The Nintendo theme park experience is headed to the US. Universal Studios Hollywood announced Super Nintendo World — a ride and interactive area in the style of the Super Mario game series — will debut at the California theme park in 2023.
Nintendo’s debut park in Osaka was delayed by nearly a year due to the pandemic, opening to limited numbers in March 2021.
For the US spin, fans can expect an interactive area, a special themed ride and themed shopping and dining — because the park has to make money, right? Like the Osaka iteration, Super Nintendo World will be an expansion of the current Universal Studios Hollywood, marking the first major expansion of the Hollywood park since the Wizarding World of Harry Potter was added in 2016. If your heart is still set on seeing the Japanese original, it will be getting a Donkey Kong expansion in 2024.
— Mat Smith
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'Call of Duty: Warzone' is coming to mobile
Activision is currently hiring for new roles to build the game.
Call of Duty: Warzone, the free-to-play battle royale, will soon have a mobile version. In a tweet, the game’s publisher, Activision, announced it was hiring for a slate of new mobile roles. It’s not the first CoD title adapted for mobile — Activision released the kinda-OK Call of Duty: Mobile in 2019.
Ford’s 2022 Maverick pickup is perfect for nerds
Low cost, 3D printing and customization.
The only problem is that EVs are pricey. So why not embrace a hybrid that also happens to be a small truck with a very impressive starting price? The 2022 Ford Maverick starts at $20,000 and ships with a hybrid powertrain that delivers up to 42 MPG. In addition to being a truck, it has a bed built for customization. Plus, thanks to makers like Robert Trapp, the FITS (Ford Integrated Tether System) already has 3D designs for printing or manipulation. It’s relatively cheap, customizable and a hybrid. Roberto Baldwin gives it a test drive.
NVIDIA's high-end GeForce Now streaming tier is available on a monthly plan
It costs $20 per month or $100 for six months.
There's finally a month-to-month payment option for GeForce Now RTX 3080. Before, NVIDIA only offered six months of access for $100. Now, it costs $20 per month to try that tier. That lowers the barrier to entry, though you'll save more in the long run with the six-month plan. Expect 1440p resolution gaming with ray-tracing at up to 120 fps on Mac and PC and 4K HDR resolution at 60 fps on NVIDIA Shield.
Red Rocks Amphitheater will no longer use Amazon's palm-scanning tech
Activists and artists pressured Denver Arts and Venues to stop using the system.
Red Rocks Amphitheater, one of the most recognizable concert venues in the US, no longer plans to use Amazon’s palm scanning technology for ticketless entry. Activists and artists including Fight for the Future, Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine) and Kathleen Hanna (Bikini Kill) pressured Denver Arts and Venues to refrain from using Amazon One at the venues it manages.
Those who signed an open letter cited concerns about Amazon sharing palmprint data with government agencies that seek to track marginalized people and activists.
Samsung adds performance throttling controls to the Galaxy S22
They're only available in South Korea for now.
Users on Samsung's Korean community forums are receiving an update for the Galaxy S22 series that adds a "Game Performance Management Mode" to Game Booster. The release should let users override the throttling feature and wring more speed out of the flagship phones, at least so long as they're willing to accept reduced battery life.
DuckDuckGo reverses course, will demote Russian propaganda in search results
The founder said he is “sickened” by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The search engine DuckDuckGo will down-rank sites that spread Russian propaganda and disinformation. Founder and CEO Gabriel Weinberg tweeted that the privacy-focused search engine would be releasing updates to ensure Russian disinformation sites rank further down in search results. Earlier this month, DuckDuckGo announced it would pause its relationship with Russian-state-owned search engine Yandex.
Razer’s Seiren lapel mic works over Bluetooth
It’s made for streamers on the move.
Razer’s Seiren Bluetooth lapel microphone packs an omnidirectional mic and AI-based noise suppression. The lapel mic includes a 3.5mm jack for monitoring through headphones, and you can customize it through the Razer Streaming App to tweak the noise suppression level, making for a pretty compelling mobile mic experience, at least on paper.
The Seiren Bluetooth is available for $100 and should work with "all" phones as well as common streaming apps like Streamlabs, Twitch and YouTube.