Hardly anyone knows the American Ronald Wayne. However, Wayne was the third founder of Apple alongside Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. He ended his involvement with the company after a short time, returning his 10% company shares. These would be worth hundreds of billions today.
Apple’s success story is almost unparalleled. Founded in 1976, the company has a long and successful history to look back on. However, even in its early days, the young company had to do without one of its three founders.
You will find out why Ronald Wayne, the partner of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, quickly left Apple and thus gave up a lot of money in this article.
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How crash detection works on iPhone and Apple Watch
10% of Apple’s shares are now worth 295 billion dollars
Who is Ronald Wayne? Ronald ‘Ron’ Wayne is an American entrepreneur. He was the third co-founder of Apple. His two business partners were none other than Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. Wayne met the two a few years before the founding of Apple.
Previously, they were colleagues at Atari and met this way. During a several-hour discussion at Ron Wayne’s house, Steve Jobs is said to have suggested starting an IT company together. On the historic date of April 1, 1976, Apple was finally founded.
Why did Wayne sell his shares in Apple again? A few years earlier, Ronald Wayne experienced a major economic failure with the distribution of slot machines. This made him risk-averse towards expensive business ventures.
When Apple began to invest large sums of money, he reportedly saw his personal fortune in danger. One of these investments was paid with a check that is now worth $135,000. From a legal standpoint at the time, each of Apple’s founders was personally liable for the debts of the other two partners. Additionally, he saw his professional future less in the documentation systems that Wayne had already developed at Atari and adapted for Apple.
For these reasons, Ronald Wayne left Apple after a short time. In doing so, he returned his shares for a sum of $800 to Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. The 10% of Apple would be worth 295 billion dollars today.
How did Wayne get his shares? When Apple was founded, the three partners agreed that Jobs and Wozniak would each receive 45% shares and Wayne would receive the remaining 10%. This made him a sort of decision-maker. For example, the original partnership agreement concerning Apple originated from him.
Wayne also created the documentation for the Apple I computer and designed the first logo for Apple (known as Apple Newton). He also briefly had administrative oversight as part of his responsibilities.
What did he do after his time at Apple? Wayne returned to Atari for two years. After several other professional stations, he spent his last working days running a stamp shop. Additionally, he was contacted several times by Steve Jobs, who unsuccessfully tried to bring Wayne back to Apple. Wayne was not the only employee that Steve Jobs wanted to bring back into the company.
He is now 89 years old and has been retired for a long time. In his retirement, he is engaged in selling stamps and coins, with sales taking place from his modest home in a small town in the Nevada desert.
Did Wayne regret selling his Apple shares? According to his own statements, he did not regret the sale. He later said: “Would I like to be rich? Everyone would like to be rich, but I couldn’t keep up with the pace. I would be rich, but I would be the richest man in the cemetery.” (via wikipedia.org)
He was convinced that Apple as a company would become successful. Still, he saw the financial risks from potential setbacks that he personally did not want to take.
In One Piece there are over 1,000 characters that we can see in the Anime and manga. However, there are a few characters that we unfortunately see too rarely. MeinMMO author Jasmin Beverungen has picked 5 characters that should appear more often.
Warning, spoilers! The article contains information about all the persons mentioned in the headings, which extend into manga chapter 1098.
Other characters, on the other hand, who have also sneaked into the hearts of the fans, unfortunately do not get as much screen time. MeinMMO has therefore created a list of 5 characters that definitely should be seen more often in One Piece.
These are the criteria for inclusion:
The last major appearance of the characters was a long time ago
They rank in the top 100 of the most popular characters from One Piece (via anitrendz.net)
Therefore, the previously mentioned Law is excluded, for example, as he recently had an exciting fight on Onigashima. You will also not find a single member of the Straw Hat crew in the list because, with a few exceptions, they are always present.
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Rank 5: Shanks
Shanks uses the King’s Haki.
When Shanks makes an appearance, he steals the show from everyone else. The red-haired pirate has been one of the most important figures in Luffy’s life since his childhood and is himself one of the four pirate emperors.
So far, Shanks has not shown much of his abilities. Many One Piece fans are waiting for him to finally reveal what he is capable of one day. So far, we have only seen how powerful Shanks is in a few scenes.
He is one of the few pirates who can visit the World Government in Mary Geoise without fearing for his life. Additionally, admirals of the Marines are already afraid of Shanks from afar. He is such a great threat just by building up his Haki that mentally weak individuals faint and admirals like Aramaki take flight. Moreover, he destroyed Eustass Kid’s pirate crew with just one sword strike.
Hopefully, Shanks will show what he is made of in the next chapters of One Piece. It is only a matter of time before we get to see the red-haired pirate for a longer time. We are excited to see how the encounter between him and Luffy will unfold.
Rank 4: Koby
Koby has done well in the Marines.
Koby is one of the individuals who has undergone the most significant development. We already know his beginnings from the Netflix series on One Piece: He was a little boy who was kept as a slave on Alvida’s ship. But he had the desire to become a Marine soldier, which he has fulfilled.
By now, Koby has become a considerable man who possesses immense power. With just one blow, he was able to destroy an entire island. He owes his strength to Luffy’s grandfather, Monkey D. Garp, who subjected him to rigorous training.
He also has a significant appearance in the Netflix series:
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One Piece – German Trailer for the First Season of the Live-Action Series by Netflix
Koby had an appearance in between, but especially his last chapters make you eager to see more of his powers. He was captured by Blackbeard during his last appearance and managed to escape thanks to the help of Perona and other members of the SWORD unit.
We are excited to see what further adventures the manga has in store for Koby and whether he will even have to face Luffy and his crew one day.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Eevee is one of the most versatile Pokémon overall, as it brings various forms that differ significantly from each other. We rank them based on the Pokédex.
What kind of list is this? Eevee has been one of the most popular pocket monsters since the first Pokémon generation. Its cute base form and its three evolutions Vaporeon, Flareon, and Jolteon quickly found their way into the hearts of Pokémon fans and remain there to this day.
Over the years, the Eevee family has grown larger, with new forms being added. Today we have a total of 8 evolutions that Eevee can take on.
Looking at the stats of the monsters, one can quickly create a ranking of the Eevee evolutions in Pokémon GO or in the main games based on their strength. However, in this list, we look at Eevee and its evolutions from a different perspective: the entries of the Pokédex across all games (which can be viewed at pokewiki.de).
Because if one were to live in the Pokémon world, one might wonder: What does the Pokédex say about the different forms? Which Eevee versions are safe, which ones should be approached with caution, and which bring perhaps the most devastating abilities?
We answer that in the Pokédex Power Ranking of Eevee. And we begin with…
Rank 9: Eevee
Eevee in Pokémon GO
Eevee is the original, the cornerstone, the mother of all Eevee evolutions and therefore above any doubt. It is a relatively rare Pokémon of the “Normal” type and actually sounds like a mostly relaxed character. The Pokédex refers in virtually all variants to its “unstable genetic material” that allows it to perfectly adapt to its environment through mutations – specifically in the form of evolutions.
However, since the “Sword and Shield” games, there is a point that also makes normal Eevee dangerous and it’s called “Gigantamax”. Through Gigantamax energy, Eevee can grow to a gigantic size, but retains its playful nature. However, that very nature can become problematic:
“It is even more trustworthy than usual and wants to play with everyone. But due to its enormous size, it crushes its playmates,” it says, for example, in the Pokédex entry from Pokémon Shield. Meanwhile, Pokémon Sword refers to the fact that “its fur becomes even fluffier” and that it “catches its opponents by wrapping them in the fluff around its neck.”
No matter how cute Eevee is: In its gigantic form it is not harmless, even if it only wants to cuddle.
Rank 8: Leafeon
Leafeon in Pokémon GO
The plant evolution of Eevee is a Pokémon that you like to have nearby: According to the Pokédex, it performs photosynthesis and is therefore constantly surrounded by clean air. Its pleasant scent is also highlighted in some entries.
In terms of battle, however, it is less experienced. In “Pokémon Black and White” it says: “With its plant-like cell structure, it performs photosynthesis. It actually never fights.”
The exception, according to “Pokémon Ultra Sun”: “Leafeon doesn’t like to fight, but if its companions are in danger, it uses its leafy tail like a blade.” And according to the entry in “Pokémon Shield,” it can for example split large trees with it and is very proud of that.
One should not provoke it; overall, however, Leafeon is a Pokémon that is not at home in battle. Therefore, it ranks further down in the Power Ranking.
Rank 7: Vaporeon
Vaporeon and its shiny form in Pokémon GO
Vaporeon’s element is water, and that’s what the Pokédex emphasizes: It usually lives near bodies of water and is perfectly adapted to this environment. In the yellow version, the Pokédex says it is invisible in water. Later games even talk about its cell structure being so similar to water molecules that it blends with them. The Pokédex in Ruby and Sapphire also emphasizes that it can manipulate water at will.
This is a powerful ability; however, it is also portrayed as a defensive Pokémon. In “Pokémon Moon,” for example, it says it waits “quietly and stealthily for fish Pokémon to catch as prey,” while “Ultra Sun” explains: “If it senses a hostile attack, it disappears into the water and becomes invisible.”
With its water attacks, Vaporeon is dangerous; however, it seems to prefer stealth and camouflage instead of engaging in open combat. That’s why it ranks a bit lower in the Power Ranking.
Umbreon is a fan favorite and often appears at the top of many Eevee lists when looking at its performance in the games. However, the Pokédex paints a picture that does not depict the greatest fighter but rather a secretly operating being.
It is a nocturnal Pokémon whose rings glow on its body at dusk to intimidate others nearby. It lurks in the shadows waiting for prey and, according to “Ultra Sun,” has the advantage of being able to see clearly due to its large pupils while its prey stumbles through the forest without clear sight at night. “Pokémon Moon” makes it clear: “Its black fur blends with the night. It patiently waits for its prey and bites its throat at the first opportunity.”
If threatened, it secretes a kind of venomous sweat to protect itself, aiming for the eyes of its opponent, according to “Pokémon HeartGold.”
Although this is a very effective behavior, it is typically one that animals use that avoid direct confrontations. Therefore, we rank it a bit lower in the ranking.
Rank 5: Espeon
Espeon and its shiny form in Pokémon GO
The psychic evolution of Eevee is also rather defensively oriented. Pokédex entries about it emphasize its loyalty to its trainer and the ability of prophecy, with which it protects itself and its loved ones from harm. Based on air currents, it can not only predict the weather and attacks from its opponent but also, according to “Pokémon Y,” even read what its opponents are thinking.
Its offensive energy in “Pokémon Ultra Moon” is nourished by sunlight stored in the orb on its head. However, this brings disadvantages in nighttime battles. In battle, it primarily relies on its psychic powers.
Overall, Espeon is a monster that is very hard to fight – after all, it may know what you are planning before you do. At the same time, however, it seems to have less destructive power than other Eevee evolutions. Therefore, it ranks in the middle of the rankings.
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Pokémon Concierge – Official Trailer by Netflix
Rank 4: Glaceon
Glaceon and its shiny form in Pokémon GO
In the Pokédex of “Pokémon Shield,” we learn that Glaceon releases powdery snow with cold air, making it extremely popular in ski areas. It is much less popular with enemies who get hit by its needle-like ice fur projectiles, as highlighted by the entry from “Alpha Sapphire.”
Overall, its Pokédex entries often mention frozen fur attacks as well as the ability to freeze the air around it. It also has a nasty trick: “Glaceon creates a diamond dust storm to enchant prey with its beauty so that it can freeze them unnoticed,” it says in Pokémon Sword. Furthermore, it can lower its body temperature to -60 degrees Celsius, as we learn in “Pokémon Ultra Sun.”
It is not particularly aggressive in its behavior. Accordingly, we rank it higher in the ranking purely based on potential – but the top spots go to other Eevee evolutions.
Rank 3: Sylveon
Sylveon is not harmless
Sylveon is the “youngest” of all Eevee evolutions, appearing in the sixth generation. One should not be deceived by its appearance, because: “When it comes to a fight, it fearlessly dives into the fray, even when its opponent is a much larger dragon Pokémon,” says the entry in “Pokémon Ultra Moon.” Furthermore, the entry in Pokémon Moon emphasizes: “If it has spotted prey, it waves its ribbon-like feelers to distract them. If successful, it dives upon them.”
In Pokémon Scarlet, it is even referenced that it looks elegant but aims “craftily at weak points” with its attacks. And lastly, it has a special ability: With its ribbons, it can, according to “Sword,” “X,” and “Scarlet,” diminish hostile feelings to end battles.
In short: Sylveon can act soothingly but, when in doubt, can attack quite fearlessly and calculatedly. This makes it a wolf in sheep’s clothing and therefore anything but harmless.
Rank 2: Jolteon
Jolteon and its shiny form in Pokémon GO
Jolteon not only looks energetic; the Pokédex also makes clear that one should not mess with it. In “Pokémon Yellow,” it emphasizes that Jolteon’s mood “constantly wavers between anger and sadness,” creating electricity. One should avoid this mood around it, because in Pokémon Platinum, for example, it is made clear that it “fires small tufts of its fur” when disturbed. Since these consist of electrically charged needles, that’s not as cute as it sounds. Also, in “Pokémon Sun,” its nervous nature is emphasized, making it difficult for trainers to win its affection.
But it doesn’t stop with its electric fur: According to several Pokédex variants, it drains energy from the atmosphere, converting it into bolts of 10,000 volts strength that it fires from its mouth. In “Pokémon Moon,” the Pokédex also mentions that lightning often strikes nearby – and that can cause serious damage.
So, one definitely does not want to mess with Jolteon. However, there is still one evolution that is even more dangerous.
If we go by the Pokédex, one should best stay away from Flareon. The fire evolution of Eevee constantly radiates heat to prevent its own body from overheating. However, we aren’t talking about a mild fever here: According to “Pokémon Moon,” its body temperature averages 700 to 800 degrees Celsius, and in excitement, it can rise, according to “Ultra Moon,” even to 900 degrees Celsius.
This alone poses a problem of being near Flareon even slightly. It gets even more intense when it attacks: A flame sac in Flareon’s body stores the breath, which it then heats to a relaxed 1,700 degrees Celsius and expels.
For reference: The melting point of titanium is around 1,660 degrees Celsius. Thus, Flareon possesses an immense destructive power that grants it the first place in our ranking.
What do you think of the Pokédex ranking of Eevee evolutions? Would you rank them differently? And which is your favorite variant? Let us know in the comments!
With patch 10.2, World of Warcraft received a ton of new quests, a new area, and rewards. One of them, the mount “Ochre Dreamclaw”, is only now available. However, to obtain the mount, you must be extremely patient.
This is how you obtain the Dreamclaw: You can find the start of the quest line at the “Smoldering Sproutling” at the southwestern corner of the lake right by Amirdrassil (coordinates: 49/68). When you talk to the sproutling, it wants you to extinguish the fire.
You must not be mounted, otherwise you cannot interact with the object. Once you have extinguished the fire, you need to speak to the sproutling again and clean it. Afterwards, you will receive the first quest: “Some Water…”
For this quest, you need to go to Professor Esch, a treant in the camp of Amirdrassil. From here, the 23-day journey to the mount begins.
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6 of the rarest mounts in WoW – Do you own them?
How to Get the Ochre Dreamclaw
You need to complete a total of 5 quests, between which you must wait 3 or 5 days each:
Follow Esch’s instructions and fill the water bucket he gives you to water the sproutling. A bar will now slowly fill up.
5 days later, you will receive the next quest: “A few Minerals…” For this, you need to collect fish bones from Deepcoil Lurkers. You will find these just south of the Eye of Ysera.
Another 5 days later, there is the quest: “The Right Food.” For this, you should gather turtle egg shells, whipper root material, and bananas from Tel’Abim. The shells can be found at turtles in the southwest of the island on the beach. The material can be obtained from whippers southeast of the Amirdrassil camp. You can buy the bananas from the innkeeper. Combine all reagents by clicking on a whipper root material in your inventory.
After 3 days of waiting, the fertilizer will be ready. Bring it to the plant and interact with it.
5 more days later, the next quest is ready: “And a Little Magic.” For this, you need to place a totem with treants in the east of the dream and drain energy from it.
After another 5 days, you will finally receive the last quest: “A Little Hope is Never Valueless,” this time from Professor Esche, who stands right next to the sproutling. From him, you will then receive the mount.
While you are waiting for the sproutling to fill its bar, you can safely do something else. If you collect mounts, it is advisable to complete epic seed events in the dream. These have a chance to reward one of 6 mounts.
A few more mounts that require significantly less effort can be found here:
You can approach Starfield in many ways: You can explore planets, test mods, or engage with the main story. One player tackled it with a skill that many probably rarely use – or might not even have on their radar.
In a video on YouTube, the user “Causal Loop” presents a summary of his run in Starfield. The special thing about it is: He completed the main story without firing a weapon himself. However, that was not the only rule he set for his run.
“Weapons are meant for one purpose: shooting. But ammunition is expensive, heavy, and it’s not honorable to kill someone who can’t even see your face,” says Causal Loop ironically at the beginning of his video, in which he summarized his experience.
He wondered what it would be like if he were a real villain in Starfield, using the firearm as a blunt tool to cause total chaos.
If you’re looking for a strong firearm instead, we have a helpful video here:
Start video
Starfield: How to get an extremely strong weapon right from the start
All weapons allowed – but without shooting
What were the rules for his run?On Reddit, Causal Loop posted on November 23 a contribution titled “I played Starfield only through melee attacks.” There, he explains the rules he set for himself.
We summarize a few of them:
The only way to deal damage to enemies is to hit them with the weapon.
Pistols, rifles, heavy weapons are allowed as long as the weapon is used like a bat instead of pulling the trigger.
Environmental damage such as exploding barrels is allowed.
Normal ship combat is allowed.
Companions must not deal damage or damage too much.
He tried to take companions as rarely as possible, but some missions require it.
He plays on normal difficulty.
Regarding the difficulty level, he writes in the post:
Easy and very easy would have made the challenge ridiculous, while hard and very hard didn’t really make it harder. It just increased the number of times I had to hit enemies and the amount of medi-packs I had to use.
Since money is incredibly easy to get, the extra use of medi-packs wasn’t really a big issue.
Moreover, playing on a higher difficulty leads to more legendary items, so I thought normal would be more balanced to play.
As background, he chose “Bounty Hunter”. So he already had points in piloting, targeting systems, and boost pack training at the start of his space adventure in Starfield. In particular, the boost pack training is one of the most useful skills because it allows you to use your jetpack immediately – which also proves helpful in combat.
Regarding the traits, he chose “Universally Educated” to gain bonus loot, “Wanted” so that he deals more damage at low health and “Introverted” because he did not want to recruit companions.
How the community reacts: Some users address him in the comments on Reddit and YouTube regarding his statement that ammunition is heavy and expensive. In response, Causal Loop writes that it was irony. “The joke is to say how stupid melee attacks with firearms are when ammunition is cheap/light.”
Others note that they have already spent many hours in Starfield but did not even know that you can perform a melee attack with an equipped firearm. “80 hours in the game. How do you hit with weapons on PC?” writes a user on Reddit.
Several people praise the entertainment value of the video. The user “notfound379” comments on YouTube: “This is really the most consistent entertainment I’ve experienced with this game after I had already given up on it. They should hire you.”
Another user writes that the video makes him want to buy Starfield. Every game wants to be “Soulslike”, meaning super hard, but he has neither time nor patience for that.
Have you also improved your melee skills in Starfield? Or do you prefer to try out different firearms? Feel free to leave us a comment about that.
The skill system is a central and important point in Starfield. Some aspects of it are criticized by players – therefore, they developed a mod to make leveling fun again:
Baldur’s Gate 3 is full of cool spells. MeinMMO shows you how to get a special spell in the game when you choose the “Dark Urge” path.
Baldur’s Gate 3 has captured the hearts of many role-playing fans, and with the “Dark Urge” there is a special spell that you can only get if you fully commit to the dark side.
In this article, I will reveal how you can obtain the powerful spell Wort der Macht: Tod .
Please note that this article contains major spoilers for your Dark Urge run.
In the video, you will learn how to cast two spells in one go:
Start video
Baldur’s Gate 3: Cast two spells in one go
To obtain a powerful spell, you must be really evil
What kind of spell is it? Wort der Macht: Tod (Engl.: Power Word Kill) is one of the most iconic spells from the Dungeons and Dragons universe. This special 9th-level spell forces any creature with 100 hit points or less to die immediately. The peculiarity or rather the catch is that you can only use the spell once per campaign. Presumably, the spell would simply be too powerful in Baldur’s Gate 3 if you could use it per long or short rest.
You can even use this spell against the final boss as soon as they drop to 100 hit points or less.
How to obtain the spell: To do this, you must kill Orin with your Dark Urge in Act 3 and switch to the evil side. After you defeat Orin in the Temple of Bhaal, you will first be presented with a dark scene.
In this scene, you will be faced with a choice:
Will you change your path or completely devote yourself to the service of Bhaal?
If you choose to serve Bhaal, your Dark Urge will be rewarded with the powerful spell Wort der Macht: Tod . The outcome of your decision not only ensures that you receive the spell but also affects your story.
It is even cooler that you can obtain a 9th-level spell that would normally only be available at level 17. Even if it can only be used once and only when the opponent has 100 hit points or fewer.
The fact that this powerful spell can only be used once per campaign emphasizes its exclusivity and requires careful consideration of when it should be used most effectively.
Perhaps you harbor a special grudge against an NPC – here the spell could prove to be the perfect answer.
The Rebel Alliance plays an important role in Star Wars. A conversation in Episode 3 revolves around the origin of this alliance. However, the scene was deleted.
Star Wars: Episode 3 – Revenge of the Sith shows a meeting between senators, including Padmé Amidala, Bail Organa, and Mon Mothma. They discuss Palpatine and the democracy that is threatened by his rise to power.
The conversation results in the plan to create an organization to fight for the preservation of democracy – Padmé eventually agrees with the other senators after initial doubts. However, the scene was deleted from the film.
Here you can see a trailer for Star Wars: Episode 3 – Revenge of the Sith:
Start video
Star Wars: Episode 3 – The Revenge of the Sith Trailer (English)
The focus should not be on Padmé
Why was the scene deleted?According to Screenrant, George Lucas expressed in a bonus feature on the home media version of Star Wars: Episode 3 – Revenge of the Sith that the deletion of the scene was a result of a decision to focus the film more on Anakin and his fall.
The scene would have given Natalie Portman’s character Padmé an even more important role and greater development. You can read more about it at our colleagues from Moviepilot.
What was discussed in the scene? Senator Bail Organa notes during the meeting that they cannot allow “a thousand years of democracy to disappear without a fight.” When asked what he means by that, he says: “I apologize, I don’t want to sound like a Separatist.”
Senator Mon Mothma interjects:
We are not separatists trying to turn our back on the Republic. We are loyalists trying to preserve democracy in the Republic.
Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005) Deleted, Extended & Alternative Scenes #2 via YouTube
Padmé expresses that she cannot believe it has come to this. Palpatine has been one of her oldest advisors and served as an ambassador when she was queen. One of those present responds: “I believe you underestimate the extent of the corruption that has spread in the Senate.”
Bail Organa stands up and states: They cannot debate this further. They have decided to take action – Senator Mon Mothma and he want to create an organization. Padmé interrupts him and asks him not to say more. She understands that, but “at this point, some things are better left unsaid.”
The group agrees that no one will talk about the plans – not even with close associates. Padmé Amidala also agrees, and the scene ends.
Next month, the first part of a film series on Netflix, originally conceived for the “Star Wars” franchise but rejected by Disney, will be released.
The sci-fi project revolves around Kora, who leads a peaceful life in a colony on the edge of the galaxy. One day, the ruler Balisarius marches in with his soldiers and occupies Kora’s homeland:
Stephen “Mortdog” Mortimer is the Game Director of Teamfight Tactics. We at MeinMMO conducted an interview with him and the Global Head of E-Sports – Michael Sherman – focusing on the Auto Battler. It faced many problems at launch but is now performing better than ever. Next, the E-sports division is also set to expand.
What is this interview about? I had the opportunity to talk for almost an hour with Mortdog (title photo) and Sherman about the development of TFT. We focused on hurdles faced during its development, the major successes, and the upcoming plans for the game.
Recently, on November 21, the new set Remix Rumble launched, introducing an additional element of music into the gameplay. All champions, attributes, and some items have been adjusted accordingly.
Who conducted the interview? Alex has spent hundreds of hours in TFT over the years. He has achieved the ranks of Platinum and Diamond multiple times, sometimes even as a one-trick pony with Yuumi. Apart from TFT, he also engages with LoL and MMORPGs, including Guild Wars 2, ESO, and New World.
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At the start, there were very few developers, but it became a huge success
MeinMMO: I would like to start with the launch of Teamfight Tactics and would like to know from you – Mort – how everything began for you. And how exactly did you become the Design Director of the game?
Mortdog: When the original TFT team was assembled, it was a very small team. I believe there were about seven designers, a few artists, engineers, and so on. And they were working on developing the game.
In the first five and a half months, there was a lead designer named David Abecassis who oversaw everything. But he had to switch projects for various reasons. About a month before the release, they lost the chief designer. And Andrei, the head of all LoL studios, said: “I need someone to replace him.” He asked me: Hey, you’ve been looking at this genre. Would you like this position? And I said: “Sure.”
So I joined the team about a month before the release, took on the leadership role, and I’m still doing it today.
The audience of TFT on Twitch in 2019 (via Sullygnome).
MeinMMO: And TFT had a really great launch in June 2019. It temporarily reached number 1 on Twitch and people everywhere were talking about the game. Do you have a rough estimate of how many players tried it out?
Mortdog: I can’t give exact numbers, but the answer is: A huge amount. It was a very large number. And for a while, after we couldn’t really maintain those numbers, there was concern that it might be a fad. Initially, everything was exciting, and then it just started to decline.
MeinMMO: Were you surprised by the great success at launch, or did you expect it?
Mortdog: I wouldn’t say I was surprised. We did have a bit of help behind the scenes. Just the fact that we were the second game from Riot Games created hype. So that initial success didn’t really surprise me. However, how quickly the hype faded was certainly a big challenge for us.
“If set 3 doesn’t work, we can just shut down TFT”
MeinMMO: With set 2, you launched a big experiment in October 2019. A completely new experience, new champions, new comps. How did you come up with this idea?
Mortdog: I spoke with Andrei ‘Meddler’ van Roon about it. It was originally his idea. We looked at the LoL champions and the many available choices there. At that time, LoL had about 130 or 140 champions. And it was pretty clear that we wouldn’t be able to feature every champion when we made a set. But to ensure every champion gets a turn, we wanted to introduce a rotation. That led to the idea: Oh, but what if we also wanted to include the Star Guardians? Let’s bring in the Star Guardians. And then naturally it was like, okay, if we do this, we now have 200, 300, 400 champions. And that led to a cool idea. What if we made this thematic group of sets?
And the other thing is that we felt auto-chess would get solved and boring very quickly. My personal experience was that I played it for about a month and thought: “Yeah, I’ve seen everything I need to see. I’ll log off.”
And we wanted to make sure it’s not a game that just dies out after two years.
Here you can watch the teaser for the new set 10:
Start video
TFT: Showstoppers Mini Cinematic
MeinMMO: But such a change is confusing. Do you remember what the initial feedback was like?
Mortdog: Set two had a few major mistakes. The first was that we delivered it too early. There were a lot of people still enjoying that set and not ready for the change.
Mistake number two was that we had a pretty large audience. And we hadn’t yet taught the players what makes TFT so special. With our new set, we essentially booted out everyone who didn’t want to change. Because not everyone wants a bunch of changes every few months. And some of them didn’t come back because TFT changed too much.
And the third major problem was that we made some pretty questionable design decisions because we didn’t exactly know what we were doing. I always joke that we had an elemental-based set. And then we turned Zyra, instead of plants, into a fire-type character. We had a moon trait and turned Dianna into fire. There were just so many things that even LoL players thought: Excuse me, what?
But that’s the beauty of TFT: Every time we develop a new set, we learn from it.
MeinMMO: But set 2 did not go well with the fans, if I remember correctly. Then set 3 came, which I personally did not like at all. How was the transition?
Mortdog: With set 2, we reached the point where we thought: “Wow, if set 3 doesn’t work, we can just shut down TFT. Then we’ll go back to set 1, leave it alone, and focus on other things.” That was definitely our low point. Fortunately, we turned it around.
MeinMMO: Was there another point in development where you were at a real low point?
Mortdog: With set 5, we had a second low point. It wasn’t about player numbers, but rather satisfaction. In particular, the shadow items upset many of our veteran players and showed us that not everyone wants those deep design elements. Some people just want to have fun.
“We have more than doubled the size of the team in the last year alone”
MeinMMO: And when did you reach your peak? Or are you still in a rising high?
Mortdog: Our game is currently running great. As I mentioned, we keep reaching new “huge numbers”. I can’t speak about details, but what I can say is that things like Gizmos & Gadgets, released alongside Arcane and the Augments, were a really big success. Fates and Chosen, along with the release in the eastern regions, were also a really big success.
So we continue to have a lot of these great successes. And every time we have a little slump and wonder, are we still good? Bang, another new success. We’re still going and hope that Remix Rumble will be another big success.
MeinMMO: How important was the release on mobile devices for you? I myself play TFT very actively there.
Mortdog: It was really important to make the game accessible to more people and more gaming opportunities. Additionally, each region is a bit different. In the USA or Europe, PCs dominate. But in countries like Brazil or Latin America in general, mobile is much more dominant. And so we are expanding into new target groups. Korea is another big country, where there are just a lot of mobile players. So mobile was definitely very important for our expansion and will continue to be.
MeinMMO: In an interview in late 2021, you said that the number of developers was still steadily increasing. Is that still the case in 2023 or have you reached an end?
Mortdog: So the size of the team has more than doubled in the last year alone. We have grown significantly. One aspect of this is also the area of e-sports.
TFT wants to create large LAN tournaments with hundreds of participants
MeinMMO: Since you’ve already mentioned e-sports, I will now turn to Sherman. I am a huge fan of League of Legends and am currently watching Worlds, like most people I know. But with TFT it’s different. I can rarely motivate myself to watch the events. How do you see the eSports scene? And how satisfied are you with it at the moment?
Sherman: TFT is struggling like many new games to find its e-sports identity. At the beginning, it focused a lot on adopting what was successful in LoL. In a way, that worked. But I don’t think watching is really the best form of e-sports for TFT.
What we’ve seen is that players are most satisfied and excited when they participate in competitions themselves. In the first few weeks, we didn’t activate ranked matches, and the community was really eager to play ranked. That doesn’t necessarily mean they want to be the best player in the world. I think we are trying to create an ecosystem for TFT where it’s not immediately about that.
So how satisfied am I with the state of TFT e-sports? We are in an exciting transitional phase because when I joined, it was about how to enhance the competitive scene. And that’s really exciting. We’ve made some big upgrades to make prize pools more valuable for top players and made some format changes that have helped top players enjoy themselves more.
The Vegas Open is a step in a new direction for us, where we are really focusing on how to create a more engaging and exciting e-sport that features large numbers of players competing against each other. Here, 512 players can compete against each other at once.
I’ve seen a lot of fighting game events and I’m intrigued by them. I love that the competitions in fighting games are more at the forefront. I want to go and see my friends, compete with them, and experience a cool moment. And I believe that this type of competition will encourage the TFT community even more than it already has.
Here you can find the summary of the last championship:
Start video
TFT: Runeterra Reforged Championship Event Recap
MeinMMO: That’s an interesting picture you’re painting. Because I always felt the urge to participate in tournaments, but I found the websites and information about them somewhat confusing. If there are now regularly large live events, that would be great.
Sherman: There is definitely still a lot to be done to realize this vision. But our hope is that we can work towards a system where every player can participate in tournaments and e-sports if they want to try.
MeinMMO: And what is your stance on community-run tournaments? Would you actively support such events?
Sherman: Yes, we are always looking for ways to better support community-organized tournaments. We are already doing this in some areas, e.g., our regional offices support local tournaments happening in their region or country.
We have also realized that it is quite challenging to host a TFT tournament without tools like custom games or the spectator mode. We are still working on implementing such content.
MeinMMO: Yes, the question of a spectator mode was also on my list. What I sometimes miss in TFT are prominent figures like Caps or Faker in LoL. Do you see yourselves as being responsible for promoting and strengthening such individuals?
Sherman: I think comparisons with League will always be very difficult since it’s the biggest e-sport in the world. If you look at Faker, then we’ve built a wall between Faker, who is much better than everyone else, and you and me. I can’t drop my hand low enough to illustrate that.
I believe that if we focus too much on making individual players legends of the game in TFT, it will deter people from stepping up themselves. That doesn’t mean we don’t want to help create stars and people who can make a living from TFT.
3 sets per year, new fun modes, and the strategy for success
MeinMMO: How do you generally see the future of TFT? Do you want to experiment with more fun modes like the Lunar event, or are you more focused on major revisions like the ones with the Augments?
Mortdog: As I mentioned, the team has grown much larger. Some of the fruits you’ve already seen, some you haven’t. That aside, we are also at three new sets per year, which we want to maintain without intermediate sets. For the smaller droughts in between, we are always looking for variety. Fun modes could definitely make sense there.
I think there are just a lot of cool things you can do with TFT and experiment with.
All important information about the latest patch has been summarized for you by Mortdog here:
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MeinMMO: Do you still follow other games in the genre, like Dota Underlords or the standalone Auto Chess of the mod developers? If you look at the numbers there, you are clearly more successful. Why is that?
Mortdog: I occasionally check them out and play them. I think one of the main reasons for TFT’s success is that we focus heavily on the gameplay experience. Many of the battles are very exciting, and the players and champions do really cool things.
If you compare that to some other games, they feel a bit flat. They just don’t have those highs and lows, the pacing, and such things that we place a lot of emphasis on.
The second important part is our sets. I think that the autobattler genre typically provides fun for two to four months before people get bored. The fact that we patch so frequently, much more than anyone else, is beneficial for us. When you start to get bored, it’s like: “Oh, what’s coming next?”
If you want to take a break and do something else and then come back. That’s great. My favorite is Wolfie, the famous Pokémon player. He played quite actively during set five and six, even did some casting, then he left and played a lot of Pokémon. Now he’s back for set nine and ten. And he says, “I’m having fun again.” And that’s exactly our goal.
MeinMMO: Thank you, Mort and Sherman, for participating in this interview.
What do you think about the development of TFT? Which set did you enjoy the most? And would you attend a live e-sport event?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
On December 7, 2023, Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader will be released on Steam. The role-playing game in the vast Warhammer universe comes from developers who have already made a name for themselves in the field. If you’re looking for a replacement for Baldur’s Gate 3, you’re in the right place.
What kind of game is this?
Rogue Trader takes place in the grim world of Warhammer 40, a future in the 41st millennium, where the Imperium of Man fights against chaos demons, orks, and malevolent tyranids.
The game is a tactical role-playing game, or CRPG, just like Baldur’s Gate 3. The game is developed by Owlcat Games, who have already created the Pathfinder games – some of the best role-playing games on Steam.
What makes Rogue Trader special: Most RPGs take place in a fantasy world and are at least loosely based on the well-known Dungeons & Dragons or are inspired by it. In Rogue Trader you face a dystopian, grim sci-fi world.
The Warhammer world is characterized by – as the name suggests – constant war. You are a rogue trader and captain of your own ship, with which you travel the galaxy and navigate through dangerous territories in search of profit.
Owlcat Games are known for embedding various and secret endings in their deep stories as well as introducing meta-systems into the game. Therefore, managing your journey will be as important as driving the story forward.
You will be accompanied by a fighting Eldar (a “Space Elf”), a fanatical Adepta Sororitas, and a colossal Space Marine from the order of the wild Space Wolves. Interaction with your companions is an important part of the game.
Start video
Warhammer 40k Rogue Trader: The trailer for the release date with gameplay
Rogue Trader – A Role-Playing Game Without Classes
I pre-ordered Rogue Trader a long time ago and had access to all the tests, but purposely played very little. Actually, not at all, because I want to wait until the game really comes out.
A major feature is already revealed right at the beginning of the game: There is no classic character creation with races and classes, as you might know from Baldur’s Gate 3. Instead, you select various points from your past:
your homeworld essentially decides your “race” and provides you with attribute bonuses and feats. However, you are always human
the origin is essentially the “class” and determines which skills you are particularly good at and what you start with
doctrines specialize you in what you do – such as adept, leader, shooter, etc.
your “triumphs” and the “darkest hour” further shape your character, but there is still missing information on what exactly they are supposed to do
Rogue Trader thus dispenses with some of the most well-known features of the RPG genre and replaces them with new systems. However, they also fit well into the universe, because: Humans (and actually all races in 40k) are absolute racists and want to erase everything else anyway. What is more important is where you come from and what you can do – and how loyal you are to the Emperor.
You can also customize your ship, which serves as a mobile base for your missions. Otherwise, character customization is kept quite simple: a few templates for face, body, and hair, by far not as detailed as in Baldur’s Gate 3. However, there are no spoilers for the story and the goal of the game yet.
I am still a bit skeptical about how well Warhammer 40k will work as a CRPG, but I still supported the game early on because I have great trust in Owlcat. The Pathfinder games are among the best games I have ever played with well over 200 hours per game. And Warhammer excites me too, although more the fantasy universe:
Players report that they are seeing ads for the latest installment Mirage in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey – in the middle of the game. Developer Ubisoft confirms this advertising but also states that it should not appear at all. The ‘error’ is nonetheless causing frustration: gamers are now wondering if they soon need an ad blocker for their games.
What’s the deal with the advertising?
Players who pause older parts of Assassin’s Creed can reportedly see ads while loading menus.
A user on X, formerly Twitter, shows a scene from Odyssey: there, he is currently pulling up the map and receives an offer for -20% on the new Assassin’s Creed: Mirage for Black Friday.
The advertisement is displayed across the entire screen and in the middle of the game. You must actively close it to continue playing.
This is what Ubisoft says: The reports about the advertising have spread quickly. In a statement to Eurogamer, Ubisoft has spoken out about it. The statement reads:
[This advertisement] is the result of a technical error that we fixed as soon as we were made aware of it.
On Reddit, the topic is widely discussed and is currently one of the largest threads in the general gaming subreddit. There, users believe that the appearance of the advertisements may have been a bug. However, their existence surely is not.
Select a MMO video…
“We cannot accept this”
With over 1,400 comments, hundreds of gamers are participating in the discussion. The outrage over the new idea of displaying ads in games is enormous – but so is the outrage over Ubisoft itself.
Now users see a new low being reached. They say: “Such a thing cannot be accepted. Such advertising in the game is for me the reason to uninstall the game and write an ugly review.”
Others say they would return the game directly – whereupon a user comments: if companies do this cleverly, the advertising will only come after the return period.
The mood is extremely negative. Even if this is a mistake, players now predict that this is all just a “testing the waters”.
Ubisoft and other companies want to find out how bold they can be before gamers lose their patience: “The companies have shifted from ‘How do we improve the user experience’ to ‘How do we squeeze the last drop of money from customers before we lose them?'” A similar discussion recently took place regarding Diablo 4:
The Twitch streamer Asmongold experienced a moment during a stream where one of his guild members saved him from a possible death in WoW-HC. Asmongold rewarded this with an immediate promotion.
The Twitch streamer Asmongold had promised his community to play the HC mode of WoW Classic for at least some time if Blizzard announces “WoW Classic Plus”.
Blizzard subsequently announced something similar with the “Season of Discovery”, which was enough reason for the streamer to fulfill his promise.
In his stream on November 21, one of his guild members not only astonished Asmongold himself but also his community. A player named Aticis managed to save Asmongold and the other guild players with a clever action.
Learn more about Asmongold in our video:
Start video
Career and life of Asmongold in 3 minutes – What makes him special?
“Brother, I promote him right away”
How did the player save the streamer? In his stream on Twitch on November 21, Asmongold played World of Warcraft in HC mode along with members of his guild. The streamer noticed a hostile player who had “flagged” himself to provoke Asmongold and the other members into attacking him.
By this term, it means that players mark themselves as ready for PvP and thus become attackable by the other faction. If you attack such a player, you also flag yourself for PvP and can be attacked and killed. In this case, the rogue of much higher level would have simply kicked the streamer out of life. In WoW Hardcore, this means the definitive end of the character.
Asmongold commented on this:
It is obvious that this random person is flagged here and I think they are trying to get us to flag ourselves so they can kill us. Because [the members of this group] are level 60 […] and I just don’t want to waste the time.
The player “Aticis” apparently took this as an opportunity for an unexpected action. As Asmongold explained to his viewers on Twitch what tactic the opponent was currently using, Aticis went for it and took the player out.
This means: the player who wanted to set a trap lost his character. Asmongold burst into laughter and said: “Brother, I promote him right away.”
“No way. No way, he just took him out,” Asmongold then expressed what certainly many were thinking at that moment as “Aticis” simply took out the opponent at level 41.
Here you can watch the situation on YouTube:
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This is how the community reacts: The clip uploaded on November 22 to the YouTube channel “Asmongold Clips” currently has over 550 comments. Here opinions are divided.
While one side seems impressed, the other side seems skeptical, as in their eyes it could simply be a viewer of the streams:
“Cinamazing” comments: “I love how Asmon immediately knows exactly what happened, and that’s because he’s probably done this with countless people.”
“raveboymtc2448” writes: “The guy saved Asmon’s life. What a legend.”
“nakano15” notes: “Maybe this player was previously fleeing from an enemy and managed to escape him, then boarded the boat without realizing that it was flagged for PvP. Thought he was safe and went afk.”
“Jay-407” writes: “I have a quiet feeling that the man just wanted to see Asmon and didn’t realize he was flagged.”
Here, Asmongold promoted a member of his guild, but previously he had also thrown someone out. The streamer had to watch as one of his guild members doomed another player in WoW:
In Diablo 4, Wudijo was one of the first players to level Hardcore solo to level 100, only to lose his character shortly thereafter because of a mistake.
Wudijo keeps trying out new builds in his streams and faces the toughest bosses. At the end of October, he defeated Uber Lilith with a single attack, because he was wearing the right pants.
The latest challenge he set for himself was to equip only blue items and level up to level 100 in Hardcore mode of Diablo 4. With this condition, he entered the cave to Duriel – one of the toughest bosses in the history of Diablo.
Duriel is one of the bosses in the “Season of Blood”. Here you can see a trailer for Season 2:
Start video
Diablo 4 presents new Season 2, coming this fall – Blood & Vampires
Only blue items, no Elixir of Death’s Escape
Why does he only wear poor items? The Diablo expert and Twitch streamer Wudijo is known for experimenting with various builds in Diablo 4 and maximizing their potential. He undertook a “Blue Rogue” run, that is, a run to level 100 in HC mode with his hunter, who equipped only blue items.
By doing so, he dispensed with build variations based on legendary attributes – as blue items have none. Additionally, the items have few affixes compared to legendary items, and are thus usually sorted out at higher levels and replaced by better items.
On maxroll.gg you can view Wudijo’s special build. He also refrained from “Cheat Deaths” – that is, the Elixir of Death’s Escape, which protects him from character death.
Before he first ventured to Duriel with his “Blue Rogue”, he said in the livestream on November 22: “He will definitely be a challenge, we’ll see.” He noted that he would tackle Lilith afterward.
After roughly 5 minutes, he defeated the tough boss with the words: “Okay, that was Duriel.” You can watch the fight in the YouTube video, it starts at 2:01:30:
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Did he also defeat Uber Lilith? After that, he faced another tough boss: Uber Lilith. He made several attempts, but had to abort all fights in the second phase and teleport away to avoid his character’s death. For this, he paused the restriction with the elixir.
He abandoned the attempts to defeat Lilith and instead went into Nightmare dungeons. In a level 100 dungeon, then the thing happened that every HC player fears: Too much damage poured in, and the character died.
How did Wudijo react? Wudijo laughed and said “So much damage, holy.” He activated his Scroll of Escape to escape death, but that didn’t work. “I didn’t expect to make it to level 100, that’s crazy,” he remarked.
After watching his stream video and analyzing his gameplay, he said “That was fun. We accomplished the most, we pushed to level 100 without really dying, I’m not sad about how it turned out, it’s all good.”
GTA Online offers numerous boats for moving on water, but which one is actually the fastest? We show you in this list, along with the prices and where you can get the speedy boats.
What boats are there in GTA Online? Similar to vehicles, there is a wide range of different transportation options on water. These are also based on real-life models like speedboats.
Why do you need the fastest boats? If you want to get from A to B on water as quickly as possible, a fast boat is quite handy. For example, if you own a yacht, you can reach it quickly. Additionally, there are boat races where you will have an advantage.
We will regularly update this list for you on MeinMMO when the top 10 fastest boats change.
List of the currently fastest boats in GTA Online
These are the fastest boats by top speed: We have selected the 10 fastest boats for you. Submarines, yachts or other watercraft are not part of our list, as they do not offer enough speed for quick transportation.
The YouTuber Broughy, known for his listings and analyses of the fastest modes of transportation, sorts these by top speed, measured over a longer period of time. Here you can find a video about the boats on YouTube.com.
Note: As mentioned in our list of the fastest cars in GTA Online, you should also keep in mind here that the speedometers in GTA Online are not particularly reliable. The numbers from Broughy represent the “real” speed of the cars. It’s quite possible that GTA Online shows you different values for speed at times. However, this does not change the ranking.
It should be noted that there are many variables when it comes to top speed in GTA Online. This can lead to different (and higher) top speeds. Additionally, however, is the fact that the in-game speedometer and other forms of speed measurement either do not work or are at least inaccurate (Example on YouTube). Therefore, if you compare this with your own observations, you will most likely get false results.
From the explanation of YouTuber Broughy regarding the calculation of speeds – Source
Ranking
Boat
Speed
1
Shitzu Longfin
196.3 km/h
2
Nagasaki Dinghy
115.0 km/h
3
Shitzu Jetmax
112.6 km/h
4
Pegassi Speeder
109.8 km/h
5
Speedophile Seashark
107.8 km/h
6
Shitzu Squalo
105.8 km/h
7
Shitzu Tropic
101.7 km/h
8
Shitzu Suntrap
82.0 km/h
9
Lampadati Toro
80.8 km/h
10
Police Predator
78.0 km/h
How much do the fastest boats cost?
We show you the normal price of all listed boats. Keep in mind that there are regular discounts and bonuses on vehicle prices in GTA Online.
Price: 2,125,000 GTA$. If you complete the Cayo Perico Heist as group leader and use the vehicle during the heist, you can get the vehicle for 1,593,750 GTA$. Then you get it as a Pegasus vehicle.
Dealer: DockTease
Longfin is the undisputed champion
This is what makes it so good: The Longfin speedboat is the absolute speed king on water. It is a staggering 80 km/h faster than the second-placed Dinghy, with a speed of 196.3 km/h.
When looking at 10th place, the huge difference becomes even bigger: The Police Predator only reaches 78 km/h, meaning there’s almost a 120 km/h gap between 1st and 10th place.
The Longfin speedboat is even faster than many sports cars and can theoretically compete with some airplanes. So if you are looking for a fast boat, you can’t miss out on the Longfin. The only downside is the steep price.
Pro
Possibly the only alternative if you are looking for a really fast boat
Can keep up with fast sports cars and airplanes
Cheaper if you complete Cayo Perico as a leader
Contra
High price
Boat races are not the most popular category
Who should buy a fast boat? Generally, Broughy recommends a vehicle for pure transportation as long as your destination is on land. Furthermore, boat races are not necessarily the most popular category in GTA Online, so you should consider carefully whether it is worth your money.
You should only spend that much money if you already have enough saved up and really want to speed across the waves.
It has been 25 years since Half-Life captivated players, and now Valve has fixed a nearly historic bug that has been impairing the gaming experience for decades. MeinMMO reveals what is behind it.
Since the release in 1998 of the iconic first-person shooter Half-Life, the gaming world has changed, but even after a quarter of a century, the game remains relevant and timeless. The game is still popular and even set a player count record in 2022 thanks to a fan campaign.
The story of the game focuses on the scientist Gordon Freeman, who works for the company Black Mesa.
A failed experiment leads to the opening of a portal to another dimension, and Freeman is suddenly confronted with the threat of hostile Xen creatures.
Valve, the development studio behind the masterpiece, recently took a step that makes the hearts of fans race. Valve celebrated the 25th anniversary of Half-Life with a major patch released on November 19. Among other things, four new maps for Half-Life Deathmatch were added, as well as three old maps that were only available on the “Half-Life: Further Data” CD at the time. Additionally, the game was optimized for the Steam Deck.
However, amidst the excitement, a long-standing bug that has plagued the game for decades was finally fixed in a surprising follow-up patch on November 22.
Here is a trailer for a mod of Half-Life 2:
Start video
Legendary shooter on Steam receives a VR version after 18 years – “This will be the best thing ever developed”
The timing for the sequence where a tentacle grabs a scientist in the Blast Pit has been corrected
What bug was fixed? It is an animation error in a crucial moment of the game. During the sixth chapter Blast Pit, a tentacle monster breaks through a glass pane, throws a scientist to the ground, and then pulls him toward itself. However, this has not been synchronized until now, resulting in a delay. This created the impression that the tentacle pulled the scientist away without physically touching him.
The player VinciusMedeiro6 recorded the scene before and after the patch and shared it on X. The upper video shows the fixed scene and the lower one how it was before. Here you can see both versions:
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How is the community reacting? The fans of Half-Life mainly celebrate the bug fix and share their excitement on Reddit. We have summarized some comments for you:
Dtb1987 writes: These crazy bastards did it.
Barn_Advisor was annoyed by the bug and emphasizes: This little error annoyed me so much for some reason that I now ironically consider Half-Life 1 to be the better game since it has finally been fixed, lol.
knb128pl says: November 22, 2023 the most important date in human history.
Eikdos found the scene with the bug better: Oh man, I liked the broken animation. It worked in its own way.
Many players also didn’t know or didn’t notice that the scene had a bug, as some report on Reddit.
In summary, Valve’s recent correction of the Blast Pit bug not only demonstrates their commitment to the quality of their classic title but also the enduring passion of the Half-Life community. While players continue to explore the beloved world of Half-Life, they can now do so without the bug that has existed for nearly 25 years.
In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 there is a recently available mode where you can play in a team with 9 other people – and many players really enjoy that. On MeinMMO you will find out why.
In a mode that was recently introduced in CoD: MW3, some players say the SBMM is quite weak. However, some critics believe: this won’t last long.
What kind of mode is this? 10v10-Moshpit is a multiplayer mode that has higher player counts and is supposed to provide a fast-paced and intense gaming experience. At least, that’s what it says in the description.
Thus, a total of 20 players battle on different maps for kills, flags, tags, or zones. Own experiences from the MeinMMO team raised concerns: the mode does seem pretty chaotic.
However, several posts on Reddit have recently emerged on the topic, and many players write there that they are having an incredible amount of fun with the mode.
Start video
The new CoD MW3 presents itself with shooter action in the new multiplayer trailer
“The most fun I’ve had in Call of Duty in years”
How do players find the mode? On Reddit, several players shared their opinions about the 10v10-Moshpit. In a post from November 22, the user states: “Some matches feel like they have no SBMM.”
In another post from November 22, the creator Pandacapy91 writes: “10v10 in MW3 is honestly the most fun I’ve had in Call of Duty in years. I think SBMM is weakened in the mode.”
In the comments, other users agree. “2keyed” writes that he also feels that the SBMM is significantly reduced. In every lobby he has played in so far, there is a mix of “bots, a few sweat players, and average players. It’s a lot of fun.”
“danger_frog” notes that 10v10 feels great, and he would love to keep it. “It makes even Derail almost playable.” One of the larger multiplayer maps, where we have found that you often have to search for opponents in 6v6 modes (only to get sniped from some corner).
Here you can learn more about all the multiplayer modes in MW3:
Are there other opinions as well? Some users are rather skeptical. “QC-TheArchitect” writes in a comment: “Placebo effect. SBMM will hit with full force as soon as the placebo wears off. Note: It will be quick.”
“Basilthebatlord” believes that other new modes felt similar on the first or second day. As if SBMM had a new “algorithm” and put everyone back to neutral ranks. “After a few days, it feels normal again, like any other mode. Enjoy it while it lasts!”
On the other hand, “pethy00” believes that SBMM is inherently less accurate, the more players the game needs to match together. “RuggedTheDragon” also believes that the chances of skill diversity in matches is simply higher. There are probably not as many people looking for 10v10 compared to other modes.
We also tested the mode – alone and with friends, including a very mixed skill level – and the rounds felt really relaxed at first. Although this changed after a few hours, it still didn’t feel as “sweaty” as some 6v6 matches.
Have you tested the mode already? Do you also feel that the SBMM is weakened here and the rounds are more relaxed? Feel free to leave us a comment about it.
It won’t be long until the first season in CoD: MW3 starts. To inform you about what to expect, we list the most important information:
In Pokémon GO today is the Community Day Classic. Unfortunately, Niantic made a mistake with the appropriate showcase Pokémon.
Today, Voltulamm is the focus in Pokémon GO. All information about the Community Day Classic with Voltulamm can be found with us. However, there is a small inconsistency with the corresponding showcase. As Niantic reports, they unfortunately made a small mistake. So, the showcase Pokémon today is not, as one would expect, Voltulamm – but rather Schiggy.
In this regard, Niantic writes on X (formerly Twitter): “Trainers, please note that Schiggy will appear in PokéStop showcases during the Voltulamm Community Day Classic today instead of Voltulamm. We apologize for the inconvenience.”
Standard settings for the Niantic showcase not adjusted?
On Reddit, a discussion is taking place about how such a mistake can happen. The user Brock_Hard_Canuck has a fitting explanation that seems understandable in this context.
He writes: “Schiggy seems to be the standard showcase Pokémon. So if Niantic sets up a showcase and forgets to set the Pokémon type correctly, it will default to Schiggy.”
The switch to Voltulamm was probably forgotten today, which means that you need a good Schiggy today to win the showcases, not Voltulamm.
How about you: do you use the Community Day Classic? Do you still have a need and interest in Voltulamm, its evolutions, and the exclusive attack for Ampharos? And do you ideally even have a suitable Schiggy to win the faulty showcases?
Of course, you can find all the information about the Community Day Classic with us. Even if you want to know what you find in the 1 Euro ticket for the Voltulamm Community Day, you’ll find it with us.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
On December 2, this year’s Bisalina Charity Stream will take place. Participants will face several challenges at the XPERION in Cologne and raise donations for the DKMS.
What kind of live stream is this? The Bisalina Stream is a speedrun livestream that brings together content creators and speedrunners for several years. This year, they have aimed to host the largest European speedrun event.
This year’s participant lineup will compete in several categories. These include among others Beat the Bisalina: Super Mario World, Speedrun Resident Evil and Speedrundale Super Mario 64 70 Stars Race.
Who is behind the event? The event is organized by Bisalina aka Lucina Hum and 84komma5s aka Aron Niemeier. Bisalina has been organizing speedrun events for several years now. They also regularly take on challenges.
MeinMMO editor-in-chief Leya spoke with Bisalina about the event:
Select a MMO video…
Who is there? At the Bisalina Speedrun Charity Stream, you will see this year among others YouTuber and streamer Huebi as well as the Rocket Beans Gregor Kartsios and Sia Shouri.
Niklas Hennings will also be there, who currently works as Creator Partnerships Lead for the electronics retailer Saturn. For Webedia (GamePro, MeinMMO, GameStar), video producer Andreas Sperling participates.
Also attending are the two speedrunners and world record contenders Dwhatever and Benji.
Where do the donations from the stream go? All proceeds will be donated to the DKMS. The non-profit organization based in Tübingen is dedicated to the registration of stem cell donors to enable blood cancer patients worldwide to receive treatment through stem cell transplants.
When and where does the stream take place? The livestream will be recorded at the XPERION in Cologne and starts at 2 PM on December 2, 2023. Several Twitch channels will restream the event, including ScreenFireGermany on Twitch, the channel of Andreas Sperling.
Note from the editorial team: MeinMMO belongs to Webedia Gaming GmbH. Webedia is a media partner of this year’s Bisalina Stream.
Update 28.11.20923: Originally, it was stated in the news that the GameStar Twitch channel would restream the event. In fact, the restream will be via the channel of Andreas Sperling (who will be on-site for Webedia).
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In 7 vs. Wild, 14 participants must survive in the wilderness of Canada for two weeks. But before the start, the group had to overcome a challenge that they miserably failed, as Twitch streamer Trymacs revealed now.
What was that challenge?
It was a classic “Don’t laugh now” challenge.
As part of the briefing, the 14 participants also took part in a meeting with the First Nations, the indigenous peoples of Canada. There, the participants were to listen to the “holiest song” of the tribe and absolutely must not laugh.
However, the group apparently failed completely at this, as Trymacs has now revealed.
Trymacs is known for his love of Clash of Clans:
Start video
The new trailer of Clash of Clans lands in the YouTube trends at number 1 – “Hopefully a movie will come someday“
This is what was seen in the video: In “The Behind the Scenes,” the scene is only shown very briefly in the video: An indigenous woman beats on a drum and sings, the participants stand in front of her, and you can see and hear how Affe auf Bike and Hanah Assil have to stifle some giggles.
“No one was allowed to laugh because it was their holiest song”
This is what Trymacs says: The Twitch streamer Trymacs visibly feels uncomfortable about the scene in the reaction video. He notes that a lot was cut out.
Trymacs explains:
Man, so much was cut out. So this is some kind of descent from some holy wolf clan from some region there, who nourished themselves there. Dude, she played the holiest song of the clan, and we were all completely exhausted, we had jet lag, we were in bad shape. And the problem is: No one was allowed to laugh because it was their holiest song.
But… vocally, it was also… not much. And you know how it is when you’re with a lot of colleagues in a situation where you definitely can’t laugh, and then you start laughing just because you shouldn’t laugh.
He then looked at Rumathra and he had to badly stifle his face to not burst out laughing, and next to him, Papaplatte was “breathing heavily.” Trymacs states that it’s not even a song, and it lasted 10 minutes. There was “just nothing happening.”
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Trymacs says he apologizes on behalf of the whole group. It was by no means meant to be disrespectful; they did not laugh at the woman, her culture, or her singing.
If the production can’t cut 10 seconds from the video without someone giggling, you wouldn’t want to imagine how the situation unfolded in full length.
Today, the Community Day Classic with Voltilamm is taking place in Pokémon GO. In the shop, you can purchase a ticket for €1 and unlock a special research. We will show you the contents.
What kind of ticket is this? Each month, at least one Community Day takes place in Pokémon GO. You can unlock research in the game’s shop for about €1 (price varies depending on the shop). The special research always revolves around the Pokémon of the respective C-Day.
Due to the time difference, some trainers have already participated in the research and shared the tasks and rewards with the community. In the overview, we show you all the contents. This way, you can easily decide whether purchasing is worth it for you.
Special Research with Voltilamm at Community Day 1/4
Task
Reward
Land 5 good throws
15 Pokéballs
Catch 15 Voltilamm
Encounter with Voltilamm
Use 10 Power-Ups on Pokémon
20 Voltilamm candies
Stage Reward: If you complete all three tasks and collect the corresponding rewards, you will also receive 3,000 Stardust, 1 Incense, and an encounter with Voltilamm.
Special Research with Voltilamm at Community Day 2/4
Task
Reward
Send 10 Pokémon
10 Sananabeeren
Catch 15 Voltilamm
Encounter with Voltilamm
Evolve 3 Voltilamm
30 Voltilamm candies
Stage Reward: If you complete all three tasks and collect the corresponding rewards, you will also receive 4,500 experience points, 1 Egg Incubator, and an encounter with Voltilamm.
Special Research with Voltilamm at Community Day 3/4
Task
Reward
Land 3 great curveball throws
15 Ultra Balls
Catch 15 Voltilamm
Encounter with Voltilamm
Evolve 1 Waaty
50 Voltilamm candies
Stage Reward: If you complete all three tasks and collect the corresponding rewards, you will also receive 4,500 Stardust, 1 Rocket Radar, and an encounter with Waaty.
Stage Reward: If you complete all three tasks and collect the corresponding rewards, you will also receive 5,500 experience points, 3 Rare Candies, and an encounter with Ampharos.
Is the purchase worth it?
You need to know this: Through the unlocked Pokémon encounters, you will receive strong Voltilamm, Waaty, and Ampharos. In addition, you will receive valuable items such as a Rocket Radar, Incense, and an Egg Incubator whose monetary value exceeds the purchase price of the ticket. So if you are already interested in the items and need strong Voltilamm for your collection, then purchasing the ticket may be worth it for you.
A few days ago, during a developer stream, new features were presented on the PBE test servers of League of Legends. Players noticed that Riot Games used one of their memes to draw attention to a bug in LoL.
How did the meme come about? In a video from November 8th, Riot employee Phreak addressed the criticism from many players about the ping system:
According to some critics, the ping system was a “restriction” of the necessary chat function
However, LoL developer Phreak argued that it serves for simple and quick communication
As an ironic example, Phreak said that in some situations, instead of a ping, one could also write the lengthy “Karthus Ult” in the chat: As proof that a ping is much faster and more straightforward than typing the term “Karthus Ult” – according to the motto: By the time you have typed that, and Karthus has activated his ultimate, you are already dead.
The reaction of the players on Reddit was not exactly positive.
A player then made a “suggestion” on Reddit about what one could write in such situations to quickly request an ultimate from Karthus: “Dearest Karthus, I hope you are doing well. We are currently in a terrible situation on the bot lane. Please consider helping us with your ultimate ability, as I believe that Lee Sin has come to destroy our tower. Best regards, your bot lane.”
This was meant as mockery, exaggerating Phreak’s example.
Start video
LoL: The new champion Hwei fights with a brush -Trailer
“Dearest Karthus …”
What did Riot Games do in response? The meme, known in the community as “Dearest Karthus”, apparently also circulated intensively within Riot. They then decided to utilize the meme within their community and incorporate it into their test servers.
On November 21, a new update was introduced on the PBE test servers for League of Legends. On the same day, a player shared a screenshot showing a message that appears when a player tries to use a bugged item on champions like Ornn, Rengar, or Neeko.
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Users then receive the following formal message: Dearest [Champion Name], we seem to have discovered a small bug with this item. Please consider recalling and purchasing an upgrade in the shop, as we believe this will benefit your further success. Best regards, Riot Games.
Riot’s response indirectly addresses the players’ criticism of their employee Phreak and his arguments for why the ping usage was restricted in League of Legends.
