Mark Zuckerberg announced earlier this year that he wants to lay off employees from Meta. He cites the reason that these employees are not delivering the performance that was expected. However, former employees have also spoken out, saying the layoffs have a different reason.
How many employees does Mark Zuckerberg want to lay off? In January, Mark Zuckerberg announced in a memo to employees (via Bloomberg) that he wants to lay off nearly 5% of Meta’s workforce. That would be about 3600 employees.
According to Bloomberg, Zuckerberg aims to specifically target employees who do not meet Meta’s work expectations and perform worse than desired. However, former employees have also commented, saying it’s not due to a lack of performance.
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People need to know that we are not underperformers
What do employees say about the layoffs?Business Insider spoke with several employees about the memo and the planned layoffs. The sources wanted to remain anonymous, so the statements cannot be confirmed. The interviewed employees paint a different picture of the situation.
One of the respondents was said to be shocked. According to Business Insider, he even showed documents indicating that he had met or exceeded expectations in recent years. Another employee was away due to parental leave and was likely laid off, despite previously being praised for his performance.
One employee said regarding the layoffs according to Business Insider: The hardest part is that Meta publicly states it is laying off underperforming employees, so it feels like we have a scarlet letter on our backs […] People need to know that we are not underperformers.
Generally, the accounts suggest that the anonymous employees consistently received positive feedback before they were suddenly laid off.
On teamblind.com, a site where people can rate their employer, a supposed employee from Meta spoke out. He said that countless employees were reportedly laid off who were on parental leave or taking medical leave, even though they had good performance: Apparently, it was more about money than performance. Be cautious if you join this company.
All the reports from employees are anonymous, so the allegations cannot be substantiated. Nevertheless, there is a large number of employees making such claims. Tech billionaires are constantly under criticism, also for their behavior toward employees and spreading misinformation. The latter was also criticized by a Nobel laureate: Nobel laureate warns about Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg: “They lack moral values”
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The shooter pro TenZ creates an illusion with his fast aim. To dissolve it, you must pause the video.
Who is it about? Tyson “TenZ” Ngo is a former CS:GO and Valorant pro. He was able to win the Valorant Masters twice – in 2024 in Madrid and in 2021 in Reykjavik.
In September 2024, TenZ ended his career as an eSports athlete to work as a content creator for the Sentinels.
On Twitch, he has over 4.2 million followers and streams regularly to about 8,000 viewers (via sullygnome). His videos on YouTube regularly reach over 150,000 views.
TenZ is primarily known for his incredibly good aim and strong reaction time, impressing with precise headshots.
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Counter-Strike 2: Valve once again impresses with the launch trailer
He shoots so fast that an illusion arises
Why do I doubt my eyesight? TenZ has occasionally played the aim trainer Aimlabs in the past. This kind of “game” is meant to help players aim better with the mouse. There are various exercises in which different targets, such as balls, are shot at. Depending on the exercise, precision, speed, or tracking is to be improved.
A 4-year-old clip of TenZ playing Aimlabs has gathered over the years 1.8 million views. I recently rewatched this clip and noticed that he destroys the targets so quickly that he creates a kind of optical illusion.
What kind of optical illusion is this? To explain this optical illusion, I need to do a little test with you. Check out the clip in the YouTube video and tell me:
How many balls are shown on the screen at the same time?
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The correct answer is 3. If you saw 4-6 balls, that was probably some kind of optical illusion.
In the clip, TenZ plays the exercise “Gridshot Ultimate,” where a maximum of 3 balls are shown at the same time. Once a ball is shot, a new one appears in a different spot. If you pause the video or let it run at a low playback speed, you can also see that there are always only 3 balls.
I asked 5 different people in advance of the article how many balls they see – all with different hardware, gaming preferences, and varying ages. Each of them admitted to often seeing 4 balls or more. Also, in the comments below the video, several users noted that they sometimes see 5 balls, even though they know that in the exercise there are a maximum of 3.
On Steam, you can currently try out numerous games for free. One of them is an action game that reminds you of the old GTAs and sends you into an open world, as it might have been staged by film director Michael Bay.
Which game are we talking about? The game is called Deliver at all Costs, and the name says it all: You play as a courier with a mysterious past and, let’s say, unconventional methods. The action game is being developed by Studio Far Out Games for the following platforms:
PC (Steam, Epic Games Store)
PS5
Xbox Series X|S
When we say that Deliver at all Costs reminds us of “the old GTAs,” we mean the very old parts – so GTA 1 and 2 from 1997 and 1999. Just like back then, you don’t play from a third-person perspective, but from an isometric viewpoint – that is, “slanting from above.” However, you won’t miss out on 3D graphics.
The developers have not yet announced a release date. However, as part of the Steam Next Fest, there is already a free demo for Deliver at all Costs.
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Deliver At All Costs: The first trailer for the action game on Steam
Delivery Boy with the Destruction Fury of a Michael Bay Movie
The biggest feature of the game is the insane level of destruction: Almost everything in the game world can be turned to rubble by your delivery truck. The destruction follows a complex physics engine. The developers share more about this in a video on YouTube.
With all the destruction and madness on screen, one might almost think that Michael Bay helped develop the game. The director is known for his Transformers films, among many other things – and for making a lot of things explode in his movies.
The game world is an (almost) open world. It consists of several large areas connected by tunnels. The tunnels serve as a replacement for disruptive loading screens.
On behalf of Wizards of the Coast, who are making a fortune with Baldur’s Gate 3 and Dungeons & Dragons, a new AAA game was supposed to be created in Austin, Texas. The people who were supposed to save BioWare’s Anthem were at the helm. But the project is now over.
What kind of project was it? Since 2022, a new studio from Wizards of the Coast was working on a new AAA game in Austin, Texas. The studio is called “Skeleton Key.” Wizards of the Coast are the operators and license holders of game universes like Magic: The Gathering or Dungeons and Dragons.
However, Dailey left the studio and the work on Dragon Age with some companions from BioWare and founded Skeleton Key, the new studio of Wizards of the Coast. Their new project, which he had been working on there since 2022, is now also over.
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Anthem shows the four different combat suits in the launch trailer
What was known about the game? The studio Skeleton Key was founded in 2022 as an internal team of Wizards of the Coast and diligently recruited people, especially developers with decades of experience in the industry.
Its first game was supposed to have a high budget and “include immersive gameplay, unique stories, and thought-provoking moments. It was also supposed to focus on horror and suspense.”
But it was never clear what exactly lay behind it. It was assumed that it would probably be some kind of horror game.
Wizards of the Coast apparently wants new style, new direction
This is the result now: As revealed in the LinkedIn post of the Audio Director, Nassim Ait-Kaci, who worked for Skeleton Key until recently, Wizards of the Coast has canceled the project and laid off some people.
The game had been in development since 2022. They have also canceled the remaining job openings.
According to the Audio Director, Wizards of the Coast wants “a new style and a new direction” – well. Other employees who are still officially working at Skeleton Key have also reported themselves as job seekers on LinkedIn. For example, the head of Technical Art or a Senior 3D Animator. More on the topic: EA’s decision to let the MMO Anthem die looks even worse today than in 2021
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Players are eagerly waiting for Monster Hunter Wilds and can hardly wait to rush into the new areas with friends and the community. As a big AAA game, one can expect that there will also be a Day-One patch. A lucky player is now showing how large the patch might be.
What kind of player is this? Monster Hunter Wilds will officially be released on February 28, 2025, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series. The game will also receive a physical release. With such releases, it often happens that players get their hands on a physical copy of the game faster.
A lucky individual shows in a Reddit thread that he seems to have received the game early, as the PS5 download screen is visible along with how much he needs to download. Additionally, there is also a patch of nearly 18 GB, which is likely a Day-One patch.
Start video
Monster Hunter Wilds is about to be released: Here’s what you should know before buying
A possible Day-One patch for the PS5
What kind of patch is this? In the thread, one can see the standard download size for Monster Hunter Wilds that is typical for other physical games. According to the image, it will be about 50.881 GB. Below, there is also a patch of version 1.000.020, which is 17.975 GB in size.
The Reddit user assumes that this patch is the Day-One patch that will be available at launch. This has become common with almost every AAA release. Almost 18 GB is quite large, but not surprising compared to other major titles.
What is the content of patch 1.000.020? From the image, it cannot be concluded what the content of the patch is. However, one can assume it includes optimizations. Typically, Day-One patches do not provide content updates.
We have asked Capcom about the contents of the patch and will update this section of the article as soon as we receive a response.
If you have pre-ordered the game digitally, you will be able to start downloading the game earlier. It can be assumed that you will also be able to download the patch earlier. The preload on consoles starts on February 26, 2025. Monster Hunter Wilds seems to be another grand entry in the iconic series. Even MeinMMO editor-in-chief Leya Jankowski is almost entirely satisfied: Monster Hunter Wilds in review: Almost perfect – but not without flaws
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
A new study shows that 70% of users are polite to ChatGPT, but the reasons for this vary widely. While many do it out of habit, others fear potential consequences. Experts disagree on whether politeness towards AI influences our behavior or even improves technology.
This study is about: The survey (via techradar.com), conducted by Future in December 2024, surveyed over 1,000 individuals from the USA and the UK. It was found that politeness towards AI, such as ChatGPT, is no longer just an exception but has become normal for many.
What are the results?
Habit and Decency: 82% of US users and 83% of UK users who are polite to AI find it simply “normal” to say “please” and “thank you,” regardless of whether they are speaking to a human or AI.
Fear of AI Rebellion Consequences: About 18% of the surveyed US users and 17% of the UK users who are polite believe it may be important in the future to treat artificial intelligence with respect to avoid negative consequences.
Improvement of AI Performance: Some users believe that polite requests lead to better and more helpful responses.
Lack of Emotions in AIs: Around 30% of users see no reason for politeness as they believe that AI does not have emotions and that politeness is unnecessary.
Efficiency and Time Saving: Others state they want to keep their interactions short and concise to save time. Additionally, they want to achieve more precise answers this way.
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What do experts say about this? Expert opinions on politeness towards AI are divided. Some emphasize that politeness is important to promote respectful behavior in interpersonal interactions. They warn that disrespectful treatment of AI could also affect our social relationships. Another argument comes from the CASA paradigm, which states that we often treat machines like humans. Our brain does not differentiate between interacting with a human or an AI.
John-Anthony Disotto, an AI editor at TechRadar, viewed the topic somewhat skeptically. In his opinion, behavior may be largely related to fear. After all, science fiction films like “2001: A Space Odyssey” or “Terminator” have shaped the notion that AIs could someday take over.
ChatGPT Shows Flexibility
In response to our question, ChatGPT itself commented on the topic of politeness: “As an AI, I do not require politeness as I have no feelings or emotions. However, I find it interesting that people are often polite, even when speaking to a machine. It makes the interaction more pleasant for most and can, in some cases, actually lead to better outcomes, as polite requests are often framed more precisely.”
As we explore politeness and its impact on artificial intelligence, it also shows how far technology has advanced. Elon Musk officially stated that we have reached the limit in the area of training data. There are no more human data with which AI can be trained.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In Pokémon GO new adventure effects are coming into play. What is this and what does it bring? Let’s take a look at it here.
Last year, Pokémon GO introduced adventure effects. These are attacks that can be used even outside of battles and provide you with special bonuses.
So far, there are only very few such effects. Currently, Origin Palkia, Origin Dialga, Necrozma Dawn Wings, and Necrozma Dusk Mane each have their own adventure effect attack.
How do you get these attacks? By fusing Kyurem with Reshiram or Zekrom, more on that here. But important: Kyurem must have the attack Ice Age when fusing. Otherwise, you won’t get the special attack with the fusion form.
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What does the adventure effect Frostvolt bring in Pokémon GO?
Cost: For Frostvolt, you need to use 5,000 Stardust and 5 Kyurem candies if you want to activate the effect with your black Kyurem. You can activate and stack the effect multiple times by paying the resources multiple times. The limit is 24 hours.
Effect: For 10 minutes, every Pokémon you encounter will be somewhat frozen. This means: Especially twitchy Pokémon will be much easier to catch. They will dodge less and likely also defend against fewer ball throws.
It should also be easier to catch with connected additional devices. This would affect gadgets like the Go Plus.
What does the adventure effect Frostbreath bring in Pokémon GO?
Cost: For Frostbreath, you also need to use 5,000 Stardust and 5 Kyurem candies if you want to activate the effect with your white Kyurem. Stacking is also possible.
Effect: The catch circle during encounters will slow down for 10 minutes. This should make it significantly easier to land excellent throws. This is useful since excellent throws yield more XP and are often needed for certain research tasks.
With connected additional devices, catching should also be easier with Frostbreath.
First, it should be emphasized again that your Kyurem must master “Ice Age” before you fuse it to get the attacks. If you fuse it with another attack, you will receive different moves and thus no adventure effect. Given the costs for the fusion, you shouldn’t recklessly fuse wrong specimens here.
On the other hand, you cannot combine adventure effects with each other or with other adventure effects. So, don’t try to use Frostbreath and Time Noise simultaneously, for example.
Otherwise, more content for the GO Tour will come into play, or is already being activated right now, in advance, during the Journey to Unova event. One of these features is the new Tour Pass, which allows you to earn rewards by leveling up. You can read all important information about the Tour Pass in Pokémon GO here.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The first tests of Monster Hunter Wilds are out, and one topic is particularly engaging the community: the difficulty of the game.
Why is difficulty a major topic? In Monster Hunter, the goal is to hunt large and powerful monsters and face challenging battles along the way. Looting, leveling, and grinding have always been core elements of the game. The series surrounding the monster hunters has existed for over 21 years now and sends players on the hunt with numerous titles and spin-offs.
This leads to some particularly loyal players also being part of the community for several years and titles. Particularly during the time of Monster Hunter World, voices arose saying that the game would become too easy and too “casual” (examples via Reddit and Steam). The tight battles and the hard grind for the desired equipment have become less frequent and offer little challenge.
Since February 24, 2025, the first tests of Monster Hunter Wilds have been published, which are overwhelmingly positive. However, among other things, there is more frequent criticism that MH Wilds is also too easy or even easier for some. Many veterans are already concerned that the game will not provide them with a challenge and are expressing their frustration on Reddit.
However, the community sees the issue less with the game itself as a problem, but rather with the players who express this criticism.
Start video
Monster Hunter Wilds is about to be released: Here’s what you should know before buying
The Experience of Veterans as the Main Reason
What reasons lead to the criticism? On Reddit, alongside numerous threads discussing that the game might become too easy, there are also some that do not directly see the reasons for this discussion in the game itself. One example is the thread by Glum_Series5712, addressing the discourse and the problematic nature of the criticism.
The user mentions 3 reasons that he believes lead to this criticism:
Players who express this criticism are mainly experienced players. These players are veterans of the series and bring a lot of prior experience both with the game mechanics and with some monsters. For this reason, they find the battles easier than newcomers do. From his perspective, this point is often forgotten and leads to frustration among these players.
The battles are now much more dynamic than before, and the hardware has improved. This makes the game much smoother, the downtime between attacks and actions shorter, and overall feels quicker.
Also, the revised controls, which have become significantly more pleasant with titles like Monster Hunter World and Rise, contribute to this. This mainly concerns the delay between keypress and action execution as well as the significantly improved camera control.
He also emphasizes that he sees the main reason as the fact that players who find the game too easy have simply become more experienced and have developed skills over the years that make their hunts easier. In this view, the game has not become easier; rather, the players (and the hardware) have simply improved.
MeinMMO editor Alexander Schürlein also has a clear opinion on difficulty:
Basically, I agree with the user and his summary. Experienced players will have little trouble with the low-ranking monsters in Monster Hunter Wilds and will therefore quickly progress through the story and reach the high-ranking monsters. This is mainly because Wilds placed special emphasis on an improved learning curve during development, which aims to make it more accessible for newcomers to learn the basic mechanics of the game.
This will be introduced to players through improved tutorials and a clear structure in the monster progression. For instance, the first monster Chatacabra only has attacks that focus on a single target, while Quematrice as the second monster teaches initial area attacks with its tail. Thus, the monsters indirectly act as teachers, which may initially seem underwhelming for veterans on their early hunts. I see this change as another point that will certainly contribute to the criticism.
However, such changes are also necessary to accommodate players who have not been with the series for years and are familiar with the old, clunky times, and to ensure a new flow of fresh hunters who enjoy Monster Hunter and will become new veterans in the future. And let’s be honest: Who really enjoyed the battles against Lagiacrus in Monster Hunter Tri on the Wii with that terrible control and didn’t wish for better camera controls?
As the game progresses, the monsters will also become tougher, and veterans will quickly reach these points. If they find the path there too easy, there’s still the option to set personal challenges. For example, you can fight without armor, attempt speedruns, or even do no-hit runs.
What does the community say? Under his post, there are numerous voices agreeing with him and seeing the issue similarly. Additionally, some fans highlight that Monster Hunter World also significantly increased its challenges with the Iceborne expansion, where even voices were heard requesting nerfs for certain monsters, such as Behemoth or Alatreon.
Many also agree with him that earlier hardware made games unnecessarily difficult, thus blocking many inexperienced gamers from the franchise because they found no way to actually play the game.
A recent study in Australia suggests that Merino sheep grazing between solar panels not only contribute to the maintenance of the facilities but also produce higher quality wool.
How do the sheep get between the solar panels? Sheep have been used for landscape management for years. They are essentially natural lawn mowers that can be employed in places where humans and their machinery are less suitable (via IBC Solar).
In Germany, sheep are also used to trim the grass area under and around photovoltaic systems. A study conducted in Australia now suggests that this method is beneficial not only for the solar panels.
In Sheepy: A Short Adventure, you will become a sheep and experience an adventure in the style of Ori and the Blind Forest:
Start video
Sheepy: A Short Adventure is an atmospheric platformer in the style of Ori and the Blind Forest
Benefits for Animals and the Environment
How was the study conducted? The investigation was carried out at the Wellington Solar Farm in New South Wales (Australia) by Lightsourcebp in collaboration with EMM Consulting and Elders Rural Services (via Energy).
Over a period of three years, 1,700 Merino sheep were divided into two groups: one group grazed on traditional pastures, while the other grazed between the solar panels of the facility. Factors such as wool growth, fiber strength, and the weight of the sheep were examined. The results suggest that grazing under solar panels does not negatively affect wool quality; some parameters even showed improvements.
What results were surprising? The results suggest that grazing under solar panels does not negatively affect wool quality; some parameters even showed improvements.
In addition to the potential increase in wool quality, integrating sheep farming in solar parks, or vice versa, likely offers further advantages. The sheep help keep the grass short, which reduces maintenance efforts for the facilities. Furthermore, the land remains agriculturally usable while clean energy is produced at the same time.
Brendan Clarke from Lightsourcebp emphasizes in the statement on the official website the importance of such synergies for a sustainable future: The promising results of this study show that we are on the right track.
How significant is the study? The results of the study appear to be conclusive – agrivoltaics, i.e., the dual use of land for agriculture and solar energy, is widely recognized. Even the Bavarian State Research Center for Agriculture published official guidelines on this in 2023 (via lfl).
Nevertheless, it should be noted that the investigation was conducted by Lightsourcebp, a renewable energy company. A certain self-interest cannot be ruled out. Especially since the parent company bp usually generates the largest revenues from non-renewable mineral oil.
Less water loss, protection from heat, and a better environment for bees – the benefits of dual land use are clear. You can read more about how sheep maintain solar systems on the colleagues’ page at Gamestar-Tech: 3,000 sheep maintain solar collectors in Texas
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Genshin Impact is one of the most successful video games of recent years. However, the path to success was anything but straightforward. Allegations of plagiarism, political controversies, and even an assassination attempt repeatedly posed challenges for the development studio HoYoVerse. How was the game still able to establish itself?
What makes Genshin Impact so special? When Genshin Impact was released in 2020, it surprised the gaming world. The open-world action RPG combined a vibrant anime design with a gacha-based character collection system and an innovative elemental combat system. The huge success was not only due to the aesthetics of the game but also to the detailed and vibrant world of Teyvat, which is full of quests and challenging opponents.
Genshin Impact was developed by HoYoVerse with a gigantic budget of 100 million dollars, with around 2,400 developers working on it. Just two weeks after release, the game had recouped its development costs, and after a month, the revenue from the mobile versions alone was already at 250 million dollars.
Nevertheless, Genshin Impact has been controversial from the start and has caused some controversies.
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Genshin Impact: Trailer shows gameplay for Natlan
Controversies overshadowed the successful launch
Why did Genshin Impact cause controversies? Although Genshin Impact is extremely successful, the game has been accompanied by controversies from the very beginning. Here are the main issues that posed challenges for the development studio right from the start:
Allegations of plagiarism: Shortly after the first gameplay presentation, many players noticed similarities to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Critics accused the studio of having almost directly copied the open-world design and some game mechanics. The debate escalated so far that a visitor to the ChinaJoy fair in 2019 demonstratively smashed a PlayStation 4 on which Genshin Impact was running to protest the alleged copy.
Spyware allegations: The development studio implemented an anti-cheat program in the first version of the game that interfered deeply with the players’ operating systems. This program was particularly criticized in the United States as potential spyware. Although it was quickly removed, many players’ trust had already been shaken from the start.
Political censorship: A quest featuring a cat character as well as certain character designs and dialogues were allegedly altered to comply with China’s political requirements. These changes led to criticism in the community and repeatedly caused the hashtag #BoycottGenshin to trend on social media.
Outrage over anniversary escalated
How did the assassination attempt occur? In 2021, an anniversary celebration for Honkai Impact 3rd in China caused massive outrage. The game, also developed by HoYoVerse, featured a character in revealing clothing in a casino setting – a depiction that is considered highly problematic in China.
The controversy escalated to the point that an agitated man attempted to murder two of the three founders of the development studio. Fortunately, he was stopped in time.
The incident nevertheless showed how emotional the reactions to the studio’s games can be.
Between global success and local challenges
What does the future hold for HoYoVerse and Genshin Impact? Despite all the controversies, Genshin Impact remains a huge success. The game generates billions and ranks among the most profitable free-to-play titles worldwide.
The criticisms – from allegations of plagiarism to data protection concerns to political censorship – have not hindered the success of the game and the studio so far. However, these controversies also highlight the challenges that HoYoVerse, as a Chinese company, faces: the balance between creative freedom, political requirements, and the expectations of a global gaming community.
Monster Hunter Wilds has not been released yet, but it is already considered the best game of 2025 according to Metacritic. The anticipation from players has propelled it to the number one spot on the Steam bestseller list.
What kind of game is this? Monster Hunter Wilds is an action role-playing game from the Japanese developer Capcom and is the latest installment in the Monster Hunter series, which has been around for over 20 years. The game will be released on February 28, 2025 for the following platforms:
Monster Hunter Wilds is about to be released: Here’s what you should know before buying
Monster Hunter Wilds receives high scores on Metacritic
How well is it received? The first reviews from press representatives have shown a very positive picture of Monster Hunter Wilds:On Metacritic, the game has a metascore of 90/100, based on 74 reviews. Here’s a brief selection:
DualShockers gives it 100 points and writes: “After 100 hours of gameplay and reaching Hunter Rank 110, I can confidently say that Monster Hunter Wilds is a better game than World and Rise. The focus is heavily on optimizing and making the gameplay experience accessible, without removing the fundamental principles that experienced hunters appreciate. Monster Hunter Wilds is a game that everyone should experience.”
MMORPG.com gives it 95 points and states: “While it is possible that Monster Hunter Wilds may deter some veterans who joined the series early, it has made significant progress towards a more balanced game that appeals to a much broader audience.”
GamePro awards it 91 points and writes: “Wilds combines features from World and Rise with new ideas to create the best overall package in the Monster Hunter series to date.”
Thus, Monster Hunter Wilds surpasses the RPG hit Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, which has a “mere” metascore of 88/100. Monster Hunter Wilds is currently the best-selling game on Steam. However, there is not only praise for the latest installment of the MH series, but also criticism.
The French site Gamekult gives it only 70 points and criticizes: “The rough, inaccessible, and extravagant feel of the past has made way for a relentless accessibility, a clear pursuit of simplicity, and a targeted openness for newcomers.”
What is the game about? In Monster Hunter Wilds, it’s all about hunting increasingly larger and more dangerous monsters. You can do this alone or together with other players. The basic gameplay loop works as follows:
You set out to hunt a monster and try to kill or capture it.
If you are successful in your hunt, you collect various materials depending on the type of monster.
From the collected materials, you craft stronger weapons and armor that also grant you specific bonuses.
With improved equipment, you hunt larger and more dangerous monsters, which in turn drop new materials – and the cycle starts all over again.
There is no skill tree like in other role-playing games in Monster Hunter Wilds. Your abilities and attributes are all tied to your equipment. This allows you to change your playstyle at any time.
It has become common for animes to run for several seasons. However, some series should have ended after the first few episodes – because the hero is actually too weak to survive for long.
Our anime heroes have it tough: They get pierced by lasers or weapons, thrown from great heights, or endure explosions. Where normal people would have met their end, they simply get back up.
If you were to take away the anime plot armor, many protagonists would be doomed. Because some of them are so weak that they should have died in the first few episodes. MeinMMO shows you some animes where the hero should have been dead long ago.
Tokyo Ghoul
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Tokyo Ghoul – The Trailer for the Anime in English
Number of episodes: 12
Where can I stream the anime? Crunchyroll, Amazon Prime Video, Joyn, ProSieben FUN, Seven Entertainment
What is the anime about? In Tokyo, ghouls are causing havoc. They feed on human flesh and cannot eat normal food without vomiting. Ken Kaneki is an average student who wants nothing to do with all of this. Instead, he is looking forward to a date with the attractive lady Rize Kamishiro.
However, it turns out that Rize is a ghoul herself. A fight ensues, in which Rize dies and Ken loses consciousness. When he wakes up again, he is told that he received Rize’s organs transplant – and with them, her ghoul powers.
Why should the hero have been dead? The anime Tokyo Ghoul is the beginning of many more stories surrounding Ken and his friends. But actually, it would have been over for Ken two times already.
On one hand, because he only survived due to Rize’s involuntary organ donation. On the other hand, because at the beginning he was unable to cope with life as a ghoul and would have starved if he hadn’t had the help of his new friends. They made the human flesh as a new food source so appealing to him that Ken ultimately ate it.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
A bizarre legal dispute has hit Amazon’s streaming service Twitch: In the wake of sanctions against Russia, Twitch has de-monetized a former professional player of League of Legends. However, the Russian judiciary deemed this unlawful and intends to force Twitch to lift the sanction against the former LoL professional. The fine aimed at compelling Twitch started small but has been increasing steadily.
This is the former LoL professional in question: Former LoL professional Kirill Konstantinovich Malofeyev (29) is known as Likkrit. He played until 2017 and then became a Twitch streamer. He has earned approximately $66,000 in prize money from LoL.
There aren’t many successful Russian e-sport players in LoL: Actually, they mostly play DOTA 2 by Valve. Russian e-sport players have earned a total of $39 million with DOTA 2, $15.5 million with CS:GO, and only $1.5 million with LoL (via esportearnings).
Likkrit is the son of Russian oligarch Konstantin Valeryevich Malofeev, who comes from the finance sector and now heads a media group.
The streamer and oligarch’s son Likkrit found the ban unjust and sued Twitch in a 25-page complaint at a Russian court in June and October 2022. The first lawsuit was dismissed, but the second one was accepted.
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These are the 5 most relevant German streamers on Twitch in 2024, according to Google
Russian court imposes fine on Twitch that doubles every week
This verdict was reached: The court ruled that Twitch and Amazon are violating Russian rights by “de-monetizing” the streamer.
Therefore, the Russian court demanded that Twitch restore the account, or else Twitch must pay a penalty for failing to comply with the judgment.
The penalty amount is 100,000 rubles, and with each day that the account remains unreinstated, an additional 100,000 rubles are added. 100,000 rubles is approximately 1,100 euros.
But the amount also doubles with each week, and this continues without limit. More than two years have passed since the verdict, meaning the amount has already doubled more than 100 times – the penalty payment is thus now unimaginably large.
In 2023, the oligarch’s son tried to enforce the Russian court ruling through a law in Turkey and delivered a corresponding letter to Amazon’s Turkish branch. Twitch counters that the original business relationship of the streamer was formed with Twitch, not Amazon, and hence the letter in Turkey is irrelevant.
Twitch says: Streamer earned only $2,000 per month – penalty amount is absurd
This is what Twitch’s lawyers say:
Since this penalty doubles every week, it is now allegedly higher than all the money in the world. The enforcement of this amount is in no way justified and is disproportionate to the less than … $2,000 in revenue that Malofeyev’s account generated while he was active.
Twitch is now trying to oppose the enforcement of this amount through the U.S. justice system.
You might as well give it a try. Twitch has been sued repeatedly in the past, but through the American legal system, which is also known for imposing large penalties, although not of this magnitude: Twitch is being sued for $25 million – Due to too sexual content
The title image is from Likkrit’s active time as a LoL professional.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The fate of Dauntless is sealed. The free monster game will soon be shut down.
After almost 6 years, it’s over: The free monster hunting game Dauntless will be discontinued in May. The developers issued the following brief statement via Steam:
Dauntless will be discontinued on May 29, 2025. Dauntless will not receive any further content or updates. The game will no longer be playable on May 29, 2025.
Dauntless was seen as an alternative to Monster Hunter, as players hunted various creatures here as well and tried to gain an advantage over the monsters through better equipment. This could be done solo or in multiplayer.
With the end of the game, however, a chapter is concluded that was unfortunately already anticipated.
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Launch trailer showcases the reboot of Dauntless: Awakening
After layoffs, Dauntless is now also coming to an end
What happened with Dauntless? Dauntless launched in May 2018 on PC, having been introduced in 2016. Developer Phoenix Labs wanted to fill the Monster Hunter gap on PC with their alternative Dauntless.
Unfortunately for Dauntless, Monster Hunter did just that – also in 2018. Monster Hunter World launched on January 26, 2018, on Xbox One and PS4, and on August 9, 2018, on PC.
This gave Dauntless three months on PC without competition, but afterwards, it had to compete against Monster Hunter. Nevertheless, Dauntless was embraced by many players.
At the end of January, layoffs occurred at Phoenix Labs, with large parts of the staff being let go. It was said at that time that they would soon announce how Dauntless and another game, Fae Farm, would continue.
As far as Dauntless is concerned, clarity now exists.
While one monster game is ending, another is just getting started: Monster Hunter Wilds is about to be released. Many fans are already looking forward to the new game, and on February 28, the first hunts can begin. Want to get an impression of the new game? Here you can find the test of Monster Hunter Wilds by MeinMMO editor-in-chief Leya Jankowski.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Bungie is currently facing a major problem, and the only ones who can help them are the fans of Destiny 2 and their love for the game.
What is Bungie struggling with? As early as October 2024, MeinMMO’s editorial director, Schuhmann, reported on a new lawsuit against Bungie. This time, however, it is not about cheaters but about plagiarism accusations.
The author Kelsey Martineau introduced a fantasy world in 2013 and 2014, which Bungie allegedly copied blatantly. This was supposed to serve as a template for the campaign of the Red War.
Now there are new developments regarding the case, and they initially did not look good for Bungie. The team struggled to prove their innocence. The culprit was a feature that still has no fans in the community.
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Destiny 2: Launch trailer for the new episode Heresy
Content Vault was already regarded as a bad idea back then
Why is the Content Vault problematic? The Content Vault was introduced, to provide more space for new content in Destiny 2. The motto was “Out with the old, in with the new” – unfortunately, this included the popular campaign of the Red War. Many contents have disappeared since then, which were part of the game and the story of the loot shooter.
And although only the community had a problem with it, the very same system has now become the developers’ downfall. Bungie wanted to prove in court that the campaign of the Red War was not copied – however, the evidence was lacking. The reason for this was the vault, as the campaign resided there.
Why didn’t Bungie retrieve the Red War from the vault? It doesn’t work that easily with the vault. The vault is like an intermediate world where all content is stored in a database so that Bungie can access it for future projects.
However, it is not a functional collection that developers can simply pull onto the servers and play. When something ends up in the vault, the developers, if they want to retrieve the content, have to painstakingly rebuild it manually and adapt it to the engine. This costs a lot of time and resources.
How did Bungie solve their problem? In order to defend itself against the plaintiff, Bungie took the help of the community.
There were countless videos on YouTube about the campaign, including the well-known 10-hour lore video by My name is Byf – the lore expert of Destiny 2. With this “archive,” Bungie was able to present some evidence.
For the sixth part of the “The Elder Scrolls” series, there was a special auction where the winner could name an NPC in the upcoming RPG. Now the winner has been announced, but it is not the fan site that had hoped for victory.
What kind of auction is this? Bethesda held an auction around The Elder Scrolls 6, where the highest bidding winner could design and name an NPC in the upcoming game. The amount will go to the “Make-A-Wish Mid-Atlantic” foundation, which supports children with chronic illnesses.
The GameStar Talk discusses the possibilities of The Elder Scrolls 6:
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How does it continue after Starfield with The Elder Scrolls 6? – This is what GameStar Talk is discussing
Mysterious bidder outbids fan site
What kind of fan site is this? The fan site Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages, shortened UESP, is a fairly well-known association of fans of the Bethesda RPGs. They have been dealing with everything that happens in and around the Elder Scrolls games since 1995.
They also placed their bid for the auction, and not alone, but together with the Imperial Library, a lore site for TES, and some TES content creators.
What was the winning amount? Despite the large consortium, their sum was ultimately not enough, as they were outbid by a mysterious bidder. The person donated a total of $85,450, which is approximately €81,593. Unfortunately, it is not known by how much UESP was ultimately outbid.
Fan site seeks contact with the winner
On X, UESP posted about the completed auction. In their post, they state that they would like to get in touch with the winner to find out what the person would like to include for an NPC in TES 6.
Furthermore, they elaborate that their plan would have been to create and name the NPC after a deceased fan named Loranna. They still want to implement that and are now looking at other options to make it still possible.
To address Astarion on a specific topic, you must die – yes, that’s how thought-out Baldur’s Gate 3 is.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is full of hidden content. From secret rooms to unknown weapons to small dialogues that only a fraction of the player base will ever see and hear. There is exactly such a dialogue with Astarion, but you will only see it if you follow a very specific sequence – and in this case, the death of your character is only an intermediate step.
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There are secret rooms in Baldur’s Gate 3 that only a few of you will ever see
What kind of dialogue is it? Astarion is a vampire (spoiler, sorry) and as such, he has a thirst for blood. After he joins the group, there will be a scene in one of the following nights where Astarion tries to drink your blood.
The next day, you can confront him and talk about his vampiric condition. You can also set rules – for example, that he cannot attack humans. You can then specify that he cannot attack anything “with which one can hold a conversation” – to which Astarion suggests animals. You can then reveal under certain conditions that you can talk to animals, which leads the vampire to this outburst:
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You can literally talk to animals? What do I have left then? Stones and trees? Not that I would be surprised to see a druid talking to trees… but alright. I do my best to feed only on the dumbest animals.
How to unlock the dialogue? To experience this little yet quite amusing outburst from Astarion, several factors must be met. You need to:
Play as a druid.
Be able to talk to animals and have the spell active.
Let Astarion drain you at night.
Not to stop Astarion and die while making this statement.
Because Baldur’s Gate 3 does not allow your death – for various reasons – you will still be alive the next day, thanks to Withers. In the following conversation, you can then confront Astarion.
Scenes like this are rather a bit hidden in the game – but not as hidden as a certain dialogue with Karlach. In that one, the tiefling barbarian breaks the 4th wall and can suddenly see you before the screen and realizes that she is just part of a game.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The world of Cyberpunk 2077 is marked by injustice, oppression, and violence, where everyone fights for themselves and has to make the best of what they have. A mission in Phantom Liberty is a perfect example of how difficult it is to ensure justice in Night City. Those who are willing to spare a character despite contrary instructions are rewarded with a rare scene.
Which mission is being referred to? It is the gig “Dogtown Saints,” which is commissioned by Mr. Hands. V is supposed to rescue Dr. Anthony Anderson from the Scavengers (also known as Scavs). They are known for abducting people to violently “take” their cyberware and implants.
The Scavs have taken over a hospital that was a refuge for those in need, where Anderson provided these people with used implants.
The mission is clearly stated: free the hospital from Scavengers, find Anderson, and rescue him unharmed from his situation. However, like many missions in Cyberpunk, it does not go completely smoothly:
Here is the trailer for the Cyberpunk 2077 DLC Phantom Liberty:
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Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty — Official Trailer
Two Sides of a Dilemma
What decision is crucial? Upon arriving at the clinic and finally locating Anderson, V sees that the doctor is being threatened by Nika Yankovich with a gun. She is searching for her missing brother Gasya, who was once cared for by Anderson. The situation becomes tense, and V must decide whether to shoot Nika.
If V hesitates too long, Anderson reveals that Gasya has already passed away. He had been in a coma, and Anderson had hoped to save some of his implants rather than help him to provide for the less fortunate.
Nika now wants her brother’s body, which Anderson is unwilling to allow. Here, one can decide whether to side with the doctor or the grieving sister.
What happens after both decisions? If one does not want to give Nika the body, she attacks V. The only option then is to take her down so that Anderson can utilize her brother’s body and the mission can be successfully completed.
However, if one gives Nika the body, one later finds her at the edge of the Dogtown wall. The location is specified in this video. She is sitting at her brother’s grave, where one can exchange a few words with her.
While both decisions affect the outcome of the mission differently, there is no “right” solution here. Ironically, Johnny is the one who manages to summarize the situation best:
I feel sorry for the girl. It must be hard for Anderson too. The guy had questionable ethics, but what else is a doctor supposed to do in Dogtown? It was a situation from the start where everyone loses.
What do the players say about it? Despite the dilemma of which person to help in a situation where ultimately no outcome seems “right,” many players have a clear opinion. After all, Nika is a member of the Scavengers, who seemingly got a taste of their own medicine.
“The thing is, we have now been to a few Scav hideouts, seen the flesh on hooks, on butcher tables, and in ice baths… and seen what they did to Evelyn,” says lemao2222 on YouTube, “at least her brother cooked himself and was practically dead, unlike those poor pigs.”
While the decision in Dogtown Saints only significantly affects the end of this mission, there are other decisions that can determine the entire course of the game, from side missions to friendly or hostile corpos to the final fate of V. You can read about some important decisions in the game in this article: Cyberpunk 2077: The three most important story decisions at the restart
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk disagreed with EA’s practices after the company bought and took over his studio. Therefore, he left the developer a few years later. However, he originally had a different, nefarious plan.
What did Zeschuk intend to do? In a podcast with My Perfect Console, Zeschuk revealed that he wanted to change EA from the inside:
I lived in Austin for two and a half years to make Star Wars: The Old Republic, and I knew that it was a kind of dead end. If it had been super successful, super duper successful, Ray [Muzka, co-founder of BioWare, Ed.] and I would probably have made an attempt to take over EA from within, as the corporate pirates that we are.
But for that, his MMORPG, Star Wars: The Old Republic, would have had to be a bigger success than it ultimately was. To get to the negotiating table with EA, the game from the Star Wars universe would have needed to generate about 1.9 billion euros per year. But that didn’t work out, which is why Zeschuk had no basis for negotiation and left the company shortly thereafter.
You can watch the trailer for the MMORPG here:
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Star Wars The Old Republic Trailer
BioWare founder disagreed with EA’s practices
What did he want to change? He describes that he cannot stand large corporations. They only exist to market games. Many North American companies, including EA, would try to squeeze the most money out of a franchise.
However, Zeschuk would not like this practice. He prefers to develop many good games like Mass Effect rather than a few titles from which a lot of money can be extracted. This includes live service games that are supposed to generate money with new content over the years.
How successful is SWTOR then? While the success of Star Wars The Old Republic was a surprise for EA, it did not generate the amount that Zeschuk was talking about:
However, that does not shake the popularity of the game: the MMORPG is still one of the best titles for many players. It is very positively rated on Steam.
The new patch from World of Warcraft is coming and there are many changes. We have summarized all the details that concern your class.
With patch 11.1 Lorenhalt, not only does the second season of the expansion The War Within begin in World of Warcraft, but there are also plenty of new features. Many classes and specializations are being revised, some quite drastically. So that you are not caught off guard at the release on 26.02.2025, we have summarized all the important changes for you.
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3 absurde Bugs, die in WoW passiert sind
An overview of class changes
Below we summarize the class adjustments roughly so that you have an overview of the most important changes. If your specialization is not mentioned here, the changes are only minor.
Death Knights will be a little less survivable in their DPS specializations but will do more damage. Additionally, “Unstoppable Glacier” gets a new animation that fits the time.
Death Knights were a bit too lively – that will be corrected.
Tank Demon Hunters are getting a major overhaul that will change the gameplay significantly. There are many new talents and defensive abilities such as “Demon Spikes” now have a longer duration and can be maintained for a longer period. This should make Demon Hunter tanks significantly more attractive, which were virtually extinct in the first season.
For Druids, the class talent tree is being drastically overhauled. There are many new talents and the arrangement of old talents has been adjusted. Basically, it is now much easier to access all “meaningful” abilities for a chosen specialization, and there is more flexibility.
Summoners are getting a rework of their “Flame Warden” hero talents, making them more useful in dungeons. At the same time, the enhancement summoner is significantly adjusted, so that he only transfers his enhancement effects to other DPS characters and has less influence on tanks and healers. This is intended to take Summoners out of their “meta role” – because in the high-level gameplay area, a Summoner was practically mandatory.
Hunters have by far the largest number of new features. All three specializations have been overhauled along with their hero talents. The most important is that Marksman Hunters can now use their “Beast Effects” like Berserk, even if they are without a companion. All three specializations now feel more rounded and intuitive. There are many new talents and over 20 old talents have been removed. It is worth taking a look at the extensive details.
Mages receive adjustments in all three specializations, which are somewhat less significant. While the Arcane Mage has been slightly simplified and has higher trigger chances from many talents, the Fire Mage has seen a slight reduction in resources, but is compensated with powerful attacks that pack a bit more punch.
Monks receive only minor changes. The biggest adjustments are for Mistweavers. Healing is slightly shifted so that Mistweavers can work better for both group and single healing, and occasionally incorporate offensive abilities.
Paladins can look forward to more healing as healers but must accept minor to moderate nerfs to their self-healing as tanks. They will therefore be more dependent on a healer, but can deal more damage.
Paladins are in a good position with patch 11.1.
For the Priest, there are few changes for Shadow, but significant adjustments for Discipline. The number of available cooldowns is reduced, and the dominant role of Discipline Priests in dungeons is thereby diminished. Holy Priests also receive massive adjustments, and there is now a new play style that focuses on Renewal.
The Rogue receives only minor adjustments. There are slight improvements to Outlaw, such as an increased chance of rolling a flush. The other adjustments are merely details.
For Shaman, massive changes are coming for Enhancement. The damage of this specialization shifts from ranged abilities (which consume Maelstrom) more towards melee abilities. This is likely to reduce the burst damage of the class somewhat. A look at the details on page 2 is worth it. Healing Shamans can better benefit from Healing Tide, but there are only minor adjustments here as well.
Warlocks will be a bit easier to play in all three specializations. There are more passive effects (if desired), and some talents are now more rewarding. The adjustments are relatively minor compared to other classes.
Warlocks have been made a bit too complicated – this will be corrected. If desired.
Warriors are being slightly revised, especially Protection Warriors. They will now need to press fewer buttons to fulfill their role as a tank – it was so much before that it was even physically uncomfortable to play. Other specializations receive only minor updates that have little impact on the playing style.
A particularly significant adjustment is being made for all tank specializations, as they will now be able to contribute much more to the performance of the group. Even if some tanks have lost a bit of their survivability, they will all be allowed to deal significantly more damage from now on.
Because all tanks deal around 20% more damage with all (or selected) abilities with patch 11.1. It will therefore happen more often in dungeons and raids that you, as tanks, are closely following the DPS characters – or even overtake them if the situation allows.
What else is in the patch? Of course, the changes to the classes are only a small part of patch 11.1 Lorenhalt. The centerpiece is the new gameplay content, that is, the area Lorenhall with the story surrounding the Goblin cartels and the continuation of the plot surrounding Xal’atath and their plans.
In addition to a new season with fresh dungeons, a large, interesting raid, and a completely new mode of movement, there are also new depths and an improvement of progress for solo players. More information on all the major changes can be found in our overview of patch 11.1 Lorenhalt.
If you are interested in the full, very detailed patch notes, you can view them on the second page of this article. If that is too cumbersome for you, you can also learn about the decision made by the developer over 20 years ago that still ensures that WoW remains a blockbuster.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
