Goodbye Twitter, hello X
The day we’ve long been dreading (or rather, awaiting in nervous anticipation) has finally arrived. Twitter is no more, and ‘X’ — yes, that’s the name and not his kid’s nickname — will reign supreme. At least that’s what the company’s capricious owner said in a slew of tweets on Saturday evening, noting that the app’s name would be changing, along with the iconic blue bird that’s so inextricably linked to it.
“And soon we shall bid adieu to the Twitter brand and, gradually, all the birds,” he tweeted. He later went on to say, “It should have been done a long time ago, sorry it took so long,” during a Twitter X(?) Space, where he also confirmed the logo would be changing on Sunday.
That time has officially come. We were going to write some snarky piece on how Elon’s ideas always take too long to implement. In the end, it was we that were too late. Regardless, the iconic Twitter bird is gone, replaced by the infinitely more bland ‘X’. It might take a while for your phone’s app to update – but if you log into Twitter (that’s what the URL says), you’ll notice the change in decoration.
The current CEO of Twitter, Linda Yaccarino, said the ‘new’ X, however different it might look, would be “powered by AI” and is “the future state of unlimited interactivity – centered in audio, video, messaging, payments/banking…”
“X will be the platform that can deliver, well… everything,” she continued. What that’ll actually look like when the rebrand takes place, we’re not so sure. All we want to know is: what the hell will tweets be called? Xeets?
You might want to check your Ubisoft account
Honestly, when was the last time you logged into your Ubisoft account? It’s been a minute, right? Yeah, you might want to keep an eye on your emails, because Ubisoft is going nuclear. The has-been of the games industry, Ubisoft, has been deleting “inactive accounts” because… uh, they can. That includes all the account’s purchases, unlocks, and progress – all in the name of the company’s terms of use.
Fear not! Ubisoft is warning those accounts that have gone a little stale in the form of an email, letting them know that they have 30 days to log back into their accounts and save it from the Void™. If you, like many, miss that email, you can start kissing all your stuff goodbye.
“We have temporarily suspended your inactive Ubisoft account and will be closing it permanently in 30 days in accordance with our Terms of Use.”
This rule, apparently, has been a part of Ubisoft’s terms of service for years, something that many people glossed over in their signing up on the platform. That means Ubisoft is well within its rights to go after inactive accounts legally, though morally, it’s a little shady.
All this to say: if you’ve got a mail from Ubisoft sitting in your inbox, it’s best not to ignore it. It’s understood that a single sign-in is enough to deem the account ‘active’ again. You can log a support case with Ubisoft right here if you’ve been affected by the company’s dodgy schemes.
Project Q is real, and it might be kinda cool
Ever since Sony’s reveal of the handheld “console” back in May, we’ve been against it. Despite not knowing much about it, we know that it’ll require an active internet connection to stream games from a nearby PS5 console – which isn’t exactly cheap to begin with. Our mind could be about to change, what with an onslaught of leaks from @Zuby_Tech that indicate the handheld might be running Android.
These leaks look like the real deal. It’s not just a bunch of information someone is telling you to believe. These are actual photos and even a video showing the oddly-split DualSense controller encasing the 8in touchscreen LCD display. That’s a leak in itself, but it’s the hardware that caught our eye first.
The device appears to be running some sort of Android build with a Qualcomm chip taking residence inside. It’s got all the typical symptoms – three-button navigators, an ‘apps’ page, and a few Android test apps. There’s also a “QC Test” app that points to the chip inside being a Snapdragon one.
We’re still awaiting a final look at the device and software that’ll ship to consumers when Sony ever decides to do a deep dive into the workings of the console, which should be soon if the rumours of a November release ring true. But if it’s got an Android OS backing it all up? The possibilities could be endless.
Make Borderlands great again
There’s a new Borderlands project in the pipeline! Woohoo, right? Wrong. Temper that excitement because Hollywood is sticking its nose where it doesn’t belong again. And no, we’re not talking about that Borderlands movie that’s been stuck in development hell for years (and now has Jack Black attached?). No, we’re talking about Borderlands: EchoVision Live – an “interactive streaming series.”
It’s been described by its creator, Genvid Entertainment, as… well, we’ll just let you read it:
“Fans will have direct and permanent influence on the story and characters of Borderlands: EchoVision Live, an unfolding narrative experience in which all audience members engage over which story decisions are made and collectively experience a shared outcome.”
The announcement doesn’t go into much more detail on how that’ll actually work, though if you’ve had the misfortune of watching Netflix’s interactive Black Mirror episode, you’ll know what to expect. We also know that it’s similar to Silent Hill: Ascension, another interactive series from Genvid. That’ll allow watchers to vote each week on what happens to the series’ characters, a system that’ll most likely be in place for Borderlands.
As for the story… it’s Borderlands. Duh. It follows “eight wannabe Vault Hunters” who “fork over their hard-earned cash for a safely guided tour of Eden-6 – all the excitement with none of the danger! What could possibly go wrong?”
No release date has been attached, but we’re betting it’ll be sometime after the more well-known Ascension hits the small screen. So… sometime in 2024.