Category: News

One of Sony’s most unique console exclusives is headed for a surprise PC release in August. Guerrilla Games announced on Friday that Horizon Zero Dawn will arrive on both Steam and the Epic Games Store on August 7, removing the PS4 exclusive title just months before the console’s successor is expected to drop in late 2020.

The 2017 release will come with a few new bells and whistles when it drops in August. Most of them come on the graphical side with multiple ways to improve resolution, including an option for superwide resolutions. These graphic updates will only whet the appetite of those who wanted to play Horizon, but were unwilling to play it for the Playstation 4.

On top of the graphical updates, this PC edition will also carry The Frozen Wilds DLC as well, giving PC gamers the full Aloy experience. An experience that if you haven’t experienced yet, you absolutely should.

Rumors started flying in January about a potential PC port of Horizon Zero Dawn, but until today’s announcement nothing was substantiated. Also, Horizon isn’t the only PS4 exclusive to head to PC as Death Stranding will be out on PC later this month. With this release, it’s fair to wonder if the PS5 will see a similar re-release with updated graphics. A new title in the series, Horizon: Forbidden West, is reportedly slated for a release in 2021 and there are few better ways to stoke excitement than re-releasing this game for all to enjoy.

The NBA’s bubble league in Orlando faces a number of questions that stem from the fact that it is occurring amid a global pandemic, something that is magnified by the fact that Florida has been one of the states hit hardest in recent days and weeks. But beyond that, the United States is in the midst of frequent calls for social reform following the death of George Floyd, a Minnesota man who was killed by a police officer earlier this year.

In the aftermath, untold numbers of individuals have taken to the streets worldwide in an effort to spur widespread change in the face of systemic inequality that disproportionately targets individuals of color. A number of NBA players have reportedly raised this as a concern, with the belief being that basketball coming back would take away from the attention that is currently on this moment.

The NBA’s response to this has included promising to “drive direct action and create meaningful and generational change” through off-court initiatives that spark societal change. There have also been examples of things the league will do in Orlando to show solidarity with this movement, like a report that indicated players can have social justice-inspired messages across the backs of their uniforms where their nameplates would be. On Friday, we got the entire approved list of slogans that players can use, as approved by the NBA and the NBPA.

Via Marc Spears:

The list of the approved suggested social messages, per the source, for the back of the NBA jerseys: Black Lives Matter; Say Their Names; Vote; I Can’t Breathe; Justice; Peace; Equality; Freedom; Enough; Power to the People; Justice Now; Say Her Name; Sí Se Puede (Yes We Can); Liberation; See Us; Hear Us; Respect Us; Love Us; Listen; Listen to Us; Stand Up; Ally; Anti-Racist; I Am A Man; Speak Up; How Many More; Group Economics; Education Reform; and Mentor.

Spears had previously reported that, in an effort to be sensitive towards those who have lost a loved one, players would not be allowed to display the names of those that “died in police custody or in racially motivated incidents.”

Next week marks two months since Tekashi 69 made his return to music, social media antics, trolling, and all things that come with the package of being the outspoken rapper that he is. Since his return, Tekashi has debut two new singles, “Gooba” and “Trollz,” and landed a No. 1 spot on the Billboard singles chart thanks to the latter Nicki Minaj-featuring single. He also stirred up a bit of controversy following accusation of chart manipulation against Billboard as well as a “Locked Up” remix with Akon that social media was not too happy about.

With all that in the past, Tekashi pushes full-steam ahead with his latest release. Returning to Latin music for the first time since his sophomore album, Tekashi debuts his latest release, “Yaya.” He previewed the single earlier this week directly from his home studio. On the song, Tekashi shows off his Spanish skills as he speaks it for the majority of the song. Tekashi’s last dive into the Spanish language came on “Bebe,” from his sophomore album, Dummy Boy.

The new single arrives after Tekashi proudly announced he was just a month away from ending his house arrest sentence. “I have about 34 more days til house arrest is over, about 34 more days and the ankle monitor comes off and the king of New York is back on the street,” he said earlier this week.

Watch the “Yaya” video above.

If nothing below suits your sensibilities, check out our guide to What You Should Watch On Streaming Right Now.

Hamilton (Disney+, Friday) — After a bumped-up release date, the cinematic version of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s original Broadway production (which nearly broke the Tony Award record and fetched a Pulitzer Prize, a Grammy, and an Olivier Award as well) will be streamable in your living room for Independence Day weekend. The movie version promises to bring “live capture” to viewers in an artistic way, which will harness the power of streaming in an intimate manner, for something that Hamilton fans have never experienced. Read our interview of Okieriete Onaodowan, the longest-tenured original cast member, and enjoy the new behind-the-scenes documentary after the show.

I Am Not Your Negro (Hulu documentary, Friday) — This James Baldwin doc (narrated by Samuel L. Jackson) is based upon his unfinished manuscript, Remember This House, and is based upon his equality-seeking experiences as well as those from civil rights leaders including Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.

Warrior Nun (Netflix series, Thursday) — This manga-comic-book adaptation does indeed contain warrior-ing and nunn-ing, but it’s much more than that, including a superhero origin story, a coming-of-age tale, and an often-schlocky creation that arrives with certain expectations from the title itself. The action might take a few breaks, but when it’s on, expect some serious butt kicking of demons.

Hanna: Season 2 (Amazon Prime series, Thursday) — The gritty TV adaptation of Joe Wright’s 2011 film continues after saying goodbye to Joel Kinnaman’s Erik (RIP). Now, the teen assassin has a foe in Utrax’s new leader, John Carmichael, who’s portrayed by Dermot Mulroney. Nothing like a dose of Dermot to antagonize things up, and Mireille Enos will also return as her CIA operative character.

Unsolved Mysteries (Netflix series, Wednesday) — This revival should satisfy fans of the original and newcomers alike. Yes, there are some key differences between the show that ran for 14 years, but it feels fresh while still maintaining familiarity. That is to say, these cases will still thrill and chill and captivate the true crime-buff audience, so enjoy this six-episode batch with more to come.

The Whistlers (42 Km Film on Hulu, Thursday) — Romanian New Wave director Corneliu Porumboiu’s 2019 festival-circuit film has a heist for you. The story involves a Romanian cop. who just happens to be a whistleblower, learning a coded whistling language (for real) to help mobsters escape from prison and steal millions of euros.

Thiago Ventura: POKAS (Netflix special, Thursday) — Another stand-up comedy special’s here to bridge the gap between the streaming giant’s regular Tuesday comedy infusions. Thiago Ventura will tell anecdotes about growing up in a poor Brazilian community while digging into social issues and taking a clear stance of actions mattering much more than words.

Say I Do (Netflix series, Wednesday) — Just what we need, another reality romance show, right? This one revolves around couples who have always planned on getting married but just never got around to tying that knot. Interior Designer Jeremiah Brent, Fashion Designer Thai Nguyen, and Chef Gabriele Bertaccini are all about creating dream weddings, and hopefully, we’ll see some Bride- and Groom-zillas.

Here’s the rest of this weekend’s notable programming:

Black Monday (Sunday, Showtime 8:00 p.m.) — Blair greets election night with a risky proposition, and it’s double-date time for Mo and Dawn.

Perry Mason (Sunday, HBO 9:00 p.m.) — Mason and Strickland are working to gain some unauthorized access to physical evidence at the city morgue while the DA uses a new development to gain favor with the public.

The Chi (Sunday, Showtime 9:00 p.m.) — Emmett’s working on getting his new business of the ground, so he and Tiff move in with Jada.

Snowpiercer (Sunday, TNT 9:00 p.m.) — The time for revolution has arrived, so Melanie can say goodbye to power while Layton leads an armed rebellion.

I’ll Be Gone In The Dark (Sunday, HBO 10:00 p.m.) — This true-crime docuseries is revolutionary, much like the Michelle McNamara book that fueled it. This is a duel-edged story of obsession and a “portrait of an artist” — one who pursued justice for dozens of survivors and victims’ families, decades after law enforcement let the Golden State Killer case go cold. It’s about those survivors, and it’s about the citizen investigators, including Michelle. She was a wife (to Patton Oswalt), a mother, a friend, and, yes, an obsessive, who was instrumental in solving this case, but not before it consumed her as well.

NOS4A2 (Sunday, AMC & BBC America 10:00 p.m.) — Charlie Manx is looking for a favor from an old friend while Millie’s revisiting the past, and Vic’s hopping on the shorter way while leaving Lou and Wayne to confront a threat on their own.

Outcry (Sunday, Showtime 10:00 p.m.) — This five-part documentary launches to examine the case of high school football star Greg Kelley’s controversial conviction and sentencing for child molestation, along with the subsequent quest for truth and justice.

Desus & Mero (Sunday, Showtime 11:00 p.m.) — The illustrious guest will be New York educator and politician Jamaal Bowman.

Fortnite has leaned into comic book culture a number of times over the years. Whether it’s been the heavy influence that Deadpool has played on a number of facets of the game, or the time that Thanos’ Infinity Gauntlet was available as a weapon that gamers could use, or a handful of other examples, Fortnite has leaned into the fact that the Marvel and D.C. universes have gigantic followings with some frequency.

The latest example of this came on Thursday, when Fortnite released a trailer for its newest comic-inspired instillation into its gigantic corner of the video game-playing world: Captain America. The video announced that gamers will have the opportunity to toss on the red, white, and blue, pick up his shield, and play as Steve Rogers.

According to The Verge, picking up this skin will run gamers 2,000 V-bucks, and in addition to getting to toss on Captain America’s threads, his shield with serve as a pickaxe, meaning gamers can use it to farm materials or, if you are like me and never seem to pick up a weapon in time when you land on the same house as someone else in Pleasant Park, as a weapon. Beyond the skin, The Verge noted that gamers can drop 300 V-bucks on a Captain America fireworks emote as well.

In recent years, a brighter light has been shined on the idea that women in rap aren’t treated the same way men are. In some ways, though, things have started to turn around. Just halfway through 2019, for example, there were more female rappers on the Hot 100 chart than there were in any other year of the decade. That same year, Cardi B became the first solo female rapper to win the Grammy for Best Rap Album, with Invasion Of Privacy picking up the honor.

As far as Janelle Monáe is concerned, though, there is still progress to be made. She let her thoughts be known about the topic today, when she said she “really only ever [wants to] hear women rapping” and offered an explanation for that statement.

Monae tweeted, “I really only ever wanna hear women rapping. The amount of misogyny from most of men in rap and music is infuriating. We need to abolish that sh*t too.” She then retweeted a response to her tweet, which reads, “I feel the same. Even the ‘woke’ male rappers have a lot of misogynistic lyrics.” Monáe continued, “Women (black women inparticular) have been betrayed by the majority of men for far too long. The systems that enable Patriarchy and abusers of power are burning. Either bring gasoline or burn with them.” She then added, “Y’all can’t wait to call women every b*tch, hoe, discuss violent acts against women, etc for clout in rap, rock, and through out music history. Misogny has NEVER been okay yet it has become normalized. Women didn’t create misogny, y’all did. SO YOU DO THE WORK to ABOLISH IT.”

Monáe has recently voiced her opinions on other pertinent goings-on as well, like when she and other artists spoke out against the Buffalo police officers who shoved an elderly man to the ground.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

There is no such thing as a normal release or announcement of something new anymore. Deviating from traditional project rollouts is a good way to get eyes on it, and that might be what Kid Cudi has done today. Last night, he simply tweeted the date for next Friday, writing, “7/10/2020.”

This sort of cryptic message is usually interpreted to mean that whoever tweeted it has something coming on that date, so next Friday could very well bring something new from Cudi. But what could it be? There are a few possibilities for what that day could bring.

Last week, Cudi teased a new animated Kids See Ghosts show with Kanye West, so perhaps that will drop next week. He’s also considered starting a podcast, so maybe the first installment of that is on the way. He could also be releasing new music to follow up his recent No. 1 song with Travis Scott, “The Scotts.” Cudi recently called on Eminem for some sort of “help,” so optimistically, maybe they have something in the works.

Whatever the case may be, Cudi doesn’t tend to put a ton of misses out into the world, so whatever might be coming on Friday, it’s probably worth looking forward to.

Like many of her peers in music, Megan Thee Stallion has been a vocal supporter of the Black Lives Matter protests that have sprung up in the wake of George Floyd’s death over the past month-plus. Megan has reiterated her endorsement of the movement in a new NME cover story, in which she calls BLM protests “part two of the civil rights movement.”

Megan discussed her willingness to speak out about certain subjects, despite the lines she has to toe as a public figure. She said, “Sometimes being a public figure, you don’t wanna say the wrong thing because you don’t want to be insensitive to people or get too opinionated. But I will always say what I feel. I don’t speak on things that I don’t know about, and I won’t speak on things I don’t believe in.”

She also offered her thoughts on the “strong Black woman” stereotype, saying, “Let me tell you, Black women are strong. We can be going through whatever and still put on a good face. I know there were times that my mother might have been going through things but I never knew, because she wanted me to feel safe and OK.”

Read the full feature story here.

Seth Rogen is no stranger to beards and oddball New York comedies, but in An American Pickle he’s pulling double duty as a bizarro Captain America. Friday brought the trailer for the HBO Max movie starring Rogen as both a modern New Yorker and an ancestor that’s been missing for a century as part of a strange pickling incident.

The setup is the briny American Dream: Rogen’s character and his wife, played by Sarah Snook (Shiv, from Succession) have dreams of leaving the old country and finding prosperity in America in the early 20th century. The immigration means Rogen goes from a life of ditch-digging to killing rats in a pickle-making facility, where he accidentally falls into a brining vat and is preserved.

Somehow he survives 100 years in the condemned factory and emerges to experience a very different New York City. It’s basically a pickled version of Captain America, minus the super powers and adding in a lot more kosher salt and vinegar.

“The world has changed,” Rogen narrates with an accent as he holds a newspaper clipping of Snook’s obituary during the trailer. “Everyone I know is gone.”

But he tracks down a great grandson, also played by an accent-less Rogen, who shows him the ropes of the modern Big Apple. The plot apparently mixes the modern Rogen finding his way, a very confounded brined Rogen learning about David Bowie and the eradication of polio, and maybe some artisan pickles. It looks like a nice mix of heartfelt and absurd, which is a perfect distraction from a reality where surviving 100 years in a vat of pickles would serve as a nice relaxing staycation of sorts. An American Pickle hits HBO Max on August 6, just in time to watch it while taking a nice soak in a pool of something other than pickle juice.

For years, individuals and groups alike have argued that Washington’s NFL team should change its name, arguing the name used since 1933 is offensive to Native Americans. The franchise has pushed back at every turn, but following a number of threats from corporate sponsors, it appears the team is preparing to make some sort of change to its longtime brand.

A recent report by Adweek indicated that a number of investors that are worth a combined $620 billion wrote a letter to a trio of the team’s largest sponsors — FedEx, Nike, and PepsiCo — calling on them to divest from the franchise as long as it kept its current name. Shortly after, FexEx asked Washington to make the move, while Nike stopped listing team merchandise on its website.

All of this financial pressure on the organization appears to have paid off. In a statement by the franchise that included quotes from owner Dan Snyder and head coach Ron Rivera, the team announced a “thorough review” is underway.

The review has the support of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, a name change is likely in the cards.

There is no word on a potential timetable for a name change, nor are there any rumblings of what the team’s new name could possibly become. According to BetOnline, which put out odds for a potential new name, “Presidents” is currently the favorite.