Xbox and Bethesda dropped a *ton* of sweet game trailers at their E3 kickoff

Xbox and Bethesda dropped a *ton* of sweet game trailers at their E3 kickoff

Halo? Jack Sparrow in Sea of Thieves? A proper first look at Bethesda’s long-awaited Starfield? A new batch of Game Pass games for subscribers? All here, and then some.

Microsoft and Bethesda Softworks kicked off their E3 2021 on Sunday afternoon with an extended onslaught of reveals and new trailer drops from the two storied publishers. It was notably the first E3 press conference for either of them since Microsoft’s blockbuster Bethesda acquisition in 2020.

That’s especially notable because both brands have, in recent years especially, tended to dominate many of the headlines coming out of E3 with their surprises and big-name exclusives. Now, with everything from Elder Scrolls to Halo to Doom to Minecraft all under the same corporate stewardship, two blockbuster press conferences have merged into one. Read more…

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A ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ game is coming in October and it looks freakin’ rad

A 'Guardians of the Galaxy' game is coming in October and it looks freakin' rad

Ready for a Marvel surprise? Square Enix has a Guardians of the Galaxy game coming, and it’s totally separate from the publisher’s 2020 Avengers game.

In fact, this game couldn’t be further from the online super team-up gameGuardians of the Galaxy is a solitary, story-driven adventure that puts players in the role of Peter Quill, aka Star-Lord, at a time when he and his misfit family of teammates are still getting to know each other after only a year of working together.

Based on what we’ve seen so far, it looks like the game delivers a pretty familiar mix of combat, exploration, and character interactions, with the choices you make influencing the plot to some extent. You’ll also notice stuff like health bars and ability menus in the footage. Like I said, familiar stuff, but excitingly, it’s playing out here in a Marvel universe. Read more…

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There’s more than one way to check battery life on the Apple Watch

There's more than one way to check battery life on the Apple Watch

The Apple Watch has many strengths, but battery life isn’t one of them. While Apple’s smartwatches are rated for up to 18 hours of power (depending on usage), it’s not the same as the days-long battery life offered by competitors.  

If you use the Apple Watch to track sleep and other daily metrics, receive notifications, and more, then you should also keep a close eye on battery life.

Here’s how to check how much juice is left on your Apple Watch. 

Swipe up to the Control Center

All you have to do is swipe up on the Apple Watch display.

All you have to do is swipe up on the Apple Watch display.

Image: screenshot / apple

To check battery life from the Apple Watch itself, swipe up on the display to access the Control Center. From there, you’ll be able to see the battery percentage.  Read more…

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‘In The Heights’ is Hollywood going Bollywood in the best way

'In The Heights' is Hollywood going Bollywood in the best way

On June 10, I went back to the movies.

Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jon M. Chu’s In The Heights hit theaters and HBO Max on Friday, but finally seeing it confirmed what I suspected since the very first trailers debuted online:  For In The Heights, Hollywood went Bollywood.

I have waxed about Indian movie musicals at length on this website and others, but in recent years — especially since Aladdin — my frustration grew with Hollywood’s failure to realize the same potential in its own live-action musicals. I’ve run into this in my own experience as a part-time dancer, creating videos with various other performers and companies. Performance is different for an audience than a camera, right down to singing live versus lip-sync. Video choreography is often more intense since dancers can rest in between takes and only perform small sections at a time. Read more…

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Educators rally to #TeachTruth as the GOP tries to silence lessons on U.S. oppression

Educators rally to  #TeachTruth as the GOP tries to silence lessons on U.S. oppression

On Saturday, educators all around the U.S. made it abundantly clear that legal maneuvers aren’t going to stop them from bringing truth to the students in their classrooms.

The nationwide protest was conceived as a response to ongoing efforts by Republican lawmakers to set rules on what is and isn’t OK in U.S. classrooms, particularly when it comes to lessons on U.S. history. Despite the very real and proven roles that racism, sexism, and other forms of oppression have played in the development of U.S. society, the GOP’s ongoing culture war calls for patriotism to supersede the importance of facts in schools. Read more…

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Vin Diesel says ‘Fast and Furious’ saga will end in 2024

Vin Diesel says 'Fast and Furious' saga will end in 2024

After more than 20 years, the story of Dominic Toretto is drawing to a close — but not any time soon. Vin Diesel told The Associated Press on Thursday that after two more films, his chapter of the Fast and Furious saga will end in 2024.

“Every story deserves its own ending,” Diesel said during a F9 press junket. “I know people are going to feel like it doesn’t have to end, but I think all good things should,” he said. “There are reasons for a finale. I think this franchise has deserved it.”

That isn’t to say that there won’t be more Fast and Furious films period. Other characters could get spinoffs — like we already saw with Hobbs & Shaw — or the films could maybe even reboot one day with new cast members entirely. As long as the cars go vroom, we’re in. Read more…

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The ‘queer aesthetic’ is deeper than rainbow merch

The 'queer aesthetic' is deeper than rainbow merch

Mashable is celebrating Pride Month by exploring the modern LGBTQ world, from the people who make up the community to the spaces where they congregate, both online and off.


As well-intentioned as Pride merchandise may be, mullets and cuffed pants capture the “queer aesthetic” far better than anything dripping in rainbow logos. But that doesn’t mean they’re safe from rainbow capitalism. 

In a TikTok posted in April, Giulia Beaudoin asked viewers why a mirror selfie of someone with green hair, wire rimmed glasses, and black high-top Converse is “so much more gay” than a photo of herself dressed in rainbow suspenders and a hat emblazoned with “PRIDE.”  Read more…

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How to delete your Tinder account

How to delete your Tinder account

Well, the time has come to delete your Tinder account. Maybe you’re a lucky user who’s found your person! Or maybe you’re just sick of the fire emblem staring back at you every weekend night when you don’t have a date.

Either way, here’s how to do it.

How to delete your Tinder account

To permanently delete your Tinder account, you must be signed in either on the app or the browser site (Tinder.com). Tap on the profile icon, then go to Settings. Scroll down and click “Delete Account.”

How to delete your Tinder account

Image: mashable

Deleting the app from your smartphone won’t delete your account — nor will it delete your subscription if you’re a paid user. If you bought a subscription with your Apple ID or Google Play ID, you must cancel the subscription separately. Here are instructions for how to cancel an Apple subscription and how to cancel a Google Play subscription. Read more…

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If you’ve never seen an E3 showcase from Devolver Digital, it’s time to treat yourself

If you've never seen an E3 showcase from Devolver Digital, it's time to treat yourself

For most publishers and creators of video games, E3 is a time for business. Yeah, it’s fun to meet with the community and get those exciting reveals out. But ultimately, there’s a job to be done.

That’s just as true for Devolver Digital as it is for all the rest, but gaming’s most punk indie publisher hides it so well. Where you’d normally expect a major publisher like E3 to trot out the news in the most widely accessible way possible, Devolver gets weird. That was as true in 2021 as it’s always been.

If you really want to get all the in-jokes here — it’s a legit cinematic universe at this point — then you’ll want to go back and catch up with Devolver’s showcases from 2017, 2018, 2019, and yes, even 2020. But the deranged 2021 showcase is a totally enjoyable watch on its own, too.  Read more…

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How to cancel YouTube TV

How to cancel YouTube TV

If you’ve “cut the cord” with a YouTube TV subscription, but now you want to actually cancel YouTube TV itself, here’s how to do it.

Canceling or pausing YouTube TV on browser

On YouTube’s website, click on your avatar on the top right corner. Choose Settings from the dropdown menu. Then select Membership from the left-side menu. Under YouTube TV, you’ll see an option to “Pause or cancel membership.”

The former allows you to stop your membership from four weeks to six months. Your YouTube TV account will pause after the next billing date, and you won’t be charged during the pause period.

By pausing, you keep current library recordings but you won’t have access to YouTube TV or new recordings. All family accounts will be paused, as well. When the pause period is up, you will be charged and have access to all features again, or you can manually end the pause early and resume the membership whenever you’d like. If you’d rather pause your account, just click PAUSE. Read more…

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