Netflix is building its own game studio

Netflix is no longer relying exclusively on third-party teams to bolster its game catalog. The streaming giant is forming an in-house game studio in Helsinki, Finland to create “world-class” original games without ads or in-app purchases. While it’s too soon for details of the games themselves, Zynga and EA alumnus Marko Lastikka will serve as director.

Helsinki is a good fit as the home to some of the “best game talent” on the planet, according to Netflix. This includes The Walking Dead mobile developer Next Games (which Netflix bought in March). Netflix has purchased multiple developers, including Boss Fight and Oxenfree creator Night School Studio, but hasn’t built a developer from scratch until now.

You won’t see the first fruits of this internal studio for “years,” Netflix says. Still, this and recent acquisitions show how the company’s gaming strategy is evolving. Where Netflix initially depended on outsiders’ games, including slightly tweaked versions of existing titles, it’s increasingly focused on truly unique projects you won’t find elsewhere. In theory, more people will subscribe to Netflix with the game library in mind.

Watch NASA crash DART into an asteroid at 6PM ET

NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft is about to crash into the asteroid Dimorphos, and you’ll have plenty of options to follow along as it happens. The space agency is livestreaming coverage of the DART collision starting at 6PM Eastern, and you can tune into either a full presentation or a dedicated stream from the craft’s DRACO (Didymos Reconnaissance and Asteroid Camera for Optical Navigation) instrument. That last feed will show one image per second up to the moment of impact. The vehicle is expected to smash into Dimorphos at about 7:14PM, although its distance from Earth will delay the footage you see.

You aren’t tied to official sources, either. The Virtual Telescope Project will host its own stream starting at 6:30PM ET. It’s teaming up with two South African observatories to provide an Earth-bound view of the collision. The Didymos asteroid system (where Dimorphos is a moonlet) will just be a dot, but you should see it flare up after DART makes contact.

DART will gauge the viability of using spacecraft to deflect asteroids, comets and other objects that might otherwise strike Earth. If all goes well, it will show that NASA can use autonomous vehicles as defensive systems and confirm the results using ground telescopes. Dimorphos is an ideal candidate due to both its relative proximity and the lack of threats — NASA won’t inadvertently create the very calamity it’s trying to avoid.

This won’t be the only mission headed to the Didymos system, either. The European Space Agency expects its Hera mission to reach Didymos by 2026, when it will study DART’s effects on Dimorphos. If there are any questions left after tonight’s one-way flight, they should be answered within a few years.

Lego unveils a 6,187-piece Mandalorian ‘Razor Crest’ set

Lego has pulled back the curtain on its latest Star Wars set, and it’s one that will keep you occupied for a while. It’s a 72 cm-long version of the Razor Crest from the Disney+ show The Mandalorian. While there was already a 1,000-piece version of Din Djarin’s ship, this one has 6,187 pieces.

The set, which is part of the Star Wars Ultimate Collector Series, features removable engines, along with a cockpit, escape pod and a carbon-freezing chamber that’s just the right size for a minifigure. Speaking of which, minifigures of Grogu, the Mandalorian, Mythrol and Kuiil (who can be placed on a buildable Blurrg model) come with the set. You can display the figures on a stand that includes an information plaque.

Lego Star Wars The Mandalorian Razor Crest set
Lego

The model, which is 50 cm wide and 24 cm tall, costs $600. Lego VIP members can snap it up on October 3rd. Everyone else will have a shot at buying the Razor Crest set on October 7th at Lego’s website and stores.

Building the set could help fans of The Mandalorian pass some time until the show returns. The third season is slated to hit Disney+ in February 2023.

iPhone 14 Pro、Watch Ultra、AirPods Pro 2 全開箱 + 用後感分享｜Engadget Update EP153

Apple 2022 年的手機、耳機、手錶新品 iPhone 14 Pro、Watch Ultra、AirPods Pro 2 都已經正式開賣了，小編也使用了有一星期的時間，最近還是有很多朋友在問「值得升級嗎？」、「好用嗎？」等等。今天的 Engadget Update 就跟大家一起分享一下使用心得，還有一些新配件可以給大家參考看看，要怎樣一併升級喔！…

UK warns TikTok of £27 million fine over child privacy violations

TikTok isn’t just facing financial penalties in the US over claimed child privacy breaches. The UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has warned TikTok that it might face a £27 million (about $29.2 million) fine after the watchdog determined that the social network may have broken data protection law by “failing to protect” kids’ privacy between May 2018 and July 2020. The company may have handled the data of children under 13 without parental consent, processed “special category” data (such as ethnicity, sexual orientation or health) without a legal foundation and didn’t offer necessary information to users in a “concise, transparent and easily understood” fashion.

ICO began investigating TikTok in February 2019, soon after the US’ Federal Trade Commission fined the social media heavyweight $5.7 million over reported child privacy infringements. At the time, the UK overseer was concerned about both TikTok’s “completely open” direct messaging as well as its transparency tools. Sexual predators were found messaging users as young as eight years old, and it was relatively easy for kids to bypass the app’s age gate.

The office stressed that these were preliminary findings, and that there was no definitive conclusion that TikTok broke the law or will pay a fine. ICO added it would “carefully consider” TikTok’s stance before making a final decision. We’ve asked the company for comment, and will let you know if we hear back.

There’s mounting pressure on TikTok to protect kids. In the US, members of Congress and state attorneys general are grilling TikTok over possible harms to child users, including attempts to keep them riveted to using the app. A UK fine might not be the end of the company’s troubles, at least until politicians and regulators are satisfied it’s keeping young people safe.

Major Audacity update makes it a much better audio production tool

Audacity is best known as a free app to do quick audio edits and record audio, but the latest update makes it more viable as a full on production tool, parent Muse Group has announced. Version 3.2 now supports non-destructive editing, real-time effects and enhanced VST3 support, along with user interface improvements and faster audio sharing via a new service, audio.com.

The most welcome addition is non-destructive audio capabilities that allow creators to adjust effects without the changes being permanently baked into the audio file. It also supports real-time playback of effects and crossfades as you adjust them, allowing for more accurate edits while listening to audio. That compares to previous versions, which required that you render the effect before you could hear it.

The company has completely rewritten the code base for VST plugins to improve stability and reliability, while adding improved support for VST3. It also addressed concerns about what we’ve called its “ugly and a bit archaic” user interface. And it now offers a “clearer and more consistent set of visuals” in the top bar for editing, with a new “Audio Setup” option that makes it easier to change input, mic and output settings. 

Finally, the new audio.com site lets you easily share audio files by sending a link rather than the entire file. You can share files either publicly or privately, or use your account for cloud storage. (Muse Group recently updated its privacy policy, promising it wouldn’t sell any of the “very limited” data it collects from users.) The new version of the app is now available as a free download.