The Morning After: The Moon needs its own time zone

Space agencies and private companies around the world have been scheduling their own lunar missions over the next few years, and that could be quite complicated to coordinate when they all use different time zones. During a meeting at the European Space Agency's ESTEC technology center in the Netherlands last year, space organizations discussed the "importance and urgency of defining a common lunar reference time."

In a new announcement, ESA navigation system engineer Pietro Giordano said a "joint international effort is now being launched towards achieving this." There are a few challenges: They will have to decide whether to keep lunar time synchronized with Earth's or not because clocks on the Moon run faster based on the satellite's position. Each day on the Moon is, in Earth terms, 29.5 days long.

– Mat Smith

The Morning After isn’t just a newsletter – it’s also a daily podcast. Get our daily audio briefings, Monday through Friday, by subscribing right here.

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Jack Dorsey launches his Twitter alternative, Bluesky

It’s out now in closed beta.

Jack Dorsey’s new Twitter alternative, Bluesky, is available in closed beta on the App Store. The invite-only app joins the list of Twitter substitutes, including Mastodon, as Twitter clings on through staff attrition and precarious stability. Bluesky began in 2019 as a Twitter-funded side project. Dorsey, who co-founded Twitter and was still CEO when the initiative started, saw it as a more open alternative to an increasingly centralized Twitter. Then, Bluesky spun off as its own company in 2021.

You’ll have to enter your email address to join the waitlist. The Bluesky app reportedly borrows heavily from Twitter. However, it includes minor differences like “What’s up?” in place of “What’s happening?” along with a simplified process of creating a post (which can also include photos) by selecting a plus button. So… yeah. It’s all pretty Twitter-esque.

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Sony 2023 Bravia XR TVs hands-on

Bigger, brighter and even more better looking.

Engadget

One major company was missing from this year’s CES barrage of TVs: Sony. Now it’s finally ready to show off its latest flagship sets. Its 2023 line of Bravia XR TVs are all powered by the company’s Cognitive Processor XR, so they all include support for stuff like Sony’s XR Clear Image tech, which allows for adaptive noise reduction, auto HDR tone mapping and more. Sony is also trying to take as much of the guesswork out of setup as possible by making its TVs in the standard video or cinematic modes look great right out of the box. Read on for the full round-up of both the LED and OLED families.

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Meta apparently plans to launch its first true AR glasses in 2027

The company reportedly shared its AR/VR roadmap with employees.

Meta has shared its latest augmented and virtual reality hardware roadmap with employees, and according to The Verge, it's planning to launch its first full-fledged AR glasses in 2027. While the company intends to release other AR glasses before then, the device it's launching in four years is the same one Mark Zuckerberg believes could become Meta's "iPhone moment." The glasses, which will reportedly project avatars as high-quality holograms superimposed on the real world, are expected to be quite expensive.

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Airbnb is banning people ‘likely to travel’ with prohibited users

The company’s policies lean heavily on the side of homeowners.

Airbnb is banning users who may be associated with people the company deems a safety risk. Although the short-term rental company faces an impossible balancing act of making owners feel secure without discriminating unfairly against renters, its appeals process – a critical step in catching overreaches – appears to err on the side of perceived homeowner security.

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Garmin unveils its first dedicated running watches with AMOLED displays

Garmin announced two new GPS running smartwatches with AMOLED displays today: the Forerunner 965 and 265 series. The new watches provide “advanced training metrics” for runners and health stats like heart-rate variability (HRV), overall sleep quality and training load.

The Forerunner 265 Series come in two sizes (the 42mm Forerunner 265S and the 46mm Forerunner 265). The 265S offers up to 24 hours of battery life in GPS mode and up to 15 days in smartwatch mode; the 265 offers up to 20 hours of GPS use and 13 days of smartwatch use. Both watches have Pulse Ox sensors, “Body Battery” energy monitoring, sleep and stress tracking, menstrual cycle monitoring and pregnancy tracking. Additionally, they monitor V02 max (the maximum oxygen you can consume per minute based on your weight), performance condition and other metrics. Finally, it offers two adaptive training options: daily suggested workouts by entering upcoming race info and following a video series from your favorite Garmin coaches.

Meanwhile, the Forerunner 965 is the higher-end model with a 1.4-inch AMOLED display, up to 31 hours of battery life (in GPS mode) and up to 23 days in smartwatch mode. In addition to carrying over all of the cheaper model’s features, it logs additional performance metrics like load ratio (the relationship between an athlete’s training load and what they can handle), real-time stamina info to manage exertion levels and detailed climbing metrics (including gradient, distance and elevation gains). The watch also includes built-in mapping and more storage for music.

The Forerunner 965 will cost $600 when it launches in “late March.” The Forerunner 265 is available today for $450.

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Ring founder Jamie Siminoff is stepping down as CEO

Jamie Siminoff, who founded Ring and created the video doorbell that started it all, is stepping down as the company's CEO. In a blog post, Siminoff explained that invention is his true passion and that he's focusing on creating new products for the company as its Chief Inventor instead. 

Apparently, the rest of the Ring team has known about his transition plans and his search for a new chief since June last year. From March 22nd, the company will be led by former Discord COO Elizabeth Hamren. The new CEO will also head up the Blink, Amazon Key and Amazon Sidewalk divisions. 

Siminoff shared how Ring's first video doorbell was created in his garage and how it grew into a company that offers products across several categories, like cameras, alarms and even security drones. In 2018, Amazon acquired the company in a bid to take Nest head on, allowing Ring to scale up its production and reach customers it wasn't able to before. 

Over the past few years, though, Siminoff also had to deal with the fallout over Ring's close relationship with law enforcement. The company came under fire from lawmakers and privacy advocates after it was revealed that it had formed partnerships with over 600 police forces across the US. To be specific, it allowed authorities to keep homeowners' videos indefinitely and to share them with anyone they want. Ring ultimately changed the way it handled video requests from law enforcement agencies in 2021, when it required them to make public requests within 12 hours of an incident if they want a copy of users' surveillance videos. 

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Sony Bravia 2023 TV Models Get New PS5 Exclusive Features

Sony has unveiled its 2023 Bravia XR TVs, a new range of what it considers the best TVs for PS5. According to the company, those who fork out the cash will be in for a treat when it comes to gaming as the new Bravia XR TVs take PS5 gaming “to the next level” with exclusive features.

Why the 2023 Sony Bravia XR models are the best TVs for PS5

The new range of Bravia TVs are the X90L (full array LED), X93L (mini LED), X95L (mini LED), A95L (QD-OLED), and A80L (OLED). They offer Auto HDR Tone Mapping, Auto Genre Picture Mode, and a dedicated Game Menu for tailored settings.

The Game Menu allows players to quickly turn on or off Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) and Motion Blur Reduction. Players can also easily adjust brightness, black equalizer, and screen size, among other settings. “With the newly added Game Menu, it has never been easier to fine-tune gaming settings and assist functions,” Sony writes. “All the essentials are at the gamer’s fingertips for on the fly adjustments.”

The A95 model comes with a new Multi-View feature, which allows players to watch walkthroughs and guides side-by-side while simultaneously playing games.

Release dates and prices for the 2023 Sony Bravia XR TVs are yet to be announced.

The post Sony Bravia 2023 TV Models Get New PS5 Exclusive Features appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

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GTA 6 Might Star Rapper 50 Cent, Tease Suggests

It looks like the latest GTA 6 leak (if you can call it that) has come from 50 Cent. Last night, the rapper posted a Vice City image on his Instagram profile out of the blue, with a peculiar caption.

Why fans think 50 Cent’s post is a GTA 6 leak

50 Cent’s Instagram post, which is still up at the time of this writing, can be viewed below:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by 50 Cent (@50cent)

For those who aren’t familiar with 50 Cent’s work, Power is a show that he produced and starred in. Reddit users have pointed out that GreenLightGang, Branson, and Le Chemin du Roi are brands 50 Cent is associated with.

The GTA 6 connection here is Vice City, which the upcoming game is reportedly set in.

Some fans have theorized that 50 Cent will have a Vice City show of sorts. Others have said that he may be teasing upcoming GTA Online content like Dr. Dre did at one point.

Nevertheless, fans are of the view that it’s unlikely that 50 Cent is breaking any non-disclosure agreements here. If true, either Rockstar Games is gearing up to announce something or fans hoping for a GTA 6 reveal soon are up for yet another disappointment.

The post GTA 6 Might Star Rapper 50 Cent, Tease Suggests appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

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Sony Wants PS5 to Get Best Versions of Multiplatform Games

Sony Interactive Entertainment wants PS5 games to be the best versions of third-party multiplatform games. According to head of third-party portfolio and acquisitions, Shawne Benson, this means utilizing features that are unique to the PS5 and its peripherals.

How Sony wants third-party PS5 games to be the best versions available

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, Benson said that while there is always room for exclusives, third-party developers benefit most from their games being released on as many platforms as possible. However, Sony wants PS5 versions of these games to stand out. In order to achieve this, Sony encourages developers to utilize technology like 3D audio, DualSense haptics, and adaptive triggers.

“That’s thinking about it less around exclusivity than what kind of technologies could they adopt that really make PS5 sing,” Benson explained. “So there’s a lot of things we could do and then create marketing stories around, and that’s where some of these partnerships for multiplatform games really focus.”

Sony has indeed dedicated quite a few PlayStation Blog posts and marketing trailers to highlighting PS5 exclusive features in major third-party games like Hogwarts Legacy. Benson revealed that Sony doesn’t specifically pay developers to incorporate DualSense features in their games but does offer marketing and development support where it makes for “a good PlayStation story.”

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Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty Review (PS5)

I’m always down for a good Souls-like and was thrilled to hear that Team Ninja was developing Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty. I recently replayed Dark Souls and Dark Souls 2, and I was ready to get back into action. Fortunately, though this game has some flaws and peculiarities, most fans of the genre will find it satisfying.

Big trouble in Three Kingdoms China

Wo Long takes place in Three Kingdoms era China. The Yellow Turban Rebellion is in full force, and you take the role of a simple militiaman defending a village against a horde of raiding bandits. Unfortunately, this version of China has big (evil) Dynasty Warriors energy, so you’re quickly killed.

Luckily, you’re quickly revived through the power of a Divine Beast and sent on your way. You soon find that a forbidden medicine called Elixir has unleashed dark forces across China and caused man and beast alike to mutate into monstrosities. Of course, this is all set against the background of the fall of the Han dynasty, so you’ll meet historical figures like Zhao Yun, Zhang Liang, Lu Bu, and others.

Unlike many Souls-like games, there are no vagarities to the lore here. So if you’re someone who never cared to read item descriptions or chase down vague sidequests, this game is for you.

Han-to-Han combat

Combat in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty feels like a blend of Sekiro and Nioh. Though you have a guard, there’s a lot of emphasis on deflecting and counterattacks, especially in boss battles. Since there’s no stamina gauge, it pays to be aggressive in this game. Almost every foe has some form of unblockable attack, so staying in their face and ensuring they don’t get the chance to unleash their best attacks is a viable strategy.

The game has 17 types of weapons, ranging from one-handed swords to dual-wielded halberds and giant hammers. Each type has a unique move set and Martial Arts, but weapons within a type behave very similarly to one another. For example, two hammers will have the same move set but may have different Martial Arts. Some Souls-like fans might find this disappointing since games like Elden Ring differentiate every single weapon from each other.

There’s also ranged combat, but it’s not great. Something about it feels off, and you never have enough ammo for it to make a difference. Unlike the Souls games, where archery is an incredibly useful alternative to melee fighting, it’s very tacked on in Wo Long. For the most part, I feel the same way about the magic system, but I admittedly didn’t dive into it super deep. There may be a way to optimize your build to make magic more useful.

By the numbers

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty threw everything but the kitchen sink in regarding gameplay systems. You’ve got a traditional leveling system where you spend Genuine Qi (Souls) to raise stats. There are upgradable weapons, armor, and accessories, and each of these pieces of gear has randomized Special Effects and Martial Arts attacks. There’s also a magic system, Divine Beast special attacks, and an NPC recruitment system. So, if you’re into min/maxing, your work is cut out for you. The game’s premier system, though, is the Morale Rank.

Completely different from your character level is your Morale Rank. This number is constantly in flux, restarts at zero on each map, and helps determine your character’s strength and which spells you can cast. Each time you defeat an enemy or plant a Battle Flag (bonfire) or Marking Flag (checkpoint), your Morale Rank increases. You lose all your Morale Points (and half your Genuine Qi) each time you die, but you can get them back. Defeating the enemy that killed you will satisfy your Revenge (capital R gameplay mechanic), and you’ll take back what’s yours.

Morale Rank rewards you for going out of your way to explore each level thoroughly. The extra strength you get from having a high Morale Rank can make bosses easier, and the game tends to be balanced toward you keeping your Morale Points fairly high. Your best spells also require you to have a high Morale Rank to cast, which provides another incentive for reaching for the stars.

Who’s the boss?

Souls-likes are known for their bombastic bosses, and Wo Long has plenty of gigantic and powerful enemies to fight. For the most part, though, I wasn’t a huge fan of the boss battles in this game. When you break down combat in most Souls-likes, it comes down to pattern recognition. Every enemy, bosses included, has a set amount of moves they can draw from, and they’re all choreographed. So, you can study a foe, learn their tells, and use that to avoid or guard against their attacks while hitting them with your own.

The best Souls-likes make the above process invisible to the player. Bosses can switch things up or have access to fringe case moves that can throw you off. However, in Wo Long, most bosses are so rigid in their patterns that there’s only one way to fight them. Each of these foes is intimidating at first glance, but most of the time, it comes down to avoiding their attacks until they charge up a Critical Blow so you can deflect it to drain their Spirit Gauge (stamina) and execute a Fatal Strike.

Not every boss encounter is paint-by-numbers, and there are ones the game hyped up beforehand that had me white-knuckling the controller. FromSoftware’s games certainly have their share of mediocre boss encounters, so Wo Long isn’t setting a precedent here. I would have liked to have seen less quantity and more quality out of these encounters as a whole.

It’s no Lordran

Exploration is my favorite aspect of Souls-likes, and Wo Long disappoints in that regard. The game is split into dozens of levels, each of which takes place on a small map. So, instead of adventuring across a sprawling, interconnected world, each location is roughly the size of a Monster Hunter map.

That’s not to say that there weren’t secrets to find in them. There are hidden areas to discover, with fantastic treasures and powerful foes waiting within. But none of the environments pack the punch of Lordran, Drangleic, Lothric, Ashina, or the Lands Between.

The advantage to this is that you can have bite-sized Souls-like morsels. Each level only takes around 30 minutes to an hour to complete on average, which is excellent for players who want to get into the action quickly.

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty review: The final verdict

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a challenging romp through a dark fantasy version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms and works well as a Soulslite. Each level is a bite-sized Souls experience to be conquered and moved past. The tight, challenging combat will thrill fans of the genre, but the lack of an interconnected world might turn off those that love the thrill of exploration.

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