A new gameplay trailer has just dropped for Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria, and it’s narrated by John Rhys-Davies, who played Gimli in Peter Jackson’s original LOTR trilogy.

It’s also doing what trailers do best, and giving fans a much better idea of what they can expect from the game, which involves reclaiming and rebuilding the dwarven homeland of Moria.

In order to do that, players will need to harvest resources for crafting and building up defences – whilst fighting off various beasts and enemies – as they make their way deeper into the dangerous mines.

Here’s the trailer:

Set in the Fourth Age of Middle-Earth, the game follows beloved character Lord Gimli Lockbearer, who is summoned to the Misty Mountains where he’ll command a company of dwarves “tasked to reclaim the lost spoils from the Dwarven homeland of Moria—known as Khazad-dûm or Dwarrowdelf—in the depths below their very feet. Their quest will require fortitude, delving deep into the Mines of Moria to recover its treasures.”

So, what else do we know about the game? Well it’s set to be released in the autumn via Free Range Games and North Beach Games. It’ll be out on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S – and launching simultaneously on PC and the Epic Games Store.

Source: GeekTyrant

Guide Strats has released a map of the highest rated video games developed in each country, with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (developed by Nintendo in Japan) ranking at no.1.

In order to get the findings, the video game guide company analysed the Metacritic scores of 20,000 titles, before looking at each game’s country of origin to reveal which games rated the highest.

Then they made this cool map infographic with the results!

So, apart from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time being the world’s highest-rated video game – achieving a score of 99 on Metacritic – let’s take a look at some of the other key stats:

• The title of Europe’s highest rated game – with a score of 98 – goes to Grand Theft Auto IV developed here in Scotland (UK) by Rockstar North! (We’re proud of that ‘un)
• Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2, from Neversoft Entertainment, takes the no.1 spot in the United States with a Metacritic score of 98.
• For Canada, developed by BioWare and with a score of 96, it’s Mass Effect 2!
• As for Australia, is anyone really surprised it’s BioShock? It has a score of 96, and was developed by 2K Australia.

It’s also nice to see Estonian-made Disco Elysium on the map (despite its very public dramas, which we wrote about recently)!

Some of these games are of a vintage now – The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was developed in the late ’90s, for example.

Speaking of it, the game’s producer, Shigeru Miyamoto said:

“At that time I found it interesting to make things that no one understood, that didn’t exist before.”

Arguably, that’s still a thing happening these days, thanks to the likes of Hideo Kojima (Death Stranding, anyone?!).

Interestingly, the four countries with the top-scoring games are actually in four separate continents: Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania. It’s also good to know that every continent is represented in this map.

You can buy The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for 3DS on Amazon.

Not one to be sniffed at, this interactive nose sculpture from multimedia artist Adnan Aga – called the Adnose – can ‘smell’ any object held in front of it.

How do we know? I mean, how does a nose on its own even tell us what it’s smelling? Well, a paper poetically describing the smell is printed from one of the nostrils!

Dubbed a ‘unique sensory experience’, the nose uses a Raspberry Pi camera module (with the addition of a fisheye lens) to take a snapshot of whatever is placed under its nostril.

Once the photo is processed via Google Lens (which helps it identify the object in question), it’s then up to a GPT-4 language model to produce a delightful description.

You can watch the video below to get a better idea of the process – and listen to the nose’s voice, because despite what I said above, it actually has one of those… somehow:

It’s quite a charming interactive art installation, and that’s without even knowing the background of the artist, who was actually born with the inability to smell – known as anosmia. This nose now does the job for her, just like a prosthetic – which is how Adnan himself has described it.

He hopes it will raise awareness of the anosmic community, which is often overlooked.

The Adnose was well received at its debut, which took place at a ‘smell-and-tell’ event at the Olfactory Art Keller in Chinatown, New York – where it fits right in with various other smell-related pieces.

Adnan actually created this art installation as part of his graduate thesis, and you can find out more about it via his LinkedIn page. You can also still visit the talking nose at the Olfactory Art Keller’s  Cubiculum Odoratus where it’s currently residing.

What do we think – another great use of AI?

Source: ReviewGeek

We’ve just watched the announcement trailer for Still Wakes the Deep, the latest game from The Chinese Room – and we’re excited for it!

That’s right, the studio that brought us Dear Esther, Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, and Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture is coming at us with a new oil rig horror game that promises to be a chill fest!

Described as a ‘narrative horror game’ set in Scotland circa 1975, it’s a first-person game that takes the studio ‘back to its roots’.

The announcement trailer is full of atmosphere and tension – which is just want you want from a horror teaser trailer.

Check the official announcement trailer out below:

The Chinese Room have released a short blurb to go with, which reads:

“Disaster strikes the Beira D oil rig off the coast of Scotland. Navigate the collapsing rig to save your crew from an otherworldly horror on the edge of all logic and reality.”

And, if you don’t mind us saying, this seems to be generally a good time for Scottish oil rig horrors, what with the success of The Rig and all!

Still Wakes the Deep will be released early 2024 and will be available for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, PC and Game Pass.

In the meantime, you can buy Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs right here on Steam or the entire collection of Amnesia via the Playstation Store.

Source: Engadget

If you’re anything like us, you’ve probably already watched the incredible sequel that is Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

But did you know the brief LEGO scene near the start of the movie was actually animated by a 14-year-old fan? That fan is Preston Mutanga from Minnesota.

Apparently Mutanga had always had a flair for finding creative solutions, often scrapping the instructions for sets of LEGO blocks in favour of his own designs.

According to Mutanga via a recent interview: “I also used to make comics when I was younger. Looking back at them now, they’re not the greatest — I’m not going to lie — but it was good practice for telling stories.”

However, it was last December that he began a project that would change everything. He decided to use his dad’s old computers to recreate the trailer for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse shot for shot, but in the LEGO style.

He’d already been making LEGO-style short computer-generated videos for several years, so by this point it was a piece of cake. And it quickly got the attention of LEGO Movie directors and Spider-verse writers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.

Here’s the tweet that led to what happened next:

Well, it led to Christina Steinberg, another Spider-Verse producer, to contact Mutanga and ask if he’d like to animate a LEGO segment of the movie.

Here’s what Miller had to say:

“We found out that it was a 14-year-old kid who made it and we were like, ‘This looks incredibly sophisticated for a nonadult, nonprofessional to have made. It blew us all away, including some of the best animators in the world.”

It took Mutanga several weeks working on this project after his homework each night – and getting feedback from Miller who would check on his progress every other week and provide detailed input.

Now this high school kid has professional industry experience, he’s understandably looking forward to becoming a full-time animation director, and we can well see that happening!

Mutanga said: “I adored the first movie and was so hyped for the second one, so getting to work with the people who actually made this masterpiece was honestly like a dream.”

We love stories like this here at Geek Native – just a reminder that anything’s possible when you really put your mind to it.

Source: Yahoo! News

We’ve seen a few AI-generated fan trailers in the style of Wes Anderson now, but this one might very well be my favourite.

The trailer for Extraterrestrial Expedition shows us what classic sci-fi horror film Alien might have been like if Wes Anderson was in the director’s seat.

It’s got all the good makings of a Wes Anderson film, with Tilda Swinton as Ellen Ripley, with a supporting cast of Bill Murray, Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Ben Stiller, Jeff Goldblum, Gyneth Paltrow, Angelica Huston, an orange cat, and… Owen Wilson as a xenomorph?!

What I find charming about this reimagining are the colours, and the way the Nostromo just glides across the screen in that Wes Anderson way.

The video, created by AI Fungi, was published along with this blurb:

Embark on an epic journey to the depths of space, the 1979 classic “Alien” is reimagined through the unique and imaginative lens of Wes Anderson in “Extraterrestrial Expedition.” This extraordinary fan-made trailer offers a fresh perspective on Ridley Scott’s epic masterpiece, blending Anderson’s distinctive style with the awe-inspiring landscapes and extraordinary creature called Xenomorph, created by the so called “Engineers”.

What do you think – if this was an actual movie, would you watch it?

Source: GeekTyrant

Gamers have been showing the dents in their heads from wearing headphones for prolonged periods of time, and we’re all a little freaked out by it.

It all started when Twitch streamer Curtis (AKA Curtoss) livestreamed himself as he shaved his hair for charity, only to discover live on camera that his gaming headset had left quite the indent.

When you actually see it, it’s actually quite a shocking thing – and, I suspect, permanent.

The gamer performed the selfless act of shaving his head on the livestream, and started by going right down the middle, remarking: “The shaver’s working like a champ.”

However, it wasn’t long before things took a turn, and he noticed the indent across the top of his head.

“Dude, I have an indent like right here, this is where headphones go! I have a fucking headphone indent on my head! What the fuck?”

And here’s the moment it happened:

He also added that he’d actually been vaguely aware of it before now, thought it was just his hair.

But bruh, he’s not the only one… this actually seems like quite a common thing! After the clip went viral on social media, with over 42 million views on Twitter, gamers started sharing their own head dents.

The results are… disturbing.

The one on the right just gave me the shudders, because holy shit. Nope. I can’t even.

“New fear unlocked,” replied one user. Another said: “Tell me why I’ve just rubbed my head to make sure I don’t have one.”

Another user chimed in with: “This is why I will never wear a headset for prolonged time periods.”

I’m kind of grateful I wear earphones now! What do you think of this story? Do you have a headphone dent – and have you checked?!

If you love Jurassic Park and you love Transformers, you’ll probably be interested in this new 2-figure set from Hasbro!

What a great way to celebrate Jurassic Park’s 30th birthday! We’re seeing a lot of fantoosh collaborations, but this one in particular seems quite special and full to the brim of character.

The set features the debut of transformer bots Dilophocon and Autobot JP-12, and come with accessories including an embryo containment unit, shaving cream canister, rain hat, and venom blast effect.

Check it out:

This set, priced at $74.99, isn’t quite here yet – you’ll have to wait until October – but it is available to preorder right here on the official Hasbro site.

If you need more of an incentive, check out these super cool images, all courtesy of Hasbro.

They’ve really gone all out on the photography here, and I for one appreciate the effort. What do you think?

It seems everyone’s talking about ChatGPT in some form or other, especially since the iPhone app has been released, allowing us AI access literally at our fingertips – whatever you need it for.

Now, it’s been announced that the iOS app is to benefit from some fairly robust updates, including a Siri integration.

Editor’s note: Because Siri and Chat GPT together are just what we need to aid along the AI uprising…

The most talked about of these enhancements to the iOS version is the integration of Shortcuts, enabling users to integrate your prompts, and the app’s outputs, with other apps on your phone. This is actually something that’s been around for a while in the browser version, but now it’s coming to your phone.

As for the Siri integration, you can now summon ChatGPT with your voice or ask Siri to create Shortcuts for you.

You’ll also be able to use drag-and-drop to transfer ChatGPT messages and information to other apps on your iOS device, along with improved iPad support, allowing users to make better use of that bigger screen.

Want to try it out for yourself? You can catch it on the App Store now.

Source: HowtoGeek

Great news for Razer keyboard users today, as the reknowned tech company has just unveiled an exciting new feature known as ‘Rapid Trigger Mode’ for its users.

Specifically designed for the Razer Huntsman V2 Analog and Razer Huntsman Mini Analogue keyboards, this feature can be enabled through the Razer Synapse software. With the aim of enhancing the gaming experience, Rapid Trigger Mode offers users an optimal balance of speed, responsiveness, and precision.

So, in other words, an all-round better gaming experience – and we like those here at Geek Native!

So, what does this new mode actually do?

One of the key elements that sets Rapid Trigger Mode apart is its innovative approach to keystroke registration. Unlike conventional keyboards where a switch must pass a fixed actuation point and then reset by moving back past a predetermined reset point, this new mode revolutionises the traditional mechanism.

By eliminating the need for a fixed reset point, the switch instantly resets as it moves upward immediately after registering a keystroke.

Alrighty then. It’s also got numerous practical benefits. Users can execute rapid keystrokes more efficiently, resulting in reduced key travel and improved reaction time. This advantage is particularly crucial in fast-paced gaming scenarios such as first-person shooters and rhythm games.

This impressive functionality is made possible by the cutting-edge technology embedded within Razer Analog Optical Switches. Leveraging optical technology, these switches ensure exceptional precision while being highly resistant to external factors like temperature fluctuations and magnetic interference.

Oh yeah – did we mention it’s free?

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of Rapid Trigger Mode is that it comes at no additional cost to users – that’s right, mothertruckers – it’s free!

Razer has made this feature available as a free update through the Razer Synapse software. To enjoy Rapid Trigger Mode, users simply need to update their Razer Synapse to the latest version, which can be easily accomplished by following a set of straightforward steps outlined in the official announcement.

Once the update is complete, users can find an ‘Actuation’ tab within Razer Synapse, allowing them to activate Rapid Trigger Mode for their preferred keys and customise sensitivity settings to their liking.

The global rollout of this update is already underway and is expected to be available to all users by June 13, 2023.

In the event that some users do not immediately see the update, Razer encourages them to revisit the software over the next few days until the rollout is complete. For more detailed information about the new Razer Rapid Trigger Mode, get it straight from the horse’s mouth over at Razer.