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Baldur's Gate 3 custom campaign mod Path to Menzoberranzan breaks silence with update on development re-think and character reveal tease
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Baldur’s Gate 3 custom campaign mod Path to Menzoberranzan breaks silence with update on development re-think and character reveal tease

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The modders behind a Baldur’s Gate 3 custom campaign dubbed Path to Menzoberranzan have put out their first progress update in a few months, having gone silent just after getting their first build working around June. The reason for that quiet spell, according to the group, has been a “wild” summer in which they’ve had to revamp their development pipeline to better fit the scale they’re aiming for with the mod.

They’ve also teased full reveals of three characters who’ll be playing roles in what the Path to Menzoberranzan team have thus far pitched as a custom adventure through some returning locations from previous games in the series to the Drow city that serves as the mod’s namesake.

“It’s been a while since our last progress update, but rest assured that we’ve been working hard behind the scenes,” Path to Menzoberranzan community manager Andrew Simone wrote in this latest announcement on the mod’s Discord server. “We promise the silence has been for a very good reason.”

“The past few months have been wild: what started as a rebuild of one area of Baldur’s Gate II has grown into a full-scale campaign,” he explained. “That leap has meant re-thinking a lot of our processes, from how we collaborate to how we build content. Our summer was spent tightening up our production pipeline so we can deliver something truly special!”

Simone went to on the add that the mod’s team “is kicking back into high gear, more so than ever before”, before teasing full reveals of “some unique individuals” including “a Drow cleric of Eilistraee, a swashbuckling human, a man resembling Frankenstein’s monster, and more!”

There’s no mention of the demo which the modders looked close to releasing around the time of their June update, with a Q and A section of the mod’s Discord that was last updated in June reading: “The team is working towards the first playable demo. At this time, the timeline for this demo is under review.” So, it’d seem the need for these few months of rejigging has led the group to move away from their original plan of aiming to release said demo around 2025’s midpoint.

Those sorts of changes or delays understandably always lead to folks wondering whether the project’s in danger of fizzling out, given how many ambitious mods have suffered that fate. Though, it’s worth noting that there have also been plenty of big mods which’ve still delivered despite certain elements taking longer than originally expected. While it’s a mod that’s been in development much longer than Path to Menzoberranzan, Fallout: London developers Team FOLON have only just released their first DLC, announced all the way back in December 2024. Some extra work on future save compatibility was acknowledged as part of the reason why that ended up being the time it took.

This latest Path to Menzoberranzan update concluded with an announcement that the modders are recruiting for six roles across their technical, user experience and design departments. These gigs are for a systems programmer, an integration programmer, a UX designer, a systems UX lead, an emotional UX lead, and game designer. If you’re interested, more details can be found via the recruiting channel of the mod’s Discord server.



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Borderlands 4's Worst Character Sucks Less After Today's Update
Game Reviews

Borderlands 4’s Worst Character Sucks Less After Today’s Update

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A new update for Borderlands 4 is available now on all platforms, and after installing it you’ll discover that all of the game’s playable vault hunters are now stronger. But one in particular, Amon, is much, much more powerful after the patch, which is great because many (myself included) considered him to be the worst and weakest of the bunch.

Borderlands 4 launched last month to mostly positive reviews and big numbers on Steam. I really like the game and its chaotic mix of looting and shooting, even if performance issues have been a problem over the last few weeks. But performance has improved steadily with the last few patches, and now Gearbox is targeting balance tweaks. But don’t worry, the studio isn’t nerfing anything yet. Instead, the latest patch for the open-world FPS is all about buffing the vault hunters. And Amon, a large space warrior, got the most buffs following complaints that he wasn’t much fun to play and didn’t feel as exciting during firefights as other characters.

On October 2, Gearbox pushed out a new patch for Borderlands 4 that is focused entirely on improving each of the game’s four vault hunters. After the update, Harlowe does more stasis slam damage, Rafa’s APOPHIS Lance skill is deadlier, and the Siren Vex got some buffs to make some of her builds more viable. But it’s Amon who got the most tweaks by far, with the new patch notes listing 60+ buffs. Yowza! And some of these are huge, with one buff to “Massive Forgewave Damage” being listed as a 100-percent increase!

While it might seem drastic, Amon truly needed these buffs. I’ve now played as Rafa, Vex, and Amon in Borderlands 4, and by far the most boring and weakest was the big, tanky Amon. It often felt like I was tossing points into his skill tree without ever feeling the effects. Hopefully, these buffs help his kit feel more exciting and effective to use during combat encounters.

Anyway, here are the full Borderlands 4 patch notes as shared by Gearbox on Thursday:

Character Balance Adjustments:

Harlowe

Action Skills – Zero-Point

  • Stasis Slam Damage increased by 30%
  • Stasis Immune Damage increased by 14.7%

Rafa

Action Skills – APOPHIS Lance

Capstones – People Person

  • Project: Raiju Damage now scales by 12% per second, up from 10%
  • Project: Basilisk Damage increased by 15%
  • Project: Basilisk Hazard Damage increased by 25%
  • Project: Gorgon Damage increased by 17%

Passives – People Person

  • El Catrín
    • Critical Hit Damage increased to 8% from 7% per point
    • Bonus Shock Damage increased to 8% from 7% per point
  • Per My Last
    • Double Damage Chance increased to 6% from 5% per point

Action Skills – Arc-Knives

  • Melee Attack Damage increased by 12%
  • Dash Damage increased by 5%

Passives – This Year’s Gimmick

  • Handshake Deal
    • Melee Damage increased to 9% from 7% per point
  • To the Last
    • Skill Damage increased to 8% from 6% per point
  • El Paragus
    • Splash Damage increased to 9% from 7% per point
  • Liquidation
  • Collaborative Ignition
    • Bonus Damage increased to 8% from 6% per point
  • Sinergia
    • Duration increased to 14 seconds from 12 seconds
    • Melee Damage increased to 4% from 3% per point
  • Empuje
    • Action Skill Duration increased to 7% from 6% per point

Vex

Action Skills – Incarnate

  • Phase Explosion Damage increased by 16.6%
  • Eldritch Blast Damage increased by 9.5%

Augments – Vexcalation

  • Energy Vampire Damage increased by 25%

Capstones – Vexcalation

  • Heartpiercer Damage increased by 22%
  • Desecration Hazard Damage increased by 50%
  • Desecration Airborne Burst Damage increased by 48%
  • Geistwave Damage increased by 41%

Passives – Vexcalation

  • Radiant Attunement now deals 7% Splash Damage, up from 6% per point
  • Dreadlight Hazard Damage increased by 100%
  • Ars Arcana now increases Skill Damage by 9% from 8% per point

Action Skills – Phase Phamiliar

  • Trouble Health increased by 10%
  • Trouble Damage increased by 21.9%

Augments – Here Comes Trouble

  • Violent Outburst Damage increased by 12.5%
  • Vorpal Fang Damage increased by 34%

Capstones – Here Comes Trouble

  • Trouble Bubble Damage increased by 33%

Passives – Here Comes Trouble

  • Blood is Magic now increases Action Skill Damage by 8% from 7% per point
  • Claw and Bang now increases Melee Damage by 8% from 6% per point

Passives – The Fourth Seal

  • Fell Inscriptions Melee Damage increased to 7% from 6% per point
  • Recurrence now increases Melee Damage by 0.2% per stack from 0.16% per point
  • Haruspex Phase Dagger Damage increased by 11.7%

Amon

Action Skills – Scourge

  • Scourge has had its Maximum Vengeance increased by 50%, making it able to absorb more damage and deal more damage with Forgewhip when consumed.
  • Forgewhip Damage has increased by 27%

Augments – Vengeance

  • Blastchill Damage increased by 45%
  • Molten Rebuke Damage increased by 86%
  • Eternal Winter Massive Forgewave Damage increased by 100%
  • Stormlance Damage increased by 52%
  • Stormlance Detonation Damage increased by 10%

Capstones – Vengeance

  • Glacial Rapture Capstone now has a 60 second cooldown, down from 70 seconds
  • Glacial Rapture Forgewhip Damage increased by 16%
  • Glacial Rapture Fissure Damage increased by 41%
  • Wrathfall Damage increased by 46%

Passives – Vengeance

  • Scorched Kairos now increases Ordnance Damage by 6%, up from 5% per point
  • Battleborn now increases Gun Damage by 4%, up from 3% per point
  • Scar Tissue now increases Maximum Health and Rep Kit healing by 9%, up from 8% per point
  • Eternal now increases Action Skill Duration by 5%, up from 4% per point
  • Worldbreaker Damage increased by 50%
  • Winter’s Kiss now increases Damage Dealt by 10%, up from 8% per point
  • Strike The Anvil now deals 15% of the Damage Dealt, up from 12% per point

Action Skills – Crucible

  • Forgeaxe Damage increased by 12%
  • Double-Edge’s Twinned Forge Axe Damage increased by 10%

Augments – Cybernetics

  • Axe and Stones Action Skill Cooldown restoration increased to 40% from 33%
  • Axe and Stones Action Skill Ordnance restoration increased to 40% from 33%
  • Endless War Gun Damage Taken increased to 20% from 15% per Prime stack
  • Hour of the Hammer Forgehammer Damage increased by 14%
  • Blade Tempest Forgesword damage increased by 13%
  • Blade Tempest Forgesword Detonation damage increased by 4%

Capstones – Cybernetics

  • Snowmaul Damage increased by 38%
  • Storm Surge impact damage increased by 10%
  • Storm Surge Forgestorm damage increased by 60%
  • Conflangarang Capstone’s Fire Trail Damage increased by 100%

Passives – Cybernetics

  • Gathering Storm now increases Elemental Damage by 3% per stack, up from 2% per point
  • Executioner now increases Critical Hit Damage by 4%, up from 3% per point
  • Destruction Engine now increases Forge Skill Damage by 6%, up from 5% per point
  • Destruction Engine now increases Detonation Damage by 8%, up from 6% per point
  • Tempered Pyre Forge Axe Damage increased by 19%
  • Tempered Ice Forge Hammer Damage increased by 18%
  • Masterwork now increases Forgedrone’s Damage by 10%, from 7% per point
  • Masterwork now increases Forgedrone’s Duration by 8%, from 5% per point
  • Tempered Lightning Forge Sword Damage increased by 13%
  • Lightning Rod Elemental Bolt now deals 40% of the Damage Dealt, up from 30% per point
  • Escalation now increases Forgedrone’s Attack Speed and Movement Speed by 5%, up from 3%, per point
  • Honed Point now increases Forgedrone’s Critical Hit Chance by 5%, up from 4% per point
  • Heat Exchange now increases Cryo and Incendiary Damage by 8%, up from 7% per point

Action Skills – Onslaughter

  • Onslaughter Shield Regeneration increased to 15% per second, from 10%
  • Onslaughter Rocket Punch Damage increased by 78%
  • Molten Slam now has a 60 second cooldown, from 80 seconds
  • Molten Slam Damage increased by 50%

Augments – Calamity

  • Fellfrost Damage increased by 71%
  • Fulminating Fist damage increased by 69%

Capstones – Calamity

  • Hoarcleave now has a 55 second cooldown, from 65 seconds
  • Hoarcleave damage increased by 11%
  • Hoarcleave Detonation damage increased by 18%
  • Molten Roil now has a 70 second cooldown, from 80 seconds
  • Stormcutter now has a 65 second cooldown, from 75 seconds
  • Stormcutter Damage increased by 65%

Passives – Calamity

  • Heavy Plate now increases Maximum Shield Capacity by 7%, up from 6% per point
  • Wield The Storm now increases Status Effect Damage and Status Effect Duration by 7%, from 6% per point
  • Tritanium Knuckles now increases Melee Damage by 8%, up from 7% per point
  • Tritanium Knuckles now increased Skill Damage by 4%, up from 3% per point
  • Harbinger now increases Melee Damage by 2% per stack, up from 1% per point
  • Mortal Flare Damage increased by 22%
  • Judgment now increases Melee damage by 10%, up from 8% per point

Additional Change:

  • Added auto-clearing of Borderlands 4 stale shaders on version update, preventing performance degradation on some PCs.



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Ananta producer says every character could have their own game and perhaps unwisely compares it to the Avengers
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Ananta producer says every character could have their own game and perhaps unwisely compares it to the Avengers

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Ananta, whether it ends up being a good game or not, is clearly a confident one. You have to be brave to so blatantly, we’ll say, borrow from so many different games. Like many anime-esque games of its ilk, it will live and die by its characters (which, by the way, you won’t have to gacha roll for), of which it seems to have in spades judging from that first gameplay trailer. These characters will all play differently too, and according to Ananta’s producer Ash Qi, the dev team wants you to think of them like Avengers members. Comparing your new thing to an older, widely loved thing is always a safe move!


Speaking to GamesRadar, Qi said he believes “many of the characters in the game could be protagonists in their own game.” Qi went on to explain that they’re “trying to create a big storyline that will evolve, giving the characters focus, which will add new characters and new cities to explore. Take Marvel as an example; there are many different heroes and champions in The Avengers.


“However, characters like Captain America and Spider-Man have their own storylines, separate from the larger plot, and they are the protagonists of their own stories, each with their unique missions.” Qi goes on to note that this approach, of trying to make each character stand out, is their attempt of keeping them in focus – not to mention a feature they’re working on where several characters can all fight other enemies at once.


One point I do take slight umbrage with is that Qi also said the studio is trying to “achieve a design that feels unique compared to other RPG games.” Sure, there might not be many RPG games like this one, but there are even just some animations that seem uncomfortably similar to other games.


I still have my reservations about Ananta, but I’m still curious to find out how it actually shapes up… whenever that is.



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Final Fantasy Tactics art shows each character job.
Game Reviews

Final Fantasy Tactics Ivalice Chronicles Jobs Guide: 10 Best Character Classes

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Final Fantasy Tactics is renowned for its clever, quirky, and deeply customizable job system. It might be the best job system in any game ever. It’s certainly the best in Square Enix’s long-running RPG franchise (Final Fantasy XIV fans can fight me in the Dorter Slums after work). But how do you decide which one to choose? Here’s my list of the best ones, based on a combination of their sheer power and how fun they are to play with.

A word of warning: you won’t find jobs like Time Mage, Mimic, or Arithmetician in the ranking below. That’s because while each of those contains some of the most powerful abilities in the game, they are each highly situational and/or better when paired with other jobs as the primary one. So while you should make sure everyone learns some of the Time Mage’s skills, you should never be fielding one just for fun. And while Mimic and Arithmetician are responsible for some of the deadliest combos in the game, they also both come with huge drawbacks that ultimately disqualify them for our purposes here.

The jobs below are the ones that will get you the most bang for your buck and are the ones you’ll want to revert back to once your characters have mastered the rest of their skills.

10. Orator (Requires Mystic Lv.3)

Final Fantasy loves experimenting with offbeat character classes and in Final Fantasy Tactics that’s the Mediator. This job talks and carries a gun. That’s it. While not the most powerful or effective, it’s pretty versatile and lots of fun. Intimidate lowers a unit’s Bravery and can turn them into a chicken. Mimic Darlavon can put even some bosses to sleep. All of these abilities cost zero MP and have no cast time. Also the hat rules.

9. Geomancer (Requires Monk Lv.4)

What if a knight also had magic? This is Final Fantasy Tactics‘ version of the Blue Mage. Geomancers can carry swords and shields but also hit enemies from far away with environmental magic based on what type of terrain they’re standing on. Each attack comes with its own chance to proc a debuff like slow or petrify. The attacks don’t do much damage but they are free, happen immediately, and can chip away at foes while you’re closing the distance.

8. Dragoon (Requires Thief Lv.4)

Dragoons have the tankiest stat growth and also the coolest-looking armor. They can hit from two squares away with javelins, keeping them out of harm’s way for enemy melee counters. Plus they can ignore elevation when moving, and Jump allows them to hit faraway enemies for extra damage while staying out of danger for most of their turn. They aren’t very flashy or fun but they can take a beating and still dish it out, one-shotting pesky enemy mages from far away.

7. Black Mage (Requires Chemist Lv.2)

Black Mages have the highest base magic attack power in the game and make things, including on occasion their friends or even themselves, go boom. All you really need to know.

6. White Mage (Requires Chemist Lv.2)

This is the most versatile magic class because it can revive fallen party members and attack with Holy. Like its Black Mage counter-part, Flare, Holy also only targets one square, letting you nuke enemies without fear of friendly fire. In addition to full-heal revives with Arise, Reraise lets you revive allies ahead of time before sending them to draw enemy fire. The only downside is that all of this costs a boatload of MP.

5. Summoner (Requires Time Mage Lv.3)

Summoners have the most powerful attack spells in the game. Unlike Black Mages, their summons can’t hurt allies and also have wider areas of impact. Cyclops and Bahamut do incredible damage and their casting times in The Ivalice Chronicles remaster have all been buffed. Plus Lich is absolutely necessary for late-game boss fights where enemies have over 1,000 HP. That’s because it does damage on a percentage of total HP basis, letting it hit for 999 damage. Also Golem is a great support summon for soaking up Archer fire in-between turns.

4. Ninja (Requires Archer Lv.4, Thief Lv.5, Geomancer Lv.2)

Two words: Dual-Wield. The only thing cooler than one sword is two swords, and the Ninja job gives you that. Or two flails if you’re an RNG sicko. Ninjas have great movement and speed, and can be outfitted with enough evasion to make their squishy HP less susceptible to being quickly depleted. The throwing attack isn’t the best but it’s another decent ranged option for picking enemies off from afar.

3. Samurai (Requires Knight Lv.4, Monk Lv.5, Dragoon Lv.2)

Okay, maybe I lied. The only thing cooler than two swords is one big sword that you lift up over your head to cast magic with. The Samurai is another interesting riff of the “what if Knight but also Mage?” question. The Iaido abilities scale with magic attack and let you heal, buff, debuff, and damage a big area around your character without having to worry about friendly fire. It can be expensive early on when your swords randomly break in-between uses, but more tanky-ness than the Ninja and Geomancer also adds to the appeal. Some other people would put Ninja ahead of Samurai, and that’s because they get a perverse satisfaction out of constantly having to revive them.

2. Chemist (Unlocked from the start)

Unlocked right from the start, Chemists are the true workhorses of the Final Fantasy Tactics combat economy. They’re far from flashy but they provide incredible value, instantly healing without needing to wait for spells to cast or hoping they have enough MP left in the tank. They also get guns and they automatically discover items hidden beneath them during battle sometimes. There is almost no battle in Final Fantasy Tactics you can’t eventually win simply by throwing dozens and dozens of potions and phoenix downs at it. Plus they have lots of fun pouches.

1. Monk (Requires Knight Lv.3)

The Monk. Where do I begin? They don’t need weapons or hats so you don’t need to spend a ton of money on upkeep. They have the best physical attack growth in the game and the Martial Arts ability is by far the most useful. They have ranged options and can revive allies or get rid of status effects for free. Plus they are the only Job that can restore MP to multiple characters at once, keeping your big Mage guns fueled up. The only drawback is these abilities are severely hampered by differences in elevation so you have to play smart. But when all else fails, just punch everyone in the face really, really hard. Works every time.



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This Creepy Slasher Movie Inspired By An Iconic Disney Character Is Coming To 4K Blu-Ray
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This Creepy Slasher Movie Inspired By An Iconic Disney Character Is Coming To 4K Blu-Ray

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There are immutable truths about our world: rain falls, wind blows, and the second a beloved IP enters the public domain territory, you can bet that a slasher movie based on it will hit theaters in record time. We’ve seen it happen to Winnie the Pooh, and last year it happened to Steamboat Willie, the 1928 Disney character who served as the prototype for what would eventually become Mickey Mouse. Steamoat Willie entered the public domain on January 1, 2024, and then earlier this year was reimagined as a horror movie villain with the animated horror-comedy short, Screamboat, created by . The movie is getting a Blu-ray release on December 9, including a fancy steelbook edition 4K Blu-ray that’s availabe to preorder for $43 at Amazon.

$43 | Releases December 9

This two-disc set includes both 4K and standard Blu-ray copies of the movie. The UHD version is in native 4K with HDR10 and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. The cover is deceptively cute, as it features Steamboat Willie waving to the audience, but when you look closer, you’ll see that he’s surrounded by carnage. The back cover sports a CG-render of Willie overlooking the New York City skyline.

Screamboat Bonus Material

The Blu-ray doesn’t come with much in the way of extras, but you’ll at least get a few deleted scenes, a short behind-the-scenes documentary, and audio commentary with Willie’s actor, David Howard Thornton.

  • Audio commentary track with actor David Howard Thornton
  • Documentary: The Making of Screamboat
  • Deleted scenes

Screamboat was announced a mere day after Steamboat Willie entered the public domain. It tells the story of a late-night ferry ride in New York piloted by a murderous version of the formerly kind-hearted mouse, who has become warped and twisted after years of neglect. Passengers who use the ferry fall victim to Willie’s rampage. While the movie is admittedly forgettable and a cash grab at best, it is notable for its connections to a larger horror movie franchise, Terrifier. The producers of Terrifier 2 and 3 are responsible for this movie, and David Howard Thornton–who plays Art the Clown in the Terrifier movies–steps into the furry costume of Willie for this movie.

The movie has had a mixed reception since it was first released in cinemas in April, but if you want to see a tiny mouse horribly murder people and you’re a fan of practical effects, then Screamboat might be worth picking up. It’s impressively ultraviolent, and it’s the kind of movie you can enjoy without needing to overthink things.

$19

This isn’t the only beloved IP that has been turned into a slasher movie–nor will it be the last, we imagine–as, believe it or not, there are two movies that transform Winnie the Pooh and his friends into homicidal monsters. Billed as the first instalment in the Twisted Childhood Universe, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey was released in 2023, and it’s a horror-parody of A. A. Milne and E. H. Shepard’s classic Winnie-the-Pooh books.

This time, Pooh finds blood to be sweeter than honey as he goes on a killing spree alongside his best friend Piglet. The movie hasn’t received a 4K release yet, but you can pick up a standard Blu-ray release of it. For special features, all it includes is the original theatrical trailer and a short documentary detailing its production. The film was made on a tight budget of around $100,000, but it grossed $7.7 million at the global box office.

$25

Naturally, a sequel wasn’t far behind, as Pooh returned alongside Piglet, Tigger, and Owl to take revenge on Christopher Robin for revealing his existence to the world. Again, don’t expect much in the way of special features, as all you’re getting with this Blu-ray is a theatrical trailer and an image gallery that collects various film stills. Walmart does offer an exclusive steelbook case version of the movie, and you can pick up both of them in an affordable two-pack on Blu-ray as well.

TKTKT

Watch the entire film series, if you dare

While slasher films aren’t nearly as popular in the 2020s as they were in the 1980s and 1990s, the exception to that rule is The Terrifier franchise. The series of movies starring Art the Clown is not for the faint of heart, as each movie ups the gore to a stomach-churning level. The character has become a modern-day horror movie icon since he first debuted, and there are several editions of the Terrifier trilogy to pick up. Fans looking to watch the first movie and the prequel anthology movie All Hallow’s Eve can grab a two-pack Blu-ray for just $27, and you can get both Terrifier 2 and Terrifier 3 in 4K Blu-ray formats.

There’s even a Terrifier 3 Amazon-exclusive Limited Edition Collector’s Box Set that comes with several extras, including a themed “box of soap” and barf bag. Trust us, if you’re watching the threequel for the first time, you’re going to need these items.

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Famous Race-Losing Horse Who Inspired An Umamusume Character Has Died
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Famous Race-Losing Horse Who Inspired An Umamusume Character Has Died

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With a career record of 113 losses and no wins, racehorse Haru Urara became an unintentional pop culture icon in Japan and beyond. The beloved race-losing horse inspired one of Umamusume: Pretty Derby’s horse-girl characters, and her death this week has been marked by many well beyond the racing sphere.

After making her debut in 1998, racehorse Haru Urara became famous for her reliable losing streak, becoming a household name across Japan and for some a kind of patron deity for losers who nevertheless refuse to give up.

Former racehorse Haru Urara, known for an impeccable 113 race loss record, and as the inspiration for the Umamusume: Pretty Derby character of the same name, has died aged 29. pic.twitter.com/HXvdijrj1G

— Eurogamer (@eurogamer) September 9, 2025

Haru Urara lends her name and trademark losing streak to one of the characters in Umamusume: Pretty Derby, a game and anime franchise centered around anthropomorphised horse-girls who double as racers and idols. Though the racehorse Haru Urara retired in 2006, the Umamusume character made more people aware of her quirky background, with the anime and game seeing a trend of fans coming to visit the horse where she was spending her retirement at Matha Farm.

Haru Urara died at the age of 29, Eurogamer reports, but her legacy will live on in the form of an unlucky but endlessly positive anime horse girl in a surprisingly popular gacha game.

Umamusume was first announced as a gacha game back in 2016, but due to delays the anime adaptation released first in 2018. While the free-to-play game was released in Japan in 2021, it didn’t see a release outside of Asia until June this year. Umamusume’s worldwide Steam release proved popular with gamers, with the game hitting a peak of over 87,000 concurrent players in its first month of release. The game is also available globally on iOS and Android.

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Beloved Japanese racehorse that inspired Umamusume: Pretty Derby character has passed away
Game Reviews

Beloved Japanese racehorse that inspired Umamusume: Pretty Derby character has passed away

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Japanese racehorse Haru Urara, who inspired a character of the same name in popular gacha game Umamusume: Pretty Derby, has passed away.

Haru Urara was 29 when she passed. In human years, she would have been around 90 years of age. According to Japanese outlet Friday Digital, the cause of Haru Urara’s death was colic.

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“It is with heavy hearts that we share that Haru Urara passed away,” the official X account for Umamusume: Pretty Derby wrote today, calling her a “legendary” racehorse despite her not having a particularly strong track record. In fact, she never won a single race.

“We share our condolences to all the staff involved in Haru Urara’s care,” the Umamusume: Pretty Derby account said.

Haru Urara was a fan-favourite in Umamusume: Pretty Derby. As our Connor reported earlier this year, Uma Musume: Pretty Derby fans recently came out en masse to send packages of delicious ryegrass to the real-life inspiration of their favourite horse from the game.

It is with heavy hearts that we share that Haru Urara passed away on September 9.

The legendary racehorse’s legacy serves as the inspiration for the character of the same name in Umamusume: Pretty Derby.

We share our condolences to all the staff involved in Haru Urara’s care.

— Umamusume: Pretty Derby (@umamusume_eng) September 9, 2025

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This is a news-in-brief story. This is part of our vision to bring you all the big news as part of a daily live report.





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Huntr/x eating ramen
Game Reviews

KPop Demon Hunters Actor Pays Tribute To Her Character At VMAs

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Last night, some of the biggest names in music gathered in Elmont, New York, for the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards. Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter, and Lady Gaga all took home some of the biggest awards, but one of the presenting groups at the event stole the show: the voices of Huntr/x, the fictional demon-slaying K-pop group from KPop Demon Hunters. Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami, the singing voices for Rumi, Mira, and Zoey in the Netflix animated musical, all came together to present the award for Best Album. Sadly, the group didn’t perform any of the bangers from the movie, but Nuna did take the opportunity to pay tribute to her character at the show with her outfit.

In the opening of KPop Demon Hunters, we see Huntr/x fans being interviewed on camera about the group. A few Mira fans talk about how she’s not only the group’s leading dancer and the black sheep of her family, but is also a fashion icon on and off the stage, with one fan raving about how she wore a black sleeping bag to the Met Gala and it was an iconic moment. Nuna didn’t wear a one-to-one recreation of Mira’s sleeping bag outfit to the VMAs, but she did wear a big puffy jacket that was a clear homage to the character over the rest of her outfit. Maybe if she attends the Met Gala next year she can fully commit, but for now, we’ll take the nod.

Who else could wear a sleeping bag to the #VMAs???

Audrey Nuna of KPop Demon Hunters pays tribute to Mira on the red carpet. | 📸: Getty pic.twitter.com/irG5g2PUzM

— Netflix (@netflix) September 7, 2025

Huntr/x was nominated for one award at the show, with “Golden” being in the running for “Song of the Summer,” but losing out to Tate McRae’s “Just Keep Watching.” Even without the award, the song has been incredibly successful outside of the movie, having topped the charts in over 20 countries worldwide. Hopefully, at some point this year we get to hear some of the songs from the movie performed live during awards season. For now, we have videos of the girls singing them at karaoke bars.





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In rare show of hacking for joy, Blue Archive player fills the world with clones of their favourite character
Game Updates

In rare show of hacking for joy, Blue Archive player fills the world with clones of their favourite character

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Late last month, players of Nexon’s tactical schoolgirl gacha fest Blue Archive were horrified to discover that their universe had undergone Koyukification. For context, Kurosaki Koyuki is one of Blue Archive’s recruitable characters, a twin-tailed pinkhead known for her immense natural code-breaking skills, her passion for gambling, and her mischievous persona.


On August 31st, Blue Archivists logged onto discover that Koyuki had multiplied like a virus. Cafes and arcades teemed with duplicates of the character. Her snaggle-toothed rictus filled the game’s recruitment banners. The very information page – once a source of guidance and solace to so many – had been edited to read “nihahaha”, in mimicry of the character’s giggle.


It was kind of like this scene from Being John Malkovich, if John Malkovich had been a freakazoid 15-year-old piker armed with a light machinegun. And also, the closing scenes from Matrix Revolutions (Koyuki’s in-game nickname is “White Rabbit”), if Neo and Agent Smith had decided to lay off the kung fu and sample the local parfait.


How to explain these nightmarish events? It was a hack, obviously. As reported by Automaton West, publishers Nexon took Blue Archive offline for a few hours that Sunday to expunge the excess Koyukis and carry out an investigation. Seemingly, this was the good kind of hack, carried out for the glee of it rather than to filch anybody’s credit card details. Or at least, that’s what they’re saying publicly.

According to Nexon’s subsequent notice to players, somebody managed to break into the game’s content delivery network and mess with the environment settings, which are managed separately from the game itself, redirecting them to an IP address in the Netherlands.

The hacker’s changes only “affected the client-side content display”, it seems. Nexon say that “players’ accounts, game data, and payment information were not affected, as they are operated in a separate database and always revalidated by the game server.”


You may find the idea of your online gameworld being suddenly suffused by goblin cryptanalysts amusing. Rest assured that Nexon do not. Aside from introducing new restrictions and countermeasures, they’ve reported the whole ordeal to the Korea Internet & Security Agency. They’ve also prepared a player compensation package of in-game McGuffins to say sorry for the emergency maintenance period. Thoughts and prayers, etc.

Is Blue Archive worth playing post-Koyukification? I can tell you nothing save that this trailer thoroughly weirded me out with its bright and breezy scenes of school life in which everybody present is packing enough firepower to clear out a Terminid nest.



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hax$ funeral with melee setups and technicals speech
Esports

Super Smash Bros mod adds Nintendo cease and desist letter as playable character

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After facing backlash over a paid Balatro-themed skin for Super Smash Bros. Melee, modder Mooshie turned a fake Nintendo cease and desist letter into a playable fighter.

On August 21, modder Mooshie released a new Super Smash Bros. Melee mod that added Jimbo from Balatro as a skin for Mr. Game & Watch. Sharing the project on Twitter, Mooshie promoted it with the caption: “I put Balatro into Melee! Get it at my newly created Patreon, linked below!”

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However, because the mod was initially locked behind a paid Patreon tier, it quickly drew backlash from the community. On August 26, Mooshie issued a lengthy statement apologizing for the rollout and announcing a new approach: all future mods will be free to download, with paid Patreon supporters only receiving early access before public release.

They explained that the decision came after hearing feedback and consulting with other creators, calling the early-access model a “compromise” that ensures mods are playtested while still keeping them accessible to the broader community.

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A new foe has appeared: Nintendo cease and desist

On August 31, Mooshie followed up with another project, this time giving Kirby a makeover by turning him into a parody Nintendo cease and desist letter.

While meant as a joke, this mod is available for free on Mooshie’s Patreon, with the showcase tweet reading: “I put my Cease & Desist Letter from Nintendo into Melee! See how much court fines you can stack up against your opponents with this new skin over [COPYRIGHTED CHARACTER]!

I put my Cease & Desist Letter from Nintendo into Melee!

See how much court fines you can stack up against your opponents with this new skin over [COPYRIGHTED CHARACTER]!

Get it at your nearest courthouse, linked below!
Lawsuit compatible. pic.twitter.com/QHXyo516z2

— Moosh (@Mooshies_) August 31, 2025

While the skin looks like an official takedown notice at first glance, a closer look reveals lines such as “low key that mod do be sick though” and “Your mod too tough. Your Game & Watch too different.” Mooshie has not confirmed receiving any real communication from Nintendo.

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The trailer also promises “more real mods soon,” with a cameo from the protagonist of LISA that may hint at what Mooshie is planning next.





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