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Marathon still lives, as Bungie announces new closed technical test ahead of public update
Game Reviews

Marathon still lives, as Bungie announces new closed technical test ahead of public update

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Bungie has announced a closed technical test for its forthcoming shooter Marathon, which will take place later this month.

The limited, invite-only test will be in North America and Europe across PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Steam, with players able to sign-up now. The test itself will take place from 22nd – 27th October.

Marathon was fully revealed back in April, but in June Bungie indefinitely delayed the extraction shooter due to “passionate” fan feedback that was heavily critical.

Marathon | Gameplay Overview TrailerWatch on YouTube

Since then, Bungie has run several closed tests to gather further feedback. Now, it’s opening the playtests further.

“This is an important checkpoint for us as we test our improvements since Alpha, including three maps, five runner shells, prox chat, re-tuned combat pacing, solo queue, deeper environmental storytelling, and more,” said Bungie. “That said, the Technical Test build is a work in progress and will only include a portion of what’s planned for Marathon’s full release, focused on the early player experience.”

A public update on Marathon’s development is due “in the coming months”, following this playtest.

The test is also under NDA, meaning feedback won’t be made public.

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Development of Marathon feels like a critical time for Bungie. Following its acquisition by Sony back in 2022, Bungie has failed to release a hit game, Destiny 2 player counts have dropped, and the company has been rocked by accusations of toxicity right up until this year.

Bungie admitted after Marathon’s reveal the game used an external artist’s work without permission and morale was reportedly in “free fall” as it dealt with the response to the game.

CEO Pete Parsons has since left the company after years of criticism and layoffs.

As for Sony, it’s keen not to repeat mistakes made in the release of the ill-fated live-service shooter Concord, which Marathon has already been compared to. Back in August, chief financial officer Lin Tao admitted the company’s live-service strategy is “not entirely going smoothly”.



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Capcom wants Resident Evil Requiem boss battles to test your wits rather than your shooting skill
Game Updates

Capcom wants Resident Evil Requiem boss battles to test your wits rather than your shooting skill

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Capcom has said it’s looking more to the original Resident Evil games for ideas about how to challenge players with boss battles in the ninth Resident Evil game, Requiem.

Specifically, game director Koshi Nakanishi said he wants to test your wits rather than shooting ability.

“Of course there will be boss battles,” Nakanishi told Automaton. “However, rather than defeating enemies in a flashy manner as you progress through the game, like in games that emphasise gun shooting action, the style is more like Resident Evil and Resident Evil 2, where players expand their exploration area in a closed space and overcome obstacles using their wits.”

Watch on YouTube

The game’s new protagonist, Grace Ashcroft, is central to this. Unlike Leon Kennedy, she isn’t a veteran killer with hardened nerves, so she won’t immediately be capable of gunning down hordes of undead. Nakanishi has said before that Leon Kennedy is “actually quite a bad match for horror”. So unlike Kennedy, Ascroft will start the game as quite defenceless. But she will learn.

“One thing that’s so appealing about the Resident Evil series is that characters who are initially terrified grow stronger as they gain experience in extreme situations,” Nakanishi said. “Grace is scared at first, but the situation eventually causes her to snap, and she becomes able to fight her enemies.”

We had a chance to sit down with Nakanishi at Gamescom to talk about pacing. Alex thinks Resident Evil 7: Biohazard is one of the best-paced entries in the series, and Nakanishi directed that game as well. “My approach is the same this time…” Nakanishi said, before launching into a longer explanation.

Resident Evil Requiem launches at the beginning of next year, on 27th February.



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Call of Duty says its anti-cheat for Black Ops 7 has ‘one of the strongest detection systems we have ever built,’ and this week’s beta will help put it to the test
Game Reviews

Call of Duty says its anti-cheat for Black Ops 7 has ‘one of the strongest detection systems we have ever built,’ and this week’s beta will help put it to the test

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Ahead of this weekend’s beta test for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, Activision is reiterating its focus on anti-cheat to maintain the integrity of the game on PC.

Along with requiring Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 to even launch the game on PC, Activision says its RICOCHET Anti-Cheat system has evolved over the past year in Black Ops 6 to try and stay ahead of cheat-makers worldwide.

Image via Activision

“Over the last year, Team RICOCHET has trained advanced machine learning systems on millions of hours of gameplay,” Activision said in a new blog post. “These upgrades are smarter, faster, and more reliable than ever; built not just to catch cheaters, but to set the new standard for fair play and evolve with the game itself.”

With these changes, the company says RICOCHET now has “one of the strongest detection systems we have ever built, designed to separate natural aim from the precision patterns of an aimbot,” faster wall-hack detection, and a layered defense that “with constant and independent updates, makes it tougher for cheaters to adapt and easier for us to stay ahead.”

Call of Duty players have heard this all before in recent years as the hacking epidemic has grown with crossplay and free-to-play Warzone accounts, but the fact is anti-cheat is a never-ending battle against cheat providers who are always trying to stay one step ahead to make a quick buck by selling cheats. And Activision says it’s working to fight on that front, too.

“We’re striking cheat makers and sellers from every angle: in-game detections that stop them cold, and legal action that dismantles their operations,” Activision said. “And we’re not stopping there. Significant continued improvements to our systems are coming, including those that detect external hardware.”

The BO7 beta, which begins this Thursday, Oct. 2, is part of the process of ensuring that the anti-cheat systems are at work, Activision said, calling it “a critical test for the systems we have online under real player conditions” as players will inevitably try hacking in the beta test.

Image via Activision

“We are actively monitoring matches, gathering data across thousands of unique hardware setups, and removing cheaters in real time,” the company said. “The beta allows us to measure how our detection tools perform when faced with live attempts to cheat, and to fine-tune how quickly and effectively we strike back. Every report, every flag, and every removal during the beta feeds directly into stronger responses tomorrow.”

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Apple’s ‘Veritas’ chatbot is reportedly an employee-only test of Siri’s AI upgrades
Gaming Gear

Apple’s ‘Veritas’ chatbot is reportedly an employee-only test of Siri’s AI upgrades

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According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman Apple is testing Siri’s upcoming revamp using an internal chatbot called Veritas. The company’s struggles as it tries to keep pace in the AI race are no secret. The next-gen Siri has been delayed multiple times and the debut of Apple Intelligence was met with a tepid response. Veritas gives Apple the ability to quickly develop, test, and collect feedback on new Siri features like “search[ing] through personal data… and perform[ing] in-app actions like editing photos.“

According to Gurman Veritas resembles other chatbot apps like ChatGPT and Gemini. Employees type requests, have back and forth conversations, and can even revisit old exchanges to dig deeper on a particular topic. But, at least for now, it doesn’t appear like there’s any plan to release it to consumers. (Which Gurman believes is a mistake.) Instead Apple plans to keep its internal chatbot just that, internal. Instead it’s looking increasingly likely that Apple is going to rely on Google’s Gemini for its AI-powered search.



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Genndy Tartakovsky Releases Test Footage for 'Black Knight' Film
Product Reviews

Genndy Tartakovsky Releases Test Footage for ‘Black Knight’ Film

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Longtime animator Genndy Tartakovsky has a new film he’s working on called Black Knight, and to get it made, he’s calling on his longtime audience for assistance.

On Friday, the Unicorn: Warriors Eternal and Star Wars: The Clone Wars alum released test footage for the film, which he’s been working on with his team for nearly a decade. Tartakovsky said on Instagram that Sony Animation “liked what we were doing, but they were unsure if there is an audience that would go see it theatrically. So to try something different, I thought I would share the test to see if it can get a ground swell of excitement that would change the studio’s mind.”

Black Knight is an original film centered on a 14th century knight operating a 20-foot tall suit of armor “using ropes, pulleys, and levers,” said Tartakovsky. While short, the footage shows our unnamed hero using a massive sword to fight a human-sized ninja armed with a kusarigama. The knight’s got the size advantage, but the ninja has speed on her side, though we don’t get much of an idea of what that would look like.

Still, the concept here is promising: the armor carries a lot of weight and the forest they’re fighting in looks gorgeous. Tartakovsky’s got plenty of CG experience thanks to his Hotel Transylvania movies, and you can bet it’d look good from start to finish.

Why wouldn’t Sony Pictures Animation want to make Black Knight for theaters? Because, as discussed during KPop Demon Hunters‘ rise, original animated movies finding an audience are a crapshoot, and there’s no telling what hits in the moment or takes off after the fact. (Nobody cared about Elemental until Disney changed its marketing strategy and it took off big in South Korea, for example.)

If Sony did put it in theaters, promoting it as “from the studio behind KPop” might also have general audiences thinking it’s only coming to theaters for a week or two before jumping over to Netflix. Whatever deal the two companies struck in 2021 that’s resulted in KPop and Tartakovsky’s recent raunchy 2D comedy Fixed hitting the streamer first doesn’t apply here, and Sony would probably like to not give every animated movie it owns over to Netflix right away.

None of this should take away from the fact that Black Knight should get made, given Tartakovsky’s pedigree and relationship with Sony. That’s what matters first and foremost, and with luck, enough interest will be drummed up that we can see it in some format in the years to come. Until then, there’s always Fixed, Primal, and everything else he’s made.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.





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Swift To Test On-Chain System On Linea Blockchain
GameFi Guides

SWIFT to Test On-Chain System on Linea Blockchain

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SWIFT, the global interbank messaging network, is finally moving forward to test its on-chain messaging system on Linea, the Layer 2 blockchain developed by Consensys after months of negotiating. Several major banks, including BNP Paribas and BNY Mellon, will take part in the multi-month trial.

The test aims to explore how blockchain could improve speed and how easy the system can be programmed for international payments. According to a report by BigWhale, the banks will also test how stablecoin can be used to support tokenized transactions.

🔴 SCOOP: SWIFT picks Linea (Consensys’ L2) to test on-chain messaging

10+ banks incl. BNP Paribas & BNY Mellon join

A stablecoin is also being exploredhttps://t.co/RxBrcvV7mt

— The Big Whale 🐳 (@TheBigWhale_) September 26, 2025

“The project will take several months to see the light of day, but it promises a major technological transformation for the international interbank payments industry,” a source at one participating bank told reporters.

SWIFT’s decision to carry out this test is due to the growing interest in how blockchain technology be used in the process of traditional banking. So instead of sending multiple messages between accounts, transactions could just be recorded as single on-chain payments. Banks hope this will reduce costs and allow smoother connections with other tokenized financial assets, such as bonds and shares.

The interbank network connects more than 11,000 institutions around the world  handling billions of messages every year. But SWIFT does not move the money itself, it only sends standardized payment instructions. Money flows through accounts held between banks, known as nostro and vostro, or through national settlement systems.

For example, if a French company pays a Brazilian supplier, SWIFT sends a standard message called MT103. The supplier’s bank gets the message and processes the payment. This system works but can be slow because it depends on many steps and relays.

Why did Swift choose Linea?

Linea, a Layer 2 network built on Ethereum, was reportedly chosen for its cryptographic privacy capabilities. This allows participating banks to test blockchain functionalities without exposing sensitive commercial information.

Currently, the pilot is exploratory, with technical challenges integrating with existing banking systems to be solved. The project brings together leading institutions, giving them an early view of how the world of international payments could change

Sources indicate that the trial could eventually enable payments and settlements to merge into one secure on-chain transaction, transforming how banks move money internationally.

Also Read: Cardano is 3rd Gen Blockchain, Others Took Shortcuts: Hoskinson





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Gaming Gear

Apple reportedly made a ChatGPT-clone to test Siri’s new capabilities

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In the pursuit of actually releasing the updated version of Siri the company promised way back at WWDC 2024, Apple is taking a page out of OpenAI’s book. According to Bloomberg, the company has created a ChatGPT-inspired app to test Siri’s new capabilities ahead of the release of the improved voice assistant next year.

This new app, called “Veritas” internally, will likely never make its way to the public in its current form, but offers Apple employees a faster way to test Siri’s new skills. That includes letting users search through personal data stored on their phone, like their emails and messages, or taking action in apps, like editing photos. The new app is apparently also a way for Apple to “gather feedback on whether the chatbot format has value,” Bloomberg writes.

While an internal app doesn’t make it any clearer how useful Apple’s updated Siri will be, it does suggest the project is in a more advanced stage than before. Given the difficulty the company’s faced actually releasing its various AI products — including publicly delaying the Siri update back in March 2025 — that’s meaningful.

Apple’s original promise for Apple Intelligence was that it could offer a curated selection of AI-powered features with a level of privacy and polish that its competitors couldn’t muster. The reality is that Apple shipped a collection of so-so features that worked, but couldn’t pull off its truly impressive demo: a Siri informed on the context of your life and with the ability to actually do things on your phone.

Apple is only realizing that vision in 2026, Bloomberg reports, through a combination of its own AI models, and at least one third-party model from its competitors. In June, the company was reportedly considering using a model from either OpenAI or Anthropic, but as of August, the company is now apparently circling a partnership with Google.



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Global banks join SWIFT in blockchain test run on Consensys’ Linea
Crypto Trends

Global banks join SWIFT in blockchain test run on Consensys’ Linea

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SWIFT has reportedly mobilized a consortium including BNY Mellon and BNP Paribas for a pivotal experiment that includes migrating its core messaging system onto ConsenSys’ Ethereum layer-2, Linea.

Summary

  • SWIFT and banks including BNY Mellon and BNP Paribas are reportedly testing blockchain messaging on Consensys’ Ethereum layer 2, Linea.
  • The project follows SWIFT’s 2023 tokenization trials and supports digital asset tests planned for 2025.
  • A successful rollout could bring faster settlement, lower costs, and stronger cross-border payment infrastructure.

According to a Sept. 26 report from The Big Whale, the global financial messaging cooperative has initiated a development project with more than a dozen major institutions to experiment with putting its foundational messaging framework on-chain.

A source within a participating bank indicated the project is a multi-month endeavor, characterizing it as a precursor to a significant technological transformation for the interbank payments industry.

The selection of ConsenSys’ Linea was reportedly driven by its emphasis on privacy through advanced cryptographic proofs, a feature deemed critical for meeting stringent bank compliance standards.

SWIFT’s blockchain path was years in the making

Last year, SWIFT announced that live trials for digital asset and currency transactions across its network were slated for 2025. The current project with Linea appears to be the foundational technical work necessary to make those live trials feasible, moving the cooperative beyond theoretical research and into practical implementation.

Before this announcement, SWIFT published results from a series of trials that tested the movement of tokenized assets across both public and private blockchains. SWIFT’s research demonstrated that its existing secure messaging infrastructure could potentially function as a universal “interoperability layer,” connecting different distributed ledger technologies without requiring banks to undertake massive and costly systems integrations with each new platform.

The Linea project takes this concept a step further, exploring what happens when SWIFT’s own messaging core is migrated on-chain, potentially creating a more native and efficient settlement layer.

For banks, the implications are significant. SWIFT’s system links more than 11,000 institutions, yet it has long been criticized as cumbersome and overly dependent on intermediaries. A successful blockchain integration could mean faster settlement times, reduced costs, and a more resilient architecture for cross-border payments.



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Pikachu looking shocked.
Gaming Gear

Pokemon Company says Homeland Security’s use of its property in disturbing promotional video was unauthorized, but DHS doesn’t seem to care: ‘To arrest them is our real test, to deport them is our cause’

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The Pokémon Company says the US government did not have permission to use Pikachu and other Pokémon content promotional videos for the Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection agencies posted to X—but what it’s going to do about it, if anything, remains to be seen.

The first video, a montage of ICE agents and police blowing up doors and arresting people mashed up with music and video clips from the Pokémon TV show, was posted on the evening of September 22. It also features the words “Department of Homeland Security” spelled out in the Pokémon font. It’s the sort of thing I would not have believed could possibly be real if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, but there it is.

DHS followed with a series of Pokémon-style “cards” bearing images of people convicted of crimes in the US.


Related articles

But that wasn’t the end of it: A couple hours later, Customs and Border Protection got in on the act with an animated image of Pikachu, calling him “Border Patrol’s newest recruit.”

(Image credit: The Pokemon Company (via CBP))

Support for the display in replies was widespread—it’s X, after all—but there was pushback too, and calls from some for The Pokémon Company, or Nintendo, to take action against what was presumed to be unauthorized use of the property.

In a statement provided to PC Gamer, The Pokémon Company International confirmed that the US government did not have permission to use the content, but left the question of what comes next unanswered.

“We are aware of a recent video posted by the Department of Homeland Security that includes imagery and language associated with our brand,” it said. “Our company was not involved in the creation or distribution of this content, and permission was not granted for the use of our intellectual property.”

Nintendo, one of the owners of The Pokémon Company, is notoriously litigious when it comes to dropping the hammer on people who can’t effectively fight back. But former Pokémon Company chief legal officer Don McGowan thinks this is likely a fight it doesn’t want: The Pokémon Company International is “INSANELY publicity-shy,” he said, and perhaps more compelling in light of the US government’s recent treatment of South Korean workers at a Hyundai plant in Georgia, “many of their execs in the USA are on green cards.”

“Even if I was still at the company I wouldn’t touch this, and I’m the most trigger-happy CLO [Chief Legal Officer] I’ve ever met,” said McGowan, who became well-known for his aggressive pursuit of Destiny 2 abusers and cheaters during his post-Pokémon years at Bungie. “This will blow over in a couple of days and they’ll be happy to let it.”

For its part, Homeland Security doesn’t seem inclined to change tack. In response to an inquiry about the unauthorized use of Pokémon intellectual property, a DHS spokesperson invoked lyrics from the Pokémon theme song, saying, “To arrest them is our real test. To deport them is our cause.”



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Arc Raiders' devs would you like you to slam its servers with one last, open to all tech test next month
Game Updates

Arc Raiders’ devs would you like you to slam its servers with one last, open to all tech test next month

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With Marathon having received an indefinite delay back in June, that just leaves one game to test whether extraction shooters can make it mainstream: Arc Raiders. While this one has been cooking for a while now, it actually has a release date, October 30th. There’s been a few tests along the way, and it turns out the devs have one last one in them!


The good thing about this test – they’re calling it a Server Slam – is that it’s completely open to everyone. You don’t need any kind of access code, and despite this announcement coming with the shooter’s pre-order trailer, you do not in fact have to pre-order it either. This test is taking place between October 17th and 19th, across PC and console, and essentially it’s just to get as many people playing as possible to ensure there are no server hiccups when the game actually launches.

Watch on YouTube


Apparently this test will take place on the Dam Battlegrounds map for those in the know, and you’ll be able to get a taste of the game’s progression, crafting, and quest systems. It’s worth noting that none of this progress will carry over to the full game, so don’t get too deep into it. You’ll get a backpack cosmetic as a little treat in the full game for your troubles at least.


I’ve said it before on this site and I’ll say it again, I’m not particularly big on shooters, but I’m always curious about a burgeoning genre or subgenre. Sure extraction shooters aren’t exactly new, but they are quite hard to recommend given how easy it can be to lose progress. Not sure if I’ll be jumping in at launch, though I’ll be keeping my eye on it to see how things go at least.


Arc Raiders is out October 30th.



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