Tommy meets Phil near the end of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. Screenshot: Rockstar Games / EJrM FILMS / Kotaku
The remastered Grand Theft Auto: Trilogy appears to be leaving the Confederate flag behind based on its recent trailer. Revealed last week, the footage offers a brief glimpse of arms dealer Phil Cassidy, but this time without the symbol of Southern slavery on his shirt.
Cassidy, a recurring GTA character, is only visible for a split second in the new trailer, but at 0:34 you can clearly see him sporting a black t-shirt with a skull across the front instead of his usual Confederate flag. It’s unclear if this means that all depictions of the Confederate flag have been removed from the remasters, though it seems unlikely that Rockstar Games would make that alteration only for the trailer.
Phil Cassidy in the original version of GTA: Vice City (left) compared to how he appears in the remaster (right). Screenshot: Rockstar / Kotaku
The studio did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A gun freak and drunk, Cassidy appears in GTA III, Vice City, Liberty City Stories, and Vice City Stories. ViceCity is where he’s featured the most prominently, however, and it’s the only game in which he’s wearing the Confederate flag on his clothes. Over the course of the games, Cassidy loses one of his arms when one of his moonshine bombs accidentally explodes, and is generally an asshole fuckup, so it’s not exactly an endorsement of the symbol.
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The Confederate flag, long a symbol of Southern states igniting a bloody Civil War in defense of slavery, has recently come under renewed scrutiny as more and more white people realize how racist it is. Apple removed games that featured it from the App Store back in 2015. Just last year, Twitch banned the Confederate flag from appearing anywhere on its streaming platform.
It’s also become increasingly common for studios to cut other offensive content from games before re-releasing them. Just this month, Capcom removed suggestive comments and upskirting from its new VR version of Resident Evil 4, though the original version of the game is still available on Steam. In Rockstar’s case, GTA III, Vice City, and San Andreas were removed from sale prior to the Trilogy’s arrival on November 11.
Dodgers skipper Dave Roberts announced that right-hander Joe Kelly has been removed from the team’s playoff roster following a bicep injury that occurred in the first inning of last night’s game. Left-hander David Price has been added to the 26-man roster in his place.
Kelly ran into trouble serving as an opener against the Braves, allowing a two-run homer to Freddie Freeman that ultimately proved inconsequential as the Dodgers stormed back not long after. After facing just four batters Kelly walked off the mound with what is being termed a biceps strain. Even if the Dodgers advance to the World Series this strain will prove season-ending for Kelly. Injury removals of this sort render players ineligible to return for the current or next series, meaning even a speedy recovery wouldn’t enable Kelly to rejoin the pen.
Despite last night’s hardships Kelly had been a reliable weapon out of the bullpen for Roberts, as he allowed just one run in 4 2/3 playoff innings up to that point. That had continued a trend of strong work this year, as the bespectacled reliever finished the season with an impressive 2.86 ERA/3.08 FIP, a 27.5% strikeout rate, and 58.4% roundball rate across 44 innings.
Price meanwhile has served as a utility pitcher of sorts in his first regular season action with Dodgers. Following his opt-out of last year’s shortened season Price has embraced the role of occasional starter, middle reliever, and game finisher. Opposing batters haven’t had much difficulty facing the former Cy Young winner, hitting .272/.339/.428 with just a 17.8% strikeout rate. An above average ability to avoid hard contact and keep the ball out of the air however has allowed the lefty to post a serviceable 4.03 ERA/ 4.23 FIP across 73 2/3 innings this year.
In one more piece of ominous Dodgers news, Roberts also reported that left-handed reliever Justin Bruihl is dealing with arm soreness. On the year the rookie pitched to a 2.89 ERA/ 3.97 FIP with a strong 50% roundball rate across 18 2/3 innings. While the lefty sported only a 15.1% strikeout rate in his inaugural season he displayed much stronger bat-missing abilities in the minors throughout his career, frequently checking in with strikeout rates north of 30%. A call hasn’t been made on whether or not to replace Bruihl on the roster just yet, though this continues an unwelcome trend of playoff injuries for the team after replacing Justin Turner on the roster yesterday.
At halftime of the Denver Broncos’ matchup against the Baltimore Ravens, the team announced that starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was being evaluated for a concussion. He did not come out with the team to start the third quarter, and was then ruled out for the rest of the afternoon. With “Teddy Two Gloves” sidelined, in comes Drew Lock to try to lead a comeback victory.
Bridgewater completed 7 of 16 passes for 65 yards and one touchdown in the first half, as the Ravens secured a 17-7 lead through the first two quarters. Bridgewater was also sacked twice, and the final hit he took likely caused the head injury.
Lock of course was the loser of Denver’s quarterback competition this offseason. The second-round pick out of Missouri in 2019 experienced a sophomore slump last season, as he completed 57.3 percent of his passes for 2,933 yards with 16 touchdowns and 15 interceptions in 13 games played. He went just 4-9 as the starter.
Follow along with the action and check out our takeaways from Ravens-Broncos after it ends right here.
With the addition of features like a 120Hz display on some models, Apple’s iPhone 13 lineup is many ways a step above the phones the company shipped last year. But when it comes to the question of repairability, the story is more complicated. Conducting a teardown of the device, iFixit found it couldn’t get the iPhone 13’s Face ID feature to work if replaced the phone’s display. No matter what workaround it tried, iFixit could not get Face ID to work again. By its estimation, the display on the iPhone 13 lineup is serial-locked to the device. “Right now, if you replace your screen, Apple kills your Face ID, unless they control the repair,” the company warns.
While obviously not a good look for Apple, there may be a simple explanation for what’s happening. iFixit says it spoke to a licensed repair technician who said they were told by Apple support that the issue is a bug the company plans to fix in a future iOS release. We’ve reached out to Apple for more information. If it turns that limitation is not a mistake, it would be a brazen move on Apple’s part given that the FTC, at the , recently voted unanimously to .
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Secretary of State Antony Blinken has deleted a tweet that seemingly criticized the Chinese government and showed support from the United States for the people of Hong Kong, instead opting to issue a less-forceful tweet in its place.
The original message, shared from Blinken’s Twitter account, read: “Beijing should let the voices of all Hong Kongers be heard. The PRC’s disqualification of district councillors only weakens Hong Kong’s long-term political and social stability. We stand with the people of Hong Kong & continue to support their human rights & fundamental freedoms.”
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Blinken’s tweet came after China moved to dismiss seven pro-democracy councilors two days after they were to submit information to help determine whether their oaths of office were valid.
Following the deletion of the tweet, the same account later issued another tweet that read: “The PRC’s disqualification of seven pro-democracy district councillors undermines the ability of people in Hong Kong to participate in their governance. Governments should serve the people they represent. Decreasing representation goes against the spirit of Hong Kong’s Basic Law.”
When contacted by Fox News for a statement regarding the decision to delete the original tweet, a spokesperson for the State Department insisted that the original tweet was “intended to come from the spokesperson.”
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“The team that manages the Secretary’s Twitter account mistakenly sent the tweet intended to come from the Spokesperson. We fixed that error and tweeted from both accounts, speaking out about Hong Kong authorities’ disqualification of pro-democracy district councilors,” the spokesperson said.
In addition, the spokesperson insisted that the tweet was not deleted over “political concerns.”
“Suggestions that this administrative change was somehow motivated by political concerns is patently untrue. The tweets affirm – in words and in meaning – that the United States stands with the people of Hong Kong. We urge the PRC to allow the people of Hong Kong to meaningfully participate in their governance.”
Disneyland has unveiled a replacement for the popular annual passholder program used by a million fans that will require advance reservations as part of a new system designed to reduce crowding and smooth demand throughout the year.
Disneyland announced on Tuesday, Aug. 3 that the new Magic Key program will replace the Annual Passport that has been in use at the Anaheim theme park for nearly four decades.
Magic Key annual passes go on sale Aug. 25 no earlier than 10 a.m. Keyholders — the new name for passholders — can visit Disneyland and Disney California Adventure starting on Aug. 25 provided reservations are available for their pass type.
SEE ALSO:Why Disneyland killed its annual pass program
The new annual pass will be available at four price points: $1,399 Dream Key, $949 Believe Key, $649 Enchant Key and $399 Imagine Key. Monthly payments will be available for each pass level. Daily visitors can turn their ticket into a Magic Key pass.
The $399 to $1,399 Magic Key price range is in line with 2019 prices for Disneyland annual passes. In 2020, the Southern California Select pass rose to $419 while the Signature Plus pass climbed to $1,449.
Higher priced passes will offer fewer blockout days on reservation access calendars. Keyholders should expect reservations to be sold out on some days. The fine print notes that reservations are limited, subject to availability and not guaranteed for any specific dates or park.
The $1,399 Dream Key provides access to both parks every day of the year with free parking.
The $949 Believe Key is good for 317 days per year and offers 50% discounts on parking. The Believe pass is blocked out around Christmas, New Year’s Day and Easter and some weekend days in February, March, April, May and July.
The $649 Enchant Key provides 216 days of annual access to the parks. The Enchant pass is blocked out around Christmas, New Year’s and Easter, most of June and July and big chunks of April, May and August.
The $399 Imagine Key is only available to Southern California residents and is good for 147 days per year. The Imagine pass is essentially good Monday through Thursday with a few Fridays and blocked out most of June, July and August and for big chunks of November, December, January and April.
Dream and Believe keyholders can hold up to six reservations at a time. Enchant keyholders can have up to four reservations and Imagine keyholders can have two.
Dream keyholders get 20% off merchandise and 15% off food while Believe, Enchant and Imagine keyholders receive 10% discounts on merchandise and food.
SEE ALSO: 7 Disneyland rides made into movies — plus 7 more possible projects
The new Magic Key pass will be similar to the former Flex pass launched in May 2019 that required advance reservations. Disneyland described the Flex pass as the most highly rated and sought after pass under the former AP program.
Keyholders will be able to make reservations up to 90 days in advance and cancel their reservation up until the night before they visit the park. Keyholders can make reservations on the day of their visit provided reservations are still available.
Keyholders with three no shows in a 90-day period will have their Magic Key privileges put on hold for 30 days with no new reservations permitted during that period.
Parkhopping will be permitted at 1 p.m. for keyholders — just like daily visitors. Advance reservations for keyholders and daily visitors are expected to continue for the foreseeable future.
Disneyland surveyed thousands of passholder about their opinions and preferences with 80% saying they wanted to continue with the new Magic Key program.
The Magic Key passes come with several perks that include PhotoPass offers, exclusive experiences, special events and limited edition merchandise.
The Alfresco Tasting Terrace that was exclusive to annual passholders will become the Magic Key Terrace. A Magic Key event starting Sept. 1 in the Tomorrowland Starcade will feature a keyholder lounge. A Magic Key celebration month will be announced at a later date.
All Magic Key information will be relayed to keyholders through a new portal in the Disneyland mobile app.
Charter members who sign up during the first 66 days, in celebration of the 66th anniversary of Disneyland, will receive a Magic Key swag box that includes a pin, button, magnet, lanyard and park map.
SEE ALSO:Former Disneyland annual passholders complain about lack of priority ticket access for parks’ return
Fans have been waiting months for Disneyland to announce a replacement for the popular passholder program.
The cancellation of the AP program in January sent shockwaves through the loyal fan base — which Disneyland redubbed “Legacy Passholders.”
Disneyland officials won’t say how many people have annual passes, but theme park industry observers have estimated the number to be 1 million. Annual passholders comprise an estimated 50% of Disneyland resort attendance, according to UBS financial analysts.
Disneyland and Disney California Adventure reopened on April 30 with attendance capacity constraints and other state-mandated COVID-19 health and safety measures after a 412-day pandemic closure. Most restrictions were lifted on June 15, although Disneyland and DCA are once again requiring visitors to wear masks indoors amid a spike in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations tied to the delta variant.
Guests visiting Disneyland Paris in June 2020. Photo: Aurelia Moussly/AFP (Getty Images)
Oh, so you want to go on the Ratatouille ride with your partner and two kids, but you don’t want to wait? That’ll be $40 please. Disneyland Paris has announced that the free FastPass service, a way for folks to skip the line by reserving a slot ahead of time, will instead be replaced by a pay-per-ride service and a selectively available free virtual queue. Disney won’t say whether U.S. parks may one day do the same.
Disneyland Paris has started advertising its new service “Disney Premier Access,” launching this summer (and yes, it has the same name as the Disney+ service for watching theatrical releases at home for a higher price). First reported by WDW News Today, Disney Premier Access charges guests between €8 (about $9.50) and €15 (about $18) to reserve a spot in the “designated fast lane”—in other words, to use the service that used to be free with FastPass. It’s the latest in a series of post-pandemic closure decisions that have been frustrating Disney Parks fans—most notably replacing annual passes with a new membership program, the details of which have not been unveiled yet.
Disney Premier Access will be available for Big Thunder Mountain, Peter Pan’s Flight, Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy, Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast, Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain, Star Tours: l’Aventure continue, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, and Autopia. Guests wanting to use the service have to reserve one of the “limited availability” spots ahead of time through their Disney accounts and then scan the QR code to get into the designated fast lane. However, paying for the service doesn’t even ensure that it’ll work. The website notes that “purchasing a Disney Premier Access gives you fast access to the attraction you choose, but does not guarantee immediate access.”
It’s not the first time we’re seeing paid FastPass programs at Disney Parks (no surprise, considering the FastPass system had its issues). Disneyland has the MaxPass program while Disney World has FastPass+. However, both of those options were in addition to the free FastPass programs (it’s also important to note that they’ve been suspended during the novel coronavirus pandemic, along with FastPass itself). In addition, Disneyland Paris isn’t the first park to implement Disney Premier Access. Shanghai Disneyland looks to have quietly replaced its FastPass program with the paid service last year—although that one is through packages, not per-ride payments. However, the increase in these pay-to-play programs is adding fuel to the rumors of replacing the free FastPass program in the U.S. parks, which have circulated for years. According to Orlando Weekly, Disney Parks have been working on monetizing queue jumping since the mid-2000s. Disney wouldn’t comment on whether the U.S. parks would be switching to Disney Premier Access, stating that it’s only a Disneyland Paris (and Shanghai Disneyland) program at this time.
However, just because FastPass is gone at Disneyland Paris doesn’t mean folks are doomed to wait four hours or more every time they want to go on Peter Pan’s Flight. The park has also been implementing Standby Pass, a virtual queue system that lets guests digitally hold their place in line for certain attractions. Unfortunately, Standby Passes aren’t available all the time, like FastPasses usually are. They’re only implemented on select rides to reduce crowding and help with social distancing. Because we’re still in the middle of a global pandemic.
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Ariana Grande is joining hit show “The Voice,” replacing Nick Jonas as a coach.
The pop superstar, 27, will join the next season of the NBC show, Season 21, alongside regular coaches Blake Shelton, John Legend and Kelly Clarkson.
A source told Page Six, “Ariana is a huge fan of The Voice and her management team has been negotiating to get her on the show for a while.
“She is replacing Nick Jonas, who is a [coach] on the current season, but he isn’t leaving for good. Nick will remain on rotation with other stars that have appeared on the show. The chances are he will be back soon.”
Multi Grammy-winning Grande has appeared on “The Voice” in the past, performing her hit “Into You” on the finale in 2016, but did not take part as a coach.
Her most recent album, “Positions,” broke the record for most songs to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and cementing her as Spotify’s most-streamed female artist of the past decade.
Grande said, “I’m so honored and excited to join ‘The Voice’ family! I have been a huge fan of the show for such a long time.
“I can’t wait to go head-to-head with the incredible coaches, get to know these new artists and help to take their craft to the next level.”
Grande also shared her excitement on social media, writing: “surprise !!! i am beyond thrilled, honored, excited to be joining @kellyclarkson@johnlegend@blakeshelton next season ~ season 21 of @nbcthevoice ! 🤍,” and noting, “@nickjonas we will miss you.”
The battle rounds for the current Season 20 of “The Voice,” with coaches Clarkson, Jonas, Legend and Shelton, continue on Monday, April 5 and April 12 on NBC.