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Arc Raiders' 2.0 Update and 'Spider-Man' Grappling Hook Drive Player Count to Reach 7-Month High
The new Arc Raiders 2.0 update has triggered a seven-month high for its concurrent player count on Steam as fans show up for its "Spider-Man" grappling hook, a new map, a free weekend, and more.
Vikings Elevate/Activate Multiple Players vs Saints, Including OBJ
The Minnesota Vikings are indeed elevating Odell Beckham Jr. from the practice squad for Sunday's game in New Orleans. See the full list of Week 5 elevations here.
How Spurs can make changes while preserving 'delicate ecosystem'
Mitch Johnson must balance the Spurs' starting lineup, player roles and team chemistry to preserve last season's NBA Finals magic.
Kentucky high school announces death of senior football player
Danville High School mourns the loss of senior football player Jamaree Johnson following a recent injury.
Chicago Bears @ Green Bay Packers: Week 5 Players to Watch
Take a look at @BryanOrenchuk’s players to watch for Green Bay as Chicago travels to Lambeau Field for the 214th meeting between the two franchises.
Leeds manager & players agree on 1 thing about Arsenal
Leeds United’s manager and players were complimentary of Arsenal’s mentality, following the Gunners’ comeback win on Saturday.Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty ImagesLeeds United put in a good perfor...
Training: Ready for the Reds
View the best images as City complete our final preparations ahead of our trip to Liverpool. Men's Team Maresca: Our players are ready for Anfield test After an extended international break, the retur...
Half-Time Player Ratings: Man Utd vs Spurs (Premier League)
Manchester United returned from the international break to face Tottenham Hotspur in a must-win match at Old Trafford.
Giving Props: Vikings Player Bets Vs the Saints
Let’s try to keep the positive momentum going
How One Player's Downfall Has Hurt the Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are still a force to be reckoned with, but one player who used to be great is now unplayable for them.
Jaguar reveals a $130,000 all-electric vehicle. Why?
At a darkly lit event in a Manhattan warehouse this week, actress Florence Pugh, Knicks player Karl-Anthony Towns as well as throngs of influencers all gawked at Jaguar Type 01, the British automaker’s first new model in nearly a decade.
All About Alabama QB Keelon Russell’s Family
His dad is a former college football player.
Portugal suspends Cristiano Ronaldo and initiates disciplinary proceedings after walkout
The Portuguese soccer federation has suspended Cristiano Ronaldo and initiated disciplinary proceedings against the player for walking out on the team.
The Daily Mauling: 10/10/26
Links! The time for tonight’s game has changed to 7pm to beat the storms headed to the southwest This SI article says weather may still be a factor in the game Kansas basketball players give their thoughts on the return of Tre White and Melvin Council, Jr Hall of Famer Mike Ditka died Friday at […]
José Mourinho sends warning to Real Madrid stars
Real Madrid head coach José Mourinho has this weekend fired something of a warning shot the way of his players in Spain’s capital. This comes amid the assurance that the Portuguese will show no he...
📸 Neuer's unbelievable howler after just 8 seconds 😱
Ouch.This Saturday afternoon, Bayern Munich travel to Augsburg for Matchday 5 of the Bundesliga. Vincent Kompany's players made the worst possible start to this Bavarian derby, conceding the opening g...
OK, what do we do now?
The watching Braves baseball portion of our year has ended. Now it’s the offseason. We’ll watch the rest of MLB’s postseason with you here. But outside of that, we will be into offseason programming. We’ll have player reviews soon. We’ll slowly perform an autopsy of the season. After that, it’s a lockout. The owners seem […]
Every Virtus Bologna player drafted by the Golden State Warriors
Let's take a look at every player who has been drafted by the Warriors out of Virtus Bologna.
Juventus is keen to make their team more Italian
Juventus are reportedly preparing to change their transfer strategy by focusing more heavily on Italian players as they look to strengthen their domestic core. The Bianconeri have spent recent years p...
Maresca: Man City players can shut out controversy against Liverpool
Enzo Maresca has no concerns about his players' mentality as Manchester City brace themselves for a hostile reception at Liverpool. City travel to Anfield on Sunday for their first match since it was announced the club had been found guilty of breaching the Premier League's financial regulations.
Watch Motherwell v Celtic LIVE on CelticPlayer
The Celts are back after the international break! The Bhoys travel to North Lanarkshire to take on Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership tomorrow (October 11). The Hoops sit top of the table, and it�...
🚨 Official: Chelsea extend key player's contract until 2034!
Another contract extension at Chelsea!At midday on Saturday, Cole Palmer extended his Chelsea contract by another season. The English forward is now tied to the London club until the summer of 2034. A...
Arsenal star’s father insists his son is world-class
Mikel Merino continues to prove his value at Arsenal, with the midfielder delivering important performances for club and country despite often being overlooked when discussions turn to the best player...
Maple Leafs Announce Major Player Absence Ahead of Avalanche Showdown
The Toronto Maple Leafs revealed that forward John Tavares will be unavailable on Saturday as the Maple Leafs gear up to face their toughest test of the season against the Colorado Avalanche.Maple Leafs head coach Jim Hiller told Travelling Reports that Tavares had headed back to Toronto as the Tavares family welcomed their newest son, […] The post Maple Leafs Announce Major Player Absence Ahead of Avalanche Showdown appeared first on HEAVY.
Fosi Audio Launches DAP Neo Digital Portable Music Player
DAP Neo brings lossless playback, tactile controls and a focused listening experience to the Fosi Moment range, Fosi Audio’s new product line of CD and DAPs.
Every BK Skonto player drafted by the Golden State Warriors
Let's take a look at every player who has been drafted by the Warriors out of BK Skonto.
Cardinals Reveal Jeremiyah Love’s Final Status Ahead of Lions Matchup
Week five is on the horizon for the Arizona Cardinals.Arizona’s date with the Detroit Lions is now less than 48 hours away as of the afternoon of Oct. 9.With Friday passing by comes the ultimate injury designations for the Cardinals’ roster heading into Sunday.The player with the most intrigue following their status this week is […] The post Cardinals Reveal Jeremiyah Love’s Final Status Ahead of Lions Matchup appeared first on HEAVY.
Gears of War: E-Day Sold 168,000 Copies on Steam but Xbox Game Pass Players Generated 130% More Revenue
We recently reported that Gears of War: E-Day wasn't having the best launch week over on Steam, but according to Alinea Analytics's Rhys Elliott, Steam doesn't even account for half of the game's revenue or owner base. The analytics firm estimates that Gears of War: E-Day sold around 230,00...
Player Availability Report: #SKCvPOR
Player Availability Report is SportingKC.com’s look at the latest status updates around the team ahead of upcoming matches and is presented by Saint Luke’s. All details listed are from the league’s official Player Status Report that is submitted the day prior to the match. Sporting Kansas City returns home this
Look for Marlins' Heriberto Hernandez to Step Up in 2027
After smashing 25 homers this season, the emerging outfielder is entering the prime of his player
Mike Ditka tributes pour in from former President Obama, Chicago's sports teams and around the NFL
Mike Ditka was “Iron Mike” as a player who revolutionized the tight end position and later became the easily recognizable and often imitated fiery, mustached and sweater vest-wearing “Da Coach” of the Chicago Bears during a Super Bowl-winning tenure.Ditka died Friday at 86, his family announced in a statement.
Russell Westbrook wants to carry torch for L.A. Olympics
Retired NBA player and Olympic gold medal winner Russell Westbrook said he wants to carry the torch when his native Los Angeles hosts the 2028 Games.
Reports - Watchdog eyes NIL violations at 5-10 Power 4 schools
The College Sports Commission is looking into possible rules violations at between five and 10 Power 4 schools regarding payments to players, according to multiple reports.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 Launch Rollout Adds DMZ Early Access
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 has added DMZ to its list of early access experiences available for pre-order players ahead of its launch later this month.
Cavs season preview: Donovan Mitchell
Can Donovan Mitchell be the best player on a championship team?
Superbowl-winning player and coach Ditka dies aged 86
NFL icon Mike Ditka, who coached the Chicago Bears to the Super Bowl XX title in 1986, dies aged 86.
Karl-Anthony Towns would have to decline his player …
Karl-Anthony Towns would have to decline his player …
Gears of War: E-Day sells 230K copies
Gears of War: E-Day has sold 230K copies since its advance-access launch on October 1 and full release on October 6. Steam accounts for 168K of those, with Xbox (console and PC) selling 62K. But there’s more to this story, as Xbox makes up the bulk of revenue. E-Day is the best-reviewed Gears game in nearly two decades (and the best one ever made, in my opinion). The Coalition has made a banger here (it’s currently in my top 10 of the year). Despite E-Day’s undeniable quality, this is a soft result. And it’s down to the business model, really. E-Day has made $37M so far, thanks to the Premium upgrade On Xbox, Game Pass is cannibalising much of the premium revenue. Our estimates show that 1.7M folks accessed E-Day via their subscription rather than a copy. But Xbox is having it both ways – or having it halfway, at least – via its Premium Edition Game Pass upgrade. Game Pass subscribers could pay $30 (or their local equivalent) for up to five days of early access starting October 1. Our estimates show that of the 1.7M who accessed E-Day through Game Pass, 722K paid for the upgrade. Between the review embargo lifting on October 1 and the full release, E-Day managed to shift another 250K early-access upgrades – no doubt helped by the campaign’s rave reviews. So despite selling far fewer copies on Steam, Xbox accounts for almost three-quarters of the revenue (roughly $26M of the $37M, versus about $11M on Steam). So “230K copies” undersells the paying audience. Including the 722K upgrades, nearly 950K people actually paid something for E-Day. The $30 upgrade is a halfstep from cannibalisation, but will Xbox go all the way? While E-Day is a sublime game, these are soft numbers for a flagship when Xbox badly needs revenue wins. E-Day sold 62K copies on Xbox against 722K Premium upgrades, so for every one copy sold on Xbox, nearly 12 Game Pass upgrades were sold. The $70 premium SKU is – functionally – dead on Xbox. Normally you can’t see what a Game Pass player would have paid, because the game’s just there in the subscription. But the $30 early-access upgrade estimate shows that 722K people demonstrated they’ll spend real money on this game. In a world without day-one Game Pass, many of these folks would have bought E-Day at $70. They paid $30 for five days early access to something they don’t own. Xbox is, in effect, charging its most valuable customers the least, based on a hangover from a tried-and-exhausted strategy from a previous administration. Those 722K willing-to-pay players generated about $21.7M via the upgrade. If three quarters of this group – mostly US and European audiences – bought E-Day outright, that’s nearly $40M. Of course, Game Pass does bring in meaningful recurring revenue, and E-Day is adding value for hundreds of thousands of subscribers. However, Game Pass is no longer growing, so Xbox is at a crossroads. Xbox is reportedly looking to do a Netflix and bolt on an ad-supported tier to pad it further. But that will just set a new floor, and leadership keeps telling us the priority now is revenue growth, which is subscriber-speak for ARPU. Xbox has already pulled Call of Duty from day-one Game Pass after day-one inclusion hammered its sales, with new CoD titles now arriving on the service around a year late. We know that some Microsoft executives believe the service devalues games outright, and rumours (which Microsoft has dismissed so far, to be fair) suggest that day-one releases could be taken off Game Pass. Want more free estimates and insights in your inbox twice a week? Subscribe below! Subscribe When a game this well-reviewed does this softly on its home platform, the model – not the game – gets brought into question. What else E-Day’s early adopters have played (including this month so far) Looking at E-Day‘s players on Xbox, most have played the franchise before (86% have played Gears 5, 76% Gears 4), and every game on the crossover list is either a shooter or a title from an Xbox-owned studio (though Game Pass is inflating those numbers, of course, more on that later): As for what else Xbox’s E-Day players have played this month, the top three are Fortnite (16%), Roblox (7%), and Call of Duty (6%). Another 5% played Minecraft Dungeons II, which is also on Game Pass and launched a couple of days before Gears‘ advance-access date. Many Game Pass players are happy to check out most big new additions. Want more free estimates and insights in your inbox twice a week? Subscribe below! Subscribe Over on Steam, the top crossover games are also mostly shooters (slightly more PC-coded ones), including Space Marine 2, which was itself heavily inspired by Gears: Looking at what E-Day‘s Steam players are into this month shows who they are – as subscriptions don’t skew the data. The top three are Wardogs (13%), Deadlock (12%), and CS2 (10%), so you’ve got the restless shooter crowd checking out the new hotness. A little further down are Helldivers 2 and Space Marine 2, your co-op PVE shooter players who’ll feel right at home in Horde mode. Game Pass is skewing the playtime distribution on Xbox Looking at the playtime distribution in our platform, E-Day players on Steam are – relatively speaking – playing for longer: 54% of E-Day players on Xbox have played for five hours or less (versus 32% on Steam) 19% of Xbox players played for over 15 hours (versus 33% on Steam) 14% of Xbox players played for over 20 hours (22% on Steam) The absolute number of people playing for over 15, 20, and 50 hours is, of course, bigger on Xbox, thanks to the sheer volume of folks who came in through Game Pass (upgraders included). None of that is cause for alarm. Game Pass is the reason Xbox playtime skews lower, as when a game is free to try, people try it and bounce without putting in even an hour (17% under an hour on Xbox versus 6% on Steam). Want more free estimates and insights in your inbox twice a week? Subscribe below! Subscribe The subscription brings in tourists alongside the committed, dragging down the average even when the game is excellent (but also perhaps winning over the uninitiated). It’s standard across every subscription-included title, on PS Plus too. Forza Horizon 6, for instance, had 11% of its Xbox players bounce under an hour, versus just 2% on Steam. So, Xbox’s crossroads So there we have it. Gears of War: E-Day is an incredible game whose revenues have been stifled by subscription inclusion and exclusivity. It’s the best-reviewed entry in the series in fifteen-odd years, but it still turned into one of the year’s softer flagship launches, not because players didn’t want it, but because Xbox’s own storefront gave its most willing buyers a reason not to pay. Which leaves Xbox at a crossroads. Will it keep making Gears games when the financial returns are this thin and the margins this low? And if it does, does the next one arrive off Game Pass at day one – the way CoD now does, or even on PlayStation? I think it should. Alright, back to E-Day for me! The last word Reply to this email – or reach out here – if you have any feedback for the newsletter – or want to request a game for us to cover. [Alinea Analytics boasts the most accurate PC and console estimates in the business. Game makers use our platform to understand their audience, keep an eye on the competition, monitor sales trends, and spot new opportunities. We equip game studios and financial institutions with accurate data and the confidence to make smarter, data-driven decisions. Want to talk about all things games market data? We’d love to chat!]
Hampshire legend Adams leaves after 25 years
Hampshire club legend Jimmy Adams leaves the county after more than 25 years as a player and coach.
LSU Finally Reveals 10-Player Roster in Will Wade’s Exhibition Return
The game offered a glimpse into which LSU players are eligible.
5 Chiefs Players Under Pressure Coming Out of the Bye
The Kansas City Chiefs are surely doing some reflecting on how 2026 has unfolded so far. A lot of things have gone right as they sit atop the AFC with a 4-0 record. Several players have stepped up and made an impact, but others are feeling the pressure to step up during the rest of […] The post 5 Chiefs Players Under Pressure Coming Out of the Bye appeared first on HEAVY.
Confirmed: Barcelona breakthrough academy talent renews until 2030
FC Barcelona’s plans for the present and future are taking shape, with the club officially confirming the renewal of one of its most promising young players, Xavi Espart.The Catalan club announced t...
Meet the Teen Athlete Who Overcame a Major Health Curveball
After developing an unprecedented and progressive spinal curvature, known, 10-year-old Macie Perna feared her love for playing softball may be lost forever. But, a life-changing operation at Shriners Children's Philadelphia called Vertebral Body Tethering, or VBT, hit those fears out of the park. Just six weeks later, Perna was back on the field stronger than ever before. Now, at 16, she has no restrictions and big dreams. Macie and her mother Michelle join TODAY's Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones to talk about her health journey and her role as a Shriners Children's International Patient Ambassador. She even gets a surprise from her favorite college athlete! (Sponsored by Shriners Children's)
Bills Keep Drafting Defensive Players, but Where Are the Results?
The Bills have invested heavily in defensive draft picks, but early-season struggles raise questions about Brandon Beane's roster building.
Mavericks Macao Trip Proves Chemistry Is Already Built
Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg are ready. Dallas players say the locker room is tight. The Macao trip shows the Mavericks are set for a run.
Michael Pittman’s Absence Opens Door for Steelers Receivers
Michael Pittman Jr., whom Pittsburgh acquired from the Indianapolis Colts this offseason, will miss multiple weeks after aggravating his foot injury. His absence creates an opportunity for Pittsburgh's younger receivers to establish themselves. Which players could see increased opportunities?
U.K. Box Office Back to Full Health — But What Lessons Do We Learn?
Will the IMAX hype hold? Why does A24 deserve credit? Cinema programmers at three major theatrical players put their heads together and agree on the audience appetite for filmmakers with original stories.
Detroit Pistons: Scouting The End Of The Bench
The Detroit Pistons played a total of 16 players during their two-point preseason win over the Phoenix Suns on Monday night
Badgers' Grady Deering gains confidence through experience
A happy-go-lucky Wisconsin men's hockey player opens the season on a high note. His team now faces Minnesota State.
Lyanco shines in stoppage time, scores equaliser and celebrates result
One of the standout players in the match against Athletico-PR, center-back Lyanco played a decisive role in securing Atlético’s 2–2 draw in Curitiba. In the final moments of stoppage time, the No...
Ace Combat 8 players in Japan are affectionately headcanoning its ace pilot protagonist as a helpless "airhead" outside the cockpit, thanks to clumsy story moments and awkward QTEs
In ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE, players take on the role of silent protagonist Rex, an ace pilot who racks up impressive achievements in aerial combat. However, a popular headcanon has recently been making the rounds among Japanese Ace Combat players, proposing (affectionately) that outside of the cockpit, Rex is actually a complete airhead. The idea was fueled by how the game’s interactive scenes work as well as certain moments in the story, with Rex gradually becoming the fandom’s beloved anemic baby. Note that this article discusses some details of Ace Combat 8’s main story. Ace Combat 8 is set in the franchise’s shared fictional world of Strangereal. In […]
Kvernadze remains Roma’s priority for January
Roma, ahead of the next transfer window, are looking to provide Gasperini with a right-footed left winger capable of beating opponents. The player, who has been highly sought after this summer, could ...
Arc Raiders Jumps to Six-Month High Player Count With 2.0 Update and Free Weekend
Embark Studios has put in a decent amount of work maintaining and developing Arc Raiders in recent months, with the company recently announcing an upcoming co-op mode slated to launch into testing on October 13 while it continues to iterate on its anti-cheat processes and detection methods. In...
Warriors unsure when Kristaps Porziņģis will return from lingering health issue
What is clear is that Warriors players and coaches still don't have a good sense on when Porziņģis may be able to return.
How MLB's Proposed Changes Would Impact the A's
MLB's latest proposal would shorten the regular season and make changes to the postseason format — but only if players agree to a salary cap first
Syracuse Basketball: Three Takeaways From ACC Tip-Off Event
Orange players and head coach Gerry McNamara spoke to the media in Charlotte, N.C. this week ahead of the 2026-27 season.
Maple Leafs Handed Clear Fight Prediction Before Golden Knights Game
The Toronto Maple Leafs face the Vegas Golden Knights this Thursday, October 8, and the conversation ahead of the game centers not only on possible lineups and outcomes, but also on potential fights.In the latest edition of The Leafs Morning Take, Nick Alberga and Jay Rosehill discussed who could be the first Leafs player to […] The post Maple Leafs Handed Clear Fight Prediction Before Golden Knights Game appeared first on HEAVY.
Wrexham Receive Encouraging International Fitness News
Phil Parkinson welcomes encouraging news on Wrexham’s international players as the squad prepares to return to Championship action at Derby.
Bucs LB Trotter Graded Top 5 Rookie in NFL
Although the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' season has been very disappointing, rookie linebacker Josiah Trotter has been one of the best players at his position league-wide.
Maresca says 'feeling is fantastic' among Man City squad
Enzo Maresca says his players "don't care too much about the noise" surrounding Manchester City over the 115 Premier League charges.
USA TODAY Sports Top IX flag football players of Week 7
These nine flag football players made their mark across the country this week.
U SPORTS Is Getting An NCAA Boost This Season With
With a new push to potentially limit international players in the NCAA, U SPORTS hockey will become an increasingly enticing option for Canadian players. This season, another group are making the transfer from the NCAA coming to Canada to complete their university women's hockey careers.
Farmington football forfeits 4 games for using ineligible players
Farmington football had to forfeit the first four games of its MHSAA season after two ineligible players suited up for the Falcons this season.
‘Survivor 51’ star Rob Antonson insists ‘I’m not a quitter. I’m just not.’
‘Survivor 51’ player Rob Antonson looks back at his controversial exit and insists ‘I’m not a quitter. I’m just not. I’ve never quit anything in my life.’
NFLSU rookie check-in: Week 5 preview
The top LSU players from the class continue to play well
Colts’ Shane Steichen Reveals Unusual Post-London Plan
All good coaches have a plan when it comes to being strategic with schedules. A 17-game season can really be strenuous on the players' bodies and minds. This is why Steichen came up with a unique plan. He wanted to combat some of these challenges. The post Colts’ Shane Steichen Reveals Unusual Post-London Plan appeared first on HEAVY.
Every Yale player drafted by the Boston Celtics
Let's take a look at every player who has been drafted by the Celtics out of Yale.
The latest Premier League market values 🤑💸
Money money.Between the World Cup, the start of the season and the transfer windows, players' market values have been shaken up this summer.Whether it's new arrivals, dramatic drops or incredible rise...
New Report Assesses the Strategy to Remake the U.S. Science Ecosystem — and Lays Out a Path to Rebuild It
First installment of a multi-part series, Forging the Future of Science and Democracy, examines the players and the playbook that got us here.
Key Contributors in the Magic's Win Over Grizzlies
The Orlando Magic opened their preseason slate with a 122-118 win over the Memphis Grizzlies, and these players had a lot to do with it.
Cottagers best ever XI: Who is Fulham's greatest right winger?
Our ongoing international break series continues, as Fulham's next Premier League match against Ipswich approaches. Next up in the series of naming the Cottagers' best-ever Premier League players comes the right wing position.
Sporticast: Can the Premier League Thrive With Fewer Stars?
On the 593rd Sporticast episode, Lev Akabas, Justin Birnbaum and Jacob Feldman fill in for Scott and Eben to discuss a week’s worth of sports business news. Justin recently published Sportico‘s annual list of the world’s highest-paid soccer players, with Cristiano Ronaldo leading the way with roughly $300 million in earnings. Only one of the …
Agent confirms Juventus has made an approach for his player
Lorenzo Palmisani is one of the most wanted players in Serie A at the moment. He has continued to impress when he plays for Frosinone since the start of this season.Their fine start to the campaign is...
Gimme Him: One player Commanders would steal from Giants
There is one player the Washington Commanders would love to steal from the New York Giants in their Week 5 matchup.
Juventus joins the race for the new Jude Bellingham
Borussia Dortmund has unearthed a player they believe could be the next Jude Bellingham and they might lose him soon. Juventus is one of the clubs interested in the teenager.The player in question is ...
Morikawa says LIV players face 'business decision' after Rahm exit
Double major winner Collin Morikawa said Thursday that LIV Golf players have to make "a business decision" about their futures, after Jon Rahm's lawyer said the Spanish star was quitting the breakaway…
Bills QB Josh Allen Faces Warning From Legendary NFL Player
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is getting a harsh warning from legendary NFL receiver Steve Smith Sr. The post Bills QB Josh Allen Faces Warning From Legendary NFL Player appeared first on HEAVY.
'Survivor 51' recap. One player quits and another abandons his tribe
Warning: The following contains major spoilers for the Wednesday, Oct. 7, episode of "Survivor 51." "Survivor" blindsides are in full swing during the open era.
‘Survivor 51’ recap: A player quits the game due to a ‘tiny cut’
A ‘Survivor 51’ player quits the game due to a ‘tiny cut’ that is smaller than every cut on every contestant to ever play the game. Read EW’s recap.
Every York College player drafted by the Golden State Warriors
Let's take a look at every player who has been drafted by the Warriors out of York College.
Several Tigers Prospects Looking for Bounce-Back Seasons
Detroit Tigers fans are likely familiar with the top positional player prospects. If not, we’ll see more of guys like Zyhir Hope and Bryce Rainer play in the Arizona Fall League. We’ll analyze these two top prospects and their performances after the league ends. The prospects highlighted include a few former top 100 prospects and …
Gears of War: E-Day Launches to Modest Reviews and 31,500 Peak Steam Players
Gears of War: E-Day, the origin story of the long-running Gears of War franchise, launched on Steam, Xbox, and Game Pass, and, although Microsoft has been building hype for the new Gears game for several months leading up to launch day, the game's launch performance on Steam is less than stellar....
Who Won August and September: Original Films or Franchises?
(Welcome to the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a newsletter on the entertainment industry and business strategy. I write a weekly Streaming Ratings Report and a bi-weekly strategy column, along with occasional deep dives into other topics, like today’s article. Please subscribe.) I just heard someone say that if you’re reading a pundit or data analyst, and they don’t tell you that they got anything wrong, they’re not a pundit but an “influencer”. I agree with that. You have to tell your audience when you get things wrong, or they won’t (or shouldn’t) trust you as much. Today, we’ve got another edition of “What I Got Right, What I Got Wrong”. In general, I’m patting myself on the back (and patting very hard) about a few things like IP at the box office, LIV golf, horror films, crowdfunding movies, superheroes, and old people going to the theaters. That said, I also made a couple of data mistakes on the streaming bubble popping and HBO’s datecdotes, so I’m not perfect. But first, I need your feedback... Subscribe Follow-Ups: What Should We Call Mid-Budget Movies Which Aren’t Cinematic Enough for Theaters But Are Too Expensive to Make Money on Streaming? After I asked for feedback on what we should call straight-to-streaming films that are too big to pencil out on streaming but not really big enough to resonate in theaters, I got some great suggestions from you all, including... “Moldilocks” from John Aboud “Little Big Indie” from Travis Frick1 “Midflicks” from Jonathan Funke. “Extra-Medium” from Jona Nwuke. (Read the explanation in the footnote.) Between these and Brandon Katz—who suggested “Bermuda Budget Triangle”, “The Platform Gap” and “The Distribution Deadzone”—we’ve got some excellent suggestions. And they’re better than my suggestion, the “Streaming Budget Dead Zone”, so let’s take a poll! The winning entry becomes the new term. Loading... RIGHT: LIV Golf is Fully Bankrupt…Is Anyone Else Next? A few years ago, I was always a bit perplexed at all the articles I’d read praising LIV Golf and their strategy to disrupt the PGA. LIV Golf, a brand new professional golf league, offered PGA stars ten times what they made on the PGA Tour to join their new league. And folks praised this strategy for its initial “success” in that a lot of big names did indeed leave the PGA. Yeah, of course the players came over. LIV Golf paid them so, so, so much more! But LIV Golf hadn’t discovered a way to increase potential revenue. So think about this in basic business terms… They paid much more in costs… …but had no real way to increase revenue. That’s not a strategy! That’s deficit financing. It won’t work unless you bankrupt the competition (and then turn around and pay those same golfers much, much less). It’s not a sustainable strategy and only lasts as long as the company/person/nation backing it decides they’re cool with losing money. For LIV Golf, that meant Middle East oil wealth, in particular Saudi Arabian money. Clearly, the current Iran War has hurt Middle East finances, so they need to trim their more exorbitant spending. And LIV Golf was part of that trimming. This should be a major warning for others. TGL’s parent company, TMRW Sports, just got a $1 billion valuation, despite TGL’s (the indoor golf league) horrible TV viewership of less than half a million viewers per match. Unrivaled, the women’s basketball league, just secured a $650 valuation, despite its horrible TV viewership and a new rival (Project B) entering the scene next year. To relate this to streaming, Hollywood should ask which streamers may have wealthy patrons funding their losses. (Let’s be clear: Google, Amazon and Apple.) Could those patrons lose their appetite? For Amazon, probably not. But Apple has a new boss, so maybe! WRONG: My Analysis of the Streaming Bubble Was Missing a Week I’m going to be congratulating myself a lot today, but I make mistakes too, like this data goof. When I last compiled the data on the decline in TV shows, I was missing one week at the end of June. If you look at the first image, you can see that one week was mislabelled as “July”. Mainly, this image got updated to show a 27% decline, not 29%: This change doesn’t really impact the overall analysis, but it is two percent better. By the way, through the third quarter, the decline increased and it’s now a 30% decrease since 2022. (I’ll write/visualize this in an upcoming article.) But I want you to trust me and my data. Especially these days, when many people are using LLMs that I know are inserting faulty data into their charts, I want to keep earning my audience’s faith. So that’s the accurate data. RIGHT: IP Remains Very, Very Popular In July, I wrote a giant (and I mean giant) article on Backrooms, Obsession, and the box office, going over what we know, what we don’t know about what works in theaters, looking at YouTubers, IP, the horror genre, comic book movies, and a whole lot more. The month of August really tested a lot of my theses and, being honest, mostly supported my arguments. Let’s start with IP. Looking at 8-Aug (the weekend after Spider-Man: Brand New Day came out) to 18-Sep (the weekend that Resident Evil came out, which I think provides a nice bookend to this time period), there were seven films based on pre-existing IP: Resident Evil (2026) ($126 million) Practical Magic 2 ($65 million) _Insidious: Out of the Furthe_r ($65 million) Coyote Vs. Acme ($59 million) Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie ($53 million) Tony ($15 million) Super Troopers 3 ($7 million) Compare those to the notable original films from the past month—I actually could have included more movies, but here are just thirteen, bringing us to an even twenty films—including.... The End of Oak Street ($54 million) Buddy ($26 million) Mutiny ($15 million) By Any Means ($15 million) The Dog Stars ($14 million) Runner ($14 million) One Night Only ($11 million) Hope ($8 million) Spa Weekend ($7 million) The Uprising ($6 million) Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma ($6 million) Onslaught ($3 million) Eli Roth’s Ice Cream Man ($2.8 million) Here’s that in chart form: Five of the top six films in this time period were all based on IP. I made a big chart of films that grossed over $200 million at the box office before Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey hit theaters. Let’s update that chart! By the way, if you want to see how I categorized each film—so another bar chart—here it is: I know that many of my fellow critics/pundits/analysts dislike films based on IP and how Hollywood is making so many of them. And I’m sympathetic to this point of view. As I’ve written many, many times before, you need a balance between existing franchises, new IP, and original films. And Hollywood clearly needs to make more films like Resident Evil (a well-made film from a visionary director) and fewer Practical Magic 2’s (which didn’t get critical or customer buzz). But at some point, critics and pundits need to contend with what audiences are telling them: Movie-goers aren’t showing up to original films. Audiences are speaking with their dollars, telling you they want more IP and franchises. You can try to convince studio heads to make fewer IP-based films and franchises, but the data and numbers aren’t there. Instead, critics need to work harder to convince audiences to show up for original films. Aim your ire/concern at the average person, not studio heads.2 Because they’re just making the films that audiences are telling them to make. WRONG: Original Horror Films Didn’t Break Out I’ll be honest, even though I wrote an article casting some skepticism on the horror genre in July, if you asked me to make a prediction, I would have predicted that, in August, a new, original horror film would have blown up. No, seriously, I just assumed that Obsession and Backrooms presaged a change in audience behavior. But none of the buzzy new original horror films from August—Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, Onslaught (not an action film in spite of the ads), The End of Oak Street, Eli Roth’s Ice Cream Man, or _Buddy—_broke out. To be clear, exactly one of those films (Buddy) had good “ROI”, but again—I try to be specific in my language—none were “popular” in any broad sense of the word. None of them will be “saving” movies theaters like Backrooms or _Obsession_helped save the summer. The new Insidious film and Resident Evil, both based on IP, were far and away the biggest horror films since July. (We’ll see if this changes in October/Halloween season.) RIGHT: Stay Skeptical about Crowdfunding... I’ve long been skeptical about crowd-investing platforms as one of Hollywood’s saviors, mainly because there’s so much hype/buzz. People need to stay more skeptical about more things, explaining both the potential upside but also the downsides. In particular, the media often hypes crowdfunding at the start and never checks in on the actual results after they’ve come in later. And August gave us our first update! _Ice Cream Man—_directed by Eli Roth—grossed $6 million off of a $5.5 million budget. This is a production of The Horror Section, which was one of the first “crowd investing” studios with 2,400 investors, which means that 2,400 investors probably lost money. They certainly aren’t getting as great of returns as if they had just invested their dollars in the stock market. Hopefully Stiletto (Tagline: “Someone’s Going to Make it Rain Blood!”) does better next month. WRONG: Another Data Goof Here’s another data error. When the first episode of House of the Dragon came out, HBO put out that it had 21.5 million viewers in the first three days, and I read that to mean in the US…but no, it was global. So my US-only datecdotes charts shouldn’t have included it. We never got US-only numbers for the first episode, but for the final episode, HBO put out that it had 11 million US viewers. (And that global dropped to 21 million viewers.) Here’s the updated chart (which I’ve since used in the Streaming Ratings Report): Still, this show is absolutely huge. RIGHT: Superhero Films Remain Very, Very Popular After Supergirl flopped, I read a few takes that “comic book movies are going the way of the Western”. Post-Spider-Man: Brand New Day, that take didn’t age well. To be fair, I have a very nuanced take on the superhero genre right now; it’s down right now, for a lot of reasons. But it’s not “dead”. Maybe _Spider-_Man is just a really popular character? I saw that take, and it’s a fair counter-argument. (But pundits arguing that superhero movies were dead should have mentioned this $1.5 billion counter-argument…) But is it just Spider-Man? The next Avengers film already has $50 million in pre-sales (and I was skeptical that that film would do well) and the Avengers: End Game re-release topped the box office two weekends ago (over three original films). And I wouldn’t bet against Batman or Superman. So maybe it’s just Spider-Man, Batman, Superman and the Avengers. Oh, and Deadpool, of course. And Black Panther. And Wolverine. And probably the X-Men. Plus a well-made Wonder Woman or the Hulk film could break out. But that’s it! It’s just those ten characters/teams. Oh, what’s that? Lanterns is also doing well on HBO? (See previous section…) To be fair, I’m actually pretty sympathetic to the argument that more popular characters—like Spider-Man and Batman—anchor more popular films. In fact, I made that exact argument three years ago when I first wrote about the “Marvel-cession”. In many ways, you can blame The Guardians of the Galaxy for fooling Marvel Studios (and the rest of us) into believing that any character could pop. It turns out, the list of iconic characters is probably smaller than most people think. But it’s probably too early to say that superhero films and comic book movies are dead unless “death” means a slight decline over a longtime. RIGHT: Who Killed Theaters? Old People I get frustrated whenever I see headlines or analysis about how young people are “returning” to theaters. As I’ve detailed(for years), young people have always powered the US box office, despite narratives about “kids these days” and their “phones”. Really, what’s changed post-2020/pandemic is that old people aren’t going to the movies nearly as much. This summer, I saw a movie (from an older director) in a theater near a retirement community, and multiple older people at the theater were talking about how this was their first time seeing a movie in years. I dislike personal anecdotes, so YouGov can fill in the data, best summarized by this headline: “Who killed movie theaters? Not the youths”. According to them, 64% of people aged 18-29 have seen a movie in the last year, but only 30% of 65-and-older. 20% of 18-29 have seen a movie in theaters in the last week and 42% in the last month. Here’s the polling data: Most concerning? Many Americans (17%) think theaters are a worse or much worse experience than watching films at home. Slight WRONG: Hadestown Opens Big A live theater capture of the Broadway musical, Hadestown, made $20 million at the US box office, which begs the question: was I wrong to be skeptical about musicals a few years ago? Yes and no. On the one hand, $20 million is a far cry from being “popular”, so yeah, the genre isn’t that popular overall and Hadestown is one of the more popular musicals from recent years (i.e. the “Taylor Swift Data Fallacy” in action). On the other, I doubt filming this cost all that much, and I don’t think that they spent much on marketing, so this is a good source of ancillary revenue. Smaller Updates WRONG: As I mentioned in a Streaming Ratings Report, I underestimated the budget for Enola Holmes 3. It probably cost more like $50 million, if not more. But... I’m not sure that it really matters? At sub-10 million hours, prices have to come down to make this work. WRONG: Netflix is giving Ink a 27-day in theaters! To quote the kids/YouTubers these days, let’s go! Now I might actually have a chance to see Danny Boyle’s latest in theaters. I’d complained about this in a “Coming Soon” section, but I was heartened to read that Netflix is giving multiple films longer theatrical windows this year. RIGHT: Netflix is sending 4-5 films per year to theaters. Netflix is slowly but surely sending more and more films to theaters, as I cautiously predicted earlier this year. For now, it’s just three big films and a number of awards contenders, but still, this is great news. And they’ll be releasing box office grosses! Just this week, Ted Sarandos confirmed that KPop Demon Hunters 2 will come to theaters (and my guess is it performs in the box office top ten at a minimum). WRONG: Angel has 3 million subscribers! How do I know this? Well, they told Deadline, who reported it. I marked this as “wrong”, since they’ve doubled their subscribers in one year but, you know, they don’t really have a hit film to speak of and they’re still losing money. WRONG: Furious was only renewed for one more season. I accidentally wrote “two more seasons” in my latest “Renewals, Cancellations, Un-Orders and Removals Update”. RIGHT: House of David is ending with its third season. In July, Prime Video renewed House of David for a third season, as I just wrote in my latest “Renewals and Cancellations” report. Well, now it’s ending after that third season. Why? As I’ve been writing, its viewership wasn’t great. I got feedback that this show didn’t cost very much, but it cost enough that its limited viewership didn’t save it. WRONG: Adults was a Hulu original! So I missed Adults when it first came out last year; I saw that it aired on FX and just assumed that it was a linear-first program. Turns out, it aired three episodes on FX, but binge-released the rest of its episodes the next day on Hulu. Huh. So I should have covered it last year! But I just wrote about it. 1 “When I was a kid in the 90s, if you wore a t-shirt to school that wasn’t too big and also wasn’t too small, but somehow didn’t quite fit, we’d say you were wearing an “extra-medium” shirt.” 2 As always, a huge exception is Disney, which barely makes anything original anymore.
Pre Order Minecraft for Nintendo Switch 2
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