Category: Technology

Holden might be done and dusted in Australia, but the company made a wide range of pretty great cars, including a whole heap of extraordinary concept vehicles.

My personal favorite Holden concept is the 1969 Hurricane, which would have been the only mid-engine Holden ever made, but a close runner-up would likely be the 1970 Holden Torana GTR-X.

Designed by Phil Zmood, this beautiful muscle car, with retracting headlights and a Datsun 240Z-like body, wasn’t always going to remain a concept car. A brochure at the time indicated that Holden would be building a limited collection of GTR-X vehicles, however this never happened.

The Torana GTRX 1970, another Holden that never made it :c pic.twitter.com/FYakWJ1V6h

— BLM | Zachariah Kelly (@ZachariahK_) August 4, 2022

“Engineers dream. Sometimes those dreams become a reality. But not often,” the brochure reads.

“One such dream is the Holden Torana GTR-X. And it has come true. It is the product of the GMH Research and Development, and Advance Styling Groups. It was built to assess the public reaction to an advanced design two-seater sports car.

“The GTR-X borrows heavily in styling and innovation from GMH’s experimental ‘Hurricane’, but it is designed with the thought of possible limited volume production. And low tooling costs could make it available for far less than its European counterparts.”

Specs-wise, the GTR-X would have been quite powerful. The engine was a 3-liter 189S six-cylinder, with a four-speed manual gearbox (RWD). The car weighed just 1,043, capable of putting out 5,200rpm, with power peaking at 119kW. They’re specs comparable to the 2-liter Mazda MX-5.

The brochure goes on to call the GTR-X “another dimension in motoring”, but the project was ultimately scrapped. Cars4starters claims that it was discontinued due to concerns about profit from the planned 1,000-1,5000 annual sales. There may have also been concern within the GM (General Motors) brand that it would compete with the Opel GT, which did look quite similar. Opel was a sister company to Holden, operating in the European and US markets (another was Vauxhall).

Now, one of the only pre-production 1970 Holden Torana GTR-X vehicles sleeps soundly at the National Motor Museum in Birdwood, South Australia, as a member of the Holden exhibit, sitting with the Hurricane and the Coupe 60. I recommend checking the museum out.

Also, who doesn’t love the Torana? The Torana everyone remembers best, the small and boxy muscle car Peter Brock thrashed around Bathurst, setting a lap record on the final lap of the race, would have been in good company alongside the special edition GTR-X.

I hope that one day these concept cars can be added to a game like Grand Touring or forzamotorsport, to be loved and appreciated years later.

Long live the Holden Torana GTR-X.

Rockstar Games is currently hard at work on GTA 6, one of the most highly anticipated video games of the decade. While news about the upcoming title has trickled out in recent months, with early reports claiming it will have male and female Hispanic protagonists as well as a sweeping Miami setting, we still don’t know much about the game. That hasn’t stopped Rockstar Games and parent company Take-Two from hyping it up as the next massive leap in entertainment.

‘The Rockstar Games team is determined to once again set creative benchmarks for the series, our industry, and for all entertainment, just as the label has done with every one of their frontline releases,’ Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said in a recent financial call.

He confirmed the game was ‘well underway’ at the studio, and proceeded to hype up the future of the franchise. While it appears Zelnick has unwavering confidence in the project, it may be too early to get excited.

The idea for GTA 6 has been gestating for nearly a decade, with little tangible progress shown to the public. It was only in February 2022 that Rockstar confirmed active development was progressing, and there’s been little news of the game since then.

Read: Everything we know about Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto 6

According to Bloomberg, the game is also at least two years away – or even further, given the current game delay cycle we’re in. Reports from multiple sources agree that Rockstar is currently taking its time with the game in an effort to better look after employee wellbeing.

Previous projects, including Red Dead Redemption 2, have been heavily scrutinized in the past, for allegedly being developed under terrible crunch conditions. Going forward, Rockstar is reportedly looking to change this, and the perception of its company culture.

So while Rockstar appears to have wildly ambitious plans to change the face of entertainment for good, those looking forward to seeing the results of this commitment shouldn’t hold their breath. It’s also important to take claims like these with a dose of realism. While GTA 6 will no doubt make a massive impact, like GTA 5 before it, it’s always best to keep expectations in check and be aware of how hype can warp your future enjoyment.

GTA 6 is currently in development, with more news promised at a later date.

Less than 1% of Netflix users are engaging with the company’s mobile game offerings, according to Apptopia (via CNBC). About 1.7 million subscribers have downloaded Netflix’s 24 mobile games 23.3 million times since the company launched the gaming apps in late 2021.

The failure to engage its audience with games coincides with an exodus of users from the streaming giant. Netflix lost nearly a million subscribers in the first quarter of 2022 and 200,000 in the second quarter. The service also hiked its prices for all its streaming plans in January.

Company executives anticipated that it would take some time for them to succeed in the gaming market. Last year, COO Greg Peters stated, “We’re going to be experimental and try a bunch of things, but I would say the eyes that we have on the long-term prize really center more around our ability to create properties that are connected. to the universes, the characters, the stories that we’re building.”

Netflix’s games are often associated with popular shows like stranger things and The Queen’s Gambit. Games are downloaded separately from the mobile Netflix app through the iOS and Google Play app stores.

Despite a lackluster first year, Netflix isn’t giving up on its gaming venture. The company intends to expand its game offerings from 24 to 50 by the end of 2022.

Hearthstone’s latest expansion, Murder at Castle Nathria comes with 135 new collectible cards, a new keyword, and a new card type. And of course, these new cards include many new, legendary hero cards that will surely shake the current meta and keep you on your toes!

I’ve been playing the game for the past week with the new expansion cards and loved the many deck possibilities – with the Priest and Mage being my favorites for this expansion.

New collectible cards

Thanks to Blizzard, I was gifted the Hearthstone: Murder at Castle Nathria Mega Bundle (that you can purchase separately) to check the cards out. The Murder at Castle Nathria Mega Bundle includes 80 Murder at Castle Nathria card packs, 5 Golden Murder at Castle Nathria card packs, two random Murder at Castle Nathria Legendary cards, the Sire Denathrius Warrior hero skin, the Denathrius card back, the Sandy Shores Battlegrounds Board, and 10 Mercenary Packs.

After opening the packs, here are some Legendary cards that I’ve got:

Apart from these new, legendary minions, there are definitely many new popular minions from the latest expansion pack too. For example, I see quite a few of Stoneborn General being played, which is a late minion but can guarantee a clear board of a powerful minion, or two. Vengeful Visage is a cool card that copies a hopefully-powerful enemy’s minion that attacks the enemy hero instantly and also gives you a great counter card. Unfortunately, I find out that if the minion has been buffed, you won’t get the same exact duplicate. What you get is the original, default minion stats (which can be lame like a 0/2 totem before the buffs).

Priest

If you are playing a Priest Deathrattle deck (I used to play this and the annoyance it gives to your enemies is satisfying enough), Masked Reveler is an awesome choice for a board control + a quick summon of your more powerful Deathrattle minions. You can also play Creepy Painting and then sacrifice a Deathrattle minion to become a copy of it.

I actually enjoy my new Priest deck that steal cards from the enemy players’ decks. The new expansion totally suggests and encourages this deck, and it creates a hectic, random, dynamics on every game (since it depends on what kind of deck is your enemy playing). If you are planning to play this “stealing cards” deck, you can add Invitation Courier, Identity Theft (which is a must-have card for this deck), The Harvester of Envy, and Mysterious Visitor.

This was my deck for a while because every game is a challenge that you must overcome, and every game also creates a new, weird combo that you wouldn’t know exist (since it combines the cards that the enemy is playing with your own cards ). However, it also creates randomness which can make you lose the game as there won’t be any synergies with your deck.

Criminal Lineup is a late card with 8 mana but if you can summon 3 copies of a very powerful minion, you are guaranteed to win.

mage

After playing the Mech-deck for some time (with the Mage and Paladin classes), I’m happy to make the “Skeleton Mage” deck to be my primary deck. It is so fun and I have a win rate about 80-90% so far with this deck. Thanks to new Volatile Skeleton and all the cards that utilize this new minion like Cold Case, Deathborne, Nightcloak Sanctum, and the ultimate card – Kel’Thuzad, the Inevitable, you’ll get massive random 2 damage per Volatile Skeleton that can clear the whole board or win you games.

I combine my deck with Sire Denathrius (that you can get without having to craft it) and Mordresh Fire Eye, just in case I don’t get enough Volatile Skeleton summons to seal the deal. Thanks to Magister Dawngrasp, I can make the Hero power more and more powerful as the game progresses. As long as I keep stalling while gathering one of these three “sure-win” combo, it’ll always be a win even during a very late, late game.

Just check out this screenshot on a recent game I played, where I could hold my ground barely with the deck and still win at the end!

Otherclasses

I haven’t explored the other classes’ decks because I’m having so much fun (and lots of wins) using my Frost Mage deck. But there are few cards worthy of a mention here. For example, Shaman’s Criminal Lineup is a late card with 8 mana but if you can summon 3 copies of a very powerful minion, you are guaranteed to win. The Warrior’s Riot is a great board clear while keeping your minions alive, assuming you have enough minions on the board to begin with. The Paladin class also has many cool ones like Buffet Biggun and Steward the Steward if you are playing Silver Hand decks. I’ve also seen many Warlock class players creating a new Imps deck, which is quite devastating with all the buffs when you have Imps in play.

New Keyword: infuse

Infuse gets triggered each time a friendly minion die and if you have Infuse cards in your hand, the cards can transform into a more powerful version. The requirements are varied as some cards can only get powerful after you sacrifice enough number of minions, but other cards will gain something each time a friendly minion dies, like Sire Denathrius.

New Card Type: Locations

Locations are new cards that can be played on the battlefield with just the initial cost. It has abilities that you can activate (for free) with -1 durability cost and has a 1-turn cooldown. These cards can only be removed with a card like the Demolition Renovator.

Murder at Castle Nathria is probably one of the best Hearthstone expansions so far. It adds many, new collectible cards with many great, new, fun, synergies and none of them feel too strong or ridiculous to counter. I’m honestly having great fun with the latest expansion and find that I’ve been playing Hearthstone more often than before with the latest expansion.

It’s definitely a great time to come back to Hearthstone and utilize these new expansion cards and make a whole new, fun deck of your own!

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Automotive retailer Repco has launched a new brand campaign in celebration of 100 years on the road, created by its creative and strategic agency of record Thinkerbell.

The campaign, ‘Driven by Passion for 100 Years’, makes for a game of ‘I-SPY’ for car lovers, feature Easter egg placements of historical car history, racing moments and pop culture, from Brian’s ’94 Supra, the fabled Peter Brock Energy Polarizer, the rock that ended DJ’s Bathurst, or Brabham’s legendary engine.

Thinkerbell was first appointed to the Repco account following a competitive pitch in the first half of 2021. The agency has since created a number of new works for the brand, including its Bathurst 1000 sponsorship launch ‘Bringin the bathurst’ and subsequent iterations of the platform during the race event.

The new campaign is carefully crafted to remind Australia and New Zealand of Repco’s deep connection to auto culture, from winning F1 championships to helping you fix your first car.

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With hidden references loaded throughout all assets, the campaign is set to roll out across TV, Print, Radio, Social and Instore, culminating in an interactive game – challenging enthusiasts to test their skills with an online experience.

The campaign will culminate in an online interactive game

Jim Ingram, national chief creative tinker at Thinkerbell said: ‘Whether you’re buying an air freshener for your new car, or a replacement four-barrel carby for your old one, anyone who shops at Repco shares a passion for all things auto. And it’s been fun creating a centenary campaign that’s riddled with hidden moments of passion, some obvious and some that will challenge even the most rusted on car nut.”

Kym Sutherland, general manager, marketing: “Repco’s been there for all car enthusiasts for a hundred years now. Whether it’s yours, or someone else’s that you’re working on, we understand that passion – it’s how we got started in the first place.”

Credits

Client: Repco

Scott Whiteley – Executive General Manager Marketing and CX, Automotive
Kym Sutherland – General Manager, Marketing
Priscilla Sugrue – Brand Manager

Creative Agency: Thinker Bell
Matias Reyes – Creative Tinker
Julia Keller – Thinker Cale Berry – Creative Tinker
Gideon Nedas – Lead Thinker Jess Evernden – Lead Production Tinker
Jaime Morgan – General Manager – South
Dom Counahan – Exec Brand Thinker
Jim Ingram – National Chief Creative Tinker
Sam Whatley – Lead Creative Tinker
Josh Parmenter – Lead Creative Tinker
Adam Ferrier – Chief Thinker

Media Agency: Initiative
Aaron Farrelly – Group Director
Bec Olsson – Partnerships Manager

Production Co: The Producers
Mitch Kennedy – Director
Victoria Conners – Exec Producer
Original Composition: Ack Kinmonth

Sound: BangBang
Digital Agency: Kojo

Player First and Warner Bros.’ MultiVersus You have hit another milestone at 10 million players. The statistics website tracker.gg revealed the WB fighting game currently boasts 10.3 million players at time of writing.

MultiVersus has been a success since its launch in late July. Currently still in beta, its first day boasted over 140,000 players on Steam. It was later reported as the most played game on the Steam Deck handheld.

Most of the game’s player base appears to be on consoles. Of those 10 million players, nearly 69,000 are playing on Steam.

Though the game’s first season has been indefinitely delayed since its original August 9 date, that hasn’t stopped players from digging into the WB platform fighter. Upon full release, the first season will feature DLC characters Rick and Morty, ranked mode, and a battle pass.

During EVO 2022, MultiVersus had its debut tournament at the annual fighting game competition. It’s clear, through both the fighting game community, and its player count, that the game will have some legs for the foreseeable future.

Amidst concerns about the game’s lifespan following WB’s merger with Discovery, game director Tony Huynh confirmed that MultiVersus was unaffected by company shakeups.

Licensed games keep getting bigger and more popular

Currently, MultiVersus stands as one of the biggest licensed games of the year. The additional success of games such as Marvel’s Spider-Man series, or the various crossovers that Fortnite has with licensed characters, means we’ll surely be getting more of them.

Recently, Arc System Works CEO Minoru Kikooda said that licenses like WB or Marvel would be a boon to the future of fighting games. Going forward, his company will make a greater effort to pursue licenses it wants to make games for.

“In the future, if we have such an opportunity, we are actively pushing to collaborate with new IP owners,” said Kikooda. “We need to expand fighting game communities through IP.”

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick didn’t have a huge amount to say about the still-untitled GTA 6 during the company’s recent earnings, but that didn’t keep him from using some pretty strong language to describe it.

“With the development of the next entry in the Grand Theft Auto series well underway, the Rockstar Games team is determined to once again set creative benchmarks for the series, our industry, and for all entertainment, just as the label has done with every one of their frontline releases,” reads a quote from Zelnick in the company’s latest financial results report. That’s quite a statement and surely gives the game, whatever form it takes, a lot to live up to.

Zelnick, of course, is known for issuing big, bold claims. It’s not that I don’t believe him when he says this, either — quite the contrary, we’re still seeing the continued, runaway success of GTA Online today, a decade after launch. So there’s certainly precedent for puffing one’s chest. But still … what a thing to claim.

This statement marks the second time this year that Rockstar has confirmed active development on its follow-up to the staggeringly popular Grand Theft Auto V. There are still no official details on GTA 6 just yet. However, a report did go around late last month regarding improved working conditions on the project and that the game would feature a Latin woman in the lead role.

Take-Two’s latest earnings report indicates that GTA V has sold almost 170 million units worldwide. That’s another five million sales since its last earnings report in May. Additionally, Take-Two says that its GTA+ subscription service has “seen consistent growth since launch.” It also confirmed that players on PS5 and Xbox Series X spend more than those on older hardware.