How Cyberpunk, the generation’s most hyped game, turned into its biggest disaster December 18, 2020 The Witcher 3, released in 2015, is rarely far from the upper echelons of “Best Game Ever” lists. Developed by Polish studio CD Projekt Red, it was a sprawling, hugely ambitious RPG that refused to offer players a neat solution to its deftly written quests. In its squalid, low-fantasy world, sparing the life of some [...]
Triller: Mike Tyson, Snoop Dogg and the TikTok rivalling video app’s big plans to shake up sports broadcasting December 18, 2020 Three weeks ago in Los Angeles, a 54-year-old Mike Tyson fought a 51-year-old Roy Jones Jr in a boxing match that was unusual not only for the age of its participants. Former undisputed world heavyweight champion Tyson showed glimpses of his old power and speed as the judges surprisingly scored the eight-round contest as a [...]
Jamie Peacock: Rugby league great on the importance of mindset, ultramarathons, Rob Burrow, and accepting the risk of dementia December 18, 2020 “I was never the most physically talented player,” says Jamie Peacock. It is a remarkable statement from someone who stands 6ft 5in, became a titan of rugby league and won the game’s Man of Steel award. But it reflects Peacock’s conviction that mentality and character are everything. “My ability to get the best out of [...]
Selling off museum pieces to save jobs should not be a taboo — especially during a pandemic December 18, 2020 When a group of Royal Academy of Arts grandees recently suggested selling one of the institution’s masterpieces, it caused quite a stir. This was not just any artwork: it was Michelangelo’s Taddei Tondo, a great unfinished masterpiece that is considered among the Academy’s crown jewels. The proposal — auction it off for more than £100m [...]
City A.M. recognises work of 2020’s Business Heroes December 17, 2020 The business world has never seen its foundations shaken as they have been throughout 2020. Lockdown has been a huge challenge for both companies and their staff, with vast swathes of the population first placed on furlough and then grappling with the technological and social difficulties of working from home. City A.M. has certainly not [...]
EFL clubs urged to sue government after being cut out of £300m bailout December 17, 2020 English Football League (EFL) clubs should unite and sue the government for excluding them from its sport bailout, says one owner. The Sports Winter Survival Package last month issued £300m of emergency funding to offset the financial impact of Covid-19. Rugby union received £135m and horse racing £40m, but the only funding for football was [...]
The Week in Sportbiz: Premier League toasts beIN deal; banker set to buy Lille; breakaways boosted; Australian Open delay; and Griezmann bins Huawei December 17, 2020 Christmas cheer has arrived early at the Premier League after it agreed a new $500m deal with beIN Sports. The contract, which gives beIN exclusive broadcast rights in 24 countries across the Middle East and North Africa, is effectively a three-year extension to their deal for 2019-22. It comes as a boost to the Premier [...]
Pixar’s Soul is another existential gem from Pixar December 17, 2020 The release of Pixar’s Soul is a bittersweet experience for many movie fans. Anything that comes from the production line of the animation powerhouse feels like an event, and event movies should arrive in a cinema, not just another block of content alongside murder documentaries and Bake Off boxsets. Nonetheless, Pixar’s 23rd feature arrives on [...]
Rangers, Hummel and JD Sports probed by competition watchdog over replica kit pricing December 16, 2020 Scottish football club Rangers are being probed by the UK competition watchdog over the pricing of their replica kits. The Competition and Markets Authority is also investigating Rangers’ former kit maker Hummel and retailers JD Sports and Greaves Sports. The CMA said it’s probe centred on “suspected anti-competitive behaviour in relation to the price at [...]
Wonder Woman 1984: Gal Gadot shines in retro romp December 16, 2020 The news that Warner Bros would be simultaneously releasing their upcoming slate in cinemas and HBO Max shook the entertainment world, although most headlines buried the fact that this was a US-only deal. In the UK, this week’s sequel to Wonder Woman is still a cinema event, and a welcome one after months of scant [...]