Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by nakal_mode

Blizzard is getting sued whatever time this is

nakal_mode — Sun, 10 Oct 2021 13:17:36 +0800

QUOTE

The DEFH Is Stepping In To Block Activision Blizzard’s Settlement With The EEOC, To Prevent The Destruction Of Sexual Harassment Evidence

After it was announced that Activision Blizzard was being sued by the EEOC on top of their existing lawsuits, not long after that was a settlement between the parties announced, though the DEFH is stepping in to stop the settlement from happening, as it would allow Activision Blizzard to destroy evidence of sexual harassment at the company.

The news comes from website Kotaku, who reports that the settlement between the EEOC and Activision Blizzard would result in the destruction of evidence crucial to the trial being brought forth by the DEFH, since the settlement includes a clause allowing Activision Blizzard to “remove any allegations of sexual harassment from the personnel files of settlement claimants”.

Essentially, the DEFH is trying to step in to make sure that Activision Blizzard won’t be able to sweep the whole thing under the rug like it never happened, as they’ve already shown that they will destroy files in an attempt to intervene with the ongoing trials.

If the DEFH is unsuccessful, it would be detrimental to their case.

https://www.psu.com/news/the-defh-is-steppi...sment-evidence/

TL;DR Blizzard is so eager to settle the lawsuit by EEOC because it allows them to erase all the complains and evidence of sexual harassment once they paid a micro amount of fine, DEFH tries to stop it in order to preserve the evidence.

NFT game developer scams $2.7m frm "investor"

nakal_mode — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 09:47:27 +0800

QUOTE

'Evolved Apes' NFT creator Evil Ape disappears with $2.7M

Evolved Apes is a collection of 10,000 unique NFTs available for purchase on the NFT marketplace OpenSea. Each of them was also meant to be a character in an Evolved Apes fighting game, in which NFT owners would pit their apes against one another in battles for Ethereum cryptocurrency rewards (just as ancient hominoids did thousands of years ago, as I understand).

But it's all gone disastrously off the rails: According to a Vice report, one week after Evolved Apes went live, the head of the project vanished, taking 798 Ether—worth roughly $2.7 million—with them.

The money was raised through the sale of NFTs, and was expected to be used to support the development and marketing of the game. But the situation started to look sticky in September, according to the report, as project leaders began to fall off the radar and communications grew erratic. It also came to light that the artist on the project hadn't been fully paid, and winners of a social media contest hadn't been given their NFT prizes.

Backers eventually asked Mike_Cryptobull, a member of the community who spent a little over $10,000 on 20 Evolved Ape NFTs, to investigate the situation and compile a report on what exactly had happened. In it, he said that Evil Ape, the aptly-named administrator of the project's blockchain wallet (whose real identity isn't publicly known), had disappeared, taking the money with him. The official Evolved Apes Twitter account and website are also gone.

"Evil Ape has washed his hands of the project taking away the wallet with all the ETH from minting that was to be used for everything, from paying the artist, paying out cash giveaways, paying for marketing, paying for rarity tools, developing the game and everything else in between," the report says. "This wallet is also the wallet connected to receiving the 4% royalties from resales. Evil Ape is also holding a number of the 1/1 Evolved Ape NFT’S that were intended for giveaways."

There is no mention about the pursuit of criminal charges in either Mike_Cryptobull's report or the Vice story, in part because it's not completely clear that a crime has been committed. According to Jdmjem, an administrator of the Fight Back Apes Discord, police reports were filed in the UK, where the Evolved Apes crew is based, but while there is "definitely an aspect of a scam," there may not technically have been one.

"The thing is that everyone did get what they paid for, an NFT," they said in an email sent to PC Gamer. "At the end of the day any promises of a game or other development fall out of the scope of your purchase."

"People are trying to file police reports but [the] problem is this is unknown turf and while unethical not technically illegal. We all got what we paid for."

There are still questions about the unpaid artist and contest winners, but the matter is further complicated by jurisdictional issues—the NFT market is international, and Evolved Apes purchases come from all around the world—and the fact that individual reports are for much smaller amounts than the sum total, and thus aren't likely to garner much attention or traction from police agencies.

Of course, some members of the community aren't terribly interested in police intervention anyway.

"We're trynna find that n****," a remaining member of the original Evolved Apes Discord named vert told me. "Once we find him he's getting put on the bin and we're gonna pull up on him. The police won't even get the chance to pursue criminal charges once we are done with him ... That n***** is done for."

Despite the huge loss, at least some of the Evolved Apes community is hanging tough, and the plan now is to attempt to carry on. "We will become the Fight Back Apes, fighting as a community against our nemesis Evil Ape," Mike_Cryptobull said in his report. The new project leadership is reaching out to "massive players in the NFT game" for assistance and advice, and is also seeking continued effort from volunteers. That might seem like a big ask given all that's happened so far, but this time the crypto wallet will not be left in the hands of one person, but will instead require multiple people to sign in to gain access to the funds.

For now, the sale of the Evolved Apes NFTs continues: The OpenSea trading history indicates that more than 660 of them, worth roughly 16.7 Ether ($59,700) have sold since Evil Ape's disappearance was made public knowledge. And Evil Ape is still earning 4% royalties on each sale: Josh_Cryptobull , another member of the community, said attempts to contact OpenSea, presumably to either halt the sales of Evolved Apes NFTs or redirect the royalties, have so far gone unanswered.

https://www.pcgamer.com/evolved-apes-nft-cr...with-dollar27m/

TL;DR You want NFT? Here is your worthless NFT that can be infinitely generated, I'm taking the money, enjoy suckas.

Brianna Wu writting TV series about Gamergate

nakal_mode — Thu, 07 Oct 2021 12:56:45 +0800

I have high anticipation to see how Brianna Wu going to write herself sending death threat to herself on her Steam page, fake how her life is threatened that she has to run from her home, fake cry someone is trying to assasinate her and refuse to appear in E3 unless given extra security.

Definitely going to be a TV series filled with facts and deep insight how a developer can sleep with game reviewers for high scores.

https://boundingintocomics.com/2021/10/06/z...een-ok-with-it/

Just had my second dose Moderna vaccine.

nakal_mode — Sun, 03 Oct 2021 11:36:53 +0800

Advise is no strenous exercise for 2 weeks now, not 1 week.

Also, no alcohol for 24 hours after jab.

Today Caturday, mana caturday tered?

nakal_mode — Sat, 02 Oct 2021 14:58:53 +0800

Post all Caturday memes.

TGS2021 gameplay trailer.

nakal_mode — Fri, 01 Oct 2021 19:24:17 +0800

[YOUTUBE]PFNYSfuxIUw[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]9HHafuRIgfs[/YOUTUBE]

Monstet Hunter Rise coming to PC

nakal_mode — Fri, 01 Oct 2021 10:36:05 +0800

[YOUTUBE]nhk2DE7m8nc[/YOUTUBE]

Diablo 2 Ressurected, 4.7/10 user score

nakal_mode — Wed, 29 Sep 2021 11:17:47 +0800

https://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/diablo-i...negative&page=1

Bayonetta is back.

nakal_mode — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 08:38:19 +0800

[YOUTUBE]KzbHNv-Ygyo[/YOUTUBE]

Epic double screwed by Apple.

nakal_mode — Thu, 23 Sep 2021 13:35:56 +0800

QUOTE

Apple Effectively Bans Fortnite From the App Store for Five Years

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney revealed that Apple has rejected the company’s request to re-instate Epic’s developer account, effectively banning Fortnite from returning to the App Store following the legal battle between Epic and Apple.

Sweeney revealed on social media this morning a letter sent to him by Apple rejecting Epic’s request to have its developer program account reinstated. An Apple Developer Account is required to develop and deliver apps on iOS.

Furthermore, Apple says it will not consider requests to reinstate Epic’s account “until the district court’s judgment becomes final and non-appealable,” which Sweeney says could be as long as five years.

This all began when Epic pushed back against Apple’s payment 30% fee taken from every digital transaction in Fortnite. Epic protested by offering its own payment option in the iOS app, which led to a snowball effect where Apple removed Fortnite from iOS devices which led to Epic suing Apple. During this time Epic lost its Apple Developer Account and Fortnite remains unavailable on Apple devices.

The lawsuit itself eventually went to trial and the judge ruled that external payment systems should be allowed on apps available in the App Store. And while that may seem like a win for Epic, the judge also ruled Epic Games breached its contract with Apple and was ordered to pay Apple $6 million in fines.

Epic says it will appeal parts of the ruling, specifically the ones where Epic lost, but the court has previously stated that Apple’s termination of Epic’s developer account was valid and lawful.

Sweeney says it will continue to fight Apple on this and says Apple has broken its promise to welcome Fortnite back to the App Store if it agreed to play by the rules, which Epic argues is now the case given the court's ruling on allowing custom payment methods.

In any case, if you thought the Epic v. Apple situation has concluded, think again.

https://www.ign.com/articles/apple-fortnite...mes-tim-sweeney

Padan muka Timmy, start crying victim more.

[twt]https://www.twitter.com/TimSweeneyEpic/status/1440711578819567622[/twt]

ActiBlizz Boboy Kotek kena cucuk SEC,lawyer cabut

nakal_mode — Wed, 22 Sep 2021 12:13:50 +0800

QUOTE

Activision boss Bobby Kotick subpoenaed as multiple agencies seek truth on harassment allegations

Activision Blizzard is under increasing pressure over its response to this year's claims of employee misconduct and harassment, with both the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) now involved.

Company boss Bobby Kotick and other senior executives have been subpoenaed to provide their internal communications regarding the company's response to the high-profile allegations, Wall St Journal [paywall] reported (thanks, GamesIndustry.biz).

The SEC is investigating whether World of Warcraft and Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard should have told its shareholders sooner about California's ongoing lawsuit. The EEOC, meanwhile, has been investigating the claims of harassment itself with the aim of a payout for victims - potentially in the millions.

In other Activision Blizzard news, the firm's chief legal officer Claire Hart has announced her departure via LinkedIn.

"After more than three years at Blizzard Entertainment, I have decided to move on to my next adventure. Friday was my last day," Hart wrote.

"The past three years have been full of unexpected twists and turns, but I feel honored to have worked with and met so many great people at Blizzard and across the Activision Blizzard businesses."

Earlier this month, Activision Blizzard employees filed a new lawsuit accusing the company of using "coercive tactics" to prevent organisational efforts to improve working conditions.

All this continues amid the original legal action by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing which alleged sexual harassment, discrimination, and a "frat boy" work culture at Blizzard.

The fallout of that lawsuit has seen numerous departures, including that of Blizzard president J. Allen Brack, but clearly today's latest developments will see further pressure put at the very top of Activision Blizzard.

UPDATE 11.50am UK: Activision has issued a new statement saying it is cooperating with the agencies listed below and complying with the SEC's subpoena.

"The Company is actively engaged in continued discussions with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and has cooperated with the EEOC's investigation concerning certain employment practices," Activision wrote in a press release.

"It also confirmed that it is complying with a recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) subpoena issued to the Company and several current and former employees and executives regarding disclosures on employment matters and related issues. The Company is confident in its prior disclosures and is cooperating with the SEC's investigation."

"We are deeply committed to making Activision Blizzard one of the best, most inclusive places to work anywhere," company boss Bobby Kotick added. "There is absolutely no place anywhere in our Company for discrimination, harassment, or unequal treatment of any kind. While we continue to work in good faith with regulators to address and resolve past workplace issues, we also continue to move ahead with our own initiatives to ensure that we are the very best place to work. We remain committed to addressing all workplace issues in a forthright and prompt manner."

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2021-09-...ent-allegations

Truly the best friend a man can get

nakal_mode — Sun, 19 Sep 2021 17:31:32 +0800

[YOUTUBE]BdAIm9gUIRc[/YOUTUBE]

Destroy all Humans again

nakal_mode — Sat, 18 Sep 2021 08:33:01 +0800

[YOUTUBE]cl8fokvSrTw[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]brXWvd8AP48[/YOUTUBE]

And have Spongebob as well.

[YOUTUBE]OOwh9befbMg[/YOUTUBE]

Blizzard is getting sued again for intimidation.

nakal_mode — Fri, 17 Sep 2021 12:02:49 +0800

QUOTE

New lawsuit accuses Activision Blizzard of worker intimidation and union busting

Employees have filed a new lawsuit against Activision Blizzard accusing the company of using "coercive tactics" to prevent organisational efforts to improve working conditions - amid ongoing legal action by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing alleging sexual harassment, discrimination, and a "frat boy" work culture at Blizzard.

Following that first filing, organisational efforts by employees saw more than 2000 current and former Activision Blizzard staff sign a petition describing the company's initial, widely lambasted response to the lawsuit as "abhorrent and insulting", with subsequent strike action seeing more than 500 workers walk out and "hundreds" more participate virtually around the world in an effort to improve working conditions.

However, the new lawsuit, filed to the National Labor Review Board by the ABetterABK worker collective in conjunction with the Communications Workers of America, alleges Activision Blizzard has, within the last six months, "engaged in and is engaging in unfair labour practices" that violate laws laid out in the National Labor Relations Act.

"Activision Blizzard management is using coercive tactics to attempt to prevent its employees from exercising their rights to stand together and demand a more equitable, sustainable, and diverse workplace," the CWA wrote in a press release announcing the legal action. "It is their right as workers to organise for a work environment free from abuse, discrimination and sexual harassment, and this right is protected by federal labor law."

According to the filing, Activision Blizzard has "threatened employees that they cannot talk about or communicate about wages, hours and working conditions", has told employees they "cannot communicate with or discuss ongoing investigations of wages, hours, and working conditions", has "maintained an overly broad social media policy" and enforced that policy "against employees who have engaged in protected concerted activity" (ie. worker activity protected under federal law), has "treated or disciplined employees on account of protected concerted activity", "engaged in surveillance of employees engaged in protected concerted activity", and "engaged in interrogation of employees about protected concerted activity".

That "protected concerted activity" has included petitioning for improved working conditions at Activision Blizzard, with ABetterABK having continued to list four demands: an end to forced arbitration in employment agreements, the adoption of inclusive recruitment and hiring practices, increases in pay transparency through compensation metrics, and an audit of ABK policies and practices to be performed by a neutral third-party.

Activision Blizzard has so far met one of those demands by commissioning a third-party audit of ABK practices and policies. However, its choice of company, WilmerHale, has come in for considerable criticism given the law firm's reputation for union busting.

This latest legal action isn't the first to accuse Activision Blizzard of shenanigans in its response to the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing's initial allegations. The DFEH recently updated its lawsuit, alleging Activision Blizzard's HR department had shredded documents related to staff complaints and internal investigations - a claim the Call of Duty publisher described as "not true".

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2021-09-...d-union-busting

She-Ra live action in production

nakal_mode — Wed, 15 Sep 2021 07:38:54 +0800

And SJW weirdos are going into full nuclear meltdown.

Made a petition to demand cancellation of the live action, comment section is a gold mine.

https://www.change.org/p/dreamworks-cancel-...-2018-animation

Twitter meltdown is amazing.

https://twitter.com/search?q=%23sheramovie&lang=en

QUOTE

She-Ra Live-Action Series in Early Development at Amazon (EXCLUSIVE)

A She-Ra live-action series is in early development at Amazon, Variety has learned exclusively.

As the project is in the very early stages, no writer is currently attached. DreamWorks Animation will serve as an executive producer after recently producing the Netflix animated series “She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.” However, the live-action version will be a new, standalone story and will not be connected to the animated show.

Should the project go to series, it would mark the first live-action adaptation of the She-Ra character. She first debuted onscreen in the animated film ” He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword” in 1985 as part of the “Masters of the Universe” franchise before spinning off into her own cartoon series, “She-Ra: Princess of Power.”

In the original animated series, She-Ra’s real name is Princess Adora, the long lost twin sister of Prince Adam, a.k.a He-Man. She was kidnapped as a baby by Hordak of the Evil Horde and taken to the planet Etheria, where she was mind-controlled into serving as a Force Captain of the Horde. He-Man eventually helped her break the mind control and gave her the Sword of Protection, which allows her to transform into She-Ra and grants her incredible power. “She-Ra: Princess of Power” ran for two seasons and nearly 100 episodes between 1985 and 1986.

“She-Ra and the Princesses of Power” removed any connection of the character to He-Man, instead retconning Adora into an orphan who became a willing member of the Horde on Etheria. The show featured her as a teenager who breaks from the Horde after she discovers the Sword of Protection (again allowing her to transform into She-Ra) and takes up the cause of the Rebellion on Etheria. The show ran for five seasons and 52 episodes, with the fifth and final season dropping on Netflix back in May 2020.

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/she-ra-liv...zon-1235061288/

Google exposed

nakal_mode — Wed, 15 Sep 2021 06:34:51 +0800

QUOTE

Technology giant Google has launched an “antiracism” initiative that presents speakers and materials claiming that America is a “system of white supremacy” and that all Americans are “raised to be racist.”

I have obtained a trove of whistleblower documents from inside Google that reveal the company’s extensive racial-reeducation program, based on the core tenets of critical race theory—including “intersectionality,” “white privilege,” and “systemic racism.” In a foundational training module called “Allyship in Action,” Google’s head of systemic allyship Randy Reyes and a team of consultants from The Ladipo Group train employees to deconstruct their racial and sexual identities, and then rank themselves on a hierarchy of “power [and] privilege.” The trainers then instruct the employees to “manage [their] reactions to privilege”—which are likely to include feelings of “embarrassment, shame, fear, [and] anger”—through “body movement,” “deep breathing,” “accessing [their] ‘happy place,’” and “cry[ing].”

The program presents a series of video conversations promoting the idea that the United States was founded on white supremacy. In one video, Google’s former global lead for diversity strategy, Kamau Bobb—who was later reassigned to a non-diversity-related role at the company after being exposed for writing that Jews have “an insatiable appetite for war and killing”—discussed America’s founding with 1619 Project editor Nikole Hannah-Jones. Jones claimed that “the first Africans being sold on the White Lion [slave ship in 1619] is more foundational to the American story” than “the Pilgrims landing at Plymouth Rock.” She claimed that she led the New York Times’s 1619 Project—a revisionist historical account of the American founding—to verify her “lifelong theory” that everything in the modern-day United States can be traced back to slavery. “If you name anything in America, I can relate it back to slavery,” Jones said in the video. At the end of the conversation, Jones concluded that all white Americans benefit from the system of white supremacy. “If you’re white in this country, then you have to understand that whether you personally are racist or not, whether you personally engage in racist behavior or not, you are the beneficiary of a 350-year system of white supremacy and racial hierarchy,” she said.

Next, Sherice Torres, Google’s then-global inclusion director (now a vice president of marketing at Facebook Financial), hosted a video discussion with Boston University professor Ibram X. Kendi about racism in American life. Kendi argues that all Americans, including children as young as three months old, are fundamentally racist. “To be raised in the United States, is to be raised to be racist, and to be raised to be racist is to be raised to almost be addicted to racist ideas,” he said. “The youngest of people are not colorblind—between three and six months, our toddlers are beginning to understand race and see race.” The solution, Kendi claimed, is for all Americans to admit their complicity in racism and “respond in the same way that they respond when they are diagnosed with a serious illness.” Denying one’s complicity in racism, Kendi argued, is only further proof of a person’s racism. “For me, the heartbeat of racism is denial and the sound of that denial is ‘I’m not racist,’” he says. Ultimately, Kendi argued that policymakers should deem any racial disparities the result of racist policies—and work to undo the deep-seated racism that permeates every institution in our society. “Certainly, it’s a critically important step for Americans to no longer be in denial about their own racism or the racism of this country,” he said.

Finally, employees at Google created an internal document called “Anti-racism resources,” which contains reading lists, graphics, and racial-consciousness exercises. The document contains a disclaimer that it was “not legally reviewed” and, therefore, not to be considered official company policy—but it was created by Google diversity, equity, and inclusion lead Beth Foster, hosted on Google’s internal-resources server, and made available across the company. One graphic in the document claims that “colorblindness,” “[American] exceptionalism,” “Columbus Day,” “weaponized whiteness,” and “Make America Great Again” are all expressions of “covert white supremacy.” Another graphic, titled “The White Supremacy Pyramid,” advances the idea that conservative commentator Ben Shapiro represents a foundation of “white supremacy” and that Donald Trump is moving society on a path toward “mass murder” and “genocide.”

When reached for comment, Shapiro blasted Google’s depiction. “All it would take is one Google search to learn just how much white supremacists hate my work, or how often I’ve spoken out against their benighted philosophy,” Shapiro said. “The attempt to link everyone to the right of Hillary Clinton to white supremacism is disgusting, untrue, and malicious.” Google declined to comment on this story before publication.

In 2015, Google quietly ditched its corporate motto, “Don’t Be Evil.” Maybe the company, which has now become the world’s library, should revisit that decision. There is no doubt that racism is a social evil, but instead of tackling it head-on, some employees at Google appear to have succumbed to the latest pernicious academic fads, including “antiracism.” The reality is that a company like Google could only have achieved such success in the United States and that, whatever its flaws, America remains the most tolerant, welcoming, and diverse society in history. Google, which has attracted the best and the brightest from around the world, should know better.

https://www.city-journal.org/a-radical-raci...ogram-at-google

[twt]https://twitter.com/realchrisrufo/status/1435698254516142082[/twt]

[twt]https://twitter.com/realchrisrufo/status/1435698533999398912[/twt]

[twt]https://twitter.com/realchrisrufo/status/1435699533124554752[/twt]

[twt]https://twitter.com/realchrisrufo/status/1435699832266518528[/twt]

Meet the writer of KOTOR Remake

nakal_mode — Sat, 11 Sep 2021 06:51:18 +0800

Meet the writer of Knights of the Old Republic Remake.

Knights of the Old Republic Remake is a complete remake of the game that include changes to character and story.

Also, this writer hates the original Knights of the Old Republic and definitely don't understand Star Wars.

[YOUTUBE]xQkENXa9WNE[/YOUTUBE]

Playstation showcase 2021

nakal_mode — Fri, 10 Sep 2021 05:42:12 +0800

[YOUTUBE]WkKAyThShs8[/YOUTUBE]

Injustice

nakal_mode — Thu, 09 Sep 2021 08:09:17 +0800

[YOUTUBE]bEZ5hNd7hsw[/YOUTUBE]

Amazon is asking a deep question.

nakal_mode — Wed, 08 Sep 2021 07:23:19 +0800

Reply is epic.

[twt]https://twitter.com/PrimeVideo/status/1434214682395648008[/twt]