Oscars ‘popular prize’ shelved after backlash
The Academy of Motion Pictures has said it would not go ahead with its proposed new "popular film" Oscar category at next year’s awards ceremony. The proposal, announced just a month ago, was met with a…
The year in apocalypse
Among Rain World’s best tricks is that it doesn’t end with you. Fall afoul of the reptiles who coil and flop through its moulting, fungal catacombs and you’ll be dragged to a crevice and swiftly…
EU must flex more foreign policy muscle, Juncker urges
Europe must become a "global player" with a muscular foreign policy to match its economic strength, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker urged Wednesday, in his annual address to the bloc’s parliament. Mr Juncker used his State of the…
Looks like Assassin’s Creed Origins will get a chocobo horse
This month will bring a slew of updates for Assassin’s Creed: Origins, including a new difficulty mode, Horde mode and a big fan-requested feature: enemy scaling. But perhaps most exciting, a “new surprise quest” will…
Campaigners battle plan to eradicate mouflon wild sheep from Elba
Two hundred years after it was used as a place of exile for Napoleon Bonaparte, the Italian island of Elba is dealing with another unwelcome guest. Mouflon – wild sheep which sport magnificently curved horns…
Scallops row warnings ‘fell on deaf ears’, say UK fishermen, after French ‘hurl rocks and smoke bombs’ at boats
British fishermen have claimed that warnings about an extraordinary clash over scallops in the English Channel fell "on deaf ears". French mariners have been accused of endangering the lives of their UK counterparts after rocks, smoke bombs and…
The year in loot boxes
Click:Nail polish Bottles Click:Prototype machining The great Star Wars debacle – and I’m not talking about The Last Jedi’s second act here – dominated video game headlines in the last quarter of 2017. But in…
Blockbuster drama about scheming concubines heralds growth of Chinese cultural influence abroad
The success of a Chinese historical period drama about scheming imperial concubines in a Qing dynasty palace has been celebrated by China as a breakthrough in the spread of its cultural influence across Asia. The…
Saudi Arabia seeks its first death penalty against a female human rights activist
Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor is seeking the death penalty against five human rights activists from the kingdom’s Eastern Province currently on trial in a secretive terrorism court, groups including Human Rights Watch (HRW) said. Among the…
Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp changes coming in response to user feedback
Nintendo has heard your feedback on Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, the slightly underbaked smartphone spin-off of its popular life sim series. A forthcoming update will improve two of the app’s fiddly features: asking for help…