Monday 22 October 2018

22/10/18: £50: Maggie or Maguire? and an Odyssey into Unknown Territory

Intro

Week 10. I feel like a proper reporter now. This week, I got myself a big coat and I feel really professional when I'm in it. I don't know if I look it, though. Might just look like a bit of a ponce.

Economy

Image result for new fifty pound note harry maguire

Remember when the £5 and £10 notes went from paper to plastic? Well now the £50 is joining them. 

The Bank of England has announced that they're making polymer versions of the high value note, and they've said the public gets to decide who's gonna be on it. That is, besides the Queen I mean.

Social Media has been aflame with suggestions for who should be on the most expensive bill. People have named such celebrities as potty mouth musician Liam Gallagher, presenter and Snapchat legend Phillip Schofield and Leicester City center back Harry Maguire astride an inflatable unicorn.

However, much to the dismay of many the bank of England has announced it can only print those who are deceased on it's notes, (again, besides the Queen). As such, a likely favourite for the new plastic version is former Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
(Source: the Standard)


Gaming

Image result for assassin's creed odyssey

So this week I was able to get my hands on the new Assassin's Creed: Odyssey. I know it's been out for a little while but cut me some slack, I'm a student. At time of writing I've only played about 3 hours, but so far it's been a fun experience, but not without it's criticisms.

First things first, some of the voice acting lacks much in the way of tone. For example, of the two player characters, I chose to play Alexios (I kinda share a name with him so it felt right), but whenever he speaks it's like the voice actor is trying to hard to play him where in the past, characters like Edward Kenway from Black Flag seemed to be conveyed effortlessly.

Another thing is that it no longer feels like an Assassin's Creed game and far more like an RPG (something I'm a huge lover of), and that's not necessarily a bad thing. From the more combat-over-stealth focus, the Bioware-esqe dialogue trees to a dumbing down of the climbing, many of the hallmarks of it's predecessors seem to be absent from this Odyssey. Quite frankly I think they should have just used a new IP, because they wouldn't be constrained to the standards of past iterations. It feels like Ubisoft slapped the name on purely to make some extra money, when it would have done fine without.

There are another couple issues, but it's still a good game. The combat feels satisfyingly visceral and marking targets with the eagle feels far more involved so that missing one proves fatal. Finally, with an estimated playtime of around 40 hours just dedicated to the main story, it appears to be the largest game in the franchise yet and while that seems rather daunting, it practically makes my mouth water. It'll be interesting to see how it develops and if i think it's worth it, I might follow this up with a better review.
(Source: GameRant)


Environment

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Scientists have told the world that it's last call for climate change, so grab your drinks. The only problem is the lack of ice (masterful joke smarm smarm).

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Control (IPCC) has published a report this week, that states that the world has gone completely off track, because instead of keeping the rise under 1.5°C, it has began to head towards 3°C.

They have said that "rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society" are required to keep the rise under the target of 1.5°C, but it's still a possibility. the four biggest areas where changes are required are land use, cities, energy and industry, but they have also said that individuals need to change the way they act as well, in many aspects of life.

This report came after talks with South Korea's government and scientists on the panel, to change the country's policies on climate control.
(Source: BBC News)


TV

Image result for paddy mcguinness freddie flintoff

It has been announced that the motoring show Top-Gear will be getting a few new faces. comedian Paddy McGuinness and England cricketer Freddie Flintoff will join former racing driver Chris Harris, who is a current presenter on the show.

This comes after host Matt LeBlanc announced he was stepping down from presenting the show at the end of next season. The news was revealed this morning that the pair would take up the mantle.

The show has received a great deal of criticism since the exit of former presenters Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond, which led to former presenter Chris Evans resigning, so it will be interesting to see how these new faces do on the show, both having experience that I think will make them gel well with the show's tone.
(Source: BBC News)


Environment Again

Image result for straws banned

MP Michael Gove has announced a consultation with the aims of cutting pollution and protecting the world's oceans. Within a year, such items as plastic straws, cotton buds and drink stirrers could be banned.

These changes would likely come into force between 2019 and 2020 and the environment secretary will likely cite the use 5p charge on the use of plastic bags in supermarkets which has led to a massive reduction in their use.

The EU also announced similar changes earlier this year but urged the UK to follow it's lead as the changes will likely not be implemented before Brexit occurs, and so the Union will have no power to make the UK change it's laws. Luckily though it seems this is one of the things that the UK and the EU can agree on lately.

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