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Apple TV+ renews 'Mythic Quest' for seasons three and four
The workplace sitcom about a game studio wrapped up its second season in June.
Netflix renews 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' for season 3 and 4
Netflix fiercely guards viewer numbers with the utmost secrecy, but there are often indicators of how popular a show is among subscribers. Take Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, for example. The reboot of the teen witch franchise only launched in October, but already has a holiday special and a confirmed second season, which will drop April 5th. Fans must really be digging the show, because Netflix has doubled down by quickly renewing it for 16 more episodes across season 3 and 4.
Anthony Mackie is Netflix's 'Altered Carbon' season two lead
Netflix has renewed Altered Carbon for an eight-episode second season, Deadline reports, and Anthony Mackie (Captain America: Civil War, The Hurt Locker) will take over the lead role of Takeshi Kovacs. Joel Kinnaman (House of Cards, The Killing) played the lead in season one, but because the series is set in a future where consciousness and the mind can be transferred between physical bodies, characters were always expected to be played by multiple actors. Takeshi Kovacs is a former rebel who's reawakened centuries after his last body, or "sleeve," died.
Netflix renews 'Aggretsuko' and commits to more new anime
Netflix is going all-in on anime, renewing another series and bringing in a bunch of new ones, it announced at the Anime 2018 festival. There'll certainly be a lot of variety, starting with season 2 of Aggretsuko (below, arriving in 2019) about a red panda who bristles against her quotidian life via nightly death metal karaoke sessions. It also revealed that the second season of vampire-fighting show Castlevania will debut on October 26th.
Orange is the New Black renewed for a third season before the second even debuts
We're still a month out from the next level crazy of Orange is the New Black's second season, but Netflix has already ordered a third. The show's writing team took to Twitter (later confirming with Variety), breaking the news with a picture of possible names for episodes and some are enough to make an Engadget editor blush. "Hot For Janitor," "KIDS: YUM!" and "Et Tu, Luschek" might seem a bit tame, sure, but trust us, there's a reason we didn't embed the picture itself after the break. Considering Netflix called the show its most watched original series ever, the renewal news isn't entirely surprising but it's welcome nonetheless. There aren't any spoilers on the pictured whiteboard (as far as we can tell), so if you click you should be safe for the June 6th premiere, Dandelion.
HBO renews 'Silicon Valley' three episodes in
If you've been enjoying Mike Judge's (King of the Hill, Office Space) take on Silicon Valley, you aren't alone. After just three episodes, HBO has ordered a second season of the eponymous show. What's more, the outfit has also cleared a fourth term... err, season, of the political comedy Veep. Both have apparently done better in terms of viewership than the sadly ill-fated Hello Ladies, which is especially good news for Judge's satirical look at the NorCal tech corridor. Say what you will about being hasty, but it's pretty awesome to see the premium-TV outfit keep rewarding its viewers' favorite shows --regardless of whether or not they knock HBO Go offline. Now, if we could just get a True Detective season two announcement, all would be right with the world.
Complimentary iCloud storage upgrades are expiring soon
If you were a former MobileMe user who got a nice 20 GB chunk of free storage last year when iCloud came to life, the happy days are almost over. A number of the TUAW staff members have received an email similar to the one seen above, noting that we'll have to either buy a storage plan by September 30, 2013 or have the plan drop down to the free 5 GB iCloud plan. The link on the email goes to this support page, which explains how to sign up for a plan. In my case, the 20 GB plan is going to take US$40 out of my wallet for the next year. How about you, TUAW readers? Are you going to renew your iCloud plan or just make do with your Dropbox or Google Drive accounts?
Netflix renews Hemlock Grove for a second season
Netflix's first foray into the horror genre seems to have gone well, as the company announced it's renewing Hemlock Grove for a second season. The 10 episode run will debut next year, presumably after fellow Netflix Originals Lilyhammer (later this year) and House of Cards (currently in production) make their second run through the gauntlet. Hemlock Grove didn't receive the same level of critical praise as other series Netflix has premiered, but executive producer Eli Roth called worldwide fan response "phenomenal" and season one "just a warm up." So let us know -- did you enjoy it enough that you're looking for more (and, will presumably hang onto that Netflix subscription)?
Apple extends iCloud storage upgrade for MobileMe users another year
Apple's done its level best to lure help you over to iCloud from MobileMe, and it looks like it's not quite done yet. We're seeing reports from users who have received messages advising that the additional storage offered to ease the transition has been extended for another 12 months, sans cost to you. Whether a charge will kick in right away when that period ends, and at what price isn't made clear. But if you like to drag your data heels, or want to take your sweet time deciding if the new service is for you, it looks like luck is on your side. [Thanks, Jonathan C]
Google Maps updates streetview for New Orleans, reminds us the jazz plays on
In many ways, Google's Streetview is a document. A snapshot in time. Usually, this amounts to pictures of a sunny clear day in downtown Localsville, but it can also be a reminder of times less bright. Since Hurricane Katrina, the city has been working hard to rebuild neighborhoods and communities, and better prepare itself for the future. Today -- via Google's Lat Long Blog -- Mayor Mitch Landrieu proudly announced that Streetview has been updated to reflect those efforts, and show New Orleans in that familiar, sunny way. Whether it's Congo Square ("the birthplace of jazz"), the city's parks, or more recent features and attractions, Landrieu proudly extends an invite to all of us to come take a look, enjoy the virtual tour, and "whet our appetite." We say put the Gumbo on.
Shifting Perspectives: A Mists talent analysis for cats and moonkin
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Shifting Perspectives for cat, bear, restoration and balance druids. Welcome to our DPS edition, brought to you by Chase Hasbrouck, aka Alaron of The Fluid Druid blog. This week, we feel talented. So. New talents! Awesome, right? This week, I'm going to take a closer look at the tiers and make recommendations on which talent you'll want to pick up for your Mists of Pandaria adventures. (Yes, I've looked at the new talents before, but we've had several months' worth of discussion and changes since then.) I apologize in advance for the terrible puns in the subheaders. Tier 1: We like to charge it, charge it No way around it: Displacer Beast is flat-out terrible. In theory, the ability serves as a way to escape from enemies; in practice, it completely fails at this because it lacks the threat-dropping capabilities of Feign Death or the temporary damage absorption of Vanish. DoTs will still immediately snap you out of stealth, as will spells in the air (sometimes). Non-players will keep all their threat and keep attacking you. I could maybe sorta kinda see it being used offensively in PvP for feral (open from Prowl, dump some energy, DB out and reopen), but that's pushing things. At this point, I don't think the talent is fixable, and I'm hoping they scrap it and replace it with something that buffs Dash and/or Stampeding Roar. Luckily, we have two other talents that are much better. Feline Swiftness's passive movement speed increase is boring but very helpful in any situation. Unfortunately, it has one key downside: It does not stack with boot enchants, which makes them an integral part of the decision. Feral will almost certainly be using the Blurred Speed enchant anyway for the agility bonus, so it's really more like a 7% bonus for them. Balance has a little more choice here; they can choose between move speed + 140 mastery or 175 haste, which will likely be a superior DPS option. Wild Charge, in contrast, has a wealth of situational uses, especially in PvP. The cooldown being so short means you can use it pretty much every time you need it, which is great. Of course, that means you have to use it to gain any benefit from the talent. If you'd rather focus on your rotation, just go with Feline Swiftness. Basically, it's a pretty close call. I probably prefer Wild Charge for feral and Feline Swiftness for balance, but it can go either way.
Free for All: The old becomes new on Ragnarok's classic server
Ragnarok Online might seem very familiar to many of my readers. In fact, if you are from a certain age group, the group that grew up with the internet instead of watching it come into being while you were already living on your own, you might have played Ragnarok Online. I can often tell a Ragnarok fan as well. They're OK with the grind as long is it pays off in the end, and they usually have a pretty exact way of looking at MMOs. I have yet to find a Ragnarok player who is over 30 and who roleplays more than anything. In other words, Ragnarok has affected almost an entire generation of MMO gamers. Personally, I always enjoyed the graphics of the game when I got a few chances to play it, but the overwhelming world and gameplay was a bit too much, and I didn't really enjoy the entire experience. Well, good news for me! I can now roll on a brand-new, old-school server that promises to be more like something from the early days of the game. The best news? All players will start off on the same page. Want to know more? Keep reading because I sat in on a conference call with Ragnarok producer Jason Koerperich to talk about all of the changes.
Apple gives MobileMe holdouts an olive branch, extends 20GB iCloud offer to September
Still skittish about jumping from MobileMe to iCloud, even after Apple promised you a free copy of Snow Leopard to ease the pain? Have no fear: Apple has quietly extended its offer to upgrade those paying for 20GB of MobileMe space to a matching amount on iCloud the next time they renew. You now have until September 30th to make the leap at no extra cost, instead of the original June 30th cutoff. And if you've been paying for 40 to 60GB of MobileMe storage, you can get 50GB of iCloud space on the same terms. It won't take away the sting of losing iDisk, Gallery or iWeb at the end of June, but if you're the sort who routinely needs a lot more storage than a free 5GB iCloud account -- and don't like the alternatives -- you now have that much more breathing room.
Amazon, Netflix ink licensing deals with ABC, add new content for you to munch on
It was a pretty busy day for the Disney-ABC Television Group yesterday, as the company announced a new licensing deal with Amazon, while renewing its pre-existing agreement with Netflix. The Amazon deal will allow Amazon Prime members to access all prior seasons of Grey's Anatomy, every episode of Lost, and all previous seasons of The Secret Life of the American Teenager, among other series. Amazon expects to add a total of some 13,000 titles to Prime Instant Video by "early next year," and just in time for the holiday season (as well as the release of the Kindle Fire). The renewal of Netflix's deal, meanwhile, ensures that the company will continue to offer episodes of shows like Private Practice, Brothers and Sisters, and Ugly Betty, as well as new additions, including Switched at Birth, Kick Buttowski and Alias. Basically, though, it's just more of the same. But at a time when Netflix is losing customers in the wake of its price hike and Qwikster debacle, maybe stability isn't such a bad thing. Surf past the break for a pair of dueling PRs.
Starz ends renewal negotiations with Netflix, will pull movies from streaming in February
Starz has apparently decided it can live without the hundreds of millions of dollars a renewal of its content licensing deal with Netflix was expected to bring and announced an end to negotiations today. According to the Company Town blog, talks broke down over Starz's insistence that Netflix implement tiered pricing, and charge customers even more for access to its content. That means when the current deal expires on February 28, 2012, they will all go away, including a number of its newer release flicks from Sony (already pulled) and Disney that Starz has exclusive licenses to and Starz content like Camelot and Spartacus. To make matters worse, all of this is going down the same day as a price hike makes it more expensive to keep both disc and streaming services. While Starz claims the move is a part of its strategy to "protect the premium nature of our brand by preserving the appropriate pricing and packaging of our exclusive and highly valuable content" as well as "evaluate new opportunities", Netflix spokesman Steve Swasey is quoted as saying it can redirect the Starz money to deals with other content providers to "maintain or even improve the Netflix experience." Beyond Starz, in the US Netflix also has access to newer movies from its deals with Epix and a few smaller distributors like Relativity Media. Check Starz's statement in full after the break, and let us know if this is changing your answer to yesterday's poll question.
Sprint to double Upgrade Fee to $36 starting September 9th?
It's time to either find your favorite teddy bear or pinch a few hundred pennies. In today's second bout of unfortunate news coming from Overland Park, SprintFeed is reporting that we should brace ourselves for yet another hike in one-time charges on September 9th. This time, it's the oh-so-beloved Upgrade Fee that's the victim of inflation, getting beefed up to $36 for any existing customer who desires a new phone; if you're hoping to renew contracts on multiple lines, Sprint is graciously willing to cap the fees at a maximum of $150. There's speculation that these bumps may have something to do with the latest rumor coming out of Cupertino, but it may also simply be a routine policy change. Regardless of the motive, it means anyone holding out for the next best thing should start looking under every couch cushion they sit on, in hopes of scrounging up a few extra bucks.
Acer changes its logo, hopes to start afresh
Over in Acer HQ, it's out with the old and in with the new. Having bid ciao to former CEO Gianfranco Lanci, the Taiwanese company is now slapping a fresh coat of paint and a softer typeface upon its corporate identity. The new Acer green is lighter and brighter and the more rounded new shape looks a lot safer for kids to play around with, should the occasion ever arise. We doubt this will make a big difference in the company's push to be "more like Apple," but hey, at least we now have a visual marker to distinguish the products that came before this shift in strategy from those that come after.
Ragnarok Online goes free-to-play
Ragnarok Online's been pretty quiet following its Renewal update last year, but the free-to-play train is now passing through town and it looks as though the game is hopping aboard for the ride. Gravity Interactive has announced that it is dropping the subscription model from Ragnarok Online effective immediately. The company encourages new and returning players interested in this F2P format to make their home on the Yggdrasil or Valkyrie servers. The company is also offering a premium VIP subscription package for players looking to turbo-boost their advancement. VIP players not only have the option to play on a VIP-only server (Ymir) but will also benefit from a 50% increase in experience gain, loot drops, more storage, a lessened death penalty, access to special areas, and the full use of all nine character slots. If this low, low cost of entry tempts you to check out the game, all it takes to play is a free Warp Portal account through the official website.
Don't panic about those WoW Magazine subscription renewal notices
We got some reports through Twitter and the tip line that current subscribers to the World of Warcraft Official Magazine had received notices asking them to resubscribe. Several people, especially those who ordered subscriptions and haven't yet received their four issues, took this to mean that their subscription had lapsed and that they wouldn't be receiving any more issues unless they resubscribed. This is not the case! We contacted Andy Salisbury, editor at the mag, and he had this to say: The email is just a reminder. Those that paid for 1 and 2 year subscriptions will get their 4 and 8 issues (respectively), regardless of timing. We're not going to hold anyone's issues hostage or anything of the sort, it's just meant to let subscribers know about renewal! So don't panic. The email was just intended as an "if you like the WoW magazine, resubscribe to it!" notice, not as a notification that you won't be getting what you paid for. Thanks to Andy for getting back to us so promptly.
Ragnarok Online brings new updates to Renewal
Ragnarok Online fans have something new to enjoy lately thanks to the recent content update, Renewal. Renewal has been bringing some exciting events to the game, including the race to 150. The first 10 players to reach the current level cap of 150 will receive a a "Hall of Honor interview, and a free upgrade of their most important leveling item to +11." The developers aren't done with the surprises, though. They'll be taking feedback on Renewal in the coming weeks, and you'll find even more updates, changes, and additions to the game as time goes by. For now, make sure you check out the lore behind Renewal and all the details on the Race to 150!
