Netflix might offer cheaper ad-supported plans in the coming years. In the company's most recent earnings call, co-CEO Reed Hastings has revealed that the streaming giant is currently working on the offering and that it will be finalizing details for those plans "over the next year or two." Hastings said he finds ads complex and he's a huge fan of the simplicity of subscriptions, but giving consumers who don't mind watching ads the option to pay less "makes a lot of sense."

And it could make a lot of sense for the company, too. The service lost around 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter of 2022, a development it blamed on stiffer competition, inability to expand in some territories due to technological limitations and account sharing. Apparently, 222 million households are paying for Netflix, but over 100 million more are sharing those accounts. 

Back in March, Netflix started testing a feature in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru that allowed subscribers to add two "sub-members," who'll get their own log-ins and profiles, for $3. It may just be a fraction of what a full membership costs, but at least Netflix is getting something from people who'd normally just borrow their friends' accounts.

Hastings clarified during the call that the ad-supported memberships will be added as tiers and members who don't mind paying full subscription fees don't have to be subjected to advertisements. "It is pretty clear that it is working for Hulu, Disney is doing it, HBO did it. We don't have any doubt that it works," he said. The executive also added that Netflix will merely be a publisher and that it will not track user data to match ads like some of its competitors do.

Amy Hennig’s Skydance New Media studio is working on not one but two new games with Disney. Following last year’s Marvel announcement, Hennig and company revealed today they’re working on a AAA Star Wars game with Lucasfilm Games. And just like the studio’s Marvel collaboration, fans can expect a “narrative-driven, action-adventure” experience. Lucasfilm Games said the title would tell a new original story set within the Star Wars galaxy but offered few other details on the project, including a release date or target platforms.

“I’ve often described how seeing Star Wars in 1977 essentially rewired my 12-year-old brain, shaping my creative life and future indelibly,” said Hennig, whose previous credits include the Uncharted series from Naughty Dog. “I’m elated to be working with Lucasfilm Games again to tell interactive stories in this galaxy that I love.”

For Hennig, Tuesday’s announcement marks a return to the Star Wars franchise. Before founding Skydance New Media, she worked at EA’s Visceral Games studio on a Star Wars game that was ultimately canceled by the publisher. Her game is one of a handful of new Star Wars titles currently in development. Respawn Entertainment is working on three new games, including a sequel to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Fans can also look forward to Star Wars: Eclipse from Detroit: Become Human developer Quantic Dream.

Instagram is rolling out the option to create and donate to fundraisers through Reels. Users in more than 30 countries can now add a link for people to donate to more than 1.5 million nonprofits. The fundraiser tool has been available in Stories and on livestreams for the past couple of years.

The feature was announced as part of Meta's Earth Day efforts. Meta says that more than 4 million people have donated over $150 million through Instagram and Facebook to support environmental protection and nonprofits fighting against climate change. The most popular environmental causes, based on the overall number of donors, are The Ocean Cleanup, World Wildlife Fund and (one that's close to my heart) Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.

Most donations made on Instagram last year were under $20. Meta covers the payment processing fees for charitable fundraisers, so every penny that users donate goes to nonprofits.

Elsewhere, Meta announced that it's adding more features to its Climate Science Center. It will highlight actions people can take in their day-to-day lives to combat climate change. The center will also shine a spotlight on data visualizations showing country-level emissions. The Climate Science Center is now available in 150 countries.

Across Instagram, Facebook and Messenger, Meta has released stickers and profile frames to help people show their support for environmental causes. In addition, the company revealed the nine organizations that will receive funding from a $1 million grant program to help them fight climate misinformation. Meta also announced the Sustainability Media Academy, a project to help Asia-based journalists build expertise and develop authority on sustainability issues.

In a rare case when we're so used to major games getting delayed, Nintendo now plans to release Xenoblade Chronicles 3 on Switch on July 29th. It originally scheduled the game for September, but perhaps in part due to a Zelda-shaped hole in the 2022 calendar, the company is moving up the release date.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 will arrive nearly five years after the previous game. While the JRPG will follow on from the events of Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles 2, it'll have a new cast of characters. A new trailer offers a peek at them in action and reveals that you can team with up to seven characters at the same time. A special edition that will be available exclusively through the My Nintendo Store includes a steelbook cover and an art book.

Despite the sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wildslipping to next spring, Nintendo still has an exciting lineup of exclusives for the rest of 2022. Nintendo Switch Sports arrives this month and June brings both Mario Strikers: Battle League and Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes. The Live A Live remake will drop a week before Xenoblade Chronicles 3.Splatoon 3 is earmarked for sometime this summer, while Bayonetta 3 and Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are also expected to arrive later this year.

The third season of Netflix's animation anthology Love, Death and Robots will bow on May 20th. The streamer teased the release with a short video showing the same adult-oriented themes and wide variety of animation styles as the previous volumes. 

The series is produced by Tim Miller and David Fincher, who has a four-year exclusivity deal with Netflix. In the trailer, Netflix showed short clips of The Crown, The Queen's Gambit and other shows as a way to contrast them with the far more intense "problem child" animated show. "The threesome you've been waiting for," the tagline states.

The styles run the gamut from hyper-realistic with a Gulliver-like character to 2D cel animation, with just about everything in between. The series has garnered solid critic reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, though audience scores dropped in volume 2 when it toned down the nudity and gore. The number of episodes also dropped in the second season with eight compared to 18 in volume 1. Netflix didn't say how many episodes are coming with volume 3, but you'll only have to wait a day to find out. 

A movie version of Mojang Studio’s Minecraft is starting to come together. Action hero veteran Jason Momoa is in talks to star in an upcoming film adaptation of the popular worldbuilding game, reportedThe Hollywood Reporter. While no contract has been signed yet, the possible addition of Momoa is an encouraging sign of life for a film that has been on Warner Bros’ backburner. Warner Bros originally planned to release the film in March 2022, but it was shelved due to production delays related to the pandemic, according to THR. The film’s troubles pre-date Covid-19; its original director and screenwriters quit the movie in 2014 due to creative differences with Mojang.

Napoleon Dynamite’s Jared Hess has now reportedly signed-on to direct the film, and Dune producers Mary Parent and Roy Lee are also on board. It’s unclear what role Momoa will play in the film, as it’s still unknown what elements of the 2011 game will appear in the film and whether we’ll see fan favorites like Minecraft Steve. The film’s storyline, released by Mojang Studios in 2019, is pretty straightforward: “The malevolent Ender Dragon sets out on a path of destruction, prompting a young girl and her group of unlikely adventurers to set out to save the Overworld.”

But fans should expect more movement on the film in the near future. The Anklerreported that Warner Bros.’ lease on the rights to Minecraft expires in January 2023, so production on the film will need to start before then.

Sega Genesis’ Streets of Rage franchise is reportedly coming to the silver screen. Sources toldDeadline that John Wick creator Derek Kolstad wrote a script adaptation on spec. Also to be involved are Sonic franchise producers dj2 Entertainment and Escape Artists. While no deal has been signed yet, it’s likely to soon be in motion.

Widely known as one of the most popular Sega franchises from the early 90s, the original Streets of Rage trilogy still has an enthusiastic fanbase drawn to its vintage aesthetic and EDM soundtrack. The beat-em-up games feature ex-cops who take on underground criminal gangs. The franchise finally got a long-awaited sequel in 2020 with the release of Streets of Rage 4, which sold more than 2.5 million copies worldwide. The games offer very little as far as storyline, which gives the film a lot of liberty, but also very little to work off of.

A Streets of Rage film adaptation has serious potential to draw crowds, given that there’s no shortage of nostalgia for games from the 80s and 90s. Both Sonic films were box office successes. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 earned $72 million in its opening weekend at the domestic box office this month, an especially high figure during the pandemic era.

If Exploding Kittens is still a part of your party game repertoire several years later, Netflix has just the news you were hoping to hear. The streaming service is introducing an "exclusive" version of the Exploding Kittensmobile game as well as an animated TV series. The adult-oriented show will be executive-produced by card game creators Elan Lee and Matthew "The Oatmeal" Inman as well as veterans like Mike Judge, and will star well-known personalities including Lucy Liu (Kill Bill) and Tom Ellis (Lucifer).

The series revolves around a holy war that sees God and the Devil visit Earth in the form of beefy house cats. It won't stream on Netflix until 2023, but the upgraded game is due in May with two new cards and promises of future gameplay based on the show.

Netflix is keen to note this is will be the first time it launches both a game and a series from the same franchise (Stranger Things doesn't count, apparently). While the game certainly wasn't built from scratch, the company not-so-subtly hinted that it might repeat this simultaneous development strategy going forward — don't be surprised if more games and shows arrive in tandem.

You probably didn't get to watch Nintendo's first anime movie when it premiered in Japan in 1986, but you now have your chance — at quality you would never have experienced in theaters. Polygonnotes Femboy Films has released a 4K remaster of The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach on both YouTube (below) and the Internet Archive. You can not only expect clean, color-corrected visuals based on a rare 16mm print, but new English subtitles and a fresh two-channel Dolby Surround audio capture from the VHS release.

The story isn't exactly revolutionary, but it's an intriguing peek at the Super Mario Bros. franchise at a time when the canon was far from settled. Mario and Luigi travel from the 'real' world into the Mushroom Kingdom to rescue Princess Peach after briefly escapes into their realm and is captured by King Koopa (Bowser). You can expect many references to the original Super Mario Bros. game, but you'll also find unusual deviations from the now-established premise. Mario and Luigi work at a grocery store, and they're compelled to save Peach thanks to a Dumpling Dog character. And did we mention Luigi drinks sake?

Whatever you think of the plot, this is a significant film preservation project. Great Mission was only officially released in Japan, and there was just one run of VHS tapes. If it weren't for the restoration, the anime might have been lost to modern audiences. The remaster should ensure that younger gamers have a glimpse of early Super Mario culture beyond emulated games or the not-so-stellar American movie from 1993.

Famed electronic instrument maker Roland is celebrating its 50th anniversary today by teaming up with boutique publisher Bjooks to announce a coffee table book that tells its story. Inspire The Music: 50 Years of Roland History is a 400-page tome that delves into the tech, people and culture behind the company.

The book includes several chapters that explore Roland products and their impact on certain music scenes. Roland and Bjooks say Inspire the Music explains the context and history of the Jupiter-8 Synthesizer, Boss guitar pedals, TR-808 Rhythm Composer and TB-303 Bass Line. The book will cover other gear, such as keytars, grooveboxes and V-Drums, as well as how the Octapad SPD-30 percussion pad became a staple of modern music in India.

In addition, Inspire the Music features dozens of interviews with artists and Roland designers. You can expect to hear from the likes of Johnny Marr of The Smiths, DJ Jazzy Jeff, guitarist Nita Strauss, Sister Bliss of Faithless, Orbital, Peaches, Swizz Beatz, Jean-Michel Jarre and Nick Rhodes and Roger Taylor of Duran Duran.

Bjooks came to prominence through Kickstarter, and has published glossy books on topics such as guitar pedals, modular synthesis and interface design. In 2020, it teamed up with Moog for a book featuring tips and tricks for the semi-modular Mother lineup.

Inspire The Music will be released this summer. Pricing has yet to be revealed.

Roland/Bjooks