Author: dpugh007

Pokemon Day falls on February 27 each year, coinciding with the anniversary of the original Pokemon Red and Green release in Japan. This year, the Pokemon Company is rolling out several tech-related goodies to celebrate, including an Amazon Alexa- and Google Home-compatible app that lets you talk to Pikachu “live” and Snapchat filters based on the first-generation starter Pokemon.

Pikachu Talk, which is already available in Japan, is now available for Amazon Alexa in “most countries” and Google Home in the US. With Pikachu Talk, you can ask Pikachu questions, and it will respond with a variation of its name. (It seems like this doesn’t include any lines in a human language, a la Detective Pikachu or Pikachu from the the recent Pokemon the Movie: I Choose You.)

Speaking of I Choose You, the film–which is inspired by the early Pokemon episodes but has its own twists–will be available to stream on the PokemonTV app. The movie originally aired in theaters during a special release in November 2017.

The celebration continues with new Snapchat filters based on the Kanto region starters. Bulbasaur will roll out first, followed by Charmander and then Squirtle. You can also pick up some special merch from the Pokemon Center, including pins and a new Charizard gallery figure that will kick off a special line of larger Pokemon figures. You can see the filters, figure, and pins above.

Finally, there will be a special Pikachu available in Pokemon Go as part of the festivities. You can find more details on all the Pokemon Day activities on the Pokemon website.

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Following the arrival of a digital video streaming platform called CBS All Access last year, GameSpot parent company CBS is launching a new digital network themed around sports. CBS Sports HQ, as it’s called, is a 24-hour “streaming sports news network” launching today.

The free service, which is produced in partnership between CBS Sports and CBS Interactive, will offer news, highlights, and analysis around what’s happening in sports. This will include “live news and reporting, game previews and post-game analysis, must-see highlights, projections, and in-depth statistical breakdowns.” There is also DVR-like functionality that lets you watch segments that already aired and then switch back to live programming.

Today, you can access CBS Sports HQ through the CBS Sports website and via the CBS Sports app on connected devices such as Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and Roku. You can also watch content on the CBS Sports mobile app for iOS and Android, while it also streams through CBS All Access.

CBS Sports HQ will not replace existing brands such as CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network but will instead live and operate as a complementary service. Some current CBS Sports commentators and reporters will work on content for CBS Sports HQ.

Loaded on CBS Sports HQ website right now are lots of videos about some of the biggest news is sports right now. You can check out videos about the latest news across all major professional sports leagues, including the NFL and NBA, while there is a lot of college sports programming as well in the lead-up to March Madness next month.

Disclosure: As mentioned, CBS is GameSpot’s parent company.

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GTA Online, the multiplayer mode for GTA V that basically prints money, is still proving to be incredibly popular some four years after it originally launched. Now, it looks like Rockstar Games and parent company Take-Two may have further plans for the game.

Earlier this month, Take-Two filed a pair of new trademark applications related to Grand Theft Auto logos, one of which appears to be for GTA Online. The trademark application shows the familiar “G,” “T,” and lowercase “a,” along with an “O” for the first time. Take-Two already holds the trademark for “Grand Theft Auto Online” written out, so this move appears to be Rockstar looking for something shorter, potentially as an option and not a replacement.

The other new trademark filing was for the standard “G,” “T,” and lowecase “a.” Both were initially filed in the first week of February this year. Both were submitted with a “specimen” of the Xbox One edition of Grand Theft Auto V. According to the USPTO, a specimen is “generally what consumers actually see when they are purchasing your goods or services.” The physical edition of GTA V for Xbox One was shown as the specimen, because, according to the USPTO, “a label must be the physical label that is being used on the product or packaging in the marketplace where the goods are actually being sold or transported.”

It is not immediately clear why Rockstar, through its parent company Take-Two, filed for these new trademark applications, or if it means the game’s logo on physical boxes will change going forward. Rockstar is usually very tight-lipped about everything it does, so we wouldn’t expect the company to have a public comment on these new filings. Whatever the case, we have followed up with the company in an attempt to get more details.

GTA Online has been immensely popular following its launch in October 2013 (a month after the main game launched in September that year). Through its microtransactions, the game makes lots and lots of money, and it continues to do so, even multiple years after release. In fact, December 2017 was the game’s biggest month ever in terms of players.

Take-Two’s CEO, Strauss Zelnick, has said GTA Online is like the “gift that keeps on giving” as it relates to the money it brings in from microtransactions. Going forward, Take-Two has said it wants some form of “recurrent consumer spending” in all of its games, so this would presumably include the next instalment in the GTA series.

Take-Two could have filed the trademark applications for Grand Theft Auto Online and GTAO as a means to protect its future interest in using those terms. Considering they are not tied to a number, the terms Grand Theft Auto Online and GTAO could theoretically be used to refer to the online mode for the next GTA title. Also worth noting is that trademark filings are not necessarily an accurate indication of an upcoming product announcement or change.

Development on GTA 6 is reportedly underway now, with the game taking place somewhere in the United States. Of course, Rockstar has not announced the game yet, and this is no surprise, given that Red Dead Redemption 2 is coming this year.

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While on the road to Wrestlemania, WWE is making a stop at Elimination Chamber, a yearly event that features a hellish main event consisting of six competitors in an enclosed structure, getting eliminated one by one. 2018’s PPV is the first time the women will have their own Elimination Chamber match, so that means the WWE Universe will get two Chamber contests for the price of one.

In addition, former UFC star Ronda Rousey will be officially signing her WWE Raw contract during the event, so while Elimination Chamber isn’t stacked with matches, there’s still a lot to look forward to. The event will be coming to the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, February 28 on PPV and the WWE Network. The show will consist of six matches, one of which will take place on the Kickoff show. You can check out an in-depth look at the match card and our predictions here.

Here’s the card lineup for the event:

• Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson vs. The Miztourage (Kickoff Match)
• The Bar (c) vs. Titus Worldwide (For the Raw Tag Team Championship)
• Matt Hardy vs. Bray Wyatt
• Asuka vs. Nia Jax
• Women’s Elimination Chamber
• Men’s Elimination Chamber

The Kickoff Show starts on the WWE Network at 7PM ET/4PM PT. The actual Elimination Chamber event begins at 8PM ET/5PM PT on the WWE Network and on PPV. Below, you’ll find the winners of each match as it happens.

In case you’re not caught up, don’t worry; we put the final results in spoiler blocks.

Kickoff Show

The Good Brothers vs. The Miztourage

The Good Brothers get the win at 8:52.

Main Card

Women’s Elimination Chamber Match

Mandy Rose eliminated first.

Sonya Deville eliminated.

Mickie James eliminated.

Bayley is eliminated

Bliss pins Banks at 29:36.

The Bar vs. Titus Worldwide (For the Raw Tag Team Championship)

The Bar wins by pin at 10:01.

Asuka vs. Nia Jax

Asuka wins by pin at 8:12.

Matt Hardy vs. Bray Wyatt

Hardy pins Wyatt at 9:56.

Men’s Elimination Chamber

The Miz is eliminated first.

Elias is eliminated.

John Cena is eliminated.

Finn Balor is eliminated.

Seth Rollins is eliminated.

Reigns pins Strowman at 40:08.

That’s all folks.

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