Watching any meteor shower can be loads of fun, and thanks to the incoming 'Arids' shower, some people will have a spectacular opportunity to watch it make its first ever appearance on Earth. It's no secret that outer space is one of the most fascinating things around. It's a never-ending canvas of mystery and wonder. Whether it be planets in our own Solar System or galaxies millions of light-years away,  there's always something new to learn about the great beyond.While deep space and research have to be left to the professionals, that's not to say the rest of us can't also make our own observations. A prime example of this is meteor showers. Throughout the year, numerous asteroids and meteorites hurtle through space, get sucked into Earth's atmosphere, and soar through the sky. If someone is in the right place at the right time, they can see these visiting space rocks with their very own eyes. Some are easy to miss, others are jaw-dropping, and there are multiple chances to see one for yourself.Along with the many meteor showers that occur every single year, astronomers are now preparing for a meteor shower that's never been seen on Earth before. The shower is known as the 'Arids.' The name comes from the Ara constellation where the meteors originated, and while they were initially spotted by The SETI Institute on September 30, the inaugural shower isn't expected to peak until Thursday, October 7. Astronomers predicted the Arids shower all the way back in 1995 by studying ejected particles from Comet 15P/Finlay, but it isn't until now that it's been visible.It's not very often people get to witness a new meteor shower being born, but with Arids, that's exactly what's happening. It's already been added to the IAU Working List of Meteor Showers — proudly carrying the code ARD and an identifying number of 1130. It remains unclear if and when Arids will return following its visit on October 7, but regardless, this is an incredible opportunity that shouldn't be missed.For folks interested in watching Arids' grand debut for themselves, the bad news is that it will be fairly limited. The folks at Space.com confirm it'll only be visible from the Southern Hemisphere, with the best viewing locations including New Zealand, Argentina, and Chile. The shower will also be quite small and slow, meaning proper viewing equipment is a must to get the full experience. For anyone who does happen to be in those areas, look for the shower around 00:35 UT and 03:55 UT on October 7.It is disappointing that folks in the Northern Hemisphere have to sit this one out, but it's also important to remember that this isn't the only meteor shower to keep an eye on. The annual Draconid shower is expected to peak early in the morning on October 8, offering a gorgeous view of additional space rocks. Whether you're in a position to watch Arids or Draconid, be safe, have plenty of time to get comfy, and enjoy the upcoming shows!

Editor’s Note: A lawsuit has been filed against Activision Blizzard by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, which alleges the company has engaged in abuse, discrimination, and retaliation against its female employees. Activision Blizzard has denied the allegations. The full details of the Activision Blizzard lawsuit (content warning: rape, suicide, abuse, harassment) are being updated as new information becomes available.Is World of Warcraft still worth playing in 2021? Blizzard's long-running MMORPG has certainly gotten up there in age, but the commitment to making changes to improve the game's overall experience, including the approach of Patch 9.1.5 for Shadowlands, has meant playing the game in 2021 is still worthwhile. In fact, the MMORPG seems to keep getting better - and, considering the last several years for context, it's definitely possible that Shadowlands is at least the game's best showing in its modern era, even with all the recent controversies surrounding Blizzard.Answering whether or not World of Warcraft is worth playing can be difficult since the answer varies so dramatically based on what players want. With that said, those looking for hyper-specific, niche benefits to playing may not always find what they're looking for, even if the general consensus surrounding the MMO's overall gameplay is positive. There were plenty of players who enjoyed Warlords of Draenor, after all, despite that expansion's less-than-stellar reputation within the game's larger community. Ignoring the fact that there will inevitably be no unified opinion, however, the question of "is World of Warcraft worth playing in 2021?" can be broken down into two separate responses: one detailing whether new players will enjoy it, and one discussing the experience of returning veterans.The answer to both those questions is yes, albeit each group may find World of Warcraft worth playing in 2021 for different reasons. World of Warcraft: Shadowlands reviews were positive, player engagement is waning but still strong, and the world of Azeroth is still very much alive. Here's why WoW is worth playing in 2021, regardless of a player's previous involvement with the MMORPG.For new players, "is WoW worth playing in 2021?" boils down to "how hard is it to get into World of Warcraft in 2021?" The answer to that question has been "not very" for some time now, as Blizzard consistently worked to make its MMORPG more accessible to newer players. However, the massive overhauls that came with Shadowlands have set a high bar for the new player experience in WoW, making it easier than ever for beginners to start their adventures in Azeroth.The Shadowlands release brought with it a completely revamped leveling system that makes World of Warcraft progression feel smoother and more meaningful. Blizzard reduced the inflated level cap to a much more reasonable 60, condensing the game's scattered abilities, talents, and upgrades into a much tighter path of progression. The result is each level earned feeling like a meaningful addition to a larger experience, and the game's introductory levels have also been streamlined, making what was once a daunting experience a much more digestible endeavor.Finally - and perhaps most importantly - Shadowlands' level squish also fixed the game's story. World of Warcraft progression pre-Shadowlands wasn't necessarily a mess, but the result of years of expansions being stacked on top of each other (with tweaks that only directly considered whichever one was most recent) made for an uneven narrative. Players progressed through cool environments way too rapidly, often departing stories mid-way through because they'd out-leveled the adventure. Part of the reason WoW has been so successful over the years is the way it marries its storyline concerns to the way players progress to its endgame, and emotional investment in characters like Thrall and Jaina is hard to build when they're jumping in and out of the player's arc at seemingly random times.Thankfully, Shadowlands introduced a much tighter narrative progression system, one that sees newer players guided through the story content that's most relevant to the new WoW expansion prior to engaging with it. If new players decide to reroll a character afterward, they'll be able to choose a zone to make their focus leveling, letting them stick to one story arc and see what it has to offer without feeling like their progression path is suboptimal or outright nonexistent. It's a welcome change and one that's likely had even veterans revisiting their favorite expansions with new characters just to relive iconic story beats.For the most part, Blizzard has World of Warcraft down to a science, which is why WoW is still popular in 2021. Character arcs, class roles, itemization, and more have all been carefully honed over the years and are now implemented with mostly minor hiccups. If there's one thing that has seemed virtually unsolvable in World of Warcraft's long history, though, it's how to make the WoW endgame fun for the entirety of an expansion - if that's even possible. For veteran players, "is WoW worth playing in 2021?" is almost certainly a question that can only be answered by an assessment of its current endgame design.How Shadowlands endgame feels probably depends a lot on a given player's reception to the Great Vault mechanic, but it's got some strong characteristics going for it. The Great Vault essentially provides a hub for endgame players that helps them sort out which content they're "meant" to be doing in a given week, giving players loot based on the content they did in the week prior. The Great Vault also gives players choices - the more content they complete in a given week, the more options they'll have with regards to the loot they acquire from the system, removing some of the frustration of reward gear not being a good fit for a player's needs.The Great Vault also helpfully keeps track of what a character has accomplished that week, further reducing the frustration of missing out on one of WoW's endgame loot cycles. There are still some concerns over the Great Vault - like whether or not it's enough of a reward for those sinking in the most time - but by and large, the system is a new idea from Blizzard that's helped make the Shadowlands endgame more accessible without making it feel too simplified or mundane.There's also Torghast, the World of Warcraft answer to rougelike dungeon exploration. Torghast mixes up the way endgame progression usually goes, randomizing more than just loot drops while also offering Torghast-specific character builds that grow more powerful the deeper a player gets in a run. Torghast hasn't been for everyone, and it can still be a vexing element of the game whenever runs go awry, but it's yet another addition to World of Warcraft's endgame content that has improved and diversified its experience.Since Shadowlands launched last year, WoW has gotten bug fixes and balancing updates, including the most recent fixes to the Sanctum of Domination on September 24. Of course, the recent lawsuits and controversies surrounding Activision-Blizzard have likely diminished some of the goodwill players felt after Shadowlands' release, but looking at the game solely as an MMO, WoW still holds up incredibly well. In the meantime, fans are eagerly awaiting Patch 9.1.5, which will add a number of player-requested changes to WoW. For these reasons, World of Warcraft is still very much worth playing in 2021.

Nuclear Blaze is an upcoming 2D action platformer that puts players in the role of a firefighter tasked with putting out radioactive flames - and rescuing cute cats along the way. It is being developed by Deepnight Games, who impressed gamers with 2017’s corpse-possessing roguelike Dead Cells. Dead Cells would go on to inspire plenty of indie Metroid-like titles such as last year’s Forgone, and a DLC expansion subtitled Fatal Falls was released back in January.Last month, Deepnight announced its newest 2D side-scrolling adventure Nuclear Blaze, which is currently set to launch on Steam on October 18. As a firefighter who is airdropped inside a secret underground military facility, players will have to explore Metroid-style levels as they work to extinguish constantly spreading fires by aiming their trusty fire hose in any direction they please, investigate the source of the ongoing inferno, and even engage in the time-honored firefighter’s tradition of rescuing cats. Nuclear Blaze features the smooth controls of Dead Cells (as designed by former Motion Twin associate Sébastien Benard), a designated “Kid Mode” for younger players, and multiple unique levels packed with hidden secrets and side-stories as players unravel the mystery behind the shady military complex.Nuclear Blaze looks to be a fun take on the classic Metroidvania formula of exploring large maze-like dungeons packed with hidden secrets and Easter Eggs. This formula can also be seen in the critically acclaimed Metroid Dread, which will release on October 8th. Firefighting is a relatively unexplored profession among recent video games save for a few simulators, so this title will hopefully stand out from the Metroidvania crowd. Players will be able to strap on their fire hoses, put out a few loose flames and even rescue some adorable kitties when Nuclear Blaze launches on Steam on October 18.

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Inferno #1In Marvel Comics' new Inferno event, the X-Men's Wolverine can't escape reliving one of his most iconic deaths over and over again. The anti-mutant organization Orchis has grown too powerful with the return of the Sentinel Nimrod, though there's been very little the mutants of Krakoa have been able to do to stop them. While the island nation has been continually sending teams to try and destroy Orchis, none have been successful despite resurrecting and sending the same mutants with each attempt. This includes Wolverine, who's been stuck in a brutal loop experiencing one of his most brutal deaths multiple times over.In this first issue of Inferno from Jonathan Hickman and Valerio Schiti, it's revealed that Krakoa has already tried sixteen times to destroy Orchis and Nimrod using a variety of means. While a few attempts have involved hiring assassins and sending the alien Brood to do the job, the majority have been the deployment of the same mutants over and over again. However, no matter what they've tried everything has failed. Nimrod has proven to be too powerful, able to counter all kinds of abilities and destroying the mutant teams with extreme prejudice. While Wolverine has been a part of the X-Force teams sent with every resurrection, the end result has never been pretty.Inferno #1 depicts Krakoa's sixteenth attempt, seeing Nimrod defeating Domino, Omega Kid, and Wolverine as he's apparently done several times before. However, Nimrod sears all of the flesh from Wolverine's adamantium-covered bones, a nod to Logan's most famous death by Sentinel as seen in Days of Future Past. Furthermore, as Orchis reviews the footage of this latest incursion, it's revealed that they've been collecting Wolverine's skeletons of which they now have several thanks to Logan's vicious cycle of resurrection after continually experiencing one of the worst ways he's ever gone out in Marvel Comics' past.While Krakoa has a store of adamantium they've been using to regraft the metal to Wolverine's skeleton whenever he needs to be resurrected, they must be running low of the nearly indestructible and rare metal. Logan's past skeletons continue to fall into Orchis' hands, and there's no telling what they might do with them going forward. It's certainly possible that it could all come back to haunt the former Weapon X with the upcoming X Lives/Deaths of Wolverine event. Perhaps Orchis finds a way to weaponize the adamantium skeletons down the line, forcing Wolverine to fight elements of his own past selves.In any case, it's going to be interesting to see where Krakoa goes from here. Seeing as how the resurrected mutants have no memory of the incursions, it looks as though they're going to keep trying until they succeed (despite their inability to learn and adapt from their mistakes). All Krakoa knows is that Nimrod is back online and Orchis must be destroyed. As such, Wolverine seems determined to stop them at all costs, even if it means continually reliving one of his worst deaths ever.

The first image of the Transformers: Rise of the Beasts designs for the G-1 Autobots and Decepticons has been revealed. The Transformers live-action films, adapted from the cartoon and toy line of the same name, began in 2007 with the Michael Bay Transformers starring Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox. Rise of the Beasts, which is currently filming, is the seventh film in the franchise, including the successful 2018 spin-off film Bumblebee. The film was written by Darnell Metayer and Josh Peters and is directed by Steven Caple Jr., who previously helmed Creed II.The film is based on Transformers: Beast Wars, the cartoon series from the '90s. It's a prequel that will introduce several new characters to the live-action universe, including Rhinox and the "beast mode" Optimus Primal, a captain of the Maximals. Other beloved characters like Bumblebee and Optimus Prime will also be appearing. Rise of the Beasts will also explore how Optimus Prime became devoted to protecting humanity.On his Instagram, Steven Caple Jr. posted a first-look image of the designs for the first-generation Transformers. The first image displays the Autobots, decked out in pastels with retro designs, looking not dissimilar to vehicles James Bond would have driven back in the day. The second image shows the Decepticons looking menacing with more muted, militaristic colors. Indeed, one design looks almost exactly like the evil truck in Steven Spielberg's Duel. Check out the images below:Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is set about seven years after the events of Bumblebee and follows two archaeologists who get mixed up in a war between the Maximals, the Predacons, and the Terrorcons. It's set in Brooklyn and parts of Peru, including Machu Picchu, as revealed in the Instagram post. The film will star Anthony Ramos, Dominique Fishback, Luna Lauren Vélez, Tobe Nwigwe, and Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime and Ron Perlman as Optimus Primal. Transformers 7 will storm theaters on June 24, 2022.This new glimpse at the Autobots and Decepticons continues the trend of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts pushing for more accurate interpretations of the original Transformers from the animated series. Caple focuses on brighter, poppier colors and sleek designs over the complicated CGI-laden work the Michael Bay films were known for. This is also in line with the style of Bumblebee, the more stripped-down tale that Rise of the Beasts directly follows on the Transformers timeline.

Padma Lakshmi and Gail Simmons, host and judge of Bravo's Top Chef, took to the streets of Houston on a rainy Saturday as part of a mass nationwide women's march in protest of Texas' restrictive abortion law. Top Chef season 19 is currently filming in Houston, their second time in the Lone Star State in more than a decade, formerly filming in Austin, Dallas and San Antonio. The new season will feature a panel of all-star judges made up of former Top Chef contestants, and Padma and Gail will be joined by judge and chef Tom Colicchio.The abortion law by the State of Texas has been a controversial topic that has sparked the attention of celebrities and even the federal government. Senate Bill 8 (SB 8), as it is formerly known, outlaws abortions after six weeks of pregnancy with no further leniencies in instances of rape or incest. Some shows have decided not to film in Texas, including an upcoming show from the creator of The Wire. As of September 9, the Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against the State of Texas to prevent them from enforcing Senate Bill 8, claiming it violates the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.The Women's March was held in major cities on Saturday, including Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and Houston, where Top Chef's Padma and Gail led a large group of women shouting, "Our body, our choice!" in the march to City Hall. The duo took a break from filming to be a part of the protest, where they not only participated in the march but also spoke to a large audience. As reported by Houston's local news outlet, CHRON, Padma recalled her own personal experiences where her mother had to have an abortion at Planned Parenthood after sustaining severe injuries from a car accident. "At that time, not only could my parents not afford another child, but her body could not physically sustain another pregnancy," she said. "It's out of love for me that they made the difficult decision to do what was right for our family and it's out of love for my mother and all families that I stand here today, ready to fight." Padma also revealed that she was raped when she was 16 years old. "My only saving grace was that I didn't become pregnant," she said. "I know how sexual violence can make people feel powerless, and this bill is a knife in the heart to those very same people."Gail shared that she had mixed feelings about filming the upcoming season of Top Chef in Houston due not only to the passing of SB 8 but also Texas' voting rights restrictions. However, she told the crowd that the people of Houston's stance on the bill contradicted that of the state's, and it was important to recognize that. "I know that Houston is a deeply diverse and vibrant place," said Gail. "I know that my beloved restaurant industry, let alone the women of Houston and all of Texas, need our support now more than ever and that personally choosing to back out of coming here would only serve to hurt the local people and the local economies that I set out in my career to uplift and stand behind."Padma and Gail didn't come to Houston just to film Top Chef. These strong women used their voices to call upon local and national governments to stop SB 8 and to call out the Governor of Texas. The women were bringing the heat to the Women's March and calling on the state officials to pack their knives and go.Source: CHRON

Universal Studios Japan has announced a partnership with The Pokémon Company for a mysterious new virtual reality experience. Nintendo currently has an attraction at Universal Studios Japan called Super Nintendo World, with plans to branch out to Universal's Hollywood, Orlando, and Singapore locations by 2025. Unfortunately, these plans have been hindered by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which also forced Super Nintendo World to temporarily close its doors less than a month after its grand opening back in March.       So far, Super Nintendo World’s rides and attractions have been primarily focused around Mario, with attendees riding the interactive Mario Kart rollercoaster, dining at the Toad Café, unlock exclusive Miitopia character costumes with special interactive wristbands, and even making pleasant conversation with fully-voiced characters like Princess Peach. However, there are plans for Super Nintendo World to branch out into non-Mario Nintendo franchises in the future, as evidenced by an upcoming Super Nintendo World Donkey Kong expansion based around the equally iconic character. Now, it looks like Pokémon could be joining the theme park fun soon, though it’s too early to tell.On October 6, Universal Studios Japan announced it is entering a partnership with The Pokémon Company that will begin in 2022. So far, there are few details about what this partnership will bring (with no mention of any Pokémon attractions at Super Nintendo World in the release), but Universal Studios Japan’s announcement does mention plans to develop an interactive virtual experience that will “immerse guests into the world of Pokémon.” Both Universal Studios Japan President and CEO J.L. Bonnier and President and CEO of The Pokémon Company Tsunekazu Ishihara expressed excitement at this long-term deal between their companies.This new partnership with Universal Studios Japan comes right as fans continue to celebrate the Pokémon franchise’s 25th anniversary this year. To commentate the milestone, Nintendo is releasing several Pokémon games on Nintendo Switch over the next few years, including the upcoming Pokémon Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl and the open-world Pokémon Legends: Arceus. Rumors speculate that there will be more major Pokémon announcements in 2022, so perhaps the details of the Universal Studios partnership will prove to be related to those reveals.It's still too early to tell if the VR experience described by The Pokémon Company and Universal Studios Japan will be a part of Super Nintendo World or something entirely different, but the idea of exploring the vast world of Pokémon and interacting with its assortment of titular collectible creatures is certainly an exciting concept. It may take a while to see these plans come to fruition, though, as the newly announced partnership between The Pokémon Company and Universal Studios Japan doesn’t officially take effect until next year.Source: Universal Studios Japan

Steven Johnston from 90 Day Fiancé did a companionship inventory with Russian girlfriend Alina in Turkey, and the way he shooed a dog away was his biggest red flag yet to many fans. 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way episode 6 saw Steven dropping one bombshell confession after another to Alina. Not only did Steven reveal that he wasn’t a virgin, but he also came clean about him cheating on her with several girls despite warnings. While Alina is sticking around and hoping that Steven deleting his social media might change things, fans saw him treating a dog as terribly as he treats his partner.While making it clear that he’s not ready to get married to Alina yet, and having her wonder if she could even trust him, Steven wanted to do the practice called companionship inventory. This is something that Steven did when he was a Mormon missionary involving two people telling each other about their strengths and weaknesses, along with things that need to be changed. As per Steven, this would help them have a stronger relationship and be “more effective together.” Alina took this as an opportunity to ask Steven about his girlfriends, and he blamed her for being insecure. But Steven admitted that he wasn’t ready to be “exclusive” with Alina, and up until a month before going to Turkey, he was going out on dates.But before Steven could spill these horrific secrets, he wanted to have a “special moment” at the park with Alina and thought of the local street dogs as a distraction. Steven said “get out of here” to the dogs in an attempt to shoo them and pushed one of them with his foot. As Reddit user u/cedwards13 noted, it was during this moment that their “hatred for Steven grew more” than they thought it could. As Steven was already getting slammed for his bizarre and hypocritical wine tasting behavior, fans such as @Vegasgirlblog noticed, “Steven’s little laugh while he tries to kick the dog away.” 90 Day Fiancé viewer @nicoleshanique tweeted, “Steven would’ve definitely kicked the dog if there was no camera crew.”Meanwhile, @Bjess74 addressed their tweet to Alina, saying, “Dump Steven now. How he treated those dogs tells you all you need to know.” What’s interesting to fans is that Steven had previously admitted that he’s "all for bugs not being killed because you know, they have spirits too” despite working in pest control. But Steven clearly didn’t care about the dogs, indicating that he may have been lying. Still, some fans are defending Steven by saying he meant no harm to the animal and that he just “gently scooted” it away using his foot. In fact, in a later scene, he was seen carrying pet food to feed stray cats with Alina.With the range of red flags that Steven has shown on 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way so far, everything he does is making him look like a hypocrite. Steven has been intimate with women in the past and is not a virgin. Yet, he wants Alina to be one and stay away from wine to exercise her faith since she’s agreed to get baptized. Fans think that Alina should abort the Turkey mission and go back to Russia and adopt a dog instead of choosing to marry Steven.Sources:  u/cedwards13/Reddit, @Vegasgirlblog/Twitter, @nicoleshanique/Twitter, @Bjess74/Twitter