The creators of the Halo TV series have addressed Cortana's controversial redesign, explaining that they wanted Master Chief's AI companion to feel "very tangible" on the show.

Speaking to GamesRadar+ about the reaction to Cortana's new look in the Halo series, Kiki Wolfkill, a studio head at 343 and Halo's executive producer, explained that the decision was partly driven by technology, as the team likes to utilize the latest tools to make considered design choices, just like they have done throughout the decades-spanning game series.

"It's so funny, because we change her design for every game. And a lot of that is driven by technology," Wolfkill said. "A lot of the design changes as we progress[ed] through the game generations was because we had access to better graphics, technology, more pixels, and more effects. And so it's always been about adapting Cortana to the environment.

"In this situation, it's so very different from the games in that she has to feel real," Wolfkill continued. "And by that, I don't mean feel like a real human. She has to feel like a real AI, a real hologram, and be a character that real people are acting against… That was really the impetus in designing her – how do we make her feel very tangible in this Halo world?"

Jen Taylor, the voice of Cortana in the mainline Halo games, reprises her role as the "smart" AI for the upcoming series, having voiced the beloved character in Halo: Combat Evolved and its sequels, Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 4, and Halo 5: Guardians, plus a brief appearance in Halo: Reach. Taylor says she's "curious" to see how the new take on her character plays out.

"I understand why people are protective of that [original design]. I am curious to see how it's received. I'm interested in seeing something different and seeing something new... I'm also interested to see what she looks like in this new version," Taylor said, adding that the AI has "different goals than the Cortana that we have known in the past 20 years."

Dramatizing an epic 26th-century conflict between humanity and an alien threat known as the Covenant, the Halo TV series weaves deeply-drawn personal stories with action, adventure and a richly imagined vision of the future. Paramount is clearly pleased with that vision, as the show has been renewed for a second season ahead of its Paramount+ premiere on March 24.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Back in 2007, a fake GameCube portable design spread across the internet. In 2022, someone has actually made it a reality.

YouTube user GingerOfOz has 3D printed, wired, and modified the handheld to look exactly like the original mockup - and it actually works.

There were a few hurdles, of course. The original design features a disk slot but both the GameCube and Wii disk drives are bigger than the new handheld itself.

Y'know that fake GameCube portable that has floated around the internet for 15 years? Well, I got tired of it being fake. It's real now. pic.twitter.com/Ihox29CoP0

— GingerOfOz (@GingerOfMods) March 12, 2022

The slot on front of the handheld is therefore just for show, as GingerOfOz instead opted to run all the game digitally using a Wii motherboard.

He admitted this would be a point of contention, as the machine wouldn't have the GameCube start screen and menus, so modified the software to run both of these as expected.

The video shows GingerOfOz piecing it all together, from the beginning where he reverse engineered (read: smashed open with a hammer) a Nintendo DS Lite, to the casing pieces being sealed together to mark the finished product.

The result is very impressive. GingerOfOz shows the machine playing a range of GameCube games including The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, and Metroid Prime.

He even tracks down the designer who sent the internet into a frenzy in 2007, who explains he made it just for fun and that he's since gone on to become a game developer at companies including Ubisoft and Epic Games.

Official support for handheld GameCube games is sadly less of a reality. While GameCube controllers do work on Switch, we still haven't seen any sign of GameCube virtual console games on Nintendo's hybrid handheld, despite multiple reports saying they were coming as far back as 2016.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale.

Back in 2007, a fake GameCube portable design spread across the internet. In 2022, someone has actually made it a reality.

YouTube user GingerOfOz has 3D printed, wired, and modified the handheld to look exactly like the original mockup - and it actually works.

There were a few hurdles, of course. The original design features a disk slot but both the GameCube and Wii disk drives are bigger than the new handheld itself.

Y'know that fake GameCube portable that has floated around the internet for 15 years? Well, I got tired of it being fake. It's real now. pic.twitter.com/Ihox29CoP0

— GingerOfOz (@GingerOfMods) March 12, 2022

The slot on front of the handheld is therefore just for show, as GingerOfOz instead opted to run all the game digitally using a Wii motherboard.

He admitted this would be a point of contention, as the machine wouldn't have the GameCube start screen and menus, so modified the software to run both of these as expected.

The video shows GingerOfOz piecing it all together, from the beginning where he reverse engineered (read: smashed open with a hammer) a Nintendo DS Lite, to the casing pieces being sealed together to mark the finished product.

The result is very impressive. GingerOfOz shows the machine playing a range of GameCube games including The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, and Metroid Prime.

He even tracks down the designer who sent the internet into a frenzy in 2007, who explains he made it just for fun and that he's since gone on to become a game developer at companies including Ubisoft and Epic Games.

Official support for handheld GameCube games is sadly less of a reality. While GameCube controllers do work on Switch, we still haven't seen any sign of GameCube virtual console games on Nintendo's hybrid handheld, despite multiple reports saying they were coming as far back as 2016.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale.

Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson is heading to space with Jeff Bezos' rocket company, Blue Origin, later this month.

Blue Origin, the spaceflight company founded by former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, announced on Monday that Davidson would be among the crew of its upcoming NS-20 mission, which will mark the fourth human flight for the New Shepard program and the 20th in its history when it completes its scheduled liftoff from Launch Site One in West Texas on March 23.

Davidson will join five other passengers on the flight, including angel investor and former Party America CEO Marty Allen; SpaceKids Global founder Sharon Hagle; her husband, the president and CEO of Tricor International, Marc Hagle; teacher and entrepreneur Jim Kitchen; and the president of Commercial Space Technologies, LLC, Dr. George Nield.

"Pete Davidson joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 2014," Blue Origin notes in its profile of the star. "In 2020, he co-wrote and starred in the semi-autobiographical film The King of Staten Island, which also earned a nomination for The Comedy Movie Star of 2020 at the 46th People's Choice Awards. Pete also appeared in the 2021 film The Suicide Squad directed by James Gunn."

The SNL comic will be the third celebrity to take the flight, after William Shatner and Michael Strahan. Shatner became the oldest person to ever reach space following the successful completion of his flight aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket in October. It was only the second crewed outing for the ship, which had Jeff Bezos aboard for its first launch.

New Shepard's first-ever human spaceflight took place nine days after Sir Richard Branson successfully reached the edge of space aboard his Virgin Galactic rocket plane. Bezos congratulated Branson and his crew on Instagram at the time, saying he couldn't wait to "join the club." However, Blue Origin has other ambitions outside of its space tourism ventures.

The company plans to build a commercial space station called Orbital Reef in partnership with multiple other space companies, including Boeing, Sierra Space and several more. The outpost is scheduled to be up and running by the late 2030s, aligning itself as a possible successor to the International Space Station, which is expected to be retired in 2030.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson is heading to space with Jeff Bezos' rocket company, Blue Origin, later this month.

Blue Origin, the spaceflight company founded by former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, announced on Monday that Davidson would be among the crew of its upcoming NS-20 mission, which will mark the fourth human flight for the New Shepard program and the 20th in its history when it completes its scheduled liftoff from Launch Site One in West Texas on March 23.

Davidson will join five other passengers on the flight, including angel investor and former Party America CEO Marty Allen; SpaceKids Global founder Sharon Hagle; her husband, the president and CEO of Tricor International, Marc Hagle; teacher and entrepreneur Jim Kitchen; and the president of Commercial Space Technologies, LLC, Dr. George Nield.

"Pete Davidson joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 2014," Blue Origin notes in its profile of the star. "In 2020, he co-wrote and starred in the semi-autobiographical film The King of Staten Island, which also earned a nomination for The Comedy Movie Star of 2020 at the 46th People's Choice Awards. Pete also appeared in the 2021 film The Suicide Squad directed by James Gunn."

The SNL comic will be the third celebrity to take the flight, after William Shatner and Michael Strahan. Shatner became the oldest person to ever reach space following the successful completion of his flight aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket in October. It was only the second crewed outing for the ship, which had Jeff Bezos aboard for its first launch.

New Shepard's first-ever human spaceflight took place nine days after Sir Richard Branson successfully reached the edge of space aboard his Virgin Galactic rocket plane. Bezos congratulated Branson and his crew on Instagram at the time, saying he couldn't wait to "join the club." However, Blue Origin has other ambitions outside of its space tourism ventures.

The company plans to build a commercial space station called Orbital Reef in partnership with multiple other space companies, including Boeing, Sierra Space and several more. The outpost is scheduled to be up and running by the late 2030s, aligning itself as a possible successor to the International Space Station, which is expected to be retired in 2030.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

The creators of the Halo TV series have assured fans that the Chevy Tahoe, spotted in the show's first major trailer, is there for a reason.

In an interview with Polygon, Halo showrunner Steven Kane and others working on the show addressed the elephant in the room – in this case, the GMT800 Tahoe that featured in the Super Bowl spot for Paramount Plus' upcoming TV adaptation – explaining that the vehicle's inclusion is intentional despite it seemingly not fitting in with the show's 26th-century setting.

Can someone explain to me why there's a Chevy Tahoe in the #Halo TV show? pic.twitter.com/YGH1EmneAE

— The Don (@TheDon_KTR) February 4, 2022

Kane admitted that it was "both frightening and exhilarating to know people care that much" about the series to have examined the footage in such detail ahead of the Halo series Paramount+ premiere on March 24, though he was quick to dispel any concerns from fans as he confirmed that the Tahoe is included in the show for a reason.

"For people who haven't spent time in the game industry, there's no such thing as too fast a shot to notice something," Kiki Wolfkill, a studio head at 343 and Halo's executive producer, explained further. "We have to assume every single frame will be examined."

Kane and the Halo team said they scrutinized every detail of the series, meaning everything that made it onto the set had a rationale behind it, including the specific Chevy Tahoe model, which Polygon says was produced between 2001 and 2006, more than 500 years before Master Chief was born, but the team reiterated that the series is not the game.

"What people see will be different from what they've expected," executive producer and director Otto Bathurst warned. "And hopefully a strong percentage [of fans] will be pleased with it. But listen, I'm sure it's going to ruffle some feathers."

It was previously said that the Halo TV show would not be taking place in the timeline of the video games, and would instead make use of a newly formed "Silver Timeline." The new timeline roots the series "in canon" and features everything you'd expect from the story of Master Chief's fight against the Covenant, but it just comes from a "different perspective."

Dramatizing an epic 26th-century conflict between humanity and an alien threat known as the Covenant, the Halo TV series weaves deeply-drawn personal stories with action, adventure and a richly imagined vision of the future. Paramount is clearly pleased with that vision, as the show has already been renewed for a second season.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

The creators of the Halo TV series have assured fans that the Chevy Tahoe, spotted in the show's first major trailer, is there for a reason.

In an interview with Polygon, Halo showrunner Steven Kane and others working on the show addressed the elephant in the room – in this case, the GMT800 Tahoe that featured in the Super Bowl spot for Paramount Plus' upcoming TV adaptation – explaining that the vehicle's inclusion is intentional despite it seemingly not fitting in with the show's 26th-century setting.

Can someone explain to me why there's a Chevy Tahoe in the #Halo TV show? pic.twitter.com/YGH1EmneAE

— The Don (@TheDon_KTR) February 4, 2022

Kane admitted that it was "both frightening and exhilarating to know people care that much" about the series to have examined the footage in such detail ahead of the Halo series Paramount+ premiere on March 24, though he was quick to dispel any concerns from fans as he confirmed that the Tahoe is included in the show for a reason.

"For people who haven't spent time in the game industry, there's no such thing as too fast a shot to notice something," Kiki Wolfkill, a studio head at 343 and Halo's executive producer, explained further. "We have to assume every single frame will be examined."

Kane and the Halo team said they scrutinized every detail of the series, meaning everything that made it onto the set had a rationale behind it, including the specific Chevy Tahoe model, which Polygon says was produced between 2001 and 2006, more than 500 years before Master Chief was born, but the team reiterated that the series is not the game.

"What people see will be different from what they've expected," executive producer and director Otto Bathurst warned. "And hopefully a strong percentage [of fans] will be pleased with it. But listen, I'm sure it's going to ruffle some feathers."

It was previously said that the Halo TV show would not be taking place in the timeline of the video games, and would instead make use of a newly formed "Silver Timeline." The new timeline roots the series "in canon" and features everything you'd expect from the story of Master Chief's fight against the Covenant, but it just comes from a "different perspective."

Dramatizing an epic 26th-century conflict between humanity and an alien threat known as the Covenant, the Halo TV series weaves deeply-drawn personal stories with action, adventure and a richly imagined vision of the future. Paramount is clearly pleased with that vision, as the show has already been renewed for a second season.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Ti West has revealed that he secretly filmed a prequel to his new A24 slasher film X, titled Pearl, and is currently writing the third entry in the unexpected new franchise.

Ti West's X made its debut at the SXSW Film Festival this week and, according to IndieWire, the filmmaker has plans to expand upon the story with both a prequel and a sequel. The prequel was written a few weeks before cameras started rolling on X and it has already been shot with Mia Goth reprising her role, though this time, playing a younger version of Pearl, the spooky old woman in the first movie.

"I'm trying to build a world out of all this, like people do these days," he said in an interview. "You can't make a slasher movie without a bunch of sequels."

X stars Jenna Ortega, Mia Goth, Brittany Snow, Scott Mescudi, and more. The film is set in 1979 and follows a group of young filmmakers as they set out to make an adult film in rural Texas. However, they find their production is disrupted when their reclusive, elderly hosts catch them in the act, leaving the cast of the movie's X-rated picture to fight for their lives.

According to IndieWire, West shot the movie's prequel, Pearl, on the same set as X, which was filmed with the Avatar 2 crew during a break. Pearl is described as a Douglas Sirk-inspired "Technicolor, 'Mary Poppins' kind of movie" that "promises to fill in some of the gaps, exploring how the cabin where the massacre of X takes place was a boarding house during WWI."

"If 'X' is about the way this auteurist era of independent filmmaking is affecting people, 'Pearl' is sort of about the old Hollywood way that affected people," West revealed. "The way in which they enrich each other is all a part of the craft of the filmmaking. I wanted to do something where all of the crafts of the movie were their very apparent charms."

Pearl is expected to be fully completed by May, having already wrapped production and finished the editing process. West has wasted no time in jumping straight into the third entry of his new film series, a sequel to X, that will explore another filmmaking era. He is currently writing the story, which will focus on "how home video has affected people."

A24 will be releasing X in theaters on March 18, together with a sneak peek of the prequel that will be screened alongside West's new slasher.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Ti West has revealed that he secretly filmed a prequel to his new A24 slasher film X, titled Pearl, and is currently writing the third entry in the unexpected new franchise.

Ti West's X made its debut at the SXSW Film Festival this week and, according to IndieWire, the filmmaker has plans to expand upon the story with both a prequel and a sequel. The prequel was written a few weeks before cameras started rolling on X and it has already been shot with Mia Goth reprising her role, though this time, playing a younger version of Pearl, the spooky old woman in the first movie.

"I'm trying to build a world out of all this, like people do these days," he said in an interview. "You can't make a slasher movie without a bunch of sequels."

X stars Jenna Ortega, Mia Goth, Brittany Snow, Scott Mescudi, and more. The film is set in 1979 and follows a group of young filmmakers as they set out to make an adult film in rural Texas. However, they find their production is disrupted when their reclusive, elderly hosts catch them in the act, leaving the cast of the movie's X-rated picture to fight for their lives.

According to IndieWire, West shot the movie's prequel, Pearl, on the same set as X, which was filmed with the Avatar 2 crew during a break. Pearl is described as a Douglas Sirk-inspired "Technicolor, 'Mary Poppins' kind of movie" that "promises to fill in some of the gaps, exploring how the cabin where the massacre of X takes place was a boarding house during WWI."

"If 'X' is about the way this auteurist era of independent filmmaking is affecting people, 'Pearl' is sort of about the old Hollywood way that affected people," West revealed. "The way in which they enrich each other is all a part of the craft of the filmmaking. I wanted to do something where all of the crafts of the movie were their very apparent charms."

Pearl is expected to be fully completed by May, having already wrapped production and finished the editing process. West has wasted no time in jumping straight into the third entry of his new film series, a sequel to X, that will explore another filmmaking era. He is currently writing the story, which will focus on "how home video has affected people."

A24 will be releasing X in theaters on March 18, together with a sneak peek of the prequel that will be screened alongside West's new slasher.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Scott Hall, the WWE Hall of Fame wrestling legend who rose to stardom as Razor Ramon and was a founding member of nWo, has died at the age of 63.

As reported by ESPN, Hall broke his hip last month and had severe health complications following the surgery that was meant to repair it. On Sunday, Hall's best friend and former tag-team partner Kevin Nash wrote on Instagram that he was on life support, and his close friend Sean Waltman confirmed he had passed away on Monday, March 14.

Hall was born on October 20, 1958, in St. Mary's County, Maryland, and he moved around a lot growing up as his father was in the military. In 1984, he began his pro-wrestling career in Championship Wrestling of Florida. From there, he would participate in AWA, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, WWC in Puerto Rico, and WCW before joining WWF in 1992.

The WWF is where he took on the moniker of Razor Ramon, a "Miami-Cuban character based on Scarface." Hall was also nicknamed "The Bad Guy" and would become a founding member of the New World Order (nWo) alongside Hulk Hogan and Kevin Nash.

He won the WWF Intercontinental title four times and won seven tag team titles in the WCW, and six of the tag team titles were with Nash. He was the United States Heavyweight champion twice and won the World Television title once.

WWE is saddened to learn that two-time WWE Hall of Famer Scott Hall has passed away.

WWE extends its condolences to Hall’s family, friends and fans. pic.twitter.com/jgqL3WizOS

— WWE (@WWE) March 15, 2022

Hall was a heel in the wrestling world, but his charisma and charm won the hearts of many fans around the globe. He was known for chewing a toothpick, his slicked-back hair with a single curl on his forehead, and catchphrases like "hey, yo" and "survey says." His finishing move - Razer's Edge - saw him hold his opponent with both arms outstretched before slamming them to the ground.

"There was nobody cooler than Scott Hall," former WCW and current AEW broadcaster Tony Schiavone told ESPN in 2021. "Kevin Nash was cool, too, but freakin' Scott Hall was ahead of his time."

Hall returned to the WWE (which used to be known as WWF) after WCW went out of business and was bought by the WWF in 2001. In 2002, he was released due to "issues related to substance abuse." He would seek treatment and had "reportedly gotten sober in the recent years."

In 2014, he was inducted in to the WWE Hall of Fame for his time as Razor Ramon. In 2020, he would be inducted again as part of nWo.

When Scott was still on life support, Nash shared a few words about his close friend and someone he loved with all his heart.

"Scott's on life support," Nash wrote. "Once his family is in place they will discontinue life support. I'm going to lose the one person on this planet I've spent more of my life with than anyone else. My heart is broken and I'm so very fucking sad. I love Scott with all my heart but now I have to prepare my life without him in the present.

"I've been blessed to have a friend that took me at face value and I him. When we jumped to WCW we didn't care who liked or hated us. We had each other and with the smooth Barry Bloom we changed wrestling both in content and pay for those......alot that disliked us. We were the 'Outsiders' but we had each other.

"Scott always felt he wasn't worthy of the afterlife. Well God please have some gold plated toothpicks for my brother. My life was enriched with his take on life. He wasn't perfect but as he always said 'The last perfect person to walk the planet they nailed to a cross' As we prepare for life without him just remember there goes a great guy you ain't going to see another one like him again. See Ya down the road Scott. I couldn't love a human being any more than I do you."

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.