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Castlevania is one of the most beloved franchises in video game history, despite a period of 13 years when we didn’t see a new installment until the launch of Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse earlier this week. Over the years, the games have provided a variety of experiences, mixed with rich lore built on the vampire myth. With so many games available to choose from, it can be difficult to know where to begin if you haven’t touched the series in a while. Accordingly, here is our ranked list of the 8 best Castlevania games. It should make an excellent starting point. Released: Oct. 31, 1991 When Castlevania came to the Super Nintendo, it needed to impress players who were still deciding whether they wanted to spend money on a new generation of Nintendo hardware. Fortunately for everyone involved, the team at Konami was up to the task. Super Castlevania 4 features beautiful environments, as well as a hero who can now whip in eight directions, even while jumping. It’s also possible to grapple to distant points, or to wield the whip as a shield. Early use of Mode 7 rotation provided some visual showpieces to go along with parallax depth that brought static environments to life.

Picture Kellnor, a burly, Conan-looking Barbarian standing with a mighty weapon in each hand. In one, he holds a demonic sword stolen from the Cult of Asmodeus. In the other is Azuredge, a glowing battleaxe forged by the legendary archwizard Ahghairon. This intelligent weapon is inhabited by the spirit of Lady Lauroun, a legendary hero of Waterdeep. It operates under rules remarkably similar to Thor’s Mjolnir: it becomes impossibly heavy to hold if the character trying to wield it isn’t worthy, and it can be thrown through the air before returning to its owner’s hand. Unfortunately for Kellnor, Azuredge demands that its wielder remain virtuous, so sharing a wielder with an evil sword was non-negotiable. Even the numbers made Kellnor’s choice practically inevitable. The demon sword was +2. Azuredge was +3. And so, after extracting the Eye of Golorr hidden inside the sword’s hilt, Kellnor simply dropped it outside the entrance to the cult’s hideout and moved on. The rest of the do-gooders in the party wanted nothing to do with it.

What researchers uncovered through lab testing and surveillance footage, prosecutors said, was a plot by his fellow graduate student to intentionally poison him.

Image: Nintendo Life / NintendoThe Pumpkaboo's Sweet Surprises event runs from 17th October to 1st November, adding two Gen 6 Ghost-types to Pokémon Pokopia. For those who have played previous Pokopia limited-time events, the format will be familiar: a new Pokémon, Pumpkaboo, visits a Pokémon Center and requests a currency (Pumpkin Candy) in exchange for items which can help make a couple new habitats. But in a spooky twist, this time is you have to scare the event currency out of your resident Pokémon.

Poilievre in GermanyScreenshot:CPACPublished on: 17 Oct 2026, 4:00 pmLoading content, please wait...

We’re sharing this article early to provide faster access to peer-reviewed, accepted research. It is citable and carries a permanent DOI. This version is subject to further edits and will be replaced automatically by the final Version of Record. All legal disclaimers apply. AbstractSewing is one of the established methods used to fabricate and assemble multilayer insulation (MLI) blankets for aerospace applications, yet the resulting effective flexural behavior remains insufficiently understood. This study investigates the room-temperature, quasi-static flexural behavior of MLI blankets composed of aluminized BoPET radiation shields and polyester net spacers across structural configurations of 2, 6, 12, and 24 layers. A full factorial design was employed to evaluate the influence of the number of layers, stitch density, needle thread tension, and needle foot force. Statistical analyses demonstrated that the number of layers is the dominant factor governing flexural response. Among the sewing parameters, needle thread tension was associated with modifications in bending length, while needle foot force primarily affected local compaction.

Earlier this year, Swedish developer Liquid Swords released Samson, a GTA-ish, open world beat 'em up about dealing with debt, driving sturdy but battered cars, and saving your sister. It wasn't received all that well, including by us, notably because it was quite broken. While subsequent patches did seek to address those issues, it doesn't seem like it was quite enough, as the developer has gone bankrupt. As reported by Swedish outlet Breakit (via Gametalk), on October 12th the Stockholm District Court put out a bankruptcy order against the developer. According to Breakit, almost 30 employees are affected, with the Swedish state stepping in to cover all unpaid salaries. It seems that staff had gone at least two months without pay, obviously a significant period to be without it, and they themselves petitioned to file the company as bankrupt. Breakit also said that the administrator for the bankruptcy filing is hopeful in regards to finding a buyer.

Street Fighter is leading the box office battle in its opening weekend as Elizabeth Holmes documentary You Can See Everything draws big crowds, while Whalefall has trouble making a splash. Coming in on the lighter side of Paramount Pictures’ projected sum, Street Fighter grossed $13 million on Friday, including Thursday previews, and will open with around $31 million domestically for the weekend from 3,575 North American theaters. Marking the first release in Paramount’s distribution deal with Legendary, the studio had been expecting a debut in the mid-$30 millions for director Kitao Sakurai’s feature adaptation of the Capcom video game. Noah Centineo, Andrew Koji and Callina Liang star in the $82 million-budgeted movie focusing on a combat tournament.

Posted: Oct 17, 2026 3:52pm UTCBarry Sloane, the actor behind Call of Duty's Captain Price, has shared a message with fans as praise for Modern Warfare 4's campaign rolls in. Early reactions to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4's story mode have filled social media feeds in the first 24 hours since early access players dived in – and most of them seem to be quite positive. Fans online have called it one of the more "brutal" and "intense" campaigns the series has ever seen, with many going as far as to say it holds its own against classic stories featured in games like the original Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops. It appears to be a winner for publisher Activision and developer Infinity Ward that critics like, too. While Steam reviews paint a "Very Positive" picture, IGN awarded this year's set of story missions an 8/10. Our reviewer said the Modern Warfare 4 campaign made them "feel something for the series again," adding that it managed to send the reboot saga series out "on a high note. ""The MW4 campaign was a 10/10 for me, they made a good story and ended it," one recent Steam review said. "Damn near almost cried at the end LOL.

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Tomas Franzese is the Weekend News Editor at Polygon, following and reporting on the latest goings-on in the gaming and entertainment spaces. During the week, you can find him working on Remastered, his newsletter about video game history and retro gaming, or contributing to GameSpot and other publications. Previously, Tomas was the Gaming Segment Lead at XDA and a Staff Writer at Digital Trends. Nicolas Cage and Antonio Banderas will star in the next season of True Detective

France’s ‘yellow vest movement’ – comprised of a group of trade unions and citizens – have organised a major nationwide protest on Saturday to voice their objection to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and rising fuel prices gripping the country. Speaking to Euronews, a representative of the movement revealed that the protest was arranged in part to support the student-led mass protests which have rocked the country in recent weeks, demanding the government revamp the education system, increase in school funding and access to resources as well as modernise classrooms and institutions.

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IntroductionBirds rely on a collection of behavioural, physiological, and chemical defences to mitigate the constant threat posed by pathogens and parasites in their environment1. Preen oil from the uropygial gland (UG) is a key component of avian integumentary immunity, supporting feather maintenance and waterproofing, while the UG is also known to harbour diverse microbes, including γ- and α-Pseudomonadota and Actinomycetota, that contribute to feather defense2,3. We recently exemplified a case of the bacterial isolate Amycolatopsis sp. PS_44_ISF1 derived from the UG of the toxic bird Pachycephala schlegelii that can directly contribute to the bird’s chemical defence system, by producing bioactive metabolites such as the antifungal macrolactam ciromicin A3,4, the co-secreted tensioactive lipopeptide family pachycephalamides, and a highly modified hexapeptide, named demiguisin A (1) (Fig. 1). The chemical structure of 1, caught our interest, as it contains non-proteinogenic piperazic acid (hexahydropyridazine-3-carboxylic acid, Piz) residues within the sequence Gly–β,γ-OH-Piz–Leu–Piz–DHPA–γ-c-Pro (Fig. 1)3,5.

The ocean beneath Saturn's moon Enceladus lies under kilometers of ice, but some of its contents do reach the surface. Jets near the south pole spray out water vapor and icy particles, offering a way to investigate the hidden ocean without drilling down to it.