Washington, D.C. The highly anticipated action role-playing video game “Diablo IV” launched its early access on Thursday night. However, there were some delays, particularly for PlayStation players.

While many players who pre-purchased eligible “Diablo IV” editions experienced no problems with the early access launch, some PS5 users reported getting an invalid licensing error message. After initially stating that a server-side balance update had been implemented, Blizzard acknowledged the problem.

A software upgrade known as a hotfix focuses on a single problem and normally does not cause service interruptions.

The most recent game in the Blizzard “Diablo” series, which debuted in 1996, is titled “Diablo IV” and was released in May 2012. This is more than ten years after “Diablo III”‘s debut. Although the game’s early access began on Thursday, the launch is set for the following week.

Diablo’s general manager, Rod Fergusson, referred to “Diablo IV” as “our most brutal vision of Sanctuary,” the make-believe setting for the game. He continued, saying that it incorporates “the darkness of the original game” and expands on significant elements from other games in the franchise.

Activision Blizzard, the parent business of Blizzard Entertainment, announced in April that its net sales for the first quarter of 2023 increased to $2.38 billion from $1.77 billion. Activision reported that “Diablo IV” presales were robust, indicating that the game had undergone successful public testing.

What you need to know about “Diablo IV’s” upcoming official release and early access launch on Thursday is provided here.

WHEN DOES DIABLO IV COMMENCE?

Depending on your local time zone, “Diablo IV” will be formally published on Tuesday or Wednesday next week. The game will begin in the United States on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT).

Although “Diablo IV” is set to be on sale next week, early access started a few days earlier, on either Thursday or Friday, depending on where you are. Players who pre-purchased the game’s digital deluxe or ultimate edition were expected to have early access.

Additionally, some devices allow players who have previously purchased “Diablo IV” to pre-load the game. According to Blizzard, pre-loading is possible for Windows PC, Xbox, and PlayStation.

DIABLO IV “UNABLE TO FIND LICENCE”?

Although early access appeared to open without incident for the majority of gamers, some PS5 users reported receiving an error message that stated, “unable to find a valid licence for Diablo IV,” according to posts on Blizzard’s community forums and social media. Players on the PS5 appeared to be the ones most affected by the problem, but some other users said they also received the notice on Xbox and other platforms.

In a forum post late Thursday night, Blizzard recognized the PlayStation customers’ complaints. Adam Fletcher, director of global community development, later claimed that “Diablo IV” had received a server-side balance update implemented across all platforms.

How many early access players were affected by the problem is unknown. On Blizzard’s forum, some angry customers reported that they were still having access issues as of Friday morning.

The Associated Press requested statements from Blizzard and PlayStation on Friday morning.

WHAT CLASSES DO DIABLO IV CHARACTERS FALL INTO?

“Diablo IV” reportedly takes place decades after the events of “Diablo III: Reaper of Souls.” The angel Inarius and the demon Lilith have started a battle and are at odds.

In “Diablo IV,” players can choose from one of five classes: Druids, Rogues, Sorceresses, Barbarians, or Necromancers.

At launch, “Diablo IV” will support couch co-op and cross-platform play on Windows PC, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4, among other platforms.

Financial results for Activation for 2022, Microsoft Deal

In 2022, Activision, the company behind “Call of Duty,” “Candy Crush,” and “World of Warcraft,” recorded net revenues of $7.53 billion, a decrease from the $8.8 billion reported in 2021.

Microsoft revealed plans to buy Activision in January 2022, but the historic transaction is doubtful more than a year later. Last month, the European Union authorized the $69 billion purchase, but British regulators halted it due to concerns about competition. Authorities in the US are also attempting to block the merger.

Regulators worldwide have scrutinized the agreement because of concern that it will give Microsoft and its Xbox platform control of popular s. PlayStation maker rival Sony has led a ferocious opposition.

Activision and Microsoft have appealed to a tribunal about the U.K. ruling. Liam Deane, a gaming industry analyst at digital research and consultancy firm Omdia, previously told The Associated Press that if the appeal is unsuccessful, Microsoft would be compelled to either cancel the arrangement or carve out the U.K. as a distinct market, which appeared to be an impractical choice.

SOURCE – (AP)

Brad Pitt and ex-Angelina Jolie are still embroiled in a contentious argument over a winery amid their custody case.

The Maleficent actress allegedly carried out a “vindictive and unlawful sale” of her part of their French estate and vineyard, Château Miraval, according to fresh records filed in Los Angeles on June 1 and obtained by E! News. The actor from Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood makes this claim.

Pitt, referring to his ex’s company, said in his amended complaint that “Jolie went forward with the vindictive putative sale in breach of her and Nouvel’s contractual obligations,” preferring to sell her stake in Miraval to a designated Russian oligarch and prevent Pitt from continuing to pursue his successful vision and strategy in developing the property and business that was intended to be their children’s legacy.

The purchase of 50% of Chateau Miraval and the Miraval trademark from Angelina Jolie was revealed in a press release by Tenute del Mondo, a division of the alcohol manufacturer Stoli Group, in October 2021. The statement continued, “We are thrilled to have a position alongside Brad Pitt as curators of their extraordinary vintages.”

Brad Pitt and ex-Angelina Jolie are still embroiled in a contentious argument over a winery amid their custody case.

And in his most recent filing, the actor claims that he learned about “Jolie’s putative sale” to Stoli from the press release and that she “collaborated in secret” with the company’s founder, Russian-born billionaire Yuri Shefler, and his associates to “pursue and then consummate the purported sale, ensuring that Pitt would be kept in the dark.” Pitt also mentioned that he rejected Shefler’s offer to purchase Miraval.

According to CNN, the billionaire was exiled from Russia in 2000 due to his opposition to President Vladimir Putin. The Oscar winner also claimed in his paperwork that the U.S. Treasury Department had branded Shefler as an “oligarch in the Russian Federation.”

In addition, the actor claims that Jolie changed her mind about giving him her interest after a temporary custody decision went in his favor. About four months before the announcement, in late May 2021, Pitt was given joint custody of the former couple’s children by a retired judge who had been retained to resolve the dispute.

The actress for Eternals, who has seven children with her ex—Maddox, now 21; Pax, 19, Zahara, 18, Shiloh, 17, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 14—later filed a lawsuit, and a California appeals court agreed with her that the judge who issued the decision should be removed from the case because he failed to adequately disclose his professional relationships with Pitt’s attorneys. The custody dispute is still pending.

Despite her contractual duties and years of pledges to Pitt, the actor claims in his amended complaint that “in the wake of the adverse custody ruling, she no longer wanted to sell to Pitt.”

Jolie had stated in court records from 2022 that she was not required to sell her stake to her ex, but she has yet to react to Pitt’s most recent filing. Her lawyer was contacted by E! News for comment, but no response was received.

The conflict between the ex-couple and the winery began in 2022. Pitt filed a lawsuit against Jolie in February of that year for allegedly selling her shares in Chateau Miraval without his permission. In 2008, the two invested together to purchase the winery. In front of their six children, they married in 2014 on the vineyard’s property.

Brad Pitt and ex-Angelina Jolie are still embroiled in a contentious argument over a winery amid their custody case.

After that, in September 2022, Jolie’s business filed a $250 million countersuit against Pitt, claiming that he had organized an effort to “seize control” of Chateau Miraval “in retaliation for the divorce and custody proceedings.” Although a judge pronounced the couple legally separated in 2019, the divorce between the Girl, Interrupted actress and the actor has not yet been finalized. The actress filed paperwork to break her marriage to the actor in 2016.

According to Jolie’s petition, the Babylon star allegedly “ignored” a “final offer to sell her interest in the winery,” thus, Jolie sold Nouvel to a global beverage corporation in 2021.

Jolie offered to sell Pitt her investment despite not being required to do so and engaged in months-long negotiations with him, according to her declaration. “Pitt’s hubris got the better of him, and as a deal was about to be struck, he made an eleventh-hour demand for onerous and irrelevant conditions, including a clause designed to prevent Jolie from publicly speaking about the circumstances that had caused their marriage to end.”

Pitt responded to Jolie’s countersuit on June 1 by stating that he vigorously refutes all of the charges and requests that the court dismiss Jolie’s cross-complaint with prejudice.

Pitt is suing Jolie for punitive and exemplary damages and a statement that her alleged sale of Nouvel was invalid. Pitt is also demanding a jury trial.

SOURCE – (AP)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. Tommy Prine spoke about his father’s passing in front of a crowded audience in The Basement, one of Nashville’s most intimate music venues.

During a recent sold-out performance, he observed, “It stinks to lose a parent at any age — in my case, when he was the world’s greatest songwriter.”

Singer-songwriter John Prine, Prine’s father, passed away in April 2020 at 73 due to coronavirus complications. Even for a period when grieving had grown commonplace, his death sparked a flood of global mourning.

In the music industry, the heartbreak was especially severe. The bonds John Prine formed with his music were only strengthened by his generosity to budding musicians. Many others tried to digest the unthinkable by expressing their sadness through memorial songs.

It turns out that Prine’s own family was experiencing a similar situation.

Last year, Tommy Prine published “Ships in the Harbour,” a song about his father that is as heartfelt and open-hearted as ever. It resists the urge to curl up in the fetal position rather than flee from what he lost. It gets the closest of any song to properly expressing the immense weight of grief brought on by the pandemic.

Tommy Prine, now 27 years old, is set to release a whole album of songs that deal with growing up, love, and grief. The film “This Far South,” which will be released on June 23, is daring in how it faces his father’s passing head-on and how the son of a legend handles the inevitable concerns that arise from working in the same field.

Tommy Prine keeps going and works hard on a risky project. He created a unique album, and it is captivating.

According to Prine, “honestly, even if my Dad wasn’t who he was, I feel like I would’ve made the same record,” he stated in an interview with The Associated Press. Because of who he is, “I didn’t include these songs, but I also didn’t shy away from them.”

Writing songs enabled Prine to process everything he had lost. His father’s legendary position feels almost incidental to the intimacy of that journey.

“I’m Tommy Prine, and I lost my Dad in the pandemic, and that’s going to be the focal point of what I’m trying to get across,” he said. And while I am aware that it was a fairly public event and that most people will be aware of the background, I believe that they are optional.

I believe people may just listen to it from the viewpoint of a young man who lost his father unexpectedly.

The few allusions, such as the card games and talks they avoid, are vivid without ever becoming cloying. In a lovely song called “By the Way,” he discusses the singular sensation of occasionally hearing his father’s voice.

Prine sings, “I don’t want to talk about the day you slipped away.” The tunes we used to sing still make it difficult to hear your voice.

But Tommy also has other weaknesses and is more or less influenced by those who aren’t his biological father. For instance, the anthemic flourishes and introspective lyrics on the album show co-producer Ruston Kelly’s influence. The song “Reach the Sun” begins with a manic episode in the middle of the night but eventually soars to resemble Kelly’s best work, including the excellent album he recently published.

In an interview conducted after Kelly’s performance with Prine at The Basement, Sufjan Stevens was named another artist who influenced both. Prine heard a sound that matched the wistful desperation he wanted to express while listening to Stevens’ “Carrie & Lowell” album, which Kelly had directed him towards.

Tommy spoke about his father’s passing in front of a crowded audience in The Basement, one of Nashville’s most intimate music venues.

It was “probably the last thing I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” according to Prine, but it ended up being a “saving grace” for him as he dealt with the hardship of losing his father.

Listeners would do well to consider how they would react if they weren’t aware that this album was produced by the legendary John Prine’s son, given the darkness that hangs over anyone named Prine who dares to try his hand at making original music. Social media and other modern methods of music distribution make it plausible, if not probable, that Prine’s music will reach a brand-new audience. His father may not be well-known to some listeners his age or younger, but these songs will draw comparisons on their own.

But everyone who pays attention will hear the promise of a creative person who bravely followed his heart. Fans of John Prine may recognize elements of the album’s disarming honesty, but they will also hear a new voice presenting intense music that crackles.

Tommy claims that although having considered it, he rarely worries about the legacy issue. But that’s simply another thing he has arranged in its appropriate position.

“I’m just making the music I want to make, and music that is a representation of who I am as a person,” he stated. I have my tale to share because I had quite different childhood experiences than my father.

SOURCE – (AP)