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Microsoft says it plans to release future Call of Duty titles on PlayStation

Microsoft has confirmed that it plans to continue developing Activision franchises for PlayStation platforms.

In a recent blog post focused on upcoming changes to its store likely tied to regulatory restrictions surrounding Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the tech giant cites Call of Duty as an example of a series that will be on PlayStation “beyond the existing agreement and into the future.”

“To be clear, Microsoft will continue to make Call of Duty and other popular Activision Blizzard titles available on PlayStation through the term of any existing agreement with Activision,” says Microsoft. “And we have committed to Sony that we will also make them available on PlayStation beyond the existing agreement and into the future so that Sony fans can continue to enjoy the games they love. We are also interested in taking similar steps to support Nintendo’s successful platform. We believe this is the right thing for the industry, for gamers and for our business.”

Phil Spencer, Microsoft’s head of all things Xbox, has previously stated that the company will honour existing publishing agreements, but this is the first definitive information we’ve seen regarding future plans. Previously, there was a widespread belief that the series would go exclusive to Xbox and PC following 2023. Rumours surrounding the Call of Duty series indicate that Modern Warfare 2 will release in 2022, while Call of Duty: Warzone 2 a new unknown Call of Duty title will drop in 2023.

Microsoft also mentions that it plans to continue supporting Nintendo hardware, and says that it won’t force PC users to purchase games through its own app stores.

“While change is not easy, we believe it’s possible to adapt to new rules and innovate successfully. And we believe it’s possible for governments to adopt new tech regulation that promotes competition while also protecting fundamental values like privacy and national and cyber security,” writes Microsoft.

The full blog post can be found here.

Image credit: Activision 

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Mobile Syrup

Ubisoft to release smaller, stealth-driven Assassin’s Creed in 2022 or 2023: report

Ubisoft is developing an Assassin’s Creed game that’s “smaller in scope” than the series’ recent entries, according to Bloomberg‘s Jason Schreier.

The game, codenamed “Rift,” is said to be a repurposed expansion to Ubisoft Montreal’s Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, which was originally released in 2020. The game will star standout Valhalla character Basim and won’t feature a massive open-world like Valhalla or 2018’s Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, according to Bloomberg. Instead, the game will reportedly focus on stealth gameplay and is set for release in late 2022 or early 2023. Specific platforms weren’t mentioned, but given that Valhalla is a cross-gen title, it seems likely that Rift will release on PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S alongside PC.

Rift is a separate project from codenamed “Assassin’s Creed Infinity,” a live service title that Ubisoft confirmed last year with scant details.

Eurogamer, which corroborated Bloomberg‘s report, provided a few additional details, noting that the game is set in Baghdad and will feature a setting similar in size to one of Valhalla‘s “smaller individual map regions.” Eurogamer adds that Rift is expected to explore Basim’s story prior to the events of Valhalla.

All told, these are notable changes for the series, which originally started as more stealth-driven before becoming more of an action-RPG in the vein of The Witcher 3. While reception to Valhalla was generally quite positive, a recurring criticism was that the game — which can take 60 hours for the main story alone — was quite bloated. Otherwise, the smaller Assassin’s Creed games came in the form of ‘2.5D’ titles in the Assassin’s Creed Chronicles subseries, which were released between 2015 and 2016.

The reason for this pivot, per Bloomberg, is for Ubisoft to fill out a “thin” release schedule. The publisher games lineup has taken a hit due to employee departures and major game delays. With respect to the former, various Ubisoft developers have been exiting the company over the company’s alleged toxic work culture at several studios, including Ubisoft Montreal and Ubisoft Toronto. While Ubisoft let go a number of accused individuals while promising to make cultural changes, employees have reported that little has actually improved since.

Image credit: Ubisoft

Source: Bloomberg, Eurogamer

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Mobile Syrup

Here’s every colour of Samsung Note 20 Ultra

Samsung has brought back the Galaxy Note form factor with the new Galaxy S22 Ultra, and if you want it in a fun colour, this is how.

Often Samsung will limit the best colour options to devices sold on its website. That means carriers and Best Buy will likely sell the phone in ‘Burgundy,’ ‘Phantom Black,’ ‘Phantom White’ and ‘Green.’

Samsung’s online exclusive colours are a more silver/grey-tinted ‘Graphite,’ a very distinctive ‘Sky Blue’ that seems to match the Samsung bespoke fridges, and finally a burnt ‘Red.’ Notably, all of these phones still feature black top/bottom rails so the colouring isn’t as cohesive as the ‘Burgundy’ and ‘Green’ variants.

They still look nice, but it seems like these are just the ‘Phantom Black’ phones with different coloured backplates and S Pens.

You can view all the colours below:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Source: Samsung.com

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Mobile Syrup

Parliamentary committee grills CRTC chair on meeting with Bell CEO, reversal of internet decision

Ian Scott told the parliamentary committee of industry and technology his meeting with Bell CEO Mirko Bibic in an Ottawa pub was by the rules.

The Canadian Radio-Television Commission (CRTC) chair spoke at the committee on February 8th on the ongoing work the organization is completing. In his remarks, Scott said the CRTC understands the growing concerns by both the government and citizens to support competition and the affordability of internet service providers.

But his comments didn’t escape him from being grilled on the CRTC’s decision to reverse a 2019 finding that internet rates were too high in Canada and needed to be lowered. The decision came after the CRTC completed a review that lasted three years.

The decision was put on hold on May 27th, 2o21

“Now, why did we reverse course? To put it simply, we got the initial decision wrong. We couldn’t move ahead with rates that we knew were erroneous,” Scott said.

Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith asked Scott how they got it so wrong. “How can we have confidence in your continued work if, after three years of a comprehensive review, you get it so completely wrong?”

Scott said costing processes are complex, and the CRTC made a decision that was believed to be correct. After getting appeals from some telecom companies, a “thorough analysis” was conducted and “additional information from all parties” was sought, Scott said, leading to the reversal.

Regarding his encounter with Bibic, Scott said all of his meetings are “pursuant to the rules.”

Scott addressed the meeting for the first time in a February 2nd article with the Toronto Star. He told the publication, “nothing inappropriate was done.”

Conservative MP Tracy Gray asked Scott if any individual or company was told about the reversal before it became public.

“No one gets advice, or advised, or communicated commission decisions in advance of their publications,” Scott said.

Since the article was published, the Competitive Network Operators of Canada (CNOC) filed an application with the CRTC asking Scott to rescue himself from decisions involving internet service competition until an appeal independent service provider TekSavvy filed with the Federal Court is heard.

CNOC’s application states the meeting his Bibic happened only one week after telecom companies, including Bell, filed an appeal against the CRTC’s 2019 decision.

Scott’s speech to the committee is available here.

Image source: CRTC (screenshot)

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Mobile Syrup

Samsung offers up to four years of major Android updates on new devices

Samsung has been improving its Android update support over the past couple of years. Though we typically get Samsung Android updates a bit slower in Canada when compared to the rest of the world, future updates will arrive globally.

Samsung says it’s offering four years of major Android updates on the Galaxy S22 and other recent device releases.

Four years of major Android updates is pretty great considering Google only offers three years of major updates and five years of security patches for the Pixel 6. Samsung is also providing five years of security patches to all Samsung smartphones as well.

Below are the Samsung devices that will receive four years of major Android updates:

  • Galaxy S22
  • Galaxy S22+
  • Galaxy S22 Ultra
  • Galaxy Tab S8
  • Galaxy Tab S8+
  • Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra
  • Galaxy S21
  • Galaxy S21+
  • Galaxy S21 Ultra
  • Galaxy S21 FE
  • Galaxy Z Fold 3
  • Galaxy Z Flip 3
  • Galaxy Watch 4
  • Galaxy Watch 4 Classic
  • Upcoming Galaxy A devices

9to5Google points out that Samsung says “up to” four years of major updates, which means it could potentially only give these phones three years of major updates. Hopefully, that’s not the case, though.

To learn more about the new Galaxy S21 series, check out our announcement posts.

Source: Samsung

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Mobile Syrup

Canadian carrier pricing, pre-order details for the Samsung Galaxy S22 series

Samsung unveiled its latest Galaxy S smartphones, the Galaxy S22, S22+, and S22 Ultra, at its Unpacked event on February 9th. Shortly after, Canadian carriers started revealing their pricing and pre-order details.

We’ve collected the pricing and pre-order information below so you can check out which carrier has the best offer on the S22 series. Some carriers haven’t released pricing yet, so keep in mind that some might be missing from the list below, but we’ll add them as information becomes available.

It’s also worth noting how much these phones cost outright from Samsung:

  • Samsung Galaxy S22: 8GB + 128GB — $1,099.99
  • Samsung Galaxy S22: 8GB + 256GB — $1,169.99
  • Samsung Galaxy S22+: 8GB + 128GB — $1,399.99
  • Samsung Galaxy S22+: 8GB + 256GB — $1,469.99
  • Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: 8GB + 128GB — $1,649.99
  • Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: 8GB + 256GB — $1,789.99
  • Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: 12GB + 512GB — $1,929.99
  • Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: 12GB + 1TB — $2,209.99 (Samsung exclusive)

You can learn more about Samsung’s S22 pricing here.

Telus

Telus revealed its pre-order details, including a special limited-time offer to “double the memory” of the S22 series. According to details on the carrier’s website, customers can get the 256GB S22 Ultra, S22+, or S22 for the same price as the 128GB version. Telus notes that the discount applies automatically. This offer ends on March 10th, 2022 and is only available with a two-year Telus ‘Easy Payment’ financing term.

  • Galaxy S22 Ultra starts at $0 upfront, $40.29/mo financing for 24 months with Bring-It-Back ($2,210 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22+ starts at $0 upfront, $37.42/mo financing for 24 months with Bring-It-Back ($1,815 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22 starts at $0 upfront, $29.42/mo financing for 24 months with Bring-It-Back ($1,445 retail price)

You can learn more about Telus’ Samsung Galaxy S22 pricing here.

Koodo

Telus’ flanker brand Koodo also has the Samsung S22 series available for pre-order, but without the same storage discount. It’s also worth noting that Koodo doesn’t offer financing plans like other carriers — instead, it uses a ‘Tab’ system that reduces the upfront cost of a device and then divides that up as a monthly Tab Charge that customers pay along with their monthly plan cost.

  • Galaxy S22 Ultra starts at $858 upfront on Tab Plus with a $33/mo Tab cost for 24 months ($2,040 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22+ starts at $608 upfront on Tab Plus with a $33/mo Tab cost for 24 months ($1,730 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22 starts at $308 upfront on Tab Plus with a $33/mo Tab cost for 24 months ($1,360 retail price)

Check out all of Koodo’s S22 series pricing here.

Freedom Mobile

Shaw-owned regional carrier Freedom also offers the double storage deal on the new Samsung Galaxy S22 series. That means Freedom customers can pick up a new S22 device with 256GB of storage for the same price as the 128GB version of the device. That’s a savings of up to $168, depending on which phone you get.

  • Galaxy S22 starts at $0 upfront, $28/mo MyTab for 24 months with a $50/mo plan on TradeUp ($1,296 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22+ starts at $0 upfront, $37/mo MyTab for 24 months with a $50/mo plan on TradeUp ($1,656 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22 Ultra starts at $0 upfront, $40/mo MyTab for 24 months with a $50/mo plan on TradeUp ($1,944 retail price)

Learn more about Freedom Mobile’s S22 series pricing here.

Shaw Mobile

Shaw’s Galaxy S22 series pricing is also live, although it’s worth noting that Shaw is a little different since its plans and prices rely on customers’ Shaw internet package. If you’re a Shaw internet customer, make sure to check out the carrier’s website to see what your package will get you.

Additionally, like the others, Shaw offers a limited-time discount on the 256GB S22 models that makes them the same cost as the 128GB models.

  • Galaxy S22 Ultra starts at $0 down, $72/mo MyTab for 24 months ($1,944 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22+ starts at $0 down, $60/mo MyTab for 24 months ($1,656 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22 starts at $0 down, $45/mo MyTab for 24 months ($1,296 retail price)

Check out all of Shaw Mobile’s S22 pricing here.

Rogers

Toronto-based national carrier Rogers also has the double storage offer, which appears as a discount applied to the 256GB S22 models that brings the price down to match the 128GB versions.

  • Galaxy S22 Ultra starts at $0 down, $53.83/mo financing (regular $77.21) with Upfront Edge ($2,211 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22+ starts at $0 down, $46.08/mo financing (regular $63.38) with Upfront Edge ($1,815 retail price)
  • Galaxy S22 starts at $0 down, $36.08/mo financing (regular $50.46) with Upfront Edge ($1,445 retail price)

You can check out Rogers’ S22 pricing here.

More to come…

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Mobile Syrup

Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story coming to Disney+ Canada in March

Disney has confirmed that last year’s West Side Story will hit Disney+ Canada on March 2nd.

This is the same day the film begins streaming in the U.S. on Disney+ and HBO Max.

The news comes one day after the musical romantic drama was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film is the second feature-length adaptation of the 1957 stage musical of the same name. West Side Story tells the story of fierce rivalries and young love in 1957 New York City.

The film stars Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez as Bernardo, Mike Faist and Rita Moreno.

It’s worth noting that Disney hasn’t yet confirmed if and when Guillermo Del Toro’s Toronto-shot Nightmare Alley — its second Fox-produced film up for Best Picture — is coming to Disney+ Canada. The neo-noir psychological thriller hit Hulu and HBO Max in the U.S. on January 31st.

Image credit: 20th Century Studios

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Mobile Syrup

Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story coming to Disney+ Canada in March

Disney has confirmed that last year’s West Side Story will hit Disney+ Canada on March 2nd.

This is the same day the film begins streaming in the U.S. on Disney+ and HBO Max.

The news comes one day after the musical romantic drama was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film is the second feature-length adaptation of the 1957 stage musical of the same name. West Side Story tells the story of fierce rivalries and young love in 1957 New York City.

The film stars Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez as Bernardo, Mike Faist and Rita Moreno.

It’s worth noting that Disney hasn’t yet confirmed if and when Guillermo Del Toro’s Toronto-shot Nightmare Alley — its second Fox-produced film up for Best Picture — is coming to Disney+ Canada. The neo-noir psychological thriller hit Hulu and HBO Max in the U.S. on January 31st.

Image credit: 20th Century Studios

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Mobile Syrup

Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story coming to Disney+ Canada in March

Disney has confirmed that last year’s West Side Story will hit Disney+ Canada on March 2nd.

This is the same day the film begins streaming in the U.S. on Disney+ and HBO Max.

The news comes one day after the musical romantic drama was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film is the second feature-length adaptation of the 1957 stage musical of the same name. West Side Story tells the story of fierce rivalries and young love in 1957 New York City.

The film stars Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez as Bernardo, Mike Faist and Rita Moreno.

It’s worth noting that Disney hasn’t yet confirmed if and when Guillermo Del Toro’s Toronto-shot Nightmare Alley — its second Fox-produced film up for Best Picture — is coming to Disney+ Canada. The neo-noir psychological thriller hit Hulu and HBO Max in the U.S. on January 31st.

Image credit: 20th Century Studios

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Mobile Syrup

Samsung pokes fun at Apple with Netflix’s Bridgerton

Today Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S22 series, but unlike in previous years, the company partnered with Netflix to unveil its new phones. Queen Charlotte (played by Golda Rosheuvel), from the Shondaland and Netflix series Bridgerton, is holding the season’s inventor’s ball at the Palace.

The first invention showed off was a raincoat presented by Lord Macintosh, which Queen Charlotte quickly dismissed. While this is just a brief scene before Tristar revealed the Galaxy S22, if you read between the lines, this is clearly shade being thrown at Apple. In case you weren’t aware, before 1998, Apple’s computers were called Macintosh computers, which is definitely a throwback.

The trailer continues by showing off the S22 and S22+, with the queen being interested in the handset’s camera sensors.

The video ends with Queen Charlotte asking Lord Tristar when the phone will be ready, and he reveals that the phone won’t be available for 209 years. This means that you won’t be seeing the Galaxy S22 or S22+ on the second season of Bridgerton.

Check out our announcement post if you want to learn more about Samsung’s Galaxy S22 series. 

Source: Samsung