Doctor Who fans have been left disappointed after showrunner Russell T Davies shared an artificially generated clip of William Hartnell.

The video was created by an Instagram user who exclusively shares AI-generated clips of themselves supposedly travelling back in time, to such events as Partygate and Princess Diana’s wedding day.

A recent clip saw him claim to be on the 1963 set of the first episode of Doctor Who – although several social media users have pointed out huge anachronisms in the video. 

In it, Hartnell’s artificially reanimated figure can be seen in the background, speaking with a crew member and standing in front of the Tardis. 

In voiceover, the creator claimed the first Tardis was made of cardboard (it was built with wood) and questioned what Hartnell might have discussed with the crew in between takes, when the episode was filmed as if it were live, for minimal editing.

In the comments section of the post, John Barrowman described it as ‘brilliant’ and Davies also wrote ‘amazing!’, which he reiterated when he shared the Instagram reel to his story. 

The decision to promote AI slop has disappointed several fans online, with Matthew Purchase sharing the post on X with the caption: ‘Oh god. RTD likes AI slop.’ The post has been viewed over 200,000 times.

Sammy wrote on X: ‘The Tardis prop didn’t look like that, all the sets are wrong. Literal slop and I don’t know why RTD would post that.’

Meanwhile, Josh Snares similarly commiserates over the lack of accuracy, while Romana said it proved Davies needs to step back from the show.

‘I think above else it just proves he is out of touch and that we need new blood in the writers’ room. The same 3 people can’t write Doctor Who forever if it’s going to continue and continue successfully,’ she wrote. 

Matt simply wrote: ‘Russell T Davies has just lost it hasn’t he really.’

Zee was another disappointed fan online, writing: ‘Why use this slop when the show has successfully recast late actors and had old Doctors reappear without de-ageing effects? This show only exists today because of the love and care humans put into creating it.’

While some Whovians believed the furore was making a mountain out of a molehill, others framed the promotion of AI as a ‘moral issue’ given the threats it poses to the entertainment industry and those working on shows like Who.

Davies subsequently appeared to remove the post from his Story, but he still follows the account posting this AI-generated content and has not deleted his comment.

Other fans dug up a years-old interview of Davies, alongside Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson, in which he suggested Who could one day ‘re-create’ the past Doctors with CGI. 

The reception from the actors beside him was noticeably muted as he told Variety: ‘Wouldn’t that be amazing? A CGI William Hartnell as the very first Doctor in 1963.

‘Imagine that. It would be amazing. One day we can do anything.’ 

Metro contacted Bad Wolf for comment on this story.

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Claudia Winkleman was left red-faced during a radio appearance today, after she inadvertently swore in front of a schoolboy.

The host of The Traitors was on Heart Breakfast ahead of her chat show’s return to BBC One this evening for its second ever episode.

Sitting in the studio on Friday with Amanda Holden and Jamie Theakston, Winkleman was first interviewed by school pupil Finley, who was tuning in remotely.

But, as a clip from the studio showed, Winkleman didn’t quite realise that Finley was still on the call after the interview had ended.

Theakston teased Winkleman would still be on the show after a break, to which the former Strictly Come Dancing host said: ‘Oh no.’

As Britain’s Got Talent judge Holden assured there would be more chat to come, Winkleman replied: ‘F*** sake.’

Almost immediately, her face turned to a picture of shock as she saw that Finley was still listening in. Next to her, Holden started to howl with laughter – if anything, watch the clip for her priceless reaction.

The apologies came thick and fast from Winkleman, as she said: ‘Finley do not be me, ever,’ but he seemed to take it all in his stride, laughing along.

Holden then joked: ‘I bet mummy swears, as Winkleman topped up her apologies to the school pupil.

This evening’s instalment of The Claudia Winkleman Show will see the presenter joined by comedian Joanne McNally, as well as actor Guz Khan, ahead of his new Amazon Prime series Bait, which he stars in alongside Riz Ahmed. 

Also on the star-studded sofa will be former One Direction member Niall Horan, to discuss his new album.

Rounding out the sofa is Olivier Award nominee Rachel Zegler, off the back of her hugely popular run as the lead in Evita on the West End.

The premiere BBC episode was met with a mixed reception, including a three-star review in the pages of the Metro, which said Winkleman needed to do a better job at ‘keeping the show on the rails’.

BBC viewers at home had a similar take, with many agreeing that Tom Allen had acted as more of a host than Winkleman did herself.

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The Friday letters page is surprised GTA 6 no longer has the most watched trailer record, as one reader laments the death of Red Storm Entertainment.

Games Inbox is a collection of our readers’ letters, comments, and opinions. To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@metro.co.uk

Crimson letter day
Can’t say I’m surprised at the negative Crimson Desert reviews. Although I guess I should call them ‘mixed’ which seems to be what we’re supposed to say when all the trustworthy sites mark it down and the ones you’ve never heard of give it 9/10.

The graphics do look good, and I can’t pretend I wasn’t swayed by them when I was watching the trailers, but I’m very suspicious of any game that’s claiming to be the next big thing, and it’s made by a developer with very little experience in the genre.

When you know they’ve only ever made an MMO before the whole game seems like exactly what you’d expect from that. Its Metacritic score is lower than some people seem to have expected, so I think it’s clear it’s not a great game, but from what I’ve read the score isn’t low enough.

I also have a really bad feeling about the console versions. The fact that there’s not a single review of the PlayStation 5 version is giving me Cyberpunk 2077 vibes and that’s not going to be a pretty sight.
Hammeriron

Not awful
Can anyone explain to me why anyone thought Crimson Desert was going to be amazing? I’m going to assume it was nonsense whipped up by streamers and YouTube, since as I write this it’s doing really well on Twitch, but why? Surely they haven’t run out of things to talk about or were they just doing advertising for the company?

It may seem harmless but they’re talking people into paying £50+ for a game that doesn’t sound like it’s any good. And we haven’t even seen what it looks like when it runs on consoles, so I can’t wait for that obvious disaster to be revealed.

Of course, the second stage will be people who were tricked into buying it pretending to everyone else that it’s actually really good or ‘not that bad’. I don’t know about you I demand a bit more than that for my entertainment.
Lee Perrin

Losing the crown
Interesting that GTA 6 had its trailer record broken by what I would’ve thought was a relatively ordinary new Marvel movie. I’m sure it will do well, but it won’t do as much as the last Spider-Man film (because it was a crossover) and I doubt it’s going to be a cultural moment like Avengers: End Game or something like The Force Awakens. GTA 6 is absolutely on par with those sort of things though, so I’m surprise it’s not still number one.

I guess population growth alone will mean the number always goes up but with cinema attendances down… it’s just not something I would’ve betted on. I’m not going to say something daft like GTA 6 isn’t going to do well but this is the first sign we’ve had that it does have its limits. But to be fair that surprisingly sensible Take-Two boss does seem to realise that.
Dustin

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Beyond monsters
Been playing Pokemon Pokopia since launch. My, that game is a compulsive one, right?

Anyway, got me thinking, when is a pocket monster not a pocket monster and it’s just an animal? When a bird can fly and dart about quickly, isn’t it just a bird? No room for you in my pocket, pigeon! And if a squirrel doesn’t have a flaming tail or the ability to bend spoons with its mind then isn’t that just a fluffy rodent?! Kicked from the team ya furry rat!

Is there a discernible difference, or was Ash just going around enslaving wildlife for 25 years?
big boy bent
Currently playing: Pokopia and Thank Goodness You’re Here!, was chuckling away as I mowed the park with the daisies because I knew what was coming… I love you… I love you… I love you…. ha ha ha! Looking forward to more.

GC: Pokémon are fully sapient, unlike ordinary animals. No more so than in Pokopia, where they communicate with each other like a human would and perform complex tasks.

BSAA Dispatch
I hope Leon and Ada have hooked up, I think that would be neat. I think other than Barry Burton none of the other characters are confirmed to have a partner of any kind? I love Resident Evil and I would very much support a game that was not a survival horror. Something that was more comedic, sure, but also something that was more dramatic, with time for everyone to sit around and chat.

I don’t even know if half of these people have even met each other. Does Leon know Jill? Does Claire know anyone that isn’t Chris? Why has Sheva never come back and do they keep in touch?

I’m imagining some kind of visual novel/point ‘n’ click thing. Maybe something like Dispatch, where action is happening but it’s all about how the people are behind the scenes, I think that’d be a great idea.
Lobbie

La fin
Very sad to hear about the death of Red Storm Entertainment. I used to love the early Rainbow Six games, back when they were primarily tactical games, with action only as a minor aspect. Those days are obviously long gone but then so too is the whole franchise. Splinter Cell and Ghost Recon are both dead, and so is all the experimental stuff like EndWar and H.A.W.X.

Rainbow Six itself is essentially dead, with Siege being all that’s left of it, and it has nothing in common with the old games. The only other thing is The Division, which I would’ve sworn is also dead but apparently has a third game on the way, but either way it’s just another live service game.
As an adult, I have to admit I do look on the games in a different light.

They’re very right wing (as Tom Clancy was himself, even if he wasn’t a nut about it) and the whole gun fetish thing is kind of distasteful in the current age. As was said, it’s completely different to what Ubisoft used to be about and in that sense I’m not as sad to see the end of it all.

Let’s face it, if they were to bring these franchises back it’d be in name only, like Ghost Recon Wildlands, so what’s the point? I wouldn’t have shut down Red Storm but I would’ve had them making something that was a bit more political nuanced and not so much trying to appeal only to Americans.

I don’t have much faith that Ubisoft can make it through the next few years but if they do I hope they can get back some of what made them interesting in the early 2000s. Military games are fine, but they have to make them more than just shooting galleries. They need a more European perspective, not an American one.
Claborn

Petition for a petition
Can confirm that boost mode on the Switch 2 is really good. It’s the only thing that’s got me off Pokémon Pokopia (for a while) and while it is a shame that not all games are affected equally, I do think it’s a good start.

I would definitely sign the petition for a Switch 2 edition of Astral Chain, but I realise that’s never going to happen. I would love to hear of a sequel though, because I thought the original did better than expected. PlatinumGames seemed like they were in trouble for a while there but Ninja Gaiden 4 reviewed well, so hopefully they’ve still got the juice.
Luminous

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Cheap graphics
I found the DLSS 5-ified images revealed the other day a bit off putting to be honest.

While clearly a lot better in the amount of detail over the original images I do think they all were overly bright and had that artificial, unnatural feel you see with a lot of AI.

While not AI, the first thing that sprang to my mind was the awful, garish, pimped up remaster of Halo: Combat Evolved. I’ve played the game several times since and always use the original graphics, just at a higher resolution, as I think they look much better and atmospheric than the technically better, more detailed, retina burning newer graphics.

I’m sure DLSS 5 and its implementation will improve though and look more natural. It’ll probably be useful for a lot of smaller devs to punch above their weight in the graphics department.

I quite like that Take-Two guy but GTA 5 is generally considered the highest grossing entertainment product ever, with something like $10 billion in revenue. He’s got a bit more resources at his disposal than nearly everyone else.
Simundo

GC: That doesn’t seem like a good reason to put up with AI slop. Many lower budget and indie titles are visually impressive already, the idea of losing that in favour of a generic AI look is an awful thought.

Inbox also-rans
Why would Sony change the name of PlayStation Network? PSN is a perfectly good acronym and unlike most Xbox names it means what is. I’ll put it another way: I’m jealous of how many millions of dollars some marketing consultant charged to change it to PlayStation Online, or whatever it’ll be.
Cinder9

I am also very keen to know what Persona 6 is like. I’d be going through the roof now, annoyed at the lack of news, but I remember it was exactly like this waiting for Persona 5. That was worth it so hopefully this will be too.
Tater

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Jeremy Clarkson has secured a planning permission win for his Farmer’s Dog car park following a desperate fight to save profits.

The Clarkson’s Farm star, 65, opened his Oxfordshire pub and restaurant in 2024, instantly attracting floods of visitors.

Its popularity has remained steady since, but Clarkson has also encountered obstacles along the way, which he’s made no secret of.

As customers have continued flocking to the boozer, he’s had no option but to rent out a neighbouring farmer’s field, which has served as an overflow car park for the hundreds of vehicles pulling up each day.

Clarkson then applied to West Oxfordshire District Council for retrospective planning permission, seeking for the overflow car park – which can hold 360 cars – to remain for at least a few years.

Being granted planning permission would prevent gridlock on the surrounding country lanes, it was argued, and the council seemingly agreed.

Clarkson has now won his battle, The Sun reports, and he can freely use the space as an overflow car park until December 31, 2029.

‘Having previously engaged in discussions about the car park and the barrow, we are pleased to see that an application has now been submitted,’ said Historic England.

Initially, Clarkson faced resistance from conservationists, who expressed concerns that repurposing the field as a car park could impact a 1,400-year-old burial ground called the Asthall Barrow nearby.

Clarkson installed one-inch-thick aluminium sheets over a 10,000-square-foot area in response, creating a hard surface on the ground to protect it.

This, in itself, brought unforeseen troubles, though, with a woman taking legal action after slipping and falling on the ‘razor sharp’ surface, cutting into her hand, which underwent reconstruction after metal fragments had to be removed.

Despite writing to Clarkson’s pub to highlight the health and safety risks of the car park and filling in his accident book, Elizabeth, from Scunthorpe, did not receive a reply.

Consequently, the temporary metal sheets have remained on the car park’s surface, but, despite planning permission being granted, work cannot begin on the ground until a ‘detailed’ water drainage scheme has been submitted and approved over the next few months.

Still, Historic England adds: ‘This is a positive step in finalising discussions around parking for the pub.’

Clarkson’s own planning team said: ‘The Farmer’s Dog started trading just over a year ago and has proven to be very popular. 

‘There is parking on site, but in order to deal with the level of demand, alternative arrangements were made to ensure the safe movement of vehicles and people to and from the site.’

Previously called The Windmill, the pub was bought by Clarkson for £1million in 2023, and he soon got to work on its renovations and expansion.

He proudly sells and serves products from his Diddly Squat farm – which also features in his Amazon Prime series – and has been making headlines for an array of reasons… usually controversial ones, such as £7 pints, punters’ disgusting toilet habits, and his views on banning those with food intolerances completely.

Upon its opening, Clarkson did actually ban his former Grand Tour colleague James May from the pub. While that’s likely a joke between the friends of 20 years, Clarkson definitely meant it when he prohibited the prime minister from entering the establishment.

Sir Keir Starmer sits atop the banned list, in fact, with the ex-Top Gear host long having been vocal about his disdain for the Labour leader.

‘He’s banned. He’s the first person on the board in the hall to be banned,’ Clarkson once said in an interview, adding: ‘He hasn’t done much to endear himself to me yet.’

In contrast, Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has been invited with open arms – while all Labour MPs except Markus Campbell-Savours are not allowed in for a pint.

Clarkson isn’t backwards in coming forward when it comes to the hospitality industry and his battle to maintain profits.

Writing for The Times in December 2024, he said he has experienced ‘extraordinary’ amounts of theft when people ‘come in for a pint [and think they are] entitled to go home with the glass in which it was served’, leading to financial losses, which sit alongside the expensive costs of outdoor heating, fuel, and traffic marshals.

‘The customers are coming. There’s no problem there. But turning their visits into a profit is nigh-on impossible.’

Clarkson is also fearful that pubs as a whole are at risk, with latest stats suggesting one closes every day.

The broadcaster believes the fact that Gen Z aren’t going out drinking as much contributes to the losses, saying previously that ‘the fact is that three breweries are closing every week, along with eight pubs, and all those 28-year-olds who believe they survive on water alone aren’t exactly helping.’

He’s admitted to going home at the end of the day ‘absolutely knackered’, telling BBC that he’ll spend all day ‘dealing with hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of problems’.

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Developers at Capcom and Ubisoft were apparently unaware of the company’s support of Nvidia’s DLSS 5, as the AI upscaler controversy continues.

Nvidia’s new DLSS 5 technology, which uses generative AI to alter a game’s visuals, has become a new focal point in the conversation around generative AI.

After the technology was showcased earlier this week, many fans and developers have criticised it for how it alters character’s faces to the point of being almost unrecongisable and changes the lighting to make it less realistic – based on comparison shots using Resident Evil Requiem, Starfield, and others.

Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang has been bullish about the criticism, calling it ‘completely wrong’ and insisting that it ‘doesn’t change the artistic control’. However, the latest report suggest that developers at Capcom and Ubisoft had no idea about the technology until it was unveiled to the public.

As noted in the original blog post, the announcement of DLSS 5 was supported by several companies, including Bethesda, Capcom, Hotta Studio, NetEase, NCSOFT, S-Game, Tencent, Ubisoft, and Warner Bros. Games.

According to Insider Gaming, DLSS 5 was revealed to developers at Capcom and Ubisoft at the same time as everyone else. ‘We found out at the same time as the public,’ one unnamed Ubisoft developer told the outlet.

It’s claimed developers at Capcom were particularly shocked by the studio’s involvement, as they had historically been very ‘anti-AI’ with projects like Resident Evil Requiem. Now, some fear this might represent a change in attitude among higher-ups.

In the original announcement, Capcom’s executive producer and corporate officer, Jun Takeuchi, described DLSS 5 as ‘another important step in pushing visual fidelity forward, helping players become even more immersed in the world of Resident Evil.’

Additionally, Charlie Guillemot, co-CEO of new Ubisoft subsidiary Vantage Studios, said: ‘Immersion is about making the world feel real. DLSS 5 is a real step towards that goal. The way it renders lighting, materials, and characters changes what we can promise to players.

‘On Assassin’s Creed Shadows, it’s letting us build the kind of worlds we’ve always wanted to.’

While Nvidia clearly got support from executives, it’s not going to help their position if the actual teams within Capcom and Ubisoft – whose work DLSS 5 directly affects – were not consulted beforehand.

GameCentral has reached out to Ubisoft and Capcom for comment.

It seems as if the backlash against DLSS 5 has come as a surprise to many within the industry. After posting positive impressions about the technology earlier in the week, Digital Foundry founder Richard Leadbetter has since said in a new video that they ‘don’t think we did a good enough job on the day’, saying they should have ‘taken more time with the material’ before posting the video.

The blowback they received even led to death threats against the team, which Leadbetter described as ‘crossing the line’ and ‘totally unacceptable’.

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Londoners have become well versed to the dulcet tones of announcers reminding them to ‘mind the gap’, but now some will be hearing a Hollywood star also giving them some advice on their commute.

Today and tomorrow, acting legend Morgan Freeman, 88, will become the new voice of Baker Street Station.

Following his starring role in the Warburtons ad 150 years in the Baking last month, he’s now swapped narrating films to voicing the Tannoy system at the London Underground station. 

Those taking the tube will hear the star – known as having the ‘voice of God’ – mix up the familiar tube announcements.

Adding some American charm to the daily commute, Freeman will be voicing a ‘fresh batch of playful, bakery-themed twists’ on the familiar Tube announcements on the northbound Jubilee line platform at Baker Street.

Instead of ‘mind the gap,’ passengers will be asked to ‘mind the bap’ and reminded to ‘stand behind the buttery yellow line’.

To celebrate the humble crumpet – one of Warburton’s signature products – the traditional ‘roundel’ signage along the platform will also be transformed into giant crumpets. Selected signage on the platform will also be changed to ‘Bakers Street’. 

The tube takeover is part of the baking firm’s 150-year celebration, in which the underground station in central London will briefly be known as ‘Bakers Street Station’.

Ahead of the takeover, Warburtons chairman Jonathan Warburton said: ‘At Warburtons, we have a classic Northern sense of humour, and we wanted to share a bit of that fun with Londoners on their daily commute and hopefully raise a few smiles.

‘As you can probably tell, we also love a good bread pun, so Baker Street was a match made in heaven, and hearing a voice as legendary as Morgan Freeman’s booming to travellers on the platform is certainly a recipe for a memorable day!’

Last month Freeman questioned what a crumpet was in a Warburton’s ad before telling the story of the business, which was founded in 1876 in Bolton.

Promoting his appearance in the ad, Freeman said: ‘Lending my voice to chronicle 150 years of this family’s unwavering dedication to the simple, yet profound, act of baking…well, that’s a narrative that truly deserves to be heard.

‘Their commitment to quality baking, passed down through generations, shines through, making it abundantly clear why they’ve remained a beloved household name for so long.

‘I confess, I found myself quite taken by that crumpet – 300 holes, I told you these Warburtons were crazy.’

At the time Warburton also said the campaign represented the brand’s commitment to ‘baking delicious bread for British families’.

‘When it came to telling the story of our relentless passion for baking, who else could we possibly ask but the world’s most recognisable storyteller and the voice of God himself, Morgan Freeman,’ he shared.

The chairman went on to say Freeman brought a ‘epic and memorable scale to our history’.

Aside from working with Warburtons, the actor recently also narrated the new Netflix series The Dinosaurs, which examines dinosaurs 165 million years on Earth and the forces that shaped their evolution.

Executive produced by Steven Spielberg, the four-part series was released two weeks ago and has since become one of the most-watched series’ around the world.

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The Wednesday letters page agrees with the backlash against Nvidia’s DLSS 5 tech, as one reader wonders why Öoo was never in the UK Indie World.

Games Inbox is a collection of our readers’ letters, comments, and opinions. To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@metro.co.uk

No star review
So the inevitable has finally happened and Starfield is coming to PlayStation 5 (but not Switch 2, for some reason, I noticed). As someone that has played the game on PC I would say now that it is not something to get excited about. I have no idea what the new story DLC will be but the problems with the game are so deep it’s literally impossible for it to fix it.

I really resent that game. It tied up Bethesda for years and is going to lead to something like a 20 year gap between Skyrim and The Elder Scrolls 6. 20 years! And the only other proper game they’ve made since then is Fallout 4. People talk about Sony wasting a generation, but Bethesda has wasted two. Skyrim was an Xbox 360 game, for pity’s sake!

The worst thing is that thanks to Skyrim I have little faith in The Elder Scrolls 6 being worth the wait. Starfield has a shopping list of problems but one of the main ones is that it’s so old-fashioned. The dialogue system, the AI for companions, and the way towns work is almost exactly the same as Skyrim.

And then the one thing you’d want to be the same as Skyrim – the exploration and open world design – is completely missing. Instead of getting an amazing open world with a secret around every corner you get an infinite collection of identikit, randomly generated planets that are about as interesting to explore as Milton Keynes on a Sunday. So no, I would not recommend Starfield to any PlayStation owners.
Korbie

Consumer backlash
GC always says the best way to stay positive about the games industry is to just go away and play some new games. That’s true but the other thing that gives me hope is how the majority of gamers are anti-AI, much more than you would expect of a hobby where technology is so important.

This Nvidia DLSS 5 tech is horrendous and emphasises the fact that AI is attempting the death of art. As if it wasn’t bad enough that all AI artwork looks the same, and it is everywhere because it’s so easy to make, now games have to look like it as well. The levels of uncanny valley are off the scale, while there’s no consistency of any kind (Grace doesn’t look anything like herself in AI-o-vision) and the lighting is terrible – like the game is constantly shining a high-powered spotlight at the screen.

As usual with AI, it’s all a solution to a problem that doesn’t actually exist and as usual I imagine Nvidia and other companies will respond to the intense, and very clear, negative reaction by… doubling down on it all and blaming gamers for not liking it. I don’t know about PlayStation 6 but it is very obvious that the next gen Xbox is going to do nonsense like this and I’m already sick of it.
Zeiss

Ugly future
That Nvidia DLSS 5 stuff is so ugly, I can’t believe anyone involved thought it was a good idea. Do they not have eyes? Digital Foundry is getting so much grief for being positive about it and I can’t say they don’t deserve it.

What makes me laugh about all the comparison images is that the only game that looks halfway decent is Starfield, and that’s because it already had a bland art style with dead-eyed characters, so adding an AI filter of exactly that didn’t make it any worse.

The Resident Evil Requiem shots are laughable though and the idea of video game graphics no longer being what the developer intended but some on-the-fly guessing game made up by the AI is disgusting to me. The future sucks.
Focus

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Secret mode
I love seeing the difference between how other companies show off their new products and updates and what Nintendo does. We get a big blog post and lots of details from Sony about their PSSR tech. Then we get some kind of preview blow-out from Nvidia about their AI thing, which seems to have blown up in their face. And then for Nintendo and their boost mode… they keep it a secret and don’t tell anyone.

I only found out about it from the news reports but giving it a quick twirl it does actually seem quite good. You can definitely see the difference it makes and that’s pretty rare in these instances, in my experience.

Now all we need is an annoucement for that ‘proper’ Nintendo Direct we’re all waiting for. Which could take place anywhere from tomorrow to December. Because it’s Nintendo and who knows what they’re ever thinking.
St1nger

Improved formula
Am I missing something? All Resident Evil bosses are just run around, pop off a few shots, rinse and repeat. Not played Requiem yet but I can’t imagine it’s much different. Not that this is a bad thing but it is part of the formula.

I’m saying this as a massive fan too, but I love the games as an overall experience, in spite of the boss fights usually.
Bobwallett

GC: You are missing that… maybe that part of the formula should be changed?

Spore reproduction
I was thinking of old games that never got a sequel or modern day equivalent and I remembered Spore, which at the time it came out I was kind of obsessed with. For those that don’t know it was by the creator of SimCity and The Sims, so it was a big deal at the time, and was about controlling a species from microscopic organisms to space-faring aliens.

That sounded great in theory but in reality it was just half a dozen minigames that weren’t that great. However, the creature designer was amazing and I had hours and hours of fun creating my own creatures and messing around the editor. It was the only thing at the time better than the WWE creator-a-wrestler.

I think it was a flop, so there was no sequel at the time and to be honest I haven’t heard anyone talk about it in years. I do feel it’s the sort of thing that could do very well today with an update though, as, to me at least, it was basically the Minecraft of its day in terms of you ignoring what the game was actually about and making your own stuff.

One of the big ideas was that the things you designed in the earlier eras carried through to the later ones but that wasn’t really very obvious when you played so I would focus more on that and making it more one game with the same controls rather than a bunch of separate ones. Civilization takes place over thousands of years but it’s still the same game, so something like that.

It couldn’t be an official sequel though, because it was by EA and I don’t see any chance they’d approve anything like that.
Sandlow

Nothing like it
Thanks for the review of Öoo. I had never heard of this game until now and I don’t understand why it wasn’t in the UK Indie World. Surely the whole point of them is to highlight games just like this?

Given the low price I have bought it already and look forward to playing it tonight. I love seeing how unusual and imaginative indie games can be, compared to big budget games. Don’t get me wrong, I love myself a blockbuster, if it’s well done, but even something like Resident Evil Requiem is getting criticised for being original. That doesn’t seem to be a problem for Öoo.
Royston

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Prehistoric gaming
RE: Grackle and Mickah. Having just turned 50, and been around games since I can remember, I have some very old gaming first memories. I think the very earliest one would have been Escape for the ZX Spectrum – a simple maze game where you had to find a key to ‘escape’, avoiding dinosaurs as you ran around the map.

I also remember playing Gorf in the arcades around the same time, whilst on a family holiday to Swanage, and being amazed when my brother told me it was the word frog spelled backwards! (Well, I was only six at the time.)

I’ll try and find the time to turn this into a Reader’s Feature as I’m pretty sure I can remember the first game I played on many formats, including Spike on the Vectrex, Shadow Of The Beast on the Amiga, Pac-Land on the Commodore 64, and Cuthbert Goes Walkabout on the Dragon 32.

Good memories, good times.
Jonathan Foley
Currently playing: Horace (Switch) and Virtual Boy (Switch 2)

GC: We look forward to that Reader’s Feature.

Inbox also-rans
So this Clunkin’ Bell restaurant hasn’t even opened yet? We’re getting leaks and rumours about GTA knock-off restaurants but nothing about the actual game? That about says it all.
Mentz

I’m sorry but if DLSS 5 or anything like it is part of the PlayStation 6 then that’s it for me as far as gaming is concerned. These artless, cynical tech bros trying to destroy art, just because they can’t make it, is revolting to me.
Devo

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MORE: Games Inbox: Is Requiem the best Resident Evil game?

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MORE: Games Inbox: Who will win out of PS6 vs. Project Helix?

Simon Cowell and his wife, Lauren Silverman, have made a big decision in raising their son, Eric.

The Britain’s Got Talent judge, 66, and his 48-year-old entrepreneur partner welcomed Eric in 2012, naming him after Simon’s father.

While he’s no stranger to the public eye, having appeared on TV alongside his lookalike dad numerous times, Simon and Lauren have now decided that he can have his own phone – but under strict conditions.

The media mogul and his wife have backtracked on their smartphone ban for their boy after an ‘honest conversation’ that made them reevaluate their rules.

Taking to Instagram, Lauren explained: ‘For a long time Simon and I were very firm about one thing, no phone for Eric. (Simon himself hasn’t had a phone for nearly 8 years!)

‘But recently Eric had a very honest conversation with us about it that made us rethink our position slightly.’

‘He now has a phone with some very clear boundaries,’ she added, explaining the rules he must adhere to. ‘The main one being, no social media. Just texting and calling friends and family.’

‘Parenting in the current world we are living in can sometimes feel overwhelming but swipe through to see the approach we are trying in our house for now,’ Lauren added in her carousel of pictures, going on to reveal that she ‘changed [her] mind’ since texting is very different to using socials platforms.

‘Whether we like it or not, texting has become a part of childhood,’ she stated. ‘Plans are made there. Jokes are shared there. Friendships often happen there and at some point kids start feeling like they are the only one not in the conversation.’

For a ‘long time’, she was ‘very clear’ that her son was not to have a phone, but discovered that their son had been secretly messaging friends on Snapchat using hers, leading to them reaching an understanding.

‘That moment really made me stop and think about what the right approach should be,’ Lauren reflected.

‘Instead of turning it into a battle, we talked. What he told me was actually very simple. He didn’t care about social media. He just wanted to be able to text and call his friends.’

Lauren – who noted phones aren’t allowed in Eric’s bedroom, at the dinner table, or during family time – explained the logic behind the ‘boundary’, writing that the ‘pressure, comparison, [and] toxicity’ of social media are things she’s more than happy to ‘wait for’.

As Lauren mentioned, Simon hasn’t had a phone of his own for eight years, despite being one of the most in-demand figures in British showbiz.

The former X Factor judge previously revealed how his decision was made for his own ‘mental health’.

He told the Mail on Sunday newspaper: ‘The difference it made was that I became more aware of the people around me and way more focused.

‘The thing I get irritated with is when you have a meeting, everyone’s on their phone – and I was probably in that place too. You can’t concentrate.

‘It has been so good for my mental health. It’s a very strange experience, but it really is good for you, and it has absolutely made me happier.’

Simon, whose dating history is well documented, his exes including Sinitta and Terri Seymour, began dating Lauren in 2013.

At the time, Lauren and her now-ex husband, Simon’s friend, Andrew Silverman, were going through a divorce, which turned messy when he accused her of cheating with Simon.

Proceedings were ultimately settled outside of court, avoiding Simon being called as a witness and protecting the well-being of Lauren and Andrew’s son.

Simon subsequently confirmed Lauren’s pregnancy, and Eric arrived on Valentine’s Day in 2014.

He and Lauren got engaged in Barbados in 2021, despite his long vocal reluctance about getting married.

Fiancée Lauren then sparked rumours they had quietly tied the knot when she launched a new Instagram account using his surname.

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Riley Green was left bleeding after a disgruntled fan threw a phone at him onstage. 

In a video posted to social media, the country star was caught off guard while performing at Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne, Australia, when a phone was suddenly thrown from the crowd, clipping the musician in the ear. 

A shocked Green paused the show and asked his crew to turn the house lights on in an effort to identify the thrower. With the help of the crowd, Green pointed to the fan and threw him out of the show.

“This one right here? Get his fat a– out of here. Go on,” Green said.

After the fan was escorted out the arena, Green — who wasn’t aware of his injury — thanked his fans for their support. 

“I’d like to take a moment while I’ve got everybody’s attention to thank each and every one of you for coming out tonight.,” he said. “Hang on, am I bleeding? Y’all see how tough I am? Thank God he didn’t have an iPhone 12, that would have really hurt.”

After the show, Green gave his fans an update on social media. 

“5 stitches later… sewed up,” he wrote on his Instagram Stories, accompanied by a photo of the injury. 

Earlier this month, Green spoke with Fox News Digital about why he prefers his life in Alabama over furthering his career in Tennessee. 

“I feel like I’ve got every reason in the world to move to Nashville, and it’s just never crossed my mind. I love my farm in Alabama, and it’s the place I draw all my inspiration for songs from,” he said.

Green added, “Life moves a lot slower down there.”

“When I get a day off, and I’m on my farm, I do as little as possible,” Green said. “But, [I] definitely get on the tractor and do a little bit of clearing and – I got my pops out there helping me work on the farm. I got a lot of animals and dogs and we just kind of take it easy.”

Green is making his acting debut in the Luke Grimes-led “Yellowstone” spinoff, “Marshals.”

Speaking to Fox News Digital at the premiere, Green said his nerves were wrecked stepping on set for the first time, and it doesn’t compare to going on stage.

“Oh, much more nerve-wracking. I don’t get nervous going on stage anymore. I’ve played enough shows now it kind of comes naturally, but this was a completely different world, and it’s not my set, it’s not my stage. I’m kind of the new guy in that bunch, so it was definitely a nerve-wracking thing,” he said.