#like his defining traits are: be the smart guy that solves riddles and be in love with Nina.

[thechosenanubis]

unpopular opinion: in s1 Fabian is an underdeveloped character.

[enterinit]

New Xbox One Games for May 12 to 15

New Xbox One Games for May 12 to 15.

Huntdown – May 12

Crime doesn’t pay – Unless you’re a bounty hunter! In the mayhem-filled streets of the future where criminal gangs rule and cops fear to tread, only the bounty hunters can free the city from the corrupt fist of felony. Lay waste to the criminal underworld and make a killing in this hard boiled action comedy arcade shooter. Key Features: Hunt solo or give suppressive fire and advance on the enemy together in co-op as you run, jump, and take cover in the neon soaked, graffiti strewn 80s inspired cityscapes. Hand painted 16-bit pixel art graphics and hand-drawn animations combined with fluid action-packed 60-FPS gameplay and an epic synthesized soundtrack. Huntdown everything from feral punks to organised hockey hooligans, this game is riddled with 16-bit bad guys and crime bosses, each with their own stomping ground to reclaim, and arsenal of weapons to confiscate.

Deep Rock Galactic 1.0 – May 13

Deep Rock Galactic is a co-op-first sci-fi FPS featuring badass space Dwarves, 100% destructible environments, procedurally-generated caves, and endless hordes of alien monsters. Hoxxes IV has the highest concentration of valuable minerals ever discovered; however, everything on the planet from the creatures to the fauna is extremely hostile. Good thing Deep Rock Galactic employs the best space miners in the universe: Dwarves! Combining two things Dwarves love most - mining and killing monsters - Hoxxes is the perfect job for any proud, space-faring Dwarf. *** 4-player Co-Op *** Work together as a team to dig, explore, and fight your way through a massive cave system filled with hordes of deadly enemies and valuable resources. You will need to rely on your teammates if you want to survive the most hostile cave systems in the galaxy! *** 4 Unique Classes *** Pick the right class for the job. Mow through enemies as the Gunner, scout ahead and light up the caves as the Scout, chew through solid rock as the Driller, or support the team with defensive structures and turrets as the Engineer. *** Fully Destructible Environments *** Destroy everything around you to reach your goal. There is no set path so you can complete your mission your way. Drill straight down to your objective or build an intricate network of paths to explore your surroundings -- the choice is yours. But proceed with caution, you don’t want to stumble into an alien swarm unprepared! *** Procedurally Generated Cave Network *** Explore a network of procedurally generated cave systems filled with enemies to fight and riches to collect. There’s always something new to discover and no two playthroughs are alike. *** High-Tech Gadgets and Weapons *** Dwarves know what they need to bring to get the job done. This means the most powerful weapons and the most advanced gadgets around - flamethrowers, gatling guns, portable platform launchers, and much, much more. *** Light Your Path *** The underground caves are dark and full of terrors. You will need to bring your own lights if you want to illuminate these pitch-black caverns.

Island Saver: Dinosaur Island – May 13

Prehistoric Dinosaur Adventure! Dust off your trusty Trash Blaster and get ready for a new super-sized adventure! Another Savvy Island needs your help! And this one’s filled with fearsome dinosaur bankimals! Meet Newton, Pigby’s inventor friend, and use your money sense to help him escape his debt. Features: 14 dinosaur bankimals to save!Roar around on a Tyrannosaurus Rex!Soar through the sky on a Pteranodon!Collect lost fossils and help a friend in debt!

Potata: Fairy Flower – May 13

This adventure platformer tells a story of a young witch exploring fairy forests to find herself and save her home. Join her quest now! Immerse yourself into a picture-perfect fantasy - solve numerous puzzles, fight enemies, reveal all the secrets… and don’t forget to save the world! Features: Wonderful worldRelax gameplaySeveral ways of passing a locationsAmazing puzzles with several solutionsBossesExciting story and funny characters

Super Mega Baseball 3 – May 13

Super Mega Baseball 3 refines the series’ formula with the deepest on-field simulation yet, comprehensive online and offline game modes including a brand new Franchise mode, and vastly improved graphics. New content includes revamped UI plus tons of new audio, team/character content, and stadiums with variable lighting conditions. Features: • Challenge your hand-eye coordination or relax and hit dingers with fluid gameplay that scales seamlessly from novice to beyond-expert levels of difficulty. • Apply and refine your baseball instincts with a sophisticated baseball simulation featuring new pickoff and stealing mechanics, wild pitches/passed balls, designated hitters, and situational player traits. • Take in the sights and sounds of 14 richly detailed ballparks, each featuring unique day, night and alternate lighting conditions. • Guide an evolving team to greatness over multiple seasons in the all new Franchise mode featuring player development, aging, retirement and signing/releasing of free agents (1vCPU, 2vCPU, local or online). • Compete online to win pennants and climb to higher divisions in the cross-platform Pennant Race mode (1v1, online only). • Create your ideal league with a comprehensive customization suite that includes season length/structure, team names/uniforms/logos, and player names/appearance/attributes. • Play or simulate any combination of games/teams in customized Seasons and Elimination brackets, solo or with friends (1vCPU, 2vCPU, 1v1, 2v1, 2v2, CPUvCPU, local or online). • Skip customization and compete for top leaderboard scores with standardized teams and settings (locked player attributes) in Standard Season and Standard Elimination modes (1vCPU, 2vCPU, local or online).

Thy Sword – May 13

Thy Sword is a retro inspired hack and slash roguelike with procedural generated levels. Pick from different hero types like the Barbarian and Valkyrie to break the tyranny of the Dark Overlord! Pick from three different difficulty modes to suit your playstyle. New to adventuring? Then select apprentice mode to have infinite credits or if you’re a heroic veteran, choose hero mode where you only have one credit. Unlock additional heroes throughout your journey! Bring along a friend in 2 player cooperative mode to save the land from the Dark Overlord. Can you collect all of the crystals? Features: Fast paced, strategic sword and bow combatPlay solo or cooperatively locallyChoose from multiple heroes and unlock new onesPick from 3 different difficulty options to suit your playstyle

Ion Fury – May 14

Shelly “Bombshell” Harrison takes on a quest to slay evil transhumanist mastermind Dr. Jadus Heskel in the streets of Neo DC. She leaves a trail of carnage throughout huge, multi-path levels filled with gigantic explosions, more secret areas than we can count, and inhuman foes behind every corner. There’s no regenerating health here; stop taking cover and start running and gunning. Shelly’s crusade to take down Heskel’s army will see her leave destruction in her wake with a wide arsenal of weapons, complete with alternate fire modes and different ammo types. Ion Fury laughs at the idea of mandatory checkpoints and straight paths through shooting galleries. But, just because this is a true old-school first-person shooter doesn’t mean we've ignored all the good new stuff the last two decades have brought. Headshots? Hell yeah. More physics and interactivity? You betcha. 3DRealms, Voidpoint and 1C Entertainment have taken the best of both worlds and cooked it all into a bloody stew. Features: • The true successor to classic shooters such as Duke Nukem 3D, Shadow Warrior, and Blood. • Experience the original BUILD engine on steroids, pumped up and ready to rock again after 20 years! • Duck, jump, climb, swim, and blast your way through 7 exciting zones packed with multiple levels of mayhem! • A beautiful game world assembled from thousands of hand-crafted textures and sprites • An awe-inspiring arsenal of devastating weapons, including multiple ammo types and alternate fire modes. Tri-barreled revolvers, grenade launchers, and heat-seeking smart bombs are your best friends! • The classic '90s FPS action you love, meshed with modern inventions like locational damage and seamless level transitions • ZERO PROCEDURAL GENERATION. All levels are hand made and full of multiple paths, cool effects, and complex set pieces! • Thumping soundtrack comprised of true tracked module music, in authentic FastTracker 2 format

Emma: Lost in Memories – May 15

Poetic, surrealistic and melancholic, EMMA: Lost in Memories offers a unique experience in a strange and dangerous world where walls fade away as you touch them. The main character, Emma, is young, vibrant and intriguing: she leaves her home following an owl, and soon loses herself in a world which she slowly finds more and more dangerous. Features: One fast and simple mechanic: all the platforms and walls start disappearing when you touch them!The character runs automatically at a fixed speed! Control her special abilities (double jump, dash and climb) and do your best to react at the correct time.Minimalistic 2D artistic style completely drawn by hand.Dynamic gameplay in a poetic and eccentric world.Single-screen levels which combine skill and ingenuity with planification and strategy.Two game modes: Main Story and Memory Chest. Complete the Main Story first to enjoy the levels in the Memory Chest!Delicate reflexion on memory loss.

Tacticool Champs – May 15

Tacticool Champs combines the best features of shooter and arcade game, where up to four players fight with each other in a closed arena. Quick matches, wide variety of weapons and unlimited ways to eliminate the opponents are waiting for you! Choose your hero from ten available characters, fight in one of ten unique environments, select from sixty pre-defined scenes or create your own with an in game scene creator! Compete with friends in couch multiplayer, improve your skills playing against computer controlled characters and when you are ready, show the players from around the world who is the real Champ during online battles. Read the full article

[junker-town]

How the Eagles solved their quarterback quandary

The Eagles owner recounts the process for how the team decided Carson Wentz could be the face of their franchise.

After the 2015 season, the Eagles realized that Dallas was still banking on veteran quarterback Tony Romo, the Giants still enjoyed the mature hand of Eli Manning and Washington was enjoying the emergence of Kirk Cousins.

The Eagles' owner, Jeffrey Lurie, was not happy with his quarterback quandary.

Lurie bought the Eagles in 1994. He paid $185 million for them to then-owner Norman Braman, who had lost his zest for ownership, unhappy with free agency and soaring player salaries and unmoved in his belief that the rocketing cost of franchise quarterbacks helped split a division among most locker rooms that was unmanageable.

It took Lurie five years to find a franchise quarterback when Donovan McNabb was nabbed with the No. 2 overall pick in the 1999 draft. It took six years after that for the Eagles to reach Super Bowl XXXIX, a 24-21 loss to the New England Patriots.

Lurie has not had a whiff of the Super Bowl since that game in 2005.

Nor a franchise quarterback.

We looked at the crop of future 2017 quarterbacks and we thought the 2016 group showed us we'd better act now.

He fired head coach Andy Reid after the 2012 season, courted college coaching whiz Chip Kelly from Oregon, and fetched vet- eran quarterback (and former No. 1 draft pick) Sam Bradford among a series of futile moves in recent years. In November 2015, he began hearing whispers about this wunderkind quarterback from tiny North Dakota State. Lurie heard chatter about the 2016 draft presenting two highly projected franchise quarterbacks.

So, in December 2015, Lurie set out on an old mission in a new way.

"I define a franchise quarterback as someone who has the physical talent, the mental leadership qualities, and mental toughness to be a consistently winning quarterback that puts you in contention to win a championship," Lurie said. "He has to have that ‘it' factor. The single most important trait is the mental fortitude to handle the challenges that face a young quarterback. He has to be a smart quarterback — in today's NFL, quarterbacks have to routinely make intricate decisions in 2.5 seconds or less.

"We looked at the crop of future 2017 quarterbacks and we thought the 2016 group showed us we'd better act now. Was there a franchise quarterback we could move up in the draft to get? Was this the year to get what we have been looking for, searching for such a long, long time?"

Those early whispers from November 2015 came from Eagles personnel executive Tom Donahue. He told Lurie there was this small conference quarterback from North Dakota State who looked bright and talented. Who looked interesting. His name was Carson Wentz. Cal quarterback Jared Goff was also beginning to create buzz. Lurie listened. Lurie was intrigued.

A month later, Lurie fired Kelly as his head coach. In January 2016, he replaced him with Doug Pederson, in part because of Pederson's offensive, quarterbacking acumen. And Lurie made sure that Pederson had other equipped offensive-minded coaches around him, including offensive coordinator Frank Reich and quarterback coach John DeFilippo.

Then Lurie hit the road with his new head coach, general manager Howie Roseman, and a contingent of Eagles coaches and staff, all on a franchise quarterback expedition. "I first saw Carson at the Senior Bowl in 2016," Lurie said.

"Our scouts were there. Then we all went on this quarterbacking tour in late March where we met the quarterbacks in their environments. We visited Carson in North Dakota. We visited Goff at Cal. We went to Paxton Lynch at Memphis and to Kevin Hogan at Stanford. We saw some others. It wasn't just to say hello. I wanted to spend time with them. We had a strategy in place."

It was find the right guy.

The right rookie quarterback.

A franchise quarterback.

Then to move up to the top of the draft from their No. 13 spot in the first round and swipe him.

Decidedly, mercilessly, take a bolder shot at solving their lingering franchise quarterback enigma.

Glenn Andrews-USA TODAY Sports

Wentz wowed the Eagles at the Senior Bowl. He wowed them on their tour visit. He wowed them at the combine. He continued to wow them when he visited Philadelphia afterward.

It was his size. His arm. His intelligence. His command. His personality. His skill.

Wentz thinks he understands the connection, now saying about his new town, his new team, his new home: "They love hard work and they love winning. That's the biggest thing, and I'm the same way. I hate to lose. If you're not working hard, I don't really tolerate it either. So, I think it's a great fit for me."

Wentz sure looked like the missing puzzle piece.

We were quite focused on Carson and we decided we wanted the No. 1 pick for the 2016 draft.

Lurie said his pre-draft work showed him that Wentz was remarkable in his poise, confidence, and humility. He considered Wentz a quick thinker. Lurie describes Wentz's confidence as strong but not arrogant, "an impressive air for what he was then, a twenty-three-year-old." He said Wentz was "hungry" and that the quarterback's pre-draft trip to Philadelphia was a reconfirmation of the Eagles' earlier assessments.

"We were quite focused on Carson and we decided we wanted the No. 1 pick for the 2016 draft," Lurie said. "But we were at No. 13. How would we get there? The first move was getting from 13 to No. 8, and I give Howie credit for creating a deal with the Miami Dolphins to achieve that. We learned the St. Louis Rams were very aggressive in getting to No. 1, and our intel said they wanted Goff. We got to No. 2 and took our chances that the Rams were not bluffing."

The Eagles traded three top 100 picks in the 2016 draft: their first-round pick in 2017 and a second-round pick in 2018 to the Cleveland Browns for the No. 2 draft slot. A lofty price they appreciated when the Rams, indeed, selected Goff at No. 1 and Wentz fell to them at No. 2.

"It was a relief," Lurie said. "Our plan came to fruition. I was just very excited for us. It was a ton of research. A study of quarterbacks. We believe we found a young man who has all the ingredients of a franchise quarterback — and, yet, we still don't know. I've been at this long enough to know it really takes a few years to know. It takes every ingredient possible, particularly staying healthy and improving. Surviving the mental part of that first year is the hardest and most valuable."

The Eagles faced that itchy riddle . . .

Start him?

Or sit him?

The plan was for Wentz to sit and learn behind Sam Bradford. McNabb had done that as a rookie behind Doug Pederson, thus further defining Pederson's Philadelphia connection. Lurie and Pederson agreed that Wentz would be best served to watch, wait, and be groomed behind Bradford.

But that began to steadily and then quickly change.

From the earliest camp workouts, Wentz rapidly ascended. Reich, in an early June camp interview, raved about how Wentz's "aptitude was off the charts."

Lurie expounded: "Both Frank [Reich] and John [DeFilippo] began telling me very early in the process that this guy is ready if we need him, that if he had to play he could play. They described it as almost ‘unprecedented.'"

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

That readiness factor was cemented by this one: the Minnesota Vikings had lost starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to injury and called the Eagles in early September requesting a trade for Bradford.

"We were going to play Sam, we had signed him to a two-year contract before the season, but we also knew he was a tradeable asset. And this was a way to get our assets back from the trade to move to No. 2. We determined it was the best of both worlds— not in the short term, but the long term. Carson gets to play right now. We get draft picks back.

"Do you play your rookie franchise quarterback right away, or do you sit him? There is no perfect way. It is a matter of your strategy in how you develop quarterbacks. What are his strengths and weaknesses? Where does he come from and from what system? Peyton Manning and Troy Aikman started as rookies and took their lumps; they had the mental toughness to not only survive it but grow from it. We felt the same way about Carson."

We determined it was the best of both worlds ... Carson gets to play right now. We get draft picks back.

Wentz had orchestrated a pro-style offense at North Dakota State and was granted tremendous liberty in audibles and in his decision-making based on his progressions and analysis of defensive tactics.

The Eagles were aligning Wentz with other rookie quarter- backs in NFL history who were resilient and surprisingly effective as rookie starters.

Among the most recent were Jameis Winston with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2015, who threw 22 touchdown passes as a rookie. Andrew Luck in 2012 with the Indianapolis Colts helped push his team into the playoffs as a rookie, throwing for 4,374 yards. Russell Wilson in 2012 (26 touchdown passes, 10 interceptions) led the Seattle Seahawks into the playoffs. Matt Ryan in 2008 produced a rookie season that included his first NFL pass — 62 yards for a touchdown — one of 15 more touchdown passes that season and nearly 3,500 passing yards. Ben Roethlisberger in 2004 won 13 straight games as a rookie with the Pittsburgh Steelers and helped ignite his team into the AFC Championship game.

For most rookie quarterbacks — even potential franchise quarterbacks — starting an entire season can be a pit worth avoiding; especially if a proven, valuable veteran can lead.

Pederson countered, as Wentz took the starting role: "Everyone feels like this kid is ready to go and we drafted him to take on the reigns—it's something we're prepared to do."

The Eagles saw a nimble mind, a big arm, maturity beyond his years, and let Wentz sling it.

In fact, Pederson literally made the call a week before the Philadelphia 2016 season opener against the Cleveland Browns at home. Wentz took the actual phone call that he would be the team's starter while lying on the ground geese hunting in New Jersey. Lurie was certain the Eagles were making the right call well before that.

"I invited all of the quarterbacks during training camp to my box for a concert that was in our stadium, Sam, Carson, and Chase Daniel," Lurie said. "Carson didn't want to come. He graciously declined. He said he had done nothing in the NFL as yet and did not want his teammates to think he deserved such a privilege. He said he believed the veteran players wanted to see young quarterbacks working extra hard, not being treated in exceptional ways in the owner's box. I respected his feelings. I was not surprised. I told him the hopes I had in him. I told him there would be a time it would be OK. This was not only the type of quarterback, but the type of person we were turning to as our franchise quarterback."

Blitzed: Why NFL Teams Gamble on Starting Rookie Quarterbacks by Thomas George, with a foreword by Warren Moon and an afterword by Tony Dungy, will be published on September 5, 2017, by Sports Publishing an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing. The book is available for preorder at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and IndieBound.