Sometimes, it’s proper boring having to write about other people having a great time in video games. It mostly just makes us wish we were the ones having the fun, instead of the ones sitting in front of a document and putting down words about someone else’s fun.
But you know what? Why just write about the Minecraft Caves & Cliffs update, when we can play it ourselves! We own Minecraft, and the ability to take screenshots! Yeah!
So, here’s a gallery of our adventure in a newly-generated Minecraft world, using the experimental Caves & Cliffs 1.18 snapshot on PC — an update that will reportedly come to Switch this holiday season, but can be accessed now if you don’t mind it being a bit janky. In the screenshots, you can see massive caves, pockets of plantlife, and a range of much gentler slopes, as well as the local water levels and re-jigged ore distribution.
Mo’ Cave, Mo’ Problems
The new mega-caves are rather exciting, but they are also FILLED with hazards. Zombies, Creepers, lava, you name it, it’s in here. Flying around these massive earth-holes is a great time, but walking around is pretty darn difficult.
Mountain Time
Oof, that river is quite gorgeous. We don’t know if that’s new, or we’ve just never seen such a majestically meandering water feature before. But check out them slopes!!
A Room With A View
No evil residents in this hillside village. Probably. Minecraft’s villagers don’t really have the brainpower to figure out ethics, anyway.
Proper Lush
Lush caves are a rather lovely new addition, adding moss blocks, azaleas, dripleaf plants, and new planty light sources, so they’re easy to spot in the mega-caves.
Marooned Marinelife
One recurring feature of the new world generation is that the new local water levels will sometimes create huge underground lakes (very cool) into which will spawn glow squids (also cool) who will often beach themselves and die (not cool). That’s emergent storytelling, though!
Drip, Drip
The new dripstone caves are pointy, dangerous, and extreeeeeemely pretty, even if they will kill you.
Better visibility
Surely, we hear you say, being able to see for miles in these new caves must make it really easy to find ores and other goodies? Well, yes and no. We found a spawner pretty quickly, but diamonds took a lot longer — in fact, we only found one in our exploration, and it was at -30 thanks to the new ore generation tweaks. However, we found it without having to do any digging, so that’s good news for your pickaxes, at least!
Tell us if you’ve found anything interesting in your new world in the comments below!
The temperature in North Dakota has been quite hot, and even record-breaking at times this year! One of the best ways to beat the summer heat is simply by hanging out in the water. It is fun to kick back and relax at the river or at a lake, but if you are looking for a thrill, you can visit a waterpark. No, you do not have to plan a trip to the Wisconsin Dells for waterslide family fun!
North Dakota may be known for its harsh, cold winters, but also have pretty incredible warm summers. And some North Dakota towns have beautiful waterparks for families to enjoy during the hottest season. Keep reading to see the list of some of the best water park and slide locations in North Dakota.
Where is your favorite North Dakota waterpark or waterslide to beat the summer heat?
Waterparks in North Dakota
North Dakota summers can be scorching. Check out the state’s best waterparks to cool off during the hottest season of the year!
Waterparks in North Dakota
North Dakota summers can be scorching. Check out the state’s best waterparks to cool off during the hottest season of the year!
Next time you are in Grand Forks for a concert at the Alerus Center, stay at the Canad Inn and take the kids to Splashers of the South Seas. There are a bunch of fun things you can do, including sliding down one of those “toilet bowl” slides.
Oil on canvas painting by Maurice de Vlaminck (French, 1876-1958), titled Country Road, signed lower left, 17 ½ inches by 20 ¾ inches. Estimate: $ 30,000-$ 50,000.
Large 20th century patinated bronze fountain figure of the Four Seasons, 87 inches tall by 53 inches wide. Estimate: $ 5,000-$ 10,000.
The oil on canvas painting by Swedish-born Louisiana artist Knute Heldner (1875-1952), is titled Shrimp Boats, No. 5 and is artist signed lower right. Estimate: $ 4,000-$ 6,000.
Russian icon of the Virgin of Kazan by Sergeyevich Lebedkin (Moscow, 1898-1914), featuring a 21kt gold and enameled sterling oklad. Estimate: $ 500-$ 1,000.
19th century American gilt and gesso Rococo Revival figural over-the-mantel mirror on a later white marble base, 96 inches tall by 75 ½ inches wide. Estimate: $ 3,000-$ 5,000.
Sold will be French, English and American furniture, original paintings by local and regional artists, fine jewelry and couture pieces, sterling silver, more.
NEW ORLEANS, LA, UNITED STATES, July 9, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ — It’ll be Christmas in July in New Orleans when Crescent City Auction Gallery holds a big, two-day Important Summer Estates Auction the weekend of July 17th and 18th. The sale is brimming with over 800 quality lots of fine French, English and American furniture, over mantel mirrors, original paintings by local and regional artists, fine jewelry and couture pieces, a piano, sterling silver, nativity sets, model boats and more.
Start times both days will be 10 am Central time. Expected top lots include a large 20th century patinated bronze fountain figure of the Four Seasons, 87 inches tall by 53 inches wide (estimate: $ 5,000-$ 10,000); an oil on canvas painting by the French artist Maurice de Vlaminck (1876-1958), titled Country Road, signed lower left, 17 ½ inches by 20 ¾ inches (estimate: $ 30,000-$ 50,000); and paintings by Knute Heldner and AJ Drysdale.
The oil on canvas by Swedish-born Louisiana artist Knute Heldner (1875-1952), is titled Shrimp Boats, No. 5 and is signed lower right. It measures 29 ½ inches by 35 ½ inches and should bring $ 4,000-$ 6,000. The oil on canvas laid to board attributed to Norwegian-born Louisiana painter William Buck (1840-1888) is titled Covington Scene. It’s expected to finish at $ 3,000-$ 5,000. Both would be fine additions to any Southern collection.
It’s an eclectic sale, with merchandise ranging from vintage couture (Chanel, Hermes, Prada, Louis Vuitton, others) to fine estate jewelry (white, yellow and black diamonds, tanzanites, emeralds, sapphires, South Seas pearls, more) to a Russian icon of the Virgin of Kazan by Sergeyevich Lebedkin (Moscow, 1898-1914), featuring a 21kt gold and enameled sterling oklad, measuring 12 ½ inches by 10 ½ inches (estimate: $ 500-$ 1,000).
A 19th century American-made gilt and gesso Rococo Revival figural over mantel mirror set on a later white marble base, having an overall size of 96 inches tall by 75 ½ inches wide, is expected to gavel for $ 3,000-$ 5,000; while an American spelter slag glass lighted base lamp, probably Edward Miller, 21 inches tall, should knock down for $ 500-$ 900.
A circa 1940 44-piece Stieff sterling flatware service in the “Williamsburg Queen Anne” pattern, having a total weight of 53.75 troy oz., is estimated to ring up $ 1,000-$ 2,000. Also, a silverplated epergne/centerpiece, together with a silverplated circular mirror plateau, with relief fruit and scroll decorated rims (two pieces) should hit $ 400-$ 800.
A large oil on canvas painting by Scott Upton (N.C., b. 1958), titled Glimpse of the Hidden, signed and titled on verso, 47 ¾ inches by 71 ¾ inches, is expected to garner $ 3,000-$ 5,000. Tops in the American furniture category is a circa 1880 Victorian carved walnut marble-top sideboard, 76 inches tall by 58 inches wide (estimate: $ 600-$ 900).
French furniture, a staple at nearly every Crescent City auction, will feature the following examples:
• A French Provincial Louis XV style carved cherry sideboard from the early 1800s, 42 ¼ inches tall by 55 ¼ inches wide (estimate: $ 1,000-$ 2,000). • A French Empire carved mahogany marble-top center table made in the 19th century, 29 inches tall and 38 ½ inches in diameter (estimate: $ 800-$ 1,200). • A 19th century French Empire style carved mahogany marble-top commode, 34 ¾ inches tall by 50 ½ inches wide (estimate: $ 700-$ 1,200). • A French Provincial Louis XV carved walnut vaisselier (furniture for storing and displaying china), 85 inches tall by 52 inches wide (estimate: $ 600-$ 1,200). • A 20th century French style ormolu mounted ebonized mahogany bombe Boulle marble-top parlor cabinet, 38 ½ inches tall by 39 ½ inches wide (estimate: $ 600-$ 900).
Original artwork by New Orleans and regional artists is just as ubiquitous and will be led by an early 20th century oil wash on board painting by Alexander J. Drysdale (La., 1870-1934), titled Louisiana Bayou at Dusk, signed lower left (estimate: $ 800-$ 1,200); and a 20th century mixed metal sculpture by New Orleans artist Thomas Mann, titled Techno Rabbit Clock, with a carrot form stand, 6 inches tall, signed (estimate: $ 800-$ 1,200).
An oil on board painting by Colette Pope Heldner (New Orleans, 1902-1990), titled Swamp Idyll, signed lower left and signed and titled on verso, 19 ½ inches tall by 15 ¼ inches wide, carries a pre-sale estimate of $ 500-$ 800. Also, a large silver gelatin photographic print by George Valentine Dureau (New Orleans, 1930-2014), titled Two Young Boys, unsigned, 41 inches tall by 34 inches wide, should command $ 400-$ 800.
On to Europe, where an early 20th century oil on canvas painting by Henry Schouten (Belgian, 1857-1927), titled Horse and Donkey, signed lower left and 17 ¼ inches by 25 ¼ inches, is estimated to fetch $ 1,500-$ 2,500. Also, an oil on canvas Portrait of a Lady in White, initialed (“V.J.”) and initialed and dated (1836), should finish at $ 1,200-$ 1,800.
A 19th century patinated bronze sculpture by Antoine Louis Barye (French, 1796-1875), titled Spread Wing Eagle, 9 ½ inches tall and impressed “F. Barbedienne Fondeur”, has an estimate of $ 1,000-$ 2,000; while an early 20th century Continental School gilt bronze figure of a Classical Male Athlete, 25 ½ inches tall, possibly a Grand Tour souvenir, should rise to $ 800-$ 1,200. These are just a small sampling of what bidders can expect.
Live, in-person bidding, as well as exhibition previews, will be held by appointment only, in the Crescent City gallery located at 1330 St. Charles Avenue in New Orleans. Previews are being held daily (except on Sunday) and started July 8th. A Saturday, July 10th preview will be held from 9 am -1 pm. To schedule an appointment for live gallery bidding on auction day, or for a preview, call 504-529-5057, or, you can send an email to [email protected]
Internet bidding will be provided by LiveAuctioneers.com, Invaluable.com and BidSquare.com. Absentee and phone bids will be accepted until 1 pm Central time on Friday, July 16th. A 25 percent buyer’s premium will be applied in-house (three percent discount for cash or check). A printed catalog is available; call 504-529-5057 or email [email protected]
Crescent City Auction Gallery is always seeking quality consignments for future auctions. To consign a single item, an estate or a collection, you can call them at (504) 529-5057; or, you can send an e-mail to [email protected] All phone calls and e-mails are confidential.
For more regarding Crescent City Auction Gallery and the two-day Important Summer Estates Auction slated for the weekend of July 17th and 18th, visit www.crescentcityauctiongallery.com.
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Sully Hildebrand Crescent City Auction Gallery +1 504-529-5057 email us here
Sunday is the Fourth of July and we have a lot to celebrate. This year we will get to have an actual Fourth celebration, complete … Read more
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The Famicom Detective Club titles were a fascinating recent arrival on Switch, with The Missing Heir and The Girl Who Stands Behind both available. Quite a few members of the Nintendo Life team are playing them, and the general consensus is that they’re rather lovely — albeit admittedly dated — experiences. The blend of handsome updated visuals and sound with gameplay that strictly adheres to the original late 1980s game design is both jarring and, depending on your perspective, rather charming.
You do have the option, in both games, of switching out the soundtrack for the original retro beeps and boops, which is a neat feature, although to this writer’s tastes you’re better off with the new audio. Voice acting is another addition but, perhaps exposing the fact that Nintendo initially only planned to release it in Japan and keep the budget low, it’s Japanese-only. Of course, it could be said that this is a disappointing corner to cut — along with the fact they’re eShop-only outside of Japan — but as they’re visual novel experiencesanyway it adds authenticity considering the locations of both games. But still, it’s important to acknowledge that the option to switch voiceover languages would have been nice.
Another feature that might have enhanced the appeal would have been the ability to switch between original Famicom screens and the attractive new partially-animated art. These games are a part of Nintendo history, so that would have been a fun thing to do. Again, this may have been a combination of Nintendo keeping the budget low and actual technical challenges of working in English text (and other languages) into legacy code.
In any case, if you’ve missed them Nintendo has shared some rather nice comparison shots on Twitter showing how the games have evolved (and inadvertently teased what an art-style switching option could have delivered). It’s fascinating to see how original scenes were reinterpreted.
Taro on the Telephone
Our protagonist was clearly more feisty in the original.
Myoujin Mountain Hop
This is a real stand-out in terms of showing the creative effort and thought that went into re-imagining and expanding some scenes.
Mirror, Mirror
A fantastic scene in the new version of The Girl Who Stands Behind, definitely a major improvement in atmosphere.
Enjoying a Damn Fine Coffee
Both of these scenes look great, maybe the original coffee shop was a little more visually interesting.
Pac-Man 99 is the latest battle royale game on the block, and it’s exclusive to Nintendo Switch Online subscribers. Following in the footsteps of Tetris 99 (and the departed Super Mario Bros. 35), this competitive online game takes a classic video game franchise and injects some modern 1v100 (well, 1v98) everyone-for-themselves gameplay that’s arguably worth the price of a Nintendo Switch Online sub on its own.
The game is free-to-play for online subscribers, but just as Tetris 99 has, it also features downloadable skins and extra modes to enjoy if you’re willing to pay for it. We’d assume that a future physical release will bundle all this DLC onto a cartridge — again, just like Tetris 99 — but for now you’ll have to go digital if you want all the extra goodies.
Below we’ve gathered together a list of ever Pac-Man 99 DLC skin available to download, plus information on prices and a little poll at the end — let us know your favourites!
What are Pac-Man 99 Custom Themes?
While you might be very happy to play with the classic Pac-Man skin, there are a host of downloadable retro ‘skins’ you can use instead. These include several classic Namco games and franchises, such as Galaga, Dig Dug, Rolling Thunder and Xevious.
Using a different skin will change the visuals and the sound effects, but it has no affect on gameplay whatsoever — they just look cool and give the game a different retro flavour. It’s still called Pac-Man 99, too, even without Pac-Man.
How many Pac-Man 99 DLC Themes are there?
There are currently 29 themes available, although one of those is the default Pac-Man skin. So, 28 extra skins, if you like.
How much are the Pac-Man 99 DLC Themes?
The classic character skins are available individually for $ 1.99 / £1.69 / €1.99 each, although you can buy the DLC bundle which unlocks all the skins plus the ‘Mode Unlock’ (extra gameplay modes) for $ 29.99 / £24.99 / €29.99.
Pac-Man 99 DLC Themes – Complete List
Here’s the full list of every DLC theme currently available to download in Pac-Man 99:
Classic Theme
Vector Theme
Colorful Theme
Frame Theme
Bricks Theme
Pastel Blocks Theme
Igloo Theme
Garden Theme
Log House Theme
New Rally-X
Namco Classic 1 Theme
The Tower of Druaga Theme
Namco Classic 2 Theme
Galaga Theme
Dig Dug Theme
The Genji and the Heike Clans Theme
Yokai Dochuki Theme
Dragon Buster Theme
The Legend of “Valkyrie” Theme
Cosmo Gang The Video Theme
Namco Classic 3 Theme
Rolling Thunder Theme
Wonder Momo Theme
Xevious Theme
Baraduke Theme
The Return of Ishtar Theme
Namco Classic 4 Theme
Namco Classic 5 Theme
Bravoman Theme
Reader Poll – What are your favourites?
Let us know your favourite Pac-Man 99 DLC Theme by voting for your top three in the poll below.
Will you be downloading any of these, or the whole lot? Too pricey? Let us know if they’re tempting you — and how you’re getting on with the game so far — with a comment below.
“Harv’s Island is my home away from home and one of my favorite features in New Horizons, so I made my #ACNHYear1 photo submission there.” (Image: @MetManMas)
Whether it seems like yesterday or not is a matter of perspective, but Animal Crossing: New Horizons launched one year ago today.
And what a year it’s been! Nintendo’s life sim ended up becoming a significant coping mechanism for many people throughout 2020; a social outlet and positive focal point for millions of players that the makers couldn’t possibly have foreseen during development.
Now that we’ve fully cycled through all of the game’s four seasons and a full calendar year, we recently asked you to use the tag #ACNHYear1 and share images with us via Twitter — photos that best sum up your experience with the game over the past 365 days. A huge thank you to everyone who responded! You’ll find below a small selection of our favourites, plus an extra couple from Nintendo Life staff.
So let’s dive in and look at just some of our very favourite memories after the first full year of Animal Crossing: New Horizons…
Animal Crossing: New Horizons – A Year In Pictures
We kick things off and set the mood with stalwart Nintendo Life contributor and resident DJ Shiryu…
How it started / How its going. #ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/03gSSFup3x— Shiryu (@ShiryuGL)
March 12, 2021
My little island of Enceladus has changed so much! Here’s to another year! @nintendolife #ACNHYear1 #AnimalCrossing #ACNH #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/RxFb2hWAl7— Wolfy (@WolfyWardark)
March 13, 2021
This has been our little world away from the world for the last year. Me, @TashyMcFlashy and our kids have our little paradise called ‘Cat Island’ #ACNHYear1 ♥️🌷🌹🍎 pic.twitter.com/74G7ajb3PR— Captain Wizard (@captainwizard)
March 13, 2021
one of my favourite areas of the island taken during a nice rainy day in summer #ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/ymU7X1qeKg— Dragwhite (@Dragwhite1)
March 12, 2021
Graduation with my friends on ACNH is probably my favourite moment @nintendolife#ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/unQyzJkMH1— Mukil Varman (@Mukil2003)
March 12, 2021
I think I can honestly say I’ve never played one video game every day for a year before, but that’s going to change on the 20th.#ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/U2GVIyIaHo— Kevyn on Video (@kevyn_on)
March 14, 2021
Nothing sums up my first year of #AnimalCrossing like my gallery with the 50+ villager portraits I’ve collected so far. #ACNH #ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/Gz0gJFynhO— Terry Estep 🏳️🌈 (@terry_estep)
March 12, 2021
#ACNHYear1 @nintendolife I spent waaaay too much time recreating over 100 football and rugby kits and turning my island into a virtual Sports Direct pic.twitter.com/4dHX9ozT1U— Gametropolis (@darrek_attilla)
March 12, 2021
All units, ATTACK! #ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/49nuZxlXx8— Kurtis Merrill (@roguejedi22)
March 14, 2021
Animal Crossing really made a weird 2020 more bearable. A sweet and cute, relaxing game, though this made it look like a horror movie was about to happen #ACNHyear1 pic.twitter.com/P75A7drbQA— Spaddel2710 (@Spaddel271090)
March 12, 2021
Lupe, disfrutando de Phuket #ACNH #ACNHYear1 #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/E2NfF6QJJF— Bykuta⚓️🇲🇽 (@Bykuta)
March 17, 2021
Can’t believe it’s almost been a whole year! This game has given me a lot of joy and I met some great friends through it too #ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/PWNHZrrFYh— Ninjendo (@Ninjendo92)
March 13, 2021
These four images are among my favorite #ACNH memories over this past year. A day of endless balloons, my first tarantula, picnic fireworks, and my three favorite neighbors wishing me a happy birthday. Here’s to the memories from #ACNHYear1 and to making new ones in year 2! pic.twitter.com/SX6G0cy5mH— DonSerrot 🦉 (@DonSerrot)
March 12, 2021
This is where it all started #ACNHYear1 https://t.co/0yz9Ps8eXJ— Tony Gunawan (@roberttflash)
March 13, 2021
@nintendolife #ACNHYear1 first two are from games my friends invented on their islands. Plus Pietro needs some love! #AnimalCrossing pic.twitter.com/MCUR4uUe1X— NSWMongoose (@NSWMongoose)
March 15, 2021
#ACNHYear1 Being able to have a day out with your chum during lockdown! pic.twitter.com/EtpvnkLeMs— Emma B (@emz_m_86)
March 16, 2021
Achieved my biggest achievement today, but the conniving Tom Nook still isn’t done flogging more home improvements apparently 😭 #ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/RZVkGeKviH— Zeo (@ZoeHorwood3)
March 13, 2021
#ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/aSnAHKJSjz— AJ_is_a_Nerd (@AJ_is_a_Nerd)
March 15, 2021
Just chilling out. #ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/cxQiNMU0kZ— Kevin (@shonenjump86)
March 12, 2021
From the very first to my most recent screenshot, looking forward to many more updates and memories!! #AnimalCrossing #ACNHYear1 pic.twitter.com/3s0skc25jp— Jackakacus (@Baryonyx_Bro)
March 14, 2021
Thanks to everyone who shared their memories of the last year. Feel free to post more in the comments below and let us know your favourites from above.
