The latest Elden Ring update is now available and rolls out several major bug fixes for the action RPG.
Chief among them is a fix for a recently introduced bug that let Malenia, Blade of Miquella, heal herself incorrectly. The notoriously difficult Elden Ring boss is supposed to heal every time her blade hits a player, but she was briefly able to self-heal at any point after you’d summoned a co-operative player into your game. The fresh change will make defeating her a lot easier.
Publisher Bandai Namco says the patch has also “fixed a bug that caused some bosses to die at unintended times”. After Update 1.04 went live last week, some players had reported bosses suddenly dying midway through fights.
For one Redditor , the Fire Giant kicked the bucket immediately after transitioning into his second phase, while the Godskin Duo both shuffled off their mortal coils when their health bar was only half-depleted. Being able to defeat bosses exactly as FromSoftware intended should make things a lot more enjoyable.
Additionally, the update fixes “a bug in which the effect duration of the Cerulean Hidden Tear was revised downward”, resolves an issue that prevented the Elden Beast boss from “working properly under certain circumstances”, and “fixed some text”. The details of those fixes aren’t listed, but the features should now be fully functional.
The previous 1.04 update made some big changes to Elden Ring, introducing a major magic rebalance that made spell-slinging Fath-based builds far more powerful. It buffed the damage of Colossal weapons, too, improving the effectiveness of Strength builds.
Add to that the quality-of-life features that were introduced – including an option to toggle the camera's auto-rotation feature – an expanded Patches questline, and plenty of fixes for combat and quest progression glitches, and Elden Ring’s updates are coming thick and fast.
FromSoftware has been quick to address some of the game’s outstanding problems, keeping its already massive audience firmly committed.
That rumored iPhone subscription service just doesn't make any sense
A report broke last week about a new iPhone subscription service - according to Bloomberg, Apple is working on a way to get iPhones in your hands, without you having to pay a hefty one-off fee (or giving loads of money to cell companies).
This would apparently start with iPhones, but roll out to other Apple devices later down the road, and would let many more people get their hands on an iDevice, since it's easier to break down the cost into monthly payments, rather than see it as one huge lump sum.
However since TechRadar's team covered the news when it broke last week, I've been unable to stop scratching my head (no, it's not headlice) - I just don't understand what's happening here.
It's already a service
The main question I kept asking myself is: "isn't that already a thing?".
It is. Apple's iPhone Upgrade Program lets you pay monthly to get your hands on a new iPhone - it starts at $30 or equivalent for the iPhone 13 mini , and goes up to $45 for the 13 Pro Max , and when the iPhone 14 comes out you'll be able to upgrade to that.
At that price, you're basically getting an iPhone for around 2/3 the cost of buying it outright for a year - but for many people, that's a convenient way to do it.
Sure, that price doesn't include your SIM card or connectivity, but depending on your network, that doesn't cost too much more.
And that's not the only option you have, if you want to 'subscribe' to an iPhone - ever heard of a thing called 'carrier plans'?
Yep, one of the oldest concepts in smartphone history let you pay a fee every month in exchange for a smartphone - sure, they're not exactly comparable in terms of price, but in terms of concept, they absolutely are.
Is this a case of Apple re-inventing something that already exists?
So rumors of Apple's 'new' subscription service have me a little confused - how is this any different to the myriad similar services out there?
The whole package
Apple is already way too fond of its subscription services, having approximately 10 million of them. There's Apple Fitness, TV Plus, iCloud+. Arcade, Music - the list goes on (okay, not to 10million, but there are too many to easily remember).
Apple One is the overarching subscription service for if you want them all, which subscribes you to loads of other subscription services (PSA: if you're getting sick of the phrase 'subscription service' now, we don't recommend reading the rest of this article on subscription services).
The company could add iPhones as another notch to its belt by weaving them into the existing packages - perhaps a new tier of Apple One could get you a new iPhone as well as Arcade and Music, or a new iPad alongside TV Plus, or an Apple Watch paired with Fitness.
It could also be a hardware-only scheme, netting you an iPhone, Apple Watch and iPad all in one bundle, for the ultimate Apple fan.
Whichever way you spin it though, this option wouldn't exactly be cheap - we're talking several hundreds of dollars leaving your account each month to just get the latest hardware, if that's what comes to pass.
And that's a problem, given how many subscription services are vying for your attention.
Ownership vs loanership
TechRadar's Editor in Chief, Gareth Beavis, pointed out to me that this iPhone subscription service could just be a phone hire purchase scheme, where you contribute over time until you've paid off the cost of your iPhone.
This is a common thing for personal vehicles - well, I've been told, but I'm under 30 so won't ever get to experience it. But I don't think that's what Apple would go for.
The current iPhone Upgrade Program doesn't offer you the phone to keep once you've paid off its fee - you keep changing devices, and keep paying Apple, essentially on a leasing scheme.
A hire purchase model doesn't fit into the subscription scheme that we're used to - other than vehicles, how often do you get to rent something for money, then keep it afterwards?
Do I get to keep my Xbox Games Pass games when I've subscribed long enough? Or my favorite Netflix films when I've watched them enough times? That's actually even the case for vehicles now - some electric vehicles can be bought on permanent lease, where you're constantly paying for the privilege of driving them.
You don't really buy things anymore - you subscribe to them and lose them when you want to stop paying. You spend for access, not ownership. That's where capitalism has pushed us, and I don't see Apple bucking this trend.
Subscription burnout
There are far too many subscription platforms around these days - a problem which a new iPhone subscription plan would contribute to. Sure, this isn't a new thing by any means - there's evidence that news subscription services were used as early as the 16th Century in Germany - but it's hard to deny that there's been a recent rise in the 'pay little and often' means of buying things.
But when does it end? At what point do we say "I've got too many services, I don't need another one"?
It can't be far off - I recently reached my limit, canceling my Playstation Plus (mainly because it's gotten a bit rubbish, as my colleague eloquently explains here ), and I think it's just the first in a big personal purge.
Of course, since you're not putting as much thought into what you spend on, this is great for the companies, and that could help Apple get more of its expensive smartphones into buyers' hands.
It would also help with buyers' remorse, as you could realize you've got Apple crazy and then just give it all back and watch your bank balance return to health. Yes, you've already spent and own nothing, and you can't now sell anything to recoup it, but it means that you can try things out much easier.
But with many other iPhone and smartphone subscription services already existing, and the busy landscape of subscription services greatly reaching tipping point, I'm struggling to understand - or get excited for - another Apple one.
Thor: Love and Thunder trailer won't bolt online anytime soon
The first Thor: Love and Thunder trailer has been delayed due to reshoots, according to one prominent insider.
Per The Ankler's Jeff Sneider , the highly anticipated teaser for Thor 4 has been held back due to pick ups involving Christian Bale's Gorr the God Butcher. Sneider claims that the former Batman star was reshooting scenes on Manhattan beach as recently as last week (March 14), which has led to a delay in releasing the Marvel Phase 4 project's trailer.
Sneider's suggestion comes after weeks of fans' calls for Marvel to release Thor: Love and Thunder's trailer. MCU fanatics have taken to Twitter and Reddit to express disappointment over its supposed delay but, if we know Marvel, they won't be swayed by fan demands either way.
It's unclear how long the rumored reshoots will last or if they're the sole reason for the trailer's delay. It isn't unusual for films of this scale to receive pick ups, but it does seem odd that a movie's first trailer would be held back as a result of reshoots.
Additionally, it's worth noting that other prominent Marvel movie leakers, including MyTimeToShineHello, Daniel_RPK, The Cosmic Circus, and BigScreenLeaks haven't commented on these supposed reshoots. Sure, it's possible that this quartet hasn't received word on the pick ups from their contacts. However, when something this big breaks – from a speculation standpoint, at least – there's usually more than one leaker covering the rumor. That's not to discredit Sneider, but it's worth taking this new report with a pinch of salt for now.
Thor: Love and Thunder is one of three MCU films set to release in 2022. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is first up on May 6, while Black Panther: Wakanda Forever arrives in theaters on November 11. Thor 4 is sandwiched between those with its July 8 launch.
Moon Knight will launch before that trio, though, with the Oscar Isaac-starring Marvel TV show arriving on Disney Plus on March 30. And, according to Isaac's co-star Ethan Hawke, Moon Knight could spawn a mini Marvel franchise on its own .
Analysis: has Thor 4's trailer really been delayed by reshoots?
It's possible, but we wouldn't say it's the main reason. As we mentioned, it's becoming a common occurrence for movies of this size – with their large-scale production budgets – to undergo reshoots. Sometimes, early cuts of films don't resonate with test audiences, so picks ups are required to make a film's narrative flow better. Alternatively, a movie may not stitch together properly during the editing process, so extra (or new) scenes are needed to act as a bridge between other sequences.
Thor: Love and Thunder isn't the only recent Marvel Studios project that's required reshoots. Doctor Strange 2, Ms Marvel , and She-Hulk have all reportedly re-entered production for those reasons we listed above. So Thor 4 isn't alone if pick ups are necessary for the final cut.
But we think there's a clearer explanation as to why Thor: Love and Thunder's trailer hasn't arrived yet: Moon Knight. As we revealed earlier, the upcoming MCU TV series launches on Disney Plus on March 30, so Marvel's full attentions will have been placed on that.
With Moon Knight's press tour having ended – be sure to check in with TechRadar in the lead up to launch for our exclusive coverage on the show – we'd be surprised if a Thor 4 teaser doesn't land online soon. Ms Marvel's June 8 release date and trailer were finally revealed on March 16 , and Thor: Love and Thunder will be the next MCU project to launch after that. It would be strange, then, if a teaser trailer wasn't released soon-ish.
Our guess? Thor 4's first trailer should arrive once Moon Knight begins airing on Disney Plus. We don't have insider knowledge, so don't quote us on that. But, if Marvel's recent release strategy is anything to go by, trailers for upcoming productions tend to launch after the studio's newest superhero movie or TV show. Here's hoping we're right.