8 things to watch out for this week

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Ant-man and the Wasp hits US cinemas, Fortnite season 4 draws to an end, and Defiance 2050 resurrects a last-gen MMO in our pick of the week's best games, TV and movies

Fortnite season 4, Ant-man and the Wasp, A Quiet Place and Darwin Project

1. Fortnite season 4 is coming to an end, and we're all on tenterhooks to see what’s going to happen next

The fifth season of Fortnite is nearly here, but before that can happen Epic just has the small matter of ending season 4. After rocket launches, rumours and an epidemic of rifts devouring landmarks around the map, finding out what’s going on will be probably be a greater reward than the new season itself. Where season 3 ended with comets filling the sky ahead of the map’s crater-filled redesign, now we now have rifts taking away part of the map every day this week. That’s only likely to escalate in this final week as everything wraps up for a whole new start. Will those hop rock filled trucks reach their destination? Will there be any more monster footprints? What else will the portals take? The only way to find out is to stay tuned over the next week and see what happens. Leon Hurley

What: Fortnite
Where: PS4, Xbox One, NIntendo Switch, PC
When: Sometime before July 12 at 8AM BST / 4AM EDT / 12AM PDT

2. Ant-Man and the Wasp hits theatres, but with a month between UK and US release dates, one side of the Atlantic better watch out

After years of the UK getting Disney movies before the US, America is finally getting its own back as Ant-Man and the Wasp lands in theatres this Friday - a whole MONTH before the UK gets it. Why the gap between release dates? Disney hasn’t commented, but most think it’s to allow the World Cup to pass, so that Europe is over its football craze and back in cinemas come August. This means one of two things for you. If you’re in America, it’s time to be unbearably smug on Twitter after you watch the latest MCU movie this weekend. And if you’re in the UK, it’s time to get off Twitter completely for fear of spoilers. While staying away from all social media for an entire month isn’t really realistic for most of us, there are some tools you can use to try and stop the tide of Ant-Man and the Wasp spoilers about to head your way. If you go to your settings in Twitter and click on ‘Muted words’ you can mute any tweets with a specific keyword - such as Ant-Man and the Wasp - so you won’t see anything related to that word in your feed. Most other social media platforms have something similar and you can undo it as soon as you’ve seen the movie and are spoiler-safe again. So whether you’re about to find out what Ant-Man and the Wasp were up to while the rest of the Avengers were fighting Thanos, or you’re on your way to an internet-proof cave for a month, it’s going to be an interesting week. Lauren O’Callaghan

What: Ant-Man and the Wasp
When: July 6, 2018 - but only in the US! It’ll hit UK cinemas on August 3, 2018
Where: Theatres

3. Experience the wonder of a movie that is A Quiet Place in the comfort of your own home, and in total silence

It's so rare that a film manages to be so powerful without nary so much as a word, but A Quiet Place does just that. It's incredible just how much of an aural experience a film that hangs on whispers and wafts of music can be. But actually what that means is that it's a movie that was very difficult to watch at the movie theatre (or the cinema to us Brits). Anyone who dared to slurp a slushy, crunch on popcorn, or even - gasp - nachos and that crazy yellow cheese, was glared at and tutted at by anyone else in the room. But of course, they dared, and the pindrop moments of A Quiet Place suddenly became a lot less impactful. That's where the Blu-Ray and DVD release comes in, because when you're watching this movie at home, you'll be able to appreciate the silence. Ban snacks, make sure the pets are on serious nap time, and tuck the kids away in bed, because A Quiet Place deserves to be watch. And to be watched with no other distractions, audibly or visually. Sam Loveridge

What: A Quiet Place
Where: On DVD and Blu-Ray in the US (UK date TBC)
When: July 10

4. For Video Game Day, take a moment to revel in the fact that we live in the age of video games

Mario, The Last of Us, Fortnite

Prepare yourself: any videogames you play on July 8 are going to be imbued with a special significance. No, there’s not an exclusive timed event or even a new item - instead, July 8 is officially Video Game Day, a time for gamers everywhere to unite in their love for those virtual worlds. There might not be a parade going on in the street, but there are still plenty of ways to show your admiration for your game - or games - of choice. As well as playing that glorious title, you could wear some merch into college or work, whip up a gaming-inspired dish (make sure to keep an eye on your sweetrolls), team up with someone in Fortnite’s duos and make yourself a buddy, or just spend a moment in quiet thanks that we live in a time when videogames exist. Not that your gratitude has to be silent… fireworks exist precisely for moments like these, right? Zoe Delahunty-Light

What: Video Game Day
Where: EVERYWHEREEEEE
When: July 8

5. Defiance 2050 brings a last-gen MMO back from the dead, but can it pull off a Final Fantasy XIV-style comeback? 

Remember Defiance? No one would blame you if you didn’t. The 2013 MMO was based off the Syfy TV show of the same name, and the two pillars planned to intertwine with each other for a “groundbreaking” user experience, with changes to the game reflecting new developments in each episode. Unfortunately, Defiance the show got cancelled after three seasons, thereby robbing the game of the only thing keeping it unique. Never one to back down from a tough situation, developer Trion Worlds has not only continued to support Defiance, but completely reworked it from the ground up. This new and improved reboot now arrives on PS4 and Xbox One in the form of Defiance 2050, promising improved visuals, new gameplay, and a robust free-to-play business model. Whether that’s enough to keep this unexpectedly resilient MMO alive is anyone’s guess, but you’ll be able to test it out for yourself once Defiance 2050 makes impact next week. Alex Avard 

What: Defiance 2050
Where: PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One
When: July 10

6. If you're interested in the future of Warframe - and you should be - you need to tune into Tennocon

If you're not already a devotee of Warframe, you should give it a try - it's one of the best free games out there. And if you are, you know why this weekend will hold one of the biggest event of the year for fans: TennoCon is coming on July 7. The day-long convention brings Warframe fans, prominent community members, and the developers themselves together in London, Ontario. Though tickets sold out a while ago, you can still tune in at home for the main event. Tenno Live will outline the future of the game; developer Digital Extremes revealed the Plains of Eidolon update (which added a huge new open-world zone) at Tenno Live last year and the studio's teasing even bigger news this year. Check the details below to see when and how you can watch. Connor Sheridan

What:  Tenno Live 2018, the main event of the third annual official Warframe convention
When: July 7 from 3pm to 4 pm PDT / 6pm to 7pm EDT / 11pm to midnight BST
Where: London Convention Centre in London, Ontario

7. Twitch meets The Hunger Games in Darwin Project, another free Battle Royale game for your Xbox One

If you, like me, are twiddling your thumbs in between rounds of Fortnite and Destiny 2, desperately waiting for something new to tuck into, Scavenger Studios might hold the answer. With its focus on pitting 10 players against each other in a perennially receding combat zone, Darwin Project might sound like a cheap battle royale knock off at first, but the newly released free-to-play game has been in development long before PUBG or Fortnite were ever a thing. Darwin Project’s real USP, however, is the way it incorporates streaming culture into its gameplay. Show Director mode gives one player the ability to manipulate the map and mess with competitors from above, and if said director is streaming the game on Twitch, their audience can have a say on how they go about influencing events. That reason alone should be enough to at least give Darwin Project a shot this weekend. Alex Avard

What: Darwin Project
Where: PC, Xbox One
When: Out now

8. Develop: Brighton invites gaming's keenest minds to discuss the future of our industry, with insight from Sony's Shuhei Yoshida

Shuhei Yoshida, Present Sony Worldwide Studios

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Brighton might be a small seaside town in the south of England, but that doesn't stop it from becoming the key destination for game developers at this time of year. The Develop: Brighton conference invites game makers, and budding developers, to gather together to talk about the present - and future - of our industry, including insight from some of the gaming industry's big dogs. This year, there's even a (fake) fireside chat with none other than Shuhei Yoshida, the President of PlayStation Worldwide Studios. There's a chat with Haden Blackman and Andy Wilson from Hangar 13 about Mafia 3, EA Motive's Jade Raymond talking about her career and the studio's upcoming Star Wars game, and Bossa Studios' Chet Faliszek talking about the Future of AI in games creation. You can check out the full Develop schedule right here. It should be interesting stuff, and although you can't watch a live stream direct from the Develop Conference itself, we'll be on the ground bringing you all the most interesting tidbits from the event floor, so stay tuned to gamesradar.com. Sam Loveridge

What: Develop: Brighton
When: July 10 - 12
Where: Brighton, UK and right here on GamesRadar

8 Things to Watch This Week picks the best games, movies and shows of the next seven days every Friday at 9am PDT / 5pm BST.

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