Latest news with #Annihilation
India.com
12 hours ago
- Politics
- India.com
Indias Pralay Missile: Two Successful Tests Validate 500km Range, 700kg Payload
India carried out two successive test flights of its domestically built short-range ballistic missile, 'Pralay,' successfully. The first test was conducted on Monday, and a second successful test followed today, Tuesday. Both tests were launched from Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Island along the coast of Odisha. Indigenously developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the 'Pralay' missile is meant for conventional battlefield deployment and represents a giant step in India's military power. Two consecutive flight trials of 'PRALAY' missile was successfully carried out on 28th and 29th July 2025 as a part of User Evaluation Trials to validate the maximum and minimum range capability of the missile system. The missiles precisely followed the intended trajectory and… — DRDO (@DRDO_India) July 29, 2025 About The 'Pralay' Missile The 'Pralay' (also known as 'Doom' or 'Annihilation') is an SRBM short-range ballistic missile specifically designed for use on the battlefield to meet the requirements of the Indian Air Force and the Army. Its main characteristics are Range: 'Pralay' has a strike range of 150 to 500 kilometers, and it can target both tactical and strategic targets. Payload: It is capable of carrying a conventional warhead weighing 350 to 700 kilograms, and it can target key targets like command centers, logistical bases, and airbases precisely. Propulsion & Guidance: Powered by a solid-fuel rocket motor, the missile provides fast launch capabilities. With onboard advanced navigation and avionics, mid-flight trajectory corrections can be made, making it difficult for opponents to intercept. Mobility: With a twin-launcher system mounted on a high-mobility vehicle, 'Pralay' is optimized for quick deployment in critical border regions. Notably, 'Pralay' is being conceived under India's 'No First Use' nuclear doctrine for use in conventional attacks. This strategic placement enables India to provide a strong retaliation option to opponents without the use of nuclear weapons. Successful Test Launches The initial successful test launch was conducted at 9:35 AM on July 28, 2025, from Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Island. The missile successfully struck the targeted point, meeting all the performance parameters. The second consecutive test on July 29, 2025, also corroborated the real-world performance of the missile, both tests proving to be precise and reliable. The trajectory of the missile in both tests was carefully tracked by detailed coastal monitoring systems, verifying its precision and the strength of its control system. These consecutive successes reflect DRDO's commitment to indigenous technology progress and India's 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' (self-reliant India) drive. Strategic Advantage For India The 'Pralay' missile is likely to greatly enhance India's defense along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and Line of Control (LoC). Its benefits are: Rapid Response: The missile has a launch time of under 10 minutes, giving it a decisive edge in times of border tensions. Deterrence & Control: It acts as a deterrent for would-be aggressors and provides a mechanism to control encounters in short-range combat areas. Accuracy: With the latest technology, it can precisely strike vital enemy installations. Ease of Deployment: Its double-launcher configuration on a high-mobility platform means quick deployment on the borders. 'Pralay' will supplement current systems such as the BrahMos missile to further augment India's overall strike capabilities. Milestone For Indian Security Such successful tests are a landmark milestone for India's security, as they: Prove the success of DRDO's indigenous technology. Equip the Indian Army and Air Force with a solid conventional weapon that can de-escalate tensions at the borders without escalating to nuclear threats. Give India a strategic advantage over surrounding nations, particularly considering the delicate condition of the LAC and LoC. After these successful tests, the 'Pralay' missile is ready for early induction into the Indian Defence Forces, setting a new trajectory for the country's defence readiness. While its induction could be seen as threatening by countries in the vicinity, perhaps raising local tensions, DRDO is also considering ways to further extend its range and even export it globally, strengthening the defence diplomacy of India.
Engadget
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Engadget
Elden Ring Nightreign is adding two-player co-op next week
Elden Ring Nightreign is finally adding a two-player co-op mode on July 30. Prior to this, FromSoftware's spinoff could only be played solo or with three players. The so-called Duo Expeditions come as part of patch 1.02. This is something fans have been asking for, as not everybody has two friends available at once to tackle a tough-as-nails 3D adventure. FromSoftware has released a trailer to accompany this news, so you can see the two-player co-op in action. Beyond Duo Expeditions, the forthcoming patch will include "quality-of-life UI improvements" and options for filtering Relics. We don't know what the UI upgrades will look like, but July 30 is right around the corner. This news comes just two months after the company tweaked the game to make the single-player experience a bit easier. It had been notoriously difficult, even for fans of FromSoftware. That update introduced an automatic revival mechanic and increased rune rewards for solo expeditions. There's no doubt about it. Elden Ring Nightreign is a bona-fide hit. The company also recently shared that the game has reached five million players. The wider Elden Ring universe is slowly but surely becoming a cultural juggernaut. There's a movie in the works, to be directed by Alex Garland. That's the guy who made Annihilation , Ex Machina , Civil War and the underrated TV show Devs .
India.com
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- India.com
Weird, Wacky & Unforgettable: 7 Weirdest Books I've Read—And Why You'll Love Them Too
photoDetails english 2928587 Weird, Wacky & Unforgettable: 7 Weirdest Books I've Read—And Why You'll Love Them Too, this takes you on a journey through some of the strangest and most unexpected reads out there. These 7 unique books defy genres, challenge norms, and leave a lasting impression with their odd plots, eccentric characters, and mind-bending storytelling. These are perfect for curious readers seeking something different. This list of 7 books celebrates the beauty of the bizarre and shows why these unconventional reads are worth adding to your bookshelf. Updated:Jul 08, 2025, 02:27 PM IST House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski 1 / 7 House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski This book isn't just a story; it's an experience. The plot follows a family discovering that their house is mysteriously larger inside than outside. But the story is told through bizarre footnotes, overlapping narratives, and text that twists, flips, or spirals across the pages. It's unsettling, haunting, and unique. You don't just read it, you decode it. The Vegetarian by Han Kang 2 / 7 The Vegetarian by Han Kang It begins with a woman's decision to stop eating meat after a disturbing dream, but it quickly spirals into obsession, alienation, and surreal imagery about plants and human bodies. It's eerie, dark, and very metaphorical. It explores themes of control, freedom, and madness in a short yet powerful read. Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami 3 / 7 Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami It features talking cats, mysterious disappearances, raining fish, and bizarre prophecies. Reality and dreams blur completely in this coming-of-age fantasy. Murakami's poetic writing and surreal world make this weird ride oddly comforting. Night Film by Marisha Pessl 4 / 7 Night Film by Marisha Pessl This creepy thriller revolves around the mysterious death of the daughter of a reclusive horror filmmaker. The book mixes regular narrative with photos, news clippings, and web pages, creating an unsettling, interactive vibe. It's like falling into a dark rabbit hole, perfect for fans of eerie mysteries and metafiction. Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer 5 / 7 Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer Part of the Southern Reach Trilogy, it explores a mysterious, ever-shifting area called 'Area X.' The story is filled with bizarre creatures, hallucinations, and cosmic horror. It's a short but deeply unsettling exploration of nature, identity, and the unknown. The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien 6 / 7 The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien This surreal Irish novel blends murder mystery, philosophy, and absurd humor. It features a world where bicycles merge with humans, time loops, and lots of existential confusion. It's mind-bending, hilarious, and unlike anything else you'll read. Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders 7 / 7 Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders The novel takes place in a graveyard, where the spirit of Abraham Lincoln's deceased son interacts with a bizarre cast of ghosts, all trapped between life and death. It's emotional, experimental, and strangely beautiful—a weird mix of history and ghost story.
Otago Daily Times
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Latest zombie instalment dissects the human condition
28 YEARS LATER Director: Danny BoyleCast: Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jack O'Connell, Alfie Williams, Ralph FiennesRating: (R16) ★★★★+ REVIEWED BY AMASIO JUTEL Twenty-eight years after the "rage virus" was liberated from an animal testing lab by eco-terrorists, the British Isles are under strict quarantine. On the mainland, the virus runs rampant, giving birth to an array of new "infecteds". Off the northeast coast of England (Lindisfarne, or "Holy Island"), Spike (Alfie Williams) and his parents, Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Isla (Jodie Comer), live in a fenced off survivor community, connected to the mainland via a causeway only accessible at low tide. Armed with bows and arrows, Jamie and Spike cross the causeway for a father-son rite of passage zombie hunt. A casual (and effective) exposition dump lays the Act One stakes bare — in 4 hours, the tide will be too high to return, and they'll be stuck on the mainland; a natural world that takes no prisoners. Despite the drastic change in iPhone megapixel resolution over 23 years, the 28 visual style remains distinct. Cinematographer of the original film, Anthony Dod Mantle, returns with guerrilla-style, over-the-shoulder shots and canted wides of the father-son duo, a visual metaphor to alienate them from a world where they don't belong — two decades free of humanity's blemish means humans come second. Colourful vistas depict crumbling buildings set in the vast greenery. Striking infrared sequences and freeze-frame bullet-time high-speed pans of explosions of infected blood and guts are staggering, and supplement this gruesome, genre-fare video game logic. The creature innovation of the film is the "alphas" — head-ripping, spinal cord flail-waving infected, whose exposure to the virus has juiced them up to 12-foot-tall beasts. Forced to hide under the cover of night, having missed their four-hour window home, Spike and Jamie are taunted by the looming silhouette of an Alpha on the horizon line, twice the size of any infected near it. The menacing threat is actualised in an electrifying foot race across the shin-deep causeway home. A slightly shocking tonal shift finally marks the main protagonist (masked by the strange billing order that likely is owed to a confirmed sequel), who sets out on a Wizard of Oz-style cross-country journey with a haphazard crew, through a colourful array of set pieces to the remarkable "Bone Temple". A document of the lives that have been, it's undeniably amazing scenery, complete with an eccentric "third act Fiennes" masterclass to go with. Garland's writing packages themes explored in his own work. His forensic diagnosis of humanity — folk horror and tribalism, the rule of nature and nationalism — marries well with Boyle's humanistic directorial lens, who has an approach to character direction much less subtle, perhaps even brittle, compared to recent Garland projects, Annihilation, Men and Civil War. The film straddles that line between cold diagnosis of the human condition and the viscerality of the horror and humanity in this film, profoundly so. This is no more resonant than in Spike's first venture across the causeway. Boyle deploys a stern sonic and visual pastiche to a renowned 1915 recording of Rudyard Kipling's Second Boer War poem, Boots . Overlayed with footage from the classic film Henry V , and non-fiction footage of wartime, Boyle harmonises with Garland's thematic endeavour to indicate the splintering society through tribalist strife, harkening back to the act three twist of 28 Days Later . Garland's interest in folk horror is particularly symbolic, characterising the arbitrary centring power of religion amid conflict. Masks and churches figure prominently; ritual practices denote the in-community and those who are cast out. The communal power of the church on "Holy Island" (literally) opposes the structural integrity of those on the mainland, where they're seen as decrepit and crumbling. The bookends of the film materialise this thematic idea very openly. 28 Years Later is post-post-apocalyptic horror with a deep emotional storyline, exhilarating action, and bombastic film-making, and a tale of the cold-hearted tribalism and polarisation that its writer too often pontificates about in less effective films.
Geek Tyrant
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Tyrant
Even Alex Garland Can't Beat Malenia in ELDEN RING and He Talks About His Experience — GeekTyrant
If you've ever rage-quit after your tenth attempt to beat Malenia in Elden Ring , you're in good company, director Alex Garland knows your pain. The acclaimed filmmaker behind Ex Machina and Annihilation , who's also set to direct the upcoming Elden Ring movie from A24, is currently on his seventh playthrough of the game. Turns out, he's still stuck on the same boss that haunts the dreams of countless Tarnished: Malenia, Blade of Miquella. In an interview with IGN while promoting 28 Years Later , Garland confessed: "It's Malenia who's the tough one. I'm now on my seventh playthrough of that game. I've leveled up, I've got lots of juice, and a cool sword, and stuff like that, and I just throw myself at them again, and again, and again, and again. 'That was the technique I learned with 'Dark Souls.' It's not that you get better, it's more like monkeys and typewriters. You just keep doing it, and eventually, one day, they're dead." Garland's struggle with Malenia is hilariously relatable. She's notorious for regaining health with every hit she lands, even if you block, and her hyper-aggressive moveset makes even the most leveled-up builds feel undercooked. It took my forever to beat this character! Her second phase, where she transforms into the Goddess of Rot, kicks off with a deadly AOE that can one-shot you if you're not already sprinting in the opposite direction. And Garland? He's still stuck in the same masochistic loop the rest of us fell into… learning by dying. Over, and over. But it's not all pain and panic rolls. Garland does find a silver lining in other boss fights, like Starscourge Radahn: "Radahn is really easy. You just summon a bunch of guys, they take down half his health, and then you keep hitting him.' Which, sure, works in the base game, but any Tarnished who's braved the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC knows that strategy won't fly with Promised Consort Radahn. That rematch is a full-blown endurance test with no summons, a brutal arena, and attacks designed to break your spirit. Whether you're a first-time player or the director tasked with adapting Elden Ring for the big screen, the struggle is universal. Garland gets that, and it's a good sign for the film. Between his persistent trial-and-error playstyle and George R. R. Martin's involvement as a producer, the Elden Ring adaptation might actually capture the spirit of the game, not just the lore, but the real emotional loop of failure, perseverance, and triumph. In other words… suffering.
