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Tag: predator

  • Roblox sued by Southern California families alleging children met predators on its platform

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    Video gaming platform Roblox is facing more lawsuits from parents who allege the San Mateo, Calif., company isn’t doing enough to safeguard children from sexual predators.

    A Los Angeles County mother, whose identity wasn’t revealed in a November lawsuit, alleges that her daughter met a predator on Roblox who persuaded her child to send sexually explicit photos of herself over the social media platform Discord. The woman is suing both Roblox and the San Francisco company Discord.

    When her daughter signed up for the gaming platform last year at 12 years old, the woman thought Roblox was safe because it was marketed for children and as educational, according to the lawsuit filed in a Los Angeles County Superior Court.

    But then her daughter befriended a person on Roblox known as “Precious” who claimed to be 15 years old and told her child that she had been abused at home and had no friends, the lawsuit said. Her daughter, accompanied by a friend’s parents, met up with the Roblox user at a beach and the person appeared older and attempted to introduce her to a group of older men.

    After they met, the predator tried to persuade the girl to visit her apartment alone in Fullerton and tried to alienate her from her family. The child suffered from psychological trauma, depression and other emotional distress because of her experiences on Roblox and Discord, according to the lawsuit.

    The lawsuit accuses Roblox and Discord of prioritizing profits over safety, creating a “digital” and “real-life nightmare” for children. It also alleges the companies’ failures are systematic and other children have also suffered harm from encountering predators on the platforms.

    “Her innocence has been snatched from her and her life will never be the same,” the lawsuit said.

    Roblox said in a statement it’s “deeply troubled by any incident that endangers any user” and prioritizes online safety.

    “We also understand that no system is perfect and that is why we are constantly working to further improve our safety tools and platform restrictions to ensure parents can trust us to help keep their children safe online, launching 145 new initiatives this year alone,” the statement said.

    Discord said it’s committed to safety and requires users to be at least 13 years old to use its platform.

    “We maintain strong systems to prevent the spread of sexual exploitation and grooming on our platform and also work with other technology companies and safety organizations to improve online safety across the internet,” the company said in a statement.

    The lawsuit is the latest scrutiny facing Roblox, a platform popular among young people. More than 151 million people use it daily. Earlier this year, the platform faced a wave of lawsuits from people in various states who allege that predators are posing as kids on the platform and sexually exploiting children.

    NBC4 News, which reported earlier on the lawsuit, also reported that Roblox is facing another lawsuit from a California family in Riverside who allege their child was sexually assaulted by a man the child met on Roblox. That man was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

    Roblox has been taking new steps this year to address mounting child-safety concerns. In November, the company said it would require users to verify their age to chat with other players. Roblox users would provide an ID or take a video selfie to verify their age. The verification feature estimates a person’s age, allowing the company to limit conversations between children and adults.

    The lawsuit by the Los Angeles County woman called safety changes made in 2024 by Roblox “woefully inadequate” and said they were made “too late.”

    “These changes could all have been implemented years ago,” the lawsuit said. “None of them involve any new or groundbreaking technology. Roblox only moved forward when its stock was threatened.”

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    Queenie Wong

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  • Dan Trachtenberg Gave ‘Predator: Badlands’ a Better, More Fun Ending

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    Dek of the Yautja goes through a lot throughout Predator: Badlands, all in the name of seeking validation from his father, Njohrr. This being Predator, “validation” actually means “trial by combat,” and the showdown between father and son at the end was almost more restrained than what we got on screen.

    In the final cut of the film, Dek and Njohrr’s fight on Yautja Prime has them really going at it. But as Wētā’s two supervisors—Sheldon Stopsack for VFX, and Karl Rapley for animation—revealed to Polygon, that clash was originally more akin to a samurai film. “Father would turn invisible, and there’d be a quick rush as they ran toward each other,” explained Rapley. “Dek threw sand at Father, which revealed him, and then they crossed paths, like a samurai standoff, and they went to the opposite sides, and then Father’s arm fell off. So it was just a very quick exchange.”

    After watching the film, director Dan Trachtenberg approached Wētā about doing a “bigger” sequence that would make it feel “more of a moment.” The Predator: Badlands stunt team came down to New Zealand and made a brand new fight sequence, so Wētā had to digitally create Yautja Prime, including the clan guards Dek disposes of and the planet’s geographical features. Using the original fight as a reference point, Rapley said the team used “sweeping camera moves” for the new sequence and created a sandstorm from scratch.

    Stopsack felt the sandstorm served a “narrative point” of Dek outsmarting his father, and the idea behind it was sound. It may have been a challenge, but he said the team was “excited” to tackle it and considers it “one of the more beautiful, fun aspects [of the film]. Dan told us, ‘We don’t want to show them clearly. It wants to be muddy and a bit more gritty.’ I really admired that and resonated with it.”

    With the longer fight, audiences get to see how Dek’s come into his own as a hunter, and it hopefully gets them excited about where he goes next. There’s no word yet on if we’re getting a sequel to Predator: Badlands, but at the very least, it feels like the young Yautja has endeared himself enough to hopefully pop up somewhere else.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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    Justin Carter

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  • The Best Rocket Launcher In Destiny 2 And How To Get It

    The Best Rocket Launcher In Destiny 2 And How To Get It

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    Destiny 2 is back on the menu thanks to a brilliant new horde mode called Onslaught. As players return to the sci-fi shooter MMO in droves following the free Into The Light update that’s been showering them with loot, a lot of you are no doubt behind on the latest top gear. Fortunately, Apex Predator is arguably the best legendary rocket launcher in the game and it’s really straightforward to get, making it the perfect piece of loot to grind for ahead of The Final Shape.

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    A reprised version of Apex Predator arrived in Destiny 2’s Last Wish raid last year and remains the gold standard in high-damage rocket launchers thanks to brand new perks like Reconstruction and Bait and Switch.

    The first slowly increases reload speed over time while the second provides a damage boost shortly after firing all weapons back to back. Bipod for more ammo and Explosive Light for higher damage and blast radius after picking up an orb of light are also decent perks.

    While some of Destiny 2’s best guns are a pain to get, Apex Predator isn’t one of them. It can drop from any encounter in the Last Wish raid, making it easy to hop in, get to the first checkpoint, and then fight the first boss, Kalli, over and over until you finally get Apex Predator to drop. Here’s a quick guide from Destiny 2 YouTuber Datto on how to complete that encounter:

    If you’re lucky, you’ll get one with some version of the above perks earlier on. If not, however, don’t worry: Apex Predator is also craftable. Unlocking the craftable frame for Apex Predator requires collecting five deepsight versions of the weapon (also known as red borders). That can take a lot longer but it will also allow you to level the solar rocket launcher up and equip enhanced versions of its perks to boost its stats even more. Players can also take part in the recently added Riven Wishes quests to unlock weekly tokens that let them automatically earn one randomly rolled Apex Predator.

    Now, perhaps you’re just getting back into Destiny 2 and really want a great rocket launcher people won’t make fun of you for but all of this sounds like way more work than you were counting on. Good news: Hothead is another decent rocket launcher and it doesn’t require any raiding. You can get one directly from Zavala in The Tower. All you need in order to buy it is to give him three Vanguard Engrams and 25,000 Glimmer.

    Hopefully you land one with Auto-Loading Holster, Explosive Light, Demolitionist, Clown Cartridge, Field Prep, or Vorpal Weapon. Still, if you plan on going hard once Destiny 2’s climactic The Final Shape expansion arrives on June 4, it’s probably worth chasing Apex Predator. It’ll be a great day-one raid weapon and will no doubt serve you well in the expansion’s challenging main campaign.

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    Ethan Gach

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  • ‘Prey’ Director Returning for New ‘Predator’ Sequel

    ‘Prey’ Director Returning for New ‘Predator’ Sequel

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    Amber Midthunder in

    After taking the franchise into the past with the badass 2022 prequel Prey, director Dan Trachtenberg is returning with a new Predator sequel—and this time, we’re going (back) to the future.

    Per The Hollywood Reporter, Trachtenberg has signed on to direct Badlands, a new installment in the Predator franchise. Trachtenberg developed the story with Patrick Aison, who wrote the screenplay for both Prey and the upcoming Badlands. Unlike Prey, which was set in the 18th century and centered on a Comanche woman (Amber Midthunder) going toe-to-toe with a Predator, Badlands will be set “sometime in the future.” Little else is known about the plot, though THR notes that Badlands will also feature a female protagonist—and honestly, I wouldn’t mind if Trachtenberg found a way to cast Midthunder again.

    The series kicked off in 1987 with the release of Predator, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and the late Carl Weathers. Shane Black, who would go on to write and direct Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and The Nice Guys, had a small supporting role in Predator and famously punched up the script on set, though his work was uncredited. John McTiernan directed the 1987 film, which was followed by 1990’s Predator 2, starring Danny Glover. The franchise lay dormant until 2010’s Predators, directed by Nimród Antal and produced by Robert Rodriguez. Black returned to the series for 2018’s The Predator, which he directed and co-wrote with Fred Dekker. Reports of studio interference were validated by the finished product—an underwhelming mess that lacked Black’s usual sensibilities.

    Prey was a huge success when it was released on Hulu in 2022. The film was originally slated for a theatrical release, but under 20th Century Studios’ previous output deal, Prey would’ve ended up on HBO after its theatrical run. Having just acquired 20th Century, Disney decided to circumvent that release strategy by dropping Prey on Hulu. Now, according to THR, 20th Century is developing a new series of Predator films based on the success of Prey.

    Badlands does not yet have a release date, but it seems likely that it could hit theaters as soon as 2025.

    (featured image: 20th Century Studios)

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    Britt Hayes

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  • Prey’s Dan Trachtenberg Is Directing a New Predator Movie

    Prey’s Dan Trachtenberg Is Directing a New Predator Movie

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    Prey
    Image: Hulu

    Great news for fans of the Predator franchise, particularly standalone prequel entry Prey: the director of that 2022 film, Dan Trachtenberg (who also made 10 Cloverfield Lane), is returning to the universe. While Prey 2 still might happen, that’s not what this new project is; rather, it’s another standlone titled Badlands.

    As Deadline reports, Badlands is a direct result of Prey’s success; despite being a straight-to-Hulu release in a time when theaters where still reopening after the height of the pandemic, it was a critical and audience smash. There’s no word yet if Badlands will get a theatrical release, but it seems like a good possibility; the trade writes that the project is “high prority” for 20th Century, with the lead role currently being cast and shooting due to start later in 2024.

    There are no specific plot details yet, but we can absolutely assume the story will involve an alien hunter coming to Earth with all manner of ridiculous weaponry, hoping to add more victims to their kill count. Purely speculating here, but the title Badlands evokes the Wild West era; if Trachtenberg is going for another period piece in the vein of Prey, perhaps we’ll see some sharpshooting outlaws in the mix.

    Are you excited for a new Predator movie that follows Prey’s blueprint for success? Let us know in the comments below.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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    Cheryl Eddy

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  • New law will ban rat poison that was harmful to wildlife

    New law will ban rat poison that was harmful to wildlife

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    Wildlife advocates are hailing the passage of Assembly Bill 1322, which expands a moratorium on rat poison, as a win for mountain lions, coyotes and other animals that live in and around urban areas across California.

    The new law, also known as the California Ecosystems Protections Act of 2023, will place a moratorium on diphacinone, a first-generation anticoagulant rat poison, developed before 1970. The law will take effect Jan. 1.

    Mountain lions, coyotes and other animals are often the unintended victims of the poison when they eat smaller animals, like squirrels, possum or raccoons that have consumed the rat poison. Diphacinone is often used to kill rats, squirrels and other rodents.

    The new legislation is an expansion of a similar bill passed in 2020, which placed a moratorium on second-generation rodenticides, those developed after 1970.

    The rat poison suppresses an animal’s immune system and can be a factor in general population decline, according to Laurel Serieys, postdoctoral scholar in environmental studies at the University of Santa Cruz who expressed her concerns to the California Department of Pesticide Regulation in 2018.

    Los Angeles’ beloved mountain lion P-22, which was euthanized last year after suffering a number of health issues and injuries after the animal was hit by a car, was exposed to rat poison in 2014 and was suffering from mange, a parasitic infection. The mountain lion’s illness spurred action in the California Legislature that led to the first moratorium on rat poison in 2020.

    Despite the 2020 legislation, the Center for Biological Diversity said that “wildlife continues to be exposed to rodenticide and suffer from illnesses and death due to unintended poisoning.”

    Diphacinone has been prevalent for so long because “it kills, not just rodents, but larger animals up the food chain,” said Tony Tucci co-founder of Citizens for Los Angeles Wildlife, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit that works to restore the habitat of wildlife.

    “This bill not only had strong support in the state Legislature, it also had support from local municipalities like Los Angeles County, and we are thrilled that policymakers are understanding that poisoning the predators of rodents through secondary exposure is counterproductive, killing nature’s predators in the wild will ultimately result in more rodents,” Tucci said.

    Los Angeles County approved a motion earlier this year asking the state of California to ban first-generation anticoagulant rodenticides.

    Rat poisoning products are readily available on the consumer market as ready-to-bait stations that contain that contain rodenticides, including diphacinone, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

    Poison Free Malibu, a wildlife-protection activist group, was pleased by the passage of Assembly Bill 1322 but said there is still work to be done on other pesticides.

    “We are still concerned about other poisons, which are coming to the fore now that the anticoagulants are being restricted,” said Kian and Joel Schulman, founding members of the group.

    They suggest using alternative solutions to rid pests, such as trash control, sanitation and making sure buildings are properly sealed to prevent rodents from entering.

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    Karen Garcia

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