The price of the GTA 5 Xbox Series X/S remaster has been spotted online, giving us our first look at how much the latest version of Rockstar’s acclaimed open-world shooter will cost.
A listing for the Xbox Series X /S version of Grand Theft Auto V was spotted on the Australian official Xbox store by prolific gaming deal tweeter Wario64 . The game is listed for AU$ 59.95 - which equates to about $44.00 / £33.50 - and is currently discounted to AU$29.97 - about $22.00 / £16.73.
Meanwhile, the Xbox Series X/S version of Grand Theft Auto Online, GTA 5’s multiplayer component, can be bought separately for AU$30.95 - about $23.00 / £17.30 - and is also currently discounted to half price.
According to the page’s description, the 50% discount will be live until June 14, 2022. That's a long time, given the next-gen versions of GTA 5 are planned to release later this month on March 15.
In the run-up to that launch date, Rockstar has been feeding fans more details about the remaster, including GTA 5’s PS5 and Xbox Series X/S graphics options . You’ll be able to choose from three graphics modes: Fidelity, which offers 4k resolution and ray-tracing at 30fps; Performance, which drops ray-tracing for 60fps and 4k resolutions; and Performance RT, that’s a hybrid selection of the other two modes.
Analysis: a fair price?
Given that GTA 5 was released almost a decade ago, and has already received one next-gen port to the PS4 and Xbox One , we’d expect this latest remaster to launch with a healthy price cut. The vicinity of $20 to $25 seems appropriate, although those that don’t snap up the game before June will be stuck paying double that figure once the discount ends. That’s not a small amount, considering many will have already played through the game several times over.
Graphical improvements, faster loading times, and all the other benefits of the latest hardware will convince many to shell out again for Rockstar’s open-world shooter. Add to that immersive 3D audio and haptic feedback for the PS5, and those who live to jack police cars or cause mayhem will be convinced.
Some may think the discounted price isn’t as generous as it might first seem. CD Projekt Red recently released the next-gen upgrade of Cyberpunk 2077 for free to all players who currently own the game on PS4 and Xbox One, making the pricing of this GTA 5 remaster harder to stomach. But Cyberpunk 2077 is complicated by its controversial launch. Many see its next-gen version as the true version of the game, and the one they were promised before launch. Don't expect many other publishers to follow CD Projekt Red by giving away remasters for free.
PS5 players will be getting a freebie, however. If you play GTA V Online on PS4, you can claim the multiplayer component on PS5 for free up to three months after it launches this March. Xbox players have no such luck, however, and will have to purchase the standalone title again if they want to play on Microsoft’s latest platform.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ending and post-credits scene explained
Major spoilers follow for Doctor Strange 2. You have been warned.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has finally landed in theaters. And, obvious as it is for us to say, we imagine you have plenty of questions about what you've just watched on the big screen.
The latest Marvel movie is a surreal, horror-infused multiversal adventure with many moving parts. For one, there are character cameos from other Marvel superhero film franchises. If you're interested in reading about every one who turns up in Doctor Strange 2, check out our full cameos guide .
Meanwhile, there's the continuation of plot points sets up in previous Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) projects like Spider-Man: No Way Home , WandaVision , and Loki , a fair degree of action, and teases for Doctor Strange's next solo movie.
Your head may be in a spin, then, after taking in Doctor Strange 2. Based on the above, we'd be surprised if it wasn't. Luckily for you, though, we're here to help. Below, we run through everything worth knowing about the ending of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. That includes its mid-and post-credits scenes (and their cameos), which character survive to end of the film, how its sets up another Marvel Phase 4 project, and more.
It goes without saying that you shouldn't read past this point if you're yet to see Doctor Strange 2. We're diving into huge spoiler territory from now on , so turn back now unless you've watched it. But be sure to bookmark this page and return once you've seen the movie.
Doctor Strange 2 ending explained: does Wanda die?
Despite its two-hour runtime, Doctor Strange 2's plot gets through a lot . So let's break down what actually occurs during its finale, plus any important events leading up to it.
Ahead of the film's third act, Doctor Strange, America Chavez, and Earth-838's version of Christine Palmer go in search of the Book of Vishanti, a supremely powerful and magical tome that has the power to gift sorcerers whatever abilities, spells, and other magic that they require. This is the same book that Defender Strange and Chavez tried to reach in the movie's opening sequence as they attempted to defeat Gargantos.
With Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch consumed by the Darkhold – the book of unspeakably evil power – it seems that the Book of Vishanti is the only way that the trio can stop her from tearing the multiverse apart. Their quest, though, is in vain. Just as they reach the Book of Vishanti, Scarlet Witch catches up with them. You know, after she's brutally murdered the Illuminati. You can read more about them in our separate cameos article, which is linked above.
She destroys the Book of Vishanti, captures Chavez, and sends Doctor Strange and Christine through one of Chavez's multiverse portals into a different dimension. All Scarlet Witch needs to do now is steal Chavez's multiverse-traversing powers (killing Chavez in the process), track down her kids Billy and Tommy in an alternate universe, and be reunited with them forever. Oh, and hold dominion over the multiverse, just in case she needs to escape with them to another reality if her children are ever in danger.
Meanwhile, Strange and Christine land in one of the universes that Supreme Strange – Earth-838's version of Doctor Strange – inadvertently destroyed during his Incursion Event. As a reminder, Incursion Events occur when someone uses the Darkhold to travel between two universes, causing them to collide with one another, and destroying both (and killing trillions) in the process. Supreme Strange had used the Darkhold at some point, which led to an Incursion Event between two universes that he had visited. After The Illuminati defeat their universe's version of Thanos, the rest of the superhero group's members vote to kill Supreme Strange as he's considered a threat to the multiverse. Reluctantly, Black Bolt terminates Supreme Strange with his quasi-sonic scream.
Here, Doctor Strange meets Sinister Strange (another of his variants) to try and convince the latter to let the former use Sinister Strange's version of the Darkhold (a copy exists in every universe) so he can stop Scarlet Witch. Sinister Strange had turned to the Darkhold to try and save his universe, but his efforts were in vain. Instead, the Darkhold exacted a heavy toll on him, leaving Strange with a third eye and more, well, sinister abilities than his MCU counterpart.
Long story short, Sinister refuses to hand over his Darkhold. He also says that, because he didn't win the hand of Christine in his universe and get his happy ending, he has vowed to kill every other Strange variant. The pair fight and the MCU's Strange winds up killing Sinister Strange.
Doctor Strange uses the Darkhold to dreamwalk, i the process that allows a sorcerer to possess (or astral project into) a variant of themselves in another universe. He places his consciousness in the corpse of Defender Strange – the Strange variant who died during the film's beginning and inadvertently traveled to the MCU with Chavez via the latter's multiverse portal. With Christine's help, Doctor Strange uses the Souls of the Damned – evil spirits that try to drag sorcerers to their doom – to bolster Defender Strange's magical abilities, allowing Defender Strange's undead body to travel to Mount Wundagore and stop Scarlet Witch.
At Chthon's tower on Mount Wundagore (the birthplace of chaos magic and where the Darkhold's multiple spells were transcribed from), Scarlet Witch begins to steal Chavez's powers. However, she's interrupted by Defender Strange and Wong – the latter having survived his fall and climbed back to the mountain's summit. The pair defeat Scarlet Witch's demonic henchmen before battling Scarlet Witch and, after they briefly incapacitate her, Doctor Strange (through Defender Strange) delivers a confidence-boosting speech to Chavez to use her powers without fear.
Breaking free of Strange and Wong's prison, Scarlet Witch immobilizes them, setting up a showdown with Chavez. The pair briefly duel until Chavez realizes that she can only beat Scarlet Witch one way. She opens a multiverse portal to the universe where Scarlet Witch had previously dreamwalked as that universe's version of Wanda, who is the mom of Billy and Tommy in that dimension.
Shocked at Scarlet Witch's arrival, this universe's Wanda tries to protect Billy and Tommy but is attacked by her counterpart. A terrified Billy and Tommy lash out at Scarlet Witch before cowering in fear. Scarlet Witch realizes that she's become a monster and, after the Wanda variant comforts her, she tearfully leaves. Scarlet Witch returns to Mount Wundagore and, consumed by guilt, tells Wong and Chavez that she must atone for her sins. The duo leave through a multiverse portal as Scarlet Witch destroys Chthon's castle, seemingly killing herself in the process and eradicating all traces of chaos magic from the multiverse.
His dreamwalk having ended, Doctor Strange makes his peace with Christine's Earth-838 variant. Chavez and Wong show up to drop Christine back in her universe, before the duo and Strange return to their reality. The trio make their way to Kamar-Taj, where Wong oversees Chavez's training in the Mystic Arts. Strange departs for the Sanctum Santorum, but not before he and Wong share a heart-warming moment about whether they're both happy with their lot in life.
In the present, Strange fixes his broken watch and heads out into New York. However, and a sharp pain spreads throughout his head and Strange falls to his knees screaming as numerous people look on. Strange looks up to the camera as a third eye appears in the middle of his forehead. Cut to black, roll credits, etcetera.
Doctor Strange 2 mid-credits scene explained: who is Charlize Theron's character Clea?
The first Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' post-credits scene is a delightful and comic book fan service-y one.
After the first lot of credits roll, we see Stephen Strange walking down a street in New York. Someone calls out to him and, after he turns around, we see none other than Charlize Theron (Mad Max: Fury Road, Fast and Furious ) – in a purple and black ensemble – standing a few yards away.
Theron's character – Clea – tells Strange that she tracked him down as he's caused an Incursion Event and says the pair are going to fix it. She conjures a purple-colored magical weapon to tear a hole in the fabric of reality, which leads to Dormammu's domain, aka the Dark Dimension. Remember, Doctor Strange traveled to Dormammu's realm to bargain with him in Strange's first solo Marvel movie .
Clea tells Doctor Strange that he needs to follow her to overturn the effects of the Incursion, which he agrees to. Strange's third eye appears on his forehead again and the pair enter Clea's portal before the screen cuts to black.
So, who is Clea? In short, she's a fellow sorcerer who has major ties to Dormammu. In the comics, Clea is the daughter of Prince Orini (the son of the Dark Dimension's former ruler) and Umar, Dormammu's sister. So we guess you can say she has personal reasons for traveling to the MCU's Dark Dimension and discussing matters with Strange and her interdimensional, universe-consuming uncle.
In Marvel's source material, Clea is initially a disciple of Doctor Strange's, who trains her in the Mystic Arts. The pair become lovers and eventually marry. Later on in the comics, Clea returns to the Dark Dimension to become its Sorceress Supreme. And, after Strange dies fighting the Three Mothers, Clea even assumes the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme in the comics' main universe, aka Earth-616.
It's unclear if Clea's MCU arc will be similar to (or differ from) her comic book counterpart, but we suspect that she'll play a major supporting role in Doctor Strange's third solo adventure. Leaked concept art had previously suggested she'd appear in Doctor Strange 2, too, so it's very cool to see her do so.
Even so, it may be a while before Strange returns for another MCU movie – star Benedict Cumberbatch has told IGN that he's taking a break from acting and isn't sure when he'll return. Despite the sheer number of Marvel films on the way, here's hoping it won't be too long of a wait.
Doctor Strange 2 post-credits scene explained: who is Bruce Campbell's character Pizza Poppa?
Unlike its end-credits stinger cousin, Doctor Strange 2's second post-credits scene isn't much to write home about.
In it, we're reunited with Bruce Campbell's Pizza Poppa, the street vendor who encountered Doctor Strange and America Chavez after they arrive on Earth-838.
The scene is only a brief one, and it simply shows Pizza Poppa continuing to punch himself in the face after Strange cast a spell on him to do so. Remember, Pizza Poppa was rude to the pair earlier in the film so, in a humorous form of retaliation, Doctor Strange cast a spell that made Pizza Poppa punch himself repeatedly in the face for, according to Strange, "about three weeks".
After a couple of final hits, the spell finally wears off. Relieved, Pizza Poppa laughs before, in a fourth wall breaking moment, stares directly at the camera (a clear nod to director Sam Raimi's Evil Dead film series) and makes a quip. Unfortunately for Evil Dead fans, though, Campbell doesn't say "groovy" – a move that would've gone down far better with us than what Campbell actually says. Still, it's a funny scene nonetheless, even if we're unlikely to see Pizza Poppa again in the MCU.
The history of the iPhone SE
The iPhone SE is Apple's best budget iPhone , and the third generation was announced during Apple's Spring event on March 8, 2022.
The iPhone SE 2022 is a decidedly modest update to Apple's most affordable handset line, but it does boast the same processor as the iPhone 13 and 5G connectivity. It remains the cheapest new iPhone in Apple's line-up, but the new iPhone SE is actually more expensive than its predecessor.
But affordability was never the main selling point of Apple's entry-level iPhone: it was all about the portability.
So when Apple introduced the very first iPhone SE back in 2016, it was all about the size. According to Apple's Greg Joswiak, the first generation iPhone SE was "the most powerful four-inch phone ever."
So where did it come from, and how has it fitted in with the rest of the iPhone line-up? Let's find out.
iPhone SE (2016)
The first generation iPhone SE
The first iPhone SE was based on the design of the iPhone 5 , which despite the name was the sixth generation of the iPhone. Released in 2012, the iPhone 5 was pretty impressive at the time with its newer, slimmer body, its 4-inch Retina display and its snazzy new Lightning connector, which replaced the previous 30-pin Dock connector.
The iPhone 5 was one of the shortest-lived iPhones, replaced in 2013 by the iPhone 5S and the iPhone 5C , and it was much missed: when the next iPhone, the iPhone 6 , got significantly bigger it was clear that for many people the smaller iPhone was the sweet spot in terms of portability and usability.
The iPhone SE was launched in March 2016 to make those people happy, and while it looked like the iPhone 5 it didn't have the same innards.
Instead of an Apple A6 chip it had the same A9 as the 2015 iPhone 6S , and it also had a 12MP rear camera, Live Photos and Retina Flash. It was something of a stealth iPhone, with modern internals in an older case, and it was much-mourned when Apple canned it in late 2018.
It has the distinction, along with the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus, of having the longest iOS support of any iPhone: seven versions, starting with iOS 9 and running all the way up to iOS 15 .
iPhone SE 2020
The second generation iPhone SE
Apple decided to bring back the iPhone SE in early 2020. This time it was part of the same iPhone generation as the iPhone 11 , and Apple launched the iPhone SE 2020 at the same time as it discontinued the iPhone 8/8 Plus in April 2020.
Like the first generation, the second iPhone SE was a mix of older design and modern insides. It was based on the iPhone 8, but inside it was an iPhone 11: it had the A13 Bionic system-on-a-chip and a 4.7-inch Retina display.
That's small compared to other phones, but it was a significant improvement over its predecessor's 4-inch display, and it has True Tone, Display P3 and HDR10/Dolby Vision support (although it can't actually display HDR; instead it enhances the content for its own display).
Camera-wise the second iPhone SE was very similar to the iPhone 8, with its 12MP rear camera capable of 4K video, 63MP panoramas and Smart HDR. Both cameras also support Portrait modes.
iPhone SE 2022
The third generation iPhone SE
The biggest change in the iPhone SE 2022 5G is that last bit: 5G. The previous iPhone SE was 4G-only, and that means it was lagging behind much of the rest of the affordable smartphone market.
5G is faster and more reliable than 4G, but unfortunately faster connections also mean a higher price tag: the iPhone SE 2022 is $30 / £30 / AU$40 more expensive than its predecessor. To be fair, there are a lot of other improvements too. There's "the toughest glass in any smartphone" to protect it from lumps and bumps, and it has the same six-core CPU / 4-core GPU A15 Bionic system-on-a-chip as the iPhone 13.
That delivers better battery life, and it also enables the iPhone SE to have the same secure on-device Siri and dictation as the iPhone 13, something that wasn't possible in the previous SE model. If you like to take photos you'll love the improved camera setup in the new iPhone SE, which can do the same computational photography as the iPhone 13. That means the ability to save your own photographic styles for faster processing, smart HDR 4 for exceptional contrast and detail and faster Portrait processing too.
It also means you get the brilliant Live Text processing that can recognize text when you point your camera at it or open an image containing text. If you like the sound of that, pre-orders start this Friday and the iPhone SE 5G goes on sale on March 18.
iPhone SE 4?
Will there be a fourth generation iPhone SE?
Only time will tell, and it may be determined by how well the new iPhone SE 2022 is received. It's too early for any rumors or leaks just yet, but we'll be keeping an eye out for any rumors regarding the next iPhone SE.