COLUMBIA, S.C. — A small loose piece of paper that crossed the counter of a convenience store on a country road in South Carolina is now worth $1.537 billion, so lottery officials could hardly be blamed Wednesday if their excitement seemed colored by anxiety.
They said a single ticket sold at the KC Mart in Simpsonville, South Carolina, matched all six numbers to win the Mega Millions jackpot. Unless the winner chooses to come forward, the world may never know who bought the ticket that matched all six numbers drawn Tuesday night.
“Our message to the $1.5 BILLION #Mega Millions jackpot winner: Sign the back of the ticket, place the ticket in a safe location, speak with a trusted advisor and CALL THE LOTTERY at 1-866-736-9819. Take a deep breath and enjoy the moment!” the South Carolina Education Lottery tweeted.
An earlier Mega Millions estimate of $1.6 billion would have been a world record for lotteries, but actual sales came in below the $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot prize shared by winners in California, Florida and Tennessee in January of 2016.
“The final total was less than the $1.6 billion estimate,” confirmed Carol Gentry, a spokeswoman for the Maryland Lottery, which leads a consortium of state lotteries participating in the Mega Millions jackpot.
The winning numbers have been drawn for the record $1.6 billion Mega Millions lottery jackpot, but it isn't immediately clear if there's a winner. The numbers drawn on Tuesday night are 5, 28, 62, 65, 70 and Mega Ball 5. (Oct. 24)
“Estimates are based on historical patterns,” she explained Wednesday morning in a phone interview with The Associated Press. “The jackpot’s been rolling since it was hit in July in California, but there are few precedents for a jackpot of this size. Typically, about 70 percent of sales occur on the drawing day, so forecasting precise numbers in advance can be difficult. That’s why we always use the term estimate.”
The ticket is worth about $877.8 million in a lump-sum cash payment, which most winners choose to take, rather than collect the full amount in annual payments over three decades.
South Carolina is one of eight states — along with Delaware, Georgia, Kansas, Maryland, North Dakota, Ohio and Texas — where winners can remain anonymous. The winner also has up to 180 days to claim the prize.
“Our board has a policy to protect the winner because of all the risk associated with having that much money,” South Carolina Education Lottery Director William Hogan Brown told ABC’s “Good Morning America.”
*** South Carolina’s previous record-holder — someone who bought a $400 million Powerball ticket in the Columbia area in 2013 — never wanted to be identified.
Holli Armstrong, spokeswoman for the South Carolina Education Lottery, said the retailer will get a $50,000 payout. A news conference at the KC Mart was planned for later Wednesday.
The biggest Mega Millions jackpot winner prior to this was a $656 million ticket sold back in 2012, Gentry said, “so it’s a record for Mega Millions and it came very close to breaking the world record of all the jackpots.”
The winning numbers were 5, 28, 62, 65, 70 and Mega Ball 5. The lucky player overcame miserable odds: The chance of matching all six numbers and winning the top prize is 1 in 302.5 million.
Mega Millions is played in 44 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
It will likely be days or even weeks before the ticket-holder steps forward to claim the prize.
Lottery officials and financial managers encourage people to take time to map out a strategy for investing their hundreds of millions of dollars, and winners must deal with security concerns befitting someone who suddenly is immensely wealthy. Depending on the state, winners have from 180 days to a year to claim their prize.
The Mega Millions jackpot grew so large because it had been nearly three months since a player had matched all six numbers and won the top prize. The last time that happened was July 24, when 11 co-workers from California won a $543 million prize.
Lotto players waiting in line to purchase lottery tickets.
Although Tuesday’s jackpot was magnificently large, it’s no fluke. It reflects a trend toward ever-growing lottery prizes due to changes in the game that worsened the odds with hopes that bigger jackpots would result in better sales.
Officials with the Powerball game were the first to make that move in October 2015 when changing the odds of winning the jackpot from 1 in 175 million to 1 in 292.2 million. Mega Millions followed suit in October 2017, resulting in the odds worsening from 1 in 259 million to 1 in 302.5 million.
While most attention has been on the Mega Millions game, Powerball also has been soaring. The estimated prize for Powerball’s annuity option in Wednesday night’s drawing is $620 million, with a cash prize of $354.3 million.
It?s the biggest Party Pack yet with five party-saving games, including the return of the classic pop culture trivia mashup, You Don?t Know Jack. Use phones or tablets as controllers and play with up to eight players, plus an audience of up to 10,000.
Marvel's Spider-Man: The Heist - Felicia Hardy aka Black Cat, is back in town and leaving mysterious clues around Marvel's New York to toy with Spider-Man.
Venice, California-based Wevr is now hiring UE4 artists, engineers, and animators for an unannounced high profile VR project, based on one of the biggest entertainment IPs of all time! If you have gaming/interactive media experience and are looking to join an ace team that is working on an ambitious, high-visibility and potentially career-defining project, we’d like to hear from you.
Whether you’re just starting out, looking for something new, or just seeing what’s out there, the Gamasutra Job Board is the place where game developers move ahead in their careers.
Gamasutra’s Job Board is the most diverse, most active, and most established board of its kind in the video game industry, serving companies of all sizes, from indie to triple-A.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 10-24-2018, 10:15 AM - Forum: Lounge
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Warhammer: Vermintide devs acquire A Sweet Studio AB
Independent studio Fatshark, best known for Warhammer: Vermintide, announced earlier today that it has acquired neighboring Swedish game developerA Sweet Studio AB.
A Sweet Studio’s catalog of published games including Flower Pop Adventures, Scalpers: Turtle & the Moonshine Gang, One Final Chaos, and Candy Bandit, are now owned by Fatshark.
As detailed in a press release, all nine employees from A Sweet Studio have already moved to the Fatshark office located in Stockholm, and are preparing to work on more content for Warhammer: Vermintide 2.
“It’s great to be a part of such a successful studio, and be working on a great IP such as Warhammer,” says Gustav Linde, the former CEO and founder of A Sweet Studio.
We know you’re busy and might miss out on all the exciting things we’re talking about on Xbox Wire every week. If you’ve got a few minutes, we can help remedy that. We’ve pared down the past week’s news into one easy-to-digest article for all things Xbox! Or, if you’d rather watch than read, you can feast your eyes on our weekly video show above. Be sure to come back every Friday to find out what’s happening This Week on Xbox!
Forza Horizon 4 Sees Two Million Players in Its First Week It has been one week since we launched Forza Horizon 4 and we are humbled by the overwhelmingly positive feedback we continue to receive from players around the world. We are proud to say that in this first week alone, there are currently two million players driving around Forza Horizon 4’s Britain… Read more
October 2018 Xbox Update Rolling Out Today If we could pull your attention away from exploring the beautiful scenery and becoming a Horizon Superstar in historic Britain with Forza Horizon 4, we have some new Xbox One features to share. The October 2018 Xbox Update adds new ways to express yourself with Avatars, interact with your console… Read more
The 10 Coolest New Features in Fallout 76 “War. War never changes.” While that phrase has been part of Fallout’s lore since the very beginning, the same can’t be said about the Fallout series itself. Each game in the venerable post-apocalyptic RPG series has expanded and improved upon features in the entry before it, to the point that the changing locales… Read more
Darwin Project Has Reached 2 Million Inmates on Xbox One – Here’s What’s in Store Hey Xbox players! Ever since we launched Darwin Project on Xbox One via Xbox Game Preview, your support has been incredible. So much of your feedback has helped shape Darwin Project into what it is today, from Duo Mode to customization to new Tools, Powers, and Tiles―and this is just the beginning… Read more
Available Now: Victrix Pro AF Wired Gaming Headset for Xbox One When it comes to Xbox accessories, we believe in providing choice for gamers. Our Designed for Xbox program enables collaborations with top-tier hardware partners to deliver not only choice but also the best possible gaming experiences. The newest device from one of our top partners is the Victrix Pro AF… Read more
Next Week on Xbox: New Games for October 16 – 19 Welcome to Next Week on Xbox, where we cover all the new games coming soon to Xbox One! Every week the team at Xbox aims to deliver quality gaming content for you to enjoy on your favorite gaming console. To find out what’s coming soon to Xbox One, read on below and click on each of the game profiles for pre-order details (dates are subject to… Read more
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Has Arrived on Xbox One It’s finally here! Ever since Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 was announced earlier this year, we’ve been counting down the months, weeks, hours, minutes, and yes… even the seconds until this moment. But that wait is over, and players around the world are immersing themselves into the game-changing world of Black Ops 4… Read more
How My Memory of Us Meets its Players The greatest joy that a game developer can have is to watch players who are playing your game at the moment and to talk to them. During the pre-release presentations and travels of My Memory of Us to fairs and gaming events, we had an incredible pleasure to see various players and a wide array of their reactions to the game… Read more
For Honor Graphical Remaster Launching with Marching Fire on October 16 For Honor Marching Fire is coming to Xbox One, bringing the four new heroes of the Wu Lin faction into the fray, the new PvE Arcade mode to test your mettle, and the new 4v4 Breach mode to challenge your team strategy as you siege or defend a castle. The October 16 launch also coincides with a massive free update… Read more
Don’t Miss the Fourth Annual Game4Paul Fundraiser on Oct. 11, Live on Mixer On Thursday, Xbox will partner with Reach Out WorldWide (ROWW) to host the fourth annual Game4Paul charity fundraiser, a livestream full of games, exclusive sweepstakes and more that will support ROWW’s mission to provide natural disaster relief across the globe. The livestream will also honor… Read more
Announcing the Minecraft Creators Bundle Create your ultimate Minecraft adventure and be a part of the global phenomenon with the Xbox One S Minecraft Creators Bundle, available soon at select retailers globally for $299 USD / £249 GBP. The Xbox One S Minecraft Creators Bundle includes: Xbox One S with 1TB hard drive, 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player… Read more
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice Coming to Retail Stores on December 4 Just in time for the holidays, we’re excited to announce Ninja Theory’s critically-acclaimed Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is hitting shelves in retail stores on Dec. 4. Since first launched, the game has taken over a million fans worldwide on a journey with Senua, a Celtic warrior who embarks on a haunting vision quest… Read more
Grand Theft Auto Online: GTA$ Gifts, Red Dead Redemption 2 Pre-Order Bonus, and More Los Santos is awash with money making opportunities this week. Play GTA Online any time through October 15 to earn GTA$300,000 bonus cash and instantly unlock the Green Wireframe Bodysuit. All GTA$ gifts will be deposited into your Maze Bank account by October 22. Plus, the Stone Hatchet and Double-Action Revolver… Read more
Pinball FX3 Welcomes Williams Pinball: Volume 1 and a New Free Table We at Zen Studios are excited to welcome tables from the iconic Williams and Bally collection to our Pinball FX3 library, live now! The release of Williams Pinball Volume 1 is significant, as this new three-pack represents Zen’s first true digital simulations of real pinball machines – specifically, Medieval Madness, Junk Yard, and The Getaway: High Speed II… Read more
Making Choices Matter in The Shapeshifting Detective, Coming Soon to Xbox One Hello Xbox fans! We’re D’Avekki Studios, a game studio run by myself, Lynda Cowles, and my husband Tim Cowles. We made our Xbox One debut earlier this year with The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker and now we’re excited to be back with The Shapeshifting Detective, a new supernatural FMV murder mystery… Read more
Warface Now Available for Free on Xbox One Great news! Warface is available for free on Xbox One! Gather your friends and set off together on exciting raids and PvE missions. Take the pedestal of honor in ranked matches and fight together in fast-paced PvP modes! Exclusively on Xbox The Cyber Horde raid – In a Blackwood laboratory, where experiments… Read more
Make Some Spooky Switch Savings On WayForward Games This Halloween In The US
If you like video games, and if you like saving money, then this current deal from WayForward Games could be right up your street.
The developer has revealed that all of its games on Switch are now available to download at discounted prices as part of a special Halloween sale. These deals are only available in the US, but users from other regions could always take advantage of the deals by setting up a US account.
If you’re wanting to take advantage of any of these offers, you can find the games directly from Nintendo’s online store right here. The offers are available until 4th November, so you’ve got a little bit of time to read up on each title and see which one (or three) might be best for you. You can find our reviews of each game by clicking on their names above.
Make sure to let us know if you’ll be buying any of the games on offer in the comments below.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 10-24-2018, 08:12 AM - Forum: Lounge
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Game Sale At Best Buy: PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch (US Only)
A new week means you can find a new set of video game deals at Best Buy, available both in-store and online. This week's sale sees temporary price drops on a handful of PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch games, as well as discounts on accessories and $10 rewards for specific purchases and pre-orders. Let's take a look at what deals are available between now and October 27.
For PS4 owners, select DualShock 4 controllers are $5 off this week, bringing them down to $60 each. They come in a variety of colors, which is great for anyone looking to expand beyond the traditional black. Pre-order Fallout 76 this week, and you'll get a special steelbook edition, plus access to the beta. The beta begins October 23 on Xbox One and October 30 on PS4 and PC.
If you trade in select games between now and December 1, you'll get a $10 coupon toward the purchase of Battlefield V in addition to the game's trade value. That's on top of the $10 reward credit you can get for pre-ordering Battlefield V. Speaking of credit, if you pre-order Just Cause 4, which comes out December 4, you'll also get a $10 reward. And buying Dragon Ball FighterZ for Nintendo Switch gets you a free $10 Best Buy gift card.
There aren't that many games on sale this week at Best Buy, but you can same some cash on a few fine titles. Sports fans can grab NHL 19 or NBA 2K19 for $40 each. The open-world shooter Far Cry 5 is on sale for $30, the cheapest we've seen it drop yet on console. And Xbox One owners can pick up Minecraft: Explorer's Pack for $20.
You can find more video game discounts at Best Buy right here.
The Best Party Games to play with Family & Friends
As much as we enjoy our serious mobile games here at Pocket Tactics, sometimes it’s nice to just unwind and have some fun with friends and family. Party games are a really entertaining and worthwhile genre of games and nothing’s better than meeting up, sharing a good meal, and capping off a hangout session via our mobiles.
Easy to pick up, high-energy and socially demanding, but along with these requirements comes exhilaration, surprise and a guaranteed way to shake things up. The life of the party might just be lurking in the palm of your hand. Here’s our collection of the best games you can play with your friends, whether you’re using an iPhone, iPad or an android device.
Identity V
Developer: NetEase Games Platforms: iOS, Android Price: Free
One hunter chases four innocents across a gothic manse while the would-be escapees struggle to find and solve puzzles. The asymmetry and creepy-cute aesthetic make for a thrilling and iconic experience. The devs are always experimenting with new play modes (like the 8v2 for starters) and the hunt-or-be-hunted setup is a timely mix of the survival- and battle-royale games so en vogue these days. Add in a splash of progression (skill trees, new and unusual characters, cosmetic unlocks) and you have a winner.
Soul Knight is a pixelated top-down arcade shooter with a dash of roguelike elements thrown in for good measure. Technically it’s not primarily a multiplayer game, but the local multiplayer mode is so good it would be criminal not to give it a shout-out here. The weapons are unusual and distinctive, dreamt up with some real flair. It takes some real skill to pull off impressive moves, but the difficulty-satisfaction curve is pitched just right with this one.
Mucho Party
Developer: GlobZ Platforms:iTunes, Android Price: Free (effectively a trial with limited games), $3.99 one-time IAP for full unlock.
Sample a sumptuous variety of mini-games with inspired and easily-digested twists with goofy facial reactions, and deft touch controls. Your player avatar has an oversized head with a handful of emote options which are customizable: just snap a few photos of your mug with exaggerated expressions and mild hilarity ensues. Yes, the new Mario Party is a classic return to form but Mucho Party is a really nice substitute available for the price of a song. A hidden gem.
Heads Up!
Developer: Warner Bros. Platforms:iOS, Android Price: $0.99, Free (android). Optional IAP to unlock extra category modes.
Heads Up! Was a victim of its own success for a time. The game is dead simple: a word appears on screen and is held above the guesser’s head. This same guesser is assailed by clues from teammates until the guesser finds the right word or phrase . Cycling through words quickly to rack up a high score, switching up the guessing role amongst team members. Heads Up! has one simple advantage over every other game on this list: it doesn’t need a surface to work. Works just as great standing or crammed together in a vehicle. Anywhere with good sight lines is fair game for Heads Up! short of a hall of mirrors. It’s so good that it’s cliche, at risk of getting played to death and forgotten. In case you’ve never given it a chance with a bored group, do.
Spaceteam
Developer: Henry Smith Platforms:iOS, Android Price: Free
Masquerading as chaos and nonsense, Spaceteam never fails to gin up a riotous good time. Navigating the reaches of space takes technical know-how and precise coordination, and Spaceteam spoofs these facts of spacetime-travel by splitting up instructions from control panels. Someone knows which button to press, and where, but the orders and details are deliberately turned into techno-speak-gibberish. Jabbering, giddy gibbons sharing gibberish…in space. Seriously though, the game works wonders for those improvisational types who thrive on chaos and unprecedented social situations. Oh, and it allows for cross-platform play between Android and iOS.
Talisman is a wild time and a mess, digital or analogue, but it’s markedly tidier and every bit as much of a caper on the good old ‘pad. Collecting magic artefacts, spells and literal pieces of fate and destiny as the hour grows late. It’s a classic and epic game, but also well suited to casual meet-and-greets, too. Because each turn’s decisions are relatively simple and straightforward, players can banter, chow down or otherwise divert themselves without hampering the flow of the gameplay at all.
Psych!
Developer: Warner Bros. Platforms:iOS, Android Price: Free
Creative word games can be risky prospects when entertaining guests, but they also give such sharp turns of phrase and sweet surprises. (Cue Balderdash, Apples to Apples, Cards Against Humanity) Anything that allows for write-in answers is a golden opportunity, and Psych! Is no exception, adding replayability and variety. After hearing the prompt, each player jots down a fake answer to add to the pool. Points are earned by either guessing the true answer, or duping others into picking yours. It’s clean, freeform and effortless excuse to mess around and let your imagination run wild with some friends.
Mysterium
Developer: Asmodee Digital Platforms: iOS, Android Price: $3.99, $3.49
Solve a murder mystery with a little ethereal help in Mysterium, where players will use richly illustrated images to try and winnow the guilty from the innocent. Just like in Clue, location, suspect and weapon will have to be grouped into the proper combinations. The mediums divine which of these combinations is valid, and then after successfully sleuthing, the group has to figure out which of the stories is the ghost’s own tragic ending. So a game that goes well ends where the ghost’s afterlife begun. It’s a fun gothic take on deduction, creative visual interpretation, and contention, sometimes downright quarrelsome co-operative goals.
Triple Agent is a mixture of chaos and order, of ineffective backstabs, liars giving useful tips and honest fools botching the naked truth. It’s a find-the-betrayer style party game, just like Mafia and Werewolf, but what sets it apart from its ilk, aside from a whip-smart app and panoply of extra optional win conditions, is the total miniaturisation of the experience. One device is passed around to dole out identities, clues and the final elimination vote. The group at the end of the chaotic play session collectively eliminates one person, and if they were a Good Guy the Bad Guys win and vice versa. Really fresh interface and game design take on an old standard.
Worms are good for the earth, enriching the soil and setting the fields for a rich harvest next season. Worms from Team 17, on the other hand, spend all their lives trading quips and aiming impractical and ultraviolent weapons at each other. Carpet bombs, napalm, the holy hand grenade, anything and everything is an instrument of death in Worms. The terrain is destructible too, and the only ‘loot crate’ drops are just in-game goodies and not a euphemism for scummy monetisation. This is a premier zany 2D shootout, decades old and no worse for wear.
What are your favourite party games? Let us know in the comments!
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