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Fortnite is running the Super Showdown event later this week (August 2), and so far we know that it'll involve Superman in a big way. This is the latest in a string of live events that've been airing in Fortnite this year, and I'm expecting it to lead nicely into Season 4.
What's new in Fortnite?(Image credit: Epic Games)Epic Games just launched the collab for The Fantastic Four: The First Steps, with movie-inspired skins available as rewards as part of a new Tournament. Soon, we'll see a brand new Season of Fortnite, launching Chapter 6 Season 4 for players to dive into. At present, we don't have much info on what to expect, though we'll get news as launch day approaches.
We're currently in Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 3, a superhero-themed affair that adds super-powered items and a completely new ranking system. The next season of Fortnite is just around the corner, however, so the game will be getting a big refresh very soon indeed. It's regular updates like these that have kept Fortnite firmly ranked in our best free games to play in 2025 list.
Here's what you need to know about Fortnite Super Showdown, including the start time and how to watch it on the day. It's a live Story Event, and it's set to be a Superman-led battle against a gigantic foe. Let's dive in.
Fortnite Super Showdown - cut to the chase- Start time: August 2 at 2:30pm ET / 11:30am PT (August 1) / 7:30pm BST
- Doors open: August 2 at 2pm ET / 11:00am PT (August 1) / 7pm BST
- Summary: Superman Story Event in Battle Royale
Fortnite Super Showdown will start on August 2 at 2:30pm ET / 11:30am PT (August 1) / 7:30m BST. Doors will open half an hour prior, and it's recommended that you jump in at the following times to secure your place:
- East Coast US: 2pm ET (August 2)
- West Coast US: 11am PT (August 1)
- UK time: 7pm BST (August 2)
Fortnite Super Showdown is a live event that'll begin at the times specified earlier in this article. If you want to watch it live, you can jump in yourself, and there will likely be a safe zone around Demon's Domain where players won't be able to eliminate each other.
If you can't log in yourself, TechRadar Gaming will be covering the event as part of a live blog (as we did recently with the Fortnite OG rocket launch). I'll be giving my impressions as they happen, and providing up-to-date info on how the event is unfolding. You can also join your Twitch or YouTube streamer of choice, as there'll no doubt be many streaming the event. Note that Epic Games doesn't broadcast these events live on its official channels.
Fortnite Super Showdown teaser trailerSuperman returns to help save the island August 2 in this season’s Super Showdown Story Event! pic.twitter.com/Vcr2QmSBQoJuly 27, 2025
The Fortnite X channel tweeted out a teaser trailer for the upcoming Super Showdown event (embedded above). In it, we see the eye of a giant creature, which many believe to be a kraken. Then, the current map is shown with Demon's Domain highlighted as the main location for the event.
Fortnite Super Showdown Story Event - what to expect(Image credit: Epic Games)Fortnite Super Showdown will feature a giant battle between Superman and an as-yet unrevealed foe. We know that it's a huge enemy with a big white eye, and many fans are predicting it to be a kraken. Other than that, we know that it'll all take place in Demon's Domain and will likely give some teases as to what's coming next in Chapter 6.
Epic Games will probably reveal more closer to launch, and once it does, I'll be sure to update this page.
You Might Also Like...- Twitter founder Jack Dorsey has launched Bitchat Mesh
- The private messaging app uses Bluetooth to send texts
- It comes with plenty of privacy features
Tired of Messages and WhatsApp and ready to try something new? Twitter founder Jack Dorsey’s new Bitchat Mesh app has landed on the iOS App Store, while an Android version is available on GitHub.
Download the app and you’ll find that it offers a novel way to contact friends and loved ones.
Dorsey announced Bitchat Mesh in early July. Unlike traditional messaging apps, Bitchat Mesh doesn’t rely on the internet to link up users and devices. Instead, it uses Bluetooth to relay messages from one person to another, so it should theoretically work in places where you lack internet connectivity – provided there are enough nearby Bluetooth devices to pass on your texts.
As well as this unusual distinction, Bitchat Mesh puts an emphasis on user privacy. You don’t need to register your phone number or email address with the app, nor even create an account to get started. That allows you to keep your identifying information private without being hindered.
Bitchat Mesh is also end-to-end encrypted, meaning all of your messages remain private and no one – not even Bitchat’s developer – can intercept or read them. There’s even a 'panic mode' that lets you erase all your data by triple-tapping the app’s logo.
A different way to text(Image credit: Pixabay)Bitchat Mesh is a specialized app for people who care deeply about their privacy, and its unusual nature might prevent it from achieving the kind of mass-market saturation that rivals like WhatsApp have managed. But it could still have plenty of appeal for people who need its distinct features.
By not relying on the internet, for example, the app is more resistant to both network outages and censorship attempts than rival products might be. That could come in handy in nations run by oppressive governments or locations where you might not trust the security of more popular alternatives.
In our brief testing, Bitchat Mesh told us that there were zero other users in our vicinity, presumably because the app has only just launched. But that's likely to be an issue for many potential uses – if there’s no one around you, you might struggle to send your messages, given that the app relies on Bluetooth connections to relay texts.
Still, Bitchat Mesh can be used entirely for free, with no paywalls, subscriptions or in-app purchases yet in place, so you might want to try it out to see if it suits your needs.
You might also like- Tencent is being sued by Sony for its Horizon Zero Dawn-like survival game Light of Motiram
- Sony alleges that the game is a "slavish clone" of the Horizon IP
- It's also claimed that Tencent reached out to Sony to collaborate on a new Horizon game, which Sony declined
Sony is suing Tencent over Light of Motiram, the publisher's open-world survival game that looks an awful lot like Horizon Zero Dawn.
Initially reported by Reuters, Sony has filed a lawsuit against Tencent for copyright and trademark infringement, claiming the Chinese tech company has created a knock-off game of its Horizon intellectual property.
Sony alleges that the company's upcoming game Light of Motiram, developed by Polaris Quest, is a "slavish clone" of Guerrilla Games' 2017 title and copies several Horizon elements, like gameplay, art style, post-apocalyptic themes, the game's playable protagonist Aloy, and other details.
The suit also cites the public's comparisons, including headlines from Kotaku, GameRant, and comments made on IMDB.
"Tencent’s copying of Horizon is so blatant that the public has described it as 'crazy,' 'insane,' and 'shameless,'" the lawsuit reads.
(Image credit: Tencent / Polaris Quest)"Tencent also used its rip-off of the iconic Horizon main character 'Aloy' as the centerpiece of its pre-release marketing and promotional strategy, deliberately causing numerous game lovers to confuse Light of Motiram as the next game in the Horizon series when encountering Tencent’s promotional game play videos and social media accounts."
Sony also alleges that the game's promotional art and screenshots have "misappropriated protectable elements of SIE’s copyrights in the Horizon Franchise to a significant degree", including music and vocals, which are similar thematically.
The PlayStation company says this was deliberate, as Tencent hired a composer from the Horizon Forbidden West soundtrack "to replicate the unique sound for Light of Motiram."
(Image credit: Guerrilla Games)The suit also alleges that Tencent asked Sony to collaborate on a new Horizon game, which Sony declined. Sony claims that the company began development on Light of Motiram afterward, despite the rejected offer.
"Upon information and belief, sometime in 2023 (and unbeknownst to Sony) Tencent started developing a video game called Light of Motiram which – just like Horizon – features a young, red-headed female protagonist and tribal groups fighting for survival among large robotic animals in a post-apocalyptic world," the suit reads.
"In March 2024, at a gaming conference in San Francisco, California, Tencent executives approached Sony with a pitch: to develop its own Horizon game in collaboration with SIE. Sony rejected the idea and considered the matter closed.
"Apparently, Tencent was undeterred by SIE’s refusal to license its Horizon intellectual property. Tencent continued secretly developing Light of Motiram, eventually announcing a forthcoming game. Tencent’s promotional material bore a strong similarity to SIE’s own Horizon promotional material."
Sony is seeking unspecified monetary damages and an order blocking Tencent from violating its IP rights.
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Apple TV+ has announced a new series from Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, yet we know almost nothing about it. We first heard about the new series through a social media post of a smiley face in a petri-dish, we then got our (very vague) first look at what was revealed to be called Pluribus after a fake countdown was posted online. While we do know that the show will star Rhea Seehorn, who I can now assume will play a woman called Carol (more on that later), what Pluribus is actually about is open to interpretation.
Here’s a rundown of what we see in the seconds-long Pluribus teaser. It opens with a wide shot of what appears to be a prison with a guard standing in the frame, then zooms in for an up-close look at the guard licking doughnuts and then placing them in a box. Linking back to the original teaser image shared on social beforehand, which featured the tagline 'Happiness is contagious' accompanied by a Petri dish containing a smiley face, we see a sign that reads 'Help Yourself' with the same smiley face.
And that’s literally all we know… until now. Apple TV+ has released a phone number without explanation, showing Carol being asked to call it under “no pressure”. It’s not even a message meant for me, but I couldn’t help calling it to find out more. What I found, amazingly, was even more shocking and baffling than what I’d already seen.
I still don’t understand what Apple TV+’s new show from Breaking Bad is about after calling its ominous phone numberI’ve taken on the burden so you don’t have to. If you were to call the phone number from the above advert, here’s exactly what you’d hear:
It begins: "Hi Carol. We're so glad you called. We can't wait for you to join us. Dial 0 and we'll get back to you via text message." Obviously, I’m not Carol, but I did dial “0” to get the next part of the message.
"Please know your life is your own, Carol. You have agency!" (Again, my name is not Carol.) "That being said, Reply YES to sign up for updates from AppleTV+ and agree to our terms of use and Privacy Policy. Freq varies, consent not a condition of purchase, msg & data rates apply. Reply STOP to cancel, HELP for help."
Slightly more boring, but even for a fictitious marketing stunt, Apple has to get its boilerplate T&Cs for SMS marketing in there somehow. I replied “Yes” and got this response:
"You must have so many questions for us! Understand, we only want to make you happy. We'll be in touch soon. Text STOP to stop, HELP for help.”
So logic tells me I’m going to be hearing from the mysterious Pluribus voice at some point in the future. What it will say, I do not know. When it will arrive, I cannot say. Who is Carol? Maybe I’ll never find out. Maybe she never called the number back. Maybe I’m Carol and my parents read my birth certificate wrong.
Currently, the only clue for what on earth is going on is the title itself. ‘Pluribus’ is a Latin word meaning ‘many’ or ‘more’. It's most famously used in the phrase ‘E pluribus unum’, which translates to ‘Out of many, one’. If we apply this to what we’ve seen, Carol is our one… but one of what, we’ve got no idea.
I’d bet any money that Apple TV+ and Gilligan are going to eke this marketing campaign out as much as they can. Clearly, I’ll be getting part of it sent directly to me, and I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry in anticipation.
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- Russian airline Aeroflot confirms suffering an IT incident
- More than 40 flights were allegedly grounded following attack
- Silent Crow and Cyberpartisans both claimed responsibility
Aeroflot, Russia’s largest airline, has suffered a cyberattack which disrupted its operations and grounded dozens of flights.
The news was confirmed by the airline, as well as by the Kremlin itself - and also by two cybercriminal groups who claimed responsibility for the attack - Silent Crow, and Cyberpartisans.
The former is a Ukrainian group, while the latter - Belarusian.
"War on all fronts"In a Telegram group, Silent Crow apparently said its “prolonged and large-scale operation” - “completely destroyed” the airline’s IT system. As a result, more than 40 flights were canceled, the BBC reported, mostly domestic flights inside Russia, but also a few routes to Belarus and Armenia.
Cyberpartisans also confirmed taking part in the hack, noting, "We are helping Ukrainians in their fight with the occupier, carrying out a cyber strike on Aeroflot and paralysing the largest airline in Russia."
Reliable information from Russia is hard to come by, but some media are reporting that the airline confirmed having issues with its information system.
"We must not forget that the war against our country is being waged on all fronts, including the digital one,” the BBC cited Anton Gorelkin, a Russian MP.
Since the war between Russia and Ukraine started in 2022, cybercriminals, hacktivists, and state-sponsored hacking groups have been active more than usual, trading blows across the internet, disrupting critical infrastructure organizations, spying on military, defense, government, and IT organizations, and stealing sensitive data.
Conti, which was a major ransomware operator at the time, publicly sided with Russia, stating they would retaliate against any attacks on Russia in cyberspace. This angered its affiliates, many of which were Ukrainian. Soon after, an unidentified hacker leaked Conti’s chat logs which, although indirectly, resulted in the group’s disbanding.
In June 2024, one person was arrested in Ukraine, under suspicion that they developed encryptors for Conti.
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- Windows 11 has a useful change for multiple monitors in a new preview
- You'll be able to access notifications and the calendar flyout on the secondary monitor
- Previously that wasn't possible, even though it is in Windows 10
If you use multiple monitors with Windows 11, there's a change in the pipeline with the taskbar that you're really going to appreciate.
Windows Central noticed that Microsoft has brought in the ability to access the notification center and calendar flyout in the taskbar on a secondary display. This has happened with the latest preview release of Windows 11 in the Dev channel (build 26200.5722).
It's currently the case that if you're running two monitors with Windows 11 you can only access these details on the main display. With the secondary display, the active elements of the system tray – on the far right-hand side of the taskbar – don't work, meaning all you can do is look at the time and date.
If you want to access the calendar panel (by clicking on the date), you need to mouse across to the primary monitor to do so (and the same is true for checking on notifications).
However, with the new preview build, it's possible to click on those parts of the taskbar and access the mentioned panels on the secondary monitor.
(Image credit: Hellooodesign / Unsplash)Analysis: the return of another Windows 10 feature that was ditchedThis is another tweak for Windows 11 which sounds like a relatively small move, but it'll actually be a major convenience for those whose PC setup includes two monitors (or perhaps more). That might be a niche set of people, granted, but it'll be quite a boon for them – the move has already been welcomed with open arms by some (Windows Central included).
Indeed, you might be wondering why this wasn't possible in the first place – especially because in Windows 10 you've always been able to access these parts of the taskbar on a secondary monitor.
Well, that's a good question, and it's not the only piece of functionality that fell by the wayside when Windows 11 arrived. There were quite a few key pieces of the interface and options therein that were mysteriously dropped from Windows 10 in the shift to Windows 11.
They included the ability to move the taskbar away from the bottom of the screen to pick an obvious example (or to 'never combine' apps on the taskbar, though that functionality has since been added back).
The reason these decisions were made was apparently down to some of the complexity involved in the changes under the hood with Windows 11 – or at least those were the vague noises Microsoft made some time ago now, by way of a rather unsatisfying explanation.
At any rate, Microsoft acknowledged in the blog post for the new preview build that this change is being made to "address your feedback", so clearly there have been a fair few complaints about the missing functionality in question.
Note though that this change is only rolling out in testing for now, so not all Windows Insiders will see it (though it is possible to force an enablement, as leaker PhantomOfEarth explains on X).
It'll probably be a while before this arrives in the finished version of Windows 11, and the feature seems a likely pick for inclusion in the big Windows 11 25H2 update arriving later this year.
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