This edition of the Geek News Brief includes stories about a 5-part premiere event for The Flash, Overwatch hero McCree getting a new name, and a release date for Horizon Forbidden West.

Host: Rob Logan [Twitter] [Twitch]

The Flash Season 8 will premiere with a 5-part special event

The CW has announced that the upcoming eighth season of the Grant Gustin-led DC series The Flash will officially debut on November 16, with a five-part special event titled, “Armageddon.” The event is expected to feature a number of guest stars from ongoing and completed Arrowverse shows who are reprising their superhero roles to join Gustin’s scarlet speedster in battling a major alien threat.

The event will feature some of the CW’s most notable heroes and villains. Set to join The Flash team are Javicia Leslie as Batwoman, Brandon Routh as The Atom, Cress Williams as Black Lightning, Chyler Leigh as Sentinel, Kat McNamara as Mia Queen, and Osric Chau as Ryan Choi. Tom Cavanagh and Neal McDonough will return as enemies Reverse Flash and Damien Darhk.

Also, Tony Curran has joined the cast of The Flash for its 8th Season in the role of Despero. The character is described as a powerful and intelligent alien possessing incredible telepathic powers who left his homeworld under mysterious circumstances. Now he’s facing a deadly mission on Earth, one whose outcome will decide the fate of humankind and put him on a collision course with Team Flash.

Overwatch hero McCree will be renamed following Blizzard controversy

The sexual harassment lawsuit against Activision Blizzard will have more repercussions for game content. Blizzard is changing Overwatch character Jesse McCree’s name now that his real-life namesake has left the company. The developer wants a name that better represents Overwatch ideals, according to a statement.

The company had planned a story arc for September that would have featured McCree, but is delaying that narrative until later in 2021 to reflect the name change. Players will instead get a new free-for-all map that month. Blizzard also promised that it would no longer name characters after employees, and said it would be more thoughtful and discerning about referencing the real world in Overwatch.

The real Jesse McCree left Blizzard earlier in August, just weeks after his name surfaced in a California lawsuit over sexual discrimination and harassment at the gaming giant. McCree was reportedly spotted in photos of BlizzCon’s notorious “Cosby Suite” hotel room where Blizzard workers allegedly harassed women.

Horizon Forbidden West set for release on February 18, 2022

The rumors of a Horizon Forbidden West delay are true, although the wait won’t be that long. Guerilla has revealed that the highly-anticipated game will be released on February 18th, 2022 for both PS4 and PS5 owners, with pre-orders starting on September 2nd.

For those who want to revisit Horizon Zero Dawn or experience it for the first time on the PS5, Guerilla has released a free Enhanced Performance Patch that gives plays a targeted 60 frames per second with 4K checkerboarding through backwards compatibility.

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Rob Logan

Rob is a movie buff, computer whiz, gamer, huge Batman fan, and above all... a geek. In addition to being the Founder and Host of The Geek Generation, he is also a photographer, graphic designer, certified clinical hypnotherapist, a former professional wrestler, and a current superhero.

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