Friday, April 17, 2009

Devastator and Other Video Game News

More details are coming out about the upcoming 360/PS3 versions of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen game. The latest comes from MTV were they report that Devastator and the Constructicons will be in the game as part of a story point derived from the movie.
While the game’s developer had to keep quiet on the biggest (literally) addition to the film’s roster of giant robots due to how closely the game is modeled on the movie, there were a few Devastator-related bits and pieces to glean from the event (though no images, unfortunately). Production coordinator Mike Mejia took MTV News through a climactic battle with the massive Decepticon set in streets of Cairo late in the demo — an encounter that Mejia said was pulled directly from the plot of the film.

And that wasn’t all there was to learn about Devastator and (as fans of the series will be glad to hear) the Constructicons that unite to form the villain.

Along with taking us through a battle between Optimus Prime and Devastator, Mejia took a moment to pan the in-game camera around the massive villain and provide an up-close peek at the robot’s design. Composed of several different Decepticons like his cartoon (and comic book) counterpart, Devastator maneuvered around the Cairo cityscape on all fours, with his various construction-vehicle components clearly visible during the slow-pan peek.

It’s also worth noting that “Demolisher,” the Decepticon with a giant wheel seen in several of the “Revenge of the Fallen” trailers (seen in the concept art [above]), is clearly visible as the primary torso and neck component of Devastator. Originally rumored to be Devastator, the wheel-wielding Demolisher robot is actually just the bulk of Devastator’s chest in the game — giving you an indication of how large the character will likely be in Bay’s CGI-fueled sequel.
Of note is the continued confusion over Demolisher or Scavenger. The question is they the same character with naming confusion or two separate characters? The first movie also had naming confusion with Brawl being called Devastator in the movie. The confusion initially started as Toy Fair 2009 images leaked and people (including me) just assumed that the naming of Demolisher and Scavenger were confused and are the same thing.

They are probably two separate characters. The primary reason is story logistics. The movie opens with NEST tracking down Demolisher (as seen in trailer) in Shanghai, China. As the above indicates, the battle with Devastator takes place in Cairo, Egypt. Which do you think is easier to do story wise - have to explain how a character escaped and traveled thousands of miles to Cairo or simply introduce a new character? Another reason is official information from Paramount for a USA Today article lists them separately. Official information trumps speculation. Last, as the toy image below shows, they are two separate toys, with similar but clearly different designs (SCVGR on side is its own hint).

Back to the video game, another blog entry from MTV highlights that homages to the various G1 gestalt characters will make appearances in the game and briefly mentions online play possibility of playing as Devastator.
The developers behind the games are Transformers nerds themselves, I was told. They have used Aerialbots, Stunticons, Combaticons, Protectobots and Omnibots as inspiration for the unnamed robots players will encounter in the game. There was no sign that these modern-day Protectobots will merge into the mighty Defensor. Instead they seem to be foot soldiers — extra robots to shoot and be shot by. The group names are classifications as these robots won’t have names.

The Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of “Revenge of the Fallen” include online multiplayer deathmatch and capture the flag modes. Up to eight gamers can play online. The new “Revenge of the Fallen” version of Devastator is, like his 1980s predecessor, a giant robot made up of smaller robots. So, I asked, can online players each play as one of Devastator’s component robots and then merge so that multiple players control a single, towering Devastator? The Activision reps gave me a stalling laugh and then one said: “We do have a lot of Transformers available [in the game.]
My read on that is you can play as a Constructicon but you and your buds will not get to merge and form Devastator. He is probably reserved as a boss character only.

Last, but not least, is from TFW2005. They have posted information from the Activision's New York press conference yesterday. It is worth the read as breaks down many elements of the upcoming video game. That can be found here. Also they have posted a video interview with a Transformers 2 developer that sadly has no spoilers. Thanks to Patrick and Scorpio for some of the links.

33 comments:

  1. i have to say, my money is Demolishor and Scavenger being a name mix up. makes little sense to have such similar characters, less sense than how does a transformer travel. they came from outer space i don't see egypt being trouble.

    toy discrepancy can be easily passed off as prototype vs actual.

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  2. ya but im stiill wondering if demolisher survives Shangai, and actually is one of the constructions, i dont see him living or surviving the Shangai seen (as much as i want him to live 4 the final battle), how would he evn get to Cairo?? hes not like Blackout who can fly from from some where in the middle east and get to la quickley, i just dnt see him surviving, i was hoping that sideways would get killed by the Arcee sisters, but if that doesnt work i have a reasonable plot 4 the beginning of the movie, it starts when sideways gets detected by the Arcee sisters so Demolisher trys to help him, but Prime Comes with Nest, and now that Optimus and the others know that there are new decepticons on earth, they need reinforcments and thats when the rest of the autobots come, and then sideways escapes and tells starscream that theyve been discovered. then the rest of the new decepticons comes out of hiding and thats how the war begins

    sorry 4 long post :)

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  3. we might as well ask how does megtron get out of the ocean? tanks aren't know for swimming prowess.

    no one question how the tank in the first movie was able to the city to be able to fight in time for the final showdown, by all rights he should have still been on the road by the time the movie ended.

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  4. good point. He never knows when to quit.

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  5. well decepti freak you have to remember its a movie, i think that in the trailer with the aircraft carrier, when it sinks i think the carriers were going to megatrons location ubove where he is under water bcuz they know the decepticons are searching for him, i think the balls of fire that sink the carrier are decepticons who dont get an alt form till later, they go unde water take the body. lets say megatron kills one of them bcuz he dosnt like any body, since megatron is mising a leg an an arm he kills one of the robots who saved him and there alt mode is a cybertronian tank, he scans there alt mode and he gets to land somehow ---just my thoughts

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  6. sure RY, that could be. and thats my point for Demolishor too, its a movie. a number of things could happen.

    we also know that Devastator kicks prime's butt on a grassy field, i never thought of that being egypt. it could be, but i think it shows that Devastator gets around. when you are a monster like that not many people check your passport.

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  7. http://www.allspark.com/content/view/4881/20/

    news of the transformers book avail for preorder on Amazon,

    found on allspark.com, thanks to previous poster for telling me about the site ;)

    from description:
    This cryptic warning is ignored by the national security adviser who feels the ruthless Decepticon threat is no more. The allies are victorious, the enemy has been defeated, and the world is safe. Small attacks around the world have been contained, and the remaining pieces of the coveted Allspark are locked in an electromagnetic vault on one of the most secure Naval bases in the world. But nothing is at it seems, and there is a shift in the shadows. Things can change in an instant–and fragile peace will become all-out war.

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  8. Wait. Those toy images are the same bot. one is the one that transforms, the other is one that only connects to the others to for devastator. Do there packages give two different names or something?

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  9. may I point out two things from the trailer.

    1. bots fall onto an aircraft carrier in the ocean.

    2. We see Ravage coming from the ocean which could mean he was coming out of the water (though he doesn't appear to be dripping wet)

    I think this could mean that the bots can travel through water. Prime emerged from a pool which showed that they don't get damaged from water. So it's not like the bots are trapped on whatever island or continent they are on. They could swim. And being that devastator is huge isn't not to ridiculous to think he would try that.

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  10. It was Ironhide that came out of the pool, not Prime. Prime landed on the empty field which was witnessed by Sam & Mikaela.

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  11. heyy wat i dnt understand is if peple want toys from ROTF toys so much, go on ebay they have some of the toys already but alot of dough including shipping. thy have the demolisheer, and rampage toy on there i wonder wat else they have on there

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  12. But the whole point of them putting them in that specific part of the ocean was the water pressure at such great depths would crush the remains....

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  13. @Max, and because it was cold, they hate cold for whatever reason.
    this is the part where you have to say its a movie and suspend your disbelief.

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  14. I think too that Demolisher and Scavenger are the same, just a toy mixup (final draft vs prototype). As far as how he gets to Cairo? Well, if Devastator is going to be that huge, how are constructicons going to join together ... besides climbing up eachother or something? I think they'll have the ability to fly. Well, not so much fly like a plane, but like a rocket. Just straight up. So Demolisher, seeing that he's loosing the battle with Prime, makes a run for it, lunching himself back into space. With just a minor adjustment on re-entry he could land in Egypt.

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  15. My bad, Ironhide not prime.

    thanks for pointing that out punch.

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  16. I know the plot in Egypt has been stated. I know the fact that pyramids will play a role in the second movie has also been stated. But I still felt this discovery I made was worth boasting about (thought I'm sure I'm not the first to discover it).

    I was watching the first movie with Bay commentary. He said during the Frenzy battle in the room with the radion "If you listen closely you can hear frenzy is saying every now and then 'Tutankhamun'. Just a funny thing I guess"

    Funny how frenzy would say that and the next movie is based somewhat on a pyramid and Egypt. Almost as if Bay was giving a clue.

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  17. A preview spoiler of what TF2:ROTF movie opening sequence it's highly likely to look like is given in the upcoming novel... here is an excerpt:

    http://www.randomhouse.com/delrey/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780345515933&view=excerpt

    Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

    Written by Alan Dean Foster
    Fiction - Movie or Television Tie-In; Fiction - Science Fiction | Paperback, 336 pages | May 2009 | $7.99 | 978-0-345-51593-3 (0-345-51593-5)





    Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
    enlarge
    EXCERPT
    Chapter One


    Despite rampant, not to say runaway, development in the course of the preceding decades, the sprawling megalopolis of Shanghai still boasted areas that could be relatively dark and quiet—especially after ten at night. Even in bustling modern China, not all enterprises operated around the clock. Not every commercial venture burned power by keeping its lights on when the last shift had left for the day. The outskirts of the business park that was home to assorted heavy industries was nearly silent. A minimum of lights pushed against the darkness at an assortment of locations where such illumination was deemed necessary for security reasons.

    A sizable chunk of the ancient city had sacrificed its homes and alleys, its noodle shops and kiosks, to make way for the extensive industrial compound. A few of the old neighborhoods still clung to its fringes, saved from demolition when the developers’ voracious appetite for land had finally been sated. Most of those who dwelled within the surviving houses counted themselves fortunate. Their homes had been spared, the living was cheap, and they had benefited from good jobs in the factories while being spared the need for an expensive commute. Their preserved hutong was safe, too. Spillover from the advanced security that protected the commercial development kept thieves and vandals away from their homes.

    In the absence of the delivery trucks that rumbled to and from the industrial complex throughout the day, the surrounding streets were comparatively quiet. Exhausted workers slept, while behind closed doors and windows those who could not rest parked themselves in front of garrulous televisions or plied the Internet. Young lovers stole moments of intimacy where they could in a city where privacy was among the scarcer commodities. Elders contemplated how much their lives had changed in the preceding de?cades, much as elders have done since the time when their predecessors prowled for food in fields and jungles instead of massive grocery stores.

    A nomadic distributor of such food was presently plying its lonely way among the district’s deserted streets and avenues. The ice-cream truck was squat and battered, and had visibly been heavily used. Its bells tinkled an oddly familiar melody while the intensity with which its headlights illuminated the surrounding streets and structures suggested hidden power quite out of keeping with its scruffy external appearance. Equally iconoclastic was the English- language sticker that decorated part of the truck’s rear bumper:

    DECEPTICONS—SUCK MY POPSICLE

    Out of the darkness a trio of powerful motorcycles came thundering. Their leather-clad female riders were beautiful, alluring, and as alike as identical triplets. Occasionally their outlines wavered like the advanced holograms they were. Though not real, they were all part and parcel of the single entity to which they belonged.

    The lateness of the hour neither inhibited the two children who came running after the ice-cream truck nor diminished their desire for its produce. Waving yuan, the boy and girl tried desperately to intercept it. Short legs being no match for large tires, they were too late. Despite their imploring shouts they rapidly fell behind, slowed, and finally came to a discouraged and disappointed stop. Then the truck abruptly halted, turned, and with headlights dimmed came straight toward them.

    Brother and sister, too startled to get out of the way, could only stare as the truck bore down on them. In the absence of an adult to snatch them up and carry them to safety, scream at them to run, or deliver any other instruction, they stood dumbly in the middle of the street and gaped at the oncoming vehicle. At the last possible instant the truck did the impossible: it split perfectly in half. As if mounted on individual gyroscopes, each section sped past the paralyzed children, one on each side. Whirling around to maintain eye contact, brother and sister became simultaneously aware of two subsidiary impossibilities. The more obvious one was that the two halves of the ice-cream truck had rejoined to once more become one. The other was that it had left in its wake a small mountain of Popsicles, Dreamsicles, drumsticks, and other frozen treats both imported and domestic. Instantly putting aside all thought of the magical vehicle that had nearly run them down, the delighted children piled into the stack of frozen treats with an enthusiasm that would have done their physical education instructors proud.

    On another street, a speeding black semi was in the process of disgorging contents of a very different kind. No treats these, frozen or otherwise. The small Hummers it unloaded carried men clad in full hazmat gear. In addition to their protective clothing they bore a variety of cutting-edge search-and-seek instrumentation. They also packed weaponry designed to deal with whatever their searching might find. Their expressions matched their gear and reflected their determination.

    Ice-cream–seeking children aside, the industrial complex was a hive of uncharacteristic nocturnal activity. Blackhawk choppers had joined the rapidly deploying hazmat teams and began to circle the district. They were backed up by Cobra gunships. Bigger copters of Russian design mounting heavier weapons formed still another line of aerial defense.

    No shots were fired. No disinfecting elements were deployed. The increasing number of weapons- wielding arrivals worked in silence, searching for . . . targets. The men and women of several squads began to slip out of their bulky hazmat suits. The insignia on their uniforms identified them not as waste workers but as soldiers.

    One such group preparing to exit a rapidly descending chopper was led by a somber-faced major who was better prepared than anyone else in the area to deal with the unknown possibilities it currently presented. Better prepared, that is, except for the master sergeant crouched beside him. As always, Epps had his iPod with him, but for once it was tucked away in a secured pocket. There was a time and a place for swaying to the music, and this particular night in industrial Shanghai was neither. Like Major William Lennox, the sergeant was all business. Behind them, highly trained troops readied themselves to follow the pair’s lead. Though they had been well briefed and given some idea what they might expect to encounter, all of them knew they would have to rely on the expertise of the two battle-hardened Americans.

    Reaching up, Lennox gently repositioned his lightweight headset. “Break, all stations, this net: cordon and search. People’s Republic has put out an appropriate cover story, so the area should be clear of civilians. ‘Toxic spill’—had to evac the district for search and rescue. That’s us, ’cept for the ‘rescue’ part. Don’t need to restate how important this is—and how in all probability dangerous. Six sightings in eight months; gotta make sure this one does not get out in the public eye. ’Specially after Rome. So keep it tight and let’s make this operation as clean as possible.”

    The chopper’s skids made a grinding sound as they touched down on the thick concrete.

    “All right, everybody—let’s rock.”

    Led by Lennox and Epps, the troops poured out of the copter and quickly spread out, keeping in contact while seeking cover. No one spoke. There was nothing more to be said, and any communication would come from their commanding officer and his assisting noncom.

    Flipping the visor of his advanced headgear down over his eyes, Epps hastily activated its integrated radiation tracker. The heads-up display showed him what he expected to find, in spades.

    “Lotta interference on this one,” he muttered to the man standing alongside him. “Gamma signature’s at four bars.”

    “Four?” Lennox added something under his breath. “You gotta be kidding me. That’s not what we came for.”

    Behind them, one of the team members offered his own assessment. “Either it’s cloaking its signal, like in Rome, or we’re getting echoes off all this heavy metal.”

    Lennox nodded, pondering. Reaching a decision, he whispered sharply into his headset’s pickup. “Tell our four-by-four friend that he’s clear.”

    A moment later another black truck appeared. A second squad of experienced soldiers scrambled out, the last one getting off just as the vehicle began to change shape. Bending, folding, rising into the night sky, it assumed the form of a familiar silhouette, scarred but unbowed. Taking a step forward, it crouched down wordlessly behind Epps and Lennox, looming over them. Neither man was intimidated by its proximity.

    Quite the contrary.

    Turning, Epps favored the new arrival with a welcoming nod. The metal giant responded with a slow nod of its own. Epps grinned knowingly.

    “Let’s kick some alien ass.”

    Lennox’s tone was disapproving. “Epps, you’re getting cocky.”

    Excerpted from Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen by Alan Dean Foster Copyright © 2009 by Alan Dean Foster. Excerpted by permission of Del Rey, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

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  18. I'm sorry, I can't let that slide. That was absolutely Prime that came out of the pool in TF1. 1)You get a clear shot of his face, which looks identical to how it was drawn in the prequel comics 2) He's much taller than Iron Hide - he brushes by that cypress tree as the dad comes out and then it immediately shows him scanning the semi afterward, and 3) the music even changes as he's climbing out of the pool.

    Iron Hide was the protoform that crashed into the baseball stadium, they never show him until he's first transforming into the Topkick.

    Watch it again, I KNOW I'm right.

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  19. Ironhide was THE ONE THAT CAME OUT OF THE POOL & SCANNED THE FAMILY'S TOPKICK.

    RATCHET CRASHED AT A FUCKIN' DINER.

    JAZZ CRASHED AT A BASEBALL STADIUM.

    OPTIMUS PRIME LANDED ON THE FUCKIN' FIELD WITNESSED BY SAM & MIKAELA.

    PRIME THEN RAN AWAY FROM THOSE 2 & FUCKIN' SCANNED THE RED TRUCK.

    I FUCKIN WATCHED IT A 1000 TIMES ALREADY & IT WAS FUCKIN' VERIFIED & EXPLAINED AT THE TF WIKI.

    YOU FUCKIN' MUPPET!

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  20. "Though not real, they were all part and parcel of the >>single entity<< to which they belonged."

    Did anyone else catch that? Referring to the three motorcycles - I wonder if that's indicating that they do merge.

    This is not bad writing - I might have to pick this up. Won't read it before I see the movie though.

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  21. Yeah, because Wiki is always correct on everything that idiots put in there. That and I'd love to know where Wiki "Verifies and Explains" it.

    You can see his goddamn face when he gets out of the pool! The protoform faces were very similar, if not identical, to what they looked like after they scanned something. That was Prime's face.

    That's okay. You can go on believing whatever you want. I'm not going to let some dick-eating child on this blog get my ire up because he's acting like a douche.

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  22. chill, its not even important who landed where.

    thanks for the book except.

    "all part and parcel of the single entity to which they belonged" seems to point to the bikes being all one entity, but vague enough to mean about anything still too.

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  23. Punch - part of being a mature person is being able to admit when one is wrong. Upon further research, it appears that you are correct. I am apparently wrong, Iron Hide climbs out of the pool.

    Now don't be such a jag off next time. It's possible to argue without being a buttfucker.

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  24. To TheChief:

    I'm not looking for a fight or an angry argument, but I believe that you are inncorrect. Punch is right.

    Optimus Prime protoform - landed in the field, Sam and Mikaela saw it, ran away, scanned the passing semi-truck

    Ironhide protoform - landed in pool, crawled out, scanned family's GMC Topkick

    Ratchet protoform - landed by the diner (with the fat kid and the camera)

    Jazz protoform - landed in baseball stadium and went to car dealership

    I do understand how you could get the mix-up though, they do look very similar. (Prime and Ironhide are BOTH huge) But due to the editing and pace of the film, it would lead us to the position of Punch's.

    SWITCH TO OTHER TOPIC:
    Although I'm confused by the whole "Devastator and Constructicons issue", I will be thoroughly impressed by whatever Michael Bay has in store. If I get excited by images of toys and video games, I think that I'll faint when I see ILM's 120 foot CGI creation on a 70 foot screen! :D

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  25. Sorry, I didn't see the above post.

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  26. I am referring to TheChief's at 9:47pm.

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  27. Sorry my mistake in my comment caused a heated argument.

    But does anyone have a comment on the rest of what I had said in that comment (the one about prime coming out of the pool, which was actually ironhide as punch pointed out)?

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  28. Exactly tyler...no matter how many times someone post what they think the plot is or how you or anyone imagines how the movie will turn out,We all will still be in awe when we see the final cut. With that said...shouts out to scorp for keepin us informed with whats goin on even though a few thinks he has no life,Somehow we have to help keep this blog goin til june because the bayster is not helping in that department and most importantly what are we as transfans gonna do between rotf and the third installment as bay is takin a year hiatus??? sorry bout the long post...

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  29. "Its bells tinkled an oddly familiar melody"

    I wonder if this is the transformers theme from the cartoon and not the regular ice cream jingle. I was reading IMDB and Jablonsky said he was going to incorporate the theme after a lot of complaints. I know you can't always trust IMDB, but anything is possible.

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  30. Yeah I might actually consider reading that book. This must prove that the ice cream truck is SOME kind of Autobot (probably confirmed a long time ago). Also, who is the Autobot who comes out of the truck? Bumblebee, or some other one? And one more thing, do you think they'll have 4 or 5 simultaneous events- Shanghai, Rome, Sam's house, the aircraft carrier, and Egypt?

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  31. Counterpunch4/18/2009 8:08 AM

    You drew first blood, TheChief. Not me.

    IT IS GOOD TO KNOW THAT IN THE END A MUPPET ADMITTED HIS MISTAKE. You were the one acting like a fucking 5 year old jack-ass ' oh you're wrong you're wrong BS'.

    Dont fucking tell me how to run things in here. I am Counterpunch & I am rarely wrong.

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  32. ALL HAIL SAM WITWICKY4/18/2009 9:32 AM

    WOW this game is gonna be f***ing awsome .online multiplay er downloadable content. an awsome arey off robots at ur disposal . im gonna be playing this game for ages cant wait until 19th of june .and as for the trailer megan fox is lokkin hotter than ever by about 100 times. and the robot action is full on awsomeness bring on the 24th

    REVENGE IS COMING

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