Check out the first extended trailer for 'House of the Dragon'

If you've been waiting for the Game of Thrones prequel, House of  theDragon, we finally get a better look at the series. It's going to premiere in Canada on August 21 on Crave. The show takes place approximately 300 years before the events of Game of Thrones. It also focuses on the story of the House of Targaryen. 

House of the Dragon stars Paddy Considine, Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Emma D'Arcy, and Fabien Frankel, among others. The series is created by Ryan Condal, Miguel Sapochnik, and A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin. (In case you don't know, Game of Thrones was based on Martin's fantasy novel series.) 

Apple Store is down for some regions, including Canada

If you want to do middle-of-the-night shopping at the Apple Store, it looks like it's down right now. It's offline here, in the US, and some countries like Australia and the UK. It comes with a notice that says, "We'll be right back." And it promises that "updates are coming to the Apple Store." But it still seems to be live in countries like China, New Zealand, and Japan, so it's unclear what this maintenance is for.

Apple typically takes down the Apple Store when it plans to release a new product, but that's typically a worldwide "shutdown." It's most likely just maintenance. But if you're wondering why you can't shop right now, well, the site isn't down just for you. And maybe by the time you see this, the site might already be up.

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TikTok starts testing in-app mini-games

Source:TikTok

TikTok has quietly added a small collection of mini-games into its app. There are nine games available during this testing period. Of course, you can record gameplay for these titles and share these videos on TikTok. You can just add the game on its own through the "Add link" option and selecting "MiniGame" This will allow your viewers to play a linked game by tapping the link. They can still watch videos while they play. The test is running in the US, but it's also been spotted in the UK version of the app. 

Third-party gaming studios developed the games for the platform, including Vodoo, Nitro Games, FRVR, Aim Lab, and Lotum. But ByteDance also bought a game studio, the Shanghai-based Moonton Technology, last year. This pilot test comes after a Reuters report says TikTok plans to make a "major push" into gaming. It is looking for ways to keep people in its app and increase its advertising revenue, and gaming is one of those methods. None of the current games available don't have ads or in-app purchases for now. But we wouldn't be surprised if it gets that in the future.

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Canadian Reviewer Weekly Roundup – 7/24 – 7/30

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