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Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 30, 2014 in Videogames 
I’m glad that I’m waiting to play the latest Telltale Games adventure game series The Wolf Among Us. The spin-off of the comic series Fables released the first of five episodes, “Faith,” a few months ago, but the second episode, “Smoke and Mirrors,” has taken longer than expected to come out. The latest trailer promises that it’s “coming soon,” so it should be out shortly. Those who are playing each episode as it comes out will probably be ecstatic, as this new episode’s trailer looks pretty awesome. I figure I’ll pick up the whole series at once when it’s finally finished. Read more…
Tags: Fables, Telltale Games
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 30, 2014 in Videogames 
Final Fantasy XIII has a pretty convoluted story, not at all helped by a horrible presentation that seems to delight in requiring you to know certain information, but not giving that information for hours, requiring a look at a list of terms in a dictionary, which makes the eventual explanation boring. If you can’t tell, I’m not a fan of the poorly-written game or its sequel Final Fantasy XIII-2. But Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, the third and final entry, is out soon, so Square Enix made this awesome recap of the story so far. It boils everything down to the bare minimum, and best of all, it’s done in 16-bit graphics like the classic SNES entries. It almost makes things comprehensible! I just want Square Enix to do more with this style of graphics. Read more…
Tags: Final Fantasy, PS3, square enix, Xbox 360
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 29, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Captain America: The Winter Soldier isn’t out on April 4, but that doesn’t mean Marvel isn’t already thinking of the future. Since we’re still in the middle of Marvel’s “Phase 2,” there are not a lot of confirmed details for movies in “Phase 3” besides Ant-Man. However, we might see a third Captain America movie, as Marvel has already arranged for Anthony and Joe Russo to return to direct a third film. They’re already working on the story, even though the movie isn’t officially confirmed yet. Read more…
Tags: captain america, Marvel
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 29, 2014 in Animation, Cinema, Videogames 
I guess Sucker Punch saw that Insomniac’s fellow PS2-era platformer Ratchet & Clank was getting a movie and wanted in, because now we have a Sly Cooper movie scheduled for theaters in 2016. Hell, it’s even being made by Blockade Entertainment and Rainmaker Entertainment, who are also making the Ratchet & Clank movie. My gut reaction at first was that Sly looked weird and had too much detail in his fur, but after seeing it in action, I have to admit he looks pretty cool. The whole trailer feels like the video game it’s sourced from, and that’s great. Plus, I have to love when a series like this opens with a Reservoir Dogs reference. My only question now is if Naughty Dog will get a Jak and Daxter movie made to complete the PS2 platforming trilogy. Read more…
Tags: Sly Cooper
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 28, 2014 in Dr. Who, Television 
Part of the excitement of getting a new main actor on Doctor Who is seeing what he’s going to wear. Sometimes you wind up with something unique and classic, like Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor, and other times you wind up with possibly the worst outfit ever cobbled together, like Colin Baker as the Sixth Doctor. Now that Peter Capaldi has taken over the role as the Twelfth Doctor and filming has begun, we finally get to see how his version of The Doctor will look. And how he will look is pretty cool. Read more…
Tags: BBC, Doctor Who, Peter Capaldi
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 28, 2014 in Videogames 
“Wait, I thought Microsoft already owned Gears of War, the solid dude-bro cover-based shooter that helped cement the Xbox 360’s reputation throughout it’s lifetime!” Well, other than helpfully recapping what Gears of War is, that would be wrong, Mr. Strawman-I-Made-Up! Epic Games, the developer, owned the IP and made an exclusive agreement with Microsoft for the game to be Xbox 360 exclusive. After an initial trilogy and a spin-off by a different developer, Epic seemed to have cooled on making any more games in the series. (And there’s nothing wrong with a series knowing when to end instead of running forever!) But now Microsoft has bought the IP, and there’s not much reason to do that unless you plan on making more games in the series. Read more…
Tags: Gears of War, Microsoft, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 23, 2014 in Star Wars 
Disney isn’t just doing a new Star Wars trilogy. No, they’re mixing in lots of individual side movies, sort of taking a page from Marvel. Considering that there are at least two such movies being considered, this next bit of news is surprising, but not that surprising. Latino Review reports that Pixar, an animation studio within Disney, will supposedly get their hands on the license and make a movie. There’s no clue as to what the movie will be like — if it’s a full side story like the extra live-action movies, or if it’s targeting kids, or if it’s a collection of shorter stories like other animated tie-in films — but I could see it working. Of course, the definitive animated Star Wars experience so far is Genndy Tartakovsky’s Star Wars: Clone Wars, and even without Tartakovsky involved, I think traditional 2D animation suits Star Wars‘ visual design much better. But even if Pixar aren’t as infallible as they used to be, I think they could make a good product. I’d expect to see much more of this kind of thing in the future, as Disney fully utilizes that expensive Star Wars license. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Pixar, Star Wars
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 23, 2014 in Dr. Who, Hobbies and Collections 
Yes, you can buy Cards Against Humanity, the more outrageous, dirty version of Apples to Apples. But you can just as easily download the cards and print your own — the makers even provide a link. You can do pretty much whatever you want with the format and writing, just as long as you don’t call it “Cards Against Humanity.” So it’s really easy to make a fan expansion however you want, like Crabs Adjust Humidity. Taking note of this, the comedy group Conventional Improv made a show based on Cards Against Humanity that they perform at conventions. In honor of Doctor Who‘s 50th Anniversary, they had performed a Doctor Who-themed game called Cards Against Gallifrey. That fan version is now available to download, so consider mixing these cards in if you’re a Doctor Who fan. Read more…
Tags: card games
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 22, 2014 in Animation, Cinema 
If you really loved Disney’s latest animated movie Frozen, you may want to consider visiting Quebec City. Disney has worked with Hôtel de Glace to create a hotel suite fashioned out of ice and snow. Frozen art director Michael Giaimo supervised the design to make sure it looked similar to the movie’s aesthetic. There’s also a “Frozen Activity Cave,” which isn’t explained, so it could be anything, but I’d guess it’s where you’d toss the kids if you and your partner wanted some alone time on that frozen bed. I’ve always appreciated ice sculptures, but I think sleeping in one might be a bit too much for me, so I’m happy to just look at these photos. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Frozen
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 22, 2014 in Videogames 
La-Mulana was a great retro-inspired 2D game with lots of exploration and secrets to uncover. (In fact, you can buy it on Steam for only $1.49 if you get it quickly!) Indie developer Nigoro wants to make a sequel that doesn’t require you to have played the original, and it needs your help to kickstart it on Kickstarter. In La-Mulana 2, you’ll play as the previous protagonist’s daughter, though it looks like her father is still in the game. There will be new monsters to fight in new ruins called Eg-Lana. Nigoro needs to raise $200,000 in funds by February 22, which seems totally doable, but there are of course tantalizing stretch goals to make the game even better. This is something any retro-enthusiast should want to exist! Read more…
Tags: Indie Games, Kickstarter
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 21, 2014 in Animation 
TV Guide premiered the first trailer for DC’s next animated movie, Son of Batman. This is an adaptation of the 2006 storyline Batman & Son, in which Bruce Wayne learns that he has a son from the boy’s mother, Talia al Ghul, leader of the League of Assassins. Bruce raises him, and soon young Damian is going out with Batman as Robin, though he certainly acts like someone who was raised by the League of Assassins. The animation looks good enough, though Damian seems a bit whinier and less aggressive than he is in the comics. Take a look and see what you think! Read more…
Tags: Batman, DC Comics, Warner Brothers
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 21, 2014 in Animation, Cinema 
When I was younger, I really wanted a lot of live-action versions of things I had seen animated. How cool would things like Dragonball Z and Evangelion be with real people? (Turns out not so well.) Now that I’m older, I’m perfectly content with these things to stay the way they are, because good animation can do things live-action can’t and should be respected as its own art form, not just something to distract kids. But Disney seems committed to redoing its most famous animated movies in live-action. Alice in Wonderland came out in 2010, Cinderella will be out in 2015, but this year is Maleficent, the Sleeping Beauty reimagining that focuses on its main villain of the same name. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Sleeping Beauty
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 16, 2014 in Television 
These days, everyone’s on board with Batman being a dark, gloomy character. The movies have shaken off Schumacher’s stench and gone gritty and realistic. But there was a time when Batman was downright camp: the 60s live-action Batman TV series. DC sometimes revisits this time with things like the Batman: The Brave and the Bold cartoon, but there’s really nothing quite like the original. Through Conan O’Brien (whose show Conan shoots right on the WB lot near my apartment), WB has confirmed that they are releasing Batman — presumably all 120 episodes — in a complete box set later in 2014. Conan tweeted the news with a picture of him and the Batmobile, which was retweeted by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. There are no further details yet, and I’m not sure if the 1966 Batman movie with nearly the same cast from the TV show will be included. Regardless, it’s good that this is finally getting a release so we can see Adam West, Burt Ward, Cesar Romero, and all the other wacky actors. Would a Blu-ray version be asking too much? Read more…
Tags: Batman, Conan, Warner Brothers
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 16, 2014 in Videogames 
Dark Souls II is out on March 11, 2014, so it’s time for those trailers to start rolling in and hyping up all the ways you can die. As expected, you play a cursed character of some sort, and you’ll be dying over and over again against brutal defenses in order to progress through the game. Look at some of those bosses! Though it’s not the most impressive enemy, the guy in shackles creeps me out; maybe I’m thinking of the deformed (and unkillable) Lisa Trevor in the Resident Evil remake on Gamecube? Regardless, everything here looks deadly. It should be fun! Read more…
Tags: Dark Souls, Namco Bandai, PS3, Xbox 360
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 15, 2014 in Videogames 
Yasumi Matsuno has made some of the best strategy RPGs, like Ogre Battle and Final Fantasy Tactics. He’s since left Square Enix and gone freelance for almost a decade, but he’s ready to reveal his latest game. Unsung Story: Tale of the Guardians is another medieval strategy game inspired by some of his earlier work. You’ll play as several heroes as they take part in the “Seventy-Seven Years War” in the land of Rasfalia, with each hero getting their own episode. The title is being made by American developer Playdek and is planned for PC, Mac, iOS, Android, and Windows tablets. The game is being posted on Kickstarter, so it will have to meet its minimum funding goal. Two of the stretch goals, however, will add PS Vita and 3DS versions to the development schedule, so you have the option to play it on more systems. Other stretch goals include additional scenarios, voice-overs, and a soundtrack composed by Hitoshi Sakamoto, who has scored some of Matsuno’s past games. I’m interested because of Matsuno, but I have to point out that the game has one of the most generic fantasy titles ever. Read more…
Tags: Fantasy, RPG
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 15, 2014 in Tech 
Well damn. Net neutrality has been considered one of the most important policies for the Internet to have. The concept is that the Internet should be a free and open space to encourage competition and allow smaller sites to grow big; therefore, internet service providers (ISPs) must give equal treatment to all websites and traffic, regardless of how big or small they are. ISPs have wanted to offer faster connections that bigger sites must pay for, or section off certain types of websites for an additional fee. Net neutrality argues that a start-up like Amazon may not have been able to fully grow if it had to compete with other websites that could afford to load faster. Unfortunately, that just got thrown out the window. Read more…
Tags: The Internet
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 14, 2014 in Cinema, Hobbies and Collections 
Magic: The Gathering is still one of the most popular trading card games out there, despite being 20 years old. And since Hollywood has shown it is willing to develop even simple board games like Battleship into a reasonable facsimile of a movie, I can’t be entirely surprised that there’s a Magic movie on the way. Yes, Hasbro has made a deal with 20th Century Fox to adapt a card game into a movie. They’re aiming for something as epic as Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, which sounds silly, but there’s a ton of lore (often expanded upon in books and comics) for writers to draw from, so it’s possible. Simon Kinberg, who helped produce the X-Men and Fantastic Four universes for Fox, will produce Magic as a franchise, with multiple movies being the ultimate goal. All well and good, but do we really need a Magic movie? Does everything need to be tied to a preexisting product or franchise these days? Read more…
Tags: 20th Century Fox, Magic the Gathering
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 14, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Paul Rudd will play Ant-Man in Edgar Wright’s Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 3 film, fittingly called Ant-Man. But he’s not playing Hank Pym, the classic character. No, Marvel has clarified that Rudd is playing Scott Lang, the second Ant-Man who steals equipment from Pym. Of course, it makes sense for Pym to be in the movie, so Michael Douglas has been cast in that role. Now that we finally know which Ant-Men are involved, I can make some guesses as to some plot points. I’d imagine that in this universe, Hank Pym might just be a scientist instead of also being Ant-Man. Scott Lang steals his equipment for some reason, uses it to become Ant-Man, and eventually gets mentored by Pym. I’m still curious as to what the conflict will be. Could it be related to Ultron in The Avengers 2, since Pym created him? Read more…
Tags: ant-man, Marvel
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 9, 2014 in Videogames 
WayFoward’s take on Double Dragon, Double Dragon Neon, was an awesome beat ’em up game with a rocking 80s soundtrack. Now it’s coming to Steam, with online co-op to boot. For $9.99, you can punch bad guys in the head, which is better than getting hit yourself, as this trailer illustrates with science. It says “coming soon,” so there’s no date, but I’d imagine it won’t take long for it to come out. Now PC gamers can enjoy this old-school game too! Read more…
Tags: Retro Games, Steam
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 9, 2014 in Videogames 
We all know videogame graphics aren’t as important as gameplay, but having some good graphics generally can’t hurt. The Farm 51 is making an FPS called Get Even, and it certainly won’t be out until 2015. But in the meantime, we have a trailer that shows off their use of Thorskan, which allows them to scan an environment directly into the game. The walls and floors look really pretty (or should I say ugly and gritty?), though I noticed the camera quickly flies over the faces on those bodies, so maybe all they’ve got are pretty environments. The studio promises a game that “subtlety [sic] removes the classic division between single-player and multiplayer” and focuses on the memories of the main cast. The trailer doesn’t show any of that, but it does include a few live-action shots, so try not to get too confused when you watch it. Read more…
Tags: Videogames
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 8, 2014 in Videogames 
When showing off the PS4, Sony shared its desire to be able to stream PS3 games from their servers to the PS4 since the PS4 couldn’t play PS3 games due to its different chip architecture. The console launched, but the game streaming wasn’t ready yet, as we had been told from the start. But it seems we’ll have game streaming soon, as Sony has announced PlayStation Now. The streaming service will work not just on PS4, but also on PS3. Streaming is also planned for PS Vita, as well as most 2014 US models of BRAVIA TVs, and in the future tablets and smartphones. Sony is using the Gaikai tech they purchased to help stream across multiple devices, even keeping your save progress in the cloud. Read more…
Tags: Playstation Vita, PS3, PS4
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 8, 2014 in Cinema, Videogames 
The most recent game based on Alien/Aliens was 2013’s Aliens: Colonial Marines, one of the worst games of the year that failed to live up to any of the apparently-false advertising and press demos. Everyone’s rightfully wary of any future games in the franchise, but let’s give Creative Assembly (known for Total War) a shot. They’re making Alien: Isolation, a survival horror game about Amanda Ripley — the daughter mentioned as having died of old age at the beginning of Aliens — exploring a space station to find info on Ellen Ripley and the Nostromo. Instead of hundreds of xenomorph enemies that are treated like cannon fodder, there’s only one, nine-foot-tall, formidable xenomorph that hunts Amanda throughout the game; they’re clearly aiming more for the horror of Alien than the action of Aliens with this game. Read more…
Tags: Alien, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 7, 2014 in Anime, Cinema 
Unlike the Cowboy Bebop and Akira movies that never got off the ground, Hollywood is actually managing to remake an anime into a live-action film — just not one you expect. This is Kite, scheduled for release sometime in 2014. The original Kite (or A Kite in Japan) is an OVA made of 2 30-minute episodes, often edited into one 60-minute film. It’s also extremely violent and somewhat controversial for its scenes of graphic sex and rape, including scenes of the main character Sawa as a young girl; some places even list it as a hentai, though it’s not. It’s been remade as a live-action American film, though it’s almost certainly based on the earlier censored releases that cut out the actual depiction of rape. India Eisley stars as Sawa, while Samuel L. Jackson is the guy who gets top billing. Jackson is actually a fan of Kite, though again, I’d have to imagine he’s thinking of the censored version that most fans have seen. The first trailer is below, and it looks pretty stylish. Read more…
Tags: Samuel L. Jackson
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 7, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections 
Speaking of Legos, check out this purported leaked image of a Simpsons Lego set. With 2523 pieces, you’ve got a lot to work with as you construct the Simpsons’ house and populate it with the entire family (and Flanders). You can even open it up and check out the interior decorations, from the look of it. As this was a leak on Eurobricks, there’s no word on a date or price, but with that many pieces, you can expect it to easily cost you a pretty penny. Read more…
Tags: Lego, The Simpsons, Toys
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