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Posted by Bob Muir on Mar 3, 2015 in Tech, Videogames 
Nice move, Epic. The game studio that develops one of the most used middleware engines, Unreal Engine, has decided to make their latest release, Unreal Engine 4, free. That’s right, the engine is free and all updates will be free. Developers making commercially-released software will pay a 5% royalty on gross revenue that is higher than $3,000 per project and per quarter, though developers can still negotiate the fee with Epic. This opens up the middleware to any developer who wants it, no matter how small the project. In fact, if your product doesn’t make much money (or is free), you basically don’t pay royalties. This is going to be great for the indie market and will hopefully lead to some cool ideas. Read more…
Tags: Unreal
Posted by Bob Muir on Mar 3, 2015 in Cinema, Comic Books 
In what isn’t a huge surprise, it seems that Drew Goddard may be writing and directing the next Spider-Man. While Goddard’s rep walked back initial reports that it was a sure thing, he apparently has a meeting with Sony to discuss the possibility. Goddard first joined the Spider-Man franchise when he left Marvel’s Daredevil (coming soon to Netflix) in favor of Sony’s Sinister Six spin-off of The Amazing Spider-Man. With that series officially dead and Sinister Six put back into development — which seems like the precursor to a mercy killing. Honestly, this just makes sense, so don’t be surprised when this is announced soon. Read more…
Tags: Marvel, Sony, Spider-man
Posted by Ben Huber on Mar 2, 2015 in Television 
HBO has released a brand new poster for Game of Thrones season 5, which features a big ol’ dragon on it. Not that surprising! However, the bottom half of the poster (which I’ve placed below the break) features a character encountering the dragon that show fans might not expect (especially if you’re avoiding spoilers). Check it out if you dare! Also included are two new clips, one featuring Jon Snow and the criminally underused Mance Rayder, and another featuring Brienne and Pod reflecting on the failed kings of Westeros. It’s not far away now: season 5 begins April 12th. Read more…
Tags: Game of Thrones, HBO
Posted by Ben Huber on Mar 2, 2015 in Tech 
The past few days, rumors swirled of a Valve virtual reality headset being announced with a major hardware producer. Today, in Barcelona, HTC announced that they’ll be the ones partnering with Valve to create a new VR headset called the Vive that will release before the end of 2015. The device will use two 1200 x 1080 screens (one for each eye) that’ll refresh at 90 frames per second. In addition to the standard accelerometer and gyrosensor, there will also be two laser position sensors that’ll track your head in a 15-by-15 foot space. The VR hardware race is heating up, now with Oculus, Valve, Sony, and possibly Nvidia all planning headsets (plus Apple is investigating the area too). This should be fun to watch! Read more…
Tags: HTC, oculus rift, Valve, Virtual Reality
Posted by Ben Huber on Mar 1, 2015 in Animation, Cinema 
Adventure Time is everywhere and it probably one of the biggest TV shows for kids these days. Creator Pendleton Ward and the crew at Cartoon Network have done an impressive job keeping the show interesting as the cast and story expands. Now, the series will be getting a feature-length animated film in theaters, courtesy of Warner Bros. Chris McKay and Roy Lee will be producing the picture, some of the folks behind The LEGO Movie. I’m actually surprised this hasn’t happened sooner, as an Adventure Time movie seems like a license to print money! I wonder what sort of story they’ll tell, or if they’ll end up with “just a longer episode on a bigger screen” syndrome? Read more…
Tags: Adventure Time
Posted by Ben Huber on Mar 1, 2015 in Cinema, Star Trek 
At this point, I don’t think I can say anything about Leonard Nimoy that hasn’t already been said by more eloquent people. He and his acting have left indelible memories with all of us and our pop culture. And not only was he a great actor, he was also a great person. Often that’s all too rare a combination these days. In this post I’m simply going to let some of Nimoy’s work speak for itself. Live love and prosper. Read more…
Tags: Leonard Nimoy, Spock
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 28, 2015 in Cinema 
There’s been news going around of the town Rincon de la Victoria in Spain announcing their intentions to build a “theme park” (although it sounds more like a plain old regular park with some minor themed elements) called La Comarca… aka, The Shire. It’s very clearly inspired by the Lord of the Rings, but lacks one key element: approval from the Tolkien Estate or Warner Bros. Whoops! Council representatives behind the park design claim “All the concepts will be original, they will not be able to be considered ‘copies’,” but yet “representatives from the council were accompanied during the presentation by an actor dressed up as Frodo.” Warner Bros. is currently investigating the project. I’m not so sure this park will happen in this form… Read more…
Tags: Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 28, 2015 in Cinema 
If you were wondering the most likely candidate would be to direct the Blade Runner sequel now that Ridley Scott had offered it up, wonder no longer! Denis Villeneuve, the director behind such films as Prisoners, Enemy, and Incendies, is in negotiations to direct the cyberpunk movie. The production company sent out a press release about it, which basically means it’s already official. Harrison Ford is also confirmed to return to his role as Rick Deckard, which I’m not entirely sold on yet. Still, one of the original co-writers of Blade Runner, Hampton Fancher, has written the script with Michael Green (Green Lantern, The River). The film will begin filming in summer of next year. Villeneuve is one of the best directors out there right now, so this suddenly set my hopes a tad bit higher. Read more…
Tags: Blade Runner, Denis Villeneuve, Harrison Ford
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 27, 2015 in Cinema, Comic Books 
The Josh Trank Fantastic Four film grows closer, and stills seems to be a bit of a mystery. Even with a teaser trailer, the movie seems to be a bit obtuse from a marketing standpoint. It doesn’t help that there have been negative rumors floating around during filming (mainly that Trank has been incredibly unprofessional). Those rumors haven’t really solidified since, but the lack of marketing and Fox’s general disregard for the film has been puzzling. Still, they released four new photos with Empire, and well… they sure are photos of the cast. Nothing really special though, and definitely nothing big enough to start the hype train rolling. Check them out below! Read more…
Tags: Fantastic Four, Josh Trank
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 27, 2015 in Cinema 
In a recent interview with Sky Movies, Neill Blomkamp went into more detail about his next film, which will be a new Alien film. Like many folks, Blomkamp wasn’t a fan of Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection, and is planning for his film to take place after Aliens, effectively ignoring half of the series. This is an interesting approach, and it has stirred up a lot of debate online. Many fans are upset that the canon is being disregarded so flippantly, others are happy to see an alternate take on where Ripley’s story could go. I’m not married to the idea of “canon,” and we live in a world where stories are rebooted all the time. While this movie could definitely turn out poorly, I don’t think we need to cling so preciously to the concept of “canon.” If it’s good, then great! If not, then oh well! We already have some wonderful Alien films we can always re-watch any time. Read more…
Tags: Alien, Aliens, neill blomkamp
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 26, 2015 in Animation, Television 
One of the best TV cartoons that Disney ever made was Ducktales, the classic, Emmy-winning spin-off of Donald Duck’s comics. From 1987 to 1990 (plus a movie), it chronicled the adventures of Scrooge McDuck (Donald’s uncle); Huey, Dewey, and Louie (Donald’s nephews); Launchpad McQuack (their pilot); and tons of other characters. Disney has finally come to their senses and is reviving this winning series with a new series for Disney XD. They won’t be ready until 2017, but that sounds like good news to me, as taking that much time could hopefully translate into more lavish, traditional animation. Read more…
Tags: Disney, DuckTales
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 26, 2015 in Videogames 
Where do you go from Street Fighter IV? It would be simple for the upcoming Street Fighter V to change direction to differentiate it from IV (and II, since IV was so similar to it). The current footage looks like a graphical improvement to IV (that’s strangely slower), so what sets it apart? Capcom’s answer is to bring back an old character from Street Fighter Alpha. Charlie Nash is Guile’s best friend who was supposedly killed by one of M. Bison’s helicopters. Obviously, he didn’t completely die, but it looks like he has some modifications, so maybe he’s out for revenge. Hopefully we’ll see some other obscure characters pop up as fun additions. Read more…
Tags: Capcom, PS4, Street Fighter
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 25, 2015 in Cinema 
While I’m eternally disappointed that Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) doesn’t feature Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law, it doesn’t change the fact that it’s an excellent film that won the Oscar for Best Picture just days ago. If you’re a really big fan, you might want a Birdman action figure of your own to add to your collection. But since they don’t exist, you’ll have to make believe with this fake ad featuring the action figure you wish you had. The figure isn’t sold in stores, since it was only given away in a contest, so why should those kids get that figure all to themselves? Read more…
Tags: Birdman
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 25, 2015 in Fandom, Television 
It seems like all our favorite childhood franchises are getting modern, gritty reboots these days. I think it speaks to our nostalgia for our past while avoiding any potential embarrassment for enjoying “childish” things. There’s a new Power Rangers movie which is likely to do its own thing (or do America’s first season of the show) instead of looking to the current series. But what if that movie got the Batman Begins treatment? You get this awesome fan film directed by Joseph Kahn and produced by Adi Shankar (The Grey, Dredd). POWER/RANGERS stars James Van Der Beek and Katie Sackhoff, and while this might be tedious as a feature-length film, it’s excellent as a short. Read more…
Tags: power rangers
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 24, 2015 in Television 
If you’re like me, you missed that short-lived leak of House of Cards season 3 and can’t wait to see it when it releases February 27. But in the meantime, Sesame Street is here to fill the void. While the skit is mashed up with the Three Little Pigs, it’s all the little details that make “Frank Underwolf” a great parody: his class ring, knocking on the desk, and of course his asides to the audience. Just don’t be too surprised when the House of Bricks turns out to be something else. Read more…
Tags: Sesame Street
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 24, 2015 in Television 
Though Marvel’s Inhumans movie won’t be out until the far-distant future of 2019 (scheduled after Avengers: Infinity War Part 2), Marvel stealthily introduced them in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.‘s mid-season 2 finale. But though Skye and Raina “became” something more, the episode ended before we could really get any answers. Judging by this promo for the second half of the season, it won’t stay that way for long. Skye specifically says the word “Inhuman,” so it’s possible this is where the word may originate from in the MCU. I think it’s safe to say that for now, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. might as well be called Inhumans of S.H.I.E.L.D. for the rest of this season. Read more…
Tags: Agents of SHIELD, Marvel
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 23, 2015 in Videogames 
You don’t even know it yet, but you want to hear every Smash Bros. character clapping. It’s true! Every time you finish a match in Smash Bros. for Wii U or 3DS, the losing characters applaud politely (or sometimes not-so-politely) while the winner basks in the glory. In-game the clapping is silent, but the Game Grumps have taken it upon themselves to add in the foley sound effects for all the characters clapping. Sometimes they go a little bit… overboard. Who knew clapping could sound so gross? Come on, you’re curious, aren’t you? Click through to watch nearly six minutes of video game characters clapping in silly, silly ways. Read more…
Tags: Super Smash Bros.
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 23, 2015 in Cinema 
This definitely wasn’t what I was expecting to see today: Sesame Street has put together a cute little video featuring Caroll Spinney, the Birdman. Well, the man inside the bird. Big Bird, that is. Yes, Sesame Street made a Birdman parody, and it’s quite clever, too, playing on all the elements of the film. I’m sure most kids won’t get this joke video, but that’s okay, this isn’t really for them anyway. It’s just a smart way for Sesame Street to stay in the spotlight during Oscars season. (By the time you’re reading this, maybe Birdman has won something?) Check out the video embedded below! Read more…
Tags: Birdman, Sesame Street
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 22, 2015 in Cinema 
When we heard that Disney wanted to reboot Indiana Jones, I don’t think many people were surprised. When Chris Pratt was being floated as the possible lead, I think most folks said, “Yeah, I could totally see that.” The real surprise is this: Steven Spielberg is expressing interest in directing the reboot and returning to the franchise again. It’s still very early in the process, but assuming the script is to his satisfaction, Spielberg does want to direct Pratt in a new adventure. Spielberg definitely still has talent so I suppose this isn’t a bad turn of events! There’s still a ways to go, but we could be looking at a new Jones film soon. Read more…
Tags: Indiana Jones, Steven Spielberg
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 22, 2015 in Cinema 
There’s been tons of speculation over who will play the new Spider-Man. We heard a few names being floated not long ago, but on Meet the Movie Press, TheWrap’s Jeff Sneider went on record saying that the new Spider-Man will not be white. He also believes that there is a high chance he won’t be Peter Parker as well. Sneider isn’t someone to make stuff up, as he’s also worked for Variety in the past and is very reliable. If he’s saying this, it’s because he’s hearing inside info that’s pointing him this way. Now, this could contradict the initial Marvel press release that mentioned “Peter Parker” specifically, but Sneider says that the Sony email leaks might have been a factor in changing the character. Could we get Mile Morales? I would love to see this happen. (And sorry guys, but it won’t be Donald Glover. It’ll be a younger actor.) Video below with the full conversation! Read more…
Tags: Marvel, Spider-man
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 21, 2015 in Television 
Season 5 of Game of Thrones is right around the corner (and we’re getting into uncharted territory for several characters). George R.R. Martin even mentioned recently that some characters who are still alive in the books will die in the show. Now book-readers and show-watchers alike can cower in fear of their favorite characters getting offed! With all this stress, I think it’s time to relax a bit with some season 4 bloopers! This was released as a final reward to visitors of the Game of Thrones Exhibition in London, but now everyone can enjoy it online. Read more…
Tags: Game of Thrones
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 21, 2015 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Jason Momoa and Zack Snyder promised that Aquaman in the upcoming Batman v Superman film would be “badass,” a term that not many non-comic fans would associate with the character. However, given that they cast Jason Momoa as Aquaman, and going by this first image of his costume, I have to say: he does look pretty badass. When they announced Momoa as the actor to play him, I definitely pictured a more Khal Drogo-esque Aquaman, and this fits the bill. It remains to be seen how much of a part he’ll play in the film, but hopefully Aquaman will be handled well and become a fan favorite. Read more…
Tags: Aquaman, Batman v. Superman
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 20, 2015 in Fandom, Videogames 
Here’s a fun little video to start your Friday off right: Headcrabs are pretty rude. Not only do they hide behind easily-crowbar-ed boxes and attempt to couple with your head, eating your brains in the process, but according to this short Source video, they’ll steal your stuff, too. Nathan Hibberd created this short film and I think it’s probably the silliest thing on his YouTube channel currently. Also, I can use this post as an opportunity to talk about Half-Life, one of my favorite video game series ever. I love the world of Half-Life, and the amount of great videos like this one just go to show that a lot of other people do too! Read more…
Tags: Half-Life, Source Filmmaker
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 20, 2015 in Cinema 
This new Japanese trailer for Mad Max: Fury Road runs only 1 minute in length, yet it somehow feels like a full-length trailer with an abundance of footage. It still remains to be seen if Fury Road will be a good film, but I think most people will agree that the trailers are top-notch. This is how you get people hyped for your movie! I’ve embedded the trailer below. It reuses a fair amount of footage from previous promos but also sneaks in quite a few new shots as well. When a new Mad Max film was announced, you’d be hard pressed to find any excitement on my end. Now? I’m planning on seeing this opening week! Read more…
Tags: mad max
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