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Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 13, 2013 in Anime 
Production I.G. is on a mission to show the world what 2D animation can do with their latest project, a four-film series in the Ghost in the Shell franchise. As a massive fan of 2D animation, I couldn’t be happier, and the fact that Ghost in the Shell is such an interesting universe is pretty nice to boot. The first film is named Ghost in the Shell: Arise, which focuses on Makoto Kusanagi, back in her younger days before she was the Major we’re familiar with. Read more…
Tags: Ghost in the Shell
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 12, 2013 in Videogames 
I suppose you shouldn’t let that headline scare you too much. There may be more games in the Professor Layton series, but this is the last game starring Hershel Layton himself as the protagonist. Professor Layton and the Azran Legacies concludes the prequel trilogy of Layton games, and while the game still doesn’t have an English release date, the game is out on February 28 in Japan, so have some tantalizing trailers! Read more…
Tags: Professor Layton
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 12, 2013 in Dr. Who, Television 
I would have thought that Doctor Who mania would be in full swing, since 2013 is such a major milestone in Doctor Who history. It’s been 50 years since the broadcast of the first episode, “An Unearthly Child,” but other than a 60-minute anniversary special, there are only a few minor things being done. And what’s the deal with one 60-minute special? There should be some two-hour extravaganza, with as many Doctors returning as possible, a la the 25th anniversary’s The Five Doctors. (Plus, the season leading up to it featured the return of previous villains.) Ah well, at least the special will…be in theaters…and in 3D? Read more…
Tags: 3D, Doctor Who
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 11, 2013 in Animation 
Want to take a look at the nominees for the Oscars this year? Many of the films aren’t out on Blu-ray yet, are already out of theaters, or had limited releases, but with the Animated Short Film category, you don’t have to worry about that! All of the nominees for the category are available online to watch, and there are a bunch of great contenders. Disney’s Paperman is there, as well as another solid choice, Adam and Dog. The Simpson’s also have an entry, in The Longest Daycare. All in all, there’s some excellent work on display here! Watch a few below, or click through to Bleeding Cool for the full list. Read more…
Tags: The Oscars
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 11, 2013 in Cinema 
Good news everyone! Wait, no, bad news. Very bad. The people who made the CGI Horton Hears a Who and The Lorax movies are getting their hands on another Doctor Seuss tale, perhaps his most well-known aside from Cat in the Hat: the Grinch Who Stole Christmas. Universal, why? I don’t see the need. Then again, it has a certain amount of guaranteed sales just due to the name. But while we’re on the topic of unnecessary entertainment, let’s also mention that Brett Ratner is making an animated Farmville TV show. He reportedly said “Farmville is one of the most exciting brands out there today,” which probably translates to “money? This is money, right? I could go for some of that.” Read more…
Tags: Dr. Seuss, farmville
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 10, 2013 in Fandom, Videogames 
You’ve probably seen me post about the Oculus Rift before, but this mod takes it to a whole other level. Using an Xbox Top Shot Elite controller, a tracking device taped on top, and an Oculus Rift, Nathan Andrews has created an awesome-looking mod for Half-Life 2. Your view and gun controls are separated and controlled individually by each motion tracker, thus allowing you to feel closer to being in the game itself. It’s a really neat setup, and one that I hope can be replicated easily, especially with the Rift dev kits coming out so soon. Watch the video below! Read more…
Tags: Half-Life, Mod, oculus rift
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 10, 2013 in Cinema, Hobbies and Collections 
Like Battle Royale? How about Scott Pilgrim? Or Kevin Tong? What about ridiculously cool posters? Throw them all together and Mondo has the movie screening for you. On February 16th at the Alamo Drafthouse, in partnership with Mondo, will be showing Battle Royale. Buy a ticket, and not only do you get to see the film, you also get a sweet print by Scott Pilgrim creator Bryan Lee O’Malley, and renowned print artist Kevin Tong. The poster will be 24 x 36 inches. Supplies and tickets are limited though, so act quick! Read more…
Tags: battle royale, Poster, Prints
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 9, 2013 in Videogames 
Looking for a new Wii U game now that Rayman Legends has been delayed? LEGO City Undercover looks like it might fit that bill. It’s the latest in a long line of LEGO games, but it looks to be breaking the mold in a few ways: one, it’s an open-world GTA-style game and two, more work seems to be going into the writing and voice acting. This new trailer via Nintendomination actually made me laugh a few times, and the missions look to be fun, so maybe I’ll check this game out. That goofy and charming LEGO humor really seems like a perfect fit here. Watch the trailer below. Read more…
Tags: Lego, Wii U
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 9, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections, Television 
Hey! This is actually a pretty clever box set! The Walking Dead season 3 Blu-ray box set, made by McFarlane Toys, will recreate one of the most creepy and disturbing bits from the series: the Governor’s wall of preserved zombie heads. It’s been made to light up, and the best part is you can fill it up with your own water, so it’ll look like the actual fish tanks the Governor has. Granted, we don’t know when this will come out, as the second half of season 3 will only start airing tomorrow night, but sometime this year you’ll be able to own your own collection of decapitated zombie heads. Take solace in that fact. Read more…
Tags: McFarlane Toys, The Walking Dead
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 8, 2013 in Videogames 
Here’s some surprising and odd news: Rayman Legends, the upcoming Wii U exclusive set for February 26th… is now no longer a Wii U exclusive or coming February 26th. Ubisoft confirmed that the game will be delayed until September, and will also be coming to Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. This is the latest in a list of Wii U games that originally were exclusive, but are now jumping ship to other systems – and honestly, it’s a bit confusing. Perhaps most bizarre is not only was Rayman already delayed from launch to February, the delay to September is a terrible choice because of one little thing: Grand Theft Auto V is also releasing in September, and no game company wants to be up against it. So why throw out Rayman Legends to die? Hopefully we’ll hear more soon. Read more…
Tags: rayman, Ubisoft
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 8, 2013 in Cinema, Videogames 
The other day at DICE, J.J. Abrams and Gabe Newell got up on stage together to give a presentation about their discussions on storytelling in games and film. If you’ve been paying attention, you may know that Gabe and J.J. have been buddies for a while, and have frequently mentioned their love for each other’s works. So now, on the cusp of Abrams getting the Star Wars gig, they have announced that they’ll be working on creating content together. Namely, Abrams wants to create Portal and Half-Life movies, and Newell wants Abrams to collaborate on a game with Valve. Pretty exciting stuff, but Abrams said that they’re only in the “early stages” of the talks, and are going to hire a scriptwriter soon. So who knows what could change in that time. Read more…
Tags: Gabe Newell, Half-Life, J.J. Abrams, Portal
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 7, 2013 in Television 
HBO is loving Game of Thrones as much as its fans, and with good reason: the show is a cross-over hit. Season three begins on March 31, and like many people, they’re eager for anything with George R.R. Martin’s name on it. So it’s no surprise that Martin has signed a two-year deal with HBO to continue as co-executive producer on Game of Thrones. But that’s not all! Martin will also be developing and producing new shows for HBO. Read more…
Tags: Game of Thrones
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 7, 2013 in Cinema, Star Wars 
It seems like Disney is definitely set on making some Star Wars spin-off films to be released between official episodes of the sequel trilogy. Yesterday we heard about a Yoda movie, but Entertainment Weekly is claiming that Han Solo and Boba Fett will be getting their own stand-alone films. Han Solo’s will explore the smuggler’s origins, set between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, perhaps with an older Harrison Ford as a framing device for a new actor younger than Han Solo’s original portrayal. Meanwhile Boba Fett’s will be a bounty hunter adventure, set either between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back or between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Star Wars
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 6, 2013 in Videogames 
Woah, stop, don’t just go breaking your toys after reading that headline. I’m talking specifically about new toys that are supposed to break in half. Activision just announced Skylanders: Swap Force, the newest entry in the surprisingly popular videogame/toy line. If you somehow haven’t heard of it, you buy real toys and place them on a special device to summon them for play in the game. This latest version features 16 new toys (sold separately) that you can break apart and reassemble however you want, for up to 256 possible combinations! Read more…
Tags: Activision, Skylanders, Toys
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 6, 2013 in Cinema, Star Wars 
Here’s a juicy rumor about the fate of Star Wars in Disney’s hands. We all know about the sequel trilogy, and everyone is pumped about J.J. Abrams directing Episode VII. But while these sequels will be released every two-to-three years, not as much attention has been paid to Disney’s plans for additional stand-alone films. Lawrence Kasdan and Simon Kinberg are writing two stand-alone films, so what’s the deal with them? At least for one of them, there’s one word: Yoda. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Yoda
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 5, 2013 in Videogames 
No matter how accomplished a Pokemon collector you are, it is currently technically impossible to have caught all 649 Pokemon. (At least, officially — let’s ignore the hackers.) That’s because Nintendo has yet to make available the last event pokemon, Meloetta. Sure, the game doesn’t require it to complete your Pokedex, but if you’re going to bother to catch ’em all, you might as well go all the way. But now, Nintendo is finally giving out the rare Meloetta. Read more…
Tags: gamestop, Nintendo DS, Pokémon
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 5, 2013 in Cinema 
Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim may not have had a trailer during the Super Bowl — for that matter, no Warner Brothers movie did — but at least we have a bunch of fancy new images to share. If buzz from the recent test screening is anything to go off of, this is going to be a giant robot movie you don’t want to miss. Plus, Looper director Rian Johnson has seen it, and he loves it!
Read more…
Tags: Pacific Rim, Robots, Warner Brothers
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 4, 2013 in Fandom, Videogames 
Have you been playing Hotline Miami? It’s a brutal beat-em-up game where you must eliminate gangs in various levels as quickly and efficiently as possible – and everything kills you in one hit. It becomes a fast-paced rush of violence that evokes similar feelings to Super Meat Boy, in which you restart instantly and every mistake feels like your own, rather than the game messing up. Now dress it all in a heavy 80s neon aesthetic, Drive-esque protagonist, and amazing synth-heavy electronic music. Now you’re ready to beat people up in style. Grab your lead pipe and watch this video below where the lead from Hotline Miami invades a few other games and dispatches his own style of justice upon them. Read more…
Tags: Hotline Miami
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 4, 2013 in Videogames 
Excited for March 26th to get here? You know, for Bioshock Infinite? Some might want to live in a fantasy world and ignore Bioshock 2, calling this game the true Bioshock sequel. I’m not really one of those people, but, I am way more interested in Infinite than I ever was in Bioshock 2. I hope this resurgence of steampunk-ish games doesn’t come back to bite us, because I do like the setting for Infinite. But the real question is, will the story live up to the level of the original game? At the least, it looks like they’re playing with some interesting themes here – I hope they handle them well. Watch a new trailer below as well as a fun faux-historical VHS tape about Columbia. Read more…
Tags: BioShock: Infinite
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 3, 2013 in Videogames 
Looking for something to bend your brain? A game that will challenge your skills of perception? Anything that allows you to use the phrase “non-euclidean” in a normal sentence? Then Antichamber is the game for you! It’s been in development for quite some time, but now it is finally out for PC on Steam. Simply put, Antichamber is a puzzle game, but in reality it’s much more complex. Physics mean nothing, and in an impressive bending of game logic and programming, Antichamber creates crazy game worlds that defy traditional thinking. It’s really clever, and in example, sometimes the way to solve a puzzle is to not look at it. Just a hint. Watch a trailer below or check out the game on Steam! Read more…
Tags: antichamber, Indie Games
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 3, 2013 in Cinema 
So, how about that World War Z? After a long and troubled production cycle, it’s finally coming out. The first trailer didn’t look very appeal, at least to fans of the book, and sadly I’m here to report that the new Super Bowl ad will do nothing to change your mind. It seems even the marketers are aware that people are sick of zombies, as they don’t even clearly show the zombies, and when asked about what’s happening a character simply says “we don’t know.” Sounds like a motto for the whole movie. Watch the clip below. Read more…
Tags: World War Z, zombies
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 2, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Here’s a sweet new poster for Iron Man 3, along with a new teaser clip, all leading up to a new trailer during the Superb Owl this Sunday. Not interested in football? That’s ok, because I’m sure it’ll be online mere minutes after the fact, if not beforehand. This new Iron Man film looks to be beating up Tony quite a bit now, even more so than Avengers. Will Shane Black be able to make an awesome film after Favreau’s mess of Iron Man 2? I sure hope so, especially with his buddy-buddy relationship with Robert Downey Jr. I’d like Iron Man 3 to blow my socks off. Watch the preview below. Read more…
Tags: Iron Man 3
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 2, 2013 in Videogames 
Sony has announced on February 20th they’ll be having their Playstation Meeting event again, this time teasing that viewers will “see the future.” That seems like a Playstation 4 announcement to me, right? We can never say for sure, but the Vita was announced at a previous Playstation Meeting, so the likelihood is high. It’s especially interesting given that Kaz Hirai recently said that they’d let Microsoft make the first move. What a twist! Maybe he was luring them into a false sense of security so that his secret Playstation event would catch them by surprise! Or maybe I’m putting too much thought into this. Watch the teaser trailer below. Read more…
Tags: PlayStation 3, Sony
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 1, 2013 in Animation 
I love seeing student animation films, especially some of the ones that come out of The Animation Workshop in Denmark. Some real high-quality work is produced there, and this latest short film is no exception. The Reward tells the tale of two adventurers who snatch up a dropped map and embark on a journey for lost treasure… or whatever it is under the X on the map. The journey is long and storied, and – you know – just watch it. The animation is very well done and in particular I thought the character design was fantastic. It’s roughly 9 minutes long, so buckle in and click through to watch it. Read more…
Tags: Short Films
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