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Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 31, 2012 in Videogames 
We knew it was coming, but now we’ve got a clearer idea of when: Grand Theft Auto V is coming as soon as Spring 2013. Rockstar North announced on their blog that the highly anticipated game would release for PS3 and Xbox 360. The company made no mention of a PC version, but PC versions of previous games in the series have typically released after the console versions. Read more…
Tags: Grand Theft Auto, PS3, Rockstar, Xbox 360
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 31, 2012 in Cinema, Star Wars 
In news that took me a while to wrap my head around, today the Walt Disney Company purchased Lucasfilm for $4.05 billion in cash and stocks. Disney now owns not only Lucasfilm, but also Industrial Light and Magic, Skywalker Sound, and LucasArts, as well as Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and numerous other properties. This is a pretty big deal, and I’m not entirely sure how to take it. What conflicts my opinion even further is the news that Disney is planning a new trilogy of Star Wars movies. Read more…
Tags: Disney, George Lucas, Star Wars
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 30, 2012 in Anime 
Anime studio Shaft really knocked it out of the park with their first non-adapted anime, Puella Magi Madoka Magica. The twelve-episode series was a subversion of the usually light-hearted magical girl genre, mixing daring visuals with haunting music and a dark plot that threw viewers for a loop. Shaft’s next original anime is also a magical girl story, but this one seems a bit more conventional, though still beautiful. Read more…
Tags: magical girl
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 30, 2012 in Videogames 
If you’re reading this on the east coast right now, not only do you still have some sort of power in the midst of Hurricane Sandy, but you get the treat of watching the launch trailer for Assassin’s Creed III on the day the game releases! This is the game fans have been waiting for since Assasssin’s Creed II in 2009, and after two more games with Ezio than we expected, the day is finally here. The setting shifts from the Italian Renaissance and Constantinople to the American Revolution, and the new lead is the half-Native American Ratonhnhaké:ton, better known as Connor Kenway. Read more…
Tags: Assassin's Creed, PS3, Xbox 360
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 29, 2012 in Science 
Here’s a great way to start your week if you’re a space fan: a 9-gigapixel (yes, giga) image of the Milky Way taken by the VISTA at the ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile. Thousands of images that were taken by the telescope were stitched together and then released in one enormous 108,500 x 85,500 pixel picture – and it looks absolutely gorgeous. It was run through three infrared filters so we can see stars that would usually be hidden in a normal view. If you’d like you can visit the site and see higher-res versions of the image, or even download the original full-size picture! Yes, all 24 gigs of it!
Tags: milky way, Space
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 29, 2012 in Videogames 
Check out the new limited edition Japan-exclusive 3DS that Nintendo is dangling in front of our faces – a Charizard-themed Pokemon 3DS. The cover is pretty cool, right? Nice design and it looks slick – and then you open it up and see the flames rippling across the back. Kudos to whichever artist at Nintendo came up with that one… pretty clever! Much like the Pikachu 3DS XL from earlier this year, you need to enter a drawing and win to be eligible to even pre-order this system. Hopefully this will eventually show up here – the Pikachu one is making an appearance in Europe, so there is some small sliver of hope! Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Pokémon
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 28, 2012 in Fandom 
Merry and Pippin are always playing jokes and, obviously, always getting into trouble. This cute video from Brotherhood Workshop does an excellent job of bringing the LEGO Lord of the Rings sets to life in stop-motion. The two reckless Hobbits attempt to scare Frodo and Sam and end up getting burnt in the process – although what else would you expect? I’m continually impressed by the quality of these animations, especially with how smooth they are. I know CGI is being used for most of LEGO’s commercial work now, but some classic stop-motion would look even better if done like this! Read more…
Tags: Lego, The Hobbit
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 28, 2012 in Videogames 
Want a blast from the past? Here are some awesome photographs taken by Ira Nowinksi from 1981 and 1982, giving you a glimpse back to the classic arcades of yesteryear. There are around 700 photos total, all recently added to the Stanford University Libraries. It’s pretty neat to see this kind of stuff get documented, although I suppose it was bound to happen sooner or later. And man, talk about an intense stance up there. You thought we were bad today, leaning towards the TV, controller clutched tightly? Try that pose for 3 hours. Check out a few more photos after the break! Read more…
Tags: Arcade Games, Photography, Retro Games
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 27, 2012 in Hobbies and Collections 
There are a lot of classic books covers I love. Some of them are really iconic, stuff you’ll always remember. Out of Print has a unique idea that I love: take book covers and put them on t-shirts. Maybe it’s really obvious, but I haven’t seen anything exactly like this before. So you can get your favorite book cover design on t-shirts, sweaters, and more – and they also donate to Books for Africa in the process for each item sold. Pretty neat! Click through for some more images or visit their site to check out the full selection! Read more…
Tags: Classic Books, T-Shirts
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 27, 2012 in Cinema 
Poor Jason Momoa – he was a good Conan, stuck in a bad movie – and now he’ll never get a second chance. Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed on with Universal Pictures to return and play Conan in a new film called (to everyone’s surprise, I’m sure) The Legend of Conan. I’m sure Arnold has been missing the cameras, but this whole situation seems hilarious to me. This movie better be amazingly terrible or actually good, because no one wants another middling Conan film. Funnily enough, the producer went out of his way to say this new film skips the second Conan (1984). Just smile and nod, I suppose. Read more…
Tags: arnold schwarzenegger, Conan
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 26, 2012 in Hobbies and Collections, Videogames 
Thanks to Major League Mods (Mark Bongo), they’ve accomplished something I’ve wanted since I was young: to have my own R2-D2 that plays video games. Ok, maybe it wasn’t that specific, but you can’t deny that an original Nintendo Entertainment System crammed into a plastic R2-D2 shell is pretty freaking cool. It features all your plugs, and the cartridge fits in on the back, out of sight. Mark even customized the controller a bit, to make it fit in with the rest of the package. Best part? The power and reset buttons are connected to a speaker that plays R2-D2 noises. You can play NES games on pretty much anything these days, but in the end, I still think these kind of mods are the best. Read more…
Tags: NES, R2-D2
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 26, 2012 in Anime, Hobbies and Collections 
Sailor Moon has been coming back in a big way, especially with the new anime series peeking over the horizon. Bandai is jumping in the pool with something I know a lot of fans have been clamoring for: a poseable Sailor Moon action figure! All we have so far is this image fresh from Tamashi Nation, in which you can also see what looks to be a Chibi Arts Sailor Moon in the background as well. I’m sure prices and release dates will be announced very soon, but for now you’ll just have to drool over this. Tomopop is also saying they’re hearing rumors of the other Inner Senshi/Scouts being announced too. Excellent! Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Sailor Moon
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 25, 2012 in Videogames 
God bless Valve for having the sort of corporate structure that lets them do pretty much whatever they want. Take Team Fortress 2, for example. Making up a crazy hat-based economy seems strange (and kind of destroys the benefit of having distinctive, recognizable character designs, even in silhouette), but it allowed the game to go free-to-play with pretty much no negative consequences. The latest idea isn’t exactly new — a Halloween scenario, still to be announced, has been done in previous years — but another event means another delightful comic book that feels less like an advertisement and more like a free gift of hilarity. Read more…
Tags: Valve
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 25, 2012 in Star Wars 
After Star Wars hit it big, fans became really invested in what would happen to the characters in “Star Wars II,” as it was referred to when talks of a sequel were starting to make the rounds. Without an internet to pass around hearsay, the duty of cultivating rumors fell to publications like Starlog, which devoted an article in their February 1980 issue to listing all the supposed rumors. Thankfully, The Empire Strikes Back turned out differently, because some of these are pretty silly. Read more…
Tags: Star Wars, Time Travel
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 24, 2012 in Anime, Videogames 
I’ve been playing One Piece: Pirate Warriors, the anime-inspired spin-off of Koei and Omega Force’s long-running Dynasty Warriors series of beat ’em up games. It has its flaws, but for a One Piece fan since Viz started running it in Shonen Jump in 2003, it’s probably the best representation of the franchise in video game form. There are bits that feel like they’re begging for downloadable content — notably an option on the main menu that brings up an empty list of additional content — and since Namco Bandai is publishing it, they of course have some add-ons to sell you. Read more…
Tags: DLC, Namco Bandai, One Piece, PS3
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 24, 2012 in Anime 
Since October 2011, Madhouse has been animating a new adaptation of Hunter x Hunter, a manga by Yu Yu Hakusho‘s Yoshihiro Togashi. But back in 1999, there was a 62 episode adaptation by Nippon Animation. Both anime reflect the time period they were made in, but since they cover the same narrative beats so far, that means they’re ripe for comparison videos! Read more…
Tags: Hunter x Hunter
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 23, 2012 in Anime 
According to Dengeki’s 20th Annivesary Festival, a second season was announced for A Certain Scientific Railgun (To Aru Kagaku no Railgun), the spin-off of the anime A Certain Magical Index. Simply titled To Aru Kagaku no Railgun S, the new episodes will continue following Mikoto Misaka and her friends in Academy City. Read more…
Tags: A Certain Magical Index
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 23, 2012 in Videogames 
In the old days of video game translation, English localization staff often changed characters’ names to appeal more to a Western audience. While we grew up knowing Sonic the Hedgehog’s nemesis as Dr. Ivo Robotnik, Japan knew him by his original name, Dr. Eggman. (It kind of justified all the egg references in the Sonic games, such as the Death Egg in Sonic 2.) In recent years, Sega has tried to reconcile these two names, stating that “Robotnik” is his real name and “Eggman” is his nickname, so that things can stay somewhat consistent. Videogame humor site Dorkly has another theory. Read more…
Tags: Sonic the Hedgehog
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 22, 2012 in Hobbies and Collections, Videogames 
Ready to put your pets through some serious testing? Maybe you have a young child or robot that looks like a child and need to find the perfectly-sized Portal gun them. Thankfully, your strange requests have been fulfilled by ThinkGeek, and you can now get a mini Portal gun. It lights up and makes sounds just like the full-size replica that was sold earlier this year, but it’s smaller! ThinkGeek lists that it comes with a stand and a full-color gift box as well. I’m not sure why that’s a big deal, but maybe you really like gift boxes. In that case, head over there and get yourself one – it’s $59.99! Read more…
Tags: Portal, Portal 2, ThinkGeek
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 22, 2012 in Videogames 
Are you hyped at all for BioShock Infinite? Granted, we have a whole lot of other games (and a new system) to get through until February 26th next year, but the latest in the BioShock series is looking more and more impressive. I was a little worried when we heard reports that the development of the game was in trouble, but if any of that’s true, they’re certainly not letting it show through. Lots of aerial combat and vertical movement is featured in the trailer – something I, personally, adore. Watch the trailer after the break! Read more…
Tags: BioShock: Infinite
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 21, 2012 in Animation, Anime 
Like livetune? How about Megumi Nakajima? Maybe school girls traveling through time and space, bizarre colorful worlds, and ancient Japan in a desperate attempt to get to school? What do you mean that doesn’t make sense? Come on now, this is anime. Logic and rules aren’t exactly a priority here. This recent music video for livetune’s song, Transfer, with Megumi Nakajima, is really cool and blends surprisingly well with the music. Check it out! Read more…
Tags: music videos
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 21, 2012 in Videogames 
Super Meat Boy was one of the biggest indie hits in a long time, and coming from just two guys, it’s pretty impressive. The duo (Edmund McMillen & Tommy Refenes) was also featured in Indie Game: The Movie and gave an inside look into their work on the project. Now, they’re working on a new Super Meat Boy for iOS and PC, and have just announced their next game: Mew-Genics! (Exclamation point included.) There’s not too many details about the game yet, but they describe it as a game that’s “randomly generated, strange and involving cats.” Seems unique! And I’m up for whatever Team Meat creates next! Read more…
Tags: Indie Games, super meat boy, team meat
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 20, 2012 in Videogames 
I’ve been paying closer attention to Assassin’s Creed III than the previous games in the series, if only because I’m interested in the new twists on the formula the game is receiving. The spin-off game for the Playstation Vita, Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation, looks to be even more unique. The main character is an African-French assassin named Aveline de Grandpré and she’ll be fighting her way through 18th Century New Orleans. To be honest, the main thing I thought when the announcement first came out was: why isn’t this Assassin’s Creed III, not a spin-off? Granted, the Vita looks to be supporting the game perfectly fine and i’m sure it’ll be great, but making it a mainline AC game would’ve been incredibly cool. Watch the trailer below for more details on the story and gameplay. Read more…
Tags: Assassin's Creed, Playstation Vita
Posted by Ben Huber on Oct 20, 2012 in Videogames 
Halo 4 has been getting some pretty big press, hasn’t it? Forward Unto Dawn has been leading up to the release of the game on Election Day, but now it’s been upstaged by another short film, this time directed by Tim Miller (famous for Scott Pilgrim and the intro sequence of Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) and David Fincher. Last time I wrote about Halo, I said why not make a feature-length film? They’re getting all these big names to make 3-minute videos promoting their game, which is great, but it seems like a waste at times. I’m sure there are an abundance of legal and monetary issues preventing the Halo film from getting off the ground, so I suppose fans will make do with this for now. The trailer itself is great – watch it after the break. Read more…
Tags: Halo, Hollywood, Short Films
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