Archive for April 2014
Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes Announced
Disney has announced Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes, also known as Disney Infinity 2.0.
It’s an all-new sequel to the popular toy/game hybrid, and unites the best characters from the Magical Kingdom and Marvel universe. The project was first teased last month, and like the first Disney Infinity, buying real-life toys will unlock new characters, levels, and items. This time around, there will be vehicles and game modes to unlock as well, and the playsets will be much bigger.
All six of the movie Avengers (Iron Man, Black Widow, Thor, Captain America, Hulk, and Hawkeye) will launch with the game, with more than 20 characters on the way. Thankfully, all the real-world collectibles from the first game will work as well. Marvel’s fan-favorite comic book author Brian Michael Bendis is writing the game’s story campaign, so even the most hardcore Marvel lovers have something to look forward to.
Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes will be available this fall on all the same consoles as the first Disney Infinity, and it’s also coming to the Xbox One and PS4.
Here’s a look at the new toys that launch with the game:
Hugh Jackman Only Has One More Wolverine Movie Left In Him
It looks like Hugh Jackman is getting ready to hang up his claws.
Speaking with SFX magazine, Jackman revealed that, after this month’s X-Men: Days of Future Past, he thinks he’ll only make one more movie as Wolverine. That will probably be the third Wolverine solo outing, which is currently in the early stages of development with The Wolverine director James Mangold expected to be back at the helm. It has a release date scheduled for March 3, 2017, which will be 17 years after Jackman first appeared as the ageless character.
This means Wolverine will not be appearing in the other new mutant movie, X-Men: Apocalypse, which is slated to arrive in 2016. We’ll just have to wait and see what Fox plans to do if Jackman really does end his run as Wolverine. They could retire the character, or recast him with a new and younger actor.
Assassin’s Creed Movie Finds Director
It looks like the Assassin’s Creed movie has found a director.
Variety reports that the deadly video game adaptation will be helmed by Australian filmmaker Justin Kurzel. His first movie was the 2011 crime thriller The Snowtown Murders, and he’s currently working on a new adaptation of Shakespeare’s MacBeth, which stars Assassin’s Creed lead Michael Fassbender. The pair apparently have a good working relationship, because Fassbender reportedly campaigned for Kurzel to get the job.
Earlier this year, Safe House director Daniel Espinosa was rumoured to be in talks to helm Assassin’s Creed, but it seems he didn’t get the contract.
There’s no word yet on the plot of the film. It could borrow its story from one or several of the games, or tell an original story with a different Assassin. Fassbender doesn’t really look like any of the historical heroes from the existing games, but he could pass for the present day character Desmond Miles.
The next game, Assassin’s Creed Unity, will launch this holiday season.
Star Wars: Episode VII Rumors Say Han Solo Will Have A Huge Role
This Sunday marks a fun day for Star Wars fans around the world. The date is considered by many to be a day to celebrate George Lucas' great science-fiction franchise, as die-hards tweak the date - May 4th - to resemble the series most famous line of repeated dialogue: May the 4th be with you. As a result, many anticipate that this Sunday may be the date chosen by Disney and LucasFilm to officially announce the cast of the upcoming Star Wars: Episode VII. Nothing has been confirmed on this front, but regardless we are definitely getting closer and closer to the reveal. Hence why the rumor mill is once again getting busy.
Take, for example, the new report posted over on Deadline. The site says that the first big table read for Star Wars: Episode VII is scheduled to be held tomorrow in London, which means that all of the actors will be on hand and director J.J. Abrams will presumably be forced to soon reveal his signed-on cast. The report adds that Adam Driver and John Boyega, who were previously mentioned in rumors, are both still in line for large parts, as are Inside Llewyn Davis star Oscar Isaac and Oxford trained actress Maisie Richardson-Sellers. Because we know absolutely nothing about the script written by Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan, at this point in time we have no idea what kind of roles the actors might be playing (though it has been previously said that Adam Driver will be the movie's central antagonist).
Interestingly enough, the Deadline report also seems to treat the casting of Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill like a done deal, despite the fact that Disney and LucasFilm have yet to make anything official. What's more, the story also adds that Ford actually has a "gigantic role in the first of the next three films," though that's pretty unsubstantiated. It was just revealed earlier today that all three of the original Star Warscast members have been seen in London, which very well could be because they are reuniting for the Star Wars: Episode VII table read. We can probably expect that every reporter in England will be keeping an extremely close eye on every action the group of stars take over the new few days, but given the level of secrecy surrounding the movie I wouldn't be surprised if J.J. Abrams had the country build a few secret underground tunnels exclusively for members of the Star Wars: Episode VII cast and crew
Principle production on Star Wars: Episode VII will begin very soon, with most of the shooting being done in the legendary Pinewood Studios in England, and Disney and LucasFilm plan to have the movie out in theaters on December 18th, 2015. We expect to hear some very, very big news about this sequel soon, so be sure to stay tuned over the next few days.
No Hearthstone for Consoles
Blizzard is not currently looking at bringing its hit online card game Hearthstone to consoles, according to production director Jason Chayes.
“The idea of getting it onto console has come up from players,” he told Eurogamer. “It’s not something we’re actually looking at right now. We feel like we have our hands full in the short term with getting onto Android as soon as we can, which is kind of one of the big priorities we’re looking at right now.”
Chayes added that the team may consider bringing the game to consoles if their is enough interest from consumers. ”What we’ve said in the past, and this will continue to be the case, is that we want to be able to hear back from our community and our players what they’re really interested in, what they’re very passionate about,” he said. “If getting Hearthstone onto console is something there’s a huge interest in, then we’d love to hear about that so it’s something we can be thinking about.”
Blizzard is currently working on the game’s first expansion Curse of Naxxramas, which will add new PvE encounters and cards.
Zack Snyder Will Direct Justice League
Speaking with the Wall Street Journal, Warner Bros. president of worldwide production Greg Silverman has confirmed that Man of Steel director Zack Snyder will helm the long-awaited Justice League movie. The studio hasn’t settled on a release date, but don’t expect to see it before 2018.
It’s unclear exactly what DC icons will appear in the Justice League film. We do know that Batman Vs. Superman will feature Henry Cavill as Superman, with Ben Affleck as Batman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, and Jesse Eisenberg as the villainous Lex Luthor. Don’t be surprised if all of them return in Justice League. As for the other heroes, Aquaman, Flash, and Green Lantern are part of the the traditional Justice League lineup, and Cyborg is rumoured to be joining the roster as well.
Before Snyder can start working on Justice League, he has to make Batman Vs. Superman. It begins filming next month, and will hit theatres on May 6, 2016.
Roberto Orci Wants to Direct Star Trek 3
It looks like one of the officers aboard the USS Enterprise may be promoted to captain.
Variety reports that Star Trek 2009 and Star Trek Into Darkness co-writer Roberto Orci is in the running to direct the third mission in the current film series. He’s already co-writing the new movie, and if he gets the job, it would be his first time behind the camera of a big budget film, but it seems Paramount Pictures has yet to make up their minds. J.J. Abrams won’t be back in the captain’s chair because he’s busy with an even bigger sci-fi adventure, Star Wars: Episode VII.
It’s not all good news coming down the subspace channels, though. Variety also reports that Orci is splitting with his longtime collaborator Alex Kurtzman. Along with Star Trek, the pair have written and produced dozens of projects, including Transformers, Sleepy Hollow, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. It seems both of them want to pursue new projects separately.
New Watch Dogs Multiplayer Footage
Ubisoft has released a new video for Watch Dogs that offers a walkthrough of the game’s three multiplayer modes: Online Hacking Contracts, ctOS Mobile Companion App, and Competitive Decryption Combat.
First up are Online hacking Contracts. These are where another player can enter your game and attempt to hack you to earn notoriety. A player will be notified when another player is in their game trying to hack them, following this a countdown timer will begin, if the player being hacked fails to find the hacker then they lose. The player being hacked must smoke out the hacker and stop them, doing so successfully earns notoriety that can be spent on upgrading skills, as does successfully hacking someone. If the hack fails, but the hacker escapes, then both players earn notoriety.
Next up is the ctOS Mobile Companion App. Now this mode is a little different to the usual multiplayer affairs as a player on the mobile app is challenging someone in game. The player on the app has full control over anything that can be hacked in the game and the police. Basically the mobile app users must prevent the in-game player from reaching race checkpoints in a given time using everything at their disposal.
Finally, we have Competitive Decryption Combat. In this mode two teams of players vie for control of a file. However, getting the file is only half the battle. After your team gains control of it, you must then decrypt it, which takes time. During this time, the defending team must hold off the opposition long enough for the decryption to finish. Of course being Watch Dogs, both teams are able to hack the environment around them to create cover and set off traps.
Watch Dogs is set to launch May 27 for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and PC. A Wii U launch is scheduled for this fall.
Tag :
Gaming,
Watch Dogs
No Frozen Sequel Anytime Soon
You can’t hold back Queen Elsa, but it looks like you can hold back the sequel to Frozen.
Speaking with business partners, Disney chairman Alan Horn revealed that there have been no discussions yet about making a sequel to the record-breaking animated film. A sequel could still happen eventually, especially when you consider how much money the film has made, but since the studio hasn’t even bothered to start thinking about one, don’t expect to see it anytime soon.
This doesn’t mean Disney is ready to let it go. They’re currently developing a live Broadway musical based on the film, which will hopefully feature the talents of the film’s voice actress and established Broadway talent Idina Menzel. Other Disney movies like The Lion King and Aladdin have already been turned into Broadway productions.
Star Wars: Episode VII Will Cost…
Even if Luke Skywalker pawns his landspeeder, he still won’t come close to paying for Star Wars: Episode VII.
Speaking with Bloomberg News, Disney chairman Alan Horn revealed just how much the new film will cost to make. It carries a production price tag of $175 to $200 million, which doesn’t include the advertising budget. That’s usually around the same amount.
This will make Episode VII the most expensive Star Wars movie by far, with the prequels costing $115 million each. Keep in mind that $200 million is average for a big movie these days. Disney’s The Avengers cost an estimated $220 million, while the last J.J. Abrams film, Star Trek Into Darkness, cost $185 million. The most expensive movie ever made is James Cameron’s Avatar, which reportedly cost $500 million if you include the research and development costs.
Disney paid $4.06 billion to buy Lucasfilm and the rights to the Star Wars franchise back in 2012.
Star Wars: Episode VII is currently shooting, with a release slated for December 18, 2015. Expect the first official casting announcements soon.
Dragon Age: Inquisition Box Art Revealed
Dragon Age: Inquisition‘s box art depicts the lone Inquisitor facing off against a horde of demonic entities of the Fade emerging from the Veil, developer BioWare unveiled today on Twitter and Facebook.
Inquisition‘s story revolves around concentric narrative threads about a world divided, both in civil war between the Circle of Magi and the Templar Order and political upheaval in the land of Orlais as well as a tear in the Veil that’s unleashing demons from the Fade into the physical world.
The third Dragon Age‘s box art is more traditional than its counterparts, which were stylized and depicted a dragon formed of blood against stark white background.
Dragon Age: Inquisition launches on Windows PC, PS4, Xbox One, PS3, and Xbox 360 this fall.
Tag :
Gaming
Octodad: Dadliest Catch on PS4 Next Week
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Octodad : Dadliest Catch is finally hitting shelves next week. The developer announced today.
“We started Octodad as a ragtag group of students, and it’s been a long and crazy ride getting our silly game on the PS4,” creative director Kevin Zuhn wrote in a post on the PlayStation Blog. “This is our first foray into consoles, and we’re proud to be here. We released Octodad on PC back in January, and since then we’ve taken the time to improve it based on feedback from our players. The latter third of the game in particular has gone through some radical changes, with added challenges like deck swabbing, jig dancing, and new disguises to wear!”The PlayStation 4 version will also support additional controller configurations, namely ones that support PlayStation Move and “double PlayStation Moves” (one glowing wand in each hand).
Octadad: Dadliest Catch will be available for $14.99 when it launches next week.
Tag :
Gaming
Batman: Assault on Arkham Animated Movie Announced
Not only is the Caped Crusader hitting new gen systems this fall with Batman: Arkham Knight, but now a new animated film has been announced that looks to be a follow up to the story of last year’s Batman: Arkham Origins. Assault On Arkham will focus on the Suicide Squad, a team of villains teased at the end of Origins, and looks to take place between that game and Arkham Asylum. Kevin Conroy will reprise his most famous role as Batman, and Troy Baker will also return from his successful turn in Origins as The Joker.
No release date has been announced yet, but expect it to hit Blu-ray and digital stores sometime this year.
Source: Polygon
Watch a New Batman Animated Short
Bruce Timm, who’s worked on Batman: The Animated Series and the recent DC animated movies, has created an all-new short film titled Batman: Strange Days. It sees the Dark Knight track down and battle the villainous Dr. Hugo Strange, and features classic, film noir-style black and white visuals. Bruce Timm created the short to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Batman, and you can expect more cool Bat-videos to emerge from the shadows throughout the year.
Hitman GO Launch Trailer
Square Enix Montreal has released Hitman GO for iOS, offering a unique approach to the franchise’s stealth gameplay.
“Hitman GO is a turn-based puzzle game with beautifully rendered diorama-style set pieces,” the developer explains. “You will strategically navigate fixed spaces on a grid to avoid enemies and take out your target or infiltrate well-guarded locations. You really have to think about each move and all the Hitman tools of the trade you would expect are included; disguises, distractions, sniper rifles and even 47′s iconic Silverballers.”
The game features challenging puzzles, scale-model characters, explorable environments with secret passageways, multiple enemy types, and multiple ways to complete each level.
Hitman GO is available now on iOS for $4.99, and is compatible with iPad 2 and above, iPad Mini, iPhone 4 and above, and iPod Touch 5th generation and above.
Tag :
Gaming
Xbox One Version of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Cancelled?
Activision has indefinitely postponed the release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on Xbox One, a spokesperson has confirmed.
The game was originally set to release alongside the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, 3DS, and Wii U on April 29 in North America and May 2 in Europe. However, a spokesperson has informed MCV that this will no longer be the case. The spokesman quoted:
“We want to inform you that we are revising our release plans for ASM2 on Xbox One,” a spokesperson for the publisher said. “When and whether ASM2 is released on Xbox One is TBD.”
No official reason was given for the delay. The game will still be available for other platforms from April 29 in North America and May 2 in Europe.
Tag :
Gaming
