The NeverEnding Story: The Original Dark Souls: The NeverEnding Souls Meme

   

      It's been quite a while since I posted on my own sites, and even longer since I made any kind of memes.  Well, I've been on a Dark Souls kick recently, and going over old movies for reference material for a project I've been working on.  In doing so I came across a long-time favorite film from my childhood- The NeverEnding Story.

     In re-watching the film I realized that Dark Souls has a LOT in common, and a lot of parallels with the film (and I suppose the book it's based on).  I mean, right off the bat, Fantasia is being destroyed by an infection of darkness called The Nothing- whereas Lordran is being devoured by consuming dark called The Abyss.  There's the great wolf Gmork and the great wolf Sif, and so on.  There's the multiple gates on the way to finding a way to solve the problem besetting the land. I'm genuinely curious to know if Hidetaka Miyazaki has ever seen this and unconsciously drew any inspiration from the film.

     I'd actually like to recommend people just watch the film again anyways, due to the tremendously meta work of the story itself- and in even more surprising recommendations, I recall the book being less impressive than the film- which is quite rare for me to say.  Anyways, I laughed watching this scene and picturing this exact moment as if I were playing the game and experiencing it like this.

     Have a laugh and enjoy.  #NeverEndingSouls

Joker: Official Teaser Trailer & Quick Thoughts

     The first trailer for the Joaquin Phoenix Joker film has landed, and it's... different.  Not that it is necessarily a bad thing, we'll just have to wait and see.

     The Joker seems to take a completely different approach to other DC films in that it gives us the origin of the Dark Knight Detective's most famed villain and puts it center stage.  I'm cautiously optimistic as it does look good, but could revealing the Joker's true origin ruin some of the magic that made him so special?
     I'd previously written that Nolan handled him perfectly, he arrived on the scene and "had no fingerprints, no ID, nothing but 'knives and lint.'"  He arose from nothing, and in the end literally vanished.  But here, we get motivations and familial links- which can only serve to humanize him, making him more relatable and understandable, which in turn takes away the true wild card aspect of his being.

     I'm of the same position I was when first seeing Jared Leto's Joker from Suicide Squad for the first time- we have to wait to see it in action.  Granted, after seeing Leto in action I had to write:

     "I think they went a little too far into a Tony "Scarface" Montana look.  I mean, while he is the Clown Prince of Crime, they entirely left out the clown part.  When he makes Griggs kiss his hand I was totally expecting a water spout to splash out of the ring in the face, or have a flower on his coat do it, but it never happened.  Ayer completely left that aspect out.  They made him all bling and no sting." 

     Hopefully this team has learned the lesson of failure from Ayers and Leto.  In the mean time, I'll keep my fingers crossed that Joaquin Phoenix along with writer/director Todd Phillips and co-writer Scott Silver have done something much more in line with the iconic and beloved arch-rival to the legendary Batman himself.
     Seriously, this looks to either be a masterpiece, or something very, very terrible.  It's a risky film that DC is taking a massive chance with.

     The Joker waltzes into theaters October 4th.

Marvel Future Fight: Teases (X-traordinary) X-Men Announcement for SDCC 2018

     Ever since the 3 year anniversary of Marvel Future Fight, the game and developers have really turned things around from a few great flubs in the last year- such as the loot box Ultimates characters which resulted in amassive player boycott.
     Today after the official Marvel Games twitter account posted an image about what is in store for this years San Diego Comic Con without Future Fight, players questioned the lack of the game, and the official Future Fight account was quick to respond with an amazing teaser.

Calling all Agents! Your presence is urgently requested for a briefing  that is of the utmost importance! We have something... X-traordinary to  discuss! #MarvelSDCC #SDCC2018 https://t.co/DNUiL6WC0j

— Marvel: Future Fight (@Marvel_FFightUS) June 28, 2018

     This seems like an easy teaser for the Extraordinary X-Men comic series.  Granted we can only speculate at this point, but we already have a lot of the team in the game and there's an opportunity to give them new uniforms and even expand the roster with fan favorite characters like Deadpool.
     Considering that last years SDCC announcement was the Age of Apocalypse, I can only imagine this years will need to top the hype and subsequent letdown last year- Apocalypse himself didn't even arrive in game until a couple weeks after the initial update hit.

     The hype has already begun, and I for one, am very X-Cited to see what Netmarble has in store for Marvel Future Fight as SDCC 2018 at the Marvel Games Panel on Thursday, July 19th from 1-2pm.

     For related [ Posts ]

Morbius: Jared Leto Officially Cast as The Living Vampire

     In an out-of-left-field announcement, Sony has announced that Jared Leto has been cast in a Morbius film, based on the 1971 comic character created by Gil Kane and Roy Thomas for Amazing Spider-Man 101.
     This comes as an odd surprise as Morbius has never been a huge character in the Spider-Man universe, whereas the Venom film makes sense because he's been in countless issues and series as well as being wildly popular as a dark and gritty anti-hero.  Morbius has only appeared periodically since that first issue and even had a solo-series for a few years.

     Michael Morbius was a scientist with a rare blood disorder, and in a typical old horror story fashion through an effort to cure the disease via a science experiment gone wrong, he instead transformed himself into a pseudo-vampire- along with all the vampire-like traits that come with it such as enhanced strength, speed, a healing factor, night vision, echolocation, and the classic vampire staple- a thirst for blood.

     He began as a foe of the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, and eventually grew to be a tragic anti-hero and fight for the side of good.  Perhaps Leto will be able to really nail the tragic dichotomy of a man torn between seeking to do good and fighting his inhuman lust for blood.  Rumors say that Daniel Espinoza (Safe House) is going to be directing the feature, so hopefully we'll get something more character accurate than Leto's bizarre take on the Joker from Suicide Squad.  In addition, Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless are writing the script, and they will be overseen by Palak Patel.
     Now I'm curious to know if Sony hold the cinematic rights to Jack Russel, of Marvel Comics' Werewolf By Night. Or if they'll have a cameo appearance of either Venom or Spider-Man considering the relation of the properties.

     Morbius has no set release window yet.

     Venom is set to release October 5th.

     Spider-Man: Far From Home is slated for early July 2019 release.

     Source [ Variety ]

Netflix & Gaming: Why Aren't There Mobile Video Games of Bright, GLOW, and Game Over, Man!

PREVIOUSLY ON NETFLIX...

     Netflix has been branching out of simple streaming video over the last year and into other media.  They released a comic just last week, The Magic Order, after their acquisition of famed comic book writer Mark Millar's (Wanted, Kingsman, Kickass) Millarworld Publishing earlier last year.
     Netflix has also tinkered with some interactive narrative fiction with their "Choose Your Own Adventure" type children's shows with partnered company Dreamworks Puss in Book: Trapped in an Epic Tale (featuring Puss in Boots from the Shrek films) and Buddy Thunderstruck, as well as Stretch Armstrong: The Breakout which through their partnership with Hasbro.

THIS EPISODE...

     Much more recently however,  Netflix has announced both a team up with Telltale games for a new episodic Stranger Things game, a full game in Telltale's own unique fashion, as well as an adapted version of Minecraft: Story Mode to continue in Netflix's interactive narratives.

     Netflix explained to TechRadar that, "Minecraft: Story Mode is a licensed 5-episode interactive narrative series coming to our service this fall. It's an extension of our other interactive stories we have on our service like Stretch Armstrong: The Breakout, Puss in Book: Trapped in an Epic Tale and Buddy Thunderstruck: The Maybe Pile."  Further going on to say, "We don’t have any plans to get into gaming. There’s a broad spectrum of entertainment available today. Games have become increasingly cinematic, but we view this as interactive narrative storytelling on our service."
     That doesn't sound so good.  Netflix regards the Stranger Things Telltale project to rightfully be a video game, but considers the more "Choose Your Own Adventure" type stuff on their own platform to be "interactive narratives" due to the simplistic nature and limitations of the streaming service and a remote.
     That may leave gamers a little disappointed, but we can still be hopeful because...

NEXT WEEK ON...

     They've already entered the gaming realm.  First off, Netflix has already published one extremely fun mobile video game with Stranger Things: The Game.  It was a phenomenal top-down RPG akin to the old Legend of Zelda games.
     Secondly, according to a job posting for Netflix, the Manager of Interactive Licensing says,

     "We are pursuing video games because we believe it will drive meaningful show awareness/buzz and allow fans to “play” our most popular content. We want the interactive category to help promote our titles so they become part of the zeitgeist for longer periods of time and we want to use games as a marketing tactic to capture demand and delight our member community."

     So, they say they aren't getting into games, but have already made one, and have a second one on deck (the two Stranger Things games).  Which means we may be seeing a lot more interactive stories on the streaming service itself, while the licensing could wind up bringing us actual games based on Netflix's properties on other platforms.

     The collaborative projects were an intriguing start, but what really has me curious is the release of their own show Stranger Things: The Game's tie-in mobile game last year.  I wouldn't mind a bunch of small games based on properties Netflix holds.

     Here's a few Netflix shows that would benefit greatly from a video game.

GLOW

     I've already expressed wonder as to why some of their properties don't have tie-in games, and GLOW is the perfect example.  Players could work their way through a small story based off of the wrestling characters from the show in an isometric wrestling game.  It could have story mode, an infinitely replayable mode just for fun, and even some challenge modes.  DLC skins would be an option for generating income.
     The reason GLOW would be a great candidate is not just that the show is amazing, but the games it could emulate are insanely popular.  Fire Pro World Wrestling is widely regarded as great (despite some clunky controls), and a more stylized game to emulate would be one of the best wrestling games of all time 1993's WWF Royal Rumble.  By today's standards, it's a simple game, but it still holds up mechanically and plays great- which GLOW could imitate for the mobile market.

BRIGHT

     The gritty crime-fantasy Bright, which I've also asked for a game for, would be another great show that could get a very awesome Grand Theft Auto type 3rd person game.  A simple 3rd-person, action adventure would suit the nature of the Netflix original well.  Players could swap back and forth between narratives of a human and an orc and their intertwined stories leading to a single endpoint.  Think of games like the HIGHLY underrated Dead Space Mobile, Slaughter 1 & 2, or even anything Rockstar Games has on mobile (all the GTA games, Bully, and Max Payne).  There's a wealth of potential in this brilliantly created world ripe for video game entries.

GAME OVER, MAN!

     Another great option would be the action comedy Game Over, Man!, which has an in-film video game adaptation already.  It's nothing special, but offers a small glimpse of the potential it could have.  It could easily be a small entertaining spoof of the movie itself, or even an unrelated storyline all taking place in one of the characters' daydream or some such thing.

     Netflix has a ton of great originals and there's plenty of opportunity to tap into tie-in games through licensing- so for whoever gets the job listed above, please start bringing us this extra form of entertainment to allow for that much more immersion in these worlds.

     Source [ Tech Radar ] via [ PC Games Insider ]

     Stranger Things: The Game [ Google Play ] [ iOS ]

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order: EA & Respawn Teases Upcoming Action-Adventure Game at E3 2018

     Almost 9 months after writing about EA's poor handling of the Star Wars license ("Of Midichlorians & Microtransactions: The Force Asphyxiated"), we are finally getting some good news about the franchise's game front.
     During the EA E3 2018 conference IGN met up with the CEO of Respawn Entertainment Vince Zampella for a little hint at what's coming down the line.  Though he could only tease what is on the way from the developer, and it definitely sounds a great deal better than any of the Battlefront 2 content or the multitude of mundane and unmemorable Star Wars shovelware on mobile we've been getting.

From @Respawn comes a brand-new action adventure game which tells an original @StarWars story around a surviving Padawan set shortly after the events of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is releasing Holiday 2019:  https://t.co/CKZ5IM7XkL pic.twitter.com/txGjZNLE1m

— EAStarWars (@EAStarWars) June 9, 2018

     The game they've been working on is titled Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and is a 3rd person action-adventure.  We'll be playing as a Lightsaber-wielding Jedi during the "Dark Times" between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, when the Jedi are being hunted down and eradicated after Order 66.  The Force Unleashed 1 and 2 were great and sold quite well, and there's not currently a whole lot of information to go on here, but it's plenty enough to wet our appetites and make us hungry for the future of Star Wars games again.

     Presumably, after the backlash from all the single-player Star Wars games being cancelled EA may have finally listened to the fans and decided it would actually be lucrative to create and finish one- especially after seeing the sales numbers of games like Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Assassin's Creed, Last of Us, Uncharted, Nier: Automata, Dishonored 2, Resident Evil 7, and so on say the single-player market is thriving quite well. 

     I'm curious to know if this will be the game that Visceral Studio had been working on before EA decided to  have it "revamped and moved to a different studio."  Or if this will have a link to the "open-world Star Wars game" I read about recently.  The last news about Visceral's game said it would be moved to members of EA Vancouver and EA Worldwide, but who really knows what's going on behind the scenes.  Makes me also wonder if there are any plans to revisit or pull from either of the cancelled Darth Maul game or Star Wars: 1313 at all.

     Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is tentatively slated for a Holiday 2019 release.

     Source [ EA Official Site ] [ IGN at E3 ]

Inhumans: Jeph Loeb on Their Possible Future on TV (and a Possible Lead to the Fantastic Four)

INHUMANS PAST

     Back in 2015 Marvel announced the Inhumans were slated to get a feature film, which could've been amazing under MCU head Kevin Feige, and then there was a rumor that Vin Diesel would be possibly tapped to play Black Bolt, which would've been awful.
     Then in 2016, it was announced they'd be making the move to television instead, which had potential, until it was made known it would be on ABC and not Netflix- leaving me less than pleased again.  Things took a much worse turn as Scott Buck was then given the role of showrunner because his track record is essentially a death sentence for a show- see what he did to Dexter or the fan response to his mishandling of Iron Fist- and even the talented casting choices couldn't save the Inhumans.

     The great disappointment was made certain after the release of the first trailer.  It looked horrendous.  The CGI looked cheap, the story appeared to take the unbelievably amazing Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee Marvel Knights series and reduce it to the worst possible version, and the character designs were atrocious (outside of Black Bolt himself).  It wasn't a too great of a surprise as the show had been rushed, and the double-team of ABC and Scott Buck together didn't leave viewers with much hope that it would turn out even mediocre- because as their history has shown through Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter, they take great characters and neuter them.
     As I wrote then:

     I've made it well known that I think Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is crap, it's quite terrible.  Even with all the headway the Robbie Reyes Ghost Rider has been making, the show is still not nearly as great as it should be.  It gets 2 steps ahead and makes 5 steps back.  They need better writers and better directors.  Seriously, the showrunners have lost the magic of what made Agent Coulson so appealing in the movies.  The same can be said about Agent Carter.  They need to go back and study what made these characters special in the movies and focus on replicating it on television. 

     Skye/Daisy/Quake gained some powers and went from hacking-as-a-semi-superpower to master combatant.  It's absolutely preposterous.  Fitz and Simmons are in the same boat- everybody is now an action star, leaving no differentiation between characters.  That's very poor story telling. 

     And that's exactly why I'm very worried about the Inhumans being handled by a team that relegates their characters to daytime soap opera status.  We want things at least to have the quality the Netflix shows have.  The interpersonal relationship drama and angst is far too abused in S.H.I.E.L.D., maybe they need to focus on small tasks and awesome Mission Impossible type subterfuge as opposed to all the damn overused world threatening crap.  For Inhumans, they should simply adapt the 12 issue Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee run.  Keep it simple and meaningful.  A tightly knit story with a huge payoff.

     Since I wrote this Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has gotten much better, but still suffers from these issues, but it IS progressing into a much better show.  Then, when the inevitable cancellation came for the doomed Inhumans back in December, my immediate thought was, "The #AgentsofSHIELD show should just pick up the #Inhumans on their show- it's a better show anyway."  Because despite its flaws, Agents is getting significantly better and has made huge leaps forward from where it began.  I've tweeted enough praise for the potential in the show, and heavy criticism against it, in hopes we could see them again in a much better way, so the following news makes me quite hopeful.

INHUMANS FUTURE

     During a Reddit AMA for the release of Cloak & Dagger Marvel's Head of Television Jeph Loeb answered a bunch of questions and gave out some great teasers for what is to come.  He stated numerous times when asked about show crossovers that there is a good possibility, for fans to "wait and see", and to "stay tuned" for news.

Then most applicably to this particular situation comes from these gems:

thatguy9234: 
Will the actors in Inhumans be brought back if their characters are revived in either Marvel TV or the MCU? I personally liked the casting choices made for the show. 

JephLoeb:
Hope so. Great cast and for what's it worth, still think is a fun show.

     Another great tease from this one, which includes some good New Warriors info:

Dennisw0w:
Thank you for this AMA, it's very nice of you. I have a few questions I'd love to get answered.
1. Do you think we could expect see the royal family again even though there's no more Inhumans? Perhaps in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 6?
2. Any progress with finding New Warriors a home?
3. Are there any exciting crossovers planned between shows or movies? No need to be specific. 

Jeph Loeb:
Well Dennis...
1. Wait and see
2. We're working on it.
3. Answered before.

     And lastly, this one:

blackbutterfree:
Dear /u/JephLoeb despite “Inhumans”… unique reception, Anson as Black Bolt, Serinda as Medusa and Iwan as Maximus are universally praised by fans as the best parts about that show. Could we ever see any of them reprising their roles in other MCU tv shows? Preferably a short arc on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

JephLoeb:
Hope so. We love these characters and the actors are the best!

     So the Inhumans may have a televised redemption after the ill-fated show.  The actors can be given a chance to shine, and better writers and directors can make fans of these wonderful characters in their new home.
     I, for one, am greatly looking forward to them being given a proper treatment and hope they appear on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. now that their creative team has been hitting their stride.

     Source [ Reddit AMA with Jeph Loeb ] [ ComicBookResources ]

A FANTASTIC POTENTIAL

     Now, for the Fantastic Four teaser- which obviously cannot happen until the rights that Fox currently owns, go back to Marvel via the huge deal that's been in progress for months.  I would like to say this is some crazily in depth analysis and ingenious sleuthing regardless if it is true or not.

     This entire next section comes from a brilliant Reddit User named KingInvalid96:

But my burning question to you has to do with my absolute favorite portion of the MCU- Marvel's Agents of S.h.i.e.l.d. I've got a fan theory that the show is actually an epic prologue to several iconic storylines in the marvel universe including Ghost Rider, Secret Invasion, SWORD, and most notably, The Fantastic Four and Doctor Doom.

This idea was planted in my mind after a reoccurring use of the word “Doom” by one specific character, or rather a set of characters that would eventually become one character. That which I’m referring to is Will, Ward, and Hive. These characters share an interesting proclivity towards the word “Doom” both in their dialogue and in their interactions, sometimes even quite literally saying “I’m Doom”. (SPOILERS)

1.) Season 3 Episode 5 (4722 Hours): Jemma, stuck on Maveth with Will, proclaims [“I’ll be the voice of Hope, you’ll be the voice of Doom.”](https://imgur.com/n7Pi10ehttps://imgur.com/n7Pi10e).

2.) Season 3 Episode 18 (The Singularity): Hive, before being stabbed by Jemma, quite literally says [“I’m Doom, you’re hope- remember?”](https://imgur.com/VR9FFmG)

3.) Season 4 Episode 19 (All the Madame’s Men): Framework Tripp is talking about whether Ophelia is building some sort of “doomsday device” and Framework Ward, uncharacteristically whines [“Can we not use that word to describe it? It’s not helping me think.”](https://imgur.com/hcH9RCf)

Now this would mean nothing if you assumed Hive's offscreen death meant he was actually dead. But with Graviton being dead in space where the Hive parasite can be drawn to it, I haven't lost faith. Especially considering [Robin's 8-in-1 person drawing shown on Enoch's fridge](https://imgur.com/LNCp0kE). General "My body is a steel trap" Talbot could house

1. Doctor Hall
2. Ian Quinn
3. Green Confederacy Alien (Skrull?)
4. Carl Creel
5. Will "Im Doom" Daniels
6. Grant Ward
7. Alveus Hive
8. Quake ???

I definitely believe they could all come together... like [pieces solving a puzzle](https://imgur.com/AndICKa). But it's been pointed out that the connection here is reliant on common words and basic math. So I thought about the parallels between the show and the F4 themselves:

• The Fear Dimension/Negative Zone
• Alien Energy/Cosmic Radiation
• Discovery of the Inhumans
• The Shield Academy/Empire State University
• The Fantastic Fitzsimmons literally becoming the First Family in the MCU in ep. 100
• Deke saying everyone in shield changed their names (what're the odds Fitsimmons choose Reed and Sue?)
• Fitz/Reed designing a spaceship
• Enoch's accumulation of wealth + reputation for Frozen Fitz/the Future Foundation

I could go on, considering I'm absolutely enamored with the idea that you guys are already planning something similar. But I won't continue to bore you with my fan theories and instead ask a very simple question:

Am I crazy, or are you guys producing Agents of Shield to be the epic prologue to something more? Can you elaborate or hint towards the future of the show now that it's been renewed for Season 6?

JephLoeb:
You're not crazy. But that's all I can say!

      Wow, that's a hell of a fan theory, and honestly, I'm quite impressed.  I had hoped for years that Fox (or Marvel if they got the cinematic rights back) would make a Fantastic Four film as a straight up period piece set in the 1960s, complete with the Galactus plotline and the four thwarting him and making a device that eliminates the memory of it from everyone on Earth- and thus preserving the Marvel Cinematic Universes timelines.

Agent Carter: Possible Revival: Marvel's Head of TV Jeph Loeb - "Find Us a Network"

     Two years ago ABC made the brilliant decision to cancel the fan-favorite show Agent Carter to free up the talented lead actress Hayley Atwell for their new show Conviction in hopes doing something more mainstream and subsequently boosting ratings.  That plan worked out quite well and Conviction was cancelled after a mere 13 episodes.  Now, after the Roseanne got the axe due to some seriously poor life choices and Ambien, fans are jumping at the chance to convince the network to pick Agent Carter back up.

     In a Reddit AMA Marvel's Head of TV Jeph Loeb replies to a question by user Super-Finch's question about an Agent Carter revival with the response, "Wouldn't that be cool? Find us a network! Hayley has been so kind of saying she'd love to come back."
     Which is true, she said when the show was initially cancelled that she would love to return to the role saying, "Yeah, 100%. Absolutely. Yeah, I love Peggy, I love the people that are working on this project together, the fans are incredibly warm and welcoming and it would be an absolute privilege and an honor to bring her back for the fans."  She's also voiced the character again in the animated feature Avengers: Secret Wars, and even admits to previously bugging Marvel people about getting a movie.  Hell, she's even written she'd do "whatever it takes" to bring it back.
     Though, it should be noted, Huffpo claims Atwell has said she's left the Marvel Universe and isn't looking back just yesterday in an interview, but that isn't really what she's said at all.  When asked about possibly returning she said, “To get a call now would be like, ‘Oh, God!’ I’m sure anything could happen, but it’s this genre world that’s so multifaceted it’s like, will it ever die?”  Atwell doesn't appear hopeful about the possibility, but she isn't completely discounting it either- even as of last summer mentioning she'd love to see more of Peggy in the films.

     Netflix had already passed up on the chance to save Agent Carter and explained why in an Entertainment Weekly article back in July 2016 by saying, “We’re looking for truly original brands to own, and in that Marvel space we already have [original comic book shows] - so that was mostly why.”
     Hulu might be an option, as they've got Marvel's Runaways.  Perhaps NBC might be interested because fans spoke up recently, and the network stepped up and saved Brooklyn 99 from cancellation.  Then there's even a chance for Carter to return via Disney's (and thus Marvel's) own streaming service which is set to launch next year...

     Considering the fact that Loeb has said that Cloak & Dagger getting made was wholly due to fans calling for it, the chances of Agent Carter returning aren't too bad.  In my opinion, however, as much as I wanted a Cloak & Dagger series, I wasn't expecting it to be such a kiddie-teen show- I was expecting the hard drugs and abuse stories from the 80s comics, and in essence mimicking the grit of the Netflix Marvel shows.  It looks cheaply done, and from what I've seen it might not last long, and possibly might follow in the footsteps of the Scott Buck ruined Inhumans.  Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. took a while to really hit the mark, it started off as more like Agents of S.H.!.T., so perhaps Cloak & Dagger will as well.
     I for one just hope that if Agent Carter does make a triumphant return they can get the appropriate crew to write and direct a good 1950-60's era Cold War spy thriller show that she deserves.  The first two seasons were enjoyable following the Agent Carter Marvel One Shot (the special was great), but the show simply lacked the punch she had in the films (they did the exact same thing to Agent Coulson translating him from film to TV).  The show could easily be tied to some rough early years of S.H.I.E.L.D., a more in depth crossover with the Black Widow's backstory, and keep it as an all-around good period piece show.

     So for fans of the show, dust off your Life Gem Infinity Stones, and get out there to be heard so that Agent Carter may once again have life.

     #RenewAgentCarter

     Source [ Comicbook ]

Star Wars: Rivals- Another Mundane Mobile Game on the Way & Thoughts

     In accordance to modern mobile gaming trends, another cheap-looking Star Wars game is on the way called Star Wars: Rivals.  It's being touted as "the first real-time Star Wars competitive action shooter for mobile."
     Players may currently pre-register for Star Wars: Rivals, and in doing so gain access to some bonuses.  For the pre-registrations, we'll receive for a limited time, exclusive access to special support units.  For those who do so through Goggle Play, they'll receive access to the Imperial Death Troopers to fight alongside players in PvP skirmishes with advanced weapons and cover fire.  For iOS users, they'll get access to the Rebel Special Forces, giving them health restoration out on the battlefield.

     Instead of a new and interesting 3rd person shooter or action/RPG that many fans have been clamoring for, we are getting a yet another bland, half-assed, cover-based shooter with a Star Wars skin- complete with grind heavy, loot-box-laden bore-fest.

     In a post I wrote months ago, "Of Midichlorians and Microtransactions: The Force Asphyxiated," I explained a large part of the Star Wars games' problem:

     This doesn't bode well for the Star Wars game as it sounded like the game was "shaping up to be a story-based, linear adventure game," under Visceral's good hands, but now it may be becoming something much closer in alignment with EA's push towards a "games as service model."  Meaning it might wind up like Battlefront, being all hype and no substance, and completely riddled with preposterous microtransactions for every little thing, of which we can only expect more of this same old shit from with the release of Battlefront 2 soon.  It's the same thing for Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes, Star Wars: Force Collection, and Star Wars: Force Arena, they are cheap games designed to siphon money off of players instead of creating a unique and memorable story in a beloved franchise.  All the really good Star Wars games have been cancelled or shut down- Star Wars: 1313,  the mobile game Star Wars: Uprising, the Untitled Darth Maul Project, and the amazing potential of Disney Infinity. 

     So when EA says, "We want to take the time to get each game right, to make it unique, to make it amazing," I don't believe it.  When the game arrives we'll see if they really want a good story and experience, or if it follows the path of the Dead Space games, getting worse with each new installment, getting worse with each step away from a great single player experience, and closer to the large multiplayer messes.  We even know that Dead Space 3's original plan was great, and EA flubbed that up in the name of the almighty dollar, proving that they've become the money-hungry monsters worshiping a Marker with a big green S spray-painted on its front.

     Will Disney and EA realize that maybe we might want something more akin to the very underappreciated and truly fun Dead Space Mobile game?  It's a small, but highly replayable, 3rd person game with a good controls and a great story that expands the lore and universe of the main games, while telling us a riveting stand-alone tale from a completely new perspective.  Sure, they could add a competitive shooter arena on top of it, but there's been a plethora of complaints about Disney/EA not wanting to make single player games recently, which is completely idiotic- have they not seen how well The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has done?  Or how about Hellblade, Nier: Automata, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Cuphead, Nioh, and Uncharted 4?
     Maybe some of the backlash is due to not producing anything for the neglected single-player market.  Just take a look at the mass

     We want new mobile games like Dark Forces, X-Wing/TIE Fighter, or the Jedi Academy games.  Or how about a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic version of Marvel Future Fight?  With the ever-expanding roster of Star Wars characters, they could have YEARS of material and more than enough income from players.  We want them to make something worth playing, worth investing our time and money into, not another pile-of-crap, shovelware game.

     Pre-Registration Links [ Google Play ] [ App Store ]

     Source [ Star Wars Official ]

     Reference and Discussion [ Reddit ]

DC Unchained: Superman's Skills Revealed

     Shortly after being announced at Comic Con Seoul, the highly anticipated upcoming mobile action-RPG game DC Unchained was delayed into early 2018 and disappointing many eager fans.  Since that time we've gotten news of a Closed Beta Test, a new trailer, and some other small teases for the game- including a Batman and Superman character "family" tree, and a look at Metropolis.
     Now, we get a teaser trailer for Superman's skills and a good look at his whole skill tree.

   Looks a bit clunky for flow, and his character model isn't nearly as square-jawed and bulky as most modern incarnations of Superman have been portrayed, but still looking good.  A more fully formed description of the skills, including a plethora of unseen passive skills, is listed below.

     We're finally getting a steady stream of new game info at a decent rate now, so I'm really hoping the game will be released soon, and shortly after to the rest of us in the western markets- unless they do a global launch right off the bat.

     It looks like DC fans will finally have a mobile game good enough to compete with Marvel's truly amazing Future Fight.  I truly hope that publisher 4:33 Creative Labs and developer Thumb Ageis can make this the mobile DC Comics game we've been clamoring for years to get.

     Related Posts [ DC Unchained ] [ Marvel Future Fight ] [ Justice League Superheroes ]

     DC Unchained Official [ CBT Site ] [ :Plug Community ] [ Facebook ]

DC Unchained: NEW Trailer & Limited Closed Beta Test

     Since Korean publisher FourThirtyThree, Inc (4:33 Creative Lab), along with DC and Warner Bros., announced the upcoming mobile game DC Unchained I've been quite excited to see what looks to be the equivalent of Netmarble's absolutely amazing Marvel Future Fight.  Unfortunately, early last month the company broke the news that they would be undergoing some drastic changes and the game would be delayed into 2018.  Then just a couple days ago 4:33 gave us the first official trailer for the closed beta test.

     DC Unchained is shaping up to be a tremendous 3rd person action-RPG letting players take the roles of an initial 30 heroes and villains across multiple modes including story, PvP, and real-time co-op.
     The closed beta test will run for one week in January (Wed. the 10th through Wed. the 17th), and sadly it is limited not only to Android devices, but also to players located in Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.  Testers have the chance to obtain Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman, along with numerous other goodies such as gold, gems, and skins to aid them in their quests once the game has its grand launch at a later date.  So if you are lucky enough to live in one of those areas head over to the pre-registration site to get signed up!

     DC Unchained Official [ CBT Site ] [ :Plug Community ] [ Facebook ]

     Related posts [ Marvel Future Fight ] [ Justice League Superheroes ]

Marvel Heroes: BLACK FRIDAY Will Be the End, Gazillion Fires Everyone, Shutting Game Down in Two Days

     Only five short days after the announcement that Gazillion was closing its doors and Marvel Heroes would be no more as of December 31st, we've received even worse news.  In a spectacularly awful move, Gazillion has fired all of their hardworking staff the day before Thanksgiving via an internal email to their employees.  What makes this so much more awful is the fact that the firing of the employees leaves them without severance, PTO payouts, and no insurance according to Andrew Hair, who before today was a Gazillion gameplay engineer, and confirmed by one of Gaz's former game designers- Brian "Asros" Waggoner.

     It's been leaked from ex-developer Winterthur (@Zurick on Discord) that the Marvel Heroes (Marvel Heroes Omega) will NOT be playable until December 31st, but will in fact end in a mere 2 days (on November 24th) making it a true Black Friday- and in a feat of villainy Gazillion will be giving us the true Omega Update as the game vanishes from our lives.
     While my long-standing and deep appreciation for Marvel Heroes is extremely disappointed in its far too swift server shutdown, my heart and condolences go out to all the awesome Gazillion employees that kept us happily entertained for the last 4 years both in game and on the official forums- they were the real heroes in this, and they have a tough time ahead after CEO Dave Dohrmann's (he of the inappropriate sexual conduct scandals, harassment, and accusations) email destroyed their Holiday season.  It's sad to say, but it looks like instead of taking responsibility, Dohrmann would rather ruin the lives of everyone around him- and tanking any hope of Gaz reaping the rewards of all the great things that were on the horizon for the game.

     There is a very little hope left for the game to be salvaged, though there IS some hope still, there's a petition for Marvel and Disney to save the game, (and on twitter) perhaps under different leadership it could be bought up and given new life, perhaps it will be forgotten and ignored by The House of Mouse- either way, try to show your support for the devs that worked tirelessly for these last few years in whatever endeavors they choose to pursue in the future.  Thank you for all the great memories.

     Sources [ Massively OP ] via [ Reddit ]

Marvel Heroes Omega: My Thoughts on Disney Officially Shutting it Down

THE OFFICIAL NEWS

     After 4 and a half years of having some serious ups and downs, Marvel Heroes is finally being closed.  Over the last month many of us long time players have been speculating about this possibility on the forums, the first news broke from Kotaku letting them know Disney/Marvel is parting ways with Gazillion.

     As a Marvel representative stated in an email to them:

“We regret to inform our Marvel Heroes fans that we have ended our relationship with Gazillion Entertainment, and that the Marvel Heroes games will be shut down. We would like to sincerely thank the players who joined the Marvel Heroes community, and will provide any further updates as they become available.”

     Later AgentPilot posted an official statement from Gazillion on their forums:

"We’re sad to inform our players and our entire Marvel Heroes family that Marvel Heroes Omega will be shutting down. The Marvel Heroes servers will stay on until Dec 31, 2017, and we’ll be removing real money purchases as soon as possible. Players will be able to play the game entirely for free once this sunset period commences. We will share the exact date things go completely free as soon as we can. 

We’ve had the privilege of entertaining and collaborating with our players for over four years. We’re extremely humbled by that privilege and wanted to get this message out: Thank you. Thank you to our players, our tireless employees, and everyone involved in the life of Marvel Heroes, Marvel Heroes 2015, Marvel Heroes 2016, and Marvel Heroes Omega."

THE PROBLEMS

     Gazillion has been in a very turbulent times ever since David Brevik (of Diablo 2 fame) departed the company in January 2016 (check out these threads, the tone of the forums drastically shifted), and having other Gaz employees like Doomsaw and Ryolnir go was another huge hit- resulting in a quick downhill slide of the game.  Former long-time Gaz Community Agent Fenixion posted his own decision to leave on the forums on Halloween definitely gave us more worries, as well as Agent Vapor's departure.
     Really, the only good to come out of this was the surprise return of former Gaz employee Doomsaw to the forums.  He swung through and found he still had moderator privileges, but they were quickly stripped even with no other Gaz members posting anything.  Since no Gaz employees were doing or saying anything, he voluntarily went and tried to raise hope and bring levity to the forums.
     Much more recently is the highly inappropriate sexual misconduct issues concerning Gazillion's CEO Dave Dohrmann, and the fallout it's having on the rest of the staff and company. [ More references: 1, 2, 3, 4 (at about the 1.5hr mark) ]  And then Gazillion going completely silent shortly after this. [ Great video by DisKingdom about companies (Gaz particularly) going silent. ]  The long awaited and promised Omega patch, along with numerous other things like the costume closet, the Halloween event, and Thor Ragnarok tie-in pack, never arrived for the scheduled Oct. 27th date.

MY THOUGHTS
   
     It's extremely disappointing to hear, but honestly the PC player base had been dwindling from being essentially neglected for the console ports after the "Biggest Update Ever" shit all over the game (the BUE essentially prepped and simplified the game to be ported)- while it made a lot of good starts, it completely ruined the way a great many of the characters could be played, eliminating the vast variety of character play styles and shoe-horned them into essentially only one viable build for each character.
     Gaz pretty much ditched the extremely loyal PC player base for the potential for new console players and it was an absolutely terrible choice.

     I'd previously written that, "It's the only game I've made an effort to play at least a half hour a day for the last year.  It's just amazing and it keeps getting better.  Thank you Gazillion.  Marvel Heroes 2016 is a must play for fans of any Marvel properties."  In all reality, I probably put in a thousand plus hours.  The original launch was a mess, but the game progressively made it amazing by the 2016 iteration, and until the Biggest Update Ever, was easily, without-a-doubt the best Marvel game ever made.  Sadly, after the BUE (and the changes in leadership and direction) the game never got back to what it was and what it could've been.

     It'll be very sad to see this game go, but honestly they could still make a few bucks by compressing what they can and makingthe game able to play on disc or download with private servers.  Sell the game as old games were, a whole item, playable without an internet connection.  Hell, just the Danger Room section itself could be sold (obviously we'd need to be able to keep all the crap we've already unlocked/bought) as a game in itself.  It'd also need to have the Hydra damage bugs toned WAY down, which should've been fixed a year ago.
     Though it makes me wonder if Disney and Marvel will still hold all the programming and assets and whatnot, and if they might bring in a new team to possibly relaunch the game somewhere down the line.
     As for me, I'll probably get a good couple weekends of play in on this, and go back to hyping the only other Marvel game I play every day- Marvel Future Fight.

     My own Marvel Heroes account link [ MrJRB ]

     Related-ish posts [ Future Fight ]

     Sources [ Massively OP & 2, 3 ] [ Kotaku ] [ HiMyNameIsLeo ] [ MMORPG ]

DC Unchained: Delayed to 2018

     After it was revealed at Comic Con Seoul, the upcoming mobile action-RPG game DC Unchained has been oddly missing from the news.  In late October however, the developers released some potential bad news for the title.

     Due to some financial woes, DC Unchained developer FourThirtyThree, Inc (4:33 Creative Labs), a one time top South Korean developer, has reported massive net losses since 2014 with  great competition from mobile game giants like Nexon and NetMarble (who make the Marvel comics equivalent game called Marvel Future Fight).  Since the announcement 4:33 has had to make huge alterations to their business model after having no break out titles in years.  They had an emergency board meeting to discuss and plan a new business strategy, which includes a move away from creating 3rd party and move towards more self-developed IPs and titles, as well as reductions in manpower in marketing and publishing roles.  While 4:33 have said there's been no restructuring, they have offered employees the opportunity to retire from the company.

     The company has stated that any games that already have 3rd party deals will remain unaffected.  With that, they've got Blade 2, Boxing Star, and DC Unchained on the way to hopefully alleviated the financial troubles.  Part of the announcement mentioned the fact that DC Unchained will not hit the expected release of late 2017 in time for the release of the Justice League film, but rather the game will be released in 2018- and it has been confirmed to be coming to western markets for certain.

     Sources [ MMO Culture ] [ NewsNews ]

Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Voice Cast Announced & Worrisome Changes

THE CAST

     Yesterday, Nickelodeon announced the voice cast for their upcoming 26 episode 2D re-imagining of the TMNT series, Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

     The cast all sounds pretty good so far.  We'll be getting Omar Miller as Raphael, Ben Schwartz as Leonardo, Josh Brener as Donatello, Brandon Mychal Smith as Michelangelo, Kat Graham as April O’Neil, and lastly TMNT vet Eric Bauza as Splinter.  I'm particularly pumped for Brandon Mychal Smith's Michelangelo, and curious to hear Bauza as Splinter after he voiced Nickelodeon's current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' Tiger Claw.

     And with the cast comes the official plot summary:

     Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles follows Raphael, Leonardo, Donatello and Michelangelo on all-new adventures as they seek to unlock the mystical secrets of New York City. From the tallest skyscraper to the dankest sewer drain, the Turtles will encounter absurd new mutants and battle bizarre creatures all while enjoying their favorite slice of pizza. 

     Tapping into mystic, ninja powers they never knew existed, the four brothers must learn to work together and navigate the perils of the modern age and hidden realms in order to fulfill their destiny to become a team of heroes.

THE WORRISOME CHANGES

     Now comes the parts that worry me.  With the re-imagining of the Turtles, comes the changes.  With all iterations some changes can be great, and there shouldn't really be problems with those, but there are always some that don't really quite make sense.  Such is the case with the fact they are seemingly altering a piece of the brothers' foundation of their relationships. That part is a little irksome to say the least.
     While Michelangelo, Donatello, Splinter, and April all remain in their archetypal roles, Leonardo and Raphael are apparently being swapped which makes little sense. 
     From Nickelodeon's source article, they say, "Raphael, as the oldest and physically biggest brother, he is now the leader and his enthusiasm and bravado puts him front and center for most of their bizarre adventures; Leonardo, the self-professed ‘coolest’ brother possesses irreverent charm and a rebel heart." 
     What bothers me is the fact that Nickelodeon is completely changing the foundation of these two.  Since the beginning, I've always seen all four brothers as representing very distinct archetypes, and with the alteration of two, that changes the team's entire dynamic.  Raph has been the fire of passionate emotion, Leo was the more level-headed water, constantly flowing and seeking a true balance, Don was the stable Earthly, logical mind, Mikey is the airy heart, wild and free- and Splinter connected them all as the spiritual core. 
     Think of how these fundamental character principles effect the group's relationships- and for a great reference, look at how Avatar: The Last Airbender uses the same core ideas with their own characters as elemental Benders.  This shift will put the emotion in the role of leader instead of the less turbulent flowing of water and that goes against, not just the TMNT's own history and precedent, but flies in the face of mythological/archetypal basis- Raph's pure emotion shouldn't rule, in the same way that Mikey's heart or Donatello's pure logic shouldn't lead the team.  It'd be the equivalent of having an instinctually Id driven person, without the guidance of the Super Ego (Leo), balancing the pure unconscious (Mike), Id (Raph), and rational Ego (Don).  This is something that will eat at the back of my mind for a while, and is definitely something more for me to ruminate on to possibly flesh out more and explain better.

     As a lifelong Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fan, I'll give it the benefit of the doubt, but I'm going to be very, VERY skeptical going in to the show.

     Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is set to premiere in 2018 on Nickelodeon.

     For related posts [ TMNT ]

     Source [ Nickelodeon ]

Disney TOYBOX Action Figures: Lineup, Price, and Packaging Revealed!

     About a week ago Disney Infinity fans received a small bit of good news.  The Disney Store teased the release of new action figures featuring the extremely distinct Infinity art design style.

     Now, it must be stated for clarity- these are NOT Disney Infinity extensions and don't have anything to do with the game- they are only action figures based on the art style.  The designs were taken from Infinity and re-engineered into a completely new toyline, with added articulation, and will be launched under the "Toybox" as an homage to the game, as was confirmed by former Disney Infinity VP of Production John Vignocchi on twitter.

     The launch lineup will include figures from Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar franchises.  There will be Buzz Lightyear, Woody, and Jessie from the Toy Story films as the Pixar Toybox figures, Spider-Man, Hulk, Thor, and Iron Man from the Marvel Toybox, and lastly, Rey, Kylo Ren, and a First Order Stormtrooper from The Force Awakens in the Star Wars Toybox.
     They all look amazing and have great packaging, and I really hope they continue the Toybox line with many more to come.

     The figures will be available EXCLUSIVELY on ShopDisney for $12.95 each on Nov. 3rd.

     Source [ Jason Inquires ]

Disney INfinity Returns via TOYBOX Action Figures

INFINITE POSSIBILITIES

     Last year was a bad year for Disney INfinity.  Small problems began began to emerge with the announcement that the Marvel Battlegrounds play set would ship with a single figure, then there was news that there would not be a 4.0 release, but rather 3.0 would be getting updates to continue the Infinity line.  In March Disney Interactive said they'd be dropping out of E3 without a reason giving, and then they officially announced in May of 2016 the video game series would be cancelled.

ENDLESS FUN

     It was a shock to fans, and there were a slew of problems that could've easily put off the toys-to-life game's closure- such as adding far more actual game content, more replayability, and even the simple feature of resetting a figure's data more than twice could've gone a long ways to it selling better.
     What the series did right, however, was in the art design.  The Disney INfinity design style was absolutely superb, and now fans of it are in for a treat.  Disney INfinity focused Youtube channel Infiniteer Adventures spotted an intriguing ad on the Disney Shop- showing that on November 3rd, Disney is releasing action figures that look exactly like they are ripped straight from the game's gorgeous designs.  Making the case even stronger, is the fact this toy series appears to be named directly after the specific Disney INfinity game feature called the TOYBOX as can be seen from the image above, featuring Rey and a Stormtrooper from the Star Wars: The Force Awakens playset.

     It's great to see that such wonderful toy designs are being salvaged for an even better use, bringing us articulated versions of the INfinity toys from Star Wars, Marvel, and Pixar properties.  This also offers the opportunity for fans to potentially obtain some of the previously cancelled figures such as Spider-Gwen, or the truly stunning looking Doctor Strange toy.  This is some truly exciting news coming a year and a half after the closing of the game and someone was smart enough to have held on to the game's slogan and put it to great use- "Infinite Possibilities, Endless Fun-" and we can all be thankful for it.

     Related posts [ Disney INfinity ]   

     Source [ Infiniteer Adventures ]

TMNT: The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Return to Arcades with a WHOLE NEW GAME!!!

     The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have had a long history in video games, loaded with many ups and downs, with occasional oddball gems that really stands out.  In recent years there's been some decent attempts to regain that special something that the old arcade quarter-munchers had and the home ones did not.  It's been nearly 30 years since Konami's original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game first hit arcades and Raw Thrills, Inc is looking to bring back those beat 'em up glory days with an all new adventure featuring our favorite heroes in a half shell.

     Modern arcade game developer Raw Thrills has been hard at work on reviving an old fan-favorite arcade genre staple in the form of a brand new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles brawler beat 'em up, and hopefully proving to us that there are still turtles games to look forward to.  This completely original TMNT game is based on the look of the extremely popular Nickelodeon cartoon, which will be finishing up season 5 in November.

     "This new version of TMNT is a completely new re-imagining of the brawler concept. There are more moves, more environmental interaction, cool Turtle Power special attacks, voiceover from the entire cast (including Seth Green and others)… it’s really amazing."

     Many fans will be quite excited to have this TMNT nostalgia returning to the coin-operated gaming for the first time in decades, and Raw Thrills, Inc plans to have a demo at this year’s International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions expo in November.

     This could possibly be the game I've been asking for for years, in my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows game review I wrote:

"I think a bigger and better studio may have been able to truly pull off an open-world 4 player co-op beat-em-up much better than this- a game to match the ambition this one so desperately strove for.  We just haven't found the right company to do it justice yet.  Maybe Activision can find a group to do it with the Nickelodeon series on a larger scale. 

     As a lifelong fan since I was about 5 years old, that is what I would want.  A huge action RPG brawler, maybe even a hack-n-slash, in a fully open world of Manhattan, complete with sewer system.  The world should be as large as any of the GTA games by Rockstar, and it should be filled with plenty of baddies and mini-missions.  Take note Activision- Traveller's Tales' Lego Marvel Superheroes did it right with the large cityscape full of fun mayhem to be had with a couple hundred characters to swap around.  Copy that and improve on it."

     Now, I know Raw Thrills' game won't be expansive enough to encompass a huge open world for a beat 'em up, but the mere fact they are returning to the roots of TMNT gaming is a wonderful thing.  I'd even consider the fact that they may steal the crown for best turtles game which I personally believe to be 2007's TMNT for the Nintendo GBA.  This could be the start fans of the franchise have been waiting for to point the following games towards what we've been wanting for years.

     I can't wait to play this at an arcade cabinet soon. And pray to the reptilian gods that this game may find a port to home consoles or mobile devices.

     For related posts [ TMNT ]

     Source [ Arcade Heroes ]

Jurassic World Evolution: Trailer & Thoughts

     I heard there was a new Jurassic Park game on the way and I got immediately excited, unfortunately that excitement was swiftly quashed when I found out it was just another world builder game.

     According to the developer's official press release:

     "Jurassic World Evolution evolves players’ relationship with the Jurassic World film franchise, placing them in control of operations on the legendary island of Isla Nublar and the surrounding islands of the Muertes Archipelago. 

     Players will build their own Jurassic World as they bioengineer new dinosaur breeds and construct attractions, containment and research facilities. Every choice leads to a different path and spectacular challenges arise when ‘life finds a way.’"

     I'm not going to lie, though the developer has over a decade of world/city building, management, and simulation games experience, I just feel they could've done better for the Jurassic Park legacy than this genre of game.  The old Sega Genesis game was a great platformer, the Sega CD version was a point-and-click mystery (as was the far superior, and much more recent Telltale version), and this honestly feels like an upscaled version of Ludia's mobile tie-in Jurassic World: The Game.  The mobile game was a good time-waster, overloaded with IAPs and the like with an interesting dinosaur evolving and battling sub-game- but it was also a mobile game, and not a full console game.  While I don't like this type of game, I'm sure it'll have a bunch of people hyped.

     All I'd like to see, and have wanted to see for decades, is a 3rd person action-adventure game like Uncharted 4 or Rise of the Tomb Raider that takes place in the Jurassic Park universe.  If they could get a company like Naughty Dog or Crystal Dynamics/Eidos Montreal to make it, the game would top the charts instantly.  The closest we got to it is the LEGO Jurassic World game, it wasn't the best, but it was still pretty damned fun despite the flaws (that plague all the LEGO games).

     Jurassic World Evolution will arrive on PC, PS4, and XBox One in Summer 2018, in time for the theatrical release of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom on June 22, 2018.

     SOURCE [ Frontier ]

Warner Bros.' DC Films: Quick Thoughts About Comics Looking Towards R-Rated Films

     After ignoring what fans have been bitching about for years, the box office numbers of Fox's Deadpool film, and last weekend's Logan raking in huge numbers, have made some studios rethink the ratings on their own films.  Deadpool had over $130 million just for the opening weekend.
     The Wrap reports that an Insider at Warner Bros.' DC Films recently said that, "With the right character(s)" they would definitely make an R-rated film.  A "100% yes," they would consider making a more adult oriented movie.

     Granted there have been previous R-rated superhero films such as Blade, Kickass, and Watchmen, but I worry that the studio goal is to simply make money, without putting in the effort to understand why Deadpool and Logan are doing so damn well at the box office.
     DC Comics in film has generally been handled very poorly.  Zack Snyder doesn't seem to grasp what makes these iconic characters important and lasting, and the result can be clearly seen in the vast difference between the abominable Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and Christopher Nolan's tremendous Batman: The Dark Knight.  Would making BvS: Dawn of Justice an R-rated film give it the boost it needed?  Not really, as the extended version showed.  It was a better version than the theatrical cut, but it still fell short of what is should've been.  They need to learn character insight before a rating will make a difference.  Deadpool nailed the character, and Logan got it almost 100% right- it made a giant leap forward and I think the first 2/3 is amazing and then it falters a bit.  What is important with Logan is they learned that they need to make a good film first, then add the R, as I'd been complaining about for years.  It's why X-Men: Apocalypse was garbage, they didn't make a good story.

     Not every comic book movie needs the grittier reboot.  The rating doesn't matter if the writers and directors don't "get it."  Look at how shitty the first two Wolverine films were.  As the Insider mentions, with the right character an R rating could do very well.  Ben Affleck's Batman in the right hands could be an R rated masterpiece.  Think of Casino or Goodfellas with the Batman- a hardcore crime story filled with the mob focused villains, and maybe a very serious take on the Riddler.  It could be absolutely astounding, but I doubt it would work with Snyder a the helm.  He lacks the fundamental knowledge of the underlying significance of these characters.  We need a Scorsese leading the project, something handled by people that understand more than a simple good looking shot.  They have to know what makes the stories and characters matter, and in the end it needs to come down to substance over spectacle.

     Source [ The Wrap ]