Marvel Future Fight: Gwenpool & The New Avengers Have Arrived!

     Marvel Future Fight recently got another huge update (full details here) and, one again it is amazing.  I've said it over and over again, this game is consistently getting better than it was, and it's already a better game than 90% of games out there for mobile devices.  That isn't to say it is not without problems, because there are definitely a few- such as the huge Timeline Battle imbalances- but really, it's a small problem considering how exactly much content the game provides overall.

     This new update brings us a total of 6 new characters and 2 new costumes.  First there's the undeniably fun Gwenpool, then we get The New Avengers- comprised of White Tiger, Wiccan, Hulkling, Songbird, and Squirrel Girl!  The new costumes are one for Wasp, and a classic for Nebula.  I really like the new selection of characters, they are well designed and fun to play.  Particularly Gwenpool because of her silly skipping walk animation.

     On top of this we get 5 new Special Missions.  The previous Special Missions for Ant-Man and Guardians of the Galaxy have been moved to Dimension Rifts, which are now searchable instead of relying on finding them randomly- making getting ones you want infinitely easier to get into.  I got sick of finding the same one over and over.

     This update on the whole is amazing.  It adds a great cast of extra characters, new levels and enemies, and a bunch of other little niceties.  I've been having a blast with most the new characters, and the added levels have given us a very welcome change for scenery and story elements.  Future Fight, well, developer Netmarble, has again outdone themselves.

     I did notice one oddity, and I don't know if it's a bug or not, but I've only had a single person show up continuously as an ally shifter (which is happening far more frequently since the update) and it's Gwenpool.  I don't mind the issue, because I did buy the 20 biometrics for 30 days pack to get her, and this just makes leveling her up a little quicker.  Seriously, I've had her show up at least 12 times back to back.  Finally, problem working in the player's favor!

     Plus, I know many of us are still awaiting the arrival of the leaked-a-year-ago Doctor Strange (and he's already teased by Netmarble in a previous video).  It makes sense that they'd be saving him for closer to the film's release though, so we should be seeing him around late October or early November.

     Related posts [ Marvel Future Fight ]

Outcast: The Whole First Episode & A Short Review (Robert Kirkman & Cinemax)

     Cinemax has done a couple great things for their upcoming series Outcast.  First, they posted the first episode in its entirety for our viewing pleasure, and second, they've already renewed the show for another season before its televised debut.  Outcast is based on the comic book of the same name from Skybound/Image Comics created by the team of writer Robert Kirkman, of The Walking Dead fame, and artist Paul Azaceta*.

     I wrote quite a while back that the show's creators appear to, "have given great life to this tale of demonic possession and the toll it takes on those that deal with it for their whole lives."  So far, I think I was spot on with those words.  Patrick Fugit's Kyle Barnes is a man trying to hide from a world that fears him, attempting to live his days in an odd form of normalcy compared to those around him.  Fugit does a great job of playing the role of pariah.  You can see how tired he looks as he tries to bridge the gap between the life he had, and the one the one he's currently struggling with.  A history of demonic possession is a dark path to tread and Fugit presents it beautifully.  He is extremely believable in this role, and I can't wait to see what he'll do as the series progresses.

     There's also only a handful of people that are willing to aid Barnes, including Reverend Anderson (Philip Glenister), Kyle's adopted sister Megan Holter (Wrenn Schmidt), and Chief Giles (the always amazing Reg E. Cathey).  Each of them is distinct in their role and do a tremendous job of supporting Barnes.  As the series proceeds, they'll all get their chances to really shine.

     Cinemax has certainly gained me as a viewer.  The supernatural-horror genre has been relatively sparse on television lately, and what shows there are turn out pretty terrible.  Even Kirkman's The Walking Dead devolved from survival horror into something much less appealing.  I feel it's lost the grounded horror focus it started with.  It seems to have been missing the real psychological tension that hit audiences in the first season  That's coming from someone that read the first 100 issues.

     Anyways, I read the first two story arcs of Outcast as they hit the stands monthly about two years ago, and they absolutely nailed it for the show.  They captured the creepy atmosphere perfectly, and the tremendously eerie presentation of the possessed child in this episode is downright brilliant.  Seriously, that kid deserves an award for how disturbing he makes himself.
     This show has been handled extremely well so far, and now there's only 9 more episodes to go.  I'm now hopeful enough that I think the show will be far superior to the the source material.  That is definitely something I never thought I'd ever say.

     Outcast will possess us all beginning Friday June 3 at 10pm on Cinemax.

     *As a side note, I'd like to really, REALLY recommend some of Kirkman's other comic series' such as Invincible (the only series I've read monthly since it started!), Destroyer, and The Irredeemable Ant-Man.  As for the incredible Azaceta, I've been a fan of his since his art in the Grounded comic book series.  That's one that I would recommend to any longtime fans of superhero comics in general.

Marvel Future Fight: Captain America: Civil War Update & Thoughts

     Once again the amazing Marvel Future Fight mobile game has received a truly monstrous update.  This one as a large tie-in to the upcoming Captain America: Civil War film.

     We are getting a slew of new costumes (currently only for Team Cap, with the exception of Ant-Man, whose will be added soon along with Team Iron Man's).  There's also 3 new boss fight characters- Supergiant, Ebony Maw, and Thanos himself- have joined the battle, as well as one more playable character- Crossbones.
     The new costumes are a welcome addition, but I am unimpressed by Crossbones' play style so far.  He's got nothing interesting or new, but perhaps he'll grow on me.

     An added bonus is for this update there's a limited time event in which players can choose sides in the civil war and earn points in hopes of receiving some spoils and awards.  The Faction Battle is either Team Cap or Team Iron Man and has some nice back and forth as players get their points and time in.

     My one huge disappointment is that the Timelines PvP is still completely ridiculous and horribly imbalanced.  How has this remained a staple to play for daily achievements and also largely left to be a broken mess?  Either eliminate the daily mission, or fix the match ups.

     Overall, things are continuously improving with plenty of things to keep players engaged and happy, it's just that nagging PvP area that is causing problems.  Although... the equipment areas- namely the cards and the highly irritating upgrading system are kind of terrible. What's the point of upgrading items you like if they change into a random different item?!?  I was super angry my +48% burn damage boost became a Speed resist item.  Seriously Netmarble, that is a terrible idea.  If it's a gamble on what you get out of upgrading valuable items, then upgrading is something we won't necessarily want to do.

     For the full update info [ Marvel Future Fight Official ]

LEGO Marvel's Avengers: FREE Ant-Man DLC Pack Available Today!

     Back in January Playstation announced a wonderful exclusive for LEGO Marvel's Avengers that included FREE bonus DLC packs for the Captain America: Civil War and Ant-Man films exclusively for Playstation.

"Utilizing the ability to shrink in size but increase in strength, Ant-Man (Scott Lang) stars alongside a variety of memorable characters, including Ant-Man (Hank Pym), Cassie Lang, Darren Cross, Hank Pym, Hope Van Dyne, Luis, Scott Lang, The Wasp (Janet Van Dyne) and Yellowjacket, along with Ant-Thony (Ant-Man’s Flying Ant). The pack also includes an exciting new theatrical-based level from the blockbuster movie."

     The Captain America: Civil War pack was alright with a bunch of extra characters, but the one I've been waiting for is the Ant-Man pack- which is available today!  To make this even sweeter, Scott Lang's best bud Luis will be narrating the adventure- complete with the always amazing Michael Peña doing the voice work for his LEGO counterpart!

     Future Season Pass offerings will include Black Panther, Captain Marvel, Doctor Strange, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and The Masters of Evil.

     Source [ Playstation Blog ]

Robert Kirkman's OUTCAST: NEW Cinemax 30 sec. Promo

     Outcast is a 10 episode Cinemax show based on the Skybound/Image Comics series by Robert Kirkman of The Walking Dead fame.  I'd rather recommend his tremendous comic series Invincible, but that's far less well known, or even his runs on Destroyer or Irredeemable Ant-Man.

     Cinemax has appeared to have given great life to this tale of demonic possession and the toll it takes on those that deal with it for their whole lives.  Outcast is the story of Kyle Barnes (Patrick Fugit) on a journey to live a life of relative normalcy with the aid of Reverend Anderson (Philip Glenister) who is dealing with demons of the personal kind.  There seems to be a lot more to what lies just out of sight from most mortals, and these two may have a hand in keeping them from creeping into this realm.

     As I wrote when the first trailer arrived, the supernatural-horror genre has needed a kick to its ass in recent years, and this show looks to capture the dark roads some must walk quite wonderfully.

     Outcast is set to premiere on Cinemax on June 3rd.

Captain America: Civil War: Trailer 2 is Damned Amazing... Like Spider-Man

     The new Captain America: Civil War trailer is downright spectacular... much like our first glimpse of Spider-Man in the film.  Although I think he looks a little bit "off"- like the cg is strange or something, it's great that we get to see him.  The new suit design is neat but looks a little cartoony considering the more serious looks of all the other characters in the movie.

     We finally get to see the Hawkeye and Ant-Man arrow, real Black Panther hatred towards the Winter Soldier, and Scarlet Witch being a true contender to take down Vision in terms of real power and potential.
     I was hoping that this film would be far better than the ridiculousness that came out of Avengers: Age of Ultron, and it definitely looks like it will be.  Marvel appears to be putting in the actual creative time to craft a story worth watching that isn't just an end of the world scenario loaded with shallow writing and plots and over-the-top action sequences that Hollywood is so intent on using.

  Captain America: Civil War arrives in theaters May 6th.

Disney Infinity NEXT: News & Thoughts for 2016

     Disney Infinity is such a great idea, it's finally good to see the developers beginning to listen to the fans.  The new Disney Infinity NEXT show they started on March 1st proves they are at least attempting to listen to us avid fans and supporters.

No 4.0 Edition, Four New Playets, and a Problem

     Right away we know the first 3 playsets will be Marvel Battlegrounds, Finding Dory, and Alice: Through the Looking Glass.  The last set is a guaranteed Star Wars set- maybe Rogue One, perhaps a even a Clone Wars or Rebels set.  We aren't sure.  Although a Rebels set with Hera and Chopper would be cool to go with all the other figures already out.

     Anyways...

     The first news I would like to really touch on is the big change of their choice not to release a 4.0 this year, but instead build upon version 3.0's foundation.  This is a grand choice, but I fear their decision to do so may be driven more by preventing data-miners from showing that the games are so damn short because they cram all the material onto the disc in advance and then release the keys (toys and playset pieces) to unlock the stuff later, rather than by generating a larger quantity of material.

     Honestly, every single person I talk to that plays this game absolutely hates the fact every playset is so short.  Ridiculously short.  They can be beaten within a few hours without a struggle.  Granted, they have added some replayability to the sets by allowing for missions to be played over and over- but...
  ...personally, I believe a much better remedy to the issue would be to follow LEGO Dimensions' suit (like all the non-Dimensions games even) and make one huge open world hub filled with randomly generating quests and occurrences.  Seriously, Infinity has nothing even remotely as fun and well created as LEGO Marvel Super Heroes' open New York City area.  If Disney Infinity is truly listening to us like they say they are, this is a necessity to keep the competing toys-to-life games on the ropes.  The content needs to be there- much bigger areas with far more stuff in them.  The playsets feel really small and empty.

     Isn't Disney the place where imagination is supposed to thrive?  Where's the genius level design? Where's our secret levels (I'm thinking something as wonderful as Dark Souls' Painted World of Ariamis)?  We want a game that is fun with actual depth and plenty of room for exploration, not one sixth of a playset because 6 separate games needed to be smooshed onto a single disc with 30 figures.

Marvel Battlegrounds

     Most of my interest in the game is with the Marvel material.  It has a fair amount of issues, such as Green Goblin being shipped without the advertised glider in game, but it also has a lot of opportunity.  That opportunity should rightfully start with its 4 player addition.  Battlegrounds is set to be the first Infinity game with a 4 player option... BUT... it's 4 player co-op on a single screen and not online match making as pretty much every other game made is.
     Sorry Disney Infinity, but making Infinity an online match making game is going to be a must if you want to continue being the "number 1 toys-to-life game."  It's absurd this hasn't happened yet.  Nearly all games have this feature and by not having it, you are losing serious ground.  Not everyone has a pile of controllers, not everyone is able to play with a group and so on.  I read somewhere that the reason they haven't made Battlegrounds online is because then people would expect that to happen in the other toyboxes.  OBVIOUSLY!
     Dear Disney Infinity team, we aren't playing games from a decade ago, nowadays people expect online as a standard feature, especially as the playsets are so sparse to begin with.  Disney is a multi-billion dollar a year company, there should be plenty of budget to fix this (and all the other complaints we are all grumbling about).

     Another issue they have is the figures- Battlegrounds is getting not one, but TWO figures we already have.  To be fair, the Captain America has gotten some new moves and skin, but do we really need another Spider-Man?  No.  I'm genuinely upset that this may become a problem, where instead of new ones we'll get more copies and the like.
     On the bright side of that, "Even more new Marvel characters will be released this year."  (Video @ 9:41)  There's a really good chance we'll finally get a Scarlet Witch (although how that'll work with the Marvel v Fox disputes is beyond me, I mean I want some X-Men characters for sure, but Marvel seems like they are strangling them out of the market in every avenue they can.  Doctor Strange is highly likely as well with a film releasing this fall with possibly a couple toys from the movie.  I wouldn't doubt a Squirrel Girl at some point.  Marvel's been pushing the change of her "not being a mutant" pretty damn hard in the comics, so I'm thinking they've got some things in the works to cash in on (a cartoon?).
     I would like a Darkhawk or Ghost Rider figure myself.  Both of them have multiple in game extras, but no playable characters.  What a tease.  At least I'll be able to play as Ant-Man finally.

The Future

     In an interview with Venture Beat, Disney Infinity VP of Production John Vignocchi said, "At the end of the Battlegrounds section we'll drop an Easter Egg."  The whole article is worth a read, but I just wanted that snippet.  The hint is likely something being prepared for more Marvel related Infinity coming later in the year- Dr. Strange??? - but we'll have to wait until the end of Battlegrounds to see for sure.

     In the end, I hope over the next year the developers learn they definitely need to up their game in terms of content and so on.  Disney Infinity has all the foundations to be something so much more amazing than it is, but that's about all it has, the foundations.  We want and need to see that Disney does indeed have the imagination they claim and put it to use for all of us supporters.

     Sources [ Disney Infinity NEXT Ep. 1 ] [ Infinity Inquirer ]

Captain America: Civil War: Big Game Spot: Line Ups in full and Ant-Man's Suit

     With the Big Game Spot, Marvel's Captain America: Civil War gives us the line ups for both sides in a couple shots, with our first view of the new Ant-Man costume and Vision appears as well.

     There really isn't much in the way of new clues from the material, but it is a bit exciting anyways!  I've got a feeling some sides will shift through out the film.  As things are probably not as they seem.  Besides, Nick Fury hasn't been spotted yet, nor have we heard from Maria Hill or Sharon Carter yet either.  This is shaping up to really build off of the political intrigue that Captain America: The Winter Soldier has built.

     Captain America: Civil War hits theaters

LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens: Announcement Trailer & Thoughts

The Brick Awakens

     In a completely unsurprising announcement, Warner Bros. Interactive, TT Interactive, The LEGO Group and Lucasfilm announced jointly this morning that LEGO video games are returning to it's foundation with the Star Wars canon with LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens would be available on June 28.

     Honestly, this shouldn't be a shock to anyone.  If ever there was a series to milk for money it's Star Wars.  LEGO sells well, the games always sell well despite the bugs, flaws, and and all the other myriad problems that still haven't been remedied since LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game way back in 2005 ( I think I still have my original copy!).
     All their games are fundamentally fun, but the little nagging issues that linger really put a damper on that fun factor.  I mean seriously, they haven't figured out the twin-stick flight is better than the single-stick and two buttons to control the ascent and descent they've been using?!?
     Even the most recent release was a bit lackluster, LEGO Marvel's Avengers, which is essentially an updated LEGO Marvel Super Heroes with all the X-Men and awesome other characters cut out.  I'm not kidding, the open world New York City and S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier are pretty much exactly the same as the last game.  It's still fun, and they've improved the flight controls just a little, but the levels are every bit as unclear as ever.  The story jumps all over the place and doesn't follow the movies in any particular order.  Clunky combat and the very wonky object action detection is very frustrating.  There's also some issues with unresponsive controls and a problem (at least on PS4) with preventing players from swapping characters in a level when you absolutely have to do so to proceed that I've encountered numerous times.  In my opinion, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes still stands as a much better game than LEGO Marvel's Avengers, though they are both worth playing for fans.

     Other than that LEGO Jurassic World was very fun and I am super excited to play the Ant-Man DLC pack for the Avengers in a few months as well- and of course, being the sucker that I am, I'll be once more coming back to the LEGO Star Wars games with The Force Awakens set in June.

Disney Infinity 3.0: Marvel Battlegrounds: Local Multiplayer Only & Thoughts

     For as excited as I was for more Disney Infinity 3.0 stuff, this week has been an enormous letdown for news concerning the upcoming Marvel Battlegrounds playset.  First it was announced that the set would only come with a singular figure, Captain America (The First Avenger), and we know there are only currently 3 other figures slated (Ant-Man, Black Panther, and Vision- with no female figures at all) with mere rumor that more are on the way, and now we get the news that the set will be LOCAL MULTIPLAYER ONLY.

     The official site lists:

"Battle up to 3 opponents in the arena with 4-person local multiplayer"

   Honestly, if Marvel Battlegrounds is supposed to be a "game changer" for the Infinity brand, they really need to up their game- opening up online multiplayer is an absolute must.  To me this feels like they are currently selling us merely the face of a game.  Essentially we are getting a fancy box and no real content or true expansion to the brand.  Infinity is on the 3rd generation and there still isn't multiplayer offerings.  The story modes are meager at best in the playsets, the minigames are mundane, and they really aren't giving players anything new.  Battlegrounds may provide us with a fighting arena, but how many players don't have the option of playing in groups locally?

     Supporters have asked consistently for online play, and we got a broken, or at least rarely functioning, online play with "Flynn's Arcade"- leaving the bitter taste of horrible disappointment in our mouths.  What makes this even more questionable is the lack of a confirmation that their will even be AI opponents to play against.  It's generally assumed that will be the case, but it isn't stated anywhere.  Sadly, this might be the first time I am disgusted with how lacking a new playset appears to be.  Barely any new characters, no online support, and it was mentioned previously there will be no story mode.
     Disney is one of the biggest companies in the world, there is no reason they can't compete with other game companies in the video game arena.  This should be an area where they make the Lego Dimensions and Skylanders toys-to-life games look infantile.  They have the reasources to make something staggeringly big- I'm thinking toys-to-life in an Elder Scrolls sized game world.  instead we've been getting sparse gameplay and some mediocre extras.  Stuff I'd expect for mobile games, but nothing really console sized.
     Disney Infinity, coming from an avid supporter, the game needs a huge overhaul and it needs one quick.  This is a case where just the addition of online multiplayer would do wonders.  I recall Disney being all about imagination, so show us that creativity is truly valued, and give us a game worthy of our investment.

     Disney Infinity 3.0: Marvel Battlegrounds will be available March 15th.

     Source [ Infinity Inquirer ]

Disney Infinity 3.0: Marvel Battlegrounds Playset Release Information & Thoughts

     The announcement of the release date isn't new, as the March 15th leak had happened already, but what is surprising about the Disney Infinity 3.0: Marvel Battlegrounds playset is the fact it only comes with a single figure (Captain America: The First Avenger) instead of the customary 2 or 3.

     What bothers me even more is it's a character that many players already have, albeit with a new skin and potentially some new moves.  One more issue is the fact that there are currently NO female figures for the set.  Where's Scarlet Witch?  Where's Captain Marvel?  Where's Wasp?  This set definitely needs a few female figures to balance out the roster.

     I suppose the good news is that ANY of the Marvel Infinity figures will work with the game, not limiting it to just the 3.0 group which is small to begin with.  It's also been stated that many of the 2.0 Marvel characters have been "retooled" to be of better use in Battlegrounds.  It is also a plus that the price is cheaper at $29.99 than before.  To pad this pack out they are offering a pre-order bonus from "Participating Retailers" (currently only Best Buy and the Disney Store) of any one of your choice of a Disney Infinity Marvel 2.0 figure.

     In addition to the figures listed as being part of the Battlegrounds wave (Ant-Man, Black Panther, and Vision) and the recent Ultron and Hulkbuster Iron Man, Disney is offering the Marvel's Avengers Figure Pack (consisting of Iron Man, Black Widow, and Thor from the 2.0 Playset) for $29.99.  To me this is just an added slap to the face that instead of more new figures, they're once again offering old figures- at least the Captain America will be a little new.

     John Vignocchi put out a statement about the release:

Marvel Battlegrounds is a four-player, arcade-style brawler that allows you to battle with up to three friends locally. You get to play in 12 levels across eight all-new arenas, including Knowhere and Wakanda. You’ll also be able to battle as any playable Disney Infinity (2.0 Edition): Marvel Super Heroes figure, making Marvel Battlegrounds the Play Set with the largest selection of playable characters.

You guys know that the Disney Infinity team is always listening to your feedback, and we make changes along the way based on what we hear from the community. Your feedback has led to one significant change in our Play Set configuration. We heard from you that you want more choice in how you expand your Disney Infinity collections, especially with the Play Sets. With this in mind, the Marvel Battlegrounds Play Set Pack will come with the Play Set piece and one figure (Captain America – The First Avenger). Now it’s up to you to decide which other Marvel Super Heroes and Super Villains you want to fight with in Marvel Battlegrounds from a selection of 25 characters and with more to join the roster soon!

     All right, not to sound too nit picky here, but there will be 26* total figures available for Marvel, and 28 if you count the Black suit Spider-Man (which is getting a single release after the PS Vita pack exclusive) and the new version of Cap as separate, so there's already more figures than they've mentioned.  So I want to know will there actually be more on the way that we've yet to see?  Especially because this round of Marvel figures is so sparse.  They always say there's some more to join coming, but what does that really mean?
     We want more individual figures, I mean if Battlegrounds is supposed to be such a game changer for Disney Infinity where's all the supporting figures like the Winter Soldier, Scarlet Witch, Wasp, or Captain Marvel?  And no, we don't want more duplicates or repaints.  Because I'm sure someone will suggest a War Machine that'll be essentially Iron Man with a gun, unless he's drastically different, it could rightfully be a costume disc.
     When it comese down to it, I'm wondering when we'll start getting major Marvel characters like Luke Cage, Daredevil, and Jessica Jones.  Where's our the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. or Agent Carter?  When will we get Squirrel Girl or Ghost Rider now that we've got his chain and bike as power discs?  I can understand the IP rights feud keeping out the mutant population, but seriously, where's all the rest of the Marvel Universe.  If battlegrounds is going to be this big thing, show us by giving us a huge selection of NEW figures to go with it.
     I don't know if I want to wait until Disney Infinity 4.0 for a Doctor Strange.

     Source [ Infinity Inquirer ] [ Inf. Inq. 2 ]

*Iron Man, Black Widow, Thor, Hulk, Hawkeye, Cap, Loki, Falcon
Iron Fist, Nick Fury, Spider-Man, Nova, Venom, Green Goblin
Star Lord, Gamora, Drax, Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Yondu, Ronan
Ultron, Hulkbuster
Ant-Man, Black Panther, Vision

Disney Infinity 3.0: Marvel Battlegrounds NEW Pics & Release Date

     Yesterday Amazon had listed for pre-order both the Nick and Judy Zootopia figures with a date of March 1st, and they also had the Marvel Battlegrounds playset and power disc pack listed as March 15th.  The downside is all their new Disney Infinity 3.0 listings have been taken down.

     The playset listing's info:

Evil forces scheme for world conquest as they pit Marvel’s greatest Super Heroes against each other! It’s an all out brawl in Marvel Battlegrounds! • Engage in 4-player combat and battle in 12 levels across 8 epic new arenas! • Customize your game with up to 6 Round Marvel Power Discs per match • Select Super Heroes and Villains from your ENTIRE collection of Marvel characters in Disney Infinity • Smash through floors, walls and tear down the environment as you battle to defeat your opponents • 28 characters to collect and more to come! Use Captain America’s shield to attack from a distance and increase the power of close quarters combat.

     In addition some of the mock-ups for the single figures have begun surfacing.  There's Black Panther, Ant-Man, VIsion, and Symbiote suit Spider-Man (for single release, as the only other ways to play him were with the costume disc or the Vita pack exclusive).  We've known about these from the leak back in October, so it really isn't news.  What is cool, however, is the tight lid they've kept about who the 2nd character for the playset will be.  So far there's only Captain America's new costume The First Avenger.  I hope it'll be Winter Soldier or Scarlet Witch.

     The, the power disc set for Marvel comes with what appears to be the Winter Casket from the Thor film, a symbol of the Nova core, a Darkhawk laser, and what I think is really cool- Ghost Rider's motorcycle.  So we'll have his chain whip and bike, but actual Ghost Rider figure?  Perhaps he'll be an unannounced surprise. 

     On a side note, art for Baloo from the Jungle Book has also been released and can be seen at this link [ Infinity Inq. Twitter ].  This new figure makes me wonder if the previously mentioned unannounced playset with be for the Jungle Book as a film tie-in of sorts.

     Source [ Infinity Inquirer ]

LEGO Marvel's Avengers: Ant-Man & Civil War DLC Packs

     It was recently announced the TT Games upcoming LEGO Marvel's Avengers was going to be receiving 2 DLC packs, adding 2 more films to the 6 film roster the main game was made of (in addition to the massive Marvel Universe related content also there).

     The two films will be Captain America: Civil War and Ant-Man.  The Civil War pack will be available at the main game's launch on January 26th, and includes 9 characters that are also able to be used in the main game.  There will be Captain America, Iron Man (in the Mark 46 armor), Black Panther, Winter Soldier, Falcon, War Machine, Scarlet Witch, Crossbones, and Agent 13.

     The second DLC, the one I am personally very excited for, is the Ant-Man level pack.  This contains 11 new characters including both Scott Lang and Hank Pym as Ant-Man, Ant-Thony the flying ant, Cassie Lang, Darren Cross, Scott Lang, Hank Pym, Hope Van Dyne, Luis, Janet Van Dyne as The Wasp, and Yellowjacket.

     At the end of the announcement of this being a Playstation timed exclusive deal, there was a little tidbit extra about a season pass and its contents:

"Keep an eye out for the season pass content that we’ll be bringing your way featuring classic comic content as well as content from Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."

     Source [ Playstation Blog ]

Disney Infinity 3.0: Vignocchi Talks the Future of Infinity: An Unannounced Special Character in 1st Quarter 2016! (And an Unannounced Playset!)

     Disney Infinity's VP of Production John Vignocchi had an interview with Dis Kingdom's Abraham Larios Jr. with a bunch of interesting things about the future for 2016.

     To me the important things are-

     First- In addition to the Marvel Battlegrounds playset, we will see at least one more playset for sure.  Vignocchi was asked about his phrasing about playsets and, "When asked to clarify if he meant to say playsets as plural, JV said that the word Playsets with an “S” on there is on purpose and correct!"
     Furthermore, on the topic of Marvel Battlegrounds, no release date has been officially announced, and the Power Discs will be used in a much different fashion than they have been for the last few years.  They'll be used in "a unique way" which is quite intriguing to think about what they might be cooking up.  On top of that the playset itself will also play very differently than any of the previous sets have, and has been labelled a "game changer" for Disney Infinity while still in the Beta.

     And Second- Vignocchi mentioned while talking about the figure release slate, that Boba Fett has been pushed out from his originally expected release date in January, but still remains in the first quarter of 2016.  Nick and Judy from Zootopia will also be in that time period but then going on, "he mentioned that during quarter one, another special character that has not been announced or leaked yet."
     That's right, a character that hasn't been leaked or announced yet will be arriving in the first quarter 2016!  They have not confirmed if they'll be a Disney, Marvel, or Star Wars character.  We know that Ant-Man, Vision, and Black Panther have been leaked by Amazon, and there has been rumor and speculation that one other character might be coming some day, and I really hope that's who it is- Kim Possible.  Of course, we'll just have to wait and see.

     Peter Pan is still set for an August/September release and his final design is going to be revealed to the Toy Box Master Artist group by Avalanche Studios before being shown to the community later this year.  Captain EO is stuck in a kind of limbo.

     Darkwing Duck though, he is another story.  As Larios writes:

"Darkwing Duck on the other hand, seems may be closer to becoming a reality. JV told us about a conversation he had with John Blackburn this past week. He said he was having an argument with John Blackburn about a character for an upcoming project that JV was supporting inside of Disney Infinity. John then said to him that he rather do Darkwing Duck than that character he was proposing. JV said that John really put him back on his heels because in the midst of a heated argument about a character, he dangled one that is so close and personal to him as one that they could officially bring."

     That is a very loaded paragraph.  Darkwing Duck is very possible, but then so is the mystery character that was dangled in his face, which could be anyone.  What makes this so cool, is that it is one that Vicnocchi himself is psyched about, and by the sounds of it, he was genuinely surprised by not only the suggestion- but the likelihood of it actually officially happening.

 The future of Disney Infinity is looking good.

     Source [ Dis Kingdom ]

Captain America: Civil War: A LEGO Playset Movie Spoiler?

     It looks like one of the upcoming LEGO sets for Captain America: Civil War has a potential spoiler attached to it: Ant-Man as Giant Man.

     Personally, I had been hoping Scott Lang would've cranked the dial the opposite direction and fussed with the regulator at the end of Ant-Man so he could get huge and squash Yellow Jacket,I mean they hinted at the giant growth with the garden gnome, Thomas the Train, and the massive ant, but I guess it made much more sense to keep Ant-Man more in the shadows until Civil War hits theaters when they might need an extra edge against a big gun opponent like Vision, a secret weapon of sorts to even the odds.
     Granted, this isn't a guarantee, as the Ant-Man movie final battle set had a black-clad Hank Pym Ant-Man suit that wasn't in the film, but the odds have been raised from micro to giant sized potential with this play set.

     Captain America: Civil War arrives in theaters May 6th, 2016.

Disney Infinity 3.0: Ant-Man, Black Panther, and Vision Leaked!

     Someone over at Amazon has accidentally leaked some of the future Marvel characters for Disney Infinity 3.0.  We are getting Vision, Black Panther, and Ant-Man.  And they all look amazing.  I see there are a bunch of 2.0 figures as well as the Black Spider-Man and the new Captain America that is to be packed with the Marvel Battlegrounds Infinity playset.

     Normally I don't like to do this, but as a huge fan of both Marvel and Disney Infinity, this is something I would want to see.  I mean, really, I've been complaining about how we aren't getting much in the way of Marvel figures announced, and then this happens.  A lucky day indeed.

     On a side note, is this looks a lot like some serious build up for the first part of the Captain America: Civil War movie.

     Source [ Infinity Inquirer ]

Disney Infinity 3.0: Marvel Battlegrounds Update & Captain America: The First Avenger

     The newest Disney Infinity 3.0 announcement has dropped.  Along with a new trailer, we get a new figure.  Kind of.

     Coming in March 2016, Marvel Battlegrounds will provide a new story as well as new dimensions of gameplay for the Disney Infinity Marvel players:

     "In the original storyline, Ultron teams up with Loki in an effort to steal Asgard’s immensely powerful Infinity Stone. To accomplish this, Ultron and Loki create robotic replicas of the famed Marvel Super Heroes and turn them against each other in an effort to distract them while they commit their crime. The Marvel Super Heroes duplicates battle each other in iconic environments such as a wrecked Brooklyn train yard, Wakanda and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Lunar Base, culminating in a universe-shaking battle against Ultron."

     Sadly the new 4 player co-op can't mask my disappointment the of the 4 officially known Marvel Infinity characters, 2 of the figures are just costume swaps and not really new.  Black suit Spider-Man and Cap are merely new costumes, while Hulkbuster Iron Man and Ultron are at least totally new characters.  Although they have yet to officially announce Ant-Man since their teaser months ago.

     Source [ Infinity Inquirer ]

Ant-Man: Review

     After all my excitement for Ant-Man, I am torn between liking it and seeing the films immediate flaws.  Right off the bat, you have a movie with Edgar Wright's flavor seeping through, but then we can also see how blatantly it was forced into conforming to the typical Marvel Studios filmography.

     The strange need for the movies to link in the most obvious ways is getting absurd.  The connectivity is wonderful, but it's beginning to be shoved in our faces.  Marvel has a tendency to strongarm things into place for the bigger picture, which is at odds with the whole premise of Ant-Man itself.
     Ant-Man isn't about the world-saving glories the Avengers have become known for.  It is a passing the torch story, but one that is being done under the table.  Hank Pym, played with great aptitude by Michael Douglas, is a failed father and creator of both his shrinking Ant-Man suit, and a nice device that allows him to communicate with ants- giving him access to the world's largest biomass colony, meaning he has an infinite army of unseen warriors and workers.

     After keeping his Pym Particles and shrinking serum out of the hands of Howard Stark and S.H.I.E.L.D. for decades, Hank now has to take action to keep his former protege Darren Cross (Corey Stoll)- who is played as a villainous caricature in his path towards becoming Yellowjacket- from militarizing and selling the shrinking technologies.

     Along the way he enlists Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), an ex-con that burgles for all the right reasons.  He too is a failing father, struggling with his ex-wife, her new-and-stereotypical douchebag police officer boyfriend, and attempting to be there for his daughter.  Under Pym's guidance he can become an actual hero, one worthy of his daughter's ideal view of him.

     What this movie gets right is taking massive steps back in terms of the story.  This isn't about "dropping cities" on things as Pym complains about the Avengers (a reference to the Age of Ultron film), it's about doing what's right for the ones you care about.  It's about doing it in secret.  Ant-Man was a secret in war espionage in Pym's younger days, and now that the suit has taken its toll on him, he must find an heir.  Due to a tragic loss in Pym's past he is reluctant to have is extremely overqualified and capable daughter Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) take over for fear of losing her as well.  So he goes with the second best choice, Lang.  Which is almost a metaphor for the film in that they don't go with the right choice, they go with the safe one.
   
     The movie then becomes a heist film focusing on training Lang to become the unrecognized hero of the day.  Along the way he has some old friends assist- including Michael Pena whose role as a criminal is that of stealing every scene he is in- to stop Cross from unleashing microscopic chaos around the world.

     What I think the movie does wrong, however, is shoe-horn in a love story.  It feels out of place and completely unnecessary.  They could have left it open ended and it would've worked better.  Not every leading pair needs to become romantically involved.
     The whole lead up to the going subatomic and Lang's solution for escape is a bit preposterous as well.  Why wouldn't he have just smashed a few of them all over his body- maybe even one too many- causing him to grow past normal size and become Giant Man accidentally?  Which was another complaint I had.  Quite a few items are grown to super sizes, so why didn't they use that in the film on a person?  All the build up and no payoff.

     Then at a middle ground between good and bad, although I complained about the movie being forced into a mold, when an Avenger finally does show up, they chose the right one.  They chose the most human and relatable person for Lang to encounter and it actually works very well.  So even though it seems forced, it also feels fitting.

     Overall, I really enjoyed the film.  It has plenty of predictable elements, but also a fair amount of moments of genuine heart and originality.  Ant-Man was at its best when it focused on the small things and really, it should stay that way.  Hank Pym wanted the Ant-Man to stay out of sight, so Marvel should keep the stories with him small, but with a large impact.

     After seeing this, I am unbelievably eager to find a leaked copy of Wright's original script.  To truly see what wonderfully subtle things were there that were buried under the typical Marvel must-haves could be enlightening.
     I'm also looking forward to Hope Van Dyne finally getting to take up the mantle of Wasp...

Disney INfinity 3.0: Ant-Man INfinit-Teased!

     Ant-Man hits theaters today, a week ago he showed up in the mobile game Future Fight, and a bug-riddled start yesterday (many players, myself included, are unable to even load the game due to patch problems) over in the usually amazing Marvel Heroes 2015, and now Disney INfinity has teased his arrival in Disney INfinity 3.0.

     We might as well just assume he'll be playable, because- firstly- everyone else in the image is playable, and secondly- he's already in the game as a team-up disc.  The chances increase his odds of being playable when you take in to account the fact that Marvel still has 4 unannounced playable characters from their official playable character board. [ Pic and info about the board ]

     I've been thinking this was going to be the approach for some time, as I wrote back on June 6th:

     "Well, I thoroughly look forward to more of what is to come in the following months as we get closer to the release date.  Especially the Marvel: Age of Ultron related stuff, which the Disney Infinity team has been ultra secretive of.  We have gotten a lot of information on everything else except the Marvel group for Disney Infinity 3.0. 

     I'm actually wondering if they'll be having a bunch of Ant-Man themed stuff that just hasn't been announced yet, and maybe they're waiting for the movie to be released first.  They already have his character modeled and usable as a team up..."

     Well, I think this will be a great thing.  I want to see some levels where everything is humongous and you have to navigate the world as a tiny hero.  Much like the Super Mario Bros. in Giant Land.

     Disney INfinity 3.0 releases August 30th.

     Source [ Disney INfinity Official Twitter ]

Ant-Man: Ant Invasion of Marvel Heroes 2015!

     Ant-Man will reach theaters this Friday, and he's already made appearances in other games, such as the mobile Marvel's Future Fight, but he is set to release this week in the massive Marvel free-to-play game Marvel Heroes 2015.

     For people that don't know what this game is, think of Diablo, but with almost 50 starting characters- ALL of which are amazing Marvel properties.  From the X-Men and Avengers all the way to the Guardians of the Galaxy.  This game is a must play for anyone with a computer.

     Anyways, this week developer Gazillion is deploying both a movie-version and comic version of Scott Lang as Ant-Man, as well as an separately voiced Hank Pym Ant-Man.  Game Informer has all the information on the release (see link below), a nice exclusive trailer including an Anchorman reference (of which I made a Meme about over a month ago), and some info graphics of how improved the game has become since it launched in 2013.

     It might also be of note that Gazillion is running a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory-esque contest involving 5 Vibranium Tickets that anyone can win- netting them $5000.  Anyone can win, regardless of how long they've played.  So now is the perfect time to join the game.

     Ant-Man is slated to launch as "early as Thursday" in [ Marvel Heroes 2015 ]

     Source [ Game Informer ]

     For other related posts [ Ant-Man ]