Game of Thrones 4:8 Recap: Mountain Always Beats Melon!


Yeah, well… that was an innnnnnteresting fight while it lasted. Of course, even though I didn’t read that far into the books, I knew from the moment all those fancy moves were being displayed and the non-stop banter that sounded half out a medieval Spider-Man comic was droning on that the fight was going to go a particular way. Ouch and double ouch. Still, as noted by a few people, it WAS a tie at the end, so perhaps the Imp can get away on a technicality or something. Hey, with two episodes to go, things are certainly getting really interesting… Continue reading

Orphan Black 2:7 Recap/2:8 Preview: From Grins To Grimaces At The Drop Of A Hat…

I don’t think I’ve laughed more WITH a serious sci-fi show than I have during this season of Orphan Black. Last Saturday’s episode gave poor Vic both barrels, Sarah and Allison didn’t escape without making me chuckle and Donnie? Yeah, he’s even MORE clueless than even I realized. Given the rather surprising end to that episode, he’s in even MORE trouble than I’d have imagined, so we’ll need to see where that bit of story takes him. That said, next week’s show looks to get the dramatic elements to the forefront again now that the other big clone-related reveal has borne some rather unique blossoms.

Oh yeah… it looks as if there’s going to be quite a bit of drama kicking around in next week’s show…

Jodorowsky’s Dune Coming to Blu-Ray/DVD July 8. BUY IT.

Jodorowsky's DUNE BDVD 

 
Predictions: this one will get a nomination for Best Documentary at next year’s Academy Awards for sure, but will probably lose to something more dramatic and real-world fixated. Anyway, if you’re a creative sort, Jodorowsky’s Dune will expand your mind significantly even as the project as intended ends up not getting filmed in the end. If you happen to love behind the scenes dirt, this film is packed with it (and MAN, is some of it of the VERY bizarre variety). Still, I wonder how the sci-fi film landscape would have changed had this been shot and completed as intended. It would have certainly been one of the more expensive films ever created at that time, but as we all know, money tossed down a well doesn’t guarantee all the wishes dumped in afterwards will come true. Anyway, grab this one in July, invite some friends over and make it a movie day, as I’m betting any special features included will be as compelling as the documentary or even more so…

Movie Review: APP

APP_FINAL US PosterAs the first second screen “horror” film, Bobby Boermans’ APP dares to ask you to not only keep your cell phone ON during its entire running time, it wants you to download an app just for the purposes of getting the most out of the wild ride it sends you on for a very brisk 75 minutes.

However, if the very idea of having a phone buzzing away a few times on your lap as you watch a film outrages you to no end, you can watch the film without a phone and still enjoy it quite thoroughly. It’s certainly worth seeing this one both ways (which I did for the purposes of this review) as the phone-enabled parts are cleverly crafted to not distract from the film at all, giving you enough time to glance down then back up without missing anything important.
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CD Projekt RED Has Got Some Summery Surprises In Store Soon…

CDPR_Summer Conference logo

Well, well… it looks as if a few more developers and publishers are stepping outside the usual confines of E3 to show what’s cooking to fans directly as opposed to having news filtered through assorted outlets. CD Projekt Red is joining the club with this upcoming June 5, 2015 conference that will no doubt be a showpiece for the PC and console versions of its eagerly awaited RPG The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. As you can see from this teaser below, I must be psychic or overstating the obvious (or both):

 
I also just NOW realize from watching that video that I’ve been pronouncing gog.com incorrectly for YEARS. Oops. Oh well, I bet a lot of others have been too, so I don’t feel bad at all. I do wonder how massive that Collector’s Edition will be for TW3, as the one for The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Extended Edition was pretty hefty from what I recall. Well, we’ll see in a few days, right?

Bugbear’s Next Car Game: Still On The Way, But Getting There Is Half The Fun…

Yes indeed, Bugbear Entertainment’s Next Car Game STILL needs a proper title, but that’s not stopping it from becoming a big favorite among pretty much anyone who’s gotten the chance to try out one of the many tech demos or preview builds. The developer is still taking pre-orders for the game (which is also coming to Steam) and even offering up Kickstarter-like bonuses to those who spend a bit more loot such as getting their names in the game or allowing a set number of users to design their own custom rides for all to use. One of the coolest things anyone can grab of (if they have the money to buy and space to use it) is Fanatec’s SPECTACULAR selection of racing game seats, wheels, shifters and such that make any driving or racing game an even more realistic experience. As you can see in that video above, The setup Bugbear is using (which includes Fantec’s Universal Hub) is quite modular, allowing many steering wheel variants to be used.

Now, the only thing the game needs is a proper console version, although the original crowdfunding drive fell short of that goal. My hope is that the PC version does well enough and gets enough attention that at least ONE of the big three companies sees that as a chance to get a great destruction derby racer back on the market for their systems. Granted, both Sony and Microsoft have marquee racers and may pass on this one (and too bad for them if they do!), but Nintendo hasn’t had a GOOD first-party realistic racer for ages (although Need For Speed Most Wanted U is hands-down the best racer with actual licensed cars in YEARS on a Nintendo platform), so a big fat pipe dream is seeing them wise up and at least look into sending Bugbear a few dev kits so they can either port thew game over or come up with something new and just as fun on that hardware. Granted, that’s a slim chance, but hey – one can only hope, right?

Sacred 3 Coming To PC & Consoles August 5 (Or: There Goes My Late Summer)

 
As a fan of the Sacred series for about nine or so years since that Sacred Gold box fell on my foot at a GameStop, I turned it over, saw it was an action/RPG and bought it on the spot, I’m completely psyched for Sacred 3. Coming to PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 (yet again, the newest consoles are shut out thanks to the game being developed for what was available at the time), I’m expecting more open world fantasy madness, plenty of quests and side quests, intentionally campy voice acting, LOADS of hidden goodies, and of course, excellent replay value. Screenshots don’t quite do these games justice thanks to the isometric view (although zooming in will likely be in the game, it makes the game much harder), but here you go just for fun:

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Personally, I’m a gameplay video guy myself, so I like this better as an example of what’s to come:

 
I’m trying to figure this one into my schedule so I at least have one or two characters completing their story arcs just in time for that Diablo III expansion to hit the PS3 and I segue from one high quality dungeon crawler to another. Well, in THEORY, that’s what’s supposed to happen. We’ll see soon enough, though. Ancaria

Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel PAX East Gameplay: “Bounce, Breathe, Look, SHOOT!” (Rinse & Repeat)…

BL_TPS_coverOkay, so it’s the name of an old basketball primer for kids, but that’s also a fitting description of what Gearbox and 2K Australia expect a great deal of you Borderlands fans to be doing in Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, the upcoming standalone game set for a fall release on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. Sorry “nest-gen” fans! You’ll need to wait a bit while the game you wanted or expected NOW or sooner is being cooked up in one way or another for its eventual release whenever.

While I’m sure that Gearbox and 2K Games could make a small fortune redoing the older Borderlands games and DLC from the ground up, I’d gather they’re doing the WISER thing and creating an all-new chapter to the franchise that packs in even more of what’s expected. This will also keep owners of those shiner (or matte-r) new systems from rioting and storming assorted game company headquarters anytime soon, too (er, Ha-ha?).

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Sniper Elite III Hands-On: Even More On Target Than Before…

Sniper Elite III_PS3I was on the subway headed down to see and play Sniper Elite III at a 505 Games media preview when I realized I’d forgotten my eyeglasses. Oops. You can’t be a good sniper at all if you can’t see a damn thing even with a scope, but amusingly enough, that absent-minded error on my part made the demo even more enjoyable.

Thanks to veteran developer Rebellion making the game much more flexible and thrilling than its predecessor, even a quarter blind bat like me was able to have a total blast making as many mistakes as I did. Okay, that’s not sounding like a ringing endorsement for the game, but it’s coming – keep reading. Even if I had brought my gaming spectacles along, my plan was to play the demo in as loose a manner as possible, making mistakes to see how the AI would react while seeing how expansive the level designs were this time out. In Sniper Elite V2, despite some alternate routes, most maps felt a wee bit too boxed in and linear and displacement wasn’t emphasized enough throughout the game (although the best players learned those levels and probably did some of their own shoot and scoot tactics… Continue reading

Orphan Black Episode 7 Trailer: Sticks And Clones May Break Your Bones…

 
Well, now… is almost everyone from each clone’s past turning into a monitor? It would seem so, but this is making Orphan Black even more interesting as the plot thickens this season. I actually need to watch some of the last episode again, as I was working on something during commercials while watching the show and missed about five minutes because I got sucked in past those ads and didn’t look up. I’m a crappy multi-tasker, people. Anyway, I need to get back to that work I was doing now, so it’ll be me catching what I missed On demand before next week’s episode where my FULL attention will be held. Now, good night (well, for you – I’ll be up for about two or so more hours)…