E3 2014: Scalebound: Platinum’s Xbox One Exclusive Leans To The West A Bit…

Posted on June 11, 2014 by geelw

While actual gameplay wasn’t shown, I’d gather that the game will at least look very close to what’s above and as it’s from PlatinumGames, there’s no doubt that there’s going to be more going on that what’s shown here. Granted, that lead character seemed a bit to cool for his own good, but this one’s going to be a game that needs a more complete dissection in hands-on form at some point. As with nearly any game trailer, it’s hard to get a feel for a game’s tone and pacing from a cinematic unless there’s some actual gameplay tossed in at some point. That said, I’m confident Game director Hideki Kamiya and his team can make this exclusive one Xbox One fans will be proud to claim as their own.

E3 2014: Bloodborne: FromSoftware Shakes It Up With A Mighty, Grim PS4 Exclusive…

Posted on June 10, 2014 by geelw

Too much stuff to cover means you get bits and pieces of what I find cool, so here’s the amazing teaser trailer from FromSoftware’s upcoming Bloodborne, a PlayStation 4 exclusive that looks pretty unsettling and surprised a lot of gamers who thought the veteran developer would immediately get to work on next-gen versions of Dark Souls for Sony and Microsoft. Nope. I figured the team wanted a break from that dark, grimy series, so this dark, grimy and gorier-looking game with gameplay that’s yet to be unveiled is next up on their plate. I’m holding my breath for screens and gameplay videos and I know SCEA will make me come up for air to download them when they’re ready. I think it’s time to get that PS4 if you haven’t yet…

E3 2014: Sony’s E3 Experience: Greatness Inbound, Warts & All…

Posted on June 10, 2014 by geelw

SO much good going on here, it’s hard to know where to begin, although this presser’s a bit long and has some snoozy moments. Then again, unlike Microsoft forgetting ALL about it’s “last-gen” consumers, Sony gets in nods to the ps3 while expanding the base with that lovely $99 Vita TV, coming sooner than many thought. I’ll shut up now and let you watch it all, but expect some commentary later on individual titles as I find time to talk about them… enjoy!

E3 2014: Alphadia Genesis: So It’s A Mobile Port. For Now, It’s The Sole JRPG on the Wii U…

Posted on June 9, 2014 by geelw

Well, until Monolith Soft’s “X”(or whatever it will be called once it’s completed) gets an actual release date (which should hopefully be announced at the Nintendo Direct broadcast later today), that is. Somehow, Nintendo’s home consoles have slipped a bit on the JRPG front since the Super Nintendo days, although there have been a few outright classic (and not so classic) titles released for every home system from the N64 up to the Wii. Natsume is publishing this former iOS/Android game later this summer as a digital-only eShop release and I’d say it’ll do well among those gamers who have a Wii U sitting at home and miss playing these games on a big screen. Sure, the 3DS family has PLENTY of JRPGs and more on the way and yes, is the preferred handheld for millions of users. Nevertheless, old farts like me who prefer playing games we can actually see that won’t have our backs going out from being hunched over a screen and our poor eyeballs swelling in our skulls will be welcoming Alphadia Genesis with open arms. Thanks, Natsume!

Funko’s Hikari Friday 6: You’ll Go Double Batty For This Giveaway!

Posted on June 6, 2014 by geelw

Two more super-rare Funko Hikari figures are up for grabs, this time it’s one each of the Limited Edition Classic Glitter Batman Hikari Sofubi Figure (#1 of 500) and the Limited Edition Diamond Comics PREVIEWS EXCLUSIVE Verdigris Batman Hikari Sofubi Figure (#1 of 600). You want BOTH, right? Well, you can only get one if you win and you’ll have to haunt the internet later to seek the other one out. Anyway, you know the drill – pop on over to one of Funko’s social media channels:

www.facebook.com/OriginalFunko
www.twitter.com/OriginalFunko
Instagram @OriginalFunko

Enter, and keep whatever you need to keep crossed until next Thursday when the lucky winners are announced. Good luck and pop in next week for another cool limited edition figure contest from Funko!

Funko’s Hikari Friday 5 Giveaway: TWO Turtles Up For Grabs!

Posted on May 30, 2014 by geelw

This week’s Hikari giveaway is kind of like a rerun, but a GOOD rerun with new stuff. TWO Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vinyl figures will be given away to two very lucky winners. One is Leonardo (yeah, you know he HAD to make an appearance given the rest of his pals have been part of this giveaway)and the other is a no-name Turtle that’s cool because of the silver glitter thing going on.

Okay, you know the drill, people! Hit up one of the Funko social network pages below:

www.facebook.com/OriginalFunko
www.twitter.com/OriginalFunko
Instagram @OriginalFunko

Enter and keep your fingers, toes and eyes crossed – you just may be one of the two lucky WINNERS! Everyone else, well… you’ll need to boogie on over to your favorite collectible retailer in August in order to buy one of these. Good Luck!

Random Film of the Week: HOUSE (1977)

Posted on May 23, 2014 by geelw

(thanks, tubesoda!)

One of the most unusual “mainstream” horror films you’ll ever see, Nobuhiko Obayashi’s 1977 film HOUSE is one of those inventively crazy movies that will stick in your head for a long while after those end credits roll.

Paradoxically, it’s tricky to talk about the film in detail and not give a lot away. But on the other hand, you could go in knowing the entire story and what happens to every character in the film before you see it and still have your mind completely blown by the bizarre visual effects and how the tone switches from comic to horror (and back and forth at that) at the drop of a hat.

Or drop of the head, in this case… Continue reading →

Funko’s Hikari Friday 4 Giveaway: Batman is Back As A Prize, And You’d Better LOVE Glitter!

Posted on May 23, 2014 by geelw

Sure, that campy Batman TV show from the 1960’s hasn’t aged well to some of you out there, but it made me crack up as a kid and still does today. That’s why this week’s Hikari Japanese Vinyl giveaway from Funko is making me smile a bit broader.

Hmmm…you know something? I don’t think I’ve run the description that Funko puts in its press releases, so here you go:

Hikari, meaning ‘light’, is a highly collectible line of clear Sofubi Figures. These will be ultra-limited and piece runs will range from 500pcs-5000pcs depending on the treatment. Each Hikari piece will include a hand numbered card to prove authenticity and rarity.

Anyway, winning isn’t easy but entering IS. Just click on over to one of Funko’s social pages:

www.facebook.com/OriginalFunko
www.twitter.com/OriginalFunko
Instagram @OriginalFunko

Follow the instructions there and wait. Well, you can do OTHER important and non-important stuff while you’re waiting as they’ll most likely contact you if you’re the lucky winner. If you’re one of many unlucky LOSERS, you can still buy this limited to 3000 pieces figure when it ships out to retail in September.

Tune in next week for another excellent Hikari giveaway! Same Bat-time, Same Bat-channel!

READS: Super Graphic Is A Must For Comics Fans AND Statistics Hounds

Posted on May 21, 2014 by geelw

Writer/editor/designer Tim Leong is a genius, packing all 192 pages of his VERY informative (and a lot more hilarious) new book Super Graphic with graphs and charts and statistics on a wide range of comic book trivia. Ever want to know how much leg Wonder Woman has shown over 70 years? Or how many places in the world (and off it) Tintin has been? How about the difference between cosplay and crossplay? Maybe you’re really curious about How many times the letter “V” was used in each volume of V for Vendetta? Don’t guess, now – buy this book instead!

These and many more answers await in this amazingly cool book which doesn’t use a single illustration from any comic out there. Instead, it’s all an amusing collection of stylized lists and artwork that never fail to entertain, educate and inform with a fine sense of humor throughout.

The book is chock full of serious info as well, but it’s the humor that ties everything together. If you don’t laugh upon seeing the Gotham City Police Department’s Utility Bill (page 154) or the two pages on Why Guys Like The Invisible Woman and Why Guys Like Spider-Man (pages 84 and 85), you may need to go to Doctor Strange and get your head shrunk for a spell. Oh, and that Venn diagram with Stan Lee’s Nicknames for the Marvel Bullpen (pages 68 and 69)? Priceless. Disney and other comic and comic strip characters, manga, anime, animated movies and indie comics also get covered here as well as lots of non-comic, but related info. So if you’re not a member of the Merry Marvel Marching Society or a junior member of the Justice League, you’ll still find a great deal of interesting stuff here to pore over. Pick this up for $18.95 over at the Chronicle Books website.

NAtURAL DOCtRINE Trailer: Or, An Easy Pick For RPG Fans This Fall…

Posted on May 17, 2014 by geelw

While Kadokawa Games’ NAtURAL DOCtRINE garnered decent enough scores from Famitsu (31/40 for the console versions and 30/40 for the Vita), it didn’t exactly sell like hotcakes in its native land. Still, here in the west, the hunger for decent JRPGs needs to be sated, so thanks to the fine folks at Nippon Ichi Software America, we’ll be seeing (and playing) this one soon. I’m going to get this because I’m interested in that PS3/PS4/Vita play and how the game will look across the three platforms.

Granted, I’m NOT the graphics whore type who gets cranky that an game isn’t mapping every bump nor using all of a console’s power at all. I’m just curious as to why MORE games aren’t compatible across the three platforms other than Sony wanting people to buy more PS4s as opposed to hanging onto that older PS3 (or buying a new one). I’m seeing a bunch of games that are only PS4 and Vita compatible and that seems odd because some of them can CLEARLY run on the PS3 with no hassles. Anyway, mini-gripe over. More on NAtURAL DOCtRINE soon – stay tuned…