Monthly Archives: February 2015
A Year of Adventure: Wrap-Up Spectacular
Over the last year (of adventure), Kosta has written 22 features on 29 classic point and click adventure games. Check them all out here, then read on for his thoughts on the genre, other notable classics and the new school adventure scene.
Well, here we are at the end of the road. And just like that song from a group of boys who became men, it’s hard to let go. What you’re probably thinking right now is “Kosta! It’s been great and all, but I need to know! Just what makes an adventure game so special?” First, way to cut right down to the core there. You’re right, we probably shouldn’t waste any time. But to answer that question one must quote a respected and published writer* who once said, “You know this is the wrap-up edition of the Year of Adventure right? There are, like, 22 incredibly in-depth, entertaining, funny, and informative articles covering dozens of adventure games spanning over thirty years of gaming history that answer that very question. And then some!"
2015 MVP Named in Puppy Bowl XI
Cara, a 14-week old Shih Tzu playing in her rookie year in the prestigious Puppy Bowl, has been officially named the Puppy Bowl XI MVP. Proudly representing her home state of Florida, this shaggy little scamper came in ready to play as part of the 2015 Starting Line-Up at this year's Puppy Bowl. Her double-dog TD runs weren’t enough to keep her Team Fluff from getting licked by rival Team Ruff, but her furry fury up and down the field did kick off the highest-scoring Puppy Bowl in history.
In the 11th year of Puppy Bowl play, a new level of competition was added to the yearly puppy bout. The pups were divided into teams for the first time, with Team Ruff in green and Team Fluff in yellow. Normally, this event is every mutt for himself in the battle to be alpha dog, but now that these terriers are on teams, pack mentality rewards those who can play nice with others.
New Heroes: Reborn Teaser
While Heroes Reborn hasn't started filming yet, nor do we know when exactly it will debut this year (though it could be as early as this summer), NBC debuted a new teaser for the Heroes revival Sunday during the Super Bowl.
The teaser does include new footage, clearly shot for the teaser itself, featuring returning Heroes star Jack Coleman and the recently-cast Zachary Levi.
George Lucas Isn’t Interested in Sci-Fi Anymore
Geroge Lucas has admitted he no longer has any interest in the science fiction genre, before sharing some candid thoughts on the state of Hollywood,
“I really have no interest in science fiction at all,” Lucas said during an on-stage conversation with Robert Redford at the Sundance Film Festival. Naturally, the statement elicited a big laugh from the crowd, considering Lucas' sci-fi legacy.
The Star Wars director went on to share some pretty contentious thoughts on the state of mainstream American movie-making, claiming that a lot of Hollywood movies these days are "circus movies".
"Let’s see how much blood comes out when he splats,” Lucas explains. “Its now gotten to be more and more circus than substance."
PlayStation Network Suffering Sign-In Errors
Sony’s PlayStation Network is experiencing connectivity issues with many users reporting an inability to sign into the service
The official PlayStation support Twitter account states that the company is aware of the sign-in issues users are experiencing, and is working to address them. It expects to keep users informed with ongoing updates. The PlayStation Knowledge Center isn’t reporting PSN errors, at the time of writing.
Both Microsoft's Xbox Live and Sony's PlayStation Network services suffered ongoing connectivity and functionality issues over the holiday period and beyond. Both networks had sporadic moments of varying functionality during the outages, as many users experienced a range of issues from an inability to sign in to complete service outages.
School Suspends Boy For Threatening a Classmate With The One Ring
In today's ridiculous news, a Texas boy has been suspended from school for 'threatening' to make his classmate disappear via The One Ring from the fictional world of The Lord of the Rings.
Aiden Steward, a 9-year-old from Kermit Elementary School, was suspended for threatening another child with purported magic powers. According to Aiden's father Jason, the Steward family had seen The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies the previous weekend, inspiring Aiden to bring a ring to school and tell a classmate that he was going to make him disappear by putting it on his head.
“I assure you my son lacks the magical powers necessary to threaten his friend’s existence,” Jason Steward wrote in an email to The New York Daily News. "If he did, I'm sure he'd bring him right back."
Disney Bringing its Catalogue to Netflix Australia
Netflix has announced that its partnership with Disney will bear fruit in the Australian market, when the popular streaming service hits Aussie and Kiwi shores in March.
Pixar and Disney animated smashes such as Frozen, Cars, Monsters Inc. and UP will be available at launch, alongside TV shows like Lost, Jake and the Never Land Pirates and Good Luck Charlie. Of course, the Marvel catalogue is also part of this deal, and Marvel's Thor: The Dark World and Captain: America The Winter Soldier will be part of the launch line-up, with Guardians of the Galaxy, Maleficent and Big Hero 6 coming in the following months.
"As part of our long-standing global relationship with Disney, we're thrilled to bring fan favourites like Tangled and Star Wars: The Clone Wars to Netflix members in Australia and New Zealand," said Ted Sarandos, chief content officer of Netflix in a release. "We believe it is a great representation of the calibre of television and movies that our members will be able to enjoy in March and beyond."
Salem: Season 2 Premiere Date Announced
WGN America has set the premiere date for the second season of its hit supernatural thriller Salem, which will make its return on Sunday, April 5th at 10:00 p.m. ET/ 9:00 p.m. CT.
Lucy Lawless, Stuart Townsend, and More Join Salem: Season 2
The network also released the first-look photo from the new season of Salem, currently in production in Shreveport, LA for its 13-episode sophomore run.
In the pic you'll see new series star Stuart Townsend (Queen of the Damned, The League of Extraordinary Gentleman) as Samuel Wainwright and Janet Montgomery as Mary Sibley.
FOX Orders Pilot from Weezer Frontman Rivers Cuomo
Now's the time of the year when networks order up TV pilots hoping to find their next big hit. Not all find their way to series of course, though most come from notable names and star recognizable faces.
Per Deadline, FOX, along with ordering an office comedy pilot starring Entourage alum Kevin Connolly, has ordered up a pilot from Weezer's Rivers Cuomo and Psych creator Steve Franks called DeTour.
Written by Franks, DeTour is inspired by Cuomo’s real-life experiences, centering on a rock star who made the unexpected choice at age 30 to quit his band and go back to college.
American Sniper Takes Out Michael Bay’s Project Almanac
Director Clint Eastwood and star-producer Bradley Cooper's American Sniper continued to dominate the North American box office this weekend, remaining No. 1 with an estimated $31.9 million haul in its fourth weekend in wide release. That's a record-breaking Super Bowl weekend at the box office.
The Oscar-nominated Sniper's domestic total currently stands at $248.9 million. It has now passed Saving Private Ryan as the highest-grossing war movie of all time (not adjusted for inflation).
Moving up into second place was family film holdover Paddington with an estimated $8.5 million, just edging out the Michael Bay-produced time travel found footage movie Project Almanac, which debuted in third place with $8.5 million.