Monthly Archives: March 2015
Terminator Genisys: To Cyberdyne and Back
Last summer, IGN and several other outlets paid a visit to the NASA set of Terminator Genisys in New Orleans, where we got a firsthand look at Paramount's sci-fi thriller. There, we got to chat with some of the cast, including Arnold Schwarzenegger (T-800), Jason Clarke (John Connor), Emilia Clarke (Sarah Connor) and Jai Courtney (Kyle Reese). We also sat down with director Alan Taylor and some of the crew to learn more about Genisys and its place in the Terminator franchise.
The day we were there (about three months into production), Taylor and company were shooting a scene with Schwarzenegger, Courtney and Emilia. The set was a control room at Cyberdyne, set in 2017, with a state-of-the-art Time Displacement Device (TDD) in the center of the room. According to the producers, this was a third-act scene, so I'll spare you the "how" and "why" our heroes end up there. But even from the weathered look of the actors -- particularly Arnie, whose T-800 character was looking pretty scuffed up at this point -- it was clear it was late in the game.
Borderlands 2 Sales Pass the 12 Million Mark
Borderlands 2 sales have passed the 12 million mark, according to Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford.
Speaking with Microsoft's Major Nelson on his podcast, Pitchford made it clear he learned about this through an earnings call with 2K but he doesn't have exact numbers.
First released in autumn 2012, last we heard last year was the game had sol 8.5 million copies, becoming 2K Games' history at the time. In its opening months, Borderlands 2 shipped 5 million copies.
Broken Age Act 2 Release Date Announced
Broken Age Act 2 will be available on April 28. 2015 in North America and April 29 in Europe. This date marks not only when you'll be able to continue the adventure you started on PC, but also when the entire Broken Age game will be available for cross-buy on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita.
If you've already bought Broken Age Act 1 on PC, Act 2 will be delivered as a free download. Likewise, once those dates hit, the game will no longer be split into "acts," and will only be available as one full experience for $24.99.
We loved the Broken Age Act 1, and have been covering Act 2 all week as part of IGN First, including the first look at gameplay, as well as a commentary with Broken Age-creator Tim Schafer.
No Kojima Station Broadcast This Week
The latest episode of the Kojima Station broadcast, which was scheduled to air tomorrow, has been canceled "due to various circumstances," Kojima Productions has announced.
"To everyone who usually watches Kojima Station, thank you. The broadcast scheduled for March 26 at 20:00 has been cancelled due to various circumstances," a notice posted on the studio's official website, as translated by Gematsu, said.
"Nevertheless, we apologize to those who were looking forward to it," the statement added. "As for the next broadcast, we will share more information as soon as it’s decided."
These Massive Transformers Are Made Out Of Used Car Parts
A father and son team have built massive replicas of Transformers Bumblebee and Optimus Prime out of used car parts.
Yu Zhinin and his son are two farmers from Hunan Province in China. According to Shanghaiist, after the Transformers films blew up big in cinemas, the two saw a chance for possible joint-business venture.
Already possessing a background in fine arts, the father found an abandoned factory to work in, then, armed with some used car parts and images downloaded from the Internet, Zhinin brought in his son to help out in turning spare parts into Transformers.
First Image of Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor Released
The first image of Jesse Eisenberg as the villainous Lex Luthor in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice has been released, showing the balding villain in what appears to be a prison jumpsuit.
Entertainment Weekly has the exclusive image, accompanied by director Zack Snyder reassuring potential Lex fans that Eisenberg more than has the acting chops to pull the role off. Now that we've seen the image, we reckon he's not too far off on the look either.
Jeremy Clarkson Sacked From Top Gear
Jeremy Clarkson has been sacked from Top Gear. The outspoken TV star was suspended by the BBC following a “fracas” with a producer, and today the corporation opted not to renew his contract, which expires at the end of next month.
BBC Director-General Tony Hall has said it's with "great regret" he's let Clarkson go, as he was always a fan of Top Gear. No blame is being leveled at producer Oisin Tymon, who went to A&E after the incident.
"It is with great regret that I have told Jeremy Clarkson today that the BBC will not be renewing his contract," Hall said in a statement. "It is not a decision I have taken lightly. I have done so only after a very careful consideration of the facts and after personally meeting both Jeremy and Oisin Tymon.
Battle Royale Free to Watch on Xbox Live This Weekend
Square Enix and Arrow Films are teaming up to offer free rental of Battle Royale all weekend on Xbox Live, only in the UK.
To celebrate the release of Final Fantasy Type-0 HD on Xbox One, the movie - which also centers on school kids who quickly prove themselves adept in a fight - will be available via the Xbox Video Store or app on Saturday March 28 and Sunday March 29 at no cost.
In case you missed it last week, game director Hajime Tabata revealed a sequel to Type-0 was actually in the works, though it was put on hold so the team could focus on getting Final Fantasy XV ready. He also showed off some concept art from the title.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3D Review
Just as watching a film at the cinema offers a different experience from that of watching at home, playing on a handheld is a different proposition than playing on a television. The fact is, certain approaches fit one form of play better than another. It may sound obvious, but this is a reality of consumption often overlooked by those with power over game design.
Screen size is the primary factor dictating which features do and don't work across handhelds and console-based games. It's this, amid all of its splendid and eventual intrigue that the classic RPG Xenoblade Chronicles 3D has either failed to understand or simply not tackled for fear of altering what made its original incarnation so great. While it remains the remarkable game that it was when it was first released on the Wii in 2011, the reduced screen size Xenoblade Chronicles 3D has been squeezed on to does sour the experience.
The sense of scale generated by the game's imposingly large environments has been retained, as has the wider visual flair and depth of battles. Similarly, character models when viewed up close are surprisingly expressive given the limited colors and lines used to draw them. However, it's the little details that have suffered from the transition from the large to small screen.
Icons indicating the availability of a new quest or the presence of a shopkeeper, for instance, alongside the directional area pointing you to your next objective are far from clear and easy to miss amongst the extensive buffet of other imagery typically filling the screen. The latter can be especially confusing at times, forcing you to slow down your exploration efforts in order to perform constant references of the full map.
Everything feels a little cramped and, as a result, messy. Simple visual cues that should be easily digestible at a glance take too long to figure out, reducing the simplicity of interaction that allowed the Wii original to stretch its wings and present its more complex nuances with precision and clarity.
The New 3DS' 3D effect doesn't help either, further complicating the issue of space by overloading the visual impact. It's most noticeable when trying to identify enemies at a distant that are painted a similar shade to their environment. While the 3D is gorgeous during cut-scenes and moments not requiring much (or any) interaction, it gets in the way when the action picks up. Having to constantly turn it on and off is a minor problem given the New 3DS' positioning of the 3D slider, but it remains a nuisance.
That's New 3DS with a capital 'n' by design, because Xenoblade Chronicles 3DS only works on Nintendo's latest handheld iteration. Yes, if you have an older model you will have to pull out your wallet and part with your cash. It's the first game to require the new model by default and, as such, much is riding on its success--particularly the overriding consumer view of the hardware.
It's a shame, then, that more care hasn't been given to the macro details; if it wasn't for those it would be tempting to award this experience something approaching top marks. In all other areas this is an RPG that delivers the same extraordinary experience it did four years ago. Such was the originality of its ideas back then that today it makes the majority of its younger genre peers look positively archaic by comparison.
The real-time combat system shines especially bright, offering a deceptively easy to learn set of rules that are continually enriched and diversified as you're drawn further into the plot and up the character levels. For instance, attacking from behind can cause extra damage, while attacking from the side can lower physical defense. Later you can chain character-specific moves between all three characters, adding more depth to already intricate combat. By opening the door to new tactical avenues so frequently, and providing a wide range of enemies to test them against, there's rarely an area or period of play in which battles feel stale or repetitive.
Considering the length of the game, some 70 hours or more, this should be considered a towering achievement. It's a shame that the visual restrictions do inhibit some of the combat's appeal in comparison to the Wii edition, but it's worth sticking with it to explore and appreciate the varied action during skirmishes. It's also worth checking out Xenoblade's many side quests, which--thanks to some deep subplots and character exploration--are far more interesting than the run-of-the-mill fetch quests you'd find in lesser RPGs.
Similar time and effort has gone into the narrative, a tale of giant titans and warring colonies that's rich and energetically presented thanks to a skilfully orchestrated English-language localization effort. While the voiceover work is most certainly pointed towards the sillier and more childlike end of the acting spectrum, the charm with which it has been carried out makes it difficult not to enjoy.
The style of acting provides an accurate barometer for the wider experience as whole; Xenoblade Chronicles is so unlike what most other Japanese RPGs have attempted over the past decade or so. Dialogue and character reactions rarely fall foul of the stifling conventional cliches that can plague even the most revered games in this genre, mirroring the degree to which you're pleasantly surprised by the scale of the world and the combat. Xenoblade might have been crammed into a smaller space, but that has certainly not diminished the well-rounded and varied characterization of its cast.
While it's an inferior proposition to its initial release in 2011, Xenoblade Chronicles 3D remains superior to the majority of RPGs. The move to 3DS has harmed the act of playing, but if you can look past the clunky signage and questionable 3D then you'll find a game that remains an amazing high point for the genre, one that'll absorb you right up to its glorious finale.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3D Review
Just as watching a film at the cinema offers a different experience from that of watching at home, playing on a handheld is a different proposition than playing on a television. The fact is, certain approaches fit one form of play better than another. It may sound obvious, but this is a reality of consumption often overlooked by those with power over game design.
Screen size is the primary factor dictating which features do and don't work across handhelds and console-based games. It's this, amid all of its splendid and eventual intrigue that the classic RPG Xenoblade Chronicles 3D has either failed to understand or simply not tackled for fear of altering what made its original incarnation so great. While it remains the remarkable game that it was when it was first released on the Wii in 2011, the reduced screen size Xenoblade Chronicles 3D has been squeezed on to does sour the experience.
The sense of scale generated by the game's imposingly large environments has been retained, as has the wider visual flair and depth of battles. Similarly, character models when viewed up close are surprisingly expressive given the limited colors and lines used to draw them. However, it's the little details that have suffered from the transition from the large to small screen.
Icons indicating the availability of a new quest or the presence of a shopkeeper, for instance, alongside the directional area pointing you to your next objective are far from clear and easy to miss amongst the extensive buffet of other imagery typically filling the screen. The latter can be especially confusing at times, forcing you to slow down your exploration efforts in order to perform constant references of the full map.
Everything feels a little cramped and, as a result, messy. Simple visual cues that should be easily digestible at a glance take too long to figure out, reducing the simplicity of interaction that allowed the Wii original to stretch its wings and present its more complex nuances with precision and clarity.
The New 3DS' 3D effect doesn't help either, further complicating the issue of space by overloading the visual impact. It's most noticeable when trying to identify enemies at a distant that are painted a similar shade to their environment. While the 3D is gorgeous during cut-scenes and moments not requiring much (or any) interaction, it gets in the way when the action picks up. Having to constantly turn it on and off is a minor problem given the New 3DS' positioning of the 3D slider, but it remains a nuisance.
That's New 3DS with a capital 'n' by design, because Xenoblade Chronicles 3DS only works on Nintendo's latest handheld iteration. Yes, if you have an older model you will have to pull out your wallet and part with your cash. It's the first game to require the new model by default and, as such, much is riding on its success--particularly the overriding consumer view of the hardware.
It's a shame, then, that more care hasn't been given to the macro details; if it wasn't for those it would be tempting to award this experience something approaching top marks. In all other areas this is an RPG that delivers the same extraordinary experience it did four years ago. Such was the originality of its ideas back then that today it makes the majority of its younger genre peers look positively archaic by comparison.
The real-time combat system shines especially bright, offering a deceptively easy to learn set of rules that are continually enriched and diversified as you're drawn further into the plot and up the character levels. For instance, attacking from behind can cause extra damage, while attacking from the side can lower physical defense. Later you can chain character-specific moves between all three characters, adding more depth to already intricate combat. By opening the door to new tactical avenues so frequently, and providing a wide range of enemies to test them against, there's rarely an area or period of play in which battles feel stale or repetitive.
Considering the length of the game, some 70 hours or more, this should be considered a towering achievement. It's a shame that the visual restrictions do inhibit some of the combat's appeal in comparison to the Wii edition, but it's worth sticking with it to explore and appreciate the varied action during skirmishes. It's also worth checking out Xenoblade's many side quests, which--thanks to some deep subplots and character exploration--are far more interesting than the run-of-the-mill fetch quests you'd find in lesser RPGs.
Similar time and effort has gone into the narrative, a tale of giant titans and warring colonies that's rich and energetically presented thanks to a skilfully orchestrated English-language localization effort. While the voiceover work is most certainly pointed towards the sillier and more childlike end of the acting spectrum, the charm with which it has been carried out makes it difficult not to enjoy.
The style of acting provides an accurate barometer for the wider experience as whole; Xenoblade Chronicles is so unlike what most other Japanese RPGs have attempted over the past decade or so. Dialogue and character reactions rarely fall foul of the stifling conventional cliches that can plague even the most revered games in this genre, mirroring the degree to which you're pleasantly surprised by the scale of the world and the combat. Xenoblade might have been crammed into a smaller space, but that has certainly not diminished the well-rounded and varied characterization of its cast.
While it's an inferior proposition to its initial release in 2011, Xenoblade Chronicles 3D remains superior to the majority of RPGs. The move to 3DS has harmed the act of playing, but if you can look past the clunky signage and questionable 3D then you'll find a game that remains an amazing high point for the genre, one that'll absorb you right up to its glorious finale.