Monthly Archives: June 2015
The Summer of Arcade is Returning (Kind of)
Remember the Summer of Arcade, Microsoft’s showcase of all things Arcade? A new version is set to arrive on Xbox One this coming summer.
The Summer Spotlight, as it’s known, was revealed on Major Nelson’s Xbox Daily E3 show. While Nelson didn’t go into too much detail about what the program is and which games will be featured, we did manage to snag a few nuggets of info.
First off, three of the games that will take centre stage are Kings Quest, Smite, and Toy Soldiers War Chest. Secondly, the Summer Spotlight aims to highlight the best of Microsoft’s downloadable titles, spanning indie offerings, ID@Xbox titles, and of course, Arcade games.
Elsewhere in the Xbox Daily E3 Show, the director of ID@Xbox Chris Charla was brought out to explain what the Summer Spotlight is. According to Charla, the event maintains the “spirit” of The Summer of Arcade, and hopes to show players new experiences via their Xbox One.
Blind Side Subject Says Movie Has Hurt His NFL Career
NFL star Michael Oher, the subject of The Blind Side, is no fan of the Oscar-nominated movie that depicted his life story.
Oher, currently a left tackle for the Carolina Panthers, knocked the movie when reporters asked him whether he felt the need to prove himself following some lackluster past seasons with the Baltimore Ravens and the Tennessee Titans.
“I’m not trying to prove anything,” Oher said, according to ESPN. “People look at me, and they take things away from me because of a movie. They don’t really see the skills and the kind of player I am."
Persona 4 Manga Series to be Released in English
Publisher UDON Entertainment has announced today that the previously Japan-only manga adaptation of Atlus’ 2008 PS2 game Persona 4 will be published in English for the first time later this year.
“I’ve played the Persona 4 games and I’ve seen the anime from beginning to end, and yet the manga has still offered me a fresh, new perspective on this fantastic story,” said UDON’s senior editor Ash Paulsen. “It’s an experience that the games and anime can’t quite replicate, thanks to manga’s uniqueness as a storytelling medium.”
Shenmue 3 Kickstarter Adds Several New Stretch Goals
After raising USD $3 million in just 48 hours, Shenmue III developer Ys Net has added several additional stretch goals to the game’s Kickstarter drive, seeking to push the final total even higher. The four new goals, which focus on expanding the game’s Baisha Village and its characters, raise the campaign’s bonus target from USD $4 million to USD $5 million.
The campaign has already met several of the original stretch goals (cinematic shorts based on the original pair of Shenmue games and subtitle support in German, French, Spanish, and Italian). An update on the game’s Kickstarter page explained that the next stretch goals on the list “will add new systems to Shenmue 3 that will give a huge boost to the gameplay.”
40 Minutes of Metal Gear Solid 5 Incoming!
Good news everyone! IGN will be debuting the Metal Gear Solid 5 E3 2015 demo tomorrow, June 18 at 5am PDT.
That's June 18, 8am EDT, 1pm BST and 10pm AEST.
40 minutes of Metal Gear action baby!
To tide you over until then, why not watch the new six minute E3 trailer?
And then suss out our rewind theatre?
And if that's not enough to satiate your Phantom Pain pangs, why not check out our extended hands-on preview from before E3? Or read about the 19 awesome details we noticed in the game?
Jon Bernthal Calls Playing Punisher a ‘Huge Honor’
Hot off the news of being cast as The Punisher in Daredevil: Season 2, Jon Bernthal (The Walking Dead) has opened up about his excitement for the role.
Speaking to ABC News, Bernthal shared the feeling of "honor" that comes with playing Frank Castle, but remained tight-lipped about the much-awaited second season: "Oh man, it's just a huge honor to play the part and that's all I can say about that...I'm very thrilled and we haven't started yet, but I'm very much looking forward to it."
Aykroyd: Ghostbusters Reboot ‘Hits the Right Notes’
Original Ghostbuster Dan Aykroyd has opened up about the reboot's script, praising the friction and dynamic between the characters in Paul Feig and Katie Dippold's all-female take.
Speaking to Spinoff Online at AFI's Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony for Steve Martin, Aykroyd assured, "It's going to be hot!" when asked about Feig's upcoming all-female Ghostbusters reboot.
"The new one’s going to be big! The interplay, and with each of them, their individual voices are so well defined," Aykroyd told the site. "They’re just such different characters, and there’s a friction. There’s a dynamic there. I’m not going to spoil it for people, but it’s going to be big, big!"
Hit-Girl Movie in Development
Kick-Ass director Matthew Vaughn has revealed that a Hit-Girl prequel film is in development.
Vaughn told Yahoo! Movies that he's "not happily done with the
franchise." He went on to reveal the following: "We’re working on an idea for a prequel of how did Hit Girl
and Big Daddy become Hit Girl and Big Daddy...If we make that, hopefully that will be the sorbet for the people that didn’t like ‘Kick-Ass 2’ and then we can go off and make ‘Kick-Ass 3’."
Addressing the mixed response to Kick-Ass 2 -- which opened to only $13.3 million stateside -- Vaughn expressed his hopes for the Hit-Girl movie to save the franchise, noting, "I think we’ve got to do this prequel to regain the love that we had with ‘Kick-Ass’."
Why Nintendo Didn’t Show Zelda at E3 2015
In an interview with IGN, we asked Nintendo President Reggie Fils-Aime about the company's decision to not show Zelda Wii U at E3 2015.
We first learned about new footage of The Legend of Zelda from famed Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto, and that Nintendo chose not to show the game this year. He told IGN that Zelda is still coming Wii U. Of course, Nintendo made it clear that it wouldn't show Zelda at E3 when the game was delayed back in April.
Below is our Q&A exchange with Fils-Aime on the matter.
Here’s the Halo 5 Collector’s Edition Statue
Our first look at the statue included in the Halo 5: Guardians Collector's Edition has surfaced online, courtesy of Amazon.
The retailer's listing for the $250 Collector's Edition now includes a photo of what's featured in the package, including a glorious statue of both the Master Chief and Agent Locke. Give it a look below.
