Monthly Archives: September 2015
Revisiting Microsoft’s Original Answer to Gran Turismo
Gran Turismo is near enough the greatest thing that ever happened to racing games. Let me firmly establish that right now. No-one had made a racing game quite like it before. It rocked the entire genre and its incredible girth cast a giant shadow that most other racing games in the tail-end of the original PlayStation era struggled to emerge from under. There was a long period of time where my copy of Gran Turismo was a permanent resident in my PlayStation. Its default location wasn’t in its box; it was in the console. Waiting.
I never actually played the original Forza Motorsport. At the time of its release I’d just begun working on Australia’s Official PlayStation Magazine and had been thrashing around with Gran Turismo 4 for six months. I was assured I’d dig Forza, which I suspected, but I didn’t really have room in my life for it. Besides, I already had an Xbox racing game I was addicted to: it was called V8 Supercars 2 (or TOCA Race Driver 2, as it’s more commonly known as).
Astronaut on His Way to Control an Earth-Based Robot from Space
Danish European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen is set to control an Earth-based robot from the International Space Station using a new haptic remote control.
Mogensen, commander Sergei Volkov and Aidyn Aimbetov are currently in transit to ISS after launching earlier today, September 2. Once there, Mogensen will control the arms of the Interact Centaur rover on September 7 from a 400 km orbit above Earth.
The force-feedback-based teleoperation will let Andreas feel what the robot is "feeling," allowing him to perform remote-controlled tasks in the sub-millimetre range.
Ready Player One’s Lead Actress Frontrunners
Steven Spielberg appears to be closing in on the female lead for Ready Player One as Elle Fanning (Maleficent, Super 8), Olivia Cooke (Me and Earl and the Dying, Ouija), Lola Kirke (Mistress America, Gone Girl), and two unnamed actresses are reportedly in the running for the role.
The Wrap reports Fanning, Cooke, and Kirke are testing for the role of Art3mis, Samantha Cook’s avatar in the virtual reality universe known as the Oasis. Sources say the casting process isn't far along but Spielberg hopes to find his female lead before finishing his current projects Bridge of Spies and The BFG.
Gotham: Season 2 Villains Rise in New Trailer
Gotham: Season 2 is nearly upon us and FOX has released yet another trailer and more images.
Titled Rise of the Villains, the trailer focuses on Gotham’s rogues gallery. Jerome (Cameron Monaghan), and his maniacal laugh, are prominently featured in the new trailer. The recurring Season 2 character rumored to be the Joker was also recently featured in a clip where he meets Barbara Kean (Erin Richards).
Check Out Our Huge PAX 2015 Cosplay Slideshow
PAX 2015 has come to an end, but the long weekend in Seattle was another successful celebration of gaming and geek culture. Once again, cosplayers brought their 'A'-games to PAX, and we put together a gallery of some of our favorites from PAX 2015.
All sorts of costumes were on display, drawing inspiration from MOBAs to brawlers, comics to anime. Destiny cosplayers were out in force at PAX 2015, and we collected the best we saw into a Destiny cosplay slideshow of their own.
Are you one of the cosplayers featured in our gallery? Let us know in the comments!
Seth Macy is a freelance writer who just wants to be your friend. Follow him on Twitter @sethmacy, and MyIGN at sethgmacy, or check out Seth Macy's YouTube channel.
Star Wars: Episode 8 Eyes TV Stars for Female Lead
The search for the female lead in Star Wars: Episode VIII has reportedly been narrowed to three "top contenders": Orphan Black's Tatiana Maslany, Jane the Virgin's Gina Rodriguez and Bates Motel's Olivia Cooke.
"Insiders insist it’s early in the casting process and that (writer-director Rian Johnson) is still auditioning actresses, with several rising stars yet to read for him," according to TheWrap.
"Others suggest that Johnson is narrowing down the field and that Rodriguez, Maslany and Cooke will be among a group of girls slated to chemistry-read with The Force Awakens star John Boyega before the end of the month."
All-Day McDonald’s Breakfast Starts Next Month
In a move designed to help turn the tide of slowing sales, McDonald's will begin offering its breakfast menu all day long beginning October 6.
Who among us doesn't know the heartbreak that comes with arriving at McDonald's, belly aching for the flavor of a savory breakfast treat, only to have those egg-filled dreams shattered by the phrase "I'm sorry, we stop serving breakfast at 10:30?"
That gut-wrenching statement will be a thing of the past, at least at McDonald's locations in the United States. A McDonald's spokesperson told CNN Money all-day breakfast was likely its "number one" customer request.
Karen Gillan Joins Emma Watson and More in The Circle
Karen Gillan is set to co-star in the upcoming film adaptation of Dave Eggers' novel, The Circle.
According to Deadline, Gillan will play Annie - a warm, goofy, but intelligent member of the titular Circle.
Karen Gillan as Doctor Who's Amy Pond.
The Circle is an internet monopoly that links users' emails, social media, banking, and online purchases with their universal operating system. That results in one online identity - and as moviegoers will find out, that may not turn out to be a good thing.
StarCraft 2: Legacy of the Void World Premiere Announced
Details on StarCraft II's final expansion Legacy of the Void are coming soon.
On September 13, developer Blizzard Entertainment will be hosting a livestream showing off the expansion's cinematic, revealing the release date, and discussing the features in Legacy of the Void.
The livestream will take place on the official StarCraft Twitch channel at 10am PDT on September 13. Those who live in southern California can also opt to watch the event at the Blizzard Barcraft in downtown Los Angeles at the Theater at Ace Hotel. William "Chobra" Cho will host the premiere.
PS4 Update 3.0 Beta Begins Today, Packs a Lot of Features
The upcoming firmware for the PlayStation 4 will bring a number of new changes to the current-gen system.
A post by VP of Platforms Marketing John Koller on the PlayStation Blog has announced that those who were able to enter into the beta for the update - codenamed "Kenshin" - will be able to access the new features starting today.
"If you were selected for our beta program, you’ll get to see these features first-hand very soon. Keep in mind, some of this content might not make it into the final version — that’s why we’re having a beta, after all." he said, adding that the PlayStation team has introduced new features that are "expanding the social capabilities of the system even further."