Monthly Archives: January 2016
Pokken Tournament Western Release Date Announced
Pokken Tournament releases for Wii U in North America and Europe on March 18.
The launch date for Bandai Namco's upcoming fighter was revealed in a post on the official Pokemon Twitter account, confirming it will be available in the west the very same day arrives for Wii U in Japan.
#PokkenTournament is coming to Wii U on March 18, 2016! https://t.co/1nHSo9xgu7 pic.twitter.com/2u6G2679qI
The Best of Bowie Onscreen
The UK podcast team mourn the death of David Bowie by celebrating his finest moments onscreen, from The Man Who Fell to Earth and Labyrinth to The Prestige and Extras. Rory is back from Japan with news of the hottest Bandai Namco games and the coolest karaoke joints. And Gav is over-the-moon about the Deadwood movie announcement, but less happy about the lack of love for Narcos at the Golden Globes.
So clean your ears, clear your brain, and wallow in this week's podcast nonsense...
IGN UK Podcast #314: Bowie's Best Film Performances
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The Magicians to Embrace the Horror of the Magical World
Based on the fantasy novels by Lev Grossman, Syfy's new series The Magicians centers on a group of 20-something students who are studying magic at the mysterious Brakebills University. Sounds a lot like an American version of Harry Potter, right? Well, the creators of the series would like you to think differently, as this show comes with a harder edge - one that intends to push the envelope a bit more. A contemporary, scary affair, The Magicians intends to embrace the dark side of magic right out of the gate.
Executive producers Sera Gamble (Supernatural, Aquarius) and John McNamara (Aquarius, Trumbo), along with the cast, appeared for a Q&A session at the TCA Winter Press Tour and spoke about the horror behind the story. Severed heads. Crushed eyeballs. Things of that nature. "The thing about Lev’s books that really drew me," McNamara said, "because I’m not a huge fantasy fan. I like it, but I’m not - like Sera is really a true die hard fan. But everything that’s truly terrifying in his books, truly terrifying, is what humans do to each other. That’s also the most transformative thing in the books. So we’re going to lean right into that hard."
Star Citizen Alpha 2.1 Releases Today
Star Citizen's Alpha 2.1 went live today, Cloud Imperium announced on its site. Alpha 2.0 launched in December, just after Star Citizen's crowdfunding campaign surpassed $100 million.
The latest update contains "an array of bug fixes and balance updates aimed at enhancing" the overall experience. Thanks to tester feedback, the developer was able to make the game much more stable, the patch notes read.
Along with those fixes come two new purchasable ships in Crusader—the MISC Freelancer and the Aegis Vanguard Warden. The Freelancer will cost you $110, and the Vangaurd, $250. For those who have $410 to drop on two in-game ships, the Aegis Fighter Pack is available, and it includes the Aegis Sabre and Aegis Vanguard Warden at a slight discount than if you were to purchase separately. The prices are steep, but Cloud Imperium notes that the money goes to funding Star Citizen's development.
New Pokken Tournament Multiplayer Modes Detailed
Following Bandai Namco's recent announcement that Chandeleur is joining Pokken Tournament, several new modes for the Wii U fighting game have been detailed, including online multiplayer.
According to Serebii, Pokken Tournament will feature a "Single Battle" mode, featuring three difficulty levels, as well as a local battle option, in which one player uses the GamePad to face off against another using a standard controller. The game will run in 30fps in the latter mode; however, you will be able to connect two Wii Us using a LAN cable to maintain a 60fps experience.
How The Division Seamlessly Merges Multiple Genres
After almost three years of various trailers and demos, I wasn't sure I understood exactly what type of experience The Division wanted to focus on. Was it strictly an open-world adventure? A traditional MMORPG? Or was it staying close to the classic Tom Clancy framework and focusing on being a tactical co-op/PVP shooter? After spending a few hands-on hours with it, I realized that it manages to be all of these things simultaneously – and it seems like it's just the game I've been looking for.
The moment-to-moment gameplay (exploration, combat, etc) of The Division is predominately third-person action. As such, it performs more than admirably. Its combat mechanics control well and the enemy AI is adaptable enough that you don’t always feel like you’re constantly replaying the same firefight as your opponents suppress, flank, and advance on you and your team. It employs your standard arsenal of military-grade weaponry, from SMGs and assault rifles to machine guns and a variety of grenades, and both weapon attachments and armor upgrades can be obtained by looting enemies, bartering with vendors or crafted using materials recovered from scrapped items.
Robert Kirkman on The Walking Dead’s Future
The Walking Dead #150 is out now, and it sheds light on the ongoing direction of this long-running zombie saga.
Warning: this article contains spoilers for The Walking Dead #150!
Recent issues of The Walking Dead have explored the aftermath of the Whisperers' brutal attack and Rick's uphill battle to prevent his people from launching into a destructive war against an unknown enemy. The solicitation for issue #150 promised a big betrayal, and that moment came when two citizens of Alexandria attacked Rick in the middle of the night. But despite having only one hand and a bad leg, Rick proved capable of defending himself.
Splatoon Is Getting Its Last New Weapon Today
Splatoon's Custom Hydra Splatling will be the last weapon added to the game, Nintendo of America announced.
A tweet from Nintendo of America's official account confirmed that the weapon will be available today.
The Custom Hydra Splatling will be available in #Splatoon tomorrow! pic.twitter.com/QDayg7QFJz
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) January 14, 2016
UK Deals – Heavy Rain & Beyond Two Souls Collection under £26
Hitman Collector’s Edition Revealed
The contents of the Hitman Collector's Edition have been revealed.
The community has voted for what they wanted in there, and here's what the results are: a 10-inch Agent 47 "Chessmaster" Statue, a hardcover 60-page art book curated by art director Jonathan Rowe, and Agent 47's red tie and clip set.
You'll also get the game, of course, and the "premium collector's edition packaging," which is a fancy term for the box.
Pre-orders for the Collector's Edition will be available very soon, and will cost you $140 / €140 / £110. If you pre-order, you'll also gain access to the beta which starts on February 12 for PS4, and a week later for PC.
Yesterday we discovered that Hitman will be going fully episodic, and will release new locations as add-ons. The game will be released on March 11.