Monthly Archives: February 2016
Bloodborne and Multiplayer: A Surprising Partnership
Bloodborne was one of last year’s crowning achievements; a brutal, beautiful experience that challenged players as only From Software’s games can. What’s so enduring about Bloodborne, however, is just how layered it is. Some of my most memorable moments venturing around Yharnam, for instance, have been driven by leaving the oppressive atmosphere of solo play behind, and venturing into the game’s superb spin on multiplayer.
By way of example, I was playing co-op with a friend recently. We had been through a war together, trekking along the DLC, and made it to the final area relatively unscathed - until now it seemed, as another player invaded our game.
Nice spot for a picnic. Scones with strawberry jam anyone?
All the Winners of the 88th Academy Awards
The 88th Annual Academy Awards were held today in Hollywood.
Chris Rock hosted the celebration, an awards ceremony marred by controversy over the #OscarsSoWhite hashtag and lack of diversity among its nominees.
We'll be updating this article throughout the awards broadcast with the winners marked in red.
Scroll down for the full list of nominees:
Best Picture
- The Big Short
- Bridge of Spies
- Brooklyn
- Mad Max: Fury Road
- The Martian
- The Revenant
- Room
Fantastic Four Ties for Worst Movie at Razzies
Keeping with their tradition of holding their ceremony the day before the Academy Awards, the Golden Raspberry (Razzie) Awards announced their winners Saturday for the worst movies and performances of 2015.
Fantastic Four won three awards, including tying with Fifty Shades of Grey as the Worst Movie of 2015.
Fifty Shades of Grey was the biggest recipient, earning five Razzies.
The full list of Razzie Award nominations is below. Winners (ahem) are marked in red.
Gods of Egypt Is 2016’s First Big Box Office Flop
Gods of Egypt bombed at the box office this weekend, opening in second place with an estimated $14 million.
The Alex Proyas-directed fantasy epic -- starring a Scotsman (Gerard Butler) and a Dane (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) as two of the titular Egyptian deities -- reportedly cost $140 million to produce.
This poor showing makes Gods of Egypt the first mega-flop of 2016.
Deadpool remained champ this Oscars weekend -- its third straight weekend atop the domestic box office -- earning another $31.5 million. Its domestic total currently stands at $285.6 million, and it's worldwide cume is $609.8 million.
Deadpool is currently the third highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time behind The Passion of the Christ and American Sniper.
Fox Sets Release Dates for 2 New Marvel Movies
20th Century Fox has set new release dates for many of its upcoming movies, including two unnamed Marvel character movies, The Predator, and more.
The first untitled Marvel film will be released on October 6, 2017, and the second on January 12, 2018.
Deadpool 2 is a likely guess for one of these two slots, though we'll have to wait for an official confirmation.
Additionally, Fox has moved Gambit off its schedule for the time being, something many foresaw when the film's production got delayed and directing duties changed, with Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity, Edge of Tomorrow) stepping in for Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes). That being the case, one of those new Marvel-movie dates could be used for Gambit - most likely the one in October 2017, given Gambit was going to open this October originally.
Killer Instinct’s Arbiter Is an ‘Amalgam of Arbiters Past’
The Arbiter coming to Killer Instinct's third season is not based on a singular Arbiter, but is instead an "amalgam of Arbiters past," 343 Industries said in its latest Halo Waypoint update.
Arbiter will come with multiple looks, all of which were revealed in yesterday's post.
All Arbiters will use the T-51 Carbine for ranged attacks, and either the energy sword or Prophets' Bane for close encounters. Arbiter will also have sticky grenades on hand. The different armors and costumes are pulled from "a variety of sources," making the character more of an homage to Halo's Hall of Arbiters concept.
Vinyl: Olivia Wilde on Devon’s History and Working With Scorsese
Olivia Wilde has returned to TV for her first series since House in HBO's recently-debuted Vinyl. Wilde plays Devon Finestra, who we first meet in the 1970s, alongside her record producer Richie husband, (Bobby Cannavale), in a music industry-centric series from the impressive trio of Boardwalk Empire creator Terence Winter and his fellow executive producers Martin Scorsese and Mick Jigger.
I spoke to Wilde about Vinyl and Devon’s intriguing backstory and history -- both with and without Bobby -- and how there is much more to the role than it may seem at a glance.
Olivia Wilde as Devon Finestra in Vinyl.
Pokemon Aims to Evolve in the World of Fashion
To celebrate Pokemon Day in Los Angeles, JapanLA Clothing opened a limited-time Pokémon Boutique pop-up shop featuring a collection of Pokemon clothing and merchandise. The “kawaii” or “cute” clothing products will continue to be on sale for the shop’s one-month duration, ending on Sunday, March 27.
“People that wear the Pokemon-inspired clothing, they're happy,” said Monika Salazar, Director of Licensing for The Pokemon Company. “It brings a smile to everyone's face and all the friends that they go meet. Everyone smiles when Pokemon is around, so we just want to bring joy, fashion, fun, and adventure to the brand.”
Dark Souls 3 Publisher Launching Slashy Souls Tomorrow
Bandai Namco and GameStop are releasing their Dark Souls-inspired mobile game Slashy Souls on iOS and Android. Though it's not a continuation of Darks Souls—and not entirely connected, either—it does follow similar themes.
Slashy Souls reimagines From Software's super hard role-playing games with "epic 16-bit gameplay." Players will face a world riddled with "devious traps and obstacles," fighting "monstrous bosses" as they travel along the way. Special "weapons and master spells" will aid players in their journey. According to Polygon, the game will launch tomorrow.
Ballers: Season 2 Teaser Trailer Released
HBO released a teaser trailer for the second season of Ballers.
Ballers', which premiered last year, stars Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Rob Corddry. Johnson plays former NFL player Spencer Strasmore, who is starting over as a financial manager for Miami's professional athletes. Corddry plays Johnson's on-screen boss.
According to HBO, the first episode of Ballers was a massive success, bringing in 8.9 million viewers across HBO's branded platforms. The show's first episode broke HBO records, placing it as the network's most watched first episode of a half-hour series.
IGN reviewer Matt Fowler thought Ballers first season was just okay, giving it a score of 6 out of 10. Johnson, Corddry, and John David Washington (Ricket Jerret in the show) all had strong performances, but ultimately, the storylines dragged out and conflicts resolved too easily.