Monthly Archives: May 2016

Top 10 Secret Bosses in Video Games

Few gaming accomplishments feel quite as good as completing an archaic series of events deep into an adventure, only to find yourself face-to-face with an enemy that most players didn't even know existed. From celestial beings and playground legends, to inside jokes and series throwbacks, here are our 10 favorite secret bosses in video games.

Back in '95, the idea of Square and Nintendo making a game together seemed impossible, and yet low and behold Super Mario RPG was gifted to the world along with it’s ridiculously tough boss Culex. In the dark corners of the game’s Monstro Town resides a Culex, a foe who shrugs off Super Mario RPG's two point five D aesthetics, and goes straight up Final Fantasy on the plumber and his crew. Seeing his iconic crystals, hearing the Final Fantasy music, and finally taking down Culex was one of the most satisfying moment of the entire game.

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Inside of Japan’s Biggest Pokemon Center

Japan is home to multiple Pokemon Center stores, but the biggest of them lies in the Sunshine City shopping center in Ikebukuro. This is the Mega Tokyo Pokemon Center, which is filled floor-to-ceiling with Pokemon toys, clothing, accessories, statues, and much more.

IGN recently visited the Mega Tokyo Pokemon Center and took photos of every item currently available, including items from the Ditto-inspired “Transform” series of plush toys, the Little Tales Pikachu collection, the 20th anniversary Retro line of items, and much more.

Swipe through the gallery below to see what the Mega Tokyo Pokemon Center has to offer:

Want to see more awesome game-themed stores? Check out our tour of Japan’s Final Fantasy cafes and New York’s Nintendo World store, plus subscribe to our new IGN VR YouTube channel, where you can take 360-degree VR tours of everything from Blizzard’s office to the PAX East 2016 show floor.

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Eriq La Salle Joins Wolverine 3

It looks like Eriq La Salle is joining the cast of Wolverine 3, but we don't know who he'll be playing yet.

This news comes via Variety, who say plot and character details are being kept quiet for now.

Eriq La Salle (Astrid Stawiarz/ Getty Images) Eriq La Salle (Astrid Stawiarz/ Getty Images)

La Salle is best known for his role as Dr. Peter Benton on ER. He has also more recently appeared on Once Upon a Time, CSI: Cyber, and Lucifer.

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Halo 5 Memories of Reach Expansion Adds Noble Team REQs

Halo 5: Guardians' Memories of Reach update—which is expected to release later this month—will add Halo: Reach–inspired REQ content.

The new REQs include helmets and armor based on characters Jorge, Emile, Jun, and Kat, GameSpot reported. Carter's armor has been available since Halo 5's October release.

Indomitable, which is based on Jorge's armor, is called a "rare sight on the battlefield," and "usually a sign the UNSC has authorized weapons of mass destruction." Wrath, based on Emile's armor, is an upgrade of Mark V EVA suits. Vigilant, based on Jun's armor, "was originally a one-off upgrade for an unnamed VIP within Spartan branch." 343 describes Intruder, based off of Kat's armor, as having a multi-channel drone controller.

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Boba Fett Could Have Been the Main Star Wars Villain

Craig Miller - Lucasfilm's "first official fan relations officer" - has some interesting behind-the-scenes knowledge about what Star Wars could've been.

According to Inverse, Miller says "Originally Boba Fett was set up in Empire as a character, and the third movie’s plot was going to be more about Boba Fett, rescuing Han Solo and all of that... Boba was gonna be the main villain."

Lucas' original plan was to have nine films, but Miller says "While we were working on The Empire Strikes Back, George decided he was going to complete the first film trilogy and that would be it."

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Tunisian Mobile Game Gives Away Real Cow as a Prize

The International? More like The Unfashionable. Curiosity? The only thing we're curious about anymore is how best to take a huge chisel to our brains to forget all about it. The greatest ever prize for playing video games has been revealed, and it is a cow called Pamela.

As reported by the BBC, Tunisian developer Digital Mania gave its players an incentive to master its game, Bagra in the form of a real-life bovine.

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Halo 5 Forge Map Allows for Pokemon Battles

A fan-made Halo 5: Guardians map evokes memories of Nintendo's Pokemon Stadium.

Poke'Battle, created by Forge creator Captaindirewolf, lets players choose one of three Pokemon—Venusaur, over at the green terminal; Charizard, at the red terminal; or Blastoise, from the blue terminal—and "battle" rock-paper-scissors style in a scenic stadium.

The winner is chosen via element advantage, so Venusaur beats Blastoise, Charizard beats Venusaur, and Blastoise beats Charizard. A sniper rifle becomes available for the winner to kill their opponent.

Players can only battle with the three main Pokemon, but others—like Pikachu, Magikarp, and Snorlax—are scattered around the map.

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Star Wars: Episode 7 Opening Once Included Severed Hand

The opening sequence of Star Wars: The Force Awakens originally featured a severed hand, Mark Hamill confirmed.

Back in 2014, an unofficial outline of Episode 7 leaked—and according to those rumors, a severed hand gripping a lightsaber would float through space following the opening Star Wars crawl.

Speaking with The Sun, and as reported by Birth.Movies.Death., Hamill said in the original version of Star Wars: The Force Awakens "the first thing that came into frame was a hand with a lightsaber."

"A severed hand that enters the atmosphere, and then the hand and bone burn away and goes sticking into the surface of Jakku," the actor said, "and this alien comes in, don't know if it was Maz but it was an alien hand who takes the lightsaber away, and then the movie proceeds as you see it."

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Official Mod Support Announced for Total War: Warhammer

Creative Assembly has announced Steam Workshop support will be available from day one for Total War: Warhammer.

The Assembly Kit will also be released along with the Database Editor so you'll be able to create your own mods. Creative Assembly previously announced the game would not be supporting mods, however the developer has caved to fan-demands and made it a reality.

Mods will be available when the game launches, as anyone who has attended one of the company's Mod Summits in the last three years will be given early access to the game and mod tools. Creative Assembly is currently working with well-known modders Magnar and Dresden in order to create custom Legendary Lord start positions and alter settlement rules allowing each race to settle in every region.

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Persona 5 Japanese Release Date Announced

Atlus announced today that Persona 5 will launch in Japan on September 15 for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3.

A new trailer confirmed the date, in addition to revealing new party members and gameplay. You can check it out below:

A date still hasn’t been confirmed for the West, though last we heard from Atlus Persona 5 is still expected to be released in 2016.

A 20th anniversary-themed Collector's Edition was also announced for Persona 5 in Japan, including an art book, a soundtrack with songs from previous Persona games, and series-inspired DLC, including outfits from Persona 3 and 4. The set will be available for 13,800 yen (roughly $128USD). A Western version of the Collector’s Edition has not been confirmed.

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