Monthly Archives: June 2017
Valve Shows Off New ‘Knuckles’ VR Controller
Valve has given us a better look at its virtual reality controller on its Steam Community page. Dev kits for the controller, called Knuckles, are being sent out to developers directly from Valve.
The Steam page is a guide for devs, helping them sync and set up the drivers for the Knuckles dev kits, but it also shows off some of the features of the controller, including finger tracking.
For devs getting their hands on the controllers, Valve warns "finger tracking initializes to an uncalibrated state and will be very poor," requiring a calibration process, but the uncalibrated state fresh out of the box is "considered a temporary measure," and won't affect production units.
Pokemon Go Re-Opens Gyms with New Features
After being taken offline for a few days, Pokemon Go gyms have re-opened, developer Niantic Labs announced on Twitter today.
Niantic has added a few new updates that completely redesign gyms in the game. Instead of being based on Prestige, gyms will now only allow a maximum of six Pokemon, and only one of each type. You can also now earn items at gyms by spinning a photo disc like you do at PokeStops, plus earn a variety of gym badges.
The way you battle Pokemon at gyms has also changed, as you'll no longer go up against the weakest Pokemon first. Instead, you will battle Pokemon in the order they were placed in the gym. Other Pokemon Go updates include raid battles and plenty of new items. You can read all about them here.
Marvel’s Legacy Relaunch to be Revealed Tomorrow
If you're eager to learn what new comics will be a part of Marvel's upcoming Legacy relaunch, you won't have to wait much longer. A new press release reveals that Marvel will be pulling back the curtain on Legacy tomorrow, June 23.
Marvel's press release teases the reveal of "Every Hero! Every Title! Every Story!" while promising "a new dawn" for the Marvel Universe. The press release was also accompanied by a newly revealed cover for August's Marvel Legacy #1:
Marvel Legacy #1 variant cover by Mark Brooks. (Marvel Comics)
How to Catch Up on Preacher
Jesse, Tulip, and Cassidy are back - hitting the road in Preacher: Season 2, looking for answers, looking for God. And Hell's coming with them. Or, you know, Hell's coming after them. In the form of the raised-from-the-grave Saint of Killers.
If you still need to watch Season 1, or wondering how to catch Preacher: Season 2 when it premieres on Sunday, June 25th, check out our handy guide below.
If you're all caught up on Preacher's first season, then Season 2 kicks off on Sunday, June 25th at 10/9c on AMC, with the next episode airing Monday, June 26th at 9/8c - with Mondays being Preacher's regular day and time slot from there on out.
What Ron Howard’s Hiring Says About Star Wars Spinoffs
Today’s official announcement that Oscar winner Ron Howard will replace Phil Lord and Chris Miller as the director of the Han Solo movie indicates that Lucasfilm is not looking to significantly shake things up when it comes to their burgeoning Star Wars anthology films.
The initial hiring of comedic directors Lord and Miller, the helmers behind the irreverent Jump Street flicks and The LEGO Movie, suggested an acerbic, but still loving take on the beloved franchise was in store. But according to reports, Lucasfilm and Han Solo co-writer Lawrence Kasdan ultimately balked at the duo’s going off-script and their more comedic take on the Corellian smuggler and his origin story. Now, with Howard coming aboard to finish shooting and reshape the film throughout post-production, it would appear that Lucasfilm will get the Han Solo movie it wanted, and that film would seem to be one more in line with what the company deems a Star Wars movie should look, feel, and behave like.
Steam Summer Sale 2017: Our Favorite Deals
The annual purge of disposable income known as the Steam Summer Sale has begun - promising us all deep discounts on games we'll probably never play, but have to buy anyway, because, let's face it, we're weak.
Fortunately, several of us at IGN have banded together to help guide you through the madness with our favorite picks and game deals.
Over $20
Animated Spider-Man Movie Casts Mahershala Ali
Mahershala Ali (Luke Cage, Moonlight) has reportedly joined the voice cast of Phil Lord and Chris Miller's upcoming animated Spider-Man movie.
The Tracking Board reports Ali will play Miles Morales' uncle, Aaron Davis (a.k.a. the Prowler from Marvel's Ultimate universe). Additionally, Atlanta's Brian Tyree Henry is reportedly joining the cast as Jefferson Davis, Miles' father and Aaron's brother.
Ali as Cottonmouth in Marvel's Luke Cage
Food Wars Season 3 Announced for Fall
Season 3 of Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma, officially titled Food Wars! The Third Plate, has been announced, and will debut this fall.
As reported by Anime News Network, the announcement is featured in this year's 30th issue of the Weekly Shonen Jump magazine. The upcoming third season of the popular anime series, which is based on the manga by Yūto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki, will cover the battle against the Council of Ten.
Those who pick up volume 25 of the manga when it's released on July 4 will get an early look at the Council of Ten, as the volume comes bundled with an original anime DVD that features a few of its members.
Cliff Bleszinski Wants to Make Games About Lost Dogs and Mental Health
Cliff Bleszinski has been making video games since he was a teenager and is known largely for his work on first- and third-person shooters like Gears of War and the upcoming LawBreakers. But Bleszinski has ideas for very different games, including one about a lost dog.
"We have two dogs and I just love dogs. The studio is dog-friendly. Any day when we have multiple dogs at work, I can just feel like the tension is so much far less because dogs are awesome," Bleszinski said during an interview with IGN at E3 2017.
If he got around to making it, Bleszinski said he'd call the game Dog Gone. It would feature a dog trying to make it back to his irresponsible family.
"It’d basically be a family that takes the SUV or whatever to the Grand Canyon, and they get distracted by something and they wind up driving back home to Jersey," Bleszinski said. "They somehow manage to forget their dog — terrible people, mind you, much like the family from Home Alone. Then the dog has to go through all these different sections of dogs he meets the Chihuahuas, the Rottweilers, the Pitbulls, the Pomeranians, and everything at these various, different locations."
Here’s What’s Leaving Netflix in July
As it gets hotter, some head outside while others hole up indoors. For all you couch commandos, here are all the movies and TV shows that are expiring from Netflix in July.
This is you last chance (for now) to catch movies like 1966's Batman: The Movie (RIP Adam West), Blazing Saddles, The Last Samurai, and Working Girl, along with even classic-ier classics like Hello, Dolly! and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
Also, fans of famous Sandra Bullock and Meg Ryan rom-coms may want to get a move on, as While You Were Sleeping, Two Weeks Notice, and Kate & Leopold are set to vanish as well.
