Monthly Archives: September 2017

The Cathartic Intensity of Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice

You can feel it. A stranger. An imposter in your own body. 

Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice opens to our Celtic warrior protagonist Senua riding a canoe to the Norse mythology’s land of the dead, Hellheim. A chorus of voices echo through your headphones, warning you to return from where you came. “You’re moving towards your death,” one whispers. “Turn back, it’s too much,” says another. “You’re too weak, you’re going to die.”

Senua looks straight ahead towards what’s hidden beneath the fog and you continue to go further into the canal, only able to slightly move the camera left and right as if solely with your eyes. Opening credits and crucified corpses planted in the sand around you fade away as you arrive at Hellheim’s shores. Stepping onto the ground, you push the boat away, preparing for the journey ahead. “You don’t have to do this,” a voice says. “You can still turn back.”

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Kingsman 2 Knocks IT Off at Box Office

Kingsman: The Golden Circle debuted in first place at the domestic box office, dethroning Stephen King's with an estimated opening weekend haul of $39 million.

The Matthew Vaughn-directed sequel managed to surpass the Kingsman: The Secret Service's $36.2 million debut, but didn't quite reach industry expectations, which pegged The Golden Circle's opening weekend at $40 million. The first film had considerable longevity in North American theaters, grossing a total of $128.3 million, so it stands to reason Kingsman 2 may have similar staying power.

This weekend also brought with it the release of The LEGO Ninjago Movie, which placed third with an underwhelming opening weekend estimated at $21.2 million. As such, the latest entry in Warner Bros.' LEGO film franchise is now its lowest-grossing, with an opening haul well below The LEGO Movie's $69.1 million and The LEGO Batman Movie's $53 million debut.

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WWE No Mercy Live Blog and Results

With two big "WrestleMania worthy" main events -- first time matches Braun Strowman vs. Brock Lesnar and John Cena vs. Roman Reigns -- No Mercy is looking to seriously shake things up during WWE's down season, giving us bouts that one would usually expect to see at a "Big Four" PPV.

Also on the card: The Miz will defend the Intercontinental Championship against Jason Jordan, Alexa Bliss will try to escape with her title after facing most of the RAW Women's roster, Finn Balor is out to defeat Bray Wyatt without any help from his "Demon," and tag team champs Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose will take on former champs Sheamus and Cesaro.

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Watch the Starship Discovery Fly Over NYC

Last night I had front row seats as a huge model of the USS Discovery, the main starship in Star Trek: Discovery, took to the skies above the Hudson River on Manhattan's west side.

You can see video of the flight here:

Suspended by cables from a blackhawk helicopter, the 50-foot mock-up made several passes, lighting up the sky and social media as surprised New Yorkers posted about the UFO out their windows. Senior Vice President Nikki Leynor of Remarkable Media, the company that built the rig, told me the mini starship was made of a truss skeleton and a custom built network of LEDs just for this event and would be dismantled later that night, though it could be reassembled again if the need arose.

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Nioh Complete Edition Announced

Nioh Complete Edition was announced this weekend at Tokyo Game Show 2017 and will be released in Japan later this year.

As reported by Gematsu, Nioh Complete Edition includes the base game of Team Ninja's action RPG, along with all three add-ons: Dragon of the North, Defiant Honor, and Bloodshed.

The game will be available digitally in Japan on November 7, followed by a physical release on December 7, with both versions priced at 5,800 yen. The digital release will feature five new weapons, while the physical release will include a mini soundtrack CD and a strategy guide for the game's beginning.

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Fire Emblem Warriors DLC Plans Revealed

Fire Emblem Warriors will get three add-on packs by spring 2018, Koei Tecmo announced at Tokyo Game Show 2017.

As detailed by Gematsu the first DLC pack, Fire Emblem Fates, will be released by the end of this year. It will be followed by the Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon add-on pack at the start of 2018, and the Fire Emblem Awakening pack, which will arrive sometime in the spring.

Each pack, individually priced at 1,400 yen, will feature new playable characters and weapons. A 3,000 yen bundle that includes all three add-ons, along with a bonus bride costume for Lucina, will also be available. There are currently no officials details regarding how much each add-on pack will cost outside Japan.

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The 6 Most Emotional Experiences I Had at Tokyo Game Show

Outside of the big booths like PlayStation, Bandai Namco, Capcom, and Konami, TGS has a huge emphasis on VR and mobile games. After checking out Monster Hunter World and Zone of the Enders’ new VR mode, I explored the rest of the show floor to see what this year’s TGS had to offer.

There were many cool – and disappointing – experiences. While most of everything I experienced was neat, there were some that stuck with me for wrong reasons. Below you’ll find the things on TGS’s show floor that impacted me most, for better and worse.

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Shin Megami Tensei on Switch: New Details Coming Soon

New information about the upcoming Shin Megami Tensei game for Nintendo Switch will be shared on October 23.

Atlus teased the forthcoming news during its "Atlus Live Special #1: Megaton Feature" at Tokyo Game Show, Persona Central reports. After showing the same teaser image that was released back in March, Atlus shared the following image, teasing the arrival of new information about the game next month:

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Inside Is Coming to Nintendo Switch

Inside, the critically acclaimed side-scroller from Limbo developer Playdead, is coming to both Nintendo Switch and iOS.

Inside creator Arnt Jensen shared the news with Famitsu (via Eurogamer) while touring Japan. Pricing and release details for the forthcoming iOS and Switch versions have yet to be announced.

Earlier this year, Playdead revealed the first piece of concept art from its next game. While details about the untitled project are few and far between, given the studio's pedigree, there's plenty of reason to be excited for whatever's next. Not only did Inside earn a 10 from IGN, it was also our runner-up for 2016's Game of the Year.

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