Monthly Archives: August 2015
Nintendo Showcases Animal Crossing Amiibo
Nintendo has provided a better look at the eight different Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival figurines.
Along with showcasing individual packages for Lottie and Isabelle, Nintendo also unveiled a three-pack bundle that includes K.K. Slider, Reese and Cyrus. The figurines are a key proponent of Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival, which is a Wii U party game previously announced at E3 2015.
The other amiibo figurines are Digby, Lottie, Mabel and Tom Nook. Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival doesn't have a release date yet, though the Wii U game is planned for release this holiday season alongside Star Fox Zero, Devil's Third and Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water.
J.J. Abrams Sheds Light on Kylo Ren
Star Wars: The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams has cleared up some details about the nature of new villains Kylo Ren and the First Order.
In a chat with Empire, Abrams stated, ""Kylo Ren is not a Sith." He added, "He works under Supreme Leader Snoke, who is a powerful figure on the Dark Side of the Force.”
Snoke is the CG character played via performance-capture by Andy Serkis.
Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and members of the First Order.
Wrestling Wrap Up: Sting Returns to Challenge Rollins
Well, I have to say, WWE did a great job of juicing up this SummerSlam weekend. Three sold-out days at the Barclays Center, a four-hour SummerSlam, a superb NXT TakeOver, this was a masterful package*. Unless they wind up treating the Rumble the same way, they've succeeded in making this a very close second to WrestleMania weekend.
*Masterful Package™
And that includes filling the post-SummerSlam RAW with fun surprises and new directions. The Dudley Boys, Sting, a new Wyatt family member - it was a particularly fun show.
New Comic Explores Fire Lord Zuko’s Legacy
Gene Luen Yang has revealed some of the details on the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender - Smoke and Shadow series from Dark Horse Comics.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, he talked about what Fire Lord Zuko will be facing. "
brings his mom back to the Fire Nation, because a lot of it will be about power — it’ll be about how Zuko was handling being the Fire Lord."
“I think all of us are haunted by our families, our families of origin in some way," Yang continued. "We worry about either continuing the legacy of our parents or falling into the same pitfalls as they did. And I feel like that’s just a hundred times worse for Zuko. So the focus will be really on the Fire Nation world family, and on how Zuko deals with power and fear.”
Square Enix Giving Away an Island in Just Cause 3 Contest
Just Cause 3 developer Avalanche Studios and Square Enix have announced a contest for Just Cause 3 in which the grand prize is a real-life island.
According to the official website, players must come out on top of the Chaos Points leaderboard 90 days after the release of Just Cause 3 for a chance to win an island valued at $50,000 USD or a cash prize for the same amount. Chaos Points are acquired by creatively destroying anything and everything in Just Cause 3.
Square Enix does specify a location for the island, nor does it guarantee the island to be inhabitable or accessible via means other than a boat.
Here’s Nolan North as Ghost in Destiny
Bungie has provided the first look at Nolan North as Ghost in Destiny.
A new teaser trailer for Destiny: The Taken King features the first dialogue spoken by North as Ghost, who's taking over duties for Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage. North, who's known for his portrayal of Nathan Drake in the Uncharted series, has reportedly assumed the role because of availability issues with Dinklage.
North as Ghost isn't the only new addition coming to Destiny with The Taken King expansion. Bungie has previously highlighted 27 major changes on the way for the shared-world shooter.
New Trailer Released for Ash Vs. Evil Dead
The latest Ash Vs. Evil Dead trailer has been released.
Bruce Campbell's Ash Williams is returning in this TV adaption of the film, which will have 10 half-hour episodes. Here's the latest trailer:
During a panel at the TCA Press Tour, Bruce Campbell let everyone know just how much blood there would be in the upcoming Starz series.
Last week, Starz released a new poster for the show depicting Campbell standing atop a car with chainsaw in hand, flanked by co-stars Ray Santiago and Dana DeLorenzo.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Tournament Rakes in Record Views
ESL One Cologne 2015 concluded on Sunday, with Swedish team Fnatic beating out the French team EnVyUs 16-7 on Cobblestone, the second map of the finals.
Not only was this a record for Fnatic, who have now won three major Counter-Strike: Global Offensive championships, but it was also the most-watched CS:GO tournament yet, raking in over 27 million unique viewers on Twitch.
Online views were up 30% from the last Counter-Strike event held by ESL One in March of this year, peaking at 1.3 million concurrent viewers over the weekend. The event itself was held live in the LANXESS arena, Germany's largest indoor stadium, housing over 11,000 visitors each day.
This was also the ESL's first eSports event where randomized drug tests were held for competitors. All tests came back negative.
Phantom Pain Gets a Companion App at Launch
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain will be launching with a companion app for PlayStation 4, PS3, and Xbox One.
According to Konami, the Phantom Pain companion app will function similarly to the Ground Zeroes app, giving players access to Snake's iDroid and allowing them to view the in-game map during play. The app will show more of the map than on the game screen.
In addition to the map functions, the companion app will let players listen to all records and music obtained in the game.
No mention is made if a PC or Xbox 360 version of the companion app is in the works.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake Update Talks Combat and Graphics
An update on the state of the Final Fantasy VII Remake reveals the title's visuals are starting to come together, but experimentation is ongoing when it comes to combat.
That's according to producer Yoshinori Kitase, who told Famitsu (via Gematsu) that progress is being made, while reiterating what has been said previously about the need to update the old turn-based battle system.
“We’re starting to see the visual direction,” Kitase said. “On the other hand, we’re currently working out the battle system and such through trial-and-error. Since there’s a possibility that the command battle system of the old days might not work today, we’re thinking hard about what kind of direction we can take it.