Monthly Archives: September 2021
A Three-Part DC Comics Documentary Is Coming to HBO Max
A DC Comics documentary series is coming to HBO Max from the director of The Pixar Story.
The news was announced on Wednesday in a press release from WarnerMedia. The show will be developed by DC Comics and promises a complete history of the company. The documentary will be so big it will be spread over three parts and stream exclusively on HBO Max.
Leslie Iwerks and Mark Catalena will co-direct the series with CW DC boss Greg Berlanti as an executive producer. Iwerks previously directed The Pixar Story and The Imagineering Story for Disney with Catalena acting as an editor and writer on The Imagineering Story. Berlanti is best known to DC Comics fans as an executive producer on the Arrowverse TV shows.
DC Comics CCO Jim Lee said in a press release that he’s excited that a documentary series can explore an 80-year history of comics, movies, and more.
“DC has a rich legacy of over 80 years of iconic storytelling: from the introduction of the genre defining [sic] Super Hero Superman in 1938 to the amazing movies, TV shows, cartoons, games and comics which have been synonymous with superheroism for generations thereafter,” Lee said. “We are so excited to dive into this history and bring fans along this amazing journey.”
It won’t be the first DC Comics documentary released by the company. The 89-minute movie Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics was released in 2010 and is currently available for free on the Warner Bros. Entertainment YouTube channel.
Outside of comics, DC is currently airing new seasons of Supergirl and Stargirl on The CW, new seasons of Teen Titans Go! and DC Super Hero Girls on Cartoon Network, and new seasons of Titans and Doom Patrol on HBO Max.
Injustice, a new DC Comics movie, is scheduled for release on October 19. Two new DC Comics video games, Gotham Knights and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, are expected to be released in 2022 with DC Universe Online continuously updated.
DC fans recently got a sneak peek at new music for the upcoming movie The Batman. In our Doom Patrol season 3 premiere review, we said the new season "premieres with its signature blend of poignant character development and plain WTF moments, paving the way for an exciting installment."
Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN.
Tiger King Is Getting a Second Season on Netflix
Netflix docuseries Tiger King is getting a second season, and it's coming later in 2021.
We don't know much about the new set of episodes yet, but in a Tweet, Netflix promised season 2 will bring, "just as much mayhem and madness as Season 1!"
Tiger King is coming back this year — and Season 2 promises just as much mayhem and madness as Season 1! pic.twitter.com/mFBUxtAl6i
— Netflix (@netflix) September 23, 2021
Entertainment Weekly reports that producers Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin are back for the second season. While it remains to be seen exactly what the new season will focus on, the producers say they have a lot of leftover footage from shooting the first season. However, Chaiklin previously said she doesn't know if the documentary's participants will want to be interviewed after seeing the first season.
Joe Exotic is currently serving 22 years in federal prison for two counts of murder-for-hire in an attempt to kill animal rights activist Carole Baskin, as well as a handful of wildlife violations. Ahead of season 2, you can check out our explanation of where every major player in Tiger King is now.
Nicolas Cage was initially set to play Joe Exotic in a drama series based on Tiger King for Amazon. But, Cage later revealed that the project was potentially shelved entirely. Cage said Amazon felt the series took too long to come together and was no longer relevant. Still, Netflix is ready to head back the Tiger King well with a follow-up to the documentary.
Tiger King was immensely popular right at the start of the COVID-19 lockdowns last year. It was one of the most-watched shows on Netflix in all of 2020, and we put it on our list of the best documentaries on Netflix.
Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN. You can find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.
Netflix Tudum Schedule Revealed: Includes The Witcher, Cowboy Bebop, and More
Netflix's Tudum schedule is finally here — and it features news and reveals for some of Netflix's biggest upcoming shows and movies, including The Witcher, Cowboy Bebop, The Sandman, and much more.
Tudum officially kicks off on September 25, and Netflix has provided an hour-by-hour breakdown of what to expect, together with news around some of the big reveals planned for the day. The global fan event promises to deliver exclusive trailers, clips and announcements from over 100 series, films and specials, announced by a whole host of famous faces.
Click through our slideshow below to check out the Tudum schedule or keep scrolling for highlights of the event, including the first look at Cowboy Bebop's opening titles and a first look at The Sandman, with even more expected to be announced on Saturday.
Hour One
- Dwayne Johnson premieres an exclusive clip of his upcoming epic action film Red Notice, which also stars Gal Gadot and Ryan Reynolds.
- Tune in to find out more about Stranger Things 4.
- Join the cast from season one and season two of Bridgerton as they discuss the series, and debut a first look at the upcoming second season.
- Jason Bateman premieres a first look (video) at the thrilling final season of Ozark.
Hour Two
- An exclusive first look (video + character posters) at the long-awaited dark fantasy series, The Sandman, based on the comic books created for DC by Neil Gaiman.
- Chris Hemsworth teases the next installment of the action blockbuster Extraction.
- Stars Sam Corlett, Frida Gustavsoon, and Leo Suter take you behind the scenes to introduce an early sneak peek at the very first footage released from Vikings: Valhalla — an all-new exploration of the spectacularly epic Vikings saga.
- Charlize Theron, Regina King, Zazie Beetz and more join Netflix CMO Bozoma Saint John to discuss some of Netflix's most exciting upcoming action films.
- Sneak peek of Cobra Kai season four that you don't want to miss.
- An exclusive look at the Cowboy Bebop opening title sequence featuring John Cho (Spike Spiegel) and the highly anticipated music from Yoko Kanno.
Hour Three
- The cast of Emily in Paris debuts the first teaser of the new season and reveals the premiere date for season two.
- Hello from our new Queen, Imelda Staunton, on the set of The Crown season five.
- Zack Snyder joins actor/director Matthias Schweighöfer, actress Nathalie Emmanuel and other cast members to reveal the trailer for their Army of the Dead heist prequel Army of Thieves.
- Jennifer Lawrence and writer/director Adam McKay introduce an exclusive clip from their eagerly-anticipated new comedy Don't Look Up, also starring Jonah Hill, Rob Morgan, and Meryl Streep.
- Lots of news from The Witcher universe, including exclusive first looks, and some exciting breaking news!
- Catch up with the cast of The Umbrella Academy as they answer fan questions from behind the scenes of season three.
The virtual livestream will begin on September 25 at 9am PST / 12pm EST / 4pm GMT / 1am JST and KST across Netflix's YouTube channels, in addition to Twitter and Twitch. There will also be special pre-shows spotlighting Korean and Indian series and films along with anime content that will kick-off at 5am PST / 8am EST / 12pm GMT / 9pm JST and KST.
Want to fill up your watchlist before then? Check out everything new to Netflix this month and see our rundown of the biggest shows coming to streaming during this half of the year.
Adele Ankers is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.
Death Stranding Director’s Cut Review – The Limits Of The Dead
Just like learning how to bake bread or mastering a language, going back to Death Stranding was one of those things I had always intended to do during lockdown, but never did. Returning to a gray, hazy, hostile world of death and human misery just seemed like the worst possible choice for living through a real-world pandemic. I should never have hesitated. In the face of all of Death Stranding's violence, its dead things, its surreal horror, and the bleakest, salted-earth portrayal of the post-apocalypse, there has always been this strong mote of hope and love and bonding and connection that's never been more necessary. If nothing else, Death Stranding: Director's Cut is the best excuse to return to the valley of the shadow of death, and find the grim beauty waiting there. What the new features and content bring to the table is simply making that return easier and more welcoming than ever.
Death Stranding was originally released for the PlayStation 4 in November 2019. In our original review, which you can read here in full, Kallie Plagge awarded it a 9/10, saying that "Death Stranding is a hard game to absorb. There are many intertwining threads to its plot, and silly names, corny moments, and heavy exposition belie an otherwise very simple message. That comes through much more clearly in the game's more mundane moments, when you find a desperately-needed ladder left behind by another player or receive a letter from an NPC thanking you for your efforts. It's positive without ignoring pain; in fact, it argues in both its story and its gameplay that adversity itself is what makes things worth doing and life worth living. It's a game that requires patience, compassion, and love, and it's also one we really need right now."
More to the point, however, Director's Cut is a bit of a misnomer. Despite the appeal of an auteur like Kojima taking a more proactive approach, tweaking dialogue and text files or adding scenes, nothing terribly germane to the plot, story, character development, or the way the world is presented has been messed with here. This is still largely the same game it was in 2019: a post-apocalyptic odyssey to reconnect the disparate cities of America at all costs, with our taciturn, faithless hero, Sam Porter-Bridges, facing the literal and metaphorical ghosts of America along the way. That's just the very tip of an expansive iceberg of a plot that toys around with metaphysics, the role of politics in our lives, the inherent nihilism of fundamentalist thinking, the social contract deteriorating, and lots more. All this is held up by a primary gameplay loop that has you playing postman to the entire country--mostly on foot--and across varied, melancholy-inducing terrain. Still, all of that was in the game we got two years ago, and by and large, the Director's Cut is the same kind of enhanced experience Ghost of Tsushima's Director's Cut was.
That's not a bad thing, it's just not a big thing. Newcomers and those starting from scratch will benefit the most. The Director's Cut features a much more elegant set of introductory challenges, clearer explanations of core mechanics, and some helpful bits of gear like the Support Skeleton and the new debilitating Maser Gun are available early on, taking a lot of the aggravation out of the game's first few episodes. There is an AR firing range allowing you to test out any new weaponry you get against static targets or on bots who function like the MULE enemies, which was especially helpful in letting me finally get the timing down for parrying using the Strand rope.
Continue Reading at GameSpotDeath Stranding Director’s Cut Review – The Limits Of The Dead
Just like learning how to bake bread or mastering a language, going back to Death Stranding was one of those things I had always intended to do during lockdown, but never did. Returning to a gray, hazy, hostile world of death and human misery just seemed like the worst possible choice for living through a real-world pandemic. I should never have hesitated. In the face of all of Death Stranding's violence, its dead things, its surreal horror, and the bleakest, salted-earth portrayal of the post-apocalypse, there has always been this strong mote of hope and love and bonding and connection that's never been more necessary. If nothing else, Death Stranding: Director's Cut is the best excuse to return to the valley of the shadow of death, and find the grim beauty waiting there. What the new features and content bring to the table is simply making that return easier and more welcoming than ever.
Death Stranding was originally released for the PlayStation 4 in November 2019. In our original review, which you can read here in full, Kallie Plagge awarded it a 9/10, saying that "Death Stranding is a hard game to absorb. There are many intertwining threads to its plot, and silly names, corny moments, and heavy exposition belie an otherwise very simple message. That comes through much more clearly in the game's more mundane moments, when you find a desperately-needed ladder left behind by another player or receive a letter from an NPC thanking you for your efforts. It's positive without ignoring pain; in fact, it argues in both its story and its gameplay that adversity itself is what makes things worth doing and life worth living. It's a game that requires patience, compassion, and love, and it's also one we really need right now."
More to the point, however, Director's Cut is a bit of a misnomer. Despite the appeal of an auteur like Kojima taking a more proactive approach, tweaking dialogue and text files or adding scenes, nothing terribly germane to the plot, story, character development, or the way the world is presented has been messed with here. This is still largely the same game it was in 2019: a post-apocalyptic odyssey to reconnect the disparate cities of America at all costs, with our taciturn, faithless hero, Sam Porter-Bridges, facing the literal and metaphorical ghosts of America along the way. That's just the very tip of an expansive iceberg of a plot that toys around with metaphysics, the role of politics in our lives, the inherent nihilism of fundamentalist thinking, the social contract deteriorating, and lots more. All this is held up by a primary gameplay loop that has you playing postman to the entire country--mostly on foot--and across varied, melancholy-inducing terrain. Still, all of that was in the game we got two years ago, and by and large, the Director's Cut is the same kind of enhanced experience Ghost of Tsushima's Director's Cut was.
That's not a bad thing, it's just not a big thing. Newcomers and those starting from scratch will benefit the most. The Director's Cut features a much more elegant set of introductory challenges, clearer explanations of core mechanics, and some helpful bits of gear like the Support Skeleton and the new debilitating Maser Gun are available early on, taking a lot of the aggravation out of the game's first few episodes. There is an AR firing range allowing you to test out any new weaponry you get against static targets or on bots who function like the MULE enemies, which was especially helpful in letting me finally get the timing down for parrying using the Strand rope.
Continue Reading at GameSpotSable Review – Sandy Pilgrimage
The titular Sable is part of a nomadic tribe known as the Ibexii. Like every child who comes of age on the planet of Midden, Sable must leave her clan behind and embark on a rite of passage called The Gliding. This involves venturing out into the wider world on a pilgrimage to learn more about themselves, the land they inhabit, and the people that populate Midden's sun-scorched sand dunes. Like those before her, Sable is bestowed a hoverbike and a Gliding Stone before leaving, the latter of which allows her to float through the air using an energy bubble born from ancient technology. With this, the stage is set for an open-world adventure that's equal parts relaxing and engrossing.
At its core, Sable is a game about exploration, with its mechanics and overall design all feeding into this central philosophy. Upon departing the Ibexii camp for the first time, you're free to straddle your hoverbike and venture off towards any of the four corners of Sable's vast but manageably-sized map. There are quests to complete along the way that maintain some semblance of order, but this is a freeform open-world game that disregards the genre's traditional objective structure. Generally, your compass will point you in the vague direction of your current quest, while at other times you'll be given directions that encourage you to discover locations for yourself. You can set your own waypoints by using the map or by finding a vantage point and using the Navigator to mark potential points of interest, and all of these are displayed on the compass that encircles your hoverbike. Crucially, you never have to stare at a mini-map or a big objective marker as you skim inches above the sand, and this keeps your eyes planted firmly on what's in front of you.
If you're heading towards a particular location with your eyes on the horizon, you're likely to spot other distractions along the way, whether it's a plume of smoke billowing into the sky and hinting at signs of life or the battered husk of a crashed spaceship. This kind of organic discovery is often found lacking in open-world games that rely on pre-existing points of interest and maps scattered with markers, and it sets Sable apart as you chart the world yourself by venturing towards whatever catches your eye. Midden is a fascinating world to uncover, too, with small pockets of civilization nestled in between the serene desolation of its sprawling desert. There are dilapidated temples engulfed by sand, a graveyard full of gargantuan animal bones, and an eerie forest shrouded in perpetual darkness--to name just a few of the sights you'll come across throughout your travels.
Continue Reading at GameSpotSable Review – Sandy Pilgrimage
The titular Sable is part of a nomadic tribe known as the Ibexii. Like every child who comes of age on the planet of Midden, Sable must leave her clan behind and embark on a rite of passage called The Gliding. This involves venturing out into the wider world on a pilgrimage to learn more about themselves, the land they inhabit, and the people that populate Midden's sun-scorched sand dunes. Like those before her, Sable is bestowed a hoverbike and a Gliding Stone before leaving, the latter of which allows her to float through the air using an energy bubble born from ancient technology. With this, the stage is set for an open-world adventure that's equal parts relaxing and engrossing.
At its core, Sable is a game about exploration, with its mechanics and overall design all feeding into this central philosophy. Upon departing the Ibexii camp for the first time, you're free to straddle your hoverbike and venture off towards any of the four corners of Sable's vast but manageably-sized map. There are quests to complete along the way that maintain some semblance of order, but this is a freeform open-world game that disregards the genre's traditional objective structure. Generally, your compass will point you in the vague direction of your current quest, while at other times you'll be given directions that encourage you to discover locations for yourself. You can set your own waypoints by using the map or by finding a vantage point and using the Navigator to mark potential points of interest, and all of these are displayed on the compass that encircles your hoverbike. Crucially, you never have to stare at a mini-map or a big objective marker as you skim inches above the sand, and this keeps your eyes planted firmly on what's in front of you.
If you're heading towards a particular location with your eyes on the horizon, you're likely to spot other distractions along the way, whether it's a plume of smoke billowing into the sky and hinting at signs of life or the battered husk of a crashed spaceship. This kind of organic discovery is often found lacking in open-world games that rely on pre-existing points of interest and maps scattered with markers, and it sets Sable apart as you chart the world yourself by venturing towards whatever catches your eye. Midden is a fascinating world to uncover, too, with small pockets of civilization nestled in between the serene desolation of its sprawling desert. There are dilapidated temples engulfed by sand, a graveyard full of gargantuan animal bones, and an eerie forest shrouded in perpetual darkness--to name just a few of the sights you'll come across throughout your travels.
Continue Reading at GameSpotHere’s Why Deathloop’s More Robust Melee Combat Was Scrapped
Deathloop originally had a more robust melee combat system, but it was scrapped during development and replaced with the kick move.
In a Noclip video interview around the 12:50 mark, Deathloop creative director Dinga Bakaba revealed that Deathloop originally had a combat parry system similar to Dishonored. This idea was scrapped in favor of Deathloop's simple and very powerful kick.
"In the beginning, you could defend with the machete and parry and block like you said okay let's just ask ourselves all the questions that just put [sic] the fencing of Dishonored, we will figure it out later," Bakaba said. "But as soon as we added the multiplayer, something went wrong."
Bakaba explained that the invader "has a delay over the host." This provided a difference in gameplay between the multiplayer invaders and the NPCs. So, the parry system was scrapped, but the developers weren't satisfied.
"So then we removed the timed parry and it was only [blocking] and that was boring as hell," Bakaba said. "So we said 'f*** defense, let's just replace defense with the kick like a big kick that makes you go oof.'"
The parrying was then removed and the fan-favorite kick was born.
Check out IGN's pick of the best PS5 SSD to play Deathloop at its top console potential.
IGN's Deathloop review was relatively positive towards the game and praised the combat system: "The precision engineering of this complex, looping world is held in balance by Deathloop’s combat system, which is a delightfully raucous affair that roars like a dragon with ballistic breath."
Visit our Deathloop walkthrough and Deathloop guide for beginners to master Arkane Studios' latest.
Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN.
PS4 Firmware Update Reportedly Keeps Consoles From Being Bricked
PlayStation 4 firmware update 9.00 reportedly prevents the console's battery from tampering with the PS4's ability to play games.
As reported by GameSpot, there was discussion earlier this year on websites like Ars Technica that the battery powering the clock inside every PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 will prevent the consoles from being able to play games. Because the consoles use their own clock to verify PlayStation trophy information, if the battery in that clock dies out then the consoles reportedly won't be able to start games.
YouTube channel Modern Vintage Gamer removed the battery from a PlayStation 4 with firmware update 9.00 and found that games were able to play, according to GameSpot. There is no official information from PlayStation regarding this issue.
DualShockers has the official patch notes for update 9.00 and there is no mention of any changes to the console's battery. There was reportedly a change to trophies though. PlayStation 4 users can now view PlayStation 5 trophies on their consoles in the Trophies section and under the profiles in the Games tab.
There were also changes to Messages where a group owner can now delete a group. Also, if you block another user that you share a group with, then you will have the option to remove yourself from the group that's shared with them.
Sony also added the ability to use Remote Play on an iOS or Android device using mobile data and made changes to Parental Controls.
Now that PlayStation 4s will hopefully stick around for much longer, check out the best PS4 accessories to get.
The PS4 continues to put out new games in the next generation but IGN has already put together a list of the best games of the PS4/Xbox One Generation and the (mostly) complete history of the PlayStation 4.
Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits Is Another Great PS5 and PS4 Game – Beyond Episode 718
On this week's episode of IGN's weekly PlayStation show, Podcast Beyond!, host Jonathon Dornbush is joined by Brian Altano and Mitchell Saltzman to discuss Kena: Bridge of Spirits, another great console exclusive game for the PS4 and PS5 lineup. We jump into Mitchell's thoughts from his review, in which he called Kena a great game, what we love and hope to see improved about the combat and exploration in future games, our love of the beautiful art design and detail, and we weirdly get hung up on the game's fonts.
But in general, we discuss what's so great about Kena's gameplay and world, and why you'll want to pick up Ember Lab's first game on PS4 or PS5. Plus, we dive into the recent reports about Quantic Dream's alleged Star Wars game, if that's a combination we're interested in seeing, and whether it makes sense for Quantic Dream to explore settings like the original trilogy or apply its choice-based gameplay to an era like The High Republic. We also dive into the reports about discussions of a Marvel vs. Capcom 2 remaster, and Mitchell gives us some insight into why the project is so fervently demanded, and what we hope to see from an MvC 2 remaster.
We also read a new Memory Card story, offer wild Super Smash Bros. Ultimate predictions for a PlayStation guest character, and much more! Direct Download
Podcast Beyond! is live every Wednesday. For more on PS5, check out our PS5 console review and our PS5 wiki guide for tips on how to best use your system. And for more Beyond, be sure to watch the first episode of our Bloodborne let's play!
Jonathon Dornbush is IGN's Senior Features Editor, PlayStation Lead, and host of Podcast Beyond! He's the proud dog father of a BOY named Loki. Talk to him on Twitter @jmdornbush.