Fringe: Season 4 Review

Season 4 was not Fringe's best.

I wanted to get that out of the way early. What follows is a somewhat lengthy exposition into the many wonderful and not-so-wonderful elements of this odd season, but essentially what I'm going to be telling you is that this season as a whole, though it had many bright spots, was only "good enough" to justify renewal for a fifth and final season.

This season of Fringe had an unusually lofty and perhaps unfair expectation to live up to – it had to provide a resolution to the Season 3 finale bombshell that Peter was erased from time and space and "never existed". Many critics and fans (myself included) worried that "The Day We Died" may have been Fringe's "jump the shark" moment and only a brilliant resolution in Season 4 could save the show from collapsing under the weight of its own massive plot twist.

The season opener, "Neither Here Nor There", didn't do much to answer the burning questions left from its predecessor. Instead it focused on showing us a world without Peter – a world drastically different than the one we knew and had come to rely on. The episode set the stage for the continuous redefinition of Fringe lore that would mark the entire season and leave Fringe fans uncertain about the future and whether the events of the previous three seasons really mattered. But a lot of the material was presented quite well, and even though this new look at the old characters wasn't necessarily welcome, it did often prove very interesting.

But the show suffered without Joshua Jackson in the mix, although Seth Gabel did an admirable job stepping in to fill the void. Even though it only took 4 episodes for Jackson to return, it felt like the series was dragging its feet on the Peter issue, and the method of his return was a bit disappointing and it was explained in a barely adequate manner that seemed anti-climactic after the huge bombshell that Season 3's finale dropped.

Once Peter was back, he spent much of his time trying to leave. Just like many of the viewers, he didn't feel the world he found himself in was "right". This created yet another quandary for the series as the viewers couldn't be sure if emotional investment in this incarnation of our characters was even worth it because it was quite possible they'd be irrelevant once Peter got back "home".

So the first third of the season was inconsistent and the episodes often felt aimless. The ratings were in the tank, with "Wallflower" and "Back to Where You've Never Been" being back-to-back episodes with viewership considerably under 3 million. The cancellation rumor mill started churning at full speed.

But Fringe is too good of a series to flounder for too long, and soon the quality of the episodes improved dramatically. Things started to turn around with "Enemy of My Enemy", the episode that re-introduced David Robert Jones as a threat to both universes. This was a great episode that was full of excellent writing, special effects, and a feeling that the show was starting to get back to its roots. Then there was "The End of All Things" which I felt was probably the best episode of the entire season with absolutely brilliant writing and clever plot twists. The dastardly deceptions of David Robert Jones and Bad Nina were excellent, and paired with equally excellent portrayal of Olivia.

The series continued with a number of high-quality episodes that gradually put the weird "timeline" play to rest. Once we hit "A Short Story About Love" Peter and Olivia were truly back together, it was clear that Peter was home all along, and the series could finally move into more consistent material. But the threat of cancellation still loomed large, and it seemed more likely than not that Fringe could no longer escape the chopping block. The producers could feel the axe being lowered, and just to hedge their bets they threw out a vision of what the series could be if they were given the chance to wrap things up. The result was "Letters of Transit".

This episode came out of nowhere and totally caught the viewers off guard, but no one could deny that the material was intriguing and bold, and interest in a shortened final season skyrocketed. This story also put William Bell back into the fray, which seemed like it might just be a CG job until Leonard Nimoy appeared in the flesh shortly afterward – the biggest and most welcome surprise of the season despite the wonky script kludges that surrounded the return of his character.

The two part season finale wrapped up the late-coming William Bell plot adequately, but the finale's greatest success was setting us up for the world we got a glimpse of in "Letters of Transit". For the first time, Fringe didn't end a season with a major cliffhanger. We know where we're going, and we're certain that it's the end.

Season 4 didn't do a lot of favors for the series, but it was not without monumental moments. However, it's important to note that the most important developments of this season revolved around making things the way they used to be. David Robert Jones came back, William Bell is back in action, Peter is back in "existence" and back with Olivia, and there's no bridge to the alternate universe. Season 4 could be seen as a long, arduous, wandering journey back to the stuff that made Fringe popular in the first place, and for fans who weren't too happy with the developments of the past two years, this could be an additional reason to have faith in Season 5.

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/20/fringe-season-4-review

Touch: "Tessellations" Review

Warning: Full spoilers for the episode follow...

"Dammit!" count: 4

"Tessellations" was a bit of a dud as far as Touch episodes go if you consider that the main strength of this series, and the tipping point regarding whether you're going to get a decent episode or not, resides in its ability to pull together those "global connectivity" stories in clever, unexpected ways. Unfortunately, the show misses way more than it hits in that department, and even when it does hit the chance is more than likely that you've had to endure some insufferable characters along the way.

The most interesting things that this episode had to offer involved the reveal that someone inside Aster Corp, where Jake's aunt works, is behind the sinister plot to keep Jake away from Martin, and test him with numbered blocks in order to bring out his special abilities. That, and Avram's (Bodhi Elfman) explanation of Teller's block test to Clea; the five platonic solids (each shape representing a classical element) and a dodecahedron to represent the universe.

Other than that though, "Tessellations" was filled with more dumb characters and a rather unbelievably dangerous situation for Martin. I know they did their best to explain , but it still seemed like a bit of a stretch, even for this show, to buy that Martin would risk dying and no longer being around for Jake. And what was the point of making Joey, the Mobius shipping employee who lost his job and had the wife with MS, get singled out as a hero on the news if that's not what got him his job back? Martin still had to go talk to Nelson (Stabone from Fast Times!) and threaten him in order to get him to rehire Joey.

Plus, there wasn't even a vast, intricate web connected people here. There were, really, only two stories; the shipping yard and Israeli Tomer with his Palestinian girlfriend. And that story played out in an even more cornball fashion than the heist scenario. Once again, we get a "dreamer." A guy in love who constantly aggravates the girl he loves. A girl who's cold and practical only up until the guy floors her with a grand romantic gesture. But never the first grand dramatic gesture, right? It's always the second one. Didn't we just go through this last week in "Music of the Spheres?" And so, because the girl always winds up sort of just "caving," it becomes hard to believe that the girl really loves the guy at all.

Also, we got another scene where Avram himself has a brief, somewhat inconsequential connection to the "B" story when Tomer called him to randomly ask him about numerology. And since the "B" story, like last week, also involved a man looking for a gift for his girl, Avram was strangely mixed in. The trouble here was that as soon as Avram told Tomer that his message regarding "9808 becoming 2545" meant that something good was going to come from something bad, we knew everything would turn out just fine. Not that we couldn't assume that anyway, with this being Touch and all, but the whole scene felt forced. And it made me roll my eyes at Tomer even more for calling Avram to ask him whether or not the message was a good one or not based on the numbers.

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/20/touch-tessellations-review-2

Has Nintendo Redesigned Wii U’s Controller?

A new photo indicates that Nintendo has redesigned the controller for Wii U. In a photo tweeted by a QA tester at Telltale Games, Wii U’s tablet controller appears to have proper analog sticks in place of the sliders shown during E3 2011.

Wii U's new controller, as tweeted by a Telltale Games employee.

Comparing the image to the controller shown last year, it also appears that Nintendo has relocated the plus and minus buttons to the right side of the tablet and centered the microphone. A Wii U logo has also been added to the bottom left.

The Wii U controller shown at E3 2011.

The initial controller model was met with a bit of criticism for not including proper analog sticks, a topic that we wrote about during last year's show. While it appears Nintendo was listening, keep in mind that the image shown by the Telltale employee is likely a development unit and doesn’t necessarily indicate what we’ll see in the final retail controller.

Nintendo has confirmed in the past that we’ll see Wii U in “final form” at E3 2012, and with just over two weeks to go until the show, you can expect many more details to come very soon.

Do you prefer the new Wii U controller design? Let us know in the comments below.

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/has-nintendo-resdesigned-wii-us-controller

Iron Man 3: What Takes Him to China?

New purported plot details for Iron Man 3 reveal the role China plays in the Marvel sequel. Just in case these rumors prove true then consider this a SPOILER warning.

We've known for awhile that Infernal Affairs and House of Flying Daggers star Andy Lau was going to be in Iron Man 3. Now this Andy Lau fan site points out a video report from China's Apple Daily that claims Lau will play a friend of Tony Stark's in China who will help him in his battle against the Mandarin.

The report further claims Iron Man has come to China to rescue a friend's daughter who was kidnapped in America and brought overseas. Chinese actresses Bingbing Fan is said to have been cast as Lau's wife and Yang Mi as his assistant.

The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley's not-so-secret villain role) has reportedly been altered from his comic book roots so as to not harm the Chinese image. (Iron Man 3 is a Chinese co-production.)

Iron Man 3 begins shooting in North Carolina before moving on to Beijing and Shanghai. The movie will reportedly see Iron Man fly over the Great Wall of China, the National Palace Museum and various landmarks in Shanghai.

Thanks to Latino Review and CBM for the head's-up!

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/iron-man-3-what-takes-him-to-china

Duncan Jones Targets James Bond Creator

Moon and Source Code director Duncan Jones will direct a biopic about James Bond creator Ian Fleming.

The Hollywood Reporter says the project, announced at this week's Cannes film festival, will focus on the author's early years as a British naval intelligence officer during World War II and how his commando days inspired his greatest literary creation.

The film will be based on Andrew Lycett's biography Ian Fleming, The Man Behind James Bond.

"Fleming lived through one of the most perilous periods in world history, in a position that allowed him a unique vantage point of all the players, all the stakes. He witnesses true heroism first-hand. And he saw the evil men could do," said Jones. "Then, when the war ended, he went off to write fiction. The essential question for me is where did Ian Fleming end and Bond begin?"

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/duncan-jones-targets-james-bond-creator

Batman: Arkham City Bags Stan Lee Award

Batman: Arkham City was crowned the Best Game at this year's Stan Lee Awards, which took place today at Kapow Comic-con in London. X-Men: First Class also walked away with the award for Best Superhero or Sci-Fi film.

The awards were picked by a panel of expert judges including IGN's very own Rich George, with DC picking up the publisher of the year gong, Scott Snyder was named best writer and Sara Pichelli took home artist of the year.

And IGN favourite Game of Thrones was victorious in the TV category.

FULL LIST OF WINNERS:

Best Writer: Scott Snyder

Best Artist: Sara Pichelli

Best Superhero or Sci-Fi Movie: X-Men First Class

Best Game or Toy: Arkham City

Best TV Show: Game of Thrones

Best Publisher: DC

Best Comic Hero: Batman

Best Newcomer: Sara Pichelli

Best Trade: Walking Dead

Best On-Going Series: Detective Comics

Best Limited Series: Dark Angel Saga

Man of Year: Scott Snyder

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/batman-arkham-city-bags-stan-lee-award

Max Payne 3 Review

After almost nine years, Max Payne, the pill-popping, bullet dodging, cop with nothing to lose and a penchant for horizontal gunplay has returned in Rockstar Studios’ Max Payne 3. When it was first revealed that MP3 was going to be the next title from Rockstar Games, there was a nearly audible reaction of, "Why?" from a good portion of gamers. After all, it had been nearly a decade since anyone had seen Max in action, and it seemed that it would stay that way, since he wasn’t exactly a character gamers were clamoring to see resurrected.

Thankfully, Rockstar ignored our collective abandonment of Max Payne, and decided to once again put Max at the forefront of the third-person action genre by delivering a bullet-adoring, genre-defining, shooter experience to rival this generation’s best, and the result is Max Payne 3.

When the original Max Payne burst onto the PC scene back in 2001, with its melodramatic, film noir-inspired presentation and Matrix-style bullet time-centric combat, it was definitely a breath of fresh air, and a large number of gamers no doubt still remember sinking countless hours into the game just because the bullet time turned standard shootouts into something completely unique. It also told a twisted and unforgiving tale of corruption, redemption, and desperation, presented in a comic book-panel style in between scenes of explosive violence.

Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne carried its predecessor’s torch admirably, maintaining the core mechanics, tone, and style fans loved while adding a still impressive layer of physics that took the slowed down action to a whole new level. Watching thugs get spun violently into the air in slow-mo never got old, and it helped make the sequel a worthy successor to one of the most groundbreaking shooters ever, even if it did feature plenty of similar scenarios (the least appealing of which involved navigating window ledges). In short, it felt like a natural, less game-changing next step.

With Max Payne 3, Rockstar once again hits all of the expected series beats, most of which players have come to expect from the genre in general, but it does so with such flair, polish, and focus of vision that what you end up with is a game that has an old-school heart in a next-gen body. You’ll still need to track down painkillers to heal yourself, but you’ll be doing it as a fully motion-captured James McCaffrey who moves at a noticeably slower pace than the much younger Max Payne from the previous games. Max narrates the story in his familiar pseudo-noir wordiness, but now it’s accented with a system that projects choice words and phrases into the scene and turns video into still images that are then used to pull off the comic book panel effect.

This artful balance of old and new is mirrored in the game’s story as well. The narrative jumps between flashback and present day, telling the painful tale of how Max was pulled out of his whiskey-soaked stupor by former policeman-turned-hired gun Raul Passos and thrown (bald) head first into the gang and corruption-fueled madness of the Brazilian criminal underworld via his political powerhouse of a client, the wealthy and supremely connected Branco family.

The story itself has more twists than a Twilight Zone-themed roller coaster (damn you crazy metaphor-laden narration!), some of which are rather obvious, but others that completely caught me off guard. I can already anticipate some players referencing the Mexico portion of Red Dead Redemption when discussing the closing chapters of MP3, but as was the case in RDR, I found myself being pleasantly surprised by the meatiness of the final act, pudge included.

The scope of the story is equally impressive, taking you from the snowy streets of New York City to the sun-baked back alleys of Sao Paulo to the over-the-top decadence of a multimillion dollar yacht under siege in the Panama Canal. Each setting brings with it a unique color pallet, and is crammed with a staggering amount of detail. Imagine all of the effort Rockstar puts into bringing its open worlds to life. Now imagine all of that effort concentrated down to individual set pieces (that are still quite substantial in their own right), and you’ll start to get a sense of how remarkable these place spaces truly are.

But for as slickly told as the story is, it’s the presentation--the stuttery video feed camera effects, the sans-loading screen transitions between gameplay and cutscenes, etc.--that bring MP3’s "cinematic" vision to life. You should know though that while there technically aren’t any load screens, the first half of every cutscene is an unskippable load time. Obviously, being forced to watch a brilliantly directed and well-acted cutscene instead of staring at a load screen is hardly a bad thing, but I figured you should know.

You should also know that those gameplay/cutscene transitions I mentioned before will have you screaming with girlish joy, because they flow so naturally that you honestly won’t even realize they are happening. One second you’re watching Max run at a dude to push him out of a nearby window overlooking a dance floor and the next you’re crashing through said window only now you are aiming at other enemies scattered around the club below, picking them off as you fall towards the ground surrounded by glass and the bracing against the body of the dude you just tackled out the window. There are numerous action-packed transitions like this, but even the standard move from cinematic to gameplay is slick as all hell.

Honestly though, the crowning jewel in Max Payne 3’s multi-jeweled crown is the combat. The animations systems driving Max’s movements are easily the best of any third-person action game I have ever played. The way he shifts his weight when changing directions to the way he is able to roll around while prone, enabling him to blast fools in a full 360 degrees to how he looks popping painkillers with one hand and popping caps with the other are nothing short of extraordinary. And that’s not even taking into account what happens to the poor bastards on the receiving end of Max’s remarkable actions. 

Building on the Euphoria-powered AI behaviors established in Grand Theft Auto IV, and then expanded in Red Dead Redemption, Max Payne 3 brings death to life in more moan-inducing ways than you can imagine. The way bullets impact bodies in the game is cringe worthy enough, but thanks to the new and improved final kill cam--another series staple--you get you watch in slow-mo and, if you hold down A/X, super slow-mo each individually rendered bullet rip through the flesh and bone of your enemies, before their bodies slump to the ground, filled with gaping, blood-spurting wounds. Action doesn’t get more joyously and bloodily balletic than this, and it all plays out without a single hiccup or slowdown even during the most chaotic of shootouts.

For as glorious as MP3’s action and presentation are, the game is not without its missteps, as small and few as they are. Similar to the oddly placed platforming sections in the previous two games, MP3 includes a couple of equally odd quick-time sequences at specific points during the story. Considering that you have to pull them off successfully to progress, these moments could have easily just been part of the cutscenes they appear in and nothing would have been lost.

The golden guns feature introduced in RDR makes its return in MP3, but it feels a bit out of place given the game’s linear design and more narrow narrative, because it means you’ll be spending time scouring every corner of every level to find the various gun pieces needed to unlock the golden weapons. While I do like that it pushes you to take in every inch of the gorgeously designed environments, it defuses the game’s otherwise fantastically frenetic pacing.

The same could be said for the television programs (despite the pertinent info provided by the newscasts detailing your actions) and the returning ability to play a little ditty on various pianos scattered throughout the game. You can also find clues (a picture, news clipping, a character hiding in a bathroom stall, etc.) that can give additional context to the story events, but this at least fits in with Max’s detective past, and therefore feels much more organic than tickling the ivories while someone you’re supposed to be rescuing is somewhere with a gun pressed against their head waiting for you to show up.

Once you’ve finished Max’s lengthy single-player campaign, you can then replay every chapter in the game in either Score Attack (new to the series) or New York Minute (a franchise staple), both of which will have leaderboard fanatics coming back on a daily basis to ensure their name remains at the top. You’ll want to play through the story mode again and again anyway because the combat is just that good, but having the option of doing so while racking up points and/or racing against the clock are welcomed additions.

As was the case with GTA IV and Red Dead Redemption, Max Payne 3 includes a robust, challenging, and super fun multiplayer component in addition to its substantial single-player offering. The standard deathmatch and team deathmatch are the perfect places to witness/cause massive amounts of fluid death, but Gang Wars mode is where I found myself having the most fun. Not only does this mode tie directly into Max’s story (you play as members of the gangs Max fights against in New York and Brazil), but it plays out over five chapters, each of which gets a specific voiceover narration setting up the story behind the showdown, and 10 game modes. So one round you might have to grab cash and bring it designated drop off points, and the next you’re trying to stop the other team from blowing up key points around the map. This sort of multiple game type setup is nothing new to multiplayer, but it works beautifully here.

One of the big questions for MP3 mulitplayer was how bullet time was going to work. The answer is remarkably well, because it’s based on line of sight. So when you dive and there’s no one around, you just dive. But if you have an enemy if your crosshairs, time slows for you and the targeted player. If the other player breaks your line of sight, time speeds up again. It’s an elegant solution, and one that rewards quick thinking and map awareness while also letting players enjoy the franchise’s signature gameplay features outside the main campaign.

The multiplayer also features a mega crap ton of challenges to complete and perks/weapons/gear/attachments/characters/outfits to unlock. The perks (Bursts/Sutures) system adds a great deal of strategy to multiplayer, as they offer all sorts of ways to counter opposing perk-based efforts. Having weight impact health regen and movement speed is another nice touch, since it discourages tanking in favor of lean, mean fighters.

Perhaps the most talked about multiplayer feature in MP3 is Crews. These are just clans--complete with fully customizable logos that can be crafted over at Rockstar’s Social Club site--but MP3 crews will eventually be transferable to GTA 5. Initiating vendettas against another player in multiplayer matches is one thing, but being able to start feuds with other crews is just good fun, and it adds an extra layer of camaraderie to the entire multiplayer experience.

Max Payne 3 is a technological tour de force that will have you screaming "Dear lord!" more times than midnight mass. The performances are top notch, the action plays out with unrivaled fluidity, and the multiplayer is deep and rewarding. Silly distractions aside, Max Payne 3 is an action lover’s wet dream that also happens to employ some of the slickest direction and transitional trickery this side of a David Fincher box set. Lock and load. It’s bullet time...time.

Source : http://www.g4tv.com/games/xbox-360/61622/max-payne-3/review/

Nick Frost: I’m The Anti-Divvy In The World’s End

Nick Frost entertained the masses with tales of Spaced, Paul, Hot Fuzz and becoming a dwarf for Snow White and The Huntsman this afternoon in his Q&A at Kapow! Comic Con in London.

He was hesitant to reveal details on his next team up with Shaun of The Dead cohorts Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, the apocalyptic The World’s End which starts filming this September, however he did share that he would playing more of a straight role than usual. “I’m not going to give anything away,” he explained to the packed auditorium, “but [my character] is not a divvy. He’s the anti-divvy. I’m not sure that’s even a real word!”

He went on to talk about the next project on his slate, Cuban Fury that he described as "Batman in dance shoes.” The salsa-inspired film starts shooting in five weeks with Chris O’Dowd, Rashida Jones, and Olivia Coleman. “We’re going to shoot it like a Bourne film, so don’t be put off by the fact that it’s about dancing,” Frost told the gathered crowd.

Frost, ever the professional, hosted an extended Q&A session with the audience dishing up a free hug and hilarious anecdotes about best mate Simon Pegg – “His mouse droid impression talked directly to my soul." Working with Spielberg on Tintin – “I just wanted to hold him every day, and kiss his little beard!”,  to flushing cakes down the toilet in an American hotel with Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish. YouTube it.

For all the latest info on The World’s End stay tuned to IGN.

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/nick-frost-im-playing-the-anti-divvy-in-the-worlds-end

Momentum Shows Off Lawless and More at Kapow!

Indie distributor Momentum shared a wealth of clips from upcoming films at Kapow! today.

Rick McCallum, George Lucas' long-time collaborator, took to the stage with actor David Oyelowo and director Gareth Evans to highlight what moviegoers have to look forward to.

The showcase kicked off with Red Tails, which MacCullum produced and Oyelowo starred in alongside big names including Cuba Gooding Junior, Elijah Kelley and Ne-Yo.  The film, due out June 6th in Europe and already on release in America, follows the first African American fighter squadron in the Second World War, and is packed with tense dogfights.

MacCullum said of the pilots, “they were the rockstars of their time.  It was incredible stuff that these kids had to go through – and they were kids, only 18 and 19.”

Western crime film Lawless was shown next, which stars Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman and Guy Pearce. Set during the prohibition in Virginia, three brothers get on the wrong side of the wrong guys and there’s action that invokes Al Capone style mobs, with Guy Pearce in particular set to make a terrifying impression.

For horror aficionados, The House at the End of the Street is out at the end of September and looks distressingly gritty.  Jennifer Lawrence is in the film, alongside a terrifying little girl who wouldn’t look out of place in The Ring, judging by the footage.  In a similar vein, Red Lights sees Robert de Niro play a very dangerous psychic using his powers on victims Cillian Murphy and Sigourney Weaver.

We weren’t shown any footage for the last two films, but the information we got was exciting nevertheless.  First we heard about Seven Psychopaths, the new film from the creators of In Bruges.  Due out in September, Colin Farrell will be appearing as the long suffering best mate of a man who steals the dog belonging to a crime lord, with capers ensuing.

Momentum then told us about Ender’s Game, the highly awaited film adaptation of the novel of the same name.  Due out in October 2013, it’s a dark sci-fi film starring Harrison Ford, Abigail Breslin, Ben Kingsley and Hailee Steinfeld where humans are locked in battle with alien insectoids for the Earth.

To wrap up, we were shown a climactic fight scene from The Raid which released yesterday, while director Gareth Evans answered questions.  If you want to know more about that, check out our coverage from earlier in the day.

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/momentum-shows-off-lawless-and-more-at-kapow

Nikita: "Homecoming" Review

Note: Full spoilers for the episode follow.

Nikita fittingly capped off a sensational second season that began with "Game Change" by turning the canvas on its head yet again. "Homecoming" was a bold and satisfying season finale, daring in its unexpected hopefulness and lack of a traditional cliffhanger. Make no mistake about it though, the new balance of power places Nikita and her friends in very real danger - from outside and from within.

The hour's most pivotal event was obviously the death of Xander Berkeley's cruel and vainglorious mastermind, Percy. It's hard to imagine Nikita's world without him in it, even though we know his dragon's head is only one of many. He went out in grand style of course. I particularly loved when he confessed to his faithful Division recruits how he betrayed and used them all and that he wasn't sorry in the least because they were all "pathetic street trash." Ah, Percy. You will be missed. Nikita did deserve this hard-fought victory though, and it was truly thrilling to watch him plunge to his gorgeously gory death, breathing his last word before the end, as she once predicted, "Nikita."

The title "Homecoming" refers to Nikita and Michael's return to Division both as star dropouts returning to campus as well as Percy's prodigal progeny returning to the fold. All season we've been teased with Percy's "Luke, I am your father" comments to Nikita, but Percy's last was so over-the-top that it seemed to me to close the door on any literal interpretation of these allusions. Instead, he seemed more like Dr. Frankenstein intent on killing his monster. Once Percy was dead though, Nikita was finally able to stop running from the truth she's been battling all season: Division made her who she is today. Maybe it's just easier without anyone around to say, "I told you so."

"Homecoming" brought the audience back full circle to the beginning of the season as well as the beginning of the series. Starting in "Game Change" and continuing throughout Season 2, Nikita has wrestled with the concept of finding a home, and whether she'd deserve to finally rest there if she could ever find it. Here, she finally accepts that, like it or not, dreaded Division has always been her home. Taking over the organization she once sought to destroy sounds crazy at first, but it actually takes her back to her original mission. In the pilot episode, Nikita said she was the first recruit to get out, and she was going to make certain she was not the last. Now she's been presented with the opportunity to make good on that vow on a large scale, and bring "immunity, identity, absolution" to Division's masses. How could a girl with a guilty conscience matched only by her savior complex ever resist it?

Before he died, Percy also got to demonstrate his magnificent genius one last time. The elaborate satellite particle beam plot turned out to be a con, while his real plan depended simply on his most loyal soldier, Roan, physically placing the plutonium inside a nuclear reactor. This also gave me yet even more respect for last week's layered "Crossbow". Why was it so laden with references to science fiction? Because that's exactly what Percy's "Star Wars" satellite Death Star plan was. Roan's death was also a nice, ahem, shock, though the bigger and more welcome surprise was his moment of genuine grief when he realized that Percy was dead. There a heart beating under that Terminator facade all along.

Michael is my kind of spy... fearless and inventive.

Despite its general awesomeness, I did have a few problems with the episode. First of all, Nikita and Michael blew the hatch open last week and I don't believe anyone had time to reseal it, so why were the Marines struggling to cut through the hatch in this episode? Did I miss something? Also, Sean and Alex got from New Jersey to Maryland in no time. I'm not saying I need to see them chatting in the car or whatever, but there just didn't seem to be any suspense in regards to their tracking down Roan. Even terrific Nikita episodes often feel like they need maybe five more minutes to completely pull off everything that was attempted. I would've rather had one more "Where the hell is Roan?" scene between Sonya and Birkhoff and/or Sean and Alex than the Amanda scene at the end, which felt like an unnecessary reminder of things we all already know: Amanda has a black box, she's still one of the Big Bads on the canvas, she's super evil and so forth.

The almost-happy ending between Michael and Nikita was absolutely beautiful. The sun has come up and they've once again somehow survived the impossible. They're in plain clothes in a pretty pastoral setting, but it's phony. It's a fake farm that recently housed the trained killers who gave their lives for Percy's lie and it's a perfect metaphor for the life-after-espionage fantasy that they've been contemplating all season. Michael would still like to chase after it, but Nikita is not yet capable of believing a real happy ending awaits her, so she'll keep working on that atonement thing.

It was a finale without real cliffhangers, yet everyone's in flux. Can the government really be trusted to let Division sort itself out when killing them all is so much simpler? Will Division's power bring out Nikita's dark side? Can Ryan maintain his integrity? Will Alex be able to pursue a future with Sean or will her painful past continue to haunt her? Can Michael and Nikita's relationship survive this latest major life change? Season 3 (yay!) holds the answers to these questions and many more and I can't wait until fall to see how it all plays out.

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/nikita-homecoming-review

Rocksteady: There Are Still "3-4" Undiscovered Secrets in Batman Arkham City

Rocksteady has clarified its earlier assertion that there are still undiscovered easter eggs in Batman: Arkham City, saying that there are still "3-4" left to be found.

At a panel hosted by IGN at London's Kapow! Comic Con, Director Sefton Hill said that there were "3 or 4" secrets in the game that nobody had yet uncovered.

"Some of them we put in there that were really obscure were found within a week [like the Scarecrow code]," he said. "We didn't think anyone would ever solve that, but it only took people two days. But there are still 3 or 4 things that people haven't seen - some of them very subtle things. There's one that we had right in one of the first demos that we did that nobody has found - it's in there if you look hard enough."

The panelists also shed some light on the creative processes behind Arkham City, although they refused to be drawn on what Rocksteady's next project will be. Sefton did take the time to reiterate that they were absolutely not working on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, to our continued disappointment.

Look out for our full panel write-up soon.

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/rocksteady-there-are-still-3-4-undiscovered-secrets-in-batman-arkham-city

Gareth Evans Talks The Raid Remake

The Raid director Gareth Evans discussed the future of the franchise at Kapow In London today. During the Momentum Showcase at the Comic Convention, the Welsh director explained his involvement in the American remake, as well as the upcoming sequel.

 

He said the remake would incorporate some changes as the original was, “a movie in a foreign language with a star nobody knew and a director nobody knew.”  It won’t be anything too drastic though, as Evans is on board as executive producer and the Indonesian star of the first film, Iko Uwais, will be choreographing the action.

 

While fans may be sad not to see him at the helm for the remake, he said he felt it was important that he stood back.  He explained, “I’m not remaking it myself.  My approach is to be hands off; in order for them to do the job properly they need to be given freedom.”

 

The good news is that this leaves Evans free to focus on getting the Indonesian sequel underway.  When The Raid was still in script form, Evans was primarily focused on another project called Berandal.  After seeing how well people responded to The Raid, he decided that with a small rewrite (“about 15 per cent”) Berandal could serve as a sequel.

 

He’s now planning a full trilogy and shared today that *SPOILER* Mad Dog will be reappearing in the next film, though we’re not sure in what capacity.  With filming due to start January 2013, he said he felt hopeful about releasing by “the tail end of next year.”

 

Finally, with the American remake underway, Evans was asked how he’s coping with the influx of Hollywood offers.  He said that he hasn’t received any, putting this down to the level of violence in his films.  He teased, “I make violent movies, so I don’t quite fit the Hollywood mould… yet.  But at the moment I can make smaller films that allow me to do what I want.”

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/gareth-evans-talks-the-raid-remake

Best Games Quotes of the Week - May 19

This week, Diablo III's launch happened, and so we've cordoned off a special area to hold the howls of outrage and the humble apologies for that particular moment of historic unfortunateness.

Meanwhile, it's been a good week for games news with our old friend the Infinity Ward-Activision row exploding onto the scene, always a busy corner for those who enjoy vehemence and back-biting among industry types.

And then there's just a bunch of cool and crazy, including Tera's sexual censorship, first looks at Unreal Engine 4, The Last of Us just being great, how Batman breaks legs, the greatest living-room console-set-up ever and, of course Peter Molyneux.

You can look back at recent Quotes features by Googling 'Best Quotes IGN' but a good place to start is last week's column. I am, as always, at your service. Join me on Twitter to discuss the games business, or just weigh in on Comments. Best one gets posted in next week's column.

I’m Pedobear

Credit: Eurogamer

“If you look at the forums and how users usually react to this race [the Elin], it's either people offended by the way they look, or it's people trolling, saying, hey, I'm "pedobear". This is the kind of behaviour we want to avoid at all costs.”

Frogster's Lucile Le Merle on how the Elin were censored for the West, in Tera.

Eurogamer

Sculpt the Lighting

“[Previously] you would have to manually sculpt the lighting in every section of every level. The number of man-years that required was astounding.”

Cliff Bleszinski talks about Unreal Engine 4

Wired

Show me the Cables

“If you're going to impress me show me the cables and switch box!”

Top Reddit comment on a photo of an awesome historic console set-up, doing the rounds this week.

The Smiling Catfish

Game Physically

“It’s a very demanding game physically. Some of the top players are playing at 300, 400 actions per minute.”

Kevin Knocke, e-sports broadcaster on IPL on StarCraft 2’s superstars.

IGN START

The Last of Us

"It’s a game about the human condition. 20 years after a plague has decimated our society, how does man survive? When all moral and ethical codes have been stripped, who do you trust? After watching your friends and loved ones pass, do you think you could still love? What is life without hope? We’re trying to make you feel these dilemmas while you’re playing The Last of Us."

The Last of Us game director Bruce Straley.

IGN

Fake Fumigation

“[Thomas] Fenady testified that he expressed concern about the project but was told, "Don't worry about the repercussions." Fenady found an outside company, InGuardians, who also balked at the task because of "legal hurdles." Stymied, Fenady approached the company's Facilities Department and talked about staging a "fake fumigation" and a "mock fire drill" in order to get West and Zampella away from their computers long enough to copy files on their computers.”

Inside scoop on Activision’s clandestine attempts to fire Infinity Ward heads Jason West and Vincent Zampella.

LA Times

A Small Portion

"Although it is a meaningful payment, it is only a small portion of what we are seeking in litigation. It is outrageous that they made us wait, they obviously knew they owed the money and this just shows that they breached the contract."

Bruce Isaacs, attorney for the Infinity Ward Employee Group on Activision’s decision to stump up some back-payments on royalties.

The Verge

Rivals Resident Evil

"We got to that million-dollar figure by cutting as much as we could, because we're small. We would love to be able to make this game for $250,000, but that's not a reality. If you're making a puzzle platformer with two or three guys in a room, that's a different story. We're trying to make a game that rivals Resident Evil or the original Metal Gear Solid. We're trying to do that in half the time, with a small team, and a fraction of those budgets."

Former Halo producer Ryan Payton on iOS stealth game Republique's Kickstarter success.

Edge

Opposed to Blocked Used Games

“For the record, I'm totally opposed to blocking used games. I think it's great for the consumer that they can buy those. We have a customer that buys our console late in the cycle, pays less, is looking for value priced games, and I think it would be anti-consumer for us to do that.”

Sony’s Jack Tretton, quoted by analyst Michael Pachter.

GameTrailers

Here and Elsewhere

“We've been getting several questions, here and elsewhere about the future of on-disc DLC. We would like to assure you that we have been listening to your comments and as such have begun the process of re-evaluating how such additional game content is delivered in the future.”

Capcom’s Christian Svensson is looking at new places to stick his DLC.

Capcom Unity

New Consoles

“The new consoles from Microsoft and Sony will allow more integration of item-based transactions within games, including a free-to-play option similar to the model used in social and mobile games. We believe the F2P model on consoles...could drive a higher level of profitability per franchise.”

Analyst Colin Sebastian is ready for console free-to-play.

VG247

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/best-games-quotes-of-the-week-may-19

Kapow! DC: All Access Before Watchmen Panel

A panel of DC executives admitted they are suffering from anxiety in the run up to the launch of Before Watchmen at a DC All Access panel at Kapow! Comic Con in London today.

“To say we’re excited would be an understatement,” admitted Senior VP of Sales at DC Entertainment Bob Wayne, “But, to say we’re nervous would also be an understatement! I think we can let the product speak for itself, and hopefully everybody will enjoy what we’ve got.”

“We went to a lot of trouble to assemble the talent, to make sure we had the right people working on it,” explained Dan DiDidio co-publisher of DC, “Honestly, I can say this for every one of the creatives involved, that they’re doing some of the best work of their careers. They know how important this project is, and they know how much scrutiny it’s going to come under.”

They revealed several variant covers at the panel at the London Business Design Centre including an awesome S&M inspired Ozymandias cover, and a psychedelic Josh Middleton variant for Silk Spectre, the Before Watchmen arc that both DiDio and Wayne were very enthusiastic about.  “Silk Spectre is my personal favourite,” said Dan, “Darwyn Cooke is working with Amanda Conner on this one, and he really wanted to capture the spirit of Silk Spectre in a specific period of time. Darwyn wrote the basic plot and Amanda ran with it from there.”

“This is one of the quietest of the stories, but also one of the most heartfelt. It’s a coming of age story, with Silk Spectre discovering herself, and separating herself from her mother.”

The Rorschach series is fittingly being described as “the most violent series” of Before Watchmen with Brian Azzarello and artist Lee Bermejo recreating Time Square of the 1970s for the very first issue of the arc. “It’s pretty intense,” stressed DiDio, “as someone who lived in New York in that era, it’s as gritty as I remember.”

The panel went on to discuss the Curse of the Corsair, the pirate-themed companion piece that will preface each issue of the book run, promising 34 different cliff-hangers for each issue. “It captures the style and tone and the shifts in nature of the stories that are taking part in the main features. We hope it recreates that same feel that Tales of the Black Freighter did in conjuction with the original Watchmen.” said Wayne. “It’s a swashbuckling adventure that just gets darker and darker as the series goes on,” added DiDio.

The panel were keen to deflect questions about Alan Moore's much-publicised negativity towards the project at the start of the Q&A session, but were candid when it came to discussing how much freedom they had given all the creatives when it came to crafting a new backstory for the series.

“When we sat down with all the writers, everyone was very beholding to the source material. They all had a copy of Watchmen in front of them that was operating as their ‘bible’ for the creative process,” DiDio said, “But, the first thing we said everybody should be able to be their own story-teller. Everybody has a lot of freedom in how they approach the material, how the writing is, how the drawing will look, and they all approached it very differently.”

Editor Will Dennis reiterated, “We always said from very early on, we want to let these guys do what they do best. You don’t hire these guys to do what they do so well and make them do something else.”

You’ll be able to find out how successful they’ve been in bringing the classic Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons series back to life when the first issue drops in June. Be sure to check out our first impressions of Before Watchmen here.

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/19/kapow-dc-all-access-before-watchmen-panel