E3 2012: Hokra hands-on

One of the first games I had the chance to play at this year's E3 was a lovely little indie title called Hokra. The game, which was being shown off at the IndieCade booth, can best be described as a minimalist sports title. And as was very appropriately pointed out by GameZone's own Lance Liebl, Hokra almost has a very slight shooter element to it, as well. Hokra is a game for four players. Participants are divided into teams of two, and their goal is to take a ball — or pixel — and score it into their respective goals. Each team has two goals, and they are color-coded to match the players' sprites. Hokra's visual design is made up entirely of pixels, so it has a completely non-threatening and entirely calm aesthetic to it. The game really looks great, and the minimalist art style creates one big abstract sports game. The sound is also very simple, and composer Nathan Tompkins was quick to point out that he didn't want to create a chiptune-heavy soundtrack because the game wasn't really a traditional 8-bit title.

A match in Hokra is won by the team that manages to fill its goals' pixels. Running to the goal with the ball or "kicking" it into it helps fill in the large collection of pixels. Controls are simple, and given Hokra's design, I really wouldn't have it any other way. You move around the screen using the analog stick, and if you have the ball in your possession, you can pass it to your partner or attempt to score by pressing the A button on the Xbox 360 controller. If you're not in possession of the ball, you can sprint by tapping the A button. What this essentially means is that if you've got the ball, you'll move slower than your opponents. As defense, you have the opportunity to steal the ball from whoever has it. Successfully stealing the ball can be a lot deeper than you might initially think. Case in point: You can sprint toward the person with the ball by tapping A and succeed in taking it for yourself, but as soon as you do, you'll need to stop pressing A, because you'll end up kicking the ball away. Hokra poses a wonderful little system that takes some technique and finesse to master, but it's incredibly rewarding and just plain fun.

As much fun as the gameplay may be, the social aspect of Hokra is also a total blast. I was playing alongside fellow GameZone writer Vito Gesualdi, and together we were taking on another duo. These two guys were primed and ready, and they gave us a good fight. That said, my partner and I gave each other a better fight. Shouts of "You suck!" and "Don't steal the ball from me!" were uttered throughout, and they were a hell of a lot more prominent than the typical "Pass it over here!" and "Good shot!" crap you hear in traditional sports games. Hokra is a game where you team up to beat another pair, but you still can't help but point out your partner's stupid mistakes, and the game is awesome because of that.

I'm not going to lie; I had so much fun playing Hokra and talking to developer Ramiro Corbetta that I completely forgot to ask about the game's release info. That said, the fact that I played it using an Xbox 360 controller could indicate a possible PC or Xbox 360 launch down the road. I'll be sure to get the full scoop straight from Corbetta, but until I do, I would like to point out that I had a total blast playing Hokra. The gameplay was ridiculously fun, and the presentation was absolutely pleasant. Now that I'm away from it, I realize that I need more Hokra in my life. Here's hoping I get to play it again very soon.

Source : gamezone[dot]com

Comic-Con: Talking Starship Troopers and Bug Problems with Casper Van Dien

We can ill afford another Klendathu!

Casper Van Dien returns as Johnny Rico in Starship Troopers: Invasion, the latest chapter in the space-faring, bug-crushing saga, due on Blu-ray and DVD on August 28th from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The film represents Van Dien's first foray as Johnny into CGI-animated form, and he also executive-produced the project along with Ed Neumeier, screenwriter of the original movie. Shinji Aramaki, the director of Halo Legends, Appleseed and Appleseed Ex-Machina, brings his anime stylings to the film as director. And these gentlemen will all be hitting San Diego Comic-Con this week to show off the new movie.

In fact, if you're going to the con, IGN and Sony are giving away 25 free passes to the worldwide premiere screening on Saturday, July 14, at 7pm. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Van Dien, Neumeier and Aramaki (moderated by yours truly!). Click here for your chance at grabbing a pass. And Casper will also be participating in a fan signing at IGN's Oasis Lounge at the Hard Rock Hotel at 1pm that day, so if you're in town you know where you need to be.

But in the meantime, I jumped on the phone with the actor to talk about his newest Starship Troopers adventure. Check out our chat below -- and see you on Saturday…

Scott Collura: How does Starship Troopers: Invasion connect to the previous films in the series?

Casper Van Dien: In my opinion, I feel like it’s a continuation of the first and probably takes a little bit from the second and the third as well. But it brings back the characters from the first. It has Carl, Johnny and Carmen. We’ve also got some cool new characters. It ties in more to the book as well. I think it’s a combination of the Starship Troopers world created by Edward Neumeier, Paul Verhoeven and Phil Tippett. Then we’ve added in this new Japanese anime style by Shinji Aramaki and the executive over at Sony, Tony Ishizuka [Vice President of International Production, Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions]. They did a great job. I loved it.

SC: What was it like transitioning to animation for this project?

CVD: It was a lot of fun to do. With Shinji Aramaki, the anime director, he’s such a talented man. He created a lot of the mecha suits [in anime]. He also drew the Kamen Rider, which was the Masked Rider. When I grew up in Japan until I was almost five years old, that was my first hero, the Masked Rider. So it was interesting to see some of his work. I thought he did a great job. It was a blast to work on this with everybody.

SC: What similarities does Invasion have to the original Robert Heinlein book?

CVD: Well, you definitely have the suits, and they’re done really well. Even just the regular armor that they wear is so cool, and the weapons are just amazing. I just wish we could have actually had those [in the live-action movies]. That part of the world is amazing to see what they can create. That’s just a phenomenal job. And the bugs, what they’re able to do with that and take off from what they did in the third one. They’re able to create even more of the Starship Troopers world. Flint Dille did a great job with the screenplay. He’s really good with these animated projects as well. He’s been around for a long time. So there’s just a huge… they just have so many different things in so many different worlds, I think they’ve created a very unique spin with this on its own but it also completely correlates with all the other Starship Troopers worlds. And it leaves room for more to happen and more to come. There’s a nice twist in the end that I think opens up a whole other can of worms. It opens Pandora’s Box, in my opinion!

SC: The thing about the first film is you kind of feel like your character Johnny might not survive all the craziness, but now here we are and he's still fighting the bugs all these years later.

CVD: It’s a lot of fun to see that. You know, I heard that Sony is rebooting Starship Troopers, and people ask me all the time, they go, “What do you think? They shouldn’t do that.” And I think it’s really cool. I was also the twentieth Tarzan, and there have been so many different Bonds. I think it would be cool to see a lot of different Johnny Ricos. I think it’s a great character.

SC: The Starship Troopers universe would seem to be big enough to support a variety of approaches.

CVD: Completely. It’s a fun and exciting process, and I’d like to see -- of course, I’m always going to be attached to this. It’s just something where I walk down the street and people go, “Johnny Rico!” [Laughs] And that’s 15 years later and there are still people saying that to me. It’s kind of cool.

Casper Van Dien

SC: Did that ever bother you, being so closely associated with one role?

CVD: You know, sometimes when people go, “O.K., we know who it is. This is the guy from Starship Troopers.” Of course, I wasn’t the guy from Starship Troopers before I did it. But for the most part, it’s really thrilling to have people quote lines you said in a movie 15 years later, for them to keep coming at you with it. I can be at Disneyland or walking down the street or picking my kids up from school -- I picked up my eight- and ten-year-old the other day, and these six boys go, “Johnny Rico! Wait a minute, your dad’s Johnny Rico!?” And I’m like, “What are you guys doing watching Starship Troopers?” They’re like, “Our dads made us watch it with them.” [Laughs] It’s kind of funny. It’s just something that keeps going on. The longevity of it is fantastic. It’s an honor to be in something that people quote all the time. I’m still doing interviews about that movie, and it’s 15 freaking years later. It’s still something that they’re talking about. A lot of directors talk to me about it, and they like it. I’m like, “Well, put me in your movie!” [Laughs] But I had a lot of fun with it. I’m loving being in this business, and it’s a lot of fun to do. That movie, I am so grateful for every chance I get to be a part of that world.

SC: Did you guys know you were making something special when you were working on the first film?

CVD: It felt like something special every day. First of all, you’re talking about a book I read when I was a little boy. So to be able to play a character that you liked and you were 13 years old when you read it, and then to be around a director like Paul Verhoeven who directed movies you had seen as a kid, too -- RoboCop -- then later when I became an actor and started studying and seeing his older films and just going, “God, this guy’s amazing,” and actually getting an opportunity to work with him? It kind of felt surreal, the amount of extras they had on it and the team -- working with Academy Award-winners like Phil Tippett and the writer of RoboCop, you’re blown away. It was a really cool cast. I enjoyed everybody, and I had so much fun with all those people. I still, when we bump into each other to this day… we’re starting to become closer I think. It’s pretty interesting.

Source : ign[dot]com

Ghost Rider Producer Falls for Fifty Shades of Grey Movie

Universal Pictures and Focus Features have hired the Oscar-winning team behind The Social Network to produce their screen adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey, that best-selling erotic romance novel you can't avoid that started as Twilight fan-fic.

The studios announced Monday that Michael De Luca (whose credits also include Ghost Rider 1 and 2, Fright Night, and Moneyball) and Dana Brunetti (Fanboys, 21, Safe) have come aboard to produce the adaptation of the E. L. James lit trilogy, which follows the relationship of 27-year-old billionaire Christian Grey and college student Anastasia Steele.

“At its core, Fifty Shades of Grey is a complex love story, requiring a delicate and sophisticated hand to bring it to the big screen,” said Universal Pictures Co-Chairman, Donna Langley, in a statement. “Mike and Dana’s credits more than exemplify what we need in creative partners and we’re glad to have them as part of our team."

Source : ign[dot]com

Adventure Time Creator Dishes on the Season One DVD and More

Mathematical! Fans have been asking, and Warner Home Video and Cartoon Network have finally answered. Adventure Time: The Complete First Season will come to DVD this week (look for our review tomorrow).

In honor of this exciting release, we sat down with Adventure Time creator Pendleton (Pen) Ward to discuss what it takes for young prospective artists to break into the industry, the direction of the show, as well as Ward's amusing contribution to the DVD bonus features.

Before Ward was famous, he visited Simpsons creator Matt Groening to discuss what it took to make it in the animation industry. While Ward could not recall what transpired during that chat, he did offer some inspiration for young artists.

“My advice comes off as generic, but I think it's important advice – and that's to keep drawing.” Ward suggests. “I think if you persist, you keep drawing, you're already one step ahead of anybody who's quit. And that's probably the biggest challenge when you're learning, whether you're drawing, or really anything at all – is to keep doing it.”

Even in the show's early days, Pen Ward was always working hard at the series, attempting to craft a show that was not only fun and funny, but also refreshing and original.

“Every day I'm just focused on trying to keep the ideas fresh and interesting.” Ward states. “For example, I wanted to put a monkey in an episode, and one of the writers, Jesse Moynihan, told me not to. He thought it was jumping the shark, that is was just cheap humor. I told him, you're right, you're right. So we took it out.”

It's this sense of originality that's turned Adventure Time from a cult series into something of a phenomenon. But Ward isn't really phased by the show's new found mainstream stardom. “I don't have a real concept of it, honestly,” Ward said. “We just work on the show every day and keep doing it. But I see how much people really like it at Comic-Con, which is a lot of fun.”

Instead, Ward spends his time focused on the story. “We're always trying to top ourselves and make each episode better than the last,” Ward said. “We don't want to become stale.”

Ward is currently putting the finishing touches on season four, while also drafting episodes for the show's upcoming fifth season. While he remained mum on all the juicy details, he did offer hints as to what fans can expect. “In future episodes you'll get to see more of the history of Ooo.” Ward offers. “There's also a few more origin stories for some of the characters. There's going to be another Fiona Cake episode coming up, which features Marshall Lee more.”

In the meantime, fans can explore the various bonus features found on the season one DVD. One special feature was actually shot on Ward's own iPhone, using a handy $150 Steadicam unit. “I wanted to put something cool on the disc,” Ward explains. “I wanted to interview everybody and put it all in one shot. Then we decided to put animation on it.” The end results are nothing short of bizarrely humorous, with the featurette almost playing like a bonus episode of the show.

But the featurette isn't the only goodie Ward was excited about. Playing as sort of a complement to the “Mom-entary” from the Will Ferrell/Mark Wahlberg film, The Other Guys, Ward sought out another helper to add some flavor to the supplemental material. “There's a commentary from my mother with Polly Lou Livingston, who voices Tree Trunks,” Ward admits with a laugh. “It's pretty funny.”

Obviously, because this first season took quite a while to make its way to DVD, fans might be worried it'll be a few more years down the line before future seasons arrive, but Ward attempts to put those worries to rest. “I'm positive they'll be coming,” Ward assures. “I'll have to stay up and do some more special features, too.”

With the release of Seth MacFarlane's Ted in theaters, naturally the thought of doing something live action came up. Ward was fascinated by the idea of doing a feature-length movie. “I think it would be great.” Ward said. “I want to do a live-action movie with the Adventure Time characters, actually. That would be interesting.”

We certainly hope he gets the chance to do that in the near future. But, in the meantime, you can check out Adventure Time on Cartoon Network, or pick up the show on DVD or digital download.

"A long time ago, when I was a baby, I went boom boom on a leaf. Then I fell backwards and sat in my own boom boom and cried for a day, but no one came to help me. That day I vowed to help anyone in need, no matter how small their problem! And that's why I need to go." Follow R.L. Shaffer on Twitter, Facebook andMyIGN for quotes, rants, reviews, news and more!

Source : ign[dot]com

Daredevil Faces the End of Days

Remember Daredevil: End of Days? This mini-series was announced way back at the second New York Comic-Con in February 2007. It promised to chronicle Matt Murdock's last adventure and feature an all-star cast of Daredevil creators, including writers Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack, penciller Klaus Janson, and inker Bill Sienkiewicz. Unfortunately, the project has seen numerous delays over the years as the creators worked to balance their various commitments with this demanding assignment.

Luckily, there's a light at the end of the tunnel for Daredevil fans. Today Marvel held a Next Big Thing press call to announce that End of Days #1 will be shipping in October 2012. Bendis, Mack, Janson, Sienkiewicz, and editor Tom Brennan were all present on the call to shed more light on this elusive book.

Daredevil: End of Days #1 (Alex Maleev cover)

Janson talked about the genesis of the project. "We wanted to get a lot of the people who were associated with Daredevil through the years together on this book and make it the culmination of action for the character. What's interesting about the story is, not only do we have this incredible lineup of talent on the book, but we see almost everyone who's ever been associated with the character through the years. A lot of characters pop up in this story which, to me, is just an absolute pleasure to draw and a pleasure to read."

Bendis explained the setting of the series, saying "It takes place in the not-too-distant future [later revealed to be about 10 years forward]. We get to see a glimpse of what the Marvel Universe very well may turn out like if everything goes to hell. Not in a dystopian, Mad Max-type of way. More in the vein of Daredevil -- a more realistic way. Very specifically, how the world of Daredevil has changed and what has happened." Bendis revealed that Daredevil is murdered in the first issue, "which sends Ben Urich on his very last assignment."

The creators downplayed the idea that End of Days will be a murder mystery, as the identity of Murdock's killer will be apparent from the start. The focus will be more on the reasons for his death and Urich's investigation. Bendis said, "As he unravels exactly what Matt Murdock's death meant, he'll unravel a lot of secrets about Matt and the world of Daredevil he never knew before. His life and the life of everyone in Matt's world is in danger. So a little, tiny nod to Citizen Kane and a huge, huge nod to all of the people who have worked on Daredevil with us and before us." Bendis also remarked that the story will offer commentary on the state of modern journalism and media, not unlike Aaron Sorkin's new series Newsroom.

Daredevil: End of Days #1 (David Mack cover)

Fans can expect to see a number of familiar faces in the story. Aside from villains like Bullseye and Kingpin, Elektra will make an appearance as "a violent soccer mom," a fact which Bendis noted should appeal particularly to long-term readers. Janson, meanwhile, joked about her trading in her traditional sais for a soccer ball. Nick Fury and The Punisher will also appear in the story, along with various other unnamed Marvel characters outside the immediate Daredevil family.

Readers can expect a much darker Daredevil book than the one currently being penned by Mark Waid. "Our book is dark and violent and shocking to those who are used to our runs on Daredevil," Bendis said. "For those who are used to Daredevil right now, I think it's going to be doubly shocking." Mack elaborated, "Even though it exists in the ambiguous near future, it almost has this old style New York grit to it. It feels like anything can happen, like the '70s films." The creators brought up the crime films of Martin Scorsese as a comparison.

As if the murder of Matt Murdock didn't make this obvious, the creators are very much treating End of Days as Daredevil's final adventure. Janson said, "I’m taking this as the last Daredevil story. I'm approaching that way and I'm putting everything I can into it." Sienkiewicz downplayed the need to reflect recent Marvel continuity, saying, "The way the future is being portrayed -- it's entirely of a piece. The city is its own character as well and everything about it has the Daredevil stamp all through it. It's very much its own thing and of its own world."

Finally, Brennan teased the quality of the project. "Every level of the book, from writing to penciling to inking and even lettering -- you'll see a bunch of masters at their craft. I suspect that, if you're an aspiring comic book writer or artist, they're going to be pointing to this series for years to come as an example of comics done right."

Check below for more preview art from Daredevil: End of Days #1.

Jesse is a writer for IGN Comics and various other IGN channels. Follow Jesse on Twitter, or find him on IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Kirkman: FPS Walking Dead "Would Be Pointless"

Last week, Activision announced its own take on the zombie-infested world created by Robert Kirkman. The Walking Dead Video Game is a first-person shooter based on the TV show scheduled for a 2013 release. The announcement caught many off guard as Telltale Games just put out the second  of five The Walking Dead: The Game episodes.

However, now the FPS announcement is odd for a different reason. Back in March, Kirkman was interviewed about the Telltale title and asked at the 1:47-mark why the game wasn't a first-person shooter.

“

But to do a Walking Dead game that's just that would be pointless.

"You can play Left 4 Dead," Kirkman said. "You can play Dead Rising. You can play Resident Evil -- those are all great games and I do that, and I think other people should do that. But to do a Walking Dead game that's just that would be pointless. I think that you would always be compared to that, and you'd either be better or you'd be worse -- but you'd be the same kind of game, and that's no fun."

Kirkman goes on to say that The Walking Dead isn't about shooting and killing, it's about the interaction between characters and their personal evolutions. "It has heart" and that's something Telltale is able to incorporate in the game.

"Which they wouldn't be able to do if it was just a run-and-gun, like 'I like to cut people up' kind of game, which again are great but that's not what Telltale does," he said. "And that's why they're doing The Walking Dead game."

IGN reached out to Kirkman's publicist for a comment from the author, but an email was not immediately returned. Of course, Kirkman was talking in broad strokes about the first-person shooter genre, so perhaps Activision and developer Terminal Reality came to Kirkman with an idea that broke the "run-and-gun" mold.

We'll find out as we learn more about The Walking Dead Video Game in the coming months.

Greg is the executive editor of IGN PlayStation, cohost of Podcast Beyond and host of Up at Noon. Follow IGN on Twitter, and keep track of Greg's shenanigans on IGN and Twitter. Beyond!

Source : ign[dot]com

The Dark Knight Rises: Biggest 2D Opening of All Time?

Ready for another round of wall-to-wall packed movie theaters? New pre-release tracking predicts Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises could very likely surpass the $158.4 million opening of The Dark Knight, which had the biggest three-day domestic debut of all time when it opened.

Rises will be hitting theaters on July 20, the same debut weekend as The Dark Knight in 2008. To this day, TDK remains the top domestic opener in terms of 2D feature films. Since then, two 3D pics -- this summer's The Avengers and last year's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 -- have taken the No. 1 and No. 2 spots with $207.4 million and $169.2 million, respectively.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, TDKR's overall tracking numbers come close to The Avengers,' but the latter had an added boost of 3D ticket sales. However, Nolan's final Bat-chapter will also screen in several hundred IMAX theaters, which charge at a premium. (Over an hour of the movie was shot using IMAX cameras.) What's more, the film clocks in at 164 minutes -- 21 minutes more than The Avengers and 12 more than The Dark Knight.

Females are reportedly less interested in seeing The Dark Knight Rises than The Avengers, but Warner Bros. still has two weeks to court this demo.

Max Nicholson is a writer for IGN, and he desperately seeks your approval. Show him some love on Twitter and IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Diablo III: Saving the End Game

It happened just after the sixty hour mark. After felling Diablo for a second time the charm of the creeping hordes and sprawling dungeons dwindled. The treasure chests, once blossoms bursting with a near-endless wealth of weaponry, lost their allure. When a hero of the High Heavens finds the best gear around, what's left for them to do?

A Blizzard community manager recently admitted that the item hunt "is just not enough for a long-term sustainable end-game." Players need something more in order to stay engaged and keep slaying. No matter how many patches and hotfixes roll through to tinker with the little things, beating Diablo III four times in a row leaves precious little fun left to enjoy. But, like Tyrael taking up his sword in Act I, not all hope is lost. Descend below for a list of additions that could save Diablo III's end game.

My Kingdom for a Sword

Start simple, Blizzard. More item affixes could help. Think devious hexes, armor brands, and other neato buffs. While the current set has plenty of delightful side effects just made for exploiting, a few extra never hurt. Unless they throw Diablo III's balance right out the window, which is always a looming threat when adding to a complex equation.

Speaking of affixes, some of those found in Diablo II never made the jump to Diablo III. We need only look to those for plenty of options that have yet to be explored in the latest adventure.

Race Ya to the Finish

Much like moving from Normal to Nightmare, this next suggestion starts to get crazy. With so much of Diablo III's design hinged on the purpose of encouraging multiple runs through the story, why not implement a ranked time trial?

Imagine a simple prompt at the beginning of the campaign that disables all cutscenes and sends you hurdling towards Diablo with a time counter on the top of the display. After clearing the story, or perhaps just an act, your time appears on a global leaderboard for all to see. This would exist outside of the time-based achievements, by the way. Those do their own thing.

Of course, time trials present their own set of problems, like how to handle players that log in and out mid-play. But jockeying for the fastest time gives Diablo extremists an additional way to compete and compare skills.

Modes! Modes! Modes!

One of the best ways to keep the party going is to develop more modes on top of the norm. It's worked well for years because developers can deliver the same play experience but in a different package. In the case of Diablo III, some recognizable formats seem like a perfect fit for this dungeon crawler.

First! A tower mode. Or endless dungeon mode. Whatever brooding title fits, really. Completely randomize a series of never-ending floors and challenge players to go as deep as they can on a single run. No deaths allowed, and some restrictions on returning to town. This would not only open up a limitless dungeon-crawling option but would also force explorers to think twice before picking up everything on the floor.

Second! Look to almost any modern shooter to find a delightfully replayable horde mode. Implementing this into Diablo III would require some serious effort on Blizzard's behalf as it requires appropriate maps and the like, but what wonders it could work on the end game! A cooperative battle against waves and waves of enemies. Saving your gold or spending it on temporary defenses and walls. I tremble at the thought.

Third! Arcade mode! Play for points!

At the End of the Game/Day

We all know that PVP mode beckons us from just up the road, and inevitable expansions all but guarantee new classes and quests. But until then, Diablo III needs more.

Finding the perfect set of loot can only keep the adventuring masses entertained for so long. And with plenty of folks already clearing the story on Inferno, Blizzard needs to consider other ways to keep everyone playing, or else Evil will prevail.

Ryan Clements writers for IGN and, despite what you might think, loves Diablo III. Really. He took a day off of work to play it at launch. Follow him on Twitter, and share in his love of The Last Airbender, which he just finished for the first time.

Source : ign[dot]com

Rockstar Expands Max Payne 3 Studio

Rockstar has announced that it will expand its Toronto studio, moving the development team to a new larger, custom-built facility in Ontario thanks to support from the Ontario government. Over the next six months, Rockstar Toronto will be joined by members of Rockstar Vancouver, who will be offered the chance to join Rockstar Toronto or to take positions at other Rockstar studios.

Rockstar Toronto previously worked on Max Payne 3 and the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV, in addition to Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City and prior Rockstar titles The Warriors and Max Payne 2. Rockstar Vancouver also contributed to Max Payne 3 in addition to developing both Bully and Bully: Scholarship Edition. According to Rockstar’s vice president of publishing and operations Jennifer Kolbe, combining the two studios “will make for a powerful creative force on future projects.” Kolbe notes that Rockstar plans to add more than 50 new positions to the expanded Canadian team and credits the Ontario government’s cooperation for the ability to do so.

Financial details on the partnership with Ontario’s government weren’t disclosed, though Ontario minister of economic development and innovation Brad Duguid commented that “By providing financial support and tax incentives to help companies grow, we maximize Ontario's competitiveness in the global economy and support job creation.” It’s currently unknown what the new combined Canadian studio will work on first, though it’s worth noting that Max Payne 3 has several downloadable expansions in the works.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

First Look: The Hunger Games Bonus Features

In anticipation of the August 18, 2012 home video release of The Hunger Games (details here), Lionsgate and Summit Entertainment have unveiled a trailer for the disc's bonus features. Check it out:

Here's a breakdown of all the bonus features:

• The World is Watching: Making of The Hunger Games: An eight-part documentary covering the "making of" the film in all aspects from the pre-production process all the way through the theatrical release and fan reactions


• Game Maker: Suzanne Collins and The Hunger Games Phenomenom


• Letters from the Rose Garden featurette: Insights from Donald Sutherland on the development of his role as President Snow


• Controlling the Games: Stories and concepts behind creating the control center


• A Conversation with Gary Ross and Elvis Mitchell


• Propaganda Film (in its entirety)


• Marketing Archive


• Both the DVD and Blu-ray include a Digital Copy


• Preparing for The Games: A Director's Process (Blu-ray Exclusive)

Suggested retail for the Blu-ray is $39.99. You can pre-order the Blu-ray on Amazon for $22.96. The DVD suggested retail is $30.98. Amazon's pre-order price for the DVD is currently set at $18.96.

Stay tuned for more news, and look for a Blu-ray review of The Hunger Games in August!

"May the odds be ever in your favor." Become a friend of R.L. Shaffer on Twitter, Facebook or MyIGN for quotes, rants, reviews, news and more!

Source : ign[dot]com

Falling Skies: "Love and Other Acts of Courage" Review

Note: Full spoilers for the episode follow.

After some questionable decisions soured last week's instalment of Falling Skies, smarter heads finally prevail. The pacing is a little slower however and there is a major focus on Maggie and Hal's relationship, which I didn't expect to like as much as I did.  The big bombshell, the potential of a Human-Skitter alliance, is the real highlight and should have a lot of people talking.

Maggie and Hal have been flirting with one another for quite some time now so it was good to finally see their sexual tension develop into something more, sort of.  There are a lot of barriers written into Maggie’s character and it seems like it may take Hal some effort to work through them all before they can have any sort of sustained relationship.  The car scene was cute and Hal did a great job of handling the situation.  Their first kiss ended up pretty much how I expected though, with Maggie throwing up a barrier and distancing herself from Hal.  It makes sense considering some of the things we know Maggie went through with Pope’s group.  Maggie and Hal did end on a strong note though.  I don’t think I need as much time devoted to their budding relationship again, we got a lot of scenes with them this week, but they’ve established an interesting dynamic between the two and I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes.  Will it end badly?  Probably.

It was good to see Tom getting pissed off at both Hal and Ben about keeping secrets regarding Ben’s strange behavior.  Ben has a reasonable excuse but Hal really should have known better.  Hal keeping Ben’s situation a secret almost seemed out of character last week so I’m glad he decided to do the right thing now, even if Maggie had to push him into doing it.

The big news this week is that the scarred Skitter is apparently the leader of a resistance group fighting against the Overlords.  This has the potential to be a huge turning point for the series but I get the impression we will see this storyline dragged out for a little while.  Especially with Ben planning on jumping ship and running back to the Skitters.  I loved how Weaver handled the situation and that he brought up the ruthless nature of the Skitters that we’ve seen in the past.  Allowing Weaver, Tom and the 2nd Mass to forget what the Skitters have done so soon would be disappointing.  Hopefully Tom continues to approach this proposed alliance with a healthy bit of pessimism.

Actually, an exciting twist would be to have the Skitters proposed alliance turn out to be a clever trick.  The alliance seems to be wrapped up a little too neatly and I’m starting to smell a swerve coming out of nowhere in the next few weeks.  I’ve seen some speculation that the Harness creatures may actually be the ones leading this invasion.  That’s an interesting idea but what if the Skitters are the ones really in charge and the Overlords are the slave race.  Ok, that’s just crazy, but I’m hoping for something a little more exciting than a simple Skitter/Human team up.

Rick’s return was a neat surprise.  Not much to his character though - he played the part of mouthpiece for a Skitter once again and ended up getting shot in the chest.  I swear that kid could never catch a break.

There’s a great scene between Tom and Weaver at the end of the episode.  Their candid conversation about what may have to happen to Ben if he proves to be a liability had some strong emotion to it.  Tom was on the verge of breaking down at the thought of his son being a potential traitor and Weaver wasn’t handling it much better either.  I like that their tackling the potential of this issue early and it was a good lead in to the final scene with Ben planning to leave the 2nd Mass.

What bugs me about Ben is that he likes to get his brothers into trouble.  Last week he asks Hal to keep a secret for him, now he’s asking Matt.  Hopefully Matt has the good sense to tell someone before Ben runs off.  I don’t need to see another episode with Tom tracking down one of his missing kids.

While one less Maggie and Hal relationship scene might have helped with the pacing, “Love and Other Acts of Courage” was an improvement over last week.  A little less action but the developments this week could have huge repercussions over the course of the rest of the season.

Source : ign[dot]com

Apple Maps May Come to OS X and PC

Apple may be bringing its upcoming Apple Maps not just to mobile devices on iOS, but also to Macs running the latest OS X Mountain Lion.

According to developer Cody Cooper, several lines of code point to Apple Maps working on the latest Intel Chipset in the MacBook Pro and Air product lines. According to Cooper, as he told TechPP, this doesn’t necessarily mean that older Macs won’t have access to the maps service, but because of shading support on different components.

It’s not too far-fetched to imagine Apple Maps coming to OS X, but there might even be a possibility that Maps could end up on Windows machines eventually (there are more iPhone/iPad owners with Windows-based computers than Macs); Putting iTunes on Windows was universally lauded as an all-around good decision.

Apple has been very vocal about adding the best parts of iOS to their desktop computers, so it's certainly possible we could see Google competitors, like Maps or Siri, hit OS X sooner, rather than later.

Source : ign[dot]com

We Have Anarchy Reigns. What Should We Do?

Platinum Games is currently one of Japan’s most beloved developers, and just about everything the studio does these days is carefully tracked by industry enthusiasts. From MadWorld to Infinite Space and from Bayonetta to Vanquish, Platinum Games has created a smorgasbord of titles since its founding in 2006. And two of its future titles – Project P-100 and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance – have yet to see the light of day.

But one of its recent games has seen the light of day, at least in Japan. It’s there that Anarchy Reigns – known in Japanese as Max Anarchy – was released on July 5th. And we imported a copy to give you guys some coverage. The fact is, publisher SEGA was slated to release the game worldwide in early July, but after revealing the game was delayed back in late May, we found out that Anarchy Reigns wouldn’t be released anywhere outside of Japan until 2013.

The good news is that we’re not going to let that stop us from giving you Anarchy Reigns coverage. But we want input from you, the readers, about what specifically you crave. With the game being so far removed from western release, our goal is to give you the coverage that fits best its status as a long-off product.

So here’s what you need to know. The game is fully localized, and actually defaults to English text and voice acting. The PlayStation 3 version of the game, like virtually all PS3 games, isn’t region-locked, meaning you can import it from Japan and play it no matter where you are. The catch? With shipping and premium costs associated with importing it, you’re looking at dropping around $100. Oh, and online fidelity is likely going to suffer if you want to play multiplayer. After all, you'll be pinging servers in Japan.

So utilize the poll below and let us know what you want us to do with Anarchy Reigns. Keep in mind that you can select more than one option if that best suits you. And then expand on your thoughts in the comments below. Do you want IGN importing more games from Japan for coverage? Do you want us to only import games that will eventually come out here, or is the exact opposite true? We want to get a better idea of how we should approach Japanese coverage moving forward, and the answers can only come from one source: You.

Colin Moriarty is an IGN PlayStation editor. You can follow him on Twitter and IGN and learn just how sad the life of a New York Islanders and New York Jets fan can be.

Source : ign[dot]com

Bloodshot #1 Review

Bloodshot #1 is a bloody affair. There is plenty of violence, guts, and gore to keep the darker side of you satisfied. Of course, the twist is that almost all of this happens to the title character. Bloodshot has a pretty rough time in his own title. He is blown to pieces in this book again and again. Literally, blown to pieces. As you might have guessed, Bloodshot is a slightly different book when compared with the other relaunched Valiant titles; it's more intense, more violent. It's a brutal book and one that is totally worth checking out.

Duane Swierczynski runs the title character through the gauntlet in this first issue. The script is incredibly well done, playing with your expectations in all the right ways. You think you have the setup all figured out only to find that, like Bloodshot, you are simply being lied to. Rest assured, this is not your typical superhero book, if it can even be called a superhero book at all. It feels more like a classic action movie. We have a hero that has been deceived and manipulated; a hero that also happens to be an unstoppable killing machine. You just now the crap is going to hit the fan and, man, I cannot wait for it. Early indicators point to it being awesome.

The book looks fantastic thanks to Manuel Garcia and Arturo Lozzi. The horrible violence inflicted on Bloodshot is visceral and huge. The entire comic isn't Bloodshot being disemboweled, so it's fortunate that the art looks great during the quieter moments, too. Garcia and Lozzi do an awesome job of conveying emotion in the characters. You can just feel Bloodshot's anger and confusion towards the end of the book. Two pages later he is torn to pieces by high-caliber bullets and you feel that, too. It's just that kind of comic.

Valiant is quickly becoming the publisher to beat and as long they keep putting out quality book like Bloodshot, it's likely to stay that way. Waiting thirty days for the next issue is going to be grueling. I'm ready for more ultra-violence and more Bloodshot.

Benjamin is a writer and storyteller. He owns many leather-bound books and his office smells of rich mahogany. Follow Benjamin on Twitter, or find him on IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

What's the Scoop on Adult Swim's Black Dynamite?

Following in the footsteps of its live-action feature source material, Adult Swim’s new animated series Black Dynamite centers on its title character (played by Michael Jai White), a funky government agent-turned-assassin who is hellbent on stopping “the man,” while also protecting his eclectic family of pimps, prostitutes and orphans. While most of the original film’s cast and creative team have returned for the new show, The Boondocks creator Carl Jones has also come aboard as executive producer.

IGN recently spoke to some of the cast and crew to talk about the new series and how they worked to adapt the movie into a half-hour animated series. Jones recalled that it all started after he saw the Black Dynamite film, which White had written and created.

“As soon as I saw [the movie], the first thing that came to my mind was that this would make an amazing animated series,” said Jones. “Coincidentally, a week later, my manager called me and told me that the production company that did the movie was trying to reach out to me about developing a cartoon. So we met with Mike, started kicking around some ideas and then we took it to Adult Swim.”

During production, the new series quickly took on a life of its own, deviating from the low-budget, B movie look of the 2009 blaxploitation film and focusing instead on a slick and stylized aesthetic. “There are advantages in cartoons,” Jones continued. “You can do things that you can’t do in live-action. It actually opened up a lot more doors for us to explore. Just like the movie, we do film parodies. But now we can do a film parody of King Kong and then actually have Black Dynamite fighting a giant albino gorilla on top of the Watts Towers.”

However, White noted that there are still many similarities to the movie, particularly with the characters. “The essence of the characters is still there. That strange family unit is still evident in the cartoon. It’s not all that different, character-wise.”

Byron Minns, who reprises his role as Bullhorn on the show, felt that the series opened up new doors, allowing the characters to really flesh out their storylines. “The thing that makes the animated series special is that we’re able to delve into the characters in full,” he said. “In the series we have ten movies, and each episode is about a different character. We get to really see who these people are in different situations, how they interact as a family. In that way, it takes the movie so much further.”

Not unlike The Boondocks, Black Dynamite explores its mature themes through the use of comedy, offering entertainment for older and younger viewers alike. “I love the adult cartoons,” said White. “When a kid and an adult can watch it and get different things out of it -- this is one of those things where I think a teenager and an older adult will get different layers out of it. This is the kind of stuff that I would watch.”

Added Jones, “The interesting thing is, we have a whore house in the show, but you never actually ever see them whoring. I made it a point; you won’t ever actually see Black Dynamite being a pimp, and you won’t ever see the whores actually whoring because that’s not what [the show] is about. It’s just a way to give the world a texture that actually existed in that era, but the stories actually have nothing to do with it.”

Although the series is set in the 1970s, Jones said that the show is very modern in the way its presented. “The music of that time period, the colors, the styles, the fashions -- these are things that I think younger people can get out of it because the point of view is very young and fresh, but it’s also set in a world very familiar to people that are 30, 40, 50 years old. To me, it plays on so many different platforms and levels. You have a whole audience of fans that love animated action and fighting, stuff like that. Then you’ll get the Dave Chappelle, Boondocks social commentary and that type of comedy. There are so many ingredients that I think make it palatable for just about everybody.”

Black Dynamite also aims for a unique vision that really utilizes the animated medium while also taking advantage of its distinct period setting. “These people come from a particular slice of life,” said Minns. “They all have different backgrounds. You have a lead character, an ex-CIA assassin who goes back to the neighborhood and takes care of these prostitutes and orphans -- and in his world, that’s noble.

“We have ten crazy episodes that will explore almost any ‘70s icon that we can come up with, and that’s the beauty of animation," he continued. "We can have these people as guest stars on our show. We can bring back Elvis, we can see little Michael Jackson.”

As Kym Whitley, the voice of Honeybee, concluded, “I believe it’s going to be a hit because when I watched it I enjoyed the animation, the story -- it moved. I liked the characters, and it was something I’d not seen before on Adult Swim.”

Black Dynamite premieres Sunday, July 15 on Adult Swim.

Max Nicholson is a writer for IGN, and he desperately seeks your approval. Show him some love on Twitter and IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Scott Snyder Talks About the Joker's Brutal Return

The Joker is coming back. Better yet, he’s coming back in the most horrifying way possible, thanks to the superstar duo of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo, starting in October’s Batman #13. Announced last week, Death of the Family is going to bring back the Clowned Prince of Crime after a year out of the spotlight and, well, faceless.

To get some more dirt on the story, we talked with Snyder about the Joker’s psychology, his unique relationship to the Dark Knight, and how Death of the Family will be tying into other Bat-family titles.

Hero Worship: The Appeal of the Joker

IGN Comics: So last year, Tony Daniel took off Joker’s face in Detective Comics #1. How long has Death of the Family been in the works?

Scott Snyder: I’ve had the beginnings of the idea for a Joker story like this since before the New 52, and then it really came together later on. What happened was DC said they wanted to take Joker away and take some of the classic villains off the table a little bit so there could be room for these new villains in Batman that have been exciting to work with. So I knew that in Detective they were going to take Joker away for a while, and Tony had a couple of different ideas about how to do that. I talked to him about it and began to think about the kind of story I’d eventually want to tell, and [Tony] had a couple of different options; any of them would’ve really worked. But this one I thought would tail perfectly into this, so he really wanted to go with the taking the face off one. It was cool with me, so he did that, and then about six months ago I started talking with Peter Tomasi about a story we could do to bring the Joker back.

It’s really meant to be the biggest, craziest, most twisted Joker story I could possibly tell. The more you think about it, one of the things that’s most interesting is that the Joker, as prevalent as he is in Batman mythology, actually isn’t in comics that much when you look back. I mean, he’s in Batman R.I.P. and he was in Batman and Robin in places, and before that he was in No Man’s Land or wherever, but he actually isn’t a central villain in Grant’s [Morrison] stuff. Even though he plays a really great role, he hasn’t been front and center and pitted against Batman in a huge way in a really long time. So even though he’s been in the animated stuff and the movies, there was a realization among us that there hasn’t been a big Joker story in a while and we’re taking him off the table for a year, so this is going to be the opportunity to bring him back in the most vicious way possible.

For me, it became really about writing a love letter or exploration of the Joker that would be my Joker story to end all of my Joker stories. Almost like if I only ever got one chance to write him, this would be it. It’s everything I love and admire and am terrified about in the Joker, all in one place. It’s got a lot of meaning to me personally; a lot of design into his psychology and the symbolism there. Everything from the history of the court jesters and the royal court and tarot cards and everything to this sort of weird Shakespearean stuff to squirting flowers and beyond. It really is an “everything and the kitchen sink Joker” in one place.

“

The Joker is the guy that essentially says, 'I am the jester that serves you, king, in Gotham.'

IGN: That’s crazy. I have a couple of follow-ups to that. The first, well, you mentioned how DC took Joker off the table for a while. I always find he works best when he has been gone for a while and he kind of comes back with a bang. Why do you think he’s become such a classic villain even though he’s a character we only get in doses?

Snyder: I think he embodies all of the most terrifying things to Batman. The Joker is the guy that essentially says, “I am the jester that serves you, king, in Gotham. I bring your worst nightmares to life to make you stronger. And in that, I have a relationship with you that no one else has. I know the darkest corners of your heart and I bring those to life. I celebrate those.” He sees into Batman, saying, “Here are the things that are totally crazy about you and these are the things that I love and that make you wonderful. Let’s celebrate those by you stopping me from doing horrific things in your city.”

And in that way, he represents to me the truest and most frightening form of what a villain can be, because he’s what Batman is most frightened of about himself personified. He could descend into this kind of madness and let his pathologies get the best of him and he is crazy deep down somehow. That’s what the Joker is sort of saying to him all the time; that’s why we have they this special relationship. “All you have to do is give up Bruce Wayne and come live with me.” In that way, I think he’s not just Batman’s greatest villain but he’s such a brilliant villain in general because he represents all of these things that a villain can be to this incredible extreme.

IGN: In the past, in Black Mirror, you wrote Joker a little bit in one of the issues. Is your approach to him this time around any different than what you did in Black Mirror?

Snyder: That is sort of the seed for this Joker, in the way that that Joker seemed to know more than he should about his enemies. I think the fun, the realization there for me was the Joker was just as scary without his conventional grin. He’s wearing a mask throughout that story in the beginning, so Joker can still be Joker even when you just catch a glimpse of his eye or his hair. He can still be himself and be frightening.

So in that way, there’s a connection here but also just in the way how in that one he sees Dick Grayson and he says, “You smell like feathers, little birdie, you’re not my Batman.” So that notion that he has a deep connection and a deep familiarity and knowledge of Bruce as Batman is something that’s hugely important in this story. Joker’s got a big secret and a big axe to grind against the Bat-family, so he’s really built to this point that factors in all of the things that have been happening over the last year. In that way, I feel like it’s a story that really has a big scope but at the same time is extremely personal.

IGN: In terms of the Bat-family, they’re just coming out of the Court of Owls story. What’s different about the threats that they’re facing from the Joker – a villain that they think they know pretty well – as opposed to the Court who was completely new to them?

Snyder: For me, the idea with Court of Owls was that, when the other books played a part, it was about Gotham history. It was about those writers getting to explore a moment in Gotham history and creating a Talon that came from that era to be pitted against their heroes for reasons that were personal to what was happening in their series individually. But here, I think a lot of people have the idea that the Joker has faced off with some of these Bat-family characters before, but he really hasn’t. I mean, when you think about The Killing Joke and you think about Barbara [Gordon], you think, well, he came after Barbara and that. But he didn’t, he was coming after Commissioner Gordon and using Barbara. And similarly, in Death in the Family, he uses Jason [Todd] to get at Batman in as many ways as he’s hurting Jason too. In that way, Joker would make the argument that, “I’ve never faced off with you guys, but now I’m looking you in the eye and I’m coming for you. I will tear down and kill and burn anything in your life to break you.” They’ve never faced a nightmare like the Joker is the idea, and he’s coming for each one of those characters individually.

And you will see him in those books. What’s going to happen in Batman is a thousand percent self-contained; it’s going to be my big Joker story with Greg Capullo in Batman. You will not have to read another book to follow it whatsoever to follow it, I promise you that. It’s from #13-17, with a big, huge finale in 17 with an annual-sized issue – and we’ll be in the back-ups too, so it’ll just be a giant story that’s the equivalent of almost seven issues packed into five. Even though that will be completely self-contained in Batman, you will see Joker in the other series in self-contained ways similar to Night of the Owls, where he goes after those Bat-family members in ways that will give him a chance to completely unleash the most terrifying things you’ve seen in those series up to this point.

Batman #13 Cover

The difference between Night of the Owls and this, I think, is I love Night of the Owls because it gave us all a chance to explore the different layers of Gotham’s past, but this one is really personal. Meaning, when Joker comes after you because he’s angry, he comes after you in the most personal way possible. Even if he doesn’t care that much about you, he’s going to expose the thing he thinks you’re most afraid of about yourself and go for it. And there’s nothing off limits when you use the Joker; nothing gruesome, nothing macabre, nothing violent. In that way, this is a really different storyline than what happened in Night of the Owls because it’s extremely personal for each character.

IGN: It seems to be tempting when writing the Joker to lose focus on Batman himself – is there a trick to making sure you keep that balance?

Snyder: I think the key is that Joker is all about Batman. He exists to be the demon on Batman’s shoulder. Here, we won’t lose focus on Batman because it’s told through Batman’s point of view, and then Joker is haunting him, almost, throughout. The Joker is there to say, “You’ve forgotten important things and I’m going to prove those to you.” So the trick to not losing Batman in a Joker story is that, at least in my interpretation of the Joker, he exists solely to expose the dark truths about Batman. In that way, they’re equal partners on the page.

IGN: Perfect. And obviously they released that teaser earlier this week which was just creepy and awesome – what do you think Greg is bringing to this story?

Snyder: Oh, man. Greg is one of the best partners I’ve ever had on anything. He’s so creative and so exuberant; he’s got so many ideas. From the page turn in Batman #5 to all of these visual things in Court of the Owls that were his idea. Here, he’s really designing a Joker that’s iconic, I think – he looks different because he doesn’t have his face, or he has it in a different way, at least, which I think is going to be really scary and cool – but at the same time we wanted to do something that makes it look like Joker is going to work. Like he’s coming to get you. He’s got his tools. He might be a little bloodstained, but he’s Joker and he’s coming to do what he does best. And the core things about him that you recognize as iconic will be there, even though this will be a scarier, almost horror movie version of the Joker.

So Greg is having a ball with it, his sketches are amazing, and the fun is also to be able to let him interpret the terrors that the Joker brings on the page. So if I say there’s a scene where someone’s in the GCPD and Commissioner Gordon is looking for them with a flashlight, you see a flash of white, a flash of green, you see a white hand trailing along the wall, you hear something slinking past… Greg is just wonderful about creating the most terrifying interpretation of that stuff. All I can say is it’s the scariest thing I’ve ever worked on, I love it. [laughs]

IGN: [laughs] That’s really exciting. You mentioned the back-ups a little bit before, but how are they working in relation to the main story?

Snyder: Well the back-ups are going to tie-in in the way that you’ll see how the Joker approaches the other villains in the rogue’s gallery to either participate or to take them down in different ways, and his relationships to them will be explored in the back-ups in ways that I think will really surprise people and be fun.

IGN: And I guess my last question would have to be, what’s your all-time favorite Joker story aside from your own?

Snyder: Aside from my own? My own is always my favorite. [laughs] Honestly, it’s hard to pick, but it’d probably be The Killing Joke, simply because it really blew me away when I read it in terms of the deep relationship that Batman has to the Joker there, and that moment when they laugh together at the end is one of my favorite moments in all of comics. But also The Dark Knight Returns; the fact that Joker was catatonic until Batman returned. There’s something fascinating to me about that.

The other one that is really important to me that I think maybe gets overlooked sometimes is the animated Joker in Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. I think that’s one of the best Joker stories ever; it’s so dark and so piercing in terms of the Joker’s psychology and how it relates to Bruce and what would happen if he knew who he was and how far he’s willing to go. All of those things are really well explored there. So I don’t know, there’s a constellation of things that I love. Also, Grant Morrison’s Arkham Asylum for its strange transgender weirdness with him. But at the end of the day, that’s what I love. He’s a character who, at his core, in all of his interpretations, is deeply terrifying, and deeply exciting to use for that reason. He comes at Batman in a way that exposes the greatest nightmares of Batman’s heart, which is incredibly fresh and exciting and horrifying.

IGN: Well, awesome, I’m really excited for it, man. I was instantly pumped when I saw that teaser. [laughs]

Snyder: Thanks man, I can’t wait for you guys to see it. And thanks to IGN, you guys are always great to us, and I appreciate that.

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on IGN. He often dances with the devil in the pale moonlight.

Source : ign[dot]com

Man of Steel Plot Details Revealed

With Comic-Con fast approaching, director Zack Snyder will no doubt have plenty of Man of Steel goodness to showcase in San Diego. Until then, Warner Bros.' Superman reboot has been held under lock and key, with only a logo and the promotional image below to whet our appetites.

However, /Film reports that an update to the official IMAX website -- a posting which has already been removed -- has revealed two very important bits of information: one, the film will be in both 3D and IMAX (obviously); and two, we've also been given a new plot synopsis:

"In the pantheon of superheroes, Superman is the most recognized and revered character of all time. Clark Kent/Kal-El (Henry Cavill) is a young twenty-something journalist who feels alienated by powers beyond his imagination. Transported years ago to Earth from Krypton, a highly advanced, distant planet, Clark struggles with the ultimate question ‘Why am I here?’ Shaped by the values of his adoptive parents Martha (Diane Lane) and Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner), Clark discovers having extraordinary abilities means making difficult decisions. When the world is in dire need of stability, an even greater threat emerges. Clark must become a Man of Steel, to protect the people he loves and shine as the world’s beacon of hope -- Superman."

Still a little vague, yes, but it does give us a general sense of what's to come. Also, since Man of Steel was not shot using IMAX cameras; the movie will be DMR up-converted for the final release.

Man of Steel is scheduled to hit theaters on June 14, 2013.

Source : ign[dot]com

StarCraft II – IPL Team Arena Challenge 3 – Week 9 Preview

Welcome to another look at IGN Pro League Team Arena Challenge, the StarCraft II tournament featuring the very best teams in the world. In each match the teams play a Best of 9, elimination style match, where the winning player stays on while the losing player is replaced by another player on their team. First team to five wins is the victor.

In this weekly column we preview the upcoming matches with some analysis of their current performance and their performance in the tournament thus far.

This week marks the Western teams last stand against the top Korean organizations.

TSL v Acer

Rosters

Acer

Bly, DarkHydra, Mondragon, Nerchio, ParanOid, Scarlett

TSL

RevivaL, Polt, Symbol, Hyun, Cyrano, Inori, Punisher, Shine, Dream, RagnaroK, Ultimate

Road So Far

Acer

• Won 5 - 4 v Eclypsia


• Lost 4 - 5 v Prime


• Won 5 - 3 v Mouz


• Won 5 - 1 v aTnType

TSL

• Won 5 - 0 v Check 6


• Won 5 - 4 v FXO


• Lost 4 - 5 v StarTale

Analysis

Acer keeps finding themselves in an underdog role and they keep plowing through their opponents. In the most recent match, the polls still put aTnType as the favorite, but Nerchio made quick work of their European rivals, winning 4 matches to close out a slaughter started by his teammate ParanOid.

TSL had a close match again, this time losing out to StarTale in a great comeback by Squirtle after StarTale was down 4-2. The lack of closing power is something that is uncharacteristic for TSL, usually Polt is a sure finisher, but Squirtle had too much momentum in this match.

Acer looks to be very strong with Scarlett joining the team, but this is still a team without a lot of depth, and not a single Protoss player on the roster. Even their only Terran player DarkHydra is suspect and is relatively untested and unproven. However, with three very strong players in Bly, Scarlett and Nerchio, it is very possible on of these could carry their team to an upset. All the stars would have to align for this to happen though, and I would say TSL will win a relatively close match; the depth of the TSL roster is far greater than Acer's.

Prediction - TSL 5 - 3 Acer

MVP v Karont3

Rosters

MVP

DongRaeGu, Dream, Finale, Keen, KeePing, Lure, Monster, Noblesse, sC, Sniper, TAiLS, Vampire, Galaxy

Karont3

LoLvsxD, LucifroN, Ryo, VortiX, AlastOr, MikOeL

Road So Far

MVP

• Won 5 - 0 v Evil Geniuses


• Lost 1 - 5 v IM

Karont3

• Lost 2 - 5 v Quantic


• Won 5 - 2 v Check 6


• Won 5 - 1 v Empire

Analysis

MVP looked surprisingly bad in their last match against IM. In what looked like it could have been a league final, IM completely rolled over MVP without using any of their top players. Only DongRaeGu managed to take just a single map before being defeated by Happy. They will need a much better effort against Karont3.

Speaking of Karont3, VortiX looks to be the hottest player in Europe right now after qualifying for TSL4, defeating HasuObs, Socke, LoWLey, Select and Golden consecutively, and then all killing Empire's best possible lineup after Violet left the team earlier this week. This Spanish team is proving it's here to stay with two of Europe's fastest improving players, capable of catching lightning in a bottle and then dominating any high level team.

Karont3 will need both their stars to be in top form to take this match as MVP is the most talented team they have played thus far. And while Karont3 has proven they can beat any Western based team, they still haven't had to go against a Korean lineup. MVP won't be able to look ahead however, as if they don't take Karont3 seriously, its very possible for them to lose. Still it's MVPs match to lose, and assuming they play at top strength, should be able to take this.

Prediction - MVP 5 - 3 Karont3

NsHoSeo v Evil Geniuses

Rosters

NsHoSeo

Sage, BanBans, San, Tassadar, Jjakji, Seal, Sculp, Sting, Freaky, Fairy

Evil Geniuses

DeMusliM, IdrA, iNcontroL, JYP, HuK, LzGaMeR, Machine, PuMa, ThorZaIN

Road So Far

NsHoSeo

• Won 5 - 3 v FXO.CIS


• Lost 2 - 5 v SlayerS

Evil Geniuses

• Won 5 - 3 v Infinity Seven


• Lost 0 - 5 v MVP


• Won 5 - 3 v DtG


• Won 5 - 2 v Dignitas

Analysis

EG recovered nicely after the thrashing they took from MVP Monster two rounds ago. They cruised past Dignitas behind a strong performance from HuK, who continues to make appearances and now finally has made his mark on an EG team league match. It seems as though EG may have fallen into a rhythm, however, as we stated last time, Dignitas was a team without a direction, and NsHoSeo will be much harder for them.

NsHoSeo could have beaten SlayerS, if they had used their best player and GSL Champion Jjakji. Why Jjakji was absent remains a mystery, but if he plays in this match, it will be much easier than SlayerS was for them. All of HsHoSeo's supporting cast are comparable to every player on EG, but with more consistency across the board.

Make no mistake, NsHoSeo will need Jjakji to win this match. All of EGs players have proven themselves at this point with HuK, IdrA, JYP and PuMa racking up wins in the tournament thus far. NsHoSeo remains slightly less proven though as none of their roleplayers have stepped up as a primary #2 player to Jjakji. EG has a really good chance at taking this match and I think it will be close regardless. However, at their best NsHoSeo is a better team, and I expect them to barely hold on to win this match.

Prediction - NsHoSeo 5 - 4 Evil Geniuses

Prime v FXO

Rosters

Prime

AnNyeong, BboongBboong, Byun, Creator, MarineKing, Maru, AriA, Classic, Dayfly, Salmosa

FXO

asd, Choya, Crane, Gumiho, jks, Leenock, Lucky, Sirius, Supreme, TheBest, Tear, Tree, Weekend, Whale

Road So Far

Prime

• Won 5 - 4 v Acer


• Lost 3 - 5 v Team Liquid

FXO

• Lost 4 - 5 v TSL


• Won FF v Quantic


• Won 5 - 3 v compLexity

Analysis

Prime had a stunning defeat at the hands of Team Liquid, or more specifically, Liquid`TaeJa who all killed Prime, the defending GSTL, KSL and Team Arena Challenge champions. Prime has now looked vulnerable in a few matches, with their near loss against Acer coupled with their loss to Team Liquid. While they haven't had one particular weakness in their game, they will need a stronger effort all around to defeat FXO.

Meanwhile, FXO has looked like they have taken a step back. While Tear has proven to be a top player now with big team league wins for several weeks in a row, losing Oz and the fall of Gumiho and Leenock is starting to show. Neither player are as good as they once were in late 2011, and while Lucky has been a bright spot for them, they will need more than just two players to carry the load. Unless FXO gets help from their former superstars, they will be in a lot of trouble against Prime.

Prime still has one of the top 5 players in the world in MarineKing, and Creator has proven himself to be the ace that Prime needs, winning in the clutch in a few matches. At only 15 years old, it's astonishing what Creator has been able to do in carrying his team through wins. FXO's only chance is a strong performance from Tear, and then Leenock, Lucky and Gumiho returning to their former glory. Prime will be just too good for them.

Prediction - Prime 5 - 3 FXO

What do you think about this week's matches? Can FXO reclaim their past riches, or will Prime continue it's team league dominance?

Let us know in the comments below and make sure you watch all of these great games on the IPL site and tune in next week for a wrap-up of these matches and our breakdown of Losers Round 4.

Source : ign[dot]com

Trailer Leaks from Canceled Amalur MMO

A trailer for Kingdoms of Amalur MMO Project Copernicus has emerged, despite the fact that the project will never see the light of day. While screens and video of Project Copernicus leaked out months ago, new footage gives the best idea we’ve had yet of what the universe in Copernicus might have looked like.

When we last saw footage of Project Copernicus, a trailer showed a fly-through of environments that included a look at what the game’s map might have been like. New footage reveals an even more in-depth look, including a first glimpse of a few of the game’s characters. (The footage can’t be embedded, but can be seen at Kotaku.)

Project Copernicus began development in 2007 with a planned release date of 2010. A couple years later, we heard the first details about Copernicus, including the idea that it was set in a "Tolkien-esque fantasy realm."

Copernicus missed its 2010 goal and news of the MMO was scarce as 38 approached the release of Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning earlier this year. Soon afterward, news of the studio’s deep financial troubles began, leading up to 38 Studios laying off its entire staff in May. Since then, news of other now-canceled projects has emerged, including a planned sequel to Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning.

Despite the sad ending to 38’s story, it’s fascinating to take a look at what might have been if Project Copernicus had eventually been released. For more details on the eventual demise of 38 Studios, additional details were provided in recent comments from studio founder Curt Schilling.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com