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Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 23, 2014 in Videogames 
If you’ve been clamoring to start playing Orcs Must Die! Unchained, I have good news. A closed beta will begin on June 27th. The new free-to-play game has been in development for a bit, and they’re going to slowly start opening up the gates to players. You can sign up on their website to be entered in the beta. They’ll be rolling it out over time, and will feature new heroes every week to try. If you’re impatient? Well, you can pay to get in early if you really want. But I’d advise just waiting for the beta. The new trappings sound a lot like MOBA games, but with an OMD twist. Watch the old trailer below for a look at some gameplay or check out their site here to register. Read more…
Tags: Orcs Must Die!
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 23, 2014 in Cinema, Hobbies and Collections 
The special features from The LEGO Movie keep on pouring out, and this latest one features some self-aware humor in regards to the next LEGO film in production, Ninjago. The ninja-based series of sets has proved popular with kids and has gotten its own TV show already, so a movie isn’t that surprising. However, the cartoon features CGI with the flexible cartoony LEGO figures, rather than the more realistic take that The LEGO Movie featured. I hope they change to the latter. The promo features the “President of Hollywood” selling Emmett on some minor ninja-related changes to the current film. Check it out below! Read more…
Tags: Lego, The LEGO Movie
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 22, 2014 in Cinema 
Looks like Doctor Strange is rolling right along! Jon Spaihts (who wrote the first draft of Prometheus before a certain someone came along and changed it a fair bit) has been tapped to script the film. Originally Thomas Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer had been lined up to script the affair, but Spaihts is one the way to fast-track this one and get it made pronto. Hopefully he can bang out a solid script for Marvel! Oh yeah, and in Doctor Strange casting news, Jared Leto is also apparently being eyed for the lead role as well. Who will eventually get it? No idea, at this point. Read more…
Tags: Doctor Strange, Marvel
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 22, 2014 in Videogames 
Out of all the games at E3 last week, one of the most interesting games that caught my eye was Cuphead. It’s a run-and-gun platformer that can be played single player or co-op — and it has some amazing art direction. Reminiscent of classic cartoons from the 30s and 40s (while still being its own thing), Cuphead hits a niche I didn’t even know I wanted to see. The art is all hand-drawn, and the jazz soundtrack is completely original as well. Really impressive! I can’t wait to see more of it. The game sadly doesn’t come out until 2015, and will arrive on Xbox One and PC. Check out the trailer below. Read more…
Tags: Indie Games, Steam, Xbox One
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 21, 2014 in Star Wars 
It’s everyone’s favorite time of the week: Star Wars Episode VII rumor time! Latino Review did some digging on the recent Making Star Wars post, and found a few things weren’t quite on. But they were close! The bad guys are indeed a group of mercenaries hunting down Jedi, and Adam Driver and Lupita Nyong’o and the two mains in that crew. Black and chrome will indeed be their color scheme as well, including some Storm Trooper underlings. It seems that many designs in the film are being taken or based on old Ralph McQuarrie designs that went unused in the original trilogy. I am definitely okay with that, as it appeals to my nostalgic side. They also go into some speculation based on their sources, but you can read that all here. Read more…
Tags: Episode VII
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 21, 2014 in Cinema 
In a press conference, Paramount Pictures announced something no one would ever guess: Transformers 5 will be coming. In 2016, no less. Yes, the money train will continue to barrel onward, leaving a trail of mutilated robots in the dust behind it. Obviously, no word on who will be directing it, acting in it, or write it yet. No release date either, just a beautifully nebulous “2016.” I want to say “when will it end?” but the overseas market is booming, so I don’t think we’ll see this Transformers series slow down anytime soon. I’d rather see a new iteration, closer to the roots of the series in design language, but for now, we’re stuck with Bay’s vision. Read more…
Tags: Transformers, Transformers: Age of Extinction
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 20, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
It looks like Quentin Tarantino will be dabbling in the comic pages soon. Django, from Tarantino’s last film, Django Unchained, will leap into a comic book series in which he meets up with Zorro. Dynamite Entertainment will release the comic book series, which (along with Tarantino) will be written by Matt Wagner, and yes, Zorro and Django is the oddest crossover ever. I think it’s weird enough to work though, as they’re both very “pulpy” characters that could play well off of each other. Django previously was adapted as a 7-issue series by Dynamite, so it’s no surprise to see them bringing it back in a new way. I wonder how it’ll turn out! Read more…
Tags: Django Unchained, Quentin Tarantino
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 20, 2014 in Videogames 
I don’t know if there’s anything I can add to that headline. It’s Angry Birds mixed with Transformers, and it’s a game/app coming very soon. Comic-con features a lot of new stuff, but some of the news is a little weirder and oddball than your typical movie announcement. What else can Angry Birds cross over with next? Harry Potter? Doctor Who? Star Trek? Minecraft? All of those sound like licenses to print absurd amounts of money. I imagine they’ll all have very punny names like Optimus Prawk and… Laserbeak. Wait. Hang on a second! Read more…
Tags: Angry Birds, Transformers
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 16, 2014 in Animation 
Apparently it hasn’t been all fun and games over at Nickelodeon. They recently finished work on the third season of The Legend of Korra, only to have episodes 3 through 6 leaked on the Mexican Nickelodeon site. Oops! In response to this, they quickly released a trailer giving a deeper look at the upcoming season to satiate fans. I’ve included it below. The third season will begin airing on July 3rd, which is earlier than usual, so perhaps the leak situation has pushed things up a bit. The trailer itself looks impressive, and to me it looks like the budget for the series has been increased. I have no idea what’s going on story-wise, though, as I haven’t caught up with Korra yet. I will someday soon though! Read more…
Tags: nickelodeon, The Legend of Korra
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 16, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections 
Threezero, who has frequently collaborated with Ashley Wood under the company ThreeA, has been doing some amazing work. Their figures have been fantastically done and have been both original and based off of existing popular culture. Threezero’s latest work? An Atlas titan from Titanfall. It stands 20 inches tall with its base (and 18″ without), has over 100 articulation points, light-up cockpit and eyes, an openable front hatch, and a 6 inch fully poseable pilot to fit inside. That’s right, you get a figure to go inside your other bigger figure. Pre-orders are open now on Threezero’s shop, and it’ll run you $430, not including shipping. So, uh, it’s pricey, but I think if there’s any Titanfall model to own, it’s this one. Check out some videos of it below. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, ThreeA, Titanfall
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 15, 2014 in Animation, Anime 
Good news, Studio Ghibli fans! The documentary about the famous Japanese animation studio, “The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness,” will be getting a theatrical release here in the US thanks to GKIDS. The doc, directed by Mami Sunada, follows the production of the most recent two Ghibli releases, The Wind Rises (from Hayao Miyazaki) and The Tale of Princess Kaguya (by Isao Takahata). Sunada was granted unprecedented access to the studio while they toiled, getting a surprisingly up-close look at their work. It’s unusual to see such unfettered access to a Japanese studio, much less Ghibli themselves. GKIDS did not specify a release date, but did say that it will come this year. This is one that any animation fan will not want to miss. Read more…
Tags: Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, Studio Ghibli
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 15, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
It’s official, folks, after months of rumors and frequent denials by Jason Momoa, HitFix has confirmed that he’ll be playing Aquaman in the upcoming Batman v. Superman film. Momoa even recently complained about everyone bothering him as to whether he’d play the watery hero, but it seems he’s just sworn to secrecy by Warner Bros. and DC. It looks like all that destruction by Superman in Man of Steel will be a springboard for the story, as HitFix claims that both Batman and Aquaman will be pissed about the damage done. Aquaman still won’t have a huge part, but they’re definitely setting him up for the eventual Justice League film. Plus, at the very least, this is going to be the most badass incarnation of Aquaman yet! I think a Khal Drogo-style Aquaman would be very entertaining. Read more…
Tags: Aquaman, Batman v. Superman
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 14, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections 
I didn’t think I’d ever be writing ‘Wes Anderson’ and ‘LEGOs’ in the same sentence. A promotional image of a single LEGO brick backed by the Grand Budapest logo showed up the other day, teasing people about what might be in store. Well sadly, it’s not a consumer-level LEGO set, but instead it’s a massive model made by master LEGO builder Ryan Ziegelbauer. The building is made from more than 50,000 bricks, took over 575 hours to put together, and weighs 150 pounds. It stretches 6 and a half feet wide and 7 feet tall — not too shabby! If you want to see it in person, it’ll be at The Grove in LA from June 14th to the 15th, but if you’re like me, you can just watch the timelapse build video I’ve included below. Read more…
Tags: Lego, Wes Anderson
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 14, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
DC and Warner Bros. have been working on a Justice League movie for a long time. A very long time. But a recent report from Nikki Finke says that the company may be closer to realizing its vision — or a the very least, they have a map laid out. According to Finke, the current plan is to lead up into a Justice League movie with the Batman v. Superman film (something we all expected), and not have standalone Wonder Woman or Green Lantern/Flash films until after it releases. An interesting idea. Below is a full list of the upcoming films. Obviously, everything is in flux and things can change, but this looks like DC’s roadmap for their future superhero films. Read more…
Tags: DC Comics, Justice League, Warner Brothers
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 13, 2014 in Cinema 
Curious how the next big Jurassic Park film will turn out? Jurassic World has some really interesting ideas behind it and a solid cast. Plus, Colin Trevorrow seems to understand what made Jurassic Park special, so hopefully he can direct a solid picture too. So: here are some of the first pics from the set of Jurassic World straight from Universal to AV Club, featuring Chris Pratt, Dallas Bryce Howard, Nick Robinson, that kid from Iron Man 3 (Ty Simpkins), and no dinosaurs at all. I suppose that’s to be expected though. Perhaps some of the characters are looking at dinosaurs, as evidenced by their scared expressions! Read more…
Tags: Jurassic Park, Jurassic World
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 13, 2014 in Cinema, Hobbies and Collections 
In the run up to the DVD and Blu-ray release of The LEGO Movie, you’ve got to get people excited, right? That’s why Warner Bros. and the crew behind the film have released one of the silly special features on the disc: a spoof trailer featuring Abraham Lincoln and Michelangelo as History Cops! This appears to be goofy side project made by the crew with all the extra LEGOs they had sitting around, and while it reuses a joke or two from the film itself, it’s still pretty funny. Also, I hope it encourages you to pick up The LEGO Movie, because it’s worth every penny. Check out the trailer below the jump! Read more…
Tags: Lego, The LEGO Movie
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 9, 2014 in Videogames 
Star Citizen continues to grow and change impressively. For being entirely crowd-funded, they’re doing a great job making the whole process look professional and open. Their latest release is the reveal of a new ship, the Freelancer, in a faux commercial, just like their previous ship reveals. This one is a trucker vessel though, so it has all the trappings of a truck commercial, complete with rough-and-tough voiceover and gritty kinetic typography. It’s pretty neat. Also neat is the release of their dogfighting module to all backers, so if you’ve supported Star Citizen at one point or another, check out the news page here and get to downloading! Read more…
Tags: Star Citizen
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 9, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Doctor Strange has been a film that Marvel has been plugging away on slowly, but it seems like the ball is finally rolling. A few days ago, Scott Derrickson announced that he would be directing the film, working off of a script by Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer (although there were some rumors of rewrites). Now the question is: who will play Doctor Strange himself? Well, Deadline caught wind of Marvel’s most recent wishlist for the film, which is basically just their dream choices without any realistic vetting. They are: Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Hardy. Those two join the previous rumored choices of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Johnny Depp (but chances are those two have passed the role up by now). Sorry Marvel, but these are some boring choices! Try picking someone more unique! Read more…
Tags: Doctor Strange, Marvel
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 8, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Ok, ok, maybe that’s a bit cynical of me. But Peyton Reed did direct the movie Yes Man, so it’s an easy joke to make, especially given that Marvel seems to want one of those right now. Adam McKay, who was in the running to direct Ant-Man previously, will be contributing to the script, but the directing is all Reed. Now it’s up to them to steer this project back to safety. I’m just not sure if you can save this movie in the eyes of the hardcore fans now — they are the ones most upset by Edgar Wright’s departure. But as long as the mass audiences like it, that’s all the matters now. Read more…
Tags: ant-man, Marvel
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 7, 2014 in Videogames 
Tom Francis, the creative mind behind Gunpoint (one of my favorite indie games from last year), has released a new game: Floating Point. For free. Yes, the whole game. For totally free. He says it’s a ‘thank you’ to all the people who supported Gunpoint and him over the last year, and he wanted to give something back. It’s not a large game, but it is incredibly cool and relaxing. You swing about from shape to shape, collecting objects and listening to some cool tunes. It’s really unique and and be played entirely with your mouse. Oh yeah, and it’s free! Who can argue with that? Check out a trailer below. Read more…
Tags: Gunpoint, Indie Games, Tom Francis
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 7, 2014 in Television 
Yup: no one can stop the Game of Thrones train. The fantasy series has beaten the previous record-holder at HBO, The Sopranos, to become the company’s most popular show ever averaging a gross audience of 18.4 million viewers. That’s a lot of fans. The previous record was 18.2 million, by HBO’s iconic Sopranos, but it seems that dragons, swords, and magic were able to win more people over than a classic crime drama. And that’s saying something, I think! Just don’t expect anyone to make it out alive of this next season, you know? Read more…
Tags: Game of Thrones, HBO
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 7, 2014 in Anime 
At long last, after ages of teasing, planning, delays, and uncertainty, Sailor Moon Crystal is finally real. I mean, we’re seeing actual animated footage of it, so I can only assume it’s not my imagination. This is a remake essentially, a new anime adaption that plans to stay closer to the original manga’s storyline. The series is planning to run 26 episodes, and will begin airing on July 5th. It’ll be streaming worldwide, so chances are you’ll be able to watch it somewhere (Viz Media has licensed it in the US). Also, it’ll only air twice a month, so factor that into your Sailor Moon-watching schedule too! Check out the trailer below. Read more…
Tags: Sailor Moon
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 6, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections
A while back LEGO released a Volkswagen T1 Camper Van, which was one of its most beloved sets in a long time. Now they’re releasing another classic car, this time a Mini Cooper. It’s looks fantastic, especially in its unique green color. It also features an adorable little picnic basket and blanket for those lazy Sunday afternoon drives. The model is coming out in August, and will run you $99.99 USD. Not too bad! Check out the video below of the LEGO designer showing of the features of the set, like a brick-built engine, functional trunk, and the removable roof. Read more…
Tags: Lego
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 6, 2014 in Star Wars 
After the success of Chronicle, Josh Trank has gone on to get signed to the Fantastic Four reboot, which was a big step up. Now, Disney is courting him too, and have signed him to direct a Star Wars spin off film. He’s another example of Disney’s strategy: find young up-and-coming directors to make Star Wars spin off films for cheap! Once again, there’s no word on what the story or script will focus on, but that’s to be expected when we’re this early in the game. Until then, he’s working on The Fantastic Four. How that film turns out will probably determine whether I get excited for this one! Read more…
Tags: Josh Trank, Star Wars
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