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Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 31, 2013 in Television 
Season 4 of Game of Thrones is shaping up to be very exciting, but it looks like some big changes are happening as well. Daario Naharis, originally played by Ed Skrein, will now have a different actor taking on the role: Michiel Huisman. No word on why Huisman is replacing Skrein, but as it becomes a more important part perhaps they wanted someone else to tackle the growing role. Also, replacing Ian Whyte as The Mountain will be Icelandic strongman Hafþór “Thor” Björnsson, and replacing Callum Wharry as Prince Tommen will be Dean-Charles Chapman. Quite a lot of toss-ups, but it’ll be exciting to see everything fall into place! Read more…
Tags: Game of Thrones
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 31, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
The long wait is over, Marvel fans! You now have your voice for Rocket Raccoon: Bradley Cooper. This was the last major part to cast for Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel’s upcoming sci-fi superhero film. Given that he is such a beloved character, director James Gunn said they wanted to get their “dream guy” for the part. It seems Bradley Cooper is that guy! I wonder how fans will react? Guardians of the Galaxy will arrive about one year from now, on August 1st, 2014. Read more…
Tags: Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 30, 2013 in Videogames 
Grand Theft Auto V is almost here, and it’s one of the biggest releases of the year, despite the upcoming next-gen consoles. I’m normally not a big GTA fan, but these trailers are definitely piquing my interest. So, with the game arriving on September 17th, Rockstar has released one more final trailer for whet your taste buds. I have no doubt this game will sell amazingly well and be super popular, but I think I’ll wait for a PC or GOTY edition release later. Too many games are coming out all at once! Read more…
Tags: Grand Theft Auto
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 30, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Were you expecting this casting? Joss Whedon can certainly make some creative picks for actors! James Spader has been cast as Ultron, in Avengers: Age of Ultron. His name, obviously, is not very synonymous with comic books, but he’s got a long and excellent history in film and TV. Is it a bit of a wild choice? Yes. But given that Ultron will probably be CGI, Spader’s voice acting is probably the main draw here. We still don’t know much about the story or how they’ll be introducing him (we’re assuming they’ll change his origin story from the comics), but I’m very excited to see Spader’s take on the rouge AI. Read more…
Tags: Avengers: Age of Ultron
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 26, 2013 in Animation, Cinema 
I love seeing the tricks and effort that go into “movie magic.” Concept art, early animatics, CG tricks, anything that shows how they create the amazing stuff you see on screen. That’s why I was super interested to see on The Awesomer a link to an early animatic for The Avengers, focusing on Iron Man’s introduction. It’s way more exciting and interesting than the one we got, but I can understand why it was ditched: why do we need to be introduced to a villain right away that we’ll never see again? Still, if you’re like me and love seeing this behind-the-scenes work, check it out below. Read more…
Tags: Iron Man, The Avengers
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 26, 2013 in Videogames 
Star Citizen has been an incredible success for a crowdfunding game. Chris Roberts’ game has been getting record support and now, the game is starting to take shape. At an event in Cologne, Roberts and the team reveal the Hanger Module, a download available this Thursday, August 29th, that lets you walk around your hanger and view your ships that you own. Granted, you have to support the game by buying a ship and have backer access to the game, but still: it’s a good first step. I’ve included an embed below of Roberts demoing the hanger and the crowd cheering. At everything. No matter what. Read more…
Tags: Star Citizen
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 25, 2013 in Videogames 
Titanfall has consistently been one of the best-showing games at the past few press conferences. It’s fast-paced, incredibly exciting to watch, and also very vertical. I love shooters that require you to look up and engage on multiple levels, dealing with enemies above and below. Most of all, I love mechs and giant robots. Titanfall looks to combine that with on-foot combat that’s super versatile (double-jumps and wall-running!), while not making either side too overpowered. This new trailer from Gamescom runs through a multiplayer level with plenty going on, and makes me very interested for the game’s release. Check it out below. Read more…
Tags: Titanfall
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 25, 2013 in Videogames
We don’t know when (probably October), and we don’t know how much (probably $350 or so), but Nintendo will be releasing a special edition Wii U system branded with Zelda-inspired designs on the controller. Along with this news we’ve also gotten word of a few upgrades to Wind Waker HD. The Triforce hunt will be shortened, a harder “Hero Mode” will be available right from the start (enemies do more damage and no hearts drop, you must use potions or heart containers to heal), a new sail will make sailing faster, and you can now take selfies with Link’s camera. Yes, the first game ever to feature selfies, and it’s Wind Waker HD. Thanks, Nintendo. Read more…
Tags: Legend of Zelda, Wii U
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 24, 2013 in Cinema 
We’re just rolling in the cinema-related news here, aren’t we? Paul W. S. Anderson, one of the most… interesting… filmmakers out there, with his wonderful collection of Resident Evil movies featuring Milla Jovovich in every single one, is back. This time he’s making a movie about Pompeii, which feels more than a little Titanic-inspired — but hey! It has Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) in it! And Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland)! And Babydoll (Emily Browning)! Depending on how much interaction Jack Bauer and Snow have, it could be entertaining just watching them mumble and swear at each other. Other than that, call me cynical, but this looks like another poor film from Paul. Maybe it’ll be so bad that it’s good? I hope so. Read more…
Tags: Paul W. S. Anderson
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 24, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
I’m sure most of you have heard the news by now: Ben Affleck will play Batman in the upcoming Man of Steel sequel. Henry Cavill will duke it out with Affleck and then presumably become fast friends who fight evil together. Now, a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth has been happening over this choice, and this is the internet, so we need to make an extra big deal out of it. People are crying foul, and most especially, bring up Affleck’s previous comic book endeavor, Daredevil. Yes, Daredevil sucked. It was also made by a completely different team of people at a completely different point in time. Affleck is an acclaimed director now with two Oscars. I’m not saying I have the utmost faith in Zack Snyder (I don’t), but this silly collection of overbearing complaints and petitions to change actors is getting ridiculous. This is just a movie. Read more…
Tags: Batman, Man of Steel
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 23, 2013 in Cinema, Hobbies and Collections 
Yes, the Brotherhood Workshop is at it again! They have LEGO-fied another movie trailer, and it’s more Lord of the Rings. This time it’s the recent trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, which they have spent two months making. There’s a great mix of LEGO and visual effects here, but mostly it’s just fun to see little LEGO figures waddle across large landscapes. That, and that LEGO Smaug is pretty freaking awesome. If only the official LEGO model would be so detailed and impressive! Watch the video below and then grab you minifigures and reenact it yourself. Read more…
Tags: Lego, The Hobbit
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 23, 2013 in Television 
Season three of Game of Thrones had some really impressive digital visual effects work — especially given that it’s a TV show. From the gorgeous vistas to the masses of armies clashing, I was impressed by what they pulled off. SpinVFX has posted a video showing the steps taken behind the effects. It seems they were most proud of their effects for the Wall, as they built a 700 foot wall that was a couple miles length. Now that’s impressive! No wonder that scene came off so well. Obviously, there are many spoilers in these clips (although they avoid anything major) but you probably should see season 3 first to appreciate much of these effects. Check out the video below. Read more…
Tags: Game of Thrones
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 19, 2013 in Videogames 
Dead Island was an interesting game. It’s sequel, Dead Island: Riptide was pretty disappointing. So now what for Techland? They’re trying something totally different: Dead Island: Mirror’s Edge edition. Dying Light is their 2014 game that focuses on traversal and parkour while avoiding the hordes of the undead on an island. Granted, this looks way better than either of the Dead Island games and also seems to have some more interesting game mechanics. This 12 minute video gives a pretty good idea of what they’re aiming for, and it certainly got my attention. The question is, can they pull it off? I sure hope so! Read more…
Tags: Dead Island, Dying Light
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 19, 2013 in Videogames 
I was never a big fan of typing games. I’m not sure why, perhaps I associated it too much with “work” and not “fun.” However, Icarus Proudbottom Teaches Typing is a bit of a different beast. Made in one month by Holy Wow Studios for the July 2013 Something Awful GameDev Competition, the idea was to make an educational game that isn’t boring or unentertaining. They lure you in with warnings about profanity and Native American spirit animals and then next thing you know you’re putting points into your typing skilltree and typing like the gods. Trust me, this game is worth it, and you can play it right in your browser, here. Do it. Read more…
Tags: Holy Wow Studios, Indie Games
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 18, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections 
And yes, it is awesome. Pop Culture Shock Collectibles has revealed their latest bust, Skeletor, from Masters of the Universe. Did you ever know you needed this? If you’re ready to own a life-size bust of the lord of destruction, you might want to prepare your poor wallet: retail price is $675. So while that’s not something I’ll be pre-ordering anytime soon, if you’re up for the adventure, the pre-order period opens at 3pm on August 26th. Then again, there is an option for a version with LED eyes, so at night he can keep watch over you with his evil red gaze. Pleasant! Read more…
Tags: He-Man & The Masters Of The Universe, Skeletor
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 18, 2013 in Videogames 
Game Freak recently had an event in which they announced a TV special called Pokemon: The Origin. It’ll focus on the original trainer, Red, from Red and Blue, and will be a short single-episode TV event. Pretty cool right? (Don’t worry, the trailer is below the break.) Yeah, but what I found even more intriguing was the short promo video for X & Y that showed a mysterious image of Lucario and Blaziken facing off in the streets — in HD. Is this an upcoming Wii U Pokemon game? A new Pokemon Stadium game? Some fans are even theorizing that it could be a Pokemon fighting game. Time to start guessing, Poke-fans! Read more…
Tags: Pokémon
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 17, 2013 in Anime 
There’s a lot of Ghibli goodness in the pipeline. The Wind Rises, Hayao Miyazaki’s latest feature film, is already out in Japan and doing well, but we’re only just now getting a subtitled trailer for the film. Tiff has uploaded the trailer we shared before, but now with subtitles. Also, Isao Takahata’s upcoming movie, Kaguya-hime no Monogatari, has gotten some new images on Japanese TV. It looks absolutely gorgeous, and I love the style that they’ve adapted here — it really contributes to the storybook feel of everything. Check out the videos for both after the break. Read more…
Tags: Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, Studio Ghibli
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 17, 2013 in Cinema, Fandom 
This video calls itself 8-bit, but trust me, this is way closer to 16-bit than 8. Now with that out of the way, feel free to check out this cool video from CineFix that takes the world of Blade Runner and transposes it into a video game. Well, a video game with lots of dialogue. There’s not a lot of action, instead it adapts iconic scenes from the film into simple vignettes made from pixels. I’d be interested in seeing some of these scenes laid out as hi-res wallpapers, too. Check out the video below! Read more…
Tags: Blade Runner
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 16, 2013 in Videogames 
Surprise! After a test launch in Australia and New Zealand last month, the long-awaited Plants vs. Zombies 2 is now out on iOS devices. This new game is free-to-play, with in-game microtransactions, but according to Popcap, no purchases are needed to beat the game. I’ll report back to you on that factoid soon. For now though, it looks like a worthy successor and I’m liking the new art style too. The game will only on iOS right now, but will be arriving on basically every other platform ever pretty soon. Trust me. The original game was on everything. Download the game here or watch the trailer below. Read more…
Tags: Plants vs. Zombies
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 16, 2013 in Videogames 
Rockstar officially announced GTA Online (at least, in any real capacity) and the new trailer showing it off looks fantastic. It’s a persistent, online world were you can team up with friends to go on heists, race your large collection of cars, or just mess around in the world. Details are still a little sparse at the moment, but the whole mode seems to be very ambitious. And when things are so ambitious, you have to wonder if they can deliver. Still, they’re not rushing this out, at GTA Online won’t be available at GTA V’s launch, and will instead arrive October 1st. I’m still holding out hope for a PC version, so for now I’ll just watch from the sidelines. And watch this trailer. Read more…
Tags: Grand Theft Auto
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 12, 2013 in Television 
Every retailer has to have their own special edition these days — game pre-orders with bonus DLC, box sets with unique covers, or promotional goodies inside. Amazon just added an image and page for their special edition Game of Thrones season 3 boxset, and it looks exactly like the posters for season 3. But it’s sculpted out! Pretty neat in concept, but to be honest, I never really liked that poster. It seemed so bland compared to the previous marketing visuals (although some of the applications of it were interesting). But, if you want to pick up this boxset, just hop on over to Amazon’s page — it’ll run you $105 and releases February 18th, 2014. Read more…
Tags: Amazon, Game of Thrones
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 12, 2013 in Anime 
Here’s another little tidbit of news coming out of Otakon: Cowboy Bebop will be back in print again in the US. FUNimation announced that they’ll be releasing the popular anime classic series digitally and on Blu-ray in 2014. Sadly, the Blu-ray probably won’t be as impressive as the Japanese box set, but it also won’t be $350. If you’re not into owning things, Daisuki has you covered. The streaming service has confirmed they have licensed Bebop for release in 2014 as well, and are anticipating it to go up just before FUNimation’s release. Good time to be a Bebop fan! Read more…
Tags: Cowboy Bebop, Daisuki, FUNImation
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 11, 2013 in Videogames 
Pokemon X & Y aren’t too far away now — October 12th is growing closer. Nintendo and Game Freak have been very careful to trickle out info at a specific pace, and it’s that time again! This time they’ve revealed several new evolutions for older Pokemon. Lucario, Blaziken, Absol, Mawile, Ampharos, and the previously revealed “Mewthree” are all getting new Mega Evolutions that unlock new moves. Yes, that new Mewtwo evolution is actually a Mega Evolution. The twist on these, though, is that they can only happen in battle while the Pokemon is holding a certain object. After battle, they return to normal. A few other new non-Mega Pokemon were revealed as well. Images of all these below, as well as a trailer! Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Pokémon
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 11, 2013 in Anime 
Otakon is in full swing this weekend! If you’re not there you’re missing out on Cowboy Bebop creator Shinichiro Watanabe’s panel, at which he announced his next anime: Space Dandy. It’s a comedy about a crew of alien hunters lead by Dandy, the dandiest man in space. Dandy and his two partners, Meow and QT (a robot Dandy bought thinking it would be cool, but was actually “a Roomba”), travel the galaxy in search of new aliens not yet discovered. Watanabe promised “old school” Flash Gordon-styled space adventures with tons of crazy alien designs each week. And, the staff list looks incredibly solid, with Dai Sato and BONES on the list. Check out an off-screen video below of the trailer as well as more images. Read more…
Tags: Shinichirō Watanabe, Space Dandy
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