2019-04-09
It looks like Microsoft is gearing up to announced a half-dozen more Xbox Game Pass titles this week. The Xbox Game Pass Twitter account posted a cryptic tweet where it asked, "What if we announced six more games on April 10?"It would be a bad look to post this tweet and not follow up with new Xbox Game Pass announcements on April 10, so this is pretty much confirmation that it'll happen. However, there were no teases about what games might be announced. â˜â˜â˜â˜â˜â˜â˜â˜ What if we â˜â˜ announced â˜â˜ 6 more games ☠☠on April 10th? ☠☠☠â˜â˜â˜â˜â€‚ðŸ’  🤔 — Xbox Game Pass (@XboxGamePass) April 8, 2019The latest addition to Xbox Game Pass was Minecraft, which arrived last week and represents one of the catalog's biggest releases ever.Xbox Game Pass is Microsoft's all-you-can-play subscription service on Xbox One that provides members access to a growing catalog of games that users can download and play for as long as their membership remains active. In addition to Minecraft, some of the other marquee titles include Halo 5 and Halo: The Master Chief Collection, as well as Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Just Cause 4, all the Gears of War games, Doom, and more.The service costs $10 USD/month, but new subscribers can sign up for $1 USD/month. It's only available on Xbox One, but Microsoft has talked about bringing it to every device.Xbox Game Pass is separate from Project xCloud, which is Microsoft's upcoming game-streaming service that will enter public trials later this year. Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-09
Preacher, the AMC TV show based on the comic book and led by Superbad's Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, is coming to an end. It has been announced that the drama will end after its fourth season. It was Rogen who confirmed the show's cancellation, writing on Instagram, "It's been a wild ride. Thank you all."Rogen also released the first teaser for Preacher Season 4, which confirms an August 4 premiere date. Check it out below.pic.twitter.com/tlIXrl1ow3 — Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) April 8, 2019Preacher stars Dominic Cooper (Need for Speed, Mamma Mia) as a preacher named Jesse Custer from Texas who isn't exactly the model of faith. The show also stars Custer's vampire friend Cassidy (Joseph Gilgun) and girlfriend Tulip (Ruth Negga). The comic book series on which it is based was created by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon.As Deadline reminds us, Rogen and Goldberg are leaving Sony TV--the producers of Preacher--for a new deal at Lionsgate.Preacher Season 3 aired in 2018. The show's showrunner is Sam Catlin, who wrote and produced episodes of AMC's Breaking Bad. Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-09
Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds is getting involved with a new TV show, and it might not be what you expect. Reynolds is producing the new ABC game show "Don't."As reported by Variety, the original game show is a "comedic physical game show" where families of four take part in mental and physical challenges where they "don't" do something. Examples include "don't forget," "don't slip," or anything else, it seems.ABC cruelly canceled Two Guys, A Girl & a Pizza Place 18 years ago. ‘DON’T’ is so good, it‘ll fast become the 2nd best show ABC has ever produced. And ABC will worship me. And my sitcom will be back on the air. @TraylorHoward @NathanFillion and @RichardRuccolo, you’re on notice. https://t.co/YwIIjSMEgL — Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) April 8, 2019Here's more from Variety's description of the show:"Each episode will focus on one family as they go through the 'Don't' tests. If they succeed, they'll win a cash prize. But if the family fails a challenge, one of them will be eliminated. When just one contestant is left, the last remaining family member must compete on their own. Whatever money they've earned, the family keeps."Reynolds has a history with ABC, as he starred on the late '90s sitcom Two Guys and a Girl (which was originally titled Two Guys, A Girl & a Pizza Place). More recently, the Deadpool franchise joins ABC owner Disney after that company bought the Deadpool series from Fox. He also has some experience with game shows, as he showed up on a South Korean game show as part of viral marketing for Deadpool 2."All my life, the word 'don't' has tortured me," Reynolds said. "From 'don't curse' to 'don't play ball in the house' to 'don't eat the crab salad you left in the sun for three days.' I cannot wait for my personal trauma to become the next great ABC family show," Reynolds said.Go to Variety to get the full story.The next big Ryan Reynolds movie is Detective Pikachu; Reynolds voices Pikachu.Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-09
HBO's beloved and long-running fantasy show Game of Thrones kicks off the beginning of the end when Season 8 premieres this coming Sunday. Ahead of that, HBO has released a nice video in which the stars of the series discuss memorable events from the past decade, and it's a treat to watch. Emilia Clarke, who plays Daenerys shares a story of how she fell off her horse on the first day of filming, while Peter Dinklage, who plays Tyrion, recalls how he originally had no interest in taking the job in the first place.The actors also talk about the most shocking and surprising scenes over the years, their favourite actors to work with and locations to shoot in, and what they'll miss and remember about the show when it's over.It's very special and nice to hear, especially from the younger actors who grew up on set like Maisie Williams, Emilia Clarke, and Sophie Turner, how working on the show and learning from more veteran actors helped them grow in confidence that has crossed over into their professional and personal lives. Check out the video below.Game of Thrones Season 8 premieres April 14 on HBO. For more, you can find out why actor John Bradley thinks Game of Thrones has changed TV forever. Author George R.R. Martin also recently talked about how he thought the show shouldn't end at Season 8.Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-09
George R.R. Martin does not want HBO's Game of Thrones to end. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter from the final season's NYC premiere, Martin said he would have wanted the show to run longer. But while the main show is ending, there might be a prequel series someday, and of course he continues to write new books."I don't think it should be the final season. But here we are," Martin said. "It seems to me we just started last week. Has it been longer than that? The time has passed by in a blur. But it's exciting. I know it's an end, but it's not much of an end for me. I'm still deep in writing the books. We saw five other sequel shows in development. I think I'm going to be hanging around Westeros while everyone else has left. (Laughs.)"Martin said in 2018 that Game of Thrones could have run for as many as 13 seasons, thanks in part to the breadth of detail and history from the book series. Showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff originally only wanted seven seasons, so Martin and company were successful at convincing them to do at least one more than they set out to.The "five other sequel shows" is a reference to the Game of Thrones spin-offs that HBO has in various stages of development. The first of these hasn't started shooting yet, though the producers are "getting very close" to beginning, Martin said. HBO has committed to filming a pilot episode for the show, but there is no guarantee it'll get picked up to series. Whatever the case, Martin said he's excited about the cast and crew for what he described as a "very different" show than the mainline Game of Thrones program."They have a great director and an amazing cast. I've been following along closely. I have my fingers crossed," he said. "It's different. It's definitely very different. It's set thousands of years in the past. You're looking at a whole different era of Westeros. No dragons, no Iron Throne, no King's Landing. It will be interesting to see what the fans make of that."Jessica Jones director SJ Clarkson is directing the show, which will star Naomi Watts. X-Men: First Class' Jane Goldman will serve as showrunner.Game of Thrones Season 8 premieres April 14 on HBO. For more, you can find out why actor John Bradley thinks Game of Thrones has changed TV forever.Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-09
It's impossible to play or talk about Dangerous Driving without comparing it to Criterion's seminal Burnout 3: Takedown. This is by design, of course, as developer Three Fields Entertainment--a small indie studio comprised of former Criterion alum--set out to create a spiritual successor to the dormant racer; latching onto the groundbreaking Burnout 3 as a clear and popular focal point. Everything about Dangerous Driving's design, right down to small details like font selection and the phrasing used in its loading screens, is distinctly Burnout 3. It foregoes the advances made in its sequels--like traffic checking and the introduction of an open-world--to hone in on what made Takedown so special.My first hour or so with Dangerous Driving was fraught with bewilderment, however. There's a single song that plays on the main menu, but other than this there's a complete absence of music throughout the entire game. Licensed tracks are a crucial component to the Burnout formula, and after playing a few events in near-complete silence, their monumental importance can't be overstated. Obviously, this is true of most games, but particularly one where high-speed exhilaration is on the menu. After initially thinking this was either a bug or that music would eventually find its way into the game via a day one patch, I hopped into the audio settings and discovered the reason for its omission: Spotify integration.This is a smart idea for an indie studio that might not have the budget to splash out on licensed music, and after finding something suitably upbeat and aggressive myself, the experience of tearing around the track and wrecking other cars was improved tenfold. Yet asking people to own a premium service just to get music in their game is a fairly excessive compromise. It's an understandable trade-off for gaining access to popular music in a budget-priced game, but beyond the monetary requirement, it also has an effect on gameplay. Three Fields can't manipulate Spotify music in any way, so songs will just play through from start to finish without the incorporation of any interactive elements. This means that the music doesn't change its tone when you boost, or slow down and warp during takedowns, and that robs these moments of some of their potential impact.When you're out on the road, the handling of each car will feel instantly familiar to anyone who's ever played Burnout before. While most contemporary racing games are wary of fully embracing an arcadey style without featuring some kind of simulation element, Dangerous Driving is a full-blooded, balls-to-the-wall arcade racer. You'll hold down the accelerator ad infinitum until your finger aches, careen around corners by either scraping across the steel guard rails or tapping the brake button to effortlessly drift around, and weave between oncoming traffic at over 200-miles-per-hour as the nitrous oxide flames spewing out of each exhaust pipe propel your car forward.Unfortunately, the physics can be fairly wonky at times, often bringing your vehicle to a complete stop because you brushed against a wall; while other times it will shoot you straight up into the air, or force your car into a complete 90-degree turn. This can be incredibly frustrating during the latter stages of an event when one mishap is enough to send you tumbling to the back of the pack. Collision detection is also inconsistent; numerous times a head-on crash resulted in my car clipping through the floor and appearing unscathed on the other side. The face-distorting sense of speed, though, is genuinely electric, and the PS4 Pro version maintains a stable 60 frames-per-second with one notable exception: It has a tendency to hitch rather egregiously when you're driving through tunnels.The crux of Dangerous Driving's racing is centered around the need to drive recklessly and constantly put yourself in harm's way. By hurtling towards incoming traffic, performing near misses, nailing drifts, tailgating, and taking down your opponents, you earn variable degrees of boost that will help fire your chosen vehicle towards the finish line. There isn't a discernible difference in how each car handles, other than the fact that some go faster than others, but their pinpoint responsiveness coupled with the high framerate ensures that you're fully capable of serpentining in and out of danger if your reactions are quick enough. Again, this is quintessential Burnout, with the destruction of your fellow drivers doubling your boost meter and incentivizing the most perilous behavior possible. These takedowns are reminiscent of those that debuted in Burnout 3, although the slow-motion crashes in Dangerous Driving are surprisingly underwhelming. They're not bad, but they're also not impactful enough--which the aforementioned issues with music contribute to--lacking in any real dynamism or metal-crunching detail.There are exceptions to this rule, but vehicle collisions actually look a lot more violent when they occur near you in real time, with broken cars hurtling across the road in a furious cascade of fire and sparks. A wrecked car doesn't signal the end of its lifespan either. While Dangerous Driving unabashedly riffs on Burnout, it has its own ideas, too, like persistent wrecks. Now, if you're driving on a track with multiple laps, any takedowns that happen will leave the battered husk of that car out on the road as a smoke-billowing obstacle. This is rather ingenious, as subsequent laps gradually evolve the track until it's veritable minefields of dead vehicles.The slow-motion crashes are not impactful enough--which the aforementioned issues with music contribute to--lacking in any real dynamism or metal-crunching detailThe problem with this--and it's not a problem with the mechanic itself, but rather one with the game's overall structure--is that these multi-lap events, and the most stimulating moments within them, are too few and far between. Dangerous Driving excels when you're in the middle of the pack, trading paint with other cars, and fighting tooth and nail to move up the field. It's here where it's at its most exciting, and really latches onto what made Burnout 3 so brilliant in the first place. But reaching first place is relatively easy--I was taken down by the AI twice in all my time playing--and once you're there the rubber banding isn't aggressive enough to ever compete with your driving unless you crash. Rivals drivers will hover just behind you, waiting to capitalize on any mistakes, but there are far too many instances where you can take a leisurely drive in first place, resulting in a feeling that you're missing out on all the action.It doesn't help that the track design is bland. Visually there's a lot of variety with a cohesive theme of North American National Parks that encompasses sunswept canyons, beachside cliffs, snowy mountain ranges, and so on, but the tracks themselves are made up of the same kinds of long, winding corners that it almost feels like they were copied and pasted from one track and into another. They rarely deviate from this standard blueprint, and there's nothing that sets the tracks apart from one another either. This compounds the issues with difficulty and AI during race events, and also results in a dearth of engaging racing in other game modes. There are face-offs against a single opponent, the takedown-centric Road Rage, time trials, a survival event that tasks you with reaching checkpoints to stave off an ever-depleting timer, and even a nod to Criterion's work on Need for Speed in the shape of police pursuits. Again, there's a decent amount of variety here, with familiar modes returning from Burnout (including one that was previously its namesake, re-titled to Heatwave here), but the lack of interesting courses and a scarcity of racing events depletes much of the excitement.Online multiplayer is being added in a future update, and playing against other people might allay some of these problems. But the more I played the more I began to realize Dangerous Driving lacks that magic spark the Burnout games had in abundance. That kinetic energy, palpable sense of danger, and the heart-racing thrill that something could and would go wrong at any moment. The AI was aggressive--competitive--and the satisfaction of taking them down was born of more than just getting to watch their car crumple against the nearest brick wall. The tracks were inventive, too, more interesting in their environments, and full of diverging paths and risky shortcuts.Dangerous Driving nails the basic feeling of driving a car in Burnout, but the lack of small details quickly begin to add up and peel away at everything that doesn't feel quite right. The most damning criticism I can level at it is that it's often dull and lifeless. There are too many events that fail to capitalize on its strengths, and those that do can only reach those heights in fleeting moments. I was concerned that maybe I'd feel the same way about Burnout; that one of the greatest racing series ever made just doesn't fit in 2019. So I went back and played Burnout 3 again and it quickly alleviated all of those fears with a rapid combustion of thrilling vehicular mayhem. The potential was there for Dangerous Driving to latch onto that magic, and there are brief moments when it feels like you're playing a brand new Burnout. But the truth is, I'd rather play a 16-year-old game than pick up its spiritual successor again, and that's a disheartening outcome. Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-08
Following 2015's surprise hit Her Story, creator Sam Barlow initially wasn't keen on making a similar game right after. However, as the framework for his follow-up took shape, the writer/director found his past's game approach to storytelling as a compelling hook for his new tale. In Telling Lies, you'll investigate the lives of four strangers over a period of two years; each of them has their own secrets and personal trauma. By witnessing brief glimpses of their lives from private videos, you'll uncover the larger story that connects them all together.We spent some time talking with the game's writer and director during GDC 2019, where he gave us the rundown on what to expect with his return to the interactive video drama. In essence, Telling Lies takes Her Story's foundation of an interactive drama and expands its scope. Featuring a larger cast of characters, portrayed by film and TV actors such as Logan Marshall-Green, Kerry Bishé, Alexandra Shipp, and Angela Sarafyan, it puts more of a focus on the private moments that individuals have alone with their devices, and how relationships are affected when filtered through a personal phone or webcam.With an air of voyeurism similar to films like Steven Soderbergh's Sex, Lies, and Videotape and Francis Ford Coppola's The Conversation, the overarching story unfolds on a modern desktop with access to an NSA database. Playing heavily to the modern paranoia surrounding increased surveillance, this conceit allows you to search through hours of recorded footage taken from phones, computers, and dashboard cameras, revealing plenty of personal and raw moments. According to Barlow, when the larger story begins to form, you'll come to understand why you're examining these characters in the first place.Similar to Her Story, Telling Lies will have you comb through footage looking for the key information that fills in the blanks of a fractured timeline. Moving away from Her Story's '90s-era tech, the player interface in Telling Lies--another desktop--is more modern, allowing for greater flexibility in how you can interpret and piece together the story. By searching keywords, you'll be able to find clips that include the use of that word. Engaging the clip will start you at the point where the keyword is spoken by the person of interest. From here, you'll be able to play the video for its duration, even if you landed on the last word spoken in the clip, or scrub it back to see what came before--possibly unearthing a new clue.Barlow explained that Telling Lies not only examines intimacy in the modern age but also plays with the concept of context and what you bring with your perspective. In Her Story, it became apparent over the course of the game that figuring out the crime that Hannah was suspected of wasn't necessarily the true goal. Rather, it was more of a character study and an exercise in fostering empathy for her, faults and all. According to Barlow, Telling Lies is about "exploring the larger story through the negative space," an idea that stuck with him during the making and ensuing reception of Her Story."It's kind of doubling down on the sense of narrative I had with Her Story," Barlow said. "People would play that game and one of the big positives they came away with was they felt like they had an intimate experience when spending that time with that character, listening to her talk, and it felt like they had a connection and empathized with her in a way. Despite it being essentially a computer interface, it all felt quite organic and human in a way. You get to explore [the story] through these more character-driven and intimate moments, which is a very different texture to most video games."Some clips will show various characters during some mundane moments, without anything of consequence happening. However, another video might show a pivotal, and likely serious, event, which can give previous clips new meaning. Discovering the context of many of these clips can add new layers to the key characters, which can affect your perception of their relationships with others. Though it all seems to be in a similar vein as Her Story, and Barlow said that Telling Lies hits something more social than its predecessor could."I think it's an interesting question when you make something that is as different and weird as Her Story," said Barlow. "I deliberately did not immediately want to make a sequel with Her Story, and I gave myself some distance from it. Once I came back to it and I was like, 'What was interesting to me about that game that I think I could do more with? What direction can I take it in?'"One of the more remarkable things about Her Story was the way it used its detective conceit as a means to examine its key character. Thanks to its non-linear approach, you could unearth details about the lead at your own pace. Barlow seems to be aware of what made the original work, reinforcing the flow of the narrative and the sense of distance from a story that's long since past. However, the new focus on a larger cast can make for a more intriguing plot, which may play out in its most raw and intimate forms.Telling Lies is set for release sometime in 2019 and will be published by Annapurna Interactive.Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-08
"How did the surprise ending of Avengers: Infinity War affect the tone of Endgame in the aftermath of Thanos's destruction?"The question was posed by Iron Man director and Happy Hogan actor Jon Favreau to Joe and Anthony Russo, the brother directors shepherding the Marvel Cinematic Universe to its phase 3 conclusion with Avengers: Endgame. Favreau was moderating a Los Angeles press conference featuring the directors along with much of the cast, from Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Chris Evans) to Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Captain Marvel (Brie Larson).In the lead-up to Endgame, everyone involved with the movie has been hesitant to discuss it in any detail--understandably--but the Russos gave a satisfying answer nonetheless."One of our favorite storytelling adages is 'Write yourself into a corner,'" Anthony Russo said. "And what we take that to mean is put yourself in a place on a narrative level where you have no idea how you could possibly move forward from here, and that's a very exciting place to be. It forces you to come up with some really creative ways forward. And we tried to do with the endings of every single Marvel movie we've done, never more so than Infinity War."Of course, Infinity War's ending featured the destruction of most of the Marvel heroes we've come to know over the last decade of MCU movies. As fans, it's easy to believe that most of that damage will be undone, whether by time travel, the heroes wresting control of the Infinity Stones away from Thanos, or some kind of Quantum Realm hijinks. But the Russos said they want the weight of Infinity War's ending to continue to matter even after whatever happens in Endgame."We are very committed to the ending of that movie," Anthony said. "We think that stories lose their meaning and relevance and resonance unless there are real stakes. And for us, moving into this new movie--into Endgame--the story is very much about how do these characters--how do these heroes--deal with loss? Resounding loss, true loss, devastating loss--that's what they've experienced in Infinity War, and that was a unique experience for all of them. How does a person move forward from that moment? How does a hero move forward from that moment? The way we wrote it into the story is, How is everybody on an individual level dealing with that experience, and then how do they collectively deal with it?"Joe Russo also teased Endgame in his own vague terms, predicting "satisfaction" for fans. "This is, I think, a really unique experience in movies, this grand mosaic, depending on how you count it up, 11 franchises that have been interwoven into one big mural," the co-director said. "With Endgame we get the opportunity to finish off one of the grandest experiments in movie history and bring it to--as Kevin [Feige] said--an epic conclusion. What we're hoping for is that people feel satisfied with the conclusion."When asked for a single word they think describes Avengers: Endgame, Joe Russo took several moments to think, then responded with "cathartic." Some of the actors present during the press conference also tried their best to describe the movie without revealing any details, including Chris Evans. "I think just the completion of the arc--I mean that's safe to say, right?" he said. "That this movie does kind of provide kind of an ending to a lot of--"That came a little too close to providing actual information about Endgame, so Favreau interrupted him with a loud buzzer noise directly into the mic. "Let's just talk about Scott Pilgrim," the moderator joked.Robert Downey Jr., on the other hand, managed to discuss the weight of some of the decisions made during Endgame's creation without anyone feeling the need to step in and stop him from saying too much. "It's one of those things where you go like, 'Wow, I think we just made a pretty serious choice here.' But I think audiences like that," the actor said. "I think audiences are so smart, and they require to not be fed the same drivel as even 20 minutes ago. So we need novelty, and I think what the Russos and Kevin [Feige] have tried to do is provide that in spades."Mark Ruffalo, who plays Bruce Banner/Hulk, remarked on the movie's bittersweet tone, and how it has bled into the way the cast and filmmakers discuss it. "We're all talking about like we're dead. 'Oh, I loved working with these guys, it was great knowing them. They were great Boggle players,'" he said, half joking. "There's something very bittersweet about the tone."The franchise's newest hero, Brie Larson (Captain Marvel), added her own perspective. "The whole thing has always felt like a dream, and this film will always be personally dear to me, because it was my first time playing Captain Marvel," she explained. "We shot [Endgame] first, so I had to stumble and try to figure out who this character was with no [full] script for this and no script for Captain Marvel either, and perform for the first time in front of legends. But it was incredible.""I'm super excited for this to come out so that I can talk about it," she continued. "I want to be able to talk about my experience, which I haven't been able to do for a very long time."Avengers: Endgame hits theatres on April 26. Tickets went on sale this week, and unsurprisingly, pre-sales are setting records and crashing ticket-selling websites. Check out our trailer breakdown for a look at all the minor details in the latest trailer, not to mention everything we learned from watching 10 minutes of footage.Read next: How Much Time Passes Between Infinity War And Avengers Endgame? New Footage Reveals The AnswerInfo from Gamespot.com
2019-04-08
The Kickoff Show for Wrestlemania is over and done, and the results for all four matches--including the two battle royals--can be found below. It's onto the main card now, and there are plenty of more matches coming out way. Keep refreshing to see who wins and loses at WWE's biggest event of the year.Every major WWE title is on the line from 205 Live's Cruiserweight title to Raw's Universal Championship. There is plenty to get excited about and something for every WWE fan on the April 7 evening.Wrestlemania 35 will be the final WWE PPV and match for Kurt Angle, a Hall of Famer with a long history with the company and wrestling as a whole. He'll be taking on Baron Corbin, but if we had to guess, we're thinking there will be more to this match. There is also Kofi Kingston fighting Daniel Bryan for the WWE Championship. Kingston has been down a long, hard road in order to get here, overcoming immense odds and obstacles placed in his way.Finally, there's the main event of Wrestlemania. For the first time, women will headline the show with a triple threat match between Charlotte Flair, Ronda Rousey, and Becky Lynch in a winner takes all match. Considering how amazing past Charlotte/Lynch matches have been in the past, this should be good one. Check out the full card below.Wrestlemania Match Card:Buddy Murphy (c) vs. Tony Nese (Cruiserweight Championship) [KICKOFF SHOW]Andre The Giant Battle RoyalWomen's Battle RoyalThe Revival vs. Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder (Raw Tag Team Championship)Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Finn Balor (Intercontinental Championship)Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyreThe Usos (c) vs. Ricochet & Aleister Black vs. The Bar vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Rusev (Smackdown Tag Team Championship)AJ Styles vs. Randy OrtonBayley & Sasha Banks (c) vs. Beth Phoenix & Natalya vs. The IIconics vs. Nia Jax & Tamina (Women's Tag Team Championship)Shane McMahon vs. The MizSamoa Joe (c) vs. Rey Mysterio (United States Championship)Kurt Angle vs. Baron CorbinTriple H vs. Batista (No Holds Barred Match)Daniel Bryan (c) vs. Kofi Kingston (WWE Championship)Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Seth Rollins (Universal Championship)Ronda Rousey (c) vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair (Winner Takes All)As Wrestlemania goes on, we'll be keeping you updated with the winners and losers of the event as it happens. Scroll down and keep refreshing for live updates.Kickoff ShowBuddy Murphy (c) vs. Tony Nese (Cruiserweight Championship)Tony Nese wins by pin at 10:46Women's Battle RoyalCarmella was the lone survivor at 10:23The Revival vs. Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder (Raw Tag Team Championship)Hawkins and Ryder win by pin at 13:19.Andre The Giant Battle RoyalBraun Strowman wins at 10:20Main CardBrock Lesnar (c) vs. Seth Rollins (Universal Championship)Rollins wins by pin at 2:30.Randy Orton vs. AJ StylesAJ Styles wins by pin at 16:10The Usos (c) vs. Ricochet & Aleister Black vs. The Bar vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Rusev (Smackdown Tag Team Championship)The Usos win by pin at 10:02Shane McMahon vs. The MizShane won by pin at 15:28Bayley & Sasha Banks (c) vs. Beth Phoenix & Natalya vs. The IIconics vs. Nia Jax & Tamina (Women's Tag Team Championship)The Iiconics win by pin at 10:45.Daniel Bryan (c) vs. Kofi Kingston (WWE Championship)Kingston wins by pin at 23:44Samoa Joe (c) vs. Rey Mysterio (United States Championship)Samoa Joe wins by submission at 1:00.Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyreMatch in progressUpdatingInfo from Gamespot.com
2019-04-08
We've learned a little more about the 2019 Sonic the Hedgehog movie. Speaking to IMDB from the CinemaCon event recently, Jim Carrey--who plays the evil doctor Robotnik--said the film will have an edge to it while still overall appealing to families."We're playing to families, so you can't get too crazy," Carrey said. "But I made sure that there are some winks and nods, and edgy things that are still acceptable to both age groups."Carrey also described Robotnik as a very smart scientist who is "pure, unbridled evil."The new Sonic movie is produced by Deadpool 1 director Tim Miller, and that fact prompted the question about the film potentially having an edgier side.Actress Tika Sumpter plays a veterinarian who is "one of the ones who helps Sonic get through this dimension of a world and figure it out."James Marsden plays a police officer who meets Sonic through happenstance, and then they work together to challenge Robotnik. Marsden also spoke about the Sonic film's tone."Of course the movie is going to be family friendly, but there is an edge to it; there is a sharpness to it. There is a wit to it," he said.You can watch the full interview here on IMDB.Two trailers for the new Sonic movie premiered at CinemaCon; they haven't been released publicly, but you can read a recap of what happened in them here.Sonic opens in theatres on November 8. Ben Schwartz (Parks and Recreation, voices Sonic. The movie is directed by Jeff Fowler, who picked up an Oscar nomination for Gopher Broke. Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-08
Part of what made Star Wars: The Last Jedi a controversial film among fans was the way it handled Rey's parentage. Fans speculated wildly about who her parents might be, but it was revealed in The Last Jedi--written and directed by Rian Johnson--that her parents were ... apparently no one of any significance at all. That revelation, in addition to the killing off of Supreme Leader Snoke, irked some fans. They thought the reveal of Rey's parentage and plans for Snoke were part of some grander storytelling scheme.Now, Johnson has suggested that he wouldn't be bothered if Star Wars: Episode IX from JJ Abrams retcons some of the storytelling beats from The Last Jedi. Johnson was asked directly by MTV News if he would be bothered if Episode IX retcons Rey's lineage..@rianjohnson is just as excited for J.J. Abram’s #StarWars Episode IX as we are, and he tells us at #CinemaCon he hopes that the directors keep taking the universe to new heights: “I want him to do stuff that I wasn’t expecting him to do†pic.twitter.com/D7Jh5SqgeT — MTV NEWS (@MTVNEWS) April 5, 2019"Like I said, man, I want to let go of all my expectations," Johnson replied. "I want to sit back. I want to be entertained. I want to be surprised. I want to be thrilled. I want him to do stuff that I wasn't expecting him to do, and just go along for the ride. For me, that's why I go to the movies, you know?"Explaining the reveal of Rey's parents, who were nothing more than "filthy junk traders" according to Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), Johnson said, "We're not here to give Rey an easy time; we're here to put her on the hard path so that she has to. Because that's the path of a hero."Abrams reportedly had a different idea for Rey's parents, so it'll be interesting to see if he decides to retcon Rey's parents in Episode IX.Very little is known about the story of Episode IX, but it's expected to wrap up the new trilogy that began with 2015's The Force Awakens. Abrams also directed The Force Awakens, and he wasn't originally attached to Episode IX until director Colin Trevorrow was released.Also in the interview, which you can watch in the embed above, Johnson confirms that he's still working on his new trilogy of Star Wars movies, while he also talks excitedly about the new Star Wars movies from the creators of Game of Thrones.Episode IX releases in theatres this December.Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-08
It appears the DC Extended Universe of films is back on track. After Batman v Superman disappointed audiences, 2017's Wonder Woman and 2018's Aquaman struck better chords and made a lot of money at the box office. The latest DCEU movie, Shazam, opened this weekend--and it, too, is doing well out of the gate.The movie made $53.5 million in the US and Canada for its opening weekend, which represents a good start but of course not as strong as other, big DCEU films starring bigger and better-known characters like Batman, Wonder Woman, and Joker. It is the seventh movie in the DCEU.Counting preview ticket sales, Shazam has made $56.8 million in the US and Canada, according to Entertainment Weekly, which supplied all the box office figures. Shazam was the No. 1 movie of the weekend in the US and Canada. Shazam has made more than $100 million so far from international markets, for a global total of around $158 million to date.Shazam focuses on a young boy, Billy Batson (Asher Angel) who can turn into an adult superhero named Shazam by yelling "Shazam!" Zachary Levi plays Shazam. The movie also stars Adam Brody, Ron Cephas Jones, Mark Strong, and Djimon Hounsou. It was directed by David F. Sandberg (Annabelle: Creation) off a script by Henry Gayden and Darren Lemke.Elsewhere at the box office, the newest Stephen King movie, Pete Semetary, opened to $25 million, while another new release, The Best Enemies starring Sam Rockwell and Taraji P. Henson, opened at No. 6. You can see the full weekend box office report below, via EW.April 5-7 US/Canada Box OfficeShazam! -- $53.5 millionPet Sematary -- $25 millionDumbo -- $18.2 millionUs -- $13.8 millionCaptain Marvel -- $12.7 millionThe Best of Enemies -- $4.5 millionFive Feet Apart -- $3.7 millionUnplanned -- $3.2 millionWonder Park -- $2 millionHow to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World -- $2 millionInfo from Gamespot.com
2019-04-07
Given how many different haircuts and facial hair styles various characters have sported throughout the Avengers: Endgame trailers we've seen so far, there's been lots of speculation about how much time will have passed between the end of Infinity War and the start of Endgame. Disney today screened around 10 minutes of footage for select press on the company's studio lot in California, and given how much we still actually don't know about Endgame, even in those scant minutes of footage, we learned quite a bit--including exactly how much time has passed between the end of Avengers: Infinity War and the beginning of Avengers: Endgame.In this footage, we got a specific answer: When Tony records his extremely sad message for Pepper, which appears to be more or less the movie's opening scene, he mentions specifically that he and Nebula have been stranded in space for 22 days. That's just over three weeks between Tony and co.'s ill-fated battle with Thanos, and Endgame's early scene of Tony and Nebula stranded out in space.Tony also mentions that their oxygen will run out by the following morning. Given that both he and Nebula will eventually make it back to Earth--judging by other glimpses we've seen, at least--we can assume their situation is about to change. That potentially places several scenes we've glimpsed in trailers around the same time frame, though others appear to be further in the future--or maybe even in the past. For example, we know from the trailers that Paul Rudd's Ant-Man will team up with the Avengers again in Endgame, but we didn't glimpse his arrival yet in the most recent footage screened to press.That's not the only thing we learned from the latest screening. Click here for nine more things the footage revealed--from the Avengers' new secret weapon against Thanos to what the remaining heroes plan to do.Avengers: Endgame hits theatres on April 26. Tickets went on sale this week, and unsurprisingly, pre-sales are setting records and crashing ticket-selling websites. Check out our trailer breakdown for a look at all the minor details in the latest trailer, and read on to find out what we learned from the 10 minutes of footage we've seen.Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-07
The sudden closure of Telltale Games was one of the most shocking stories of the games industry in 2018. But in the time after the closure, publisher Skybound Games worked with key members of Telltale Games to finish The Final Season for The Walking Dead. Following the completion of the series, which will be the final game for all existing developers at Telltale Games, the studio's creative director Kent Mudle and Skybound Games CEO Ian Howe spoke with GameSpot about finishing the long-running and popular series under such unusual circumstances. During our interview, they spoke candidly about the closure of the studio, revealing what the immediate plans were at the time of the closure, what the developers had planned after The Walking Dead, and what they believe the lasting impact Telltale will have on gaming.Editor's Note: This interview has been edited for clarity and readability.Telltale's final chapter is a unique one in game development. Can you take us back to the moment when this news broke, and how you were able to find a solution to finish The Final Season?Kent Mudle: WelI, I guess the start of this experience would be the middle of production of what would have been the final season of The Walking Dead. At that point, Telltale Games shut down. For a moment it seemed like all hope was lost and we would never really get to finish this thing. At the time Ian and I had really believed in it and worked on it very hard, and a lot of us really thought it was gonna be one of the best things we've ever made. It was heartbreaking, both to not finish that and also for a lot of people who came to work and found out that it was all over.But luckily, we learned pretty quickly that Skybound was interested in trying to resurrect the thing, so we were given some hope. That sustained us for a certain period. But then when we finally got back up, it was almost like no time had passed, and we were actually able to just get right back to making the piece of art that we all wanted to make, and I think the experience has been miraculous.Ian Howe: The guys couldn't work for two months as we were clearing all the legal side of things, but we were able to stick with almost the exact schedule less those two months, which was pretty incredible. That's a testament to the team and the effort they put in to get it over the line because that's hard to do. Just picking up something that's had this eight-week gap in the middle.The day the news broke, we were really shocked. It was like "sorry, what?" We sat around a phone talking to Telltale co-founder Dan Conners and CEO Pete Hawley, and there was me and David Alpert, and a few of the other senior people at Skybound. Robert Kirkman [the creator of The Walking Dead] was laying on the couch behind us, just kind of listening, and at the end of the call, we were just diving into the weeds and Robert said, "let's just go get the story finished." That was very refreshing to just have a guide from Robert, as to say just go and make this happen. And then we, I think we flew up the next day.Mudle: It was crazy how quickly it happened. The day we were fired, they were supposed to come back and they said pack up our stuff and Brody and Paul called me into a room and they were working on the spreadsheet and I guess they may have already been in touch with [Skybound] at that point. Yeah, like almost right away, you guys came up and we had that big meeting in the boardroom with everybody trying to figure out how viable this would all be.Howe: The desire was to finish it, and there was definitely that dedication to try and save some jobs. These guys had been let go without any severance and have been through a tough situation--can we figure something out? Thankfully we were able to put together something pretty quickly, and I will give huge credit to the management of Telltale who went out of their way and did everything they could to make this deal happen as quickly as it could. For exactly that reason to help those people out, so that I don't think that should get lost in this.There was a massive outpouring from fans regarding the fate of Telltale. It must have been very overwhelming to see such a response from fans, especially after the January reveal of the final two episodes.Mudle: I think the outpouring of love and excitement that happened as soon as it was confirmed that Skybound was definitely going to continue was tremendous. Like it's almost like- people had been into the season, it was just a roller coaster of emotions. It just hit people like super hard. I just remember it being everywhere, every social media feed I had ever looked at, it was just like blasted with support.Howe: Yeah, it was overwhelming in a good way, but also that there was a definite realization of expectation that, and at the time it happened, Skybound Games was in its infancy and it still is, honestly. It's still in its infancy and I don't know what [Kent's] expectations were, but you didn't probably realize there was so few of us.Mudle: I didn't, when we first started talking to you guys, it sounded like you guys were like five people or something when you started being like, 'we'll save it.' Yeah, I assumed that Skybound was a bigger company.Howe: Yeah, the games division of Skybound was five people. We were less than a year old and we were still definitely in training wheels. I mean I've been doing this for a long time so I realized that a lot of the work related to the publishing side had been done. Telltale was literally the lowest maintenance team I've ever worked with, they literally just came back in and got on with the job. That to me speaks volumes about the character of the people there, but also the desire to get it finished. Our part compared to what these guys were doing was very small, but it was really all about the focus of getting these guys back in a room somewhere with the ability to finish the story.Around the time of the closure, reports came out that the last two episodes of the season were already written and ready for production. Did the experience of the last few months have any influence on the final episodes?Mudle: Well at the time of Telltale's closing down, Episode 3 had just hit sort of the middle point of development, which was funnily referred to as the ratings milestone--meaning all the voicework had been recorded and all the visuals were in sort of a rough state. So Episode 3 really just kind of had to get finished and just get a normal series of edits along with some nips and tucks anyway. Episode 4 had already had its first round of voicework recorded. So the first draft of the episode was written and recorded and like very base level like visual stuff had been done.Thankfully before Telltale shut down, we already had talked, you know we work with Skybound editorial to get feedback from them and we already were aligned on what the plan was going to be to finish the thing. Though we did some revisions and some minor adjustments, it was exactly as it would have been had Telltale not exploded, really. And it was a testament to Skybound for letting us do our own vision without trying to like meddle with it in any way except for giving us feedback. But it was exactly what we envisioned and we'd all agree with Skybound to do even before Telltale shut down.It seems fitting in a way that Telltale's history closed out on The Walking Dead. This series, in particular, helped propel the studio to new heights, and in a lot of ways, it seems like it's a bit of an epitaph summing up Telltale was all about.Mudle: Weirdly, I think it would have done that anyway regardless of the studio closing. It was always going to be the last Walking Dead game, and we all knew at that point. After that, we were actually planning to move Telltale as a studio into new kinds of games, with new graphics engines, and just kind of go bolder. So this was always intended to be the last hurrah for the classic style of a Telltale game. Like the choices, the waiting, and all that stuff. So it was always trying to be like the very best one of those. We know that it's such a long-running series that we wanted to do a bunch homages to the past and that kind of stuff.We even wanted to do some stuff in the last quarter of the episode that was supposed to be like, this is what a new Telltale game could be like with like those mechanical twists and that kind of thing. So it was always kind of intended to be a tribute to Telltale's legacy. And it's weird that it's ended up being that in, you know, in its finality because it was the last one ever.Telltale had some strong parallels with Lucasarts of the '90s, with games like Full Throttle and Grim Fandango. A lot of fans saw the studio very much in that school of thought, offering these in-depth adventures with some compelling characters.Mudle: That does mean a lot that fans saw that in us. I'm a storyteller at heart and if I can get the audience to care about something you care about, these fictional people that we made up so, so passionately that they feel real feelings, I think that's a huge accomplishment. I think the legacy of Telltale has had left has on the games industry has been kind of broad and wide as a whole. I think it's still a really rich space to explore, and I'd like to think Telltale helped kickstart all that again. So I think that legacy will stick around forever, and it'll always be an honor to have been a small part of that.I can only imagine how bittersweet experience this must be for you all. Though it's sad to see Telltale come to an end, you do leave a sizable legacy of games behind.Howe: Well, I've been doing publishing for 28 years and this is the project I'm probably most proud to be associated with. The motivation to bring it back and to rescue it gives me a great deal of personal satisfaction that we were able to do that. The fact that this community has really actually come together. I'm very grateful to have been a part of this.Mudle: Yeah, absolutely. Episode 4 makes me extremely emotional, honestly. Like a lot of it is tough near the end, in that it's kind of a loving tribute to the people that worked on the game. I still can't even look at it without getting a little misty-eyed. I'm just so proud of the work everybody did. We all came together to make this beautiful thing and to leave that stretching back into all the years that I worked with all of those people. It's the end of an era, and it's sad, but I'm glad we got to at least finish it in style.Info from Gamespot.com
2019-04-07
Prior to NXT Takeover: New York on Friday, April 6, 2K Games held the Million Dollar Championship tournament for WWE 2K19, with the semi-finals taking place at WWE Axxess and the finals at the Takeover preshow during Wrestlemania week. What we expected was a standard, run-of-the-mill tournament. What we got was the most entertaining non-PPV event of the entire week.At Axxess, semifinalists Gregory Davis from Jacksonville, Florida; Stephan T. Benson from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; David Hoey from Sydney, Australia; and Roman Droßard from Pfalzfeld, Germany were teamed up with WWE superstars to coach them along the way, as they fought each other for the chance to take on AJ Styles at NXT Takeover for a million dollars.The semifinals were a site to behold with WWE superstars Kofi Kingston, Big E, Xavier Woods, The Miz, Ember Moon, Corey Graves, and Paige (not pictured) entered the fray. Droßard and Davis were eliminated in the first round, and it came down to Benson--using Brock Lesnar--and Hoey--using Braun Strowman. The two can be seen above, shaking hands after the round.To get to this point was no easy task, as the Million Dollar Challenge in WWE 2K19 was exceptionally tough. "I took ages to get the challenge done," explained Hoey. "I think I was working on it--on and off--I'd say easily three weeks." Since completing the challenge and being selected for the semifinals, Hoey spent roughly three hours a day playing, and he even brought his PS4 over from Australia to practice. Out of all the contestants, Hoey had the longest way to travel, and told us he was pretty jet-lagged.His competitor was dressed head-to-toe in gold, and every conversation with him felt like a WWE promo. He calls himself the "Golden Voice of Sports Entertainment," and Benson chose his outfit for a specific reason. "It takes gold to beat gold," Benson told GameSpot prior to the semifinals. The final match in the Million Dollar Challenge has players taking on a golden AJ Styles. "By the end of this tournament, everyone is going to be laying in a heap, and I'm going to have my hand raised in victory as your million dollar champion." He wasn't lying.As for what the two would do with the money, Hoey explained he's young, and he'd put it in the bank, while Benson said he'd take care of his family. The final match between the two may not have been the most exciting, as Benson spent most of the time outside of the ring, running from Hoey, but when a million dollars is on the line, you've got to do what you can to win. However, the antics of the WWE superstars were hilarious, which included Woods holding up a sign that read, "Match of the century" and Big E awkwardly sitting on the middle ringpost. After winning, AJ Styles came out and got in Benson's face. The two cut promos on each other, and it was onto the finals.This led to NXT Takeover where the final bout took place on the preshow. Benson came out and very quickly got the crowd booing with his smack talk. However, when it came to the actual match against Styles, Benson came out on top, and he made it look very easy. After his win, he was presented with a million dollar check, while Styles threw his controller from the entrance ramp into the ring."This is the first day of the rest of my new life," Benson told GameSpot backstage after his win. "I'm going to be smart with the money, but I'm gonna have some fun." He didn't seem too worried about Styles going into the match even though Styles is a huge gamer, appearing on UpUpDownDown regularly. "I promised him. I would take him to suplex city, all expenses paid with all the bells and whistles, and look where I'm standing. I'm a million dollars richer, baby. Can't no one argue that."Info from Gamespot.com