Xbox Showcases Stellar Spring Games Lineup for Xbox One and Windows 10

Xbox Showcases Stellar Spring Games Lineup for Xbox One and Windows 10

In San Francisco last week, Head of Xbox Phil Spencer reaffirmed Microsoft’s commitment to bringing the biggest Microsoft Studios franchises to both Xbox One and Windows 10, and provided journalists, YouTube personalities and Twitch streamers hands-on time with Xbox’s most-anticipated spring games and platform experiences.

Kicking off with today’s release of Gears of War: Ultimate Edition for Windows 10, the Xbox spring games lineup includes a wide array of fan-favorite franchises coming to both Xbox One and Windows 10, including Quantum Break, Forza, Killer Instinct and more.

“At Xbox we believe gamers should be able to play the games they want, with the people they want, on the devices they want,” Spencer said. “Making more of our popular games available for gamers to play on either Xbox One or Windows 10, each powered by Xbox Live, is another important step towards this vision. We are committed to delivering amazing gaming experiences for gamers who play on consoles, PCs or both.”

The Best Franchises are Coming to Xbox One and Windows 10 This Spring
Whether you enjoy hitting the race track in a gorgeous supercar, bending time to your will, or venturing deep into apocalyptic worlds, Xbox is delivering an amazing lineup of games this spring and beyond:

• Dark Souls III – Attendees enjoyed hands-on with new content from the third entry in the acclaimed Dark Souls series at the Xbox Spring Showcase. Launching Apr. 12 on Xbox One,Dark Souls III takes players through an apocalyptic, dark journey to unfold the secrets of the unique universe created by Hidetaka Miyazaki, FromSoftware and BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment (additional details).
• Forza Motorsport 6: Apex – Arriving in the Windows Store this spring, Forza Motorsport 6: Apexis a free, curated standalone experience for Windows 10 that provides fans with a diverse tour of what Forza Motorsport 6 has to offer, including trademark innovations iconic to theForza franchise, such as Drivatar™ opponents and Forzavista™ cars, as well as new ways to play and compete. The experience also takes advantage of DirectX 12, delivering breathtaking visuals at up to 4K resolution, and was playable for the first time at the Xbox Spring Showcase on an Intel Unleashed Custom (additional details).
• Forza Motorsport 6 (Porsche Expansion Pack) – Available today, the Porsche Expansion Pack for Forza Motorsport 6 on Xbox One spans Porsche’s 60-year history, giving players the chance to race and master 21 Porsche models, including nine new to Xbox One, in an all-new eight-hour Career campaign. The Porsche Expansion also features the debut of the Virginia International Raceway track, in both night and wet conditions (additional details).
• Gears of War: Ultimate Edition for Windows 10 – Available in the Windows Store starting today, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is playable for the first time on Windows 10, and was shown on Alienware Area 51 and iBUYPOWER Revolt 2 at the Xbox Spring Showcase. Remade from the ground-up, the game features amazing 4k resolution built with DirectX 12, unlimited refresh rates and controller and mouse and keyboard controls (additional details).
• ID@Xbox – ID@Xbox showcased two marquee titles:
  • Pit People from The Behemoth is coming first to Xbox One, followed by Windows 10. Experience this fast-paced, turn-based co-op adventure in a closed Beta later this year (additional details).
  • Below from Capy is coming to Xbox One. Below is a descent into the Depths. Explore. Survive. Discover. (additional details)
• Killer Instinct: Season 3 – Microsoft Studios and Iron Galaxy announced that eight new fighters are joining the arena in Killer Instinct: Season 3, available March 29 on both Xbox One and Windows 10. The team provided hands-on with the first four characters available on launch day – Kim Wu, Tusk, The Arbiter from the Halo franchise, and Rash from Battletoads – on Xbox One and an MSI Nightblade X2 Windows 10 PC (additional details).
• Minecraft with Oculus Rift support – Microsoft and Mojang are teaming up with Oculus to provide the first-ever demos of Minecraft: Windows 10 Edition with Oculus Rift support, shown at the Xbox Spring Showcase on Cyberpower Black Crow and Acer Predator G6. You can playMinecraft: Windows 10 Edition in Creative or Survival mode in full 3D while using the familiar Xbox One controller that ships with every Rift sold. Minecraft: Windows 10 Edition with Oculus Rift support will be available through the Windows Store and Oculus Store this spring.
• Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition – Microsoft Studios highlighted additional content for Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition, demoed at the Xbox Spring Showcase on Xbox One. The Definitive Edition enhances the award-winning original game release with new content, including new areas, abilities, more story sequences, multiple difficulty modes, fast travel between areas, and more. Available March 11 on both Xbox One and Windows 10 (additional details).
• Quantum Break – Remedy Entertainment debuted the DirectX 12-powered Windows 10 version of Quantum Break at the Xbox Spring Showcase, offering hands-on demos running on an Nvidia Z97 Carbide, Asus ROG G11 Series, and Acer Predator G6 (additional details). Anyone who pre-orders the Xbox One digital version through the Xbox Store, purchases an Xbox One digital token at participating retailers, or pre-orders an Xbox One Special EditionQuantum Break bundle, will receive the Windows 10 version of the game for free, downloadable from the Windows Store via redemption code when Quantum Break launches on Xbox One and Windows 10 on April 5.
• Tom Clancy’s The Division – Ubisoft treated attendees to in depth hands on time with the open beta content for Tom Clancy’s The Division, an immersive online open-world action role-playing game. Launching March 8 on Xbox One, players will team up with other Division agents to reclaim New York City from the chaos of a deadly pandemic (additional details).

DirectX 12 Showcase: Rise of the Tomb Raider, Ashes of the Singularity, King of Wushu – Square Enix, Snail, and Stardock showcased their latest DirectX 12 enhancements for Rise of the Tomb Raider, King of Wushu, and Ashes of the Singularity on Origin PCs, iBUYPOWER Revolt 2, and Maingear PCs. Ashes of the Singularity is taking advantage the DirectX 12 multi-adapter technology, allowing PCs to use multiple GPUs, even from different manufacturers. Rise of the Tomb Raider was playable for the first time at the Xbox Spring Showcase running DirectX 12.

New Features in the Windows 10 Xbox App and Xbox One – The Xbox team discussed new updates arriving soon on Xbox One and also in the Xbox app in Windows 10, demoing some of the new features on a top-of-the-line Razer Razerblade 14-inch laptop:

• Gamerscore Leaderboard in the Achievements section and Hero Stat Leaderboards in Game Hubs
• See Avatars in your Activity Feed if you’ve chosen to replace your gamerpic with your Avatar
• An updated “Featured” section spotlights games, deals, community events and more
• 16-person Party Chat is enabled across both Xbox One and the Windows 10 Xbox app
• Xbox 360 achievements will automatically post to your Activity Feed
• More interactive Game Hubs with web-linking
• Compare your Avatar with your friends’ Avatars
• Reputation interface changes, players with ‘good’ profiles will no longer feature a reputation gauge

Stay tuned for more exciting news and reveals at E3, including our full lineup of holiday exclusives as well as new innovations, features and experiences coming to Xbox One, Windows 10 and Xbox Live.

Tom Clancy: The Division: NVIDIA Trailer

Tom Clancy: The Division: NVIDIA Trailer

NVIDIA TRAILER

To view the trailer click the image below

PS4 3.50 Beta live tomorrow

PS4 3.50 Beta live tomorrow

3.50 Beta Goes Live Tomorrow Delivering Much Anticipated Features to PlayStation®4 Leading features of the next major system software update make it even easier for players to connect spontaneously and play with friends on PS4™

Auckland, New Zealand, 2 March 2016:  Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) today revealed the features included in the beta for the next major system software update 3.50, codenamed MUSASHI, for PlayStation®4 (PS4™). As part of the beta phase, players can schedule gameplay events with friends directly through their console. Players can also receive specific notifications as selected friends appear online. Heading the list of  features is full support for PS4 players to set-up and arrange gameplay events in console as well as via PlayStation®App (PS App), making it easier for like-minded gamers and friends to arrange gameplay together.  The feature gives event hosts the ability to edit events after they’ve been scheduled, with invited friends and community members notified of any changes. In addition, players can now be notified as friends come online, bringing more visibility to when friends are available to play and inspiring more immediate interaction between gamers. This much-requested feature allows gamers to tailor notifications for individual friends, meaning it can be activated for a select group of close-friends, rather than the entire friends list. Whilst playing together is at the heart of the beta, the trial also brings functionality and improvements for those wishing to enjoy an uninterrupted experience on PS4. The ability to appear offline is included to allow gamers full immersion in their play experience, whilst still offering them the full suite of PS4 features. We wanted to detail some of the other features we’re adding to PS4 in this update. We’re making it easier to connect and play together with friends and the wider community, as well as introducing some much requested features:   Remote Play (PC/Mac) – We’re bringing PS4 Remote Play to Windows PC and Mac. This feature won’t be available to test in the beta, but you can look forward to it soon. PlayStation Plus – A new option in the PlayStation Plus destination will allow you to easily check and manage your online storage Dailymotion, New service partners in Share feature – Dailymotion, an additional live streaming service, will become available for PS4 users to enhance their broadcast experience. Like other live streaming services available on PS4, users will enjoy the following features: Activity Feed, What’s New Broadcast Info Tile, Live Detail and Live from PlayStation. All of these features are currently being trialled as part of the beta by community members who chose to sign up when PlayStation invited players via the PS Blog. The final features list will be revealed when the system software update goes live.

New Trailer, Characters and Power Discs Unveiled for Marvel Battlegrounds

New Trailer, Characters and Power Discs Unveiled for Marvel Battlegrounds

NEW TRAILER, CHARACTERS AND POWER DISCS UNVEILED FOR MARVEL BATTLEGROUNDS,

MULTI-PLAYER ARCADE BRAWLER GAME FOR DISNEY INFINITY 3.0

ANT-MAN, BLACK PANTHER, AND VISION JOIN ROSTER OF MORE THAN 25 PLAYABLE MARVEL CHARACTERS; NEW LINE-UP INCLUDES COSTUMES INSPIRED BY CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR

MELBOURNE, Aust. – (March 2, 2016) – Disney Interactive today unveiled new trailer, characters and Power Discs for the Marvel Battlegrounds Play Set launching for Disney Infinity 3.0 in Australia and New Zealand on March 24. 

Joining the roster of more than 25 playable Marvel characters, including Captain America – The First Avenger, Hulkbuster, Ultron and all of the characters from Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes are:

·        Ant-Man, who shrinks to the size of an ant but increases his strength to pack a whopping punch

·        Black Panther, the leader of Wakanda who defends his homeland with acrobatic skills and his legendary claws

·        Vision, a brave and noble synthetic warrior who will fight to bring peace to the world

The new line-up of characters includes costumes inspired by the upcoming film “Captain America: Civil War,” releasing in local cinemas on April 28, 2016.

Additionally, a new Marvel Battlegrounds-themed Power Disc Pack will be sold separately and contains:

·        Cosmic Cube Blast – Unleash a powerful energy blast on nearby foes

·        Darkhawk’s Blast – Blast obstacles with a powerful energy beam

·        Nova Corps Strike – Call upon the Nova Corps to unleash a tactical strike from above

·        Ghost Rider’s Motorcycle – Take a ride on the wild side with Ghost Rider’s flaming motorcycle 

Developed by United Front Games, in partnership with Avalanche Software, Marvel Battlegrounds is the first Play Set to introduce four-player arcade brawler gameplay to Disney Infinity.  Players engage in the ultimate rumble as Marvel Super Heroes and Super Villains struggle to gain control of Wakanda’s most valuable resource, Vibranium. The ever-growing clash creates factions as the war stretches to the cosmic battlegrounds of space. Players can choose from more than 25 Marvel characters found inside Disney Infinity, and battle through 12 levels across eight dynamic arenas.

Armageddon Expo Manukau is coming

Armageddon Expo Manukau is coming

Manukau will be beseiged this weekend with the inaugural launch of the Armageddon event!

Running over Saturday and Sunday 5th / 6th March., here's the full details of what's ahead!

Armageddon – the entertainment expo of New Zealand! And we're heading to Manukau for the very first time! 
http://www.armageddonexpo.com/nz/

Armageddon is a weekend-long event at the Vodafone Events Centre featuring sci-fi, gaming, anime, collectibles, TV and movie stars and comics. This is a massive family-friendly event not to be missed.
Schedule

MAIN STAGE
Saturday 
9.45am - Song of a Fifth Grade Samurai
11am - Supernatural Panel with Ruth Connell
Noon - Stargate Panel with Richard Dean Anderson, Christopher Judge and David Nykl
1pm - Ash VS Evil Dead panel with Ray Santiago
2pm - Star Trek: The Next Generation panel with Marina Sirtis
3pm - Trinity Treasures presents – Cosplay Parade
4pm - Fear Factor Contest
4.30pm - IPW Wrestling with Haku

Sunday 
9.45am - Song of a Fifth Grade Samurai
11am - Stargate Panel with David Nykl
Noon - Stargate SG-1 and MacGyver panel with Richard Dean Anderson
1pm - Stargate SG-1 panel Christopher Judge
2pm - Kamehameha Contest with Mike McFarland
2.15pm - Trinity Treasures presents – NZ Cosplay Cup
3.30pm - Ice Cream Eating Challenge 
4pm - IPW Wrestling

STAGE TWO
Saturday
9am - Animation Screening – Persona 4: The Golden Animation
1pm - Animation Panel with Mike McFarland and William Salyers 
2pm - Comic Panel with Dean Rankine, Charles Soule and Christian Gossett
3pm - Animation Screening – Angelic Layer Series Collection
4pm - Trinity Treasures presents – Leveling Up Your Cosplay with Monika Lee and Riddle

Sunday
9am - Animation Screening – Giovanni’s Island
11am - Animation Screening – The World God Only Knows: OVA Collection
1pm - Trinity Treasures presents - Translating Props and Costumes
2pm - Wrestling Panel with Haku
3pm - Animation Screening – Ping Pong

PHOTOS
Saturday
10am - Richard Dean Anderson - $45 
Noon - Marina Sirtis
12.30pm - Ruth Connell
1pm - Christopher Judge
1.45pm - Stargate SG-1 Duo – Richard Dean Anderson and Christopher Judge - $90
2pm - Stargate Trio – Richard Dean Anderson, Michael Shanks and David Nykl - $120
2.15pm - Ray Santiago
3pm - Haku
3.45pm - David Nykl

Sunday
10am - Richard Dean Anderson - $45
11am - Christopher Judge
1pm - Ruth Connell
1.30pm - Haku
2pm - Stargate SG-1 Duo – Richard Dean Anderson and Christopher Judge - $90
2.15pm - Stargate Trio – Richard Dean Anderson, Christopher Judge and David Nykl -$120
2.30pm - Ray Santiago
3.30pm - Marina Sirtis
4.15pm - David Nykl

SIGNING TIMES
Richard Dean Anderson - $35
3.30pm to 5.30pm Daily

Media Guests - Christopher Judge, David Nykl, Ruth Connell, Marina Sirtis, Ray Santiago, Haku
2.30pm to 5pm Daily

Animation Guests - Mike McFarland, William Salyers
Saturday - 11am to 12.30pm and 3pm to 5pm
Sunday - 11am to 1pm and 3pm to 5pm

Comic Guests - Dean Rankine, Christian Gossett, Charles Soule
11am to 1pm and 3pm to 5pm Daily

Cosplay Guests - Monika Lee and Riddle
Saturday - 11am to 2pm and 5pm to 6pm
Sunday - 11am to 1pm and 3.30pm to 6pm

Hail, Caesar!: Film Review

Hail, Caesar!: Film Review

Cast: Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Ralph Fiennes, Alden Ehrenreich, Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson
Directors: Joel and Ethan Coen

The Coen Brothers return to Hollywood with Hail, Caesar!

In a playful ode to Hollywood past, it's the story of Capitol Pictures head Eddie Mannix (a brilliant Josh Brolin) and how his life plays out over one day inside the studio system.

Mannix is a fixer, and his skill-set is needed when George Clooney's Baird Whitlock, the star of the studio's prestige picture, Hail, Caesar (The Tale of The Christ) is kidnapped. With only a brief ransom note purporting to be from The Future, Mannix is racing against the clock to ensure the production's not shut down and Capitol Pictures isn't plunged into anarchy and infamy.

Hail, Caesar! is The Player through a Coens-shaped prism.

Brolin's is hands down the star of the film, the thread that ties together what are essentially a series of well-executed cameos that occasionally threaten to overwhelm the thinnest of narratives to the casual viewer.

Talk of communism that echo Trumbo, the death of the movies with the advent of television and a long debate about spirituality sit alongside a brilliantly executed dance number with Channing Tatum channelling Gene Kelly. It's a flick of polar opposites in many ways, and as light a feast as the Coens have ever served up to us.

And yet on the surface, the film is a frothy ode to 1930s era surroundings; a film that revels in its gloriously recreated ethics and which delights in its re-staging of motifs you'd recognise from the pantheon of Hollywood's finest. A water set dance number with Scarlett Johansson oozes with panache and prestige but sits at odds with the drama that's unfolding around it; and while Mannix's push to solve everyone's problems is the main drive of the film, the zigzagging and meandering means the journey to the end is nothing short of occasionally frustrating.

Thankfully, some of the motifs of the latest Coens' film stays with you after the lights have gone up and once the thrill of Clooney playing Charlton Heston and Brolin playing a version of a real life Hollywood fixer has washed over you, the themes begin to surface and the perception that it's a patchwork pastiche of a collection of cameos and scenes subsides.

In its own perverse way, it's escapism of the purest level, as the studio's desires to detract from the depression and the threat of the Cold War are recreated for us to behold.

Hail, Caesar! is something more than a love letter to Hollywood though; it's an iceberg of a film, an under the surface look at the politics and ideology of the times with a few dance numbers thrown in and talk of the H Bomb to distract you.
It's a smoke and mirrors kind of film that is as frothy as it comes and dawdles on its way, lacking some of the tightness and pay-off you'd expect, but works thanks to grizzled Brolin's determination and whose arc sees him being tempted outside of Hollywood as he deals to the daily concerns. (Something many of the time would have faced with the impending demise of Hollywood, a threat we know never came to pass but whose image would be tarnished with the problems).

Not every journey is as successful and some off camera resolutions feel forced, slight and narratively cheating. Of the cast, Ehrenreich is perhaps the revelation as Hobie Doyle, a John Wayne-esque simpleton of a hillbilly chosen for his looks, his lassoing ways and his sex appeal. The scenes where Ralph Fiennes tries to direct him are a joy to behold, dripping in frustration and working against the clock.

Ultimately, Hail, Caesar! may not at initial sight be among the Coens' finest efforts, but thanks to its cohorts of cameos, its perfect casting and spot-on recreations as well as its scratch-the-surface message, it's still a cinematic sweet treat, if you're willing to forego and forgive its excesses and flimsinesses.

Rating:

Gods of Egypt: Film Review

Gods of Egypt: Film Review

Cast: Gerard Butler, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Brenton Thwaites, Geoffrey Rush, Rufus Sewell, Courtenay Eaton, Elodie Yung
Director: Alex Proyas

It's possible that the latest swords and sandals film will fall short, but it is not through lack of trying and digital ambition.

Essentially a throwback to the Ray Harryhausen FX pics of yore, Gods of Egypt centres around the age old rivalry between god brothers Horus (Game of Thrones' Nikolaj Coster Waldau) and Set (Gerard Butler).

When Set murders his father Osiris (Aussie Bryan Brown) on the day of Horus' coronation and rips out his eyes (the source of his power) Egypt is plunged into chaos.

Entering the fray is mortal thief Bek (an utterly underwhelming Brenton Thwaites) whose plan to raid the tomb and restore Horus' sight renders his nubile missus Zaya (Courtenay Eaton) dead as they flee.

Hoping Horus can save her from the afterlife, Bek strikes a bargain with the god and the mismatched buddies set off on a mission of redemption.

Gods of Egypt's creature ambitions out-strip its budget and the result is an FX addled character-less mess that lacks the charm of the likes of Clash of the Titans, but is reminiscent of what makes them successful.

Gerard Butler, complete with Scottish brogue, chews every piece of crumbling masonry in every scene he appears in, imbuing his Set with the tyrannical edge that's needed, but very little else. Equally, Coster-Waldau manages to convey a degree of misery and pity as the wronged god but he does little to give the character an edge that's needed. 


Worst offender is Brenton Thwaites, whose acting is in the very loosest sense of the word - it's like he's reading the script for the very first time and doing little with it.

Geoffrey Rush shows up to cash his cheque as the sun god Ra in a side story that sees him effectively manning a spaceship of the gods and fighting off a smoke monster (no doubt left over from Lost) determined to plough the Nile into its belly.

In between the slow-mo shots and some slightly shonky looking CGI, director Alex Proyas (who did such a masterful job with the much under-rated Dark City) does what he can, but there simply is little in reserve to carry this through. 

Digital wizardry left over from the Hobbit has these gods taller creatures than the men around them, but it's an image that never quite manages to succeed thanks to a script that fails to deliver any kind of dimension to the proceedings or any kind of stand out moments, thanks to characters that are weak and severely dramatically malnourished.

Ultimately, Gods of Egypt's FX are where the film rises and ironically falls. The scope of ambition and the design is impressive, there's no doubting the evocative nature of the era is well-realised, but it's all background dressing. With hammy dialogue, a weak story and visuals that are redolent of both Tomb Raider and the Mummy, Gods of Egypt is a mess of mythical proportions and a missed opportunity to stake its own place in anything other than infamy rather than cinematic mythology.