Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 Beta announced for PlayStation 4

Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 Beta announced for PlayStation 4

Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 Beta announced for PlayStation 4

We have great news for all the Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 fans: you will be able to play the game before its release on PS4!

Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 will have two Beta phases:

• A closed beta from October 8^th to October 10^th
• An open beta from October 14^th to October 17^th

How will you be able to access the Closed Beta?

All players who preordered Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 digitally (on the PS Store) will be able to access the Closed and Open Beta.

Some codes will also be distributed in various ways, so keep an eye out!

How will you be able to access the Open Beta?

All players on PlayStation 4 will be able to play in the Open Beta, just be sure to have a PSN Account ready!

What will be the exact opening times of the betas?

The closed beta will open at 9 am UK Time/10am CEST on October 8^th and will close on October 10^th at 9 am UK Time/10am CEST. The beta will be downloadable one day in advance on October 7^th at 9 am UK Time/10am CEST.

The open beta will open at 9 am UK Time/10am CEST on October 14^th and will close on October 17^th at 9 am UK Time/10am CEST. The beta will be downloadable one day in advance on October 13^th at 9 am UK time/10am CEST.

Be ready to take part in the tournaments to show the world that you are the best Time Patroller! All players who participate in the Beta will also receive a small gift when the game is released!

Sniper Elite 4 | First Gameplay Trailer & Target Führer Teaser

Sniper Elite 4 | First Gameplay Trailer & Target Führer Teaser

Sniper Elite 4

GDE and Rebellion are pleased to announce the Sniper Elite 4 pre-order bonus’ TARGET FÜHRER and CAMOFLAUGE RIFLES SKIN PACK.  This will be included in any pre-order box of Sniper Elite 4.

The debut gameplay trailer for SNIPER ELITE 4 is here and its ending has a twist in the tail – a teaser for TARGET FÜHRER, an extra campaign mission FREE to players who pre-order on any format!

With a brutal mix of stealth and bullet-pumping action set against gorgeous Italian backdrops, the first SNIPER ELITE 4 gameplay trailer showcases just some of the many additions and improvements coming to the most anticipated WW2 shooter of this gaming generation.

In TARGET FÜHRER, players will once again set their sights on history’s most notorious tyrant in a forgotten corner of the Mediterranean where a secret Nazi U-boat facility threatens Allied shipping. When agent Karl Fairburne attempts to assassinate the base’s Commander, he finds his target already dead, executed in person by a shadowy visitor. Karl’s mission has changed: TARGET FÜHRER! Players must destroy the imposing U-boat base and take down Hitler in as many ways as they can in this replayable campaign mission for 1-2 players. SNIPER ELITE 4 is now available for order at retail on PlayStation 4, and Xbox One All pre-orders will receive the TARGET FÜHRER campaign mission and CAMO RIFLES SKIN PACK which includes detailed camouflaged sleeves for the game’s seven iconic WW2 rifles.

 

Kung Fu Panda 3: DVD Review

Kung Fu Panda 3: DVD Review

Battling both demons external and internal, Po's return in Kung Fu Panda 3 is a frenetic family filled blast of pure cinematic animated joy.

This time around, the Jack Black voiced cuddly panda is on a quest to answer the age old question of "Who am I?" when he is appointed teacher by master Che Fu.

However, his existential crisis is threatened with being derailed when two events occur - the return of his father, voiced with warmth by Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston, and the arrival of JK Simmons' baddie Kai, a Kratos-like double blade wielding creature from the spirit world who's chi- stealing ways are a remnant of a 500 year old fight with master Ugwe.

So with Po's universe literally and figuratively about to be torn apart, the fight is on - but in true dumb skull panda fashion.

There's a heart and warmth to Kung Fu Panda 3 that's there from the start and leaps out from the screen as it mixes the story with some truly astounding animation, that blends its Eastern influences with ease.

Coupled with Po's trademark loveable dim-wittedness, the film makes great fist of its animation and its mystical trappings to weave together a story that wraps up all the threads and feels as rounded as the bear's belly, filled with dumplings.

While the original gang is sidelined a little by the threat of Kai and Po's heading out on his own, the frenzied pace of the film never stops. In fact, its unrelenting pace at the start grows near wearisome but will be adored by ADHD kids fed on a continual diet of quick cut zaniness as the story moves breakneck speed to where it needs to.

After about 40 minutes,King Fu Panda 3 slows and the result of doing so is welcome (even if some of the emotional heft of a reunion with pops  is lacking) as well as visually resounding.

With its message of two fathers being pertinent in this day and age of broken families and its resolve of we can make the difference together, Kung Fu Panda 3 delivers the requisite learnings to its family friendly audience without too much of a lecturing.

Complete with some truly impressive animation that blends greens, yellows and other hues from its palette to its Eastern mythological trappings, Kung Fu Panda 3 shows the franchise is in rude health, and is showing no sign of losing any of the creative resolve or charm of its central character as time goes on.

Rating:

HITMAN Bangkok 360 Trailer

HITMAN Bangkok 360 Trailer

HITMAN Episode 4: Bangkok – 360 Trailer

Take a virtual tour around the Himmapan luxury hotel and resort, the location for the “Club 27” mission in HITMAN.  

Travel through the halls and rooms and learn about Episode 4 with a fully 360 degree trailer.

Keep your eyes open for some lesser known clues for how to take out your targets as well - anyone fancy a coconut…?

Watch the HITMAN: A 360 degree visit to Bangkok 

My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2: DVD Review

My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2: DVD Review

Released by Universal Home Ent

It's not easy being Greek, as a paraphrased amphibian might once have intoned.

And it's certainly not easy following up a sleeper hit from nearly a decade and a half ago (just askZoolander 2 about that same problem).

This time around, Nia Vardalos' Toula is suffering from feeling like she is in a rut, is smothering her own daughter Paris and is struggling with a lack of spark within her marriage to John Corbett's Ian as she tries to juggle the incessant chirping entourage of her family.

But, she barely has time to herself, when it is revealed her parents Gus and Maria weren't actually married properly a half century ago.

So, when Maria decides to enjoy some freedom and Gus decides to pursue the route to arrogance, it is up to Toula to work on the old adage of family and that "just when she thought she was out, they pulled her back in again". 

My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 is a Greek tragedy by all accounts, a retro movie that is of its time and that fails in its quest to achieve its former glories.

Sure, the old messages and time honoured tropes of finding time for yourselves later in life, of letting your siblings free to live their own lives and of loving family for all their foibles are all there on show. There are even lines like "We Greeks see no difference between hugging and strangulation" to give insights into the over-bearing nature of family and Toula's in particular.

But they are whipped together and put through the tiresome microscope of attempts to reflect Greek cultures that feels particularly strained and weak this time around. The biggest problem is a script that appears over-stuffed yet bizarrely enough, under developed. Also it's the weak humour that relies on punch line of extended family appearing to embarrass and it soon becomes increasingly tiresome. It really is a case of "Abandon all Opa ye who enter".

If anything, even Vardalos looks tired and weary in parts of the film that increasingly relies on the older end of the family to drive any semblance of a paper-thin plot and they flounder, delivering growing elements of an entirely weak and utterly predictable sentimental plot that fails to hit any of the right notes. The world has moved on and in many ways, this film feels like it's been left behind.

I'm willing to concede that perhaps an older audience looking to be mildly engaged by the likes of this retro film will find something in it to enjoy.

But the escalating squabbling and over-bearing nature of the whole family in My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 helps it shake off the earnestness and charm of the first film, and leaves you with a feeling that this is one Greek feast you don't want to repeat on you. 

Coming Soon to GTA Online: BIKERS and More

Coming Soon to GTA Online: BIKERS and More

Coming Soon to GTA Online: BIKERS and More

Bikers, the next big addition to GTA Online, brings the eagerly-anticipated ability to form and lead your very own Motorcycle Club for up to 8 players. Bikers will introduce new roles to play from fresh Prospects to club Presidents with a massive slate of new competitive and co-op gameplay, along with a range of new motorcycles, properties that include MC Clubhouses with a special custom Biker mechanic, and venues for seedy business ventures. 

MC work is dangerous, sometimes requiring a helping hand from your full Chapter.

Beyond a range of opportunities to climb the ranks within a gang and build lucrative businesses as a formidable MC, Bikers also includes a selection of appropriately-themed new modes for bikers of all kinds, along with new weapons, styles, tattoos and features to make this a huge addition to the world of GTA Online.

Seize vertically integrated growth opportunities across a range of sectors with Businesses.

And while loyal MCs will fight to expand their foothold alongside black-collar CEOs and Organizations, there’s always another opportunity to make your mark just around the corner. Keep an eye out for high-level, high-risk vehicle based business ventures to spring up across Los Santos and Blaine County soon.

It’s already been an exciting year for GTA Online. Further Adventures in Finance and Felony brought new, challenging work opportunities and high-rise office spaces for CEOs willing to risk everything to keep climbing the criminal ranks. New Adversary Modes like Power Play and Trading Places added an exciting new dimension to team-based games. Cunning Stunts took stunt racing to a new level with a radical new set of Races and vehicles, alongside Creator tools that allow the infinitely creative community to build and share their own Stunt Races well into the future. 

And ongoing weekly GTA Online bonuses highlight the enormous breadth of available undertakings. Be on the lookout for more of these throughout the fall as well, including continued opportunities for bonus GTA$ and RP in select activities, valuable discounts and new weekly Premium Stunt Races.

The Boss: DVD Review

The Boss: DVD Review

Re-teaming with her director husband andTammy cohort, and reviving a character from 15 years ago in comedy troupe The Groundlings, Melissa McCarthy stars as the brash businesswoman Michelle Darnell.

Abandoned repeatedly when she was but a nipper, and thrown into various foster carers before being rejected time and time again, Darnell's grown up to be America's 47th Wealthiest woman but isn't much loved by her staff, chiefly Kristen Bell's long suffering single mom and assistant Claire.

When Darnell's incarcerated for insider trading, she emerges from prison determined to get back to the top - and finding only Claire's begrudgingly willing to let her stay, she insinuates her way into her life.

The Boss ain't exactly top dog.

Granted, if you've seen Melissa McCarthy's previous fare (and specifically Tammy) you will know what to expect - a pinch of raunchy (aka foul language) mixed in with some sweet saccharine fare to help you invest in the character's arc.

Clad in high neck turtleneck jumpers and clearly a spoof of Martha Stewart via Donald Trump, McCarthy invests fully into this character and it feels like a second skin to her without a shadow of a doubt as she inhabits the monstrous caricature.

With her push to create a brownie empire via Girl Guides named the Darnell Darlings (vaguely resembling a female troop of Black Power candidates, clothed in red berets), there are certainly moments when McCarthy sells what she's offering with ease and gusto.

But that mix of potty-mouth below par script and physical comedy soon provides a meal of diminishing returns.

There's only so often the apparently improvised and under-written script can fall back on a lazy dick joke to hit the highs it's aiming for. Granted, it ain't anything other than low-hanging fruit, but it soon becomes tiresome. And when the humour runs out, a third act over-dollop of sentiment as saccharine and as sickly as the brownies Darnell's Darlings are selling really thrusts things over the edge.

Bell proves fair game and gives a great straight performance as the frustrated mother of a kid and a monster (Darnell) but her sweet-natured turn goes to prove the diamond to Darnell's rough. That said, it's clear McCarthy has lived the character of the self-made millionaire before and there are moments when the monstrous and unexpected gives way to some funny laughs.

Dinklage is one-note Blue Steel and wasted, but then no-one in The Boss acquits themselves well and the whole thing suffers when compared to more amusing fare like Spy.

Fudging the final act and abandoning the crass proves very much to be The Boss' tonal Achilles heel, as it feels like extended sketches have been padded with very little idea of what to do and where to go.

Melissa McCarthy may get some modest returns for The Boss, as she clearly strikes a chord with the audience at times, but the film's insistence on following an oddly uneven journey and a woefully weak script does nothing to get this boss out of the cinematic boardroom and back to the floor.

In fact, quite simply, this Boss deserves to be fired.