Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus Free Trial Starts Today

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus Free Trial Starts Today

Today we’re happy to announce a free trial for Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. Players can now download the free trial on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC and play through the entire first level of the game. Should players choose to upgrade to the full version of the game, their save data will carry over. 

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus launched on October 27 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC, to widespread praise from the critics and community. Wolfenstein II has also been nominated in several categories for The Game Awards, including Best Game Direction, Best Narrative, Best Action Game and Best Performance (Brian Bloom as BJ Blazkowicz). 

Wolfenstein II sends players to Nazi-controlled America on a mission to recruit the boldest resistance leaders left. Players will fight the Nazis in iconic locations such as small-town Roswell, New Mexico, quarantined New Orleans, and a post-nuclear Manhattan. Armed with an impressive arsenal of fully upgradeable retro sci-fi weaponry, including the all-new Dieselkraftwerk, players can unleash new abilities to blast through legions of advanced Nazi soldiers and über soldiers in this definitive first-person shooter. 

MONSTER OF THE DEEP: FINAL FANTASY XV VR out now

MONSTER OF THE DEEP: FINAL FANTASY XV VR out now

MONSTER OF THE DEEP: FINAL FANTASY XV

AVAILABLE NOW

SYDNEY, 22^nd November 2017 – The expanding FINAL FANTASY® XV Universe casts its line into the world of virtual reality with today’s release of MONSTER OF THE DEEP: FINAL FANTASY XV, a brand-new VR experience for the PlayStation®VR system. Based on the mini-game from FINAL FANTASY XV, this new downloadable content invites players to head out on an angling expedition with crown prince Noctis, his companions Ignis, Prompto and Gladio and other familiar faces across picturesque locales.

Players can put their fishing skills to the test in Story Mode, which places them in the middle of an exhilarating, action-packed showdown with a menace lurking in the depths, or take in the sights, sounds and scenery of Eos through a variety of challenges in Free Fishing mode. With 13 different rods to use, 61 lures to choose from and over 100 varieties of fish to catch, players can look forward to a gratifying journey ahead to becoming Eos’ greatest Lord of the Lures.

Now in GTA Online: Hunter Attack Chopper, 16 New Transform Races and More

Now in GTA Online: Hunter Attack Chopper, 16 New Transform Races and More

FH-1 HUNTER NOW AVAILABLE

Calling the FH-1 Hunter an attack helicopter might be misleading, because this thing is in a class of its own. Its unique rocket barrage alone is enough to eviscerate an army of foes, and that’s before you consider your buddy's contributions at the helm of the gunner-operated Turret. Can you hear it? The sweet cacophony of exploding aircraft and Homing Missiles whizzing through the sky. Your enemies should be so grateful. Pick up your FH-1 Hunter today from Warstock Cache and Carry.

NEW TRANSFORM RACES & DOUBLE PAYOUTS

A whopping 16 new Transform Races have arrived in GTA Online, serving up more thrills and spills for those willing to risk life and limb for glory. Competing in any Transform Race between now and November 27th will also grant you Double GTA$ & RP, so hit the Stunt Tubes and earn big while you can.

To get right into to any of the new Races, hit the links below to bookmark them on Social Club and get instant access the next time you hop in game. From the game, tap the boot button from the loading screen or hit any one of the Transform Race Series icons scattered across the map to jump directly into a Series featuring these new Transform Races:

90° | Acropolis Now | Crossroads | Dam Control | Dead Drop | Dockades of Fun | Fairway Drive | Looped | Maverick | Odyssey | Pipes Pipes Pipes | Snakes and a Plane | Splash Landing | Switch Up | Trench IV | Twister

UNLOCK THE WHITE JOCK CRANLEY JUMPSUIT: NOV 21 - 27

Whatever you make of Jock Cranley's politics, we can all agree that stunt jumping in Southern San Andreas wouldn't have been the same without his trademark, bulge-hugging attire. Grab yourself a piece of history with the White Jock Cranley Jumpsuit - a free in-game unlock for all who log in to GTA Online between now and November 27th.

AUTOMOTIVE DISCOUNTS

Give your fleet of racing vehicles an edge or simply satiate your lust for petrol and burnt rubber with these discounts on cars and automotive upgrades, going on all week long. And be sure to stay tuned for some big discounts coming later this week for Black Friday.

• Progen Tyrus (Super) – 25% off
• Dewbauchee Rapid GT (Sports) – 25% off
• Engine Upgrades – 25% off
• Handling Upgrades – 25% off
• Brakes – 25% off
• Transmission – 25% off
• Turbo – 25% off
• Suspension – 25% off
• Spoilers – 25% off

PREMIUM RACE & TIME TRIAL SCHEDULE

Prepare to slam that throttle in this week's scheduled Premium Race and Time Trial events. Through November 27th:

• Premium Special Vehicle Race - "Redneck" (locked to Rocket Voltic)
• Time Trial - "End To End"

Launch Premium Races through the Quick Job App on your in-game phone or via the yellow corona at Legion Square. The top three finishers will earn GTA$ and you'll get Triple RP regardless of where you place. To take a shot at the Time Trial, set a waypoint to the marker on your in-game map and enter via the purple corona. Beat par time and you'll be duly rewarded with GTA$ & RP.

Previously:
Coil Cyclone Now Available Plus This Week’s GTA Online Bonuses
GTA Online: P-45 Nokota Fighter Plane Plus New Dogfight Mode, Discounts and More

The Stolen: Film Review

The Stolen: Film Review

Cast: Alice Eve, Stan Walker, Graham McTavish, Cohen Holloway, Richard O'Brien, Jack Devonport
Director: Niall Johnson

The NZ set Western has had middling success so far.

From the enigmatic Slow West to the downright average Good For Nothing, it's a genre that clearly has some legs in.

Hoping to cash in on that, are Niall Johnson and writer Emily Corcoran, who've used the Canterbury coasts as their backdrop to the story of Alice Eve's Charlotte Lockton at the end of the 19th Century.
Relocating out to New Zealand with her husband and being trained to use weapons to survive in the wilds, Charlotte gets a rude awakening when they're robbed at midnight, her husband killed and her 3-month-old son kidnapped.

Receiving a ransom note 3 months later with a picture of her son, Charlotte sets out on a dangerous mission to rescue him.

Less Unforgiven, more unforgiveable, The Stolen's problems come from a patchy script, some wooden dialogue and some truly underwritten characters.

While the countryside looks great and Johnson makes great fist of the juxtaposition of both the rugged terrain and the contrast of Eve's porcelain English rose look.
But it's not enough to make parts of the film feel like a slog - even for a relatively short 90 minute run-time.

The tarts-with-hearts that Charlotte journeys across town with are given the most broad-brush cursory backstories with which to work and consequently, there's little to engage with when the inevitable peril sets in.

Chiefly Stan Walker feels majorly under-utilised and predominantly bookends the film with a character that suggests there could have been much more.

Richard O'Brien's Irish barkeep is another oddity in a film which mixes so many different accents in, you can be forgiven for thinking it's not set in New Zealand.

Complete with overbearing OST that blasts out any moment and drowns its emotional edges, The Stolen feels like it's punching above its weight.

Ultimately, with an improbable twist set down in the final furlong, The Stolen's whole feeling is one of something that's betrayed the promise of its mightily impressive premise.

It's disappointing as the setting and the story idea, which could have been better propelled along by revenge and a smash-the-streotype-female lead feels more like it's been squandered.

The Big Sick: Blu Ray Review

The Big Sick: Blu Ray Review

Cast: Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Ray Romano, Holly Hunter
Director: Michael Showalter

With a strong footing in truth, The Big Sick's rom-com cum cultural clash love story has rightly sent the genre back into fresher territory.

Silicon Valley's Dinesh aka Kumail Nanjiani stars as a version of himself in a story ripped from his own life.

Wannabe stand-up Kumail is working in a club one night, when he's heckled by Zoe Kazan's Emily. Intrigued, Kumail ends up striking a relationship with her after the show. Despite trying out an awful chat-up  line with Emily, the pair connect and end up in an easy relationship.

However, what Emily doesn't know is that Kumail's Pakistani family is trying to set him up with other women in an arranged marriage, via a series of dates which happen at family meals. (In one of the more excruciating touches, the women his parents have selected for him just happen to drop by during meal-times for an appointment.)

When this revelation hits the pair, Emily splits from Kumail, leaving him devastated. But things get worse when he gets a call to say Emily's seriously sick in hospital...

In many ways, The Big Sick is your typical romantic comedy.

Boy meets girl, boy falls for girl and problems and obstacles persist in the course of true love. So far, so tried and tested formula.

However, what The Big Sick brings to the table is a large degree of freshness, some genuinely funny moments and some sweet insights into the cultural clashes which are, of course, inevitable.

And really, at its heart, this is not a film that defies convention.

In fact, the only defiance is Kumail's insistence on going against his family wishes and avoiding spending time praying in the basement, choosing instead to play games on his phone, until his allotted time has passed.

Yet, being grounded in so much truth and veritas, (unsurprising as it's ripped from Kumail Nanjiani and Emily's real life romance), what The Big Sick manages to do is breathe some life into a genre that's been stale for a while and subverts expectations of those going into it.

Nanjiani brings his usual deadpan flair to the delivery, but thanks to a cleverly written script that fizzes with life and reality, there are some truly amusing moments. Mainly due to the ease of banter between the two and a slight subversion of the usual gags you'd expect about cultural stereotypes.

From a great gag over Kumail's Uber-career to the genuine warmth these two share, there are very much the signs that The Big Sick is keen to inject some humour where it's never been before.

It's not entirely perfect though.

At just a shade over 2 hours, there could have been some excising on the script front (a slew of comedy bar scenes seem a little unnecessary) to ensure the perfect mix, but it's a minor complaint.

The other interesting angle The Big Sick brings is that at its heart, it's a two-pronged relationship comedy.

Not only does Emily and Kumail's relationship take up the time on screen, but there's also a large amount of the film which is devoted to Kumail's relationship with his potential in-laws, played by a terrier-like Holly Hunter and an easy-going career best Ray Romano. There is also the battle between Kumail's family and their desire to do right by tradition and his desire to break away from that. (Interestingly, the final resolution doesn't quite provide all the answers and really does feel like there are more questions than answers.)

As Emily's parents battle their wariness and try to protect their daughter from the indirect charm offensive launched by an awkwardly bashful Kumail, what also emerges is profoundly sweet and utterly charismatic despite its inevitable outcome.

There's a great deal of earnest charm about The Big Sick and it's difficult to be profoundly cynical against its intentions. But in crafting a rom-com that's genuine and earnest, The Big Sick succeeds in being a genre best and ensures the entirely over-stuffed category is given a new lease of life. 

Madame: Film Review

Madame: Film Review

Cast: Toni Collette, Harvey Keitel, Michael Smiley, Rossy de Palma
Director: Amanda Sthers

Trying to blend Cinderella with an attempt at insight into a decaying marriage doesn't quite reap the rewards it should for Amanda Sthers writing and directorial attempt, Madame.

Holding a dinner party for the London Mayor in Paris, pressed Anne (Collette, tart and relatively convincing as haughtiness gets the better of her) forces her maid Maria (de Palma) to step in as one of the guests, fearing 13 at the table is an unlucky number.

But thrust into a world she can only comprehend through servitude, Maria catches the eye of the family art appraiser (Smiley, a welcome presence on screen and a sign that Europe has a differing eye on romantic leads).

As the two grow closer, the lies have to be maintained, but Anne finds her tolerance for the charade shrinking as Maria finds her heart opening to he possibilities of love and life beyond her downstairs role.

Sthers may scatter her film with contemporary references such as Brexit and Aung San Suu Kyi  but her attempts to make something timeless sees her hoist by her own petard.

Madame is not a film that feels for farce or grasps at depth; it feels in some ways incomplete and woefully undercooked in places. Certainly an ending frustrates, even if some may consider it inherently French. 

The trouble is that while Sthers peppers her film with the French approach to offering both unconventional romances their time in the sun and some kind of commentary on what makes France so appealing, its deployment fails to engage and indulge either the sense or the heart.

Ultimately, Madame is more a film that starts off familiar, offers fresh eyes on a tired story but then fails to utilise its differing USP for anything other than the fanciful.

Atomic Blonde: Blu Ray Review

Atomic Blonde: Blu Ray Review

Cast: Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, Toby Jones, John Goodman, Eddie Marsan, Sofia Boutella
Director: David Leitch

Blazing style clearly over substance, Atomic Blonde's Cold War story breathes a chill over proceedings.

Whether it intends to or not is another matter.

Theron stars as Lorraine, a hard vodka drinking super spy who starts the film being debriefed by her boss Eric Gray (played with the usual brilliance by Toby Jones) and a CIA stooge (a bearded John Goodman).

Tasked with tracking down a list that could hold a complete breakdown of every spy and their alibis, Lorraine meets her contact David Percival (played with relish and energy by James McAvoy) in Berlin at the fall of the wall.

However, unsurprisingly things start to go wrong and soon Lorraine is in the cross hairs...

Trading more off a killer soundtrack that includes iconic tunes of the era like New Order's Blue Monday or Father Figure from George Michael, Atomic Blonde sadly lacks the moves to fully convince in this ripped-from-a-graphic novel.

There is one singularly impressive fight sequence inside an abandoned house that seriously showcases some incredible choreography and some impressively desperate close hand combat. Stripped of any OST or reliance on cool tunes to punctuate its narrative or execution, the grunting and bone-crunching fight stand alone of anything else this year.

But despite Theron's commitment to the icy blonde she inhabits and the fact she looks like a Debbie Harry clone thrown deep into the spy world, Atomic Blonde feels hollow, an exercise more in precise cool than a precision film of the spy genre, packed with twists. 

Once again, it's a film that has a commitment more to its origins than its cinematic execution, its pop stencil ethos and its desire to be cripplingly cool, ripped as it is from the Oni Press graphic novel series "The Coldest City"

It's not without merit; it's more that outside of its one truly raw and gritty fight sequence, it feels more of a hollow disposability than anything else. There's certainly little to cling on to after the lights have gone up - which is a real shame, given that Theron's a great actress and a female action lead of this calibre rarely comes along in a relatively mainstream Hollywood release.