Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle: Blu Ray Review

Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle: Blu Ray Review

Positioning itself with its tongue firmly in its cheek at times, and aiming squarely at the family market, the next generation version of Jumanji is surprisingly a relatively fun, fluffy movie that builds on the original and yet somehow becomes its own beast.

20 years after the game was discovered initially, it's re-discovered in a basement of a group of four teenagers confined to detention (can you say Breakfast Club?). But the game is now a video game and when the nerd, the jock, the silent beauty and the self-obsessed girl all wind up inside it by accident, it's a race against time to save Jumanji and escape...

Jumanji Welcome To The Jungle is a bit more fun than you'd expect, largely due to the Rock goofing off in the film and cocking a snook at his persona of rugged action hero.

While Jack Black's attempts to channel an Instagram obsessed teenager occasionally resort to a little bit creepy and the attempts to explain why Karen Gillan's video avatar is so skimpily clothed and behaves like a stripper at one point rankle, there's actually a reasonable pace that carries Jumanji Welcome To the Jungle along at such a pace it's almost infectious and distracts from the levity of the script.

It's largely due to the core cast's chemistry, and even if the rest of what transpires is shallow, it does work well from this factor.

Adhering to the rules of video games and channeling the ethos well, Kasdan gives the film an internal logic that helps greatly (even if his villain seems a little weak in the wash). Channeling Hardcore Henry at the start and NPC elements of video games, as well as some meta moments involving cut scenes, helps it riff on its Uncharted / Indiana Jones / Jumanji vibe. (Though no points to the OTT Sony PlayStation product placement early on)

Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle may not win any awards for being the greatest film of the year, but it has to be said, its pace, willingness to send up its heroes and build on Kevin Hart and Dwayne Johnson's Central Intelligence chemistry help it to carve out its own strong niche in the family outing market.

Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle does goofy well and its learning lessons may be obvious to many, but given its success at the box office and its ability to bring families to it's "You only have one life and it matters" message are nothing to be sniffed at.

Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom's new trailer has new dinosaur

Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom's new trailer has new dinosaur

The new and final trailer for Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom has arrived ahead of its release in cinemas June 21.

CAST & CREW

Directed by: J.A. Bayona (The Impossible)

Written by: Derek Connolly (Kong: Skull Island), Colin Trevorrow (Jurassic World)

Starring: Chris Pratt (Jurassic World, Guardians of the Galaxy), Bryce Dallas Howard (Jurassic World, Black Mirror), Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic Park, Thor: Ragnarok)

Synopsis: It’s been four years since theme park and luxury resort Jurassic World was destroyed by dinosaurs out of containment.  Isla Nublar now sits abandoned by humans while the surviving dinosaurs fend for themselves in the jungles. When the island’s dormant volcano begins roaring to life, Owen and Claire mount a campaign to rescue the remaining dinosaurs from this extinction-level event. 

Owen is driven to find Blue, his lead raptor who’s still missing in the wild, and Claire has grown a respect for these creatures she now makes her mission. 

Arriving on the unstable island as lava begins raining down, their expedition uncovers a conspiracy that could return our entire planet to a perilous order not seen since prehistoric times

DARK SOULS: REMASTERED FOR NINTENDO SWITCH POSTPONED TO THIS WINTER (AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND SEASON)

DARK SOULS : REMASTERED FOR NINTENDO SWITCH  POSTPONED TO THIS WINTER (AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND SEASON)

DARK SOULS^TM: REMASTERED FOR NINTENDO SWITCH^TM

POSTPONED TO THIS WINTER (AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND SEASON)

Solaire of Astora amiibo™ has also been pushed back

BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Europe previously announced the release date of DARK SOULS™: REMASTERED for all platforms to be on May 25^th, 2018. The release date for the Nintendo Switch™ version has now been pushed back to this winter (Australian and New Zealand season – summer in European Season). Additionally, Solaire of Astora amiibo has also been postponed to the same timeframe. The Nintendo Switch™ version of DARK SOULS: REMASTERED allows players to play it anytime and anywhere.

DARK SOULS: REMASTERED will be available on May 25^th, 2018 for the PlayStation®4 system, Xbox One, and STEAM® for PC. For more information regarding DARK SOULS: REMASTERED and other titles from BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Europe please visit: https://www.bandainamcoent.com, or follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/darksouls, or https://www.facebook.com/BandaiNamcoEU.   Join the conversation on Twitter at: https://www.twitter.com/BandaiNamcoEU .

Attack on Titan 2: PS4 Review

Attack on Titan 2: PS4 Review

Platform: PS4
Released by Koei Tecmo

The hack and slash Manga is back in A.O.T.2.

The first game, released back in August 2016, was an impressive adaptation of the Manga series about a group of freedom fighters taking on a race of naked giants who had breached their walls.

However, it was held back by some slightly problematic gameplay elements which made fighting a little more difficult than it should be, and attacking less fun than it ought to be.

And while Attack on Titan 2 improves on the gameplay and fighting elements, its desire to make you sit through unbearably long cut-scenes and also redo some things you did in the last game makes you wonder if you're still playing the first game.

Getting to choose between male or female is a good touch, and starts the game off in a way that is compelling and interesting as you get inserted into the narrative and get to know the characters from the TV series.

Once again you're hauled into your OMD (Omni-multi-directional) gear and get to fire harnesses which can propel you through the world and into the what lies ahead. But not without training - and lots of it - as well as lots of stereotyped drill instructor material.

But once the training is done, the game finds a compelling enough groove as you defend your friends from attack, work in teams and generally try to save the day. It's here that AOT2 finds its groove and there's a manga-esque smoothness to being fired through the air.

The fluidity of the flying mixed with combat works well, but it's the fact that AOT2 feels so recycled that makes it such a let down in many ways. Friendships and interactions make up the bulk of it as well, but those only hold you back from the fighting Titans that you want to do.

Ultimately, AOT2 is a mixed bag - it improves on some things, feels like a step backwards in others. It's to be hoped there's a threequel, but given that the developers have got it all right now, more needs to be done on the story to ensure there's no holding back on the very real potential of this gaming franchise and TV series.

SHENMUE I & II LAUNCHING FOR PLAYSTATION 4 AND XBOX ONE IN 2018

SHENMUE I & II LAUNCHING FOR PLAYSTATION 4 AND XBOX ONE IN 2018

A LEGEND IS REBORN. SHENMUE I & II LAUNCHING FOR PLAYSTATION 4 AND XBOX ONE IN 2018.

SEGA’s most requested re-release of all time finally comes to a new generation of gamers!

Sydney, Australia – 16^th April, 2018 - SEGA® Europe Ltd. is proud to announce that the pioneering epic saga Shenmue™ I & II is to be re-released for a new generation. Get ready to go on a thrilling voyage across faithful recreations of Japan and Hong Kong, China, in a timeless tale of revenge and mystery when Shenmue I & II launches on PlayStation® 4 and Xbox® One in 2018.

Since their original release, Shenmue I & II have established a passionate following and are revered as one of gaming’s greatest series of all time. These revolutionary masterpieces deliver a gripping story of retribution as Ryo Hazuki sets out to avenge his father’s death and attempts to unravel the secrets behind a mysterious artefact known as the Dragon Mirror.

Shenmue I & II comes complete with the original feature set that defined modern gaming, including enthralling jujitsu combat, investigative sleuthing, and RPG elements in addition to memorable mini-games. Shenmue I & II is set within engrossing real-time open worlds that feel truly alive thanks to day-to-night cycles and weather changes, with a population of civilians who follow their own schedules.

This is the definitive version of these all-time classics and will be the best Shenmue experience to date. The re-release will stay true to the originals with modernised features including fully scalable screen resolution, choice of modern or classic control schemes, an updated user interface and the option to enjoy either the original Japanese or English voiceovers.

Shenmue I & II will be available to pre-order from Australian retailers soon, for all the latest information head over to: https://shenmue.sega.com/

Rare reveal Sea of Thieves content roadmap

Rare reveal Sea of Thieves content roadmap

Sea of Thieves: Content Plans

New updates, new features and new challenges coming your way!

It's been just over three weeks since we launched Sea of Thieves, and a lot has happened since then! We've been listening to you all, and we know you are keen to hear how we plan to grow Sea of Thieves. As we've always said, launch is just the start, and we are going to grow and evolve the game with feedback from our community. It feels like the right time to reveal how we'll do this.
 
Sea of Thieves is a unique experience. As we look to add to the game, we will be very purposeful about the type of experience we want to create, and how we want this game to grow. At the same time, we have also been listening closely to everyone playing the game since launch and have been ensuring that this feeds into our content plans. When considering what to add to our plans, we always consider how we can make the most impact on the following:

• Bringing players together in interesting ways, encouraging different types of player encounters
• Enriching the world that players adventure in
• Giving players new ways to play
• Giving players a variety of goals and rewards
• Broadening the journey to Pirate Legend and beyond

Alongside this, what's key for us is the rhythm and cadence we want to get into with Sea of Thieves. Our focus for April is to continue addressing the top feedback points, but as we move into May, our focus will shift to new content.

Our first content update, The Hungering Deep, will release in May and bring with it a new AI threat to the world. Crews will have to work together to discover and defeat this threat as part of a unique event. We will also be introducing a number of new mechanics to assist players on this adventure, and there will be unique rewards that players can earn as part of this event. Beyond this, we will begin our weekly events programme during May, where we introduce new mechanics and give players fun new ways to play with weekly events and rewards.

In the summer months, we'll debut two more content updates with Cursed Sails, which will include a new ship type, and Forsaken Shores, which will introduce players to a perilous new part of the world to explore.

Similarly to The Hungering Deep, both of these updates will also include new gameplay mechanics for players, new AI threats to challenge and new unique rewards to claim.

As we've always said, we never wanted to do anything to separate our players, so we're pleased to confirm that all content updates will be available to all our players, at no additional cost.

For more details on our plans for the coming months, and some in-depth thinking behind them, please watch the video.

With Sea of Thieves being a game that grows and evolves, we'll be listening to you, our community, throughout. As such, we'll always be looking at whether our current plans are meeting your needs. Based on feedback since launch, we have changed the priorities for both Pets and Ship Captaincy which we had previously announced as things we would look to add in the few months after launch. These are on the back burner for now whilst we add to the game in other areas. Expect our plans to continue to be fluid, but always with the goals listed above as our guiding principles.

We are hugely excited to be beginning this phase of Sea of Thieves, and seeing where the adventure takes us.

Cheers,

– Joe Neate, Executive Producer

KINGDOM HEARTS Union χ[Cross] Fan Event & KHIII Classic Kingdom Video

KINGDOM HEARTS Union χ[Cross] Fan Event & KHIII Classic Kingdom Video

FIRST KINGDOM HEARTS UNION χ[CROSS]

FAN EVENT UNITES FANS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Event Celebrates 2^nd Anniversary of the Hit Mobile Game with a

Special Announcement of a KINGDOM HEARTS III Tie-In

SYDNEY, 17^th April 2018 –   This past weekend, over a thousand keyblade wielders gathered to attend the Dandelion Meeting, the first official North American community gathering for KINGDOM HEARTS Union χ[Cross]. Attendees celebrated the anniversary with various activities including new playable content and panel discussions with the development team.

During the panel, Franchise Director Tetsuya Nomura and KINGDOM HEARTS Union χ[Cross] Producer Hironori Okayama shared their insights into the inner-workings of the beloved series. Additionally, in a special video message, KINGDOM HEARTS III Co-Director Tai Yasue revealed that the new mini-games inspired by classic Disney cartoons and 1980’s LCD games that fans were able to play at the event will also be available to play in both KINGDOM HEARTS Union χ[Cross] and KINGDOM HEARTS III. 

Nomura also announced that fans will have a unique chance to become part of history in KINGDOM HEARTS III. Up to 300 players will be selected to have their KINGDOM HEARTS Union χ[Cross] usernames appear in a secret location within KINGDOM HEARTS III. For more information, visit: http://sqex.to/dHK.

Other exciting announcements for the mobile game include:

• New Player vs. Player (PvP) Mode – During the Dandelion Meeting event, players were treated to a special preview of the new asynchronous PvP mode which will launch later this year. The new PvP mode will be the first time players can battle against one another in KINGDOM HEARTS, and will require players to strategically use their best medals in turn-based combat to be victorious. The player who wins the most turns will win the battle, and be entered into a monthly PvP Leaderboard for the chance to accumulate rewards and recognition.

• 2-year Anniversary Celebration Gifts – To commemorate the game’s second anniversary, 3,000 jewels were gifted to all players on April 7, 2018. Players were also gifted two Fantasia Mickey B medals today, which can be claimed any time within the next month.

KINGDOM HEARTS Union χ[Cross] is available now as a free-to-play app (with in-app purchases) through the App Store for iPhone and on Google Play™ for Android devices.