Paramount Picture (Mother!) released the first look at the upcoming film Annihilation. The sci-fi thriller is based on the first book of Jeff VanderMeer’s wildly popular Southern Reach Trilogy. Alex Garland (Ex Machina, 28 Days Later) serves as the film’s writer and director. Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, and Tessa Thompson star as the biologist, the psychologist, the anthropologist, and the surveyor who enter an environmental disaster zone as part of the latest expedition. The biologist (Portman) hopes to discover clues about her husband (Oscar Isaac), who had gone missing in a previous expedition.
Annihilation is set to hit cinemas in Australia on February 22, 2018.
Ubisoft is making a big push to educate gamers about Ancient Egypt with Assassin’s Creed Origins by working with historians and Egyptologists. This isn’t the first time Ubisoft have worked with academics for their games, as they teamed up with anthropologists and linguists to create a setting for Far Cry Primalthat is rooted in current knowledge. Ubisoft announced today that Assassin’s Creed Origins post-launch update will introduce the Discovery Mode to the game. This dedicated mode allows players to explore Ancient Egypt at their own pace to learn about Ptolemaic Egypt through dozens of tours curated and designed by historians and Egyptologists.
The collaboration with academics is going one step further this time around. Ubisoft has partnered with Google and academics to create the Hieroglyphics Initiative Project to help further our understanding of Hieroglyphics. Google and Ubisoft are harnessing the power of machine learning to identify specific hieroglyphs, help decipher damaged writing, and hopefully translate Hieroglyphic writing.
Assassin’s Creed Origins is set to launch on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows on October 27, 2017.
Bethesda released a brand new trailer for The Evil Within 2that introduces viewers to another human that inhabits the nightmarish world of STEM. Father Theodore is a priest whose charisma has twisted the minds of his followers, turning them into obedient Harbingers that happily do his bidding. In STEM, Father Theodore plans on using his flamethrower wielding Harbingers to control the new world and become the god of STEM.
The Evil Within 2sees the return of Sebastian Castellanos, years after the events of the first game. Now a drunken former cop, Sebastian is forced to work with his old nemesis Mobius and enter STEM in hopes of rescuing his daughter who he believed to be long dead. The Evil Within 2 is set to launch on Friday the 13th, October 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows.
There are not many RPGs that can satisfy my need to snoop through (mostly) abandoned locations and loot whatever I can find. Vaporum gives me one gigantic location with a lot of secret areas, lockers and containers to pillage from. Killing many enemies along the way and trying to stay alive is only a bonus.
Story
Vaporum puts us into a place of unnamed castaway waking himself near a grim, gigantic tower. Still, it seems far more welcoming than the ocean we’re in. We set to explore its interior and soon enough we find one of the three available exosuits that we can hop in. Now it’s on us to uncover the rest of the story by exploring the tower, moving up and listening to occasional audio logs we find on our journey. Despite playing as one character during the game, we’ll hardly feel alone since our protagonist has a habit of narrating as we explore.
Gameplay
As we put on the exosuit and step deeper into the tower, we find out that we’re not exactly alone. The tower is a home to many enemies and traps. Enemies range from mechanical spiders & drones to mysterious humanoids and there is always a danger of falling into a pit if you’re not careful where you step on. To not make it so simple as going from one room to another, sometimes there are doors we need to open by finding a specific key or solve a puzzle. Regarding enemies, there are plenty of ways how to dispatch them. Our arsenal (that we build up from looting) ranges from melee weapons to guns and later on, we even get access to certain gadgets that we can equip on our exosuit. Some provide us useful defensive buffs while others can unleash devastating area effects on multiple enemies, which saved my life on more than one occasion. As for the weapons, there certainly is a lot to choose from. Blades, blunt weapons, pistols, two-handed rifles…..there is always something new to try on enemies and see which one brings them down easily. There’s no such thing as winning combination that you can set up and just steamroll through the game so a lot of times you’ll switch from various sets to deal with different enemy types. As you defeat them, they’ll drop a substance called “fumium”, which is just a fancy form of experience points. Getting a lot of fumium enables you to level up your exosuit and assign points to better weapon usage and defense.
Visuals
Having a game in a steampunk setting with mechanical enemies was more than enough for me to start reminiscing about first Bioshock as I explored the tower. Nevertheless, Vaporum’s design and art contain a lot of its own identity. For a grid-based dungeon crawler, it manages to escape from repetitive level design and monotonous locations. There is a map that you can summon at any time but I rarely had any need for it since the levels and paths are easy to memorize. I never had a moment to think “hm, this room looks kinda the same as the one from 10 minutes ago, have I been here already?”
Audio
Considering Vaporum hits all the good spots so far, I was slightly disappointed that I couldn’t find anything to say about the music. There’s hardly any of it as you explore but as I mentioned above, at least you’re not alone with the main character often narrating. There are some ambient sounds coming from broken pipes, electricity buzzing and they do a nice job of spicing up the atmosphere. There is an excellent theme on the main menu of the game so it makes me wonder why something similar wasn’t included at least during intense battles. On the bring side, the ambient audio does a superb job, especially at making me feel nervous at some points and culminating in self-inflicted jump scares. In 90% of times, there really was nothing behind my back (and in the room I just cleared) but it’s always something you realize far too late.
Overall
Vaporum is a tricky piece of work. On the surface, it doesn’t show anything to lure you in instantly. However, as you continue to play more, you catch that common virus of “just one more room to explore and loot”. Combat manages to be surprisingly intense, especially at later stages where you get to use a combination of gadgets along with standard attacks. It is a game that doesn’t try hard to pitch itself to you since the atmosphere and addictive gameplay speaks for itself. A lot of the gameplay elements click perfectly resulting in you spending hours exploring every nook and cranny it than you intended. Not that it’s a bad thing.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
I’ll be honest, I’d never heard of Lost Boys before I saw it on the In the House line up when they announced the new season. Although I skimmed over the synopsis on the Wikipedia page, I largely went into it blind so I could bring you my opinion completely fresh. I was confident that the good people at In the House had good taste in the cult classics they screen and wouldn’t steer me wrong. So I donned my leather jacket and eyeliner and headed on down to George Street cinemas to see what all the fuss was about.
The MCs for the evening were Jason ‘Jabba’ Davis and David ‘Quinny’ Quinn who kicked things off with a quick bit of cross-promotion before sitting down to talk about the film. Said cross-promotion included giving away jetboating tickets for correctly answering a piece of horror movie trivia. After this brief interlude, the two sat down to talk about the film we were about to see. An interesting piece of trivia which stuck with me from Quinny is the fact that the leader of the vampire gang, David, says the name “Michael” over a hundred times in the film. After that, it was time for the screening proper to begin.
Story
The film’s plot starts off with a family moving out to the small beach town of Santa Clara in California. Unlike the wholesome stereotype of small towns in America, this West Coast town immediately sets itself up as a hotbed of seedy behaviour and danger. Into this world steps the young and impressionable Michael who, chasing the approval and affection of peers who egg him on to do more and more dangerous things, ends up inadverdantly becoming a half-vampire. It’s then up to his younger brother, Sam, to use his nerdy know-how to figure out a way to bring his brother back from the brink of undeath.
The story’s actually really straight forward in regard to its arcs with each of the leads set up in the first act and completing their personal arc by the time the credits roll. The older brother realises that there’s more to life than the approval of his peers and the younger brother learns to appreciate the older one. There really isn’t too much that’s groundbreaking in this story which you’d probably be able to guess the narrative direction it follows with ease but there are certainly some excellent bits of writing here and there in the script. Alongside this, I wasn’t particularly impressed with performances by most of the actor’s performances but I’d figure that more as being a fault of the shallow screenplay.
That being said, the stand out performances here are definitely Kiefer Sutherland Corey Feldman as the enigmatic leader of the vampire youths and the nerdy adolescent vampire hunter respectively. Sutherland brings to the role a sort of smouldering intensity which I’d seen previously in Stand by Me and suits him just as well here. It’s easy to see why he was cast as this cast as he carries the role of a teenage punk with ease even if it is a bit one note at times. His performance, nonetheless, is memorable and will stay with you long after you forget his last “Michael”. Feldman on the other hand plays a nerd who is intensely passionate and territorial of his chosen hobby. His over-the-top performance ventures into the territory of delightfully camp and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Nonetheless, both these characters will be immediately recognisable to anyone who has spent any amount of time interacting with teenage boys.
One thing that this film certainly broke ground on and ultimately set a new cinematic standard for is the depiction of vampires as seductive and youthful. It’s hard to imagine vampires as anything but these days but back in the day, they were pretty much treated like most horror monsters as terrifying creatures of the night with a human disguise. There’s certainly examples of that in this film, especially in the film’s ultimate climax, but what really draws people and makes this film so seminal is how it compares vampirism to other rebellious teenage pursuits like drinking and thrill seeking. It grounds the mythology in a much more relateable context and makes being a vampire seem much more fun than just becoming immortal. It’s not hard to see why so much modern fiction involving vampires takes so much from this film.
Visuals & Audio
The visual direction of the film does pretty well for a production from it’s time. The special effects are generally all above board and the make up similarly holds its own but there are some flaws which might be noticed by eagle-eyed audiences. One of the special effect sequences gets played out twice with the second one playing out in reverse and although it can generally be looked over, I was somewhat irked by it. In all likelihood, you won’t notice these things but if you do it may mildly annoy you.
One thing which stood out in this film is the awesome costume design of Daniel and the other vampires. I’ve always had an appreciation for the aesthetics of alternative subcultures like goths and punks and this film does a decent job at showcasing some pretty cool costume design in that regard. Although some elements are no longer fashionable (vis-a-vis, mullets), there’s a lot that they wear which would still be quite trendy in certain alternative circles. I can certainly imagine that pretty much everything worn by these teen vampires would be on the wishlist of many a friend’s “dream aesthetic”.
The music was distinctly 80s with plenty of synth and pop covers besides the standard orchestral score. It gives the film a very upbeat and grungy film but I do feel it does date it somewhat. That being said, it does fit with the film’s overall 80s aesthetic which can certainly be part of it’s charm. One particular stand out for me was a cover of The Doors People are Strange which played during the opening credits and I’ve come to realise probably was homaged in the opening of the True Blood series.
Overall
Overall, I had a great time watching Lost Boys and was very glad to have been able to make it to the In the House screening of it. It’s reimagining of what vampires could be like was seminal for it’s time and it is easy to see how, with performances like Sutherland’s, sexy vampires would become a staple. Part of the film’s vampire appeal is the aesthetic of vampire characters which remarkably still holds up as cool even by today’s standards (the mullets are questionable however). The film’s soundtrack features some memorable pieces which will probably leave a good impression on you (and possibly motivate you to find them yourself). There’s a lot to love in this film and I can easily see how this film can become some people’s favourite but as for me: I’d recommend watching it at least once for most film and pop culture geeks to see it’s influence on other vampire fiction.
For other films which In The House is screening, feel free to check out their schedule for the next season here. Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Sony Interactive Entertainment Australia is pleased to announce the impressive line up of games available to PlayStation Plus members this October.
The first free title for PS Plus members is Kojima Productions’ farewell to the Metal Gear universe, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. As legendary soldier Big Boss, it’ll be up to you to run countless incursions into the conflict-riddent territories of Afghanistan and Central Africa as you work to liberate captured comrades and recruit new personnel to rebuild your decimated private army.
With Halloween hitting at the end of October, the second title is a no-brainer. A true cult hit, the Amnesia series garnered a reputation among gamers as one of the most terrifying experiences of the last generation. The complete series has been polished up and released on PlayStation 4 as Amnesia: Collection. Each unique adventure places you in the shoes of a different protagonist as they struggle to overcome their personal demons, and (hopefully) escape with their sanity intact.
For those who missed it in September, you can still download PS VR sports shooter RIGS Mechanised Combat League and PlayLink title, That’s You! for free in October. In the irreverent party quiz, That’s You!, you and up to five of your friends and family get to find out what you really think about each other. With your TV, PS4 and a tablet or smartphone in hand, answer over 1,000 funny questions, take part in daring doodle challenges, snap selfies for photo challenges and more.
You can see the launch trailer for RIGS:
That’s You!
Check out the full list of free October titles below:
Click here to see the video announcing the PlayStation Plus October line up. For more information, please head to the PlayStation Blog.
In case you missed it, Sony Interactive Entertainment Australia has launched a call to arms for all Australian digital treasure hunters with PlayStation Plus Platinum Hunters. PlayStation has brought the ultimate in virtual accolades to life, crafting only four bespoke Platinum Trophies that are sure to be coveted by the most dedicated trophy hunters. To win, players must complete all in-game accomplishments and unlock the Platinum Trophy for a specific title. The first title to kick off the competition is EA SPORTS™ FIFA 18.
You can see the PlayStation Plus Platinum Hunters launch video:
For more information on the competition’s T&Cs please visit here.
KONTROLFREEK® INTRODUCES NINTENDO SWITCH PRODUCTS TO ITS PERFORMANCE GAMING GEAR LINEUP
Gaming Gear Company Offers Full Suite of Products that Improve and Protect the Nintendo Switch Video Game System
Sydney, 28 September 2017 – KontrolFreek® today announced its lineup of Nintendo Switch-compatible Performance Gaming Gear, marking the company’s first major product platform expansion since its founding in 2009. The addition of Switch products to its portfolio allows KontrolFreek to enhance the gaming experience for the Nintendo community, which has voiced concerns over the functionality of the Switch’s Joy-Con controllers.
The flagship product in the company’s Nintendo Switch line is KontrolFreek Turbo. This Performance Thumbstick™ set adds 83 percent more surface area and 4.4mm of height to standard Switch Joy-Con thumbsticks for more comfortable and precise gameplay experiences. Key product features include:
Available in black and neon red/blue color variants
Uses KontrolFreek’s proprietary composite material to create a strong, versatile grip that helps reduce wrist, hand and thumb fatigue
Designed for use in games like Super Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart 8, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Splatoon 2
Additional products in KontrolFreek’s Nintendo Switch line include:
FPS Freek® Thumbstick Sets for Nintendo Switch Pro Controller: KontrolFreek now offers three of its best-selling legacy Performance Thumbstick sets for Nintendo Switch Pro Controllers, including FPS Freek Inferno, FPS Freek Galaxy and FPS Freek CQC™ Signature. Each set adds varying degrees of thumbstick height to increase range of motion and improve precision, ensuring players are better equipped for navigating difficult platforming sections in Super Mario Odyssey or “inking” out victories in Splatoon 2.
KontrolFreek Tempered Glass Screen Protector for Nintendo Switch: The screen protector is designed to keep Switch screens in pristine condition without sacrificing clarity. The 9H rated tempered glass is precision-cut for placement on the Switch and applies easily without distracting air bubbles. It features an oleophobic coating and anti-shatter film for additional protection.
Performance Grips™ for Nintendo Switch Pro Controller: KontrolFreek’s Performance Grips use a combination of advanced materials to give gamers better control, support and comfort during gaming sessions. They are easy to apply and can be repositioned without leaving a sticky residue.
All products in KontrolFreek’s Nintendo Switch line will launch on 24th October 2017.
“Nintendo Switch has taken the gaming industry by storm and will continue to be the hottest gaming device this holiday season, but it’s not perfect,” said Kelly Eisenberg, Senior Brand Manager at KontrolFreek. “One of the most common critiques we hear from gamers is that the size of the Joy-Con and its analog stick can create an uncomfortable experience after playing games for multiple hours. Turbo and other products in our Switch line were designed to address that critique and are the perfect pieces of gear for all Nintendo fans this fall.”
Turbo and other Switch products are KontrolFreek’s latest in a string of compelling 2017 releases, which include the Atomic, Striker and Destiny 2: Ghost Performance Thumbstick sets, the company’s line of Performance Gaming Wear, KontrolFreek 12 FT Gaming Cables and controller skins, which allow gamers to customize the look of first-party PlayStation 4 and Xbox One controllers without the need for expensive paint jobs or a messy DIY project.
Starbreeze Publishing and Lion Game Lion has launched Raid: World War II on Steam today. The development team is led by Ilija Petrusic, the former co-founders of Overkill Software and the lead level designer for Payday 2. Raid: World War II is a FPS that stars a team of four former prisoners of war from the US, the UK, Germany, and the Soviet Union. The team were all rescued by the mysterious Mrs. White of British Intelligence and have now been tasked with wreaking havoc upon the Nazis back lines by any means possible.
Players will be able to choose between Recon, Assault, Insurgent, or Demolition classes for their character. Each class has their own skill tree and war cry buff. Players will also be able to pick weapons, from traditional mainstays of World War II to highly experimental weapons, and mod them with a variety of upgrades. The game costs $39.99 USD on Steam. Owners of Payday 2 will a 10% discount if they buy the game before October 31st. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One release of RAID: World War II is scheduled for October 10th in the Americas and October 13 for the rest of the world.
THQ Nordic has released The Guild 3early access preview on Steam and GOG. The game is the latest chapter in the long running medieval life simulator. The Guild 3 lets players establish their own family dynasty that will work their way up from being humble peasants to powerful merchants who command power and respect from the society around them. Players will be able to join organizations like the Freemasons and The Alchemist Guild to secure their family’s future. While not yet supported in the current early access build, the game will eventually feature multiplayer modes.
Currently, the early access build is mostly feature complete. THQ Nordic expects the game to be in early access for at least the next 4-6 months as they stomp out bugs, do some final balancing, add more content, and introduce the remaining features on their to do list. The early access build is currently available for $29.99 USD, with the price expected to rise once the game leaves early access.
JACKBOX GAMES UNVEILS THE COMPLETE LIST OF GAMES IN THE JACKBOX PARTY PACK 4, LAUNCHING THE WEEK OF OCT. 17
Five and a half new party games headline Jackbox’s next great party game collection on PlayStation®4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch™, Windows PC, Mac, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV and Nvidia Shield
CHICAGO – Sept. 27, 2017 – Jackbox Games has announced that its next collection of hilariously absurd party games, The Jackbox Party Pack 4, will launch on Oct. 17 for the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system; Oct. 18 on Apple TV (4th Generation only); Oct. 19 on Nintendo Switch™, Windows PC and Mac via Steam, the Humble Store and Bundle Stars, as well as the Mac App Store, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV and Nvidia Shield; and Oct. 20 on Xbox One.
Five – and a half! – crowd-slaying party games combine to make The Jackbox Party Pack 4 the series’ best installment yet:
Fibbage 3 – The threequel to the outrageous bluffing game boasts totally new question types. (2-8 players)
Fibbage: Enough About You – A new game mode where players guess weird facts about each other! (3-8 players)
Survive the Internet – Twist your friends’ “online” comments in comical ways in this web-based frame game. (3-8 players)
Monster Seeking Monster – A spooky date-a-thon where you message and date fellow monsters with special powers! (3-7 players)
Bracketeering – Place smart bets on stupid arguments in this deranged debate match. (3-16 players)
Civic Doodle – Improve the town’s murals and one-up your friends in this irreverent art game. (3-8 players)
Games in The Jackbox Party Pack franchise support phones, tablets and computers as controllers. Players can easily join the fun by using their device to enter a room code at Jackbox.tv, and up to 10,000 additional audience members can join and affect the outcome of the games. Optional features like extended timers and manual censoring make it easy for streamers to play with their communities.
Jackbox Games, formerly Jellyvision Games, is a developer and publisher of party games on major gaming platforms and home entertainment devices. The studio is best known for comedic party games like YOU DON’T KNOW JACK, Fibbage, Quiplash and Drawful. Jackbox Games “makes the world’s best party games” according to Business Insider. YOU DON’T KNOW JACK has been called “the greatest quiz-show game ever made” by The Onion’s A.V. Club. All current-generation Jackbox games feature the innovative use of mobile devices as controllers, allowing anyone with an internet-connected phone, tablet or laptop to join a game without the need for extra game controllers. Players connect to games on their devices by visiting http://jackbox.tv and entering the custom game code displayed via the system hosting the game. This unique concept also allows for games that involve secret player input. The digital release of The Jackbox Party Pack, a massive collection of five party games, was named “Best Local Multiplayer Game of the Year” by Giant Bomb. The company is located in Chicago, Illinois.
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