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WWE 2K15 Review

December 1, 2014

WWE 2K15
Developer: Visual Concepts/Yuke’s
Publisher: 2K Sports
Platforms: Xbox One (Reviewed), PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3
Install Size: 21.78GB
Release Date: Out Now
Price: AU$99.95 – Available Here

Overview

WWE 2K15 for new-gen consoles is the first title Visual Concepts have actually had any first-hand input in since 2K Games purchased the rights to the IP from a bankrupt THQ back in February, 2013. The last-gen version is more or less the same game as last year, whilst the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions have been overhauled in both the presentation and gameplay department. Is that necessarily a good thing? You would think so but, ultimately, WWE 2K15 falls flat in multiple areas (Hey, at least we got Sting playable in a WWE game!) The old adage of “one step forward, two steps back” may just apply here; read on to find out why.

Gameplay

WWE 2K15 has been slowed down drastically in many aspects of the core gameplay, mostly due to the introduced Stamina system. Initially, however, unless you are a super-heavyweight facing a cruiser-weight, the first addition to the core gameplay is Chain Wrestling. From the get-go, grapple moves are not achievable, instead automatically entering into a collar-and-elbow tie-up when attempted (these engagements are broken out of after four attempts maximum). From here, the player three options: a wrist-lock, headlock or waist-lock, mapped to three face buttons on the controller. Essentially, this is a game of scissors, paper, rock. Once in dominant position, you must find the hot spot with the right thumbstick and can also attack with ‘X’ to interrupt your opponent’s rhythm if they are on the cusp on escaping. This is slightly intuitive given the fact that every involved button is on the right side of the controller; assigning the rotational input to the left thumbstick is just more practical and common sense, especially since it is isn’t being used for anything else in those moments. Nonetheless, what these encounters do is deal slight damage as well as build momentum for the player who comes out on top, getting them closer to using their signatures and finishers.

Every move and motion takes Stamina. Staying still or simply walking will replete it ever so slightly, but managing it becomes an integral element in succeeding. Finishers and OMG! Moments (of which there are many more), in particular, require a set amount of Stamina. When tired, your character will delay in getting up, crawl to the ropes or even the pin in what is dubbed a “Desperation Pin”. You can even break up the count/submission in a tag match from the crawling state. Weight detection is back too, which means the player can assign weight-specific manoeuvres as a contingency for when they may have to fight the Big Show, for instance. Carrying on from the mentioned OMG! Moments, Skills have been introduced in 2K15, which governs your ability to pull off such dramatic moves, or even climb the top rope, dive to the outside, etc. Abilities also shape each wrestler’s fight-style, determining if they can store up to three finishers at a time, steal the opponents finisher, roll escape to the outside and more. Finally, outside of the enhanced rope physics and new positions (you can execute a low dropkick and send the opponent into the second rope now), dragging will be done automatically when the opponent is too close to the ropes for certain moves, although this can become frustrating when it’s not truly necessary, yet your character does so anyway, wasting several seconds.

A sticking point in the craw of many fans has been the omission of match types in Exhibition mode, such as Handicap, I Quit and Tornado Tag. This is extremely annoying, and confusing in equal parts, when you observe their inclusion in MyUniverse mode. Whaaa? Okaay… [See: Ryback’s entrance below]. Multi-man matches became frustrating for me personally at any rate, thanks to the ability for anyone to interrupt a grapple mid-animation. I know the alternative isn’t exactly realistic, but I spent a whole minute in a fatal four-way once trying to execute a single grapple move, but couldn’t due to constant interruptions from stupid A.I. who couldn’t just fight each other meanwhile? The frustrations continued as the game proceeded to stutter, and this wasn’t just during 4-6 man matches where the load might be high. That aside, I did find myself playing MyUniverse mode a lot more than I expected, with Story archetypes unlockable by playing specific scenarios and finding “clues” for recreating them appealing to my collector’s personality. 2K Showcase is where most of the effort was obviously placed, however. The objective-based gameplay is much more appetising and can present an actual challenge when difficulty is bumped up to Hard or Legend. It’s also where nostalgia kicks in, most of the unlockables are hidden, and most new commentary lives. Expect to unlock a myriad of alternate CM Punk outfits.

The Creation suite has seen some significant cut backs just like the match offerings, with no Create-An-Arena, Create-A-Title, Create-A-Finisher or Diva caws. There’s also less new items, animated moves and other parts than in previous years. Custom themes are not supported either, although the ability to upload your own logos is a nice touch…if only there wasn’t such restrictive caps on the quantity you can upload and download per day. Overall, with this feature aside, the Creation Suite is disappointingly bare. Finally, MyCareer is nothing like what we were promised. I played more than 20 hours building my Social Media follower numbers (which does nothing but take you to the next biggest show), progressing from NXT to Raw, and never got a U.S., Tag Team or Intercontinental title shot. Very few cutscenes are found, with 95% of the critical information given via text. The options can only be changed on a match-by-match basis, and that precludes difficulty, which stays at “Normal”, resulting in an extremely easy and therefore boring slog through your career, where nothing seems to happen outside of three PPV’s a year (of your choosing). I miss the days of WWE SmackDown! Shut Your Mouth where you could roam backstage and interact with wrestlers, creating branching story lines. How did we revert backwards so much? Hopefully Visual Concepts implement a managerial mode and deep MyCareer next year like they have in NBA 2K.

Visuals & Audio

It goes without saying that WWE 2K15 on the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 is the best looking title in the series yet. The facial scans, for the most part, capture the Superstars in almost life-like detail. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the entire Divas roster. For some strange reason, they all look bloated, with fat lips and puffy cheeks. Also, in terms of physique, there is very little accuracy; Brie is the same size as Nikki, for instance. And, ahem…we’re all aware of the massive differences between the twins. It’s also quite clear which superstars were not scanned, such as The Rock, CM Punk and Vince McMahon. Across all of the inaccurate facial representations (except for Bray Wyatt, who has plainly been done an unflattering injustice in his model), the common thread of unfaithfulness lies in the dead eyes and oddly misshapen brows. A perfect example of the development team’s inconsistent work is that, facially, CM Punk 13-14′ is absolutely faithful, while CM Punk 11′-12′ looks like chopped liver. It’s the same guy! He just changed his hairstyle! Why does the actual model look so damn different?! …Sorry, didn’t mean to get so hot about it. It’s just mind-boggling.

Speaking of mind-boggling, Ryback is given a 100% up-to-date entrance in WWE 2K Showcase, while, if you play him in any other mode, he doesn’t even do his “it’s feeding time!” line or usual gestures; it’s entirely generic. Moving that over into his default entrance is the equivalent of a cut-and-paste job in Word. Baffling. Also, screen-tearing at every integration of real-life video footage – even the championship title cards – will aggravate you if you hate screen-tearing as much as I (with a passion). Additionally in the visual department, while the completely 3D audience looks great, every arena is exactly the same size; Wrestlemania 30’s set, for example, is not even close to 1:1 scale, with a short ramp and 15k crowd attendance. Also baffling is the reported 30 hours of new, recorded commentary from Michael Cole and Jerry “The King” Lawler, each…where is it? Because, outside of 2K Showcase mode, 90% of what I heard during any given match was stripped directly from WWE 2K14 and even beyond. Not only that, but the commentary is still as bland as ever in those instances, with lots of “dead air” and lines unrelated to the action in-ring (King calling a “series of strikes” when you land one super kick). The soundtrack is missing John Cena’s two exclusive tracks with Wiz Khalifa, which I guess is a business decision made to help sales of the physical soundtrack. Regardless, there’s only 12 songs on-disc, which is somewhat paltry in comparison to other sports games.

Overall

This is what happens when you rush a title to meet a pre-determined schedule. Visual Concepts stays busy enough with yearly iterations of NBA 2K, and then having to take on-board a new IP in the WWE, being tasked with revamping it for a new-generation of consoles, results in a half-baked entry in the franchise. Expect WWE 2K16 to be radically improved, as the development team should have a better established understanding of the product and how to utilise the development tools to their best advantage. All that said, die-hard WWE fans will still find merit and enjoyment in WWE 2K15, although the polished, quintessential wrestling sim this is not…by a long shot.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition Review

Andrew Day

November 30, 2014

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition Review

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition
Developer: New Line Cinema, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Publisher: Warner Bros.
Platforms: Blu Ray, 3D Blu Ray, Digital HD (Reviewed)
Release Date: Out Now
Price: AU$34.95 – Available Here

Overview

Lord of the Rings is one of the biggest fantasy franchises of all time, both on the printed page and the silver screen, so it was hard not to get excited to see JRR Tolkein’s The Hobbit be adapted into film. However the fact that it was divided into three movies brought with it a lot of problems. Scenes that go on for too long or add little to the overall plot, and a tone that is neither consistent with itself or the original source material, and an over the top use of CGI really detract from what could otherwise be an enjoyable instalment of the Lord of the Rings saga.

Story

Following on almost directly from the end of An Unexpected Journey, The Desolation of Smaug follows Gandalf, Bilbo and the group of travelling dwarves as they head towards their home in the Misty Mountain to reclaim it from the vile dragon – Smaug. Like all of Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films, The Desolation of Smaug is filled with action, adventure and with more than a little darkness. Watching the film comes as a bit of a shock to the system for anybody who grew up reading the original book – the tone of the film is a lot darker than the children’s tale.

The darker tone can at times feel a little at odds with the characters as they appear in the film – the dwarves for example, aside from their leader Thorin, all have a jovial and joyous persona and are more like bumbling, comedic relief than actual characters. The comedic relief aspect would be fine if they didn’t make up the majority of the cast and the film didn’t have its darker, more serious tone.

Bilbo, played by the talented Martin Freeman is really the lynchpin of the film, and he brings with him a lot of acting talent to an already chock-a-block full outing. The actor, more commonly known for his roles on television is able to stand alongside heavyweights like Sir Ian McKellen and Orlando Bloom and in many cases outshine them all. I truly believed Freeman’s portrayal of Bilbo and his whole “I’m afraid, but trying to be brave” act that he puts on.

The key problem that the Hobbit trilogy has been suffering from is that it is too long. Each of the Lord of the Rings films were long, and the extended editions even more so – however the scenes all felt relevant and they all felt like they advanced the plot. The Hobbit movies, and this is especially true for The Desolation of Smaug. A good hour’s worth of the film doesn’t really add anything to the plot or the characterisation and feels like it is there solely to pad out the length of the movie. Scenes like the dwarves escape from the Elvish prison and the subsequent ride through the river in barrels is entirely too long and in dragging on the way it does, becomes boring and tiresome.

The extended edition of the film adds about a half-hour’s worth of additional content, and a lot of this is pretty cool. While many of the scenes included in the theatrical release suffered from being too long or not aiding the plot, the extended scenes seem to fill in the gaps a little better. Discussions about the One Ring are some of the most powerful and really help tie the film to the original LotR trilogy.

Visuals & Audio

Where the original Lord of the Rings trilogy was filmed using a lot of practical effects and extras in fancy costumes, Jackson has opted for the cheaper, more grandiose use of computer generated imagery for the prequel trilogy. This use of imagery has sadly taken away a lot of the life and dare I say it, magic of the franchise. Once bustling townships and hordes of orcs have been replaced with computer-drawn NPCs, and honestly the franchise is not better for it.

The aforementioned barrel scene is one that perfectly showcases the poor use of CGI in the film. The dwarves, the attacking elves, the river itself, all of it look just so fake. I know I have used this scene as a bit of a scapegoat for the film’s problems but it really is just a poignant example that showcases them all. However, for all of its negatives there are some things about The Desolation of Smaug that I really did enjoy.

Cumberbatch’s portrayal of the proud, draconic Smaug is beyond reproach. Love him or hate him, the man has a flair for the villainous and brings a tremendous amount of gravitas to the role. Smaug’s voice is brooding, commanding and in its own way very mesmerising. Not only does Cumberbatch bring a powerful oral performance to the role, but Smaug himself looks fantastic. Unlike the majority of the characters in the film, Smaug’s long reptilian body is animated so perfectly that you could swear he was real.

Overall

The Lord of the Rings is one of those franchises that I adore, and I constantly want to feel the same way about the Hobbit. However Jackson’s use of CGI, inconsistent tone and the fact that a movie that should have been two-parts (at most) has been split into three has really made The Desolation of Smaug suffer. With just a few trims to the plot, and certain scenes removed the film would be an amazing example of the fantasy genre. As it currently stands however, it is only kept afloat by some seriously powerful performances and the love of millions of fans who have come to expect greatness from the franchsie.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Uncut Edition Review

Nathan Farrugia

November 30, 2014

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Uncut Edition Review

Dragon Ball Z Battle Of Gods Uncut Edition
Studio: Funimation / Toei Animation
Publisher: Madman / 20th Century Fox
Format: Blu-ray
Release Date: 26/09/2014
Price: $34.95 (AU) – Available Here / $24.99 (U.S) – Available Here

Overview

Dragon Ball Z Battle of Gods raised quite a stir when it was first announced. It then went on to do very well across theatres worldwide, bringing new life to the Dragon Ball franchise and seemingly spawning a new wave of films. Battle of Gods has now been released to an international audience on both Blu-ray and DVD in this extended uncut edition which features 20 minutes of additional footage alongside some bonus extras. Does Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods on Blu-ray deserve a spot in your Dragon Ball collection? Read on to find out.

Story

There are some spoilers present below so skip to the next section if you haven’t seen the film and want to go in blind. The story of Battle of Gods centers around the God of Destruction Beerus who keeps balance amongst the universe by destroying a few planets every 50 years or so. This time he wakes up early due to having a premonition about fighting a Super Saiyan God and this leads him to Bulma’s 38th birthday party on Earth where he tries to seek out his opponent. All your favourite characters from the series are back here from Goku to Hercule, and there are also a couple of new characters to get the story going.

Lord Beerus is an interesting villain. While not ‘evil’ he has the responsibility of keeping balance in the Universe by destroying life, a task he seems all too comfortable with in times of rage but also has no problem dismissing at others. It’s always nice to see an antagonist with an unpredictable nature and different motives, even if he’s end goal of destroying the world is about as cliche as you can get. It was also nice seeing a villain on another level of power and seeing how the Z warriors react to this. His informer Whis displays great wisdom and power even if he hides this for most of the film and is mostly seen imposing himself trying his hand at comedy or sampling Earth’s many delicacies. Food obsession is a big part of Beerus’ and Whis’ characters and it does play a bit thin over the course of the film which is one of the only negatives to be found in the story.

The movie contains a great mix of new lore, comedy and of course, the fights Dragon Ball Z is known for. It’s always welcoming to see new non-contradicting material being added to any universe and it is no different here. Battle of Gods has a big focus on comedy, with plenty of one liners to more thought out sketches such as when Goku has to act formal for Lord Beerus. Emperor Pilaf and his gang are also back from the original Dragon Ball, bringing back their ‘we suck at being villains’ comedy along with them and they are on screen just enough before becoming irritating. Nearly everyone of these jokes hits home, as was the case and at a live screening event I attended several months ago where everyone was joining in on the laughs.

The comedy does outweigh the action somewhat in a roughly 30/70 split, but the action here is all epic. From the first fight on King Kai’s planet with Beerus destroying an overconfident Super Saiyan 3 Goku, to the fight at the party with everyone taking on Beerus and Vegeta getting in some hard hits, and of course the grand finale between Super Saiyan God Goku and Beerus. Fights are just as you remember them from the series, full of high speed movement and heavy blows sending opponents rocketing to the ground with craters being created and rocks smashing into pieces. It’s still awesome seeing someone get mad, powering up their aura and dashing in for a rush attack or energy blast. All the fights are spirited and backed by great animation and powerful sound.

The uncut edition adds over 20 minutes to the original film, mostly in insignificant ways such as additional cuts or extra lines of dialogue. However it does add a few great scenes that expand on story details, give character reactions or are just added for comedy. One funny example involves Vegeta being chastised by everyone at the party for not doing anything evil for a while, even receiving a round of applause from the group much to his dismay. If you’re going to watch the film you might as well watch the uncut version.

Visuals

For those that have read any of my Blu-ray Dragon Ball Z Season reviews, you will know I often divulge about visual issues that arise thanks to the remastering process such as cropping. Luckily with Battle of Gods none of this is needed as the whole movie has been created from the ground up for widescreen and HD and it looks pretty good. Colours are bright, lines are sharp and attack effects look stunning. There are also some memorable special effects, such as God Goku’s Aura and Beerus’ Super Nova. On a slightly more negative note, there is still a problem retained from the original series with characters losing facial details when shown at a distance and it’s a shame the move to HD didn’t fix this.

Battle of Gods introduces some new CGI like animation in some scenes, most notably in the fights where the world kind of looks 3D while the camera is spinning around trying to keep up with Goku and Beerus or a mountain is exploding. These effects are visually impressive and add to the experience, taking the fights to a level that perhaps couldn’t be achieved with traditional animation.

As a long time Dragon Ball Z fan my only complaint is that the movie uses the ‘new style’ look that begun with the opening and closing animations used in Dragon Ball Kai. It’s not that it looks bad and it does look good in it’s own right and is definitely cleaner, I just feel it doesn’t look as good as the old style that got much more consistent in the Buu saga. Characters still look like themselves, however appear more ‘shiny’ and ‘cartoony’ losing that hand drawn ‘rawness’. This is just a personal preference however and doesn’t take away from the fact that the film does look good in it’s own right and has been animated very well.

Audio

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Uncut can be watched in either the Japanese audio in 2.0 or in English in 5.1, with both tracks presented in Dolby TrueHD. The theatrical version has both tracks presented in 5.1 TrueHD. All the voices, sounds effects and music comes across loud and crystal clear here and makes good use of the new audio technology.

In terms of voice acting, nearly everyone here reprises their roles for the new film, with the only differences I noticed being Bulma who has her Kai voice actress (which is a very jarring change for me as her Dragon Ball voice actor suited her perfectly and has been doing the gig for a very long time) and her father Dr. Briefs. Some may argue Vegeta’s voice sounds a little off and yes he does sound slightly more ‘royal’ here but it still sounds like Vegeta. Props to Sean Schemmel who has basically become Goku at this point and kills it in this film. I’m no expert on the Japanese vocal track but it sounds the same from what I have heard in the past and I’m sure won’t offend viewers who are used to the Japanese language setting.

Battle of Gods gives us some awesome vocal tracks, such as a remix to Cha-La Head Cha-La by Flow and a new song titled Hero that have both received an English translation for the English dub. These are powerful, uplifting tracks and Goku and Beerus fighting to Hero is probably my favourite part of the movie just for the epicness. The accompanying score is also impressive, always fitting the atmosphere of the movie and adding more intensity and hopelessness to situations when it needs to.

Extras

Fans of extras won’t be dissapointed here, with two main features and a good deal of trailers for other anime, the original Battle of Gods U.S. trailer and also a text less opening and closing. The first main feature shows about half of the Goku vs. Beerus fight but features a pop up box of the voice actor who is speaking at the time with the whole fight done in real time. Seeing Sean Schemmel and Jason Douglas put there all into the performances is great and really gives you a better appreciation of their craft as they mimic their on screen animated characters basically becoming their on screen persona.

The second major feature is just under 20 minutes long and shows off random clips of the voice cast performing their lines alongside the movie as well as messing those lines up, telling jokes and just having fun. In case you were wondering, yes, Chris Sabat is shown voicing the Bingo song and it’s hilarious as you think it is. There are also some interesting scenes of Sabat introducing the actors to scenes and guiding them through it, giving the audience a welcome insight into how the voice actors get into the roles and how they struggle at times getting a line right. This perhaps doesn’t count as an extra, but the theatrical version of the film is also available on disc should you want a shorter experience.

Overall

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods is a welcome addition to the Dragon Ball Z series. The movie provides action, laughs and expands the Dragon Ball universe well while leaving room for future works to be created. The new characters of Beerus and Whis are intriguing, powerful and both have unique personalities while the rest of the cast haven’t changed at all making fans of the series feel right at home. While not a flawless release with a minor over-focus on comedy and a personal preference contradicting the visual style chosen for the film (not to say it isn’t still excellent in its own right), the 20 minutes of extra footage, high level audio including some memorable vocal songs and a good amount of extras means Battle of Gods earns its place amongst your Dragon Ball collection.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

Telltale Games Game of Thrones Release Dates Revealed

Nathan Farrugia

November 30, 2014

Telltale Games have surprised Game of Thrones fans everywhere, announcing through Twitter that the first game in the six episode long series will be available in only 2 days for some platforms. The game is coming out on multiple platforms through each of their digital distribution services with dates as follows.

On December 2nd, the first episode titled Iron from Ice will launch on PlayStation 4 in the US as well on PC and MAC. On December 3rd, the game will launch on Xbox One, Xbox 360 and also PS4 in the European region. On December 4th, the game will then come out on iOS worldwide. Finally the PlayStation 3 version will launch worldwide roughly a week later on December 9th. The only version not to receive a concrete release date was the Android version, which still retains a general December release date.

Let us know if you will be picking up Game of Thrones: Iron from Ice when it releases in your area in the coming days. If you want to check out more information on the game please check out our previous coverage.

Naruto Movies Triple Feature Review

Travis Bruno

November 29, 2014

Naruto Movies Triple Feature
Studio: Studio Pierrot
Publisher: Viz Media
Format: DVD
Release Date: October 14, 2014
Price: $19.97 – Available Here

Overview
After running for fifteen years, the Naruto manga has come to an end and in the next couple of weeks, the final Naruto movie will be released in Japan. It has been a long time coming but Viz Media isn’t about to let fans forget about a series such as this. As such, they have recently released a triple pack containing the first three Naruto movies; Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow, Legend of the Stone of Gelel, and Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom. Is it worth returning back to the early years of Naruto to experience these films once again?

Story
Unlike the other movies included in this release, Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow is likely the most memorable for fans of the series thanks in part to the way it was handled in the States as well as how different it is from the rest of the series thanks to the fact that it not only includes movie theaters and steam engines which have never appeared in the series since.

Anyways, this first movie sees Naruto, Kakashi, Sakura, and Sasuke working to protect a famous actress named Yukie Fujikaze as she films her next movie. Shortly into the filming process, the crew comes under attack by shinobi from the Land of Snow, revealing that not only is Yukie a princess, but she also possesses an artifact capable of unleashing a hidden powerful source of chakra.

The second film, Legend of the Stone of Gelel, features the Hidden Sand Village coming under attack by enemies wearing strange armor while at the same time; Naruto, Sakura, and Shikamaru are trying to catch a lost ferret as a mission. During this time, they come across the same type of enemies that attacked the Hidden Sand Village and in the process Naruto is separated from the others and finds himself alongside Temujin, one of the men wielding the bulky armor who works under a man trying to create a weapon of legendary power called the Stone of Gelel.

Finally the third film, Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom, sees Naruto, Rock Lee, Kakashi, and Sakura hired to protect the extremely wealthy prince of the Land of the Moon as he continues his travels. With both the princes and his son being so wealthy they are able to buy whatever they want, their irresponsible and bratish attitudes see the pair not only misunderstanding the ways of the world but also find themselves in the middle of a revolution as a new power has risen up to try and take the Land of the Moon for itself.

While this triple feature may offer fans a chance to revisit some of these old films at a low price, it also reveals one flaw that is hard to avoid and that is how formulaic each of these movies happens to be. Every movie features the new main character being introduced as an unlikable character before they are then grown slightly over the course of the movie as they deal with the nefarious schemes of their opponents before being forgotten about as soon as the film ends with Naruto’s signature move.

This happens with the bitter introverted Yukie, the rough and cocky Temujin, and even with the annoying duo in the final film. It also doesn’t help that the very first film, Land of Snow, also happens to be the best of the lot as it is evident that every movie after that was given less of a budget and it appears that the writers simply ceased to care about what actually was happening. Likewise the action generally always plays out the same way as well, though I will admit that the enemies in Stone of Gelel are at least rather interesting thanks to their powers.

Visuals
One thing that is interesting to watch over the course of these three movies is how the budget and quality continued to drop as they went on. Studio Pierrot made a number of nice animation decisions with Land of Snow as the fighting sequences moved fluidly and the quality of all of the character designs remained quite impressive. This continues into Stone of Gelel, though the cracks start to show in regards to the way that the enemies are designed.

Although their powers make for an interesting fight, the transformations are rather lacking overall and the background scenery which was spectacular in Land of Snow takes a hit this time around. Then now with the third film, it appears they simply stopped caring. Everything from the designs of the characters to the fighting scenes appears off in this film, giving it a cheap feel worse than any of Naruto’s original filler.

Audio
One thing that is nice about this collection is that each movie contains both the original Japanese voice track as well as the English dub that fans are likely familiar with. Both of these voice tracks hold up quite well and the new characters fit in well with the rest of the cast.

A noticeable issue however is that nearly all of the background music found in these films seems to be simply reworked background themes from the original Naruto anime. This does work as a nice callback to fans of the original Naruto series though it would have been nice if some new themes were implemented to help change things up a bit over the course of these movies.

Extras
This Naruto Triple Feature comes with a small number of extra features for each film contained on a separate disc. The first disc features a ten minute long special called “Hidden Leaf Village Grand Sports Festival” which is a fun watch, as well as standard extras such as movie trailers and a sneak peek. The second disc is a bit different as it offers a “Naruto Guide” which pops up information about various terms and techniques as they appear. This is a nice addition for those unfamiliar with the series, but doesn’t really add too much extra to the film. There is also a full commentary track featuring the director and voice actor and this is repeated on the third disc with Crescent Moon Kingdom featuring only a commentary track.

Overall
By being released at such a cheap price, those who pick this up will find at least one good movie, one decent film, and one that ultimately feels like it is best forgotten. This Naruto Triple Feature is perhaps something that is best watched separately over the course of a week as many of its glaring issues will be less noticeable. At least those looking for some decent action with a variety of different locations and some nostalgia for the old Naruto series will find a small amount of pleasure watching these films despite their problems.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd Review

Travis Bruno

November 29, 2014

Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd
Developer: Sega, Crypton Future Media
Publisher: Sega
Platforms: PlayStation 3 (Reviewed), PS Vita
Release Date: November 18, 2014
Price: $49.99 – Available Here

Overview
Despite being a virtual pop idol that was once something exclusive to Japan, Hatsune Miku has garnered quite a large following around the world. Even then, Sega surprised everyone by releasing Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F last year in the West, making it the very first time a Miku title was ever released in the West. Now a year later and after appearing not only in tours around the country but even on a late night talk show, Hatsune Miku and the rest are back once again with Sega’s Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd and it feels like she never really left.

Gameplay
Many of the elements in Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd are almost the exact same as they were from the first title but there is a good reason for that as it mostly revolves around the title being a rhythm game that already had such a tight and well-designed input system it is hard to top. As such Project DIVA F 2nd makes a few slight tweaks to some inputs but otherwise many elements will feel quite similar to those familiar with the last title.

Those jumping on the Miku bandwagon with this game will find an absolutely loaded rhythm title that can be both incredibly fun and frustrating at the same time. There are forty different songs available to play in Project DIVA F 2nd, most of which will need to be unlocked by completing previous songs, and every one of these songs offers a different experience as button inputs fly across the screen in random patterns as players try to hit them at the right moment all while not losing focus and watching the music videos in the background.

The Easy difficulty is a very good recommendation for newcomers and even those who may not want much of a challenge as even Normal can be difficult thanks to Project DIVA F 2nd requiring an 80% accuracy rate to even succeed at completing a song and the title making use of all of the face pad and directional buttons of the controller mixed in with Star Notes that need to be completed with flicks of the analog stick. These Star Notes have also been modified slightly to require players to flick the stick in a certain direction or use both sticks at the same time to properly complete and not lose their combo.

Of course for those really wanting a challenge, you can add various elements to increase your “Diva Point” payout which can be used to purchase costumes and accessories, by making the appearance of notes even more random or lower the difficulty by increasing the window of error players will have to work with. Then again, the true challenge lies with Extreme mode where even the most skilled will find their hand-eye coordination being put to the test.

Managing to complete a song will unlock plenty of content for players ranging from costumes, new songs, accessories, and even themes you can use to change up the way the top and bottom of the screen will look. Everything except for the songs will need to be purchased via Diva Points though so be careful, that new costume may take quite a number of points to unlock. Then again, considering most of the songs will need to be played through more than once so you can practice your movements and train your memory, this isn’t much of an issue.

While the rhythm gameplay is obviously the highlight here, there are a few other modes in Project DIVA F 2nd, such as the return of the Edit mode that allows players to create their very own music videos and designs. The Edit Mode is even more robust than before, though actually creating something amazing in this mode will take a lot of dedication from players. There is also the return of the “Live Performance” option that gives players control of the camera and set-up for certain songs and the Diva Room.

This Diva Room once again allows players to buy various things to customize each of the Vocaloids’ rooms and change their outfits as well as interact with them, though this is mostly done through rubbing their head the right way and playing simple mini-games to raise their happiness with the player.

It is worth noting that one thing that fans have asked for is included in Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd and that is English subtitles. Unlike the first game, Sega has actually put in the extra effort of giving us English translations of the songs in the game which is a very big improvement. While this does make it something of an extra distraction during rhythm gameplay (it can be switched back to romanji in the menu), simply watching a video of the performance after completing the song is the best way to tell what actually is going on and what is being sung.

Visuals
Despite being a sequel, Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd really hasn’t been given that much of a graphical upgrade over its predecessor, though that really isn’t much of an issue The basic designs of Miku, Luka, Rin, Len, Kaito, and Meiko are all the same as before, but that is pretty much where the similarities end. Every character has numerous outfits, called modules in the game, that can be unlocked and these outfits can change the entire appearance of the character wearing them.

Combine this with how well choreographed all of the sequences in the music videos are and you have a gorgeous looking game that will be hard to put down. There is even a nice amount of variety added to the loading screens as new fan art for each of the characters has been added into the game, making almost every loading screen look different than the last.

Audio
As with any rhythm game, the real focus is on the music. It just so happens that this is where Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd shines as it not only features a number of brand new tracks but also countless fan favorites that were released in past games. This means that popular songs such as Miku’s “World is Mine” have finally been released in the West among many others that have never graced our shores.

There is such a variety to be found here that there is almost something for everyone as long as you are a fan of J-pop . Every Vocaloid is given a chance to shine in solo performances and there are a number of duets spread throughout the release. As before, those who are fans of Meiko or Kaito will find the number of songs on offer a bit lacking for these two as most of the music comes from Miku herself or from Megurine Luka. The Kagamine twins are generally paired off in duets but they do have a few solos of their own.

Overall
It is easy to lose hours of time playing through the amazing sounding songs and enjoying the vibrantly colored and well-designed music videos found in Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd. With so much content to unlock and the title offering an extremely difficult challenge to overcome, fans of Hatsune Miku or even Vocaloids in general will find this an amazing offering with a number of nice improvements, even if some elements feel like simple transitions from the first title.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

All You Need Is Kill Manga Omnibus Review

Travis Bruno

November 29, 2014

All You Need Is Kill Manga Omnibus Review

All You Need Is Kill
Author: Hiroshi Sakurazaka
Artist: Takeshi Obata
Publisher: Viz Media
Release Date: November 4, 2014
Price: $14.99 – Available Here

Overview
Rarely does a Japanese light novel get as much attention as All You Need is Kill has been given. Not only has the novel been given a manga adaptation and a Western style comic adaptation, it has also been adapted into a Hollywood movie titled Edge of Tomorrow. With the comic lacking in places, Viz Media has now released an omnibus containing the entire manga, is this adaptation more fleshed out and worthwhile for fans?

Story
Ever since Keiji Kiriya was a child, humanity has been fighting for its survival against a race of creatures known as Mimics. No one knows what they are or where they come from, but their intent is clear… the destruction of all humanity. With humanity constantly in a losing war against the Mimics, only specially designed sets of power-suits called “Jackets” allow humanity to stand a chance against these seemingly unstoppable creatures by creating the United Defense Force.

As such, when the story starts, a lone soldier is dying on the battlefield accompanied by a woman in scarlet red armor asking him a question. However this is far from the end for this soldier named Keiji, who finds himself waking up in his bunk like nothing had ever happened. Suffering from a severe sense of déjà vu, Keiji continues through the day leading up to his first deployment against the Mimics, noticing that a woman named Rita Vrataski, also known as the “Full Metal Bitch” due to her unparalleled fighting prowess against the Mimics, appears to have taken notice of him.

Despite this strange feeling, Keiji finds himself deployed only to quickly be killed in combat, only to once again wake up in his bed repeating the same events over and over again. Forced to live the same day over and over again and die on the battlefield, Keiji chooses not to resign himself to despair and instead takes this opportunity to become an expert on the battlefield in the hope that he might eventually find a way to escape the loop of death, and perhaps that very answer has been within arm’s reach every day.

The manga adaptation of All You Need Is Kill is clearly a better choice over the comic that was released earlier this year for a number of reasons. Not only does the length of the total omnibus make the story flow at a much smoother rate by explaining certain details and not jumping frenetically from place to place, but we also learn more about the actual characters present in the story. This includes Rita’s tragic backstory as well as Keiji’s continuing struggles with not only fighting, but holding onto his emotions as he witnesses every loop play out in a different way, resulting in different deaths due to his actions.

The manga does a great job keeping a fast paced sense of action and danger while also telling an enjoyable storyline with very little being lost in translation. That isn’t to say there still aren’t problems however as there are still certain elements that feel rushed or are completely left unexplained and while it is nice to see a little bit more characterization for side-characters, they play almost no role in the actual storyline other than to give readers a slight change of pace.

Artwork
For those who may be unaware, All You Need Is Kill’s manga artwork is drawn by Takeshi Obata, who is famous for his works with Death Note and to a lesser extent Bakuman., so those who are familiar with his work will find themselves in for quite a treat. The way that Obata draws the faces of his characters really helps make the emotions in All You Need Is Kill shine as we see Keiji run an entire gamut of emotions throughout the story.

The amount of detail put into the various pieces of armor, the Mimics, and the weaponry really helps give the action sequences the aforementioned fast pace and even though the deaths shown in All You Need Is Kill can be a bit gory, the amount of detail in these sequences shouldn’t be enough to concern most readers.

Also one thing to note is that this release, despite simply being labeled as a Shōnen Jump Advance manga, is actually slightly larger in height than the already larger than normal Viz Signature series. While this allows the artwork to be shown at a larger size, it also means that those with smaller book shelves may need to slide this omnibus somewhere else.

Extra Content
There are a few noteworthy additions found in All You Need Is Kill’s manga omnibus though they mostly come in the form of a few color pages included at the start of the manga storyline. At the very beginning the book features full color artwork of Keiji in his Jacket as well as a full color piece of art featuring Rita as she is leaving her Jacket in a skintight suit. Other than that, in-between each chapter is a sentence, likely from the light novel, talking about the upcoming events and it is worth noting that the artwork featured on the front and back of the omnibus happens to be the artwork for both original manga volumes.

Overall
All You Need Is Kill’s manga adaptation is a much better way to enjoy the story compared to the basic comic predecessor released earlier in the year as not only is the artwork a major improvement over the previous release which makes the action scenes feel all the more dire, but the story progresses at a much smoother pace. Although said story may still have a few limits, due in part to being a manga limitation and also due to some issues with the original work, those looking for a great sci-fi action manga should find themselves quite pleased with All You Need Is Kill.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

WWE SuperCard update adds new cards, rarity level, and improves drop rates

Travis Bruno

November 29, 2014

2K Games has announced that WWE Supercard will be given a large batch of new content. This update, which is now available for both iOS and Android devices, adds over sixty new cards to the game, including John Cena and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, twenty four new in-ring animations, and a new rarity level called “Survivor.”

The energy card limit has now been increased to ten while cards such as Divas, Legends, and WWE Superstars have been increased to 110. Finally the drop rates have been improved and rewards have been rebalanced to give players a better chance at receiving higher tier cards from the draft board after completing exhibition matches.

Madman Licenses ‘The Last: Naruto the Movie’ and ‘Love Live! School Idol Project’

K. Roberts

November 29, 2014

Madman Licenses ‘The Last: Naruto the Movie’ and ‘Love Live! School Idol Project’

Madman Entertainment has just announced at Supanova Brisbane that they have acquired the theatrical rights to The Last: Naruto the Movie and the home video rights to Love Live! School Idol Project.

The Last: Naruto the Movie is the conclusion to the long-running franchise Naruto, which has been running for over 15 years. On January 17, 2015, cinemas across Australia will be screening the film. Tickets and more details will be made available shortly at reelanime.com. The film will only be shown in cinemas for one day.

Madman describes the film: “The moon is approaching dangerously close to Earth! Unless something is done, the moon will disintegrate, showering the earth with gigantic meteorites. As the clock ticks towards the end of the world, can Naruto save the earth from this crisis? The final chapter of Naruto’s story unfolds!”. The following cinemas will be showing the film:

New South Wales:

Event Cinemas – George St, Sydney
Dendy Cinema – Newtown
Avoca Beach Picture Theatre – Avoca Beach
Hoyts Penrith
Hoyts Blacktown

Victoria:

Cinema Nova – Carlton
Hoyts Highpoint
Hoyts Frankston

Queensland:

Dendy Portside – Hamilton
Event Cinemas – Myer Centre
BCC Cairns City
Hoyts Sunnybank

South Australia:

Palace Nova Eastend
Hoyts Tea Tree Plaza

Western Australia:

Luna Leederville
Hoyts Carousel

Tasmania:

State Hobart

Australian Central Territory:

Dendy Canberra

The school idol drama Love Live! School Idol Project will be available for streaming on AnimeLab. A home video release date will be confirmed in 2015.

Madman describes the series: “The traditional school Otonokizaka High is situated between the three towns of Akihabara, Kanda, and Jimbocho. This school is also in imminent danger of closing. Because of this crisis, the second year student Honoka Kosaka takes center stage with eight others to do something about it!”.

The announcement does not state exactly how much of the Love Live! anime was licensed.

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