As well as being ultra busy defending Skylands again from the evil maniac overlord Kaos the Skylanders have made a move to iPad and iPhone with a completely new challenge at hand. Their good friends the Mabu who helped guide and assist them throughout their various journeys are in a bit of a bother and need the Skylanders help to rebuild their once great lands. In Skylanders Lost Islands players will be in charge of building and evolving their own magic islands complete with a huge array of customisable options as well as 35 unique Skylanders to unlock and power up. Lost Islands will support players existing physical figurine collections, importing them into the game and bringing them to life in amazing HD graphics.
In June 2013, one man (Brad Pitt) will race against time to bring a divided world together on the eve of its final hour. Every culture, every weapon and every army will rise because the only hope for survival is war.
Zombie fans are in a frenzy eagerly anticipating the upcoming Paramount Pictures Post Apocalyptic Horror “World War Z”, starring a bearded Brad Pitt and hitting cinemas sometime June 2013. Judging from the teaser trailer, the action looks intense and fast paced and hopefully will be void of too many lovey dovey heart felt scenes, sticking closer to fear, suspense and a little bit of gore just for good measure that would be more in tune with flesh eating zombies breathing down your neck. Ive always seen Brad Pitt as one of the more adaptable and natural actors of our times so his transition into this role should be fairly smooth. Take a look at the first screenshot and teaser trailer and let us know your first impressions.
World War Z will hit cinemas in Australia in June 2013
Today a new batch of screenshots for Dead Space 3 were released and a number of them feature some rather horror packed screenshots of creepy looking necromorphs attacking both Isaac Clarke and his co-op partner Carver.
Now while some people may complain about how Dead Space 3 now features a co-op mode, EA has already stated that gamers can choose to play a completely single-player version of the game if they wish, or start up a game with two people and experience some new co-op story elements between Isaac and Carver. Currently Dead Space 3 is set for a release sometime on February 15th next year.
Today Epic Games and Microsoft revealed that anyone who pre-orders Gears of War: Judgment will receive some special incentives regardless of which retailer they pick it up from. The content will be multiplayer exclusive and will take the form of the Classic Hammerburst, which was a standard weapon of the Locust Army during E-Day.
As for retailer specific bonuses, they will include special multiplayer character skins for Young Marcus, Young Dom, Anya, and Alex Brand. Currently the retailers which will carry each skin have not been revealed though Microsoft has said that they will do so in the next few weeks. Until then, you can check out the Classic Hammerburst in the video below.
The Wii U is almost upon us, folks – and with that comes promotion for all of the launch titles that will be bursting out during the first month. One of those is the new fighter Marvel Avengers Battle for Earth, which will also see a release on the Xbox 360.
For those unfamiliar thus far, here is a bit of info:
Developed by Ubisoft Quebec, Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth is the ultimate super hero brawler set in authentic comic book-style art environments based on the iconic Secret Invasion storyline. Battle for Earth provides endless entertainment through a variety of gameplay modes including co-op, campaign, arcade, challenges, versus and tournament.
Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth features 20 different characters that fans will enjoy embodying, including Avengers such as Captain America, The Hulk, Iron Man, Hawkeye, Black Widow and Loki and Iron Man plus other fan-favourite Super Heroes and Super Villains from the Marvel Universe.
You can check out the launch trailer below, and get ready as this fighter is just a week away from hitting shelves.
Fans of Call of Duty are just days away from Black Ops II landing in stores, but to hold them over, a bit more news has surfaced for the upcoming FPS favorite. Today, it was announced that Call of Duty: Black Ops II’s new live streaming feature will let players live stream gameplay on YouTube directly from the Xbox 360 and PlayStation3 game consoles. That’s a pretty big deal in itself, a huge step forward for competitive gaming in general.
Here are the details:
Call of Duty: Black Ops II player live streams will be viewable on YouTube via web browsers, mobile and tablets through Call of Duty Elite as well as individual YouTube user channels.
“From the beginning of development with Call of Duty: Black Ops II, the team has been pushing boundaries on every front to offer Call of Duty fans things that they haven’t been able to do before,” said Mark Lamia, studio head of Treyarch. “With our competitive play and eSports initiatives, we wanted to deliver live streaming capabilities built right into Call of Duty: Black Ops II, because Call of Duty is not only fun and exciting to play, but we believe it will be just as exciting to watch. By making the capability of live streaming as accessible as possible to our fans, straight from a player’s console without the need for any additional hardware or sophisticated setups, we are empowering our fans to share their multiplayer experiences.”
“Our partners are using YouTube Live to bring entertainment, must-see moments and more to millions of people around the world. With Call of Duty: Black Ops II, people can live stream their gameplay directly from the game or watch the best players live on YouTube, which is an awesome next step for the eSports community,” said Sang Kim, Head of Game Partnerships.
A verified YouTube account is required to live stream. A valid Call of Duty Elite registration is necessary to view the streams and related information inside Call of Duty Elite. Call of Duty: Black Ops II player live streams will be subject to limitations and restrictions. Additional Call of Duty: Black Ops II live stream destinations will be announced in the future.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II hits shelves next week for the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC on November 13th. The Wii U version will then come on November 18th, just in time for the system’s launch.
WWE ’13 Developer: Yuke’s Publisher: THQ Platform: Xbox 360 (Reviewed), Playstation 3, Nintendo Wii Release Date: October 30, 2012 Price: $59.99 – BUY NOW
Overview
I’m not going to sugarcoat it. WWE ’12 was the most disappointing wrestling game that THQ have ever delivered in my opinion. Everything felt copied and pasted from the year before, and glitches ran a muck in a soulless wrestling sim that once was one of the greatest yearly franchises in the industry. “Bigger. Badder. Better” was the tagline of that title, and when I heard the next game was donning “Live the Revolution”, I shuddered to think how many more steps back my all time favorite series would take.
This entire industry is an odd beast though- and sometimes, things can be rectified with the passion that goes into development. WWE ’13 is the greatest example of this, as it’s the series best title in years – even with it’s obvious shortcomings. After every year of buying into THQ’s self-produced hype, this time I finally feel that hype is merited. Why, you ask? Here is my review for WWE ’13.
Attitude Mode
I cannot even begin this review without speaking of WWE ’13’s new Attitude Era mode. Replacing the mediocre Road to WrestleMania, Attitude Mode is a campaign made up of the the greatest moments from one of the most exciting arcs in WWE history. Back in 1997, DX were the edgiest duo on television, the Texas Rattlesnake was rising through the ranks, and The Rock was just about to hit his prime as The People’s Champion. Yes, I could go on and on about what made 1997-2000 the best time ever to be a wrestling fan, but that topic is a monster in itself. I have wanted to see the era properly implemented in a wrestling game for years, and it’s easy to say that this lone mode is the greatest tribute that has ever been offered to us kids that grew up rolling our eyes back in our heads and shouting “Just Bring It” to random strangers.
Starting out, players are placed in the boots of Shawn Michaels and begin rewriting history as they go throughout over 12 iconic match-ups that defined his own place within the era. That moment in Montreal, the feud with Davey Boy Smith over the European title, and of course, DX’s uprising have all made the cut, with the player swapping out between “Blue Blood” Hunter Hearst Helmsley and various other superstars to get a nostalgia driven history lesson. There are several of superstars that also have their own dedicated campaigns, but for spoilers sake, I won’t go into too much detail of that, but I assure you, if you remember it – it’s more than likely here.
Attitude mode may sound like a ho-hum campaign, and it very well could of been. Thankfully, the passion of the development team shines through brightly within this mode as there are so many finely tuned features that went into creating every story that it would be an absolute crime to miss out on all the festivities. Every major feud has been recreated through cutscenes, with audio taken right out of the original product. There are a few censors placed from time to time (mainly to beep out the “F” in WWF), but that really doesn’t matter due to how well the scenes play out. Original footage has also been edited in, detailing the history of the scenario the player is about to partake in with a video vignette – cause let’s face it, a lot of today’s fans were in diapers during this momentous era. Commentary by Good ‘Ol J.R. and King sweetens the deal even further, as they go out of their way to speak about the happenings of the night, detailing the history of the current scenario even further while still calling the match to near perfection.
It all makes for one of the most compelling season modes a wrestling game has seen to date, and that’s before we even get to how the matches play out. Most of the match-ups have one simple objective of winning, but to unlock a lot of the hidden content, bonus objectives can be executed to allow the player to relive the match in it’s true form. For instance, in the Bad Blood Hell in a Cell match with Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, the player must make a comeback, get Taker’s damage to “critical”, and then gain a pinfall to become victorious. Sometimes other requirements such as hitting an opponent with a chair or nailing a finisher a set amount of times will also be needed to gain a victory – allowing the player to relive every match as it actually played out. I will admit, some of the objectives can feel a bit tedious due to the AI’s stubborn ways, but for the most part – this mode is the closest one can get to the Attitude Era without re-watching those recorded VHS tapes.
Gameplay
If you have played any of the more recent WWE titles from THQ, you should know of what to expect when it comes to the core product. Players can move and run around the ring at free will, and use grapples and standard attacks from a hefty movepool to gain their finishing maneuver. The HUD is gone by default this time around (there are options to turn it back on), which really doesn’t make a difference due to the cues that appear when a finisher or signature move is earned. Reversals have also been revamped to a one-button scheme, making it easier to counter. This can lead to countless back and forth chain grapples, but for the most part – it gets the job done well enough. Yeah, not too much has changed, but things do feel a bit more polished this year due to the new “Predator 2.0” system.
Last year, the Predator technology was used to display animations for counters and keep the action from halting. It was a great concept, but the bugs with it caused for complete model freezes at times, and made for some of the most unintentionally hilarious glitches I had seen in a wrestling game. The 2.0 version feels like the true form of that, as it works well in keeping the momentum of a match moving during lightening fast exchanges. Aerial counters feel a lot easier to execute this time around, allowing someone like the Undertaker to catch and opponent in mid air and deliver a slam at the tap of a button. When a finisher is stored, this can also be turned into a “OMG!” moment, letting Taker then tombstone his opponent from out of the air and into the mat. It looks as awesome as it sounds, and is just one of the benefits of the physics upgrade.
Pins are not nearly as polished. The Predator tech allows players to kick out of pins by utilizing a small meter and releasing the “A” button at the correct time. While I do respect the timed approach, this can still be a headache. Imagine you are going back and forth with Rey Mysterio and he does a quick roll-up. You then have to immediately go into the mini-game to kick out of a pin, and a good portion of the time the shock of the event can lead to a feeling of unpreparedness, with that one missed timing costing the match entirely. If you happen to have a laggy opponent online, it can be impossible to get this timing down. I know, the button tapping is archaic and had to go, but I still feel as if this pinning method could have been handled in an alternative manner. Submission moves are quite the opposite, and rely on quick tapping or maneuvering to the bottom rope to break the hold – making for the first time I have preferred to end in a submission victory over the standard pinfall route.
Now that we have spoken about the gameplay mechanics, it’s time to focus on what one can expect to see in terms of content. Firstly, this title features more Superstars than any other WWE wrestling game…ever. Players can choose from the more modern stars such as Cena and Sheamus, or go a classic route and select Mankind and The Nation of Domination’s Mark Henry. Divas are also in, but prove nearly useless as their ability to fight male superstars is completely a thing of the past, which boggles the mind due to how large of a role Lita, Trish, and other female competitors had when it came to cross-gender bouts of the past.
As far match types, the basics have all been covered – with TLC, Table, Hell in a Cell, and others balancing out the standard amount of exhibition bouts within the game. Players can even edit their match before starting, changing the type of cage, weapons, and rules to their liking. Due to the Attitude era’s inclusion, there are also more arenas than ever before, giving the player nothing but choice as they make their selection. Create a Wrestler has also returned and is as detailed as ever, letting one create any Superstar or figment of their imagination to take on the already plentiful and varied roster. Yes, customization still runs strong, and with the Create a Finisher, Match Type, Arena, Superstar modes being so broad, it is almost impossible to run out of things to do.
Speaking of customization, WWE Universe mode is back, and has been finely tuned to allow modern era and created Superstars alike to get their moment. I could best explain this to fans of Smackdown 2, as in theory, it isn’t too far off from that season mode. Each week, matches are lined up and can be participated in by both real superstars and created performers. Belts can switch hands, storylines can take place, and rivalries can begin within this mode, which is a nice go-to feature after one finishes up the already astounding Attitude season. Online features such as downloading Superstars and participating in match-ups work well enough, and it has never been easier to share content. Those who shudder at the previous title’s Online misfits can now do a “fair” option as well, turning off all edits so that someone like Sin Cara will not be pulling off the chokeslam unexpectedly. These sound like minor changes, but they are a big deal to those of us who spent hours trying to save a created star or got nothing but headbutting horror in previous versions of the game, so it’s nice to see that THQ have had their ears open to complaints and have begun to address issues of the past.
Visuals and Audio
Well, I have been praising quite a bit in this review so far, but I would be lying if I said the graphics in WWE ’13 were phenomenal. Yeah – some models look fantastic and are heavily detailed, but others, like poor Billy Gunn and Shawn Michaels look like they were produced out of an old CAW mode from the Playstation 2. The arenas are more consistent in quality however, each bearing an exact resemblance of the original counterpart, which makes simming dream match-ups a large part of what makes WWE ’13 so enjoyable. There are a few graphical glitches from time to time, as I have seen a few moments of floating tag team partners and insane rope movement, but after last year, these come off as light moments of humor and do nothing to effect the actual gameplay.
The audio is one of the finest things within WWE ’13. The two commentary teams do a spectacular job at calling every match, and there is no doubt in my mind that this is the best work done in the genre to date when it comes the area that fans have complained about for years. Each team spend their time speaking about your selected superstar’s personality while still staying on topic with the moves that are being used, making it feel as if you are watching the real thing live on television. Of course the music from entrances and standard sound effects such as chair and ladder shots sound good as well, but I cannot stress enough how much of an improvement the fixed commentary actually is. It isn’t perfect by any means as there will be moments where Cole shouts out “MANKIND!” for no reason (as an example), but this is the year you do not need to drown out the sound with some other form of audio.
Overall
Every single year, it’s two steps back, one step forward with the WWE Games franchise. Well, at least for the past five years or so, anyway. For the first time in a long time, I find myself with more to praise than to complain about as WWE ’13 is the game we have been waiting to come around since Here Comes the Pain. Sure, the lack of Diva interaction, bugs, and the pinning system still need attention, but the overall product here is nothing short of revolutionary compared to the somewhat lackluster games in recent years. That may sound like a negative reflection, but I am someone who has stuck with this franchise through the good, the bad, and the downright terrible, and nothing makes me happier than to see WWE ’13 rise above it’s potential. Just one trek through Attitude mode will show any fan how much attention that was put into the final product, and each match is just as enjoyable as the next due to the heavy amount of customization we have come to expect from the namesake. While not perfect, WWE ’13 is the best wrestling game of this generation, setting a firm bar in place of what we should expect for all future installments.
Street Fighter X Tekken Developer:Capcom Publisher:Capcom Platforms:PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC, PlayStation Vita (Reviewed) Release Date: October 23, 2012 Price: $39.99 – Available Here
Overview: In what has become something of a common practice for Capcom, the company has created another fighting game which pits two classic franchises against one another in one on one combat. Seven months ago Street Fighter X Tekken was released to consoles around the globe to a mild amount of fan fair and more controversy than you could shake a stick at. Now Capcom has brought Street Fighter X Tekken over to the PlayStation Vita with a few handheld specific upgrades and some special characters. Does the game make a smooth transfer onto Sony’s handheld?
Story: A strange object has crash landed in Antarctica and while no one knows truly what the object is, it appears that anyone who fights near the box shaped object gains special powers that makes them stronger than they ever were before. Because of the rise in conflict this mysterious box causes, it has been called Pandora. Thus two forces of fighters have set their eyes on the box and must do battle with one another to obtain it.
Anyone who has played the console versions of Street Fighter X Tekken will see that nothing has changed in the storyline this time around and anyone who hasn’t played it shouldn’t expect wonders here as Capcom has provided an absolutely barebones storyline that simply sets up a weak premise for why these characters would even be fighting in the first place and nothing more.
Visuals & Audio: Perhaps the most stunning thing about Street Fighter X Tekken on the PlayStation Vita is how gorgeous this game looks. Usually when a game is brought over to a handheld the visuals suffer in a significant way, however that is simply not the case with Street Fighter X Tekken as the game’s graphics are just as colorful and the fighters’ character models have only lost a small level of detail.
Little seems to have been sacrificed to make the game work on the Vita and this has created a near-console-like visual experience in the palm of your hands as the characters still have the classic touch Capcom used in SFIV and the backgrounds are still animated and as stunning as they were on consoles.
To go along with the game’s great visual presentation the background music is still as excellent as before with a nice collection of fast-paced tunes to keep your blood pumping in the menus as well as in the fights themselves.
Gameplay: If you’ve played Street Fighter X Tekken on the consoles then you should know roughly what you will be getting into when you start up the Vita version, but for everyone else the game controls very similar to past Street Fighter series with this one taking many notes from SFIV. However players will now be able to use both Tekken and Street Fighter characters that pair off against other members of these franchises.
As you fight it out you will fill up a Cross Gauge that can be used to pull off various powerful attacks such as Super Arts, Ex Attacks and Cross attacks which allow the player to quickly swap their fights to deal a large amount of damage to your opponent. Here is where Capcom has changed things up a little bit on the PlayStation Vita as they have offered a chance for players to set various attacks and combos up with an easy to use touch screen interface.
Players can choose to use either the front or the rear touch pads on the Vita to activate one of four customizable tiles that will execute an attack string that can be anything from a powerful combo attack to a simple punch if you wish it. These touch screens do make the playing field a bit easier for those of us who aren’t great at remembering more complex move inputs but they don’t sway the gameplay so much that you can easily defeat opponents by using it.
If you choose to not use these touch screens and prefer fighting with the standard face buttons then you shouldn’t worry about playing on a handheld device. The controls on the Vita do an amazing job handling the fast paced inputs that Street Fighter X Tekken can sometimes require and the responsive controls will never let you down despite how hectic things can get in these tag team battles.
Outside of fighting against various enemies, the menu’s in the game have been given the touch screen treatment as well. This means that navigating through the main menu, character selection, customization, etc. will require use of the front touch screen. The navigation is rather fluid and doesn’t feel like a forced use of the touch controls so there should be no qualms about this change. It is also worth noting that Capcom added an augmented reality photo mode which allows the user to take a picture with their favorite character if they wish it. Nothing really exceptional here but still a nice little bonus for people who may be die-hard fans of either franchise and want to be next to Ryu or Jin.
Now Street Fighter X Tekken on the Vita also contains a slew of new fighters that weren’t available in the standard console versions of the game. In fact players will find twelve characters playable on the Vita as well as a code that will unlock these characters for the PlayStation 3 version of the game. This means that the Vita version contains an absolutely stunning number of characters that you can play as with a roster simply bursting at the seams with not only Street Fighter and Capcom characters but Cole from Infamous, Pac-Man and Mega Man which bring the total number of playable fighters to 55.
Now considering the Vita is a handheld device that has zero option to connect straight to the internet via a wired connection, many people may be concerned about the online multiplayer of Street Fighter X Tekken on the Vita. Well you can put those concerns to rest because out of the many fights that I experienced online only one in every ten matches felt like it was plagued with lag during the actual fight, though character interactions were laggy through most online matches. It is also worth noting that players can actually fight against users on the PlayStation 3, pitting Sony’s handheld against Sony’s console and it didn’t seem like my console playing opponent held any special edge despite working with a full screen.
Overall: It comes as quite a surprise that Capcom has managed to bring Street Fighter X Tekken over to the PlayStation Vita while sacrificing little in the visuals and nothing in the gameplay department. In fact, with the addition of touch controls and Vita specific characters, many may see this as the definitive version of Street Fighter X Tekken. With an online multiplayer mode that rivals the console versions any fan of fighting games who own a Vita would be doing themselves a disservice if they pass this title up.
American Horror Story: The Complete First Season Studio: 20th Century Fox Television Publisher: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Format: DVD (Reviewed), Blu-Ray Release Date: October 24, 2012 Price: $39.98 – Available Here
Overview
The Emmy award winning American Horror Story brought back to life (ironically enough) a genre that was all but dead in television. Never has a TV horror series been developed that has garnered the amount of praise, and the kinds of ratings, that American Horror Story has. The show’s fans are beyond a cult following, with 3.85 million viewers tuning in for Season 2’s premiere in the U.S, making it FX’s highest rated show. The brilliant homage to all things horror has now arrived on DVD. Read on to find out whether this Complete First Season, 4-Disc set, is worth selling your soul!
Story
American Horror Story, Season 1, follows the Harmons, Ben, Vivien and their daughter Violet, as they move from Boston to Los Angeles in hopes of leaving behind a painful past and starting anew; Vivien had caught Ben, red-handed, as he cheated on her with a younger woman. Compounded by an earlier miscarriage – the effects of which Ben, a psychiatrist, indirectly blamed for his infidelity – the Harmons were on the brink of separation. They had hoped this new home, this new beginning, would be a godsend for them. Violet takes a liking to this new house, where the owners died in the basement. That fact, once delivered to the Harmons by the real estate agent, Marcy, was actually what sealed the deal in Violet’s mind as she exclaimed “We’ll take it!”. Oh, if they only knew…what they were about to experience would change their realities forever.
What’re they all looking at?!
As the pilot progresses, the Harmons are introduced to many new faces, including Moira – the former housekeeper who insists she continue working for them, Constance – the kleptomaniac and invasive next door neighbour, and her daughter Adelaide – or Addie for short – who suffers from Down Syndrome and also barges in whenever she wants. A gimp suit is found in the attic and comes into play (literally, with Vivien to be clear), while Ben sees his first new patient in a disturbed teenager named Tate, whom he banishes from talking to his daughter after finding them chatting in her bedroom. This is all just the start, the set-up…as the season plays out, new characters and backstories are introduced, almost consistently on an episode-to-episode basis. But it never feels bloated. Everyone has a story to tell and each lends to the lore and divulging of events that have occurred at the house.
Time passes, and Vivien is still finding it hard to be intimate with Ben after what he did. Things further complicate for the Harmons, including the discovery that Vivien is now pregnant (remember the man in the gimp suit?! She assumed it was Ben, right?), it starts to become evident that this house, the Murder House as it is dubbed by a touring company that passes by quite regularly, is host to many secrets and it’s death-filled past is much more extensive then the Harmons were led to believe. I can not go any further without spoiling the numerous plot twists and revelations that abound, but let’s just say that things get much stranger, much weirder and much more disturbing. It’s a hallowed roller-coaster ride that you should not miss!
If I know my horror stories, that baby may not be the welcome addition to the family that they want…
Visual
American Horror Story is one of the very few shows to have been filmed in the older Super 35 format. The inspiration behind that decision is ostensible, as the show is a throwback to the old, gritty, grainy, classic horror films of the 70s and prior. With that in mind, know that the DVD transfer was never going to be crystal clear…it’s just not possible. However, I was still disappointed by the amount of graininess present, regardless of that fact. The disc menus and text also looked quite blurry. Colour-wise, there has been no degradation or over-saturation, and everything looks as it did on TV. In regards to the actual filming and camera work, American Horror Story utilises a consistent bag of horror hallmarks, such as the tilted angles and sharply edited jump cuts. The wardrobe, color-palette and set designs communicate that creepy tone and atmosphere so well, it’s probably one of the best aspects of the show’s production.
And you scare us Tate…
Audio
The audio sounds good in 5.1 Dolby Digital format, however the mix could have been better balanced as the volumes of the dialogue/sfx and music are, at times, seemingly poles apart. The commentary track is handled well, however, with the primary audio enhanced when Murphy is speaking, and the secondary enhanced when he is not so that you can those moments of the dialogue. Subtitles can be turned on during commentary, for either the commentary itself or the dialogue. Languages available for subtitling are of a peculiarly Nordic flavour, with English, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish only.
Extras
The Complete First Season boasts one of the best, most informative commentary tracks I can ever remember listening to. Ryan Murphy, co-creator of the show, talks us through every detail during the Pilot episode. He talks about casting, filming experiences with the actors, behind-the-scenes tidbits, hints and symbolism that you may not have picked up on, camera choices and much more. Personally, I love learning about the film making process, so this was perfect. I just wish we could have gotten the actors’ takes on an episode or two as well, as I am intrigued to hear their thoughts on the shoot and subject matter. Rounding out the special features are four featurettes, all found on disc 4. First up is The Murder House presented by Eternal Darkness Tours of Hollywood’ – a faux tour of the infamous Murder House; a take off of the scenes in the show where the tour stops by the house, but does not enter, instead moving on to the next site. This 6.5 minute piece acts as a recap and chronology of the history of the house in the canon.
Mr. Harmon, you dirty dog, you!
Next is the ‘Behind the Fright: The Making of American Horror Story’, which is self-explanatory and the most in-depth piece at 23 minutes long. Then we have ‘Overture to Horror: Creating the Title Sequence’ – insight into the creation of the show’s creepy main title sequence. Ryan Murphy requested the team who did the main title sequence for the film 7even, and he got his wish with Prologue’s Kyle Cooper being brought in, per his request. The almost 9 minute video also details the composition of the title theme, which is a reconstruction of composer Cesar Davila-Irizarry’s unreleased experimental piece, “Creatura”. And finally, we have ‘Out of the Shadows: Meet the House Ghosts’ – a run-down of all the ghosts that wander the Murder House, with interview footage from the actors who played them. All up, some good extras, however they did end up covering some of the same ground. And I know there were deleted scenes that were not included, because they were alluded to by the show’s co-creator, Ryan Murphy, in his commentary track for the pilot.
Overall
The Complete First Season is a worthy DVD set with, for my money, one of the most insightful audio commentaries in recent memory making up for the other, slightly unsatisfying, extras. I would have loved to have seen more “on-the-set” footage instead of the shallow studio recorded interviews that dominate the bulk of the special features. The extras are a welcome addition, nonetheless, and the video transfer is fine considering the shooting format of using Super 35 film, although a bit grainy and soft at times. However, if you’re a fan, or a newcomer to the series, you should definitely buy this DVD set and (re-)experience the tale of the Murder House! If you’ve got the extra ‘cashola’ to spend, go for the Blu-Ray, which has DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound and a 1080p/AVC image encode.
Soldak Entertainment’s upcoming game, Drox Operative, has been in beta for a little while now, which means that although there are those players actual able to play and enjoy the game while helping to improve it, there are still those who haven’t gotten to touch it at all. But, luckily for those players today is the day where that changes because the demo for Drox Operative has just been released.
The game sees players as the most fearsome entity in the galaxy a Drox Operative, trained so well that any mission isn’t too impossible to complete. After the fall of the Drox, however those operative’s still kicking about found a new way of life the only way they knew how, getting missions done, from anyone they choose to work with. With plenty of different win conditions, the game let’s players pick exactly how they want to play from underhanded to one-on-one.
With a new dynamic galaxy with every playthrough players will still have lots to explore in the demo and at only 120MB space shouldn’t really be a worry either. Interested players can check out the demo HERE.
