Christopher Nolan Shares His Love of the Fast & Furious Movies and Alien 3

Christopher Nolan, who recently made headlines by publicly deriding the decision by Warner Bros. to move its entire 2021 film slate onto HBO Max, got in touch with his lighter, goofier side this week by professing his love for the Fast and Furious franchise. Guesting on MTV's Happy Sad Confused podcast, Nolan expressed how much he enjoys the entire franchise, and how the movies have gotten wilder and more unbelievable - though he still mostly prefers the first movies in the saga, particularly Tokyo Drift. “I’m sort of an original recipe [guy]," Nolan said. "I mean the Rob Cohen original. But I’ve got a very soft spot for Tokyo Drift, actually. And then the skill as Justin Lin’s iterations, as they got crazier and bigger and crazier and bigger, they became something else, but something else kind of fun." "The fun thing about those movies is even as they’ve gotten bigger and bigger and bigger, as sequels have to do," he added, "everyone always complains that sequels get bigger but we’re the people making sequels get bigger, we do want them bigger, you don’t want them smaller, it’s the Alien 3 lesson that [David] Fincher learned. You can do it but it’s not going to make anybody happy, even though personally I love that film, a lot more than he does in fact.” [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/07/02/a-brief-history-of-time-in-christopher-nolan-movies"] The latest installment in the Fast and Furious Franchise, Fast 9, was slated for April 2021, after it was bumped an entire year from its original April 2020 date due to the COVID crisis. Now it's been pushed back a second time, though this time it's a much smaller move to May 28, 2021. Nolan, meanwhile, isn't the only director speaking out against the Warner Bros. decision to stream its massive 2021 movie schedule on HBO Max. Dune director Denis Villeneuve has also chimed in, saying "with this decision, AT&T has hijacked one of the most respectable and important studios in film history." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=f9-character-posters&captions=true"]

Fall Guys Season 3 Exclusive: Check Out The Final Reward on Its Fame Pass

IGN's delighted to be able to show you the ultimate reward for completing the Fall Guys Season 3 Fame Pass - meet Dapper Walrus. Unlocked in multiple parts as with all Fall Guys costumes, it's the fourth costume unlocked by working through the game's upcoming Fame Pass, and the glorious top portion is the final reward on the track, meaning only the most dedicated players will receive it. Check out screenshots and art of Dapper Walrus below: [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=fall-guys-dapper-walrus-costume&captions=true"] Dapper Walrus is just one of many new additions in the winter-themed Fall Guys Season 3, including new race level Tundra Run, which we exclusively revealed earlier this week. We also got a rundown of Season 3's many new obstacles from the developers themselves - check out our video, which covers everything from nasty flippers to boxing bloves designed as presents, below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/12/fall-guys-season-3-the-most-chaotic-obstacles-yet"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Cyberpunk 2077: Johnny Silverhand’s Bionic Arm Is Now a Real World Prosthetic

Xbox, CD Projekt Red, and the non-profit Limbitless Solutions have teamed up to create a real world prosthetic based on the bionic arm of Keanu Reeves' Johnny Silverhand from Cyberpunk 2077. As reported by Xbox Wire, these Johnny Silverhand-themed prosthetic arms will be donated for adults in upcoming clinical trial starting in 2021. A behind-the-scenes video is also available to show more of how this project came to be. [caption id="attachment_245212" align="aligncenter" width="720"] Courtesy of Limbitless Solutions[/caption] Limbitless Solutions is a non-profit organization that uses 3D printing to to create prosthetic arms for children and adults that are capable of gripping objects and performing carious gestures, and they are designed to be much cheaper than other prosthetics on the market. This Cyberpunk 2077-inspired bionic arm is just one of the many pulled from pop culture. In 2015, Limbitless teamed up with Robert Downey Jr. to present a young superhero fan Alex Pring with an Iron Man prosthetic limb, and in 2018, it partnered with 343 Industries to offer Halo-themed prosthetics. Another company, Open Bionics, recently teamed up with Komani to create a bionic arm based on Venom Snake's arm from Metal Gear Solid V for a UK-based gamer named Daniel Melville who was born without a hand. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/10/cyberpunk-2077-review-with-new-gameplay"] For more on Cyberpunk 2077, check out our review and our IGN Wiki Guide that includes the best tips and tricks and a comprehensive beginner's guide to help you as your start your adventure in Night City. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Cyberpunk 2077 Review

A beautiful cityscape with a staggering amount of choice (and a few too many bugs).

Justice League Investigation Over, “Remedial Action” Taken Over Fisher Claims

"WarnerMedia’s investigation into the Justice League movie has concluded and remedial action has been taken,” WarnerMedia announced in a statement Friday night following a months-long investigation into allegations made by Cyborg Ray Fisher of a toxic, hostile working environment under reshoots director Joss Whedon. In August, WarnerMedia officially launched a third-party investigation into Justice League actor Ray Fisher's claims that reshoots director Joss Whedon ran a toxic, hostile set and that former DC Films co-chairs Geoff Johns and Jon Berg enabled the alleged bad behavior. Fisher also claimed Johns reprimanded him for complaining up the chain about it at the time. The actor also alleged that DC Films boss Walter Hamada pressed Fisher to "relent on Geoff Johns." While it remains unclear what "remedial action" was taken, Fisher observed on Twitter, "Some we’ve seen, and some that is still to come." It may be completely unrelated to the WarnerMedia investigation, but Joss Whedon recently left his HBO show The Nevers. Whedon cited the ongoing pandemic as a reason for his stepping aside. (HBO is part of WarnerMedia.) Fisher also tweeted a letter WarnerMedia sent him congratulating him for coming forward with his allegations: "WarnerMedia appreciates you having the courage to come forward and assist the company with creating an inclusive and equitable work environment for it’s employees and partners.” Fisher thanked his supporters and added, "There are still conversations that need to be had and resolutions that need to be found." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/justice-league-the-snyder-cut-trailer"] WarnerMedia's statement Friday is an about-face for the company considering that in September they issued a lengthy statement slamming the Cyborg star and denying Fisher's claims about Walter Hamada. The studio also alleged at the time that Fisher has refused to meet with their third party investigator to discuss the case. Fisher denied that. Previously, Justice League producer and former Warner Bros. co-president of production Jon Berg fired back at Fisher's claims that Berg and his former fellow DC Films exec Geoff Johns "enabled" any alleged bad behavior from Whedon on set. Berg also revealed one thing he claimed Fisher was upset about during the reshoots. Berg told Variety at the time that it was "categorically untrue that we enabled any unprofessional behavior.'" Berg also said Fisher was upset that the filmmakers wanted him to utter one of Cyborg's signature catchphrases from his small screen appearances. “I remember [Fisher] being upset that we wanted him to say ‘Booyaa,’ which is a well known saying of Cyborg in the animated series,” Berg said. Ray Fisher recently shot additional footage for The Snyder Cut of Justice League, which will debut on HBO Max in 2021. Fisher said he had reshot almost all of his scenes when Joss Whedon took over the project, saying only a single scene of his from Snyder's original version made it into the theatrical release. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=justice-league-snyder-cut-all-the-known-differences-from-the-theatrical-version&captions=true"]

Patty Jenkins’ Star Wars: Rogue Squadron Movie Will Have an Original Story

Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins is directing a Star Wars: Rogue Squadron movie, and while Rogue Squadron is known to many as a video game franchise (not to mention a series of tie-in novels), her film will feature an original story rather than a direct adaptation of pre-existing narrative. Even so, Jenkins assures the movie will honor everything in the Rogue Squadron franchise that came before it. “[In the Star Wars: Rogue Squadron movie] we're doing something original with great influence from the games and the books,” Jenkins told IGN in an interview. “There's a lot of things being acknowledged and understood about the greatness of all of those things, but yes, it's an original story and I'm so psyched to do it." The Rogue Squadron video game series first launched in 1998, featuring Luke Skywalker’s team of ace Rebel pilots taking on the Empire. The games featured iconic starfighter battles seen in the Original Trilogy like the Death Star trench run and the Battle of Hoth, as well as original ones created for the games. The first game’s plot took place during and after the Original Trilogy. It followed Luke and his trusted friend and fellow pilot Wedge Antilles as they attempted to destabilize the Galactic Empire by carrying out hit-and-run missions and escorting Imperial defectors to safety within the Rebel Alliance. The game featured main antagonist Moff Kohl Seerdon and culminated in a battle on Mon Calamari to stop the planet-destroying World Devastators. While the games have become classics in the eyes of Star Wars gamers, fans should expect Jenkins to build a fresh story from the ground up. The film is slated for a Christmas 2023 release. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/10/star-wars-rogue-squadron-patty-jenkins-announcement-video"] Two Rogue Squadron game sequels followed in the form of Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader and Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike, as well as the spin-off Star Wars Episode I: Battle for Naboo. The games were praised for their faithful attention to detail with the various Star Wars spaceships such as the X-Wing, A-Wing, and Y-Wing, as well as their fun, arcade-style flight action gameplay. Deborah Chow and Bryce Dallas Howard are notable for being the first female directors to play in the live-action Star Wars universe by taking on episodes of The Mandalorian, and now Jenkins continues to break new ground for the franchise by being the first woman director to helm a live-action Star Wars movie. Jenkins' upcoming film Wonder Woman 1984 is a sequel to her 2017 hit that grossed $821 million worldwide. The sequel reunites Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman with the mysteriously returned Steve Trevor, played by Chris Pine, and pits her against Pedro Pascal’s Maxwell Lord and Kristen Wiig’s Barbara Minerva aka the Cheetah. The film releases on December 23, 2020 both in theaters and on the HBO Max streaming service. Star Wars: Rogue Squadron was one of the many Star Wars announcements revealed during Disney Investor Day 2020, including an Ahsoka Tano Spinoff, Rangers of the New Republic, a Star Wars: Lando Calrissian series, a High Republic series called Acolyte, an anime called Star Wars: Visions, Star Wars: Andor, and Hayden Christensen's return as Darth Vader in Disney+'s Obi-Wan Kenobi series. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-upcoming-star-wars-movie&captions=true"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joshua is a Senior Editor and Producer of Features at IGN. If Pokemon, Green Lantern, or Star Wars are frequently used words in your vocabulary, you’ll want to follow him on Twitter @JoshuaYehl and IGN.

Cyberpunk 2077’s Developer’s Bonus Structure Changed After Launch Issues

Following launch issues surrounding Cyberpunk 2077, CD Projekt Red has allegedly changed its developer's bonus structure to ensure they will still get their bonuses. As reported by Bloomberg, executives at CD Projekt SA have taken "responsibility for the buggy release of the highly-anticipated title Cyberpunk 2077 this week" and have made changed to make sure that the team "will receive their full bonuses no matter how the game is reviewed." “We initially had a bonus system that was focused on the game’s ratings and the release date, but after consideration, we believe that measure is simply not fair under the circumstances,” wrote Adam Badowski, studio head and creative director for Cyberpunk 2077, in the email to staff that was obtained by Bloomberg. “We underestimated the lengths and complexity involved to make this a reality, and still you did everything you could to deliver an ambitious, special game.” [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/10/cyberpunk-2077-review-with-new-gameplay"] As of this writing, Cyberpunk 2077 has a 90 on review-aggregate site Metacritic, which reveals that high standards the team had set for itself. Despite these high review scores, Cyberpunk 2077's launch has been impacted by many factors, including a possible seizure-inducing sequence in the game, poor performance on base PS4 and Xbox One units, and copyrighted songs that may cause DMCA strikes for streamers. Furthermore, these issues and others have caused CD Projekt Red's stock to drop 29% around the launch of Cyberpunk 2077. Current and former employees talked to Bloomberg about how the bonus structure previously worked for Cyberpunk 2077 devs, and it's a bit complicated. Every month, team leads would give out tokens - styled after the company's logo, no less - to "members of the their team they felt deserved honors." These tokens could then be transferred into bonuses if Cyberpunk 2077 were to meet certain criteria. Under the revised system, those "payouts will be guaranteed even though Cyberpunk 2077 was delayed and the review score has been mixed." Bloomberg also notes that these bonuses come "on top of regular annual profit-sharing payouts," but that "there has been concern it pushed them to work longer hours." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/12/11/cyberpunk-2077-xbox-one-series-xs-and-ps4-tested-early-framerate-analysis-results"] This tracks with an earlier report that revealed CD Projekt Red had enacted mandatory six-day work weeks to finish work on Cyberpunk 2077. This came after promises that no crunch would be implemented. All these issues aside, Cyberpunk 2077 appears to be a bonafide commercial success. CD Projekt revealed that its pre-order sales had already covered the entire development and marketing cost of the game, and that Cyberpunk 2077 had sold 8 million copies before launch. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=cyberpunk-2077-pc-gameplay-screenshots&captions=true"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

JJ Abrams’ Bad Robot Forms Game Studio With Left 4 Dead Creator

Bad Robot Productions, JJ Abrams’ movie, and TV production company, has launched a video game division under the guidance of former Valve executive Michael Booth. In 2018, Abrams announced that Bad Robots will be expanding into video games with Bad Robot Games, but the newest venture under Booth will bring video game development in-house. Meaning Bad Robot themselves will begin developing and designing games on their own. Booth will serve as general manager and will lead the creative team through the company’s first game, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Booth was formerly a developer for Turtle Rock Studios, the developers of Left 4 Dead and Back 4 Blood. He was project lead on games such as Counter-Strike: Condition Zero, Nox, as well as working on Team Fortress 2 and Command & Conquer: Generals. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/01/17/left-4-dead-3-is-not-in-the-works"] In a statement to Hollywood Reporter, Booth says, "My career has been driven by a desire to innovate new ways of bringing people together for epic adventures online, leaving them exciting stories they can tell their friends afterward." Booth added, "The games I create center around people working together to survive and thrive in fantastic worlds, which seems an excellent fit for JJ Abrams' approach to moviemaking. As a huge fan of JJ's work, I'm incredibly excited by the unique opportunity to create something new at Bad Robot Games Studios in collaboration with the world-class talent at Bad Robot." There has been no word on what Bad Robots’ first project will be. [poilib element="accentDivider"]Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 Review

Fans of competitive, block-dropping puzzle games had it pretty rough for most of the last decade. Creativity in the Tetris space was being stifled by a strict set of game-rules guidelines imposed by The Tetris Company, while Puyo Puyo was mostly trapped in Japan, playable only by those international fans fervent enough to tread import waters. Thankfully, things have changed somewhat on both fronts, bringing us the unusual mashup title Puyo Puyo Tetris in 2017 to critical and fan success. Three years later, we now have a follow-up in the form of Puyo Puyo Tetris 2. While it keeps much of what made the original game a success, it offers a few new game modes and online enhancements--but as a sequel, it lacks the same punch as the original.

Like in the original game, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is built around an engine combining these two competitive puzzle titans into a singular game entity. Players pick either Puyo Puyo or Tetris gameplay and go up against an opponent, with rules adjusted according to which style they're using--or they can play a mode that switches between Puyo Puyo and Tetris gameplay at set intervals. If you're feeling especially brave, you can attempt Fusion mode, which puts Puyo blobs and Tetromino blocks on the same board in a complex rules mashup that will put your puzzling skills to the true test.

But that's just the beginning. There's a lot on offer in Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 for both solo and multiplayer play. The Adventure mode offers an all-new story, complete with a pleasant new overworld interface and featuring a cast of colorful weirdos--mostly from the expanded Puyo Puyo universe--who solve all of their problems and disagreements by tossing colored blobs and blocks at each other. The game modes change in every chapter, so Adventure Mode serves as a way to practice and learn the various styles of gameplay available while also unlocking characters, in-game shop credits, and various embellishments for your profile. While the rainbow-colored characters and their jokey personalities are certainly cute, the nonsensical nature of the narrative will either charm you to bits or leave you mashing the skip button to get to the dropping faster. This mode takes a few hours to finish, and future DLC expansions have been teased.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 Review

Fans of competitive, block-dropping puzzle games had it pretty rough for most of the last decade. Creativity in the Tetris space was being stifled by a strict set of game-rules guidelines imposed by The Tetris Company, while Puyo Puyo was mostly trapped in Japan, playable only by those international fans fervent enough to tread import waters. Thankfully, things have changed somewhat on both fronts, bringing us the unusual mashup title Puyo Puyo Tetris in 2017 to critical and fan success. Three years later, we now have a follow-up in the form of Puyo Puyo Tetris 2. While it keeps much of what made the original game a success, it offers a few new game modes and online enhancements--but as a sequel, it lacks the same punch as the original.

Like in the original game, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is built around an engine combining these two competitive puzzle titans into a singular game entity. Players pick either Puyo Puyo or Tetris gameplay and go up against an opponent, with rules adjusted according to which style they're using--or they can play a mode that switches between Puyo Puyo and Tetris gameplay at set intervals. If you're feeling especially brave, you can attempt Fusion mode, which puts Puyo blobs and Tetromino blocks on the same board in a complex rules mashup that will put your puzzling skills to the true test.

But that's just the beginning. There's a lot on offer in Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 for both solo and multiplayer play. The Adventure mode offers an all-new story, complete with a pleasant new overworld interface and featuring a cast of colorful weirdos--mostly from the expanded Puyo Puyo universe--who solve all of their problems and disagreements by tossing colored blobs and blocks at each other. The game modes change in every chapter, so Adventure Mode serves as a way to practice and learn the various styles of gameplay available while also unlocking characters, in-game shop credits, and various embellishments for your profile. While the rainbow-colored characters and their jokey personalities are certainly cute, the nonsensical nature of the narrative will either charm you to bits or leave you mashing the skip button to get to the dropping faster. This mode takes a few hours to finish, and future DLC expansions have been teased.

Continue Reading at GameSpot