As Next-Gen Approaches, Switch Still Has ‘Great Potential,’ Witcher 3 Port Dev Says
When games like The Witcher 3 are ported to the Nintendo Switch it highlights just how capable a system Nintendo’s hybrid console is. And according to The Witcher 3 port developers, Saber Interactive, there’s the Switch is capable of much more.
In an interview with WCCTech, Saber founder Matthew Karch says that the studio’s upcoming Switch version of World War Z “is actually more challenging than the port of The Witcher 3” and that there is “still a lot of great potential in the hardware and the platform.”
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-witcher-3-on-switch-screenshots&captions=true"]
When Witcher 3 was announced for the Nintendo Switch there was some commotion considering the sheer size of CD Projekt Red’s RPG. In IGN’s review of The Witcher 3 on Switch, we were surprised by just how capable the port was, though wouldn’t say it was better than its PC or PS4/Xbox One counterparts.
Karch also teased that upcoming Switch ports will be similarly impressive saying that he feels there are “more developers can get out of the Switch hardware, and we think fans will be surprised at some of the upcoming titles for it.”
The comments are especially notable as the games industry prepares for the launch of next-gen systems like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. While the Switch has shown to be capable of playing current-gen games like Doom Eternal, there are some questions about what next-gen means for the Nintendo Switch. The question has fueled speculation about the rumored, but unconfirmed, Switch Pro.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/06/11/the-witcher-3-nintendo-switch-trailer-e3-2019"]
Saber is a developer best known for supporting studios on ambitious ports. Saber helped develop ports for The Witcher 3, Vampyr, and World War Z. The studio is also assisting Crytek on Crysis Remastered, which will also come to the Nintendo Switch.
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
Matt Kim is a reporter for IGN.
The Last of Us Part 2 State of Play Impressions
BEYOND! On this week's episode of Podcast Beyond!, host Jonathon Dornbush is joined by Lucy O'Brien to break down everything we learned in the The Last of Us Part 2 State of Play presentation. We also discuss a bit of our hopes for the PS5 reveal event, which, naturally, was only a rumor when we recorded and then was officially announced 12 hours later. Ain't timing grand?
Watch the new episode below:
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/29/the-last-of-us-part-2-state-of-play-impressions-beyond-episode-647"]
Note: Unfortunately, we had a version of this episode that, due to technical issues, we lost the recording of, which featured the full cast. We'll return next week with coverage of the PS5 reveal event and more!
Download or listen to the show on these platforms:
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=confirmed-playstation-5-games&captions=true"]
- Direct Download
-
YouTube (Link to come!)
The Last of Us Part 2 State of Play Impressions
BEYOND! On this week's episode of Podcast Beyond!, host Jonathon Dornbush is joined by Lucy O'Brien to break down everything we learned in the The Last of Us Part 2 State of Play presentation. We also discuss a bit of our hopes for the PS5 reveal event, which, naturally, was only a rumor when we recorded and then was officially announced 12 hours later. Ain't timing grand?
Watch the new episode below:
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/29/the-last-of-us-part-2-state-of-play-impressions-beyond-episode-647"]
Note: Unfortunately, we had a version of this episode that, due to technical issues, we lost the recording of, which featured the full cast. We'll return next week with coverage of the PS5 reveal event and more!
Download or listen to the show on these platforms:
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=confirmed-playstation-5-games&captions=true"]
- Direct Download
-
YouTube (Link to come!)
Will Disney ‘Kill’ Mulan’s Theatrical Release in Favor of Digital?
Will Disney still release its live-action reimagining of Mulan in theaters in July as it's long claimed it would? Obviously, any theatrical release is entirely dependent on when cinemas reopen following worldwide COVID-19 closures but a Wall Street analyst claims Disney may ultimately opt to "kill" Mulan's theatrical release in favor of a digital debut. And that such a move may ultimately be better for Disney's business than pushing it out to theaters that cannot run at full capacity.
Analyst Michael Nathanson of the firm MoffettNathanson said on an investors' conference call that if Mulan can gross even half of the usual $1 billion Disney's pre-pandemic spate of blockbusters usually made "it will be a freakin’ home run."
Nathan, who Deadline describes as usually bullish on Disney's business, recently downgraded the company's shares in light of how hard hit and widespread the damage inflicted on Disney has been due to COVID-19 closures.
[poilib element="quoteBox" parameters="excerpt=%22I%20don%E2%80%99t%20think%20it%E2%80%99s%20a%20given%20that%20Mulan%E2%80%98s%20going%20to%20be%20released%20as%20we%20think.%22"]As Deadline reports: "Exhibitors and Disney alike have held firm that they are moving forward with the July plan, but Nathanson isn’t sure the studio will follow through. Beyond the viability of theaters, he said, the company would have to 'un-furlough a lot of their employees' in distribution and marketing. 'I don’t think it’s a given that Mulan‘s going to be released as we think.'”
As with Tenet, Hollywood's other major July release, Mulan's theatrical run depends on 80% of cinemas worldwide being open within the next three weeks, including major American markets like New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. (And, remember, theaters will still be required to practice social distancing so attendance will be limited.) If theaters in such markets still remain closed, it's likely Disney will have to push Mulan's release date again. Or, as analyst Nathanson suspects, Disney will opt to release Mulan digitally instead.
[ignvideo width=610 height=374 url=https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/02/02/mulan-official-final-trailer]
Pointing to the premium video-on-demand success of Universal's Trolls World Tour, Nathanson believes Mulan shifting to PVOD and then an early Disney+ debut could actually be more beneficial to Disney than may be apparent. Disney's already pushed Artemis Fowl to Disney+, while studio brass left the door open to releasing more movies on digital instead of theatrically.
He believes a Mulan digital release could serve as "a bit of a boost" to Disney+ and help Disney's stock in the long run: “If they do kill Mulan, that could help the narrative. In a perverse way, that could be better for Disney stock in the long run than having Mulan go to theaters.” (It should be noted that Mulan was tracking to be the biggest box office hit of 2020, domestically, before the pandemic struck the U.S.)
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-delayed-movie-due-to-coronavirus-so-far&captions=true"]
This analysis doesn't appear to account for what sort of backlash Disney could face from theatrical exhibitors should it pull such a high-profile movie as Mulan and release it on digital instead. AMC Theaters is at war with Universal over the studio's decision to drop theatrical releases for Trolls World Tour and The King of Staten Island in favor of VOD, and Warner Bros. has been careful to reiterate that Tenet will be a theatrical release after shifting Scoob! to digital.
Would you be more willing to watch Mulan in theaters or on digital? Let us know in the comments!
Will Disney ‘Kill’ Mulan’s Theatrical Release in Favor of Digital?
Will Disney still release its live-action reimagining of Mulan in theaters in July as it's long claimed it would? Obviously, any theatrical release is entirely dependent on when cinemas reopen following worldwide COVID-19 closures but a Wall Street analyst claims Disney may ultimately opt to "kill" Mulan's theatrical release in favor of a digital debut. And that such a move may ultimately be better for Disney's business than pushing it out to theaters that cannot run at full capacity.
Analyst Michael Nathanson of the firm MoffettNathanson said on an investors' conference call that if Mulan can gross even half of the usual $1 billion Disney's pre-pandemic spate of blockbusters usually made "it will be a freakin’ home run."
Nathan, who Deadline describes as usually bullish on Disney's business, recently downgraded the company's shares in light of how hard hit and widespread the damage inflicted on Disney has been due to COVID-19 closures.
[poilib element="quoteBox" parameters="excerpt=%22I%20don%E2%80%99t%20think%20it%E2%80%99s%20a%20given%20that%20Mulan%E2%80%98s%20going%20to%20be%20released%20as%20we%20think.%22"]As Deadline reports: "Exhibitors and Disney alike have held firm that they are moving forward with the July plan, but Nathanson isn’t sure the studio will follow through. Beyond the viability of theaters, he said, the company would have to 'un-furlough a lot of their employees' in distribution and marketing. 'I don’t think it’s a given that Mulan‘s going to be released as we think.'”
As with Tenet, Hollywood's other major July release, Mulan's theatrical run depends on 80% of cinemas worldwide being open within the next three weeks, including major American markets like New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. (And, remember, theaters will still be required to practice social distancing so attendance will be limited.) If theaters in such markets still remain closed, it's likely Disney will have to push Mulan's release date again. Or, as analyst Nathanson suspects, Disney will opt to release Mulan digitally instead.
[ignvideo width=610 height=374 url=https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/02/02/mulan-official-final-trailer]
Pointing to the premium video-on-demand success of Universal's Trolls World Tour, Nathanson believes Mulan shifting to PVOD and then early Disney+ debut could actually be more beneficial to Disney than may be immediately apparent. Disney has pushed Artemis Fowl to a Disney+ release instead, while studio brass has left the door open to pushing smaller movies to digital instead of theatrical.
He believes a Mulan digital release could serve as "a bit of a boost" to Disney+ and help Disney's stock in the long run: “If they do kill Mulan, that could help the narrative. In a perverse way, that could be better for Disney stock in the long run than having Mulan go to theaters.” (It should be noted that Mulan was tracking to be the biggest box office hit of 2020, domestically, before the pandemic struck the U.S.)
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-delayed-movie-due-to-coronavirus-so-far&captions=true"]
This analysis doesn't appear to account for what sort of backlash Disney could face from theatrical exhibitors should it pull such a high-profile movie as Mulan and release it on digital instead. AMC Theaters is at war with Universal over the studio's decision to drop theatrical releases for Trolls World Tour and The King of Staten Island in favor of VOD, and Warner Bros. has been careful to reiterate that Tenet will be a theatrical release after shifting Scoob! to digital.
Would you be more willing to watch Mulan in theaters or on digital? Let us know in the comments!
Crucible Review – A Prime Disappointment
It's easy to recognize Crucible's many design influences. The Amazon-published third-person multiplayer game features hero-style characters with abilities similar to those found in Overwatch. Its one MOBA-centric game mode should feel familiar to you if you've played Smite or the now-defunct Paragon. And even its light progression system echoes the one found in Gearbox's Battleborn. Crucible attempts to remix a lot of existing ideas and cohesively tie them together into something more successful, but as a result, it fails to create an identity for itself.
Crucible takes place on an alien planet primed for off-world mining, which plays host to three game modes on its single map. Heart of the Hive is as close to a MOBA as Crucible gets, with a focus on PvP and PvE play as two teams fight to secure the hearts of dangerous hives. Alpha Hunters is a spin on battle royale, with teams of two skirmishing in short matches. Lastly, Harvester Command combines traits of team deathmatch and classic point control, rewarding players for kills and the number of objectives controlled on the map. In each mode, you have a choice to play as one of 10 characters, each with a handful of unique abilities and unlockable traits.
Heart of the Hive is the main event, pitting two teams of four against one another on a large map filled with AI enemies as you hunt down periodically spawning hives and attempt to capture three of their underlying hearts. Like in most MOBAs, you kill these enemies for XP, levelling up your character to improve your health, damage, and ability effectiveness. But in Crucible, there's no challenge involved in killing these enemies; it's easy enough to tackle a large group of them alone without any risk, dancing around their slow and predictable attack patterns. It reduces the necessary farming of experience to a mindless annoyance, made even more irritating by the fact that it's predominantly how you'll spend most of your time in this mode.
Continue Reading at GameSpotCrucible Review – A Prime Disappointment
It's easy to recognize Crucible's many design influences. The Amazon-published third-person multiplayer game features hero-style characters with abilities similar to those found in Overwatch. Its one MOBA-centric game mode should feel familiar to you if you've played Smite or the now-defunct Paragon. And even its light progression system echoes the one found in Gearbox's Battleborn. Crucible attempts to remix a lot of existing ideas and cohesively tie them together into something more successful, but as a result, it fails to create an identity for itself.
Crucible takes place on an alien planet primed for off-world mining, which plays host to three game modes on its single map. Heart of the Hive is as close to a MOBA as Crucible gets, with a focus on PvP and PvE play as two teams fight to secure the hearts of dangerous hives. Alpha Hunters is a spin on battle royale, with teams of two skirmishing in short matches. Lastly, Harvester Command combines traits of team deathmatch and classic point control, rewarding players for kills and the number of objectives controlled on the map. In each mode, you have a choice to play as one of 10 characters, each with a handful of unique abilities and unlockable traits.
Heart of the Hive is the main event, pitting two teams of four against one another on a large map filled with AI enemies as you hunt down periodically spawning hives and attempt to capture three of their underlying hearts. Like in most MOBAs, you kill these enemies for XP, levelling up your character to improve your health, damage, and ability effectiveness. But in Crucible, there's no challenge involved in killing these enemies; it's easy enough to tackle a large group of them alone without any risk, dancing around their slow and predictable attack patterns. It reduces the necessary farming of experience to a mindless annoyance, made even more irritating by the fact that it's predominantly how you'll spend most of your time in this mode.
Continue Reading at GameSpotJon Favreau on Early Baby Yoda Art Being ‘Too Cute’ or ‘Too Ugly’
When The Mandalorian first debuted on Disney+ one character, in particular, sparked an internet frenzy unlike any other... Baby Yoda! And while we wait for more adventures with the little green guy in Season 2 later this year, the streamer is giving fans fascinating new behind the scenes footage, featuring the cast and crew breaking down how Baby Yoda was brought to life.
In episode 2 of Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, titled "Practical," showrunner Jon Favreau explains the long process of creating one of the Star Wars universe's most adorable characters:
"We got lots and lots of drawings, and some of them were too cute, and some of them were too ugly, and some of them were the wrong proportions," Favreau said. "But they were all informing, as we gave notes on each drawing, Dave [Filoni] and I started zeroing in on what it was. And finally, it was one image that Chris Alzmann did that had him wrapped up in what looked like a piece of a flight jacket or something, and his eyes looked a little weird. But we found it charming, and that’s what became the rallying image that we said, 'this is good.' And it developed from there… And that when the people from Legacy came in, and that’s when it became 'The Baby.'"
[caption id="attachment_2358599" align="aligncenter" width="720"]
"Some of them were too cute, and some of them were too ugly." - Jon Favreau[/caption]
Another interesting reveal about the Baby Yoda puppet is that it took 3 months for the team at Legacy to build, and at any given time, there are three to four puppeteers controlling various aspects of his movements: Jason Matthews (eyes), Trevor Hensley (gross body moves and his head), Hiroshi ‘Kan’ Ikeuchi (ears and mouth), Mike Manzel (walking sequences, arm movements), Tamara Carlson Woodard (rotates in with a lot of the other puppeteers as needed and also made the costume).
From the perspective of the actors, Gina Carano admitted that Baby Yoda stole every scene she shared with him. "Jon Favreau came up to me and he was like, ‘you did pretty good that time, that was a pretty good scene,'" Carano said jokingly. "But the baby kicked your ass.'" For Mando himself, Pedro Pascal said, "[Baby Yoda] activates your primal childhood dreams. We’re all going to be second fiddle to this little guy. That’s how cool he is."
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/04/23/disney-gallery-star-wars-the-mandalorian-official-trailer"]
For on The Mandalorian, find out why it takes three guys to play Mando and learn about Dave Filoni's epic journey from Avatar: The Last Airbender to the Star Wars universe.
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
David Griffin still watches DuckTales in his pajamas with a cereal bowl in hand. He's also the TV Editor for IGN. Say hi on Twitter.
"Some of them were too cute, and some of them were too ugly." - Jon Favreau[/caption]
Another interesting reveal about the Baby Yoda puppet is that it took 3 months for the team at Legacy to build, and at any given time, there are three to four puppeteers controlling various aspects of his movements: Jason Matthews (eyes), Trevor Hensley (gross body moves and his head), Hiroshi ‘Kan’ Ikeuchi (ears and mouth), Mike Manzel (walking sequences, arm movements), Tamara Carlson Woodard (rotates in with a lot of the other puppeteers as needed and also made the costume).
From the perspective of the actors, Gina Carano admitted that Baby Yoda stole every scene she shared with him. "Jon Favreau came up to me and he was like, ‘you did pretty good that time, that was a pretty good scene,'" Carano said jokingly. "But the baby kicked your ass.'" For Mando himself, Pedro Pascal said, "[Baby Yoda] activates your primal childhood dreams. We’re all going to be second fiddle to this little guy. That’s how cool he is."
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/04/23/disney-gallery-star-wars-the-mandalorian-official-trailer"]
For on The Mandalorian, find out why it takes three guys to play Mando and learn about Dave Filoni's epic journey from Avatar: The Last Airbender to the Star Wars universe.
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
David Griffin still watches DuckTales in his pajamas with a cereal bowl in hand. He's also the TV Editor for IGN. Say hi on Twitter.Jon Favreau on Early Baby Yoda Art Being ‘Too Cute’ or ‘Too Ugly’
When The Mandalorian first debuted on Disney+ one character, in particular, sparked an internet frenzy unlike any other... Baby Yoda! And while we wait for more adventures with the little green guy in Season 2 later this year, the streamer is giving fans fascinating new behind the scenes footage, featuring the cast and crew breaking down how Baby Yoda was brought to life.
In episode 2 of Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, titled "Practical," showrunner Jon Favreau explains the long process of creating one of the Star Wars universe's most adorable characters:
"We got lots and lots of drawings, and some of them were too cute, and some of them were too ugly, and some of them were the wrong proportions," Favreau said. "But they were all informing, as we gave notes on each drawing, Dave [Filoni] and I started zeroing in on what it was. And finally, it was one image that Chris Alzmann did that had him wrapped up in what looked like a piece of a flight jacket or something, and his eyes looked a little weird. But we found it charming, and that’s what became the rallying image that we said, 'this is good.' And it developed from there… And that when the people from Legacy came in, and that’s when it became 'The Baby.'"
[caption id="attachment_2358599" align="aligncenter" width="720"] "Some of them were too cute, and some of them were too ugly." - Jon Favreau[/caption]
Another interesting reveal about the Baby Yoda puppet is that it took 3 months for the team at Legacy to build, and at any given time, there are three to four puppeteers controlling various aspects of his movements: Jason Matthews (eyes), Trevor Hensley (gross body moves and his head), Hiroshi ‘Kan’ Ikeuchi (ears and mouth), Mike Manzel (walking sequences, arm movements), Tamara Carlson Woodard (rotates in with a lot of the other puppeteers as needed and also made the costume).
From the perspective of the actors, Gina Carano admitted that Baby Yoda stole every scene she shared with him. "Jon Favreau came up to me and he was like, ‘you did pretty good that time, that was a pretty good scene,'" Carano said jokingly. "But the baby kicked your ass.'" For Mando himself, Pedro Pascal said, "[Baby Yoda] activates your primal childhood dreams. We’re all going to be second fiddle to this little guy. That’s how cool he is."
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/04/23/disney-gallery-star-wars-the-mandalorian-official-trailer"]
For on The Mandalorian, find out why it takes three guys to play Mando and learn about Dave Filoni's epic journey from Avatar: The Last Airbender to the Star Wars universe.
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
David Griffin still watches DuckTales in his pajamas with a cereal bowl in hand. He's also the TV Editor for IGN. Say hi on Twitter.
"Some of them were too cute, and some of them were too ugly." - Jon Favreau[/caption]
Another interesting reveal about the Baby Yoda puppet is that it took 3 months for the team at Legacy to build, and at any given time, there are three to four puppeteers controlling various aspects of his movements: Jason Matthews (eyes), Trevor Hensley (gross body moves and his head), Hiroshi ‘Kan’ Ikeuchi (ears and mouth), Mike Manzel (walking sequences, arm movements), Tamara Carlson Woodard (rotates in with a lot of the other puppeteers as needed and also made the costume).
From the perspective of the actors, Gina Carano admitted that Baby Yoda stole every scene she shared with him. "Jon Favreau came up to me and he was like, ‘you did pretty good that time, that was a pretty good scene,'" Carano said jokingly. "But the baby kicked your ass.'" For Mando himself, Pedro Pascal said, "[Baby Yoda] activates your primal childhood dreams. We’re all going to be second fiddle to this little guy. That’s how cool he is."
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/04/23/disney-gallery-star-wars-the-mandalorian-official-trailer"]
For on The Mandalorian, find out why it takes three guys to play Mando and learn about Dave Filoni's epic journey from Avatar: The Last Airbender to the Star Wars universe.
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
David Griffin still watches DuckTales in his pajamas with a cereal bowl in hand. He's also the TV Editor for IGN. Say hi on Twitter.Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop: More Than Half of Season 1 Has Been Filmed
Netflix's live-action Cowboy Bebop series hit an unfortunate snag last year when star John Cho was injured on set. Now executive producer Marty Adelstein (TNT's Snowpiercer) has provided an update on how many episodes were filmed before the series went on hiatus.
In an interview with Syfy Wire, Adelstein revealed the series was deep into production by the time Cho injured his knee, triggering what was expected to be a seven-to-nine-month shutdown while Cho recovers. According to Adelstein, the first three Cowboy Bebop episodes have been completed, while Episodes 4 and 5 are in post-production and filming had begun on Episode 6 before the hiatus. This contradicts earlier reports indicating production had only been underway for a week before Cho's injury.
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-live-action-remake-currently-in-development&captions=true"]
"So, we have finished three episodes. I think we’re into [shooting] six; then John Cho tore his ACL, unfortunately. But I have to tell you I really like the show. It’s really fun," Adelstein told Syfy Wire. "And we have gone out of our way, because of all these anime movies that have come out and been accused of being whitewashed, we have really gone out of our way. The characters are all sort of multiethnic, and it’s a great cast. And the two episodes I have seen are so much fun. It’s really fun."
Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be any update on when production on Cowboy Bebop will resume. Obviously, the COVID-19 pandemic creates additional problems for the series on top of Cho's lengthy recovery process.
Adelstein also had new updates to share on Netflix's live-action One Piece series. While COVID-19 will likely delay the start of filming until at least September, the first season of One Piece has been written, and Adelstein is hopeful casting will begin in June (possibly as soon as next week, in fact).
"We were supposed to start filming in August in Cape Town, South Africa. We anticipate the date being able to film [now is] September, at the latest," Adelstein said. "We have basically all 10 scripts written. We will start casting when we go back. My suspicion is June 1, but we will start doing our casting. We have a lot of names that we’re talking about, and we should be in production in September. We have been working very closely with Sensei Oda. So, we’re going to get started, and this one is very big. I mean, Snowpiercer was a big production; this is even bigger."
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/01/07/john-cho-talks-upcoming-cowboy-bebop-netflix-series"]
Speaking to IGN in January 2020, Cho said he hasn't yet been in contact with original Cowboy Bebop director Shinichirō Watanabe, and noted one of the main challenges with the series has been maintaining the "unique" and "weird" tone of the anime. "I think that was the big thing I was focusing on all the time was...we got to keep it strange and that's hard to do, but I watched some of the stuff and I'm really happy with it," Cho said.
While we wait for more news on both shows, check out our breakdown of all the live-action anime remakes currently in development.
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.