Even If It Fails, Google Stadia Can Still Bring Us Into the Game Streaming Future
Though Google is making some big promises with Stadia, I still don't think it'll be universally replacing video game consoles any time soon. People can be slow to adapt to new tech, internet speeds and data caps still pose a barrier, and Stadia won’t be available worldwide at launch (though more regions will be added in 2020).
Entertainment as a whole may have shifted to streaming and subscription services, but that’s( at least in part) because people never grew attachments to their boomboxes or VCRs the way they did for the NES, or that excitement from getting a manual with their game case. Like many others, you’d have to pry my cartridges and discs out of my cold, dead, slightly inconvenienced hands before I gave them away. But despite my old ways, I know an all-digital future is probably inevitable, and Google is clearly ready to capitalize on it.
How Game of Thrones Developed This Battle From Page to Screen
It takes a village (or more accurately, a small city) to bring Game of Thrones to life. The show employs countless artisans who contribute work that will never be seen on screen, but is still integral to creating the world of Westeros - including storyboard artist Will Simpson, who helps conceptualize the visuals of the show on the page to help the cast and crew realize it on camera.
Simpson's work is getting the spotlight it deserves in a new book, Game of Thrones: The Storyboards, from Insight Editions - which features artwork and sketches from Seasons 1 through 7 of the HBO hit. In IGN's exclusive clip, Simpson takes us inside the conception of the pivotal (and controversial) Battle at the Frozen Lake sequence from Season 7's "Beyond the Wall," specifically breaking down the scene in which Tormund Giantsbane (Kristofer Hivju) has a brush with death during the fight against the wights and White Walkers.
Pokemon Masters Release Set for This Summer
Today The Pokemon Company and developer DeNA revealed new gameplay details and an animated trailer for the upcoming mobile game Pokemon Masters, as well as a release window of this Summer (or Winter for anyone in the southern hemisphere) on iOS and Android.
Pokemon Masters takes place in a new location called the island of Pasio. Trainers from every region have come to Pasio and are split into “sync pairs” - for example, Red and Charizard, Misty and Starmie, or Brock and Onix - and there will be 65 sync pairs to recruit at launch, with more coming later.
You can watch the video below to see both the new animated trailer and new gameplay.
14 Classic Comics That Defined DC’s Shuttered Vertigo Imprint
The comic book industry was dealt a blow with the news that DC is shuttering the long-running Vertigo imprint at the end of 2019. Vertigo has played home to some of the most beloved and critically acclaimed comics on the stands. It serves as a crucial piece of DC history and has been a constant, necessary reminder that comics don't always have to revolve around capes and tights.
Even as we mourn the end of this branch of DC's publishing line, we wanted to look back and reflect on the comics that helped define Vertigo as a brand. These books helped push the entire medium forward and served as an early proving ground for some of the biggest and best creators in the industry.
Star Wars: Daisy Ridley Confirms if Rey Will Appear in Next Trilogy
Rey actress Daisy Ridley confirmed she won't appear in the next Star Wars trilogy following Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
In an interview with Buzzfeed's AM to DM, Ridley was asked if Rey would appear in the next Star Wars trilogy, to which she responded "I can say I'm not in the next trilogy. Because Rian
always said... if it’s the Rian one, or it’s the guys that did Game of Thrones. I’m not sure. Whichever one it was, they always said it was going to be a separate story. So I’m not, no."
Future Star Wars Films
Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed earlier this year that the next film in the Star Wars series will be the project from Game of Thrones' David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. Rumors suggest this film could take place during the Old Republic era, with later reports claiming it will be based on the classic BioWare game Knights of the Old Republic.
Paul Rudd Set to Join Ghostbusters 2020 Cast
Paul Rudd is reportedly in final negotiations to join Jason Reitman's upcoming Ghostbusters film.
Reported by Variety, Rudd will allegedly play a teacher in the film. "I’ve been wanting to work with Paul Rudd since my short film opened for Wet Hot American Summer at Sundance," said Reitman. "I’m thrilled he’ll be joining this new chapter in the original Ghostbusters universe."
Other Ghostbusters 2020 Stars
Sigourney Weaver claims she will reprise her role as Dana Barrett alongside former co-stars Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd. Earlier this year, Reitman said this sequel would "hand the movie back to the fans."
This Power Rangers Twist Changes Everything About the Classic Team
Mighty Morphin Power Ranger #40 kicks off a new era for BOOM! Studios' ongoing series, and in the process it changes what fans thought they knew about the Power Rangers team.
Warning: this article contains spoilers for Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #40!
Up till now, the series had been set in the early years of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, focusing on the original five Rangers plus Tommy in his Green Ranger form. This issue jumps forward in the franchise timeline, skipping ahead to a point where Lord Zedd is the main villain and Tommy now leads the team as the White Ranger.
WoW Successor Canceled Because Blizzard Didn’t Control Its Scope
Titan, the MMO positioned to succeed World of Warcraft, was allegedly canceled because Blizzard Entertainment wasn't able to control its scope and ambition.
Reported by VG247, Mike Morhaime, co-founder and former president of Blizzard Entertainment, revealed this during a speech at Gamelab in Barcelona, Spain.
“We’ve tried really hard not to announce any games that weren’t ready to be announced, or we weren’t sure that we were going to release them,” said Morhaime. “Titan is an exception to that where we wanted it to be our next generation, our sequel to sort of World of Warcraft. We took a lot of our senior developers and put them on this project. And I think where we really failed was we failed to control scope. It was very ambitious.”
Why Final Fantasy XIV Deserves a TV Series
A Final Fantasy live-action TV show was just announced - specifically, a Final Fantasy XIV Online TV series. We don’t know when it will come out, or what specifically it covers, but we do know it’s directly inspired by the world of Final Fantasy XIV and will take place in Eorzea.
Casey DeFreitas and Mike Mamon, two of our Final Fantasy XIV fans, discussed why the fourteenth installment, an MMORPG, deserves a TV series. Read their conversation and speculation below, and read more details about the Final Fantasy XIV TV series here.
Cyberpunk 2077 Install Size Is Twice As Big As The Witcher 3
The disk space needed for Cyberpunk 2077 has been revealed by Game Pressure, which they confirmed after preordering the game from the PlayStation store.
The PlayStation 4 version will reportedly need at least 80GB of space – which is more than twice the size of The Witcher 3's install, and 13 GB larger than Days Gone.
According to the report, the Xbox One version of Cyberpunk 2077 should be able to use its 4K capabilities with the available consoles, but it is unknown how much disk space the Xbox One version will require, as well as any enhancements that will be seen with the PS4 Pro.