The Rationale Behind the Newest Hearthstone Nerfs
Team 5 recently announced a number of nerfs designed to address the prominence of Druid in Hearthstone right now, and in a surprise move also took the opportunity to make a few other changes. To find out a little more about the thinking behind the adjustments, I caught up with senior designer Mike Donais and game designer Dean Ayala for a chat.
IGN: It’s great to see you guys address the Druid concern quite quickly. I think it’s much appreciated by the community. I was looking at the latest Vicious Syndicate report this morning and it was saying that 30% of the overall meta is Druid and that climbs to almost 40% at Legend ranks. Can you give me a look behind the scenes at how the team identifies something has to be done, then gets things in motion? How did you decide which cards to hit and what was the testing process like?
Leto ‘Blinded’ Himself For Blade Runner 2049
Jared Leto rid himself of his sight in order to play Niander Wallace in Blade Runner 2049.
The villainous Wallace happens to be blind, and in an interview with the Wall Street Journal (via ET), Leto revealed he wore special contact lenses that made his eyes look opaque and restricted his sight while on set. This meant he had to be guided around the set during the entire shoot.
"We all heard stories about Jared, how he transforms into the characters," Blade Runner 2049 director Denis Villeneuve told the WST, "but even this didn’t prepare me for what was to come."
Live-Action Titans Series Casts Dove, Hawk
Minka Kelly and Alan Ritchson have been cast as Dove and Hawk in DC's live-action Titans series.
Kelly (Friday Night Lights, Parenthood) and Ritchson (Smallville, TMNT) are set for recurring roles in Titans Season 1, with series regular backup deals for a potential series 2.
Minka Kelly
Hawk (aka Hank Hall) and Dove (aka Dawn Granger) are a vigilante crime-fighting duo who also share a romantic partnership. Hawk is described as "an aggressive, offensive bruiser" while Dove is "strategic, defensive and lithe."
How Hulk Ended Up on Sakaar in Thor: Ragnarok
With less than two months to go until its release, and after two trailers, Marvel Studios’ Comic-Con presentation and the stars and director’s many interviews and social media posts, you might think you already know plenty about Thor: Ragnarok. But there are still a few cool things I can now share with you about the Marvel film that you might not have known, particularly in regards to its co-star, the Hulk.
I visited the set of Thor: Ragnarok in Australia almost exactly a year ago, during which time I learned the following about the MCU’s seventeenth feature film. If you’re trying to avoid any and all spoilers, even the smallest details, then bookmark this page and come back to read it after you’ve seen the movie.
Batman Chooses a Side in the War of Jokes and Riddles
Batman #30 by writer Tom King and artist Clay Mann saw a turning point in the War of Jokes and Riddles where Batman finally chose a side in the bloody battle between two of his greatest enemies.
Warning: this article contains full spoilers for Batman #30!
Art by Mikel Janin. (DC Comics)
This whole war started because Joker and Riddler couldn’t decide who should be the one to kill Batman. Things escalated quickly, with Gotham City supervillains big and small taking a side in what became a massive, city-wide turf war.
Star Fox Characters Use Nintendo Legends’ Likenesses
Star Fox's eccentric cast of characters, including Fox McCloud and Falco Lombardi, were designed after a few Nintendo legends.
During an interview on Nintendo.com, original Star Fox graphic designer Takaya Imamura revealed that the faces of the characters on Team Star Fox are actually based on staff members that worked on the game. For example, Fox was designed after Miyamoto while Falco is based on designer Tsuyoshi Watanabe, who worked on The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Star Fox, and more.
"Fox has a fox-like face like Miyamoto," said Imamura. "Falco is Watanabe. At the time, we laughed over how his nose sticks out like a beak!"
20 Years Later, Final Fantasy 7 Continues to Shape My Life
You know how you have a few defining moments in your life you look back on that changed everything? A moment that you know if you had made a different decision, you would not be the same person you are now? One of mine was pressing “O” instead of “X”.
It was 1997 and my mom had bought my older brother and I a PlayStation for Christmas along with Crash Bandicoot (I had specifically asked for Croc: Legend of the Gobbos after a young, susceptible-to-ads me had seen a commercial) and Final Fantasy 7. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was the first video game in our house, so Crash fit right in as we sped through the opening levels, hitting the “X” button to jump on the heads of passing crabs. Crash was colorful. He challenged our developing motor skills. He had attitude that as aspiring adolescents, we admired. What else could we even bother to play?
Game Scoop! 450: Destiny 2, Metroid, & More
Welcome back to Game Scoop!, IGN's weekly video game talk show. It's our 450th episode, and we're celebrating by giving away $450 worth of PlayStation Store credit. Tune in to find out how you can win. We'll also chat about Destiny 2, Metroid, Mario + Rabbids, and a lot more. Watch the video above or download the podcast below.
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Magic: The Gathering Arena Aims to Recreate the Tabletop Experience
Magic: The Gathering’s new virtual, free-to-play card game, Magic: The Gathering Arena, isn’t a direct simulation of the physical card game in the way that Magic Online is – with every single card and every unique set of rules. Instead, Arena is trying to translate the actual experience of playing Magic – of bluffing and deliberating – all with another player sitting across from you, analyzing your every move. It’s taking the community appeal of in-person events like Friday Night Magic, and making them accessible to players 24/7.
Toys R Us Eyes Potential Bankruptcy Filing
Popular toy retailer Toys R Us is looking to potentially file for bankruptcy due to its massive debt.
MSNBC reports the company currently owes $5 billion, $400 million of which is due by next year. Toys R Us has hired law firm Kirkland & Ellis to help weigh restructuring options and deal with the debt, which can be anything from bankruptcy filing to possibly raising enough finances to cover the money owed.
"As we previously discussed on our first quarter earnings call, Toys R Us is evaluating a range of alternatives to address our 2018 debt maturities, which may include the possibility of obtaining additional financing," Toys R Us spokeswoman Amy von Walter said in a statement.