Early Psychonauts 2 Gameplay Shown Off in Art Test Video
Developer Double Fine Productions recently released gameplay footage of its upcoming Psychonauts 2, the crowd funded sequel to 2005's Psychonauts.
Shown off in an update video (seen below) uploaded to Double Fine's YouTube channel, Double Fine founder Tim Schafer and the game's project lead, Zak McClendon, reveal a recreation of the first game's camp Whispering Rock, but running in Unreal Engine 4. While they do stress that it is merely an art test, and none of the environments shown will be in the final product, the two do show a fair bit of early gameplay, including combat, traversal, and a 2016 model of the game's main character, Raz.
Oculus Shows Off Standalone VR Headset, Facebook App
During an event this morning, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg showed off Oculus VR's latest plans for an in-development VR headset. As reported by Variety, the as yet unnamed device will serve as a type of middle road between full-fledged VR headsets like the Oculus Rift and mobile headsets like Samsung Gear VR.
The new VR headset will work without the need for cumbersome wires attached to a PC, but will apparently still offer motion tracking. The technology was referenced as inside-out tracking, wherein the sensors are placed on the headset itself and the complementing markers are actually placed on the environment. Zuckerberg says the company is working on the new headset now, but it's "still early" in the development cycle.
Luke Cage Soundtrack Coming on Yellow Vinyl From Mondo
The official soundtrack of Marvel's Luke Cage is coming to vinyl, courtesy of Mondo.
The 180-gram "Power Man Yellow" vinyl will be available for pre-order starting tomorrow, October 7 for $35. It features the original score by composers Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, as well as collectible artwork by Matthew Woodson.
"We sought to create a score that reflects the world of Luke Cage," Younge and Shaheed Muhammad said in a statement. "We see this world as a place where classic cinema meets classic Hip Hop."
Batwoman’s New Comic Sends Her on Black-ops Missions
DC Comics announced a new Batwoman (Kate Kane) ongoing comic book series by writer Marguerite Bennett and artist Steve Epting as part of the next wave of Rebirth titles. The character will be featured in a Rebirth one-shot that sets the groundwork for her new status quo before the series launches in March 2017.
Batwoman is currently the co-lead of Detective Comics by writer James Tynion IV, and so he will co-write the first story arc of the new Batwoman series with Bennett to establish the new mission that will send her across the globe in pursuit of supervillains outside of Gotham City’s jurisdiction.
Batwoman Rebirth #1 cover. (DC Comics)
Blade Runner Sequel Title Officially Revealed
The sequel to Ridley Scott’s sci-fi classic Blade Runner finally has am official title: Blade Runner 2049.
Aside from the name announcement, no other details were revealed about the upcoming sequel, and the movie’s plot remains a mystery. But, while speaking to Entertainment Weekly about his upcoming film Arrival, Blade Runner 2049 director Denis Villeneuve did confirm the movie takes place several decades after the original, and is set in a future dystopian Los Angeles.
Image Via Warner Bros.
Nickelodeon to Air Double Dare 30th Anniversary Special
Today marks the 30th anniversary of Nickelodeon's beloved game show Double Dare, and to celebrate, the network has announced plans to air a commemorative special next month.
Double Dare's original host Marc Summers will reunite with announcer John Harvey and co-host Robin Marella for the special, which debuts on Wednesday, November 23 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The half-hour event will include a behind-the-scenes look at the show, as well as classic footage and brand-new games that were filmed this year. An encore will follow at 10 p.m. ET/PT on The Splat.
"Double Dare was the show for a particular generation," Summers said in a statement. "For the kids of the ‘80s and ‘90s, they laughed and learned, and got messy in the process. Thirty years later, I believe it’s still the gold standard."
How to Build a VR PC
Virtual reality is finally here, but building a rig that can upload your face to cyberspace isn't as simple flipping on the kitchen light. Not only do PC gamers have to choose between the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, but they'll have to make sure their rigs are powerful enough to play VR games. So to facilitate your journey to virtual reality, we've specced out two rigs, one built for a budget and one designed to pump out the pixels.
Before we dive into our builds, here's a brief explanation of why VR requires so much power: both the Rift and the Vive have two displays — one for each eye. Each of those displays show a resolution of 1080x1200. However, the actual resolution is closer to 1512x1680 for each eye, since VR requires rendering graphics with a “buffer” to correct for lens distortion. Add to that the fact that VR requires 90 frames per second, minimum, and you can see why powerful components are a must.
14 Coolest Luke Cage Easter Eggs and References
The first season of Luke Cage has hit Netflix, introducing a whole new cast of heroes and villains to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Here are the coolest and most memorable Easter eggs and cameos from these 13 episodes. We’re skipping some of the more obvious things (like the obligatory references to “The Incident"), in favor of the new and unexpected.
Full spoilers for Marvel's Luke Cage: Season 1 continue below.
There were plenty of cameos for other Netflix MCU characters in Luke Cage, though not always the ones you’d expect. Luke’s old flame Jessica Jones was only mentioned in passing a couple times. There were also various offhand references to Daredevil, Wilson Fisk and the Punisher over the course of the season.
NYCC: Ash vs. Evil Dead Swallows Our Souls
Bruce Campbell and Lucy Lawless hit New York Comic-Con today to talk about the second season of their STARZ series Ash vs. Evil Dead. Joining them were co-stars Ray Santiago (Pablo), Dana DeLorenzo (Kelly), Lee Majors (Brock Williams), Ted Raimi (Chet Kaminski) and Michelle Hurd (Linda B.) for a preview of the new season, the premiere screening of the second episode… and the usual Bruce Campbell panel magic.
The panel began with a cast discussion, as Majors was asked if he was a big fan of the series before taking the job. His answer was simple: “No.”
After the crowd’s laughter subsided, the former Six Million Dollar Man clarified. “I am now,” he said. “Because I saw the first season when they asked me if I wanted to do it. It was bat-s#!t crazy. Mr. Bruce Campbell chased me down in a parking lot and begged me
Non-Gaming Apps ‘Absolutely’ Coming to PSVR, Says Sony
Despite the fact that PlayStation VR is initially being positioned as a gaming device, Sony sees a much broader future for its upcoming VR headset.
In an interview with IGN, SIE Worldwide Studios chairman Shawn Layden confirmed that non-gaming applications will "absolutely" be coming to PlayStation VR. "You probably won't see that coming from our Worldwide Studios, because that's not what we do. We do games... but there's a lot of interest from the film and television arts community," he explained.
"Our sisters at Sony Pictures Entertainment have a whole team spun up around VR and we've talked to Sony Music as well," Layden added, highlighting the benefit of having the other members of the "Sony family" available to keep them informed about where other interests in entertainment are headed.