Rumored Details About Cate Blanchett’s Thor 3 Role
New details on Thor: Ragnarok's rumored villainess have reportedly leaked.
Until now, the villain's identity has remained a mystery, but sources close to Geek.com have revealed new information about the role—which Cate Blanchett is expected to play (though a deal is not yet in place).
Darkwing Duck Is Not Coming Back
Sorry '90s kids, but news of a "gritty" Darkwing Duck reboot has been greatly exaggerated.
Io9 and several other websites were bamboozled earlier today when an old April Fools joke circulated around the net, promising a new Darkwing Duck series that would have both the “same energy and bumbling crime-fighting spirit” while also presumably being a dark, TDKR-style re-imagining of the character.
The show was a spin-off of Duck Tales that aired from 1991-1992. It began on the Disney Channel before moving over to ABC. It featured the adventures of mild-mannered Drake Mallard who fought crime by night as caped vigilante Darkwing Duck along with his sidekicks Gosalyn and Launchpad McQuack.
Overwatch Beta Returns in February
Overwatch's closed beta will return in mid-February, Blizzard announced today. The team-based shooter went "offline for an extended break" back in December, and the development team hoped to get it back up in late January.
"Rather than try to rush a beta patch out this month, we're going to take a few extra weeks before bringing the closed beta back," an update on the Overwatch forum reads.
Though Blizzard is happy with the progress it has made, Overwatch just isn't ready yet. The goal of the break was to "address player feedback, work on some core features, and adjust the balance of the game." While looking through the feedback, Blizzard noticed that fans wanted more game modes "in addition to Point Capture and Payload." So that's what they'll be working on in the coming weeks—polishing the new game mode and finishing up some new maps.
Star Wars Toys Sell Over $700 Million in 2015
Star Wars fever reached a new peak in 2015, as the franchise's toy sales reached over $700 million for the year, according to retail research group NPD (via Reuters).
The NPD group released a report showing the Star Wars franchise leading a strong year for the toy industry, which generated $19.4 billion overall and boasted significant marketing growth.
Star Wars toys, like the BB-8 droid and Kylo Ren lightsaber, alone contributed more to the toy industry's sales and growth than Jurassic World, Minions and Avengers combined.
The Star Wars franchise saw an extra surge on Force Friday, which NPD says attributed to their surge to the number one spot. IGN recently listed the ten best Star Wars toys around, which includes one released on last year's Force Friday.
The Escapists The Walking Dead PS4 Release Date Revealed
The Escapists: The Walking Dead will release for PlayStation 4 on February 16, Team17 has announced.
In the game, players will control The Walking Dead's Rick Grimes as he wakes up at the Harrison Memorial Hospital. The tutorial level matches the first issue of The Walking Dead comic, according to a PlayStation Blog post. Players will then travel to various recognizable locations from The Walking Dead universe, including Greene Family Farm, Meriwether Correctional Facility, Woodbury, and Alexandria.
Crafting returns to the PS4 version of the prison break game, with over 70 different items able to be crafted from more than 250 materials. Some of these items include shovels, cutters, and a modified pistol and rifle.
Marilyn Manson Joins the Cast of Salem
Marilyn Manson is joining the spellbinding chaos on WGN America's Salem in a special Season 3 guest starring role.
Manson joins returning Salem stars Janet Montgomery, Shane West, Seth Gabel, Ashley Madekwe,
Tamzin Merchant, Elise Eberle, Iddo Goldberg, Joe Doyle and Oliver Bell as Season 3 begins production today in Shreveport, LA.
Manson is set to portray “Thomas Dinley” - a barber and surgeon who is the go-to man in Salem, from a shave and a haircut to being leeched, bled, sliced open or sewn up. Previously, Manson collaborated with Salem's composer Tyler Bates on the show’s opening title sequence: the song "Cupid Carries a Gun," which also appears on Manson's latest album, "The Pale Emperor."
Arrow: First Look at Vixen
Vixen is making the jump from animation to live-action on an upcoming episode of Arrow, and the first image of the character has now been revealed.
Megalyn E.K., who voices Vixen on the CW Seed animated series -- which was recently renewed for Season 2 -- will be reprising her role on Arrow. Mari McCabe/Vixen met both Green Arrow (Stephen Amell) and The Flash (Barry Allen) in the first season of the animated series, which is set in the Arrow/Flash universe, so we'll see how much her appearance on Arrow references those events.
Megalyn E.K. as Vixen in Arrow.
Daily Deals: The Best PS4 Hard Drive, The Martian, Star Wars: Battlefront
The Best Hard Drive for Your PS4
Here's the deal: it's rather simple to upgrade your PS4's hard drive. If you want twice the space and improved loading times, the HGST Travelstar 7K1000 is drive you want. It's typically $66, but it's a few bucks shy of that right now at $61. It's not only 1TB, it's a 7200 RPM drive. The standard drive is 5400 RPM, so you will see improved load times. Check our article on the best PS4 hard drive if you want more info.
Exploding Kittens App Released, DLC Free for Limited Time
The Exploding Kittens card game is now available for download on Apple iOS, and for a few days, all in-app purchases totally free. This includes the party pack expansion deck and a whole bunch of avatars—Gentleman Tofu, Business Sharl, and Unwell Pizza among them.
Courtesy of Exploding Kittens
You won't need an internet connection to play. The multiplayer game combines WiFi and Bluetooth, so all you've got to do is stand near your friends to play. The developers note that this is a new process, and users will experience some bugs. The team, however, is working to fix these bugs as they come up.
Ubisoft Partners With Elijah Wood’s Company for VR Games
Ubisoft will be working with Elijah "Frodo Baggins" Wood's production company, SpectreVision, to create virtual reality games.
“As a longtime gamer, I’m first and foremost a fan and admirer of Ubisoft," says Wood. "So to be collaborating with them within the realm of VR is an incredible treat!”
SpectreVision was started in 2010 and is behind movies like Elijah Wood's teachers-vs.-kids zombie movie, Cooties, and Iranian vampire movie, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. While no projects have been announced, SpectreVision's team will be working with Ubisoft's FunHouse Studio in Montreal.
SpectreVision CEO Lisa Whalen announced the partnership today at the Sundance Film Festival.