Whisky Altered after Four Years in Space
Scottish whisky that spent four years aging on the International Space Station has returned to terra firma with a set smokey flavours not encountered in Earth samples.
US space research company NanoRacks and Ardbeg Distillery on Islay sent samples of unmatured whiskey to the ISS with charred oak wood shavings in 2011. Control samples of the same whisky were kept on Earth.
The key aims of the experiment were to find out how microgravity impacts maturation of the flavour of oak and the behaviour of terpene, compounds that contribute to the flavour of food, beer, wine and spirits.
After a range of analyses, Ardbeg's director of distilling Dr Bill Lumsden told Sky News that the space samples were noticeably different than the control sample left on Earth.
Meet the Galavans in New Gotham: Season 2 Clip
FOX has released a new clip from Gotham: Season 2's premiere episode, "Damned If You Do."
The snippet offers up an early glimpse at two newcomers to the series: Jessica Lucas as Tabitha Galavan (aka Tigress) and James Frain as her brother Theo. In it, Theo has a chat with the inmates of Arkham Asylum, paying special attention to Barbara Kean.
Just last week, FOX released a brand new trailer as well as a bunch of new cast photos featuring the likes of Lucius Fox, Selina Kyle, and many others. Another clip from Season 2 was also released, showcasing an interesting conversation between Barbara and Jerome.
Straight Outta Compton Finally Dethroned at Box Office
Straight Outta Compton has finally been beaten to the number one spot at the North American box office this weekend.
Pushing the N.W.A. biopic down to number two is War Room, Sony's low-budget Christian drama.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, War Room is expected to reach $12.3 million for the Labor Day weekend, taking it to roughly $28 million since its debut last weekend.
Straight Outta Compton is expected to have earned $150.2 million domestically through Monday's holiday.
The Transporter Refueled opened Friday, and although IGN's review said that it's "as good as its predecessors," it had a disappointing debut, coming in at number five with just $7.1 million for the three-day weekend despite showing at 3,434 theaters.
Late Show with Stephen Colbert is This Week’s TV Highlight
Fall TV is here! - kicking off with FXX premiering new seasons of The League and You're the Worst, Syfy debuting new runs of Z Nation and Continuum, and HBO landing with new seasons of Project Greenlight (back after a decade away) and Doll & Em. Plus, Netflix airs Season 4 of Longmire, which the streaming giant rescued after it was cancelled over on A&E.
But the big news this week is Stephen Colbert taking over as host of The Late Show on CBS. Ditching the extreme right wing parody character he embodied on the Emmy-winning Colbert Report, Colbert looks forward to engaging his guests in a more genuine manner.
Gotham: The Importance of Alfred
With Gotham: The Complete First Season, hitting DVD and Blu-ray this Tuesday, IGN has an exclusive clip from the behind-the-scenes footage that is part of the collection.
In this clip, Sean Pertwee ("Alfred Pennyworth") and David Mazouz ("Bruce Wayne") discuss the importance Batman's beloved butler has to the character and how his dedication stands out.
Check out the footage below.
Gotham: The Complete First Season is available Tuesday, September 8th on DVD and Blu-raty.
The Funniest Moments in Serious Games
Video games don't have to prove they can be funny anymore. Monkey Island, Borderlands, Portal, Grand Theft Auto and plenty more have provided us hundreds of laughs over the years. But occasionally even bleak, deadly-serious games can crack a great joke or two. And more often than that, games can make us laugh even when they aren't trying thanks to questionable writing or acting, glitches, and other unfortunate errors.
Below are some of our picks for the funniest moments in serious games.
For a game series all about the end of all life in the galaxy and tough moral choices, EA’s Mass Effect series can be surprisingly hilarious at times. Our personal favorite is Mass Effect 2’s running gag that depict’s Shakespeare's Hamlet performed by… an all-Elcor cast. “An unforgettable 14-hour experience!” Honorable mention for all the laughs playing Shepherd as a complete bastard can provide, too.
Destiny Lawsuit Papers Confirm Story Changed ‘Substantially’
Ever since Destiny launched last September, there have been mutterings about the game's story - or rather, a perceived lack of the one that was advertised in pre-release trailers and promotional material.
Last year, a tester for the game shared on a since-deleted Reddit thread about how he was invited to Bungie to try Destiny out before launch, and encountered a markedly different story to the one the game released with. Though Bungie has always remained quiet on such claims, or even gently refuted them, speculation has always continued that the departure of Bungie lead writer Joseph Staten a year before the game launched was a sign something had gone awry.
A Look Back at the Star Wars: Droids Cartoon
Ever since 1977, it's hard to remember a time when Star Wars didn't dominate the pop culture scene, especially now that we're getting a new Star Wars movie every year until the end of time (or whenever Disney feels like stopping). Even the decade between Revenge of the Sith and The Force Awakens had The Clone Wars TV show, but looking back I think most folks would agree that 1984 to 1996 (give or take) was the proverbial "Dark Times" for Star Wars. By the mid-1980s, popularity in the franchise had faded -- to the point that even toy sales were on the decline. (More on that later.)
The Force Awakens Soundtrack Release Date Announced
Walt Disney Records has revealed that the Star Wars: The Force Awakens soundtrack will be available on December 18.
This is the same date that the movie will release in theaters. The John Williams composed soundtrack can be pre-ordered now from Universal Music's website.
Last week IGN visited Lucasfilm in San Francisco to get a peek at all the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens toys and merchandise. We also heard antagonist Kylo Ren speak for the first time.
Sam Smith is Singing SPECTRE Song
UPDATE: It's official - Sam Smith is singing the new Bond song. Via Twitter the Grammy-winner announced that the song would be called 'Writing's on the Wall' and said "I am so excited to be a part of this iconic British legacy and join an incredible line up of some of my biggest musical inspirations."
Speaking to Radio 1, Smith also revealed that he wrote the song in just 20 minutes with regular collaborator Jimmy Napes, and recorded it back in January. The song will be available to purchase and stream on September 25.
