How Gaming’s Breakout Gay Character Came to be
It’s been a big couple of weeks for LGBT rights, thanks to the legalisation of equal marriage in the United States, along with numerous Pride events taking place across the globe over the past few weekends. More than ever before, it seems acceptance and inclusion are winning the day and we’re seeing this bleed into popular culture as a whole. Just last month, Nintendo announced the next Fire Emblem would allow both male and female same-sex marriages in game – a marked turn from the resistance it showed to introducing such unions into Tomadachi Life.
Comic Book Reviews for July 8, 2015
You might think the comics industry would take the week off for SDCC, but you'd be wrong. This was yet another week full of high-profile releases and new debuts from various publishers. Marvel alone launched Civil War #1, Age of Apocalypse #1 and Star Wars: Lando #1 alongside a healthy slate of returning Secret Wars tie-ins.
DC's new lineup keeps humming along, with some of the standouts this week including Batman #42, Starfire #2 and Constantine: The Hellblazer #2. DC also brought back Justice League United after a three-month absence, complete with a new creative team and new status quo.
Archie Comics finally delivered their long-awaited relaunch of the main Archie series, an issue that wound upearning the highest rating of the week from our Review Crew. Elsewhere, Image closed out the current story arc in Saga and relaunched Rob Liefeld's Bloodstrike, while IDW kicked off a big crossover between the Star Trek and Green Lantern franchises.
Company of Heroes 2: The British Forces Coming Soon
SEGA has announced Company of Heroes 2: The British Forces, a new standalone multiplayer pack for the real-time strategy game.
The British Forces includes 15 new units, six new commanders, and eight new multiplayer maps that show off historic locations throughout Europe in World War II.
At the same time, Company of Heroes 2 will receive an overall "major design upgrade" to improve the balance of all five factions. The game will also see improvements to visuals and animations for most infantry units.
"The British Army has been one of the most requested factions since we first announced Company of Heroes 2 three years ago," said Greg Wilson, Executive Producer at Relic Entertainment. "The British were a major player in WWII and we are excited to bring their unique makeup and overall tactical doctrine to the Company of Heroes 2 battlefield."
Next Hearthstone Expansion Looks Like Argent Tournament
Blizzard is teasing the next batch of new cards coming to Hearthstone, and it looks like they could be themed around World of Warcraft's Argent Tournament.
PC Gamer received a trumpet-playing cardboard tube and scroll that reads "Champions are gathering from around the world to witness the next exciting thing Hearthstone has in store. News travels far and wide in search of brave new faces ready to answer the call to arms — Are you one of them? Muster for battle and mark July 22 on your calendar."Foll
Following this, a new Inkeeper's Story has also appeared on Blizzard's Hearthstone site, replete with an illustration of a dwarf feeding what's branded a "unicorn". Only it isn't a unicorn, it's a Quel’dorei Steed, a mount available at Warcraft's Argent Tournament grounds if you grind enough rep with the Silver Covenant faction.
39 New Cars Added to Forza Motorsport 6 Garage
Forty new cars have been added to the Forza Motorsport 6 line-up, including the 2014 Volvo #13 Volvo Polestar Racing S60 STCC, and the 1999 BMW #15 BMW Motorsport V12 LMR.
"Last week, we kicked off the 'Forza Motorsport 6' Garage by announcing 40 cars that will be part of the more than 450 cars in the game at launch, including the entire paddock of Formula E cars that are racing today," said developer Turn 10 Studios on the Forza website.
"This week, we keep the garage door open and line up another 39 cars that will be a part of the biggest and best Forza game yet."
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New Star Wars Book Descriptions Lead in to Episode 7
The Force Awakens is set approximately 30 years after Return of the Jedi, and there's a lot that's happened in between.
To help fill in some of the blanks, Lucasfilm is championing a series of 20+ books under the banner Journey to Start Wars: The Force Awakens.
Scheduled to start releasing in the coming months, some of the titles have been showcased on the official Star Wars website with descriptions and covers.
Not all of the titles are set after Return of the Jedi, and some don't exist within the timeline.
Matt Bomer Was Briefly J.J. Abrams’ Superman
Magic Mike XXL actor Matthew Bomer almost played the Man of Steel in a Superman project that never got off the ground.
Speaking with Josh Horowitz on the podcast Happy, Sad, Confused, Bomer said he was called to screen-test for a Superman movie directed by Brett Ratner and written by J.J. Abrams ten years ago.
The movie was a "lighthearted" take on Clarke Kent at college, and Ratner wanted Bomer for the role.
"Brett chose me for the project and then it all fell apart", said . It was a very lengthy process to get the role, I think it was over the course of three months because I went in in a cattle call. It sort of evolved from there. It was a month of, ‘Okay, looks like this is going to happen’. And then it slowly fell apart. I have zero regrets about that, I feel like I’ve gotten to do such a rich array of roles in so many different things. I haven’t been too locked in… I mean that’s a very iconic role to portray, to suddenly be that character in everyone’s minds forever.
Halle Berry Tells Fans to Speak Up if They Want a Storm Movie
Halle Berry says she'd love to do a Storm solo movie, but the fans need to speak up if they want it.
"In a heartbeat I would do a Storm movie", Berry said in an interview with Deadline. "I love that character through and through. So if that ever became an opportunity for me if it’s before I’m 65-years old I would absolutely do that."
"If the fans want that the fans need to speak up and I’m sure it would be a possibility. If Fox felt like they could make money off of a Storm movie I’m sure they would do it."
While a Storm solo movie doesn't gel particularly well with the current X-Men cinematic timeline, there's certainly opportunities to jump back and forth into the past and present considering the foundations laid in the first two X-Men films (not the third. Never the third).
Halo Channel App Now Available on iOS and Android
The Halo Channel app is now available on iOS and Android devices, 343 Industries announced today. A Windows Phone version is also in the works, and will be released alongside Windows 10 Mobile later this year.
Previously released on Xbox One and Windows 8 PCs and tablets, Halo Channel is a hub for Halo news and videos. Additionally, Halo Channel features original programming such as the live-action series Halo: Nightfall.
To commemorate Halo Channel's arrival on iOS and Android, those who download the app will receive a Halo 5: Guardians REQ pack containing a unique emblem, according to a post on Halo Waypoint. If you've already downloaded the app on Xbox One or a Windows 8 device, you'll also be granted the REQ pack.