ABC Fall Premieres: Agents of SHIELD, Muppets, and More
ABC has announced its fall premiere dates, with dates for Agents of SHIELD and The Muppets, among others.
The Muppets will begin September 22, at 8 PM ET. It will lead into the second season of Fresh Off the Boat. Marvel's Agents of SHIELD is coming later in the month on September 29, and will replace Dancing with the Stars at the 9 PM ET spot.
Other new additions to the line-up include Blood & Oil and Quantico at 9 PM and 10 PM, respectively, on Sunday, September 27. The Ken Jeong comedy Dr. Ken will premiere at 8:30 PM on October 2, and Wicked City will begin at 10 PM on October 27.
Steve Watts is a freelance writer who is movin' right along. You can read more of his keen insights by following him on Twitter and IGN.
Batman v Superman Goes LEGO
The neatly stylized Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice posters have attracted a LEGO version from the toy company.
The image is almost identical to the real thing, albeit with Superman and Batman's LEGO-blocky faces and studded background surfaces. Plus, it adds the word "Building" to the 2016 teaser.
DC and LEGO have been working together these days, most notably with a prominent part for Batman (and cameos from Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern) in the recent The LEGO Movie. That was so successful, in fact, that LEGO Batman is getting his own spin-off movie in 2017. We would bet that Supes will make an appearance in that movie too, so maybe the two iconic heroes will throw down twice in a row.
Aca-ourse They’re Making Pitch Perfect 3
Pitch Perfect 3 is reportedly in the early stages of development.
According to Variety, Universal and Gold Circle are planning another sequel in the musical comedy series starring Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson. The movie studio and production company are apparently negotiating with writer Kay Cannon about returning for Pitch Perfect 3.
Cannon, who's written for 30 Rock and New Girl, penned the screenplays for Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2. She also served as a producer on those TV shows as well as the feature film Baby Mama.
While Universal and Gold Circle are in talks with Cannon, there's no information on who might direct Pitch Perfect 3 or which Bellas could return for the film. That said, Pitch Perfect 2, helmed by Elizabeth Banks, has made over $250 million worldwide and beat out Mad Max: Fury Road during their debut weekends. So Banks has to at least be in the running for the gig.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens Announced for Comic-Con
It's official: Star Wars: The Force Awakens will be at next month's San Diego Comic-Con!
StarWars.com announced today that The Force Awakens will have its own panel on Friday, July 10th, in Hall H. The panel's time has not yet been revealed.
Lucasfilm president and producer Kathleen Kennedy, director J.J. Abrams, writer Lawrence Kasdan, and "special guests" will be attendance to gives fans a special look at Episode VII. (The site says further details about the panel will be revealed Thursday at Entertainment Weekly.)
Research Finds Only 34% of Games Come to Retail
The latest findings from the Electronic Entertainment Design and Research (EEDAR) group suggest an all-digital future may be closer than we think.
GamesIndustry reports that according to EEDAR's findings, the number of games released physically on Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony hardware has declined from 383 copies in 2008 to 145 in 2014.
Conversely, the drop of physical releases has been countered by the rise of digital. In 2008, 102 games were released onto digital storefronts, whereas in 2014, the number rose to 279. Now, virtually all games released physically also see a release on digital storefronts.
Phantom Pain Will Have Optional In-Game Purchases
An Italian PlayStation Store pre-order page for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain reveals the presence of microtransactions in Konami's upcoming stealth game.
The line "Acquisti in-game opzionali," which roughly translates to "optional in-game purchases," confirms suspicions first raised by a few recent previews of The Phantom Pain.
You can see the full Italian page listing on the PlayStation Store.
IGN's own Jose Otero also noticed room for what could be microtransactions when he previewed The Phantom Pain last month.
App Store Update: June 10
Every day hundreds of new apps make their debut on the App Store, and hundreds more are updated or reduced in price. We have sifted through the noise and highlighted those select few that might be worth your attention.
Note: The prices and deals compiled below are accurate at the time we published this story, but all are subject to change.
Speedy Car: Endless Rush – (Free)
Drive as fast as you can, bouncing back and forth between two lanes, trying to weave your way through crossroad traffic.
SPECTRE: First TV Spot Unveiled
Sony Pictures Entertainment and Eon Productions have unveiled the first TV spot for SPECTRE, the 24th James Bond film.
The 60-second clip of SPECTRE showcases Daniel Craig's Bond delving into his past, encountering Christoph Waltz's villain Franz Oberhauser, piloting an airplane and fighting enemies on a snow-covered mountain.
Directed by Sam Mendes, SPECTRE is set to hit the silver screen November 6.
Evan Campbell is a freelance news writer who streams games on his Twitch channel, talks about Nintendo weekly on the NF Show, and chats about movies and TV series on Twitter.
What to Expect from Cap: Civil War’s Licensed Gear
During the Licensing Expo 2015 in Las Vegas, Disney revealed the licencees they would be working with to create products tied in with the upcoming film Captain America: Civil War.
Variety reports new apparel, accessories, footwear, toys, electronics, costumes, and more will be produced by a range of companies. These companies include Hasbro, LEGO, Funko, Hot Wheels, and Kellogg's, among others. Civil War licensed products are expected to become available approximately eight weeks before the film's opening.
Much of the licensed products will turn its focus toward newer characters such as Vision, Falcon, War Machine, and Black Panther. Adult women's apparel will also be a big focus of their licensing efforts, as will the character of Black Widow.
Deals of the Week: Final Fantasy XIV $10, 1TB Xbox One With $50 Gift Card, Borderlands 2 $8
Update: it's backordered, but you can still lock in the low price.
Amazon has FF XIV for $10 on PS4 and PC (that's 50% off the Steam price). The game got a massive new expansion, so you've got a lot of MMO goodness to look forward to if you're diving in for the first time.