Yearly Archives: 2018
The Forest Review: Are You Afraid Of The Dark?
The broad premise of The Forest is far from unique. A plane crash lands on a seemingly deserted island, and you, a lone survivor, have to figure out a way to survive. It doesn't take long, however, until blood curdling screeches fill the night and glowing eyes appear in the distance. Once it sets in that your new home isn't as empty as it first appeared, The Forest evolves into a uniquely harrowing adventure that you won't soon forget.
Cannibals inhabit the grassy fields and pristine lakes around you, watching your every move; they are the source of The Forest's ever-present tension. You might expect monsters like this to attack on sight, but their behavior is erratic. Sometimes they'll charge forward to unsettle you during daylight but stop just outside striking distance to simply stare in silence. Other times they might feign a retreat before leaping into nearby trees to quickly get behind you. The Forest's enemies aren't easy to predict, which makes each encounter thrilling.
The breadth of enemy types is impressive too, and they can get surprisingly weird. As you explore the island more and dive into terrifying, pitch-black caverns, enemies transform into terrifying body-horror figures--amalgamations of appendages that bellow deep, disturbing howls. They're frightening to behold and even scarier to fight.
The Forest does a good job of trickling out these surprises while you're already struggling to manage vital meters and resources. It's also imperative that you keep a close eye on the quality of the resources you find. Not every berry bush contains a bounty that won't poison you, and not all water is safe to drink. Meat you gather from hunted animals will rot if not cooked quickly. None of the resulting illnesses are serious enough to dissuade you from eating questionable food if you have no other choice, but needing to think about what you eat adds an additional layer to the minute-to-minute hunter-gatherer gameplay.
Chopping down trees for logs or scouting a route to clean water is paramount in your first few days on the island, and once you establish yourself, this goal shifts to fortifying your position with a base, and perhaps complex spike traps and tree swings. The sheer number of structures you're able to build is impressive, and thankfully The Forest doesn't gate your ingenuity with illusive blueprints. You're given a notebook filled with outlines at the start.
Building has a tangible effect on the island in several ways. Resources like small game and shrubs will respawn over time, but larger trees will remain felled for the entirety of your stay. You might turn a dense forest into an open field of stumps not long after you start, which gives enemies a clearer line of sight into your doings. The more you impose yourself on the island, the more aggressive your aggressors become. Patrols will grow and the more monstrous creatures will emerge from their caves for an all-out assault. The Forest doesn't force you to play in any specific way though, so a more reserved nomadic approach is sometimes safer and more viable. But the sheer delight at seeing an enemy trigger a well-placed trap during a raid is priceless, and well worth the risk of angering the locals.
There's a lot to think about when it comes to surviving in The Forest, but the balance between each of its interlocking parts keeps the game moving at a riveting pace. For every danger the island offers, there's a smart solution around the corner.
Crafting smaller items plays a big part when it comes to personal safety, too. Your inventory screen allows you to combine items you've collected to create new tools; from something as simple as combining a few sticks and stones to make an axe, to creating high-powered explosives using a combination of wristwatches, electrical boards, and spare change. The number of items you can both collect and craft is vast, but the inventory page eventually becomes cumbersome and overwhelming to navigate. And with only four customizable hotkeys, you don't have easy access to everything you want in a pinch.
Although it's constantly testing your perseverance and wants you to feel stretched thin, The Forest never feels overbearing. You'll always be able to depend on your crafted weapons as they aren't hampered by durability. Your pocket lighter will always help you see in the dark, never running out of vital fluid. This reliability frees you from the burden of worrying about the lifespan of any potential upgrades you can make to items too.
Exploration in survival games is usually tied only to your immediate well-being, but The Forest features a narrative that's slowly uncovered by exploration and incidental environmental storytelling. Abandoned camps are a great hunting ground for modern resources and offer hints at past and present events. Putrid remains of long-dead victims aren't an uncommon sight, but you'll also come across small photographs, videotapes and magazines that flesh out a conspiracy with the island at the center.
Uncovering The Forest doesn't have to be a lonely experience, and it offers co-operative play for up to eight people. The time spent getting a fortified settlement up and running is drastically reduced, but remains just as compelling. Co-operative play does, however, deflate the the feeling of being exposed. Larger groups of enemies become easier to deal with, and the fear of diving into caves alone is undercut by both voice chat and the fact that enemies don't scale accordingly. The Forest might be silly fun with friends, but it's at its best when playing alone.
There's a lot to think about when it comes to surviving in The Forest, but the balance between each of its interlocking parts keeps the game moving at a riveting pace. For every danger the island offers, there's a smart solution around the corner. Combined with unpredictable enemies and captivating horror set-pieces, The Forest strikes a compelling balance between survival and horror that you won't soon forget.
Don’t Expect to See a Lot of Jamie Foxx’s Spawn in the New Movie
Jamie Foxx's Spawn won't be hogging much of the spotlight in Blumhouse Productions' upcoming movie.
In an interview with ComicBook.com, Spawn creator Todd McFarlane said the film starring Foxx will be a "creep movie" and will feature the character as more of a monster that lurks in the shadows than a traditional superhero.
McFarlane, who is also set to write and direct the upcoming film, says he's looking to get moviegoing audiences out of "superhero mode." In order to do so, the focus will be taken off of Spawn and will instead be placed on private investigator Twitch Williams.
The Best VPN Deals June 2018
IGN Movies Podcast: Spawn Casting and Solo Flopping
Welcome back to the IGN Movies Podcast! In this week's episode, Jim Vejvoda and Tom Jorgensen explore all the latest news from the geek moviesphere!
We begin with a discussion on the box office failure of Solo: A Star Wars Story -- and what it might mean for the franchise, Lucasfilm, and Disney -- before moving on to our hopes for the Boba Fett movie that Logan's James Mangold may direct.
Then we chat up the latest news on the Disney-Fox deal, Hasbro's hopes for the Power Rangers franchise, and the casting of Jamie Foxx as Spawn. We also field listener questions and discuss the movies we most recently watched.
Listen to our latest podcast by clicking the lovely large type below - right click to download.
Dungeons and Dragons Newest Storyline Waterdeep: Dragon Heist Revealed
The next storyline adventure in Dungeons & Dragons' ever-expanding arc has been announced. Called Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, Wizards of the Coast will take players to one of the main cities in the Forgotten Realms setting, the bustling, titular city of Waterdeep.
While details are scarce for the moment, Waterdeep: Dragon Heist will be an urban treasure hunt requiring players to “use diplomacy, intrigue, stealth, and their wits to follow clues and solve puzzles,” in what’s sounding like the fantasy Ocean’s Elven-style caper that we never knew we needed in our lives.
Best Action Movies on Netflix Right Now (July 2018)
Everyone loves a good action movie, but we don't all agree about what makes a "good" action movie. Some of us want carefully crafted cinema, full of smart plotting and rich characters. Some of us just want big explosions, dumb storylines, and a brainless good time. Fortunately, Netflix Streaming's offerings currently run that whole gamut, with blockbusters, fight films, animated adventures and shootouts galore... if you know where to look for them. And that's where we come in with our monthly updates on the best new movies on Netflix. From Mortal Kombat to Star Wars to Everly to so much more, there's a lot of good action movies to choose from here!
(Oh, and when you're done here, be sure to also check out our list of the 25 Best Action Movies Ever and what's new to Netflix this month.)
Amazing Spider-Man Finale Features New Costume
Amazing Spider-Man #800, written by Dan Slott and featuring the work of six iconic Spider-Man artists, not only featured Spider-Man’s climactic battle with the Red Goblin but acted as the finale to Slott’s decade-long run on the title. As you’d expect, it came with lots of surprises, including a new twist on an old favorite Spidey costume.
Warning: full spoilers for Amazing Spider-Man #800 ahead!
Given that Red Goblin was a fusion of Green Goblin and the Carnage symbiote that combined all of their strengths while eliminating their weaknesses (namely sonics and fire), Spider-Man needed his own edge to take down the villain. Eddie Brock took a beating fighting the Red Goblin as Venom and was down for the count, so he gave his symbiote to Spider-Man in order to help level the playing field. The result is Spider-Man once again wearing the black symbiote costume:
Bungie Announces Partnership with Chinese Tech Giant NetEase to ‘Explore New Directions’
Bungie has partnered with Chinese tech giant NetEase for its future projects.
As detailed on a recent blog post, the partnership will help Bungie become an entertainment company which can "explore new directions" and "build new worlds." However, the studio didn't share any specific details about what these projects might be, and whether any new game beyond the Destiny franchise is in development.
"Today, we’re excited to announce that we’ve entered into a new partnership with NetEase to help us explore new directions," Bungie's statement reads.
"With their industry expertise, they’ll empower us to build new worlds and invite players, new and old, to join us there. They’ll help us support separate teams inside Bungie to bring our newest ambitions to life."
Legion Renewed for Season 3
FX announced today it has renewed Noah Hawley’s (Fargo) trippy X-Men spinoff series Legion for Season 3.
According to the announcement, the show will return in 2019. Rwo episodes left to air in Legion’s second season. The show recently saw its original 10-episode Season 2 order upped by one more to 11 episodes for the season.
“Legion has redefined the superhero drama and exceeded all expectations as the intensity and revelation build through the second season,” said President of Original Programming for FX Networks and FX Productions Eric Schrier. “We are incredibly proud of Noah Hawley’s achievement and are honored to continue the series as it pushes the boundaries of conventional television storytelling.”
Best Full-Tower ATX Cases
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When you’re building a new PC it’s easy to focus all of your attention on grabbing the best graphics card, CPU, and motherboard. But let’s not forget about what holds it all together; the chassis. This is where all those expensive components have to live and—more importantly—breathe. For a lot of PC gamers, and PC builders, a full-size ATX case is the best option due to their generous size which allows for extra working room and plenty of space for fans and radiators. Though large cases aren't as en vogue as they used to be, there's still plenty to choose from, and here are my picks for the best full-size cases available today.