Yearly Archives: 2020

Mafia 3 Seems to Contain Unfinished Map for a Whole Other Canceled Game

Leftover game files found in Mafia III Definitive Edition have provided what seems to be a glimpse into a cancelled Hangar 13 project, codenamed Rhapsody. A YouTube video posted on Monday by user Sliderv2 provides a look at an unfinished map of Berlin, the supposed setting for a now-cancelled Hangar 13 project that was first uncovered by a 2018 Kotaku report. The game, which was known internally as Rhapsody, was set in 1980s Berlin. As for the premise, the Kotaku report claims that "you'd play as a Russian Jew whose parents had been murdered in a Soviet labor camp. He'd be rescued by Americans, then recruited to join a spy organization called Rhapsody." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2016/10/11/mafia-3-review"] Rhapsody was compared to the movie Kingsman, but suffered a massive overhaul and the spy elements were reportedly scrapped early in the development. The project later became an "action game fueled by music." The current status of that project is unknown - it's not clear whether it's still in development in some shape at Hangar 13. Regardless, the video gives us an interesting look at the cancelled game's setting, if you can get past the floating Mafia 3 protagonist which the camera is orbiting around. A lot of work had been done on the map, including an impressive model of the Berlin TV Tower. Rhapsody may never see the light of day, but tidbits about what became of the scrapped project may arrive in the future as data miners delve into what Hangar 13 has left behind. Until then, check out a series of screenshots from the Mafia: Trilogy collection, which includes a look at the remade version of the original Mafia that Hangar 13 is set to release later this year on August 28. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

Detroit: Become Human, Beyond, Heavy Rain Steam Release Dates Announced

Quantic Dream has officially confirmed the Steam release date for Detroit: Become Human, Beyond: Two Souls, and Heavy Rain.

Quantic Dream’s three latest games will arrive on Steam simultaneously on June 18, the company announced on Twitter. Quantic Dream had previously released the game’s on the Epic Game Store in 2019. Before that, all three games had been PlayStation exclusives.

 

Earlier this year, Quantic Dream founder David Cage said that the studio had “lots of surprises” in store for fans in 2020. It seems this might have been at least part of what he was talking about.

PC gamers who held off on buying Quantic Dreams’ library will also be able to play a free demo of each game. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-quantic-dream-review&captions=true"]

Steam doesn’t currently have prices listed for any of the three games, but we can get a potential idea based on what they’re going for on Epic. On Epic, Detroit is currently being sold for $39.99, Beyond for $19.99, and Heavy Rain for $19.99.

We quite liked Detroit: Become Human, calling it “a wonderfully silly interactive drama that meaningfully bends to your will” in our review. You can also check out our Beyond: Two Souls review and our Heavy Rain review to see how these Quantic Dreams games hold up today.

[poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN, and he's on every platform.

Detroit: Become Human, Beyond, Heavy Rain Steam Release Dates Announced

Quantic Dream has officially confirmed the Steam release date for Detroit: Become Human, Beyond: Two Souls, and Heavy Rain.

Quantic Dream’s three latest games will arrive on Steam simultaneously on June 18, the company announced on Twitter. Quantic Dream had previously released the game’s on the Epic Game Store in 2019. Before that, all three games had been PlayStation exclusives.

 

Earlier this year, Quantic Dream founder David Cage said that the studio had “lots of surprises” in store for fans in 2020. It seems this might have been at least part of what he was talking about.

PC gamers who held off on buying Quantic Dreams’ library will also be able to play a free demo of each game. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-quantic-dream-review&captions=true"]

Steam doesn’t currently have prices listed for any of the three games, but we can get a potential idea based on what they’re going for on Epic. On Epic, Detroit is currently being sold for $39.99, Beyond for $19.99, and Heavy Rain for $19.99.

We quite liked Detroit: Become Human, calling it “a wonderfully silly interactive drama that meaningfully bends to your will” in our review. You can also check out our Beyond: Two Souls review and our Heavy Rain review to see how these Quantic Dreams games hold up today.

[poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN, and he's on every platform.

‘Make Solo 2 Happen’ Fan Campaign Demands Star Wars Sequel

It’s apparently a banner month for fan campaigns making their movie dreams come true. While DC fans are (eventually) getting the Snyder Cut and (hoping for) an Ayers cut of Suicide Squad, fans of Solo: A Star Wars Story are clamoring to “#MakeSolo2Happen,” and they’re picking up some steam.

Fans took to Twitter this Memorial Day weekend to share their hopes for a sequel to the Han Solo origin story, pining for the return of cast members like Emilia Clarke’s Qi’ra, Darth Maul, and Donald Glover’s Lando Calrissian.

Here's artist Matt Ferguson, who created a couple of official posters for Solo, chiming in with his support. One fan even went so far as to dress up his family in shirts reading "Make Solo 2 Happen" in classic Star Wars font. The "Make Solo 2 Happen" campaign, including the T-shirts appearing in multiple tweets, appears to have started with The Resistance Broadcast, a podcast from the Star Wars News Net fan site. They also happen to be selling sweatshirts and mugs with the same fan campaign logo. Solo fans may have their work cut out for them, considering Solo only made a total of $392 million worldwide at the box office. With a budget of $275,000,000, it fell short of expectations on its opening weekend, grossing a domestic box office of $83 million at the time. Still big numbers, but remarkably unimpressive compared to The Last Jedi's $1.3 billion worldwide gross, The Rise of Skywalker's $1 billion worldwide gross. Even Rogue One, the first of the offshoot Star Wars movies, grossed a little over $1 billion worldwide. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2018/05/23/solo-cast-takes-the-ultimate-han-solo-star-wars-quiz"] As of April 2020, Solo screenwriter Jon Kasdan says he doesn't expect Disney to pursue a sequel to Solo, calling it a "tough sell." Disney CEO Bob Iger decided to slow the pace of production on Star Wars films following Solo's lackluster performance.

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Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/nerf herder for IGN.

‘Make Solo 2 Happen’ Fan Campaign Demands Star Wars Sequel

It’s apparently a banner month for fan campaigns making their movie dreams come true. While DC fans are (eventually) getting the Snyder Cut and (hoping for) an Ayers cut of Suicide Squad, fans of Solo: A Star Wars Story are clamoring to “#MakeSolo2Happen,” and they’re picking up some steam.

Fans took to Twitter this Memorial Day weekend to share their hopes for a sequel to the Han Solo origin story, pining for the return of cast members like Emilia Clarke’s Qi’ra, Darth Maul, and Donald Glover’s Lando Calrissian.

Here's artist Matt Ferguson, who created a couple of official posters for Solo, chiming in with his support. One fan even went so far as to dress up his family in shirts reading "Make Solo 2 Happen" in classic Star Wars font. The "Make Solo 2 Happen" campaign, including the T-shirts appearing in multiple tweets, appears to have started with The Resistance Broadcast, a podcast from the Star Wars News Net fan site. They also happen to be selling sweatshirts and mugs with the same fan campaign logo. Solo fans may have their work cut out for them, considering Solo only made a total of $392 million worldwide at the box office. With a budget of $275,000,000, it fell short of expectations on its opening weekend, grossing a domestic box office of $83 million at the time. Still big numbers, but remarkably unimpressive compared to The Last Jedi's $1.3 billion worldwide gross, The Rise of Skywalker's $1 billion worldwide gross. Even Rogue One, the first of the offshoot Star Wars movies, grossed a little over $1 billion worldwide. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2018/05/23/solo-cast-takes-the-ultimate-han-solo-star-wars-quiz"] As of April 2020, Solo screenwriter Jon Kasdan says he doesn't expect Disney to pursue a sequel to Solo, calling it a "tough sell." Disney CEO Bob Iger decided to slow the pace of production on Star Wars films following Solo's lackluster performance.

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Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/nerf herder for IGN.

Suicide Squad Director’s Cut Would Be ‘Easy to Complete,’ Says David Ayer

Suicide Squad director David Ayer says that a director’s cut of his DC universe movie would be “easy to complete.” The comment stands in contrast to the news of the infamous “Snyder Cut” of Justice League releasing in 2021 and costing $20 - $30 million.

Ayer made the comments in a tweet Monday, responding to a Collider editor asking why DC didn’t release his cut of Suicide Squad on a service like HBO Max.

“This is a good question,” Ayer responded. “My cut would be easy to complete. It would be incredibly cathartic for me. It’s exhausting getting your ass kicked for a film that got the Edward Scissorhands treatment. The film I made has never been seen.”

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Ayer made similar comments about other footage cut from or left in Suicide Squad. When asked about a scene from a trailer featuring Katana’s eyes being suddenly filled with a murky black liquid, Ayer said he’d filmed a scene where Enchantress uses a tendril to take over Katana and attack her allies.

Ayer also seemingly criticized the cuts that were made to Suicide Squad for ignoring some of the fundamentals of good storytelling and editing.

 “Good screenwriting means complete arcs culminating with some kind of closure for each main character,” Ayer said. “It’s not rocket science. When you cut the joists the building sags.”

Ayer says that the “only battle I won” was keeping in a bit where the character Diablo references that he’s killed women and children.

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-actor-and-character-confirmed-for-dcs-the-suicide-squad&captions=true"]

“It was the only battle I won,” Ayer said. “Decision makers were allergic to Diablo killing his family. Look at my films - death, guilt, redemption and emancipation from toxic relationships are themes I explore as a filmmaker. The human soul is beautiful and complex.”

Ayer added that an impressive shot of Enchantress’ hand gripping June Moon and transforming her was his idea, and that he had more footage fleshing out their relationship.

 

With the news of Zack Snyder’s cut of Justice League being revived, some DC fans have taken to calling for a similar director’s cut of Suicide Squad, which was originally supposed to end with a different villain and a much bigger Justice League connection. Ayer appears to still hold some complicated feelings on the matter, given how open he’s been to commenting on the difficult process of getting Suicide Squad to theaters.

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/06/david-ayer-says-much-of-jared-letos-joker-remains-unseen"]

Ayer responded to fan questions about cut footage of Jared Leto’s Joker, saying that his “heart breaks” for the actor that much of his work never made it into the theatrical release. Leto himself also said in 2016 that a large amount of Joker footage never made it into the film.

Some fans have sinced started the hashtag “#ReleaseTheAyerCut,” a direct parallel to the “#ReleaseTheSnyderCut” that eventually got its way. It’s possible that a similar fan movement may get its way as well. Meanwhile, we're still getting James Gunn's reboot of the Suicide Squad, and last we heard, Gunn said there's no reason for his film to be delayed due to COVID-19, since it wrapped filming earlier this year. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN.

Suicide Squad Director’s Cut Would Be ‘Easy to Complete,’ Says David Ayer

Suicide Squad director David Ayer says that a director’s cut of his DC universe movie would be “easy to complete.” The comment stands in contrast to the news of the infamous “Snyder Cut” of Justice League releasing in 2021 and costing $20 - $30 million.

Ayer made the comments in a tweet Monday, responding to a Collider editor asking why DC didn’t release his cut of Suicide Squad on a service like HBO Max.

“This is a good question,” Ayer responded. “My cut would be easy to complete. It would be incredibly cathartic for me. It’s exhausting getting your ass kicked for a film that got the Edward Scissorhands treatment. The film I made has never been seen.”

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-dceu-movie-review-score&captions=true"]

Ayer made similar comments about other footage cut from or left in Suicide Squad. When asked about a scene from a trailer featuring Katana’s eyes being suddenly filled with a murky black liquid, Ayer said he’d filmed a scene where Enchantress uses a tendril to take over Katana and attack her allies.

Ayer also seemingly criticized the cuts that were made to Suicide Squad for ignoring some of the fundamentals of good storytelling and editing.

 “Good screenwriting means complete arcs culminating with some kind of closure for each main character,” Ayer said. “It’s not rocket science. When you cut the joists the building sags.”

Ayer says that the “only battle I won” was keeping in a bit where the character Diablo references that he’s killed women and children.

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-actor-and-character-confirmed-for-dcs-the-suicide-squad&captions=true"]

“It was the only battle I won,” Ayer said. “Decision makers were allergic to Diablo killing his family. Look at my films - death, guilt, redemption and emancipation from toxic relationships are themes I explore as a filmmaker. The human soul is beautiful and complex.”

Ayer added that an impressive shot of Enchantress’ hand gripping June Moon and transforming her was his idea, and that he had more footage fleshing out their relationship.

 

With the news of Zack Snyder’s cut of Justice League being revived, some DC fans have taken to calling for a similar director’s cut of Suicide Squad, which was originally supposed to end with a different villain and a much bigger Justice League connection. Ayer appears to still hold some complicated feelings on the matter, given how open he’s been to commenting on the difficult process of getting Suicide Squad to theaters.

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/06/david-ayer-says-much-of-jared-letos-joker-remains-unseen"]

Ayer responded to fan questions about cut footage of Jared Leto’s Joker, saying that his “heart breaks” for the actor that much of his work never made it into the theatrical release. Leto himself also said in 2016 that a large amount of Joker footage never made it into the film.

Some fans have sinced started the hashtag “#ReleaseTheAyerCut,” a direct parallel to the “#ReleaseTheSnyderCut” that eventually got its way. It’s possible that a similar fan movement may get its way as well. Meanwhile, we're still getting James Gunn's reboot of the Suicide Squad, and last we heard, Gunn said there's no reason for his film to be delayed due to COVID-19, since it wrapped filming earlier this year. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN.

Watch X-Men: Days of Future Past With Writer-Producer Simon Kinberg

Here at IGN, we're always looking for new ways to bring our community together to embrace what we're most passionate about. That's why we launched Watch From Home Theater, a weekly live show where we unite some of your favorite IGN personalities and special celebrity guests to have a digital movie night together with you watching some of our favorite films of all time. This Tuesday, May 26th at 5 p.m. PT, we're watching X-Men: Days of Future Past with screenwriter-producer Simon Kinberg! Adapted from the classic Marvel Comics storyline, Days of Future Past sees the big screen’s original X-Men and the prequel series' teammates living in a dystopian future where the massive mutant-hunting Sentinels have practically exterminated mutants, incarcerating the surviving ones in concentration camps with the humans who helped them. The only way for the X-Men to survive is to send one of their own back in time telepathically in order to stop the assassination that paved the way for the mutant holocaust. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2014/05/13/x-men-days-of-future-past-video-review"] In our 2014 review of the film, we said "X-Men: Days of Future Past is the most ambitious entry in the franchise and also the most rewarding, allowing fans to see the casts of both the original trilogy and First Class join forces in one action-packed, high-stakes, and surprisingly witty adventure film." Simon Kinberg has been involved in the X-Men movie franchise since 2006 as both a screenwriter and a producer, and he also produced both Deadpool sequels as well as Logan. As a screenwriter, Kinberg's breakthrough film was 2005's Mr. and Mrs. Smith and he also penned Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes. As a producer, Kinberg's films include Elysium, Murder on the Orient Express, Cinderella, and The Martian, which earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Picture. We're thrilled to have him on the show! IGN won't be able to show the full movie in the live stream watch-along so if you want the full WFH Theater experience, sync up the movie on your devices and watch with us when we press "play" together! If you don't already own a copy of Days of Future Past then you can rent or buy it on Amazon PrimeGooglePlayYouTubeVudu, Hulu, and iTunes. (If you aren't already a Hulu subscriber, the service is currently offering a 14-day free trial for new users.) Watch From Home Theater isn’t just a show or an opportunity to watch a movie; it’s a hangout with passionate people who share one thing in common -- their love of film. Each week, we'll invite our viewers to join in the conversation using our WFH Theater Discord channel to chat with our host as well as our celebrity guests. With running commentaries that range from insightful to silly, each viewing will take on a life of its own based on each film. Check out highlights from our recent episodes of WFH Theater below!

WFH Theater - Empire Strikes Back with Sam Witwer & Rahul Kohli

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/21/the-empire-strikes-back-watch-party-w-sam-witwer-rahul-kohli"]

WFH Theater - Revenge of the Sith with Ashley Eckstein & Cameron Monaghan

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/19/revenge-of-the-sith-watch-party-w-ashley-eckstein-cameron-monaghan-wfh-theater"]

WFH Theater - Netflix's Extraction with Chris Hemsworth, Joe Russo and director Sam Hargrave

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/extraction-full-one-shot-scene-breakdown-wchris-hemsworth-joe-russo-and-director"] [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=best-superhero-directors-cuts-you-can-stream-now&captions=true"] Jim Vejvoda is IGN's Executive Editor of Movies. Follow him at @JimVejvoda.

Watch X-Men: Days of Future Past With Writer-Producer Simon Kinberg

Here at IGN, we're always looking for new ways to bring our community together to embrace what we're most passionate about. That's why we launched Watch From Home Theater, a weekly live show where we unite some of your favorite IGN personalities and special celebrity guests to have a digital movie night together with you watching some of our favorite films of all time. This Tuesday, May 26th at 5 p.m. PT, we're watching X-Men: Days of Future Past with screenwriter-producer Simon Kinberg! Adapted from the classic Marvel Comics storyline, Days of Future Past sees the big screen’s original X-Men and the prequel series' teammates living in a dystopian future where the massive mutant-hunting Sentinels have practically exterminated mutants, incarcerating the surviving ones in concentration camps with the humans who helped them. The only way for the X-Men to survive is to send one of their own back in time telepathically in order to stop the assassination that paved the way for the mutant holocaust. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2014/05/13/x-men-days-of-future-past-video-review"] In our 2014 review of the film, we said "X-Men: Days of Future Past is the most ambitious entry in the franchise and also the most rewarding, allowing fans to see the casts of both the original trilogy and First Class join forces in one action-packed, high-stakes, and surprisingly witty adventure film." Simon Kinberg has been involved in the X-Men movie franchise since 2006 as both a screenwriter and a producer, and he also produced both Deadpool sequels as well as Logan. As a screenwriter, Kinberg's breakthrough film was 2005's Mr. and Mrs. Smith and he also penned Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes. As a producer, Kinberg's films include Elysium, Murder on the Orient Express, Cinderella, and The Martian, which earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Picture. We're thrilled to have him on the show! IGN won't be able to show the full movie in the live stream watch-along so if you want the full WFH Theater experience, sync up the movie on your devices and watch with us when we press "play" together! If you don't already own a copy of Days of Future Past then you can rent or buy it on Amazon PrimeGooglePlayYouTubeVudu, Hulu, and iTunes. (If you aren't already a Hulu subscriber, the service is currently offering a 14-day free trial for new users.) Watch From Home Theater isn’t just a show or an opportunity to watch a movie; it’s a hangout with passionate people who share one thing in common -- their love of film. Each week, we'll invite our viewers to join in the conversation using our WFH Theater Discord channel to chat with our host as well as our celebrity guests. With running commentaries that range from insightful to silly, each viewing will take on a life of its own based on each film. Check out highlights from our recent episodes of WFH Theater below!

WFH Theater - Empire Strikes Back with Sam Witwer & Rahul Kohli

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/21/the-empire-strikes-back-watch-party-w-sam-witwer-rahul-kohli"]

WFH Theater - Revenge of the Sith with Ashley Eckstein & Cameron Monaghan

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/19/revenge-of-the-sith-watch-party-w-ashley-eckstein-cameron-monaghan-wfh-theater"]

WFH Theater - Netflix's Extraction with Chris Hemsworth, Joe Russo and director Sam Hargrave

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/extraction-full-one-shot-scene-breakdown-wchris-hemsworth-joe-russo-and-director"] [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=best-superhero-directors-cuts-you-can-stream-now&captions=true"] Jim Vejvoda is IGN's Executive Editor of Movies. Follow him at @JimVejvoda.

Pixar Debuts First Gay Main Character in New Short Film

Pixar’s first openly gay main character has debuted in a new short film titled “Out.”

The nine-minute short film, which released on Disney Plus on Friday, tells the story of a man named Greg, who struggles with coming out as gay to his parents, frustrating his partner Manuel. Through some magical mishaps, Greg accidentally switches bodies with his excitable dog Jim and attempts to hide a picture of him and Manuel from his mom and dad, who surprise him with a sudden visit. Check out the trailer in this tweet:  

Out debuted as part of Pixar’s SparkShorts series, which lets independent creators showcase animation projects.

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Technically, this isn’t the first gay character in a Pixar film, although it is certainly the first gay main character. When Pixar’s Onward released last March, actress Lena Waithe voiced a gay cyclops who worked as a police officer. That cyclops ultimately only served as a side character, and evidence of her sexual orientation was relegated to a throwaway line referencing her girlfriend.

In older films, like Toy Story 4 and Finding Dory, Pixar has added very minor evidence of gay characters, including a brief shot of two women who fans suspected were a lesbian couple. Oddly enough, in an ET Canada interview, Finding Dory star Ellen Degeneres (herself one of the first openly gay actors in contemporary Hollywood) said that there was no lesbian couple in the film simply because one had short hair.

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Disney has been somewhat slow to include greater LGBT representation in some of its biggest properties. Avengers: Endgame featured co-director Joe Russo making a cameo as a gay man in Captain America’s therapy group who briefly mentions he is going on a date with another man. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker briefly showed two women kissing, and while fans criticized Disney for making the moment so missable, IGN editor Joshua Yehl had much more positive thoughts overall.

As for future properties, Marvel’s The Eternals is set to feature an openly gay superhero.

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Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN.