NBC Revives Emerald City
NBC has given Emerald City -- its dark modernization of The Wizard Of Oz -- a 10-episode series order, after having shelved the project last year. The series was devised by scribes Matt Arnold (Siberia) and Josh Friedman (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) as a Game of Thrones-influenced reimagining of L. Frank Baum's classic tale.
According to Entertainment Weekly, the project is being reworked by writer David Schulner, who previously worked on shows like Dracula, Do No Harm, The Event and Kings for NBC.
Here's the official longline for the series: "In the blink of a tornado’s eye, 20-year-old Dorothy Gale and her K9 police dog are transported to another world, one far removed from our own—a mystical land of competing kingdoms, lethal warriors, dark magic and a bloody battle for supremacy. This is the fabled Land of Oz in a way you’ve never seen before, where wicked witches don’t stay dead for long and a young girl becomes a headstrong warrior who holds the fate of kingdoms in her hands."
Rock Band 4 Will Support Old Guitar Hero, Rock Band Instruments
You may want to hold on to those old Guitar Hero and Rock Band instruments.
Speaking with Business Insider, Rock Band 4 project director Daniel Sussman revealed the upcoming music game will be compatible with last-gen Guitar Hero and Rock Band peripherals.
Sussman explains he and his team wanted to see this integration through as a way to cut costs for consumers.
"Our position is really all about respect for our consumers and for the money that they have spent to get into the game space in the first place. They spend a fortune on games: on consoles, on hardware, and we're sensitive to that," he said.
Ryan Gosling Eyed For Blade Runner Sequel
Ryan Gosling is in negotiations to star in Blade Runner 2, the sequel to the 1982 sci-fi classic.
The new comes via Variety; it's not yet known which character Gosling will play if cast.
The original Blade Runner took place in a dystopian 2019 Los Angeles. The sequel will take place several decades later, with Harrison Ford reprising his role as Rick Deckard.
Denis Villeneuve is directing the sequel, with the original's director Ridley Scott producing this time around. Hampton Fancher and Michael Green wrote the script, which Scott praises as "very, very good."
What We Expect (For Now) From Apple’s WWDC 2015
Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference might not sound like something we should care about as consumers, but that's never actually the case. As Google does with its own annual I/O conference, the WWDC keynote always spills a fair amount of news about what's ahead for Apple—and the 2015 conference was just announced this week, running from June 8-12 in San Francisco.
The rumors and reports circulating around this year's event offer ample reason for tech and gadget junkies to stay tuned, with potential new hardware, software, and services expected to make an appearance. Here are the five big announcements we may hear at WWDC 2015.
Star Wars: Battlefront Release Date Possibly Leaked
Star Wars: Battlefront might be launching November 17.
NeoGAF user salromano spotted that the source code for the Star Wars: Battlefront website lists November 17 as the release date for the DICE-developed game. The hidden text says: "The latest news and updates for Star Wars Battlefront. Available November 17, 2015 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC."
Earlier today, we got an early look at Star Wars: Battlefront, thanks to footage attached to the end of the Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer. We also learned earlier this week that Star Wars: Battlefront will be playable first on Xbox One for EA Access subscribers.
Daily Deals: Free Android Apps, Mortal Kombat X $50, Xbox Live for $35
I'd say the must have here is Plants vs Zombies, but if you see anything in there you like, shout it out in the comments.
Mortal Kombat X and A Blue DualShock 4
Here's a pretty good deal: this bundle is $100, so you're paying $50 for the game and $50 for the controller. The blue DualShock 4 is currently $50, and you can get a copy of MK X for $50 here, so you're not overpaying a penny if you want Mortal Kombat and a new PS4 controller.
Grand Theft Auto 5 in Virtual Reality
If you have Grand Theft Auto 5 on PC and an Oculus Rift development kit, you can now experience Los Santos in first-person virtual reality.
VorpX, a driver that lets you play DirectX 9-11 games using the Oculus Rift, recently added support for Grand Theft Auto 5 on the PC.
Because Grand Theft Auto 5 isn't optimized for virtual reality, the experience may not run as smoothly as games that are designed with that in mind.
You can still use your own head movement to control the first-person camera, though, which adds at least a level of the immersion possible with VR.
Check out the video below, which depicts a first-person, VR-controlled bike ride through a rainy Los Santos.
App Store Update: April 16
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.
Adaline – ($1.99)
Adaline just got her degree in political science and decides to open a pizza place in the woods, not knowing that is home to a hungry pack of wolves. Only some unexpected allies¹ will help her avoid being turned into take-away food.
A Small Glimpse At Star Wars: Battlefront
For impatient fans who can't wait to get a look at Star Wars: Battlefront, you can get a small glimpse of game footage at the end of the Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer on YouTube.
The video depicts stormtroopers and AT-AT walkers on what appears to be the planet Endor.
Skip to 1 minute 49 seconds in the video below.
The game footage isn't part of the trailer itself, but a small thumbnail that will presumably be linked off to Star Wars: Battlefront footage once we get the full reveal at Star Wars Celebration.
Princess Leia Is Ditching The Iconic Hair Buns
Actress Carrie Fisher, known best as Princess Leia, has confirmed that those iconic buns (or "star puffs") that were tied to her character won't be returning for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
However, she did say that there might be some kind of alternative style in the upcoming movie.
"The buns are tired now," Fisher said. "We’re probably not going to see the futuristic buns. But we have something else ... that’s not going to be the metal bikini."
Star Wars Celebration will unfold through the end of the weekend, April 16 - 19, in Anaheim, California. For everything from the event, be sure to head over to IGN's complete coverage of the event as it happens.