How to Build Your Own PC
This post originally published in May 2015. It was last updated and expanded July 2017. Be sure to visit IGN Tech for all the latest comprehensive hands-on reviews and best-of roundups. Note that if you click on one of these links to buy the product, IGN may get a share of the sale. For more, read our Terms of Use.
With powerhouse PC games like Wolfenstein 2, Destiny 2 and Middle-Earth: Shadow of War just around the corner and GPU tech advancing faster than ever, the time is right to jump in and build a PC. A PC isn't a must-have to enjoy these games, but you get some benefits unavailable on consoles, like deeply discounted sales on stores like Steam and GoG.com, deeper mod support, fast loading times, and prettier graphics at higher framerates.
Affleck’s Batman Suit a ‘Six-Handed Operation’
Ben Affleck's Batman suit takes multiple costumers and several minutes, according to the designer.
Batsuit designer Michael Wilkinson said that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice director Zack Snyder wanted to address the problem of Batman being unable to turn his head in the cowl. The results work, but with some time investment.
"It’s a very important thing to Zack that the Batsuit would be comfortable and very flexible but then would be able to perform in a very natural and forceful way," Wilkinson told Fashionista. He said the neck pieces was one of the top priorities for Snyder, mentioned in one of the very first meetings, and "a lot of incredible engineering went into the development of the new black cowl."
Luke Cage Series Gets a Showrunner
Netflix and Marvel have tapped Almost Human and Ray Donavan co-executive producer Cheo Hodari Coker as the showrunner for the upcoming Luke Cage series.
Coker will also write the first two episodes and serve as an executive producer on Luke Cage. The former journalist has previously written for Ray Donavan, Almost Human, NCIS: Los Angeles, Southland and the 2009 film Notorious.
Mike Coulter (Halo: Nightfall) will star in Luke Cage as the titular hero, and he will make his debut in the Jessica Jones series on Netflix. Luke Cage is set to premiere next year.
5 Things You Need to Know to Read DC’s Convergence
April is just around the corner, and that means DC is ready to kick off their latest comic book event, Convergence. Convergence is a big 8-part crossover that will replace DC's normal New 52 comics for April and May. Easily its biggest selling point is the fact that it's bringing back classic, pre-New 52 versions of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and various other heroes.
With old heroes returning and different universes mashing together as part of a huge story, it's understandable you'd need a primer to keep everything straight. Comics have a reputation for being hard to get into, but we've laid out everything you need to know in our handy guide. Check it out so you can dive into Convergence when it starts tomorrow!
Lost’s Mr. Eko is Killer Croc in Suicide Squad
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje is making the leap from Marvel Studios to DC movies.
According to TheWrap, Akinnuoye-Agbaje -- who played Kurse in Thor: The Dark World -- has been cast as Killer Croc in Suicide Squad.
If you didn't know, Croc is a reptilian-looking felon named Waylon Jones who has tangled with Batman many times in the comics.
No word on how large a role in Killer Croc will actually play in Suicide Squad. The movie reunites Akinnuoye-Agbaje with Will Smith, whom he recently co-starred with on the pro football drama Concussion.
Immortals Actor Joins Texas Chainsaw Massacre Prequel
Stephen Dorff (Blade, Immortals) is joining the Texas Chainsaw Massacre prequel in a lead role as Hal Hartman.
Millennium Films' Leatherface will center around the violent teen who will become Leatherface after he escapes a mental hospital with three other inmates and embarks on a deadly road trip, reports Deadline. Dorff will play an equally deranged lawman named Hartman who is chasing the teens.
Stephen Dorff in Blade
Someone Created a Walking Minecraft Robot
In case you needed another Minecraft spectacle to put your little dirt houses to shame, take a look at this massive attack robot by Cubehamster.
It's called Colossus, and not only is it equipped with "mini nuke cannons" and "tomahawk missile launchers," but it walks too. See it in action below.
Powered by pistons, slime blocks, and redstone, Colossus towers over villages, raining down destruction with you up at the helm. It took Cubehamster at least 50 hours to build, an effort that began last December.
Other features of the Colossus include: a reload system for its nuke cannons, a longbow missile system, a sky elevator and elevator docking bay, storage, and a start/stop engine.
App Store Update: March 31
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.
Pie in the Sky: A Pizza Odyssey – ($2.99)
It's a game about delivering pizza . . . in outer space!
Pixar’s RenderMan Software Is Now Free
If you've ever wanted to up your animation game, now's your chance. Pixar Animation Studios has made their in-house rendering software free to download and use.
RenderMan -- used for all of Pixar's films as well as pictures like Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain America: The Winter Soldier -- is now completely free for non-commercial use on Windows, Mac, and Linux. The free version includes all the features of the paid version, with no time limits or watermarks.
The only restriction is that it cannot be used in a commercial way. If you make something you do want to profit from, you can pick up the commercial license for the software for $495 (USD).
RenderMan isn't a 3D modeling application. Instead, it fleshes out animation to make it more realistic with interactive lighting and shading. Not only is it used for Pixar films, it's also the industry standard for special effects. To use it, you will need to create a 3D model or animation to render. RenderMan currently supports Autodesk's Maya (which has a free trial available for download) and The Foundry's Katana.
Resident Evil Revelations 2 Adds Online Co-Op
Resident Evil Revelations 2's free update went through today, adding the much-anticipated online Raid Mode co-op and a few other tweaks as well.
It's currently available on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. Xbox One should receive the update "shortly," according to Capcom.
Before now, players were only able to play local co-op in Resident Evil Revelations 2's action-focused Raid Mode, via split-screen.