You’re never too old, it’s never too late, to change your life, to start something new. How about becoming a feature film director? Or a screenwriter? Throughout the years we’ve always tried to provide some extra inspiration for our filmmaker/storyteller readers and this fine infographic is the perfect bit of inspiration to share. Nathalie at the site Mentorless has created an infographic titled It’s Never Too Late To Make Your First Feature Film that takes a look at 26 filmmakers “with an international career that made their first feature film in their 30s or 40s, proving that it’s never too late to start making films.” Indeed. She breaks down each into 4 categories, including their age when they directed an “international breakthrough”. ›››
Marvel is kicking things up a notch with Avengers 2 just a few weeks away. Up next is a first look at the villain Yellowjacket, the first real photo of him in costume, from the Ant-Man movie directed by Peyton Reed starring Paul Rudd as Hank Pym. This is likely from the next trailer, and just being revealed as a single shot now, but take a look anyway. Yellowjacket is the name of the suit that Darren Cross (played by Corey Stoll) wears when he becomes a villain, with the suit giving him super powers. “Hank Pym’s Ant-Man suit doesn’t have a single weapon,” director Peyton Reed told EW. Adding, “whereas Yellowjacket is armed with plasma cannons.” Looks like at least two of them sticking up like stingers behind his shoulders in this photo. ›››
Following his recent comments about Xbox and PC game Ori and the Blind Forest becoming profitable in just one week, developer Moon Studios CEO Thomas Mahler has now spoken about where the franchise could go next–and one possibility is the big screen.
Writing on NeoGAF, Mahler said he has “somewhat” of an outline for where he’d like to take Ori’s story in the future “if we’d get to work on another Ori-related project.”
Speaking of which, Mahler said fans can help increase the liklihood of Moon Studios working on more Ori projects by buying the game and telling their friends about it.
“The more copies we sell, the higher the chance that we get to work on new projects,” he said.
Going back to Ori’s story, Mahler said, “I think we crafted a big world with memorable characters and there’s a lot of potential for us to go in and keep working on that tale.”
“I’ve read both sides now–people that loved the story and people that really only cared for the gameplay and dismissed the story,” he added. “But there was actually quite a lot of lore we created that didn’t really make it into Blind Forest. I do really like that we kept the story focused on that triangle-relationship between Ori, Naru, and Kuro. I love that our characters have quite a lot of depth and that even our antagonist isn’t just out to take over the world, but has a good reason for her actions. But it’d be interesting to take it a step further and open up the world a bit more, to give people further insight into how Nibel works, the characters in it, etc.”
Mahler went on to say that it’s “perfectly fine” if people only enjoy Ori for its gameplay. But all the same, he says he’d like to expand on the game’s story someday–possibly through a movie.
“I’d love for us and Microsoft to do a little bit more with the IP,” he said. “Ultimately, I think it’d be amazing if some movie studio would acquire the film rights and produce a film based on Ori. I think the story we crafted would suit itself really well for that medium as well…”
Ori was released in March for Xbox One and PC. An Xbox 360 version is coming later this spring.
GameSpot’s 9/10 Ori and the Blind Forest review hailed it as a “rapturous platformer that is as fun as it is beautiful.” For more on the game, check out some images in the gallery below.
The Xbox One edition of free-to-play game Happy Wars was accidentally released today, and that slip-up–which developer Toylogic attributes to a “system glitch”–is causing major problems.
Anyone who downloaded and played the Xbox One edition of Happy Wars (it’s no longer available on the Xbox Store) will find that the Xbox 360 version of the game is broken and no longer playable.
Toylogic says in a Facebook post titled “Urgent” that the final version of Happy Wars for Xbox One will be released in the “near future.” In the meantime, the developer advises that–if the game is still available to download in your region–you should not do that.
But people who did download and play the Xbox One edition and would like to return to the Xbox 360 version are out of luck, at least for now. This issue will be resolved in the next Happy Wars Xbox 360 update, though no timetable for its release was announced.
“If you have already installed and played Happy Wars for Xbox One, we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you,” Toylogic wrote.
Happy Wars, Microsoft’s first free-to-play Xbox 360 game, was originally released in October 2012 and has seen more than 6 million players. The game was later brought to PC, while the Xbox One version was announced at E3 2014. The game will feature cross-platform play with the Xbox 360 edition (and your saves will carry forward, too), as well as online play and four-player split-screen local multiplayer.
As was previosuly announced, developer Giants Software built the console version of Farm Simulator on a new graphics and physics engine. Watch the trailer and you’ll probably agree that the game does look rather nice. You can also see a variety of screenshots in the gallery below.
Farming Simulator 15 tasks players with managing and developing their own farm. This includes harvesting resources and taking care of animals such as cows, chicken, and sheep. You’ll also need to sell your products and invest in more and better vehicles and power tools.
The game also includes a new activity: woodcutting, along with vehicles and tools dedicated to the craft. In all, Farming Simulator includes more than 140 vehicles and farming tools, including some that are exclusive to the console editions. Popular farming brands including New Holland, Ponsse, Case IH, Deutz-Fahr, MAN, and Liebherr are represented in the game.
Speaking in the latest issue of Edge magazine, as reported by GamesRadar, Spencer was asked for his thoughts about not having a competitive device to launch against Sony’s PlayStation 4 headset, Project Morpheus. Spencer replied: “It’s more of an announcement than anybody really having any VR stuff right now–and that’s not a shot at Sony. I mean, it’s hard tech, and I think it’s great what they’re doing with Morpheus. But they’ve announced [it for] the first half of 2016, so a little over a year from now.”
“I don’t think VR is a now thing. I’m not saying it’s five years from now, but it’s not really a now now thing” — Spencer
Overall, Spencer said he sees VR as “an interesting space,” and one that’s different than what Microsoft is doing in the “mixed reality” sector with HoloLens. All the same, Spencer stressed that, “there’s nothing that precludes us from doing something in the VR space.”
“There are partners out there, and while these guys are PC-based today, if we want to do something with Xbox… Right now, it’s just been about technologies and things that I think we need to do on Xbox One to make the experience better, and that’s where our focus has been,” Spencer added. “And I don’t think VR is a now thing. I’m not saying it’s five years from now, but it’s not really a now now thing.”
In addition, Spencer teased that various VR companies are “very interested” in bringing Microsoft’s Minecraft franchise to VR. No official projects have been announced, but Microsoft did show off a Minecraft HoloLens tech demo back in January. He also reiterated that Microsoft is currently exploring gaming opportunities for HoloLens, explaining that, while traditional VR experiences like Oculus or Morpheus are tethered to a PC or console, HoloLens aims to differentiate itself by being untethered in nature. But for people who do own an Xbox or PC, there could be gaming potential there with HoloLens.
“Now we can say, ‘Well, OK, if I do have an Xbox or a PC, what are those scenarios?’ We haven’t publicly talked about what those are, but you can imagine, as we continue to drive and get success with HoloLens, those scenarios will become obvious and developers will take advantage of them,” Spencer said.
The full interview with Spencer is available in the latest issue of Edge Magazine, which you can buy online right here. The issue also features more coverage for Wii U shooter Splatoon and a new interview with veteran Capcom designer Yoshinori Ono, among other things.
What’s your reaction to Spencer’s comments about VR? Let us know in the comments below!
“Call of Duty: Black Ops III is the first title for next-gen hardware in the critically acclaimed Black Ops series,” reads a line from the description, referencing Xbox One and PlayStation 4. The game is also likely to come to PC, though it’s unclear if Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 will be supported this time around.
In terms of story, Black Ops III is set in a “dark, twisted future where a new breed of Black Ops soldier emerges and the lines are blurred between our own humanity and the technology we created to stay ahead, in a world where cutting-edge military robotics define warfare.”
We also have now learned that Black Ops III will feature three main modes: Campaign, Multiplayer, and Zombies. All of this comes together to deliver the “deepest and most ambitious Call of Duty ever,” Activision writes. Black Ops III developer created the now-popular Zombies mode, delivering the first iteration of it in 2008’s Call of Duty: World at War.
Meanwhile, the Treyarch Facebook page has recently been sharing news stories about biohacking, suggesting this may play some role in Black Ops III. Given the “new breed of Black Ops soldier” referenced above, this definitely sounds possible.
2010’s original Black Ops was set primarily in the 1960s, while 2012’s Black Ops II took place in the 1980s and 2025.
In addition, Twitter user ThaTiemsz has posted what they call official Black Ops III art (see above). This picture was apparently found on the Call of Duty website, though we’ve been unable to find it ourselves.
Activision plans to formally reveal more details about Black Ops III on Sunday, April 26. The game is due out this fall, and will be a follow-up to Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare.
Shuhei Yoshida, the Sony executive who presides over internal games development, has asked fans to send across their ideas and requests for PlayStation 4 system features.
Writing on Twitter, Yoshida said that all ideas should be sent to his colleague Toshimasa Aoki, who can be found here. One fan has already asked for the PS4 to introduced uncompressed screenshot support; an idea which Aoki said he would look into.
.@toshimasa_aoki works on new PS4 features and Project Morpheus. You can send Toshi your feedback and requests, that will help us. 🙂
Yoshida has in the past been a key point of contact for PlayStation 4 owners who request new ideas for the system. During the console’s launch in late 2013, the executive heard numerous requests for the console to introduce DLNA and MP3 support, the latter of which was introduced twelve months later, as part of the Masamune firmware update.
Microsoft is preparing to deploy an Xbox 360 upgrade that will allow the console to support external hard drives with a capacity as big as two Terabytes.
Presently, the size limit for Xbox 360 external hard drives is 32GB. However, that theoretically can double to 64GB, because the console can connect to two external drives simultaneously. With this new update, that means the total possible external hard-drive capacity has ballooned to four Terabytes.
Writing on the ‘Major Nelson’ blog, Xbox executive Larry Hryb said that the console update would arrive “later in the year”. Preview members, however, can try the new feature straight away.
In March, Microsoft revealed that its Xbox One preview program–which allows participants to beta test new system-wide features–has expanded to the Xbox 360.
In November, the Xbox 360 will mark its tenth year on the market. The system has sold 83 million units worldwide.
Bungie has detailed several new features and gameplay changes that will be added to Destiny via the upcoming 1.1.2 patch.
Key among them is a new approach to ammo drops in the Crucible multiplayer mode. Speaking on the Destiny website, Crucible designer Kevin Yanes said that Special and Heavy ammo drops will be more limited resources to help balance matches.
“Special Ammo will spawn less frequently, it will take longer to pick up, there will be less crates located on the map, and the bricks you find will provide you with less ammo,” he explained.
For Heavy ammo, players will no longer have the option to camp near supplies and retrieve them when necessary. Instead, Heavy ammo will despawn if not picked up within a period of time.
“The main thing we wanted to prevent in terms of Heavy Ammo was players trying to buffer their supply by sitting within range of a brick without picking it up,” Yanes added.
“This hurts your ability to anticipate when heavy ammo would be in play during a match. By introducing despawn conditions, we’re ensuring that players will have to acquire ammo when it becomes available, or risk losing it all together.”
Meanwhile, the update will also include a safeguard that is hoped will prevent players from accidentally deleting their hard-earned items and weapons. With the new update, players can “lock” their items by highlighting them and pressing the right thumb-stick.
“One recurring story we keep seeing involves Legendary and Exotic gear getting accidentally dismantled by errant pets and over-enthusiastic children,” said UI engineer Daniel Hanson.
“We decided to empower players to protect their precious gear with Item Locking.”
Along with the Crucible changes and Item Lock feature, Bungie is also introducing more ways for players to express themselves. With the 1.1.2 update, players will now be free to wear any of their helmets in the Tower social space.
Artist Andrew Davis explains: “The design team came to us wondering if we could give players the option to show off their sweet helmets while running around the Tower. We all agreed that it’s important to give players every opportunity to show off the cool gear they’ve earned. It turned out to be a fairly quick UI task to turn helmets on in the Tower. Our engineers banged out the code for it in short order. All we had to do was figure out where to put the menu option. A number of locations in the UI were discussed. Character screen? Details screen? We decided that the Settings menu was the most obvious and easiest place to control this new feature.”
Bungie has yet to share a release date for the 1.1.2 update, but says it will be able to share the information “very soon.”
The developer will also announce the release date for Destiny‘s next expansion–House of Wolves–later in April.
