Archive - 2015

First Two Images of TV’s Supergirl Released

2015/03/06

Comics News, Geek News, Movie News, News, Screenshots / Photos

March 6, 2015 — Please find attached the first two images from CBS’s new pilot SUPERGIRL, from Warner Bros. Television and based on the characters from DC Comics.

SUPERGIRL stars Melissa Benoist as Kara Danvers/Kara Zor-El and Supergirl
The costume for Supergirl was designed by three-time Oscar® winner Colleen Atwood, who also designed the costumes for THE FLASH & ARROW and whose motion picture credits include Academy Awards® for her work on Alice in Wonderland, Memoirs of a Geisha and Chicago, as well as eight additional Oscar® nominations for films such as Into the Woods, Snow White and the Huntsman, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and Sleepy Hollow, among others
Colleen Atwood said, “In designing Supergirl, I wanted to embrace the past, but more importantly, thrust her into the street-style action hero of today.”
Production begins on the SUPERGIRL pilot this week

Born on the planet Krypton, Kara Zor-El escaped amid its destruction years ago. Since arriving on Earth, she’s been hiding the powers she shares with her famous cousin. But now at age 24, she decides to embrace her superhuman abilities and become the hero she was destined to be.

The SUPERGIRL pilot is from executive producers/writers Greg Berlanti, Ali Adler and Andrew Kreisberg. Sarah Schechter is also executive producing, with Glen Winter directing.

Based on the characters from DC Comics, SUPERGIRL is produced by Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television.

SUPERGIRL Images

Blackrock Mountain Coming to Hearthstone

2015/03/06

boothby

Geek News, Mobile News, News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News

BOSTON, MA.—March 6, 2015—Blizzard Entertainment revealed today what’s in the cards for Hearthstone®: Heroes of Warcraft^™ —an all-new Adventure that will challenge brave duelists to venture forth from the comfort of the tavern and plunge into the depths of Blackrock Mountain^™! The newest addition to Hearthstone’s Adventure Mode will introduce a slew of new hot-headed bosses to put players’ dueling skills to the test.

The Blackrock Mountain Adventure thrusts Hearthstone players into the middle of a war between powerful forces battling for control of the mountain. There, duelists will encounter fierce minions, including Dark Iron dwarves, fire elementals, and dragons, before facing off against iconic menaces from theWarcraft® universe, such as Ragnaros, the Firelord. Card-slingers who take down these villains will reap a mighty reward—31 scorching new cards inspired by the legendary mountain and its denizens, bringing a wealth of new tactical options to the ever-evolving Hearthstone metagame.

Coming this April to PC, Windows and Android^™ tablets, and iPad®, Blackrock Mountain will open up one wing per week over the course of a month. As with the game’s first Adventure, Curse of Naxxramas, it will be accessible for either 700 in-game gold per wing or $6.99 per wing, with the entire Adventure purchasable for $24.99. Further details, including specific launch timing, will be announced in the weeks ahead. Preorders (real money only) for Blackrock Mountain will be available starting March 19, and will include an exclusive card back to those duelists ready to take on what lies within the mountain when it opens.

To read up on all things Blackrock Mountain, visit www.playhearthstone.com.

Bone Yard Effects Premieres Interactive Exhibit at ScareLA 2015

2015/03/06

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, Halloween, News

LOS ANGELES (Friday, March 6, 2015) – ScareLA, the Southern California convention dedicated to Halloween, is pleased to announce the premiere of an exclusive interactive exhibit “Angels & Demons” by renowned makeup artist Larry Bones of Bone Yard Effects, this August 8 and 9 at the Pasadena Convention Center. A fan favorite for the past two years, Bones returns to ScareLA accompanied by over two dozen talented artists to transform select ScareLA attendees into beautiful and terrifying creatures from the supernatural.

“I’m so excited to bring Bone Yard Effects back to ScareLA this year,” says Larry Bones, founder of Bone Yard Effects. “I have loved being part of this awesome event for the past two years, and am amazed by how fast it is growing. As ScareLA gets bigger, we at Bone Yard have the opportunity to grow as well. I’m pleased to announce Bone Yard’s ‘Angels & Demons’ presentation. A huge team of Bone Yard artists will create either an angel or a demon character from head to toe, each with its own unique attributes. You’ll see over twenty five different characters over the weekend, and will have the opportunity to get a photo with them on our display stage. We look forward to seeing you all at ScareLA 2015!”

Bone Yard’s “Angels & Demons” demonstration will culminate in a small army of over 25 creatures roaming the show floor, interacting with guests, and making themselves available for unforgettable photo opps. The installation spurs from the convention’s unique focus on creating high quality immersive entertainment. It is to complement over a dozen onsite mini-haunts and experiences only found at ScareLA.

“Every year, Larry gives his Bone Yard Effects crew a new makeup challenge to unveil at ScareLA, and every year, they top themselves with even more creative and scarier creatures that end up wandering our show floor” says David Markland, Executive Producer of ScareLA. Co-producer and ScareLA founder Lora Ivanova adds, “In addition to his team’s amazing artistry, Larry offers an invaluable learning opportunity for makeup enthusiasts and professionals. Every step of the creature transformation shows tips from one of Hollywood’s greatest. We can’t wait to see what he creates with us this year.”

Since 2006, Larry Bones has been the department head of Makeup and Hair for Universal Studios Hollywood’s blockbuster event, Halloween Horror Nights in Los Angeles. Each season, Bones oversees the transformation of hundreds of men and women into horrific monsters that lurk in the theme park’s mazes and fog-choked scare zones. His extensive list of film and television credits include Scary Movie 2, Congo, Dawson’s Creek and Roseanne.

In addition to film and themed entertainment production work, Bones offers a line of hand-made consumer-level foam latex prosthetics, FX Faces, which will also be on display at the Bone Yard Effects booth during ScareLA. They are available for purchase online at www.boneyardfx.com.

Less than 48 hours are left of the ScareLA 50% off tickets pre-sale discount. Pre-sale ends Friday, March 13. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit: www.scarela.com.

New Cities: Skylines Video Dev Diary

2015/03/06

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News

STOCKHOLM – March 5, 2015 – Paradox Interactive and Colossal Order, rumored to be secretly constructing the eighth wonder of the world, have today released the final installment of their video developer diary series for Cities: Skylines, the highly anticipated city simulation game for PC, Mac and Linux set to break ground on March 10th!

Lifting the lid on a variety of clever systems within the game to make your job of building your perfect working metropolis as streamlined as possible, the brand new video diary highlights that Cities: Skylines isn’t just a looker but has smarts too!

To uncover just what a clever game Cities: Skylines is, watch the brand new developer diary:

Never before seen in a city builder, Cities: Skylines contains the first integrated Dynamic Water System giving all the rivers and estuaries within the game real-world mass and direction. This will mean that you must think carefully where to place your water services to ensure that your city’s waste will go downstream and that you don’t pollute your population’s water supply!

The video developer diary also explores Zoning within the game, built to enable you to reasonably simulate a realistic city of up to one million people, along with the District Tool and the Economic Simulation model.

Players of Cities: Skylines will have total control in endless sandbox city-building gameplay across massive maps, allowing them to design and manage the metropolis of their dreams. Vast backdrops and maps provide players with countless ways to improve and expand their cities, while extensive modding support allows players to design everything from in-game parks and buildings to new landscapes.

Cities: Skylines can be pre-ordered at www.citiesskylines.com.

Rapoo A500 Bluetooth Speaker – A Review

2015/03/06

Judgeman

Geek News, News, Reviews, Tech News, Tech Review

Music is a very important part of my life. For me to really be happy and productive at work, I have to have some music playing in my office. This means that bluetooth speakers are a must for me. This week, Rapoo sent me not one but two bluetooth speakers to play with and review for you all, the Rapoo A500 and the A3060. We are going to start with the larger A500, and do the A3060 in it’s own review.

Packaging and Aesthetics
The A500 comes in a nice clear package from Rapoo, so you can see exactly what you are getting with this speaker. The speaker measures a small 5.5 inches in length, 2.5 inches tall, and roughly 1.5 inches deep rectangle shape. The A500 comes in six colors (red, white, green, blue, black, and yellow) and is packaged with a USB cable for charging, a 3.5 jack cable to connect your non-bluetooth devices, and a carrying bag for the speaker. The speaker I received was the black one, and I did like the overall aesthetic look of the A500. For me, the look of the device, especially in black, is meant to me a bit more stealthy to the eye. This speaker can hide out on top of your shelf and play music, without drawing attention to itself.

Connectivity
Pairing to the A500 through a bluetooth device is an easy task by simply using the bluetooth connectivity of your device. What I really liked about the A500 as a bluetooth device, is that I can use the device even if the On/Off switch on the back is turned to Off. I don’t have to worry about having to get up and turning on the device just to listen to music, which is fantastic if you put your speaker up high like I did.

Hands Free
The A500 can also be used as a hands free device, thanks to the microphone in the speaker. Sound quality as a hands free device is just ok. I had a hard time hearing some people through the speaker as I drove. Also, due to the size of the speaker, I just didn’t have a great place to put it in my car. Sure, some two sided tape could do the trick, but then you got this speaker attached to your dashboard. No thanks, I would rather just keep my headset.

Sound
Ok, now for the important part, the sound quality of the A500. The volume range of the A500 is decent enough for it’s size. It’s loud enough to listen to music in a good size room, without being over powering. The overall sound quality is good for the size of the speakers, but the bass is really lacking in the A500. Playing anything that relies on heavy bass through the A500 is an exercise in disappointment. The high and low notes sound clean, but the bass is just not there.

Final Thoughts
Overall, when it comes to the most important aspect of any speaker, the A500 just comes up ordinary. The speaker itself is designed nicely and comes with everything you need to connect to all your current audio devices, but the sound quality is just average for me. The Rapoo A500 will run you about $45 US, so depending on your need for a speaker and what you are looking for, the price could be a determining factor on whether or not you will enjoy the A500. For me, I would rather spend a little more money on a speaker that can hit the bass a little harder.

[easyreview title=”Product Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”3″ ]

Las Vegas Super Toy Convention (Gallery)

2015/03/06

Ripper71

Comics News, Geek News, News, Screenshots / Photos

The Las Vegas Super Toy Convention was held in a little section of Circus Circus this year and like many things in Vegas they tend to play big even when in a small space. This was my first year attending but there was a lot of talent and vendors crammed into the convention area with over 6,000 attendees showing up, mostly on Saturday.

The convention has been around a few years but is still trying to get a bit organized. Enough comic vendors showed up that they changed the name to the Las Vegas Super Toy Comic Convention on some of their literature but not on other things. If you hear someone talking about either one they are both the same show.

The cosplayer tables didn’t get set up until Saturday so that also caused a bit of confusion but it was nice to see them circulating. Then the cosplay stage wasn’t setup on Saturday the ladies stepped up and got it running and done then setup their own panel room on Sunday. There was a definite feel like they didn’t expect the success of cosplayers arriving but with Las Vegas being such a hub for it and large communities nearby in SoCal and AZ I think it could really grow into a larger part of the event. Kudos to AZ Power Girl, Wind Of The Stars. Anti Ai Chan, Cosplay Butterfly, and Mzre Yuen for taking control of the cosplay events and making them run.

The guest stars were definitely the big draws to the event and not all that you might expect. There was an amazing line for the Ric Flair signing, The Nature Boy really drew them in with a long line being kept secure by the 501st Battalion (huge Star Wars primarily stormtrooper and imperial cosplay group). It is quite a sight to see tons of wrestling geeks being kept in line by half a dozen stormtroopers and an imperial guard. Most people expected Ric Flair to be loud but it was the suspendered and bowtie sporting All American Boy Bob Backlund who during photo ops headlocked his fans and shouted in a voice so loud that people jumped at the other end of the convention and the official photographer missed the shot half the time due to shock. For a guy who has been around the ring a few times he is still quite a sight.

There were a few celebs from the film world there too, Jennifer Rubin from movies such as Nightmare On Elm St. 3: The Dream Warriors (she was the punker dreamer, a fave in my house), Screamers and the sleeper film Bad Dreams is still stunning and stops you with a smile. Daeg Faerch who played young Michael Myers in Rob Zombie’s Halloween movies has grown into a cool young man that you might not recognize until you make eye contact and see that wicked stare.

On the subject of Halloween, one of my favorite poster designs done for the first Halloween was made by Joe Simko, most notably known as one of the main artists on Garbage Pail Kids trading cards. He has also put out Stoopid Heroes and my personal favorite Cereal Killers. I commissioned him to create a custom Garbage Pail Kids comic cover with a Halloween theme based off Nasty Nick. It is now a prize to be hung in my Halloween room. Simko is also taking part in a Garbage Pail Kids documentary so keep an eye out for that.

When all the above is said and done it is after all a toy convention and that was not forgotten. Big wigs from Mattel and designers from Hot Wheels and WWE action figures were on hand to talk shop and show off the new lines. Bill Miekina showed off a Sting action figure with him holding his bat that is sure to sell out quick when they hit the market later this year. The Arizona Outlaws were there with a 50 foot race track to race Hot Wheels on and gave away thousands of dollars worth of Hot Wheels cars to kids and kids at heart who came up and wanted to get into the race. They added a ton of excitement and a lot of smiles to the event and I look forward to seeing them again.

The Las Vegas Super Toy Convention has it’s rough spots but it is still growing and adapting and I can’t wait to see what they bring us next year.

Las Vegas Super Toy Convention Gallery

Rapoo A3060 Bluetooth Speaker – A Review

2015/03/06

Judgeman

Geek News, News, Reviews, Tech News, Tech Review

Part two of my bluetooth speaker week wraps up with my review of the Rapoo A3060 bluetooth speaker. The A3060 speaker is a smaller and cheaper speaker in comparison to the A500, with less features and connectivity to it’s larger and more expensive cousin. However, I ended up liking the A3060 more, due to it’s sound quality.

Packaging and Aesthetics
The Rapoo 3060 only comes with one connector out of the package, and that is a USB charger for the speaker itself. The A3060 is a nice, round speaker that stands about an 2 inches tall and about 1.5 inches wide. The A3060 comes in six metallic colors: yellow, black, green, silver, gold, and blue. I received the yellow version of the A3060, and have to say I like the way it looks. It’s small and round, so it does not take up much room on a crowded desk. The speaker design allows for a 360 degree listening arc, so no matter where it gets placed you will hear the music.

Connectivity
The A3060 can only be connected to a bluetooth device, it does not come with a 3.5 jack like the A500 does. This meant that I could not play anything from my non-bluetooth Ipod. Connecting the A3060 to a bluetooth device is simple enough, like it should be these days. I was able to stream Pandora through the A3060 at work with no troubles at all, until I would forget that my phone was in my pocket and I would walk out the door. Range on the bluetooth is decent enough to keep your phone in the same room as the speaker, but walk out with the phone and you will find that you are out of range of the speaker rather quickly.

The A3060 also has voice commands, which I assume are there to help you connect your device. I say assume since the voice commands where in Chinese and not English, so I did not understand a thing that the A3060 said to me.

Hands Free
The A3060 can also be used as a hands free device for communications. Like the A500, the A3060 really didn’t work out well as a hands free device due to the sound quality of both the microphone and the speaker when trying to talk to someone. Unlike the A500, the A3060 fit nicely in a cup holder in my car and didn’t slide around. You are just better of using the A3060 as a speaker and not a hands free device.

Sound
Sometimes spending more money does not always mean you will get the better product. When compared to the more expensive A500, the A3060 has a much deeper sound quality to it due to the design. Bass sounds much better on the A3060 then on the A500, while the highs and lows sounds just as clean. This gives the A3060 the edge over the A500 just on sound quality alone, and would be the better buy if it wasn’t for the lack of the 3.5 jack.

Final Thoughts
The A3060, for my money, is the better speaker compared to the A500 in sound quality, and in portability. However, what you gain in quality of sound, you will loose in connectivity. What would have made the A3060 a fantastic speaker instead of a good speaker would have been the addition of a 3.5 jack so you could connect your non-bluetooth devices to the speaker. Still, for something that will run you about $30 US, the A3060 is a decent quality speaker with some decent sound for its size. I just hope your Mandarin is up to speed if you want to understand the voice commands.

[easyreview title=”Product Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”3″ ]

Evil Twin Studios Announces 2015 Haunted House

2015/03/05

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, Halloween, News

Evil Twin Studios, the dementedly-brilliant folks behind last year’s Raymond Hill Mortuary (See Our Review Here) have announced that they will once again be scaring the masses this October. In an email blast this morning, the group stated:

All new haunted house experience coming Halloween season 2015!
We are thrilled to announce that Evil Twin Studios will once again make nightmares come true in South Pasadena. In addition to a new theme, we will be scaring at anew location just down the street from our previous haunts. Proceeds from our 2015 haunt will benefit the South Pasadena Educational Foundation (SPEF). More disturbing details coming soon.

Logitech Unveils G303 Daedalus Apex Performance Edition Gaming Mouse

2015/03/05

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, News, Peripherals News

NEWARK, Calif. — March 5, 2015 — Logitech (SIX: LOGN) (NASDAQ: LOGI), a leading innovator of gaming peripherals, today introduced its newest Logitech G mouse, the Logitech® G303 Daedalus Apex Performance Edition Gaming Mouse. Designed based on feedback from the gaming enthusiast and eSports community, the Logitech G303 features the Logitech G exclusive Delta Zero™ optical sensor technology for precision targeting, and metal spring button tensioning system in a lightweight, compact form.

“The community sent us a clear message that they wanted the lightweight, symmetrical design of our G302 combined with the amazing sensor in our G502,” said Ujesh Desai, vice president and general manager of the Logitech gaming business. “We took this feedback and built a mouse that was tuned and tested by pros to help ensure improved accuracy, comfort and performance. Thanks to you and this feedback, we’ve built an amazing product.”

The Logitech G303 features one of the most advanced optical sensors available in gaming mice today and reflects Logitech’s ongoing commitment to leveraging science to design products that help gamers win. The Logitech G303 also incorporates RGB customizable lighting color and brightness to match your style, system or environment.

“The G303 Daedalus Apex gives us a definite advantage,” said Sean “sg@res” Gares of Cloud9, CS:GO. “This mouse offers a comfortable feel with a lightweight, ambidextrous grip.”

Advanced Optical Sensor

This performance-oriented mouse features Logitech’s best optical sensor for maximum tracking accuracy. Our exclusive Delta Zero optical sensor technology minimizes speed-related accuracy variance, commonly known as “mouse acceleration,” for improved accuracy and precision targeting. Combining a huge DPI range of 200 all the way up to 12,000 with zero smoothing, this mouse delivers unparalleled tracking performance and responsiveness, and tracks movement at 300 inches per second. The optical sensor can also be tuned to achieve optimum lift-off distancde and maximum tracking speeds on any gaming surface, so you can always get the best possible tracking response.

Performance-Driven Design

The Logitech G303 delivers the utmost accuracy, responsiveness and performance in a lightweight, compact and durable design. The Logitech G exclusive metal spring tensioning system reduces pre-travel, resulting in improved button responsiveness and feel. The left and right click buttons have also been tested for 20 million clicks – which is the equivalent of a top professional gamer practicing 10 hours per day for two years – so you can confidently game for hours on end.

RGB Customizable Lighting

For maximum visual appeal, full-color RGB lighting on the Logitech G303 projects light onto your mouse pad and can be customized from a palette of up to 16.8 million colors. You can bring your mouse to life with “breathing” light patterns, or set your lighting to sleep when you aren’t using your system.

Pricing and Availability

The Logitech G303 Daedalus Apex Performance Edition Gaming Mouse is expected to be available in the U.S. and Europe beginning in March 2015, for a suggested retail price of $69.99. For more information please visit gaming.logitech.com or our blog.

Rock Band 4 Announced

2015/03/05

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, PlayStation 4 News, Trailers / Videos, Xbox One News

Cambridge, Mass. – March 5th, 2015 – Harmonix is excited to announce that it is teaming up with Mad Catz to bring Rock Band™ 4, the next generation of the award-winning social and interactive music gaming platform, to PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system and Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft®.

Players can guarantee that they can be ready to rock with new hardware on release day by signing up to be alerted when pre-orders go live at http://www.rockband.com/preorder.

Additionally, fans attending PAX East in Boston between March 6 and March 8 can pre-order an exclusive Penny Arcade-themed guitar in person at Harmonix’s booth, #4224.

START A BAND. ROCK THE WORLD.

Rock Band 4 brings the critically-acclaimed franchise to a new generation of consoles, focusing on the features and gameplay that people love, and expanding the franchise in innovative ways that were informed by how fans play and what they want.

“With Rock Band 4, we’re doubling down on the energy and excitement of playing music live with your friends,” says Harmonix Chief Executive Officer Steve Janiak. “Focusing on the core experience that our fans have told us they love allows us to evolve established gameplay in meaningful ways that we can’t wait to share with everyone later this year.”

“We couldn’t be happier to be working with Harmonix and help bring the band back together for the launch of Rock Band 4,” added Darren Richardson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz. “Harmonix possesses unrivalled passion and vision for music gaming and we can’t wait to introduce the next generation music platform to passionate gamers.”

Harmonix will reveal to its fans more details about exciting new features of Rock Band 4 this coming May.

STILL THE MOST MUSIC. PERIOD.

In addition to a killer on-disc soundtrack, Rock Band 4 will support over 2000 tracks released since the 2007 launch of the original Rock Band, accounting for more than 500 of rock music’s most legendary artists.

“Since the beginning, we’ve called Rock Band a music platform. Players responded by downloading hundreds of their favorite tracks, and building a massive library of playable music,” says Rock Band 4 Product Manager Daniel Sussman. “It’s important for us to respect those purchases and enable our fans to bring that content over to the Rock Band platform on new generation consoles.”

Players who’ve purchased or downloaded playable tracks on last-generation consoles will be able to download and play those tracks on their new platforms at no additional charge*. Hundreds of tracks will be available at launch, with more back catalog music – and new tracks – to be added regularly after launch.

CELEBRATE WITH FREE DOWNLOADABLE CONTENT FOR ROCK BAND 3, AVAILABLE NOW

To celebrate the long-awaited announcement of Rock Band 4, Harmonix is offering a free downloadable track. “I Still Believe,” recorded by UK-based songwriter Frank Turner for his fourth EP, Rock & Roll, is available now for download today, free of charge, on PlayStation®3 and Xbox 360®. Playable today in Rock Band 3 and Rock Band Blitz, this is one of the hundreds of songs that will be compatible with Rock Band 4 when it ships later this year for PlayStation®4 and Xbox One!

Rock Band 4 will be available later this year. For more information, head over to http://www.harmonixmusic.com and follow @RockBand on Twitter for updates.