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F1 2018 Gameplay Trailer Released

Larkspur, Calif. – July 31, 2018 – Codemasters® has released the first full gameplay video for F1® 2018, the official videogame of the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship™, which reveals the incredible depth and feature set of this year’s game. Launching onto PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, the Xbox One family of devices including the Xbox One X and Windows PC on August 24, 2018, F1® 2018 lets you follow the path and career of an F1® driver like never before.

Featuring the most in-depth career mode ever seen in the franchise, 20 classic cars from the history of the sport, and new stunning visuals, F1® 2018 takes F1® gaming to the next level.

The new trailer is available to view now at www.youtube.com/formula1game.

“This is the most complete F1® experience that Codemasters has ever created,” said Game Director Lee Mather. “The Career mode is the central point of the game and has been greatly expanded with the inclusion of pressurized press interviews that will directly affect your path through the sport. There is also far more flexibility for the player, including the ability to select your own rival and negotiate team moves during the season. The Career mode also expands the player’s research and development options, with each F1® team now having its own unique technology tree with differing strengths and weaknesses. What’s more, F1® 2018’s Career will also feature significant rule changes between seasons during the Career for the first time.

“The game’s handling has also been reworked using real world F1® data to give us new suspension and chassis physics, as well as the introduction of manually deployed ERS. This all means that the cars feel great to drive and you can really feel the difference between the modern cars and the 20 classics there are in the game. There is a huge contrast between the low aero, low grip cars from the 1970s compared to the 2018 cars.”

As well as improvements to the career, classics and simulation, F1® 2018 has also undergone a significant graphical uplift with the inclusion of new visual elements, including environmental mist, heat haze, track mirage effects, new engine heat haze and off racing line dirt kick-up which brings it even closer to the real sport.

When playing online, the game’s new Super License system is designed to minimize the effects of poor driving in multiplayer races. Players are rated on their skill levels and driver etiquette and then matched with other gamers of a similar ability and driving style.

F1® 2018 is the official game of the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship™ and features all of the official teams, drivers and circuits from the thrilling season. This includes the return of the iconic Hockenheimring and the addition of the FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE at the Circuit Paul Ricard.

Follow Codemasters F1 games blog (http://blog.codemasters.com/f1/) and social channels on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Formula1game) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/formula1game) for future updates.

Fantastic Fest 2018 First Wave of Films

Austin, TX – Tuesday, July 31, 2018 – Entering its 14th year of celebrating offbeat and brilliant cinema, this installment sees Fantastic Fest bring the very best in mind-melting mayhem and madness from all corners of the globe, which also includes a cinematic trip back in time to South Korea, highlighting a period of filmmaking that was mad, bad and dangerous to know!

Fantastic Fest is thrilled to present the World Premiere of the bone-chilling World War II horror-thriller OVERLORD, produced by J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot, with director Julius Avery and stars Jovan Adepo, Wyatt Russell, Pilou Asbaek, John Magaro and Mathilde Ollivier in attendance. This exhilarating, nerve-shredding ride tells the story of American paratroopers dropped into occupied France on the eve of D-Day who discover a secret Nazi lab carrying out terrifying and bizarre supernatural experiments.

Fantastic Fest alumni return to the festival in a dual threat that promises to shock, awe and conquer audiences. First up APOSTLE sees Gareth Evans’ (THE RAID) take on the folk horror genre with Dan Stevens as a mysterious man infiltrating a sinister cult headed by Michael Sheen to rescue his sister with eye-gouging results. Then, Timo Tjahjanto pits Joe Taslim against Iko Uwais (THE RAID) in THE NIGHT COMES FOR US, an action thriller where the body count breaks new records in bone-crunching fights, venomous violence and dynamic destruction!

Fantastic Fest’s mission to bring the best of genre continues to flourish with a worldwide group of films headed to Austin for a celebration unlike any other. Leading the pack is returning comedic genius Quentin Dupieux (RUBBER) with his unexpected tale of a police interrogation during a murder investigation over the course of one night in the North American Premiere of KEEP AN EYE OUT. Director Alejandro Fadel’s cerebral Cannes shocker MURDER ME, MONSTER will also have its North American Premiere at the festival. Sensational shot-on-16mm psychotropic horror LUZ will be in Austin for its U.S. Premiere, and the thrilling Swedish independent blockbuster THE UNTHINKABLE will blast the audience with its European take on a nation-under-siege big-budget spectacle at its World Premiere.

Other Fantastic Fest highlights include a focus on global female genre filmmakers who are blasting through the silver screen with distinctive and brilliant features. From Ukraine, Marysia Nikitiuk explores the clash between old world values and young love in a visually charged fusion of genres in WHEN THE TREES FALL. Spain’s Sonia Escolano turns up the tension in her mesmerising treatise on religion, faith and belief in HOUSE OF SWEAT AND TEARS. Isabella Eklof brings her Sundance critical hit HOLIDAY to the fest all the way from Denmark. And finally, alumna Amanda Kramer makes an unforgettable mark with her distinctive debut LADYWORLD, a post-apocalyptic, daring probe into the darkest reaches of the teenage female mind.

Fantastic Fest turns its eye to South Korea and explores the Korean Quota Quickies, a period in the 1970s which saw filmmaking flourish despite stifling ideological censorship thanks to a quota system which required a strict number of local productions be made for each of the foreign films imported. Although most of these were rushed productions, clever directors used the system to their advantage to sneak strange and daring content past producers, directors and censors. Fantastic Fest is going to present two very rarely seen films from the period: BANGREUMYEON from director Kim Ki-Young, one of Park Chan-Wook’s directing idols, and QUIT YOUR LIFE from director Park Nou-Sik, who provided the literal roadmap for all Korean revenge movies to come.”To be able to highlight a period of Korean cinema that is largely unknown in North America is a brilliant opportunity to not only re-discover what shaped the modern Korean cinema we all know and love, but also a great way to tap into the sheer electric creative force running through the films as shaped by the strict authoritarian environment they were created in,” says FF Creative Director Evrim Ersoy. The festival will also bring the best of modern Korean cinema to the festival including Lee Chang-dong’s critical Cannes hit BURNING.

AGFA (the American Genre Film Archive) triumphantly returns to the festival with a trio of restorations all receiving the World Premiere treatment. ’80s shot-on-video epic BLOOD LAKE is restored from the 1″ master tapes and arrives alongside a double bill of I WAS A TEENAGE SERIAL KILLER and MARY JANE’S NOT A VIRGIN ANYMORE, celebrating the punk riot grrrl feminist cinema of Sarah Jacobson, both in brand new 2K preservations. Plus the highly-anticipated World Premiere of MANIAC, restored lovingly from the once-thought-lost 16mm negatives into 4K; with director William Lusting in attendance!
A bizarre trio of animation from across the world arrives at the festival to showcase the most daring, dangerous and unique styles. From Japan and the demented mind of Ujicha comes VIOLENCE VOYAGER, a stop-motion cornucopia of mesmerising madness. From Chile, directing duo Cristóbal León and Joaquín Cociña’s breathtaking WOLF HOUSE, featuring perhaps the most inherently sinister and chilling story in any film this year. And finally, from Czech Republic and building on the great Czech puppet animation tradition arrives Aurel Klimt’s delightfully untrue but entertaining story of the first dog in space, LAIKA.

Fantastic Fest also sees expansion within its advisory board with the addition of new member Curran Nault. Nault, who is the Founder and the Artistic Director of the queer transmedia arts festival OUTsider, says, ‘”It’s an honor to join the Fantastic Fest Board at this pivotal moment in its evolution. I’m beyond ecstatic to lend my voice to the extraordinary creative fray already underway this year.” He’s the sixth member of the FF advisory board, which also includes Kier-La Janisse, Suki Rose-Simakis, Elijah Wood, Peter Kuplowsky and Kristen Bell.

Finally, building up on last year’s successful launch, Fantastic Fest Satellite Markets are back! They’ll be showing best of the festival titles including CAM, THE GUILTY, this season’s scariest film TERRIFIED and many more to come in Denver, San Francisco and New York. Details for the Satellite Markets can be found on the satellite landing page, here!

FIRST WAVE FILM LINEUP BELOW:

APOSTLE
United Kingdom, 2018
World Premiere, 129 min
Director – Gareth Evans
The year is 1905. Thomas Richardson travels to a remote island to rescue his sister after she’s kidnapped by a mysterious religious cult demanding a ransom for her safe return. It soon becomes clear that the cult will regret the day it baited this man, as he digs deeper and deeper into the secrets and lies upon which the commune is built.

BAN GEUM-RYEON
South Korea, 1981
Regional Premiere, 90 min
Director – Kim Ki-young
From Park Chan-wook’s idol comes a twisted tale of lecherous lords and murderous mistresses. Presented outside of Korea for only the second time, Kim Ki-young’s masterpiece BAN GEUM-RYEON is a lush smorgasbord from Korea’s most demented cinematic mind.

AGFA and BLEEDING SKULL PRESENT: BLOOD LAKE
USA, 1987
World Premiere of New Preservation, 82 min
Director – Tim Boggs
The finest vacation from hell ever captured on VHS, rescued from the original 1″ master tapes!

BURNING
South Korea, 2018
Texas Premiere, 148 min
Director – Lee Chang-dong
Lee Chang-dong’s latest triumph weighs the delicate balance between creation and destruction as a writer runs into an old classmate who gets him caught up in a mystery bigger than both of them.

CAM
USA, 2018
US Premiere, 94 min
Director – Daniel Goldhaber
In Attendance – Writer/Producer Isa Mazzei
Alice is a camgirl with principles. She doesn’t do public shows, she doesn’t tell her fans she loves them, and she doesn’t fake her orgasms. But when a mysterious lookalike takes over her channel, the rules no longer apply.

DOG
France, 2017
US Premiere, 87 min
Director – Samuel Benchetrit
A dark fable about loneliness, perfectly illustrated by Jacques Blanchot’s loss of humanity and slow transformation into a dog. Director Samuel Benchetrit shares a subtle commentary on our current world, and its social, interpersonal, and political issues.

AN EVENING WITH BEVERLY LUFF LINN
USA, 2018
Texas Premiere, 108 min
Director – Jim Hosking
Fantastic Fest alumni director Jim Hosking (THE GREASY STRANGLER; RENEGADES) is back with a second feature as absurd, crazy, and funny as his first. Follow Lulu Danger’s very own revolution in a Lynch-meets-Waters run-down version of America.

THE GUILTY
Denmark, 2018
Austin Premiere, 85 min
Director – Gustav Möller
A horrific crime; an emergency responder struggling to stay off the edge; a kidnapping victim calling in for help. This is all we’re going to tell you about first-time feature filmmaker Gustav Möller’s unmissable and gripping debut thriller.

HOLIDAY
Denmark, The Netherlands, Sweden, Turkey, 2018
Texas Premiere, 93 min
Director – Isabella Eklöf
The sun-drenched dream of the eponymous summer vacation has its dark side revealed in Isabella Eklöf’s powerful debut feature HOLIDAY, an unforgettable exploration of the fraught, brutal experience of young womanhood.

HOUSE OF SWEAT AND TEARS
Spain, 2018
World Premiere, 104 min
Director – Sonia Escolano
In Attendance – Director Sonia Escolano
“She,” the leader of a violent cult, rules her flock with an iron fist to ensure they never stray from the path. But a series of events and a mysterious outsider threaten the pattern of their reality in this electrifying exploration of faith and belief.

AGFA PRESENTS: I WAS A TEENAGE SERIAL KILLER
USA, 1993
World Premiere of New Restoration, 27 min
Director – Sarah Jacobson
Sarah Jacobson’s punk-spirited DIY films combine B-movie aesthetics and riot grrrl feminism in brand new 2K preservations.

KEEP AN EYE OUT
France, 2018
North American Premiere, 73 min
Director – Quentin Dupieux
An absurd all-night interrogation set in a camp ’70s police station, Quentin Dupieux’s latest opus, KEEP AN EYE OUT, is a celebration of his own brand of quirky, offbeat humor, performed by France’s most refreshing comedic talents.

LADYWORLD
USA, 2018
US Premiere, 93 min
Director – Amanda Kramer
In Attendance – Director Amanda Kramer and Actor/Co-Editor/Production Designer Noel David Taylor
In Amanda Kramer’s daring low-budget debut LADYWORLD, a birthday party quickly devolves into chaos when a mysterious earthquake traps eight teenage girls alone in a house, challenging their friendships, identities, and eventually their grip on reality.

LAIKA
Czech Republic, 2017
Regional Premiere, 88 min
Director – Aurel Klimt
In Attendance – Director Aurel Klimt
This is the story of Laïka the space dog who, unlike in real life, did not die aboard Sputnik 2 in 1957. In this bizarre and charming stop-motion musical, Laïka crashes on a peculiar planet where she meets new friends.

LUZ
Germany, 2018
US Premiere, 70 min
Director – Tilman Singer
In Attendance – Director Tilman Singer
Luz enters a police station at night to report an assault. As the interrogation progresses, it becomes clear a demonic entity wants to possess her in this audacious, psychotropic horror film shot on 16mm.

MADAM YANKELOVA’S FINE LITERATURE CLUB
Israel, 2018
International Premiere, 90 min
Director – Guilhad Emilio Schenker
Desperate, aging, Sophie only needs to seduce one more handsome victim – excuse me, date – to become a worry-free Lordess in MADAM YANKELOVA’S FINE LITERATURE CLUB, Israeli director Guilhad Emilio Schenker’s delightfully twisted debut feature.

MANIAC
USA, 1980
World Premiere of New 4K Restoration, 88 min
Director – William Lustig
In Attendance – Director William Lustig
The 4K restoration of grindhouse auteur Bill Lustig’s 1980 slasher landmark features splatter SFX artist Tom Savini’s gnarliest work, as well as one of horror’s finest, sweatiest performances from legendary character actor/co-writer Joe Spinell.

AGFA PRESENTS: MARY JANE’S NOT A VIRGIN ANYMORE
USA, 1997
World Premiere of New Restoration, 98 min
Director – Sarah Jacobson
Sarah Jacobson’s punk-spirited DIY films combine B-movie aesthetics and riot grrrl feminism in brand new 2K preservations.

MURDER ME, MONSTER
Argentina, France, Chile, 2018
North American Premiere, 109 min
Director – Alejandro Fadel
Visual horror masterpiece MURDER ME, MONSTER lures you into the fascinating and opaque underworld of serial murder, supernatural obsession, metaphysical hallucinations, forbidden love – and one nightmarishly gross monster.

THE NIGHT COMES FOR US
Indonesia, 2018
World Premiere, 121 min
Director – Timo Tjahjanto
A former triad enforcer must protect a young girl while trying to escape his former gang, setting off a violent battle on the streets of Jakarta.

THE NIGHT SHIFTER
Brazil, 2018
US Premiere, 110 min
Director – Dennison Ramalho
An attendant at a busy morgue who can also converse with the dead puts his loved ones in peril using his forbidden knowledge for vengeance in Dennison Ramalho’s (NINJAS; ABCS OF DEATH 2) twisted and gleefully icky feature debut.

ONE CUT OF THE DEAD
Japan, 2018
Texas Premiere, 96 min
Director – Shinichiro Ueda
A filmmaker sets out to shoot a zombie film in an abandoned factory, but something is lurking on the outside. Is it a zombie apocalypse or just another shoot gone wrong?

OPEN 24 HOURS
USA, Serbia, 2018
North American Premiere, 100 min
Director – Padraig Reynolds
In Attendance – Director Padraig Reynolds
A young woman who had previously set her serial killer boyfriend on fire is now seeking normalcy by getting a job working the overnight shift at a 24-hour convenience store, where things are most definitely not going to be normal.

OVERLORD
USA, 2018
World Premiere, TBD min
Director – Julius Avery
In Attendance – Director Julius Avery and cast including Jovan Adepo, Wyatt Russell, Pilou Asbaek, John Magaro, and Mathilde Ollivier
In the upcoming WWII horror-thriller OVERLORD, a group of American paratroopers drop into Nazi-occupied France on the eve of D-Day. As they struggle to carry out their seemingly impossible mission, they discover a secret Nazi lab carrying out terrifying and bizarre supernatural experiments.

PIERCING
USA, 2018
Texas Premiere, 81 min
Director – Nicolas Pesce
From the twisted mind of Nicolas Pesce (THE EYES OF MY MOTHER) comes a provocative two-hander chamberpiece – a tense battle of wits and desire between prostitute and trick, predator and prey.

QUIT YOUR LIFE
South Korea, 1971
North American Premiere, 82 min
Director – Park Nou-sik
Presented in English for the first time, actor-director Park Nou-sik balances the scales of justice as he stalks around Korea with his noose of judgment in the relentless revenge drama QUIT YOUR LIFE.

SCHOOL’S OUT
France, 2018
North American Premiere, 103 min
Director – Sébastien Marnier
In this dread-soaked cerebral thriller, a handsome young substitute teacher gets in over his head when taking on a class of gifted students after their former teacher’s dramatic in-class suicide.

TERRIFIED
Argentina, 2017
US Premiere, 87 min
Director – Demián Rugna
In Attendance – Director Demián Rugna
Strange things are going on in a Buenos Aires neighborhood. Demián Rugna’s constantly surprising and truly spine-chilling horror film has one goal: to scare the shit out of everyone.

THE UNTHINKABLE
Sweden, 2018
World Premiere, 129 min
Director – Crazy Pictures
Something unthinkable is happening in Sweden. It starts with a few isolated incidents but suddenly, it’s all over the country. There are some who were prepared and others who weren’t. Ready or not, things will go out with a bang!

VIOLENCE VOYAGER
Japan, 2018
Regional Premiere, 83 min
Director – Ujicha
En route to visit a friend in another village, two kids go looking for a fabled shortcut through the mountain. Instead, they stumble upon an amusement park called Violence Voyager, and that’s when everything goes to shit.

WHEN THE TREES FALL
Ukraine, Poland, Macedonia, 2018
North American Premiere, 88 min
Director – Marysia Nikitiuk
In Attendance – Director Marysia Nikitiuk
Scar and Larysa are desperately in love and suffocating under the tradition and archaic demands of their Ukrainian village. When the frustrations of each finally detonate, their world and the lives of those surrounding them are tragically shattered.

THE WOLF HOUSE
Chile, 2018
North American Premiere, 73 min
Directors – Cristóbal León & Joaquín Cociña
In Attendance – Director Cristóbal León
An animated tale, supposedly restored from the archives of a German colony by the Chilean government, THE WOLF HOUSE is the unsettling story of Maria, punished with a hundred nights alone in a cabin in the woods.

ATTEND:

FAN Badges and 2ND HALF Badges for Fantastic Fest 2018 are available for purchase here.

For the latest developments, visit the Fantastic Fest official site www.fantasticfest.com and follow on Facebook & Twitter.

The Walking Dead: The Final Season Console Demo Out Now

SAN RAFAEL, Calif., July 31th, 2018 — Leading publisher of digital entertainment Telltale Games and Robert Kirkman’s Skybound Entertainment today launched a new playable demo for The Walking Dead: The Final Season. The demo features the opening sequence of the upcoming season premiere and offers players their first chance to experience The Final Season’s brand new combat, camera system, and art style. The demo is currently available for download on both Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

Episode one of The Final Season will be available for download starting August 14, 2018 on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One across all regions. The Final Season will also come to Nintendo Switch later this year. The game is currently available for pre-order on PC, PS4, and Xbox One for $19.99. All players who pre-order The Final Season will receive download access to each of the season’s four episodes as they become available.

Players who pre-order on PS4 and Xbox One will also immediately receive The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series Collection — which gathers all 19 existing episodes of the award-winning series into a single package — as a free pre-order bonus. PC players who pre-order on Steam, GOG, GamersGate, or the Humble Store will receive 10% off the full retail price. All pre-order offers expire August 14.

  • Season Description: Clementine, now a fierce and capable survivor, has reached the final chapter in her journey. After years on the road facing threats both living and dead, a secluded school might finally be her chance for a home. But protecting it will mean sacrifice. Clem must build a life and become a leader while still watching over AJ, an orphaned boy and the closest thing to family she has left. In this gripping, emotional final season, you will define your relationships, fight the undead, and determine how Clementine’s story ends.
  • Emotional, Gut-Wrenching Story – See Clementine’s journey through to the end. As she builds a new life, you will have to grapple with new types of choices and live with the consequences as AJ looks on, learning from your every move.
  • More Control, More Tension – A new over-the-shoulder camera system, greater freedom to explore detailed environments, and scenes with unscripted combat capture the fear of living in a world overrun by the undead and create the most engaging The Walking Dead game yet.
  • Striking New Visual Style – The all-new Graphic Black art style rips the ink from the pages of the Eisner Award-winning comic book series and brings the world of The Walking Dead to life like never before. Supports 4K resolution and high dynamic range on compatible devices.

In addition, The Walking Dead: The Final Season will be fully dubbed in French, German, Latin-American Spanish, and Brazilian Portuguese. It will also be subtitled in French, German, Latin-American Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, Italian, Russian, and both traditional and simplified Chinese. Episode one voice packs and translations will be available for download on launch day.

Assetto Corsa Compitizione Early Access Trailer

STAVELOT, BELGIUM – July 31st, 2018 – During the SRO press conference on Friday, July 27 – held during the 70th edition of the illustrious Total 24 Hours of Spa race – Kunos Simulazioni revealed the release date of Assetto Corsa Competizione, the new official Blancpain GT Series game published by 505 Games. The game will be accessible on PC via Steam’s Early Access program beginning Wednesday, September 12, 2018. Kunos also revealed a new trailer for the upcoming racing simulation game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI-Q-C0koSU.

In his speech, Marco Massarutto, co-founder and brand & product manager of Kunos Simulazioni, introduced some of the features offered by Assetto Corsa Competizione. Offering an extraordinary level of simulation quality that allows players to experience the unique atmosphere of this GT3 Series, the game features official drivers, teams, and all cars & circuits with the highest level of accuracy and attention to detail. Taking full advantage of Unreal Engine 4, Assetto Corsa Competizione will ensure the highest quality rendering with photorealistic weather conditions and graphics to reach a new standard in driving realism and immersion racing. Motion capture technology is used to create the animations of mechanics and drivers in an even more realistic fashion and guarantee a high level of player engagement during races, pit stops and driver changes.

Following the Early Access launch, in September Assetto Corsa Competizione will receive monthly expansion updates to introduce new cars, tracks and features until the final release of the game in early 2019. The final version of the game will also offer a wide selection of difficulty settings, and a deep and efficient rating system, able to offer the perfect multiplayer challenge for any type of driver – from newbies to skilled professionals. Kunos will optimize the game for competitive players with the full sets of racing classes and special events, and the option to face toughest challenge – a full 24-hour race, with options for driver swaps in both single and multiplayer modes.

During the Total 24 Hours of Spa racing weekend, a preview version of Assetto Corsa Competizione was playable in the paddock area of the Spa-Francorshamps circuit, thanks to a special videogame tournament officially supported by SRO Motorsports Group, organizer of the Blancpain GT Series. This was the first e-sports initiative proposed by SRO Motorsports Group for the Blancpain GT Series E-Sports, supported by Pirelli, AK Informatica, RSeat and Fanatec with amazing rewards for the best drivers. The top three virtual pilots of Assetto Corsa Competizione were officially celebrated on the circuit podium:

1st: Enzo Bonito (Italy)
2nd: Kamil Franczak (Germany)
3rd: Hany Alsabti (Germany)
The conference is accessible here:

Full SRO conference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QH6pEZLOek
ACC presentation (starting at 45’37”): https://youtu.be/fQtiVpa6u4M?t=45m37s
For additional information about Assetto Corsa Competizione, check the Steam product page (https://store.steampowered.com/app/805550) and the official Assetto Corsa website, or follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Shenmue I & II Story Trailer

July 31, 2018 – To celebrate the upcoming re-release of Shenmue I & II on new platforms, we’ve worked with Corey Marshall, the English-version voice actor of Ryo Hazuki, to create a series of videos exploring the basics of the legendary saga – starting with the story! Watch the first episode HERE:

Exploring first and foremost the setting and story of Shenmue I & II, in this episode Corey guides us through Ryo’s tale of investigation and revenge for his father’s murder, and the mystery of the Dragon Mirror that his father kept hidden and eventually died to protect. Ryo’s quest of retribution against Lan Di, the man in the Chinese robes who assassinated his father before his very eyes, took him from the faithfully represented town of Yokosuka to different locations across China, meeting many allies along the way.

On August 21st, new players can get immersed into Ryo’s quest to find justice on PC, PS4 and Xbox One.

Shenmue I & II is now available for pre-order digitally on Steam, Xbox Marketplace and PSN with a 10% discount, and from SEGA approved digital retailers*. The physical edition is available to pre-order from US and EMEA retailers.

For all the latest information on Shenmue I & II, go to: https://shenmue.sega.com/

*Please check here for an exhaustive list of digital retailers and more details as to what constitutes a SEGA approved retailer.

McFarlane Toys Announces Fortnite Collectible Figures

TEMPE, ARIZONA, — July 30, 2018 — McFarlane Toys today announced a new partnership with Epic Games to create a range of Fortnite™ premium collectible figures, related accessories and resin statues, in a deal brokered by IMG.

The new Fortnite branded collection will feature seven-inch premium figures from the Fortnite franchise and high-end accessories.

“The Fortnite brand has taken on global status and continues to grow each day. The game, with its sense of skill and irreverent fun, now has hundreds of character options to choose from, which is a tremendous blueprint for making any successful toy and action figure line,” said Todd McFarlane, CEO and Founder of McFarlane Toys.

“The developer’s art team at Epic Games wants to bring that same attitude into the creation of their toys, and everyone here at McFarlane Toys will be doing all we can to bring Fortnite fans the very best products,” said McFarlane. “With such a deep and visually interesting library to choose from, I have no doubt that we will be able to showcase both current and ‘classic’ looks from the Fortnite franchise. After talking with some of the top creators at Epic Games, I’m delighted they are as stoked about our partnership to make cool toys as we are!”

Donald Mustard, Worldwide Creative Director of Epic Games commented: “We’ve been fans of Todd and McFarlane Toys for years and years, and it’s been a dream come true to have an opportunity to collaborate with them. I’ve seen some of the prototypes and they’re so sweet… I think players are just going to be blown away.”

Launching in Fall 2018, the collection will be available for purchase from mass retail stores.

Fortnite is the action building game from Epic Games that lets you drop into a massive 100-player PVP Battle Royale or team up with friends in a co-op campaign to Save The World against a horde of monsters. Craft and loot in giant worlds where no two games are ever the same. Fortnite™ Battle Royale is free and available on PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, iOS, and soon, Android.

Halloween Horror Nights Reveals Stranger Things Maze Key Art

Universal Parks & Resorts, July 30, 2018 – Things are about to get turned upside down at Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights’ with the first look reveal of the “Stranger Things” maze key art designed exclusively by Kyle Lambert, the official illustrator of the mega-hit Netflix original series.

Featuring the series’ cast standing adjacent to the predatory Demogorgon, the ominous image depicts a nearly palpable account of what guests can expect to experience when the “Stranger Things” maze debuts as part of “Halloween Horror Nights” this fall.

The “Stranger Thing” maze, inspired by season one of the Netflix series, will come to life at Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Orlando Resort, beginning, Friday, September 14, and at Universal Studios Singapore, beginning Thursday, September 27, 2018.

The parallel universe, referred to as the Upside Down, that terrorized the small town of Hawkins, Indiana in “Stranger Things,” will bring the chittering, predatory Demogorgon to “Halloween Horror Nights” to stalk unwitting guests as they encounter iconic scenes, characters and environments from the mesmerizing series.

Working collaboratively with Netflix, along with the creators and executive producer of the blockbuster series—Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer and Shawn Levy, the mazes will be authentic representations of “Stranger Things,” designed to transport guests into artfully recreated scenes and storylines. From the menacing Hawkins National Laboratory, under the U.S. Department of Energy, to the Byers home adorned with an erratic display of flashing Christmas lights and the eerie Upside Down woods oozing a shower of floating orb-like spores, the chilling new mazes will offer surprising twists and unexpected turns around every corner.

Universal Studios’ “Halloween Horror Nights” is the ultimate Halloween event. For more than 25 years, guests from around the world have visited “Halloween Horror Nights” to become victims inside their own horror film. Multiple movie-quality mazes based on iconic horror television shows, films and original stories come to life season after season, while the streets of each park’s event are transformed into highly-themed scare zones with menacing scare-actors lunging from every darkened corner.

For more information about “Halloween Horror Nights” visit www.HalloweenHorrorNights.com.

Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor Unveils Revamped Experience for 2018

LONG BEACH, Calif., (July 30, 2018) – Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor, Southern California’s most authentically terrifying haunt, will once again rise from the depths on September 27, drenched in legend and oozing with a sordid past. Regarded as one of the most haunted places on Earth, the Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor is a thrill-seekers’ delight, blurring the lines of history and hysteria, and for the 2018 season, the event will disorient fans with an entirely NEW park footprint along with NEW maze designs, INTERACTIVE alternate paths, and THRILLING live entertainment.

“This coming season attendees are invited to descend into Dark Harbor’s newly, Omni-immersive and hyper-enhanced mazes for its darkest season yet,” stated Charity Hill, Executive Producer of Dark Harbor. “With a myriad of voluntary experiences, alternate paths, secret bars, and hidden passages we are proud to deliver a choose-your-own-adventure mega haunt.”

Put on a detective’s hat and retrace the steps of Samuel the Savage to solve the gruesome murders in B340. Re-live childhood nightmares playing hide-and-seek with Scary Mary and her sinister teddy bear in Lullaby. Escape the Ringmaster’s big top before becoming a specimen in the oddities museum of Circus. Head to boot camp with Half Hatch Henry for a reimagined storyline of the fan-favorite maze, Deadrise, to experience Captain’s rigorous training camp. Feeling Intrepid? Traverse the John Brown Shipyard and try to hide from the lurking creatures in the Scottish Highlands aboard Iron Master’s express train to hell. Clock-in to a shift aboard the infamous Grey Ghost and avoid Chef’s chopping block while working up an appetite for flesh in the maze FEAST.

At Midsummer Scream on Sunday, July 29, the producers of Dark Harbor announced a devilishly-perfect addition to their creative team, the sinister & twisted mind of Jon Cooke. The NEW Dark Harbor Production Designer brings with him over a decade of experience designing some of SoCal’s most celebrated theme parks and haunted attractions.

As Dark Harbor’s darkest and most sinister season approaches, those daring enough to set foot on property will navigate a bone-chilling 9-degree Ice Bar, dodge hundreds of devious entities, seek out hidden havens, indulge in devilish treats, imbibe intense concoctions, survive Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch Sinister Swings, brave the Panic 4D Experience, and white-knuckle death-defying aerial and fire stunts for the haunt’s most frighteningly immersive season yet.

Let the countdown begin: 6 blood-curdling mazes, 5 weeks of terror, 3 new secret bars, 2 electrifying stages, 1 way out…

The annual haunt returns to the Queen Mary on September 27 and continues to scare those who dare on select nights through November 2. General Admission ticket prices start at just $20 online with optional limited upgrades to Fast Fright, Evil Express, VIP, Ultimate Scream, Creepy Cabanas, and Private Patios (available while supplies last). For more information or to purchase tickets online, visit www.queenmary.com/dark-harbor.

Planet Alpha Release Date Trailer

31st July 2018, UK – Team17, a global games label, creative partner and developer of independent, premium video games and Denmark based independent developer Adrian Lazar of Planet Alpha ApS game studio have today announced that their mysterious, beautiful platform adventure game PLANET ALPHA, will be launching on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch™ and PC on the 4th September.

To celebrate the game’s forthcoming launch, a new trailer has been released today which showcases some of the threats and danger you’ll come across as you explore the strange alien world you find yourself upon. You’ll have to combine fast platforming action with stealth and creative puzzle solving to survive and uncover the truth.

PLANET ALPHA is an atmospheric side-scrolling platform adventure game. Combining fast platforming, creative puzzles, stealth mechanics and a unique art style to create an unforgettable experience.

PLANET ALPHA is heading to Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch™ and PC on the 4th September 2018.

To keep up to date with all the information on PLANET ALPHA please like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and join us on Discord.

Star Wars: Episode IX Cast Announced Including Carrie Fisher

July 27, 2018 – Star Wars: Episode IX will begin filming at London’s Pinewood Studios on August 1, 2018. J.J. Abrams returns to direct the final installment of the Skywalker saga. Abrams co-wrote the screenplay with Chris Terrio.

Returning cast members include Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, and Billie Lourd. Joining the cast of Episode IX are Naomi Ackie and Richard E. Grant, who will be joined by veteran Star Wars actors Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, and Billy Dee Williams, who will reprise his role as Lando Calrissian.

The role of Leia Organa will once again be played by Carrie Fisher, using previously unreleased footage shot for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. “We desperately loved Carrie Fisher,” says Abrams. “Finding a truly satisfying conclusion to the Skywalker saga without her eluded us. We were never going to recast, or use a CG character. With the support and blessing from her daughter, Billie, we have found a way to honor Carrie’s legacy and role as Leia in Episode IX by using unseen footage we shot together in Episode VII.”

Composer John Williams, who has scored every chapter in the Star Wars saga since 1977’s A New Hope, will return to a galaxy far, far away with Episode IX.

Star Wars: Episode IX will be produced by Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams, and Michelle Rejwan, and executive produced by Callum Greene and Jason McGatlin. The crew includes Dan Mindel (Director of Photography), Rick Carter and Kevin Jenkins (Co-Production Designers), Michael Kaplan (Costume Designer), Neal Scanlan (Creature and Droid FX), Maryann Brandon and Stefan Grube (Editors), Roger Guyett (VFX Supervisor), Tommy Gormley (1st AD), and Victoria Mahoney (2nd Unit Director).

Release is scheduled for December 2019.