Author - Jerry Paxton

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – In the studio with Charles Dance

2015/04/21

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

April 21, 2015 — Watch Charles Dance (Game of Thrones, Dracula Untold, The Imitation Game) perform for the first time as a video game character: Emhyr var Emreis — ruthless Emperor of Nilfgaard.

Garnering over 200 prestigious awards before launch, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is CD PROJEKT RED’s most ambitious endeavour up to date. Set within a truly open world, the game puts you in the role of a wandering bounty hunter and monster slayer, Geralt of Rivia. In The Witcher, you take on the greatest contract of your life — tracking down the Child of Prophecy, a living weapon that can alter the shape of the world.

The game is scheduled to launch May 19th, 2015, on Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, Windows PC, and PlayStation®4. Visit www.thewitcher.com for more information about the game and pre-order availability worldwide.

Trailer

King’s Quest Behind the Scenes Dev Diary #1

2015/04/21

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, PlayStation 3 News, PlayStation 4 News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News, Xbox 360 News, Xbox One News

April 21, 2015 — Today Sierra™ is unveiling the first in what will be a four-part series of diaries showcasing the development of its upcoming adventure game, King’s Quest™. These intimate videos go behind closed doors with developer The Odd Gentlemen to meet the people, passions and techniques driving this bold reimagining of one of gaming’s most treasured names.

This opening featurette, titled “The Vision,” introduces Creative Director Matt Korba and Producer Lindsey Rostal, who leapt at the opportunity to bring the unforgettable storytelling, puzzles and wit of the original King’s Quest games into a new era. Thinking about the future of a franchise with such a storied past, the team chose to begin this new journey at its end, as an aged King Graham takes his granddaughter, Gwendolyn, back through the untold tales of his astounding life. That arc came full circle for the team when they met King’s Quest creator Roberta Williams – and fellow Sierra co-founder Ken Williams – to hear firsthand what inspired the game that paved the way for so many adventures to come, passing the torch from one generation to the next.

The first chapter of King’s Quest will tip its hat later this year as a digital download on the PlayStation®4 and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment systems, Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, the Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft, and Windows PC. For more on King’s Quest, please visit www.sierra.com, and follow Sierra on Facebook and Twitter.

Trailer

Heroes of the Storm Open Beta and Release Dates

2015/04/20

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Windows PC News

IRVINE, Calif. – April 20, 2015 – Rally your fellow heroes and get ready for battle, because the portal to the Nexus is about to bust wide open! Blizzard Entertainment announced today that Heroes of the Storm™ will officially launch on June 2, following an open beta testing period beginning May 19. The free-to-play online team brawler brings together a diverse cast of iconic characters from Blizzard’s far-flung realms of science fiction and fantasy, including the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® universes, and challenges them to compete in epic, adrenaline-charged battles.

Heroes of the Storm invites players to customize heroes to suit their style and then team up with friends for some all-out mayhem. The game features a variety of gameplay modes for players of every skill level, including Cooperative, in which players team up against computer-controlled opponents, and Quick Match, an accessible way to jump in and play versus others. Experienced players can also join forces against other teams of players in highly competitive, draft-style ranked play.

“With its focus on team play and fast-paced fun, Heroes of the Storm is a fresh take on a very popular genre,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “We’ve built Heroes of the Storm in a way that makes it accessible to new players, but also challenging enough for veterans who really want to put their skills to the test. We can’t wait to see what Heroes brings to the co-op and competitive scenes once the Nexus opens up to everyone.”

Heroes of the Storm will launch with more than 30 playable Heroes and 7 dynamic Battlegrounds, each with unique challenges to overcome – and even more Heroes and Battlegrounds are on the way. Players can customize the look of their Heroes with a variety of skins, as well as switch between a stable of special mounts that help them cover ground on the battlefield more quickly.

To celebrate the launch of Heroes of the Storm, Blizzard will be holding a live-streamed event on June 1 in London, U.K.. Further information will be made available as the event draws closer.

The Heroes of the Storm open beta test will follow on the heels of the epic finale of the Heroes of the Dorm™ collegiate eSports tournament. Students from more than 400 schools across the U.S. and Canada have bashed and brawled their way through the brackets, with hundreds of thousands of dollars in tuition and other prizes on the line. On April 26, the Heroes of the Dorm championship match will be hosted at the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles and televised live in prime time on an ESPN network and also accessible via WatchESPN – further details on the telecast will be announced at a later date.

Heroes of the Storm has received a Teen rating from the ESRB. In addition to the English version, the game is available fully localized into Latin American Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Polish, European Spanish, Italian, Russian, Korean, traditional Chinese, and simplified Chinese. To learn more about Heroes of the Storm, head over the official website at www.heroesofthestorm.com.

With multiple games in development, Blizzard Entertainment has numerous positions currently available – visit http://jobs.blizzard.com for more information and to learn how to apply.

Star Wars Celebration VII Photo Gallery

2015/04/19

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Screenshots / Photos

Here is our photo gallery from the 2015 Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, CA. While there, we saw a ton of great cosplayers as well as sat in on some awesome panels. We also got to see the likes of Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Anthony Daniels – to name just a few! Of course, we also got to see the Season Two preview trailer for Star Wars Rebels as well as the second teaser trailer for Star Wars The Force Awakens! Overall, it was a total blast and I can’t wait for Star Wars Celebration to hit US shores again. In 2016, it looks like the convention is heading to jolly old London!

Photo Gallery

Norse Foundry Aged Mithral 7 Piece RPG Metal Dice Set Review

2015/04/19

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, Misc Review, News, Reviews

Norse Foundry makes all kinds of tabletop RPG related gear, mostly made of metal (hence the “Foundry”). They have a range of dice, coins, pins – even some velvet and satin dice bags. However, we had our eyes on their metal dice – the company’s claim to fame, and got to checkout their 7 piece “Aged Mithril” metal dice set. Our game of choice: the new Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition ruleset. The kind folks at Norse Foundry gave us a media rate on the dice and, before we knew it, they arrived on our doorstep. All that was left was to conjure up our RPG group and start slinging some metal. The Half-Orc Fighter in me roared in anticipation.

All the Norse Foundry 7 piece metal dice sets contain one D4, D6, D8, D10, D12, D20, and one percentile die. This is a good variety of dice to start with for most any RPG out there right now. You may have to roll one of the die more than once depending on the game, but that’s cool. We removed the dice from the clever box they arrived in and marveled at their sheer weight. They a lot heavier than standard, plastic dice, and the metal points are sharp and pointy – so be careful! Don’t be tempted to use them as caltrops or thrown weapons in a LARPing game as you could put an eye out. Just keep them on a table and everyone should escape in one piece. The craftsmanship of these dice is very impressive. Norse Foundry’s “Aged Mithril” collection has a tarnished, dulled-steel look about them and very much look like what a Fantasy gamer would think aged mithril would appear as.

Most of the dice in this set are 16mm in size save for the D20, which is 22mm in width. These are just the right size for tabletop play and will match your more standard dice without issue. We began playing our D&D 5th ed. campaign and our party began a quest across an ancient desert in search of some old ruins. On the way, we encountered some giant fire ants. Being level one adventurers, this would surely prove challenging. I rolled initiative and was immediately disappointed as the D20 hit the wooden surface we played on then slid a short distance, not rolling at all. This would happen a lot throughout the evening as the dice were just too heavy for the light wooden tabletop we were playing on. I eventually went back to my run-of-the-mill, plastic dice as they readily bounced on the wooden table.

I thought this would be the end of my using the Norse Foundry metal dice until I corresponded with one of their craftsmen on the matter. He recommended that I pick up an RPG/TCG play mat to use as a rolling surface and explained that the two hard surfaces of the wood and the metal simply don’t play well together. I went on Amazon and picked up a basic play mat made from fabric. My RPG group then got together for a second gaming session a few weeks later. The results were like night and day – I highly recommend that you get a fabric or spongy play mat for use when rolling these metal dice. When used, the metal dice bounce a lot more and grip on the fabric, causing more randomness in the roll and a more natural feel to the plastic dice you have most likely been using all this time.

Overall, Norse Foundry is the place to go if you are in the market for metal dice. They are utterly unique and feature an exceptional build quality. Also, their prices are extremely competitive – especially if you select one of their 7 piece dice sets. Each 7 piece dice set retails for $34.99 and is available now at their official website. They have a variety of colors and surfaces – from the “Aged Mithril” we reviewed to the black and red “Nightmare” set to a brilliantly-shiny “Chainmail” set – as well as several more. Whatever your preference or style, chances are you will find something that speaks to you at their site.

Norse Foundry Website

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Star Wars Rebels Season 2 Trailer Features Vader, Captain Rex, Ahsoka, and More

2015/04/18

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Trailers / Videos

This new trailer for Star Wars Rebels Season Two has a ton of awesome moments in it – including the return of several characters from its progenitor animated series, Star Wars The Clone Wars – including clone Captain Rex, a fan favorite! Also heard in this trailer is the voice of James Earl Jones as Darth Vader himself. Lots of twists and turns await us in Season 2.

Trailer

Mordheim: City of the Damned Early Access Phase 5 Update

2015/04/17

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Screenshots / Photos, Windows PC News

April 17, 2015 — Rogue Factor’s turn-based tactical RPG adaptation of Games Workshop’s tabletop game has already received a huge amount of content since its release on Early Access, but as things shape up towards launch, Rogue Factor is back with more in Early Access Phase 5.

Major changes come to The Cult of the Possessed as they are now receiving a random mutation when leveling up, thus changing their physical appearance as well as modifying their statistics. This is what today’s screenshots illustrate! For example, the “thousand eyes” mutation not only gives a uniquely ocular aesthetic to the unit, but you’ll get +10 for initiative as well.

The long awaited Rune System is coming to the game, allowing players to enchant their weapons and equipment. You’ll be able to test the multiple possibilities offered by these enchantments alongside the previously introduced high-end gear. Speaking of cool gear, you’ll now see visual representation of the different armor sets of all units, thus making it easier to see their level of defense on the battlefield.

You’ll also find new features such as the in-game chat system, the combat log and many more tweaks and options coming straight from the open communication between Rogue Factor and the players.

On top of that, there’s one new unique map available and another procedural map from the merchant district to sink your teeth (or fangs) into.

Mordheim: City of the Damned will be 33% off starting from now, lasting until Monday.

More features will be added in the future, such as customization, consumable items, and Warband levelling. Be sure to check our Steam Page for more details about what’s coming next!

Screenshots

Star Wars Battlefront Star Wars Celebration Preview

2015/04/17

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, PlayStation 4 News, Screenshots / Photos, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News, Xbox One News

I was one of the fortunate, few media folks able to see the Star Wars Battlefront presentation yesterday at Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim. I was even made to sign a strict NDA on the subject – one that has, thankfully, expired! The pre-alpha gameplay footage we saw was beautiful and very polished for being “pre-alpha”, so the final product should be even more staggering. The level followed some Rebel troopers as they fought Imperial forces on what was, presumably, the forest moon of Endor. It was basically an in-game version of what you saw in this morning’s game trailer release – really cool stuff.

After the in-game footage, we got to hear about some of the technology going into Star Wars Battlefront’s development. One of the big technology buzz words being associated with Star Wars Battlefront is “Photogrammetry”. This is a technique where an object is photographed from every conceivable position to calculate not only its three dimensional shape but also its texturing. The results are impressive – Most impressive. We got to see rotating video of an in-game Stormtrooper helmet, DL-44 heavy blaster pistol, and a few other things – each looked almost exactly like its real-world counterparts.

Speaking of real-world counterparts, the people at LucasFilm invited the developers up to the museum at Skywalker Ranch. This is where the film company keeps all the awesome props, costumes, etc from their films. DICE had full access to use the real items from the movie in their video game via the Photogrammetry technique. Another thing that DICE’s development team did to make sure that Star Wars Battlefront looks incredible and realistic was to send their designers out to various locations around the world to study the landscapes, take photographs, etc. We saw images of DICE developers exploring a glacier, the Grand Canyon, and even a redwood forest. This attention to detail really shows in the screenshots you can see in the gallery at the bottom of this post. Star Wars Battlefront is due out on November 17, 2015 and I can’t wait to see more on this at future events. There are so many fun possibilities for mash-up battles with characters and battlefields in and out of chronology.

The final Star Wars Battlefront surprise was also a bit of a tease into the second Star Wars teaser trailer which we saw yesterday. “The Battle of Yakku” is a free DLC pack which will be released on December 1, 2015 (pre-order customers) and December 8, 2015 (for non pre-order customers). This DLC will chronicle the battle which resulted in those downed starships seen in the film’s second teaser trailer (the desert landscape with the X-Wing and Star Destroyer husks). This news was also a cool little revelation for Star Wars fans as many thought that the desert world seen in the film teasers were the more familiar planet of Tattooine.

We would like to send huge thanks out to FortySeven PR’s Steve Hahnel and EA’s Melissa Ojeda for giving us this look into the game while at Star Wars Celebration. The PR team promised that we would be seeing a lot more of Star Wars Battlefront in the months leading up to its release.

Star Wars Battlefront Assets

Star Wars Battlefront Release Date Revealed

2015/04/17

Jerry Paxton

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

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. April 17, 2015 – DICE™, an Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) studio, and Lucasfilm announced today that Star Wars™ Battlefront™ will be released beginning November 17, 2015 in North America (November 19 in Europe) as the first full-length trailer for this highly anticipated title premiered to thousands of fans at Star Wars™ Celebration. Combining an unprecedented collaboration with Lucasfilm and the award-winning Frostbite™ game engine, Star Wars Battlefront will deliver an incredibly authentic and immersive interactive entertainment experience featuring photorealistic visuals and epic action in iconic Star Wars™ locations. See how this comes to life in-engine by experiencing the newest trailer for Star Wars Battlefront at http://starwars.ea.com/battlefront.

Reveal Trailer

“Like so many others around the world, everyone at DICE is a tremendous fan of the Star Wars universe,” said Sigurlina Ingvarsdottir, Senior Producer of Star Wars Battlefront. “To be working on a Star Wars project and knowing we are helping to represent the universe we love to our generation and a legion of new Star Wars fans is truly an honor. Thanks to the access and knowledge shared with us by Lucasfilm, and the passion and talent of our team, we plan to deliver an amazing game that puts you right in the middle of the Star Wars battles you always imagined playing.”

Star Wars Battlefront will allow fans to live out a wide range of heroic moments and intense battle fantasies of their own – firing blasters, riding speeder bikes and snow speeders, commanding AT-ATs and piloting TIE fighters and the Millennium Falcon. These battles will take place on some of the most iconic planets in the Star Wars universe, including Endor, Hoth, Tatooine and the previously unexplored planet, Sullust. Gamers will be able to play as some of the most memorable characters in the original trilogy such as Darth Vader and Boba Fett. Star Wars Battlefront will feature a wide range of modes tailored for different types of battles, from larger 40-person competitive multiplayer to crafted missions that are played solo, with a friend via split-screen offline or co-operatively online.

Fans who pre-order Star Wars Battlefront will be among the first players to experience the Battle of Jakku*, the pivotal moment when the New Republic confronted key Imperial holdouts on a remote desert planet on the Outer Rim. Taking place in the aftermath of the Rebel victory in the Battle of Endor, players will experience the events that created the massive, battle-scarred landscape of Jakku shown in Star Wars™: The Force Awakens™. Players who pre-order Star Wars Battlefront can fight the battle one-week early starting on December 1, 2015. All other players will get access to this free† content on December 8, 2015.

Star Wars Battlefront will be available in North America on November 17 and starting November 19 in Europe for the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, Xbox One™, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft and on Origin™ for PC. To join the Star Wars Battlefront conversation please visit www.facebook.com/EAStarWars, follow us on Twitter® at www.twitter.com/EAStarWars or sign up for the official EA Star Wars newsletter at http://starwars.ea.com/newsletter.

Universal Studios Announces Studio Tour Guide Casting Call

2015/04/16

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News

Universal City, California, April 16, 2015 – The race is on as Universal Studios Hollywood casts a wide net in search of Studio Tour guides as the theme park prepares to introduce “Fast & Furious—Supercharged,” the new grand finale to the world-famous Studio Tour and the all-new “Nighttime Studio Tour” this summer in celebration of the theme park’s 50th anniversary.

Open call auditions will take place at Universal Studios Hollywood on May 4 from 2-4pm.

As one of the most progressive and exciting theme park experiences anywhere, Universal’s Studio Tour invites guests to enjoy a front row seat with behind-the-scenes access to one of the world’s largest movie and television production studios, led by expert Studio Tour guides, knowledgeable on the inner-workings of Hollywood.

As the destination readies for a blockbuster summer with the introduction of the “Fast & Furious—Supercharged” thrill ride and the “Nighttime Studio Tour,” more than 40 English, bilingual Spanish and Mandarin-speaking Studio Tour Guides will be hired to join an existing roster of nearly 100 guides.

Candidates interested in auditioning must possess the following attributes for consideration: friendly, engaging and enthusiastic; have a performance and/or public speaking background; are knowledgeable of film and television; have a charismatic live television camera presence; and must be at least 18 years of age.

They will need to come prepared with a resume and headshot and be available for a series of follow-up auditions on May 6 and final interviews the week of May 11. Full-time employment will begin on May 26, beginning with three weeks of fun, intensive training. For more information, please visit www.UniversalStudiosHollywood.com/auditions.

The perks associated with the role of Studio Tour guide are also priceless. Aspiring actors and those seeking to work within the entertainment industry will have daily access to an authentic studio lot, and the filming locations of thousands of movie and television shows. In addition to enjoying a flexible work schedule, Studio Tour Guides will benefit from a variety of opportunities, including intimate symposiums with prestigious industry professionals, free professional acting classes, auditions for top industry casting directors and free private screenings of Universal Pictures films.

“Fast & Furious—Supercharged” is a technologically advanced, epic ride that reunites stars from the Fast & Furious series in a groundbreaking mega-attraction designed to catapult guests into the high-stakes underground world of street racing at perceived speeds in excess of 120 miles per hour. Featuring Vin Diesel (Dominic “Dom” Toretto), Dwayne Johnson (Luke Hobbs), Michelle Rodriguez (Letty Ortiz), Tyrese Gibson (Roman Pearce) and Luke Evans (Owen Shaw), “Fast & Furious—Supercharged” will debut on June 25 as the grand finale to Universal Studios Hollywood’s behind-the-scenes Studio Tour and can only be experienced at The Entertainment Capital of L.A.

For the first time ever, Universal Studios Hollywood’s all-new “Nighttime Studio Tour” will bring over 20 locations along the famed Studio Tour backlot to life with movie set lighting and special effects used in nighttime productions. Theatrical lighting will cast a glow on iconic backlot sets as Studio Tour guides shed light on Hollywood secrets and tricks of the world’s most glamorous trade, including how filmmakers create the effect of daylight amid the black of night. Celebrated stars who found fame on Universal’s backlot will also make cameo appearances on the “Nighttime Studio Tour,” including Marilyn Monroe, Norman Bates and Frankenstein. The “Nighttime Studio Tour” will run every weekend throughout the summer from July 4 through Labor Day.

For more information visit, www.UniversalStudiosHollywood.com, and for all the latest news, “Like” us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram and Twitter at @UniStudios

Universal Studios Hollywood, The Entertainment Capital of L.A.SM, includes a full-day, movie-based theme park and Studio Tour; the CityWalk entertainment, shopping and dining complex, the Universal CityWalk Cinemas and the “5 Towers” state-of-the-art outdoor concert venue. World-class rides and attractions include “Despicable Me Minion Mayhem” and “Super Silly Fun Land,” the critically-acclaimed mega-attraction, “Transformers™: The Ride-3D,” the intense, award-winning ride, “King Kong 360 3-D” on the behind-the-scenes Studio Tour, “Revenge of the MummySM—The Ride” and “Jurassic Park® —The Ride.” As part of its milestone 50th anniversary celebration in 2015, new attractions include the electrifying 3D-HD thrill ride, “Fast & Furious—Supercharged” as the grand finale to the famed Studio Tour, “Springfield,” hometown of America’s favorite TV family, adjacent to the award-winning “The Simpsons RideTM” and the “Nighttime Studio Tour,” offering tours of the iconic movie backlot on select evenings.