NVIDIA isn’t winning PC gamers over this year. With melty connectors and GPU shortages, You’d think the maker of the Shield would want to try to reclaim some goodwill. Nope. Hidden in the company’s knowledge base, as uncovered by GameSpot, Nividia will end the Shield’s GameStream feature, which allows users to stream games in 4K.
According to NVIDIA, an update planned for mid-February will nix GameStream from all Shield hardware. However, in an act of almost incredible kindness, the company will allow customers to use GameStream until then. How generous. The update will not be mandatory; however, there are consequences. To ensure that more people get in line, Shield hardware will lose the functionality of an unspecified number of apps, including GeForce NOW.
“Starting in mid-February, a planned update to the NVIDIA Games app will begin rolling out to SHIELD owners. With this update, the GameStream feature will no longer be available in app. SHIELD users can continue to use GameStream until that time.” – NVIDIA
Of course, NVIDIA does have an alternative it would like you to use once GameStream goes offline. That alternative is GeForce NOW, an app that requires users to pay a fee to stream games in 4K. Monthly membership dues for this service start at $0 to stream for one hour. The next tier allows for 6-hour sessions, 1080p resolution, and up to 60 FPS. If you want 4K, you gotta pay. $19.99 is what you’ll need to lay down to get Ultra HD, 120 FPS, and an 8-hour session.
All good things must come to an end unless you’re using Steam Link. Yes, that option is still available for the time being. It’s doubtful NVIDIA would try to tamper with Steam’s connectivity to a Shield-enabled device, but you never know.
Do you own a Shield? Is it worth paying $19.99 monthly to stream games in 4K? Let us know your thoughts below.
The third wave of Willow action figures was announced this week by Super7. Rather than sticking to the classic Ron Howard movie, the latest batch of 3.75″ tall toys is based solely on the Disney+ series. Oh, goody. So, who made the cut? This is exciting! We’re getting Plank of Wood, Not Val Kilmer, The Key To Everything, and Mr. Paycheck Cameo, to name a few!
Willow Ufgood, Head Cage, Dove, Kit, Jade, and Commander Ballentine. Each figure is $20. Or, if you’re one of those people who is seriously going to collect these, the entire setcan be picked up for $120. So, go ahead and flush that money you got for Christmas down the drain. I mean, at least you’re not buying NFTs. Possibly, in thirty years, you could resell the Willow+ collection for maybe a 10% profit. They’ll fetch more on eBay than a crate full of mint-in-box Rose Tico figures.
Wave 3 will arrive in the Summer of 2023, months after everyone forgets about the Disney+ series.
Photo Credit: Super7
“The magic returns with the Disney+ original series, Willow! Long ago, Willow Ufgood defeated the forces of evil, and now he must set off with a new set of unlikely heroes to make things right again.”
Suppose you’ve not seen the new Disney+ Willow series yet. In that case, I’d suggest skipping it, especially if you’re burnt out on deconstructionist media or fantasy epics constructed via committee rather than a storyteller. However, if you love watching characters tearing each other down, wooden acting, Erin Kellyman, and clothing that manages to stay in absolutely pristine condition through the rough wilderness, Willow+ is for you.
But seriously, the show isn’t great. The original movie wasn’t all that good, but at least it had heart. I’m not sure what Willow+ has, aside from a habit of falling into all the same pitfalls that most modern relaunches of old franchises do. So what’s a new label we can give these pieces of by-committee media? Let us know in the comments.
Fans of Sonic the Hedgehog will most certainly enjoy anything involving the speedy blue hedgehog, regardless of how good or bad it may be. But is Sonic Prime on Netflix interesting enough to be a fun show to watch for non-fans of Sonic? A lot of the enjoyment you get from the show will entirely depend on what you go into it looking for, especially if you know anything about Sonic. Unfortunately, this show is just another average and shallow outing added to Sonic’s ongoing legacy. While it may have a few good moments, the show just isn’t as great as some may have hoped it would be.
The first aspect of Sonic Prime that will either hit or miss with some viewers is the voices of every character. While some voices work well, like Sonic and Shadow the Hedgehog’s voices, others sound very out of place. The worst of the bunch is the voice of Knuckles the Echidna, which sounds like a very hard attempt at a unique accent that just doesn’t work. Other voices like Dr. Eggman also sound very weird in comparison to previous iterations of the character. Most of the cast is new to the franchise, but not all of them work with these parts for this story.
Speaking of which, the main plot of the show is not that great either. It’s a good attempt at trying something different for the character but doesn’t end up being good in many ways. Sonic fans will like the fun nods to past games and throwbacks that are littered throughout the show, but beyond that the story is mediocre.
During a battle with Dr. Eggman, Sonic and his friends come across a mysterious crystal called the Paradox Prism. While trying to destroy Eggman’s robots, Sonic shatters the Paradox Prism and is sent across multiple realities with alternate versions of Green Hill Zone. While trying to get home, Sonic comes across multiple versions of his friends and their problems with Eggman and the changes to their world.
The biggest issue with this plot is that we don’t spend enough time in the Green Hill Zone we know, let alone Sonic and his friends the way we know them. The premise of the show feels like something that can be done within a few episodes rather than an entire season. Parts of the variations seem interesting at first, while others aren’t as much, but by the time things are established the show is ready to move on.
It would’ve been far better to spend more time within Green Hill Zone with Sonic and his friends battling Eggman before jumping into the alternate dimensions. The moments we get everyone interacting together in the original Green Hill, the show ends up being a better Sonic the Hedgehog show.
One thing Sonic Prime does get right is the action. Every battle and fast-paced scene that Sonic finds himself in is pretty good to watch. Sonic’s speed is on full display and every other side character gets moments to shine in their own way. Tails uses his tech to his advantage, Knuckles and Rogue the bat glide through the air, and Amy hammers away at her enemies. Alternate versions of the characters have fragments of their original counterparts, but never as good overall.
If you just want another show about Sonic the Hedgehog to watch while tuning out, then Sonic Prime will be fine. But if you were hoping for the show to be a great outing for Sonic and his friends, then this isn’t the show that will do so. At its best, Sonic Prime is an average show with a few good moments that aren’t enough to make it stand out from the rest of the franchise.
Are you a big Sonic the Hedgehog fan? Have you gotten to watch Sonic Prime on Netflix yet? Post a comment down below and let your voice be heard!
When you consider films that deserve to be put on 4K Blu-ray, what titles come to mind? Visually stunning cinematic masterpieces? Beautifully animated movies? How about The Return of Swamp Thing? Well, according to an Amazon listing, a 2-disc collector’s edition of the Jim Wynorski-directed feature is on the way.
On February 7th next year, a newly remastered version of the 1989 sequel to Wes Craven’s Swamp Thing will hit the market. This isn’t just some quickly thrown together, future bargain bin dust collector either. Instead, Lightyear Entertainment put some genuine love into this thing. The film has been restored from “the original interpositive” and will come packed with a slew of new features, commentary tracks, and extras. Check out the complete list of features below.
Photo Credit: Lightyear
BRAND NEW 4K restoration from the original interpositive with Dolby Vision / HDR mastering.
BRAND NEW: Reflections on Swamp Thing 35 years later by Michael Uslan, Producer of both Swamp Thing movies and Exec Producer of all the Batman movies.
BRAND NEW: Music Video by the RiffTones: ‘Your Ever-Loving Swamp Thing’
Original 2.0 and 5.1 Stereo Audio
Audio commentary from Director Jim Wynorski, Composer Chuck Cirino, and Editor Leslie Rosenthal
Audio commentary from Director Jim Wynorski
Interview with Editor Leslie Rosenthal
Interview with Composer Chuck Cirino
Interview with Director Jim Wynorski
Interview with Lightyear Entertainment Executive Arnie Holland
1989 Promo Reel
Photo Gallery (accompanied by Chuck Cirino’s film’s score)
Original Theatrical Trailer (HD Transfer from original 35mm materials)
2 TV Spots
6 Promotional TV Clips
2 Greenpeace Public Service Announcements
The Return of Swamp Thing is played for more laughs than Wes Craven’s film. There are some improvements. The lead character looks much more like his comic book counterpart now, and the creature effects silly in an entertaining way. The inclusion of Heather Locklear is … something. She’s undoubtedly no Adrienne Barbeau. Also, including children as side characters was unnecessary. Then again, the entire sequel was superfluous.
I’m not trash-talking the film by any means. I loved it as a kid. Hell, I even watched the cartoon and had the action figures. But we cannot skirt around the fact that The Return of Swamp Thing was more-or-less a parody. It’s a lighthearted film with a couple of dark moments, and the best thing about it was Monique Gabrielle as Miss Poinsettia. Man, she was smoking hot in that movie.
Swamp Thing’s sequel is an enjoyable watch, but don’t expect anything dark and brooding from Alan Moore’s influence from this era of DC Comics to be represented. The movie never gets into the revamped origin of Swamp Thing. You’ll have to check out the ill-fated 2019 TV series to see that play out in live-action.
If you don’t want to wait for a 4K Blu-ray, you could always go to YouTube and watch the movie for free. It’s in 1080p
Spider-Man: Far From Home did several great things. It gave two previous Peter Parkers closure and finally got the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Spidey out from under the shadow of Tony Stark. By the film’s end, Peter was in his iconic simple red and blue suit and not overloaded with Stark Tech. Hot Toys has created a 1/6 scale premium action figure donning that classic suit.
Have you noticed the MCU’s tendency to dull down anything brilliant, instead choosing muted color palettes for almost everyone? So the colors are appropriately bright on this figure, and that’s refreshing.
Hot Toys did a fantastic job of capturing Tom Holland’s likeness, but this may be a reused head from a previous couple of MCU Spidey action figures. The wall-crawler comes with several alternate pairs of hands and web effects. Unfortunately, this also means he will with a higher price tag. This Spidey is $345 if you order him through Sideshow Collectibles.
Photo Credit: Hot Toys
Photo Credit: Hot Toys
Photo Credit: Hot Toys
Photo Credit: Hot Toys
Photo Credit: Hot Toys
Photo Credit: Hot Toys
Photo Credit: Hot Toys
Ten (10) pieces of interchangeable hands with black web pattern including:
One (1) pair of fists
One (1) pair of gesture hands
One (1) pair of open hands
One (1) pair of hands for web shooting
One (1) web swinging left hand
One (1) Spider-Man mask holding right hand
Each piece of head sculpt is specially hand-painted
One (1) newly tailored red and metallic blue colored Spider-Man Suit embossed with grayish black trims, web pattern and black colored spider emblem on chest
One (1) Spider-Man mask (not wearable on figure)
Six (6) strings of spider web in different shapes and lengths
One (1) open spider web effect accessory
A specially designed rooftop themed diorama base (Approximately 21cm L x 21cm W x 19cm H)****** Exclusive to Deluxe Version
It only took how many MCU movies until Spider-Man donned his iconic red and blue suit? Five? Six? Sure, Civil War Spidey’s outfit was close, but why is the Marvel Cinematic Universe so opposed to bright colors?
It appears that the Blumhouse Five Nights At Freddy’s live-action film will still happen. Last time we heard about this five-years-too-late project, Emma Tammi had been tapped to direct, and the Jim Henson Creature Shop would be bringing the haunted animatronics to life. Now Superhero Hype is reporting that the movie has cast its first actors.
Matthew Lillard, the aspect of Thir13en Ghosts, and the dystopian future face painter of The Hunger Games, Josh Hutcherson, joined the production in undisclosed roles. If I were a betting man, Hutcherson would probably play the male lead or the person who doublecrosses the female lead. Given his history with the horror genre, Lillard will most likely be the unlucky security guard who discovers that Freddy and his robotic friends are more than a bit hostile when the pizza parlor closes down. However, the Scream star does have the best facial expressions when it comes to being terrified; they may as well use that strength to boost a film that’s coming out close to a decade late.
It was almost by chance that Scott Cawthon, a developer of unremarkable Christian-themed games, developed the Freddy Fazbear franchise. Since its release on PC in 2014, the Freddy universe has grown to include nearly 20 titles, including spinoffs. However, the steam driving that multimedia powerhouse has died down quite a bit in the past two years. Partial because of a controversy over certain people and organizations Cawthon once donated money to and because of standard brand life expectancy.
A Five Nights At Freddy’s movie should have happened in 2016 or 2017, at the height of the property’s popularity. However, a film adaptation was in development Hell from when the first game blew up. Much like the Slenderman film, Cawthon’s creations may finally hit theatres when no one cares. Given that Jim Henson’s fabled Creature Shop is attached to do the practical effects, I’ll watch it, but probably not in theatres.
What do you think of these latest developments? Let us know below.
The first Avatar film by James Cameron was a visual marvel that pushed the boundaries of computer effects in movies. While many had criticisms of the story it told, nobody could deny how beautiful and surreal the movie looked with its colorful imagery. The world of Pandora wowed audiences by making us believe in things from another place we never saw before. The highly anticipated sequel, which took many years to produce, may have done it again by bringing us back to Pandora to show us something else brand new about it. Without question, Avatar: The Way of Water is a visual spectacle that will have you dropping your jaw in amazement, even with a few stumbles with its plot.
Just when we thought we saw enough great things about Pandora, the second Avatar movie manages to bring us to another part of the planet with its own unique characteristics. The story continues a number of years after the events of the first movie, with Jake Sully and Neytiri raising a family within the forest of Pandora among the Na’vi. Neytiri gives birth to 3 kids from Jake and adopts two more into the family, including the human son of Jake’s enemy Colonel Miles Quaritch from the first film. After years of peace, the humans from Earth return back to Pandora to colonize it once again. Before his death Colonel Quaritch was cloned into a Na’vi body and given archived memories from his previous life, giving him the motivation to hunt down Jake and Neytiri. Over the course of the movie, Jake flees with his family to islands on Pandora ruled by the Metkayina tribe and adapts to their way of life, while also trying to avoid conflict with the humans who have returned to the planet.
The main plot of the movie is good but has pacing issues throughout the 3-hour runtime of the film. There’s a lot of setup and info dump at the beginning, with a big sidetrack in the middle before things pick up and return to the main plot again. Much of the time is spent building up this new portion of Pandora, showing the Metkayina tribe and their way of life among the seas. There are elements that tie back into the conflict between Jake and Quaritch, but much of it won’t pay off until the last act of the movie.
But is the world-building in Avatar: The Way of Water really good? Much of the praise for the movie will be for the visuals, specifically the wildlife that interacts with the Na’vi. The Metkayina look different than the Na’vi we saw in the first film and live differently than their distant relatives. But how all of this is presented is what will mesmerize and intrigue everyone who watches the movie.
Many underwater scenes look fantastic and borderline feel as if they were shot practically instead of using CGI. The Na’vi and creatures swimming through the sea look gorgeous and stand out as among the best underwater sections ever made, especially among computer-generated scenes. You’ll feel like they put the camera underwater and actually saw some of these creatures swimming around.
While the visuals in the movie are a masterclass in how to make things feel real, the characters we meet are still relatable just as much. There’s a lot that happens between all of Jake’s children and how they interact with the Metkayina tribes, as well as the strong family relationships between Jake, Neytiri, and the kids. The visual spectacle of the film is there, but it doesn’t get away from feeling like a well-thought-out story about a family trying to remain strong in the face of hardships. Everything else around that is the icing on the cake.
Both Zoe Saldana and Sam Worthington are fantastic in their roles once again, but we spend a lot of time with the child cast of the film playing all of Jake’s kids to really see them shine. Some might dismiss much of it as teen drama within a big-budget action movie, but there is a very nice range of emotions and events that circle back to the big parts of the plot to make it all feel very significant. The rest of the cast is fantastic, with a nice combination of returning actors from the first film and newcomers playing the roles of the Metkayina Na’vi.
If the biggest problems with Avatar: The Way of Water are the long runtime and small pacing issues, then the majority of the film is a big success for what James Cameron set out to do. We’re definitely going to see more Avatar films in the near future and hopefully, they won’t take as long to make. But it’s good having the second film of this series knock it out of the park and impact the medium in a similar way to its predecessor. Avatar: The Way of Water is a blockbuster that you’ll definitely want to see at least once when you can. More than likely we still haven’t seen the absolute best that this series has yet to show us, but it’s exciting to see what will come from it next.
Have you had a chance to see Avatar: The Way of Water yet? Did you enjoy the first film? Post a comment for us down below and let us know your thoughts about it!
Mezco’s One:12 Collective Rumble Society figures have been interesting departures from the typical DC and Marvel-themed 6″ tall toys. One that we covered earlier this year was Atticus Doom, a private detective who used otherworldly powers. The action figure looked cool and came with an insane amount of accessories. However, if you missed your chance to pick him up, don’t worry because Mezco is reissuing Atticus with a few changes.
The Necroverse Edition of Atticus Doom has loads of new glow-in-the-dark accessories. Although many of these are the same as we saw in the previous edition, the added glowing gimmick makes them all the better for displaying. This time, Atticus also gets a new top hat and fedora, so we’re not restricted to the turban. Not bad for $100.
The action figure is currently on a waitlist.
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Atticus will come with the following features and accessories:
Two (2) head portraits
Hand painted authentic detailing
Approximately 16cm tall
Six (6) interchangeable hands
One (1) pair of fists (L & R)
One (1) pair of posing hands (L & R)
One (1) pair of holding hand (L & R)
Fedora
Top hat
Overcoat with faux-fur collar
Sufi turban
Long-sleeve shirt
Ascot
Waistcoat
Slacks
Boots
One (1) Mantle of Madness head
One (1) Goblin Shillelagh
One (1) Eldritch FX
One (1) Eye of Mordrid
One (1) Blade of Zion
One (1) flame FX for Blade of Zion
One (1) brain (removable)
One (1) Philosopher’s Oculus (fits into brain)
One (1) posed Cthulhu Fraction
One (1) Cthulhu Fraction with integrated posing wire
One (1) Medusa Hand
One (1) Nebulous Claw
One (1) Cindered Palm with attachable flame
One (1) Alayna Alishrir – book with real paper pages
“It is a gift. A gift to the foes of Mordor. Why not use this Ring?” Why not pawn a few golden rings, magic or otherwise, to pay for the new $208 Boromir figure from Asmus Collectibles? Do it for Frodo. Do it for Sean Bean!
Asmus will release a 12″ tall version of Boromir this January as he appeared in Peter Jackson’s The Fellowship of the Ring. The likeness to actor Sean Bean is … OK. However, the nose and the eyes look too narrow. Other than that, Asmus delivers another highly detailed figure with incredible tailoring. The addition of a diecast sword is a nice touch.
Asmus Toys doesn’t give us a lot of detail, and there are many odd spelling errors in the official description of Boromir’s action figure. Also, I wish the facial detail were more in line with what we saw from the Gandalf the White figure we covered last month.
Photo Credit: Asmus Toys
Photo Credit: Asmus Toys
Photo Credit: Asmus Toys
Photo Credit: Asmus Toys
Photo Credit: Asmus Toys
Photo Credit: Asmus Toys
Photo Credit: Asmus Toys
The fallen son of Gondor comes with the following features and accessories:
Super detailed head in super detail and likeness to the movie actor
One pair of gloved fists
One pair relax gesture gloved hand
One pair of weapon-holding gesture, gloved hands
One black inner shirt with chain-mail-like sleeve
One patterned fleece cape
One dark blue robe
One pair of dark brown pants
One plastic belt with a scabbard
One pair of ankle-articulated boots
One diecast alloy sword
One diecast alloy dagger
One shield
Poor Boromir. His heart was in the right place, but the Ring corrupts all who wield it, particularly the prideful. Regardless of his brief madness when demanding the Ring from Frodo, the son of Denethor redeemed himself by protecting his friends at Parth Galen.
The Street Fighter series is responsible for laying down the foundation of the fighting game genre and its competitiveness among players. While it wasn’t the first video game series to do so, it was definitely the one that popularize the genre and made the fighting game community what it has become today. Now Capcom is ready to enter the next phase of the ongoing series with Street Fighter 6. New characters, fresh stories, and a ton of runbacks can be expected to happen when the game officially releases in June 2023. But before then, eager players and fans were able to try out the game in a Closed Beta Test for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC.
Is Street Fighter 6 a solid next step for Capcom after everything that happened with the previous entry of the series? Based off what one can experience in the online beta, the short answer is yes. But the closed beta isn’t the whole picture of Street Fighter 6, only giving us a glimpse at the core gameplay mechanics and overall presentation of the game, not the full package. For the closed beta, players can explore the online Battle Hub and play matches with each other, both ranked and unranked. It’s a different approach to what Capcom has done with online lobbies in Street Fighter 5, but also a very fresh experience overall.
There’s a total of eight fighters to play with in the online beta, each with an assortment of special moves and playstyle. There’s a nice selection of returning fighters and newcomers that give a good view of what to expect from the full release. Classic fighters like Ryu, Ken, Juri, Guile, and Chun-Li have both a familiar feel and an interesting new flair with their arsenal of attacks. Playing with Ryu feels right with special moves and inputs that are recurring from almost every previous Street Fighter entry, but the new Drive mechanics mix things up.
Drive Parry and Drive Reversal offer nice defensive options to counteract your opponent, while Drive Rush and Drive Impact can hurt them and close the distance between you. Combine all of this with everything you might already know with the classic characters, and you’ll find yourself on a good footing for taking battles online.
The newer characters on the roster will be interesting for everyone to try out. Whether you take a liking to them or not is entirely subjective, especially if you already have a set playstyle in mind to stay with. The beta allows players to use Luke, Kimberly, and Jamie online. Their attacks have recognizable inputs that may remind you of games like Street Fighter Third Strike or Street Fighter 4, but their personalities and strategies are original and clever. It will definitely take time to discover all of the nuances for each new character, but it’ll be worth it if you want to take on the world on or offline.
As far as other parts of Street Fighter 6 that are ambitious, the beta doesn’t give much to offer. Things like standard Arcade Mode and World Tour will have to remain a mystery until the game officially releases in 2023. But that doesn’t mean the beta is short-lived at all. Getting into matches online with other players is pretty fast and easy, especially since Street Fighter 6 has cross-play between platforms. Whether you’re on PlayStation 5 or PC, you’re going to be able to match up with someone and play a ton of rounds.
And if you’re worried about connection quality, then rest easy knowing Street Fighter 6 will have rollback netcode. Matches run smoothly and with little to no big issues, provided you have a decent to good internet connection to be online with. Everyone’s experience with online matches will be different because of that, but the majority of matches in Street Fighter 6 online will turn out very well for most.
For a second closed beta to the game, Street Fighter 6 has made a very good first impression. The gameplay at its core is very well designed and feels great to play. Characters you know and are unfamiliar with have a lot of neat aspects to them that will uncover more discoveries over time, leading to some very cool matchups and strategies that the fighting game community will love. If you were on the fence about Street Fighter 6 turning out well, then get ready to square up when the game finally comes out in 2023. You won’t want to back down from this challenge and miss out on all the fun.
Are you a big Street Fighter fan and going to pick up Street Fighter 6? Which character are you planning to main when the game is out? Post a comment about all of it below and let us know!
