We learned that Ubisoft+, the developer/publisher’s gaming subscription service, will be making its way onto XBOX come January 20th, according to PC Mag. From the look of the lineup that’s available for the PC, you’ll get to play several Ultimate Editions of games, saving you quite a lot of money.
The subscription service currently comes in two tiers. One is strictly for PC, and the other includes PC and cloud gaming from two competitors. The cost of Ubisoft+ for XBOX has not yet been announced.
We checked Ubisoft’s website, and only the following two tiers are priced.
If you don’t have an XBOX and for some reason only have access to Google’s Stadia or Amazon’s Luna, there are cloud gaming options available for Ubisoft+, too. The subscription is a bit more than PC Access, sitting at $17.99. However, several new and classic games are available to stream. These include the Ultimate Edition of Far Cry 6 and Valhalla, Scott Pilgrim, Beyond Good & Evil, and Rayman Legends.
From personal experience, if it’s a toss-up between Luna and Stadia, pick Luna. I’ve used both, and Luna provided a much better experience with almost no input lag and better overall quality of the stream. Stadia has been and continues to be a poor performer regardless of wifi or direct connection.
I’m a bit on the outs with Ubisoft right now. The last couple of games I’ve purchased has had bugs involving game saves, which the company has yet to fix. Yeah, I’m still waiting for AC Valhalla to receive a patch, and that game has been out for quite some time. Nothing makes you put a game back on the shelf faster than losing 8+ hours of progress because all the manual saves didn’t actually save anything.
What do you think of Ubisoft’s push into the subscription service business? Let us know in the comments section.
[Source: PC MAG]
Ubisoft’s Subscription Service Ubisoft+ Coming To XBOX Soon
A Scott Pilgrim Anime Series Being Developed for Netflix
Continuing to add onto its’ anime collection, Netflix will be bringing back Scott Pilgrim as an anime series. The creator and artist of the graphic novels, Bryan Lee O’Malley, will be writing and executive producing with BenDavid Grabinski. Grabinski was the showrunner behind the revival of Are You Afraid of the Dark? for Nickelodeon. O’Malley and Grabinski will showrun the series if the project continues to move forward. Japanese animation studio Science SARU, located in Tokyo, Japan, will be providing the animation work. The company’s co-founder Eunyoung Choi will be the producer.
The director of the series will be Abel Gongora. Gongora began his work in animation as a location designer, and later an animator, at Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon. He then moved onto a French animation studio named Ankama. Ankama had opened up a subsidiary in Japan, taking along with them 25 European animators to the Tokyo studio, working alongside a team of Japanese artists. After the studio closed, this would eventually lead Gongora to become one of the first of five staff members to join Science SARU (Science Monkey in English) in 2014.
Given how much influence manga and anime had on the creation of his graphic novel series, it feels rather fitting to have a production company in Japan doing the animation.
Band members from the 2010 movie “Scott Pilgrim vs the World” will be involved with the development of the anime. Wright and producing partner Nira Park will receive exec producer credits along with Marc Platt, Jared LeBoff, and Adam Seigel of Marc Platt Productions, and Michael Bacall.
Scott Pilgrim centers on the main character as a slacker living in Toronto and in a garage band called Sex Bob-Omb with his friends. His life is turned upside down when he meets Ramona Flowers, an American girl who is recently single. But before their love can blossom, Pilgrim finds himself challenged by his love’s seven previous relationships, and must defeat them in over-the-top fashion.
Six volumes of the series were published by Oni Press between 2004 and 2010, with the graphic novels not just becoming indie comic hits but a publishing phenomenon that broke out into the mainstream, selling millions of copies.
Although the 2010 movie bombed at the box office, it eventually gained a cult following. The movie cast included Michael Cera as Pilgrim, Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Flowers, Kieran Culkin, Chris Evans, Anna Kendrick, Brandon Routh, Jason Schwartzman and Brie Larson.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Osamu Tezuka’s Childhood Manga to be Published for the First Time
On January 3rd, 2022, it was announced in Japan a manga will be published for the first time in March of this year. When he was between the ages 13-14, Osamu Tezuka had created a manga story with his younger brother and sister. The main character is snowman-shaped and named “Mama” as the character goes on adventures involving things such as treasure hunting. Titled “Mama Detective Story”, only a few pages have ever been publicly shown to the world. This will be available for pre-order on the official website of the publisher 888 Books in Japan.
Osamu Tezuka is considered the Godfather of manga and anime, forever changing the manga and animation industry to become what it is today. Throughout his career, Tezuka created and wrote more than 700 manga series consisting of around 170,000 pages of drawings, and another 200,000 pages of anime storyboards and scripts. Though he came from a family of doctors, lawyers, and military men, his interests in art was always encouraged. His father was an engineer, but he used to draw manga before he married, and he also collected manga books over time. Tezuka’s father had bought a movie projector, which is how Osamu was introduced to his greatest influences in art and animation, Walt Disney and Max Fleischer.
These are just a few pieces of works Tezuka is best known for creating:
- Jungle Taitei (Jungle Emperor), 1950-54. Later released as the animated series Kimba the White Lion in the U.S.
- Tetsuwan ATOM (Astro Boy), 1952-68
- Ribon no Kishi (Princess Knight), 1953-56
- Hi no Tori (The Phoenix), 1956-89. Tezuka’s personal favorite and the series he worked on continuously from its inception until his death.
- Black Jack, 1973-83
- Buddha, 1974-84
Through his work, Tezuka initiated a new way of telling a visual story in manga form through dynamic action, as if you are part of the characters world.
“I felt [after the war] that existing comics were limiting. Most were drawn as if seated in an audience viewing from a stage, where the actors emerge from the wings and interact. This made it impossible to create dramatic or psychological effects, so I began to use cinematic techniques. French and German movies that I had seen as a schoolboy became my model. I experimented with close-ups and different angles, and instead of using only one frame for an action scene or the climax (as was customary), I made a point of depicting a movement or facial expression with many frames, even many pages. The result was a super-long comic that ran to 500, 600, even 1,000 pages. I also believed that comics were capable of more than just making people laugh. So in my themes, I incorporated tears, grief, anger, and hate, and I created stories where the ending was not always happy.” -Osamu Tezuka
Manga is virtual. Manga is sentiment. Manga is resistance. Manga is bizarre. Manga is pathos. Manga is destruction. Manga is arrogance. Manga is love. Manga is kitsch. Manga is a sense of wonder. Manga is … there is no conclusion yet.
-Osamu Tezuka-
In February 9, 1989, Tokyo, Japan, Osamu died of stomach cancer.
Hopefully this manga will make its’ way outside of Japan so that the rest of the world can also have a chance of owning their own copy of this manga collection. It will be fascinating to see the beginnings and growths of someone who has done such amazing works of art in writing and drawings.
What do you think of this? Would you want this as part of your manga collection if you were able to own your own copy? Let us know!
Sources: LiveAbout, 888Books, and Twitter @Musicrobita
‘Justice League’ Star Ben Affleck Claims ‘The Flash’ Has His Favorite Batman Scenes
‘Gigli’ star Ben Affleck was controversially cast as Bruce Wayne in Zack Snyder’s second outing directing films for the DCEU ‘Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.’ He would reprise the role in ‘Suicide Squad’ and both versions of the ‘Justice League.’
He is set to be making his supposed final appearance in the upcoming film ‘The Flash’ and it seems that Affleck is ready for it according to GamesRadar.
“I have never said this… but maybe my favorite scenes in terms of Batman and the interpretation of Batman that I have done, were in The Flash movie,” he said in an interview with the Herald Sun. “I hope they maintain the integrity of what we did because I thought it was great and really interesting — different, but not in a way that is incongruent with the character.”
Affleck continued, “Who knows? Maybe they will decide that it doesn’t work, but when I went and did it, it was really fun and really, really satisfying and encouraging.” He added that the movie has “a really nice finish on my experience with that character.”
Michael Keaton will be joining Affleck on screen as another Batman that will appear in ‘The Flash,’ where actor Ezra Miller will reprise the role of Barry Allen as he traverses through time to meet different versions of Bruce Wayne.
You can check out the trailer for ‘The Flash’ here:
The movie is directed by Andy Muschietti and also stars Ron Livingston, Kiersey Clemons, Michael Shannon, Antje Traue, Sasha Calle, Saoirse-Monica Jackson, Rudy Mancuso, and Luke Brandon Field.
Affleck and Keaton are joined by Adam West, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, and Robert Pattinson who have all played Batman in a major motion picture. Kevin Conroy voiced the Dark Knight for the theatrically released animated film ‘Batman: Mask of the Phantasm.’
‘Rick and Morty’ Writer Cody Ziglar Talks Writing Spider-Man
Marvel Comics has tapped TV writer Cody Ziglar to take on the “Spider-Man Beyond” storyline unfolding in the wallcrawler’s flagship series ‘Amazing Spider-Man.’ Currently, Peter Parker is presumed dead and his erstwhile clone Ben Reilly has taken up the webs. Ziglar spoke about writing for Spidey and how Reilly is going to be impacted by the plot.
When asked what it was like working on Ben Reilly, Ziglar said, “I think the coolest thing, the thing that really interests me is that he’s Peter, he’s a clone of Peter, but he’s had a much harder life, so he has a little bit of a chip on his shoulder. He’s a guy who doesn’t trust a lot of things, particularly himself. But there’s also an air of desperation that makes him want to believe, he wants to think things will work out.”
“He’s working a little bit harder than Peter would because I think he has been dealt a worse hand. He’s died and been reborn at the hands of the Jackal a bunch of times—he’s been dealt a pretty rough hand. It’s been fun to write from that angle,” he said. “Also, he’s a guy who’s finally getting a win, he’s getting a W, he’s getting what he wants, to carve out his own legacy, to do good and be the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man he’s always wanted to prove himself to be. He has as much stability as a person can have in a world with guys named the Lizard and others who have octopus arms. That getting to prove himself aspect is what has drawn me the most to him. What’s his character journey? What’s the thing he has to battle through?”
Ziglar went on to discuss how Kraven the Hunter, Doctor Octopus, and the Kingpin will be making appearances as “Spider-Man Beyond” continues.
Bioware GM Talks Rebuilding Their Reputation, Never Mentions Real Issues
Gary McKay took over the role of Studio General Manager at Bioware in June 2021. The once legendary video game developer has been on the rocks with gamers over the past several years. Between Mass Effect 3’s unrewarding endings to the bait-and-switch, that was Anthem, we all knew that the Bioware of old was dead. The stench of EA was all over whatever this new company was.
Today the GM made a lengthy blog post about the company’s state and what lies ahead. Paragraphs and paragraphs address the recent Mass Effect Legendary Edition release and the “incredible reception” it received. However, McKay does not address Anthem or Mass Effect Andromeda in the text.
Gary McKay states that the company’s reputation does need to be repaired, but he does not expand on why it was damaged, to begin with:
“When I took on the GM role, I talked about rebuilding our reputation, and that remains a huge priority. We are laser-focused on building back the trust of our fans and community, and we plan to do that by delivering the types of games that we are best known for and ensuring they are of the highest quality.”
OK, what exactly does that mean? This sounds more or less like what he said back in June. These nebulous statements aren’t going to renew my confidence in this version of Bioware. Anthem was revealed to be a quickly thrown-together mess and was dumped by the developer not long after launch. Mass Effect Andromeda wasn’t much better, with the version of the game before the first patch being a glitchy disaster full of terrible dialog and terrible character faces.
In short, the General Manager’s post is a word salad full of back-patting and complaining about the environment the pandemic put the company in. Yup, 2020 made things harder, but Bioware’s problems started long before that. Admit that Anthem was a failure and the customers were left high and dry. Transparency will go a long way.
Maybe it is me, but when you talk about rebuilding a reputation, you should address the concerns. The nebulous phrase “highest quality” does not tell me a damn thing. Where were the shortcomings? How were they created? What was done to correct them?
This is frustrating because Bioware, many years ago, delivered great games. So what do you think of the GM’s words? Let us know in the comments section.
[Source: Bioware]
Japanese Supernatural Crime Drama ‘Signal: The Movie Cold Case Investigation Unit’ Coming To North America
Japanese film director Hajime Hashimoto’s supernatural crime drama ‘Signal: The Movie Cold Case Investigation Unit’ is making its way to North America via a blu-ray DVD release from Shout! Factory and Eleven Arts on March 22, 2022, though it is currently available for pre-order.
The movie follows a police officer who finds an old police radio that allows him to communicate with the past, so he can solve mysteries in the future. It is a continuation of a hit television series from Fuji TV. It is written by Kosuke Nishi and Hiroshi Hayashi with Takashi Hagiwara, Yoko Toyofuku, Ichiryu Obara, Takahiro Kasaoki, and Mai Ishida serving as producers.
Among the cast includes Kentaro Sakaguchi, Kazuki Kitamura, Michiko Kichise, Yuichi Kimura, Tetsuhiro Ikeda, Kaede Aono, Tetta Sugimoto, Nao, Tetsushi Tanaka, Takeshi Kaga, and Tsuyoshi Ihara.
You can watch the trailer below:
Shout describes the synopsis as follows:
“When officer Kento Saegusa (Kentaro Sakaguchi) picks up a dusty old police radio that’s about to be scrapped, it brings him into contact with Takeshi Oyama (Kazuki Kitamura). The two detectives, one from the past and one from the present, have worked together to solve countless cold cases. Now they’re back together once more!
Tokyo, 2021. A high-ranking government official is killed when his chauffeur loses control on an expressway. Saegusa suspects it was far from accidental. Meanwhile, in 2009, parliamentary officials are dying in a succession of fatal car crashes. While the police write them off as accidents, Oyama is the only one convinced of foul play.
This time, Saegusa and Oyama are forced to go up against corruption in their own home: the police force. Will they finally reunite in the present?”
K-pop band BTS are included in the soundtrack with them performing the theme song “Film Out,” with member Jungkook co-writing it with Japanese rock star Iyori Shimizu.
An Anime Version Of ‘The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten’ Is Coming
‘The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten’ is a romantic slice-of-life comedy light novel series by Saekisan with illustrations by Hanekoto. I was originally published by the Japanese publication company Shōsetsuka ni Narō though it was later picked by SB Creative.
Japanese animation studio Project No.9 announced that they had picked up the series for an anime adaption to be directed by Kenichi Imaizumi and written by Keiichirō Ōchi.
“We’re being spoiled rotten today with light novel news out of GA Bunko’s New Year Anime Festival, which now includes the announcement that The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten is getting a TV anime adaptation,” Funimation said on their website. “Narrated by Manaka Iwami (Fruits Basket) as Mahiru Shiina, the trailer previews her first meeting with Amane Fujimiya, played by Taito Ban (Pretty Boy Detective Club), and the budding romance between them.”
“Taku Yashiro (Horimiya) and Haruka Shiraishi (Golden Kamuy) have also been cast as Itsuki Akazawa and Chitose Shirakawa, respectively,” they added.
Project No.9 also released a trailer to commemorate the announcement, though no concrete release date was revealed.
MyAnimeList describes the synopsis as follows, “Amane lives alone in an apartment, and the most beautiful girl in school, Mahiru, lives just next door. They’ve almost never spoken-until the day he sees her in distress on a rainy day and lends her his umbrella. To return the favor, she offers him help around the house, and a relationship slowly begins to blossom as the distance between them closes…”
‘The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten’ has released over eight volumes with several more planned.
Square Enix began releasing the series in manga form through their Manga UP online magazine. The artwork is from Wan Shibata with Suzu Yūki handling the composition. Yen Press acquired the licensing for the North American release.
Knight Rider’s K.I.T.T. Is Getting The Playmobil Treatment
Playmobil’s move into licensed figures and vehicles has marked an interesting time for collectors over the past few years. On the one hand, we love the idea of our favorite characters getting reimagined in a new way. But, on the other, those of us with kids know that these child-friendly toys are going to end up seeing a lot of playtime.
Regardless of that conundrum, Playmobil is pressing on. The toymaker has tackled Ghostbusters, Back to the Future, and James Bond. Now it’s time for the Hoff! Yup! David Hasselhoff’s Michael Knight and the talking Trans AM K.I.T.T. are getting the kiddy treatment.
Priced at $89.99 and sized just right for the 3″ tall Playmobil figures, Knight Industries Two Thousand’ crime-fighting car features lights and sounds right out of the classic ’80s show. Unfortunately, Entertainment Earth’s exact phrases and sound effects weren’t listed, but they’d be pretty easy to guess. As shown on the box, K.I.T.T. will probably have the scanner sound effect, turbo boost, and a few lines addressing Michael.
I wasn’t expecting Playmobil to include Devon Miles and Bonnie Barstow. But that’s a nice added feature. Will we get a K.A.R.R. variant in the future?
Speaking from experience, Playmobil’s licensed vehicles are worth the cash, most of the time. However, since K.I.T.T. is $89.99, that may stretch things a bit. The Ghostbusters’ ECTO-1 wasn’t that much, plus it was larger and had more features.
Maybe it’s the cost of doing business with Universal? Who knows?
What do you think of the addition of Knight Rider to the Playmobil line? Let us know in the comments section.
[Source: Entertainment Earth]
Super7 is Adding Hank Scorpio and Duffman To Simpsons Ultimates Wave 2!
Super7, you now have my undivided attention for this line of Ultimates figures. Generally, I wasn’t looking to spend $55 a figure, but now that you’ve got Hank Scorpio, Duffman, and Krusty the Clown all in one wave? Just take my money. Suck it right outta my pockets, you dirty, dirty toymakers!
The first wave Super7 announced contained an unexpected group including Poochie and robots of Itchy and Scratchy. This second wave is a real improvement! But, of course, adding Hank Scorpio to anything makes it better. He’s the boss I hope to be for my team, complete with the corporate hammocks.
I like Duffman because he reminds me of myself. I’m a corporate shill who loves drinking, and I’ve got a killer body. If I’d not spent $60k on a college degree, I would have gladly taken up a career as a beer spokesman.
Bartman is, well, Bartman. I remember Bart’s alter ego being somewhat popular for a small period in the very early ’90s before everyone started liking Homer and all the secondary characters more. I don’t blame them.
Each character can be picked up individually for $55 a pop or all together for $220.
The newest wave of The Simpsons ULTIMATES! is here to help you continue to build your own menagerie of Springfield’s most interesting characters!
Bartman, Duffman, Hank Scorpio, and Krusty the Clown are made-to-order, highly articulated, deluxe 7” scale action figures featuring a variety of interchangeable parts and iconic accessories inspired by your favorite episodes of The Simpsons.
Super7, I know you read these posts. Wave 3 needs to have Handsome Pete. I am not joking. Handsome Pete is an icon and needs proper representation in the toy medium. Do you hear me?!
What do you think of this new wave of The Simpsons Ultimates action figures? Let us know in the comments.
[Source: Super7]
