New Realms: Joining ‘Mardu’ at the Fate Reforged Pre-Release

I attend the Fate Reforged Pre-Release event and give my initial reaction on what it's like to play the latest Magic: The Gathering set.

Read it here:
New Realms: The Blog

Xbox 360 Review: Alien: Isolation from Creative Assembly Delivers Genuine Scares

'Alien: Isolation' sets the foundation for what a proper game in the series should look like.

After last year's abysmal Aliens: Colonial Marines, the prospect of playing yet another title based on the famous film franchise filled me with dread. Thankfully, Alien: Isolation makes it clear out of the gate that this isn’t some action-based shooter that makes poor use of the license, but instead a tried-and-true homage to the original Ridley Scott classic, complete with a slick retro vibe and a gloomy, foreboding atmosphere that conjures the spirit of the timeless science fiction-horror masterpiece.

Fans who have been waiting to see Alien translated into a proper videogame finally have what they've they been looking for: A fun game that delivers the tense thrills and cheesy fun of the original movie. While not without its flaws and frustrations, Isolation's adherence to classic survival-horror mechanics and its dark cyberpunk setting make it a must-play for anyone craving some effective Xenomorph scares.

Movie Review: Men, Women & Children (2014)

A preachy, disjointed disaster. 

 

When leaving the theatre after seeing Men, Women & Children, the latest from Juno director Jason Reitman, my friends and I had varying views of what the movie was about. Discussions ranged from how it examines the irony of communication technology breeding a generation of poor communicators, to how it exposes the human race as a helpless collections of molecules, cursed to live on a giant rock in a vast universe that's doomed to collapse. At the time I presented another alternative. But I can’t recall what it was. To be honest, I don’t have a clue what the larger moral of the story is, but I am positive there is one, glaring at me and shoving itself in my face from beginning to end, like a reactive father trying to teach a complicated lesson that he himself had never thought of before this moment.

Movie Reivew: X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

Loosely based on the Chris Claremont comic arc of the same name, X-Men: Days of Future Past opens in a dark dystopian future, where a war with robotic soldiers -- called "sentinels" -- has left the mutant population devastated and helpless to fight back. On the run and fighting for their survival, the remaining mutants of the world have only one plan left: Send one of their own back in time, in hopes of stopping this bleak future from ever happening.

It’s an almost ironic plot, considering how truly horrible some of the X-Men film entries have been. Those who were hoping this outing would act as reboot for the dying franchise can rest easy: X-Men: Days of Future Past is not only the hands-down best film in the series, it may very well be the best comic book adaptation of all time.