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Call Of The Sea Is Now Available On Xbox Game Pass

Call of the Sea is now available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, and is also included in Xbox Game Pass. The story-driven adventure marks the debut for Spanish developer Out of the Blue.

Set in 1934 in the far reaches of the South Pacific, you play as a character called Norah who finds herself on a lush island paradise in the search for her missing husband. The nameless island is dotted with remnants of a lost civilisation, with its tropical forests and sandy shores intertwined with ancient ruins and occult mysteries.

Call of the Sea is heavily influenced by the works of author H.P. Lovecraft, albeit with a twist. Out of the Blue co-founder Tatiana Delgado said earlier this year that the studio is “trying to focus on the surreal and the oneiric more than the horrific and the grim. In short, Call of the Sea isn’t a descent into madness but a rise to sanity. Losing your mind makes you see a dream-like, colorful world.”

The developer also set its sights on next-gen early in development, with Delgado saying the team wanted to specifically “target the next gen” with Call of the Sea.

“As soon as we saw what was possible, we wanted to do it because–although we have a stylized, visual style, so it’s not realistic–we wanted to get as much as possible from the graphics side,” Delgado said. “And I think we can benefit a lot from the next-gen and, we’re kind of different for what you would expect from a next-gen game.”

Call of the Sea is now available for $20, or as part of an Xbox Game Pass subscription.

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EA May Block FIFA Ultimate Team In Countries With Strict Gambling Laws

The latest patch for FIFA 21 reportedly features code that would allow EA to disable Ultimate Team in some countries or regions that have strict gambling laws. While this doesn’t mean EA is looking to imminently block Ultimate Team in certain countries, the studio is at least preparing for the potential eventuality.

FUT Watch found the code for a pop-up message in the game’s latest patch, which states, “FIFA Ultimate Team is currently not accessible due to a demand from the authorities of your region.” EA has a history with local gambling authorities and lawmakers in both Europe and North America, of course. Just this year, a class-action lawsuit was filed against the company in California, a similar lawsuit was filed in Canada, and a district court in the Netherlands allowed a fine over EA’s loot boxes to proceed.

EA has remained compliant in some regions by not offering FIFA Points for sale. In Belgium, for instance, the company removed the virtual currency following the country’s crackdown on loot boxes. Players in Belgium can still play Ultimate Team, but the only way to purchase players and other content is through the use of in-game coins.

As more countries begin to tighten their restrictions and file lawsuits against EA, it appears as though the company may be considering blocking the mode in certain countries to get the authorities off its back. This seems like the most extreme conclusion, however.

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Cyberpunk 2077 Dev Promises Big Bug Fixes In Day One Patch

With the first wave of Cyberpunk 2077 reviews now out, reviewers’ opinions have varied on the quality of the game’s storytelling and themes, but all have agreed on one key point–the game is buggy as hell. In a conversation on Twitter, a CD Projekt Red developer has promised that the upcoming 43GB day one patch will make all the difference.

While there seems to be a lot to talk about in terms of Cyberpunk 2077’s story and expansive world, it’s the bugs that are dominating the conversation right now. “Cyberpunk 2077 is phenomenally buggy,” GameSpot’s Cyberpunk 2077 review reads. “I played a pre-release build that was updated during the review period, and there’s a day-one patch planned as well, but the scale of technical issues is too large to reasonably expect immediate fixes. I encountered some kind of bug on every mission I went on, from more common, funnier ones like characters randomly T-posing to several complete crashes. I didn’t notice much of an improvement after the update, either.”

Adding to the anxiety of people planning to boot up the game when it releases on December 10 is the fact that review codes were only given for the PC, giving players no idea of how the game will run on either new or older consoles.

Now, CD Projekt Red’s Fabian Mario Döhla has responded to some of the concerned comments on Twitter, reassuring players that the bugs would be less of an issue after patches. In one reply he said that the patched game on console would be “a different game.”

He also explained that a lot of the bugs encountered by reviewers had either already been fixed or would be in the day one patch–and even went further to explain that a lot of the bugs could have been caused by reviewers playing the game at higher settings than their PC could handle.

With the game releasing on December 10, preloading is now live on Xbox and PC–though the issues encountered by reviewers have seen some players giving their pre-orders a second thought. It’s clear that CD Projekt Red will bring the game’s bug issues under control with upcoming patches, but not everyone has faith that the day one patch will be enough.

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Temuera Morrison Talks About Being Boba Fett In The Mandalorian

Despite being the canon face of Boba Fett since 2002’s Attack Of The Clones, The Mandalorian is the first time Temuera Morrison has played the character beyond video game voice roles and a few dubbed lines in the original trilogy. Now that his triumphant debut has been made, the New Zealand actor has talked about the role in an interview with the New York Times.

From the beginning, Morrison said, there was never any certainty that he would reprise the role–though without his familiar face, the character’s cameo at the end of Season 2’s first episode wouldn’t have had such instant recognition. “My agent and I had a number of discussions–when are they going to call me?” he said. “But then I kept forgetting about it. In this day and age, they have a number of options. They could have called other people to play the part. They can go with a fresh face. They could have called the Rock. I felt so grateful that after all this time, something came to be.”

When that call did come, Morrison was brought in for a meeting with series creator Jon Favreau and executive producer Dave Filoni, where the two ran him through their vision for the character. “I actually got to the meeting quite early–I was so excited I got there about two hours early–and there were conceptual drawings on the wall,” Morrison said. “I saw an image that looked like me, and I said, I’m sure that’s me. But even then, I didn’t want to get too excited… I was just listening–I wasn’t discussing anything. I’m just nodding, going, yes, yes. Obviously they had their ideas about what they wanted to do, and they must have told me that they wanted me to play the role again. But I was so nervous that some of it was just going straight over my head.”

Despite the whirlwind of the initial meeting, Morrison did get to add his own unique stamp to the character. “I come from the Maori nation of New Zealand, the Indigenous people–we’re the Down Under Polynesians–and I wanted to bring that kind of spirit and energy, which we call wairua,” he explained. “I’ve been trained in my cultural dance, which we call the haka. I’ve also been trained in some of our weapons, so that’s how I was able to manipulate some of the weapons in my fight scenes and work with the gaffi stick, which my character has.”

Unfortunately for fans who want to know more about Boba’s encounter with the Sarlacc pit–and more importantly, how he escaped it–Temuera Morrison doesn’t have the answers. “I’m not one of those guys that knows too much about the actual history,” he explained. “The fans of Star Wars, they have better knowledge of, ‘What’s happened? How can he still be alive? I thought he was stuck in this place?’ I can find out more on the internet.”

The interview ends with Morrison talking about his most famous co-star–Baby Yoda, newly officially named Grogu. “Baby Yoda’s probably the biggest actor in Hollywood at the moment,” Morrison said. “But I never got to work with him very closely or with the people who move him around…. But hopefully I’ll get to meet him and we can have a little bonding session.”

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Call of the Sea Review

All great puzzle games not only consist of lots of smaller problems to solve along the way, but one overarching conundrum to unpack on your journey. They take you to a mysterious place full of intrigue and the unknown, a place which by the end of your time there you’ve uncovered all of the secrets it held inside. The stunning island setting of Call of the Sea does exactly this as you’re led through each of its puzzle-laden areas, gradually revealing the answers to an engrossing story full to the brim with beauty and darkness.

It’s clear from the get-go of this four to five-hour first-person adventure where its inspirations came from. The shadow of Lovecraft hangs heavy over the island, with echoes of other-worldly creatures and pearlescent “The Colour Out of Space” tones littering the landscape at times. Never does it descend into pure horror, though, and stays firmly put in the more dreamlike elements of the Lovecraftian spectrum, with aspects of Guillermo Del Toro’s work also present.

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In particular, The Shape of Water appears to have a big influence throughout – romance, fantasy, and well, water are big themes here. It’s fundamentally about the lengths we’ll go to for the people we love. And like true love, Call of the Sea is reciprocal; the more you invest in its characters and story, the more gratification you’ll ultimately receive when choosing between its equally affecting and poignant endings.

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Call of the Sea is not without a sense of adventure, though, and borrows heavily from the 19th-century novels of Jules Verne and H. G. Wells as you travel to a mysterious location and unearth its history as well as the remnants of an ancient civilization. There’s a genuine feeling of discovery as you follow in the tracks of your character’s explorer husband, Harry.

You play as Norah, a woman suffering from an unexplained illness, the cure for which is the reason Harry ventured to the south Pacific in the first place. She’s expertly voiced by Cissy Jones (of Firewatch and The Walking Dead fame) who carries the story on her shoulders for almost all of its runtime with occasional support from Yuri Lowenthal (Marvel’s Spider-Man) as Harry. Similar to Firewatch, Call of the Sea has a personal story to tell with a healthy dose of mystery thrown in. It’s very well written on the whole and concisely tells its story through internal dialogue, letters, and painted murals without ever becoming confusing or dull.

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It’s in these internal thoughts, however, that some of the writing doesn’t hold up. It occasionally feels unnatural, with the obvious stated on more than one occasion. It didn’t detract too much from me enjoying the story as a whole, but did at times leave little to interpretation or genuine discovery and what felt like it could’ve been an enticing open mystery sometimes became an expedition in exposition instead.

An adventure game is only as good as its puzzles, though, and in this regard Call of the Sea excels. As much as its story and aesthetic influences are clear to see, its gameplay is firmly rooted in classics such as the Myst series. Each chapter tends to have one large puzzle to solve in order to move onto the next area, and it’s surrounded by numerous smaller problems to solve in order to find the main solution.

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They start off fairly basic but build in complexity as you move deeper into the heart of the island. Some conundrums share similar mechanics, whether that be translating symbols or pressing a series of disparate buttons in a correct order, but no two are identical. There’s a sense of progression in difficulty that goes hand-in-hand with the story, meaning the puzzles hit a real sweet spot for me and my head felt appropriately scratched. They were never so simple that I felt I wasn’t being challenged, but also never obtuse to the level of me being stumped.

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This is much appreciated, as with a story-heavy game such as this you never want your momentum to be slowed as you await the next plot developments. It’s a hard thing to balance, but Call of the Sea achieves this throughout. It constantly brings in surprising new mechanics and ways to move around its world. Each new set of puzzles brings a new set of ideas to the table whether on land, or occasionally, underwater. A favourite section of mine had me trying to bring an oversized dormant organ back to life and work out how to play the correct series of musical notes in order to proceed. There’s always a satisfying pay-off to these larger puzzles as well in the form of significant narrative advancements or pure visual spectacle.

Each of these areas will have you travelling back and forth between locations in order to do things in the right order. This can become a little laborious over time, as Norah isn’t the fastest walker, and while you can move slightly quicker by “running” it isn’t enough of a speed boost to ease the pain.

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What does make slowly strolling your way across the island and back more bearable is that there’s plenty of stunning scenery to take in. Each biome houses its own delights, whether that be the tropical tones of a bird-song filled clearing or the harsh crashes of waves set against lightning poetically cannoning off a shipwreck. No two areas feel the same, and indeed not all of them feel of our world, but they’re all attention grabbing in their own ways. The classic look of 1930s posters and postcards is infused into the art style and allows for colours to burst off of the screen.

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This paradisiacal setting allows for the more foreboding and unusual architectural and artistic elements of the island to stand out more than they would do in a less naturally tranquil place. In essence it mirrors the themes and story of Call of the Sea perfectly; an experience packed with beauty and wonder that hides a dark mystery bubbling beneath its surface.

 

Francis Ford Coppola Is Officially Done With The Godfather

Since the release of The Godfather in 1972, the trilogy has defined Francis Ford Coppola’s career for almost 50 years. Now, the least well received film in the trilogy is getting a definitive directors cut that hopes to fix most of the 1990 film’s errors–while also marking the end of Coppola’s involvement in the franchise.

In a new interview with The Guardian, Coppola has talked about moving on from the iconic trilogy. “Me and The Godfather are done now,” he said. “There is more that [screenwriter] Mario Puzo wrote that we never used. But I don’t own The Godfather, Paramount owns The Godfather, and they may well decide to make more films. I feel that I’ve made my trilogy. I have other fish to fry.”

As far as what’s next, the director said that he would like to try his hand at sci-fi. “I want to make a film about the future,” he said. “You know the Alfred, Lord Tennyson quote? ‘For I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see, saw the vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be…’ That’s the movie I want to make. It would be called Megalopolis. I’m 81 so I hope I have enough years to make it.”

The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone is almost an entirely new take on the ending to the trilogy, with surprisingly extensive changes made to the original. It is out now in select cinemas and will release on Blu-ray and digital on December 8.

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Tenet Director Christopher Nolan Speaks Out Against WB’s Decision To Put Movies On HBO Max

Veteran director Christopher Nolan has shared his thoughts on the decision by Warner Bros. to release its entire 2021 movies slate on HBO Max and in theatres. Nolan, a longtime supporter of the traditional moviegoing experience, told ET that he was in “disbelief” when he heard the news.

He remarked that there is “such controversy” around the news because, as Nolan tells it, Warner Bros. “didn’t tell anyone.” The 2021 slate, including The Matrix 4, Dune, The Suicide Squad, and The Many Saints of Newark, are being positioned as loss-leaders to help fuel the growth of HBO Max, according to Nolan.

“In 2021, they’ve got some of the top filmmakers in the world, they’ve got some of the biggest stars in the world who worked for years in some cases on these projects very close to their hearts that are meant to be big-screen experiences,” Nolan said. “They’re meant to be out there for the widest possible audiences… And now they’re being used as a loss-leader for the streaming service–for the fledgling streaming service–without any consultation. So, there’s a lot of controversy. It’s very, very, very, very messy. A real bait and switch.”

Nolan, who has worked with Warner Bros. for a very long time on films like the Batman trilogy, Inception, and the recent Tenet, said it’s bad form on the part of Warner Bros. to do this. “It’s sort of not how you treat filmmakers and stars and people who, these guys have given a lot for these projects,” he said. “They deserved to be consulted and spoken to about what was going to happen to their work.”

Looking long-term, Nolan said he believes Warner Bros. and other big movie studios believe the movie theatre experience will return to normal operation. The moves by Warner Bros. and others to shift to digital and streaming for new releases is a business move to make more money in the short-term, according to Nolan.

“What you have right now in our business is a lot of the use of the pandemic as an excuse for sort of grappling for short-term advantage,” he said. “And it’s really unfortunate. It’s not the way to do business and it’s not the best thing for the health of our industry. But when the theaters are back and people are going back to the movies, when the vaccine has been rolled out and there’s an appropriate health response from the federal government, I’m very bullish on the long-term prospects of the industry. People love going to the movies and they’re going to get to go again.”

In a separate interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Nolan lashed out at Warner Bros. even more intensely.

“Some of our industry’s biggest filmmakers and most important movie stars went to bed the night before thinking they were working for the greatest movie studio and woke up to find out they were working for the worst streaming service,” Nolan said.

He added: “Warner Bros. had an incredible machine for getting a filmmaker’s work out everywhere, both in theaters and in the home, and they are dismantling it as we speak. They don’t even understand what they’re losing. Their decision makes no economic sense and even the most casual Wall Street investor can see the difference between disruption and dysfunction.”

The new Warner Bros. strategy kicks off with Wonder Woman 1984 on Christmas Day. For what it’s worth, Warner Bros. has publicly stated that the plan to make its movies available for streaming is only a “one-year plan,” and it won’t continue in 2022.

In a statement, WarnerMedia chair and CEO Ann Sarnoff said, “We’re living in unprecedented times which call for creative solutions, including this new initiative for the Warner Bros. Pictures Group. No one wants films back on the big screen more than we do. We know new content is the lifeblood of theatrical exhibition, but we have to balance this with the reality that most theaters in the U.S. will likely operate at reduced capacity throughout 2021.”

Some movie theatre chains are not very happy with this move from Warner Bros. AMC Theatres, one of the largest theatres in the US, said pretty much what Nolan did: this move is about subsidizing HBO Max at the expense of its longtime partner.

“Clearly, Warner Media intends to sacrifice a considerable portion of the profitability of its movie studio division, and that of its production partners and filmmakers, to subsidize its HBO Max startup,” Adam Aron, CEO and president of AMC Entertainment, said in a statement. “As for AMC, we will do all in our power to ensure that Warner does not do so at our expense. We will aggressively pursue economic terms that preserve our business.”

Master Chief Takes His Helmet Off In New Xbox Series X Ad From Taika Waititi, And He’s A Cat

Microsoft went big with its newest advertisement for the Xbox Series X|S, recruiting none other than Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi to create a special spot for the next-gen console wherein the dreams of an Xbox fan were visualized. This included Master Chief as a cat.

The video is very trippy. It chronicles the real dreams of streamer Krystal Holmes AKA MoonLiteWolf, who had her dreams recorded and sent to Waititi for him and others to interpret visually.

The Xbox team used a method called Targeted Dream Incubation. MoonLiteWolf experienced a guided sleep experience known as hypnagogia, which was tracked by a device called a Hypnodyne headband. She was then asked to recall her dreams, and Waititi visualized them.

The whole video is a treat, but probably the best part is how MoonLiteWolf dreamed of Master Chief. In her dream, Master Chief took off his helmet–which he never does in the games–to reveal himself to be a cat. And then this Master Chief cat starts dancing. It’s very strange and cool.

This is all part of Microsoft’s new marketing initiative called “Made from Dreams,” which itself is an extension of the “Power Your Dreams” marketing tagline for the Xbox Series X|S.

Professional American football player Odell Beckham Jr. also participated in the dreaming experience. He shared his real dreams with the Xbox team, and they created a controller and a pair of Nike Air Force 1 shoes based on what he saw. The controllers, which you can see below, will be available to win in a sweepstakes; full details on how you can win will be released later.

OBJ dreamed up these Xbox controller designs
OBJ dreamed up these Xbox controller designs

Head to the Xbox Wire to see more of the special creations inspired by real dreams.

Free Game Alert: Get Open-World Stealth Action Game Seven: Enhanced Edition For $0

Humble is running a free game promotion, and you can get an interesting-looking stealth action game by subscribing to their newsletter. The game is Seven: Enhanced Edition, a 2017 game that comes complete with its DLC expansion.

Seven: Enhanced Edition is an isometric stealth/action-RPG, and you play as the thief Teriel. You’ll be able to make choices about how you play and whether you help the citizens of Peh, the region you’re exploring, or exploit them for personal gain.

To get the game, you need to follow this link and subscribe to Humble’s mailing list. If you’re already a subscriber, clicking on the “Get It Now” button will automatically send you a code.

The game usually costs around $30, so “free” is a big saving.

The free code is for a GOG copy of the game, so you won’t be able to install it on Steam.

Make sure you act fast if you want a free new game to play over the holidays.

Free-To-Play Soccer Game PES 2021 Lite Is Available Now

eFootball PES 2021, which was already a smaller, cheaper update with fewer changes than usual compared to PES 2020, now has a “Lite” version–and it’s free. The new iteration of the game is available today on PS4, Xbox One, and PC, and it includes full access to myClub mode.

Players who download this free version of the game will let you build up a super team, sign a manager, and guide your team to victory. It’s the most popular mode in PES, so having access to it for free will be a boon to anyone who didn’t pick up the latest PES at launch.

The PvP Matchday mode is also available. This mode recreates historical matches and moments, and lets you relive them. You cannot play this mode online, but you’ll be able to play with a friend in the same room.

You can watch the trailer for the new free-to-play game below.

Publisher Konami has also announced the beginning of the 2021-21 season eFootball.Open tournament. Players of the console and mobile versions of the game, including this Lite version, are now able to enter through the online qualifiers, so if you think you’re a top-tier PES player this is your chance to prove it.

PES 2021 (including the Lite edition) is also playable on PS5 and Xbox Series X through backwards compatibility, although there’s no dedicated next-gen version this year.

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