Ubisoft and Netflix are partnering for an animated series adapting the Splinter Cell video game franchise. Derek Kolstad (the writer behind the John Wick movies) will write and executive produce the series.
Splinter Cell had long been in development as a feature film set to star Tom Hardy but the trade says that project is “currently considered inactive.”
The stealth game franchise — which has spawned seven games as well as novels — follows black ops agent Sam Fisher. He has been voiced by both Michael Ironside and Eric Johnson in the games.
This week on Wrestle Buddies, GameSpot’s professional wrestling podcast, Chris E. Hayner and Mat Elfring have a lot to talk about–and they’re not alone. The Good Brothers–Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson–are here to talk about all manner of things.
First up, Mat and Chris watched an episode of Impact Wrestling on AXS TV and had a bunch of thoughts. In the great wrestling war between AEW and WWE that technically doesn’t exist, Impact is often an afterthought. After checking out the product though, we can’t figure out why that’s the case.
Next, we dive into the rich history of WWE Studios filmography to study cinematic achievements like The Marine 5 and 12 Rounds 3 to come up with our Top 5 movies from the company. Yes, while WWE has released quite a few bad films, there are also a number of great movies you should check out.
Lastly, the aforementioned Good Brothers are here to talk about going to Impact after leaving WWE, their upcoming comedy pay-per-view, and so much more. Naturally, Chris couldn’t let this appearance happen without talking to Doc Gallows about his time in Aces and Eights, the best thing to ever happen in Impact Wrestling History. Gallows and Anderson, much like the Wrestle Buddies, appreciate the sillier things in wrestling history, so you’re not going to want to miss this one.
All that plus we answer your questions! New episodes of Wrestle Buddies are released every Thursday on the podcast platform or app of your choice, including Spotify, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.
Splinter Cell, the long-running stealth-action franchise developed by Ubisoft, is getting its own animated Netflix adaptation, according to Variety. The first season is in development and helmed by John Wick writer Derek Kolstad.
Two seasons have already reportedly been ordered, encompassing a total of 16 episodes across them. There’s no indication yet if the series will adapt stories from some of the games, or whether series stalwart Michael Ironside will be reprising his role as Sam Fisher. Ironside was last involved with the series in Splinter Cell: Conviction, having been replaced in the most recent entry, 2013’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist. He later returned as Fisher in multiple cameo appearances across other franchises.
Derek Kolstad is no stranger to action productions too. He’s served as a writer on all three John Wick films while also recently providing writing for the Disney+ exclusive Falcon and The Winter Solider. The series was recently delayed after initially planning to launch this August.
This also isn’t the first animated video game adaptation to hit Netflix. Konami’s Castlevania has already been adapted across three fantastic seasons, with a fourth currently in development. Ubisoft also recently helped produce a film adaption of Assassin’s Creed starring Michael Fassbender. It wasn’t as good.
The French publisher has not dipped back into the Splinter Cell well in a long time though, with series protagonist Sam Fisher relegated to cameos in Ghost Recon: Wildlands and Breakpoint, as well as the recently announced mobile game Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad. Although a new Splinter Cell entry has never been officially ruled out, it was missing yet again at the recent Ubisoft Forward stream.
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A game-breaking bug is halting players’ adventures 20 to 30 hours into Paper Mario: The Origami King. The RPG’s driving narrative force revolves around Princess Peach and her castle being held in place by enormous streamers atop a distant mountain. It’s up to Mario to rescue the princess from the game’s titular villain by travelling to different locations within the Mushroom Kingdom in order to destroy all five streamers.
As YouTube channel Nintendo Unity recently detailed, a game-breaking bug can destroy a players’ save file on the fifth and final streamer, leaving those affected by the issue with the option to either delete their save and start again or wait for Nintendo to resolve the bug with a forthcoming patch.
Polygon reached out to Nintendo and were told that the studio is currently working on such a fix. “We are aware of reports about issues affecting some players of Paper Mario: The Origami King,” a representative from the company said. “We are working to resolve these issues and plan to address them in a software update. We apologize for any inconvenience.”
If you’re currently playing through Mario’s newest RPG adventure and don’t want to lose hours upon hours of progress, it’s worth knowing how to avoid the issue. As you make your way to the game’s final streamer, you’ll need to grab the Spring of Rainbows VIP card in the Shangri-Spa area. A Toad will take the card out of your possession permanently once you’ve entered the cave for the Spring of Rainbows, and if you progress forward the game will carry on as intended.
If you decide to turn around and leave the cave, however, Toad will treat Mario as though he still needs to give him the VIP card to get back inside. Since you’ve already handed it over and it’s no longer in your inventory, there’s no way of acquiring another one. Paper Mario only has one save file, and the game automatically saves when leaving the cave, so you’re left stuck in limbo with no way to progress.
For the sake of those already affected by the game-breaking bug, hopefully Nintendo’s fix isn’t too far away. It’s a shame, too, because aside from this, Mario’s return to the paper world is a success. The game was awarded 8/10 in GameSpot’s Paper Mario: The Origami King review. “Each piece of The Origami King elegantly fits into its whole, taking its irreverent flair to new heights,” critic Suriel Vazquez said. “The Paper Mario series has recently shown that being clever and being smart are two different things, but thankfully, it’s once again managed to be both.”
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Looking for a high-end laptop without the boutique price tag? We’ve got you covered. Today’s spotlight deal is a huge discount on Alienware’s flagship laptop, normally $3100 and down to $1800 for a few days. That’s not all that Dell is offering. They even have an RTX 2080 equipped gaming laptop for under $1600. In other deal news, the Back to the Future Trilogy in 4K UHD sees its first discount ever over at Target, and the Ring Fit is still available at Best Buy.
______________________________ Eric Song is IGN’s deal curator and spends roughly 1/4 of his income on stuff he posts. Check out his latest Daily Deals Article and subscribe to his IGN Deals Newsletter.
The Version 1.4 Summer Update of Animal Crossing: New Horizons has turned one of the game’s most useful glitches into a feature.
As spotted by the @ACWorldBlog Twitter account, you can now remove the HUD when using the NookPhone Camera App by clicking in the right analogue stick on your Joy-Con.
Earlier in July, a glitch that allowed players to remove the HUD was itself removed, leading to a backlash from fans and content creators, who were using the tweak to capture footage and screenshots of the game without the visually busy elements of the interface.
Now they’ll be relieved that Nintendo has been listening, and has brought the glitch back into the game as a feature.
The past Camera App Glitch allowing you to remove the HUD has now been added as a native feature in Version 1.4 of Animal Crossing: New Horizons! Simply press in the right analog stick to remove the user interface. Thank you Nintendo!! #ACHHpic.twitter.com/wGC0xVhV0z
— Animal Crossing World (@ACWorldBlog) July 30, 2020
We reviewed Animal Crossing: New Horizons upon its launch in March of this year, scoring it a 9 and calling it “an expanded, polished, next-generation reboot of a classic.” In other New Horizons news, here’s the full skinny on the latest content update, which has brought fireworks and dreaming to the game.
Microsoft Flight Simulator will launch on Steam, and VR support is coming later this year as part of a free update.
“Microsoft Flight Simulator for PC will support VR via the HP Reverb G2. This will be available later this fall,” head of Microsoft Flight Simulator Jorg Neumann revealed during a press briefing. In an accompanying post on the Xbox blog, it was announced that the game will be coming to Steam on launch day as well as Windows 10 and Xbox Game Pass for PC, which is currently in beta.
Neumann has told Eurogamer that VR support will come to other headsets beyond the Reverb G2 later down the line. “We’re going to bring it to all the devices – all the common ones,” Neumann told Eurogamer. “It’s just going to take a few more months after that.”
During the same briefing, Neumann described Microsoft Flight Simulator as “an ever-changing, ever-evolving platform” with more features and more planes arriving in the years to come.
Following the game’s launch, the team at Asobo is “aiming to release something meaningful every month.”
Free world updates will arrive every two to three months and focus on a specific area of the globe, with custom airports and missions. Free sim updates will address community wishlist features in between. Asobo is also planning paid DLC for Microsoft Flight Simulator, and Neumann mentioned helicopters and heliports as a potential focus.
During a media preview for Spiritfarer–an upcoming death positive game that sees you play as Stella, a ferrymaster to the afterlife–I played through a mid-section of the game and spoke to creative director Nicolas Guérin. I asked him what it was like to work on and release a project that deals with mortality and grief during a worldwide pandemic, when death is likely at the forefront of many people’s minds.
“It is scary at first,” Guérin told me. “Scary because it would be entirely possible that people don’t want to hear or talk about death anymore, being that much surrounded by it. But then, taking a step back, I believe maybe, maybe Spiritfarer could be a little bit of help.”
I was a bit surprised at my experience with Spiritfarer. We’ve seen quite a few games that deal with death positivity in the past few years, such as A Mortician’s Tale and Necrobarista. However, Spiritfarer takes on a much more transactional tone in how it asks players to take a hard look at the swirl of emotions that surround dying or caring for the recently deceased.
In Spiritfarer, you encounter and befriend many different spirits, from child-like bundles of curiosity who misunderstand your intentions to savvy romantics who are unfaithful to their spouses. It’s your job to try and befriend these people, learn about who they were in life, and help them ultimately move on.
This translates into a lot of fetch quests and multi-part crafting missions. Initially, it’s a bit unsettling. You feel good for checking off tasks and helping people deal with their grief but it also feels like you’re being selfish for gaining some semblance of satisfaction when you’re not the one who has to struggle with accepting death. But Guérin assures that Spirifarer is intentional in making you feel good about accomplishing tasks–doing things for people who are dying to make both them and yourself feel good is a part of grieving.
“Indeed, transactions in Spiritfarer are meant to be interpreted through the lens of grief acceptance, but more importantly, with [keeping] in mind the concept of efforts and care,” Guérin said. “Mechanically speaking, all transactions in Spiritfarer represent a sacrifice of oneself to care and help others. There is even a currency in Spiritfarer, called Glims, and [protagonist] Stella can buy many things. But of course, everything she buys, she does so for the spirits she is taking care of.”
Spiritfarer developer Thunder Lotus Games isn’t a stranger to games that deal with coming to terms with dying. The developer’s first game, Jøtun, sees you play as a Viking woman who dies dishonorably and has to now prove herself to the gods in order to enter Valhalla, and the studio’s sophomore effort, Sundered, sees a woman descend into an ever-changing underworld where she must choose whether she’s willing to sacrifice her humanity and embrace demonic, Eldritch-like powers in order to save herself.
Spiritfarer has a vastly different tone than those games though–it’s very cute (you can hug whoever you want, even your cat) and none of your problems are solved through violence. It’s more about emotionally connecting to the dying than coming to terms with your own mortality.
Even in the brief preview I got to play, I couldn’t help but be drawn to the cast of characters Stella has to ferry to the afterlife. I didn’t have much time to interact with Gwen, Stella’s best friend and one of the first spirits you have to say goodbye to, but seeing her and Stella part ways got me all misty-eyed. If it wasn’t for my intent to not cry in the middle of something where I’m expected to remain professional, I’d have likely burst into tears right then and there in front of the devs. The farewell was such an emotional gut-punch because it wasn’t strictly tragic, there were underlying currents of hope (that Stella and Gwen would see each other again) and happiness (that Gwen was leaving Stella’s ferry feeling more content than when she arrived) to the scene too.
“The game’s values are about kindness and the understanding that we’re all interconnected, shaped by others” Guérin said. “At the core of it, there is hope, or at least, a stronger proximity with the concepts of heritage and legacy, and how even if someone passes away, his or her imprint will remain on us, on who we are, and who we will become.”
If you’re as excited to go on a journey with Stella as I am, Spiritfarer is scheduled to set sail for Xbox One, PS4, Nintendo Switch, and PC in 2020.
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Twitch Prime has revealed August’s batch of free games for subscribers, and it’s one of the better months in recent memory for the program. Twitch Prime is included with every Amazon Prime subscription, so don’t miss out on these freebies. All you need to do to start getting free games through Twitch Prime is link your Twitch account to your Amazon Prime account.
Treachery in Beatdown City is the standout here. The beat ’em up released earlier this year, and though it harkens back to old school arcade games, it adds more depth to the formula with RPG mechanics, character strengths/weaknesses, and a tactical menu that gives each fight a strategic bent. It earned an 8/10 in GameSpot’s Treachery in Beatdown City review.
Blazing Chrome, a 2019 run and gun, is also noteworthy. Machines take over the world, and as a member of the resistance, you have to run through a series of chaotic side-scrolling levels, obliterating every mechanical enemy in sight. Blazing Chrome thoroughly nods back to 16-bit shoot ’em ups, and you can even play local co-op with a buddy.
Chroma Squad is a tactical RPG inspired by Power Rangers that released in 2015, while Warsaw is also a tactical RPG that takes place during WWII. Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn is a sequel to the 1994 fighting game. A Legend Reborn is a departure from the original as a beat ’em up. The main character, a kung fu master, is voiced by Shaquille O’Neal himself.
Twitch Prime also gives away free in-game loot for popular games each month. In August, you’ll be able to snag new goodies for Red Dead Online, Apex Legends, Grand Theft Auto Online, and more. You still have some time to claim July’s Twitch Prime free games before August’s freebies take their place–right now you can grab 23 free games.
August 2020 free Twitch Prime games
Available throughout August
Treachery in Beatdown City
Blazing Chrome
Chroma Squad
Warsaw
Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn
Free SNK games with Twitch Prime
Available through December 31
Art of Fighting 2
Baseball Stars 2
Blazing Star
Fatal Fury Special
Ironclad
The King of Fighters 2000
The King of Fighters 2002
King of the Monsters
Metal Slug 2
Pulstar
Samurai Shodown II
Sengoku 3
Shock Troopers 2nd Squad
SNK 40th Anniversary Collection
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Nintendo’s secret best mobile game continues to expand its roster. To celebrate the Dr. Mario series’ 30th anniversary, classic 8-bit Dr. Mario has been added as a new character in Dr. Mario World, and he’s free for all players.
Access the game before 10:59 PM PT on August 30 and you’ll receive 8-bit Dr. Mario as a free login bonus. In solo play, 8-bit Dr. Mario is able to eliminate three special viruses when his skill gauge is fully charged, while in multiplayer, he can prevent your opponent from moving half-capsules for four seconds.
8-bit Dr. Mario isn’t the only new character to join the game this week; another Koopaling has also just received his medical degree. Dr. Lemmy is now available through the Staffing feature, and his special skill revolves around barrels. In solo mode, Dr. Lemmy can immediately break 10 barrels in a stage, while in multiplayer, he can hide one of your opponent’s viruses inside a barrel.
On top of the new doctors, one new assistant–Sushi the shark–has also been added to the game. You can get a look at 8-bit Dr. Mario in the video above, while Dr. Lemmy and Sushi are highlighted in the tweet below.
Blue: “I collected some information on the new doctor and assistant appearing today at 11 PM PT. I think you’ll be chuckling so much that you’ll forget the contents of the video, so watch it several times.” #DrMarioWorldpic.twitter.com/4heiZh2YbI
Dr. Mario World is also in the midst of an anniversary event. Right now, Nintendo is giving out an infinite Heart, which lets you play any stages without using up stamina for 30 minutes, as a free daily gift, and the Daily Booster offers two free plays per day instead of one. Nintendo is also giving out other daily login bonuses through August 5.
Nintendo has only released a handful of games on mobile so far, and while they haven’t been huge money-makers for the company, Nintendo says its mobile games have strengthened its IPs. The company’s most recent mobile title, Mario Kart Tour, is also getting new content this week in the form of the Wild West Tour, which adds Nabbit, Cowboy Wario, and Kalimari Desert.
