Author: Trafficblast

Following the announcement from Netflix that it would consider no longer filming in Georgia if the state’s abortion law takes effect, Disney has now also weighed in.

CEO Bob Iger told Reuters that Disney would likely pull out of its operations in Georgia if the law goes into effect in 2020 as scheduled. He said it would be “very difficult” to keep filming there if that happens. “I think many people who work for us will not want to work there, and we will have to heed their wishes in that regard,” he said.

“I don’t see how it’s practical for us to continue to shoot there” if the law takes effect, Iger said. Disney filmed some of its biggest movies in Georgia, including Black Panther, Avengers: Endgame, and other Marvel box office juggernauts.

Iger also mentioned that it’s expected that Georgia’s abortion law will be challenged in court. “Right now we are watching it very carefully,” Iger said.

Netflix boss Ted Sarandos said earlier this week that the streaming giant behind shows like Stranger Things and Ozark would “rethink” its operations in Georgia if the abortion law takes effect.

Georgia is a popular place for film and TV productions, with a reported 455 productions taking place there in 2018 alone. The state is popular due to the tax credits that it provides, among other things.

While Netflix and Disney are holding off until more details come to light, The Handmaid’s Tale director Reed Morano said recently that she would not film a new show in Georgia due to the abortion law. The Kristen Wiig comedy Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar also recently announced it wouldn’t film in Georgia as planned due to the law.

In addition, JJ Abrams and Jordan Peele said they would donate profits from a new HBO show filming in Georgia to organizations working to fight the Georgia abortion law.

Blizzard is currently working on a lot of games; in fact, the studio has more titles in production currently than it ever has in its entire history. The company might not be willing to reveal the new projects just yet, but Blizzard’s CEO J. Allen Brack has now teased that you could see a new Overwatch game outside of the existing shooter.

He told Game Informer that Overwatch, like Blizzard’s other franchises, could extend beyond the initial title into new areas. He mentioned that Warcraft originally started as a RTS before becoming an MMO with World of Warcraft, and also a mobile card game with Hearthstone. You might also see Overwatch extend to new categories, he teased.

“We’ve talked about how we’ve got more games in development than ever before. More games in development than in the entire history of the company,” Brack said. “We also think that there are a lot of different types of games that can exist within the IPs that we have. If we think about the Overwatch IP for example, we think about the Overwatch IP as being extremely large and extremely all-encompassing. Overwatch, the game people experience today, is just being a very small part of what that IP could be.”

Blizzard doesn’t always release all of the games that it works on. For example, Blizzard developed a game called Warcraft Adventures but it was canceled before release.

“We think that a lot of these franchises have the ability to have lots of different types of games, lots of different types of experiences,” Brack said.

Brack also acknowledged that Blizzard is looking to create brand-new franchises as well. The company doesn’t do that often. When it was released in 2016, Overwatch was Blizzard’s first new IP since Diablo about 18 years prior.

“That’s a long time to go without creating a new franchise,” Brack acknowledged. “So we want to create more games in our franchises and we do want to think about new franchises as well.”

J. Allen Brack took over as Blizzard’s new president after founder Mike Morhaime left the company last year.

Blizzard’s next big event is Blizzcon 2019 in November. There is no word on what Blizzard may show, but the company is surely hoping to have a better showing than in 2018 when the company unveiled the mobile game Diablo Immortal to a mixed reaction.

In other news, the Overwatch League’s commissioner recently left Blizzard to join Epic to work on Fortnite.

Creative Assembly’s new strategy game Total War: Three Kingdoms is off to a hot start. The game sold more than 1 million copies in its first week to become the studio’s fastest-selling strategy game ever. The game is the current No. 1 strategy game on Steam in terms of concurrent players with more than 160,000 peak concurrent players today.

Creative Assembly’s chief product officer Rob Bartholomew said in a statement that the response to Three Kingdoms “exceeded all expectations”

“We’re seeing a lot of ‘best Total War ever’ comments out there. We’re very proud,” he added.

Three Kingdoms is the first Total War game set in China; it takes place in 190 CE. The game was originally scheduled to launch in March, but Creative Assembly delayed it to May to fix bugs, add polish, and make sure the localization was done right.

GameSpot’s Total War: Three Kingdoms review scored the game an 8/10.

“This is the most ambitious that Total War has ever been, from the variety of different ways that you can enjoy the game to the sheer scope of the stories that they’ve weaved around each unique character’s playable experience,” reviewer Ginny Woo said. “Three Kingdoms feels like the rightful evolution of the series, pulling from its roots in historical military tactics to come up with an engrossing modern strategy game that is always a delight, even in its less well-oiled moments.”

With Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge about to open to the public at Disneyland, fans planning to visit the planet of Batuu are also likely planning to part ways with a lot of their money. Galaxy’s Edge is loaded with new and exclusive merchandise that you won’t be able to find anywhere else (much of which you can take a peek at in our image gallery from visiting the park), ranging in price from a few dollars to a few hundred–and beyond, as we’re about to explain.

For those with plenty of cash to burn, there are some very high-end items for you to browse. During a media preview event, GameSpot found the most expensive piece of merchandise for sale in the new land. For the low, low price of only $25,000, you can have your own custom R-series droid.

Whether you want a perfect replica of R2-D2 or some splashes of color, the design of the droid is up to you, if you’re willing to pay enough. You can customize the droid’s paint job and parts–to an extent that wasn’t clear yet during our sneak peek. You can even choose whether your droid will appear scuffed up and used, or shiny like it just arrived from the factory. The droid is functional, including sounds and lights, and controllable via remote. If you decide to pony up, it will be about 90 days from the time of order to your custom droid arriving at your front door, according to Disney.

Of course, there are also options for those that don’t want to spend quite that much.

You can also build your own smaller droids for $100, or purchase one that’s been pre-built, with the price depending on the droid in question. Speaking to GameSpot, Disneyland Resort Merchandise Strategy Manager Summer Bloomfield said that prices on droids start at $10.

Honestly, though, everyone should get the $25,000 option and then R2 units can rule the galaxy. Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens at Disneyland on May 31, with Walt Disney World’s arriving on August 29.