Trafficblast – Page 9179

Halo Spinoff Games Go Free Next Weekend

There’s a good chance many Halo fans have skipped the series’ strategy game spin-offs Halo Wars and Halo Wars 2. After all, if hair-trigger shooters are your thing, it’s not a given that you’re also interested in real-time strategy games. But if you’ve wondered whether the Wars series might appeal to you, Xbox One and PC players will have a chance to find out next weekend, when the games will be available to try for free.

Specifically, as part of a Free Play Days event, Xbox One owners will be able to download and play Halo Wars 2 between October 18-21. PC gamers can try out Halo Wars: Definitive Edition on Steam during the same window of availability. There’s no word yet about the games being on sale for those who want to buy them once the demo period ends, but that’s traditionally the case. Both games are available through Xbox Game Pass as well.

Halo Wars first launched in 2009 on Xbox 360, pitting human UNSC forces against the alien Covenant army several decades prior to the events of Halo: Combat Evolved. It got an enhanced Definitive Edition for Xbox One and PC in 2016; that’s the version that will be free on Steam.

In GameSpot’s original Halo Wars review, Luke Anderson wrote, “It looks and sounds great, and it captures the essence of the series well, but there’s not much else to keep you coming back once you’ve finished the short campaign and grown tired of playing multiplayer skirmishes between the two sides. It’s good while it lasts, but it will appeal more to fans of Halo and casual RTS players than anyone looking for a deeply engrossing strategy game.”

The sequel, Halo Wars 2, came out in 2017 and takes place shortly after the events of the original and offers a similar RTS-lite experience. “Halo Wars 2 lies somewhere in between an RTS game for Halo fans and a Halo game for RTS fans,” Kallie Plagge wrote in our Halo Wars 2 review. “It adapts Halo’s FPS roots well, taking the series’ classic missions and reformatting them in ways that make sense for a strategy game without sacrificing accessibility. But ultimately, this is a very light RTS experience geared toward Halo veterans, not a robust strategy game, and it runs out of steam quickly.”

In any case, both games are worth trying for free if you’ve ever wondered about them and don’t have anything else to play next weekend.

Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween Review

There are the makings of a spooky, kid-friendly classic buried somewhere within Ari Sandel’s Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween. It is a film that features, among its many monsters, a werewolf, a yeti, a cackling ventriloquist dummy, a trio of truly terrifying witch creatures (with eerie Mysterio-like globe heads), a gigantic killer spider, and an army of killer gummi bears (that can mash their bodies together into giant bear monsters before swallowing children whole). There are ghosts, goblins, a headless horseman, and, of course, a flock of flying jack o’ lanterns. So eager is Goosebumps 2 to get to its spooktacular monster mash, that it regrettably hastens past such trivial cinematic necessities as establishing a rich mood in its own opening act. Acknowledging that it is a comedic film for younger kids, Goosebumps 2 still feels unduly impatient.

Aladdin: How the New Trailer Recreates the Animated Movie

Aladdin is the latest in a growing list of live-action remakes of classic animated Disney movies.

And if the newly released teaser trailer is any indication, it may be one of the most faithful adaptations yet.

Most of the footage revealed in this trailer draws directly from the original Aladdin, offering glimpses of the fantastical city of Agrabah, the mythical Cave of Wonders and even a brief glimpse of the titular hero.

Check out our slideshow or scroll down to see just how this new footage compares to the original Aladdin.

The Desert

Top 10 Haunted House Movies

With The Haunting of Hill House coming to Netflix in series form, and Halloween soon upon us, it’s time to celebrate this most ghastly of seasons with a list – in no particular order – of our 10 all-time favourite haunted house movies.

Any and all of these should suffice as you settle down for an evening of apple bobbing and televisual frights, from the fearsome hilarity of Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead II to the altogether more melodramatic horrors of The Haunting. Sure, we’re playing a little fast and loose with the rules – we’re allowing demonic hauntings as much as we are supernatural disturbances – but, regardless of source, if it goes bump in the night, it’s got a place here. So, bolt your doors, shutter your windows and, whatever you do, make sure you’re on the outside when the darkness finally crawls in.

Get a Sneak Peek at Nathan Fillion’s New ABC Drama

Castle only ended in 2016, but Nathan Fillion is already back on the case in a new ABC drama – solving crimes from the other side of the badge in The Rookie.

Fillion stars as John Nolan, a small-town guy who, after a life-altering incident, is pursuing his dream of being a Los Angeles police officer – even if it makes him the force’s oldest rookie. IGN has an exclusive sneak peek from the series premiere, which sees Fillion’s character trying to fit in during his first day on the job.

Beloved by fans for his work on Firefly, Dr. Horrible, and for being the ideal guy to play Nathan Drake, Fillion recently reflected on his career trajectory and why his new character should resonate with audiences regardless of their circumstances.

First Look at Fallout 76’s Hi-Res Map of Appalachia

Check out this detailed map of Appalachia in Fallout 76, including all the points of interest you can explore.

DuckTales Season 2 Premiere First Look

To the untrained eye, it’s always been hard to tell the difference between Huey, Dewey, and Louie Duck beyond their different colored shirts – especially since they all have the same infuriating effect on their crotchety grand-uncle, Scrooge McDuck.

But Disney Channel’s DuckTales revival spent its first season building the troublemaking trio into distinct characters with their own skillsets and interests – and in the Season 2 premiere, we’ll see one of the triplets grappling with the idea that maybe he doesn’t want to go adventuring all the time.

Above, check out an exclusive sneak peek from the DuckTales Season 2 premiere, in which a game night is anything but relaxing as the family faces shrink rays, a barbaric civilization and an unhealthy level of competitiveness.

Stephen King’s Castle Rock: Exclusive Look at Casting the Perfect Villain

Hulu’s Castle Rock, a psychological-horror series inspired by the written works of iconic American author Stephen King, is set for release on Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

We have a first look at some of the bonus content, featuring a segment on how the creators chose the series’ primary villain, “The Kid,” played by Bill Skarsgard (IT). You can check out the clip below:

Per the press release, “The first season of Castle Rock, from Bad Robot Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television, will be available to own on Digital October 15, 2018. Consumers can enjoy all 10 episodes in high definition and standard definition along with never-before-seen bonus content.” Castle Rock Season 1 will also be available on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD on January 8, 2019.

Fortnite’s Ghost Portal Back Bling Is Easier To Get For A Little While

As part of a recent update Fortnite developer Epic Games introduced Halloween-themed cosmetics to unlock. The coolest among them is the Ghost Portal Back Bling, which emits ghostly apparitions when equipped. However, players complained that unlocking it was too difficult and, in response, Epic has made it easier for a limited time.

As detailed on the Fortnite subreddit and on Twitter, from October 12 at 10 AM ET / 3 PM BST / 7 AM PT until October 14 at 11:59 PM ET / 4:59 PM BST / 8:59 PT, simply playing 20 matches is enough to get the cosmetic. You don’t have to win, as merely taking part in 20 matches is enough, and next week the challenges attached to the Back Bling will auto-complete and the item will unlock. However, this is only available if you already own (or purchase) the Skull Trooper skin.

The original method required players to complete the Skull Trooper Challenges, which involved finishing seven of the Daily Challenges, playing 50 matches, getting at least one elimination in 14 matches, searching 10 chests in a single match, and dealing 1,000 damage to an enemy in a single match. Understandably, people felt that this was asking a lot.

In addition to the Ghost Portal Back Bling, Fortnite’s in-game shop now has the Skull Trooper (Male) and Skull Ranger (Female) skins. The former is a returning skin that has been much requested. It costs 1500 V-Bucks and has color customization options. The latter, meanwhile, is a new skin for the female character model and is available for 1200 V-Bucks. The Skull Sickle Harvesting Tool will set you back 1200 V-Bucks and the Crypt Cruiser Epic Glider is priced at 1200 V-Bucks. You can see all these cosmetics here.

Epic Games has revealed a new vehicle coming to Fortnite soon. The Quadcrasher is described as being useful for players who want to “charge the boost to crash through structures or get some air,” which we imagine is pretty much everyone.

Fortnite’s Season 6, Week 3 challenges have unlocked and you can use our breakdown to see what they are. The most difficult among them involves completing time trials, but we’ve done the legwork to find the trials so you don’t have to. Check out our time trial location guide for all that information. Fortnite is now in open beta on Android, which means you can download it without an invite, however you’ll need to go through Epic to get it.

The Modders Keeping Madden ’08 Alive

In 1984 the Baltimore Marching Colts (an NFL marching band) were abandoned by their team. In the middle of the night (literally) the then-Baltimore Colts moved to Indianapolis. Their fans and the Marching Colts were stunned. Team-less, the band continued to practice and play at events, hoping football would someday return to their city.

In 2007, EA Sports decided to discontinue Madden on computers, leaving PC gamers without a modern football title. But, like the Marching Colts, the Madden PC community played on.

Thanks to the dedicated (and slightly obsessed) Football Idiot modding community, there’s been an updated mod of Madden 08 every year on computers during the 11-year hiatus.