Author: Trafficblast

Iron Fist Season 2 is almost here, as it’s scheduled to arrive this Friday, September 7, on Netflix. And based on the episodes we’ve seen so far–more than half the season–it seems like a massive improvement over the terrible first season. You might even want to check it out, which is why we’ve put together this refresher course for what happened across Iron Fist Season 1, as well as The Defenders.

The Netflix MCU may pride itself in being about “street level” heroics versus its big screen counterparts’ aliens and magic rocks and cosmic genocides–but that doesn’t mean things in regular, everyday New York City don’t get a little dicey from time to time. This is especially true when it comes to the world of Danny Rand, who brings his own level of crazy to the Defenders mix. He may not have bulletproof skin or the ability to lift cars, but the Iron Fist does his best to make literally fighting dragons work in a street level world, and that takes some work.

The Iron Fist story isn’t necessarily complicated, but it’s certainly got more moving parts–and a much broader scope–than your traditional Netflix Marvel story. Not only is Danny the product of an ancient, mystical civilization that hails from another dimension, he’s also the wielder of a chi-based, kung fu-influenced weapon that’s designed to destroy another ancient, mystical group of people who may or may not be puppeteering the entirety of New York’s underworld from the shadows. The Iron Fist continuity and mythology weaves its way through nearly every Defender’s life in one way or another, whether they’re dealing with the nefarious Hand themselves like Daredevil, or just trying to keep their heads above water while duking it out against corrupt systems like Jessica Jones and Luke Cage.

On top of all that, the bulk of Iron Fist’s first season culminated into the Defenders miniseries, so that’s even more you’ll need to bring yourself up to speed on: the story of the “Black Sky” and the final battle against the Hand–things you’ll probably want to know before you go wading back into the chaos.

All of this is to say, there’s kind of a lot to keep track of here–and it’s understandable if you’re not caught up, considering most people thought Iron Fist Season 1 and Defenders were pretty bad.

So whether you binged that first season back when it was released, or you want to dive right in without ever having to put yourself through it, we’re here for you. Here’s your crash course in everything Iron Fist, and a rundown of exactly what you need to know and what you’ll need to remember to hit the ground running When Iron Fist Season 2 releases on September 7.

To celebrate the launch of Insomniac’s Spider-Man on September 7, Sony is offering a free Spider-Man theme for PlayStation 4. It’s a static theme that features a Marko Djurdjevic-illustrated image of Spidey swinging into battle against Rhino and Scorpion. It’s set against music from the game and gives all of the PS4 system icons a Spider-Man pattern. Make sure to claim the freebie soon, because the offer ends right when the game launches.

To get your free theme, visit the launch countdown page for Spider-Man, scroll down, and click “Claim Reward.” A window will pop up with a code you can bring to the PlayStation Store to redeem. Once you do that, you can select it from the Themes section of the settings menu. Now Spider-Man is slinging webs on your PS4’s home screen.

Sony is going all-out to market this PS4-exclusive game. You can also pick up a limited edition Spider-Man PS4 Pro bundle for $400–if you can find it in stock. Take a look at our Spider-Man pre-order guide for details.

And don’t forget to check out our Spider-Man review. Critic Edmond Tran wrote, “The feeling of embodying Spidey and using his abilities is astonishing, and the time spent on exploring its major characters help make its story feel heartfelt, despite superhero bombast. There have been open-world Spider-Man games before, but none so riveting and full of personality, none that explore and do justice to this many facets of the universe.”

While you’re tinkering with your PS4 themes, you can also pick up a free dynamic Destiny 2: Forsaken theme here.

Destiny 2‘s third expansion, Forsaken, is out now and that means players have a bunch of new weapons, armor, subclasses, and more to explore. If you pre-ordered the game on PS4, Xbox One, or PC, though, you have an extra set of bonuses coming your way, providing you know where to redeem them.

Anyone that pre-ordered Forsaken will get Cayde’s Exotic Stash, which comes with a few cosmetic goodies. To redeem your reward, go see Amanda Holliday in the Tower Hangar once you finish the Forsaken campaign. Cayde’s Exotic Stash includes:

• Last Hand–An ornament for Ace of Spades
• Queen of Hearts–Exotic Ship
• Standoff–Emote
• Shades of Cayde-6–Shaders

Bungie says players who don’t have space for the items in their inventory will see them sent to the Postmaster, and you should make sure you have adequate space to avoid losing the items altogether. Once you get them, the rewards will be unlocked in the collection.

Forsaken is out now, unleashing all its new content (PS4 players get some exclusive items). You can check out all the new Exotics weapons and armor, read GameSpot’s full guide to Gambit mode, and learn how to unlock Forsaken’s new Subclasses and Supers. Meanwhile, Bungie has unveiled a new rewards program where you can earn collector’s items by completing in-game challenges and has announced Year 1 PS4 exclusives will now be available on all platforms.

The first image from Captain Marvel is here, and it’s a notable one. Brie Larson stars in the upcoming Marvel movie, which is set for release in March 2019. She is the first female superhero to headline a film within the MCU, and the image comes via Entertainment Weekly, which has subsequently shared additional photos and details.

The main EW image shows Larson as Carol Danvers wearing the iconic Captain Marvel costume from Marvel’s comic books, which will be good news for those fans who were worried that she might be wearing something a little different. Check it out below:

Captain Marvel is directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, who collaborated on Ryan Gosling’s breakthrough Half Nelson and have directed episodes of hit TV shows The Affair and Billions. The cast features Samuel L. Jackson as SHIELD boss Nick Fury and also includes Ben Mendelsohn (Star Wars: Rogue One), Jude Law (Sherlock Holmes), DeWanda Wise (She’s Gotta Have It), and Gemma Chan (Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them). According to EW, the movie will not include an origin story and will initially see Danvars working in space as part of the elite Kree military team Starforce. The magazine also released additional Captain Marvel images and details.

Larson spoke about what we can expect from her character. “She can’t help but be herself,” she said. “She can be aggressive, and she can have a temper, and she can be a little invasive and in your face. She’s also quick to jump to things, which makes her amazing in battle because she’s the first one out there and doesn’t always wait for orders. But the [not] waiting for orders is, to some, a character flaw.”

Captain Marvel hits theaters on March 6, 2019. For more, check out our look at everything we know about Captain Marvel.

Famed game designer Hideo Kojima has shared little about his new project, Death Stranding, since the game’s showing at E3 earlier this summer, but fans may get another look at the enigmatic title soon. Kojima Productions has announced Death Stranding will have a presence at this year’s Tokyo Game Show, which is scheduled to kick off in Japan later this month.

According to the official Kojima Productions Twitter account (via Siliconera), the studio will host a Death Stranding stage event during TGS on September 23. No timing details have been announced yet, but the presentation will feature appearances from director Hideo Kojima himself, as well as “several” voice actors from the game. Additional information and guests will be announced at a later date.

Development on Death Stranding began following Kojima’s departure from Konami in 2015. The title was first revealed during Sony’s E3 2016 press conference, although aside from being an open-world action game, it is still very much shrouded in mystery. It stars a number famous actors, including The Walking Dead‘s Norman Reedus, Hannibal‘s Mads Mikkelsen, and Lea Seydoux and Lindsay Wagner, both of whom were revealed during the game’s E3 2018 trailer.

The extended trailer also provided fans their first glimpse at Death Stranding’s gameplay. In it, Norman Reedus’s character can be seen traversing a variety of environments, including rivers, expansive plains, mountainsides, and Martian-like landscapes. Later in the video, he encounters a woman who helps him avoid detection by invisible monsters.

Death Stranding is in development for PS4. A release date for the game has not yet been announced. Despite this, the title is already available for pre-order from a number of retailers. You can learn more in our Death Stranding pre-order guide.

It’s officially September, and that means the next wave of additions to the Xbox Game Pass library is now available. There were 10 titles added to the catalog for September 2018, including some big first-party games such as Halo: The Master Chief Collection and Quantum Break. These add to the more than 100 games (across Xbox One and Xbox 360) that are already available in the library.

The Master Chief Collection, which originally launched in 2014, is the biggest Halo package ever released. It includes remastered versions of Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2, in addition to Halo 3 and Halo 4. All of the multiplayer maps for each game are also included. If you’re playing on Xbox One X, the game looks better and loads faster.

The other headlining game for September is Quantum Break, the 2016 time-bending game from Alan Wake studio Remedy Entertainment. In a big twist for games, the title mixes gameplay and live-action TV, featuring actors like Shawn Ashmore, Aidan Gillen, Dominic Monaghan, and Lance Reddick. Additionally, quality racing game Onrush, which released earlier this year, is included in this month’s offerings.

In addition to the dozens of back-catalog games available in the program, all of Microsoft’s first-party games launch into Game Pass, meaning subscribers can get games like Forza Horizon 4, Halo: Infinite, Gears 5, and others at no extra cost.

September 2018 Xbox Game Pass Additions

• Halo: The Master Chief Collection
• Quantum Break
• Onrush
• Aven Colony
• Shadow Warrior 1
• Sky-Force Reloaded
• Snake Pass
• Manual Samuel
• Giana SIsters: Twisted Dreams
• Innerspace

In addition to Amazon’s new Lord of the Rings TV show, an all-new “AAA” video game based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s iconic fantasy franchise is on the way. The untitled project is in the works at Athlon Games, which is the video game publishing label operated by the Hong Kong based chicken meat supplier Leyou‘s new video game publishing label Athlon Games.

It’s not immediately clear which studio is developing the game, as Athlon said it is working with an unspecified partner for the title.

The untitled game has an online focus, and The Hollywood Reporter describes it as an MMO (though the official press release does not say this). It’s officially described as a “completely new experience,” and one that will incorporate cooperative elements.

In terms of the story, it’s set in Middle-earth “a long time” before the events of The Lord of the Rings. The game will cover “lands, people, and creatures never before seen” in the Tolkien universe, and all of those possibilities are exciting to think about.

Athlon Games president Dave Miller, who formerly worked at Warner Bros., suggested in a statement that the new title is coming to PC and console, while it could have a games-as-a-service model. He said the game is being made to remain appealing “for years.”

There is a good reason to believe the new Lord of the Rings game will be a free-to-play title. Leyou says that while the free-to-play business model is popular, prevalent, and generally accepted in Asia, there remains “vast untapped potential” for the model in the rest of the world.

If the new Lord of the Rings game is indeed an MMO, it won’t be the first. The Lord of the Rings Online launched all the way back in 2007 and is still in operation to this day, though its ownership has changed hands.

Athlon partnered with Middle-earth Enterprises for the new game, though terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“We are extremely pleased to work with Athlon Games to create a new, immersive game experience, exploring epic regions in Middle-earth during the years leading to the events of The Lord of the Rings,” Middle-earth Enterprises licensing boss Fredrica Drotos said. “Athlon’s game will allow millions of Middle-earth fans throughout the world a unique opportunity for fellowship and epic exploration.”

Leyou Technologies owns Digital Extremes (Warframe) and Splash Damage (Gears of War 4 multiplayer), while it previously invested millions of dollars into Halo and Call of Duty co-developer Certain Affinity. As mentioned, video games are just one part of Leyou’s business. The company also operates a slaughtering and processing facility in China that is capable of processing 18 million chickens every year.