Street Fighter V’s Rose Will Pummel You With Tarot Magic

Capcom has released a new gameplay video for the previously teased Rose, who is making her return to the series in Street Fighter V very soon. The tarot-wielding fighter is an unusual character who will keep her enemies off-balance with a mix of melee and magical abilities.

Rose’s signature abilities make use of tarot magic and can grab and slam down enemies from range, and she can also use anti-air attacks to keep them from closing in. She’s also capable of mixing it up with punches and kicks when need be, as well as powerful magical counters that will punish anyone who plays too aggressively in a corner. Almost all her attacks see flowing ribbons moving through the air, which is both gorgeous and a little distracting to whoever she’s beating up.

Rose is available through both the Season 5 Premium Pass and the Season 5 Character Pass. Both give you access to five characters, and the final character is expected to arrive this fall. You don’t get quite as much with the Character Pass, but it does still include all five characters and some special costumes and color variants. These passes are available on both PS4 and PC.

Street Fighter V has now been the franchise’s go-to fighting game for more than five years and has since been updated with the Arcade Edition and Champion Edition content. It has also continued showcasing its characters in other games, with Ryu and Chun-Li both making guest appearances in Fortnite. Yoshinori Ono, who had worked as an executive producer on the series for more than a decade, departed Capcom in 2020.

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A ’90s Daredevil Show Was Cancelled In Favour of a Doomed DC Series

We could have had a Daredevil TV series in the early ’90s, but an ill-fated adaptation of a competing DC show saw plans cancelled for a series starring the Man Without Fear.

In the latest IGN Inside Stories documentary, The Incredible MCU That Time Forgot, actor Rex Smith reveals that NBC had TV plans for Marvel’s Daredevil, before a CBS adaptation of The Flash show saw them abruptly abandoned. Smith played Matt Murdock in 1989’s The Trial of the Incredible Hulk, which left a set-up for a Daredevil show when arch-enemy Wilson Fisk (played by Indiana Jones’ John Rhys-Davies) escapes before the conclusion.

Smith told IGN that the set-up was intentional, but ultimately never paid off. “It was not just a guest star thing for film. This whole effort was a springboard for a series for the Daredevil,” he explains.

Rex Smith as Daredevil in The Trial of the Incredible Hulk (1989).
Rex Smith as Daredevil in The Trial of the Incredible Hulk (1989).

Trial of the Incredible Hulk screenwriter Gerald Di Pego confirmed that for us: “The whole reason to do [the 1980s Hulk] movies was not just to show the Hulk again, but to bring in the other universe characters. So if you’re going to bring in Daredevil and Kingpin, you’re certainly not going to put them in jail or kill them off.”

While the project never moved far enough along to see a truly set storyline, Smith told us that John Rhys-Davies was also signed up for the TV project, to reprise his role as Wilson Fisk. “We were so excited, John and I both,” he explained. “He was signed on for the series too, to be my Moriarty for Sherlock Holmes. There’d be other baddies, but the real baddie that always had his hand in it was going to be John.”

Unfortunately, the show never made it out of the gate due to the CBS network’s interest in a competing DC project, a 1990 series about The Flash. “I hear from my agent,” says Smith, “He goes, ‘We have a problem.’ I go, ‘What kind of problem?’ He goes, ‘Well, [CBS] bought your contract for Daredevil, because they’re coming out with The Flash and they don’t want the competition. So NBC sold your contract.'”

That contract sale saw the Daredevil show put on ice, and Smith was essentially paid not to play Daredevil, so that The Flash could succeed – although that series would only see a single season before being cancelled itself.

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“They wanted to have the only superhero show,” Smith continues. “So Flash got it and Daredevil got buried. But what a strange twist of events, isn’t it? […] I’m glad to be able to let people know. And also let them know that, this thing, every intent of it was to bring to television the Daredevil. And we’ll never know how that could have gone.”

Of course, we would eventually see Daredevil emerge as a 3-season Netflix streaming series – which itself would see a sudden end after the emergence of Disney+. The TV rights for the character now lie with Marvel Studios, but we’ve heard nothing about a revival for the character from Disney, with fans petitioning to allow Netflix series star Charlie Cox to return to the role.

There’s much more to learn about Marvel’s early on-screen projects in The Incredible MCU That Time Forgot, which includes major players from the ’80s Hulk projects that introduced Thor, Daredevil, Stan Lee cameos and more to the TV-watching world. And if that’s not enough for you, check out our other superhero documentaries, Batman: Year One – The R-Rated Reboot That Almost Was, and Batman Beyond: The Classic That Nobody Wanted.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train Review

Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train opens in theaters nationwide in the U.S. and Canada on Friday, April 23, 2021. This was reviewed out of Japan. Read more on IGN’s policy on movie reviews in light of COVID-19 here. IGN strongly encourages anyone considering going to a movie theater during the COVID-19 pandemic to check their local public health and safety guidelines before buying a ticket.

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A visually stunning theatrical continuation of one of anime’s biggest recent hits, Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train only slightly misses the mark. The point of this film is to show us how the characters have grown from training after their last life-and-death battle—and to have them learn the hard way just how far they still have to go.

Picking up moments after the end of the TV series, the film — a blockbuster success in international release — follows our team of heroes as they board a train where both normal people and demon hunters have gone missing en masse—likely due to demons. Of course, this means that whatever’s going on is a bit too much for mid-level hunters like Tanjiro and his friends, so they are assigned to work with Rengoku, one of the nine strongest hunters in their organization. Yet as they begin to explore the mystery of the train, it quickly becomes clear that raw power alone will not be enough to save all those on board.

Each side character gets their time in the spotlight to do something meaningful — especially Inosuke — with the film providing a convincing rationale as to why the far more powerful Rengoku doesn’t just solve everything himself. Much of the plot here deals with dreams. This, in turn, allows for an insightful view of what our heroes’ deepest desires are. While some dreams, like Inosuke and Zenitsu’s, are used mainly for comedic purposes, others, namely Tanjiro and Rengoku’s, show us what exactly they lost due to the demons — the everyday life and familial connections that were so precious to them.

We also get a more metaphorical look at several characters’ subconscious. For Rengoku, it is an ever-burning hardpan desert symbolizing his undying personal drive. For Tanjiro, it is an endless serene lake under a stunning summer sky symbolizing the peace and warmth at his very core. All this helps us better understand our heroes and empathize with what they are going through.

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While the film does have some good character development, Enmu, the main villain of the film, gets almost none at all. Up to this point, the villains we have encountered have often had layers to them—something deep inside that both Tanjiro and the viewer can empathize with even as he cuts them down. For the mansion-twisting Kyogai, it was his need to be recognized, either as a demon or as a writer. For the spider-demon Rui, it was his need for a family to replace his human one even though he could no longer understand the concept.

Enmu, on the other hand, is spectacularly one-note. He is a sadist, plain and simple. He lets his victims experience their greatest dreams only so he can watch the horror on their faces as they awaken to him killing them. He shows no remorse for his actions and only regrets not killing more people. If it weren’t for his excellent character design, he’d probably be the most forgettable villain of the franchise.

And yet Enmu isn’t the weakest aspect of the film; the climax is. While the majority of the film is spent following Tanjiro, he is not the emotional core of the film but rather Rengoku. In fact, this film lives or dies on how well you connect with Rengoku, which is the problem.

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It’s hard to connect with Rengoku because we don’t know Rengoku. Moreover, none of our heroes know him either. While he did appear briefly in the series proper, he was equal parts antagonist and comic relief during Nezuko’s trial. In fact, before the film, Rengoku and Tanjiro never even had a single conversation. In this film, beyond talking in battle, they have only two brief conversations, one at the start of the film and one at the end and neither are particularly deep. While Rengoku’s dreams and an almost-too-late flashback do let us know a bit about him it’s no way near enough to successfully pull off the emotional gut-punch the film is aiming for. No matter how much the score swells and voice actors give their all, the climax just falls flat.

On a visual level, there are few anime out there that look better than Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train. It expertly combines 3D and traditional animation in a way that makes both look amazing. Vivid colors, dynamic camera movements — this film has all the things we’ve come to expect from Ufotable’s animation in recent years.

But where it truly stands apart from other Ufotable works is in its effects. While the Demon Slayer TV series focused mainly on the water effects — making them look as if they came straight out of a Hokusai painting — this film aims to do something comparable with fire. It feels powerful, otherworldly, and perfect for something that’s supposed to be able to destroy even the most powerful of demons. It’s hands down the visual highlight of the film.

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Mass Effect Lore: The First Contact War

With Mass Effect: Legendary Edition well on its way, we know that this will be the first time that many folks play through BioWare’s acclaimed sci-fi trilogy. There’s a lot of lore and backstory to these games, so if you’re not huge on reading comic books and novels, paging through text logs, and exhausting every dialogue choice just to enjoy an RPG, we’re here to help ensure you’re fully up to speed.

In the video above, Jordan Ramée talks through the First Contact War, a three-month conflict that takes place prior to the events of Mass Effect. The First Contact War is just what humans call it though–you may hear all of the alien characters in the game refer to it, instead, as the Relay 314 Incident.

Even though it takes place before the trilogy, the First Contact War is an important event. It defined humanity’s place in the Milky Way galaxy, and explains why there’s a palpable tension between certain humans and aliens. Understanding the First Contact War will help you better understand several of the main characters you’ll meet in the first Mass Effect, especially squadmate Ashley Williams and main antagonist Saren.

We’ll be breaking down the lore of Mass Effect leading all the way up to the release of Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, so stay tuned. Mass Effect: Legendary Edition will launch for Xbox One, PS4, and PC on May 14–the remaster will also be playable on Xbox Series X|S and PS5 via backwards compatibility.

Days Gone Director, Analyst Disagree Over Why Big Games Can Flop

It doesn’t appear we’ll be getting a sequel to Sony Bend’s Days Gone, and some of the game’s creative leadership is no longer at the studio. This includes director and writer John Garvin, who appeared to put the blame for games not getting sequels–at least in part–on players not willing to pay full price at launch.

Speaking to fellow former Sony developer David Jaffe, Garvin said (via VGC) that “If you love a game, buy it at full ****ing price,” and said he has heard players talk about getting games on sale or through PlayStation Plus, instead.

Jaffe asked the obvious rebuttal to this, which is how can you know you love a game you haven’t played? Garvin doubled down but didn’t have much of an answer. He pointed to the PS4-exclusive God of War getting more support out of the gate.

NPD Analyst Mat Piscatella, who previously worked for both Activision and Warner Bros. in the business and sales planning departments, disagreed with putting the blame on players.

“If a game didn’t sell well at launch it’s most likely because the game, its marketing, or its price failed to incentivize consumers to purchase. Blaming the consumer for a game not selling well at launch is a bit off the rails,” Piscatella said.

Days Gone was polarizing at launch, with reviews all over the place. According to GameSpot’s sister site Metacritic, they ranged from as low as 3/10 to as high as 10/10, with plenty of very low and very high scores among the 109 cataloged. By contrast, God of War’s very lowest score on Metacritic was a 7.5/10 and it had more than 40 perfect scores. Seeing such praise for a game before it’s out can certainly influence a buying decision.

Days Gone is free on PlayStation Plus right now and is also included in the PS5’s PlayStation Plus Collection. The game releases for PC on May 18.

Now Playing: Days Gone – Official PC Features Trailer

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E3 2021: Schedule, Participants, And What To Expect

E3 2021 is going to look a lot different than the E3 events of years past. Rather than host a large, in-person event like we’ve seen every other year except 2020, the ESA has chosen to host a digital show featuring a number of development and publishing partners. This will give everyone the chance to see trailers and announcements online while also giving companies the freedom to run events their own way. GameSpot is also participating in the gaming frenzy this June with the return of Play For All, which includes support for important charities.

It can be a lot to keep track of, particularly if you’re used to the more rigid schedule of traditional E3 events. However, game companies have started to announce when they’ll be hosting their own events, and we’ve organized them to make it as easy as possible to plan your personalized E3 viewing party.

When Is E3 2021?

E3 2021 will take place from June 12 through June 15, and participating publishers will be hosting their own events within that timeframe.

However, we won’t be limiting this breakdown to only official E3 events, because several publishers have chosen to forgo the ESA’s structure for their own events. EA and Sony are two of the biggest players to do this in the past, and we will include their events if and when they announce them independently.

E3 2021 Schedule

June 12

Ubisoft Forward: Noon PT / 3 PM ET

Ubisoft Forward began last year after the cancellation of E3 2020, giving the publisher a chance to show off and announce its games. We actually got two separate Ubisoft Forward presentations last year, and it’s possible that could be planned again. Far Cry 6 and VR-based Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell projects are in the works, as well as the extreme sports game Riders Republic.

June 13

PC Gaming Show and Future Games Show: Time TBD

PC Gamer and GamesRadar will once again host the PC Gaming Show and Future Games Show, respectively, on June 13. These events typically have more of a talk show format, particularly the former, and focus on a variety of games. That includes lots of indie titles, and there are also opportunities for deeper gameplay dives and questioning than we typically see in the other press conferences.

June (Date TBD)

Summer Game Fest and Day of the Devs

Geoff Keighley is once again not associated with E3 this year, and has instead organized another Summer Game Fest to offer game announcements and news over several months. It’ll kick off in June, and it will also feature a special iteration of the Day of the Devs from Double Fine and Iam8Bit. This will give aspiring and established developers the chance to show off their games to the world.

Unscheduled

The following publishers have not officially announced press conference dates or presentations for E3 2021. However, they are confirmed to be participating in E3 and have almost always held events in the past.

Xbox

Microsoft’s event this year is probably going to look a lot different than in years past, and not just because of the digital format. As of earlier this spring, Bethesda is part of Xbox Game Studios, meaning the publisher’s own content will likely be included in the Xbox show instead of in a separate conference, and mentions of “summer” seem to indicate E3 is the place where it happens. That could also make the Xbox show one of the longer ones we see this year, and we’ll surely see something on the upcoming Halo Infinite.

Nintendo

Nintendo didn’t release a Nintendo Direct presentation last year in the wake of E3’s cancellation, but the company is confirmed for E3 2021 in some capacity. Its E3 Nintendo Direct events are almost always fantastic, offering big news on a variety of first-party Nintendo Switch games. With such a long period of no information on games like Metroid Prime 4 and Bayonetta 3, it would seemingly be the right time to give some updates.

Not participating

PlayStation

PlayStation was not listed among E3 partners when the ESA revealed its plans for the show. This would keep in line with what Sony has done over the last few years, as it has offered State of Play presentations without hosting a huge, blockbuster event. With the PS5 now available, however, we could see some sort of separate event.

Electronic Arts

EA was one of the first big publishers to break away from E3, instead hosting its own EA Play festivities at the same time. It isn’t clear what form that will take, or if that’s the plan, for 2021, as these events are focused more on community interaction than normal press conferences. It did still host a conference last year, however, so chances are EA has another planned for June.

Amazon Reportedly Cancels Lord Of The Rings MMO

Amazon has reportedly canceled its long-awaited Lord of the Rings MMO game, making it just the latest in a growing list of unreleased projects from the tech giant. However, it appears this game’s cancellation came from a contract dispute rather than any issue with creating something that met quality standards.

Bloomberg reported on April 17 that issues arose after co-developer Leyou Technologies was purchased by Tencent back in December. Amazon and Tencent could not then come to an agreement to continue developing the game, which was also being co-developed by an internal Amazon team, and this forced it to be canceled. According to a statement Amazon gave to Bloomberg, the internal team will move to other projects.

Leyou is the same parent company behind Warframe developer Digital Extremes and Gears Tactics studio Splash Damage. It also owns a stake in Certain Affinity, a studio that has worked extensively on support development for the Halo series.

Thus far, Amazon Games has a very rocky track record for actually shipping games. Multiplayer titles like Breakaway and Crucible have been canceled outright, with the latter actually releasing and then being un-released after receiving significant criticism. Two other projects were apparently canceled, as well, and the MMO New World has been delayed repeatedly. It’s now arriving in August.

Amazon is still spending a whole lot of money on another Lord of the Rings project, however. The first season of the upcoming Lord of the Rings show cost a reported $465 million to make, a staggering figure for a series that will be included free with Amazon Prime memberships.

Now Playing: New World – Exclusive Developer Breakdown Of The MMO’s Progression Systems