George R.R. Martin Teases New Game That Could Be Developed By From Software

Correction: this story originally incorrectly stated that From Software’s rumored new title could be a Game of Thrones game. Martin himself has only confirmed that he did some “consulting” work for a new game developed in Japan. What’s more, the rumor is that Martin is working with From Software on a new video game project of some kind but not necessarily a Game of Thrones game. GameSpot regrets the error.

HBO’s Game of Thrones is officially over, but the series is continuing with a two-hour documentary on May 26 and then potentially a new prequel TV show. Outside of TV, author George R.R. Martin is keeping busy. He wrote on his blog that he did some consulting work on a video game from a studio in Japan. He never says it is a Game of Thrones game, so he may only be doing consulting work for writing or other world-building, but it’s still exciting to think about.

Martin said this mysterious game is being developed “out of Japan.” Gematsu reports that Sekiro, Bloodborne, and Dark Souls developer FromSoftware is working on the game, which is an open-world title featuring horse-riding. Hidetaka Miyazaki is reportedly working on the title with Martin. It remains to be seen if it is a Game of Thrones game, however.

The game is said to be published by Bandai Namco, with a reveal at Microsoft’s E3 2019 briefing planned for June. The game has reportedly been in development for three years. Gematsu notes that it only confirmed this information with a single source but decided to publish its story in light of Martin’s blog post revealing a new game in development by a Japanese studio.

It would definitely be an intriguing development to learn that From Software was working on a new title from Hidetaka Miyazaki with the help of George R.R. Martin, even if it isn’t a Game of Thrones game. It is the kind of announcement that would be a huge get for Microsoft if it were to premiere at the Xbox E3 briefing. Even if the cat is out of the bag now–if this is even real–it’s exciting to think about.

From Software’s latest big release was Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, which was published by Call of Duty publisher Activision. The game was received well by critics and it sold more than 2 million copies around the world in less than 10 days.

Correction: this story originally incorrectly stated that From Software’s title could be a Game of Thrones game. The only suggestion is that Martin is working with From Software on a new video game project of some kind.

Game Of Thrones TV Show Ending Might Not Be Same As The Book, GRRM Says

The Game of Thrones series finale, “The Iron Throne,” aired on Sunday and it was divisive. Not everyone enjoyed how writers/showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff wrapped things up for the show that began back in 2011.

The book series on which the show is based, George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire,” however, might have a different ending. The author wrote on his blog today that the ending to his book series, which finishes with The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring, might be different than the TV show.

Or maybe not.

First off, he said he knows he’s late with The Winds of Winter, but he promises that “it will be done.” He isn’t ready to commit to a release date, but he stressed that it will be finished, and then A Dream of Spring will follow. But how will it all end?

“The same ending as the show? Different? Well… yes. And no. And yes. And no. And yes. And no. And yes,” Martin said. “I am working in a very different medium than David and Dan, never forget. They had eight hours for this final season. I expect these last two books of mine will fill 3000 manuscript pages between them before I’m done… and if more pages and chapters and scenes are needed, I’ll add them. And of course the butterfly effect will be at work as well; those of you who follow [my blog] will know that I’ve been talking about that since season one.”

Martin added: “There are characters who never made it onto the screen at all, and others who died in the show but still live in the books… so if nothing else, the readers will learn what happened to Jeyne Poole, Lady Stoneheart, Penny and her pig, Skahaz Shavepate, Arianne Martell, Darkstar, Victarion Greyjoy, Ser Garlan the Gallant, Aegon VI, and a myriad of other characters both great and small that viewers of the show never had the chance to meet. And yes, there will be unicorns… of a sort…”

But what will be the “real” ending to Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire? Martin says that is a “silly question.” Instead, Martin said fans should get comfortable, sit back, and buy his books to find out how it all ends.

“How about this? I’ll write it. You read it. Then everyone can make up their own mind, and argue about it on the internet,” he said.

For lots more on Game of Thrones, check out GameSpot’s recap of the series finale in the video embedded above. You can also read GameSpot’s The Iron Throne review here.

Game Of Thrones Season 8 Makes A Lot More Sense If Bran Is Evil

The finale episode of Game of Thrones Season 8 is here, and at last, the question of who will sit the Iron Throne has been answered. Fans, viewers, and Las Vegas have speculated about which character would ultimately rule since the show’s beginning, with all kinds of callbacks and Easter eggs providing clues along the way. Plenty of characters have tried to manipulate their way to power over the years, only to ultimately fail (and die, often horribly).

So the fact that Bran Stark wound up the ruler of Westeros is somewhat confusing. He’s an entirely unassuming choice, having seemingly done very little since he became the new Three-Eyed Raven way back in Season 6. Though Bran has the ability to warg into animals (and sometimes people) and to know about seemingly anything that’s happening anywhere, he seems to rarely use these powers, and hasn’t been very involved in the goings-on of Westeros. He outed Littlefinger in Season 7, provided some information about dealing with the Night King, and helped Jon learn about his true identity, but that’s about it. Bran came off as a good choice for the ruler of Westeros because it’s seemingly not a job he wants (“I don’t really ‘want’ anymore,” he said earlier in Season 8), because he’s supposedly wise, and because he’s distant and therefore can be objective and just.

But some viewers are questioning the choice of Bran in the end, because it doesn’t make a ton of sense. For someone who knows seemingly everything, Bran hasn’t spent much time this season helping anyone. He did little during Season 7, he did nothing during the Battle of Winterfell, and what information he has provided hasn’t been all that useful. What makes him such a good choice for king, other than the fact that he’s a great compromise to keep the power away from everyone else?

The fact that Bran hasn’t had much going on since Season 6 has bothered a lot of viewers, and now to have him wind up on the throne seemingly by default is even less satisfying. Bran does say one thing that suggests he knows more than he’s letting on, though. During the council to choose the new king, when Tyrion asks Bran if he’s up for the job, Bran responds, “Why do you think I came all this way?” Once again, Bran suggests he knew something would happen before it did, so why isn’t he using that information more effectively?

No Caption Provided

If you think about it, Bran’s actions–and more aptly, his inaction–have constantly and subtly pushed in the direction of him becoming king. Season 8 makes a lot more sense if you consider that Bran might have been manipulating events for his own benefit all along. After all, he could have saved a lot more lives along the way, if that had been his goal. But what if it wasn’t?

Bran the Deceiver

Consider Bran’s actions during the Battle of Winterfell. Though he can warg into animals and get a bird’s eye view of the battle, which could then allow him to pass useful intelligence to the fighters defending the castle, Bran does nothing. He just sits in the godswood, quietly using himself as bait for the Night King. If he could have helped, why didn’t he? Maybe because Bran foresaw several key deaths that would help bolster his position.

The Battle of Winterfell saw so many of Daenerys’s forces eliminated that she was suddenly on even ground with the Lannisters. She also lost Jorah Mormont, her most trusted adviser and most capable protector. Other key deaths during the battle included a popular and capable leader in Lyanna Mormont, who was known to sway public opinion with gripping speeches, and Theon Greyjoy, who had a history with Sansa Stark that could divide her loyalties. Key people who might have changed the rest of the events of Season 8 were lost during the battle.

Bran also helps provide Jon with the information about his true parentage, even though that does nothing but complicate an already strained wartime situation. It’s Bran who convinces Samwell Tarly to tell Jon the truth about who his parents were, which instantly puts Jon into conflict with Dany even though he’s already pledged her his loyalty, bent the knee, and given up being King in the North for her. Jon has a better claim to the Iron Throne than Dany, but it’s obvious he doesn’t want to rule. Why tell Jon about his parents at all, or at least, why tell him right before he fights a battle that could mean the destruction of all of Westeros? It seems like a bad move that doesn’t help anyone, unless you consider that Bran wants to sow discord and push Daenerys over the edge.

Losing Ser Jorah leaves Daenerys without her best bodyguard and without the man who had often acted as the voice of reason against her worst impulses, right when Dany is within sight of her goal, and right when the biggest threat to her claim to the throne, Jon, is suddenly revealed. Daenerys then loses her dragon Rhaegal and her close friend and adviser Missandei to a sneak attack at Dragonstone–again, something that seems like a guy who can become a bird and see things anywhere in the world could have helped her avoid.

No Caption Provided

That puts Daenerys at King’s Landing in a fraught state. Her enemies have killed her best people, her advisers are turning on her, her dragons are dead, she hasn’t won any loyalty despite helping beat the army of the dead, and the man she loves could challenge her pursuit of the goal she spent her life chasing. She’s primed to do something terrible, and Bran could have stopped any or all of those circumstances from coming to pass with his superpowers. But he doesn’t.

Playing The Long Game

Really, the events of Season 8 make a lot more sense if you assume Bran is manipulating people on purpose, Littlefinger-style. He tells Jon that he’s actually Aegon Targaryen knowing that at the very least, it’ll create distrust between him and Daenerys. He lets lots of people die fighting the army of the dead because he wants them gone, but sets up Arya to kill the Night King (he gave her that Valryian steel dagger, don’t forget) to eliminate one of his chief adversaries. He allows Dany to lose her armies and her dragons to weaken her. He doesn’t provide any of his family members with information about King’s Landing or their enemies that could help them take the city with less bloodshed. Everything he does or doesn’t do sets up the opportunity for Cersei, Dany, and Jon to eliminate each other, and nothing he does or doesn’t do saves lives or de-escalates that conflict.

There’s even a fan theory to go with this idea, but it’s based more on George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” novels than what’s in the show. It concerns the true identity of the Three-Eyed Raven: a Targaryen bastard called Brynden Rivers, also known as the Bloodraven. With his greensight and warg powers, the theory goes, the Bloodraven could have lured Bran north of the Wall and then taken over his body, executing a lengthy plan to take the Iron Throne for himself. (Here’s more about the idea of Bran becoming the Bloodraven.)

Fans have also speculated that Bran could become the Night King through some combination of time travel and magic ever since Season 6. The touch of the Night King has been enough to turn babies into White Walkers and dragons into wights, and the Night King pointedly touched Bran during a vision in Season 6 (“His mark is on me,” Bran reminded us in Season 8). Maybe that touch had more of an effect on Bran than we all realized.

If Bran is evil, then his arc in Season 8 is a masterstroke of manipulation and careful inaction–everything Bran doesn’t do matters as much as everything he does do. There’s a reason he doesn’t use his powers to help people in Season 8: He doesn’t want to help them. And by doing very little, acting disinterested, and downplaying his magic abilities, Bran sets himself up to seem like an excellent choice for king. He gets the throne with no opposition because everyone else thinks it was their idea to crown him. Littlefinger couldn’t have executed a better deception.

John Wick 4 Release Date Announced While Chapter 3 Is Still In Theatres

John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum is still in theatres, but we’re already learning about the sequel. It was confirmed today that John Wick 4 will open in theatres on May 21, 2021.

This was announced by way of a text message sent to fans and media (including here at GameSpot). It says: “You have served. You will be of service. John Wick: Chapter 4 is coming – May 21, 2021.”

The ending to John Wick Chapter 3 certainly set up more stories to be told in the John Wick universe, so the announcement today is no surprise. Part of what drives the success of the series is star Keanu Reeves and stunt-coordinator-turned-director Chad Stahelski, so hopefully the pair return for the 2021 sequel.

John Wick Chapter 3 opened to around $57 million in North America to dethrone Avengers: Endgame and become the No. 1 movie.

In addition to John Wick Chapter 4, it was announced in 2017 that a spin-off film centered on a young female assassin was being developed. There is also a TV show; Starz is developing The Continental, a series set in the Los Angeles location of the franchise’s infamous assassin hotel.

Game Of Thrones Finale The Iron Throne Set A New Ratings Record For The Show

Surprising no one, the Game of Thrones finale was a ratings smash. The episode, “The Iron Throne,” attracted 19.3 million viewers across all platforms right away, HBO announced. This includes 13.6 million people who watched the linear TV broadcast on HBO, and the rest coming from replays and streaming.

The previous record for a linear broadcast episode on HBO was 13.4 million from Season 4 premiere of The Sopranos back in 2002. “The Iron Throne” is the most-watched episode of the final Game of Thrones season, surpassing “The Bells,” which had 18.4 million viewers.

Overall, Game of Thrones Season 8 averaged 44.2 million viewers per episode after a week of viewing, which is up by more than 10 million over the average of Season 7.

HBO also announced that the show that follows Game of Thrones on HBO, Barry, reached 2.7 million viewers for its own season finale to reach an all-time series high. It is up 253 percent from the previous season’s finale which attracted 774,000 viewers.

“The Iron Throne” was written and directed by Game of Thrones showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff. The pair are finished with Game of Thrones, but the series will continue through prequels, one of which stars Naomi Watts and begins filming this year. On May 26, HBO will air a two-hour Game of Thrones Season 8 documentary that promises to dive deep into the story behind how the final season came to be.

Weiss and Benioff are now working on a new Star Wars trilogy with Lucasfilm, the first instalment of which will premiere in 2022. They are also shopping around for a new “overall” deal with multiple different studios, according to a report.

For more on Episode 6, check out the show’s latest coffee cup-style gaffe (this time featuring a pair of water bottles) and a reminder of who was at the council meeting (there were some faces present who we hadn’t seen in years). For our thoughts on the final episode, check out our “The Iron Throne” review.

Gen 4 Pokémon, Glaceon, And Leafeon Now Available In Pokémon Go – GS News Update

You need a javascript enabled browser to watch videos.

Please use a html5 video capable browser to watch videos.

This video has an invalid file format.

Sorry, but you can’t access this content!

Please enter your date of birth to view this video

By clicking ‘enter’, you agree to GameSpot’s
Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

Stranger Things 3 Character Posters Reveal New Characters