Epic Games’ free-to-play MOBA Paragon never quite found the stability it needed to become successful, shutting its doors in early 2018 after being live for less than two years. Meanwhile, another Epic title, Fortnite, was flourishing–and its huge success ultimately meant that the company had little reason to keep Paragon alive. Shortly after the game shut down, Epic announced it would be releasing millions of dollars worth of Paragon assets to Unreal Engine 4 developers, and now that generosity is coming to fruition.
At least four new MOBAs are now being developed with Paragon’s official assets, PC Gamer has reported. The games include OverPrime, CORE, Predecessor and Fault, with many of them nearing a soft launch in beta or alpha phases.
Despite the overall decline of the MOBA genre, each of the new games is looking to bring something different into the mix–even while using the same game’s assets. You can see what the different games have done with the same asset sets in the trailers below.
Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us Part II features a neat, and fairly sophisticated, mini-game of sorts that lets you play music on an acoustic guitar. Numerous different chords and strumming patterns are possible, and this has led to some wonderful videos of covers of famous songs popping up online.
Now, Blink 182’s own Mark Hoppus has gotten involved. During a recent Twitch livestream on his account, Hoppus covered his own song, “Dammit,” using the Last of Us 2’s in-game guitar. It’s a four-chord song, so it translates quite well in the game as an acoustic version of one of the band’s most famous tunes. It’s a delight to watch Hoppus in this video, even if he forgets the words at one point.
You can buy a replica of the guitar from The Last of Us 2, but at $2,300 it’s not cheap. Sony partnered with guitar company Taylor for the custom acoustic guitar based on Ellie’s guitar from the game.
As the writer, producer and director on The Batman, Matt Reeves has been working with Warner Bros’ film studio–now, he’s moving his overall deal for TV content from 20th Century Fox to Warner Bros, THR reports.
Reeves, along with his production studio, 6th and Idaho, will create and develop television projects for Warner Bros. TV destined for various platforms, including WarnerMedia’s new streaming service HBO Max. Reeves currently has an exclusive first-look deal with Netflix for feature films.
Reeves’ past TV projects include WB’s Felicity, The Passage on Fox, Tales From The Loop for Amazon, Relativity, and Gideon’s Crossing. He was in pre-production on an NBC pilot for Ordinary Joe, a passion project for Reeves since 2006, before the COVID-19 pandemic shut productions down worldwide.
The new Tom Hanks movie, Greyhound, comes to Apple TV Plus on July 10 behind reviews that are mostly positive. However, Hanks–who also wrote the script–says in a new interview that he’s a little upset the film won’t be released in theatres.
He told The Guardian that it’s an “absolute heartbreak” that Greyhound isn’t able to screen in cinemas as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. The movie would shine brighter on the big screen, he says. “I don’t mean to make angry my Apple overlords, but there is a difference in picture and sound quality,” he said.
Apple reportedly paid $70 million to acquire the distribution rights to Greyhound from Sony Pictures. The film company put the movie up for sale due to the global health pandemic causing movie theatre closures in the US and around the world.
With its big action sequences concerning naval warfare, it does seem natural that a theatrical release would have been the ideal way to see Greyhound. But the world is changed these days.
Greyhound is just the third movie that Hanks has written, following That Thing You Do! (1996) and Larry Crowne (2011). The movie premieres July 10 on Apple TV Plus.
In March, Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson contracted coronavirus while filming the new Elvis Presley movie in Australia, becoming among the first major celebrities to get the virus.
Hanks told The Guardian that he and Wilson got better after about two weeks, though their experience with the virus when they had it sounds very terrible. “My wife lost her sense of taste and smell, she had severe nausea, she had a much higher fever than I did,” Hanks said. “I just had crippling body aches, I was very fatigued all the time, and I couldn’t concentrate on anything for more than about 12 minutes.”
The new Tom Hanks World War II movie, Greyhound, is coming to Apple TV Plus on July 10. Ahead of that, reviews for the war movie have begun to appear online, providing first look at the reception.
Here in this story we’re rounding up excerpts from reviews posted to a variety of outlets across the internet to help you decide if the movie is worth your time and money.
Greyhound was originally scheduled to come to theatres, before Apple paid a reported $70 million to Sony for the distribution rights to bring it to Apple TV Plus. Hanks, who also wrote Greyhound, told The Guardian that it’s an “absolute heartbreak” that the movie won’t screen in theatres.
The movie, which is based on the C.S. Forester book The Good Shepherd, stars Hanks as naval officer George Krause. Inspired by real events, Krause is the commanding officer of the Navy warship Greyhound, and he’s tasked with leading his crew in a battle against German forces at the beginning of World War II.
Greyhound is directed by Aaron Schneider, whose 2003 movie Two Soldiers won the Oscar for Best Short Film, Live Action. For more on the critical response to Greyhound, check out GameSpot sister site Metacritic.
It’s also worth noting that Greyhound is not Hanks’ first WWII movie (he starred in Saving Private Ryan), nor is it the first time he’s playing the captain of a ship–he did that in Captain Phillips.
Greyhound
Directed By: Aaron Schneider
Written By: Tom Hanks
Starring: Tom Hanks, Elisabeth Shue, Karl Glusman, Stephen Graham, Devin Druid, Lee Norris, Rob Morgan
Release Date: July 10 (Apple TV Plus)
Slant
“With no vividly drawn humans on display, the action feels like rootless war play. In short, Greyhound takes a fascinating bit of WWII history and turns it into a blockbuster version of bathtub war.” — Chuck Bowen [Full review]
Entertainment Weekly
“The movie maps its course by Hanks’ steady hand: A ship moving swiftly and with sure purpose– compelled by death and danger, but safe in the certainty of history.” — Leah Greenblatt [Full review]
IndieWire
Hanks isn’t bad, per se, but “Greyhound” has more trouble finding Commander Krause beneath his flop sweat than Commander Krause does the submarines that are lurking beneath his ship. He’s green and religious and trying to sail his way through modern history’s soggiest trial by fire, but few of these details crest into view during a movie that struggles to see what’s under the surface.” — David Ehrlich [Full review]
Variety
“As a warship commander leading a convoy through a treacherous stretch of the North Atlantic, Tom Hanks anchors a World War II thriller that’s less a drama than a tense and sturdy diary of the logistics of battle.” — Owen Gleiberman [Full review]
IGN
“Greyhound has occasional bursts of violent excitement but it’s overall lack of engaging characters, the unappetizing CG, and the lackluster story make for a very color-by-numbers outing from a headlining star capable of a whole lot more.” — Matt Fowler [Full review]
USA Today
“The movie is successful at finding little details that make it feel lived-in and authentic. There’s the sailor who repeats information from the sonar operator to Krause and sneezes, causing everyone to give him side-eye. Or the way an exhausted Krause takes off his dress shoes and bleeds wherever he steps because of literally being on his feet for days. Many of those moments add emotional punch to the visceral story, in which Hanks won’t steer you wrong: Greyhound satisfies as both a snazzy war picture and a showcase for its star.” — Brian Truitt [Full review]
Blink 182’s Mark Hoppus has covered one of his own songs, Dammit using the simulated in-game guitar in The Last Of Us 2.
While streaming the game on Twitch, Hoppus spent time in the Valiant Bookstore noodling on one of the acoustic guitars Ellie can tinker with throughout the course of the game, and saw him cover Dammit, one of the most popular singles from Blink 182’s 1997 album Dude Ranch.
Hoppus manages to copy the four-chord structure from the strong by strumming on the DualShock’s touchpad, using the right stick to switch between the different chords in time with the tune. He also has a little sing-song to accompany his strumming (though he does need to ask the Twitch chat for the rest of the lyrics at one point).
The proper replica will run you $2,300, but bear in mind that that’s not so distant from the regular price range for Taylor guitars of this kind. For more on The Last Of Us 2, check out our guide to every collectable in the game.
Last week in an Instagram live interview, Halle Berry mentioned that she had been preparing for a role as a trans character. After backlash from the trans community, Berry has now announced that she will no longer be considering the role, Variety reports.
In the original interview with hairstylist Christin Brown, Berry discussed how interested she was in the trans male character’s story–though she misgendered the character multiple times. “[It’s] a character where the woman is a trans character, so she’s a woman that transitioned into a man. She’s a character in a project I love that I might be doing,” Berry said. “It’s really important to me to tell stories, and that’s a woman, that’s a female story – it changes to a man, but I want to understand the why and how of that. I want to get into it.”
Berry’s comments were criticized by many online, and for some proved how important it was to give trans actors the opportunity to tell trans stories. The makers of the Disclosure documentary on Netflix responded in a tweet imploring Berry to watch and understand the issues the documentary exposes in the entertainment industry.
Hi @halleberry, we heard you’re considering playing a trans man in your next project. We ask that you please watch @Disclosure_Doc on @netflix first to understand how cis actors like yourself acting in trans roles has major cultural consequences offscreen. #DisclosureNetflix
— Disclosure Documentary (@Disclosure_Doc) July 6, 2020
Halle Berry has now tweeted a statement apologizing for her remarks, and stating that she would no longer be considering the role.
“I am grateful for the guidance and critical conversation over the past few days and I will continue to listen, educate, and learn from this mistake,” she wrote, which was acknowledged by LGBT media monitoring body GLAAD.
Stardew Valley‘s 1.5 update will add a “significant new piece of end-game content” plus other new additions as well. In a tweet, developer Eric Barone, also known as ConcernedApe, teased the update that was previously announced when the 1.4 update was released. The tease shows Willy’s shack with a new back door, that wasn’t previously there.
Stardew Valley 1.5 update… notice anything new in Willy’s shop? Progress on the update is coming along steadily. It’s still in a “nose to the grindstone” phase, but some good milestones have been met. This update adds a significant new piece of end-game content and much more! pic.twitter.com/FmjgDJnqYO
Where the door leads and if it’s connected to the end-game content is unknown, but Barone said he has hit some good milestones on the update, but no release window has been given. Like previous updates, the new content will be free for all players. Update 1.5 might also include bananas, which will be added as a new growable fruit after winning a Twitter poll.
GameSpot has officially kicked off Play For All–a celebration of all things gaming. Join us as we bring you the summer’s hottest news, previews, interviews, features, and videos, as well as raise money for COVID-19 relief efforts and Black Lives Matter with the help of our friends from around the gaming world. Check out the Play For All schedule for more.
Thirty minutes of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla has found its way online, revealing a first look at the female version of Eivor. The footage is from what appears to be an early build of the game, so it’s likely we’ll see a much more polished portion of the game during this weekend’s Ubisoft Forward event. That’s happening on Sunday, July 12 at 12 PM PT / 3 PM ET.
Take-Two is currently working on a new BioShock without its creator, designer, and writer Ken Levine. He, however, is, working on a new game within Take-Two that will have “some weird sh** in it.” We don’t know much else about the game other than it’s being developed by Ghost Story Games, which Levine runs as president. In the meantime, the next BioShock is being developed by Cloud Chamber.
Lastly, the next Xbox Series X stream officially got a date and time: Thursday, July at 9 AM PT / noon ET. There are still Xbox 20/20 events to come, and we still don’t have an official price or release date.
Meanwhile, Play For All keeps on trucking. Play For All is a multi-week summer gaming celebration and charity event featuring special guests like Troy Baker, Danny O’Dwyer, and many familiar GameSpot faces. We’ve already raised thousands of dollars for #BlackLivesMatter and COVID-19 Relief Efforts thanks to all of you! Be sure to tune in every day between 12 PM and 2 PM PDT for interviews, livestreams, and everything in between.
When movies can be made again, Thor actor Chris Hemsworth is not only set to come back for Extraction 2, but he’s also making a new movie about Hulk Hogan in which he’ll play the title character.
Hemsworth shared a few little details about the movie in an interview with Total Film, as reported by GameSpot sister site ComicBook. Hemsworth said he’s preparing to get the most jacked he’s ever gotten, even more than for the Thor and Avengers movies, to play Hogan.
“This movie is going to be a really fun project,” hesaid. “As you can imagine, the preparation for the role will be insanely physical. I will have to put on more size than I ever have before, even more than I put on for Thor.”
Hemsworth also said he’s putting in work to get Hogan’s accent right, and also his attitude. Hemsworth is Australian, while Hogan comes from the American south and has a very deep voice.
Hemsworth added, “I will also have to do a deep dive into the rabbit hole of the wrestling world, which I’m really looking forward to doing.”
The Hulk Hogan movie comes from the directing and writing team behind Joker, with Todd Phillips set to direct and Scott Silver attached to write the movie about the wrestler’s life.
Hogan’s career is undeniably gigantic, covering decades upon decades from New Japan Pro Wrestling to AWA to WWF to WCW to TNA. As we reported earlier, though, this movie will primarily focus around his origin story, including the rise of Hulkamania and his work in the WWF.”
Hogan also had his own cartoon series, action figures, numerous movie roles–including playing himself in Gremlins 2–and many other merchandising opportunities. There is no word yet on when the Hulk Hogan movie will debut or who else will star in it.
