Occasionally, here at IGN, we like to showcase something from geekdom’s rich history – like a pop-culture Time Capsule that gives us a peek in to the past, perhaps providing a new appreciation for previous projects.
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The day is November 1, 1994, and Star Wars creator George Lucas has decided to document his fist day of writing Episode I of the Prequel Trilogy. Visions of Jar-Jars dance in his head.
In a six-minute video entitled “All I Need Is an Idea,” Lucas drops his kids off at school and heads into his writing annex to brainstorm ideas about the beginning of the saga. Unjust taxation would play a huge role, but how? Someone would surely hate sand, but who? These were all things Lucas needed to hammer out!
All Lucas had were yellow pads, pencils, and the 15 pages of original notes he wrote down when he began the entire series in the mid-’70s to give the Original Trilogy characters a developed backstory (with tabs reading “Jedi,” “Empire,” and more). In the binder, we’re quickly shown a page detailing young Anakin (age 9-20), described as a hard-working, blue-eyed “boy who builds droids.” Some interesting questions jotted down include “Is he a mutation?” and “Who is his father?”
The answers to which are, obviously, “Sure, why not?” and “Babu Frik.”
Check out “All I Need Is an Idea,” which was included on The Phantom Menace’s original DVD release, here…
In the second half of the video, Lucas comments on how movie-making technology of the ’90s would now allow him to explore stories and settings that he couldn’t manifest previously. “I get to do a lot of things I couldn’t do before,” he said, envisioning the hard road ahead of him, on the precipice of a massive three-movie production.
The Skywalker Saga recently concluded its nine-episode story with The Rise of Skywalker, which, in certain ways, actually mirrors The Phantom Menace.
I wonder if Lucas has a yellow pad with notes about that movie. No, of course he didn’t write Episode IX, but maybe he once jotted something down about Owen and Beru’s stranger-danger nosey neighbor who was always asking everyone for their name.
Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.
We’re back again to ask about and discuss the games we’re currently playing right now. The GameSpot team is usually busy keeping up with the biggest releases, but other times we’re catching up on games we missed, replaying old favorites, experiencing classics for the first time, or just dabbling in odds and ends for a spell. Below you can see a sampling of the games that we’re playing, the reasons we’re playing them, and what we love about them so far.
But don’t just stop at reading our responses; we also want to hear from you too! Tell us all about what you’re playing in the comments section and what you’re diggin’ about them.
So please, join us and ramble on about all the super cool video games you’re playing! We know you need to get it off your chest as much as we do. And if you’re playing the same games from previous weeks, that’s fine too! You’re more than welcome to talk about why you still love it!
Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore — Tony Wilson, Video Producer
I missed out on this crossover RPG’s original Wii U release, but I’m happy to get another chance to play it on Switch. I’m not well-versed in Japanese idol culture (the basis of the game’s plot), but I am a massive fan of the two series that combine for this adventure: Shin Megami Tensei and Fire Emblem.
Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE pulls from the SMT spin-off Persona, but in this case, the “personas” are Fire Emblem heroes from throughout the series’ history. I love seeing how each one is interpreted by the developers–the same team that thinks Norse god Thor looks like a Dragon Ball Z villain.
Turn-based battles fuse the two series, too, combining SMT’s elemental affinities with Fire Emblem’s weapon triangle. It leads to a deep rock-paper-scissors-like system where striking an enemy with an attack they’re weak against lets the rest of the party dogpile with immediate follow-up attacks. I get such a thrill out of totally wiping a party of multiple monsters before they even get a chance to act. That’s the high-level experience I grind for (and live for).
I’ve got maybe one or two dungeons left to conquer before I finish my adventure, but all I want to do is see more Persona-fied Fire Emblem characters and test my might against them in battle. | Twitter: @chaingunpope
Syberia (Switch Port) — Matt Espineli, Editor
While I spend time playing all sorts of games every week, there’s one that I realized I’ve been consistently booting up every night: Syberia. This 2003 point-and-click adventure game isn’t blowing my mind, but its Switch port is helping me fall asleep at night. Don’t get me wrong; that doesn’t mean it’s dull or that I hate it. Aside from nostalgia, part of the appeal of the point-and-click genre in general for me is how it helps me relax and put me at ease at night after a long day–similar to an easygoing bedside novel. And Syberia is so pleasant in how it demands little of me other than a basic intellect to connect the dots of its mostly straightforward puzzles. (Sorry, Grim Fandango, your puzzles stress me out and keep me up at night. I genuinely still love you and hope to complete you one day.)
As American lawyer Kate Walker, you need to solve a gripping mystery afoot in France around the inheritance of a family-owned spring-automaton toy factory. The premise’s intrigue is more than enough to push me forward. But it’s the whimsical, dreamy qualities of the Art Nouveau-inspired reality presented in Syberia’s world that captivates me the most (and lulls me to sleep). It’s a place where people rely on and use rusty, clockwork automatons to help them do domestic work, and buildings are massive and excessively ornate. The sprawling scale always inspires me to explore–though my excitement to look around every corner is occasionally derailed by my diminishing cognizance as I run Kate into a wall for 15 minutes.
After an arduous, stress-inducing day, Syberia is the exact kind of point-and-click adventure game I need; it’s fascinating, relaxing, and nostalgic. I hope I can remain awake long enough every night to beat it someday, though. | Twitter: @MGespin
Terry Bogard (In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate) – Edmond Tran, Senior Editor & Video Producer
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has started becoming a regular thing again in the Australian CBSi office–at least for me, a couple of the folks at CNET, and others when their bosses are out of the office. I’m not sure what sparked the fever again other than a couple of us thinking that was a good idea. Still, the thing that is motivating me to keep it going through this latest phase is wanting to get really good with a new character that I’ve had a 20+ year affection towards: Fatal Fury’s Terry Bogard. The Power Wave Prince. The Burn Knuckle Boss. The world’s No. 1 Crack Shooter… that last one doesn’t play so well.
I was ecstatic when he was announced late last year, but he was released during a super busy time for video games, and Smash is no good if you’re playing by yourself, right? So instead of getting back into Smash then, I made The King Of Fighters ’98 (one of my favourite fighting games of all time) my Switch commuting game for a little while. That was fun. But now that other people want to get back into Smash too, I’ve put my former main Lucas on the bench in favour of a different blonde orphan–one that is old enough to buy beer, has a cool cap, and hits hard.
It’s been fantastic. I’m stoked over how faithful a representation Terry has in Smash–his moves are all there, his hilarious Engrish barks are all there, I’m rewarded for knowing his inputs and flow, and he’s got an excellent fighting game-style strategy to him that is super satisfying to play. I could tell from his reveal video that game director Masahiro Sakurai loves the character, and it really shows.
It’s really changed my mindset of how I approach Smash, too. I’m using Terry as I would in a KOF game, and it’s working out well. I’m focusing on hit-confirming special moves and supers, getting more confident in aggressively chasing and juggling opponents, and just playing in a completely different style than I used to. That’s not to say that this style of play didn’t exist in the game before Terry; it’s just not how I was used to playing Smash. I like goofy, unorthodox characters! But now that I can just convert my years of gung-ho KOF play into it, well, it’s working out super well– I’ve got Power Geysers and Buster Wolves popping off all over the place, and it makes me smile. When Terry asks, “Are you okay?” I can only shout an enthusiastic “YES.” I’m going to start wearing a cap to work. | Twitter: @EdmondTran
Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 — David Ahmadi, Video Producer
I’ve enjoyed getting my feet wet with a cover shooter that incorporates a solid loot progression, and even though it had an initial rocky start for me when the game released last year, I’m finding my return to be a lot more enjoyable. Despite being playable solo, these games are always more engaging and entertaining when played with friends or with online matchmaking. I’m usually pretty shy, but beyond a few griefers in the Dark Zone, my time going through side quests, story missions, and online PvP with strangers I’ve met online has been enjoyable.
Ever since starting this job at GameSpot almost a year and a half ago, I’ve grown better at juggling multiple games at the same time. Since I finally got all the Xbox Achievements for Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, I’m more than happy to swap in The Division 2 in its place, and continue progressing for the foreseeable future (or maybe until Half-Life: Project Alyx comes out!) | Twitter: @Roshby57
Disco Elysium — Dave Klein, Video Producer
I’ve been trying to catch up on the major games of 2019 I missed, and with GameSpot (hey, that’s us!) awarding Disco Elysium a 10/10, it seemed like a must-play game. I’m all for indie games doing something fresh and new, and some of the most creative titles come from smaller teams with fewer cooks in the kitchen.
So, I’ve been immersed in a choice-filled adventure role-playing game, in a genre I would love to see developed further–that being the detective mystery. The game is wonderfully over-abundant with dialogue options and offers something unique to my collect-everything, click-everything mentality, picked up from a lifetime of gaming: clicking all of the dialogue choices can have severely negative consequences. You’ll need to be careful about what dialogue you choose, as it’ll have positive or negative repercussions at later points in the game.
Disco Elysium is a game in which you can reinvent your drug-addled character into whomever you like, with a right RPG mentality of every stat point being meaningful among a large number of traits you’ll invest in your character. That said, if I’m honest, I find the writing to be pretentious, and it has pulled me away from the game on more than one occasion. I’m sure the writing will be right up some players’ alleys, but I’ve found my eyes glazing over regularly as the game goes into yet another self-important political diatribe. | Twitter: @TheDaveKlein
Game Boy Advance – Peter Brown, Managing Editor
Yet another vintage hardware mod has more or less dominated my last week. This time, I installed updated screens in two old Game Boy Advances–an original GBA and a GBA SP. GBA display upgrades have been around for years, but it’s only recently that IPS displays have come on the scene. They are practically the endgame for GBA upgrades, and it feels great to finally get there.
Where previous screen upgrades gave old GBA systems a chance to shine using the SP’s backlit screen (the sought after AGS-101 model), they are relatively dim compared to the stop-you-in-your-tracks brightness of an IPS panel–which also comes with 10 intensity settings. Colors pop like never before, and because the panel is at a higher native resolution than the standard GBA screen, everything is extremely crisp. The inherent motion blur of old GBA screens is also made a thing of the past thanks to the IPS’s higher refresh rate. The viewing angle then seals the deal, allowing you to see colors and values, as they should look, no matter your perspective.
With the refreshed hardware in hand, I’ve enjoyed revisiting old favorites like Advance Wars, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, and Castlevania: Circle of the Moon. Having both models also gives me the chance to pick a GBA that works for me in specific moments. If I’m headed to work, I pack my GBA SP since it’s collapsible and can take a bit of knocking about in a backpack. The standard GBA? That stays at home, on my desk, waiting for dedicated play on the couch. It’s also been upgraded with a new shell and new buttons. Do I want Nintendo to release a Game Boy or Game Boy Advance Classic? I do, and I’m also very interested in Analogue Pocket that’s due later this year. For now, though, I’m more than happy using the handhelds I know and love now that they’ve been souped up to modern standards. | Twitter: @PCBrown
Alien: Isolation — Phil Hornshaw, Editor
It was recently my birthday, and even though I’m a grown man in my 30s, I always receive toys for such occasions: specifically, Alien toys, because I am a big, stupid Alien fan. The new lunchbox adorning my office shelf got me thinking about Alien: Isolation, so I re-downloaded it and fired it up again this week, intent on making what is probably my fifth or sixth run through the entire game.
Alien: Isolation is one of my absolute favorites, and I can’t think of any other video game adaptation that has so thoroughly captured the essence of its source material. Slipping through the cluttered, dirty, analog tech-ridden Sevastopol station is ridiculously true to Ridley Scott’s 1979 movie, and a significant achievement of research and recreation in its own right. But then there’s the creature, an eight-foot-tall monstrosity that seems smart and angry as it chases you around. It’s been almost six years, and I’m still impacted by the straight-up malevolence of the alien and the ingenious ways developer Creative Assembly has made the thing seem so clever.
I’m not usually one to push people to play games on high difficulties, but when it comes to Alien: Isolation, I do think that the true, intended experience is conveyed by playing it on the hardest difficulty you can manage. It isn’t about personal challenge or the thrill of “beating” the game; the higher the difficulty, the smarter and more deadly the creature. I’m running through Nightmare Mode (again), which makes the experience even tougher by taking away your map and messing with your motion tracker, but what makes the difficulty mode interesting is that the alien learns how to kill you. Really, really quickly. Blast it once with the flamethrower, and it’ll be sure to stay out of range the next time you aim the weapon in its direction. Throw a noisemaker once, and the next time, the creature will know to ignore it. You can craft a whole bunch of tools in Alien: Isolation, and on Nightmare Mode, you can use each one once or maybe twice before the AI adapts. It’s terrifying.
It’s not just impressive to see the creature paying attention to your actions and anticipating them–it makes the damn thing feel horrifically real. And that’s exactly what I want out of an Alien game and a horror game. The alien is something that has always really frightened me, which is what has made me such a fan, and Alien: Isolation captures the nervous discomfort of seeing the creature and the rising terror when you hear it scream and break into a run in your direction. I can’t wait to sneak back into the shadowy corridors of Sevastopol, straining to hear the sounds of something moving with frightening speed through the vents above. | Twitter: @philhornshaw
Doom (2016) AND Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus 😀 — Kurt Indovina, Host & Writer
Every night for the past week, I’ve laid in bed either ripping demons limb from limb with my demon-slaying mitts or dismembering Nazi scum while dual-wielding machine guns. It calms my bones, slows my heart rate, and makes it easy to drift to sleep. It’s like meditation, especially Doom (2016) in particular, which I think is comparable to Tetris for some people: it’s a calming game about putting pieces in the perfect place–even when it speeds up and gets a bit chaotic, there’s a trance-like flow to it all. That’s how I feel about playing Doom, but set to brutal metal music and with excessive amounts of gore, and instead of putting things in place, I’m obliterating an imp’s face with my fist. Same thing.
When I’m looking for something more story-driven and not as hectic, but still super violent and satisfying, I switch over to Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus. Strangely, both games are made with the id Tech 6 engine, and feature a Mick Gordon soundtrack–not sure what that says, but there’s a unique formula here, like listening to Enya while getting a massage. It just works.
Anyway, these games are a few years old, I know, but after finishing Kentucky Route Zero, and Disco Elysium three times in a row (both of which are slow-paced, action-free games), I think I just needed a little controlled chaos in my life. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to prepare for my nap and to shove my fists through a Cacodemon. | Twitter: @KURT_INDOVINA
Pokemon Home — Kevin Knezevic, Associate Editor
I know you can’t really “play” Pokemon Home since it’s more a service than an actual game, but I’ve been fiddling around with it compulsively since it surprise-launched earlier this week. I’d been eagerly looking forward to bringing my precious pocket monsters over from 3DS to my Switch. While that’s a significant draw of Pokemon Home, it’s the service’s other functions that have kept me coming back to it.
It initially seemed strange to me that many of Pokemon Home’s features were divided between the Switch and mobile versions, effectively forcing you to use both to get the most out of the service. In practice, however, this seems to have been a smart decision, as each version is tailored around its respective device. I expected to use Home primarily on Switch, but I’ve found that version is only really useful for transferring Pokemon or organizing which boxes my monsters are stored in.
Meanwhile, I check the mobile version every few hours, mainly because it’s the only one that offers the ability to trade Pokemon. Since I rarely take my Switch out with me, having that functionality on my phone is great because of how quick and convenient it is. I can check the status of my trades or put a Pokemon up on the GTS at any point during the day, which is a boon when you have as many spare Pokemon clogging up your boxes as I do.
Of course, there are some valid issues with the service; those who don’t have a smartphone will be missing out on some of its most useful features, and the it doesn’t seem to be particularly worthwhile if you aren’t as invested in the series as I am. That said, I’ve been pleased with Pokemon Home thus far. It’s a much more robust service than Pokemon Bank on 3DS was, which helps justify the higher subscription fee. I’ve been putting off transferring my entire Pokemon Bank collection over because the process is a little confusing, but this weekend I think I’ll finally get around to it.
By 2000, I was playing a lot of Squaresoft games. I’d become a die-hard Final Fantasy fan, I’d loved the horror-RPG combo of Parasite Eve, and I’d gotten lost in the weirdo religious underpinnings of Xenogears. Square’s action-RPG Vagrant Story hit me harder than any of them, though, because it felt so different from the Square RPGs I’d been playing for years. It dropped you into a medieval fantasy world that was grounded in realism–early portions of the game focus on struggles between a powerful church and an aristocratic state, which felt closer to the real world than most of Square’s more out-there games, like Final Fantasy VII and VIII. Vagrant Story was heavy on political intrigue, imagining a world full of armies with divided loyalties, cultists with strange powers, and spies trying to maintain the status quo, like Game of Thrones through the lens of Final Fantasy Tactics.
In the center of it all was Leá Monde, a storied city rendered into ruin by earthquakes but surging with a dark, strange power. While you spend the game trying to figure out what the opposing forces of the world all want with the ravaged city, you’re constantly contending with a supernatural force that literally raises the dead. Though Vagrant Story is full of magic and monsters, the people of its world spend the game confused and frightened by those things, facing powers they can’t understand but still hope to wield. Even in broad daylight, Leá Monde is oppressive and foreboding, both for the player and for the characters they encounter; even the rank-and-file soldiers following orders in the city fear what they might become if they fall in battle.
Vagrant Story’s world and narrative are dark and compelling, and they’re bolstered by gameplay that mixes in a bunch of RPG systems to make a tough-as-nails game. Attacks and defenses are based on timing, making combat into a dance, and a dense system of elemental affinities and magic abilities add a whole lot of strategic thinking to any enemy encounter. Yes, a lot of it is tough to deal with–I never did quite master the weapon system–but it leads to intense, difficult boss battles that feel like RPG cousins of encounters in modern games like Dark Souls.
Okay, one last thing: like the writing, Vagrant Story’s presentation is phenomenal. For a PlayStation game, it’s often beautiful and colorful, pushing the hardware of the time to the absolute brink with incredible art direction, and its soundtrack is unmatched. It’s probably my favorite game of its era, easily in my top five of all time, and if ever a game from the height of Squaresoft deserved a remake or a remaster, it’s Vagrant Story |Phil Hornshaw, Editor
We’re barely a month and a half into 2020, and already we have a strong contender for weirdest movie trailer of the year. Taken at face value, The Iron Mask may seem like a very loose adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ iconic story The Man in the Iron Mask, starring Jackie Chan and Arnold Schwarzenegger for some reason. But the truth, appropriately enough, is much, much stranger.
If you haven’t already, check out the new trailer in the embed above or the video player below, then follow along as we try to break down what this nutty fantasy movie is actually about.
Despite the title, The Iron Mask doesn’t really draw much inspiration from The Man in the Iron Mask, beyond a subplot involving a character locked away in prison wearing an iron mask. But in this case, said prisoner is the Russian Tsar, who’s been imprisoned in the Tower of London. The Tsar happens to be locked up alongside Chan’s character, “Master.” Master is the one who orchestrates a jailbreak and winds up battling Schwarzenegger’s prison guard character, James Hook.
Wait, as in Captain Hook? Maybe. We’re not exactly sure on that front. But none of this actually matters, because the trailer is doing its best to disguise the fact that neither Chan nor Schwarzenegger are the stars of the movie. In fact, they only appear for a few minutes during this Tower of London sequence.
What Is The Iron Mask Actually About?
Instead, the actual star of The Iron Mask is Jason Flemyng, who plays a globetrotting adventurer named Jonathan Green. The movie is actually about Green’s journey from England to China and his encounters with various colorful characters and magical creatures along the way, including the mythical Dragon King. The Tower of London is just one stop along that journey. The movie also stars Charles Dance as Lord Dudley and the late Rutger Hauer in one of his final roles as an ambassador.
The Iron Mask was originally released in Russia and China under the title Viy 2: Journey to China. It’s a sequel to a 2014 movie called Viy, which in turn was based on an 1835 horror novella by Ukranian author Nikolai Gogol. The original Viy movie also follows Flemyng’s character as he travels through Eastern Europe and explores a cursed Ukranian forest.
So basically, you have a Russo-Chinese film that draws in fragments of all sorts of public domain stories from both East and West (The Man in the Iron Mask, Peter Pan, Journey to the West, etc.), and with a cast comprised of equal parts British, Chinese, Russian, and American actors. Plus Chan and Schwarzenegger, who seem to be there mainly to help give the film a marketing boost. That doesn’t seem to have helped its box office prospects overseas, but who knows? Maybe a title change and one really weird trailer is enough to build a following in the US.
In a scenario that’s reminding some online of the Seinfeld episode when Kramer’s new phone number was so similar to a movie listing hotline that he started to answer calls as Mr. Moviefone (while rifling through actual newspapers for showtimes), the actual Moviefone is now being run by one employee.
Moviefone — which began in 1989 as a dial-up service for checking movie times — filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last month, after parent company Helios and Matheson suffered unsustainable losses from MoviePass, now only has one staff member left.
According to Variety, General manager Matt Atchity, former EIC of Rotten Tomatoes, has “been retained by the trustee overseeing Helios and Matheson’s liquidation to keep Moviefone running pending a sale of the property.”
Moviefone is currently reported to be worth around $4 million which is 1.1% of its former value ($388 million in 1999). All Moviefone employees except Atchity were laid off at the end of January. The site’s listings are all automated, pulling movie times in from theater chains all across the country.
Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.
In Episode 4 of Star Trek: Picard, “Absolute Candor,” the Admiral (retired) has finally made it off Earth, and as a result the series has picked up the pace a bit. While still mired at times in reams of back story and explanation, this segment benefits from a few different things, including the bulk of Picard’s team all onscreen together — at last — and bouncing off each other in fun ways, a banger of a cliffhanger ending, and the always ace direction by Trek vet Jonathan Frakes himself.
The episode picks up 14 years ago on the planet Vashti, at a Romulan Relocation Hub where Picard and Raffi helped to relocate a group of refugees during the Romulan crisis. In particular, Jean-Luc is close with a sect of warrior nuns and the young orphan boy they’ve taken in, Elnor. It’s a nice concept that the Admiral would have such affection for the child when one considers that when we first met him on Next Generation, Picard made a big deal of how uncomfortable he was around children. His character evolved over the seven seasons of the show, thanks in part to his relationship with Wil Wheaton’s Wesley Crusher, and here we see how much further he’s come.
It’s tragic, then, that the Mars attack means that Picard has to leave Elnor and his people. And though he promises them that he’ll be back soon, his resignation from Starfleet shortly thereafter means that he can’t fulfill that promise. (Or won’t, anyway.)
So when Picard finally returns to Vashti looking for a warrior to accompany him on his trip, it is, of course, the on-the-cusp-of-manhood Elnor (Evan Evagora) who winds up getting the job. But Elnor’s resentment of Picard, who took 14 years to return, not to mention his “absolute candor” in dealing with others (a trait of the sect that raised him), brings another edge to the band of misfits Picard is leading on this show. Nobody seems to like each other that much here!
And yet, we get a very fun scene on Rios’ ship La Sirena where everyone slowly gathers in a holographic recreation of Picard’s office from the vineyard. A lot of the humor comes from Michelle Hurd’s Raffi, who knows Picard — sorry, J.L. — so well that she can also call him on his B.S. in a way that nobody ever would back in the old days of Star Trek. “You want to go to Vashti? Are you out of your goddamned mind?!”
Picard’s relationship with the older Elnor actually doesn’t get a lot of time to develop this week, but what we do have works, particularly a nice moment where the Admiral tells his young charge about Data. Elnor remembers hearing about the android from Picard back in the day, and in particular his orange cat Spot! It’s a simple moment but it feels genuine. Of course, a kid would remember the orange cat.
On the other hand, I worry that this show is doing the “quest” type of story where each week we need to uncover another piece of the bigger puzzle, or worse, find some tool or person who will help solve the big mystery. Right now, Picard’s trying to get to Freecloud where Raffi believes android expert Bruce Maddox is in hiding. This week was all about bringing Elnor into the fold as part of that journey, but the danger here is that the story could just become about collecting things in order to unlock the boss fight in the end. See The Rise of Skywalker for a particularly acute example of this syndrome.
Star Trek: Picard also seems to suffer from not having very strong single-episode stories to tell within its bigger seasonal arc. What exactly is this week’s segment about beyond getting Elnor onto the team? It would seem to be Picard’s admission to himself, and to the people of Vashti, that he wronged them all those years ago when he gave up on the relocation effort. But this is pretty much all taken care of in a few sentences near the end of the episode. It’s nice character shading, but it also kind of gets lost in the episode’s load of Romulan backstory.
Meanwhile, over on the Borg cube, Soji and Narek are still doing their dance, and it currently feels as though the nasty Romulan loverboy might actually be falling for his target. But his also-nasty sister is giving him such a hard time about completing his mission that Narek could be facing a choice soon — the mission or the girl. Frankly, this is all so one-dimensional that it’s hard to care about what’s happening here.
The episode culminates with a Frakes-brand action climax as the La Sirena crew faces off with an Original Series-era Bird of Prey, until a mysterious ship arrives to save the day. And then, in a classic Star Trek emergency beam-out moment, Picard is suddenly face to face with… Seven of Nine! Now we’re getting somewhere.
The use of the Romulan greeting “jolan tru” is a nice callback to Next Generation’s Romulus two-parter “Unification,” among other Trek stories.
Patrick Stewart is apparently so reluctant to wear the Starfleet uniform that even in the flashbacks here he goes with a safari look (with combadge!) rather than the red and blacks.
“I hate that f#@king hospitality hologram.”
Speaking of which, I didn’t realize last week that there were two different EMHs on Rios’ ship. Actually, an EMH and an ENH (Emergency Navigational Hologram). And now there are two more — hospitality and a weapons officer (Emmet), all with different personalities and accents! And they’re all hilarious.
Picard blew up on personal com traffic on Vashti this week, which is kind of like what happens when Patrick Stewart tweets about one of his rescue dogs on Earth!
There’s so much back story and exposition on this show, and yet I’m still not clear on how many Romulans survived, and how many perished, in the supernova incident.
When Picard makes his stand against the racist Romulans on Vashti — presumably believers in the “Romulan Rebirth” movement that Raffi mentions — it also allows for Elnor to show off some sweet sword-fighting skills. “Choose to live!”
Video games are a magical place where designers’ dreams can become a reality. Thankfully for the rest of us, that means we’ve got to try out some of the coolest blades, busters, gadgets, and gizmos that have popped out of their brains and into the hands of our favorite heroes.
Join us as we celebrate those which have been burned into our brains as some of the most iconic video game weapons of all time.
Sure the early version of the Gravity gun is good for throwing saw blades and explosive containers at people, but later its power is improved tenfold. At the end of the game, you can rip video consoles off of walls, and grab Dark Energy orbs that instantly disintegrate anyone they touch. It’s power aside it’s easily one of the in-game moments that stick out in your mind and a weapon we’ll never forget.
9. Energy Sword – Halo
You may not have been able to wield the Energy Sword in the first game, but seeing the Elites activate them would make you step back and take notice. Finally getting to wield the sword in Halo 2 made you feel all-powerful as it would send you hurtling across the screen toward other players resulting in an instant kill, and of course, we all felt that surge of power when the blade snapped on. It’s look is clearly halo and stands out to this day as one of the most memorable Halo weapons ever.
8. Hidden Blade – Assassin’s Creed
The hidden, sliding blades assassins tuck along their wrists are carefully hidden for good reason. The better the blade is concealed, the easier it is for it to pop out and end a Templar’s life. Efficiency and effectiveness resulting in a quick, clean kill. The entire idea of the Assassin’s Creed series is conveyed easily by the visually striking hidden blade wielded in an assassin’s cloak. And a target will never see it coming.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey was the first AC game not to feature the Hidden Blade (at least not until it appeared in an expansion pack), but it did introduce the excellent Spartan Kick.
7. Scorpion’s Spear – Mortal Kombat
“Get over here!” It’s a haunting cry and accompanies something rather violent: Scorpion’s signature move, the spear attack. Seemingly from nowhere, a razor-sharp kunai attached to the end of a rope or a chain appears from Scorpion’s hand, flies across the screen, and viciously embeds itself into the chest of his opponent. Representing the stinger at the end of a scorpion’s tail, it’s emblematic of the Mortal Kombat series in so many ways: bloody, grisly, and uncompromising. It’s crude and cruel in equal measure, yet it’s also one of the first moves mastered in the game.
6. BFG-9000 – Doom
Mr. Dwane Johnson’s reaction to the BFG in the Doom movie will be recognized by anyone who has used this weapon – awe and deep respect.
Here’s a gun that turns everything in its path into goop. The BFG established exactly what we should expect when it comes to powerful in-game weaponry and it has yet to disappoint in any Doom game of the series.
5. Keyblade – Kingdom Hearts
The Keyblade may come in many forms, but Sora is most known for wielding the Kingdom Key. It was also the first to ever appear in the series. There are other, more powerful keys that you can collect, but the Keyblade is the iconic entry from the series that Sora wields with finesse.
4. The Mega-Buster – Mega Man
The Mega Buster has been attached to Mega Man’s left hand since the first game and has varied greatly in power since it made its premiere.
Originally it could only shoot tiny pellets, but by Mega Man 5 it had been upgraded to the Super Mega Buster which could hold a charge and be deployed at any enemy who dared peek out from cover.
3. Blades of Chaos – God of War
The Blades of Chaos will forever be known as Kratos’ unique weapon of choice. They were obtained during a moment of weakness when Kratos begged the God of War, Aries to spare his life. To answer his prayers the god seared these blades into his flesh and helped him defeat an army. The Leviathan Axe is more modern and incredibly cool, but the Blades of Chaos or any other blades Kratos holds are an unforgettable symbol of the series.
2. Buster Sword – Final Fantasy VII
Nearly six feet long and a foot across, the Buster Sword is more than just a giant, single-edged blade. It’s an iconic Final Fantasy weapon that immediately conjures images of Final Fantasy VII’s spiky-haired hero Cloud Strife. For Cloud, it symbolizes friendship and a promise to be Zack’s living legacy. In short, the Buster Sword is not just a huge chunk of metal that can cut down foes; it’s a memento passed on from hero to hero in the fight against evil.
1. Master Sword
This beautiful sword is an icon to gamers everywhere, as well as an instantly recognizable item of central importance in the Zelda franchise. Sure, there have been plenty of great weapons and items in The Legend of Zelda series, but only the Master Sword has endured since the days of A Link to the Past. Each story since the Super Nintendo entry has been crafted around Link’s quest to obtain this legendary blade.
In Ocarina of Time, the sword allows Link to travel through time, an integral mechanic that eventually helps leads to the defeat of Gannon. In Wind Waker, it is so powerful that when plunged into the Evil King’s forehead it causes him to turn into stone. And in Skyward Sword, the armament is used to seal away the power of evil forever, with the help if its sentient spirit, Fi. With such extensive lore, a wide array of abilities, and a personality all of its own, the Master Sword is our logical choice for the top spot on the list of most iconic gaming weapons.
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Those were our picks, but did we miss any? Would you have rather seen the crowbar from Half-Life on the list, or are you upset Gears of War’s Lancer (one of my favorites) didn’t make the cut? Let us know about it in the comments below!
With the cool tease of Robert Pattinson all geared up for The Batman, which director Matt Reeves posted on Twitter, we’re sorting through all the movie batsuits and ranking them awful to awesome, from nipples to neck-mobility.
The batsuit is more important than any of Bruce Wayne’s various gadgets and weapons. It needs to strike fear in the hearts of law-breakers while also coloring the specific Bat-movie it appears in with a distinct tone and vibe. We’ve all gone down the batsuit road many times, and many actors and directors have tackled the Dark Knight’s various crucibles crushing the criminals of Gortham. The Caped Crusader’s costuming is crucial, allowing him to shift through the shadows and strike, like a bat, out of nowhere.
Here’s a glimpse of Pattinson all batted up, with score accompaniment by Michael Giacchino (Lost, Spider-Man: Far From Home)…
Now let’s dig into decades of batsuits, from ’60s camp to ’80s goth to armor freakin’ thick enough to take on Superman (with the assist from kryptonite). The IGN Entertainment team voted on our faves, considering both form and function, and this is the ranking we came up with! And a few notes: This list only includes live-action movie suits, and we’re not including the Pattinson suit here since we haven’t seen the whole thing yet!
Yeesh. So — side note — the Joel Schumacher films each had two batsuits for strictly toy sale purposes.
Batman & Robin’s alternate attire were the dreadful ice outfits that Bruce, Dick, and Barbara used in their efforts to thwart Mr. Freeze. Impervious to his cold attacks, the suits were also resistant to good taste and invulnerable against pleasing aesthetics.
12. Batman Forever Sonar Suit
After the bulk of Bruce’s batsuits were destroyed by Riddler in Batman Forever, he used his last remaining regalia to battle his foes in the film’s final fight – the Sonar Suit. It was a somewhat plain-looking silvery-black thing that totally felt like the last thing Bruce would have in his closet. It was also the first of Schumacher’s second batsuits (for toy line purposes).
11. Batman & Robin Main Suit
Blending the two Batman Forever batsuits (“Panther” and “Sonar”), and adding pop-out ice skates (because reasons – er – FREEZEons), George Clooney’s costume combined nipples with a metallic sheen for a result that we all mostly resent because he was a bad Batman in a bad Batman movie.
10. Batman v Superman Knightmare Suit
In Batman v Superman’s dystopian dreamscape, featuring a dustbowl Earth ruled by an evil Superman, Batman kept his regular DCEU costume and just added a big trench coat, goggles, and a separate ski mask. Oh, and guns. Whatever. It was all kind of a “hat on a hat” and that point, but who’s to say what’s right and wrong about Bruce’s dream-slash-vision? Any dystopia worth its weight in wasteland warlords is all about unnecessary accessories.
9. Batman v Superman Armored Suit
When the clock struck “Clobberin’ Time” for Bruce and his showdown with Superman, he decked himself out like a Decepticon, clamping himself inside a massively-strong batsuit exoskeleton. Inspired by the suit used in the Bats vs. Supes fight in Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, this chunky costume allowed Bruce to be just strong enough to fight Superman when Superman was incredibly-weakened by kryptonite.
8. Justice League Tactical Suit
Featuring upgraded armor, weaponry, and flight goggles, Bruce’s Justice League gear was the pinnacle of his Bat-tech, utilized in the battle against cosmic forces invading Earth. Less bulky and tank-like than the fireplug-looking costume he wore while slugging it out with Superman, Bruce’s tactical uniform was awesomely appealing apparel to wear against Steppenwolf and his minions.
After two Tim Burton/Michael Keaton outings, Val Kilmer found himself adorned in attire that was – er – anatomically articulated. Inspired by the statues of ancient Greece, according to director Joel Schumacher, this bad boy had nipples, folks.
Aside from the much-maligned nips, however, the Forever suit (nicknamed the “Panther Suit” on set) made some nice, graceful alterations to the Burton costume, including a less-yellow chest symbol and a newly-designed utility belt.
6. Batman v Superman/Justice League Main Suit
Influenced heavily by both the comic’s long-running grey suit and Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, Ben Affleck’s batsuit in the DCEU is no-nonsense war wardrobe. It’s not meant to spotlight any flashy symbols or showy gadgets, it’s meant for hiding in the darkness until it’s time to burst into a room and cripple a dozen crooks. And maybe even brand them, if there’s time. Its stark simplicity has made it a fan favorite. This suit, with some subtle tweaks, also appeared in Justice League.
5. Adam West Suit
Before Tim Burton created the go-to movie iconography for all things Batman, Adam West ruled the roost with his ’60s camp TV portrayal of the Caped Crusader, complete with a satin blue and purple suit that featured smaller ears and a shorter cape (so West wouldn’t trip on set). For an entire generation, this was the one and only batsuit and West’s famous portrayal cemented this particular Batman in the annals of pop-culture history.
4. Batman Returns Suit
In Batman Returns, Bruce has been out Batmanning so much (or sometimes just sitting quietly at home waiting for the Bat-Signal to hit) that he’s now got a Batcave vault full of suits. The Returns suit isn’t hugely different from the debut costume in Batman ’89, but it featured a less sculpted look than its predecessor. It’s an angular armor-plated version with a new (to us, anyhow) gliding cape function.
3. Batman Begins Suit
Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins took a very grounded and gritty approach to Batman’s gear, reverse-engineering how one might actually craft one of these cool costumes in real life. Using Wayne Enterprises’ R&D department, Bruce tweaks an already-existing paramilitary “Nomex survival suit” and then fuses together the bat-aspects of it from other places. Customized with advanced tech, like a Kevlar cowl and memory cloth cape, this was the first batsuit we got to see built up from scratch.
2. Batman ’89 Suit
When Tim Burton’s Batman landed in 1989, fans were introduced to the first ever bulked-up, imposing depiction of the batsuit on the big screen. All black, with a yellow chest emblem, Michael Keaton’s suit was a foreboding rubberized take on Neal Adams’ illustrations. And what it lacked in head mobility (Keaton couldn’t turn his neck at all), it made up for in shadowy, sinister presence. And the highlighting of the bat symbol nicely mixed with the film’s marketing, which was often just the symbol itself on a poster. It wasn’t the most functional of the lot, but it’s the most iconic. And it’s the suit that influenced every single movie suit that followed, to this day.
1. The Dark Knight/The Dark Knight Rises Suit
After a year on the job, and with an anarchist clown to deal with, Bruce Wayne decided his Nomex batsuit needed a few alterations and upgrades. Sacrificing protection for mobility and agility, Lucius Fox whipped up a new costume using separated plating, and The Dark Knight suit was born – the perfect sleek and slimming suit to go toe-to-toe with Joker. Unfortunately, this lighter suit didn’t fare well against the brute force of Bane when Bruce donned it years later.
Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.
This is a mostly spoiler-free review for Hulu’s reboot of High Fidelity, with all 10 episodes now available to stream.
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In episode 2 of Hulu’s gender-flipped adaptation of the Nicholas Hornby novel High Fidelity, Rob (the incomparable Zoe Kravitz) breaks down the seven rules for organizing the perfect mixtape. Yes, you read that right. Suspend your disbelief that New Yorkers in their late twenties are still consistently making mixtapes for each other (at least she does it on Spotify). Anyway, here are the rules — which will make the idea of creating your own mix actually seem fun:
Gotta be entertaining.
Needs to tell a story.
Don’t be too obvious, but [it] can’t be too obscure either.
Can’t double up on songs by the same artist, unless that’s your theme.
The most important track is #1. It’s gotta be familiar, but also unexpected. Most importantly, it’s gotta make you feel good.
Track 2, there needs to be an element of surprise. What you’re saying is, “keep listening. There might be more here than I thought.”
Before we get to rule 7, let’s start with whether or not the High Fidelity makes it through the first six. Yes and no. If we consider the opening episode, “Top Five Heartbreaks” our first track, High Fidelity pulls off a lofty goal: it hones in on what made the John Cusak-helmed rom-com drama compelling with a heavy-hearted, complicated protagonist struggling to understand their own culpability and faults in failed love. Kravitz’s Rob is every bit as charming, flawed, and frustratingly selfish as Cusak in the 2000 film.
(Side note: some critics felt Kravitz’s glamorous presence made for a mismatch in casting and a distraction, but Rob is relatively financially stable, owns her own record shop, and has the most gorgeous, successful men and women of NYC throwing themselves at her feet, so her casting makes sense. What’s more distracting is how she affords her large Brooklyn apartment when Champion Records only seems to attract paying customers on Saturdays.)
In the first episode of the 10-part series, a fourth-wall breaking Rob is still reeling from a relationship that ended a year ago, when she attempts to go on a first date. Her suitor, Clyde (Jake Lacy), bores her at first until they sink into a charming flirtatious rhythm, bonding over his flimsy appreciation for the song “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac and her overwhelming knowledge of the band and the making of the groundbreaking album, “Rumors,” which is not her favorite.
When that date ends in sex and he ditches in the morning after promising her french toast, Rob is disappointed but not surprised. “Of course it was the nice guy. It’s always the nice guy,” she laments. From there she takes us through her top five most memorable heartbreaks: Kevin Bannister, Simon Miller, Kat Monroe, Justin Kit, and most recently, Russell “Mac” McCormack. (Though Kat is a woman and Rob is sexually fluid, the chemistry is hardly there and the bulk of her storyline remains more heteronormative than the creators probably think it is.)
Episode 2, “Track 2” accomplishes rule number six wholeheartedly, gripping the viewer and creating something new out of old characters. Champion Records’ only employees — Simon (David H. Holmes), Rob’s gay ex-boyfriend and heartbreak #2, and Cherise (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), Rob’s boisterous friend who seems to be all talk, little action when it comes to her own musical career — cement themselves as the emotional heart of the series and two of the most compelling reasons to watch. Their riffs on race, sexuality, and trauma as they pertain to the eclectic music that moves them helps modernize a series that otherwise could have felt trapped in the early aughts. It doesn’t hurt that they call Rob on multiple instances of bulls–t and act as the audience’s perspective on her actions.
From episode 2 on, the series builds momentum and delves further into these surprisingly authentic characters and each of Rob’s breakups (as well as some new relationships), while keeping the reason behind her breakup with Mac shrouded in mystery. In a later episode, she sits in the studio while her latest hookup, Liam (Thomas Doherty), a sexy, young musician, records a new song. She tells him the beat is fun, but the vocals sound earnest. “Get weird with it,” she encourages, and it works.
Likewise, High Fidelity is at its best when it gets weird with it, and flounders when it becomes too earnest. Episode 5 is the highlight, following Rob and Clyde on an outrageous not-date in the Upper West Side that feels notably rom-com-y and electric in a way that Hulu’s other recent movie reboot, Four Weddings and a Funeral, failed to capture. However, a decision Rob makes in the same episode that attempts to solidify her status as the hero of the story inadvertently undermines that swagger.
So, back to that final rule:
7. Closers are tough. It’s the last thing they’re gonna hear and the only thing they’re gonna remember, so you gotta bring your message home
Unfortunately, High Fidelity begins to waver once it hits its emotional peak late in the season with a chaotic, crescendoing party scene that rips apart Rob’s newfound confidence. From there, the series flounders in an attempt to draw out the story for another three or so episodes, and none of the character arcs reach a satisfying enough conclusion. The season finale comes after a supposedly earth-shaking revelation that simply doesn’t feel so meaningful, and the season ends awkwardly and abruptly, leaving much more to be desired.
But that doesn’t mean the whole thing is a bust. There are bursts of genius scattered throughout High Fidelity that bode well for a potential second season, and plenty of relationships worth exploring further. That’s not even mentioning the beautiful way music is utilized throughout the series to echo the characters’ ethos and emotions, effortlessly diving between artists like Minnie Ripperton, David Bowie, Aretha Franklin, Swamp Dogg, and, delightfully, PTAF’s “Boss Ass Bitch” after a particularly successful hookup.
High Fidelity is right, closers are tough, and while it struggles with hitting a solid finish, hopefully this isn’t the end.
Video game movies have often proven worthy of disdain in the past but the new hybrid CG-animated/live-action Sonic the Hedgehog is shaping up to be better liked than most, at least according to the IGN staff who have seen the movie.
In addition to the official IGN review posted on Tuesday, below you’ll find reactions from six staff members across all of our content-making departments — from editorial to social to video — all of which are kept as spoiler-free as possible.
These roundup pieces are a bit of an experiment that we will continue tweaking and refining, so we’ll be taking all your feedback left in the comments as we produce more of these in the future.
From the official IGN Sonic the Hedgehog review: While this family-friendly action-comedy suffers from a simplistic story and leans too heavily on tired visual cliches, Sonic the Hedgehog is nevertheless boosted by solid performances from Ben Schwartz as Sonic and Jim Carrey as Dr. Robotnik. Their ongoing cat-and-mouse game is entertaining, and passionate fans of the Sega franchise should appreciate all the nods to Sonic’s history.
Make no mistake, this frantically-paced film is made first and foremost for Sonic fans. If you’ve been there for the little blue fella these past 29 years, from his humble beginnings on the Sega Genesis to his current iteration, then Sonic the Hedgehog is the love letter you’re probably looking for. If not… maybe save your gold rings.
Sonic the Hedgehog is a sweet and simple adaptation of the beloved video game franchise of the same name. This is a movie aimed at kids that certainly is charming as an adult viewer — and pays loving homage to the Sonic video games — but also isn’t especially edgy or adult with its humor. Instead, this is a sweet story about friendship and family, with the strongest bond being between Ben Schwartz’s teenage Sonic and James Marsden’s Tom Wachowski, a cop who crosses paths with Sonic and needs to protect him from Jim Carrey’s villainous Dr. Ivo Robotnik.
Carrey channels his full The Mask energy for a pre-Eggman Robotnik, with all the mustache-twirling zeal you’d hope from him playing this character. As someone who didn’t grow up playing Sonic and who didn’t have a deep attachment to the character, I found his big-screen debut pleasant and inoffensive, but it’s not something I would rush to theaters to see again any time soon.
Zach Ryan, Director of Social Content and Strategy
I didn’t expect much from the Sonic film. To be honest, I’ve never really been much of a Sonic fan, but from the moment we saw those first renders, I knew that this movie would certainly be… something. Fortunately, for all of us, Sonic the Hedgehog is surprisingly fun and full of heart. Yes, it’s chock full extremely online jokes and there are a couple of genuinely bizarre product placements, but that’s not enough to bring down the absolutely bonkers action sequences or distract from a genuinely charming performance from Ben Schwartz as Sonic.
My only real gripe with the film is Jim Carrey as Dr. Robotnik. He’s got a very ‘90s era Jim Carrey vibe about him throughout the whole movie and his over-the-top “I’m better than you” schtick is more annoying than it is funny. It captures a Saturday morning cartoon feel in the same way the recent TMNT films did: absolutely crazy, occasionally cringy, and ultimately a good time.
The Sonic movie is charming and perfect for kids, with little substance for the adults bringing them to the movie outside of the fantastic bar fight and, of course, Jim Carrey chewing up every scene he’s in.
But other than that, not much of the movie sticks with me outside of the glaring omission of City Escape. Like, why have Sonic travel to San Francisco and have him run away from something and NOT play City Escape? It’s probably in a previous draft of the movie that’s forever lost in time. Like tears in rain.
I went into the Sonic movie with pretty low expectations – I was a Nintendo kid that played a handful of Sonic games at my friend’s house growing up, so I honestly wasn’t sure what was going to happen. The movie relied heavily on making Sonic a believable character on screen, and to that end, the design of Sonic was exactly what it needed to be to carry the film (I honestly don’t think I could have stomached a movie’s worth of Sonic’s initial gremlin design). Ben Schwartz did an impeccable job voicing a version of Sonic I actually liked: wisecracking, but not too snarky. Schwartz also managed to make Sonic a goofy chatterbox that never crossed the line into becoming a true annoyance, which I consider a pretty impressive feat. There were a few fun nods to Sonic’s source material, and I’m glad the movie didn’t get lost in the weeds with pointless references or lore that wouldn’t make sense to the plot.
I also felt like Sonic the Hedgehog worked as well as it did thanks to the efforts of its small but talented main cast. Similar movies like Detective Pikachu lost me whenever the camera cut away to the bland human characters, but I felt James Marsden ended up having great chemistry trying to keep up with the hyperactive hedgehog, and Jim Carrey absolutely stole the show by channeling his ‘90s-era zaniness to make every scene he was a part of absolutely over-the-top. I did find the plot revolving around Sonic and Tom Wachowski’s quest to get to San Francisco a bit odd and ultimately underused. The pacing didn’t feel quite right at times with Sonic rushing along with secondary plots by getting mad at something that didn’t make sense, and certain scenes just ended up feeling trivial. That said, Sonic’s slow-motion action scenes were pretty enjoyable, and actually translated Sonic’s signature “spin dash” to look as cool in a movie as it does in a video game.
I never played the Sonic games growing up, so everything I learned about Sonic’s tragic life-on-the run was straight from this movie. That being said, I love James Marsden, Jim Carrey, Ben Schwartz, and Ben Schwartz’s love of Sonic, and would’ve tried to watch this movie for them regardless. Sonic is the kind of self-aware kids’ movie that would entertain both the young children and the grown-ups who brought them alike.
Although it is a fun time for the kids, Sonic doesn’t really say anything about anything, especially for its human (and actual) lead, James Marsden’s Tom Wachowski. Marsden, by the way, carries the film expertly and is clearly having a lot of fun, especially against Jim Carrey’s Robotnik. The cat-and-mouse road trip that covers the second act really builds Tom and Sonic’s friendship and fulfills each character’s needs the way a neat movie should. There are also some truly creative “freeze time” sequences with songs that, indeed, slap.
It’s obvious that this film is the first of a franchise, setting up the Sonic/Dr. Robotnik rivalry over the course of what felt like one long first act. The way Tom’s story ends does leave a bad taste in my mouth and Jim Carrey’s Dr. Robotnik, unfortunately, is a little too out-of-place against everyone else’s dialogue and performances. So while the larger lesson of maybe staying in your comfortable space instead of challenging yourself may be troubling to expose to children, it still is a sweet story of helping those in need.
With a commendable performance from Jim Carrey and the titular hero voiced by Ben Schwartz, this live-action adaptation brings the joy and excitement for fans and children alike. Though the film does an adequate job of introducing some lore to Sonic, it falls short in the final act. With some surprise appearances making their way into the film leaving room for possible sequels, this is a strong start to a possible film franchise.
