This week Kinect Star Wars becomes the first Kinect-Required videogame to top the UK Game Charts, knocking last week's No. 1, FIFA Street down to No. 2.
Unfortunately, the game has received very mixed/negative reviews making Star Wars fans such as myself very disappointed. Although, I did kind of expect the bad reviews once I saw the inclusion of a "Galactic Dance-Off Mode."
Skyrimalso re-enters the top 10 at No. 10, whileSSXclimbs 3 places to No. 7 due to a price drop.
Other new entries outside the top 10 are, The Devil May Cry HD Collection at No. 18, and Kinect Rush: A Disney Pixar Adventure at No. 32.
UK Top 10 Games (All Formats, All Prices):
1. (-) Kinect Star Wars
2. (1) FIFA Street
3. (2) Mass Effect 3
4. (5) FIFA 12
5. (3) Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13
6. (7) Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
7. (10) SSX
8. (9) Mario & Sonic at the 2012 Olympic Games
9. (8) Battlefield 3
10. (11) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
That's all for this week. Here's a trailer for this week's new No. 1:
In the middle of a load of Capcom announcements, the game publisher announced a new entry in it's Lost Planet series - Lost Planet 3! The trailer is below, and don't worry, it is in English!
Capcom announced the new game is a prequel to the last two, but will return to planet EDN III, while introducing a new character, Jim. Jim has to obtain samples of Thermal Energy on EDN III for Neo-Venus construction.
Jim visits the Coronis base on EDN III and soon sets out on a mission to find a natural source of Thermal Energy using a utility rig.
According to Capcom:
"acting as a home away from home and boasting an array of tools that can assist Jim on the field, the utility rig provides Jim's safety and is essential for not only his contract work but also his protection against the ever-changing climate. "
Lost Planet 3 will feature both first person (while playing in the rig), and third person (while playing on foot) combat, and initial impressions are good! It will hit XBOX 360, PS3, and PC in early 2013.
Today, amongst a whirlwind of other Capcom news, the Japanese game publisher announced that its much-hyped Resident Evil 6 will be coming to stores earlier than previously announced.
When Capcom released the announcement trailer a couple of months ago, they brought with it the release date of November 20th 2012. This date has now been brought forward to October 2nd 2012. I wouldn't be surprised if this is a tactical move done to keep Resi 6 from being in competition with this year's Call of Duty, which is bound to come out this November.
Capcom also announced that the game would not be coming to Nintendo's upcoming console, the Wii U. One of the game's producers, Hiroyuki Kobayashi, said this, "Unfortunately, RE6 will not be available at this time on the Wii U. Right now we're concentrating on the PlayStation 3 version, 360 version and the PC version of the game."
Capcom also revealed more about Resi 6's multiplayer mode. Announcing it will have split-screen and online co-op play, featuring the ability to drop in and out of game. They also announced the return of the Mercenaries mode - seen most recently in Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D on 3DS.
Today, Marvel released a teaser with Gambit's name on it. They have not yet announced whether this is for a new ongoing book, or limited series, but told fans to look out for their Next Big Thing panel on Sunday April 15th 2012 at 11am Central.
For those who don't know Gambit is a fan-favourite member of the X-Men, and this teaser could well be used as proof that he will make it through this year's Avengers vs. X-Men relatively unharmed.
Last year Steven Spielberg brought back this much-loved comic-book detective, and although the outcome is fun on the whole, it's definitely a mixed bag.
The story of "The Secret of the Unicorn" goes a little like this. Tintin comes across a model of the famous ship, the Unicorn, which sank a a couple hundred years ago while carrying a huge amount of gold. It is also believed that this ship is the reason that the Haddock family line is cursed. Tintin gets caught up in a deadly quest for treasure and a settling of scores between two rival family lines.
This plot brings with it many fun moments, but overall just seemed a bit weak to me. Many a time I couldn't quite make out why the main villain was bothering to do what he was doing! And I just thought that maybe stronger motives would have made this a better story on the whole, as it seemed a little too far-fetched.
But that's not too say it was boring, the story was well paced and kept my attention for the duration. It was helped along by a fantastic cast of voices, although I found Tintin's uber-posh English voice to be slightly annoying sometimes - and I'm English.
But that's just a minor flaw because the voice acting here is brilliant, with Andy Serkis, and Daniel Craig delivering great performances, with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost bringing some appreciated comic relief.
Now, a lot of the hype surrounding Tintin came from the much talked about animation, and I'm happy to say that for the most part it delivers. The animation here is often beautiful and brings the movie alive. Although I did find that the detail drops a bit during close-ups on faces, and there is indeed "Dead Eyes" on a lot of the character's that make them feel a little less human then I would have liked.
In the end, Tintin is a fun, but flawed movie. The potentially great story is let down by it being just a little too far-fetched (even for a Tintin movie), thankfully the great voice acting and (mostly) beautiful animation mean it's still an enjoyable movie - just maybe one that would be better off as a rental.
March was a big month for comics. Marvel launched this year's event in Avengers vs. X-Men #0 and #1, the Justice League started a new story arc featuring Green Arrow and Shazam! And there were several new series' launched including Image's Saga, Marvel's Avengers Assemble, and Mark Millar's Supercrooks.
But what 10 books sold best? Has DC's "New 52" beaten Marvel's books again? Let's find out!
The JLA face their biggest challenge yet: A big Marvel event!
3. Justice League #7 (DC)
4. Batman #7 (DC)
5. Avengers Assemble #1 (MARVEL)
6. Action Comics #7 (DC)
7. Green Lantern #7 (DC)
8. Detective Comics #7 (DC)
9. Batman: The Dark Knight #7 (DC)
10. Superman #7 (DC)
It is in fact Marvel who take the top 2 places this week, but with just 3 of their books in the top 10, it seems that overall DC is still the winner - taking the remaining 7 places of the top 10, with Justice League #7 being their best-selling book of the month.
The Top 100 Analysis:
Looking through the rest of the top 100, it seems other "New 52" books: The Flash, Aquaman, and Batman and Robin are also selling strongly, but just miss out on the top 10 - settling at No. 11, 12, and 13 respectively.
Aforementioned new series' Saga and Supercrooks settle at No. 40 and No. 51 respectively. Saga ends up being Image comics' biggest selling book of the month.
Meanwhile Dark Horse's biggest selling book is Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 9 #7 which ends
up at No. 70.
IDW does less well with their biggest selling book, Magic the Gathering #3, at No. 91.
Other books at the lower end of the top 100, include Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi Force Storm #3 at No. 100, and Batwing #7 at a surprisingly low No. 97. Now while it is an achievement by itself to even be in the top 100, it's still worrying for a bat-book to be this low down especially when the likes of Batman, Batman: TDK, Batman and Robin, Batwoman and Batgirl are all in the top 30, with Nightwing at No. 31.
Could Wave 3 of The New 52 see the end of Batwing??
That's all for this week, if you liked this article please let us know in the comments section, if you didn't then please tell us why! We're constantly trying to improve our service at The Entertainment Network so any criticism will be taken on board!
If you would like to sign up to our brand new newsletter then please e-mail us at: theentertainmentnetwork@hotmail.co.uk and put in the subject line "newsletter."
After the somewhat underwhelming Avengers vs. X-Men #0, I was worried that this year's event from the house of ideas would be hugely disappointing - like so many before it. Thankfully, I actually really enjoyed #1 - which is in many ways the first proper issue of this series.
For those of you still unaware at the premise of AvX - here's a brief spoiler-free summary. An alien energy force - known as the Phoenix Force - is coming back to earth. The last time this force was on our planet, it used the X-Man Jean Grey as a host and she ended up dying in order to save the world from the force's immense power.
Now, the Phoenix Force is coming back to Earth in order to find a host in the "Mutant Messiah" Hope Summers. Cyclops leader of the X-Men) believes that if Hope can find a way to control the force, then the dwindling mutant species can receive some new life. Meanwhile The Avengers believe that this force is only going to bring bad stuff. Like more death.
This is what sets the Avengers and the X-Men apart.
Now to talk about the issue itself. I have to say I'm impressed. I had my doubts with #0, but this issue turns out to be well paced, and well written with a great script. It does a good job in filling in those who may not be experts on the matter at hand - which was good for me because I missed events like House of M, and Avengers: X-Sanction.
The only issue I had with this...um...issue, was John Romita's art. There's nothing particularly bad about it, but I've just never been a fan of his art. It's always seemed a bit too square and simple to me.
Apart from that, Avengers vs. X-Men is a great start to this year's Marvel event and one that fills me with hope that it might break the trend of disappointing events that have been plaguing comic fans in recent years.
There was always going to be a lot of pressure on the people behind this movie. The Hunger Games book's have such a huge following of dedicated fans, and so if the film-makers got it wrong, there'd be hell to pay. Thankfully, The Hunger Games is a good adaptation - albeit, one that may not please all fans.
The story of The Hunger Games goes a little bit like this. In a country called Panem (basically the ruins of North America), there are 12 districts and a capitol. Every year, the Capitol holds a televised event called The Hunger Games where 1 boy and 1 girl are chosen from each district to fight to the death in an arena. The capitol holds this event as a way to show their power over the districts after they won a war against them a long time ago.
The movie sticks to the plot of the book quite well, although it does cut out quite a bit and that may anger some fans depending on how much they loved the book. As a reader of The Hunger Games, I didn't mind the cuts mainly because I understood that they couldn't make the movie too long, so they had to happen. Plus, while they may bother the book's readers, the cuts don't impact the story.
Although, at some points I did wonder whether those who hadn't read the books would be able to follow it as easily as I did.
When it comes to acting, The Hunger Games is excellent. Jennifer Lawrence is great as Katniss, and while it took a little while to convince me, Josh Hutcherson does manage to deliver as Peeta. But my favourite character had to be over the top district 12 representative, Effie Trinket, played brilliantly by Elizabeth Banks.
For all those fans out there worrying The Hunger Games would end up like Alex Rider, and Twilight (get horrible movie adaptations, basically), then you can stop worrying now. While The Hunger Games may not please the hardcore fans, most people who liked the books should be pleased with the movies' version of events.
With a good mix of action, comedy, and romance, The Hunger Games is a must see.
Oh dear. That's 88 minutes of my life I'm never going to see again. The Devil Inside is by far one of the worst horror films ever, and one of the worst films I've ever seen.
So first of all - the plot. It's boring, unrealistic and at some points just plain nonsensical. It focuses around Isabella Rossi - daughter of Maria Rossi - a woman who killed 3 people during an excorcism in the late 80s.
For some reason - after 15 years of living without a mother - she decides she wants to help out her mum, who's in a mental instituition in Rome. She goes there, enlists the help of 2 priests to help get her mum excorcised....again. The plot isn't original, and because of it is very predictable. By around half way through it was easy to guess what was going to happen, and that just takes the fun out of telling a story.
And just as the plot does start to gain some momentum it ends. And oh is it a stinker of an ending. It just feels like after 88 minutes of being bored, the writers give you a massive slap in the face.
Plus the character's are ridiculous. Isabella seems to have only 1 working brain cell in her skull as she doesn't seem to get the picture that her mum is a murderous psycho bitch. And, the 2 priests that help Isabella out have a very "devil may care" attitude (no pun intended) to not just the Vatican and its rules but also Christianity in general - and that makes it hard to believe in these character's at all.
Another reason these character's are hard to believe in is because the actors portraying them aren't really given a chance to shine at all. I believe they do have potential, but they weren't given a chance to use it. The film's script has many poor moments, and the decision to make the film like a documentary really weakened it as a whole. Why? Because it doesn't bring anything to the movie. It's like the people behind this turd of a film were trying to make it more realistic, but it just doesn't work - everything about this from the opening writing that reads: "The Vatican didn't help make this film" reeks of bullshit.
Add in the fact that this film genuinely isn't scary at all and you've got one bad movie. There are bloody bits, and gross bits but none of it is scary. Watching a possessed woman hump the air whilst having a period (an ACTUAL SCENE in this movie) is disgusting, but it's not scary.
There's not really any redeeming feature I can think of about this movie. It isn't scary, the plot is dull, the ending is lazy, the acting and script are very weak - and the whole thing reeks of bullshit. Spend your money somewhere else. Please.
The annual GAME Bafta's took place tonight and it was another great show. Dara O' Briain did a great job hosting, with Portal 2, Batman: Arkham City, and Battlefield 3 among the winners! Full list inside!
Best Story:
Winner: Portal 2 Other Nominees: Batman: Arkham City, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, LA Noire, Skyrim, and Uncharted 3
Best Original Music:
Winner: L.A Noire Other Nominees: Assassin's Creed: Revelations, Batman: Arkham City, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Skyrim, and Uncharted 3
Audio Achievement:
Winner: Battlefield 3 Other Nominees: Batman: Arkham City, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Dead Space 2, The Nightjar, and Uncharted 3
Best Design:
Winner: Portal 2 Other Nominees: Batman: Arkham City, L.A Noire, LittleBigPlanet 2, Super Mario 3D Land, and Skyrim
Game Innovation:
Winner: LittleBigPlanet 2 Other Nominees: Bastion, Child of Eden, From Dust, L.A Noire, and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Best Strategy:
Winner: Total War: Shogun 2 Other Nominees: Dark Souls, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Football Manager 2012, From Dust, and Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars
Mobile & Handheld:
Winner: Peggle HD Other Nominees: Dead Space iOS, Magnetic Billiards: Blueprint, Quarrel, Super Mario 3D Land, and The Nightjar
The GAME Award 2011:
Winner: Battlefield 3
Other Nominees: Batman: Arkham City, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, FIFA 2012, L.A Noire, Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Minecraft, Portal 2, Skyrim, and Uncharted 3
Best Action:
Winner: Batman: Arkham City
Other Nominees: Assassin's Creed: Revelations, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Portal 2, and Uncharted 3
BAFTA Ones to Watch Award:
Winner: Tick Tock Toys
Other Nominees: Joust, and Dreamweaver
Best Online - Browser:
Winner: Monstermind
Other Nominees: Gardens of Time, I am Playr, Global Resistance, Skylanders: Spyro's Universe and The Sims Social
Artistic Achievement:
Winner: Rayman: Origins
Other Nominees: Batman: Arkham City, L.A Noire, LittleBigPlanet 2, Skyrim, and Uncharted 3
The BAFTA Special Award:
Winner: Notch (Minecraft Creator)
Sports/Fitness:
Winner: Kinect Sports: Season 2
Other Nominees: Dance Central 2, DiRT 3, F1 2011, FIFA 2012, Your Shape: Fitness Evolved 2012
Online Multiplayer:
Winner: Battlefield 3
Other Nominees: Assassin's Creed: Revelation's, Dark Souls, Gears of War 3, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and LittleBigPlanet 2
Debut Game:
Winner: Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet Other Nominees: Bastion, Eufloria, L.A Noire, Monstermind, and Rift
Family Game:
Winner: LittleBigPlanet 2
Other Nominees: Dance Central 2, Kinect Sports: Season 2, LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean, LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, and Mario Kart 7
Best Performer:
Winner: Mark Hamill (The Joker - Batman: Arkham City)
Other Nominees: Aaron Staton (Cole Phelps - L.A Noire), Nolan North (Nathan Drake - Uncharted 3), Stephen Fry (Narrator - LittleBigPlanet 2), Stephen Merchant (Wheatley - Portal 2), and Togo Igawa (Dipolomat, Advisor, Military General - Total War: Shogun 2)
Best Game:
Winner: Portal 2
Other Nominees: Batman: Arkham City, FIFA 2012, L.A Noire, Skyrim, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
