Category Archives: News Snippets

Xbox One revealed as next generation console

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Starting their event strong, Microsoft has officially revealed the name of their next Xbox console:  Xbox One.  Far from the speculated Xbox Infinity, this new system promises to be an all-in-one entertainment system bringing all of your gaming, television, and film experiences together in one cloud-based device.

The reveal of the system’s official name was followed by a teaser video showcasing the design of the system’s design, the new Kinect, and the redesigned controller.  The system is sleek, but, in my opinion, boxy and ugly.  It looks like a satellite box, honestly.  However, the redesigned controller looks incredibly comfy.  The design is familiar with some minor tweaks that change the overall feel of the device.  The d-pad is new and the teaser promised more precision than the Xbox 360 controller–the disc d-pad of the 360’s controller and it’s “tilt” input has been criticized for years.

Windows 8 features having multiple programs running with one on the main display and the other snapped on a sidebar.  Skype has also been finally added to the Xbox suite with chat across platforms being confirmed.  The system’s multi-app capability is a welcome feature and it seems to be able to cycle through all of those apps quickly and seamlessly.  It’s really quite impressive.

Stay tuned to PowerUp Online for more Xbox One news.

Star Wars Rebels coming to Disney XD Fall 2014

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Eager Star Wars fans looking for the next big thing from the property won’t have to wait until the 2015 release of Star Wars Episode VII as a new animated series will be coming to Disney XD in fall of 2014.  Set in the time between Episodes III and IV, Rebels will chronicle the “a time where the Empire is securing its grip on the galaxy and hunting down the last of the Jedi Knight.”  Given this description, it’s safe to assume the series also follows the events of The Force Unleashed.  While the game may have received middling reviews, it’s hard to dispute the fact that it told an incredible story surrounding the formation of the Rebel Alliance.

Little else is known about the series, but it has been confirmed that several key people from the previous animated Star Wars series (The Clone Wars) will be working on Rebels.  These include Dave Filoni, Kilian Plunkett, and Joel Aron.

Rebels will debut on Disney XD with a 1-hour premiere in the fall of 2014.

 

Source:  IGN

Mark Hamill will Not voice Arhkam Origins’ Joker

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Fans of The Animated Series and the previous Arkham games will be disappointed to hear that Luke Skywalker will not be reprising his iconic role as the Clown Prince of Crime.  This isn’t too terribly unexpected as Kevin Conroy won’t be returning to voice Batman as the developer is hoping for a new, younger voice to fill the role of a less experienced Batman.  Filling the roles of Batman and the Joker will be Roger Craig Smith (Assassin’s Creed II’s Ezio) and Troy Baker (Bioshock Infinite’s Booker DeWitt) respectively.

According to GamesRadar, Smith’s Batman tries to emulate the sound of Conroy’s Caped Crusader but “lacks the conviction” for the role.  Having not heard the actor’s interpretation of the character, it’s hard to make my own judgment, but it’s hard not to wonder why not just have Conroy return if your voice actor is going to sound like a clone without the heart.  Baker’s Joker, on the other hand, apparently successfully emulates the sound and style of Mark Hamill’s performances which GamesRadar says he “nails.”  Not having Hamill return may have to do with the actor not wanting to voice the Joker again–he had said that his performance in Arkham City would be his last turn as the Joker.

Batman: Arkham Origins releases for Xbox 360, PS3, WiiU, and PC on October 25 this year.

Source:  GamesRadar

Zombieland: The Series dead after pilot

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Amazon’s attempt to continue the story of Zombieland as a series has failed.  Zombieland: The Series will not be picked up, likely due to all the negative reactions surrounding the pilot.  I wasn’t a fan and was actually preparing a review of the first and only episode of Zombieland: The Series, but decided to stop after realizing that the only sentence I wrote (“Zombieland: The Series is a soulless disappointment, but it’s free.”) completely sums up the series and would hardly be worthy of a post.  You can see the failed experiment yourself for free on Amazon.

 

Source:  IGN

Star Trek Enterprise looking to Netflix for a Season 5 comeback

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It’s been eight years since Star Trek Enterprise (ENT) came to a studio determined end with its cancellation, but that hasn’t stopped Rob Bolivar and Doug Drexler from looking to Netflix for the future of the series.  Hoping to revive the show for a fifth season, they’ve launched a campaign to bring the series back to life on Netflix similar to the upcoming revival of Arrested Development.  Series creator Brannon Braga stated that Netflix could possibly revive the series if a revival campaign received enough support.

 

Sources:  IGN, Facebook

The Novelist coming summer 2013

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A newly released trailer for the upcoming indie game The Novelist teases what could be an extraordinary adventure game.  Placing players in the ethereal boots of a ghost haunting a house inhabited by a writer and his family, they are encouraged to explore and influence the lives of these characters while staying out of site.  As a fan of the genre and as a writer, I can’t help but be intrigued by this title.  The Novelist promises a game about “life, family, and the choices we make.”

“Wolfenstein: The New Order” officially announced

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Bethesda has announced a new installment in the Wolfenstein franchise.  The brand has been dormant since under-performing Wolfenstein released in 2009.  This new iteration in the franchise will be a reimagining while staying true to its action-adventure shooter roots and is being developed by MachineGames.  MachineGames is composed of industry veterans who worked on The Darkness.

The New Order is being developed for PS3, Xbox 360, PC, and next-generation consoles for release in the fourth quarter of this year.  The game will utilize id Tech 5 (first introduced with id’s Rage).

Techland’s “Hellraid” has a teaser trailer

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The upcoming first-person action game Hellraid from Dead Island developer Techland has a teaser trailer.  It kinda looks like the offspring of the aforementioned Dead Island and Bethesda’s Elder Scrolls games.  If they can iron out the bugs that plagued Dead Island, this might end up being a wonderfully addicting gaming experience.

Mission: Impossible 5 in the Works

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Tom Cruise is set to produce and star in a fifth installment in the Mission: Impossible franchise.  There’s no script or director at this time, but rumor has it that Jack Reacher director Christopher McQuarrie is a likely candidate.  Jack Reacher was well done and that direction would definitely be well suited in the M:I universe.  As a fan of Tom Cruise and the M:I franchise, I’m all sorts of excited about this news.

 

Source:  IGN