It’s Not Hard To Bring Back F-Zero, Nintendo

Retired Nintendo artist and designer Takaya Imamura, who helped Nintendo create The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask and Starfox characters like Fox McCloud, said to IGN that the Nintendo racing series F-Zero isn’t dead. It’s just a series that is “hard to bring back” without a “grand idea”.
Imamura stated that the pinnacle of the F-Zero series was F-Zero GX. However, that was 18 years ago and was on Nintendo’s Gamecube. It’s been three gaming generations already and we haven’t seen a new entry since.
“Of course, Iâ€™ve thought about it many times, but without a grand new idea, itâ€™s hard to bring it back.”
He did share how F-Zero GX was created.
“I think it started with [Amusement Vision’s] Toshihiro Nagoshi proposing the project to Miyamoto. I really liked Daytona USA (which Nagoshi produced), so I was honoured to work with him. We had an arcade system board called Triforce which was based on the GameCubeâ€™s architecture, so when Nagoshi proposed doing an arcade version of F-Zero, I was really happy, as I had always been a fan of arcade games.
Back then, Nagoshi was the top of Amusement Vision, a subsidiary studio of Sega. I donâ€™t think many people outside the company were ever allowed inside the actual development offices. Companies donâ€™t usually let people inside their development offices, but they showed me the arcade cabinets they were working on, which has become a special memory for me,â€ recalls Imamura. â€œNagoshi had a professional darts machine in his office, which I thought was very stylish. In those days, Nagoshi still had long hair, but he was already quite imposing.”
But Is It Hard To Bring Back?
No, it’s not. Most Nintendo games and franchises usually come back after a few long years, not close to two decades. And the sequels still have the core game intact with minimal tweaks and changes. Were there “grand new idea(s)” that powered the Kirby series? Or the Paper Mario games? Or the Mario Party games for that matter?
And even if Nintendo’s internal dev team are out of ideas, why not partner up with devs like Capcom and Bandai Namco to reinvigorate the series? Make it an open-world racing game ala Burnout Paradise and Forza Horizon 4, or a semi-Grand Theft Auto style game with its colourful cast of characters, but keep high-speed racing as the main focus? See, it’s not that hard to come up with a grand idea; it just needs a lot of years to develop and give it that Nintendo touch.
I think there’s a stigma behind the F-Zero games internally, much like the Metroid brand. The difference is the latter had its chance with Metroid: Other M, and has a new Metroid Prime in the works (behind the scenes via Bandai Namco).


Fire Emblem: Three Houses Update Adds Most-Requested Features

This year’s iteration of Fire Emblem is, to put it quite simply, successful. To the point where any single DLC is usually clamoured by RPG fans.
The latest paid update for the game (which is available now) is sure to make people swoon, since it adds in the ability to interact with animals and give them gifts. Why this was omitted initially is beyond our understanding, but it’s here now so hooray!
Other noteworthy features in the Fire Emblem: Three Houses Expansion Pass Wave 3 DLC to justify the costs include:

the ability to recruit Anna by completing a special quest.
a new sauna to visit at the monastery.
maid and butler battalions.
new types of attire for most students.

Conquer new quests, dress up with new outfits, sweat it out in the new sauna activity, and interact with animals in the #FireEmblem: Three Houses Expansion Pass Wave 3 DLC, available now!
Learn more: https://t.co/fHw20dTMo1 pic.twitter.com/sEoRJf1orW
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) November 8, 2019

The Expansion pass costs US$24.99. No, you can’t buy the DLC waves individually. Keep in mind that the next DLC wave will be out 30th, April 2020, so cherish this one for now.


Overwatch League – Philly Pips Shock as Dynasty Stomps Mayhem & Outlaw Record First Win

Day 1 of the Second Week of the Overwatch League kicked off earlier this morning with a great mix of close matches and stomps as Philadelphia Fusion goes 2-1, Houston recording their first win of the season and Seoul Dynasty going to the top of the league with a 3-0 record following a stomp on the tepid Florida Mayhem.
Philly Wins First Ever Orange BowlÂ
In a matchup dubbed ‘The Orange Bowl’, Philadelphia Fusion narrowly pipped past San Francisco Shock to improve their season record to 2-1. Despite going down 0-1 following the early loss on Dorado, Fusion bounced back with a convincing win on Temple of Anubis. Poko’s trademark D.Va Bomb again became the highlight of Fusion’s win on Oasis as he connected with ShaDowBurn’s Graviton Surge en route to the win which secured the series win. On the Shock side, they appear to be wanting at times, especially on the DPS end as Babybay and Danteh struggled against their counterparts. Sinatraa and Super cannot join the team soon enough to address this issue and while it is still too early to press the panic button, would be interesting to see how Shock fare against Boston Uprising in their second match of the week come Sunday.
The result sends Philadelphia 2-1 in the league, with Shock falling to 1-2.

“We call this one the BIGGER bang!”-@ggDoA @Poko_ow #OWL2018 #pdomjnate https://t.co/U6dIipgQGs pic.twitter.com/FsjsB6b4lx
â€” Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) January 18, 2018

Dynasty Stomps Mayhem To Go Top Of the League
Seoul Dynasty fielded an all-new, never seen team composition going into the match yet still prove to be too strong for Florida Mayhem. Despite the absence of Miro who was benched in favor of Kuki, Dynasty never looked like losing as they showcased their squad depth. Fielding two flex players in Gido and XepheR, the boys from Korea varied their approaches throughout to show the gulf between them and the one-dimensional Mayhem who has the smallest squad in all of the league. Florida, who relied on TVIQ popping off to stand any chance of a win failed to threaten Dynasty as he was constantly shut down by Fleta.
Surprising tho, Dynasty only used seven players throughout the match, with Tobi subbing in for Gido after the first map. Still, it made no difference as Dynasty cleaved through Mayhem like a hot Genji Dragon Blade through butter. The ever-reliable Ryujehong was named MVP of the series and rightly so as the best support player in the world healed, revived and nulled countless enemy ults to lead his team to an easy 4-0 win.

This angle of approach leads to key kills for @MunchkinOW‘s Dragonblade. #OWL2018 #TheDynastyBegins https://t.co/U6dIipgQGs pic.twitter.com/z20tpSIEZX
â€” Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) January 18, 2018

Deadly precision coming from Ryujehong’s Zenyatta. #OWL2018 #TheDynastyBegins https://t.co/U6dIipgQGs pic.twitter.com/RL7AWcapb3
â€” Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) January 18, 2018

Houston Grab First Win Of the SeasonÂ
This match was hardly a contest as the Dragons were clearly outplayed and outmatched by the Houston Outlaws who consigned them to their third match loss. While JAKE stole the limelight with his flashy kills as Junkrat and Soldier 76, it was Muma who played the major role for the Outlaws, even going as far as not dying on Junkertown and was only eliminated five times in the entirety of the series.

Recon Mode, Tank Mode, Sentry Mode, @Rawkus Mode. #OWL2018 #UpTheAnte https://t.co/U6dIipgQGs pic.twitter.com/AhnUJ8a71t
â€” Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) January 18, 2018
The Dragons really need to take a hard look at themselves and figure out how the are to carry on in the season as they are starting to look like they do not deserve to be playing in the OWL. While no one is questioning the abilities and mechanical skills of their players, the team does not look anything like a team competing in a top-tier competition.Â  Roshan kept getting eliminated early which snowballs to numerous team wipes while Diya’s inconsistencies on Widow is now even more apparent as his positioning and approaches have become too predictable. The Dragons have the perfect opportunity to bag the first win of the season on Saturday as they face the struggling Florida Mayhem in a battle of two 0-3 teams.

Week 2 OWL action continues tomorrow as Dallas Fuel seek their first week of the season as they face Houston Outlaws at 6AM Kuala Lumpur/ Singapore time. It will be followed by a cracker of a match as two 2-0 teams face each other – New York Excelsior take on Los Angeles Valiant at 8AM. Fusion returns as they play their second match of the week, this time against Los Angeles Gladiators who impressed many in Week 1.


Grand Theft Auto 6 May Take Place In Miami & Features Female Lead Character

Sources close to Bloomberg said that the upcoming Rockstar sandbox open-world crime spree game will feature its first-ever female protagonist.
Bloomberg claims that Grand Theft Auto 6 will take place in a version of Miami and features a female playable character. The game’s development started in 2014 and the game will be out in 2 years’ time.
“Early designs called for the inclusion of territories modelled after large swaths of North and South America. The company reeled in those ambitions and cut the main map down to a fictional version of Miami and its surrounding areas.
[The female protagonist], who is Latina, will be one of a pair of leading characters in a story influenced by the bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde, the people said. Developers are also being cautious not to “punch down” by making jokes about marginalized groups, the people said, in contrast to previous games.”
Other tidbits from Bloomberg include the game’s single-player map to be updated over time, with new missions and cities added on a regular basis. This may mean less crunch during the game’s final months. On the flip side, GTA 6 will feature more interior locations than past GTA titles.
Why the changes? Well, it has a lot to do with Rockstar’s cultural overhaul after reports of Red Dead Redemption 2’s 100-hour work weeks were out in public.
“Due to some of the changes that the company implemented in an effort to improve working conditions, such as a restructuring of the design department and a pledge to keep overtime under control.“
GTA 6 will be out in either 2024 or 2025 according to various sources. At the very least, there will be an official reveal and announcement in 2023.


These Are The Marvel What If…? Stories We Want To See Animated

Marvel’s What If…? animated series now has a release date and a slew of episodes slated for its Disney+ Hotstar run this August. So far, we know that the show will touch on Peggy Carter’s Captain Britain stint and T’Challa being a Guardian of the Galaxy.
We don’t know what the rest of the episodes will be like, but we’d like to throw in the What If…? stories we want to watch in this current run and future seasons of the series.
So here’s a list of what we would love to see in Marvel’s What If…?. Just one rule for this feature: we can only touch on established MCU storylines & characters. Basically, no X-Men, no Fantastic Four, and so forth.
Marvel Zombies

This one’s a no-brainer, but it’ll be great to see a fleshed-out MCU version of the Avengers coping with zombieism. The original comic book storyline tells a story of the Avengers and the world’s superheroes turning into zombies and consuming all of Earth’s human life. Basically, they’re without food and need to find a way on how to survive.
In the MCU version, the zombie Avengers can trick aliens and lifeforms outside of Earth to come on by so that they can capture them as an alternate food source. Since the zombies still retain their intelligence, zombie Bruce Banner, Tony Stark, and Peter Parker can wrap their heads together to create the ultimate device to ping interplanetary folks to pop by Earth. This can serve as an excuse for the Guardians of the Galaxy to fight off a superpowered zombie army in a pretty grisly What If…? episode.
Also, just seeing Tom Holland’s Spider-Man break down and cry about how he ate his loved ones to survive his disease is probably going to be a scene-stealer that fans will enjoy.
Bucky Becomes Captain America

What if the roles had been reversed? After Steve Rogers gets the serum, he somehow gets kidnapped by Hydra. Who can be the next Captain America? Bucky Barnes.
Bucky can still lose his arm during the Hydra scuffle, but now has Howard Stark outfit him with a metal arm and a vibranium shield with none of the Hydra brainwash nonsense. Meanwhile, Bucky will have to contend with Steve Rogers, super soldier-powered Agent of Hydra. With the current MCU context, it’ll be great to see Bucky’s side of things and how he copes with being America’s icon.
Since this version of Captain America will not be frozen in time, we can have the entire episode chronicle Bucky’s escapades post-World War 2.
Hulk VS The World

Remember The Maestro? He’s the evil version of The Hulk in an alternate dimension where almost all its heroes are wiped out from nuclear winter. Imagine if the MCU Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy had to fight an evil Hulk who retains Bruce’s intelligence but ditches the moral compass?
Suddenly the Avengers has a legitimate threat since the evil Hulk knows how his ex-pals fight. This Hulk can also build his own lab and gamma weapons, not to mention experiment with living creatures to create his own gamma-powered army. And the kicker? This Hulk actually wins against every Avengers encounter, builds his own country, and invades anything in his path because “he feels like it”. This version of the Hulk takes the “Hulk strongest there is” motto to an extreme and evil degree.
Earth’s last hope? A team-up between Thor and Thunderbolt Ross, who ends up becoming the Red Hulk by getting the government to replicate the gamma-infusing incident on him. Oh, and maybe Red She-Hulk tossed in for good measure.
Joe Fixit
After Thanos did the snap, the current Avengers are at a loss at what to do in the movie’s 5 long years. But instead of The Hulk turning into his ultimate form in Avengers Endgame, what if things turned out different?

Bruce Banner tries to upgrade his current Hulk status in a new gamma experiment, but instead, he turns grey and has a morally ambiguous outlook in life. He ditches science and ends up becoming a Las Vegas enforcer called Joe Fixit. While strong, this Hulk relies on cunning and manipulation to get ahead in life. Instead of doing the greater good, he just rules over Las Vegas; it’ll be interesting to see the lavish lifestyle Hulk experiences on Earth during the 5 years in between the two last Avengers films.
Some of us would love to hear actor Mark Ruffalo channel a mob boss while in his grey Hulk persona. Have grey Hulk fight gang wars against MCU’s Kingpin, The Vulture, Mandarin, and others for a fun What If…? episode.
Iron Man, Emperor of Earth

This was a Marvel’s Exile’s story that cropped up during writer Judd Winick’s run. Just imagine if MCU’s Tony Stark survives the Infinity War and Steve Rogers left the current timeline.
He may have developed a god complex; worst than the one he had. After using his tech to help restore the planet post-blip, Tony Stark ends up manipulating everyone around him to give him total reign over the United States of America, and then eventually Earth. Imagine a Doctor Doom-like villain but with an attitude. Tony Stark can just create a gazillion automated Iron Man suits and armor as his personal army, loaning his services out to the highest bidders for profit in secret.
With James Rhodes, Happy Hogan, and Pepper Potts somehow being his only allies against the Avengers and every other superhero in the MCU, it’ll be interesting to see how former friends survive a nation ruled by Iron Men.
This may be a What If…? storyline where Doctor Strange can finally fight against Tony Stark for real, as a means to capitalize the antagonism between the two in the Avengers films. Science vs magic equals an epic confrontation to bookend the episode.
An Actual Age of Ultron

The Avengers movie Age of Ultron was kinda lacking because Ultron wasn’t quite the badass villain he sought out to be. Marvel’s What If…? can rectify that, making Ultron a world-domineering threat as he gains control of the internet, all of the world’s defenses, and just kill off all of humanity.
Imagine if in the final moments of the second Avengers movie, Ultron won. He has Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver under his control, now augmented with his tech. He also has Vision mind-wiped and serves as a template for his enforcers. And this Ultron can create his own wife Jocasta, probably modelled after Tony Stark’s soon-to-be wife.
Well, almost. The Avengers and a number of superheroes and villains have teamed up to form a resistance to deal with Ultron. Of course, he’s intelligent enough to build his own version of the Avengers, but in robot form. Add in the menacing voice of James Spader reprising Ultron, and you have a What If…? episode that is essentially MCU’s Terminator.
Know of any wacky What If…? ideas we can add to this feature? Let us know on the comments or on our social media pages.


USA President Issues Executive Orders Targeting Tencent’s WeChat and TikTok

US President Donald Trump has issued an executive order to ban all WeChat transactions from Tencent. This ban is coinciding with the same order targeting TikTok, which will take place in 45 days.
The order was mandated because the US claims that TikTok and WeChat are funnelling the personal data of Americans and Chinese citizens in the USA to the Chinese Communist Party.
The order’s wordings may be vague to the point that people are concerned it may affect Tencent’s gaming properties like League of Legends, Valorant, Fortnite, and most Unreal Engine titles. Tencent owns Riot Games, 40 percent of Epic Games, and 5 percent of Activision Blizzard. But rest assured that it’s only targeting transactions related to WeChat.

“The following actions shall be prohibited beginning 45 days after the date of this order, to the extent permitted under applicable law: any transaction that is related to WeChat by any person, or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, with Tencent Holdings Ltd.”

TikTok was desperate enough to be bought by Microsoft just to avoid this order, so you know this is serious business.


Infinity Ward & Raven Software Are Teasing New CoD Warzone Season 4 Content

The changes just keep on comin’.
Infinity Ward and Raven Software have teased some new content for Call of Duty Warzone in Season 4. The developers are going to bring in new Field Upgrades, map changes, new game modes, and more.
“On the gameplay stuff I can tell you, there will definitely be new modes… We’re constantly working on modes,” said Raven Software creative director Amos Hodge (via GamerGen).

Â “We want to add new spice to the game. [There will be] new items, field upgrades, loot, brand new items to put in your loadout, and new playlists.”

At least for the latter, these include modes like Duos: One-Shot and Stimulus, Infinite Gulag, Classic Battle Royale, and something called “PewPew” which we’ll have to wait and see when it’s official.
Infinity Ward narrative director Taylor Kurosaki also added the new modes will have something to do with a whole other part of Verdansk players haven’t seen yet. This may mean the bunkers all over the map may open soon.
Regardless, this looks like a good time to be a Call of Duty Warzone player. Now if only the devs can sort out the server fixes and rampant cheaters, then we’ll all be hunky-dory.


ILM’s Eng Sze Jia On Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker

Eng Sze Jia joined Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) in 2015. As a Production Coordinator, Eng supports artists on their day-to-day schedule and ensures all show milestones are reached.
Together with the ILM Production team, she plans and executes priority changes based on key client & studio dates. Engâ€™s journey in VFX started in 2011 at Rhythm and Hues Malaysia with the Life of Pi VFX team.
She has been credited on 20 Hollywood projects to date and has coordinated for Layout, Animation, FX, Credev & Compositing to date. Sze Jia is a graduate of Monash University Malaysia, School of Art & Social Sciences, with a Bachelor of Communication (Hons) minoring in Journalism & Film.
Q: Hi, Ms. Eng. Can you tell us more about how you came to be a VFX Production Coordinator at ILM?
A: The gist of it is that I’ve always had a keen interest in film. When I was studying at Monash University, I was exposed to a lot of local filmmakers, we had film studies and modules.
When I graduated, I’ve always kind of known that I wanted to be involved in film. I’ve been working with ILM for close to five years, and the first movie that I worked on was 2016’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows.
I’m a person that really, really likes animation, so I think coming into this industry, I get to work closely with animators even though I cannot animate. Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker is actually the second Star Wars movie I worked on here, after 2016’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Q: As a VFX Production Coordinator, you support artists on their day-to-day schedule and ensure that all show milestones are reached. Can you explain more about what it is you do at ILM?
A: Well, basically, the oil on the gears, we keep the gears moving, that’s one way of describing it. We schedule up the work. Imagine that you have a lot of to-dos so we have to prioritize, so a production manager will mainly plan out so like for these five months, this is what we’re going to achieve.
Production Coordinators are the ones who are running the floor. We have targets to meet every week, and basically, we need to keep showing creative approval and related stuff. The gist of it is that we organize and communicate a lot, to make sure that everything goes according to the timeline.
Q: What were the hardest challenges you faced while working on Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker?
A: Every job comes with a its own set of challenges. For me, I think time was a big challenge because we need to draw and achieve a lot of things within a short period of time. We had to make sure that everyone is looking at the bigger picture.
At a certain point, there were times that we felt were difficult. To overcome that, it’s usually the team coming together to say that we can definitely finish it on time. Towards the end of the project, it was particularly very challenging.
Q: Do you any remember any specific scenes from the movie that you worked on?
A: We actually worked on one of the most challenging sequences that we’ve ever worked on at ILM, involving a lot of water. (She’s speaking about the scene seen in the trailers where Rey is lightsaber-duelling with Kylo Ren on top of a ship platform with raging waters around them).

We wanted it to render, but wouldn’t render the way that we wanted it to. I think working on that particular sequence was challenging.
There were certain parts where Rey and Kylo Ren were rendered in CG, flying around on top of water and stuff like that.
Watching how realistic it is during the reviews is definitely something quite rewarding.

This scene from Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker.
Q: How hard was it to keep spoilers and secrets?
A: That was definitely a challenge. There was a time when my husband was threatening to divorce me if I didn’t tell him a spoiler. (laughs) No, I’m just exaggerating.

One thing I do is that I don’t watch the cuts with audio, and that is one way to avoid spoilers. I think I successfully did that because I only just found out how it ended yesterday during the screening.

However, there will always be bits of trivia related to the movie that people will ask about. Even if you get spoiled, all you can do is try to forget about it, that’s what most of us did anyway.
Q: What’s the best movie you’ve worked on so far, and why?
A: I worked on Ready Player One, and I think that was kind of cool.
Q: What are you working on now post-Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker?
A: I can tell you that it’s a Hollywood movie. (laughs)
For more on Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker, check out our review of the movie here.


Who Won PvP Esports Championship? Find Out!

Singapore’s Major-level Dota 2 tournament, as well as its high-profile Arena of Valor and Hearthstone tournament that forms the trifecta that is PvP Esports Championship is over. The big question is: who won?
We could just pull out the corny sentiment card and say Singapore and its supposedly-fractured esports collective won, at least as far as Dota 2 is concerned. If the pictures and finals turnout are of any indication, it proves that with the right game, your reception is going to be stellar. While far from perfect, PvP Esports Championship is a great shape of things to come.
Enough of that; here are the results.
Dota 2: Malaysia >Singapore
Clearly the draw of the entire weekend; the tournament played host to a number of great teams in a tournament post-International 2018 with a prize pool of US$200,000. Top tier teams like Fnatic (now with former Mineski guy Iceiceice), PSG.LGD, Team Secret, and Singapore hometown hero Resurgence fight it out for the top spot. In the end, it boiled down to the final two: Team Secret and Fnatic.
Both teams played four games leading to a tie. The last match going to Team Secret thanks to Malaysia’s ownÂ Yeik “MidOne” Nai Zheng going on a killing spree near the tail end of the fifth game. Even with Fnatic’s Filipino, Singaporean, and Korean mix, they were no match for the combination led byÂ Clement “Puppey” Ivanov and the secret sauce brought in byÂ MichaÅ‚ “Nisha” Jankowski.

Arena of Valor
PvP Championship also played host to Singapore’s first-ever major Arena of Valor tournament this year that actually made public headlines. When all was said and done, it was down to the top three in respective order: Thailand’sAlpha X, Taiwan’s Monster Shield, and Singapore’s Resurgence. Smart bans from Alpha X and their counters against top-tier heroes like Superman help push the Thailand team to victory.

Hearthstone
This is the first time a Singapore stop is made for the global Hearthstone Championship Tour. Australian player Alex “NaviOOT” Ridley emerged the winner with his Druid and Warlock deck against OldÅ™ich “Faeli” Mahdal from the Czech Republic.


Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant Proves That The Director Can Make A For-TV Call Of Duty Adaptation

Guy Ritchie’s latest take on modern warfare and soldiers in recent times is discomforting but also full of spark and righteous fury. It details the story of Sergeant John Kinley (Jake Gyllenhaal) and his partnership with interpreter Ahmed (Dar Salim), which starts off in typical fashion with his battalion using intel and chasing leads to destroy Taliban weaponry during the then-ongoing Afghan Taliban war that raged on for 20 years.
Blood Brothers

Then it reaches a point where it’s just the two of them surviving in enemy territory, and the repercussions and after-effects that follow. Guy Ritchie and his crew pulled out all the stops in showcasing Afghan territory landscapes, both pretty and barren, with underlying tension that follows. This also includes sudden bursts of violence, gunfire, the occasional military craft aerial footage/helicopter pan shots, and all the shots and trappings you want out of a visceral modern warfare film experience done by a pro. The action scenes and drama bits involving John Kinley and Ahmed are tense, well-shot, and strikes a fine line between realism and gritty action. In fact, if Guy Ritchie said he wanted to adapt the current Call of Duty: Modern Warfare games into a live-action adaptation I’m all for it.
Stars-wise, while I prefer crazy Jake Gyllenhaal (see Ambulance) to straight man Jake Gyllenhaal, his performance as John Kinley works here and complements the other shining star of the film: Dar Salim who plays Afghan interpreter Ahmed. He’s not exactly a clean character as he’s got a muddy past, but he’s relatable and can be sympathized with given his lot in life, his survivalist instinct, and his will to protect his loved ones. Dar Salim plays the role well and is clearly the show’s highlight that makes us root for him from his appearance all the way to the end of the harrowing journey.
Shock And Awe

That said, there are a few stumbling blocks. We really don’t need the scenes involving John and his family because they just fall flat, and feel forced and padded out. Ditto certain scenes in the first half where the chain of command needed to be established and orders needed to be mentioned and executed. Still, the movie didn’t feel like it was too long and drawn out, and the chemistry between Jake Gyllenhaal and Dar Salim’s sergeant and interpreter dynamic works pretty well and carries the entire film.
It’s not a full-on masterpiece, but it did captivate my attention with its lead performances, its lovely vista shots of Afghan and Taliban territory, and its intense combat portions that are sure to cement the director’s sterling reputation more so than usual.

Final Score: 80/100


Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection Will Be Out For Major Platforms This June

Get ready for a punishing 2D platforming good time; Ghost ‘n Goblins Resurrection will be out for the PS4, Xbox One, and PC (Steam) this 1st June. Previously, the game was made available for the Nintendo Switch.
Pre-order bonuses include one-day early access on 31st May for consoles, and a special “Wallpaper and Mini Soundtrack Set” for PC.
Ghost ‘n Goblins Resurrection features a picturesque storybook art style, punishing 2D action and platforming that’s emulated from the 80s arcade “classic”, and local co-op play. Oh, and various difficulty levels ranging from easy (with respawn abilities) to hard.


Kakuchopurei Best 30 Games Of 2022: #18

For the rest of the list, head here. For #19, head here.
#18. SOULDIERS (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X | S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC)

Being just released this June 2022, Souldiers, a 2D Metroidvania with elements of Dark Souls done right, beating its contemporaries in many aspects; gorgeous graphics, amazing level designs, catchy soundtracks, and a progressive combat system. It ticks all the boxes for a stimulating platformer experience.
Souldiers is fairly liberal in terms of character manoeuvrability, allowing players to adapt to enemies in ways that suit their playstyles. Moreover, players’ exploration and progress are heavily rewarded with passive ability-bestowing items, equipment, orbs, and unique sub-weapons. Tonnes of puzzles along the journey especially in dungeons to push your wits on its challenging, yet fairly level progress. Despite being a Metroidvania, Souldiers provides three playable classes: the Scout—a balanced, close-range fighter; the Archer—a mid-long range combatant; and the Caster—a spell-slinging powerhouse best for those who enjoy “risk-and-reward” playstyle.”
Overall, a great game for those looking for a new action platformer that ticks all the boxes of what a Metroidvania game should be.


Rock Out With The Falcom 40th Anniversary Livestream Concert

Falcom celebrates its 40th anniversary of JRPG-making with a pretty epic JDK Band concert. This is the group’s first time playing for a Western market, as you can tell from the English.
If you’re a fan of Ys and The Legend of Heroes’ rocking music, this concert will not disappoint. The video and timestamps are at the bottom.

0:00 – Intro
0:14 – GO FIGHT!
4:20 – Band talk
4:57 – Ys 1 & 2 Chronicles “First Step Towards Wars”
7:58 – The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky “Whereabouts of Light”
12:54 – Ys Origin “Genesis Beyond the Beginning”
16:05 – The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero “Inevitable Struggle”
20:33 – The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel “Pulsation to Tomorrow” OP1
25:29 – Ys VIII “Sunshine Coastline”
29:09 – Trails of Cold Steel 3 “Step Ahead”
33:45 – Trails of Cold Steel 4 “Ai no Uta”
40:18 – Trailer for The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie
41:10 – The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie “No End No World”

But Wait; There’s More!
In addition, Falcom announced a slew of previously PSP-only JRPGs: The Legend of Heroes – Trails from Zero, The Legend of Heroes – Trails into Azure, and The Legend of Nayuta. The games will be out in 2022 and 2023 for PS4, Nintendo Switch, and PC (via Epic Games).

The company has also announced the upcoming RPG sequel The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie which is slated for PS4, PC, and Nintendo Switch in 2023. Here’s the game description:
“Three different fates are about to unfold in The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie! Use the Crossroads system to switch between Rean Schwarzer, Lloyd Bannings, and the masked figure “C”. Dive into refined tactical combat with new features such as United Front, and discover new allies and challenges within the halls of the True Reverie Corridor!”


Elden Ring Boss Fight Guide: How To Take Down The Toughest Baddies In The Lands Between

Disclaimer: this guide is still a work in progress since Elden Ring is tough as all hell.
Elden Ring is out now, and it’s a pretty tough but well-designed RPG title, especially with its plethora of bosses ready to curb stomp you to kingdom come.
Here are a few tips & tricks to defeating the bosses of Elden Ring. For a basic guide on surviving the Lands Between, here’s a starter guide.
Note that the videos & tips below are spoiler-filled, so here’s your warning.

Leonine Misbegotten (Castle Mourne, south of Limgrave)

Once you get the hang of his speed and attack chain/swing patterns and radius, he’s easy to punish.
Margit The Fell Omen (Before Stormveil Castle)

A very tough gate-keeping boss early on.
If you have trouble with the first phase of the fight, just buy Margit’s Shackles from the special merchant Patches: he sells it for 5,000 runes. Equip it in your item slot and use it to stun Margit for a few seconds. Note that when he pulls out the shiny hammer, you cannot use the Shackles.
Godrick the Grafted (Stormveil Castle)

The big boss of the Stormvale Castle legacy dungeon. Godrick has wide swing attacks, but you can jump over one of them. He also has an area of effect move where he sticks his sword to the ground and white circles pop up twice; sometimes three times. He also does a wind charging attack, followed by a cartwheel, then is followed up with either a jumping ground pound attack or two wind projectiles heading your way in an arc. You can dodge these with right timing.
His second phase turns one of his hands into a flamethrower. Stay far away from him when he does flame attacks; when you get hit they can hitstun chain you to death. He also has new attacks when doing his wind charging spell move; he shoots out two flame projectiles that you need to dodge proper.
The main takeaway is you should use the dead dragon obstacle to your advantage so you can keep Godrick away. The obstacle will not block flame attacks however.
Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon (Royal Raya Lucaria Magic Academy)

On the first phase of this fight, you have to kill a specific child target that sings and throws purple books at you. Do this to three of these children and Rennala will fall down from the sky, ripe for your melee attacks. Rinse and repeat; avoid the glowing crosses when she lifts children up as projectiles. When she says “Come sweetings, let us be born anew”, that’s when the lifting of the children starts, so just hide behind the bookshelves when she’s about to launch the projectiles.
The second phase of the fight is now her throwing magic bolts and lasers at you from afar. You just have to get up close and attack her; her poise is low and can be hitstunned with basic melee attacks. The only tricky part is to safely approach her as she has magic spells with various timings. When her life is lower than half, she will cast a white circle AoE spell (which you can dodge with good timing), which then summons her own Ashes of War to fight for her temporarily. These come in different types:

Three wolves like your own Ashes of War spirit wolves spell.
A giant troll.
A fast sword-wielding horror.
AÂ  dragon with fire breath.

Don’t be greedy with attacking her; you could get stunlocked from her spells and then get blindsided by any of her Ashes of War summons. Just be patient and strike when her summons are gone. If you get the timing down pat, you can dodge her white circle AoE spell, deal a sword slash or two, then back off when the creature she summons approaches to attack you.
Magma Wyrm Makar (Before Altus Plateau)

You know like some bosses in Dark Souls can be beaten by rolling into its big-ass attacks? This boss is kind of like that. Just dodge into it when it does one of its major attacks and end of its combo string, and then attack it from behind. Just watch out for its running lava attack and when it stands up.
Godfrey, First Elden Lord (Leyndell, Royal Capital)

Starscourge Radahn (Caelid, Redmane Castle)

Morgott The Omen King (Leyndell, Royal Capital)

Ultra Instinct Margit. He has a few new attacks in addition to his previous attacks when he was Margit the Fell Omen. His second phase gives him a red blade attack that really stings. You can use your Margit’s Shackles on him for the first phase.
Demi-Human Queen Maggie (Mt. Gelmir)

Fire Giant (Forbidden Lands)

Godskin Duo

This fight is basically Ornstein and Smough but tougher; the fat one in the duo is equally as fast as the thin one and both have fireballs. If you have a ranged build, you should be fine as long as you keep your distance and distract the other partner with an Ash summon (like the trio of wolves).

If you’re a melee build, it’s tough. You need to avoid the fat one and attack the skinny one. Distract the fat one with a Mimic Tear summon (or anything really), hope they don’t die too fast, and wail on the thin one.
Maliketh The Black Blade (via Boss Fight Database)

Godfrey The First Elden Lord (Human Form)

Radagon of the Golden Order


Beware, Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil Will Put A Curse Of Boredom On You

I don’t vividly remember the first Maleficent movie and this time, I’m not blaming my poor memory. It was a forgettable retcon of a beloved Disney story that had Angelina Jolie’s face plastered all over it. The sequel is actually just more of that but with less substance. Don’t be fooled by the subtitle, this isn’t a movie that will introduce any big changes in Maleficent’s morality.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil is a direct sequel to the 2014 movie. It’s very straightforward. Maleficent (Angelina Jolie) has crowned Aurora (Elle Fanning) as the queen of the Moors, the forest kingdom where magical creatures called fairies live in harmony with mother nature.
The plot is set into motion when Prince Phillip (Harris Dickinson) decides to propose to Aurora. Their marriage would unite the Moors and the human kingdom that Prince Phillip comes from. As shown in the trailers, Queen Ingrith (Michelle Pfeiffer) isn’t all too happy about her son marrying the woman raised by Maleficent.
Now that we’ve gotten the plot synopsis out of the way, let’s get down to business.
Twice Upon A Time
No, that’s not the Addams Family on the left.
Assuming you’re approaching this movie as a childless adult and not a parent, you won’t find anything amazing in the plot. In fact, you’d be even less capable of enjoying it if you’ve spent time watching 8PM Malay dramas. It’s the all-too-familiar tale of a vengeful mother-in-law who will stop at nothing to ruin her son’s wedding because she’s got some kind of problem against the bride-to-be or in this case, the bride-to-be’s magical godmother and her forest-dwelling subjects.

Proof of how lazily written this movie is can be found in the first few minutes. Remember everything that happened in the first movie? Well, people simply have forgotten so they’re scared of Maleficent. Again.

The romantic love story between Phillip and Aurora doesn’t feel all that genuine. It doesn’t even reach a fraction of the emotions channelled through the mother-daughter love shown in the first movie.
As battles between humans and fairies were raging on the screen, I was having a battle of my own against the monster known as drowsiness. The movie never even attempts to do anything surprising. Everything that happens from start to end can be predicted the moment the villain is revealed, which is about 20 minutes into the movie. At least the first movie tried to do something new by portraying Maleficent as a tragic hero. This time, they just cram all the boring Disney stereotypes and cliches into a movie.
I’d love to talk about the plot holes I found but hey, this isn’t the kind of movie to be analysed that much. It’s a movie made for the whole family and should be approached as such.

In that perspective, I’ll say that it does a decent job. The amazing CGI coupled together with the main theme of harmony between species is enough to make this enjoyable for kids and parents.

Jolie Good Show

Speaking of the amazing CGI, it’s probably the only thing I enjoyed about the movie. Mistress of Evil‘s overall aesthictic values are beautiful. From Maleficent’s bright yellow-green eyes to Aurora’s many dresses, the movie never stops serving the audience magical eye candy.

One particular shot in the movie was so picturesque that I felt like framing it. and the best part is that it was almost entirely in grayscale.

As I wrote earlier, I didn’t enjoy the plot of Mistress of Evil. However, I’ll admit that I grew attached to the characters. Perhaps that’s because I kinda enjoyed the first movie but whatever the reason is, some of the scenes in the movie’s climax still got me shedding a few tears. I’d say it’s because I found none of the characters annoying.
Out of all the characters, Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent is still my favourite. Just like in the first movie, it’s thanks to her that Mistress of Evil is somewhat enjoyable. However, her role isn’t as big as in the first movie so there’s a lot less dialogue and expressions coming from her. Most of the scenes are focused on the evil queen, who isn’t all that interesting despite Michelle Pfeiffer doing her best to bring the character to life.
For Whom And For What Purpose?

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil ultimately succeeds in being nothing more than a made-for-TV Disney movie with extremely high production values. Every moment of watching this film made me wonder about who exactly the producers were aiming to please with this movie. It gives nothing new for fans of the first movie and gives newcomers something stale and boring.
Even if I were talking to parents who were looking for something fun to watch with their kids, it’s hard to recommend Mistress of Evil. Kid-friendly jokes are almost non-existent. Heck, I only remember being amused for three times throughout the 1 hour 58 minutes runtime.
There’s also a fair bit of violence and death too but the characters aren’t really sad about the losses so it’s really weird.

If you’ve got a Netflix subscription, I’d suggest just staying at home to watch the first movie. It’s at least two times more enjoyable and has Angelina Jolie delivering a wonderful performance as the tragic villain-turned-hero.

FINAL SCORE: 40/100
We received a preview screening courtesy of Walt Disney Malaysia. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil premieres in Malaysian cinemas on 16 October 2019.


The Fantastic Four Movie Is Not Coming Anytime Soon

During the weekend, a rumour circulated like a wildfire; that Jennifer Lawrence will be playing Susan Storm AKA Invisible Woman in the upcoming Fantastic Four movie. However, that rumour has been debunked by not one, but two sources.
According to Deadline Senior Film Reporter Justin Kroll (via Twitter), it is too early for an official Fantastic Four cast to be taking shape. Not only is there no script yet, but Marvel Studios have just only started meeting with writers.

All I’m gonna say is this, Marvel just started meeting with writers on FANTASTIC FOUR, there is no script and it will be awhile before this film starts shooting
— Justin Kroll (@krolljvar) February 21, 2021

If that’s enough proof, The New York Times writer Kyle Buchanan also essentially tweeted and confirmed the same thing. Marvel Studios has yet to even give a definitive release date or window for the Fantastic Four movie. Plus, director Jon Watts is still busy directing and filming the untitled Spider-Man 3 movie and sequel to 2019’s Spider-Man Far From Home.

1) Production on Fantastic 4 is *not* beginning soon  2) Marvel hasn’t even dated the movie yet  3) The director is still busy shooting Spider-Man 3 https://t.co/3oaOtCiD1V
— Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) February 21, 2021

Right now,Â theÂ Fantastic Four rumours seem more like wishful thinking than anything. The Fantastic Four movie was only officially confirmed by Marvel Studios in December 2020, and no other details were provided then, only that Jon Watts would be the director. With no release date/window or script, and the fact that Watts is busy with Spider-Man 3, it’s not realistic to think that any official casting news would be announced now of all times.
Fans shouldn’t expect any official casting news in the near future, or for that matter, any massive easter eggs. I know many fans are excited about Marvel’s First Family finally entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but let Kevin Feige and Jon Watts plan all this properly.
There’s really no need to make baseless theories about the Fantastic Four appearing in WandaVision. “Aerospace engineer”? Please, just stop. If you want real theories based on existing comic book lore, check out my WandaVision episode breakdown articles onÂ the first two episodes,Â Episode 3,Â Episode 4,Â Episode 5, Episode 6 and Episode 7.


The 2022 Gran Turismo World Series Returns This Weekend

E-Racing fans, the 2022 Gran Turismo World Series returns this weekend starting tomorrow, Friday, 27 May 2022 until Saturday, 28 May 2022 with the first rounds of the Online Season 1.
Formerly the FIA Gran Turismo Championships, The Gran Turismo World Series will see a welcome return to live events in 2022. The best of the racers from the first online season will be invited to compete in a three-day World Series Showdown in July against the best of the 2021 championship at the spectacular Red Bull Hangar-7 in Salzburg, Austria.

The World Series then continues online with Season 2, with the fastest racers invited to challenge the established stars at the World Finals in November. After a two-year hiatus, the finals return to the prestigious Sporting Monte Carlo, which hosted the 2018 and 2019 World Finals events.
In addition to the two in-person live events, fans can watch the top racers go head-to-head in a series of three Nations Cup and three Manufacturer Cup broadcast World Series races. While the competitors will compete online from their homes all over the world, the competition is no less fierce and the skills on show are no less impressive.
Genesis is joined as a new partner by Italian brake company Brembo. Both brands will add to the contributions of long-term partners Michelin, Toyota, Mazda, Alpha and BBS who have helped to enrich both the game and the championships.
For more information about the World Series then feel free to check out their website here and PlayStation’s blog post. If you want to watch it live then you either watch on their official website or you can catch the VODs on YouTube.


League Of Legends Wild Rift Open Beta Is Now Live

Riot Games has announced that League Of Legends: Wild Rift has launched its first Regional Open Beta in Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, and Thailand, with many more regions to follow in the rest of 2020 and early 2021.
During this Regional Open Beta, the mobile game will also be open to all players in Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Timor-Leste. Riot Games has prepared a few surprises to usher in this launch. First, join Jinx in the new cinematic League of Legends: Wild Rift trailer as she rounds up her crew to hit the Rift:
League of Legends: Wild Rift is now available to download for free on the App Store and Google Play Store in Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Timor-Leste.

Stay tuned to Kakuchopurei for our full review. In the meantime, check out Riot Games’ trailer for the game featuring a remix of The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me”.


We Unboxed The Infinix Note 12 2023 Gaming Phone

One of the fastest-growing mobile brands in the world, the Hong Kong-based smartphone company Infinix is taking mobile gaming to the next level with its new Note 12 2023 phone.
The phone itself is full of awesome features, like an AMOLED screen, an ultra-thin body, a pretty good 50MP Ultra Night Triple Camera, a pretty good OS, and MediaTek Helio G99 6nm chipset to run games and apps well. We’ll have a full review in the near future, at least in October, but for now, you’ll have to settle for an unboxing video of the pretty package complete with appropriate synth music. That’s just how we roll.
Check out the video below:


Another Developer Hit By Layoffs

After the abrupt shutdown of The Walking Dead developer Telltale Games late last year, the start of this year has been no different, with the most recent being Activision Blizzard’s heinous act of laying off almost 800 employees earlier this month.
Firemonkeys Studios is the latest to be hit by massive layoffs, as publisher EA begins to downsize the Australian game developer best known for making mobile games like Real Racing 3 and Need For Speed: No Limits.
According to Kotaku Australia, the number of employees at Firemonkeys was originally around 200, and it seems like the number of staffers affected by the layoffs might even amount to 40 or 50 people.
Here’s an official statement by EA regarding the matter:

“The FireMonkeys studio is working on some of our most popular mobile games. We recently made a decision to shift teams to focus more on our live services, and have entered into a consultation period that may impact some roles in the studio.
Weâ€™re working to match skills with opportunities as we go through this period, identifying other opportunities at EA, and providing as much help to our employees as we possibly can.”

This is a disheartening revelation, as the developer was reportedly in the midst of developing Real Racing 4, which is now said to be officially canceled following the layoffs. However, EA has not confirmed or denied the game’s cancellation, and instead offered the following statement:

“Real Racing 3 has a thriving community, and the studio continues to deliver new content to the game. Firemonkeys also works on Need for Speed: No Limits and The Sims FreePlay, one of EAâ€™s most successful mobile titles.
Weâ€™re not going to get into our future product plans, but the Firemonkeys team is continuing to take on new challenges for us and our mobile players.”

To understand exactly how bad this is, the Australian division of Game Workers Unite (an organization fighting for game developer rights and a unionized games industry) said that the layoffs at Firemonkeys alone are equal to approximately 5% of the entire Australian games industry.
This devastating turn of events just goes to show how important it is that the games industry unionized as soon as possible. It’s needed to ensure that the rights of game developers remain protected and to avoid any more events like from happening in the future.


Here’s Our First Look At Hideaki Anno’s Kamen Rider Reboot

Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno, after wrapping up his beloved mecha series, is now looking at making new films. One of which is a retelling of the classic 70s tokusatsu superhero show Kamen Rider, which is about a cyborg bike rider who beats up monsters and supervillains with Kamen Rider-themed attacks.
The new film is called Shin Kamen Rider and based on the new teaser it’s going old school, albeit with a number of modernized changes and surprises.

One of them is the somersaulting costumed fighter at the end with the dreadlocks and green eyes-filled mask.

The new cast for the film was also announced recently:

Sosuke Ikematsu will play the bike-riding cyborg protagonist Takeshi Hongo.
Minami Hamabe will play Ruriko Midorikawa, the daughter of the scientist who helped Takeshi in the course of the series.

Shin Kamen Rider will be out in Japan first in March 2022. This retelling is the second in a trilogy of Shin films by the director, with the first being Shin Godzilla. The last one will be Shin Ultraman.
The big question: will the Bahasa Melayu version of this show be called Satria Baja Baru?


FaZe Finally Win A CS:GO Major

After many iterations, FaZe finally formulated a Major winning roster.
If you’ve been living under a rock for the past month then you may have not known that the PGL Antwerp Major was taking place in Belgium from 9 – 22 May and there were a lot of storylines going into this Major. Questions that were going to get answers.

The main team in question was Natus Vincere (NaVi) as they were favourites to win as the last Major winners and many believed this was going to be the start of a new dominating dynasty. Unfortunately, NaVi fell short in the Grand Finals against no one other than FaZe Clan, a team that pundits believed to be one of the only teams that could go head-to-head with NaVi for the crown.
#FazeUP?
What you need to understand is how big this is for not only FaZe Clan but also their captain, Finn “karrigan” Andersen and the longest-lasting member in Håvard “rain” Nygaard.
You may need a little bit of context: both karrigan and rain initially joined FaZe back in 2016 and were later joined by players who at some point were considered the best players in the world in Nikola “NiKo” Kova?, Ladislav “GuardiaN” Kovács and Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer. This roster would later be considered CS:GO’s first super team.
Unfortunately, they saw little success, after some benchings and roster changes, karrigan was loaned out in later 2018 to Team Envy for two months and returned to the roster until March 2019, when he left to join MOUZ (formerly mousesports).

Announcing the new CS:GO roster for mousesports:– @chrisJcsgo– @FROZENNcs– @karriganCSGO– @ropzicle– @w0xic
Full Story: https://t.co/00Mc8VpOYR pic.twitter.com/OtaLJFeNbS
— MOUZ (@mousesports) March 14, 2019

In early 2021, he rejoined the organisation but the team had since changed drastically, having brought in Marcelo “coldzera” David and Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken from Brazil and Canada respectively. But even with the new star-studded roster, they only saw mediocre results. So another roster change was in dire need and after another stint with olofmeister in place of coldzera, FaZe signed Estonia star and karrigan’s former teammate, Robin “ropz” Kool from MOUZ in January 2022.
Since then, FaZe has won three of their past five tournaments and placed Top 3 in the other two, Antwerp included. So on paper at least, their stock looked good going into this Major.
ANTWERP MAJOR
They lost their first game in the Legend Stage to Finnish squad ENCE but managed to win their next three games seating them with the 5th seed going into the quarterfinals. This matched them up against Ninjas in Pyjamas, who they managed to take down 2–1.

Moving onto the semifinals, this was a nail-biter as they were to face the Russian roster of Team Spirit, who many considered to be the dark horse of this event. Although FaZe won 2–0, what the scoreline doesn’t show is that both games were within or less than three points. On the final map, Dust II went to overtime, ending 25–23 in favour of FaZe as karrigan knifes Abdulkhalik “degster” Gasanov for the final kill.

Using that momentum, FaZe was in high hopes going into the Grand Finals versing NaVi. Map 1, Inferno went to overtime thanks to karrigan getting a decisive 3 kills which turned things around for FaZe as they took the map 19–16.

Map 2 was on Nuke and FaZe came out swinging winning 10 out of the 15 rounds in the first half.

Proceeding to the second half NaVi put up a good effort pulling things back to 12–10 in favour of FaZe. However, karrigan and co. prevailed in sealing the deal by winning the last four rounds consecutively, ending with FaZe as the victors 16–10. After 6 long years, crowning FaZe Clan, karrigan and rain as the PGL Antwerp Major champions.


Want Persona 5 Switch Port? Keep Fighting, Says Atlus

Ever since Persona 5 originally launched for the PS4 and PS3 in 2017, gamers have been asking for a Nintendo Switch port. Fan fervour only increased when Persona 5 protagonist Joker was added as a DLC fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Expectations were squashed when the Persona game announced for the Switch later turned out to be a sequel in the form of Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers.
However, Atlus is still encouraging fans to keep fighting for a Nintendo Switch port of Persona 5. Speaking with IGN, Atlus Communications Manager Ari Advincula said:

â€œI am a strong believer in ‘never ever give up on hope’.
You want what you want and if you don’t let us know it weâ€™re never going to be able to make it.
Itâ€™s important to always voice your opinion.â€

Advincula added that she was fighting for the Persona 5 Nintendo Switch port from within as well, but admits that she’s not the one ultimately making the decisions. As such, while it’s all well and good if fans keep fighting for it, there’s essentially no guarantee that the Persona 5 Nintendo Switch port will happen at all.
Fans seem to have forgotten that even if the Nintendo Switch doesn’t get Persona 5, they will still exclusively be receiving the upcoming Shin Megami Tensei V. If you’re unfamiliar, the Persona series is actually a spinoff of the main Shin Megami Tensei franchise, the latter of whom focuses more on traditional JRPG roots and darker themes (and less of the social stuff in the Persona titles).


Esports Funding Is Now Worth US$2 Billion Since 3 Months Ago

Platform-makers like EnjinCoin and Bountie want its services to complement both hardworking gamers and players who want to train themselves into esports. Naturally, these sites are doing their best in keeping tabs on the market, as well as contribute to it in some shape or form. Based on recent reports from The Esports Observer, they seem to be in a very good place, financially speaking.Â
The news site has published its Q1 2018 Esports Business Digest which details the most relevant financial movements in the esports circuit over the last three months. Within that short amount of time, the industry has raised more capital in this specific quarter than any other quarter in the past few years. Specifically, the total number has almost reached the US$2 billion mark.

Why is this upsurge happening? A few reasons:

Asia’s esports market is on a slow-but-steady move, since the Chinese live-streaming market has been growing from US$5.5 billion in revenue since last year. It’s projected to head up to US$16.5 billion in 2022, with Tencent being the biggest player in this field since they are involved in funding live-streaming platforms Huy and Douyu TV.
A lot of people are making big team-related investments. Highlights include a US$38 million funding round for Vision Esports, which is a special investment vehicle for Vision Venture Partners who also happen to own Twin Galaxies and Echo Fox.
To add on to that, investors have put in US$2.5 million into esports data platform FanAI (which is used by big teams like Cloud9 and a number of Overwatch League teams) and tournament organizers DreamHack. FanAI’s data has been used by Catalyst Sports, which led to the Dr. Pepper and Team SoloMid sponsorship that happened recently.
There is a growing boom in esports stadiums and facilities around the world from Las Vegas to Hangzhou.
Mobile esports is also on the rise with titles like Mobile Legends, Arena of Valor, and Vainglory being top picks in this exclusive space. In fact, Bountie is continuing this initiative with an upcoming exhibition match later this week.
We should also factor in other major esports events like the Blizzard-exclusive Overwatch League. The league itself is not only expensive to run but also dishes out harsh monetary fines for teams that do not behave themselves. Because of its high production values and operational costs, it’s no surprise that this happens to be one of the key reasons investments are at an all-time high.

This is definitely good news, as there are a lot of people who want to support such endeavours and keep the field growing. How far can it go beyond The International and Overwatch League? Who knows, but one thing is for certain: companies and startups will need to keep the esports and gaming scene growing with its new ideas and innovations.
Article originally published on Bountie, albeit with slight edits to maintain Kakuchopurei’s style & tone. Learn more about Bountie here.Â


Ralph Breaks The Internet Is A Meta Magical Adventure

Ralph Breaks The Internet pushes the envelope of the meta-commentary and easter egg references of its 2012 predecessor. Disney‘s choice to move beyond gaming into the vast digital realm of the Internet was a great one. Just like 2014’s The Lego Movie, Disney’s Wreck-It Ralph 2 is great because it’s not afraid to make fun of its own properties.
Six years after the events of the previous movie, protagonists Ralph and Vanellope have followed the same daily routine. While Ralph might be content with that, Vanellope isn’t. One thing leads to another, and Vanellope’s Sugar Rush game under threat of being unplugged, the solution lies inside the Internet.
Testing the Power of Friendship

The first movie explored the idea of Ralph trying to prove that he isn’t the bad guy everyone thought he was. He succeeded in changing everyone’s perception of him and became best friends with Vanellope in the process. Meanwhile, Ralph Breaks The Internet tests the nature of that friendship, in a tale that is as relatable as it is heartbreaking.
The trials and tribulations of friendship aren’t something new in animated movies, but though the plot of Wreck-It Ralph 2 doesn’t quite reach Pixar levels of narrative complexity, I feel like it did manage to portray a fairly realistic depiction of friendship. Ralph is that overbearing, controlling and sometimes toxic friend that holds you back. Almost everyone knows someone like Ralph, and that means the story will hit harder for those who do.
Ultimately, this is a children’s movie we’re talking about. So the movie ends not on a tragic note but a bittersweet one. Remember, this is still Disney and not Pixar, so don’t expect a tearjerker Mama Coco ending accompanied by uncontrollable sobbing.
Disney Goes Meta

Although the potshots at Internet memes and online culture are great, the best and most memorable moments of Wreck-It Ralph 2 are the ones that poke at classic tropes involving Disney princesses, Star Wars, and Marvel characters. These will probably stick in the minds of audiences long after the relevance of Internet memes fade away in a couple of years.
Moreso than Ready Player One, half of the fun in watching Wreck-It Ralph 2 lies in pointing all out the myriad easter eggs and references. There are less gaming ones this time around, but meme hunters and Disney enthusiasts should be having the times of their lives.
I appreciated little details like the Star Wars theme subtly playing in the background when the First Order Stormtroopers were chasing Vanellope. It made the Disney fan in me giddy when the music would change to a specific Disney princess’ iconic theme whenever one of them spoke or when the camera focused on them.
Internet-related hijinks include Ralph resorting to making ridiculous viral videos in order to become a Buzztube star, a scene showing us what Amazon bids would look like from inside the Internet, and even a living personified search engine. Some of these jokes would probably fly over the heads of some of the younger viewers (and some of the older ones too).
Two Post-Credits Scenes and a Music Video

Here’s a PSA for everyone: There are two post-credit scenes in Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2. This includes a mid-credits scene, as well as another post-credits scene at the very the end of the credits.
Additionally, Disney also included an exclusive music video for viewers in Malaysia and Indonesia, featuring the original song “Sebuah Lagu” performed by Jakarta-based Jazz-Folk band ‘Payung Teduh.’
‘Sebuah Lagu’ directly translates into ‘A Song.’ It’s a sweet and melancholy song with a title that fits the overall meta-theme of the movie, so be sure to wait for this musical treat after the movie ends.
Another Great Animated Sequel

Both Incredibles 2 and Wreck-It Ralph 2 have been turned out to be worthy sequels to their predecessors, proving that Disney and Pixar are currently evading the ‘bad sequel’ syndrome. If the upcoming Toy Story 4 is anything like these movies, itâ€™ll probably be worth the wait too.
Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2 is what I expected and more, with meta-commentary and jokes galore. The narrative also explores a fairly realistic friendship between the two characters, which many will find relatable and heartbreaking. However, the best moments in the movie are when it makes fun of itself. That’s refreshing for a Disney animated movie.
Final Score: 85/100
Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2 opens in Malaysian cinemas on November 22, 2018. We caught the movie on MBO Cinemas Big Screen via press screening, courtesy of The Walt Disney Company (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BcYBFC6zfY&w=560&h=315]


Razer Co-Founder & Gaming Mouse Pioneer Robert Krakoff Has Died

Before Razer became what it is right now, the company and its culture stemmed from one guy: Rober “Razerguy” Krakoff. The man behind the idea and creation of the “gaming mouse” has sadly passed away at the age of 81.
To recap, Razerguy and his team was behind the first-ever gaming mouse: the Razer Boomslang. Not only was it revolutionary at the time, it jumpstarted other companies into doing this line of peripheral-making from Logitech to Steelseries. Without him, there wouldn’t even be a Razer and a slew of game peripheral companies trying to copy and imitate it.
Apart from Razer, he also founded MindFX Science, a brand that focuses on selling energy drinks and supplements. He also wrote a dozen books since 2009 under his pen name RM Krakoff.

Razer has put up an official post about his passing. Rest in peace, Razerguy, and thank you for starting a future filled with gaming peripherals and “l33t” gaming goods.
https://www.facebook.com/razer/photos/a.77781772575/10162120977972576/?__cft__[0]=AZV0tD6AYMj3K6f-6Lx1qZ5LZcaKmVklxsHtwzt3fyNrQOnanXUDivywEKZKqi3n50ZPaJhQmGLw0cYnXVYB5bOaq3eDU2oDldV2JlIE_EX9fMk1Y-Ll3z2jK684jE5jT5WPeW06G1L4-FWZmZSrcKJaPy3V1WHZbpb5bj98buPrKg&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R


Disney Will Shut Down Southeast Asia TV Channels On Astro & Unifi

Sad news for many folks getting their Disney channel fixes on local cable networks. Disney will reportedly be shutting down the majority of its TV channels in Southeast Asia later in October 2021.
The following channels will be shut down:

Disney Channel
Disney Junior
All SEA Fox channels (Fox, Fox Crime, Fox Life, FX, Fox Movies, Fox Action Movies, Fox Family Movies, Fox Sports, Fox Sports 2, Fox Sports 3)
National Geographics channels (Nat Geo People)
Star channels (Star Movies China, SCM Legend, Star Sports 1, Star Sports 2)
Channel V

Insider reports (via Lowyat.net) state that this move is meant to shift viewer focus to Disney’s own streaming service; namely Disney+. This was revealed during a town hall session earlier today. Disney has launched Disney+ in Indonesia and Singapore; most likely it will start rolling out the service in Malaysia and other SEA countries in the near future.
This decision will definitely impact local cable networks like Astro and unifi TV. Right now, the majority of the channels listed above are still there until October. Astro has this to say (via Lowyat.net):
“With reference to the news report that Disney plans to stop 18 of its linear channels in the Southeast Asia region of Oct 2021, we wish to inform that we are still waiting for detailed information from Disney.
We will update customers once we have full details.”
Guess most folks will need to pony up for one more subscription service later in 2021.


Apex Legends’ Wraith No Longer Runs Like Naruto

Respawn Entertainment has released its latest major update for Apex Legends, which introduces the battle royale gameâ€™sÂ crossplay beta, Flashpoint limited-time mode, and the Aftermarket Collection Event.
What did they change?
Well, for one thing, Wraith no longer runs like Naruto or a ninja. You can see the change below, courtesy of the Apex Legends News Twitter account.

Not even going to lie… little bit sad about this change ? pic.twitter.com/NS3NyzW6FS— Apex Legends News (@alphaINTEL) October 5, 2020
Why did the developer change the way Wraith runs? How does running animation affect gameplay? The reason given in the patch notes is a long one:
Wraith is a very challenging Legend to nerf. We look at Legend performance across a number of axes: how often trios with this Legend on them win games/place highly, how often this Legend gets knockdowns vs is knocked down, how often this Legend is picked. Across each and every single one of these axes, Wraith dominates.And yet each time we hit her abilities (which we’ve done a lot) she bounces back within a few weeks without bleeding a lot of pick rate. Her kit is uniquely useful both in solo games and in highly coordinated games. Also, she’s just really cool. We get it.We don’t want to hit her abilities anymore. We think both she and Pathfinder have been pushed to the edge in terms of cooldown and utility nerfs where pushing them any further would make them a lot less fun to play. We don’t want that!So we started looking at other Legend specific things that could give her this power–and discovered that her sprinting animations are unique in how much they artificially shorten her (by hunching over), thus shrinking her shootable area from the perspective of the enemy. It doesn’t sound like a lot but taken together with her already small hitbox, it’s a lot of power.This patch, we’re introducing a new set of sprint animations for Wraith. These are much more upright and expose a larger area of her body to gunfire. Now we know her old sprint was iconic and we hate to see it go as well, but we believe this is the best way by far of bringing her in line without having to hit her abilities again. Depending on what we see after these animations go live, we may even be able to put some power back into her abilities (no promises though).As always, we will be listening to feedback and monitoring data on this change.
Yeah, they’re changing Wraith’s running animation because apparently running like Naruto makes you harder to shoot. Who would have thought?
In the meantime, you can check out the rest of the changes in the latest update via the officialÂ patch notes, including balance changes to other Legends as well, such as Bloodhound, Loba, Pathfinder, and more.


The HypeTrain: What You Need To Know About Malaysia’s First MRT Gaming Event

Update [23/11/2022]: Sorry, folks. HypeTrain has been postponed indefinitely. Stay tuned on Kakuchopurei for more future updates!

Latest update of the HypeTrain ?
The train hasn't left the station nor is it out of commission. We'll see you guys in the future when we're ready with the next announcement.#HypeTrain #KKP #Announcement pic.twitter.com/QU61PYjvEV
— Kakuchopurei (@Kakuchopurei) November 23, 2022

This November, Kakuchopurei will be launching a one-of-a-kind video game event called The Hype Train. Here’s what you need to know about the upcoming Malaysian event.
What Is the Hype Train?

HypeTrain is a Kakuchopurei original IP and in the long run, we aim to bring similar events to other train stations, train lines in the Klang Valley (think the Ampang line, or the Kelana Jaya line) and even to outside of Malaysia. The Singapore, Jakarta and Bangkok MRT lines are definitely within our sights.
For one special weekend, 26-27 November, we have partnered with MRT Corp to bring to you a novel way to experience your favourite games.
We have identified four high-traffic MRT stations in the Klang Valley which will host ‘Hype Booths’ where passersby can engage with activities, participate and compete in several video game titles in a much more conducive and meaningful manner.
All of these booths will run simultaneously across four stations, and all participants are not only encouraged to take part in Hype Booths near them but to visit ALL THREE stations to accumulate as many points as possible by taking part in the various activities.
The full list of games featured will be unveiled in the upcoming days, so be sure to stay tuned to our website and other social media accounts. Pre-registrations for The HypeTrain will also commence in the next few days, rewarding early birds with a significant advantage compared to walk-in sign-ins.
The Hype Train Date & Info
Date: 26-27 November
Time: 10am-6pm
MRT Stations:

KG16 Pasar Seni MRT
KG18A Pavilion Kuala Lumpur–Bukit Bintang MRT
KG22 AEON–Maluri MRT

Games:

FIFA 23 (published by EA Sports)
GigaBash( published by Passion Republic Games)
Street Fighter V: Champion Edition (published by Capcom)
Mobile Legends Bang Bang (published by Moonton)

Pre-Registration Link: https://www.kakuchopurei.com/login/
More Info/News
Introducing the HypeTrain!
HypeTrain announces stations & games
HypeTrain Soft Launch
IGN SEA coverage


Halo Infinite’s Multiplayer Is A Blast From The Past Made Great By The Present

Platform(s): PC (version reviewed), Xbox Series
Genre: Multiplayer first-person shooter with a campaign mode coming soon
Halo Infinite and its first-person shooter multiplayer PvP gameplay remind us why it’s good to go back to basics, albeit with a lot more sprucing up to make it fit this generation. Because what isn’t broken doesn’t need much fixing. Just a good number of tweaks and additions that makes sense.
The Great Journey
In this iteration of Halo’s PvP mode, you team up with a bunch of other Spartans and go online fighting 4 other Spartans in either Slayer (kill for points), Capture The Flag, and other multiplayer modes involving points, scoring, and the occasional bloodshed. Big Team Battle is the 24-player version; more players, more kills/problems to deal with, and a ton of vehicles for the wide-open space maps.
The majority of the maps here are symmetrical to a point, but they have memorable landmarks and layouts, ranging from the pathways and centre area of the Bazaar to the jump pads and sniper alcoves of Behemoth. You’ll find your favourite map within a couple of sessions; the settings for PvP are both laced with quality and quantity. We won’t be starved for newer maps anytime soon with these choices.

And it’s not just the maps; the guns you get to use range from oldies to newfangled oddities. Familiar weapons like the Assault Rifle and handgun/Magnum get the tweaks and balances they deserve so that they are the best starting weapons for default multiplayer modes. Old favorites like the Battle Rifle also has some much-needed upgrades while some long-missed weapons like the Gravity Hammer will make Halo 3 veterans squeal with glee, albeit with some changes that you’ll need to get used to.
New weapons include the Sentinel Beam which drains shields super-fast with its beam attack and the Heatwave which covers vertical and horizontal targets just fine and has bouncing shots; perfect for enclosed spaces. The game also has an equipment system where you can use items with a limited amount of use. This means having access to awesome tools like the Grappling Hook and Repulsor. The grappling hook not only pulls you towards ledges but also onto targets to close distances. You can also use it to grab weapons from a good distance. I love having the plasma sword with the Grappling Hook to cover distances for my one-hit kills from behind. Conversely, there’s nothing quite like sweet justice as to push sword-wielding idiots and live grenades back and away from you with the Repulsor.
Vehicles are another Halo staple that cannot be overlooked. Despite being barraged by a rogue Banshee or enemy Wasp, Spartans on foot never feel as helpless. No longer limited to just peppering them with your assault rifle, you can now choose to either hijack them with your grapple gun, disabling them with a Dynamo Grenade, or just snipe at the pilot out of the sky with a well-timed Skewer. There’s always more than one way to skin a Banshee.
For those coming from a host of more recent and twitchy shooters such as the Call of Duties of the world, Halo Infinite sticks true to the Halo formula. Unlike that series, gunfights aren’t decided by who shoots first, but rather, benefits those who manage to effectively incorporate the intricate dance of bunny hops and crouches, well-placed grenades, obtaining superior positioning and effective team play. I’m not saying 2v1s are impossible to pull off, but they require more finesse and advanced planning.
There’s a ton of variety weapons-wise, and you can even drop them for your allies if needed. Simply put, Halo Infinite’s multiplayer arsenal is fun to use, seems balanced so far, and makes all your Slayer/Big Team Battle matches a hoot.
High Charity

The only major gripe to this shooter mana from heaven is its progression system. I understand that Halo Infinite’s multiplayer is a free-to-play game, and some payments need to be made for additional rewards via its battle pass, among other cosmetic things. However, the progress and levelling up for this bit can be a bit slow for myself and others, especially if you feel like you aren’t going anywhere even if you had 10 matches or so. You can still beat the system with a few bot matches and co-operative players online, but still, players shouldn’t be going through excessive measures just to level up in multiplayer and get a few extra colours and cosmetics.
Speaking of cosmetics, in its current state, we only have access to three armour cores or ‘styles’ – Mark V as worn by the Spartans in Halo Reach, Mark VII armour which is the most recent iteration and the event-tied, Samurai-inspired Yoroi. Each of these cores has a number of customisable armour pieces and coatings which are specific to a particular core. The overall customisation does feel a bit limited compared to older Halo games, but still enough to ensure no two Spartans are 100% identical.
Halo Infinite’s multiplayer modeÂ is a great way to get everyone on board the shooter if they have an inkling of love for the multiplayer PvP FPS genre. It’s fun, familiar-yet-new, and its gameplay modes and maps are a blast to play in. Even if its progression feels very long-winded, it IS a free-to-play game, so we’ll let that slide. It’s hard to believe that it took this long for another revered shooter to take the fair-yet-balanced payment route; whatever audiences it gets, it deserves due to its solid and well-tuned shooter gameplay, controls, and overall fun factor.
Besides, what else are you going to play for your online shooter fix: the still-broken Battlefield 2042 which you had to pay more than full price for to get to its Early Access? Or the “same old, same old” nonsense that is Call of Duty: Vanguard? Just do yourself a huge solid and make yours Master Chief.
Not-So-Final Score: 90/100*
*we’ll be sure to update this once we’re done with the game’s Campaign mode


Mortal Monday: The Best Mortal Kombat Moments Throughout History

It’s been five years since the last Mortal Kombat game, a series that is knee-deep in fighting game history because of its controversy and palette-swapped ninjas. From making history via the creation of the ESRB to creating a standard in easter eggs and game secrets, it’s no surprise the Mortal Kombat franchise has a huge following all over the world.
It doesn’t matter if the games are created by Midway or by NetherRealms Studios; they’re all awesome, goofy, absurd, and fun at the same time. Here is Kakuchopurei’s favourite Mortal Kombat bits, for which there are plenty. We’ll break it down from fatalities to the goofy bits.
Best Fatalities
You can’t pick just one. There are just too damn many, so we just pick our favourites.
Scorpion’s latest trademark.
[wpvideo N8SdttZG]
Kung Lao’s split decision.

Liu Kang’s fourth wall-breaking.
[wpvideo F9ENymac]
Quan Chi’s leg day.
[wpvideo B56NEAz0]
Kabal’s air pump.
[wpvideo Uo5AAgu4]
Cassie Cage’s selfie moment.
[wpvideo N2Z1yfxw]
Johnny Cage’s ball-buster

NEXT: Best Kharacters


Assassin’s Creed 2 Is Free To Keep Right Now (Update)

Update:Â Assassin’s Creed 2 is now free to grab and keep on Uplay. The offer will last until 18 April at 5am.
Original: It seems that the game that introduced the world to Ezio Auditore will be free this week.
Daniel Ahmed, who spotted the information on German site MyDealz, shared on Twitter that Assassin’s Creed 2 will be free on Uplay on 14 April. Given time zones and all, it’d probably happen on 15 April for us here, but I’ll keep an early eye on Uplay all the same.

Assassin's Creed II will be free on uPlay (PC) this Tuesday, April 14th. https://t.co/cGo5K2Z7lh pic.twitter.com/QnGzaRzDZc
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) April 11, 2020

No word yet on how long the free deal will last, but the Google translation of MyDealz’s page implies that it’d last for more than one day, at least. It also seems that the rest of the Ezio trilogy, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood and Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood will be discounted during that time.
I’d decided that the Assassin’s Creed series just wasn’t for me after failing to get into AC3 and Black Flag, but I’d always been tempted to try AC2 because of its setting. It looks like I don’t have an excuse anymore if this free offer comes to pass.
The offer will also make Assassin’s Creed 2 the latest Assassin’s Creed game to have been given away for free. Assassin’s Creed 3, Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag, and Assassin’s Creed: Unity were previously made free for various reasons on Uplay, while Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate was one of the Epic Game Store’s weekly free game offers recently.


Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales PS4 Pre-orders Are Now Open

We’re still about two months (give or take) away from the launch of the PS5, but Insomniac Games has already opened pre-orders for Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales ahead of the game’s launch on 12 November 2020.
The game is RM209 on the PlayStation Store, and pre-ordering the game comes with the following digital bonuses:
T.R.A.C.K. Suit â€“ Designed by Javier GarrÃ³n, one of the talented Marvel artists on the Miles Morales Spider-Man comic book series. Zip up the Time Response Activated Circuit Kinetic (T.R.A.C.K.) Suit and unlock the Untrackable Suit Mod.Second Spidey Suit â€“ TBA.Gravity Well Gadget â€“ Get a web up with the early unlock of the Gravity Well Gadget. Pull enemies together to knock them down and disarm them with this new combat device.Extra Skill Points â€“ Learn new powers and combat abilities more quickly with extra skill points to spend.

There’s nothing wrong with buying Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales on the PS4 if you’re not planning to get a PS5 at launch. Insomniac Games Community Director James Stevenson recently confirmed on Twitter that Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales PS4 save data will be compatible with the PS5 version.

Yup!— James Stevenson (@JamesStevenson) September 28, 2020

In the meantime, check out the gameplay trailer for Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales below:


Willy’s Wonderland Is A Mediocre Gorefest That Is Less Creepy & More Cheesy

The Five Nights At Freddy’s games are popular for a reason; theme park animatronics are often creepy as heck to anyone older than 12. While we still haven’t gotten an official movie adaptation yet, Willy’s Wonderland is here to scratch that itch. However, this movie isn’t the same as those games, and it’s basically just a silent Nicolas Cage beating up a bunch of evil animatronics for an hour and a half.
One Night At Willy’s

If you’re expecting a more traditional horror movie or something closer to the jump scares of the games, Willy’s Wonderland isn’t that. The premise of the movie isn’t much and I won’t spoil the barebones plot in my review. Nicolas Cage plays a silent character named simply as The Janitor in the credits. He’s not actually a janitor, but rather, circumstances lead him to have to spend one night cleaning up a Chuck E. Cheese-like attraction called Willy’s Wonderland.
There’s also a bunch of teenagers led by Emily Tosta’s Liv Hawthorne, who mostly just acts as fodder for the evil animatronics and to rack up the kills in this movie. Directed by Kevin Lewis, Willy’s Wonderland looks sort of drab as well, honing in on that low-budget horror aesthetic.

The movie doesn’t even bother with logic or details, so don’t expect any of that. You should just expect a shlocky hamfest with a surprisingly good soundtrack composed by Ã‰moi.

It’s structured sort of like a video game as well, with Nicolas Cage’s The Janitor moving from one area to the next in Willy’s Wonderland (after finishing his cleaning duties) and encountering the animatronic characters one-by-one. Unfortunately, the movie doesn’t flesh out these murderous animatronics much so they’re just there to be violently beaten up by Cage’s character. They might seem scary at first glance, but Cage’s character dispatches them with such ease that we’re left wondering; what makes these animatronics so deadly in the first place?
It’s oddly satisfying to see Nicolas Cage cleaning and destroying animatronic beasties. Plus, horror movies rarely have me checking out their soundtracks after watching them, but Willy’s Wonderland did that for me. It’s got an entirely original soundtrack (which is available on Spotify) with several great tracks in there, including the titular Willy’s Wonderland (which you can check out below). It has this retro 80s vibe to it that fits the cheesy low-budget horror quality of the movie.

For Your Entertainment

If you’re a horror fan, you should probably check Willy’s Wonderland for its bizarre premise and cheesy violence. If you’re a fan of Nicolas Cage, he delivers another eccentric performance here without uttering a single line or word for the entire duration of the movie (yeah, his character doesn’t speak at all). If you’re fine with all of that, you’ll probably enjoy this entertaining slaughter-fest for what it is.
If not, Willy’s Wonderland doesn’t really offer anything new or unique to hook in viewers. It’s best enjoyed as you kick and relax with little to no expectations except for one thing and one thing alone; Nicolas Cage kicking the crap out of creepy animatronic mascots.
Oh, and here’s a fun fact: The visual effects in Willy’s Wonderland are produced by Malaysian studio Base FX, the same one behind some of the special effects seen in The Mandalorian.
FINAL SCORE: 50/100


The Ascent Is Not Xbox Exclusive Anymore Starting Next Month

Cyberpunk action RPG The Ascent is coming to PC and PlayStation 4.
This version of the game will be out on 24 March, 2022. It will cost US$24.99, but PS Plus members can get it for a 10% discount. PlayStation users will also get an exclusive RPEG 33 Rocket Launcher with blue laser targeting systems, provided they pre-order the game.
Previously, the action RPG came out in July 2021 for PC and Xbox consoles. Players can co-op or go solo killing enemies and work for the Ascent Group either with guns or bigger guns. It’s developed by Swedish indie studio Neon Giant.
For more on The Ascent, check out our review.


Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker TV Spot Features New Footage

Despite releasing a ‘final’ trailer just last month, Disney and LucasFilm have unveiled a new TV spot for Star Wars Episode IX The Rise Of Skywalker. Though it runs for only 30 seconds in length, the TV spot features glimpses of brand new footage not included in any of the movie’s previous trailers.
The new TV spot begins with the same now-iconic scene of C-3PO saying, “Taking one last look, sir, at my friends.” from the final trailer. Then, we see a shot of the Millennium Falcon exiting hyperspace to an unknown planet. The weird thing here is that the ship is back to being equipped with its original round dish, instead of the square one that was initially introduced in Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens.

The next scene has the Star Wars fan in me very intrigued. It shows Rey discovering the shattered remnants of Darth Vader’s helmet, which was last seen in Star Wars Episode VII The Force Awakens. It looks like the helmet will be playing a larger role in the third and final movie. Maybe Emperor Palpatine has been possessing the helmet all these years? Sort of like a Force Echo?

The rest is basically the same old footage, though we do get a first clear look at Kylo Ren’s fixed helmet. The lines, or seams, where the helmet is pasted together is red in colour, which is very Sith-like in theme.

Time Travel In Star Wars

My working theory remains that Emperor Palpatine / Darth Sidious could have somehow survived all these decades and years by transporting himself to the future. Time travel is a relatively new concept in the franchise, as it was introduced inÂ the final season of theÂ Star Wars RebelsÂ animated series.
In the thirteenth episode of the final season, protagonist Ezra Bridger saved Ahsoka Tano from dying at Darth Vaderâ€™s hand by pulling her into the World Between Worlds, a dimension that exists outside of time and space but linking all moments in time together at the same time.
This act proved that time could be manipulated and altered in the Star Wars universe. In the same episode, Emperor Palpatine himself could project an astral form into the World Between Worlds but he needed Ezraâ€™s help to physically enter. His plans were foiled when Ezra retaliated against him and destroyed the portal.
It could be possible that Darth Sidious managed to find another way into the World Between Worlds, and used it to transport himself into the future. If he had access to it, he could have amassed a secret Imperial army and stayed alive all this time without anyone knowing.
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of SkywalkerÂ is slated to release on 20 December 2019. In the meantime, check out the new TV spot below.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zsp8iOt76YU&w=560&h=315]


The Next Legend of Heroes RPG Will Arrive This September, But…

Good news, JRPG fans! The next Legend of Heroes entry will be out in a few months.
The Legend of Heroes: Kuro no Kiseki will be out for the PS4 on 30th September according to a news piece on Famitsu. However, this is the Japanese version. There’s no info on an English version as of now, though we suspect it’ll take half a year for that version to get released.
The game’s voice cast is also announced (via Gematsu). You may recognize some names from other anime games, or anime in general.

Van Arkride (voiced by Daisuke Ono).
Agnes Claudel (voiced by Miku Itou).
Feri Al-Fayed (voiced by Yui Ogura).
Aaron Wei (voiced by Yuuma Uchida).
Risette Twinnings (voiced by Yui Ishikawa).
Quatre Salison (voiced by Mutsumi Tamura).

Update: the Famitsu issue also talks about two new characters in the game. They are Judith Runster (pictured below) the stoic actress who fights with a Meteor Whip, and Bergard Zeman the old benefactor and chaperone who wields a gauntlet and armor combo.

The developers also talked about the Crafts system, where each character can spend Craft Points to activate character-specific skills for combat. These include main character Van’s Coin Bullet that deals damage in a half-circle range to Agnes’ Glow Hammer that deals damage and recovers EP to help support her other arts.
Check out some awesome JRPG gameplay of Kuro no Kiseki below.


Star Wars Andor Episode 8 Breakdown & Easter Eggs

The eighth episode of Star Wars Andor is now streaming on Disney+ Hotstar Malaysia. I’ll be discussing heavy spoilers so if you haven’t seen it or want to avoid spoilers, now’s your chance to stop reading.
Check out my spoiler-free review of Andor here.
The Andor series will explore a new perspective from the Star Wars galaxy, focusing on Cassian Andor’s journey to discover the difference he can make. The series brings forward the tale of the burgeoning rebellion against the Empire and how people and planets became involved. It’s an era filled with danger, deception and intrigue where Cassian will embark on the path that is destined to turn him into a rebel hero.
Diego Luna returns as Cassian Andor and is joined by cast members Genevieve O’Reilly (who will portray a young Mon Mothma), Stellan Skarsgård, Adria Arjona, Denise Gough and Kyle Soller. The executive producers are Kathleen Kennedy, Sanne Wohlenberg, Diego Luna and Michelle Rejwan. Tony Gilroy is the creator and showrunner.
In the meantime, check out my interview with Andor actors Kyle Soller and Denise Gough by heading over here for the written article, or you can watch the entire interview below:

Check out my breakdown of the first three episodes of Andor, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6 and Episode 7 here.
Check out my breakdown of Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode 1 and 2, Episode 3, Episode 4 and Episode 5 here.
You can check out my previous breakdowns of The Book Of Boba Fett Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6 and Episode 7 here.

That’s Andy Serkis

Five-Two-D unite manager Kino Loy is played by none other than Andy Serkis.
He’s best known for playing Gollum in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy of movies, Caesar in the Planet Of The Apes reboot trilogy and as supervillain Ulysses Klaw in Black Panther, as well as Alfred Pennyworth in 2022’s The Batman.
PORD (Public Order Resentencing Directive)

The new Imperial law or decree is basically introduced by Emperor Palpatine as a retaliation against what happened on planet Aldhani (Andor’s heist robbery in Episode 6).
It imposed harsher penalties on anyone convicted of criminal acts affecting the Empire and classified the attacks as a Class One Offense. This is probably what sparks more citizens of the Empire to rise up and become Rebels, as the Empire grows more and more tyrannical and authoritarian.
At this point in Andor, the Galactic Senate still exists. By the events of the Battle Of Yavin in Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope, the senate would no longer exist.
Saw Gerrera

Forest Whitaker reprises his role as the Rebel Partisan leader Saw Gerrera, who first appeared in 2016’s A Rogue One A Star Wars Story (though technically he first appeared in canon in the Star Wars The Clone Wars animated series).
This is basically only a few years before he would eventually die in Rogue One A Star Wars Story. Let’s hope it’s more than just a cameo role.
Until the next episode, excelsior!


Forspoken Gets A PC Demo

Square Enix and developer Luminous Production Studios are sharing the love that is the newly-released action RPG open-world title Forspoken, starring a Whedon-esque quip-savvy heroine, with a new PC demo.
The free PC demo is available right now on Steam, Epic Games Store, and the Microsoft Store. Here’s a brief description:
“In the PC demo, players will face-off with a variety of enemies and test their fighting abilities with an extensive arsenal of attack and support magic that will prepare them for the high-octane action they can expect to encounter in the full game.”
We’ve played about 6+ hours of Forspoken for the PlayStation 5. Despite all the stuff you’ve heard regarding the game’s dialogue, the game is decently entertaining, though it has yet to set itself apart from other better open-world titles that thrust you into the open-world action more. Stay tuned to Kakuchopurei for our full no-frills review.


So Who Is The Most Popular PokÃ©mon In Southeast Asia?

Saying PokÃ©mon is pretty popular game franchise is a huge understatement. You can just show any random person one of the game’s starter creatures; odds are they’ll know it’s from the anime. Or live-action movie starring Ryan Reynold’s voice. Or at least their element.
The monster-battler series and its stable of pocket monsters are iconic as all heck, but which one is the most popular in our region and in the world? Thanks to an infographic from Toy Zone via Google data & analytics, we now know who is the most popular PokÃ©mon in Malaysia, Singapore, and the whole of Southeast Asia.
Here’s the list:
Malaysia – Gyarados

Singapore – Charizard

Indonesia – Mew

Brunei – Eevee

The Philippines – Abra

Thailand – Kangaskhan

Vietnam – Mew

Cambodia – Dragonair

Myanmar – Golem

Notice anything odd about this data? It seems that Toy Zone has collected data based on Generation 1 PokÃ©mons, who are arguably more iconic than the rest of the later generations. Still, it is weird that the infographic omit the other PokÃ©mons from newer generations. And the fact that this was data from 2020.
Still, any information right now that leads to a sweet infographic like this is better than none, since it does become a watercooler chat topic for many offices.
The Toy Zone infographic also listed down the top PokÃ©mon worldwide. Don’t act too shocked at who number 1 is.

Pikachu
Charizard
Onix
Mewtwo
Eevee
Gengar
Mew
Snorlax
Lapras
Gyarados
Bulbasaur
Ditto
Golem
Charmander
Dragonite
Squirtle
Abra
Raichu
Blastoise
Slowpoke


Latest Call Of Duty: Black Ops Patch Lets You Go Hardcore

Treyarch has announced a Hardcore mode in the latest Call of Duty: Black Ops – Cold War patch. You can toggle that mode for the Moshpit playlist, which contains the game’s most popular modes and maps.
The latest patch also fixes some Outbreak bugs and the League Play’s ladder system. Take a look:
Multiplayer

Rapid Fire Moshpit:Â Added HC Rapid Fire Moshpit to Quick Play.
Season Challenges:Â The “Guerrilla Warfare” Season Challenge now tracks kills from any weapon that the player picks up, not only from weapons from players theyâ€™ve killed.
Daily Challenges:Â The â€œHelping Handâ€ Daily Challenge now properly tracks Spy Plane assist score.

League Play Ladder

If the player gets incorrectly placed into a “broken” Ladder, playing another match will put the player into a functional Ladder.
Addressed an issue that could cause other names on the Ladder to be blank.

Zombies

Added various stability fixes related to Objectives in Outbreak.
Resolved an issue that prevented completing the objective if a player carrying a canister left a co-op match in progress.
Resolved an issue that caused graphic corruption when using upgraded Frenzied Guard Field Upgrade.
Addressed an issue where a player could not listen to three Radio Transmissions in “Firebase Z.”

CoD fans who want to take it up a notch will be pleased with the Hardcore playlist. After all, there’s nothing like the thrill of a multiplayer match where guns work as lethally intended.