Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Gaming

  • ‘Sonic the Hedgehog 2’ Eyeing March Production Start

    ‘Sonic the Hedgehog 2’ Eyeing March Production Start

    Just recently, news broke about Sonic the Hedgehog director Jeff Fowler tackling a live-action adaptation of The Pink Panther. It made us wonder what this could mean for the sequel featuring the blue blur. Well, luckily the preliminary production details have been released via the British Columbia Film Commission to tease what is to come. It looks like the film is scheduled to film between 15th March until 10th May 2021. So, we can expect some casting details earlier next year as the film enters production. It will film under the codename Emerald Hill with the in-house production company being given the title Red Energy Films. The first film had the codename Casino Night. The in-house production at the time was Hedgehog Films.

    There isn’t too much to go on for the upcoming production, but the naming choice of the in-house production company is rather interesting. Red Energy doesn’t give anything away but could tease the focus of the sequel. The color red is strongly associated with Knuckles the Echidna, whose race we saw briefly in the opening of the first film. It is the biggest mystery that hasn’t been answered, so there is a good chance this sequel will follow-up on it.

    Tails’ arrival at the end of the first Sonic the Hedgehog film could be a tease of the worlds colliding. I am curious which direction they will take, as they can either be inspired by Sonic Adventure‘s storyline that heavily featured the Echidnas or focuses on the Archie Comic storylines. There is also the question of how or if Robotnik will return as well. There are a lot of potential story directions they can take, so we’ll hopefully get some glimpses with future casting announcements.

    Source: Deadline, BCFC via Tails’ Channel

  • Latest ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Dev Stream Teases New Game+, Kate Bishop And More

    Latest ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Dev Stream Teases New Game+, Kate Bishop And More

    After a short hiatus, we finally got a brand new Marvel’s Avengers developer stream. This time, they didn’t host it on their own Twitch channel but together with up-and-coming streamer Laajune. It is part of their new direction to work together with people from the community, which is a great move. Of course, this stream is right after the reveal of Kate Bishop, so a lot of people were wondering what is new and what can be expected from the game’s future. Of course, here is another quick rundown of the stream highlights:

     

    • They confirmed that New Game+ isn’t too much longer, as it is currently in bug testing. Now, keep in mind there is no real release date but, hopefully, we could see its addition around the same time Kate Bishop is released in December.
    • AIM Cloning Labs are sadly still in bug testing. The reason it is taking time is that it is a very complex system, so they want to make sure it works once they release it.
    • The reason they chose the Omega-Level threat naming is that they don’t believe it is complex enough to be called a raid.
    • Yes, AIM Labs and Kate Bishop will feature brand new and unique Exotics.
    • Speaking of Bishop, her Quantum abilities are not a new status effect on weapons. It is an element unique to her, but they did tease that new ones are going to be included in future content drops.

     

     

    • Her focus remains on ranged attacks, so she is comparable to Iron Man.
    • Kate’s DLC will expand existing hero‘s stories, which will evolve throughout the various expansions. It sounded like we can expect some unique heroic mission trees that follow-up on the Reassemble campaign.
    • Multiplayer Mega Hives are still in development.
    • They have been looking into concepts like leaderboards and clan creations. They are excited about playing with them in the future. Reworks are underway for the star rating to optimize it.
    • They acknowledge the game’s repetition and set it as their mission to change that with future content. Hawkeye’s DLC will include brand new environments that were teased in the trailer.
    • There was a mention of Hulk potentially being able to throw objects in the future.

     

     

    • The roadmap is waiting for internal approval so that they can release it. Crystal Dynamics confirmed that their teams have adjusted to having to work from home, so they are at a rhythm to get more precise with their work. They are also getting support from their companies to work from home.
    • They teased that there might be more to the short shot of the Circe Q drink at the end of the Kate Bishop Deep Dive.

    Ever since I saw the latest War Table, I have been excited to replay the campaign again. There was a brief question if we could replay the new missions, which hopefully will be confirmed. It would be a waste not to revisit these stories in the future, as they bring a lot of life and unique aspects to the game. We still have some time until Avengers’ first big character update is released, but I do hope we get some minor updates until then. There won’t be an official stream next week during Thanksgiving but we can expect more in the future. These are a great way to get a small look into what they are working on, as well as see what new projects they might be interested in tackling.

    Source: Twitch

  • Scott Cawthon Offers ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ Film Update

    Scott Cawthon Offers ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ Film Update

    Five Nights at Freddy’s is a fascinating franchise. The first entry started as the final project that Scott Cawthon wanted to do before leaving the franchise behind. Suddenly, the game was a massive success, and it started getting one sequel after sequel. Now, the franchise includes merchandise and even a long list of books that take place in a different canon. There was only one thing many of us were waiting for the announced Five Nights at Freddy’s movie. Well, ScottCawthon was working on a new script after the rights were passed on to Blumhouse Studio. We heard nothing on it for years until he suddenly took to Reddit to reveal some details on the script and project. It is quite a long update so don’t let the title mislead you, the film has not been canceled but is entering production soon.

    Bad news about the FNAF movie. 🙁
    byu/animdude infivenightsatfreddys

    Have to give it to him, the title is wonderfully misleading. So yes, the FNAF film is finally going to start shooting in Spring with Scott combining his various story ideas in one. The “Mike” naming of the screenplay is also interesting as Mike Schmidt was the name of the first game’s protagonist. It looks like he went through nine different scripts with some spinning off from the novel series. It is uncertain how the film will tie into the games or novels. They may be trying to set-up a third canon that isn’t bound by the game’s overall lore but will have similar elements.

    I think focusing on something closer to the first game would be a great way to introduce filmgoers to the franchise. Hopefully, they will also be using actual animatronics and not CGI, as it would add a great and unique element to the film. There is still a lot of hype around this franchise, as its next game Security Breach will be a PlayStation exclusive. I cannot wait to see Freddy and the gang in live-action in the coming years.

    Source: Polygon, Reddit

  • ‘Hitman’ IO Interactive Working on an Untitled ‘007’ Game

    ‘Hitman’ IO Interactive Working on an Untitled ‘007’ Game

    In case you missed it, the minds behind the latest Hitman trilogy have announced their latest project. It seems like they are going to tackle one of cinema’s most iconic characters, James Bond. The spy extraordinaire’s origin story will take center stage in their upcoming project. The announcement also came alongside a short teaser that shows a transition from their logo into the iconic opening shot we know and love from the franchise.

    https://twitter.com/IOInteractive/status/1329426703186325504

    The project has no name as of now. It currently holds the Project 007 working title. Their website does highlight that the story will be completely original, which will see how James earned his 00 status. It looks like they are also recruiting people to join their team. This project might be very early in development, so do not expect it anytime soon. Something is interesting when you check out their applications, as they have various projects highlighted with who they are looking for. It seems IO is also looking for a Multiplayer Network Programmer, who will be attached to an unannounced project. They could be hiding the fact that this game will include multiplayer, or there is another major project to be announced soon that will be heavily focused on multiplayer.

    IO has built up quite the reputation with their quality releases from the Hitman franchise. The Danish company once was owned by Square Enix before they were able to perform a management buyout to become an independent production company. They were also the ones that created Kane & Lynch during a hiatus from the franchise that put them on the map. IO’s work on that project will certainly come in handy during the development of this brand new game. It is great to see the European company get their hands on such a massive IP, so cannot wait to see what they will be able to do with it.

    Source: Twitter, 007, Career IO

  • ‘Marvel’s Avengers’: Kate Bishop to Release Early December

    ‘Marvel’s Avengers’: Kate Bishop to Release Early December

    Finally, the first Marvel’s Avengers post-launch War Table has arrived. We got our first look at Kate Bishop’s story in further detail, as well as more of the first major update to the game. We also finally got a release date, as she will be available as of December 8th. It looks like Kate will be forced to travel through time so that she can save her mentor Clint Barton, who will be the focus of the second patch.

    Her operation “Taking AIM” will feature our first new villain, which is the Super Adaptoid. A machine that combines the various abilities from the Avengers and also seems to work as a mini-raid. They highlighted that her final mission will be replayable at a higher difficulty. It also had a short tease that maybe we get another match with the Kree Sentinel from the Reassemble campaign.

     

     

    She uses AIM tech to teleport around and can make use of a sword to take on enemies’ close-up alongside her classic bow. Yes, she has unique arrowheads that can be used in a variety of ways. Her base abilities utilize quantum energy, so she can create an afterimage that also does damage. Kate can even upgrade her abilities to create portals for allies, which will be a great addition to the game.

    Clint Barton’s operation “Future Imperfect” is finally confirmed. It will be available in early 2021, which will teleport our heroes to the future to fight an evil version of Hulk named Maestro. Actually, if you look closely at his throne, you might even notice a Wakandan helmet, who will take center-stage after this game’s release.

    Strangely enough, there was no mention of the AIM Cloning Labs, which we assumed would be released in advance. This was a fantastic trailer that really showcased her abilities and Clint’s story looks really promising alongside Kate.

     

    Source: YouTube

  • ‘Star Wars: Squadrons’ Adding Two Free Holiday Updates

    ‘Star Wars: Squadrons’ Adding Two Free Holiday Updates

    I am revisiting Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order as I got in the mood to revisit the galaxy far far away. Sadly, I have yet to try out Star Wars: Squadrons, which is the latest game released by EA from the franchise. Unlike the Fallen Order and Battlefront, this franchise focuses on space combat. It put you in the cockpit fas you fought through a single-player campaign or even with friends online. The game released in early October and is now getting some more content updates, which the developers Motive Studios titled their holiday supply drops. The best part is, the DLC will be free for those currently enjoying their time in the X-Wing or Tie-Fighter cockpits.

    In their first update as of November 25th, players will get a brand new multiplayer map. Fostar Haven, which was heavily requested from the campaign, will be available via Fleet Battles and Dogfight. You can expect some upgrades on the familiar location that will not side with either the New Republic or the Empire. They are also adding some new components, which will help add something new while battling it out in space.

    That is not all, as the December update will include two brand new Starfighters. The New Republic will be equipped with the B-Wing, or also known as the Blade Wing. It got classified as a brand new Bomber-class. Tie Defenders will be joining the ranks of the Empire, which will act as a Fighter-class starfighter. The update will also include the ability to create custom matches. So, players will finally be allowed to create their match with unique modifiers for a new challenge.

     

     

    The developers ended the blog article with a thank you to the fans that come to love this game. As I said, I haven’t been one of the lucky ones to try it out yet but seeing this much passion by the developers certainly has gotten my interest. Also, these designs look fantastic, especially the new TIE Defender has my interest. My favorite part of the Battlefront franchise was being able to take control of one of the iconic starfighters. So, I think it is about time I give the game a shot so I can enjoy these new additions alongside everyone playing the game.

    Source: EA

  • ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Next War Table Finally Confirmed

    ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Next War Table Finally Confirmed

    We’ve all been waiting for something relating to Marvel’s Avengers future updates. Well, it looks like we are this close to some answers, as Square-Enix has officially sent out a newsletter confirming when we will be getting a War Table video. The best part is, we will get the video tomorrow at 4 PM GMT, so there won’t be a long wait as we initially expected. The video will be a deep dive into the character of Kate Bishop, who will be Crystal Dynamics’ first major addition to the game. The e-mail also comes with a brand new look at the character, and a short tease of her story.

     

     

    Kate Bishop was on the fast track to becoming an Avenger when A-Day changed her course. Blindsided by the avengers’ disbandment and AIM’s crusade against Inhumans, she stuck with her mentor Clint Barton to investigate the disappearance of former SHIELD director Nick Fury.

    It looks like we might get our answers to Fury’s storyline earlier than expected. Her story will also act as a set-up to that of Clint Barton, so it will be interesting to see how exactly they will connect. The video is confirmed as a Deep Dive, so we will most likely get a tease of her gameplay, skills, and missions. Hopefully, they will also highlight some future content within the video, which isn’t evident as of now.

    Also, the fact that it is called a Deep Dive could be a hint at her being sooner rather than later. Keep in mind, that statement is just a theory of mine and not confirmed in any way. We hopefully will get an official release date within the video, as people believe she won’t be playable until December as of now. This reveal is fantastic news, as we finally are getting to the moment that Avengers can grow as a game. Here’s hoping this is just the first step that gets the ball rolling.

    UPDATE: They have also shared the news on Twitter, so here is the official tweet confirming the video will be pre-recorded:

    Source: Twitter

  • How ‘Spider-Man: Miles Morales’ Sets-Up The Franchise’s Future

    How ‘Spider-Man: Miles Morales’ Sets-Up The Franchise’s Future

    Finally, after two years, we got a sequel to Insomniac’s Spider-Man. Just as the PlayStation 5 has released, Spider-Man: Miles Morales kicked off the next-generation of gaming. The story takes place a year after Peter managed to take down his former mentor. Now, he is leaving the city in the hands of his protegé, who just moved to Harlem. His mother is running for City Council while the Roxxon Energy Corporation is in the middle of a gang war with the new-found Underground army. Their leader, only known as the Tinkerer, has outfitted them with high-tech weaponry that could shake Miles’ new home to its very core. It all offers Miles a unique story while Peter is away in Sokovia with Mary Jane. Now, the question remains of how they will tackle the existence of two Spider-Men in a future sequel.

     

     

    Miles Morales is a spin-off from the original. So, the story is quite a bit shorter than and on a smaller scale. Yes, Harlem is at risk, but he luckily didn’t have to stop a virus from spreading throughout the entire city. Now that his story is done, Peter is back in town. The post-game does hint at them taking rounds patrolling, which could be an indication of how they tackle the next main installment. We have no date or title for the next Spider-Man entry, but there is a good chance it’ll release in the next two years. Now that Miles has been introduced, we will be switching between the characters throughout the expanding story. There is also a chance we could see inspiration from Batman: Arkham Knight, where you could switch between the characters mid-battle. So, if you are facing an enemy type that is only vulnerable to a venom-based attack, you need to take control of Miles. Also, does that mean they might call it Spider-Men?

    Either way, it’ll be interesting to see how they balance both characters in the game. We will probably have another threat that will affect the entirety of New York City. Osborn seems prone to create something that has some devastating results. I did start wondering if we might see more characters getting added throughout the story. The addition of Miles was a great surprise during the 2018 game, and there is quite an extensive cast from the comics left to explore. They could add characters like Silk or Spider-Woman, who can bring their unique skills to the game alongside Mary Jane’s stealth sections. They might try to add some more variation as the game once again returns to Peter Parker.

     

     

    In general, I do think we’ll see more spider-based characters added to the franchise as it grows. I wouldn’t even rule out that they go down the Spider-Verse route to give people fan-favorite characters, like Gwen Stacy. Now, the advantage is that they can continuously add spin-offs for these newly introduced characters to keep the franchise going. For example, we could get a game focused on Gwen Stacy that tells the story of the events before she would somehow end up in 2018’s universe. Insomniac could add a unique art style to the city similar to that of the comics and what was briefly shown in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The advantage is that as they add new spider-based characters, you can switch between them in the main franchise. So, their work for the spin-offs also influences the mainline development. There is a reason Sony wants to create an entire film franchise aroudn the web-crawler and the games could make that a reality. My only question is, where can I sign up for an Agent Venom spin-off?

  • ‘Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla’ Outperforms ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’ in UK Boxed Sales

    ‘Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla’ Outperforms ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’ in UK Boxed Sales

    Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla has done something that no other game has done in 13 years. It was the first to outsell Call of Duty in the game’s United Kingdom release weekend. Valhalla got released a few days ahead, but it still is a huge surprise. Currently, digital sales are not included, so going by pure boxed sales, the latest Ubisoft entry was able to outsell the gaming giant. The pandemic has shifted a large number of sales to digital, so we will see if this still changes. Still, the latest Assassin’s Creed game has doubled that of its predecessor, Odyssey. 18% of its sales were for the PlayStation 5 version even though that console won’t release for another week.

    Activision Blizzard’s Anna Malmhake did highlight that the latest Call of Duty did set a brand new record as their highest first-day digital sales worldwide. It’s boxed sales in the UK, however, was down by 64% in comparison to 2019’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. In third place, Spider-Man: Miles Morales’ sales were down by 56% to 2018’s entry, but 71% of its sales were for the PS5 ahead of its release. The next-gen exclusives Demon’s Souls was the 6th best-seller while Godfall only ranked at 16.

    Nintendo continues to remain on the top ten, like Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Super Mario 3D All-Stars, Mario Kart 8: Deluxe, and its Minecraft version. Watch Dogs: Legion dropped in sales by 36%. Overall, the UK saw a week-on-week increase of 96% in sales. PS5 games even accounted for 19% of all games sold even with the console’s belated release in Europe. It’ll be interesting to see how the next-gen launch in the US has performed.

    Source: Games Industry

  • ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Hawkeye Voice Leaked

    ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Hawkeye Voice Leaked

    So, after dissecting the Marvel’s Avengers player base claim that has been going around, which you can find by clicking here, it looks like we got a new leak that teases more of the work that Crystal Dynamics has been working on. Just recently, data miner @mmmmmmmmiller had leaked an update on their work for Black Panther. Now, he also revealed our first listen to Giacomo Gianniotti‘s voice as Clint Barton, a.k.a. Hawkeye. So far, he is the second confirmed character that was going to release shortly after Kate Bishop. Given the current delays, it is unclear when we will have a chance to play as the titular character. Still, it is nice to hear the voice and a reference to his background in the circus.

    We still do not know much about where the game is heading with their DLC characters. Right now, the best orientation point for future content would be to keep an eye out for the War Table, which hopefully will give us a tease of where the story is heading. I think right now, the best move Crystal Dynamics can do is to surprise its players. They may have a crazy story planned, which is why we saw the addition of Tachyon Rifts. These new mission styles did sadly not include a brand new mission string but did add a new level of gameplay.

    Plus, the concept of time-altering rifts is a great way to introduce a unique storyline that may twist our expectations with A.I.M. The Marvel universe has a lot to offer, and slowly seeing this story evolve around that could be quite the journey similar to when Iron Man just started the franchise. Right now, it feels closer to the same experience I had with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which had a rocky start but managed to change into a unique sector with the Marvel brand.

    Source: Twitter, Vocaroo, GameRant