By Anonymous on Nov 18, 2017 12:17 am We know it as the day after Thanksgiving, but Joey goes a bit deeper and shows us the origins of the most dangerous shopping day of the year.
Black Friday 2017 is still a week out, but Microsoft has kicked off the Xbox Store's big annual sale. There is a huge number of games discounted as part of it, although for now, only Xbox Live Gold members will have access before the sale expands to include everyone next week.
As you'd expect, the bulk of the offers are available on Xbox One, where you'll find hundreds of games discounted. There's also a ton of DLC on sale, but for our comprehensive list, we've focused on games, special editions, bundles, and season passes, rather than individual DLC packs. In many cases, these prices aren't the best ones available this Black Friday; physical copies are often cheaper, as you can see in our roundup of all the Xbox One Black Friday 2017 game deals. But if you're looking for the convenience of digital games, the premium may be worth it.
Below, you'll find our comprehensive list of all the Xbox One games, bundles, and season passes on sale. We've also included a limited selection of Xbox 360 games that support backwards compatibility on Xbox One. The full list is available on the Xbox website. For deals on hardware and accessories, as well as physical games, check out our full Xbox One Black Friday 2017 deals roundup. You can also see all of our Black Friday coverage through the links below.
There have been rumors for months that a Green Lantern would appear in Justice League. With the movie finally out, it's safe to say that those rumors panned out--sort of.
In a flashback scene describing an ancient battle between the forces of earth--Amazons, Atlanteans, and humanity--and the villain Steppenwolf, an unknown Green Lantern does appear. The hero is promptly taken out in the same scene, his Power Ring flying away to find a new wielder, so it's not exactly a major role. But the fact he's there at all is a big deal for Green Lantern fans who've been waiting for a movie to do it justice since the lame 2011 Ryan Reynolds version.
The Justice League scene leaves no question about it: That's definitely a Green Lantern. We reached out to Warner Bros. PR and learned a few more details about him:
"We do see 'a' Green Lantern in that scene, but a generic one (not any of the popular ones we know in the comics). That battle was the teaming up of the different beings on Earth at the time: Humans, Greek Gods, Atalnteans, and Amazons (of which Robin Wright's character, Wonder Woman's aunt, was one, since it took place before she died in the Wonder Woman movie)."
The other major characters in the scenes--including one who appears to wield lightning powers, and another with a powerful-looking bow and arrows--are actual Greek gods, according to PR; Zeus and Artemis, to be specific.
Rumors about Green Lantern in Justice League originated from an early trailer in which Steppenwolf muses on the fact that there are "No protectors here--no Lanterns, no Kryptonian. This world will fall, like all the others."
Things escalated further when a Big Bang Theory contest to attend the Justice League premiere featured the Green Lantern logo alongside those for Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, The Flash, and Cyborg.
Fans hoping for Green Lantern to play a surprise major role in Justice League might be disappointed by this relatively minor Easter egg, but hey--at least it's something. And, fingers crossed, it might pave the way for more Green Lantern in the DCEU.
The biggest shopping day of the year, Black Friday 2017, is quickly approaching, and those in the market for new games, consoles, or accessories will find a ton of discounts across every major platform. In particular, a huge selection of titles will be on sale at various retailers this Black Friday, including some of this year's biggest releases, such as Destiny 2.
If you're looking to pick up Bungie's popular shooter on either PS4 or Xbox One, you'll have a lot of options to choose from. Based on the Black Friday ads that have been released, the best price offer will be at GameStop; the game retailer will have the title for $27 with a free Cayde-6 figure. Elsewhere, Best Buy and Target will both sell Destiny 2 for $30, while Toys R Us will have it for $35. However, no sales on the PC version of the game have been announced so far.
If you'd prefer to get Destiny 2 digitally, you'll also find some sizable discounts on Bungie's new title in the PlayStation Store and Xbox Store. Both services have already begun their Black Friday sales, though at the moment only PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold members can take advantage of them. The standard version of Destiny 2 is available in both digital stores for $39. If you're also planning to pick up its DLC, you can purchase the game and expansion pass bundle for $67.49. Meanwhile, the Destiny 2 Digital Deluxe Edition (which also includes the expansion pass and other exclusive content packs) is available for $75. Those without a PS Plus or Xbox Live Gold subscription will gain access to the sales on November 21.
If you're still unsure if Destiny 2 is worth picking up, you can read more about it in our full Destiny 2 review. The game's first expansion, Curse of Osiris, is slated to release for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on December 5. Bungie offered some new story details and a look at other content from the upcoming DLC in a recent livestream. Additional streams for Curse of Osiris will take place on November 21 and 29.
You can see the complete list of Destiny 2 deals for PS4 and Xbox One below. We'll continue to update the list as more Black Friday ads and prices are revealed. You can also find all of our other Black Friday 2017 coverage through the links at the bottom of this roundup.
Destiny 2 PS4/Xbox One Black Friday Deals
Best Buy -- $30
GameStop -- $27
PlayStation Store [PS Plus members-only until November 21]
Destiny 2 standard edition -- $39
Destiny 2 game + expansion pass bundle --$67.49
Destiny 2 Digital Deluxe Edition -- $75
Target -- $30
Toys R Us -- $35
Xbox Store [Xbox Live Gold members-only until November 21]
In the new Justice League movie, Jason Momoa's Aquaman can control water (to a degree), is able to swim really fast, and apparently possesses something approaching super strength.
But can he talk to fish?
This is, of course, a question that the movie itself asks, by way of Ben Affleck's mildly bemused take on Batman. But Aquaman's answer--something vague about "currents"--isn't exactly satisfying. That's why, when given the chance, we asked him ourselves: Does Aquaman talk to fish or not?
"Not yet," Momoa replied.
"It's more complicated than that," Ezra Miller, Justice League's Flash actor, chimed in.
We were hoping for an answer slightly more complex than a Facebook relationship status, so we pressed Momoa for more.
"I think he can hear them and they can hear him," the actor explained. "On a larger level, when he was a kid, he knew he had something special, because he could hear them, and they could hear him."
That may well tie in with some of Justice League's deleted scenes, including ones involving Willem Dafoe's character, Nuidis Vulko, who was cut from the movie entirely. Momoa described some of Aquaman's lost backstory during the interview.
"[Zack Snyder and I] were kind of trying to establish that he was taken down there as a boy, and he was an outcast, he was a half-breed, and he was built up as a young boy, because he was fed all these ideas by Vulko--that he was the rightful king," he said. "And he gets down there, and he's a half breed, he's impure, and I'm just made to feel like I'm this disease. So after that, I was like, 'f*** you, f*** you, I'm on my own.'"
It sounds like we'll learn more about all that in 2018's standalone Aquaman movie.
"We'll see Atlantis in Aquaman," Momoa teased--and it's going to be a big deal, the actor promised.
By Anonymous on Nov 17, 2017 10:00 pm Join the US crew for 36 hours as they play video games for the children! Don't forget to join our Australian crew and United Kingdom crew for the remainder of the 72 hours!
The upcoming live-action Pokemon movie Detective Pikachu has its first confirmed cast member. It has been reported by Variety that Justice Smith, best known for the Netflix musical drama The Get Down, will star in the film.
Smith received much acclaim for his role in The Get Down, where he played the teenage lead, Ezekiel "Zeke" Figueroa. Although it wasn't picked up for a second season, Smith followed the show with a role in next summer's Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.
Detective Pikachu is to be directed by Goosebumps' Rob Letterman, with a screenplay from Nicole Perlman (Guardians of the Galaxy) and Alex Hirsch (Gravity Falls). Production on the movie is currently scheduled to begin in London in January. Last month, it was reported that big names were being considered to voice Pikachu, including Hugh Jackman, Mark Wahlberg, Ryan Reynolds, and Dwayne Johnson.
Detective Pikachu will be based on the Japanese video game Great Detective Pikachu, in which the Pokemon character features as a master detective. Imagine Sherlock Holmes but with Pikachu. Unlike the character's primary appearances in Pokemon games, the detective version of Pikachu speaks, which explains why producers are considering actors with such familiar voices.
Only one week remains until Black Friday 2017, which means you'll soon be able to find a ton of discounts on video games, consoles, and accessories across all platforms. That's also true for 3DS, which will see a number of its recent and older releases go on sale, including the mainline Pokemon series.
The newest Pokemon titles, Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, launch one week ahead of the big shopping day, and while there won't be any notable deals on those games at major retailers this Black Friday, you'll be able to find some nice discounts on the series' previous 3DS installments. Based on the ads that have been released, GameStop will have the best offer for those still looking to pick up Pokemon X and Y or Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. Each of those games will be available for $20 apiece, or you can pick up three of them for $40--effectively netting you one of the games for free.
Best Buy will also have discounts on Pokemon X, Y, Omega Ruby, and Alpha Sapphire. Each title will cost $20; however, there won't be an additional offer as is the case with GameStop, so if you're looking to pick up more than one version, that remains your best choice. Target, meanwhile, will have doorbuster deals on Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire for $25 each.
While Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon won't be on sale, you'll be able to find discounts on the original Pokemon Sun and Moon versions at some retailers. Both Best Buy and Walmart will sell the two titles for $29 each. That's a good price if you've yet to pick up one of the seventh generation titles and you're not interested in the new features and Pokemon in Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon.
You can check out the complete list of Pokemon deals for 3DS below. We'll continue to update this as more Black Friday ads are revealed. You can also find all of our other Black Friday 2017 coverage and roundups through the links at the bottom of this story.
Pokemon 3DS Black Friday Deals
Pokemon X/Y
GameStop -- $20 (or 3 for $40 with Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire)
Justice League had a troubled production--that's no secret. It's inevitable that some material gets left on the cutting room floor in any production, but for a movie that went through re-shoots, a director change, and who knows what else, that's bound to be extra true.
During interviews with GameSpot, several Justice League stars dished on some of the movie's biggest deleted scenes.
Back to Atlantis
In Justice League, Aquaman actually spends most of his time on land. But in earlier versions of the movie, he had more to do under the sea.
That's where Willem Dafoe's character, Nuidis Vulko, would have come in--if he hadn't been cut from Justice League entirely.
"There's a place where [Aquaman] goes down to, and it got cut out of the movie," Momoa said. "He knows spots where he can go and he can see these statues, the remnants of [Atlantis]. There's Vulko--obviously we'll have way more scenes with Vulko, Willem Dafoe--in [the 2018 standalone] Aquaman. There just wasn't enough time in this movie."
Momoa went on to describe Dafoe's character in greater detail.
"Vulko's his connection to Atlantis," he said. "I think what Zack [Snyder] and I did, we were kind of trying to establish that he was taken down there as a boy, and he was an outcast, he was a half-breed, and he was built up as a young boy, because he was fed all these ideas by Vulko--that he was the rightful king. And he gets down there, and he's a half breed, he's impure, and I'm just made to feel like I'm this disease. So after that, I was like, 'f*** you, f*** you, I'm on my own.'"
He explained some of Aquaman's backstory, too--what the rightful King of Atlantis has been up to all these years.
"He hates Atlanteans, he cannot stand being on land. He just--he's stuck in the tide. That's what Zack wanted," Momoa continued. "He was a blue collar worker. The guy worked in very lonely places, on oil rigs, he'd weld, and he could just be in peace, and he could exist on there and no one would know his secret. But there's things where ships went down and he couldn't save enough people, and he lost friends. The humanity side of him can't deal with this power that he doesn't know how to control yet."
Mama's Boy
For his part, Ray Fisher's Cyborg gets a good amount of screen time dedicated to exploring his relationship with his father and his newfound powers. One thing we don't see in Justice League: Victor Stone's mother.
That wasn't always the case, though, Fisher told GameSpot.
"There were some things that you'll probably end up seeing later on, that didn't make it into this version of the film," Fisher said. "There's a scene with Victor Stone, when he still was Victor Stone, and his mother, that was really special to shoot."
He said Justice League feels like an origin story for Cyborg, despite being an ensemble film.
"It does feel like an origin, particularly to people who don't know as much about Cyborg," he said. "We pretty much know the history of the Flash...And then you've got Aquaman, who's half man, half Atlantean. I think those stories have been told for so long, it's kind of like just knowing Batman or Superman's origin, or Wonder Woman's origin."
That's probably true--introduced in 1980, Cyborg is the "youngest" member of the new Justice League. So why the cuts?
"You're shooting and testing, and when you're putting it together, you're seeing how cohesive you can make the story," Fisher said. "Ultimately this is a team story, and, while there is some Cyborg material that we don't see here, I'm just happy that my teammates get to shine as well."
"What is great about this film going forward is you'll be able to see him rebuild himself mentally the same way that his father rebuilt him physically," Fisher teased. "And it's a process that's going to take time."
One More Punch Line
Finally, while Justice League is easily the funniest DC movie yet, it could have been even funnier. Ezra Miller, who plays The Flash, shared one joke that didn't quite make it into the final film.
"There's a line that I miss from the film, that I wish was in there," Miller described. "[Aquaman] throws that thing against the wall in the Batcave, and [Batman's] original line was--I think now he just says, 'Hey. Don't do that.' But the original line was, 'Hey. Don't do that. A lot of my shit explodes.'"
Ezra and Momoa cracked up at this, and Momoa parroted the line after Miller said it. So why was it cut?
"Because, I think, that we only got a certain number of curse words," Miller explained.
All you need to do is watch an earlier Justice League trailer to know that there's much more that was cut. What about Superman's black suit, which actor Henry Cavill teased on his own Instagram in 2016? That and more didn't make it into Justice League.
With a Predator reboot coming next year--which director Shane Black said will have a larger scale than previous films--and 2017's Alien: Covenant hitting theaters, the two biggest aliens not owned by Lucasfilm seem to be making a resurgence. Together, both the Alien and Predator franchises have put out 11 movies--two of which feature these aliens hunting each other--and quite a few video games, including that button-mashing one in every arcade during the '90s.
That got us thinking, how much did each of these franchises make and which one, on average, did better? We took a look at the numbers from Box Office Mojo and ranked each movie by its take in the theater and figured out which franchise reigns supreme.
11. Predator 2 (1990)
A predator turns the streets of LA into its hunting grounds in the far-off future of 1997. Neither Danny Glover nor a Xenomorph skull got people into the theaters to see Predator 2. Wait, doesn't that Alien Easter egg mess with the Alien: Covenant and Prometheus timeline?
Domestic Gross: $30,669,413
Worldwide: $57,120,318
10. Aliens Vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)
A struggling pizza delivery boy wants to win the heart of a woman he loves; however, Aliens and Predators come to a small Colorado town, fight each other, and what's left is the most ridiculous movie in either franchise.
Domestic Gross: $41,797,066
Worldwide: $87,087,428
9. Predator (1987)
A group of armed commandos finds themselves hunted by an alien. This is easily the best movie in the Predator franchise because it's simple, straight-to-the-point, and mixes horror, action, and suspense incredibly well.
Domestic Gross: $59,735,548
Worldwide: $98,267,558
8. Alien (1979)
A flight crew in space finds themselves being hunted, one by one. Alien isn't just one of the best science-fiction movies of all time: It's one of the best horror films of all time. It's the only movie in the Alien franchise that can truly be called a horror film.
Domestic Gross: $80,931,801
Worldwide: $104,931,801
7. Predators (2010)
Warriors from around the world are kidnapped and brought to an alien planet where they are hunted for sport. Predators is a fun movie, but it didn't revolutionize the franchise. It tried to expand on the mythos but fell a little flat.
Domestic Gross: $52,000,688
Worldwide: $127,233,108
6. Aliens (1986)
It's everything you loved about Alien but turned into a high-octane action film. Aliens, especially the Director's Cut, is an outstanding film that everyone should watch at least once. James Cameron's take on the franchise is so different from the original, but it works exceptionally well.
Domestic Gross: $85,160,248
Worldwide: $131,060,248
5. Alien 3 (1992)
Primarily known for going through pre-production hell for a decade and through numerous, insane scripts, Alien 3 isn't the worst movie in the Xenomorph saga, but it's close. Somehow, it still brought in quite a bit of money, mostly from overseas.
Domestic Gross: $55,473,545
Worldwide: $159,814,498
4. Alien Vs. Predator (2004)
Ever since Predator 2, everyone wanted to see a movie with Aliens and Predators fighting each other. In 2004, we got it, and while it's kind of a fun watch, it's ridiculous. Come on, the movie is about archaeologists in Antarctica caught in the middle of an Alien/Predator war in an underground pyramid.
Domestic Gross: $80,282,231
Worldwide: $172,544,654
3. Alien Resurrection (1997)
Alien Resurrection brings Ripley back to life, 200 years in the future, and also resurrects the long-dead Xenomorph species. What could go wrong? In between directing The City of Lost Children and Amelie, two incredibly brilliant movies, Jean-Pierre Jeunet directed Alien Resurrection, which had a lot of potential. It's just hard to unsee that alien/human hybrid at the end of the movie.
Domestic Gross: $47,795,658
Worldwide: $161,376,068
2. Alien: Covenant (2017)
Alien: Covenant delivered the origin of the Xenomorphs we know and love. The movie fell flat, as it was all over the place, but at least we got to see some Aliens.
Domestic Gross: $74,262,031
Worldwide: $240,745,764
1. Prometheus (2012)
Prometheus told the story of how life started on Earth, within the Alien Universe. Like most movies in the Alien franchise, almost everyone met a horrible death.
Domestic Gross: $126,477,084
Worldwide: $403,354,469
Which Franchise Did Better?
The Alien franchise brought in more money, in total, since it had a few more movies under its belt. Including the two AvPs, the Alien movies brought in $1.4 billion at the box office, which averages out to $182 million per movie. The AvP movies brought its average down from $243 million. The Predator franchise made $542 million, including the AvP films, which averages out to $172 million per movie.
Having trouble finding a SNES Classic? Retailer Walmart has announced that the mini console will be in stock this week, November 15-17. Units will be available starting at 11 AM PT / 2 PM ET each day, which means you have a total of three chances to purchase one. [Update: It's Friday, making today the last of the three confirmed allotments of SNES Classic Editions that Walmart will sell. Systems went quickly during the first two sales, and demand for the system remains high, so you'll need to be fast if you want one.]
There is a limit of one per customer, and Walmart says supply is going to be "limited." It appears the units will be available on Walmart's website, though it remains to be seen if there will be units available in-store as well.
Black Friday 2017 is still a few days away, yet UK retailers are already announcing their cheap game deals and setting them live. If you're in the US, check out all the PS4 Black Friday deals or a bunch of Xbox One Black Friday deals; otherwise, scroll down to see Game's early Black Friday UK deals--including games and accessories for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, Wii U, and more going cheap--all in one place.
At this stage, deals for PS4 and Xbox One consoles are looking pretty slim. Your only options from Game are a pre-owned original 500 GB PS4 for £150 or a pre-owned original 500 GB Xbox One for £130.
Finally, Nintendo Switch deals are limited to a single game: The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth+ is available for £30. Otherwise, only accessories are on offer, with no bundles going cheap right now. You can grab the Joy-Con steering wheel twin-pack accessory for £8 or a case that holds cartridges for £5; check out the rest of Game's Switch offers here.
Below, you'll find our comprehensive list of everything Game will have on sale; we'll update this post as necessary as Black Friday itself approaches. For much more, check out all of our Black Friday coverage through these links:
The Sims 4 launches for Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on November 17, joined by a new pets expansion for the PC version. Ahead of its launch, we thought it would be a good chance to take a trip down memory lane and explore the origins of Will Wright's popular life simulation series.
Very few games can say they presented something truly original to medium like The Sims did, and even fewer can boast the kind of cultural significance it has. Released in 2000, The Sims allowed players to puppeteer the lives of virtual people, micromanaging every aspect of their existence with no real goal other than whatever they set for themselves.
For some, The Sims provided unparalleled escapism, letting them live out a fantasy life through in-game characters. For others it was an invitation to indulge their creative whims by crafting ideal homes and, of course, there's also those that indulged their sadistic side by toying with the lives of Sims in cruel but often amusing ways.
The sheer amount of gameplay opportunities The Sims provided--and continues to provide--makes it a series with broad appeal. But the game it is now was formed of numerous building blocks creator Will Wright experimented with in other titles. Wright, one of gaming's most celebrated luminaries, looked to the works of an MIT scientist, used 3D home design software as a jumping-off point, and even used his daughter for inspiration on the series that would define his career.
The story of The Sims is one of ingenuity, real outside-the-box thinking, and a fair bit of risk-taking. It's a story that we explore in-depth in the video above. As a self-confessed super fan, Lucy digs deep into the origins of the The Sims, going as far back as Wright's first game, Raid on Bungeling Bay, and then charts the evolution of his thinking and the resulting game design ideas that came along the way. Alongside this, she also discusses the cultural impact of The Sims as well as some of the stumbling blocks the series, its developer Maxis, and publisher EA faced. Check it out and give us your favourite Sims memories in the comments below.
Seven whole days have passed since Xur last appeared in Destiny 2 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC, which means he's had an opportunity run off, steal a few more Exotics off the back of a lorry (we presume this is how he keeps getting them), and now he's back trying to sell them to Guardians again.
This week Xur is hanging out on Titan. This is one of the spots he frequents, so if you been playing Destiny 2 for a while you'll probably have been here before. For all you new players, all you need to do is fly on down to The Rig, head straight on the left, and you'll find him hiding in a room on ground level. If you're having trouble, open the map and put a waypoint on him and you can follow that. We've got details on what he's offering below.
Click image to view in full screen
Hard Light (Auto Rifle) - 29 Legendary Shards
Lucky Raspberry (Hunter Class Chest Armor) - 23 Legendary Shards
Synthoceps (Gauntlets) - 23 Legendary Shards
Karnstein Armlets (Warlock Class Gauntlets) - 23 Legendary Shards
In related news, a Destiny 2 double XP event called The Clarion Call begins today. To earn double XP you have to be in a clan, though if you're not already you can create or join one during the event and still get the reward. Once you're in a clan, going into battle with your teammates and doing activities will yield double XP toward bright engrams. The double XP event ends on November 20.
As part of the most recent Destiny 2 server maintenance, Bungie released an update dubbed "The one before Curse of Osiris." It's primarily concerned with resolving some lingering issues with the game, rather than introducing any new content or features. You can read more about Destiny 2's update 1.0.7 for PC, PS4, Xbox One here.
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We know it as the day after Thanksgiving, but Joey goes a bit deeper and shows us the origins of the most dangerous shopping day of the year.
Join the US crew for 36 hours as they play video games for the children! Don't forget to join our Australian crew and United Kingdom crew for the remainder of the 72 hours!
The most epic moments from Need for Speed Payback, brought to you by EA.
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