It's an unusually packed for major releases on all platforms. Two particularly big titles arrive on PS4 this Friday, though those aren't the only games hitting Sony's console in the next couple of days.
Co-headlining this week's releases is Assassin's Creed Origins, the latest installment in Ubisoft's popular franchise. This entry is the earliest chapter in the series and recounts the beginnings of the Assassin order. The game is set in ancient Egypt and features a revamped combat system, though players who'd prefer to soak up the sights can choose the educational Discovery mode, a free mode that launches next year and eschews combat altogether. We'll have a review of Assassin's Creed Origins up soon, but you'll be able to pick the game up on October 27.
Launching alongside it is Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, the highly anticipated first-person shooter from Bethesda. The New Colossus is the sequel to the 2014 Wolfenstein game, The New Order. It once again puts players in the role of B.J. Blazkowicz, who is fighting to take back control of the United States from Nazis. The game's latest trailer featured a surprise appearance by a notable character who, up until now, has never actually appeared in a Wolfenstein game. The New Colossus releases on October 27, but in the meantime, you can take a look back on the history of the Wolfenstein series.
With every new peek at Thor: Ragnarok, it becomes clearer that it is unlike any movie Marvel has released before. With a quirky sense of humor that could only come from the mind of director Taika Waititi, and an adventure that finds Thor (Chris Hemsworth) struggling to save his home, and running into the familiar faces of Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) along the way, fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe are in for something special.
In a new featurette from the movie, the trio--and their secret weapon, Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson)--are introduced, as Thor puts together a new team of heroes to take on the goddess of death, Hela (Cate Blanchett). "Thor has certainly met his match and he needs help," Hemsworth teases in the video, which can be seen below.
It remains to be seen whether this team can properly band together to actually defeat Hela and save Asgard from complete destruction. In the meantime, though, at the very least this new group has a name. Thor almost immediately dubs them The Revengers. While it's not the most original name, it makes sense that Thor--a founding member of the Avengers--wouldn't stray too far from what he knows. Besides, as he explains to Valkyrie, the name makes some sense. "I'm getting revenge, you're getting revenge," the god of thunder says, as if it were obvious.
Can the Revengers actually get the job done, though? After all, Hulk is an uncontrollable rage monster, Loki would betray his brother before he would actually help him, and Thor is without his trusty hammer. That sounds like a recipe for a complete disaster. Luckily, as the featurette shows, Valkyrie--who Thompson describes as "one of many elite warriors"--is exactly what they need and will hopefully help bring them closer together. Honestly, based on what's been seen of the character so far, maybe a Valkyrie standalone movie isn't such a bad idea?
Following Destiny 2's launch on PC this week, some concerns began to emerge regarding the use of seemingly innocuous software, such as Discord, Fraps, Mumble, and Xsplit. Players reported they had been banned for running these programs while playing Destiny 2, but Bungie has now responded to clarify what it's handing out bans for--and it says it's not any of these programs.
As reports began to pile up that bans had been issued for use of the aforementioned software, a thread on Reddit began making the rounds to warn players. It claimed that using any of these programs would subject you to a ban, which was a real concern given that Bungie's support site states that there is no recourse for banned players. "Permanent account bans are only implemented with rigorous checking to ensure that the innocent are not punished alongside the guilty," the page states, adding, "Account restrictions and bans are only done in extreme cases; if actions were taken against your account, then it was with reason."
Bungie has now confirmed it did ban "approximately" 400 players on PC on launch day. However, it notes that these were not done automatically--Bungie manually investigates each case before dropping the banhammer. Those 400 players "were using tools that pose a threat to the shared ecosystem of the game." In other words, chatting through Discord didn't get anyone banned.
"We did not (and will not) issue any bans for the use of overlays or performance tools, including Discord, Xsplit, OBS, RTSS, etc.," Bungie said. It also added that it overturned four bans from the PC beta, and refers players to this post for more details on compatibility between the game and third-party software.
The release of Bungie's game on PC has allowed it to be datamined. This has led to a possible leak of Destiny 2 DLC details, though at this point we have no way of knowing for sure what will actually make it into the game.
Another update is on the way to Rainbow Six Siege. Ubisoft has detailed what's new in the upcoming patch, which serves as one of the "Mid-Season Reinforcements" that focuses on improving the game and fixing bugs, rather than introducing new content.
Kapkan sees a radical change to how his gadget works. His laser trip mines now essentially disappear after being placed, making it far more difficult for enemies to avoid. However, this isn't an across-the-board buff: the mine deals 60 damage, rather than instant killing foes caught in the blast. Kapkan himself, meanwhile, sees a jump in his movement speed.
"We feel as though this change is an adaptation of Kapkan to the skill level of players who have adapted to spotting the trip laser, instead of rushing through doorways," Ubisoft explained. "We hope to see new strategies develop for him, alongside our other trapper defenders."
Blitz is another character seeing a change. Ubisoft wanted to make him more effective overall, noting that he is "extremely vulnerable without his shield protecting him," particularly when he sprints. With this update, Blitz can sprint but keep his shield up in front of him, protecting him from enemy fire while he gets close enough to leverage his shield flash ability.
The last big character change concerns Ela, who has been deemed too strong. Following the update, she'll now have only three Grzmot mines (down from four) and experience greater recoil when firing her Scorpion SMG.
Also included in the update is a new Jager Elite set, Flying Ace, which consists of a matching uniform, headgear, Operator card, title, charm, and victory animation. There are also a variety of network improvements--including those to hit validation and latency alignment--which are explored in some detail here.
Ubisoft has also resolved a potential exploit that allows it to provide Renown in single-player Terrorist Hunt missions and Situations, though this will be doled out based on playtime--meaning difficulty or performance isn't accounted for. Finally, numerous bugs have been fixed, such as problems with shields in certain doorways and an issue where players could see through smoke grenades if they were far away. You can check out everything that's changed in the full patch notes. The update is on the way to PC, PS4, and Xbox One, but a release date has not been announced.
We teamed up with Blizzard to give away ten (10) BlizzCon 2017 Virtual Tickets that include in-game freebies! Entry is open Worldwide. Yup, you read that correctly... WORLDWIDE. Competition ends Sunday, October 29th, 2017 at 12:00PM PT and ten winners will be contacted via email. Scroll down to enter below.
The Virtual Ticket let's you stream BlizzCon 2017 from the comfort of your own couch, live and in high definition. You'll get coverage of both days of the show, including panels, contests, interviews, the closing ceremony, and more, along with some in-game goodies. This year's BlizzCon takes place November 3rd & 4th.
The in-game freebies you get include:
Overwatch: BlizzCon 2017 Winston Skin
World of Warcraft: Stormwind Skychaser and Orgrimmar Interceptor
StarCraft II: Junker SCV, Probe, and Drone Skins
Heroes of the Storm: Nexus Razorback Mount
Diablo III: Murkromancer Pet
Hearthstone: Mystery Goodie
Enter below (the additional entries are optional to increase your chances of winning):
Though Warner Bros hasn't had much to say about their Shazam movie lately, it's still on track for a release, according to the director. When the studio first released their DC Entertainment film slate in 2014, they revealed that a Shazam movie was scheduled to be released on April 5, 2019.
Quite a bit has changed since then, though. Firstly, there's the critical reception to the DC movie universe. Outside of Wonder Woman, the films have been met with less-than-stellar reviews. Beyond that, Dwayne Johnson revealed that instead of his Black Adam appearing in Shazam, he would star in his own standalone film. Still, earlier this year Warner Bros. claimed that Shazam was still on-deck to be the movie that follows Aquaman.
Now, in a post on Reddit, director David F. Sandberg has confirmed the movie's release month. "April 2019," he writes in response to a question about the film's release. "It takes a long time to make [visual effects] heavy movies." However, he doesn't mention whether the originally announced April 5 release is still the target.
The director, who also helmed horror films Lights Out and Annabelle: Creation, was first announced as directing the movie in 2016. While no casting news or production start date has been revealed, Sandberg has been actively documenting the pre-production process on Instagram.
However, those hoping to catch a glimpse at what the movie may be about are out of luck. Thus far, the images and videos contain mostly looks at the soda, candy, and toys of the production office.
In the meantime, there are plenty of DC projects in the works--from Wonder Woman 2to an eventual Batgirl movie.
In the new video, released by USA Today, Johnson describes the experience of growing up a fan, only to now be creating his own entry into the iconic Star Wars canon. "I flash back to when I was a kid with the action figures," he says of walking aboard the Millennium Falcon for the first time. "Suddenly I had a big lump in my throat. This is how it gets you."
The footage gives a candid look at the set of a Star Wars film in a way most don't see--from Daisy Ridley (Rey) twirling around her lightsabers like a baton to Johnson directing Peter Mayhew to give a Chewbacca howl that's "sad like a dog whimper." While the production was no doubt long and exhausting--this is a Star Wars movie, after all--the feeling the video gives is that the experience was filled with positivity and joy.
Based on what the cast has to say, one of the main reasons that came to pass is the director himself. Following Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Ridley says that Johnson decided to shake things up. "Rian is doing many unexpected things and taking the characters in new directions," she reveals. John Boyega (Finn) adds, "The individual stories of these characters are elevated and made fresh and new."
That new approach isn't just refreshing for the cast introduced in The Force Awakens, though. Even Mark Hamill, who has been playing Luke Skywalker for 40 years, is excited about the movie's trajectory. He explains, "That's what I love about Rian's approach to the story. It's like a real journey of discovery."
It's Carrie Fisher (Leia Organa) that has the nicest sentiments for her director, though, in an interview filmed before her 2016 death. The Last Jedi will be the final appearance in the franchise for the late actress, who says of Johnson, "He has flaws in other areas. I just don't know about them."
For his part, Johnson admits to USA Today that the scenes featuring Fisher in the movie are among the ones he's most excited for fans to see. "Having these scenes in the film recontextualize tragically with her not being here anymore, it's incredibly emotional," he says. "For the next few months, seeing the fans ... process the loss and celebrate her as Leia one last time, it's going to be intense. I think it's going to be really sad but really joyful, I hope. She really kicks (butt) as General Leia, and I'm happy for that."
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is in theaters on December 15.
If the It movie has proven anything, it's that there's nothing creepier than an evil clown like Pennywise. That's something Vine star and former Colbert Report production assistant Jesse McLaren set out to prove when his sister asked him to shoot her engagement photos.
He took the pictures but didn't stop there. "My sister asked me to shoot her engagement pics so I hid Pennywise the Clown in every photo," he writes on Twitter. "Countdown until she notices." That tweet was accompanied by four images from the set, in which he's photoshopped Pennywise the Dancing Clown somewhere into the background.
Image credit: Jesse McLaren
One image uses Tim Curry's portrayal of Pennywise from the 1990 TV miniseries, while the other three rely on Bill Skarsgard's take on the evil clown from this year's film. The images themselves--or what can be seen of them, as McLaren has cropped out the faces of his sister and her fiance--are well-done. However, all it takes is one little glimpse of Pennywise to make them equal parts hilarious and downright scary.
Naturally, it didn't take the woman long to realize what he'd done with the photos and thankfully she can take a joke. He shared a text message from his sister on Instagram, who writes, "On one hand, I really hope that you get the help that you need. On the other...I totally want to use these."
Whether the couple actually use the creepy photos remains to be seen but it would certainly make them memorable to anybody who got a copy. You can see all four of the photos on McLaren's Twitter account.
As promised, Nintendo's Animal Crossing-focused Direct presentation eschewed talk of any other console or game to focus completely on a new Animal Crossing game for mobile. Dubbed Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, the game will arrive sometime in late November. Nintendo followed up the presentation with some screenshots and a slew of press release information.
The game's design, sound, and overall gameplay will be familiar to anyone's who's played the full-fledged entires in the series, and there'll be an assortment of returning activities and mechanics. In addition to customizing your character and your living area (in this case, an RV camper), you'll also lay out furniture and themed items across the game's campground setting. There'll be a real-time day/night cycle, and you'll have the ability to visit shops run by the regular game cast to purchase new clothing and furniture to customize your personal space. And it wouldn't be an Animal Crossing game without the ability to go into deep debt. Instead of Tom Nook, however, Pocket Camp has OK Motors, where you can purchase major upgrades that expand your RV's interior and allow you to trick out your in-game camper.
But it's not all familiar; Pocket Camp introduces a few changes as well. Completing requests from visitors will provide you with crafting material. Instead of just buying new items, you can craft new furniture by bringing the materials to series-regular Cyrus, who'll take the raw materials and craft stylish new items.
Another change to the standard Animal Crossing flow are friendship levels for visiting animals. You can raise that level by bringing your friend items they like or fulfilling specific requests. From the press release, "If you level up your friendship or decorate your campsite with an animal's favorite items, she or he might pay you a visit." And it wouldn't be a mobile game without some kind of new currency. Pocket Camp introduces Leaf Tickets, which can be "earned through regular gameplay or purchased using real-world money." The items "can be used to shorten the time needed to craft items,more easily acquire materials or acquire unique camper exterior designs."
You can also play with visit other players' camps or trade items with real-life friends by sharing game IDs. "Random player avatars will also visit the campsite from time to time. Once someone visits, you can exchange your Bells for items saved in the Market Box."
The game will launch for free across both iOS and Android. And regular content updates will roll out afterward--which you can assume will include some kind Christmas/holiday content. The press release states: "Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp will eventually offer seasonal events to keep the experience fresh and surprising, as well as limited-time furniture and outfit options through game updates. These events and updates will begin rolling out after launch."
There is no denying The Walking Dead has proven to be one of the biggest TV shows of recent years. It set records for scripted cable drama and, despite being seven years old, still draws audiences that many shows would be very pleased with. Nevertheless, last weekend's Season 8 opener was the lowest rating season premiere since its third season in 2012.
As reported by Variety, the episode was watched by a total of 11.4 million viewers on Sunday night. This was the fourth worst premiere in the show's history, beating only Season 1 (5.35 million), Season 2 (7.26 million), and Season 3 (10.86 million).
However, it is worth noting that while Season 7's premiere was far more popular, with 17.03 million viewers tuning in, it showed the resolution of a hugely controversial cliffhanger, and the season saw a rapid drop off in viewers. In comparison, there was no cliffhanger leading into Season 8, so it will be interesting to see if viewers fall away further.
The season opener's lower-than-usual viewing figures were matched by its lukewarm critical reaction. GameSpot's Walking Dead Season 8 premiere review stated that the episode "on the whole it felt like a placeholder, something to remind fans of why they like the show in the first place, while hinting at some more interesting developments to come--but not a 100th episode." Click here to check out a full video breakdown of the episode.
In bizarre, related news, AMC is selling Walking Dead branded adult diapers. The novelty item comes after a line in the premiere episode and is available now to order from the official Walking Dead online store.
There have been a handful of racing games released on Nintendo Switch so far, but those have primarily skewed toward a more unrealistic style. Mario Kart 8 is a kart racer like its predecessors, while Fast RMX offers the closest thing to F-Zero that we may see on a Nintendo system in the near future. Those looking for a different flavor of racing may get just what they want with Gear Club Unlimited.
As featured in the video above, Gear Club seeks to fill that simulation-style racing game void on Switch. While not quite on par with Gran Turismo in terms of realism, it does distinguish itself from the obvious choices for racing action on the platform. Most notably, it does so by featuring licensed, real-world cars.
More than 400 different races are included in Gear Club, and it features split-screen multiplayer support for up to four players. Although you won't be adjusting gear ratios and other truly hardcore elements of simulation racers, it does allow you to customize various components to tune the vehicle's performance.
Gear Club Unlimited arrives for Switch on December 1 and carries a price tag of $45. You can get a better sense of what to expect in the video feature above.
Warner Bros. has announced a slate of DLC for Middle-earth: Shadow of War. The publisher detailed the additional content in a new trailer, which provides a look at the new tribes and story campaigns players can experience soon.
Developer Monolith will add four expansions to the game, two of which come in the form of new tribes. First is the Slaughter tribe, a "gruesome" tribe of Orcs that are "capable of ambushing players at any point." The expansion will launch this November and introduces new missions, a new fortress with an Overlord throne room, monuments, outposts, and new Epic and Legendary Orcs.
That will be followed by the Outlaw tribe, which is set to launch this December. The Outlaw tribe is "home to the most rebellious warriors in Orc society." Like the previous tribe expansion, it adds new missions, Epic and Legendary Orcs, and a new tribe fortress with Overlord throne room, monuments, and outposts.
The remaining two expansions are story campaigns that will launch in 2018. The Blade of Galadriel campaign releases in February and puts players in the role of Eltarie, an "elite assassin" who wields dual Elven blades and can "harness the Light of Galadriel with a host of deadly new combat abilities, skills, and gear." The expansion also adds new Nemesis characters like Flint and Tinder and the Slayer of the Dead.
The second story expansion launches in May and is dubbed Desolation of Mordor. In this campaign, players assume the role of Baranor and "command the forces of Man against a new Orc threat to the East." The expansion also lets players craft new gear and takes them to a brand-new region, the Desert of Lithlad
The Slaughter Tribe, Outlaw Tribe, and Blade of Galadriel expansions will be available to purchase individually for $15, while the Desolation of Mordor DLC will cost $20. Warner Bros. is also offering a $40 season pass that will net you all four expansions when they become available. Players who purchased the $100 Gold Edition of Middle-earth: Shadow of War will get the DLC packs for no additional cost.
By Anonymous on Oct 25, 2017 10:07 pm The Lobby crew discusses whether Origins revitalizes Assassin's Creed, and The New Colossus continues Wolfenstein's March.
In what might be the most inevitable news story of the week, the newly launched PC version of Destiny 2 has already been datamined. As a result, we've gotten some hints of what might be to come in future updates or DLC expansions for the game, though there's no guarantee any of it will ever happen. [Possible Destiny 2 DLC spoilers ahead.]
As uncovered by Reddit user TheEcumene, thousands of files have been uncovered that relate to things not yet in the live version of Destiny 2. This primarily consists of voicelines, which reference a wide variety of things. For instance, there is talk about the Patrol zones from the original Destiny, as well as Black Garden and Vault of Glass, which has players speculating about their possible return in Destiny 2. Phobos and Mercury are also discussed, with the former sounding like it could become a Patrol zone, according to TheEcumene. Remember that a previous report suggested Mercury would serve as the key new location in the game's first DLC, Curse of Osiris.
Elsewhere in the files, new worlds Ganymede and the Myriad are mentioned, and Osiris will apparently be coming to the Tower (and Shiro will head to Mercury). Bungie has already suggested we'll see the return of some limited-time events from the original Destiny--The Dawning is coming up--and these files point to returns for others, such as Crimson Days, Festival of the Lost, and Sparrow Racing League. Players may also have the chance to head to the Reef again and take part in the Prison of Elders activity, with the names of Petra and Variks coming up.
You can check out everything for yourself in this Reddit post, provided you don't mind having future content potentially spoiled. Just be aware that none of this may actually end up in the game--plans change and are scrapped, so the existence of any of these files doesn't mean anything on its own.
Concussed? Tore a quad? These wrestlers kept going.
For an athletic endeavor that critics deride as fake, professional wrestling exacts quite a toll on performers' bodies. A body slam onto an unforgiving, hard mat will hurt, no matter how well the victim lands or rolls, and no matter how "ready" he or she is to get slammed in the first place.
Injuries happen—real injuries that require time off, surgery, or a series of concussion tests. Usually, those injuries occur during a match, in front of a live audience and television cameras. And rather than stop the match, most wrestlers would rather finish what they started and work through the pain.
Here are 10 WWE wrestlers who were injured, sometimes severely, and still managed to finish their matches. "Tough" is an understatement in these cases.
John Cena's torn right pectoral tendon
Monday Night Raw, Oct. 1 2007
Sometimes, the moves that injure wrestlers are the ones that are least expected. Cena tore his right pectoral tendon not from lifting the Big Show or from falling off a ladder. He tore it while doing a basic arm drag on Mr. Kennedy. For the rest of the match, Cena fought with one arm, as he cradled and dangled the injured limb by his side.
It was an unfortunate situation, but it was arguably worse for Mr. Kennedy, who was quickly becoming an unpopular presence backstage. Randy Orton would later accuse Kennedy of botching a back body drop, and WWE fired him.
Cesaro's impacted teeth
No Mercy, Sept. 24 2017
Here's an injury that happened quite recently. A month ago at No Mercy, Cesaro started bleeding from the mouth after being flung, face-first, into the ring post. When the camera zoomed in, there saw a gap where his front teeth should have been. Everyone assumed that he had his teeth knocked out. No big deal, in the big scheme of things. Jeff Hardy's lost a tooth. Natalya's lost a tooth. But Cesaro's injury was actually worse.
You see, the teeth didn't come out; the teeth went in, into Cesaro's gum line, which sounds even more painful than the former. This type of injury would later require dental surgery. But after a consultation with the ring doctor and a brief respite in his corner, Cesaro was back in the match, which actually stole the show that evening. And on a fight card that included Cena vs. Roman Reigns and Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman, that's no easy thing to do.
Sting's cervical spinal stenosis
Night of Champions, Sept. 20 2015
Have you noticed that Seth Rollins doesn't do his buckle/barricade bomb nearly as often as he used to? Well, you wouldn't do as much either if it severely injured and retired the legendary Sting.
Sting took the buckle bomb twice in the same match at Night of Champions. His body went numb, and he collapsed in the ring; he had trouble standing back up. After a brief rest in the corner, Sting gathered enough energy to continue. He and Rollins wrestled for a couple of minutes, and Rollins got the improvised roll-up victory to end things early.
Sting would later say that despite his injury, his main focus was to get Rollins over. It's an old school tradition; when a wrestler gets close to retirement, he or she should lose important matches to the younger talent, and pass the torch. He would be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame the following year, and he announced his retirement from competition during his acceptance speech.
'Stone Cold' Steve Austin's nerve damage and bruised spinal cord
SummerSlam, August 3 1997
This one is a little tough to watch. Owen Hart performs a real piledriver on Steve Austin by accident, driving his head and neck into the mat. The move damaged Austin's nerves and bruised his spinal cord; for a few seconds, Austin was paralyzed. It took all of his remaining strength to crawl towards Hart and roll him up for the improvised win.
This incident led Austin to change his fighting style. He transformed from a more technical wrestler into to an all-out brawler. The incident also shortened Austin's career; his neck and spinal cord would never fully recover.
Finn Balor's dislocated shoulder and labrum tear
SummerSlam, August 21 2016
Almost a year after the buckle bomb sent Sting into retirement, Rollins performed the move again in his title match against Finn Balor at SummerSlam 2016. He threw the Demon King into the outside barrier, dislocating his shoulder.
Balor not only finished the match, but popped his arm back into its socket in order to do so. He became the inaugural universal champion, but during his post-match celebration, you could tell that something was wrong with him. He couldn't lift his arm all the way to do his signature demon pose.
The following day, the worst was confirmed; Balor needed months to recover from his injury, and Raw General Manager Mick Foley stripped him of the title in the middle of the ring.
Eddie Guerrero's massive blood loss
Judgment Day, May 16 2004
Blading is when a wrestler intentionally cuts his forehead, usually with a razor blade, so that he can bleed during a match. Done properly, blading creates a slight trickle of blood, resulting in a "crimson mask."
But at Judgment Day in 2004, WWE champion Eddie Guerrero bladed too deeply, and the blood came pouring out of him in a massive gush. There was so much blood that pools of it collected in the ring. And after the match, Eddie went into shock and had to be rushed to the hospital, where he received IV bags to replenish his fluids.
Mick Foley's Hell in a Cell match versus The Undertaker stands in a category of its own. There is no other match like it, and that's the way it ought to be. Any average man would have died in this match, but Mick Foley is no ordinary man.
First, he fell off the roof of the cell, Then he fell through the cell, after climbing back onto the roof for more punishment. The latter fall was the worse of the two, because it was not planned. Foley went unconscious after hitting his head on the steel chair in the ring, and he aspirated a tooth into his sinus cavity. And that was before he got choke slammed onto a pile of thumbtacks. To this day, Foley says that doesn't remember most of the match. He didn't even remember getting slammed on the thumbtacks until he got backstage, and Undertaker pointed out that they were stuck in his arm.
Triple H's torn quadriceps
Monday Night Raw, May 21 2001
On Raw in 2001, Triple H was involved in a tag team match that pitted him and Steve Austin against Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit. During the match, The Game tore his quadriceps muscle off the bone. He hobbled about for the rest of the match, trying to keep weight off of his leg. Despite this, he still allowed himself to be locked into the Walls of Jericho submission hold, which put even more strain on his already injured leg. Talk about a pain threshold.
Triple H needed physical rehabilitation, and he faced the idea of early retirement. But when he finally returned on Raw eight months later, the audience went crazy, and Triple H fed off that energy. He won the undisputed championship at WrestleMania X8 later that year.
John Cena's broken nose
Monday Night Raw, July 27 2015
Cena has always been physically resilient, with an incredible threshold for pain. And when Seth Rollins' knee broke Cena's nose during their main event match on Raw, he showed the WWE Universe why he's been The Guy for so long.
After holding his nose and shaking off the pain for about a minute, Cena completed the entire, lengthy match without losing a single step. And in between every major spot, the ring doctor was there, mopping up blood and trying, in vain, to stop the bleeding. The following week, Rollins, who was playing the heel, showed a photo of Cena's broken face on the Titantron to mock him. It only served to emphasize how tough Cena truly is.
Brock Lesnar's concussion
WrestleMania 19, March 30 2003
Brock Lesnar was, and is, a freak of nature. The man is the size of a Buick, but he moves like someone who is 150 pounds lighter. He's mostly known for his incredible strength, but when he was still training in developmental promotion Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), he mastered the Shooting Star Press. Yes, you read that right. A 250+-pound heavyweight was able to do a mid-air backflip off the top rope and land in a face-down splash. If you haven't seen Lesnar pull it off successfully, you should. He flies halfway across the ring. But he stopped doing the risky move once he moved up to the main roster in 2002.
Fast forward to WrestleMania XIX, where Kurt Angle was fighting Lesnar in the main event. And Angle, eager to create a "WrestleMania moment," suggested to Lesnar that he finish the match with the shooting star press. Lesnar agreed. And on the biggest stage, in the biggest match of his career, Lesnar botched the move for the first and only time. He slipped on the rope, under-rotated, and landed on his head, giving himself a severe concussion in the process.
From there, a glassy-eyed Lesnar improvised the finish. He got to his feet, delivered an F-5, scored the pin, and collapsed in the corner. It's a small miracle that Lesnar didn't paralyze himself from the neck down. But Lesnar retained consciousness, so it worked out in the end. The Beast became WWE champion, and his missed shooting star press became the subject of multiple highlight reels for years to come.
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The Lobby crew discusses whether Origins revitalizes Assassin's Creed, and The New Colossus continues Wolfenstein's March.
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