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The day before E3 officially kicks off, or as some call it “Media Monday”, always boils down to a competition of sorts between two of the gaming industry’s titans; Microsoft vs. Sony. Every year this battle’s gravity can’t be compared to anything less than a heavyweight prizefight in Vegas. Unlike boxing, it’s ever rarely a draw. […]

  Rey may not have made it onto Hasbro’s Boardwalk but next week she’ll be front and center as video game pinball developer Zen Studios releases a pair of new tables based on the mega blockbuster, Star Wars: The Force Awakens. First, the Force Awakens table sees Rey, the breakout character of the new Star Wars […]

Just a short time ago at The Game Awards we got the surprise announcement about Telltale Games taking on the world of Batman in 2016. Now they’ve debuted footage from the highly anticipated The Walking Dead: Michonne mini-series. “We’ve been hard at work on this very special exploration of The Walking Dead universe that will […]

Fallout 4 parties like it's 2099

Today over on the WB Games Community forums the remainder of Batman: Arkham Knight‘s downloadable content rollout was announced. In addition to new story episodes featuring Robin and a slew of Batman’s villains it was also mentioned that the Catwoman episode originally set for October is delayed to November. The troubled PC version of the game […]

Telltale Games rolls out the redstone carpet for the Minecraft Community in LA

The kiosks are torn down, the free shirts are all gone, and the YouTubers are in editing. Yep, another E3 is finally in the books. Now the hard part of waiting for the games on the show floor to find their way to our homes begins.  Now that the gauntlet of bouncing from appointment to appointment is done, you can read about all the games we got hands on time with.

The Games of Indiecade

Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst

Lego Marvel’s Avengers

Rock Band 4

Disney Infinity 3.0

Skylanders Superchargers

Mad Max

Who Won Media Monday?

For now I want everyone to take a peek at a slice of our week through the eyes of independent film maker Ricardo Ramirez.

Xbox Media Briefing and Fan Fest

The week in E3

All photos by Ricardo Ramirez

Thanks for the photos and that’s it for us from E3, read the E3 Wrap Up for a chance to win a prize pack from the show and we’ll do more at SDCC in a few weeks.

Before we move on to the next big show here at Comics Beat, I wanted to talk a little about the E3 2015 that was and the shape of two industries post show.

E3 2015 is done. Now the hard part of waiting for everything we saw to be in our actual hands begins. No wait, Arkham Knight comes out Tuesday. I happen to agree with what popular gaming site Kotaku said about this year’s show. Sure in the moment, you can’t help but feel anything except excitement for the future. Then shortly after the show when I walked down Figueroa and saw the giant Batman banner. It suddenly dawned on me, I’m actually glad it’s over cause I get to play that next week. We knew Halo and Fallout would be coming this year, but every surprise we saw seemed to be for a much later date. In a world of bacon wrapped pizzas, you don’t know if you have that kind of time.

On Monday, I gave the overall E3 victory to Xbox. Once Tuesday rolled around and we saw longer versions of what Sony showed during their press event; the victory was still the same but the margin by which Microsoft came out victorious was smaller. “We won’t charge you to play the games you already own”, backwards compatibly was the announcement of the show and such a consumer friendly move. It’s a jab directly at Sony that states Microsoft’s intent. It might not be the top feature you look for in a console, but it’s certainly one worth putting in bold on the box. While it remains to roll out, if Xbox can pull off free backwards compatibility it gains them back so much good will they lost early on. For all I love about PlayStation including the Vita and PS Plus, its entire ecosystem is like the newer Terminator movies they just don’t speak to each other very well and that leaves an opening for Xbox.

What happens post show, well Sony has a chance that Microsoft won’t. Because of the punches that PlayStation took this time around, they’ll have another huge PlayStation Experience event like they did in Las Vegas. It’ll be the opportunity for them to regroup and sell fans on Morpheus, perhaps also backtrack on the PS Now. The event’s crowd will undoubtedly be biased in favor of Sony, so much so that even if PlayStation literally admitted charging their customers to stream old games they already own was a mistake, it would still be met with thunderous applause that drowns out media criticism. It’ll also be the point where Sony can either cancel Morpheus or drop a focused presentation that ends with major price news. With multiple VR headsets scheduled to come out in 2016, Sony has to do something to ensure the early adopters will be on their side. Let’s face it, this unproven technology doesn’t leave financial room for gamers to have multiple headsets. Just like Highlander, “there can only be one”… well in our homes anyway.

That’s the thought of the overall show. Now I want to talk about what we’re all about here… comics! Mostly how they relate to the gaming industry after E3. The volume and direction of how comic books traverse the world of gaming speaks to the state of both mediums. One thing that particularly stuck out to me was how many games are being licensed by comics publishers as opposed to video games licensing comics. Such a gap leaves opportunity for comics publishers to make better inroads with gaming audiences.

Look at all the books, either recently in stores or coming soon, that are based on video games. Halo: Escalation, Tomb Raider, Plants Vs Zombies, Mirror’s Edge: Exordium, Skylanders, Metal Gear and Persona 4 are just some that come to mind. Most of those titles are the result of deals where Marvel or any comics publisher approach studios with hopes of producing a book or two based on the most popular games. And why wouldn’t they, gaming has the largest captive young audience of any medium. It would almost be foolish not to.

There’s also a flip side to that coin. Lately, most video game publishers aren’t in a hurry to license comics. Major exceptions are becoming more rare these days. Batman: Arkham Asylum was the first true quality Batman comic game. It came at a critical time when WB needed to capitalize on comics. We got Watchmen a few years after getting the taste of Superman Returns out of our mouths, but WB was on it’s way to producing a bad Green Lantern movie. With some of their major properties coming to an end in film, WB needed comics to be consistently viable in other places. Their game’s division was a perfect catalyst for something big and they had the right studio in Rocksteady. The rest is Arkham history.

Can you remember a big comic book based game that didn’t come from the in-house parent company? Probably the best, most recent example would be Telltale Games The Walking Dead. Telltale is a studio with a rich licensed game library like Sam & Max and Back to the Future to name a few, but they weren’t on the map of mainstream media. That attention didn’t come till they crafted one of the best Walking Dead stories ever with Lee and Clementine. At this year’s E3 they announced a new project based in the comic book world of Walking Dead which features fan favorite character Michonne. Telltale themselves are a great developer and made fantastic story driven games before Kirkman, but I don’t believe they’d be where they are today without Walking Dead.

Games carry a similar curse to film. Just because a studio taps a property doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll ever get to play that game. Some time ago there was talk of Aspen Comics’ Fathom being a game but that never happened and even though 2K’s partnership with Top Cow gave us back-to-back games based on The Darkness; the second ended on a cliffhanger that left us wanting a third we’ll never see.

When you look at things objectively, the video game industry certainly doesn’t need comics. It’s emerged as the dominant form of entertainment and rightfully so. Comics just can’t match that level of volume sales and distribution, but there is room to grow through gaming. It just needs the flow to change. Marvel and DC didn’t accomplish this on the level it intended to with film. Moviegoers who don’t read comics are older and less likely to go from the theater to the comic shop. The immersive nature of gaming is a better primer for this in its younger audience. Sure the Arkham and Injustice books do well because their known properties, but there’s a significant percentage of their buyers that never picked up a comic book until they saw those titles and were easily accessible through digital platform.

Yes, it’s easier said than done but comic creators need to focus less on getting that movie deal and more on who would make a kick-ass game out of my comic. You could argue that only the major books from the big two have a chance at crossing into games, but then how you you explain The Wolf Among Us based on Fables or The Darkness. Both of those games are stellar examples of what could be accomplished with properties that aren’t part of the mainstream.

I know that neither industry is as simple as I just made it seem, and sure there’s tons of legal meetings people must have behind close doors before something can even get off the ground. We just aren’t as in the dark as we think. One of the benefits of the social media age is having access to the people who make your favorite games. Part of why more comics aren’t games is because we don’t tweet out things such as “hey I loved this game, and this comic would be awesome in that style” enough. Most of Image Comics line up would be awesome in gaming. I love what Dark Horse Comics did with The Last of Us, but I think a Hellboy game based on the comics and made by Ninja Theory would be a winner.

In order to achieve the growth in comics readership we’d all love to see; gamers have to be exposed to Superman (better than before), Saga, and even Archie. Bringing games over to comics isn’t a bad start, but the flows can’t be as lopsided as in recent years. Why is Batman: Arkham Knight the only, based on a comic book, blockbuster game coming out this year. The goal should be at least two or three a year. Comic industry, instead of saying hey let us make a comic based on Mortal Kombat, it’s time to say have you thought about making a game based on our Teen Titans book!

If you’ve read through this then thanks and you definitely deserve a prize. So let’s giveaway a bunch of E3 stuff first person that follows @Comicsbeat on instagram and tags us in a shot of their favorite comic book game wins this and a few other pieces from E3 and it includes a shirt given away by the folks at Batman: Arkham Knight.

If you aren’t on instagram, then follow and tweet the same thing at me.

Midday Tuesday, the Los Angeles Convention Center will open its exhibit hall doors and over 125,000 gamers, press, and VIPs will spend three days talking about and playing video games. Monday was the traditional press conference filled day before the show where each major publisher gets an hour or so in the media spotlight (except Nintendo which happens Tuesday morning). Over the last few years it’s become the unofficial start of E3 and today the latest chapter of console wars was waged.

These lavish presentations full of bright lights, fog machines, and the occasional video game trailer have become a competition between Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony’s PlayStation. Sure a case could be made for Bethesda after their take no prisoners flurry of Doom and Fallout 4 on Sunday night, but for now we’ll only examine two of the big three (Nintendo, Xbox, PlayStation).

Every year this day has the feel of a heavyweight prize fight in Vegas but with less scripted stuff, and for the most part it’s worth paying to see. This year could be summarized as the year of distinction. Rather than trade jabs or brag about how many units they’ve moved, both Sony and Microsoft stuck to what puts butts in their seats… games. In doing so each showed a shifted focus on different aspects of the market.

When Xbox opened their presentation this morning they did so by having a female lead from 343 Industries take the stage. For those who don’t know 343 Industries are the current developer of Halo games and the unquestionable massive blockbuster in the making Halo 5: Guardians. Huge step for female leaders in the gaming industry. Now as to where Xbox has focused their energy and resource, well it’s easy to see; they’re after the Summer popcorn flick audience.

Halo 5, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Gears 4, Forza 6; all these exclusive experiences coming to the Xbox One and all are created on the premise of generating revenue in excess of 3 times what it cost to produce. You know what? They’ve got a legitimate shot of doing so. Look at Gears 4:

It’s over the top action, it’s entertaining violence, it’s a sequel, it’s Hollywood. The same could be said for the other big titles shown by Xbox.

Sure ID@Xbox exists to keep the footprint of independent creation at Microsoft, but nothing has emerged exclusively out of that camp as a contender for a game of the year award. There are some promising titles coming soon from it, particularly the Cuphead game, but it’s far from a “game changer”.

Xbox’s current strategy is focused on opening wallets with adrenaline rushes to the eyes, and along the way they managed to be first to give console gamers the thing they’ve been clamoring for, Backwards Compatibility! Monday they dropped information on the first true version of this feature we all believe is so simple you’d think it should have been there all along. It’s not a service you’ll have to pay for, nope, Xbox simply wants you to put in an old 360 game and play it on your new Xbox One. There’s still a lot of details to work out including; if the day comes where every game is backwards compatible but has online multiplayer servers that were shut down, what then. But this is a step in the right direction for Xbox and will certainly help them get the audience who haven’t made the transition from Xbox 360 to Xbox One for fear of losing their library.

Remember when we all wanted to burn Xbox at the stake and everyone groaned at DRM protected games and a console that always had to be connected to the Internet. Then when it came in $100 more than its competition everyone all but wrote off Microsoft. They’ve come a long way since those days. Now consider that Phil Spencer was the first corporate face in this new era of consoles to come out, and by focusing on games, say this is why you bought an Xbox One. While Xbox hasn’t fully recovered from their mistakes which led to an almost insurmountable uphill PR battle; they have managed get back up before the count of 10. Xbox is actually giving gamers what we want, deal with it!

Now don’t get things mixed up. PlayStation is my jam! The warm feels you have about that old 8-bit Nintendo where you had to blow in the cartridges, throw salt over your shoulder, and sacrifice a chicken in order to make it work (not sure about those last two); that’s how I feel about the original PS one. I’ve stuck with Sony through all their missteps and those E3 press events where you keep yelling at the screen begging them to stop showing a demo of a book. This year Sony put up one hell of a show, especially when going in it appeared they might not have much to talk about.

What they did demonstrate on Monday is how radically different their focus is from that of the competition. PlayStation, more than Microsoft, has an uncanny affirmation to the art of video games. Sure, we saw one presentation for their triple-A exclusive planet destroyer of a blockbuster, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End. Mind blown!

When it arrives, Uncharted 4 will be a contender for game of the year. The only other triple-A title to make an exclusive appearance for PlayStation was Guerrilla Games finally revealing the project they’ve been working on in secret. This world looks epic to say the least and the setting is definitely unique, take a look at Horizon: Zero Dawn.

Both these games are said to be coming in 2016, leaving Sony without a 2015 exclusive blockbuster game. Star Wars Battlefront is available on Xbox One, and if No Man’s Sky were to come out this year it’s still “console debut” on PlayStation. This means it may see a release at the competition.

Where Sony is really leading the charge is in indie games. Their resume in these stylish artistic experiences is unparalleled; Unfinished Swan and Journey just to name a few. While Sony have yet to put out true killer apps that remind us why we bought the PS4, they’ve managed to add real value using games considered too experimental by big publishers. PS4 gets Everyone’s Gone to Rapture, Devolver, and Killstrain; all nice additions to the PlayStation library.

Sony isn’t stopping there. Just look at what Little Big Planet architect Media Molecule is bringing to the table at some point.

Dreams is a game that taps into the artistic zeitgeist of the gaming community. I can’t wait to see what twisted beautiful creations players come up with using the game.

While 2015 is a holding year for Sony they reminded everyone that even though the big games of the year won’t be exclusive to Sony, some of their bonus content will be. For comic fans there’s no bigger game this year than Batman: Arkham Knight. Part of their presentation was showing off the exclusive Scarecrow Nightmare Missions for the game.  It was a level of insanity not yet seen in the Arkham franchise, a level of experimentation perfect for PlayStation. You fired a gun in first person view! You fired a gun in a Batman game!

Yes, we finally saw The Last Guardian again. It’s been 7 years and whole console cycle but the game is still in the works. Though for as long a wait as fans have endured, it just didn’t feel like a PS4 game… at least visually it didn’t. It’s still early with much left to be revealed about the game and it will certainly be a part of the PlayStation Experience this year.

Perhaps Sony’s biggest pop came from another long awaited return.

PlayStation and Final Fantasy have always gone hand-in-hand. It’s one of the many reasons for Sony’s loyal fan base over the years. We saw this game announced some time ago with cheap place holder graphics but seeing how next-level this title looks in its CG trailer; you couldn’t help but be filled with glee.

Sony’s media presentation managed to not bore me when the talk shifted to PlayStation Vue‘s a la carte TV service. It’s a feature that, while not on my wish list, has an appeal for anyone who hates paying 50 bucks a month for cable TV.

Massive kudos to PlayStation for not totally forgetting the Vita. Sony’s handheld is a great piece of hardware that’s never received its due. Many of the games shown during the press conference have Vita ports on the way or remote play functionality.

Also personal note, Sony gets extra points for giving me an excuse to tweet @beckycloonan during their baller a** pre-show. Any time that happens it’s a win for everyone. Now go read Gotham Academy #7.

So while it was far from a bad outing for PlayStation, it did reinforce the fact that the company’s best year is not 2015. In a culture that demands instant gratification, teasing what you’ll be playing in 2016/2017 doesn’t win you the battle.

Ultimately, these companies are on two different paths to lead the industry. Xbox is here to blow sh** up and take your money now. Meanwhile, PlayStation has become the artistic torch bearer of gaming; they’re inventing new types of experiences using the technology at hand… just not for us to use right now.

Who won E3 2015 media day? Well by what we saw from both camps today, it’s apparent Xbox took the win. It’s really the first year they can make that claim. Microsoft showed big games for this year, new ideas, and gave the crowd something we wanted from both systems, first. I’m a PlayStation guy through and through so it’s with a heavy heart I had to give Xbox the W. However, judging by the path Sony laid out for gamers today; I expect E3 2016 to be the biggest year PlayStation has in recent memory. Hopefully by then our cyborg bodies built by robot overlords will be ready.

Media Monday at E3 kicked off with Xbox where 500 dedicated fans camped out Saturday night to join press and VIP at the Galen Center this morning. Head of Xbox, Among all the buisness and media frenzy a small green pond of average fanboy/girl gamers joined Xbox on the floor as they laid out their plans for this holiday going into 2016.

Last year Microsoft delivered on their promise of focusing soely on games, games, and more games. It definitely helped the Xbox One make up some of its lost ground on Sony’s PS4 as the company won the battle of hardware sales on two different months in the past year, including a holiday period. What could Xbox do to follow its success?

Here comes the opening sizzle reel with Laura Croft, and Gears of War. This years motto “Jump Ahead”

343 Industries Bonnie Ross opened things by talking about all the new ip. It’s the first time I can remember a female voice open one of these presentation. Halo 5 is up first

This crowd is going nuts for the first story gameplay from Halo 5. (update with images later on). It’s smooth and the quirky covenant scrub charm is back. Here you’re playing as the game’s new protagonist John Locke.

With his own squad of marines, the team battles the enesmies from Halo 4. That annoying vanishing is back. I should have mentioned right now 4 people are on stage playing a co-op mission that takes place in the main story. A new reels showing off story cinematics and vehicular multiplayer combat is shown.

Halo 5 is playable at e3. The game will see players control two different teams of spartans with the ability to drop in and out at will. The multiplayer is said to be the bigges in the game’s over the top history.

Oh damn! World Premiere

The creators of Metroid Prime bring you a barren ravaged world where a girl and her robot companion battle hordes of killer androids to survive. This is Recore (Spring 2016)

Phil Spencer is on stage talking about the game and the state of Xbox. He called today’s line up “the greatest in Xbox history.”  So far, yeah it is!

A new feature for Xbox One, backwards compatibility!

Head of development Mike Ibarra is showing off the feature with Mass Effect on the Xbox One. It’s available this holiday. “we wont charge you to play the games you already own”

A new Xbox controller. Eliete will be available this fall, hair trigger locks, more preciison

Todd Howard from Bethesda is on stage after last nights Fallout 4 triumph. The demo is much of what we saw last night at Bethesda. A bit more of the game’s combat features are being shown including stepping into a mech suit and mowing down enemies with a chain gun.

They closed their portion of the presentation with the same reel from last night.

Todd announces Xbox exclusive feature? PC mods created on well PC can be transfered to Xbox One

EA’s Peter Moore is onstage to talk about EA access. A $5 a month service that grants early access to games and a vault of free old games. Titanfall joins EA access vault this week. Dragon Age INquisition comes to the service later this Summer. Play Fist, Play More, Play for Less. EA access vault is free for Xbox Live members all week.

Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2. New characters, new worlds. A world premiere trailer was shown. Not Suburbia, it’s Zomburbia. This time around the plants are the invaders. Highway to the Dangerzone is making this even more epic. The game arrives Spring 2016. Check out @comicsbeat on instagram for up to the minute pictures.

A car came up through the floor and acsended to the celing! This is Forza Motorsport 6. To celebrate Ford’s GT anniversary the game has the car exclusively this year. September 15, 2015 you can drive it in the game and save thousands of dollars.

World Premiere from Bandai Namco. Dark Souls 3 in Early 2016. It looks freaking nuts from the CG tailer.

Now Ubisoft is showing the Division. A new trailer expaling the game’s story was shown. A virus decimated humanity and you’re part of an elite squad activated as a last resort, you are The Division. Lots of jumping over cars and shooting at people, sounds like fun. This action RPG set in New York. Xbox ONe players get an exclusive beta later this December.

Rainbow Six Siege followed with the announcement that both RS Vegas titles will be free with Siege. A new trailer was shown for Siege. The FPS focuses on team combat. Ubisoft have made this clear blowing up shit gun ho will not win the game. Play it October 10, 2015.

A stylish Windows 10 and Xbox Exclusive came on screeen. It’s an animated co op battle much like Gauntlet but better. Gigantic comes to beta this August.

Another sizzle reels for slew of Xbox games is shown. Including Ark, which we’ll go hands on with at the show this week. ID@ Xbox has some interesting titles coming from more than 1,000 independent developers.

The developers of Gone Home bring you Lunar Station Tacoma. This story driven game takes you through the mystery of a missing crew and launches 2016.

Ashen, from developer Auora44 is a cold fantasy exploration game that will see players survive a world of ghouls and monsters.

Beyond Eyes, is a game about a blind girl that tells a story of hope. Developer Tiger Squid will release the game later this year first on Xbox One.

Cuphead is a game with the look of a 1960’s Disney cartoon. Studio MDHR created the most lunatic game I’ve ever seen. Coming 1936 plus 20 years.

Xbox Game Preview lets users buy and try games still in development. A feature that’s common on PC but first on consoles here. The first titles include The Long Dark , Elite Dangerous,  and Day Z. A few titles will be available today.

Creator of Day Z, Dean Hall is on stage talking about wanting a game that’s “a universe”. He’s showing off the massive MMO called ION. The trailer shows a space thriller the likes of Alien.

Rise of The Tomb Raider.

New gameplay is being shown. The demo begins with Laura making her way out of an icy cave. The game’s looking real good. The ice climbing mechanics from the previous game are back. Laura scales the mountain to get a view of some ruins only to be knocked off by mother nature. As she dangles from a rope attached to her partner she swings to her own rescue and now is running from an avalanche. She Spider-Maned her way onto a different mountain! The demo ended with a trailer that shows some of the game’s story and the tombs she’ll raid. The game launches November 10, 2015.

A new xbox trailer that showcases stuff from Rare like Perfect Dark and Battletoads. 30 hit games in one collection, it’s Rare Replay available this August. 2015 is the studios 30th anniversary.

The studio also has a new game. A premiere trailer using in game footage starts in a cartoony animated beach. Cut to pirates sailing on harsh water and forcing another pirate to walk the plank. This game is Sea of Thieves.

Fable Legends is free to play on Xbox One and PC with crossplay between the two. This co-op version of Fables launches soon.

A new partnership with ValVR and Oculus is being mentioned. An Xbox One controller ships with Oculus.

Microsoft Hololens revelaed in January is like google glass but more futuristic. Now we’ll learn how it works with gaming. The demo is using Minecraft built for Hololens is being shown. Ok Hololens just took the Minecraft world and rendered it on an object in the real world. We’re seeing what Hololens is seeing and I can’t distinguish that it doesn’t exist in the real world when you watch the screen and the stage at the same time.

Gears of War is up next. Rod Ferguson is on stage to talk about Gearrs of War Ultimate edition on Augst 25, 2015. Public multiplayer beta starts today.

Now lets get into Gears of War 4, Game features new characters. The world looks like something out of Walking Dead if it were in the Salem witch trials. Its lighting effects are gorgeously blending with the real world weather. Our heroes storm into a desolate old building full of books and a monster hive. You had a flashlight now itls gone and things go from bad to worse. This character runs through a hallway laced with gross looking pods that you shouldn’t touch even on a dare. These don’t seem like the traditional enemies you faced in previous games. You can still chainsaw them though. Yep it’s called Gears 4 and it hits Holiday 2016.

Phil Spencer is back on stage enticing the audience to move from the 360 to Xbox One. There will be more reveals on Xbox at E3 during the week. We’ll update this post with assets in a few as things wind down.

We’re just a little bit over a week from one of the biggest video game trade shows around, E3. Publishers and developers are readying snipitets of their upcoming games for a select few to go hands on with. Before the madness ensues, Bethesda Softworks (Elder Scrolls, Skyrim) took it upon themselves to make a major pre-show announcement earlier this week. Meanwhile, Telltale Games revealed they won’t have much to demo at E3, but teased something big for Walking Dead fans. Finally, Microsoft wants to bring the general public a slice of E3…Let’s Go!

The creative force behind popular games such as Skyrim and Elder Scrolls confirmed the long rumored next chapter of the Fallout game series. This past Wednesday Bethesda Softworks officially announced Fallout 4 and dropped the game’s first teaser.

The only things certain about Fallout 4 is that it won’t be coming to the PS3 and Xbox 360. This one will be a modern console and PC only game. But from the trailer we can deduce for certain a return to Vault 111 with some good ol Nuka Cola, oh and it’ll have a dog and well that’s about it. More details about the game will be revealed during Bethesda’s E3 showcase on June 14 at 7pm PST. Fans can watch it live on the developers YouTube channel here.

Our thought:

Since the trailers debut the Internet has given Fallout 4 the scrutinizing response many a film and celebrity have enjoyed. Some have said “it doesn’t look as good as it should”, while others have made fun of the Baahston setting with Fenway Park. Bethesda’s previous entry, Fallout 3, was a technical and visual achievement for previous gen consoles. In this current shiny 4K era, visual achievements are few and far between. The room left for evolutionary leaps rests in the gameplay mechanics. If you enjoyed Skyrim on a PS3 or Xbox 360, then it’s fun to imagine what Bethesda’s mind could do with the power of this new generation of consoles, maybe even giving the game an online capability it’s never seen before.

What’s most interesting about the rumors still swirling around Fallout 4 is its possible release date. The Bethesda online store suggest it could be this year. Its estimated ship date is listed as “TBA 2015,” both before and after Fallout 4 is added to your cart. This could certainly just be a placeholder date because “dates subject to change” is always a thing. If gamers do indeed see the next chapter of Fallout in 2015 then it means Bethesda have pulled off something rare in today’s spoiler filled world. They’d have to have been working on Fallout since 2012 and kept it a secret from the public and press, something I didn’t think possible this day in age. Which will also mean we’ll see a heavy PR campaign bombard mainstream media and your favorite convention this Summer.

How mind-blowing would it be if Bethesda went on stage and said “pick up Fallout 4 this August”? The only thing that could top this is if Gabe Newell from Valve came to an E3 press conference and said Half-Life 3 is on STEAM today, then he Gallagher mallets an old Atari and walks off. Man I could go for some watermelon right now.

Just when we think we’ve got all the answers; Telltale Games changes the questions. While the award winning developers of story driven game adaptations such as Fables, Borderlands, and Game of Thrones won’t have a large presence on the E3 show floor; it doesn’t mean they won’t make waves. This past Tuesday the company’s Director of PR, Job J Stauffer, tweeted the following.

While they’ve previously made it clear their Walking Dead series would not get a season 3 in 2015; they haven’t said what fans will get in its place this year. Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman will be on the official E3 YouTube live stream to help make whatever this announcement is. You can watch it go down here Monday morning.

Also, fans of Minecraft expecting details on Telltale’s Minecraft: Story Mode game will have to wait till Minecon in London, this July 4-5.

Our Thought:

Kirkman has always spoken highly of simply having Telltale come up to him with the story and letting the developer run with it. With Robert on hand for the official announcement it could mean the developer’s first move into synergy with other Walking Dead properties. With AMC well into production on the upcoming Fear The Walking Dead spin-off we could see a game prequel that leads into the show’s debut.

Also, some have criticized Telltale for not showing Minecraft: Story Mode at E3. It’s actually far from a mistake. Minecon is the perfect setting to build a media frenzy with fans who are all but guaranteed to go crazy for the game in a market that often needs more push than the US. Telltale have been more questions than answers as of late but when they do peel back the curtains they have a knack for picking the most opportune time.

While we all knew Sony is sure to show more Uncharted 4 at their upcoming press event. PlayStation let leak the expected news of an Uncharted PS3 collection port for the PlayStation 4. Bluepoint Games, a studio with a portfolio full of stellar ports is tasked with bringing Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection to the PS4 on October 9, 2015.

In addition to the full 1080p 60FPS and texture upgrades, the game not only brings the story modes but includes all the previously available multiplayer goodness.  Buying the Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection grants you exclusive access to Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End multiplayer Beta version.

Our Thought:

Sony has put too much of its resources on ports. The ratio of good new PS4 experiences to ports is dismally lopsided. I love my PS4, but when I go long periods of time without turning it on… I start to wonder why I even bought it in the first place. Admittedly, when you consider that the PS4 console sales lapped the PS3 within its first year; it translates to an audience of Xbox 360 converts who might not have previously played Uncharted. In a way it makes them a necessary evil towards the success of a triple-A title like Uncharted 4 by removing any kind of high wall putting a #4 on the end of a game might place in consumers minds.

On a side note, Sony would be wise to include the six issue mini-series published by DC Comics as part of the Uncharted collection. Either as a bonus or on disc digital. Cause you know… comics!

Electronic Entertainment Expo or as it’s commonly known, E3, is the biggest trade show in gaming. It takes up the entire Los Angeles Convention Center and overwhelms the senses more so than SDCC ever could. So many have growled about it not being open to the public, but most trade shows typically aren’t for fans. While that’s not likely to change anytime soon, many developers and publishers that contribute to the spectacle of the show throw orbiting events the public CAN attend. Microsoft is taking full advantage of this.

Xbox want to bring Los Angeles gamers as close to the action as possible. While their social media guru, Major Nelson and company, will be delivering content from the show floor all week on the Xbox YouTube channel, the company is also putting together Xbox FanFest: E3 2015.

Xbox will give 500 lucky fans a one-of-a-kind ticket for E3 week, the gaming industry’s biggest showcase.  The Xbox FanFest Ticket will include:

• Entry into the Xbox E3 2015 Briefing on Monday, June 15^th, 9:30 am PT, at the Galen Center in downtown Los Angeles.
• Invite to the exclusive Xbox FanFest Party, Monday afternoon, June 15^th, where fans will get to play the best exclusives and biggest blockbuster games this holiday and beyond.
• VIP access to the Xbox esports Celebrity Challenge & Twitch Party sponsored by Xbox.
• Meet-and-greet with some of the industry’s top developers, leaders and influencers.
• Even more surprise events during the week.

To be one of the lucky 500:

Fans can begin lining up at Microsoft at Westfield Century City in Los Angeles, starting at 10 p.m. PDT on Saturday, June 13. This Microsoft store is located at 10250 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles, though the line will start near the LensCrafters on Avenue of the Stars.

Tickets will be distributed on a first come first served basis beginning at 11am on June 14 at the Microsoft Store at Westfield Century City.

In order to be eligible, fans need to be at least 21 years of age with a valid Xbox Live gamertag (Gold Membership not required)

Our Thought:

Want to know a bit of insider info? Jeff Rubinstein of the Xbox team is a former part of Sony’s PlayStation Blog team. If you previously followed their E3 events, he was primarily responsible for all the run of the mill gamers getting into E3 every year they threw an event. Sony’s followers would line up like it was SDCC in front of the LA Sports Area to try and ensure their entrance into the press conference and be rewarded with a complimentary exhibits pass to E3. How the man did it, I have no clue.

So to anyone considering trying to be one of the 500, do it. Last year those at the Microsoft event had to go through a lottery to try and win their way in. From what I heard, 200 Xbox fans were granted entrance to the Xbox press event and access to the E3 show floor. Jeff’s highest number with Sony was 250, could he top that this year with Xbox? If you’re an LA area SDCC Hall H veteran, you’re no stranger to this and the loot is worth spending a summer night in an LA mall to find out.

With one week left till E3 don’t expect much in the way of major announcements in the next few days. If you’re one of those people that kills time on social media follow @Comicsbeatlive on twitter for some of the sights and free energy drinks of E3. Follow the Instagram account as well for blurry pics from the show as my finger partially covers cameras all week. How can I get fire on this iPhone again?

It’s June! Summer! Batman!

The game gamers and comic fans alike have been waiting for releases on June 23rd. Rocksteady, the studio behind Batman: Arkham Knight aren’t going to make waiting easy. Today they’ve released a special trailer showcasing the pre-order Harley Quinn content.

Harley gets her own unique skill set complete with her own version of the game’s “detective vision” and takedowns. In addition, her content will also have story missions that add a sliver to the game’s narrative. The current DC Comics digital weekly prequel series Batman: Arkham Knight has seen the character scar Lucius Fox and align herself with the Penguin to invade Wayne Enterprises, if her in-game story missions have anything to do with this remain to be seen.

The Harley Quinn DLC pack is available free for anyone who pre-orders Batman: Arkham Knight from any retailer. Various other bonuses are available depending on which retailer you choose to order from, such as Gamestop offering the exclusive Red Hood pack.

With all the early bonus content and the optional $40 season pass add-ons, Arkham Knight is looking to pour a gallon of comic goodness into the shot glass of our attention spans. So set aside some time away from loved ones to play it.

Batman: Arkham Knight launches worldwide on June 23, 2015 for the Xbox One, PS4, and PC.

We’re just a month away from the super comic-con bowl of video games, E3. Soon the entire Los Angeles Convention Center will be filled with creative giants, CEOs, journalists, “models” tempting you with cheap sunglasses or free T-shirts, and those fortunate enough to get into the show.

This special late Sunday night edition of WTGB comes sponsored by my DayQuil binge followed up with NyQuil chasers to even me out and an apology for not being able to write wrap ups for Marvel’s Secret Wars. With E3 and a few other shows fast approaching, there’s just no time to do it justice after that fantastic second issue came out last week. I will be posting digital codes of all the May tie-in and spine series issues at the bottom of Game Beat, starting with this one. Enjoy!

For now let’s turn the focus to all the things we want to see at E3 2015. Which means I can officially confirm Comics Beat will be on the show floor and the press events covering all the comics related games and more… but mostly to collect free bags, shirts, and magazines to level out my coffee table with.

From indies to first party exclusives, E3 2015 will be about games, games, and more games. Being in the middle of a new hardware cycle, the focus for this E3 will be soely on the games coming to the consoles and PC.

Batman: Arkham Knight is the first big release post E3, having a full on playable version at the show is a bit of a no brainer, though I wouldn’t expect any new announcements concerning its content. The boys at Rocksteady are already doing an excellent job of teasing the public, they’ve even released a new Arkham Insider video showing off the “dual play” system.

Ever since Lego announced their toy based game, Dimensions; it’s been radio silent on the Lego Marvel Avengers game coming this Fall. While it won’t be part of anyone’s presentations, the game should be playable on the show floor and word of a hard release date seems like a good bet. I’m curious to see if it will still have all the open world goodness of Lego Marvel Super Heroes.

With the recent word of Telltale Games not releasing Season 3 of their Walking Dead game in 2015, the developer has been vocal about announcing something big to come soon for Walking Dead fans. Telltale usually like to keep things intimate and off the exhibit floor at E3, it stands to reason they’ll be showing a brand new Walking Dead one-shot game that doesn’t tie directly into Clementine’s story behind closed doors once again. Perhaps some art, a teaser; but whatever they show will most likely be their September release.

Then there’s the Secret Wars event going on at Marvel. We know there’s going to be a toy line coming to Toys R Us in conjunction with it . Word has been quiet on how the Marvel’s current buffet of mobile titles or a new game would play off the Battleworld. Remember Marvel Super Heroes, the fighting game on PS1?

It was more or less the Infinity Gauntlet game. While we probably won’t get anything close to that for Secret Wars, we’re sure to hear about at least some kind of add-on content for one of these games tying into Secret Wars.

As for the big three…

Per usual, Microsoft will start the round of June 15 press events. Xbox head, Phil Spencer, brought a strong showing in 2014 that translated to boosted sales for the Xbox One. He’s certain to follow the same game centric formula as last year. On the non-gaming front, we don’t expect them to waste valuable time going over all the services, however a demonstration of the Xbox One’s long talked about DVR functionality might be in order. Could we also see a redesigned version of the Xbox One? While the 360 went through some variants in its lifetime, it never happened as quickly as this one would, should it be part of Microsoft’s announcements for E3.

Where Halo 5: Guardians places in the Xbox presentation will be very telling in terms of aces up Microsoft’s sleeve. The game’s hard release date of October 27 is just a few months away. We’ve seen a ton of art and pieces of the story thanks to its viral “Hunt the Truth” campaign. If Xbox’s presentation opens with Halo, weather it’s campaign gameplay or multiplayer, it would indicate Microsoft will end with the official announcement of the new Gears of War game for Xbox One, maybe even alongside footage from the original GOW remake coming to the new console. With, Quantum Break delayed to 2016 and original unproven IPs set to be announced; closing their press event with a new installment of a proven franchise makes the most sense.

Sony PlayStation will close E3 Media Monday at the LA Sports Arena. We’re sure to hear a lot of bragging about the millions of units PS4 has sold to date during their presentation. As for what they’ll show and announce during their time in the media’s eye… Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End is a given. Even though it’s been moved to 2016 and an extended preview was previously shown during PlayStation Experience in Vegas; Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckmann will be onstage to tell us something we don’t know about the game that will make the wait feel that much longer.

If Druckmann is indeed on stage, what better time than having the eyes of the world watching to bring out Sam Rami and show the first clip of The Last of Us movie. Sure it’s a long shot, but E3 has a history of huge surprises. Could we also get the Uncharted trilogy remastered for PS4? So far the PlayStation 4 has been all about porting Sony’s previous system classics to the new one with The Last of Us Remastered and the next up God of War remaster. PlayStation has a ton of things they need to update consumers on such as their VR Project Morpheous, backwards compatibility, and the other big game of PS Experience No Man’s Sky. They could have an out of the blue announcement, but with so much they’ve previously confirmed yet not put in our hands they simply don’t need one.

There’s also the PlayStation Originals which brought us the polarizing Brian Michael Bendis adaptation of his creator owned book, Powers. Because of the season 2 announcement, it stands to reason the debut series was a success on some level for Sony. Why else would they be willing to invest further money in more episodes. If it exceeded their expectations expect solid viewer numbers to be part of their humble brag and some art or still from season 2 to be included. One of the few surprises Sony could have waiting in the wings might be an expansion of PS Originals content, maybe other adaptations of popular comics. Personally, I’m rooting for Matt Fraction’s Sex Criminals mainly due to my wanting to see Chip Zdarsky awkwardly appear onstage during another big presentation.

Nintendo is actually the gray area of the show. Their Tuesday June 16 digital press conference has already dropped news ahead of itself. According to Nintendo, we won’t be seeing the delayed Legend of Zelda for Wii U. They are however bringing the Nintendo World Championships to the show from the –long long long– ago film The Wizard. Would there really be much of a point to having Fred Savage and the Power Glove appear during a press event that no one will physically be in attendance for? Mario Maker will also be available that week for the general public to try at select retailers during E3.

The Wii U and DS are likely to have announcements about new Pokemon, Metroid, and Animal Crossing but those would probably be leaked a bit before the show. Nintendo also has the slim possibility of being the only console company showing off hardware with their rumored new “NX” system in development. Currently no details are known about the system. Nintendo wouldn’t want to deter any future Wii U sales by even talking about new hardware that isn’t coming out this year so the possibility that we’ll see it at the show is highly unlikely.

What do you want to see during E3 2015? Who do you think will win this year’s E3? What size shirts do you all use?

Also here’s codes for digital copies of Secret Wars 1-2, Magneto, and Mighty Avengers. (First come first served) We’ll also be giving away physical copies of all the May Secret Wars books at the end of the Month thanks to my LCS and if you’re in the LA or Long Beach, CA areas go buy your Secret Wars at Pulp Fiction. All this month they’re selling every new Secret Wars issue (and tie-ins) 50% off. 

Marvel.com/redeem

Magneto 18- FMC1M3NNXDX8

Mighty Avengers 18 – FMDUEP80DYIR

SECRET WARS 1- FMCJG76UTQDV

SECRET WARS 2- FMD7GMLM7F4B

What a 48hrs it’s been. Gamers have been given reason to cheer and cry. Such weight that can only be decompressed with hours of performing Mortal Kombat X fatalities.

Wait that ain’t it… oh well let’s talk about some of the major news video games has recently bombarded us with.

On Sunday, Treyarch showed off the first full trailer for the next installment of the Call of Duty franchise. Call of Duty: Black Ops III comes to the PS4, Xbox One, and PC this November.

Now the series has become a yearly expectation, not unlike a new Madden Football game or MLB The Show. Hell, the game has even aided in giving birth to pro gaming leagues where Mountain Dew fueled players compete for bragging rights and copious amounts of cash. So what can a new installment bring that we haven’t seen before? Bigger combat arenas allowed the game to boast a 4-player co-op campaign. For the first time in the franchise’s history, the campaign’s protagonist is fully customizable. In addition to upgrading abilities, changing your character’s appearance and tweaking weapons, players can pick the gender of their Call of Duty hero. Black Ops also brings back Zombie survival mode, where players obliterate wave after wave of the undead. This time the mode comes with a full character progression system similar to multiplayer.

Being the third CoD game by Treyarch, the group is leaving nothing out. Come November we’ll see wall running, underwater combat, unlimited sprinting, the ability to customize your solider as a heroic female in the campaign, and swimming. Yes according to the developer certain battle arenas will have areas where players can have their solider swim while still controlling weapons and combat. Though we haven’t seen much of how this development will affect the game, it sure does sound like a thing they threw in after the art directors pool party. The one thing the game really needs is a new Jim Lee drawn cover.

Cause this weird “I gotta go to the bathroom but I don’t want to put my guns down” box ain’t cutting it.

Call of Duty: Black Ops III is set to release on November 6, 2015. Preordering through Gamestop will get you access to the upcoming beta.

Disney Infinity 2.0 finally released their mobile app on Android today. The guesstimated five of us that don’t have iPhones can now:

Create your own worlds and games starring over 60 of your favorite Marvel and Disney characters! Marvel Super Heroes come to Disney Infinity: Toy Box 2.0, with some of your favorite characters including the Avengers, Spider-Man, and Guardians of the Galaxy. Also explore some of your favorite Disney and Disney/Pixar characters from Frozen (Elsa & Anna), Big Hero 6 (Hiro & Baymax), Brave (Merida), Pirates of the Caribbean, Monsters Inc, and more!

For anyone that hasn’t picked up any Disney Infinity console and PC version… yes the cost goes beyond what you’ll initially pay after the starter set. This is just the new trend in gaming. These miniature versions of Mickey Mouse, Venom, Jack Sparrow, and Baymax we all have to buy are the new form of downloadable content for games. Though they have the distinction of having desk/shelf potential for collectors, it can still add up to serious coin, which is why it’s a nice feature that you can use web code cards from your physical Disney Infinity Figures to unlock characters in the mobile game. Such a novelty is essentially making the content transferable through all the platforms that gives it a value other games could learn from.

Now if we could just get those Legos and Amibos to talk to each other.

Plus look at the meme potential!

As we talked a little about yesterday, Batman: Arkham Knight or as I call it “That thing I’m not going to work the week of June 23rd for,” dropped a new trailer that included the long awaited story playability of Nightwing, Robin, and Catwoman (I don’t count Arkham City cause you had to download her). The feature looks to be similar to what Grand Theft Auto 5 did with switching between three main characters at the push of a button at any time.

Here it is again in all it’s glory:

Two-Face, Oracle, Azrael, and the bat-plane also appear in the trailer. In addition to all this, pre-ordering the game get’s you a playable Harley Quinn in the game’s challenge maps and if you do it through GameStop then the Red Hood (Jason Todd) will also be yours. The game’s “Mature” rating doesn’t shine through in the trailer but you can see a level of despair that hasn’t been hit in the series yet, and that’s saying a lot because Arkham City wasn’t exactly sunshine and roses.

Fortunately we won’t have to wait too much longer as the game is locked into releasing worldwide June 23, 2015 on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

In the meantime, have you figured out who “Johnny Charisma” is yet?

Before we start the rundown of what gaming comics will be in stores this week, we should take a moment of “silence” for Silent Hills. Last year the world was told to play the creepy ass downloadable game P.T. In it, you’re put in the shoes of a man trapped in the hallways of a house where some supernatural depressing Scooby Doo ghost shit is going down.  The erie vibrance and mind bending nature of the situation made the game a brief but intense ride. Then at the end players find out that this is just a “Playable Teaser” for a game called Silent Hills. As if that wasn’t enough, we’re then told the game is being developed by Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima and master film director Guillermo Del Torro. Then as if that isn’t enough we’re told Daryl Dixon himself, Norman Reedus, is going to  model and voice the main character.

Yesterday, Konami confirmed our worst fears and officially canceled Silent Hills.

For fans of the Silent Hill series; the teaser was like being defibrillated back to life. A franchise whose better days were behind them, only showing mere glimpses of awesome in comics being published by IDW, was going to make a comeback. For a brief moment two storytelling giants that specialize in the bizarre were going to give fans the game they knew this series could be and P.T was the proof.

What went wrong? While we may never know the real answer to that, at least until someone makes the documentary about all this ten years from now; the writing had been on the wall for quite sometime. Rumors surrounding Kojima leaving Konami after Metal Gear Solid 5 turned into plausible scenarios. Though he doesn’t look it, Hideo Kojima is like 50 something years old (Somewhere there’s an attic with a painting of an old Hideo Kojima screaming cause this guy doesn’t age). If he feels it’s time to move on and tell a new story then he’s earned that right. Most feel that he’ll put his passion for Hollywood to use. Then, Konami itself is starting to show signs of restructuring to focus on other ventures like gambling; they even pulled themselves from the New York Stock Exchange. Though, if you look at their numbers, it was apparent very little trading happened in the US for them. Both parites will undoutebly be okay as their names and properties alone could keep them afloat for years.

There’s the matter of Guillermo Del Torro. He was the first one to come out and say that he was no longer working on Silent Hills. The news was just the latest in a string of incomplete projects the filmmaker has in his portfolio; Justice League Dark and Haunted Mansion (announced at SDCC 2010 but only now finding its star) come to mind . It looks like Pacific Rim 2 will be done before either of those movies gets to theaters. In the end the tragic news of Silent Hills doesn’t fall on Del Torro, he’s a gamer and a storyteller who wanted to create art with a man he sees as a legend. When it became apparent that the legend was leaving the table, he decided not to do the project.

Kojima will be okay, Del Torro will be okay, Konami will be okay; the only real casualties here are all of us because we’ll never know what could have been.

Gaming Comics 4/29:

Injustice: Year Three Annual #1                                                                                                                                         (W) Ray Fawkes, Brian Buccellato (A) Sergio Fernandez Davila & Various (CA) Neil Googe

Here it is:

Batman: Arkham Knight developer, Rocksteady are ending their Arkham series with a nuke. Today’s trailer shows off a new feature for the series. This time around players will have the ability to switch between characters from the Bat-family. The trailer shows Nightwing and Robin executing co-op attacks on enemies. Previously these characters have only appeared as DLC for the game’s challenge maps, but now their going to be a part of the campaign narrative.

In addition comic fans will recognize the character known as Azrael. No word on if this version is Jean Paul Valley, who took over the mantle of the bat during the Knightfall storyline in the comics. So far all the marketing materials points to a bold move from the developer that may spell the demise of Batman.

Batman: Arkham Knight comes to the PS4, Xbox One, and PC June 23.

We’ll talk more about this latest trailer and the Silent Hill cancelation this evening, in the meantime what are your thoughts about this new Batman trailer?

Yesterday the earthquake felt around the world was from the millions chanting “Yes!” in unison after the reveal of the new Star Wars film trailer. Today at Celebration, the aftershock came in the form of a game footage reveal for EA’s new Star Wars Battlefront game. Since it’s reveal at E3 last year, not much had been seen or revealed from the game. Now we know most of the crucial details. Look at the astonishing new video below along with info from the game’s developer, DICE (Battlefield) :

Here’s the rundown:

• - The game will release on November 17, 2015 on PS4, Xbox One, and on Origin for PC.
• - While the game doesn’t have a traditional story mode, all the online goodness takes place on four planets: The desert planet Tatooine, the forest moon of Endor, the desolate frozen wasteland of Hoth, and the previously unexplored Sullust, where Imperial outposts manufacture weapons. Instead of the traditional campaign, Star Wars: Battlefront features a series of missions, playable alone or via online and local co-op.
• - You’ll be able to play as your favorite characters including Darth Vader and Bobba Fett. Also, the Millennium Falcon will be a part of the aerial combat. A documentary style piece was shown that had iconic elements from other Star Wars characters like Han Solo.
• - On December 8, owners of the game will have access to free downloadable content featuring the new planet of Jakku revealed as part of the new JJ Abrams movie. Those who pre-order the game will have access to it a week early on December 1.
• - No Jar-Jar or prequel era stuff, it’s all original trilogy folks.

With all the new canon from shows like Rebels and the new Marvel published comics, the game could have a bottomless well of additional elements and content to turn Battlefront into a massive world that takes away our need to go outside on the weekends.

Are you excited about Battlefront? If you haven’t already, does the announcement want to make you buy a PS4 or Xbox One?

Coming off of WonderCon, this is gonna be a short one in the world of gaming crossing over with comics.

DC Universe Online is still very much alive and kicking with robust communities of players still devoting hours upon hours of their 2nd lives in the comics based MMO. Since its debut in January of 2011, the game has been well supported with new content, and today publisher Sony Online added what they call “munitions” to the game.  Munitions is all about big guns and big explosions. With it, you will learn to harness a vast array of conventional and modern weaponry to control and defeat your enemies.  If you have not yet downloaded DC Universe Online, you can do so for free. Munitions can be purchased at character create or you can gain access to it automatically when you become a DC Universe Online Member.

DC Universe Online is available for PS4, PS3, and PC.

Zen Studios has released tons of themed tables based on everything ranging from classic moves to retro games. Zen Pinball 2 is about to get the Marvel Studios treatment on April 21st when they release Avengers: Age of Ultron Pinball. The Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron table will allow players to relive the struggle of Earth’s mightiest heroes, including Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye against Ultron and his seemingly endless army. The table features dedicated game modes for each member of the Avengers team, including a first-person sharpshooting mini-game starring Hawkeye, a spectacular aerial melee combat sequence between Iron Man and Ultron, and selectable difficulty levels (Easy, Medium, or Hard) to cater to each player’s individual skill level.

The studio is cautious not to have any potential movie spoilers incorporated in the table. Anyone wanting to enjoy slapping your steel balls at Ultron can rest assured knowing they’ll still go into the movie spoiler free.

Zen Pinball 2 is available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, and Wii U.

Last Friday’s digital release of Batman: Arkham Knight the comic book series saw the beginning of a new storyline that points to the potential first encounter of Arkham Knight and Bruce Wayne. Part two of this story releases on Comixology this Friday.

A new installment in the Deus Ex series was confirmed by a new cover for the latest Game Informer magazine. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided will take place two years after Human Revolution. It focuses on humanity’s fear of augmented people after the conclusion of the previous game. No release date is set yet, but it’s coming to PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

DC Comics previously published adaptations of the franchise, but no publisher has announced anything in support of this new game. If one will be created, it’s typically an announcement for SDCC.

Gaming Comics in Stores This Week:

Batman: Arkham Knight #2 (DC COmics) (Printed edition collecting 2nd arc)
Mortal Kombat X #5 (DC COmics) (Printed edition)
Sonic The Hedgehog #271 (Archie Comics)
Sonic Boom #6 (Archie Comics)

Over the last few days even more Batman: Arkham Knight tidbits have dropped, Mortal Kombat builds towards its launch, Halo 5 announced a release date, and Marvel delivers a new mobile game.

Playstation Blog delivered the announcement of a limited edition PS4 console that comes with a limited edition Steel Grey PS4 system chassis with a custom Batman: Arkham Knight faceplate, a matching DualShock 4 wireless controller in Steel Grey and the disc based version of the game. This special bundle will be available for $449.99.

In addition, Sony is also doing a regular PS4 console that comes with the standard black system, controller, and Batman: Arkham Knight game for $399.99.

The bundles will be available when the game launches on June 23, 2015; currently the consoles are available for preorder at most major retailers.

It was obvious Electronic Arts, Star Wars: Battlefront would have a presence at the upcoming Celebration in Anaheim. Today it was revealed when exactly that will take place. DICE, developer of the Battlefield game series, will debut the Star Wars: Battlefront official reveal trailer during its Star Wars Celebration panel on April 17th, starting at 10:30 am PT. Those who can’t make it out to the show can catch the reveal trailer on EA’s website and official Star Wars channels during the convention, which itself runs from April 16-19 in Anaheim California.

Though a sliver of the game was shown at E3, this will be the first time actual gameplay will be on display for the public to enjoy. Star Wars: Battlefront is expected to arrive in stores later this year and what better place for a release date announcement than Star Wars Celebration.

IGN has the first 25 minutes of Mortal Kombat X gameplay. There’s a lot of information in this extended video for fans to digest, including an opening cinematic that sets the story going forward. Outside of the exciting helicopter fight between Scorpion, Sub Zero, Kenshi, and Johnny Cage, players will get a good look at the undead army of Quan Chi and Shinnok as they take on the Earthrealm Special Forces.

So far the digital comic series from DC has almost caught up to the events of the opening. As in the book Sub-Zero and Scorpion are set to be possessed and do battle with Earth’s champions while Kenshi has yet to join Cage and Sonya Blade. The footage looks impressive as the game seamlessly transitions from interactive moments to cut scenes and then to the actual fights themselves.

The Story looks as amibtious and cohesive as their previous entry Injustice: Gods Among Us was. Netherrealm, the game’s developer, has up’ed the ante for this one. Mortal Kombat X releases on PS4, PC and Xbox One this coming April 14 while the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions will follow in the Summer.

Today, DeNA and Marvel Entertainment today launched Marvel Mighty Heroes, a real-time co-op brawler written by Fred Van Lente. For the first time on mobile devices players must defend the world by assembling a dream team of Marvel Super Heroes including Iron Man, Thor, Spider-Man, Captain America, Star-Lord, Hulk, Hawkeye as well as dozens of Super Villains yet to be announced. In game events will be available to download such as today’s “Infinity” series were players will team up to battle Thanos.

The game feels like a compact version of Marvel Ultimate Alliance, we’ll give you some more thoughts on it as we spend a little more time with it. Mighty Marvel Heroes is currently available as a free download on the Apple App Store for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and on Google Play for Android phones and tablets. Plus if you download the game this week you get a free special in-game Hulk as a reward.

During Sunday’s season finale of The Walking Dead on AMC, two new TV spots revealed the worldwide release date for the highly anticipated Halo 5: Guardians. The commercial showed the same events from both of the game’s main characters: Master Chief and Agent Locke. You can see it for yourself, there’s a lot of tension and drama that was missing from Halo 4.

Although with the game being an October release, it leaves Microsoft with no big exclusive for November. It could be that this spot will go to Rise of The Tomb Raider, a game that was announced during E3 but has not been talked about much since.

So what games are you excited for? Have the problems of the Mortal Kombat X digital series wavered your excitement for the game? Are you getting the Arkham Knight edition PS4?

By Daniel Romer

Now that the Internet has been with us for over 25 years, what are we to make of all the concerns about how this new medium is affecting us, especially the young digital natives who know more about how to maneuver in this space than most adults?

Although it is true that various novel media platforms have invaded households in the United States, many researchers still focus on the harms that the “old” media of television and movies still have on youth. The effects of advertising on promoting the obesity epidemic highlight how so much of those messages are directed to children and adolescents. Jennifer Harris noted that children ages 2 to 11 get nearly 13 food and beverage ads every day while watching TV, and adolescents get even more. Needless to say, many of these ads promote high-calorie, low-nutrition foods. Beer is still heavily promoted on TV with little concern about who is watching, and sexual messages are rampant across both TV and movie screens. None of this is new, but the fact that these influences remain so dominant today despite the powerful presence of new media is testament enough that “the more things change, the more they stay the same.”

When it comes to the new media, researchers are more balanced. Sonia Livingston from the UK reported on a massive study done in Europe that found a lot of variation in how countries are dealing with the potential harms on children. But when all was said and done, she concluded that the risks there were no more prevalent than those that kids have confronted in their daily lives offline. What has changed there is the talk about the “risks,” without much delving into whether those risks actually materialize into harms. Many kids are exposed to hurtful content in this new digital space, but many also learned how to cope with them.

2013 E3 – XBOX ONE Killer Instinct B. Uploaded by – EMR -. CC-BY-2.0 via Flickr.

The perhaps most contentious of the new media influences is the emergence of video gaming, either via the Internet or on home consoles. The new DSM-5, which identifies mental disorders for psychiatrists, suggests that these gaming activities can become addictive. Research summarized by Sara Prot and colleagues suggests that about 8% of young people exhibit symptoms of this potential disorder. At the same time, we still don’t know whether gaming leads to the symptoms or is just a manifestation of other problems that would emerge anyway.

Aside from the potential addictive properties of video games, there is considerable concern about games that invite players to shoot and destroy imaginary attackers. Many young men play these violent video games and some of them are actually used by the military to prepare soldiers for battle. One could imagine that a young man with intense resentment toward others could see these games as a release or even worse as practice for potential harmdoing. The rise in school shootings in recent years only adds to the concern. The research reviewed by Prot is quite clear that playing the games can increase aggressive thoughts and behavior in laboratory settings. What remains contentious is how much influence this has on actual violence outside the lab.

On the positive side, other researchers have noted how much good both the old and new media can provide to educators and to health promoters. It is helpful to keep in mind that many of the concerns about the new media may merely reflect the age old wariness that adults have displayed regarding the role of media in their children’s behavior. In a recent review of the effects of Internet use on the brain, Kathryn Mills of University College London pointed out that even Socrates was skeptical of children learning to write because it would reduce their need to develop memory skills. Here again, the more things change, the more they remain the same.

Daniel Romer is the Director of the Adolescent Communication and Health Institutes of the Annenberg Public Policy Center. He directs research on the social and cognitive development of adolescents with particular focus on the promotion of mental and behavioral health. His research is currently funded by the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. He regularly serves on review panels for NIH and NSF and consults on federal panels regarding media guidelines for coverage of adolescent mental health problems, such as suicide and bullying. He is the author of Media and the Well-Being of Children and Adolescents.

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They're here....And you should be, too!! Video games are now available for loan in the Children's Room (and in TeenSpace)! Our collection has been jump started with fun, family-oriented (rated E for Everyone) games for Wii, PS2, PS3, and Xbox systems.

Gaming provides stories and information in a new format while enriching vocabulary and encouraging literacy activities. Simply put, you have to know how to read to know how to play. It is also a great way to try out new games (without the financial investment) like Madden NFL 10 or The Great Dinosaur Rescue, while having a little indoor fun on these blistery winter days.

And, if you're kids are new to the Wii system then perhaps they'd like to join us for our Wii Buddies program on Wednesday, Feb. 17 @ 2pm. Children in grades 1-5 will learn the ins and outs of Wii Sports with some help from our teen volunteers. Limited program registration begins on Feb. 3.

Children's video games are on loan to Syosset residents for seven days. There are no renewals and no holds. Click here for more information on the wonderful things gaming can bring to your library.

- posted by Nadine

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