inSYNC - Issue 9, July 2014 by inSYNC

inSYNC

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Contents

Contents Editor's Note The Round Up

Tech Germany’s Robot Valet 6 Amazon’s First Smartphone 8 3D Printed Organs Breakthrough 9 First Electric Harley-Davidson 12 Business Making Millions On Youtube 14 Music Isle of Wight Festival Review Glastonbury Highlights Wireless Festival Review Standon Calling Preview Green Man Preview

16 20 22 24 26

Film & Telivision Most Anticipated Films This Fall 28 22 Jump Street Review 30 Sherlock Returning 31 Gaming Top Stories The Future of Playstation 4 E3: Microsoft E3: Sony E3: Nintendo E3: EA E3: Ubisoft

32 33 34 36 38 40 41

une’s been a busy - but exciting month for us, kicking off with E3 games expo at the beginning of the month, where all the large game publishers and developers got the oppurunity to show off some of the biggest sequels and new IP’s in the gaming world. Read into our gaming extravaganza for reviews on each companies E3 conference. With June also came some of the summers first music festivals. We had a great time in the sunshine at Isle of Wight festival and although Glastonbury was a little bit muddy, it’s it was only a very minor issue with everything else that was going on. Finally we also attended wireless festival, seel all our reviews in the music section! There’s also a large number of upcoming music festivals in August, we picked some of our favourites and previewed them to help you decide which one is worth spending on! Finally we have our technology and film sections, for which there is a great deal of interesting articles including Dusseldorf Airport’s new robot Valet parking system and a review of 22 Jump Street, the sequel to one of 2012’s funniest films. We’ve also compiled a list of our top 5 most aniticipated films coming out later this year, including a new Christopher Nolan film! Be sure to check out next month’s issue, we’ve got a HUGE preview to one of our favourite festivals; Bestival as well as other fantastic Technology, Gaming, Music, Television, Film and Business coverage. You may notice quite a difference in the layout of this issue. I used to just design the covers, but now I have taken the role of designing the layout of the enitre magazine. You should see a much more refined inSYNC over the coming months. Have a great summer and we’ll see y’all in August! George Hall

www.insynctm.com @insyncmag facebook.com/insyncmagazine Contact us

07414 715157 insynctm@gmail.com inSYNC Magazine 95 Castle Road Southsea Hampshire PO5 3AY

The Team contributers

Editor George Hall Social Network Manager Tobi Stidolph Head Writer Jesse Price

Tom Jones Film Luke Jackson Music Ollie Mahoney Various Thomas Emmans Various

No part of this publication may be reproduced, both digitally or physically, withour prior written permission from inSYNC and/or the Wolf Group. The publisher holds the rights to all work from contributors, editors and guest contributors unless otherwise stated. All images featured in inSYNC (this publication) are used either with permission granted from the copyright owner, or are in the public domain (i.e. are part of a press release, press pack, etc). If you are the copyright holder to an image in this, or any inSYNC publication, and feel that appropriate permission was not gramnted, please go to the Legal section of our website and follow the instructions on how to contact us about the issue. inSYNC takes no responsibility for any content provided to us by advertisers. inSYNC is published by the Wolf Group. Wolf Group registered address: 155 Manners Road, Southsea, Portsmouth, Hamshire, PO4 0BD, UK.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

News

Roundup

The

Bite-size news from the past month

Facebook buys video advert startup Social network giant Facebook has confirmed the purchase of LiveRail, a technology startup that helps companies to place more relevant advert videos that appear on the company’s website and/or app. LiveRail also provides firms with a real-time bidding platform, similar to eBay, for marketers looking to place adverts within online videos. Although no figure for the sale was revealed, certain reports claim that Facebook have shelled out $400 to $500 million for the firm. This could prove a vital move for Facebook in the online war to try and take on Google, and as online video advertising is growing and becoming more lucrative, this buy could have come at the right time for Mark Zuckerberg’s company. In a recent blog Brian Boland, Facebook’s Vice President of Ads Product Marketing and Atlas, said, “More relevant ads will be more interesting and engaging to people watching online video, and more effective for marketers too. Publishers will benefit as well, because more relevant ads will help them make the most out of every opportunity they have to show an ad.” According to figures from LiveRail, it delivers more than seven billion video ads per month for different companies.

world cup breaks sport twitter record

digital banking With more and more people now taking to Internet and mobile banking, the total daily digital money transactions has surpassed £1 billion in the UK. New technologies have meant we are now transferring around £6.4-£7.2 billion a week, up from a mere £5.8 a week this year in 2013. And, although no official figure was released for the amount of transactions made by mobiles, it apparently has ridden quite significantly. The study also found that, on average, 15,000 banking apps had been downloaded per day. 14.7 people now have a banking app on their phone in the UK, a massive 2.3 million rise since January 2014. This said, people still, at the moment, prefer Internet banking, ”While customers like the ease of checking their balance with an app on their phone or tablet, they often use a PC to transfer larger amounts or apply for a mortgage,” it said.

During Germany’s 7-1 destruction of Brazil at the World Cup’s Semi-Final a record 35.6 million tweets were sent. The game also broke the record for the most tweets sent in one minute; 580,601 tweets were sent in one minute, triggered when Germany scored their fifth goal. Six of the top ten trending topics on Twitter were referenced to the match, with #BrazilvsGermany topping the Twitter chart. German Miroslav Klose was the most tweeted German player, followed by midfielder counterpart Toni Kroos. The previous Twitter record for a sporting event was the Brazil vs. Chile match, which counted 389,000 Tweets in a minute. Previous to that match was the 2014 Superbowl, which saw 382,000 Tweets per minute.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

News robin thicke's album sells just 530 in its first week So, Robin Thicke. The man that managed the biggest selling single of 2013. His new album may as well be a joke then, to be honest. Thicke’s newly released album ‘Paula’ has only sold 530 copies in its first week on sale in the United Kingdom. Yep, 530! This saw the album hit number 200 in the midweek album chart update. Just to put that into perspective for you, Bob Marely’s album Legend is currently at number 54 in the album chart, and has been in the charts for 842 weeks. I was so shocked to hear this that I even thought a good £50 bet would surely say I could put an album out and probably have more success. And, to be honest, I have no musical talent what so ever. Though, after the huge success of Blurred Lines, its seems like everyone was then jumping on the hate Thicke bandwagon, perhaps because of the sexual connotations of the song - although that didn’t stop people buying it - or his rumoured cheating and general poor attitude towards women. Even his wife Paula Patton, whom he named his album after, left him and seemed to join the hype of hating Robin Thicke. Either way, we can only stand and appreciate the spectacular failure of Paula.

a new story for harry potter & co We all knew Happy Potter would be one of those series that was never left alone. Perhaps they’ll even remake the movies in 100 years time. But, anyway, seven years since the release of the last Harry Potter book means JK Rowling has written a new short story about wizarding trio. Maybe Rowling has blown through some of her £600 million fortune and needed some extra cash. The new material has been published online at Harry Potter’s world, Pottermore, and it has been set out like a Daily Prophet news article. We learn that Harry is about to turn 34, and is nowe a famous Auror. He hasn’t swapped his signature round glasses, but he now has a new, mysterious scar about his right cheekbone. Ginny is now a jounralist, and Ron is co-managing Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, the joke shop his bothers Fred and George began. Hermione is deputy head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and is now rumoured to be getting a higher job within the Ministry of Magic. Neville Longbottom is now a herbology teacher and Hogwarts, and Luna is married with twin sons. This new article is definitely worth a read, but we will have to wait in the meantime to see if there is going to be any more Harry Potter stories coming our way.

google chromecast can be used for pirating movies

jamie t returns, and sells out very, very fast Jamie T sold out in record time after four year silence: The singer-songwriter from London known for hits such as ‘Sheila’ and ‘Sticks and Stones’ announced a comeback tour on a handwritten note posted on his official website on 1st July. Jamie, who rose to fame extremely quickly in 2006 with the release of ‘Sheila’, before drastically falling off the map in 2010 is set to perform just three intimate shows in Glasgow, Liverpool, and Portsmouth. As of 10:10am, ten minutes after tickets were on sale, all venues were sold out. Dates: July 29 - Art School, Glasgow [SOLD OUT] July 30 - Kazimier, Liverpool [SOLD OUT] July 31 - Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth [SOLD OUT]

A streaming service for pirated films that is Chromecast-compatible for Windows users is now ready to use. Google’s streaming device, that costs £30, and has only been on sale since the beginning of July in the UK can now be used for watching pirates. The Chromecast device allows users to stream YouTube, Netflix and more straight to your tablet, smartphone or TV. It works in much the same way as Apple tv. The new open-source project, named Popcorn Time, launched earlier this year, has gained popularity thanks to its simple interface, and ability to stream pirated copies of films. We now wait to see Google’s response to the new software, which will work on users’ Chromecast devices after downloading the system’s software.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Technology

Germany's Rob

The future of car parks?

n Germany, even parking has now become high tech. Very recently, Dusseldorf Airport, in Germany, introduced robot valet parking, to take the hassle out of parking in a cramped car park for travellers and holidaymakers. Travellers come into the airport, and leave their car at the arrival level of the new ParkingPLUS structure. As they go to leave, they then have to confirm that no one is in the car via a touchscreen. The robot valet assistant is nicknamed ‘Ray’, and he takes over from there. So how does Ray work? Ray measures travellers’ vehicles, and takes control of the vehicle with a forklift system. It positions airport-goers’ cars in one of 249 spaces made available for the automatic valet. The machine is so far designed to lift cars upto 3.31 tons in weight. Cleverly, the valet system is connected to Dusseldorf ’s flight data system so, by checking the customer’s travel data, Ray knows when the customer should return for their vehicle. Travellers can update their travel data in the parking app, which is free for iOS and Android. The robot measures the vehicle, picks it up with a forklift-like system, and takes it to the back area, where it will position it in one of the 249 parking spots reserved for automated valets. The machine is capable of carrying standard cars weighing up to 3.31 tons. Dusseldorf is a fairly small airport in comparison to others in major German cities, and tourists praised the convenience of entering the terminal from the ParkingPLUS area. A statement from the airport read, “[Ray] makes the distances between planes and passengers’ vehicles even shorter.” Ray is designed to make

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

bot Valet

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Technology a passenger’s journey less stressful, and improves the overall airport experience. Thomas Schnalke, Dusseldorf ’s Managing Director said, “Our product is especially appealing to business travellers, who arrive at the airport shortly before the flight, seek efficient parking, and return within a few days.” The robot valet parking is quite expensive, however, priced at €29 per day, compared to that of a standard airport car park in Europe, which is on average around €39 a week. And, although the airport is targeting business travellers, the service is open to anyone who requests it. Dusseldorf Airport official have already stated that they will expand the system should it prove popular. An expansion would also bring the cost for customers down slightly. Ray is produced by a company called Serva Transport, in the Bavarian town of Grabenstatt. The system was reviewed last year, and Dusseldorf is the first place ever to have the system installed. There yet to be word of an installation of Ray underway anywhere else, but it would be neat to see this at one of the UK’s top airports in the near future. Tobi Stidolph

Technology

Amazon's First Smartphone

fter an endless amount of rumours, Amazon’s founder and CEO Jeff Bezos announced the company’s first venture into the smartphone market, with the Fire Phone. The Fire Phone compares itself to most top end smartphones such as the HTC One (M8), Samsung Galaxy S5 and the iPhone 5S. The Fire Phone has 4.7 –inch, 720p IPS Liquid Crystal Display. The internals of the phone include a quad-core 2.2 GHz processor and an Andero 330 graphics chip. The Fire Phone will also have 2 GB of RAM. Along the sides of the device there will be the standard volume up and down buttons, as well as a third shutter button that can launch the camera, and can be used for taking photos. On the back of the phone there is a 13 megapixel camera with OIS (optical image stabilisation). Amazon will also give all Fire Phone costumers unlimited photo storage via Amazon’s Cloud Drive. Like the new HTC One (M8), the Amazon device will have two front facing speakers that will be powered by Dolby Digital Plus. So far so good then. The Fire Phone has enough power to conformably last you two years on a contract, but what are they bringing to the phone that will convince you to buy it over the newest iPhone or the latest flagship Android device. Well, if you already use Amazon’s services you will be happy to know that the Fire Phone can be used to control the

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Fire TV. In addition to this it will also control Amazon Prime Video, and the recently released Prime Music service. Popular streaming services like Netflix and Hulu Plus will also be available. Amazon’s Mayday service will also be accessible on the device. But, what is an Amazon device without the ability to buy products from Amazon’s incredible online catalog? This is where you cue the new Firefly feature. Firefly allows users of the Fire Phone to use the inbuilt camera to scan QR codes or items, and then will add these items to your Amazon Basket. Being able to recognise 100 million items and listen for music and add it Prime Music is an amazing feature, but it does look as if Amazon are just encouraging you to spend more and more money. The phone will be available in North America on July 25th, starting at $199 for the 32 GB model on a two year contract, or $299 for the 64 GB version. No word on when we will be seeing it in the UK, but there’s no doubt it will find its way across the Atlantic soon enough. Tobi Stidolph

New scientific breakthrough for 3d printed organs

Technology

rand new research has overcome a major married, now enabling scientists to 3D print whole organs. We have been able to ‘print’ certain human tissues for a long while, but now US and Australian researchers can now print human tissues that can survive in there own. Until now, a major barrier had been in place to stop the process moving from printing tiny sheets of tissue to entire 3-dimensional organs. The barrier was that they had not figured out how to develop the blood vessels that provide cells with nutrients and oxygen, and allow them to excrete waste. This cell process is called ‘vascularisation’, and is necessary if researchers are able to prevent cells from dying, so that they can then grow large transplantable organs. However, in this new breakthrough, researchers from Sydney and Harvard university have managed to 3D bio-print capillaries, the channels that allow vascularisation to take place. They can now sustain themselves and survive. They used a high-tech ‘bio-printer’ to fabricate tiny fibres to serve as the mould for artificial blood vessels. The 3D printed structure was then covered with a ‘cell-rich protein-based material’, which was then solidified by shining light on it. Finally, the scientists removed the bio-printed fibres to leave behind a network of tiny capillaries coated with human endothelial cells. This formed stable blood capillaries in less than one week. This is a medical breakthrough, and biomedical engineer at the University of Sydney, Dr. Luiz Bertassoni, said, “We have shown that we can print these capillaries, we have shown they are functional, that they mature to form capillaries and that we can tailor make them to the sizes and structures we need. Tissue engineering to make simpler tissues has been a reality for a number of years and through what we have been able to achieve, we can start talking about larger, more complex tissues that are able to survive longer.” “Thousands of people die each year due to a lack of organs for transplantation,” Bertassoni said. “Many more are subjected to the surgical removal of tissues and organs due to cancer, or they’re involved in accidents with large fractures and injuries. While printing organs may be a couple of decades away, I also wouldn’t be surprised if I was wrong about that because this type of engineering is moving so rapidly. I would so love to be wrong.” We will see how far thus new technology will advance medical science on our planet. Tobi Stidolph

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Category

www.101reykjavik.co.uk

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Category

IOS 8 AND OSX YOSEMITE BETA 3 DETAILS

GLIMPSE OF POTTERS LIFE J.K. Rowling has written a new story about Harry Potter, featuring the character as an adult for the ﬁrst time since the conclusion of her book series nearly seven years ago. The story is the latest in a series about the the Quidditch World Cup that Rowling has been writing over at Pottermore for a few months now in anticipation of the actual World Cup. There's not necessarily a lot for fans to take away — these are mostly surface level observations and sketchy information from a gossip columnist, after all — but there are a few new details on what Harry, Hermione, and Ron have all been up to in the years since Rowling left them. That's certainly more than fans have been expecting, as Rowling has said in the past that she's done with Harry's story. Don't expect her to break the rule again anytime soon though: Rowling's spokesperson tells The Bookseller that she has "no plans" to write additional Potter stories.

Author: Izak Jackson

FOR DAILY TECH & GAMING NEWS VISIT: http://podd.io/

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inSYNC Author: Magazine | July 2014 Harry Zolobajluk

Technology

the first electric

he Harley-Davidson. It’s more than the world’s most famous motorcycle brand. It’s an iconic piece of history, returning memories of when the distinctive sounding bikes were driven around the US by men with tattoos, leather jackets and beards. The company created its own image, showing off the Harley’s famous V-twin engines. Take all that, and it makes the motorbike-makers next project sound just a tad insane. This is the Harley-Davidson LiveWire; and it is the first ever electric two-wheeled vehicle, straight out of Milwaukee. Test drives of the firm’s brand new electric motorcycle have made people impressed. Although this new project may not be not be suited to the typical Hell’s Angels-type rider, the bike is said to offer a surprisingly good mixture of both power and comfort. Of course, the first question that comes to mind is sound. Now, this bike, of course, doesn’t sound like a proper Harley, but it apparently has a futuristic sound that is similar to that of a modern airliner taking off. And, although the LiveWire doesn’t make that satisfying rumble, it will take you to 60mph in less than four seconds, and has a lot of style. Speaking about sound, the LiveWire’s motor had to live up to Davidson’s iconic mantra, but with no engine this took a lot of hard work. Company President Matt Levatich insists that the result of the new bike is “not contrived”. The bike now has a high-pitched whirring, coming from the three-phase AC induction motor. This reverberates around the chassis that in-turn increases the level of sound. It is apparently louder than you’d think. What Harley now has to do, though, is find out whether anyone actually wants their newly concocted vehicle. To market the LiveWire, the company is taking some of the bikes on the ‘Project LiveWire Tour’, which will see the new bike take to Europe and the United States, where the majority of Harley’s bikes are sold. It will invite people to test and look at the LiveWire, and the manufacturer is asking for feedback in return.

introducing the livewire Building the LiveWire was a challenge for the company, going from building a bike around an engine, to building one around a battery. Batteries are heavy, and although Harley have not stated the weight of the battery they have used, experts reckon it is somewhere in the region of 110kg. This meant cutting weight elsewhere on the bike. Harley created a cast aluminium frame that surrounds the battery box, and this weighs only 6.3kg, making it 3.6kg lighter than the Zero, a rival bike companies electric bike. They have also cut weight on the wheels, ditching the exhaust system and giving the bike a tightly packaged, sleek look. The company has been building motorbikes since

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

1903, and has definitely stuck to the ‘bigger-is-better’ way of life. This said, even the likes of Harley knows that times are changing, and has recognised that it needs to start changing and growing its customer base; which is currently dominated by white middle-aged males. New motorcycle brands like Zero and Brammo have proven that attracting younger customers requires the ability to manufacture smaller, more compact bikes, that are powered by batteries. Even major motorbike players like Yamaha, and soon Ducati, are starting to give electrical power a chance. Mark-Hans Richer, Harley-Davidson’s Head of Marketing said, “Any business has always got to look ahead to see where customers

Technology

harley-davidson

are interested in going, and see where society might be going.” Some specs for you then; the LiveWire will ofer 74 horsepower, 52fp of torque and a top speed of 92mph. Pretty nifty for something with a battery. It will cost around £7,500 and it is said that it has even more torque and power than Harley-Davidson’s Iron 883 motorcycle. Harley-Davidson says the new bike is using a Lithion-ion battery with a range of 53 miles. It’s not a lot at the moment, and takes 3.5 hours to charge. Harley has emphasised its own excitement over their new product, although they have significantly downplayed the importance of the leap that the LiveWire is

taking for the firm. An electric bike is something that could draw a younger, more urban audience to the ancient, iconic brand. Mark-Hans Richer also said, “This is just part of us understanding where the world might want to go.” The firm is taking a cautious approach to the new project, though, as to not upset the constant popularity of the more traditional Harley, and more traditional clientele. Hopefully, Harley-Davidson can really make something big out of this future project. Some of the company’s last projects delving into potentially lucrative but niche markets have somewhat ended

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

poorly. This said, it hasn’t kept the biking firm from trying again and again. Earlier this year, Harley launched the Harley-Davidson Street, a simpler, cheaper bike made for inter-city riding. The Harley LiveWire is another step in that modern direction. That’s not out of the question. Harley’s past forays into the potentially lucrative market for smaller, city-focused bikes have ended poorly. That hasn’t kept it from trying again this year with the launch of the Street, a simpler, cheaper, bike made for city riding. The LiveWire is another step in that direction. Company President Matt Levatich said, “Why can’t Harley do some of these other cool things, too, and see where it takes us?”

Business

The Man Making Millions From Youtube 14

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

ive years ago, just anyone would not have been able to get rich just from being on the web. But now, with Google taking a stronger and stronger grip on the Internet, their advertising schemes are making lots of people lots of money. Swedish YouTuber Felix Kjellberg, better known by his YouTube name ‘PewDiePie’, has recently revealed that he earns the equivalent of £2.4 million in advertising sales every year. In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, the YouTube addict said that his videos are astonishingly lucrative. Kjellberg usually uploads two vids a day with him playing different video games whilst providing an Audi commentary. Not that much when you think about it. He said, “I play video games and try to entertain to the best of my abilities. It’s kind of amazing that I can play video games for a living. When I realised that for the first time, I almost got teary-eyed.” Kjellberg started his YouTube career while studying in Gothenberg in 2010, and gained 27 million subscribers to his channel. However, he did not sign any advertising deal with the search engine until December 2012. Hi adverts are now managed by Maker Studios, who take a cut of his revenue, and sold themselves to Disney earlier this year. The YouTuber is directly responsible for the very brief popularity of the app-based smartphone game Flappy Bird. The app rocketed to the top of Apple’s App Store chart after PewDiePie published a video named ‘Flappy Bird - Don’t Play This Game’. Kjellberg also said, “It’s cool to have this kind of influence, but at the same time it’s kind of scary. Unlike many professionally produced shows, I think I’ve established a much closer contact with my viewers, breaking the wall between the viewer and what’s behind the screen.” The Swedishman, who now lives in Brighton, also added, “What I and other YouTubers do is a very different thing, it’s almost like hanging around and watching your pal play games. My fans care in a different way about what they are watching.” This was all said in PewDiePie’s Wall Street Journal interview. Tobi Stidolph

Category

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Music

Isle of Wight Festival 2014

or many people, Isle of Wight festival is the start of the British music festival season and more importantly – the Summer. The Isle of Wight festival has a huge legacy with acts such as David Bowie, The Rolling Stones, The Who – and the one the organisers like to reference the most – Jimi Hendrix. The Isle of Wight is still a great festival, although not on the same level as Glastonbury or Bestival due to its corporate tendencies, you can’t deny they still manage to book solid line ups of vintage acts like The Specials, huge rock bands such as Red Hot Chili Peppers or newer bands and dance acts such as Peace or Gorgon City. Without further ado, here’s a round-up of some of our favourite acts who played.

Rudimental

Rudimental took to the Isle of Wight main stage for the very first time, two years to in 2012. The Hackney outfit immediately had a dominance about their performance and had the the day after their debut gig performance, which was also at the Isle of Wight Festival, crowd in fine voice right from the off. The special guest band dropped a selection of hits from their debut studio album Home including ‘Free’, ‘Waiting All Night’, ‘Not Giving In’ and ‘Feel The Love’.

Biffy Clyro

Biffy Clyro took to the main stage as Friday night headliners for the first time, on their second visit in three years to the Isle of Wight. They subbed Pearl Jam in 2012. The Scottish trio who had more than earned their co-headline slot were on incredible form from the outset and played massive hits ‘Many of Horror’, ‘Biblical’, ‘Mountains’, ‘Bubbles’ and ‘Black Chandelier’ amongst many others with frequent bursts of fireworks and confetti. The performance got the crowd buzzing for Calvin Harris.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Music

Calvin Harris

Calvin Harris rounded off a memorable Friday on the Isle of Wight and an all-Scottish headlining affair, after Biffy Clyro, with potentially the best set of the weekend. The Scottish DJ brought out the majority of his impressive back-catalogue including ‘Bounce’, ‘Feel So Close’, ‘We’ll Be Coming Back’ and ‘Drinking From The Bottle’, with every drop as big as the last, greeting the crowd with bursts of dry ice, and the occasional firework before a finale to remember during ‘Summer’. A full firework display lit up the main stage, making sure the adoring crowd went absolutely crazy.

Katy B

Headlining the Big Top after the main stage action had finished was London’s singer-songwriter Katy B. The 25 year old put in a very energetic set and was the perfect closing performance, complementing Calvin Harris on the main stage. She played her bangers from 2011 album ‘On a Mission’, including ‘Lights Out’ and of course ‘On a Mission’, as well as newer tracks from her 2014 album ‘Little Red’.

The Specials

Following on from The 1975, and sub-headlining the Red Hot Chili Peppers, 1977-formed ska band, The Specials, took to the stage on a very pleasant Saturday evening. From the start of the set, there was an energy within the crowd for the first time that day. The stylish, suited Coventry outfit performed hits ‘Too Much Too Young’, ‘Rat Race’, ‘Ghost Town’, ‘Concrete Jungle’ and ‘Stereotype’, amongst many others on what was a fairly large setlist that got the crowd moving as much now as they would have done 30 years ago.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Music

Red Hot Chili Peppers

Under normal circumstances, an England Football match on a Saturday night would be considered an absolute must watch, and certainly many people would have headed to the big screen to watch it, but the Chili Peppers still drew in a massive crowd. 1983-formed Californian funk-rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers were the biggest name on the lineup, and from the outset it was clear as to why. After turning up to the main stage somewhat fashionably late the Chilis delivered a set packed with energy from minute one and it didn’t take long for that energy to be passed on to the massive main stage crowd. The band played hits ‘Snow’, ‘Californication’, ‘By The Way’ and ‘Give It Away’, as well as many of the signature Chili Pepper jams with a dominance to the wanting crowd. But, interestingly and obviously fairly disappointingly missed off ‘Under the Bridge’, ‘Higher Ground’, ‘Around the Corner’ and ‘Meet Me at the Corner’, which were all apparently on the setlist.

Peace

Indie band Peace, on the verge of releasing their follow up to last years debut ‘In Love’ took to the Big Top stage on Sunday, sliding some new songs such as ‘World Pleasure’ and their new single ‘Money’. Everyone had a lot of fun and it’s fair to say that Peace as a band is definitely on the rise.

Gorgon City

Gorgon City provided an exceptional closing set on the Big Top after Clean Bandit and Red Hot Chili Peppers on main stage on Saturday. Only one half of Gorgon City was in attendance for the DJ set but that did not matter, as the typical deafening bass associated with Gorgon City was noticeable on every occasion.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Kings of Leon

Kings of Leon rounded off the 2014 Isle of Wight Festival with a memorable performance at Seaclose Park. Their live show had a fresher feel to it after their 2011 hiatus and was one of the performances of the weekend. The band, who were in the middle of a short UK stadium tour dug deep into the back catalogue and duly played hits ‘Pyro’ and ‘Radioactive’ amongst many more, before the evidently tiring Isle of Wight crowd were reinvigorated with monster 2008 hits ‘Use somebody’ and then ‘Sex on Fire’ at the end of the encore.

Fall Out Boy

American rock band Fall Out Boy were contenders for heaviest band on the lineup this year and at no point looked like disappointing the wanting Isle of Wight crowd. With banter from both lead singer, Patrick Stump and bassist Pete Wentz after the majority of each song, the set flowed very nicely. The band played a surprisingly large set of 15 with a mixture of bangers in the shape of ‘Dance Dance’, & ‘I Slept With Someone’ and ‘I don’t Care’, as well as newer stuff such as ‘Phoenix’, Young Volcanoes’ and ‘My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark’ as well as their cover of Michael Jackson’s ‘Beat It’.

George Hall & Luke Jackson

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Music

glastonbury 2014 thursday

friday

The 1975

Kaiser Chiefs

On Thursday, although music had not officially started, we caught indie-pop group The 1975 at the William’s Green tent, where their secret set was beginning. The 1975 have really made it big in the last eighteen months, and with only one, self-titled, album under their belt this is quite an achievement. However, for a band excelling as much as The 1975, they have, quite possibly, one of the worst attitudes towards gigs as any other band we’ve seen. Lead singer, Matt Healy, strolled on stage, bottle of wine in hand, which was met with some, what seemed to be, scepticism from the awaiting crowd. The rest of the band followed, and everything kicked off pretty swimmingly. I do like The 1975’s music, but the way the conduct themselves on stage is one of concern. When songs ‘Pressure’, ‘Girls’, ‘Sex’ and ‘Chocolate’ were thrown into the mix the crowd seemed happy enough. Let’s be honest, it was only the first night at Glastonbury, so perhaps people weren’t quite yet throwing themselves in just yet. The highlight of this set though was the experience of a fight. Now, occasionally at a gig you’ll get a crowd scrap, but unusually this was between The 1975 front man and a member of his audience. A can thrown on to stage in Healy’s direction prompted him to comment, ‘If you do that again, I’m f**king coming down there’, which was ignored by the majority of the crowd. But, as ‘Girls’ ended, a second can, thrown on stage during the song, saw Matt Healy put down his guitar, and jump straight into the thick of it, slapping the thrower in the process. Onlookers watched as drummer George Daniel then launched himself into the crowd. This then made the security act. Not something you get at a gig, and a more than unimpressed Glastonbury crowd then booed the frontman as he tried to explain the situation.

Metronomy

A thirty minute wait after The 1975 was worthwhile to see 4-piece electronic music group Metronomy perform. They lifted the spirit of William’s Green, and when top hits ‘The Look’ and ‘Love Letters’, and ‘The Upsetter’ the crowd really got going. Metronomy ended our first taste of Glastonbury acts on a high, and we look forward to seeing them again in the near future.

The Kaisers opened our Friday at Glastonbury with an earlier 11:30 set. It was a secret set, meant for young Kiwi singer Lorde of whom pulled out, so Ricky Wilson and co snapped up the opportunity. The Kaiser Chiefs kept the crowd happy with ‘I Predict A Riot’, ‘The Angry Mob’ and ‘Oh My God’. It was fun to watch frontman Ricky Wilson actually performing and showing off his indie-rock self, rather than seeing his TV performance on the Voice self. There was quite a comparison, as his normally calm character went full throttle and played off of the crowds energy. The only let down to the Kaiser’s performance was it seemed a little forced. Perhaps as it not being their actual set, but one where they were publicising. And being on so early in the day, meant all eyes from the BBC, and the nation were watching them perform. Who knows? Either way they out on a good show, one that kicked off our Friday with a positive.

Crystal Fighters

Even if you don’t like Crystal Fighters’ unique, dance sound, you will appreciate the effort and energy that they give during a gig. The five-person, London-based band was one of the top acts that we got to see at Glastonbury this year. Playing at Glastonbury’s famous John Peel stage. Crystal Fighters gave it their all to a very excitable, enthusiastic crowd. Crystal Fighters took their name from an unfinished opera written by Laure Stockley’s, one of the band’s founding members, grandfather. She came across the article, which was written by the old man in the months before he died, in his remote Spanish countryside house. The house was in the Basque area of Northern Spain, that has a lot of history, culture and music relations. Crystal Fighters is based on Basque music, and they set the tone at their Glastonbury set by playing the txalaparta, a Basque music percussion instrument that is made up of 4 planks of wood. This got the crowd hyped, and built on the entrance of each of the band’s members. Although they only played a small, ten-song set, it was impressive to watch, and the crowd really got into each song. ‘Follow’, ‘Champion Sound’, ‘Love Is All I Got’, ‘You and I’, and Fighters’ new single ‘Love Alight’ made the crowd bounce. It was a great set, and we would highly recommend getting to see Crystal Fighters when they are next on tour.

Arcade Fire

The magical Canadian indie-rock band that is Arcade Fire stepped out onto Glastonbury’s famous pyramid stage as the first headliner of the year. The six-piece unit are an incredible group of musicians playing the guitar, drums, bass, piano, violin, viola, cello, double bass, xylophone, glockenspiel, keyboard, synthesiser, French horn, accordion, harp, mandolin and hurdygurdy. That is an amazing set, and is what gives Arcade their unique sound. Frontman Win Butler pulled off a stellar performance, and kicking off with ‘Reflektor’, the title song from their 2013 Number One album, started the gig on the right foot. Arcade Fire has an excellent screen behind them to represent each song, and the immense Glastonbury crowd joined in with almost every tune. ‘Joan of Arc’, ‘The Suburbs’, ‘We Exist’, ‘Keep the Car Running’ and ‘No Cars Go’ all got the crowd in a singalong mood. Arcade Fire put on an impressive show, even mixing in some songs of Glastonbury’s best former headliners, like ‘Wonderwall’, Bitter Sweet Symphony’ and ‘99 Problems’. Arcade ended the show on a high with ‘Here Comes the Night Time’ and ‘Wake Up’, which caused waves of singing from the crowd even after the band had left the stage. Win Butler thanked the crowd at the end, quoting, ‘...in a life of impossible things, this has to be a highlight,’ which may have caused a few tears. The way Arcade Fire have a sincerity to their music, and the performance they give, and has to be admired. They are like no other. Arcade Fire definitely gave us some ‘gig shock’.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

our highlights saturday

sunday

Circa Waves

White Lies

A small, new band from Liverpool kicked off our Saturday in Somerset. Yet to release an album, Circa Waves are someone we already like and can’t wait to see how far they go. It was good to see them high in the bill, filling the Other Stage, and although they may not have drawn in such a big crowd I’m sure they’ll begin to very soon. The four-man crew, fronted by Kieran Shuddall, has announced their own tour for November, which means an album from them in imminent. ‘Stuck In My Teeth’ is, at the moment, their best song, and definitely worth a listen to. Only problem is, Circa Waves are similar to a few indie-pop bands, and the push for uniqueness is really needed.

Pixies

The Pixies never fail to impress, and have made a massive comeback since their reunion in 2004. Still making success out of their new material, released in June last year, the American rock group drew an enormous crowd to Glastonbury’s Other Stage. They also showed off some of their new album, ‘Indie Cindy’, that was only released in April. The crowd had a good singalong session, especially with ‘Here Come’s Your Man’ and ‘Where Is My Mind?’ Black Francis, Pixies frontman, still has a great voice, and in the ten years since their get together they have become evermore popular. The Pixies have also announced a tour for later this year, with new rock band Royal Blood as support. We look forward to seeing the Pixies again, and hope they keep the crowd entertained as much as they did at Worthy Farm this year.

MGMT

Instead of seeing the legendary Metallica on the Saturday night, we opted for the John Peel stage to see American psychedelic rock band MGMT. Although often pegged as one of the worst live performing bands, MGMT absolutely rocked Glastonbury, and the energy from the crowd was definitely transferred to the stage. ‘Kids’, ‘Alien Days’ and ‘Electric Feel’ were all on the bill for the Saturday night set, and these had the entire crowd singing along. To add to MGMT’s unique, and somewhat unusual, sound, they had a giant screen behind with trippy images of shapes and characters that can only have been inspired by the works of LSD. MGMT’s imagination poured onto the stage, with the excellent backing video, and way that they performed each song. Although there was not much interaction with the audience, the Connecticut-based band didn’t need it to make their set work. Definitely a recommended artist to catch, and although we may have missed one of the biggest heavy rock bands of all time, I don’t regret setting foot on the MGMT trail.

Music

I went along to White Lies only knowing a few songs. But they definitely win my award for most surprising act I saw at Glasto. In the end I knew around five or six songs of their set, but they were really good. The were so good intact, I’ve now downloaded all of their albums. White Lies are a three-man band from Ealing in London, and front man Harry McVeigh are one of the best live voices I think I’ve heard. If you ever want to see a man that is so incredibly happy to be on stage watch White Lies. They were quoted as saying Glastonbury 2014 was one of the best crowds they’d ever had, and I don’t think they were expecting it. McVeigh couldn’t stop smiling the whole gig, and at one point he looked like he was struggling to sing. The crowd’s energy transferred to the stage, and White Lies made one of the best performances I saw in Somerset. ‘To Lose My Life’, ‘Death’ and ‘Big TV’ were all top tunes for the crowd to enjoy, and they put all into their Other Stage performance. Watching their set back, they had a massive crowd, and for band that isn’t particularly big they did well to impress. If there was a band I had to pick to go see a headline tour this year, it would definitely be White Lies; a must watch for any music lovers.

The Horrors

After White Lies, instead of rushing to the Pyramid, to see Dolly Parton, we remained at the Other Stage to see indie-rock band The Horrors. Although I like The Horrors’ music on record, it was disappointing to see them perform a dreary, generally boring set. The crowd didn’t exactly get into it like most of the other acts that we saw over the weekend, and comparing it to White Lies’ performance that came before it, it was a waste to watch. Now, I’m not a Dolly fan, but I now wish that we’d gone to see her. At least she would of put on a show that was worth watching, and probably, for me, a once-in-alifetime opportunity to see.

Kasabian

Now, when Michael Eavis announced that Kasabian were to close Glastonbury 2014, as the Sunday night headliner, I wasn’t that excited. I had always admired the Leicestershire rock band’s style but had never really got into them. Then, a few week before Glastonbury, they performed at Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Glasgow. Their set impressed me, and acted as a festival warm up for group. I have to say, I listen to more Kasabian now than I ever did, and they absolutely smashed the Glastonbury performance. Hit after hit was played and I don’t think a single member of the crowd did not join in the fun. People of each others shoulders, flags, inflatables and flares set the tone for the rock group’s madness. ‘bumblebeee’, ‘Shoot the Runner’, ‘eez-gl’, ‘Fast Fuse’, ‘Fire’, ‘Vlad the Impaler’. The list is endless. I have to say non-stop jumped for ninety minutes really takes it out of you. Not to mention the mosh pit that erupted when prompted by the chants of frontman Tom Meighan. Soon after Glasto, Kasabian announced their headline European tour, and they made Glastonbury all the better. We absolutely got our money’s worth for the festival as a whole. And, with a band like Kasabian, they could now charge at least £60 for you to see just them. We look forward to being able to return to Glastonbury, and we will 100% be trying for tickets when the sale opens in October. Tobi Stidolph

The Monday morning aftermath

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Wireless Festival Review

Wireless Festival

Kanye’s mask is just one part of his live theatrics.

omething about festivals that people need to understand is that there are two types. Type one is the kind of festival where what you pay is what you get. An amazing experience lasting a whole weekend; rock up on a Wednesday or Thursday, chill out before the music starts, then saunter home on the Monday feeling good about the past four days, even if you are covered in mud. These are the kinds of festivals where everyone in encouraged to dive in head first. This is what Glastonbury, Bestival and Secret Garden Garden, to name just a few want. A festival focused on good music, good times and good atmosphere. Then there’s the festivals that are saturated in corporate advertising, and you’re made to feel like having a good time is just a few more pounds away. These are the kind of festies that are either one-day items or a place you wouldn’t turn up to until the time you’re supposed to, and you leave at the end of the weekend as quick as you can. Now don’t get me wrong, these are still good festivals where you can go enjoy some bands, but you feel like you have to pay extra for the best festival experience, rather than being thrown in at the deep end, and having to swim your way back to reality after everything has ended. With Wireless, this year had one of the best lineups of any festival in the UK, but was let down by its get-you-in get-you-out approach. I don’t mind walking past a Pepsi Max Stage, but the rushed vibe doesn’t make it a place

you’d arrive at 9am and stay until the end of the headline act. We showed our faces at Finsbury Park, in north London, at around six, just enough time to get pattered down by the airport-style security check point and through to watch Giorgio Moroder. Moroder was a must-see, because being the Godfather of disco music and being the grand age of 74 means he’s not just around the block when you want a dance. We remained at the Pepsi Max stage to see Basement Jaxx. The electronic dance duo from Brixton put on a great set, with the extra performers and singers that are with the pair for their live shows. I did have to appreciate the effort that they put in, and would definitely love to see them again. Mainly due to our time seeing Jaxx being cut short to get a decent spot for Kanye West. For a lineup this strong you can put up with rowdy crowds and sluggish advertising campaigns for half a day. Hell, I would of put up with that for Kanye alone. The Yeezus star played an impressive 22-song set, including hits ‘Black Skinhead’, ‘Clique’, ‘Can’t Tell Me Nothing’ and ‘Jesus Walks’, but disappointingly left out ‘Gold Digger’. One of Kanye’s famous rants was interjected in the middle of song ‘Runaway’, but unlike stated on his setlist carried on for twenty minutes. Although I appreciated the speech from the Atlanta-born artist, maybe going on for an extended period to fifty-thousand odd drunken persons wasn’t

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

london july 4th

the best idea. Half way through boos began raining down from areas of the crowd, and taunts of ‘Shut the f**k up Kayne, play a song’ began. Although this was clearly audible, the tenacious Mr. West merely ignored the chants and continued what he had to say. In all Wireless 2014 was not bad value for money, but having to pay god knows how much extra for the VIP experience would not have been my cup of tea. All this aside, I don’t think it put people off buying tickets for the sold-out festival, but jumping from the euphoria of Somerset at Glastonbury to the middle of London at Wireless in a matter of days was perhaps not the best of choices. Tobi Stidolph

Category

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

sTANDON CALLING S

Music

‘Much more than simply a music festival’ - It has a swimming pool! tandon Calling is one of England’s most hush-hush festivals, but why wouldn’t it be, it’s tiny? Set in the grounds of a 16th century manor house in the middle of nowhere, the 5,000 capacity festival is never afraid to have fun. The festival’s nightlife never seems to end, with the so-called ‘Cod Shed’ seeing a lot of the early hour action, with revellers dancing until sunrise. Electro-god Julio Bashmore has taken to the Cow Shed in previous years. A late-night licence keeps the bars rolling too, and adds to the party atmosphere. Alongside the consistently strong lineups at Standon, it does not change massively yearon-year. Now although it may not sound like it, I mean this in the best possible sense. This is a festival with an outdoor swimming pool, and joyful festival-goers flock to it every year when the weather is looking up. The campsite for Standon is always trouble-free for those who inhabit there, and Standon seems to have a smiley, positive atmosphere that lasts the weekend through. There is also a special kids area set out designed so music-lovers with families can still attend, not having to worry about their children. Activities featuring painting, drawing, playdough and more will keep the little ones occupied.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Music

The weekend party that is Standon Calling has kept the festy at the top of the mini-festival chart for a long time. It’s the place to go for fun and freewill. As for 2014’s headliners; Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls bring their folk-punk sound to Standon. Public Enemy will then bring themselves to the main stage for Saturday night’s event, and Sunday will see rock band Maximo Park close the festival. We will also see indie-rock band Peace, newcomers Clean Bandit, British singer-songwriter Ella Eyre, London-based singer King Charles, DJ Yoda, and many more bring their sounds to the Hertfordshire festival. Each year Standon Calling has a weekend theme. This year it’s ‘Lost in Latin America’ so cue the arts, set designs, costumes and more. Perhaps the best aspect about the theme is flitting between the stages, food stalls, and extra entertainment, something you don’t always get to do with a major festival. Standon also gives people the ability to walk from one side to the other in ten minutes. Sometimes a compact size is best to improve atmosphere at a festival.

Still need some convincing that Standon is one of the best mini-fests around? The dress up theme Saturday is something that not a single punter misses out on, and passing up the opportunity would be a costly mistake. The annual themes are novel, and the costumes become more and more extravagant, making Standon’s atmosphere ever more adhering. Standon makes for an excellent weekend of quirky fun, and with some of the areas decked out to be more ‘child-like’, which, although is aimed at adults makes it even more a family-friendly environment. Standon Calling is a must for those who want to jump right into an intimate, music-loving festival. The special experience that it gives will make sure you have an excellent weekend that hits you right in the spot. Standon Calling is Friday, Saturday and Sunday 1st to 3rd August, and tickets start at an incredible £85.00 for Super Early Bird buyers. All tickets are available at www.standon-calling.com, but you’ll have to be quick. Tobi Stidolph

‘Standon Calling is a must for those who want to jump right into an intimate, music-loving festival’

Our top Picks from the line up... peace We saw Peace perform last December on tour, and again at the Isle of Wight Festival. They just keep performing to a high standard, with their excellent sound, and that’s why we are looking forward to seeing Peace bring their indie-rock to Standon Calling. Peace recently released a new single, ‘Money’, and that is setting them up for their forthcoming album, which is being released later this year.

dj yoda

We’re also looking forward to seeing DJ Yoda’s set. The London-born hip hop artist uses samples of songs to create his ‘cartoon’ musical style. DJ Yoda has bad a pretty expansion career, working with many people, releasing two albums, and even working on 2009 videogame DJ Hero. He has won many awards, and often appears on BBC Radio 1 as a guest. We look forward to seeing what Yoda has in store for Standon.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

clean bandit

Clean Bandit are the band that everyone’s talking about. They have a quirky difference about them, and we are looking forward to seeing them perform and Standon, as they tour with their new album ‘New Eyes’. Clean Bandit made it big with their chart-topping single ‘Rather Be’, earlier this year, and have really made a name for themselves performing at tons of festivals across the country this summer.

Green Man Preview

Green Man Festival W

‘focused on good music and creating a unique ambience which lasts the entire weekend’

ith the amount of festivals now cropping up throughout the year in the United Kingdom, it can sometimes be hard to know which ones you want to go to! Sometimes it’s hard to get away from the corporate advertising and mass marketing campaigns that Glastonbury has managed to dodge for so many successful years. For something different in a festival, out in Brecon Beacons, there is four days worth of independent, family-friendly fun waiting to be had. Music has to excel more than anything else to make a festival great, and this certainly ticks all the right boxes for what’s good for your ears. Green Man Festival, something the Welsh can definitely be proud of, has an incredibly strong line up for 2014’s mid-August weekend party. Green Man is known for its relaxed atmosphere, and has a strong sway towards the indie and folk music scenes. Having won both the Grass Roots Festival and Best Medium Sized Festival accolades at this year’s UK Festival Awards, we are expecting another great year from the Welsh festival. With that under the belt, it’s clear to see that Green Man isn’t just the same as any other mid-sized market festival, but one that is focused on good music and creating a unique ambiance that lasts the weekend long. Green Man have sorted exotic indie-folk band Beirut to headline, who will bring a new sound to the valley this year. Also joining Beirut at the head of Green Man 2014 is recently-reformed Neutral Milk Hotel, whose indie legacy has almost

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

certainly prompted a lot of music influence into a number of today’s bands. The Saturday headliner is yet to be announced. Joining the two front bands at the Black Mountains setting include Mercury Rev and The Waterboys, both of whose set lists are overflowing with cracking songs that Green Man-goers can get excited about. A band who we at inSYNC thoroughly enjoyed at Glastonbury this year, The War On Drugs, are still in the UK for Green Man, still sucking up the success from their latest featured album. Drugs fans will turn up in droves to see the Philadelphia-based band perform the latest and greatest hits. 2014’s Green Man Festival is lining itself up to be one of the best so far, and for a festival that’s only on its eleventh year, the acts playing just keep getting better. First Aid Kit, touring ahead of their new album Stay Gold release, Caribou, Polica, Daughter, Kurt Vile, Anna Calvi, and more will join the main headliners over the long weekend. For those more accustomed to dance, Green Man will fulfil your urge to dance too; Simian Mobile Disco, The 2 Bears, East India Youth, and tons more will add to the vibrant atmosphere and excellent nightlife. As well as this, Green Man is one of the few British festivals that has a 24 hour licence meaning that you can party from dusk ‘til dawn, really making the most out of this quaint affair.

Music

But, it’s not just about the music. Green Man encompasses literature, comedy, film, theatre and art too, to bring festival-goers the best entertainment experience, and to showcase a strong commitment to the performing arts. The comedy stage will this year bring us standup from Josh Widdicombe, plus more. And, something only Green Man could provide is the so-called ‘Einstein’s Garden’, which promises to impress, with a lineup of science and nature fun designed to blow the mind. The setup of Green Man is also one of spectacular design, featuring different areas. The festival’s intimate main stage is at the Mountain’s Foot, placed in front of the Black Mountains landscape. The Far Out area features Green Man’s excellent all-night entertainment regime filled with DJs and dance acts, all in the shadow of a large bonfire. Green Man 2014 will run from Thursday August 14th to Sunday August 17th. And, if you think this glorious, laid-back, atmospheric festival comes at a great cost, think again. Adult tickets for just £159 is much more affordable than most of Britain’s major festivals and there are even student tickets available for just £135, plus a booking fee. Check out Green Man now, and order your tickets on their website at www.

Our top Picks from the line up... bEIRUT The New York-based six-piece are brining their indie-rock sound to Green Man this year. The headline act are described as being synonymous with exotic world music and should give an excellent show to Green Man’s chilled out vibe. We’re looking forward to see what Beirut will bring to Green Man, and see if they are as good of a live band, as they are on record.

CARIBOU

(Pictured above) Canadian composer and musician Caribou is joining Beirut as one of the top billed acts for Green Man 2014. Albums ‘Swim’ and ‘Our Love’ proved to be popular for the artist, and his psychedelic pop sounds have rocketed his career further onwards. Caribou has gone from strength to strength including supporting Radiohead on their headline tour back in 2012. This should be Caribou in good stead to bring an excellent show to the Green Man main stage.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

tHE WAR ON DRUGS Philadelphia band, The War On Drugs, is someone we thoroughly enjoyed at Glastonbury last month, and it’s great to see them on the list for action at Green Man. They are still enjoying success from their third studio album ‘Lost In The Dream’, and with songs like ‘Under the Pressure’ and ‘The History of Plastic’ on the setlist it should make for a decent show.

Film

the most anticipated f Here’s some of our most anticipated films for the rest of 2014, there is plenty to choose from but we managed to narrow it down to five.

lost river

Originally called How to Catch a Monster, well-known actor Ryan Gosling is making his directorial debut with a film, which features big names such as Eva Mendes, Christina Hendricks, Saoirse Ronan, and featuring in his first big movie Matt Smith; who is better known for being the star of Doctor Who in recent years. This film has been attracting a lot of interest and at the recent Cannes Film Festival received a mixture of reviews. The story consists a single mother who is swept into a dark underworld, while her teenage son discovers a road that leads to a secret underwater town. This film could either be a stroke of genius or a disaster but you’ll have to wait until October/November of this year to see it.

Guardians of the galaxy

The newest film to come from Marvel Studios is an action/sci-fi film from space where an American pilot called Peter Quill, played by the actor Chris Pratt, finds himself at the centre of a manhunt after stealing a mysterious orb coveted by the villainous Ronan (Lee Pace).To help fight Ronan, Peter Quill; also known as Star-Lord, creates ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ in order to save the world. As expected with a Marvel film, it comes with a star studded cast, which includes the likes of Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel, Josh Brolin and even Bradley Cooper, who is voicing a raccoon. If this film is anything like the success of the Avengers, or any of the characters from that films’ individual movies then this film should be a big hit. Guardians of the Galaxy is in cine-

Mockingjay: part 1

The third instalment of the Hunger Games series comes from the final book of the trilogy ‘Mockingjay’. For film purposes the book has been split into two, mainly to make more money of course. But, I’m looking to forward to this film to see if it can better the previous two. Its features the same cast with the added addition of Julianne Moore. In this instalment Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) has become the symbol of a rebellion in the districts against the autocratically run capital. No matter how good the film is, due to the mass fan base for the franchise, it will most definitely be a box office success. The film will be in cinemas on 21st November 2014.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Film

films coming this fall

maze runner

This film is based on the book with the same namesake, written by James Dashner. Main character Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) wakes up in an elevator, remembering nothing but his own name. He emerges into a world of about sixty teen boys who have learned to survive in a completely enclosed environment, subsisting on their own agriculture and supplies. A new boy arrives every 30 days. The original group has been in "The Glade" for two years, trying to find a way to escape through the Maze that surrounds their living space. They have begun to give up hope. Then a girl arrives with a strange note, and their world begins to change. Other cast members include Will Poulter (from We’re the Millers) and Thomas Brodie-Sangster (from Games of Thrones). Personally, I’m quite intrigued by this film but it does have a Hunger Games-kind-of-feel to it, but I may be proved wrong. I’m also a big fan of Will Poulter so it will be interesting to him play in different genre of film.

interstellar My most anticipated film for the rest of 2014 is Interstellar by director Christopher Nolan. Nolan has directed some of my favourite films of all time such as The Prestige, The Dark Knight Trilogy and Inception, so I have extremely high hopes for this blockbuster. This sci-fi/fantasy is about a group of explorers that make use of a newly discovered wormhole in space to surpass limitations on human space travel, and conquer the vast distances involved in an ‘Interstellar Voyage’. Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey stars along with Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and many others for this film. The film poster already shows a tagline “Mankind was born on earth, it was never meant to die on here”. This straight away gets me excited, and from watching the trailer I believe this could be an early contender for an Oscar in 2015. The movie will be released on 7th November in the UK. Tom Jones

If you want to read more film reviews follow me on Twitter @ tcjones95 or follow my blog at http://tomstimes.wordpress.com/. Check out Tom’s other reviews online at www.insynctm.com.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Film

22 JUMP STREET Review

o, most of us saw the immature hilarity of Jonah Hill’s 21 Jump Street. A film based on the 1980s TV series that starred Johnny Depp. Well, it’s back. The best bromantic, action-comedy sequel that you’ll see this year. After the success of the first film, I was worried that Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum might just butcher the comedic adventure for another sack of cash, but actually it held true to its predecessor. I believe this was partly helped due to Jonah Hill’s involvement in devising the storyline. 22 Jump Street is living proof that comedy sequels can work through its uncompromising immaturity and goofiness. The shear height of continuous entertainment was impressive; never a dull moment within. What Hill has managed to do so well is turn crazy stunt and university gags into a memorable and funny film that all can enjoy, and works well to make sure you get your money’s worth. Stars Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum return as characters Schmidt and Jenko, two men who are thrown into Jump Street Division, an undercover, police-initialised program to root out drug dealers. This time, instead of being a school, the pair find themselves at university, with the same undercover aliases as before: Brad and Doug McQuaid. The pair are given

their assignment by Deputy Chief Hardy, and it is oddly similar to the first. At this point, you are starting to think maybe it’s just a copy of the first film. Wrong. Although, the films are similar, they are different enough to make them great. Schmidt and Jenko report to Jump Street, but this time to number 22, the building opposite the old one. The commander is once again Captain Dickson (Ice Cube), who is just as funny as in the first, but is thrilled with the team’s flashy new headquarters, even with an Ice Cube joke thrown in. I won’t spoil it for you. So, the story continues. Schmidt and Jenko turn up at college, and find that they are on a path to self-discovery. Jenko finds himself at ease within the ‘lads’ and on the college football team. He bonds with football counterpart Zook, while Schmidt tries to soften his jealousy by making a new relationship with arts major Maya, played by Amber Stevens. Hill and Tatum are a good double-act, and when it comes to what seems to be the end of their friendship, they play out a brilliant ‘breakup’ scene, enforced by the line “…maybe we should investigate other people.” Whilst Jenko is chasing up a drug league inside the football team, Schmidt’s relationship with Maya is somewhat thwarted by her roommate Mercedes, played by Jillian Bell. She is

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

very deadpan and is brilliant is a fistfight with Schmidt later in the film. This is something that the script calls ‘Mr-and-Mrs-Smith-ing’. The film is easy to watch, but does have a decent storyline too. The silliness of the pair’s college dorm room life is exceptional, especially when they meet the twin brothers from across the hall. This gives more excuses for the banter and idiocy of Schmidt’s character to roll within the scene. Now, I know what you’re thinking. There’s probably going to be three or even four movies, right? Well, the epic way that they ended 22 Jump Street sort of sank the 23 Jump Street ship. It was funny whilst it lasted, and we certainly don’t want another Hangover situation on our hands. But, if you’ve failed to watch the 21 sequel, definitely go and enjoy the cinema experience before its too late. Tobi Stidolph

Television

Sherlock Returning

veryone’s favourite British detective has confirmed that he’ll be hitting our screens once more. Sherlock, one of the most popular British series ever made, is returning to British television. It is a nice thing to hear when both Sherlock stars, Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, have excelled elsewhere with their careers, especially in the United States. Although both actors don’t seem to have a awful lot of time for more Sherlock right now, Martin Freeman recently made an appearance on talkshow Alan Carr: Chatty Man, where he hinted at more Sherlock, that could be sooner rather than later. “Mark Gatiss may beat me up, but there is an idea for this one-off special that’s such a good idea, and as I was listening to it I thought ‘we’ve just got to do this.’ And I don’t know when we are going to be able to do it, unfortunately. It’s a fantastic, really mouth-watering idea. But I really don’t know when we are going to get to do it,” said Freeman. The original plan for the next instalment of Sherlock was to begin filming this October to be ready for January 2016, but Martin Freeman recently admitted to newspaper, The Guardian, that this plan had ‘fallen away’, mainly due to scheduling issues. And, although the next two seasons are apparently already planned out, creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss have not written the script for Sherlock as of yet. Recently, there has also been a number of rumours about a Sherlock movie, but Moffat told reports that he saw no point in making a Sherlock film, when he could

just make three feature-length episodes that could be shown in cinemas. Either way, I don’t think Sherlock fans will mind, providing that this plan does not delay more Sherlock. The general consensus seems to be some is better than none, and will keep the Sherlock ball rolling until Cumberbatch and Freeman have more time to concentrate on filming the next series. we can expect to see the next full series of the show sometime in 2016. Tobi Stidolph

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Gaming

Gaming News Top gaming stories from the past month

lords of the fallen gets a release date The fantasy action-RPG will be heading to the PS4, Xbox One and PC on October 31st. Heavily compared to Dark Souls, which can only be a good thing, mainly because of the flexible combat and environmental takedowns.The game was announced last year by ex-Witcher producer Tomasz Gop, calling Lords of Fallen “Boarderlands meets Dark Souls”.

Hearthstone DLC: Curse of Naxxramas Prices Announced

Valves Steam Controller Will Be at Gamescom Valve has revealed, through its official Gamescom profile, that it will be bringing its Steam Controller to Cologne, Germany for Gamescom 2014. The Controller was revealed last year and interested fans because Valve opted to replaced traditional joysticks with touchpads. Since the announcement the touchpad has been replaced for buttons similar to that of an Xbox controller.

kinect 2.0 Pc price Kinect is now available for pre-order on the Microsoft Store before its release on July 15th. It will cost £159 or $199, and although it was released on the Xbox One for gaming, the PC version will focus on ‘application’ more. It also ships without software, which is licensed separately. We still haven’t been told how much we will be paying for the Xbox One version of Kinect 2.0, and it’s important to note that the PC version will not work on or with the Xbox One.

The eagerly awaited single player expansion for Hearthstone was first announced earlier this year. Many fans, including myself, were disappointed that the pricing and release date wasn’t revealed. The first piece of the five DLCs will be free to anyone who accesses it within the first month. After that, the other four pieces will be released week-on-week and will cost $7 each or 700 in-game gold. Players who wish to buy all of the DLCs at once will receive a discount. The DLC will also be released at some point this month, although we are still to find out.

the 2k humble bundle The newest Humble Bundle has been unveiled, and once again it’s the best value for gaming I’ve ever seen. What’s even better is that if you buy it now you’re also giving to charity. For anything under $7.50 you get BioShock, The Bureau: Xcom Decalcified, and The Darkness 2. Paying over $7.50 will get you, in addition to the first three games, BioShock 2, Mafia 2, and Spec Ops: The Line, with more games to come. And paying $20 or more will get you all of the games just listed plus Xcom: Enemy Unknown and BioShock Infinite. The great thing about the Humble Bundle is you pay whatever amount you want, and some of the proceeds go to the game-maker’s chosen charities.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Gaming

The Future Of Playstation 4

he future of the PlayStation 4 looks to revolve around three key features. The future development of streaming technology and services, much like PlayStation Now that has just entered its beta stage, sensor tech like wearable lifestyle and fitness devices, and virtual reality devices like Sony’s PlayStation Morpheus. All of this was revealed by Sony Computer Entertainment President Andrew House, who made the reveal during a Q&A session at a developer conference in Brighton. He was also joined by the PS4 architect Mark Cerny. “There are two or three potential directions that our industry and our form of entertainment could go,” House started. “Our acquisition of Gaikai, and our commitment to PlayStation Now, is again very much in the spirit of looking at how the distribution method is going to shift over time. I’ve been paying attention to what’s been happening to the music business and I think someone told me recently that the people involved in the music industry are maybe a fifth of what they were ten years ago. If you look at the stats on music streaming last year right now, last year was the first year that music downloads actually decreased year-on-year. It’s only by six percent, but it’s on the downturn. Streaming, meanwhile, is something like 30 percent up.” He continued, “No one can make perfect predictions about where these things trend but

it says to me that convenience of streaming has been embraced first in music, now in video and television, and it’s going to play some role in our business as well. Our goal, rather than have the future dictated to us is to try and be a pioneer, shaping the way it goes. That’s what we’re trying to do with PlayStation Now.” We’re also seeing a revolution in the development of sensor technology, whether it’s lifestyle-fitness management or the trend for wearables. I think we’re on the cusp, right now, of seeing a huge number of these different sets of technology get down to the physical size, and low cost, where they’re going to be very ubiquitous. This could play some sort of role in a new generation of interactive experiences, that could drive Sony further forward in the gaming market. Andrew House also said, “Then the third one is virtual reality. There’s just a sense that we have that the technology is again reaching that tipping point, it’s on the cusp of being something that really delivers you true presence, of feeling like you’re in another world. When that’s delivered it’s really magical and I think that how far,

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

how large, how quickly that’s going to become a major part of what we do remains to be seen, but we definitely think the magic of that experience leads you wanting to pursue it.” It’s impossible to see where the future of gaming could be even just five years from now. PlayStation seem to be investing heavily into wearable technology, and anything that could give users easier access to games, or a better experience while playing game. I think this definitely would interest a mass number of users. Jesse Price

Gaming

e3: microsoft

off Forza Horizon 2, Evolve, Assassin’s Creed: Unity, and Dragon Age: Inquisition. All of these n the past year Microsoft have been lacking games made the crowd go crazy. We got some behind their major competitors, Japanew footage of the off-road racing in Forza, nese-based PlayStation. Because of the huge some new gameplay from Evolve, showcasing the changes that Microsoft have made to the Xbox monster, along with probably the best gameplay One before the launch, they started way behind. demo of the show Assassins Creed. In this we saw So, with the odds stacked against them could Mi- four Assassins working together to assassinate a crosoft get existing and future costumers excited target. The best part was watching the four players about what’s coming soon and what we will see in working together; they moved quickly through the the further future? mansion map killing the guards. The fast pace and Well before E3 even started, Microsoft started teamwork could give the franchise a much needed giving people hope for what was to come. They change. But I was disappointed that with Dragon dropped Kinect, bringing the Xbox One in line Age they didn’t show any gameplay. with the PS4’s price, and they no longer required Microsoft’s audience may be hyped about what’s us to have an Xbox Live Gold Membership to use to come, but so far we’ve only seen the predictastreaming services and certain apps. And, they ble games that we see every year. And, this is the brought the games with Gold to the Xbox One. point at E3 where Microsoft bring out their big In addition to this, they also promised us that E3 hitter for 2014; Sunset Overdrive, Insomniac’s would be dedicated to the games. (known for making PlayStation games) next big They kicked off the show with Call of Duty: adventure. The trailer shown at E3 explained the Advanced Warfare, although you could argue that basic story of the game and then broke into the this was rather predictable. But, the gameplay that first live gameplay shown. Ted Price, Founder was shown dropped straight into action, with the of Insomniac, manned the controller as he took massive set piece that was shown had stunning us on a roller coaster ride, literally. The bright graphics and an array of gadgets that could let us colours and comedy elements bring something tackle the levels in different ways. new to games, something that has been lacking on The big games kept coming when they showed consoles in recent years.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Gaming

Next up came Fable Legends. Like a lot of games that we saw at E3, Fable seems to have co-op mode as its main focus. The demo showed one player as the villain who can set traps and the formation of minions on a map. While the other four players work together to defeat the villain. We don’t yet know if there will be any other game modes or a story that connects it all together, but this new Fable is far different from the previous games on the series. Then, it was time for Microsoft to claw back some reputation. For the past year, Sony has had the indie games on lock down. But when they showed Ori and the Blind Forest, a platformer with an enchanting world but it still had some depth to the story. And then came possibly the least surprising announcement of Microsoft’s E3: The Halo Master Chief Collection. It will have all of the content of Halo, Halo 2, Halo 3 and Halo 4, and the content of the DLC’s, making it was the best value game I have ever seen. Queue the last blockbuster of the night. First we saw a trailer for Rise of the Tomb Raider. Then some Witcher 3 gameplay. Then came a re-imagining of cult favourite Phantom Dust, and an Xbox One exclusive from Platinum Games called Soul Bound. Microsoft ended the conference with the announcement that Crackdown would also be returning. Although there wasn’t any jaw dropping moments of this year’s E3, Microsoft had a solid show and the future of the Xbox One looks hopeful. Jesse Price

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Gaming

e3: sony

or the past year the PS4 has been beating the Xbox One in almost all the territories where both consoles are sold, and with the news that all of their studios are working on PS4 games everyone was excited to see what they had in store for us. First up was Destiny. Activsion seems to on Sony’s side when it comes to this game. Much the same as the partnership between Call of Duty and Microsoft, PlayStation will get the DLC first along with some PS4-exclusive missions. A new trailer was shown explaining the story of the game, plus the beta, which will come to next gen consoles later this year. But, the big news was an alpha version, that would be exclusive to PS4, and an allwhite PS4 bundle that would come with Destiny will be available around the 9th of September. Time for PlayStation’s next AAA game, Order: 1886. They showed us what the game looked like in its gameplay, although it was hard to see because the gameplay scene was dark. It looked as if the player was walking through a dark room using an oil lamp to light your way. Then he was attacked by a monster that resembled a werewolf. The graphics were some of the best I’ve ever seen so far this year and hopefully Order is coming early 2015 rather than later. Next was Entwined, a rhythm game that was developed be a small team of student game designers directly for Sony. The good news for this new game was that it was available on PS4 the night

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

of the E3 show. PS3 and PS Vita versions will be coming soon with a cross buy. Then it was time for Infamous’ new DLC. The standalone, that doesn’t require the game to be played, story content will have to play as a ‘fetch’ game, acting as a prequel, before the events of Second Son. Another PlayStation exclusive to be announced at E3 2014 was Little Big Planet 3. It will feature three new characters that will allow new gameplay opportunities. We were shown a gameplay demo of one of the levels and it seems to be at its best when played with friends. Even though the people playing made a few mistakes, the new characters were shown properly and I understood what they will bring to the game. We were told that it was coming to PS4, but later it was revealed that it would also come to the PS3 too. After some talking from the President of PlayStation, he revealed Bloodborne. A new, very gothic-looking spiritual successor to Demon Souls. Everyone has presumed that this is from Software’s Project Beast, which was leaked just before E3, but with only a CGI trailer and no gameplay it was hard to judge. More from Far Cry 4 was next, with a very action-packed sequence. We saw the main character use a mini crossbow, throw sticky bombs, then carjack someone. It then depicted him diving off a cliff in a wing suit, as another player seamlessly dropped. It looked amazing and we got to see Strafe gunning in a helicopter and using an elephant as a weapon. I can’t wait for this game, but what we saw definitely looked scripted, and more improvisation during a show always makes for

Gaming

better game entertainment. Time for another game announcement. Dead Island 2. Sony only showed us a live action trailer so there’s not too much I can say, but from the little we saw, it looked like this game is going in a positive direction. Some more exclusives for PlayStation came from Disney Infinity. They showed off a live action trailer for Magicka 2, and although there was no gameplay, the trailer was funny and showed off the game’s imagination. Just like Disney should really. A neat little surprise came from a remastered Grimm Fandango that’s coming to PS4 and Vita. A lot of indie games came next: Bro Force, Not a Hero, Titan Souls, Plague Inc.: Evolved and Hotline Miami 2. The very short footage we saw from each game made all the games look fun, and it seems that PlayStation still have the indie game community on their side. Then time for yet another exclusive. Let It Die made by Suda 51 is a new game that we are yet to know a lot about as the gameplay that we were shown didn’t give too much away. Let It Die will come to PlayStation4 in 2015 The next announcement came from the makers of Journey, with their new scuba diving/ swimming game called Abuz. Not a lot was shown, but it will make its debut on the PlayStation. Another game that will be making its debut on the PS4 is No Man’s Sky. When this game was first announced I couldn’t believe the scope of it, and then the developers revealed that the game was even bigger than we first thought. I can’t be sure if the gameplay that was shown was real, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’m very excited for when this game launches. The next set of news wasn’t really about gaming, but was nice to hear. The first prototype Project Morpheus, the PlayStation virtual reality headset, was playable on the show floor. Some lucky E3 punters got to try it out! The PlayStation Now

beta would come to North America and Canada on July 31st, then, finally, PlayStation TV would be coming to North America and would only cost $99. No news if it will come to Europe yet, but if it sells well then we can live in hope. Next, cue Mortal Kombat X. I was looking forward to this one, mainly to see if the gameplay would match the trailer that was released just before E3. Although it didn’t in the end, it had fluid combat and we even got a look at some of the new characters. And, of course, there were lots of fatalities. As a fan of the series this new one looks like an improvement on its predecessor. Mortal Kombat X will come to next gen and current gen consoles early next year. Some unexpected news came from Ratchet and Clank. Sony announced a movie was coming out for the game and remaster of the first game available for the PS4. At this point the conference was reaching 90 minutes, and should really have been the end of the show, but there was still some more news to come. A trailer then appeared saying “The flowing trailer contains spoilers”, and of course it was The Last of Us: Remastered, but I’m not sure people that haven’t played the game were happy to see any spoilers before they played the game. The game will be released on the 29th of July. Finally, GTA V will be coming to next gen consoles and PC, and will use the power of the new hardware to improve the graphics, and anyone who plays on Xbox 360 and PS3 can transfer their online character to the PS4. Then we got a proper look at Batman Arkham Knight. The graphics were amazing and we got to see the Batmoblie turn into a tank. Possibly the best news about the game was Scarecrow, who looks to be the main villain. It’s nice to see game-makers Rockstedy take a break from the Joker, and take a risk with other villains. Closing the Sony show for 2014 was Unchart-

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

ed 4: A Thief ’s End. It had a cinematic trailer that gave away a small part of the story. It was probably the best looking trailer I have ever seen and if anyone could make a game look that good it would definitely be Uncharted game-maker Naughty Dog. Jesse Price

Gaming

e3: nintendo

his year, again, Nintendo had a digital event rather than a big live stage event for their reveals. But, with a failing console, and some games that fans have been asking for, Nintendo have it all to win, and nothing to lose. This year Nintendo decided to have a fairly strange Robot Chicken-like segment that had all the Nintendo characters ready to watch the show, they tried to make it funny but without much success. Then it was time to see some Super Smash Bros., the new Nintendo 3DS version. It played a big part, probably because after the delay for the 3DS version, fans have been worried if the game would match the greatness of the Wii U version. Although not graphically impressive, the fast paced combat looked the same as its console counterpart. The also used Smash Bros. to reveal that they would be releasing their own version of Skylanders, called Amibo. We saw a Mario figure to get an upper hand in a game of Smash Bros. and they will be releasing pretty much all the Nintendo characters you can think of. Along with future Nintendo games they will be updating older ones, the example they gave was Mario Kart 8. From the developers of Kirby’s Epic Yarn, we saw Yoshi’s newest adventure with Yoshi’s Woolly World. Imagine all of the Mario landscapes and enemy’s you love transformed in wool. But it goes deeper than just a visual aspect, the gameplay is heavily influenced by wool. Yoshi’s Woolly World is set to be another Nintendo master piece.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

The big new 3DS game of the show was Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker. Starting as everyone’s favourite toad you play in a 3D world similar to Mario 3D Land, and I guess to go looking for worldly treasures. The gameplay looks different enough from Mario games, but we still get to see the crazy enemies that you can expect from the usual Mario series. Next up on the Nintendo lineup was Zelda. The lead developer showed us the graphics and explained a little about how the dungeons in the game would work. You no longer have to play through them in a certain order, but you can now tackle them however and whenever you want. Time for Bayonetta 2. They showed us some game play, and it stays true to the first game. Nothing about the story was given away, but as long as the combat is the same I’m happy, and the good news is if you haven’t had a chance to play the first game, it will be included for free with the second. A nice little Nintendo bonus. Hyrule Warriors also made an appearance. The size of the map was revealed, along with some playable characters like Princess Zelda, Link and some others from the Legend of Zelda series. We also got to see some of the custom moves set for the characters. In addition, they also got in a quick bit of Kirby and the Rainbow Curse coming in 2015. Mario Maker. Exactly what it sounds like. The Wii U game will allow you to make you own Mario levels, and then play through them. On top of this you will have access to levels created by other people. This is just what Nintendo needed, more Mario, and the fact they don’t have to

Gaming

create any themselves leaves them to make other projects. The last new game of the show was Splatoon, a third person shooter where 8 players play a 4 vs 4 match. Unlike normal shooter games your goal is to cover the map in your ink. The team who cover the majority of the map win; all in a cartoony setting. The advantages are any area covered in your teams ink allows you move though it faster as a squid. The game looks amazing and to understand it fully you have to watch the trailer. Nintendo had a rough time with the Wii U, but they had a great E3, and the future of the console looks solid. Their still the best game developers in the world in my opinion, and we will see where these new projects take them and the future of Wii. Jesse Price

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Gaming

e3: ea

ormally EA’s E3 show tends to be the least exciting, always showing new iterations of the same-game franchises. But, having said that they do now have a number of different Star Wars games in development, and a few studios working on some unannounced games so I was excited to see what they had in store for us. Cue Star Wars: Battlefront, probably what the crowd wanted to see the most. The franchise has been a cult favourite from the very start and when EA revealed last E3 that the Battlefield developer DICE would be making the new game, it seemed like the perfect match to come up with a good game. So, what were we going to see: a trailer or maybe some gameplay? Although, EA only showed us some “early in-game footage” and a video of the developer taking trips to the locations where the original movies were filmed. It was nice to see EA caring about the fans of the franchise, but they didn’t really have anything to show and it feels as if they were using it to fill space and time. Oh well, lets see what Star Wars-y stuff they come up with. Next up, Dragon Age: Inquisition, again. Don’t get me wrong, the trailer they showed genially got me excited about the game, but there still wasn’t any gameplay involved. The live music and dramatic trailer showed new locations and monsters we will see and fight in the game, but maybe they’re waiting until the game is closer to release until they show us some of the sacred gameplay, and give away more about the story. They kept rolling with the big names, as up next was the new Mass Effect game. There were many rumours that the new Mass Effect would make an appearance, but it was unclear in what form. They showed us some “conceptual prototypes” which were nice, and the design of the new game looked promising. They did well by throwing in all the buzz words that fans were happy to hear. Excitement is definitely building for this. Someone in the crowd was ecstatic when Sims

4 flashed up on the screen. I’ve never understood why people enjoy Sims as much as they do, but I won’t write it off, I’ve played it once and found it fun. It’s just I struggle to see how people play it week-in-week-out. The new Sims is still true to its predecessors, but with many new features and an upgraded house building mode that fans of the series should get excited for, but yeah it’s still the Sims. Now for EA’s endless amounts of sports games. First we saw UFC, and a demo of Bruce Lee fighting some UFC champions. To be fair the graphics were some of the best I’ve ever seen, each punch made the other fighters’ face ripple and seeing pain in face of the fighter really set the tone for the game. Next was NHL 15, I’ve never played an NHL game, but it looks like they’ve changed everything, and according to NHL fans that can only be a good thing for the future of the game. Changing it up a bit was Criterion, former Need for Speed developer, with a brand new yet-to-betitled game. We saw some very early footage of helicopters, ATV’s, wingsuits, boats, jet skis and planes all from a first person view. It all looked nice, but seeing how early on the shoots were, I can’t see us getting our hands on a beta for a long time. Back to an EA Sports game with Madden. EA talked in depth about how they are making the defensive side of the game more involved within gameplay, and clearer to understand. Anyway, time to mix it up again with Mirrors Edge 2, again seeing some “conceptual prototypes”. The footage they showed looked good and is what you can expect from next gen consoles. No release date was given, so you can expect to wait a little while longer until we’re back in Faith’s shoes again. But, all the same I’m looking forward to this. Then it was time for EA’s big money spinner, FIFA 15. Every year we get to see what small changes fans will be dying to see. Of course EA were excited to tell us the changes they would be bringing to the new FIFA, using buzz words like seeing the players “emotions”. Either way it’s FIFA again, and I’m sure, if you’re a footy fan, you’ve

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

made your decision whether you’re buying it or not. Finally closing the show was Battlefield: Hardline. When this was announced I was looking forward to playing it as a police officer in Miami. So when the game director came out on stage and talked a little about the campaign I was pretty contented. He explained how it would play out more like a police show on TV, in addition to showing a small trailer. But the main focus was multiplayer. They showed off a new game mode called Cops and Robbers, and we saw how a match would play out rather than just talk endlessly about it. They also announced a beta of the new mode would be coming to next gen consoles and PC. EA had a safe show; that’s not to say it was bad. I actually enjoyed the show and I’m quite excited for the games they showed. But this wasn’t the best they’ve had at E3. Jesse Price

e3: ubisoft

Next up was Tom Clancy’s The Division. A lot of people were excited to see this as they opened with a lengthy trailer explaining the story of the n the last few years Ubisoft have become my game. That was then followed by a small section of favourite games developer. They seem to stay co-op game play. The chatter between the players faithful to their very large back catalog of seem fake, and although the game look amazing, games, while at the same time investing in new Ubisoft still haven’t shown us what it would look IP’s (intellectual property), and making different like to play the game alone. genres of games. They have become a company Time for Assassins Creed: Unity again. I’m that listens to what fans want and have become not going to say that much because half of what more successful because of it. they showed was the same as Microsoft, but they Far Cry 4 is probably Ubisoft’s most anticipated showed it from a different player perceptive. Howgame of this year, and it’s also been subject to a ever, they did show a single player mission and lot of controversy, so it was probably the best way the upgraded Stealth and Eagle Vision made the to start the show. What we saw was the opening game look even better. This Assassins Creed could scenes of the game; an awkward bus ride was be the one fans have been asking for for a long interrupted by soldiers, and then came in the time. With more information coming in the next ruthless villain of the gam, ‘the guy in the pink few months, we’ll find out if the game changes or suit’. We are showed how he is willing to kill makes the same mistakes as its predecessors. someone without a seconds thought. We also got In the past few years many companies have to see some gameplay of liberating forts, similar attempted to make a fitness game that would to liberating camps in Far Cry 3, but in Far Cry 4 appeal to gamers, and now Ubisoft are bringing you can use friends that you acquire in the game their own to market. Shape Up is an Xbox One exto help you. Far Cry 4 looks amazing and hopeful- clusive that tries to turn exercise into a game. The ly will improve on the last game. game could have you shadowbox terrorists, dance Unfortunately the hype stopped there, well at on a giant piano, or do pushups with weights on least in my opinion. Because, it was time for Just your back, and many more game modes that will Dance 2015. A trailer was shown with a song that be announced later this year. everyone has been bored of for quite some time. The most interesting game of the show was But, Just Dance has a new feature that seemed like Valiant Hearts, a 2D side-scrolling puzzle game a good idea. You can now use your smartphone set during World War 1. We didn’t get too see as a controller and to show us how it worked, how the game play looked, which was a concern dancers mobbed the stage and performed one of considering the game is so close to release, but we the levels from the game. The game looked fine, were treated to a rather emotional trailer featuring but I think Ubisoft had dedicated too much time the saddest dog in the world, that actually left or effort on it. many in the crowd in tears.

inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

Gaming

Finally, to finish the show was possibly what the people wanted the most, Rainbow Six: Siege. It was announced along with a hostage rescue mode. We saw five players as S.W.A.T, and the others as a gang. The confined spaces of the house and destructible environment were amazing, giving both teams multiple ways of killing each other. Ubisoft had a safe, but decent, show. They showed some amazing games and some everyone is looking forward to owning. I guess playing it safe seemed to be a theme for E3 this year. Jesse Price

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inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

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inSYNC Magazine | July 2014

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inSYNC Magazine | July 2014