September 2013 Review
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08 Table of Contents NEWS
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Atlus Sale Attracts Bid From SEGA Every Xbox One Includes a Chat Headset Nintendo 2DS Review MacBookAir2013 (13-inch) Review
EVENTS
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E3 2013 San Diego Comic-Con 2013
FEATURE
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Mass Effect 3
Editor's Note About the Magazine Project-G is a games and gadgets magazine where you can read all the latest games, released games and what's going on in the gaming world and technology world. This magazine is not just for gamers but also for the developers, game companies, and to all readers that are living in the tech and gaming worlds. It is like a newspaper that informs them what are the games and gadgets that will be release, there are also reviews about games that are available to two or more platforms The magazine also updates the readers about the comic-con events, the E3 and other community events. Our magazine talks about the game or the gadget and rate it professionally.
About this Issue The featured game of Project - G --Mass Effect (trilogy), by the way every cover page of our magazine is our featured game and we will give you the unknown information and facts about that featured game. (Back to the game) The Mass Effect just released its 3rd sequel but it is rumored that the 4th is coming soon. So we talked about what happened from Mass Effect to its 3rd sequel. Enjoy reading!
Our Staff
Joycell Manzanares Editor-In-Chief Layout Artist Writer
John Paul Natividad Managing Editor Layout Artist Researcher
Yves Hernandez Feature Editor Writer Researcher
Pro Evolution Soccer 2014 How Konami's new engine and a taste for innovation have made PES 2014 a new start for the longrunning series.
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Pro Evolution Soccer 2014 marks something of a soft reboot for the long-running football series. With an impressive new engine in tow - Konami's feted Fox Engine no less and a strong localisation team now installed at Konami's European office, it's clear that PES 2014 is doing its best to move the series forward, to innovate and impress audiences old and new. And while it's still unclear about how some of its more ambitious features will actually work- we'll come to those later - it's definitely worth keeping an eye on during the pre-season.
Let's start off by being quite superficial. PES 2014 looks fantastic, and is a significant improvement on previous instalments. But by far the most eye-catching aspect of PES 2014 is the players. The benefits of the new Fox Engine are evident and very, very impressive. Skin textures look incredible - in replays and post-goal celebrations, you can see pores, veins bulging beneath the skin, and sweat dripping from the brows of your more industrious players. And the likenesses of marquee players such as Balotelli, Ozil,
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your team's strength. Centre-backs and holding midfielders feel exactly like they should - strong and imposing, but less During a game, when the camera pulls out to the default television angle, much of this technically gifted, so you're less likely detail is inevitably obscured, but during goal to go on mazy runs with someone like celebrations and action-replays you'll marvel Javi Martinez. Yet when the ball goes to at its high-level realism, from the improved a winger like Franck Ribery or a creative grass texture to the way fabric billows when midfielder like Bastian Schweinsteiger, players run. It's not quite next-gen, but it's you instantly feel empowered and arguably the best-looking football game the imaginative. They're faster, can turn on current generation of consoles has produced a sixpence, and have a much greater so far. range of passing. and Schweinsteiger are genuinely uncanny.
PES 2014 feels more physical than ever before. Players now have mass, solidity, and rather appropriately this is down to a new bit of tech called the M.A.S.S. System (Motion Animation Stability System, if you were wondering). It gives players not only selfawareness of when they're under pressure but also the physicality to respond - they'll stick out an arm to hold-up play or stick a foot out if they think they can intercept a wayward pass. In PES 2014 not all players are created equally and you'll quickly learn to play to
This mixture of brawny, defensivelyminded players and more nimble, attacking ones creates gameplay underpinned by a cat-and-mouse dynamic. No matter who you're controlling, defender and attacker, you must decide between a low risk/low return or high risk/high return strategy. While tricks are a potent skill to learn, misjudge the situation or the position of the incoming defender, and there's a very good chance you'll give away the ball
(and look a bit of an idiot in the process). This decision-making process, of weighing out the consequences, also extends to defending, which is much simpler this year. Holding down X is the easy option, allowing you to shadow the player in possession without applying much pressure; if you combine it with R 1, you'll get tighter, close enough to jostle with the opposition; and if you're feeling really brave, you can of course lunge in for a sliding tackle. Those are the basic mechanics, but PES 2014 is also championing some ambitious yet more intangible features. 'Combination Play' is a system that allows you to control
the movement of your Al teammates.
approach this year, defined by innovation.
Each player will have a 'heart' stat, which will be visible as an icon on th tactics screen. If the match is evenly balanced, and a player like Robben sets off on some dazzling runs, he has the ability to lift the mood of the crowd, which in turn will lift the entire team. It's hoped that this feature will allow for FA Cup-style giant slayings, with it bringing parity to mismatched teams. In reality, it's a tricky feature to implement balancing the shift in stats will have to be deft to avoid unbalancing the wider game. But again, it's symptomatic of PES 2014's
If you're coming to PES 2014, after a few years away, you'll find it challenging and reward, visually impressive, and full of new ideas. Konami has rested upon those laurels of years ago, it's gone back to the drawing board and found returned with something very promising.
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Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 ,__________ I
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Ij PS3 360 :I Developer: Konami :I L------------ -• - - - - -- J- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ! Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 continues the story from the end of Ninja Storm 2, mostly ignoring the gameplay changes made by spinoff Ninja Storm Generations that was released between the two. As usual for the series, Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 is very well-presented. It looks brilliant, the Ultimate Ninja Storm series perfected its anime-authentic look a few games ago. Soundwise the game holds up just as well, with a great soundtrack and the full cast of voice actors from the anime. Purists even have the option of changing the voices to Japanese if that tickles their fancy. Where the two elements meet is a little sketchy - some of the lip-synching looks like it came straight out of an old Kung Fu movie - but apart
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from that it's smooth sailing across the board. The story mode will be the main selling point to most fans, and it's pretty expansive. I haven't seen the anime so I can't accurately judge how closely the game follows it, but going by what's here I'd say it does a so-so job. Some parts are covered extensively, leading to long periods of time where you're doing nothing but watching cutscenes or tapping through conversations. These bits irked me a little bit. Naruto's interesting enough stuff and I get the feeling I could enjoy the anime, but if I'm sitting down to play the game I expect to play the damn game. otherwise I might as well just watch the anime. On the other hand, some plot threads
and characters just seem to stealthily drop out of the equation altogether. I obviously can't confirm if this is how things go down in the source material but I suspect not. Part of the problem here is the game's PG rating, which limits what they can show and leads to the frequent character deaths being glossed over so much that I'm not even sure who's really dead in the end. The main meat of the game is in the fighting however, and it fares much better in this area. Things haven't changed much in regards to the mechanics or controls, so if you've played previous games in the series then you'll probably pick it right back up without missing a beat. That's not necessarily a bad thing - the fighting here is fast and smooth with enough unique mechanics to give it some depth.
Nintendo 2DS review: Hands-on The Nintendo 2DS is a great entrylevel handheld that offers a gateway into Nintendo's superb OS and 3DS games catalogues It's fair to say that the Nintendo 2DS console took a lot of people by surprise when it was announced this week. The Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo 3DS XL have been enjoying something of a renaissance of late; while the Wii U has been floundering since launch, the 3DS has shifted 1.4 million units in the last three months no doubt buoyed by strong titlessuch as Luigi's Mansion 2, Donkey Kong Country 30 and Animal Crossing: New Leaf. The last thing anyone expected was Nintendo to announce a new hand held console that may eat into the profitable sales of the 3DS and 3DSXL. Especially one that's backwards compatible with the entire OS back catalogue and looks rather ungainly at first glance.
slate. It essentially looks like a 3DS with the hinges removed. Available at launch in blue with black trimmings ("Black + Blue") and white with red trimming ("White + Red"), the 2DS boasts dual screens, two shoulder buttons, a thumbstick, a D-pad and face buttons. A 'Home' button sits directly below the lower screen and to the left is a 'Sleep' slider. The 'Power' and 'Start' buttons are situated on the lower right hand side and there's a camera fitted snugly at the top of the console. There's no slider to turn the 2DS's Wi-Fi off, but users can do that in the settings menu. On the reverse side of the console, there's a slot for the 2DS's stylus (which comes with the 2DS as standard) and a memory card slot. The 2DS also has two cameras on its reverse side and users can capture 30 pictures using the console's camera function.
Games Size and build Games reviews While all of its predecessors boast a clam-shell aesthetic, which allows users to snap them closed, the 2DS has been designed as a twin-screen
FIFA 14 review: Hands on GTA 5 preview BioShock Infinite review
Injustice Gods Among Us review Call Of Duty Ghosts preview You won't be able to display your photos in 30 on the 2DS, however. But you can import them to a 3DS or 3DS XL using a memory card and view the in 30 if you wish. The reason for this is that the 2DS doesn't have 30 presentation capabilities - hence the name. The whole purpose of the 2DS seems to be aimed at giving new Nintendo handheld adopters a way into Nintendo's OS back catalogue at a reduced price. That's the console's biggest strength next to its relatively cheap recommended retail price, really. The 2DS is backwards compatible with every single OS title ever released. If you've ever wanted to delve into Nintendo's admittedly superb handheld games catalogue but were put off by its price or the stories of the 3DS causing motion sickness, the 2DS should tick all of your boxes and then some.
Nintendo 2DS release date: 12 October 2013 Nintendo 2DS price: ÂŁ109
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Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate Tri, Tri. Again? I,--------------.-------~I
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Every time a new Monster Hunter games comes out, I think: surely, I must be done with this now. After several hundred hours over at least three versions, I'm not going to get sucked in again. But I do, every time. It's because Monster Hunter's world is so absorbing, and the gentle rhythm of prepare, hunt, and collect is so innately satisfying. Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate is the slickest game in the series to date, and it's an ideal introduction to the hugely enjoyable business of cooperative monster-slaying. The basic idea is to venture out into the wilds, find an impressive monster, kill it, and then make hats and swords out of its entrails - but there's a lot more to it than that. There are 12 weapons, hundreds of items, and more than 100 hours' worth of quests, but it's the thrill of the chase and the addictive rush of hard-earned victory that continually hooks me in. Monster Hunter has a reputation for being intimidating, but really it's a lot
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:j easier to get to grips with than it looks. It's challenging, sure - thrillingly challenging - but it's hardly Dark Souls. In Japan this is a game played by mums, little brothers, couples ... something like five million people, going by Monster Hunter Portable 3rd's sales. All you need is someone to show you the ropes. There are a few new monsters, a rearranged single-player experience and a whole new multiplayer area, but the meat and bones are the same as 2010's Monster Hunter Tri - with updated graphics on Wii U, of course, and much better loading times. It's got the same finelytuned selection of weapons, the same storyline, and many of the same singleplayer quests, though they have been reshuffled to incorporate new monsters and the difficulty curve is slightly gentler this time around - some of the toughest missions have been moved up a rank or two, evening out a few of Tri's difficulty spikes. Whether you're playing on 3DS or Wii U, you're getting the same experience,
which is pretty remarkable in itself. You can transfer your save between the two platforms using a free app from the eShop. You can play online on Wii U, but not on 3DS - and if there's four of you in a room together, you can play locally on three handheld consoles and one Wii U, and the TV screen becomes an HD showcase for your battle - which is by far the most exciting way to play. Monster Hunter really comes alive in multiplayer, so you'll want to coerce some friends into playing with you. Show them a few of the best battles, though, and they probably won't need much persuasion. The graphical update is a touch disappointing for players of Tri, though. It's clear that Capcom has spent most of its time making the monsters themselves look better; the environments, by contrast, are still very sparse, with some textures that are noticeably out of place in HD. The smaller monsters and non-player characters in the single- and multiplayer towns also haven't been remodelled. Touchscreen features, though, are a valuable addition. The Wii U gamepad and
3DS touchscreen can be customised with panels, so you can put your map, health and stamina, item pouch, and whatever else on the bottom screen if you want, giving you an unobstructed view of the action. It unclutters the screen, it's customisable to your tastes, and it's more convenient to actually play. Monster Hunter quests come in three broad flavours: head out and gather some of this thing, kill a number of smaller monsters, or kill one big bad monster. The third flavour makes up about 75% of the quests on offer, and those are the ones that progress you through the ranks; Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate knows we don't want to spend hours collecting mushrooms before we're allowed to fight anything.
not quite perfect, but it's certainly a lot better than it ever was on the PSP; it's only noticeably slow when you're fighting underwater.
Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate wasn't made for the Wii U controller and it does feel a little awkward at first, but it never gets in the way of enjoying the game. On 3DS, even without the Circle Pad Pro attachment, controlling the camera using the touchscreen works surprisingly well. It's
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2014
Release
Atlus Sale Attracts Bid From SEGA SEGA could become the new parent company of the Persona maker.
The ongoing sale of Atlus has attracted the attention of SEGA's parent company SEGA Sammy, which is among those to bid on the company in the hopes of acquiring it.
Whether Sega will emerge as the top bidder is unclear at this point. If it does, its bid will reportedly be in the neighborhood of 20 billion yen (about $203 million). More details should emerge this week and a deal could be worked out before the end of the month, Bloomberg reports.
Atlus' parent company Index Corporation filed for civil rehabilitation (similar to bankruptcy protection in the United States) back in June before announcing last month that it would sell its subsidiaries, including Atlus. According to Bloomberg Japan, Sega was one of about 20 companies to place a bid on Atlus, a Japanese game developer and publisher with an extensive history dating back almost three decades. The long list of games it has been responsible for releasing include those in series like Megami Tensei (and the spin-off Persona games), Etrian Odyssey, and Trauma Center. other games it's developed or published include Catherine, Game of Thrones, Demon's Souls (it published the game in North America), and Dragon's Crown.
Should it succeed, this would not be the first major acquisition of the year for SEGA. Following THQ's collapse, SEGA acquired Relic Entertainment, developer of the Company of Heroes and Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War series, with its winning bid coming in at $26.3 million.
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Every Xbox One Includes a Chat Headset Xbox One Day One edition unboxed on Xbox Wire.
In a blog post published alongside a new Xbox One Day One edition unboxing video on Xbox Wire, Microsoft revealed several new details regarding its upcoming console and accessories as they unboxed the new machine, said to be one of 20 final-spec Xbox Ones in the world so far. Most notably, the Xbox One Day One edition will include an Xbox One Chat Headset, reversing the policy Microsoft announced in June. (Note: Project-G has confirmed with Microsoft that the Chat Headset will be included in everyXbox One and not just the limited-edition Day One versions of the console) Xbox Wire editor Lisa Gurry explains the chat on Xbox One offers three times the sampling rate of the Xbox 360 and that the lightweight earpiece with its bendable, rotating mic boom (which can be worn on either the right or left ear) tips the scales at only 44 grams. You can also control the volume and mute without taking your hands off the
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controller, as those buttons are placed at the connection point with the gamepad. The Xbox One controller, which Microsoft reiterated features more than 40 design improvements, will allow you to play wirelessly with standard AA or rechargeable AA batteries (or via the standard micro USB port for wired play). The micro USB cable (not included) will charge the batteries if you are using the Xbox One Play & Charge Kit, although it will not charge generic rechargeable AA batteries. Albert Penello, director of product planning for Xbox One, elaborates here, explaining that when you plug a microUSB cable into the controller for wired play the internal radio is actually shut off and all data is transmitted through the wire. In this mode you'll actually be able to use the controller without batteries. Penello also notes that the HDMI cable
included in the box is a Category 2 HDMI cable, rated for 1080p, 3D and 4K, according to the HDMI 1.4 spec. He also explains that, while the built-in wireless on Xbox 360 just supported single-band A/B/G/N @ 2.4ghz the Xbox One wireless radio is A/B/G/N, but supports dual-band 2.4ghz and 5ghz frequencies. The Xbox One console itself, the Kinect sensor and even the HDMI cable and the power supply all have a "liquid black" finish.
EVENTS
ABOUT E3 is the world's premier trade show for computer and video games and related products. The show is owned by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the U.S. association dedicated to serving the business and public affairs needs of the companies, publishing interactive games for video game consoles, handheld devices, personal computers, and the Internet.
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EVENTS
E3 2013 E3 takes place June 11-13, 2013, at the Los Angeles Convention Center. E3 draws tens of thousands of professionals to experience the future of interactive entertainment. The most influential people leading the most innovative companies in the industry attend E3 to see groundbreaking new technologies and never-before-seen products for computers, video game consoles, handheld systems, mobile and social, and the Internet.
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I The Superb Vi be ~ at E3 2 0 13
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It was a great show this year, with an often times electric atmosphere, and no wonder, really. We got to see and play a heap of PS4 and Xbox One titles, while Nintendo showcased a strong line-up across 3DS and Wii U, and indie developers were more prominent than ever. To put it simply, after the stagnant vibe at E3 2012, it felt like the industry was moving forward again. Let's rock!
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Killer is Dead The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: Fiends from the dark side of the moon threaten everything we hold dear, and only one man can stop them: Mondo Zappa. What it means for gaming: Killer is Dead is in many respects a typical Suda 51 game. It has an assassin lead, outlandish bosses, hyper-violent gameplay and stylised visuals, but it also looks like it strikes a solid balance between style and substance . Grasshopper's games, after all, are never short on personality, but don't necessarily deliver on tight gameplay. This could be the one to nail absolutely everything . Here's hoping.
Super Mario 30 World The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: Princess Peach gets catty - reeoowr!
Wonderful 101 The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: Better than the Fantastic Four, the Famous Five and the Secret Seven combined. What it means for gaming: The more games that do something genuinely fresh the bet-
ter, right? Well, Wonderful 101 definitely falls into that category, playing like a lovechild of Viewtiful Joe, Pikmin and Voltron. That's a good thing .
Diablo III The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: Stay awhile and listen ... to the sounds of thousands of demons being slaughtered
What it means for gaming: Nintendo badly
needs to deliver first party hits to keep the Wii U afloat, and the good news is that 30 World is shaping up to be every bit as good as Super Mario 30 Land, only with multiplayer as a focus.
What it means for gaming: Diablo Ill coming across to console is a pretty big deal. It's been a long time since we've seen a Blizzard game on console, and it's great to see, particularly because the next generation's hardware and online functionality are going to be better aligned with PC than ever before.
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Metal Gear V: The Phantom Pain Octodad路 Dadliest Catch The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: Loving father, caring husband, secret octopus. What it means for gaming: One of a suite of indie games coming to PS4 (alongside PC), Dadliest Catch will be unlike anything PlayStation fans have come across before. Think KWOP but starring an octopus pretending to be human, with an elaborate control scheme that makes even the most mundane tasks near-impossible .. and hilarious.
The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: Snake on a horse. What it means for gaming: The massively anticipated fifth MGS game is also the most ambitious; a next-gen, open-world, stealth-focused action-adventure that promises all new forms of 'tactical espionage.'
The Crew The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: It's like The Cannonball Run only with less Burt Reynolds and a whole lot more you. What it means for gaming: This racer blurs the lines between solo and multiplayer in a seamless way, letting you hop into co-operative or adversarial challenges all over the good ol' US of A
Dead Rising 3 The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: It's you versus thousands of zombies in a sprawling world. What it means for gaming: Dead Rising 3 is the real deal: bigger in scope, more user-friendly for players and grittier in tone ... without losing the series' sense of humour. That said, it will be interesting to see whether the move away from a timeline-based structure (by default - it still exists in Nightmare mode) will be a good decision or not.
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South Park: The Stick of Truth The one-sentence Hollywood-style pitch: Screw you guys, South Park is going to home consoles. What it means for gaming: The Stick of Truth is shaping up to be one of the best games based on a license in gaming history, demonstrating just what is possible when a great studio works with the creative forces behind a property.
MacBook Air 2013 (13-inch) review he new MacBook Air 13-inch has come a long way from something that was once seen as an over-priced netbook. T3 went in for a closer look
When it first launched, the MacBook Air was the classiest, most portable laptop around, its aluminium casing making it stand out for weight and looks. It often drew gasps when people picked it up for the first time. Now, in a world of ultrabooks and tablets, it needs to prove itself all over again. The rumour was that the 2013 MacBook Airs would have Retina displays, the high-resolution screens now found on some 13-in and 15-in MacBook Pro models. That didn't happen. Maybe it would have pushed the price up too far - after all, this is Apple's entry-level machine now there's no plain MacBook. Or maybe it would have added weight with the extra battery needed to power those extra pixels. And after all, battery life, though not bad, wasn't the strongest part of the Air package so reducing that wouldn't have been welcome. We've already reviewed the MacBook Air 2013 11-inch, so now we're looking at the larger MacBookAir 2013 13-inch ..
Features The ports and sockets on the new Air are identical to last year's model, apart from an extra teeny-tiny hole on the left edge. This is a second integrated microphone designed to help with noise cancellation. So as usual with the Air range there's no Ethernet connection. To wire your laptop in to the internet, you need a USB adaptor.
the MacBookAir now for several years - is that it's mighty fast to wake up from standby. Earlier models took a few seconds. This was pretty quick, though it's amazing how soon you found yourself twiddling the trackpad impatiently during this short wake-up period - the mouse cursor wasn't instantly available.
When the MacBook Air was first revealed, this was laughed at by rival manufacturers, though now many super-slim Ultrabooks have the same solution.
Now, when you open the lid, the mouse is working as fast as you can touch it. It's a saving of just a few seconds, that's all, but it transforms the experience from good to great.
More importantly, one of the under-thehood changes on this year's model is the improvement of wi-fi to 802.11 ac, so faster wireless internet is a possibility and wired Ethernet may be less frequently needed. It would be nice if Apple bundled the cable with the machine but at least the ÂŁ50 price drop from last year means you may feel you can justify the extra expense.
The model we tested had 128GB of flash storage, a 1.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 chip. It is fast. You can get faster configurations, but for most people this will move more than fast enough. Not least, that's down to the 4GB of on board RAM. You can opt for double this, though that pushes the price up of course.
manages great colour reproduction. It has good viewing angles, too. Overall, you might not even notice the lack of Retina ..
Of course, this isn't a real match for the pricier Pro which either comes with an optical drive or a Retina display, but the joy of the slim, light Air is hard to be
Performance One of the main pluses of a storage system that's entirely SSD - standard on
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EVENTS S AN D I E G 0
INTERNATIONAL ABOUT Comic-Con International: San Diego Comic-Con International: San Diego began in 1970 when a group of comics, movie, and science fiction fans -- including the late Shel Dorf, Ken Krueger, and Richard Alf -- banded together to put on the first comic book convention in southern California. ComicCon started as a one-day "minicon," called San Diego's Golden State Comic-Minicon, on March 21, 1970 at the U.S. Grant Hotel in downtown San Diego. The purpose of this single-day event-which included two special guests, Forrest J Ackerman and Mike Royer, and drew about 100 attendees-was to raise funds and generate interest for a larger convention. The success of the minicon led to the first full-fledged, three-day San Diego Comic-Con (called San Diego's Golden State Come-Con), held August 1-3, 1970, at the U.S. Grant Hotel, with guests Ray Bradbury, Jack Kirby, and A E. van Vogt. Over 300 attendees packed into the hotel's basement for that groundbreaking event, which featured a dealers' room, programs and panels, film screenings, and more: essentially, the model for every comic book convention to fol low.
The Best of San Diego Comic-Con 2013 San Diego Comic-Con
came and went with a whole bunch of madness in between.
You can still see all of it over at our Comic-Con index, but we thought it'd be fun to break down the best of the best across movies, TV, and comics.
The Batman-Superman Movie The surprise of the con, Warner Bros.' reveal that the sequel to Man of Steel will actually be a Batman/Superman movie shook Hall H like Krypton in its final hours. We know almost nothing about the film aside from the fact that director Zack Snyder and scripter David Goyer will be back, and that it is scheduled for 2015. Oh, and that it's going to probably be called Batman Vs. Superman. Yes, the Dark Knight returns ...
X-Men: Days of Future Past How many X-Men is too many XMen? We don't know, because when approximately 14 cast members from X-Men: Days of Future Past took the stage on Saturday for a "surprise" appearance, it seemed there was no such thing as too many mutants. Not only was the sizzle reel for the postapocalyptic/time-travel/sequel / prequel/what-is-it a showstopper, but the on-stage interplay between the cast -- including new and old X-folks like Hugh Jackman, Michael Fassbender, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, and Jennifer Lawrence -- was priceless. The X-Men, it seems, are forever!
Guardians of the Galaxy The big question mark of the con, and of Marvel' s upcoming slate, Guardians of the Galaxy proved to be another highlight of the weekend. Even though the film just start shooting a couple of weeks ago, the cast (including Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Michael Rooker, Benicia Del Toro, and others) and director James Gunn a 11 flew over from London on Saturday (and were heading back that same night!) to show off some freshly shot footage from the space saga. Amazingly, the reel that was shown was very polished despite having just started shooting, but even more importantly, it looks great. Funny, oddball, and very, very different from past Marvel films, Guardians looks like it's could take the studio's slate to a whole new level . And yes, we saw Rocket Raccoon and Groot, and yes, they look awesome.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Comic With the 20th anniversary of the original Power Rangers show in full swing, publisher Papercutz has listened to the cries of fans and announced a new Power Rangers comic that returns to the original cast in a "lost episodes"graphic novel format. With a whole new generation of fans current enjoying Power Rangers: Megaforce, it's time for the older fans to get back in on the action.
Nightcrawler's Back He's been dead since X-Men: Second Coming, but Marvel is finally returning Nightcrawler to the land of the living. An all -new X-series called Amazing X-Men will find Wolverine and his team journeying to the far reaches of the Marvel Universe to find their old friend and bring him back home. It seems even in death, Nightcrawl er has had his work cut out for him.
Gail Simone Writing Tomb Raider Comics Her latest video game adventure has brought Lara Croft back to the forefront of pop culture, and now she's getting the A-list comic book treatment for the first time in years. Dark Horse revealed an ongoing Tomb Raider series written by Gail Simone that will pick up after the events
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EVENTS of the latest game and lead directly into the eventual sequel. While the game was more or less contained to one locale, the new comic wi 11 have more of the globetrotting spirit we've come to expect from Lara.
The Legend of Korra Korra fans have been anxiously anticipating Book Two of the animated series for a year now. At Comic-Con, not only did they find out the show will return in September - they got to see the first new episode! The Korra creators also discussed what's to come in Book Two , AKA " Sp i r i t s , " i n cl ud i n g revealing we'll be meeting the first Avatar ever, voiced by The Walking Dead's Steven Yeun. They also debuted art and footage from upcoming episodes.
Harley Quinn in the Spo 1 i ght Despite being a longtime fan favorite, Harley Quinn hasn't had a solo series in ten years. Ten years! That's like an eternity in comic book publishing time! But that all changed last week with the reveal of a new Harley Quinn series by Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Palmer, the first time Harley will have her time to shine in a decade. While she's been a lead member of the Suicide Squad, we can't wait to see Harley come into her own in the New 52.
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Captain America: The Winter Soldier The footage shown from the Cap sequel, Winter Soldier, was al so a highlight in that it, like Guardians, seems to be pushing the boundaries of what a Marvel film can be. There's a taste of 1970s thriller here, as Steve Rogers continues to grapple with the sketchiness of the modern spy world. Which isn't too say that the film is lacking in action and eye candy -- the footage shown included, but wasn't limited to, a clutch, close-quarters elevator fight, a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier crashing into the water, the Black Widow's guns blazing, the Falcon soaring, and a money shot of the Winter Sol dier himself_ picking up Cap's shield.
Community Community always gets a huge response at Comic-Con, but this year had an added element of excitement - the return of Dan Harmon! And Harmon didn't disappoint, coming onstage in a purposely shoddy Iron Man outfit and delivering a Tony Stark-inspired speech to kick off the panel. As far as what fans can expect in Season 5, Harmon stressed that he wanted to return to the more grounded feel of Season 1 and Season 2 and make the characters more relatable again. He also revealed there will be an all-animated episode of Community in Season 5 and teased a second Dungeons and Dragons episode is in the works.
Avengers: Age of Ultron While Marvel somewhat disappointingly didn't announce any new projects, like the rumored Doctor Strange or Black Panther, they did finish up their panel with a big reveal: Joss Whedon took the stage to show a teaser for Avengers 2, which basically just consisted of quotes from the first Avengers while something -- Iron Man's helmet? Avengers armor? -- took the form, in the final moments of the trailer, of the villainous robot Ultron's head. Cut to the title Avengers: Age of Ultron. Wow!
Surprise Zelda Statues These gorgeous statues were a total surprise when we found them on the show floor. Such a surprise, in fact, that we know very little about them. There's no price or release date, and Dark Horse said they weren't even final versions. So who knows when we'll be able to own them, but we do know this: they are absolutely beautiful.
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Tom Hiddleston's Appearance As Lok i Drives Comic-Con Completely Insane
Doctor Who With many fans camping out overnight, this year's Doctor Who panel was another incredibly popular one. It also served as a farewell, as Matt Smith was making his final SDCC appearance for the show, before his departure in this years Christmas special. The fans in attendance were given a very special treat, vi a the debut of a new trailer for the big 50th anniversary special, which wi 11 team up Smith and David Tennant. Suffice to say, the crowd went wild for this footage, showing the two beloved Doctors working together.
To introduce, "Thor: The Dark World", Tom Hiddleston took to the Comic-Con stage in character as Loki. The crowd. went. INSANE.
said, in the dark. "Lining up in the sweltering heat for hours. Huddling together in the dark like BEASTS!" A flash of light, and, boom, there was Loki. Cue complete, unhinged freakout.
"Humanity, look how far you've fallen," Loki first
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XBOX 360.