Julius

The film will be releasing for all four current major media formats — 4K (notably the first Star Wars film to be releasing for this format), Blu-Ray, DVD and digitally — in the UK on Monday 9th April. Like with TFA, there will be two sleeve variants for the Blu-Ray release; this time around, it’s First Order and Resistance. Personally, I’m preferring the look of the Resistance sleeve this time around. Kylo looks pretty lonely with only Phasma...where are Snoke and Hux? Despite seeing the film in cinemas quite a lot times within a relatively short window, I’ve had a real itch to watch it again lately (probably because Rebels is ending later on... ), so I can’t wait to see the film again, let alone watch all of the bonus feature content! I definitely need to look into getting the novelisation of the film too. They’ve gone with the much cheaper route of putting out a canonical Director’s Cut (Rian Johnson worked with the author to include many things not included in the film), so it’ll be interesting to see if any of the deleted scenes turn up in the novel and are thus considered canon.

Easy Allies preview of the Japanese demo:

I have to agree. I’ve actually stopped listening to NVC, mainly because, while I can respect that Filip needs time to settle in, he’s just not clicking yet with me personally. I didn’t mind Jose, though he did seem to come off a bit too defensive of Nintendo for my liking at times, and thought that the trio of Peer, Zach and Brian was brilliant, because they already had an established chemistry and I already knew their opinions on Nintendo. Last time I listened (to the podcast), it seemed like Filip was trying a little too hard to settle in, so his opinions blurred in with everyone else’s, and I don’t know what angle he’s coming at a lot of this stuff with. On a similar note, I actually stopped listening to Game Scoop! a couple of weeks back, too. Someone wrote in with their predictions for E3 2018 (and cast an almost all-encompassing net), and they talked about these predictions for the majority of the show. It just felt so lazy to pick up someone else’s completely uncertified opinions and run with them as a time fill, and it felt so unprofessional (and was frustrating for me) that many of them clearly have no idea what they’re talking about when it comes to what might turn up at E3. I also don’t mind podcast hosts making mistakes - I love EZA’s corrections segment - but they were just so consistent about making mistakes (whether it be game release dates, developers, publishers, etc.) that I couldn’t tell if I was listening to an industry journalist or a couple of casual gamers down a pub talking over a beer or two. The only IGN podcast that I actually still listen to is Beyond, and, for the most part, I really enjoy it. Max, Brian, Marty, Andrew and many of their guests have excellent chemistry, a deep knowledge of PlayStation, and just an overall passion for games, and a reverence for what other consoles are doing great at, which greatly contrasts with NVC - who deviate from talking about anything but Nintendo, to a degree which seems almost unnatural - and Unlocked - who seem hellbent on reviving the console wars.

Fiorentina captain and Italy international Davide Astori has passed away on the eve of his team’s match with Udinese, aged just 31. This was revealed in an official statement by Fiorentina: The match between Fiorentina and Udinese has been postponed.

Man...at face value, this is such a hard question. There are so many Pokémon that have great designs and that I have an emotional attachment to, and I think that’s a testament to just how consistent this series is. However, for my favourite three Pokémon...I don’t think it’s even close. I have so many memories and stories attached to the following Pokémon in particular that it’s no surprise that this franchise has found a way to bring me back in from my attempt/s at walking away from it. So, in no particular order: Bulbasaur Bulbasaur was my first starter Pokémon, on a game and system that I didn’t own - my friend was kind enough to let me dabble around for a few hours on the game around his house. My first Pokémon card? Bulbasaur. The Pokémon that I drew the most when I was younger — that I used to try to wish into existence? Bulbasaur. It might not be a particularly strong Pokémon, but I love it’s simple but effective design. And then, in the anime, I remember Ash getting a Bulbasaur, and it being full of conviction, but pretty quiet otherwise. Being a shy and quiet child myself, looking back, it’s no surprise that this was the Pokémon that I gravitated most towards. Sceptile Whilst Bulbasaur was my first starter Pokémon, I think it’s important to mention that the first Pokémon game that I owned was actually Pokémon Ruby — a game that I originally started with a Mudkip. I still remember my time with Mudkip. I played up to Mauville City and getting pretty stuck against Wattson; if I recall, I must have accidentally decided to not teach it to my now Marshtomp, and it not being tooled with a particularly great moveset. After some grinding and running around everywhere in the early parts of the game, I ventured back to Slateport with Mr. Briney and Peeko. I went up to the Trick House not too far north of Slateport, just past the entrance to Cycling Road, and continued my grind. One of my Pokémon must have been poisoned, because I ended up hobbling back to Slateport’s Pokémon Centre with a wobbling screen. Dashing to Nurse Joy, she healed my Pokémon, and revealed that Marshtomp had Pokérus. I was already confused and frustrated about what I should do at this point in the game, and so I exited the Pokémon Centre and saved my game. This was the tipping point. So, I decided to start the game again, but planned to not save it. I’d made loads of progress with Marshtomp, so maybe I just needed a new perspective, and so I thought I’d try out a different starter Pokémon. Not being a fan of Torchic’s design, I decided to go with Treecko, and yep, you probably guessed it: I accidentally saved over my old save file. What ensued was my most difficult but rewarding time with a Pokémon game. I say that because I remember battling May’s Blaziken and Flannery’s Slugma to be particularly hard. Sure, I understood type weaknesses, but my other Pokémon were all so weak when compared to the might of my starter Pokémon that I just stuck with Treecko, then Grovyle, and then Sceptile. Going to the Pokémon League, Sceptile must have been somewhere around Lv. 70, compared to a real pick-and-mix team of Lv. 40 - Lv. 47 Pokémon (I recall having Groudon, Pelipper, Gyarados, and a Castform). I would use the other Pokémon only on occasion, such as an obvious type mismatch or when I needed to revive or heal Sceptile. I must have tried tens of times, but I just could not beat Drake with Sceptile for the life of me, and so I went around the region training as hard as I could, battling every single trainer that I could find, and grinding a whole lot at the aforementioned Trick House. During my travels, I stumbled upon TM02 Dragon Claw at the top of a waterfall in Meteor Falls, and decided a while later to see if any of my Pokémon could learn the move. Oh, Sceptile can learn it? And with that, Drake’s Salamence, unbeknownst to me at the time, was now all but doomed. And Steven, in comparison, was an absolute cake walk. My Sceptile was Lv. 93 when I beat Drake, but might have been Lv. 94 when I beat the League. Regardless, I’d done it, but my completely underlevelled and unbalanced team would later go on to be annihilated at the Battle Tower, and accidentally deleted by a friend a short while later. I think that I have such affectionate memories of my journey in Hoenn because I made that journey during my six months living in Australia, on my first Nintendo console (only my second console and my first handheld: a Nintendo DS) with no friends interested in Pokémon at my school, and having to write back home (here, in England) for some advice from a friend (I’d always get around whatever obstacle was in my way by the time that I received his response). This was my way of maturing, and I feel like I owe it to this game that I adjusted so quickly to life on the other side of the world. I was just experiencing change, wonder, and unexpected challenges, just like my in-game counterpart. And that’s why I love Sceptile. Staraptor While I was over in Australia, early on, I was privy to something my friends over in England weren’t yet: the marketing of Diamond and Pearl. I remember seeing Turtwig, Piplup and Chimchar designs featured as the main Pokémon card in some card tins. Well...I wrote them off as fake, because I had no actual way of knowing that these games were coming. I mean, some late Hoenn region stuff was only just being aired over there on TV. So, when I returned to England in August, I ended up down in Bournemouth, where my aunts worked. They’ve always been especially kind to me and my siblings, often showering us with gifts when we visit, and this time was no different. First, in the WHSmith in Boscombe, they picked up a copy of Pokémon World, which of course had a spread on Diamond and Pearl, as they’d been released only a few weeks prior. It dawned on me that those Pokémon I saw over in Australia actually were real, and that a DS exclusive Pokémon game was available, and later that day, they lovingly bought me a copy of Diamond, and my little sister a copy of Pearl. This was the last day of our holiday in Bournemouth, but we hadn’t brought our DSs with us — my mother didn’t want us to just laze around, I guess — and so I had to wait until the next day to start experiencing Sinnoh. Turtwig reminded me of Bulbasaur, so I chose it as my starter. Once in Sandgem Town, though, I accidentally spent all of my money on Poké Balls, and received a promotional Premier Ball (as you do for purchasing 10 or more Poké Balls). Well, I backtracked from there to the first route, and the first Pokémon that I found was a Lv. 2 Starly. After defeating the first gym leader, Roark (?), in Oreburgh City, it quickly became apparent during a scrap with Team Galactic to the east of Floaroma Town that Starly, not Turtwig, was to become the Pokémon that I had the greater bond with (in stark contrast to my Ruby experience with Sceptile). And my Starly, then Staravia, then Staraptor, ripped apart the gym leaders of Sinnoh, the Elite Four, Cynthia’s Lucario in particular, and then many of my friends’ legendary Pokémon in local wireless battles.

Anniversary dev talk with Shinya Takahashi:

I’m very surprised that Nintendo still hasn’t announced what they’re doing with regards to older titles/Virtual Console coming to the Switch, considering just how close it is to the end of Wii Points availability. Definitely gives rise to a nervous group of fans who are anxious to know what’s going on with some of their favourite titles, or, adversely, some gamers who want to play these games but aren’t sure if Wii VC is a wise investment, especially in the event that Switch VC is around the corner. I hope they speak up about their plans for legacy titles on the Switch sooner rather than later. And part of me really hopes that it isn’t part of a Netflix-type catalogue scheme.

Opening cutscene with an amazing theme song - Light Up My Life - performed by singer/songwriter Mai Kuraki, composed by shilo and arranged by Shuho Mitani. A battle mechanics trailer, featuring some new and some returning mechanics: And a new illustration by Raita Honjou showcasing the valkyria Clymaria Lewin.

We know for a fact that it’s been in true development since January 2016, and that the facial animations were originally in the build of the game utilised for the Gamescom trailer, but were removed for some reason. If I’m recalling correctly, I read somewhere that Yu Suzuki also did this (shown an older version of the game before trumping it with the new one not too long later, to blow people away) whilst at SEGA, so perhaps this has something to do with not getting fans too excited and expectant for a 2018 release in the event that it isn’t released this year? I genuinely think it’s 50/50 that we get Shenmue III this year, because the way that they’ve handled things so far has meant that we’re pretty much clueless as to where exactly they are in the development process. On the other hand, I’m pretty confident that we’ll see Shenmue 1+2 HD later this year. SEGA will finally be getting a chance to cash in on their golden eggs, and the release of 1+2 HD prior to III (and then being received amazingly) is vital to the success of III (I think it’s worth mentioning here that SEGA has invested in the project). My personal opinion is that we’ll see Shenmue 1+2 HD announced at E3 and released some time between the start of July and the end of September, whereas I think Shenmue III could arrive in the last week or two of November, if not in December — if the game is to make it to release this year. Otherwise, it’ll probably be delayed into Spring 2019 (and by all means, they should leave it in the oven to cook a little longer than that if that’s what the game needs).

Oh, I agree. I hope it wasn’t coming across that I was against it, or it being included in a PSHCE course, because I think it absolutely belongs there. I was just giving my opinion on why it might not just slot straight into the curriculum, because, as you alluded to, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all PSHCE specification (though, arguably, it’s the course that would really need it) which is being applied at every place of secondary education across the country, which means that this - along with many other important things that perhaps should be on the spec. - couldn’t just be slotted in. Though I definitely think that it’s important that education about such an agreement is made apparent, I think that it might be better suited to an assembly format than a classroom-based one. This is, of course, a pretty serious agreement: PSHCE is almost objectively a subject that isn’t treated as seriously as its content might merit, and has many points of relevance for all students to learn from, so I personally don’t think that it’s an optimal environment to learn about the ins-and-outs of such a topic. I’m not too surprised at your mentioning of the reaction of The Big Questions’ audience, because I doubt that there will be a large enough portion of the country against it to warrant not having it available as an option.

In an interview with Gamersflag, Yu Suzuki revealed that Shenmue III will not being a conclusive end to the series, leaving open the possibility of us seeing Shenmue IV in the future. In another interview with Gameblog, Suzuki talked about a number of different subjects, key among them being how Shenmue and Yakuza are often compared. On that topic, Suzuki stated: When asked if Shenmue III would be released in 2018, Suzuki responded that “I’ll try my best to make that happen.”

Bethesda has revealed that their E3 conference is scheduled for 18:30 PDT on Sunday 10th June, which is at 05:30 BST on Monday 11th June for us folks in the UK. Elder Scrolls VI? A Fallout spin-off akin to New Vegas? Starfield? Should definitely be a better show on paper than last year’s (I hope )

Apparently the Switch is/will be displaying a play time of zero hours for those who purchased and played the Switch at launch. It seems like Nintendo might have coded the software so that it tracks the time played from a specific date and month, but not a specific year, meaning that it resets playtime to zero for games launched over a year ago (i.e. Breath of the Wild on March 3rd will be reset to zero hours on March 3rd). It’s possible that the figure will return to normal in 11 days, but this has yet to be confirmed. Hearing about this just makes me want the Activity Log to make a triumphant return.

Moonlighter will be receiving a physical release when the game launches in May (which has been confirmed by the game’s publisher, Merge Games). In case you need a quick reminder about the game, here’s its Switch announcement trailer.

Yeah...whilst I agree that PSHCE (that’s what they called it when I left high school a couple of years ago, and still call it, according to my little brother - C is for Citizenship, iirc, if anyone’s wondering) would be a great route to go for raising awareness of such a thing, the whole course becomes a bit of a waste towards the tail end of high school (Year 10/11), focusing almost exclusively on things teenagers “shouldn’t” doing (i.e. drugs and alcohol; sexual education, unprotected sex and the problems that could arise from it; sometimes self harm, depression/anxiety and the like). It’s a course that isn’t taken seriously at all, because the people who would typically take it seriously use it as a chance to relax their mind a bit compared to other classes, and the people that such lessons are targeting have likely already partaken in something that they “shouldn’t” have done. Things like the above should be added to the long list of things that PSHCE in the later years of high school should, in my opinion, be used for, like financial awareness and stresses, mortgages, loans (student and otherwise), mental well-being, etc. Furthermore, sex education is something that should be taught earlier (as it will likely be taken more seriously, and might actually be able to have an impact), just like the problems with drugs and alcohol, because the demographic taking part in activities relating to these things is, worryingly, only getting younger. Back to the topic at hand though (apologies for my tangent), I agree that voting registration would probably be the best time to make this available. Desired changes after this could probably be made accessible by means of a simple form at your local GP.

Switching the light on and off, if I had to guess?

Such a smart move for them to consolidate on this. They saw a massive gap in the market for release dates in H1, used their initiative in filling it up with a bunch of great exclusives, and are reaping the rewards. I’m actually very surprised that we haven’t heard of a similar reorganisation over at Xbox. The more PlayStation supports console exclusives in H1, the more difficult it’s going to be for Xbox to effectively break into that window with their own exclusives (likely targeted at a similar demongraphic) in the future.

Infinity War was originally scheduled to release in the States on May 4th, with many countries/territories (UK included) getting it a week earlier on April 27th (some places, like Australia and Sweden, get the film in the 25th iirc). This has been the situation with most - if not all? - MCU films to date. So, there was an awesome Twitter exchange to exhibit the remedy to that situation. The film is now coming to America on April 27th. Reasoning for this change seems twofold: • they don’t want the film ruined for fans who are having to wait a week longer than those situated elsewhere. • they don’t want the film to overlap too heavily with Deadpool 2 and Solo. Great PR stunt for Disney/Marvel. Only 56 days to go

The Brazilian national team’s doctor, Rodrigo Lasmar, is saying that, in addition to a small fissure in his fifth matatarsal (which is what the media has been focusing their reports on), Neymar also has a major fracture to a bone in the middle of the foot.

Absolutely gutted to hear that Neymar’s likely got three months of recovery ahead of him after his surgery. It’s going to be a real shame if - once again - Brazil doesn’t live up to their billing at the World Cup because Neymar is out injured.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the Switch will not receive any revisions this year (i.e. an XL or mini version), with Nintendo instead wanting to focus on more peripherals to make use of the Switch’s USB-C connectivity.

Awesome. And you’re absolutely right, Sony’s really bringing the heat to kick this year off; they seem to really be cementing H1 as their period of focus for exclusives after it worked so well for games like Horizon Zero Dawn and Persona 5 last year, with a focus on third party endeavours in the latter half of the year. They’re really crushing it, and this year is looking like it will shape up to be at least as great on paper as last year was for them. I’m getting very curious as to when we hear anything on the Spider-Man front now that we know this, because I can’t see them pushing it back to late in the year, because of: i) the massive list of gigantic third party games coming, ii) wanting to capitalise on that Infinity War hype, and iii) their official stance being that first-party exclusives announced to have a 2018 release date will all have arrived by E3 2018. I have figure that it’ll probably be slotting in some time between E3 and the end of August?

Still haven’t completed it myself, but I can’t wait to get back to it. First game I’ll be returning to this summer. I definitely think that there’s room for a sequel, if not two; I’d love to see how other different areas and cultures of the world turned out, like Eastern Asia or Western Europe (iirc, the land in Zero Dawn is based on Denver/Colorado). I’m very happy for Guerrilla. They took a huge risk in fundamentally changing the types of games that they made with HZD, which has paid off massively for them.