Tag: video games

Gaming, News, Video Games1 Comment

Activision Blizzard’s Toxic Culture is Part of a Larger, Ongoing Conversation about Video Games

Jamal Michel

This week, employees at Activision Blizzard plan to walkout in protest over work conditions and leadership’s poor response to workplace treatment of women — particularly women of color, transgender women, nonbinary people, and other marginalized groups, according to a Kotaku report. On July 20, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing filed a lawsuit alleging that the company cultivated a toxic and sexist, “frat boy” workplace environment, and since the bombshell news dropped, scores of former and current employees, reporters, and gaming leaders have voiced their concerns over the lack of accountability on the part of Activision Blizzard.

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Animation, Gaming, StreamingLeave a comment

Teaser Trailer for ‘The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf’

Mike Manalo

More great news for you Witcher fans! The upcoming animated movie, The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf is coming on August 23. And yesterday, Netflix dropped the first teaser for the anticipated movie, which you can watch right here:

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Hard N.O.C. Life, StreamingLeave a comment

Hard NOC Life 226: Why are Critics Dunking on ‘Space Jam’

Hard NOC Media

Keith, Britney, and Dominic welcome back Jamal to figure out why everyone else is hating on LeBron James’ Space Jam reboot — a film the whole crew loved. Jamal is also here to plug our Twitch channel and Gaming Newsletter so be sure to subscribe to both! Later, Keith, Dom, and Britney break down the Loki finale and what it all means for the future of the MCU.

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Marvel, Movies

Deadpool and Korg Team Up for Hilarious ‘Free Guy’ Reaction Video

Mike Manalo

OH MY GOD! Deadpool is officially part of the MCU guys!

In an email sent out today by the Deadpool Corps entitled “[Draft] Deadpool Integration Test Email #1” (timely, Reynolds!), 20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios Disney included a link to an unlisted video featuring everyone’s favorite Merc with a Mouth AND Korg from the MCU, meaning — DEADPOOL IS OFFICIALLY PART OF THE MCU! THIS IS HIS FIRST CANON APPEARANCE (…I think? Maybe?…Not?)

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Gaming, Video Games

‘Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut’ Set to Arrive in August

Jamal Michel

Sucker Punch announced today that Ghost of Tsushima, their Japanese masterpiece of an RPG, is getting a director’s cut release on both PS4 and PS5 August 20. Players will experience the brand new Iki Island and loads of additional content, new features, and some PS5 exclusive enchantments that will further elevate the critical hailed title.

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Interview, Video Games

Noveen Crumbie and Adriana Colón on Arkane Studios’ New Game ‘Redfall’

Jamal Michel

With the reveal of incredible new indie titles, new and upcoming downloadable content, and major blockbuster games dropping on Game Pass the day of their release, this summer’s E3 gave gamers a lot to appreciate following a year and a half of some of the industry’s most challenging times. For me and thousands of other gamer nerds, the standout for the summer was the reveal of Arkane Studios’ new open-world co-op FPS Redfall.

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Conventions, Gaming, Streaming

WitcherCon is Coming in July

Mike Manalo

If you’re a huge fan of The Witcher then you’re about to have the best day ever! On July 9, Netflix and CD Projekt Red are teaming up to bring you WITCHERCON! Today, the two companies partnered up to release details and a full schedule for the upcoming virtual event.

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Conventions, Video Games

Indie Developers Thrive Despite Post-Pandemic Challenges

Jamal Michel

If this year’s E3 expo showed us anything it’s that indie game developers are built different. Throughout the span of the four day long event, viewers were shown dozens of new titles coming to consoles and PC, and many of those titles came from small studios turning passion projects into marketable content. Between this summer’s E3 and the 2021 Wholesome Direct, gamers saw first-hand the hard work put in by indie game development studios who were also coming off one of the most damaging events to the industry and globe as a whole.

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Origins, Video Games

After 25 Years and Zero Games Played, My Father Remains the Ultimate Gamer

Jamal Michel

The other day, my father noticed one of the PC games I was playing and was pretty stunned — not just at the graphics but the overall presentation of gaming today. Growing up, the computer in our home was mostly used for homework, school projects, and of course, Math Blaster. I don’t know that my father knows how deep the rabbit hole of PC gaming goes, or its history, but he remains one of the single most significant figures in introducing video games to me.

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Marvel, Video Games

‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ Console Game Debuts, Prompts ‘Avengers’ Comparisons

Dominic Mah

Square Enix and Eidos Montreal showed off the first clips from a new Guardians of the Galaxy game for PS5/PS4/Xbox Series XJS/PC at their E3 showcase on Sunday. The preview included the reveal trailer, an extended Alpha-build gameplay clip, and information about the AAA superhero game’s launch date.

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Gaming, Tech

Check Out Razer’s Newest Collab With Ubisoft to Game Like an Esports Pro

Jamal Michel

Today Razer announced a new edition to their line of esports worthy tech in a collaboration with Ubisoft. The BlackShark V2 Pro: Six Siege Special Edition — reskinned with a striking Six Siege design and highlighted with eye-catching orange stitching and accents is a perfect fit for any hardcore gamer.

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Conventions, Video Games

Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest is a Bright Spot in Tumultuous Times

Jamal Michel

I first saw Geoff Keighley on G4TV back in my early teens and after noting his passion for games, his quirky presentation, and his overall excitement to share some good news, I knew I had finally found some long lost brother who became infinitely more successful than me, and rightly so. Geoff’s been an icon in the entertainment and gaming industry for the last two decades and while his reputation precedes him, there still never seems to be a shortage of excitement when he hits the stage to share a famous WORLD PREMIERE.

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Conventions, Video Games

The 2021 PC Gaming Show Officially Airs June 13

Jamal Michel

The return of PC gaming’s biggest showcase finally arrives June 13, the weekend of E3, with a bevy of exclusive content, trailers, and more for fans and gamers to enjoy. PC Gamer will be streaming the show from their YouTube and Twitch channels from Los Angeles within E3’s official programming to bring viewers some of PC gaming’s most innovative and exciting new titles.

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Conventions, Tech, Video Games

E3’s Media Week Includes Lackluster Perks, Buggy Features, and Bizarre Avatar Creator

Jamal Michel

Since its inception, the Electronic Entertainment Experience (or E3 expo) has been the number one hotspot for fans and gaming journalists alike to get a sneak peak at the biggest and most anticipated titles to come to the gaming world. As of late, however, the once celebrated video game and tech expo has been against the ropes, fighting the wavering reality of its relevance amid a changing landscape that saw the announcement of the PlayStation 5 in an interview with Wired magazine. In 2019, the expo was rocked by Sony’s withdrawal from the convention and before that, faced increased criticism for “over hyping” titles that would ultimately bust (i.e. Anthem).

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Reviews, Video Games

Flight School Studio’s ‘Stonefly’ is a Must-Play Indie Game

Jamal Michel

This week, the folks at Flight School Studios and MWM Interactive released their indie mech title, Stonefly. The adventure game is a chill yet wholly beautifully exploration of legacy, resource gathering and mech building, as players follow Annika Stonefly in her search for her father’s stolen rig. After a late-night excursion, Annika mistakenly leaves the garage door storing the mech wide open, leaving it victim to a theft that launches our main character on her journey through dangerous and captivating flora and fauna.

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Gaming, Movies, Music

Death Row Records Celebrates ‘Above the Rim’ Deluxe Soundtrack with Exclusive Merch

Jamal Michel

When we all saw Tupac Shakur in Juice in the ‘90s, not only did we pray to never run into someone like Bishop in our own lives, but we learned the range Pac had outside of the studio. ‘90s and early 2000s Black cinema was marked by a particular era of gangster-laden, hip-hop fueled narratives that sometimes hit the mark, with films like Do the Right Thing, Boyz N the Hood, and New Jack City lending various insights into the cinematic representation of Black Consciousness as it was in the ‘90s and later.

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Fantasy, Video Games

‘The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD’ will Launch with Amiibo Feature That Has Fans Concerned

Jamal Michel

Back in February, the folks at Nintendo dropped an official trailer for the highly anticipated release of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD for the Nintendo Switch. The high-definition remaster of the 2011 classic, originally released on the Nintendo Wii, was announced during February’s Nintendo Direct stream, to the thunderous applause of countless Zelda fans. What followed were several announcements, including Skyward Sword themed Joy-Cons (with preorders currently sold-out practically everywhere) available the same day as the game’s July 2021 release.

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Martial Arts, Reviews, Streaming, Video Games2 Comments

NOC Review: ‘Mortal Kombat’ is Not a Flawless Victory

Mike Manalo

It’s ironic that this would be a review I’m covering following Godzilla Vs. Kong because it actually has the opposite problem. It’s great from a POC standpoint. But it’s just not a very good movie, I’m afraid. Yes, it’s my unfortunate responsibility to tell you that Mortal Kombat is a dud. It’s a bland entry to the list of barely passable video game adaptations that would ultimately leave Shang Tsung starving, because it has no real soul to suck from it anyway. While not completely atrocious, it is about as forgettable and lifeless as, say, 2018’s Tomb Raider reboot.

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Interview, Martial Arts, Streaming, Video Games

NOC Exclusive Interview: ‘Mortal Kombat’ Star Chin Han

Patrick Strange

Heyyy! It’s Kuya P back again with another NOC EXCLUSIVE! I was lucky enough to sit down for a quick conversation with Actor, Chin Han who will be appearing as Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat premiering in Theaters and HBO Max this Friday!

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Movies, Video Games1 Comment

Get Over Here… and Watch the Opening of ‘Mortal Kombat’

Keith Chow

In anticipation of the film’s theatrical and streaming release on Friday, April 23, Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema have released the opening seven minutes of Mortal Kombat, the reboot of the famed 1995 adaptation of the legendary fighting game. Watch it below in all its gory glory:

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News, Video Games

20 Iconic Bethesda Games are Coming To Xbox Game Pass

Jamal Michel

Earlier this week, Phil Spencer, the head of Xbox, officially announced their acquisition of ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks. Speculations of the move had been mounting for months leading up to the multibillion dollar acquisition of one of gaming’s most robust publishers. In a sweetening of the pot today, Xbox announced the 20 blockbuster titles joining their Game Pass library by the week’s end.

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