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$3,950 will get you a life-size BB-8 that doesn't move
If you've been wanting a life-sized replica of Star Wars' BB-8, Sideshow Collectibles will soon have you covered. The company just announced its BB-8 Life-Size Figure, a 37-inch tall replica of the adorable droid that appeared in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. It's designed to look as similar to the film's version as possible, complete with a paint job that makes it appear as weathered and worn as the one from the big screen.
Watch how VFX artists crafted 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'
ILM has unveiled the official "sizzle reel," for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, showing how it did major visual effects for the movie. If this sounds familiar, an apparently unauthorized making-of video made the rounds early this year, but was quickly pulled. The franchise is the gold standard for VFX, though, so fans can once again get a look behind the curtain, seeing how shots were created at houses in San Francisco, Singapore, Vancouver and London.
The best 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' toy gets even better
Sphero's BB-8 quickly became the most sought-after Star Wars toy when it was revealed last year. Now, the company is introducing a "Battle-worn" edition of the droid at IFA 2016, featuring a murky appearance that makes it further resemble the character from Star Wars: The Force Awakens. But that's not it. Along with this new rolling ball, Sphero introduced the final version of its Force Band, which lets you control BB-8 by simply waving your hand. The wearable device is also compatible with two other members of Sphero's robot family, the SPRK+ and Ollie.
ICYMI: ISS inflation failures, remote controlled muscles and more
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-2").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Today on In Case You Missed It: That newly installed inflatable habitat aboard the International Space Station has refused to fully inflate and nobody's sure why just yet. A Japanese inventor has devised a system that enables users to hijack another person's limbs simply by moving their own. And Disney released a special edition LP set for Star Wars: The Force Awakens soundtrack that features hidden, laser-engraved images of the Millennium Falcon and TIE Fighters.
'Star Wars: Battlefront' lacks a story mode thanks to some movie
When Star Wars: Battlefront launched, barring a lightweight solo play arcade mode, it didn't have a true single-player campaign. During publisher EA's recent earnings call, executive VP Patrick Söderlund explained that it "was a conscious decision we made due to time and being able to launch the game side-by-side with the movie that came out to get the strongest possible impact." Star Wars movies are a big deal, in case you didn't know.
The 'Star Wars' holographic chess game is nearly a reality
"Let's be real: Any article you read about Magic Leap or any AR platform, the first thing they talk about is Holochess." That's Mike Levine, the former senior effects specialist at LucasArts and the current CEO of mobile game developer Happy Giant. Levine is working on a new project with Corey Rosen, the former creature-effects supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic, and legendary monster designer Phil Tippett -- the man who created Holochess for the original Star Wars: A New Hope. Together these sci-fi comrades are building HoloGrid: Monster Battle, a tactical collectible card game that takes numerous cues from the classic Holochess scene. Forty years on, Star Wars still exerts a huge influence on Tippett's life. "It's really weird," Tippett says. "It's like being in some kind of time bubble or Groundhog's Day. It keeps coming back."
Comcast deal lets you buy 'Star Wars' from your set-top box
It's not that hard to get Star Wars: The Force Awakens through digital sources, but Comcast doesn't want to be left out. It just struck a deal that brings Disney's movies to the Xfinity TV store, both online and from your TV proper -- if you want to watch the adventures of Rey and Finn from your set-top box, you can. Only The Force Awakens is available right away, but Comcast will fill out the catalog over the "coming weeks."
What's on your HDTV: 'Star Wars' Blu-ray, 'Fantastic Contraption'
Now that The Walking Dead has wrapped up its season with an annoying cliffhanger, it's time for Fear the Walking Dead to step in on AMC. Of course, neither show matches up to the Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which arrives this week on Blu-ray after debuting on-demand last week. We've also got an exciting VR release, as Fantastic Contraption rolls out for properly-equipped PC gamers, while on Xbox Quantum Break makes its time-shifting debut. Sports fans are ready for the final game of the NCAA Men's Basketball tournament, as well as the beginning of the MLB season. American Crime Story: The People vs. O.J Simpson, Sleepy Hollow, 11.22.63 and Billions all have season finales this week, while American Idol drops in the series finale. Look after the break to check out each day's highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).
What's on your HDTV: 'Archer,' 'The Walking Dead' season finale
This week Archer season seven premieres on FX, while The Walking Dead prepares for its season finale. Of course, VR games have arrived including Adr1ft, while the new Rollercoaster Tycoon comes to PCs via early access, and Resident Evil 6 arrives on the new generation of consoles. We also have a day-and-date Ultra HD Blu-ray release, as Concussion is available in 1080p or Ultra HD and, of course, the new Star Wars movie will be available via digital outlets starting Friday, before the Blu-ray arrives next week -- I have a (legit) early copy, and it's as excellent as you would expect. Look after the break to check out each day's highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).
'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' Blu-ray rip leaks to torrents
After grossing over $2 billion in theaters, Star Wars: The Force Awakens has made its long awaited debut... on the piracy scene. The movie is scheduled for release via download until April 1st, and the Blu-ray arrives April 5th, but now that the discs are pressed one has inevitably leaked out. TorrentFreak estimated that in the first 12 hours over 250,000 people had already downloaded a copy, and it's currently topping trackers like The Pirate Bay and Kickass Torrents.
'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' arrives on Blu-ray and DVD April 5th
After raking in over $2 billion in box offices around the world, Star Wars: The Force Awakens is set to take over your living room. The J.J. Abrams-directed film will be available as a digital HD purchase from the likes of iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and more on April 1st. If you'd rather secure a physical copy the movie will be available via a Blu-ray combo pack and DVD April 5th. As you might expect, there's a load of behind-the-scenes content (sadly, digital extras "may vary by retailer"), including the making of the film, building BB-8, creating creatures and the music of John Williams. In fact, there's a full-length documentary with footage and interviews on how The Force Awakens was made.
Meet the Oscar-nominated sound designers behind Kylo's lightsaber
Skywalker Sound is home to Star Wars. The award-winning sound designers and mixers who inhabit the red-bricked walls of George Lucas' audio post-production facility have shaped the soundscapes for the saga so far. From the first movie in 1977 to The Force Awakens in 2015, the team of sound wizards has converted fictional ideas into believable sounds and indelible memories. Instead of pulling from a ready-made digital library, they tend to rely on organic sounds. Mundane objects and creatures are carefully manipulated into powerful spaceships and energized lightsabers. try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-554275").style.display="none";}catch(e){}
Watch how 'Star Wars' turns people into CG characters
Heads-up: spoliers ahead. It's not shocking to hear that the frequently practical visual effects of Star Wars: The Force Awakens are still loaded with computer graphics, but you might be surprised to know just how much effort went into blending real people with virtual characters and worlds. Both IAMAG and FXGuide have posted clips showing the work involved, and it's clear that there's a whole lot more involved than green screens. The highlight by far is the rendition of barkeeper Maz Kanata. Lupita Nyong'o wore a special, patterned suit to let her perform on-set, and performed separate motion capture sessions (using a stereo head rig) to get her expressions down pat. The team also used software to tweak Maz's facial features after the fact.
'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' is the UK's biggest ever film
We knew that Star Wars: The Force Awakens would be a popular film, but the sheer speed at which it's breaking box office records has still taken us by surprise. It's now the biggest movie in UK history, raking in a whopping £104 million after 22 days. The seventh instalment in the force-wielding franchise took the title by toppling Skyfall, the quieter and character-focused Bond film that struck a chord with moviegoers in 2012.
The new 'Star Wars' is the biggest North American movie to date
You knew it was just a matter of time before Star Wars: The Force Awakens broke some of the truly huge movie records, and that's starting to happen this week. As of sometime on January 6th (likely by the time you read this), TFA will become the highest-grossing movie of all time in North America, pushing past Avatar's $760.5 million. It'll take much longer for the flick to achieve the worldwide record (it's just under $1.6 billion versus Avatar's $2.8 billion), if it does at all, but the Chinese debut on January 9th could give it a healthy push toward that goal.
'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' broke several movie records
If you suspected that Star Wars: The Force Awakens would smash box office records when you saw the lengthy queues at your local theater, you made a pretty good guess. Disney expects the adventures of Finn, Poe and Rey to set an all-time domestic debut record with an estimated $238 million haul. The previous best, this summer's Jurassic World, "only" pulled in $208.8 million. On top of that, TFA also broke several other domestic records, including the biggest single-day gross ($120.5 million), biggest Thursday preview ($57 million), best December debut and multiple IMAX records. Worldwide, it's estimated to rake in $517 million over its first five days -- and that $4 billion Lucasfilm purchase suddenly seems like the bargain of the century.
Playdate: 'Star Wars' week celebration, episode two!
Star Wars: The Force Awakens is nearly upon us, and Engadget's gaming crew can barely contain itself. Life for Sean, Tim and Jess has been a constant struggle between the pain of being patient and the fear of encountering spoilers out there on the internet. How does one cope with such stress, such anticipation? By playing old Star Wars games, of course! Today we'll be taking a look at the PlayStation 4 ports of Star Wars: Racer Revenge and Super Star Wars, as well the classic Tie Fighter space sim on PC and, if there's time, the cinematic adventure of Rebel Assault II.
ICYMI: We've gone full Leia in honor of Star Wars
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-811506{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-811506, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-811506{width:570px;display:block;}#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-44035{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-44035, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-44035{width:100%;display:block;}try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-44035").style.display="none";}catch(e){}try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-811506").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Many of you will be leaving work as quickly as possible to catch an early screening of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. We're helping you prepare for the glory of what awaits with a round-up of some of our favorite Star Wars moments and characters with all the products, amazing DIYs and games that are rocking our galaxy.We'll be back to normal for tomorrow, so if you see any interesting science or tech videos, please share with us! Just tweet us with the #ICYMI hashtag to @mskerryd.
Playdate: 'Star Wars' week celebration, episode one!
Get ready for a week almost 40 years in the making: over the next five days, Engadget Playdate is all about Star Wars. The movies, the toys and, most of all, the video games. Join us as we trip over our nostalgia in preparation for The Force Awakens. We'll be revisiting the best of Star Wars gaming in chronological order, starting with the prequel trilogy's Republic Commando and Star Wars: Starfighter
Spotify will reveal your 'Star Wars' soul mate
With three days to go before the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Spotify has become the latest company to piggyback on the marketing bandwagon. The streaming service is giving users the chance to see which character, new or old, has the same taste in music as you. All you need to do is visit the stand-alone website "Spotify Star Wars," log in, sit back and hope for the best. The site analyzes listening data and assigns you a character based on your most visited artists. The character-match algorithm is a little nonsensical, though. For example, if you're into teen pop, you're paired with Luke Skywalker, or if neo soul is your thing, Padme Amidala is your girl. The parallels are difficult to predict.
