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Lego's STEM-friendly Batmobile needs more STEM
Even as STEM toys become more popular, Lego's construction sets remain the gold standard, with more recent products like Mindstorms and Boost expanding into the fields of robotics and coding. This month it's bringing that technological expertise to its more standard kits with the Powered Up ecosystem. Now bread-and-butter sets like Lego City and licensed products like DC Superheroes get nifty additions like motorized parts and app connectivity, starting with Batman's iconic vehicle.
Lego's Powered Up kits are built for connected play
Lego's Boost sets are good for teaching the basics of code, but what about those who don't necessarily want to go that far? The company is accommodating them, too. It's launching a Powered Up platform that makes coding and connected play an option even if it's not the original intent. Only some sets will have full programing and mobile device control -- others will be powered or remote controlled, and some will be regular Lego kits with Powered Up support as an option.
Batmobile toy uses augmented reality to show the driver's view
Batman's got plenty of wonderful toys bearing his name, from his trusty Batarangs to his super Batcomputer. However, none are more famous than the Batmobile. And, while diehard fans might be a little down on the design of the latest version as seen in Batman v Superman and Justice League, they certainly won't be disappointed by the sheer amount of cool tricks packed into Mattel's new radio-controlled model. With its own built-in dash cam, augmented reality features and the ability to spew real exhaust, this new ride is exactly the kind of thing Bruce Wayne would have built if he went into toy design instead of crimefighting.
Batman glides into Arkham Knight gameplay trailer
Warner Bros. offered the first in a series of three gameplay trailers for Batman: Arkham Knight today, showing the caped superhero rescuing workers from a chemical plant. Found after the break, the video features a healthy dose of gliding and Batmobile action, as well as some good old-fashioned ass-kicking by the dark knight. Batman: Arkham Knight will launch on June 2, 2015 for PS4, Xbox One and PC. The final installment in Rocksteady's Arkham trilogy was delayed this past June. The game is "five times larger," and is set one year after the events of Batman: Arkham City, the developer's 2011 entry in the series. With a little help from the developer, diligent players recently unearthed an Easter egg in Arkham City with a special message from Calendar Man. [Image: WBIE]
Barely Related: The Millennium Falcon's Batmobile baby
A happy weekend tip from us, your pals: Take a walk. Enjoy the sun, the shade and the way your new iPhone screen looks in both of those lighting situations. Welcome to Barely Related, a conversational Friday column that presents the non-gaming news stories that we, the Joystiq staff, have been talking about over the past week. And no, we're not stopping our focus on industry and gaming news. Think of this as your casual weekly recap of interesting (and mostly geeky) news, presented just in time to fill your brain with things to discuss at all of those weekend shindigs. Grab a fresh drink, lean back in your armchair, and get ready to talk nerdy with us.
Barely Related: Alan Moore's million, James Franco's Rant
Welcome to Barely Related, a conversational Friday column that presents the non-gaming news stories that we, the Joystiq staff, have been talking about over the past week. And no, we're not stopping our focus on industry and gaming news. Think of this as your casual weekly recap of interesting (and mostly geeky) news, presented just in time to fill your brain with things to discuss at all of those weekend shindigs. Grab a fresh drink, lean back in your armchair, and get ready to talk nerdy with us.
Seen@E3: Da-nanananananana Batmobile
Alright, this has to violate ... we don't know, at least 12 different health, fire safety and traffic laws. No wonder the villains in Rocksteady's Batman: Arkham Knight are so angry with Gotham's Dark Knight: he's totally inconsiderate of where he parks his car! Sorry Bats, but we're gonna have to write you a ticket for, let's say $1,000. We know that's a lot, but hopefully it'll teach you a lesson: you either park your car in an approved space or live long enough to see yourself handed a parking violation. [Image: Joystiq]
Batman: Arkham Knight trailer unleashes your greatest fears
Warner Bros. unleashed a new trailer for Batman: Arkham Knight today, and while it stretches our personal definition of "gameplay video," it does ramp up the drama in the Dark Knight's night-life. The video shows off Batman's new plated suit as well as developer Rocksteady's version of the Batmobile. It also gives Batman a closer look at his newest nemesis, the Arkham Knight. Batman: Arkham Knight was unveiled in March and is set one year after the events of Batman: Arkham City, in a section of Gotham said to be "five times larger" than that of Arkham City. The game's soundtrack is being composed by David Buckley and Nick Arundel, the former signing on after scoring Call of Duty: Ghosts. Kevin Conroy returns in Arkham Knight to voice Batman after Roger Craig Smith took on the role for WB Games Montreal's Batman: Arkham Origins. Arkham Knight is coming to Xbox One, PS4 and PC. [Image: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment]
Batman Arkham Knight set one year later, 'five times larger' than Arkham City
The recently-revealed final game from Rocksteady in the Arkham series, Batman Arkham Knight, will feature "traffic-friendly streets" in a map that's said to be "roughly five times the size" of Batman Arkham City. Lead AI and combat programmer Tim Hanagan told Game Informer that "at any given time, there are between three and four times the number of thugs active in Gotham City than there were in Arkham City," and that larger riots in the game will have up to 50 characters wreaking havoc. Arkham Knight is set one year after Arkham City, in which Batman's foes have banded together to tear the Dark Knight's attention away from a crumbling Gotham City. The single player-only game will also include an arch-villain created from scratch by Rocksteady and DC Entertainment CCO Geoff Johns. Rocksteady's initial announcement focused on another big addition to the Arkham series: Players will get plenty of time in the driver's seat of the Batmobile, which can be fetched at the press of a button, can handle the jumps and boosts expected of the more reckless drivers among us and will eject Batman out of his seat at times. Kevin Conroy will return to voice Batman after Roger Craig Smith lent his voice to the character in Arkham Origins. Additionally, Nolan North will voice Penguin, Wally Wingert will voice Riddler, Tara Strong will continue as Harley Quinn and Troy Baker will voice Two-Face again. Speaking of Harley Quinn, Joker's popular sidekick will be playable via pre-order bonus content that includes four challenge maps. [Image: Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment]
Batman: Arkham Knight leaked on GAME listing [Update: 10/14 list date]
A listing for Batman: Arkham Knight appeared on the GAME retailer site. While no longer available to view, the game was listed for PS4, Xbox One and PC. A Google search limited to GAME's site shows the listing existed in some capacity before being pulled by the retailer. Update: Game Informer revealed that Batman: Arkham Knight will be the cover of its April magazine. The game will be the final one in the Arkham series from Rocksteady, and is set after the events of Batman: Arkham City. The game will feature the Batmobile and a new area of Gotham City reportedly "far larger" than that of Arkham City. Batman will spend his time in the game hunting down familiar foes: Scarecrow, Two-Face, Penguin and Harley Quinn in particular. Update 2: WBIE issued a trailer for the game and a press release, the latter found after the break. The publisher noted that the game will launch this year. Update 3: The game's website lists Harley Quinn as a playable character via a pre-order bonus. The add-on content will include four challenge maps and give players the opportunity to use Harley's "unique weapons, gadgets, and abilities first-hand." Update 4: An image on GameStop promoting Batman: Arkham Knight's Harley Quinn pre-order bonus lists an October 14 release date for the game. Given that GameStop is the only retailer with that listed date at the moment, we wouldn't mark our calendars just yet. We've added the image after the break and reached out to Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment to confirm the date. Update 5: A Warner Bros. representative told Joystiq, "Batman: Arkham Knight is scheduled for release worldwide in 2014. " [Image: WBIE]
Nissan's BladeGlider electric concept car should definitely race the Batmobile (eyes-on)
We already knew that Nissan's eye-catching electric car concept looked fit for a superhero, but it's honestly not just comic-book premise. A Nissan spokesperson told us that the BladeGlider is a very early prototype aimed towards for-real vehicle production. To its credit, with some geometry skills and practice, you could probably fit two BladeGliders into a standard parking space. Perhaps even more incredibly, the BladeGlider also apparently uses less energy than Nissan's eponymous Leaf EV. The car draws on a lot of design cues from the DeltaWing, a car that Nissan worked on and one that previously did the rounds at Le Mans, among other raceways. Development then judiciously plucked design and engineering pointers from the ZEOD RC, its hybrid electric race car. As you'd expect from a car that's striving towards the future, the twin doors rise upwards rather than swinging out. Sure, we've seen that before -- 30 years earlier -- but in this concept car the entire cockpit also pitches to the side to make space for the driver's exit or entrance. It's no solo car, however, and there's space for two passengers in the back. And that shape: the front of the car is a meter wide, opening up to 1.8 meters along the back. There aren't many cars out there like the BladeGlider -- check out a shot of the HUD after the break.
World's only turbine-powered Batmobile up for sale on eBay, recession hits Bruce Wayne, too
Remember that Boeing-powered Batmobile we ran across last month? Well friends, it could be yours via eBay auction in about a week. Currently, the highest bid is you can buy it now for $620,000 -- which would be enough to cover the cost of several cars not fit for the Caped Crusader. However, none of those come equipped with a helicopter turbine, now do they? Putsch Racing reminds interested parties that the mean machine is street registered in the US, so you can roll like the Dark Knight without fear of the police pursuing you. An iPad loaded with digital avionics helps you monitor the jet engine, and you can use your choice of three fuel sources to power the thing: Jet A, kerosene, or diesel. Hey now, we never said it was environmentally friendly. If you, like Jay-Z, are "planking on a million," check out the detailed auction shots below and bid on Batman's ride yourself. %Gallery-131955%
Man builds turbine-powered Batmobile, brags about having the only one (video)
So you think you're a huge fan of the Dark Knight, huh? Not so fast. Do you own a full-sized Batmobile? Yeah... we didn't think so. But, auto restoration guru Casey Putsch does, and to launch himself further into super-fanboy status, he upgraded the engine with a Boeing turboshaft -- snatched out of a naval drone helicopter. According to him, this makes his collector's item one of a kind, in true Bruce Wayne fashion. Sure, these discarded movie props are usually powered by a standard 350 (especially the older models), but that wasn't enough for a dude's dude who appraises and designs all types of vehicles for a living. Mods were also made to the interior, including an iPad in the dash which serves as the avionics system and keeps track of the important GPS coordinates -- you know, stuff you'd expect Lucious Fox to toss in to track villains and such. For a look at this beast in action, check out the video after the break; meanwhile we'll try to figure out how to cram a jet engine into a Tesla Roadster.
Gordon Murray reveals new Batmobile, Dark Knight gets serious about reducing carbon footprint
So you've finished building your Batman Forever-style Batmobile, your Tumbler's up on blocks in the front yard, and you're itching for a new project. It's not too early to start planning a DIY version of Gordon Murray's newly unveiled Bat-ride (part of the Batman Live World Arena Tour). The designer drew on his experience with the McLaren F1 for his new concept car, which includes a healthy dose of imagineering: there's a carbon-fiber body that "breathes," as well as LED-lit "virtual wheels." We're not sure how carbon fiber breathes or what virtual wheels are, but as Murray explains in the video below, they're based on Formula One materials as he imagines them 15-20 years from now. He also envisions a greener Dark Knight, whose ride runs on hydrogen fuel cells and lithium-ion batteries -- no longer will the caped crusader suffer a guilty conscience due to his excessive carbon dioxide emissions.
Keepin' it real fake, part CCVII: NOKLA Batman Mobile phone gets all its signals crossed
Look, in real life, we all know that Batman's car is called the Batmobile, NOT the Batman Mobile, and to be perfectly honest, we don't know why it ever seemed like a good idea to name a phone after an auto anyway, but then again: it does look rather... awesome. No, it doesn't look like the most comfortable phone, but as the Dark Knight himself would surely tell you, life is full of pain. This GSM bad mother's boasting a whole host of whack features, including an FM radio, and a "pixel high definition camera," plus "basic functions," but we all know this one's purely about style -- which it's got to spare. This bad boy seems to be currently available in China, and while we doubt we'll ever see it on shores of the U.S., we can tell you this: we'd be willing to pay at least twenty-five dollars to add this to our NOKLA collection. There are a few more stunners after the break.
Video: Homebrew Batmobile ready to fight crime, compensate for your rotten childhood
Of course, the Batman Tumbler we saw a year or so ago is totally bad-ass, but sometimes you need something more suitable for black tie events: cotillions, charity functions, and so forth. This Batmobile (circa Batman Forever) is hand-built by a sculptor named Bob Causey and features a retractable hard top, a high-tech interior (including three LCD displays) and, the builder assures us, is actually road worthy. If anything, this guy should provide the perfect vehicle for your neurosis. Because, let's face it -- this whole donning Lycra Spandex and looking for people to beat up act? It's a cry for help. Video after the break.[Via Oh Gizmo!]
Tumbler Batmobile modded to house PC
For those of you still enamored by the Optimus Prime PC case mod, here's yet another transformation to keep you in awe. A self-proclaimed Batman fanatic happened upon an RC iteration of the Tumbler Batmobile, and as any true nerd would do, he wondered if a PC could be stuffed within. Sure enough, with a healthy amount of dedicated modding, the RC Tumbler was finally equipped with an AMD Sempron 2800+ CPU, a 40GB hard drive, and a basic DVD drive, but considering the main purpose is to race around the web and look sexy, we'd say it's potent enough for that. Click on through for a few more shots that even Bruce Wayne would approve of.[Via Digg]
