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‘The Lonely Assassins’ is the best Doctor Who game ever made
It's a found phone game that doesn't outstay its welcome, has some fun puzzle-solving elements and a very quirkly conclusion.
'Doctor Who' tried to tackle Big Tech, and failed
Doctor Who has had something to say since its first episodes aired in 1963, often reflecting the anxieties of its creators, from the environment through to looming dystopia. The show's newest executive producer, Chris Chibnall, clearly has concerns about the state of technology today. Unfortunately, he has struggled to properly articulate them, often coming across more amateurish than insightful.
'Doctor Who: The Edge of Time' VR game arrives November 12th
While it might be an iconic TV franchise, Doctor Who hasn't exactly set the video game world alight over the years. BBC Studios, publisher PlayStack and developer Maze Theory are trying to remedy that with the promising Doctor Who: The Edge of Time, a VR game they'll release November 12th. It was previously scheduled for a September debut.
'Doctor Who' will be an HBO Max streaming exclusive in the US
Finding the shows you want to stream is about to get more complicated in the coming months as some big-name companies launch their own services to take on the likes of Hulu and Netflix. Among them is WarnerMedia, and when HBO Max arrives next spring, you may have to start using that platform if you're a Whovian eager for your Time Lord fix.
The BBC is giving 'Doctor Who' the VR treatment
There may be no new series of Doctor Who for 2019, but the BBC is preparing a little something to keep fans entertained in the meantime. The corporation has announced that it will release a short episode of the show, available exclusively in VR. at some point in the near future. Doctor Who: The Runaway will be a 12-ish minute episode that places the viewer inside an animated version of the TARDIS console room.
Amazon inadvertedly streamed an upcoming episode of 'Doctor Who'
Never mind bootleggers releasing unaired Doctor Who episodes -- the biggest concern this week is none other than one of the BBC's own distributors. Fans who tried to watch the latest episode of the show ("Kerblam!") on Amazon the evening of November 21st found themselves watching "The Witchfinders" instead -- an episode that wasn't supposed to air until November 25th. Yes, the time travel jokes pretty much write themselves here. The io9 team notes that Amazon even had the subtitles for "Kerblam!" instead, leading to some unintentionally funny mash-ups of text from the future with the 17th-century past.
BBC iPlayer now hosts all post-revival 'Doctor Who' episodes
Whovians, rejoice: every 'modern' episode of Doctor Who is back on iPlayer. (At least for Brits, anyway.) All of the adventures starring Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi as the humanoid and usually heartwarming alien are included in the re-release. They're being offered as a sort of warm-up for series 11, which will debut this fall with Jodie Whittaker as the iconic Time Lord. You'll need to hurry, though, if you want to watch everything before the show comes back.
Twitch is hosting a seven-week 'Doctor Who' viewing event
If you're a die-hard Doctor Who fan, Twitch is about to make your summer. The livestreaming service is teaming with BBC Studios on a seven-week Doctor Who viewing event on May 29th that will show more than 500 classic episodes of the Time Lord's adventures, dating all the way back to the first black-and-white season in 1963. It's not the usual marathon -- the company will air a batch of episodes every day on its TwitchPresents channel starting at 2PM Eastern. The Yogscast team will produce shows to introduce each Doctor, so you'll hopefully know the differences between Tom Baker and Sylvester McCoy (hint: there are many) by the time all is said and done.
A lost 'Doctor Who' episode featuring Tom Baker is finally here
Doctor Who fans have waited nearly four decades for today. Shada -- an episode that began filming in 1979 with Tom Baker as the legendary Time Lord -- is finally finished and available to download (a DVD will be released in the UK on December 4th, and in the US on January 9th). An animated segment and a new scene were produced to fill in the footage gaps, both of which feature Baker reprising his role as the Doctor. To add to the prestige, the episode was also written by Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy author Douglas Adams.
3D audio will make the next 'Doctor Who' episode even scarier
This Saturday's episode of Doctor Who is a spooky affair called "Knock Knock," and it's getting a special binaural edition online immediately after the episode's premiere. Anyone wearing headphones (it's best experienced with headphones) can enjoy the 3D "surround sound" effect as they follow the Doctor and Bill on their latest adventure.
Four decades of 'Doctor Who' arrive on the BBC's BritBox
BritBox, the streaming service co-owned by British broadcasters BBC and ITV, has now become an essential purchase, at least for some people. The company is now the exclusive home to the entire library of classic Doctor Who episodes in the US. Subscribers will now be able to watch the surviving full serials from the 1963 - 1989 show, back when it was awesome.
Chris Chibnall is in charge of 'Doctor Who,' and it's British TV's fault
The news that Chris Chibnall was going to replace Steven Moffat as the man in charge of Doctor Who wasn't one I relished hearing. After all, Chibnall lacks the pedigree of both his predecessors, and the episodes that he has written for the show have been underwhelming. His appointment makes plenty of sense when you look at it from the BBC's perspective, but it also exposes a bitter truth about the state of the UK's TV industry.
BBC America to show social media on 'Doctor Who' reruns
The latest season of the time-travelling Doctor is all wrapped up, so what should you be doing while you wait for his next adventures? Watching reruns with a sprinkling of social media, apparently. BBC America will soon be rebroadcasting season 9 as "Doctor's Notes," which are essentially regular episodes with fan-made commentary layered on top. They'll include quirky tweets, rambling Tumblr posts, exceptional Instagram fan art and Facebook babble. The BBC says it'll then be coupling these with its own facts and storyboards to keep longtime fans entertained.
What's on your HDTV: 'Furious 7' Blu-ray, 'Doctor Who', 'Forza' and 'Destiny'
Week one of NFL action is done, but there's plenty of things on the schedule other than sports. Later tonight Apple CEO Tim Cook is stopping by Stephen Colbert's Late Show stage, while FX takes the wraps off of its new series The Bastard Executioner. We'll be avoiding an emotional viewing of the Furious 7 Blu-ray by playing Forza Motorsport 6 instead, although gamers can also opt for the new Destiny expansion or a round of Pro Evolution Soccer. On streaming, The Mindy Project finds a new home on (ad-free) Hulu, while Netflix has a Keith Richards special lined up. Andy Samberg hosts the Emmy Awards Sunday night and oh yeah, some show called Doctor Who is back. Look after the break to check out each day's highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed)
BBC trials a way to explain complex backstories in its shows
Most of the BBC's programming is only available for 30 days on iPlayer, so trying to keep up with long-running and complicated TV shows can be a pain. Want to remember how River Song fits into the Doctor Who universe, but don't have the DVD box sets to hand? Your best option is normally to browse Wikipedia or some Whovian fan sites. To tackle the problem, the BBC is experimenting with a site format called "Story Explorer," which could explain storylines and characters for some of its most popular shows. Today, the broadcaster is launching a version for its Home Front radio drama with custom illustrations, text descriptions and audio snippets. More importantly, the key events are laid out as simple, vertical timelines so that you can easily track the show's wartime chronology.
'Lego Dimensions' will include 'Portal', Doctor Who and Homer Simpson
If the combined might of Batman and Gandalf wasn't enough to intrigue you, how about throwing in a Timelord (with a Scottish accent)? More details of the Skylanders-baiting Lego Dimensions game have been gleaned from a building instruction sheet for its Back To The Future set, with a catalog of level packs (read: figures and accessories) we're going to see alongside the game itself. As well as Doctor Who, expect to see a Portal 2 pack, as well as Jurassic World, The Simpsons and Scooby-Doo. You can also expect multiple figures from Lego's own brick-based franchises like Ninjago as well more characters from Lord of the Rings -- these will be part of "fun packs", likely to cost less than the aforementioned full-blown level add-ons. And if it sounds like a lot, remember: we haven't even seen the DC comics sets yet.
'Doctor Who' coding game for kids arrives on tablets
You no longer have to fire up your computer just to give your children some programming lessons from Doctor Who. The BBC's educational coding game, The Doctor and the Dalek, is now available on iPads and Android tablets (both through Amazon and soon Google Play). You'll get largely the same instruction-based Boolean logic puzzles as before, but with a few new levels and new abilities for your one-of-a-kind Dalek companion. The catch? While the game is still free, it's only available in the UK for now -- here's hoping that the BBC makes it available worldwide so that more kids can help their favorite Gallifreyan.
Netflix's 'A.K.A. Jessica Jones' gets David Tennant for a villain
Once you've won the hearts of a planet as the dashing lead in a science fantasy show, you're faced with the lingering specter of typecasting. One actor who has managed to avoid such perils is David Tennant, who has thrown himself into any - and every - role imaginable to avoid being known as just The 10th Doctor. Now, however, the Scotsman is returning to the genre that made his name, after taking a role as the villain in Marvel and Netflix's forthcoming A.K.A. Jessica Jones. There's some more detail after the break, but be warned: there might be some spoilers.
'Doctor Who' is coming to 'Minecraft' on Xbox 360 next month
Simply put, Doctor Who and Minecraft are two worldwide sensations, each extremely popular in their own entertainment category. Thus, it just kind of makes sense to bring the two together. Thankfully for those of you who are into both, Microsoft and the BBC have partnered up to do exactly that, by way of digital downloadable content for Minecraft on the Xbox 360. Starting next month, players will have access to character packs from Doctor Who, including skins of The Doctor himself, his companions and his mad enemies -- all from throughout the show's entire history, not only from most recent seasons. No word yet on if this also applies to the upcoming Xbox One edition of Minecraft, but it wouldn't surprise us if that was the case.
What's on your HDTV: 'Doctor Who', 'Bojack Horseman', 'Diablo III'
Shark Week is no longer upon us, and real NFL action is almost here. But first, we've got a few more things to get around, including the premiere of a new season of Doctor Who, with Peter Capaldi taking over the title role of The Doctor. Netflix also has a couple of premieres this week, with its new series starring Will Arnett as the voice of Bojack Horseman plus a US/Canada premiere for the BBC drama Happy Valley. The F1 series continues in Belgium, and on HBO fans will be able to see the last episode of True Blood. Diablo III: Reaper of Souls - Ultimate Evil Edition brings the series to next-gen consoles this week as well (in 1080p on Xbox One and PS4) and with some options for cross-platform saves. On Blu-ray there's The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and a new Y Tu Mama Tambien release from Criterion. Check after the break for a list of what's new this week plus a few trailers, and drop a note in the comments if you see any highlights we've missed.
