fantasy
Latest
Amazon releases first 'Wheel of Time' trailer ahead of its November 19th debut
Amazon has shared the first trailer for Wheel of Time ahead of the show's November 19th debut.
The Hugo Awards will have a video game category in 2021
For the first time in its storied history, the Hugo Awards will honor a video game.
'Godfall' is a fantasy 'looter-slasher' RPG from Gearbox for PS5
At The Game Awards, Gearbox Publishing and developer Counterplay Games revealed one of the first few confirmed games for PlayStation 5. Following its own Borderlands 3, Gearbox is kinda staying in the looter-shooter arena, but Godfall will be somewhat different from the popular space western series.
‘Good Omens’ and the art of avoiding Armageddon
The world will end one day. That's a plain fact; what's unknown is the exact manner in which humanity will be erased from existence. Whether the oceans will boil us from below like a massive earthenware lobster pot, or a nuclear holocaust will strip the planet bare, or biological warfare will infect our evolutionary timeline, is anyone's guess, and everyone has a theory.
Amazon's first 'Lord of the Rings' teaser is a minimal Middle-earth map
As things stand, we know very little about Amazon's Lord of the Rings Prime Video series. We do know it will last several seasons and it will include some familiar characters from J.R.R. Tolkien's books, though Amazon was clear it's not remaking Peter Jackson's movies. The release timeline, as well as the aspects of Middle-earth history the show will cover, also remain a mystery. However, we have a little more movement on the project, as the first official teasers for the show have started to trickle out.
Amazon plans TV series based on Robert Jordan's 'Wheel of Time' novels
Amazon's fantasy TV ambitions aren't just confined to The Lord of the Rings. The company has ordered an hour-per-episode series based on Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time novels -- yes, after years of canceled plans and legal hurdles, it's finally happening. The series promises to be a direct adaptation of the books, which center around a world where only women are known to wield magic (or rather, "channeling") and prophecies talk of a person who's the reincarnation of a powerful being.
A 'Lord of the Rings' game is coming from the publisher of 'Warframe'
If you're itching for a new Lord of the Rings game to move past the controversy of Shadow of War, we have good news -- although it might not be quite what you're expecting. Athlon Games (partner to Digital Extremes and Splash Damage) has signed a licensing deal that will see it create an "online game set in the world of Middle-earth." There are precious few details beyond that, but you can likely rule out seeing the likes of Frodo or Aragorn when the title will be set "long before" the events of the LOTR novels, with new places and characters. Much like Amazon's future show, Athlon isn't messing with the canonical material.
Amazon offers first details about its 'Lord of the Rings' series
Amazon initially said precious little about its Lord of the Rings series beyond acknowledging its existence, but details are finally starting to trickle out. In an interview with Deadline, Amazon Studios chief Jennifer Salke provided a few tidbits about the fantasy show despite its early stages. For one, there will be familiar characters. Amazon isn't "remaking the movies," Salke said, but nor is it is "starting from scratch." The Prime Video production will make at least some effort to shape its own identity, then.
'Runescape Classic' will shut down after almost two decades
One year after revealing plans to port both RuneScape and Old School Runescape to mobile and tablet, developer Jagex has announced that the original RuneScape's PC servers will be going offline permanently. To be clear, that's Runescape Classic -- the 2001 game -- so Old School Runescape servers remain unaffected.
Netflix's big-budget film 'Bright' already has a sequel planned
If you're as thrilled as we are for Netflix's Will Smith vehicle, Bright, then get ready for even more excitement. The film, which reportedly cost Neftlix $90 million to make, already has a sequel lined up, according to a report at Bloomberg. Whether this is the start of a Marvel-esque movie universe exclusively on Netflix (as TechCrunch notes) or not, it's hard not to see this as competition for actual movies in theaters.
Step inside a mind filled with beauty and fear in 'Figment'
Figment is a colorful, whimsical puzzle game that combines childlike fantasies with mature themes including death, disease and trauma. It shouldn't work. These ideas should be oil and water, existing around each other but never fully melding into a cohesive experience. But Figment defies logic -- even in an early build, the game is magical and deep at the same time. It's like an episode of Adventure Time mixed with the adorable puzzler Machinarium but in a musical, hand-painted world.
DraftKings and FanDuel pull the plug on college fantasy contests
While debates about the legality of fantasy sports services DraftKings and FanDuel rage on, both companies have announced that they'll suspend all paid contests on collegiate sports as of this week. Sorry, armchair coaches: looks like your March Madness championship paydays aren't coming after all. While the news might be a bummer for people already gearing up for the Division I college football in a few months, CNBC also reports that the two companies will also stop offering contests involving "high school and youth sports."
'Harry Potter' meets 'Zelda' in a fantasy action game
Mages of Mystralia is a fantastical romp through a mystical world, starring a young woman named Zia who discovers she has powerful magical abilities -- though this isn't necessarily a welcome development. Zia accidentally burns down her house and is forced to flee her homeland, and as she journeys across the countryside she meets other exiled mages who help cultivate her powers. Eventually, it's up to Zia to save Mystralia from certain doom. Mages of Mystralia combines elements from some of the most popular fantasy franchises in recent memory: There's a special, magical child like in Harry Potter, whimsical yet creepy woodland creatures as seen in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and a determined, red-headed young warrior like the star of the Disney-Pixar movie Brave. All of this is bundled into a cohesive narrative by a star of Dungeons & Dragons lore, the creator of the Forgotten Realms world, Ed Greenwood.
The NSA hides surveillance software in hard drives
It's been known for a while that the NSA will intercept and bug equipment to spy on its soon-to-be owners, but the intellgency agency's techniques are apparently more clever than first thought. Security researchers at Kaspersky Lab have discovered apparently state-created spyware buried in the firmware of hard drives from big names like Seagate, Toshiba and Western Digital. When present, the code lets snoops collect data and map networks that would otherwise be inaccessible -- all they need to retrieve info is for an unwitting user to insert infected storage (such as a CD or USB drive) into an internet-connected PC. The malware also isn't sitting in regular storage, so you can't easily get rid of it or even detect it.
Norrathian Notebook: Landmark celebrates Year 0 anniversary
I've got to admit, it's a bit weird to be celebrating an anniversary before an actually launch; you can't exactly say "Happy first birthday!" if it hasn't been born yet! But Landmark found a way to make it work, celebrating Year Zero with fans this past weekend. The sandbox opened its alpha doors on January 31st, 2014; all that players could do at that point was gather and build a bit. Since then, the game has expanded its features, adding more building stuff, water and caves, combat, deeper caverns and mobs to fill them, and still more building stuff. Development has definitely come a long way in the last 12 months, so there is certainly reason to revel in the festivities. Of course there's still much more work to be done, but why not take a moment and party in honor of Landmark's progress. Who doesn't like a party?
Trove shows off its wonders for January
Do you like seeing all of the creative projects that people can put together in Trove? The team behind the game certainly does, since one of the cornerstones of design is to get creative. Which is why there's a new post detailing some of the wonders to be found in the game from the month of January, Club Worlds that offer visual flair and a unique perspective. Some of the worlds are mostly just visual treats, others are functional spots that allow you to ride along special tracks to hear music or take part in a high-speed pinata-cracking festival. If you want an idea about what new worlds to visit during your next play session, you could do worse than hopping into the game and taking a gander at what's on display.
Shroud of the Avatar's release 14: FREE HAT
If you want a silly-looking pointed hat in Shroud of the Avatar but don't know how you could possibly get one, then the latest development update will make you extremely happy. It tells you how to get just that. Yes, you can have a new hat as a reward for finishing another installment of the Grand Tour quest. So you get up to speed on all of the new features of the patch and you get a hat along with it. Everyone wins. The development update also contains a look at more of the overland modeling going on behind the scenes, some of the in-game books being deployed, and a new Kickstarter project for the spiritual successor to the Ultima Underworld games. There's also the usual assortment of discounts and items that will soon be leaving the game forever. Check out the full update for the in-game and community details.
Daybreak: No SOE Live this year, but our games will endure
What does the transition from SOE to Daybreak Game Company mean for you? Well for starters, if you had set aside money and time to attend SOE Live this year, it's time to change those plans. Community Manager Linda Carlson confirmed on Twitter that the fan convention would be taking some time off due to the corporate transition: "SOE Live will take a hiatus as we focus on our exciting transition and the future of Daybreak Game Company." Daybreak President John Smedley also posted several follow-ups to the announcement and the ensuing player questions: "1) All our games are still up and will continue to be despite our new name. 2) Yes, we want to bring our games to Xbox One in addition to PS4. 3) Station Cash doesn't change at all (though we will be rebranding it soon here). 4) We're still making Everquest Next. Nothing has changed."
World of Warcraft outlines February's events
There are a lot of holiday events in World of Warcraft this month. February contains the Lunar Festival, Love is in the Air, the Darkmoon Faire... heck, it's also going to be the month that the next major raid opens up. Luckily for avid World of Warcraft players, the official site has put together a comprehensive schedule of the month's festivities, starting with the Valentine's Day event and the new raid opening tomorrow. Astute readers will note that Blizzard suggests players prepare for patch 6.1 with no hints about when it's coming out. Whether this means it's going to be later in the month or won't be dropping until March remains to be seen. Then again, the raiding crowd will have plenty to do through the month with Blackrock Foundry, and if you like holiday events, you've got several of those coming around as well.
Diablo III to begin technical testing in China shortly
If you're a gamer in China waiting for Diablo III, you have undoubtedly been waiting for a very long time. Given the game's subject matter and the strict censorship policies of the government, it's not a surprise that it's taken a while to get moving. At long last there is a light at the end of the tunnel, however, as distributor Netease has announced that the censorship issues are finally resolved and the game is free to begin technical testing. The testing phase will begin after the lunar new year is celebrated later this month. While the exact nature of graphical changes has not been disclosed, Netease stresses that the game will still be cool to look at, which could mean... almost anything, really. Still, at this point most of the players who have long waited for the game will just be happy to see it finally available within China.
