First things first: The CW’s attempts at launching characters, subplots, or larger universe-changing factors like superpowers or magic have not always gone off smoothly, often sapping momentum from individual episodes or existing storylines. Thankfully, the decision to introduce Vandal Savage (Casper Crump) – who will soon take the role of ‘big bad’ for Legends of Tomorrow – in The Flash actually shows the kind of elegant cross-universe storytelling fans have come to hope
Not all free-to-play models are bad; League Of Legends does it well with rotating champions and monetized skins that add customization but no significant advantage. Mobile games are known for particularly exploitative models, and psychologists have even made connections between particularly devious free-to-play games and gambling addicti
Many free-to-play games have in-game currency that can be purchased with real money, giving those who are willing to shell out actual money a reward. That’s all well and good, but many gamers feel it sets the stage for unbalanced play, as people willing to spend real cash may get better weapons or more play time to level
If there’s one compliment that can be paid to the braintrust behind **The Flash ** , Arrow and the upcoming Legends of Tomorrow , it’s that they aren’t afraid of taking on the tasks of universe-building that would frighten off other production teams. It’s because of that fact that this week’s two-part crossover between their headlining stars begins with full reveal of not one, but three new DC Comics characters (on top of continuing each show’s storylines). The result is an episode dripping with fan service – but one that ultimately has far too many masters to serve to ever hope of doing it w
Another strategy game I played on my list is SteamWorld Heist and it’s a winner for me. Understanding the gameplay is simple and the story jumped right into the action. Exploring randomly generated ships and shooting it out with robots makes every stop along the way a true challenge. The old west aesthetic and steam-powered environment in SteamWorld Heist is pulled off much better than Wild Wild West. It’s almost the complete opposite of SteamWorld Dig but you could say SteamWorld Heist is a more grown-up version in the series. It’s a game to both kill time and robots with.
Other developers try downloadable content. To combat profit loss from piracy, developers continue to work on a game after its release and provide extra content to those who are willing to pay. You can pay $60 upfront for a game and continue to pay later if you want more. Unfortunately, this draws a fair amount of criticism, especially when games started coming out with day-one DLC—if the content was ready at the time of release, gamers asked, why not just include it in the game? Further, what was to stop developers from holding back content gamers wanted so they could ask for more money later on? Out of this has come a new trend of free-to-play games, which on the surface seems greats, but whose implementation is proving aggravating and even alienating for gamers and developers al
On paper, the plan is being executed to perfection. Cisco (Carlos Valdes) uses his new superpower to sense big things in his new girlfriend’s future, those big things get even bigger when a magical villain comes to town, establishing himself as too much for masked vigilantes, and chasing the now-fully-revealed Hawkgirl off into their own series . It’s a thing of shared universe beauty if it can be pulled off, and Crump is up to the task of playing an immortal villain. Unfortunately and, perhaps fittingly, it’s the velocity that becomes the prob
On one hand, being able to explain the finicky mythology of Hawkgirl and Hawkman in a single scene is an impressive feat. And thanks to Hentschel’s matter-of-fact delivery, viewers will either be on board with the story of reincarnation and endless battle or not. But the consequences of leveraging so much of the episode’s story on new characters is apparent once the credits roll: the presence of Green Arrow is almost an afterthought. There’s a cocktail party scene and some exposition offered by Ra’s al Ghul, but with the crossover setting up such monumental action and mythology, its own importance pales in compari
Pokemon Red and Blue were more than just a fad (as is evident by the continued success that every new iteration is met with), but there was something special about the original Game Boy titles that still manage to resonate with gamers all these years later. Besides, it was the first time that many gamers were hit with one of the most challenging decision of their lives: Bulbasaur, Squirtle or Charman