The existing run of the show comprises of 53 episodes that are 22 minutes long each, so you’ll have to set aside around 19-and-a-half hours between now and Sunday to make sure that you’re caught up on all the happenings. The show was originally run from 2003 to 2006 before getting cancelled after three seasons due to low ratings.

However, fans have been dying to see a return of the show, and Netflix stepped in in 2011 to save the day. Season 4 will consist of 15 episodes, which is quite a full season, but beggars certainly can’t be choosers. Plus, Netflix doesn’t have plans to continue Arrested Development past the fourth season, so be sure to savor these 14 episodes while you can.

Alongside the original cast, there are also set to be several guest stars throughout the season, including Ben Stiller, Conan O’Brien, Adam DeVine, and Kristen Wiig. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said that the original cast was “extremely difficult” to get together in the first place, so having guest stars is definitely an added treat.

This only a start for Netflix, however. The company plans to launch even more original series in the future, with content boss Ted Sarandos saying that the company wants to double original content in 2014. We’ve already seen several original shows this year, including House of Cards and Hemlock Grove, meaning that we should see an even bigger bevy of shows come next year.

Microsoft‘s Phil Harrison says that “anybody who has usage privilege on that machine can use it,” indicating that a Family Pack-style option could be making a comeback for the Xbox One. Microsoft discontinued the Xbox Live Gold Family Pack earlier this year, which came with multiple memberships at a slightly-discounted price.

For the Xbox One, it seems that a similar model will become available, although it’s not exactly confirmed how the new model will work, but we do know that you won’t need multiple memberships — one for each person. Microsoft’s Ben Kilgore says that Microsoft will still allow users to access their own friends list and such, saying that the company wants “you log in to get your stuff, and when he logs in to get his stuff. On that console, if you have Gold, he can use Gold as well.”

As for current Xbox Live Gold memberships, those will be compatible with the Xbox One, so if you have an Xbox 360 now and end up getting an Xbox One, your current membership will transfer over, as well as still remain active on your Xbox 360, allowing you to go back and forth between the two consoles.

Again, we’re not sure exactly how this model will work, but so far it sounds a lot better than the current Xbox Live membership model on the Xbox 360. We’re also not sure if Microsoft will change up the pricing structure for memberships, or if they’ll introduce a new tier system, but we should be hearing more about that later this year.

SOURCE: Polygon

In the FAQ for the Xbox One, it states that the console is designed in a way “so you can play games and watch Blu-ray movies and live TV if you lose your connection.” However, many of the Xbox One’s new features will require an internet connection, including cloud abilities and such, so while you can technically play games without an internet connection, the gaming experience probably won’t be as exciting or feature-packed.

As for used games, the FAQ states that the Xbox One is designed “to enable customers to trade in and resell games.” Of course, these are pretty vague statements, and we wouldn’t be surprised if there were a few details that we’re not aware of yet that Microsoft isn’t telling us, but it at least provides us with a little assurance.

However, it’s said that Xbox 360 games won’t be able to work on the Xbox One due to a different architecture used in the new console (x86 compared to PowerPC). Luckily, though, your Xbox Live profile will transfer over, meaning that you won’t lose all of those achievements you earned playing Xbox 360 games.

Microsoft told Engadget that the company cares “very much about the investment people have made in Xbox 360 and will continue to support it with a pipeline of new games and new apps well into the future.” In fact, Microsoft will have some news for Xbox 360 gamers at E3 next month, so stay tuned for that if you plan on sticking with the eight-year-old console.

Update: On one of Microsoft’s Twitter support accounts, a Microsoft employee said that used games would not require a fee. That was changed a short while later, with users being directed to a post on Major Nelson instead.

VIA: Engadget

Design

The original Xbox 360 design measured in at 310 x 80 x 268 mm, with a slightly concave form-factor; Microsoft offered it in white or black. In mid-2010, the Xbox 360 S shrunk things down, introducing some sharper angles along the way, and offered in matte or gloss black. The most noticeable illumination is the the “ring of light” on the front, with four lit quadrants that show processing or error status.

Above: Xbox 360 in Black and White. Below: Xbox One.

The new Xbox One is an altogether more blocky affair, resembling a traditional Blu-ray player or A/V receiver more than anything else. Microsoft describes it as finished in “deep and rich liquid black” with a beveled edge to add a little eye-candy, but it’s also quite sober. How well it will fit in a world of flat-screen TVs remains to be seen – though they could perhaps stand on top of it – but there’s the possibility to replace at least your Blu-ray player in the A/V rack.

Processor and Graphics

In the Xbox 360, Microsoft used a specially developed PowerPC tri-core Xenon processor running at 3.2GHz, while the graphics were courtesy of an ATI Xenos GPU running at 500MHz and paired with 512MB of 700MHz GDDR3 memory.

The Xbox One kicks things up another level altogether. Microsoft is yet to fully detail the processor, calling it only an 8-core chip based on x86 architecture, and with “more than 5bn transistors”; the graphics, meanwhile, haven’t even been described beyond something custom from AMD with DirectX 11.1 support

However, there’s 8GB of system memory, and Microsoft will use virtualization technology to effectively run three platforms simultaneously. The underlying core is the Windows Kernel, as per Windows 8, while the Xbox OS runs virtually within that; the third platform basically acts as a bridge between the two. That means Microsoft can keep the Xbox OS part stable over the lifespan of the console, giving game developers a consistent platform to code for, while the Windows kernel – where apps like Skype and others will run – can be updated progressively.

Optical Drive

Aside from a short-lived experiment with an external HD-DVD drive, the Xbox 360 has stuck with DVD. That means support for games and movies; games come on dual-layer DVD with up to 7.8GB of space. There’s also regional locking, which is optional for game developers

The Xbox One keeps an optical drive, but here kicks it up to a Blu-ray drive. That’ll be used to install games to the console, too, along with play movies. Unfortunately, what it won’t do is backward-compatibility, so you wont’ be able to load up your old Xbox 360 titles on the new Xbox One.

Storage

In its most recent form, the Xbox 360 offers up to 320GB of hard-drive space, though most used a 250GB drive. The Arcade version has 4GB of integrated flash storage on the motherboard.

The Xbox One goes straight to half a terabyte, with a 500GB internal drive. That space will be vital, however, since games will be installed directly to the onboard storage rather than run from Blu-ray. It’ll mean faster loading, but we’re still not sure how big all the high-res graphics Microsoft and its developer partners are so excited about will be.

Connectivity

When first launched, the Xbox 360 had three USB 2.0 ports; that was increased to five on the Xbox 360 S, as well as a dedicated Kinect port. The refreshed model also has integrated WiFi b/g/n along with a 10/100 ethernet port. HDMI has been included since mid-2007.

For the Xbox One, there are now USB 3.0 ports, with at least five spread around the console. Microsoft has also included wired gigabit ethernet and a digital optical audio output. In addition to an HDMI output, for hooking up your TV or a projector, there’s also an HDMI input, for plugging in your cable TV box or other source.

Unfortunately, despite the focus on TV and multimedia, there are no internal tuners and no CableCard slots. Any source you want to use with the Xbox One must be external, just as Google did with the original Google TV boxes.

Inside, there’s WiFi and WiFI Direct, the latter – in a tweaked way – being used to hook up to the controllers.

Controllers

Microsoft redesigned the Xbox controller for the 360, and it has stuck around since with only a minor refresh in mid-2010. Available in wired and wireless versions, it has two analog sticks and two analog triggers, along with eleven digital buttons and a D-pad. There’s also a USB port – custom-shaped, for the chatpad keyboard – and 2.5mm headphone connection.

Above: Xbox 360 Wireless Controller. Below: Xbox One Wireless Controller.

The new controllers look similar, though with smoothed off edges and a more rounded look. The controls are similar in layout – helping keep things familiar for Xbox 360 upgraders – but there’s now new impulse triggers and an updated “precision” directional pad. The battery is now integrated too, and of course they use WiFi Direct to hook up, rather than a proprietary 2.4GHz link as on the old console.

Kinect

Microsoft introduced the Kinect motion-sensor bar in 2010, an add-on to the 360 to compete with the Wiimote and PlayStation Move. The bar uses a combination of camera and infrared sensors to identify gamers and track their movements; it can simultaneously track up to six people, though only two active players at a time. Twenty joints per active player can be individually monitored, and there’s also voice recognition support.

Above: Xbox 360 Kinect. Below: Xbox One Kinect.

The new Kinect has been significantly redesigned, matching the blunt-sided look of the Xbox One, and getting far more impressive internal abilities. It now has a 250k pixel infrared depth sensor and a webcam, with a wider angle lens. As well as tracking body movement, it can monitor both skeletal and muscle movements. In fact, it’s so sensitive it can even measure the gamer’s pulse, monitoring the pigmentation changes in their face. The microphones are used for the Xbox One’s advanced speech recognition system, which is used to wake the console as well as search for content, switch between TV and gaming, and more.

This battle isn’t over

Just because there’s the Xbox One on the scene, however, that doesn’t mean the Xbox 360 is going anywhere quite yet. “In just a few weeks at E3 we’ll be sharing what’s next for Xbox 360″ Microsoft’s Don Mattrick said at the opening of the event today. We’ll also be seeing a collection of new games and additional functionality from the Xbox One at E3 as well as Gamescom later this year – stay tuned!

Hardware

First off, the console and controller come with a new black look that’s the complete opposite of the matte white appearance that the Xbox 360 had when it was first released eight years ago. The controller is reminiscent of the Xbox 360 variant, but it obviously includes a handful of changes, including a new D-pad (woot!), vibration motors in the trigger buttons, as well as a slightly redesigned body that makes the battery pack more flush with the rest of the controller.

As for what’s inside the Xbox One, there’s an 8-core processor with 8GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive built in. The Xbox One will also come with a Blu-ray drive for the first time, officially ditching the HD-DVD format and officially getting with the times. There’s also both HDMI input and output, as well as USB 3.0. As for the Kinect sensor, it has a 1080p camera sensor and can shoot 60 frames per second. It’s so finely tuned that it can read your heartbeat while watching you exercise, as well as notice how balanced you are. The new Kinect’s field of view is also expanded by 60% to allow it to capture more objects in the frame.

Software

Microsoft also revealed Xbox On (not to be confused with the name of the console itself). Xbox On is a feature that uses the new Kinect sensor and voice and hand recognition to allow users to perform a number of commands without the controller. You can even turn on the console with your voice, as well as switch through apps (including watching live TV and movies), as well as jump into games with the power of your voice. Hand gestures also allow you to navigate the user interface using Minority Report-like gestures. You can also use Windows 8′s snap mode, where you have two apps run split-screen side-by-side, such as chatting with someone on Skype while you continue to play a game.

The home screen is a lot like that of the Xbox 360, with a few minor tweaks. We still get the tile layout that Microsoft is known for at this point across their different platforms, and the home screen shows us games, movies, apps, and TV stations that you’ve watched/played recently, and it also shows content that you frequent.

The Xbox One essentially runs three operating systems in a way. The first one is the raw Xbox OS that developers can use, and the second OS is based on the Windows kernel. The third OS is a piece of software that allows the first two OSes to communicate with each other. The raw Xbox OS will be used for games, while the Windows kernel portion will be used for apps and such.

The Xbox One will also be cloud-powered, meaning that games, movies, music, etc. You’ll even get DVR capabilities in games, so you can record gameplay while you’re playing, and play it back any time you want, with the ability to edit footage as well through the cloud. Not a lot of details on cloud capabilities have been announced, but we should be hearing more on that in the near future.

Games & Apps

Of course, it wouldn’t be the Xbox One without games. Several developers and publishers made an appearance at the Xbox One event to show off the next-generation in gaming. EA Sports showed of FIFA 14, as well as new additions to Madden, NBA Live, and UFC. There’s also going to be a new Forza installment, and a new concept that combines TV and gaming into one, called Quantum Break. Steve Spielberg also made an appearance and announced an interactive live-action Halo television series, which should be fairly interesting. Activision was also there to show off Call of Duty: Ghosts, which was just recently announced.

Microsoft partnered with the NFL to bring a more interactive and immersive football experience to the Xbox One. Users will be able to live-stream games, as well as manage their fantasy football teams through the console, with the ability to chat with friends at the same time through Skype. Details are extremely scarce at this point, but essentially, it seems like you just need to take what you know about interactive sports on gaming consoles and throw it all out the window.

Market Release

So, when should you expect the Xbox One to land in stores? Microsoft says at some point “later this year,” but we’re guessing some time in the fall before the holiday shopping season begins. That’s around the same time that we should expect Sony’s PS4 to release, so it’ll be interesting to see which console hits stores first and when. In the meantime, Microsoft will reveal more about the Xbox One at E3 2013 next month, as well as at Gamescom in August.

According to Spielberg, this television series is an opportunity to bring on a new era in entertainment. For “Halo The Television Series”, an “intersection where technology and myth-making meet” is made, and something “truly groundbreaking” will be unleashed. While the Halo game series certainly hasn’t been anything to scoff at over the past few years of it being one of gaming’s most popular, the inclusion of Spielberg in a television series surrounding it brings this announcement to a different environment entirely.

NOTE: The above photo comes straight from Bonnie Ross herself, taken of of both her and Steven Spielberg for this announcement specifically.

The Halo game franchise will certainly be coming to the Xbox One as well, but for now, it’s only a television series. Saying that it’s “only” a television series may prove to be folly as well – with what we’ve seen from the Xbox One for voice recognition, voice commands, and future Kinect interaction, we may yet see some game-changing content, as Microsoft says.

This release is intended for the Xbox One and may very well be amongst the devices “exclusive downloadable content.” The true extent of this content set is not yet known – we’ll see soon enough! For now, be sure to check out more Xbox One content in our brand new Xbox One tag portal to see how, when, and why you might want to check this console out.

The Xbox One can connect to all of your devices in your living room (maybe not ALL, but probably most of them). By doing this, you can control other home entertainment devices and even turn on and off your television using the Xbox One with Xbox On voice commands. You can also cycle through various apps on the new console by saying things like “watch TV,” “call Fred” (in Skype).

However, you can also turn on the console by saying “Xbox on,” meaning that the console can be turned off per se, but it will always be on in a sense in order to hear voice commands to turn on the console. You can also use hand gestures with the Kinect camera to swipe through home screens and apps, which will give you a Minority Report-type feeling.

Essentially, it’s a lot like what you can do with the Xbox 360 Kinect already, except this time around, there’s a lot more you can do with voice commands and hand gestures, and it’s a lot quicker and faster to navigate through apps. The voice recognition seems to be quite crisp and fast, and this also was the first time we got to see the new Xbox One interface, which looks a lot like the Xbox 360 interface.

However, the sequel barely missed beating out the 2009 Star Trek film, which garnered just over $75 million over its opening weekend four years ago. The movie’s co-production company, Paramount, seemed to think it would make a lot more over the three-day period, as Into Darkness’s totals so far have missed the company’s estimates. After all, Into Darkness was the weekend’s only major release.

The new Star Trek film did push Iron Man 3 down to the second spot for the first time since its release. Iron Man 3 only brought in just over $35 million over the weekend, but that pushes the movie’s total to $337 million in the US, and crossing the $1 billion mark on a global scale. Of course, that’s far cry from Avatar’s $2.7 billion total, but you know a movie is quite successful when it passes the $1 billion mark. For what it’s worth, only 16 movies have ever made more than $1 billion globally.

While some believe that Into Darkness will make a comeback in the coming weeks to make up for the revenue it could’ve made over the weekend, it’s not likely that the film will see a huge increase anytime soon. It faces some stiff competition from upcoming movies, like Fast and Furious 6 and the third iteration of The Hangover, both of which are expected to bring in big bucks.

The 2009 Star Trek film grossed a total of $385.7 million worldwide while it was in theaters. Of course, it’s possible that Into Darkness could match this, but the chances are slim. After an OK opening weekend, and ongoing competition with Iron Man 3, as well as future road blocks with other summer movies, topping $400 million may be a difficult task for the new film.

The movie will be completely developed, produced, and financed by Rovio, with John Cohen and David Maisel hopping on board to help out. Cohen is best known for his role as producer for Universal’s Despicable Me, and Maisel is the former Marvel Studios chairman and executive producer for the Iron Man series, as well as The Incredible Hulk, Thor, and Captain America.

Overall, Cohen isn’t a huge name in the movie business, other than his role in Despicable Me, but he did have an executive role in several animated movies, including two Ice Age films and the 2007 remake of Alvin and the Chipmunks. He also served as vice president of production at Twentieth Century Fox Animation, and he also contributed to Horton Hears a Who and Robots, the former of which is a classic Dr. Seuss children’s book.

This will mark the first time that Angry Birds has ventured out into the movie entertainment business. The series recently scored its own animated web show, and has passed out merchandise licensing to several companies to make T-shirts and even plush toys of popular Angry Birds characters. Needless to say, the movie is expected to bring in a lot of sales.

The Angry Birds film first came to light back in 2011 when Maisel joined Rovio, which hinted to the possibility that Rovio was in the act of acquiring movie-focused talent. As for the plot of the movie, we’re left without any details and how the levels of Angry Birds will tie into a full-length film exactly, but Rovio said it will retain “full creative control” over the project by working outside the traditional studio system.

SOURCE: Rovio

During a closed-doors gun legislation meeting with 20 religious representatives from around the US, Vice President Biden said that “there’s no legal reason why” the government couldn’t tax media companies for making and distributing violent content, such as video games, movies, etc. It’s said that a majority of reps at the meeting agreed with Biden, and that the government should tax such media companies.

The vice president also said that there needs to be a comprehensive scientific study to research the impact that violent media have on kids. Of course, many studies have been done in the past that attempt to find a correlation between playing violent video games and acting violent in real life, some of which have said that there is no impact, and other studies claiming that there is, in fact, a correlation. We honestly may never come to an agreed upon solution in this case.

Biden wants the tax to go towards a fund that would help the victims of violent crimes, as well as their families. Whether a tax like this will eventually be make it’s way to being a law is still yet to be seen. There’s been a recent influx in the number of lawmakers urging to put an excise tax on violent media, but we’ve yet to hear how much progress these proposed bills have made.

Ever since the Sandy Hook school shooting, Vice President Biden has been focusing more and more on gun violence, and he even recently held a Google+ Hangout to answer questions and state his concerns on the state of gun control and gun violence in the US. However, former House speaker Nancy Pelosi is one of the few politicians that is defending violent video games, saying that the research just isn’t there yet to prove that such media cause violence. However, the fingers will undoubtedly still be pointed at violent video games for years to come, and whether or not steps will be taken to control violent video games is still in question.

VIA: Gamespot

SOURCE: Politico

IMAGE CREDIT: Marc Nozell

Today’s announcement for expansion comes after Aereo recently unveiled new streamlined plans for its service, which would get rid of daily and annual plans in favor of two simple monthly plans. $8 per month would land you 20 hours of DVR storage space, while $12 per month will give you 60 hours of DVR space, which is 20 hours more than the previous $12 plan.

Aereo has been the center of a controversy since the launch of its streaming service. The company has been drawing criticism since users don’t need a cable subscription to watch broadcast television, as they can watch television on their mobile devices using Aereo’s service, which takes broadcast antenna signals and converts them into internet signals that the streaming app can digest.

Needless to say, Aereo has been sued multiple times by television networks, and the company already won in appeals court once. Plus, the lawsuits aren’t stopping the company from expanding its service to more cities. Aereo will launch service in Boston tomorrow, with Atlanta coming roughly a month later. The company plans to expand to 22 more cities in 2013, including Miami, Austin, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Washington DC, Baltimore, Detroit, Denver, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Tampa, Cleveland, and Kansas City. Those are just some of cities that are planned to get the new service, with more to come in the future if the lawsuits don’t take down the company first.

Aereo has taken some heat from networks ever since the launch of its streaming television service over a year ago. Both CBS and News Corp. (owner of FOX) have taken aggressive steps in order to get Aereo banned, calling the company’s actions illegal, since they’re supposedly stealing broadcast antenna signals and using them for their own gain financially. It’s a sticky situation, indeed, and we’re not sure how much longer Aereo will be able to stay up, but if the courts are in favor of Aereo, broadcasts networks will need to think of a new strategy to retain viewers.

The audio and subtitle options can now be accessed from within the video player, meaning that you don’t have to return to the main menu in order to adjust these settings. Plus, accessing these options from within the video player while watching a show will bring up catered settings for that particular show, including available languages and surround sound options.

The video player has also been updated to look more like the web and mobile versions, although it keeps some of the same PS3 aesthetic. The video player will now be much more reminiscent of other platforms with Netflix, and PlayStation 3 users should be able to pick up another device without a huge learning curve getting in the way.

Today’s PS3 update also includes improvements for “trickplay” mode, which is that fancy series of screenshots you get when you want to skip ahead or backward in a show. This time around, the screenshots appear much quicker on the screen, allowing users to fast-forward or rewind a show at a much quicker pace than before, although we would still love the option to automatically skip opening credits for a TV show that happens after the cold open, but it seems we’ll still be dreaming about that.

Netflix streaming first hit the PlayStation 3 back in November 2009, and it recently became the number one streaming device for Netflix, where Sony’s gaming console had more Netflix users than any other platform that Netflix in on, including the Xbox 360, so it’s really no surprise that the streaming company is giving extra attention to the PS3.

SOURCE: Netflix Blog

According to local television news station 13WMAZ, the filming began today at a local car wash, with multiple streets being closed in the area over the next few weeks. Details on the film are a bit scarce at this point still, but as filming continues, we could hear more about it in the future. However, we already know that Michael Keaton will star in the film, who is known for his roles as Bruce Wayne/Batman in the 1989 film, as well as Batman Returns in 1992. The movie will also star Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter’s Dominic Cooper, and recording artist Kid Cudi.

As for the plot of the new film, IMDb states that Need for Speed will focus on a street racer who was just released from prison as he “joins a cross country race with revenge in mind.” At the same time, an “ex-partner” places a bounty on him at the start of the race. It sounds like a fairly typical plot to a street racing, and we can expect the usual things to happen in the film, such as explosion, cars crashing, and classic manly fist fights to even it all out. The film looks to take on the Fast and the Furious series, which will see its sixth installment release later this month.

The folks behind The Fast and the Furious series have been milking the movies for everything they’ve got, so we’re not expecting much out of this upcoming release. With a release date pegged for March 14 of next year, we have a long way to go before we’ll get to see it, but hopefully it’ll give the street racing movie genre a much-needed reboot, which is something that has been wanted for several years now.

VIA: Polygon

SOURCE: 13WMAZ

The news was first speculated after several members of the production crew tweeted about the delay of Jurassic Park 4. Those tweets have since been deleted, but Universal Studios says that the movie, indeed, has been delayed and will be released “at a later date.” However, it seems that the movie will still see the light of day eventually.

Then again, we can’t be too surprised by the delay. A June 2014 release date seemed pretty quick, and while the script is reportedly finished, the production team most likely didn’t feel confident that they would be able to deliver a quality movie by the summer of next year, so it may be another year before we see the next installment come to the big screen.

Of course, while the anticipation of a new Jurassic Park film has us slightly excited, we’re still bitter over the second and third installments in the series, and now that little Timothy is all grown up, we can’t imagine there being a better cast than what we saw in the first Jurassic Park. Nonetheless, we’re keeping our optimism. What about you?

[via Slashfilm]

This clip is joined by a Google Hangout that’s taking place starting at 1pm PDT / 4pm EDT and going forward into the afternoon. This Google+ Hangout holds the heads of the film, Hood and Orci, speaking to select members of the public as well as the star of the film Asa Butterfield. This actor portrays Ender in the film which will be released on the 1st of November this year.

Ender’s Game has also seen the start of a viral campaign that will be ushering in information about the plot and the environment which will hold the characters of this science fiction story. This story takes place in the future, a future where a single alien invasion has set our Earth on high alert, allowing a single government system to keep sway over the citizens of our planet while they train children to become future military leaders. These children – Ender included – are part of a future era of humanity in which kids have the potential to become genius-level thinkers in their adolescence.

The film stars Asa Butterfield, Harrison Ford, and Sir Ben Kingsley amongst many new entrants into the major motion picture world. This film is the first official adaptation of the Orson Scott Card novel Ender’s Game, a book which was born of a short science fiction tale told in the pages of Analog Science Fiction and Fact.

Have a peek at SlashGear’s brief timeline of events that’ve recently lead up to this release and be prepared for a flow of information the likes of which we’ve not seen since Prometheus.

The International Fleet Sentinel is a faux-publication being shown through the micro-blogging website Tumblr. There you’ll find a series of five portals that bring information about the story through blurbs written from the perspective of the space army that is the International Fleet and the world government, graphics included. The first of these is a Mission Statement.

UPDATE: The first full-length Ender’s Game movie trailer has been released – have a peek at it and discuss without end!

Series: Mission Statement of the International Fleet

It’s here that the International Fleet lets Earth know that it remains at the center of the “single, harmonious government” preparing for a potential second global invasion by aliens that were defeated by Mazer Rackham in the distant past. Readers of the book know that this posturing is done for more than just the benefit of the citizens of the Earth’s confidence in their leadership.

“Lucky for us, every human being has preparation on their mind,” reports I.F. Major Gerald Stacks, special negotiations envoy to the nations of Earth. “The leadership of humanity must prioritize interstellar readiness and, to support that, total global cohesion.”

This theme seems to be getting pushed harder than it is in the original book. Perhaps we’ll see more of a “big government crush” than we do in the original storyline. And hopefully more of Peter and Valentine.

Next Leader Recruitment

The application process for Battle School is not that unlike joining the Navy here in the present, only it’s not the recruit that signs away their future, it’s their parents. Gifted children are what Battle School will be pushing through to end up in I.F. Tactical and the Strategic Training Academy.

“There is no greater pride for parents than to see their children achieve greatness, and there is no greater achievement than to protect the survival of our race. The I.F. Tactical and Strategic Training Academies are training tomorrow’s brightest leaders and greatest public servants. Our world needs heroes. Your children are our brightest hope.

These exclusive academies provide a safe place for gifted children to refine their focus and learn the necessary skills to lead our planet in the impending intergalactic war. Prepare our world for the future and prepare your child for greatness today.

Does your child have what it takes? Could your child be the next Mazer Rackham? Apply to the I.F. through your local recruiting office to discuss your child’s government sponsored education.”

Of course these kids wont remain children as such for long. As the story tells us and as we can expect from the film, Battle School gives no mercy to the future battle-hardened members of the military, not for size, not for ability, not at any level. Through this mercilessness, Ender will become more powerful than the coddled child he was on Earth.

Here you’ll see the first teaser for the film, a seconds-long set of mini-clips also making way for the first full-length trailer coming up later today.

Developing a Strategic Mind

Here you’ll find information about the Battle School, where Ender and other future geniuses are sent to develop and become great leaders. It’s not in every plotline that a group of children are given such regard. Here though, the IF has recognized the power of the children of this future generation and will be making full use of it.

Looking Back at the Great Invasion

Setting the viewer up for an understanding of why everyone is so flustered about aliens in the movie, this bit tells of the former great leader of the military in Mazer Rackham. This fellow is, in the story, a major hero and one looked up to as history’s most prominent savior of the human race. The victory he commanded allowed the “Great Invasion” to be stopped and preparations to begin for the next wave of alien opponents.

Thirds

A plot element used in the Ender’s Game story used to single out Ender and prepare him to be a major military leader for the future of the human race. This Thirds announcement lets the world know that though overpopulation has regulated society at large to have only two children per couple of parents lest a special exception be made. Ender is, of course, part of a very special situation, as we’ll find throughout the story.

It was at the German re:publica digital conference that a Q&A session saw The IT Crowd writer and original creator Graham Linehan announce a final episode. This final episode was promised to be a lovely 40 minutes long – right around twice the length of a standard episode – and will contain at least the main four members of the cast.

According to Linehan, the script for this Very Special episode was prepared over a year ago but was delayed until now due to a collection of reasons, pregnancy to alternate obligations. The final episode is set to be filmed in three weeks time, according to Bleeding Cool, and may not end up appearing in any sort of final form until quite a bit later this year.

Since appearing in The IT Crowd, Richard Ayoade has appeared in Bunny and the Bull (in 2009, during the series), Noel Fielding’s Luxury Comedy, Full English, and the made-for-America comedy movie “The Watch.” Matt Berry is perhaps best known for his appearances in other cult-classic British television shows like The Mighty Boosh and Snuff Box, but has ramped up appearances in titles like Snow White and the Huntsman, Portlandia (TV series), and Svengali.

Katherine Parkinson appeared in The Great Outdoors, The Old Guys, Whites, and The Bleak Old Ship of Stuff in extended runs on television and popped up in several movies in the past few years as well. You’ll find Parkinson in Easy Virtue, Pirate Radio, and How to Lost Friends & Alienate People as well.

Chris O’Dowd has perhaps seen the biggest amount of success on television as well as the silver screen, having appeared in the Kristen Wiig comedy movie Bridesmaids in 2011, television shows such as Family Guy (voice), Moone Boy, Girls (yes, that Girls), Family Tree, and Monsters vs. Aliens (voice). He appeared in the film This is 40 and is part of a set of films coming out in the next couple of years: Hippie Hippie Shake, Epic (voice), Cuban Fury, Calvary, St. Vincent de Van Nuys, The Coward, and Thor: The Dark World!

The movie eclipses other box office films such as The Dark Knight series, The Hunger Games, and Spider-Man 3. Iron Man 3 beat out its predecessor by almost $50 million during opening weekend, when Iron Man 2 grossed $128.1 million during its opening weekend two years ago, where it ended up grossing $312.4 million altogether in the US.

However, Iron Man 3 is expected to gross a lot more than that. Analysts expect Iron Man 3 to gross a lot more than Iron Man 2, but The Avengers are still expected to keep the lead, where it ranks number three in all-time revenue at $623 million in the US, and comes in at number one in all-time opening weekend revenue at $207 million in the US.

Many would say that Iron Man 2 was quite underwhelming compared to the first film in the series, but with The Avengers being released last year, which featured Robert Downey Jr. playing Tony Stark in the film, The Avengers essentially set up Stark for a threequel that got comic book fans and geeks alike really excited for the next movie in the series.

What you’re going to see here is a major spoiler in the form of a character appearing that, if you’re a fan of the book, you’ll remember isn’t supposed to appear outside of flash-backs and memories. Here he’s shown in the form of Ben Kingsley with a name tag making his role in the movie plain as day. If you’ve never read the book and don’t plan on it, this appearance won’t affect your movie viewing (unless you happen to remember his name when you begin your viewing experience.)

UPDATE: The first full-length trailer has arrived! Have a look!

The rest of the trailer is full of quick flashes of major plot devices like the Battle School and the Battle Room it contains. There you’ll see the big screen’s interpretation of “stars” inside the Battle Room, Flash Suits, and even a recreation of one of the most entertaining moments in the book. What we must assume is that this is Bean, a character that shadows Ender throughout the book and here uses a thin cord to out-maneuver the enemy in a game at the school.

“When the gate opened, all they could see was a large brown star only fifteen feet away, completely blocking their view of the enemy’s gate.

Ender didn’t pause. “Bean, give yourself fifty feet of rope and go around the star.” Bean and his four soldiers dropped through the gate and in a moment Bean was launched sideways away from the star. The rope snapped taut, and Bean flew forward. As the rope was stopped by each edge of the star in turn, his arc became tighter and his speed greater, until when he hit the wall only a few feet away from the gate he was barely able to control his rebound to end up behind the star. But he immediately moved all his arms and legs so that those waiting inside the gate would know that the enemy hadn’t flashed him anywhere.” – Hatrack, from Ender’s Game original story from August 1977 issue of Analog

Have a peek at the timeline below to see other recent sneak peaks, leaks, and straight up teasers from Ender’s Game the movie and follow SlashGear’s entertainment portal for more information on this film as it approaches this winter. The movie itself comes out on the first of November, but given the amount of teaser material we’ve seen thus far, there’ll certainly be a massive amount of buildup between here and there.

Of course while Will and Jaden Smith were part of the conversation to speak about the state of the planet, they sat in front of a poster for the film they’ll be starring in soon: After Earth. This movie takes place in a future where the human race has left the planet in an effort to survive the future in which our Earth has become wild with untold masses of beasts and threats to any humanoid who would dare set foot in their domain.

Because the film wrestles a bit with the idea that our planet might one day be relatively uninhabitable by humans, this opportunity was sought by those involved in the chat to expand the public understanding of the threats we’re under here in real life. Will Smith began the chat speaking a bit about the difference between having grown up in real life Philadelphia where concrete is 80% of the environment and the locations they went to film this movie.

Ray Kurzweil spoke of how humans have recently been shown to have changed biologically in the last 1,000 years, but that his interest was in how we’ll be changing technologically in the next 50, 100, or 100,000 years will bring. Will Smith responded to this saying that even in his career in music, the amount of change that’s happened has been “extremely powerful” – his first two albums were only on vinyl record and plastic cassette tape, for example.

This conversation will continue for a short while this afternoon – join in on the fun! A group of 8th grade students and Google+ users have been offered the chance to speak with each of these advanced minds today – don’t skip this rare opportunity to see these folks speak their minds! Let’s chat!

We’ve known for some time that there are going to be multiple Star Wars film in the future, including standalone films, but today’s news is certainly a new development. We’ve even been teased with Star Wars Episode VIII, which isn’t announced yet, but there will surely be a move to come after Episode VII.

The Disney films of the movies and the standalone films are said to alternative summers, meaning that Episode VIII would come out in 2017, with Episode IX releasing in 2019. The years in between would be the standalone films that will focus on individual characters in the Star Wars universe, such as Yoda, Han Solo, and Boba Fett.

Star Trek director JJ Abrams is on board to direct Star Wars Episode VII, with the script being written by Michael Arndt, who penned movies like Little Miss Sunshine, Toy Story 3, and Brave. He also wrote the screenplay for The Hunger Games sequel Catching Fire. Several actors from the original Star Wars trilogy are also reported to be returning for this latest movie.

[via Coming Soon]

The entire 79-minute movie is available to watch for free on Funny or Die’s website, and the trailer is below if you want to get a teaser on what to expect. However, you’ll certainly have to have an open mind in order to find it funny or entertaining. It’s certainly not up to blockbuster standards, but it is a comedy website after all.

It’s almost as if the movie is a parody of the upcoming Steve Jobs biopics, but Funny or Die does a pretty terrible job at making it entertaining in some way. Justin Long (who plays Steve Jobs) has always kind of been of a loose cannon, and Jorge Garcia (who plays Steve Wozniak) is slightly bad at the role. However, if you’re expecting to get some stupid-humor out of it, rather than accurate drama like what we’ll see in JOBS, this may be the movie for you.

Justin Long has a long history with Apple, though. He most known as portraying the Mac in the Mac vs. PC ads that use to air all the time on television. These ads featured John Hodgman as the PC, and the two would go back and forth on computer tasks that they could better than the other, with the Mac ultimately winning in the end due to its “cool” factor.

With Citizens of Florence you’ll have such an awesome experience that you’ll forget there’s a show to watch as well! Push your way through a collection of artifacts so lovely you’ll wonder why the app is free. Dive into 24 beautiful environments photographed panoramically right there in the midst of this fabulous visual experience!

NOTE: You can also watch the first episode of Da Vinci’s Demons free right this minute over on Starz – make it count!

And know this: you’ll not be just jumping in without a paddle. You’ll be choosing your own character to explore this environment. Depending on who you choose, you’ll be unlocking bits and pieces throughout Florence as you watch each episode. You’ll find more content than you know what to do with!

-Over an hour of custom video clips from the creator David S. Goyer, Historian – Dr. Findlen of Stanford, and deleted scenes
-Sneak peeks into the next episode of Da Vinci’s Demons
-100+ show elements including artifacts, characters, props and locations
-Exclusive Puzzles and Games
-Da Vinci’s inventions in stunning 360 degree format

Have a peek at this app in the iTunes app store right this minute – it’ll set your brain on fire and invent a way to put it out before you can click on it. Let us know if you’re convinced yet that second screen apps are the way of the future!

LucasArts created a collection of games over the past couple of decades including such mega-hits as X-Wing vs TIE Fighter and Dark Forces and some relatively lesser-known titles that will effectively fizzle. According to a statement provided by Game Informer, layoffs are imminent, if not already in-effect.

“After evaluating our position in the games market, we’ve decided to shift LucasArts from an internal development to a licensing model, minimizing the company’s risk while achieving a broader portfolio of quality Star Wars games. As a result of this change, we’ve had layoffs across the organization. We are incredibly appreciative and proud of the talented teams who have been developing our new titles.” – Disney

Reports today suggest that every single one of LucasArts remaining 150 employees have been laid off this month. This is the last wave, it would seem, of a series of layoffs that span back several years. According to Ars Technica, LucasArts employees numbered closer to 500 back in the mid-2000s. This also isn’t the beginning of LucasFilm’s LucasArts licensing out the rights to games without in-house development.

• Star Wars: The Old Republic – Bioware
• Star Wars: Battlefront – Pandemic
• Lego Star Wars – Travellers Tales

Though it’s always difficult to report news of layoffs in any of the industries we report on, this information can be seen as a positive force for those interested in the further adventures of the characters inside the Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and several other LucasArts title universe. Though we’ve not heard specifically about anything beyond Star Wars titles at the moment, we’re certainly all for developers from all over the wide world of gaming taking their crack at A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away!

This move has been rumored for a couple weeks now, but NBC finally made it official today. Jimmy Fallon will leave his current post as host of Late Night, and will move to the earlier 11:35 PM time slot for The Tonight Show. As for who will replace Fallon on Late Night, that has yet to still be determined, but speculation and predictions are already flying around.

However, while The Tonight Show has been based in Los Angeles, California for the past 22 years, Jimmy Fallon will remain in New York City, which means The Tonight Show will move to the show’s original home in the Big Apple at 30 Rockefeller Center. It’s expected that Fallon will officially take over the reigns sometime after the 2014 Winter Olympics in order to give Fallon’s new show a strong start.

While Leno started hosting The Tonight Show in 1992, it hasn’t been a consecutive run. Conan O’Brien took over the show in 2009, but after realizing there were disagreements between O’Brien and NBC, the red-haired comedian left the show just a year later, in which Leno was reinstated as The Tonight Show host in 2010.

Image via Flickr

With its inclusion in Iron Man 3, the ALCATEL ONE TOUCH Idol will be appearing more than once, contests for Red Carpet treatment, RadioShack sales, and more! You’ll be able to pick up your opportunity to win tickets to Iron Man 3 through the company’s official Facebook page or otherwise see the film yourself (if you don’t win) starting on May 3rd – not too far away!

““Being the exclusive mobile phone partner for Marvel’s Iron Man 3 is a good example of the increased popularity of the brand’s premiere Android devices, including the ONE TOUCH Idol and Idol Ultra.” – Nicolas Zibell, President, Americas & Pacific for ALCATEL ONE TOUCH

The ALCATEL ONE TOUCH Idol smartphone itself weighs in at a cool 110g, just 3.88oz, and is extremely thin at just 7.9mm. You’ll be able to rock and roll with HD photos both front and back-side with this smartphone with an 8 megapixel camera on the back and a 2 megapixel camera on the front – HD video included, too. The display on this machine is a 4.7-inch qHD IPS LCD with anti-fingerprint coating – hot stuff!

You’ll be able to pick the ALCATEL ONE TOUCH Idol up in brushed aluminum across a spectrum of colors: Silver, Slate, Cranberry Pink, Red, Magic Blue, and Mint Green! Have a peek at our hands-on looks at this and other ALCATEL ONE TOUCH devices and let us know if you’re pumped up about Iron Man 3!

What you’re seeing in this poster (and it’s enlarged vision below) is, oddly, an illustration of what we’ll see in the movie theater. While this sort of thing is certainly not unheard of, (see: every single Star Wars movie), it is the first time that this particular movie has had a teaser that wasn’t an on-set photo. What we’ve got here is a battle school student – we’ll assume it’s Ender himself – standing in front of a new vision for the Battle Room in the Battle School where he’ll spend most of the film.

What you’ll notice here as a fan of the book is the major differences between the written word and this visual representation, starting with the transparency of the whole thing. While in the book we had to assume that the walls were either black or metallic gray, here they appear to be perfectly see-through, with the Earth shining brightly behind. This makes a whole lot of sense, of course, since these kids are, indeed, training to be battling in space – not in a darkened room.

The “stars” (aka the boxes) appear to be very much the objects written about in the book, and the Flash Suits look just as excellent as they did when we saw them in earlier previews of this film. You’ll see our first look at Flash Guns as well as the way the students will be blasting their way through one of the most important elements of the story – the game.

This film has been given a new synopsis in the last few weeks as well, mind you:

In the near future, a hostile alien race called the Formics have attacked Earth. If not for the legendary heroics of International Fleet Commander Mazer Rackham (Ben Kingsley), all would have been lost. In preparation for the next attack, the highly esteemed Colonel Hyrum Graff (Harrison Ford) and the International Military are training only the best young minds to find the future Mazer.

Ender Wiggin (Asa Butterfield), a shy but strategically brilliant boy, is recruited to join the elite. Arriving at Battle School, Ender quickly and easily masters increasingly difficult challenges and simulations, distinguishing himself and winning respect amongst his peers. Ender is soon ordained by Graff as the military’s next great hope, resulting in his promotion to Command School. Once there, he’s trained by Mazer Rackham himself to lead his fellow soldiers into an epic battle that will determine the future of Earth and save the human race.

Based on the best-selling, award winning novel, ENDER’S GAME is an epic adventure which stars Asa Butterfield, Hailee Steinfeld, Ben Kingsley, Viola Davis, with Abigail Breslin and Harrison Ford.

Make sure you check this fabulous futuristic epic out on November 1st at a theater near you – and keep your eyes peeled as more website teasers like http://if-sentinel.com/ appear. Hot stuff!

[via Ender's Ansible]

Each of these monoliths will have a TV screen of its own, each of them facing the center of a large circle where visitors will be able to drown themselves in this immersive experience. Each of these bugs was created by filmmaker Tom Kuntz and The Mill LA, each of them coming at you from their own position in the circle of wild action with no less than a soundtrack made of the “exuberant loops” of electronic musician Dan Deacon.

For those of you that’d like to know more about the PLAYBAR that blasts each of these bugs to life with audio so real you’ll freak, have a peek at our full Sonos PLAYBAR Review from earlier this month. At the opening for the show (on April 4th), there’ll be a live performance by Dan Deacon as he collaborates with the Bugs right in front of your face!

Each of the Bugs uses not only a Sonos PLAYBAR, but a BrightSign digital media player as well. Each of the six characters will be performing simultaneously while visitors to the show are doused in what Sonos and The Mill LA describe as “an intense audile and visual experience, demonstrating the supremely immersive energy of the combined senses.”

If you’re a member of the public – and we know you are – you’ll want to head over to Sonos Studio starting on April 5th at any time between 10AM and 6PM. That’s Sonos Studio at 145 North La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036 – you can’t miss it! Also stay tuned to SlashGear’s Entertainment tag portal for more excellence from The Mill LA – we’ve got some hot action in store for you!

Obviously when there’s a program this old all about computers, even when it’s all “retro” and funny because of it, there’s some level of understanding you must have so far as how excited everyone seems about now-ancient tools and features. What’s particularly interesting about this video is how simple the presenters make each of the terms included in the still relatively new concept of visual computing.

What you’re going to learn is how the Apple Macintosh computer made working with a computer at home – or at school, or in the office – a reality for those that otherwise would never have considered using a computer. While the difference between working only with lines of code and working with pictures and renderings of objects wasn’t brand new at the time, the solidification of that kind of thinking was certainly taking place.

You’ll find that the Macintosh they’re working with here in the program was launched with two applications – one for typing (MacWrite), the other for drawing with your mouse (MacPaint). By the time this program had been filmed, as they say “the number of Mac products has skyrocketed, and now numbers in the hundreds.”

So consider this your mission for this weekend – see if you or one of your friends or family members would like to learn how computers work at their most basic. The talks here are applicable even to our most advanced systems – see how they make the magic happen now! And make sure you grab your healthy helping of Easter ham or otherwise non-denominational feast with the future on your mind!

BONUS: Save a collection of episodes lost to time for whatever reason, there’s a massive amount of episodes of Computer Chronicles up in the Internet Archive for your perusal now as well. More computer knowledge from the 1980s than you’ll know what to do with!

Have a peek at a few more “Weekend Watching” posts below to see how they ring your bell!

What you’re seeing here is the trailer shown on-stage today courtesy of Hideo Kojima – the presenter at hand, mind you, was wearing a bandage around his head and a t-short that read “Phantom Pain” as he did so. None too subtle! If you don’t see it here already, you’ll soon be having a peek at some more gameplay as well.

As far as the title Ground Zeroes goes – that’s just another piece of the game’s plotline. According to TheSixthAxis, we’ll be seeing Ground Zeroes late in the game while The Phantom Pain will be a bit of a prologue sort of presentation. For those of you wondering, that’s actor (and again voice actor) Keifer Sutherland helping Snake out of the hospital, and the band Garbage doing the soundtrack we’re hearing thus far.

Here you’ll see The Phantom Pain as revealed at the 2012 Video Game Awards – remember and freak out accordingly!

Also be sure to remember the greatness that was – and will be – Ground Zeroes in its first trailer here:

Stay tuned as we find out more information than you can handle about this futuristic blast-fest and dive deeper into tapping on windows and walls than you’ll ever have wanted to go! Check the timeline below for more Metal Gear Solid action as well!

Of course with such plot elements finding their way into the trailer itself, we must assume that Wolverine’s trip to Japan happens rather early in the movie. With the man finding his love in Jean Gray lost in a crumpled photo and and reborn in the woman you Wolverine buffs might recognize, he’s brought to the land of the blood red sun where we’ll certainly be seeing some rather emotional moments. No worries though, there’ll be plenty of sword fighting to be had.

When you dive into the Wolverine story archives, you find a massively expansive timeline and versions of the truth – in the comics, that is. If you’re talking about the film series, we’ve still got a lot of questions about how everything in Logan’s life will have happened – and will happen in the future. With this movie it would appear that those with the rights to the Wolverine name have decided that he’ll survive well beyond the lives of his X-Men pals – we’re not expecting many, if any, crossovers here in this installment.

This may well make for a less-than exciting set of battles in future X-Men-centric films – at least for this particular character. What fun is it if we know he survives?

This film will be hitting theaters in July – this international trailer reveals that internationally you’ll be grabbing your seat on July 26th! Have a heart and see Wolverine chop his way to mortality courtesy of a man with a fabulous set of magical science skills this summer – and let us know how it goes!

This film has had a couple of “moving posters” revealed this week as well. The first shows the man whipping out his claws in a rainy day situation on a street, while the other shows Wolverine discussing his Batman-like stance with the wind. Have a peek first at the louder of the two posters here, then let yourself reflect on how Batman and Wolverine were paired up in the 1990s for a comic series that had them eventually converge into one being – name that comic label!

This much more Dark Knight-like moving poster is the “international” model in which you’ll once again understand that we’re headed to Japan. This fabulous environment will be the place where Logan fights not just with his claws, but with a katana as well. His mind and body and spirit will be tested as well, etcetera, but the blood will be there. Oh yes, there will be blood aplenty.

Finally have at this lovely Vine video and cry because it’s so very, very short. You’ll be able to see the full version of this trailer on the 27th of this month while the movie will premiere on the 26th of July!

This is the second of what we must assume will be several previews of the upcoming album, one that’s quite a few years in the making. As the team’s last “proper” album was released in 2005, this will be the first time we’ve heard a non-soundtrack set of tracks from Daft Punk in 8 years. The newest promo you’ll see here shows what may be the cover of the album as well.

The first of two promo videos was also shown during an episode of Saturday Night Live. This is also the first time these fabulous electro-power-team will be releasing an album with Columbia Records.

Sony Music owns the Columbia Records and, according to Pitchfork, they’ve registered a collection of track lengths in the order of a 13-track album that’s more than likely set to be the Daft Punk album in full. These tracks are anywhere from 3:48 to 9:04 in length, with most of the tracks hitting at least the 4-minute mark.

You’ll be able to grab this album on the 21st of May, 2013, and pre-orders are available right this minute. This beast will be available on CD, vinyl record, and in digital format from your favorite music sale sources across the planet.

You see the hordes of zombies, which act a lot like ants swarming over the environment and people, but the trailer gives you no close ups and no indication of exactly what people are fighting. Another thing that the trailer doesn’t shed any light on is exactly why Brad Pitt’s character and his family are important to saving the world.

It appears as though he may be some sort of soldier or doctor, but that’s unclear. If you watched the first trailer for the film, you may remember the close-up of one of the zombies that many have criticized for being too computer rendered. It looks like the trailer has tried to go more mainstream by not talking about zombies and instead taking a worldwide pandemic feel.

There is good reason for this movie to not talk up zombies. Zombie genre flicks haven’t exactly made huge amounts of money at the box office. The top zombie-themed films have grossed around $100 million at the box office. World War Z reportedly cost over $170 million to make so the film need a big box office take.

[via Screenrant]

According to screenshots taken from a survey that was given to season pass holders and other frequent goers of various Disney parks, the company is asking folks what they would think about a possible “Star Wars themed land at the Disneyland Resort.” Needless to say, Disney may be looking at adding a little bit of Star Wars to its parks, which would be pretty amazing.

Of course, Disney World has been home to the Star Tours amusement ride for some time now, which is a “3D, motion-simulated space flight that launches you into the world of Star Wars.” (Get a feel for it here.) However, it looks like Disney is wanting to expand on that to dedicate an entire section of one of its parks to Star Wars.

Another question in the survey asks people how familiar they are with the Star Wars series, including the characters, settings, and stories, in order to get a feel for how many of their loyal guests know about Star Wars. However, it seems like a pretty obvious question to us, and we bet that as long as Disney built such a park, people will come.

If you’re a fan of the original Star Trek television series, you’ll perhaps have been guessing at the idea that the antagonist for this film was going to be Khan. The man who launched a thousand memes. But consider this: we’re in a completely alternate timeline now – an alternate dimension, if you wish – where the Enterprise crew hasn’t necessarily even found the frozen crew of ultra-beings from whens Khan came.

Does that rule out the idea that Khan will make another appearance here in this film? Not necessarily. But it’s much more likely that the team behind this installment of the Star Trek franchise will opt for another brand new enemy to our best buddies Kirk, Spock, Uhura, and the rest. Here we’ll quite likely find that Benedict Cumberbatch – the actor you’re seeing acting quite mean in this and the other trailers – ends up being a brand new character altogether.

Fun Fact: you’ll also see Peter Weller standing up about 35 seconds into the trailer. That’s Robocop, just so you’re aware. He was also in several episodes of the television show Star Trek: Enterprise as a Terran supremacist – certainly not reprising that role here.

Have a peek at our timeline of Star Trek excellence below and get ready for the big jump – May 16th Internationally and May 17th here in the USA!

Stokdyk’s role in the creation of this movie began 2.5 years ago, working directly with the director of the film, Sam Raimi. With Raimi, Stokdyk broke down each element in the storyline piece by piece, speaking about how they’d go about creating each visual effect that would need to exist. After knocking out the script for a period, Mr. Stokdyk headed to Detroit for 7 months of filming the movie on soundstage, working after this for over a year in post-production.

As Visual Effects Supervisor, Stokdyk worked with the fabulous Sony Pictures Imageworks, a group we’ve had some rather fruitful conversations with in the past, to be sure! For those of you who have that tingling feeling you’ve heard Stokdyk’s name before, you’ll be glad to know you’re right: he’s previously worked with Sam Raimi on each of the Spider-Man movies (1, 2, and 3) as Visual Effects Supervisor as he does on the one we’re discussing today and has worked in different effects roles on such classic films as Titanic, Contact, and The Fifth Element.

According to Stokdyk, in both Oz the Great and Powerful and in the film industry in general, the way an effects-inclusive movie can distinguish itself is simple (so to speak). As Stokdyk says, “In Visual Effects nowadays, there’s basically effects work, there’s character work, there’s environmental work – and what distinguishes one show from another nowadays is it’s own unique combination of how those pieces work together and how they’re Art Directed together.”

Seems simple enough to say, right? Stokdyk continued, “[This film] has a nice blend of character animation that’s stunt and action oriented – and performance based – interacting with the real actors. We’ve also got really fantastical environmental extensions of sets. They bring into this fantastical world of Oz what we’ve shot on set.”

You’ll be seeing your fair share of fantastic effects-dependent shots and characters throughout this film which – if you did not know – is out in theaters now! Featured computer-generated characters you’ll be seeing throughout the film include:

The China Girl – this little lady is a porcelain doll that our hero Oz finds after her town is destroyed in the film. She’s voiced by Joey King and trots along with fully realistic features from top to bottom.

Finley the Flying Monkey – a cute little beast voiced by none other than your best buddy Zach Braff. This lovely beast also accompanies Oz throughout the movie and has one whole heck of a lot of fur that needed digital brushing – not to mention the rest of his fully-animated monkey body.

Both Braff and King took part in filming their parts as the monkey and he doll throughout principal photography, allowing the rest of the actors to act and respond in a much more organic way than traditional CG replacements would have allowed. Once filming was complete though, it was all up to the effects teams to bust forth with what Sony Pictures Imageworks describes as “the most technically challenging production Imageworks’ has completed to date.”

The group notes that they completed over 1,100 shots that appear in the final product, these including every single one of the GC environments and character shots. You’ll see digital doubles of each of the main characters: Oz, Glinda, Theodora, Evanora, and Knuck. You’ll see “thousands of flying baboons including three unique hero baboons.” You’ll see massive amounts of CG creatures including “attacking snapdragons, horses, various insects, butterflies, birds, flying fish, wooden horses, lion, squirrel, and river fairies”. You’ll see giant digital crowds of characters across the countryside and inside the city.

Some of the most awesome bits and pieces you should look out for while you’re experiencing this magical mix of fanaticism are:

• Glinda’s Magic Bubbles
• A shimmering wall around Glinda’s countryside and village
• Theodora’s Fire Tornado
• The Oz hologram
• Water effects galore
• Massive poppy fields
• China Town
• Emerald City – including “the main gates, boulevard, central square, back gate, back
alley, bell tower, palace, dais, vaulted corridor, Throne Room, Room of
Resplendence, balcony and bridge digital sets and huge aerials of the city”
• Fog!

And for those of you that are worried that this is another one of those films that destroys the experience of moviegoing with a heavy overdose of effects-driven shots, don’t fret! According to Stokdyk, they were certainly conscious of how easy it could have been to OD.

Stokdyk: You have a certain number of shots in any movie that are all computer generated, right? You just can’t shoot them, or there’s a prop that’s too expensive to shoot, or you shoot them in post after you’ve shot them in principal photography. We certainly had a decent chunk of those kind of shots, but after you’ve gone all CG, and done everything in the world CG, where’s the boundary? Where’s the next frontier after that?”

As Stokdyk tells us, so too must it be true! Expect the most awesome combination of art direction, live action, and CG you’ve ever seen on a film of this kind – start to finish!

First you’ll be choosing either Predators or Aliens to control, right out of the gate. It won’t really matter in the end, as you’re controlling both throughout the game, but it’s nice to have the illusion of control. Once you’ve completed one chapter with your Predator, you’ll be switched back to your Alien, and you’ll be evolving step-by-step with both races whether you like it or not. And you’ll like it – you’ll play it all night long, and you’ll like it.

The storyline is almost irrelevant as you take on each of the two races of beings you’re not whenever you’re out in the field. Fighting scientists and colonial marines when you’re either a Predator or an Alien whenever you’re no fighting one or the other bloodthirsty other-worldly race, that’s the joy you get to experience in this app.

You’ll be running through environments both diverse and deadly: it’s not only the other organic creatures that are after you, it’s the fire and the explosions and the bullets, too. And just when you think you’re about to reach the end of your ability to massacre the enemy, you gain enough experience to add a new terrifying weapon to your arsenal. Or if you’re an Alien, a new level of evolution to your body.

The Predator begins as a nearly nude blade-wielding ruffian, while the Alien begins, appropriately enough, as a facehugger. You’ll find some strange tingling feeling in your fingertips as you leap at the face of the helpless lab worker in your wake, implanting Alien spawn into his gullet. Once you’re out of his chest and full grown, you’ll also be working with facehugger back-ups to help grow your friendly family.

At the moment this game is entirely offline and you’ll be going through a fairly strict storyline, and if that’s all this game is – it’s still well worth the cash you’ll drop on it. This is a game that makes us understand what our newly quad-core processors are doing, what they’re being used on. Without games like this, all that power could be going to waste – don’t let it!

Have a peek at Alien VS Predator: Evolution on your iOS or Android device this week and let us know how it goes. Also have a peek at the Fox Digital Entertainment game DIE HARD (2013) for a whole new class in mobile gaming – the Endless Shooter!

With this trailer comes confirmation of Tony Stark facing off against not just the Mandarin, but the United States of America – again, that is. This is a continuation of the idea that the USA – or entities therein – are not seeing Iron Man as a protective force that should be as private as it is with Stark, but as a weapon that should be integrated into the government’s own forces. Lucky for them, it appears as if a flock of Iron Men appear near the end of the trailer.

This trailer features characters we can assume will be played by the same actors as they were in previous installments of the film. The director is new, this meaning we’ll have a bit of a different approach one way or another, but the cast will be rolling out with a bit more solidity between films than we had between Iron Man 1 and 2. Now that we’re heavy into the success of the film series – and have seen several of the Iron Man characters in the collective Avengers film – we can expect the cast to stay largely the same from here on in.

Meanwhile you’ll be glad to know that the release of Iron Man 3 is still set for May 3rd and will be battling it out with Star Trek Into Darkness without a doubt – that film coming just a couple weeks later into the month. Iron Man 3 is one of several next-generation Marvel Comics films being released in the near future, each of the Avengers grabbing hold of a continuing series well into the next century as well. Stark ahoy!

[via Yahoo Movies]

If you’ll head to Twitter on March 12th (that’s a Tuesday) from 2-2:30 PM PST, you’ll find both Davis and Howard giving a talk – and you can join in if you’d like! Follow #WillowChat and you’ll see the whole epic trading of words commencing. Then comes the features in the actual release!

With this release of Willow as a 25th Anniversary Edition, you’ll find a brand new personal video diary from none other than Warwick Davis – he’s going all-out to promote this, one of this most well-known starring roles. You’ll find matte paintings, photos of on-set bits and pieces, and deleted scenes as well. You’ll be getting a set of remarks from Ron Howard as well – what better wait to gain insight into the making of the classic?

This release will also include a new introduction from Ron Howard to the original 1988 featurette for the film, “The Making of an Adventure.” You’ll also see special effects master Dennis Muren give a new introduction to his bit of the collection, “From Morf to Morphing: The Dawn of Digital Filmmaking.” Sounds rather great! We’ll see the release of Willow in its newest fully digitally restored edition on both Blu-ray and DVD Combo Pack starting on March 12th wherever fine films are sold.

Have a peek at the timeline below for more Lucasfilm-related business in the recent past – there’s one whole heck of a lot of it!