The King’s Speech & True Grit Lead Nominees For The 83rd Academy Awards

There were no real surprises when the nominations for the 83rd Academy Awards (or Oscars, to you and me) were announced on Tuesday. The King’s Speech is top of the class with 12 nods (including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Screenplay.) Next on the list is True Grit with ten nominations, and Inception and The Social Network both have eight each.

Also getting some significant love are Jennifer Lawrence for Winter’s Bone (she’ll soon be seen as Mystique in X-Men: First Class), Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours (along with lead James Franco), The Kids Are All Right (alongside a Best Supporting Actor nomination for upcoming Avengers actor Mark Ruffalo) and Toy Story 3 (which has been nominated for both Best Animated Feature and Best Picture.) The awards ceremony will be held on February 27th, with the aforementioned James Franco and the Selina-Kyle-shaped Anne Hathaway hosting.

Sony Announces New Handheld Console

There have been  rumours about a successor to the Sony PSP range for at least a year, if not longer. Now, Sony have quashed those rumours…but still announced a new handheld console. In fact, it’s a Next Generation Portable, or code-named to be the NGP.

So yes, all those other reports you’ve been reading on sites that there was a PSP2…well, they’re wrong, because Sony have made every effort to inform us that this is a totally new product (however it might look.) The specs include a multi-touch screen at the front (and an interesting multi-touch pad on the rear), front and rear cameras, six-axis motion sensing, built-in 3G and bluetooth, and the usual smattering of buttons and analogue sticks.

The games and console memory will be on small flash-based cards that Sony hope will provide an ever-expanding memory system as required, along with a new product called Near, which will pick up on nearby players and friends. The NGP is expected to launch before the end of 2011.

On top of all this, Sony had another big announcement: the PlayStation Suite coming to Android phones and tablets, which will allow users to access PlayStation classics on their Android device.

Zombies Are Taking Over My Comics

If there’s one thing that’s cool about the internet, it’s discovering new stuff: when that stuff just happens to be a webcomic about a zombie apocalypse…well, that’s cool, isn’t it?

Zomblicity is a new web-comic written by Robin Sandiford with art by Farcreazy Fahad which is currently on the second issue of its first volume (which is expected to run to a total of nine issues.) Zombie comics come and go, but Zomblicity promises something a little bit different: what if there were two worlds, one in which lead character Curtis Madsen were attacked by a zombie on his way into work…and one where he wakes up 33 minutes later! Robin has described the series as

a ‘Sliding Doors’ with Zombies if you like (although it’s much more than that..I promise)…and [issue 3] will be much more action/gore based fun…This is where the fun really starts!!!

The first two issues are already available online at Zomblicity.co.uk, so go and check it out and give these guys some support!

Jameson Dublin Internation Film Festival 2011

Every year, the JDIFF brings some pretty amazing films and events to Dublin, and with this year’s festival taking place February 17th -27th, Dublin will once again be wrapped up in the glitz, glamour and bright lights of Hollywood. While the films always take pride of place, we can’t help but notice some of the big names who’ll be around with films this year, including Martin Sheen, Emilio Estevez, Richard Ayoade and Harry Shearer, to name but a few.

We’re especially interested by some of the horror offerings at this year’s JDIFF including Spanish horror Julia’s Eyes, vampire chiller Stake Town and a special “interactive” screening of William Castle’s The Tingler starring Vincent Price. More details can be found at the official JDIFF site, where tickets are on sale now.

Duke Nukem Forever…And Ever…And Ever

We’ll believe this one when we see it in stores, but Duke Nukem Forever finally has a release date of May 2011.

Supposedly.

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Fantastically Four No More

We’re not going to spoil things like some other sites by telling you exactly what happened in this week’s Fantastic Four #587, but it culminated in the death of one of superhero-dom’s first family. The story has had a long lead-up since current writer Jonathan Hickman started his run with issue 570, and if we’re to believe the various interviews, it’s a death that won’t be reversed any time soon.

However, some of the real story is derived not from who died in the issue, but the fact that the comic went on sale on Tuesday (rather than the traditional date of Wednesday) which led to various news sources running with a lead story spoiling the character’s death and circumstances in their headlines: after Captain America and The Sentry, it appears that Marvel comics just can’t keep their big death-blows under wraps, whether it’s intentional or not.

Should you feel the need to know exactly what happens, you can pick up Fantastic Four #587 in stores now (or check any news feeds that you haven’t seen since Tuesday.)

Released This Week: In Cinemas

• Hereafter
• Tangled
• Biutiful
• The Mechanic

Released This Week: Games

• Dead Space 2

So instead, we’re launching the ZombieZine, a weekly round-up of news from the worlds of gaming, movies, comics and other such nerdy and geeky finery. We’ll have images, trailers, release dates, and other such news, made up of all those little pieces of news that maybe don’t warrant an entry just for their own sakes. We’ll aim to have the ZombieZine going out every week, and to make your life interesting, will have a quick run-down of the new releases (in Ireland) for the week (and if we have reviews, we’ll link to them.)

Roll up, roll up…you can check the first ZombieZine below.

Andrew Garfield Is Spider-Man (Now There’s A Picture To Prove It)

The first images of Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man from the as-yet untitled Spider-Man reboot coming in 2012 (in 3D no less…yeah, I’m not sure how I feel about that either.) Garfield himself manages to look like a suitably lanky teenager (no small feat for a 27 year-old), an interesting contrast to Tobey Maguire’s somewhat stockier frame (Spider-Man being lanky/teenager-like is good!) As a promo image, though, there’s a few questions: what’s with the damaged Spider-Man symbol on his chest? (Is this taken from some post-fight sequence?) Where’s the mask? (You can’t expect us to have a serious opinion without seeing the full thing yet?) And what’s with those metal bits on his wrists? (Old-school mechanical web-shooters? Or just a fancy MP3 player?)

We’re sure we’ll see a more complete set of images soon, but for those of us who’ve been unsure if a Spider-Man reboot is maybe too soon, it bodes well for the movie that there can be so much right about the image above.

The Dark Knight Returns Gets Some Cast: Tom Hardy Is Bane; Anne Hathaway Is Selina Kyle (Not Catwoman)

In a press release from 19th January, Christopher Nolan finally offered up some information on The Dark Knight Returns, and there were some surprises. Both Anne Hathaway and Tom Hardy had been linked to roles in the third (and potentially final) of Nolan’s Batman films, but it’s the characters they’ll be playing that have are most interesting.

Hardy (who worked with Nolan on last year’s Inception) will be playing Bane, the villain best known for “breaking the Bat,” and worst-known for featuring in Joel Schumacher’s 1997 Batman And Robin (wherein the phrase  “hulking mess” comes to mind.)

“I am delighted to be working with Tom again and excited to watch him bring to life our new interpretation of one of Batman’s most formidable enemies.”

Hathaway’s casting has some similar issues, but also some interesting phrasing from Nolan: she’ll be playing Selina Kyle, but there’s no indication from Nolan’s statement that the film will also feature Kyle’s alter-ego, Catwoman. That character’s big-screen interpretations have always been camp (and let’s all look at Halle Berry when we say “unsuccessful”) which might not fit with Nolan’s style from the first two movies, but it could also mark a significant change in tone as Nolan brings his trilogy to a close.

X-Men: First Class Gets Some Class Photos

Last week, we didn’t even have so much as an official poster image for X-Men: First Class (sorry if that made our 20 for 11 a bit boring) and now, we have the poster above. And some cast photos. It doesn’t say much for what’s actually going to happen in the film, as most of the images are fairly dry and action-less, but hey, there’s chess games! And Magneto! More images and some news from director Matthew Vaughn can be found over at /FILM.

Trailers: Rubber

French horror films are usually good, but what about when they’re about killer tyres? With psychic powers?

Rubber comes from French director Quentin Dupieux, or Mr. Oizo. That’s the musician responsible for the music in the Flat Eric Levi’s ads, in case you can’t remember…yeah, we’re not sure what that says about a feature film either, so just sit back, relax and watch the trailer.

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Nintendo 3DS Gets A Date, Games

We knew it would be March: now we know exactly when. Nintendo’s new handheld console, the Nintendo 3DS will be in stores March 25th in Europe and March 27th in the US. Among other games that were announced for the “launch window” (between March and June) will be a remastered Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time, Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition, Kid Icarus: Uprising, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, Rayman 3D and Rabbids 3D. There’s no solid info on retail price yet: Nintendo have released this to retailers, and currently we’re hearing everywhere between €200 and €300 based on different retailers and bundles.

Your Mom Hates This

Dead Space 2 isn’t in stores until next week, but the promotional campaign has already begun, with some TV spots and a website declaring that “Your Mom Hates This.” It all seems a little bit like the campaign is trying to flaunt controversy and anyone who’s thought seriously about games will probably groan at a company actively using this to sell its product.

But that said, it’s still a fun viral. And is a nice comparison to the launch trailer which features some little-known band called Smashing Pumpkins that nobody’s ever heard of.

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Released This Week: In Cinemas

• Black Swan (review coming soon)
• John Carpenter’s The Ward
• Morning Glory

Released This Week: Games

• LittleBigPlanet 2 (review and interview with the developers coming soon)

Perhaps it says something about the video game industry overall that pretty much everything we’re looking forward to this year is some form of sequel (even if just spiritual.) But we’ve thrown in some hardware too, just to keep things interesting.

Since games are a bit less dependable than movies, we’ve tried to keep this list in some kind of order based on release dates, but like everything else, they’re subject to change.

Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate Of Two Worlds

If you’re a regular BurnAllZombies reader, it should come as no surprise that this game made our list: it’s not like we spent most of 2009 playing the second game (and writing about it.) It’s eleven years since MvC2 came out, and in many ways, fighting games have changed…and then come back full circle. We’ve been through fighting games moving into 3-dimensions, we’ve seen story modes to try and give the games something more…and then we’ve seen them all go back to the classics, like with Street Fighter IV.

Keeping with the similar cel-shaded style of SFIV, MvC3 will pit characters from Marvel Comics and Capcom games against each other. 3D graphics in a 2D fighting environment: in other words, the kinds of gameplay we used to dream about when we were kids, back in the days before your attempts to execute a special move caused your character to step into the foreground instead.

Let’s be fair, nobody really cares about storyline when it comes to fighting games: it’s all about what big names you can use to kick the asses of other characters, and Marvel vs Capcom 3 might not have as expansive a roster as its predecessors, but you can still expect the usual run of big names like Thor, Captain America, Chun-Li, Ryu, Chris Redfield and…sigh, yes, there’s Deadpool too.

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Portal 2

There’s one thing I can say about Portal and it is that….this is a triumph.

As far as puzzle games go, Portal has provided one of the most brain-melting, addictive experiences ever, and Portal 2 looks set to provide more of the same, with players returning to the Aperture Science facility to confront a new version of GLaDOS. While the story of Portal is important, it’s always really been secondary to the gameplay (and even then, only really of interest if you’ve played the other games in the Half-Life universe.) Instead, it’s all about the fun of turning things upside down, inside out, back to front and flinging over impossible distances…thanks to portal technology (and cake…it’s all about the cake.)

So what does Portal 2 add? Well, aside from more addictive portal-ing, campaigns are supposedly twice the length of the original, with a new co-operative multiplayer that puts players in control of two robots in the facility, each armed with their own portal guns. It won’t necessarily get the love it deserves (what with using a portal gun, rather than a mindless call-of-duty machine gun) but if it’s anything like Portal, we’ll somehow still be playing it a few years later, just for the kick.

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Nintendo 3DS

It’s hardware, rather than a game, but we’re still looking forward to Nintendo’s newest console…even if it’s kind of a remake of an existing one. But c’mon…3D gaming in the palm of your hand. With no glasses (unless…y’know, you need to wear glasses.) That’s a pretty big deal.

Perhaps even more impressive is the list of titles that have already been announced for the console, with some massive franchises (Street Fighter, Resident Evil) promised. And then there’s the remakes, some of my own personal favourite games ever, including LylatWars/StarFox 64, and The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time.

The 3DS will feature backwards compatibility with existing DS/DSi software and hardware, a 3D camera and we’re even likely to get some 3D movies on it too. With all that, there’s really nothing not to be excited about (unless you’re one of those idiots who still think that Nintendo expanding their market was the worst thing to ever happen to gaming.)

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Mortal Kombat

Perish the thought of a Capcom fighter coming out without an offering from the arch-rival franchise of Mortal Kombat…ah, those were the days, back when life was a choice between Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, between Mario and Sonic, and where being player 2 was a fate worse than death.

With Midway studios having…moved on, the Mortal Kombat franchise is now under the watchful eye of Warner Bros, and it looks like things are back to the way they were with this latest game in the franchise. No, literally. The plot starts at the end of the current series where, on the verge of death, Raiden sends a message to his younger self, thus changing the events of Mortal Kombat 1-3 and allowing for the franchise to rebooted from the very beginning.

It’s not that Mortal Kombat ever took itself particularly seriously, but the games tried to have a storyline, something that just started to get far too confusing (usually in an attempt to include a character multiple times over.) But this should give the game a chance to stand on its own bloody two feet, and given the footage that has been released of Mortal Kombat so far, it looks like a 2D brawler that takes the blood and gore we know and love to the modern age could be exactly what’s needed to reignite the old rivalries.

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InFamous 2

The first InFamous game was probably the best superhero video game that wasn’t about a pre-existing superhero. High hopes for InFamous 2 then. Cole MacGrath returns, having grown from a messenger in the first game to a pretty darned powerful superhero (or villain, depending on how you played) and the plot twists certainly set up a lot of places for the franchise to go. This time around, Cole has left the New York-like Empire City for a thinly-veiled New Orleans (called New Marais here) for more open-world gameplay with his electrical powers. And, as we discovered in the first game, his powers are ever-expanding.

It looks like Cole’s powerset has been redefined to include some ice-based powers, but we won’t know how or why exactly until closer to release; ditto on the redesigned Cole that was revealed last year, causing outrage from fans, and the character model being changed back to closer resemble the Cole from the first game.

If InFamous 2 can continue in the same fashion as the first game, we’ll have an impressive franchise on our hands, but developers Sucker Punch need to up their game as well: having finished InFamous as a full-fledged super-man, going back to basics in the sequel is just going to feel forced.

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Batman: Arkham City

Well, Batman: Arkham Asylum was all kinds of fun, so it was no real surprise that a sequel was on the cards. Nor that the stakes would be a little bit higher. Now, Arkham is full of so many inmates that it’s been forced to expand to its own ghetto of Gotham City, and Batman’s going to be forced to deal with enemies that have a lot more resources to hand.

Like all things Batman, Batman: Arkham City is generating more rumour than fact, and there’s not much that we can honestly tell you about the game, other than Catwoman playing a big part in the game’s storyline. There’s also a rumoured multiplayer, but whether that will be as Catwoman, as one of the rest of the Batman family or a totally unfounded rumour…well, we don’t know yet, do we?

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Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception

Back in 2009, we named Batman: Arkham Asylum our cross-platform Game Of The Year. And Uncharted 2: Among Thieves claimed the prize for platform exclusive. Somewhat appropriate that both should have sequels out this year, and both deservedly make our 20 for 11.

We don’t know much about Uncharted 3 yet (save the continuing adventures of Nathan Drake, and something to do with a desert…the game was only announced a few weeks ago) but Nolan North (aka the voice of every male video game protagonist ever) always needs more work.

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The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword

There’s always a huge amount of hype for any Legend of Zelda game, and this one has been going for nearly two years, after the below artwork showed up after 2009′s E3.

As with all Nintendo (and Zelda) games, the game will really be left to speak for itself (that’s our nice way of saying we don’t know a lot about it. Save for some gameplay footage shown at E3 2010, which was more about mechanics than anything else, all we really know is that this entry in the epic series will look at the origins of the Master Sword.)

Nintendo are also playing their cards close to their chest with regards to a release date, although the Zelda games have a habit of appearing in stores just before the festive season (however, if recent releases are anything to go by, release could be sprung on us with only a few weeks’ notice.

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Mass Effect 3

Nope, I’m not sure just what it is about Mass Effect that somehow manages to have won over millions either, but there’s no doubt that, having come from relatively nowhere, it’s become one of the biggest franchises on the XBox 360. (Yay me for avoiding the douchiness of saying “killer app.”) And perhaps soon to be the PlayStation 3 too (once Mass Effect 2 launches on the console this month.)

Mass Effect was always touted as a trilogy, but given the success (and relative slow-moving nature) of Mass Effect 2, there’ll be no surprise if this just closes one part of the story while leaving everything else wide open. And that story? Oh, just a Reaper attack on earth. With lots of Reapers. Attacking Earth. Seriously, the trailer below just has a mix of imagery that you rarely expect to see in a sci-fi game like this.

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The Last Guardian

Nope, we’ve nothing new on this one since we wrote about it two whole years ago but the long awaited new game from Team Ico should be with us this year.

Emphasis on should be.

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With an uncountable number of games (okay, we could count, we’re just too lazy to do it) out this year, there are a few honourable mentions as well: Dead Space 2 / DC Universe Online / Gears Of War 3 / the Tomb Raider reboot / Ms ‘Splosion Man / Bulletstorm / LittleBigPlanet 2 / LA Noire / Duke Nukem Forever (hah! hahahahahaha…we’ll believe it when we see it) / X-Men: Destiny / Star Wars: The Old Republic / Dragon Age II / Doom 4 / Crysis 2.

Click here for 20 for 11: Part 1 – The Movies

That said, when we say “countdown,” there’s no particular order; and when we say “things,” we’re mostly looking at the worlds of movies and games here. Check back later today for our lists: if you’re lucky, we might even have some trailers and images for you!

First up, our mates over at Citizen Game have an event all set up for October 9th, a public game review (yes, that’s public, not pubic.) And it’s in a pub! Head along October 9th to The Star On Bethnal Green and have yourself a play of PES 2011 and FIFA 2011 (let’s face it, they’re football games, we probably won’t be reviewing them on here.) For more information, check here.

Meanwhile, if you’re in Dublin between now and November 14th, drop into the new Playstation Hub on South William St where you can get a chance to play the latest upcoming releases for the console, as well as ignore everything we have to say about Playstation Move and just give it a go yourself. Check the press release below for more info, or jump straight to the Facebook page for the all-important opening hours.

PlayStation has just transformed vacant premises on Dublin’s South William Street into a luxurious state-of-the-art gaming zone, the PlayStation Hub. The PlayStation Hub opens at 50 South William Street from 12 noon tomorrow, Friday 17^th September – Sunday 14^th November and offers gaming fans of all levels a chance to experience PlayStation®3’s exciting new PlayStation®Move motion controller and a range of other exciting PS3 game releases for free in Dublin city centre.

Overnight, the South William Street premises has been converted into an intimate gaming paradise with the PlayStation Hub being kitted out with six demo areas dedicated to PlayStation®Move and a separate gaming zone where gaming enthusiasts will have a chance to preview some exciting new PS3 game releases, including Gran Turismo 5 and LittleBigPlanet 2.

PlayStation®Move launches in Ireland on Friday 17 September and offers a gateway into a gaming experience like no other. Combining the PlayStation®Eye camera, a dynamic colour-changing sphere, vibration function and an easy to use button interface, the motion controller allows players to engage with games in ways they never imagined. Player’s movements – even the most subtle ones – are registered by the motion controller’s advanced motion sensors and the PlayStation^®Eye USB Camera allowing players to use the motion controller as a blade to slay foes, a bat to hit the winning home run, or a brush to groom your fluffy pet!

Visitors to the PlayStation Hub can look forward to enjoying a variety of exciting and innovative software titles that are either dedicated to or supported with the PlayStation Move platform including:  Sports Champions, Start the Party, EyePet,  The Shoot, The Fight, Heavy Rain Move Edition and Kung Fu Rider by SCE .

Everyone who visits the PlayStation Hub will be in with a chance to win a PS3 and PlayStation Move starter pack.  For more information and to check opening hours visit www.facebook.com/sonyplaystationireland.

With a website called BurnAllZombies, we’d be remiss not to share this exclusive clip from the film, which also includes one of those weird moments where the games cross over with the movies, namely the axe-wielding enemy from Resident Evil 5. This time, he’s facing off against Claire Redfield (Heroes‘ Ali Larter) in a men’s toilet…nope, we’re not sure either, but it looks pretty cool.

Even in this clip, you can see how the film will be making use of some 3D effects, and like everything Resident Evil, it looks just a little bit silly, but totally awesome.

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Resident Evil: Afterlife is in cinemas September 10th 2010.

The game is a joint production involving Channel 4 and Littleloud, and is written by Kieron Gillen: comic-book writer, gamer, co-owner at Rock, Paper, Shotgun and all-round nice guy who was kind enough to answer a few question about The Curfew, some of the issues that the game brings up, and of course his comic books. The interview below has not been edited, and we’d like to thank Kieron and Rebecca Ladbury for their time and co-operation.

BURNALLZOMBIES: Can you describe a little bit about the creative process behind The Curfew? It was commissioned by Alice Taylor, commissioning editor of Channel 4’s educational programming, so how much of the idea was already in mind, and how much developed over the course of writing?

KIERON GILLEN: Channel 4 Education has its vague over-arching themes which it plans to use as fuel for projects. Littleloud was considering a couple of them – Civil Liberties and Mental Health – when they approached me as possibly as a writer. In the end, it was the core of one of Littleloud’s idea – “the curfew”, a safehouse, four people, day-after-tomorrow “Canterbury Tales”-structure – which we ended up developing. And it developed a lot… though, since that core is recognisable in the short-form I list above, it shows that it’s much more about execution than the grand oversweeping structure.

In short – the high-level theme came from Channel 4; everything about the actual execution of that theme came from Littleloud.

Channel 4 and its affiliated channels have been heavily promoting The Curfew during ad breaks, and a lot of these ads are similar in style to Channel 4’s TV shows. Was The Curfew always planned as an interactive “game” with a real-life cast, or were there ever other/“simpler” possibilities of telling the same story? And how did that format affect your approach as a writer.

Littleloud have a long history at making webgames. Arguably their most famous previous one was the BAFTA-award winning Bow Street Runner, which uses the earlier version of the same technology – rendered backgrounds, real-actors and similar conversation/mini-game interaction. The Curfew was basically the spiritual sequel to Bow Street Runner, just turning the technology to a new end. Being a gaming geek, I think of it as Planescape Torment to Bow Street Runner’s Baldur’s Gate.

I’ve never written for actors before. Like any new thing, it affected my writing by provoking me to panic. It’s just how I operate.

As part of Channel 4’s educational programming, much of The Curfew revolves around notions of citizenship, as well as the rights and responsibilities of a nation and its inhabitants, and other civil rights issues. At what stage did Amnesty, Liberty, Human Rights Watch and The Equality And Human Rights Commission get involved in the production, and what kind of response did they have to the story?

I’m afraid you’d have to talk to Littleloud and Channel 4 about this, as I never communicated to them directly. Basically, even at synopsis form, everything I wrote was taken to Channel 4 and evaluated whether it was actually suitable, and then – apparently – eventually presented to experts. That so many human rights groups are linked is probably the best evidence of how they took it.

While a fictional narrative, there’s some real-life issues writ large in The Curfew, and one of the most interesting aspects for me has to do with the availability and control of media. As a writer and games journalist, you straddle an interesting divide between creator and consumer: what are your own thoughts on censorship and access to media, as well as piracy and digital content, based on your experiences from both sides?

Big question. I suspect any answer I can give which works in a short interview format is going to sound really pat. I’ve started writing this paragraph a few dozen times now, and I can’t work out a way to get to the end of the paragraph and make a point I actually believe which doesn’t demand another eight paragraphs of explanation.

It’s a big question, and most of the questions are about the world we’re choosing to make. My immediate urge was to write that I’m against censorship in all its forms, but I just start picking at that and drawing a line between what censorship is and isn’t. I think the democratisation of the press with the internet age is an important thing – but I also understand that married to the postmodern belief in all-opinions-are-equal, the based chew of capitalism and general entitlement that it leads to some really nasty places. One of the themes in The Curfew which people haven’t picked up on as much is the basic one of personal responsibility – of where it starts and where it ends, and what communication is anyway.

It’s a game which is fundamentally won or lost by weaponised empathy. We’re here with each other and we’ve got to make the best of it.

And the question of Piracy is another essay, which I don’t think necessarily overlaps with digital content. I’ll go as far to say that if you can’t give people access to something in a format they want – digital – you can’t be too surprised when they pirate when there’s no other option.

Currently The Curfew plays out on site, with plans for a full downloadable experience later this year. Are there any plans to support The Curfew with other narratives outside of the main game? Or to revisit the world in some other format in the future?

I don’t know what Littleloud has planned… but I wouldn’t be surprised if it is never touched again. I think games are desperately obsessed with turning their worlds into brands, which is great for capitalism and not so great for the art.

Most of our readers probably know you best as the writer of Phonogram, some of your more recent work with Marvel Comics or maybe your games journalism with Rock, Paper, Shotgun: it’s a pretty eclectic CV, so were there any major differences (or similarities) in writing The Curfew?

Impossible deadlines.

If only I was joking.

I think it would be fair to say that you’re as passionate about games and music as you are about writing, and knowing what games someone plays or what music they listen to gives a real sense of character: in Phonogram, music even defines their very being. Similarly, in The Curfew, the game The Call Of Grand Theft Duty is integral to one of the characters: is this something you do consciously when creating a character, or does it just come naturally? Do your characters develop from their interests, or do they develop the interests as they grow? And have you ever written a character that you suspect of liking Kula Shaker? [If you've read Phonogram, you'll get that. If not: shame on you.]

Someone in a random tweet or e-mail just wrote asking something like “would you say the major theme across all your work is how humans interact and are shaped by the culture they consume?” And I thought… well, yes. That’s it, innit? I’d never put it that cleanly, but if you want a BIG THEME across everything I do, that’s it. That said, Lucas [The Boy in The Curfew] is given a far harder time than Phonogram’s cast for his solipism.

In terms of creation, it works both ways. Some of it comes quickly. You just know that a character would like a certain band. In Phonogram, it occasionally goes the other way – like Laura emerging from the black swamp of Long Blondes records. And then when you’re writing a character, you catch a record and realise it resonates with that character. Lloyd only got a happy ending in Phonogram when I found myself listening to Los Campesinos late at night, and found myself thinking “Lloyd really could do with hearing this. He’d learn something.” When thinking about Generation Hope [Kieron's new X-Men series, commencing in November, focussing on the supposed mutant saviour and a team of new mutants], I was listening to These Dancing Days’ “Hitten” and it sort of clicked. That’s where she is, right now, and that’s what this series is about.  I tend to see songs as blobs of narrative and meaning in an unrealised, pure form. [Jamie] McKelvie [Kieron's collaborating artist on Phonogram and Marvel's Siege: Loki one-shot] says that instinct is pretty much the thing which allowed me to write Phonogram.

The character who likes Kula Shaker lives, crumpled up, in my office-bin.

Moving away from The Curfew, any plans to revisit the world of Phonogram after The Single’s Club [the second series in the comic]? Or to see (hear?) Phonogram on stage or screen?

I’d love to do another series of Phonogram, but it’s just incredibly, incredibly unlikely. Financial reality crushed it, and now McKelvie and myself are just too busy.

Phonogram on screen or stage would be highly amusing, especially considering I originally wrote it to be as unadaptable as possible. That said, you never know.

There seems to be a second wave of the British invasion hitting Marvel and DC over the last few years, focussing on names like yourself and Paul Cornell; how does it feel to be name-checked in the same breath as the likes of Gaiman, Moore, Carey, Morrison et al?

That’s complimentary company you’re putting me in. I like to imagine when you say I’m name-checked in the same breath, the breath is saying “Isn’t nearly as good as XYZ”.

Really? It’s about as strange as you may expect.  On the other hand… okay, I’ll spin off at an angle. When doing Phonogram, Jamie and I wanted to do something that mattered to other people as much as the stuff which inspired us mattered to us. We are people who have had life-changing experiences with art, and we wanted to be part of that chain. So, when people come up to us and talk about how much the work means to them, up to the point of changing how they dress or what clubs they go to or whatever… well, it’s profoundly embarrassing and  bizarre. But it’s also exactly what we wanted. As odd as it is – and that you find it odd is about the only way you can tell you haven’t gone off the deep end – it’s what you entered this game for, so you have to smile and say thank you and (if pressed) say that you understand, because you were there yourself once.

So when people compare me to some people who I absolutely count as major influences…

Well, I didn’t get into this line of work to be shit.

I want to be as good as my influences – all my influences, inside and outside of comics. Hell, I want to be better, even if I don’t think I’ll ever be. You have to try.

You’re finishing up a pretty successful run on Thor at the moment, and Generation Hope will be on shelves later this year: did Thor give you a chance to get involved (or even check out) the film/tie-in game? And how close will Generation Hope run alongside the other X-Men titles?

Nope. I’ve only seen as much of the film as everyone else has, which I kinda like. I want to be surprised. And Generation Hope will be part of the core X-men universe. They’re Matt [Fraction, current writer of Uncanny X-Men] and my characters, so they’re always going to be. However, I also want to write a book which is readable entirely by itself. Anything I write, I try and make the smallest individual elements mean something by themselves.

Finally, regarding characters or franchises from the worlds of comics and video games: if there were one character or franchise you could get your hands on, regardless of rights or medium, what would you write?

I would like to get my hands on all the Suburban Glamour characters, so Jamie doesn’t own them anymore. And then I would write them really badly, saying things like “Jamie McKelvie smells bad. He smells so bad. Pooooooooo! He smells like Pooo.” And then I would phone him up and laugh at him. Again.

[Jamie McKelvie was unavailable to comment on his personal scent at the time of posting this...truth is, we didn't actually ask anyway.]

The Curfew is currently in Beta and can be played here.

Generation Hope begins in November; Thor is an ongoing series and Siege: Loki is available as one-shot or as part of several Siege collection from Marvel Comics, including a Siege: Thor Hardcover due later this year.

Phonogram: Rue Britannia and Phonogram Volume 2: The Single’s Club are available now, published by Image Comics.

Kieron is a regular contributer and co-owner of Rock, Paper, Shotgun.

Mass Effect 2 Comes To Sony PlayStation 3

The former Microsoft-exclusive hits the Sony PlayStation 3 in January 2011. We weren’t the only ones to think that the game was pretty damn good (you can check our review here) and I’m looking forward to seeing how the transfer is to PS3, whether there’s any noticeable change to graphics or gameplay (although it may prove that the only change will be the game being on one disc, rather than two.)

Dead Space 2 Gets Dated

January 25th in the USA; January 28th in Europe. Gamers get to revisit Isaac Clarke in his fight against the Necromorphs, and the game will also come with a PlayStation Move compatible version of Dead Space: Extraction (previously released on the Wii.)

Dragon Age 2 Trailer

We’ve been promised a much more immersive experience with a completely new “visual identity” (nope, we’re not sure what that means either.) It looks like the game will be released March 8th 2011 (USA) and March 11th (Europe) with a nifty-looking cut-scene trailer below.

With little in the means of story, it’s the game’s official description which informs players of their lost sister. Limbo offers players a simple goal, a supposedly “simple” platforming adventure of constantly moving right-wards while avoiding numerous obstacles. So many obstacles, in fact, that the game doesn’t keep a track of lives, unlike many platformers, with death often being particularly gruesome, and in many cases the only way of learning how to traverse a particular obstacle. The first time walking over a well concealed bear trap only to see the boy graphically cut to pieces is quite shocking and not something which becomes easier to stomach as the game progresses, especially as there never seems to be a moment where the boy isn’t in some form of danger.

Concealed traps and rapid deaths aren’t the only obstacles facing the boy and in the rare occasions when the game manages to slow down there’s usually a puzzle nearby involving switches, platforms and/or gravity defying physics to be solved. The game does a great job of explaining the mechanics of all of these with no dialogue and with the exception of one or two instances players won’t be racking their brains too long for a solution (which is often that your jump was not timed to perfection).

The physics work as expected, momentum and gravity being used to great effect, and each separate area offers its own unique puzzle type so that players never feel as if they are constantly solving the same puzzle, which is especially welcomed due to the boy’s limited move set. Players can grab objects, press switches and jump, all of which are used in inventive ways (especially when you have a jump to trigger a switch mid-air.) The first time a player jumps from one moving platform to another or grabs a box may not be that impressive but as the game progresses and platforms are replaced with floating corpses and boxes with twitching giant spider legs players will be equally disgusted and impressed.

All of Limbo‘s disgusting feats are beautifully brought to life with varying shades of black, white and grey. Everything exists within silhouette, re-enforcing the game’s mood and making the boy’s quest seem even more helpless as his pale, glowing eyes peer into the darkness. It’s also to the game’s credit that this style never gets old, constantly refreshed as various streams of light illuminate the dark, whether it comes from a glowing bug or the spark of a hotel sign. As with the game’s imagery, its music remains stark and haunting, with little in the way of traditional music supplied players will be more familiar with insect buzzing, spinning saws and haunting echoes in the dark.

If the game is to have one complaint though it is that as the game progresses, the game mechanics attempt to over shadow the hard work done by developer Playdead to keep the oppressive mood as the game’s main focus. Thankfully the game’s abrupt ending prevents this from happening but it will still no doubt be the first hour or two of play that stick with player’s the most.

While short on multiple features or intricate gameplay players looking for a tightly paced game with an engaging atmosphere will find a lot to enjoy with Limbo. It isn’t the longest experience, with an average play through clocking in at around 4 hours, but it offers an experience unlike any other and one well worth multiple replays.

Zombie Rating: A-

Limbo is available now Xbox Live Arcade.

The PlayStation Move lands in Irish stores on 17th September, with motion control support for new and existing games, with the promise of a lot more coming in 2011. Of the games we got to experience, we’ll have a quick look below at The Fight, The Shoot, Start The Party, Heavy Rain (Move Edition), Sports Champions and Kung Fu Rider.

But first off, let’s check the hardware: PlayStation Move consists of two add-ons to the regular PS3 console: the PlayStation Eye camera (expected to retail on its own for €29.99, and also packaged with last year’s EyePet; and the PlayStation Move motion controller (RRP €39.99) with both available in a bundle together, and packaged with new consoles. Additional options include a sub-controller, known as the PlayStation Move navigation controller (featuring an analogue stick, D-pad and further buttons) and a charging station.

You might have seen images of the motion controller from any E3 coverage, either this year or last year: they’re those weird things with a globe on top, that look just a little bit like sex toys. The motion controller itself features the same four face buttons as have been on PlayStation controllers for years, along with a new “Move” button (under your thumb) and a trigger underneath (pretty much equivalent to the A and B buttons on a Wii Remote.) And before anyone starts giving out about the Wii-comparisons, that’s not going to be the only one on here, so take a deep calming breath.

A combination of hardware within the controller and the relationship between it and the PlayStation Eye gives the controller its one-to-one motion controls, which are pretty precise. While the PlayStation team were quick to highlight that some of the tech on display was still in the very early stages, that proved to be something of a drawback when it came to the controls: the sheer amount of hardware involved means that recalibration may be necessary if you move positions significantly during play, or if handing off the controller from one player to another.

But how does it feel, I hear you ask? A little too light, if I’m honest. One of my main complaints about any and all PlayStation controllers is the lack of real weight in the controls and the buttons; sure, a great deal of that isn’t always a good thing, but I always feel that the controls for “other consoles” offer a little bit more feeling to them. Sure, I don’t want to feel like I’m holding a heavy weight when using a motion controller for gaming, but I like to feel like I’m holding something, otherwise what’s the point in having the controller?

The PlayStation Move‘s tracking is impressive, however: impressive enough to go from a pointing device to access menus, to recognising fully-fledged motion and to even recognising orientation. The game’s on show at the Irish launch preview showcased that; but the games themselves left a little something to be desired.

Sports Champions showed off the most impressive usages of the controller within the one game, and we got to have a look at the game’s archery game, and also a gladiator-style battle, complete with sword and shield. Both of these games can be played with one controller, but for the full experience, get one in each hand and you’ve got the sword-and-shield/bow-and-arrow package.

If you can’t guess how gameplay works for both of those games, then you need to remind yourself exactly what a motion controller does, don’t you? The game follows each action through, from removing an arrow from your quiver to aiming at the target and firing. And hopefully hitting the target too…

The Shoot required a little less thought, and proved somewhat disappointing for me: an on-the-rails shooter, utilising the PlayStation Move controller as a pointer device for shooting various bad guys. It’s an interesting concept: The Shoot itself is both a shooting game and a reference to the fact that it is based around the making of various big-screen movies. Of course, the game also makes use of some of the controller’s motion control elements, and the graphics are impressive, but play itself isn’t too different from any number of Time Crisis games from way back when.

Equally, Start The Party highlighted some of the controller’s finer points, moving from pointing-to-gesture-based controls, and yet the gameplay itself was overly simplistic. For a party game, and one aimed at all ages, the games are fun and yet progress quickly enough to provide something of a challenge, but even then, it felt like it was lacking something. I’ll avoid the Nintendo comparison in this case, because we don’t need to look at other consoles, rather than just casting an eye back to the EyeToy on the PS2.

The Fight provides one of the most promising uses of the PlayStation Move, but this also highlights some of the disadvantages of the hardware involved. The use of two motion controllers proved a little bit confusing for some moments of the bare-knuckle fighting game (although I will admit we were playing very early code) and the lack of a sense of weight to the controllers did little to contribute to the feeling of being “in the game.” The game pits you in a series of bouts, but there’s no real reference point for you to gauge your opponent’s position, and punches may end up widely missing the mark.

We’ve already reviewed Heavy Rain when the game was released earlier this year: a downloadable patch will be available to add in Move compatibility, although navigating your character around the screen still requires the use of the navigation controller (although a standard SixAxis/DualShock 3 can also be used as well.) We got to see one scene of the game, an early interrogation and fight scene in a brothel, and having played the game with a traditional control scheme, there is little difference with the Move controls.

Unfortunately, I’ve a similar opinion of Kung Fu Rider, a game putting the player in control of a private detective, armed with office furniture in an interesting cross that incorporates elements of kart-racing games and the “fun” elements of the Tony Hawk franchise. Unfortunately, it’s a game that doesn’t really require Move controls: with a weird shake-to-accelerate control scheme, it does little to capture the necessary speed required for such games.

TV Superstars and an EyePet add-on were also on display at this event, although we didn’t get a chance to try out either game. SOCOM 4 and Killzone 3 are also promised for release next year, and both games will also include Move functionality: in this case, I’m reserving judgement until we’ve seen some more games like these. If PlayStation successfully manage to transfer some of the traditional gameplay associated with these action/shooter titles to the Move format, they’ll no doubt be successful, and with the games we’ve seen, they’ll certainly win over the casual market. Whether they’ll successfully manage to win over all those in between, we won’t see until the system launches in a few weeks’ time.

Sony PlayStation Move is launched in Ireland on September 17th, with worldwide release around that week. Some titles will be available from launch, with others expected later this year.