Category: Movies

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Injustice 2 Drowns Players In Content!

With the success of Injustice: Gods Among Us it was only a matter of time before Warner Brothers and NetherRealm Studios released a sequel, and they really went for it this time.  Just about all of your favorite characters are available in this twisted take on the DC Universe, and you will not run out of things to do any time soon.  My only complaints are:

  • I am really bad at fighting games
  • They really push the micro-transactions

If you unfamiliar with the DC Injustice Universe let me fill you in: The Joker killed Lois Lane and that sent Superman down the path to the Darkseid, so Batman and a group of reformed villians needed to take down Superman and his Regime that wanted to murder all bad guys.  Injustice 2 starts some time after Clark’s defeat, but now Brainiac has shown up and the world may need Superman again.

If you are thinking that is a pretty involved story for a fighting game, you would be right.  The single-player story is excellent in Injustice 2.  I would almost call it a must play for any DC Comics fans out there.  Even if the Injustice Universe is a dark mirror to the actual DC Universe (though Batman v Superman did hint at it).  The story and cut-scenes are just great!

As I said, I am terrible at fighting games, so I am probably not the best person to extol a fighting system, but Injustice 2’s feels intuitive to the point where it is easy to understand, but I am still trying to get the hang of the finer points, so my combo game is not on point.  What I am saying is, it feels good even if I have to play the game on easy.

Besides single-player, just about every mode you can imagine is available.  Including a new Multiverse mode that changes up the game’s mechanics, but the real addition is the loot.  There is tons of loot to customize the characters with.  If is fun to open Mother-boxes and see what is inside to slap on to my fighters.  Even if most players online force you to turn off all the equipment’s bonuses.  Not to mention you will need to level your heroes and villains to just put on a lot of the stuff you get.  Meaning you will have to play Injustice 2 a lot to get the most out of the ‘Gear’ system.

The biggest flaw this game has is all the focus on micro-transactions.  There are like five types of currency in this game, and you can pay for four of them.  I just paid $60 for this game, I don’t want to be nicked and dimed for other crap.  New characters is one thing, but paying to trade in ‘Gear’ is another.

I have been loving this game, and I am trying to get better at it, so that I can enjoy it more.  The terrible micro-transaction system is not enough to keep me from playing it.  If you like fighting games or DC Comics, Injustice 2 is well worth checking out.  Maybe you will see me online, and you can destroy me.

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Guardians Of The Galaxy’s Second Verse Is The Same As The First!

If you are wondering if you will like Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 or not, just ask yourself whether you liked the first one or not.  They didn’t change the formula very much.  It is still a rag-tag group of rouges cracking wise and saving the galaxy.  This time with more daddy issues.  That really is pretty much the whole review, but you came for more, so here we go.

“Daddy issues” should be the be the subtitle to the film.  It turns out the whole crew, except Baby Groot (Vin Diesel) and Drax (Dave Bautista), have them, and this film explores them.  Especially Peter Quill’s (Chris Pratt) because his long lost his birth dad shows up.  Drax, to be fair, has other family issues because he ‘was’ a Dad.

The concept of family is a common theme with group based action films (e.g. all of the Fast and Furious films), and it is easy to see why.  You get the built in drama of learning to love and live with the “new” family juxtaposed against all of the baggage from their old “real” family, and we get to see what happens when those “families” collide.  I am guessing Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 will not be the last film to use this setup.  I mean Vol. 3 comes out two years from now, and those “daddy issues” will not just go away.

If you are looking for a funny film filled with a lot of action and a great group of character’s, and you are not looking for something more from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 versus what we got in Vol. 1, you will be very happy.  If you did want something more, and you were hoping this film would push the massive and now lumbering MCU forward in any real way, you may feel a little disappointed.  Thankfully this crew is too fun to let that disappointment sink in too deep.

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We Are Getting Another Hellboy, Just Not The One I Wanted…

Mike Richardson, founder of Dark Horse Comics, has found new suitors for Hellboy with producers Larry Gordon and Lloyd Levin.  David Harbour will now star as the titular hero, and the very capable director Neil Marshall (The Decent and Game of Thrones) will helm the film.  This script is being co-written by Hellboy’s creator Mike Mignola.

All of the above information should make me happy.  Hellboy is a fun character, but I really wanted Guillermo del Toro and Ron Perlman to finish their Hellboy trilogy.  To some extent it makes sense to start over, nine years have past since the last Hellboy film, so it is really not in the public consciousness anymore, but the heart wants what the heart wants.  As talented as David Harbour is, Ron Perlman will always be my HB.  Good luck to everyone involved, but it is just not the film I was hoping for.