Square Enix Brings Batman to San Diego

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SQUARE ENIX has announced today that its exclusive, limited edition BATMAN Arkham Origins collectable figure under licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Consumer Products, on behalf of DC Entertainment.

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A 2014 San Diego Comic-Con exclusive, the new figure depicts a younger Batman when he first started on his path as the Caped Crusader. The figure incorporates the details of his powerful physique, and the metallic color variation showcases the careful sculpting used in its development. The articulated cape allows for multiple poses, from gliding through the night sky with his cape spread wide, to a more dormant stance with his wings closed and stowed. Included with the figure are his iconic Batarang and grappling gun, as well as a display stand.

500 of these limited edition figures will be available for purchase at the Square Enix booth (# 3829). An additional 500 will be available online at https://exclusives.na.square-enix.com/.

 

Lumia 930 launches date released for the UK

With the Lumia 930 has just started to beginning its global rollout though, and today, the company announced that the device will go on sale in the UK on 17 July, and should be available free on 24-month contracts costing around £33.

Microsoft has not yet ready to announce off-contract pricing; this will come down to retailers and carriers, who will make their own announcements over the next couple of weeks.

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With the latest 8.1 software and the best of Microsoft and Lumia services, the Lumia 930 delivers an unrivalled user experience and the ultimate in video and imaging smartphone capability, all from only £33 per month on contract.

The Lumia 930 packs a rich suite of differentiating applications and services into a beautifully crafted design featuring metallic details and vibrant new colours. All this is achieved while still keeping content like photos, videos and documents in sync using the free OneDrive cloud service across Windows Phone, PC, tablet, Xbox and other connected devices.

The crystal clear 5-inch OLED display lets you watch in full HD and your favourite shows, movies or video clips are viewable in any light conditions as the device uses PureBlack screen technology. Equipped with a high capacity 2420 mAh battery and built-in wireless charging, there is little need to worry about running out of battery.

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  • The class-leading 20MP PureView camera with optical image stabilisation and high quality ZEISS optics ensures that capturing and reliving amazing images and videos is quick and easy.
  • The enhanced Nokia Camera app with Living Images makes it easy to add movement and emotion to static pictures and the addition of other free imaging apps such as Nokia Storyteller, Nokia Creative Studio and Nokia Refocus lets you bring even more levels of creativity to any picture.
  • With four high-performance microphones and Rich Recording, the Lumia 930 captures HD video like never before, with incredible directional audio and support for 5:1 surround sound capture and playback.
  • A 2.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor ensures that experiences such as Xbox gaming, image capturing and video processing, are faster, smoother and richer than ever before.
  • SensorCore technology brings low power motion sensing, helping you track your activities all day long with minimal power use – perfect for apps such as Bing Health and Fitness and external wearable monitors.
  • Integrated features including single swipe notifications in the Action Centre, the new Microsoft Enterprise feature pack, Microsoft Office, OneDrive, Nokia Camera, and HERE Maps and Drive+, all work seamlessly to make the Lumia 930 a great tool for productivity, work and play.

“We live in a world that is becoming even more social and where sharing and capturing moments has never been so important,” said Conor Pierce, VP of Microsoft Devices for the UK & Ireland. “The Lumia 930 is the perfect blend of design, colour and Microsoft Lumia services, delivering cutting-edge technology to create an unrivalled video and imaging smartphone experience that are instantly shareable.”

Wireless charging functionality together with a wireless charger will come as standard in the sales pack of the Lumia 930. In addition, Microsoft will run an exciting promotional offer – from the 17th until the 31st July all Lumia 930’s purchased from participating retailers will include a free additional wireless charger, the outstanding MD-12 speaker plus a voucher for £20 of free apps from the Windows store. Altogether, this promotional offer is worth around £130 RRP.

The Lumia 930 will go on sale with UK retailers from the 17th of July and will be available from Vodafone, EE, Phones4U, O2, Carphone Warehouse, Tesco and Amazon. It will also be widely available across other UK High Street and online retailers in a range of vibrant colours including bright orange, bright green and black. Phones4U will stock the Lumia 930 exclusively in white.

Tech specs summary:

Lumia 930
Operating System Windows Phone 8.1
HERE location services Free global HERE Maps and HERE Drive+;Free HERE Transit available in the Store
Display 5” Full HD OLED, 1920×1080; 441ppi; 16:9; Sculpted Gorilla Glass 3; 3 column home screen, Sunlight Readability, Super Sensitive Touch for glove and nail usage
Battery 2420 mAh battery, integrated wireless charging
Processor 2.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor
Main Camera PureView 20 MP with Optical Image Stabilization, Resolution: 1920×1080. Includes Nokia Camera. Dual LED flash, ZEISS optics
Front Facing Camera HD 1.2 MP wide angle
Memory 2 GB RAM, 32 GB internal memory; 7 GB free OneDrive cloud storage

 

 

Two Minute Review: Synology DiskStation DS414

It’s time for another two minute review, this time for the Synology DiskStation DS414.

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Synology DiskStation DS414 is a feature-rich 4-bay NAS specifically designed for growing businesses to effectively manage, protect and share data. Equipped with comprehensive office applications, DS414 raises working efficiency while securing data with full backup solutions.

  • Dual Core CPU with Floating-Point Unit
  • Over 207.07MB/s Reading, 135.63MB/s Writing
  • Dual LAN with Failover and Link Aggregation Support
  • 1GB RAM Boosting Multitasking Power
  • Features SuperSpeed USB3.0
  • Hot-swappable & Tool-Less Hard Drive Tray Design
  • Running on Synology DiskStation Manager (DSM)

Specifications

Specs

A Closer Look

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Final Thoughts

The DS414 looks great with it’s black matt sides which do a great job of keeping it looking clean.

The DS414 doesn’t come with any hard drives preinstalled, so the first task is to slide out one of the drive bays and fit the drive. The whole process is very quick and easy and you should be up an running in no time at all and you don’t need any tools to do it either!

As usual with Synology, the thing that makes everything so easy, and provides all the functionality is the DiskStation Manager software – everything you could possibly need to do can be done from it, from setting up users and folders, to installing and configuring applications.

The rear of the DS414 has two USB 3.0 ports, unfortunately the USB port on the front, which can be used for bulk ingestion of data from a USB drive is only USB 2.0 meaning it can be a lot slower. Hopefully on later models this will be addressed.

There are also dual fans (only one of which is in use at any one time which is great for keeping the noise levels low) and dual Gigabit LAN ports. So you have a fair bit of redundancy packed into such a small box.

The cost of the DS414 is around £350, although as usual you should look around for the best deal.

If you are looking for a NAS box with some great features, then this could be the box for you! Remember, the major selling point for any Synology box is the Diskstation manager software, so keep that in mind when comparing the DS414 against other NAS boxes on the market today.

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You can learn more about the DS414 from the Synology website.

M.O.J.O. Micro-Console for Android from Mad Catz gets OUYA and 4K Support

We recently review the M.O.J.O. Micro-Console for Android from Mad Catz and now there has been quite a big update.

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Mad Catz and OUYA announced that the OUYA storefront and hundreds of games are now available on the Mad Catz M.O.J.O. Micro-Console for Android. M.O.J.O. owners can now access OUYA’s impressive library, from quirky independent titles like Duck Game and Amazing Frog to established games such as Final Fantasy III and Sonic the Hedgehog.

Announced in March as the first device to feature OUYA, which aims to bring OUYA content to a wide variety of TV-based devices, M.O.J.O. is a $199 Android-based Micro-Console and media player, featuring high-performance hardware and an open software platform that supports a wide variety of gaming and media content. Part of Mad Catz’ GameSmarteco-system of mobile products, M.O.J.O. is compatible with a wide variety of accessories, providing a near endless array of entertainment and productivity uses.

This is all part of a new and FREE firmware update to the Micro-Console which adds 4K (UHD) compatibility and vastly enhanced Google Play access which pretty much removes the need to root your device.

So what are you waiting for, the M.O.J.O. just got even better!

Zombie Driver Ultimate Edition out now on Xbox One

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In case you missed it last week, Zombie Driver Ultimate Edition has been released on the Xbox One.

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Zombie Driver Ultimate Edition is published through the ID@XBOX program, exclusively on the Xbox One. Ultimate Edition includes all of the downloadable content that was ever created for the game, plus a new pack of car skins that hasn’t been released on any other platform. We didn’t want to just throw the extra DLC into the package so we’ve modified the Blood Race campaign to include the additional cars as rewards for winning the tournaments. The game now features 31 story missions, 36 Blood Race events, 9 Slaughter arenas and 15 drivable vehicles.

Zombie Driver Ultimate Edition is available now from the Xbox Store priced £11.99.

Another World 20th Anniversary Edition is Now Available on Xbox One

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In case you missed it, Another World 20th Anniversary Edition was released last week on Xbox One.

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Also known as Out Of This World, Another World is a pioneer action/platformer that released across more than a dozen platforms since its debut in 1991.

Along the years, Another World has attained cult status among critics and sophisticated gamers alike.

An immersive adventure with unique storytelling, Another World chronicles the story of Lester Knight Chaykin a young scientist hurtled through space and time by a nuclear experiment that goes wrong.

A remastered presentation: a joint effort between visionary game-designer Eric Chahi and developer Martial Hesse Dreville, Another World is back in its 20th Anniversary Edition with Full High Definition graphics faithful to the original design.

It’s available now from the Xbox Store for £6.49.

Win a copy of Sniper Elite 3 and a Giotek Headset for the PS4

To celebrate the release of the highly anticipated strategic shooter Sniper Elite 3, we’re giving one lucky reader the chance to win a copy of the game on PS4, along with a PS4 headset by Giotek, putting the player in the centre of the action in World War 2’s North African Campaign!

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Observe.  Plan.  Execute. Adapt… Sniper Elite 3 is out now on PS4, Xbox One, PS3 and Xbox 360 from 505 Games.

Check out our review of Sniper Elite 3 here.

How to enter to win

So the main prize is a copy of the game on PS4, along with a PS4 headset by Giotek and we also have a runners up prize of a copy of the game on Xbox One.

There are three different ways you can enter to win – for a better chance of winner you can enter using all three!

Via the site

So all you have to do to win a copy of Sniper Elite 3 is to leave a comment below telling us you want to win.

Via Twitter

Just retweet the message below, and make sure you are following @aedney on Twitter:

Via Facebook

Like Us on Facebook and leave a comment on the Facebook post:

Usual contest rules apply, and the winners will be selected at random. This contest is open only to those in the UK – sorry!

The contest ends Friday 11th July, so good luck.

In addition, Gioteck are offering 50% off their AX1-R headset for PS4 (also works with Xbox One with the additional Microsoft Stereo Headset Adapter) via Gamers Outlet http://tinyurl.com/osmb2p2– just enter the code SNIPER50 on the check-out screen (valid from the 1st of July to 22nd July).

Watch The Master Chief Collection ‘Terminal Trailer’

With the Halo “journey” that begins in 2014 by remembering and celebrating HALO’s past. This holiday, “The Master Chief Collection” will launch on Xbox One, marking the first time the entire Master Chief story will be playable on a single console. Included with “The Master Chief Collection” is “Halo: Nightfall” an original live-action digital series that introduces a pivotal new character in “Halo 5: Guardians.”

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In December, the journey continues with the competitive multiplayer beta of “Halo 5: Guardians,” leading up to the fall 2015 launch alongside the Halo television series.

Have a look at some concept art for HALO 2: Anniversary

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Win Under the Skin on DVD and the soundtrack

To celebrate the launch of Under the Skin on DVD and Blu-Ray on Monday, we have another great giveaway for you – this time you can win the DVD and a copy of the soundtrack – and we have 3 sets for you.

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Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Jonathan Glazer (Sexy Beast, Birth), UNDER THE SKIN features an absolutely mesmerising performance from Scarlett Johansson (Her, Don Jon) as a seductive alien preying upon hitchhikers in Scotland.

Adapted from Michael Faber’s novel of the same name, UNDER THE SKIN has undergone a decade-long transition from page to screen, with performances heightened in the finished film by Glazer’s singular decision to shoot many of Johansson’s scenes as unscripted conversations with non-actors, using hidden cameras.

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Johansson’s revealing performance excitingly displays a further willingness to not only bare her own skin, but to deviate from convention as her character battles with burgeoning emotions in a world filled with feeling. Unsure as to why she acts the way she does, the conflicted emotion she gradually feels for her victims endangers her own existence.

Check out the trailer:

How to enter to win

There are three different ways you can enter to win – for a better chance of winner you can enter using all three!

Via the site

So all you have to do to win a copy of the Under the Skin DVD and soundtrack is to leave a comment below telling us you want to win.

Via Twitter

Just retweet the message below, and make sure you are following @aedney on Twitter:

Via Facebook

Like Us on Facebook and leave a comment on the Facebook post:

Usual contest rules apply, and the winners will be selected at random. This contest is open only to those in the UK – sorry!

The contest ends Friday 11th July, so good luck.

Under the Skin is available on digital platforms on July 7th and on Blu-ray & DVD on 14th July, 2014.

The Winners of our Win the spectacular Russian epic STALINGRAD on Blu-ray/DVD giveaway

Acclaimed Russian director Fedor Bondarchuk’s action epic STALINGRAD exploded onto Blu-ray and DVD on June 23rd and to celebrate we’ve got 3 copies of the Blu-ray/DVD to give-away – here are the winners.

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Starring Thomas Kretschmann (King Kong, upcoming The Avengers: Age of Ultron) “Stalingrad” is an epic look at the battle that turned the tide of World War II. A band of determined Russian soldiers fight to hold a strategic building in their devastated city against a ruthless German army, and in the process become deeply connected to two Russian women who have been living there. The film is directed by acclaimed Russian filmmaker Fedor Bondarchuk (9th Company), who was introduced to the world of cinema at an early age as the son of actress Irina Skobtseva and internationally acclaimed film actor and an Academy Award®-winning director Sergei Bondarchuk. The film stars an ensemble cast including Thomas Kretschmann (King Kong), Petr Fedorov, Sergey Bondarchuk, Mariya Smolnikova and Yanina Studilina.

The Winners

Graeme Denman

Sharon Barron

Stuart Edwards

STALINGRAD is out on Blu-ray (with 3D), DVD and digital download now. You can order your copy now here: http://amzn.to/1jzJmOr

The Winners of our Win a soundtrack from Jon Favreau’s CHEF giveaway

To celebrate the release of Chef in cinemas now, we are giving away 2 movie soundtracks – and here are the winners.

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When Chef Carl Casper (Jon Favreau) suddenly quits his job at a prominent Los Angeles restaurant after refusing to compromise his creative integrity for its controlling owner (Dustin Hoffman), he is left to figure out what’s next. Finding himself in Miami, he teams up with his ex-wife (Sofia Vergara), his friend (John Leguizamo) and his son (Emjay Anthony) to launch a food truck. Taking to the road, Chef Carl goes back to his roots to reignite his passion for the kitchen — and zest for life and love.

Chef features an all-star cast including Sofia Vergara, Scarlett Johansson, John Leguizamo, Bobby Cannavale, Dustin Hoffman, Oliver Platt, Robert Downey Jr. and young actor Emjay Anthony.

Follow the foodie fun on Facebook facebook.com/ChefTheMovie and Twitter twitter.com/LionsgateUK #ChefMovie.

The Winners

Pete Aighton

Malcolm Carrott

CHEF IS OUT IN CINEMAS NOW!

The Wolf Among Us: – Season Finale: ‘Cry Wolf’

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The fifth and final chapter in season of  of Telltale’s Fables-based serial The Wolf Among Us, is landing next week called Cry Wolf.

It will premiere on 8th July on PC, Mac and PS3 in North America. Then, on 9th July, it will launch on European PS3s and XBLA worldwide. Finally, on 10th July it will come to iOS (both iPhone and iPad).

This new trailer gives us a glimpse of what trials wait ahead for our lupine hero in The Wolf Among Us’ season finale.

The Ultimate Kyrat Edition of Far Cry 4

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Ubisoft has announced the launch of pre-orders for the most complete Far Cry 4 package available: the Ultimate Kyrat Edition. Presented in an exclusive box, this definitive fan package will include all the elements featured in the Kyrat Edition and in the Limited Edition as well as the Season Pass that will allow players to get access to the forthcoming Far Cry 4 downloadable contents. Only in the EMEA territories, players will be able to purchase this Ultimate Edition for PlayStation4, Xbox One, and Windows PC, on the uPlay Shop – shop.ubi.com/UltimateKyratEdition.

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The Far Cry 4 Ultimate Kyrat Edition features:

  • Hurk’s Redemption: Three action-packed single-player missions featuring Hurk, the popular Far Cry 3 character
    • Mission 1: Fight dangerous enemies in the ice caves of snow-capped mountains to retrieve a rare artifact.
    • Mission 2: What’s better than riding elephants? Fighting waves of enemies on an elephant with Hurk by your side.
    • Mission 3: In this epic finale, chase down an enemy convoy in a gyrocopter and save Hurk from certain death.
  • Hurk’s exclusive Harpoon gun “the Impaler”!
  • A 20 cm figurine of the game’s villain Pagan Min seated on an elephant throne
  • A travel journal to record your own adventures
  • A Pagan Min Propaganda Poster
  • The game Map
  • The Far Cry 4 Season Pass
  • The exclusive future pack Metal Box
  • An exclusive collector case

With Far Cry 4 players will experience the most expansive and immersive Far Cry ever, in an entirely new, massive open-world. Players will find themselves in Kyrat, a breathtaking, perilous and wild region of the Himalayas struggling under the regime of a despotic self-appointed king. Using a vast array of weapons, vehicles and animals, players will write their own story across an exotic open-world landscape. Developed by Ubisoft Montréal in collaboration with other Ubisoft studios, Far Cry 4 will be available worldwide on 18th November for PlayStation4 and PlayStation3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Windows PC.

Review: Space Run

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Well the name says it all really. You play as Buck Mann a glorified space delivery boy charged with quickly, and safely, delivering various goods across incredibly dangerous areas of space. I don’t know if there are any space police or whatever in Space Run but if there are they’re really bad. It’s a warzone even for a delivery company!

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Space Run is essentially a side scrolling strategy game that draws heavily from the ideas of a tower defence game. Your ship consists of various hexagons that allow you to place your precious cargo and any of the turrets, shields and thrusters available. You’ll need to ensure that your cargo is protected on a suitably defendable hexagon whilst making sure you have space for thrusters, to get through the level faster, and are able to aim your guns at incoming threats. It’s not always easy to fit it all in.

The exact size and shape of your ship will depend on the mission you take on so you will have to employ different strategies each time. And it gets more complicated when you need to use a power generator to power turrets correctly. There’s a lot to think about and usually there isn’t a perfect solution so there is a sense of just getting the job done rather than creating a super-death-delivery-ship.

After each mission you can spend your hard earned space credits on upgrades for your turrets, buildings and their abilities. There’s a good feeling of progression and you are handsomely rewarded for completing missions quicker. There’s a real incentive other than score to keep completing missions as fast as possible.

But unfortunately there isn’t really enough variation to keep the gameplay interesting past a couple of hours. The ship changes and levels become more challenging and tactical to a degree but there are only so many different runs that you can do. All too soon it becomes a case of repeating the same things over and over. It is challenging, especially if you go for the fastest time, which is where most of the appeal comes from but there isn’t enough strategy to keep things interesting past the 2 or 3 hour mark.

There is a thin plot forced in around Space Run’s missions but it’s really just a way for the game’s characters to be amusing. Or at least try. Sadly it’s almost impossible to feel much of a connection to Buck Mann. He’s about as generic as space scoundrel rip offs come and isn’t as funny as he thinks he is. You’ll have a few laughs, but not as many as are intended. There are some nice Sci-Fi geek references though. My particular favourite was the word ‘frak’ which reminded me how much I need to get a life after I laughed.

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Space Run is a good side scrolling adventure for a couple of hours but there isn’t much replay value to keep you coming back for more. The half baked characters and humour unfortunately don’t deliver as much entertainment as they needed to. With subpar characters and mediocre humour Space Run relies solely on its gameplay. Which is good fun for a brief period but doesn’t do anything to hold your attention for too long. But it is good fun while it lasts.