Scully Nerd Reviews

Mortal Online 2

2021-03-23T12:40:00.001-04:00

Check out this video from ESO on the coming game Mortal Online 2. This will be one to keep an eye on!

2021-03-22T13:07:00.005-04:00

Yashahime is getting a second season!!

Check out this article from Crunchyroll!

Empire of Ember

2021-03-21T13:38:00.005-04:00

See this new video from Kage848 on the game "Empire of Ember".

Cannot wait to try this one out for myself!

Doom

2016-05-24T17:07:00.003-04:00

Zach Goodier

Doom is a first-person shooter that reboots the original game. Now, some of you might be thinking the original is like an early 2000’s production…. No. This is meant as the spiritual reboot of the original 90’s game that, more or less, defined the modern shooter. Many of the demons will be familiar, and the game doesn’t throw a lot of story or character your way, only bloody, wondrous carnage.

Environments look and feel impressive to travel and fight in.

You play “Doom Guy,” AKA “Doom Slayer,” depending on who is describing you. You awake in a sarcophagus from Hell, in a UAC Mars facility in the midst of being overrun by demons. You quickly awake and begin smashing and blasting everything that crosses your path, and you soon meet/talk to a couple of survivors, who are each trying to accomplish their own ends: Olivia Pierce is trying to open the gate to Hell so the demonic overlords can usher in a new age for mankind, and Samuel Hayden, director of the Mars facility, who is helping you try to contain the nightmare.

Olivia Pierce is a fanatic who believes Hell will pave the way to humanities future.

The story is basically just killing demons and killing more demons, and that’s exactly why I loved every second. This is the true spiritual successor to the original game: it doesn’t throw exposition and characters at you, it just gives you a gun and points you to the demons.

Demon runes can be found by completing challenges to earn them.

So, if the story is deliberately minimal, then the entire single-player campaign is coming down to gameplay, and I am glad to say Doom delivers big time. The game has many of the classics, with some new looks and what not, and the same goes for the demons. You are running and gunning your way through corridors, open rooms with large hordes, and the deepest bowels of Hell itself. Weapons all have mods which can be swapped on the fly to alter your combat abilities, and they all look and feel unique in how they can work in your favor. Combat is fast-paced, tense, and richly satisfying, with glory kills, ragdoll physics, and gruesome carnage being cornerstones to combat.

Hell looks appropriately... well, you know.

Multiplayer is where the game does lose some steam, with all its’ modes being remakes of classic types, but the fast-paced combat is still present and enjoyable. For me, though, it’s all about the campaign, which is fantastic. With higher difficulties comes more fun, which is somewhat rare. Sure, the challenge is higher, but with the pacing, it makes everything feel faster and more exciting.

Good luck.

This is a fantastic game. It captures the essence of the classic Doom in a modern game. The graphics, pacing, and design all feel amazing. The rewards for exploration and skillful gameplay are great, with upgrades and challenges to work on, even after the campaign is over. Multiplayer is somewhat uninspired, but the look, feel, and action is all that fans of the originals should appreciate in a modern version.

Good:

-Great visuals and level design.

-Fast pacing keeps the action going and the player on edge.

-Challenges and upgrades to inspire replay.

Bad:

-Multiplayer is fairly unoriginal in concept, with most ideas already found in some form in other games.

Scully Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Captain America: Civil War

2016-05-12T18:27:00.001-04:00

Zach Goodier

Cap is back, and he’s bringing back most of the Avengers with him. This time, after a semi-successful mission in Africa, the Avengers are called to answer for the increasing amount of collateral damage left in their wake. Towards this end, the UN decides to create an oversight committee in order to reign in the superheroes. This splits the group, with people like Cap and Hawkeye believing that to agree would be to involve the Avengers in politics and limiting their ability to function as protectors of the planet as a whole. Meanwhile, people like Tony Stark, especially after creating Ultron, feel that they have too much power to operate separately from the people they are supposed to be protecting, and their mistakes, willful or not, cost lives.

If you're hoping for a lot of this, then you might be somewhat disappointed, but it does happen.

This movie initially does a good job of making both sides out to as reasonable as they are: Cap prioritizes personal freedom and the right to make our own choices (conservative), and Stark takes the stance that the safety and security of the world as a whole should take precedent. However, things get more complicated as the summit to sign the accords is bombed, and Bucky Barnes is believed to be the culprit. Afterward, Cap goes AWOL trying to save Buck, while Iron Man is called to apprehend him. From here, things get fuzzy quickly, as both new and old faces are called on to side with either leader.

Any more specifics would be spoilers, so in terms of how everything turned out? Pretty good, but there are a few minor issues with both the story and how things turned out. First of all, this probably shouldn’t have been a Captain America movie, but another Avengers film. Sure, Hulk and Thor are missing, but the vast majority of the group is fighting. Sure, the central story heavily involves Bucky, but the first Avengers had Loki, so clearly that shouldn’t have any huge bearing. The reason this becomes an issue is how the story starts to eventually sway in Cap’s favor, with Tony being treated like a traitor for much of the story when it’s actually Rogers who went rogue. Plus, much of the fighting could have been avoided with relative ease had Rogers and his comrades tried talking before attacking.

Scarlet is back, and while she doesn't get extensive time to develop her character on-screen, she does a solid job.

The tone feels somewhat biased towards Cap, with Stark being treated more like an antagonist, even if his reasons for believing they need limitations ultimately end up proven valid by Cap going rogue, especially with how it all turns out in the end with the movie’s villain, who *SPOILER ALERT* was playing Captain by framing Barnes in order to drive a wedge between them, which is ultimately successful to some extent. *END SPOILERS*

This basically sums up the tone of the movie: everyone hating on Iron Man.

So, this movie does have some issues, but it does ultimately deliver as an action movie and it does add some realism to the Avengers franchise, forcing the heroes to face the consequences of their sometimes mixed outcomes when fighting dangerous foes. The visuals are all that we’ve come to expect from Marvel, which is to say excellence, and the story is somewhat convoluted, but ultimately should provide you with enough to keep you entertained. The only issue is that the attempt to make these characters turn on each other has some mixed results, and labeling this a Captain America film does kind of tilt things in one direction, even when it feels counter to reason. Rather than showing both the right and wrong of both sides, like the comics, this movie takes a fairly Captain-centric view, which still makes a solid film, but ultimately loses much of the depth that the comics had towards this event.

There is a late film development that definitely makes things personal for one of our Avengers.

Overall, go watch it. It's a great film, and you will almost certainly enjoy it. However, if you're going in believing this will be a balanced and open film about the equal validity of these opposing ideologies and characters, then you might feel this movie comes up short, basically forcing a particular outcome to satisfy a somewhat convoluted plot with a villain who had potential, but ultimately wasn't developed enough to be memorable. My beef with the film is more in comparison to the comic storyline, and how

Good:

-Great action.

-Outstanding visuals all around.

-Realistic consequences from the first movies.

Bad:

-Villain kind of an afterthought, with a convoluted plot that really shouldn’t have worked.

-Some VERY questionable moments by many of the characters that occur just for the sake of plot, to keep the tension high and the conflict rolling.

Scully Rating: 9.0 out of 10

Tom Clancy's The Division

2016-05-06T13:08:00.000-04:00

By: Robert Murphy

In the wake of an unknown viral outbreak, New York City has become a desolate wasteland filled with roaming gangs, murderous psychopaths and an all around lack of the basic necessities people need in order to survive. Unbeknownst to the rest of the world however there is a secret organization of individuals who are the last line of defense in the event of such a catastrophe. These average looking men and women are the agents of The Division and they are here to put New York City back together again.

As I said before, danger is lurking around every back alleyway and down every manhole cover on the once "peaceful" streets of NYC. After a brief character customization and introduction into the pandemic that started this whole mess, players are given free rein over the city and help those in need. And boy, are there a lot of people who are in dire need of your help. People wander the streets seeking shelter and aid against the batches of criminals who escaped during the outbreak and the madmen trying to "cleanse" those who may still be infected. The sheer size of everything though is exceptional, NYC feels as grand as it would in real life as you wander the streets and begin to construct a base of operations where people can come for help and you can begin unraveling the mystery behind what happened here.

The derelict environment doesn't do much more for the main story however. The missions for The Division are top notch in my book and play out like you would expect from a MMORPG. There are the basic missions which amount to fetching this or that and then the heavier missions that go through various locations and increasingly difficult to handle enemies. Sitting down and tackling the games main story missions feels like you're headed off in to battle with you and your friends all assuming different roles. The content itself is okay, there is a standard story that doesn't really wow but rather it feels par for the course for a game like this. The real catch though is the fact that the story isn't completed and will be revealed later as the game expands forward with more missions and gameplay.

As for player classes, there are three variants to choose from once you begin to level up your character that reflect upon the three types of main missions players will be going on. Once you find your base of operations there are essentials that need to be gathered in order to rebuild what was taken for the city. These essentials boil down to Medical, Tech and Security wings that make up the various areas of your base. As you complete main story missions it will give players points to upgrade these various portions of your base and in turn it unlocks players character tress to follow. The toys and gadgets for each class are fun to try out, Tech having some enjoyable explosives, Medical a looking you to emit healing shock-waves and Security allowing you to create shield walls for your friends. Each class does well to benefit either single player or online play well and can be switched up with relative ease if you would like to try out something different on the fly.

Speaking of online play, one of the best and the most challenging thing The Division has going for it. Playing missions with your friends or anyone else in the game is quite simple, the various safe points to find around the city are like meeting points for fellow agents. Once you step in to one there could be any number of players reequipping themselves for their next fight and you in turn can join them on this journey. Then, of course, you have the simple method of sending a request to your friends but there is something rather nice about this meeting area that made the experience feel rather engaging. It was like going out to a bar and meeting someone new. The aspect of the game that often ruins this warm sentiment of coming together to meet new people is the addition of the Dark Zone.

Smack dab in the middle of NYC lies this area known as the Dark Zone and it promises many things such as new challenging missions and some legendary loot. The challenge in going into this area for a new adventure is the area is entirely PVP where players can move in droves to take down unsuspecting players. This is often the case too, I cannot account how many times I entered the zone to try my hand at getting some new items and seeing how I stack up, only to be sent packing with my tail between my legs. The Zone is a challenge and there in lies it's fun but at the same time the risk doesn't always outweigh the reward. When you usually die in the game you lose some EXP and maybe a item or two but in the Dark Zone you could lose a whole lot before you earn something good. It's definitely a place for serious level 30 players and above, but as the game has develop a little already to try and compensate for it, I feel the Dark Zone could be a potentially great addition to The Division.

Like most games that play to the vein of online action or an MMORPG format there needs to be plenty of groundwork laid for future updates and missions while having a good amount of intrigue in it's initial release to keep players interested. I believe The Division has this going for it. The many different mission modes to choose from, the Dark Zone PVP area, the feeling of accomplishment that goes into building your base up and just the all around enjoyable gameplay itself had me hooked from the moment I sat down to play the game. Combat is easy to pick up on and the story, while not extremely enthralling, is still a blast to go through by yourself or with a group of friends. The Division takes everything that the Tom Clancy games have done over the years and brought it to the modern age of online play and it feels great.

Good:

- Addictive gameplay from the missions to gun play

- Immersive environment, apocalyptic NYC is beautiful if not scary

- Seamless multiplayer enjoyment for your friends and potential ones

- Fun progression system that can easily be switched up

Bad:

- Dark Zone is a challenge with not a lot of reward to it

- The main story of a huge viral outbreak is okay it just doesn't excite

Scully Rating: 8.7 out of 10

Minecraft: Story Mode Episode Five - Order Up!

2016-04-26T20:48:00.003-04:00

By: Robert Murphy

The biggest question on my mind when entering into the latest episode of Story Mode was where could the tale possibly go to with Jesse and his friends? The last episode brought the Whither Storm saga to a close and the new Order of the Stone had come out on top and were ready to take on a whole new adventure. This is precisely what "Order Up!" sets out to do as our heroes head forth into an unknown land in search of a legendary item with immense power. But, they may all be sent further down the rabbit hole than they initially had planned.

Jesse and his friends have grown up immensely since their initial debut back in October of last year. They have all since become mirror images of their idols the former members of the Order of the Stone and it rather suits them. The people of the world look at them as if they were great heroes and they have proved it to them time and again by not only beating the Whither Storm but also going on countless adventures since then in search of mythical items that the world has only dreamed about. However, not everyone is as enthused with our new heroes as we soon learn. The former members of the Awesome Ocelots, who now refer to themselves as the Blaze Rods, have become envious of the groups fame and feel they are stealing all of the best items for themselves. Thus they set out to challenge our heroes and claim their latest find for themselves, a flint and steel with some mysterious powers.

The discovery of this item is what sets the story in motion as a lost order that was even more impressive than the Order of the Stone is revealed. They had done many experiments with portals and thus the flint and steel comes into play by transporting everyone to a strange city in the sky. The idea of which plays wonderfully with those familiar with Minecraft's randomly generated worlds and how often times chunks of land can form that simply float on air. It's usually simple enough to get to though or look upon them and admire the ridiculousness of it but what happens when that's all there is? What is Minecraft world where you cannot destroy everything around you and build it into whatever you wish? Well, Jesse and his friends are about to find out.

An interesting stand alone idea comes from the story this time around as the people of the land have never been given the chance to build for themselves. They lack the simplest knowledge of building and even things like ladders are a mystery to them as to how you would create them. Naturally the hero worship for Jesse and his friends becomes even stronger here do to their abilities but this is a double edged sword that gets them into serious trouble here as building without permission is expressly forbidden. It's an interesting dynamic to be sure as there are characters presented on both sides, those who want to freely build and the followers of the Founder of the land. Neither are necessarily bad or good as you will find out but there in lies an issue for the choices presented.

The choices for Story Mode have never been all that grueling to begin with, there have been many interesting combat points and fun little nods to the audience but here the choices feel rather bland. I had almost forgotten that the game was a choose your own style game until almost the very end of this episode. The dialogue wasn't at all bad and in fact it felt as though the freedom of an independent story made things feel looser for the writers. But, by the end their is a relatively simple choice to go with as you can simple wrap everything up with a few kind words. It's rather story book and for a game geared more towards younger audiences I can see the appeal, it just doesn't wow you.

By the end however, I was satisfied with where the adventure has gone with this latest entry into Story Mode. I know that after the last episode I questioned what exactly was the end game for Telltales' Story Mode, but with the series renewed for four more episodes following "Order Up!" and an enticing finale to leave everyone off with, I feel that even better episodes are just around the corner.

Good:

- The writing feels lose, fun and free

- Solid stand alone tale that sets up for so much more down the road

- A beautifully crafted world that once again makes great use of Minecraft lore

Bad:

- The "tough" choices were lack luster

- No true semblance of conflict to be had here

Scully Rating: 7.0 out of 10

11.22.63

2016-04-19T17:36:00.001-04:00

By: Robert Murphy

One of the biggest conspiracies in American history has revolved around the John Kennedy assassination that shook the nation to it's core. It was an unbelievable tragedy, but years later there are still many different ideas about what actually happened on that day. People always question whether or not it was actually done by the shooter that they arrested, Lee Harvey Oswald, or whether there were bigger elements at play. Was the CIA somehow behind it? Was there a second shooter? Or was it even Oswald? And while I've never been one to get wrapped up in all of the crack pot theories, this new series from the mind of Stephen King peeked my interests.

The story revolves around an interesting take on time travel when longtime diner owner Al Templeton (Chris Cooper) reveals to the recently divorced English teacher Jake Epping (James Franco) that he has discovered a portal to 1960. Simply by walking into the pantry closet of Al's diner will transport anyone back to this era and for years he has tried to stop the assassination of one our most famous presidents but with no success. His last passage through has left him a doddering old man with cancer and unable to try and continue his work in the past. So he hands the task on to Jake knowing that he doesn't have too much longer in this world and since Jake was eager for a fresh start, who better to continue on where he left off.

Events of the story though feel more centered around Jake than his overall goal to stop the Kennedy assassination from happening. Naturally so since it will be three years before the fated day when Kennedy gets shot and the show compensates for this quite well. Jake spends much of the first year getting the lay of the land and learning just why Al has failed so many times before him. Time itself wants to happen in this world, it has a set path that does not want to be tampered with. This becomes painfully clear when Jake goes through the worst case of diarrhea in his life, one of the high points of time travel humor to come out of the series. But, Jake's early attempts at altering time lead him to learn some harsh lessons and while he succeeds at altering one life in his future it still took an immense amount of effort to overcome. So what will it be like when he tries to alter a huge point in history like the one between Oswald and Kennedy?

As Jake slowly makes moves to get close to Kennedy and Oswald various dangers pop up for him such as vivid hallucinations and random events preventing him from trying to learn the truth about what is to come. Music in a room will get louder so he can't hear a conversation, a flaming drink will nearly burn his entire arm up, a car will come crashing through a phone booth he was using, these just to name a few. The most bizarre of these occurrences comes when a seemingly average homeless man appears wherever Jake ends up. Perhaps he is an agent of time itself or just another time traveler but it really is never fully explained why he focuses so much on Jake or how he possess the abilities he has despite a brief explanation to what he is after in a later episode. It comes off as the rantings of a mad man more or less and made the character feel less effective than I thought he would end up being.

These time occurrences also effect those Jake becomes closest to in the 1960's. Despite the warnings left by Al before he left Jake becomes extremely close to a number of people during this era. Some were bit players who never got in on the grand scheme of things but they still played their parts wonderfully such as Deke Simmons and Mimi Corcoran. But even more exceptional were those who learned that Jake was a time traveler on a mission to save the future. Early on Jake reluctantly takes the help of Bill Turcotte (George MacKay) who is searching for something to believe in after losing his sister and having Jake come along with this mission to save the president was just the thing. Bill unfortunately suffers the most after Jake starts to lead double lives with another character Sadie (Sarah Gadon), leaving him to do most of the grunt work while he is away. But this also leads him to get increasingly close to our potential assassin Oswald (Daniel Webber) and his neglected wife Marina (Lucy Fry). It becomes a tangled web of mystery as Bill wanders dangerously close to Oswald without Jake ever realizing the two had become fast friends. Could he have been a second shooter? It cannot be risked.

As for Oswald himself, the story never quite makes it all the mystery it is cracked up to be. Jake struggles to uncover the truth as to whether or not he is the real killer or not, simply because he does not want to harm an innocent man for no reason. However, the story doesn't give credence to any other potential killers out there. There is some speculation with the CIA and agents are constantly revolving around Oswald for some unknown reason. The story almost makes it seem like it's their fault in the first place that Oswald shoots JFK without ever really going into the "why" that is on everyone's minds. Oswald never really pops either and I feel the story had trouble shifting focus from Jake back onto Oswald especially in the final episode when all caution is thrown to the wind and the assassination needs to be stopped.

In any case, James Franco's commanding on screen performance sucked me in to the story as I learned of the many details surrounding the life of the man that killed a president. There is genuine intrigue throughout the entire story as to finding out what did or didn't happen during the months leading towards JFK's death, even though Oswald himself never quite stands out as a character you fear or want to get an understanding for. He talks about Marxism one minute and then his rights as an American the next and it makes him feel like a jumbled up mess of ideas. As for time traveling back to 1960's, it is handled in an engaging manner and the concepts of time "pushing back" make things even more difficult for Jake and those trying to help him. It gives those out there who would think time traveling back and changing one thing for the better would be so simple and have them think twice about the effects it may have on themselves and the future.

Good:

- James Franco was on top of his game

- Characters were all engaging no matter how short a time spent on them

- Concepts of time travel and time fighting back felt fresh

Bad:

- Oswald and the mystery around him didn't pan out

- The mystery man following Jake throughout the story was a bust in the end

Scully Rating: 7.8 out of 10

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

2016-04-08T13:26:00.000-04:00

By: Robert Murphy

It is one of the oldest superhero debates in the books, who would win in a fight? Whether it be Iron Man versus Captain America, Wolverine versus Deadpool, the list goes on and on. But perhaps the first and most time tested question has to be, if Batman and Superman were to ever be at odds with one another then who would win? Would Batman's witts and gadgets prevail? Or would Superman's incredible strength and raw power prove too much for the Dark Knight. Man versus God. It's the name of the game here and I couldn't wait to see who would come out on top.

Before we can have the fight however we must get to know our two contestants and while our new Superman (Henry Cavill) has already received a movie of his own, our new Batman (Ben Affleck) has not. So, much of the first half of Batman v Superman serves as an introduction to everything that spurred Bruce Wayne to becoming a capped hero and why he has such a deep hatred for Earth's greatest defender. The movie itself does a good enough job of making viewers see why for themselves as it opens on the destruction caused during Superman and General Zod in the Superman movie. Bruce Wayne lost countless people in the chaos and while he did his best to help those that were caught in the destruction, there were still those who hated the son of krypton for what he did.

But, Ben Affleck's Batman isn't centered around just an angry man looking to teach Superman a lesson about the damage he caused, no he has actually had a tough twenty years of defending Gotham from bad guys and terrifying foes. While audiences don't get to meet any of the big name bad guys (i.e Joker and the rest) we do see signs of the damage they caused. Batman keeps a memorial to a former Robin in his Batcave with graffiti written all over it and it appears to be very obviously left by his most infamous enemy The Joker. You can see all of this wane on his character throughout the movie and he struggles with all the damage that has been done by his enemies and years of fighting crime. Perhaps it is why he has taken a much darker approach in taking out bad guys by killing them and even going so far as branding them before going to prison, a procedure that also leads to their eventual deaths as well.

This is something that Superman will not stand for any of this however as right from the get go his alter ego is dead set on writing a story about the Batman vigilante while his buff tights wearing counterpart aims to put a stop to him by mild force. It's pretty laughable to be honest as Superman tries to make Batman stop what he has been doing for years without anyone else questioning his motives. Especially since the movie focuses greatly on how Superman is such a deadly force, what if he goes off the handle one day? Who could stop someone like Superman if it came down to it? Sure, we all know Superman is a good guy but with power like that you don't need to wonder why people would be scared of him swooping down and taking over.

Henry Cavill's portrayal succeeds in this department as being the soft eyed optimist who would like to see the best in the world and wants to protect Earth and it's people. It's everywhere else that I feel Superman has his shortcomings. Against Batman and Bruce Wayne on screen Superman and Clark Kent feel over shadowed. It's almost like the movie should be a Batman movie with characters from his story and not characters from Superman's like Lois Lane (Amy Adams) filling in the spare screen time which gets shoehorned in to give her character something to admits all the bluster and bravado being thrown around.

That's where Batman v Superman has it's downfall as all the other nitty gritty nonsense leading up to the climactic conclusion for the story leads viewers down some boring roads. Lois Lane struggles to find out who set Superman up during an early scene in Africa involving some shady warlord. She seeks back channel contacts and tries to prove her lover's innocence and you're all left there wondering why does it even matter. The biggest source for controversy hit when Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) makes his way onto the stage. The character is a walking talking cliche and truly strides away from the character audiences would be expecting. He constantly is spouting off about this philosophy or that and when he stands before Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent he is so giddy that it seemed like he already knew the big secret in the room before everyone else did. He sticks out like a sore thumb with his manic behavior and clearly isn't driven by the same egotistical tendencies that former Lex's have before him.

As for the big showstopper Doomsday, the creatures overall introduction into the story was an interesting one to say the least, it was one of the few moments where Lex wasn't all over the place as he learns ancient kryptonian knowledge and crafts his plan to take down Superman. Once on screen however Doomsday looks like a rip off of the new Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles character model with all the bad CGI that comes with it. There was a whole disconnect between the action and the characters reactions on screen during these final moments. It felt like Affleck, Cavill and the addition of Gadot were in a whole other world only entering into the action to dash across the screen and then go back to talking and reacting to one another. There was a fake atmosphere to the situation and it leaves much to be desired.

Now with the introduction of Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman, I felt that she played her role well and was used with the correct touch during the entire story. Wonder Woman was never meant to be a big addition to everything that was happening during the story and yet her character is still an important one to the story down the road so her presence was a vital one. Gadot does this perfectly as she mainly deals with Bruce Wayne and her story gradually becomes more realized through their interactions and his investigative know-how. Her incorporation also led to an interesting introduction to the rest of the Justice League and rather than wasting more movie time on it it becomes addressed and then moved on from. Boom boom, simple as that. It built on the DC universe lore to come and then got right back to the matters at hand with the movie and I was thankful for that.

Unfortunately, Batman v Superman does not deliver on all the hype surrounding it as the two most iconic DC superheroes go head to head and eventually formed an alliance like no other in universe. Ben Affleck's Batman was a surprise hit and everything he did on screen was top notch as he plays the brilliant detective that is Batman and the swarvy playboy that is Bruce Wayne. Even the story had a solid idea going for it as it weighed in on heavy controversy of how absolute power can be dangerous and others but it doesn't have the follow through to pull it all off. And while I liked the light touch that was used to introduce Wonder Woman and the rest of the DC cast into the story, there was just no raw excitement when it got there. The same could be said for most of the proceedings here as well.

Good:

- Ben Affleck as Batman

- Cavill, Gadot and Affleck had great symmetry together

- Hard hitting themes and controversies involving superheroes

Bad:

- Doomsday was aptly named here

- Where was the fun? Where was the excitement?

- Side characters like Amy Adams were dull

- Jesse Eisenberg's Luthor

Scully Rating: 5.0 out of 10

Daredevil (Season 2)

2016-04-05T18:37:00.000-04:00

Zach Goodier

Daredevil is back, and this season is just as tense as evil. Still dealing with the aftermath of Fisk’s attempts to take over the city, Matt Murdock is finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. However, crime is still running rampant in the city, and with the rise of violence as a mysterious new vigilante starts killing off mobsters and other criminals, Daredevil is still working overtime to try to clean up Hell’s Kitchen.

My favorite character this season.

The big new addition this season is the Punisher. I had concerns about how he was going to handled in this show, given his bloody and much grittier feel than typical comic characters, but he is executed very well, especially with a solid performance by Jon Bernthal. The Punisher is a very faithful adaptation of the character, with Frank Castle being the victim of losing his family in an unfortunate shootout between mobsters and police in a failed sting operation. Frank seeks revenge by hunting down criminals throughout Hell’s Kitchen, which puts him at odds with Daredevil, who believes in imprisoning criminals rather than kill them.

While fighting a common enemy, these two are far from friends.

This brings us to one of the great parts about this season: the moral conflict. Daredevil is frequently challenged by both Castle and Elektra (who plays a major role later in the season), who have no reservations about killing to rid the streets of criminals who prey on the innocent. In one scene, these two have a discussion about their methods, during which Daredevil claims that Castle is no better than the people he kills, while Castle points out that all the criminals that Daredevil defeats merely go to jail, and many are already returning to the streets to resume preying on people. It goes a long way toward bringing the battle home for both characters, who struggle with their choices, but are committed to their own paths.

The firm faces new cases, and the dynamic between friends changes as secrets are revealed, and choices made.

Elektra makes an appearance later in the season, becoming important as a new enemy rises in Hell’s Kitchen: The Hand. Elektra is interesting, but kind of feels weak when being introduced so close to The Punisher. I felt she might have been a greater character if they maybe held off another season so the Punisher storyline could reach a conclusion of sorts, because I had a hard time shifting my attention from the anti-hero when Elektra is introduced in the midst of Punisher’s story.

Elektra is a nice addition, but felt somewhat forced into the story while other story arcs were still in major sections.

Still, this season is great, but not without a few weaker moments. That being said, the strong definitely outweighs the weak in this season, and between The Hand, Fisk’s revival, and the Punisher; Hell’s Kitchen is getting crowded fast, as various individuals/groups are preparing to fight for the future of the not only the city, but the world at large.

Good:

-Punisher is great.

-Fisk is still in the picture.

-Plenty of strong moments for all major characters.

Bad:

-Too much going on at certain points, distracts from the individual storylines.

-Elektra definitely upstaged by Punisher.

Scully Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Superhot

2016-04-04T21:13:00.002-04:00

By: Robert Murphy

What if I told you that the world you are experiencing isn't real. That your mind is trap inside of a prison that you can feel, taste or touch and that the world is holding you back. Okay, it's not as crazy as all that but with each mind bending level of Superhot it felt as though you were stumbling further down the rabbit hole of some grand conspiracy involving a hidden game with a simple premise. Time moves when you move.

Each level of the game plays out like some sort of action movie where players must perform insane actions in order to take out massive amounts of enemies in what appears to be mere minutes for them but it could be an eternity for you. You aren't sure why these faceless red men are continuously trying to harm you, you are only told that you should not be in this game in the first place. Also you're super hot apparently, as the end of each level rejoices in telling you. Anyways, the one thing that you do have in common with your red faced enemies is that one hit equals in your unfortunate end and the level resetting back to where you began. This means whatever method you use or they use to kill are extremely effective and it ranges from hitting, kicking, slashing and shooting until they shatter into little red triangles all over the place.

It's a rush to say the least as certain levels feature massive amounts of room and venues for players to take out their enemies, where others require quick thinking and careful maneuvering in order to succeed. While your character is not moving the screen is basically in a state of pure frozen silence as you assess the situation at hand. Bullets will inch their way closer and enemies will come in ready to do battle but just like Neo in The Matrix, you can see it all coming. Skillfully making it through levels in this manner makes it feel all the more satisfying as well and even more so with the variety of different ways the enemies can be played around with or the fun little additions the game has going for it as well.

Punching enemies backward into an oncoming train, throwing a katana and shish kabobing two enemies together or slicing bullets in half as they manage to get too close. It's crazy but it makes you think of the many different ways a given situation can be handled with the tools at your disposal. Superhot itself wouldn't give you this impression at first though as the game gives off a very minimalistic presence to it. Not much is devoted to super detailed graphics or insanely lifelike environments and there doesn't need to be for this simple idea presented here. Bad guys are red, weapons are black and everything else is an off white color. It's basic and it works as each level truly only boils down to moment to moment encounters and replayed over again at the end like a highlight real of your awesomeness.

Later levels keep things interesting by adding in more items to the equation. Better armaments like assault rifles make blazing away bullets a bit of a challenge as the burst fire will send three jutting out at a time and so with one quick side step you can be taking out multiple enemies instantly. But the biggest among these changes is the ability to body snatch enemies later on in the game. As you learn to free your mind from it's perceptions of your body you can begin to take over others and make former enemies your friends. It's a clever mechanic and plays into the games mind bending story quite well.

Underneath all the slow motion antics there is a meta-layered story taking place between each level that tries to shake players perceptions on reality. Is this really a game? Is this reality? Is my body holding me back? Is my mind in a prison waiting to be released? All this fourth wall stuff comes to mind as the story progresses, hitting myself in the head was one of the highlights as the computer system attempting to free me berated and reveled at the sheer stupidity. The home menu screen is a mind warping experience in itself too, appearing as an old school DOS system it features layers after layers of hidden software and engines to find for yourself. It also gives players the allusion of control in the game, taking away your ability to write a response in the chat or call for help, even making you dance around like a caged rat even at one point. It may be an idea that has been done before but in many ways Superhot makes it it's own.

While it is an incredible thrill to play, Superhot does suffer from some replay factors as I beat the games main storymode within a few hours and short of a few other challenge modes there wasn't a real drive to relive the experience over again. That being said, I did revel in the experience as it happened bit by bit, flashing before my eyes in a haze of gun shots and flying fists. It was like a drug I couldn't get enough of and that drug had me shouting "SUPER HOT" from the top of my lungs, not giving a crap about who heard me.

Good:

- Very unique idea for the games main drive, time moving as you do

- Challenging situations

- Blowing away enemies into tiny bits is a blast

Bad:

- Story is interesting but has been done already

- Lack of replay value

Scully Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Erased

2016-03-29T22:44:00.000-04:00

By: Robert Murphy

What would you do for one chance to travel through time and correct a mistake that you made in your past or change the future for the better by righting a terrible wrong? Well for some unknown reason Satoru Fujinuma posses this kind of ability where when tragedy strikes those around him he can travel backwards to moments before it happens and hopefully prevent what is about to occur. He dubs this ability revival and even though he generally feels disconnected from everyone and everything around him, he does everything in his power to help those in need. This becomes painstakingly more perilous however when a murderer from his long repressed childhood comes back and murders his mother, this sending him on the longest revival trip he has ever gone on to try and change not only his current future but the future of those around him as well.

Initially Satoru was a character that I thought would not prove to be an overall engaging one since I had seen his like so many times before. As the story progresses however viewers begin to see more and more as to why the present Satoru felt so separated from those around him. He was so lackadaisical and couldn't quite muster up the drive to do anything in his life, even with his true passion of manga writing, and there was just something missing from his life. Many people out there can probably relate and this ended up working in his favor in a lot of ways but when viewers meet his younger self it also adds some more depth to his character. Satoru's hero complex kicks into full swing once he sets himself on the path of protecting Kayo, a young girl in his class, who was the first victim in a series of murders in his home town. Satoru believes that she is the key to preventing everything in the current future and if he saves her then he saves his mother, his friends and himself from a horrible fate.

Even before Satoru travels back in time and enters the body of his younger self, the story had major appeal going for it. The mystery as to who was causing all of these misfortunes in Satoru's present was a deeply engaging one as this person was one step ahead of him and absolutely everyone else in the story. Everyone was working against Satoru it seemed, except for a young girl by the name of Airi who believed in him and his innocents, but she too ends up getting caught in the cross hairs. Once in the past the situation is just as perilous as a young Satoru tries to piece together just who is responsible for the impending murders and tries to help Kayo and the other girls in the killer's sights. It becomes delightfully endearing as well seeing as Satoru and his friends are all young children attempting these grand feats of hiding out to protect Kayo. It's cute and you almost forget that Satoru is a thirty year old trapped inside of his younger self, that is until he stops to remind himself of this at a humorous moment of attraction he feels for Kayo.

After a pinnacle moment for the story, Satoru is left to clean up loose ends and try to ultimately make sure the killer will no longer prove to be a problem for anyone close to him. However, this proves to be the dragging moments for the show since the mystery itself is just about solved and in terms of viewership everything already seemed wrapped up. That being said the finale for the show was extremely satisfying to see as it shows how Satoru has come full circle as a character. He has been changed by all the experiences with his past life and he no longer feels the emptiness he once did. He wasn't pretending to have friends, he actually made them and they stood by him. He wasn't just trying to be a hero, he actually became one and felt as though he was just like his childhood hero that brought his friends together and fought evil. The future looked bright and it made the drag for the three preceding episodes feel worthwhile.

There is a certain artstyle to series that captures all of the drama happening as well and it is truly beautiful. Satoru is shown the moments of an impending revival when a blue butterfly flies nearby and for those of you who have played Life is Strange it will ring remarkably similar, not that I'm knocking the show for this. Erased also cleverly use old time film reels to depict timelines of the situations at hand as well as use it to show moments of connection being severed/created during points of Satoru's revival. Outside of these factors, the animation itself is simply top notch, even though many points in Satoru's past take place in a cold winter setting it is brought to life with many bright colorful moments. A particular highlight in one episode show Kayo and Satoru traveling to a remote spot from his childhood, there are foxes that come and dance around them and other wonderful sights, but the best is when they reach a seemingly desolate tree that comes to life when they stand under it. The stars bring it to life like a massive Christmas tree and it truly shows the height of the shows animation prowess.

The overall themes of the show go to some intense places such as child abuse, isolation, murder, loneliness and a whole lot more and it adds to the wholly engaging experience that is Erased. The series had an engaging presence right from the get go and despite a brief drag near the end, there was a solid presentation all the way through. This is capped off by wonderful themes, animation and not to mention one heck of an opening theme song for a show that will hit viewers on multiple levels.

Good:

- Saturo's development as a character made him truly enjoyable

- An engaging story

- Tough to swallow themes that are handle very well

- Wonderfully animated

Bad:

- A bit of a drag near the end with the episodes feeling like they don't accomplish too much till the end

Scully Rating: 8.8 out of 10

House of Cards (Season 4)

2016-03-22T21:09:00.001-04:00

By: Robert Murphy

When you're in politics, there is no room for the weak. Frank (Kevin Spacey) and Claire Underwood (Robin Wright) both know this and together they have brought everything and everyone that has stood before them to their knees. But, what happens when their skills are now used against one another as the end of House of Card's third season left viewers watching Claire walk out on Frank to pursue her own goals. These two won't let one another go quietly though and what follows is a series of events that leaves their entire dark history crashing down around them.

After the events of last season things had felt somewhat restrained compared to the level of intensity brought forth in the shows first season. Season four of House of Cards brings viewers back to the nail biting grittiness of it's roots as the Underwood campaign becomes a battle like no other. Frank, of course, has always been the shows leading man and it has always been known that Claire may be just as formidable as he is when you get down to it. This latest season however sets out to prove this fact in it's first half, Claire may not have all the leverage of the Presidency at her disposal but she proves that Frank's overwhelming power and his goals for a second term can all be used against him. Spacey and Wright have always been fantastic together since day one of the series but as everything is stripped away and they battle it out, a whole new intensity is brought forth.

What's more was a whole new cast of characters enters the fray as Frank and Claire set up their pieces on the board for battle. Ellen Burstyn joins the show as Claire's ailing mother who absolutely despises Frank but might despise her daughter just as much. There's also Neve Campbell who plays a political consultant to Claire as she runs for some sort of office of her own. These are just to name a few but where it all comes together is when the show mixes the old with the new. As I said this a season where the past comes back and the massive amount of bones, tears and blood that have made the Underwood's path to success a reality will start to unravel. The interesting part is it's a story that was thought to be all wrapped up and done with but it slowly creeps up on the Underwood's bit by bit when the formerly silent Tom (Boris McIver) returns to find the answers hidden away in the Underwood's closet.

Some more returning cast members do not have as much going on though along the way. In the efforts to bring up the past I believe a bit too much comes out of the wood work and not enough is done with those who use to be major players. Remy and Jackie in particular are merely used when the story feels the need for it. Even the surprising turn up of Ramond Tusk doesn't prove to be an overall powerful thing and really he is only used as a puppet for the Underwood's tug of war early on in the first half of this latest season. And normally it wouldn't be so bothersome if these people didn't use to be key players in the larger story that was happening before. It isn't to say that all the former cast suffer from this especially when Tom (Paul Sparks) makes his return into the Underwood's inner circle or the ever loyal Doug (Michael Kelly) tries to hold the crumbling Underwood party together, but more use could have been pulled out of some of these other former cast members.

When the dust finally settles in the halfway stretch for the fourth season, Frank and Claire finally come to terms with a true adversary in their campaign for re-election. Heather Dunbar (Elizabeth Marvel) never truly posed much of a threat in my mind when it came to Frank and that was because she, and similarly the third season as a whole, were too restrained to fight back. This all changes when the Republican favorite William Conway (Joel Kinnaman) and his full on campaign against Frank as an American golden boy, a former soldier, loving father and husband comes into play. It's the whole nine yards, but with a twist. The golden boy has just as much valor as Frank and he has his own more modern approach to taking the presidency. Conway is a master at using new forms of technology such as Instagram, web broadcasting and some of the more controversial methods such as site monitoring to fuel his apparent narcissism and goals to take the presidency.

This overall makes a potent combination for the season as a whole as it starts out with Frank and Claire batting it out with one another and them coming back stronger than they ever had before. The crippling reality though is that despite their best efforts there was an unknown force bubbling under the surface waiting and building up everything that it needed to take down the Underwood's. It's a powerful blow and mixes wonderfully with all the topics that this season had going for it, including an ISIS type terror group dubbed ICO.

The biggest surprise for this latest season is how much of a whole story feels to have come out of everything that unfolds here. Since the first season of the show, Frank and Claire have steam rolled over everything in their path and nothing has put them in their place. They've silenced everyone that's attempted to stop them, but now seeing the past come back to haunt them makes things feel like the road may eventually come to end for the Underwoods. That being said a fifth season has already been renewed for the series that will still undoubtedly prove to bring even more of a darker side of the Underwood's out into the open. Especially with the spine tingling finale viewers are sent off with.

Good:

- Frank and Claire Underwood, better than ever

- Story coming full circle with all the Underwood's have done

- New cast and old mix together wonderfully

- Conways making true adversaries for the presidency

Bad:

- Some old favorites like Remy, Jackie and Tusk feel under used

Scully Rating: 8.9 out of 10

Homeworld (Remastered)

2016-03-21T18:23:00.001-04:00

Zach Goodier

As a newcomer to the franchise, I had no idea what to expect from this game, and I found myself pleasantly surprised with what I found. You play the commander of a mothership. During your test runs, circumstances arise that leave you as the last hope for your civilization. Desperate, you decide to return to your races ancient home: Hiigara. However, pirates, unexplored space, and a formidable empire stand between you and your home. As you engage in the 16 mission story, you will be tested in a variety of ways that challenge your ability to adapt your fleet as new threats arise.

Even the backgrounds look amazing, and they only get better in later levels.

The story isn’t overly engaging, it simply helps you understand what is going on, and setting up each level. Your ship has an AI and support crew that help with things like research and fleet management, but these characters are simply voices, nothing more. Where this game aims is to deliver strong gameplay, and this it does exceptionally well. Animation and models are all beautifully rendered, with your ships having their own look and feel. Enemy ships are distinctly different, based on who you’re up against, and they all offer unique challenges.

Your mothership is your home, and carries the survivors of your race in stasis. It also produces all your other ships.

One of the major things this game does is carry your fleet over between levels. This means that whatever ships you have remaining following your completed mission, will be the ships you start out with next level. This results in a mechanic that makes you seriously consider what ships your fleet is fielding, and whether your fleet can react to new threats well, or if you are overspecializing in an area. Either method can work, and each carries its own challenges. If your fleet is generalized, then you will have to likely move more slowly to identify threats and position/build yourself accordingly. Specialization results in a fleet that might be exceptional at handling certain types of threats, but obviously would be lacking in every other area.

Outside of the actual game, story is conveyed with various stills and narration.

Ship models are all appealing, and the relationships between ships in combat are interesting, with battles feeling truly life-like, as ships rip into each other. While certain ships specialize against certain enemies, they never feel like single-purpose tools, like they can in other games. Even if a ship specializes in as an anti-fighter corvette, it can still be useful against other corvettes and smaller ships, because lighter armor on most corvettes offers less protection. This keeps things feeling realistic, rather than having to build a particular type of ship to overcome each enemy ship. This is why the game’s flexibility leaves you options in how you want to approach most situations. However, it does challenge you by making certain methods ineffective, so it is still up to the player to adapt.

Good:

-Wonderful models and animation.

-Has that “rock/paper/scissors” dynamic, but doesn’t make it so extreme to make ships broken.

-Having your fleet carry over to the next level adds a new dynamic to how you play.

Bad:

-Story and characters are lacking, but this is an RTS above all else.

Scully Rating: 9 out of 10.

Marvel's Agent Carter (Season 2)

2016-03-15T13:00:00.000-04:00

By: Robert Murphy

The world of high stakes espionage can be a rather fraught with danger around every corner but Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) takes it all in stride. The plucky Agent Carter isn't able to spend too much time off of her feet after her last heroic adventure before she is off to the sunny shores of LA to solve a new mystery involving all the glits and glamour the city is famous for. But, the story isn't as grand as you would hoped it to be given it's flashy setting and returning main stage contenders.

As to be expect Hayley Atwell gives a commanding performance as she returns to the Peggy Carter character and all the doubts about her abilities as a female agent have effectively been dispelled here. People now treat Peggy with the respect she deserves, well except for Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper), but aside from that she leads the charge once again in this latest adventure with the same take no nonsense attitude as before. But her character also gets a much deeper perspective this season as it's not all just fight scenes, smart come backs and British enthusiasm. Viewers get some insight into what Peggy was like before she joined the war and before she became so determined to never give up the fight. We also see Peggy reach a breaking point and let all her emotions out, everything she keeps pent up and hidden under a sweet smile.

Peggy's respected colleagues and adversaries also make their return along with her but some don't show too much in the way of growth. Mr. Jarvis (James D'Arcy) was a much welcomed return and he has actually been doing some secret agent training of his own since his adventures with Peggy last season. His character is ready for more missions and excitement once Peggy arrives on the sandy shore but the addition of his wife Ana (Lotte Verbeek) into the actual story proves to give his character new perspective as well. The scenes between Peggy and Jarvis become quite heated this time around and were frankly the highlight of this latest season. But outside returning Howard Stark, who only appears in a few spots like in season one, the rest of the cast is predominantly lacking in development.

Daniel Sousa (Enver Gjokaj) is now in charge of operations on the west coast with a whole new squad of fresh faced agents under his command. Which is not a good thing since they're all lacking in experience, this leads him to call for aid when a mystery involving frozen corpses begins to unravel. Jack Thompson (Chad Michael Murray) being the natural jerk that he is sends Peggy to help Agent Daniel out in this matter, which stirs up sorts of feelings best forgotten when he left New York. The problems begin when Peggy arrives on the scene, Daniel at first has a whole new story going for him with a new girlfriend and a new job. It's a fresh start for him that he needed but he ends up right back in the same rut he was before when Peggy arrives. The two flirt and become infatuated with one another and an odd love triangle forms with one of the other new characters that just didn't fit Peggy or the show. Agent Thompson is just the same as he was before as well, viewers saw a great episode last season that gave insight into him as a person but these new characteristics never stick. What's more is he becomes somewhat off a completely off the wall bad guy this season and it never pans out.

As for the new cast members things are just as split for the series. The creme of the crop is undoubtedly Whitney Frost (Wynn Everett) who battles it out against Peggy Carter this season. Her character is all around interesting as she pretends to play the Hollywood dream girl by day but underneath it all she possess a genius like no other on the show. She unfortunately has to hide it do to the same stigma Peggy put up with in the first season, she a female agent and Whitney a female scientist, neither are taken seriously. Whitney however breaks away from this mold early on and is a driving force for the story. Right alongside Whitney is new show comer Dr. Jason Wilkes (Reggie Austin) who is the aforementioned third member of Peggy's love triangle. But, even though his character continuously flirts with Peggy, he isn't a one trick pony. His level of expertise into "zero matter" proves to help drive the story as much as Peggy and Whitney do making him a great addition.

Other additions to the cast falter though as Matt Braunger (playing an annoying scientist) and Lesley Boone (Peggy's receptionist friend from season one) attempt to join in on the action in multiple episodes. The humor is definitely strained with their additions and I was never quite sure as to why the show felt the need to involve these characters when there was so many other members already in play. Kurtwood Smith making a surprising addition to the cast as the head of the FBI that is old friends with Jack Thompson. Ray Wise who returns as the Roxxon Oil CEO that has a habit of getting knocked out by Peggy. And Bridget Regan as the former member of the Black Widow experiments who ends up aiding Peggy after she is captured in the first episode of this new season. If more time had been spent including these characters rather than Braunger and Boone then I could have found more enjoyment with certain episodes.

In the end, Agent Carter's second season feels like an experiment into different ideas for the show to eventually follow up on with zero matter being an otherwise engaging part of the story that could have made the story truly compelling. But, this season struggled to find balance between telling an engaging spy story with the original humor brought forth in it's first season. What's more is new characters and returning ones do not fit the bill for their performances with character either falling back into old patterns or just not being engaging at all. Wynn Everett and Reggie Austin save the day in many regards alongside Haley Atwell's always commanding Peggy Carter but much more could have been done to improve the shows follow up second season.

Good:

- Haley Atwell as Peggy Carter is captivating once again

- Evertt, Austin and returning James D'Arcy all lead to great moments for the show

- Zero matter was an interesting new element for the Marvel universe

- Old Hollywood coming to life

Bad:

- The plot has trouble balancing the humor and the action

- Most new characters fall flat and old ones return to their usual routines

Scully Rating: 7.0 out of 10

Far Cry: Primal

2016-03-09T17:01:00.000-05:00

Zach Goodier

The latest addition to the Far Cry franchise has you playing a character set in the earliest days of civilization. Mammoths and sabertooth tigers are aplenty, with additional threats from rival tribes. Your people, the Wenja, have been scattered to the wilderness by rivals, and having just arrived from distant lands, you must begin a quest to rally your people, defeat your rivals, and survive extinction.

It's good to be Beast Master. You can tame all sorts of animals, and use them as mounts and allies in the world.

Things in Primal are much like they were in previous titles, with the characters you meet often being crazy in one form or another. Here, things are certainly a little different, with the prehistoric setting making things like politics and motives being nonexistent for the most part. This is reflected in the story, for what little there is of a main story. That isn’t really a major knock against the game, but if you want compelling characters like you had in 3, and arguably 4, then you’ll be sorely disappointed here. There is only the struggle to survive against rivals, who do have leaders, but they don’t really captivate you like Pagan Min or Vaas did.

Some characters have moments, but they mostly fall somewhat flat compared to previous games.

The gameplay is what’s important here, and that is a solid experience. You can spend resources you collect upgrading your village to unlock side-quests, and upgrade your arsenal. This makes resource collecting somewhat essential to face the increasing difficulty of missions as you progress. Your weapons are limited to clubs, spears, and bows, which can all be upgraded and/or have alternate versions which may be better suited for different situations.

Your rivals offer unique challenges with uses of things like poison and fire.

The graphics all look great, with various locations offering wildly different experiences, between the frozen north to the almost tropical south, there is a lot to experience, and getting around never feels like too much a drag.

Your village starts tiny, but finding lost Wenja will make it grow into a prehistoric metropolis.

This game is very enjoyable, with enough ways to upgrade your experience throughout, and a nice pace that keeps things exciting while letting you slow down from time to time to enjoy things, the gameplay is very enjoyable, and you will have plenty of quests to enjoy. The story does fall a little flat, and with a lack of interesting characters, you may feel there isn’t as much life to this world as you would prefer. This means that despite the fun gameplay, it doesn’t leave a lasting impression on the story side of things, which is a shame. Still, having a prehistoric playground like this is very satisfying.

Good:

-Awesome gameplay.

-Upgrades to both your character and the village are deep and enjoyable.

-Beautiful world and graphics.

Bad:

-Not much story here.

-Lack of compelling characters.

Scully Rating: 8.0 out of 10

Gods of Egypt

2016-03-08T10:00:00.000-05:00

Zach Goodier

Gods of Egypt is an action/adventure film starring GoT’s Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Horus, the god of air, and Brenton Thwaites as Bek, a mortal thief seeking to right wrongs committed against him, and against all humans. Gerard Butler plays Set, who usurps the throne in order to rule over all of creation. Horus, who fought Set, had his eyes taken when he was beaten, leading to his exile. Bek, sometime later, breaks into Set’s vault and steals the eye in order to help Horus take the throne and save Egypt from Set’s cruel rule.

One look at this pic and you should realize Horus is another Lannister.

What ensues sounds great on paper, but quickly begins to fall somewhat flat. Nikolaj does a great job as Horus, but he basically follows the Jaime Lannister pattern of being an elitist D-bag early on, who then suffers a massive setback that leaves him helpless, before going through an on-screen gradual redemption where he changes his ways and becomes a much more likeable character overall. So, he was basically type-cast for this role, but it still works fairly well. Gerard Butler makes for a decent villain, but it feels like Set is never really fleshed out all that well, we just see him being a terrible person and know he has to be defeated, and that’s about it.

This says everything you need to know about Set: he's big, scary, and tough.

The action is exciting, and that’s where the most excitement will be had in this film. Gods can transform into armored figures that more closely embody the depictions of the gods we know from Egyptian mythology. In these forms, gods like Horus can fly, and they can fight each other with their full power. However, this leads in to one of the weaker parts of the film: the CGI.

Scenes like this try to mix CGI with actor's faces, and it just doesn't quite look right, B for effort, though.

The special effects are somewhat “hit or miss,” with some scenes, like twin giant snakes, looking fairly good, but other scenes fall flat with mediocre CGI that makes you very aware that you’re watching a couple of actors leaning back and forth in front of a green-screen. This somewhat hurts the experience on the visual side, which is kind of important, since most of the supporting cast feels weak, either due to lame acting or a lack of screen-time to work with.

Geoffrey Rush plays Ra, another under-used character that could have been more interesting.

This movie goes for the flash, but instead of going off like fireworks all the way through, it ends up being a mix of a couple fireworks, some sparklers, and quite a few weak party poppers that leave you with mixed feelings about the overall impact. This isn’t a bad movie, but it certainly isn’t a good one, neither.

Good:

-A few high-points with CGI.

-Jaime Lannister being another Jaime Lannister-type guy.

Bad:

-A few low-points with CGI.

-Mediocre acting and uninspired characters throughout.

Scully Rating: 5 out of 10

The X-Files: Season 10

2016-03-07T10:50:00.001-05:00

By: Robert Murphy

There is always an issue with trying to capture lighting in a bottle seeing as it was already impossible the first time it happened, so when people try to reboot a series that has long since gone off the radar, it can be hard to get the same spark. It doesn't hurt however that series creator Chris Carter returned to work on the tenth season of The X-Files rebooted return to television as well as lead actor David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson. The series was earmarked for a six episode run of the cult classic that depicted two FBI agents that were assigned cases involving strange phenomenon or suspected elements of the supernatural. But, by the end of the final episode there are for more questions than answers and viewers are left to question if there is more. Just like the show always has.

The shows revival though is a bit of a tricky one to track as it didn't follow the new plot line that it sets forth in the first episode but rather it set out to try and be another season for the show, mixing an overarching story with some other cases thrown in the middle. This would normally be fine since the odd ball cases that Scully (Anderson) and Mulder (Duchovny) would go on were just as interesting as the overall conspiracy that Mulder has been trying to hunt down his entire life. The first episode as well as the finale capitalize on this conspiracy theory but add in real 20th century paranoia to drive it all home. Guest star Joel McHale plays Tad O'Malley who makes a living off of "revealing" the truth about government's spying on us with micro drones, poising us with chemicals through plane slipstreams and perhaps the most popular being the 9/11 attacks being the start of a global initiative against humanity. What this all did perfectly is bring Mulder's theories up to date and catches viewers up to what has been happening behind the scenes since the show went off the air even though Joel McHale didn't quite feel at home delivering all this news.

It's a great set up to be sure and while many others out there viewed the first episode as a bumpy start, I saw it as a perfect blend of new cult theory meats the old cult theory. What's more is Anderson and Duchovny still proved to have the one screen chemistry that made The X-Files so watchable back in it's hay day, if it weren't for these two at the forefront I'm not sure the show would have ever made it past it's first season. The real issue for the reboot is perhaps what comes after the first episode as the middle chunks to the story are more or less random cases and does not continue this new overarching story. These episodes are not bad in anyway shape or form, in fact the second episode itself is the creepiest and most attune to the shows former format as a boy with strange telekinetic powers searches for something from his past that Mulder and Scully inevitably get wrapped up in.

The third episode is perhaps the most bizarre of the bunch when guest star Rhys Darby comes down with an apparent case of reverse monsterism, transforming from weird lizard creature to average middle aged man overnight. It's plucky to say the least but overall it felt like a wash of an episode, don't get me wrong Darby does a fantastic job as he describes the woes of being a pathetic middle aged man. Lying about his sex life, forced to get a job and watching pornography. Mulder too has his own crisis in this episode about whether or not his years at the bureau have all been a waste as he looks over old case files and finds out things like a "rockman" siting was just a mascot selling tires. But, this silliness doesn't come together well throughout the episode and with a six episode run, the show did not have the episode to waste on something like this.

The fourth episode was perhaps the most gruesome display I have ever seen come from the series as a street art inspired monster called the "garbage man" takes out various people in the community that are threatening homeless people. But, the fifth episode proved to be a favorite of mine when two fresh faced young agents come to Scully and Mulder for advice on a terror cell case they are working. Chris Carter obviously drawing a parallel to young Scully and Mulder here by creating clones of their former selves with Agent Miller (Robbie Amell) and Agent Einstein (Lauren Ambrose). But the episode is far more humorous and enlightening than it is pure ridiculousness. The episode shows just how far Scully and Mulder have come after working with one another, Mulder obviously opening Scully up to the supernatural and making her less of a skeptic while Scully has made Mulder more of a believer in her faith and her judgment as a partner in life/work.

And then just as quickly as it started the final episode was ready to rocket the overall story forward in a record time rushing through just about everything that was laid out in the premiere. The sheer amount of information alone is enough to give viewers whiplash in this last episode as an epidemic breaks out causing panic for Mulder and Scully. The ideas themselves were great, watching along I couldn't help but feel that there is some wonderful elements to the story coming full circle, truths potentially coming to light and our main characters finally coming to blows with the "smoking man." It could have been a magnificent send off but it just doesn't follow through, what's worse is it ends in a cliffhanger with no news as to whether or not there will ever be another season down the road. It feels a little cheap and if the story had maybe followed this overarcing story more then viewers could have had a satisfying ending to what was a surprising series of stories in the supernatural.

The X-Files return to television was something I'm sure many were excited about and it is truly wonderful to see that everyone decided it was worth their time to come back to the show and send it off right. What's more is the charm was all still there as Mulder and Scully feel like they never left one another and had a commanding on screen performance. But, the show itself didn't have the time to pull off what it aimed to achieve as it showed off various ideas for episodes but nothing solid for the overall story. Added on top of that a cliff hanger hanging in the wind and there is just no telling what will come out of this strange effort to revivalist the series.

Good:

- Mulder and Scully are still perfect together

- Premier episode set forth potentially great ground work

- Episodes rang true to the old school X-Files

Bad:

- Episode three was simply bonkers and felt like a waste for a miniseries

- New story set forth fell flat in the finale

- Cliff hanger ending?

Scully Rating: 6.0 out of 10

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4

2016-02-29T19:31:00.000-05:00

By: Robert Murphy

There is no easy way to tell everyone this but there is sadly no robot Naruto in this latest edition to the franchise. Devastating, I know. Now that that's out of the way, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 picks the story right back up where players left off as the 4th Great Shinobi War is well underway. For those of you who have read the manga you know that this means there are intense battles, amazing characters and some of the most gut wrenching scenes to ever come from the series are about to unfold. But, does the game follow through as well as the core material did?

The combat system for the Ninja Storm games has already been a long favorite of mine, players can easily weave jutsu as well as use hand to hand combat against your opponents without it being too complex. When coupled with the climactic scenes for these final chapters of the series they offer up just the right feeling one would expect to get from fighting these legendary characters. Fights are also complemented by cinematic sequences that depict some of the raw action as it unfolds and the returning quick time button moments really drive them home as players unleash their characters attacks in full force. A small but interesting new mechanic that has been added here is the ability to switch freely from your support characters, so rather than fight alone with one character and having them unleash minor attacks, you can switch to them and use both of the characters techniques. A compelling feature since I prefer some characters to others or some signature attacks.

Other featured elements are a bit of a hit or a miss for the most part. Mob battles are a feature for certain story moments and in some regards they work like the scene where you first see Kakashi's chidori when he was a kid or when Obito kills all those Hidden Mist ninja that killed Rin. But, these can lead to monotonous story moments later on where you must simply beat wave after wave of the same generic enemies until you reach a certain closing point. What's worse is the optional story mode objectives that can require players to get a large amount of kills or strikes during these sequences.

Once players dig into the games main Story mode, Ninja Storm 4 found a way to take the story that many players already knew was coming but present it in a unique way. The story comes with different branching storylines as Naruto and Sasuke are the main characters truthfully for these final moments. Each of them went through something slightly different and so did the people around them, so the story follows suit as players will play different branching arcs that join up with one another when Naruto and Sasuke do the same. However, each story point itself is plays out in a rather bizarre fashion as each chapter is capped off by explaining the battle that is about to unfold with quick cutscenes that can often be really long. What's more is the cutscenes go back and forth between animated scenes and motion comic effects, both never really coming off as that appealing since the animations were poor and the lip synchronization was often completely off. The story itself doesn't ever derail and plays out all the great battles just as they appeared in the book but there was simply a bit much to sift through when you're trying to get those great battles.

Following on the heels of Story mode, players also have the games Adventure mode which is also a bit of a two prong experience. The story here brings up some of Naruto's best fights through it's many years as Naruto himself moves forward in the present as the hero of the Hidden Leaf Village and new adventures that come with it. It's an interesting way to bring Naruto and Hinata together as well as remind players more about the rich history the series has. Unfortunately, the adventure mechanic itself is really a big bust that felt thrown in as a side note when it could have all simply been incorporated into the Story mode itself. Adventure mode is filled with dull side missions that have you travel all over to fight a random character or go on an actual mission that just has you taking a letter to another village and all the games faults truly are more prevalent in this area such as the bad lip syncing and poor animation.

Multiplayer battling continues to be an ear mark however for the Naruto games. The character roster now features the complete list of all the series characters with 61 players to choose from, each having their famous jutsus, attacks and variant costumes to try out. The different mode options for online play are limited but outside of a regular sparring match what did you really expect? Still there is an Endless mode, League, Tournament and Ranked/Player matches to choose from and test your fighting abilities against other players out there. The minor aesthetic features are still here as well, such as editing your own ninja playing card to feature pictures from the series and your own ninja tag line.

Happily, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 took a huge step away from the features that were present in Ninja Revolution and gets back to the elements that work so well for the series in the past. While many of the additions to the game are only minor, they do offer new ways to fight such as the support switching feature in combat. But, the good does balance the bad here as the games Adventure mode and some other poor editions prevented a totally enjoyable experience here.

Good:

- Minor additions to the games already solid combat system

- Story mode follows the series perfect with an interesting presentation to following along with it

- A completed roster makes online and offline play

Bad:

- Adventure mode is a complete wash

- Story mode is sadly filled with bad cutscenes and overabundant dialogue

Scully Rating: 6.0 out of 10

RWBY Season 3

2016-02-23T18:08:00.001-05:00

By: Robert Murphy

Those of you who have been with RWBY right from the get go know that the story is about many lovable characters who are attending Beacon Academy for hunters and huntresses. Everything is fun, bubbly and only gets serious for brief moments during the series where Ruby Rose and her friends must combat some upstart trouble makers. This season however follows a much darker path and the time for being kids must be set aside in order to combat the growing threat hidden away in the shadows, until now.

The start of the series begins much as you would expect it to as Ruby and her team prepare for the Autumn festival and compete with classmates as well as other cools in competitions that test their skills as huntsmen and huntresses. This whole ordeal capitalizes on perhaps the most captivating aspects for the show and that is it's fight scenes. A Pokemon style battle arena is brought forth and the stages vary with each and every match up so you will see beach levels, mountain levels, forest levels and all of them coming with their own environmental challenges to face while the teams are fighting one another. All the fights themselves are spectacular and show off the skills the Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang have all acquired since they joined the school and became teammates. Their teamwork being one of the best parts to see as they combine all of their skills to make excellently choreographed attacks against the opposing teams.

This setup also sets the stage for many characters to appear from team RWBY's respective pasts. Ruby and Yang's Uncle Qrow (pronounces Crow) makes his first appearance and despite his outward drunk/smart ass behavior, he will be a major player in revealing all of the evil activity going on behind the scenes for the past two seasons. Weiss also gets an unexpected welcome from a former family member when her sister Winter comes to Beacon alongside of General Ironwood and his massive army of robot soldiers. She is just as cold as Weiss was when viewers first met her but later it is revealed that she left home just like Weiss did and followed an unorthodox path, in their father's opinion anyways. Lastly, we learn a great deal more about Blake's past when the White Fang makes their own moves on Beacon this season. Their leader Adam having a long teased history with her that now has come back to haunt her.

While this all may seem like great editions to the story that will drive home a much more serious plot line, many of the ideas get muddled along the way as all of this information tries to be crammed into the story in progress. Qrow is not just in town to see his family as I said and he in turn reveals what Cinder Fall and the rest of her cronies have been trying to achieve. The end game seems to be nothing but true chaos for Cinder but in order to get there she needs more power, even more the impress amount she already wields. This ends up coming from a bizarre story about four legendary huntresses that were thought to be nothing but an old fairy tale. It would seem that it was anything but that however and when it comes time for it, an ultimate sacrifice must be made by one of the shows main characters in order to acquire this power. The real issue with this turn of events though was how quickly it gets thrown into our story and then must be accepted as fact.

There are more signs of these thrown at the wall ideas when Qrow reveals more about Yang's history. It would seem that somehow he can speak to his sister (Yang's mother) who was presumed dead and yet must be in some other plane of existence? It really makes no sense and little time is spent exploring what this could all mean for Yang's character down the road. It seems very crucial to question this because by the end of this season Yang has gone through quite the ordeal, she no long is the same smiling ass kicker she has been this whole time and its hard to see how she will recover after everything that happens to her. Other instances of thrown around ideas are all too common, between Winter revealing a hidden power she and Weiss possess and the odd abusive love story between Blake and Adam and Ruby possess some hidden power herself too by the end. There is truly just far too much going on this season and far too little time to get through it all properly.

What remained rock solid thus far was the overall story that was established after last season with Cinder and her team preparing to unleash all out war on Beacon. Her plans devastated not only Beacon but our main characters too and in almost George R.R. Martin fashion, all bets are off. Cinder effectively causes untold despair for just about everyone which is what attracts a massive amount of Grimm to the city in all shapes and sizes. This includes the biggest Grimm we've ever seen to date but the overall tone shift proved to be an interesting one to say the least. It offered a new layer of depth that I didn't expect to come from a show with such a light hearted feel to it, heck other shows like this don't even go this dark when it comes to the world being taken over by some evil force so it's truly something to be admired.

By the time RWBY 's third season comes to a close there is a great deal of information to digest and that isn't necessarily a good or a bad thing. There are plenty of new ideas floating up in the air but none of it is really concrete by the end of the story. However, Cinder Fall and the rest of her team have proven to be a force to be reckoned with after causing untold death and despair for our main characters, offering up a different experience for this season that I did not see coming from an anime like this. So overall the future for RWBY can truthfully go down a very solid path if all the ideas brought up this season get more time to grow and develop, but only time will tell if that will happen.

Good:

- A much darker plot line than I ever thought to come from RWBY

- Top notch fighting scenes remain throughout

- Solid trademark humor the show is known for

Bad:

- New plot lines are all over the place

- Interesting ideas but so much left unexplained or ignored on the way to the end

Scully Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Psycho Pass: The Movie

2016-02-22T01:26:00.000-05:00

By: Robert Murphy

In the past Psycho Pass has merely been focusing it's stories inward as people have come out in opposition of the Sibyl system and all that it stands for, they've wanted to turn it up on it's head and make those who loyally follow it question what kind of world they are living in. Psycho Pass: The Movie however looks outward to the world outside the "peaceful" society that Japan has established for itself and tries to spread it's grand views to other lands. Naturally, it's people are not as accepting as those who have spent so long under the watchful eye of Sibyl and so Akane Tsunemori must travel to a land ravaged by civil war and a guerrilla force that is led by a former member of her team.

Thus far, the plot lines for both Psycho Pass and Psycho Pass 2 have been so engaging that I never found myself curious as to what the rest of the world was like outside of Japan's borders. While the story focuses merely on the shores somewhere in Asia's mainland there is a distinct impression that the world is dire need of stability and safety everywhere you go. Sibyl is willing to offer just that in this latest entry into the series but it appears to be going poorly as an unknown group of terrorists breaks into Japan in order to punish those who have unleashed this force on them. Akane and her team fortunately got wind of the attack before anything serious occurs but something even more disturbing comes about once the situation is investigated further. It would seem the leader of these terrorists is Shinya Kogami and he has been preventing Sibyl and their sympathizers overseas from gaining control over the land. Determined to discovers the whole truth for herself, Akane sets out to find Kogami and have him reveal the whole story as well as determine what Sibyl is really planning.

Immediately the situation seems bleak for Akane and this land as it's cities and people are battered from the constant fighting and unrest that has plagued the land. The only prosperous area is the technologically advance island city just off shore of the mainland where Sibyl and the areas leaders have settled and begun to implement the new order of things. The area looks just like Japan but there are some very disturbing sites when you look closely at the peaceful atmosphere. Many of the citizens inside are forced to wear collars that constantly check their psycho pass due to so many people having above average hues with war, violence and hate being overly common.

These people sadly have become a servant class inside of the city where they are treated as lesser for just having a questionable hue. They must take separate buses, are only allowed to work menial jobs (if they get any at all) and are also immediately blamed in altercations if the other party is a none collar wearing person. What's even more disheartening is the simple fact that if any of these people's hues go too far above the already agreed upon new limit under Sibyl then they are killed instantly by the governments aggressive military police force. It is a tough pill to swallow and since Akane has no authority here she must look the other way in the hopes that she can eventually get to the bottom of what is happening here.

This is where the movie definitely shines however and it's with Akane front and center confronting yet another Sibyl debacle. After two series Akane has become something of a potent force against all of Sibyl's misdoings and it in turn actually values her input when critical moments arise. It's made her so much stronger than the scared little girl who first joined Kogami years ago on their first mission and so when the two of them come together again it is quite the interesting turn around. Akane is able to read Kogami and determine what he is feeling, knowing instantly that he did not intend to become leader of a resistance force. Kogami along side of her is also still rock solid as a character and his current situation leaves for some unflattering parallels to a man he once killed for being able to bring out fanatical devotion in people. This is because he has done just this with the rebels around him, not deliberately, but the people in the camp all look to him as some sort of savior to their cause and it worries him.

While Akane and Kogami are at the forefront, the rest of the cast manage to garner some interesting screen time in the movie. Ginoza has changed drastically alongside of Akane by becoming more relaxed and open with what is going with himself personally and this includes revealing his needing to punch some sense into Kogami. It's not anything major for the story but it's a bit of light fun in another dark Psycho Pass entry. But by far the most interesting side characters to come out of all this was Akane's partner Mika who has taken a different path after discovering Sibyl's secret. She has essentially become the systems willing watch dog since then and her role as this is far more established here as she not only brutally tortures someone to get information but also she is constantly challenging and critical of Akane's methods. Mika praises Sybil here at the end when everything is revealed and played off as a massive success, it ultimately feels like a massive conflict between her an Akane will be coming in a possible new season.

That factor alone is the only thing wrong with the Psycho Pass: The Movie and that's the fact that it is less of an overall movie as it is a continuation of everything that came before. The story furthers many different plot lines and creates an overall solid new story to go along with all the new developments. So the fact that the story itself is not a beginning to end or stand alone event is not a bad thing to have here in any way. Adding on top of the excellent story pieces you have Akane and Kogami together once again and showing off just what type of characters they have become. As always too Sibyl is on constant source of intrigue for the story and seeing how it can effect the outside world is a terrifying thought. In the end, all the pieces come together and Psycho Pass: The Movie proves to be a stepping stone to greater things down the road.

Good:

- Akane and Kogami together again

- Seeing Sybil being used on another society is both terrifying and interesting

- Side character development and stories that could lead to future plot lines

Bad:

- The "movie" is less stand alone and more of a continuation of everything we've seen so far

Scully Rating: 8.8 out of 10

Lazer Team

2016-02-17T21:07:00.000-05:00

By: Robert Murphy

Many of you out there are old enough to remember just how comical science fiction movies use to be before everyone started to take the genre seriously, the movies weren't all bad but there were plenty out there like Mars Attacks that were plain ridiculous. Well, Lazer Team is just that kind of ridiculous, but in a good way. Developed by the web production company Rooster Teeth the movie follows four misfits who end up crashing a vessel sent from an intelligent alien race known as the Andarians and is meant for the savior of planet Earth. Sadly, the suit inside ends up in their hands and the world is left with no other choice but to have them fight against an imminent alien threat.

The story itself however tends to focus more around the four members of the team; overprotective cop Hagan (Burnie Burnes), cocky high school quarterback Zach (Michael Burns), burnt out alcoholic Herman (Colton Dunn) and the dimwitted Woody (Gavin Free), rather than the impending attack on Earth. This isn't a bad thing though as each of the characters have their own unique experience with one another and the pieces of the suit they receive. Hagen receiving a shield that symbolizes his wanting to protect those around him, Herman picking the pair of boots that fixes his limp and restores his former legendary speed and then some, Woody dawns the helmet that grants him a massive intelligence boost and Zach takes the laser for his incredible throwing arm and his loose cannon personality. It's not the most subtle of metaphors for each of the characters but it gets the job done.

The other factor working in the teams favor is the fact that the cast members themselves have worked together for many years and it relieves any misgivings people might have about their lack of acting experience. There is no sense of tension on screen and all of the actors are able to play off of one another in the best way so the jokes hit when they need to, for example Woody's sudden adaptation of an English accent after gaining super intelligence (Free actually being of British decent) and making a point to say that stupid people think British accents make them sound smarter. However, some of the dialogue does go to a lower level for the sake of trying to get a cheap laugh out of the audience. I felt that there were far more hits than misses when it came to the humor but early on when you have characters like Zach (who is portrayed as the dumb jock) talking like a buffoon about sex, drinking or getting "likes" on an Instagram post of the "Lazer Team," it goes a bit too far.

Some of the side characters also have room to play with their roles as well and this is especially true for resident Captain American-esque Adam (Alan Ritchson) who was meant to wear the super suit and be Earth's savior. He is admittedly upset about the thing he spent his life to achieve being taken away by these undeserving four and even more so when he is given the task to train them on how the suit is suppose to function. He later has a change of heart when he sees just what they are capable of when they work together. You also have Mindy (Alexandria DeBerry) who is not only Hagen's daughter but also the love interest for teenage motermouth Zach. Her best moments are when she shows up to the team's hideout to refuel the team with food and refuel Zach in other ways. Don't worry, it doesn't go well.

Now the budget for the movie was obviously not to the heights of many other Hollywood productions but once again Lazer Team makes the best of what it's got. The CGI levels were up to par with exactly what they needed to be used for in the various fights and alien technologies such as holograms and so on. But what is the movies biggest eye sores are the moments where you remember that this a web production company and they're probably going to pump some free advertisement right into it. I appreciate the odd reference here and there but more than a couple times previous glories from the company's biggest production make their way into the story. Near the end of the movie there were a gaggle of superheroes dressed like characters from RWBY and X-Ray and Vav too. There was also the football teams colors being Red and Blue, a tip of the hat to the company's first production in online machinima. And while having your own easter eggs is fun, it is a bit self serving considering many of the people who will pay to watch your movie are already long time fans of your content.

Lazer Team walks a fine line between being an example of just what crowd funding and plenty of community support can do for an independent movie. Nothing was too over the top or out of the depth for what the story needed in order to be funny, action packed and interesting. The four lead characters were all easily likable losers as well that had their own challenges to overcome in order to beat back the alien threat. However, many low brow jokes and plot points don't quite cut it here and when you think about the fact that there is a plan for a sequel to be made, you begin to hope that things won't get too far out of hand here.

Good:

- The "Lazer Team" themselves were solid

- Plenty of humor and high points for the story

- A balanced use of CGI and props that doesn't go out of depth for the story

Bad:

- Low points that feature bad dialogue and some frankly unappealing jokes

- Referrances to Rooster Teeth's other productions should have been few and far between

- A sequel? I'm not so sure guys.

Scully Rating: 6.0 out of 10

Deadpool

2016-02-16T18:46:00.000-05:00

Zach Goodier

After years of anticipation, we finally have the movie featuring our favorite “Merc with a mouth,” Deadpool. So, does it live up to the expectations? Well… F@#$ YES!!!

The movie starts us in the middle of the story, with Deadpool already mutated, and running rampant on a quest for revenge against Ajax: the mutant who had people like Wade lured into his workshop in an effort to create mutant slaves to sell to the highest bidder. Wade is also trying to find Ajax, to have him cure the disfigurement Wade endured during his mutation. After a firefight (not to mention the hilarious opening credits), Wade takes us back to the beginning, where he was working as a domestic merc. He then meets Venessa (AKA “A hot chick”), and their crazy almost immediately clicks, and they quickly fall in love before Wade falls ill with cancer. The rest, as they say, is history.

Mmmmmm... that's hot.

The plot of this movie isn’t all that original, but that really isn’t the idea, and the movie would only be hindered by a convoluted plot. This is a film about Deadpool, and establishing him as the character he is intended to be, and rinse the aftertaste from Origins that left us fearful. So the main focus of this review is going to be the character himself.

Colossus is strong, and somewhat overconfident. He is also a typical "hero" type, who thinks he can make Deadpool join the X-men.

On that front, I have to say, Ryan Reynolds nailed it. This is Deadpool, plain and simple. He swears, he’s dirty, and he has no intention of being PG-13. Plus, the hilarity never stops: 4^th wall breaks, guns galore, and all the relentless jokes and moments that make Deadpool… Deadpool. His relationships with everyone only help to make him even better: between Colossus and Teenage Warhead (not saying the whole thing), they only help to contrast Deadpool from the typical X-men variety of mutants/heroes.

Meet Francis... err... Ajax.

There really isn’t very much else to say. The action is all awesome, the laughs flow almost non-stop from the opening credits, and this movie really comes together brilliantly. It doesn’t rely on plot or deeper themes to entertain the audience, it uses Deadpool, and those around him, as a source of comedy and excitement, as things start getting crazy. If you’ve followed Deadpool in comic form, then you’ll almost certainly love this movie. If you’re walking in expecting another superhero film with boy scouts and mama’s boys, then keep looking, because Deadpool is neither. This is a raunchy, foul-mouthed, head-shooting action/comedy thrill ride that keeps the laughs coming from beginning to end.

Good:

-Deadpool is finally who he is meant to be.

-Hilarious, between 4^th wall breaks and edgy humor.

-Action to go with the laughs.

Bad:

-Isn’t overly original, and the powers of some mutants (like Ajax) are somewhat vague and don’t really make sense.

Scully Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Minecraft: Story Mode Episode Four - A Block and a Hard Place

2016-02-12T22:02:00.001-05:00

By: Robert Murphy

All roads have led to this point, but why so soon? The fourth episode to Minecraft's: Story Mode teaches our budding heroes in the consequences of blindly worshiping their own idols while also continuing to delve ever deeper into the rich lore and wonder that Minecraft has to offer. Unfortunately, the journey there is filled with all manner of low points for the characters who either don't live up to there potential or just don't garner the development they deserve.

"A Block and a Hard Place" starts out on solid footing when a mystery surrounding our legendary Order of the Stone starts to come about but before you get there the group has to take a trip to the farthest reaches of the known world, the "Far Lands." The concept of The Far Lands is not a far fetched one as many have managed to reach the seemingly impossible to find edge of the map in Minecraft. It's a place where nothing can be built or mined and thus the perfect place to somehow spawn an evil lair that holds all the Order's most valued artifacts. A very clever idea by the developers to be sure and one that digs even deeper into the development of this world into actually being a place where people live and spread secret legends about the games most famous glitches, tricks and mechanics.

The trip there however proved to be nothing compared to the grand spectacle that was the previous episodes opening credits. Cut together here are bits of time skips of our heroes traveling to the ends of the world in order to reach this legendary location. The chunks of time are filled in with choices for players to pick that include things like "Are we there yet?" over and over again to the annoyance of everyone in the game and myself. This also proves to set the tone for the rest of the stories dialogue choices from here on out.

Surprisingly little is done to grow Jesse and his friends as characters in this tale and once again most of the focus revolves around the Order and their past rather than what lies in the present. While the Whither Storm is a product of the groups past sins and the story developments that come from it do lead the story down a solid path, there is just little for Jesse and his team to do outside of generic compliments to one another. For that matter, many of the choices players will come to face do not end up being all that dire once all is said and done either. This is truly a shame since issues with Petra were growing into something that would potential damage the team forever and the reoccurring rivalry Lukas was beginning to heat things up as well, but they are simply dropped like they never happened or just forgotten for the sake of moving the story ahead.

Fortunately the chapters climactic conclusion proved to put the focus back where it belonged as Jesse and his friends surpass their would be heroes in a big way. There is a charming battle that ensues here that mixes actual combat with ridiculous building, something that Jesse's friends are particularly great at and I loved choosing a final creation to help distract the Whither Storm as well as choosing mine and my friends battle gear. There were also some surprisingly intense combat moments involving the quick time button prompts and a tough sacrifice made by a character that I'm sure was a fan favorite.

The looming question in my head though continues to be, what is next? There is still a fifth and final episode planned for Story Mode somewhere in the near future but with all the lose ends tide up here it is hard to say what exactly that chapter will end up being about. Perhaps a bit of uncertainty going in is a good thing and a chance to correct the story issue of the past can be made but it is anyone's guess at this point.

What I appreciate most about Minecraft's: Story Mode thus far has been the attention and appreciate that went into making the world of Minecraft come to life even more than the original game already does. Telltale Games has a clear understanding of the world and all of the crazy things that it can be capable of with the right mind set. However, the slow pacing and poor story direction for "A Block and a Hard Place" keep it from being totally enjoyable all the way through.

Good:

- Triumphant conclusion

- Wonderful use of Minecraft lore

Bad:

- Important story issue get dropped

- Slow pacing and poor dialogue

- Focuses more on the Order rather than Jesse and his friends

Scully Rating: 7.0 out of 10

Rainbow Six Siege

2016-02-10T22:43:00.001-05:00

By: Robert Murphy

An enemy group is hold up tight in a securely fortified room, but then the door gets ripped down and out go the flashbangs and systematically your enemies get dropped one by one and your team stands over them victorious. That's how a good match goes anyways but this is the extremely invigorating feeling that comes from playing Rainbow Six Siege. The reboot to the long standing Rainbow Six franchise now pits players against an unknown terrorist threat that has every nation in the world coming together in order to combat them. The world's top agents are at your fingers tips, all you have to do is put them to work.

Siege is no joke when it comes to gameplay as it puts players into environments meant to make you aware of anything and everything that could possibly happen to them because it most likely will. Outside of the regular attack and defense style objectives, teams of five must attempt to keep every shred of themselves intact as they maneuver through various scenarios. If you think you are safe in a certain spot then you're dead wrong; walls, windows, floors, rooftops, it can all be taken down in an instant with any number of the gadgets players have at their disposal. This is all the thrill however as it is just as invigorating to destroy as it is to try and hunker down with a group and stop yourself from becoming a red blood smear on the side of the wall. It is an indescribable rush and one that I haven't felt from a shooter in so long since so many modern shooters are going the fast paced route, Siege wants you to go slow, to think tactically and strike hard.

What adds to this tactical way of playing is the attention to detail surrounding the games audio tracks, and no I don't mean some epic level song, I'm talking about the sounds of the players. Every level features some sort of scenario or interesting aspect to it but what players will be paying most attention to is those footsteps made by an enemy climbing up the staircase or the sound of glass shattering from an unknown window. Paying close attention to these details can lead players through a successful match or spell their certain demise.

The chaos though comes from the variety of "Operators" that Siege has brought together from around the world in these matches of attack and defense. There are twenty characters in total and each of them brings their own unique skills to the table for the variety of game modes and they're even divided into the categories they would best serve players in such as Doc for defense and Sledge for attack. Digging further into these two characters and why they're suited for these tasks; Doc carries a handy revive gun that launches needles into your fallen allies which is a handy tool in a game where life can be taken away so easily and Sledge makes for an excellent offense operator with his sledgehammer that can be used to knock down any wall that isn't specially barricaded. The list goes on just like this and each operator is uniquely fun to play as with all their little gadgets to test out, the only problem being getting to your favorite operator before someone else picks them first.

The maps you will be treading across are just as diverse as the characters that will be running through them, Oregon is a personal favorite of mine where you travel through a half constructed group of apartment buildings that looks like a drug den. But, the missions themselves do lack a bit of diversity to them, like when it comes to attacker missions that boil down to finding a certain objective and either retrieving or destroying it. The defender missions do shake things up a bit by causing pure paranoia as you defend against all avenues of danger but even still you're just playing the same game mode from a different perspective. And then the solution doesn't always wind down to whoever complete the objective but rather whoever eliminated who first.

The fan favorite Terrorist Hunt mode however proves to bring back the true nostalgia players out there who remember taking down a series of AI controlled enemies throughout a map without them eliminating you first. While the game mode is definitely a welcomed blast from the past the difficulty settings could do with some altering considering Normal mode can almost be completely all by yourself. The AI won't take advantage of the features that make Siege the exceptional shooter that it is so players will need to bump it up a notch to Hard mode for a more satisfying challenge and then of course Realistic mode proves to be just what you would expect, one bullet and you're ready to drop.

As for the rest of the game, there isn't much to say when it comes to the single player element and that's not a bad thing considering it was never the main focus for it to begin with. The ten single player training missions serves as a way to ingratiate players into the various game types, tools and challenges that they will end up facing throughout their collective game play experience. The challenges are relatively quick and painless to get through and doing all of them earns you a fair amount of Renown, the in-game currency that unlocks weapons, characters, skins and more. There is also a hidden eleventh mission that puts all your skills into action but it's underline message to the audience will leave fans second guessing the lack of an interesting single player story or a cooperative one for that matter.

Despite these minor few short comings, Rainbow Six Siege is the type of shooter that I have been missing for years now. The raw game play is simply fantastic as it blends realistic or as realistic as you would want it to be without you pulling out your hair or throwing your controller across the room. The shear chaos of destructible environments; shooting through walls, up through floor boards, thermiting through barricades, it's all a mixture for success as it couples with the tactical game play elements of stealthily moving through a level trying to take out enemies without awakening a hornets nest. In the end, what more could you really ask for?

Good:

- Paranoia inducing and chaotic gameplay action

- Massive amount of destructible environments

- Variety of Operators and their toys

- Beautiful maps

Bad:

- A single player element that hints that there could have been much more here

- Diversity in the game modes

Scully Rating: 9.0 out of 10