Month: July 2019

There have been various attempts to make a movie version of Neil Gaiman’s classic Sandman comic book series over the years, but none of them have so far made it to screen. However, it now looks like a Sandman adaptation is finally happening, with Netflix set to make a TV version of the acclaimed series.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix has signed a “massive financial deal” with Warner to adapt Sandman. THR’s sources state that this will be be the most expensive DC show ever produced. The series’ showrunner will be Allan Heinberg, who co-wrote the hugely successful DC movie Wonder Woman.

The Sandman show will be executively produced by Gaiman and DC veteran David Goyer, whose credits includes co-writing Man of Steel and Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies, as well as the TV show Krypton. DC and Netflix are yet to make an official announcement about the deal.

The most recent attempt to bring Sandman to the screen was in 2016, when Dark Knight Rises star Joseph Gordon-Levitt was on board to star and produce a version for Warner subsidiary New Line Cinema. That project collapsed when Gordon-Levitt walked away, stating that he and executives at New Line couldn’t “see eye to eye on what makes Sandman special.”

The original run of Sandman lasted for 75 issues, plus one special, between 1989 and 1996. Gaiman has returned to the title a number of times since, including a novella and a six-part prequel series. The comic has won over 26 prestigious Eisner Awards, and by the end of its run was DC’s most popular title, outselling the likes Batman and Superman.

Netflix has taken the wraps off of its upcoming The Witcher series with a round of cast shots that show the major cast in full costume. In a pair of tweets, we got our first looks at Geralt (Henry Cavill), Yennefer (Anya Cholatra), and Ciri (Freya Allan).

The shots also came alongside a poster-style image of Geralt facing the horizon, with the tagline, “The worst monsters are the ones we create.”

The company also revealed the series’ logline that sheds light on a story direction for this first season: “Based on the best-selling fantasy series of books, The Witcher is an epic tale of fate and family. Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. But when destiny hurtles him toward a powerful sorceress, and a young princess with a dangerous secret, the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent together.”

Netflix is planning a panel at San Diego Comic Con on July 19 that will share more details on the series. That may be where the company drops a release date. So far we only know that it’s planned for a fall release, and that the first season has wrapped production.

The series appears to be modeling itself primarily after the well-loved Witcher 3. That game is currently slated for a release on Nintendo Switch, with a few graphical compromises.

Remedy says it “could bring Alan Wake to different platforms.” The company earlier announced it had acquired the publishing rights to the series, which until now has only come to PC and Xbox 360, from Microsoft.

When asked by GameSpot what this meant for the future of the franchise, Remedy replied, “The only thing we want to clarify, now that Remedy owns the publishing rights, is that we could bring Alan Wake to different platforms if we so choose. We have nothing to announce for now.”

Alan Wake and its spinoff, American Nightmare, were both published by Microsoft on Xbox 360 and self-published by Remedy on PC. The developer now solely holds the publishing rights, though it did not address the chances of a sequel. In the past, Remedy has repeatedly stated its desire to make Alan Wake 2, though it’s unclear if that is more likely now. What is more likely, though by no means confirmed, is a PS4, Nintendo Switch, or Xbox One port of the existing Alan Wake games, which were released in 2010 and 2012, respectively.

We do know of one project already underway: a live-action Alan Wake television adaption is in development. The show is a collaboration between Remedy and movie production company Contradiction Films.

Remedy’s next game, meanwhile, is Control, which launches for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on August 27. We saw the shooter at E3, and we think it’s Remedy’s most interesting game since the first Alan Wake.

The first trailer for Jumanji: The Next Level is here. The sequel to 2017’s hugely successful Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle reunites Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black in another video game-themed adventure, and it hits theaters in December.

The new movie has a similar plot to the last one, with Johnson, Hart, Gillan, and Black playing the avatars of people pulled into insane adventure game Jumanji. But this time, Johnson and Hart aren’t being controlled by kids–they’re the avatars of two wise-cracking old folks, played by Danny DeVito and Danny Glover. It looks every bit as wild and funny as the last movie, with lots of humor derived from the fact that De Vito and Johnson are physically about as far from each other as you can get. Check the trailer out above.

Jumanji: The Next Level is directed by Jake Kasdan once more, and also stars Awkwafina, Madison Iseman, Colin Hanks, and Nick Jonas. It releases on December 13.

The original 1995 movie Jumanji starred Robin Williams, Kirsten Dunst, and Bonnie Hunt. In that movie, Williams’ character became stuck in a board game as a young boy before being set free (along with other creatures and characters) in the modern day.

In related news, Johnson will be seen next month in the Fast & Furious sequel Hobbs & Shaw–watch the latest trailer here. For more, check out GameSpot’s guide to the year’s biggest movie releases.

The game has changed in Jumanji: The Next Level, arriving in theaters this Christmas. Starring Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Karen Gillan, Danny DeVito, DannyGlover, Nick Jonas, and Awkwafina.

Super Mario Maker 2 tops the UK physical sales chart for the week ending June 29, according to sales monitor Chart-Track. The platforming game debuts at No.1 in a busy week for new releases.

Nintendo’s latest Switch exclusive beats competition from Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled, which slips to No.2, and the newly released F1 2019 at No.3 and Judgment at No.4. Two more new releases manage a top 40 finish: The Sinking City debuts at No.12, while Car Mechanic Simulator takes its pit stop at No.23.

Super Mario Maker 2 has received critical acclaim, including an 8/10 from GameSpot. “What I’ve played so far has proven, once again, that the Mario series is worth all the admiration it gets, and Mario Maker 2 is an excellent tool for picking it apart by pushing its enemies, mechanisms, and Mario, to their limit,” wrote critic Peter Brown in our Super Mario Maker 2 review-in-progress. “I’ve yet to make a stage of my own that I think is worthy of sending out to other players, but I’m committed to getting there. Whether exploring the full potential of a single element or throwing things at the wall to see what sticks, I’ve got the itch to join the creator’s club. And thankfully, even if you aren’t an instant success (like me), Mario Maker 2 makes the learning process intuitive and enjoyable.”

You can see more reviews of this week’s new games below. You can also read the full top 10 sales chart for this week below, courtesy of UKIE and GfK Chart-Track. Note this table does not include digital sales data, and so should not be considered representative of all UK game sales.

Reviews

• F1 2019 review
• Judgment review
• The Sinking City review
• Super Mario Maker review-in-progress

Top 10 UK Games Chart

1. Super Mario Maker 2
2. Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled
3. F1 2019
4. Judgment
5. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
6. Red Dead Redemption 2
7. Grand Theft Auto V
8. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
9. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
10. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate