News

EXTINCTION: A Field Day in Decapitating Giants

Published

6 years ago

April 10, 2018

The David v. Goliath dynamic just plain works. It’s the ultimate underdog, little-guy owning the champion, huge guy. It’s relatable, and has worked like gangbusters for Attack on Titan and Shadow of the Colossus and the like. Extinction plays in that wheelhouse to varying degrees of success in both fun and gameplay.

Extinction takes place during a time when an evil force known as the Ravenii decide to invade the kingdom of Dolorum in attempt to make mankind extinct.

You take on the role of an Avii, an elite Sentinel solider who was trained in the bloody ins and outs of taking down the Ravenii. Upon arrival in Dolorum the invasion begins and leaves Avii and his partner Xandra with the task of ultimately saving humanity by dominating the baddies.

The game is divided into a 7-chapter campaign filled with their own subchapters and challenges to meet. Each chapter has Avii, alternating between taking down the lower level ‘Jackal’s’, saving civilians and systematically taking down 150 foot ogres. With each mission Avii is given certain set of challenges to meet that primarily revolves around killing a certain amount of enemies, saving a certain number of civilians, completing time trails, etc.

Let’s talk about the elephant… err I mean ogre in the room. Ogre’s are by far the best part of the game. These hulking monstrosities are huge and each comes with a set of strategic challenges in order to take them down. These usually involve knocking off bits of their armor, slicing off legs and arms and eventually climbing to the base of their neck to decapitate the huge bastards all while avoiding becoming a bloody pancake.

In order to execute a killing blow, Avii has to fill his Rune meter by saving civilians, or by destroying ogre armor. Filling that meter can be a real pain, especially when the city is being destroyed by two or three Ogres and you are trying to serve a killing blow to at least one of em before they destroy the city. In that way, Extinction evolves from a straight hack-and-slash to a hack and slash/strategy hybrid.

Along the way, Avii can earn points in battle that afford him upgrades to assist in making things a little easier. Rune focus, health, acrobatics among other things can be given enhancements that not only lend a hand but also make the game more fun in general. Avii is equipped with a sword to take down baddies and a grapple that allows him to zip around using buildings, trees and ogre armor as latch-on points. Zipping around takes some getting used to, and in early, non-upgraded gameplay can be a bit maddening. Stick with it. The payoff is well-worth the time.

Extinction

Extinction has a gorgeous color palette reminiscent of a Fornite’s aesthetic. It allows the game, even at its most dire, to maintain polished, colorful and a fun landscape to play around in.

Controls were a bit of a problem for me at first. That is a natural reaction to getting used to controller dynamics and how to correctly string them together successfully. Response time and crunchiness are tight once you find your footing. I found climbing, grappling and dodging easy to pull off once I got learned how to seamlessly chain tactics together. It’s extremely satisfying and earned when you are able to zip around an Ogre, save civilians, knock off an enemy’s vital armor and laydown a successful killing blow all in one swoop.

The chapters are broken up by some eye-popping, Ralph Bakshi-esque inspired animation sequences, that really expand on the world being built throughout Extinction. The old-school style of these were a throwback to a lot of the animation I was raised on, and it was great to see it back in action. Got me thinking that totally wouldn’t mind an animated series based on the world of Extinction.

Downing an ogre is tremendously cool and satisfying. No matter how many times I went about it, there was always a specific strategy that is needed in order to get up to the big guys neck to remove his head. Furthering the enjoyment is the mass amount of dark ogre blood that comes out of these dudes when you take parts of them off. The blood sprays are a call back to old Samurai films and really add to the emersion and enjoyment of the dang thing.

Extinction is thrilling, satisfying gameplay experience. Despite its sometime repetitive nature, the game remains fun by upping the difficulty of each mission. Completionists are in for a treat with all of the varying challenges, timers and rules that are given to them as additional to do’s. Offering daily trials, and a couple of other modes to play on, Extinction offers up a satisfying form of fantasy that has an indie spirit with blockbuster sensibilities.

Extinction is out now on Playstation 4, Xbox One and PC.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

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Movies

Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

Published

15 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

News

Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

Published

17 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.

The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.

“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.

Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.

The prize also includes:

An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings

A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear

A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room

A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course

The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II

Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two

“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”

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Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Movies

’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power

Published

19 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.

**Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes**

Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.

Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.

There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.