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‘John Wick Hex’ is All About Tactical Timing and Bloody Neon Execution

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Hex

We finally have a John Wick game! A film entirely deserving of a game. A film that packs more action and bullet shots to the head than It does dialogue. I mean who hasn’t been dreaming of playing as the Baba Yaga himself? Blasting enemies in slo-mo, lining up head shots and racking up kill combos. A game that explores the world further and even opens itself up to an sandbox experience that allows you to choose side missions and hit jobs of varying difficulty. This isn’t that game. This in fact is none of those things. John Wick Hex is an approach to John Wick that is more chess than it is Max Payne. More RTS than it is first-person shooter. More surprise than anything we could have imagined. So, all that says, how does it hold up you ask?

John Wick Hex is surprisingly an RTS game. An indie RTS game to boot. Hex comes at us from Mike Bithell of Bithell games. This is the dude responsible for the very awesome and existentially hilarious Thomas Was Here. So as you can expect Bithell has a very different approach to what others would have done with the title.

John Wick Hex is a prequel to the films. It acts as a chapter that shows John “Baba Yaga” Wick while he is still killing the hell out of everyone, minus the dead wife and dead dog. Doesn’t mean John is killing any less angry though, that you can trust.

Hex is a new baddy in the world of Wick. A mastermind that manages to work out a way to kidnap both Winston and Charon. The kidnapping takes place intentionally on Continental Hotel grounds. The act is done in an open act of rebellion in an ultimate attempt to shake up the High Table. In response The High Table places a hit on Hex and orders the return of both Winston and Charon. Of course, John Wick is hired to make short work of the whole thing.

Hex

The early missions take place as flashbacks in conversations between Hex, Winston and Charon. These ultimately reveal the moves and strategies of Wick. All these are missions you play through and ultimately lead to twists and turns in the narrative and of course ultimately lead to your target – Hex.

The combat of Hex takes place on hexagonal grids and like other RTS allow you to navigate and execute close quarter combat as well as work with your firearms. Defensive tactics are also allowed in select areas. The noticeable difference and the mechanic that sets this game apart from others is the timeline at the top of the screen. All moves occur withing the timeline and have to be executed near perfectly in order to succeed. A quarter of a second misspent can lead to losing the game or getting a bad combat rating. It’s an farily new mechanic to the world of RTS and one that takes some time getting used to.

Between the timeline and the classic RTS grid John Wick Hex is a sort of revelation. A new approach to gaming that makes for calculation and perfect execution. Something that John Wick definitely gets behind in his personal actions.

Outside of this though, John Wick Hex could have been called anything else, because in spirit and approach it is not a John Wick game. It’s a very impressive game and could have been applied to any sort of RTS world like Aliens Vs. Marines or Toaster Oven McShooter or whatever generic title was available and been just as good and just as exacting. In fact, my main complaint is strangely that it is a John Wick game. A game that is so strangely different from its films counterpart material.

Charon and and Winston are both brought to life by the actors who portray them. Both Ian McShane and Lance Reddick play themselves. As an added bonus Troy Baker plays that of big bad Hex. Sadly, Keanu Reeves didn’t reprise Wick for the game. A bit of a bummer, but Wick doesn’t speak at all from what I remember here.

Hex

Right out of the gate we have to get past the fact that the moves that John Wick executes in Hex do not look cool. They do not happen fast, and they are not the signature speedy kills that we are used to from the films. It’s a world apart. It’s probably the games biggest eyesore. This especially becomes horribly noticeable when you finish a mission and allowed to go back and watch the level you just completed played back seamlessly. This means all the dodging, close quarter combat, rolls, headshots and executions is shown to you in a chain. What should be a badass looking clip that you want to save and show off, is cringe worthy. It’s stiff and robotic looking and makes John Wick operate like a Rock ’em, Sock ’em robot instead of The Boogieman. It is important that if you are going to play through the game as an RTS and Wick fan, that you immediately forgive this section of the game. It’s rough… but worth it due to the game being great in its primary mechanics.

The approach to the games comic book, cell shading is pretty cool looking and a nice step in the direction of establishing its own style. It does manage to share the pink, and teal neon lights that flood both the world and a better part of the nightlife in the films. The cell shaded approach is very minimal, but does manage to vary each level enough that your eyes never get bored from place to place. Although, the enemies contained within these levels could have used some tweaking, almost everyone is wearing black slacks, a white dress shirt and a black tie. It ends up feeling like you are going up against an army of deadly door to door Mormons.

Hex

When you spot an enemy on the grid, time pauses and allows you to select your move. Within the choices you are also able to see the amount of time that the move will take. Rather it be a hip throw, or a throat chop, one move might be better suited for a certain situation due to timing. Sometimes time is sacrificed for power and vice versa. In addition to the time that the move takes, it also shows you the probability of that move being successful or not. Like in most RTS games, you are taking those factors as well as positioning into account, this time you are having to additionally factor in the timeline.

The timeline at the top of the screen also reveals exactly how many seconds it will take for your enemy to perform a certain move. So, if you see that its going to take 4 seconds for your enemy to aim and shoot, and it takes you 2.5 seconds to throat chop him – than you can execute that and interfere with his planned tactical timeline. This then allows you a second or two of extra time to pull up your gun and fire. Or to push him forward and fire at enemies behind him. The further you become familiar with the timeline and Hex’s system as whole the more impressive your chains of moves will become. Its just a shame that they look so janky.

Hex

Focus is a very important part of the games mechanics. It allows you to perform melee takedowns, crouched shooting and dodging properly. In order to refill your focus, you just bring up an option similar to that of reload or wait. The option to change stance is also vital to learn. This puts you in a crouched position and totally changes your view of the games grid depending where you are standing, or if you are behind an obstruction. It does make it harder for your enemies to hit you though, so it’s a bonus.

Somebody, please get this man a gun! John Wick Hex is a careful bit of impressive tactical and well-time action. While it definitely, wasn’t the game that anyone expected from the monster action film series it is based on, it does manage to impress in its innovative approach to RTS. Mike Bithell managed to add a very indie approach to the world of Wick. There is a very welcome chapter of John Wick’s life here that we hadn’t known about, and I love spending time in the world of Wick. It’s great to see a new big baddie that Wick had gone up against in his past. John Wick Hex is a fresh approach to RTS in genral and the addition of that timeline makes for an addictive experience where I found myself attempting to master my level ratings. While the actions of Wick are janky the masterful use of RTS elements makes for an unexpected but excellent experience.

John Wick Hex is now available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Mac.

Reviewed on Xbox Series X from a code provided by publisher.

Check out the side-scrolling and impressive, Unto the End right here.

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‘Immaculate’ Stars Reveal Which Horror Villains They Would “F, Marry, Kill”

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Sydney Sweeney is just coming off the success of her rom-com Anyone But You, but she’s ditching the love story for a horror story in her latest film Immaculate.

Sweeney is taking Hollywood by storm, portraying everything from a love-lusting teenager in Euphoria to an accidental superhero in Madame Web. Although the latter got a lot of hate among theater-goers, Immaculate is getting the polar opposite.

The film was screened at SXSW this past week and was well-received. It also gained a reputation for being extremely gory. Derek Smith of Slant says the, “final act contains some of the most twisted, gory violence this particular subgenre of horror has seen in years…”

Thankfully curious horror movie fans won’t have to wait long to see for themselves what Smith is talking about as Immaculate will hit theaters across the United States on March, 22.

Bloody Disgusting says that the movie’s distributor NEON, in a bit of marketing smarts, had stars Sydney Sweeney and Simona Tabasco play a game of “F, Marry, Kill” in which all their choices had to be horror movie villains.

It’s an interesting question, and you might be surprised at their answers. So colorful are their responses that YouTube slapped an age-restricted rating on the video.

Immaculate is a religious horror movie that NEON says stars Sweeney, “as Cecilia, an American nun of devout faith, embarking on a new journey in a remote convent in the picturesque Italian countryside. Cecilia’s warm welcome quickly devolves into a nightmare as it becomes clear her new home harbors a sinister secret and unspeakable horrors.”

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‘Terminator: Survivors’: Open World Survival Game Releases Trailer And Is Launching This Fall

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This is a game that many gamers will be excited for. It was announced at the Nacon Connect 2024 Event that Terminator: Survivors will be launching early access for PC via Steam on October 24th of this year. It will launch fully on a later date for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation. Check out the trailer and more about the game below.

Official Trailer for Terminator: Survivors

IGN states, “In this original story taking place after the first two Terminator films, you take control of a group of survivors of Judgment Day, in solo or co-op mode, faced with a multitude of lethal hazards in this post-apocalyptic world. But you’re not alone. Skynet’s machines will hound you relentlessly and rival human factions will fight for the same resources you desperately need.”

First Look Image at Terminator: Survivors (2024)

In related news to the Terminator world, Linda Hamilton stated I’m done. I’m done. I have nothing more to say. The story’s been told, and it’s been done to death. Why anybody would relaunch it is a mystery to me. She claims she doesn’t want to play Sarah Connor anymore. You can check out more of what she said here.

First Look Image at Terminator: Survivors (2024)
First Look Image at Terminator: Survivors (2024)

An open-world game about surviving against Skynet’s machines sounds like an interesting and fun game. Are you excited about this announcement and trailer release from Nacon? Let us know in the comments below. Also, check out this behind-the-scenes clip from the game below.

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New ‘Paranormal Activity’ Entry Isn’t a Movie, but “It’s Going to Be Intense” [Teaser Video]

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If you were expecting another Paranormal Activity sequel to be a feature film you’d be surprised. Maybe there will be one, but for now, Variety reports that DreadXP co-director and creative director Brian Clarke (DarkStone Digital) are creating a video game based on the series.

“We are thrilled to work with Paramount Game Studios and to have the opportunity to bring the world of ‘Paranormal Activity’ to gamers everywhere,” Epic Pictures CEO and DreadXP producer Patrick Ewald told Variety. “The films are steeped in rich lore and creative scares, and under the stewardship of creative director Brian Clarke, DreadXP’s ‘Paranormal Activity’ video game will honor those core tenets and offer horror fans one of our most terrifying games yet.” 

Paranormal Activity video game

Clarke, who worked on the horror video game The Mortuary Assistant said the Paranormal Activity franchise shows just how much reach a genre-specific title can accomplish, “If you thought ‘The Mortuary Assistant’ was scary, we’re taking what we learned during the development of that title and cranking it up with a more reactive and horrifying haunting system. It’s going to be intense!”

The new game is scheduled to be released in 2026.

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