Month: April 2018

Avengers Infinity War — Thoughts on Thanos

Avengers Infinity War

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

  • Spoiler Alert

Avid followers of Marvel Entertainment’s works have reason to cheer. The ten-year ride to get to Avengers: Infinity War is finally here!

Essential to this film is knowing the events from the previous Avengers, Captain America, Guardians of the Galaxy films. The story continues from where Thor:Ragnarök left off.  When considering the focus is finally on the mad Titan Thanos, to learn about his back story is the highlight of this film.

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Is Alex Garland’s adaptation of Annihilation About Enlightenment?

Avengers Infinity WarBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Alex Garland’s adaptation of Jeff VanderMeer’s book, Annihilation is a thoughtfully compelling film. The narrative defies the norm for science fiction. It takes elements from survival horror and turns a few ideas I recall from Robert Zemeckis’ Contact around. If I had to deal with meeting aliens in the same way this film suggests, let them have this planet! Part of the story’s DNA may have taken inspiration from John Carpenter’s The Thing. However, this idea goes beyond cloning or regenesis.

In this film, a trip into the light fantastic known as The Shimmer to figure out what’s happening to a small part of Planet Earth is required. Many governments are worried. If this weirdness took place during Jesus Christ’s time, some may call the mission is to approach the Burning Bush. After Moses encountered God to obtain the Ten Commandments, he was positively glowing.

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Returning to the Fold: MtG Arena & Hopes Before the Apr 26th Update

Avengers Infinity War

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Magic the Gathering: Arena is Wizards of the Coast‘s next digital iteration of Stainless Games’ Magic Duels. They have taken over development and have created a glitzier version which I appreciate. This update sports a new engine to allow for easier integration of new cards (and perhaps old too) when this product comes out of Beta testing. This change may happen very soon. On March 26th, new features will open up and Dominaria is being added. I am more excited to play this new set more so than owning the cards.

I played this set during the prerelease weekend and did better than expected. The practice I got in with the video game helped me win a few games than be smeared. WotC’s goal to bridge the two formats worked. Soon, I can ditch Duels in favour of Arena once the testing tag is removed. I may still continue to show up at some local game store events, but I feel like I’m done “paying” to play. As long as Arena has a mode for casuals, I will be sold on this new product. I have far too many hobbies where I sink just as much money into, and those I’m not too deep into will have to go. Daily quests for coin rewards are far more appealing to take on. Packs of cards now have wild cards that can be exchanged for specifics pieces. This feature is terrific, such that nailing any card is possible. To do this for the physical game means spending a lot of money for multiples of a killer card.

In the Beta product, this product focuses on player vs player battles. Coming changes include “best of one” events (no clearer definition is offered in the press release), an improvement in how to earn currency and added features. I am hoping narrative elements (much like in Duels for starting players) will be included, and perhaps also a test mode for experimental decks. Playing against opponents around the world is enjoyable, but I want a space where wins and losses are not recorded under DCI league. Supposedly, this feature is available in Magic Online; however, this iteration is as old as the Commodore PET displayed at the Royal BC Museum — it’s not a user-friendly system.

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Remembering TRON Part 2 — What’s Still on the Game Grid

From coin-op glory to modern reboots, TRON’s gaming legacy spans arcades, consoles, and fan-made projects that keep the Grid alive. Here’s a look at every key title still worth playing.

TRON logo for arcade and console gamesMost TRON games made after the original film—or its sequel, Legacy—have tried to stay faithful to the source material. But let’s be honest: the 1982 arcade classic still reigns supreme. With four different challenges packed into one cabinet, skilled players could blaze through the entire thing in a single credit. While it didn’t recreate every beat of the movie, it was an impressive achievement for its time and pure coin-op bliss. Later, parts of it made their way to home computers, inspiring new spins on the formula.

For this list, I went back to replay every TRON title I could still get my hands on. Some were easy to find, others required more digging (and stretching the “hobby allowance”). And yes, I still believe TRON isn’t dead—it’s just lying dormant, waiting for the next big power surge. If you want to know which arcade classics inspired these games, check out The Classic Games That Inspired TRON.

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On Rampage and Its Salute to Toho Films

Avengers Infinity War

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Somewhere along the way, the movie adaptation of the video game Rampage forgot its video game roots. The monsters were once human. They were mutated from the craziest of sources and to tell the entire backstory is a movie in itself! I’m okay with this core change. It would have made for an amusing B-Movie horror film back in the 50’s, but these days, the demands are elsewhere.

Audiences want it loud. Production studios want realism. For me, I have too much of a cat’s curiousity. I want to see what kind of story can materialize from many an 80’s arcade game. Not all of them had enough of a narrative to begin with.

No matter what, Dwayne Johnson, can do no wrong. His natural charm and the investment he makes into the roles will usually get me buying a movie ticket for. Even when he was a wrestler, this guy is the only reason I paid attention to the WWE. I can smell what The Rock is cooking, and that’s his natural charm. When he has that pearly white smile, you know you are in for a ride. He makes anything he appears in just that gosh darn fun.

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The NFB Takes on Annecy with Animal Behavior & More!

National Film Board of Canada

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

The National Film Board of Canada is getting ready to take on Annecy International Animation Film Festival with five shorts going into competition. This event takes place in France from June 11 to 16th, and is considered by many as a great event to premiere unique animated works. This year, they are honouring Brazilian animation and music in this art form will be the spotlight. Fantasia and Allegro non Tropo are classic works, and to learn the composers behind them will be talking about the process will make for a nice contrast to the sneak peaks I have seen from the NFB.

Filmmakers Alison Snowden and David Fine have a screening of Animal Behaviour (Zoothérapie), and it has a sweet charm to it that I like. This team is better known for the celebrated Bob and Margaret, and I am very reminded of the same type of humour in their short. The series follows the lives of these titular characters in a mundane manner and by the end of an episode, the feelings that emerge are from 70’s TV show, Happy Days. Viewers are simply left smiling. With the short, caricatures of today’s concerns can be found. Are we truly in control of our lives? Cheryl, the praying mantis, has boyfriend problems; Lorraine, a leech, suffers from separation anxiety; Todd, a pig, has an eating disorder, Jeffrey, a bird, has pangs of guilt; and Linda is an obsessive-compulsive cat.

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