Ender’s Game teasers ignite: original novel popularity surges

As the film version of the story presented in the Orson Scott Card science fiction book Ender’s Game gains steam in the teaser and advertising world, the novel appears to be grabbing its own share of attention as well. This week is the 9th week that Ender’s Game has been aboard the New York Times Best Seller’s list, it currently resting in the #18 spot between A Clash of Kings and A Feast for Crows. For those of you excited about the movie, there’s been several teasers unleashed quite recently that you’ll want to wrap your head around, not least of these the first teaser poster, Battle Room and all!

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What you’re seeing in this poster (and it’s enlarged vision below) is, oddly, an illustration of what we’ll see in the movie theater. While this sort of thing is certainly not unheard of, (see: every single Star Wars movie), it is the first time that this particular movie has had a teaser that wasn’t an on-set photo. What we’ve got here is a battle school student – we’ll assume it’s Ender himself – standing in front of a new vision for the Battle Room in the Battle School where he’ll spend most of the film.

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What you’ll notice here as a fan of the book is the major differences between the written word and this visual representation, starting with the transparency of the whole thing. While in the book we had to assume that the walls were either black or metallic gray, here they appear to be perfectly see-through, with the Earth shining brightly behind. This makes a whole lot of sense, of course, since these kids are, indeed, training to be battling in space – not in a darkened room.

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Click the thumbnail for a full-sized version of the teaser poster.

The “stars” (aka the boxes) appear to be very much the objects written about in the book, and the Flash Suits look just as excellent as they did when we saw them in earlier previews of this film. You’ll see our first look at Flash Guns as well as the way the students will be blasting their way through one of the most important elements of the story – the game.

This film has been given a new synopsis in the last few weeks as well, mind you:

In the near future, a hostile alien race called the Formics have attacked Earth. If not for the legendary heroics of International Fleet Commander Mazer Rackham (Ben Kingsley), all would have been lost. In preparation for the next attack, the highly esteemed Colonel Hyrum Graff (Harrison Ford) and the International Military are training only the best young minds to find the future Mazer.

Ender Wiggin (Asa Butterfield), a shy but strategically brilliant boy, is recruited to join the elite. Arriving at Battle School, Ender quickly and easily masters increasingly difficult challenges and simulations, distinguishing himself and winning respect amongst his peers. Ender is soon ordained by Graff as the military’s next great hope, resulting in his promotion to Command School. Once there, he’s trained by Mazer Rackham himself to lead his fellow soldiers into an epic battle that will determine the future of Earth and save the human race.

Based on the best-selling, award winning novel, ENDER’S GAME is an epic adventure which stars Asa Butterfield, Hailee Steinfeld, Ben Kingsley, Viola Davis, with Abigail Breslin and Harrison Ford.

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Make sure you check this fabulous futuristic epic out on November 1st at a theater near you – and keep your eyes peeled as more website teasers like http://if-sentinel.com/ appear. Hot stuff!

[via Ender’s Ansible]


Ender’s Game teasers ignite: original novel popularity surges is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Goodbye Harlem Shake, Hello…Hadouken-ing?

It seems as though a new internet phenomenon sweeps the web every few weeks, sparking global obsession along with a fresh generation of internet trolls and blogger backlash. The new "Hadouken-ing" photography craze out of Japan has just broken onto the "meme scene", but the battles and discussions have already begun, mainly about the name, where the original idea actually came from, and of course, the age-old question: Which is better, Street Fighter or Dragon Ball Z?

The Mill LA teams with Sonos Studio for “Bugs” interactive multimedia experience

This week the folks behind VFX studio The Mill LA have joined with Sonos Studio for an interactive multimedia installation event that’ll be going by the name of “Bugs!” This installation will be living in Sonos Studio from the 5th of April until the 5th of May. This installation will mash together the greatness that both groups can provide: six massive displays combined with six Sonos PLAYBAR units, each of them depicting a Bug that’ll blow your mind.

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Each of these monoliths will have a TV screen of its own, each of them facing the center of a large circle where visitors will be able to drown themselves in this immersive experience. Each of these bugs was created by filmmaker Tom Kuntz and The Mill LA, each of them coming at you from their own position in the circle of wild action with no less than a soundtrack made of the “exuberant loops” of electronic musician Dan Deacon.

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For those of you that’d like to know more about the PLAYBAR that blasts each of these bugs to life with audio so real you’ll freak, have a peek at our full Sonos PLAYBAR Review from earlier this month. At the opening for the show (on April 4th), there’ll be a live performance by Dan Deacon as he collaborates with the Bugs right in front of your face!

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Each of the Bugs uses not only a Sonos PLAYBAR, but a BrightSign digital media player as well. Each of the six characters will be performing simultaneously while visitors to the show are doused in what Sonos and The Mill LA describe as “an intense audile and visual experience, demonstrating the supremely immersive energy of the combined senses.”

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If you’re a member of the public – and we know you are – you’ll want to head over to Sonos Studio starting on April 5th at any time between 10AM and 6PM. That’s Sonos Studio at 145 North La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036 – you can’t miss it! Also stay tuned to SlashGear’s Entertainment tag portal for more excellence from The Mill LA – we’ve got some hot action in store for you!


The Mill LA teams with Sonos Studio for “Bugs” interactive multimedia experience is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Weekend Watching: 1985 “Computer Chronicles” discusses the all-new Macintosh

Back when Apple’s first Macintosh computer was introduced, there was an explosion of interest from not just geeks and nerds, but “the rest of us” too – that’s what this television program explores. What you’re about to see is an episode of the legendary Computer Chronicles, a show here dug up from the archives by Wired for your enjoyment. This episode goes by the name “MACINTOSH”, was directed by NICHOLS, and is program number 210, and is approximately 29:03 in length – there’s even a countdown beeper before it begins!

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Obviously when there’s a program this old all about computers, even when it’s all “retro” and funny because of it, there’s some level of understanding you must have so far as how excited everyone seems about now-ancient tools and features. What’s particularly interesting about this video is how simple the presenters make each of the terms included in the still relatively new concept of visual computing.

What you’re going to learn is how the Apple Macintosh computer made working with a computer at home – or at school, or in the office – a reality for those that otherwise would never have considered using a computer. While the difference between working only with lines of code and working with pictures and renderings of objects wasn’t brand new at the time, the solidification of that kind of thinking was certainly taking place.

You’ll find that the Macintosh they’re working with here in the program was launched with two applications – one for typing (MacWrite), the other for drawing with your mouse (MacPaint). By the time this program had been filmed, as they say “the number of Mac products has skyrocketed, and now numbers in the hundreds.”

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So consider this your mission for this weekend – see if you or one of your friends or family members would like to learn how computers work at their most basic. The talks here are applicable even to our most advanced systems – see how they make the magic happen now! And make sure you grab your healthy helping of Easter ham or otherwise non-denominational feast with the future on your mind!

BONUS: Save a collection of episodes lost to time for whatever reason, there’s a massive amount of episodes of Computer Chronicles up in the Internet Archive for your perusal now as well. More computer knowledge from the 1980s than you’ll know what to do with!

Have a peek at a few more “Weekend Watching” posts below to see how they ring your bell!


Weekend Watching: 1985 “Computer Chronicles” discusses the all-new Macintosh is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

This is the Modem World: Nerds in rabbit holes

Each week Joshua Fruhlinger contributes This is the Modem World, a column dedicated to exploring the culture of consumer technology.

DNP This is the Modem World Nerds in Rabbit Holes

I have many interests: mountain biking, martial arts, video games, running, reading, cooking and horror movies. For each one of these, there is an internet rabbit hole so deep, so full of information and compatriots that it’s a miracle I ever actually follow through on them. Ask yourself this: Do you do what you say you do online?

The internet is great at allowing people to nerd out on their particular interests. While it serves up news and media like a champ, many of us spend our time deep-diving into whatever rabbit hole interests us. When we nerd out about technology here at Engadget, for instance, we’re getting a double dose: reading about technology in a tech environment. It’s a beautiful thing; it’s addictive and we lose sight of reality while we’re going deep. We could be in a bar, at home, at the office — wherever it is, we lose sense of our environment.

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Metal Gear Solid V revealed: hard-hitting mega-title coming up!

This week at the 2013 Game Developer’s Conference a couple of mysterious trailers from the past few weeks have been combined by the folks at Kojima to create Metal Gear Solid V. This is the first time the game has been officially revealed as existing, while two trailers – “The Phantom Pain” and “Ground Zeroes” – were both actually part of a series of pieces leading up to this final first push. Metal Gear Solid V (or Metal Gear Solid 5, if you prefer), is loaded and ready for action.

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What you’re seeing here is the trailer shown on-stage today courtesy of Hideo Kojima – the presenter at hand, mind you, was wearing a bandage around his head and a t-short that read “Phantom Pain” as he did so. None too subtle! If you don’t see it here already, you’ll soon be having a peek at some more gameplay as well.

As far as the title Ground Zeroes goes – that’s just another piece of the game’s plotline. According to TheSixthAxis, we’ll be seeing Ground Zeroes late in the game while The Phantom Pain will be a bit of a prologue sort of presentation. For those of you wondering, that’s actor (and again voice actor) Keifer Sutherland helping Snake out of the hospital, and the band Garbage doing the soundtrack we’re hearing thus far.

Here you’ll see The Phantom Pain as revealed at the 2012 Video Game Awards – remember and freak out accordingly!

Also be sure to remember the greatness that was – and will be – Ground Zeroes in its first trailer here:

Stay tuned as we find out more information than you can handle about this futuristic blast-fest and dive deeper into tapping on windows and walls than you’ll ever have wanted to go! Check the timeline below for more Metal Gear Solid action as well!


Metal Gear Solid V revealed: hard-hitting mega-title coming up! is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The Wolverine International Trailer revealed: a future in Japan

It’s time drop a couple of claws into the first full-length trailer for The Wolverine, the next chapter in the Hugh Jackman saga surrounding one of the most wild characters in the Marvel Comics universe. Here in this series of revelations (otherwise known as SPOILERS) we find Wolverine, also known as Logan, living further into the future than we’ve yet gone with Marvel on-screen thus far. We see there that his hero is offered thanks from a man whose life had been saved by Wolverine, offering him a gift for his generosity.

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Of course with such plot elements finding their way into the trailer itself, we must assume that Wolverine’s trip to Japan happens rather early in the movie. With the man finding his love in Jean Gray lost in a crumpled photo and and reborn in the woman you Wolverine buffs might recognize, he’s brought to the land of the blood red sun where we’ll certainly be seeing some rather emotional moments. No worries though, there’ll be plenty of sword fighting to be had.

When you dive into the Wolverine story archives, you find a massively expansive timeline and versions of the truth – in the comics, that is. If you’re talking about the film series, we’ve still got a lot of questions about how everything in Logan’s life will have happened – and will happen in the future. With this movie it would appear that those with the rights to the Wolverine name have decided that he’ll survive well beyond the lives of his X-Men pals – we’re not expecting many, if any, crossovers here in this installment.

This may well make for a less-than exciting set of battles in future X-Men-centric films – at least for this particular character. What fun is it if we know he survives?

This film will be hitting theaters in July – this international trailer reveals that internationally you’ll be grabbing your seat on July 26th! Have a heart and see Wolverine chop his way to mortality courtesy of a man with a fabulous set of magical science skills this summer – and let us know how it goes!


The Wolverine International Trailer revealed: a future in Japan is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

LoL Quickfind Tells You Everything You Want To Know About Your League Of Legends Account

League of Legends Katarina and RyzeHave you ever wondered how long you’ve been playing League of Legends? What about how many influence points you’ve accrued? Sadly, Riot doesn’t really seem all that keen on providing access to this information (since, cool as it is, it doesn’t really help you manage your account better). Thankfully, there’s a utility that does – it’s called LoL Quickfind.

The Wolverine movie gets 6-second trailer on Vine

What you’re about to see is a series of clips from a trailer for the next Wolverine (Marvel Comics) movie starring Hugh Jackman and one whole heck of a lot of swords. This movie will take place largely in modern-day Japan where our best beastly buddy will take on evil in a rather ancient sort of way. The trailer, you’ll find, offers very few clues as to what we’re going to see in the film – other than many, many fights and a whole lot of bladework going on.

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This film has had a couple of “moving posters” revealed this week as well. The first shows the man whipping out his claws in a rainy day situation on a street, while the other shows Wolverine discussing his Batman-like stance with the wind. Have a peek first at the louder of the two posters here, then let yourself reflect on how Batman and Wolverine were paired up in the 1990s for a comic series that had them eventually converge into one being – name that comic label!

This much more Dark Knight-like moving poster is the “international” model in which you’ll once again understand that we’re headed to Japan. This fabulous environment will be the place where Logan fights not just with his claws, but with a katana as well. His mind and body and spirit will be tested as well, etcetera, but the blood will be there. Oh yes, there will be blood aplenty.

Finally have at this lovely Vine video and cry because it’s so very, very short. You’ll be able to see the full version of this trailer on the 27th of this month while the movie will premiere on the 26th of July!



The Wolverine movie gets 6-second trailer on Vine is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Daft Punk album Random Access Memories revealed in 15 seconds

If you’re all about the robotic electronic supersonic music extravaganza that is Daft Punk, you’re in for a treat this week – the first preview of their upcoming album Random Access Memories. This album has been previewed during this past weekend’s Saturday Night Live, the name shining forth in a fabulous reveal the likes of which can only have been summoned by this artistic duo. You’ll also notice that the album is called RAM.

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This is the second of what we must assume will be several previews of the upcoming album, one that’s quite a few years in the making. As the team’s last “proper” album was released in 2005, this will be the first time we’ve heard a non-soundtrack set of tracks from Daft Punk in 8 years. The newest promo you’ll see here shows what may be the cover of the album as well.

The first of two promo videos was also shown during an episode of Saturday Night Live. This is also the first time these fabulous electro-power-team will be releasing an album with Columbia Records.

Sony Music owns the Columbia Records and, according to Pitchfork, they’ve registered a collection of track lengths in the order of a 13-track album that’s more than likely set to be the Daft Punk album in full. These tracks are anywhere from 3:48 to 9:04 in length, with most of the tracks hitting at least the 4-minute mark.

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You’ll be able to grab this album on the 21st of May, 2013, and pre-orders are available right this minute. This beast will be available on CD, vinyl record, and in digital format from your favorite music sale sources across the planet.


Daft Punk album Random Access Memories revealed in 15 seconds is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.