The Flickcast – Page 681 of 1030 – Stuff Nerds Love

‘Final Fantasy XIV’ Alpha Beta Comparison Video Released

Posted on June 28, 2010

For a series that was once created in order to save of a game studio, Final Fantasy has become one of the defining RPG series in video games. With twelve traditional releases, one MMO, and over a dozen spinoff titles, Square Enix is readying itself for a fourteenth Final Fantasy, again jumping back towards the MMO routes of Final Fantasy XI.

Since its announcement at 2009’s E3, only a small sampling of information has been released about the game, mostly to not get in the way of the hype of Final Fantasy XIII, released earlier this year. The game will follow a skill progression system, mostly resembling the structure of Final Fantasy II. Developers have taken what they have learned from Final Fantasy XI and admit to also borrowing inspiration from other titles such as World of Warcraft (the MMO industry leader), Diablo and Warhammer Online.

Coming to both the PC and PlayStation 3, Final Fantasy XIV already looks to surpass Final Fantasy XI. With a console generation to build upon and not being hampered by PlayStation 2’s internet limitations, Final Fantasy XIV may have a shot at becoming the dominant console MMO.

Below, take a peek at a side by side comparison of footage from the Alpha build of Final Fantasy XIV compared to the Beta build. For those who don’t understand that difference, Alpha code is an earlier version in the game’s creation life cycle. This is where more of the bare bones of the game is laid out. In Beta, more testing occurs and polish has been put over details in both gameplay and graphics.

Still set for an unannounced 2010 release date, be sure to check back right here for more news on Final Fantasy XIV. In the meantime, check out the video and some pics from the game after the jump.

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Indie Review: ‘Solitary Man’

Posted on June 26, 2010

A host of  recent indie films have specialized in caustic characters and unlikable leads.  Greenburg, Mother and Child, and Please Give have all featured some of the most unpleasant fictional characters of recent memory.  However, none of their characters can hold a candle to Ben Kalmen in Solitary Man, played with gleeful abandon by Michael Douglas.

The former movies at least  allowed us to believe that those characters wanted a chance at redemption.  Those characters would have liked nothing more than to assuage their guilt over their toxic actions toward others.  Not Ben.  He gets a couple of opportunities to redeem himself,  he thumbs his nose at said opportunities. He is one of the most narcissistic characters ever brought to life on film.  He’s also a misogynistic pig.

Ben is sixty years old, yet he won’t even look at a woman over twenty.  The lone exception to this disturbing rule is his current girlfriend (Mary-Louise Parker) who he keeps around because she is wealthy and has a well connected family. Ben is trying to rebuild his life and fortune after an embarrassing career-ending swindle he pulled when he was a car-salesman guru.

Disgraced and penniless, Ben tries to make up for his shortcomings by bedding as many women as is physically possible for a man his age. He treats the women with cool disregard and cruel contempt after they succumb to his charms.  He is truly awful. He espouses offensive observations such as, “No one over forty is stick-thin.”

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The Flickcast’s ‘On the Radar’

Posted on June 25, 2010

Welcome to this week’s On the Radar where we delve into all corners of the entertainment, tech and geek Internets for news, views and whatnot that may have escaped our regular coverage this week. Let is know if we missed something interesting. Otherwise, on to the links!

Jimmy Kimmel brings us a phenomenon of pop icons clashing in The Jersey Shore Saga: Friggin’ Twilight.

We’ve been to Comic-Con, so our standards for costumes are pretty high. This General Grevious costume still takes the cake.

Peter Travers of Rolling Stone Magazine has seen Inception, and he says you’ll love it.

The Food Network can be pretty boring for non-foodies, but unnecessarily censoring parts of it can make it fun in a whole new way.

Megan Fox is campaigning to play Rainmaker in a Gen 13 movie. Considering how Jonah Hex went, shouldn’t she just stop?

The world of independent film keeps growing in quality and professionalism, and the newest film The 3rd Letter is proof of just that.

What if Nintendo made Halo 3? Only hilarity, that’s what.

In other Twilight news, Robert Pattinson is allegedly a descendant of Dracula. With that brow, our first guess would’ve been Frankenstein’s Monster.

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Get a Sneak Peek at Tonight’s ‘Merlin’

Posted on June 25, 2010

It’s Friday so that means previews of tonight’s shows on Syfy. This week, however, we’ve only got a preview of tonight’s Merlin to share with you. But don’t worry, this episode of the show has enough going on so we don’t really need anything else.

In the preview for tonight’s episode, called “The Fires of Idirsholas,” Merlin’s loyalty is pushed to the limit by Morgause’s plan for revenge. What will Merlin do and how will he manage to keep his word yet prevent an even bigger disaster from happening? Tune in tonight to find out.

Before that, check out the preview for tonight’s episode after the jump. Merlin airs on Syfy at 10/9C.

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Three More Previews for NBC’s ‘The Event’

Posted on June 25, 2010

As we’ve been doing, here’s another in our ongoing series of previews of new shows coming either in the Summer or the Fall. This time around we’ve got another preview for NBC’s Fall show The Event to share with you today.

The show, which concerns a super secret event, a cover-up so big the President didn’t even know the full details and the average guy who accidentally uncover the secret, promises suspense, drama, action and fodder for those who love these kinds of stories. It also boast a pretty impressive cast including Jason Ritter, Sarah Roemer, Laura Innes, Zeljko Ivanek and Blair Underwood as The President.

In these new clips some of the stars of the show try to explain what they think The Event is all about and what their theories are. So far, after watching all the previews for this show, it does seem pretty interesting. Will it replace something like Lost for an audience hungry for a new show to latch onto? We’ll see.

Check out the new videos after the jump. The Event will air Mondays at 9/8C on NBC.

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Indie Review: ‘Mother and Child’

Posted on June 25, 2010

Rodrigo Garcia’s new film is entitled Mother and Child, but it might more accurately have been called Mother and Daughter, as variations of that freighted relationship play out in the interconnected lives of three women in Los Angeles, depicted with stellar ensemble work by Annette Bening, Naomi Watts and Kerry Washington.

Annette Bening’s role is the most attention-getting, as Karen, a woman so angry and closed that she becomes apoplectic when a co-worker (the wonderful Jimmy Smits) attempts to give her a bag of home-grown tomatoes. Karen lives with a mother possibly even grimmer than herself, but her true wound is the loss of the baby she was forced to give up for adoption when she was fifteen years old.

It soon becomes apparent, at least to the viewer, that this baby is now the adult Elizabeth, played by Watts, a corporate lawyer who protects herself with clinical detachment and a sexually sadistic streak. Meanwhile, Washington plays Lucy, a young wife desperate to adopt and become a mother.

Far apart at first, these lives overlap in that hyperlink way popularized by movies such as Babel and Syriana, but in this case the collisions are not so much a matter of chance or fate as it is of deep connections having to do with motherhood, and all revolving around the character of a social-working nun (“Mother Superior,” representing Mary, the Holy Mother?) played by Cherry Jones with appealing compassion. If such nuns were the rule rather than the far-apart exception, we might all be tempted to convert to Catholicism.

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Breaking: Peter Jackson Negotiating to Direct ‘The Hobbit’

Posted on June 25, 2010

Well folks, it looks like it’s pretty much a done deal that Peter Jackson will, much to the delight of fans everywhere, take on directing duties of both Hobbit films. After the departure of Guillermo del Toro recently speculation ran rampant that Jackson, who’s Lord of the Rings films are the definitive cinematic incarnation of the beloved trilogy, would take over for del Toro.

However, Jackson’s camp denied the speculation citing his commitments elsewhere. However, that seems not to be the case now as Jackson is in active negotiations to take on both films that will bring J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit to the big screen. According to reports, another of the stumbling blocks was money and the current financial state of MGM.

However, it seems the case is being made to MGM’s owners that two Jackson-directed Hobbit films would almost guarantee box office success. So, it remains to be seen if this very hopeful development will prove to be accurate. Let’s hope so for fans of The Hobbit everywhere.

Jackson is an immensely talented filmmaker and his Rings trilogy are examples of some of the best literary adaptations ever made. So, his version of The Hobbit should also be extraordinary. Let’s hope for every fan’s sake he really does end up as the director. More on this story as it comes to us.

Until then, how do you guys feel? Is Jackson the best choice for The Hobbit?

Check Out This New Trailer for ‘Singularity’

Posted on June 25, 2010

Raven Software and Activision’s Singularity is one of those games I’m really looking forward to. I had a chance to have a look at it previously and we’ve been bringing you as much info as we can, but nothing really compares to actual hands-on gameplay. Hopefully that will come soon enough and the game will be in my hands.

Until then, we will have to content ourselves with trailers and various other materials that highlight one aspect of the game or another. Today, we’ve got a new trailer for you that gives some more info on the game. In it, you will go behind-the-scenes with Raven Software as they discuss the multiplayer aspects of the game. Sounds good.

Click through to check out this new trailer. By clicking through you certify you are eighteen years of age or older.

Singularity hits store shelves on June 26th.

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