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Boston University took control of its area's school in a way that gave precedence to the Ball State and Muncie Community.
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Boston University took control of its area's school in a way that gave precedence to the Ball State and Muncie Community.
Every year produces a relentless heaping of blockbuster films that sell fantastically, but how many of them are actually good is another question entirely. Though the major circuit may have been a little bit short on masterpieces this year, it was by no means empty. We got another great Pixar movie, a beautiful shoutout to The Room, and the best M. Night Shyamalan film in a long time. We also caught a whole host of independent films at Heartland Film Festival this year, some of which were made in our own backyard. So as it turns out, the year of The Disaster Artist wasn’t such a disaster after all.
Out of all the Star Wars video games ever created, the original 2004 Star Wars: Battlefront and the 2005 sequel hold an extremely special place in the hearts of fans. So when news of a franchise reboot for the series came to light, a large amount of hype and equally large expectations formed around the project. The first of the new Battlefronts, released in 2015 by Electronic Arts, was praised for its stunning visuals and accuracy in representing the Star Wars universe. However, issues with squad mechanics and DLC prices truncated the game’s lifespan, and a decent first step into recreating the golden age of Battlefront ended in a stumble.
by Michael Robb Out of all the Star Wars video games ever created, the original 2004 Star Wars: Battlefront and the 2005 sequel hold an extremely special place in the hearts of fans. So when news of a franchise reboot for the series came to light, a large amount of hype and equally large expectations formed around the project. The first of the new Battlefronts, released in 2015 by Electronic Arts, was praised for its stunning visuals and accuracy in representing the Star Wars universe. However, issues with squad mechanics and DLC prices truncated the game’s lifespan, and a decent first step into recreating the golden age of Battlefront ended in a stumble. EA and DICE, the developers for the new Battlefront games, had a second chance with the newly released Star Wars: Battlefront II. In the weeks leading up to the game’s release on November 17th, trailers and early access gameplay excited fans with the promise of more depth than the previous title, a single player campaign, and free DLC after launch. But as more and more players got their hands on early access copies of the game, glaring flaws began to show themselves. Criticisms of the loot crate microtransaction system, locked hero characters, and a horribly ‘grindy’ progression system have led many to boycott the game. Unfortunately, these criticisms prove to be well founded in this new addition to the Star Wars video game galaxy. Campaign Of all the new features contained within Star Wars: Battlefront II, the campaign was among the most anticipated, and for good reason. The story that was advertised was interesting and unique: Iden Versio, a special forces trooper in service to the Empire, would serve as the protagonist. Seeing the Star Wars galaxy from the perspective of those who are traditionally the antagonists sounds like a breath of fresh air. And for a short while in the campaign, it is. As Commander Versio, you take on the rebellion using advanced tech and weaponry, all for the glory of the Empire. But regrettably, the twist in Star Wars: Battlefront II flips the entire narrative on its head, which in this case is not a good thing. Even worse, this twist occurs only four missions into the 12-mission campaign. Beyond the above-mentioned direction they decided to take the story in, Battlefront II suffers from shifting character perspectives. At many points during the campaign, certain missions will have you play as a famous character from the Star Wars saga. These characters include Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, Lando Calrissian, and Kylo Ren. While Luke and Kylo’s missions made sense in the context of the story and fit the narrative well, the other characters felt extremely out of place. It seems as if the developers included these characters simply to check off the “included iconic character” box on their campaign to-do list. As disjointed and cobbled together as the campaign is, the actual gameplay experiences you get to take part in are classic Star Wars. You want to hijack an AT-AT walker? Battlefront II has that. You want to take part in massive space battles where you take on swarms of fighters and capital ships? This game has that too. And all of it is stunningly beautiful and realistic, and feels as if you are playing through a full-fledged Star Wars film. Overall, the campaign for Star Wars: Battlefront II starts off with the story you want to experience, but then switches to something that has been done in Star Wars a thousand times before. Fortunately, the game makes up for that through epic singleplayer gameplay moments and stunning visuals. Multiplayer Moving on from the campaign, the multiplayer modes of Star Wars: Battlefront II are what will bring players back in the weeks and months after the launch of the game. At least, that is the hope. If you enjoyed the multiplayer in DICE’s previous Battlefront installment in 2015 (because let’s be honest, that’s all that game had), you will likely enjoy this one as well. The biggest addition in this sequel reminiscent of the older Battlefront titles is the inclusion of Clone Wars-era content. You can finally play as clone troopers and droids on Kashyyyk, fly Tri-Fighters and V-Wings above the oceans of Kamino, and duel as Yoda and Darth Maul on Naboo. The two other eras available revolve around the Imperial/Rebellion conflict from the original trilogy and the battles between the First Order and the Resistance of the newer films. The multiplayer overall is a ton of fun, with four different classes to play as across the eight different factions. You will play as these factions in the majority of the game modes that are available, including Battlefront’s biggest game type, Galactic Assault. In this mode, you either attack a set of objectives or defend them against the enemy team. The objectives shift depending on the map, and are integrated within a miniature narrative that takes place as the match goes on. This creates a fantastic sense of immersion that, when combined with the stellar graphics, makes you feel like you are a part of the Star Wars story. Other modes within the title include Blast—a standard team death match mode, Strikes—a mode focusing on close quarters combat with objectives similar to capture the flag, and Heroes vs Villains—a four-versus-four battle between the light and dark side heroes of the Star Wars saga. However, one mode that has yet to be mentioned is without doubt one of the greatest parts of the game: Starfighter Assault. This game type pits 12 players against 12 others in spaceship combat across all three Star Wars eras on five different maps. The space combat present in this game is a huge step up from the 2015 Battlefront due to an increased focus on match objectives and a complete overhaul of the flight controls. Not since the days of the Star Wars: Rogue Squadron games has ship-to-ship combat been this fun, and many may find themselves spending more time in this game mode than any other. Progression System In Star Wars: Battlefront II, the graphics, gameplay, maps and modes are varied and overall are entertaining. However, one aspect of the game that overshadows all others is the absolutely horrendous progression system. There are several ways to progress through Battlefront II. The ultimate rewards you are chasing are unlocking Star Cards and new heroes to play as. Star Cards are items you collect and buy that give boosts to different character classes, ship types, and heroes. These cards are obtained randomly through the purchase of Crates, Battlefront II’s version of the loot box. What makes the progression in Battlefront II so painful revolves around how Crates and heroes are obtained, as well as their cost. Both Crates and Heroes are purchased with Credits, the in-game currency. Inherently, there isn’t anything wrong with that. The real problem with this system is that the rate at which you earn credits is incredibly slow. At the end of each match, a player will on average earn between 200 and 300 credits. Crates cost between 2,000 and 4,000 credits each, depending on what type you buy. Heroes cost even more than that. Iden Versio, the hero from the campaign, costs 5,000 credits, while Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, arguably the most popular characters in Star Wars, cost a whopping 15,000 credits each. With each multiplayer match taking between 10 to 15 minutes on average, you will have to play for a ridiculous amount of time to unlock what you want. But do not fear! EA is here to save you time… as long as you’re willing to give them more money. Before the launch of this game, EA had plans to incorporate a currency different than the normal Credit system. This currency, called Crystals, would be purchasable with real-world money and could be spent on Crates to help speed your progression along. As a result of this, many players who had early access to the game spent huge sums of money to purchase Crates for Star Cards, giving them an unfair advantage over others progressing normally. The backlash from the fan base that came about afterward was so intense that EA and DICE disabled the ability to buy Crystals temporarily, and have promised to bring back the option to buy them at a later date after they rework the system. Unfortunately, this seems to be too little, too late. The system that is in place right now drip-feeds the player Credits at an agonizingly slow rate, and appears to have been designed that way to incentivize players to buy loot boxes so EA could make more money. This creates a piss-poor progression experience for the normal player who isn’t willing or doesn’t have the money to spend on extra currency. Featured image from DualShockers
by Michael Robb It’s no secret that there have been a lot of Spider-Man movies in recent history. With five movies and now two reboots of the character in the past fifteen years, many people are getting a case of Spider-Man fatigue. What can this new Spidey flick possibly provide that the previous films haven’t done already? Is Homecoming a refreshing new take on the character, or more of the same? Tom Holland is Peter Parker Move over, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield! The latest and greatest iteration of the web-slinger is perfectly cast. If you liked Tom Holland’s performance in Captain America: Civil War, then you’re in for more of the same in Homecoming, and that’s a good thing! Tom Holland’s performance represents everything great about the Spider-Man character: the teenage awkwardness, the quirky one-liners, and an eagerness to prove himself to others. Unlike the original Spider-Man actor Tobey Maguire, Holland actually looks like he could be in high school, and his interactions with other students are one of the most entertaining parts of the entire movie. What makes the Spider-Man shown in Homecoming so compelling is that he is written and acted in a way where he is Peter Parker first and Spider-Man second. He’s not a superhero who is leagues above the normal individual. He’s not rich, he’s not an invincible green monster, and he’s not a god from another world. Spidey is human, flawed and down-to-earth. He lives a normal, everyday high school life, and deals with problems that all of us face in our lives. And for this reason, he is one of the most relatable heroes ever created. He may go toe-to-toe with supervillains and can stop a bus with his bare hands, but at the end of the day, he has to be home in time for dinner. The balance between Spider-Man the hero and Peter Parker the average Joe has always been a hallmark of the character, and Tom Holland plays the role in Homecoming perfectly. Michael Keaton’s Vulture Every superhero story needs a good old fashioned villain, and Spider-Man Homecoming is no exception. Previous entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe have had generally lackluster and forgettable antagonists, but Michael Keaton’s portrayal of the Vulture breaks the mold in a spectacular fashion. The Vulture feels like a real character in Homecoming, with realistic motivations that the audience can sympathize with. He isn’t trying to conquer the world like Loki, and he’s not trying to blow it up like Ultron either. All that the Vulture wants to do is provide for his family, and give them a better life. Just like Peter Parker is a normal student, the Vulture is an everyday working man who was screwed over by those more fortunate than him, and as a result turned to crime to support those he loves. The most compelling aspect of the Vulture’s character in Homecoming is that he is a direct foil to Spider-Man. Both are pushed away and negatively affected by those above them, and come from less than financially strong backgrounds. But despite the similar situations they find themselves in, they choose to take entirely different paths. The Vulture is who Spider-Man could have become if he had chosen to use his powers for personal gain, but his morals kept him from doing so. It’s like Uncle Ben said, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Speaking of which… No origin story, no Uncle Ben By the time Homecoming begins, Peter has his powers and is an established hero in Queens. Uncle Ben is not mentioned by name once in this film, and the spider bite is briefly mentioned in dialogue between Peter and another character. Ultimately, the decision by the filmmakers to not include the same origin story we’ve all heard a hundred times was a good call. The underlying themes of power and responsibility, doing what’s right in the face of adversity, and the obligation to help others because you are able to are all present in this story, but they are not the main focus and shouldn’t be. Spider-Man: Homecoming has its own story to tell, and it doesn’t need Uncle Ben to do it. Spider-Man Easter Eggs For those of you who are fans of the character outside of the movie realm, you’ll find quite a few Easter egg references from the comics throughout the film. My personal favorite comes straight out of The Amazing Spider-Man #33, a fantastic story from the web-slinger’s original comic run. There are plenty more references that keen-eyed Spidey lovers have picked up on in Homecoming, so keep your eyes peeled! For those of you who may be concerned that these references bog down the film in any way, don’t worry! These little tidbits are so subtle that unless you were really looking for them, you wouldn’t even know they were there. All images from Wikia and IMDb
Ultimate Wolverine fan Tt Shinkan brings you a comprehensive breakdown of X-23's comic and real world origins.
[embed]https://youtu.be/7DTV8-xNwHM[/embed] by Michael Robb This review is based on the Xbox One version of the game. After eight long years of eager anticipation, the real time strategy game Halo Wars 2 has finally been released for the Xbox One and, for the first time since Combat Evolved released in 2001, a Halo game is available on the PC as well. Like its predecessor, Halo Wars 2 delivers fluid, easy to master controls and explosive, large scale battles. The opening scenes inHalo Wars 2 do a tremendous job of setting up the story and getting the player invested in the characters. Captain Cutter and Spartan Red Team take on a much more prominent role than they did in the first game, and a new Brute character, Atriox, is shaping up to be one of the greatest villains the franchise has had in a long time. Additionally, the cinematics are extremely well done and blur the line between live-action and CGI. Despite a stellar introduction, the narrative for Halo Wars 2 suffers in the long run. The events that transpire in the game don’t move the story forward in any kind of meaningful way, and the ending is abrupt and offers little in the way of resolution. In spite of several story pitfalls, Halo Wars 2 delivers in the area that matters most: fun, responsive, and easy to pick up gameplay. The intuitive console controls from the original game return in the sequel, and the graphics receive a major overhaul that make every explosion pop. A large variety of units allow players to formulate a broad number of unique strategies, and with seven selectable leaders, each with their own unique abilities and traits, you can be sure that no two matches will be exactly same. In addition to the classic Deathmatch and Domination game modes present in the first game, Halo Wars 2 includes a brand new multiplayer mode: Blitz. Rather than build up bases and train units on the ground, Blitz introduces a card based system for spawning units. While the game mode is fun at first, the lack of multiple maps and card variety lead to a very predictable and repetitive experience when compared to the base game. Video Credits: Producers: Michael Robb, Emily Reuben Post Production: Michael Robb Graphics: Daley Wilhelm, Sarah James Music: Jack McGinnis All Images From: gametyrant
On a special Button Mash, the new editors sit down to talk their favorite films and their new positions. Check it out!
In today's episode of Checkpoint, Michael and Dylan discuss the new Rogue One Teaser trailer, the Blizzard ordered shutdown of the pirated World of Warcraft server Nostralius, and the unique punishment surrounding pirated versions of Quantum Break.
In today's episode of Checkpoint, Julia and Michael discuss the retirement of the Wii U later this year and the swath of negative reviews of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice streaming in from critics.