‘Middle-earth: Shadow of War’ dominates in fun but falls short of ruling them all

By Gunner Masters / November 6, 2017

'Middle-earth: Shadow of War' expands and improves on its predecessor in almost every way from longer story, deeper character interaction and development between them, abilities, loot and upgrades and the Nemesis System. Despite these great features and fun gameplay, it can feel cheap at times when Talion doesn’t seem to react to the player’s button presses or goes after the wrong target in a huge mob, wasting the momentum built by executing combos.

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GAMING

‘Fire Emblem Warriors’ features fun gameplay, but falls flat in storytelling

By Evan Hatfield / November 6, 2017

'Fire Emblem Warriors', for all its faults in trying to tell a decent story, still manages to create a satisfying gaming experience. History mode and other extra challenges keep the fun from running out too quickly, and the power of the game’s audiovisuals simply can't be denied.

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ENTERTAINMENT

South Park Season 21, Episode 4: “Franchise Prequel”

By Jeremy Rogers / November 6, 2017

Packing in some decent social commentary and a few laughs, “Franchise Prequel” is a good episode that will never make anyone’s “Top 10 South Park Episodes” list. While it won’t win any awards, it’s still better than the majority of season 20.

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LIFESTYLE

Adult-ish: Why immersive? Why not?

By Audrey Bowers / November 2, 2017

I have taken three immersive learning classes so far during my time at Ball State. This number includes the two classes that I am currently in. If you don’t know what an immersive learning class is, it is blank. 

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ENTERTAINMENT

Heartland Film Festival: ‘The New Fire’ illuminates with blinding brilliance

By Jeremy Rogers / November 2, 2017

By showing off a literal world-class roster of interview subjects and amazingly streamlined graphics, ‘The New Fire’ pulls off what decades of nuclear power advocates have not been able to do: bring people out of the Cold War era mindsets to support sustainable, carbon-neutral energy sources.

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LIFESTYLE

Pencil Shavings: 'The Lost Girls' book review

By Justice Amick / November 2, 2017

The Lost Girls by Heather Young is the type of book where you tell yourself, "Oh, I'll go to bed after this, just one more chapter," and then you can't sleep because you can't stop thinking about it.

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LIFESTYLE

Adult-ish: Dining service workers are human, they are worth your respect

By Audrey Bowers / November 2, 2017

I pile as many dishes as I can on top of one another. My hands become covered with gravy, Frank’s Red Hot sauce and pancake syrup. I grab cups and coffee mugs that aren’t emptied yet and I feel apple juice, milk, and cold coffee on my fingertips.

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LIFESTYLE

Baker's Dozen: America's Dark Horse Problem

By Ben Baker / November 1, 2017

Our nation is in trouble.  Wildfires have ravaged our lands in the hills of California. Hurricanes have come knocking at our shores. Our capitol spins like a top every day as the investigation to possible Russian collusion continues. But here’s something that may surprise you; none of these are our nation’s most pressing issue. 

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ENTERTAINMENT

The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 1: “Mercy”

By Evan Fischer / October 31, 2017

Cheap effects, poor writing, and uninspired action sequences prevent this season premiere from being anything more than a reminder that nothing of too much importance will likely happen until the mid-season finale.

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ENTERTAINMENT

Heartland Film Festival: ‘Dealt’ is a magical royal flush

By Ryan Fine / October 31, 2017

‘Dealt’ is an informative, multifaceted, and incredibly entertaining documentary. A snapshot of the life of renowned card magician Richard Turner, it is a story of individuality that is exactly as magical as its subject.

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ENTERTAINMENT

Heartland Film Festival: ‘The Best of All Worlds’ strikes a perfect balance between tragedy and hope

By Ryan Fine / October 31, 2017

‘The Best of All Worlds’ tells an incredible true story just about as well as it could have been told. It looks great, it’s well acted, and most importantly, it shares valuable inside perspective on the battle between love and addiction.

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GAMING

Lootboxes: Friend of the publisher, enemy of the consumer

By Tanner Kinney / October 31, 2017

For those who don’t know, the lootbox is a digital box with randomly selected items that can be used in the game. This can be as simple as a new voice line to a whole new character in some games and the value of what’s in the box can fluctuate wildly. It’s sort of like getting a box of chocolates. 

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ENTERTAINMENT

Best unheard of Halloween movies: 'The Invitation' is the best slow-burn thriller you have never seen

By Tanner Kinney / October 30, 2017

This film is going to sit you down and make you reconsider everything you know and love. If you’re looking for a horror film that won’t necessarily scare you, but make you feel despair throughout your whole body, The Invitation is right up your alley. 

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ENTERTAINMENT

Best unheard of Halloween movies: ‘Stitches’ is the quintessential slasher flick, now with more clowns

By Adam Sellers / October 30, 2017

The word to describe this movie is “fun.” It’s hard to go into most slasher movies expecting actual quality, but that’s because slasher movies aren’t trying to be anything Oscar-worthy. 

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ENTERTAINMENT

Heartland Film Festival: ‘Laddie: The Man Behind the Movies’ – The story of the man who saved ‘Star Wars’

By Emily Reuben / October 27, 2017

"Laddie: The Man Behind the Movies" gives an in-depth look at the life and career of Alan Ladd Jr. that has not previously been explored. While the subject is certainly interesting, the notion of a daughter learning to appreciate and accept her father's career is the film's real strength.

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ENTERTAINMENT

Heartland Film Festival: For a war film, ‘Instrument of War’ is surprisingly uplifting

By Ryan Fine / October 25, 2017

‘Instrument of War’ is an emotional rollercoaster that brings a rare hopeful story to the war film genre. Despite a couple of head-scratching deus ex machina moments, it’s a wonderful true story that proves that where there’s a will, there’s always a way. 

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ENTERTAINMENT

Heartland Film Festival: 'The Drawer Boy' is a charming tale of truth and friendship

By Ryan Fine / October 25, 2017

A great execution of a play-to-film adaptation, ‘The Drawer Boy’ is a quaint film that nonetheless packs no shortage of emotional power. It impresses through simple storytelling coupled with incredible performances from its three main actors.

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LIFESTYLE

Cafe con Leche: Let's not wear the sombrero for Halloween

By Stephanie Amador / October 25, 2017

I’m taking pictures of Homecoming on a Saturday morning, and I see these two grown women dressed up with a mustache and a sombrero.  They are walking with a group of girls, possibly between the ages of 8 and 9. These little girls are wearing sombreros too. 

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LIFESTYLE

Demi's Diems: The Glory Days

By Demi Lawrence / October 25, 2017

 The fence is 200 feet away, grass green and dirt a grayish brown from the rain that came down earlier. A man on a riding lawn mower does his work on the baseball field behind me. I’m sure he’s wondering what a girl is doing sitting in an empty dugout of a recreation softball field on a Monday afternoon. 

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LIFESTYLE

Adult-ish: Alcohol isn't the problem, sexual assault is

By Audrey Bowers / October 24, 2017

 When it comes to Ball State’s decision to not allow 13 fraternities to have alcohol at their events, I am relieved that some action is being taken by the university but I am still concerned about the well being of women on this campus.