7/21/2008

The future of E3/Batman

So, two major events went down last week, but both have a left many questions in their wake. I'll deal with E3 first, because it pretty much boils down to one question, is E3 dying? Probably; at least as we used to know it. As much as everyone was bitching about how much of a headache E3 was in its flashy years, now everyone is whining and moaning about it's seeming lack of importance. Lots of big names pulled out and there wasn't much of anything new or surprising in an event that used to be known for that kind of stuff. Maybe Nintendo summed it up best when they just full on admitted that they weren't using E3 to target core gamers because as much as MS & Sony may want to pretend otherwise, they used a majority of their presentations for things most certainly not geared towards core gamers in the first place either (i.e. Netflix integration). Maybe dying is a stretch, but E3 used to be THE show. It was where most of the big announcements for the next year or so were made. Now it's at best just another show, especially when most companies are putting together their own press events that are cheaper, less of a hassle, and let the spotlight be on them rather than shared with others. E3 may never completely die, but if it wants to retain any real relevance, a major revamp is in order. Just keep non-essential people (i.e. the brother of some gamestop manager) from going and that should keep the excess under control.

Now, onto the greatest movie ever! (I may be exaggerating, but not by much). Lots of questions, probably firstly, who should be the next Batman villain(s)? I think there's lots of good options. Even a resurrected Ra's Al Ghul or Two-Face (because Eckhart did a great job, just overshadowed by Ledge) seems like a decent idea. To be honest, what I'd really like to see is the Joker & Harley Quinn, but Ledger put such a definitive stamp on that character in Nolan's universe that if they were to re-cast the Joker (which I believe they should eventually) that you'd probably wait until at least a 4th film (if indeed that even happens, but I see Batman like Bond, make 10 films if you want as long as the rules of the Nolan-verse are strictly adhered to) to give some distance. Riddler & Penguin seem like poor choices. Catwoman would be good to include, but not as the primary villain. So I think the best possibilities would be either Poison Ivy (especially with Catwoman, make it sort of a love triangle) or Mr. Freeze. If for no other reason, to erase the horrible memory of these great characters being butchered by Joel Schumaker. Also, I would like to eventually see Robin included, as he's such an essential part of the Batman mythos. I even have pretty much the perfect actor for him, Emile Hirsch. But regardless, the future of this franchise overall looks incredibly bright, so I'd hate to see it only have one more film with so many good directions it can go.

Ok, I had planned to do this whole post yesterday, but inspiration struck as it often does at random times, prompting me to make this kickass new video for The Force Unleashed:



And I'll most likely post again on Wednesday with my initial thoughts on the Final Fantasy IV remake for DS as well as anything else that pops up. Until then, keep yourself busy with the FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Space Ranger

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