Following Friday’s public holiday in South Africa, and most of the team taking a break (apart for overachieving Kervyn with his Stream Scene post), today we have an extended Weekly News recap. That does mean, however, we were able to squeeze in the biggest announcements and reveals from Netflix’s Tudum event, livestreamed out of Brazil this past Saturday. You can find our highlights below.
Before that, though, there were three notable deaths over the previous seven days. Actor Treat Williams, maybe best known for the movie adaptation of Hair, and TV series Everwood, died aged 71 in a motorcycle accident. Iconic comic book artist John Romita Sr., who defined the looks of such characters as Mary Jane Watson, the Punisher and Wolverine, and heavily influenced the look of Marvel comics throughout the 1970s and 1980s as the company art director, died aged 93. Finally, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Cormac McCarthy passed aged 89 from natural causes. Some of McCarthy’s novels were adapted for the screen to great acclaim, including The Road, No Country for Old Men and All the Pretty Horses.
Gaming
After the past few weeks, who isn’t Gaming Showcased out now? Still, the former E3 period ended on a high with the Xbox Games Showcase (+ bonus Starfield Direct) and Ubisoft Forward in short succession. A lot was covered during the Xbox event (watch a recording here), and Microsoft has conveniently created a complete list of everything announced and revealed.
Notable mentions must go to new trailers for Hellblade 2: Senua’s Saga (releasing in 2024 for Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, Steam, Cloud, and coming to Game Pass day one); and the rebooted Fable (which is still presumably quite far from release); plus surprise Dune DLC coming to Microsoft Flight Simulator. As for hardware announcements, the new black Xbox Series S with bigger hard drive is a big deal, although most viewers seemed to be drooling over the Starfield Limited Edition controller and headset. The former is reportedly set to retail at R2,000 in South Africa.
It’s hard to narrow down our shortlist of favourite new game reveals from the Showcase, but we’ll be keeping an eye on the following:
Action adventure South of Midnight comes from the makers of Contrast and We Happy Few, and explores the macabre, fantastical folklore of the American Deep South through heroine Hazel, who bridges the gap between humanity and the spirit realm.
South of Midnight is coming to Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, Steam, Cloud, and Game Pass on day one.
Also featuring a distinct visual style (this time centred on Japanese folklore) and exploration of the macabre – as the worlds of humankind and spirits collide – is Capcom’s Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess. Gameplay promises to combine action and strategy.
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess will come to Series X|S, Windows PC, Cloud, and Game Pass on day one.
Still on a horror/nightmarish kick is Still Wakes the Deep, from The Chinese Room, developers of Dear Esther, Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture and Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs. The studio brings their narrative strengths to this tale of terrifying events on a North Sea oil rig. Seventies and Eighties movie horror has influenced this survival orientated tale.
Still Wakes the Deep will be playable in 2024 on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, Cloud, and, surprise, Game Pass from day one.
Looking like an ideal new game for fans of Dishonored and Bioshock is first-person steampunk RPG Clockwork Revolution, from the creators of Wasteland and Arcanum. Gameplay centres on travelling back in time to reshape your home – the steam-powered metropolis of Avalon, which has been subject to sinister manipulation.
Clockwork Revolution will be released on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, Steam, Cloud, as well as become available day one with Game Pass.
Something we’ll be able to play a bit earlier than the games listed above is Dont Nod’s Jusant, a climbing-centred action-adventure puzzle game. Out during the Northern Hemisphere Autumn this year, this tranquil, dialogue-free journey sees the protagonist and their cute water companion, scale a massive tower, uncovering its secrets along the way.
Jusant is coming to Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows PC, Cloud, and Game Pass day one.
This brings us to a game that was revealed during the Xbox Showcase, but was properly explored during Ubisoft Forward (watch the 2-hour presentation in full here), namely Star Wars Outlaws – the first properly open-world Star Wars game. Set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Star Wars Outlaws, from Massive Entertainment, delivers the ultimate space scoundrel experience. Fans will play as antihero Kay Vess, and her loyal companion Nix, as they attempt one of the greatest heists the Outer Rim has ever seen, to set them up for a new life. But that means outwitting the galaxy’s greatest crime syndicates.
Star Wars Outlaws is launching on Xbox Series X|S consoles, PlayStation 5 and Windows PC through Ubisoft Connect in 2024.
Ubisoft Forward crammed in a lot more (here’s the full playlist of clips), like news on the next Just Dance, an introduction to The Crew Motorfest, and closer looks at gameplay for Assassin’s Creed Mirage and just-announced Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, which we are super excited about.
Arguably the other biggest star of the Ubisoft Forward 2023 show, though, was the finally unveiled Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, a tie-in to James Cameron’s blockbuster film series. In this first-person open-world action-adventure, you play a Na’vi warrior who ventures into the Western Frontier, a never-before-seen part of Pandora. There you unite with other Na’vi clans to protect Pandora from the invasive human forces of the RDA company. You can also watch the longer Game Overview trailer here.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora releases on 7 December this year for next-gen consoles and PC.
Now for some good news relating to indie games. Last year, we singled out narrative puzzle platformer Puzzles for Clef as one of our standouts from Wholesome Direct 2022. Now this visually striking and cipher-filled adventure (from Ukrainian developer Weasel Token and publisher Freedom Games) has a release date: 27 July 2023 for PC, before coming to Nintendo Switch later this year.
In the game, bunny heroine Clef is gifted a special treasure hunt by her sister. It starts with travelling to the island of her ancestors, which is full of beauty, secrets and interactions with the diverse locals.
Wishlist Puzzles for Clef on Steam now, and even play the demo.
Still talking indie games, Xbox’s ID@Xbox, a development and support programme for independent game creators, has announced ten indie games coming to Xbox Game Pass, either on day one of the game’s release, or day one of its arrival on Xbox. We’re most excited for Double Dagger Studio’s cute black cat adventure Little Kitty, Big City, which is out next year – and will also be available on Steam and Nintendo Switch. Also catching our eye are fantasy city builder The Wandering Village, and handmade stop-motion narrative game Harold Halibut.
Windows Central has provided this handy breakdown of everything above, and when it’s coming to PC, Xbox One and/or Xbox Series consoles:
- The Bookwalker: Thief of Tales (Xbox Series X|S & Xbox One) — June 22, 2023
- Techtonica (Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, & Windows PC) — July 18, 2023
- The Wandering Village (Xbox Series X|S & Xbox One) — July 20, 2023
- Sea of Stars (Xbox Series X|S & Xbox One) — Aug. 29, 2023
- Mineko’s Night Market (Xbox Series X|S & Xbox One) — Oct. 26, 2023
- Galacticare (Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, & Windows PC) — 2023
- Harold Halibut (Xbox) — Early 2024
- Little Kitty, Big City (Xbox) — Early 2024
- Another Crab’s Treasure (Xbox Series X|S & Xbox One) — 2024
- Neon White (Xbox Series X|S & Xbox One) — Unknown release date
We don’t like to end a recap section on a downer, but video game and media holding company Embracer Group is in trouble. This after an extremely aggressive acquisitions programme during the past few years made them the owners of the likes of Square Enix’s former Western properties, like Tomb Raider and Deus Ex, as well as the rights to all Lord of the Rings media (excluding series and literary works), along with Dark Horse Comics. Essentially, Embracer made all these purchases on the gamble that a big investment partner would come on board. That agreement fell through, meaning that Embracer has kicked off “a comprehensive restructuring program” with immediate effect. Read the press release here.
Embracer Group’s upcoming streamlining and consolidation efforts will affect roughly 17,000 employees. Notably, one of the primary consolidation and cost reduction components is “The closing of studios and termination of projects, that have not yet been announced and with low projected returns.” You can find Embracer’s full list of subsidiaries and game studios here.
Film
Following the teaser trailer a few weeks’ back, we now have the full-length official trailer for Nimona, a genre-defying and unapologetically queer animated adventure based on the award-winning web comic by ND Stevenson. Ballister Blackheart (Riz Ahmed) a disgraced knight turned villainous scapegoat of a fantasy kingdom teams up with rebellious shapeshifting teen Nimona (Chloë Grace Moretz) to cause chaos, and maybe clear his name.
Nimona comes to Netflix later this month, on 30 June.
Another new trailer here. Mixing sci-fi, comedy and conspiracy, They Cloned Tyrone is a pulpy mystery caper where with a hustler, pro and pimp (John Boyega, Teyonah Parris, and Jamie Foxx) uncover a nefarious government plot centred on African American neighbourhoods. It’s been described as a “homage to the Blaxploitation films of 1970s.”
They Cloned Tyrone comes to Netflix on 21 July.
No matter how well The Flash performs at the box office, evidently the film’s director Andy Muschietti has done enough to impress James Gunn, as the co-head of DC Studios. Mama and It’s Muschietti will be overseeing Batman: The Brave and the Bold, which is set in the new onscreen DCU, and which will explore the relationship between Batman (AKA Bruce Wayne) and a more ruthless Robin (Wayne’s biological son Damian). The film is inspired by Grant Morrison’s famous Batman and Robin comic storyline.
Whether it’s the result of the Writers’ Strike, Disney’s cost-cutting measures, general production delays, or a combination of the three, but the House of Mouse is shaking up their release schedule. These are some of the notable shifts and announcements, in order:
- Deadpool 3 is moving up from 8 November, 2024, to 3 May 2024.
- Captain America: Brave New World is moving from 3 May 2024 to 26 July 2024.
- Thunderbolts is coming out 20 December 2024, moving from July 2024.
- Blade will now release on 14 February 2025, from September 2024.
- Fantastic Four arrives 2 May 2025, after initially flirting with a February 2025 launch.
- A live-action Moana will be released on 27 June 2025.
- Avatar 3 is arriving in cinemas on 19 December 2025, a year later than initially planned.
- Avengers: The Kang Dynasty shifts an entire year, from 2 May 2025, to 1 May 2026, similarly pushing back Avengers: Secret Wars a year to 7 May 2027.
- Two untitled Star Wars movies are debuting on 2026: in May and December respectively.
Also on matters of timelines, Sony has revealed the release plans or their Marvel (AKA Spiderverse) movies. We knew about the following locked (for now) dates:
- Kraven the Hunter on 6 October 2023
- Madame Web on 16 February 2024
However, Sony has just reserved these dates as well: 8 November 2024, and 27 June 2025. Rumours are that these dates are when we’ll see the next Venom and Spider-Man live-action films.
We’re LEGO fans in these parts, and there’s nothing like a good movie tie-in LEGO set to excite us. Following the likes of Home Alone, and Batman Returns, now there’s a Hocus Pocus build coming out on 4 July. Featuring 6 minifigures and 2,316 pieces, the set will let fans construct The Sanderson Sisters’ Cottage from the cult hit 1993 original film. It’s set to retail at USD $229.99, and R3,999 in South Africa.
Series
Netflix Tudum, the streamer’s global fan event took place this past Saturday, livestreaming out of Brazil. You can watch a full recording of the event here or consult the video playlist of all individual clips. Alternatively, read a summary of everything announced here. Your crib notes version, at least according to us, is:
- Season 2 of coming-of-age queer romcom Heartstopper is back on 3 August.
- There will be an Extraction 3, again starring Chris Hemsworth.
- Cast announcements for Squid Game Season 2 (no notable new female faces, though)
- Linda Hamilton is joining the cast of Stranger Things Season 5.
- The teaser for upcoming film The Archies, which transplants the beloved Archie comics characters to 1960s India.
Now for our top 3 Tudum biggies:
Releasing in January next year is 3 Body Problem, a new sci-fi series from the creators of Game of Thrones David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, with fellow showrunner Alexander Woo. 3 Body Problem is based on the novel of the same name by Liu Cixin, and will have a global and centuries-spanning scope.
We also have our first trailer for highly anticipated live-action anime and manga adaptation One Piece (which was shot in South Africa, out of interest). In this goofy, action-packed adventure, aspiring pirate captain Luffy (Iñaki Godoy), assembles a crew – AKA the Straw Hat Pirates – to search for a mythical treasure. Oh, and Luffy has elastic powers thanks to eating a special devil fruit. One Piece comes to Netflix on 31 August.
Speaking of live-action adaptations of beloved cartoons, we still don’t know how we feel about another attempt at Avatar: The Last Airbender (especially since the creators of the animated original left the new project due to creative differences). However, Netflix used Tudum to unveil the first official images of its series leads in character, namely Gordon Cormier as airbender and avatar Aang; Kiawentiio as waterbender Katara; Ian Ousley as her brother Sokka; and Dallas Liu as firebending royalty Zuko.
Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender releases in 2024.
Moving away from Netflix now…
If you love animated anthology series like Star Wars: Visions, and Love Death + Robots, here’s another one to get hyped for. Out in just a few weeks is Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire, a 10-part sci-fi series made in Africa.
You can read our previous article on what to expect of Kizazi Moto, here, but know that this set of afrofuturist short films comes from creators based in Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. These animators draw on the continent’s rich and diverse histories and cultures to tell uniquely African tales that feature advanced technology, aliens, spirits, and monsters.
Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire premieres exclusively on Disney+ on Wednesday, 5 July. Watch the brand-new trailer below.
Now for a few TV tidbits to round off today’s recap:
- Silo, arguably the best new sci-fi series on TV in 2023 has just been greenlit for Season 2. Watch the still unfolding Season 1 now on Apple TV+.
- Disney’s Daredevil: Born Again and Max’s The Penguin have halted production indefinitely due to the Writers Guild of America strike. Initially, both comic book adaptations were due for release in 2024.
- Netflix’s upcoming The Crown Season 6 will see Queen Elizabeth II played by all three actresses who have previously portrayed the former British sovereign in the show. That’s Claire Foy (S1-2), Olivia Colman (S3-4), and Imelda Staunton (Season 5). Joining the trio is also Viola Prettejohn, who will play a young Elizabeth during WWII. Season 6 will be the historical drama’s final season, and is expected to premiere in 2024.