Happy New Year! If you’re still on holiday, enjoy it. You don’t seem to be alone, though, as it’s been a relatively quiet first week of 2022 in terms of entertainment news. Only the Gaming Industry has come out of the festive break guns blazing with announcements. Let’s start there.
Gaming
Ubisoft’s subscription service Ubisoft+ is coming to the Xbox platform. No date yet for the Xbox launch, but until now the service – which brings players more than 100 games and other rewards – has only been available on PC, Stadia, and Amazon Luna.
Unlike EA Play, Ubisoft+ won’t be included with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate (Ubisoft+ will require a separate subscription), but the partnership has some crossover with Game Pass. New tactical co-op shooter Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction is getting a day one release on January 20 with Xbox Game Pass, and PC Game Pass. More here.
PS VR2 is coming. The next-gen virtual reality tech, an upgrade of PlayStation’s existing VR offering, was announced at CES 2022 this week. Centred on the new VR PlayStation VR2 Sense controller, PS VR2 promises high-fidelity visuals, new sensory features (like headset feedback), as well as enhanced eye tracking, and a simplified single-cord setup.
When it eventually launches, one of the first exclusive PS VR2 games will be Horizon Call of the Mountain, a Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West spin-off developed by Guerrilla and Firesprite. Players will be able to explore deeper into the Horizon universe’s unique post-apocalyptic setting. More here.
Film
Jared Leto’s Morbius, based on the vampiric Marvel anti-hero has been delayed again. Initially set to hit cinemas in July 2020, the film has been pushed back several times. This week’s change sees it shift from January 28 to April 1. Theories for the postponement range from ongoing pandemic concerns to Sony’s desire to keep Spider-Man: No Way Home their star box office performer for longer. More here.
Speaking of Marvel heroes, we got our first look at Tessa Thompson’s wardrobe upgrade for Thor: Love and Thunder, where her character Valkyrie is now Queen of the Asgardians. Thompson’s leaked on-set selfie reveals a costume more in line with that of her ruling predecessor, Thor. Taika Waititi’s colorful Thor sequel (the fourth solo Thor movie) releases on July 8. More here.
Television
The past few years have included several high-profile celebrity deaths in the last days of December. 2021 didn’t buck the trend. Less than a month from her 100th birthday, trailblazing woman entertainer Betty White died peacefully in her sleep on December 31. The beloved comedian had a career in television spanning seven decades (acknowledged even as a Guiness World Record), with her signature roles including Sue Ann Nivens on the Mary Tyler Moore Show, and Rose Nylund on The Golden Girls. Read Betty’s full obituary here.
Nineties nostalgia remains strong. MTV’s notorious cartoon slackers Beavis and Butt-Head are returning in the form of a new animated film for streaming service Paramount+. The upcoming movie, featuring aged versions of the title characters, will serve as the kick-off for a “reimagined” Beavis and Butt-Head series on Comedy Central. Original series creator Mike Judge is behind both projects, neither of which have release dates yet. More here.