I’ve been a fan of board games since I was a child and I do love roleplaying games, too. So seeing a board game that’s played using an app. The whole idea and the finished board game prototype looks pretty good.
The campaign is only running for six more days and is in the final stretch before prices go up. I would recommend taking a look, as the gameplay and storyline, along with the miniatures, look awesome.
Here’s the link if you’d like to check it out:
(I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review).
I was immediately intrigued by the blurb of this book and when I received the copy, I immediately found it a really easy read. I really found Claire an interesting, engaging character and it was great to get an insight into her history and past with her younger sister.
There were a lot of really tense moments in this book right from the start. I felt bad for Claire when reading about her strained relationship with her mother and I have to say, the more I saw of Tina, the less I liked her. Not that she deserved what happened, but I felt very little sympathy for her throughout the flashbacks that revealed more of Tina and Claire’s relationships.
While I felt that Claire, Rob and her partner were really well-written characters, I did find it a bit hard to picture some of the secondary characters, particularly the other officers in the police precinct. I could understand why they weren’t as developed, considering everything else going on in the book, but I would have liked to see more of the other officers involved.
I had a lot of theories throughout the book about what was really going to happen, or who was really responsible for what was going on. There were a few moments where I did struggle to suspend my disbelief, but on the whole, most of the book felt quite real and gritty. It was also interesting to see the forensic psychologist and her profile of the killer, given the evidence she had to work with.
I liked the relationship between Claire and Rob. I liked that they had that history together and that they were both really competent in their own fields. And it was really great to see Claire make the decisions to share her history when it was appropriate, rather than hide her own personal history.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book. It was an easy, engaging read with a main character I could really root for and a relationship that made a lot of sense and really worked for the characters. I would definitely seek out the next book in this series.
Okay, so Dune…this came out two years before I was born, but I became pretty obsessed with the movie when I was younger and in school, due to being obsessed first with the video game. I played that as often as I could. So when I had the opportunity to watch this movie at the cinema, I jumped at the chance immediately.
Despite the fact that this movie is older than me, it still remains one of my favourite movies. Though I feel that there was a lot of rather gross stuff portrayed. The scene with Rabban stuffing his face and talking was cringeworthy. And the Baron was just awful.
I thought that, despite the fact the actor was much older than Paul should have been, Kyle MacLachlan was particularly good at portraying him. I thought the same about the actors playing Leto and Jessica. I was given some glimpses into their relationships and I really cared about the characters.
One thing I really didn’t like with this movie was the use of voiceover when it came to the characters thinking. A lot of the time, I felt that what those thoughts could have been spoken out loud. Or shown through the actions of the characters. The main one that springs to mind is when Thufir Hawat thinks about how he’s failed Leto; that could have easily been shown through actions or even conversations with other characters.
I did think that the worldbuilding was done particularly effectively, especially when it came to Paul learning about Arrakis and the spice and worms. There were a lot of characters that weren’t fully developed; and there was a lot from the book I would have liked to see included.
Considering the age of the movie, I did think that the special effects were really good for the time period, even if watching the movie now makes it clear just how dated those are. What was particularly effective was the way the voice, perhaps the strongest weapon of some characters, was shown and heard. It was very clearly something that was out of the ordinary and still sends some shivers down my spine even now.
Despite the fact that this movie has been one of my favourites, I can’t really see it as a true adaption of the book. There was a lot that was left out that would have really added to the atmosphere of this movie. The use of the shields, especially, looked so clunky and awkward. I honestly couldn’t see how it was possible to fight like that.
This movie was entertaining to watch for the time period and the main characters were interesting and engaging enough to keep me watching. But there were things that could have been done better. I really hope that the newest adaption of Dune will live up to my expectations.
Okay, so Facebook adverts have led me to quite a lot of things that have been really enjoyable to experience. And a few not so good, but we won’t discuss those.
Isklander was one of those. I’ve lost count of how many times I ended up clicking on the advert and thinking how good it looked. So when I had the opportunity to do so, I paid for the event; and actually paid for all three games, because I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied until I’d seen the ending in its entirety.
The first game, Plymouth Point, started out as a fairly simple missing person’s case. While there wasn’t a real reason/background for me, as a player, to be involved in all of this, I can’t deny that the game was extremely engaging. Some of the puzzles were more difficult than others. For instance, I took far too long trying to solve the first puzzle in the final game that I think the ‘character’ I was interacting with took pity on me and eventually gave me the answer.
I loved the fact that there were so many different elements involved in this game. From using the video, to making use of actual websites, to areas clearly created just for this game…there was clearly a lot of work and effort that went into this game. And the storyline was thoroughly engaging. It contained enough twists and turns to keep me guessing about what was really going on.
There was a lot of detail that went into the characters themselves. Each one I saw and interacted with, I thoroughly cared about. During the second game, ‘The Mermaid’s Tongue,’ there was a huge amount that was going on. I was a bit disappointed that the text messages didn’t really seem to go anywhere, though. They added a bit more of an urgent element to what was going on, but there were a couple of instances where my attention was drawn from one thing to another and I ended up missing a couple of details.
The cinematic elements of this were really engaging and brought a lot more to the story. Really, this whole experience was completely unique and I’ve never played anything quite like it before.
As it says on the website, the three games are standalone and you don’t have to know the existing storylines to enjoy each one, but I personally feel that it’s a much better experience if you play all three games. Also, while it does say to play as teams, I actually did play it alone…and found it just as engaging. So if you can’t get a team together, then it’s still playable just by yourself.
There is a time limit to each of the three games, but for the first two, it wasn’t an issue. The third one, it was a bit harder to do everything and I did get right to the deadline, but still managed to achieve the end goal.
You can find the game here and I think it’s definitely worth playing. For all of the detail and work that’s gone into it, it’s a really engaging, involving storyline with a lot of different elements involved. Try it out!
I did see the original movie, but it was quite a long time ago and I don’t have a lot of memories of it.
I did enjoy this movie, I have to say. It was a nice setup scene at the beginning, with LeBron James as a child wanting to play video games and having it taken away from him.
Seeing LeBron with his children was, I thought, handled particularly well. There are lots of families where at least one parent has different expectations for their children than what the child was and I thought that was very realistic in this movie.
I did really like seeing the different worlds of the Warner Brothers and how the Looney Tunes characters had fit in with each of them. Daffy Duck in the world of DC was particularly amusing. And so was the world that Granny ended up in, although I didn’t really recognise what it was.
While I don’t really remember much of the original Space Jam movie and how it handled the cartoon logic, I did like that it was included here. Especially when they were originally training and LeBron was getting irritated about the fact they weren’t playing to the rules.
I did think there were some really good moments of foreshadowing in this movie and I liked the use of Dom’s video game and the characters he created. Plus, the fact that the father and son were supposed to be playing against each other added a whole conflict to the story; and it was really good to see things from Dom’s point of view as well.
I also particularly enjoyed seeing Dom’s excitement about what was going on, even though he didn’t know the real game that was occurring. I do have to say, though, the stakes didn’t feel truly real in the movie. Even towards the end, with all of the real-world audience having been brought into the setting.
It was good to see the distinctive personality and characters of the Looney Tunes, but I was questioning about just why they were so eager to join the team. After all, it wasn’t clear about how they went from all leaving the world to being scattered in all of the different worlds.
All in all, I did think that this movie was entertaining to watch, though I don’t really have a burning desire to watch it again. It was fun and had some nice family elements, but doesn’t really match up to my faint memories of the original.
It’s really no secret that Loki is my favourite Marvel character. As my nibling pointed out, for me, it goes: Loki, Thor, Captain America. My top three, in order of preference.
I was obviously very unhappy about what happened in Infinity War, so for Loki to get his own series made me really happy.
To be honest, this series really wasn’t what I was expecting. The TVA was intriguing, but the storyline running through the episodes wasn’t really all that gripping. Tom Hiddleston as Loki was definitely the strongest part of the series, in my opinion. And I really liked Mobius and the relationship he formed with Loki.
While I thought the idea of the Variants was really interesting, the fact that some of those were so vastly different was really confusing. Considering there was only supposed to be one sacred timeline, some of the Variants really shouldn’t have existed. Like where did the alligator come from?
Miss Minutes was a…strange character, to say the least. At first, I assumed that she was just an AI. But as the series progressed, I grew to dislike her even more.
I had some very mixed feelings about Sylvie. She was an intriguing character, the more I learned about her, but I couldn’t really see her as being a true Variant of Loki. They were very different. And I don’t just mean genderwise. Equally, I really wish there hadn’t been the romance sideplot. I think more focus on the world around them, what was going on at the TVA and Loki’s relationships with the agents, should have been explored more than a romance.
I did like seeing Loki’s progression through the series and how he sort of became a voice of reason towards the end. I would have liked to see more details about all the Variants, not just Loki’s. Basically, more worldbuilding would have made the series better.
As for the ending of season one, I felt there was a lot of buildup for very little payoff. The reveal was somewhat disappointing. And while the final scene did catch my attention and set it up well for season two, it was a bit disappointing.
Still, Loki, Sylvie and Mobius were fairly strong characters who I’d like to see more of. So even though I didn’t find the first season as good as I was hoping, I’m still planning to watch season two.
Firstly, I was very excited about being able to see this movie. I’m a big fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and it was awesome to see a movie entirely dedicated to Black Widow.
I’ve always liked Natasha as a character and I really liked seeing more of her background. I really didn’t like Alexei as a character, if I’m honest. From the beginning, he really didn’t feel as invested in the family as Melina was. Of course, the movie is likely vastly different from the comic books, so the characters might be vastly different in the comics. I did feel like Alexei was there more for comic relief than any real character depth.
On the other hand, the initial scene of the movie did a really good job of establishing both Natasha and Yelena’s history together. I liked seeing the interactions between them and there were some really good elements of foreshadowing throughout.
I did feel that there were areas where the movie was slow moving. While it did allow for some character interaction and development, there were some scenes that were just straight up boring to watch. Not to say that I didn’t enjoy the movie as a whole, but in some areas, it did drag.
While there were some good elements of humour in this movie, I felt it was more focused on the plot and character development, which was good. I felt like I was really able to get to know the characters, especially Natasha and Yelena. And I did like seeing the two of them working together, though I would have liked a bit more detail regarding Yelena’s first appearance and exactly how the brainwashing had affected the before and after of the Widows. It seemed like the brainwashing was more of a recent thing.
I liked the acknowledgement that Natasha’s family was also the Avengers, though it made me sad that she had to be separated from them. I would have liked to see a bit more about the others; especially Clint, because…surely he wouldn’t have just ignored Natasha and would have tried to contact her, at the very least?
All in all, I did enjoy this movie. It allowed for more depth to Natasha’s character and it was good to see more of her history and past explored. And it tied in very neatly with the rest of the Avengers movies.
If you do watch this movie, there is an end credits scene.
I actually found this movie to be more engaging than the first one. It was interesting to go back to the time of Camp Nightwing and the Romeo and Juliet vibes were definitely stronger here, what with the Capture the Flag and the red and blue shirts to differentiate the two different towns.
Apart from Nick, I thought that the characters from Sunnyvale really weren’t developed at all, apart from being mean jerks. Right from the beginning, I had a strong dislike for the majority of the Sunnyvale characters. In stark contrast to the first movie, none of the characters were killed until they’d been developed enough for me to actually start caring about them.
While it was obvious how this movie would end, due to the first movie in the trilogy, there was still enough mystery to keep me invested in the movie. The slow advancement to the killer being revealed was enough to engage me in the struggles faced by the characters, both those involving the killer and those outside of the current situation they were involved in.
I did think that some of the choices made by the characters were stupid ones (taking pills that you have no idea what they are springs to mind), but they did make some good decisions where it really counted.
I found Cindy to be an interesting character, even though I found her hard to understand at first. In comparison to the others, I felt that she grew the most as a person. By the end of the movie, I really didn’t like Nick. While I could understand his reasoning, it didn’t really seem to fit with his actions as the Sherriff at the end of the first movie.
There was a lot of gore and violence in this movie; which was only to be expected, of course. But there was still the opportunity to learn some more about some of the past killers. For instance, Nurse Lane provided some good insight into her daughter’s tragic back story.
I did enjoy this movie a bit more than the first one. I thought the characters shown in this were better developed before the violence started. And I did feel really bad for Tommy, who seemed so confused about what was happening at the start. The killer’s hood in the first movie made a lot of sense while I was watching this movie.
All in all, I thought that this movie was engaging and I liked Deena, Josh and Sam’s appearance from the first movie. Though I did question what Deena had done about her wound from the end of the first movie. And the beginning scene of this movie, with the alarms going off, did a really good job of setting the scene. Plus, there were some really good elements of foreshadowing.
I’m looking forward to seeing the third movie in this trilogy, if only to find out the town’s true history…and in the hopes that Sarah Fier’s story isn’t just ‘evil for the sake of being evil.’
I was immediately interested in seeing this movie when I saw the poster at my local cinema. The body swap plot isn’t an original one, but this is the first time I’ve seen it done with a serial killer swapping bodies with an intentioned victim.
The initial scene of this movie did do a good job of setting up the Butcher and the sense of dread that followed the murders committed at the beginning. And those were…well, particularly gruesome and gory. But there was very little character development for the group of teens at the beginning (even for the cannon fodder who die first in a horror movie), so I was watching this first scene with zero care or concern for the characters who were initially being picked off.
This feel of little character development did come through a lot during the movie, though I did like the acknowledgement of the tropes from one of Josh’s lines in the movie.
I did feel that some of the jokes were recycled from other movies that did them better, such as when Millie is using the toilet and commenting on the body parts she currently has. In my opinion, Jumanji handled a similar scene so much better.
There was zero depth to the Butcher as a character. I feel the movie would have done a much better job if it had only stayed with Millie, or had focused on her friends and family watching her strange behaviour from the outside.
I did think there were some good elements of foreshadowing and there were some good moments of humour that did make me laugh out loud.
I have to say, I thought that there was a lot more chemistry between Millie and Booker when Millie was in the body of the Butcher. Also, it was great to see that the Butcher was limited in what he wanted to do by being in a body that was vastly different to what he was used to.
This movie wasn’t one that had a lot of mystery or required a lot of concentration to be paid to it. There wasn’t much in the way of character development for any of them…and the entire scene at the end felt really unnecessary and just tacked on. I wouldn’t watch the movie again, at least any time soon, but it was an entertaining enough movie to watch the first time.
I was immediately interested in seeing this movie, as I always enjoyed R.L. Stine’s books when I was younger.
There were some creepy moments in this movie, but there wasn’t really much in the way of jump scares. A lot of it was very predictable.
I found Deena easy to relate to. I couldn’t say I was that happy about Sam, though. While I did only see their relationship from Deena’s point of view, Sam came across as a much weaker person.
The fact that Deena and Josh’s father didn’t appear was really telling. All that I knew about him came from what the other characters said.
The scene at the beginning did a good job of setting up the feel of the rest of the movie, even though it was a fairly normal start scene for a horror movie. However, there were a lot of questions raised for me with everything that was going on. Even by the end of the movie, I had very little idea of what was going on with the history. But the first movie did a good job, because it made me want to watch the next two movies in the trilogy.
I did notice that there was a very clear divide between the two towns right from the beginning and it came across as very much a ‘Romeo and Juliet’ vibe involving Deena and Sam and the conflicts between the two towns. Plus, the only character from Sunnyvale who actually seemed to have any real depth was the Sherriff. And I was definitely intrigued by what seemed to be his knowledge of what had happened before.
I did find it strange that so many of the town’s residents seemed to just accept that violence and murder was part of their lives. While Josh was talking to someone online who seemed to believe in the witch and clearly believed in her as well, it didn’t seem like there were that many people who were questioning just why so much evil was happening in one small town. The headlines at the beginning of the movie seemed to indicate murder was occurring extremely frequently.
I did feel like the world of this movie was very small. In a way, it was good, because it allowed for more focus on the main characters. On the other hand, it didn’t much feel like there was a wider world outside of Shadyside.
I can’t really say that this movie stood out much from the crowd, but it was entertaining to watch and I liked the fact there was representation. Plus, I am interested in watching the next two movies, even if I’m in no hurry to watch this one again.
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Ink of Blood 