Author: kane2026

Computer Games / DVD / Film / Literature / TV-series

SciFiEmpire.net celebrates it’s 7th anniversary! + Book Giveaway

SciFiEmpire.net celebrates it’s 7th anniversary! Today marks the day that seven years ago I started SciFiEmpire.net. In fact the website had been up running for a week or two back then but I was still choosing a layout. July 3rd 2011 I wrote my first post. Since then SciFiEmpire.net has gone through various incarnation until things settled down a few years ago. Seven years had brought a lot of change. My first review was on Deus Ex Human Revolution. Eureka was still on the air, as was Alphas. Since then I have provided coverage of Person of Interest, Revolution, Fringe...

Computer Games

Round-up of Science Fiction Games at E3 2018

After an extended vacation I am back writing for ScifiEmpire.net. First on my todo list is a write-up on the best things I saw at this years E3 show in LA. Below are 10 Sci-Fi games I am looking forward to. Cyberpunk 2077 CD Projekt RED’s Cyberpunk was the darling of this year’s E3. Unlike us mere mortals the press was given the opportunity to see the game in action. It was a 45-minute walkthrough and ever since none of the game journalist present have shut up about the game. The rest of humanity had to make with due with...

Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom Review Owen and Claire hiding from Indoraptor

Film

Jurassic World The Fallen Kingdom Review – Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt return

Jurassic World The Fallen Kingdom Review I have been looking forward to Jurassic World The Fallen Kingdom ever since the franchise rebooted in 2015. That movie did not make a particularly lasting impression on me. It lacked the intimacy of the 1993 original Jurassic Park. Now as director is J. A. Bayona – whom I never heard of before. Yet it quickly becomes clear he has the vision for a worthy sequel that appears to tick nearly every box. Starring Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard Jurassic World The Fallen Kingdom had me entertained for the 2+ hours of running...

Vampyr review 1

Computer Games

Vampyr Review – Dontnod succeeds with Moody Action RPG

Vampyr Review Finally, after months of salivating at the idea of sinking my teeth into this game I can play it. This is a review of Vampyr, the latest game by French developer Dontnod. Now, I got only got the game since Tuesday morning and my opinion below is formed based on around 6 hours of gaming. Set in 1918 in London – during the last days of The Great War and the start of the Spanish flu – you play as Doctor Jonathan Reid. Dr. Reid has recently returned from the front, but in London he was attacked, turned into...

Vision Kit list of demos - Elizabeth Mitchell hot

Computer Games / Literature

Playing with the AIY Google Vision Kit: Part 1 – Assembly and Demos

AIY Google Vision Kit For a few months now I have been salivating at the idea of owning an AIY Vision Kit. The kit is sponsored by Google and allows makers to build their own intelligent camera for object and face recognition. As I have caught the maker and Deep Learning bug some time ago I felt this was the ideal project to combine both. However, the first series of kits were not without its flaws, but now Google has rolled out version 1.1. Based on the Raspberry Pi Zero W (wireless) Google has added what they call the Vision...

Solo A Star Wars Story Review poster

Film

Solo: A Star Wars Story Review – A good movie that sets the stage for a sequel

After more than year of constant news portraying Solo: A Star Wars Story as a troubled production you almost don’t want to see it. I certainly did go to the cinema yesterday with trepidation and anxiety. I left the cinema relieved, the movie wasn’t bad. In fact, I liked Solo, but I also recognize it is not per se a great movie. So what is Solo: A Star Wars Story all about? At its heart it is a heist movie. After escaping from Corellian poverty Han (Alden Ehrenreich) vows to go back to help his girlfriend Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke). To...

Vampyr Preview Reid attacks (1)

Computer Games

Vampyr Preview – A Macabre Action RPG from Dontnod Entertainment

Vampyr Preview When SciFiEmpire.net first started in 2011 one of the first articles I wrote was on a game entitled Adrift – by Dontnod entertainment. The game studio was totally unknown to anyone, but what caught my eye was that they were French and were producing a Science Fiction action game. Adrift was only a production title and it would later in become known as Remember Me. Sadly, despite the impressive artwork and graphics the game suffered from a linear gameplay style and could not live up to expectations. Instead, Dontnod Entertainment continues to exist and is soon scheduled to release...

Deadpool 2 review - Domino Wade and Cable

Film

Deadpool 2 Review – not as good as the original but still brilliant

Deadpool 2 Review Deadpool quickly became a fan favorite after its theatrical release. The strong chemistry between Ryan Reynolds and Morena Baccarin, the off-beat humor and the continuous fourth-wall breaking made Deadpool a delight to watch. In fact, it gave the X-Men movie franchise a shot in the arm it desperately needed. A sequel was quickly announced and despite Tim Miller not returning as director it appeared to offer everything a sequel should.  While the movie is very good, and very funny in an offensive way, it is not AS good as the original. Somehow, the sequel misses that particular mark....

TV-series

The Expanse has been cancelled by Syfy – producers search for alternative

The Expanse has been cancelled by Syfy Syfy has gone back to its roots with doing something it has always done well – cancelling another Sci-Fi series. Now The Expanse has gotten the ax. For a channel that is supposed to be all about science fiction it sure as hell is cancelling a lot of shows. Dark Matter was already cancelled and Killjoys will have its final season next year. Other recent victims were Helix, Continuum and Defiance. In fact so few shows have concluded as they should that I am wondering how Syfy earns its money.  Reasons Reasons for...

Beyond Good and Evil 2 - logo

Computer Games

Beyond Good and Evil 2 new gameplay footage 2018 – Ubisoft teases before E3

Beyond Good and Evil 2 new gameplay footage 2018 One of the games I am most excited about, besides Cyberpunk 2077, is Beyond Good and Evil 2. Today, Ubisoft released footage of early-alpha gameplay. This gives us the first indication of the direction the game is set to take. I did a preview of the game during last years E3 show (you can read it here) in which a senior developer showed footage of a tech demo. Today’s footage seems to build on that. The 3 minute montage reveals shots of the protagonists fighting with sticks, dual blades and as...

Avengers Infinity War Review wallpaper

Film

Avengers: Infinity War Review – the whole Marvel Cinematic Universe fights Thanos

Avengers: Infinity War Review Finally the long wait is over. For years we have had to hear how Avengers Infinity War would be the ultimate experience the Marvel Cinematic Universe has to offer. Assembling Earth’s mightiest heroes and the Guardians of the Galaxy to fight the often talked about but rarely seen Thanos. Avengers Infinity War is a true accomplishment, as directors Anthony and Joe succeed to juggle the overload of characters and story points to create a multi-layered experience. This is my review of Avengers Infinity War. I should warn those who have yet to see the movie that...

Westworld S02E01 Journey into Night Review - Evan Rachel Wood as Dolores

TV-series

Westworld S02E01 Journey into Night Review – the robots get the big picture

Westworld S02E01 Journey into Night Review For the last several days the fever around Westworld has been remarkable. It would call it an understatement that HBO is just pushing it to potentially replace Game of Thrones when that show ends. As much as I love these kinds of shows I remain totally uninterested in the promos, story analyses and cast interviews. I just want to watch the show. Now after almost a year and a half the second season of the remarkable Westworld has arrived. Based on the novel by Michael Crichton the show is set in a theme park where...

The Expanse S03E02 IFF Review - Elizabeth Mitchell as Rev. Dr. Anna Volovodov

TV-series

The Expanse S03E02 IFF Review – Elizabeth Mitchell will make her entrance

The Expanse S03E02 IFF Review After Westworld and Altered Carbon, The Expanse is probably the best Sci-Fi show around. Now into its third season Syfy has continued to expand the story and its cast. Based on current book series by authors James S. A. Corey, the show features a cold war style standoff between Earth and Mars – after the latter has been colonized. Tempers easily flare, especially as powers are manipulating both sides towards a war. Some have compared The Expanse as a Game of Thrones type show set in space. I think that is fair. Just like GoT it...

Emily Blunt in A Quiet Place

Film

A Quiet Place Review starring Emily Blunt and John Krasinski

A Quiet Place Review A Quiet Place is a difficult movie to label with a genre. Directed by John Krasinski and starring Krasinski and his wife Emily Blunt, the movie straddles horror and science fiction. The latter genre feels deliberately underplayed in order not to frighten of and audience which is young and female. Nonetheless A Quiet Place circles back to science fiction with references to Predator, but I will discuss that later. A Quiet Place is set in a world overrun by an alien species that aggressively kills humans and hunt by sound. However, that is not how the movie...

Ready Player One Review - movie poster

Film

Ready Player One Review – Steven Spielberg’s adaptation shines, but only just!

Ready Player One Review I have just returned from viewing Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of Ernest Cline’s novel Ready Player One. While it is better than I thought it would be – I fear it lacks the meaningful message it could have had. Ever since watching the first trailer I have been skeptical about the movie adaptation. I felt it looked like a silly CGI fest rather than a serious attempt at glorifying popular culture. Make no mistake – that is what the novel Ready Player One is – and that what made it so brilliant. Premise The premise for Ready Player One...

Episode 1 L1GHTMAN (Kelly). WarGames Interactive Series Review

TV-series

WarGames Interactive Series Review

WarGames Interactive Series Review Sometime ago the announcement went around that MGM was considering rebooting the WarGames franchise. In the face of the data leak scandals and the success of Mr. Robot that is a good idea. The original 1983 movie starring Matthew Broderick is a favorite. MGM has teamed up with EKO to create what is an interactive series. Viewers watch the series online, view scenes from different perspectives and supposedly control part of the narrative. Despite being interactive most of the action concentrates one of the characters at a time – that means the viewer will have to...