Lucasfilm | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Tue, 03 Oct 2023 09:04:34 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png Lucasfilm | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 KOTOR Remake trailer may have been delisted due to music license issue https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/kotor-remake-trailer-may-have-been-delisted-due-to-music-license-issue/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/kotor-remake-trailer-may-have-been-delisted-due-to-music-license-issue/#respond Mon, 02 Oct 2023 17:00:41 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=632637 Last week Sony quietly delisted the reveal trailer for Knights of the Old Republic, which was officially announced as a PS5 console exclusive during a PlayStation Showcase two years ago. Since then, the game has faced development issues and switched studios. This has quickly led to rumours of the game's cancellation but so far, none …

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Last week Sony quietly delisted the reveal trailer for Knights of the Old Republic, which was officially announced as a PS5 console exclusive during a PlayStation Showcase two years ago. Since then, the game has faced development issues and switched studios. This has quickly led to rumours of the game's cancellation but so far, none of the involved parties are giving a straight answer. 

Following the removal of promotional material for the KOTOR Remake, Axios editor, Stephen Totilo, emailed both Disney and Sony seeking comment on the situation. Disney pointed Totilo to Sony and Sony emailed back with what seemed to be a canned reply putting the blame on a music license expiring.

Now it is possible that a particular piece of music or sound effect was licensed for the KOTOR Remake trailer but given that the reveal was a simple character model and a logo tease, we do question if music licensing can truly be to blame here.

Embracer Group has also avoided publicly addressing the situation with the KOTOR Remake. The game was originally in development at Aspyr, a studio that has almost exclusively worked on Star Wars game ports for years. Embracer later moved development over to one of its other studios, Saber Interactive and has not provided another update since then.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: For many, KOTOR Remake was a dream game announcement but the project's status is uncertain at this point in time. 

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Sequel to 1991’s ‘Monkey Island 2’ announced https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/mustafa-mahmoud/sequel-to-1991s-monkey-island-2-announced/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/mustafa-mahmoud/sequel-to-1991s-monkey-island-2-announced/#respond Mon, 04 Apr 2022 17:57:37 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=556018 The Monkey Island series is one of the most iconic in the history of PC gaming, popularising a new genre at the time and setting the stage for studios such as TellTale Games and titles such as Life is Strange. After almost a decade and a half away, Monkey Island is back in a brand …

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The Monkey Island series is one of the most iconic in the history of PC gaming, popularising a new genre at the time and setting the stage for studios such as TellTale Games and titles such as Life is Strange. After almost a decade and a half away, Monkey Island is back in a brand new adventure.

Making the announcement, Lucasfilm Games and Devolver Digital revealed that a brand new Monkey Island game is on its way: Return to Monkey Island. Coming in 2022, the game is being positioned as “the long-awaited follow-up to the legendary Secret of Monkey Island and Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge by Ron Gilbert's Terrible Toybox in collaboration with Devolver Digital and Lucasfilm Games.”

The Monkey Island series currently spans five games, with Return to Monkey Island being set after 1991’s Monkey Island 2. Going so far back is interesting, and suggests that the developers are going back to the roots and core of the series. This is doubly the case with Ron Gilbert himself returning after so long away from the franchise.

2009’s Tales of Monkey Island received respectable reviews, but failed to live up to the classics. Hopefully Return to Monkey Island manages to feel at home amongst the series’ best offerings. We will have to wait and see.

Discuss on our Facebook page HERE.

KitGuru says: What do you think of the trailer? Are you excited? What do you think of the franchise as a whole? Let us know down below.

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EA promises “We’re making more Star Wars games” following Ubisoft’s Star Wars collab https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/mustafa-mahmoud/ea-promises-were-making-more-star-wars-games-following-ubisofts-star-wars-collab/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/mustafa-mahmoud/ea-promises-were-making-more-star-wars-games-following-ubisofts-star-wars-collab/#respond Thu, 14 Jan 2021 15:00:43 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=501035 Many fans were left surprised by the recent announcement that Ubisoft is currently working on an open-world star wars title – especially considering the fact that EA’s exclusivity agreement does not end until 2023. That being said, despite the opening of the Star Wars floodgates, EA has assured its fans that the publisher is still “making …

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Many fans were left surprised by the recent announcement that Ubisoft is currently working on an open-world star wars title – especially considering the fact that EA’s exclusivity agreement does not end until 2023. That being said, despite the opening of the Star Wars floodgates, EA has assured its fans that the publisher is still “making more Star Wars games.”

Alongside the announcement that Ubisoft would be making an open-world Star Wars game (from the developers of The Division), Lucasfilm Games assured fans that the IP holder's relationship with EA is still very much intact, saying “for fans of modern Star Wars games, fear not: some old friends are sticking around.”

Elaborating further, in “Continuing the relationship that resulted in the reinvigorated Battlefront series, the critically-acclaimed Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, and multiplayer hit Star Wars: Squadrons, Electronic Arts will too play a big role in the future of Star Wars gaming.”

Commenting on this refreshed relationship, Lucasfilm Games’ VP said “We’re really proud of the games we have created with EA. We will continue working with them and our relationship has never been stronger. While we may not have a lot of details to share at the moment, we’ve got a number of projects underway with the talented teams at EA.”

It was previously confirmed that a sequel to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order would be developed. It will be interesting to see whether EA’s controversial Battlefront series will continue, and what else the publisher has planned. Regardless, it looks as though Star Wars fans will have plenty to look forward to from all over the entertainment industry.

KitGuru says: What did you think of the EA and Star Wars partnership? Was it good or bad overall? Are you beginning to feel Star Wars fatigue? Let us know down below.

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Ubisoft partners with Lucasfilm for open-world Star Wars game https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/mustafa-mahmoud/ubisoft-partners-with-lucasfilm-for-open-world-star-wars-game/ https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/mustafa-mahmoud/ubisoft-partners-with-lucasfilm-for-open-world-star-wars-game/#respond Thu, 14 Jan 2021 13:00:42 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=501039 Ever since 2013 when it was announced that EA would be the exclusive publisher of Star Wars games, many fans expressed disappointment at the fact that they wouldn't get to see some of their favourite developers tackle the IP. While the agreement in place won’t expire until 2023, Ubisoft has now announced that it will …

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Ever since 2013 when it was announced that EA would be the exclusive publisher of Star Wars games, many fans expressed disappointment at the fact that they wouldn't get to see some of their favourite developers tackle the IP. While the agreement in place won’t expire until 2023, Ubisoft has now announced that it will be developing its own Star Wars title, opening the floodgates for many more experiences in a galaxy far, far away.

Making the announcement on starwars.com, Lucasfilm Games reveal that “The Star Wars gaming galaxy is about to experience its own Big Bang” as Lucasfilm Games have been “working quietly behind the scenes for a while now, waiting for this moment.”

As part of this ‘moment’, “Lucasfilm Games and Ubisoft are collaborating on a new story-driven, open-world Star Wars game”. The game will be developed by Massive Entertainment, who are known best for being the studio behind The Division series of games. According to Lucasfilm Games, “We’ve spent almost a year now, working to get to know them [Massive Entertainment] and what they want to bring to the table,” adding that “they have a unique vision for the story and the game they want to deliver.”

Lucasfilm Games concluded by claiming that “This is just the beginning of what I think is going to be a very exciting year for Lucasfilm Games”. While the EA and Lucasfilm partnership brought with it some well-regarded titles, it also caused much controversy. As such, it is exciting to see Lucasfilm branching out and offering its intellectual properties to other studios, as ultimately it should lead to greater and more varied gaming experiences for fans of these IPs.

Discuss on our Facebook page HERE.

KitGuru says: What do you think of this move? Are you excited by the prospects of an open-world Star Wars game? What other developers would you like to see be given the keys to the franchise? Let us know down below.

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Lucasfilm and Samsung collaborate to launch the special edition Galaxy Note10+ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/smartphone/james-dawson/lucasfilm-and-samsung-collaborate-to-launch-the-special-edition-galaxy-note10/ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/smartphone/james-dawson/lucasfilm-and-samsung-collaborate-to-launch-the-special-edition-galaxy-note10/#respond Sat, 14 Dec 2019 15:00:08 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=441691 Samsung has announced it is launching a special edition Star Wars-themed Galaxy Note10+. The new device will coincide with the release of the new Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker film, which is due to hit the screens on 20th December. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is set to be the final instalment of …

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Samsung has announced it is launching a special edition Star Wars-themed Galaxy Note10+. The new device will coincide with the release of the new Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker film, which is due to hit the screens on 20th December.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is set to be the final instalment of the Skywalker saga and to commemorate this event, Samsung has launched a special edition Galaxy Note10+ featuring a Star Wars-inspired design, along with digital content. Samsung says the collaboration will unite two Galaxies – a galaxy far, far away, and the Samsung Galaxy.

The Star Wars edition Galaxy Note10+ will be bundled with a special case, a metal collector’s item badge, an S Pen and Galaxy Buds. Also included in the bundle will be exclusive Star Wars-themed content such as wallpapers, shutdown animations, icons and sounds for fans of the Star Wars franchise to enjoy.

Users heading over to the official Samsung website will have noticed the special edition Galaxy Note10+ has been available to order since 10th December, while inside selected Samsung Experience stores, Lucasfilm and Samsung have collaborated to bring the two Galaxies together by engaging with Star Wars fans in store.

Star Wars fans hoping to check out the Samsung and Lucasfilm collaboration in-store can do so at the Samsung Experience stores in Oxford Street, London, Westfield Stratford City, London and Manchester Trafford stores. For more details about the Star Wars Special Edition Galaxy Note10+, check out the official Samsung product page.

Discuss on our Facebook page HERE.

KitGuru says: Any Star Wars fans out there excited about this collaboration between Samsung and Lucasfilm? Will you be picking up one of these special edition Galaxy Note10+ devices?

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Knights of the Old Republic is apparently getting turned into a movie https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/knights-of-the-old-republic-is-apparently-getting-turned-into-a-movie/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/knights-of-the-old-republic-is-apparently-getting-turned-into-a-movie/#respond Fri, 24 May 2019 09:40:49 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=413577 While EA seems to be opposed to the idea of letting BioWare return to Knights of the Old Republic, Lucasfilm might have other plans of its own. According to reports this week, BioWare's treasured Star Wars title is being turned into a movie. Lucasfilm has been drawing inspiration from the expanded Star Wars Legends universe …

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While EA seems to be opposed to the idea of letting BioWare return to Knights of the Old Republic, Lucasfilm might have other plans of its own. According to reports this week, BioWare's treasured Star Wars title is being turned into a movie.

Lucasfilm has been drawing inspiration from the expanded Star Wars Legends universe for a while now. Knights of the Old Republic is often cited as a fan favourite Star Wars story, with a heavy focus on Jedi and Sith lore. According to sources, Laeta Kalogridis, who previously worked on Alita: Battle Angel, is currently writing the screenplay.

The script is apparently almost done and could spawn a potential KOTOR trilogy. Of course, changes could be made to certain characters, or portions of the story. In some cases, tough decisions would have to be made, as the original game was an RPG where the player shapes the main character's choices, which is a luxury film makers don't have.

Of course, this is all rumour for now and video game movies have a rocky history. There is also the fact that Disney already has two more Star Wars film trilogies planned, one from The Last Jedi director, Rian Johnson, and another from the show-runners behind Game of Thrones. With all of that in mind, it could be a while before this idea comes to fruition.

KitGuru Says: Knights of the Old Republic is high up in my top 5 games of all time. Honestly, I would rather see the series rebooted in video game form, but a film series could also be very cool. Would any of you be interested in a Knights of the Old Republic movie? 

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KOTOR Apeiron team respond to Lucasfilm in hopes of allowing project to live on https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/kotor-apeiron-team-respond-to-lucasfilm-in-hopes-of-allowing-project-to-live-on/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/kotor-apeiron-team-respond-to-lucasfilm-in-hopes-of-allowing-project-to-live-on/#respond Mon, 22 Oct 2018 09:48:27 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=392102 Just last week, it was revealed that Lucasfilm had sent a cease and desist order to the team behind Apeiron, a small project aiming to rebuild Knights of the Old Republic in Unreal Engine 4. This wasn't a total surprise as similar projects have been shut down in the past. Since then, Poem Studios has …

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Just last week, it was revealed that Lucasfilm had sent a cease and desist order to the team behind Apeiron, a small project aiming to rebuild Knights of the Old Republic in Unreal Engine 4. This wasn't a total surprise as similar projects have been shut down in the past. Since then, Poem Studios has removed the project from the public eye and has published its response to Lucasfilm's demands, in hopes of having the situation reevaluated.

The original order from Lucasfilm called for Poem Studios to take down all websites and social media relating to Star Wars and delete all project data. It appears that those demands have been met but the studio is hoping that Lucasfilm will reconsider. As part of a reply, Poem Studios explains that it is “not rebooting Knights of the Old Republic” and is instead “taking an existing game with an active community and simply updating now outdated graphics and systems”. Apeiron is also described as “a modification of the original game” in which the user “still has to have a purchased, verified copy” of the original.

To help make its case, Poem Studios brings up a few examples of similar mods that received official blessing. Bethesda Studios sanctioned Skywind, which was an effort to rebuild Morrowind using Skyrim's engine. In order to play, users would need to own both Skyrim and Morrowind. 343 Industries/Microsoft also sanctioned a similar project called 01Installment, which is a mod for Halo on PC, once again requiring that users already own the original game.

The letter than goes on to point out that Lucasfilm does sanction fan-made Star Wars movies under the conditions that they do not crowdsource or profit from it. This aligns with Poem's efforts to rebuild the original KOTOR, with no plans to profit or ask for funding.

The letter ends will a request for a reevaluation of Apeiron. So far, Lucasfilm has yet to respond and it is unclear if it will.

KitGuru Says: The letter does make some good points, after all, Apeiron requires that people already own the original KOTOR and it is mainly intended to be a graphics update, rather than a reboot. Unfortunately, I don't see the situation changing at this point. Still, perhaps this will point out the continued demand for more Star Wars RPGs set in the Old Republic era. 

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Ambitious KOTOR remake project shut down by Lucasfilm https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/ambitious-kotor-remake-project-shut-down-by-lucasfilm/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/ambitious-kotor-remake-project-shut-down-by-lucasfilm/#respond Fri, 12 Oct 2018 10:39:32 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=390762 Back in early 2016, we learned that a small indie team was working on remaking BioWare's beloved Star Wars classic, Knights of the Old Republic. The remake was set to be called ‘Apeiron' and would see the game return in Unreal Engine 4 with completely overhauled graphics. Character models, planets and more had been completed …

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Back in early 2016, we learned that a small indie team was working on remaking BioWare's beloved Star Wars classic, Knights of the Old Republic. The remake was set to be called ‘Apeiron' and would see the game return in Unreal Engine 4 with completely overhauled graphics. Character models, planets and more had been completed but it looks like Lucasfilm's lawyers finally caught up, shutting down the project.

The Apeiron KOTOR remake was being worked on by Poem Studios, a small team born from working on this project. The team would host weekly Twitch streams of development progress and regularly put out YouTube videos to show off small parts of the game in action. Earlier this week, Poem Studios head, Taylor Trotter, announced that he had received a cease and desist letter from Lucasfilm, and as a result, the project will go no further.

Writing on the Apeiron Discord server, Trotter told fans: “It's with a great sadness that I'm posting today; I recently received a letter from Lucasfilm instructing Poem to end production on Apeiron. After a few days, I've exhausted my options to keep it afloat; we knew this day was a possibility. I'm sorry and may the force be with you”.

The Apeiron Discord is now the ‘Poem Studios' Discord instead and the studio will move on to other projects: “A question I see a lot is asking us if we'll make a new game, the answer is an infallible “yes”. At Poem we hosted an internal hack-a-thon for the team a few months ago and we have already started a new game then, we didn't want this to go public since I thought it would take away from Apeiron. We already have assets and ideas set up, so the transition between Apeiron and our new project codename “novella” will be as frictionless as possible”.

The legal letter that Poem Studios received calls on the developers to destroy all code relating to the project and remove all Star Wars and KOTOR related assets from its website and social media pages.

KitGuru Says: Apeiron managed to go unnoticed for a long time and with KOTOR being on of my favourite games of all time, I had hoped things would stay that way. Unfortunately, Lucasfilm and Disney tend to have eagle-eyed lawyers, so this day was always inevitable. Hopefully Poem Studios can find success working on an original IP instead.

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Rumor: Disney/LucasFilm considering giving the Star Wars license to new game developers https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/rumor-disney-lucasfilm-considering-giving-the-star-wars-license-to-new-game-developers/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/rumor-disney-lucasfilm-considering-giving-the-star-wars-license-to-new-game-developers/#respond Wed, 14 Feb 2018 18:00:38 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=364173 Since EA acquired the exclusive rights to make Star Wars video games back in 2013, the publisher hasn't done a lot of good with it. So far, we've had two questionable Battlefront games and one cancelled single-player project. Now it seems that the backlash to Battlefront II may have been so bad that it has …

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Since EA acquired the exclusive rights to make Star Wars video games back in 2013, the publisher hasn't done a lot of good with it. So far, we've had two questionable Battlefront games and one cancelled single-player project. Now it seems that the backlash to Battlefront II may have been so bad that it has sent Disney/Lucasfilm into the arms of other game publishers.

This week, a report popped up on Cinelinx, who claim to have a source familiar with what's going on. From what they've heard, Lucasfilm and Disney are upset about not just the fallout from Battlefront II, but also the cancellation of Visceral's Star Wars game, which fans were very excited about. After these events, Lucasfilm executives reportedly met with EA's heads to discuss things, but even so, the company has also apparently reached out to Ubisoft and Activision about a potential licensing deal.

EA currently holds an exclusivity contract for Star Wars video games. Supposedly, this contract contains a clause that would allow Disney to retract it if certain standards aren't met.

Even if Lucasfilm is discussing licensing with other major publishers, that doesn't necessarily mean that EA will lose the Star Wars license any time soon. It would likely take a long and tricky legal process to get the ball rolling and then if the license was handed over to another publisher, it would take quite some time for them to get new projects up and running.

As always when it comes to anonymous sources, this should be taken with a pinch of salt. However, it wouldn't be much of a stretch to think that other options are being considered after the drama back in November.

KitGuru Says: As much as I'd like to see some Star Wars games made outside of the Battlefront series, I'm not sure Ubisoft or Activision would necessarily be the right choice to pass the license on to. Still, everything here is pretty much hypothetical at this point, as no solid moves have been made either way. As far as we know, EA may end up keeping hold of the license despite all of the upset. 

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A petition to have EA’s Star Wars license revoked is catching on https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/a-petition-to-have-eas-star-wars-license-revoked-is-catching-on/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/a-petition-to-have-eas-star-wars-license-revoked-is-catching-on/#comments Mon, 27 Nov 2017 10:59:41 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=355624 EA has encountered plenty of backlash in the build-up to Star Wars Battlefront II's launch and even after turning microtransactions off, it seems that tensions are high. Aside from the game selling far fewer copies compared to 2015's Battlefront, some Star Wars fans are now petitioning to get EA's rights to the franchise revoked. Currently …

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EA has encountered plenty of backlash in the build-up to Star Wars Battlefront II's launch and even after turning microtransactions off, it seems that tensions are high. Aside from the game selling far fewer copies compared to 2015's Battlefront, some Star Wars fans are now petitioning to get EA's rights to the franchise revoked.

Currently there is a petition calling for Disney to revoke EA's rights to the Star Wars franchise going viral. The petition outlines a list of complaints, ranging from the publisher's handling of Battlefront (2015) the ‘pivot' on Visceral Games' Star Wars title and finally, the drama surrounding Battlefront II.

Currently, the petition has over 19,000 signatures, which pales in comparison to the number of upvotes it has received on Reddit. There are already rumors that Disney executives are unhappy with EA's handling of Star Wars Battlefront II, and with the game being brought up in political discussions, and petitions doing the rounds, it is unclear what will happen next.

Of course, we do need to keep in mind that Disney/LucasFilm's hands may be tied in all of this, EA would have spent a lot of money obtaining exclusive rights to the Star Wars franchise. Contracts like that aren't going to be simple. On top of that, we don't know how much involvement Disney/LucasFilm executives had when it came to talks of additional monetisation for Battlefront II, there is always the possibility that they approved it from the start.

KitGuru Says: EA has gone quiet since announcing the removal of microtransactions in Battlefront II and Disney/LucasFilm haven't publicly commented on the matter. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if some high-level talks were going on behind the scenes in the fallout from all of this.

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Magic Leap Star Wars demo is even more impressive than the last https://www.kitguru.net/components/vr/jon-martindale/magic-leap-star-wars-demo-is-even-more-impressive-than-the-last/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/vr/jon-martindale/magic-leap-star-wars-demo-is-even-more-impressive-than-the-last/#comments Fri, 17 Jun 2016 11:39:44 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=296425 Although Magic Leap's augmented reality headset technology is still mostly under wraps, every time it releases a new demonstration of what it can do it's even more impressive than before. The latest release sees Industrial Light and Magic creating some star wars assets for it and the effect is simply brilliant. In the short segment …

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Although Magic Leap's augmented reality headset technology is still mostly under wraps, every time it releases a new demonstration of what it can do it's even more impressive than before. The latest release sees Industrial Light and Magic creating some star wars assets for it and the effect is simply brilliant.

In the short segment of footage shot “directly through,” a Leap Motion device, we can see C3P0 and R2D2 discussing the debt Han Solo owed Jabba. Their discussion isn't purely auditory though, after walking around the real-world environment around them, R2 projects a holographic scene onto a nearby tabletop.

Although the Magic Leap guys have used a dark environment to showcase it – and you can see some of the darker portions of the AR imagery become see through at times – it's still exciting to think of the potential of this sort of technology.

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP5ZZI05A3g']

What's potentiality quite interesting at the Magic Leap technology too, is that much like VR headsets of today, it requires a powerful PC to run it. In comparison, Microsoft's Hololens is much more mobile, but lacks the processing power of a decent PC and it suffers from battery life problems by being untethered.

It will be interesting to see which augmented reality technology becomes more viable when this sort of kit reaches consumers.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: I just hope this lets you play a game of Dejarik (I did have to look that up) as it was always my favourite point in the original Star Wars movies. 

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Netflix secures exclusive Disney, Marvel, Pixar, Lucasfilm contract https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/netflix-secures-exclusive-disney-marvel-pixar-lucasfilm-contract/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/netflix-secures-exclusive-disney-marvel-pixar-lucasfilm-contract/#comments Tue, 24 May 2016 08:14:18 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=293744 If you want to watch Disney, Marvel, Pixar or Lucasfilm movies in the U.S. in the future, there's going to be one major destination for them all: Netflix. The streaming giant has secured the monstrous contract for purportedly hundreds of millions of dollars, though no word on how it affects international releases. This was announced …

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If you want to watch Disney, Marvel, Pixar or Lucasfilm movies in the U.S. in the future, there's going to be one major destination for them all: Netflix. The streaming giant has secured the monstrous contract for purportedly hundreds of millions of dollars, though no word on how it affects international releases.

This was announced as part of Netflix's address for the upcoming summer, where it detailed a number of big movies, new and old, that it's adding to the service over the next few months. It does specifically state that they're for the U.S. market though, so if you want to watch them you may need to get about the Netflix geoblock.

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h37iuBD4azI']

If that's something you do regularly, then later this year you could be in for even more of a treat, as that's when Netflix's Disney deal commences. Beginning on the 1st September, Netflix has confirmed it will be the “exclusive U.S. pay TV home of the latest films from Disney, Marvel, Lucasfilm and Pixar.” It's not clear if that will mean removing all existing pay-TV movies from the likes of Amazon Instant Video, but that may be the case.

It also doesn't give us any indication of what will happen with international availability of these new movies, though perhaps we'll see that deal between the two companies extend to other territories if it works well for both parties. That may be the case too, as Netflix has the largest subscriber base of any streaming movie/TV service, with around 75 million subscribers at the start of this year.

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Not all of them are in the U.S. of course, but a large number of them are. Securing all of the new Marvel and Star Wars movies will no doubt go a long way to encouraging even more people to sign up; especially if those movies show up quicker after they leave cinemas.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru: This is a big get for Netflix. Securing the Disney contract gives it a big leg up over competition from the likes of Amazon. If we can just get over this geoblocking nonsense then Netflix will be a much better service worldwide and competitors will need to do something special to not see it steam ahead.

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Star Wars 1313 might not be dead yet https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/star-wars-1313-might-not-be-dead-yet/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/star-wars-1313-might-not-be-dead-yet/#comments Thu, 10 Dec 2015 13:46:12 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=277818 Star Wars 1313 was a game with a lot of promise and potential surrounding it, particularly since it was set to be one of the few games to centre around a bounty hunter, rather than the on-going Jedi VS Sith battle. Unfortunately, when Disney bought the Star Wars franchise, LucasArts Studios was shut down and …

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Star Wars 1313 was a game with a lot of promise and potential surrounding it, particularly since it was set to be one of the few games to centre around a bounty hunter, rather than the on-going Jedi VS Sith battle. Unfortunately, when Disney bought the Star Wars franchise, LucasArts Studios was shut down and the project was effectively cancelled.

However, with Disney now regaining its interest in Star Wars video games, there may be some hope left for the project, as LucasFilm president Kathleen Kennedy has brought up the game in an interview, without being prompted, noting that the game concept is being looked at once again.

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In an interview with Slashfilm, Kennedy was asked if she had any unused scripts from George Lucas's cancelled TV show, Star Wars: Underworld sitting on her shelf, to which she said:

“No. No, interestingly enough, thats an area we’ve spent a lot of time, reading through the material that he developed is something we very much would like to explore. And there was 1313 the game, where there was….”

When Star Wars 1313 was brought up, the interviewer interjected to say that the concept art for that game looked amazing. Kennedy then continued to say: “Unbelievable. So our attitude is, we don’t want to throw any of that stuff away. It’s gold. And it’s something we’re spending a lot of time looking at, pouring through, discussing, and we may very well develop those things further. We definitely want to.”

So it seems that Lucasfilm is getting around to looking at old projects once again and seeing if there is anything worth bringing back, amongst which could very well be Star Wars 1313.

KitGuru Says: This isn't a confirmation by any means, but its nice to see that the project is being looked at once again and given some serious consideration. Would you guys like to see Star Wars 1313 revived? 

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Disney partners with Netflix for future catalogue https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/disney-partners-with-netflix-for-future-catalogue/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/disney-partners-with-netflix-for-future-catalogue/#respond Wed, 05 Dec 2012 20:00:11 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=117929 In a move that is likely to give Netflix a big leg up against its worldwide competitors, Disney has announced that in the future its new movies will be showcased on Netflix first and its back catalogue will also be made available on the streaming service. Unfortunately for those of you eagerly checking your Netflix …

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In a move that is likely to give Netflix a big leg up against its worldwide competitors, Disney has announced that in the future its new movies will be showcased on Netflix first and its back catalogue will also be made available on the streaming service.

Unfortunately for those of you eagerly checking your Netflix library right now, there won't actually be any new releases added until sometime in 2016 – suggesting the partnership deal is pretty long term – but back catalogue releases will be made available as early as 2013. Bear in mind, that with recent Disney acquisitions of both Marvel and Lucasfilm, this means all the Star Wars movies and most of the Super hero films – though you can already watch Thor and Captain America if using the US version of Netflix – and who hasn't tweaked their DNS settings to get the better selection at this point?

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With a deal like this, Netflix has the potential to further challenge Sky in the UK markets

In the press release, Disney also promised to bring some of its classic to the streaming service. This includes movies like Dumbo, Alice in Wonderland, Pocahontas and more.

“With this cutting-edge agreement, we are thrilled to take our highly valued relationship with Netflix to the next level by adding Disney's premier films to their programming line-up,” said Janice Marinelli, President, Disney-ABC
Domestic Television. “Netflix continues to meet the demands of its subscribers in today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, and we are delighted that they will have much earlier access to our top-quality and entertaining slate.”

While no financial figures were disclosed as part of the deal, we can speculate that with a one year license from Disney thought to be worth around $200 (£120) million, a multi-year exclusive deal like this, could be worth much more than that. Initially Netflix planned to spend $1.2 billion in 2012, but with a move like this perhaps we're looking at closer to $2 (£1.2) billion.

KitGuru Says: This sounds good to me. Netflix is pretty much all I watch these days. Why would you sit through adverts when a few quid a month gives you practically unlimited viewing options with no interruptions?

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