For some, the draw of superhero movies is the escape from reality mixed with the never-ending battle between good versus evil. And while superhero movies have shifted from black-and-white towards greater moral complexity, deep down the genre is fundamentally the same. We love watching the heroes from our childhoods and we love seeing the new takes, the new iterations, the new actors and actresses who step into the shoes of our beloved grand superheroes....

And the SNES gave rise to all kinds of amazing video games—many of which are still classic favorites to this day—and launched a handful of franchises that are still alive and kicking now. If you have a Nintendo Switch, you can actually play a bunch of those legendary video games. All you need a subscription to Nintendo Switch Online, and that’ll grant access to 40+ SNES games that you can play directly on your Switch....

Some of these new gaming genres spawn from technological innovations as developers take advantage of new capabilities to create unique experiences. For example, open-world games were immensely difficult to create before hardware improved. Other gaming genres come from spinning a popular genre and approaching it from a new perspective. This is the type of genre shift that twisted RTSes into MOBAs, and it’s this same evolution that gave us the boomer shooter: a modern take on retro first-person shooters....

You don’t need to be a pro to start air dry clay sculpting as a hobby, which can be used to craft whatever you want—even anime figures. As long as your creative self keeps pumping ideas into your hands, you’re fit to start making all kinds of air dry clay character figures for your collection—or even more practical things, like flower pots and vases. What Is Air Dry Clay Sculpting?...

On the whole, cinematography is an art form. It describes all the elements that go into how a director captures an image, similar to how painters and photographers do. But cinematography has an extra dimension: how those images move on screen. Mastering all these aspects of composition and movement can elevate a movie to new heights, and can even turn a mediocre film into a good film, or a good film into a great film....

And it’s that vicious nature that has drawn millions of people to see the show, to love the show, and to consider Succession to be one of the finest examples of storytelling in television history. What Is HBO’s Succession? The plot follows the exploits of the billionaire Roy family after the patriarch, Logan, suffers a stroke and ends up in a coma. With his children concerned with his health for the first time in their lives, the question becomes: Who will run the business?...

The classic film noir movie genre refers to a genre of movies that were released roughtly between 1945 and 1960. While these movies share thematic elements, the genre’s most defining characteristics include a dark, fatalistic mood and a visual style that emphasizes low-key lighting and unbalanced compositions. Some may claim that “noir” isn’t exactly a movie genre but more of a style or aesthetic. Countless books, essays, and articles have been written on the subject, but no one seems to be able to agree on a concrete definition beyond these vague-yet-iconic characteristics....

Simply put, The Lovers are two characters who only make sense as a romantic duo. Each one’s character development is dependent on the other character, and they fall flat without them. Their defining trait is that they are in love together. We might learn a few other things about them here and there, but they never grow enough to become their own character. Here are some of the most iconic examples of The Lovers in cinema and television, which will make this trope abundantly clear....

In January 2022, Microsoft announced that they would acquire Activision Blizzard, a decision that’s been contentious among gamers. What effect will this have on the console wars between Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo? What will happen to Activision Blizzard’s best-known properties? Will they become Xbox console exclusives? Questions and apprehensive outlooks have plunged various gaming communities into uncertainty, as Microsoft looks to win approval for their $68.7 billion takeover bid before they decide what to do....

Take The Human Centipede, for example. That abhorrent horror flick was banned in the UK until it’s 32nd cut was deemed just acceptable enough by the BBFC for viewing—and anyone who doesn’t live under a rock can understand why previous cuts of that film were banned. But then there are others—notable mainstream films that were banned, not due to sheer shock value, but for whatever other reason that made the film unpalatable....

Is it any wonder why so many filmmakers have featured Scotland in their movies? For many of us, Scottish movies are the only way we’ll ever get to see the depth of its culture—on the big screen. When filmmakers get it right, few other cultures come across so brilliantly. Here are the best Scottish movies to come out of Scotland and highlight the best of the country. 8. Morvern Callar (2002) Lynn Ramsay’s adaptation of the Alan Warner novel is a desolate and cold representation of working-class British existence....

Batman’s celebrated Arkham series, which showed gamers what it felt like to become the fearsome hero, exemplifies the standard of modern video games portraying superheroic characters. And then there’s the more recent Marvel’s Spider-Man, which built upon the video games that came before it to elevate the genre and deliver a truly immersive experience behind the mask of the Web-Slinger. But for the most part, we’ve really only seen the “mainstream” superheroes in action when it comes to video games....

Fortunately, that narrative has long since become passé, and Disney has moved forward with leading men who are more rounded as characters—instead of random guys who show up on horses for no good reason, like some form of vintage reality show. In recent years, the Princes have become one of the best parts of modern Disney movies. Their struggles and vulnerabilities have replaced the usual toxic masculinity, to deliver role models suitable for young men everywhere....

The most intriguing of all Marvel MCU TV shows has been Marvel’s What If…? series that explores what happened in alternate timelines and alternate universes within the MCU multiverse. At the start, it seemed to be threaded together by Jeffery Wright’s Uatu (aka The Watcher) as he viewed all events within the multiverse with a vow never to interfere or intervene. Sounds like a pseudo-anthology that wouldn’t have much impact on the “real” MCU, right?...

And all of those same D&D tools have made the virtual tabletop RPG experience fun in ways that just weren’t possible—at least without lots and lots of extra work—with in-person D&D campaigns. If you’re running your own virtual D&D game online (or if you’re thinking about it), then you’ll want to take advantage of the many tools at your disposal. Chief among them, at least when it comes to creating your own campaigns, are map makers, builders, and generators....

Today, over 80 years later, the Looney Tunes gang are still making even their grandchildren and great-grandchildren laugh hysterically with their animated antics—and the numerous Looney Tunes characters remain as iconic as they’ve ever been. But which character is the best? Which animated member of the Looney Tunes cast, that’s seen generations of children grow into adults, remains the ultimate favorite amongst icons? Who has the greatest legacy? We’re looking at the entire cast of Looney Tunes characters to find out for ourselves which Looney Tunes character is truly the best....

Indeed, Netflix isn’t just for movies and TV shows anymore. You can play games now! Just don’t expect anything close to Xbox Game Pass or PlayStation Plus. Think more along the lines of Apple Arcade. What’s surprising is that there are actually some great games on Netflix that are actually worth playing. If you have Netflix, these are included in your plan—so you might as well try them out!...

Along the same vein, artists often use meditation to tap into their subconscious mind’s dream world to mine their thoughts for creative inspiration. (One classic example of this is Salvador Dali!) Here are our picks for the best movies that were actually inspired by dreams and meditation, which you can certainly tell in retrospect by how strange and unusual their premises are. 10. Waking Life (2001) Where better to find the answers to life’s biggest questions than in the world of dreams?...

We’re more open about extreme movies now, but back in the day, it wasn’t uncommon for a movie to be deemed “too violent,” “too disturbing,” or “too sick” for the general public. Banned horror movies are interesting as reflections of their time periods, allowing us glimpses into what was “too much” for their eras—and they often leave us confused as to why they were banned at all because they aren’t as shocking to our modern sensibilities....

But even though mobile games are trending in a positive direction, there are still some frustrations—namely, developers who are still putting out free games packed with an excessive amount of ads, or manipulative in-app purchase designs. I don’t mind the occasional advertisement or reasonable in-app purchase models. But unskippable video ads that are 30+ seconds long? Mid-gameplay interruptions that ruin my flow? Unnecessarily tedious grinds to encourage microtransactions? Yuck. Fortunately, not all mobile games are like this....