Actor Austin Abrams will soon grace the screen in a new live-action Resident Evil movie, but what could be worse than dealing with Weapons director Zach Cregger's take on zombies? A hungry whale, as Abrams will also star in Whalefall, a new film out in October. Packaging several phobias into one terrifying ordeal, Whalefall sees Abram's character of Jay Gardiner swallowed up whole by a sperm whale, and you can see the trailer for it below--again, it's really unsettling stuff. "Following the death of his father (Josh Brolin), Jay Gardiner (Austin Abrams) goes diving off the central Coast of California in search of his remains, but is swallowed by a massive sperm whale," the plot synopsis for Whalefall reads. "While trapped inside its belly with only one hour of oxygen left, Jay comes to realize that the hard-earned lessons his father imparted may be the key to his escape." https://youtu.be/rN9F6-tbySY As if being stuck in a sperm whale's stomach wasn't bad enough, Abram's character also has to contend with a giant squid that the oceanic mammal swallowed for lunch, sticky tentacles and all. While the plot sounds like it was designed to appeal to vore fetishists, there is a layer of authenticity to it. Sperm whales are the only members of the species with throats big enough to potentially swallow a human being, and between powerful muscular contractions and their stomach acid, the chances of survival would be extremely slim. While it's highly unlikely that it would happen in real life, it's not entirely impossible, either. As for other whale species, their throats are much smaller in comparison and incapable of sucking down an unlucky diver. There have been reports in the past of people being engulfed by whales before being spat out of their mouths, with recent examples being South African dive tour operator Rainer Schimpf in 2019--who was scooped up headfirst into a Bryde's whale for a few seconds--and Michael Packard, who was caught inside the mouth of a feeding humpback whale in 2021. While Whalefall won't be out until October 28, you can see Abrams really is in way over his head when he makes a stop in Raccoon City next month. Resident Evil stars the Euphoria actor as a medical courier who wanders into the middle of the Raccoon City Incident, and he was almost killed by a 150-pound blood bag while filming an intense scene in the movie. You can see it for yourself when Resident Evil hits theaters on September 18...
With a surprise remaster of The Lord of the Rings: War in the North dropping earlier this month and Andy Serkis’ film, Hunt for Gollum, now in production, I’ve had a real desire to jump back into Middle-earth recently. It was a formative fictional world for millions, whether you read J. R. R. Tolkien’s classic novels or fell deeply in love with the fantasy universe through Peter Jackson’s masterful film trilogy. If you have a beating heart, chances are you love LOTR. But as a lifelong fan of turn-based JRPGs who grew up with classics like Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger, there is one LOTR video game in the avalanche of tie-ins that stood out above all others, and despite the hostile nature of this piece’s headline, I have plenty of nice things to say about it: The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age. Developed by EA Redwood Shores (the team who would go on to make Dead Space and Dante’s Inferno), this turn-based effort tells an original story within Tolkien's setting, with a cute cast of characters and gameplay mechanics that might seem a teensy bit familiar. And it’s basically a dead ringer for Final Fantasy 10. All Right Then, Keep Your Blitzball I suppose if you’re going to rip something off like this, you might as well pick one of the strongest games of the sixth console generation. Final Fantasy 10 arguably perfected the turn-based combat formula, while telling a legendary story that is fondly remembered decades later. To many, it stood as the last chapter in Final Fantasy’s golden era, and what a darling swansong it turned out to be. Released in 2004 for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube, The Third Age tells a simple yet compelling story that takes place parallel to the events of Jackson’s movie trilogy. 
Your journey begins in the outskirts of Moria as Berethor, a captain of the Citadel Guard of Gondor travelling to his homeland in search of Boromir (uh oh). Shortly into the game, Berethor is rescued by Idrial, an Elf in service of Galadriel who must deliver a vitally important message to her people. If you are starting to notice a pattern here, yes, pretty much every main character in The Third Age is a secret friend of a more important character from the main story. It’s an easy-breezy excuse to connect our adventure to the classic tale, while simultaneously making the game a roller coaster ride through familiar locales. Other party members include a bow-wielding ranger known as Elegost and a grumpy, hard-hitting dwarf called Hadhod. The gang is all here and the character dynamics even feel similar to Square’s classic RPG. Each party member is given their time to shine through individual arcs, while it often feels like they’re becoming better and more well-rounded people right up until the credits roll. Moment-to-moment gameplay has you walking through moody environments ranging from decaying forests to elven meadows to snowy mountains, all of which are designed to look like-- but not precisely be-- exact locations from the films. But it gets the job done, even if you only have a single path to tread aside from a few treasure-packed side routes. Each area also comes with a quest, such as defeating a certain number of enemies or finding shrines dedicated to specific deities. It’s simple, - far more so than Final Fantasy 10 - but it works. I adored retracing the steps of Frodo and company, stumbling upon the ashes of fading campfires and fighting through the Mines of Moria just like they did. It’s an effective, albeit hollow, form of fan service, one that’s ideal for a game like this, in which you likely want to celebrate everything you loved about the films. You even team up with Gandalf to take on the Balrog at one point. They’re Taking The Hobbits To Zanarkand If you’ve ever played Final Fantasy before, you will immediately guffaw at how transparent the inspiration for The Third Age's combat is. The user interface is almost identical, with the actions list and characters lined up in a similar fashion while the turn order uses face icons in the same way. While I think the combat in The Third Age is more sluggish when performing moves or watching characters go about their business, it undeniably uses the classic JRPG as a foundation. I bet that acted as the original pitch and everything else spawned from there. 
But there are ways in which it expands upon Final Fantasy 10, particularly with skill points you can assign to each character upon levelling up, or more comprehensive ways to switch up how each character looks and moves throughout the game world. Cutscenes are also far more dynamic, although don’t expect to see any hyperbudget CGI sequences for the major story moments. But whenever characters sprint across the environment with harsh urgency or a gaggle or orcs emerge from the deathly woods to ambush you it is wrought with great atmosphere. Similar to The Two Towers and Return of the King movie tie-ins, the sauce of Peter Jackson is everywhere in The Third Age. Lack of originality aside though, The Third Age remains incredibly fun to play. Each character takes on a meaningful role in the party, and there are few better feelings than unleashing Limit Break-esque attacks that wipe out the entire field in one move. I also love that you’ll constantly unlock "Epic Scenes" to watch while progressing through the story, which are 360p clips of the films with narration from Sir Ian McKellen, who plays Gandalf. The scenes are supposed to work with the context of where these new characters are in the story, and man, are there a lot of them. My personal favourite feature, however, is how customisable your party is. Each new weapon or piece or armour is reflected in their appearance, encouraging you to return to the menu constantly in order to allocate new skill points or see what equipment you have to play with. A number of modern RPGs don’t have this level of aesthetic depth so here I am, praising a licensed game from 2004 for such a thing. It will hardly steal the genre crown, but this gem is still well worth seeking out. Unfortunately, unless you’re willing to hunt down original hardware and have a physical copy to hand, there is no way to play The Third Age in 2026 without emulation. This is the tragic reality for several beloved licensed games from the era. Games people fell deeply in love with during their childhoods have increasingly become untouchable relics of the past, either due to outdated licenses or companies simply not caring. However, with the recent surprise release of War in the North, there might still be hope for The Third Age yet. It would take a dedicated team with the right expertise to enhance the visuals, spruce up the user interface, and make all those movie clips look like they aren’t playing on a potato. But a quirky RPG from such a timeless franchise deserves a second lease of life...
Actress Hayden Panettiere has died at the age of 36. Best known for her roles in hit TV series like Heroes and Nashville, Panettiere also had major roles in the Kingdom Hearts video game series and Supermassive Games' cult-classic horror game, Until Dawn. "It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden," Panettiere's family wrote in a press statement. "She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her--and to the millions who watched her onscreen." Panettiere's career in entertainment began in the '90s with roles in shows like One Life to Live and Aliens in the Family, and in 1998, she voiced Princess Dot in A Bug's Life and played a mermaid in The Object of My Affection. She'd go on to appear in more films like Remember the Titans, with her breakout role being Claire Bennet on the series Heroes, a cheerleader with the power to regenerate from almost any injury. In video games, Panettiere's first gig was as the voice of Tati in 2002's The Mark of Kri, which she followed up with work in Kingdom Hearts, voicing Kairi and Xion. Years later, Panettiere would lend her voice and likeness to the character of Samantha "Sam" Giddings in 2015's Until Dawn and its 2024 remake. "We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Hayden Panettiere," Supermassive Games wrote about Panettiere's passing. "Hayden brought Sam to life in Until Dawn, shaping her into one of horror gaming's most iconic final girls. Our thoughts are with her friends, family, and our community. Rest in peace, Hayden." "We are deeply saddened by the passing of Hayden Panettiere," Square Enix shared on Bluesky via the Kingdom Hearts page. "Through her performance as Kairi, Hayden brought warmth, heart, and an unforgettable voice to the Kingdom Hearts series. Our thoughts are with her family, friends, and loved ones." Several other actors who had a role in video games have also passed away this year. Legendary actor Robert Duvall--who reprised his role as Tom Hagen in EA's The Godfather--died in February at the age of 95, and he was followed by Jock Blaney (Wolf O'Donnell in Star Fox 64) in March, and Tom Kane in May (Gandalf in several The Lord of the Rings games, amongst many other roles)...