Mystique X-Men Cosplay Pictures

It's cold on my nipples Mystique

Rebecca Romijn has a lot to answer for. She's spawned a whole heap of Mystique cosplay and for this, we actually salute her. Without her X-Men movie shenanigans, we may never have had her legion of fans decided to emulate her blue attire and  venture where not even the movie version of Wolverine dared to tread...

Rebecca Romijn as Mystique from X-Men

Are you still with us? Hang on to your hat's ladies and gentlemen and cos play fans, we're about to catch the Mystique cosplay train - we'll stop at destinations such as body painted Mystique and I'm way too sexy for my blue skin Mystique. Either, come on everybody, join the cosplay joy ride... like Roxette asked you to in the 90s.... indeed you could say we're travelling First Class ;)

Mutant Mystique

I think the above mutant shows a fair degree of scary-ness - something about the angle of the photo and those spikes look a little too sharp for my liking....

Bikini wearing Mystique

This Mystique cosplayer must be a long way from her Magneto - he'd never have let her out with such red crazy hair?

Body painting in progress...

Put 'em up, X Man. Or other wise known as come hither Wolverine. 

Mystique Cosplayer who appears to be wearing her birthday suit. We like suits at Gears of Halo.

Attention Fanboys... this is the lady you were looking for! Those eyes suggest a hint of crazyiness much?

Kind of 'I'll fuck you up'  Mystique Cosplayer

Mystique and her Birthday Suit II

I think this Mystique is faking it. What do you think - are following that classic piece of advice, fake it, till you make it?

Ah, yes, it's a tree. I love nature!

The latest movie version of the Mystique character was played by the fresh faced Jennifer Lawrence in the mega hit X-Men: First Class movie where she plays the titular X-men smurf in blue:

Definitely First Class material

If you are still hot for some X-Men cosplay, check out Jean Grey in her Dark Phoenix glory

What's this creature from Halo 4?

If you happened to watch right to the end of the Halo 4 Concept Art Video that was released over the weekend during the Halo Festival at Pax Prime you might have spied a very orange and angry ending which appears to be showing some kind of creature. Is this an enemy you will face in Halo 4? Or is it a friend? Time will tell but colour me HUGE FREAKING EXCITED.

Here's the video that was released:



And here's some images of the art from it.

Some Halo 4 insights from Game Informer

Here's some insights, thoughts and theories on Halo 4 that Game Informer has put together. For the sake of cutting to the chase, I've deleted a whole heap of it. Take from it what you wish or read the full article at Game Informer.

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The Forerunner and their technology will be at the center of the Halo 4 experience. In the recent Halo Fest panel, art director Kenneth Scott mentioned something about Master Chief’s ship being on its way towards a Forerunner planet – possibly implying that the huge maw depicted in the trailer opens into a world, rather than a ship. Perhaps the setting of Halo 4 is partially the interior of a micro Dyson Sphere, also called a shield world in Halo-speak. A similar shield world was a centerpiece in the novel Halo: Ghosts of Onyx – a huge sphere with the habitable area along the inside edge of the sphere.

Perhaps the biggest piece of recent info about Halo 4 is its position as the first in a trilogy of games called the Reclaimer Trilogy. As near as has been pieced together by the fan community, Reclaimer is a Forerunner term for humanity, or at least a certain subset of humanity. Before departing the galaxy, the Forerunner designated these human Reclaimers as the inheritors of their power – that’s one of the reasons Master Chief is uniquely enabled to activate various Forerunner devices in the earlier games. The fact that Halo 4 and its two sequels are called the Reclaimer Trilogy suggests that we’ll learn a lot more about that inheritance, and the wider connection of humanity to the ancient Forerunner race.

The books in question, collectively referred to as the Forerunner Saga, chronicle details about the Forerunner race, including their interaction with a space-faring society of humans that existed all those years ago. It’s likely that this current run of books about the Forerunner race will be central to fully understanding the world presented in Halo 4. “A lot of what this trilogy is going to focus on is exploring the character of Master Chief, and what it means to bring him back,” creative director Josh Holmes said at the recent Halo Fest panel. “There’s a lot of depth to John that exists primarily in the other fiction that we felt we wanted to explore more deeply, and lay out a journey for him that would transform him as a character and as a man.”

As the team leads on stage at the panel spoke about Halo 4, there was a notable shift even in the way the main character was spoken about. Throughout almost any public display of a Halo game in the past, Microsoft and Bungie have been specific about calling the character Master Chief. During this weekend’s panel, we heard as many mentions of “John” as we did of his rank name of “Master Chief.” While the books and comics within the expanded universe of Halo have always openly used Master Chief’s first name, it’s clear that 343 hopes to bring that more personal understanding of the character into the games. Players should reasonably expect a much deeper and more nuanced take on the series’ hero.

As for Cortana? It’s no stretch to claim that Cortana’s relationship with the Chief will continue to deepen in the new game. In the Halo Fest panel, O’Connor seemed hesitant to answer questions about Cortana, her voice actor, or how she will interact with John in the game. We predict some big changes to the AI character over the course of the new series, not the least of which is that smart AIs in the Halo universe have a limited life span. After about seven years, smart AIs enter a demented state called rampancy, and must be destroyed. Could we be seeing Cortana deal with her impending death in Halo 4?

Halo 4 will also likely present a new alien threat into the mix. Fans love the Covenant and the Flood, but the story of the conflict against those two groups dominated the earlier games. The recent Halo Fest concept art trailer offers a tantalizing glimpse in its final moments of a strange creature too indistinct to perceive clearly....

Whatever this is, I bet he aint friendly

Halo 4 Lead Designer Jesse Snyder talks...... Halo 4

Sounds like Jessie Synder has simply been gagging AND busting his balls to talk about Halo 4. And now that he can talk about Halo rather than his latest 'project' he shares his feelings and excitement about being the lead designer for Halo 4 and The Reclaimer Trilogy.

A while back Halo 4 was announced. As you might have suspected, I’ve been pretty busy working on the game. It turns out the campaign for a Halo game requires a pretty intense amount of effort. Who would have thought. I guess people are pretty into Halo or something.

I was actually the first designer hired at 343 Industries, but at the time the studio didn’t have a name. It was called something generic like “Halo Internal.” Woooo. In any event, I was the first designer to take the plunge (there were other designers that had come and gone, but they were pulled from other parts of Microsoft).

I didn’t start as a lead either. I was just coming off a crazy amount of Treyarch crunch (which if you ask around, is some of the most legendary crunch known to mankind) and was looking to get down on some level building, scripting and prototyping. You know, hitting reset on the ol’ work life balance button. However, after working at 343 for a bit, they asked me to be a lead, and being a lead on a Halo title is not something you tend to turn down. Don’t worry, I like to stay pretty hands-on with the tools in addition to having an outlook calendar full of meetings.

Halo 4 has been pretty crazy as far as projects go. Sure, there’s all the regular game making stuff that goes on, but there’s been such a big veil of secrecy over this game which has been insane. For example, we hired lots of people (like myself!) who had no idea exactly what they were signing up for.

Yes we are 343 Industries. Yes we own the Halo IP. Yes we are part of Microsoft. A game? What is that? No, no. We are working on a project you see. An FPS? We can’t say. Sorry. Please work for us. By the way, if you were to work on an FPS…

Yep, for the longest time, we couldn’t even publicly say we were working on agame. I’m sure most of you figured that out, but for someone who is a professional game designer, it’s hard not be able say “I’m working on a game” out loud or publicly. My go-to joke was always “Oh, well I work on books and anime.” Oh books-and-anime joke, how I’ll miss you. This is especially funny if you know me well.

And then we announce “Oh, and by the way we’re making a trilogy!” Jeez, really? I go from working on projects to an entire trilogy publicly? Someone needs to take a burlesque class and learn the art of tease.

Check out the rest of the article here

The Art of the Mass Effect Universe to be released

Fans of the Mass Effect™ series looking to go deeper into the Mass Effect universe are in luck. Dark Horse is proud to announce The Art of the Mass Effect Universe, an expansive, hardcover art book showcasing the stunning and imaginative art behind the highly anticipated action RPG Mass Effect 3. With commentary from the creators of the Mass Effect series, The Art of the Mass Effect Universe invites fans to get a behind-the-scenes look at the critically acclaimed franchise.

“Mass Effect 3 is the climax of the greatest sci-fi epic of our generation, so it’s only fitting that Dark Horse up the ante as well,” Dark Horse editor Dave Marshall said. “The Art of the Mass Effect Universe will reveal reams of never-before-seen artwork that was created during the development of this modern masterpiece.”

The Art of the Mass Effect Universe will be available for purchase in February 2012 for $39.99.

From the award-winning developers at BioWare™ comes Mass Effect 3, the pinnacle of the critically acclaimed epic action RPG series. The galactic war has begun. An ancient alien race known only as the “Reapers” has launched an all-out invasion of the galaxy, leaving nothing but a trail of destruction in their wake. Earth has been taken, the universe is on the verge of total annihilation, and you must lead the counterassault to take it back. The price of failure is extinction. Only you, as Commander Shepard, can determine how events will play out, which planets you will save from annihilation and which alliances you will form or abandon as you rally the forces of the galaxy to eliminate the Reaper threat once and for all.

Look for Mass Effect: Invasion, the latest comic series, to arrive on October 19, 2011. The collection of the previous series, Mass Effect: Evolution, is on sale September 21, 2011.

Press Release origin

Humans will use the Forerunner tech in H4

I spied a nice snippet of Halo news that came out of Halo Fest:

Finally, some additional details were revealed, such as how the humans, now at peace, have started researching forerunner technology. The result of this is apparently are seen in the new human weapons, which show traces of forerunner influence now.

So humans are the new covenant now? ;)

So this makes me wonder - for how long as the Chief and Cortana been sleeping in space?

Bioshock Infinite Pax Details

Panels are all the rage these days and PAX 2011 is no exception. Bioshock: Infinite fans were treated to one hosted by Irrational Game’s Ken Levine, and voice actors for the game, Troy Baker and Courtnee Draper chatted about the third game in the horror series.

Game Informer provides the key points from the discussion panel

• Ken Levine didn’t meet any of the actors from the first BioShock, he only ever talked to them over the phone before recording sessions, but for Infinite he was extremely hands on, often getting in the recording booth to help out the actors.
• The actress who plays Elizabeth – Courtnee Draper – is going to law school, and was actually about to quit acting when she got offered the part for BioShock Infinite. She actually hadn’t heard of BioShock before her audition.
• The Uncharted games really inspired Ken Levine while working on BioShock Infinite.
• Few of the dramatic sequences in BioShock Infinite are not truly scripted. BioShock Infinite has a system that watches for cool opportunities to introduce dialogue sequences, so the game’s story will evolve differently for every player.   
• Ken Levine wanted every line of dialogue to sound perfect, so a lot of time was spent rerecording lines. Three lines, in particular, proved to be so challenging that it took the team over an hour to record what they wanted.
• At least one scene in the game was not originally planned for the game, but was pieced together using ad libs and extra lines from other recording sessions.
• During one particularly difficult recording session, actress Courtnee Draper was having trouble working up the emotions necessary to deliver her lines, so Draper encouraged the actor who plays Booker DeWitt (Troy Baker) to start berating her until she was in tears. Finally she was able to deliver her lines perfectly.

Aria T'Loak versus Predator crossover?

Aria T'Loak vs Predator crossover? Not quite, simply some artwork from the forthcoming Mass Effect: Invasion comic series that's coming out shortly. Invasion will be a tie into to Mass Effect 3.

Femshep Mass Effect 3 Wallpaper

It seems like Femshep is all the rage these days with votes to see what colour her hair will be and special marketing campaigns etc. Well, anyways here's some Femshep Wallpaper to make your computer screen feel all happy on the inside and all business on the out.

Halo 4 Concept Artwork by 343

As part of Halo Fest, 343 has released this video of Halo 4's concept artwork. I've taken some 720 res shots for us all to enjoy direct from the video. Don't thank me, buy me something.

Here's a would-be-Spartan taking a wee stroll through some kind of canyon.

Our hero looks into the forest - certainly seems 'Halo' themed.....

Is it me or does this Halo 4 artwork feel a bit Ralph McQuarrie inspired? That's a good thing!

Is one of the Halo 4 skulls hidden within this Forerunner Structure?

This one is my favourite, it really evokes a Sci Fi feel. 

Space. It's no place for a flat tyre.

Halo 4 Concept Art Video from Halo Fest

Halo 4 Concept Art Video from Halo Fest

The Reclaimer Trilogy

The new Halo series, starting with Halo 4 is to be known as The Reclaimer Trilogy. 

It's basically final confirmation that the Chief will be up against Forerunner tech....

Out of the Halo Fest:

"He said that with the Chief headed toward a mysterious new planet, the team is investing heavily in the look and feel of the Forerunner civilization. O'Connor chimed in, saying that players have seen inert, abandoned Forerunner structures in the past, but now they'll see what that technology looks like when it isn't completely dead."

"Halo 4's story is still being closely guarded, but O'Connor did emphasize that the game will be a direct sequel to Halo 3, and that it deals with the fate of Master Chief and Cortana."

And seeing as the Chief is a Reclaimer, it makes sense for the series of games to be known as the  Reclaimer Trilogy

Skulls for Anniversary

Quickest skull pix I could find!

Skulls for Anniversary 

Halo Fest has revealed Anniversary will have a new set of skulls for a novel gaming experience. 

Those announced so farL

Grunt Birthday Party – Yay!
Grunt Funeral – Like Halo 2 version, Grunts explode when they die. Available as a pre-order bonus.
Malffunction – Every respawn a random HUD element is missing for the player.
Boom – Each explosion radius is doubled.

Skulls only appear and can utilised up in the new graphics engine mode as they won’t appear in “Classic” Halo mode. 

Pax 2011 Cosplay Pictures

Here's some cos play from Pax 2011. As you'd expect from such a popular event, the costumes are all over the place ranging from Fallout to Bioshock: Infinite.

Check out these great pictures!

Some Assassins working on their creed

Looks like Elizabeth needs some rescuing 

Looks like Carmine is alive and well at Pax. At least for now - do you think Carmine will live or die in Gears of War 3. It's out next month. Excited much?

Let's Duke it out if this is a good cosplay costume or not

Portal fans are almost a mandatory requirement at a gaming convention these days

Here's some cos photos from a PAX event earlier in the year.