Shenmue 3 Finally being made after 14 years!!!

Excuse me while I go fan girl in the corner in the same way teenage girls fan over their favourite boy bands. When I first heard the news I was disbelieving of what I had just read. I had to read multiple sources on google just to get confirmation that what I was reading wasn't some sort of fabrication, or simply just a misleading title to get traffic for the website in question. After reading more than one source, I could actually allow myself to get a little excited.
Surely I am not the only one, as the Shenmue franchise is a much loved game with a dedicated core of fans. Fans that have been campaigning for years for the epic tale of main character Ryo Hazuki to continue on so that we could reach a gradual conclusion. Will Ryo Hazuki finally find Lan Di and gain the revenge he had worked so hard to act upon thus far? I was certainly keen to find out how the story unravelled and was meant to end. Therefore I was as eager as many fans for Shenmue 3 to come into fruition. I had to admit that somewhere along the line I had accepted the fact that it just wasn't going to happen, but here we are!

Before I go on, I'll recap a little bit of the story for those that may otherwise be unfamiliar. In the simplest of terms, Ryo Hazuki, the 18 year old protagonist of the story witnesses his Father, Iwao Hazuki being murdered by a man called Lan Di at their residence. A dragon mirror is stolen and thus begins a story of revenge as Ryo Hazuki seeks the man who killed his Father. And questions. Many questions that get asked by Ryo to random citizens of the streets to help him come another step closer to finding the man in which he seeks.

At the time of being made, Shenmue had been one of the most expensive games of it's time, costing a hefty 70 million to make. Unfortunately, the game did not profit and went bust. This alone was enough reason to believe another game in the series would never be made.

So how did this come about? Kickstarter. To help fund the next Shenmue, a Kickstarter was put in place after a sony show and in record time reached their funding goal of $2 Million. In addition to this, it seems that Sony is also actually helping to fund the game. It will be very interesting to see how this develops.

Crystal Maze Makes a Return!!!

...as an interactive gaming experience. I heard the news on Crystal Maze hoping for a grande return to our television screens but still, just hearing any news on one of my favourite childhood shows got me all excited.

I actually loved this show as a kid, so much so that I once tried to reenact the crystal dome part of the show. I once actually got some monopoly money and made my cousin sprinkle the money on the ground from her top bunk bed, whilst I scrambled myself on the floor quickly scooping it all up.
Basically, the idea is to bring the 90's game show back in the form of an interactive gaming experience in central london. Apparently this will be happening around autumn and is being developed by theatre company Little Lion Entertainment. This is written on their 'About' page on their website:
"Little Lion's aim is to create the most exciting, engaging and entertaining theatrical attractions London has ever seen, whilst also being a cultural force for change in opening up theatre to broader and more diverse audiences.

There has been a cultural shift in audiences towards content that they can engage in with an active way; modern audiences want to do, not watch."

A little more was written which you can read here http://www.littlelionentertainment.com/about/4587724036, but I think that description sums up what they are hoping to achieve with this Crystal Maze project. I personally think it sounds like a great idea,. The only thing is the price for participating is supposedly £50, yikes. However, if I was hanging out with a big group of friends, I think trying it out would be a great laugh.
Watching Crystal Maze when I was younger, I always thought it would be a fun thing to try out myself. I also felt this way about Supermarket Sweep. I mean, who wouldn't want to run around frantically in shopping isles, just throwing food into your trolley and making a mess while jolly music plays in the background? This is something I also tried in the comfort of my own home. Call me weird, I probably am.

My verdict: bring back the Crystal Maze on TV! If you can bring back Family Fortunes, then you can bring back Crystal Maze :)

Goodbye Bruce, Hello Caitlyn Jenner!!!!!

It's no secret to anyone who pays attention to the news of Miss Caitlyn Jenner, formerly known as Bruce Jenner who was married to Kris Jenner of the Kardashian Klan.

A couple of weeks ago, Miss Caitlyn Jenner took the world by storm when she showed her amazing transformation from man to woman, unveiled in Vanity Fair Magazine. I had heard that this was going to happen a while ago but admittedly hadn't paid too much attention to it, until I saw the pictures of Caitlyn Jenner on twitter following tweets of praise and admiration.
I had to admit, the pictures caught my attention. So much so that I had to add my own 2 cents on twitter.

It is a beautiful thing to see nothing but words of positivity and respect for the courage Caitlyn has showed, unveiling herself in such a way and exposing herself to millions of people for them to view and judge. In this case, the best case scenario occurred where a large view of the twitter population were in support and acceptance of Caitlyn. I truly believe in the freedom of being yourself in a world that can be quite cruel and stigmatic. For Caitlyn to do that is an act of courage in my view.

BGT 'Stunt Dog' Controversy - Stunt Dog used in winning Jules and Matisse Act!

Jules' dog Chase, used to walk the ropes

So, if you have watched or paid any attention to this year's Britain's Got Talent, then you will know that the winners this year turned out to be dog act Jules O'Dwyer and Matisse. This is the second time a dog act has won the show since Ashley and Pudsey back in 2012.
Due to the lack of a TV, I hadn't really been able to catch up on a lot of the acts this year (sad face). However, after seeing the buzz over Jules, her adorable border collie Matisse, and three legged dog Skippy unexpectedly brought out in the act's finale, I had to admit I was taken away by how disciplined and trained Jules' dog Matisse was.
I watched back to their first audition and their semi finale performance where Jules' dog Chase was introduced and I liked the fact that she brought out other dogs she owned,. It brought a new depth to the performance that possibly topped Ashley and Pudsey's. Skippy and Chase were not a huge part of the acts they featured in but in what little we saw of them, they also seemed to be disciplined and trained. This is something I imagine to be a difficult feat, since many dog acts have passed through the Britain's Got Talent auditions and failed, due to the lack of following their owner's instructions. How cute was it that the storyline of Jules and Matisse's final performance was that he stole the sausage from the butchers shop for little Skippy? (If you don't know what I'm talking about, watch the performance here!) That final moment had me a little emotional on the brink of actual tears! Tears of joy and admiration for Matisse, of course.

There has been an outrage due to the audience being misled into thinking that it was Matisse that had been walking the tight rope, when all along it was Jules' dog Chase walking along the two ropes. I guess this has led some to believe that the act is underserving of their win, or that they were misled into voting for what they thought was an entirely genuine performance.
My verdict on this is simple. If a professional stunt dog had been brought in that Jules didn't know of personally then I would definitely have a problem but Chase is Jules own dog that she trained. Chase had already been introduced in the semi finale performance, so it wasn't like she was hiding him. While being called Jules and Matisse, I get the impression that their act is more of a Jules and Matisse, ft Matisse's dog friends after she brought out Chase and Skippy in their own separate performances. I may actually be biased concerning Matisse since I think he is adorable, but I think the act is totally deserving of their win. That is my verdict!