Brad Shankar

Montreal's Tribute Games returns to its retro Toronto roots with Scott Pilgrim EX Narrative director Yannick Belzil goes behind-the-scenes of the latest entry in the popular -- and quintessentially Canadian -- series.

Loved chatting with @tributegames.com narrative director Yannick Belzil about Scott Pilgrim EX!
We talked about their depiction of retro Toronto, the role narrative plays in designing playable beat 'em up characters, working on Scott vs. Marvel & TMNT and the fun of making a game set in Canada. 🇨🇦 🎮

Ben Mulroney accidentally shares video with fake footage of him being a respected media figure TORONTO - Ben Mulroney, temporary host of Global News’ political affairs program The West Block and self-proclaimed “Not A Journalist,” recently accidentally shared a fake footage video of him being a...

Ben Mulroney accidentally shares video with fake footage of him being a respected media figure

Global News’ Ben Mulroney Shared a Video of Airstrikes. The Footage is Actually from a Video Game. The host of Global News’ West Block gets lost in a misinformation-driven fog of war as American and Israeli forces strike Iran

NEW FROM ME:

While US and Israeli forces launched strikes against Iran this weekend, Global News' The West Block host Ben Mulroney reposted video of fighter jets that had been miscaptioned as American F-15s attacking Iran

I double-checked. Ben was actually sharing footage from a video game

Montreal's Tribute Games returns to its retro Toronto roots with Scott Pilgrim EX Narrative director Yannick Belzil goes behind-the-scenes of the latest entry in the popular -- and quintessentially Canadian -- series.

I really like how in the weeds Yannick got about game design at @tributegames.com. Fascinating to hear how Roger Rabbit inspires his creative approach, the research that goes into gameplay design (like how he dove into martial arts to design Scott), the back-and-forth with Bryan Lee O’Malley & more.

Thanks! 🙏

Montreal's Tribute Games returns to its retro Toronto roots with Scott Pilgrim EX Narrative director Yannick Belzil goes behind-the-scenes of the latest entry in the popular -- and quintessentially Canadian -- series.

Given the irony of a Montreal team making this quintessentially Torontonian game, I also had to ask about the (sometimes heated) rivalry between Toronto & Montreal. Naturally, his answer was both funny and insightful!

Montreal's Tribute Games returns to its retro Toronto roots with Scott Pilgrim EX Narrative director Yannick Belzil goes behind-the-scenes of the latest entry in the popular -- and quintessentially Canadian -- series.

Loved chatting with @tributegames.com narrative director Yannick Belzil about Scott Pilgrim EX!
We talked about their depiction of retro Toronto, the role narrative plays in designing playable beat 'em up characters, working on Scott vs. Marvel & TMNT and the fun of making a game set in Canada. 🇨🇦 🎮

Resident Evil Requiem confronts the catastrophe that Leon Kennedy survived The connections to American atrocities are inescapable

Ah linked to the wrong piece lol
This is Gio’s amazing review:

Thank you! And shoutout to you for such a great review as always. Sorry people were reading it in such bad faith because you made such thoughtful points. The fact that the question resonated so much with him is a testament to exactly what you were saying in your review.

Diving into the horrors of Resident Evil Requiem with Leon himself, Nick Apostolides Apostolides reflects on his approach to a more weathered Leon, the overlap between his acting and humanitarian work, joining Canadian-made Warframe and much more.

Also talked about the overlap between Nick’s humanitarian work & Requiem in terms of healing & visiting devastated communities. It speaks to @marioprime.bsky.social’s excellent Requiem review about how real events influenced Capcom.
It’s important to reflect on how history shapes us & our art!

Diving into the horrors of Resident Evil Requiem with Leon himself, Nick Apostolides Apostolides reflects on his approach to a more weathered Leon, the overlap between his acting and humanitarian work, joining Canadian-made Warframe and much more.

Leon is one of my favourite gaming characters, so it was a joy speaking with Nick Apostolides about Resident Evil Requiem. We talked about how he found that added edge and physicality, the dynamic with Grace, working on Canadian-made @warframe.com and what 30 years of RE means to him.

I’ll have a Pokopia review on @mobilesyrup.com in the next few days because less than a week before embargo really isn’t enough time.
But I do quite like it so far!
And in the meantime, I’ll be putting up two cool gaming interviews later today.

Canadians travelling to the US advised to not fucking do that OTTAWA - Canadians thinking of planning a trip to the United States are being advised by the Government of Canada to perhaps consider going anywhere else on the entire fucking planet for their summer ...

Canadians travelling to the US advised to not fucking do that

Same energy

Same. I only first watched it a little over a year ago on a whim coming home from The Game Awards, but it's stuck with me ever since.
So quotable!

Rewatching In Bruges, I think it's one of my all-time favourites now. And My Father's Shadow is one of the best new films I've seen in a while. (I'm not the first to make this comparison, but it gives off BIG Moonlight feels at times.)
#LetterboxdFriday #LastFourWatched

Old Snake returning to an empty, snowy Shadow Moses in MGS4. It's absolute peak.

Came back to my old high school public library for the first time in nearly 14 years to do some writing and feeling like Old Snake returning to Shadow Moses in MGS4. 👴

FFS.

It wasn't planned at all, but I've done more interviews in the past week than I have in probably any single stretch ever. (They're starting to blur together lol)
Exciting to start sharing them next week!

Heated Rivalry fans unfamiliar with concept hockey players might be gross TORONTO - Fans of the smash hit romance show Heated Rivalry, many of whom have also become fans of hockey, are expressing confusion at the discovery that the overwhelming majority of real life hockey ...

Heated Rivalry fans unfamiliar with concept hockey players might be gross

Balthier’s one of my favourites! I was disappointed he wasn’t in the (otherwise great) Ivalice Chronicles last year.

Caillou Blasts ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ Star During Podcast Appearance — Hollywood Time$ From a bush outside Joe Rogan’s mansion in Spanish Oaks, I can confirm that former child star Caillou made disparaging comments about Dexter Sol Ansell, who plays Egg on the hit HBO show A Knight of t...

Caillou Blasts ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ Star During Podcast Appearance

Guest Scoop by @realmfresh.bsky.social

www.hwoodtimes.com/scoops/caill...

Ah man that’s great, too! You’re just cooking here haha

Ooh, I love that perspective and it's a really good way to think. Will definitely try to consider that, thank you!! 🙏

In Porco Rosso, Porco sits besides a soldier in a movie theatre and says "I'd rather be a pig than a fascist."

All-timer line, and one of my favourite Ghibli movies, honestly.

That'd be a bit tricky because the first 1/2 of the game jumps between Grace and Leon a lot lol. That said, there's a clear point roughly in the middle when they leave to Raccoon City & it starts to focus on Leon with direct references to RE2, so that would be a better place to stop and go back IMO.

This is still one of my favourite photos I've ever taken. 🐷 👊

As someone who's always still a stammering bundle of nerves during most interviews even after nearly 10 years, it's always so heartening to hear the interviewee genuinely appreciate your questions and give such thoughtful answers. 🙏
TL;DR -- cool actor interview coming next week!

Resident Evil Requiem is magnificent, if sometimes uneven This is Resident Evil survival horror and action at their absolute best, even if they don't always coalesce.

I ADORED Resident Evil Requiem.

It’s a surprisingly touching story for both Grace & Leon featuring some of the series’ absolute best survival horror & action. While it doesn’t quite strike a balance between those two signature RE genres, I was hooked all the way to the absolutely thrilling finale.

Red.
It would definitely be sad to lose IX, X, Tactics, XIV and VII Remake, but VII and VI are easily my two favourite Final Fantasy games, so those alone make me pick Red.
I also think both V and XII are under-appreciated.