All good things have a beginning.

Transformers, the Hasbro toy line derived from a Japanese Gundam-like series, exploded throughout the early 80’s.

These machine men, robots in disguise which are more than meets the eye were two toys in one, a vehicle and a kick-ass robot.

With an animated TV series and film to compliment the toy franchise, it was inevitable that eventually Hollywood would pick up the mech Autobots and Decepticons with an enduring film saga heralded by Michael Bay.

Bumblebee, the bright yellow Camaro that we have become used to in the last decade of Transformers live action films goes back to his roots. This new Transformers flick takes us back to 1987, where it all began.

Those that know the toy line real well (or were kids of the 80’s) will know that Bumblebee was originally a Volkswagen Beetle.

Being sent to Earth by Optimus Prime as war ensues on their planet, Cybertron, Bumblebee crash lands in small town California and instantly raises awareness from the military.

Fearful of the humans he is ordered to protect, the humans that chase him with military firepower, and followed by a Decepticon who almost kills him, Bumblebee goes in to hiding. His internal cyber systems fried.

A young teenage girl, Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld), who is different from her peers, grungy (although that wasn’t a thing in the 80s) and into alternative rock struggles with her everyday life since the loss of her father and adjusting to a new, overly positive step-father.

Her mum, a nurse and younger brother training in Karate, Charlie doesn’t fit in with her family or the small town social scene.

She prefers to tinker around with car parts, trying to fix a car that her Dad, before he died, and herself were restoring.

After visiting a local car wreckers to look for scrap, she discovers a yellow VW Beetle. Long abandoned and a bit worse for wear.

As it is her birthday and she had hoped for a car from her mum and step-dad, she takes her automotive future in to her own hands and fixes the VW.

What she did not realise at the time, was that she had acquired a Transformer. A Transformer with no memory of who he is.

Bumblebee from Paramount Pictures is a feel good, light and surprisingly humorous film.

We are taken through a journey of self-discovery as Bumblebee who doesn’t have any memory of Cybertron, his mission, or where he is discovers life on Earth with Charlie his new friend and teacher.

Bumblebee is like a child, scared of everything but at the same time, bewildered by everything.

During this time, Bumblebee accidentally sends out a signal to Cybertron. The Decepticons hear it and trace him to Earth.

After duping a scientist and military, the Decepticons now here on Earth, they convince the humans they have arrived in peace and are looking for a ‘fugitive’. The silly Earthlings give the Decepticons access to the world’s satellites.

It is not too long before Bumblebee is discovered – but he is not ready to fight for his life. He is not the Bumblebee we have become used to.

Bumblebee is very much the beginning of the (Hollywood films) story. He was the first Transformer to land on Earth – and humanities first protector, with other Autobots to soon follow.

A reboot of the Transformer film series – and in my opinion the best Transformers film yet.

Loved it.

The post Bumblebee (Paramount Pictures – 2018) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

NOW CLOSED – Thanks to our good mates at Universal and Hasbro STG has one epic Transformers: Last Knight Prize Pack up for grabs.

With the Transformers: The Last Knight having only just released on Bluray and DVD you can now own the most recent Transformers film. Directed by Michael Bay, Transformers: The Last Knight sees Humans and Transformers at war and Optimus Prime is gone. The key to saving the future lies buried in the secrets of the past, in the hidden history of Transformers on Earth. Only one world will survive: theirs, or ours. Starring Sir Anthony Hopkins, Mark Wahlberg and Laura Haddock.

The Transformers: The Last Knight Prize Pack includes; Transformers: The Last Knight on Bluray, a Transformers Optimus Prime Voice Changing Helmet, Transformers: The Last Knight Keyring, Transformers Megatron Premier Edition Action Figure and a Transformers: The Last Knight glass mug.

To Enter our Transformers: The Last Knight Giveaway Prize Pack you will need to answer this Question correctly:

Transformers has gone from a Hasbro toy range, through to comics, cartoons series, video games and films. When was Transformers first unleashed upon the world?

A: 1968

B:1987

C: 1984

You can give us your Answer by placing a Comment below, hitting us up on Facebook, Tweet to us, or Email Us.

* Winner(s) will be randomly selected from those that Comment below / Facebook Comment / Email in accordance to the above Question. Winner(s) will receive a Boxed Transformers Optimus Prime Voice Changing Helmet, a Boxed Transformers Megatron Premier Edition Action Figure, Transformers: The Last Knight Bluray, Transformers: The Last Knight Keyring and a Transformers Glass Mug. Competition ends on the 22nd of October 2017. Transformers: The Last Knight (Bluray & DVD) is rated M15+.

The post Enter to Win a Transformers: The Last Knight Prize Pack appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Those machine men from the 80’s are back in their fifth cinematic installment in true Michael Bay epicness as the story behind the Transformers delves deeper in to their lore.

Transformers: The Last Knight picks up some time after the previous entry where both Autobots and Decepticons are considered to be both illegal and enemies of Earth.

With Optimus Prime out of the picture, having hurtled off in to space in search of his home planet in the last film, humans have retaken their planet and exterminate or imprison any bots that they come across via a specialist unit known as the TRF (Transformers Reaction Force).

Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg), a mechanical engineer who we met in the last entry, still harbours a few Autobots such as Bumblebee, camouflaged and hidden within his junkyard. He keeps them safe and under the radar.

However, this is not where this entry begins. Go all the way back to medieval times, the time of Merlin and King Arthur. A time where technology was considered magic.

In the year 484 AD Merlin knows of the whereabouts of a crashed Transformer. Enlisting the aid and power of the said Transformer Merlin turns the tide of war on the battlefield against the Saxons. But even more so, the Knights of Iacon, a part of Merlin’s kingdom, form an alliance with the twelve Transformers that had been hiding out.

This results in Merlin being given an alien staff to wield. This staff must also be pt both safe and secret from other humans and of course, the Decepticons.

The historical intertwining in to the Transformers narrative impressed me greatly. It was not expected and gave both myself and other viewers a sense that this Transformers film would be pleasingly different.

It is – and it’s not.

Back to present day with the TRF and Cade Yeager, alongside an orphaned girl, audiences are greeted with a less than compelling narrative after the early history period and combat sequences that sporadically jump, making the entire last part of the film totally confusing.

The staff, or more of a medallion is located and ends up in Yeagers hands. This places untold power on Yeager, but we don’t really get to see much of it. Then, insert a Secret British Order, a descendant of Merlin and the creator of the Transformers’ planet; Cybertron, a sorceress called Quintessa.

The sorceress plans to use Earth to rebuild the dismantled planet and sets in to place motions and plans that had been seeded for many millennia, and turns Optimus against mankind.

The time lapses and epic battle scenes only further confuse viewers as to where in the story they are and who is battling who. I doubt that this was by design, so I tend to think that there could have been too much story that they were trying to fit in to one film. But more fluid editing was definitely needed to maintain flow.

Still, those that have watched and are also a fan of the Michael Bay larger than life toy to comics to film adaption of the franchise, they are in for a treat and a couple of surprises (…ever wondered what Bumblebee’s voice REALLY sounds like?).

And Transformers: The Last Knight leaves it open for more… I just hope it redeems itself on the next film.

The post Transformers: The Last Knight (Paramount Pictures – 2017) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Being a long time fan of Transformers, knowing that Transformers Devastation was coming had me excited, albeit a bit nervous.  Platinum has a mostly good track record of action brawler games (most notably the Bayonetta series) and so the announcement of them doing a cell shaded G1 Transformers action brawler just oozed of potential.

But one cannot help but be skeptical with the way our beloved 80’s franchise has been treated (*cough* Rise of the Dark Spark *cough*).  Fortunately for aging nerds like myself, this game is for the most part an excellent title worthy of the Transformers name.

Transformers Devastation is very much an action brawler that borrows a lot of its mechanics from Bayonetta. This is most notable in the slow down mechanic (a.k.a witch time), triggered when you dodge right before you are attacked.  This is good as the controls and fighting are both very solid, fluent and work well, but by the end of the game they are a tad repetitive.

The real standout is the fanfare.

The story and the characters are exactly what I would want and the almost complete original voice cast really brings the experience home.  The cell shading looks absolutely stunning and for the most part looks like you are playing the cartoon.  The only real criticism I could level at the aesthetics of the game is the city feels a little bland and the buildings are a little generic, but that is a minor gripe about an otherwise beautiful game.

The only thing that I felt let the game down a bit was the equipment drop and upgrading system.

Weapons get dropped which can be equipped and you upgrade them at certain points in the game by deconstructing a weapon to level the one up.  Alternatively you can sell them for credits which can be used to construct power ups, or to upgrade the weapons (breaking a weapon down to upgrade another is not free).  So it is fine as a rudimentary upgrade system, but it mostly felt like an inconvenience, when a basic experience system could have been a lot more satisfying.

The story is not long. At about five hours, it is broken up into smaller Levels which are all graded, immediately adding replay value in trying to get better grades.  On top of that, as you advance the story, you will unlock challenges, which I am not going to lie, I spent much more time playing (and loving) than the story.

But the ultimate factor in the game is it is just fun.  I cannot describe the joy that beating down Megatron in a cell shaded G1 world and fortunately different playable characters have just different enough attacks that there is enough of a reason to experiment with each character and see which one suits you best.

The gameplay is simple enough that when you have finished the story it becomes the perfect game to play for 20 minutes, though one must be warned, those 20 minutes can disappear quickly and melt into an hour.

As a fussy Transformers fan, I had a high list of demands the moment I found out that Transformers Devastation would be based on the G1 series.  Somehow it managed to tick most of those boxes and a handful that I did not know existed.  A few minor annoyances aside the game is a worthwhile play.

Just put your headphones on, sit back and melt into a world dripping with 80’s Transformers nostalgia.

The post Transformers: Devastation Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Activision has just released Transformers: Devastation. This new third-person action-brawler rolls into battle with Hasbro’s classic Generations designs and developer Platinum Games’ renowned flair for slick visuals and free-flowing, high-speed combat.

Transformers: Devastation moves at a breakneck pace where players can rocket through danger in vehicle mode before bursting into robot mode to unleash a barrage of close-quarters combos and blaster fire.

Tackle the game’s gripping single-player campaign and 50 highly challenging bonus missions with any of five playable heroes – OPTIMUS PRIME, BUMBLEBEE, SIDESWIPE, WHEELJACK and GRIMLOCK. Each of these characters can be evolved with new abilities, unique talents and more than 150 upgradeable weapons.

Brought to life with bold, cel-shaded artwork, Transformers: Devastation features legendary Transformers voice actors like Dan Gilvezan as BUMBLEBEE, Frank Welker as MEGATRON and SOUNDWAVE, Michael Bell as SIDESWIPE, Gregg Berger as GRIMLOCK, and Peter Cullen as OPTIMUS PRIME.

As the fates of Earth and Cybertron collide, the noble AUTOBOTS must face off against the DECEPTICONS’ most ruthless champions in an original adventure from veteran TRANSFORMERS writer Andy Schmidt that expands the series’ ongoing Combiner Wars story arc.

Transformers: Devastation is now available for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Windows PC via Steam.

The post Get Brawling in Transformers: Devastation! appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

This weekend at Comic-con International in San Diego, Activision and developer PlatinumGames Inc. released a new gameplay trailer for their upcoming third-person action-brawler, Transformers: Devastation.

Blasting off with a showdown between cosmic rivals, this new in-game footage puts the heavy metal clash of the heroic Autobots and insidious Decepticons front and centre with explosive cel-shaded detail.

Transformers: Devastation brings Hasbro’s converting robot titans to life with classic Generations styling and modern attitude. This new trailer highlights four of the five playable heroes in the game; Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Sideswipe and Wheeljack as well as notorious foes like Megatron, Starscream and the towering combiner, Devastator.

Whether leaping into vehicle form to ram enemies at high speed or juggling them in mid-air with a flurry of blinding-fast combos, the dynamic action of Transformers: Devastation is so close it’s personal.

Transformers: Devastation is expected to launch later this year on the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Windows PC via Steam.

The post Transformers: Devastation Gameplay Trailer appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Activision have announced it is teaming up with acclaimed development studio PlatinumGames Inc. to release a ground-breaking new game starring the Transformers Generations characters.

Based on Hasbro’s colossal entertainment franchise, TRANSFORMERS: Devastation is a third-person action-brawler game with a breathtaking comic book-inspired visual style.

Forged with PlatinumGames’ gift for fast-paced action and mesmerising art design, TRANSFORMERS: Devastation harnesses the unique abilities of its heroes to convert from robot to vehicle form to extraordinary effect. In this incredibly dynamic, combo-fuelled experience, players battle as one of five AUTOBOTS – OPTIMUS PRIME, BUMBLEBEE, SIDESWIPE, WHEELJACK and GRIMLOCK.

Throughout the game, players unlock new skills, forge new weapons, and augment their characters to battle against the vicious DECEPTICONS, including MEGATRON and the powerful combiner DEVASTATOR.

PlatinumGames utilises cel-shaded artwork to create contemporary versions of the bold, brightly coloured designs of the original TRANSFORMERS characters. The game features a story inspired by the IDW comic book universe and includes the talents of legendary voice actors like Dan Gilvezan as BUMBLEBEE, Frank Welker as MEGATRON and SOUNDWAVE, Gregg Berger as GRIMLOCK, and Peter Cullen as OPTIMUS PRIME.

TRANSFORMERS: Devastation is expected to arrive later this year on the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox, and Windows PC via Steam.

The post Activision Announce Details for Transformers: Devastation appeared first on Shane the Gamer.