A-Box is a great geek gift for Father's Day

Mystery box subscriptions are proving popular with geeks of all ages. From Loot Crate to Smugglers Bounty by Funko, there's something for fans of film, TV and video games everywhere.

Now, A-Box arrives and it's the perfect subscription gift for Father's Day!

Star Wars: The Force Awakens director JJ Abrams is a huge fan of the mystery box, as evidenced by his multimedia oeuvre, and a proud self-confessed geek. This maybe something his children would gift him for Father's Day.

A-Box is a new mystery box subscription service working directly with film and video game studios including Marvel and Activision. Each A-Box is packed with over £70 value for £38 per month (less if you opt for a longer subscription) and there's no contract. So, you could gift family and friends for their birthday or the holiday season. Why not treat yourself too?

In addition to a monthly mystery box. There'll be limited edition boxes. The first is Alien: Covenant for fans of director Ridley Scott's xenomorph. This is available for £55, but contains items valued over £150! It's worth noting there's an official life-sized replica, approved by Twentieth Century Fox, from the movie. What could it be? Leave your guesses in the comments below.



Mystery box subscriptions can be hit-and-miss. So much so that I've been reluctant to purchase one (for review purposes). However, A-Box benefits from directly supplying the movie industry for 10 years. They're off to a strong start with the release of the Alien: Covenant box from 26th June.

A-Box looks like a great addition to the mystery box space and a Star Wars: The Last Jedi themed box would be awesome this December. However, the proof will be when I have one in hand to review, myself.

The fine folks at A-Box reached out to me and, as such, this isn't a sponsored post. I simply like the look of this new fully licensed blind box subscription service and wanted readers to see for themselves.

For further details and to subscribe, visit A-Box.com.

Destiny 2 reboots the franchise this September

Bungie's Destiny promised more than it delivered upon launch in September 2014. A so-so story was overshadowed by fun Fireteam adventures with friends on PSN and Peter Dinklage's infamous Ghost. Dinklage was ultimately replaced by Nolan North best known for playing Nathan Drake in the Uncharted series.

Subsequently, Destiny has evolved with expansion packs, but I stopped playing after completing the original campaign and never went back.

Earlier this week Bungie released a teaser trailer for Destiny 2 featuring Cayde-6 (Nathan Fillion) and it was comedy gold. Could this be the sequel fans are looking for?



On Thursday Bungie released a full trailer and announced the release date for the upcoming sequel. 8th September on PS4, PS4 Pro, Xbox One and PC. As before, PlayStation owners have access to exclusive content before anyone else. Time-limited exclusivity remains a point of contention within the gaming industry. I think it's a mistake across all platforms, but that's business for you.



Bungie won't be revealing any gameplay footage until 18th May. E3 will only be weeks away and presumably the developer will appear on the PlayStation stage.

There are several editions of Destiny 2 available for pre-order and I've already pulled the trigger. Because Beta.

Are you looking forward to Destiny 2 and the promise of a more story focussed adventure? Does it matter that loot won't carry over from the original game? Let me know in the comments below.

LEGO Dimensions brings toys-to-life in September

Activision's Skylanders ignited the toy-to-life craze and Disney and Nintendo followed with Infinity and Amiibo respectively. Now there's LEGO Dimensions vying for your living room space.

“When kids play with Lego bricks, they build beyond the singular brands, intermixing all of their favourite characters and universes, and we have come up with a way for players to experience that in games,” said Jon Burton, creative director of developer, TT Games, in a press release. “Now for the first time in a videogame, Lego fans can play in the virtual world and in the real world – combining everything without restrictions.”

“Imagine putting Lego Gollum from The Lord of the Rings behind the wheel of the Lego Delorean in New Ninjago City – the creative play is endless.”

A $99.99 "Starter Pack" will launch on September 27th in the US (September 29th in the UK) for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4 and Wii U. The game leverages LEGO's original and licensed properties including Back to the Future, The Lord of the Rings and DC Comics. Doubtlessly Harry Potter will join the fray in a future update.

Given Marvel and Star Wars are both owned by Disney, there may be a conflict of interest bringing those characters to LEGO's toys-to-life franchise. This does pose a compelling question. What if you could scan a custom LEGO minifig into the game? May be Boba Fett's helmet on Iron Man's body holding Darth Maul's infamous double-bladed lightsaber.

Will you be trading-in your Skylanders, Disney Infinity and Amiibo collections for LEGO Dimensions this September? Let me know in the comments below.

Destiny Beta brings Bungie's brilliance to the fore

The Destiny Beta coincided with my dad's 72nd birthday and topped off a wonderful day! Once the 10GB download had finished that is.

Last month I got to play the Destiny Alpha and couldn't stop thinking how beautiful the game looked. Clearly developer Bungie has tweaked the graphical fidelity for the Beta build and it's even more gorgeous to look at with exceptional detail and contrast. Lavish visuals underpinned by a sumptuous soundtrack that compares favourably with Halo, Mass Effect and TRON: Legacy.



This feels and plays like a finished game. Seriously. The Beta literally thrusts the player into the beginning of the main campaign and sets up its enigmatic premise, which I won't spoil for readers who wish to wait for the final release this September.

Ride a Sparrow and recreate the Speeder Bike chase from Return of the Jedi!



Peter Dinklage's Ghost no longer breaks suspension of disbelief and his performance is as assured as Game of Thrones.

The Destiny Beta has impressed me so much I've cancelled most (if not all) of my pre-orders during the upcoming holiday season and can't wait to unbox the Limited Edition on day-one! Only August's The Last of Us Remastered and Bungie's Halo: The Master Chief Collection have survived the cull.



Bungie's latest may also be its greatest. Now it's simply a matter of waiting, impatiently, for September...

Have you played the Beta? Let me know in the comments below.

Bungie's beautifully bleak Destiny

During this year's PlayStation press conference at E3, PS4 owners were given the opportunity to sign up for Destiny First Look Alpha before next month's beta. On Thursday I received an invite code and dutifully downloaded the 6.7GB Alpha from PSN. Midnight passed by in a flurry of visual virtuosity...

With an alleged budget of $500 million dollars the weight of expectation weighs oh-so-heavily on this new IP. However, developer Bungie and publisher Activision may have a killer app to rival Halo and Call of Duty franchises!



Initial impressions are positive and the game only crashed once! Destiny looks beautiful, Killzone: Shadow Fall beautiful, and evokes Bungie's earlier opuses: Halo and Marathon. There's a Mass Effect and Phantasy Star Online vibe, which compelled me to create a human character in homage to Miranda Lawson. Incidentally, actress Yvonne Strahovski is deftly holding her own in 24: Live Another Day.

Is it me or is Peter Dinklage's Ghost bereft of emotion? The beloved Game of Thrones actor is no match for Cortana or EDI and at times he sounds sardonic, which may or may not be his intention. Just hear him say "It can't be... It's the hive!", without sniggering. Bill Nighy seems to be having more fun.

The Alpha is a teaser of what to expect this September. I played story mode, without so much as a tutorial or context, with several other PSN friends and random players joined in on the action too. Friendly fire is not a good tactic, in the midst of an epic battle, and I wasn't the one firing! Looting is addictive and brings Borderlands to the table amidst the Halo and Mass Effect design cues.

Looking forward to Destiny? Let me know in the comments below.