Rogues Portal Staff Picks 12.28.2018

Michael’s Pick

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor

Did you get a shiny new gaming system for Christmas? Well, chances are you’ll be playing the new Red Dead or Call of Duty games (or Spider-Man and God of War if you were lucky enough to get a PS4). However, if you’re looking for a fun game that doesn’t have the same cost as a newly-released title, check out Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor.

This game takes place between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. You play an undead ranger named Talion who has been bonded to an Elf-lord wraith. You hack and slash your way through Orc and Uruk armies to prevent the return of Sauron to Mordor. More importantly, you seek vengeance for your lost loved ones.

In addition to the button-mashing combat, the game is full of upgrades and side quests galore. Plus, it uses a “nemesis” system where you hunt down orc captains, and if you die, those captains get promoted. It’s entirely addicting…I might have spent an entire day on my Christmas break playing this game.

New games are great, but if you’re looking for a classic on the cheap, definitely go with Shadow of Mordor.

Anelise’s Pick

Cam

While on break I tried to clear out “my list” on Netflix — especially the movies, as those tend to pile up. One of the ones I watched was Cam. Lola is a camgirl with a ton of loyal subscribers. In order to make money and gain rank, she does what her viewers want. Sometimes she even goes that extra mile and incorporates knives and fake blood. All of that to say, Lola is determined to be in the top 50 of all camgirls out there. This comes to a stop, however, when another camgirl appears on the scene: one who looks and talks and acts exactly like Lola. What follows is a part-thriller, part-horror film driven by Lola’s paranoia-fueled mission to find out who the impostor is and how to reclaim her title.

I was pleasantly surprised by this film. It was eerie and unsettling, but also visually appealing, and I found myself hooked from the first few minutes. If you’re looking for a quick watch that is not exactly horror but not exactly your plain old thriller, then I recommend Cam.

Greg’s Pick

Berlin

If you do not know, I do a podcast called The Comics Agenda along with the other people who contributed to the staff pick this week. Because of that, I do not get a chance to sit down and really get into some bigger and longer reads. With a break from work and focusing on best of 2018 for the podcast, I finally got a chance to sit down and start to read a rather big book that I bought at CXC in the fall.

Berlin is a graphic novel that tells the story of the fall of the Weimar Republic. Boring sounding right? Not at all! The story follows the life of several of the citizens of Berlin during the fall of the republic. Although a work of fiction much of the story is pushed forward by the city and historical events. If you are a fan of history, and complex, compelling characters and storytelling this is a book you need to be picking up.

Insha’s Pick

The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs: A Very Joe Bob Christmas

There are very few things I’ll stay up late for. I need my beauty sleep like any other person on the planet. Yet, I’ve stayed up for movie marathons because I damage myself and love it. This year has brought a cool bunch of movie marathons that’s worth some attention — the best being by Joe Bob Briggs. If you don’t know who Joe Bob Briggs is, he’s a horror host that has set Shudder on fire with his comeback. He’s broken the internet three times starting with Joe Bob’s The Last Drive-In. For Thanksgiving, he introduced more bonkers films in the program called Dinner or Death. For Christmas, Joe Bob did another dope marathon of a holiday series. The series? Phantasm. 

If you don’t think Phantasm is a holiday movie, you’re wrong. Joe Bob showed four films in the Phantasm franchise (skipping over one for a damn good reason). I highly suggest binge-watching the whole thing. Joe Bob is fantastic at what he does. He’s funny, sarcastic, knows WAY too much about stuff and made Linus’ role in the Charlie Brown Christmas Movie make sense.