Tag: video-games

Grand Theft Auto VI: A Cinematic Preview on Netflix

Sports car driving on a wet coastal boulevard beneath neon casino signs

Ah, Grand Theft Auto. It brings back so many warm memories. I’m old enough to remember the original. It was shocking at the time. Stealing cars, running over pedestrians. It felt like we were right hoodlums!

Of course, you really had to use your imagination.

Wow, the world has really changed.

Grand Theft Auto VI: An Extended Look is currently being shown on Netflix. It looks more like a film.

Rockstar’s 26-minute compilation of in-game footage, captured on a base PlayStation 5 and presented like a cinematic short, dropped exclusively on the platform first and immediately shot to the top of the charts. It treats Vice City and the wider state of Leonida as a living, breathing world rather than a tech demo. The result feels less like a trailer and more like a taut, sun-drenched crime romance that happens to be playable.

Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos instantly register as the series’ most compelling leads. Their partnership has a Bonnie-and-Clyde charge mixed with everyday intimacy—raiding a fridge, arguing in an apartment, then exploding into a drug-deal-gone-wrong shootout and a frantic getaway. The footage lets their chemistry breathe between the chaos, suggesting a story that can be as much about two people trying to stay together as it is about heists and police chases. Missions that can be tackled together or separately, plus the ability to swap characters on the fly, give the relationship real mechanical and emotional weight.

Visually it is staggering. Lighting on wet asphalt, distant skylines during a parachute jump, the texture of Florida-inspired swamps, neon-soaked nightclubs, and even a tutu-wearing chihuahua all look photorealistic without losing Rockstar’s signature satirical edge. Everyday moments—driving through emergent street life, working out, grabbing food—sit comfortably next to high-octane sequences, selling the fantasy that this world exists whether you’re causing trouble or not. The editing keeps the pace cinematic while still showing off systems: wanted-level management, dual-character play, and a living city that reacts.

The soundtrack choices (Depeche Mode, Phil Collins, and more) land perfectly against the images, and the whole piece ends on a quietly effective note that makes November 19 feel both imminent and worth the wait. Netflix listing it under crime and action genres was the right call; people have already started logging it on Letterboxd as if it were a short film, which is exactly the energy it earns.

This isn’t just marketing. It’s a confident, stylish, frequently breathtaking preview that reminds you why Grand Theft Auto still matters. If this is the appetizer, the full game is going to be a feast.

Three stars – worth a quick watch.

Mortal Kombat II (2026) Review: A Nostalgic Action Sequel

Two samurai fighting with swords in ancient ruins with sparks flying at sunset

The Mortal Kombat franchise always brings warm memories to the fore of when I was much younger, It was too difficult for my hands to use the controller but my friends and brothers did. They all got so animated at times. So, there was a touch of nostalgia when I flicked onto the latest film in the franchise.

Mortal Kombat II (2026) is a gleefully brutal, crowd-pleasing sequel that delivers exactly what fans of the franchise want: spectacular fight choreography, over-the-top fatalities, self-aware humor, and deeper dives into the lore.

Directed once again by Simon McQuoid, this high-stakes martial arts fantasy picks up after the events of the 2021 reboot and throws the Earthrealm champions into an even more intense confrontation with Outworld’s forces under the tyrannical Shao Kahn.

The addition of Karl Urban as the cocky, washed-up action star Johnny Cage is a perfect fit—he brings charisma, comic timing, and genuine presence that elevates every scene he’s in. Returning favorites like Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Ludi Lin, and others get expanded roles and memorable moments, while newcomers such as Adeline Rudolph as Kitana add fresh energy and emotional stakes.

The action is the clear highlight. The film leans hard into the game’s signature style with inventive one-on-one (and larger-scale) battles, creative special moves, and satisfyingly gory finishes that feel faithful without becoming pure spectacle for its own sake.

Arenas look fantastic, the choreography is kinetic and well-shot, and the movie embraces its silly, high-fantasy roots with confidence. Moments of levity balance the darker tone and higher body count, making it more consistently entertaining than its predecessor for many viewers

.While the narrative remains relatively straightforward (as expected from a video-game adaptation focused on the tournament and defending Earthrealm), the expanded cast, improved sense of scale, and stronger emphasis on fan-favorite elements make this the most roundly enjoyable entry in the live-action series so far. It knows exactly what it is—a self-aware slugfest that rewards longtime players who can tell their Fatalities from their Babalities—and executes that mission with energy and style.

Three stars out of five from me. Don’t expect anything too deep.