Archive for May, 2012

‘Men in Black III’ topples ‘The Dictator’ at UK box office

Thursday, May 31st, 2012

Men in Black III has topped the UK box office on its debut weekend on release.

Will Smith’s science fiction blockbuster pulls in £2.9 million to secure the number one spot ahead of Sacha Baron Cohen’s comedy The Dictator.

Men in Black III‘s opening haul is significantly down from its predecessors. Men in Black opened to £7.07 million in 1997, while its follow-up took £6.19 million in 2002.

Avengers Assemble lands at number three, while new release What to Expect When You’re Expecting and Dark Shadows completes the top five.

Elsewhere, the top ten sees new entries from Wes Anderson’s Cannes Film Festival opener Moonrise Kingdom at number seven and low-budget Finnish sci-fi movie Iron Sky at ten.

The UK box office top ten in full:

1. (-) Men in Black III – £2,953,736
2. (1) The Dictator – £1,078,155
3. (2) Avengers Assemble – £872,664
4. (-) What to Expect When You’re Expecting – £661,617
5. (3) Dark Shadows – £409,560
6. (4) American Pie: Reunion – £362,323
7. (-) Moonrise Kingdom – £251,760
8. (5) The Raid – £116,340
9. (6) Beauty and the Beast 3D – £69.795
10. (-) Iron Sky – £66,076

Source: Rentrak

Emeli Sandé reclaims album No.1

Sunday, May 27th, 2012

Emeli Sandé has climbed back to the UK albums number one spot with Our Version of Events.

The ‘Next to Me’ singer narrowly beat guitar veteran Joe Bonamassa’s Driving Towards the Daylight by less than 100 copies, after he topped the midweek chart.

Adele’s mammoth long-runner 21 climbs back to number three, while John Mayer scored his first UK Top 10 album at four with Born and Raised.

Following Robin Gibb’s death last Sunday (May 20), the Bee Gees re-entered the chart at five with Number Ones, while Ultimate Bee Gees landed at 35.

Singles chart-toppers fun. climb back to seven with Some Nights, and Sir Tom Jones grabs his 17th top ten album with Spirit in the Room.

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‘The Dictator’ defeats ‘Avengers Assemble’ at UK box office

Saturday, May 26th, 2012

Sacha Baron Cohen’s new comedy The Dictator has topped the UK box office in its first weekend on release.

The film, which sees Cohen play Wadiyan tyrant Admiral General Aladeen, pulls in an impressive £4.9 million to end Avengers‘s three-week reign at the chart summit.

Johnny Depp and Tim Burton’s Dark Shadows holds its spot at number three, while American Pie: Reunion falls down two spots to number four.

Gareth Evans’s martial arts action epic The Raid debuts at number five with £417,596 from 297 locations.

Elsewhere, the chart sees a re-entry from Aardman’s The Pirates! at number nine. The Hugh Grant-voiced 3D animation sees a 4% climb in ticket sales to leap back into the top ten.

The UK box office top ten in full:
1. (-) The Dictator – £4,963,745
2. (1) Avengers Assemble – £2,814,216
3. (3) Dark Shadows – £1,638,651
4. (2) American Pie: Reunion – £1,372,896
5. (-) The Raid – £417,596
6. (5) Beauty and the Beast 3D – £395,660
7. (4) The Lucky One – £252,447
8. (7) Salmon Fishing in the Yemen – £167,171
9. (11) The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists – £132,235
10. (6) Safe – £121,399

Source: Rentrak

‘Diablo 3’ topples PC chart competition

Monday, May 21st, 2012
'Diablo 3' screenshot

Diablo 3 has ended Football Manager 2012‘s reign at the top of the PC chart.

Despite experiencing server issues since last week’s launch, Blizzard’s dungeon-crawler knocks Sega’s management sim down to second, leaving The Sims 3 in third.

With recent high-flyers Sniper Elite V2 and Tera disappearing out of the chart completely, Mass Effect 3 is able to climb one place to re-enter at ten.

The top ten PC games in full:
1.
(-) Diablo 3 (Blizzard)
2. (1) Football Manager 2012 (Sega)
3. (3) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
4. (5) The Sims 3: Showtime (Electronic Arts)
5. (6) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Softworks)
6. (8) Shogun 2: Fall of the Samurai (Sega)
7. (9) The Sims 3: Pets (Electronic Arts)
8. (7) Star Wars: The Old Republic (Electronic Arts)
9. (10) Battlefield 3 (Electronic Arts)
10. (11) Mass Effect 3 (Electronic Arts)

Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C) 2012 UKIE Ltd.

A full review of Diablo 3 can be read here.

Keane remain at albums No.1 with ‘Strangeland’

Sunday, May 20th, 2012

Keane have held off competition from Tenacious D to retain the number one spot in the UK albums chart with ‘Strangeland’.

Although Jack Black and Kyle Gass’s band looked likely to top the chart midweek, Rize of the Fenix landed at number two, giving the comedy rock duo their highest-placed album to date in the UK.

As a result, Emeli Sandé’s Our Version of Events drops one to three, while Adele’s 21 holds steady at four and Ren Harvieu’s Through the Night debuts to complete the top five.

Other new entries this week come from Garbage, whose long-awaited comeback album Not Your Kind of People arrives at ten, and dream-pop duo Beach House, who make their first appearance in the Top 40 with Bloom.

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Marvel’s ‘Avengers’ beats ‘American Pie: Reunion’ at UK box office

Wednesday, May 16th, 2012

Marvel’s Avengers Assemble has topped the UK box office for the third consecutive weekend.

Joss Whedon’s superhero ensemble pulls in £4.1 million to again hold off competition from American Pie: Reunion and secure top spot.

Tim Burton and Johnny Depp’s Dark Shadows remake debuts at number three with a £2.4 million haul ahead of Zac Efron’s The Lucky One and the 3D re-release of Beauty and the Beast.

Jason Statham’s Safe and Salmon Fishing in the Yemen both slip a place to numbers six and seven respectively.

New release Piranha 3DD debuts at number eight with a total of £242,889. The horror sequel’s opening haul falls far below the £1.33 million total its predecessor Piranha 3D earned in 2010.

The UK box office top ten in full:
1. (1) Avengers Assemble – £4,169,087
2. (2) American Pie: Reunion – £2,546,626
3. (-) Dark Shadows – £2,404,029
4. (3) The Lucky One – £431,576
5. (4) Beauty and the Beast – £422,924
6. (5) Safe – £298,201
7. (6) Salmon Fishing in the Yemen – £259,550
8. (-) Piranha 3DD – £242,889
9. (-) How I Spent My Summer Vacation – £152,728
10. (7) The Hunger Games – £143,542

Source: Rentrak

‘Hitman Sniper Challenge’ available now, view launch trailer…

Tuesday, May 15th, 2012

Hitman Sniper Challenge is available to download for pre-order customers today.

Users who have pre-ordered Hitman: Absolution will receive a code to download the spinoff, which sees Agent 47 attempt to assassinate Stallion Armaments CEO Richard Strong, Jr from a roof-top building overlooking a party.

To celebrate its launch, Square Enix has released a trailer highlighting the task at hand and some of the inventive ways to eliminate enemies.

Sniper Challenge features global leaderboards and competitions, which can be tracked on the game’s official website.

Using an Agency Kazo TRG sniper rifle, which will be transferred to the main game on release, players must take out members of Strong’s entourage, search for unlockables and take advantage of score multipliers.

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Keane land fifth consecutive No.1 album with ‘Strangeland’

Sunday, May 13th, 2012

Keane have landed a fifth consecutive number one with album with Strangeland.

The band have now scored chart-toppers with each of their five studio albums, a record that is only beaten by The Beatles.

Strangeland outsold its nearest competitor – Emeli Sandé’s Our Version of Events – by two copies to one.

The Beatles currently hold the record of seven consecutive number one albums, while Coldplay and Robbie Williams are among artists to have achieved five each.

Singer-songwriter Richard Hawley achieves his highest ever placing with his seventh studio album Standing at the Sky’s Edge, which lands at three.

Adele’s monster-seller 21 continues its run by slipping to four, while Lana Del Rey completes the top five with Born To Die.

Rebecca Ferguson returns into the Top 10 at six with Heaven, while Gotye climbs back up seven spots to eight with Making Mirrors.

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‘Avengers Assemble’ holds off ‘American Pie’ at UK box office

Wednesday, May 9th, 2012

Avengers Assemble has topped the UK box office for the second consecutive weekend.

Marvel’s superhero ensemble, which stars Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson, pulls in more than £8 million to see off competition from comedy sequel American Pie: Reunion.

Zac Efron’s war drama The Lucky One debuts at number three ahead of the 3D re-release of Beauty and the Beast, while Jason Statham’s action thriller Safe rounds out the top five.

Last week’s runner-up Salmon Fishing in the Yemen falls down four places to number six, The Hunger Games is at number seven and Aardman’s The Pirates! lands at eight.

Silent House is the only other new release to make the top ten. Elizabeth Olsen’s single-take horror movie debuts at number nine with £214,731.

The UK box office top ten figures in full:
1. (1) Avengers Assemble – £8,121,916
2. (-) American Pie: Reunion – £6,334,539
3. (-) The Lucky One – £1,159,435
4. (-) Beauty and the Beast 3D – £685,024
5. (-) Safe – £679,716
6. (2) Salmon Fishing in the Yemen – £641,051
7. (3) The Hunger Games – £346,807
8. (4) The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists – £318,039
9. (-) Silent House – £214,731
10. (7) Mirror Mirror – £207,319

Source: Rentrak

‘Company of Heroes 2’ officially announced by THQ

Monday, May 7th, 2012

Company of Heroes 2 has been officially announced by THQ.

The title was outed in the latest issue of PC Gamer, alongside details of its campaign and setting.

The campaign begins in 1941 as the Nazis begin Operation Barbarossa, their costly, and ultimately doomed, attempted invasion of Russia.

Snow-covered terrain will slow troop movement and provide cover, while units can now vault over cover points such as low walls.

As expected, series developer Relic is behind the game, using their “state of the art” proprietary Essence 3.0 Engine to provide improved graphics, dynamic battle tactics and environmental destruction.

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