Catch up with the gaming and movie news you may have missed. Let’s recap for the last week of February.
Stand By Me Returns to Theaters for 40th Anniversary
The moving 80s classic Stand By Me returns to theaters for its 40th anniversary for one-week only starting March 27. The firm was directed by the late Rob Reiner.
The 1986 film stars Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O’Connell and Kiefer Sutherland.
In a treehouse on the edge of Castle Rock, a small, woodsy town in Oregon, a budding 12-year-old writer named Gordie LaChance (Wil Wheaton) prepares to embark on an extraordinary journey—one that will change his life forever. When his best friend Vern (Jerry O’Connell) overhears his older brother discussing the discovery of a dead body in the woods, Gordie and his friends set out in hopes of becoming local heroes.
Joined by the tough but compassionate Chris (River Phoenix) and the reckless daredevil Teddy (Corey Feldman), the boys’ innocent adventure quickly becomes a profound odyssey of self-discovery. As they venture deeper into the forest, Gordie, Chris, Teddy, and Vern are tested in ways they never imagined, confronting fear, loss, and the realities of growing up.
Backyard Baseball Returns This Summer
Mega Cat Studios and Playground Productions announced Backyard Baseball, an all-new 3D installment in the fan-favorite Backyard Sports series, is releasing on June 9 on consoles and PC (including Mac!).
It will be the first entry in the popular Backyard Baseball series in 15 years.
“Backyard Baseball is a franchise that means so much to so many players, including our team here at Mega Cat Studios,” said James Deighan, CEO and co-founder of Mega Cat Studios said in a news release. “We’re incredibly honored to help bring this beloved series back in a way that respects its legacy while introducing a whole new generation to the magic that made it special in the first place. Our goal is simple: capture that same joy, accessibility, and Backyard spirit that fans remember, and build something that feels both timeless and fresh.”
Solo Leveling Season 2 on Blu-ray
On March 17, Crunchy Roll is selling the Blu-ray/DVD Combo alongside a Limited Edition Combo. The North American anime giant is also dropped the Blue-ray for Possibly the Greatest Alchemist of All Time – The Complete Season On March 10.
TMNT: Splintered Fate Alopex DLC
Developers revealed that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate is getting its first female playable character with the mutant arctic fox Alopex.
And that’s not all, the Alopex DLC features five new artifacts to help switch up your runs, including:
Polar Bear Netsuke – Every 10 seconds, Final Strike will throw out a line of flames. Cooldown is halved under half health.
The Maltese Hamster – Your Tool charges slower, but deals extra Damage.
Channel Six Mini Camera – Your Special charges slower, but deals extra damage.
Hot Cocoa (with Marshmallows) – You have -1 dash. When you dash, gain a burst of movement speed.
Buddy the Wraith – You have an allied Utrom Wraith, which levels up and evolves over a run for an extra pair of helping tentacles.
BLACK FILM Releases March 24
In BLACK FILM, Eisner Award-winning author David F. Walker presents an immersive dive into the crucial history of Black actors, films, and filmmakers. Following closely behind the very first moving picture captured by Eadward Muybridge in 1872, Thomas Edison’s thirty-second “actualities” from the late 1890s, including A Watermelon Contest and Dancing Darkey Boy, are among the first short films to depict Black people. These can be considered the earliest examples of how the film industry would go on to exploit, appropriate, and shape the narrative of Black people for the duration of its development.
Divided by decade, each section of BLACK FILM covers an important era and milestone for Black film, highlighting both difficulties and triumphs through time. For example:
The harmful popularization of blackface and minstrel shows (1890-1914)
The emergence of racist feature-length movies such as Birth of a Nation after the advancement of sound in film, countered by the success of pioneering Black filmmakers such as Oscar Michaeux and brothers George and Noble Johnson (1915-1928)
The rise of trailblazing actors such as Sidney Poitier and Dorothy Dandridge (1950-1959)
The roots of Blaxploitation as a subgenre and how Black people ultimately saved Hollywood during trying times (1970-1979)
The exciting crossover of hip-hop music into film (1980-1989)
The box office success of Marvel’s The Black Panther, Moonlight’s history-making Best Picture win, and more.With gorgeous illustrations, film stills, and rare pieces of ephemera, BLACK FILM celebrates the glowing contributions of Black actors and filmmakers, without shying away from discussing the racism that is rooted in Hollywood—an important reality to address in order to make progress.
70s-style Robot Anime Geppy-X Gets First NA Release
The 70s-style Robot Anime PlayStation One title Geppy-X is getting its first release outside of Japan since it first launched in 1999.
Four Discs. 8,000 Hand-Drawn Frames. Zero Restraint.
Built at the height of the late-90s CD-ROM boom, the original PlayStation release spanned four discs and featured over 8,000 hand-drawn animation frames — an unprecedented production scale for a 2D shooter.
This wasn’t just a game inspired by anime.
It was a full-blown 70s super robot TV series you could play.
For this Hi-Res Remastered Edition:
• Original Betacam master tapes have been re-digitized
• Modern upscaling enhances visual clarity
• Animation has been fully restored to its original 24 frames per second
This is not a simple upscale.
It’s a full restoration of a lost anime-era production.Play a Super Robot TV Broadcast
Geppy-X recreates the structure of a classic anime broadcast:
Time signal → Opening → Episode → Eyecatch → Commercial break → Ending → Next episode preview.
You don’t just watch a super robot show — you control it.
Three young pilots combine their powers to command the transforming super robot Geppy-X, defending Earth from the invading Space Demon Empire.
Mid-season mech upgrade?
Of course.
Because this is super robot anime — and when the upgrade hits, it hits hard.Three Forms. No Mercy.
At its core, Geppy-X delivers fast-paced arcade-style side-scrolling shooter action.
Switch between three combat types in real time:
X1 — Balanced precision.
Reliable, versatile firepower.
X2 — Speed unleashed.
High mobility and the screen-clearing X Seeker.
X3 — High-risk power.
Crushing close combat with X Slap and the devastating X Cannon.
Strategic form switching is essential to survive intense stages and towering boss encounters.
Midway through the story, the machine evolves into Geppy-XX, unlocking new weapons and a new level of firepower — a classic super robot turning point.
Star Wars: Galactic Tales of Terror Library Edition Pre-Orders
Star Wars: Galactic Tales of Terror Library Edition, written by Cavan Scott, releases on September 22, 2026. The 336-page hardcover is now available for pre-order.
It includes Star Wars: Tales from the Rancor Pit, Star Wars: Tales from the Death Star, and Star Wars: Tales from the Nightlands #1 – #3 in a deluxe, oversized library edition!
As the twin suns set over Tatooine, Captain Vaclav finds himself dangling above Jabba the Hutt’s rancor pit! To bargain for his freedom, Vaclav regales the crime boss with three blood-curdling tales of phantom droids, alien lycanthropes, and ice-planet serpents! Is it possible to scare the cold-hearted Hutt?
On the dark and stormy coast of Kef Bir, a cloaked figure warns a young maverick named Fry about the horrors that lurk in the ruins of the Death Star: trash compactor terrors, ghostly pilots, and Imperial zombies! Will Fry heed the warning?
And during long nights on Ryloth, Twi’leks speak in hushed tones about the Nightlander. This shadowy entity haunts three generations of legendary heroes in its quest to bring despair to the galaxy! How will Anakin, Luke, Leia, and Rey quell this dark power unlike any other?
MARVEL MaXimum Collection Revealed
Limited Run Games revealed the MARVEL MaXimum Collection and made it available to wishlist on platforms like Steam.
The collection includes X-Men: The Arcade Game (Arcade), Captain America and The Avengers (Arcade, MEGA, 8-bit), Spider-Man/Venom: Maximum Carnage (SUPER, MEGA), Venom/Spider-Man: Separation Anxiety (SUPER, MEGA), Spider-Man/X-Men: Arcade’s Revenge (SUPER, MEGA, PORTABLE, GEAR), Silver Surfer (8-Bit).
Limited Run also announced the “MaXimum Features” added to the game:
MaXimum Features
- X-Men: The Arcade Game Online: Online multiplayer for up to 6 players with Rollback Netcode!
- Archives: Dive into a digital archive featuring high-resolution scans of original box art, instruction manuals, and vintage advertisements.
- Music Player: Kick back and listen to the iconic chip-tune scores from every version of every game in the collection.
- Integrated CHEATS menu: Enable Infinite Lives and more in selected games
- Rewind & Save States: Finally conquer the “Deadly Walls” of Silver Surfer or the boss gauntlets of Arcade’s Revenge with the ability to rewind gameplay and save anywhere.
- Display Options: Play with crisp, modern pixels or recreate the Saturday morning experience with CRT and scanline filters.
Powerplex Joins Invincible VS Roster
Powerplex was revealed as the newest playable fighter in the 3v3 tag fighting game Invincible VS, set in the award-winning Invincible universe. Invincible VS will launch on April 30 for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PC.
Former GDA scientist turned high-voltage villain, Powerplex – a.k.a Scott Duvall – is a man riddled with grief after his sister and niece were killed during the destruction of Chicago, and he blames Invincible for their deaths. Harnessing his ability to convert kinetic energy into electricity, Powerplex lets his intense hatred and unrelenting anger drive him toward an unhinged quest for revenge, yielding disastrous results. In Invincible VS, he is a ranged Fighter able to maintain pressure and control spacing on opponents through electrified air attacks and excellent ground mobility, allowing for brutal combo strings.
Invincible VS is the first major game to bring the Invincible universe to life, drawing from the acclaimed comic series by Robert Kirkman, Cory Walker and Ryan Ottley. Built from the ground up, the game features beloved characters, iconic locations and devastating combos into a brutal, tournament-caliber tag-team fighting experience that reflects Quarter Up’s commitment to hard-hitting combat and deep respect for the source material.
The Testament of Anne Lee Hits Digital
The Testament of Ann Lee, from award-winning writer-director Mona Fastvold, will release on digital platforms including Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and Fandango at Home on March 10.
Based on a true legend, The Testament of Ann Lee depicts the story of the founder of the devotional sect known as the Shakers. Amanda Seyfried stars as the Shaker’s revered, irrepressible leader who preaches gender and social equality. With reimagined Shaker hymns, the film captures Lee’s ecstasy and agony in her quest to build a utopia.
Fastvold happened upon Shaker hymns which led her to resurrect the story of Ann Lee, a figure so strong yet surprisingly unsung as a “wild feminist religious leader in late 1700s America,” she recalls. Believing that Lee had been completely overlooked by history, Fastvold was inspired to write, produce and direct this film with fiery passion, explaining that “For me, being an artist is always about striving to create the impossible – that’s what drew me to Ann Lee. This film is offered as a tribute to her dream – and the silence that now surrounds it.”
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Dragon Pearl of Destruction Releases in April
Limited Run Games also announced that He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Dragon Pearl of Destruction will release on April 28 — also MOTU Day!
“Take control of He-Man, Man-At-Arms, and Teela in a fast-paced, magic-brawler that blends the crunch of arcade classics with the high-fantasy action of the animated series,” the game description reads on the Limited Run Games website.
Eternia is in peril! The nefarious Skeletor has uncovered the ancient Dragon Pearl of Destruction, a relic of unspeakable power. With the help of Evil-Lyn, he intends to perform a ritual that will plunge all of Eternia into eternal darkness. Only the Most Powerful Man in the Universe and his heroic allies stand in Skeletor’s way.
Developed by the retro-specialists at Bitmap Bureau in collaboration with Mattel, this is the 2D arcade brawler fans have been waiting for since the Saturday mornings of their childhood.
Hamnet Streams On Peacock Starting March 6
The film Hamnet streams exclusively on Peacock starting March 6. The award-winning film stars Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Emily Watson, and Joe Alwyn.
Based on the New York Times best-selling novel, Academy Award-winning director Chloé Zhao directs a powerful story of love and loss. William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) falls for the free-spirited Agnes (Jessie Buckley). Their whirlwind romance leads to marriage and three children, but as Will’s theatrical ambitions draw him to London, Agnes remains behind to manage the household. When tragedy strikes, their bond is deeply tested—but their remarkable journey ultimately inspires the creation of Shakespeare’s timeless masterpiece, Hamlet.
