This week in new releases

We all like the word 'new,' adds a promotional sheen to stand your product out from the rest.  But where can you identify all the new media to cross your path?  Sure there's 'new game releases' and 'new film releases' pieces; but where's the convergence?  That's where we come into it, introducing This week in new releases.

Hugo (PG) Out Now In Cinemas

Hugo sees the movie industry’s most iconic living director, Martin Scorsese, jump into the fruitful realm of 3D. The prospect of the mind behind Taxi Driver and Raging Bull tirelessly, painstakingly conceptualising Hugo shot-by-shot to come alive in the added dimension is tantalising to say the least. Taking place in the Gare Montparnasse railway station of 1930s Paris, Scorsese's child-friendly yarn tells the story of Hugo Cabret, a young orphan boy (Asa Butterfield) who dreams of the day he’ll be able to finish his late father’s project to repair a broken robot. Helped on his journey by Kick-Ass starlet Chloe Moretz who plays Isabelle, the two come embroiled in a magical adventure that looks indelibly heart-warming and touching at once. Wrapped up in a colour palette of warming oranges, golds and vibrant, saturated colours, it's likely to be this year's feel-good Christmas film. 

Mario Kart 7 (3DS) Out Now

Continuing our 3D theme, Mario Kart makes its debut on the Nintendo 3DS this week. Fans of the ever-popular racing series will know what to expect – Nintendo has so steadfastly refused to stray from formula for its most iconic franchises for some time now, and Mario Kart 7 appears no different. What we can tell you is that it's one of few games so far to make proper use of the 3DS's nifty hardware functionality. That means players will be able to race both locally and online, and with the ability to adjust race rules as they see fit. Additionally, StreetPass will share race data with passing Mario Kart 7 owners, while SpotPass allows friends to share Ghosts to compete against.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (DVD, Blu Ray) Out Now

And last but most certainly not least, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 sees its UK DVD/Blu Ray release this week. 10 years, 8 films and close to $8 billion at the box-office later, the Harry Potter series draws to a close with Dumbledore's Army facing off against Voldemort and his legion of Death Eaters. For Potter fans, the finale will come at the expense of your bank balance – not only is The Deathly Hallows: Part 1 and 2 now available as 3D Blu Ray releases, you're more than likely to drop money on the conclusive box-set. The DVD and Blu Ray sets come in at £20 and around £35 respectively, while the Limited Numbered Edition (complete with 19 discs, 5 hours of extra content and collectible photo album) will set you back £65-£70. It's certainly not perfect however – only the final three films have any extent of special features – so some of you might want to hold on for a more robust package when some of the fanfare has died down.