The Art of Mikhail Rakhmatullin

I've been following Mikhail Rakhmatullin's work for awhile now. A Russian artist hailing from Moscow, what strikes me the most about Mikhail is his stylistic propensity for sci-fi fantasy characters with exaggerated stature and colorful costumes that make for memorable silhouettes.

Elongated necklines, broad shoulders, bow-legged posture and gorgeously detailed outfits. His concept work is equally impressive, strong creature and location designs that make for a well-rounded portfolio. Catch more of his work after the break.

The Art of Yuanda Yu

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Yuanda Yu is an eight-year veteran concept artist with over twelve collective years of experience in digital illustration, and boy does it shows. His meticulous attention to detail is superb, his subject matter covers the gamut of hard line post-apocalyptic and speculative sci-fi tropes.

The subtle incorporation of pronounced yet careful visual cues to a variety of different culture precedes the temperament of an artist who devotes himself to the passionate study of world culture as well as illustration. Yu is currently working as a senior artist for Barajoun Entertainment and has done work for CCP and Webzen. Check out a sampling of his work after the break!

'Terminator: Genisys' Trailer Goes Back To The Future To Return To The Past

Terminator: Genisys (Genesis? je ne sais quoi?) is the fifth and latest installment in the long-running sci-fi action film series and yes, yet another reboot featuring Sarah Connor, her messianic apocalypse-fighter son John, and Arnold Schwarzenegger once again reprising his role as the titular killer-cyborg turned stalwart protector.

Something's rotten in the state of the multi-verse, and Sarah (Emilia Clark) must once again team up alongside her soon-again-to-be love interest Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) to prevent yet another mercury-morphing killing machine from extinguishing humanity's one last hope for survival. But can the couple manage to succeed where their countless other incarnations have failed? Can they prevent the inevitable "Judgement Day"?

Polished Chrome and Pearly White

The Terminator series has always had a fondness for reboots and reinterpretations, but that's to be expected from a series about hyper-intelligent murder-mechas and the human rebels who fight them sending each other back and forth across time in a chrono-cataclysmic cat-and-mouse game for supremacy and survival. I'm intrigue by the premise, if only out of love of the original Judgement Day. Though this trailer makes me wonder, can the Terminator franchise ever really exist without Schwarzenegger?

Terminator: Genisys is slated for next summer, July 1st, 2015.

Titanfall - Japanese Fanart Edition

Respawn's Titanfall was one of those titles that really had me intrigued in regards to what reaction it would receive overseas, and it didn't disappoint. And by reaction, we mean what sort of nerve it hit with the fanart community abroad, especially the mecha-centric Japanese community. I can't account for how well the game sold in a market that's typically had a strong aversion to FPS titles, but the community seems to have taken a rather strong liking to the aesthetic and the mechs especially. An earlier interview on Kotaku quoted Respawn's community manager mentioning that the Titanfall mechs were partially inspired by Shirow Masamune's (Ghost in the Shell) designs.

Trawling through the quagmire of foreign Deviantart equivalents, we've uncovered a trove of awesome tributes to the title by various Japanese artists. Our biggest hats off goes to Tajima, an artist with a very avid love of Western shooters like Call Of Duty, who provided the bulk of the fanart pieces. Check out a plethora of other Titanfall fanart pieces after the break!

Aliens Powerloader Baby Costume is Adorably Amazing

It's always awesome to see when amazingly talented creative professional make equally amazing parents. Case in point: Carsten Riewe. This guy built a replica of the P5000 Powerloader suit from Aliens as a costume for his 13-month old daughter. He details the specs behind what into making the suit in the video's description:

This Baby costume was inspired by the Caterpillar P5000 Powerloader from the movie "Aliens" by James Cameron. The arms and legs are full moveable and the top-light and LED were powered by an 12 Volt battery pack stored in the backpack. The on/off switch is in the left arm. Also in the backpack a Bluetooth boombox is installed to play mechanical robot sound fx or music if preferred. It took 100 working hours to finnish the costume and I built it for the "Karneval"-Parade in my hometown in Germany February 2014 . My 13 months old daughter enjoyed to be carried and moved in her harness safely.

That girl's going grow up to be one helluva mech-fighter/alien hunter!

The Art of Yong

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If there's one thing that Yong is able to capture in his work, it's scale. This thirteen-year veteran concept artist from South Korea excels at depicting fantastic and painterly moments of both inspiring beauty and impending destruction. A UN mecha patrolling through the derelict streets of a war-torn metropolis, a Chernabog-esque giant reeling back to deliver a crushing blow to a cathedral city. New worlds hatched from eggs, Giant teddy-bears run amok, titans grapple for supremacy, and the last fleeting moments before the end of days. I can't wait for you to check out more after the break!

First Minute Of Knights of Sidonia Anime Previewed

Knights of Sidonia is probably my favorite series currently running, Tsutomu Nihei has truly refined his storytelling skills and has provided an awesome mech experience. Like most popular long running manga series, Knights of Sidonia is getting the anime treatment and while I was originally on the fence with their use of CGI, the newest preview has cleared up a lot of my doubt.

Not gonna lie here, I'm pretty f**king hyped.

CGI in anime very rarely appeals to me, but it seems that Polygon Pictures has really stepped up their game and is providing an awesome animated experience. I'm actually pretty happy with how the mechs look, it's a lot less janky than I would expect. The series will air in Spring 2014 in Japan and in the Summer for Netflix subscribers. Can't say that I'm not ready for this.

Pacific Rim LEGOs Need To Happen Immediately

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Hot damn. It's been a minute since we've gotten a chance to post something Pacific Rim related, but luckily Japanese LEGO modeler MOKO has brought this to the table. After creating the 3-foot EVA 01 masterpiece last year, MOKO has been on a roll with other projects including the four main Jaegers from Pacific Rim. Mark 4, Mark 3, Mark 5, and Mark 1 have all been modeled in their full mecha-glory and it's pretty damn impressive.

Each of the four Jaegers are completely poseable, adding a second layer to their already awesome awesomeness. Mark 3 even includes it's freighter ship from the film, adding to the cool factor. After the jump you can check out each of the Jaegers in their full glory and wish that LEGO would back a future project as cool as this (not that Back to the Future and The Simpsons aren't already radical).

Matador - Blasting Away Mechs for Great Justice

If you haven't seen the teaser trailer of this kick-ass top-down mech shooter, allow me to bring you up to speed. Matador is an isometric vehicle action game set in a far-off dystopic future. Players assume the role of a revolutionary mech pilot who, following the death of the mysterious "Great Leader", must liberate the capital city of Solo Nobre in one night by hijacking mechs and annihilating counter-insurgents.

The game's already drummed up a fair amount of publicity with its starkly pixelated, nostalgia-inducing art style and promising sound design. With fully destructible environments, variable generated playthroughs that change every time, and a gallery of awesome mechs, tanks and antigrav weapons to choose from, Summer 2014 can't come soon enough.

The 'Stellar Jockeys' are a 4-man team based out of Champaign, IL and Seattle, WA. Matador is their first game, you can find them at their website here, and go vote for the game over at their Steam Greenlight page!

The Art of Eddie Del Rio

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If you're looking for a kaleidoscopic sci-fi feast for the senses, look no further than Eddie Del Rio. A veteran concept artist whose previous clients include the likes of Disney, 2K, THQ and the dearly departed LucasArts; Del Rio has over 16 years of professional industry work underneath his belt. His work includes concepts for the Transformers films and the critically-acclaimed XCOM series.

Eddie's gallery is bursting at the margins with competitive racing mechs skating across neon-fluorescent light trails, wire-choked console rooms, interstellar scrapyards, walking airship carriers, and Victorian cobblestone streets besieged by alien technology. Get ready to have your eyes blasted after the break.

Custom 'Tsugumori' Brings Knights of Sidonia Mech To Life

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Before I splurge about my wants and desires for this custom figure, let me start off by saying if you haven't gotten a chance to dig into Tsutomu Nihei's Knights of Sidonia then you are severely missing out on a fantastic series. Nihei is best known for his work on the fantastic cyberpunk series Blame! but I'm tempted to proclaim that Knights of Sidonia sits comfortably next to Blame! as his best work. If you're not much of a manga/comic reader, you can always wait for the film adaptation that was announced earlier last year.

Now that I've gotten that small plug out of the way can we just take a moment to appreciate the beauty of this figure? Artist S3, pieced together this incredible recreation of the series' staple mecha, Tsugumori, creating a better figure than the official release. While S3's work is a little bit more lanky than the original design, I completely dig his recreation, giving Tsugumori a bit more flexibility to it's heavy armored body.

After the jump is a full run down of the figure, take a look and sit wishing you had one to call your own.

The Art of Eliott Lilly

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Elliott Lilly's concept work has always existed on the periphery of my attention. It was only until recently that I happened upon his portfolio site again, and I think his work definitely warrants a much deserved spotlight.

I'm a sucker for armored tactical units comprised of sword-wielding cyborgs, dilapidated warehouses-turned-shatter-blasted battlefields and lovingly crafted concept guns. Lilly just so happens to have all of those in bulk. I especially love his aesthetic approach to mech design; I'm sensing some serious kindred appreciation for the likes of Masamune Shirow and Yoji Shinikawa.

A professional concept artist working in the field since 2006, Lilly's breakthrough opportunity came through his role as an environmental concept and weapon designer on the commercially-successful though conceptually-lackluster F.E.A.R. 3. Since then, Lilly has gone on to work on Id Software's RAGE and the perpetually announced/unannounced DOOM 4. Here's hoping we continue to see more of Lilly's impressive work in the future. Check out more after the break!

Gloom - "Menina"

Brazilian indie rock band Gloom collaborated with Birdo Studio under the direction of Pedro Eboli to create this awesome music video for Menina ('Girl' in Portugese). In it a kaiju fighting mecha pilot attempts time and time again to impress a girl he's got his eyes on, only to encounter endless rejection..Much to his chagrin. When he finally thinks he's got a chance, an all too obvious twist unfolds. Loved the retro 'Super Sentai' feel the studio went with as a foundation for this love story.

The Art of Ville Ericsson

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I'm seriously smitten with Ville Ericsson's work. There's no other way of putting it, because this guy is phenomenal. The body of his work is a beautiful marriage between his deft painterly style and his detail-saturated subject matter.

Space stations, cyberpunk rooftops, bipedal battle mechs and lovingly rendered scenes from Frank Herbert's Dune. This guy is pushing all of my buttons. It's like Robotech meets Greg Broadmore, with a dash of Syd Mead environmental flair.

Ericsson currently lives in Sweden and studies full-time at Atelier Stockholm. His self-described focus lies at the crossroads of painting and drawing and collaborating with other artists to bring products of the imagination to fruition. Check out more of his work after the break.

The Art Of Quiccs - Mecha On The Mind

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Quiccs Maiquez is a stylish designer, art director and toy creator based out of the Phillipines, working under the mantle of Burnwater Art X Design and Red Mutuca Studios. He's got a definite affinity for remixing iconic mecha with a slick vector style that combines his self proclaimed love of graffiti and graphic design.

The result is a lot of works based around mechas, yet always executed with a variety of different techniques while maintaining that distinct 'Quiccs' branded look. When not illustrating he's off making his custom 'pirate' vinyl toys (Munny, etc) based off of Evangelion, Gundam and other popular franchises. More of his awesome work after the break.

The Art of Alex Konstad

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Alex Konstad is an aspiring concept artist whose digital paintings are populated by colorful host of menacing creatures and colorfully abstract pop-culture. A freelancer based out of California and student of the prestigious TAD Concept Art Program, Konstad’s keen eye for composition and flair of humor is apparent through all his work. That Blender patrol-mech is hilarious and I can't decide which one his many works are my personal favorite, the Abe's Awakening portrait with smoke-stacked chimneys or the cubist re-interpretation of EVA Unit-01. I'd keep my eye out for this guy.

Greg Broadmore Shares Some "Keloid" Goodies

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WETA artist and 11 year industry veteran designer Greg Broadmore shared some of his work for the recently posted Keloid proof of concept trailer, tackling the concept of a singularity event in the face of human conflict decimating the population. Broadmore, also known for his personal creation of the Dr. Grordbort universe contributed a variety of designs for the antagonistic mecha-faction seen prowling through Russia in Keloid.

It seems like some of the visual language takes some queues from the gritty visual language seen in Blomkamp's most recent endeavor, Elysium. Check out a few more mechs, and screens from the final version from the short after the break.

The Amazing Custom Model Kits Of MDSP - Master Level

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A dash of Gundam, a few Tachikoma from Ghost in the Shell, some Maschinen Krieger with a dash of Armored Core - Those are just a few components of a model kit hobbyists complete breakfast. We just recently unearthed the website of Japanese custom model kit maker/customizer/kitbasher MDSP, who does this work for a living. A master of his craft, the level of detail that he dedicates to each and every piece is nothing short of astounding, showing off just how absorbed he gets into each one of his projects.

Through the painting process and the application of wear on the Zaku above, MDSP successfully conveys an image of a battle hardened veteran unit which has seen it's fair share of time on the battlefield. You can't help but just appreciate someone who truly treats every little miniature as a labor of love from start to finish..His vast gallery houses dozens of amazing projects, but we've hand picked a few for you to check out after the break! For any mech head out there, prepare yourself for some truly amazing eye candy.

Ketagino's Awesome Maschinen Krieger Kitbash

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Who doesn't love a little kitbashing? Custom figure maker and Maschinen Krieger fanatic (A scifi/model kit universe created by Kow Yokoyama) Ketagino set out to combine his favorite sets from the Krieger universe to create Yumiru, a construct assembled from pieces of other sets, especially the GANS Panzer, this type of recombining and kitbashing has become prevalent in conceptual fields in recent years, using pieces from various places to create altogether new designs with familiar visual languages.

While Ketagino has crafted quite a few kitbash creations, few have been as successful as his Yumiru, crafted at a 1/35 scale. If you're in the mood to do some kitbashing yourself for free, I'd recommend downloading Google's awesome Sketchup program and using the free 3D warehouse function to find pieces to recombine into an all new designs. It's all the rage these days with mech heads like myself. Check out more shorts of Ketagino's awesome kitbash mech after the break!

The Making Of ProgV's Lifesized Kitbash Mech

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Just a mech...but a life size model this time! over 4 meters tall!

These were the words that collectively blew the mind of the internet just a few days ago, when Chinese concept artist Prog Wang showed off what he'd done with his dad's retired Nissan truck. While kitbashing has been a popular concept with model kits and 3D programs like Google's Sketchup, I dont think anyone expected a 13 foot mech that looks like Hawken and reality collided.

Prog just shared a series of making of photos showing off the creation of the MA-TP (Mobile Armored Tactical Platform) mech from start to finish, in all it's gigantic kitbashed glory. Check it all out after the break, along with some notes from the creator himself.