Things to Look Forward to in 2017

Cassi Misciagna, Feature Editor

The New Year brings about a whole world of possibilities to look forward to as this year becomes ingrained in history. With these new possibilities, there are countless unpredictable events bound to happen, but here are some things that are sure to excite you for all the events in the coming months.  

 

Lady Gaga sang the National Anthem at the Super Bowl last year, but this year she will be the star at the fifty-first Super Bowl Halftime Show. Her current list of songs has yet to be released to the public, but her predicted lineup is thought to consist of tunes from both her recent Joanne album and her debut album, The Fame. Super Bowl 51 will be held on Feb. 5, 2017, at NRG Stadium in Texas, with television broadcasts being run through the Fox and Univision networks.

 

The live action Beauty and the Beast movie, directed by Bill Condon, is coming to theaters on March 7, 2017, and will be Disney’s fifth live action remake of their original tales. The stars will include well-known actors and actresses such as Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast, and Luke Evans as Gaston. The film was first presented at the D23 2016 Expo, hosted by the company last August, and is expected to follow much of the original film’s plot with a slight new spin, much like the companies 2015 Cinderella.

 

Since 1968, the Special Olympics have been run by the “Special Olympics International”, which was founded by Eunice Kennedy Shriver. During 2017, the games will be held in Austria from March 14 to March 25 to display the inspirational and amazing abilities that those who suffer from intellectual disabilities can achieve. Today, there are 35 games in the event ranging from team events, such as basketball, to solo events, such as horseback riding and gymnastics. The event will be available to watch through the ESPN network.

 

The release of Playtonic’s Yooka-Laylee will occur sometime in next March, as a somewhat spiritual successor to Rareware’s Banjo Kazooie games of the late 90’s to the early 2000’s. The game has already gained massive amounts of hype from new and old gamers alike, with more than 80,000 people backing the game in 2015 through Kickstarter. The so-far-positive reviews from big name companies such as GameStop, Eurogamer, and Forbes have also allowed for its continued anticipation. The gameplay is expected to follow much of that of its spiritual predecessor with players gathering collectables as they go through an adventure to stop the devious Dr. Puzz.  

 

Resident Evil 7 will be released on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows on Jan. 27, by Capcom, and will be compatible with PlayStation VR.  Despite the game, once again, being a survival horror, it will focus on a completely new cast of characters who live in the city of Dulvey, Louisiana, instead of the previously established Racoon City. So far, the plot of the story is mostly a mystery, however it has been released that the main character, Ethan, is searching for his wife, Mia, before he stumbles onto the house of the Baker family who, from trailers, can be assumed to be a dangerous enemy in the main game. It can be assured that it will have something to do with zombies and mutated creatures, seeing how each is a staple of the franchise.  

 

On Aug. 21, there will be a total solar eclipse that will be visible throughout most of the United States. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon blocks the path between the sun and the Earth, casting a large shadow over our planet, however the phenomenon can only occur on a new moon phase or the first phase of the lunar cycle, when the moon is normally not visible. The eclipse will be the first one visible in the United States since Feb. 26, 1979, and can be viewed from 11:46 a.m. to 5:04 p.m.
The new year is always an exciting time, and with the 2017 just around the corner, I can’t wait to see all that it holds for us!