On June 7, HBO is releasing Seasons 3 and 4 of their Emmy Award winning show, Game of Thrones on Blu-ray in collectible steelbook format. Each set will come formatted with the new Dolby Atmos audio technology.
“In addition to all of the bonus content from the previous Blu-ray™ sets, the Game of Thrones Steelbook is the first TV on Blu-ray™ title to be released with the revolutionary new audio technology Dolby Atmos, which delivers sounds and music to specific areas in the room, including overhead, creating a captivating experience that puts the audience right in the middle of the action on screen. To experience Dolby Atmos at home, Dolby Atmos-enabled AV receivers and additional speakers are required; however, Dolby Atmos soundtracks are fully backward compatible with traditional audio configurations and legacy home entertainment equipment.”
Both sets also come with collectible sigil magnets. Season 3’s magnet is the sigil of House Frey and the ancestral set of Twins, most notably where the Red Wedding took place. Season 4 comes with a magnet representing The Wall at Castle Black, with a crow and Jon Snow’s sword, Longclaw, gracing the front. Now, being that the books are made of metal, you can keep the magnets attached to the front, which works as long as each set stays in the plastic sleeve it comes in, or you can obviously sport your love for the show on your refrigerator at home.
The steelbooks, themselves, feature art from Elastic, the same company that designed the opening credits for the show. Season 3 has the Twins on the cover and a birds eye view of House Frey. Season 4’s art is of the ladder and lift mechanism you see in the opening credits at The Wall. The art is subtle and classy, just what you would expect from an HBO set.
For those that love special features, you can expect to find the following on each set:
Season 3:
- “The Rains of Castamere” Unveiled
- Histories and Lore
- Roots of Westeros
- In-Episode Guide
- A Gathering Storm
- 12 Audi Commentaries
- The Politics of Marriage
- New Characters
- Inside the Wildlings
- Deleted/Extended Scenes
Season 4:
- Behind the Battle for the Wall
- The Fallen: A Roundtable
- Histories and Lore
- In-Episode Guide
- The Politics of Power: A Look Back at Season 3
- 11 Audio Commentaries
- Bastards of Westeros
- New Characters and Locations
- Deleted Scenes
- Season 4 Blooper Reel
The only drawback to buying the steelbook set is that, being a steelbook, each side of the book only has one disc holder. This means that there are two discs crammed together on each side of the book, giving better potential for scratches on the discs. That being said, if you don’t jostle the set around too much, the discs should stay in place pretty well and scratches shouldn’t be an issue.
Game of Thrones seasons 3 and 4 Blu-ray steelbook sets are available on June 7 from HBO Home Entertainment.
