NOTE: This blog, like the other, is now using the superior Intense Debate commenting system instead of the blogger default model. Users can sign-in using Twitter and a few other services, or by getting a (free) Intense Debate ID.
ANYWAY! Here's a new "OverBytes" for y'all, addressing - perhaps innevitably - the reactivated "blame violent games" controversy. Please note, the episode was actually recorded and finished before the now-infamous NRA press conference, which is why there's no explicit mention of it or the organization itself here; though the overall theme and final point would not have changed either way. Enjoy!
Sabtu, 22 Desember 2012
Jumat, 21 Desember 2012
NRA Boss: Guns Don't Kill People, Video-Games Kill People!
Something I wish the media would remind people of more often: The National Rifle Association isn't a sportsmen's club anymore, or even a citizen's rights group for gun owners. They're a corporate lobbying group for the gun manufacturing industry. Understanding that is the key to understanding why they do things like insisting more guns - not fewer - are the key to safety, or spurring the stockpiling of weapons with the "gun-ban" boogeyman: They aren't looking to help gun owners, they're looking to increase sales. (See also: "Armed guards at schools are the answer! And we're MORE than willing to help set that up!")
But even understanding that couldn't have prepared me to see the NRA's hilariously faux-macho bossman Wayne LaPierre get in front of cameras today for what was ostensibly supposed to be their response to the Sandy Hook massacre and essentially declare, at the 8:25 mark of this video: Guns don't kill people, video games kill people!
The depressing amusement of the head of The NRA calling anything else a "shadow industry" aside, I'm actually grateful for this kind of public insanity. One thing Mr. LaPierre and I have in common is that we're both fans of clarity - he likes to talk about "good guys with guns" vs "bad guys with guns;" and I like seeing him (a bad guy with guns) come out so strongly in favor of game/movie/etc censorship, because it helps unmuddy the waters: Weak-willed so-called "progressives" who might otherwise have been willing to give ground on "violent" media (instead of keeping the debate laser-focused on the gun lobby, where it belongs) will hopefully be less so when they see it means agreeing with the distraction-tactics of LaPierre and his ilk.
So, this is to be a (political) fight, then. Games, films, entertainers, artists and the people who value them... versus The Right-Wing Gun Lobby. Good. Let's have it, then.
But even understanding that couldn't have prepared me to see the NRA's hilariously faux-macho bossman Wayne LaPierre get in front of cameras today for what was ostensibly supposed to be their response to the Sandy Hook massacre and essentially declare, at the 8:25 mark of this video: Guns don't kill people, video games kill people!
The depressing amusement of the head of The NRA calling anything else a "shadow industry" aside, I'm actually grateful for this kind of public insanity. One thing Mr. LaPierre and I have in common is that we're both fans of clarity - he likes to talk about "good guys with guns" vs "bad guys with guns;" and I like seeing him (a bad guy with guns) come out so strongly in favor of game/movie/etc censorship, because it helps unmuddy the waters: Weak-willed so-called "progressives" who might otherwise have been willing to give ground on "violent" media (instead of keeping the debate laser-focused on the gun lobby, where it belongs) will hopefully be less so when they see it means agreeing with the distraction-tactics of LaPierre and his ilk.
So, this is to be a (political) fight, then. Games, films, entertainers, artists and the people who value them... versus The Right-Wing Gun Lobby. Good. Let's have it, then.
Senin, 17 Desember 2012
MAGFest
Head's up! "The Game OverThinker" will have it's first independent panel at this year's MAGFest on January 5th at 10:00am. This is my first one of these, so it's going to be straight Q&A format. I'll be out and about at the con itself otherwise from about Friday to Sunday afternoon, in addition. Look forward to seeing any fans there!
Minggu, 09 Desember 2012
EPISODE 79: "In Praise of Clones"
Now showing on BLIP! The OverThinker asks if modern gaming has too narrow a definition of "originality."
ALSO: Learn the identity of the mysterious Red Guy, and witness a shocking surprise twist!
ALSO: Learn the identity of the mysterious Red Guy, and witness a shocking surprise twist!
Selasa, 04 Desember 2012
A Tribute to Judd Apatow
UPDATE:
The man himself, Judd Apatow purchased my artwork from the show! Here's a picture to sort of prove it!
Prints are now available to purchase online by clicking HERE!
**************************************************************************
Gallery 1988's last group show of 2012 is gonna be a big one. With a year that has seen some incredible shows like The Avengers, Breaking Bad, and Arrested Development, Gallery 1988 is closing out the year with a bang.
Opening Tuesday, December 4th and running until December 30th, Gallery 1988's stable of many artists (including myself) are paying tribute to one of the most prolific comedy writers/producers/directors of all time, the brilliant Judd Apatow. I'm a big fan of Mr. Apatow's work, so it was a huge honor to participate in this show. It was hard to narrow down one movie or show of his to do a piece based off of, so I decided to do almost all of them...
There is a private opening that you can attend if you RSVP to Gallery 1988 via e-mail! Just contact the kind folks at Gallery1988melrose@Gmail.com.
A limited number of my signed prints (13x19) will be available to purchase at the gallery.
I'll be at the opening hoping that another artist has tackled something depicting Infant Sorrow!
"ATribute to Judd Apatow"
Opening Tuesday December 4th 7-10pm
Gallery 1988 Melrose
7020 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90038
www.nineteeneightyeigh.com
The man himself, Judd Apatow purchased my artwork from the show! Here's a picture to sort of prove it!
Prints are now available to purchase online by clicking HERE!
**************************************************************************
Gallery 1988's last group show of 2012 is gonna be a big one. With a year that has seen some incredible shows like The Avengers, Breaking Bad, and Arrested Development, Gallery 1988 is closing out the year with a bang.
Opening Tuesday, December 4th and running until December 30th, Gallery 1988's stable of many artists (including myself) are paying tribute to one of the most prolific comedy writers/producers/directors of all time, the brilliant Judd Apatow. I'm a big fan of Mr. Apatow's work, so it was a huge honor to participate in this show. It was hard to narrow down one movie or show of his to do a piece based off of, so I decided to do almost all of them...
"Apatow Elementary"
There is a private opening that you can attend if you RSVP to Gallery 1988 via e-mail! Just contact the kind folks at Gallery1988melrose@Gmail.com.
A limited number of my signed prints (13x19) will be available to purchase at the gallery.
I'll be at the opening hoping that another artist has tackled something depicting Infant Sorrow!
Opening Tuesday December 4th 7-10pm
Gallery 1988 Melrose
7020 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90038
www.nineteeneightyeigh.com
Senin, 03 Desember 2012
Minggu, 25 November 2012
OVERBYTES Episode 2
Took longer to get this second one up (on my end) than I wanted it to - that won't be the case going forward. Anyway, here's the episode:
Senin, 19 November 2012
Check Your WiiU
UPDATE: My WiiU is still not working, and Nintendo tech support doesn't open for several hours and I need to sleep. All information below is as up to date as I could gather as of 7:45am ET. All I can be sure of is that my WiiU is afflicted with some kind of malfunction that multiple other people's have been, and that said malfunction is not in evidence until you try to hook it up. I am NOT claiming that this is a "widespread" or even serious issue, but it's clearly effected a few people so it's probably a good idea for multiple people to check on consoles they might've bought to "hold" for gift-giving time.
ORIGINAL POST AS FOLLOWS:
So. I bought my WiiU (Basic model) on Launch Day yesterday. Didn't get a chance to try hooking it up until well after midnight, because of work and other engagements. System appeared to be in good working order, but would not connect to my TV in a way that was "recognized." Not via it's own included HDMI cable. Not in other ports. Not with other cables. Not even via the (compatible) Wii standard cables.
As you can imagine, I was not happy.
Since it's A.) a brand-new machine and B.) around 3am at the time, not much info was available. However, I did take notice that the system's blue "power-on" light was flashing on and off and that this wasn't typically how such lights work. Checking up on that yielding depressing information via an active thread over at GameFAQs: Apparently, other people are having the same problem and, evidently, the detail of "blue flashing light" leads Nintendo to immediate send them a shipping lable so they can send it out for repairs.
If this is true - if Nintendo now has it's own "Red Ring of Death" problem - it could stand to be a pretty dicey affair: Setting aside how annoyed I am right now, the family audience the Wii brand has such penetration with is not as "used to" dealing with issues like this as gamers tend to be from prior experience; and that would translate to a really bad situation for Nintendo this holiday.
Right now, though - if you bought a WiiU and are maybe saving it to give as a gift, you MIGHT maybe want to take it out and inspect it, just in case. If these things are rare now, they'll be really rare then. Either way, fingers crossed this isn't widespread.
I STRESS: AT THIS POINT, THERE IS NO EVIDENCE THAT THIS ISSUE IS WIDESPREAD TO ANY DEGREE. THIS POST IS NOT MEANT TO BE TAKEN AS TECHNICAL SUPPORT ADVICE, A "WARNING" OR AN "OFFICIAL" NOTICE OF ANY KIND. I AM NOT A TECH SUPPORT WORKER, NOR AM I AFFILIATED WITH NINTENDO IN ANY WAY. I HAD A PROBLEM WITH MY WiiU, OTHERS SEEM TO HAVE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM, I FIGURED THE INFORMATION OUGHT TO BE KNOWN.
ORIGINAL POST AS FOLLOWS:
So. I bought my WiiU (Basic model) on Launch Day yesterday. Didn't get a chance to try hooking it up until well after midnight, because of work and other engagements. System appeared to be in good working order, but would not connect to my TV in a way that was "recognized." Not via it's own included HDMI cable. Not in other ports. Not with other cables. Not even via the (compatible) Wii standard cables.
As you can imagine, I was not happy.
Since it's A.) a brand-new machine and B.) around 3am at the time, not much info was available. However, I did take notice that the system's blue "power-on" light was flashing on and off and that this wasn't typically how such lights work. Checking up on that yielding depressing information via an active thread over at GameFAQs: Apparently, other people are having the same problem and, evidently, the detail of "blue flashing light" leads Nintendo to immediate send them a shipping lable so they can send it out for repairs.
If this is true - if Nintendo now has it's own "Red Ring of Death" problem - it could stand to be a pretty dicey affair: Setting aside how annoyed I am right now, the family audience the Wii brand has such penetration with is not as "used to" dealing with issues like this as gamers tend to be from prior experience; and that would translate to a really bad situation for Nintendo this holiday.
Right now, though - if you bought a WiiU and are maybe saving it to give as a gift, you MIGHT maybe want to take it out and inspect it, just in case. If these things are rare now, they'll be really rare then. Either way, fingers crossed this isn't widespread.
I STRESS: AT THIS POINT, THERE IS NO EVIDENCE THAT THIS ISSUE IS WIDESPREAD TO ANY DEGREE. THIS POST IS NOT MEANT TO BE TAKEN AS TECHNICAL SUPPORT ADVICE, A "WARNING" OR AN "OFFICIAL" NOTICE OF ANY KIND. I AM NOT A TECH SUPPORT WORKER, NOR AM I AFFILIATED WITH NINTENDO IN ANY WAY. I HAD A PROBLEM WITH MY WiiU, OTHERS SEEM TO HAVE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM, I FIGURED THE INFORMATION OUGHT TO BE KNOWN.
Rabu, 14 November 2012
EPISODE 78: "Press Played"
IT'S HERE! "The Adventures of The Game OverThinker" makes it's big debut on Blip, as The OverThinker takes on "Dorito-Gate," introduces new viewers to his world... and meets a mysterious new character!
Incidentally, for those who were wondering: I went with Blip partially because the monetization options are better and it's a more "prestigious" venue (they have to "accept" a show - you can't just put up anything and use their bandwith); but primarily it came down to YouTube being INCREDIBLY difficult to deal with re: fair use claims and flaggingm which makes a commenting-on-entertainment-products show difficult to do there.
Incidentally, for those who were wondering: I went with Blip partially because the monetization options are better and it's a more "prestigious" venue (they have to "accept" a show - you can't just put up anything and use their bandwith); but primarily it came down to YouTube being INCREDIBLY difficult to deal with re: fair use claims and flaggingm which makes a commenting-on-entertainment-products show difficult to do there.
Senin, 12 November 2012
TGO Blip Debut Trailer!
UPDATE: Video removed and re-uploaded to correct a glitch, should be visible shortly at THIS link:
And don't forget, we're also still very much a part of ScrewAttack with OVERBYTES!
And don't forget, we're also still very much a part of ScrewAttack with OVERBYTES!
Jumat, 09 November 2012
OVERBYTES Debut!
The first episode of our new series for ScrewAttack, "OverBytes," is now available for all audiences. It's my understanding that after this, future episodes will go back to the familiar Advantage Users first, all-audiences about one week later schedule. Check it out!
Kamis, 01 November 2012
Placeholder
So... Blip said "yes" to hosting the "Adventures of The Game OverThinker," (aka "the old show with a new-ish name.") Obviously, there isn't a new episode YET, but when they do begin they'll be arriving at http://blip.tv/gameoverthinker, so bookmark that link (or however people save links today.)
So far as I know, the plan is for "OverBytes" to occupy the same space at ScrewAttack TGO did, but I'll let you know if anything changes on that front (I don't expect it to.)
So far as I know, the plan is for "OverBytes" to occupy the same space at ScrewAttack TGO did, but I'll let you know if anything changes on that front (I don't expect it to.)
Rabu, 31 Oktober 2012
EPISODE 77: "I'm Not A Gamer"
Now up on ScrewAttack, with a special message about The Future after the credits. FYI, I am aware of visual glitching during the scene with RetroThinker - not sure where that came from, also not 100% sure how/when it can be corrected as things are ever so slightly busy here as you'll soon understand:
Yup, this is happening. Hit the jump to learn more...
NOW IT CAN BE TOLD!
Okay, I just want to get one thing out of the way nice and clear RIGHT NOW: This has nothing to do with ratings, this has nothing to do with "bad blood" with employers, and this especially has nothing to do with fan complaints (or fan encouragement, really.) This was an in-house decision that has been, frankly, a long time in coming and made with the full enthusiasm and support of ScrewAttack.
Here's the long and short of it: The Game OverThinker, as it stands now, is the show I want it to be (conceptually, if not always in execution) and the show I think is a solid model for success long-term. However, being that it's a longform series (even without the sketches) it's just not BEST suited, in my opinion, for hosting on a site like the new/improved ScrewAttack which organizes it's new content in newfeed format - it strikes me that one could be watching THIS show on a busy day, and by the time their done some other stories or shows that might've also interested them might've already cycled by; and on the flip side I didn't necessarily love the idea that an episode I was putting weeks of work into might cycle by within less than a day on it's own. Finally, I had grown tired of not being able to do as many "topical" episodes because production took so long (again, because the episodes are set up to be so long, not because of the live-action material which is typically made in-advance) that news became old by the time I could go at it. So... I had to shake things up.
Incidentally, I came to this conclusion entirely on my own - no one from ScrewAttack has EVER tried to alter, censor or demand a change to the running of this series... which is precisely why I so desperately wanted to keep doing work for them even as it became clear that the "New" Game OverThinker just wasn't a good fit right now. I brought my concerns to ScrewAttack, along with a rough solution I'd worked out, and they agreed to it wholeheartedly.
So, here's where we are moving forward, in list form:
1.) The Game OverThinker's "slot" at ScrewAttack (and within the Advantage program) will be filled by a "spinoff" series that I'm hoping to call "TGO: OVERBYTES." This will be a shorter, more up-tempo show focuses exclusively on game culture commentary and, when possible, topical news. It will update more frequently than the "original" series but be very much of the same tone and tenor. I'm very excited about this, and so is the site.
2.) The original series will continue as it has save for one main change: The onscreen title will change from "The New Game OverThinker" to "The Adventures of The Game OverThinker." There will also be a more "consistent" theme to the subject-matter of the central commentary/"lecture" material - whereas "OverBytes" will be a show about topical/newsworthy subjects and "y'know what I think?"/"did you ever wonder?" thought pieces; the longer show will be about "evergreen" Big Issue topics: Industry politics, sexism, bigotry, existential questions, that sort of thing. Basically, "OverBytes" is where you'll get stuff like "why hasn't there been a new 'Bonk' game?," while "TGO" is where you'll get "We really need to talk about XBL harassment" plus the further adventures of our cast of similar-looking superpowered doofuses.
3.) Right now, it's looking pretty good that Blip will wind up being the new home of "TGO" at least in terms of hosting. The details of whether or not this or that show can or will be cross-posted aside the other will require some hammering out, but they will BOTH continue to be embeded, posted and promoted on this blog. So if you haven't made this your "regular" first-stop in checking for news about this show now is the time to start.
4.) Obviously, all of this is still very much in motion and fluid, so some or all details could change. Trying to work out a "branding" that covers multiple series hosted in multiple places means juggling not only my own concerns but the concerns of related parties, and sometimes this or that thing has to "give." As ever, I just want to 1.) make good content and 2.) make money doing it - I don't involve myself in intra-website, intra-company, "this site rules!," "this site sucks!" bullshit unless someone comes at ME or I see something truly, heinously unfair happening.
5.) That said, I have no issue with PRAISING websites and webmasters who do good, and I need to once more reinforce what absolute CHAMPS and good eggs ScrewAttack has been about this: They've backed the show from the start, encouraged and supported it's continuing evolution, and they're being INCREDIBLY gracious and helpful with this new transition. I honestly thought this would be a VERY tricky, difficult back-and-forth process... and instead it's been some of the smoothest "business" I've conducted on the web thus far. So, hat's off to those guys.
As ever, stay tuned to THIS blog for further updates.
Yup, this is happening. Hit the jump to learn more...
NOW IT CAN BE TOLD!
Okay, I just want to get one thing out of the way nice and clear RIGHT NOW: This has nothing to do with ratings, this has nothing to do with "bad blood" with employers, and this especially has nothing to do with fan complaints (or fan encouragement, really.) This was an in-house decision that has been, frankly, a long time in coming and made with the full enthusiasm and support of ScrewAttack.
Here's the long and short of it: The Game OverThinker, as it stands now, is the show I want it to be (conceptually, if not always in execution) and the show I think is a solid model for success long-term. However, being that it's a longform series (even without the sketches) it's just not BEST suited, in my opinion, for hosting on a site like the new/improved ScrewAttack which organizes it's new content in newfeed format - it strikes me that one could be watching THIS show on a busy day, and by the time their done some other stories or shows that might've also interested them might've already cycled by; and on the flip side I didn't necessarily love the idea that an episode I was putting weeks of work into might cycle by within less than a day on it's own. Finally, I had grown tired of not being able to do as many "topical" episodes because production took so long (again, because the episodes are set up to be so long, not because of the live-action material which is typically made in-advance) that news became old by the time I could go at it. So... I had to shake things up.
Incidentally, I came to this conclusion entirely on my own - no one from ScrewAttack has EVER tried to alter, censor or demand a change to the running of this series... which is precisely why I so desperately wanted to keep doing work for them even as it became clear that the "New" Game OverThinker just wasn't a good fit right now. I brought my concerns to ScrewAttack, along with a rough solution I'd worked out, and they agreed to it wholeheartedly.
So, here's where we are moving forward, in list form:
1.) The Game OverThinker's "slot" at ScrewAttack (and within the Advantage program) will be filled by a "spinoff" series that I'm hoping to call "TGO: OVERBYTES." This will be a shorter, more up-tempo show focuses exclusively on game culture commentary and, when possible, topical news. It will update more frequently than the "original" series but be very much of the same tone and tenor. I'm very excited about this, and so is the site.
2.) The original series will continue as it has save for one main change: The onscreen title will change from "The New Game OverThinker" to "The Adventures of The Game OverThinker." There will also be a more "consistent" theme to the subject-matter of the central commentary/"lecture" material - whereas "OverBytes" will be a show about topical/newsworthy subjects and "y'know what I think?"/"did you ever wonder?" thought pieces; the longer show will be about "evergreen" Big Issue topics: Industry politics, sexism, bigotry, existential questions, that sort of thing. Basically, "OverBytes" is where you'll get stuff like "why hasn't there been a new 'Bonk' game?," while "TGO" is where you'll get "We really need to talk about XBL harassment" plus the further adventures of our cast of similar-looking superpowered doofuses.
3.) Right now, it's looking pretty good that Blip will wind up being the new home of "TGO" at least in terms of hosting. The details of whether or not this or that show can or will be cross-posted aside the other will require some hammering out, but they will BOTH continue to be embeded, posted and promoted on this blog. So if you haven't made this your "regular" first-stop in checking for news about this show now is the time to start.
4.) Obviously, all of this is still very much in motion and fluid, so some or all details could change. Trying to work out a "branding" that covers multiple series hosted in multiple places means juggling not only my own concerns but the concerns of related parties, and sometimes this or that thing has to "give." As ever, I just want to 1.) make good content and 2.) make money doing it - I don't involve myself in intra-website, intra-company, "this site rules!," "this site sucks!" bullshit unless someone comes at ME or I see something truly, heinously unfair happening.
5.) That said, I have no issue with PRAISING websites and webmasters who do good, and I need to once more reinforce what absolute CHAMPS and good eggs ScrewAttack has been about this: They've backed the show from the start, encouraged and supported it's continuing evolution, and they're being INCREDIBLY gracious and helpful with this new transition. I honestly thought this would be a VERY tricky, difficult back-and-forth process... and instead it's been some of the smoothest "business" I've conducted on the web thus far. So, hat's off to those guys.
As ever, stay tuned to THIS blog for further updates.
Stay Tuned
So... not to be too much of a Teasy McTeaserton, but big announcements about the future of The Game OverThinker are coming in the near future. I'm excited about them, I hope you will be too. Stay tuned to this blog and my Twitter for more details as I get them.
Selasa, 23 Oktober 2012
Old School Video Game Art Show @ Gallery 1988 - "The Mortals"
***UPDATE***
Prints are available to purchase by clicking HERE.
Framed artwork has already sold before the show even opened! Thank you whoever you are :)
********************************************************************************
I'm not gonna lie... as much as I loved Street Fighter II, I was absolutely blown away the next year when Mortal Kombat was unleashed on arcades across America. I was 12 years old in 1992 when I met my new friends Scorpion, Sub Zero, and the rest of the fighters engaged in Mortal Kombat in Earthrealm. I can't pinpoint exactly what it was that drew me to the game, was the easy to learn moves? The mysterious Reptile character? The amazingly realistic graphics (for 1992) or was it the announcers voice? " FIGHT!" "FINISH HIM!" "FATALITY".
The framed album and artwork will be available to purchase exclusively at Gallery 1988 either in person or through their online store HERE. **Artwork has sold**
Prints are available to purchase by clicking HERE.
Framed artwork has already sold before the show even opened! Thank you whoever you are :)
********************************************************************************
I'm not gonna lie... as much as I loved Street Fighter II, I was absolutely blown away the next year when Mortal Kombat was unleashed on arcades across America. I was 12 years old in 1992 when I met my new friends Scorpion, Sub Zero, and the rest of the fighters engaged in Mortal Kombat in Earthrealm. I can't pinpoint exactly what it was that drew me to the game, was the easy to learn moves? The mysterious Reptile character? The amazingly realistic graphics (for 1992) or was it the announcers voice? " FIGHT!" "FINISH HIM!" "FATALITY".
As soon as I saw the game at my local comic book store , I was hooked. Scorpion became my go-to fighter. I anxiously awaited Mortal Monday so that I could save my quarters and play the game at home on my Sega Genesis. When Gallery 1988 asked me to create some artwork for "The Old School Video Game Art Show: Level 2" I went with an instant classic.
"Out of the arcades and into our hearts, it's the new hit album "Fatality" from The Mortals! Join Sub Zero, Scorpion, Liu Kang, and the rest of the gang as they punch out hit songs such as "Get Over Here!", "Toasty!" and "Finish Him". You're spine will tingle with glee, your heart will pound out of your chest, your soul will be theirs. So get ready to Test Your Might with The Mortals!"
Tracklisting
In addition to prints of the artwork, I always create a one of a kind framed album. For this show I was able to get my hands on a pretty rare, and pretty special record:
Vinyl test pressing of The Mortal Kombat theme "Techno-Syndrome 12" Mix"
Yes... This record contains the amazing Mortal Kombat song from the opening of the 1995 film. Anytime I play this song, once is never enough... it usually goes on a loop for at least 6 playthroughs.
"The Mortals" signed and numbered prints will be available only through Gallery 1988.
"The Mortals" framed album will be available exclusively at Gallery 1988
"The mortals" front and back prints will be available exclusively at my etsy store HERE
***This post will be updated when artwork becomes available***
If you're a fan of video games, or were a fan of old school video games, this is a show for you. A lot of very talented and passionate artists have created some amazing artwork that you would be proud to hang on your wall. Come on down to The Old School Video Game Art Show: Level 2 at Gallery 1988 in Santa Monica! You don't even have to bring your quarters because it's free!
The Old School Video Game Art Show: Level 2
Gallery 1988 Venice
Friday October 26th. 7-10PM
214 Pier Ave.
Santa Monica, CA 90405
Minggu, 21 Oktober 2012
"I'm Not A Gamer"
Okay, so... apparently this caused a big shitstorm two weeks ago when it first happened, so call me "late" if you like but... here we are.
So! Nintendo's new ad campaign for the 3DS is based around having celebrities tell you what they use the device for, capped off by the tagline "I'm not a gamer, I'm a ______." The first (so far) is Diana Agron using an art app ("I'm not a gamer, I'm an artist;") but the second has Gabrielle Douglas playing NSMB2: "I'm not a gamer, I'm a coin-collecting champ."
There's no implicit "but" there - the idea behind the campaign isn't "I'm not a gamer but even I like this game!;" but rather "I'm not a gamer" as an affirmative statement in and of itself: "I'm not a gamer" translating to "playing this doesn't MAKE me a gamer," which in turn is reassuring prospective consumers that "playing this won't make YOU a gamer, either."
Eyebrow-raising, to be sure. But thinking on it, I like this campaign and think that it's necessary.... I just HATE that it's necessary.
The thing is, gamers have pretty-much allowed "gamer" to become a set of images in the popular culture - the rage-fueled hateful XBox Live brat, the trolling shut-in sleaze - that pretty much no one not already in "the culture" would want to be associated with; so it makes sense that someone was going to mount a campaign aimed at broader audiences based around telling them that they are "allowed" to enjoy their products without fear of being tainted with that label. I hate that it's come to this, but I can't deny that it's probably a worthwhile move.
After all, when Nintendo's pitch for the original DS and then The Wii started off by inviting "non-traditional" gamers into the fold, "gamer culture" threw a giant reactionary crying fit trying to draw a clear distinction between "REAL gamers" and the pretenders who weren't interested in AAA multiplayer action titles, or didn't grow up with an NES controller glued to their hands, or whatever the "qualifications" for being "real" were that week. So it's both fitting and entirely appropriate that they be the ones to finally be explicit about this.
So! Nintendo's new ad campaign for the 3DS is based around having celebrities tell you what they use the device for, capped off by the tagline "I'm not a gamer, I'm a ______." The first (so far) is Diana Agron using an art app ("I'm not a gamer, I'm an artist;") but the second has Gabrielle Douglas playing NSMB2: "I'm not a gamer, I'm a coin-collecting champ."
There's no implicit "but" there - the idea behind the campaign isn't "I'm not a gamer but even I like this game!;" but rather "I'm not a gamer" as an affirmative statement in and of itself: "I'm not a gamer" translating to "playing this doesn't MAKE me a gamer," which in turn is reassuring prospective consumers that "playing this won't make YOU a gamer, either."
Eyebrow-raising, to be sure. But thinking on it, I like this campaign and think that it's necessary.... I just HATE that it's necessary.
The thing is, gamers have pretty-much allowed "gamer" to become a set of images in the popular culture - the rage-fueled hateful XBox Live brat, the trolling shut-in sleaze - that pretty much no one not already in "the culture" would want to be associated with; so it makes sense that someone was going to mount a campaign aimed at broader audiences based around telling them that they are "allowed" to enjoy their products without fear of being tainted with that label. I hate that it's come to this, but I can't deny that it's probably a worthwhile move.
After all, when Nintendo's pitch for the original DS and then The Wii started off by inviting "non-traditional" gamers into the fold, "gamer culture" threw a giant reactionary crying fit trying to draw a clear distinction between "REAL gamers" and the pretenders who weren't interested in AAA multiplayer action titles, or didn't grow up with an NES controller glued to their hands, or whatever the "qualifications" for being "real" were that week. So it's both fitting and entirely appropriate that they be the ones to finally be explicit about this.
Jumat, 12 Oktober 2012
EPISODE 76: "Ask Ivan"
As a result of working out some bugs with the video, "Ask Ivan" is now live! Really, really proud of how this one came out (I think its the best mailbag to date, honestly) and I hope you'll check it out RIGHT HERE. (There's no embedding option for this blog just yet, working on that..)
And for those wondering, yes - that big action sequence at the end is the "nightmare" editing project that had been giving me so much trouble. So, just for my own edification... it'd be super-awesome if even people who don't "care" about the sketch-segments at least gave it a watch ;)
WATCH IT ON SCREWATTACK NOW!
And for those wondering, yes - that big action sequence at the end is the "nightmare" editing project that had been giving me so much trouble. So, just for my own edification... it'd be super-awesome if even people who don't "care" about the sketch-segments at least gave it a watch ;)
WATCH IT ON SCREWATTACK NOW!
Rabu, 10 Oktober 2012
EPISODE 76 ANNOUNCEMEN (UPDATE!)
UPDATE II: The issue with the earlier upload seems to have been resolved, and the episode is now viewable for ALL AUDIENCES at this new link: http://www.screwattack.com/shows/partners/game-overthinker/game-overthinker-episode-76-ask-ivan-0 (full embed post soon.) Apologies for the issues.
UPDATE: I am aware that there is some kind of issue with the video which is causing it to display as "locked" even for Advantage users. While I have no direct control over that myself, the people who do have been made aware of it and I am informed that it's being worked on.
ORIGINAL POST: "Game OverThinker - Episode 76: Ask Ivan" will debut for all audiences on Wednesday, October 17th at 11:00pm CST. As ever, ScrewAttack Advantage members can get an early look right here right now.
UPDATE: I am aware that there is some kind of issue with the video which is causing it to display as "locked" even for Advantage users. While I have no direct control over that myself, the people who do have been made aware of it and I am informed that it's being worked on.
ORIGINAL POST: "Game OverThinker - Episode 76: Ask Ivan" will debut for all audiences on Wednesday, October 17th at 11:00pm CST. As ever, ScrewAttack Advantage members can get an early look right here right now.
Coolest Thing of The Week
Courtesy the Ohio State University Marching Band, the coolest video-game related thing you will see this week (also, ridiculously impressive technical achievement even if you, like me, don't know shit about how a Marching Band works...)
Senin, 08 Oktober 2012
"Retro City Rampage" Looks Pretty Sweet
I admit, upfront, that I am a "mark" for so-called "retro-style" games. Yes, it's comfort in the familiar - this is gaming as I knew it when I loved it best and so forth - but it's also just a stylistic thing: I'm a fan of "handicapped art - i.e. art made under some kind of imposed technical restrictions - and as such I'm fascinated to see the way talented digital artists use the restricted medium of pixels to create visuals or the limited sound-range of "chiptunes" to create musical compositions.
But I'm also willing to admit that the "retro" aesthetic has also become an easy way for lackluster games to pitch themselves as a quick nostalgia fix or, more commonly, a medium awash in overly reference-heavy games that "work" as nostalgia-fixes but don't hold up as games in their own right. "Retro City Rampage," on the other hand, looks to be doing the genre right - mixing up the usual set of go-to visual cues with a solid gameplay hook (pre-III "Grand Theft Auto" with a gonzo aesthetic and an NES gloss) that looks like a lot of real fun even for folks who don't immediately get a laugh out of a Bionic Commando gag:
But I'm also willing to admit that the "retro" aesthetic has also become an easy way for lackluster games to pitch themselves as a quick nostalgia fix or, more commonly, a medium awash in overly reference-heavy games that "work" as nostalgia-fixes but don't hold up as games in their own right. "Retro City Rampage," on the other hand, looks to be doing the genre right - mixing up the usual set of go-to visual cues with a solid gameplay hook (pre-III "Grand Theft Auto" with a gonzo aesthetic and an NES gloss) that looks like a lot of real fun even for folks who don't immediately get a laugh out of a Bionic Commando gag:
And This Week's Overblown Gamer Freakout Will Be...
After recieving complaints from "Call of Duty" players of Islamic backgrounds that they were offended by a bit of background decoration in the "Favelas" multiplayer map in "Modern Warfare 2" (the offending detail: A piece of wall art including the word "Allah" was hung above a toilet stall;) Activision and Infinity Ward temporarily removed the map from availability last night (presumably the offending image will be patched out of existance.)
Hoo-boy.
After the jump, sarcasm:
There's a lot of interesting levels to be discussed here: Artistic boundaries, levels of offense, cultural sensitivities, freedom of expression, etc. And it'll be nice to HAVE those discussions - mature, dignified and reasonable versions of which I can assume will begin almost immediately! I mean, what else could happen, right?
Man, sure is a good thing this didn't happen with a game whose audience and "community" are already demonstrably predisposed to furious, paranoid hatred for minorities and/or other cultures... OR a game that doesn't already have a strong to the point of virulent strain of xenophobia in general and Islamophobia in particular running through it. I mean, can you IMAGINE what the reaction to THAT would look like?
Boy howdy, I sure am glad that this will all be self-contained in the restrained, thoughtful forum of ideas that is online gaming culture; and that I WON'T have to sit through days upon days of self-righteous twits raging through incomprehensible talking points about "P.C. FASCISM!!!," "REVERSE RACISM!!!," "FREE-SPEECH!!!," "CENSORSHIP!!!," "SHARIA LAW!!!," "DOUBLE STANDARDS!!!" or any other such nonsense.
...I mean, wouldn't that just be awful?
Hoo-boy.
After the jump, sarcasm:
There's a lot of interesting levels to be discussed here: Artistic boundaries, levels of offense, cultural sensitivities, freedom of expression, etc. And it'll be nice to HAVE those discussions - mature, dignified and reasonable versions of which I can assume will begin almost immediately! I mean, what else could happen, right?
Man, sure is a good thing this didn't happen with a game whose audience and "community" are already demonstrably predisposed to furious, paranoid hatred for minorities and/or other cultures... OR a game that doesn't already have a strong to the point of virulent strain of xenophobia in general and Islamophobia in particular running through it. I mean, can you IMAGINE what the reaction to THAT would look like?
Boy howdy, I sure am glad that this will all be self-contained in the restrained, thoughtful forum of ideas that is online gaming culture; and that I WON'T have to sit through days upon days of self-righteous twits raging through incomprehensible talking points about "P.C. FASCISM!!!," "REVERSE RACISM!!!," "FREE-SPEECH!!!," "CENSORSHIP!!!," "SHARIA LAW!!!," "DOUBLE STANDARDS!!!" or any other such nonsense.
...I mean, wouldn't that just be awful?
Senin, 01 Oktober 2012
LAST CALL FOR "ASK IVAN!"
ANNOUNCEMENT! As of Midnight this Wednesday (October 3rd) I'll no longer be taking questions for next episode's big "Ask Ivan!" event. If you still haven't asked yours, ask it here or ask it on ScrewAttack. Remember to leave a name or a handle, no anonymous queries will be answered.
The actual airdate(s) of the episode itself will follow, stay tuned for further details.
The actual airdate(s) of the episode itself will follow, stay tuned for further details.
The Guild Season 6!!!
*****UPDATE*****
Shirts are available to purchase from Jinx.com!
Ladies click HERE
Dudes click HERE
Artwork prints are available to purchase HERE :)
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Howdy boys and girls. I am super proud to announce that I have joined forced with the lovely folks over at Geek & Sundry to help promote season 6 (!!!) of the hit web series "The Guild"!!!
Shirts are available to purchase from Jinx.com!
Ladies click HERE
Dudes click HERE
Artwork prints are available to purchase HERE :)
*********************************************************************************
Howdy boys and girls. I am super proud to announce that I have joined forced with the lovely folks over at Geek & Sundry to help promote season 6 (!!!) of the hit web series "The Guild"!!!
(Photo courtesy of thebuibrothers.com)
As stated by the all knowing Wikipedia, The Guild is "An American comedy web series created and written by Felicia Day, who also stars as Cyd Sherman (aka Codex). It premiered on YouTube on July 27th, 2007". I was working in the video game industry at Electronic Arts at the time, and although, truth be told, I never got into World Of Warcraft or WOW as the kids called it... I still appreciated the intelligent writing of this show. It was clear that whoever was in charge knew what they were writing about, and didn't treat their audience like mindless dumb dumbs *cough* most network television *cough*. I have thoroughly enjoyed each season of The Guild, and I can't wait to see how Codex handles working for the company that built the game she and her friends love so dearly.
I'm very thrilled to be teaming up with the lovely Felicia Day and the fine folks over at Geek & Sundry as well as Jinx.com for "The Knights of Good". I've been a fan of The Guild for a while now, and after Comic-Con I contacted Felicia to see if we could work together on something to promote the upcoming 6th season of The Guild. It was very cool to find out that she herself was a fan of my work. She loved the idea and so I'm proud to present my latest artwork for "The Knights of Good - The Guild"
"They came from The Game to raid our hearts, it's The Knights of Good! With their new hit record "The Guild", Codex, Zaboo, Vork, Bladezz, Clara, and Tinkerballa get Guild'd with new songs like "Do You Wanna Date My Avatar" and "I'm The One That's Cool". So drop your loot and get your Beards extra Cheesy, The Knights of Good are waiting for you to join "The Guild".
*****Prints of this artwork are available in my Etsy store located: HERE
*****You can also (this is so cool!) purchase t-shirts of this design over at Jinx.com
Seeing what Felicia has done with "The Guild" over the years should be a huge inspiration for those of us who have had a rough time trying to fight their way through typical channels. Going your own route, doing what you love and believing in that vision is the best thing any creative person can do. Felicia Day has done it extraordinarily well and inspired a few people (including myself) along the way.
I'm honored to be a part of Season 6 of the Guild. It starts Tuesday October 2nd here at Geek & Sundry's youtube page. Be sure to subscribe and don't miss one episode of The Guild Season 6! Also, if you're new to The Guild and have a Netflix Instant Watch account, you are in luck! All 5 previous season are up and waiting for you to devour them. What are you waiting for? GO!
I want to give a special thank you to Felicia Day, Kim Evey, Geek & Sundry, and Jinx.com. I appreciate you all letting me be a small part of this excellent series.
Minggu, 30 September 2012
My Video Hell
I am right now (in between other, more decisively-deadlined jobs) hard at work on the next episode of "The Game OverThinker." It MIGHT take a little longer than I wanted it to take, read below to learn why...
Every episode of "Game OverThinker" from the beginning until right now have been made entirely using two programs - one for manipulating images, one for arranging and editing video files - made by the same Very Famous Software Company. I won't use their name here because it's still slightly plausible that the problem might be my doing (not looking likely), but let's just say they are Very Famous and are named after a type of building material.
ANYWAY!
I've spent about a full week (in total hours) shooting footage and building FX for the ending sequence of this next TGO episode (the middle part I'm doing last so everyone can get their "Ask Ivan" questions in) and have managed to finally this afternoon cut it together into proper format. It's a complicated sequence - one actor playing about a dozen characters via greenscreen with a lot of effects and sound elements - but also a short one, not even five minutes in length.
The "Media Encoder" that Very Famous Software Company's video-editing software allows as it's SOLE option for exporting those elements as one solid video file refuses to complete that task - constantly crashing a few seconds through the timeline with no available description of what's causing the crash or what can be done to fix it. My assumption is "too many elements," but A.) I cannot be certain because this is apparently 1983 where it's still "okay" for software to give error messages with no troubleshooting and B.) for the amount of fucking money these programs cost (seriously, figure out who I'm talking about and look up how much they ask for their products) this should NOT be an issue... especially for less than five minutes of footage not even in HD.
Now, normally, this is something you'd fix by calling a customer service person. Oh! But, you see, Very Famous Software Company doesn't have reps available "overnight" (because, as we all know, if people with jobs that involve the use of high-end video-editing software are known for anything it's for keeping reliable 9 to 5 business hours) ...or even in the evening. Or even on weekends. Apparently I can order a Domino's pizza at 2am but I can't get service for a product I'm paying... egh. You get the idea.
SO! After many hours of self-research (because, y'know, no customer service whatsoever) it seems that a seperate "effects specific" product ALSO made by Very Famous Software Company might handle this sort of project better AND I can just pop the "raw" timeline from it's current place into THAT with little difficult. Okay, cool... granted, it's another HUGE chunk of change and there's no garauntee this is going to fix the problem (sure would be nice to talk to a fucking customer service person about that, huh!?,) but it's something...
Wait! Wait! Very Famous Software Company knows their products are expensive, so they graciously offer downloads for FREE TRIALS on their website! Well, that's good news! So I go to download it, and instead of just downloading immediately via that little "do you want to download ______?" window like every other website on the fucking planet it instead asks me to install Very Famous Software Company's PROPRIETARY downloading service (which requires a login ID) onto my system. Of course it does, it's Very Famous Software Company. So I download the proprietary service that I need to download the free trial... and it won't work. Error message after error message. There is nothing wrong with my internet service. More error messages.
I have other priorities to get to at that point, so I set about those while periodically trying to make this proprietary downloading service work. Several hours later, my work is done and the download service still doesn't work.
But wait! There's another option! Very Famous Software Company offers a "Cloud" service whereby you pay a monthly fee and get to use various versions of their products... which includes the trial you've been trying to download! Hurray! And there's even a free trial of the "Cloud" service itself - double hurray!
...except once I've signed up for the "Cloud" trial, I don't see the option on it's "Apps Menu" for the product I signed up to gain access to. It turns out that the "free" trial of the product I signed up for is ONLY available through the paid version of the "Cloud" service. Of course it is. It's Very Famous Software Company.
I'm angry at this point. Like, Incredible Hulk angry. My Twitter looks like the private diary of an intern for the Romney campaign. Just burning up with hatred for Very Famous Software Company, their products, my inarguable professional need to keep using their products and most of all for the fact that once again something I was actually really enjoying doing (I honestly love doing what I do on this show, and this sequence was coming together spectacularly) has now been drained of it's joy and may even need to be scrapped altogether because of all this. I work hard on this stuff, and the parts of it that are fun are often the ONLY fun I really get for days on end.
So... fine, fuck it. It's only money. I sign up for a month's worth of paid "Cloud" service. The level I paid at lets me have full access to ONE product. I pick the one I came looking for a 4th of a DAY ago. They process the transaction. It goes through. The "order summary" pops up with a big button for "DOWNLOAD." I click it...
..."DOWNLOAD" takes me back to that same useless "Apps" menu on the "Cloud" service. The option that I'm looking for, that've now paid them to let me use for a MONTH... is not there. I sign out. I refresh. I sign back in. Try again. No change. My account, billing summary, email reciepts, etc show that I paid to be able to download this and it's not letting me download it.
And there's NOTHING I can do about that tonight. Or tomorrow. Or until Monday. Even though that means two days out of 30 that I've paid for will now be wasted.
Because I can't call their service line and ask why I am not able to access and use this product because Very Famous Software Company cannot be bothered to have a customer service line available on evenings or weekends.
Because, apparently, it is acceptable for a software company that operates a Cloud-based download management service that caters specifically to people who need constant, ready access to products and material to run their customer service on fucking BANKER'S HOURS. ...Oh! Except that term is no longer accurate, because I can call my bank 24 hours a FUCKING day.
The sun is about to come up here, and I'm fucking done for the night. The lone "upside" to this nightmare is that this is, fortunately, NOT happening to a show/project with a contractual deadline - if it was, I'd be losing my mind for real right now.
I'm telling myself it might just be some kind of service delay and I'll be able to access it tomorrow, but I know that's bullshit. I know I'm going to spend monday morning/afternoon on the phone with Very Famous Software Company working this out, either getting the trial that I paid for actually downloaded or at least getting my money back... money which will then go into the fund for the many, many hundreds of dollars I'll be spending to buy either a better computer (who knows, maybe this heap just isn't "strong enough" to render that biiiiiig scaaaaaary 4 1/2 minutes of video!) or to buy the full version of this Very Famous Software Company's "Effects" program because apparently it'll help and I'll be damned if all this work I've already done go to waste.
Every episode of "Game OverThinker" from the beginning until right now have been made entirely using two programs - one for manipulating images, one for arranging and editing video files - made by the same Very Famous Software Company. I won't use their name here because it's still slightly plausible that the problem might be my doing (not looking likely), but let's just say they are Very Famous and are named after a type of building material.
ANYWAY!
I've spent about a full week (in total hours) shooting footage and building FX for the ending sequence of this next TGO episode (the middle part I'm doing last so everyone can get their "Ask Ivan" questions in) and have managed to finally this afternoon cut it together into proper format. It's a complicated sequence - one actor playing about a dozen characters via greenscreen with a lot of effects and sound elements - but also a short one, not even five minutes in length.
The "Media Encoder" that Very Famous Software Company's video-editing software allows as it's SOLE option for exporting those elements as one solid video file refuses to complete that task - constantly crashing a few seconds through the timeline with no available description of what's causing the crash or what can be done to fix it. My assumption is "too many elements," but A.) I cannot be certain because this is apparently 1983 where it's still "okay" for software to give error messages with no troubleshooting and B.) for the amount of fucking money these programs cost (seriously, figure out who I'm talking about and look up how much they ask for their products) this should NOT be an issue... especially for less than five minutes of footage not even in HD.
Now, normally, this is something you'd fix by calling a customer service person. Oh! But, you see, Very Famous Software Company doesn't have reps available "overnight" (because, as we all know, if people with jobs that involve the use of high-end video-editing software are known for anything it's for keeping reliable 9 to 5 business hours) ...or even in the evening. Or even on weekends. Apparently I can order a Domino's pizza at 2am but I can't get service for a product I'm paying... egh. You get the idea.
SO! After many hours of self-research (because, y'know, no customer service whatsoever) it seems that a seperate "effects specific" product ALSO made by Very Famous Software Company might handle this sort of project better AND I can just pop the "raw" timeline from it's current place into THAT with little difficult. Okay, cool... granted, it's another HUGE chunk of change and there's no garauntee this is going to fix the problem (sure would be nice to talk to a fucking customer service person about that, huh!?,) but it's something...
Wait! Wait! Very Famous Software Company knows their products are expensive, so they graciously offer downloads for FREE TRIALS on their website! Well, that's good news! So I go to download it, and instead of just downloading immediately via that little "do you want to download ______?" window like every other website on the fucking planet it instead asks me to install Very Famous Software Company's PROPRIETARY downloading service (which requires a login ID) onto my system. Of course it does, it's Very Famous Software Company. So I download the proprietary service that I need to download the free trial... and it won't work. Error message after error message. There is nothing wrong with my internet service. More error messages.
I have other priorities to get to at that point, so I set about those while periodically trying to make this proprietary downloading service work. Several hours later, my work is done and the download service still doesn't work.
But wait! There's another option! Very Famous Software Company offers a "Cloud" service whereby you pay a monthly fee and get to use various versions of their products... which includes the trial you've been trying to download! Hurray! And there's even a free trial of the "Cloud" service itself - double hurray!
...except once I've signed up for the "Cloud" trial, I don't see the option on it's "Apps Menu" for the product I signed up to gain access to. It turns out that the "free" trial of the product I signed up for is ONLY available through the paid version of the "Cloud" service. Of course it is. It's Very Famous Software Company.
I'm angry at this point. Like, Incredible Hulk angry. My Twitter looks like the private diary of an intern for the Romney campaign. Just burning up with hatred for Very Famous Software Company, their products, my inarguable professional need to keep using their products and most of all for the fact that once again something I was actually really enjoying doing (I honestly love doing what I do on this show, and this sequence was coming together spectacularly) has now been drained of it's joy and may even need to be scrapped altogether because of all this. I work hard on this stuff, and the parts of it that are fun are often the ONLY fun I really get for days on end.
So... fine, fuck it. It's only money. I sign up for a month's worth of paid "Cloud" service. The level I paid at lets me have full access to ONE product. I pick the one I came looking for a 4th of a DAY ago. They process the transaction. It goes through. The "order summary" pops up with a big button for "DOWNLOAD." I click it...
..."DOWNLOAD" takes me back to that same useless "Apps" menu on the "Cloud" service. The option that I'm looking for, that've now paid them to let me use for a MONTH... is not there. I sign out. I refresh. I sign back in. Try again. No change. My account, billing summary, email reciepts, etc show that I paid to be able to download this and it's not letting me download it.
And there's NOTHING I can do about that tonight. Or tomorrow. Or until Monday. Even though that means two days out of 30 that I've paid for will now be wasted.
Because I can't call their service line and ask why I am not able to access and use this product because Very Famous Software Company cannot be bothered to have a customer service line available on evenings or weekends.
Because, apparently, it is acceptable for a software company that operates a Cloud-based download management service that caters specifically to people who need constant, ready access to products and material to run their customer service on fucking BANKER'S HOURS. ...Oh! Except that term is no longer accurate, because I can call my bank 24 hours a FUCKING day.
The sun is about to come up here, and I'm fucking done for the night. The lone "upside" to this nightmare is that this is, fortunately, NOT happening to a show/project with a contractual deadline - if it was, I'd be losing my mind for real right now.
I'm telling myself it might just be some kind of service delay and I'll be able to access it tomorrow, but I know that's bullshit. I know I'm going to spend monday morning/afternoon on the phone with Very Famous Software Company working this out, either getting the trial that I paid for actually downloaded or at least getting my money back... money which will then go into the fund for the many, many hundreds of dollars I'll be spending to buy either a better computer (who knows, maybe this heap just isn't "strong enough" to render that biiiiiig scaaaaaary 4 1/2 minutes of video!) or to buy the full version of this Very Famous Software Company's "Effects" program because apparently it'll help and I'll be damned if all this work I've already done go to waste.
Kamis, 27 September 2012
Cloudberry Kingdom is a WiiU Launch Title
Not-bad writeup on Kotaku yesterday evening putting a spotlight on the WiiU's surprising strength as an indie-friendly console given the strong lineup of downloadable games among it's launch titles. One of the standouts looks like Pwnee Studios' "Cloudberry Kingdom," which resembles nothing so much as "New Super Mario Bros." with a sadistic difficulty curve:
Rabu, 26 September 2012
Mario Warfare
Have you see enough "What if ______ was crossed with _______??" gags on youtube, webcomics, etc. to last a lifetime? You probably have, but check out this video anyway because it looks pretty awesome regardless.
If nothing else, I'm glad to see "Equilibrium" popping back up as the fan-film point-of-reference du-jour...
If nothing else, I'm glad to see "Equilibrium" popping back up as the fan-film point-of-reference du-jour...
Sabtu, 22 September 2012
Mega Man Is Over
Double-meaning, y'see.
Ever since Keiji Inafune up and quit the company awhile back, Capcom has seemed bound and determined to turn his most well-known creation into mulch: Cancelling a slew of well-into-development Mega Man titles, making his appearance in "Street Fight X Tekken" a self-parody, etc.
The latest seeming insult: The Blue Bomber's promised 25th Anniversary game (keep in mind, we're talking about a Mario/Zelda/Kirby-level Golden Age icon here), billed as a crossover wherein a "new" MM battles a cosortium of foes from all the different subseries, has been revealed as... an iPhone social game; fittingly titled "Mega Man X Over."
Over, indeed. If nothing else, at least Sonic can have some company on the "you used to be good" pile.
Ever since Keiji Inafune up and quit the company awhile back, Capcom has seemed bound and determined to turn his most well-known creation into mulch: Cancelling a slew of well-into-development Mega Man titles, making his appearance in "Street Fight X Tekken" a self-parody, etc.
The latest seeming insult: The Blue Bomber's promised 25th Anniversary game (keep in mind, we're talking about a Mario/Zelda/Kirby-level Golden Age icon here), billed as a crossover wherein a "new" MM battles a cosortium of foes from all the different subseries, has been revealed as... an iPhone social game; fittingly titled "Mega Man X Over."
Over, indeed. If nothing else, at least Sonic can have some company on the "you used to be good" pile.
Rabu, 19 September 2012
EPISODE 75: "Easy Does It"
Our newest episode is now showing for all audiences on ScrewAttack!
In this episode, we examine the modern controversy over "Easy Modes": do they really - as the lead designer of "Assassin's Creed III" recently claimed - "ruin games," or is there a vital place for them? In addition, we proudly announce that the next episode will be "Ask Ivan!" - wherein Ivan the Intern will answer questions to posted to the comments sections under the video itself or to this blog post (see episode for details, no anonymous questions please.)
ALSO! You'll see The OverThinker's favorite watering hole, discover the history of The OmegaThinker, witness the shocking origin of RoboThinker, learn something new about Ivan the Intern and watch ME gradually figure out how to properly use my new green-screen! (in all sincerity, I know some folks run hot or cold on the skits, but I'm pretty psyched with how the "ending" bookend for this one turned out tone, FX and timing-wise.)
Embedded episode and spoiler-y discussion after the jump!
Yeah, I'm proud of this one. The Hutchinson quote kind of fell into my lap as a perfect sort of topic-starter for my little niche here, and it gave me some room to A.) flesh out exactly what it is Ivan is supposed to be doing most of the time and B.) bring RetroThinker back into the picture and try out what might become his new status-quo as "resident old-timey expert guy." He's a fun "voice" to write for, and his "costume" isn't as cumbersome as some others...
As to RoboThinker's origin? I really like how it came out, overall, but it was a winding road to get here.
When I sat down during the "planning stages" for the revamped show as the AntiThinker business was coming to an end, a robot villain named "RoboThinker" was the very first thing I wrote down after deciding to continue the "____Thinker" naming-scheme schtick, but for the longest time that was all I had for him. (FYI, you have been spared the appearance of non-starter ideas like an enviro-terrorist called "Eco-Thinker," a white or yellow ninja tagged as "ElectroThinker" and a flatulence-powered one-off villain named "OverStinker.")
Believe it or not, for a long time my plan was for him to either resemble Robocop or The Borg - which would've been highly unfortunate since this is hitting so soon after "To Boldly Flee." Ultimately, I wanted him to look like a less specific parody, and the final concept ("Super-Sentai Terminator," basically) turned out to be best within my budget/abilities AND to fit best with OmegaThinker's DBZ/Trunks angle (that being DBZ's "Terminator" spoof and all.)
In any case, I hope everyone enjoys this one; and I'm already enjoying seeing people getting into the spirit of "Ask Ivan." If all goes well, you'll get those answers, an explanation of WHY OmegaThinker doesn't want OverThinker doing the fighting and your first taste of RoboThinker's voice and personality next time. Until then, let's hear those questions for Ivan!
In this episode, we examine the modern controversy over "Easy Modes": do they really - as the lead designer of "Assassin's Creed III" recently claimed - "ruin games," or is there a vital place for them? In addition, we proudly announce that the next episode will be "Ask Ivan!" - wherein Ivan the Intern will answer questions to posted to the comments sections under the video itself or to this blog post (see episode for details, no anonymous questions please.)
ALSO! You'll see The OverThinker's favorite watering hole, discover the history of The OmegaThinker, witness the shocking origin of RoboThinker, learn something new about Ivan the Intern and watch ME gradually figure out how to properly use my new green-screen! (in all sincerity, I know some folks run hot or cold on the skits, but I'm pretty psyched with how the "ending" bookend for this one turned out tone, FX and timing-wise.)
Embedded episode and spoiler-y discussion after the jump!
Yeah, I'm proud of this one. The Hutchinson quote kind of fell into my lap as a perfect sort of topic-starter for my little niche here, and it gave me some room to A.) flesh out exactly what it is Ivan is supposed to be doing most of the time and B.) bring RetroThinker back into the picture and try out what might become his new status-quo as "resident old-timey expert guy." He's a fun "voice" to write for, and his "costume" isn't as cumbersome as some others...
As to RoboThinker's origin? I really like how it came out, overall, but it was a winding road to get here.
When I sat down during the "planning stages" for the revamped show as the AntiThinker business was coming to an end, a robot villain named "RoboThinker" was the very first thing I wrote down after deciding to continue the "____Thinker" naming-scheme schtick, but for the longest time that was all I had for him. (FYI, you have been spared the appearance of non-starter ideas like an enviro-terrorist called "Eco-Thinker," a white or yellow ninja tagged as "ElectroThinker" and a flatulence-powered one-off villain named "OverStinker.")
Believe it or not, for a long time my plan was for him to either resemble Robocop or The Borg - which would've been highly unfortunate since this is hitting so soon after "To Boldly Flee." Ultimately, I wanted him to look like a less specific parody, and the final concept ("Super-Sentai Terminator," basically) turned out to be best within my budget/abilities AND to fit best with OmegaThinker's DBZ/Trunks angle (that being DBZ's "Terminator" spoof and all.)
In any case, I hope everyone enjoys this one; and I'm already enjoying seeing people getting into the spirit of "Ask Ivan." If all goes well, you'll get those answers, an explanation of WHY OmegaThinker doesn't want OverThinker doing the fighting and your first taste of RoboThinker's voice and personality next time. Until then, let's hear those questions for Ivan!
Sabtu, 15 September 2012
U Mad?
In case you hadn't heard, the WiiU has an unexpected third-party (second-party, actually - Nintendo published!) exclusive. Some people are... less than thrilled about this.
The poor darlings.
The poor darlings.
Kamis, 13 September 2012
Off To Work
I'll be getting on an airplane for The Escapist Expo very soon, which means updates to this blog may be a bit on the sporadic/late side from now until Monday. Stay tuned.
Nintendo Being Nintendo
The WiiU's dates and prices have been announced for Japan, and will be announced for the U.S. later this morning. The main non-pricing/tech related news is that it looks like the flagship launch titles will be New Super Mario Bros. WiiU and Nintendo Land.
I haven't seen much of "Nintendo Land," but I dig the "symbolism" of its existance: It's a Wii Sports/Play/Resort installment, but this time set in a virtual Nintendo-themed amusement park. I like the optimisitc (on Nintendo's side) vision of what that represents: that the "Casual-core" Wii newcomers of seven years ago are now part of the broader Nintendo fan-culture (we'll find out if that's precisely TRUE soon enough.)
Moreover, though, much as I'm supposed to roll my eyes at the "regressiveness" of the New Super Mario Bros. juggernaut... and while, yes, I'd RATHER be playing a successor to Galaxy or something truly new... damn it, y'all KNOW me. The first console of the Eighth Generation is launching... with a 2D Super Mario Bros. side-scroller. That's kind of awesome.
I haven't seen much of "Nintendo Land," but I dig the "symbolism" of its existance: It's a Wii Sports/Play/Resort installment, but this time set in a virtual Nintendo-themed amusement park. I like the optimisitc (on Nintendo's side) vision of what that represents: that the "Casual-core" Wii newcomers of seven years ago are now part of the broader Nintendo fan-culture (we'll find out if that's precisely TRUE soon enough.)
Moreover, though, much as I'm supposed to roll my eyes at the "regressiveness" of the New Super Mario Bros. juggernaut... and while, yes, I'd RATHER be playing a successor to Galaxy or something truly new... damn it, y'all KNOW me. The first console of the Eighth Generation is launching... with a 2D Super Mario Bros. side-scroller. That's kind of awesome.
Rabu, 12 September 2012
EPISODE 75 ANNOUNCEMENT!
Episode 75: "Easy Does It" will debut next Wednesday September 19th at 11:00pm CST right here on ScrewAttack. As ever, Advantage Members can watch it starting now.
ALSO: As announced in the episode-proper, Episode 76 will be our first ever "ASK IVAN" installment, wherein fan and viewer mail will be answered by Ivan the Intern. You can ask your question in the ScrewAttack comments page or the comments here (leave some form of name, anonymous questions will not be answered) concerning games, pop culture or anything else you'd want to Ask Ivan about.
Stay tuned for the episode for more details.
ALSO: As announced in the episode-proper, Episode 76 will be our first ever "ASK IVAN" installment, wherein fan and viewer mail will be answered by Ivan the Intern. You can ask your question in the ScrewAttack comments page or the comments here (leave some form of name, anonymous questions will not be answered) concerning games, pop culture or anything else you'd want to Ask Ivan about.
Stay tuned for the episode for more details.
Ryan's Review of Metal Slug XX for the Xbox 360
Hey guys, today I am going to be posting my review on the Xbox Live game, Metal Slug XX (also known as Metal Slug 7).
By the way, here is a short video from Youtube showing off the first 2 levels in the game.
Overview and story (warning, this section contains spoilers, as I have played the game already and don't know if you have or not) -
Side by side comparison: doesn't General Morden from the Metal Slug Series look eerily similar to the former dictator, Saddam Hussein (long before he was executed several years back)?
Metal Slug XX (aka Metal Slug 7 for the Gameboy DS system) is the latest addition to the hit Metal Slug series and presumably takes place after the events of Metal Slug 6 (which was featured in Metal Slug Anthology for the Playstation 2 as well as the Nintndo Wii). In Metal Slug XX, the evil General Mordin (the Saddam Hussein look alike that is the main antagonist of the series) is back and is up to his old tricks again, and even recruits soliders from the distant future to his cause and it is up tp Marco, Fio, and all of the other Metal Slug crew to foil Mordin's schemes once again. Unlike many of the previous installments of the series, were Mordin is merely a pawn of a more sinister plot (such as the alien invasions that took place in Metal Slugs 2, X and 3, a corrupt business man in Metal Slug 4, a shadowy terroist organization in Metal Slug 5, and now mutant man eating insects in Metal Slug 6), Mordin is officially the main villian once again and will also fuction as the final boss character you fight (a first in the series since the first Metal Slug game). It is also worth mentioning that the super solider, Allen (the Mr T look alike from Metal Slugs 1-4 that you fight) is back and will once again challenge the heros in a fight to the death, this time in a mech warrior style duel in one of the levels of the game. Also, like in Metal Slug 6, there are several players available (along with a downloadable character if you are willing to pay a little extra) and each of them have their own unique moves and abilities. Marco can shoot 2 handguns machine gun style when you hit the y button (based on default controls). Fio (the lady with the orange hair and hat) is automatically equipped with a machine gun instead of the regular hand gun and can't lose the machine gun whenever she dies like the other characters do whenever they die in the game. Eri has an extra arsenal of grenades and can throw them in almost any direction (up, down, diagonal, straight, etc) and can be extra useful against tough enemies (like boss fights, especially the one at the end of level 4 as you will find out as you play the game) as well as crowd conrol (and there are plenty of times where you will be outnumbered). Also, the game is 7 missions long (which is actually longer than the average Metal Slug game, which is usually 5 or 6 missions long, which varies by game throughout the series) and it does come with a built in level select feature, which can be useful if you don't want to (or can't) play through the entire game in one setting (which is roughly about 2 hours along if played on the medium difficulty). Like previous reviews, I will rate this game in a letter grade format (where an F is the worst and an A is the best) and you are free to agree or disagree with me.
Gameplay - B
Metal Slug XX plays out much like any other title in the series. The game is a classic 2D style shooter that plays out much like a typical Contra game, where it is a side scroller shooter where you you go through the levels, shooting bad guys, avoiding bullets, as well as using special vehicles (scattered in various stages) as you play through each level (mission). Most of the missions are big and fairly long and have a huge boss or boss machine that you have to fight at the end. Like all Metal Slug and Contra games, one hit kills you (unless if you are driving one of the many vehicles in the game, in which case it usually takes several hits to kill you) and you do get 3 lives before you get a game over (though the game does come with a continue system). You can also do 2 players and the Xbox 360 version does come with an Xbox live mode as well (though I haven't played it yet). The game also comes with a "combat school" where you replay through the different missions of the game and try to meet certain goals (such as getting 100% accuracy when shooting enemies, not gettign killed, etc) for extra achievements and bragging rights. By the way, I have read other reviews for this game, and I am actually surprised that some people find this game to be too short, even though it is actually 7 missions long (most Metal Slug games are only 5 or 6 missions long) and does take a little while to beat. Of course, if you are looking for a much longer game, you might try other shooters like the Mass Effect Series, the Call of Duty series, etc).
Difficulty - C
If you are a typical player when it come to games like Metal Slug and Contra, you will probably die ALOT in this game, even on easy mode. Like other games in the series, one hit usually kills your character (btw, if you play as Ralph, you can usually take 2 hits before dying) and the levels do get progressively harder as you play through the game, especially levels 4 - 7 where death is nearly impossible to avoid unless if you have extremely good reflexes and can predict the enemies' movies (though I have seen Youtube videos of people playing through games like Metal Slug XX where they never die, let along get a game over, which is definitely an impressive feat to accomplish). And there are places, where you are bound to die alot, especially in a section in level 4 where you battle man eating plants, soldiers and overhead man eating plants at the same time. Also, I found the final level to be extra challenging, especially towards the end. By the way, if you have special weapons, you usually lose them when you die (with the exception of Fio's machine guns). Luckily, when you almost inevitably run out of lives, the game does come with a continue system where you can continue in the mission and you do get infinite continues in the game as far as I can tell (which can be a good thing or bad thing depending on how you look at it). Obviously, if you are looking for a much more challenging Metal Slug game, I recommend you get yourself a copy of Metal Slug 3 for the original Xbox (now that one is extra brutal as far as lives and continues are concerned, especially on the final mission) or even Metal Slug Anthology and turn off the unlimited continues mode (which is on by default, at least in the Playstation 2 version). Anyways, the game is challenging, but it is definitely beatable (though you will probably go through lots of lives and continues by the end of hte game).
Sound- A
Personally, I loved the sound and background music in the game. Also, like in many of the newer installments, the boss music has changed again (at least for the regular bosses), though they did bring back the classic final boss theme at the final boss (the one from Metal Slug 2 when you fight the mothership). Also, the voice acting and narrating is pretty nice too.
General - A
Personally, this game was pretty fun for me and where there are some things I didn't like, I definitely recommend this game to any of you who are into arcade style shooters and are a fan of the Metal Slug series. Also, old time fans of the Metal Slug series will be pleased to see some of the recurring themes this game has to offer, including:
1) General Morden returns and is the main villian this time around. Also, for the first time since Metal Slug 1, you will fight him as the final boss, and this time it is a much more epic boss fight and comes in 3 stages (unlike the anti-climatic battle against him in the first Metal Slug game).
2) Allen is back for the first time since Metal Slug 4. If you missed him from Metal Slugs 4-6 you will be delighted to hear that he is definitely back and once again he will challenge you to a fight to the death once again (this time in a classic mech warrior style boss battle).
3) The final boss music from most of the Metal Slug games is back as well.
Anyways, that is all for now. You can find Metal Slug XX on Xbox live if you are looking for it and it is relatively cheap to download. By the way, I have not played Metal Slug 7 on the Gameboy DS yet, so I don't really know how the two versions compare, though if you have played the other versions, feel free to share your experiences with them.
Things I like to see in the sequel (assuming they make another Metal Slug game):
1) Some next gen elements (such as 2.5D graphics and comic book style feel similar to that from Mega Man X8 and Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles).
2) Cut scenes and voice acting (that would be cool, especially if they have good voice actors for the characters).
3) 10 levels would be ideal
4) Some roleplaying elements might be cool as well (kind of like how it is in the Mass Effect series).
5) They should also have more stages with alternate routes and exits (like how it was in Metal Slug 3 where most of the levels had alterate routes that yu can take for some extra variety and replay value).
6) Aliens would be nice to have again, like the ones from Metal Slugs 2 and 3.
7) Cater to both casual gamers and hard core gamers (such as making so people can choose to have limited continues or unlimited continues as was the case in metal slug anthology).
Comments?
Have you played Metal Slug XX yet? Feel free to share your experiences in the game. Did you like the game, did you not like the game? What would you like to see in Metal Slug 8 (whenever they release it) and no I don't work for SNK, so I wouldn't know anything about the sequel, though I am assuming another sequel is in the works.
Other games you might like:
Metal Slug 7 for the DS - this is the gameboy ds version of this game
Metal Slug Anthology (Playstation 2) and Metal Slug Anthology (Nintendo Wii) (there is also a version for the PSP as well). Metal Slug Anthology is definitely a must have fore Metal Slug series fans (though sadly they did not make a version for the Xbox 360, so you will have to get a Wii or Playstation 2 if you want to play that game) and features Metal Slugs 1-6 along with Metal Slug X (which is basically an alternate version of Metal Slug 2), and also has special artwork and interviews that you can unlock as you play the game. The game collection also caters both to casual players and hardcore gamers with variable difficulty modes, variable starting lives, as well as the option to either have unlimited continues (which is on by default) or limited continues (up to 20 continues) if you think you are up to the the challenge.
Overall Score (based on my experience): A-
By the way, here is a short video from Youtube showing off the first 2 levels in the game.
Overview and story (warning, this section contains spoilers, as I have played the game already and don't know if you have or not) -
Side by side comparison: doesn't General Morden from the Metal Slug Series look eerily similar to the former dictator, Saddam Hussein (long before he was executed several years back)?
|
Metal Slug XX (aka Metal Slug 7 for the Gameboy DS system) is the latest addition to the hit Metal Slug series and presumably takes place after the events of Metal Slug 6 (which was featured in Metal Slug Anthology for the Playstation 2 as well as the Nintndo Wii). In Metal Slug XX, the evil General Mordin (the Saddam Hussein look alike that is the main antagonist of the series) is back and is up to his old tricks again, and even recruits soliders from the distant future to his cause and it is up tp Marco, Fio, and all of the other Metal Slug crew to foil Mordin's schemes once again. Unlike many of the previous installments of the series, were Mordin is merely a pawn of a more sinister plot (such as the alien invasions that took place in Metal Slugs 2, X and 3, a corrupt business man in Metal Slug 4, a shadowy terroist organization in Metal Slug 5, and now mutant man eating insects in Metal Slug 6), Mordin is officially the main villian once again and will also fuction as the final boss character you fight (a first in the series since the first Metal Slug game). It is also worth mentioning that the super solider, Allen (the Mr T look alike from Metal Slugs 1-4 that you fight) is back and will once again challenge the heros in a fight to the death, this time in a mech warrior style duel in one of the levels of the game. Also, like in Metal Slug 6, there are several players available (along with a downloadable character if you are willing to pay a little extra) and each of them have their own unique moves and abilities. Marco can shoot 2 handguns machine gun style when you hit the y button (based on default controls). Fio (the lady with the orange hair and hat) is automatically equipped with a machine gun instead of the regular hand gun and can't lose the machine gun whenever she dies like the other characters do whenever they die in the game. Eri has an extra arsenal of grenades and can throw them in almost any direction (up, down, diagonal, straight, etc) and can be extra useful against tough enemies (like boss fights, especially the one at the end of level 4 as you will find out as you play the game) as well as crowd conrol (and there are plenty of times where you will be outnumbered). Also, the game is 7 missions long (which is actually longer than the average Metal Slug game, which is usually 5 or 6 missions long, which varies by game throughout the series) and it does come with a built in level select feature, which can be useful if you don't want to (or can't) play through the entire game in one setting (which is roughly about 2 hours along if played on the medium difficulty). Like previous reviews, I will rate this game in a letter grade format (where an F is the worst and an A is the best) and you are free to agree or disagree with me.
Gameplay - B
Metal Slug XX plays out much like any other title in the series. The game is a classic 2D style shooter that plays out much like a typical Contra game, where it is a side scroller shooter where you you go through the levels, shooting bad guys, avoiding bullets, as well as using special vehicles (scattered in various stages) as you play through each level (mission). Most of the missions are big and fairly long and have a huge boss or boss machine that you have to fight at the end. Like all Metal Slug and Contra games, one hit kills you (unless if you are driving one of the many vehicles in the game, in which case it usually takes several hits to kill you) and you do get 3 lives before you get a game over (though the game does come with a continue system). You can also do 2 players and the Xbox 360 version does come with an Xbox live mode as well (though I haven't played it yet). The game also comes with a "combat school" where you replay through the different missions of the game and try to meet certain goals (such as getting 100% accuracy when shooting enemies, not gettign killed, etc) for extra achievements and bragging rights. By the way, I have read other reviews for this game, and I am actually surprised that some people find this game to be too short, even though it is actually 7 missions long (most Metal Slug games are only 5 or 6 missions long) and does take a little while to beat. Of course, if you are looking for a much longer game, you might try other shooters like the Mass Effect Series, the Call of Duty series, etc).
Difficulty - C
If you are a typical player when it come to games like Metal Slug and Contra, you will probably die ALOT in this game, even on easy mode. Like other games in the series, one hit usually kills your character (btw, if you play as Ralph, you can usually take 2 hits before dying) and the levels do get progressively harder as you play through the game, especially levels 4 - 7 where death is nearly impossible to avoid unless if you have extremely good reflexes and can predict the enemies' movies (though I have seen Youtube videos of people playing through games like Metal Slug XX where they never die, let along get a game over, which is definitely an impressive feat to accomplish). And there are places, where you are bound to die alot, especially in a section in level 4 where you battle man eating plants, soldiers and overhead man eating plants at the same time. Also, I found the final level to be extra challenging, especially towards the end. By the way, if you have special weapons, you usually lose them when you die (with the exception of Fio's machine guns). Luckily, when you almost inevitably run out of lives, the game does come with a continue system where you can continue in the mission and you do get infinite continues in the game as far as I can tell (which can be a good thing or bad thing depending on how you look at it). Obviously, if you are looking for a much more challenging Metal Slug game, I recommend you get yourself a copy of Metal Slug 3 for the original Xbox (now that one is extra brutal as far as lives and continues are concerned, especially on the final mission) or even Metal Slug Anthology and turn off the unlimited continues mode (which is on by default, at least in the Playstation 2 version). Anyways, the game is challenging, but it is definitely beatable (though you will probably go through lots of lives and continues by the end of hte game).
Sound- A
Personally, I loved the sound and background music in the game. Also, like in many of the newer installments, the boss music has changed again (at least for the regular bosses), though they did bring back the classic final boss theme at the final boss (the one from Metal Slug 2 when you fight the mothership). Also, the voice acting and narrating is pretty nice too.
General - A
Personally, this game was pretty fun for me and where there are some things I didn't like, I definitely recommend this game to any of you who are into arcade style shooters and are a fan of the Metal Slug series. Also, old time fans of the Metal Slug series will be pleased to see some of the recurring themes this game has to offer, including:
1) General Morden returns and is the main villian this time around. Also, for the first time since Metal Slug 1, you will fight him as the final boss, and this time it is a much more epic boss fight and comes in 3 stages (unlike the anti-climatic battle against him in the first Metal Slug game).
2) Allen is back for the first time since Metal Slug 4. If you missed him from Metal Slugs 4-6 you will be delighted to hear that he is definitely back and once again he will challenge you to a fight to the death once again (this time in a classic mech warrior style boss battle).
3) The final boss music from most of the Metal Slug games is back as well.
Anyways, that is all for now. You can find Metal Slug XX on Xbox live if you are looking for it and it is relatively cheap to download. By the way, I have not played Metal Slug 7 on the Gameboy DS yet, so I don't really know how the two versions compare, though if you have played the other versions, feel free to share your experiences with them.
Things I like to see in the sequel (assuming they make another Metal Slug game):
1) Some next gen elements (such as 2.5D graphics and comic book style feel similar to that from Mega Man X8 and Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles).
2) Cut scenes and voice acting (that would be cool, especially if they have good voice actors for the characters).
3) 10 levels would be ideal
4) Some roleplaying elements might be cool as well (kind of like how it is in the Mass Effect series).
5) They should also have more stages with alternate routes and exits (like how it was in Metal Slug 3 where most of the levels had alterate routes that yu can take for some extra variety and replay value).
6) Aliens would be nice to have again, like the ones from Metal Slugs 2 and 3.
7) Cater to both casual gamers and hard core gamers (such as making so people can choose to have limited continues or unlimited continues as was the case in metal slug anthology).
Comments?
Have you played Metal Slug XX yet? Feel free to share your experiences in the game. Did you like the game, did you not like the game? What would you like to see in Metal Slug 8 (whenever they release it) and no I don't work for SNK, so I wouldn't know anything about the sequel, though I am assuming another sequel is in the works.
Other games you might like:
Metal Slug 7 for the DS - this is the gameboy ds version of this game
Metal Slug Anthology (Playstation 2) and Metal Slug Anthology (Nintendo Wii) (there is also a version for the PSP as well). Metal Slug Anthology is definitely a must have fore Metal Slug series fans (though sadly they did not make a version for the Xbox 360, so you will have to get a Wii or Playstation 2 if you want to play that game) and features Metal Slugs 1-6 along with Metal Slug X (which is basically an alternate version of Metal Slug 2), and also has special artwork and interviews that you can unlock as you play the game. The game collection also caters both to casual players and hardcore gamers with variable difficulty modes, variable starting lives, as well as the option to either have unlimited continues (which is on by default) or limited continues (up to 20 continues) if you think you are up to the the challenge.
Senin, 10 September 2012
Jumat, 31 Agustus 2012
4 Year Anniversary Celebration of Step Brothers
!!!UPDATE!!!
The Framed artwork is sold out, but prints are still available to purchase:
Super Step Bros. is available to purchase HERE
Prestige Worldwide is available to purchase HERE
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2008 was an interesting year. The Economy was just on the verge of going down the toilet, Flo Rida had the number one song in the country, I left my full-time job at Electronic Arts to return home to Southern California (really good timing Joey...), and a lovely little movie from Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly came out. Only one of these things can we look back on fondly and laugh.
Funnyordie.com posted an excellent preview of some of the work from the show: http://www.funnyordie.com/articles/a7a2dc72b4/step-brothers-honored-at-gallery1988
The Framed artwork is sold out, but prints are still available to purchase:
Super Step Bros. is available to purchase HERE
Prestige Worldwide is available to purchase HERE
*********************************************************************************
2008 was an interesting year. The Economy was just on the verge of going down the toilet, Flo Rida had the number one song in the country, I left my full-time job at Electronic Arts to return home to Southern California (really good timing Joey...), and a lovely little movie from Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly came out. Only one of these things can we look back on fondly and laugh.
Gallery 1988 is paying tribute to a very funny movie with "The Four Year Anniversary Celebration of the Cinematic Classic Step Brothers"
Funnyordie.com posted an excellent preview of some of the work from the show: http://www.funnyordie.com/articles/a7a2dc72b4/step-brothers-honored-at-gallery1988
Huff and Doback are one of the best comedy pairings in recent memory. Both of these actors are excellent on their own
So when I heard these two guys were making a movie together, I was pretty excited! Gallery 1988 is known for putting together interesting art shows that people didn't realize they wanted and they never disappoint. The artwork from this show is incredible, and the inspired artwork shows what a great movie Step Brothers truly is.
I created 2 different pieces for the show. I am a fan of NES box art and always love the challenge of simplifying something into the iconic pixel art. For this show I thought it was only appropriate that Huff and Doback replaced Mario and Luigi:
But then I also thought it would be appropriate to continue my series of retro children's albums with Prestige Worldwide:
The show will open Friday, August 31st and run through September 22. If you're a fan of this great movie, you should head on down to Santa Monica and check it out!
A limited number of signed and numbered prints of my artwork will be available exclusively through Gallery 1988 at the gallery as well as through their online store: http://nineteeneightyeight.com
"The Four Year Anniversary Celebration of the Cinematic Classic Step Brothers"
Opening Friday, August 31st 7-10pm
Gallery 1988 Venice
214 Pier Avenue
Santa Monica, CA 90405
Rabu, 29 Agustus 2012
EPISODE 74: "Rusty Pipes"
A few weeks ago, my colleague Jim Sterling did a video on what he so as the waning (or, at least, "water-treading") state of the Super Mario Bros. franchise which, along with a general sense of "I've gotta get to this at some point" regarding the matter, inspired me to undertake this episode... which is NOW SHOWING on ScrewAttack!
ALSO! The "wraparound" segmentsof this episode includes, among other things, a Golden Age enemy, my terrible impression of Sean Connery and the ultimate reveal of what The AntiThinker's return means for the continuing adventures of The OverThinker.
Embedded video (and SPOILER TALK) after the jump:
SPOILERS BELOW
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So... "gotcha," I guess. The AntiThinker WAS back... for about five minutes. I've been planning this bit, broadly, since before shooting wrapped on "War of The Thinkers." AntiThinker was always going to go away for at least two "arcs," then come back but in an unexpected context. Not long after that, the notion of adding "evil robot" ("RoboThinker," who you'll probably see in the metallic flesh next episode time permitting) to the evolving bad guy character-roster (alongside "ninja" and "demon") and "Terminator parody" seemed like a logical way to go about doing it.
THEN it occured to me that A.) I hadn't really done a Dragonball Z parody yet, either, and it seemed like a natural fit for the show; B.) DBZ's Androids/Future-Trunks/Cell episodes WERE a Terminator riff and C.) a version of The OverThinker in Trunks' purple hair, blue coat and sword ensemble would (hopefully) be inherently funny... it was suddenly an obvious manuever: Let "OmegaThinker's" debut be taking out AntiThinker in a parody/recreation of the "Oh no not MORE Frieza epis-OH! Frieza's DEAD just like that!?" debut DBZ gave Trunks.
ALSO! The "wraparound" segmentsof this episode includes, among other things, a Golden Age enemy, my terrible impression of Sean Connery and the ultimate reveal of what The AntiThinker's return means for the continuing adventures of The OverThinker.
Embedded video (and SPOILER TALK) after the jump:
SPOILERS BELOW
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So... "gotcha," I guess. The AntiThinker WAS back... for about five minutes. I've been planning this bit, broadly, since before shooting wrapped on "War of The Thinkers." AntiThinker was always going to go away for at least two "arcs," then come back but in an unexpected context. Not long after that, the notion of adding "evil robot" ("RoboThinker," who you'll probably see in the metallic flesh next episode time permitting) to the evolving bad guy character-roster (alongside "ninja" and "demon") and "Terminator parody" seemed like a logical way to go about doing it.
THEN it occured to me that A.) I hadn't really done a Dragonball Z parody yet, either, and it seemed like a natural fit for the show; B.) DBZ's Androids/Future-Trunks/Cell episodes WERE a Terminator riff and C.) a version of The OverThinker in Trunks' purple hair, blue coat and sword ensemble would (hopefully) be inherently funny... it was suddenly an obvious manuever: Let "OmegaThinker's" debut be taking out AntiThinker in a parody/recreation of the "Oh no not MORE Frieza epis-OH! Frieza's DEAD just like that!?" debut DBZ gave Trunks.
What Is Sony's "Console Wars" Movie?
Sony Pictures, you may have heard, has bought up a bunch of domain names relating to a movie project called "Console Wars." Yesterday, HitFix's Kris Tapley ambiguously tweeted that he'd heard of the project before and described it as "The Social Network" but for video-games.
So... a non-fiction drama about corporate-rivalry in the video game world? Interesting. But what would it be about - which "war" are we talking about?
It would be almost comically cynical and gauche for Sony to make a movie about a business they are one of the three major players IN - even in a "names changed" fictionalized version everyone would be able to tell which one is supposed to be Playstation, making it impossible not to be looking for moments of self-aggrandizement. Also, the movie would probably be current-gen because that's when the mainstream audience/press started caring about the games industry... and most of the "drama" in Generation 7 has involved Sony tripping over it's own shoes in some way.
I'll get called "biased" for this, but the only remotely movie-worthy console-biz story of Gen7 is the Wii: a company that used to be on top, now struggling on the verge of collapse, making a hail-mary pass that everyone says is insane and will fail based largely on the ideas of it's chief creative guy (Miyamoto as Billy Beane from "Moneyball," basically) ...only to see it become a giant restorative success. Like The Wii or not, that's the story.
The "Great" Console War, of course, was Nintendo vs Sega in the 80s and 90s (back when consoles actually had totally different sets of games and such) but I agree with Devin at BAD that it'd be hugely unlikely for Sony Pictures to be so gun-ho to make an 80s period piece featuring almost-exclusively Japanese actors.
That said, if Sony really does want to make a movie about the game business where their brand gets to be the underdog turned conquering hero, the "birth of the Playstation" would be the way to go: Screwed-over in a VERY public and humiliating way by the industry's top dogs, turning the remains of that screw-over into thier own brand, ultimately getting-over on aforementioned top-dog by innovating where they refused to? That's a movie. On the down side, there's no way Nintendo is going to agree to let their logos, names, products etc. be seen in that movie; which you'd kind of need...
So... a non-fiction drama about corporate-rivalry in the video game world? Interesting. But what would it be about - which "war" are we talking about?
It would be almost comically cynical and gauche for Sony to make a movie about a business they are one of the three major players IN - even in a "names changed" fictionalized version everyone would be able to tell which one is supposed to be Playstation, making it impossible not to be looking for moments of self-aggrandizement. Also, the movie would probably be current-gen because that's when the mainstream audience/press started caring about the games industry... and most of the "drama" in Generation 7 has involved Sony tripping over it's own shoes in some way.
I'll get called "biased" for this, but the only remotely movie-worthy console-biz story of Gen7 is the Wii: a company that used to be on top, now struggling on the verge of collapse, making a hail-mary pass that everyone says is insane and will fail based largely on the ideas of it's chief creative guy (Miyamoto as Billy Beane from "Moneyball," basically) ...only to see it become a giant restorative success. Like The Wii or not, that's the story.
The "Great" Console War, of course, was Nintendo vs Sega in the 80s and 90s (back when consoles actually had totally different sets of games and such) but I agree with Devin at BAD that it'd be hugely unlikely for Sony Pictures to be so gun-ho to make an 80s period piece featuring almost-exclusively Japanese actors.
That said, if Sony really does want to make a movie about the game business where their brand gets to be the underdog turned conquering hero, the "birth of the Playstation" would be the way to go: Screwed-over in a VERY public and humiliating way by the industry's top dogs, turning the remains of that screw-over into thier own brand, ultimately getting-over on aforementioned top-dog by innovating where they refused to? That's a movie. On the down side, there's no way Nintendo is going to agree to let their logos, names, products etc. be seen in that movie; which you'd kind of need...
Rabu, 22 Agustus 2012
Episode 74 ANNOUNCEMENT
Episode 74: "Rusty Pipes" - which will deal with whether or not the Super Mario Bros. series has overstayed it's welcome and that other thing that was revealed at the end of last episode - will make it's debut on Thursday 8/30. ScrewAttack Advantage members can get an early look on Monday 8/27.
Selasa, 21 Agustus 2012
Power Drain
It's been a long time coming, but now it's here: Nintendo Power Magazine is shutting down after 24 years. If nothing else, a lot of people's magazine collections are about to become really valuable.
I am feeling about as rotten about this as I did when Dr. Seuss and Jim Henson died. Yes, Nintendo Power was a nakedly commercial corporate thing - a singularly genius bit of marketing by Nintendo of America in realizing that there was going to be a "gamer culture" and getting in front of it with a big, glossy fan magazine of their own. (You can read the first issue in PDF format HERE.)
But it was a HUGE deal, legitimately, as well: Pre-internet, I don't think a lot of gamers (myself included) would've become gamers without NP to show them that there were others and that codes, strategies, maps, fan-art etc was meant to be shared. Having this magazine showing up at my house every month for a decade or so did more to make me a better reader than almost any book did, and I can say for a fact that there were a lot of NES/SNES games now considered benchmark classics that I don't think a lot of people would've connected with without NP "covering" them. A whole generation of (American) gamers were introduced to JRPGs when Nintendo Power gave away a free copy of DragonQuest (as "Dragon Warrior") as a re-subscription bonus. I myself got my first internet connection - and first exposure to the "medium" where I now make my living - in order to use the Nintendo Power AOL site. The AVGN once summed up the memories thusly:
I hadn't subscribed in years - like everyone else, The Internet replaced magazines for things like that for me - but it's still pretty sad to see it go. This is real end-of-an-era stuff - another huge part of the Golden Age of Gaming is gone. In my mind, this is as quietly-devastating a loss as when Sega abandoned consoles.
Rest in peace, old friend.
I am feeling about as rotten about this as I did when Dr. Seuss and Jim Henson died. Yes, Nintendo Power was a nakedly commercial corporate thing - a singularly genius bit of marketing by Nintendo of America in realizing that there was going to be a "gamer culture" and getting in front of it with a big, glossy fan magazine of their own. (You can read the first issue in PDF format HERE.)
But it was a HUGE deal, legitimately, as well: Pre-internet, I don't think a lot of gamers (myself included) would've become gamers without NP to show them that there were others and that codes, strategies, maps, fan-art etc was meant to be shared. Having this magazine showing up at my house every month for a decade or so did more to make me a better reader than almost any book did, and I can say for a fact that there were a lot of NES/SNES games now considered benchmark classics that I don't think a lot of people would've connected with without NP "covering" them. A whole generation of (American) gamers were introduced to JRPGs when Nintendo Power gave away a free copy of DragonQuest (as "Dragon Warrior") as a re-subscription bonus. I myself got my first internet connection - and first exposure to the "medium" where I now make my living - in order to use the Nintendo Power AOL site. The AVGN once summed up the memories thusly:
I hadn't subscribed in years - like everyone else, The Internet replaced magazines for things like that for me - but it's still pretty sad to see it go. This is real end-of-an-era stuff - another huge part of the Golden Age of Gaming is gone. In my mind, this is as quietly-devastating a loss as when Sega abandoned consoles.
Rest in peace, old friend.
Senin, 20 Agustus 2012
The Breaking Bad Art Project @ Gallery 1988
**I was interviewed by CNN about this artwork. Yes, that CNN! Check it out HERE**
Wow! Sold out, that was quick. Thanks to everyone who bought a print!
A few artist prints are available HERE
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The hits just keep on coming for Gallery 1988!! Just weeks ago was the Arrested Development show, then they packed up and headed east to NYC for Crazy 4 Cult. Now they're back at home and ready to cook! Next up, Gallery 1988 presents "The Breaking Bad Art Project".
I've been watching Breaking Bad since the pilot episode hooked me back in January of 2008. I've had to wait through very long breaks between seasons to find out what's going to happen next. I LOVE Breaking Bad, so when I heard Gallery 1988 was going to be doing a small group show, I really was beyond thrilled to be a part of it.
I am extremely excited to be a part of this show, so without further ado, I present my artwork for "The Breaking Bad Art Project" at Gallery 1988:
"Walt and the Bad Breakers have been cooking up something extra-special in New Mexico. The hit new album "Blue Sky" is loaded with the purest music your ears have ever heard. One hit of their first single "The One Who Knocks" and you'll be hooked. With catchy songs like "Better Call Saul", "The Ballad of Skinny Pete" and "Lily of the Valley", you'll never feel blue again. So get cookin' with Walt and the Bad Breakers today!"
Tracklisting
Along with prints, one lucky person will be able to purchase this one-of-a-kind framed album complete with a crystal blue vinyl record!
Available exclusively at Gallery 1988
A very limited number of prints of the album cover (signed and numbered) will be available at Gallery 1988 in person as well as through their online store: http://nineteeneightyeight.com
Album front/back Artist Prints will be available in very limited quantities through my store (After the gallery show has closed) by clicking HERE
This is an extremely short show, it opens Monday, August 20th and is up for only a week I believe. So if you're in Los Angeles, and you're a fan of Breaking Bad or just awesome art in general, head over to Gallery 1988 and check it out!
"The Breaking Bad Art Project" - Presented by Breaking Gifs
Opening Monday, August 20th 7-10pm
7020 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90038
You can just show up, you don't even have to knock.
A special thank you to Gallery 1988 for letting me a part of this awesome show. They continue to do shows that i'm super excited to be a part of, and I am so honored that they continue to have me.
On Saturday Aug 18th, Gallery 1988 held a private VIP event with cast/crew and artists. I got to meet a very lovely former high-school chemistry teacher and his son:
*******UPDATE*******
Walter White: High School Chemistry teacher, a classy gentleman all around.
...and his son Walt Jr. sometimes goes by the name Flynn, lover of breakfast.
Very, very kind hearted guy.
A very nice lawyer offered to help me sort out my financial issues. He suggested I purchase an arcade, I like the way he thinks:
I think he stole my wallet.
And this very fine gentlemen is the whole reason this gallery show exists. Creator of the greatest show on television, Vince Gilligan! Writer of some of the best X-files episodes and new proud owner of the Breaking Bad album artwork I created for this opening! It's such an honor to have someone who's work I appreciate so much, appreciate my work.
Thank you Mr. Gilligan
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