Vacation Time!!

Heading to New York for a family wedding, plus a long over due vacation . Updates will be sporadic at best, but I will try to keep you all informed. See you on East Coast time!!

Podcast 07

We have survived the wave of news coming out of E3 and return to our regularly scheduled program. Sam and Max, Alpha Protocol and Blur await your ears, as we discuss our highs and lows of gaming this past week. In addition, we will get all philosophical on your ass and discuss how games affect your brain. BOOM!

You can download it here, or listen to it below

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Play it NOW! - Red Dead Redemption

John Marston is single-handedly the greatest protagonist that Rockstar has ever created. The game's ability to capture his personality and simultaneously recreate the picturesque Wild West setting, makes for a compelling narrative rarely accomplished in games. Much of this has to do with the excellent voice acting and animation, making the scenes very cinematic. There are also the usual Rockstar tropes of dialog containing social commentary on American life, but Redemption executes these without disrupting the narrative.

With solid gameplay mechanics, ambient challenges, and believable characters, there is incentive to go beyond the main storyline. Rockstar develops this in a variety of ways; from the hunting of animals, to the picking of flowers, to the various random NPCs the user may find himself either helping or hurting. No decision you make can truly affect the outcome of the story, but instead your actions affect how NPC’s treat you. Sure, John is an honorable outlaw in personality, but Rockstar allows you to play the game anyway you would like. Therefore, if you want to go around being a generally unsavory fellow in the Wild West, the choice is yours. In the grand scheme of the storyline, the outcome does not have the same impact if you play the game as a villain. That said, this is the Wild West, and ultimately you are going to kill many people. Luckily, the combat mechanics have improved significantly over at GTA 4. Marston is able to utilize cover and execute a series of attacks sequentially, using a slow motion targeting system called Dead Eye. Dead Eye comes in handy when riding horse back and trying to shoot at the same time.

Weapon variety is fantastic for the period, offering up everything from bolt-action rifles to high-powered pistols. Even mini-guns make an appearance on occasion, increasing the blood shed in some missions significantly. There is also an open world component to the online play, where up to 16 people enter a free-roam session. In the multiplayer one can posse up to run gang hideouts, complete a new set of ambient challenges, or even run through some of the free co-op DLC. There are also some competitive modes online like deathmatch, capture the flag, and various objective-based matches. Really, the only thing missing are some of the mini-games from the single player like blackjack or poker. I do not understand what limitations are in place, but the option of gambling amongst your friends after running through town causing a ruckus would fit this game perfectly. I hope that they can release a patch, but if not, it is still one of the must own games of 2010. Play it NOW!

Note: All images are the result of a Google image search

Get Blur for $20!!

Best Buy has Blur marked down to $39.99 from June 20 to June 26. Combine with the $20 off manufacturer's coupon ([www.blurgamepromotion.com]) for a $19.99 copy of Blur. I personally took advantage of this if you saw my tweet. You should too!

Thanks to the guys at http://www.cheapassgamer.com/ for the heads up.

note: image courtesy of Google image search

Blog Report

Just picked up a subscription to the new Sam and Max Penal Zone. So far I am enjoying the new psychic powers Max brings to the franchise. It really help to have a party member that can see the future in a adventure game. Too bad you don't have them too, otherwise you wouldn't have to read all this news. Enjoy!

Hello Kitty motor oil
New Xbox 360 Warns You Of Possible Doom [Xbox 360]
Def Jam Rapstar's Online 'Data Porn' Rolls Deep [E3]
Brink Delayed Until 2011 [Bethesda]
37% of the internet is porn [Dubious Conclusions]
How To Trade-Up To The New Xbox 360 For $90 [GameStop]
You Could Use A DualShock Instead Of The Nav Controller...
Cross-Section Of A Castlevania Castle [Xbox 360]
How To Control The Next Zelda Game [E3]
Lovely Alan Wake ads
Mario's Creator On The Mystery Of Women (And Cats) [Pullquote]
The New Mortal Kombat Cuts Deeper Than Ever Before [E3]
Star Wars lightsaber replica causes blindness, cancer [Lasers]
The Shirts of Pac-Man [Screengrab]
How To Troll The Xbox 360 Kinect Users You Know And Love [Kinect]
Fallout MMO Now Accepting Beta Sign-Ups [Fallout]
Final Fantasy Designer Would Like To Make A First Person Shooter [Tetsuya Nomura]
Premium "PlayStation Plus" Subscriptions Coming to PSN [E32010]
The Definitive Guide To The Nintendo 3DS [Top]
Gaming as Performance [Arcades]

Mommy, Where Do Dead Pixels Come From?

Just laughed my ass off when I read this web comic and wanted to share it with you.

as seen on Dueling Analogs

Podcast 06

It is time for the Super E3 podcast with the usual suspects; Sean, Tim, Brian and Steve! We will go over most of the press conferences and games we are excited for in 2011.

You can download it here, or listen to it below.



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E3 Wrap Up

Click the jump for my impressions of E3 and what the "big three" had to offer.

VR - Pixel Junk: Shooter

Apparently you cannot upload a video over 10 minutes in length. Not sure how I missed that, but therefore in the interest of time, I simply split the latest video into two parts. So watch below if you are interested in seeing Lauren and me’s experience playing Pixel Junk Shooter.

Blog Report

In the final act of Red Dead Redemption and it is building to be some of Rockstar's best work. But E3 is here so I guess the finale will have to wait. News!

The Giant Video Game Banners E3 Didn't Want You To See [E3]
Creative Boss is Said to Walk Out on Assassin's Creed [Rumor]
This Tuesday: PlayStation Move at Best Buy stores throughout Los Angeles!
iPhone 4 in Tokyo
Playing Rock Band 3's New Keyboard, 102 Button Guitar Controller [Mtv Games]
Metal Gear Solid: Raiden Has Changed [Cover Story]from Kotaku by Luke Plunkett
Play Zelda II As A First-Person Shooter [Zelda]
The Disappearance Of SimCity [Simcity]
The Dreamcast Returns! (As Digital Content) [E3]
New Mortal Kombat Coming, Will Be Most Gory Ever [Fighting Games]
Old Lady Complains To Google About Pac-Man [Humor]
Sony Shows Its Faith In 3D [Playstation]
Is this elementary school secretly the Starship Enterprise? [Star Trek]
My Four-Year-Old Son Plays Grand Theft Auto [Grand Theft Auto San Andreas]
"You Gonna Read This, Fisher?" The Art of Enemy Taunts [Republished]
My Own Private Architecture [Republished]
Watch The Entire Red Dead Redemption "Short Film" [Clips]
Pissed-Off Parents Find Math Game Too Violent for School [Education]

Podcast 05

While I am still playing Red Dead and FF13, Tim and Steve start a new journey with Alpha Protocol. As E3 draws closer, news is slowly trickling in about upcoming titles. Brian and I get hyped about the prospect of a new Mortal Kombat movie and of course, Steve says something funny at the end of the show.

Download it here or listen to it below:

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Marketing 101 - Blur Ad Campaign

With the latest generation of video game consoles reaching full stride, popular culture has created a menagerie of different gamers. This results in more mainstream ad campaigns for video games, and the opportunity for creativity. Bizarre Creations’ newest IP, “Blur”, is an arcade racer, heavy on vehicular combat and multiplayer. The latest ad campaign features a foodstuff named “Brock Lee”, who is tired of driving in kart races for babies and marvels at the “big boy” racing in Blur. It is all very tongue-in-cheek and clearly a shot at the traditional kart racing genre and its current leader, Mario Kart Wii. Despite any qualms you have with the “sharing” of ideas across IPs, I feel the marketing is effective and succinctly explains the games overall theme. After seeing this, a post appeared on Kotaku showing the French ad campaign behind Blur. The approach towards the ad campaign is significantly different, taking the more “traditional” approach to advertising a product. Let's look at the two ads after the jump and go from there:

Play it NOW! - Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands

Run, jump, and climb your way through Ubisoft’s latest iteration in the Prince of Persia franchise: The Forgotten Sands. Anyone familiar with the franchise and its recent reboot will immediately notice this is not the Nolan North prince. Instead, we return to the Sands of Time era, as Ubisoft attempts to bridge the gap between the first game and its sequel, The Warrior Within. Why the departure? In my opinion, this was done to act as a companion to the recent live action summer movie, which is set in the same universe. After the first hour of play, it will be clear this is the Prince of Persia we all remember, but the game quickly evolves into a unique experience.

Blog Report

Why is it that John Marston always a sucker for scumbags and philanderers?

I just made it to Blackwater and I already hate the new mission characters more than the ones in Mexico or Armadillo.

That's saying alot since Armadillo was home to slimey, nun-robbing, necrophiliacs...

NEWS!

Tetsuya Ishida's surrealist self-portraits
Red Faction: Armageddon "Emergency Transmission"
The War Game Where Nobody Gets Shot [Politics]
Microsoft Changing Xbox 360 Box Art [Coverstory]
Results are in on PAX's Booth Babe Ban Poll [Pax]
Kim Kardashian As Lara Croft? That Can't Be Right, Can It? [Rumor]
Porn Empire Can't Penetrate the PS3 [PS3]
Radiohead Has Good Taste In Video Games [Music]
Contra Returns Without The Contra Name [Konami]
First Batch Of BlizzCon 2010 Tickets Hit eBay [Blizzard]
Enjoy Your Massage! No, Really. Enjoy It! [Wii]
Oh, BTW, EA Sports Confirms NBA Live's Name Change [Sports]
PlayStation Move Gets Another Supporter [Playstation 3]
Man Accused Of Killing Kitten For Unplugging Game Console [Crime]
Foxconn Employee Dies After 34-Hour Shift [Foxconn]
Hulu Coming To Xbox 360? [Rumor]
Sony Remembers The PS3 Is A HD System [Hd]
Rockstar Won't Be At E3; Game Reveal Purportedly On Hold
Surprise! No Portal 2 Party at E3 [E3]

Hitting it off - Pixel Junk: Shooter

For our latest edition of "Hitting It Off", join Lauren and I, as we spelunk through the "Depth's of Disaster" in Q games latest IP, PixelJunk Shooter.

Podcast 04

Sean, Tim, and Steve return; with special guest Mike Poole to talk more video games. We will spill our guts over Red Dead Redemption and POP: Sands of Time. Then, move into a little topic on Marketing video games to consumers and whether or not those Marketers should be gamers.

Download it here or

Listen to it now

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VR - Super Street Fighter IV

Check it out!

Bitmob - "Fog of War" Homework

Bitmob contributor Michael Rousseau issued a challenge to the Bitmob Community for the month of May to improve the readability of our posts. Using a series of algorithms, we could either write a new article or improve an existing one. I chose to improve upon the first editorial I ever wrote on my blog, which you can find here. The readability results are below and the re-written post with my conclusion, is after the jump.

Readability Results for original post:

Flesch Reading Ease – 54.8

Flesch – Kincaid Grade Level – 11.4

Gunning Fog Index – 14.16

Blog Report

How about the Microsoft "Wave"?

No, then maybe Playstation "Move"?

Alright Mr. Pickey, try the Nintendo "Waggle"?

Yeah, that'll do. Check out the rest of the news from this week.

New Promotions for PSP this June!
Remote Control Mario Kart Has Shells, Bananas [Nintendo]
It's Ghostbusters, Like You've Never Seen Them Before [Pachinko]
Tropical storm Agatha opens up massive, horrifying sinkholes in Guatemala City [Disaster]
Coming Soon to PSN Store: Joe Danger for PS3
Whose Car Is This? [Yours]
Man Spends Six Months Plotting Murder Of Counter-Strike Rival [Crime]
Left 4 Dead 2 Mutates Into Single-player Game [Valve]
Teen Werewolves Do Not Like The Xbox 360 [Nsfw]
Dear Apple, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft [Open Letter]
PAX Surveys Alternatives to Its Booth Babe Ban [Pax]
Should You Be a Gamer if You’re Marketing a Video Game?
Marvel vs Capcom 3 Screenshots Will Kick Your Canon In The Face [MvC3]
Don't Cheat In Guild Wars, You Will Be Killed [Mmo]
Red Dead Redemption "Short Film" Looks A Lot Like A "Trailer" [Clips]
THQ Announces Partners Division
Sonic Colors Streaks To The Wii And DS [Game On]
Kung-Fu Live for PS3: You Are the Controller
The Real Halo Rifle That Shoots Nerf Darts [Halo]
J Allard's Parting Advice To Microsoft [Microsoft]
Insomniac's Next Franchise Will Be Multiplatform
Father of the Xbox, Head of Gadgets and Fun Leave Microsoft [Update] [Xbox Shakeup 2010]
Do We Need Fair Trade Games? [Republished]

AOM - June

Sesame Street Fighter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My head just exploded! Made by a most deviantartist who goes by the moniker, gavacho13. You can find more of his work here. Shoryuken!