The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug TV Spots 1 & 2: Only A Year (Or Less) ‘Til Cable!

OK, don’t shoot me, movie people. I’ve decided to wait until this one pops up on cable TV, as the first film is (not so surprisingly) premiering later this month (on HBO, I think). So much for the normal waiting time that used to be at least a year or so after a major film hit theaters. At this point, it’ll seem to some as if the only reason to go to the movies is just to get out of the house and see a flick on something larger than that already too large HDTV you may own (or the big wall you project movies on). OK, widescreen is also a good reason, but most new films are ending up premiering in that theatrical format to the point that I get annoyed when I see a recent or older film that SHOULD be in that aspect ratio run as a crappy pan & scan version. B to the O to the O, cable and movie people who still do that crap. Even an old analog set can play a widescreen movie in letterbox format, so enough with the old versions already, I say. The ONLY films that need to fill up my screen like that are the classics TCM shows that weren’t originally shot that way. OK, old cartoons and classic TV get a pass as well.

Of course, if you’re impatient or just love seeing films on a big screen with hordes of smelly humans around you, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug opens in theaters on December 13, 2013. Everyone else, set your clocks…

Dustforce Trailer: This Sneaky Sweepy Game Could Lead To Good Clean Fun…

I actually haven’t played Hitbox Team’s Dustforce yet thanks to my Steam Library being already packed with stuff I haven’t gotten to yet and the fact that I simply do not live on Steam like a lot of folks who swear by the service do. I’ve got a good 30 or so other consoles here and believe it or else, I play a few of them every month when I get the time, so digital games are generally low on the totem pole unless they’re highly recommended or I get a review code popping up in my inbox. That said, this looks pretty fun, quite amusing and right up my nostalgic alley on a few fronts. It’s also going to be a game I’ll recommend to cranky adults who say games are DIRECTLY responsible for all sorts of behavior. If that’s true, then I say forcing your kids to play this until they plotz will make them the cleanest kids EVER. You won’t even need to ask them to do the dishes, sweep up or clean that mucky oven out. You’ll open your mouth to speak, but *Poof!*, it’ll get DONE before a letter leaves your lips!

Dustforce arrives on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita this January. Oh yeah – don’t get mad at Capcom that this isn’t on the Wii U, kids. They’re only PUBLISHING the game. If you want to fire off a missive of cranky “importance” go bug the folks at Hitbox Team for not having a Wii U dev kit or whatever.

Strider NYCC Trailer: Hiryu Go Again!

Capcom and developer Double Helix are counting on a combination of classic old school hard gameplay and a fan base who actually remembers the arcade classic or other versions of Strider to make this reboot a big hit and I think they’re on the right track. So far, the combination of lush 2D and 3D visuals, familiar gameplay with some nice twists and what I’m hearing is a high level of challenge should propel this to some decent scores and sales on anything it’s released on. Sadly, there’s no Wii U version (yet), but hopefully this error will be rectified sooner than later. Those Wii U owners tend to get mighty cranky when they feel they’re being screwed over, that’s for sure…

Gallery: Hello Kitty Kruisers (Wii U)

HelloKitty_WalkI’ve found that one of the big secrets to enjoying life is smiling more and anything Sanrio is usually quite good for getting a grin going, no matter what your mood is. Austin-based Scarab Entertainment knows this, so they’re cooking up a fun family friendly kart racer for the Wii U and mobile devices (with other platforms TBA) called Hello Kitty Kruisers, set for a Q4 2013 release from publisher Bergsala Lightweight.

Granted, I’m betting the bulk of you fist-pumping, caffeine swigging uber-core gamers are probably cringing from all the bright colors searing your eyeballs and rainbow juice splashing onto your keyboards scaring that mouse you were clicking under your seat. But, hey… I say everyone needs a too cute for words game in their libraries just to break up the monotony of grays, browns, greens and whatever color big explosions are.

Besides, EVERYONE loves Hello Kitty – they just don’t all admit it in public. For those of you immune to the charms of Miss Five Apples Tall (weight, three apples!), you’d better put on those sunglasses now if you dislike bright colors in super shiny HD, folks – things are about to get Kitty up in here:

HK_Kruisers_01 HK_Kruisers_02 HK_Kruisers_05 HK_Kruisers_08 HK_Kruisers_09 HK_Kruisers_10

Screens above, press release below the jump.

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Random Art: Another From The Vaults, Fan Art Division…

Dark Horse Melange 

Did I post this old art already? Who knows? I don’t think I did, but I can’t sleep tonight (well, this morning) and needed to do something before I went bananas. Anyway, this is a scan of a bad photocopy of postcard fan art I did for Dark Horse Comics back around 1994.I did a bunch of these in black and white and color and I believe all got published in a few issues of Diamond Previews catalogs over the course of a year or so. I haven’t done much color art since, but I’m tempted every so often. I’m not a big fan of digital color myself (well, I can’t do it very well), so if I do dive back into this illustration thing, it’ll be old school watercolor and mixed media for me. Hmm… I’m feeling a bit sleepier just typing this post, so perhaps this is working after all…

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