So, my day ends like this: I come home, turn on the computer to check my email and started laughing as soon as I saw the crazy amount of Bruce Lee fight scenes and other fun stuff from the folks at Shout Factory. It would seem that they’ve released Bruce Lee: The Legacy Collection last month (October 22, to be exact) and are now in the process of heavily promoting this nice-looking 11-disc(!) Blu-Ray/DVD set that comes with a great photo-packed book and hours of special features. But yeah, I know you… you’re just here for the fights. OK, then:
Now, should YOU buy this box set? Come on, now… you KNOW I’m going to answer with a big, wet sloppy YES. If those two awesome (and yes, hilarious) fight scenes above aren’t enough to convince you, well… there’s more where that came from. Below the jump with you, NOW! (*boot!*) Continue reading →
Like everyone else out there, I sometimes fail miserably at stuff. But being old and stubborn and cranky yet willing to learn fast is actually a darn good thing if you put it into practice. Like you, I used to get upset at a setback and sink into something soft with something edible to squeeze as I planned revenge on what wronged me (although in many cases it was those three idiots me, myself and I doing the dirty work). What one learns over time is not to dwell on the not so good parts of life and focus on making oneself a better person even if it costs you a few brownie points with your dark side. Hell, letting that part have all the fun is stupid anyway, as all that does is make your nicer side pissed off and plan revenge (meaning you’re setting yourself up for a fall even faster than you can run out to the supermarket and stock up on crow pies and chocolate ice cream)… Continue reading →
As much fun as it was and still is, frankly speaking, Superman: the Movie had a really TERRIBLE time travel sequence that breaks the film and manages to always get a tiny bit under my skin each time I see it. Fortunately, Somewhere In Time is a much better film overall about time travel, love, loss and quite probably the worst long distance relationship ever. I saw this upon its initial release back in 1980 and it’s stuck with me since.
Now, I’m not deep into the romantic fantasy genre at all, but SoT has a compelling pull to it that makes it one of my favorite science fiction films, bittersweet finale and all. It’s not for every taste, but if you decide to give this one a shot, you’ll find Jeannot Szwarc’s fine direction, the lovely John Barry score, intentionally languid pacing and solid performances from the cast (I think it’s Reeve’s best film work, period) make this one truly memorable… Continue reading →
Frankly speaking, I completely despise the term “Metroidvania”, as it smacks of laziness on the part of people who’ve adopted it to mean ANY side-scrolling platformer with gameplay and/or visuals that are common and familiar to those who might not even like either of those two storied franchises. Granted, it also confuses those who’ve NEVER played either game, as I once heard some kid in a GameStop seriously ask a clerk for a copy of Metroidvania (eek!). But I digress (as usual). Indie developer Endless Fluff has a rather fun-looking game out now for PC called Valdis Story Abyssal City and yes indeed, if you’re a fan of those old 8 and 16-bit classics (yes, such as Castlevania and Metroid) and happen to remember a seemingly now forgotten series called Valis, with a dash of Ys and a few other old games from back in the day, you’ve stopped reading this post already and are on the game’s gog.com page and buying it. And good for you, this is, as the game is on sale for $11.99 ($3 off its original price).
And hey! What do you mean “That’s TOO much!” you big cheapskate? Back in my day, we had to pay fifty bucks or more for a game like this and WALK to the damn game store UPHILL. BOTH WAYS. Darn kids and your “Why can’t everything be free or a dollar, but free first!” mentality. Good hard work deserves to be PAID for, I say. You’ll figure this out once you get to work on something awesome (or not so awesome) and no one wants to pay you for doing anything other than giving you a pat on the head or a hearty hand clasp (and not both because you work for a cheap-ass who thinks “intern” means “SUCKER” in big neon letters). If you don’t support indie games, you’ll be playing and paying through the nose on your phone and not any wiser about that wallet draining scheme…
Yeah, aren’t these TOO darn cute? Go on ahead and make that squeaky sound you do so well when you see stuff like this. I won’t laugh (Really! I probably squeak like that myself, but I’ll never tell). And yeah, if you buy them all (feel free to click on that pic above and get shot like a cannon to the UGLYDOLL online shop), I won’t tell anyone that either. Shhhh. Oh, look – they all vanished like that and went shopping. Holy cats… I need to get my readers back. Um… FREE DAY OLD TOAST! Anyone? Bueller?… Bueller? Crap. Oh well, I guess that’s my good deed for the day, huh?
With this year’s installment of the series, Skylanders SWAP Force, veteran developer Vicarious Visions (with an assist from Beenox) takes over from Toys for Bob and bumps up the console versions to to HD quality visuals (save for the Wii version) while adding a few new play mechanics. More importantly, there are a new set of Skylanders with swappable top and bottom halves and plenty of locked off areas in the game that will send parents zipping into stores to buy new figures on a regular basis. That the gameplay is so basic yet compelling and all those enticing gated-away goodies the perfect opportunity to market new toys to kids and parents is exactly the formula any game company would kill to have in play. Skylanders has worked from the beginning in successfully roping nearly anyone who picks it up into its charms and while SWAP Force is the best looking and playing game to date, Activision also needs to kick things up a notch in the future, as you can practically hear the call of a more open world game experience with even more to do bellowing from those sweeping panoramic backgrounds… Continue reading →
Well, “Wires” as in the song by Portland’s popular band, Red Fang and “Amps and Pedals” (Edit: Tubes? What was I thinking? OK, I was listening to The Tubes while typing – “Talk To You Later” as a matter of fact!) as in the different and excellent digital types (that all sound like their physical counterparts) will be available to players when they crack this wonderful game open. The vibe I got from BandFuse: Rock Legends was (and will be) of walking into the best guitar school in the world and having the chance to hang out as long as you like, provided you get off your ass, pick up an axe and learn to play at some point. As noted earlier, the amount of content here is outrageous and defies the music game standard by unlocking everything on the disc and letting YOU decide your pace. Yeah, shocking that a game does that in this day and age, but one session talking to Marcus Henderson reveals his absolute love for many types of music and his desire for anyone who picks up BandFuse to KNOW it’s NOT your average music “game” at all, but a teaching tool you’ll want to keep around even after you’ve mastered everything it has to offer.
Hmmmm. Cover an eyeball and stick a finger in one ear if you’re partly squeamish and hate the sounds of stuff blowing up. Amusingly enough, I only find two of the four Rambo pictures watchable from start to finish, so I’m quite surprised that I’m liking what I see in this licensed game more than I thought. First Blood was excellent for its surprising take on the action genre in making its Vietnam vet antihero John Rambo a more sympathetic character who gets pushed around in that small town he’s passing through until he’s had enough. The last Rambo film was a fun but gory contradiction because of Stallone’s political stance on what was going on in Burma and how the film turned Rambo from a “peaceful” tour guide back to an even more efficient killing machine with a cause. And yes… I thought Rambo II and III were bigger, dumber 80’s movies with lots of screaming and explosions and nothing worth writing home about plot-wise, but I know SOME of you will be all up in my face about my opinion on that pair of cinematic jokers.
Granted, this won’t be a Game of the Year candidate when it’s finally released in early 2014, but I think some fans of the franchise will be grinning like maniacs as they relive their favorite bits from the movies with a bit more artistic license in some cases…
I actually wasn’t expecting to get a copy of Call of Duty: Ghosts for a bit after launch for my Wii U, but surprise! Activision shot over a PS3 copy of the game this morning, so into the queue it goes. Actually, progress has been made on more reviews, so I’ll be popping this one into my old system (still going strong after what, almost seven years?) later this evening.
I’m about to run out the door here in about 15 minutes to go to some press events or I’d be playing this now. OK, back in a bit to see what all the fuss is about. I’m a campaign guy first and foremost, so I’m gathering if this one’s like the last couple of installments it will be pretty intense and dramatic (to say the least) with a few unexpected surprises. Alrighty then – off to the races with me. Now, I’ll be thinking of controllable army dogs and some sort of high-speed vehicle chase until I get back home, woof!
I had to see Street Smart twice back in 1987 because the first time I kept cracking up at the sight of Clark Kent without his Superman powers being threatened with a broken Yoo-Hoo bottle by Easy Reader from The Electric Company. Yeah, that moment happens in this flick as does a lot of other non-heroic, “gritty” street stuff in this Jerry Schatzberg-directed drama.
It’s actually a pretty solid but slightly flawed film that benefits from Reeve and Freeman’s performances along with a nice turn as Kathy Baker as hooker with a heart of not quite gold, but shiny enough that Reeve’s investigative journalist character Jonathan Fisher gets to spend some er, “quality” time with her in one scene. Of course, she’s one of Fast Black’s (Freeman) “stable” so she gets into some trouble with him as the film progresses. Fisher himself gets into even more trouble thanks to fabricating a feature article that just so happens to be a wee bit too close to Fast Black’s own life story… Continue reading →
So, my day ends like this: I come home, turn on the computer to check my email and started laughing as soon as I saw the crazy amount of Bruce Lee fight scenes and other fun stuff from the folks at Shout Factory. It would seem that they’ve released Bruce Lee: The Legacy Collection last month (October 22, to be exact) and are now in the process of heavily promoting this nice-looking 11-disc(!) Blu-Ray/DVD set that comes with a great photo-packed book and hours of special features. But yeah, I know you… you’re just here for the fights. OK, then: 
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 