In the short list of crazy injuries I’ve had this year, throwing my left shoulder out is probably the most annoying for a few reasons. Thankfully, it’s the left side and not the right, as I tend to type faster with my right hand. It’s also a good thing that I can “draw” with a mouse while recuperating in any position. This sketch was actually an old incomplete one that I dug up and tinkered with while waiting for some medication to kick in. At some point I need to get knocked down by a big dog with well-manicured paws who would proceed to jump up and down on that one spot that hurts I can’t reach. So I’ll stop typing for now, go lie outside on the sidewalk for a few hours and see what happens.
For those of you who’ve never played it, Gunstar Heroes is quite simply one of the best 16-bit games ever made, period. Japanese developer Treasure made itself a household name among gamers with this 1993 Sega Mega Drive/Genesis release that seemed to use every bit of processing power the console had and then some.
While the game has popped up in a few newer console ports over time, it seems that the 3DS just may have the “definitive” version thanks to Sega’s remaster team, M2. Here’s a fun extra credit read from the Sega Blog on how tricky it was to get the game up and running on the handheld in stereoscopic 3D. The plot is nuts if you try to make total sense of it, but you won’t be playing this for the story. It’s a total run ‘n gun with killer boss fights, a “board game” level that’s worth an entire game in itself under the right developer, and a great soundtrack that drives the action from beginning to end.
Anyway, if you have a 3DS, BUY THIS GAME. If you’re thinking about getting a 3DS, see that last sentence. Hopefully Sega has plans to get this on the Wii U as well as an HD version at some point as it’s a total no-brainer that this is a game that really benefits from a larger screen. We’ll see if that ever happens (it would be nice, Sega), but for now, this one’s a must-buy that still packs quite a few wallops.
I’ll have to admit that the title Chronicles of Teddy: Harmony of Exidus confused me for a bit because I thought it was the name of the playable hero and that character art above certainly doesn’t scream “Teddy” to me at all. In fact, that’s a girl named Tarrant and Teddy is actually her loyal plush bear.
Adding to the confusion was once I poked around the internet I found out that this game is the sequel to developer LookAtMyGame’s gorgeous-looking Finding Teddy, a PC and mobile point and click adventure where the title tells you what that game is actually about. In that game, a little girl’s stuffed toy is “kidnapped” into a strange fantasy world and she goes after it, facing off against assorted hazards along the way.
The sequel (which, amusingly enough is called Finding Teddy 2 on Steam) has Tarrant in a more action/RPG style of game with an entirely different (and still lovely) pixel art style and more familiar gameplay action/platform fans should love. Aksys Games will be publishing the game in North America for the PS4 and Wii U this fall as a digital-only release and if that trailer and all those positive Steam reviews are any indication, this one will be a must-play keeper.
At the very least, it’ll certainly make me forget all about paying full price for Magus back when it was released last year. Anyway, keep an eye on this one, folks.
The funny thing is, after I decided to recently zip through the book (it’s a great summer read, by the way) and took the longer range viewpoint I usually do, these trailers really don’t bug me at all. In a way, the filmmakers are a bit pushed and painted into the proverbial corner because being too vague means you get unfairly compared to Chris Nolan’s Interstellar (although that’s what’s been happening online anyway). On the other hand, anyone who didn’t like Prometheus and didn’t know Ridley Scott’s other, better sci-fi films might see either of the two trailers and say to themselves (or online to whomever is reading what they write) “Not THAT guy again!” or words to that effect. Rock, meet hard place. Of course, a film’s performance should be based on how well it does among those who actually see it as opposed to those who don’t and won’t that spend more time griping about it.
But so goes the modern world these days, I guess. The Martian is in theaters October 2, 2015. Go read the book at some point beforehand. Or afterwards.
While I didn’t to catch Richard Elfman’s bizarre Forbidden Zone in theaters during its limited release in 1980, I finally saw the film around 1985 on a loaner VHS tape and it made for quite an outrageous experience. Taken out back and shot by many critics of the time, the film has since become a cult favorite and now, thanks to MVD Entertainment Group, it’s back. This time both DVD and Blu-Ray owners will get to snap up this crazed classic in a Special Edition format complete with some new Bonus Materials:
– Audio commentary with director Richard Elfman and writer-actor Matthew Bright
– “A Look into Forbidden Zone” featuring extensive behind the scenes documentary featuring interviews and archive footage, including scenes from Elfman’s lost film “The Hercules Family.”
– Outtakes and Deleted Scenes
– Original Theatrical Trailer
– Wild new video intro by Richard Elfman with teaser clip of upcoming Forbidden Zone 2.
Blu-Ray owners can also buy the film in an Ultimate Edition that adds the Danny Elfman/Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo soundtrack. I’m going to introduce a few people to this one and let the sparks fly. It’s certainly a film that’s both a product of its time and still packs a kick in the head or three from some of its more offbeat moments (as in the entire film). Check out the kind of NSFW trailer and expect to have your eyes pop out of your skull at some point.
But that’s just the film doing what it needs to do, folks. It worked back then and I’m betting it’ll still work today.
Well, the eyes aren’t really lying at all. Morgondag’s stellar space rogue-like exploration game RymdResa is out now on Steam at a temporary 10% discount off its $11.99 price tag ($10.79). The game is a beautiful blend of retro visuals, languid pacing and slyly terrifying moments where your ship is about to run low on resources often at the wrong moment. Toss in a disembodied voice spouting seemingly random poetic musings along with a gorgeous ambient score and you get an instant classic with wide appeal.
I’ll have a review up over the weekend, but if the demo I’ve been playing on and off between other things (a demo that’s been taking time away from other games and stuff, mind you) is any indication, this one’s a keeper or a sleeper. The good thing is the developer is getting their great little game onto a few other platforms (Xbox One, Wii U, iPad and Linux), so some of you out there using those will soon be able to experience the same cold space and give your zen-like reflexes a total workout.
I really shouldn’t care a whit about this, but it’s bugged me that the media has fallen over themselves to make the Kermit-Piggy “divorce” a story as if it’s a real thing. Yuck. Who’s the main sponsor of this show anyway, Ashley Madison? Anyway, why the hell does something as crappy as divorce need to be introduced into a family-friendly set of characters as the Muppets?
Yeah, yeah, Sesame Street has done the reality thing as a means to explain some real world situations such as death and prison to its young audience. But in the case of this upcoming ABC show, it smacks of nonsense that’s only there to add a whiff of modern-day “reality” show nonsense to what should have been more of a throwback to the original variety show. Ugh.
On the other hand, I guess I should have seen it coming as both Kermie and Piggy have had someone else’s hand up their butts for decades.
Speaking of Sesame Street, the HBO deal? Great for subscribers to HBO but terrible for anyone not getting more than basic cable. Between that (so long, low income viewers!) and the shows possibly being chopped to half an hour thanks to modern short attention spans, you have to wonder what was being thought about other than money when all is said and done. Of course, that money thing seems to be partially thanks to online streaming wrecking certain home video revenue streams for good. But I guess thinking of (all) the children doesn’t pay the bills unless you deal with the devil in one way or another. Ah well.
I won’t be watching the new Muppet show anyway (the concept is s total turn-off to me) and I haven’t watched Sesame Street in years. Well, okay… I lied. Out f curiosity I did recently check out the close to 30 parodies they’ve made over the last few seasons and all are hilarious. Although, I do question the idea of making parodies of mature shows that aren’t for kids at all (Boardwalk Empire, Mad Men, Game of Thrones) because the parodies work TOO damn well.
I guess I should be glad there’s no SS parody of The Wire… yet.
Oh, the mighty (and lousy) puns I came up with for this new 3DS game! Atlus is bringing over Imageepoch’s Stella Glow, a JRPG where you’ll need to “tune” witches in order to use their song magic powers against assorted creatures. It seems as if the tuning process and deep heart elements lift some of play mechanics from the Ar Tonelico series, but if you loved those games on the PS2 and PS3 and happen to own a 3DS, you’ll be in absolute heaven. Witch means you’ll be waiting for this around the holidays when it ships out in North America.
I see there’s a Fire Witch in the game and the game description I got notes that there are five witches total to tune. Which makes me pun-der if there’s a Sand Witch to tune at some point. I’m not sure if the tuning leads to any romance angles, but if so, would that mean if your character decide to settle down with one of them, they can say “I Married A Witch” at some point? If there’s a kid from that union and it’s a boy you can call him Son of a Witch? Which witch wishes willingly for waterproof watches? Do witches even wear watches? I have not a clue. But I guess I’ll find out soon enough.
What, no Night Nurse, The Cat/Tigra, Shanna The She Devil or someone newer, hipper and cooler to the kids these days like Squirrel Girl? Anyway, the folks at Morphsuits want you to ogle their own list of MOST powerful Marvel Comics ladies, but you’d better be quick about that ogling part. That super-powered punch to the jaw or other body areas (ouch) will be one of the last things you remember before waking up in the hospital.
Which is exactly why Night Nurse needs to be on that list, ladies and gents. Well, there’s always next year’s infographic, right?
Ha and ha. Not really, but I am so tired of this nonsense getting regurgitated into news stories complete with clueless Joes and Janes on the street who come off as more ignorant than informed. If violent games make people violent, as someone who’s been playing them (as well as many others that aren’t violent) for decades, where’s my spot on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted List? I’d say adults who beat their children and animals because they somehow think that they can comprehend yelling perfectly without being properly taught what right and wrong are would be bigger menaces to society than some kids who get their paws on games they’re too young to play.
THAT said, I’ll agree that some kids and adults with certain psychological issues can indeed be overstimulated by ANY form of violent OR even non-entertainment entertainment from music to movies to games. The recent APA study is flawed and like other studies that have attempted to directly (or indirectly, as the study finds “insufficient evidence” when all is said and done) link violent entertainment and violent behavior, makes claims the news media never really fact checks when it needs a hot story to grab some clicks. Ugh. Anyway, I’ll shut up now and get back to some actual work. I’d have posted my review of Dungeon Travelers 2 by now, but I’m waiting for the Vita USB cable I ordered to arrive. There are no blood and guts in that game at all, but it does have half-naked anime gals in it and my mind hasn’t been corrupted by that at all…
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 