“Forbidden” Comics Make This Humble Bundle Worth Breaking Some Rules

Posted on September 30, 2015 by geelw

Because its Banned Books Week (eek!) and you need to expand your horizons a bit more, the folks over at Humble Bundle have put together a nice selection of challenged and banned comics to purchase with the proceeds benefiting The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF). It’s a great selection of digital books more that worth the minimum asking price and your money is going to a great cause.

While I’d prefer a ban on stupid people banning stuff they won’t even read, I guess this is the best revenge you can have on some of those know-little to nothings and their fear of the printed and drawn word. I’d suggest getting your bundle and reading as much as you can in or near a place that’s challenged or outright banned some of the titles just to see if anyone actually notices. I’d bet a dime that no one will care a whit unless they’re curious enough to ask. And even then, they just might find out that there’s nothing to run screaming from the room about at all.

In other words, wouldn’t it be cooler to live in a world where we’re NOT celebrating books being banned and instead celebrate the smartening up of those who ban stuff automatically because they’ve finally gotten those sticks out of their behinds? Yeah, I thought so.

Summon Night 5: The PSP Takes Another Deep Breath Thanks To Gaijinworks

Posted on September 30, 2015 by geelw

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If you thought the PSP was deader than well, the Vita (ha and ha-ha, but *sob!* for Sony not knowing how to promote its otherwise fine handheld), consider yourself about to be surprised. Gaijinworks continues to kick out the quality and somewhat obscure games with Summon Night 5, a tactical RPG headed to PSN as a digital release for both the PSP and Vita and to a lucky handful of gamers who pre-ordered the limited release physical version.

As with Class of Heroes 2, those lucky folks with the physical version coming also get the digital version of the game as a bonus because Gaijinworks knows some of them won’t ever even crack the shrink wrap on their coveted LE and a few will even go right to eBay and resell their “prize” for boo-koo bucks to the highest bidder. Damn dirty capitalism has its upsides to those who know how to take advantage of it, I suppose. As Gaijinworks doesn’t do review codes (as far as I know), I’ll be ponying up some actual hard-earned loot to play this just like everyone else interested in it.

Me, I just want to finally play an actual Summon Night game in English. I missed the two Game Boy Advance spin-offs from a while back because they got a limited release and now fetch a pretty penny for complete copies. Nope, knowledge of the other four previous Summon Knight games (nor the upcoming sixth one headed to PS4 and Vita in Japan) is necessary in order to fully enjoy what’s here. But one would hope that gamers who don’t know a lick of Japanese can some day get their paws on some sort of collection. Of course that won’t happen unless Gaijinworks has a metric ton of money lying around and time to do all that porting and localizing.

Kromaia Ω: Kraken Empire Sets Its Sights On The PS4

Posted on September 30, 2015 by geelw

Indie developer Kraken Empire‘s formerly PC-only open space shooter, Kromaia, is getting a makeover for the PS4 this fall in the form of Kromaia Ω (Omega). The visually stunning sleeper from last year was one of those games that was well worth tracking down just to get one’s mind blown by the visual style and surprising depth for an arcade-style game.

The game will get both a retail and digital release, which is a bit surprising on the surface. But it seems that the big push to digital-only that’s been going on for a while isn’t the best thing for some niche titles like this that deserve a wider audience, some of whom prefer the choice of how they get their games. Rising Star Games deserves huge thanks for thinking of consumers this way,although it would be even more awesome to see all of their PC games get this console retail/digital treatment a some point. Continue reading →

Random Art: Joe? Two? Well, Hell Yeah!

Posted on September 29, 2015 by geelw

Hey! It’s National Coffee Day or whatever it’s called. If you imbibe that devilish brew, go find a place that’s giving away a cup and get yours. I settled for being lazy and not making mine this morning just so I could hoof it down to Dunkin’and see what was what. Amusingly enough, despite the sign on the door and eager but surprisingly small crowd in the spot I stepped into, a few people on the line knew nothing about that freebie and were paying for their coffee, some even after the busy staff sort of pointed out that they could have had a freebie. Ah well.

Anyway, there was one guy in that shop who was on his tablet noting that he was going to walk to a few different Dunkin’s in the area (there are three or four within about a twenty or so minute walk) and get a free cuppa Joe at each stop. Well, that’s nice that he’s not going to be sleeping tonight, I guess. Still, it’s a somewhat good idea if you have nothing else to do and want a big ass buzz that will keep you wide-eyed and jittering into the wee hours. Um, here’s a tree to ogle that incomplete. No reason for it being here other than I’m too busy to dig up a stock image of a cup of coffee.

Yeah, I could have snapped a pic of my cup and posted it instead. But maybe I’ll do that later. I think I need a second cup of coffee now…

Blu-Ray Review: Pit Stop (The Winner)

Posted on September 28, 2015 by geelw

That’s a hell of a commute if ever there was one…

Busted-up junker cars slamming into each other on a crazy figure eight racetrack may seem like a one-note film idea with limited appeal. But Jack Hill’s 1969 “B” movie Pit Stop makes for quite a spectacular ride for more than the crash-crazed car fiends out there. For a low-budget black and white quickie shot in the late 60’s, Hill gets some major mileage from from his cast that includes Richard (Dick) Davalos, Sid Haig, Brian Donlevy, Beverly Washburn and Ellen Burstyn.

Once again, Arrow Video brings an excellent director supervised and approved HD remaster to the table packed with bonus features that make this one a fantastic addition to any film collection. For all the high-speed action and off-track thrills, there’s a nifty little tale of a man who manages to win it all yet lose everything important by the end.

Continue reading →

When Your Week Is Nuts, You Dress Accordingly

Posted on September 28, 2015 by geelw

Let the wild week begin, whee. I’m prepared at least on the outside for three days of crazy thanks to holding on to these Psychonauts T-shirts I picked up a few years back at a press event. Perhaps I should also intentionally mix up my socks and randomly pick a mismatched pair to add some more variety? Eh, we’ll see. Wearing two different sneakers or shoes is where I draw the line, though. Okay, week… bring it. I’ve got your number and then some…

Attack on Titan & Arslan: The Warriors of Legend: Omega Force Still Has Some Chops

Posted on September 26, 2015 by geelw

I’ve been a fan of Omega Force’s work since Dynasty Warriors and Destrega on the original PlayStation shook up the fighting game genre. Of course, like many fans, Dynasty Warriors 2 was the game that made me really fall for the developer. While that series has seen quite a few entries and spin-offs into other series, it’s been their work on licensed and original games using that familiar engine that have really been the ones to watch. Between the Dynasty Warriors Gundam games, Fist of the North Star, Hyrule Warriors and now the one-two punch coming to consoles soon in the form of Attack on Titan and Arslan: The Warriors of Legend, it’s been fun to see Omega Force take on popular anime and game characters as they bring their Musou engine into new territory.

It’s too bad a great little sleeper like Trinity: Souls of Zill O’ll on the PS3 never got the attention it deserved. That game is worth tracking down thanks to it being more of an action/RPG than a straight up Dynasty Warriors clone. A bit tougher to track down but worth it Warriors: Legends of Troy. While it’s not an Omega Force game (Koei Canada did the programming job), it takes elements of the Musou games, adds some M-rated gore (in a nod to Zach Snyder’s version of 300) and makes for a nice and lengthy diversion once you’re hooked in. Another sleeper (but one that hasn’t been forgotten) is Bladestorm: The Hundred Years’ War, which earlier this year got a PS4 and Xbox One update/sequel called Bladestorm: Nightmare.

Both Attack on Titan and Arslan: The Warriors of Legend are coming to PS4, PS3,and PlayStation Vita with North American release dates for AoT to be announced as they get closer to completion. Arslan lands in Japan October 1st for PS3 and PS4, and it seems that Europe and North America will get these two plus an Xbox One version at some point.

Some Batman Day Stuff To Drive You Batty

Posted on September 25, 2015 by geelw

So, it’s Batman Day tomorrow and yes, a few (well, more than a few) sites are having some nice sales on some fun to funky items. I’ll give a shout out to a handful below:

MezcoToyz is offering up an awesome deal of mystery randomness with its 1-day ONLY Batman themed Mystery Box. $19.39 (yes, the year Bats first appeared in comics)nets you a box that will contain assorted Batman and DC Comics related merchandise. You may get something common,but you may also snag something super-rare and guaranteed to have the Joker pop by with a can of Smilex gas while you’re sleeping. Hey, he collects toys too… at your expense, of course! This sale runs from 12:01 AM on September 26th to 12:01 AM on September 27th and yes, supplies are LIMITED. Oh, and if you’ll be in NYC for the event, make sure to visit Mezco at New York Comic Con (booth 1754).

If you prefer something a bit more interactive, Bundle Stars has you covered with two cool Bat-bundles of PC games with the Caped Crusaders and friends. Ten bucks nets you the first three Batman: Arkham games along with three huge DLC packs or Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham plus SEVEN nice DLC packs.

Meanwhile, the PlayStation Store, Sony is running a Batman Day sale on a slew of Barman titles for the PS3, PS4 and Vita. Boogie on over to that link above and let your wallet fly around the room for a minute before you wring it out until it’s all dried up and you’re buried in more than enough Bat-games to keep you occupied and out of trouble for quite some time. Or IN trouble because you’ve stopped going to work and have taken to wearing a cape, boots and utility belt you’ve designed on those trips to the bathroom. Remember to duck when you throw that homemade Batarang for the first time, as it’ll swing back and crack you upside the head before you can react.

I suppose you can do some reading as well, but I’ll let you poke around online for assorted sales. I do know DC Comics is doing something fun (as always) I haven’t read a decent Batman comic in ages, so I’m kind of need to do some poking around myself. Hmmm… it looks as if I’ll be hitting up the library here tomorrow or a nearby comic shop for a few freebies.

Tales of Zestiria Hands-On: Old Reliable And The New(ish) Platform

Posted on September 25, 2015 by geelw

In the case of and for Namco’s long-running Tales franchise, familiarity certainly doesn’t breed any contempt at all. Some hands on time recently with the PlayStation 4 version of Tales of Zestiria reveals producer Hideo Baba and the development team at tri-Crescendo in fine form with a game that’s a throwback to Tales of Phantasia and its more epic medieval fantasy approach in terms of character design and settings. There are also some changes to the combat system and even better, battles now play out on maps without those brief transitions from previous games in the series. Continue reading →

System Shock (Finally) Now On GOG.com: That Showdown With SHODAN, Now Enhanced

Posted on September 24, 2015 by geelw

File this one under “it’s about time!” and then go buy it, NOW. Thanks to Night Dive Studios, the classic System Shock has finally made it to gog.com as System Shock Enhanced Edition, which features not only a version of the game for higher resolution monitors, but also adds mouselook functionality, remappable keys and a few other tweaks. You’ll also get the original game as a bonus if you want to play it as originally intended. Those new bits do make the game a lot more fun if you’re a newer player looking for a more modern control scheme.

Even better, the game is on sale for a limited time for $5.99, 40% off the $9.99 price point. For those new to the experience, System Shock is a hybrid of first-person shooting, role-playing, sci-fi and horror elements as well as (still) one of the best games ever made (well, at least I think so). Yeah, yeah. Some of you out here think six bucks for a game is way too much. But given the reputation of this classic plus the fact that it’s quite replayable (don’t use a walk-through and it has even more replay value), I’d bet some of the more skeptical out there will find this gem right up there with their own favorites.