Random Film of the Week(end): It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

Posted on April 13, 2013 by geelw

Soon after hearing about Jonathan Winters’ death two days ago, I had the realization that we’re running out of truly great NATURAL comedians that made us laugh without resorting to juggling expletives or putting themselves in the public eye constantly in an ego-feeding frenzy. Granted, trying to get today’s short attention spanners out there to sit down and watch Winters’ best work is going to be a hard sell, but I think Stanley Kramer’s 1963 comedy classic kills a few birds with one stone.

Yes, the movie is too long by today’s standards (hell, it was too long for 1963 standards), but it’s packed to the gills with comedians and comediennes from a huge enough slice of history that you could see the careers of some beginning and ending with this one zany epic. The story of a bunch of wildly assorted strangers chasing down a dead robbery suspect’s stolen loot is still required viewing for anyone who considers him or herself a fan of comedy and the film works so well because no one gets away without taking a few lumps or a pratfall or three… Continue reading →

Usagi Yojimbo Takes A Stab At The PC Indie Game Market…

Posted on April 13, 2013 by geelw

Hmmmm. I used to read Stan Sakai’s great indie comic way back in the 80’s (I actually had Albedo Anthropomorphics #2 back in 1984!), so seeing the character FINALLY make it to video game form is interesting considering it’s NOT what I thought he’d be on. Amusingly enough, this and many other iOS and/or device games plus way too many indie games to count are EXACTLY what gamers would be paying fifty to sixty bucks for on a cartridge. So, seeing all of these apps popping up and getting forgotten unless they get some major press (which doesn’t seem to be a big thing non-mobile gaming sites cover regularly) is a bit amusing and annoying at the same time. I’ll check this one out if it ever shows up on something I can use a dedicated controller on or a handheld system with a decent control pad. Oh, wait… it IS coming to PC after all (wheee!):

Yeah, that’s more like it. Thanks, Happy Giant Games! For the record, I’ve tried the device thing and while fun for some titles, others just aren’t fit for tapping and tickling a screen. That’s right, grrrr… I’ll have to be dragged kicking and screaming into owning a tablet primarily for gaming – I’ll be kicking that tablet you’re trying to force on me and you’ll be screaming at me to stop with the foot action. Grrrrrowlllll.

Defiance Ark Hunter Chronicles “Director’s Cut”: Turning The Pages Before A New Chapter Begins…

Posted on April 13, 2013 by geelw

Of course, with two days to go, the Defiance YouTube page is absolutely *exploding!* with all sorts of neat character profiles from the show and more, which I’ll run in a bit. But I wanted to finish up this digital comic mini-series by running the “Director’s Cut” version. I’m usually not much of a fan of this style of animation (hey, I grew up watching those awful Marvel cartoons from the 60’s, so seeing not much has changed other than the talent is a lot better is kind of grimly depressing. Or really funny – I can’t decide). Anyway, Defiance premieres on Monday, April 15 at 9PM EST of syfy.

Nostalgia: Castle of Illusion Gets The Remake Treatment For A Summer Launch…

Posted on April 13, 2013 by geelw

Hmmm, so Disney is on a BIG nostalgia kick these days (with Sega along for the ride on this one), despite killing Lucasarts off and pretty much all chances for new Star Wars games. Or perhaps that demise was part of a larger game plan? Some not so deep thinking shows that between this reboot and the upcoming DuckTales remake from Capcom PLUS the other Disney related games on the way or out already (Kingdom Hearts, Disney Infinity, whatever device and mobile games there are I don’t care about because I don’t like the swipe and drag much), there might be enough loot raked in to put aside a few pennies for the future. As in if that upcoming in development Star Wars flick is looking as it needs some sort of interactive tie-in, whatever is coming will be developed in-house or by a developer contracted to do the job… that has (argh) excellent Metacritic scores for their previous titles.Whatever happened to just making good games, period?

Then again, Disney doesn’t discriminate, as they also killed Junction Point Studios dead after Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two didn’t do so well critically (and it seems, commercially). Yeah, that’s where we are these days, kids – studios shut for spending too much money and their games not garnering great aggregated scores on a faulty site while older games from the back catalog get yanked from their graves and given new life with the hope all will buy and every sin will be forgotten. Yuck. Well, I guess not having to pay $50 – $60 for a cartridge game will draw in more old and new fans of both Castle of Illusion and DuckTales… but there’s still that crowd of noisy ducks who think every game these days should be cheap or free, no matter how much it costs to make…

Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut Random Screenshot of the Day: It’s A Dog’s Life…

Posted on April 12, 2013 by geelw

“Spotted dogs have appeared throughout history in Europe, Asia, and Africa, credited with a dozen nationalities and as many native names. The dog we know today as the Dalmatian has been a dog of war, a draft dog, shepherd, ratter, fire-apparatus follower, firehouse mascot, bird dog, trail hound and retriever. Most importantly, he is the original and only coaching dog. His affinity for horses remains a basic instinct to this day and the breed is a natural follower and guardian of the horse-drawn vehicle.”

Source: American Kennel Club

So, now that you know you don’t need 101 (or 102) Dalmatians at all to keep a child safe, ladies and gents… just one really well-trained one. The again, I’d bet a forest full of those spotted dogs would be keeping that creepy Red Seeds Killer a bit more at bay (pun intended) and FBI Special Agent Francis York Morgan (just call him York!) a lot less busy…

Anyway, make sure you don’t go howling at the moon yourself because you missed out on picking up a copy of Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut, headed exclusively to the PlayStation 3 on April 30, 2013 from Rising Star Games. Featuring over 100 improvements over the original game, refined HD graphics, PlayStation Move and 3D TV support, all-new DLC and MORE. You’ll only find out what a dog and small child are doing mixed up in all this only if you play the game (no, the ghost of W.C. Fields isn’t in the game at all, but it would be funny to those who remember his work), so now that you’re curious, you can get on board the same train to Greenville a lot of us are already riding.

Off topic (woof!), Yesterday was Game Director Swery 65’s birthday! For real! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! OK, because I didn;t know about this until after the fact, I didn’t get him a gift at all. Er, except that post I wrote for that day, so I feel a bit bad about that. The again, he really liked the post, so it’s all good in the end. I suppose it WOULD be bad form to let him know what MY birthday is (it’s coming up next month), but if he asks me, I’ll let him know right away…

Oh, Romo! You’re SO Cute And All, But I Only Have An N-Gage QD!

Posted on April 12, 2013 by geelw

Hey, Keller Rinaudo? Your Romo is an interesting device and all, but my phone isn’t as “smart” as yours at all (or anything made after 2007) and I don’t plan to change that much. Hey, I only use it for getting calls (and almost no one calls me) and playing games. Sure, I can probably grab a nice used iPhone and be hip like the rest of you cool kids…. but NO iOS or Android device will play the awesome RIFTS: Promise of Power, Pathway to Glory and some other really great N-Gage games that never got released on other mobile platforms or handheld gaming systems.

Hmmm… if you can teach Romo to program games and pull some legal strings so these games popped up on devices and tablets, MAYBE I’ll reconsider. Or maybe not. I like my contract-less freedom and app-less lifestyle…

Soul Sacrifice: Keiji Inafune Chats Up His Vita Exclusive…

Posted on April 12, 2013 by geelw

Yes, it’s almost here (April 30) and SCEA is dropping another behind the scenes video and site updates, this time focusing on game designer Keiji Inafune and his latest creation headed exclusively to the PlayStation Vita. Between great-looking games like this, a library that’s growing steadily thanks to indies, imports and some fine third-party titles, 2013 should be a pretty solid year for Sony’s handheld. Well, I think so. Sony needs to kick it up a notch and do some price dropping on the hardware and memory cards so more can buy in and get playing some of these stellar titles…

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen Enemies Video: Eight Million (More) Ways To Die…

Posted on April 12, 2013 by geelw

Gran Soren just got a whole lot more dangerous. Seriously. Granted, it already WAS pretty deadly as it was teeming with all creatures great and small wanting to grind your party’s bones to make their bread (or a tasty filling for that bread), but the mad wizards at Capcom have worked in plenty of new not so wee beasties guaranteed to send you into a frenzy of running away if you’re too weak a character to handle it. On the other hand, if you’ve got the buff stuff and no bluff, you can tough it to those creatures rough until they’d had more than enough. Yeah, I liked Basil Wolverton’s bizarre comics as a kid, so sue me. Or go track down some of his freaky funnies.

Anyway, Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen (coming to the PS3 and Xbox 360 on April 23, 2013) brings you the COMPLETE original game, ALL the DLC packs AND an entirely new adventure all for a measly $40. This means your friends who missed out can hop in and start off and see what’s what, while YOU, dear reader (well, if you played the original) can upload your save files and beat up on those bruisers with relish. Well, the relish they were going to slather all over that bread they were going to get to baking…

Despicable Me 2 Toy Profile of the Week (8): New, Yet Nostalgic…

Posted on April 12, 2013 by geelw

This week’s peek’s not plush or plastic,
But two board classics quite fantastic.
And one old viewer from the past
(like older models, built to last).

Hasbro’s grand Monopoly
goes DM2-themed, as you see
The rules, the same, the fun, so great
That special box, you just can’t hate!

And Operation! – another winner,
Make sure to play it after dinner
poking that Minion may gross you out
(But that’s subject to quite some doubt)

That Viewmaster, yes, it’s so cute
That Minion’s mug is such a hoot
From Fischer-Price and Basic Fun
they’re teaming up for everyone.

You’ll want to buy all of these things
(I hope your car’s got mighty wings)
Your home will be packed to the roof
Big DM2 Fan? You’re THE proof!

Shown above:

Hasbro’s MONOPOLY: Despicable Me 2 Edition Game – The MONOPOLY game has never been this mischievous! Assemble the Minions! Gru is back with a villainous plan to take over the MONOPOLY game. Spin the Minion to make your move, collect Banana Bucks fast, and own all your favorite Despicable Me properties. Suggested retail price: $19.99

Hasbro’s OPERATION: Despicable Me 2 Edition Game– Whaaa’?! Stuart’s having a bad, bad day. He accidentally swallowed some unicorn fluff, his noggin’s gone nutty, and his tongue is toxic! What’s a Minion to do?! Operate! It’s the same classic OPERATION game fun, plus the wacky humor of Minions! Suggested retail price: $19.99.

Despicable Me 2 View Master® – See your favorite Despicable Me characters like never before – in vivid View Master 3D! In partnership with Fisher-Price, Basic Fun has developed the Despicable Me 2 View Master including a new internal design that provides a 50% brighter and larger image with a smoother operation and a new focus on 3D adventures featuring 21 images (across three reels) to tell the Despicable Me story. Suggested retail price: $9.99 (viewer), $4.99 (reel pack), $14.99 (gift set including the viewer, three reels and a branded case)

Despicable Me 2 toys and other licensed products will be available at retailers nationwide beginning in May 2013. Despicable Me 2 hits theaters on July 3, 2013.

Mystic Chronicles: Meet The Heroes (1): Four On The Floor, Ready For Action…

Posted on April 12, 2013 by geelw

With Kemco’s “old-school” JRPG Mystic Chronicles coming to the PSP this summer from Natsume, the company is dropping a few names and giving players a chance to meet the cast and learn a little bit about them. Say hello to them below and check out the screenshot gallery I posted back in February for some images of the gameplay. All we need now are some videos of this in action and that particular triangle is completed…

Anyway, here they are:

Lux

Lux is the main character of Mystic Chronicles, and the player will control him for the majority of the game. This young man may seem like a simple village boy, but he’s surrounded by a mysterious past that may come back to haunt him. He’s very close to his sister, Fina…

Fina is a nun who players will meet early in the story. Strangely, this woman of the cloth looks a lot like Lux’s sister, Fina. Is there some sort of connection between the two ladies? Lux is determined to find out…

Ray

Ray is a mysterious member of the ancientDarkClan – and whether that connection will be blessed or cursed remains to be seen…

Alberto has known Lux since he was a child. A mentor to the youth and a captain in the Holos Guild, Alberto’s guidance will become pivotal in some of the difficult decisions Lux’s journey will lead him to make.

Hmmm… My nostalgia sense is REALLY tingling now… all we need is a release date. Natsume won’t disappoint on that end, but you’ll need to wait a bit because that’s how they roll. Back with more on Mystic Chronicles as news arrives – stay tuned…