Gran Turismo 6 Gameplay: It’s Not Next-Gen, But It’s Still Spectacular

Posted on October 21, 2013 by geelw

Yeah, that “old” PS3 still has it going on strong and in fact, Gran Turismo 6 and a few other recent titles are showing that it’s less the age of the hardware than what a talented developer who KNOWS what it can do with it is doing. Gameplay doesn’t kick off until about 11-plus minutes in so feel free to zip forward ’til that point. I’m gathering this one will be huge for Sony this holiday season, but surprisingly enough, I’m not seeing a huge amount of industry buzz on the game. This is probably due to the amount of ink spilled about “next-gen” racers from Sony and Microsoft, plus the fact that it’s a given that every GT game will be excellent on the visuals front (unless you’re a PC elitist who goes ga-ga for graphics and think what’s here isn’t as grand as what your four-card rig can run maxed out). That said, I’m not complaining at ALL, that’s for sure…

Who Knew I Was “Popular”? The Versatile Blogger Award STRIKES!

Posted on October 21, 2013 by geelw

(thanks, gzibeuh!)

As I noted previously…(look up and press “play”) yeah, thanks, Sally! Any-whooo… so, not one, but TWO folks in the space of as many days has decided to make me grin like Conrad Veidt in The Man Who Laughs by nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award. Eeeeeee! Of course, this means I need to thank a few people and come up with a bunch of other deserving folks who might like their own days dazzled (or that daze dazzled) by a nomination. Or TWO nominations, actually. Lex Luther over at Sublime Zoo and Lady Fangtasia need to get thanks and a BIG hearty hand clasp:

(thanks, Kevinator9!)

For thinking on little old me! But a little additional housekeeping is required here before I retire to the Champagne Room for a snack. Wait, I have a Champagne Room? I must still be asleep! Oh well… er, moving onward… Continue reading →

Good Housekeeping Needs To Be Better Housekeeping. We’re Workin’ On It…

Posted on October 20, 2013 by geelw

Okay, Okay. So, I’ve been nominated for The Versatile Blogger Award from two people this week. Eeeek! Now, “Who, me?” is my reaction to being noticed ever since I got caught with my hands in a cookie jar I had to climb up onto a counter using a ladder just to get to the cabinet it was in. Obviously, my mom didn’t have a walk in pantry way back then, but that’s probably a good thing, as we’d have all been scared straight to death when Big Fig popped out. Er, where was I (besides NOT being paid by Nabisco or whomever owns them for selling Fig Newtons in no fewer than three posts this month)?

Oh, yeah – I need to do up an official post thanking the folks who nominated me PLUS come up with fifteen other bloggers to nominate and some other stuff. All of that WILL be done as soon as I get to a better connection. I’m poking this post up using a dial-up (whee!), which is amusingly enough how I posted a few thousand other entries on this site (so I guess I’m Versatile after all, if not persistent and insane). However, hitting the library tomorrow for that speedy wi-fi will allow me to poke around my links and hit up those other folks I want to nominate a lot faster in addition to giving me extra time to figure out seven interesting things about myself. Yeah, I keep my ego in the freezer, and the humble pies on the counter, kids. Anyway, back in a bit – I need to go dig up (cook) something. I kind of just woke up about two hours or so ago thanks to being up way too late again (too many games, as usual)…

Carrie “In Theaters Now” Spot: Thanks For Sharing, As I Sure Wouldn’t Know It Was!

Posted on October 18, 2013 by geelw

Seriously, the last movie theater here is still closed and I’m feeling a bit morose and annoyed about that fact. I’m hoping that asbestos issue is resolved and it gets opened back up soon. The nearest theater is a multiplex a train or bus ride away, but I’ve heard that it’s overpriced and a pain to get to because you need to walk a bit after the public transportation jaunt. That and it’s packed with the most infuriatingly ill-mannered viewers who pay no heed to cell phone turn-off notices, bring bawling toddlers into R-rated movies and commit other low crimes against civil behavior that a normal person would go mad if they went there on a regular basis. From my source who frequent there because he’s hooked on films more than I am (well, he tends to watch more crap movies than I do), he also knows that the staff lets their friends hang out there (once they buy a ticket) and sneak into the other theaters to catch other films unless there’s a supervisor hanging about to keep things in check. Granted, that stuff has been going on since movie tickets have been sold, so it’s no big deal to me. On the other hand, I can see that being annoying to anyone trying to run a legitimate business where profits need to be calculated on a per-seat basis…

Anyway, reviews seem good on this Carrie remake, so that’s at least a good thing to see…

Surprise! Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut Ultimate Edition Hits PSN!

Posted on October 18, 2013 by geelw

EDIT: It was TUESDAY when this dropped on PSN (Oops! Thanks David Bruno! Hey, I was THAT shocked by this news that I forgot to check!)

“Wait, Whaaaaat?“ was my first response to this rather sudden news and after I found my face (it popped off and rolled under a table), I had to do a few double-takes and check the calendar to make sure it wasn’t April 1st again. Anyway, Rising Star Games and developer Access games have been keeping this a huge secret until this week, but if you’re a PS3 owner jealous of your PC gaming pals getting that lovely Steam version of Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut this Halloween (well, this October 29th to be more precise), now you can stop being that jealous git and do some fancy dancin’ of your own around the room (go put some pants on first, though – i can see you through that monitor or other device, y’know).

As for what’s IN that Ultimate Edition? Well, look down and find out! No, not down THERE, silly – on your screen:

Included with Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut Ultimate Edition:

Espresso Suit – Tolerance to Hunger and Tiredness x3
Field-Ops Suit – Increase HP and Attack Power x3
High Roller Suit – Money Rewards x3
Happy Songkran Suit – Money Rewards x3
Special-Ops Suit – Increase HP and Attack Power x2 – Tolerance to Hunger and Tiredness x2 – Money Rewards x2
Catgirl Outfit – Character skin only
Friday Night Outfit – Character skin only
The Blue GT – Enhanced Handling
The Devil’s Red – Increased max speed and faster acceleration
The Green Drifter – Expert car, drifting capabilities
Chibi Chibi Bang Bang – Vehicle skin only
Greenvale Real Estate – Take up roots, rest, and recover from the comfort of your new home in Greenvale!

Sure, that PC version has additional enhancements over this one, but that’s showbiz, kids. Anyway, like the retail version of DPTDC, the Ultimate Edition will set you back a mere $29.99 on PSN and comes highly recommended if you’re a big SWERY65 fan who wants MORE DP and FK in that coffee or it’ll make a great digital gift for a fellow PS3 owner you know who STILL hasn’t been to Greenvale.

And if you’re an PS3 and/or PC AND happen to own an iPad, you NEED the awesome Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut Visual Companion, now available on iTunes for a mere $9.99. 350 pages of art, notes and other fine stuff about the game that’s currently available nowhere else (unless you happen to kidnap Swery and make him tell you everything. That, by the way is a bit extreme and we don’t condone kidnapping here at DAF. Well, in MOST cases…

Oh, and if you’ve read this far, stick around for another surprise. As in I’ll be giving two codes away of that Ultimate Edition… soon. Really. Soon.

The Four Horsemen Have Been Busy @ The Movies For Ages. You Should Be Very Pleased About That.

Posted on October 18, 2013 by geelw

So, Nick Powell over at The Cinematic Katzenjammer asked for contributors this month to write up a post or do something creative using The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse as a starting point and any horror-themed movies that happened to fit one or more of their particular talents. I decided to have a bit of fun picking four films (one for each rider) and pointing to moments in each that to me, define the essence of their namesakes. They’re not all horror films, but if you’re in the right mood you’ll see the horror in parts of them.

Amusingly enough, the devil has gotten his due here as well. ALL of these were done up as Random Film of the Week entries at one point, but three were lost when I misplaced a USB thumb stick with a ton of other fresh content I’d done for the site a few years back when it was on Blogger. One good reason for me doing this post was to kick myself in the butt hard and get on to full rewrites soon of those three.

In addition, I’ll warn you now that the Fifth Horseman (Spoilage!) is on board. So if you haven’t seen any of the four flicks listed here… you’ve been warned in advance. Which is unusual in this day and age, as spoilers usually just spill out and all over you in the oddest of places. Hell, I heard the end of Gravity from a yakky lady babbling like a jerk on her cell phone in a grocery store a few days ago. I wanted to throw a large can of low-sodium black beans at her head, but I’d be typing this from a jail cell, it was the last can of that brand on the shelf and I needed it more than her head needed a two-pound can-sized impression in it.

Anyway, saddle up and get ready to ride (or duck behind something and hope you’re unseen)… we’re off! Continue reading →

The Ugly American: Getting Back Into Shape (Part the First)…

Posted on October 17, 2013 by geelw

For the past week plus or so, the last movie theater in my area has been shut, but it’s at least not as terrible as I’d initially thought. When I first strolled past on my usual route a block away, I noticed the blank marquee and side panels and immediately thought the place was out of business and gone forever. That would have been COMPLETELY lousy, as it would mean Parkchester going from having five or six movie theaters in the 1970’s when we moved here to having ZERO for a pretty large community of people. Granted, the last few theaters before the American shut down in the late 80’s and 90’s and all have been turned into stupidly useless shops, a church and at least one gym that aren’t needed at all because we have PLENTY of those already in the area. So no one of a certain (younger) age knows that there were plenty of options every night of the week for seeing movies in this area other than The American.

And yes, it’s too bad for them that those older theaters are dead and gone…

Continue reading →

Batman Arkham Origins TV Spot: Every Story Has A Beginning…

Posted on October 17, 2013 by geelw

It’s almost here, so hopefully it’ll follow in the footsteps of the previous installments when it comes to delivering the goods. Of course, my take is even if it’s not quite as stellar as the two Rocksteady-developed Batman games it’ll still be the best Batman game you’ll play this year and one of the better licensed superhero titles to date. Naturally, Lego Marvel Super Heroes will have something to say about that, but to me, those Lego games are quite different in tone and content than what’s here. On the other hand… if TT Games ever got to making a serious game in the vein of the Arkham titles, they’d be a force to be reckoned with if they nailed everything they aimed at.

And yes, if you’re a tablet user you can grab Batman Arkham Origins – Mobile for your iOS and Android devices this holiday season.

Humor: Did You Know Fig Matches Quite Well With Ham?

Posted on October 17, 2013 by geelw

(thanks, robatsea2009!)

OK, so I’m having a suddenly NON-productive day thanks to a big fat Firefox crash that happened after a big fat Windows crash that ended up having Firefox lose my profile and every setting as it was attempting to restore them (Yaaaaaah!). It seems that the only solution other than trying to rebuild the .ini file (which is a VERY bad idea if you don’t know how to) was to delete the profile from the Firefox program folder which forces Firefox to make a new one. Problem One SOLVED, but this brings Problem Two to the forefront. New profile equals new passwords for EVERYTHING if you didn’t remember the old ones and have them handy. Blaaaaaaah. I need a cookie or a big laugh or something and thankfully, Big Fig is there with both. Watch this at least twice – once for the reaction shots from the mom and the other for BF doing that thing he does so well. OK, I’m off to dig up or recreate a ton of passwords now (Blaaaaaaah). Thank goodness that kid didn’t ask for Kool-Aid and cookies, is all I’ll say – that would have been s fight (and ad) for the ages, folks.

Short Takes: What You Should Be Playing This Week (Randomly, of Course)

Posted on October 16, 2013 by geelw

Skylanders SWAP Force: HD quality visuals, jumping and all new customizable figures all for the first time on the PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii U make this latest entry in Activision’s supremely successful yearly cash cow a huge must. Wii and 3DS owners don’t get HD graphics (obviously), but the core game is the same deal. In SWAP Force, the gameplay is even more addictive than ever (and yes, some of you adults will be sneaking in time when the kids are asleep or at school), the story longer and more interesting (in part thanks to the enthusiastic voice acting all around) and overall, this makes for both a great entry into the series as well as the latest installment that will have your wallet making faces at you whenever you yank out that cash or card to buy more figures. $74.99, pretty much anywhere that sells video games.

Valhalla Knights 3: This new PlayStation Vita exclusive from Xseed Games looks to bring Japanese developer K2’s niche grind-heavy RPG series to the masses with the best looking (and possibly, playing) installment to date. The Vita seems to be the prefect platform for this combat-heavy game that now includes an optional segment that features a bit of NSFW visits to a sort of love hotel where players can er, “score” additional playable characters and gear if they partake in a series of racy mini-games. Given that the other entries in the series have been given Teen ratings, that M VK3 is sporting must mean you’ll want to keep this away from the kiddies. That’s no problem here, as any kid that comes near my Vita is pulling back a stump… with a lollipop stuck in it (hey, I’m NICE mean old guy)… $39.99 (retail and digital).

F1 2013: Longtime fans of the actual motorsport have been a bit disgruntled these past few seasons thanks to the juggernaut crushing all under his speedy wheels that is three-time champ Sebastian Vettel. However, Codemasters is giving them a chance to beat the man at his own game, provided you’re sitting at home on your couch or in front of a high-end gaming PC setup. This year’s installment is even more gorgeous than ever, has some solid improvements (you can now save between events!) and that adjustable difficulty means even total newbies can actually make it around the track with some effort. While it’s definitely NOT for the NASCAR crowd of those expecting power-up and arcade-style gameplay, it does a decent enough job at breaking down the F1 experience that the Codies really don’t need to do more next year. Well, except add MORE Classic cars and courses, as the small amount this year is VERY welcome, but made me want to see what they could do with a few dozen more rides from the 70’s to 90’s (or perhaps earlier). $59.99,

The Wolf Among Us: I’ve not read any of the Vertigo comics this first installment is based on, so it’s pretty obvious that my excitement about this game is lower than those who have. On the other hand, given that it’s coming from Telltale Games and is modeled on the success of the company’s hugely successful multi-platform hit The Walking Dead, this one’s a no-brainer as far as the usual “should I play this?” stuff some of you go through. Given that this chapter is a slower-paced mystery with gameplay that’s heavily Quick Time Event focused and what looks to be a growing cast of really interesting fairytale characters updated and placed in an alternate New York City setting, it’s certainly right up my adventure alley and Telltale is actually offering up a really cool deal for that $24.99 (PC or Mac) price tag. Once all the chapters are complete, PS3 and Xbox 360 owners will hopefully get a retail version as well (like The Walking Dead did), but we’ll have to see if Wii U and Vita owners get as lucky…