Tuesday’s Off (On a Few Fronts)…

Posted on April 1, 2014 by geelw

Did you get my subtle yet obvious April Fool’s joke yet, folks? No? Crap. TOO subtle for you, huh? Well, I was TRYING to fool you all into thinking I wasn’t going to post at all today, but it would seem that did not work at all. Anyway, I’ve decided to take Tuesdays off for some reason, but at this particular Tuesday is the first day of the month, I think it looks a bit lazy to not have anything written to kick things off, as it doesn’t bode well for the rest of the month to start off with nothing. Or something like that. Anyway, I’ll share below what I thought was the best gag of the day – thanks CD Projekt RED:

Well, I thought it was pretty hilarious. Anyway, I’m still cobbling together a few things on the article front, so I think I’ll be back later to update depending on how much the upstairs batteries recharge. Hmmm… my brain says “it’s time to watch a movie!”, but my body say “shut up and take a nap!” I’ll let them fight it out as I go for Plan C behind their backs, mua-ha-ha-ha…

Back in a bit.

Game of Thrones S4: A Week Away, So Here Comes The Onslaught…

Posted on March 30, 2014 by geelw

Yeah, I’m too busy here to keep up with posting all those ads and teasers and such, but you don’t have to hunt far or wide to get hit upside the head with a Game of Thrones promo on TV, the internet or a few other places. It’s WAR, I tells ya, but I’m immune to the promo bombardment because I watch what I like, not what some network tells me to like. Thankfully, GoT has been pretty killer from that beginning and looks as if it’s not going to let up one bit. One more week, people… just one more week…

Child of Light Making of #1: Dream, Draw and Drink In The Delicious Results…

Posted on March 19, 2014 by geelw

Ubisoft is making game making an even more “magical” process these days thanks to its UbiArt Framework tech that allows for artists to see their work come to brilliant life while remaining unchanged from how it was created. The upcoming multiplatform role-playing game, Child of Light (April 30, 2014) presents the gorgeous storybook world of Lemuria and allows players to dive in and explore it using some tried and true gameplay along with some nice new features sure to bring on the raves from an audience hungry for new original properties and not more of the same old same old.

Given that the game is set ti launch on PC, PS3/PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Wii U (so far!), it looks as if anyone with a home console or decent enough gaming setup will be seeing what the fuss is all about soon enough. Yeah, I know you Mac and Linux users are all cranky right about now, but I guess there will be a version of this for you folks at some point down the road. In the meantime, I guess you could always make friends with someone who has one of the systems the CAN play on when it launches next month…

Alien Isolation “Creating The Alien” Trailer: Shaping Your Fears Is Tough Work…

Posted on March 13, 2014 by geelw

So, that’s how it’s done, hmmmm. Okay, now we need to see the underwear factory churning out adult-sized diapers with the Alien Isolation logo on them that will be packed in that Collector’s Edition of the game along with a pocket defibrillator and smelling salts. The folks at The Creative Assembly seem to be making the Alien game to end all Alien games because it’s closer to the first Alien film than a few of the more action-packed sequels ever were. Granted, there’s something to be said for those awesome Rebellion-made Alien vs. Predator PC games and yes, a few of the other games in this long running franchise have been quite well done and thrilling. But this may be the first game that feels frightening thanks to it looking to capture what made the original work all too well. Pre-alpha footage means there’s a long way to go before this one’s all wrapped up, folks. I’m betting it’s a big fat face-huggy surprise when it’s all done.

As usual, we’ll see…

Dementium II HD Behind the Scenes: A Whole Lot Of “Nope” Means This Needs To Be Played…

Posted on March 10, 2014 by geelw

So, yeah… Dementium II HD. Digital Tribe and Memetic Games’ PC version of Renegade Kid’s super scary Nintendo DS exclusive looks like an even more complete freak-out, although there’s definitely something to be said for the original game’s defying the hardware it was made for and offering up a frightening portable thrill ride that’s still the best horror game on that old handheld. Anyway, this update looks pretty darn jump out of your underwear freaky on a few fronts, but I’m brave. I can take it. Maybe.

Let’s see it in action (go hide the kids and pets in a closet, folks – this probably isn’t pretty):

Yeah, there’s a whole bus load of “Nope!” going on there, as in “Nope, I’m not going to open that door… TOO LATE! Gyaaaah!” and so forth and so on. Digital Tribe has done well with this frightening little gem and since I missed posting them, I’m going to run all four behind the scenes videos so you can see how the game was made. Pleasant Dreeeeeeams, now…

The other two making of videos are below the jump. Why? Because I like you… M-O-U-S-EEEEEEEEEEEEEK!
Continue reading →

Dragon Age Inquisition Update: Oh, The Places You’ll Go (And Stare At For Far Too Long)…

Posted on March 7, 2014 by geelw

Lovely. While I wasn’t enamored with Dragon Age II‘s overuse of environments and SUPER truncated finale, that first game was quite spectacular through and through. The third game looks pretty mighty to behold in these trailers, but I’m hoping we see more open environments that beg to be explored like a real world spot where you want to stop and smell the virtual roses (without getting jumped by a pack of monsters or highwaymen). We’ll see soon enough, but I’m going to go out on a limb and trust BioWare has learned from keeping an ear to the ground for fan feedback by now that more is always better thing when it comes to freedom in how one plays their RPGs…

Game of Thrones Season 3 Recap. A Little Real History to Go With The Fake One…

Posted on March 3, 2014 by geelw

Ah, if only actual politics were as simple as letting loose your dragons on some fool who thought he’d get the better of you or getting all stabby-stabby with enemies you lure into a formerly blissful wedding celebration. Nope, I don’t think we’re headed for World War III anytime soon, but the dicey situation between a few countries these past few months have a nasty parallel to the years 1936-39 if you poke through the history books. Of course, it’s hard to gauge the future based on current actions, but if the past is any indication, a lot of us will be turning to shows like GoT for some time off from real world issues. Let’s also hope that someone shows Mr. Putin some of those history books so he sees that working your way to the top over the bodies of others means the bottom rushes up faster at some point to meet you.

Game of Thrones “Artisan Piece” Vignettes: Making Westeros As Lovely And Deadly As Ever…

Posted on February 20, 2014 by geelw

I haven’t been keeping up with all these behind the scenes videos on Season Four, but I may as well post the two that jumped out at me thanks to someone pointing me to them earlier. I’m gathering all these locations around the world that get used on the show make great tourist dollar traps afterwards for those who can afford the vacation and maybe an arrow to the knee from some pissed of local who’s tired of loud crowds tromping through their back yards cooing and pointing at every tree, rock and body of water that LOOKS as if it’s straight from the show.

Yeah, that can get tiring for sure. On the other hand, you KNOW there’s that ONE guy or gal who’s making a killing being some sort of unofficial “official” go-to person who’s a font of knowledge about the areas and histories of everything they lay an eyeball on. Of course, there’s a good chance they’re lying through their teeth about half the stuff they’re bending your willing ear over. But that’s a good thing if you end up falling for their tall tales, correct? After all, you wouldn’t be a fantasy fan if you weren’t a sucker for a tale told well, right? Yeah, you know that’s true…

Jodorowsky’s Dune 2014 Trailer: From The Ashes, Much More Life…

Posted on February 15, 2014 by geelw

I can only imagine what would have happened had Alejandro Jodorowsky actually gotten his wild version of DUNE made way back in 1975 or however long it would have taken to film properly. Well, this must-see documentary may answer that for me to some extent, but I still won’t be satisfied because I still want to see it made at some point. Even as an animated film (traditional with a dash of CG enhancement in backgrounds, please!), I think it would blow the minds of anyone who sees it, especially with all those amazing artists like Moebius, Giger, Foss and others who contributed to this failed project before moving on to bigger and better things. Anyway, this one’s a must-see documentary for a few reasons and I’ll most likely shell out for the Blu-Ray/DVD when it gets a release just because this chronicle of a never made adaptation is something that deserves a few looks outside of a theater setting.

Fantastic Mr. Fox Gets The Criterion Collection Treatment. BUY IT.

Posted on February 11, 2014 by geelw

Ooooh… I hate you (again) Criterion! Granted, I really DON’T hate these guys and gals because they do some incredible work with their hove video versions of some great and not so great films, I just hate that they charge a premium for all that hard work 9as they should). I didn’t buy Fantastic Mr. Fox on any format yet because I got busy, was too lazy to look it up when I wasn’t busy and then I heard Criterion was doing up a special “Director-Approved” version (drool!), meaning there goes an arm or leg if I now want the definitive version. This wonderful flick and Moonrise Kingdom are my current two favorite films from Wes Anderson, so perhaps that one is next up on the block to get this special treatment?

Yeah, I “hate” you, Criterion… but you’re doing film fans a major solid (at least in territories where you sell your fine products). This one’s available February 18, by the way…