Bugs (And More) In A Box, With Love From D3Publisher of America…

Posted on February 6, 2014 by geelw

So, I got a nice package today from D3Publisher of America that had me laughing for a good half hour or so. For those curious types reading this, it’s a pre-release Valentine’s Day box full of fun Earth Defense Force 2025 goodies: A fake rose (that lights up when you press a button. It’s strobe-y!) Three sets of four Valentine cards (one for each class), Four dog tags (one for each character class), three packs of tasty looking traditional composition hearts and (wait for it…) a plastic heart with what looks to be three actual chocolate covered insects inside (Eeeeek!).

Well, the label inside that heart SAYS “Chocolate Covered Insects”, they sort of LOOK like they are as opposed to chocolate shaped insects from a mold, and I tend to believe everything I read the first time (well, sometimes). These days, small bugs don’t bug me and I DO like chocolate… so I’ll file this under “I’ll try anything once!” Anyway, I stuck the chocolate in the fridge for later, as it’s too hot in the home office. Those will go good with a cup of coffee, I’d imagine. Some of you have fainted dead away I see. Sorry about that! New experiences make me smile, that’s all.

Okay, let me go find some dinner, as I actually went out for a walk after the box arrived. If I have a bug or two for dessert, I’ll let you know. I may hang onto them for a little bit just to keep you in suspense… we’ll see.

The Expendabelles? Yikes. Shoot Me Now (Or At Least Hope Some Major Changes Are Made)…

Posted on February 6, 2014 by geelw

According to some sources I refuse to acknowledge because it just might happen, it looks as if there’s a female version of The Expendables in the works. Ugh, for a few reasons you’ll see if you read those links. Sure, it’s a fun idea and SURE, it’ll get ladies working in an action flick as something other than screaming eye candy or victims, but that current synopsis is awful, that fake poster tagline is WORSE and I can’t see this being anything that’s going anywhere but straight to Blu-Ray/DVD unless some of these potential cast members have a hand and foot in the rewrite room.

On the other hand, this IS a Hollywood project, so I can expect the casting to be a nightmare if this goes through, the shooting to be pure hell and the final product to be on par with the rest of this series, which is awful but campy fun as long as it’s not taken seriously. I guess the ONLY great thing here is no one is talking weekly TV series yet on either Expendables project. I’d have to head to California with a folding baseball bat in my suitcase if that ever happened…

Sabotage Trailer #1: Deja Vu, But Arnold Wants Me To…

Posted on February 5, 2014 by geelw

I know I ran this trailer for Sabotage sometime last year, but since Arnold posted it on his YouTube page, I have to run it here again or he’ll come here and punch a hole in the front door again. Actually, I wouldn’t mind that at all as he always pays for a new door afterwards. Hmmm… perhaps I can have him punch a hole in the bathroom wall near that pipe that’s now loose thanks to the idiots who installed that fish piss replacement shower head? Nah, Arnold wouldn’t fall for that at all. He’s too busy getting in other trouble to get out here anyway, I’d bet…

Drakengard 3 Trailer: Access Games Doing Its Thing, Dragon Style…

Posted on February 5, 2014 by geelw

The Drakengard series isn’t exactly known for it’s spectacular presentation or stories that make a whole lot of sense (multiple endings aside), but there’s something compelling about them that’s given the first two games a fairly loyal fan base. With original developer Cavia dissolved into the ashes of history, Access Games (Deadly Premonition) steps up to the plate for this prequel to the first game that, while not visually outstanding, offers up plenty of quirky charm and what looks like a slightly lighter tone than previous entries. Then again, one pee joke and some annoying voice acting on some of the characters aside (the game needs a dual language option), I think this one’s got the makings of a sleeper hit provided it gets enough love from Square Enix on the promotion front. As usual, we’ll see. May 20th is a few months away, so there’s enough time for the company to make more noise about this one…

300: Rise of An Empire: On War Pigs And Going Whole Hog…

Posted on February 5, 2014 by geelw

I’m still on the “jury’s out” side when it comes to this not quite sequel coming out. So many movies and TV shows have copied the green screen slo-mo technique and color palette of 300 that this film outdoing the first one in terms up upping the chaos is almost too amusing to see working so well. Granted, those who loved 300 will love this as well, but I don’t expect the pickier historians out there to be so kind to this follow up. I’m in the process of going through the first movie again this week (I haven’t seen it in a few years) and I actually thought it was longer than it actually is. I think I digitally inserted scenes from that Spartacus series randomly in my head as I was watching or something. Eh, whatever – we’ll see what this does at the box office soon enough before it makes the short four to six month trip to Blu-Ray/DVD like everything else does…

Toukiden: The Age of Demons Battle Action Trailer: Omega Force To The Rescue (Again)…

Posted on February 5, 2014 by geelw

With Toukiden: The Age of Demons dropping into stores and onto PSN on February 11, here’s a final look at the game in action. As usual, veteran developer Omega Force is at the top of their game here with another impressive action game for the Vita (and yes, PS3). It’s also important to know that while we’re not getting the incredible-looking PSP version of Toukiden in North America, the fact that they were able to get the same game and what looks like the same story content done for that “old” handheld in Japan is somewhat remarkable. Anyway, based on the demo alone, this one looks like it’s going to be a great home as well as handheld game with offline and online play that should keep those who pick it up quite busy dispatching plenty of demons from minor minions to supreme, hard to take down bosses that require time and tactics to take down.

I do hope the game does as well as it did in Japan, but that’s all up to Vita owners here to get off their butts and give the demo a whirl, then go buy the game as soon as they can rather than wait too long and let this one languish in relative obscurity. We’ll see, as usual…

“V” For Vitros: Dark Horse’s Pariah Almost Had Me Fooled…

Posted on February 3, 2014 by geelw

For a hot second there I thought that cover was telling me that there was a new comic coming from Dark Horse based on the “V” television series from the 1980’s and the later reboot. Nope, it’s the first issue of Pariah that cover represents, a sci-fi themed comic mini-series by Aron Warner, Philip Gelatt, Brett Weldele set for a February 26, 2014 release. “If you’re now all “Ooh, what’s it about?”, I’ll refer you to the press release which says as follows:

Trapped in space, the genetically engineered geniuses known as “vitros” must band together and create a plan to get back to Earth before their failing satellite turns into a deathtrap!

The cover’s above and with six pages from the issue below the jump. Oh, that final image is the cover to the second issue. Not sure why it’s there other than Valentine’s Day is coming up too quickly, but hey – free is free, so enjoy the read. Continue reading →

RoboCop Update: “Crime” Doesn’t Pay, But A Good Reboot Will…

Posted on February 1, 2014 by geelw

Under two weeks to go before the RoboCop reboot rolls into theaters and I think it’ll hold its own against the original at least as far as the story goes. Granted, I don’t think that the film is even trying to copy anything directly from the original, so some die-hards will slam it for that. I’ll take it in as a new start and see what happens, as I usually do with these remakes/reboots. Of course, if the film falls into the “too much CG, pointless plot” trap other franchise friendly films frequently fall into, then I break out the knives (which I bought for a dollar, by the way. Seriously, the dollar store nearby sells kitchen knives starting at a dollar) and start chopping away.

Crimes & Punishments: Sherlock Holmes Trailer: Punch Drugged Love…

Posted on February 1, 2014 by geelw

Once again, developer Frogwares is cooking up an interesting looking multi-case Sherlock Holmes game for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC-owning adventure game fans out there and this time, it seems to be going for a few types of gameplay as well as flashier visuals to lure in gamers from other genres. There’s some nice use of the aging Unreal 3 engine here as well as what looks like some tweaking to the investigation system and even a bit of fisticuffs thrown in for good measure. As long as the game stays away from the dopey camp of the Guy Ritchie version of Holmes and Watson, I think it’ll do well among its target audience. Granted, the fans of that newer BBC Sherlock and other shows that reinvent the character to different extents may or may not come aboard for this more classic-looking (and more traditional) Holmes, but it would be nice to see some of those younger folk realize their favorite flavor was around a LOT longer than they were.

Focus Home Interactive is publishing this one and it’s got a Q2 2014 release set. More on this game (and an actual release date) soon. Here’s a bunch of nice screens below – enjoy!

Sleuthathon, Anyone? Get A Clue This March…

Posted on February 1, 2014 by geelw

Ah, the joys of the blogathon! Like-minded fast to slow typists of assorted interests and skill sets, some of the more precisely well worded and edited post, some of the punchy, short perfect post and me with my fishing around for words and hoping they all fit together once I drop my five-cent bowl of alphabet soup on the carpet before I can even open my packet of crackers, *sob!*

Anyway, Fritzi over at Movies, Silently is at it again, hosting not just a blogathon, but a Sleuthathon featuring films up to 1965 about assorted gumshoes, nosy folks who find themselves detecting danger and other flicks and TV shows.

If YOU have a favorite film detective who fits the bill and can string together a few sentences better than I can, feel free to check out the link for submission guidelines and perhaps contribute one of your favorite films, group of related films or shows. The more, the merrier!