AMC’s The Walking Dead Also Gets The Halloween Horror Nights Treatment…

Posted on July 18, 2012 by geelw

“We want people to experience the same terror of the walker-filled reality our characters faced in seasons one and two – and will continue to face in our third season,” said Greg Nicotero, Co-Executive Producer and Special Effects Make-up Artist for the series. “Our collaboration with Universal Studios’ creative teams is exciting as we work to truly capture the essence of the show.”

Well, now… this is getting really interesting. Hmmm… I’m betting this is a secret weight-loss plan for some of the flabbier citizens of this country where deep-fried butter and bacon-wrapped everything are a normal way of life for too many out there. Hey, you! Want to lose 20 pounds FAST? Just go to Universal Studios Hollywood or Universal Studios Orlando during Halloween Horror Nights and hit both The Walking Dead and Silent Hill attractions. Make sure you don’t eat beforehand, as the zombies at the former love the smell of digesting beef patties, artificially colored cheese and soda pop PLUS those nurses at the latter can aid in taking care of those bite marks on your flesh… by sticking a few knives and needles into them (ouch!). Stock up on adult diapers and a portable defibrillator at the souvenir shop (conveniently located smack dab in between the two attractions) and you’re good to go.

“With ‘The Walking Dead,’ we want to make fans of the series feel like they are literally walking in the footsteps of the show’s characters, experiencing all of the horrific events from the series just as they experienced them,” said John Murdy, Creative Director at Universal Studios Hollywood. “The goal is to make guests of Halloween Horror Nights feel like they are trapped in the world of ‘The Walking Dead,’ using all of the attention to detail and movie-quality production values that Halloween Horror Nights has become famous for. You’re no longer sitting on a couch, watching a show…you’re living it!”

In other words, be prepared to do a lot of running. And screaming, too. Wear comfortable shoes and maybe some football gear if you tend to knock people over on your way to the exit sign…

Persona 4 Golden Cover Art: Vita Owners Can Start Up That Happy Dance Again…

Posted on July 18, 2012 by geelw

Speaking of Persona 4… I posted that last article and went off to make some coffee and as soon as I sit down again, *ding!* this pops up in my inbox. Nice. I now have another game I want for my Vita (and finally, a RPG getting a US retail release that’s deeper than what’s currently on the handheld!). Naturally, clicking on that link above will fly you over to the teaser site where you can go temporarily blind from the burst of color that will hit your eyeballs then upon your recovery, pre-order the game if you like (no pressure here!).

Of course, if you don’t have a Vita yet, you probably won’t be clicking away, but I’d say this is one of those JRPGs that’s worth a console purchase if you like your games ridiculously PACKED to the gills with content and replay value.

Random Film Of The Week: Z

Posted on July 17, 2012 by geelw

“Any resemblance to real events, to persons dead or living, is not accidental. It is INTENTIONAL.”

Sure, today’s political climate here in the US is damned awful to the point of it better to have the country be run by a pack of brainy hamsters with suitcases, but at least we’re not quite in Costa-Gavras territory (er, well… outside of illegal detentions, torture and secret trials, but hey, let’s skip that for the moment). “Loosely” based on actual events, his 1969 film, Z was (and still is) a pretty powerful piece of movie history that’s essential viewing for anyone who thinks the political system here has gone too far off the rails. It has (and how, thanks to too many ill-educated, power-mad people allowed to run for, win and hold office without proper vetting), but things aren’t quite as horrific as they were in Greece around 1963. Although the film doesn’t set an exact time or place, that quote above is placed before things get rolling and if you’re a good enough student of history (or can use the Internet properly) it’s easy to figure out that this isn’t just your run of the mill thriller…

Continue reading →

Helloooo, Nurse! Silent Hill Goes The Horror House Route At Universal Studios

Posted on July 17, 2012 by geelw

“This is not a game. This is not a movie. This is real. And guests will be tormented by horrifying creatures from an alternate dimension, including the iconic deformed nurses and the executioner. “

So, Universal Studios is adding a Silent Hill theme to its hugely popular Halloween Horror Nights attraction at its Universal Studios Florida and Hollywood locations. That’s a good thing or a bad one, depending on how much you like being scared silly by things that go bump in the night. Personally, I’ve never really been scared at any horror house I’ve been to most likely because I have a pretty morbid sense of humor to begin with and tend to elbow anyone who tries to do a “jump out’ scare on me in the eye. I also know that at the end of the day everyone going in will come out alive (soiled shorts optional) and all those mask and makeup wearing guys and gals putting the fear of fear into the heads of those who show up are making an honest buck.

Continue reading →

Mind Food 2: Oversight – Griddly Games’ Strategically Colorful Blast Of A Board Game

Posted on July 17, 2012 by geelw

Rule number one: Never play against someone who works at the company. When I first saw the intriguingly simple-looking but definitely compelling board game Oversight at Toy Fair here in NYC a few months ago, I was soundly trounced in a few quick matches by Griddly Games‘ Angela Welch, the company’s now newly minted Head of Marketing & Operations (they probably gave her the job after she beat everyone in the office at all the games the company makes – ringer!). But I managed to eke out a victory once I got the hang of the sliding tiles and color matching. Still, memo to self: don’t play board games with anyone after two hours of sleep. It’s a good thing I’m not a betting man, is all I’m saying…

Continue reading →

Deadpool? Really? OK, But It BETTER Be Good (Yeah, NSFW)

Posted on July 16, 2012 by geelw

Hey, I know I’m going to get grief for this, but I already played two No More Heroes games, MadWorld, GOD HAND, Red Steel 2 and Duke Nukem Forever. Sure, Marvel’s HUGELY popular cussin’ shootin’, stabbin; fan favorite has been around for ages, but I don’t think he can hold up an entire game on his own without the project being an exercise in brain-numbing overkill after about… oh, the third or fourth stage. Now, I don’t mind brain-numbing overkill (hell, I played the new Splatterhouse and both SAW games in the same week), but here’s a case where there better be a damn good story to back up all the jokes and gore. Meh, who am I kidding? I’d bet some of the same people that will run out and buy this are some of the same people that probably don’t “get” a Suda 51 game because they try to take it too seriously. As always, we shall see.

But yeah, this one better be a keeper or I’m calling up Lobo and telling someone is stealing his schtick…

EA Going Digital: Both Feet In, Head First (And Maybe Not Such A Great Idea To Some)…

Posted on July 16, 2012 by geelw

Hmmm. Well, at least they’re hiring, right? However, as noble as their intentions are, I can see a ton of issues with an all-digital platform that make it less a good move and more of a high-risk doom scenario under the right circumstances. But I’ll let you guys and gals discuss it amongst yourselves. Personally, I really LIKE the security of having a physical product as it’s something I can play offline and without relying on giving up personal information. Hell, given the rather crappy security ALL across the internet where a month can’t go by without some major information breach/theft issue making the news, it’s hard for me to trust ANY digital-only service with my personal data. I think we’re sacrificing security for convenience, which is a hell of a lot more dangerous in the long run, even if we’re assured that our data is “safe”. I have the feeling that there’s an anti-EA crowd of n’er do wells just waiting to poke holes in the company’s digital ship as soon as it sails. But we’ll see, I guess…

The Dark Knight Rises TV Spots 14 & 15: You’re In Line Already, Right?

Posted on July 16, 2012 by geelw

Unless, of course you already bought your tickets and are going to step out to the theater and skip the long lines (provided there’s aren’t longer lines for those picking up tickets thanks to some sort of computer glitch). I’ve purposely been avoiding as much info as possible on the story and have even NOT watched all of the TV commercials when they suddenly popped onto my TV, but I finally gave in over the weekend and yeah, this looks like it’s going to be bigger than I thought. Nolan is throwing in everything and the kitchen sink here and I sort of feel bad for any director who wants to take over the series after he’s gone. At this point, unless the movie goes into a comedy/tap dance routine in the middle and has the ending chopped off, there’s no way it’s going to be a bust at the box office.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 “Girl Power” Trailer: Er, If You Say So…

Posted on July 16, 2012 by geelw

Hmmm. Since when did Tekken turn into Dead or Alive? While it’s really cool to see live-action versions of some of the gals from the game and for those that want it, there’s a crazy pre-order deal where you get 150 swimsuits for the ladies, I’m not at all interested in the game for collecting bikinis and ogling digital cuties. Eh, maybe I’m complaining too much and maybe we’ll see an even mix of trunks for the guys in that lot, as I can see some female fans of the series getting a bit ticked at this. Then again, it’s great for a bit of competition as any new Dead or Alive game will probably want to beef up the ante significantly by adding even more swimsuits and perhaps (ack!) bringing back Zack Island and those awful mini-games in some sort of open world format. Oh, it’s going to be pure hell for those of us who just want a decent fighting game…

Too Much Bondage Leaves My Head Spinning. A Little Skyfall Makes Me Happier

Posted on July 15, 2012 by geelw

So, I’m thirteen films into my 19-flick James Bond 007 marathon (and again, thanks, Encore, but no thanks for running the SAP versions and not the original theatrical formatted flicks, grrrrr) and I’m a bit more disappointed with the middle run of the series than I thought I would be. Nostalgia value aside, seeing all of these films one after another is like getting stabbed to death by an army of ants with really tiny knives. For me, once you get past On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (and realize how good it is), most of the films after it (mostly the Roger Moore era ones) haven’t stood up so well. Sure, Diamonds Are Forever is amusing (to a fault), Live And Let Die makes for a great 9albeit controversial) intro to the Roger Moore era and The Spy Who Loved Me at least tries hard to be ten years younger than it really is. A few of the other Moore films have interesting performances and plot points, but clearly, the series was devolving into campy, self-referential humor at the expense of whatever sensible elements remained.

Yes, I know the four Pierce Brosnan films (which I haven’t seen in a few years, but will get to this week) have great key moments that helped usher in today’s more serious Bond films, so I’m looking forward to seeing them at least once more. That said, the 70’s to 80’s Bond films range from adequate to flat out dumb to trying too hard to be serious before degenerating to the usual plot point of Bind dropping his pants and bedding anything he can before getting conked on the head and delivered to the bad guy’s hideout or some other location where he’ll escape before popping up to surprise the potential world dominating fool and set into motion his usually sightly to highly comical (explosion, falling, impalement, etc.) demise.

Continue reading →