FUSE Launch Trailer: Tip #1: Don’t Die Hard, Duck, Dodge and Destroy…

Posted on May 28, 2013 by geelw

So, FUSE is finally out and, Insomniac fans can get their game on for the first time on both the PS3 and Xbox 360. As I’m up to my eyeballs in stuff to do, I haven’t grabbed a copy yet, but I’ve played a few demo builds at press events and based on the quick report from a friend who picked up his from a certain game shop, it’s super challenging and a hell of a lot of fun. I’m more of a solo player, so I’ll need to make it through the campaign with my fingers crossed that the AI is really good (it was in those preview builds) and Insomniac tweaked the challenge in that one crazy mode where the objectives change randomly for each wave of enemies. OK, enough daydreaming – back to work…

Random Film of the Day*: The Three Worlds of Gulliver

Posted on May 27, 2013 by geelw

*For the next few days, I’m going to add a random film the great Ray Harryhausen worked on. The legendary special effects MASTER passed away on May 7, 2013 at age 92 in London and yes, the film world has lost a true giant as well as a fine and talented gentleman…

OK, I don’t “hate” The Three Worlds of Gulliver at all, but as a kid, it did take me four attempts to sit through this classic family film without falling asleep. Sure, Ray Harryhausen’s “Superdynamation” effects and that lovely Bernard Herrmann soundtrack make this another perfect one-two punch for movie fans, but something about this flick has always rubbed me the wrong way.

It’s probably a combination of a few things from the silly refrigerator magnet names Johnathan Swift came up with being too nonsensical even for a kid to wrap a brain cell around (Brobdingnag? Glumdalclitch?), some languid pacing and seeing too much of Kerwin Matthews’ over-sized head (even when he’s normal-sized, his melon is a moon on his neck). Or it’s probably because Ray’s work here is “limited” in terms of the amount of stop motion effects (but you do get some great matte shots). The other technical work is fine, mind you – it’s just that compared to his more popular fantasy films, this one seems somewhat tame…
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Capcom Arcade Cabinet All-In-One Pack: Holdouts Get It But Good…

Posted on May 27, 2013 by geelw

So, you were one of those ~~cheap~~ thrifty folk hanging about and peeking ’round the corner every so often waiting for Capcom to release the full version of its hit arcade games collection at a ridiculously low price? Well, *ding!*… your order is hot and ready to go. Available now for oh, about 50% off and including the two secret bonus games, Vulgus (“What’s a Vulgus?!”, you ask? You’l find out soon enough!) and 1943 Kai! you can grab Capcom Arcade Cabinet on PSN and XBLA for $29.99 (or /€29.99/£23.99/2000 Microsoft points). Play these at home on your TV and not have to worry about some thug shaking you down for quarters, sticky controllers or cigarette smoke blinding you when you’re going for that high score. Er, unless you smoke when you’re playing games…

Random Film of the Week(end)*: Dementia 13

Posted on May 27, 2013 by geelw

(thanks, drbloodsvideovault!)

dementia 13 Sure, it’s a quickly made post-Psycho cash-in with the added shock value of a character getting decapitated on screen (a rather nifty cheap effect if you’ve never seen this flick before), but thanks to a creepier tone and some nicely tense lensing by a young director named Francis Ford Coppola, Dementia 13 manages to be a pretty decent little horror film.

Granted, if you pay enough attention past making popcorn and turning your brain off to watch this one, much of the script and more of the dialogue make about as much sense as a cat driving an oil tanker full of Tater Tots down a freeway on the way to the mall. But on its own merits, it’s a fine directorial debut brought in on a shoestring by the director and enhanced by producer Roger Corman to include the aforementioned head removal and some other elements he thought would punch things up a a bit more…

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Warner Bros. Wants You to Know There’s a Difference Between a Robot and a Man of Steel…

Posted on May 26, 2013 by geelw

Man of Steel TV Spot #7, meet Pacific Rim TV Spot # 2. Now shake hands and come out fighting for those summer box office bucks. Even better, go beat the stuffing out of something big and evil. Hmmm… Seeing both of these trailers together almost makes me think of the odd power Warner Bros. films have had over the decades. I can recall seeing many trailers either on TV (while watching TCM, primarily) or in theaters throughout the years where I’d nod when I saw that logo because I knew I’d be in for an entertaining two hours or so. Of course, I could say that about MGM, RKO, Universal, Paramount and other studios living and dead, but right now… I’m in a WB mood.

Hmm… must have been that carrot juice I had with the pulled pork and roast duck sandwich. Five points if you get my lame joke…

Review: Resident Evil Revelations (Xbox 360)

Posted on May 26, 2013 by geelw

RER_360 Platform: Xbox 360

Developer: Capcom

Publisher: Capcom

# of Players: 1 – 2

ESRB Rating: M (Mature)

Official Site

Score: A- (90%)

Calling Resident Evil Revelations a mere “port” actually does it a tiny bit of a disservice, as Capcom didn’t simply press some magic upscaling button to get this great, formerly Nintendo 3DS exclusive onto PC, PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii U. The game’s character visuals have been completely redone in HD, there’s a brand new monster type added to the game, a few new modes and a good deal more (especially for Wii U owners, I hear) that make this one a must by for any non-3DS owner who missed out on this as a portable game experience. If you’re one of those longtime series fans overwhelmed by the crazy kitchen sink that was Resident Evil 6 (I actually liked the game’s chaotically schizo overkill amount of content) or the nonstop MP-centric focus of Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City (which was fine, provided you played with like-minded friends), RER’s return to greatness will bring a smile to your face at the return to classic form. Continue reading →

Random Art: “Legs…”

Posted on May 26, 2013 by geelw

legs

Yup, another (sort of unfinished) MS Paint piece done while freezing my rear end off and waiting for this stupid wet and chilly weather to clear up. Well, if anything, lousy weather seems to be good for art practice. I may do another later, but only after I get to posting a few previews and reviews I’ve been dinking away on since last week. OK, back to actual harder work!

VGA 101: New DS Aquisitions: Soma Bringer & ATV Wild Ride

Posted on May 26, 2013 by geelw

new DS stuff

One is an awesome Japanese import action/RPG that’s very much Diablo inspired with an anime edge (and sadly was never localized into English – thanks, Nintendo for missing out on what would have been yet another a surefire hit new IP!).

The other is an amazing technical wonder in the form of a 60 frames per second racing game featuring those four-wheeled death machines some folks seem to love a wee bit too much. Thanks to Anthony Bourdain nearly killing himself when he fell off one that proceeded to roll over him as he tumbled down a sandy slope on an old episode of No Reservations, every time I see or think ATV, I get a good laugh going that takes a minute or two to subside… Continue reading →

Random Film of the Week(end): Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid

Posted on May 26, 2013 by geelw

dead men don't wear plaid If you want to get your friends into classic movies, there are three ways to do so. Kidnapping them, strapping them to a chair with eye clamps and locking them in a room with a TV locked onto Turner Classic Movies isn’t quite the best idea, nor is lecturing them about how all modern films are terrible compared to everything pre-code or up to say, 1959.

I’d say method three, where you invite them over and pop on Carl Reiner’s 1982 film Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid works the best because you get a film that’s not too old, funny as hell and one that’s going to get copious notes taken as to which classics were used in certain scenes. Of course, you’ll also have to convince some of those friends who don’t like any black and white movies (or Steve Martin) that this is worth a look, but that shouldn’t be too hard if you’re smart…
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Man of Steel TV Spot 6: Zods and Ends…

Posted on May 25, 2013 by geelw

OK, bad pun, pad pun! Eh, I figured that since this new Superman film is dumping the now supremely corny camp humor found in the five Reeve films and the original TV series for a more serious tone, I may as well get in as many bad jokes as possible before it hits theaters. Of course, I don’t think The Man of Steel will lack humor ENTIRELY, folks… I just think it’ll be minimized so the story is more enjoyable with less eye-rolling moments when a one-liner pops up and the audience groans because it ruins an otherwise good scene.. Save that stuff for flicks where jokes are part of the game plan (like Kick-Ass 2), I say.

Oh, by the way – give that funky Man of Steel Glyph Creator a whirl if you’re curious about what your family name would look like on your own super-suit. Don’t go getting any ideas, though – you won’t be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, bend steel in your bare hands or anything else (unless you’re already doing that stuff as part of a freak show act in a carnival somewhere)…