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.

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…

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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…

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.

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Pacific Rim and Godzilla Bring Giant Monsters Back, Big(ger) Time!

Posted on July 15, 2012 by geelw

Well, well, well… Not only are we getting a new Godzilla film (that, based on fan reaction to a brief clip shown at SDCC, is going to be a must-see), Guillermo Del Toro’s next film is looking like the ultimate kaiju-style action flick that will be talked about long after its theatrical run. In poring over some stills and the teaser poser above, I really think Del Toro is the perfect candidate to do an Earth Defense Force film if some studio ever decides to take that challenge, but then again, Sandlot’s EDF games are practically epic films of their own in terms of the all out chaos they provide. Anyway, next year will be a pretty amazing one for genre fans if both flicks are worth all the time and money spent on making them. I’ll be keeping an eyeball peeled for the plethora of upcoming trailers that will no doubt be rolling out as each film gets closer to its release.

DragonBall Z Kinect: You’ll Probably Want To Punch Your TV For Real, But…

Posted on July 14, 2012 by geelw

Remember… it’s a game for kids, so there’s that. Motion controls aside, it’s also a tiny bit close to what the Bandai Playdia DBZ games were in a few aspects, so there’s that as well. That means again, it’s a game for KIDS, first and foremost. All the Super Saiyan furor boiling up and way over about this one is a bit much, I think. Hell, if you’re screaming about a motion-controlled DragonBall game and you’re old enough to vote or drink, you should probably be consuming less caffeine and sugar or something. Maybe go read some Shakespeare, get out for a nice walk? I hear there’s some nice jazz in the park somewhere near you… Cultchah, folks, cult-chah…

Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why’d you steal our garbage?! Trailer: Um, Because It Was Free?

Posted on July 14, 2012 by geelw

OK, so I’m hot “hip” like the rest of you kids, as I’ve NEVER seen an episode of Adventure Time. But, I do like funky games like this, so yeah, I’ll play it when it comes out. That said, the answer to that wacky title SHOULD be something like “Because We have a much cooler game on the way!” as in, I hope to hell you’re going to announce that Earth Defense Force 3 IS indeed Vita-bound in the U.S. of A., D3! It’s looking spectacular and could be one of the biggest games on Sony’s handheld in terms of sheer replay value. So, yeah – let’s hear some BIG news around this year’s TGS about giant bugs, spaceships and robots – you’ll make a lot of EDF maniacs like me really, really happy…

Things You Find Out At Starbucks While Getting A Free Drink…

Posted on July 13, 2012 by geelw

So, today from noon to 3pm, Starbucks was introducing its new Refreshers drinks by giving away Tall sizes to anyone who walked into a location. I decided to take advantage of this at my regular Starbucks and a second one just over a mile away (and a nice walk, too) just to confirm something that was bugging me about the Wi-Fi service at the closer location. Turns out I was right, as the Wi-Fi at the shop near me stinks badly while the service at the other spot was flawless and fast. Yes, I was FINALLY able to update my Vita (after installing an older update from the Gravity Rush game card), so from here on in, that location will be my go-to spot for any portable PSN downloads and demos I need to track down. I could use the exercise, so it’s all good.

Oh yeah, the Refreshers were nice. Two flavors: Lime and Berry Hibiscus or something like that. Made with green coffee beans and real fruit, so there was a bit of a jolt (I felt sorry for the parents snapping up Coolers for their kids – it’s going to be a rough Friday night for those wired ones is all I’ll say), not a lot of sweetness (a good thing!) and overall a nice addition to the already hefty lineup the chain offers.