Hey, Kids! Time travel exists! Okay, it doesn’t (sorry, folks!), but I’m making it so with this post because I started it when I got back from the FUTURE, but my stupid computer decided to freeze up and not want to post it when I finished. Boo. Anyway, I was HERE for a while seeing part of the future of entertainment and travel courtesy of Marriott Hotels and a few very hard working and talented folks at Relevent and Framestore. More on this in a longer article shortly. My time-bending skills are limited at this point and I need my beauty rest… good night!
Tag Archives: Media Events
Oh, NOW I’m In Demand! Sort Of…
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Ha. My inbox, which is normally quite packed with invites to all manner of events (but not enough for my tastes) that usually require a bit of reservation time, was recently targeted by a few PR folks with some last-minute invites to events tomorrow and Friday that I may or may not make for a few reasons. I don’t mind going to any and all of them, mind you. But these days, a day or two is a wee bit too short to add, change or make plans to pop out to see something cool to write about because I tend to operate on a sort of semi schedule that I like to follow (sometimes). For short notice events, I tend to go with the musical selection below along with a coin toss:
THAT said, I’ll most likely see the Oculus Rift “transporter” setup down at the Marriott Marquis tomorrow, as I’ve been saying for well over a year or so that the Rift will get the most use outside of gaming as a consumer entertainment device that provides virtual vacations or short tours of famous places for a small fee. This event tomorrow is only a few minutes long total, but it’ll be the first time I strap on those goofy goggles and see what’s what in the company of others. I was around for VR’s first commercial go-round in the 90’s (ah, Dactyl Nightmare!), so this time I’m going in with no expectations other than to be surprised and even more immersed.
There’s another tech event later that evening I’ve already RSVP’d for a few weeks back to attend, but I’ll probably not stay for the full three hours, as there’s free booze and snacks and that’s always TOO tempting to fill up on even though I don’t drink much these days. Well, seeing new tech toys is always a plus, so that’s my main reason for showing up. I got a sudden invite to see a steering wheel peripheral for the PS3 and Xbox One and responded right away, but I’m still waiting to hear back from the PR guy who contacted me. Finally, my entrepreneurial brother is speaking at an event here in the Bronx in the evening, so we’ll see how long my driving experience lasts and if it bleeds into that time. I know pretty much what he’s going to cover, but I won’t ruin the surprise here, as it’s an idea that’s fairly simple yet quite grand if it takes off and goes where he wants it to. Anyway, let me stop here and go check my inbox again, as I just peeked at it and I saw a few more invites in there. Well, lookit – I’m popular again! Go me!
MotoGP 14 Trailer: A Bit of Bike Action Tease To Get Your Monday Racing…
With veteran developer Milestone S.r.L. on the case, MotoGP 14 is looking like a motorbike fan’s dream game. While this particular racing sub-genre doesn’t draw in the legions of fans automobile games do, the developer’s talents at making some very solid racers for quite some time shows once you pick up a controller. I played a few races at Bandai Namco’s NYC event a few weeks back and found the game solid in terms of the excellent controls and sense of speed. Visually, the game looked absolutely great, but I’m betting you’ll be wanting to keep your eyes glued to the road. Speaking of roads, MotoGP14 will feature more than 100 riders to choose from, all the official manufacturers, racing classes and 18 tracks all based on the Official MotoGP World Championship.
As with their other racers, Milestone knows how to yank you into the game they’ve created by concentrating on the details that are the most important, so this just may be one of the better entries in the long running series when it ships out later this year for PS3/PS4, PS Vita, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.
Gamescom 2014: Why Tomb Raider As An Xbox One Exclusive Is A Lousy Move…
One: Tomb Raider got its start at a multiplatform game (PlayStation, Sega Saturn and PC), allowing many millions of gamers to see what original development team Core Design had created. While (very) dated by today’s standards, the innovation on a few technical fronts, a strong female lead character and the game paying homage to everything from Prince of Persia to the Indiana Jones movies made it an instant smash worldwide. Clamping the new game onto ONE system “forever” is to me, a mistake that’s going to result in lower sales for the new game unless there’s guarantee people will buy an Xbox One because of the new game. It’s likely in some cases, but I’d bet an old penny that any console sales are absolutely nowhere near what both Tomb Raider and Tomb Raider II did for PlayStation sales back when both games were released.
In my years in retail, there have been a handful of games I’ve seen people slap down money to buy a console for and the first three Tomb Raider games are on that list. Granted, TR III was a bit problematic on a few fronts (and how!), but crazy difficulty aside, it still sold systems… Continue reading
Project CARS Hands-On: Simple Sample Reveals Miles Of Depth…
Sure, it was a single course (Brands Hatch) and car to drive on that course, but the Project CARS demo running at Bandai Namco’s recent NYC event floored me on a few fronts.
This super-popular initially thought headed for high-end PC-only racer is coming to next-gen consoles in November and (surprise!) is actually set for a Wii U appearance sometime in 2015. More on that later, as overhearing that news from Marketing Director Brian Hong hit me like a ton of bricks as someone was filming me play the demo for their website and I probably skidded off the track and hit something from the shock of that news… Continue reading
