300: Rise of an Empire Trailer 2: Is It Miller Time Again? I Need A Beer…

The funny thing about this trailer (at least to me) is the formerly innovative filming technique used so well by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez in Sin City, then Zach Snyder in 300 has been run so far into the ground that it’s a parody of itself to people like me who’ve seen it used and overused to assorted degrees of success and failure by a few too many directors who should know better (or just don’t). Now, as Snyder is only writing and producing this sequel, it’s all up to newcomer Noam Murro to direct himself out of the corner this comic-frame technique has placed anyone who’s used it since 2005 into. Granted, this one should be a total blockbuster because we seem to love this sort of stylized violence and all.

300WCU

Nevertheless, in my case… as soon as I see or hear of a release date my home video watch clock starts a-tickin’ away with the counting down stuff and I get to take a half-assed (but sometimes reliable) guess on how long it will take before that big deal over-hyped AAA flick ends up coming to a store near you at a decent day-one discount if you pre-order…

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Pre-Trailer Trailer: Wake Me When It’s Over Over…

I didn’t like the reboot at all for many reasons and I don’t think I’ll like this sequel equally at all either (he said, intentionally mangling the language with relish). If this one’s as overblown and underwhelming as the reboot was, I’m only going to be smiling when the people who think this will be better get what they deserve when they pay up for that movie ticket. Now, I don’t wish Spidey any ill will at all, mind you. I just wonder how a TV series would do as a weekly show or series of monthly movies that might cost a lot less than what’s looking like a CGI-packed ego project (with Stan Lee popping up in a cameo again). Then again, other than bits and pieces, none of the Spider-Man films has ever really been my favorite. I think I’ve seen the first one three times, but every other one except for the reboot twice. That one I saw once on cable and I almost changed the channel when (yet again) Peter Parker was mask-less for too long as if it’s contractually obligated for his secret identity to be revealed to as many people as possible at the most inopportune moments.

Bleh. Anyway, all these days of “Ooh, here comes the trailer!” trailers and the resulting foaming at the mouth and pants from the usual suspects online only add to the sense of desperation I sense going on from folks who so want this to be bigger than it needs to be. These folks so want the movie to be better than it is that they’ll fool themselves that it’s much more awesome than it actually turns out to be. Of course, that’s Hollywood these days, so I guess I can take it or leave it as usual. Leaving it gives me more time to do stuff I care about a lot more than a film with what’s going to be a four or less month trip to Blu-Ray at the end of the day…

Random Indie Game of the Week: Paper Sorcerer

 
PaperSorcerorOkay, so I missed this one as a Kickstarter (what else is new?), but as soon as I saw this video for Ultra Runaway Games’ Paper Sorcerer, they got my five bucks just like that. As a fan of old school CRPGs like Wizardry, Dungeon Master, Daggerfall and others plus more modern takes on them such as The Dark Spire and Etrian Odyssey, this game jumped out and bit me with its stylized visuals and smooth, speedy movement. Did I mention that it’s Mac AND Linux compatible as well? I’m only about 40 minutes into it, but I actually need to STOP playing and put it aside just so I don’t get hooked in and forget that I’ve about a dozen other games I need to review or preview before I get started on a new one. Here’s a longer look at some gameplay from the developer’s YouTube page:

Yeah, I see you reaching for that wallet. Go on ahead – I’m sure Ultra Runaway won’t mind. While you can get the game on Desura and it’s in the running as a Steam Greenlight candidate, buying this DIRECTLY from Ultra Runaway assures they get more of the profit and you can also pay more than $5 if you like as well as get the game’s soundtrack for an additional $5. Support those indie developers, I say! Anyway, if you liked what you saw above, you’re already downloading this before you’ve finished reading this post. Go, YOU!

Yeah, yeah… I’ll get a review up shortly – probably within a few weeks as I whittle down my backlog of stuff glaring at me to get it done.

Persona 5: One REALLY Great Reason to Keep That PlayStation 3 Around…

Persona 5 chairsWinter 2014 in this case probably doesn’t mean between January and March of next year, folks. If anything, Atlus is smart as hell for getting the team working on this to do so on the old hardware simply because they know it so well and can make this the best-looking Persona game to date if they choose to go all out on the visuals.

And speaking of visuals, that image from the Japanese website (currently the sole piece of art available) is pretty striking, isn’t it? That said, I’m not going to be stupid here and speculate what it means other than to say that given the previous games were about high-school age kids discovering they’re endowed with special powers and need to save the world before it ends in some insanely dramatic manner while also going through the motions of daily life, classwork and homework should still present a major story point throughout the game.

Eh, we’ll see what’s what over the next year – there’s plenty of time for Atlus to drop loads of updates before the game is ready to ship out…

Now, about those OTHER Persona games… read on for my take, if you dare…
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A Timely Reminder From The Beeb…

 
NO, not THAT one. The RIGHT one. In case you’re missing it, that worldwide telecast of Doctor Who’s 50th Anniversary episode will indeed be rebroadcast a few more times today and tonight before it most likely pops up on your Free On Demand channel if your cable box has that service. That is all you need to know in case you forgot the episode is on NOW (and is about to end shortly)…

A WHOLE Week of Doctor Who? Apple Sales Will DROP Drastically!

EDIT: Edited!

No, not those popular (but slipping in sales as of late) fruit-named hi-tech devices of many uses, but the more popular (and slipping off a tree branch, so get with the dodging, Newton!) fruit that makes some great pies, sauce, leather and other stuff you might not enjoy if other things were labeled as such. Crow pie is terrible, Kudzu sauce? Nasty! Llama leather? Awful AND it makes you seriously gassy! Anyway, next week should be pretty hard on Whovians who haven’t yet invested in that digital delay device or happen to have BBC America on their Free on Demand service in case they miss anything thanks to actual work or play activities. My own schedule suggests I’ll be playing catch up unless I go and “EXTERMINATE!” a few tasks early. I probably won’t break my routine all that much, as that tends to do nothing but make time holes in a few areas where I don’t need them (or have had to do a simple patch job that doesn’t need any further fiddling.

A Doctor A Day Keeps You Guessing (In A Good Way)…

So, not only are we getting what looks like the ultimate Doctor Who episode on November 23 in a very special simultaneous broadcast, but an actual TV movie (and DVD, at least in the UK) about the show’s beginnings. Okay, so I’m a bit behind on this news, but hey – I’m a busy man more than an obsessed fan so I need to time my excitement properly or else it’s a permanent state of bug-eyed wild postings and potentially doing what every other overexcited fan does (posting crazy YouTube videos that make me look like a total nut). Anyway, An Adventure in Space and Time looks like it’ll be a nice history lesson for Who fans and hopefully it’s more fact-based than the crap Hollywood biopics that always follow the same predictable plot patterns and lose any sense of veracity in favor of hitting the audience over the noggin with the requisite schmaltzy elements that focus test better than the actual truth.

An Adventure In Space and Time DVD UK

Eh, we’ll see soon enough, right?

As Usual, Call of Duty Gets A Celebrity Crazy Live Action TV Spot…

Here’s an answer to a question I was asked by not one but TWO readers in person within the space of a week or so (yes, people ask me stuff on the street when they see me) about coverage of some of the bigger AAA titles and why I don’t spend a ton of space covering them like other sites. It’s mostly because I prefer to NOT rush out a review before or with everyone else and partly because I can;t get access to loaner debug units like I used to a few years back. Complain, gripe, whine, et cetera, et cetera. I miss my old PR wranglers who did me the occasional odd favor, but what can you do, kids? Meh, life goes on! I was supposed to get a trumpet blast with that last sentence, but I’ll settle for a bleated out note on the STL Ocarina I’m reviewing…

Anyway, I actually liked last year’s big celebrity-packed TV ad much better, but this has its fun moments:

COD_G_Wii UGranted, I’m a LOT more interested in Call of Duty: Ghosts for the single player campaign (no matter how long or short it turns out to be) and YES, I’m much more interested in the upcoming Wii U version just to see how it turned out (Yes, *shocking!* isn’t it?), as Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 wasn’t bad at all on Nintendo’s overly maligned (by some of the Internet’s troll-iest under bridge dwellers) console which REALLY just needs some love and a lot more good games from first and third parties, as there’s NOTHING fundamentally wrong with it at all.

That said, it certainly looks great on any system I’ve seen it on, so I guess everyone will have it on their a favorite console soon enough. Yeah, that’s right. I’m a root for the underdog guy myself these days, so there you go…

Batman: Arkham Origins Launch Trailer: Your “Personal Mission” Is To Buy This Game.

To quote the Joker (not verbatim, of course):“Ha ha heee hooo haa.” So, not only is the console and PC version solid, even the portable version is doing well. So, haters be damned. On the other hand, no one listens to the ranters and ravers who bile it up over games they haven’t played, so let them rant and complain. WB Games sure doesn’t need them for this game to be a hit, that’s for sure. Go get it or he’ll come and get you. The Batman, that is. The Joker is a bit tied up right now…

Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate Gameplay: Out For A Scroll In The City Jail…

Amazingly, some really whiny “fans” are griping that this isn’t the same game as the console versions and that’s it looks like a tablet game or whatever. *Yawn*, I say to those folks, most of whom I gather haven’t played some of those old side-scrolling Batman games from back in the day. Blackgate looks good to me, not every Vita (or 3DS) game is going to be blowing the doors off of the last great one and finally, forming judgments without getting one’s grubby to non-grubby paws on the game makes you a typing monkey with an opinion and not liable to be listened to by developers, publishers or anyone else who you’re trying to soapbox out of a purchase. Now, go slip on a banana peel and get comfortable with those cranky comments elsewhere. I’ve got me some bad guys to catch and henchmen to hurt. Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate comes out to-morrow (10/25) on the PlayStation Vita and Nintendo 3DS.