The King Returns

YES. Joss Whedon is coming back to TV! With Buffy Alumni Eliza Dushku! Unfortunately, it is on FOX, which has badly burned Whedon in the past, but given that Whedon swore up & down he was done with network TV after Firefly and doesn't need to go back, I believe they will hopefully give this guaranteed awesomeness a real chance.

Moving onto this weekend's movies-I want to believe that a guy like Jerry Seinfeld would only do quality projects. After all, it's not like he's made a habit of whoring himself out after his show was canceled. But I'm not seeing this with his new animated film, Bee Movie. It just feels like most non-Pixar efforts, bland and uninteresting, but I'm sure the kids will love it.

Speaking of kids, have we had enough of peculiar ones with special needs that suddenly become parented by an adult that isn't well adjusted themselves, cause we got another one with Martian Child. Granted, this one has the great John Cusack and seems to take a more serious tone than the mostly comedic films of this nature, but it doesn't make it any less cliched.

But there is some hope in Denzel Washington's latest turn as a bad guy in American Gangster. It's been too long since we had some good mobster drama up on the big screen, and the last time Denzel played bad, he got an Oscar out of the deal, so I expect similar quality here. I will check it out if I'm not too tired from working all weekend, otherwise, I'll probably check it out sometime next week.

TRAILER OF THE WEEK: WANTED

Does gore=quality?

The simple answer is of course not. But you'd think with all the painting of Nintendo as a company with a "kiddie" image the last few years (and the general reaction to any game that didn't have an "M" rating), you'd think the level of violence (and in some cases sex/nudity)actually correlated to the level of quality. And here's where the Manhunt series comes in. See, though the first one was essentially an exercise in pure depravity, which some people definitely got a kick out of, I wouldn't really consider a high quality title. Now with the highly controversial sequel finally hitting stores in a few days, one has to wonder if the game is actually any good? My honest to god guess is that it's going to be a fairly mediocre experience. But hey, at least you can't complain about the Wii not having any M-rated titles!

I'm making one last plea to all Wii owners, current and future: BUY ZACK & WIKI. This is a game you should not miss out on. I've mostly said my piece on this brilliant title, but maybe some highlights from the dudes over at Destructoid will help you make the right choice:

BUY THIS GAME.

ZACK AND WIKI: QUEST FOR BARBAROS' TREASURE IS THE BEST GAME AVAILABLE ON THE WII RIGHT NOW.

PURCHASE ZACK AND WIKI AS SOON AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE.

If you own a Wii and you don't purchase Zack and Wiki, you are a bad person.

I want to go out on a couple of quick plugs, first my buddy Kevin has a new site where he gives humor-filled reviews of bizarre old arcade titles-The Arcade Diaries. This is the one guy I know who can school me in just about any area of game knowledge, so he definitely knows his stuff and it's a very worthy read.

The second, in case I don't update before Tuesday, is for the sixth season of Scrubs, out on DVD Tuesday. As I said when discussing the season premiere, there are some definite low points, but the worst episodes of this show is still better than 95% of anything else on TV, so it's well worth your money to go pick this up.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Balance Attack

The most terryfing thing about Saw IV....

Is it's mere existence. The continuing popularity of this ridiculously bad series perplexes me to no end. I mean really, how much can you stretch this concept, especially when you killed off both the main villain and his protege in the last movie, yet are probably making not just a 5th, but a 6th movie. I think what bothers me the most is not just that these things make money, but that people somehow think this stuff even passes for good trashy horror when it's really just trash. I hope people send a message this weekend by not going into theatres, but given the take of 30 Days of Night, another awful horror film, I seriously doubt it.

I was able to catch the season premiere of Scrubs, and it definitely showed a solid return to form, which is a good indicator of going out strong.

That's really all I got for today, but I'll leave you with these new Super Mario Galaxy gameplay vids that popped up on Gametrailers today:

Monkeys + Pirates=Pure WIN

Joining IGN, Kotaku, and just about every sensible gaming website/blog on the planet. I am pleading with every Wii owner to go out and buy Zack & Wiki this week. Preferably in about 10 hours when it should actually be in stores. You want to send a message that 3rd parties can succeed on the Wii, that not everything has to be a collection of 2nd-rate minigames, that something daring and original can actually succeed? This is your chance right here. For all the whining the gaming public does about cookie cutter sequels and shoddy rushed licensed cash grabs, when something daring and great comes along, they often miss the boat. We saw it with Beyond Good & Evil, we saw it with Psychonauts, and we really saw it with Okami (although at least that's getting a second chance on the Wii next year). I really can't say anymore on the subject except to just go out and buy the damn thing. If your budget is a little tight, the bigger games like Guitar Hero III will still be in plentiful supply whenever you have the money and you know it. With a game like this, you never know if the case is going to be the same, so don't miss out.

And also a quick reminder that the FINAL SEASON of Scrubs starts this Thursday. I fully admit that last season was a low point, but still had some really strong episodes, and hopefully they'll finish this off in a classy way unlike so many other long-running shows that essentially cop out or aren't even worth caring about anymore.

Trailer of the week: Drillbit Taylor

Drillbit Taylor - Trailer

Posted Sep 24, 2007

Two high school freshman are targeted by the school bully on the first day of school. The boys hire what they think is a low-budget soldier of fortune to protect them, but he turns out to be anything but.

Dumbledore isn't gay

Just to be clear, I don't care what sexual orientation of anybody, especially a fictional character in a book, is. But J.K. Rowling's recent "revelation" about Harry Potter's mentor when there was not even a hint of such a thing in any of the 7 novels and the fact that no hint was given by anybody else prior leads one to believe at this point she's just throwing random shit out there to try and drum up continual interest in the series even though it will probably be wildly popular for years to come. It really just seems like a cheap publicity stunt that'll have no merit. I mean, are we going to have any further delvings into Dumbledore's early years that dealt with this side of him? Probably not, which makes the "stunning" announcement pretty goddamn moot. Next she'll probably say Hermoine is a Neoconservative...

This is a huge week for gamers that may end up putting a huge dent in their overall holiday budgets. First off, we have the mega-hit series Guitar Hero III hitting every home console that still has a pulse. I get the reason it's so popular, but I honestly haven't ever picked up the controller for it and rocked out. I think the $90-$100 price tag gives me major pause as well. One day I may get into this series, but this just doesn't seem like the time with all the other games I'm much more interested in hitting stores now or in the near future.

2 of which do hit stores this week. First up is a great new puzzle game for the Wii; Zack & Wiki. For all those who complain the Wii is all about casual games, this is one of those quirky awesome games that hardcore gamers should love, but the look and style will probably cause it to be ignored by those who would enjoy it best. IGN has been campaigning for every Wii owner to pick this up and I wholeheartedly support them in this. This will be the Wii sleeper title of the year, and may even offer a more rewarding experience than Mario Galaxy.

The second is one of those games that finally makes PS3 owners dust off their systems and pick up a controller in Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction. Granted, it's not much of a change from previous titles, which with 5 R & C games in the last 6 years may be a bit much. But hey, it's something until Drake's Fortune finally hits.

The dark horse this week is Eye of Judgement, which launches with the PS3 eye (aka eyetoy). It's an interesting experiment, to be sure, but it's still a freaking card game with an unnecessary peripheral that really adds nothing to the gameplay. I'd like to see this version of the eyetoy actually be put to some good use unlike on the PS2, but I seriously doubt it's gonna happen.

Free Game of the Week: Strategy Defense

Ben Affleck's future

May clearly be behind the camera. Unlike most jaded internet jackasses, this is not a dig on his ability to act. Hell, anybody who watched Hollywoodland should know the guy has some chops. But he's arguably getting his best acclaim to date in his directorial debut of the new mystery-thriller Gone Baby Gone. It looks great, so I'm definitely going to check it out this weekend and hopefully people won't avoid it just because Ben Affleck made a few bad films.

Sadly though, people will probably turn out in droves for the suckfest that will be 30 Days of Night. I mean really. Vampires in Alaska? With only Josh Hartnett to stand against them? Sounds like a 2nd rate Sci Fi channel movie, not a worthwhile theatrical release.

But also worth checking out this weekend is the re-release of one of my all time favorite films, The Nightmare Before Christmas. I haven't gotten a chance to check it out in 3D, which is something they've been doing for a few years now, so I expect to have a very good time checking it out this weekend.

Are game companies reading my blog? Probably Not, but two things I've been championing for awhile have sort of happened, so of course I'll believe it's all due to my efforts! Firstly Little Mac is actually in Brawl! Unfortunately, it's only as an assist trophy, which is a bit of a jip, but at least he's in there. Much more exciting though, is that Okami has been officially announced for the Wii! A true sequel would probably be a little more welcomed, but of all the ports being made, none makes more sense then Okami. Hopefully it will not be criminally ignored like it was on PS2. Actually makes me sort of glad I never finished the original...

TRAILER OF THE WEEK: THE EYE

THEY'RE DROPPING LIKE FLIES!!!

Yeesh. Just after I get my 360 back, my computer completely dies on me. I'm not sure of the exact reason, as I've had plenty of times where the thing crashed and took awhile to right itself, but it usually recovered. I didn't have anything truly important on there thankfully, but it's already a pain getting new passwords for everything and I dread the long prospect of re-installing most if not all of my music (plus some files I'll probably have to download all over again). This forced me into buying a new computer, which I was sort of seriously thinking about anyways, but I'd rather I had time to pick something out I knew was perfect for me at a great deal than just having to grab one thing by the end of work today so I had something to keep me connected to the oh so precious interwebs. I definitely went for simplicity as although it's a new laptop that while most likely far superior to my relatively powerful as of 3 years ago rig, probably can't run any current top games. But as I thought about it, I couldn't think of many enough PC games that would warrant me spending the kind of money required for a suitable gaming machine, so I just went with the simple model that could easily do the basic stuff any pc these days should be able to do. Probably could've gone even cheaper if I went with the tower equivalent, but what the hell, I like the idea that I can actually take this with me if the need arises.

Making some headway in the mountain of games I'm currently trying to tackle, I did beat Bioshock on Friday. It's an incredible experience, to be sure. But I do think one area they could've improved on was boss fights, especially the final one, since he had a ridiculously easy pattern and was dumb as a rock in a game mostly praised for its AI component.

I also saw Michael Clayton, which while I thought it was a tad too predictable, was extremely well acted and an excellent choice for anyone craving a really solid legal thriller.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Portal: The Flash version

Bioware & Pandemic sell their souls

Bioware & Pandemic. Pandemic is a very solid developer in its own right, but Bioware has created some of the great masterpieces of the last decade; with The Knights of the Old Republic games & the upcoming Mass Effect under their belt. Now we may see nothing but quick cash-in sequels with little to no innovation, because they have been bought by EA lock, stock & barrel. I'm going to try and be optimistic and hope that EA is finally listening to their critics and acquiring some real talent to make some quality games. If they really give these studios creative freedom, we can see some great stuff (maybe even some great licensed games) come out of it. But I have a bad feeling we'll bee seeing yearly sequels of some sort meant to cash in on their previous efforts.

Nintendo follows up some of their best news ever (Sonic being in Brawl), with some of their worst, as they made it official today that Nintendo's all-star beat em up will not reach US shores until February. This is certainly disheartening news, but again, with so many huge titles out this year, I seriously doubt anyone will really notice it's absence. Wii owners will probably still be playing through Mario Galaxy.

I finally did see The Kingdom, which sort of plays like a slightly more competent Michael Bay message film. There is solid acting all around and hints of a taut political thriller, but anytime the plot starts really delving we get loud explosions and lots of gunfire, and sealed up in a trite attempt at how we aren't so different form one another or something. It's still a solid flick I'd recommend for a bargain matinee or a rental.

Which means this weekend I will most likely be checking out Michael Clayton, which does open nationwide, as it seems to be the closest thing to a safe bet. The only other major film even worth mentioning this weekend is We Own the Night, which seems more like a cheesy Steven Segal/Charles Bronson vehicle than something that Mark Wahlberg or Joaquin Phoenix should waste their time on. But of course Segal's career is long dead & Bronson is just plain dead so I guess somebody has to fill these kind of roles.

I forget to mention it in my last post, but if you own a PSP, you should probably pick up Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions, which shipped out this week. The original is a true strategy classic that way too many people missed out on and is now a e-bay treasure. But if you have a PSP, you have no excuse not to pick this up & if you were thinking about getting one, this is a good reason to. It may never measure up to the DS, but I believe the PSP is finally becoming a solid choice for a portable system with a decent library finally shaping up. It's just a shame it took this long to get there.

TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Jumper

Too much of a good thing?

The Orange Box is easily the biggest game release this week, and arguably the best deal ever. For a mere $60, you get arguably the greatest shooter to date, Half Life 2, it two episodic expansions, the heavily anticipated multi-player frag fest Team Fortress 2 & the very unique puzzle game known as Portal. Unfortunately, thanks to my 360 being out of commission for about a month, I may have to hold off on this purchase til I at least finish Bioshock and/or Stranglehold/Eternal Sonata/Blue Dragon. But if your gaming schedule isn't as clogged up as mine, I highly recommend picking up this great value.

OMG! SONIC IS CONFIRMED FOR SMASH BROS. Excuse while I joygasm, you can too while watching his intro vid:



In addition, some official titles for Nintendo's downloadable service, Wii Ware, were announced. Final Fantasy as a downloadable title? Could be interesting.

That's really all I got for today. But check out this sweet new music vid I made for the upcoming Wii title No More Heroes:

How about a seeker of movies that don't suck?

Cause this weekend major releases are sorely lacking in the quality department. First up, we have the latest attempt to spawn some new Harry Potter-esque franchise with The Seeker: The Dark is Rising. How much of this crap do we have to suffer through? The reason the Harry Potter films (and the Lord of the Rings films) have worked is because they weren't cheap obvious cash-ins. These latest attempts reek of of exactly that.

I really hope Heartbreak Kid delivers the message that everybody else as tired of Ben Stiller's one-note neurotic act as I am. He's still fairly funny in supporting roles that are different from his usual shtick (see Dodgeball), but the guy hasn't really been able to carry a film in years.

It doesn't open nationwide until next Friday, but George Clooney's latest, Michael Clayton actually looks worthwhile, and it's playing here, so I definitely plan on checking it out.

The PS3 store unleashed a demo of the upcoming Simpsons game by EA. That'll teach me to get excited about a licensed product. I honestly thought because EA wasn't rushing this, it'd be one of the few Simpsons games that didn't completely suck. But aside from really solid presentation. like many EA games, this was a mess of bad control and outright poorly designed gameplay that brings to mind who the hell thought this would be entertaining?

A $400, 40-gig PS3 is all but confirmed. Will this be the move the PS3 needs to finally compete? A decent selection of software wouldn't hurt, but this is a good step. The real question is what is being sacrificed aside from unnecessary hard drive space? The removal of a couple of usb ports and the card slot isn't very significant but I have heard rumors of a complete lack of backwards playability, which given the current (and for the near future) library, would be a very bad thing indeed. I honestly don't think price is as much of an issue as something to really sell the system, which probably won't happen until Killzone 2 finally hits. Assuming it even delivers.


FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Super Pilot

THEY CAME FROM JAPAN!!!

The greatest potential of the Wii's virtual console is most definitely to play those gems we never really got a chance to play on their original systems, be it because they were just too obscure or in the case of today's releases, not even released on these shores. I mean sure, you could've picked up the real Super Mario Bros. 2 in a couple of compilations over the years, but this is the first time you get the original, completely unaltered version. And oddly enough, Treasure's 3D masterpiece, Sin & Punishment, never saw the light of day here in any previous form. Hopefully this is the first of a stream of unreleased greatest foreign hits (Mother 3, anyone?).

If the Halo hubbub has died down (or your just looking for some portable goodness), the next great game of 07 is upon us-Legend of Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass hits tomorrow and will probably be the last Zelda game for quite awhile given how often they pump out these things, so take your time with it. I'm not sure how I feel about the switch to strictly stylus controls, but if they are able to keep the game fun, that's really all I care about.

After two episodes, I'm about ready to give up on Chuck, NBC's new "high-concept" "comedy". It's too bad, cause the premise seems interesting enough, and I'll watch Adam Baldwin in just about anything, but this series just seems flat to me. It's not like there's much else on Mondays at 8 though, so I might give it a couple more tries before completely writing it off.

TRAILER OF THE WEEK:

Stephen King's The Mist

Finally able to finish the fight...

YES! It wasn't exactly an agonizing wait thanks to other distractions (like my new Sony toys), but I can finally play Bioshock, Blue Dragon, Eternal Sonata & of course, Halo 3. It is not my old system, so I'll assume that one has been put down like an animal, but hey, it's just a console and I welcome my new one with open arms (as long as it keeps working anyways). So expect to see me back online on a much more regular basis.

So, I still haven't popped in Resistance on my PS3, but I have played a demo for the upcoming rpg Folklore, and it's not half bad. Granted, the graphics look like a decent PS2 title and there is no voice, which already makes it sort of underwhelming. But the soul-catching aspect, especially using the remote almost like a fishing reel to pull in souls, works surprisingly well. I couldn't recommend this for a $60 purchase if that indeed turns out to be the price, but it seems like it'd be worth it when the price does go down.

I realize I'm a day late on this (attribute it to being exhausted), but let's get on to this weekend's movies. I like the Rock. A lot. He's a very charismatic actor who's willing to take a lot of chances. That should get him plenty of plum movie roles. But so far, he's mostly been relegated to schlock action films which have mostly flopped. So now, he goes the embarrassing Disney family movie route with The Gameplan. Didn't we do this with Hogan, Schwarzenegger & Diesel? Hopefully more daring fare like Southland Tales will turn it around for Mr. Johnson.

The only other movie this weekend worth talking about is The Kingdom. An apparent murder-mystery set in Saudi Arabia, with hostile culture-clash thrown in for good measure. It looks great, and has gotten some good reviews, but just as many bad ones, so it makes me a little weary. But I'll most likely check it out this weekend anyways if I'm not too into the gaming haze I plan to get into.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Fugitive Takedown

The anti-anti Halo 3 hype

So, Halo 3 has come out and busted all kinds of sales records and of course with any game this popular comes the small but vocal minority of haters, which has always puzzled the hell out of me. I mean, there are plenty of popular series I'm not a fan of. Silent Hill being the most noteworthy (because I think it's a horrible series), but the revered Metal Gear Solid series doesn't exactly give me a hard on like it does most gamers either. But if this is news to you, it's because I don't make a big deal out of things that aren't my cup of tea. I may say my piece on them briefly, but then I move on. This vocal minority, like so many, think their belief is law, and anybody who thinks otherwise is not just wrong, but an idiot or a mindless sheep. It's that sort of thinking that makes them look like the complete idiots.

So, my PS3 did arrive yesterday, but to be honest, I was extremely tired, so I just made sure everything was functional and pretty much went to bed. I downloaded, but haven't played the demo for Folklore. Which reminds me, I really hope Home smooths out the online system, because right now is is the clumsiest, ugliest online system out there right now. Suddenly I feel a whole lot better actually paying for Xbox live if it's helping fund the far superior setup. I was able to get my account going though, and as you can see, right under my 360 gamertag is my PSN ID, Eradicator31. So feel free to send me a friend request. Right now I just have Resistance for online play, but I may get Warhawk in the near future as well.

That's pretty much it for today. I'll certainly be back tomorrow with a look at this weekend's movies, and in the meantime here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK:

Juno

The "I'm in denial, but ready to crack" phase

I keep thinking it's not gonna be a big deal, but as the release of Halo 3 crawls closer, I'm starting to think crazy thoughts since mine's still at the repair center with no real idea of when it coming back. Ranging from seeing if I can simply rent it from somewhere to outright buying a brand new one. I'd be even more likely to follow through on the latter option if I wasn't positive the minute I did that I'd get notice from MS telling me to expect my console back in a few days and something would happen to the other console to where I couldn't return it. I realize this whole line of reasoning sets me up for a nice suite at Bellevue, but it's just the way my mind works, especially since when I do finally get my 360 back, I'm probably be working double time just to make some headway in Bioshock, Blue Dragon Eternal Sonata & Halo 3.

Speaking of Halo 3, will it live up to the massive universe of hype behind it? Probably not, as MS is pushing the game as the second coming. But it will be a title with a solid campaign mode and a multi-player so chock full of stuff that you may not even notice when major competitors like Call of Duty 4 hit.

That's really all I have to say for today, but I should be in possession of my PS3 either tomorrow or Tuesday, so I'll definitely write something about that.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Feudalism

A Weekend Chuck full of Promise? Not r'ly...

Ah, another weekend of seeming disappointment. I mean seriously, the only thing that could save Good Luck Chuck from being a complete waste is a long scene of full frontal nudity from Jessica Alba. Hopefully this will cement Dane Cook's fall from his ridiculously undeserved stardom. I want to believe Eastern Promises will be one of those powerful. meaningful movies that deserves heaps of Oscar praise. But David Cronenberg's last effort, A History of Violence, is not only one of the most over-hyped movies in recent history, it's also one of the worst films I've witnessed in recent history. How that trash got so much praise is beyond me and I feel Promises will be of similar caliber. And do I really need to elaborate on why it's bad that a third Resident Evil movie even exists? I mean, the first wasn't horrible, but c'mon, this should be a direct to Sci Fi channel franchise at best, not a major movie trilogy. Well, I still haven't gotten around to seeing 3:10 to Yuma and I actually have a lot of free time on my hands this weekend, what with no 360 and all (more on that in a bit).

I previously mentioned that I acquired a PSP at a great bargain, and I hinted that I may be having a PS3 soon as well for a similarly great deal-This has happened. I am expecting to get the system on Monday and got it at quite a discount. And yes, I did get the 60 gig, because no way in hell would I get the gimped 80 gig if I had another option. I've already picked up Resistance so I have something to pop in when it arrives (and then realized how sad it is that the only title I want of the current selection is something that came out last November) and I may pick up Stranglehold as well if my 360 shows no signs of coming home anytime soon.

Now onto my 360. HEY MICROSOFT! THERE'S THIS GAME COMING OUT NEXT WEEK! MAYBE YOU'VE HEARD OF IT? STARS A GUY IN GREEN BODY ARMOR WHO FIGHTS ALIEN MENACES? I mean fuck, I'm a patient person, but I know that my fucking system has been sitting at the repair center since LAST MONDAY. And I have heard no update aside from that the console has been received and it is being repaired. If it's taking this fucking long, I should at least receive a loaner, especially at this fucking critical juncture. I've really been working too many hours the last 10 or so days to try and get some sort of explanation why I'll be missing out on what is easily the biggest console release of this holiday season. No disrespect to Nintendo, but I want to finish the fight way more than I want to travel the galaxy with Mario or beat up a bunch of friendly mascots. And suddenly there's the very realistic possibility of that not happening in any sort of timely manner. And that makes me one incredibly unhappy and pissed off 360 owner.

I know the Tokyo Game show is in full swing right now, and I've seen plenty of cool videos for stuff that once again probably isn't hitting until next year. Really only two important news bits so far: Sony is apparently bringing back rumble, which is funny considering they derided it so much in the past. Again, I've never considered rumble a big deal, but when you make a point to mock the competition for considering this feature important, then make a huge splash about adding it, you look like a total jackass. The smart move would've been either to say it was something you might be looking into adding (which we all know you were) or just stay mum on the fucking thing. I mean really, have you guys ever heard of "no comment"? It'd save you a whole ton of trouble. The other is that Sony's much vaunted "Home" system won't be appearing until sometime next year. I just have a huge feeling this is going to go from something that could've potentially been cool to an ugly mess that never gets it right.

TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Southland Tales

The myth and the reality

Joining the likes of Ubisoft & EA, Capcom recently reported huge profits thanks to their Wii efforts. This, like so many real facts flies in the face on the anti-Nintendo crowd as one of their long time claims was only Nintendo makes money on their systems. If 3rd-party companies make titles that are more than licensed crap, people will actually buy them. It's an edgy idea, but there you have it.

I am now the proud(?) owner of a PSP, but only due to an extremely generous discount. I still think the system is massively flawed at best, but there might be just enough quality titles on it now (such as Jeanne d'Arc) to warrant the extremely low price I paid (hint: significantly less than a DS). With a little luck, I may be playing Drake's Fortune on the cheap this holiday season as well.

This weekend's selection is nothing short of pure shit, so I won't talk about it. I haven't gotten a chance to check out 3:10 to Yuma just yet, so this weekend seems like a perfect opportunity.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Cow Tippin'

We may never fly the Crimson Skies again...

FASA studios has officially closed its doors. Makers of such great games as Mech Warrior 4 (one of the few Mech games I have ever enjoyed) & Crimson Skies (which is easily the best air combat game made for consoles in the last 5 years or so).But their most recent project, the massive failure that was Shadowrun is what most likely killed the studio. I had high hopes that we would see a sequel to Crimson Skies in the not too far off future. But if the guys at FASA aren't doing it, I'd rather it never be made.

Fans of fun horror & mystery would do well to check out the 2nd season of Supernatural. I admit, I initially regarded this show as WB/CW's desperate attempt to lure some back some Buffy/Angel fans; and while not quite up to the caliber of those shows, it has its own fun spin on the horror genre.

Easily the biggest game release this week is the latest disappointing PS3 exclusive, Heavenly Sword. But it may have never had a chance in the first place, with everyone expecting it to be a next-gen God of War. I did see promise when I played the game at PAX and it seemed mostly solid, but the reported 5-6 hour length killed any interest for me.

While everyone is talking about the big rivalry between Guitar Hero III & Rock Band, Jam Sessions, released for the DS this week, might actually be the dark horse that wins it all. I mean it turns the DS into a guitar! Not some crappy controller that is like a guitar, but a real freaking guitar! I know, it sounds like this is one of those improbable things, but just check out these vids:





Gaming sites have gotten their hands on the kinder, friendlier Manhunt 2. What's changed? Not a whole lot, surprisingly. Just removal of the fairly unnecessary ability to rip a guy's balls off and making the kills a little blurred, which seems ridiculous. I mean, if they are being killed in a brutal manner, would simply censoring the act make it really any less disturbing? It's like when they censor the middle finger on TV. We all know what it is. Blurring it out doesn't make it not there or any less "offensive". Hopefully in not too distant future we'll all look back on this stuff and laugh while we are decapitating infants while running over hookers in GTA VI.

TRAILER OF THE WEEK: The Hunting Party

Three journalists return to Bosnia five years after the end of the war to search for the most wanted war criminal, who is still on the loose. Based on a true story.

Boom Boom, Bang Bang

There are two movies opening worth actually talking about this weekend. Both feature overwhelming amounts of testosterone with many manly men doing manly things in a way that isn't seen much in the age of the Metrosexual. First up, there's the remake of the classic 3:10 to Yuma, this time with Christian Bale & Russell Crowe. Granted, it's probably nearly impossible to improve on the original, but I love a really good western, which hasn't happened in quite a few years, and this easily looks like it will fill that much needed void.

But I'm more more pumped about the unapologetically mindless action thriller Shoot 'Em Up. Granted, there's a possibility this could just be a cleverly marketed bomb like Snakes on a Plane, but gloriously over the top action films that don't take themselves seriously tend to work, and I'm more than willing to bet this falls in that category rather than the just plain awful over the top films like XXX.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Year of the Snake

The journey begins

So, the box to ship my crippled 360 arrived today. I quickly dropped it off at the nearest UPS location, and it's apparently already on its way to the repair center (gotta love tracking numbers, I'll definitely check every few days). With a little luck, I could be back harvesting ADAM by middle of next week if all goes smoothly.

Let the Playstation 3 volley of exclusives begin. Factor 5's much-hyped Lair hit this week. It was supposed to be one of the games that not only gave the six-axis controller some real validity, but justify your purchase of this powerhouse that's the most expensive of the current crop of consoles. Well, if you've checked out most reviews, it does neither. Now of course, some moronic Sony fanboys are just responding with cries of reviewers being prejudiced against Sony games (and just as idiotic 360 & Wii fanboys are pointing to this one game as evidence that the console is a colossal failure), but that's too be expected. What's really sad is Factor 5 is basically admitting it sucks, but blames everyone but themselves. So very pathetic.

Luckily, 360 owners get the cinematic masterpiece that is Stranglehold while PS3 owners have to wait for their version (though it does come with Hard Boiled, so that may be worth the wait). The reported 8-hour single-player mode probably makes this a solid rental for me when I do get my 360 back as I have little interest in the MP aspect, but all action junkies should give this one a look.

And congrats on Metroid Prime 3 selling over 400,000 copies in its first week. No hardcore audience on the Wii, huh? Hopefully this & the universal praise this amazing game is getting will prove that developers can make good hardcore games for the platform and gamers will buy them.

TRAILER OF THE WEEK:

My Kid Could Paint That

Funniest Tuesday Ever?

One thing I've sort of been ignoring lately is the weekly releases on DVD. Part of it is because I've usually already said how I feel about certain movies when they are out in theatres and don't feel like repeating myself. Another reason is that many weeks see no truly noteworthy releases. But I'll try and talk about these a little more often. This week is a particular rarity in that now you can enjoy the latest (or in some cases first) dvd release of four of the funniest shows on TV in the last decade or so (with video evidence of why they are so great).

First up is the most obvious and easy choice, the brilliant third season of The Office. It's amazing how this went from a lazy retread of the British series it was based on to its own brilliant animal. Just goes to show what can happen when you actually give shows a chance to develop.



There's also the wildly off-the-wall 2nd season of Robot Chicken. Somehow it's managed to do what SNL hasn't been able to do for 20 years: Make sketch comedy funny again. Granted, it's probably easier getting great comedic performances out of plastic dolls than it is to get them out of people like Kenan Thompson, but it's still quite an accomplishment given all the failed attempts at re-launching sketch comedy over the years.



If there is one show that might be more insane that Robot Chicken, it's the chaotic genius that is It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. It's sort of like a Seinfeld for our generation, with characters so self-centered and flawed they create truly cringe-worthy moments of comedy without ever really verging into just truly tasteless territory. Double kudos for giving Danny Devito his best and most despicable role since his Taxi years.



And the last big release is a series I was incredibly slow to warm to, but has quickly turned into a show I genuinely look forward to every Thursday night. 30 Rock started off bad. REALLY bad. It didn't help that I had a fairly low opinion of Tracy Morgan from his "work" on SNL. But magically, the elements somehow began to gel. Morgan is still arguably the weak link of this cast, but they play to what few strengths he has, and Alec Baldwin shows some true comedic genius, with both Tina Fey & Jane Krakowski providing brilliant backup.



All of these are well worth your money. If your wallet feels a little tight afterwords, just remember it's going to a good cause: KEEPING STUFF THAT'S ACTUALLY FUNNY ON TV!

No treats, just tricks

Though Halloween is about 2 months away, this weekend seems filled with movies designed to scare you with poor humor, bad acting & nonsensical plots all designed to trick you out of your money.

Firstly, there's Rob Zombie's "epic" remake of Halloween. How this joker became a sudden revered director of horror, I'll never know. He's just as bad as any other shit director making crappy horror movies. In this version, his bright idea is to try to give reasoning to Myers evil behavior. But that was what was so great about the silent man in the white mask to begin with. He had no reason for turning out bad, he was just an evil SOB from the moment of his birth. Sure, the occasional conflicted villain is interesting, but we don't need that for our fun trashy horror films.

Already punishing theatre-goers for a couple of days now is Balls of Fury. It's like Dodgeball. Without Vince Vaugn, or Ben Stiller or anything resembling humor.

And finally there is Kevin Bacon trying to murder whatever is left of his career with Death Sentence. A remake of Death Wish. Just think about that for a second. Somebody actually remade Death Wish. Next thing you know, they'll turn Joust into a movie. Fuck....

Just one more thing to address today. The oh-so wise & mighty Variety posted a scathing review of Metroid Prime 3. They apparently complained because it isn't a casual game like Wario Ware or Wii Sports. You know, because apparently there's some law that says you can't make a game for hardcore gamers on a system that caters more to the casual gamer. This is possibly the stupidest fucking review in the history of all reviews. I mean seriously, it's like bashing Viva Pinata (which while it didn't sell great, had universal acclaim) for being on a system that is mainly aimed at young adults who enjoy sports & shooters. Hell, this is one of the games specifically designed to address the criticism that Nintendo has all but abandoned the hardcore gamer. To criticize a game not because it's bad, but because you think it just isn't appropriate for some target group is beyond moronic. I never give much credit to variety to begin with, but this is a new low in absolute stupidity.

Game of the Week: Toast of War

BUT HE WAS SO YOUNG!!!!

Well, my 360 is dead, at a mere 9 months old. Surprisingly not by the oh so infamous Red Rings of Death that have plagued so many other 360 owners, but apparently by a completely fried video board. I find myself surprisingly calm about this considering I still have plenty left to do in Bioshock, just picked up Blue Dragon and Stranglehold is a little less than a week away. I dunno, I guess I was just mentally ready for this or something (having plenty of PS2 games & Metroid to play certainly helps). I do have to give props to MS tech support. I wasn't on hold very long at all, they didn't give me a whole lot of crap, and the entire call was done in about 20 minutes. My attitude may change depending on how long it actually takes to get back on line. Seems like it's going to be a minimum of 2 weeks. Could be over a month which would mean I'd have to wait to play Halo 3 and Eternal Sonata, which would make me stabby. So hopefully MS has their shit together and I'll get mine back in time to finish the fight at the very least.

If your 360 is in proper working order, you may want to check the newest available Live Arcade titles. Sure, there's Puzzle Fighter, which is a worthy download, but much better and surprisingly barely mentioned is the beat-em-up classic Streets of Rage 2 for a measly 400 points. This is also on the Wii Virtual console, but it's cheaper on live with co-op and achiveements, so MS definitely gives you the superior experience here (which is rare, cause the emulation usually sucks).

Planning on picking up a PS3 at the "bargain" price of $499? Better move quick, cause Sony claims they haven't got anymore. So let's review this decision again. Sony drops price. Many fans & developers claim it isn't enough, but sales comparatively skyrocket. Sony apparently decides this is bad and rather than continuing to increase sales by keeping this model, they introduce a more expensive model with minor improvements that will eventually completely replace the old one. Class, what do you think will happen will only the more expensive model is available?

Trailer of the Week:

The Assasination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford

The Assasination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford - Trailer

Posted Yesterday

An action western surrounding the private life and public exploits of America's most notorious outlaw, Jesse James. In 1881, a younger member of the notorious Jesse James gang becomes so inextricably drawn to and frightened of his mentor that his own delusions of grandeur force him to consider doing the unthinkable.

A Next-Gen Relic

Oddly enough, Metroid Prime 3 is possibly the least interesting title coming out this week. Why? Because it's yet another example of Nintendo proving all the naysayers wrong. This is a great game enhanced by the supposedly suspect Wii Controls that delivers on Nintendo's promise that they are not abandoning their hardcore fanbase or hardcore gamers in general; and they have several more titles that will be out this year that keep on delivering on that promise. This shouldn't really even be a question by now. If it's from the House of N and it's a title with big expectations, it will deliver. The answer isn't whether or not to buy Metroid, it's simply why haven't you bought it?

Much more interesting are the big 360 & PS3 titles coming out this week. PS3 has their big multi-player downloadable, Warhawk (which will also be available at retail). Much like 360's Shadowrun, this is a game that you can only play online. And while there is a whole genre of popular games that only offer online play, those titles generally offer a rich array of content beyond just your usual array of deathmatch options. Shadowrun was pretty much a massive failure, and Warhawk is almost guaranteed to be the same. I just don't really understand the reasoning behind titles like this. You cut off way too much of a potential audience in this way that you never would with a game that could use Multi-player, but has a strong offline component to make up for it (like Metroid or Bioshock).

Then there is the first big rpg of this year for the Xbox, Blue Dragon. This was a huge smash in Japan, quickly becoming the best-selling 360 game to date in that country. So rpg fans over here should eat this up, right? Well, possibly. Reviews are pouring in, mostly calling the game too old school for its own good. And with more original fare like Eternal Sonata & Mass Effect on the way, gamers should probably pass this one up. I'm very much on the fence here. On the one hand, Blue Dragon sounds like what I am looking for when I want a classic Japanese-style rpg. But on the other hand, like many gamers, there are way too many awesome games coming out now, and I just don't have money or time for anything that falls short of awesome. Blue Dragon being simply "good" just won't cut it. Of course, I say this about many rpgs that are simple decent, and end up buying them anyways. Blue Dragon will most likely be in that category.

The PAX recap

Christ, what a weekend. PAX was fun, but incredibly exhausting. If you're interested in pics (of which I did take many, including me with Wil Wheaton & some of the guys from Rooster Teeth) & vids, check out the PAX 07 thread at the Gorillamask forums (warning, this is a site full of perverts and degenerates, so of course it's like a second home to me, but venture beyond that particular thread at your own risk). So I've added Wil, Rooster Teeth and the Mega 64 guys to my links. I could've done it sooner, but to be frank, not like they need any help from my small little blog and I don't believe in putting stuff on my site that I'm not at least a casual supporter of by visting it at least couple times a month. To be honest, I haven't kept up much with what any of these guys are doing beyond when they get massive notice for something (like's Wheaton's big split from G4 or when the Mega 64 guys parodied Resident Evil and nearly got arrested), but I'll try and check in on their stuff more often so at least I can post it to the 5 people who visit this site who might also not know about this stuff.

One very pleasant surprise that was somewhat related to Pax was that I discovered a new old DS game to enjoy: Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime. This got pretty solid reviews when it was out, but I just didn't see the appeal. I wanted a new game to play while I waited in line (which is something you'll do quite a bit of at Pax if you want to get in early or go to any of the good panels) and I picked this up used for $20 and it was money very well spent. Pax is normally a great place for multi-player DS gaming, but I completely ignored that and played almost nothing else the entire weekend. It's basically Zelda lite, but it's incredibly fun.

Of course, what would PAX be without new games to play? Still pretty fun, but it doesn't hurt to have a bunch of cool new shit. The biggest draw was easily Rock Band. People lined up for hours to get one play on the damn thing. I don't have that kind of patience, but I was lucky enough to be there to film Tycho (the bald dude on guitar) from Penny Arcade doing a round with a few other guys:



Oddly enough, Sony (possibly desperately trying to garner some goodwill from the actual gamer community) had easily the largest presence, with a HUGE booth, lovely ladies attached to the new PSP for play, and all their hottest exclusives playable most of which I had some quality time with, so I'll give you a quick summary of what I did play:

Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction-Holy hell was this disappointing. I have never not loved an R & C game. It's actually the one game Sony had coming out this fall that I thought would be a guaranteed winner. But if this demo is any indication, it probably needs another year of fine tuning. The frame rate just sucks, there's extremely noticeable tearing all over. The lock-on also barely worked, making strafing and aiming a ridiculous chore. Finally it really seems like they've added nothing really new that's worth mentioning. Granted, there's technically nothing wrong with classic R & C gameplay, but this seems like the best example of a game that literally has nothing new to offer except a shiny next-gen coat of paint. I have faith in Insomniac, so I'm praying I'm horribly wrong and this was just an early demo.

Heavenly Sword-Pretty much what I expected. The fighting is solid, but like some reviews have said, is limited to small confined areas that seem to repeat way too often. And the non-fighting levels just plain suck.

Lair-Most reviews have already trashed this game, and they are right to. The whole design of using the six-axis to steer is just uncomfortable and not fun whatsoever. Plus, the game itself is just incredibly dull.

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune: Now this game got me excited about buying a PS3. The acting is shit, but that's the only flaw I could see. The game is gorgeous, runs incredibly smooth, controls great (probably due to almost no six-axis bs) and gives you a great sense of being a modern-day Indiana Jones. I highly recommend this for anyone who owns a PS3 and if PS3 can produce a couple more gems like this, I'll probably pick one up myself in the near future.

That's all for today, as I am incredibly tired from the weekend. But don't forget to check out IGN's review of Metroid Prime 3 which should be up around 12:01 am (and I'll talk about that along with all the other new games coming out this week tomorrow). In the meantime, here's a couple of videos & the GOTW for you:

ULTIMATE METROID PRIME 3 TRAILER:



Trailer of the Week: Into the Wild

Into The Wild - Trailer

Posted Jun 29, 2007

Based on a true story of one young man's tragic 'return to nature'. After graduating from Emory University in 1992, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandoned his possessions, gave his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhiked to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Bowling Alley Defense

Where Wil Wheaton is King

It's a good thing there aren't any movies I'm interested in this weekend (well, I was interested in War, but the complete lack of advance screenings for any critics leads me to believe it'll suck hard), because the major geek gathering of 07, the Penny Arcade Expo kicks off tomorrow right here in Seattle. And the keynote speaker is none other than geek icon Wil Wheaton. It's actually pretty amazing how Wil has gone from one of the most hated characters on a beloved sci-fi show to someone who's more or less become a symbol for geeks standing up to those who would exploit them. I definitely became of fan of his during his short stint on G4 when it was still a network for gamers and not some half-assed attempt to be the next Spike. He'll be sure to kickoff a huge weekend and I'll be there with my new camera to take some hopefully good pictures for nearly the whole event.

I'm a little late on this, but I hope you picked up the newly released special collector's edition of the greatest sci-fi film of the last 10 years, SERENITY. I normally abhor the double dipping process, but this edition is pretty reasonably priced at around $20 and that's worth it for the addition of commentary with most of the cast. I can understand given how this did at the box office, how a big budget sequel isn't warranted, but given the trash that gets made into TV movies or direct to dvd movies these days, I really don't understand how a show with such a huge following, that every single major person involved said they would love to continue working on can't be resurrected in some form.

Ok, that's really it for now, I'm going to try and get as much Bioshock in as I can before I go geek out at PAX.

SUBMERGEPWNED!

Yeah, that doesn't really work, but I didn't want to use a tired diving cliche like so many other sites out there.

But before I get to the main part of my post today, I pulled off a rare 3-for-3 this weekend-I saw 3 movies, and all of them rocked. I can honestly say that's an extremely rare occurrence if not a first time ever. King of Kong was magnificently insane, abusrd and hilarious. Even if you have never looked at a video game, you should be able to enjoy and appreciate the pure insanity of this documentary (although you'll probably be constantly thinking to yourself "this can't be for real!").

I also finally saw Knocked Up, and I have no idea why it took me this long to get around to it (I think I got the idea in my head that it would lose nothing on video, which is probably the case, but that's hardly stopped me before). But it's really just as hilarious as everybody's been saying and probably one of the more brutally honest films about pregnancy.

And then there's Superbad. I admit, I really expected this to just be a mildly amusing teen romp, but it's one of the better teen romps in a long, long time. It's very relatable, with great dialogue and much like Knocked Up, a mostly refreshingly honest look at high school. So to sum up, any of the above 3 films are a more than solid choice if you are looking for a good laugh.

There seems to be a conceit among gamers that FPS games need to have multi-player these days. If that was really true, than nearly every game would need some sort of MP aspect, because it supposedly makes the life of the game potentially nearly limitless. Granted, it can be an important part of the game, but that's only because these people have only played FPS games with relatively weak single-player components (yes that includes Halo, which while it has a solid single-player, it could easily be much improved, and is far surpassed by its multi-player). Hell, many of the best FPS games of all-time have no mp component whatsoever. If your provide a solid (meaning at least 10 hours, but preferably around the 20-25 mark) engaging experience, no one is going to lament about the lack of multi-player. Bioshock is exactly that, and you can tell by the reviews it's getting. If you have been rejecting the game by thinking it's too linear or too short, your just shortchanging yourself the experience. Be sure to pick it up on Tuesday.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK:Quickling

Gaming's finest "athlete"?

Now that so called cyber-athletes are actually getting some level of recognition, with big pro leagues and broadcasts on not only cable, but major networks, it seems like a perfect time to remember one of the originals, Billy Mitchell, who set a lot of original records when even fewer people gave a damn than they do today. So it's fitting that a documentary about him and one of his records being threatened comes out in limited release this weekend in King of Kong. Granted, two grown men competing for a high score in an ancient arcade game seems like boring fodder only the nerdiest of nerds would even bother to pay attention to, but the reviews have been stellar, saying this is essentially a mockumentary reminiscent of gems like Spinal Tap & Waiting for Guffman, but of course, the difference is that it's all too real. So I'll check it out with high hopes this weekend and hopefully if you are in one of the 3 major cities it's playing in (New York, LA & Seattle), you'll check it out too.

If you're not in one of those cities or just looking for something a little more mainstream, don't worry, the infallible Judd Apatow brings you his latest guaranteed laugher-Superbad. Granted, it's obviously the very familiar ground of high school losers trying to do remembered for something cool (or at least get laid) before high school is over, but the reviews claim it rings truer than American Pie or most other recent efforts, so it's most likely worth checking out, which I plan on doing if I have time.

One movie to clearly avoid, however, is The Invasion. How Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig got talked into this obvious 3rd-rate Body Snatchers rip off is beyond me. Seriously, just save yourself some time and money and rent the cheesy yet entertaining '93 remake for a much better time.

The Top 9 Current Gaming Myths

Ah, the internet. While an occasionally reliable place to get the biggest and latest scoops, for the most part, it's really juts a giant web of not so carefully constructed lies generated by fanboys, general morons and people just out to wreak havoc for fun. Luckily, most myths can be debunked fairly quickly, but some are kept alive by ardent fanboys or sometimes even self-deluded people who buy into their own bullshit. So, here, in my opinion are the 9 biggest myths still floating around that just aren't true.

9. Duke Nukem Forever is coming out: Possibly the biggest example of vaporware ever. Nobody has spent more time (or possibly money) on a single title. Hell, the last Duke Nukem game was over a decade ago, and it's little more than a joke now. I'm not even sure there'd be any viability in the title now with a market flooded with FPS games left and right as it is. Time has moved on, so should anybody claiming this game is real.

8. Licensed games ALWAYS suck: The general thought about licenses is that they are all bad and are bad for the industry. While a good majority of them are mediocre, many aren't given any credit simply because they are tied into a license, be it a movie, Comic Book, TV show or a Cartoon. But good licensed games aren't that hard to find really, you just have to be able to pick out the good from the bad. Hint: If it's based on a crappy property, it's probably gonna be a crappy game. Most solid properties (Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Marvel) have had some incredible games over the years. So don't pass something up just because it's a licensed property. Hell, one of the best Xbox games was a license from a shitty movie.

7. People want their consoles to do more than just play games: Today's consoles have online play, downloadable content, can play hi-def movies and can probably make toast as well. But how many people even take advantage of these features? Not nearly enough to justify the huge focus Sony & MS are putting towards those type of features right now. In the future, this will most likely be the case, but who's to say how far off that is? A year? 5? 10? More? Both Sony & MS have said they want to expand the market, but these massively intimidating machines they produce just don't send that kind of message to your average consumer that they are trying to reach.

6. Final Fantasy VII is getting a next-gen remake: I believe it's completely possible we will see the most popular Final Fantasy game get a re-release on a console in the near future. But if it happens, it's not going to be some full-fledged high def remake. It'll be released on a portable system or via a download service or possibly even as part of a compilation of some sort. But no high-def next gen remake is happening. Ever. There's just no real motivation behind it for Square Enix. Sure, they redid FF3 and are re-doing FFIV for the DS with a graphical overhaul, but that's a fairly minor monetary commitment. If the did the same for FF7 for any of the 3 home consoles, it would require really completely reworking the game from the ground up, and they've got more important things to work on (like pushing out Kingdom Hearts III sometime this century!).

5. Xbox Live is a great deal: Yes, Xbox live is the best online setup of any console right now. It's slick interface and constant stream of content cannot be matched by any competing console. But it's not really as great a deal as it seems when you really break it down. I can download movies, but I can only "rent" them for a severely limited period. Many things that should probably be free or at least reasonably cheap are given a ludicrous price tag. I have to pay just for playing my online friends, yet the competition lets me do it for free. The Xbox Live Arcade selection is mostly a joke and embarrassment, offering butchered classics and mediocre original content. But the real, final straw is the "points" system. Every console is a little guilty of this, but MS has perfected this art of ripping off the consumer, because you can only buy points in increments that don't really match up if you download content you pay for on even a semi-regular basis, and MS is purposely vague about just what the points really equal. There's always leftover points, which essentially becomes wasted money, much like when you've got less then $20 in your bank account. It's there, you can visit it, but even though it's your money, you can't really use it. Some drastic changes need to happen on Live if MS is going to continue justifying this setup.

4. Sony is dying: This has been the rallying cry of the anti-Sony crowd for awhile now. Sony's had a rough time over the last couple of years, no argument there, and there is still some things that need plenty of work. But Sony's not going anywhere. 2008 looks like it might really be Sony's year (after all, we have no real clue what MS & Nintendo have in store, but there's plenty of exciting stuff coming for the PS3). The tide is starting to turn in Blu-Ray's favor, and temporary cut or not, Sony's sales are steadily improving, which all points to the end result being very positive for Sony in the long run. They definitely won't have the massive stranglehold they enjoyed the previous 2 generations, but they'll probably be successful, and may even end up winning the thing if high-def adoption really takes off in the near future. And even if this round is a "loss", there's always next time, and Sony certainly has enough yen to tough it out until then at the very least.

3. The most powerful console wins: Whenever you ask a Xbox 360/PS3 fanboy (not owner, just moronic, loyal to death fanboy) why they think their console is going to win, the answer almost always is because it's the most powerful. Obviously these people flunked history. In the entirety of videogame wars, only one time has the most technologically advanced system come out on top, and the was in the 16-bit wars, where the differences were fairly minimal to begin with. Every other single round has seen the most powerful consoles usually fail to keep pace with the less powerful ones. It's plain and simple fact. Which makes it sort of ironic since Sony won with the least powerful hardware the last 2 rounds and this time they are trying with the most powerful system.

2. Nintendo is abandoning the hardcore crowd: It's easy to see why some idiots believe this. Nintendo is aiming their system to truly be for everyone this time around, and with that strategy apparently working, you are bound to see a greater influx of games simply not meant for those of us who spend a large portion of our time and money on games. But seeing as the system hasn't even been out a full year, it's idiotic to make any assumptions at this point, and the library just doesn't support that notion. Zelda, Paper Mario, Resident Evil 4 and plenty of good classic Virtual Console titles should've kept most hardcore gamers pretty busy during the first half of this year, and both Nintendo and 3rd parties are stepping it up this Winter with a slew of great games like Metroid, Mario Galaxy, Smash Bros., Zak & Wiki, Nights 2 and plenty of others. The Wii is just as loaded with potential big hits for the hardcore gamer as any other console, and they will continue to support that base.

1. My console of choice is>Your console of choice: Hey, I like what Nintendo is doing this round and I don't like what Sony is doing (and I tolerate Microsoft cause of games like Halo 3 & Mass Effect). I've never made any pretense otherwise. But it's an opinion of what's right for me based on what my likes and preferences are, and it may change next year depending on what happens in the industry. It doesn't mean my choice is superior to yours or vice-versa. Each console has it's strengths & weaknesses and anybody who seriously mocks you for not choosing the same thing they did is just an idiot and deserves no serious response. You picked your console, for whatever reason you have and you don't really need to defend that to anybody.

And there you go. Great myths debunked. Course, knowing my luck, they'll probably announce a firm release date for Duke Nukem Forever, an PS3 full remake of FFVII, and Sony's imminent bankruptcy tomorrow. In the mean time, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK:

Across The Universe

They hate it when you call 'em "Big Poppa"

Of course my friend here is a rather poor substitution for the real "Big Daddy", a mysterious and powerful guardian of the Little Sisters that inhabit the mystical underwater city of Rapture. You can see & experience these beings yourself by downloading the newly available demo of Bioshock on Xbox live, which I highly recommend. Not only does it look awesome, it's one of the few scary games I've found to be actually scary as well as allowing you a huge amount of variety in which to kill your enemies. I just hate that it makes me want the game, as my late August is already filled to the rim with Blue Dragon, Metroid Prime 3 & Stranglehold also all coming out in the same 7 day period. Suddenly I yearn for the slow times of the last 7 months...

Stardust was phenomenal. I haven't been this pleasantly surprised by a movie in years. It may be the best fantasy movie in well over a decade. It was funny, tremendously well cast and acted. It's pretty much the modern day equivalent of The Princess Bride (though definitely more grown up, so don't take the little ones).

There is basically one release anyone seems to care about this week, and that is the juggernaut that is Madden 08. I'm not extremely excited about this year's edition, but I'll at least check out the Wii version for online play, and supposedly they really nailed it this year, so I may even try the 360 version as well.

And I just got one more thing to leave you with today, a brand new 15-minute preview of MASS EFFECT:

Nintendo is bipolar

A quick note before my rant: As you can see I've added my Wii Friend Code and my Mario Strikers code where anybody can see them, so feel free to add me. Just remember that you have to send me your code as well.

I have no other explanation for how Nintendo behaves about the internet. Everything about how the Wii is online appears to indicate an incredibly slick package-Wifi, News,weather, internet access, voting channels, being able to share avatars(Miis), downloadable games. But for such a sophisticated-seeming system, it's lacking 2 very basic functions-An easy way to play with friends (though oddly enough not total strangers) and demos or even videos of upcoming games. Well, it looks like Nintendo is at least turning the corner on providing downloadable material, as the Metroid Prime Channel was released with 2 new Prime 3 vids with more stuff on the way up until the release. I would hope that the channel may eventually include a short demo and possibly even downloadable content, but that's probably asking for too much. It's a start, let's hope Nintendo (and others) think this is a positive move, cause I'd love to see some lower profile titles that look great (like Zack & Wiki or Battalion Wars 2) get at least the same treatment.

Let the Halo 3 advertising onslaught begin, found these at my local Bartell's:










There's also a 7-11 promotion starting up soon and I'm fairly positive I heard something about a Burger King promotion as well. Obviously, MS is banking on this being what keeps them ahead of the Wii this holiday season, and with the game already at over 1 million pre-orders, it may be able to do just that.

The Penny Arcade Expo is just under 2 weeks away, and yours truly will be in attendance for at least 2 of the 3 days of this gaming mecca (hopefully with a bunch of pictures for everyone). They finally released the event schedule, and it looks like it'll be a grand old time, much like last year (I'm especially looking forward to keynote speaker, Wil Wheaton & watching a screening of The Last Starfighter with plenty of fellow nerds).

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: RACIST CHECKERS

Catch a falling Star

It would seem like the safe choice this weekend might be Rush Hour 3. Sure it's gotten crap reviews, but I usually consider movies like this sort of the theatrical equivalent of McDonald's. Too much (hell even a semi-regular amount) will probably give you serious health issues, but nothing's wrong with indulging every once in a blue moon. And seeing how the last Rush Hour was 6 years ago, I'd say it was just long enough.

But I (and hopefully the general movie going audience) am going to take a risk on a film that's getting surprising buzz-Stardust. This offbeat fantasy epic is surprisingly low-key, but my critic friends who have seen it speak very highly of it, so I'll definitely try and check it out this weekend.

Has EA finally learned a bit of a lesson? I've noticed on Xbox live that free Madden videos are popping up. The same kind that EA had the gall to charge for in a previous year. This seems like the biggest note of a turnaround from a company I loathed not all that long ago, and seeing some licensed titles that didn't suck, along with some actual innovation in their long-running franchises gives me some hope. . Even their latest title, Boogie, is an indication of this. Maybe it's not a great title(I'll let you know when I can get my hands on a copy), but it's original and different from what EA usually does, so that's a start.

FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Rise of Atlantis

Will the real 360 please stand up?

Well, in addition to the long-known and long-awaited 360 price drop finally happening this week, gamers who decided it's time to "jump in" may want to also make sure exactly which 360 they are getting. I'm not talking about a difference between the Pro & the Elite (and if you're even seriously considering the Core, someone should slap you with a restraining order regarding any and all video game-related purchases ever). No, I'm referring to the fact that unannounced by MS, it seems that most new 360s that are going out not only have HDMI ports, but 65mn chips that will supposedly solve that nasty overheating issue (or at least make it less of an issue) and even a quieter dvd drive. Being a semi-early adopter, I'm not too upset at this news, I just hope that if and when my 360 dies, I get a newer premium model rather than the old one with the same issues (maybe I should start playing a lot more to make sure that happens...)

Licensed games suck as a rule. Licensed games based on old properties resurrected seemingly as a cash grab suck even more. That's pretty much been my opinion of what John Woo's Stranglehold would be. Nothing more than cashing in on a fondly remembered stylish action epic. The demo released on Xbox live today proved me wrong. This is essentially Max Payne for a new generation, totally hyped up with awesome use of slo-mo and stylish shooting sequences combined with a great level of interactivity. It's a shame this is out the same week as Metroid Prime 3 (and shortly before Halo 3 as well), but if you've got some spare cash in-between all the huge hits coming out, this is certainly worth a look.

That's really all I got for today, but here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK:

Fierce People

Return of the Son of the Bride of the PS3

Well, the gimped, yet more expensive version of the PS3 officially launched today (though I heard some places were selling them as early as Tuesday). Sure it has a slightly bigger hard drive, but at the cost of backwards compatibility when the cheaper version has near perfect backwards compatibility. And the PS3, unlike the 360, was actually made so you can remove the hard drive & get a bigger one with little effort, so why anyone would buy this model is far beyond me. But of course, soon gamers won't have a choice, except to buy other systems. Congrats Sony, do you need a bigger shovel to keep burying yourself?

Bourne Ultimatum absolutely rocked. Easily one of the best action flicks I've seen in a long time. If they do keep going with this franchise, as long as Damon & Greengrass are paired up, I could probably watch another 30 of these.

So, how is Mario Strikers a few days in? I'd consider it a solid first online effort, though the matchmaking certainly needs some work, as I've encountered nothing but people who seem far superior in skill to me. I'm willing to accept the fact that I probably suck, but matching me against people who don't completely destroy me every time would be nice.

That's really all I got for today, but here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: ORPHAN FEAST

It's like a stealth franchise

Seriously, even though the Bourne franchise is way cooler than anything James Bond has cooked up it the last decade or so, it always seems to come along, be completely awesome, then forgotten until the next installment, and still manages to blow us away every single time, which is why I'm extremely excited to check and the third (and possibly final?) chapter, The Bourne Ultimatum. It should by the spy flick to end all spy flicks. Bottom line: Ethan Hunt, James Bond & Jack Bauer all need to watch this guy and take notes.

It's the clear winner in a sea of nearly guaranteed losers. Though Jason Lee's star is on the rise with the fantastic My Name is Earl, he seems to be content with not going any bigger with obvious trash like Underdog & later this year, the long-dreaded live action version of Alvin & the Chipmunks. Unlike most film nerds, I certainly don't begrudge Lee for taking what are clearly simple paydays, but considering the guy has done some great work in smaller films like Dogma & Mumford, I hope he starts taking some chances with his work again. Hot Rod is the big screen debut from supposed SNL breakout star Andy Sandberg. Granted, his digital shorts have probably been the best thing on SNL in years, but that's not saying much, and they are really just mildly amusing bits at best. I have serious doubts that this guy will join the ranks of guys who actually broke out from the horrors of SNL to show that they are actually funny. And I just shudder at the fact that there is even a "Bratz" movie in existence. These plastic teenage hooker dolls do far more damage to little girls self-esteem and image issues than Barbie ever could.

GTA IV has been delayed till the vague timeframe of Spring '08. If all I had was a PS3 to bide my time, this might matter. Hell, to be honest, I wasn't completely sure I'd be picking this up on release day with the avalanche of great titles coming out this holiday season, now Soring is generally a very slow time and may give me reason to seriously seek it out.

That's pretty much it for today, but I realize the Iron Man footage was yanked so here's another trailer to make up for that fact:

The Nines