Somehow the creators of this poster accurately predicted my reaction to its movie’s trailer. Hey-o!
You’re not going to see much in the way of protest at the RNC in the corporate media. So, I’d like to post a few clips here and there of what’s going on.
Here a group of activists save a friend from being arrested. Nice job fellas.
Braid, given all its hype, was building itself up to be a major disappointment for me. After play through three of the “worlds,” however, I can’t stop thinking about it.
Like Mario, which it include obvious odes to, Braid works because of its simple controls. It is, despite what Alex Albrecht of the Totally Rad Show says, a puzzle game that, unlike most puzzle games I’ve played, is totally satisfying.
Some puzzles took me an hour to complete, which tested my ability not to throw you controller out the window. But when finally figured out, the they gave me a sense of overwhelming accomplishment. I totally enjoyed earning a puzzle piece then trying to figure out where it fit into the picture.
I hear that the game’s developer has some interesting thoughts on how games like Too Human, which lead you along with more weapons and armor to collect, are, in his words, unethical. I’m not sure that I agree, but I like that Braid doesn’t punish you for dying. Somehow, it just makes the game more fun.
Braid’s only flaw is its terrible writing. It’s convoluted and overly complex in an effort to sound smart. Instead, it comes off as pretentious. The plot, however, is great. It just isn’t explained very well.
Microsoft is struggling to keep its market share of the gaming hardware market. So I fully support Don Reisinger’s idea to make Xbox Live free.
Why not? PS3 and the Wii don’t charge for online gaming. And they can supplement the lost $50 per player fee with better downloadable games and movies.
Ummm. This is actually kinda good. I feel gross saying that.
On July 25, the Wall Street Journal published a commentary titled “What Bush and Batman Have in Common.” The author, Andrew Klavan, argues:
There seems to me no question that the Batman film The Dark Knight, currently breaking every box office record in history, is at some level a paean of praise to the fortitude and moral courage that has been shown by George W. Bush in this time of terror and war.
“The Dark Knight, then, is a conservative movie about the war on terror,” Klavan continues.
Having seen the movie, I agree. Sort of. It is a conservative movie. But that doesn’t make it a historically or politically accurate depiction of reality. Read the rest of this entry »
Since my 360 broke again, I’ve been searching around for some free games for my Mac. Luckily, I found TripleA–a freeware version of the classic boardgame Axis and Allies.
I love Axis and Allies, but don’t always have the time, or friends, to play it regularly.
TripleA is good, not great, and its downfalls are easy to overlook. I learned a lot more about the rules of Axis and Allies, some of which are overlooked when I play the board version. The graphics are nice, and it’s easy to get around the large map. My only real problem was that the computer moves happened so fast that I couldn’t keep up with what was going on.
I’m looking forward to playing through a few more times, and possible trying to set up a game online against some real players.
Today marks the third Xbox 360 I’ve lost to a hardware failure (known as the red ring of death) in two years. Lukily, I’m still under warranty.
I wrote to some Microsoft executives I found on Consumerist, and told them, as I’m telling you right now, that I will no longer suggest to any of my friends that they buy a 360. It’s not worth the hassle, and I now wish I got a PS3 instead.
Sites have reported a 33% failure rate, but given my experience, and the experience of others, I think it’s higher.
Microsoft offered me a one month Gold Live card in return for the time I’ve lost shipping the 360 to the repair center and back. But, to me, that’s measily considering I’ve spent hundreds of dollars on games, DLC, and accessories.
I told some Live friends and, humorisly, they blamed the European Union for banning lead solder. The lead-free solder is supposed to crack easier and cause more failures.
This is a totally bogus argument without much merit. Pleanty of products are now using lead-free solder without nearly as many failure rates. With proper ventilation, heatsinks, and fans, this shouldn’t be a problem. It goes to show how quick the right are to blame the EU and “green” liberals for all their problems.
On the bright side, I will be able to finish up some games I never got to on my PS2, Wii, Intellivision, and Mac, which, by the way, all still fucking work.
I cannot fucking wait. Any game where you can smash a dude’s face with a sledge hammer, organize a guerrilla militia, and kill an oppressive regime is for me. Plus it’s got goddamn jet packs! C’mon.
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