A Whole Lot of Random

Well it looks like I have to work today, which means I won't be able to post anything till later tonight... So here is a bunch of things I found interesting out there on the interwebs... Check them out, and discuss amongst yourselves...

Have a great day everyone...



Images from the new Astro Boy Movie - FSR

inFAMOUS is being developed into a movie - Kotaku

Project Natal to launch next year - Ubergizmo

Biometric Authentication System for vending machines - Gimodo

Michael Sheen confirmed as the villain in TRON - FSR

If you drink milk, here is a jug that keeps it fresh - Ubergizmo

Crazy lady who thinks rainbows are a conspiracy - TBT

Assassin's Creed II - Comic Con Montage

Here is a bunch of Assassin's Creed II info that was released during Comic Con.... And it's brought to you in a montage from Ubisoft...

Thanks to Kotaku

Ghostbusters Costumes for LBP

Why oh why isn't LBP (Little Big Planet) released for the 360?!?!?!

I guess my friends who own a PS3 are about to get a visit from me... Well, as long as they get these costumes that is...

Thanks to Kotaku

Assassin's Creed II Black Edition

The Assassin's Creed II Black Edition, is the special edition of what will be another one of my most played games (right up there w/ Geometry Wars (not a joke, I actually play it allot (bah, forget it, just continue reading)))...

This Special Black Edition will include:

• 64pg, finely crafted leather style hardcover, w/ parchment finish book
• soundtrack
• Ezio action figure (aka Puffy shirt doll)
• behind the scene interviews
• 3 in game bonus quests

All of this wrapped in "black packaging" (w/a "unique authentic holographic signature")...

I'm not sure how I feel about this new trend for companies to give bonus levels to their customers as long as they pre-order... I think it would be a good idea to release those levels to the rest of the public as DLC... it doesn't have to be the same days as release, but a month or so down the road would be nice...

Check out Kotaku for the rest...

The Problem w/ Video Game Studies

This article isn't surprising at all to me as I spent the better part of my youth studying psychology, and as always the classes I loved to hate ended up teaching me some of the most important things. Those being Stats, and Psychometric Theory.

< tangent >

Stats class covered (get this) statistics. Everything from how to get them, to how to manipulate them. Trust me when I tell you that I can get hard data on pretty much anything, beat it up w/ some statistic clubs and come up w/ whatever results we wanted.

Psychometric Theory class covered all psychological tests. Everything from administration to analysis. All of them biased in some way. Once you know how they are biased, you can manipulate at will.

< /tangent >

Now I'm not rising up against all testing, just on how said tests are analyzed and reported upon.

Now we in the gaming world all have read our fair share of studies. From violent "games bread violent behavior", to "game playing increases reflexes/hand eye coordination", and I believe we all take them in w/ a grain of salt. We understand that the reporters tend not to be games, they are not one of the "representative random sample" They are however sensationalists looking to boost ratings, all to keep their precious jobs in a dying field.

So yes dear reader, we have more ammunition against those people who scoff at us... Now go forth and read that article, for one day the knowledge may come in handy to slay the critics.

And if that doesn't work, we can always run them over like a hooker... then take their money (which floats around their lifeless body).... then paint the car (to loose the one star).... just like rl...*



*note: that last sentence was in jest... please don't kill your hookers... that's just mean...

Assassin's Creed II - Screen Shots

Check them out here at Kotaku...

The shots look good... but Ezio is not Altair, and he has a puffy shirt... and if pirates couldn't make puffy shirts cool, how is an apprentice assassin (who isn't Altair) going to...

Oh course I'm sure the game play will be awesome, and hopefully I can get blood all over that puffy shirt to make it a little more manly...

Dexter Game on the iPhone/Touch

Your favorite serial killer is now in the palm of your hand (or should I say "Apple of your hand") If this is anything like Trauma Center I'm going to buy it...

Check the Preview here from Kotaku

Direct from the "Minionstry of Information"

Not my kind of game, but I would love to watch more videos like this... It has a Gremlins/Bioshock/Dr.Steel feel to it...

This seems to be the direction of the video game industry, in that they make great videos for games, why not have lil films that can exist outside of the game... think TF2 and how Valve is talking about a movie based on the character shorts...