Tagged: game

The Point Radio: ‘Supernatural’ Heating Up For The Season

The Point Radio: ‘Supernatural’ Heating Up For The Season

Season five of SUPERNATURAL has been a game changer, but there is still more on the way before what could be the series finale. We begin our look at the show with a visit from “Bobby” (Jim Beaver) and how his role has changed in the last few months. Plus IRON MAN 2 in IMax and Jackie Earle as another DC bad ass.

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ComicMix Six: Best Geek-Themed Games for the Holidays

ComicMix Six: Best Geek-Themed Games for the Holidays

  • Uncategorized
  • November 19, 2009

With the holidays fast approaching, the question becomes: what do you get for the comic-loving gamer in your household?  Well, here are some of the best releases from this year to satiate their comic-gaming lust and keep you looking like the know-it-all Santa.  From purely comic-related titles to one of the year’s best surprises for film-fans, this is the collection to make your gamer happy.

1: Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (DS, PS3, PS2, PSP, Xbox 360, Wii)

Playing the previous title in this series isn’t necessary, as the events that unfold herein are actually the video game adaptation of Marvel’s ‘Civil War” event from a few years ago.  As players traverse the games environments, you’re tasked with choosing Pro- or Anti-Registration stance as you recruit new team members for your cause.  Gameplay is multiplayer-centric, as 4 players can team up together to take on all foes in this combat rich title.  As players pair up different members of their teams, stat bonuses reward the player for pre-existing groups (like having all the members of the Fantastic Four as a team, for example).  The control is refined from the previous title, so those who ARE familiar with the series will notice tighter control of their teams, as well ease in combining powers, one of the games newer features.  Here, timed special attacks can be joined with a selected partner for a larger attack, and bigger damage results.  While the ending won’t match the comic’s storyline, players will certainly enjoy all the Marvel references and characters throughout the title, and Xbox 360 and PS3 owners actually can download MORE characters to increase their player rosters.

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ComicMix Six: Halloween iPhone Apps

  • News
  • October 22, 2009

Zombie CatAnyone who has been grocery shopping in the past few weeks has probably noticed that Halloween decorations and goodies have already started disappearing from the shelves to be replaced by Christmas merchandise. Most of you have probably already put together your costumes (All of my House Hufflepuff gear is ready for the big day!). Halloween is a hugely popular holiday, and that means there is a large variety of iPhone applications to go along with it. Apps are like the latest accessory to the perfect outfit – you can find something to fit with just about any ensemble – and the great thing about apps is that they don’t disappear when the retail world decides to focus on the next holiday. I have selected my six favorite festive Halloween Apps to review for those who might be in the market for some extra Halloween spirit.

Zombie Me!
by Portegno Apps: You can’t go five feet in this day and age without
there being zombies! This application allows you to take a picture or
use a picture from your library and zombify it. There is a selection of
facial features and body parts which can be re-sized, angled and tinted
to match your picture, and with a little creative editing, you can make
a very “realistic” looking zombie. This application is a ton of fun at
parties, because you can snap a picture of your friends and then show
them their zombie-self a few minutes later. You can even upload your
zombie mug to Facebook for a laugh. Witness what I did to my cat.

Whack-O-Lantern by Decode Entertainment: In this Whack-a-mole style game, Halloween-themed characters peek up from behind curtains, gravestones and other hiding places in a spooky scene. The goal is to tap your main target, Percival Pumpkinhead, as many times as possible when he appears. You can also achieve a bonus from tapping a mustachioed skeleton named Boneski, but tapping a little grinning green guy called Zombish McBrain will cause you to lose points. The game features cute, clean cartoonish graphics and an excellent Elfman-esque backtrack that will put you in the mood to watch some Tim Burton films.

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Paul Kirk, Manhunter– er, Senator?

Paul Kirk, Manhunter– er, Senator?

  • News
  • September 25, 2009

Jesse Ventura was elected governor, so why couldn’t a costumed mystery man serve in the U.S. Senate?

Paul Kirk, the late Senator Ted Kennedy’s temporary replacement, shares a name but (probably) not the predilection for vigilante crime-fighting, with Manhunter, a DC character with an interesting history. 

In the comics, Paul Kirk used decides to become a crimefighter when his friend, Empire City
police inspector Donovan, was murdered by the supervillain known as the
Buzzard. He wore a superhero-like red costume with a blue mask. While
he had no superpowers, he was an above average athlete and possessed
superior tracking skills. Later, he went off to become a big-game hunter, but was killed by an elephant, then brought back to life by a secret society intent on ruling the world (insert obligatory Obama/ACORN reference here) and set up to lead an army of clones of him, but he rebelled and brought down the Council in a story chronicled by Archie Goodwin and Walt Simonson.

That doesn’t seem to describe the real-world Paul Kirk, but who knows? He could be a man of hidden talents.

Or it could be yet another one of those Paul Kirk clones running around…

#SDCC: James Cameron presents ‘Avatar’

#SDCC: James Cameron presents ‘Avatar’

In the grand hall denoted only as “H”, swarms of Comic-Con goers were given a treat of global proportions. 24 minutes of James Cameron’s upcoming Avatar was screened for those on hand. Of course all recording devices were banned from use, but that didn’t keep bloggers away from their terminals as soon as the panel was finished. Here’s the low down of what we know was shown:

Jake Sully (being played by Sam Worthington) is shown entering a military briefing, confined to a wheelchair. We’re reassured by a gruff officer that it’s his job to keep them all alive… but (dun-dun-dunnnnnn) he assures the soliders in the room, including Jake, that he won’t be successful.

From here, we move quickly to a lab where we meet Jake’s ‘Avatar’, an artificial/alien body that will be piloted by Jake after his DNA is combined (via the Avatar program, natch) with the Na’vi alien race. We meet Dr. Grace Augustine (played by sci-fi fan favorite, Sigourney Weaver),  who helps load Jake into the Avatar machine, after a bit of playful banter.

Cue the special effects. We enter Oz, err, Pandora.

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Webcomics You Should Be Reading: “Full Frontal Nerdity!”

Webcomics You Should Be Reading: “Full Frontal Nerdity!”

  • Uncategorized
  • May 8, 2009

I admit it. No need to twist my arm behind my back and make me cry “Uncle! Uncle! Oh Uncle, why would you twist my arm like this? What have I ever done but love you!!!”…Ahem. I admit to you I am a nerd. A dweeb. A dorkus-milorkus. I have from time to time sat at a table with nothing more than a pile of books, dice, pencils, and Mountain Dew, all to play an evenings worth of Dungeons and Dragons. I have from time to time, fired up a video game system to bring death and destruction with linked Ions Cannons. I even admit that I know that Ion Cannons are primarily used to destroy shields in the X-Wing vs. Tie-Fighter series… so saying I would use them to bring death was a false statement.   Nerdy enough? Thought so. My collective of FOMAFers… I return once again to tickle your faces, as I bring you another webcomic to toss into your web feeder gizmo-gadgets. I bring you “Full Frontal Nerdity”! 

Born as a sister comic to the popular Nodwick series by Aaron Williams, Full Frontal Nerdity takes the “Gamers at a Table” concept to fruition. Updated every week, Aaron delivers a ton of yuck-yucks to those of us who have spent an evening or two under the thumb of a wicked DM. For those of you who don’t know what a DM is… you may want to wikipedia “Dungeons and Dragons”. Don’t worry, I’ll wait. Back? Good. You may have noticed that “Full Frontal Nerdity” doesn’t have an entry on said online encyclopedia… so, consider the history lesson here over. How about instead we open up the floor to the humor.

FFN places us (generally) at the table of three live (plus one webcam dude) gamers. The jokes generally stem from traditional things we nerdy-nerds tend to deal with. From the DM who invents problems and can’t out-think his players, to the players who simply swing their axe at any problem that comes to them. Aaron obviously knows his RPG jokes down pat. While certainly less accessible then some of my other picks, it didn’t take long to scour through the archives of FFN to determine I had to share it with you. There’s enough pop culture reference as well as ventures outside the gaming, that are too good to pass up. It also didn’t hurt that my fellow Unshaven Comic creator (and my roommate, and one of my best friends of 15+ years….) told me about it, and even helped pick the list of examples to share with you. What list you say?

You walk down the dimly lit corridor. You notice cobwebs flickering in the torch light, in every corner. The dungeon smells of sulfer, rotting meat, and Calvin Klein’s Obsession… And then from out of the darkness a horrible giant list of comics confronts you!!

Roll 2D20, and see if you make your will save before checking these out:

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Webcomics You Should Be Reading: “Rogue Robot”

Webcomics You Should Be Reading: “Rogue Robot”

  • Uncategorized
  • March 13, 2009

I’m back, my gentle compatriots, with another webcomic for you to feast upon! I know what all of you are saying though, as you sit with arms folded in protest– ”But Marc, you’ve brought to us a rising list of the sick and macabre! Each new webcomic (be it still active, or dead, or with a glorious hard cover archive hitting shelves) has sunk to new depths of depravity. Have you found another gloriously funny webcomic, or are you simply reaching for the rafters in a pathetic attempt to appease us, your loyal and ravenous fanbase!?”

Worry not my friends, I bring to you a funny (if not so grotesque) webcomic to tickle your funny bones. I bring to you… Rogue Robot!

Rogue Robot was started in 2005 by Herron School of Art students Ben Roe and Amory Abbot. Ben initially wrote the strips and provided color, and Amory lent his pencils and inks to the strip. Over time, Ben has become a bit dormant, and Amory has gallantly picked up the slack on all chores, and has been putting out the strips ever since.

The comic had humble beginnings, but quickly gained speed, and found it’s voice. As it has progressed over the years, the strip has really tightened up it’s art, and acerbic wit. Akin to a ‘Penny Arcade’, the comic is essentially about 2 buddies (Amory and Ben) and a few other cast-mates with their own set of unique peculiarities. Humor ranges from straight-up slapstick violence, toilet humor, sex, with occasional epic (as in longer than 1 strip) stories. The comic hits the mark most of the time, and when it goes for broke, well, like so many other comics I’ve shared with you thus far– it’s laugh out loud funny (even though you’ll go to hell for laughing.). It’s also funny to note just how many comics end up dealing with not updating all the time.

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ComicMix Six: Television for the next generation of fandom

ComicMix Six: Television for the next generation of fandom

  • Uncategorized
  • February 17, 2009

We were all kids once and, let’s face it, for many of us there was a particular television show or short that caught our attention and grabbed our inner-geek by the shoulders to shout “Look at me!” Whether you had a particular fondness for Interplanet Janet (“She’s a galaxy girl!”), Underdog, or Super Grover, chances are that something you saw in early childhood helped shape you into the fan you are today.

My sister and I always loved Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends (new action figures are coming out this year!), and my niece is a huge Power Puff Girls fan. This got me wondering what shows will inspire today’s budding geeks. The great thing about these days is that DVD and the Internet make it possible to view not only the latest children’s shows, but everything you feel that old nostalgia for as well. However, today’s children aren’t always as excited about the Wonder Twins or Cowboy Curtis as Mom and Dad may have been. Here, then, are some more recent selections for the latest generation of fans:

1. Backyardigans
From Pirates to Samurai to Space-Travelers and everything in-between, this colorful and musical CGI-animated show (formerly aired on Nickelodeon, and now available on DVD) is all about five anthropomorphic neighbors whose imaginations take them on adventures to faraway times and places. While teaching children about the value of friendship and imagination and introducing several styles of music and dance, this show also stirs the core of future gamers. You see, the characters, Austin (a kangaroo), Pablo (a penguin), Tasha (a hippo), Tyrone (a moose), and Uniqua (a creature vaguely reminiscent of a child-sized pink ant), are like a game group. They meet, they create characters, they play out their roles and scenarios as their game characters, and then they have a snack. If you’ve ever gamed at a con, you know this drill.

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Webcomics You Should Be Reading: ‘Penny Arcade!’

  • Uncategorized
  • February 4, 2009

Penny Arcade!
It’s the trifecta of modern comedy: Sarcasm, Near-Cartoon-Levels-of-Violence, and The Deflowering of Fruit. I speak of a web comic that has consistently delivered all these aspects without fail for over 10 years. Since its creation in 1998, it’s spawned graphic novel collections, a charity that has raised millions of dollars for children’s hospitals, nearly half of my roommate’s funny tee-shirt collection, and its own convention to boot. I speak of Penny Arcade.

In concept it is merely a riff on the (now) age-old Beavis and Butthead theorem: Two dudes and a TV. Swap the TV with a video game system (or PC, or Tabletop RPG), and swap the aforementioned dunderheads with the highly sarcastic Tycho Erasmus Brahe and his friend, the sometimes-sharp-as-a-marble Jonathan "Gabe" Gabriel . The two will comment on various video games they are playing, or wax poetic on other whims and flights-of-fancy we nerds take to heart.

The strip is written by Jerry Holkins and illustrated by Mike Krahulik. Over time the strip added an additional (beloved) character or two… and will (from time to time) not include Gabe or Tycho in lieu of an in-game strip. Be forewarned (if you’ve not been clicking on the links above, because you’re patient unlike me) the boys do love the potty humor and foul language. Never-the-less…. violence, swearing, and video games has always made for excellent laughs.

The guys have a wonderful store chock full of tee’s and hoodies adorned with cute catch phrases only "very cool and socially acceptable" people like us understand. They also recently added a feature allowing you to order any of their strips in a nice high res print, suitable for framing and posting with intent to have your co-workers acknowledge your exquisite taste. Suffice to say, the guys over at the arcade have spent a good long time perfecting their craft, and three days a week you can get your fill. There’s a great archive to dig through, and their news posts, while not as auto-biographical as their Texas counterpart Scott Kurtz, offers some great thoughts about the game industry from time to time.

Some Strips of Note:

The Breakdown:

Drama: Well, aside from the "sagas" from time to time, (see Cardboard Tube Samarai above) there is little is any drama. And it’s probably best that it stays that way.

Humor: Covering everything under the sun in nerditry from video games, role playing, computers, to insider-only game industry humor…all under the banner of cartoon-violence, swearing, and general bafoonery.

Continuity: Well, Gabe and Tycho have been long time friends, but that aside, really, there’s little you’d need to know to start laughing your pooper off.

Art: Mike Krahulik’s artwork has taken considerable leaps over the last 10 years. At the beginning, backgrounds were simple, and the colors were flat. Over time, Mike’s character stylings has gotten looser, and to his credit, far better. The exaggerated figures emote wonderfully. i dare you not to laugh at Gabe’s face when he wishes Tycho vast amounts of pain. At present, the strip is a great example digital painting technique, with a vivid color palate that always compliments it’s subject matter; Be it in Fantasy, Space, or just ‘Guys on the Couch’.

Archive: The strip is over 10 years old… Generally three strips a week over the course of 10 years? By my math that’s over a boatload.

Updates: Currently updates on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Risk/Reward: It’s a free web comic folks. By my dime, it’s well worth your time if you like topical nerd humor with a dash of blood, guts and laughter. Plus, every now and then you get a strip like this.

 

Sneak Peek: ‘Archie’ #592

Sneak Peek: ‘Archie’ #592

  • News
  • December 22, 2008

Archie Comics has provided us with a first look at this week’s Archie #592

“The Demo”: A salesmen tries to sell Archie and Jughead an interactive sports video game, but the teens consider acting out the action with the wireless device as just “going through the motions” compared to their real life memories. 

SCRIPT: George Gladir.
ART: Stan Goldberg. 

“Snow Woe”: Will Archie and Chuck’s entries in the winter photo contest wow the judges or be met with a “chilly” reception? 

SCRIPT: George Gladir. 
ART: Stan Goldberg. 

“Trouble by the Foot”: Klutzy Archie’s clodhoppers have trampled everything in Lodge Mansion… including Mr. Lodge’s feet! 

SCRIPT: Craig Boldman. 
ART: Stan Goldberg. 

“A Touchy Subject”: The gang contemplates what life would be like if everything could be accessed via touch screen. 

SCRIPT: George Gladir. 
ART: Stan Goldberg.

On Sale at Comic Specialty Shops: December 24th, 2008
On Sale on Newsstands: January 6th, 2009
32-page, full color comic
$2.25 US.

 

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