Monday, March 31, 2008

Hey! Guess who is still sick!

Still. Sick. But feeling better. I took Nyquil at 4am to help me sleep and now I am groggy as shit. Trying to focus on the work I have in front of me today but it prob. ain't gonna happen for another hour or so, till this stuff wears off.

Someone - in the comments section a few posts back-commented that it seemed I was always sick. I have two things to say to that:

a- I have two little muppets running around this house and they bring home all kinds of shit from playdates and pre-school. I always heard this was the case with kids but my God, it really is amazing how often we get sick in this house these days. I am sick with colds about 3 times a year now vs. the MAYBE 1 time a year I used to get sick before I had tykes. Ah well, wouldn't trade it. But it sucks! This is probably the longest lasting cold I've ever had.

b-I used to go to Steve Gerber's blog. He's was the comic book writer who created Howard the Duck as well as the kick ass Thundarr the Barbarian Saturday morning cartoon from the 80's. Well in his posts, he was ALWAYS going on and on about how sick he was with this illness and that. And I kept thinking: dude, you are always so fucking sick. Get outside, get some exercise, get a new positive outlook on life (seemed he suffered from depression too, from what I could gather from his posts). Now telling a person to do these things and them doing them are totally different things, I know. But man, I hate that people would come to this blog and think 'oh Jaffe's this sick guy'....isn't that stupid that I would think that? Who knows man, the inner workings of my mind :) Oh and so, sadly, Steve Gerber died a few months back. So- clearly- the man was very, very sick and now I feel like a total idiot for even thinking it was something he could just solve by picking himself up and going for a walk in the sunshine. What a dolt I can be at times...

Ok, gonna try to focus thru the haze. Later ya'll!

David

ps. Took my oldest daughter to Legoland this past Saturday for the opening of their new area: Adventureland! It also coincided with INDIANA JONES DAY! Man, Indy is everywhere! I love it! Check the pix:


Indy made of Legos!


Lots of folks dressed up as Indy and the cast. Not just regular folks, but 'pro' Indy cosplayers from something called INDYFANS. Check out the Marion! She looks pretty accurate! Now all she needs is a frying pan!


The new baddie from Indy 4. Amazing what fans can do with pretty much 2-3 images on the net. Costume wise, she looks just like the Cate Blanchette character!


Lots of Indy Jones' roaming the park! There were even little kids- like 5 years old- wearing Last Crusade t-shirts! I love that younger gens get to know who Indy is. Hell, after watching the newest tv trailer 5 times yesterday, both my kids (2 and 4) are singing the theme song as they roam the house :) I so proud!


The Indyfans have a myspace page where they are promoting a doc they are making on Indy Jones fandom. This is a poster they were giving away. Here's a link to the site: INDYFANS!


The new area of Legoland: Adventureland! The big new ride is this sort of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride meets a light gun shooting gallery. Love the concept (never rode Buzz Lightyear) but the execution is ultra lacking. I mean, Legoland is a B level theme park when you compare it to, say, Disneyworld. So I was not expecting all that much. But even so, considering most of the rides at Legoland are still pretty good, this new ride ranks as a total disappointment. But I love the theme, so I still had fun!


Here's us in our IN CAR/JEEP POV, about to go into the tomb!


Here's a crappy phone pic of the interior of the ride. Lots of the interactive shooting gallery parts did not auto reset so you never really knew what you could shoot. The lighting of the ride was terrible so there was no drama. And the cars went too fast for you to really get to focus on shooting anything. But again, it was cool.

Ok, gotta run! Later ya'll!

David

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Today Is The Last Day I Am Using Words...

...ok, maybe not. But my point is: wanted to post but don't have tons of energy to do so. I feel fine but me and my wife both have a tenacious cough that won't seem to go away. The incessant coughing and old man style wheezing keeps me up at night (it is 2:30 am now, and I've been up since 1:30am). So lack of sleep over the last 3-4 days is catching up to me. So I wanna blog, but it's gonna be real short handy. Here goes with the quick hits:

* Zach & Wiki rocks much. Love the structure, love the puzzles, love the design. Love how the whole puzzle is right in front of you and- for the most part- how the puzzle environments are these little self contained chunks. On God of War, there was this whole 'oooh, a 'guess what the designer is thinking' puzzle=a bad puzzle!' but this game makes it clear- to me- that sometimes those sorts of puzzles are the best kind! Sort of the puzzle equiv. of a quick time event, where you get to experience a more narrative, one-off scenario, versus being a slave to a handful of key mechanics the game uses over and over. This game kind of reminds me- core play wise- of the classic 16 bitter OUT OF THIS WORLD/ANOTHER WORLD.

* I love my job. I simply love doing my job. It is so much fun and so exciting. I am so lucky I get to do it with the team I get to do it with. What a blast.

* I am reading A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle and it really is changing my life. One of the most amazing books I have ever read.

* Me and my wife went to see Eckhart Tolle speak in San Diego last week. Great content but not the world's most engaging speaker. In some ways this was the point. But still...reading his book is better than seeing him speak, for me.

* Taking the A NEW EARTH online class with Oprah and Eckhart. It rocks. I guess you could say that right now, we are Tolle junkies in my house. His book is one of the three key philosophical books that have really shaped my life over the last few years. The whole list is:

-When Things Fall Apart: Pema Chodron's Buddha/Shambala teachings aimed at a Western audience
- Any LAW OF ATTRACTION BOOK- Abraham/Hicks, The Secret, Think and Grow Rich,etc.
-A New Earth-the Eckhart Tolle book

* I get more and more excited for Indy Jones 4 as the days wear on. Even if what I am starting to suspect is true- that Lucas has had more influence on any movie, let alone a Spielberg movie, than he should- I am still excited. Even if the film is one of the worst Spielberg movies ever made, I don't care. It's Indy, it's summer. I'm so jazzed.

* Tier A Summer Flicks=Iron Man, Indy, Hulk, Speed Racer, Batman, Get Smart
Tier B Summer Flicks (anticipation wise)= WallE, Sex and the City, The Happening, Hancock, Wanted, Hellboy II, The Mumm* y 3

Even if only 1/3 rock, it's gonna be a hell of a summer movie season.


* I had typed a paragraph on game reviews being broken and then erased it. Does the gaming net need ANYMORE blogs/articles/debate on:

-game reviews/state of game journalism?
-games as art debate?
-violence in video games debate/ESRB ratings debate?

I think not. Game mags and web sites should not publish any story dealing with these issues for the next 18 months and see what happens. Will it force the mags/sites to come up with more interesting features? Will it force us to come to the conclusion that games are consumer products and beyond core reviews, there's not much to cover? Who knows...but man, I just can't read another story on those tired old subjects.

* My new movie star girlfriend is the Asian woman from Battlestar Galactica. I don't watch the show (I know I should, but there are only so many hours in a day...I have yet to see an episode of LOST, for crying out loud! Hell, I still have 3 discs to get thru on my first season of THE OC box set and I've had that for 2 years!)....but anyway, oh man, Grace Park- her name- is amazing.

* Kate Beckinsale recently said...well hell, if you know Kate like I know Kate, you KNOW what she said. God bless her!

* I miss the old E3.

* I have a BAFTA! For GOW OF WAR 2 story! I did the least amount of work on the story, compared to my fellow winners Cory and Marianne but hell, I'll take it! How amazing is it to have a damn BAFTA?!? That's pretty sweet and probably as close as I will ever get to an Oscar. How neat!

* Should I go to PAX? Should I go to GenCon? Never been to either.

* Should I go hear Wil Wheaton read from his newest book when he is in San Diego this month? I just re-read the amazing DANCING BAREFOOT in one setting the other night, and I think I will. But what if he's like (cause he's a gamer): 'Jaffe? Screw you man, I hate your games! I ain't signing shit for you!' I'm not really worried about him doing that, but what if he did? That'd be kind of cool, but sad.

Ok, need to go to sleep. Coughing has died down, maybe I will make it this time, thru the rest of the nite.

Goodnite ya'll!

David

ps. tired, sleepy so ain't no typo or spell checking going down here....usually I do a little of that but hell, not tonite....later!

Friday, March 21, 2008

2 SCOOPS OF INDY!

++++++++++++++UPDATE++++++++++++++

Just got back from Gamestop where I picked up a bunch of games for research and to stay current (The Club, Zach and Wiki, Rainbow 6 Vegas 2,Tomb Raider Anniversary PSP,and a few others).

Anyway, saw this and had to take a pic. This is the greatest/stupidest/most original videogame title in history! I LOVE IT!!!!



No interest in buying the game as the screenshots and play description looked pretty generic. But man, you gotta give it up for the title!

Later!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Hey!

Was crazy craving Apple Jacks this morning so I hit the local Ralph's before work.

And who did I see, staring at me from the numerous boxes of sugary sweet goodness?

Was it Snap, or Pop, or Krackle? Nope!

The Sugar Smacks Bear? Hell no!

Was it those two creepy granola chicks on the box of Kakashi's GOOD FRIENDS cereal (what the hell is up with that name?!?)....But nope, wasn't them either.

Dude, it was the fucking MAN WITH THE HAT!

Yep! It was my good buddy, Indiana Jones, staring me down from the most recent boxes of Raisin Brand Crunch cereal! (which my 4 year old calls Raisin Brown for some reason and since I'm her dad, I think it's oooh so cute!)

Check it out:







Man, when I was younger, I used to love seeing the big summer movie promos on fast food restaurant cups, cereal boxes, microwave popcorn, bags of chips,etc.

It not only signaled the start of summer movie season, but I loved how things I loved- in this case, big blockbuster movies- were oozing into pop culture and just people's lives in general! It was so exciting and I was always so jazzed that one day, stuff I worked on would be on similar products.

It wasn't till I grew up and worked in games- and games started doing this sort of promotion as well- that I realized that getting your product on a can of Coke had less to do with the world really being jazzed and thrilled about your work and everything to do with year long negotiations between PR and marketing divisions and money switching hands and deals that while creative in their own way, had nothing to with celebrating the actual creative product. Man, what a naive kid I was! Back in the day, I just assumed it was like Coke was going: Man, we love Indy so much, we wanna help celebrate this amazing movie and stick him on ALL of our shit!

Hell, do you guys remember when Pepsi put Captain Blasto on cans? Blasto had alot of potential and some areas I thought were actually pretty good...it just never came together, you know? But so yeah, if they were putting what amounted to a B level video game (and less than that for alot of reviewers) on a shit ton of cans then you KNOW it's all about the money. (sorry Jay...now if they only would have pushed Kri that hard, things woulda been a lot different with that amazing game)...

But all that said, I still get giddy and jazzed when I start seeing this kind of stuff. I recall obsessing over the back of the cereal box as a kid, looking at the characters from the new Star Wars flicks, or the bad guy from Willow,etc. Good times.

Sad thing is, I didn't want Raisin Brand Crunch today and that was the only box with Indy's face.

So I ended up eating my Apple Jacks and reading the cool new website GIANTBOMB instead.

My how times have changed!

Ok, gotta run. Ya'll have a great weekend and if you celebrate such things, have a Happy Easter as well. We're not any religion but we celebrate all the holidays so I think we're gonna do Easter Egg hunts or something with the kids. Should be fun!

Ok, later ya'll!

David

ps. you guys KNOW I'll be there DAY 1 for Indy but shit, they named the Shia character MUTT?!? I mean...MUTT!?!? How dumb. But hell, maybe it'll make sense in context....?!?

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

POLITICAL REPOST

Hey- I posted this last nite and then took it down about 1 hour later. To me, even tho I still get riled up by politics these days, I don't get as riled and it seemed to me that I'm kind of outgrowing the need to vent about every little thing that annoys me. It also occurred to me that however carefully I tried to make it clear that I do NOT think conservatives are bad (simply different from me), I am simply not a good enough writer to deal in such nuance and I could easily see the piece being taken as an insult to conservatives. And the thing is, I have relatives I love who are conservatives, I have people I work with and respect who are conservatives. And so it seemed to me to make the most sense to just remove the piece.

The other two reasons I took it down were:

a- there was nothing I was saying that you have not heard-via a much more educated take- in many other places.
b- a kind poster named Jeff commented on the post and had a pretty convincing argument (and visual aid) that the majority of the country does not engage in such black and white thinking. Jeff's post changed my mind and thus, negated the vast majority of the post.

For all of those reasons, I took the post down.

And then some brave dude posting under the name ANONYMOUS decided to repost my write up for me in the comment section.

And then another brave dude posting under the same name- same person?- decided to tell me that my blog was for gaming info and nothing else.

So fuck it, I'm gonna respost it.

Are my buttons that easy to press? Kinda.

Are two of my easiest buttons to press the 'NO ONE CAN TELL ME WHAT I CAN AND CAN NOT WRITE ABOUT' button and the 'NO ONE CAN TRY TO INTIMIDATE ME WITH MY OWN WORDS...IF I WAS NOT COMFORTABLE SAYING THEM, I WOULD NOT HAVE SAID THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE SO GO FUCK YOURSELF WITH A RUSTY LAWN MOWER BLADE, ANON' button?

You bet!

Those are easy Jaffe buttons, to be sure.

So with that said, fuck you Anonymous. Here's the post for everyone to see if they are so inclined. I took it down because I wanted it taken down on, you know, MY blog? But if reposting it takes even an ounce of your smug, self satisfaction away, I'm more than happy to repost. So here it is.

=======================

CIVIL WAR PART II
from JAFFE'S GAME DESIGN by da criminal


You know, I've come to the conclusion that America- as we know it- is pretty much doomed.

But it's not because of terrorists, it's because of ourselves.

And this current election has made it more clear to me than anything else.

There really are two Americas. The Red and the Blue. I hate to be a cynic and as an Obama supporter, I hope he is right and I am wrong: I hope he really can unite us. I'm all for it and willing to give it a try.

But I'm losing faith, people.

At least, I am if if I let myself listen to too much right wing talk radio. Hell, is there any other kind of talk radio? Whenever I listen to these right wing folks, I just can't help but think that America, as we know her, is on her last legs.

How can there be such divide? How can someone like myself listen today to Obama's stunning speech on race and racism in America and be reminded of both the challenges and promises of our country and the potential for us to have- for once- a great President? How can I hear that while so many right wingers hear a weak, wimpy candidate who- they seem to think- does not care about this country? How can I see hope and potential for greatness when the right wing can't get beyond the fact that Obama has a loser for a pastor? I guess it's the same way that whenever I heard Bush talk about ANYTHING, I just see an asshole who is out for himself at all costs, but right wingers- for a time- saw the second coming.

And so let's assume for a moment that there are alot of people out there who think like the Sean Hannity's of the world, the Pat Bucchanan's of the world, the Bill O'Reily's of the world. Let's assume that there is close to 50% (or more!) of the USA that buys what these folks are selling.

If that is the case, then America is simply finished.

And not because these right wingers are wrong. But simply because there are a shit ton of us out here who DO NOT agree with them and simply never will. And vice versa. And so where does that leave us? I mean, are we supposed to just keep arguing with such hatred and venom?

See, I listen to what people say and I've been known to change my mind when I've been educated to facts that I didn't have or understand. Conservatives have some good points about alot of things and hey, if someone can sell me on the idea of being a right winger, my mind is open to it.

But that said, I am fundamentally who I am. And that means that I will always want to help others who have less than I do. I am not just OK with but I will fight to the death in order to put the freedoms of Americans above the safety of Americans. I am ok with my tax dollars going to help the poor and to build public schools and to provide health care and to- ALSO- fund the military...but not ONLY fund the military.

And I am not wrong, and the right wingers are not wrong for thinking pretty much 180 degrees opposite from what I do.

We simply disagree.

And I wonder how much longer we can go on disagreeing because every time I hear them open their mouths to preach their version of the gospel, I tend to vomit just a little bit.

And I assume they feel the same about me and my fellow liberals.

So the question is: what do we do? Do we have an all out war? Or do we just agree that this ain't working anymore, that we've grown apart, and it's time for one of us to move out?

========================

Later ya'll!

David

Friday, March 14, 2008

Probably crazy late to the party on this...

...and I hate posting to links and videos and stuff on my blog...there are a billion blogs that do that...
but hell, this seemed pretty damn relevant and funny as hell to boot! Enjoy if you haven't seen it yet!

1979 VIDEO GAME PITCH MEETING!!!


David

ps. thanks for the help on the linking, Dan! NOW I understand what that button does :)

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Bring it, Bitch! :)









:)

Just kidding Cory. Looking forward to seeing how this all turns out...good luck, man! And congrats on the new game!

David

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

SHOW ME THE MONEY!!!!....or,er. don't....unless I earn it.

EDIT: I've removed alot of the preamble to this entry to make it read easier and to not confuse folks in to thinking this is a 'are games art and worthy' piece. It ain't.
+++++++++++++++++++



Ya'll read the great interviews with fellow GOD OF WAR director Cory Barlog over at N’gai’s Level Up Blog? If not, check them out. These interviews really got me thinking...

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/levelup/archive/2008/03/11/the-cory-barlog-interview-part-i.aspx

Reading Cory's interview- for me- really brings into focus how our industry is mainly about amazingly fun (and thus needed) PRODUCTS….But yes, products, NOT art….just products.

Now let's not get into the tired argument of 'can games can be emotional and artistic?'

I'll make it easy for you :)

Yes, of course they can.

Simply playing the flash game PASSAGE (http://hcsoftware.sourceforge.net/passage/)- for me- has made this very clear and has stopped me forevermore from wavering on the subject. Hell, ONE DAY games may very well be the BEST medium from which to get our non-real-life emotional experiences.

But for RIGHT NOW, for the vast majority of people who play games, games are simply products. Video game sports. They are diversions; ultra fun diversions (and thus, to me, ultra worthy causes) but diversions nonetheless.

And because of this, I don't agree with Cory when he talks about how valued game directors should be. Or at least game directors who are making games that are- in being strong and focused on story and emotion- seemingly trying to rival what movies do so well.

And I’m not bashing Cory and his take on things. Not at all. Not only is Cory a great game director, a passionate storyteller, an amazing animator, and all around nice person, but he’s also a super smart guy. There’s a lot going on upstairs with this dude. And hell, what Cory is saying is stuff I have said in the past, almost verbatim.

Thing is, these days, in regards to this topic, I just don’t think I buy it. Not anymore.

In the interview, Cory talks about the idea that the game biz SHOULD be rewarding the key creative players for being instrumental in bringing such strong games to market. Man, I used to say the EXACT SAME THING! Hell, Dennis Dyak was saying similar things this week in a great Gamasutra article where he speaks about the need for game directors. Here, check it out:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3568/a_human_work_denis_dyack_on_what_.php

And these guys are both right in the sense that without The Dyaks or Barlogs or Levine’s, those games (GOD OF WAR II, ETERNAL DARKNESS, BIOSHOCK) would not be what they are. No doubt.

The PROBLEM tho with the argument is that the vast majority of the audience really does not care. They want Smash Bros., and Halo3, and Grand Turismo, and Call of Duty 4 and Guitar Hero and Wii Sports.

Sure they buy games like GOD OF WAR and BIOSHOCK and ICO (well…maybe they don’t buy that many copies of ICO, even tho they should!)….but there is no indication from the audience that people like me or Cory or Dennis NEED to be paid a lot more money than we currently are. There is no indication from the players that game directors like us need to be negotiated with like movie directors- as Cory suggests-in order to get us to stick around. Because there is no financial upside for the studio/publisher to bend over backwards for folks like us.

See, it’s people like us who know movies and think of ourselves as the game equivalent of a movie director (well, I used to, not anymore). And we think there should be a 1:1 relationship between the way film directors are treated/paid/negotiated with and the way game directors are treated/paid/negotiated with. We deal in stories, they deal in stories. We deal with emotions in our games, they deal with emotions in their movies. We deal with- or try to deal with- intellectual, political, spiritual topics…just like the movie directors. But the thing is, GAME directing is NOT the equivalent of MOVIE directing because movie directors- when they are good- are key to driving the vast majority of folks to the box office/video store. Even more so than a big star, in most cases. And so they SHOULD be negotiated with and given embarrassing gobs of cash in order to get them to stick around.

But in games, it’s the STARS that get the players to line up. And the STARS in games can be SO MANY different things (concept; franchise character, technology, cool peripheral,movie license, amazing blend of elements to create a story game,etc) that to say that a game publisher should pony up the cash JUST to keep a person who can bring just ONE of those marketable elements to the table does not make sense. Because a) that director needs to be surrounded by a great- and thus- expensive team in order for him to do his thing at a level that will translate into sales. This is especially true in story based, narrative games. And b) the financial value a good story based game director brings is at or towards the BOTTOM of the food chain when compared to other game 'stars' like social gaming and movie licneses. So a publisher can just pump the same amount of cash it would take to keep a good story director around for 3 games, say, into a few different games, each with a different ‘star’; rolling the dice on a game that shines via tech and another that shines via peripheral and another that shines via movie license. And hell, those sorts of games are- most times- easier to make anyway! And more often than not, they sell better than the story based stuff (compare sales of the fantastic Uncharted to Singstar or American Idol or the Harry Potter or Fantastic Four video games).

So while I agree emotionally and phlisophically with Cory and Dennis and all the other game directors who have made amazing games that feel like movies, if I were a game publisher,while I would do a lot to keep these talented folks around, I would not brake the bank to do it. Because in games, I can get my hits from all over the place because there are many, many reasons that people play games and the vast majority of the gamers out there are NOT lining up to pay top dollar for games that give them the same feelings/ideas/vibes that movies do. Hell, I don’t have the figures, but it would not surprise me if the semi-sub par (but still kinda fun) casual title CARNIVAL GAMES has not made more cash than GOD OF WAR I. Certainly they have a higher profit margin and could very well have earned a higher dollar amount as well. (Note: I just read today that Carnival Games has sold thru 1 million copies...so they have not yet made more cash than GOD OF WAR, but they are well on their way).

And come to think of it, if the key person/people behind Carnival Games (could be a director, could be a coder, hell, it could be a guy in marketing) was able to get on a roll of 3-4 games that performed at the level of Carnival Games, then THAT person or group of people would be someone I WOULD bend over backwards for. Hell, a person who can make cheap ass games that sell great?!?! Where do I sign??! And it's NO DIFFERENT IN THE MOVIE BIZ. The reason the studios bend over backwards for Michael Bay and Gore Verbinski is NOT because they are moved by the amazing artistry of the films those directors make, but because they are moved by how much MONEY those films bring in.

So if we want to be treated- as Cory suggests- with the same level of financial respect as movie directors, then we need to start making games that are such BIG SUCCESSES that it makes the money peeps look like idiots to turn their backs on us. But right now, it makes good money sense to turn your back on someone like me and to give that money to someone like the guys at Harmonix or Neversoft or Zipper (they of Socom fame) or to that man in the picture up above playing Wii sports with Stevey Spielberg. Because that person and those companies are making the games that bring home not just the bacon, but the whole motherfucking pig. If people who make games that are movie-like want to be treated like people who make movies, then our movie-like games need to somehow find a way to become the biggest successes in the gaming business. And that- so far- has simply not come close to happening.

Of course, this is just now. In the future, things may change.

Or maybe not.

Because the reality is, in the future there may very well be the Holo-Deck from Star Trek where players can step into elaborate fantasies with depth and meaning and characters. But there will also be a Holo-Deck simulation where you can take center stage at the Staples center in LA (or better yet, a seedy club on Sunset Blvd) and Guitar Hero your way to really being a rock star, with the smell of pot filling the air, the bic lighters raised high, and groupies backstage waiting just for you.

And between those two options, just like today, I bet the Guitar Hero Holo-Deck experience would kick the shit- sales wise- out of the Holo-Deck version of Final Fantasy or God of War or Too Human...or, sadly, Ico.

David

Sunday, March 09, 2008

Ready?.....FIGHT!


You may have seen this already on the net, but I just found it today. Amazing!

After God of War, I was just SO sick of Greek Mythology/Greek History/Sword & Sandal stuff that I avoided 300 when it first hit theaters. And then I avoided it when it came out of DVD. And I even avoided it for a long time after that cause I was just so SICK of the whole vibe.

But I finally watched it last month and LOVED it. I had read the comic before and dug it, but the movie was just stunning and so cool and so amazing. And that scene with those cool dudes in the masks tossing those bombs? Classic!

So...as you can imagine, to see these two going head to head? So cool! And before you ask, my money is on Kratos. Come on man, he's the fucking God of War!

But to be fair, my Kratos love has been strong today. Why? Cause I've been playing the masterpiece that is Chains of Olympus! Been playing it non-stop today. I've been sick in bed and had some time...so I fired it up to see what the fuss was about. I worked on the story with Ru and the Ready at Dawn guys but besides helping to nail down that core story, I had nothing to do with the game...so it's fresh to me. And MAN is it good!

It's so amazing to play a game that you had nothing to do with from a series you had a huge hand in creating. The GOD OF WAR formula is repped well on the PSP and it's pretty cool that- for me- I'm digging it so much. Because a) it's just a fun ass game that makes me so glad people are making handheld games as MORE than little morsels to be played in bite-sized nuggets, but also because b) I had a huge amount to do with the GOD OF WAR formula and it's a great sense of pride for me that the formula- for me anyway- holds up so well. Granted, much/most/all of this is because the game itself was made by the amazing geniuses at RAD. But still...pretty darn cool!

Is it perfect? Nah. The biggest weakness of the game is puzzle design- as has been noted. But some of the puzzles are pretty cool. But overall, they are kind of bland. But they still serve their function as pace breakers and make the game feel more like an adventure than a pure combat game. And that is the most important point. But everything else? Fucking gold,dude!

So if you have yet to play it, please give it a try!

Oh and if I may risk more folks calling me a Sony fanboy: I have to say, the PSP is rocking so hard these days. Not just amazing games like Chains and Wipeout and MLB 2008 (and hell, I still gotta get to Syphon Filter II and try out Patapon)- but it's also so cool to see the PSP store up and running. I love the fact that you can now buy small games like flOw, as well as FULL FLEDGE GAMES UMD sized games for your PSP right off the net. How amazing is that? It's seems like games may finally be starting to enjoy the whole multiple distribution model that movies have enjoyed since VHS and cable (and hell, before that, there was the whole ABC MOVIE OF THE WEEK thing to bring in some extra cash as well).

I just think it's so neat to know that if people want to play TWISTED METAL: HEAD ON- for example- they can buy the UMD for PSP, buy the game on PS2 (with all that extra goody content) or simply download the game from the PSP store for 15 bucks! So many ways to get that content out there...as a game maker, that is crazy exciting!

Thinking about it, I wish Sony would have chopped CHAINS OF OLYMPUS into three parts and sold each for 10 bucks at the PSP store....so if you liked one chapter, you buy the next,etc......and then a few months later you could buy the WHOLE THING with some extra content on UMD. Again, to me it's about finding cool ways to get this content out there and repackage it in ways that are fun and exciting for fans but also make sense on the biz front.

Speaking of downloadable content: Heck, I even played the demo for ROCKETMEN: AXIS OF EVIL last nite and while it was- for the most part- average with some potential, I was like: you know, I may get this when they drop the price to something closer to 4.99. To me, it ain't worth 10 bucks for a number of issues the game has (many of these issues have been pointed out in alot of the poor reviews I've seen on the net, so I will save you the trouble) but issues aside, there is a charm to the game, and there seem to be some neat ideas there. I like alot of the upgrade options and if they actually affect play on a significant level, I could see it having a bit of an addicting quality. Or maybe not. Who knos. And I doubt I'd play thru it all, but for 5 bucks, I'd totally pick it up. Come on Capcom, drop the price! :)

Ok ya'll, I am sick in bed. So is the wife. So glad the Grandparents came over to help with the girls. They are Godsends!

Ok, gonna go read some Marvel digital comics and then finish up Chains of Olympus!

Later!

David

ps. Ok, so this would totally be cool...

...except for that little image of classic armor iron man coming out of the explosion in the background. Looks like a straight to video release from Cannon films back in the 80's. Or the poster for like, IRON EAGLE 6: CHAPPY'S GHOST!

The rest of the poster is fantastic, tho!

pps. you know, I'm wrong. The rest of the poster is NOT fantastic. It's shit actually. Iron Man looks great! But the photos of the actors, with Jeff Bridges looking all forced and Paltrow all out of place. It's like, in my best 1930's movie producer voice:

'come see our picture! it's got Stars! Stars I tell ya!'

....ugh, note to Marvel: not one of those people on that poster can open a movie. Not even close. So why waste valuable mind-share telling people 'hey, a new Robert Downey movie is out!' versus showing off what- on the surface- is cool about this concept? You know...IRON MAN?

ppps. YES, I get it that Marvel comics and ergo Marvel movies are about PEOPLE too and that these are flawed characters and all that. I get it, it's why I've loved Marvel comics since I was a wee lad. But that is something for folks to discover once they buy the ticket and start watching the movie. And hell, if you MUST sell that point in order to get audiences in that are more than just sci-fi/comic con attending fanboys, then do it in a compelling, creative way. Slapping some b-level actor heads on a poster only tells me that you've made a movie with b-level actors.

pppps. Huge fan of most of the cast...I know the performances will NOT be B level and this movie could very well propel them to AAA status...but that ain't happened yet.

Friday, March 07, 2008

How the hell?!?!

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++++++++++++++SECOND EDIT+++++
Just picked up some medicine for my oldest kid...she's got a bit of a cold. And so I'm waiting in line at the local Rite-Aid pharmacy and I see this...how FUCKED UP is this?!?!



Candy and sweets and all kinds of shit to make you sick and clog your arteries and make you a diabetic being sold RIGHT AT THE SAME COUNTER you buy medicine to cure those very ailments. It's either irony or a conspiracy...I vote for both, depending on my mood...how fucking nuts man.

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++++++++FIRST EDIT+++++++++
Pics from the CODE MONKEYS voice over recording session:

Here's Scott doing his thang at a recording studio in Salt Lake City!





And here I am, shouting at the mic at a studio somewhere deep in San Diego:




On my end, whole thing took all of 20 minutes. It was just me and a sound engineer who was way past the target age for the show. I got the sense he didn't approve of hearing me scream such ad libbed lines as: 'I will fucking kill you up your ass with a god damned piece of plastic, motherfucker!'

Ah well...such is life!

Waiting for Scott to send me his pics, will post those as soon as I get them!

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Running out to record my character for an upcomming episode of CODE MONKEYS!

Scott is recording his character out in Utah this afternoon.

So let me get this straight: we get to make video games with amazing teams AND we get to be fucking cartoons??!

How the hell did we get so lucky, I just don't know!

Post some pics from the session later- gotta run!

David

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

VIDEO BLOG: Overproduced Games + Code Monkeys Take II + Obama/Clinton?!?!

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Enough.

Simply enough.

I am done drinking Diet Coke...or any diet soda.

I've been drinking this slow suicidal sludge for most of my life. And not just my adult like...but most of my ENTIRE life. Well no more.

My gut tells me it's toxic and bad for me, even tho Coke says otherwise. I know it must be addicting because I crave these little cans of fuck like nobody's business. In the future, I would be stunned if we did NOT see a congressional hearing where makers of this shit-in-a-can are forced to admit to putting addictive chemicals into the blend.

Going to get on water, mainly sparkling water, so I get that carbonation bite that I love...and then just hunker down and try to beat this thing.

God, my biggest loss will be no longer having my Diet Coke and Popcorn that I get at the movies. But I will not make exceptions. I'll just snuggle in my sparkling water.

Fuck you, Coke.

Fuck you up your stupid Coca-Cola ass.
END EDIT+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Hey ya'll!

Working away, not alot of time to post today but wanted to get something up. I've got this crazy idea about trying to post SOMETHING once a day...no clue if I got enough stuff to blog about for that much content...so it may remain a dream...or I may just TRY it for a month and see what happens! :) Take it easy ya'll!

David