Check out this video looking back on an under appreciated game. Tom Clancy's Hawx. It's a jet fighter game that really didn't gain as much traction as it deserved. So this is my look back at it. Hope others out there enjoy what this game really is. I look forward to the sequel.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
My Top 5 List of Current PS3 Games - Number 4: inFamous
Number 4 on my countdown of Top 5 current Playstation 3 games is yet another Playstation exclusive. This time, the electrically charged super hero adventure of inFamous.
This game is an amazing game with lots to do and find. The open world environment lets you truly explore just about anywhere. Just about every building, structure, lamp post etc... is climbable. (Falling in water will kill you though seeing as though you are full of electricity)
You play as Cole Mcgrath an average guy that gets caught in a gigantic electrical explosion (Saying what it actually is would give it away). Needless to say, the city gets ravaged. Many buildings are left in rubble, and other parts have erupted in chaos and criminal gangs are slowly taking over different turfs.
While many were killed in the initial blast, Cole soon discovers he's got new abilities in the form of electrical powers. He can shoot electricity from his hands and incapacitate people. But this is just the start. As you progress through the game you can upgrade the strength and type of powers. You are also offered a choice of good or evil. The game constantly offers you choices of what you can do and it will either raise your good or bad Karma. Depending on which route you take, will drastically effect the type of powers you can upgrade to. Also different actions will cause your Karma to go one way or another. For example, you can heal fallen citizens with an electrical jolt for positive Karma points. Or you can suck the energy out of them for negative Karma points. One way you can almost look at it is the Light or Dark sides of The Force.
The main goal of the game is to find out what was the cause of the explosion and eventually destroy it or keep it for your own evil purposes. Along the way you take over and "clean up" the different territories. There are many different side missions to embark on in addition to the main story line. Plus there are 350 "blast shards" to find through out the game. Hunting those down alone will keep you busy for hours. But finding them helps increase the amount of power you posses so finding them is a good thing especially for later parts in the game.
This game is definitely one worth checking out. It may take you good amount of time to complete all the tasks and find all the "blast shards" but doing all that is actually quite rewarding. The multiple endings and ability to choose Good or Bad give the game good replay value. Like Little Big Planet I also look forward to the upcoming sequel to inFamous. The E3 trailers and footage that were shown have already hooked me in. Now the wait...
Download Podcast here.
You play as Cole Mcgrath an average guy that gets caught in a gigantic electrical explosion (Saying what it actually is would give it away). Needless to say, the city gets ravaged. Many buildings are left in rubble, and other parts have erupted in chaos and criminal gangs are slowly taking over different turfs.
While many were killed in the initial blast, Cole soon discovers he's got new abilities in the form of electrical powers. He can shoot electricity from his hands and incapacitate people. But this is just the start. As you progress through the game you can upgrade the strength and type of powers. You are also offered a choice of good or evil. The game constantly offers you choices of what you can do and it will either raise your good or bad Karma. Depending on which route you take, will drastically effect the type of powers you can upgrade to. Also different actions will cause your Karma to go one way or another. For example, you can heal fallen citizens with an electrical jolt for positive Karma points. Or you can suck the energy out of them for negative Karma points. One way you can almost look at it is the Light or Dark sides of The Force.
The main goal of the game is to find out what was the cause of the explosion and eventually destroy it or keep it for your own evil purposes. Along the way you take over and "clean up" the different territories. There are many different side missions to embark on in addition to the main story line. Plus there are 350 "blast shards" to find through out the game. Hunting those down alone will keep you busy for hours. But finding them helps increase the amount of power you posses so finding them is a good thing especially for later parts in the game.
This game is definitely one worth checking out. It may take you good amount of time to complete all the tasks and find all the "blast shards" but doing all that is actually quite rewarding. The multiple endings and ability to choose Good or Bad give the game good replay value. Like Little Big Planet I also look forward to the upcoming sequel to inFamous. The E3 trailers and footage that were shown have already hooked me in. Now the wait...
Download Podcast here.
My Top 5 List of Current PS3 Games - Number 5: Little Big Planet
Since the Playstation 3 was released back in 2006, a lot of great games have been released, some of which are exclusive titles, others cross platform. It's important to note that some of the best titles have been the exclusive titles. Titles such as Little Big Planet and Gran Turismo 5 (Soon to be released) are and will be game changers and set the bar for their respective genres.
In the next few articles I will go down my Top 5 PS3 games so far. This is mainly based on what i have played and what I have found to be truly exceptional.
Coming in at Number 5 is one I just mentioned, Little Big Planet.
Little Big Planet is one of the most unique games to come out in a long time. Not only is it a cute, very family friendly, and fun game, it's the first game to fully take advantage of user creativity. At the heart, Little Big Planet is a side scrolling platformer. You run around as Sack Boy who is essentially a sack doll of a character. Not much too it. But over time you will come across costumes, hair styles, glasses, clothing etc... to customize your Sack Boy. You can even change your Sack Boy to a Sack Girl by simply adding female hair styles and clothing. That's one of the great things about this game. The main character, apart from its name, is quite androgynous and makes it a perfect starting point for customization.
Speaking of customization, how about those user created levels!? Since its launch over 2 Million levels have been created from people around the world. Many incorporating a theme of some kind, and some completely original. The lengths people have gone to create levels has been outstanding. You can literally create everything in your level. The platforms you jump on, the different moving contraptions, enemies, traps, vehicles... You name it, you can just about create it with a little time and imagination. True, not all levels are great, and in fact it may take some time for someone to run across a really good level. But with the games built in sorting capabilities, finding a good level has become a much easier task. Gamers can browse levels based on their community rating and ranking.
Case and point: This game is unlike anything I have ever seen in the past. It's pure creativity factor and ability to build your own levels and worlds make this game an automatic entry into my Top 5. I certainly look forward to the sequel that's scheduled to come out later this year.
Download Podcast here
In the next few articles I will go down my Top 5 PS3 games so far. This is mainly based on what i have played and what I have found to be truly exceptional.
Coming in at Number 5 is one I just mentioned, Little Big Planet.
Speaking of customization, how about those user created levels!? Since its launch over 2 Million levels have been created from people around the world. Many incorporating a theme of some kind, and some completely original. The lengths people have gone to create levels has been outstanding. You can literally create everything in your level. The platforms you jump on, the different moving contraptions, enemies, traps, vehicles... You name it, you can just about create it with a little time and imagination. True, not all levels are great, and in fact it may take some time for someone to run across a really good level. But with the games built in sorting capabilities, finding a good level has become a much easier task. Gamers can browse levels based on their community rating and ranking.
Case and point: This game is unlike anything I have ever seen in the past. It's pure creativity factor and ability to build your own levels and worlds make this game an automatic entry into my Top 5. I certainly look forward to the sequel that's scheduled to come out later this year.
Download Podcast here
Monday, July 26, 2010
Movie Review: Inception
I recently went and saw the new Leonardo DiCaprio movie, "Inception" and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of this movie.
"Inception" is a hard movie to describe so I'll do my best. In the time of this movie there is a technology that allows people to share dreams. Leonardo DiCaprio's is an "extractor". He goes into people's dreams, with the help of someone they refer to as an Architect (which controls and creates the dream world they are in) and tries to get delicate information out of these dreams. In one way you can think of it as "The Matrix" but instead of a computer program you're in someone's subconscious. These dream-states are controlled and usually monitored by someone. But there is also a trigger that gets them out of the dream should anything go wrong. It's usually something like a jolt or a falling sensation that automatically wakes up the person. The movie also plays a lot with time dilation within the dreams. In other words they acknowledge that in the dream, 1hr is about 10 minutes in the real world. However they also delve into the concept of dreams within dreams. So while in the first layer, they get one of the devices they use to get into the dreams (In the outside world) and go deeper. As confusing as it sounds, once you watch the movie, you'll understand. Consequently, the deeper you go the more pronounced the time dilation is. Essentially if you go down deep enough, you can spend years in the dream world and only have had a couple of hours pass in the real world.
Back to the point. Leonardo DiCaprio has been separated from his two young kids, and his wife is dead before the movie starts (although he does see his wife constantly in the dreams). One day he meets a Japanese business man who promises that he can fix everything and allow DiCaprio to once again live at home and be with his kids. The price? Plant an idea into someone's head. And this is where the title of the movie comes from. They call this process "Inception".
Without going too much more into the plot, I have to say this was a fun ride in terms of story, acting, and overall direction. But the one thing that truly stands out is how this movie messes with your mind. The ending is one that essentially lets you decide what happened. It can also make you confused. In my case, it made me chuckle a little.
Although it is a two and a half hour movie, it didn't feel like an outrageous length to tell the story. Again the play with time dilation makes the movie extremely entertaining. It has plenty of interesting twists to keep you guessing. Yes some of it was a little predictable, but i think they purposely gave clues.
My verdict: Check this out! Sit back and enjoy the journey.
"Inception" is a hard movie to describe so I'll do my best. In the time of this movie there is a technology that allows people to share dreams. Leonardo DiCaprio's is an "extractor". He goes into people's dreams, with the help of someone they refer to as an Architect (which controls and creates the dream world they are in) and tries to get delicate information out of these dreams. In one way you can think of it as "The Matrix" but instead of a computer program you're in someone's subconscious. These dream-states are controlled and usually monitored by someone. But there is also a trigger that gets them out of the dream should anything go wrong. It's usually something like a jolt or a falling sensation that automatically wakes up the person. The movie also plays a lot with time dilation within the dreams. In other words they acknowledge that in the dream, 1hr is about 10 minutes in the real world. However they also delve into the concept of dreams within dreams. So while in the first layer, they get one of the devices they use to get into the dreams (In the outside world) and go deeper. As confusing as it sounds, once you watch the movie, you'll understand. Consequently, the deeper you go the more pronounced the time dilation is. Essentially if you go down deep enough, you can spend years in the dream world and only have had a couple of hours pass in the real world.
Without going too much more into the plot, I have to say this was a fun ride in terms of story, acting, and overall direction. But the one thing that truly stands out is how this movie messes with your mind. The ending is one that essentially lets you decide what happened. It can also make you confused. In my case, it made me chuckle a little.
Although it is a two and a half hour movie, it didn't feel like an outrageous length to tell the story. Again the play with time dilation makes the movie extremely entertaining. It has plenty of interesting twists to keep you guessing. Yes some of it was a little predictable, but i think they purposely gave clues.
My verdict: Check this out! Sit back and enjoy the journey.
Friday, July 16, 2010
First Impression: Canon HF-M30 HD Camcorder
At first glance the camcorder is very small. In fact it's not much bigger than a can of soda. But then when you start to play with it, you notice the old cliche holds true. "Big things come in small packages", and this camera definitely fits that saying.
It comes with 8gb built in memory and records in AVCHD. It also has an SDHC slot to expand that memory and increase recording time. I currently have 8gb SDHC card and so at 17mbs FXP mode I can record 2 hrs of video.
Speaking of video, the quality is actually quite impressive for a camera of this size. I've only had limited time to play with it but so far i like it. Low light shots will take some optimization but if you can get it right it will look great. I was doing a lot of random night shots (Aka a street near a friends house at night) and just general shots with different light settings. It performed well in all conditions. Again, more messing around with the settings will yield some interesting results. The 1080p recording really does look great. Especially very well lit areas and daylight scenes. They simply pop! To help with some low light shots, the camcorder does have its own little LED light, but it's only really effective at close range or if you open up the exposure settings to let in more light (although you get a little motion blur). Additionally the camcorder does have a pretty good optical image stabilization feature. It has a few settings and features for this. There are 2 basic settings for image stabilization, "Standard" and "Dynamic". Then there is one more, "Powered IS". This is actually a very cool feature which allows you to stabalize your image even if you are zoomed in (this camera has a 15x Optical/18x Advanced Zoom/300x Digital Zoom) the Powered IS does a great job of steadying your shot. Since I don't have the most stable of hands, this is a great feature. There are plenty of settings to play with and I have yet to fully check everything out. The more I use it, the more I am finding out what a fun camera this is.
Other than video, the camcorder does boast a still photo mode which takes 3 megapixel pictures. While that may not be too impressive, it's adequate enough. It also has a built in flash to take pictures with. Very handy!
The last thing I'll mention is the touch screen. It's actually quite responsive and works well. It allows you to access all your settings, and then some. I'll go into this a bit later. But so far I'm actually like the way they implemented the touch screen.
While I still have some work to do with the camcorder, I am really enjoying it. I am looking to get some extra lenses that this camcorder will support to help with a variety of shots.
Initial recommendation: This camcorder is definitely worth the money you pay. It has great versatility and I've just begun to scratch the surface. More to come on this but for now. Get this if you can!
Movie Review: Predators
I recently saw the movie Predators starring Adrien Brody and Topher Grace. While I enjoyed the first Predator movie, I'd have to say that this movie lacked some luster and while visually cool, wasn't what I was hoping for in the movie.
The basic premise is this: A group of elite warriors are stolen from Earth and placed on a jungle planet. For this hunt, 7 humans taken. Each of which was a combatant from a different country and each had a different specialty. The character types were quite cliche as well. For example, a Japanese Yakuza who in his last move of desperation fights off and kills a Predator with a Samurai Sword. Another way I'd have to look at the way this movie was done would be to call it Campy, and some people would agree. Each of these 7 characters got air dropped on this planet with weapons that they were carrying at the time of abduction from earth and that's all they had. Soon after landing the 7 characters meet each other and begin to work together to figure out what is going on, and where they are. The "Where" question is answered when they come to an opening and see multiple moons and planets above them. After getting a small taste of what they are up against, Adrien Brody's character figures it out. He then begins to recite the story of Schwarzenegger's character and begins to make the connection. From there the movie just loses me. Not because there was anything complicated, but because it was so straight forward. The typical formula emerges: The characters get picked off one by one and then its down to 3, Adrien Brody, Topher Grace, and a Female Sniper. And just before it gets down to that, Lawrence Fishburn makes a short cameo as a soldier who has managed to survive on the planet for some time and has taken refuge in a crashed alien vessel and remained hidden from the Predators. Too bad he dies 10 minutes after you see him. Anyway back with the predictable plot: When they get down to the last 3, a plan is made to get off the planet which ultimately goes awry, Topher's character has a big revelation, and the 3 predators that have been chasing them ultimately meet their end. Oh and they help one Predator they found tied up escape and it in turn fights off another predator. (Exciting right?).
While I won't spoil the ending, I will have to say that it was quite anti-climactic and left me saying "REALLY? I mean REALLY!?". Bottom line, wait for this to come out on DVD if you're at all interested in seeing it. I kinda wish I did now.
The basic premise is this: A group of elite warriors are stolen from Earth and placed on a jungle planet. For this hunt, 7 humans taken. Each of which was a combatant from a different country and each had a different specialty. The character types were quite cliche as well. For example, a Japanese Yakuza who in his last move of desperation fights off and kills a Predator with a Samurai Sword. Another way I'd have to look at the way this movie was done would be to call it Campy, and some people would agree. Each of these 7 characters got air dropped on this planet with weapons that they were carrying at the time of abduction from earth and that's all they had. Soon after landing the 7 characters meet each other and begin to work together to figure out what is going on, and where they are. The "Where" question is answered when they come to an opening and see multiple moons and planets above them. After getting a small taste of what they are up against, Adrien Brody's character figures it out. He then begins to recite the story of Schwarzenegger's character and begins to make the connection. From there the movie just loses me. Not because there was anything complicated, but because it was so straight forward. The typical formula emerges: The characters get picked off one by one and then its down to 3, Adrien Brody, Topher Grace, and a Female Sniper. And just before it gets down to that, Lawrence Fishburn makes a short cameo as a soldier who has managed to survive on the planet for some time and has taken refuge in a crashed alien vessel and remained hidden from the Predators. Too bad he dies 10 minutes after you see him. Anyway back with the predictable plot: When they get down to the last 3, a plan is made to get off the planet which ultimately goes awry, Topher's character has a big revelation, and the 3 predators that have been chasing them ultimately meet their end. Oh and they help one Predator they found tied up escape and it in turn fights off another predator. (Exciting right?).
While I won't spoil the ending, I will have to say that it was quite anti-climactic and left me saying "REALLY? I mean REALLY!?". Bottom line, wait for this to come out on DVD if you're at all interested in seeing it. I kinda wish I did now.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Great Netflix Find: "180 Degrees South"
Occasionally you will see little snippets like this. Little reviews about movies, music or other types of media that catch my eye/ear. This time. It's a documentary movie I found on Netflix's Instant Streaming called: "180 (Degrees) South"
It's about a guy named Jeff Johnson who loves surfing and going on adventures. He tries not to stay stationary for too long and in his life and therefore is constantly on the move. One day Jeff learns about the exploits of outdoorsman Yvon Chouinard and his 1968 van trip to Patagonia, South America. Yvon Chouinard became the first and only person to climb to the top of Corcovado, a treacherous mountain in Patagonia. In 2007 Jeff makes it his ambition to go down to Patagonia and climb Corcovado and on the way get in a little surfing.
I have to say I had no idea what to expect when I started watching this. In the end though it was just a really cool story. Jeff spends a lot of time on the water heading to Chile. Along the way he stops on Rapa Nui (Aka Easter Island) where they spend time to mend the boat that they were on meeting a new friend along the way, gaining a new respect for the Island, its culture, and the lessons learned from its history.
Ultimately they make it to Chile and take a small boat to Patagonia and finally the base of Corcovado. While in Chile they meet up with Yvon who has been living there for quite some time. Him and his wife have worked hard to buy land in the area as well as parts of Argentina to keep it as preserve land. Before Jeff leaves for Corcovado, Yvon decides to join them on the trip and go up the mountain.
This movie is just a great watch. It's quite inspiring. Watching this made me want to visit Rapa Nui even more than the first time I learned about the island. Either way though, a great little find on Netflix and a suggested watch. Stay tuned as I will periodically find some great little gems like this and let you know.
It's about a guy named Jeff Johnson who loves surfing and going on adventures. He tries not to stay stationary for too long and in his life and therefore is constantly on the move. One day Jeff learns about the exploits of outdoorsman Yvon Chouinard and his 1968 van trip to Patagonia, South America. Yvon Chouinard became the first and only person to climb to the top of Corcovado, a treacherous mountain in Patagonia. In 2007 Jeff makes it his ambition to go down to Patagonia and climb Corcovado and on the way get in a little surfing.
I have to say I had no idea what to expect when I started watching this. In the end though it was just a really cool story. Jeff spends a lot of time on the water heading to Chile. Along the way he stops on Rapa Nui (Aka Easter Island) where they spend time to mend the boat that they were on meeting a new friend along the way, gaining a new respect for the Island, its culture, and the lessons learned from its history.
Ultimately they make it to Chile and take a small boat to Patagonia and finally the base of Corcovado. While in Chile they meet up with Yvon who has been living there for quite some time. Him and his wife have worked hard to buy land in the area as well as parts of Argentina to keep it as preserve land. Before Jeff leaves for Corcovado, Yvon decides to join them on the trip and go up the mountain.
This movie is just a great watch. It's quite inspiring. Watching this made me want to visit Rapa Nui even more than the first time I learned about the island. Either way though, a great little find on Netflix and a suggested watch. Stay tuned as I will periodically find some great little gems like this and let you know.
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