Superbowl Commercials

Podcast Audio
 

 

Entertechment Episode # 93 Date: Feb 4, 2012

Kickoff Question:

Super Bowl XLVI – is it really super?

Best pre-game ad: # of views as of showtime
Volkswagon – pre-pre-ad http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ntDYjS0Y3w 11577750
Volkswagon – pre-ad http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-9EYFJ4Clo&feature=related 2984829
Honda http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhkDdayA4iA 10529387
Or Acura http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUFSHzT2xuY 12417801

(or this Doritos commercial) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idIU8Htava0&feature=related 280818

Matt’s favorite – Flash Fans 2012 by Budwiser http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0qZYqdsYAg 1016911

Joe’s Favorite – Audi Vampire http://www.youtube.com/user/FunnySBCommercials?feature=watch#p/u/36/XPJMUdPTbhA
Gaming/Games/Console

BlizzCon takes a year off, will this hurt the juggernaut that is Blizzard? http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/25/blizzcon-skipping-2012-due-to-jam-packed-schedule/
How to improve WoW and Other MMOs
EverCrack is now free to play…13 years later. http://kotaku.com/5880579/the-original-everquest-goes-free+to+play-for-its-13th-birthday

Star Trek Online is now free to play

Details starting to come out on Xbox’s next-gen console http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/source_next_xbox_wont_play_used_games.php#disqus_thread See “Open Letter to Microsoft”

ITS HERE..ITS HERE…..KINECT FOR WINDOWS http://blogs.msdn.com/b/kinectforwindows/archive/2012/01/31/kinect-for-windows-is-now-available.aspx
Just in time for http://www.blendernation.com/2012/01/31/ni-mate-enters-open-beta-the-kinected-bunny/#more-25950
Mod my Skyrim Dragon! http://www.joystiq.com/2012/02/03/skyrim-creation-kit-out-on-pc-this-tuesday-with-a-surprise/

Books/Magazines/News

Pen/Paper Games/
25years of AC/20 to the HEAD!! http://www.coolstuffinc.com/p/Board%20Games/Battletech+25th+Anniversary+Introductory+Box+Set/Acc-CYTBattletech25thAnniversaryBoxSet/#Battletech%2025th%20Anniversary%20Introductory%20Box%20Set

Movies
http://www.archetype-movie.com/ Best mini movie seen for a while?????

Intresting http://io9.com/5878739/john-dies-at-the-end-is-the-closest-thing-to-this-generations-big-trouble-in-little-china
Can we recast Big Trouble In Little China? Homework Assignment

Chapped Apps

The Steam App is here. http://www.pcgamer.com/2012/01/26/steam-app-coming-to-ios-and-android/

Oscar app

Avid movie editor app

The Voice of Experience

SWTOR: The Adventures of FennShea Bought two mounts (vehicles) and now my B.H. is shooting Sand People. Hello level 31!

SWTOR: This isn’t the white saber crystal you were looking for. http://www.pcgamer.com/2012/01/31/star-wars-the-old-republic-white-lightsaber-acquired-through-exploit-will-be-added-officially-in-future/

Game of Thrones Season 2 Trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOzXsqoJhtE

An Open Letter to Microsoft: Thoughts on the New Xbox Console

Last week, there were some rumblings about Microsoft’s next console that will replace the Xbox 360. Some of the rumours and whispers floating around include: Microsoft’s next console will be six times more powerful than the current Xbox 360; Kinect tasks will be handled on the circuit board; Microsoft will incorporate technology to prevent the new console from playing used games. In the lyrics of theatrical rock star Meat Loaf, “Two out of three ain’t bad.”

The first two rumours sound like legitimate early product info-drops, but the third rumour concerning used games made me sit up and take notice. Of all of the things to get people talking about the sequel to the Xbox 360, why would you risk getting your user base up in arms? There are two reasons in my mind why MSFT would do this: One, to get feedback on the issue of a “no used games” console; two, to get the word out that the next generation of Xbox won’t play used games so that in a year’s time, it’s old news.

Let’s just chat for a minute about the significance of used games. In the world of video games, “used games” are a bane and a boon. Used games are a bane for the people who make your favorite video games as they receive $0.00 on every used game that is sold. They are a boon for game retailers because the sale of used games is how they make a significant amount of their money.

There are arguments on both sides of the used game issue. Game makers say that it is not fair that they don’t receive any money when a used game is sold. Other people use the resale of furniture as an example of the manufacturer not getting paid when their item is sold on the secondary market. There is merit that can be found on both sides of the issue. Let me just tell you about my experience.

I am what you would call an “average gamer.” I do own an Xbox 360 and 75% of the games in my collection I have purchased used. There is a lot of thought that goes into purchasing a new game. I have to be “all-in” before I slap down $60 on a new release. But when we’re talking about $10 to $20 for a used game, I am more inclined to try new things. Here are two examples of how used games were able to convert me into buying new games, “Mass Effect” and “Assassin’s Creed.” When these two games were fresh on the market, I looked them over but because they didn’t have the words “Halo” or “Madden” in them, I was hesitant to buy them new. Fast forward a year and both of these titles were just under $20. Combine the used price with recommendations from my gaming friends and these two games were added to my collection. After playing through “Mass Effect” and “Assassin’s Creed,” it sold me on their respective franchises and I have purchased their sequels new the day they are released. There were other titles that I purchased used that were not as rewarding. But I don’t feel resentment because I’m not out a full $60. These are just my personal experiences but I know that others have shared them too.

There is a third reason that the rumour of a no-used-game console was leaked. This could be a warning “shot across the bow” to game retailers to give game makers a slice of the used games pie. This could be just the first of what could be a very big power shift in the video game realm.

Aquaman Is Cool! No Really.

Entertechment Episode # 92 Date: 1/21/2012

Podcast Audio

Kickoff Question:

 

Name one superhero (who hasn’t already had their own movie) you would like to see on the big screen. How would you make their story compelling?
Superhero Database http://www.superherodb.com/class/

Gaming/Games/Console

SWTOR – The Adventures of FennShea week 3: 1.1 patch gets rolled out and all of the Rebels die. Plus, Matt rolls two alts (Sith Inquisitor & Rebuplic Jedi Knight) and the grinding slows to a crawl.

Wednesday’s SOPA/PIPA blackout.

The Game Room’s Video Game Music of the Year Awards for 2011


As in movies, music is a key but often times overlooked part of video games. Music is what sets the mood for us and helps the storytelling process along. And if a video game soundtrack is well crafted, it can be enjoyed many times over outside of the confines of the game.So now it is time to announce the Game Room’s winners of the 2011 video game music of year.

Best Video Game Song – Winner:

“Now I Only Want You Gone” by Jonathan Coulton

This category has only has one nominee as the writer and performer of this song nailed it and hit it out of the park.

Best Video Game Soundtrack – Nominees:

“Batman: Arkham City” by Nick Arundel and Ron Fish
“Battlefield 3” by Johan Skugge and Jukka Rintamaki
“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” by Brian Tyler
“The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” by Jeremy Soule
“Star Wars: The Old Republic” by Mark Griskey and Company

Best Video Game Soundtrack – Winner:

       

(Tie) “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” and “Star Wars: The Old Republic”

Now before you scream, “Cop-out,” this was a tough decision to try and pick which one was better. Both soundtracks provided hours of thematic music. “The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim” provided a rich Nordic chorus that pushed the player along their Dragonborn quest. “Star Wars: The Old Republic” used, but didn’t rely too much on, familiar music cues. The various songwriters came up with new themes that blossomed within the Star Wars framework.

As of the posting date of this article, both of the full soundtracks are only available bundled with the collector’s editions of their respective video game releases. Here’s hoping that at some point in the near future, they will be made available for digital retail.

Tribble Pooper Scoopers

Entertechment Episode # 91 Date 1/14/2012

Don’t forget we have a new RSS feed:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/Entertechment

Podcast Audio

Kickoff Question:

2012 iCES. What impressed you?
Here’s what impressed Gizmodo: It’s our own Gadget Garth. http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2012/01/the-best-thing-weve-seen-at-ces/

Gaming/Games/Console

SW:TOR Update: The Adventures of FennShea – Week #2 – Fenn gets a ship.

Joe’s Analysis… Just Saying…
Rakghoul = Zombie
Jedi = Ninja
Bounty Hunter = Pirate

Books/Magazines/News
Robopocalpyse Reveiw/Movie Overtones
“Robopocalypse

Steven Spielberg discusses his next project, an adaptation of Daniel H. Wilson’s book:

“”It’s a movie about a global war between man and machine. I had a great time creating the future on Minority Report, and it’s a future that is coming true faster than any of us thought it would. ‘Robopocalypse’ takes place in 15 or 20 years, so it’ll be another future we can relate to. It’s about the consequences of creating technologies which make our lives easier, and what happens when that technology becomes smarter than we are. It’s not the newest theme, it’s been done throughout science fiction, but it’s a theme that becomes more relevant every year.”"

Steven Spielberg discusses his next project, an adaptation of Daniel H. Wilson’s book:

“It’s a movie about a global war between man and machine. I had a great time creating the future on Minority Report, and it’s a future that is coming true faster than any of us thought it would. ‘Robopocalypse’ takes place in 15 or 20 years, so it’ll be another future we can relate to. It’s about the consequences of creating technologies which make our lives easier, and what happens when that technology becomes smarter than we are. It’s not the newest theme, it’s been done throughout science fiction, but it’s a theme that becomes more relevant every year.”

Leviathan Wakes/Caliban’s War by James S.A. Corey

Out Of The Dark by David Weber (Spoiler Alert!)

“DV Rebel’s Guide To Making Killer Action Movies On The Cheap
by Stu Maschwitz” http://www.amazon.com/DV-Rebels-Guide-All-Digital-Approach/dp/0321413644 http://allbetsareoff.com/2011/06/plot-device-is-online/

Pen/Paper Games/
D&D: The 5th Edition beckons

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/Article.aspx?x=dnd/4ll/20120109

What suggestions would we make to the 5th edition?

Movies

UltraViolet is dead, so how come the execs don’t realize it? http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/10/amazon-rovi-flixster-and-samsung-highlight-ultraviolets-ces-p/

MS One: Maximum Security — previously titled Lockout This movie is actually getting my attention

Some Riddick News http://www.iamrogue.com/news/movie-news/item/5584-katee-sackhoff-and-jordi-molla-to-play-mercenaries-in-riddick.html
Chapped Apps

Coming Soon:

http://toucharcade.com/2012/01/05/cthulhu-saves-the-world-coming-to-ios-soon/

From The Captain’s Chair
All Bets Are Off for Indy Filmmakers http://allbetsareoff.com/2011/06/plot-device-is-online/

Boardwalk Empire Season 2 VFX Breakdown http://vimeo.com/34678075
The Voice of Experience

The Star Wars Show

“Star Wars: Underworld” is reportedly the working title for the live action series. Producer Rick McCallum dropped hints that the series will deal with the the hive of scum and villainy that takes place between Episode 4 and Episode 5.

Katie (Starbuck) Sackhoff voiced a character on Clone Wars

You don’t know the power of the dark side: http://io9.com/5873879/french-fast-food-chain-offers-darth-vader-burger-with-black-dark-side-bun

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” Xbox 360 Review

“All Hail the King of Video Games” by Matt Davenport

To say that the “Call of Duty” franchise has made Activision money is like saying the Grand Canyon is kind of big. It is a sentence using sarcasm to state the obvious. “Modern Warfare 3” is the third in the wildly successful first person shooter series by Infinity Ward (this time with assistance from Sledgehammer Games) which includes “Modern Warfare 2” and “Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.” For the purposes of this review, we will split it up and talk about the single player and the multi-player campaigns.

This bird is down*

Single Player: The single player campaign picks up right after the events of “Modern Warfare 2.” After killing General Shepard, what’s left of the now disavowed Task Force 141 make their way to a safehouse to regroup. Captain John Price is hauling a critically injured Captain John “Soap” MacTavish to safety. Meanwhile, World War 3 is unfolding all around them as Russian forces are being repelled from Manhattan. From there, the player is transported around the globe to various flash points in the storyline to twart the plans of the main antagonist, the Russian rogue Vladamir Makarov, as he attempts to get the nuclear launch codes from the Russian President. With of the military hardware being bandied about as superpowers collide, “Modern Warfare 3” is able to bring the focus to the single soldier level. The story is linear and involves a lot of “fight your way from point A to point B to point C,” but the developers throw in spectacular set pieces and create a few “Oh wow!” moments. Composer Brian Tyler picks up right where Hanz Zimmer left off and does a superb job of capturing the right tone and mood for the music of the game. Not much new is added to the various global missions. You’ll shoot bad guys, operate mounted weapons, provide overwatch support, infiltrate a villain’s diamond mine underground lair and smoke a cigar. After the success of “Modern Warfare 2,” you don’t want to change too much for fear of alienating your core players. The single player campaign didn’t carry the same weight as the first two parts of the story but it did provide about six hours of an action-fueled conclusion to this “Call of Duty” trilogy.

Single Player Score: 7 out of 10

Coming this fall to the CW*

Multi-player: This is where the “Call of Duty” franchise earns its stripes. This is why the game is a popular as it is. The developers have taken everything that works from the prior games and add a few tweeks. Multi-player in the “Call of Duty” world involves the player being rewarded for their time and skill playing the game. The more you play, the better you get and the more options you have for your online soldier. Along with leveling up your character, you can now level up your weapons. The more you use a particular weapon, the more options you have to outfit it with. Killstreaks are another way the developers have tweeked the online play. You now have the option of Assault killstreaks or Support killstreaks. Assault killstreaks work like before, your kills add up until you are killed and then reset. The Support killstreaks don’t reset when you die and (aptly named) the rewards are meant to support your team in objective based games. Along with the multi-player games of Free-for-all, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, Domination and Sabotage, the developers have added a new mode called Kill Confirmed. Kill Confirmed is a team based mode where when you kill an opposing team member, dog tags appear over the body. Pick those up and your team is rewarded, but if an opposing team member picks up the tags before you do, it denies your team the points. Another new addition to the multi-player experience is Survival mode. This compliments the Co-op mode with a game format that sends wave after wave of enemy troops at you. As you survive the waves, you are able to purchase upgrades, ammo and support.

Multi-player Score: 8 out of 10

I have you now!*

Final Word: Action movie single-player, lots of re-playability in multi-player. What “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” does it does well and deserves its crown as the King of Video Games.

Final Score: 8 out of 10

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” is available for the Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, PC and Nintendo Wii. This review was played on the Xbox 360 with a review unit provided by Activision.

The Game Room Review scoring system is based on the 1 through 10 model with 1 being the lowest score and 10 being the highest.

*Screenshots were taken from the PC version of the game.

For the “Call of Duty” Player on the Go.

According to the official Call of Duty Facebook page and the OneofSwords.com blog, the mobile app for the Call of Duty: Elite service will be released on Tuesday, January 10. This release will be for iOS devices with an Android version to be released the following week. This will be a scaled down version of what you can do on the Elite website but it will allow you to keep connected to the Call of Duty universe while you’re on the go.

One of the key features of the app will be the ability to create new loadouts and push them to your character. This will be the primary way that I’ll utilize the app as I’m the type of player who only changes my loadouts in the thirty second intermission between matches.

Reading the responses to Infinity Ward’s announcement, there are a lot of ungrateful and torqued people out there. From complaining to the delay of the app to the Apple/Android fanboy flame war, just calm down. I guess I just don’t understand how life changing this app will be to understand all of the complaints. You know, since it will be a FREE app. I don’t mind being in the minority of people to say, “Thank you,” to Infinity Ward and the developers for their hard work.

The SciFi Checklist (Not SyFy)

Entertechment Episode # 90 Date: January 7, 2012
Podcast Audio
Kickoff Question:
3D Movies and TV: Another Trend like the 1950′s or here to stay?

Gaming/Games/Console

“Star Wars: The Old Republic” The Adventures of FennShea – Week 1 http://www.swtor.com/

Sci Fi Checklist
Spaceship
Space
Rayguns
Quirky robot or furry sidekick

Books/Magazines/News
Sweden Recognizes File-Sharing as a Religion

http://mashable.com/2012/01/05/sweden-religion-file-sharing/

Brandon Sanderson’s “The Way Of Kings”
CES is coming!!

Movies
Netflix Streaming: Link
Joe Reviews : Tucker and Dale vs Evil http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Tucker_Dale_vs._Evil/70129463?trkid=2361637
WHAT!!! THAT WAS GOING TO BE MY PICK! BASTARD!! I’m going to watch it anyway just out of spite. -Love, Matt
We can both review it. It will be okay
Star Trek 2 casting news (Kerr should be very happy) http://io9.com/5873520/its-official-our-favorite-sherlock-holmes-is-playing-a-star-trek-villain

Chapped Apps

Fight Night Champion
Lunar Racer

Bonus: 

Arabic Star Trek?

http://io9.com/5873905/spacekisser-the-bootleg-arabic-star-trek-sets-phasers-to-wtf

Get in Touch with Your Inner 80’s Child

If it’s been a while since you put on those leg warmers or that Members Only jacket (with the sleeves pushed up), rejoice! On January 10th, Rock Band will release the Hall and Oates Pack. This pack contains three solid gold classics, “Private Eyes,” “Maneater,” and “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do).”

You can buy the songs individually or in a pack. Mustache not included.

2012 — Hollywoods Epic Fail Year

In the elder time chosen men had talked with the entombed Old Ones in dreams, but then something happened. The great stone city R’lyeh, with its monoliths and sepulchres, had sunk beneath the waves; and the deep waters, full of the one primal mystery through which not even thought can pass, had cut off the spectral intercourse. But memory never died, and the high-priests said that the city would rise again when the stars were right.

                                                                              – The Call of Cthulhu, H.P. Lovecraft

Welcome to the year 2012 and once again Hollywood is going to miss a golden opportunity to tap into the general populaces mindset and make money off the paranoia, angst of one of the best years in the Gregorian Calendar since 2000.

The Year 2012 has created more buzz and articles about itself that would make any viral marketing campaign look like a kids lemonade stand on a corner.  This is the year that the legendary Mayan Calendar predicts the end of the world on December 21, 2012 as that is the date the calendar stops.  This is the year of the Apocalypse, end of times, the great snuff on the earth with ideas as wacky as:

  • Mysterious Planet X is going to ram us
  • Alignment with the exact center of the Milky Way and bombarded by cosmic rays
  • The earth sheds its skin and folds the continental plates upon themselves.

And Hollywood is doing nothing!  Where are the doomsday movies?  Where is the final big budget production of some of the greatest opportunities to scare the crap out of an audience that is constantly being bombarded by the mental zeitgeist that the world could end before their holiday bonus!

Hollywood, please, please, please get your act together.  This is the year you should “greenlight” Del Toro’s version of H.P. Lovecrafts “The Mountains of Madness” done with the expertise that Del Toro has of the dark and the macabre you would have a glorious release date all set up for yourselves.   Find the talent to make good disaster movies as you will have the whole year as people get more and more chocked with predictions, wild revelations and psychics yelling “Dooooooooooommmmeeeed”