Friday, February 29, 2008
More Quiet Work
Just another day in which a snow fall was avoided by hiding indoors, a GameAxis article was started and finished, more writing to the children's novel was eked out and some Final Fantasy IX was played.
This, apparently, is what happens you're "settled down."
Just another day in which a snow fall was avoided by hiding indoors, a GameAxis article was started and finished, more writing to the children's novel was eked out and some Final Fantasy IX was played.
This, apparently, is what happens you're "settled down."
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, Journalism, Lost In Loveless, RPGs, Writing
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Goofing Around
Mostly just playing Final Fantasy IX and running a few errands around the neighborhood.
Mostly just playing Final Fantasy IX and running a few errands around the neighborhood.
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, RPGs
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Just Another Boring Day
Aside from some Final Fantasy IX and some writing of the children's novel, not much else...
Aside from some Final Fantasy IX and some writing of the children's novel, not much else...
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, Games, Lost In Loveless, RPGs
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Day Of Errands
Aside from running around the neighborhood eating at favorite restaurants, sending off mail, doing some grocery shopping and discovering a new gallery, not much of note... I love living in the Annex.
Aside from running around the neighborhood eating at favorite restaurants, sending off mail, doing some grocery shopping and discovering a new gallery, not much of note... I love living in the Annex.
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, Mean Streets Of Toronto
Monday, February 25, 2008
Oh Yeah...
I was writing a novel, wasn't I?
I actually went back to it and worked on it some today.
I was writing a novel, wasn't I?
I actually went back to it and worked on it some today.
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, Lost In Loveless, Novel Writing, Writing
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Wow
Today ended up being another run to the art supply store on Queen Street West (where we saw the fringes of the fire) and while in that part of town, I decided it was time to indulge in more comic book-ery. I'd heard many, many, MANY good things about The New Frontier and had passed it quite a few times in book stores in Singapore. I didn't pick it up at the time because they were only available in hard cover, but seeing those price-tags in the Silver Snail comic store, equivalent to their American prices, and in two easy trade paperbacks, it was time to take the plunge.
My God am I glad I ever did.
It was an exciting experience reading this story. My brain was roughly divided into two halves, the "adult" that marveled at the writing, the characterization and social observations of the tale, and the kid inside that was screaming, "HAL JORDAN IS THE GREATEST GREEN LANTERN OF ALL! NO ARGUMENTS!"
The story is another one of those alternate-history tales that places the DC superheroes within the actual historical context of the late 50's/early 60's. The Korean conflict is winding down, Kennedy has yet to take office, and Sputnik has just shot into orbit. It is the dawn of the silver age of DC superheroes and local boy (yes, he's from Toronto) Darwyn Cooke takes that turbulent setting and asks a--in retrospect no-brainer question--"But how would that period have REALLY affected the DC superheroes?"
This story answers that question to remarkable effect. The communist witch hunts, racism in the American deep south, and the questions of obeying your government versus doing the right thing are all touched upon in the story, and it is both uplifting and provocative to see how the iconic heroes handles these situations. It also helps that I've always REALLY liked Green Lantern and to see his origin story handled with so much more depth and characterization just had me grinning from ear to ear the entire time. Hal Jordan will always be Green Lantern to me, and to see it happening for the first time in a new light like this was fun in the extreme.
I loved this story. It brought out the best of modern comic narrative while at the same time somehow maintaining that sense of wonder comics usually only inspire in children yet to be jaded by the realities of life.
Also, the Blu-Ray direct to video animated version of this story goes on sale tomorrow.
I may have to pick that one up reeeeeeal soon.
Today ended up being another run to the art supply store on Queen Street West (where we saw the fringes of the fire) and while in that part of town, I decided it was time to indulge in more comic book-ery. I'd heard many, many, MANY good things about The New Frontier and had passed it quite a few times in book stores in Singapore. I didn't pick it up at the time because they were only available in hard cover, but seeing those price-tags in the Silver Snail comic store, equivalent to their American prices, and in two easy trade paperbacks, it was time to take the plunge.My God am I glad I ever did.
It was an exciting experience reading this story. My brain was roughly divided into two halves, the "adult" that marveled at the writing, the characterization and social observations of the tale, and the kid inside that was screaming, "HAL JORDAN IS THE GREATEST GREEN LANTERN OF ALL! NO ARGUMENTS!"
The story is another one of those alternate-history tales that places the DC superheroes within the actual historical context of the late 50's/early 60's. The Korean conflict is winding down, Kennedy has yet to take office, and Sputnik has just shot into orbit. It is the dawn of the silver age of DC superheroes and local boy (yes, he's from Toronto) Darwyn Cooke takes that turbulent setting and asks a--in retrospect no-brainer question--"But how would that period have REALLY affected the DC superheroes?"
This story answers that question to remarkable effect. The communist witch hunts, racism in the American deep south, and the questions of obeying your government versus doing the right thing are all touched upon in the story, and it is both uplifting and provocative to see how the iconic heroes handles these situations. It also helps that I've always REALLY liked Green Lantern and to see his origin story handled with so much more depth and characterization just had me grinning from ear to ear the entire time. Hal Jordan will always be Green Lantern to me, and to see it happening for the first time in a new light like this was fun in the extreme.
I loved this story. It brought out the best of modern comic narrative while at the same time somehow maintaining that sense of wonder comics usually only inspire in children yet to be jaded by the realities of life.
Also, the Blu-Ray direct to video animated version of this story goes on sale tomorrow.
I may have to pick that one up reeeeeeal soon.
Labels: Comics
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Holy Hell.
I've been waiting since... oh, 1986 for a game like this to arrive. Scans from Game Informer magazine have popped up on a European website. 4 player co-operative play has been confirmed. A tentative release period of late 2008 has been announced. PLEAAAAAAAAAAAAASE don't let this game suck, I NEED this game top be good...
Click to enlarge.
I've been waiting since... oh, 1986 for a game like this to arrive. Scans from Game Informer magazine have popped up on a European website. 4 player co-operative play has been confirmed. A tentative release period of late 2008 has been announced. PLEAAAAAAAAAAAAASE don't let this game suck, I NEED this game top be good...
Click to enlarge.Labels: Games
Friday, February 22, 2008
Walking With Fossils
Today we dropped The Coffin off at the nearest Purolator courier center, all expenses paid by Sony. If we're very lucky, we'll have a new PS3 by the end of next week. It also happens that the nearest Purolator center is within a brisk walk to the Royal Ontario Museum, which has been holding a big ol' dinosaur exhibit. While it's still likely not going to hold a candle to anything found at the Tyrrell museum in Drumheller, it's still a pretty cool exhibit, and for the Wife, fulfilled a life-long dream of finally being able to see a decent dinosaur exhibit. Unsurprisingly, she went a little shutter-bug crazy during the outing, but since no one wants to see 200+ pictures of fossils, here are a few choice snap shots from the trip. You can click on them to enlarge:
Today we dropped The Coffin off at the nearest Purolator courier center, all expenses paid by Sony. If we're very lucky, we'll have a new PS3 by the end of next week. It also happens that the nearest Purolator center is within a brisk walk to the Royal Ontario Museum, which has been holding a big ol' dinosaur exhibit. While it's still likely not going to hold a candle to anything found at the Tyrrell museum in Drumheller, it's still a pretty cool exhibit, and for the Wife, fulfilled a life-long dream of finally being able to see a decent dinosaur exhibit. Unsurprisingly, she went a little shutter-bug crazy during the outing, but since no one wants to see 200+ pictures of fossils, here are a few choice snap shots from the trip. You can click on them to enlarge:
Labels: Games, Icky Couple Stuff, Mean Streets Of Toronto
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Damn It...
So guess what came in the mail that I can now only stare at...
It's amazing how quickly the PS3 has become the Nerve Center Of Fun for our little house-hold. With that thing out of commission, I can now Not Enjoy Blade Runner looking at its absolute best, and I've been literally waiting YEARS for a decent transfer of this movie to hit disc.
At least we got that external hard drive, so transfer of PS3 data commences today, and with any luck, we'll have a new console by the end of next week or the beginning of the week after next.
We are also quite bummed about the fire on Queen Street West. It's a great part of town and it's sad to see a bit of local history go up in flames like that.
So guess what came in the mail that I can now only stare at...
It's amazing how quickly the PS3 has become the Nerve Center Of Fun for our little house-hold. With that thing out of commission, I can now Not Enjoy Blade Runner looking at its absolute best, and I've been literally waiting YEARS for a decent transfer of this movie to hit disc.At least we got that external hard drive, so transfer of PS3 data commences today, and with any luck, we'll have a new console by the end of next week or the beginning of the week after next.
We are also quite bummed about the fire on Queen Street West. It's a great part of town and it's sad to see a bit of local history go up in flames like that.
Labels: Games, Mean Streets Of Toronto, Movies
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Coffin Has Arrived
A term that is borrowed from the leagues of Xbox 360 owners that have had to go through this procedure before. In this case, coffin refers to the box couriered over by the console manufacturer in which you are expected to place your console, and then send back to them. When they receive it, they will send back a new console.
We're not sending it back just yet. I'd been needing an external hard drive anyway to save data on (since hard drives seem to have a 100% failure rate with me and I've actually lost two novels in progress that way) so we're going to buy tomorrow, use that to unload the PS3 hard drive data, then wipe the PS3 hard drive as recommended before packing it in. That way when the new PS3 arrives all the saved games (and more importantly, the precious downloaded songs for Rock Band) will be intact and still ready to go.
We're not sending it back just yet. I'd been needing an external hard drive anyway to save data on (since hard drives seem to have a 100% failure rate with me and I've actually lost two novels in progress that way) so we're going to buy tomorrow, use that to unload the PS3 hard drive data, then wipe the PS3 hard drive as recommended before packing it in. That way when the new PS3 arrives all the saved games (and more importantly, the precious downloaded songs for Rock Band) will be intact and still ready to go.
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, Games
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
RPG Madness Continues
Wow, the game is 4 CDs and we're already on the 3rd disc as of tonight.
Wow, the game is 4 CDs and we're already on the 3rd disc as of tonight.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Still More Final Fantasy
The Wife continues to get sucked in. And to think just a few years ago, she barely tolerated videogames. Now when it comes to RPGs, she's as hardcore as they get. It's amazing to me that games are reaching out to people that would formerly have thought them beneath their time can actually find something enjoyable about them. How the hell did that happen?
The Wife continues to get sucked in. And to think just a few years ago, she barely tolerated videogames. Now when it comes to RPGs, she's as hardcore as they get. It's amazing to me that games are reaching out to people that would formerly have thought them beneath their time can actually find something enjoyable about them. How the hell did that happen?
Sunday, February 17, 2008
More Final Fantasy IX
Except now the Wife is playing is as well.
Except now the Wife is playing is as well.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Old School
We dusted off the PS2 and stuck this in. I hadn't actually finished the game--something about encountering a glitch that made it impossible for me to complete an important side-quest--but getting back to this 4 CD beast is like being back in the 90's again, when full motion video was the hottest thing, and RPGs weren't relentlessly Emo.
Despite it having graphics that would make the PS3 weep, it's still fun to play. And this time I'm gonna' finish the damn thing.
We dusted off the PS2 and stuck this in. I hadn't actually finished the game--something about encountering a glitch that made it impossible for me to complete an important side-quest--but getting back to this 4 CD beast is like being back in the 90's again, when full motion video was the hottest thing, and RPGs weren't relentlessly Emo.Despite it having graphics that would make the PS3 weep, it's still fun to play. And this time I'm gonna' finish the damn thing.
Friday, February 15, 2008
R.I.P. Playstation 3
I have no explanation other than, perhaps we played it to death.
All I know is that in middle of Gimme Shelter, the game inexplicably froze. Trying to restart the song by pausing produced no results. After doing a reset on the system, the PS3 booted up as normally... and refused to read any disc. Not Blu-Ray game discs, not Blu-Ray movie discs, not DVDs of any variety, or CDs. Everything else worked fine, but it no longer recognized physical discs.
I can only theorize that either the housing for the laser, or the blue laser diode itself got damaged. Whatever the case may be, our PS3, which has been providing endless hours of entertainment is dead.
Fortunately, it died while still under warranty.
A quick call to Sony resulted in something like a 15 minute wait, but when I finally got an actual human being on the line, they were very helpful. After a few minutes to take down the details like mailing address and ask about the receipt--which miraculously, I actually had--she determined that everything was in order and that a replacement was in the offing. The way it now works is that we'll need to dig out the external hard drive to transfer all of our precious info onto it and wipe the existing internal hard drive. Then a package will be sent by courier--what the 360 owners refer to as a "coffin"--which the PS3 must be placed in. We send back the pre-paid parcel and when Sony gets our dead PS3, they send a new one. Fortunately, we'll still be getting a 60GB model, because I still play those PS2 games (we were actually still playing Final Fantasy XII together on the PS3) and plan on continuing so as long as my games will work.
It's good to see that Sony is so on the ball with this, but it doesn't quite lesson the sudden blow of going cold turkey on PS3 gaming.
Actually I probably won't go cold turkey. There's still our half-dead PS2 lying around. It should probably last at least long enough to start on Final Fantasy IX. I can't continue on with FFXII, because our save file is now trapped on the PS3 hard drive, and there's no way to transfer it back out and onto a PS2 memory card. Unfortunately the cables used to transfer PS2 files to the PS3 was strictly one-way, with no return ticket.
Oh well, this won't kill me.
However, staring at the Blade-Runner 5 disc Blu-Ray set that was in bound in the mail at some point... okay, that might hurt a little.
I have no explanation other than, perhaps we played it to death.All I know is that in middle of Gimme Shelter, the game inexplicably froze. Trying to restart the song by pausing produced no results. After doing a reset on the system, the PS3 booted up as normally... and refused to read any disc. Not Blu-Ray game discs, not Blu-Ray movie discs, not DVDs of any variety, or CDs. Everything else worked fine, but it no longer recognized physical discs.
I can only theorize that either the housing for the laser, or the blue laser diode itself got damaged. Whatever the case may be, our PS3, which has been providing endless hours of entertainment is dead.
Fortunately, it died while still under warranty.
A quick call to Sony resulted in something like a 15 minute wait, but when I finally got an actual human being on the line, they were very helpful. After a few minutes to take down the details like mailing address and ask about the receipt--which miraculously, I actually had--she determined that everything was in order and that a replacement was in the offing. The way it now works is that we'll need to dig out the external hard drive to transfer all of our precious info onto it and wipe the existing internal hard drive. Then a package will be sent by courier--what the 360 owners refer to as a "coffin"--which the PS3 must be placed in. We send back the pre-paid parcel and when Sony gets our dead PS3, they send a new one. Fortunately, we'll still be getting a 60GB model, because I still play those PS2 games (we were actually still playing Final Fantasy XII together on the PS3) and plan on continuing so as long as my games will work.
It's good to see that Sony is so on the ball with this, but it doesn't quite lesson the sudden blow of going cold turkey on PS3 gaming.
Actually I probably won't go cold turkey. There's still our half-dead PS2 lying around. It should probably last at least long enough to start on Final Fantasy IX. I can't continue on with FFXII, because our save file is now trapped on the PS3 hard drive, and there's no way to transfer it back out and onto a PS2 memory card. Unfortunately the cables used to transfer PS2 files to the PS3 was strictly one-way, with no return ticket.
Oh well, this won't kill me.
However, staring at the Blade-Runner 5 disc Blu-Ray set that was in bound in the mail at some point... okay, that might hurt a little.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Boring Geek Valentines Day
Valentine's Day has ceased to be the least favorite day of my friends because they knew they'd have to deal with all the venom, spite, jealousy and outright hatred that I would spew on that day at them as a result of my insane envy over them being attached and me not. However, having been comfortably married for a few years now, Valentine's actually doesn't really hold much meaning anymore either. We celebrated the day by not getting each other gifts, satisfying a craving for dim sum, playing Final Fantasy XII together and watching Aliens.
Yes, we are sad.
No, I wouldn't have it any other way.
Valentine's Day has ceased to be the least favorite day of my friends because they knew they'd have to deal with all the venom, spite, jealousy and outright hatred that I would spew on that day at them as a result of my insane envy over them being attached and me not. However, having been comfortably married for a few years now, Valentine's actually doesn't really hold much meaning anymore either. We celebrated the day by not getting each other gifts, satisfying a craving for dim sum, playing Final Fantasy XII together and watching Aliens.
Yes, we are sad.
No, I wouldn't have it any other way.
Labels: Icky Couple Stuff
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Secret Missions Done
Although I think I lack either a) the super-human reflexes required or b) the patience required to hone existing reflexes to super-human levels for actually beating the game at the last two higher difficulty settings. This goes beyond hardcore and into the next evolutionary stage of humanity, as designed by ninjas...
Although I think I lack either a) the super-human reflexes required or b) the patience required to hone existing reflexes to super-human levels for actually beating the game at the last two higher difficulty settings. This goes beyond hardcore and into the next evolutionary stage of humanity, as designed by ninjas...
Labels: Games
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Articles Done
And it's back to Devil May Cry 4 to finish assorted secret missions.
And it's back to Devil May Cry 4 to finish assorted secret missions.
Labels: Games, Journalism, Writing
Monday, February 11, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Saturday, February 09, 2008
Concerts For Geeks
Holy crap, that was FUN.
Last night we went to "Video Games Live" a big concert that performs selected tunes from games both past and present. We'd previously been to a much more modest performance in Singapore put out by an Australian group, but this one was epic in scope.
It also helped that this was a North American audience, not a subdued Southeast Asian one, so the house nearly came down when One Winged Angel, aka, "The Final Fantasy VII villain theme" started up as an encore and screaming and cheering went beyond all reason. Of particular note was the amazing 21st century way they audience clamored for said encore; waving their Nintendo DSes, PSPs, and cellular phones in the air, as a post-modern take on the traditional waving of lighters.
I have to admit, I enjoyed this. A LOT. This is probably the only time you will ever have kids willingly pay money to attend a concert performed by classical musicians. I actually got chills down my spine hearing some of these tunes roaring out of the accomplished ministrations of some Toronto Symphony Orchestra alumni. God of War was as bad-ass/majestic as ever, but the show-stopper for me would have to be the theme for Metal Gear Solid. That's always been an incredibly powerful piece of music, and with a full orchestra and choir blasting it out into Massey Hall was like nothing I'd ever experienced before. It helped immensely that for this younger, ADD-plagued audience, they had a freakin' huge screen that showed snippets of game play from the games that the music originated from (except for Squenix games, because for some reason, Squenix forbade the use of game imagery). It also helped that they it wasn't a pure performance of music. Tommy Tallarico, himself a game composer, mixed it up with things like gaming face-offs from people randomly picked from the audience, as well as the inevitable cos-play "cheer for your favorite" selection process.
For a performance that was done almost entirely by a traditional orchestra and choir, they sure managed to keep the whole night ridiculously geeky and hip...
Holy crap, that was FUN.Last night we went to "Video Games Live" a big concert that performs selected tunes from games both past and present. We'd previously been to a much more modest performance in Singapore put out by an Australian group, but this one was epic in scope.
It also helped that this was a North American audience, not a subdued Southeast Asian one, so the house nearly came down when One Winged Angel, aka, "The Final Fantasy VII villain theme" started up as an encore and screaming and cheering went beyond all reason. Of particular note was the amazing 21st century way they audience clamored for said encore; waving their Nintendo DSes, PSPs, and cellular phones in the air, as a post-modern take on the traditional waving of lighters.
I have to admit, I enjoyed this. A LOT. This is probably the only time you will ever have kids willingly pay money to attend a concert performed by classical musicians. I actually got chills down my spine hearing some of these tunes roaring out of the accomplished ministrations of some Toronto Symphony Orchestra alumni. God of War was as bad-ass/majestic as ever, but the show-stopper for me would have to be the theme for Metal Gear Solid. That's always been an incredibly powerful piece of music, and with a full orchestra and choir blasting it out into Massey Hall was like nothing I'd ever experienced before. It helped immensely that for this younger, ADD-plagued audience, they had a freakin' huge screen that showed snippets of game play from the games that the music originated from (except for Squenix games, because for some reason, Squenix forbade the use of game imagery). It also helped that they it wasn't a pure performance of music. Tommy Tallarico, himself a game composer, mixed it up with things like gaming face-offs from people randomly picked from the audience, as well as the inevitable cos-play "cheer for your favorite" selection process.
For a performance that was done almost entirely by a traditional orchestra and choir, they sure managed to keep the whole night ridiculously geeky and hip...
Labels: Culture, Games, Mean Streets Of Toronto, Music
Friday, February 08, 2008
And Done
Devil May Cry 4 has been finished (the first time) and while I am generally happy with the way the game plays, I took serious issue with the last half. Mostly because the last half was "retread all the levels of the first half, back to the beginning." The combat in the game is just as slick, deep and rewarding as it ever was, but when I realized they were going to make me play the same levels I'd just traversed AGAIN, to and try and pass that off as new content, I just kind of sat there open-mounted thinking, "You're not SERIOUS?!"
Alas, they were. I've already written the review. I'd gone in thinking it would vaguely be a 9, maybe an 8.5+, but that complete re-hash of previous levels took a series already renowned for backtracking to an ally new, mythically ridiculous degree. So I gave it an 8.3. Great game, but LOUSY level design.
Devil May Cry 4 has been finished (the first time) and while I am generally happy with the way the game plays, I took serious issue with the last half. Mostly because the last half was "retread all the levels of the first half, back to the beginning." The combat in the game is just as slick, deep and rewarding as it ever was, but when I realized they were going to make me play the same levels I'd just traversed AGAIN, to and try and pass that off as new content, I just kind of sat there open-mounted thinking, "You're not SERIOUS?!"
Alas, they were. I've already written the review. I'd gone in thinking it would vaguely be a 9, maybe an 8.5+, but that complete re-hash of previous levels took a series already renowned for backtracking to an ally new, mythically ridiculous degree. So I gave it an 8.3. Great game, but LOUSY level design.
Labels: Games
Thursday, February 07, 2008
The Main Event
Dante is now a playable character again and all is right with the world. However, amusingly, this latest version of everyone's favorite half-human, half-demon, monster killing wise-cracker bears a suspicious resemblance to Sean Bean. At least to my eye. Every time I see the guy on screen I'm reminded of Boromir for the Lord of the Rings movies. It doesn't help that he has that huge freakin' sword either.
So far I'm liking the game. The graphics are ridiculously good (as evinced by the image on the left) but they cheaped out on the level design by making the last half of the game merely following your trail back to the first level. I'm not real impressed by that, and will dock accordingly in my review.
Dante is now a playable character again and all is right with the world. However, amusingly, this latest version of everyone's favorite half-human, half-demon, monster killing wise-cracker bears a suspicious resemblance to Sean Bean. At least to my eye. Every time I see the guy on screen I'm reminded of Boromir for the Lord of the Rings movies. It doesn't help that he has that huge freakin' sword either. So far I'm liking the game. The graphics are ridiculously good (as evinced by the image on the left) but they cheaped out on the level design by making the last half of the game merely following your trail back to the first level. I'm not real impressed by that, and will dock accordingly in my review.
Labels: Games
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
It's Here
And it's freakin' HARD.
You can click on the picture to enlarge the Obscenely Hot Chick that is kicking demon ass willy nilly. She's part of the balletic insanity that gamers just take for granted when it comes to playing a Devil May Cry game, and she continues the proud tradition of being Oh So Naughty in a way that seriously pushes the "Mature" rating of the game. Sadly, you don't get to control Dante right off the bat, which is a shame, since he's really what the game is all about...
And it's freakin' HARD.You can click on the picture to enlarge the Obscenely Hot Chick that is kicking demon ass willy nilly. She's part of the balletic insanity that gamers just take for granted when it comes to playing a Devil May Cry game, and she continues the proud tradition of being Oh So Naughty in a way that seriously pushes the "Mature" rating of the game. Sadly, you don't get to control Dante right off the bat, which is a shame, since he's really what the game is all about...
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, Games
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Damn
That was some good science fiction TV. I heart Kendra Shaw...
That was some good science fiction TV. I heart Kendra Shaw...Labels: Battlestar Galactica, Boring And Insipid Posts
Monday, February 04, 2008
More Geek Stuff
A couple of arrivals in the mail today which made a) both the Wife and I pleased and b) made me extraordinarily happy but caused the Wife's eyes to roll. The first item, which was mutually pleasing, was this:
Having enjoyed the movie immensely when it first popped up in theaters, I'd been looking to pick this up for a while. Now that we've got a PS3 and a high-def TV, there didn't seem much point in picking it up on anything but Blu-Ray, so now we've got it. It was one of those films that took me by surprise because we weren't sure whether it was going to be any good or not, and surprised us a lot by having a particular sensibility that can only be described as "80's." In the same way that movies such as Gremlins and The Goonies were essentially made for younger viewers but had a slight, darker edge to them that made them entertaining viewing for adults, so too does Monster House possess that same kind of edginess rarely seen in cinematic fare for youngsters these days. I'm glad we've got it in our collection now, and though Blade-Runner still eludes me, dammit...
The other one is pure science fiction geek porn for me. The Wife tolerates--just barely--my near religious dedication to Quite Possibly The Greatest Science Fiction Television Show In The History Of Science Fiction Television. I still haven't seen season 3 as I'm waiting for that season collection to be released. The Battlestar Galactica series is a point of minor irritation for the collector in me because it's a casualty of sorts of the format war. I'd much, MUCH rather have this in high definition if possible, but BSG being under the umbrella of Universal, it means that for the foreseeable future, the only two flavors the sets will be available in is DVD and HD-DVD. Fortunately the fact that the format war is essentially over means that BSG will likely appear on Blu-Ray someday, but that won't be for at least another year, and I'm not going to wait THAT long just to watch season 3 in high definition. So for now, DVDs will do, and I'll revisit the possibility of getting these in a better format when more time passes, HD-DVD is truly dead, and Universal has already grudgingly transitioned over to Blu-Ray. Not a perfect solution, but thankfully at least the format war is essentially over now, so it's just down to waiting.
And tomorrow, if the fates are willing...
A couple of arrivals in the mail today which made a) both the Wife and I pleased and b) made me extraordinarily happy but caused the Wife's eyes to roll. The first item, which was mutually pleasing, was this:
Having enjoyed the movie immensely when it first popped up in theaters, I'd been looking to pick this up for a while. Now that we've got a PS3 and a high-def TV, there didn't seem much point in picking it up on anything but Blu-Ray, so now we've got it. It was one of those films that took me by surprise because we weren't sure whether it was going to be any good or not, and surprised us a lot by having a particular sensibility that can only be described as "80's." In the same way that movies such as Gremlins and The Goonies were essentially made for younger viewers but had a slight, darker edge to them that made them entertaining viewing for adults, so too does Monster House possess that same kind of edginess rarely seen in cinematic fare for youngsters these days. I'm glad we've got it in our collection now, and though Blade-Runner still eludes me, dammit... 
The other one is pure science fiction geek porn for me. The Wife tolerates--just barely--my near religious dedication to Quite Possibly The Greatest Science Fiction Television Show In The History Of Science Fiction Television. I still haven't seen season 3 as I'm waiting for that season collection to be released. The Battlestar Galactica series is a point of minor irritation for the collector in me because it's a casualty of sorts of the format war. I'd much, MUCH rather have this in high definition if possible, but BSG being under the umbrella of Universal, it means that for the foreseeable future, the only two flavors the sets will be available in is DVD and HD-DVD. Fortunately the fact that the format war is essentially over means that BSG will likely appear on Blu-Ray someday, but that won't be for at least another year, and I'm not going to wait THAT long just to watch season 3 in high definition. So for now, DVDs will do, and I'll revisit the possibility of getting these in a better format when more time passes, HD-DVD is truly dead, and Universal has already grudgingly transitioned over to Blu-Ray. Not a perfect solution, but thankfully at least the format war is essentially over now, so it's just down to waiting. And tomorrow, if the fates are willing...
Labels: Battlestar Galactica, Games, Movies
Sunday, February 03, 2008
The Tourist
Someone from the old Writer's Group back in Edmonton showed up for a visit in Toronto over the weekend to check out the Spice Girls concert. I wasn't even aware they were performing in town, which is no surprise considering how terminally unhip I am to anything not related to the games industry. He's now living in Ottawa, and I'd actually never met him before because he joined the group after I'd left for the other side of the planet, so it was interesting to catch up and talk shop about writing and Battlestar Galactica.
Someone from the old Writer's Group back in Edmonton showed up for a visit in Toronto over the weekend to check out the Spice Girls concert. I wasn't even aware they were performing in town, which is no surprise considering how terminally unhip I am to anything not related to the games industry. He's now living in Ottawa, and I'd actually never met him before because he joined the group after I'd left for the other side of the planet, so it was interesting to catch up and talk shop about writing and Battlestar Galactica.
Labels: Friends, Mean Streets Of Toronto
Saturday, February 02, 2008
The Refresher
Day 2 of playing Final Fantasy XII has brought back one thing I had forgotten in the year plus since I've touched the game.
It's freakin' HUGE.
Even though all I have to do now is fight the final boss to end the game, I am, of course, being a completist and going through all the additional side-quests, getting the best weapons and good stuff like that. This is a gargantuan task, and even over half the game's content has been experienced, there is still a TON of stuff left to do. Man. This game is gigantic...
Day 2 of playing Final Fantasy XII has brought back one thing I had forgotten in the year plus since I've touched the game.
It's freakin' HUGE.
Even though all I have to do now is fight the final boss to end the game, I am, of course, being a completist and going through all the additional side-quests, getting the best weapons and good stuff like that. This is a gargantuan task, and even over half the game's content has been experienced, there is still a TON of stuff left to do. Man. This game is gigantic...
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, Games, RPGs
Friday, February 01, 2008
Back To The PS2
Or at least, the backwards compatibility function of the PS3. I don't know why, but suddenly today, I realized "Hey, we haven't finished Final Fantasy XII yet."
So I'm getting back to that.
Or at least, the backwards compatibility function of the PS3. I don't know why, but suddenly today, I realized "Hey, we haven't finished Final Fantasy XII yet."
So I'm getting back to that.
Labels: Boring And Insipid Posts, RPGs
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