TheTurks Blog

Only Doctor Who carries on as normal!

2011-06-16T16:30:00.000+01:00

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking twenty-five miles to school every morning.... Uphill... Barefoot... BOTH ways...yadda, yadda, yadda

And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way in hell I was going to laya bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it!

        But now that I'm  nearly approaching the ripe old age of 40 , I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today. You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in a damn Utopia!  And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it!

1) I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have the Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the damn library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalog!!

2) There was no email!! We had to actually write somebody a letter - with a pen!  Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox, and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!

3) Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass! Nowhere was safe!

4) There were no MP3's or Napsters or iTunes! If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself!

5) Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio, and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished, and then the tape would come undone rendering it useless. Cause, hey, that's how we rolled, Baby! Dig?

6) We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you were on the phone and somebody else called, they got a busy signal, that's it!

7) There weren't any freakin' cell phones either. If you left the house, you just didn't make a damn call or receive one. You actually had to be out of touch with your "friends". OH MY GOSH !!! Think of the horror... Not being in touch with someone 24/7!!! And then there's TEXTING. Yeah, right. Please! You kids have no idea how annoying you are.

8) And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either! When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your parents, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, the collection agent... You just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!

9) We didn't have any fancy PlayStation or Xbox video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games like 'Space Invaders' and 'Asteroids'. Your screen guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen.. Forever! And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!

10) You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your ass and walk over to the TV to change the channel!!! NO REMOTES!!! Oh, no, what's the world coming to?!?!

11) There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying? We had to wait ALL WEEKfor cartoons, you spoiled little rat-bastards!

12) And we didn't have microwaves. If we wanted to heat something up, we had to use the stove! Imagine that!




  13) And our parents told us to stay outside and play... All day long. Oh, no, no electronics to soothe and comfort. And if you came back inside... You were doing chores!
  And car seats - oh, please! Mom threw you in the back seat and you hung on. If you were lucky, you got the "safety arm" across the chest at the last moment if she had to stop suddenly, and if your head hit the dashboard, well that was your fault for calling "shot gun" in the first place!


See! That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids today have got it too easy. You're spoiled rotten! You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in 1970   or any time before!

BBC News - Health groups reject 'responsibility deal' on alcohol

2011-03-14T11:26:00.000Z

BBC News - Health groups reject 'responsibility deal' on alcohol

Six leading health groups have dealt the government a blow by refusing to sign up to its new "responsibility deal" on alcohol in England.

The deal covers voluntary agreements with the drinks industry on issues such as promotions and labelling, aimed at tackling alcohol abuse.

But the organisations, including Alcohol Concern, accused ministers of not being tough enough on the industry.

The six groups are: Alcohol Concern, the British Association for the Study of the Liver, the British Liver Trust, the British Medical Association, the Institute of Alcohol Studies and the Royal College of Physicians.

Heath secretary Andre Lansley, having prostrated himself before the Drinks industry to do what they will with the government strategy, proceeds to take over the 'debate'.

His strategy obviously is to give no time for the other side to put their case.

Another success for the 'I'm alright Jack' Con-dem alliance, if you can call the liberal sell out an alliance.

A Royal Wedding

2010-11-17T15:59:00.000Z

Of course it's lovely that a couple have announced their love and intention to marry. But will the media please STFU and stop ass-licking and ejaculating joyous announcements over the airwaves.
The Tory cuts are all part of the plan. By the time of the wedding, the royal couple will have real elderly, sick and homeless peasants lining the streets as they'll have nothing else to do but watch the royal krauts and our great leaders celebrate and feast while the arse-licking media are tasked with regurgitating bucketfuls of nauseous reverent adoration for the pig ignorant common people to gorge upon.

Quantitative Easing Explained

2010-11-15T22:34:00.000Z

Home delivery snares Glasgow pizza robber

2010-11-09T17:17:00.002Z

BBC News - Home delivery snares Glasgow pizza robber
Shiva is very busy working her karma on William McManus. With all these karma purification going on, I suspect he'll be back as a Buddhist monk next time round.
Pizza - what goes around comes around (sometimes in square boxes with extra topping)

The Cloud Connection

2010-11-03T19:45:00.001Z

The Cloud Connection

A world devastated by The Big Freeze. A 16 year old infected with nano-particles that enable him to link to anything with a microchip. Hacking systems to search for his mother makes him a priority target for MI5 and a ruthless military corporation. When militant cyber-activists offer to help in his search, he soon finds himself heading towards a confrontation that could kill thousands.

Clegg - The Emperor's new Policy

2010-09-21T00:51:00.000+01:00

Why is it that every single time I see Mr Clegg on TV or hear him on the Radio, I have this really strong image of Cameron and a couple of his Tory mates watching or listening while rolling about in hysterics holding their sides and bawling 'My God he still believes it!!'

(Picture belongs to the Prime Minister's Office Photostream)

Tories Planting news in preparation for Policy!

2010-09-21T00:26:00.001+01:00

The Tories plant the 'public sector get very high wages' debate conveniently into the news media to prepare us for more severe cuts. (Yes we've seen it all on the west wing). And now the C**ts have come up with child labour. Well since the Eastern Europeans are going back to their new homes built with money they earned here, The Tory shites need to maintain their profit margins.
Here's the BBC News article (they own the picture and everything else down there!)
Should children be expected to work?

Inception or the A Team

2010-08-02T13:27:00.000+01:00

Having seen Inception (at the crappiest small screen cinema in London - (the cramped, small screen that's no better than the sitting room of a drunken stranger who's spent his redundancy on a second hand home cinema system rather than a vacuum cleaner, i.e. Muswell hill odeon)
Then watched the A Team at the proper cinema VUE north finchley.
I can honestly say, The A Team is the better movie of you want to enjoy yourself

BBC News - Government lays out fast net plan

2010-06-08T19:26:00.000+01:00

BBC News - Government lays out fast net plan

"Let them eat cake" is the traditional translation of the French phrase "Qu'ils mangent de la brioche", supposedly said by a French princess upon learning that the peasants had no bread. The phrase reflected the princess's obliviousness to the nature of a famine.
I suppose the millions of redundant and unemployed would rather surf than work for a decent quality of life. talk about turn on the internet and turn off your life.

The BBC News website reports "Culture secretary Jeremy Hunt said he realised fast broadband was "increasingly essential"

I suppose anything's better than riots.
Ah, whatever happened to true liberals and social democracy?

Study: Pro Gamers Have Eyes of Fighter Pilot, Body of Elderly Chainsmoker

2010-06-08T19:02:00.000+01:00

Study: Pro Gamers Have Eyes of Fighter Pilot, Body of Elderly Chainsmoker

1up.com have a really interesting report on the state of our young gamers. well worth a read.

"The study found that pro-gamers had mental acuity comparable to athletes, and visual response times almost as fast as fighter jet pilots. The study also suggested that gamers viewed competition with similar emotional responses....Unfortunately, that's where the good news ends. The study also found that by and large, professional gamers had low fitness levels, even compared to people much older than themselves. One young gamer, the study noted, appeared healthy and slim, but had the lung function of a heavy smoker in his 60s."

Eurovision for the mundane masses

2010-05-30T19:45:00.000+01:00

I was disappointed.
OK there was some of the usual strange magic but the uniqueness of Eurovision has gone!
It had lost all its quirkiness, due, I suspect, to the heavy hand of the judging panel.
Lithuania had a real fun tune going from Kazoos to rock for instance, that never made the cut!
I fear we are stuck with a bland 'meh', a sterile sanitised Eurovision without the anarchic passion.

Last one for me I think!

'Impossible motion' trick wins Illusion Contest

2010-05-20T13:43:00.000+01:00

BBC News - Hot pursuit ninjas save Australia mugging victim

2010-05-20T12:42:00.000+01:00

BBC News - Hot pursuit ninjas save Australia mugging victim
Three muggers make the mistake of attacking a guy round the back of Mr Soto's School for Ninja Warriors!
HiiiYaaa!

Politics used to be a Serious matter for the politicians anyway!

2010-05-20T09:12:00.001+01:00

We are living in permanent April Fools Day. Now Diane Abbott has thrown her hat into the Labour Leadership ring. What the heck is she thinking. Oh, of course. She knows she has no chance of winning. Diane just wants to put the 'black and minority ethnic and other disadvantaged and minority and vulnerable groups onto the Leadership agenda. Well done Diane, for showing how mad the Labour party, no hang on, how mad the whole of British politics has become.
Clegg chucks in his Liberal principles and values to be Cameron's Bitch.
The mad thing is that Labour's Milliband brothers sums up the stupidity of the masses. The Labour Brainiacs have cottoned on to the fact that great voting public spend most of their time watching shit TV, or dumbass friends on YouTube injuring themselves in various ways and noticed that the victims are poundshop celebs or or celebrity wannabes.
Why doesn't Labour go the whole way and have the leadership candidates run a rigorous series of tests including
Come Dine with me.
Labour Ninja
Leadership wipe-out.

Händewaschen Ultra Fail

2010-05-20T08:29:00.000+01:00

PS3 + MUBI + YOU

2010-05-18T20:26:00.000+01:00

PS3 + MUBI + YOU – PlayStation.Blog.Europe

MUBI is the new a movie streaming service coming to a PS3 near you soon, giving you the best of international Art House and indie movies.
The Coen brothers, Godard, Kitano, Almodóvar, Tarantino and Van Sant – if any of these names rings a bell then you should be getting very excited.

As the Sony blog says "we emphasize quality over quantity. You’ll find undistributed festival gems ripe for your discovery, your favorite recent independent and art-house releases. Names like the Coen brothers, Godard, Kitano, Almodóvar, Tarantino, and Van Sant are some we’ll bring home to you."

The Genius that is xlcd.com

2010-05-17T21:52:00.001+01:00

The Daily Mail Song

2010-05-17T18:11:00.000+01:00

BBC News - Oxfordshire mast fire leaves 400,000 without TV signal

2010-05-13T20:12:00.000+01:00

BBC News - Oxfordshire mast fire leaves 400,000 without TV signal

And here's the picture from the BBC website in question. BBC copyright etc.
No doubt there will be a blip in the birthrate for that area nine months hence.
Perhaps that's the solution to the dwindling population. Opp's no scratch that. most of the people have sky or cable.
Then again, it'll only be people that don't have sky or cable who will be hearing the pitter patter of the debt collectors trundling up their recession worn path and waking up the babies with their relentless banging on the door.

Heavy Rain complaints

2010-05-13T19:53:00.001+01:00

Those good people at computerandvideogames dot com are reporting that: "The UK's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has rejected a number of complaints made by TV viewers over Heavy Rain adverts." You can read the article here. Heavy Rain advert complaints rejected

Several people have made derisory comments about the Advertising Standards Authorities rejection of the complaints. They presumably consider themselves 'wits'.
They should all be ashamed of themselves for making light of such serious and dangerous content being screened at a time when vulnerable Daily mail readers and young conservatives would have settled down after supper for a little family time in front of the television.
It is outrageous that the Advertising Standards Authority rejected the complaints of my fellow hyphenated-surnamed individuals and children named after characters in classic literature.
Why only yesterday My children Anthony, Hector, Jocasta, Mercedes and Augustus were in Harrods with myself and Lucretia, the children's nanny when Augustus turned to me and said “papa, that man comes from a hot country, should he be allowed in here, is he dangerous?”
I was about to reply when young Mercedes tugged my hand and said “daddy, daddy, look at that fat man, he looks like that horrid man in the television advertisement for that Japanese companies Heavy Rain console game. Please take me home right now!”
Good heavens, it’s clear you people have no decency…
Oh, excuse me that’s the gardener, back in a mo..

Update

2010-05-13T14:05:00.000+01:00

Busy making arrangements to meet several beautiful Russian girls looking for long term relationship and helping a number of Nigerian individuals get back between 10 and 25 million dollars.

The Tory - Libdem Coalition

2010-05-12T14:32:00.000+01:00

Clegg's got what he was after all the time - power and status and screw the core lib-dem principles.
If the libdems buy this 'long term' coalition crap then they really are stupid. Might as well say."lets all become torys"!

Who needs Thatcher?

2010-05-12T14:30:00.000+01:00

No need to bring thatcher back. The current Tory party is no different! They just have a front man (Cameron) that appeals to the dumb-ass celebrity culture that guides the thinking of the majority of moronic voters. i.e judge everything by appearances and heavy doses of sugared and colourful Bullshit

Smartest A.I Football players - never the same move!

2010-05-11T13:35:00.000+01:00

The players in Natural Motions BackBreaker behave like real players, you'll never see the same move twice!

Kingdom Hearts 3

2010-05-10T18:01:00.000+01:00

If my friendly KH emails are to be believed then KH3 is due out end of July and the man man is reported to be saying:

Tetsuya Nomura Speaks

“About the next title, Kingdom Hearts 3 depends on Final Fantasy XIII Versus, but development of the next title is already underway. There are two titles other than Kingdom Hearts 3 in conception, and I think I’ll release one within this year.”
“As from next year, I want to put out a title with multiple main characters.”
“The series won’t end in Kingdom Hearts 3, more like the conclusion of the Xehanort saga.”
“It’s not the case that when Sora’s story is over another hero’s story will begin; Sora will be the hero until the end.”

Demorcacy 5mins every 5 Years

2010-05-10T15:58:00.000+01:00

Voting over, democracy is over for us for another five years (or should that be weeks?)
Now we do nothing while 'secret' negotiations take place. What a farce.
Surely these negotiations should be open and transparent.
It's our lives, money and services that are being decided upon.
You'd think the internet, podcasts, webcasts, etc should come into it's own at times like this.
What the heck is the internet for?

God of War 3

2010-04-29T23:42:00.000+01:00

God of War 3

There's a development in that intriguing God of War 3 teaser page. Rain and a a head!
Developers love their ‘intriguing’ rain teasers
Didn’t metal gear and a couple of other games have intriguing’ rain teasers – excluding heavy rain of course!

Oh and when the lightening's right, you get a shadowy reflection of someone in a dress.

Is this the GOW3 add on, a saint's row style expansion pack?

Twitter / Geoff Keighley: http://bit.ly/9TF076 This ...

2010-04-29T01:31:00.000+01:00

http://bit.ly/9TF076 This Friday's GTTV on Spike will feature the world premiere of the next CALL OF DUTY.

Is a hung parliament real democracy?

2010-04-26T22:43:00.001+01:00

I think everybody is running scared of the 'hung parliament' the lib dems are keen on. - so both labourites and conts (I said conts!) are doing the hate on them.

But would a hung parliament actually put in place a fully fledged real-time democratic parliament. Rather than the once every five years democracy we have now?

The Crazies think such a gov't won't be able to decide anything and the country would collapse. Despite the fact that there's a bunch of European countries that work perfectly well this way!

Ubisoft register numerous website domains | PS3 Attitude

2010-04-26T17:27:00.000+01:00

Ubisoft register numerous website domains | PS3 Attitude

LaserHomebattle caught my eye.
My guess is that LaserHomeBattle will be a Playstation Move game.(is it still called that I gave up keeping up on that one)
Lets you shoot lasers into other peoples houses.
It’ll be 3D so you see laser beams shoot around your living room – while your shots go smashing the opponents living room image replicated on your screen.
How effing cool would that be

Modern Warfare creators Zampella and West respawn with EA | PS3 Attitude

2010-04-12T23:57:00.003+01:00

Modern Warfare creators Zampella and West respawn with EA | PS3 Attitude

Once again PS3Attitude deliver a darn good read. worth a look!
This time they report that the two genius's behind Infinity ward have respawned as "Respawn Entertainment" and jumped ship to EA.
Then we are given the usual "we put the gamers first" spiel.
Honestly, do they take us all for noobs?
“We’re excited, now that the team is in control of the games and brands, we can ensure that the fans are treated as well as they deserve.”
“we’re honored to be their partners.”
yeah yeah, and the rest!

What a load of tosh, this BS smells so bad I can see the curves of odious odour from here in North London.

Why don’t they simply admit they are chasing the money for god’s sake?
it’s not as if we are all fooled by their ‘commitment’ to gamers.
Y’think we were born yesterday!

Remember that Frank Zappa album “We’re only in it for the money”?

Perhaps they should re-release that track
“Every town must have a place where phoney gamers meet.
new dev’ studios popping up on every Next-gen street.
Go work for EA yay yay!
Bah!

But seriously. I suppose they were saying to Activision. “Check this out, it rocks”
And activision were like “We’ve got a proven COD moneyspinner, if it ain’t broke…”

So they go to EA and say “Check this out, It rocks”
And EA say “Hey, ain’t you the guys that did COD, who gives a crap about your ideas, first things first take this money and come work for us, or dig a ditch and bury yourselves, go play hide and seek with Bin Laden – anything but stay with Activision.
Sure, work for us, reinvent pong or create something truly awesome, whatever, either way we’ll be singing in the shower for months.”

Actually I do believe the Respawn guys are sincere in wanting to continue making the most of their creative genius. This is only natural.
But You can bet your bottom dollah EA have their own agenda.
I’ve been watching some of the Bad Co 2 gameplay.
Y’know. It really looks like revamped old gen enemy movements. There is no AI that I could see, just reactive coding. It was hilarious watching the enemy soldiers wandering about waiting to get shot.
Maybe this is what the guys will bring to EA FPS, more dynamic, threatening enemy AI at least.
Good luck to them, really.

Killzone 2, GT5, Little Big Planet and more getting 3D treatment on PS3 - Pocket-lint

2010-04-04T13:56:00.001+01:00

Killzone 2, GT5, Little Big Planet and more getting 3D treatment on PS3 - Pocket-lint

It's not surprising that Killzone 2 would be one of the first to enter into the realms of 3D. Not after the amount of time and technology put in to the various layers and graphics.

Yakuza 3 Review | PS3 Attitude

2010-04-01T15:03:00.000+01:00

Yakuza 3 Review | PS3 Attitude
Crap game.
Read the reviews and comments here - worth a laugh

Take the tour FirstPlay

2010-04-01T14:17:00.000+01:00

Take the tour FirstPlay

I was lucky enough to be sent a beta key so I had a gander at it yesterday.
It's all a bit too 'casual' for my liking.
Which means it's OK as something to pass the time in between using the PS3 for anything else like playing a game, watching a film, browsing the web, etc.
I was hoping for something a bit more insightful and intelligent.
The whole thing seems to be pitched in a way that ignores the rich history of gaming.
The presentation avoids the assumption of any intelligence on the part of the viewer regarding design (game, character, environment, music, game-play, level etc) , story plot structure, narrative style, art style.
The dialogue avoids reference to anything that might get the viewer actually thinking about everything that makes a game good - or just gives the game it's look and feel and character.
So what remains are the 'exclusives'.
I think the best option is to buy those episodes that have demo's or content actually worth paying for.
If you want something a bit more gamer-intelligent I'd go for Edge.

YouTube - FINALFANTASYXIV's Channel

2010-03-31T18:52:00.003+01:00

YouTube - FINALFANTASYXIV's Channel

So the First Final Fantasy XIV game play footage on the official FFXIV YouTube channel.
It's all in Japanese but so as far as I can make out the group go to a bar then the big guy is looking for the loo and is about to wee on a statue when someone points out that people will see him for miles around.
They then see somewhere that might be a public ‘convenience’ but it turns out to be a shop. after some disputes as to whether they can use the toilets there the big guy wishes he never saw the fish tank as it makes his condition worse.
The various traders offer their various medicinal and technical solutions.
None are that appealing though, some are even too painful to consider.
By now the little girl is also desperate to go to the loo and is having trouble holding it in.
The young man laughs heartily saying she should be wearing a diaper anyway
Finally the big guy finds somewhere they can go and all are finally very happily relieved.

Brink Game Official Site | Splash Damage | Bethesda Softworks

2010-03-31T14:18:00.002+01:00

Brink Game Official Site | Splash Damage | Bethesda Softworks

Brink looks like a ton of fun. What with the customisation of characters, costumes, tattoos, weapons and even ammo the game It's worth keeping an eye on!

Nestle chocolate a guilty pleasure - that's putting it mildly!

2010-03-31T13:49:00.005+01:00

Spider-Man Shattered Dimensions.

2010-03-31T10:27:00.002+01:00

Spider-Man Shattered Dimensions : Home

Your friendly neighbourhood spiderman is back - in four dimensions.
First if the familiar troubled web-slinger we all know and love. in a gloosy bright colourful Marvel world straight out of the comics.
Then there is the 'Noir' Spidey from the same named series which saw spider-man as he would have been if he found his powers in the 1930's - a far darker, and I think visually better, game.
Plus there are two additional dimensions with no info on them as yet. Ah the teasers!
Here's the Noir link if you want to buy it from Amazon

Resistance 3 reappears in franchise survey -- Joystiq

2010-03-29T10:45:00.001+01:00

Resistance 3 reappears in franchise survey -- Joystiq

Of course there's going to be a Resistance 3. Surely this is a no-brainer.
I agree Insomniac will have to pull something pretty incredible out of the bag if it is to compete with MW2, Battlefield Bad Company 2 and Killzone 2. And I believe they are more than capable of succeeding.
The success of Resistance 3, and Killzone 2 and Uncharted 3 will in no small way be fuelled by collaboration between studios to deliver AAA games. After all. All three games occupy their own genre, so are not competing with each other. Which Can't be said for EA and Infinity ward for example.
And remember Insomniac, Naughty Dog and Guerilla are producing PS3 exclusives.
Working together and sharing expertise is a win-win-win scenario.

All this is why I believe we'll be seeing more of is 'crossovers amongst Playstation exlusives on the back of developers helping each other out - something PS3 developers can now do very easily by sharing large chunks of working game code from sections of games over a 'developer only' PSN.

Developer collaboration in improving various aspects of their games has already led to off-shoots like Helghast, Chimera and Infamous skins turning up in Uncharted. This is just the beginning.

LOST island hidden in Just Cause 2, Just Cause 2 Xbox 360 News | GamesRadar

2010-03-25T10:53:00.001Z

LOST island hidden in Just Cause 2, Just Cause 2 Xbox 360 News | GamesRadar
Just Cause or Lost Cause?

Nice touch and worth a laugh but..
The first two series of Lost were excellent, but from series 3 Lost began to get really very, very silly until it became utterly ridiculous. The time travelling island is just plain nuts and straight out of a 70's pulp sci-fi comic. Talk about stretching a franchise out to get as much money as possible from it!
As for the game, I played Lost Cause, sorry I meant Just Cause, demo (pun intended) and cancelled the pre-order.
So, put me in with the people who couldn’t give a monkeys.

Square Enix CEO Comments On Final Fantasy VII Remake // Siliconera

2010-03-24T12:46:00.002Z

Square Enix CEO Comments On Final Fantasy VII Remake // Siliconera
It will be a tough challenge after the epic FFXIII to remake a game made for a more primitive console.

I suppose Square would have to tread a fine balance between retaining the original story and adapting the whole experience to make full use of the PS3 (and maybe Xbox)power and capacity.
There would have to be some serious work put into creating a FFVII capable of meeting current standards and expectations.
After 13, it would be foolish of square to release 7 as a straight polished remake of the original plot, characters and battles. I suspect the accountants would want to pull in people new to the game and give die-hards something extra.

China warns Google to obey rules even if it pulls out | Technology | Reuters

2010-03-16T14:30:00.000Z

China warns Google to obey rules even if it pulls out | Technology | Reuters

Now here's an interesting development.
My question is what international legal jurisdiction is China considering when it demands that Google continues to impose a particular nations limits and controls in it's operations if it is not offering a service in that country - in this instance China?
What implications does such a demand have upon global freedom of speech?
For example, would all the printed newspapers need to obey Chinese laws about news coverage, all Satellite TV channels censor their content in case someone in China has a big dish pointed in a particular direction?
Does this mean North Korea, Russia, Iran, and countless other countries begin to demand that various Internet based companies and services begin to censor content and services?
Add this to the file-sharing legislation and increasing subscription services and it looks like the freedom of the internet is seeing its last days.
Enjoy it while it lasts fellas.

The Scale of the Universe

2010-03-15T11:29:00.001Z

The Scale of the Universe

It all started with a big bang. Hey!

SOCOM 4: It’s Official! – PlayStation.Blog

2010-03-04T22:50:00.002Z

SOCOM 4: It’s Official! – PlayStation.Blog

Definitely worth waiting for!

SOCOM 4 sets you up against a militant revolutionary who has up and seized control in some South Asian country. As the Ops Com, You have six days to take the guy on with the help of your elite five-man squad and deal with the crisis before all hell breaks loose. The game takes you through a hostile jungle and urban environments "against an army of well-armed rebel insurgents that completely outnumber you."

The game gives you an impressive 32-person multiplayer mode with more Special Forces units than ever before!

Games blasted for satanic content | PS3 Attitude

2010-03-01T23:25:00.000Z

Games blasted for satanic content | PS3 Attitude

Wasn’t it the church that invented Satan?

And, as anyone who read the bible knows, all of the mass slaughters,global floods, drownings, plagues, fire-storms, wrath, destruction of cities and nations, incitement to wars etc., etc. were all done by or carried out under the instructions of a Mr Lord God Almighty.
What did Satan do? er, not a lot. Got someone to eat some fruit and get all kinky and think for themselves, have a chat with Mr B Jesus on a cliff-top.

Has someone ever done a body count of how many people God was responsible for killing, in some pretty God-awful ways.

If there was a Satan, he’s probably been playing catch up since he was booted from the Garden. Wasn’t even allowed to keep his tree. No wonder he’s p****d off.

And going by all the killings still going on in the name of one or other religions ‘God’, He’s still got his Mighty Mojo wrath on.

By comparison, what gamers get up to is less than the charge of a quantum particle.

BBC News - Iran 'not co-operating' says new IAEA chief

2010-03-01T14:24:00.001Z

BBC News - Iran 'not co-operating' says new IAEA chief

If Iran complies with all IAEA and UN requirements, its nuclear program, and therefore its commercial and economic development, will fall more under the influence of Western Powers. The upside for the world is that it will not develop its Nuclear military power.

If Iran does not comply and continues on it's current path it will face sanctions. I wouldn't be surprised if in the next couple of years America and a couple of it's friends start talking about an Invasion. Russia and China will say no of course and we'll have to see how that plays out.
Worrying times!

Uncharted 2 Cleans Up At 13th Annual AIAS Awards - PlayStation 3 News at IGN

2010-02-24T14:30:00.000Z

Uncharted 2 Cleans Up At 13th Annual AIAS Awards - PlayStation 3 News at IGN

BBC News - Church launches government attack

2010-02-24T12:44:00.000Z

BBC News - Church launches government attack

There has been so much religious and faith related news in the press lately I can't help thinking that the Catholic Church, as well as other religious institutions have mounted a counter-offensive against the rising tide of criticisms of religious beliefs from the scientific community.
I wonder if 2010 is going to be the decade of the Science - v- religion smackdown.
Science will win hands down if it comes to evidence and reason.
religion will triumph if they shout long and hard enough to exasperate the opposition.

Natal will destroy Sony’s motion controller | PS3 Attitude

2010-02-23T20:15:00.000Z

Natal will destroy Sony’s motion controller | PS3 Attitude

I think I've said all I need to on this one at my favourite PS3 site!

VG247 » Blog Archive » Rumour: Call of Duty casting call mentions “SOG in Vietnam,” details characters

2010-02-23T20:05:00.001Z

VG247 » Blog Archive » Rumour: Call of Duty casting call mentions “SOG in Vietnam,” details characters

Hang on.
Wasn’t Vietnam the one, well the first one, where the American’s should have left well alone?
This is all a bit dodgy. Considering the chaos, atrocities, civilian deaths, the massive anti-war movement.
I can see a big stink happening with this one, with the Guardian and the Independent getting their knickers in a twist. The Times (and the rest of Murdoch’s Mighty Machinery: Sky, Fox etc.) will side with Infinity and put their corporate muscle behind the game, knowing it’ll give them virtually exclusive access to use the game to promote their own products – since the other media would have shot themselves in their ethical foot at the cost of profit.

Why am I saying all this when I’d probably agree with the ‘liberal’ press?

Sony: PS3 3D firmware update due within months - Pocket-lint

2010-02-14T17:37:00.002Z

3D seems to be picking up apace. And Sony seem to be up in the lead as far as gaming and 3D Blu Ray is involved.
Pocket Lint has the full news at this jump.
Sony: PS3 3D firmware update due within months - Pocket-lint

Religious freedom - what are they on about?

2010-02-03T10:08:00.002Z

So the Pope and other religious leaders are unhappy about equality legislation that prevents them from discriminating on grounds of sexual orientation. They complain about "religious freedom"

"Religious freedom" is am absurdly paradoxical statement. Religions are all about deluded beliefs reinforced by rituals and practices controlled by an archaic hierarchy.
Don't get me wrong I do believe in a Divine Being and the devotional relationship to the Divine, for which we are blessed with happiness in return. But All Religions nowadays are just institutions like any other, with belief systems and oppressive discriminations that do every thing but bring us closer to God and to each other.

Swine Flu vs. Bird Flu vs. Zombie Flu - Medical Transcription Schools

2010-02-01T12:25:00.000Z

The strange thing is that we know more about Zombie infection than the others!
Swine Flu vs. Bird Flu vs. Zombie Flu - Medical Transcription Schools

IFJ.org - IFJ Global - IFJ Report Lists China’s Secret Bans on Media Reporting

2010-01-31T13:54:00.001Z

IFJ.org - IFJ Global - IFJ Report Lists China’s Secret Bans on Media Reporting

Press Freedom in China. There is none!!
And if no one is allowed to tell, then the government can do what the hell they like to you, your family and community!

Final Fantasy XIII w-Leona Lewis track

2010-01-14T10:32:00.002Z

Sony are gearing up for the big one. I read there's a bus doing the rounds somewhere in the States.

No I don't work for Sony!

2010-01-12T21:09:00.002Z

Nah, don't work for them!
Historically Sony have been more innovative, Microsoft just cashed in on gaming with the XBox, rapidly rolling out a buggy (and poor quality build) machine to get the jump on Sony's PS3 and cut a profit- good for MS but not for the punter, a pity.
Meanwhile Sony were willing to take a price hit on their console, putting faith in power of the Cell, built in wireless networking, quality and future-proof. Games like Uncharted 2, MGS4 and Grand Tourismo 3D are proof of this. With PS2 and solid games (Final Fantasy, Metal Gear, Racers, shooters etc) as a track record, choosing the PS3 was a no-brainer for me.

The XBox alternative was a paltry hard drive,(with overpriced upgrade option, no Blu-ray, and the audacity to charge for on-line p2p gaming, I started saving for the PS3 instead.
Sure the X-box has a lot going for it but the 33% fail rate (only now improving) was an undignified and disrespectful (to gamers) start and eliminated any chance of me having faith in the product as a long term consideration.

The PS3 is now in it's stride and will be able to make the shift to full and exclusive on-line purchase and gaming if/when it eventually happens.
It's common knowledge that some developers are putting out games that look better on the X-box but that is either their preferred console and/or laziness and not proof of anything else.

Exclusives aren't a problem at all and are becoming less so because there are fewer exclusives and more than enough quality exclusives to keep both sides happy.

BBC News - 3D TV is being billed as possible industry saviour

2010-01-09T18:38:00.002Z

BBC News - 3D TV is being billed as possible industry saviour

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’m no expert but since some HD works on transmitting alternate images really fast to be picked up by gizmo glasses then why can’t standard 720i and 1080i simply be used to transmit the 3D signal? Then any HDTV will be able to show 3D

Just as Freeview digital started off as bog standard and now there is 3D freeview on the way I strongly suspect that 3D technology will soon be available on standard HD.

Call me a sceptic but chances are this is already possible but those friggin’ manufacturers would rather have us buy yet another new TV.
Forget it, I’ll stick with my crisp new Bravia thank you very much and Sony (much as I love ‘em) can stick their 3DTV where the signal don’t broadcast.

MAG public beta - is it really worth bothering with?

2010-01-08T11:57:00.001Z

So the MAG public beta is up and running.
This may seem strange to say, but in the long term I don't see the point of this one.
It does not add up.
The appeal of most games is they have a natural life cycle. Within that period regular gamers will level up within a given time period and eventually move on to other games. Modern warfare and MW2 for example. So you are left with prestige and veteran die-hards who who probably are spending less time on that game because it's not so challenging and there's the next big thing to deal with.
With no Story Arc (be nice to have a world map that shows in real time which armies are in control of which areas) the fighting is all a bit loose and pointless.
At least with COD, MW and other shooters there is a back story or context that gives the characters a bit of substance. and a historical context we were a part of making by playing through the single player campaign.
Which brings me to the possibility that a never-ending game like MAG with missions that, underneath the dressings, are all about running around shooting and blowing things up ad-infinitum will end up with the same bunch of die-hards running amok amongst various noobs and occasional visitors. Now a duck shoot is only fun for so long and few of the newer players (apart from the FPS veterans) that come on-line will want to put up with the superior fire power of elite players.
And now many people will really want to go back again and again and again to the Game?
Which is my point. 256 players is hollow, an 'emperors new clothes' feature. MAG has less to offer than most FPS MP games. It is a stripped down FPS without the single player story, nothing more,nothing less and as such will recede to the realms of the 'occasional' game like Warhawk did before it.

I'll be interested to see the timing and frequency that new maps, weapons and classes are made available by the developers.
Chances are that these will be markers for when sales begin to lag.

MAG - What is it good for?

2009-12-23T17:22:00.000Z

Having spent some time on the Beta I really can't see the long term playability of the game. Ranking up, weapons and clans are all well and good but the 'samey' feel the of actual minute to minute experience I think will lead to this game sitting on the shelf for a lot longer than it's played. Okay it looks damn good and the massive warzone is pretty impressive but the whole thing lacks a story arc. At least with the COD MW games you get the satisfaction of having ended something as well as the Multiplayer options.

Ubisoft leans towards edutainment

2009-12-23T17:12:00.003Z

Assassins Creed 2 is one of those games which like a good book, you just can't keep away from for too long. With its rich accurate historical content or people, places and politics, art collection the game can very easily be converted to an immersive tour of 15th century Italy.
Proof perhaps that if Uncharted 2 was associated with movie play and feel then Assassins Creed 2 could be best associated with something of a merger between an edutainment game. I can see Ubi' branching out into 'academic' console games. take out Ezio and you can have a whole variety of ways to get kids into exploring 15th Century Italy and everything going in in Politics, religion and art during that time - with various (Ubi)rewards along the way that kids could collect in actual ubi games.

News: Paid PSN subscription detailed - ComputerAndVideoGames.com

2009-12-23T16:54:00.001Z

Rumours about Sony putting a subscription service out on the Playstation Network have been circulating in the web for some time. Starting off with speculation in various gaming sites and blogs and gradually becoming more substantial in recent months.

Finally the Computer And Video Games website News: Paid PSN subscription detailed - ComputerAndVideoGames.com have some images of a survey which includes reference to 'cross game chat' and interestingly something called "Full Time Trial - 1st Hour is Free".
Now this latter feature really caught my interest. Is this in itself an early indication of another service on the horizon? This looks to me like the emergence of the option ot purchase major games which are purchased and played completely on-line. So the entire single player as well as MP feature is an on-line experience with no Blu-Ray purchase option (like Warhawk and Burnout Paradise) available.
I can see the cash registers in Sony’s eyes rolling already as they cut out the retailer and all the costs of physical media (manufacture, distribution, logistics etc)
Ypu may recall the little box some people were touting at Game shows last year, that offered all games on-line.
Well with ever increasing bandwidths at ever decreasing prices, Sony offering cloud storage for game saves, perhaps Sony have jumped ahead and embraced the future. Cutting out the retail shops and Developers already setting up shop in the playstation store perhaps buying games on-line only may be much nearer than we think

BBC News - Chinese proposal to meter internet traffic

2009-12-20T10:19:00.003Z

BBC News - Chinese proposal to meter internet traffic

This is the interesting bit
"The ITU also stressed that the Chinese proposal did not involve modifying the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) - one of the core specifications that controls how data flows around the internet - as Mr Servida has alleged.

An ITU spokesman said: "The ITU has no plans to modify the BGP protocol, which is not an ITU-T standard.

"A proposal has been made, and is being studied, to use BGP routers to collect traffic flow data, which could be used, by bilateral agreement, by operators for billing purposes."

China's' desire to monitor and meter internet traffic could easily lead to a 'surf tax' to enable countries to collect revenue to pay for their connections to the global net.
This could very easily lead to the love of all utility corporations TARIFFS.

You pay one subscription to your ISP
And then you choose your tariff based on where and how much of the world you want to surf around in.
This then opens up the option of companies providing gateway subscriptions so if your on a Euro only tariff you can buy a US tariff News or documentary or entertainment tariff just to browse those sites.

I can see SKY and other media broadcast corporations salivating at this potential money spinner.
It'll be like privatising utilities all over again.

M.A.G. Not my cup of tea

2009-12-11T11:11:00.000Z

I played the beta for several hours and was put off by the lack of a story arc or endgame. A characterless FPS, each mission was then 'same old same old'.
Maybe we've been spoiled by the current handful of excellent Mp content in games such as: MW2, Uncharted 2, Borderlands (what a cracker that is) which give you a more interesting context for popping a cap or two.

Famitsu gives FFXIII only 39/40!

2009-12-10T11:29:00.003Z

IGN has revamped itself and very nice it is too. I'll be visiting it a bit more often.
I see that it is reporting that Famitsu has only rated Final Fantasy XIII a 39/40.
And quite rightly too perhaps judging by the reasons given.

I suspect the useful reviews will come a few weeks after the games release after the devotees and general rpg pundits have had a chance to spend a good few days with the whole experience.
Much as I love FFX (where it all began for me!) and had a hoot with FFX-II. I tired of the turn based combat when I discovered the glories of Next-Gen FPS starting with R:FOM.
I'd be interested to see whether the combat style will sit comfortably / survive with the gaming world that now has (i) faster pace and (ii)vastly improved graphics, (iii)deeper, richer, more dynamic environments, (iv) improved NPC AI and (v) deeper characterisation and story.

Sexy Steps to Holistically Improving Your Life & Totally Transforming Humanity

2009-12-02T12:09:00.000Z

Sexy Steps to Holistically Improving Your Life & Totally Transforming Humanity

Cap & Trade Explained (Story of Cap & Trade)

2009-12-02T11:41:00.000Z

Cap & Trade Explained (Story of Cap & Trade)

The Onions - Modern Warfare 3

2009-11-26T14:06:00.002Z

This is from The Onion website, an excellent place to visit and one you should bookmark.

Playstation 4 - What, already?

2009-11-26T13:54:00.002Z

There's a Dutch website harping on about a PS4 coming in 2012 using a new IBM Power7 processor, a cut down version of the ones that will go into Servers.
FGNOnline have a similar report.
Remembering that Sony still catching up on the Losses it made on the PS3 and more recently coming up with a 'plan' to re-energise it's TV market. I'm having second thoughts about a 2012 or even 2014 release of a PS4. It will have to be a damn cheap device as the recession will only just be ebbing away.
I wonder if the more common processor will bring more developers into the market. Now this could be the deal breaker
It would offer an easier port from PS3 Cell to PS4's Power7 processor. Interesting that it will be a cut down version of the CPU that will go into servers - be interesting to see how that plays out for on-line multiplayer and MMOs.
Since broadband capacity and speed is increasing at a health rate (and cost)....
Sony may well be thinking about having more of a server based gaming experience will your games on a server rather than a Blu-Ray or hard drive. That would really bring down costs. big savings on console development, game distribution, and an increase in revenue from sales and online subscriptions.

Animus Causes OCD

2009-11-25T11:17:00.001Z

I have come to the conclusion that the Animus produces OCD in the user. A compulsion to attempt to climb any wall you run into and utter clumsiness and buffoonery when running into small groups of people

Magic, Japan Style

2009-11-25T10:26:00.005Z

Magic - Japan Style.

Now this is one video that you'll want to watch more than twice and then probably give up trying to figure out at it defies all the usual magic conventions and trickery. It's the changing expressions on his face that move this trick into being memorable!!

BBC News - Games 'permit' virtual war crimes

2009-11-23T14:52:00.002Z

So, a couple of human rights charities in swizzerland just discovered that gamers are free to go a bit wild and disregard international law.
Where have they been for the past 20 years?
They are very unhappy about Tom Clancy, Army of 2 (which was crap anyway!,
they have a go at the CODs and a bunch of other games that let you so things you'd get jailed for if you were in charge of a real army.
What a bunch of Twits! They are games. Someone should tell these 'researchers' that most people (unlike these crackpots) can tell the difference between reality and fantasy. Problem is that any anti-war demonstrators in video games would probably be the first to get pwnd!
BBC News - Games 'permit' virtual war crimes

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Sony releases pictures of Wand controller

2009-11-20T12:42:00.003Z

I see sony has released pictures of it's wand controller.
Yes, sadly it does look like a penis.
But so do a lot of things.
There should be a simple “is it too much like a penis?” test.
Maybe for instance whether you can get a condom over it. (without prejudice to size!)

PlayStation 3 Firmware (v3.10) Update Preview

2009-11-17T14:39:00.002Z

The Playstation 3 now gives you a way of automatically updating your trophy progress and download activity automatically to facebook. Pretty cool1

PlayStation 3 Firmware (v3.10) Update Preview

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God of War 3 has co-op!

2009-11-15T10:13:00.004Z

Rumour has it that GOW3 will have on-line coop, pairing up our angry hero with Hercules nonetheless.
Check out the story/rumour here at Kuoppa Network

Modern Warfare 2. Too bad to play?

2009-11-13T17:10:00.004Z

Member of Parliament Keith Vaz is throwing a hissy fit about Modern Warfare 2 not being the kind of thing decent kids should be playing!!
I am 54 years old. I really enjoyed playing the game.though I felt it was too short. The airport level does present a dilemma, but there are other parts of the game that present the player with other equally ugly aspects of war and military conflict. Through friends I know many of their teenage kids have the game. Keith Vaz needs to catch up with where most teenagers are at in regards to their understanding of video violence, social values and morality. His is the attitude that is best described as immature. What would he prefer. A war game that removed the player to a sterile 'neutral' fun space of yesteryear?

we have all been Pwnd by the Government!

2009-11-09T16:42:00.002Z

We used to be able to freely roam the web but no longer.
According to BBC news "The Home Office says it will push ahead with plans to ask communications firms to monitor all internet use."
UK surveillance plan to go ahead
What's next, a National Insurance number linked web access code / swipe card that we must use before being able to access the web - wherever we ar or whatever device we use?
So if you are at home, on the road, or at Starbucks / internet cafe, you have to enter an access code to get online.

Farewell to the internet we all knew and loved

What is China thinking!?

2009-11-06T11:26:00.002Z

The BBC news website are reporting that "China's ministry of health has moved to ban the use of physical punishment to treat teenagers addicted to the web, according to draft guidelines."
Only in China would such a law have to be passed. It just shows how different the Chinese culture is. Their basic rule seem to be "a good beating solves most social problems"
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Greed Kills off any chance of Climate Change reduction

2009-11-06T10:42:00.003Z

The talks in Barcelona, the warm up for the real serious meeting in Copenhagen next month look very worrying. Most countries do not want to invest in emission control technologies. probably because what they pay for this will have to be either added to their product prices or be paid for from profits, or a bit of both. And while the recession is still making waves no country wants to take the risk of losing more money.
It's clearly multinationals and not governments that are leading this debate. There's no conspiracy. Its simply the way of the world. Meanwhile we stand on the brink of a destruction that sounds insane to even think about let alone make public.
Who in their right mind would say, or go along with the argument that, Nature, the very life cycles that give us a climate we can live in, food and water, are starting to break down and all life is at risk. Who can imagine or believe it? Yet it is true. And the people who have the most power to stop it happening are reluctant to do so because of greed and the desire to stay in power

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Modern Warfare 2 Shows us how to Market

2009-11-05T14:26:00.003Z

So the Media has finally picked up on the 'leaked' terrorist video gameplay half-inched from Infinity ward, the developers of Modern warfare 2.
the Guardian Article can be found here

My guess is that the video was a deliberate leak - for the very reason of bringing the games attention to a broader market.
Next step is that the newspapers and news media will be banging on Infinity wards doors asking for interviews. And then the second stage of the strategy begins. IW gives the story that puts the video in context whilst plugging the whole angle of how they bring 'x' awareness and 'y' issues into gaming with quality and gripping storyline and gameplay etc.

X-Factor zombie on PS3?

2009-09-17T09:56:00.004+01:00

I see SCEA has filed a trademark for “TV Superstars.” The title includes “computer game and video game software” for “operating a real-time game for others over global and local area computer networks.

My guess is that an 'X-factor' (The 'X' referring to Delusional either /both on behalf of the viewer and so-called performer) type game is coming to the console where fools will perform in front of the PS Eye and then post the garbage up on the PSN somewhere for the obligatory humiliation and ridicule.
Chance's are the crap will be viewable somewhere in the Playstation shopping centre, I mean Home.

Well I suppose it caters for all tastes up and down the evolutionary scale

No No for Linux on PS3 Slim

2009-09-03T17:17:00.003+01:00

The News from Sony is that the PS3 Slim will not be Linux capable. Sarah Ewen at SCEE is that
The reasons are simple: The PS3 Slim is a major cost reduction involving many changes to hardware components in the PS3 design. In order to offer the OtherOS install, SCE would need to continue to maintain the OtherOS hypervisor drivers for any significant hardware changes – this costs SCE. One of our key objectives with the new model is to pass on cost savings to the consumer with a lower retail price. Unfortunately in this case the cost of OtherOS install did not fit with the wider objective to offer a lower cost PS3.

It’s a bleedin Game console not a computer.
I must admit I did toy with the idea of installing linux and spent a lot of time looking into the options, implications and methods. I never got round to it because I have a computer I can plug into the TV anyway and with the PS3’s functionality and the Media streaming capability of everything but the kitchen sink who needs Linux on a PS3 anyway aside from the Caltech and MIT people who pile them up and create cost effective supercomputers

Final Fantasy VII Remake? - Of Course

2009-08-27T11:03:00.002+01:00

So, Speaking at Gamescom last week, Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XIII producer Yoshinori Kitase refused to deny the possibility of them revisiting the game:
Well there's a big, smack in the mouth givaway if ever I heard one!
Of course there’s gonna be a remake, and it will be on all platforms, even mobile phones. For God’s sake lets get a grip girls.
We’ve all ben round this block a few times already.
“Contrived Groundswell” is a phrase that springs to mind, long term marketing strategy to generate as broad an interest as possible.
look at it this way. If they announced now it would be newsworthy only amongst us gamers. We’d go giddy and start off gigabytes of hype and debate.
But let it brew for a year, with “leaks”, rumours, the odd image here and there, “accidental” reveal in interviews and the bigger news channels will eventually pick up on this ‘phenomenon’.
Then the big announcement at TGS or E3. And Bob’s yer uncle.

Heavy Rain

2009-08-27T09:50:00.002+01:00

Any Sleuths at GC09 would have picked up that Heavy Rain, from those nice people that brought us Fahrenheit, has a 2000 page script, compared to the average game that has around 95 - 125 pages.
But remember the story of Heavy Rain provides the option of choosing to figure out who the Origami Killer, by taking on any one of four playable characters and switching between them.

But if we have four characters to switch between and with each we choose one of a selected range of paths to take, the actual number of pages we encounter diminishes.

Sure if it was one character interacting with n+1 npc’s with a fairly linear story with a small range of possible branches it would be 100% of the pages having to be available along a gamer controlled narrative pathtime.

But this same gamer pathtime will only experience 25% of the full potential route potentially available from the 4 characters of Heavy Rain. this brings the actual number of pages available experienced down to 500.
Then factor in the actual path chosen by the player from those available and the number drops into the average range.

And average can vary between the fixed script of games like Resistance 2 and COD through to Games like Mass effect and Fallout.

Ideally I’d like each member of my family to play as one character through the game – but that would have to include the dog to make up the numbers. then we could watch the whole story unfold.

I don;t suppose there is any hope of online multiplayer / singstar style crossover so we can see what happens to the other characters.
Or is there going to be a special edition with movie game play of the four stories.

To be honest I gave up with Fahrenheit. all that endless button selection started to get on my nerve.

Fireburst om the Horizon

2009-06-12T12:28:00.000+01:00

Developers exDream, based in in Hannover, Germany are working on a game that dishes out some heavy duty racing and road-rage conflict letting you ignite a rival’s car or even dose your own set of wheels in “protective flames”. Bring it on I say.

Other than yer standard racers, buggies and monster trucks, exDreams racer will let you match drivers with wheels. I'm imagining , Clarksons rapist abusive obese truck drivers!!

This would fit nicely with over 50 taunts on offer. But this is no free badmouthing and chances are someone will pwn you for your profanities

Fireburst looks like it could be a pretty good game. Almost like a cross between the powerups and weapons of Wipeout and Motorstorm.
I'll definitely keep an eye on this one. Motorstorm 2 was not that different from number one so it's good to have a different racer hit the streets. If Fireburst allows us to play our music (a la Zen Pinball) then we are onto a sure fire winner.
Here's a cut and paste from those geniuses at cinemablend.com where you can read a proper article not like this scrabble of words I knock out occasionally.

FireBurst Features:

• First PLAYSTATION 3 title from Black Inc.
• Innovative boost system: With the novel 4-stage fire boost, opponents' vehicles are eliminated in spectacular ways
• Fireburst is developed based on Unreal Engine 3
• Wacky characters
• All kinds of vehicles: From sleek buggies and pimped-up vintage models to massive pick-ups, this fleet leaves nothing to be desired
• Unique combinations of drivers and vehicles: Match a character with the appropriate vehicle to optimize driving attributes
• Game modes offering plenty of variation: Challenge and championship modes, as well as multiplayer options (with up to 16 players online, or up to 4 players offline with a split screen), make for spectacular entertainment
• Surprising twists: 20 huge tracks are divided into ten areas. Each track offers shortcuts and alternative routes
• Plenty of bonuses: Unlock new vehicles, tracks, and game modes
• Sneering and jeering: Each character uses more than 50 different taunts to mock the competition. But beware: The more you provoke the AI drivers, the more aggressively they will race you!

Demon's Soul. Don;t waste your vote!

2009-06-11T22:17:00.000+01:00

Those nice people over at Atlus.com have kindly forewarned us hardcore gamers to to prepare for the arrival of Demon's Souls. (the pic is from their site too, a thousand thanks to them)

King Allant the XII, the last king of Boletaria, searched tirelessly to expand his might. The Nexus, a great ice shrine nestled in the mountains, bestowed the power of the souls onto him, bringing prosperity to his kingdom. Still unsated, he returned again to the Nexus, where he foolishly awakened the Old One from its eternal slumber. This long forgotten evil, now wrought upon Boletaria, plunged the realm into darkness and fog. A mighty demon horde poured into the kingdom, devouring the souls of men.

Champions from other realms learned of Boletaria's fate and sought to deliver the kingdom from evil; none would return from the cursed land. Called upon by a mysterious maiden in black, you go forth, the last hope for humanity in a place lost to demons and darkness...

The Nexus, isn't that what Kirk and Picard went off to sort out in Star Trek Generations?
Anyway, so King Allant XII the unsatiated lets loose the rentahorde upon his Kingdom eh?
Well that's what you get for not living in a democracy.
These hordes have been quite busy these last few years, is there a horde labour shortage.
Shouldn't they form a union or something?

Guinea pigs of Xi No More!!

2009-06-11T21:55:00.001+01:00

Having messed about with Xi for longer than I would have liked I got to wondering about the point of it all.
Of course its about Sony Testing out the capability of using Home as a tool for corporate collaboration on different projects. Product design, system development etc. I can see software developers using the tools we messed about with in home to share and co-operate in game development.
Link this to the comment I made earlier about the secret teamsters in the dungeons of naughty dog sharing code. Imagine developers actually sharing across a private zone in Home.
Forget about emailing files and VPN, it's all in a virtual developer studio and server in Home.

And it's not restricted to Sony. Any company can do the same with their product, be it shoe design, machinery, molecular biology or software development.

The Secret Edge

2009-06-07T16:47:00.000+01:00

So Naughty Dog has somewhere in its building a team of developers to work as a creative hub and share best pratice with other PS3 Game developers
It is called Edge Tools, and the development team that is working on it is called The Ice Team.

It makes perfect sense. Everyone benefits developers and gamers both.
Breaking down the isolation of individual creative groups makes for a phenomenal increase in both the quality and pace of innovative development

PS3 Motion sensor

2009-06-04T16:49:00.000+01:00

This is quite a leap forward.
Let's hope they add this functionality to Final Fantasy XIV
PS3 Motion Sensor

Angels and Demons in full 2D

2009-06-04T13:49:00.000+01:00

Angels and Demons.
What a dull, dull film. Basic storyboard goes something like this
cern > vatican > (cars speeding through narrow streets+ action music+ shakey camera at odd angles>church > Dead priest) x3 > Big explosion > the end.
Intersperse each iteration with a liberal dose of Hanks pulling funny faces to signify (i)smugness, (ii) confusion (iii) insight (usually in that order!).

I suppose it's Ok for people with 'cultured' pretentions who give a damn about the Vatican blowing up.