Elonian Nomad

Got a little lost there

darthvid — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 07:15:35 +0000

Went-up and around my house, climbed down a mountain, then went around to go back. After climbing up I saw this:

“What the?! Where the hell am I?!”

And I realized I was lost.

Ran aound everything in one direction, trying my damnest not to go in circles (I think I did a couple of times anyway). Eventually, night came, and I had to carve myself an emergency house to spend the night.

I’m in the middle of nowhere.

Looking-up, I noticed the moon and stars moving. Mental note to use this for getting my bearing the next time I go exploring. At this point, I was wondering if I can ever get back, perhaps I should setup my new home here.

Morning came, and I was very carefull keeping my bearings as I went around the bend to see this:

“My house! I’m home!!!”

Apparently I was closer to home than I thought!

Glad to find my way back home. I think I’ll stay nearby for a few days. Next time, I’ll leave a trail of torches to guide me back.

BTW, to those who are wondering what this is, this is Minecraft Alpha.

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What’s all that oinking racket…?

darthvid — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:43:36 +0000

… oy!

You pigs get outta’ my lawn and go oink somewhere else or I’ll turn you into pork-chop!

Someone’s trying to sleep here!

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Occupied

darthvid — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 13:47:14 +0000

I wanted to make a real post, but am too busy playing this…

Sorry about the official artwork above. Annoying thing is that every time I take a screenshot it comes out all black. Not sure there’s a special hotkey or what.

The Ghosts of the Past trailer feels like a movie:

Man, this game brings back some old college memories. I didn’t get the Collector’s Edition, but my copy did come with a “1337″ dog-tag and a shirt (which is too big for me). I heard that we were entitled to join a contest where some other merch is up for grabs, but I don’t have info on it yet.

Anyway, just a little break then it’s back to the rebellion for me!

See you guys on battle.net! (^^)/

source:

SEA Starcraft II official community site

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Geek Timeline initiative

darthvid — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:21:07 +0000

As a result of several bouts of nostalgia, I began compilation of historical events to compare them with the state of my live at those times. Unwittingly, this evolved into a compilation of largely geek related events.

In case someone else out there would find it interesting, amusing, or informative, I decided to share the list.

This geek timeline is split into two:

an embedded Google Calendar which contains entries 2004 onward (including future events based on expected/projected timelines as reported by news/press)
a straightforward list for everything 2003 and below

Check it out here. Hope you manage to get something out of it.Similar Posts:

Hollywood’s Big Ideas

darthvid — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 10:56:35 +0000

Just want to share Alex Shaw’s Gonzo Gaming 7 podcast which tackles on the current trends in Hollywood. Of particular note are his comments on the wave that is 3D, how film producers and consumers are riding it, and how it relates to piracy. The fact that the videogame industry is also riding this wave gets a brief mention as well.

If you’re unaware of why 3D is currently all the rage or care anything about the current film industry, give Gonzo Gaming 7 a listen. It’ll be among the most informative/enlightening 15 minutes you’ll hear on what is, IMO, America’s most valuable asset.

Having such an erratic release schedule, any A Life Well Wasted podcast release deserves special mention. In Episode 6: Big Ideas, Robert Ashley once again shows exquisite craftsmanship as he mashes together several videogame ideas into one giant game concept, relays the experiences and goals of the guy who owns the rights to Tetris, and gives a glimpse on how oxymoronically difficult the life of a person with a huge penis can be. Listen/download it here.

Sources:

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Indie political/sci-fi drama series “Pioneer One” launched on torrent

darthvid — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 15:16:10 +0000

…what first looks like a terrorist act turns out to be a Cold War relic come back to haunt the present. We follow our main characters, a team of Homeland Security agents, as they discover the truth of what’s happened: a forgotten Soviet space mission has returned to Earth, and what it’s brought back will have implications for the entire world…

Pioneer One (image from Wikipedia)

Besides the above premise, Josh Bernhard and Bracey Smith’s project, Pioneer One, is interesting on two points:

The pilot episode is funded entirely via donations. They needed US$6000 to complete the pilot, which they managed to collect via KickStarter. The season’s remaining 6 episodes will rely on further donations to complete.
The method of delivery is via torrent. In fact, it was made for torrent.

Indie, low sci-fi, dramatic series intentionally distributed for free via torrent? Count me in!

The pilot succeeds in presenting the viewer with an interesting premise. Given that the first season is intended to have 7 episodes, and the whole series is planned to be around 5 seasons long, there’s a lot of room for an interesting and complex story.

It also feels very raw. Acting is better than expected. Some dialogue is natural, while some feel forced or expository. Camerawork is acceptable, can even be considered as pretty good given the budget. Some scenes feel prolonged, or crammed-in as fillers. Effects/CG renders are the areas where the low budget really shows, but they’re serviceable. Given these, the 30 minute pilot episode feels longer than it should be, something like a 15-20 minute teaser prolonged to a 30 minute episode.

Oddly, my favorite scene is a long monolog-ish one involving a phone conversation with an old guy. The relevance of this prolonged scene to the pilot is questionable, but it’s also the most polished one visually and atmospherically, IMHO.

The pilot is free and short, so it’s easy enough to recommend for a watch. Keep in mind that this is an indie production accomplished via donations and the occasional (but significant) free help. If you like it enough, consider donating to get the rest of the season done.

Personally, I’m looking forward to what episode 2 has to offer.

Sources:

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Krakit / Idle Contest entry

darthvid — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 08:18:11 +0000

Here was our entry to the Krakit/Idle Contest. The winner was drawn from a hat (or box, I don’t remember). Still, it’s a good shot of Hanachi-e.

Toy Break has contests going on all the time, so check-out their podcast.

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Just sharing some interactive new media

darthvid — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 11:16:23 +0000

Some call them arthouse games, some call them interactive new media art, some debate if they can be considered art at all (or if they’re even games, for that matter). Regardless of what one calls them, the following pieces of interactive new media that ARE expressions of the human condition.

I wanted to provide an overview for each example, but given their interactive length and the nature of the interactivity, attempts at explanations would ruin the experience. I opted to just let the pieces speak for themselves (except for Gravitation, where I quoted a small blurb of explanation from the author).

They’re free and take only a few minutes to “play”. Hit the break and check ‘em out.

by Jason Rohrer

Jason is the same guy who made Sleep is Death.

Passage by Jason Rohrer

Gravitation, a video game about mania, melancholia, and the creative process by Jason Rohrer

by Daniel Benmergui

I wish I were the Moon by Daniel Benmergui

Storyteller by Daniel Benmergui

I’ve played the above ones before, but it’s this one (below) that really hit home and triggered this post.

Today I Die by Daniel Benmergui

Most videogames seem (it put it in nice words) focused on an extremely narrow aspect of the human condition. Hopefully, pieces like the ones above are sowing the seeds for a broader range of expression in games and interactive media.

Sources:

by Jason Rohrer: Passage, Gravitation
by Daniel Benmergui: I wish I were the Moon, Storyteller ,Today I Die

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Found Cave Story, so Im’a goin’ Spelunky-n’

darthvid — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 09:56:22 +0000

The past week’s gaming had a retro platforming vibe, mostly due to two games: Cave Story and Spelunky.

More (or download ‘em) after the break…

- Cave Story -

Not sure if it was a metroidvania search or a browse through of Destructoid’s (apparently old) Indie Nation that unraveled this little gem for me.

Daisuke Amaya (aka Studio Pixel) spent 5 years working on Cave Story (洞窟物語) on his own. It’s a labor of love, and it shows in every blip, blop and pixel. Although it was released in 2004, everything about the game holds up well with time.

Cave Story title screen. Don't let the plainness fool you.

The graphics are retro; the gameplay, old-school. This little metroidvania-type game managed to unearth the joys of my videogaming childhood, something rarely evoked in the current fare. It’s not just because of the pixel style graphics and chip sounds/effects, it’s the platforming experience. The goodness of old school, Japanese Famicom/Genesis era platforming was successfully crafted and implemented. The character designs and the sci-fi-ish fantasy story -that only manga and anime can appear to mix properly- are endearing, with the retro aesthetic giving a timeless appeal.

Ummm... Curly... 'little help here...

After a mere few minutes of playing this title on the PC with a keyboard, I immediately set out to buy a USB controller in an attempt to evoke the sublime gaming experiences of my childhood. Aside from Street Fighter, which simply mist be played with an arcade stick, no game has ever compelled me to do this. Controller in hand, I was suddenly back in grade-school. Amaya-san’s labor of love delivered in spades.

It is no exaggeration when I say that Cave Story has joined the ranks of my “greatest games of all time” list. If you love platformers, or miss the old-school platforming vibe of the bygone NES/SNES era, I guarantee you’ll love this!

- Spelunky -

The search for a similar retro gaming experience, inevitably draws one to a somewhat more current title by Derek Yu. I’m ashamed to admit that I’ve passed over this title before. Spelunky sports a similar retro pixelated aesthetic on top of a reportedly difficult platforming experience, the interesting twist being all levels are procedurally generated.

It was difficult. The environment was littered with danger every seven tiles, and half the things around could kill you in an instant. There was never enough rope to reach all that treasure way up. There were never enough bombs to blow one’s way through. The levels, being randomly generated, never afforded you a means to learn trap positions. Then there’s your whip… the starting whip was so pathetic that it only reaches one tile forward. I’m all for a difficult platformer, but all this confused the hell out of me.

I was ignorant. I simply didn’t get it.

Spelunky title screen

Upon re-discovering this game, I was hesitant to give it another go. Two words, however, managed to change my perception of the game: rougelike platformer.

Perhaps after playing Desktop Dungeons my mind was finally able to grasp the subtleties of the genre. “rougelike platformer”… what an ingenious concept!

Gold, rubies, treasure chest, girl... what to do... what to do...

With two magic words, every level transformed into an adventure! The restrictions became options, the dangers became avenues of excitement, and every seven tiles of a level would be a new puzzle for extemporaneous analysis and solving. To top this off, with every level being randomly generated, each adventure would never be the same!

I have since grown to love Spelunky, though it remains insanely difficult. This time, however, I understand why I die; and I learn. So I guess in a way it “builds character”. Perhaps after a couple’la hundred more deaths I’d be halfway decent at it.

- Get ‘em NOW! -

There is absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t give these wonderful games a try since they’re both FREE on the PC! You can download Cave Story here. You can download Spelunky here.

For console peeps, Cave Story is already available on the Wii, and Spelunky will soon be on XBLA. These ports, however, will need payment.

Here I come to save the daaaaayyyy!

sources:

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Cute kaiju? Kawaiiju! (awwwww)

darthvid — Thu, 20 May 2010 15:10:57 +0000

Learned about this from Toy Break. Kawaiiju by Monsterforge!

Kawaiiju by Monsterforge. One of these could be yours!

These kawaii versions of kaiju are acrylic painted and made of polymer clay. Only 30 blind-boxed pieces were made, all unique kaiju, standing around 1.5-2 inches.

This one, however, is pretty special:

God Pharaoh contest prize (no longer available)

Would’ve been swell to get the piece above, but it was offered as a prize to a contest, which is already over. What a sweet sweet piece! The winner sure is lucky.

As for the others, there are still 4 pieces left as of writing! If you find these pieces as cool as I do, get ‘em here! they’re all sold out.

sources:

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