Posts Tagged Games
Battle of the Bricks
Posted by Hans Haupt in Games, Humourous, Internet, OMG, Parody, Seriously?! on December 3rd, 2009
Any self respecting person has owned and built a Lego creation of some kind. Goodness knows that I own my fair share of Lego products, probably more than I would care to admit. Even now, at the tender age of 24, I still find myself browsing through the isles of Lego products available at any and all Toys R Us stores. In all honesty, and I am sure you will agree, Lego has no age limit.
This entry is focussed on stop-motion Lego filmography. A hobby which no doubt exists for people who really have nothing better to do with their time. Regardless, it really is very cool, especially when done properly.
Alex Kobbs is one of these stop-motion Lego fanatics. He has spent the last six years creating a Halo themed 25-minute short, based on Halo’s Zanzibar map, completely out of Lego. How awesomely insane is that?!
The short film is called The Battle of the Brick and features ‘Red’ and ‘Blue’ battling it out *Halo fan high five*. The completed video is expected to hit the Web in early 2010, but for now you can have a look at the tantalising trailer:
If Lego stop-motion filmography is your thing, you can follow the progress of Kobbs’ work at the Kooberz Studio Blog.
That’s not all folks. I have one more fantastic piece of Lego filmography to share with you.
Every gamer and geek who has watched The Matrix will agree that it is one of the best science fiction and action movies of all time. However, you have not seen anything until you see The Matrix lovingly created in Lego stop-motion!
In honour of the 10th anniversary of The Matrix, a group of fans recreated nearly 900 frames of the film. The entire sequence is animated without any additional effects. What this means, is that the short was filmed ‘in camera’ without the aid of wire removal, Photoshop or any additional special effects; other than what can be created with the Lego blocks themselves. Very impressive stuff! The entire project is said to have taken around 440 hours to complete. For more information and additional videos detailing the projects immensity, check out www.LegoMatrix.com.
How cool would a Lego Matrix game be?! *Waits patiently for Travellers Tales to scoop the rights to create the game*
Until the next ‘blocky’ post “Milieunairs”!
“I’m ready for dream time, Mr. B”!
Posted by Hans Haupt in Entertainment, Games, Internet, OMG, Seriously?!, WTF on November 24th, 2009
Bioshock 2? No, this photograph is not a screen capture of the sequel to 2007’s sleeper hit. It is, in fact, an amazingly designed cosplay creation.
This incredible Big Daddy and Little Sister cosplay combination was created by none other than the now infamous Harrison Krix – who previously created a replica of the Little Sister ADAM syringe. To say that this man is merely talented, is truly a vast understatement.
I finally lost my mind enough to try to tackle one of these big guys. For those unfamiliar, Big Daddy’s are the protectors of the Little Sisters in Rapture, an underwater city devoid of morality which has degenerated into chaos and insanity. They are huge, fast, strong, and as it turns out, a solid pain in the ass to build.
- Harrison Krix (2009)
After eight weeks of work, Krix officially unveiled his creation with a magnificent photographic gallery taken at an aquarium in Georgia in the United States. Although no where near as hot as the Pikachu cosplay I previously reported on, his work is by no means any less impressive. Check it out!
Even cooler, it turns out that Krix is actually the man in the Big Daddy suit, with the Little Sister being represented by his fiancé and soon to be wife. Furthermore, Krix owns and runs Volpin Props, a replica and prop design studio and workshop. Subsequently he does do commission work *cue geekasm’s*, but is said to be quite busy until the second half of 2010.
I can honestly say, that I would love a Big Daddy costume. Even if only to run around the backyard tormenting our hyperactive Bouvier pup! One can dream…
Until the next time “Milieunairs”!
“Pikachu… use FLASH”!
Posted by Hans Haupt in Entertainment, Internet, OMG, Seriously?! on July 29th, 2009
(As seen on Kotaku, via MaximumPC)
“Wild Pikachu appeared!
Go Metapod!
Metapod used Harden!
Enemy Pikachu used Flash!
Metapod used String Shot!”(Comment by Kotaku User: DJC89, 29 July 2009)
As a self-confessed Pokémon fan, I could not resist sharing the above photograph with all of you.
I may not be into costume role-playing (cosplay) but if Miss Pikachu is anything to go by, or her friends for that matter, I may very well have to re-evaluate my stance on the subject… *loses focus and drools slightly onto the keyboard*
For those who do not know; Cosplay, short for "costume role-play", is a type of performance art whereby participants outfit themselves with an elaborate costume of some kind, which is often adorned with theme specific accessories, that represents a specific character, idea or theme.
Cosplay participants ("cosplayers") form a subculture centered around wearing their costumes and re-enacting scenes or inventing likely behaviour inspired by their chosen sources. In some circles, the term cosplay has been broadened to include simply wearing a costume, without special consideration given to enacting characters in a performance context.
So you see, having nerdish tendencies is not all bad. Admittedly a little strange, but not as bad as the stereotype would have you believe.
Until the next time “Milieunairs”!
E3 2009: Nintendo and Sony Press Conferences
Posted by Hans Haupt in Games, Technology on June 3rd, 2009
It is once again that time of year. The time of year when not only does yours truly become another year older, but also a time when the entire video games industry goes into a frenzy of elusive reveals, shocking announcements and mind blowing revelations. It is a dream of mine to one day attend the Electronic Entertainment Exposition (E3) in Los Angeles. Consequently, that dream may, hopefully, be closer than I realise but more on that later.
This has been the first year that I have managed to stream and successfully watch all three E3 press briefings from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony. Yesterday was Nintendo and Sony’s chance to shine, given how Microsoft blew everyone away. So, how were the other conferences?
Oh my guava! Nintendo never stood a chance! For a company which has always been proud of innovation and catering for children, this was most probably one of the most boring conferences I have ever seen. Not just mind numbing, but also completely lacklustre. What happened to the spark that Nintendo used to always have? The energy and playful youthfulness? Instead there were just ‘suits’, talking in monotonous tones and droning on about sequel after sequel after sequel *yawn*. What happened Nintendo?
The following constitutes the main and most exciting Nintendo announcements:
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Facebook photo uploads for the DSi
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Wii Remote Plus – adding precision and functions which should have been there from the start
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New Wii Titles: Super Mario Wii, Metroid Prime M, Wii Sports Resort (successor to Wii Sports), Super Mario Galaxy 2
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New DS titles: Kingdom Hearts, Golden Sun, COP: The Recruit, Mario VS Donkey Kong,
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Biggest announcement: Wii Vitality Sensor
Okay, so let us get something straight. The biggest and best announcement for Nintendo’s E3 showing, which will apparently usher in a new era of game play, was… a heart rate monitor?! Are you kidding me? Seriously? Seriously! Nintendo, what the heck? I can just imagine what it will be like:
“Hey, who is up for some Wii? Let’s play. Oh, but wait, before we do, let’s check our ‘vitals’ to see if we’re healthy enough. You can never take your health too seriously you know, what with Ronald McDonald and all”. Alternatively, “I’m sorry little Johnny, but you can’t play Wii anymore. The Wii Vitality sensor says your heart might explode if you do”. Oh yeah, fun times – The Wii Vitality: Every obese child’s worst nightmare!
Granted, if you are a devout Nintendo fan you would most likely have enjoyed the press conference, especially the announcement of the new Metroid and Mario games. Granted some of the announced games do look good, but only less than a handful are exclusive to the Wii. The rest can be found on other more capable consoles. In the end, I stand by my opinion that Nintendo’s conference was the most uninspiring of the three. Better luck next time!
After Nintendo’s dismal showing, anything Sony did would have been great. Thankfully, Sony didn’t disappoint.
Last night, just as the Sony press conference started, we had a power outage. Turns out that one of the ‘phases’ from the municipality blew out. Thankfully we have a three ‘phase’ house, so we switched the main power over to one of the other ‘phases’. As a result, and after an hour of mild *cough* cursing, I finally managed to watch the show.
Sony’s conference was great. From the fantastic club beat, before the show started, to the announcement of over 364 new games, over the three available Sony platforms, I was left feeling pleasantly surprised. In truth, Sony did a good job of making the show as flashy as possible. Even so, it paled in comparison to Microsoft’s E3 press event, which featured celebrities, exclusive announcements and technology that is truly revolutionary.
The following constitutes the main and most exciting Sony announcements:
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PSP-Go officially announced: $250, 50% smaller, 40% lighter, Bluetooth, 16GB internal memory, Memory Stick Micro support, slide form factor, no UMD drive
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Most notable PSP game announcements: Resident Evil, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Gran Turismo
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Most notable PS3 game announcements: God of War 3, Agent (new Rockstar franchise), Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIV Online, Gran Turismo 5, MAG (256 players online), The Last Guardian (New ICO game), Modnation,
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Most surprising announcement: Playstation Motion Controller
The big trend this year was ‘motion control’. Ironic, considering how Nintendo introduced and commercialised motion controls with the Wii while, at the time, both Sony and Microsoft shrugged it off as a ‘gimmick’. Two years later and each of the gaming industries titans now have motion controls of some kind. Go figure!
Sony’s new motion controller resembles a Wii-mote with one major difference… a colour changing golf ball like protrusion on the top. Furthermore, the new controller uses the Playstation eye for motion capture, similar to Microsoft’s Project Natal. In essence, Sony’s motion controller is a mild mix of both the Nintendo Wii-motes and Microsoft’s Project Natal (but no where near as sophisticated). However, and in my opinion, I do believe that Microsoft’s Project Natal is the true evolution of game play mechanics and will emerge as the victor in this battle for motion control supremacy. Just think of what Tom Cruise could do in Minority Report, using just his hands, face and voice – that is Project Natal!
The conferences this year were great. Microsoft completely stole the show, allowing Sony to take a respectable second place while poor Nintendo struggles to learn from past, and current, E3 blunders. Since this has all been about E3 and you all know how it is a dream of mine to go, and since my birthday is in a few days, I thought that I may answer the statement that I have been alluding to.
Next year I will be turning 25, which is a quarter of a century and halfway to fifty. Consequently, for my 25th Birthday, my father has agreed to send me to tour the states for a month or two, as well as to attend E3 (I almost screamed when he told me, I am so excited). The best part? I get to take someone with me to enjoy the experience! How cool is that? Well, when it happens, you can be sure that I will blog and Tweet every moment of it!
Until the next time “Milieunairs”!
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