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August 31 Halo 3 - live action trailerOkay so I'm posting again pre-holiday. But this is worth it.
You need silverlight to watch it, but it's free. Future changes to the siteIt's been a rollercoaster week for Tech & Gadgets where we are SO close the major changes that I've been promising for several weeks (possibly months) that I can almost smell them.
What does it smell like? The Future (and possibly raspberries - nobody knows why...)
Here's how I envision it changing:
Reviews section:
This is going to be COMPLETELY revamped, it's going to be so entirely different that it may well have to review itself before it's allowed to exist. We are getting some awesome content in that will mean that we can run specialised sections for the best gadgets around, including mobile phones and laptops.
This means that we can bring you not only the newest reviews, but also the latest news and the top 10 that you should be looking at.
All this SHOULD be ready by late September*
News section:
This is going to be awesome. We currently have all the latest from CNet news, but we decided this wasn't enough for the dedicated readers of T&G and are bringing you not one, but two other sources to make sure you are not just abreast but overwhelmed with the latest headlines globally.
Future publishing will be providing us with a tantalising glimpse into the latest updates in gadgets and computing - from the writers that provide the best magazines in the country, and the mighty PA will also be making sure that if you throw a stone at the site it will probably hit a hot-off-the-press news story**
All this should be ready by late September*
Games section:
Now this is exciting. With a bit of luck and a prevailing wind, we will be converting a little corner of T&G into a mahoosive*** gaming section that will combine the cream of gaming features with reviews and offers that will leave your index finger straining to click.
All this should be ready by mumble mumble mumble*
Finally, I'm away next week - but look out for articles on the humble Pub Quiz and some Tech myths that Windows Vista Magazine have exploded (not literally).
Toodles!
*Meh! These things are subject to change, sometimes because stuff goes wrong and sometimes cos we forget to feed the hamsters, but it's all looking good at the mo' and I'm nothing if not optimistic...
**I don't recommend this, it will probably hit your screen first and they really don't take kindly to stones.
***This word DOES NOT EXIST. Don't look it up and if you are a mother or future mother in law, I KNOW I sometimes have typos in my blog and I'm sorry, okay? But it doesn't reflect on my education, and if it does it's my teachers'**** fault...
****Particularly my first year English teacher who told me I would never amount to anything.
*****There was no five star note - are you even paying attention?
August 28 Storyline in gamesI was flicking through Edge's 'get into games' supplement today, which was a guide to working in the industry and happened upon an interview with Rob Yescombe who is a screenwriter at Free Radical.
As you'd expect with Edge it's a good article with the right questions asked, but one of the bits at the end really intrigued me.
Yescombe says: '...we've seen some great 'Hollywood screenwriters' have a go at writing a game, but without an understanding of how games and interactivity actually function they're just trying to crowbar something rigid into something flexible.
"It might get by, but it won't be the better for it."
The reason I found this interesting is because, as a writer (of sorts), the whole concept of writing a computer game is something that actively appeals to me. The very interactivity that might well get in the way of a movie scriptwriter coming up with the brilliant gaming storyline is also the most enticing thing about game scripting.
For me, the story within the game can be a massive element of what makes it enjoyable. I'll pick out immediate contrasting examples. The original Half Life versus Far Cry - both games I played through and enjoyed, but the former is - for me - perhaps the greatest gaming experience of all time (in its era) and the other is a great concept that genuinely disappointed me with its predictable descent into mutants and corridors.
At face value the two games share a lot. Single man helped along by occasional others railing against other humans and powerful non-humans. But whereas Half Life's use of scripted events and stunning set pieces drew you in, Far Cry's actually began to push me away. The lack of a storyline stopped me suspending my sense of disbelief.
I'm probably going to write a longer article about this very topic in the next month or so. But for me, plot is as vital as graphics and gameplay in deciding a game's longevity and status and had been for a long time.
August 24 A few Friday diversionsOf course the majority of you are working feverishly, furiously jabbing at your overworked keyboards in an effort to finish the weekend at the absolute tip-top of your professional prowess...
For the rest of us - the internet is your oyster, and here are some end-of-week pearls for your consideration.
You may not have noticed that 'The Intruders' author Michael Marshall Smith is guest blogging over at Powells.com - which is the website of an American book sellers. Despite claims to the contrary, MMS takes to the world of the blog like a fish to water and it's a shame that it's ending after just a week. If you need more info on MMS - you can read my interview here
For the gamers out there - Rock* (that's Rockstar to everyone else) have released a trailer to Midnight Club: Los Angeles. With Manhunt 2 being, erm, put on hiatus due to being 'unrelentingly sadistic' and Grand Theft Auto IV delayed into next year, R* need this franchise to do well. See what you think, and if you keep watching you'll get the two GTA IV trailers.
There's a couple of movie trailers that you should watch as well. The first is The Dark is Rising - which is from a fairly well known series of books set in England. Of COURSE it's been Americanised. Kudos on the casting of Ian McShane but... oh just watch it - it's a travesty, and I'm being generous.
Secondly - and a little more hearteningly - the Hitman trailers look fairly cool, and the lead actor is Timothy Olyphant (like McShane a star turn in the awesome Deadwood). Okay, so it's based on a computer game and we all know NOTHING good comes of that (I kinda, sorta, maybe liked the first Resident Evil but don't tell anyone), but let's give it a chance, at least 'til it spits in our eye and runs away.
August 23 Sony shows some loveThere was always likely to be a response to the Xbox announcement that prices were being slashed - and true to form Sony have used Leipzig's Games Convention to announce some of the forthcoming changes for the PS3 and PSP.
Interestingly, rather than making the console more cost effective, Sony have chosen to try to make the package of PlayStation products more desirable. Which is a dangerous but enticing strategy...
So, for a few extra quid (TBC of course) in 2008, PS3 owners will have the rather nifty option of turning their console into a digital telvision tuner with PVR capabilities. In laymans terms that means that you will be able to watch all of the freeview channels and record one whilst watching another to your PS3 hard-drive.
One of the other key changes makes it all but impossible for PS3 owners to ignore the fact that the PSP is the perfect companion. Once you have recorded your television shows you can then send them to your PSP to watch or, brilliantly, you can stream the programmes via Wi-Fi to watch remotely or watch live television (you;d have to leave your PS3 on to do this I imagine)
It's a fairly sexy concept; imagine sitting at a beachside cafe somewhere in a hot country watching Match of the Day live as you sip a cocktail, or spending the interminable hours in an airport lounge or on a (Wi-Fi equipped) train catching up on episodes of Heroes.
So, what you might well end up with, is a PS3 that is world class for a home media hub that will, eventually I'm sure, also be a world class games machine too.
Pretty tempting, no?
August 22 Console wars and biasThis week's been Elite launch week on Tech & Gadgets - and it's quite nice to have a theme to write around once in a while - especially bearing in mind that I will be launching a dedicated gaming channel in the next couple of months.
Of course, the downside to doing anything that's Microsoft is that I work for is essentially Microsoft so I'm inevitably going to come off as biased.
I suppose that's par for the course and it's something I've come to accept since I started here - but tomorrow sees my take on the Elite (loved it - took a good console and made it better) which means that the whole thing starts again.
I honestly adore the PlayStation 3 - and would even more if it had any games that were generally world class - but the Xbox DOES have those games, quite frankly, and the comparative lineups over the next few must have Sony quaking in their boots.
Everyone knows that Halo 3 has been held up as the likely 'killer app' for the Xbox 360 pretty much since its launch back in the late stages of 2005, but with Biochock out this week, PGR4 on its way and GTA 4 multi format the PS3 has its work cut out.
Do I think that an HD DVD drive should have been included? Actually, not really. Considering the detrimental effect the Blu-ray drive in the PS3 had and the continuing rows over the format wars, I think lumbering a console with one or the other of the formats is inviting the chance of putting a millstone round its neck.
I WOULD have liked two controllers with the Elite, and I WOULD have liked a game included - but they weren't.
The fact is that the console wars are far from over but, in the meantime, the split audience is probably not good for the industry. At Leipzigs's games convention Silicon Knights founder Denis Dyack said: "Nintendo has come out of the gate much faster than everyone anticipated, but how about longevity? The 360 is doing well in America, but not so well in Japan. The PS3 is off to a really slow start but they have a really good brand name... So the truth is, no one knows.
"Trying to make a game on all three systems is very challenging and I don't know many, if any, people that are doing that right now."
Which is a shame. August 21 BioshockToday I have been mostly testing out the Elite - which is a tough job but somebody's got to do it. Fortunately, this coincides with the release this week of the Bioshock demo, which has been garnering rave reviews across the games press.
And there's a good reason for that. As far as demos go this one is an absolute gem. It takes you through the opening stages of the game, swimming from the burning wreckage of a plane to the 'safety' of a strange entrance in the middle of the sea.
What unfolds from there is a veritable nightmare of 1950s styling and genetic mutations that carry you headlong into what seems to be a well-thought out plot. What that really means is an atmospheric, creepy and amazing sounding adventure that screams 'BUY THIS GAME'
Now, I'm fairly open in believing that the FPS is at its best on the PC, but I thought I'd give this one a fair go on the Elite, and I'm actually glad I did, because seeing Bioshock on my television seemed somehow right considering the cinematic stylings.
I loved the game and will now go and lay my hands on the full version - I'm yet to decide whether to go for PC or Xbox 360 but I'm not averse to the latter, which is fairly remarkable for a shooter.
What Bioshock does do is make the game feel fresh and different. It's not just another FPS, it's genuinely got something about it that makes it shine. It's the first demo in ages that's made my mind up about whether I buy a game. August 20 Xbox 360 price drops & Elite launchI'm just back from the press launch for the Xbox 360 Elite - and it handily coincided with the announcement that the prices would be dropped significantly for the console as a whole.
The pared-down Core system is now being priced at £179.99 - which you will probably realise puts it on a par with Nintendo's phenomenally popular Wii. Xbox's UK team were at pains to point out that they aren't trying to compete with the Wii, which they believe is a very different market, but they are hoping that the prospect of HD gaming will appeal at that price.
Perhaps the most significant price change is for the already-popular Pro package, which is now at £249.99 - significantly cheaper than main rival the PS3 and, ahead of the likes of Mass Effect, Halo 3 and Friday's Bioshock (more on that tomorrow) has got to be pretty tempting for those wanting the best gaming this year.
Finally, the Elite comes in at $299.99, a little cheaper than many forecasters have suggested, bringing with it the HDMI socket and bigger hard drive that will appeal to those who use the excellent Xbox Live service and are keen to plug their Xbox into their new flat-screen telly and get the best out of their HD.
It will be fascinating to see if the PS3's popularity starts to rise next year when it finally starts to get some titles of genuine note - but in the mean time, it's a good time for Microsoft's Xbox. It's got the choice pick of the games, it's tapping into the hard-core gaming demographic much more effectively than PS3 and, with the Elite, is offering a pretty damn good package that's significantly cheaper than its main rival.
I'll be writing a hands-on with the Elite this week, and it will be another addition to our Xbox 360 Elite special which is currently headlining the site. August 17 Is 'pimp' offensive?I get a feedback report every day from my channel and one of the recurring themes in the last few weeks has been over the 'Pimp my live' offer that I linked to.
Obviously I wasn't the man behind the name - merely the person who put the link on the channel - but even so I was amazed at some of the negativity towards the use of the word 'pimp'.
Now we all know that pimp in its most genuine usage, refers to a person who runs prostitutes - but the MTV generation knows the word in a very, very different way.
To pimp something is generally take to make it outrageous, cool, funky etc etc hence the likes of 'Pimp my ride' shows where people's cars are glammed up to the nines.
The OED has yet to include this definition - which frankly suprises me seeing the commonality of the usage - so I suppose it isn't unreasonable that some are only seeing the word's negative connotations.
But, to be honest, I think you have to take the word as a bit of a strange 21st century thing that isn't really trying to do anything beyond harking back to the likes of Starsky & Hutch's Huggy Bear and Blaxploitation films and their dandyesque Pimps.
Anyway - feel free to offer your views... August 14 Jelly baby battlesIt used to be that biting their heads off was the choice de jour of 'offing' a jelly baby - but not longer.
Logitech have put together an absolutely awesome flash game at http://www.jellybattle.com/ that allows you to battle against real life opponents in a game of strategy, skill and verve.
There seems to be a little bit of a problem with the servers (too many people playing?) but it's well worth a look.
I'm currently favouring a defensive outlook, topped up with opportunistic random drops.
It's great fun. Check it out... August 13 'Guilty' tracking CCTV, Greg Bear & William GibsonI think one of the joys of this job is that I can be writing about social networking blunders on one day to something serious the day after. Take today for an example - the two articles that I am researching (and writing) are the 10 games you should own for an Xbox 360 and the eerie CCTV that will pick out the guilty.
The latter of the two obviously ties in to my long term objections to the steady erosion of privacy and civil liberties. I know I bang on about these things a little, but I am genuinely worried about the steady growth of information kept on each and every one of us.
On a related note, I'm currently reading the second book of Greg Bear's Eon trilogy (Eternity), which has some fascinating predictions abou the future of humanity. Essentially nobody dies - they just go into a collective memory where they continue to 'live' and work on things.
Another author who made some bold predictions back in the 80s (just like Bear) is William Gibson, who wrote the classic Neuromancer and invented the word cyber space, and there was a really good interview in The Observer this Sunday, with all kinds of views on technology. A highly recommended read.
August 09 Eyebrows & CrackBerrysI think that's probably the most random blog header in the blogosphere today. But that's actually what I'm going to be talking about so it's relevant.
Let's start with the more obvious tech link and move onto eyebrows on the internet in a minute. CrackBerry. It's a great turn of phrase that appeared not long after RIM's rather nifty little device started to flood the market and sometime before people were seen furtively flicking their pearl on trains everywhere.
A brilliant device, of that I have no doubt - although it ties in with something of a bugbear of mine. People using leisure time to do work. I can understand why people want push e-mail in a social sense - especially in the US where SMS never took off and e-mail did, but I think it's really important that you have the horribly termed 'work-life balance'. So I've written a guide to breaking the addiction and taking your life back which will appear on Monday.
On to eyebrows, and anyone who has suffered the horrible misfortune of letting their eyes drift to the left of this site will see that, as far as facial features go, I'm up there with Norman Lamont.
However, first The Simpsons avatar maker that I talked about before and now the South Park one fail to give me an eyebrows option. I think there's a conspiracy. Anyway, I photoshopped them in - so ya boo sucks. August 08 Football season's comingI promise there will be some kind of tech slant to this post - but I just wanted to share my excitement about the coming season. All the expectation about the new players, everything to play for, about 2.59 on the first day of the season is pretty much the absolute peak time to be a football fan (though after a nice opening day 4-0 or a World Cup may also compete).
Now, as a Burnley fan I don't get to see my own team on the telly nearly often enough (but next season...). However, in the dim and distant past I was lucky enough to be the Fanzone commentator for Sky Sports' rather spiffy interactive service for two separate games in the FA Cup.
For those not in the know, Fanzone is the alternate commentary that you can access by pressing the red button.
Later on in my life I spent some time working in Sky Sports interactive and I know there's a whole office full of people beavering away ahead of the weekend's kick off to get things ready in time.
So, in a rare mixing of my careers kind of way, I shall be writing a piece called 'Behind the red button...' that will go live on Friday and, mwa ha ha ha ha, tap into all the footballing good feeling to propel it onto the front page of MSN (probably).
And, for the record, if any of you haven't listened to Fanzone during a game, it's well worth it. Some of the fans they get on are genuinely funny and it makes a lovely change to the more traditional commentators once in a while, if only to try to work out where the fans are biting their lips to stop themselves swearing!
August 06 Mailbag for JulyIn gaming parlance it's that w00t moment of the month again; the time when I stop pretending that only my mum reads what I write and show you what other people think about the site, my articles and the topics I've raised.
I'm starting this month's mailbag with a whole new feature (woo and hoo!) namely; the top 10 most popular articles for the month of July.
1. Irritating technology
2. Controversial computer games 3. Gadget hotlist 4. Gamers' Paradise 5. iPod competitors 6. Suitcase gadgets: holiday hotlist 7. The greatest gaming icons 8. The games we most want 9. Why gaming became cool 10. Apple iPhone review It's nice to see that the iPhone was SO cool that people wanted to read the review even though it's not out in the UK until the Christmas period (Allegedly)
On with the feedback - and we'll start with the #1 from our list and your feedback - Irritating technology.
Granny Anny came up with a decent starter for 10: My daughter has an alarm clock that talks to you. There is nothing more irrtating than to be woken up by an american accent that repeats "it is eight o'clock time to get up" endlessly.
Punita was the first in with a technology that, it seems, many of you hate: motorbikes.they just drive me nuts as they are on the road.the sound is just enuff for a headache
Mobile phone hands free kits got a fair amount of abuse, Brian Brighton (who was indignant about the motorbike suggestion) had this to say: What about all the people with bits of plastic attached to their heads, one way or the other, chatting, be it in the street, in the shops, in the bank - and they are all oblivious to anything else?
Mywgi's suggestion was interesting: Those toilet paper machines, you know the big round one attached to the wall next to you, and here is the irritating bit ! When you pull on it ! one tiny square brakes off before the things even begin to roll around once... Not enough to wipe your nose let alone your bum...
Cluffy had an altogether take on modern irritating technology, saying: You guys really should get a life. Never seen so much grumpy-old-manism before. If you are so dissatisfied with all the modern technology that makes the rest of our lives bearable, then why don't you go live on a desert island and eat raw fish? Controversial computer games, following on from the problems over Manhunt 2, proved a popular topic for discussion, although much of it was on the old chestnut of whether games should be censored at all. Carl Johnson's stance was fairly common: I've played most of the games listed...any controversy adds to the games appeal. However, I've never killed, maimed, assaulted, raped, shot, stabbed or tortured anyone. Am I immune to these games? or is it just possible that there is no link what-so-ever to games and reality? Oh, and for those that do commit crimes then blame their computer games...I think, maybe, just maybe they are scapegoating.."I didn't mean to stab him in the head...the game made me do it...!" Yeah, ok. Soundcity brought up the whole 'ignored ratings system' debate: It's usually the media(cough daily mail) hyping these stories making out these games are aimed at kids when they are clearly not! so, to summarise, parents are stupid and should check the cert on the box before allowing little johnny to go on a rampage with a chainsaw, and if we are really going to ban games then lets ban movies too!...hell lets even burn some books while were at it!,then maybe ban free speech?,and after we have banned and burned everything do you think this world will be free from bad people who do bad things?...me neither! Merlin Marshall took a different view: I find it disturbing and sad that as a society we all enjoy stabbing, raping, torturing innocent people in game rather than being a blue hedgehog that collects gold rings these days. I blame the company's who produces these games and the people who come up with some of the ideas need there heads looking at. I would not buy a game now which i felt was off a sick nature and to all the people buying these games your just supporting the company's to produce more of the same stuff. Kelvino believes society needs a new scapegoat: I think it is time that people stopped looking forward for a scapegoat in the degradation of the younger generation and look at the reality of the situation on a larger scale! The negligence of parents, the lack of activities in public area's to ease boredom amongst many I'm sure! Moving on - one of my articles this month was on how gaming has become cool. On the message board I asked why it this was saying 'gaming's not just for social outcasts...' Which piqued Phry who responded: Since when is gaming for social outcasts? It may not be a cool pastime, but your assumption is completely without any basis in reality. which to me indicates you have no knowledge of the subject on hand, and are just throwing out comments at random, with no real desire to know the answers, instead i think it is you who are trying to look cool, and doing a very poor job of it at that. Obviously if Phry had read my article he would realise that I am very much on the side of gaming having been cool. But that's what you get for not putting the whole article in the message board I suppose! It is true that I am doing a VERY poor job of trying to look cool however... Anyway, onto some non-message board feedback that I received this month 'demanding' that I change my article suggesting the internet started out as a military design. "...The BBC says that it was Tim Berners Lee that invented the Web..." Well yes. But the internet and the web are not the same thing. The Web that TBL invented was the protocols that allowed web pages to be read by networks of computers. The internet is that network of computers which stemmed from ARPANet which was designed as a method of communicating in a crisis - hope that clears things up... Okay. My monthly look at all that's good and coming up, and all that's bad and falling down. Good:
Coming up:
Bad:
Falling down
Okay - that's it for July. In August I shall mostly bringing you some of the 'awesomist' articles on the web AND the internet. Oh and the football season starts...
August 02 Social networking for the uninitiatedI probably overuse the words 'internet phenomenon' but in some cases the term is completely accurate. This week I have been doing a piece on the rise and rise of social networking - and it's fair to say that the likes of MySpace, Live Spaces and latterly Facebook are becoming an everyday part of online life.
Let's take Facebook: it's been described (a little unfairly) as MySpace for adults, but in my humble opinion it's actually more comparable to iTunes. I'll explain why; iTunes (and the iPod) made something that was being done elsewhere massively popular by stipping away some of the unnecessary complications, by sticking enough functionality in to keep people happy and by making it look good.
There's been a spate of articles on how the difference between users of MySpace and Facebook is based on class - but I think this is a bit of a case of the tail wagging the dog. Facebook's success comes from a simple user interface, a pretty darn effective news-feed of what other people are doing and a straighforward sign-up process.
You don't need to design your site - and although you can add things, one person's page looks pretty similar to everyone elses. It's neat and efficient, and inevtiably this appeals to people who don't have the time to personalise to the degree of something like MySpace - and once you have a type of audience they will invite their friends and that demographic becomes a little stronger until you have differences that people can do pointless research on. |
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