New Games To Watch For pt. 4 - Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

This is the game on everyone's lips it seems, despite a distant release date of November 10th. The highly anticipated sequel to Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Modern Warfare 2 will undoubtedly sate the fan's hunger after the poorly received Call Of Duty: World At War. Rumours are rampant, but a few things are known: The game will serve as a kind of sequel directly following on from the events in the first Modern Warfare game, with usual characters such as Sergeant "Soap" MacTavish returning. The game will involve countries such as Afghanistan, Brazil, Khazakstan and Russia, in what looks like more of the same war-torn environments and besieged forts as before, although some of the snow environment play looks particularly interesting, with mountain climbing and snow-mobile action to boot.

From the multiplayer trailer (embedding was disabled on the main reveal trailer unfortunately), the graphics look significantly better than the previous game, undoubtedly boosted by the new IW 4.0 game engine which is a whole generation beyond the first Modern Warfare's engine. It's good to see that the experience point system that was so popular in the first game is retained, with some new features added as well. I didn't even buy or play Call Of Duty: World At War due to the dismal multiplayer reviews, so seeing Infinity Ward reprise Call Of Duty 4's multiplayer action is a big relief. After just a few minutes of game footage scrounged from various sources, I can safely say that Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is going to be epic and is well worth the hype. Enjoy the trailer.

Great New Photojournalism Site

For those of you out there who are avid photography enthusiasts, the recently launched http://www.life.com/ may provide some great inspiration and an unseen look into photojournalism's history. A joint collaboration between LIFE magazine and Getty Images, the site pumps out 3,000 new images every day, most never published anywhere until now. An astonishing 95% of images submitted to LIFE magazine alone were never printed! From celebrities, to animals, to world events, the site collects a huge number of themes, images and collections for your convenience.

The site has some cheesy activities such as "Real Or Fake" and "Sexy Or Sleazy", but overall, the content is excellent. With thousands more images added every day, the content will only get better. One of my favourite all time photographers is André Kertész, considered by many the father of photojournalism, so the site's mix of world events, images which shaped the world and those which comment on society, is right up my alley. Even if you have only a passing interest in photography, the site is still well worth checking out.

Videos For The Voyeur

Caught this guy through my usual sources today and I must say I'm impressed. He acts, he sings and he takes great photographs. Here's Miles Fisher's take on The Talking Heads' "This Must Be The Place", set to the film American Psycho, because let's face it, the guy is the love child of Christian Bale and Tom Cruise. Check out more Miles Fisher at http://www.milesfisher.com/ or on his blog, http://leslie-miles.blogspot.com/. And I apologize in advance for the nudity and violence.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

New Games To Watch For pt. 3 - Batman: Arkham Asylum

A big release later next month is set to be Eidos' comic-based action game, Batman: Arkham Asylum. Billed as a gritty addition to the growing Batman universe, Batman: Arkham Asylum pits the caped crusader against the likes of The Joker, Bane and Killer Croc on the menacing backdrop of the Arkham Asylum compound. Being a huge Batman fan, this title definitely caught my attention. Sadly however, it breaks one of my gaming rules which have kept me from being disappointed thus far on my gaming ventures: Never watch a film based on a game or comic and never play a game based on a film or comic.

However, after the likes of The Dark Knight and games like Dead Space, these rules which I live by are getting harder and harder to follow. With film and game makers blurring the lines to make good product across all formats, I'm actually very tempted to give this game an honest go. However, I'm not that big a Batman fanboy, so rest assured you won't see me cuddled up under a Batman blanket, in Batman pajamas playing this latest Batman game addition, especially after a few setbacks I've noticed in game-play.

Gameplay looks, although accessible, very bland. Watching the walk-through trailer on one of the game modes made me feel the game was in fact too accessible, to the point of being pathetically easy. The voices of Batman, Commissioner Gordon and The Joker are extremely disappointing and distracting, and the plot looks rather thin. Fighting looks interesting, but with all the gadgets and gizmos, it looks like it's designed for a Batman fan to experience being the dark knight rather than for serious gamers. The graphics look great and give a real gritty sense to the whole game - something I'm used to from Eidos. However, despite the honest attempt to make a good game for all players, Batman: Arkham Asylum still fails to escape from the fan-fiction feel of other comic and film-based games. I hope I'm wrong and that this game is another great Batman release, but for now I'm going to stick to my golden rules and hopefully, I might be proven wrong for once.

Videos For The Voyeur

Here's one from the Two Ronnies archive.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

New Games To Watch For pt. 2 - Dead Rising 2

The second installment of my musings on upcoming games casts its' shadow on Dead Rising 2, sequel to the hit release Dead Rising from Capcom. Out of all the upcoming games, I am most underwhelmed by this release. The first Dead Rising showed next-gen owners their first taste of zombie action, and they lapped it up feverishly, which may be the only reason the original game was so successful. However, after some serious gameplay issues, in my books, Dead Rising was utterly annihilated by the far superior Left 4 Dead, which provided a better alternative to those zombie fans. For some reason Capcom insisted on a problematic save system, poor AI and of course, keeping that infamous screen text which only HDTV owners could view. Between these issues and the timer constantly ticking away while I still flailed on the first mission, I usually ended my Dead Rising sessions with a bunch of survivors getting eaten and my controller flying across the room.

With games like Left 4 Dead circulating on the market, what makes Capcom think we'll line up for another round of Dead Rising? They are no longer the only option for next-gen zombie enthusiasts and yet they still stubbornly refuse to meddle too greatly with the annoying save system and, at times, boring gameplay. The new game, although receiving a boost from a larger environment, better weapons and graphics and characters, still looks like the same, tired game we saw the first time round only in a different setting. For a studio like Capcom, who has never made the best games in their field, to simply ignore their consumer's requests and stick to the same formula, it is very disappointing. I was hoping to see more than just a zombie mash-fest with every weapon you can find. I want to see an emotive story line with moral choices and bold characters, with a more hands-on feel than the third-person viewer from the first game. and yet, even from the trailer you can see it is not. Dead Rising 2 is set in a Las Vegas lookalike and of course the main protagonist has changed, but most else seems unchanged. I'll keep an open mind, but from what I've seen on the game so far, it's lessons not learnt by Capcom, and ultimately, the game will be gathering dust with its' predecessor on my shelf.

Harry Potter And The Great Big Disappointment

I went to go watch Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince early this morning at the big theatre in town to beat the lunch-rush. Soda in hand and a darkening theatre filling in around me, I was bracing myself for what was going to be another dark, thrilling ride film from the Harry Potter franchise. But what I saw was not a tale of the Half-Blood Prince, but a big, fat disappointment. The first Harry Potter film to be rated PG since The Prisoner Of Azkaban, the reduced rating really did stick out like a sore thumb. Just when the film series had grown to its' darkest with The Order Of The Phoenix, the director pegs it back a notch to make for a more family-friendly movie which for those who have grown up with the characters, is a big let-down. If you are like me, a teen who has grown up with the books and early films and was enjoying the intuitive leaps the franchise was making in keeping up with the maturity of its' viewers, this film will disappoint.

From the opening frames, the film fails to capture its' audience. The first hour or so barely entertains, stringing together only the bare minimum of dialogue and plot to lay the foundation of the movie, jumping from one scene to the next with a furious pace and little cinematic joy. The second half of the film gets markedly better, although it consistently fails to keep up the dark themes from its' predecessors. Forget monsters and high action, The Half-Blood Prince focusses more on relationships, intrigue and churning the plot out before anything else. The acting of the leading three impresses, but some of the supporting actors disappoint and they only serve to water-down the maturity level further to a point where five year olds in the audience were laughing uncontrollably. 

As the lights rose in the theatre after nearly three hours of movie, a pebble of disappointment grew in my stomach. What I had just seen was a major step back in the Harry Potter franchise which will take some work to be undone. If the plot of The Half-Blood Prince did not end with a lot of loose ends, I'd probably be thinking twice about seeing the next installment. And now I hear they producers are splitting Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows into two parts, undoubtedly to milk the franchise for all it's worth. I really hope that the final Harry Potter films return to their original fan base, the now late-teenagers and early twenty year olds who have grown with Harry through the years, because The Half-Blood Prince has strayed so far from the sinister and dark film they deserve. Although I've heard some argue that The Order Of The Phoenix was worse than this latest installment, I think we can all agree that if the final films are anything short of a near R-16, or at least an M, the franchise will undoubtedly end in an anti-climax.

BioWare Shocker

Just as I was hoping to be playing BioShock 2: Sea Of Dreams long before Christmas, the game's makers BioWare have just announced that the game has been delayed until 2010. That's right, the return of Rapture is still a long way off and I am not pleased. BioWare also delayed the release of Max Payne 3 and others, to make for a dismal outlook at their press conference. It makes you wonder how this set back will affect other studio releases, such as Mass Effect 2.

But do not despair, I'll be bringing you more updates on BioShock 2 and other games which might tickle your fancy. Watch out for my next reviews on the upcoming releases of Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Dead Rising 2, Mass Effect 2 and anything else I can get my hands on.

Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince

After a long absence from the big screen, Harry is back in what looks like another dark tale for wizarding fans. That's right, Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince is coming to theatres near you and from this trailer, it looks like the plot is coming to a head. I wouldn't know though since I stopped reading the books after they reached brick-size.

Videos For The Voyeur

I laughed so hard to this video. Crazy cats played to crazy music. Too funny.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

New Games To Watch For - The Return Of Rapture!

I was in town today and picked up a copy of the new Xbox 360 magazine. I usually don't read it, but I haven't seen a new game I've liked in quite a while now, and the ones I have bought have been promptly returned to the shop (you know who you are Gears Of War 2). While Prototype looks interesting, it's not one I'd spend over $100 for, so reading up on what will hopefully be an exciting gaming season ahead is the next best thing. Although I saw several upcoming games this year which I'll place my thoughts on, such as Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Mass Effect 2, there was one game which I could not wait another day to write about.

As you can tell from the title, the under water city of Rapture is making its' return back to the Xbox 360, PS3 and computer in the next installment of BioShock! The original BioShock was ground-breaking and easily one of the best titles of all time, but BioShock 2: Sea Of Dreams seems set to break the mold once again and bring yet another great game to the next generation. Set several years after the events in the first game, BioShock 2 takes place in a now crumbling Rapture. Same splicers and mayhem, but the big difference is that you now play as a Big Daddy. Of course this changes gameplay a tad - being stronger than splicers, battles will now need to include multiple enemies to make them challenging. However, the greatest threat in the game will come from a new enemy, the Big Sister, a mysterious, stealthy and devastating version of what could be called a girl Big Daddy.

My main concern is how the new take on Rapture is going to pan out; playing as a Big Daddy changes things a lot, and it might not be the best thing. If there's anything I pray for, it's that BioShock 2 does not suffer from the sequel curse. As long as the graphics are fresh, the play is new and the story has that old BioShock feel, then I'm pretty sure, we won't have to worry. I'll let the new gameplay video I've included talk for itself (after all, it is narrated by one of BioShock's game designers), but suffice to say I will be buying the next addition to the BioShock series almost as soon as it arrives in shops. If you haven't played the first game, go and do it now! Strangely, the graphics are still pretty nice despite the game now being a few years old, so you've got no excuse.

Happy 4th Of July!

To all those who celebrate 4th of July out there, enjoy a few holiday-themed contributions to this world of web we live in. And when I say contributions, I really mean people setting their asses on fire with sparklers.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Worms Come To Next-Gen!

Although the hugely popular, almost at a cult-status, video game Worms had debuted on the Xbox 360 a while ago, there is no doubt that with this latest installment just released on the console, that the worms have finally arrived with the response they deserve. Worms 2: Armageddon bring the little pink buggers back to the Xbox 360 with bigger weapons, better scenarios, cooler toys and landscapes, and more options than the previous game, which was, lets face it, a pretty empty ride. Unlike the previous game, Armageddon brings back old favourites like the Baseball Bat, Holy Hand Grenade, Concrete Donkey and the Super Sheep, along with more goodies such as Napalm Strikes and the Buffalo Of Lies.

A great new feature is the shop system, where players can buy new items, weapons, landscapes and features using credits won from the single player campaign. It adds the sense of reward which the last game lacked and really makes for addictive gaming. This, in addition with the return of Forts, new game modes and landscapes, will likely make this the best worms game for the Xbox 360 for years to come.

It is pretty obvious why Armageddon was released. With such a hit following like the one Worms endears, it was a mistake to release such a watered-down version as the first incarnation on the Xbox 360. This is a key example that, in conjunction with demand, fan pressure really can change the games which are released and what features they have. I expect to see similar initiative taken on games such as Gears Of War 3 or the next Call Of Duty game where fan reception was poor for the sequels. In the end, we are what drives the computer game industry and although just a small example, Worms 2: Armageddon shows that if we want more destruction, more insanity and more lil' pink dudes flying off into the depths of the ocean, then all we have to do is ask.

I Hate Computers

Well, what a fiasco! A call to several computer support help lines, a night spent until three in the morning experimenting on modems and routers, and what do I have to show for it? A couple of large bags under my eyes, probably there to catch my falling tears because it was all a waste of friggin time! But alas, I get ahead of myself - let's start from the beginning...

I use the Xbox 360. Well, saying that I'm more in-tune with my Xbox 360 than any other human counterpart would be more accurate, judging by the amount of time I waste on there. So imagine my disgust when I find my NAT type is set to Moderate! Yes people, I have no idea what it is, but it's apparently bad. There's all kinds of warnings popping up and blasting at me, so I call the Xbox 360 support line. If you're against racism, my following comments could be construed to be prejudiced, but believe me, some of my best friends are Asian! I mean, my Playstation 2 is made in Japan and I love that thing like a best friend if that counts!

Of course, I ring up and who do I get? An half Asian, half Indian hybrid with a Canadian accent. You cannot make this shit up. It's like taking the most annoying telemarketer and telling them to man the help desk for quantum mechanics. So suffice to say, all I understood from the conversation was that my NAT type needed to be set to Open (like my one was some kind of prude or something), and that I needed to type in a bunch of codes into somewhere. I look down at this paper with stuff like TCP and UDP and it explodes my mind. I don't know where to start, so where do I ask? A teenage friend of a friend online from Australia.

To tell the truth, he was far more helpful than any help desk. He was spewing gibberish out at me like he was the love child of Bill Gates and Stephen Hawking. Turns out I needed to find my IP address for my modem and use some port-forwarding crap to open up these ports to the Xbox 360 servers or something! Everything was going well until I went online and everything was fine. My experience with computers is that if everything is going well, you are about to get screwed. Sure enough I restart the modem. No errors pop up! Hooray! I test my connection again, to make sure. The errors begin again. Sigh. I test it again. Now it says it can't even connect to the internet, even though I can manually. Grumble.

I go back to the ports and I find they've all disappeared. Where did they go? I can't have some random portal flapping around in my cyber space can I? It might get together with some other portals and start some trouble and then I'd really be screwed. So I enter them in again. I restart the modem, and the same thing happens. Except now the Xbox 360's IP address has been swapped with the computer's! Then the cycle starts again, and ends up with the IP address swapping over several times, 4 hours wasted of my life, a still Moderate NAT type and my in a defeated state on the floor hugging my console.

Well, the friend said nothing bad should have happened, except that this route should have worked. The story of my life with computers: I have problem, problem happens on weekend when no help lines are open, problem nearly gets fixed, revenge of the problem, problem wins. I have decided on one thing however; I'm going to lure and capture a computer nerd and keep him as my own personal helper. It's the only way.