Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on July 8th, 2009
Rocketing Used Game Sales, Wii Hour usage and Pirate Bay Lives On? - Welcome to the column that after three years would like to issue a serious message to its fanbase and that is PBBBBTTTTT! and also known as Dare to Play the Game.
I hardly played my Xbox 360 at all this week. It was mostly used for Rock Band 2 and to get in some Cellfactor. Nothing changed in those games, no achievements were gained. What did I really do this week?
Posted in: Brain Blasters by David Annandale on July 3rd, 2009
Ishiro Honda is, of course, best known and (deservedly) beloved for his classic kaiju eiga: he not only directed the first appearances of Godzilla, Rodan, and Mothra, he also delivered many of their subsequent adventures, wrapping things up with 1975's Terror of Mechagodzilla, which would be the last such entry until the mid-80s revival. The high profile of the giant monster movies has a tendency to overshadow some of this other contributions to fantastic cinema. One such effort which shouldn't be overlooked is the inventive and grim Matango (1963).
A rich entrepreneur and his guests head off for a holiday on his yacht. When the weather turns nasty, he overrules his captain, who wants to turn back, and, in a misplaced display of machismo, orders that the course be maintained. The results are inevitable: the yacht is damaged beyond repair, and drifts aimlessly, until the unfortunate characters come across a deserted island. They soon discover that theirs is not the only shipwreck on these shores: they find a much larger ship, whose crew has vanished. Covering many of the ship's surfaces is an unpleasant fungus. Our heroes clean the ship up, make it their home, and set about scavenging food, staying away from the abundant mushrooms, which are apparently toxic. But alternatives are in scant supply. Frictions mount, betrayals multiply, and one by one, the survivors succumb to the temptation of the mushrooms. These are not only addictive, they slowly transform you into one of them.
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on July 1st, 2009
Warner gets Midway, Patcher on the Used Game Market & Console Price Drops coming? - Welcome to the column that is better than the rest because we gave the rest a very strong laxative in their morning cereal known as Dare to Play the Game.
Cellfactor was again the game of the week for me. I only gained one achievement this week, but it was perhaps the most important one left. The ArenaMaster achievement finally clicked this weekend. I went into a Training Room DeathMatch with another guy where we proceeded to have a good time. We just racked up kills and let each other get our smacks in. I ended up giving him the Slayer achievement and he gave me the Arena Master in return. This leaves two achievements, All Rewards Unlocked and Marathon. Points wise, I think I have about 505,000 points. 600,000 is All Rewards Unlocked and Marathon is a Million. Looks are deceiving since the only thing I can do for points is Multiplayer and kills are 10 points a piece. Nobody seems to do capture the flag or assault even though that is where the larger points are at. Sure there are other variables like double kills, triple kills, using abilities and arena master but if the only games being played are Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch, it kinda limits your options.
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on June 24th, 2009
360 Dashboard Speed, Moore vs Obama & Digital Downloads or Bust? - Welcome to the column that dares to cross the line but quietly goes back behind it afterwards known as Dare to Play the Game.
Cellfactor off Xbox Live was my main addiction this weekend. I have gained 115 achievement points and only three achievements stand in my way. Two of those achievements are All Rewards Unlocked and Marathon. All Rewards are Unlocked when you achieve 600k points, I am just a smidgen under 500k. Marathon is 1 million. Those can be done in time with a lot of grinding. However, there is one achievement that I can’t seem to get. Arena Master. As the name implies, I have to score 5 kills in a row without tasting death. I’ve gotten 3 a few times, and I think I did get 4 once. But 5? No such luck. (again, if somebody out there is willing to trade this achievement, I am more than willing)
Posted in: Podcasts by Gino Sassani on June 19th, 2009
I had a chance to chat with Hercules himself, Kevin Sorbo this afternoon. He took time out of his busy schedule to talk to us about his television career and his new direct to DVD film, Tommy And The Cool Mule. Look for our review next week. Learn what Captain Dylan Hunt has been up to since his days recreating The Commonwealth.
Bang it here to listen to our exclusive interview with Kevin Sorbo
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on June 17th, 2009
Rock Band goes Country Tracklist, Ronnie James Dio Dropped & No Van Hagar? - Welcome to the column that sings for their dinner and any other meal too just to keep from paying known as Dare to Play the Game.
My two Arcade reviews for Wolfenstein 3d and Cellfactor: Psychokinetic Wars were posted this past weekend. In such, I played a lot of those two games. My mood of those games was a very positive experience as it was the only week I could think where I bought all of the new releases Xbox Live had to offer. In Wolfenstein 3d, I primarily played around in the opening levels of each episode getting used to the gameplay before I really try to finish. I had beaten the game a few times on PC and my goal is to ultimately beat all 6 episodes. The problem is I have a feeling it will be like Doom and might not happen right away. Then all of the sudden, I’ll get a groove and try to finish it in a couple of mad sessions.
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on June 10th, 2009
More Project Natal, EA Fight Night MMA Year Rotation & Should Apple iPhone Games be Rated? - Welcome to the column that would be interested in a hands-only controlled game if they knew where their hands had been known as Dare to Play the Game.
A funny thing happened to me with NHL 2k9 this week, I didn’t play it. Yes, it involved World of Warcraft and yes I am ashamed. Okay, not really but it sounds good when I apologize for playing a ridiculously addicting PC based MMO and trying to get my character to level 70. I’ll explain more under Mutterings. However, I did spend the time to try out two wonderful Xbox Live Arcade demos: Wolfenstein 3d and CellFactor: Psychokinetic Wars.
Posted in: Podcasts, Random Fun by Gino Sassani on June 5th, 2009
I had the chance to chat with Chris Lemmon on the phone today.
While Chris has done a little acting over the years we all knew his Dad, Jack Lemmon.
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on June 3rd, 2009
Halo 3 ODST, Project Natal & Facebook on Xbox Live? - Welcome to the column that would have gone to E3 if the show organizers didn’t do background checks for booth girl stalking known as Dare to Play the Game.
Many video game columnists are currently at E3 getting all giddy over the latest announcements and acting important like somebody is supposed to be impressed with their credentials by being at this event. The rest of us get to sit back and feed off their info and wonder what it really takes to get into one of these things besides a plane ticket and some secret “handshake”. Okay, there is no handshake but it sure does feel mysterious. I would like to think in my lifetime I would attend one of these, but I’m not holding my breath. Maybe next year.
Posted in: Brain Blasters by David Annandale on May 30th, 2009
As I believe I may have mentioned before, I'm of an age that meant I was too young to actually attend any grindhouses in their 70s heyday, though I'm old enough to remember them. When I did come of age in the 80s, the VHS and Beta war was in full swing, video rental stores were sprouting like mushrooms, and the hunger for product on the shelves, any product, was insatiable. Those were the days when people actually rented VCRs, and Mom-and-Pop stores proudly offered the likes of Microwave Massacre, Screamers and The Beast Within for rental. This was the era of distributors like Key Video, Magnum, and many, many more, all with processed cheese computer graphic logos.
And this is where the joys begin on Astron-6: Year One. This is a DVD compilation of short works by a group of young Winnipeg filmmakers. Each piece opens with the Astron-6 logo, which, from its deliberate grain and scratches to its single-chord synth theme, is a dead-on recreation of those delightfully scuzzy formative years of home video. Beyond that logo lies a wealth of demented entertainment.
