Posted in: Highly Defined, News and Opinions by Archive Authors on September 18th, 2006
If you take $17,000 from your company and you leave without any form of punishment or prosecution, can your resignation really cite “personal differences?”
You know where your Cedia is? It’s one of the other big electronics shows that helps announce and introduce new technologies. One of the more remembered announcements was Toshiba’s announcement of a 2nd generation HD-DVD player. These newer versions include shorter load times, HDMI 1.3, and in one case, full 1080p resolution. There are two models, look f...
Posted in: Brain Blasters, News and Opinions by David Annandale on September 15th, 2006
With The Curse of Frankenstein in 1957, Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee became the new kings of British horror, and their frequent co-starring roles made them a tandem the likes of which the industry hadn’t seen since the heyday of the Karloff-Lugosi double-threats of the late-30's. Their films for Hammer and Amicus have long been fan faves, but the film I’m going to sing the praises of here doesn’t have quite the same profile as the likes of Horror of Dracula. Most horror fans of a certain vintage no...
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on September 13th, 2006
PS3 Shipments, Moonwalking to the beat of a different drummer, and the Devil May Cry in joy - Welcome to the broken nose job of game columns known as Dare to Play the Game.
Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. I'm your host that had a really strange week. Those of you who are close to me probably understand more than the general populace reading this column. But lets just say I got some me time and will have a lot more me time in the upcoming ...
Posted in: Highly Defined, News and Opinions by Archive Authors on September 11th, 2006
We all know what today is, so let’s skip the tagline.
Well, for all the news (interesting and otherwise) that the Blu-Ray camp made last week, Universal announced their round of November titles for HD-DVD release. Among them are Waterworld (I met Kevin Costner on the set of that film when I was in the Army, true story), The Hulk (a better movie than people give it credit for and one that should blow out a subwoofer or two) and the granddaddy of them all, King Kong. Release for all three...
Posted in: Brain Blasters, News and Opinions by David Annandale on September 8th, 2006
Remaking cult movies is a risky proposition. By their nature, they are going to have a rabidly loyal fan base, and therefore the people most likely to be interested in the remake are also the people most likely to be hostile towards it. This is the lesson being learned the hard way by Neil LaBute. His remake of 1973's The Wicker Man is in the theatres now. He faced a barrage of criticism from the fans even before he’d finished his work. He’s unlikely to hear anything different now. Both films tell a similar st...
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on September 6th, 2006
A Full Roster, Forgotten Worlds & A Good Hard Drive crash - Welcome to the 2 bit processor in a 64 bit world known as Dare to Play the Game.
Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. I'm your host that hates hard drive crashes. My hard drive of 6 years or so crashed on Friday. (I love beeps). However, my fairly new (less than a year) hard drive is just fine. So all the really important stuff was really on that drive anyhow. I however had to restor...
Posted in: Highly Defined, News and Opinions by Archive Authors on September 4th, 2006
Insert silly saying here, I’ve got no energy to do so, for it’s the day of rest in America.
What can I say, I’m going to sit and watch my butt expand this go round (damn, I’m doing it now), so here we go…
As far as the firmware update goes for the Toshiba HD-DVD players, I did manage to download it last week and throw in Constantine for some scenes, and I’ve gotta say I definitely noticed a change in quality from the Dolby Digital Plus soundtracks. There was mnore active low end fidelity an...
Posted in: Brain Blasters, News and Opinions by David Annandale on September 1st, 2006
Back in the sixties, Gamera was Godzilla’s poor, trailer-trash cousin. This flying, fire-breathing turtle (but of course!) gallumphed his way through a series of films. The first, under its North American release title Gammera the Invincible (the one time there was a double “m” in the name), is a pretty decent monster flick for that period, with some fine destruction, and introduces Gamera’s fondness for children (so though he trashes cities, he can’t be all bad). US-shot scenes were added to the original, and...
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on August 30th, 2006
Gaming Heaven, Raging Fantasies, & a little Ray-Man - Welcome to the raging hormone that can only be described as a tertiary nipple known as Dare to Play the Game.
Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. I'm your host that found a little black chair of happiness this weekend. I picked up a video rocker from Target. It cost $100 ($38 after gift card) but was well worth it. It is very nice faux leather, extremely sturdy, and you can plug it in for the speakers...
Posted in: Highly Defined, News and Opinions by Archive Authors on August 28th, 2006
I feel like a kid in some sort of a store…
Well the week has seen some surprises, concrete or not for both camps. First and foremost, the 2.0 Firmware for the Toshiba HD player is out now. There has been some glowing praise, not only for the firmware (which now allows TruHD), but for the continuing consumer support. Bill Hunt at The Digital Bits was the first to really publicly comment on the job Toshiba (and the HD camp is doing), and while as an HD owner I can agree with it, one also has to remembe...
