Imagine being an 11 year old boy with a remote controlled car with an integrated webcam that you could look through using a wireless headmounted display while you drive it, effectively driving in first person mode. How cool is it that such a thing actually exists? Now imagine being a 41 year old man-boy trying to come up with a rationale for purchasing such a toy….
A blast from the past
I was in a fraternity back when I was in college, and there’s been a sudden burst of activity related to a facebook group that was created for the frat. I got an email today that an old friend had uploaded a photo of me which cracked me up, so at the risk of much mocking, I post it here for everyone’s enjoyment. This was taken in roughly 1991 during a fraternity rush, during which we ‘murffled’ our hair to make it stand up on end dramatically. Check out the mane I was wearing that night:
Game finished: Call of Duty 3
I’ve played most of the Call of Duty games at this point, including the various console ports. I’ve played through 2 on the PS2, and 2 on the PC (three if you count one of the expansion paks for the original game) and I played through 4 on the xbox 360 right after Christmas. I enjoyed that so much I went out and got COD3 for the Xbox 360, and played it through over the last couple of weeks. It’s nowhere near as good as 4 was, but it’s decent at what it is – a formulaic WWII console FPS. What novelty it has you can tell was tacked on because of the WII and PS3 motion sensing bits in the controllers, because there are these interactive sequences like ‘plant this bomb on the anti-aircraft gun’ which require sequences of button presses and twists, which on the wii or PS3 would have been actual motions with the controllers. They’re weak on the 360 because they feel contrived and because you can exploit them for a limited invulnerability by sprinting for the objective and initiating the sequence, which mostly keeps the AI from shooting at you so you can charge into insane situations and survive. The other new addition to the formula is scripted moments where you get jumped from around corners by enemy soldiers, which starts a ‘quicktime event’ style melee combat where you have to press the right buttons at the right time and speed. It’s basically as weak as it sounds, made worse by the fact that each of them requires whacking on the shoulder buttons, which it’s not easy to do quickly. There are also driving sequences and sequences where you control tanks or other heavy weaponry. These are just ok, and not as good as the ones in COD2, but they’re not bad either.
I didn’t try the multiplayer, because I already have the superb COD4 for that, not to mention Team Fortress 2 on the pc, so I figured why bother.
You can score the game for under $20 for the PS3 and the 360 if you shop carefully. At that price it’s worth it if you’re a fan of the genre, and who isn’t – after all, shooting nazis never gets old 😉
How to spend the perfect weekend
We had perfect weather this weekend, with temperatures in the low high 60’s and clear blue skies. Susan and I took advantage of this and went hiking in the green mountains in vermont about 40 minutes north of Bennington:
It was pretty much perfect – the hike made its way up a steep grade but at an angle such that it was never too strenuous of a climb. We saw a beautiful ice covered lake, followed a roaring brook for over a mile that the dogs had a blast frolicking in, struggled to follow a poorly marked appalachian/long trail section that was covered in sometimes deep and slightly treacherous snow, climbed an excellent quartz rock seam, and looked out over a Vermont valley with stunning views. There are more pictures if you’re interested, including a couple of movies and (after tonight) a panoramic shot of the view from the summit.
Dreamworks options Ghost in the Shell
Ever seen Ghost in the Shell? It’s taken many forms over its existence (Manga, Anime, TV series, anime sequel, multiple videogames), but it’s best known in the US as a superb anime that came out in the 90’s. It was one of the first anime to (almost) achieve mainstream success in the US, and it deserved the cult status it achieved on video. It’s a meditation on the nature of existence wrapped up in a sci fi action movie that takes place in a blade runner-esque near future. I thought it pretty cool that Spielberg’s Dreamworks Pictures optioned it for a 3d feature. Here’s hoping they bring this project to fruition, I’d love to see a competent live action Ghost in the Shell.
Want access to the evernote beta?
Evernote is an excellent little personal knowledge base. It runs on macs and pcs, will soon run on iphones and blackberries, and runs on the web. You can always get at your stuff no matter what platform you dump info into, and you can control what gets synced to their servers and what stays local on your machine. You can also control the availability of materials, making some publicly available and other stuff private.
Friday fun link: Dirk Valentine, steampunkish platformer
This week’s diversion features Dirk Valentine romping through some simple flash-based platforming action. Run, jump, shoot – it’s not too complicated. Beyond the unusual steampunk setting the main novelty to be found is in Dirk’s chain gun, which doubles as a platform builder. The graphics are also above average. Anyway, check it out!
Back on my bike
Hurrah! The weather’s warmed up to the point where I can ride my bike to work again, yesterday being the first day I was able to manage it. I used some muscles I hadn’t been using so I was a bit sore, but really it’s minor. It’s also better for Soolin this year because when she can manage it Susan has graciously agreed to pick her up on her way into work and drop Soolin off in my office. Three cheers for the return of the warm weather!
Oh Rockband, how I love you so
How much do I love Rockband? So much that I’m considering dropping ~$75 on a professional drumkit pedal to replace the flimsy thing that comes with the original drumkit. Check out the Omega Pedal. And if you haven’t been playing Rock Band, you’re missing out. It is hands down the best party game ever made, and it’s fun in its own right just playing by yourself.
Quick shot of Susan and I from this weekend
Susan and I went to a theme party this weekend in Portland Maine. Just got back a couple of hours ago and posted a quick picture. We had a blast.
Dave's Place/Metamusing 