Hot Chip – ‘I Feel Better’ Video – Toss Up
I’m honestly not even sure what to think about this music video. It is so weird, first I thought it was from some comedy group, not real musical artists. Things start getting weird around the 50 second mark, with a character that could probably best be described as ‘Cancer Jesus’ but it only gets even more insane after three minutes in. My mind has been blown. What do you think?
Super Mario Bros Crossover – Thumbs Up
I am swamped with work today, but I just had to find a quick second to post about this game that has been going round the internets because it is just that awesome. Play Super Mario Bros. as other classic Nintendo characters like Mega Man or Samus. A whole new take on one of the most classic games of all time. Play the game here.
Thumbs Up – New Super Mario Brothers Wii
I recently had the privilege of playing “New Super Mario Brothers Wii” and I must say, it was one of the most fun games I have played in a long time. Now, I don’t have much Mario experience outside of the Nintendo and Super NES versions of Mario games. But, playing this game was a bit of nostalgia for me, as I’m sure it was for many people, and that is where the excitement and pleasure come from playing the game.
“New Super Mario Brothers Wii” resembles the older Nintendo versions of Mario all rolled up into a more modern type. Like all the others, the Wii version is comprised of different worlds, from Sand Land to Wintry Wonderland (don’t know what their technical titles are, but you know what I’m talking about if you’re a Mario lover). Levels exist underwater or high atop the mushrooms. And, the video game utilizes the familiar 2-D platform that the first versions originally used. Each world finishes with the Castle level, where a member of King Koopa’s army is waiting at the end, guarding the Princess from Mario. All of these older elements are enough to suck me into playing the game for hours on end.
However, it is the mixture of older elements and newer elements which make this game a fantastic buy. For example, instead of the feather power-up, the newer version has introduced the propeller suit. While wearing the suit, when the player shakes the Wii controller, Mario is then shot into the sky, giving him the ability to reach secret landings where coins are more than abundant. Instead of the frog suit, now Mario has the penguin suit, which is sweet beyond belief. Yoshi has made his return to Mario, this time in different colors with abilities to swallow enemies, items and even balls of fire. Other power-ups include the Mega Mushroom, the Mini Mushroom, and the Koopa Shell, all which boost secret powers of busting through anything in the level, floating and running on water, and smashing through enemies like Koopa shell. Finally, and probably one of the most exciting new features of the game, is the multiplayer mode. Now, up to four people can play a level at a time, either to cooperate with each other and help one another reach new heights and stay safe from danger, or to compete with each other for coin supremacy and toss them into the pits of despair.
“New Super Mario Brothers Wii” gives gamers all of the great elements of past Mario games in addition to the newer capabilities that the Wii system has to offer. For Mario lovers (and all lovers of old school Nintendo games) “New Super Mario Brothers Wii” is a definite buy. Here’s a trailer video of the game. If seeing the greatness that is “New Super Mario Brothers Wii” doesn’t convince you, I don’t know what will.
Thumbs Up – Immerz Shocking the Gamer’s Experience
Through my web surfing one day, I landed on a video showcasing a new technology that will undoubtedly change the way gamers experience playing video games. The technology is called Immerz and is comprised of an over-the-shoulder device which releases low-frequency vibrations to the consumers chest. According to its website, Immerz is “an entirely new acousto-haptic technology that will revolutionize the way consumers enjoy and interact with multi-media.”
The way it works is simple: when something happens to your avatar in the video game, the video gamer will feel it. Numerous gaming devices have already utilized vibration reflexes for many years; however, it has only been felt through the controller. With this new technology, Immerz will send vibrations to the chest of the gamer, giving a truer sense and feel for what the avatar in the video game is feeling. In “Madden”, if your player gets tackled, the gamer will feel (to a sense) the sensation of getting hit. In “Call of Duty” if a grenade explodes near your character, the gamer will feel the explosiveness and jolt that comes from being near the explosion.
Since Immerz is compatible with any device with an audio output, Immerz can also create a new sensation when listening to music or even watching a movie. In action films, with all the explosiveness and hard-hitting scenes, the viewer can feel the action instead of just seeing it and hearing it. With music, one will really feel the bass as it rumbles through your body.
I think this new technology will revolutionize the way people experience media. It will give a new emotional sensory connection with what you are playing, seeing, or hearing. I’m definitely excited to see how this device takes off when it is released.
SNES Alarm Clock – Thumbs Up
Miss the good ol’ days before all the hype surrounding the realistic graphics and smooth play of Playstation 3′s and XBOX 360′s video games? Do you reminisce about fighting 2-D villains and only having to worry about two buttons and a directional pad as the controls? Do you have an old Nintendo or Super Nintendo gaming system sitting in your closet and don’t know what to do with it but remember how easy and simple gaming used to be? Well, now through the helpful instructions of this website you can take your childhood gaming memories and turn them into an alarm clock. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a cooler looking alarm clock then the one in the video below. It amazes me how someone even thought about turning a Nintendo system into an alarm clock, let alone program the system with alarm clock capabilities. The only way this could be any better is if the alarm sound could be the theme song of whichever game you chose to be the alarm screen. What a great gift this would be!
ARhrrr – Thumbs Up
Thumbs Up: ARhrrr is an “alternate reality” zombie video game developed by Georgia Tech Augmented Environments Lab and the Savannah College of Art and Design to run on the Nvidia mobile device. The premise of the game is simple: The player is in a helicopter over a city and he or she needs to shoot zombies to protect civilians. The interesting part about the game comes into how you play. Through the camera on the Nvidia, the player looks at a real-life printed map on a table and interacts with it on the screen. Instead of using controls on the mobile device to move , the player moves the Nvidia and themselves around the table. The highlight of this experience is being able to place real-life Skittles on the map as bombs. The player places a Skittle on the map and then shoots it through the screen to activate it. Different color Skittles even work differently. What a creative way to play a game.
As interesting as the game is, I doubt the game will take off. Most people who play games on portable devices probably would rather play on the go than on a table setup. However, this is an interesting peek into possible games of the future – using a camera to create augmented reality games in which the player can interact with the game in multiple ways.
Prototype Experience – Thumbs Up
Thumbs Up: This is a really creative trailer for Prototype, a new video game by Activision. It requires you to log into Facebook Connect, but don’t worry, your profile will be safe. It’s a really creative piece of media. I don’t want to go into more detail because I don’t want to spoil the experience for you. Check it out here.
