I didn't think I was going to get to watch this, but everyone in the house is doing other stuff!

We used to feed raccoons our leftovers after dinner (it actually kept them out of our trash can).  We would put bits on a paper plate and set it out on the back patio, and they would come up like we'd rung the dinner bell.

One night we had a sitter, who maybe wasn't quite old enough I'm thinking now, and we all decided it would be a good idea to lead a trail of crackers into the house through the sliding glass doors that lead to the patio.  The thing actually came in, ate a cracker while looking at us, then calmly turned around and left.

How we are not all dead of rabies is beyond me.

Eh, I don't think the pricing is as much a failure this year. These new consoles are coming with a lot more tech in the box, namely the new cameras and controllers. $500 is slightly more reasonable now with the new kinect camera included. Likewise for the new eye and controllers.

Also, these consoles will have free to play games available to play on them day 1.

But, since MS set the price at $500, I don't think Sony will go any lower than $450.

You mean free to play IF you pay for Gold, right?

The free to play games were for the 360.  They won't work on the Xbone.

The problem is that their Titans just look like giant humans...they hold weapons and move just like the people.  What's the point of that?

The point is you can grab little dudes out of their armor.

the

Holy shit the water effects.  Bring on this new console generation!

the waves looked odd.

Really?  The big rolling waves were the biggest thing that impressed me. 

----

Below looks incredible

I wasn't that impressed with the water, either, I have to say.

The whole thing just felt like a mild upgrade to me over the 360.

it was the way the boat handled the waves I think, it just seemed to hover above them.

The splashes looked pixelly, too.

Tit and Fall.

the

Holy shit the water effects.  Bring on this new console generation!

the waves looked odd.

Really?  The big rolling waves were the biggest thing that impressed me.  

----

Below looks incredible

I wasn't that impressed with the water, either, I have to say.

The whole thing just felt like a mild upgrade to me over the 360.

Why would he need the hood and the helmet?

Dude changed his shirt!

I don't even know what smartglass is,is it an iPad or phone?

it's an app.

Thumbs up on that obscure reference.

I should probably get around to trying a Witcher game.

I should probably get around to finishing one.

I want this game now.  Launch?  please?

Holiday '13 at least.

Looks like mo needs a smartglass device.

I don't even know what smartglass is,is it an iPad or phone?

It's an app that integrates with your console.

So, unless I have Windows phone I can't call in artillery?

No, iOs and Android devices can use 'em, too.

Looks like mo needs a smartglass device.

Please don't F up Dead Rising, please don't F up Dead Rising

You can already play the better version today, called State of Decay. 

I was just going to ask if he said it was the first open world zombie game.  SoD definitely beat it to the punch.

how about Dead Island?

He might not have said it.

Please don't F up Dead Rising, please don't F up Dead Rising

You can already play the better version today, called State of Decay.  

I was just going to ask if he said it was the first open world zombie game.  SoD definitely beat it to the punch.

Please don't F up Dead Rising, please don't F up Dead Rising

Open world could be good.

That's a smart skull sweater set, classy nerd-lady.

I really hate these scripted "natural" conversations on stage.  It'll be worse when they haul the kids out.

I wish the camera would stop pulling away from the screen that i am still f|*&ing reading!!

It's really annoying.

Minecraft trailer was useless.

Yeah, I'm not sure I completely understood the Drivatar thing, but it sounded quite innovative.

That Sunset Overdrive from the Ratchet and Clank team looks cool, but I wish we'd seen even a hint of actual gameplay.

Ryse: God of War - God of War in Rome: "this totally isn't just God of War in Rome"

Ok, fighting in formation is pretty awesome.  You tell everyone to get into a tortuga formation, when to form up for an arrow barrage, when to throw spears.  When a guy duys, the formation tightens up to fill the hole.

Gameplay seems a bit too heavy on the quicktime events, though.

"duys"

Guess everyone saw that beach scene the same way!

I was there for the very first Star Trek show, and I'll be there for the last one they make(if that ever happens)

But putting myself in the minority, I don't like Kirk or Spock in this movie. Scotty, Bones, protagonist, all fantastic jobs.
But the way Kirk is played is far to juvenile to suspend any disbelief. I just can't see a guy like Kirk(in this movie)
Handling the fates of Klingon-Federation empires.
I know tongue in cheek moments are a Star Trek staple, but in this movie it just came across as silly and totally unbelievable.

I hope the next one will do away with the teen-age actions of Kirk, and put some believability back in the Role...aka; Patrick Stewart

Its the early years I know that, but can you imagine a guy like Kirk, in this movie, being given command of anything other than a
Shuttle bus driver between outposts on a planet full of Tribbles.

But Kirk is the protagonist.

  I guess he is. But I always felt that the "main" character for the bad side was the protagonist. But dictionay meaning you are right. Thanks for making me look it up and see that I've been using the word wrong. 

You're thinking of antagonist.

Ah, storming the Normandy beach Roman style.

Also, I was a Roman once, until I took an arrow to the eye.

Curse of Brotherhood - seems kinda neat but not my cup of tea.  Seems better suited for the Wii remote.

Dark Souls 2 - pretty

I thought the same thing about Max.  I liked the first one, but it's all about drawing.  Seems the 360 is the worst console for the sequel.

Btw -- what genius at Apple thought it was a good idea to have their dev conference in the middle of E3.   Nobody will notice anything coming out of there.

Don't underestimate the rabid following of the cult of Apple. Plenty of people will be following WWDC today. Myself included.

Yeah, they'll get plenty of attention.  None the less, it does seem against standard MO to do the WWDC at any time where they're not getting the full spotlight.

I'm with you on the colors of the new one, mo.  The design is pretty good, I have to say (can't say the same for the rest of the suit, though).

For me, I settle somewhere in the '44-'86-'93 range.  Reeves Supes is my go to as far as portrayals go, but the logo is thinner and sloppier than I remember.

[Spoiler]

I agree that the biggest issue this series has is what was meant to be the hook: the interweaving stories.

Unfortunately, the way it's been done, they're in a hazy area between assuming that you've seen what has come before and recapping.  So you get too much recap and too much glossed over.

They did use Ron Howard over-narration to great effect at one point, though.

Spoiler for Hiden:

The moments where George Michael is deliberating while Howard narrates and the on-screen actors stare awkwardly are well done.

There are a couple of very weak episodes, mostly toward the beginning, and there are no knocked-out-of-the-park episodes, which hurts it overall.  There are some pretty good eps, though, and some good moments throughout, but, again, nothing that stands out as classic.

Spoiler for Hiden:

I think my favorite joke of this whole season is Club And Jeremy Piven.

The ending moment is a bit of a shocker, though not out of nowhere, but it also indicates there's more to be told.  As does the mystery that's been set up.

Spoiler for Hiden:

Watching GM punch M straight in the face was a nice bit of CG and quite jarring.  And who knows what happened to Lucille 2.

Are they still making the movie?  I'd love to see them go back to some straightforward storytelling.

Overall, the season is worth seeing if you're a fan, but uneven at best, and a bit of a disappointment.

Ah, I didn't do the "use MS points" option.  Once I did that, I got it fine.

Click to embiggenate

[Friday]

Just a heads up that Last of Us comes out of Friday instead of the usual earlier-in-the-week days (seems like everything has been coming out on Tuesday lately, except for the random Nintendo Sunday release).

For me, Last of Us and Animal Crossing, not in that order.

I got an "unable to complete at this time" message.

That game looks stimulating.

I would love to see Sony do well (IF they release a consumer friendly console) even without the big name publisher's games but I'm not as confident as some of you that we could trust the masses to actually do what's in their best interest.  History has shown time and time again that 85% of the population are goddamned morons and they might go for the console that has COD XXV even if it means subjecting themselves to overwhelming restrictions. I do know that if the people rejected Microsoft's new console and flocked to a DRM free (well not totally free of course) Sony console without 1st party publisher support that the publishers would cave in an instant. Unfortunately I can't say I trust the populace enough for that to happen.  Likely we'll never get a chance to find out as I suspect that Sony will go the same route as Microsoft and in that case, a pox on both their houses. But unfortunately I don't think even that would come to pass. Not substantially enough for publishers to see the light and console games will go out with a whimper rather than a bang, slain by the iPad.

It's true that these things we and the gaming press are bemoaning are unknown to most consumers who will be buying a console in the fall, but if Sony really were to take this bull by the horns (which, again, will not happen, but we can dream), they would be advertising the hell out of this point, and the message would absolutely start to get through.

Ha ha ha ha.

Whedon on RDJ's contract negotiations:

He is Iron Man. He is Iron Man in the way that Sean Connery was James Bond. I have no intention of making Avengers 2 without him, nor do I think I’ll be called upon to do that. I don’t think it’s in my interest, Marvel’s interest, or his interest, and I think everything will be fine. But I know that this is Hollywood and you roll with things. You have to be ready for the unexpected. But I loved working with Robert, and everybody knows he embodied that role in a way no one else can.

I'm usually on board with Whedon's sense of humor, but I'm not sure if he's being funny with the Sean Connery comment.  Or if he is, what he's trying to imply with that.

I don't sell or buy used games, so that part of the equation doesn't matter to me. Having said that, I think the issue here is that retail discs are being restricted from reselling. That tends to not be very popular. When you buy a digital downloadable game on PS3/360/Steam, it makes sense to most people that you won't be able to resell it. Those who do want to resell it get the discs instead. This has been the assumption for a long while, and it has made sense since giving away your game disc obviously makes it impossible for you to keep playing the game. The ruckus right now comes from Microsoft suddenly denying people the ability to resell the discs, a move that hurts the consumers and benefits the publishers/developers. It makes sense that people get angry when a large company like Microsoft makes major changes only to benefit itself to the detriment of its customers.

This is well said, TiLT.