« think thought view: February 2007 | Main | think thought view: April 2007 »
March 31, 2007
This Is Why Mickey's Hawt!
First, I deserve a lashing for spelling it "hawt". Second, here is my favorite shot from the secret ending in Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix. It could be a clue as to what the next installment may be about .
For the uninitiated, Kingdom Hearts is video game(s) developed by Square Enix masterfully blending the Final Fantasy and Disney universes. Currently there are 2 games for the PS2 and one game for the Gameboy Advance. All the stories follow a chronological order so sufficed to say it's epic - probably enough to be a huge Hollywood movie production but that's neither here nor there.
Back to this secret ending. It looks as if the world has fallen and three heros battle it out against our very powerful antagonist. Unfortunately none of them are any match. Just as our villain opens "Kingdom Hearts" (a repository of knowledge and power), we see a very upset Mickey brandishing his very powerful keyblade (sword).
EEK! What's Mickey going to do? What's happened to the world? Who are these 3 heroes and would I look like a total dork if I went as this Mickey for Halloween?
Video after the jump.
Posted by tranism at 12:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
March 30, 2007
Universal Symbol For Love: Holding Hands
This is so cute, I almost had to hurl. Great, now I want to go to the zoo.
via the bombtastic Centripetal Notion
Posted by tranism at 8:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Bloomed Words
How cool would it be if our casual conversations could generate dynamic imagery?
Winner of the 5th Independent Animation Festival is a cute animated short called Bloomed Words that explores that very concept. Even the most mundane conversations can be interesting with the right visuals. The conversation is between the two designers (whom are still students!) Kubo Amica and Inoue Seita.
Somebody needs to design software that does this!
via The Feed
Posted by tranism at 12:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Now Look What You Did!
This TV spot is disturbing. I wanted to somehow reach out and save them. Created by Minneapolis Studio Make, the spot reminds us of how the little things we do can often change the world in a big way and I don't mean in a good way either.
via The Feed
Posted by tranism at 12:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
March 28, 2007
For The Label Freak
Sure I'm organized, but organized enough to label every wire in my house? I wouldn't go that far, but there have been times when I needed to pull a plug out and couldn't remember which was which. It's like disarming a bomb or something. Pull the wrong one and BOOM, the T.V. turns off!
For $6, you can buy a pack of ID Pilot Wire Identification Labels. Each sticker label has an icon referencing its electrical appliance.
Or you can buy a $1 sticker sheet at your local office supply store and write on them yourself. So what's the point of buying a $6 pack with pre-printed sticker labels then? Well my friends, it's because we live in a place called consumerism. Enjoy!
Posted by tranism at 5:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
March 26, 2007
Oh My Batman, You're Blocky
I found this adorable animated short and it instantly brought back cartoon memories of our cape crusader. The animator is Isaak Fernandez Rodriquez and apparently he made it as a personal project. He was just honing his physical animation skills and the end result is this animated short entitled "Help Me".
Rodriquez cites Tim Burton and Bruce Timm's designs for the Warner Bros Batman cartoon as influences. The whole project took 3 years to complete but the labor of love landed him a job at IIion Animation Studios in Madrid.
The short ends with a to be continued. I really really hope so!
via Feed
Posted by tranism at 3:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
March 25, 2007
Japanese Readers, Hope You're Okay
Yesterday's news of aftershocks destroying 68 homes and leaving over a thousand people homeless in Japan made me worry. What can I say? I've been thru 2 earthquakes already, one of them being the big one in San Francisco and I know how it can turn people's lives upside down. We have a lot of Japanese readers so I just want to say I hope all of you, your family, friends and colleagues are okay.
Particularly my friend Jon a.k.a. Yongfook.
Posted by tranism at 9:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
March 22, 2007
Do Not Kill The Polar Bear!
Some animal rights activists in Germany want a baby polar bear killed. Say What?!?!
The cub name Knut or "Cute Knut" was abandoned by his mother. Out of love, zoo keepers decided to take the the cub in and raise it themselves. Much to their surprise, an animal rights group told the zoo Knut should be killed. They argue bandoned bear cubs have almost no chance or survival in the wild and keeping them captive only makes them unhappy and lonely.
The zoo argues polar bears are solitary by nature and killing Knut would serve no purpose. As for being unhappy, zoo keepers are weaning the 4 month old cub and he's already shot one ad campaign to promote environmental protection. He is healthy, energetic and full of life - far from being "abandoned".
People have already fallen in love with Knut and to think that an ANIMAL RIGHTS group would actually condone killing him is heinous and most certainly immoral.
"If a polar bear mother rejected the baby, then I believe the zoo must follow the instincts of nature. In the wild, it would have been left to die." animal rights activist
Right, so next time I see a human newborn in a dumpster, I'll just ignore it and be well knowing "nature" is just following its course.
via Telegraph
Posted by tranism at 2:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (39)
March 20, 2007
A Social Network for Fashion Designers
I know I know. It's another social network, but this one I like. IQONS is the MySpace Music of Fashion Designers. Everyone from the start-up in mom's garage to established boutiques networks and makes friends here.
Membership is free and already the amount of people on there is overwhelming. In other words, there are a lot of Fashion Designers out there and yet the world remains so style challenged, but I digress. IQONS lets you browse other designers, establish friendship links and post upcoming events. It even has a "hot or not" type feature called 15 Minutes of Fame. There's also an AWESOME resource called Catwalk Rating which has pictures from damn near every major Fashion Week around the world.
So if your a Fashion Designer looking for your peers, now you've found them. Try it out. You might like it.
Posted by tranism at 5:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
BRING YOUR OWN BIG WHEEL
Dear San Francisco,
I miss you. I swear if you weren't so expensive, I'd move back. Every big city has its unique culture but you old friend really take the cake. I mean, no where else can I find annual pillow fights in the middle of downtown. Total strangers beating the crap out of each other and it's all harmless fun. Nothing but laughter awash a sea of feathers.
And then you have other cultural perks like the annual BYOBW event. That's "bring your own big wheel" for all you noobs. What possesses grown ass people from all walks of life to come together on Easter Sunday and race down your most twistiest street on a big wheel? The cops don't care, they just close down the street and watch as mothers, daughters, fathers, sons, friends and strangers revert to 6 year olds screaming as they race gleefully down Lombard street. BYOBW 2006 looked so much fun.
Ah San Francisco. You crack me up. I miss you lots. I might come visit this Easter just to witness BYOBW 2007. Until then, I'll have to be happy with this video and the pictures after the jump.
Sincerely,
Electro^Plankton
Posted by tranism at 3:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
March 19, 2007
A Laptop Case for the Stylish Urban Warrior
Looking for a laptop case that's durable, sleek and gives you storage without the extra bulk? Maybe you should take a look at the Laptop Portfolio Case by Built NY.
Made from strong-rib, a fabric designed for coral reef divers, the Laptop Portfolio Case is sturdy despite its felt-like appearance. Inside you'll find a neoprene core that'll hold any range of 15" laptops. The double layered shell hides a slot perfect for holding documents, external peripherals and power cables. The unique bone shaped body ensures an accidental drop will protect your precious inside.
Available in green, lime and brown for $69.99.
Posted by tranism at 11:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Jeff Han at TED2007
Okay the more I see this man demo his multi-touch interface and software, the more I believe he will go down in history as one of the most important people of the early 21st century. When you listen to him speak about his passion, you understand he is genius at its most humbled.
"Multi-touch interfaces aren't new, I'm not the first to do it. I'm an engineer with a background in design. I saw that interfaces weren't advancing with graphics and wanted to change that."
Posted by tranism at 1:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
March 18, 2007
This Squirrel Has Better Fashion Sense Than You
That is all.
Posted by tranism at 5:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Redesigning The Alphabet
In 1950, Bradbury Thompson proposed a redesigned alphabet called Alphabet 26 that unified the characters in favor of uppercase forms with large and small variations to be used as capitals are. He argued having some letters look completely different in their upper and lowercase forms was confusing. For example, a capital "A" looks nothing like a lowercase "a", yet they're supposed to mean the same thing. Correcting this design flaw, the alphabet can be reduced to just 26 characters that look identical in both upper and lowercase forms. By doing so, reading can be learned much easier and faster. Do you agree?
Posted by tranism at 4:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
March 17, 2007
Being Twittertastic
A friend of mine despises twitter. He thinks it's a giant bulletin board run amok by 30+ year old men reduced to giggling, incessant links to YouTube and boring updates like, "I'm doing my laundry right now".
For the 10 of you totally out of the loop, twitter is a gigantic, persistent web-based mix of an old school bulletin board crossed with a modern day group chat. Yes it's part of the whole web 2.0 movement and although one might dismiss it as too simple and useless, others will point out that simplicity is what gives twitter its greatest strength; scalability.
So, do I twitter? Sounds dirty doesn't it? Find out what I think after the jump.
I too thought twitter was such a stupid idea. What was the point of another chat-like community that isn't instantaneous? I already have AIM and email. Twitter's tag-line is "what are you doing?" Umm, do other people really care that I'm bathing my dog right now? Apparently they do.
Twitter taps into a characteristic that all humans thrive on; communication. Everything we do centers around it. However, culture and proper social edicts limit the freeform flow of "talk". Twitter reinstates that. I can't go up to a stranger in person and say, "I'm going home to bathe my dog". I'd probably get the strangest look from them. But on twitter that comment would be followed by, "what kind of dog do you have?" Thus, conversation builds meandering, twisting and turning often ending up on a topic totally unrelated to the original subject. That's the beauty of twitter; freeform conversation.
That's just one example tho. Twitter can also be limited between friends and groups. For instance, my coworkers pass around ideas and links all day. The obvious solution is to use an instant messenger? True, we've tried that but it doesn't work. You see, instant chat demands just that - instant chat. It encourages people to articulate as if in a real-time conversation. However, not everyone can respond instantaneously and a feeling of IM abandon ensues. It's as if people feel, "nobody else is chatting, why should I?" Thus the whole experience collapses. Twitter allows for delay. People understand responses are not instantaneous. They understand sharing does not necessitate an immediate response. Twitter provides a unified platform for those ideas and links my coworkers pass around all day to be centrally read, discussed and archived.
What really hooked me into using twitter was during Steve Job's famous iPhone and iTV unveilings. I couldn't be there but I wanted information as fast as it was being announced. Online news publications couldn't deliver the info fast enough. Bloggers are faster but there's definitely a delay, not to mention a biased view. Twitter had a MacWorld Keynote group. I joined the group and before I knew it, dozens of people were blasting off with live up-to-the-minute updates. They were delivering news as fast Mr. Jobs spoke. No point was missed and the experience made me feel like I was really there.
"The audience is swooning, the crowds are cheering, OMG he just pulled the iPhone out for a second and quickly hid it back in his shirt pocket. I caught a glimpse of shimmer, a very thin shimmer".
The experience was unique because while people were certainly opinionated, there were others just delivering the hard facts. I felt educated about the realities of the iPhone and caught some of the emotion that must have been swept across the auditorium. Ever since that experience, I've continually used twitter for other conventions and expos, namely SWSX and CES. Even in situations where it demands the person be in more than one place at a time, twitter scaled nicely. With so many twittering from different booths on the show floor, news disseminated faster than blogs ever could.
The most recent development in twittering is the integration with 3rd party software. As reported by Chris Davies at Slashgear, a twitterer hooked his account up with his home automation software. Using a small desktop twitter client like Twitterrific (Mac only), he now receives updates from his home via twitter. He even plans to hook-up a webcam on his front porch and have twitter send him a TinyURL link with a live feed when someone comes to the front door.
So you see, twitter's simplicity is precisely why it's successful. Random conversation between strangers and friends seem like a waste of time but when the conversation is good, you can't help but get sucked in. You guys can find my twitters here.
Thanks to Logic + Emotion for the diagram.
Twitterrific screencap from Slashgear.
Posted by tranism at 9:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
The Swiss Are So Clean
Who knew the Swiss were so clean. Next time you visit a washroom and notice self-cleaning devices, they might be from this company.
Unfortunately for this girl, she didn't think before she acted. Watch the video.
Thanks Jeff!
Posted by tranism at 1:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Plants Do It, Why Can't We?
When I was 10, I had to write a report about photosynthesis. I was fascinated with how plants are living factories of renewable energy. I remember writing, "if plant's can make energy from sun, water and CO2 - why can't we?"
Well it seems we can. Scientists and researchers are racing to create an artificial model of photosynthesis and they're getting close to creating the key component; a catalyst that reacts to ultraviolet light.
The catalyst splits apart the stable bonds in the one emission we are so adept at making; CO2. The resulting synthesis can be harnessed to make liquid fuel - fuel that can power our cities.
The next step is to fully replicate natural photosynthesis. As of now, current test models use chemicals as the catalyst. Plants use sunlight. The new catalyst will have to react to ultraviolet light. Once that hurdle is crossed, a new chapter in our society can begin.
You see, I have a motto. It's called "the heart of smart". Our genius, ingenuity, resourcefulness and adaptability; we have all these smart tools at our disposal yet we keep failing. We can fix our problems if we would just listen to our hearts before listening to anything else.
via New Scientist
Posted by tranism at 1:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
March 15, 2007
Possible Leaked Footage of Sadness
For the uninitiated, Sadness is a game for the Nintendo Wii by Nibris. Aside from a pretty weak video trailer released last year, no real gameplay footage has been released. In fact Nibris has been quiet ever since, leaving game enthusiasts asking, "vaporware"?
I don't know much about the game aside from it being totally black and white, involves a woman escorting/saving a kid, all in a pre-war setting. Some people are claiming this is leaked gameplay footage of Sadness. If fake, they certainly have the black and white portion down. What do you guys think?
via Inkblot Earth
UPDATE 1: There's a second leaked video now, labeled as a beta debug run.
UPDATE 2: After some sleuthing, I've concluded it's a hoax. It's very similar to a PC FPS called Infernal.
UPDATE 3: The owner of the video turned off video embedding so you'll have to go directly to the source.
Posted by tranism at 2:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Care Bears vs. Klingons
That's what Spore creator, the Sims father, game developer genuis Will Wright wants. Speaking at the SXSW festival, Wright outlined how he hopes Spore and gaming in general can serve not only to entertain but also educate.
He believes the interactive drama inherent to video games need not be linear like Hollywood and games currently following the ways of Hollywood are moving in the wrong direction. However it was at the end of his presentation that was the most inspiring.
"One of my real aspirations of this is I wanna see interstellar wars between Care Bears and Klingons."
That is the most illuminating comment I've heard all year. Care Bears vs. Klingons. I don't know about you, but I don't think there is anything in this universe capable of widthstanding a Care Bear Stare.
via Spong
Posted by tranism at 4:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Got Milk Board Game
Board games are so not dead. They're still fun with the right group of people. Just like any other game, it's all about content and this one is a doozy.
Get the Glass is an online board game where you play to help the milk-deprived Adachi family. The 5 worlds you navigate thru are breathtakingly beautiful in a miniature scale model type way. It won't be easy tho. You've got people hot on your tail. Do a good job and you'll "get the glass". But why would a family be so milk-deprived? Well, simply because it's all part of the Got Milk campaign. First cookies, then cows, now board games. LOVE IT!
via The Presurfer
Posted by tranism at 4:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Stay Organized, Tag It Up
My files are everywhere, despite my best efforts to keep them organized. It's just sometimes when I'm working, I can't be bothered to stop, organize and then continue working again. It just messes up workflow. One way to stay organized is by using tags.
I'm sure regular web surfers have seen, maybe even used them. Tags are keywords you assign to pictures, files, music, anything really. A well known example is Flickr's implementation of tags. For example, I've uploaded a picture of some friends playing Wii. I might tag the photo as friends, wii and video games. Now I can find that photo again and any other photos based on subject matter as opposed to trying to remember file names. Tags are also used on many web sites with the same results. People can find articles and even see which tags are most popular. So now comes the obvious, implementing tags into the desktop environment and that's where these 2 little apps shine. (Mac only)
First up is TagBot. You can tag anything by right-clicking the file and assigning a name. Any file is at you tagging whims; documents, pictures, music, contacts etc. The system is integrated into Spotlight so no need for external windows cluttering up your desktop. Just type in tag(s) and BAM, there they are. The app also has a small transparent window that lets you drag and drop files onto it, be it on already pre-existing tags or new ones. Double-clicking on any of the tags will bring up a window with all associated files. TagBot is Universal Binary and incredibly stable. Downside is it's $20.
For a free alternative, try Punakea. It does everything TagBot does with a few helpful additions. You can tag bookmarks and URL links. The interface resides in a sidebar window that slides out when you cursor over the edge of the screen. Just like TagBot you can drag and drop files, assign and create tags right in the sidebar. One additional feature is the ability to view all your tags in a cloud, which just lists them all out in a justified block of text. Each tag font size in that cloud is relative to how much content falls under its association. If a tag cloud isn't your style, you can use the sidebar or Spotlight. The downsides are no right-click contextual menus for quick tagging and it's beta software - supposedly can be unstable, but I've yet to encounter a crash or bug despite my robust use of it.
Both TagBot and Punakea have active communities that openly talk to users. I've found both to be incredible assets to my workflow and file management. It leaves me free to clutter up my desktop as I work and easily find what I need when I do have time to organize everything into proper folders.
Posted by tranism at 3:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
March 14, 2007
Stereoscopic 3D Is DreamWorks' Future
Yesterday, DreamWorks Animation SKG announced all its future films will be made in stereoscopic 3D. Current films in stereoscopic 3D are just retooled versions of their originals. DreamWorks will utilize the technology right from the beginning of its creative process to create more opportunities for their artists as well as more compelling stories for the audience. The company is already hard at work on their next feature, Monsters vs. Aliens (working title), intended for release in the summer of 2009.
Aside from artistic credence, this move to stereoscopic 3D makes business sense. DreamWorks is very talented but they've had a hard time competing with Pixar. This latest development is probably in part, driven by the company's need to grow and differentiate itself; to create a unique experience and a new market its competition has no experience in. The studio is currently assembling a world-class team to drive this new initiative and I hope their first attempt will be massively successful.
Although I'm no one important they should listen to, I just want to point out, great stories will always sell a picture a thousand times better, regardless of format. In other words, go ahead and make it look cool - give me a new experience, but if the story sucks I won't be impressed.
via Feed
Posted by tranism at 1:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
March 13, 2007
OPOONA, Another Original Wii Game
Although Nintendo is still under gag order about any news for at least another 2 weeks, that hasn't stopped 3rd party developers from talking about their developments.
One in particular is Koei, who just announced an original IP for the Wii called Opoona. Aside from a few screenshots, very little is known. The game revolves around the protagonist, name Opoona, searching for answers about his family's mysterious injuries.
Although the subject matter seems serious, the art style isn't. It's bright, colorful and Opoona looks like an astronaut baby. Nevertheless we should be confident. The game is headed by some big wigs from the Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy series so production values are sure to be high.
Koei did mention one interesting tidbit. The game will use the nunchuck exclusively, which I find odd since the nunchuck has to connect into the wii-mote in order to work so why not use the wii-mote anyways? Apparently the game's combat scenarios can all be controlled via quick thrusts and snaps, changing trajectory simply by tilting the controller.
No release date yet but it's good to know the Wii will get some original content from 3rd parties; Dewy's Adventure, Sadness, MySims and now Opoona.
UPDATE 1: The teaser site just launched and might I say, the music makes me happy.
UPDATE 2: Okay before I only had my left eye on this game. Now both my eyes are clearly focused, tongue panting, ass wagging. In other words, based on the new trailer, I want this game, badly. The art style is fantastic, the music is trippy (think Pee-Wee's Playhouse gone electronic).
Posted by tranism at 8:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
It's Like Mario Paint On Steroids For DS
With the interactive portion over at this year's SXSW festival, there were quite a few interesting things on hand at the show. My favorite one is a painting and animation program created for the DS.
Software designer Sabiston is most well known for his rotoshop software used to create a stylized type of rotoscoping animation. He saw untapped potential in the DS's dual screens and touch interface and so he created a paint program with keyframe/flip-book animation possibilities. You have full control over many types of simulated paint mediums. Once completed, those images can be animated into a flip-book style animation. It doesn't stop there. You can add audio using the DS's mic and then upload the finished production to a computer via wi-fi.
His presentation at SXSW shows the DS's dual ARM processors are quite powerful and even mentioned Nintendo was at least watching his progress. He hopes his software will see release but even if it doesn't, he has plans to release it as a homebrew app.
Check out the video.
More pictures after the jump.
Posted by tranism at 3:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
March 9, 2007
Nokia Wants To Feel You
Nokia L'Amour is a web site dedicated to creating, discovering and sending emotions. Each day, a new emotion tree grows with each bulb representing one person's feeling. The bulbs are color coded to represent one type of emotion, everything from love to sadness. Clicking on a bulb sends it exploding upwards, revealing its owner's emotion.
The web site slyly keeps track of your click-thrus and rewards you with hidden wallpapers. OH JOY! If nothing else than a viral marketing scheme, at least Nokia L'Amour is pretty to look at.
Check out the wallpapers I found after the jump.
I'm not going to give you the full size wallpapers tho. You'll have to experience the site for yourself. :)
Posted by tranism at 4:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Human Powered Gym
I hate exercising. People that do it regularly and say it makes them "feel good" are weird to me. Don't get me wrong. I believe in being healthy and regular exercise should definitely be a part of everyone's regime but I'm talking about the people that do it everyday, for hours and have been for years. I wish there were some way to harness all that spent energy sweating.
Cue in California Fitness, a gym that now has "green cache". The exerciser's energies are harnessed into clean renewable energy, enough to power the gym with reserves going back into the city's grid. The gym's POWERED by YOU program is its most popular. One person on a cycle can generate up to 50 watt-hours of energy per hour. Just image a whole group of them going!
That's 4,380 liters of CO2 saved from our delicate atmosphere. Although the gym is in Hong, I'm sure we'll see similar green gyms popping up. Entrepreneurs are being challenged to come up with money making ideas that are environmentally friendly. Working out to improve your health and the planet sounds like a good idea to me.
via inhabitat
Posted by tranism at 1:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
The Reinvention Of Nihon
Japan is unique for being one of the first Asian nations to really leave behind its ancient roots and modernize itself, leap frogging its neighbors. A century later, the face of the country has completely changed yet remains uniquely Nihon.
Animation studio Amautalab visualizes this reinvention in an amazing animated short; from a quiet almost untouched island into a colorful technological marvel, awakening the beast within.
via Feed
Posted by tranism at 2:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
March 7, 2007
Sony's Little Big Planet
Let's see, Microsoft has Viva Pinata, Nintendo has. . . actually almost everything Nintendo has is sorta "age friendly", now Sony has Little Big Planet but what is this terrifyingly adorable game about?
In a phrase, gamer centric co-op. It's a physics based platformer for the PS3 and tho words fail me now, I will try my best to articulate the game.
The game seems to be divided up into 3 parts. First you have customization. Everything from your character right down to the environment. Create new game levels and challenge yourself and friends. The second part of the game is the actual platforming. Play alone or with 3 others online. The word of the day here is "co-op" if that's even a valid word. The platformer consists of many challenging obstacles that require you and your mates to work together. The environment is completely interactive. Grab ahold of things, swing, smash into walls, smack your team mates around; you know, whatever floats your boat, just as long as you successfully complete each level. The third part of the game is posting your custom made levels online, like a gamer's version of YouTube. People post comments and rate your game as it rises thru the ranks
The music is totally infectious. The graphics are stunning and incredibly sharp because the game runs in true HD. The physics are also stunning but you'd expect as much from the people who developed last years indie hit, Ragdoll Kung-Fu Masters.
A demo version will arrive on the Playstation Network this fall with the full release sometime early 2008.
Posted by tranism at 9:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Heavenly Sword Really Is Quite Heavenly
Oh PS3, how I know you'll live up to your expectations someday. And that "someday" seems to be creeping up faster and faster. Just take a gander at how they're utilizing motion capture to really set a new standard in video games.
Heavenly Sword is this action adventure/hack and slash game tied around a very cinematic story. I first played it E3 2006 and it was one of the few PS3 titles that impressed me. Now I know why.
The developers are using motion capture to get all the fluid movements of the body and facial expressions down right. Not only that, but they're using the world's most advanced motion capture studio, WETA, special effects house of films like I-Robot and the Lord of The Rings trilogy. In fact Andy Serkis whom "mocapped" Gollum in Lord of The Rings talks about how all this production effort in Heavenly Sword is really going to usher in an era of video games that can almost pass as interactive movies.
The game doesn't come out until later this year. Good thing too because between a new digital camera and the upcoming iPhone, I'll need a bit of a grace period before I can splurge again.
via Gay Gamer
Posted by tranism at 5:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
March 4, 2007
OMG China Blocks Us!
China is touted as having the world's most sophisticated firewall in the world. I don't believe it's any more sophisticated than my Netgear router. Probably just looking for words like "anti" and "red" during meta tag searches. In any case, China thinks I'm some anti-communist parading as an ordinary blogger.
Well you know what? You've found me out. Kudos to you China. You've won, but it's too late. Soon I shall topple your government and take over. MUAH-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
On a serious note, I'm not sure how accurate this site is since I see trackback URLS from China all the time. So somebody over there is reading.
Check to see if your web site is blocked
UPDATE: Some Chinese readers have pointed out this blog really is blocked, but some have found ways to circumvent the proxies. It seems China blocks anything with the suffix "ism" in it.
Posted by tranism at 7:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Prius Passes Crash Test With Flying Colors
After seeing the 2nd generation Prius at an auto show, patiently waiting on a 4 month wait list, saving up the thousands I needed for a down payment and dealing with self doubt about waiting so long for something that only depreciates in value - I find more and more reasons to feel vindicated.
The NHTSA recently released their crash test reports on the 2nd generation Prius and the car can now add "safest" to the growing list of positive adjectives to its repertoire. The Prius garnered 4 and 5 star ratings for head-on and side impact collisions, the highest in its class. The vehicle's bubble shape not only assists with crumple zones, but also keeps the cage housing its human occupants safe by staying incredibly resilient. The A-pillar barely buckles during a head-on collision and glass only fractures instead of shattering. Combine that with the vehicle's driver, passenger and curtain airbags and you've got yourself one safe car.
So my Prius is fuel efficient, has super low emissions and is now one of the safest mid-sized cars in its class. Do I feel a little arrogant? Maybe just a little, but I'd say it's more like a proud owner. I can't wait until Toyota reveals the 3rd generation Prius!
crash test video here
Posted by tranism at 5:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Simple Is As Simple Does: Toblo
A group of video game design students from Digipen got together and created a fast-paced capture the flag game called Toblo. Their main goal was to demonstrate the basics of game design (when done right) is all that's needed to make a really fun game.
On the surface, Toblo seems like an ordinary capture the flag game but it's simplicity is what makes it fun. You have no weapons and the environments are completely destructible. You know what that means right? Tear down the environments and use them as weapons! Okay, already sounds pretty fun. Next is graphic design. No need for hyper-realistic graphics here. Stylized and a sense of humor is the way to go. The bright colors and simple geometry go well with the humor anyone from any culture could understand. Teams are divided up into two groups; devils (avatars with horns) and angels (avatars with halos). Animating real walk cycles is hard so instead, they ride around on little clouds.
Toblo is up for the Audience Awards at the 2007 Independent Games Festival. That means YOU need to vote but before you do, download the game and try it out!
Posted by tranism at 4:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
March 2, 2007
Dogs Figure Out The ATM
Don't worry, these dogs aren't robbing their owners. They're a group of assistance dogs trained by Canine Partners to assist owners at the ATM. The owner still has to input their pin number but the dogs put the card in, take it, the money and receipt out.
It takes 2 years for Canine Partners to train the 30 dogs that enter the program every year. The pooches are then given to owners whom are confined to wheelchairs.
The program started with a dog name Endal belonging to a Gulf War veteran. When Endal noticed his owner struggling to get his money out from the ATM, Endal jumped up, grabbed the money, card and receipt with his mouth. The feat earned him the Millennium Award and kick started the training program at Canine Partners.
via Next Lust
Posted by tranism at 12:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)