It’s been awhile since I’ve posted here on CounterAgent, but I’ve been busy working on this web project called the SuperLame! Comic Balloon Engine. We’ve just launched it in a public Beta. So, let me take a few moments to explain what it is that’s taken up most of my time as of late.
What is SuperLame? Well, I’m glad you asked. You may have heard the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words”. So, if a picture alone is worth that much, how much more can you say with a picture that actually has words too? I’m betting at least a few more than a thousand.
You may have noticed a number of word balloon pictures on this site, amoung others. Before the SuperLame word balloon image creator web app this was a time consuming process. Enter SuperLame and the Comic Balloon Engine. Basically, it’s a simple web tool that gives users the power to easily and quickly add word balloons, speech bubbles, thought bubbles, whatever you want to call them, to your pictures.
Best of all, the entire tool is free for anyone to use. However, if you would like to donate to the SuperLame cause, we wouldn’t turn you down, of course, and hey, it’s a tax right off, right?
The above picture is an example of what you can do at SuperLame. But, don’t take my word for it, check out the SuperLame Word Balloon Web Tool for yourself. Enjoy.
Boom!
Could it be? Does the PS3 have more and better exclusives this year? Looks like 2008 may possibly be the year of the Playstation, again. Just like old times.
Is it just me or is almost every big game coming out this year a sequel? No matter what console you’re on. Either way, you got to be excited about something on the list. If the majority of these games actually release this year, wow. But does anyone really expect that? So, let’s jump in and analyze the exclusives. Note, this list in no way represents the entire list of exclusive titles for each console. It does, however, represent what we at Counteragent think are the biggest exclusives most likely to actually be released this calender year.
Did you have a chance to download and try the demos for the new XNA created community games? They were only available for a limited time. Why? No real reason, guess it was just a test to see if there was any interest. So, was there any interest? At first, yeah, I was totally interested. Then I downloaded and played all the games.
They’re only 15 day trials, which for the vast majority is plenty enough, if not too much time. Some of the games seem very much like tech demos, not games. One of the games, Jelly Car, is a really cool little tech demo, but it kind of gets boring real quick. Probably the most fully fleshed out title was The Dishwasher. The game, Dishwasher: Dead Samurai, is actually not at all about washing dishes, more about killing stuff in the most brutal, bloody way possible. The game starts slow and builds nicely, adding new moves every once in a while to extend you’re arsenal of death. It’s definitely not for the squeamish.
Other than these, there really isn’t anything you can’t just play online at any number of flash casual game sites. We’ll have to wait and see what actually becomes of this whole community games thing. At this point nothing really compels me to grab my M$ points wallet just yet. I’m still waiting for games that are actual games, like the upcoming Bionic Commando: Re-Armed.
Boom!
Okay, so, I’ve got this gimmicky thing called a Wii. Yeah it’s fun, if you like bowling, tennis, or four player party games. Why did I buy the Wii you ask? That’s simple. It’s a ‘revolutionary’ console. The motion sensing controls can’t be done anywhere else (and don’t even say, “oh, but the six axis”, no). I’d be willing to bet that’s why all those grandparents have been picking these things up too. The controls are completely unique to the Wii.
So, you ask, what’s the issue? Well, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but a number of new games, including first party Nintendo titles, are coming out and supporting old control methods. Standard, traditional, Nintendo Gamecube style, control methods. Let’s see, there’s the insanely anticipated Super Smash Brothers Brawl. Supports not only traditional NES style sideways controlling, but even the Gamecube controller, which, if I remember correctly, most people didn’t like in the first place. Newest of the games supporting all style of control is Mario Kart Wii. While this game will support the Wii motion sensing control method, it will also support every other control possible.
Why is this bad? In a way it is good, you can play the game anyway you want. However, why did I even buy a Wii? I could still be playing these games on my Gamecube. Seriously, the graphics aren’t improving dramatically, if at all. The online support is yet to be really integrated. The Mii’s are fun for only so long. Third-party support has yet to really show much promise. So, all you really have that sets the Wii apart from the rest are the unique controls. Tell me I’m wrong.
Seeing as how games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band are so successful. Why Wii? I could have just as easily bought a peripheral or a steering wheel of some sort for my Gamecube.
Boom!
Ah, how many puns can you get out of one game title? Good stuff.I know it’s Fox News, but wow that’s ignorant. Just watch the video and you’ll see what I mean. Fox News decides to take on yet another subject they know nothing about. Funny thing is, they get one panelist that actually does know what’s happening. Enter Geoff Keighley, SpikeTV and GameTrailers.com video game journalist.
I have to say, watching this really just fills me with ragohol. To see a bunch of people with no knowledge of a subject whatsoever bash and tear it apart makes me a little sad. However, all is not lost. Game journalist, Geoff Keighley, took a stand for truth, justice, and Mass Effect. The “news” piece attempted to take on the growing controversy over the highly popular (and sweet) Xbox 360 game Mass Effect and it’s “sex scene”.
I could go into all the reasons why these people are wrong and stupid. I could go into why they all suck and don’t know what they’re talking about because they’re all to busy pimping their own book or promoting their own agenda, but I won’t. I’ll let you do that. As a gamer, having played Mass Effect or not, what do you think about this atrocity of news journalism? All I have to say is, Bravo for trying Mr. Keighley. Bravo.
Source: GamerNode
Boom!
With all the stories that flow around the Internet about how video games are making kids kill. How they are ruining America’s youth it’s nice to hear this little story. Video games can save lives to. Paxton Galvanek was the first on the scene of a rolled over SUV. He pulled the pair of passengers out of the SUV and then took care of their wounds.
Want to know where he got his training? How about from the video game America’s Army. Yea that’s right from a video game. A recruitment game for the US Army no less. Maybe some of those ignorant journalists that claim video games are evil will choke on their words for just a second before they decide games are evil without even playing them.
Check it out at Yahoo.
Photo courtesy of John Hopkins Magazine
How long is too long? How short is too short? The length of an article can dictate whether or not people read what we’re writing. While everyone’s different (holy crap that’s an obvious statement), there’s got to be a general consensus as to a good post length. This article isn’t really meant to be a good read, it’s more of a survey to our readers. We want to know what you think is a good length. What will get you to read more? Please let us know in the poll below. If you’re feeling particularly generous, you could also grace our fair site with a comment or even a forum post.
Boom!
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Unless of course, you’re talking about the great Patches O’Houlihan from the movie Dodgeball.
Anyway, a new gaming site has just launched, Game Patch Central, dedicated to game patches, though not limited to. Among patches they also include some of the most popular new demos, some FAQs, and walk-throughs. While the service the site offers is a benefit to the gaming community, it’s a shame the gaming community needs this so much. This hasn’t always been the case. Game publishers and developers have gotten lazy, sloppy, or just plain greedy, shipping unfinished products and expecting us, the consumer, to wait for a fix once we’ve already paid for the product.
If this was any other media product, movies, music, books, whatever, these kind of practices wouldn’t be tolerated. When was the last time you bought a movie on DVD, took it home, and if it didn’t play or work like it’s supposed to you’re told they’re working on a patch so you’ll have to wait? Hmm. Let’s see, how about never! Ever read a book with a missing page, then later they announce the page has been completed and they’re sending it to anyone requesting it? No. It just doesn’t happen outside of the gaming world.
When a product is shipped it should be complete. If I have to pay $50 to $60 for a game, it better be finished. This problem has existed in PC gaming for quite some time. It’s only recently that these issues have trickled onto the consoles with the addition of online connectivity. The problem isn’t getting better. It’s expanding. What can we do to help? Not much really. Just don’t buy a broken product. If a game doesn’t work out of the box, then the game is broken. What about all those console gamers that aren’t connected to the internet? Yes, there are still some. What happens when their game doesn’t work without a patch? Think about it. They’re just stuck with a broken game, period.
Boom!
What do you think? Is anyone out there actually a fan of patches? Let us know. Comment below.
The MacWorld Keynote went down today and there were some great new updates announced for the iPhone and, apparently it’s red headed step brother, the iPod Touch. Some of the updates include new arrangement features for customizing your home screen, up to 9 total home screens can be saved, on both iPhone and iPod Touch. You can also SMS multiple people at once, find your location via Google Maps and Skyhook Wireless, and Webclips can be accessed via the home screen.
Steve Jobs also showed off other new features like Lyrics, Chapters, Languages, and all the new multimedia features included in the v1.1.3 firmware update. Jobs says, “All of this is valuable today as a free software update for every iPhone.” But wait, there’s more. “But what about the iPod touch? What can we do for the touch? We decided to add five Apps to the Touch. Mail, Maps, Stocks, Notes, and Weather!” That’s great, right? Wrong! “Starting today we’re going to build it into every new iPod touch, for existing iPod touch users it’s going to be just a $20 upgrade.” See. Epic Fail.
So, let me get this straight. I can pay a mere $20 to get all five of the Apps that the iPod Touch was stripped of originally, you know the ones the iPhone comes with, or I can hack it and get all those plus a ton more, minus the $20. Hmm? That’s a hard choice. Probably the worst thing about this is that Jobs said starting today, all new iPod Touch’s they ship will come with these updates. What the heck? Do you have to pay $20 more for a new iPod Touch in the store? Let me think… NO! While this is nowhere near the amount of $200 that original iPhone user’s were outraged over paying for early adoption last year, I think it is a problem on the same level.
Epic Fail Apple! I still like my iPod Touch. I just like it hacked.
Boom!
Business Weak has reported that Sony has been able to “shrink the PS3’s chips and tweak its design,” helping in getting the cost per machine down to “around $400 now, from above $800 just before it went on sale in November 2006.”
Engadget writes: According to Nikko Citigroup’s Kota Ezawa, the biggest culprit for such an improvement is the “reduction in the parts count.”
Looks like Sony is finally breaking even on the massive disappointment that has been the PS3. I think this is great. If they really want to sell PS3’s now all they have to do is cut the price in half, from the current high price of $399 to the very reasonable and attractive price of $199. That way they’re not only cheaper than the Xbox 360 at $279 for the cheapest “arcade” edition, but even cheaper than the ever popular Wii at $249. They’ll also only be losing half the money they were losing before, from $400 to $200. Win, win, I think. They get the Playstation 3 into a bunch more customer hands and solidify Blu-Ray as the dominate high definition dvd format.
I have to admit, I’ve been a little bit of a skeptic of Sony’s PS3 since they launched. However, if they did something like this (which they won’t, because they’re stupid corporate Sony) and continued to pass the savings on to the consumer, they could actually come out on top by the end of this year.
Boom!
