lara croft: tomb raider legend

PLATFORM: PSP

RELEASE DATE: 06/2006
PUBLISHER: Eidos
ESRB RATING: T for Teen
Progress: Halfway

Very few travel companions are quite as pretty as the legendary Lara Croft. I've been glued to my PSP the past few weeks during my morning and afternoon commutes. I've seem to have developed a good working relationship with Miss Croft, solving puzzles and discovering new uses for motorcycles. She was nice enough to join me in person this morning for a chat, let's see how it went:

playstation home report

Did the shit just get awesome? A massive overhaul to Playstation Home leaves past visitors wondering if the recent teaser video of PS Home is too good to be true. Could PS Home become all it could be, with free games, things to do and, most importantly, the return of poker? The teaser promises a new main spawning point (replacing Central Plaza), new spaces and dozens of free-to-play games. We dive into PS Home for a look for ourselves.

blizzcon 2011 by zoidberger

PLATFORM: Blizzcon 2011

RELEASE DATE: Oct. 21-22, 2011

LOCATION: Anaheim, CA

MY STATUS: Friday/Saturday

The sight of unkempt hair, the smell of questionable hygiene practices these are just a few of the sights and sou....errr smells of this years Blizzcon. Unlike most other conventions where a variety of fans gather (comic, video game, television, and movie) at Blizzcon only one type of fan attends, a Blizzard fan. Once a year as October draws to a close the fanboys of Blizzard Entertainment gather in Anaheim.

I have always been a fan of Blizzard from my first serious online addiction (Diablo 2, Starcraft, and Warcraft 3) to my current play of World of Warcraft and eventual crack addiction known as Diablo 3. Blizzard holds themselves to what I feel is the highest standard of game making on the market. They often use the phrase "when it's ready" when speaking in terms of a release date for their games, not because they aren't sympathetic to the needs of their fans but because they refuse to release anything other than what they feel is the best game they can make.

The weekend is all fan service for the games they have helped build over the 20+ years of game development. This year was filled with a new WoW expansion (The Mists of Pandaria), a trailer for the Starcraft 2 expansion (Heart of the Swarm), as well as more Diablo 3 news and a surprise look at the Starcraft DotA mod (Defense of the Ancients) all of which where playable at this years Blizzcon.

The games aren't the only thing at the convention though; they have a costume contest to award the devoted fans that decide to cosplay for the event. They hold Q&A panels for all of their franchises, tournaments are held for the elite players to test their skills, and a dance contest for those who want to make absolute fools of themselves.

Under the fold are pictures from inside the convention as well as a few pictures from INSIDE Blizzard HQ in Irvine (Thanks to my friend Chris for the hookup) and some after party pictures as well. I was actually able to speak to and take pictures with some of Blizzards game designers (I love you Chris Metzen).

continuity 2: the continuation

PLATFORM: iPHONE

RELEASE DATE: 07/2011
DEVELOPER: Ragtime Games

APPLE APP STORE RATING: 4+

RETAIL: .99¢
Progress: lvl 5-5

With my recent acquisition of an iPhone comes a growing interest for mobile game apps. The sheer number of games available is quite daunting. I was pleasantly surprised to find a familiar game available (temporary) for free: Continuity 2 for the iPhone is just what I was hoping for. This psychics based puzzler is casual enough to pick up and play for short intervals, yet difficult enough to challenge your brain for much longer.