This is an old video, from E3 2011. However, with all the other goodies out there this year, I never even noticed this one. Maybe some of you didn’t either.

Normally, I steer clear of cinematic trailers for reasons I explained in yesterday’s A:CM post. Still, if a publisher is going to use a cinematic to promote their game, the initial unveiling of a new IP is the best time to do it. It tells the customer, “This is our vision. We don’t have the hardware or software to realize that vision, but this is what we are shooting for anyway.” Two years later, when the developer finally has an alpha build, they can re-announce the game with some actual gameplay footage, pleasing the followers without creating unreasonable expectations.

There is another reason I am highlighting this video now. Insomniac, creators of the Resistance games, have gone platform agnostic. Xbox gamers will have a chance to try their fare this time around.

As for the trailer itself, I think the art direction and humor are enjoyable, and the narrative/gameplay are more than just a little reminiscent of Brute Force, for better or worse.

Seriously?!

In the action trailer that Gearbox released last August, they showed that the alien “blood” doesn’t have damaging power. And how do they start out this cinematic?! With acid blood dissolving the floor. If they made that change, then this game just came back on my radar. If not, GTFO. If they want to make a generic space marine movie, use a different IP. If you wanna make an Aliens game, then at least respect some of the fundamental canon.

Also, the last time I saw a cinematic trailer, it was for Brink. This is the kind of thing developers put out when they know they are screwed, when they know they effed up badly. Cinematics create unreasonable expectations, and they lie about gameplay. As many as 11 years ago, even sloth-like, behemoth Microsoft understood that. “Show only gameplay footage” was their policy for game when launching the Xbox.

Via EvAv.

Update: After the jump, I have embedded the 11 minute walk-through video that demonstrates Gearbox is just ignoring that key characteristic of the Alien. I was so upset at the time, I didn’t even write a post for the extensive clip.

Hey, this isn’t just Mass Effect “Horde” mode. This is objective MP Co-op gameplay. It looks great, but I still think they should have just made it possible for people to control all squad mates throughout the entire campaign. Drop in, drop out for the win! I am still shaking my head in disbelief that they didn’t do that. It would have been less work.

Via Joystiq.

“The editor is a big part of the design process behind Monaco. To prove the accessibility of the editor, I don’t have any level design experience, so anyone can make a level if they wanted to. We want a thriving map making community, and we have a few ideas on how to keep it flourishing over time.” Via IndieGames.com

Minecraft builders welcome. Remakes of famous locations, real and fictional, recommended. Monaco love you long time.

Having just rewatched it again recently, I can say for certain that my favorite comic book-superhero movie is Unbreakable. The mood (i.e., horror) of Chronicle dictates that it will never attain the level of the unassertive Bruce Willis/Samuel L. Jackson classic, but it does look like a cool and somewhat original addition to the super power genre.

“Three high school friends gain superpowers after making an incredible discovery. Soon, though, they find their lives spinning out of control and their bond tested as they embrace their darker sides.” Coming early February.

Apparently, they are having an afternoon showing of Bugsy Malone at The Alamo Drafthouse. Wish I could go. I saw this in the theater with my dad, the same year he took me to see Marathon Man, The Bad News Bears, The Pink Panther Strikes Again, Silver Streak, and King Kong. I had seen enough musicals and gangster movies that I was able to fully enjoy the satire.

Great memories. Splurge guns, I think they were called. I wished I had one. Hit the jump from one of my favorite songs from the show.

and the other version from the middle of the film:

Think about that for a minute.

Moore’s Law dictates the after 8 years, it should be between 32 and 64 times more powerful. Common sense tells us that MS should at least be utilizing tech that isn’t yet available as they did with the 360, which is also the reason they are enjoying this 7-8 year life cycle. They should most certainly not be grabbing some component that has already been out for 3 years by time of launch.

The implications are ridiculous. That chipset will be barely capable of running the bells and whistles PC version of BF3, currently available. That is assuming they also provide adequate RAM for which consoles are infamously under-spec’d. MS would be granting Nintendo and their Wii U legitimacy and equality. Even stick-a-fork-in-them-they’re-done Sony would be granted ride-every-ride, eat-all-you-can-eat, season’s passes to the next gen theme park. All gains made this generation would be squandered. In fact, Sony could put out their PS4 in 2015 (fulfilling their original 10 year goal for the PS3) and slap Nintendo and MS silly with eclipsing specs at a reasonable launch price getting the next-gen starved gamers to flock to their then-PC equivalent machine. 6x the 360?! That simply doesn’t compute. They may as well drop the 720 and just call it the NextFlix Doorstop machine.

I cannot be certain that this movie will be worth seeing. The factual source material is, however, epic in the truest sense of the word. (Mom read it to me before I was in grade school. Thanks, Mom!) Hit the jump for a concise and informative review of Kon-Tiki, and Thor Heyerdahl’s subsequent adventures covered in The Ra Expeditions.

Thor Heyerdahl’s double achievement of the Kon Tiki and Ra expeditions are nothing short of incredible. In the Kon Tiki he set out to prove how the Pacific Islands had been originally populated. He succeeded. For Ra, he constructed a craft of local papyrus reeds and set out to show how ancient Egyptians reached the Americas thousands of years before Columbus. He succeeded again.

Heyerdahl’s achievements rank alongside being the first man on the moon or the first to climb Everest – except that he has two such credits to his name. In this book, his latter adventure is recorded in the most interesting, yet factual way, and is a joy to read.

As my coverage of Monaco and other Indie games demonstrates, I am lovin’ me some Indie creativity. Indie Game: The Movie features developer Edmund McMillen and Tommy Refenes, Phil Fish, and Jonathan Blow of Super Meat Boy, Braid, and Fez respectively.

“First-time filmmaking duo Lisanne Pajot and James Swirsky capture the emotional journey of these meticulously obsessive artists who devote their lives to their interactive art. Four developers, three games , and one ultimate goal— to express oneself through a video game.“

Apparently, HBO is considering this as the inspiration for a fictional half-hour comedy. Nerds/Geeks are funny just as they are. This has tremendous potential.

UPDATE: The devs themselves loved the movie.  Video after the jump.

Tell me you people are watching the games this year! I haven’t seen such a consistently entertaining playoff season for a long time. Perhaps never. The Baltimore/Patriots game was incredible. I love the B-defense, and in the end, the only thing that kept their team from the title was their own performance on offense. It wasn’t even the fault of a single individual. In the final drive alone, several players screwed up hugely: dropping the ball after a perfect touchdown reception and then missing a clear and close kick. The Patriots are all thanking their lucky stars right now. Great, GREAT football.

UPDATE!

Via AintItCool.

Omake: While we are exploring YouTube productions, be sure to check out Plinkett’s review of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. I assure you, it is more enjoyable than the film proper. Warning, considerably crude in some places.

I know that we have several very enthusiastic fans for the Trials game. Looks like the sequel with its MP addition is going to be makin’ it rain!

via Joystiq.