Angry Birds Seasons Now On Android [Winter Edition]

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Angry Birds is a huge hit on the Android platform, over 7 million downloads strong, just like its iPhone counterpart. No surprise there as Angry Birds just cannot be stopped. And with the eventual release on Xbox 360 and PS3, and soon DS thereafter, the bird-flinging, pig destroying game just keeps growing stronger. And why stop there? Some director(like Uwe Boll) will step up and make a movie about the game. Although, that would probably go horribly wrong as the Boll is known for making bad, and horribly graphically violent movies. Not a good fit. Okay, let's just keep the game 'a game' and nothing more..thanks.

With that said, Rovio Mobile, the developers of the successful game, today released Angry Birds Seasons onto the Android Market and App Store, respectively.

What does that mean? Well, that means you can be enjoying 25 Winter themed levels, but you need be patient, as the first of 25 levels unlocked today, while each additional level unlocking every day up until the big day, December 25, just like an Advent calendar. Isn't that radical? Yes, absolutely!

But that's not all...there's more! With a lot of Android users thinking the iPhone/iPad, etc. Halloween Angry Birds never making the dive to your Droid X, the wait is over! The 45 Halloween themed levels are also included with Angry Birds Seasons. That's just insanely awesome...I'm sure everyone is saying!

Also of note, in the news filled AB newsletter, Rovio has stated that a paid version of Angry Birds will be available in 'later updates'. That's pretty reassuring. And one last tidbit--the devs also mentioned a "graphically lighter" option will be available in the game, as well, you know, that will be focuses on lower-end devices. Pretty nice!

Well..there you have it. Rovio has done it again..great job!

The Winter Uprising Is Here..and it kicks ass! [Indie Games]

Starting today, November 30, the Winter Uprising, as they've appropriately named it, has begun!

From here on out and throughout December(and beyond), there will be several "low-budget, but very high quality" indie games being released in the coming days and weeks.

Epic Dungeon starts the uprising off today, and will cost ya a very staggering low price of 80 msp. Now go get it!

And they've even included a very kick ass trailer, too..check it out below!

<p>Indie Games Winter Uprising from Nakatomi HMC on Vimeo.</p>

Will Kinect Support Netflix?

With the Kinect launch being a complete success(I think anyways...), gamers around the world have been controlling Xbox 360 Kinect games and Hub with full-body motion. And most are happy with just that.

But some have been left a bit disappointed. And why you may ask? Well...there's no Netflix support just yet. And this factor is a big one. Some gamers bought Kinect just for full Netflix motion controls. Other(like me) bought Kinect for the games, and of course, being the Netflix fan that I am, controlling Netflix with my my hands would definitely be a big bonus.

Microsoft has not made any announcement yet whether or not Netflix will be supported, but they did say that "certain features" will not be made available at launch. Do you feel that you've been misled by no Netflix support at launch?

Honestly, I don't really feel THAT misled. It does suck that Netflix is yet to be supported, but I can see why it isn't...yet. It could be a number of reasons. From technical issues at last minute, to Netflix not wanting to support Kinect. It could be anything. Hell..it could even be that they wanted to wait to release Netflix for Kinect when Hulu launches early next year.

When I first bought my Kinect, brought it home and hooked it up, I didn't immediately say, "Where's Netflix support?". I actually played around with it a bit, learned how to properly use it, play Kinect Adventures(which is awesome, by the way!), etc. It was a day later when I realized, "Oh yeah...I wanna watch an episode of The Office...", so then I went to the Kinect Hub and noticed that Zune was there, Last.fm was there, even ESPN was there, but Netflix was no where to be found, I was like, "What?", but wasn't immediately angered by that fact.

I then went to Google and searched for answers. I found some news on it, lots of forum posts, but nothing from Microsoft.

Anyways, Netflix will be supported. Trust me, if the streaming service is not supported, I can say that many gamers/users will be really, really disappointed even more so than now. And also extremely bad marketing on Microsoft's part especially when Netflix is shown in the Kinect Hub in all those videos. I just watched a 'very recent' Kinect video on Xbox Live that showed Netflix in the Kinect Hub. So I think if Netflix isn't going to be supported, I would imagine all those videos would be taken down and remade so that Netflix isn't shown, giving false hope to everyone who dreamed of having full-motion control over the popular streaming service.

I guess we'll see, hopefully sometime in Nov. and no later, even so much as an explanation as to why Netflix wasn't supported at launch.

What do you think? Are you happy with not having full-motion Netflix? Or are you just happy with the fact that you can control every aspect of Kinect Adventures with just full-body movement? I'm with the latter.

 

 

Sintel, an animated short-film [Surreal]

As I was looking through the daily videos on YouTube, I came across this wonderful animated short-fillm, Sintel. The short was uploaded on Sept. 30, and it didn't catch my eye then.

Sintel is a short-film that was brought on by Blender Foundation, a cause to keep the open source/free 3D software, Blender, well..free and open source.

Sintel took around one year to develop and produce by only a few very talented developers, artists and animators.

The spectacular 15-minute piece is about a young woman on a journey to rescue something that was lost to her. It's a very surreal film and very, very, very good.

Watch it below and make sure to watch it in HD(full screen, if possible):

'Splosion Man - Level 2 - Hardcore Mode (Complete)

Sometime yesterday I was finally able to complete Level 2 on the "nearly impossible" Hardcore Mode, not sure how I did it but I did it and only one more Level stands in my way from getting the prestigious achievement.

Dead Rising 2 - The Zombies are Back [Reviews]

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It's been awhile since the first hugely successful "use everything as weapons" to "kill hundreds of on-screen zombies at once" game, Dead Rising was released. Nearly over four years ago, gamers around the world felt what it was like to kill a zombie with a bowling ball..with a soda machine..with [insert crazy weapon here] and boy did they love it!

Well, this time, the stakes have never been higher with the release of Dead Rising 2 for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC! This time around, you can create custom weapons to your liking(sort of) so it's never been easier to kill a zombie with a spiked baseball bat, or whatever else you see lying around. Great stuff!

Well, I'll probably be picking up the game, but not entirely sure yet. Here are some reviews below that might help you decide, like it's going to help me decide:

Game Informer (95/100): "Even after playing for dozens of hours, you'll still find new things in Dead Rising 2. I won't spoil anything, but there's a lot of variety to be found in the game beyond obvious things like the number of objects that can be used as bludgeons. This game is designed for multiple playthroughs, and I'm looking forward to each and every one of them." Read on...

GameSpot (8.5/10): "The Dead Rising formula proves to be as addictive as ever, and a new cooperative mode and weapon crafting system are great additions to the franchise." Read on...

IGN (8.0/10): "It’s not the smoothest game and it can feel like the last one, however that doesn’t mean a thing when the game’s this much fun. Using a car battery and a Street Fighter mask to electrocute the undead and a set of knives and a pair of boxing gloves to make Wolverine claws are all great times. Watching Chuck get covered in blood as he slays thousands of zombies, changing outfits so that one minute you’re in a toddler clothes with a LEGO head and the next you’re in a sundress, and listening to completely whacked out boss stories – that’s what I remember about Dead Rising 2. Any issue the game might have just falls to the backburner." Read on...

Eurogamer (8.0/10): "But despite the low-level irritations, Dead Rising 2's focus and determination win you over. Its assured grasp of what the game is and what it isn't is worth celebrating. The harder edges of the first game have been softened a little, no doubt thanks to the involvement of a Western studio. The result is a balanced game, at once idiosyncratic, infuriating, funny and ultimately compelling. In both its story and its systems, it holds life and undeath in delicate tension; and as a result, all the loud-mouth college humour and violence fail to mask its tender heart." Read on...

Kikizo (8.0/10): "Dead Rising 2 is a serviceable follow-up, and another unique addition to the ranks of zombie bashers. Its uniqueness is of the rough-and-ready variety, however, sparked by colliding clichés, and for all Fortune City’s lashings of sugar, glitter and grey matter, many will find that unevenness hard to bear. Recommended, but watch your step." Read on...

'Splosion Man - Level 1 - Hardcore Mode (Complete)

In case some of you didn't know, 'Splosion Man is a wildly successful action/puzzle/platformer game from the indie developer, Twisted Pixel, and is extremely fun, both singleplayer and online 2-player co-op.

After you complete the game(All three levels), Hardcore Mode is unlocked. In Hardcore Mode(image above), there are no checkpoints(like Normal Mode) and if you get hit even once, you have to start from the beginning, which is a major pain in the ass.

I finally completed the first level and it was a very difficult journey and it ain't over yet. I'm now going to attempt to play Level 2 on the devastating Mode and see what happens. It may take a week, may take a month, could even take a year, but I'll do it, little by little every day. That Hardcore Mode Achievement will be mine. MINE! ...eventually.