Gaming Shots

So I was going back over some old emails and I came across these images from our first official Superbest gathering online. Brian had grabbed them from a Halo 3 multiplayer session, and I figured I may as well put them up.

I'd forgotten what a cool feature this is... beat the hell out of your friends and then go back through the footage, pick your camera angle and capture a still of your buddy's untimely demise. What a great way to elevate the art of smack talking!

Of course, half of the charm of these lies in the fact that Mike and I are completely clueless about what we're doing... Brian's captions point that out rather nicely.

Superbest. Flashpoint. Saturday.

This Saturday, catch Superbest with WIT's Jackie at Flashpoint in downtown DC. The show starts at 8, and tix are $15 here...

E3: Project Natal

I'd heard it was going to be called Fluid, but I suppose Project Natal sounds cooler if you're in to the whole shrouded-in-mystery thing. I personally think it's a fancy way of saying "not ready yet," but time will tell.

Here's the "product vision" for Microsoft's new controller-free interface. Some of the ideas look like a blast (like full-body fighting) and others seem like they're probably still a ways off (like scanning your gear for use in the game). If this is gonna work, though, we're all gonna need bigger living rooms...

A Geek Gauge

As I mentioned earlier, the parts for my new PC started arriving today. This is the box for the video card (yes, the photo was taken in the bathroom, for lighting purposes):


I posit the following:

A person's level of geekiness is inversely proportional to their answer to the question "How silly is this?"

Let me know your results. In my case, the answer is: only slightly.

It's an Exciting Time

As posted by Tyler, E3 kicked off today and I've only just had time to watch a few trailers for the big games we have to look forward to this year. My favorite surprise so far is that we'll get Left4Dead 2 in November. Take a look at the teaser (be warned, it's zombie-bloody) and see if you can't help smiling by the end like I did.

I'm sure there's plenty more awesome out there that I haven't watched yet.

Today is also the day that boxes from Newegg started arriving. I'm building a new computer completely from factory-new parts, something I've never done before. I'll post if anything awful happens. The rig it's replacing is over six years old, which is like 90 in human years. Sit quietly for a moment and you'll hear it wheezing.

On top of all that, Sears is coming on Thursday and Friday to completely redo our kitchen. I'm taking both days off to stay home in case anything comes up. Nothing will, of course -- they know what they're doing, I know. But two days off! With my new (ideally, functional) computer! I'm giddy.

E3

Oh, it's on.

New games, new technologies and new newness abound at this week's E3 Expo in L.A. Later this morning, XBox is expected to reveal details about their new Fluid system, which will read the movements of your body without the use of a controller (take that, Wii!). The potential for sports titles is obvious, but what about fighting and shooting games? Someone make THAT happen, please... I'd like to take cover behind my couch in the near future.

I won't pretend to be on top of this in any way (we couldn't afford to send a correspondent), but stay tuned to your favorite gaming sites for all the latest buzz from this annual creative kick in the gaming ass. We'll all post new hotness as it becomes available.

Literal Music Videos

Oh, you like your comedy with a bit of meta, do you?

Click here for the literal version of the music video for Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart (she would be the handsome woman in the photo above for those of you too young to remember). Worth a look on the strength of the first two minutes alone. Falls apart a bit when the "funny" voices start up in the middle, but the see-say lyrics are laugh out loud funny.

Also check out the same treatment for Meatloaf's Anything for Love (I gotta admit, "The po-po are goin' through my stuff!" made me snort a little), but do yourself a favor and ignore the wacky voice over until the singing starts.