The Pants weekly wrap-up #5

Well I’m only one day late this week (curse actually setting a weekly date to this thing) and I have to admit even by my own standards I have taken a bit of an easy option this time around.

See I got on a roll while looking for a copy of the Max Payne 3 trailer that didn’t require the viewer to sign in to youtube (to prove their age) and found some other trailers to things that interested me, so now by osmosis, they interest you.

Consider this Pants weekly wrap-up, game trailer week, thrown in with a few musical numbers at the end for awesomeness and laughs.

Cutting right to the chase…

Loved the original Max Payne and I was even a big fan of the second. With Rockstar now at the helm I know a lot of people just think we are going to get Grand Theft Max Noire Red Dead Payne, but to be honest, even though the altogether mechanics of Grand Theft Auto, LA Noire and Red Dead Redemption they are all actually amazing games (especially the latter two) so I feel pretty good about thinking the treatment Old Max might get.. Would be interested in thoughts in the comments. Here are the first two trailers setting the scene I guess for what we are maybe in for.

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I was also a big Syndicate fan back in the day. I’m not sure what I have seen so far is instilling me with much nostalgic love but I will jump in here and see if an old classic can be revitalised none the less. Hopefully this has enough of its own thought to not just be the 2012 Deus Ex, but then again, that game was pretty OK so that might not really be a bad thing.

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The Amazing Spider man game trailer.

Looks shit.

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I am Alive. I have not actually heard of this one before so again thought I would put it out there for comments. Anyone know anything about this game? It looks interesting, maybe post apocalyptic, but it has the Ubisoft tag which fills me full of dread.

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The big one this week was without doubt Borderlands 2. Love or hate the dubsteb trailer (I feel indifferent about it), you have to admire the art in this game. I know cell shaded 3D is not new but Borderlands had a style all to its own, so if the sequel can address the issues that eventually led to me quitting the first game (I got bored), then I am going to jump on this bad boy and try to take my friend BeyondMarathon with me.

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Hardly worth mentioning given that the clip really does nothing – but I love a bit of Angry Birds so here is the teaser for the next egg stealing iteration

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And now we swing wide out into the realm of tunes…

Somebody that I used to know – Gotye

So this song (album really) is actually just brilliant, despite being played to death by everyone who ever had a chance to choose a song at some radio station / hipster convention / twelve-year-old princess party. I am a big fan and it deserves to be shared on its merits alone… but that isn’t in fact the reason for this post.

Enjoy the original so you are up to speed, then the next couple will make more sense.

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So here is a cover of the above by Walk off the Earth. I think it went viral etc. but it is still pretty damn funky. Watch this one to continue down the rabbit hole…

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Then we welcome to the plate – the ever creative talents of the Interwebs. Listen through… very funny at the end.

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And if you didn’t smile at that last one well rest assured pantsless geek readers, I got something in this bag of tricks for you.

Heres the best cover of them all… mind you im sure there is some weird editing going on with the guy on the left. Check how his elbow is with the next dude, but I digress… enjoy!

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A quick segue to what has to be the dunk of the year.

Blake Griffen Monster Dunk over.. well everybody!

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Tell me something I don’t know – Herman Dune

Big fan of the Dune’s work, and this one just seems to stick in your mind hours after hearing it.

Mad Men fans love the clip also.

“A young runaway yeti embarks on an adventure into the human world and along the way, makes an unexpected friend in Jon Hamm”

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Now as you go about your business heavily smashing me in the comments of this page, play the last clip again to give you some trolling music. The tune really sticks.

See you in the comments..

My Relationship… with Video Games

 

 

My girlfriend won’t mind me writing any of this because although she says she reads my blog, I’m pretty sure she doesn’t, she is just trying to be supportive, so no backlash here for talking about video games as if they are a mistress.

When I was maybe around eight years old, video games were still in their infancy.

A friend of mine at the time whose dad worked for Nintendo, called me up one day to ask if I wanted to go around and play on his brand new Nintendo Entertainment System.

The year was 1990 and unbeknownst to me this would indeed be the beginning of my longest, deepest relationship outside of mother and father, that with video games.

I begged and begged my father for a NES. Only a little bit at first, but after I overstayed my welcome at my mates, I became far more insistent. My dad was a little old school and he just didn’t understand the attachment I had to the combination of Mario and Duck Hunt, or the night terrors I would wake from, sweating, anxious, because a girl named Zelda was still yet to be rescued by a boy named Link.

Mum eventually intervened and convinced Dad that I had wanted this “video games” long enough and they agreed that if I was good, come Christmas, maybe I might get lucky.

Christmas came and sure enough a largish box sat under the tree addressed to me…

I sat there, fixated on that box while slowly the family took turns to unwrap their presents.

The nerves were bubbling in giddy anticipation…

Then finally, it was time.

Dad picked up the chest and brought it over, laying it at my feet.

I could now remove the mystical wrappings of Christmas and reveal my well earned Master sword.

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It was a Sega Master System II.

“Latest thing on the market” Dad said.

“Comes with a built in game so we don’t even need to spend more to get you one”

Alex Kidd, how I loathed you

How proud he was…

How much I cried…

I look back now at that time and laugh. I laugh about it a lot. (Seriously how common a story is that?)

So my relationship with video games hit a very rocky road barely after it had just gotten started.

We went our separate ways for a bit. Had the odd fling here or there in the form of the home PC (thank you id Software, Maxis, Sierra and Lucasarts).

But we did survive in the long run..

After several years we were reunited once again, on Christmas by chance, by a beautiful beast called the Nintendo 64.

I owe my younger brother thanks for that gift, as it was his.

Apparently he gets what he asks for.

It was these times, this upbringing, this cold, harsh reality that my relationship with video games had introduced me too that made me the gamer I am today.

This is why I stopped playing Skyrim even when it was still fun, and this is why I only buy one game at a time and complete it, before I allow myself to purchase another title.

In closing – I am not a video game slut.

That is what we were talking about right?

So how exactly do you handle your relationship with video games?

 

Wrong handling guys…

…or is it?

 

And one last thing – Just to validate once and for all my girlfriend (who does exist) doesn’t read this blog – Honey, you are out tonight at a bar with work friends. I walked down to McDonalds and bought 4 Cheeseburgers for dinner for $4.

Now I just sit back and play the waiting game…

 

The Pants weekly wrap-up #4

Four weeks. Wow. It really does feel like just only a few days ago it was three….

Ok now be fair, if my jokes were actually any good do really think I would writing this blog?

A late Pants weekly wrap-up this time around and for that my valued viewers I apologise. I could never see Yahtzee being late with a Zero Punctuation, but then again.. I’m pretty sure he gets paid (and if he doesn’t just consider him better than me… which I know you already do anyway).

An interesting mix this week with more indie film trailers of awesome, some batman weirdness Canadian style, a few gaming must haves and plenty of left field randomness.

So lets get straight into it shall we..

Kicking this week off I think we should all have a few laughs.

You know when you play those ragdoll physics games where you see characters tumble in the most awkward ways and think to yourself “real people don’t bend like that”? Well perhaps you should think that through again after watching this…

Disclaimer: We can laugh because these people volunteer for this.

 

Take one of the most famous platformers in history, add a touch of insightful programming and throw in a few of our beloved Nintendo characters from way back when and you get this, the Super Mario Bros Crossover.

You may have seen it before, but this version 2.0 with more characters, tunes and levels (sorry about the advert up front. When I’m rich enough off this blog I will put my own videos up without ads. Until then I have to use other peoples videos which sometimes have advertising.. .. .. So yer, get used to the ads).

 

Need to come up with a way to promote the next season of your zombie-apocolypse series for TV? Perhaps not the exact reaction the creative were after but I’ll let the clip do the talking..

 

A clever little mash-up from some of Cain’s The Prestige work with a little bit of the caped crusaders exploits tied in. Kudos to the fan love.

 

Ever wondered what a tornado on the sun would look like?

Well the team here at dontuhatepants did so we were able to get one of our probes (space) to send some video back to Earth to assist us with just this curiosity.

Ok maybe I haven’t just been exactly honest.. You got me, there is no “team” here at dontuhatepants.

 

Iron Sky – an Indie movie, but it already looks better than most blockbusters I saw last year. Due for release at some point this year I believe, I already like the layers of subtext just from the trailer, including the apparent mocking of all Hollywood invasion movies that have gone before it…

Heck it is just basically outright mocking Hollywood full stop (yep, I write ‘full stop’ now).

 

Ahh Toronto Batman – where did you get that suit?

Tears.

“MY PARENTS ARE DEAD!”

 

A video from 1990 for AT&T staff, to help inform them about the risks of Hackers. I think this one is pretty cool. Isn’t it weird to see how far technology and the Internet has come, and yet corporate educational videos are pretty much exactly the same?

 

Who didn’t love Ridley Scott’s Alien trilogy?

Prometheus is the prequel, and unlike many prequels before this one that have crashed and burned, this is Ridley we are talking about here. Ridley Scott!

Can. Not. Wait.

 

Ninjaaaaaaaaa!

 

And to cap this week off we once again show the amazing new Mass Effect 3 trailer.

I know some have basically come out and said trailers are a scam and serve no purpose other than to raise a gamers hope before swiftly crushing them with the final product (ie the Game itself), but I differ. I know ME3 will be awesome, just like ME and ME2, so this trailer is just and added bonus.

Enjoy it once more..

 

Any advice for the next Pants weekly wrap-up?

Perhaps a flame war to start or just some conversation about some of things we enjoyed today?

Cya same time next week next Sunday!

 

Where is the Pants weekly wrap-up?

Never fear loyal fans…

The Pants weekly wrap-up will be online tomorrow.

In the mean time enjoy this sneak peak of whats to come (and tell me you don’t get goosebumps of awesomeness)

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Til then…

 

dontLINhatepants

LINfographic

Not my normal video game related post and possibly one that some people might call controversial or scandalous or even cheap, but hey if IGN can cash in on LINmania, so can dontuhatepants (plus I actually find this really entertaining).

I enjoy a good basketball game, making at least weekly visits to the local courts to have a shoot around with some my work colleagues. These same guys have a passion for the NBA and during the season you can’t walk past one of our desks without seeing the ESPN sports tracker up keeping tabs on our favourite teams.

None of us ever cared about the Knicks.

Enter Jeremy Lin. A guy no one had heard of prior to two weeks ago.

A second year player with only three games to his name and basically the last guy on the Knicks list (so much so that they were apparently about to sack him) but as injury fell on all those guards above him on the roster they had no choice but to put him in…

And he starred.

That was 8 games ago.

Today Jeremy Lin is arguably the most marketable player in the NBA.

The kid is on fire!

 All we have discussed on the courts is Lin.

All we have discussed at work is Lin.

All the Internet has discussed is Lin.

Now you get to see why.

LINtastic. LINning. LINbelievable. Super LINtendo.

He is LIN your face.

I give you, Jeremy Lin.

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The LIN power ballad. Gold.

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Share your favourite LIN moment to date. Mine was the 13 assists against Sacremento in two and half quarters.