The Netherlands are a hotbed of indie game development, which seems appropriate for such a brilliant and eccentric little nation. Two man Dutch indie developer Vlambeer have found themselves in the news more often than most companies of their size, thanks to two great games and a third on the way.
There are a lot of fantastic video games out there. Indie Games Ichiban's bread and butter is making sure that you steer clear of the bad ones and embrace the good. But really, the biggest goal here is to help everyone have more fun. To that end, today a game is not recommended, but an event. If you like games—not just video games—but tabletop, board and even hopscotch, then PAX Prime is one of the best events you could possibly go to.
The last week has been a trying one for me. On Sunday, there were four computers in my office, three of which were broken. The fourth was not really a computer, but more of a collection of parts that were cobbled together for the purpose of constructing a PC that would sneer derisively at the mere mention of turning down any game's ambient occlusion settings.
The indie game scene is constantly expanding, but in 2008, Minecraft, Braid and Angry Birds had not been released, along with all of the other indie games that established the financial viability of the format. Indie games were the all-but-exclusive purview of free Flash game sites and the proud users of TIGsource.com. The Independent Gaming Source is a massive forum for indie game developers to share their projects with like-minded individuals, while seeking help and approval of their games.
Most stateside gamers have probably never heard of Level-5. If they have, it's more than likely due to the charming and maddening line of Nintendo DS puzzle games, Professor Layton. Some might even remember Dark Cloud and its sequel from the early days of the PlayStation 2, and all eight of you PSP owners in the U.S. might recognize the epic Jeanne d'Arc. These games alone make Level-5 a noteworthy company, but they've quietly surpassed "noteworthy" status to become one of the largest and gre...
Tower defense games have taught us little. We already knew that defending castles from baddies was fun and that legions of weenies are the key to success in most real-time strategy situations. What other insights have they to offer?
Video capture... how does it work? Apparently, I have no idea. What I thought would be a simple undertaking turned out to be a slow and annoying pain. I just wanted to capture video in high definition and to lessen the time it takes to setup, record, and upload the video.
Pressing the button on a video game controller quickly is like running the 100 meter dash. Both require dedication and a precise exercise regime. There is also an odd quality about both in which the range between the very best and complete neophyte is tiny. Sprinter Usain Bolt holds the record in the 100 meter run at 9.58 seconds, only three seconds faster than I ran in freshmen high school track. And yet there are thousands of sprinters from a hundred years of Olympic competition in between ...
Our hacked Kinect series has demonstrated amply how the Kinect is changing the worlds of business, art, medicine and robotics. But where does it go from here? That will be determined by the thousands of dedicated DIYers out there doing work like you've seen here over the last week.
Do you remember when video games came on tiny chips in plastic cartridges? When the CD and 3D graphics just meant ugly games with long load times? Before epic cinematics, spoken dialog, or cordless controllers? Do you still have all of your old games and lament that the consoles, cords, and controllers required to play them have either been stolen by exes or broken while moving apartments?
The holiday season is here, and if you didn't already pick up a SCRABBLE set during Black Friday or Cyber Monday, then you still have time to buy the perfect gift for your lexical-minded friend. There's sure to be deals out there over the next couple of weeks, you just need to browse the web and search store shelves for the best deal.
Ok, here's the deal.. you take a video camera and just record about 5 minutes of a view similar to the pic (like where you would place a surveillance camera in a room). This bathroom has to be at a location where everybody will be gathered around watching TV etc... Sooo, when someone goes to the restroom, you playback the video you recorded earlier (hiding all playback equipment, obviously), and after the person is in the bathroom, and the tape is rolling, have everyone in the room start laug...
This German video is amazing. A joyously analog interpretation and deconstruction of the digital gaming experience. Malte Jehmlich is as primitive and inspiring as the the Vanuatu natives who devoted themselves to cargo worship after World War II!
General Tips for Exercising in the Heat -Schedule workouts for the cooler times of the day.
Oh, LifeHacker, we love you. You've brought us so many handy HowTo's: Hack Wireless Internet, Bypass Blocked Websites, Convert a Laptop Into a Projector, Watch TV & Movies on the Web For Free, 10 Must-Know Google Privacy Settings, and more.
So you've found yourself opting to be a vegetarian. The transition into a new way of eating and living is not always easy and as a result people often ditch their vegetarian goals and revert back to their previous eating habits. Here are some steps to ensure a successful transition to vegetarianism:
Robert Wright interviews Arthur Peacocke about Pantheism, the problem of evil and several other topics. Arthur Peacocke, formerly a biochemist and a member of the theology faculty at Oxford University, is honorary canon of Christ Church Cathedral at Oxford and a past winner of the Templeton Prize. Learn about the problem of evil & pantheism.
It's that time of year again when pizza boxes line the room and buffalo wings stain the couch. When cases of beer sit in the cooler and the big screen TVs are fired up and properly calibrated. When two of the best football teams vie for the championship title and the Vince Lombardi trophy.
The 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards take place this Sunday, January 16th, 2011 between the hours of 5 and 8 PM PST — that's 8 & 11 PM for those of you on the East Coast (and Somewhere in the Middle for those of you Somewhere in the Middle).
In this home entertainment video series, learn how to use a universal remote control. A universal remote is just what it sounds like: it’s a device that allows you to control several different home electronics appliances at once—like the stereo, DVD player, VCD, TV, satellite dish, etc. The complexity of the remote can vary, but in this day and age, it’s probably a good idea to have one. Our expert will walk you through some of the basic functions and buttons, including how to program the uni...
It's been a long journey for Netflix users. At first, it was a rough ride as Netflix struggled to find its place in the homes and hearts of movie watchers everywhere. Once monthly subscriptions bumped off the pay-per-rental charges, Netflix soared to great heights, known for their flat-fee unlimited rentals without due dates, late fees, or shipping and handling fees. And it was smooth sailing when streaming services were incorporated into monthly plans, with customers being able to rent DVDs ...
I love SCRABBLE, but sometimes it's hard to find an opponent who'll play a classic, tournament style game in person. Don't get me wrong—I play on the computer and iPhone all of the time, but it's just not the same as an in-person match. This leads me to stray every now and then, checking out new word-friendly games with a fast pace and interesting twist. And the most recent one was nothing like SCRABBLE, and I don't mean that in a bad way.
Learning Style What kind of learner are you? There are three different ways people learn:
Have one of the most beloved characters on jackass(steve-o,jhonny,bam) fake his death for the world to see, have them pretend to rob a bank and have a cop in there at the same time, so when they hold up the bank they get shot and since its a bank there will be cameras so thats how they got it on tape, remember this will all be fake but nobody will know. or you could fake a car crash and it would have the crew in there about to go film but only 1 would die and the rest would b just hurt.or som...
Find two people that dislike each other the most (inevitably someone and Brandon Novak). These will need to be two people that are likely to drink enough to be manipulated without their knowledge. While sleeping, superglue one part of one to the other. It can be a hand to a bare ass, a cheek to a bare ass, lips to cheek (make sure they can breathe!), etc. Or, superglue someone to themselves, in an awkward position (hand down the pants, one lip glued upwards in a permanent “Elvis,” etc). An in...
A press release should be about news. It should have a sense of urgency about it and grab the reader’s attention from the outset. A good press release must quickly answer the journalist’s immediate questions:
Obesity has ballooned into a worldwide epidemic. The World Health Organization estimates that 2.3 billion adults will be overweight and 700 million will be obese by 2015. Over 20 million children are overweight today. The reasons for these distressing figures are common knowledge: The international switch to high sugar, high fat, low nutrient processed junk foods prompted by global fast food chains and their advertising; the increasingly sedentary nature of jobs; children playing video games ...
Not sure how suitable this is for tv but its funny either way. Johnny gets everyone to join him in a drink he gets the whole cast to do a toast with him but what they dont know is Johnny has snuck ex-lax into their bubbly so as everyone runs to the toilet Johnny has put clear plastic wrap over the toilets and you can figure out the rest=) Or you could just have naked sumo's pig pile on Bam that works to.
We’ve all been there before. Relentlessly refreshing Ticketmaster and filling in those CAPTCHA codes only to receive the miserable “No tickets are available at this time” message. That’s because ticket brokers with a dozen screens and God knows how many browsers snatch up anything and everything.
I assume at this point you have already completed your control panel using Part 1 of this How To guide. Now, if you are anything like me, you couldn't fight the urge to play, and you have your panel sitting on saw horses in the living room.
I remember a time when I had to rent a VHS from the local video rental store. It wasn't all that bad, with the only real annoyances being the trip to and fro, having to rewind the movie and the possible malfunction of my VHS player, which liked to eat tape from time to time.
It turns out that the popularity of soft circuit electronics has leaked out of the interwebs and into the hands of the U.S. military. Soft circuit electronics allow you to literally sew electronics circuits into fabric using flexible conductive thread instead of wire. Soft circuits can be used for all sorts of fun projects, like the TV-B-Gone Hoodie and the Heartbeat Headband.
The most recent viral video on YouTube is just that. A viral video. After seeing all the hype and 'support' that the 'movement' is getting, I want to tell you that this is a misleading video and somewhat of a propaganda campaign. These are strong accusations against such a 'humanitarian' cause, but I'm here to show you why.
There is nothing more annoying than a greedy roommate. It's absolutely infuriating to wake up and find the cookies your mother just made for you gone without a trace. Your favorite drink is empty and the homemade meal you worked so hard on the night before is nowhere to be found. This irked me so much that I made this shocking cookie jar. When a cookie burglar touches the side and the lid of the jar simultaneously, a small electric shock stops them in their tracks.
On Google+, one of the very first creative projects using the popular hangout feature revolved around cooking. Foodies +Lee Allison and +Eric McKee decided to start their own "G+ Cooking School", which has now expanded into the Social Skillet. Although neither have formal training, they're both quite accomplished cooks and skilled instructors. Using hangouts, they've taught their students how to create dishes like margherita pizzas and chicken marsala.
Since its release three years ago, Canon's EOS 5D Mark II has been the most sought out digital SLR for photographers everywhere. But it's also becoming a favorite amongst cinematographers, thanks to its compact size and high-def video recording mode, seeing action in everything from independent features to Hollywood blockbusters and even big network TV shows.
The Kinect for Xbox 360 and PlayStation Move might be fun to play with, but people do not look very cool while they're doing it. Air guitar is not particularly flattering (even if done on stage), and neither is air-anything else, as pleasurable as it might be. This is why I find it strange that a group of admen somewhere in the world think these kinds of commercials would appeal to anyone.
Last week, I started a weekly feature on Scrabble World called Scrabble Challenge, where you can solve a few (hopefully) challenging word puzzles. Normally, these will be on Fridays, but today I have a potentially unsolvable puzzle for you to try and solve, in addition to the upcoming one...
Deep in their heart of hearts, most Americans dream of having their car festooned with missile launchers and machine guns. Anyone who cuts them off or looks at them funny in traffic could be dispensed with quick and extreme justice, leaving a real-life James Bond and his passengers free to pursue their American dreams faster than everyone else. Racing games and shooting games are among the two most popular types of video games. So why aren't there more games where one can race cars and shoot ...
A century ago there wasn't much life available for quadriplegic people. Handicap accessibility was barely even a concept, and lacking medical technology kept any semblance of independence out of reach. Today those unfortunate enough to be paralyzed from the neck down have brighter prospects, but are still unable to participate in many activities. Video games are a great option for those who do not have the use of their legs, but for quadriplegics, the use of a standard controller is not an op...
