London-based comedy sketch group Idiots of Ants is here to show us just how realistic the controls are for Medieval Swordfighter 3 using a modern Wii-mote + nunchuck setup. It’s not too long before the game starts bleeding into the real world. …They’re British and funny so watch it!
[Via Gizmodo]
…they make you grow! These here are “Play Condoms” designed by Ben Marsh. They’re condoms packaged inside plastic Game Boy cartridges. But why?
The packaging aims create a desire to purchase the product for aesthetic reasons, rather than the necessity of condoms. Simply by owning the product, safe sex is promoted.
OK, then. But with titles like Donkey Shlong and Sextris, how could you refuse?! Look in the gallery below for additional shots of the packaging.
[Via Engadget; ilikedoodles; seekvideogames]
In early June two viral advertisements hit the web that claimed to be brand new “leaked” spots for Sony’s next video game console, the PlayStation 4. The first video dubbed “Leaked Launch Trailer” (see above) features a man inside a lab facility who is wearing what appears to be an advanced pair of 3D glasses that literally brings you into the game. In the video we watch (along with Japanese testers) the man experience the PS4’s virtual reality capabilities for the first time. At first the man is spooked by what he sees, but then a glimmer of hope (and success on Sony’s part) is revealed when the man gives a satisfying smirk at the conclusion of the test. The second video (look after the break for it) is titled “Leaked Viral Video” and plays out like a true viral video, shaky cam and all. This one follows two frantic Sony employees into a large facility; once there, they find a gamer who is frozen with excitement over the powers of the PS4 system. The employees remove glasses from his face but cannot pry the game controller out of his hand. The gamer squeals in joy.
After some investigation, the web realized they were douped when 24-year-old filmaker Han West spilled the beans. West created these fake viral videos for a school project that required him to produce “one viral ad and one more ‘polished’ commercial.” “Leaked Launch Trailer”, the polished spot above, took 12 hours to shoot and cost $500. “Leaked Viral Video” took four hours to capture and cost a mere $20. In the end, his timing was impeccible; these video “leaked” onto the web just days before E3, leading many to suspect Sony would announce the vision with the PS4 during their press conference. Job well done, Mr. West.
[Via Kotaku, here & here] Continue reading “Leaked” PS4 viral videos are fake, still fantastic
Watch as Japanese violinist Teppei Okada masterfully plays the iconic soundtrack and gameplay sounds from Super Mario Bros.!
Look! It’s a Super Mario live wallpaper for Android (v2.1 or greater) devices! How awesome is that?
[Via AndroidCentral]
And just like that E3 2010 has come to a close. Oh, was it a wonderful three days of gaming. Things kicked off with Microsoft’s bizarre “Project Natal for Xbox 360 Experience” Cirque du Soleil event where we learned Natal’s true name, Kinect. The Big Three’s press conferences proved to be eventful and packed with awesome new games. Microsoft showed off exciting trailers and demos for Call of Duty: Black Ops, Metal Gear: Rising, Gears of War 3, Halo: Reach, and Fable III. Kinect was finally detailed at length, and we got a sneak peek at the Kinect Hub and many of the casual launch titles including Kinect Adventures!, Kinect Sports, Kinect Joy Ride, Kinectimals, Dance Central, and Your Shape: Fitness Evolved. Sports fanatics were happy to hear news that ESPN content is coming to Xbox Live. And to conclude the conference Microsoft unvield a refreshed Xbox 360 model that features a sleek, black finish and “whisper quiet” internals. Nintendo harnessed the power of nostalgia to excite the long-time fanboys (and girls). Appearences by The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, GoldenEye 007, Kirby’s Epic Yarn Metroid: Other M, and Donkey Kong Country Returns did not dissappoint. Before Nintendo’s conference could come to a close the Nintendo 3DS was officially unveiled. 3D glasses are not required to experience the 3D effect and Kid Icarus: Uprising is a launch title; I want one. Sony’s press conference pushed for 3D gaming with an impressive demo of Killzone 3 in 3D (glasses (unfortunately) required). Sony’s turn at motion-based gaming with PlayStation Move was demoed and titles like Sorcery and Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 utilized the new controllers well. The introduction of PlayStation Plus (Sony’s subscription based online gaming service), a fantastic trailer for Portal 2, and demos of LittleBigPlanet 2 and Twisted Metal rounded out the conference. All in all, the Big Three were successful in making gamers ’round the world happy with their upcoming offereings.
After the press conferences ended, the show floor exploded open with hundreds of game demos. Fortunately almost every booth was filled with knowledgable game developers who were kind enough to speak with me about their creations. Games like The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Donkey Kong Country Returns, SOCOM 4, Fable III, the Kinect games, Super Scribblenauts, Tron: Evolution, and the OnLive service impressed me to no end. But there’s one game that stands out the most. My favorite game of E3 2010 is Epic Mickey. The various types of gameplay, visual style, and controls made for an extremely fun and rewarding experience. I can’t wait for it to release on the Wii this holiday season.
To sum up E3 2010 in so many words–motion-controlled gaming (w/ Kinect & PS Move), 3D gaming (w/ PS3 & 3DS), and fantastic titles (that are both classic and new). I had such a great time attending this event for the very first time, and I hope you found my extensive coverage to be interesting, informing, and engaging. I look forward to attending next year’s show and I already have plans to make my coverage even more exciting and comprehensive! I’d like to give a huge thank you to Regina Durkan and Talia Chriqui for their help on the show floor and behind the scenes.
If there’s any E3 content you missed or like to read/watch again, take a look at the links below. Or you can always click the “[experience-it-all] at E3” coverage button that’s located at the top right-hand corner of the home page.
Pre- E3
[experience-it-all] @ E3 2010 E3 2010: What to expect Preview: Project Natal for Xbox 360 Experience
Pre- show floor
Day Zero: Project Natal for Xbox 360 Experience E3 2010: We’ve arrived Microsoft press conference highlights: Kinect, ESPN, Xbox slim Nintendo press conference highlights: Nintendo classics make a comeback, plus 3DS handheld Sony press conference highlights: Move, 3D gaming, PS Plus, Portal 2
Hands-on
Hands-on: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Hands-on: Nintendo 3DS Booth tour: Nintendo (plus hands-on) Hands-on: Kinectimals Hands-on: Joy Ride Hands-on: Kinect Adventures! & Kinect Sports
Interview + hands-on
Interview + hands-on: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Interview + hands-on: SOCOM 4 (w/ PlayStation Move) Interview + hands-on: TV Superstars (w/ PlayStation Move) Interview + hands-on: The Fight: Lights Out (w/ PlayStation Move) Interview + hands-on: Fable III Interview + hands-on: Super Scribblenauts Interview + hands-on: Epic Mickey Interview + hands-on: Tron: Evolution Interview + hands-on: OnLive
Booth tours
Booth tours: Capcom & Sony Online Entertainment Booth tours: 2K, Konami & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Booth tours: Square Enix, Ubisoft & Disney Interactive Studios Booth tours: Sega, THQ & EA Booth tours: Microsoft & Sony Booth tours: MTV Games/Harmonix
Ahh yes. Rapper Kid Cudi has brought the goods. Check out the first two singles off his sophomore album Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager. The first is “REVOFEV” (pronounced Rev Of Ev, short for Revolution of Evolution) which is produced by Plain Pat with strings by Larry Gold. Cudder officially released the mastered track on his blog. The second is titled “Erase Me” and it features vocals by Kanye West. The version that’s been let loose into the wild is only a radio rip, but it sounds great for a recording.
In “REVOFEV” Cudi asks, “Where will you be for the revolution?” Yeah, because this album is going to be that good. The track has a slow tempo and reminds me of many songs from MOTM, especially “Solo Dolo”. It’s not nearly as dark but I definitely hear similarities in sound and style. “Erase Me”, on the other hand, is starkly different from anything I’ve heard Cudi produce lately. It’s a very cheery, upbeat song that uses drums, guitars, and echoing vocals that results in an extremely catchy pop-rock vibe. And the fact that Mr. West makes an appearence is just icing on the cake.
MOTMII is expected to drop on G.O.O.D. Music Day, September 14 that is. But for now, take a listen and download the tracks at the links below.
[audio: Kid Cudi – REVOFEV.mp3]Kid Cudi – “Erase Me” (Featuring Kanye West) (Radio Rip)
[audio: Kid Cudi – Erase Me (Featuring Kanye West) (Radio Rip).mp3]Update: The dirty CDQ version of “Erase Me” is out now. Download it here.
[Via KidCudiBlog; 5starhiphop]
It’s been a long time coming for British musician Mr Hudson. Though you’ve probably heard of him from Jay-Z’s recent single “Young Forever”, Hudson has been in the music biz since 2007 when he dropped his first album A Tale of Two Cities. Back then he was in a band called Mr Hudson & the Library. Having listened to his debut album and working alongside him at his Glow in the Dark tour, rapper Kanye West fell in love with Hudson’s sound, and so he decided to sign him to his G.O.O.D. music label. Hudson graciously accepted and started to work on his debut solo album Straight No Chaser, which would be executive produced by Kanye. The 12-track album includes singles “There Will Be Tears“, “Supernova” (Featuring Kanye West), “White Lies“, “Everything Is Broken” (Featuring Kid Cudi), and “Anyone But Him” (Featuring Kanye West). It released in the UK way back on October 19, 2009. After numerous delays, it was finally made available to purchase and download in the U.S. on June 29, 2010. The UK version contains two additional tracks (“Lift Your Head” & a Calvin Harris remix of “Supernova”).
The best way to describe Mr Hudson’s music is alternative hip hop/electro-pop, if that makes any sense. Straight No Chaser is a breakup album, so naturally it features heavy bass thumping tracks with softer ones to balance it all out. Hudson is a fan of auto-tune, and so a number of the tracks include him using it. Interestingly, he eliminates the use of auto-tune when he’s touring; he finds it to be a fun and useful tool when working in the studio. Having listened to the album only once all the way through, I am not ready to formally review it yet. However I can say that Mr Hudson is going to be huge. He is a gifted artist with a knack for writing and beatmaking. I’d really like to see him perform live someday. Just read these choice words from collaberator Kanye West: “I believe Mr Hudson has the potential to be bigger than me, to be one of the most important artists of his generation.” Again, that comes from Kanye West!
Be sure to look after the break for some more Hudson content. You’ll find music videos for “Instant Messenger” and “Central Park”, plus there’s a short trailer that celebrates the U.S. release of the record. Continue reading Mr Hudson’s debut album finally releases stateside
We already know that “Power” is the first single off Kanye West’s forthcoming album Good Ass Job. What you didn’t know is what exactly ‘Ye was thinking when he wrote the song. Though it’s still up for interpretation, I think we can all deduce what was West takes away from his masterpiece single by looking at the George Condo album artwork that’s tagged with the track in iTunes. At the end of the song West says, “You got the power to let power go.” It appears as if this severed head belongs to Kanye, and the sword left in it plus the bloody residue represents the death of the old egotistic, power-hungry Kanye and the birth of a new man. What kind of man that is we still don’t know; but there was no Taylor Swift type incident at the BET Awards last week, where Kanye performed a fantastic rendition of “Power”, and that’s a good start.
Head over to iTunes to download the “21st Century Schizoid Man”-sampled track and start anticipating the rumored September release of Good Ass Job.
According to rapper Big Sean, September 14 is going to be a huge day for the G.O.O.D. Music crew. In the form of a tweet, Big Sean announced that his upcoming debut album Finally Famous, Kanye West’s Good Ass Job, and Kid Cudi’s Man On the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager will all release on Tuesday, September 14. If this were to actually happen it would be INSANE. You must realize, though, that all of these albums likely will not simultaneously drop on the same day since almost every major rap album get the “delay treatment”. Naturally I am skeptical about the whole thing. However, if such a day does pass I’m positive it will prove to be a fantastic marketing ploy for the G.O.O.D. Music record label (which was founded by Kanye West in 2004). I know I’ll be first in line to purchase all three of these anticipated releases.
Since Big Sean pushed out the tweet, more G.O.O.D. Music artists have decided to jump on the release date bandwagon. Consequence (ConsTV) and Tony Williams (King or The Fool) have publically stated that their albums will also drop 9/14. And the cherry on top? Rumors are swirling that John Legend is working hard to finalize his next album Wake Up (produced by The Roots) in time for the September date. With just about two months until the day, the anticipation is killing me. No really, it is.
[Via 2dopeboyz; RapRadar; TheSmokingSection, Thanks Corey Z.]
Here’s the music video for the “Wondamix” verison of Janelle Monáe’s “Tightrope”. The original version features Big Boi; this one’s got B.o.B and Lupe Fiasco. The remix is available as an iTunes download, as is Monáe’s new studio album The ArchAndroid (Suites II and III). She’s got this indie-pop/afro-punk/soulful swagga’ to her voice and style, and I like it. And B.o.B and Lupe make for nice additions to the track.
“King of Anything” is the first single off Sara Bareilles’ second studio album. Kaleidoscope Heart is the followup album to 2008’s Little Voice that featured the break out hit Love Song. You can pre-order the 14 track album right here. And “King of Anything” is available to download today, as is the music video. Sara Bareilles sounds great in this first single, and I have no doubt that Kaleidoscope Heart will please your ears. It releases September 7. (Don’t you just love this music video? The hand clapping and multiple camera shots are fun!)