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Why Do People Want A 7″ Xbox Surface Tablet?
Artist Rendition
The world is on fire right now with rumors that Microsoft is developing a seven inch tablet at their Silicon Valley offices. Not running either Windows 8 or Windows Phone 8, its OS, like the Xbox 360’s, will be built on the same kernel and probably feature a Metro-style OS in some form. So, even though they run the same tech and ports will be super easy, odds are you won’t be able to move any of that tech over. And there are other issues. There are oh, so many other issues with an Xbox Surface. So the question pops up: why would anyone want this?
Goodbye Windows Live Messenger, You Were So Awesome
Memories…
When I started working over at TeamXbox, I was told that using AOL Instant Messenger was super lame and that MSN Messenger was the super righteous. This was a decade ago and AIM is still an incredibly popular reason to claim you have an Aol account. MSN Messenger had many more features than AIM, tied to your Hotmail account, and all my friends were using it. Well, times change…
Let’s Talk About The Walking Dead’s Third Season So Far. Spoilers!
Brutal people doing brutal things.
We’re not even four episodes into this new, third season of The Walking Dead and we’ve already seen more action and plot development than the entire second season combined. Don’t you remember a year ago when we were sitting around on Hershel’s farm not finding little Sophia? Wasn’t that exciting? With four more episodes left this year (not to mention the back half next year) The Walking Dead is finally living up to its potential. Also: spoilers. Lots of spoilers.
‘Flight’ Review: A Captain In Trouble
Whip examines his whip. That was really bad, I know.
I feel I was mislead. I thought Flight – with ads that feature bright bold Eurostile type and contrails – would sport a lot more, y’know, planes. Instead, I got a two hour character study on an alcoholic coping with a controlled crash landing. A fling with a beautiful member of the flight crew opens the film, highlighting the crazy life of Captain Whip Whitaker (Denzel) who gets down with booze and up with a line of cocaine in short order. He’s a sloppy mess as he comes into the plane, reeking of gin, but when his vessel begins to fall apart around him, he sobers up quick. Through this we learn that Whitaker may be some kind of Superman, only fully operational when completely doped up. Of course, it’s not long before reality starts to catch up with him.
‘Need For Speed: Most Wanted’ Review: Lots Of Shine, Not Enough Spit
Hey guys, it’s a Need for Speed game.
I’m just guessing, not to the point of degrading the work of the talented teams over at Criterion, that Need for Speed games start off in an Electronic Arts board room. A man in a suit stands amongst his peers while a PowerPoint hangs on a wall. He proudly exclaims ‘We Need More Need For Speed-Based Product This Year’. It’s not a cheery, optimistic vision of how I think game development happens at EA’s highest echelons, but playing the series’ latest installment, I couldn’t help but feel I’ve already done so much of this before in previous EA racing games. It’s a feeling made worse by the fact that CEO John Riccitello was supposed to save EA from this kind of manipulative Larry Probst business, and yet here we are.
‘A Christmas Story 2’ Review: I Paid $3.99 To Recommend You Not Watch This
Oh. Great.
For many of us, Bob Clark’s ‘A Christmas Story’ holds a special, perennial place in our hearts. The movie’s been featured in ceaseless marathons over the past twenty years, serving as a staple of the genuine, American Christmas. The film’s narrator – Jean Shepherd, who wrote the short stories the movie is based on – tells us a tale from the perspective of Ralphie, a kid growing up in pre-war Indiana who yearns for BB guns and good grades. The movie can be sealed and hung on a wall; it’s a smart, tremendous work that would probably be the late Bob Clark’s best film, long before Super Babies sullied his reputation.
Now, nearly thirty years after that film’s debut, Warner Bros. decided that they should make a direct-to-video sequel because there are obviously a few more pennies to be wrung out of America’s collective nostalgia for Ralphie and the Parker family.
Android OS Reaches 75% Marketshare, iOS In ‘Distant’ Second
I see you hiding in the corner, Apple!
I suppose it was inevitable. Analyst group IDG recently unveiled that for the third quarter of 2012, shipments of Android-powered smartphones reached a critical 75% of all shipments made worldwide. That’s right, three out of four smartphones shipped to retailers and other resellers in the entire world had a core by Google a mere four years after Android’s debut.
Saints Row: The Third’s ‘Full Package’ Unzipping On November 6
There’s a lot of Saints Row: The Third in here.
A lot of cool games came out last year, but Saints Row: The Third, with all of its utter zaniness, stood head and shoulders above everything else. On November 6th (and on the 16th internationally), THQ is releasing its Game of the Year-style compilation of Saints Row: The Third and all of its extra content. If you haven’t made the dive yet, you should.
Need To Write A Novel? NaNoWriMo Is Here For You, Right Now!
Let this be your starting point.
Not only are you officially allowed to stop shaving today (if you’re a man, of course), but today marks the first day of the National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo for short. Long-time participant Amy wrote about it last year, and it’s hard to believe it’s already been eleven months since that hurried and intense writing session ended. If you’re unfamiliar, NaNoWriMo participants challenge themselves – and others – to write a 50,000 novel (or novella, in that range). How intense is it? Pretty intense.
Why Are Free To Play Games So Annoying?
Why is this stuff so annoying? The answer is simple.
Before Zynga’s value fell through the floor, they built on an entire company on selling virtual items in games that were free to play. If you wanted to make those crops come up or complete structures faster, you could enlist your credit card to make your dreams come true. Their model wasn’t anything new, companies out of Korea and Japan had perfected the model years before, but Zynga was a star because they were the first American company to ‘get it’ and apply their lessons to up-and-coming startup Facebook. These free to play games have proliferated but still attract a weird aura because of their intrusive begging for your dollars. So why do they do it? Because, otherwise, you won’t buy anything.
