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Tom Mulrooney documents those life sucking things we call 'video games', the increasing influence of virtual worlds, and the wonders of technology, all wrapped up in one sweet little cultural package.

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Thanks To Deitrix!
2008-04-22 17:32:24
Just a quick post to thank Deitrix for the new and absolutely amazing header! No Signal Input is looking great these days. You owe it to yourself to go and visit that site to check out his brilliant art.I will be back next Wednesday as that is the date I'm handing my dissertation in. The first post will most likely (it better be Amazon!) be my GTA IV impressions followed by a full-blown review some days after that (providing I can get through enough of the game without multiplayer distracting me too much).For those of you who are looking forward to GTA IV as much as I am I hope to see you on Xbox Live sometime next week. If any of you are interested in having a game with me sometime my Id is tmullers.I can't wait until I have the time to update this blog again. ...

Stupid University.
2008-03-03 21:45:27
Just a quick notice that, if you haven't guessed already, updates around here are going to be incredibly sporadic due to 18,000 words worth of university work and a dissertation to complete over the next few months. I don't have the time to play video games let alone write about them.I will be checking my blog roll from time to time as I do like to keep up with the latest news, but don't expect me to be the most social guy in the video game community.I really wish I could keep up with this because I love blogging but it just isn't possible at the moment.I will update, but probably only once a week. ...

More Spore Goodness!
2008-02-15 15:45:28
It's only a few days after EA officially announced the release date of Spore and the Internet has literally exploded with a tonne of new information about the most anticipated game of the year.First-up Kotaku gives us a video of a new look at the creature editor. More is revealed about the parts that make up a creature, what they do, and what's needed to gain the parts. Creation extends to air, land, and sea vehicles as well as buildings, accessories and UFO's (although the fauna creation option seems to have gone). Also shown off is one of the community aspects of the game - the content browser - called the Sporepedia. Here you can share your creations and download more with other Spore players. You can also comment on creations, track how many times yours has been downloaded, and limit content being added to game to buddies. Of note is the ability to record your creations and instantly upload a video of them to YouTube.This section also shows off some incredible creations, which conf ...
Spore

For Such A Small Guy He Sure Gets Everywhere!
2008-02-15 13:57:51
Those of you who are readers of the great and wise Gnome will know that he occasionally rises from his lair - filled to the brim with retro goodness - to bring his enlightenment to the rest of the web (do you think I'm plugging him enough here?). While we all know him for the lair he also runs Gnomes Gaming on the Go, The SEGA Master System Junkyard and Retro Treasures along with the occasional guest post here and there. You'd have thought he'd have covered all bases there but, no, on he moves to conquer the Internet.Along with Chris (The Artful Gamer) and Gary (From the Gutter) Gnome is now writing over at the recently launched Game Cabaret which, in Gnome's own words, explores the 'the sexy, dark, humorous and at times serious side of video gaming'. After breathing in that new blog smell check out wonderful posts on 'Repressed Homoeroticism in R-Type' and realism in games through the film Cabaret.With the excellent posts over at all three of these bloggers blogs I'm sure it won't be ...

Spore Release Date Finally Announced!
2008-02-12 23:55:18
The Gods have finally seen fit to grace us with a Spore release date, leaving their masses of worshipers moaning in ecstasy (I should so write erotica). One of the Gods, of course, is the legend himself, Will Wright. From EA and Will comes the official release date of September 7th for PC, Mac, Nintendo DS and mobile phones (I wonder if every single version can make the same day)."We're in our final stages of testing and polish with Spore," game designer Will Wright explained. "And the team at Maxis can't wait to see the cosmos of content created by the community later this year." - Gamespy.The biggest game of the year? It better damn well be!Spore Release Date Announced. - Gamespy. ...
Date Spore

New GTAIV Site Now Live!
2008-02-09 00:23:36
Just a quick heads-up that the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV now has it's own fully fledged flash-based site.Flash-based annoyance aside there's a tonne of new images and a few videos showing off the new environment and it's characters. There's also a map of Liberty City (where you can click on points of interest) which is likely the final design.It's good to see some new stuff and it only gets me even more excited for the game. Roll on April!Welcome to Liberty City. - Rockstar (Via Kotaku) ...
Site

Bloomsix Announces New Mobile MMO.
2008-01-31 16:39:23
Amsterdam based Bloomsix has announced what will be the first mobile massive multiplayer online strategy game. Armada: Kingdoms will run on most Java-enabled phones and a public release is scheduled for Q2 2008.The objective of the game reminds me of Tribal Wars. Thousands of players will own their own towns and also form Kingdoms with other people (like the tribes aspect of Tribal Wars). They then manage their town's economy and expand to attack their opponents. Bloomsix says the game will have a 'strong community' aspect to it (pretty much standard for any MMO which wishes to find success) and players will be able to interact with you even when you're logged out. It's distinctly casual - it obviously has to be when aimed at the mobile gaming market - and playing ten minutes a day will be enough to manage your town.I've always thought a game like Tribal Wars would execute well on a mobile (cell phone for you Yanks!) as you - unless your after a deeper community experience - you never ...

Analyst Believes Spore Will Be Delayed.
2008-01-31 16:08:57
Mike Hickey, an analyst at Janco, believes that Spore may be delayed due to recent share underperformance at Electronic Arts. I didn't mention this before but the game was reported to be roughly ready for release around March/April. Potential delays would mean the game wouldn't see the light of day until the second half of 2008.I think the popular saying 'No shit, Sherlock!' applies here. I say this because we've pretty much grown accustomed to seeing Spore being delayed and, hopefully, all these delays can only be a good thing. Personally I wouldn't mind if the game was released after Summer because I will have finished university then and, thus, have more time to spend gaming and creating a race of male genitalia.Analyst: Spore To Be Delayed To Fall/Winter 2008? - Gamasutra (Via CVG) ...
Analyst Spore

Shameless Movie Tie-In #42561
2008-01-31 01:11:57
You've been dreading this moment, as have I, Saw is finally being translated to a video game. God help us all!With something as big as the Saw franchise it was probably inevitable that a game would spawn from it, I'm just surprised it's taken so long. For those of you not in the loop Saw is set to spawn at least two more sequels (V and VI) so, unfortunately for the sane amongst us, the franchise is far from out of steam.Brash Entertainment has been licensed to produce the game for Xbox 360 and the PS3. As many current generation games Unreal Engine 3 will be employed to, possibly, see the extreme tortures in glorious HD graphics (and they thought Manhunt 2 was bad!). The films are based around a series of tests and puzzles that always result in a twist you totally weren't supposed to see coming and I can somewhat see that translating to a game.No matter how bad the Saw films can be you can't deny that the torture methods are superbly designed so it'll be interesting to see what they ca ...
Movie

GTA IV Release Date Officially Confirmed.
2008-01-24 21:41:43
After months of speculation Rockstar has officially announced the release date of, by far one of the most - if not the most - anticipated games of the year, Grand Theft Auto IV. Emails sent out to newsletter subscribers showed a date of April 29th 2008 above a picture of lead character Nico and the title. The release will be simultaneous worldwide for both the Playstation 3 and Xbox360.It's great to finally get a proper release date and, hopefully, the previous delays will only make a better game in the long-run. I suppose the only annoying thing is that it comes just before my finals!There's a nice interview with Rockstar Games Vice President of Product Development Jeronimo Barrera over at MTV. ...
Date

Turok - Demo Impressions.
2008-01-18 00:19:45
The Turok games are one of those cases where it would probably have been better leaving it alone after the success of the first game. Of course, video games are still a business and any successful game is more than likely to get a sequel. Turok spawned a franchise, and while the first is widely seen as one of the best games for the N64 the franchise flopped when the fourth installment (Turok: Evolution) was released on Playstation 2 and various consoles in 2002. Since then, thankfully, nothing has been released. Well, until now of course.Buena Vista Games (yup, that's Disney) acquired the rights back in 2005 and have eventually managed to produce a game using the Unreal Engine 3. However, this is no Gears of War. They've gone back to basics and simply called the game Turok, whether that's an attempt to start afresh remains to be seen. The demo weighs in at about 1.2GB on Xbox Live but, unless you've got nothing better to do, it's probably not worth it.Turok comes at a time when the 36 ...
Demo Impressions

Spore to be Released on the Mac. Still no Sign of it.
2008-01-17 04:30:04
Yesterday it was announced that EA are 'bringing its highly anticipated game Spore to the Mac sometime in 2008'."We couldn't be happier to bring Spore to the Mac at the same time as the PC version. Spore is a highly creative game and I look forward to seeing what the players come up with to fill the universe they design," said Wright in a statement. - MacworldI don't really care much for this news but I would if I owned a Mac. So few developers both to bring out a version of their game for Mac's so this is exciting for people who own a Mac.So why did I bother blogging this news if I don't really care? Well, it says 2008 so, even though there's not an official release date yet, it makes me more confident the game will be out this year. I'm getting increasingly worried about whether or not my rig will be up to it so I'm hoping the system requirements are on par with The Sims 2 (and providing smooth gameplay of course). Also, let's face it, we hear very little news about Spore so I'm taki ...
Mac Spore

3000 Barrels Fall Down in Crysis.
2008-01-17 03:33:33
Although Crysis itself would probably make my PC explode so much it would level my entire town I can still appreciate the wonders of what it's beautiful engine can do. The above video is simply breathtaking (considering I was once amazed at what Garry's Mod could do, and still am to some degree) and you have to wonder how a system can possibly exist to do all that without any slow down. Well, in simple terms, no system does exist. The video below shows what such a feat actually looks like in the game (not very exciting, apparently) and what can be done to combat it and make such impressive videos. The video also shows more amazing set-ups, but this time with boxes instead of barrels. Where is the explosive barrel love? WHERE???For those of you who are lucky enough to be able to run the game on full and want a more detailed - and textual - explanation just simply go here.Crysis '3000 Barrels' video - GameVideos.com (Via Kotaku)Crysis: Mass Physics - YouTube ...

Fresh Start.
2008-01-15 22:00:18
I've finally gone and switched to the new version of Blogger because I was having some problems with the older version. I couldn't get an 'Older Posts' link at the bottom of my blog, plus - let's face it - my layout was getting a little dated.With all the headaches of the previous version I'm glad that it's so easy to set things up with the new version. Pretty soon I'll probably start customising it to my own tastes once I figure out how to edit the new template properly.Also, thanks to Deitrix for the amazing header! ...

2007 'Game of the Year'.
2008-01-14 22:01:24
I know this is a little late but university work comes first and I had bucket loads of it. Wait, did I just say that? Anyway, I’m updating this at least every weekday from this day forth as I need something to keep me sane while I work on my dissertation. I also seriously need to start thinking about my future and I want writing to play a large part in it. Updating this blog can only help in that sense.I’d like to say that doing this was easy, partly because I’ve played so few games this year, but it really wasn't. With that said from the few games I have managed to play through I’ve played some cracking ones because, often, I’ve only had time to play the best (or what I was told was the best) of what’s been a stunning year. It’s easier to choose from a group of sub-standard games that only include one or two amazing standouts but it’s almost impossible to choose a winner from a bunch of A-listers. I’m still going to try though, and you can see below that I really cou ...
Game

Um, What?
2008-01-10 20:12:51
I just got an email about promoting clothing and fashion on this blog....Hmm, I think they slightly misunderstood the purpose of this site. I put a description in the right sidebar so people know what the blog is about - it doesn't take long to read it!With that said I'm impressed that this blog is actually getting any marketing interest. ...

WolfQuest Now Live!
2007-12-23 19:45:25
Remember WolfQuest? That strange yet alluring game that allows you to play as a wolf and pee on others? Well it's now live!I haven't had a chance to play it yet (hectic Christmas preparations) but apparently demand led to a server outage on December 21st. I'm looking forward to trying it though and, if you do try it, let me know if it's any good.In the mean time you could always go back to the deers.WolfQuest.orgGot a game you want me to take a look at? Email me or comment in the comments section! ...

SocioTown - A New 3D Browser-Based MMO.
2007-12-15 19:11:44
Games like Runescape and Habbo Hotel have shown that browser-based MMO's have a large market due to their ability to work on a wide-range of systems and browsers. Simplicity is an attractive option amongst the casual gaming audience and you only have to look at Metaplace to see what this appeal can generate. Obviously this leads to countless iterations all attempting to appeal to a largely young audience. SocioTown is yet another entry attempting to crack the market.Stating that your game is 'the biggest and most sophisticated browser-based 3D virtual world to date' may seem overly-ambitious but SocioTown is already looking pretty impressive compared to similar entries. Utilising Adobe’s Shockwave Player it provides players with a 'fully immersive and persistent 3D environment' which is already shaping up to look a lot better than the likes of Runescape or Habbo. I'm impressed that the game is actually running in a web browser because I've seen recent games with far worse graphics t ...
Browser

360 Lovin'
2007-12-06 23:48:47
I'm the kind of guy who will pick up a game, play it for a few days, then buy a new game and leave the previous one on the shelf to collect dust. This seems to happen no matter how good or bad I think the said game is. So, due to this, I was slightly surprised that I've spent the last two weeks working my way through games one by one.Ok, this is not entirely true. Basically I only have three games for my new 360 at the moment (Halo 3, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Assassin's Creed) and, more due to the lack of any others, I've played them all. However, I've completed COD4 and I'm now working my way through Halo 3's campaign. Assassin's creed has been put on the shelf for the moment (although I have completed a few assassin's), mainly because an FPS excites me more after a hard day's work (not that I do any!). I just feel like I fully appreciate a game more when I give it all my time and don't split it up between four or five different games. Also, I'm a bit skint at the moment so ...

So I've Finally Purchased An Xbox 360.
2007-11-24 00:07:15
Description Price Total1 326909 Halo 3 10.00 GBP 10.00 GBP *BUNDLE 333169*1 330227 Assassin's Creed 10.00 GBP 10.00 GBP *BUNDLE 333169*1 332626 Xbox 360 Premium Console 249.99 GBP 249.99 GBP *BUNDLE 333169* DELIVERY: 0.00 GBP TOTAL: 269.99 GBPSo I can finally experience the delights of an Xbox360. If it weren't for the university assignments I have looming over me like Satan himself then I'd be in for a very enjoyable Christmas! ...
Xbox

Indy Games You Should Be Playing - 11-17 November 2007
2007-11-22 17:57:00
Mid-November sees the days getting ever more colder as the nights get longer and the winter blues inevitably set in. Don't fret though, there's plenty of indy game goodness to keep you stuck in your nice warm house!This week I've mostly been using the wonderful Kongregate for my daily dose of independent games. While most of the games aren't exclusive to the site the community and the achievements are - both of which are the icing on the cake! Here's my favourite picks of the week:Asteroids Revenge III - Crash to Survive turns the tables on the traditional asteroids game by putting you in the shoes of an asteroid itself. You progress through the levels by upgrading your asteroid (speed, shield etc) and flinging yourself and your allies at the human ships. The whole game is a build-up to a final endless level where literally everything is thrown at you and your trust allies.Unfortunately you're not likely to go back to the game once you've beat the achievements but it's fun while it las ...
Games

Bot Arena 3.
2007-11-22 17:53:35
I was a big fan of the old TV program Robot Wars when I was younger because what male kid wouldn't want to see robots cutting each other up with chainsaws and flame throwers? Unfortunately Bot Arena 3 is devoid of chainsaws but the robots and their destructive habits remain. However, a lack of chainsaws doesn't equal a bad game - as much as I'd love to see them!Career mode sees you progressing through the ranks with your small crew of bots. Upgrades are made available after you beat each arena and the cash you win from each fight allows you to purchase them. It can take a few matches to know what the best combination is but, basically, it's the stronger the better (duh!). Challenge mode, with tasks like evasion from other bots, can be incredibly hard and frustrating but at least Kongregate offers you a badge if you complete them all.Unfortunately the bot AI isn't the best in the world and they can often get stuck in a corner, which is frustrating when you need the support. The click an ...

Half-Life 2: RTS Style.
2007-11-08 19:48:28
Half-Life 2 has an amazing mod scene (thanks to the incredible flexibility of the Source engine) and everything from playing as zombies, building forts, modern warfare and - of course - creating pretty much anything you want with Garry's Mod, has been covered and played by myself with much enthusiasm. So, due to this, it was only inevitable that someone would figure out that the Half-Life 2 world needed some RTS lovin'.While Bungie may be going all RTS with Halo Wars Valve doesn't seem have similar ideas for Half-Life 2 so it's ultimately left up to the mod scene to cover this niche. Half-Life 2: Wars is the result and -by God - it's not a bad one. It's just incredible to see how the Source engine can adapt to pretty much any game style.All the basic stuff you'd expect from an RTS is here; unit control, objectives, the fog of war and resource gathering through capture points (base-building and multiplayer is to be added in the next release). It's neat to see tiny Rebel and Combine sold ...
Life Style

Sky News Reports on Peadophilia in Second Life.
2007-11-03 00:09:15
Ah, Second Life! Land of furries, flying genitals, more sex than you can shake a stick at and - now - people who like to pretend to have sex with children. In a world where the only limit is your imagination it's inevitable that those with twisted minds are going to set up home.The video above is a Sky News report on an area in Second Life known as 'Wonderland'. Like countless area's in Second Life it's a place that people with the sole objective of getting some virtual 'no strings' sex can call home; except in this twisted place the avatars are in the guise of children - some as young as toddlers.The video, admittedly, employs shock tactics and has a scaremongering feel to it but it does highlight a legitimate and important issue in regard to what crosses the line in the so-called freedom of Second Life. The residents of Second Life may hark on about how their creativity shouldn't be limited but I don't see how sex with children could possibly have a legitimate reason to exist in so ...
Life News Reports Second Life

Second Life in CSI: NY.
2007-10-20 18:26:20
You could be forgiven for thinking that trailer was a spoof but it's from an actual CSI:NY episode airing in the US on Wednesday. Finished staring at the video in crazed wonderment? Right!I'm all for virtual worlds and Web 2.0 entering the mainstream but this is slightly strange. The plot sees Mac Taylor (Gary Sinise) entering Second Life in order to pursue a killer who has killed another Second Life user. Apparently Second Life is the Matrix as one of the shows characters (I don't watch the show) screams 'log off!' as Mac is about to be killed in the game. Although the episode would probably have been better with Mac's head being decapitated in real life at the same time as his virtual characters the episode is still worth watching because it's indeed a bold move for the show and it's novelty value is too much to pass on.The show will also have a tie-in with Second Life (which expects an influx of a million new users) whereby fans will be given the task of solving the murders in Secon ...
Life Second Life

Control Second Life With Your Brain.
2007-10-17 23:01:46
There's a common misconception that everyone who plays video games are lazy because all they seem to do is sit on their ass all day. With the advent of the Wii this opinion has changed a little but there's still the idea that video gamers could be doing far more with their time. So, when some Japanese bioengineers come up with a way of playing games without even so much as moving a muscle you might concede that these 'haters' have a point.Unfortunately the 'game' they decided to test this on was Second Life and one could argue whether or not the 'games' users actually have brains that think about anything other than sex (cheer up, I'm kidding!). The device works by monitoring electrical activity in the motoro cortex via eternal electrodes on the scalp. Hmm, I'll let the experts explain this one;All a user has to do to control his/her avatar is imagine performing various movements. The activity monitored by the headpiece is read and plotted by an electroencephalogram, which relays it to ...
Brain Life Second Life

Game of the Week: Orange Box (Half-Life 2: Episode Two Edition)
2007-10-17 19:05:46
The Orange Box has much to answer too in view of the lack of posts around here lately. I could say that it's because I'm back at university and I'm drowning under a flood of incredibly dull work but we all know I'd be lying if I tried to use that in my defense. It was just too damn hard not to get wrapped up in the hype surrounding The Orange Box and it's such an amazing deal that you'd be a fool not to take advantage of it. By all rights I shouldn't even own the game because it's not out in the good old UK until October 18th, but I've fully embraced the future and Steam can always have a place in my bed (a woman would be preferred, of course).Although you could spend all year reading the opinions and impressions of this excellent deal around the Internet - and anyone calling themselves a gamer would have played them to death already - I'm still going to offer my brief impressions anyway because, well, I know you love it really!First up it's Half-Life 2: Episode Two.Pimp My Ride: Half ...
Game Life Orange

Stupid News of The Day!
2007-10-05 04:13:08
Or rather it's my attempt to actually post something this week and not actually spend a great deal amount of time writing. Yes, I've been a bad blogger but university work and...um...Team Fortress 2 (it works now) must come first sometimes!Rockstar are supposedly pissed at the 'Grand Theft Scratchy' section in the upcoming The Simpsons game."I was always under the impression that when you do parody, it's a sign of respect... If we make fun of Grand Theft Auto, we're not going to hurt the sales of Grand Theft Auto... But yeah, we've definitely had some reactions - we've had to pull stuff from the game", The Simpsons lead designer Greg Rizzer revealed to us in an interview earlier this week. - CVGIsn't Rockstar being a bit hypocritical here? The GTA series makes parodies of everything but when it comes to someone making a parody of their game it's not allowed? Also I was under the impression that parody is legal in the USA.It's probably just some lawyer who doesn't know much about the co ...
News Stupid

Run Athletics Legacy x Nintendo Sneakers.
2007-09-27 21:14:46
My British upbringing is dying to call these things trainers but I'm just going to go with my wonderful cousins name for them. So, Run Athletics and Nintendo have teamed up to create these Mario Bros. inspired snazzy pair of sneakers (I should be shot for even using the word 'snazzy').The sneakers feature a Mario Bros. 'M' emblazoned on the tongue and a Power Star motif on the side. There's no word on the price but an upcoming launch party at New York's Nintendo World store (September 25th) will most likely reveal the details.I've never really been a fan of video game sneakers - possibly because we don't see them very often - but I have to admit these are pretty cool. Since the tongue will most likely be covered by whatever jeans/trousers you're wearing, however, I doubt many people would notice that they're Mario inspired. I guess I'll just stick to video game t-shirts - even though I don't currently own any because I suck.UPDATE: I've just been notified that they'll be priced $120 a ...
Legacy Nintendo

Is Shanda Really Banning Males From Gender-Bending?
2007-09-27 01:34:51
Joystiq are reporting that the story I posted yesterday - about Shanda banning males from playing female characters in one of their MMO's - may be nothing more than a rumor. They point out that the story has originated from one questionable source (17173, where they couldn't actually find the original article) and no official confirmation has been released by Shanda.Joystiq also states that they find it hard to believe a publicly traded company would violate people's privacy by making them send in a picture of themselves. In the western world I'd be inclined to agree but if we're talking about China here then it doesn't seem surprising for a country where many freedoms are suppressed. If the intent was to protect females then making them take a picture of themselves isn't doing much to promote that initiative.Combine the questionable editorial judgment with the translation problems inherent in citing information from a Chinese site and you have a perfect recipe for an erroneous story t ...
Bending Gender Males

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