Ragnar’s Realms

Today,  

MC Frontalot is the godfather of the “nerdcore” hip-hop genre and he raps about stuff that nerds care about, like “Star Wars.” A new film about his band’s first national tour is a funny, endearing snapshot of a movement struggling to be taken seriously.

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Blue Omega’s Damnation is set for release at the end of this month, and we don’t have to tell you how interesting the combination of steampunk and the wild west is. This latest trailer features lead designer Jacob Minkoff detailing Prescott Standard Industries, the manufacturer of just about every piece of technology there is in the world of Damnation and the evil force looking to conquer the United States.

As interesting as steampunk itself is, we have to say that evil dictators bent on domination just aren’t cool. Not at all, and, frankly, we think someone could use a hug.

Peace be damned in latest Damnation trailer originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 15 May 2009 05:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Today,  Apparently Microsoft’s J Allard is back in the gaming business, according to a two-year-old patent filed by Microsoft and released publicly this past week. Now a CTO at the company, Allard (along with a couple other folks) is credited on the patent for a motion-based controller from way back in November of … 2007.

Given Microsoft’s recent purchase of Big Park and the vast array of motion-sensing camera rumors, we’re betting this patent is old news. That being said, it would lend credence to the “Newton” rumors from last year surrounding the company — a rumor we lent credibility to at the time based on the reputable source. All we can do now is hope that Microsoft isn’t dead set on pulling a “Wii-too!”

[Via Engadget]

J Allard’s ‘magic wand’ patented … years ago originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 20 May 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Today,  

Filed under: Contests and Giveaways

Today is day two of our Gears of War action figure Fanswag giveaway and we’re continuing our gracious giving. But first we have to congratulate BigDaddyBooth for winning yesterday’s prize. And we 100% agree with him, Marcus Fenix is da man.

Now, onward to today’s giveaway where we’ll be awarding one lucky fanboy a set of two NECA created Gears of War action figures including “da man” Marcus Fenix and Augustus Cole. All you have to do is follow the rules below and enter by tonight at 9:00PM eastern. It’s really that easy. Easier then cleaning your room and much easier then making a bowl of ramen noodles. Here’s how you enter:

• Marcus Fenix has been sporting his iconic soul patch facial hair for a few years now and we’re curious to know what other kinds of facial hair Fenix would look good with. To enter today’s giveaway, comment on this post telling us what new style of facial hair you think Fenix should sport.
  
• Only one comment per person will be accepted. Posters of multiple comments will be disqualified. We’ll accept entries until 9:00PM Eastern time today, June 26th, 2008. You must be at least 18 years old to enter. This giveaway is open only to residents of the U.S. and Canada (excluding Quebec).
  
• Later today, we’ll pick one winner via a random drawing
• One winner will receive a set of two Gears of War series one figures worth $30.
  
• Complete giveaway rules can be found here

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Filed under: Machinima, Humor, WoW Moviewatch

When a disgruntled orc, Sazabi, decides that he’s had enough with getting coal for Christmas, he and Kitty devise a plan to trap Santa. However, Santa’s had a rough night and just can’t be arsed to deliver anything. Poor Sazabi is suckered into making the deliveries himself! Will he make it on time? Will he get another lump of coal in the end?

FireShifT has made the feel good Christmas movie of the year in A Big, Bad, Green Christmas. It went all the way to number one in the Warcraftmovies Christmas Spirit Machinima Contest. We’ll be highlighting the rest of the winners over the next few days. Stay tuned!

[Via Warcraftmovies.com]

Previously on Moviewatch…

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Filed under: E3

Update 4: Xbox head Don Mattrick confirmed that Bungie is working on a new Halo title. Whether this is related to the announcement is unclear.

Update 3: Luke Smith has commented to Joystiq: “We still have an exclusive publishing agreement with Microsoft, as we confirmed when we announced the split last year. That arrangement has not changed.” Also, all teased images of an announcement have now been removed from Bungie.net and within Halo 3. View images in the gallery below.

Update 2: Luke Smith replied to a comment made in NeoGAF confirming the publisher in question is in fact Microsoft. Reponding to the comment, “Bungie is the one who made this great little hype machine. And–although this will just add to the fire–they never say it’s Microsoft.” Smith replied, “Our publisher is Microsoft.”

Update: Bungie community lead Luke Smith has confirmed the postponement is legitimate. “We already are deeply disappointed with how things unfolded to this point without getting our fans to the intended payoff.” When forum goers at NeoGAF assumed it was a joke Smith responded with the above comment and added, “Nope. Not our style.” It’s real everyone. Sorry.

It appears that the wait is over. Forgoing the original plan of waiting for the countdown clock to reach zero, Bungie.net has been updated with new information regarding the mysterious Superintendent. According to the newly refreshed site, the Superintendent is … well, we don’t know. According to the site Bungie was working toward a reveal when its publishing partner, presumably Microsoft, canceled the announcement.

Right now on Bungie.net a letter from Bungie president, Harold Ryan is displayed and reveals the cancellation of the announcement.

Note: To clarify the speculation that Harold Ryan is not the president (effectively the studio manager) of Bungie LLC, you may want to listen to the January 18, 2008 Bungie Podcast [link opens iTunes]

Jump in to read the letter.

Continue reading E308: Bungie’s E3 announcement deferred by publisher [Update 4]

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Today,  

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, Business

Citing Famitsu publisher Enterbrain, Bloomberg reports the Wii sold three times more units than the PlayStation 3 in 2007 in Japan. Supposedly the sales difference is almost exactly three-to-one, with the Wii selling 3.63 million units to the PS3’s 1.21 million. The PS3 started to rally with the introduction of the 40GB model late in the year and finally outsold the Wii in early November, but lost momentum again later in the month and into December.

The Japanese hardware sales have remained fairly consistent throughout the year, with the only true shocker happening in late October when the Xbox 360 outsold the PS3. Beyond that Twilight Zone moment, the Xbox 360 sat high atop Mt. Fuji and penned its memoirs on solitude with sales of a meager 257,841 units in ‘07. And, just in case it ever becomes a Trivial Pursuit question, that fateful week when the Xbox 360 beat the PS3 in Japan was seemingly fueled by Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation.

[Via GameDaily]

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Today,  

Filed under: About the Bloggers

What’s your main right now?

Windshadow, a Feral-specced Druid on Kael’thas (US)

For the Horde or Glory to the Alliance?

Most of my characters are Alliance, although I have played both sides. Oh, and for the record… I personally see a ton of great folks, fun and mature, in both factions. And I also see the Trade channel full of idiots on both sides. If one side is ‘more mature’ than the other, I’ve never noticed. They feel like they share the same balance to me.

Favorite thing to do in Azeroth?

I love to log into guild chat, pump some background music into my headphones, pop into Flight Form, and go farm Herbs and Gas Clouds at Mach 280 while chatting with my guildies.

What’s the best instance in the game?

I haven’t played them all yet, since there are ‘guild favorites’ I keep going back into. But I’d have to say I enjoy the mix of pulls in Heroic Underbog as a tank the best.

What’s the number one thing Blizzard could do better?

I’d have to say communication on a personal level to reported customer account issues. When an issue is reported that, for an example, is as devastating as a hacked account, I think Blizzard needs to drastically improve the response time and amount of communication they provide to the victim.

Favorite mount?

Druids’ epic Flight Form. Without exception.

Favorite piece of loot?

Earthwarden, the epic mace for feral tanking Druids, available from the Cenarion Expedition at Exalted reputation.

What accomplishment in-game are you most proud of?

Taking down Talon King Ikiss in Heroic Sethekk Halls for my Druid Flight Form quest. It eventually took bringing in a a second Druid to provide the heals and keep the banished birds buffed, but we did it. And it felt like winning a major war, not just downing a single heroic level boss.

If you could add one touch of personal flair to your main, what would it be?

I’d love to be able to choose different models or options to enhance the look of my Druid in cat or bear form. Things such as being able to display armor pieces in Dire Bear form, or choose different colors or models in cat or bear, or even something as simple as being able to follow a long quest chain to elarn different models of cat or bear would be wonderful. As much as I love my Druid, I’d love it even more if I had the power to choose to change into a Polar Bear instead of the standard, or a tan plains cat instead of the standard Night Elf purple.

And I think this should apply to other classes’ abilities as well. Why should both male and female Warlocks get the same female model Succubi? Why not have female Warlock characters get the option of having a little beefcake instead? I’m just sayin’.

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Enter “The Green Box.” The question we’ve all been asking ourselves: Is Halo 3: ODST worth $60? If you want the answer, this is your review:

In hindsight, announcing what was then “Halo 3: Recon” as a “value-oriented” expansion appears to have been a crucial first misstep for Microsoft and Bungie along the road to marketing what is now Halo 3: ODST. In time, the so-called expansion grew to include a complete campaign with 4-player support; Firefight, a separate co-op multiplayer mode; a comprehensive version of Halo 3 multiplayer; and access to the Halo: Reach beta when it becomes available at an unspecified date next year. ODST was ultimately set at the standard, full-game price of $60. That’s when folks got skeptical.

So how’s your money being spent?

Continue reading Review: Halo 3: ODST

Review: Halo 3: ODST originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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“I kind of think of it as the land of bunsen burners and test tubes,” Sega West president Mike Hayes recently told IndustryGamers, commenting on the company’s experimentation with Microsoft’s Project Natal and Sony’s motion controller. Hayes claims that while Sega is still getting into the swing, kick and jump of things, it hopes to toss out official announcements in early 2010. “We have our ideas and we know what we want to do, but the technology is pretty new, particularly with Natal, so we’ve got to get to grips with the technology and see if it can do what we want it [to] do,” he said.

Of course, turning your body into a controller is something Sega wanted to do back in the days of the Genesis. With Microsoft and Sony taking care of the hard part, perhaps it’s time to bust out all those unused Activator concept games.

Continue reading Sega hopes to activate Natal, Sony Motion plans in early 2010

Sega hopes to activate Natal, Sony Motion plans in early 2010 originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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