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|---|---|
| Joystiq | 51 Comments |
| The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) | 386 Comments |
| Engadget | 76 Comments |
| TV Squad | 1 Comment |
| Cinematical | 1 Comment |
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| Engadget HD | 1 Comment |
| Joystiq Nintendo | 84 Comments |
| Engadget Mobile | 4 Comments |
| The Jason Calacanis Weblog | 1 Comment |
Recent comments under this profile:
First footage of Netflix on PS3 {Joystiq}
Nov 6th 2009 1:29PM I got this in this morning.
I can confirm it supports and plays back 720p.
At first I thought it did not as the first title I tried seemed to "hang" (Leverage TV Series) however another title I tried did in fact play and does so @ 720p
-K
Andy Ihnatko on Verizon Droid "iDon't" ads: baloney (mostly) {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Nov 5th 2009 10:18AM Erm. That was a *horrible* rebuttal article. His basic take was "these claims are all true but I don't care"...c'mon :)
Adobe engages Apple in passive aggressive warfare with iPhone's Flash message {Engadget}
Nov 3rd 2009 7:03AM @NohOne:
Very well-written and well reasoned...and it would have stayed that way until your imagined coup de grace:
The QuickTime container format is an open standard, has been for years, and is the container format for the mpeg 4 video specification. Either that, you don't know what "proprietary" means, because "MOV" is just as proprietary as engadget, windows, McDonald's fries and just about everything else. It is owned by someone :)
If you mean non-interoperable, well, note what I said before.
Nintendo officially announces large-screen DSi LL, hits Japan Nov. 21 {Joystiq}
Oct 31st 2009 7:45AM What the DSi LL demonstrates, in a nutshell, is that Nintendo's business is customer and market-driven, whereas, Sony (PSPGo we are sooo looking at you) seems to begrudgingly acquiesce to customer demands.
Sony seems to plan its strategy around forum and blog anticipation...but doesn't actually look at what is being bought and sold and by whom. The corporate culture there is similar to Apple's with regard to dictating what you want and need.
Sometimes it works. When it doesn't, they are VERY monolithic and slow to respond...to their detriment.
-K
Review: DJ Hero {Joystiq}
Oct 31st 2009 6:49AM I think the word all of you "DJs" (except the one) is looking for is "turntablism"...which is a wholly different style and class than (merely) beatmatching
There are some that posit that beatmatching lacks a level of showmanship...and only at the very advanced levels, such as key mixing, is really mowadays that much of a skill with the advent of so much software and hardware assistance.
That is to say, a kid with a bit of coin and 3 weeks of summertime constant practice and a sense of rhythm can put together a playlist that can be beat mixed fairly convincingly...but turntablism requires a level of manual dexterity and hand eye coordination.
Most of the "DJs" that I hear fobbing it off as dated are highly incapable of actually doing it in the first place :)
-K
Review: DJ Hero {Joystiq}
Oct 31st 2009 6:35AM I don't understand the "it costs too much" argument.
The game costs the same as any other game for ps3 or xbox360: $60.
The controller costs the same as any other Red Octane controller: $60.
*shrug*
-K
I heart my Apple TV, but as for 3.0 ... {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Oct 30th 2009 9:42PM So much for the "hardware/software" notion :)
Once you deconstruct it and then essentially install a different front end, hooks and extensions...I think it is a stretch to still refer to it as Apple TV as it clearly isn't the "hardware and software" product that Apple developed and delivered :)
-K
Survey says, yes, teens and tweens still want video games this holiday {Joystiq}
Oct 28th 2009 4:47AM I feel the same way, really. My oldest son, who is a teenager has, of course as he's gotten older, seen an R-Rated flick or two (some of the most thought-provoking films ever made are R-rated) and has played his share of FPS and such (I personally don't care for them...I call them "stress factories, lol) but my younger children...not so much.
There is a "knee-jerk" reaction it seems from "both sides" of the issue and a lot of adult gamers, you know in that 18-24 up to 30 demographic, seem to forget that there is a generation *between themselves* and the Boomers that aren't nearly as idiotic and irrational bout games and gaming.
Those would be our PARENTS.
You know, the ones that gleefully bought us all the stuff you guys consider "retro" when you are being polite. They are the ones oddly enough with the crazy talk simply because they remember the stuff they bought us wasn't as graphic.
They remember incorrectly, of course, but there is no talking to your folks sometimes. You know what I'm sayin' :)
We simply need to wait for a few more of them to die off to get a set of talking heads that know what they are talking about :)
Relax.
-K
Survey says, yes, teens and tweens still want video games this holiday {Joystiq}
Oct 28th 2009 12:21AM Some of these replies kind of disturb me, simply because I am a parent and a gamer too...with kids in elementary, middle and high school.
There seems to be this idiotic notion that everything that is appropriate for adults is appropriate for kids *when talking about game to gamers* simply because some gamers without children seem to think the mere discussion of this will somehow take "their" games away.
Honestly, I have LESS of a problem with the replies than I do with the initial notion floated in the piece in the first place.
But I suppose this is what happens when you have neither editors editing nor somewhat reasonable adults doing the writing in the first place.
The whole last paragraph was completely pandering to you guys...you know that, right?
:)
-K
New Gay Tony in-game anime is all too familiar {Joystiq}
Oct 27th 2009 7:21AM One thought about the odd political bent this took:
It is interesting to note that historically, Liberals and
Ultra-Liberals have a disconcerting tendency to suppress speech the
dissents...and usually, oddly enough, claiming a moral high ground
that justifies the suppression of opposing ideas and quashing of
other freedoms based on some sort of intellectual superiority...when
in fact it could be said that it is intellectually corrupt to do so.
Just something to think about, considering the way this comment
thread has run...
-K
Rock Band out for $9.99 on the iPhone... but fails to thrill {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Oct 20th 2009 12:30AM If you are a fan of Rock Band....get this. You will enjoy it. Without question.
Because unlike other "rhythm games" on the iPhone...this one actually looks, feels and sounds like, well, effin' Rock Band.
Comparing it to TTR is like...
No.
And I have content in TTR :) It isn't the same thing, the same feel or the same polish. Rock Band "feels" like a console game.
And at $10 and 50¢/song for track packs...it is Rock Band, bargain-style.
-K
Apple relents: in-app purchase for free apps allows demo-to-paid {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Oct 16th 2009 5:58AM Apple does not in any way whatsoever review apps "one line of code at a time" and I have no idea where you would get such a notion.
-K
Tim Schafer dishes out Brutal Legend strategies (not in real time) {Joystiq}
Oct 15th 2009 8:24PM I would say it is "RTS-esque"...as opposed to "RTS-y". It is very, very light...but I do suppose for the "Arrr! GROK KIIILLLL" types doing 3 things at once might be a bit overwhelming ;)
-K
Tim Schafer dishes out Brutal Legend strategies (not in real time) {Joystiq}
Oct 15th 2009 8:20PM @The Dark Wayne:
You have NO IDEA how "uncool" you made yourself right there...so I'm gonna help you out, just this once, so you NEVER do that again:
Sam Raimi. Bruce Campbell. Army of Darkness.
You're Welcome.
-K
Daytona USA returns to arcades in high-def as 'Sega Racing Classic' {Joystiq}
Oct 15th 2009 8:09PM A 15 year-old child on an Internet comment? No thanks.
Activision wisely promotes DJ Hero with Daft Punk {Joystiq}
Oct 15th 2009 5:56PM Spencer: Exactly.
The "problem" with DJ Hero, from a purely technical standpoint is that it sort of mixes styles, so for say a purist 1200's-style DJ (and leave us face it, in this day and age, most of them that are performance dj's are using Serato, Traktor or Torq on the backend) it is a "perversion" of sorts, but for folks that basically do "live production" style mixing it isn't *nearly* as far as a leap...but for them, scratching is a very small part of what they do, but what is "classically" associated with a performance DJ.
I personally think it achieves a pretty good balance, tho if you aren't a fan of scratching, it might be a bit much. It is meant to be a game and not a "DJ Simulator" but my previous point still stands and DJs that actually touch the thing will reluctantly agree: it is a LOT more realistic than pressing 5 colored buttons to "simulate" chords.
-K
Activision wisely promotes DJ Hero with Daft Punk {Joystiq}
Oct 15th 2009 3:26PM Ok. A Few...points:
1. For the "DJ's" out there that seem to think this is "nothing" like what they do:
You are dead wrong, on several levels. So much so, that I am willing to bet that within 3 months, someone will have these things hooked into ableton live as performance controllers.
Unlike say, GH Guitar/Bass, on Hard and Expert there is a 1:1 correlation to what is being heard, what is happening on the xfader, directional scratches and the sample triggering scheme.
Sorry.
2. Complexity, actual gameplay
If you've never used the xfader on a dj mixer, this is going to be about 30% - 45% harder for you to play. For reasons likely to be related to actual DJ involvement with the production of this game, the crossfader works like real one and has almost zero resistance at the midpoint; it does NOT click into place or auto-center. You really have to "do" it and it will infuriate the hell out of the "gamers" because it requires doing it by "feel"...a very analog sensation.
The game is VERY UNREWARDING on "Easy"...like other games of this sort, if you are musically inclined it will be HARDER on easy than Medium+, mostly because it is too slow, and well, boring. It will be "off" and you will hate it :)
3. "Tracking"
Yes. Very nice. Unlike the IDIOTIC crap in the GH series where you know, they add an extra buttons for the *exact same notes* when a distortion section comes up (I mean...really...c'mon) DJH works like this: as the difficulty ramps up, the speed and frequency of what you have to do gets closer to 1:1. You can't really "see" this in the gameplay footage/screen stuff as much as you can in videos (or watching people playing IRL) of what is going on with the controller. Unlike (again) some of the GH "wtf"-ery we are used to, the tracking is logical, directly correlates and makes sense.
As for pricing...well it is pretty much on par isn't it with all the other "plastic instrument" games...$60 first party controller + $60 "next-gen" game MSRP.
I would recommend folks that have a doubt or two not related to the music (If you don't like the kind of music, there is nothing here for you...*shrug*) to go to Best Buy, set the thing on medium or hard and try it out...or get one of your pals from activision to let you mess with the full title. If you can :)
-K
Metareview: Brutal Legend {Joystiq}
Oct 15th 2009 12:32AM No no. There is a bit more in there than that.
So far, I'm liking it.
Then again, I'm old, so I like pretty much anything where Ozzy cracks jokes and in comprehensible :)
-K
Dev raises price of $3 app to $40 just to spite customers {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Oct 13th 2009 5:34PM This is why I keep my pal Shenanigans of speed-dial.
There is virtually no situation where $3 is a "lot of money". In a world where a cup of coffee and a donut costs $3...I'm just getting sick of hearing this.
From people that routinely buy and use some of the most expensive consumer electronics made.
USB-IF to Palm: "Oh really? You've got some explaining to do." {The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)}
Oct 3rd 2009 3:51PM Paul...you...are wrong. Sorry buddy.
1. The XML method isn't "official" or "sanctioned"...it is a Hack/Workaround because -
2. The Plugin API *used* to be the way to do this. Apple pulled it to lock iTunes to the handful of underpowered old flash devices it supported originally and its own hardware exclusively.
The True and Proper Way to sync your media to a Device with iTunes would be for it to show up in the CLEARLY LABELED and DESIGNATED "Device" category in iTunes.
Any and every device USED TO be able to do this. When Apple started making their own and gained Market share, the locked everyone else out.
This is what *actually* happened This revisionist crap gets really, REALLY old after awhile.
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
