I've been reading across HBO's page and the cast's twitter, trying to find if any sort of schedule had been confirmed for Curb Your Enthusiasm's Season 9. (which hasn't been "officially announced" yet, but HBO said it was good to go..)
With the past recent Season's getting better and better ratings, a new Season is sort of an obvious move, the channel is okay with it, Larry's motivated for more episodes, they just need to film those/air them..
Anyway, will searching around, I found this funny little video which was a teaser for last year's Season 8 actually.
Check it out, Godzilla ain't got a thing on Larry David!
Saturday, March 31, 2012
This sucks
BEST WHIP & T-DOWN EDGAR TORRONTERAS MASTERS OF DIRT 2011 from edgar torronteras on Vimeo.
Obviously the music sucks, and the SUPER BIG TIME freestyle moto, cool guy attitude sucks too, but what's totally, completely, awesomely sucky is the whips they're doing. I know what you're going to say, and yeah, at first I thought it was pretty impressive. I know, they're waaaaaaay more sideways then I'll ever be. But in the process of showing off how sideways and upside-down they are, they feel the need to contort and throw their upper bodies around in what appears to be a seizure-induced fit.
I don't have any actual tricks to speak of, and I can't even do tabletops, so when it comes time to floss the whip on some jumps, I've only got five go-to moves. I try to alternate between these as I go through jumps, and I even try to do combo moves on bigger jump:
1. An actual whip. I'm not very good at these, and even if I was you don't want to do the same whip on every jump for every run down A-Line. Sure it's the most legit of my five tricks, but it's also the most boring. That's what led me to develop the next four skills...
2. The E.T. It's a classic. Pedal your brains out in mid air. You'll look like a goon, guaranteed.
3. The jammin salmon. Stick out those elbows and knees, and then shake your bike violently, 4-5 times back and forth.
4. The bar hump. The key to any good bar hump is looking back. If you bar hump but you're still looking straight ahead, you're doing it wrong. Just imagine your stem is Jessica Alba and the sky is a ceiling mirror, and you're well on your way.
5. The head whip. Otherwise known as "the pinkbike whip" or "the Mike Hopkins Titec ad circa '06." This is when some beginning rider posts a photo of themselves doing a "sick whip," but their bike is pointed dead straight. The only thing that makes it appear whipped is that they've thrown their bodies all around, and violently whipped their heads back and to the side. Bonus points if you sprain your neck or induce a crash from head-whipping, but it obviously doesn't count if your bike pivots, turns, or whips in the process. Adam Ransavage is amazing at head whips.
And the head-whip is exactly what those moto guys are doing in the video. It looks like they're trying to dance like Elaine Benes in the middle of their whips:
PETER CROUCH'UN EŞİ DUBAI'DE
 |
| Peter Crouch'un eşi Abbey Clancy kızı Sophia ile birlikte Dubai'de tatil yapıyor. |
Super Dictionary: deserve
Again with the cheesecake and Supergirl? Though this time it's a bit creepier, what with Supes, both their poses 'n' all...
Super Dictionary © DC Comics
(Click for bigger pic)
Super Dictionary © DC Comics
I've got lots of room left to improve
Above: my technique.
Below: proper technique, courtesy of Cory Tepper.
My mom always said, "the biggest room in the whole world is the room for improvement."
ComicPageOfTheWeekend: A night to howl!
Good ol' classic JLI! :D
Guy and Tora... I miss this couple..
(Click for bigger pic)
Justice League of America #28 © Marvel Comics
Guy and Tora... I miss this couple..
Justice League of America #28 © Marvel Comics
Friday, March 30, 2012
Movie NEWS! Superman: Man of Steel teaser poster
The all-new rebooted Superman movie, Man of Steel, gets a teaser poster!
kay..this is strange...I mean weird...or rather odd.
They're definitively going to the "alien" side of the Superman mythos. Not sure if I like what Hollywood graphic designers come up with nowadays...
kay..this is strange...I mean weird...or rather odd.
They're definitively going to the "alien" side of the Superman mythos. Not sure if I like what Hollywood graphic designers come up with nowadays...
Stand-up - Richard Lewis at the Laugh Factory
Here's some stand-up, it's been a while.
Richard Lewis - which most of ya probably know from Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm - who performed his routine at the Laugh Factory in October 2009.
Love this guy!
Always a fun to listen to, a bit darker/less enthusiastic than your usual comedians, but hilarious nonetheless.
This man's no doubt one of the best of his generation!
I've been trying to get his stand-up CD on Amazon for a while...
Points:
This guy has a lot of them. Verg, you better step up your game, you've got a little competition now.
MAD #Superbuddies - A new name
Time for a lil' cartoon short!
This one comes courtesy of MAD TV, one of the animators officially released it on youtube.
It's from an episode from this past February:
This was actually pretty fun! :D
Loved seeing the Flash family, the JLI, and many others get some spotlight in there!
Since Warner Bros' been recycling some DC-related MAD segments in DC Nation (the new Cartoon Network cartoon block), I'm guessing this will air again some time soon.
This one comes courtesy of MAD TV, one of the animators officially released it on youtube.
It's from an episode from this past February:
This was actually pretty fun! :D
Loved seeing the Flash family, the JLI, and many others get some spotlight in there!
Since Warner Bros' been recycling some DC-related MAD segments in DC Nation (the new Cartoon Network cartoon block), I'm guessing this will air again some time soon.
FanFilmFriday: Maxwell Lord's Advil Commerical
Here's yet another great short from the guys at Blinky Productions.
(I should make a Blinky-tag at this point, honestly!)
This one's also featuring everyone's favorite superhero, Blue Beetle!
...in...
a commercial for Maxwell Lord's Advil!
Man... lots of Infinite Crisis allusions!
Too soon?
(wait...hasn't it been like over a decade now??)
(I should make a Blinky-tag at this point, honestly!)
This one's also featuring everyone's favorite superhero, Blue Beetle!
...in...
a commercial for Maxwell Lord's Advil!
Man... lots of Infinite Crisis allusions!
Too soon?
(wait...hasn't it been like over a decade now??)
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Blind squirrels
You know the saying "even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while?"
This is the same principle, in reverse:
"Even a highly capable, naturally gifted squirrel with tons of experience who should know better still looks like a blind squirrel every once in a while."
But seriously, that's the absolute nastiest foot hang I've seen on the World Cup circuit since the Rennie days. This picture went a long way toward boosting my tragically-low-but-still-artificially-high self esteem.
This is the same principle, in reverse:
"Even a highly capable, naturally gifted squirrel with tons of experience who should know better still looks like a blind squirrel every once in a while."
But seriously, that's the absolute nastiest foot hang I've seen on the World Cup circuit since the Rennie days. This picture went a long way toward boosting my tragically-low-but-still-artificially-high self esteem.
TV NEWS! Beware the Batman teaser
It's been a long time since last Warner Bros talked about their upcoming new Batman cartoon show...
Here's a new teaser poster Warner released about Beware the Batman, the upcoming CGi TV series.
And here's the official press release:
To be honest, I guess I'll only check out the pilot, but I'm personally not much interested in another CGi show *cough*GreenLantern*cough*
I'd rather go with something similar to Young Justice...why not simply expand that show's universe by focusing on its Batman? You know, like JLU, Superman the animated series and Batman's animated were all connected?
Those were the days...
Here's a new teaser poster Warner released about Beware the Batman, the upcoming CGi TV series.
And here's the official press release:
A cool, new take on the classic Dark Knight franchise, Beware the Batman incorporates Batman’s core characters with a rogues gallery of new villains not previously seen in animated form. Along with backup from ex-secret agent Alfred and lethal swordstress Katana, the Dark Knight faces the twisted machinations of Gotham City’s criminal underworld led by the likes of Anarky, Professor Pyg, Mister Toad and Magpie. Produced by Warner Bros. Animation, this action-packed detective thriller deftly redefines what we have come to know as a “Batman show.” Featuring cutting-edge CGI visuals to match the intricate twists and turns of the narrative, Batman steps out of the shadows and into the spotlight for an entirely new generation of fans. With WBA’s Sam Register executive producing, and Batman Beyond’s Glen Murakami and Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated’s Mitch Watson producing, Beware the Batman, based on characters from DC Comics, is coming soon to Cartoon Network!Alrighty-o.
To be honest, I guess I'll only check out the pilot, but I'm personally not much interested in another CGi show *cough*GreenLantern*cough*
I'd rather go with something similar to Young Justice...why not simply expand that show's universe by focusing on its Batman? You know, like JLU, Superman the animated series and Batman's animated were all connected?
Those were the days...
Gamin' NEWS! more on #AnarchyReigns + Transformers
Here's a couple of videogame news!
3rd person action games it is for t'day!
First up, Sega and Platinum Games just released two new trailers for Anarchy Reigns, on both Sega's (SegaSide) and Platinum's (PlatinumSide) website of the game.
Duality is the key word here.
They both highlight Jack Cayman and Leo's scenario. (which just goes to confirm this game's simply MadWorld 2 at heart)
Enjoy:
Loads of gameplay and CGi cinematic scenes in there!
It is basically a continuation of the story of MadWorld. And the game itself plays pretty similarly in the singleplayer mode. (the multiplayer will be more action/match/arena oriented)
~
Meanwhile, Activision released an all-new trailer for their own Transformers: Fall of Cybertron.
This sequel to War for Cybertron is looking pretty promising, if you ask me.
And I'm not a fan of Transformers (mostly a casual fan you can say), but seeing these "dinobots", "insectbots", etc. come together in this epic conclusion.. High Moon did a great job of improving an already fun enough game.
Keep an eye out for this one, 'round August 28.
Movie NEWS! #Anchorman Announcement on Conan
Fans of Ron Burgundy and the rest of the Channel Four News Team, enjoy this announcement!
Will Ferrell just announced he would be back as Ron Burgundy in a yet-to be named sequel.
And that's not all, Adam McKay, Paul Rudd, and Steve Carell are all on board for this Anchorman 2!
(David Koechner's strangely absent for now...)
Judd Apatow will be producing it!
Let's celebrate with some music!
Will Ferrell just announced he would be back as Ron Burgundy in a yet-to be named sequel.
And that's not all, Adam McKay, Paul Rudd, and Steve Carell are all on board for this Anchorman 2!
(David Koechner's strangely absent for now...)
Judd Apatow will be producing it!
Let's celebrate with some music!
BestOf Judge Dredd - I AM THE LAW!!
With a Judge Dredd movie reboot/remake, what more fitting to have around today than....a clip from the Schneiderific original Stallone-starring Judge Dredd movie?
By the by, he is the law.
Anyone understood what Sly said there at the end??
It's been over 10 years and I still don't get it....
(à propos, I just adooooore these ol' school late-80s/early-90s violent action flicks)
By the by, he is the law.
Anyone understood what Sly said there at the end??
It's been over 10 years and I still don't get it....
(à propos, I just adooooore these ol' school late-80s/early-90s violent action flicks)
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
More Sam Hill
Sam Hill 2005:
Sam Hill 2012:
And yes, 2012 Sam Hill could kick my ass on any course anywhere with his eyes closed while riding a tricycle. We concede that point.
Sam Hill 2012:
And yes, 2012 Sam Hill could kick my ass on any course anywhere with his eyes closed while riding a tricycle. We concede that point.
Beacon Hill 2012, Saturday
Here's a totally awesome helmet cam from the Saturday Course at the Double Down in Spokane last weekend. FIRST RACE OF THE SEASON WOOOOOOOO!!!!
That... video... is... awesome. And NSFW.
The whole course was rad, the best course at beacon ever according to our complex Robot algorithms. The berms at the bottom were sick. Here's me on my Diamondback ripping one. When I showed this picture to my teammate Kyle all he had to say was "your inside knee should be pointed out." Thanks.
Speaking of Pro Racer Kyle Thomas, here he demonstrates his Vuvuzela/dartgun abilities. Kyle went full tilt on the vuvuzela all weekend until he developed "verpes" (Vuvuzela-Herpes, cold sores that come from direct or indirect contact with Vuvuzelas). Either that rider was in fact taken down by a PRKT dart, or that berm was just too awesome and the rider's CPU just broke midway through.
But don't take my word for it. Here's Project 952929292's Cole Wetherell absolutely annihilating the same turn. We all stood and stared in stunned silence at his bike for a good five minutes after he finished his race run because he ran a front spike... on a pedally hardpack course. According to Cole "it's what I'd been running, and I didn't want to switch." If anyone at 529 is reading this right now, you should probably fire Cole, or at least beat him savagely. Robots would never tolerate that sort of laziness.
In the same spirit as that Cole picture, here's another picture of Junior X rider Jonythyn Allyn demonstrating proper Junior X ETT form: looking really fast but being really slow. On the bright side, his time was fast enough for first in Pro women, though.
OK, that's a little harsh. He actually doesn't look THAT fast. And in reality, his time would have been good for fifth in Pro Men, so he wasn't slow either. I just wanted to make fun of junior X riders because it makes me feel bigger and more confident about myself.
Here's a random photo of Shimano's Tommy McGrath looking at Bobby Stenson like he's the stupidest person in the world. Based on Bobby's stellar outfit and submissive, defeated body language, we don't know where that idea came from.
Here's another picture of Cole. Based on the amount of photos of me that I found from this weekend, photographers apparently hate me the same way everyone else hates me. Unfortunately they apparently don't hate taking pictures of Cole, so that's what you get to look at. A message to photographerseverywhere: I'd way rather put up photos of myself instead of Eric Loney's younger, less annoying body double.
First race, first win, BOOM.
Beacon race run 2-24 (Crash) on pinkbike.com
That... video... is... awesome. And NSFW.
The whole course was rad, the best course at beacon ever according to our complex Robot algorithms. The berms at the bottom were sick. Here's me on my Diamondback ripping one. When I showed this picture to my teammate Kyle all he had to say was "your inside knee should be pointed out." Thanks.
Speaking of Pro Racer Kyle Thomas, here he demonstrates his Vuvuzela/dartgun abilities. Kyle went full tilt on the vuvuzela all weekend until he developed "verpes" (Vuvuzela-Herpes, cold sores that come from direct or indirect contact with Vuvuzelas). Either that rider was in fact taken down by a PRKT dart, or that berm was just too awesome and the rider's CPU just broke midway through.
But don't take my word for it. Here's Project 952929292's Cole Wetherell absolutely annihilating the same turn. We all stood and stared in stunned silence at his bike for a good five minutes after he finished his race run because he ran a front spike... on a pedally hardpack course. According to Cole "it's what I'd been running, and I didn't want to switch." If anyone at 529 is reading this right now, you should probably fire Cole, or at least beat him savagely. Robots would never tolerate that sort of laziness.
In the same spirit as that Cole picture, here's another picture of Junior X rider Jonythyn Allyn demonstrating proper Junior X ETT form: looking really fast but being really slow. On the bright side, his time was fast enough for first in Pro women, though.
OK, that's a little harsh. He actually doesn't look THAT fast. And in reality, his time would have been good for fifth in Pro Men, so he wasn't slow either. I just wanted to make fun of junior X riders because it makes me feel bigger and more confident about myself.
Here's a random photo of Shimano's Tommy McGrath looking at Bobby Stenson like he's the stupidest person in the world. Based on Bobby's stellar outfit and submissive, defeated body language, we don't know where that idea came from.
Here's another picture of Cole. Based on the amount of photos of me that I found from this weekend, photographers apparently hate me the same way everyone else hates me. Unfortunately they apparently don't hate taking pictures of Cole, so that's what you get to look at. A message to photographerseverywhere: I'd way rather put up photos of myself instead of Eric Loney's younger, less annoying body double.
First race, first win, BOOM.
Movie NEWS! Total Recall teaser trailer
The Total Recall movie is happening!
This new adaptation of Philip K. Dick's short story "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" is gonna be directed by Underworld director Len Wiseman.
And even though it is billed as a new adaptation/reboot, it might actually be part remake of the classic Scharzy movie and prequel, since it's gonna be set on Earth.
It will star Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel amongst others.
And here's the teaser trailer:
The kids are blinded by the shiny CGi, and I find this lacking the fun and simple charm the Schwarzenegger version had... This feels so "cold".
:(
COOLAPE Wednesday - Kitten of Omens
Link for the full comic on CoolApe:
http://www.coolape.org/comic-eyz-kitten-of-omens.html
Meet the leader of the ThunderCats!
OpeningTheme - The Mysterious Cities of Gold
Here's something from a pretty old and obscure cartoon.
Something I actually disliked as a kid, but which had a pretty amazing opening theme song nonetheless.
It's from The Mysterious Cities of Gold - also known as Esteban or Child of the Sun- a 1982 anime, check this out:
Easily one of the best from the 80s.
I actually knew the "original" French version Les Mystérieuses Cités d'Or, original because this was actually Japanese-French production. Check it out as well:
Something I actually disliked as a kid, but which had a pretty amazing opening theme song nonetheless.
It's from The Mysterious Cities of Gold - also known as Esteban or Child of the Sun- a 1982 anime, check this out:
Easily one of the best from the 80s.
I actually knew the "original" French version Les Mystérieuses Cités d'Or, original because this was actually Japanese-French production. Check it out as well:
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Tenacious D - To Be The Best
Dudes! The D is back!
One of my all time favorite music bands is back, that's right the Tenacious D are back, finally!
Jack Black has taken a break from his lackbuster comedies to join Kyle Gass once more.
And they announced it all through this pretty epic video below...
Hell Yeah!!
Mark your calendars! Rize of the Fenix will be released on May 15!
And it will be glorious!~
One of my all time favorite music bands is back, that's right the Tenacious D are back, finally!
Jack Black has taken a break from his lackbuster comedies to join Kyle Gass once more.
And they announced it all through this pretty epic video below...
Hell Yeah!!
Mark your calendars! Rize of the Fenix will be released on May 15!
And it will be glorious!~
The 2011 National American Miss Florida Jr Teen Gives Back in a BIG way!
The 2011 NAM Miss Florida gives back with the Salvation Army!
VGR Cold Fear
Time for another review!
This one's another survival horror, one of these game from the previous gaming generation, and one that mostly got overlooked (is it me or were a ton of really good games ignored last gen, Psychonauts, Jet Set Radio Future, Panzer Dragoon Orta, etc.?)
Mostly ignored in favor of Capcom's Resident Evil 4, this was Capcom's first foreway into the genre...
Was it good, was it that bad? And what was this one about?...
VGR: Cold Fear
From Darkworks/Ubisoft
Played on PCAlso available on Xbox & PS2
Type Survival Horror
Year 2005
Cold Fear is a survival horror that came on the previous 128-bits systems.
It was developed by Darkworks, an independent French studio based in Paris, already responsible for the well-received Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare.
While Capcom reimagined the genre for that generation with a Resident Evil 4 leaving behind the cinematic camera angles and the slow paced gameplay for a more action-oriented 3rd person "over the shoulder" styée. Cold Fear went ahead with a sort of mix of both gameplays.
The game really feels like the missing link between the old classic survival horrors like the classic Resident Evil games and the modern action ones like 4 and 5.
Cold Fear runs on the RenderWare engine (used in other games such as Ubisoft's Rayman 2 or Sega's Headhunter Redemption and Sonic Heroes), it uses both a behind the character 3rd person gameplay and the classic cinematic overviews.
But what is it actually about?
The story starts out with Tom Hansen.
Member of the U.S. Coast Guard who is dropped along his team to investigate a mysterious Russian frigate - the Eastern Spirit - that lost contact with the authorities.
A certain Barnett sends this crew on a rescue mission since nobody's responding.
Quickly the rest of his team disappear one by one or end up brutally murdered near our main protagonist.
What happened on this boat?
As Hansen, you are left alone aboard this ship to find out what is going on.
Hansen will try at first to help the crew and rescue the members that were left behind, but he is quickly met with defensive forces.
Meanwhile, the night is only starting out, and Tom will have to survive a dangerous storm, somewhere in the middle of the ocean.
But don't worry! You won't be alone for long.
Hostile Russian men, who seem to be succumbing to fear and won't recognize a rescue mission, will try to shoot Hansen!
And did I mention those alien creatures?
A strange form of parasites, called Exocells by the scientists, are seemingly using human bodies and other creatures as hosts and to feed themselves.
Like Aliens from the movies, they seem to take over people and use them to expand, survive and reproduce.
The boat is literally invaded by them!
They will attack Hansen either inside these "zombies" or outside hosts.
While investigating this mysterious ship, Tom Hansen will discover that a lethal cargo was being transferred from the ship to an oil platform, the Star of Sakhalin, not far off the boat.
It seems some pretty unethical experiments were being conducted over there. Thanks to a bunch of logs found here and there throughout the game, the full story will be revealed bit by bit.
A certain Dmitri Yusupov from the mafia used that platform as a place for smuggling when the exocells were originally discovered.
He had the Doctor Victor Kamsky brought over to study and try turning these creatures into bioweapons.
Another scientist Pavel Bakharev started working by his own, just in case....when suddenly Viktor went insane, became crazy with those monsters and let them all roam around the platform, infecting everyone voluntary!
Gameplay-wise, the game seems like a natural progression of the survival horror genre.
You "can" sort of choose between a behind the shoulder camera like in Resident Evil 4 or alternate with fixed angles.
Not actually choose, but when aiming, the camera will go over the shoulder for the more action-oriented gameplay. And you can actually move while aiming your weapon, allowing to play whenever you want with that perspective.
Or just let the more moody cinematic angles show you around.
All in all, it does make Cold Fear seem like the missing link between Code Veronica and Resident Evil 4.
Another specific element from Cold Fear to mention, is the conditions of the environment.
Alongside the health bar on the HUD menu, Tom Hansen also has a stamina bar that depends on the actions.
Like running, which will take a bit of stamina out. Hansen needs to rest to replenish it.
The conditions on the deck of the ship will affect the character.
A huge part of the engine was used to play with the environment and make these conditions part of the gameplay.
The ocean and storm can affect AND harm Hansen.
The movements of the ship might throw him out overboard, you will need some stamina and/or to grab something to not fall over.
It will also provide other sources of danger, like throwing you off while aiming or just being hit by cargo and other environmental hazards (like electric wires or crates hanging, etc.).
You won't be truly alone all the time though.
Hansen will find a woman, Anna, who will tag along, much like other characters did previously in the classic Resident Evil games. (Sherri comes to mind)
She won't fight alongside Tom Hansen, and is one of those that needs helps and being protected to stay alive. Thankfully, she doesn't throw herself into danger and usually manage to keep her health intact by avoiding enemies. Also, these segments are usually short and dispersed enough.
Cold Fear is quite an atmospheric survival horror, where the inhospitable boat really make this experience a true "survival" "horror".
There's a lot of "monsters jumping out of closets" moments. The very well done storm is realistic, there's rain and wind and all. Perfectly rendered.
The various realistic weapons only contribute to the experience. A handgun, an AK, a speargun, a shotgun, grenades. You will also get a flamethrower and a little "surprise" later.
The savegame can be annoying, specially if you're new to the genre.
It's a "survival horror"-style difficult save system to manage, like in Resident Evil 1.
Here, you will get automatic checkpoints after each mission objective completed, most of the time in rooms you need to reach, people you need to find or before bosses/difficult situations. It's alright if you're ok with replaying little segments when you die. I, personally, never had a problem with it. You only need to assure you have enough ammo/manage well your weapons/health when you reach a save. (you also get various saveslots)
Anyway, it's a fun, entertaining and long enough game for the genre.
Let's also mention the flaws, which can't be ignored.
It's a pretty classic plot and game.
You unlock bonus martial in the form of art, screens and concepts, but no other mode. So the experience feels a bit lacking at the end of the day. You can just replay harder settings if you want.
The game got a fun marketing viral at the time in the form of fake scientific websites and news report, which ended up doing more negative damage for the game than selling copies. Some people still think those are actual real pictures.
It's still a great art direction anyway.
The beautiful cover art of the game is just proof of that, the lead art, concepts and characters were the work of Aleksi Briclot.
The fantastic score is quite epic. The great main theme will haunt you, and you'll hear lots of it and its variations throughout the game.
Finally it gives the whole experience a sort of serious B-movie tone.
Cold Fear is a survival horror that came on the previous 128-bits systems.
It was developed by Darkworks, an independent French studio based in Paris, already responsible for the well-received Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare.
While Capcom reimagined the genre for that generation with a Resident Evil 4 leaving behind the cinematic camera angles and the slow paced gameplay for a more action-oriented 3rd person "over the shoulder" styée. Cold Fear went ahead with a sort of mix of both gameplays.
The game really feels like the missing link between the old classic survival horrors like the classic Resident Evil games and the modern action ones like 4 and 5.
Cold Fear runs on the RenderWare engine (used in other games such as Ubisoft's Rayman 2 or Sega's Headhunter Redemption and Sonic Heroes), it uses both a behind the character 3rd person gameplay and the classic cinematic overviews.
But what is it actually about?
A biohazard occurence...
The story starts out with Tom Hansen.
Member of the U.S. Coast Guard who is dropped along his team to investigate a mysterious Russian frigate - the Eastern Spirit - that lost contact with the authorities.
A certain Barnett sends this crew on a rescue mission since nobody's responding.
Quickly the rest of his team disappear one by one or end up brutally murdered near our main protagonist.
What happened on this boat?
As Hansen, you are left alone aboard this ship to find out what is going on.
Hansen will try at first to help the crew and rescue the members that were left behind, but he is quickly met with defensive forces.
Meanwhile, the night is only starting out, and Tom will have to survive a dangerous storm, somewhere in the middle of the ocean.
A resident evil lurks behind each corner...
But don't worry! You won't be alone for long.
Hostile Russian men, who seem to be succumbing to fear and won't recognize a rescue mission, will try to shoot Hansen!
And did I mention those alien creatures?
A strange form of parasites, called Exocells by the scientists, are seemingly using human bodies and other creatures as hosts and to feed themselves.
Like Aliens from the movies, they seem to take over people and use them to expand, survive and reproduce.
The boat is literally invaded by them!
They will attack Hansen either inside these "zombies" or outside hosts.
While investigating this mysterious ship, Tom Hansen will discover that a lethal cargo was being transferred from the ship to an oil platform, the Star of Sakhalin, not far off the boat.
It seems some pretty unethical experiments were being conducted over there. Thanks to a bunch of logs found here and there throughout the game, the full story will be revealed bit by bit.
A certain Dmitri Yusupov from the mafia used that platform as a place for smuggling when the exocells were originally discovered.
He had the Doctor Victor Kamsky brought over to study and try turning these creatures into bioweapons.
Another scientist Pavel Bakharev started working by his own, just in case....when suddenly Viktor went insane, became crazy with those monsters and let them all roam around the platform, infecting everyone voluntary!
Alone in the dark, and standing guard firmly...
Gameplay-wise, the game seems like a natural progression of the survival horror genre.
You "can" sort of choose between a behind the shoulder camera like in Resident Evil 4 or alternate with fixed angles.
Not actually choose, but when aiming, the camera will go over the shoulder for the more action-oriented gameplay. And you can actually move while aiming your weapon, allowing to play whenever you want with that perspective.
Or just let the more moody cinematic angles show you around.
All in all, it does make Cold Fear seem like the missing link between Code Veronica and Resident Evil 4.
Another specific element from Cold Fear to mention, is the conditions of the environment.
Alongside the health bar on the HUD menu, Tom Hansen also has a stamina bar that depends on the actions.
Like running, which will take a bit of stamina out. Hansen needs to rest to replenish it.
The conditions on the deck of the ship will affect the character.
A huge part of the engine was used to play with the environment and make these conditions part of the gameplay.
The ocean and storm can affect AND harm Hansen.
The movements of the ship might throw him out overboard, you will need some stamina and/or to grab something to not fall over.
It will also provide other sources of danger, like throwing you off while aiming or just being hit by cargo and other environmental hazards (like electric wires or crates hanging, etc.).
It's like an house of the dead abord the ship!
You won't be truly alone all the time though.
Hansen will find a woman, Anna, who will tag along, much like other characters did previously in the classic Resident Evil games. (Sherri comes to mind)
She won't fight alongside Tom Hansen, and is one of those that needs helps and being protected to stay alive. Thankfully, she doesn't throw herself into danger and usually manage to keep her health intact by avoiding enemies. Also, these segments are usually short and dispersed enough.
Cold Fear is quite an atmospheric survival horror, where the inhospitable boat really make this experience a true "survival" "horror".
There's a lot of "monsters jumping out of closets" moments. The very well done storm is realistic, there's rain and wind and all. Perfectly rendered.
The various realistic weapons only contribute to the experience. A handgun, an AK, a speargun, a shotgun, grenades. You will also get a flamethrower and a little "surprise" later.
The savegame can be annoying, specially if you're new to the genre.
It's a "survival horror"-style difficult save system to manage, like in Resident Evil 1.
Here, you will get automatic checkpoints after each mission objective completed, most of the time in rooms you need to reach, people you need to find or before bosses/difficult situations. It's alright if you're ok with replaying little segments when you die. I, personally, never had a problem with it. You only need to assure you have enough ammo/manage well your weapons/health when you reach a save. (you also get various saveslots)
The thing will kill you!
Anyway, it's a fun, entertaining and long enough game for the genre.
Let's also mention the flaws, which can't be ignored.
It's a pretty classic plot and game.
You unlock bonus martial in the form of art, screens and concepts, but no other mode. So the experience feels a bit lacking at the end of the day. You can just replay harder settings if you want.
The game got a fun marketing viral at the time in the form of fake scientific websites and news report, which ended up doing more negative damage for the game than selling copies. Some people still think those are actual real pictures.
It's still a great art direction anyway.
The beautiful cover art of the game is just proof of that, the lead art, concepts and characters were the work of Aleksi Briclot.
The fantastic score is quite epic. The great main theme will haunt you, and you'll hear lots of it and its variations throughout the game.
Finally it gives the whole experience a sort of serious B-movie tone.
Like a big budget 80s horror film. The Russian villains go a bit over-the-top to me, and almost ruin the dark and gritty mood sometimes though.
Overall, it's a great looking game.
A memorable experience, and easily one of the best of its time honestly. Visually, it's only missing some "next gen" effects like high definition and blut. But the textures are good, the models well animated.
Gameplay wise, it's perfect!
A memorable experience, and easily one of the best of its time honestly. Visually, it's only missing some "next gen" effects like high definition and blut. But the textures are good, the models well animated.
Gameplay wise, it's perfect!
The survival horror I always dreamt of playing!
The learning curve is easy to get your hands on, soon you'll be taking headshots like no tomorrow!
A great atmosphere built upon a great design and sountrack.
The exomutants are quite reminiscent of Carpenter's The Thing.
I also tried it on Xbox (until I had some problems with my own console...so I only played the beginning).
But even so, the PC version is vastly superior to the console one, hands down.
The graphics are a lot more crisp and clean on the computer port. On console it was a bit slower and blurry...which just goes to show how great the game was for its time.
The gameplay's a bit more fun on keyboard too, with this kind of cinematic-3rd person switchable view.
A real sgane this one got overlooked for RE4. I honestly preferred Cold Fear as a truer Resident Evil. I just wish Capcom had went this way back then...
Oh well..
A great gameplay that really captures the tension of the old survival horror genre with a mix action.
(Darkworks was the studio that was originally working on Ubisoft's recent I Am Alive...until they shut down and the production was carried over at Ubisoft Shanghai and the game changed from an actual full retail release feature to a simpler digital arcade title)
The learning curve is easy to get your hands on, soon you'll be taking headshots like no tomorrow!
A great atmosphere built upon a great design and sountrack.
The exomutants are quite reminiscent of Carpenter's The Thing.
I also tried it on Xbox (until I had some problems with my own console...so I only played the beginning).
But even so, the PC version is vastly superior to the console one, hands down.
The graphics are a lot more crisp and clean on the computer port. On console it was a bit slower and blurry...which just goes to show how great the game was for its time.
The gameplay's a bit more fun on keyboard too, with this kind of cinematic-3rd person switchable view.
A real sgane this one got overlooked for RE4. I honestly preferred Cold Fear as a truer Resident Evil. I just wish Capcom had went this way back then...
Oh well..
A great gameplay that really captures the tension of the old survival horror genre with a mix action.
(Darkworks was the studio that was originally working on Ubisoft's recent I Am Alive...until they shut down and the production was carried over at Ubisoft Shanghai and the game changed from an actual full retail release feature to a simpler digital arcade title)
I give it:
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Awesome!! :D
I got high expectations for this one, hope they won't mess it up..