Boarderland Sexism? Hardly.

Gearbox Software caused a bit of a stir today with the reveal of the "Best Friends Forever" skill tree for Borderlands 2. How can something with a name lifted straight off a Valentines card cause such a fuss?

Well, dubbed the "Girlfriend" tree by one designer; this particular set of skills specific to the Mechromancer character class, is designed for people that suck at games.

Borderlands 2 lead designer John Hemingway told Eurogamer:

"The design team was looking at the concept art and thought, you know what, this is actually the cutest character we've ever had. I told them I want to make, for the lack of a better term, the girlfriend skill tree. This is, "I love Borderlands and I want to share it with someone, but they suck at first-person shooters. Can we make a skill tree that actually allows them to understand the game and to play the game? That's what our attempt with the Best Friends Forever skill tree is.""

Can't shoot straight? Borderlands 2 has you covered. Sort of.

I can think of a couple of less patronizing terms that don't play to stereotypes that are guaranteed to piss off a cross-section of your gamers... But still, hindsight is a wonderful thing.

In any case, the tree is designed for the noob in your life (whatever their gender/relationship to you), with perks that allow you to shoot without aiming(?) and the ability to summon a large robot whose sole purpose is to sponge enemy fire whilst you scream "which button is reload?!?" at your co-op partner in a blind panic. 

Gearbox president Randy Pitchford quickly took to Twitter to defend the comment, claiming the quote was a "personal anecdote" that was being sensationalized by forum users & the increasingly easy to offend PC Brigade, and that the term "Girlfriend Skill Tree" will not be featured in any part of the finished game.

That's good news for all the do-gooders of the internet as they can put their placards down and go back to harassing pages on Facebook safe in the knowledge that this minor non-injustice never nearly almost existed..

Some GiANT news from Marvel at this years SDCC

I've never been to Comic-Con in San Diego, although I am registered for pre-registration for tickets to next years event (I kid you not, you have to register your interest in registering for tickets before the tickets even exist!) they do NOT make it easy to get your hands on the geek worlds equivalent of one of Wonka's Golden Tickets, so this year, like many others I am left to trawl the internet for info about what went down in Hall H over the weekend.

First up is the news from Marvel Studios, who made some huge announcements on Saturday about what they have planned post Avengers, in what they are calling "Phase Two" of their self-produced movies.

Some of the announcements were expected, whilst others were a bit of a surprise. So, what did we learn?

Next Stop: LV426? - Paris Train Station Gets An Alien Make Over

The marketing campaign for Ridley Scotts long awaited return to the Alien universe has already bucked the trend of simply releasing trailer after trailer showing maybe 3-4 seconds of extra footage in favour of some incredible viral marketing videos, and now they've stepped up their game once again. This time by recreating a part of the movies setting - in a disused subway station in France!

This train is for Fiorina 161, The next station is Prometheus.

Closed in 1939, The Saint-Martin subway station in Paris has been transformed into the surface of the alien world which our intrepid explorers/xeno-bait from Weyland Industries will be running through terrified when we finally get to see the film when it releases next month. 

By the looks of it, passengers won’t be able to get off and have a nosey; instead merely being able to snatch glimpses of it as their train passes by. Probably for the best really as I imagine the large stone head pictured below would make it's way into a fans home before long (although I think they might need a power loader to move it...)

Where d'ya want it? Bay 12?

I'm a massive fan of viral marketing, especially when it's done well and this is one of the best I've seen so far. If your yet to see the other videos released promoting Prometheus you can find links for them below. If your a fan of the franchise and are excited about seeing the film you should definitely take a look as they truly are something else ("Happy Birthday, David" being my favourite so far).

New Assassins Creed 3 Gameplay Trailer Is Awesome!

Unfazed by lawsuits and angry authors, Ubisoft released the first gameplay trailer for Assassin’s Creed 3 today and damn does it look good!

You can clearly see from the trailer below that this is no half-arsed sequel like Brotherhood & Revelations and that claims by the developers that this is the biggest and most ambitious entry in the series yet now seem more than just empty promises.

Yeah, I said it. Brotherhood sucked!
 

Anyway, the clip is chock full of awesome and gives us a peak at new combat, weapons, moves, and free-running tricks that make the previous games look like Tenchu for the PS1.

 

The story takes place between 1753 and 1783, across the American frontier so there aren't going to be many building to climb. Plenty of trees though.

As much of the game takes place out in the sticks instead of the ever familiar busy market places, it looks like you will now have to blend into nature to remain hidden from those pesky Templar's (new stealth system perhaps?). Luckily, Assassin’s Creed 3’s fancy new frontier locations aren’t just cut & paste forests that all look the same, offering little interaction. It looks like Connor can free-run through them just like his ancestors would run across rooftops in the previous Assassin’s Creed games.

Check out the trailer below.

Bad News For Bioshock Fans.

A bit of bad news for Bioshock fans today.

Irrational and 2K Games announced earlier that Bioshock Infinites October 16th release date has slipped back to February next year. Balls. Looks like we'll have to wait a few more months to explore the shiny floating dystopia of Columbia.

In an open letter released today (you can read it in full after the jump), the game's Creative Director, Ken Levine explained that this would give the developers time to fine tune the game, making it, in his own words "Even more extraordinary".

Now, I don't know about you but I think this game already looks incredible, but if 2K Games think they can make it even better, I'll wait as long as they want.

 

Apocalypse Pizza & Video - We Deliver Your Order Amidst The Chaos

When civilisation as we know it comes crashing down around our heads and hordes of the undead fill the streets, one question more than any other will be asked in hushed tones inside safe houses across the globe:

"Where can I order a Pizza and a movie for me and my fellow survivors to enjoy whilst hiding away from scores of brain munching zombies amassed outside?"

Well luckily, Apocalypse Pizza & Video will have you covered.

Happy Birthday ZX80! - The Little Kilobyte That Could Turns 30

I imagine that in 1982, trying to find someone who could use a computer, let alone someone who owned one wasn't easy. Back then when the ZX Spectrum first launched, computers were expensive, chunky, and complicated.

We've com a looooong way, Baby!

British company Sinclair Research wanted to change all that. Aiming to produce computers which were affordable, simple to use and, by 80's standards, compact. the ZX80 was its first attempt. 

The ZX80 - Amazing to think this was cutting edge only 30 years ago

£100 bought you a basic model with a whopping 1KB of RAM and that iconic (& shitty) membrane keyboard. The ZX81 arrived a year later, using the same Z80 processor & 1KB of RAM, but it was cheaper (yours for around £70) and it came housed in a slick black case complete with the same shitty membrane keyboard of its predecessor.

The ZX81 - Sleeker & Cheaper.

And later with added rainbows.

The ZX Spectrum is largely responsible for starting the home computing revolution in the UK. Released on the 23rd of April 1982, it was small, you didn’t need a monitor – any TV would do, and while the use of cassette tapes as a storage medium for games and software might sound like madness to younger ears, this made games (or at least copies of them) relatively cheap.

Although I was only young when we got our first computer (a Commodore) owning one at the time brought with it a range of experiences which have now passed on into electronic legend. Who could forget the seemingly endless wait for a game to load as you stared at an ever strobing 8-bit Jackson Pollock while the screeches and beeps coming from the machine filled your living room? (The “Beeee beep. Beee dee diddly-diddly” sound computers made as they dumped the info from the tapes into the computers memory have been seared into the eardrums of older gamers like a sort of nostalgic Tinnitus). 

And People Complain About Skyrims Loading Screens...

Then there were magazines with type-in games which never worked. You would spend hours sitting patiently as a parent or sibling would read out each line of code as you clumsily typed it in with one finger only to finish and excitedly hit run, play 3-4 minutes of the game then have it crash on you.

Despite its technical flaws, the ZX Spectrum is still one of the most celebrated home computers of its time. Other machines may have been more powerful, but it was the Spectrum more than any other, which helped inspire a generation of teenagers into learning how to program, which in turn helped build the UK games industry that dominated the market throughout the 90's console boom. 

So raise a glass for the little Kilo-byte that could as it celebrates it's 30th birthday, it deserves it.

Plagiarism Or A Tenuous "Link"? - Author sues Ubisoft

American science fiction author John L. Beiswenger is having a stab at suing Ubisoft over alleged similarities between his novel "Link", and the Assassin's Creed franchise. This isn't the first time someone has tried to call "minesies" on a rather lucrative intellectual property but this guys claims may actually have some weight.

Plagiarism or a tenuous Link?

The main point of the authors suit is that the premise of his novel; that the memories of an Ancestor can be "accessed, recalled, relived and re-experienced" by using a nifty gadget called a "Bio-synthesizer" has been ripped off by Ubisoft, with nothing more than a name change to hide it.

Now I'll admit that that does sound quite similar to Ass Creeds "Animus", but then again I don't think that Beiswenger solely owns the rights to the concept of Memetic Legacy...

Batman + Lego = Awesome! Dark Knight Rises Trailer Recreated With Lego

If you ask me there is nothing in this world that can't be made better with Lego.

Unless it's Glee.

Nothing can save that "twee as a Baby riding a Unicorn over a rainbow" garbage. Not even a story arc involving a serial killer with sensitive ears and a dislike for catchy pop songs, but I digress.

I'd rather eat all these Legos
than watch 5 minutes of Glee

The internet is full of awesome people doing awesome stuff with Lego, as the custom BTTF Delorian I posted about the other week goes to show; but what's better than building something cool out of Lego? Building something cool out of Lego then making stop motion animations with it! There are a lot of these on Youtube, some are good, some... not so good, but this trailer for "The Dark Knight Rises" made entirely out of those little plastic foot killers is absolutely amazing.

Bane even looks awesome as a mini-fig!

Made by Forrest Fire Films, this has to be one of the most impressive Lego animations I've ever seen, not to mention the most accurate when compared to the "real-life" version.

Check out the 1 minute 30-odd seconds of all plastic awesome below:

Now watch the original trailer:

Pretty impressive right?

I'd love to see a full length Lego Batman movie, but I guess I'll have to make do with "The Dark Knight Rises" (filmed with boring humans) when it hits cinemas this summer.

Head over to Forrest Fire Films Youtube channel here to see some more of the awesome Lego animations they've done.

Bioshock Movie Flushed?

So it seems the Bioshock film has been shelved. Again. 

Gore Verbinski had already recently stepped down as producer, leaving Juan Carlor Fresnadillo sat in the directors chair with his thumb up his ass, and now its seems he's had enough of waiting and is off to butcher The Highlander.

Done right this film could be awesome!

While its the general consensus that films based on videogames generally suck pixelated wang (excluding Mortal Kombat, of course) gamers & movie fans alike are excited about an adaptation of "Bioshock." 

The game and its sequel are both beautiful, brutal, and disquieting tales of mystery & Science fiction that take place in the abandoned underwater Utopia of Rapture; stories that, with the right director (and budget) could really be something special.

But they said that about Resident Evil, and look how much that sucked.

Its hardly even got any Zombies in it...

Thats Just Creepy... Meet Bioshock: Infinites "Boys of Silence"

2K Games have released info on yet another one of the terrifying mini-boss type enemies you will be squaring off against in Bioshock: Infinite. 

Boys Of Silence
Sounds like a Christian Boy Band...

First it was a Clockwork George Washington with a Mini gun, then the massive dudes with the giant porcelain hands. Both pretty formidable, but BioShock Infinite's latest "heavy hitter", the "Boys of Silence" are definitely the creepiest of the bunch.

Creepy eh?

Great Scott! Amazing Lego DeLorian

Check out this amazing 1:15 model of the DeLorian from Back to the Future 2 built entirely out of LEGO! 

Built by LEGO artist Orion Pax (Alex Jones) using nothing but standard bricks (& a coat of silver paint, but we'll let him off), this is his third and final attempt at the iconic time travelling vehicle & I think you'll agree it's pretty accurate. According to Alex it took around 20 hours to build, and includes working gull-wing doors, wheels that fold-up for "hover mode", and even a tiny Mr. Fusion on the back. All its missing is a miniature copy of the Sports Almanac & Hoverboard in the back.

Check out these other pictures below to truly appreciate the amount of time & detail that has gone in to making this. 

Swanky New Banner!

Check out the awesome new banner Patrick over @Draw Me Something.com did for me!

Sweet eh?

The guys over at Draw Me Something do exactly what you'd expect: you think of something for them to draw, they pick ones they like the most & draw them. The requests can be funny, serious, random, anything your warped little mind can come up with.

They don’t judge, they just draw.

For example if you ask them "Can you draw me Elmo popping out of Barney’s chest (Alien Style)?"

Then you get something like this:

Thats gotta Hurt! (Gedditt?!)

Let Sleeping Turtles Lie

When I read last week that they were going to be making a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film, I knew not to expect much.

Then I found out Michael Bay was producing it & Jonathan Liebesman (the guy responsible for Battle: Los Angeles) was directing it, I figured that makes sense, who better to ruin another childhood memory than the guy who butchered Transformers & his explosion loving, plot hating friend?

This is not a Transformer

THIS is a Transformer

Then I saw the short video below & I lost my shit.

Aliens? Are you fucking kidding me?

We Can Remake It For You Wholesale

An International Promo Trailer for Total Recall, the latest movie "reboot" Hollywoods big brains thought would be a good idea, hit the internet today and surprisingly enough it doesn't fill me with overwhelming nerd rage.

Nerd Rage: No laughing matter

Although it's only short, it gives you a good idea of what the film will look like when it finally gets its ass to Mars sorry, cinema's in August.

Memory of a life time or instantly forgettable?
We'll have to wait till August to find out.

Amazing Steam Punk Portal Gun

This has been doing the rounds this week, and you can see why!
If this is what the gun looks like, I'd hate to see the tests... or GLaDOS...

Impressive, no?

This awesome Steam punk Portal gun (if I lost you with that, Wiki that shit & be ashamed of yourself) was made by Deviant Art user Batman n Bananas over 3 months using random stuff he found lying around the house. I love the prop replicas you see over on Instructables, but not everyone has access to the sort of kit they use to make them so when someone does it using random junk most people have lying around, it makes it that little bit cooler.


According to the dude that built this cake worthy beast, its made up of: 

• 2 Antique clock movements;
• 1 +1/2 Coat hangers; 
• Metal teapot stand;
• Plastic Mechano;
• Plumbing parts;
• 1 Plant pot; 
• 1 Hair gel pot + various lids;
• Plastic tub (those ones you get nuts in the the supermarket);
• Plastic tubing;
• Lots and lots of nuts and bolts;
• Miniature storage box (for the battery compartment);
• Pocket laser disc (you can get them on ebay if anyone's interested);
• 3 light bulbs;
• Cardboard tube;
• Metal covering from an old hairbrush;
• AV socket;
• Tons of odds and ends from my parents garage;
• And of course the usual - milliput, humbrol and Warhammer paints, hot melt glue, and about 6 gallons of super glue.

If you want to read more about the build & check out his other work head over to his Deviant Art Page:- Here. 

If you need me I'll be in the shed...