More Boardgame/Videogame Convergence

http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/14409/Reiner-Knizia-to-Create-Xbox-Live-Arcade-Titles/

Reiner officially joins the juggernaut. I've really enjoyed playing Carc and Catan on XBox, but this seems to be a turn for the worst.

First, I haven't enjoyed a Reiner design since 2000 (Taj Mahal, Traumfabrik) . He's been spitting out 20 mediocre games since then. Second, having a captive designer means Microsoft doesn't need to go out and sign contracts to get the best new games. Third, I'd much rather support the Splotter Model (Antiquity, Indonesia, Roads & Boats), where you develop a game for 20 years and charge $100 for something that cost $5 to make. Sadly, I think the market wants churned out cookie cutter mechanic, themeless Euros. Finally, Reiner is a stiff.

G4's Top 10 Video Games Ever

Or since they've been on air anyway...

For argument's sake, note the heavy Sony flavor.



10 » Rachet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal



9 » Guitar Hero



8 » Halo 2



7 » World of Warcraft



6 » Burnout 3



5 » Half-Life 2



4 » Twilight Princess



3 » God of War



2 » Star Wars KOTOR



1 » Resident Evil 4

What's This On My Desk?

"Once you get on the Bang Bus you can't get off."

That's a quote from Southland Tales, the new near-future sci-fi flick from Richard Kelly, the writer/director of Donnie Darko. The context: On one of thousands of TV channels porn stars discuss the hot-button issues of the day on a beach, sipping champagne. Twitchfilm has posted links to a couple clips from the movie.

I'll be honest, the movie bears some of the earmarks that fouled Domino (a script by Kelly). I'm still interested. Kelly is really stretching here. He's written three graphic novels as prequels to the movie. He's really going for a sprawling, quirky, pre-cyberpunk vibe that I can totally get down with.

Official site.
Youtube clips: 1, 2, 3

BTW: Just in case you're wondering the movie has been delayed from the "2006" on the bottom of the poster. Not always a good sign. But then Idiocracy was delayed just as long. Don't quote me on that comparison.

Kowloon Update

Turns out my friend Mitch is in Hong Kong on a prolonged business trip. He spent a bit of time in Kowloon and confirmed that a lot has changed since City of Darkness. In his words "they're reclaiming the bay." We only talked briefly, but Mitch expressed a preference for Shanghai over Hong Kong. If I know my friend it's the city's openness, both culturally and economically, that excites him -- that potential that bubbles under an untapped market. For example, he said that there's a Ministry of Sound show happening there. He seems to think that the people of Shanghai are starving for great music.

Tomorrow he's going to see the Disney park. Hopefully he'll get some kind of behind-the-scenes look, being an employee of the same parent company. I'll link to Mitch's photo galleries when he gets back. He also promises to grab some good bootlegs.

Also: he said that pigeon tastes like duck.

Help Me Obi Wan Kenobi...

Awesome "holographic"-style tech from the USC Institute For Creative Technologies. I love living in a society where such an institute can exist. They should just come right out with it and rename their research group the USC Institute for Kick Ass Stuff From the Future.

What and Where?

Who are these little guys and where can I get them? They were on sale at PAX. I am pretty sure they are a need and not a want. They weren't on the PA online store.