tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29335714944837487212024-03-13T03:30:30.011+02:00Key to Real Inspiration During Eating Spaghetti...or pizza. or salad. or whatever.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-20667253610672003572011-06-09T01:28:00.008+03:002011-06-09T20:54:07.003+03:00The Particle Effect<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 24px;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 150%;">“Show me a man or a woman alone and I'll show you a saint. Give me two
and they’ll fall in love. Give me three and they’ll invent the charming thing
we call ‘society’. Give me four and they’ll build a pyramid. Give me five and
they’ll make one an outcast. Give me six and they’ll reinvent prejudice. Give
me seven and in seven years they’ll reinvent warfare. Man may have been made in
the image of God, but human society was made in the image of His opposite
number, and is always trying to get back home.”</span></i></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; tab-stops: 335.25pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 150%;">Stephen
King, Insomnia </span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 150%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">At this very moment my body is getting ready for
self-destruction, gathering all its energy in one cluster and as much as a second
won’t pass before it bursts, leaving puddles of body liquids and piles of guts
steaming on the sidewalk. All thoughts, dreams and expectations of the person
who used to inhabit this useless shell are going to evaporate, as those British
scientists every newspaper seems to be blabbering about are yet to discover the
soul, this ethereal product of metabolism. Not that I read newspapers these
days. Or give a shit about science.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">For all I know, this kind of energy can make my skull
explode and send the great gray jelly
that silently rests inside of it in a million directions all at once. The great
jelly becomes the great cloud of particles, which decidedly leaves dirty
splashes on the sidewalk as it makes its short journey across the universe. The
problem is that my thoughts, which used to be contained in this jelly pie,
won’t leave a trace. Not electromagnetic. Not even thermal. A cold fucking
explosion. An exploding cold fuckary.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I grinned.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I found myself in this particular set of mind on July
25, 2010, as migraine was attacking my relatively peaceful skull with its
vibrating, pulsating blades that seemed to be cutting right through my right
temple all the way to the brain core and back, only to resume their delicate
work a couple of milliseconds later. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">It was three o’ the clock in the afternoon, and my
pity fucking excuse of a body has been moving homeward. Or, at least, that was
my idea of direction at the time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">There was one thing, however, that I had no idea
about: why had this shit been happening to me? Why didn’t I just get into a car
crash or something? At least I wouldn’t have to go through this all over again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">Migraines keep attacking me once or twice a year, but,
believe me when I say you haven’t experienced anything as powerful as that in
your entire lives. It’s a religious fucking experience, and if you think your
occasional “tired and sleepy” or “not enough air” headache gives you a hard
time, then, well, think again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">Migraine or, rather, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">my</i> migraine drives you mad, wanting to shoot a bullet through your
brain. You become a half-blind, weeping, swaying, puking, bleeding though the nose,
sound-phobic, light-phobic excuse of a human being. There is nothing quite like
it in the whole world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I was walking down the street in this semi-undead
state of mine, occasionally taking brief throw up brakes in front of trash
bins. The image that my brain was getting was blurry in the middle,
over-saturated on the edges. My main goal in life at that point was to make my
way to the subway station with my eyes tightly shut and not puke on someone
important—because, let’s be realistic, it’s not like I could skip the
puking-on-someone part in a crowded street. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I was in the middle of one of my delightful trash bin
stops, when I noticed a kind of pleasant sensation, like a touch, on my right
shoulder. I shivered and raised my head in a painful attempt to look around,
then puked into the bin again. By the time I gathered enough courage to make
another attempt, the sensation was gone, but there was something new—a dark,
blurry (like everything else) human silhouette right in my line of sight. I
could probably touch this person if I had been capable of raising my hand. A
black shade around the head that was either long hair or hijab made this
silhouette look like a woman. And, indeed, it was a she, as I have found out
from the voice that was directed to me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘Hey, you don’t look so well,’ it said. And sounded
genuinely worried doing so.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘I guess I don’t,’ I murmured.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘Do you need help?’ the semi-invisible girl demanded.
And yes, it was a girl, not much older than me, either, probably 21 or 22. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘Do I look like I do?’ With this, I attempted to
smile, wiping blood from my nose with the sleeve of my shirt.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘I am going to become a doctor, you know, and you look
like you could use a painkiller.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US">And a strong one, too</span></i><span lang="EN-US">, I thought.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘I could get you some of those, there is a drugstore
around the corner—‘<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I was beginning to fall in love—there was no doubt
about that much. The chick had been my cavalry that came at the very last
moment, like in one of those Hollywood movies. Only in movies Bruce Willis
would be saved by his partner, and he was never saved from his health issues,
and not by a shiny white pill that looked so much like a little sun that, when
swallowed, went supernova and made it all seem alright. So much for explosions
this afternoon. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘—anyway, you don’t have to pay me back unless—’ she
went on and on, and I decided to puke again. And so I did just that. She didn’t
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">eww</i> or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yuh</i> or scream—nothing like that. Instead, she stopped talking and
kept silence for another five seconds or so. Then she said:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘Okay, wait for me here, I’ll be back in a minute.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">My brain didn’t function at its highest capacity as
you can imagine, yet it did occur to me that the chick might have just bailed on
my sorry ass. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">She didn’t. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘Here’s your Lorcet,’ said she in 73 eardrum pulses. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I took the box from her hand, tore it apart, took five
pills out and swallowed them at once.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘Wait, that’s too much!’ the girl exclaimed, but it
was too late, the pills had already started to dissolve in my stomach. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">In a couple of seconds I passed out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">***<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;"> When I
woke up, my migraine was gone, so were all of the other symptoms. I was lying
on a soft bed with a real feather pillow under my head. It took roughly a
minute for my eyes to adjust to the dim light in the room. The curtains on the
window were closed, but I still could see a beam of moonlight in the gap. It
was night in the city. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">Naturally, the first question that made its way to my
thinking cap was that of my current location. I remembered the girl who gave me
the painkillers, and the rest is, as they say, a mystery. I tried to sit on the
bed, found out that my strength was all gone, fell back and decided to rest for
a couple more minutes, but, apparently, was not destined to do so. Not the way
I wanted to, anyhow.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">The room door opened with a low creak. It was dark out
there, so I could not see the one to pull the handle. I could make out a
silhouette of a person standing in the doorway. It was big and somehow <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cold</i>. I felt a sudden urge to say
something, which was immediately overruled by a hunch telling me to play
sleeping. Or dead, if necessary.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">The silhouette took a couple of steps toward the bed.
I could not see it, as my eyes were tightly shut, but I heard it, alright. I
tried to look at the visitor through my eyelashes, and was able to see his face
lit by the moonlight.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">It was a middle-aged man, very big and probably quite
muscled from the look of his stature. His expression was calm as a lake
somewhere in a mountain valley. He had large eyes of indefinite color, a
straight nose and big lips, which gave him a cartoonish<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> black</i> look. He was wearing a sweatshirt and a pair of denim blue
jeans.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">The man was now standing right by the bed. I had
closed my eyes again by then, but still could <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sense</i> his presence. It was obvious that my visitor was not going to
offer me a bowl of chicken soup. For a couple of minutes, we remained this way:
him standing by the bed, me doing my best trying to pretend I was not there in
the first place.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">Then, suddenly he spoke. His voice was deliberately
loud and clear. He pronounced each word with a kind of sick roughness, making
long military style pauses between them:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘You are responsible for the death of my girl,’ he
began, clearly unsmiling. ‘and you are going to pay for this, no matter how
much she liked you.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">The sense of this man’s words did not strike me at
once. It took me a couple of seconds to process. Luckily, the man was taking
his time to make everything perfectly clear to me. When I did finally grasp the
meaning of his words, I sighed and opened my eyes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘You are not going to speak until I am done speaking.
You are going to listen to everything I say very carefully and remember
everything I say. When I am done speaking, you will have your word. When you
are done with that, I will kill you. Is that clear?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I nodded. It was perfectly clear.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘Every one of you fucking <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">maggots</i>,’ he made an especially long stop after the last word,
letting it resonate and sink in. ‘every one of you thinks she is meant for him.
That she is his property. You have no idea of what it means to be a father,
what it means to raise her, to take care of her. And I took good care of my
little girl. She was everything to me—’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I noticed that he was holding something in his right
hand. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘—and now she is gone, and it is your entire fault. I—’
his ever steady voice tripped, but it took him not more than a second to regain
balance. ‘I had to kill her. I did not want to, and it is your fault. You walk
into my house, take advantage of my little girl, and then you, you killed her.
It is all your fault. Yes, you are the murderer of my little girl.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I opened my mouth, wanting to deny his words, but was
slapped. His slap was hard and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">trained</i>,
as if he knew exactly how and where to hit to cause the biggest amount of pain
and shame.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘You are going to shut your mouth and listen to me, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">maggot</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘My girl is dead now. You took advantage of her
kindness, tricked her, raped her, and then killed her. Now, do you have
anything to say before you face your punishment?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I lost my breath. I felt an urge to deny and object,
to scream and fight, but the coldness of this man left me in a kind of consternation.
I was frozen and could not do anything about it. I waited a couple of seconds,
trying to regain my breath, watching the man grow impatient. I opened and closed
my mouth several times, but the words just would not come out. Finally, I was
able to say:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">‘I didn’t kill anyone. It is a terrible…terrible
mistake. Please—’ at this point the man raised his right hand. Now I could
clearly see the object he was holding in it. It was a Glock semi-automatic 9 mm
pistol. Anyone who’d ever seen a Hollywood movie or played a videogame would
recognize it. The man held it out, pointed at me. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">I covered my face with my hands, as if it would
protect me from the bullet. I tried to scream, but the sound came out as a quite,
powerless squeak. Suddenly, everything was perfectly clear to me: the girl,
this man, the crime he was going to blame on me, the things that had been
happening in that house. I wanted to tell someone, but I just would not have a
chance to do so.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">The father of the girl who saved me from my migraine
pulled the slide of the 9 mm with his left hand, still pointing the barrel at
me. Then he shot me twice in the head.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: right; text-indent: 35.4pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit;">Sergey
Mohov<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;">06/09/2011</span></div>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Bookman Old Style', serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span></div>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-29746823960431552912010-08-18T00:19:00.003+03:002010-09-07T22:05:55.862+03:00Resistance 3 and new Ratchet & Clank<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:6d2c5163-f5be-4017-9e35-703c7c9d37dd" style="display: inline; float: none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">
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<br />
Insomniac Games have <a href="http://insomniacgames.com/games/resistance">announced</a> their new Resistance and Ratchet and Clank games. The latter is not something I want to see as much, but just check out this teaser trailer for Resistance 3. This is THE most stylish video game trailer I’ve seen in my life. Maybe I should abandon that Heavy Rain shit and finally go for Resistance 2.<br />
<br />
That is, not to say that Heavy Rain is a bad game, quite the contrary. My Samsung TV screen is broken anyway at the moment. Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-47507024642712346622010-08-17T20:48:00.003+03:002010-08-17T20:54:04.073+03:00uDraw<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_qrj6v6ym67U/TGrLP4lq-5I/AAAAAAAAAzk/A2Z805Dnlcg/s1600-h/Wii-uDraw-GameTablet%5B7%5D.jpg"><img alt="Wii-uDraw-GameTablet" border="0" height="239" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_qrj6v6ym67U/TGrLVU9XzjI/AAAAAAAAAzo/wsoYZiJz004/Wii-uDraw-GameTablet_thumb%5B5%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Wii-uDraw-GameTablet" width="432" /></a> <br />
No one is surprised that Kinect is <a href="http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/29950/Kinect_Hits_Europe_November_10.php">hitting</a> stores in November. Namely—4th in the U.S. and 10th in Europe. I’m not gonna say how useless and marketing-based that controller is—you already know all about it and even if you don’t, just google it. <br />
<br />
The thing I’d like to talk about is new controllers from third-party devs. For example, check out this uDraw video from Gamescom. This device is made by THQ. <br />
<br />
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:c9d00c0e-3050-43d9-afa4-6d31f72be981" style="display: inline; float: none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">
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<object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/P2oPhGiRhGU&hl=en">
<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/P2oPhGiRhGU&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="355"></object></div>
</div>
</div>
<br />
It comes with a few games and applications, which are all drawing-based. This device will be selling at $69.99 and new games for it will be available for $29.99. And of course, it <a href="http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/29952/THQ_Reveals_uDraw_Wii_Tablet_Peripheral_Games.php">will</a> hit retail “just in time for the holiday season.” <br />
<br />
I am really interested how this device will affect falling Wii sales. The whole “I’m gonna make teh controller you ain’t gonna beat” thing is getting funnier each month. It’s like returning to the era of PlayStation 2 with all those ridiculous swords and guns you could plug in. It seems that people are starting to remember what the arcade machines look like.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-80973884706040617292010-08-17T13:02:00.003+03:002010-08-17T13:04:57.222+03:00On Starcraft 2<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_qrj6v6ym67U/TGpeUbvQIxI/AAAAAAAAAzc/hTo9mDBicXI/s1600-h/slowpoke_17224180%5B2%5D.gif"><img alt="slowpoke_17224180" border="0" height="240" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_qrj6v6ym67U/TGpeUgo6T-I/AAAAAAAAAzg/9BAug3ZwAwE/slowpoke_17224180_thumb.gif?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="slowpoke_17224180" width="220" /></a> <br />
If you talked to me about games during the previous several weeks, you have probably noticed that I’ve been quite offensive towards new Blizzard’s game—both before and after its release. There are two reasons for that kind of reaction.<br />
<br />
The first one is that I grew up on games from the C&C series, including Tiberian Sun and Red Alert, and also this little but fun Herbert-based Dune series. These games have always had the right mechanics, the right amount of units and no need for extreme micro controlling. The action was slow paced, and you always had plenty of time to think about what you do. <br />
<br />
Then, everyone knew what Blizzard did. In Warcraft they simply took these Westwood mechanics, tweaked them slightly, changed them a bit, and voi-la! A new game was born. Well, -ish. What’s interesting about first games in Warcraft series is that they were surprisingly similar to C&C. In fact, to the extent where an RTS player sometimes didn’t have to memorize new hotkeys. That’s why WC and WC2 both were like fun change of pace for me, not really like a new type of game. <br />
<br />
And here I have to say one more thing: I never played Starcraft back then. I was scared of the space setting, the name sounded bizarre, hence the whole thing got onto my HDD some time about WC3 release. The latter, by the way, seemed odd straight away—they changed the interface, they changed the mechanics, they added heroes and, what’s more—it was my first 3D RTS game. Not sure if it was THE first, but my first impression was shock, to be honest.<br />
<br />
And then I saw SC. It was like a revelation—I knew from the start that I didn’t want to play this. The interface and the whole feel of the game was very like WC3 and nothing—I repeat—nothing like WC2. Mechanics were a bit odd, but nothing special, really, I just didn’t enjoy playing it. In fact, each time I played SC I desperately wanted to quit and open Red Alert 2. That’s probably why I only made it to the end of Zerg campaign and got rid of the whole thing afterwards. <br />
<br />
That was the first reason I didn’t wait for SC2 whatsoever. Here comes the second.<br />
<br />
THE GAME IS AWFUL. Guys come on, I don’t really give a lot of shit about multiplayer, but this campaign is a total and absolute disgrace. Mechanics haven’t changed A BIT. Graphics look like 3 or 4 years old. At least. This plot is just pathetic in 2010. I mean, come on, rebels and oppressive government? And a badass dude sitting in a bar grieving about his lost gf? Are you taking us for morons and teenagers, Blizzard? And then this wonderful payment system, when you have to buy game cards to play a single bloody player game. How fucked up is that? I mean, yeah, I know, Bobby Kotick and stuff, but I really don’t give a shit who's fault is that—I just think that Ubisoftish protection systems must die a fast death and that if I’ve bought a game, I would really like to be able to play it—not to bloody pay again. What the hell.<br />
<br />
I know that this subscription model is applied only to Russia, Ukraine and several other countries in Eastern Europe. What I don’t know is whether Activision thinks that everyone here is idiotic enough to pay every month for a single player game.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-49718283144334410752010-08-17T02:39:00.001+03:002010-08-17T02:39:13.098+03:00Crossposting<p>I am currently trying out crossposting in LiveJournal and Blogger via Live Writer. Let’s see if it works.</p> Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-5975555769204825732010-08-17T02:23:00.002+03:002010-08-17T02:25:47.985+03:00Magic The Gathering awesomeness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOdgpr-Ai6atJg1cgJO2hKwT9fn2BdRs53UL02_9jFDw66M7Ux917yxhQqAF9Qkipb4MvYmbY1J8VfYn04TwJIZpiKVTSc9ay_JIlFPTAdQOBvVQjFZKBNJKYNTdc6WwQzL9hRUkr5wmN/s1600/pic430589_md.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOdgpr-Ai6atJg1cgJO2hKwT9fn2BdRs53UL02_9jFDw66M7Ux917yxhQqAF9Qkipb4MvYmbY1J8VfYn04TwJIZpiKVTSc9ay_JIlFPTAdQOBvVQjFZKBNJKYNTdc6WwQzL9hRUkr5wmN/s400/pic430589_md.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
They don’t design cards like this anymore. There is no way you are going to see anything like this in one of those shiny World of Warcraft boxes. I claim that this is what makes collecting card games fun: über-cards that make you want to shuffle your deck properly and scream like a kid when you are finally able to put them into play. Resource cost of this particular card is such that you won’t be able to gather that amount of lands until the latest stages of the game. But just check out this design. I mean, hell, it is divided into two parts! I dream of being able to create something like this one day.<br />
<br />
They don’t design cards like this anymore.</div>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-45661097530075065022010-08-16T16:56:00.001+03:002010-08-16T16:58:04.913+03:00The Expendables<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsBHLYjoOJ3t7XLTfCHi9SAggmeC_dD-lQJZRyv5wAy3BfVH6gy3KGQ3_b1_lVpl1CwoQS-JeQNw_EUFpyDjV_kDLu_eBNYU20nEknO1oy78EjL9le_VfdbrZFIy5C3SHEP5_S3sz-GTZ3/s1600/the-expendables.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsBHLYjoOJ3t7XLTfCHi9SAggmeC_dD-lQJZRyv5wAy3BfVH6gy3KGQ3_b1_lVpl1CwoQS-JeQNw_EUFpyDjV_kDLu_eBNYU20nEknO1oy78EjL9le_VfdbrZFIy5C3SHEP5_S3sz-GTZ3/s400/the-expendables.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">This movie
can give you everything you’d expect from a trash movie released somewhere in
the beginning of the 90s. It’s not funny. It doesn’t have a great plot (well,
to be honest, it doesn’t have any kind of plot for that matter). It doesn’t
have a lot of fresh action spiced with ambitious special effects. The
Expendables could as well have been made in the 90s. Then, again, what would you
expect from a movie produced by Rambo starring Terminator, Rocky and</span><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">John McClane</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">? </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">The whole
thing – from beginning to the end – screams in ambiguous rage: “Hell, look at
those guys, they are still so badass after all these years!” The thing is, they are not. Seriously, the whole movie is about telling us
how the cast is badass. Having seen the trailer, you’d probably wonder if there
is something more. The answer to this question is no, there is not. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">It’s not
one of those action movies released in the 21<sup>st</sup> century. Not Crank,
not Transporter, not Shoot ’Em Up. Don’t expect funny jokes and awesome style,
for there are no such things here.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">The only
reason you would want to watch The Expendables is your undeniable urge to see
dudes who became symbols of American badassness. And, of course, Charisma Carpenter, who looks surprisingly old—wrinkles all over her face. Not exactly what you remember from watching that sexy bitchy cheerleader in Buffy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">To cut the long story short, you've got to understand one simple truth: all heroes of your childhood are old now, along with those ancient special effects and oppressive militaristic leaders on lonely Latino islands.</span></div>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-1992433769250169642010-07-25T17:56:00.001+03:002010-07-25T17:59:56.512+03:00Portal: The Board Game<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhycDg5D-DU3dHcVWRx4XUmRpKFGTe8Ubje_8j6GDnFbRDqL1NIGrln_1fkapzqU4zhVRqlvY8xJhEBf5JCSdBoXoPokb6M5ysjmgkzRdvSVDg1TZOqkwVE0EnBcqeLemN6vOIkwod6ojk9/s1600/portal_prototype.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhycDg5D-DU3dHcVWRx4XUmRpKFGTe8Ubje_8j6GDnFbRDqL1NIGrln_1fkapzqU4zhVRqlvY8xJhEBf5JCSdBoXoPokb6M5ysjmgkzRdvSVDg1TZOqkwVE0EnBcqeLemN6vOIkwod6ojk9/s400/portal_prototype.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Disclaimer:</span> this game is yet to be properly play-tested, balanced and refined. Initial design might not work as intended in all aspects. Please be patient and wait for the final deliverable. If you want to have a glimpse of the game right now or are willing to participate in the play test, be wary of the possible problems this prototype might have.</i><br />
<br />
I wanted to create this game for a long time, and here it is. Downloadable, playable and absolutely copyright-free. Yes, if someone from Valve has accidentally bumped into this blog, they should know that they don’t have to sue me, since this game is absolutely free for everyone to play and is to be considered a fan-fiction.<br />
<br />
I admire Portal very much, and that is why I decided that I want to maintain its feel and some of its core mechanics throughout the board game. Here is a set of rules for you in case you decide to play this game. I haven’t made a user manual yet, since its mechanics are yet to be properly tested and refined.<br />
<br />
This game is a combination of tile-based board game and card game mechanics. On the right of the picture you can see the game board. It has a beginning (tile 1), and an ending (tile 42). In between there are simple non-distinctive tiles which are used by players for placing their chips. Each player has one chip and starts from tile 1, which means that their first turn will lead them to tile 2 or further. Some tiles have portals on them—the blue ones and the orange ones. When a player steps on a blue portal, they are teleported to the nearest orange portal forwards. When a players steps on an orange portal, they are teleported to the nearest blue portal backwards. When two players meet on one tile, the player who played last rolls a die, and can move the other player’s chip forwards or backwards the amount of tiles decided by the die roll.<br />
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Then there is the left part of the picture. Those are the cards. You have to cut them out and make a deck (of 50 cards). In the beginning of the game the deck is shuffled and the first player to move (decided by an RPS game), deals 5 cards to each player. Each turn consists of 4 stages: draw a card, play a card, roll a die and move the chip.<br />
<br />
There are 3 types of cards: board, tile and 2 tiles. Board cards are played to the empty part of the board and usually affect all players in the game. Tile cards are played to one tile and remain at that tile until someone steps on them. Then they affect the player who’s chip has been placed on that tile. 2 tile cards are played to two tiles (placed in between) and affect both of those tiles. Only one card can be placed on each tile in game. When a card is played and its effect is executed, this card goes to the junkyard and is placed face down out of the board. Players must draw a card in the beginning of the turn and then play a card. If there are no more cards in the deck, the junkyard is shuffled and is used instead of a deck.<br />
<br />
The first player to get the cake (tile 42), wins.<br />
<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: yellow;">An alternative moving mechanic.</span><br />
If for some reason you don’t have a die, there is a way to play this game anyway. All you need is a pen and a piece of paper. At first you have to assign a roller to each player in game. A roller is a person who will help them roll. If the players’ turns are distributed like this: Mike, Paul, Ivan, Kate, then the rollers assigned should look like this:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Mike — Ivan</li>
<li>Paul — Kate</li>
<li>Ivan — Mike</li>
<li>Kate — Paul</li>
</ol>
<div>
<div>
This order of rollers is important to be this way to ensure that roller will not be interested in helping or screwing with the players they are supposed to roll for. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
A squared paper is folded, and on one of its sides the roller draws a table of 6 squares. Then they randomly fill this table with numbers from 1 to 6. Each time a new table has to be drawn.</div>
</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRb9s7bxmV4hO8BeF2dpBuBBT4gwMY3QXhz6rDFHtOyMn6T52Tz0gse5YX8rupCJDE8n6Pmg1ZAOlWguAOVUY5HN0gwM4eiQbyOkgkXAcyfsSRsMIxfd_-U66D0NVQ-M7UrbFvLkTJj_Vz/s1600/%D0%94%D0%BE%D0%BA%D1%83%D0%BC%D0%B5%D0%BD%D1%8251.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRb9s7bxmV4hO8BeF2dpBuBBT4gwMY3QXhz6rDFHtOyMn6T52Tz0gse5YX8rupCJDE8n6Pmg1ZAOlWguAOVUY5HN0gwM4eiQbyOkgkXAcyfsSRsMIxfd_-U66D0NVQ-M7UrbFvLkTJj_Vz/s320/%D0%94%D0%BE%D0%BA%D1%83%D0%BC%D0%B5%D0%BD%D1%8251.png" /></a></div>
<div>
Then they turn the paper over and show where the table is to the player. The player has to choose one square. The important thing here is that the player cannot read the numbers, but can clearly see the table. This can be achieved by pressing harder when drawing a table and lighter when writing down the numbers.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Download the Visio document:</b> <a href="http://depositfiles.com/files/9zasci7ex">http://depositfiles.com/files/9zasci7ex</a></div>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-1250119879405252962010-07-07T14:31:00.001+03:002010-07-07T14:36:44.379+03:00Codename: Mandelbrot<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd7u0Ogv1uIZTjhf6nIP5XTLvhR1YlWs664ZOKQjQU4PEJlu7E0pmDYWlhSsAj9nWcfeSsDqbAYX2r_25IuyqgQp7wryKAqQGS7YEQCXtlXZPQBNsnwYEK6noCzQbMLqllzxTqNPvFwBwy/s1600/111.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd7u0Ogv1uIZTjhf6nIP5XTLvhR1YlWs664ZOKQjQU4PEJlu7E0pmDYWlhSsAj9nWcfeSsDqbAYX2r_25IuyqgQp7wryKAqQGS7YEQCXtlXZPQBNsnwYEK6noCzQbMLqllzxTqNPvFwBwy/s400/111.png" width="381" /></a></div><br />
It’s been a while since the last time I wrote something to this blog, so I decided to do something about it—here it is, a new post, alright. This new game idea is something that came to me yesterday when I was trying to make a Twitter background using these <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/benoit_mandelbrot_fractals_the_art_of_roughness.html">Mandelbrot fractals</a>. Adobe Illustrator turned out to have one interesting feature—that is, whenever you paste a raster object into it, it wants you to use only white brush over it. It’s probably possible to change the whole thing and draw rainbow-colored unicorns, but I was too lazy to try and find out about that. So, basically, I decided that this whole fractal is a living creature and the player controls another creature, which is small and stands on the surface of the big one. And that’s when things get fun.<br />
<br />
As you can see from my picture, the whole idea of the game is to wake the sleeping monster. Let’s say, our character is lost in the land of the grey, while it is supposed to be with light, and the only way to get her there is to wake up the fucker. So, here it is, a goal—but how do we achieve it, right?<br />
<br />
I’ve been asking myself this question for quite some time now, and noticed that everyone, whom I have shown this picture to, thought that those hearts in the top left corner of the screen are lives of the character. But why does she need lives? Can she even die? Obviously, not. The only bad thing that can happen to her is staying on the surface of Mandelbrot (yeah, let’s give it a name). This makes the game a puzzle. And a puzzle always has a solution and some means of achieving it. That is, knowing where the jigsaw piece has to go is not enough—you also need hands to put it in place. So, here is where the real game design begins.<br />
<br />
The player has precisely three control keys: right, left and up. By pressing right, they can rotate Mandelbrot clockwise. By pressing left—counterclockwise. When the player rotates Mandelbrot, the character runs at the same place, while the surface changes its position. By pressing up—jump. The height of jumping varies in different parts of Mandelbrot. In fact, gravity changes in different parts of it. The height of jump in each and every part of Mandelbrot is measured by Score in the lower right corner of the screen. This way, the player can see how high they can jump.<br />
<br />
So, as I have already mentioned, the hearts are pretty odd, since the character can’t die or be damaged in any way. Why do we need them then? Well, this is exactly the goal of the game. The player has to take a heart (one at a time) and give it to Mandelbrot. Then the creature will start seeing another dream, will change sides, and this will lead to a change of physics by which this little world is operated. The player may take only one heart at a time, and when they do, the remaining hearts change their position. In order to get a heart, the player has to jump precisely to the height at which they hang. In case of jumping higher, they miss the hearts, since the character can grab only at the highest point of the jump. If they jump lower, the character can’t reach the hearts.<br />
<br />
Rotate Mandelbrot → choose a position → jump and grab a heart → give the heart to Mandelbrot<br />
<br />
When the last heart is given to Mandelbrot, he wakes up, sees the character, puts her in his mouth and simply spits her to the other universe. Happy ending.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-82422789592207194972010-03-21T10:54:00.003+02:002010-03-21T11:00:13.456+02:00Foam & Mud game conceptYou’ve got your new shiny touchscreen phone, which has an accelerometer feature in it. Apart from throwing dice and choosing keyboard layout this feature can’t do pretty much anything. But you would find it quite awesome to play something relaxing using this feature—you have payed your money for it after all. So here is what I suggest.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiih_VO0TszYf4sYfZS0QUnUq08WRWf2l0YRjpzsZyISzmKdaKjOuP_DkkZbNOSme8z1T-ZuYfj4-6NdO4XUl4aJoIeSAqhTUH1xDecnKdAqi9qwVNG9VU8tGZA0pmV-4SCTHo6fb_byvjQ/s1600-h/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiih_VO0TszYf4sYfZS0QUnUq08WRWf2l0YRjpzsZyISzmKdaKjOuP_DkkZbNOSme8z1T-ZuYfj4-6NdO4XUl4aJoIeSAqhTUH1xDecnKdAqi9qwVNG9VU8tGZA0pmV-4SCTHo6fb_byvjQ/s320/1.png" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>This new game is called Foam & Mud. What you see on the screen can be either of them. Let’s say it is mud, because it is black, while the background is white. And let’s get rid of the phone. We don’t need no buttons—this game is all about your cool touchscreen and accelerometer.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwm7qOmx_atD3oM2gBn-x3-NAJTJBuCwC_bvSqenyXs9gvTFZ-oJu-QUlis-R_-aYUnj8DYEx_b5gQMi35ugVGb3jj1rAJnYz-5p5F3maVgqLjPS6T_iV2NVR5p_XTCea-NGW7b2lM5xAL/s1600-h/2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwm7qOmx_atD3oM2gBn-x3-NAJTJBuCwC_bvSqenyXs9gvTFZ-oJu-QUlis-R_-aYUnj8DYEx_b5gQMi35ugVGb3jj1rAJnYz-5p5F3maVgqLjPS6T_iV2NVR5p_XTCea-NGW7b2lM5xAL/s320/2.png" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Nothing’s changed, as you can see—we’ve only gotten rid of stuff we don’t need right now. So what do you wanna do with all this mud? Right now it looks very random and doesn’t seem to look like anything I’ve ever seen or thought about. Let’s give it some shape. At first we shall tilt the phone slightly left, making the mud fallow and slide to the lower part of the screen.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpNmwR7X7qTC7y8axTA45tziULY3rdWIhlQQZ2ERgRxWuKQNEOYAzLIwOr62yeN_GIZkotnXLNxu59m5Ln5mgLdqj0gI4rZ96n3czrj9-hmeIM6ip3Kvver2wsRHIM5bxo58fg4eRNdcrb/s1600-h/3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpNmwR7X7qTC7y8axTA45tziULY3rdWIhlQQZ2ERgRxWuKQNEOYAzLIwOr62yeN_GIZkotnXLNxu59m5Ln5mgLdqj0gI4rZ96n3czrj9-hmeIM6ip3Kvver2wsRHIM5bxo58fg4eRNdcrb/s320/3.png" /></a><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Next we’ll tilt it forward making mud slide again.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyuzPV_XyeCmERwA66XW9U0nUsIsWebvVSfwaVnEGJ3Ol13sWBI8n450P394l5n-Tv6-0y9QuWlpuBeIvqTJW4CDlnMUmj23tpHZ4W041lpfY-1Xzd4t2hprqLEmJDau_lzgGXrnuqyxxi/s1600-h/4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyuzPV_XyeCmERwA66XW9U0nUsIsWebvVSfwaVnEGJ3Ol13sWBI8n450P394l5n-Tv6-0y9QuWlpuBeIvqTJW4CDlnMUmj23tpHZ4W041lpfY-1Xzd4t2hprqLEmJDau_lzgGXrnuqyxxi/s320/4.png" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And to the opposite direction just for a moment. We can also move it as many times as we want until we get something like a shape:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRksQmSPDlmyx1Cq8hKkQLqXNg2BxrDzFG0EuGadNSbjpuuE46lbjrvigLLI2v9gMafObf78cFdo2msBV9fhoYyXZpd3tag1LUvKSkIo4lysFc_rwNaNKYlYs4Qfx-xb-yfCmjT_PpVOs/s1600-h/5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRksQmSPDlmyx1Cq8hKkQLqXNg2BxrDzFG0EuGadNSbjpuuE46lbjrvigLLI2v9gMafObf78cFdo2msBV9fhoYyXZpd3tag1LUvKSkIo4lysFc_rwNaNKYlYs4Qfx-xb-yfCmjT_PpVOs/s320/5.png" /></a><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">So here it is. A head and a tail of something vague. Let’s give this little fellow something to look with.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEerXqv3hCoz-1oIWyrkAhxBwIjxKP7Db0hmyyjKU9IlVFAdUEuGzGhGPauB1PwvcmrWhx2U0jbMPQAEyopfbPaznhZc0HFy5zC5JEiUSx6Ki7phy0ym9HGXYRjGtuSsciWTo-AuZyXz6G/s1600-h/6.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEerXqv3hCoz-1oIWyrkAhxBwIjxKP7Db0hmyyjKU9IlVFAdUEuGzGhGPauB1PwvcmrWhx2U0jbMPQAEyopfbPaznhZc0HFy5zC5JEiUSx6Ki7phy0ym9HGXYRjGtuSsciWTo-AuZyXz6G/s320/6.png" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Wow, look! He’s got eyes now that we have clicked twice on the screen. Now let’s give him a smile so that he doesn’t look so sad and unhealthy.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcA2uJiYI0fR5S4C_SS28xCuTocrtH0pjxyHwm8KJtsgi1R-L0cD6ZNeQAFuK7P2TTio3-T9JfjqIf8KfcLV_a0uR_pi0cK6MT5aOF1G52VMPmusEw_CB2r3Z3qjc38OEWqUvqOWOj_Z0e/s1600-h/7.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcA2uJiYI0fR5S4C_SS28xCuTocrtH0pjxyHwm8KJtsgi1R-L0cD6ZNeQAFuK7P2TTio3-T9JfjqIf8KfcLV_a0uR_pi0cK6MT5aOF1G52VMPmusEw_CB2r3Z3qjc38OEWqUvqOWOj_Z0e/s320/7.png" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;">The moment we made our little monster smile an achievement appeared telling us that this is something we have made good. Next time we may wanna create a robot, a rabbit, an elephant or even Johnny Depp’s portrait if we are good enough. Moreover, as the game’s name suggests, we can also change consistency of the material, switching from mud to foam, which will naturally affect the gameplay.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Here is how the figures are seen by the game and compared to ones in the game’s vector bank.</div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3gBphD3YI8tjvDQVMwAh57udIVfJjieUmemSzgGaTMu5cgmrlkkpPPIyCObGFdGY74JVxCYHQbztg1c2G6pijpEtKQxARu7nXdSA-gji_RQ_WgPdjxUa8hmfuj9vpZjs3K4BKr2LfslB6/s1600-h/8.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3gBphD3YI8tjvDQVMwAh57udIVfJjieUmemSzgGaTMu5cgmrlkkpPPIyCObGFdGY74JVxCYHQbztg1c2G6pijpEtKQxARu7nXdSA-gji_RQ_WgPdjxUa8hmfuj9vpZjs3K4BKr2LfslB6/s320/8.png" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-14283808153163346132010-03-17T17:17:00.001+02:002010-03-19T17:41:43.888+02:00Top-5 things that won't get you anywhereI am a game designer, so things I will be talking about stuff that concerns game designers, however, you certainly can try to apply them to your life too, just change games to, say, legal papers or building projects. This list presents your enemies, which will disguise themselves as your friends, and then stab you in the back when you least expect it.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Enemy #5. The Hobby Complex</span></b><br />
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<a href="http://media.boygeniusreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/video-games-reality.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://media.boygeniusreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/video-games-reality.jpg" width="230" /></a><br />
You have been playing games since you were a little kid. Everybody around you plays them, and later you discuss what happened on arena last night and how cool that guy’s Modern Warfare 2 profile is. Then suddenly you understand that you are no longer a part of this sparkling living small world. You don’t see just how fun games are—instead you start to see how they work. That’s the moment when you become a game designer. But, unfortunately, at the same moment your enemy kicks in—that enemy’s name is the Hobby Complex.<br />
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You find yourself reading boring Gamasutra articles and refusing to play just a few more rounds in Left 4 Dead 2. Your friends start to think that you are different from them, and the more your game design education progresses—the less you have time for actual playing. Don’t let this situation fool you. It’s okay to learn. You might try to return to what it’s been before, but that just won’t work like that anymore. Your only option here is to face your first enemy, deal with it and move on.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Enemy #4. Romance</span></b><br />
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Serious relationships, they call it. You are 19, the chick you’ve been dating for the last two months is 18. Face it, you’re never gonna marry her. You can’t even tell if she’s really into you as much as you are into her (vice versa scenario is also possible). The thing is, what are the odds of this relationship not ending within the next year? You probably have some kind of statistics of your own. Now take the number of 1 year+ relationships you have had by now, divide it by the overall number of girlfriends/boyfriends you had, and you will get the chance that this relationship will develop.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://juliedemboski.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/romance_tears.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://juliedemboski.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/romance_tears.jpg" width="292" /></a></div><br />
The 2,5% chance doesn’t mean that you have to go on and dump your girlfriend over the phone right away. It just means that you shouldn’t get your hopes up too high, because if you do that, when the time to break up comes, it will be tough. And when it happens, think twice about amounts of time and money you’ve spent while dating. You could be studying and getting successful instead. Just wait a few more years, and your statistics will change, but you certainly don’t want to do this right now. <s>Then again, having sex doesn’t hurt.</s><br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Enemy #3. Obsessions</span></b><br />
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Can you picture Sid Meier watching episodes of South Park one by one and then switching to How I Met Your Mother only to wait until the download of House ends? If you are watching TV shows to learn the language, it is okay, but you gotta catch the moment when this great comprehension exercise turns into a sit-back habit, which will haunt you to the extent when you won’t be able to eat without a new episode of anything.<br />
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<a href="http://rlv.zcache.com/tachyon_tv_obsession_t_shirt-p235038574108974005qn8v_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://rlv.zcache.com/tachyon_tv_obsession_t_shirt-p235038574108974005qn8v_400.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
You have to think harder about your priorities. Maybe it’s time to stop watching and start playing again instead. This will ensure that the Hobby Complex doesn’t return, and help you realize that you were obsessed. This, of course, also applies to collecting stamps, writing anime fanfics and shopping for shoes.<br />
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World of Warcraft’s legendary tip about taking everything in moderation (even World of Warcraft itself) was composed by a great samurai, who has obviously worked in Blizzard. Now I challenge you to go and try to beat him, and when you do, you can take his sword and inscribe a message of your own—the opposite statement. Only you won’t, because by that time you will have realized that he was right and you were wrong in the first place.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Enemy #2. Conventional Education</span></b><br />
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Clearly, not everyone can get a game design degree, and those who can not, go to universities to study stuff they will never get to use. The wide-spread delusion that anything can come in handy some day is a delusion and nothing but that. You will never get to use ecology, biochemistry, automation theory and visual basic programming. In fact, computer sciences students don’t get everything they need to know from classes and have to study on their own anyways. So the obvious choice here is to pick something that is relatively easy for you, will provide a decent level of general knowledge and at the same time won’t interfere with your real education.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://jamblichus.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/kids-in-classroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://jamblichus.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/kids-in-classroom.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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You might wanna create at least one game project while you are still a student, and this one project will definitely require some time. Your best friends are Gamasutra, Amazon and your French class.<br />
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Your university studies are just something you have to go through in order to get a math, psychology and marketing basis. Not that you can’t learn all that stuff on your own, you just need a degree, really.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Enemy #1. Internets</span></b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://xark.typepad.com/photos/xarkaganda/internets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://xark.typepad.com/photos/xarkaganda/internets.jpg" width="244" /></a></div><br />
Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Flickr, Chatroulette, Tumblr, Formspring, Digg, Bebo, Friendster, Delicious, LiveJournal, Last.fm, Linkedin (no, it won’t help you find a job!), Wordpress, DeviantArt, Blogger. Places you like to chat with your friends, huh? A profile here and there won’t hurt, right? Nothing’s wrong with having an online photo album, ain’t that the truth?<br />
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No, it ain’t. Take a dip in the social networking pool, and you will be grabbed by your neck and drowned in the dark waters of empty nothingness. Social networking won’t give you anything. In fact, in most cases neither will usage of IMs. Do have a Google Docs account. Do find out about business models. Do have a profile for your new project. DON’T let the internet consume you. So, following this advice, get the hell out of this blog before you decide to create one of your own!Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-26135200710831173772010-03-11T19:59:00.005+02:002010-03-14T09:46:03.746+02:00Ricky overview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrtHY5ZyZyxsXLByakTh-VHoZfVAadwK00VniL2YABHMHW6ryyJgE6hGyagyexlWCQ607eSccaLDTbAMrRTvfph0jaNppjbY2T0TfBP2qjxfc2FdztTKxTIspzkSGkfLS4XQ04yh6bvlQ3/s1600-h/dd72fvht_153cfqgtc2j_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrtHY5ZyZyxsXLByakTh-VHoZfVAadwK00VniL2YABHMHW6ryyJgE6hGyagyexlWCQ607eSccaLDTbAMrRTvfph0jaNppjbY2T0TfBP2qjxfc2FdztTKxTIspzkSGkfLS4XQ04yh6bvlQ3/s400/dd72fvht_153cfqgtc2j_b.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
The main idea of the game is using text instead of most of the game graphics, as well as in the quality of a gameplay element—in plenty of different ways. For example, a character would look like a compilation of letters of his name, turned in a specific way; a bird can be made of letters B (head), I (ii—body and eyes), R (ЯR—wings), D (tail); a comma is a boomerang; an exclamation mark is a rocket (or a sword); and dot is just a stone (or some kind of projectile).<br />
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The genre of the game is scroller/puzzle. The player can walk different routes, which can be found on the global map. After the player chooses one of the routes, they are transported onto the level screen. But between levels the player doesn’t have to stare at the global map all the time. For the sake of making the game world more diverse and live, there are also small capital levels, where friendly NPCs will give the main character (let us call him Ricky) different tasks.<br />
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Interaction with NPCs is executed the following way: Ricky approaches a character, who has a question mark over his head, then the main character gets an exclamation mark over his. After that the NPC turns to Ricky and explains what happened and what needs to be done within one animated dialog bubble. Then Ricky says “!!!”, the player’s global map gets refreshed, and a new level appears on it—the one on which the mentioned quest can be completed.<br />
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Main part of the gameplay in “Ricky” is completing puzzles with words. Puzzles are different tasks about composing words from letters. Letters can be used to build bridges, towers, roads, fieldworks. Moreover, depending on the level, a touch of action can be added via adding monsters, which try to bite the player, spit on them, make them slip or simply crush them. Regular monsters can be killed by shooting punctuation marks at them, while bosses need a special approach. <br />
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A boss dies when the player composes his name of letters, previously collected on the level. If the player hasn’t collected enough letters and has already encountered the boss, in order to get those letters, the player has to shoot the boss with their weapons and letters will fall on the ground one by one, where they can be picked up. <br />
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During game progress the player will earn a certain amount of points, which will appear on the leaderboard.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-33549501671592536882010-03-10T08:56:00.001+02:002010-03-10T08:59:33.259+02:00More about PoxNora<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHmUx4DuGPIaq9PWSR6CxuBClKrHTBREXM5sGQxUjYtjvOlgyaqMrVGzKjO6YY9Q2ol7JGRYkJTJdeOCLwtBjDliUSdr1NO5XZX2bJYpwDrgDOUdgtDAXQNF3QrgekGKTkuZ7safyEH0p9/s1600-h/2010-03-10_084521.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHmUx4DuGPIaq9PWSR6CxuBClKrHTBREXM5sGQxUjYtjvOlgyaqMrVGzKjO6YY9Q2ol7JGRYkJTJdeOCLwtBjDliUSdr1NO5XZX2bJYpwDrgDOUdgtDAXQNF3QrgekGKTkuZ7safyEH0p9/s320/2010-03-10_084521.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Yesterday, I <a href="http://krides.blogspot.com/2010/03/facebook-and-cradle-of-awesomeness.html">wrote</a> about new SOE’s MMO card game being released on Facebook. Well, guess what, I have finally tried it out properly, and now I am quite sure that it is the most sophisticated game for social sites so far. PoxNora is made for competition and multiplayer. There are different types of lobbies for casual, ranked and training games, and you can even observe games. You will compose decks (or battlegroups), collect or buy new runes and try to beat your friend, strangers and even AI. There aren’t much players in game yet, however, I really think they will come as soon as more social features are implemented. The tutorial is a little bit tiresome, but, on the other hand, how do you expect a person who has never seen a card strategy game before to know how to play it? I can’t yet say anything about balance, but I certainly like the mechanics.<br />
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The bottom line is you don't have to play Mafia and Poker anymore—something new and awesome (and competitive too) has arrived. That is not to mention PoxNora has definitely come to stay. Facebook is evolving into a gaming platform after all.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-48595629016009070842010-03-09T09:33:00.002+02:002010-03-09T09:37:50.221+02:00Facebook and the Cradle of Awesomeness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWUGiqGXP2kD9LxuvnUoPyu29DjyEKAexgC3maCecZsCBt6DiApU9vWs-c2NU3xf_ftjBeTSQD21u1vqeZxObC-aPqlXWDjcUZEprO3jUOJWhAWuT_GidE_sETd8QvO-t9lODsDbTFNPC/s1600-h/2010-03-09_092945.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWUGiqGXP2kD9LxuvnUoPyu29DjyEKAexgC3maCecZsCBt6DiApU9vWs-c2NU3xf_ftjBeTSQD21u1vqeZxObC-aPqlXWDjcUZEprO3jUOJWhAWuT_GidE_sETd8QvO-t9lODsDbTFNPC/s400/2010-03-09_092945.png" width="322" /></a></div><br />
Sony’s new game has been launched in its beta state, and it is already the most awesome game I’ve seen on Facebook. Perhaps it is the first one among those Big titles we will be playing on Facebook for the few years to follow—two of them being of course Brave Arms and Civilization. I’ll be trying it out shortly, but all you really need to know about it right now is that it is a browser-based MMO card game and that you can find it right here: <a href="http://apps.facebook.com/poxnora">http://apps.facebook.com/poxnora</a>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-11391359553467956142010-03-08T11:58:00.012+02:002010-03-08T12:18:13.377+02:00About Critters & the initial treatment documentNow that I'm finally done with this long and tiresome writing of initial treatment document of Critters, I can talk about fun stuff I had implemented in it and about the very process of writing this <a href="http://docs.google.com/View?id=dd72fvht_170mcwkbpfz">document</a>. First of all, what is the initial treatment itself?<br />
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I’ve got the idea of writing a portfolio based on these documents from a classic game design <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Game-Architecture-Design-Practices-Programming/dp/1576104257">book</a> called <i>Game Architecture and Design</i> by Andrew Rollings and Dave Morris (New Riders Publishing). The authors of this book assume that each game needs a first formalized document which will describe its mechanics, interface, graphics, game screens and other stuff. Basically, an initial treatment document is a formalized idea of the game—not a free-form game vision, but not yet a full-scale design document. It ought to give the reader an idea of what the game is supposed to look like by the end of development and help to decide whether or not this game deserves to be developed at all.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK1gGRoiuXTtDt0fE6OntU_h4xjKZ0GSzFwIbTBigdKf4h5PKj406TCwmIOetl5X_J7fOhxFXRS32nvPgOZpssC5Rtiit6H1OCnaY29YYhHsGFZLnuaDbePNyolBCGiRDazDl4Zq1un4Dp/s1600-h/critters_cover_vector_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK1gGRoiuXTtDt0fE6OntU_h4xjKZ0GSzFwIbTBigdKf4h5PKj406TCwmIOetl5X_J7fOhxFXRS32nvPgOZpssC5Rtiit6H1OCnaY29YYhHsGFZLnuaDbePNyolBCGiRDazDl4Zq1un4Dp/s320/critters_cover_vector_2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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You can check out the document at its Google Docs <a href="http://docs.google.com/View?id=dd72fvht_170mcwkbpfz">page</a>, so that I don’t have to describe it exhaustively. Instead I would like to focus on the game’s main features and USP’s as well as making clear how the document was written and planned. <br />
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Critters is built around one idea—that of an action/RPG based on mounts. It is not extremely different from other action/RPG’s, however, it offers some fresh approach to gameplay. Why move yourself if someone could do it for you? Why cast spells yourself, if your loyal critter will gladly do the job for you? You, on the other hand, will have to find those critters willing to help you, and it is also you who’s job will be to make the critters’ life easier. You control them. <br />
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At first I thought that this one mechanic change will not affect this much of the gameplay. I was even thinking of adopting one of existing RP-systems to realities of Critters, when an idea popped into my head—the whole fetish Diablo-like dancing around items and worshiping new enchanted plate mails can be easily replaced in my game. In fact, the inventory itself almost won’t be needed at all. Instead, the whole new perk system should be introduced. Perks can easily replace items if there is a sufficient number of them in the game, not to mention critters themselves, which can be added in great numbers. This way the whole economic model would be reduced to inexistent state and replaced by parts of the RP-system. Therefore, the player will be able to focus on the gameplay and playing the role instead of thinking what to wear and how much gold should be spent on potions. <br />
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The next part was making a system which would supply players with new perks and critters. That’s where quests and minigames come in handy. Speaking about quests, I have decided to make rewards dependent on the actions the player does. It is a common approach in self-esteem psychology: each time a first-grader does something that he likes, he gets a compliment exactly for what he has done. This way a player party can complete each quests in up to 10 different ways and each class will get its own reward based on how exactly he acted during this quest. This approach requires some special mechanics and ideas of quests themselves, however, I have composed a few and found out that it seems difficult just for the first 2 or 3 times; then your Blizzardish and BioWarish way of thinking changes and you start thinking variety, which is actually sort of fun.<br />
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The same way minigames in Critters require variety. There are two types of them: those for acquiring new critters and competitive ones, which offer a multiplayer- or plot-related challenge. And since there can be up to 4 players in party, it is important to design minigames the appropriate way. In fact, it is quite easy if you start with a singleplayer minigame and then let is evolve and expand, adopting new rules and elements, which would suit different game modes. Obviously, a singleplayer minigame against AI cannot work the same way as a 4 on 4 multiplayer one. <br />
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I have introduced two relatively new interface elements into the game: the first being Perk selection and the second—Bestiary. The first one is quite unique mostly because of its intended size and supposed number of minigames in it. The second is basically a spellbook (but a critterbook really) with an important feature in it—each time the player finds information on critter, this information is added in to the Bestiary. <br />
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The next fun feature in Critters is the traveling system along with the zone liberation system. Clearly, it was inspired by the game Space Rangers with its captured and free zones. The difference is that in Critters players will be able to travel without predetermined paths like in any MMO game. Making no clear division between zones (also like MMOs) is also a good idea here. Some zones in Critters have their own effects on players’ critters and also influence quests and minigames.<br />
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I haven’t really thought about detailed plot yet, but I’m really confident about the setting—dark fairy-tale meets steam-punk medieval. Critters will work best in this kind of setting, not to mention a great variety of unique zones one can think of. <br />
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Critters is my second initial treatment document and I could have missed on some important points in it, as well as made some mistakes, so if you decide tor read it, please let me know what you think about it.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-60865451055468964372009-12-06T23:24:00.003+02:002009-12-06T23:33:01.066+02:00LegalCamp '09<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://legalcamp.org.ua/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="LegalCamp09" src="http://legalcamp.org.ua/files/banner-300x250.png" /></a><br />
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I recently grew interested in different kinds of Internet-related events, because at the moment we are still working on the pre-production of this one web <a href="http://krides.blogspot.com/2009/11/media-globe-theory.html">project</a>, and it is quite important to make everything right. The previous event I attended was <a href="http://mediacamp.org.ua/">Media Camp</a> (#mckyiv09 on Twitter), and now the same guys organised a bar camp to deal with legal issues.<br />
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If you are going to be in Kiev on Friday the 18th of December, you may wanna attend LegalCamp as well, so meet you there. Or, I will probably write about it anyway, so just stay tuned to my blog, I guess.<br />
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P.S. Oh, and the hashtag for LegalCamp is of course <a href="http://twitter.com/#search?q=%23legalcamp">#legalcamp</a>.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-33030771757118740072009-12-05T14:45:00.005+02:002009-12-06T17:19:10.459+02:00Machinarium<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>This article was written as an example mini-review for my new media globe </i><a href="http://krides.blogspot.com/2009/11/media-globe-theory.html"><i>project</i></a><i>. </i><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirH1shNR4en7UGeNfTGM62YcQ6VmS1_8yUCdylaKQnqTuZOwy9OSRYoiyZ-yUMEoEmxYapmx0QczfaEtGcVaRCrKeaWbtiwYzSkQGOrTW__Fnv3IGwuvjW9hyz54dz-PHYYwosXYPuEm9B/s1600-h/mach_blog_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirH1shNR4en7UGeNfTGM62YcQ6VmS1_8yUCdylaKQnqTuZOwy9OSRYoiyZ-yUMEoEmxYapmx0QczfaEtGcVaRCrKeaWbtiwYzSkQGOrTW__Fnv3IGwuvjW9hyz54dz-PHYYwosXYPuEm9B/s400/mach_blog_1.jpg" /></a><br />
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Machinarium is a perfect game if you like naive fairy-tale plots and great artwork. It also has some other good stuff, such as fun puzzles to solve and cool minigames to play. The game is what they call independent, and its marketing budget is only 1000 bucks, which is quite impressive taking how much work was done here. If you want a game reference of what has the most similar stuff to this puzzle-adventure, you are looking for a highly underrated game from a guy named Doug TenNapel and Steven Spielberg's studio DreamWorks Interactive called Neverhood. Developers took 3 mil tons of plasticine and created probably one of the best point-and-click adventures in the history of interactive media.<br />
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As you might have already guessed, Machinarium offers us the same level of greatness as Neverhood, which makes it simply the best adventure in like ten years. The coolest thing about both games is this unforgettable feeling of presence you get playing them. The game world in Machinarium is rather steam-punky futuristic, with only robots living there, which is quite odd if you think about it without the Robots cartoon comparison.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4miqO0yooVmmBWnN-OF4t27C3cfPU2kM3w6oe8cLPPL38CZg_w4niHLPsjA56tbNTjn1kWOWqpiA4_45Hq9ituKajJVK7FyclOwi5exoYOgfn7lj1eeOuVGYSd-AEzzuesvrOFi9RuN37/s1600-h/mach_blog_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4miqO0yooVmmBWnN-OF4t27C3cfPU2kM3w6oe8cLPPL38CZg_w4niHLPsjA56tbNTjn1kWOWqpiA4_45Hq9ituKajJVK7FyclOwi5exoYOgfn7lj1eeOuVGYSd-AEzzuesvrOFi9RuN37/s320/mach_blog_2.jpg" /></a><br />
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The plot tells us about a little robot, who tries to stop his city from being captured by a bunch of bad guys. I'm not going to spoil it for you, but there is one thing you should know about it and it is that there are no words in the game at all. All you get for dialogs is comic-like thinking bubbles, which look quite funny and atmospheric.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiazd2uWPqcZaziPtaNJQrlZoOgX63KiCqPNhBseqf-8GRIl0qqySKYKm32C0OjxRI29WkZHhsNCKo-hAnbjTA2rBRLEhU3IbnxyPuItyisQzgXeetil9kMmAiy1zTLj1uvAEivB3fR-yDU/s1600-h/machinarium+2009-12-02+00-26-51-41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiazd2uWPqcZaziPtaNJQrlZoOgX63KiCqPNhBseqf-8GRIl0qqySKYKm32C0OjxRI29WkZHhsNCKo-hAnbjTA2rBRLEhU3IbnxyPuItyisQzgXeetil9kMmAiy1zTLj1uvAEivB3fR-yDU/s320/machinarium+2009-12-02+00-26-51-41.jpg" /></a><br />
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We also get hints via these bubbles and believe me, you want to get a hint here, because some puzzles in the game are quite hard to find a solution for. Speaking of which, you can always open an in-built comic-book, describing each scene of the game in detail, giving player a perfectly clear idea of what and how to do next. Some people might say that it takes all of the fun away, but I really don't think so. Instead, it makes the game absolutely suitable for kids and those adults who don't have much time to waste on a puzzle which is too hard to solve. In order to open the book, you have to win in a simple arcade game, which involves killing spiders with a shooting key. Sounds crazy, but looks quite natural in there.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_9gR6rU0lh9SfCfP-hYHQXCPojDs2tnPVof_P8Do7FtbiHL_DbOioHO9Fjqt-k7PI16mMMBSfjHHOyfA43YcsrdqNWoheZkq-0IJyrXHYBZEnPyppnaGbAs1NoLXlTpRUIRa8nz0ovLYx/s1600-h/mach_blog_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_9gR6rU0lh9SfCfP-hYHQXCPojDs2tnPVof_P8Do7FtbiHL_DbOioHO9Fjqt-k7PI16mMMBSfjHHOyfA43YcsrdqNWoheZkq-0IJyrXHYBZEnPyppnaGbAs1NoLXlTpRUIRa8nz0ovLYx/s400/mach_blog_3.jpg" /></a><br />
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The game also has a beautiful interpretation of the old arcade machine back from the 1978 called Space Invaders. Frankly speaking, I was not even born yet, when those were in use, but we all know how that kind of 8-bit oldschool is popular nowadays. And the best thing about it is that you don't have to pay coins for playing on it: you get money for winning instead! Isn't that like living a childhood dream?<br />
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All in all, the game is awesome and you probably should at least check out the free demo, which can be downloaded at <a href="http://machinarium.net/demo/">machinarium.net/demo/</a>. And if you haven't tried Neverhood back in the mid-90's, you must <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Neverhood-Pc/dp/B00004RKER">see</a> it as well.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-76520278714772978232009-12-01T01:44:00.001+02:002009-12-01T01:48:06.497+02:00A Complete History Of My Sexual Failures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img9.uploadhouse.com/fileuploads/2946/29461617a08fd08e59bbdcb69a3a8d521a6f679.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://img9.uploadhouse.com/fileuploads/2946/29461617a08fd08e59bbdcb69a3a8d521a6f679.jpg" width="282" /></a><br />
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The movie is simply the best of those released in 2009. Well, frankly speaking, Chris Waitt's indie ex-girlfriend interview film was released in 2008, but in my country it was shown only in course of the recent British Movies' Week. The film is just as indie as it gets: cocks, asking strangers to have sex, real interviews and a bunch of really funny lively moments.<br />
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Chris himself is the most hilarious person I've ever seen on screen. Like my friend said, he doesn't have to say anything: you can tell that he's a total loser from the first look at him. Anyway, the plot develops while he (and his camera crew) tries to interview his ex-girlfriends each and every of whom has dumped him. One of them even said that she stopped dating white men after dumping Chris. Loads of laughter and totally real sad moments like discovering that he's still in love with on of his exes are included.<br />
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The bottom line is you should watch this film no matter what you think of indie movies, sexual comedies or dicks in the focus of the camera. A Complete History Of My Sexual Failures is a perfect movie to watch if your mood hasn't been so good lately (which is totally common in this crappy weather), however, if your mental state is okay, it is still highly advised.<br />
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<span style="color: #444444;">And a little spoiler right here. That girl with the Russian accent is cute.</span>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-31997958431634193652009-11-21T04:39:00.004+02:002009-11-28T14:31:22.714+02:00Left4Dead 2 is a joke?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ7ML-yWo_w_abeVFSV0eBCi23D9TKNtiQ9fLRjB28eTZcIPdw9qU1t7y25Lt90slUu7LiLtSvTfjIHxPuJNX_-0U4nxgFQ95mQdhJS-xHluXdG7o9elDXeHQAPfmYGyRpG_Su1a_b_otJ/s1600/Untitled-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ7ML-yWo_w_abeVFSV0eBCi23D9TKNtiQ9fLRjB28eTZcIPdw9qU1t7y25Lt90slUu7LiLtSvTfjIHxPuJNX_-0U4nxgFQ95mQdhJS-xHluXdG7o9elDXeHQAPfmYGyRpG_Su1a_b_otJ/s400/Untitled-1.png" /></a><br />
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The original Left4Dead has won our praise by its great dynamic gameplay, tons of blood, brilliant and still quite exotic for that time cooperative multiplayer and a great deal of replayability.<br />
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The sequel was met with a protest by the game's community which claimed that it is not fair to release a sequel without any significant gameplay innovations and making everybody just buy a content-pack for a price of a new game. Some people supported this point of view, some met it sceptically.<br />
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But from what I can see right now, Left4Dead 2 is indeed a great, massive content-pack, which features five new campaigns and two new playing modes: Realism and Scavenge. The first one is basically an ultra-high level of difficulty for campaigns, and the second one is a new round-based mode about gathering canisters and refueling the car.<br />
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This stuff really could be released in the form of downloadable content like Valve did with Team Fortress 2, but this time they decided to make a whole new game out of it and, frankly speaking, we cannot blame them for this decision.<br />
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The game itself has some really cool levels, new characters and a couple of new zombie behaviors, but the core game mechanics haven't changed a bit, and neither have the graphics. Nothing surprising so far, and I have already finished 4 out of 5 campaigns. In fact, all we've got here is another portion of good old (holy cow—that's a year!) Left4Dead gameplay.<br />
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If you liked it, you probably have already bought the sequel. If you didn't like it, the sequel won't by any means change your feeling about it. If you haven't played neither, you should probably go for the Valve's special offer and buy the <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/sub/2487/">bundle</a> for 70 bucks. Or not. It's up to you.<br />
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I'll be writing a full-scale review of the game for <a href="http://mikportal.org/">mikportal.org</a> in a few days, so you will see its English version here, but I'm quite sure that nothing will have changed by then.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-88833264528857449302009-11-20T02:19:00.005+02:002009-11-20T03:12:40.712+02:00The media globe theoryThe <a href="http://books.google.com.ua/books?id=tTJeo-qpOboC&dq=media+globe&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=VA9fkmHWq3&sig=F31TMwYqyjaOLTQLoupTUZOkFks&hl=en&ei=hc4FS6HpCoqpsAbq1-W3Cg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CBoQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=&f=false">media globe</a> is a manner of treating different kinds of media which do not really often go together, but still have too much in common. For example, TV shows, video games, animated films and movies. In modern society the level of globalization has reached the point when virtually no distinctions should be made between those kinds of media.<br />
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They are completely different industries with different people working on projects and different production processes, however, the end-product is pretty much alike: all of them are played on technically similar hardware, all of them feature storyline, all of them can be easily bought via digital delivery services on the Internet. All of them have actors and all of them are listed in critics databases such as IMDB, TV.com and Metacritic.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCgrBw6B43C_xSnhqhNcLGZhvaSiqkW92wUAX_nQ-7DG2UbxxkQc38hKOpFNCyOPMthvlFeBABJubzMsZiCTrgOuBjYYFJgaZiJckKQayxeNhW7s_vb1iShTq0YKELAWc6ix8knUzVKjgv/s1600/mediaglobe.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCgrBw6B43C_xSnhqhNcLGZhvaSiqkW92wUAX_nQ-7DG2UbxxkQc38hKOpFNCyOPMthvlFeBABJubzMsZiCTrgOuBjYYFJgaZiJckKQayxeNhW7s_vb1iShTq0YKELAWc6ix8knUzVKjgv/s400/mediaglobe.png" /></a><br />
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The media globe is solid and has a firm comfortable surface. We walk on it everyday feeling really good about ourselves and about it. But every time you turn on your TV, you dip your head into the globe and observe one certain part of the inside. You dip your head in a different part of the globe, and you see a new media. Sometimes you have to dip your hands as well, though.<br />
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But what will we see if we cut the globe open? That's right, it is segmented in a way that if you take one segment away, you will see all types of media at the same time. Suddenly, you feel an urge to observe them all at once.<br />
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A person with an Internet access nowadays consumes a tremendous amount of visual information. We turn on our laptops, PlayStations, Xboxes, DVD & Blu-ray players and AV receivers and consume, consume consume. We consume all the time and we want to consume even more. But the ax of boredom and idleness is already hanging over our necks, ready to fall down any second if we're out of favorite TV shows for the week. And that's when we want even more, and this desire helps us find our way into another media.<br />
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Clearly, switching to another media cannot go nicely and smoothly for everyone. If your friend has given you advice to play Gothic 3 or to watch Bloodrayne, your impression about the media you have chosen to consume content from clearly won't be right.<br />
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And that's why me and some of my buddies decided to create a place on the Internet, where all kinds of visual media will be equal. We will try as hard as we can to guide you to your exploration and help you find the pieces of content which are right just for you.<br />
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We are starting to work on a site, which will feature news, reports, reviews and announces of all kinds of media in a familiar to everyone format of a blog. Our site will also have webcasts, which will allow you to get your visual media reports visually. This project will most likely be announced after the New Year, so stay tuned.Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-2505305658333711372009-11-18T22:56:00.010+02:002009-11-19T02:31:50.846+02:00Critters overview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-style: italic;">I'm currently working on the initial treatment document of the game called Critters. Here is the game overview. All mistakes clearly are there to test you, so comment if you see any.</span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpQD12v1jBc15aUsz-0BFVwQIAySvdW4XNNmMrc_F1BEqytrJTSm95sKK5nmwmn4zMUns4je0IVyIcgkx6TgG8XO8qPJzzjxw1Bwlevd0S1vo4sRZP7PfW_EFCqhhd7iOONQlsEsgKV2O0/s1600/critter_final.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpQD12v1jBc15aUsz-0BFVwQIAySvdW4XNNmMrc_F1BEqytrJTSm95sKK5nmwmn4zMUns4je0IVyIcgkx6TgG8XO8qPJzzjxw1Bwlevd0S1vo4sRZP7PfW_EFCqhhd7iOONQlsEsgKV2O0/s320/critter_final.png" /></a><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The main idea of the game is using creatures instead of spells in action/RPG. The character simply mounts each new creature after choosing it from the 'spellbook' or in our case from the bestiary. Each critter has its own abilities which give player a wide range of in-game actions from rooting or stunning the opponent to running faster and jumping higher.</span><br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Different critters and combinations of critters (one critter after another) are needed for different missions, which is exactly why the player must try hard to gather as many critters as he or she can. To add a critter to his or her bestiary, the player has to accomplish a minigame, which is unique for each critter.</span><br />
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</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The genre of the game is action/adventure with some RPG elements including perk system, spellbar (with critters on it), quest log and quests themselves. Each critter has two abilities (one for each mouse button). Moreover, these abilities can combine forming another (probably more powerful) interaction. To make a combo the player has to press mouse buttons in a specific way. On a gamepad this kind of controls can be realized via triggers.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
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</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The player can tame only those critters which suite his character's class. In whole there are four character classes in the game: the demono, the dru, the hypno and the warri. Demono specializes in critters with major magic abilities such as fireballs, lightnings, freezing and earthquakes. Dru's critters can control nature: they are various fairies, unicorns, dryads as well as everything else dealing with trees, grasses and forests. Hypno's specialization are creatures which can stun, hypnotize, confuse or even mind control. And, finally, warri controls the most strong, savage and fierce critters.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
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</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">All critters in the game are based on the mythology of different parts of the world, so players will be able to recognize most of them. The game setting is a bit of mythology combined with dark fairy-tale fantasy, as such of Grimm Brothers' fairy-tales. In this world gremlins wage a war against humans, who have established a steam-punk industrial society, which is expanding rapidly, leaving the creatures of the wilds less and less country to live. Each critter can and will talk to the player, making jokes of him and choices he makes, as well as giving advice.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
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</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Taming critters is conducted the following way. The player has a journal which contains descriptions of all critters, their behaviors and habitats. Moreover, he has a world map which becomes detailed in course of world exploration. To tame a critter the player has to come to a location described in the journal and perform a specific rite-minigame there.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
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</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The design of the game world is done in a way that forces the player to encounter a specific number of action on his way to the next critter or quest objective, however, the player has to choose a route himself.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
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</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The game has a coop mode which will allow up to four players to be in the game world at the same time. Each player has to pick one character class. The game world is modified based on the number of players in it. The more players—the tougher are enemies. But the minigames are modified as well, making it possible to complete each of them in the coop mode as well as in single player mode.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
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</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The competitive multiplayer mode includes both minigames and arena in team against team, team against AI, single player against another single player. Each multiplayer mode has its own leaderboard and achievements system.</span><br />
</div></div>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-12458025925337106672009-11-17T23:30:00.003+02:002009-11-17T23:45:29.834+02:00Bruce and Gerard pals forevah<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAULJrFdz_etXL5IE4oRQHU-ZWW48cqv1EykSWu6OsB6aQk6YrHNzqBZO5igMKOTa_8-DWzqOeGOHioXPtJPloNXKQUVcPjB2hA4gBqXCWgIu6V4VK8tYPmWDWxGnqWbIs4C2_iEjrYni/s1600/sf4loadone.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAULJrFdz_etXL5IE4oRQHU-ZWW48cqv1EykSWu6OsB6aQk6YrHNzqBZO5igMKOTa_8-DWzqOeGOHioXPtJPloNXKQUVcPjB2hA4gBqXCWgIu6V4VK8tYPmWDWxGnqWbIs4C2_iEjrYni/s400/sf4loadone.png" /></a><br />
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I've finally gone to the cinema tonight to see Gamer after a month of waiting, and so happened, that I've recently watched Surrogates on DVD, so I couldn't neglect the overall similarity of movies' main ideas: both feature lazy humans who sit at home and manipulate bodies via some kind of interface (one point to Gamer for manipulating other living humans).<br />
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Gamer is a movie which has great visual effects but a really lame storyline, while Surrogates offers a still lame one but at least trying not to be such, while visual effects here are mostly speculation on futuristic human-like dolls and a great scene with these dummies falling down all over the city.<br />
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But in Gamer we also have a beautifully made PlayStation Home allusion, which makes the movie worth watching at least for the sake of getting lulz out of it. Not to mention the ending, in which the main character kills the local version of Dr. Evil and the audience is so overloaded with the spark of pure happiness, that everyone almost seems to have a bubble above his head saying something like "gg you suck n00b owned l2p".<br />
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And, finally, while Surrogates is probably the worst Bruce Willis's role, Gamer is one of the best for Gerard Butler. Not even to mention th<span style="font-family: inherit;">at</span><span style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 5px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 5px; line-height: 17px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Milo Ventimiglia shows up in one scene of Gamer doing a short, but a really good acting job. You probably know this actor for his role of Peter Petrelli in Heroes TV series or Jess Mariano from Gilmore Girls. </span></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 5px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 5px; line-height: 17px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Both movies are satiric and fun to watch to some extent, but the whole Running Man scenery of Gamer is slightly better. If I had to rate them, I'd probably just swap their IMDB scores giving Gamer 6.4 and Surrogates 6 out of ten. Neither of movies is a total epic fail, but I see no reason for watching either of them for the second time. </span></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 5px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 5px; line-height: 17px;">And again, if you want to see some action, Surrogates has none to offer.</span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 5px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 5px; line-height: 17px;">P.S. Both movies clearly were inspired by video games. Great media for the industry in whole!</span>Sergey Mohovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00010970926756069424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2933571494483748721.post-65231155727467947722009-11-16T02:06:00.005+02:002009-11-17T23:47:28.906+02:00A little sthg about Dragon Age: Origins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Dragon Age is perhaps the best CRPG since Fallout 2. There are reviewers out there who say that it has nothing new to offer the genre, but I haven't seen anything deeper, more authentic and sophisticated in almost ten years and, frankly speaking, I don't quite give a fuck about how innovative it is.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The game gives you an impression of a nice fantasy book. It doesn't give you a set of rules and a setting—it gives you the world and its laws. Those who don't obey shall perish like thousands did before them.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I think I've already written this on Twitter, but every time you don't read a journal (codex) entry in Dragon Age, somewhere dies a kitten. The game world's history and mythology is so interesting and thought-out, that one may even say that codex itself is a whole full-scale fantasy book.<br />
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</div><span style="font-family: inherit;">But the coolest thing about Dragon Age is that the game alongside with recent Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 shows us how a 'hardcore' title may be financially successful and recognized by the mass market. And TV commercials, I guess, played a major role here. Nobody remains indifferent after </span><a href="http://dragonage.bioware.com/home/youtube?pageID=4"><span style="font-family: inherit;">watching</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> the great 30 Seconds to Mars Dragon Age video.</span><br />
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<div><span style="font-family: inherit;">And that is exactly what everybody's been talking about since the dawn of commercial development. The games are maturing, becoming a totally independent media, and the games marketing keeps getting more significant. You need to know how to sell your game and it is just as important as knowing how to make a fun one. </span><br />
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