GeekSix

Tron and other great franchises: “Sometimes, dead is better.”

Josh
Thursday
10:48 am

I’m about to commit geek blasphemy. Steady the noggins of your Star Trek bobbleheads and hold your sweaty can of Amp down, because the following statement is going to rattle the very foundations of the Internet:

I saw the “TRON” teaser trailer. And I was completely underwhelmed.

Actually, more than completely underwhelmed. I thought it was cheesy. Perfunctory. Uninspired. Wipe the tears from your eyes, my friends, or let them flow and have them wash away the retro-nostalgic blindness which has clouded your eyes.

I loved the original “TRON.” The art direction was never-before-seen, and the idea was fresh. It was a stunning movie.

But it was made during a particular time ..read more

Sony busts out their Move

Josh
Wednesday
10:13 pm

The hardcore gaming world mocked Nintendo for their motion controllers, but Mario and friends are getting the last laugh.

Sony debuted their upcoming motion controller — called the PlayStation Move — at the 2010 Games Developer Conference this week.

The big buzzword that Sony is attempting to leverage is “precision,” claiming that it offers a more refined experience over your current console of choice that has motion-sensitive controllers.

The claim is dubious when compared to the accuracy of the Wii MotionPlus (on the surface, both have very similar tracking). Still, once the controller playing field is leveled, the clear advantage could go to Sony, as their console supports a more robust ..read more

More Firefly inbound: Finally, an answer to Book’s backstory

Josh
Tuesday
11:28 am

Those of you (like us) who just can’t leave “Firefly” behind are in for a treat. Two new graphic novel projects are going to hit stores this year.

The biggest of them, story-wise, is a hardcover graphic novel that’s been in the works for three years. “The Shepherd’s Tale” will delve into Book’s mysterious backstory, and will be in stores in November. Although his checkered past was often dangled in front of us during the series and movie’s run, this will be the first time we’ve been presented with a canon telling of how a preacher came to know so much about guns.

A few hints about Book’s past were ..read more

A true tale of Lazer Tag and law enforcement

Josh
Monday
11:58 pm

“What’s this hooch here?” the deputy said as he yanked back a blanket in the back seat, revealing a 24-pack of Miller Lite.

We all shifted nervously, the kid-sized Lazer Tag vests bungee corded around our grown-up bellies feeling uncomfortably tight.

The hooch’s presumed owner spoke up. “It’s not mine, officer,” he stammered, attempting to sound plausibly innocent. “My older brother had the car last night, and he must have put that back there.”

“‘Zat so?” the deputy loudly mused with textbook authoritarianism as he looked to his partner. The gravel crunched as he walked back to his patrol car, sidestepping the pile of 10-year old ray guns. “You were just out here ..read more

Steal this pitch: Movies based on games that were based on movies

Josh
Thursday
11:30 pm

With the news that the industry-kickstarting game “Space Invaders” has been optioned for movie rights, we’ve decided that Hollywood has, really, REALLY, OFFICIALLY run out of ideas for movies. For reals this time, y’all.

They’ve already given every franchise possible a gritty reboot, and they’ve milked every video game franchise to boot.

So what’s left?

What about making movies out of games that were based on movies? Take all the joy of a reboot and add in pre-packaged brand appeal, and voila! Instant blockbuster.

The only problem is that some of those game-movie tie-ins were pretty tenuous and cryptic. But don’t worry, Hollywood — we’ve done all the work for you! We’ve ..read more

An Interview with 80s gaming icon David Fox

Josh
Thursday
10:22 am

If you were playing adventure games in the 80s, you’ve likely seen some of David Fox’s handiwork. Most programmers back then went uncredited, and household names were still a rarity, but the products he put time into spoke volumes. David worked on many of LucasArts’ early smash hits: “Rescue on Fractalus,” “Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders,” “Maniac Mansion” and others.

Geek6 was able to take up some of David’s time to get his thoughts on the past and future of gaming, as well as the changes that have taken place in the industry over 30 years.

You were in on the computer revolution from the get-go. What was the ..read more

Fixed system specs: The best thing about console gaming

Josh
Sunday
4:57 pm

There’s something fascinating about watching the games on a console evolve from the initial launch titles as developers figure out how to make the most of a console.

And then, during the system’s dying days, you often see some remarkable technical achievements borne out of competition with whatever glitzier progeny has taken its place.

While the effect has paled with each generation of hardware, you can see some great evolution in 20th century stuff. Check out these examples:

The Atari 2600 popularized home video gaming, creating an industry that is now rivaling Hollywood in terms of entertainment dollars. The machine’s heyday was from 1978 to 1984, and later games started to ..read more

Life without Dungeons and Dragons: A kid’s tale of alternate realities

Josh
Thursday
5:10 pm

Editor’s note: This is a really long post. It’s my coming-of-age true tale of one of my most formative geek memories, and  it’s something I’ve wanted to write for more than a year.

We couldn’t play games on Mike’s TI-99 computer that day in 1986. I can’t remember exactly why, but as a result, we wound up in his room, listless and looking for a less technological way to pass the afternoon.

Two hours later, I raced my dirt bike home over suburban asphalt, breathless with excitement. “Mom… mom…” I panted when I got inside. “I played the coolest thing! You could be an elf, or a warrior, and you got ..read more

Your very own GeekSix iPhone wallpaper!

Josh
Monday
2:00 pm

I went down to the cellar of the Geek6 headquarters over the weekend — I needed to find some tax records that claimed we were, in fact, an offshore business impervious to federal tax laws. Never you mind why.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered not only the falsified incorporation papers, but an entire art department!

“Holy crap!” I exclaimed, tiptoeing around a giant stack of empty Hot Pockets boxes.

“Don’t move those, boss,” piped up a meek and pale artist. “We save them to burn as fuel during the long, cold winter months.”

“Yes, yes,” I muttered, tipping the boxes in the vague direction of what I assumed to be a trash can. ..read more

You may not be a hero, but at least you can dress like one

Josh
Friday
10:17 pm

I’ve never quite had the guts to costume up in public — short of last Halloween’s “Alien” costume — but I have a lot of respect for people who do. It takes guts to go to a convention with spandex, spiky hair, painful accessories and/or any combination of facial appendage.

As a Browncoat, I followed AbbyShot’s loving recreating of Mal’s Browncoat from Firefly, but I never looked to see the other things they’ve got.

AbbyShot has been tinkering with movie-grade clothing replicas for nearly a decade. During that time, they’ve come up with some really cool and shockingly accurate renditions of stuff from a number of science fiction and anime series.

I love ..read more