Skyrim Machinima - Amazing videos here-->

I never really did know what 'Machinima' officially was, but, as a film guy, was always intrigued. No really, that sounds counter-intelligent but I just haven't gotten around to it! 

Machinima, for those unfamiliar, is a movie genre that uses game technology instead of traditional film technology. By recording in-game footage (usually heavily modded) and applying voice overs, music tracks, and post-processing effects, indie artists can create some pretty impressive short films. 

Sup...how YOU doin'?

Anyways, It simply amazes me that people have the talent AND time to accomplish such awesome videos. I've already seen 'The Beauty of Skyrim' via a  Facebook friends post, and was amazed at the detail/atmosphere of this game I haven't yet purchased. It must be no small feat in the game's editing suite, video editors etc. to make this magic happen. Consider me sufficiently inspired to go check out some of these guys other videos! Skyrim is turning out to be a landmark game, on a multitude of levels, lucky for me, the one that stands out most is the art design, the graphics, the sound and music, which all collide to create a very immersive and atmospheric experience.

Check out this sample, one of the most amazing i've seen so far, entitled simply, 'The Battle of Skyrim', to see what I mean. The Great Battle of Skyrim boasts "500 Draugr, 200 skeletons, 500 Dwarven Warriors", a couple of epic battle mages and one very hungry-looking dragon. Watch the whole thing, as halfway through it gets pretty bad-ass.

The Great Battle does a pretty good job showing off what the Skyrim engine is capable of if you have a killer video card and OC'd rig.

Dovahkiin

Dovahkiin is more of a music video than a film but I really enjoyed the mood created by this one. This example does a really good job showing off Skyrim's visual capabilities. (Something that can be further enhanced through mods.)

There are many more fine examples out there, just surf through the links within YouTube and you will begin discovering the beauty and artistry that is MACHINIMA in SKYRIM!

10 New Elder Scrolls V Skyrim Screenshots Released! Beautiful!

This game is gonna rock your socks off, I don't care who you are. You will be playing this for the next 5 years, just like the ones before it. The modding community will continue tinkering with this baby like it's their ol' beloved 69' Camaro.

Bethesda has been generous with their E3 unveiling of the new upcoming Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, already being proclaimed the GOTY for 2011. They've given us 10 more breathtaking screens, unpolished in-game screens...to drool over. 5 more months!

Also, here's a good article on EscapistMagazine online regarding some nice new gameplay changes for Skyrim. Be relieved! They're all better!
For the hands on DEMO of the gameplay, with producer Todd Howard at E3-check out the G4TV page HERE.

The screens show us a close look at a dragon from Skyrim along with one of the game’s new and improved horses, also one nice touch is the bright blue eyes the enemy has in the second image.

If you check out all of the screens you can gain a lot of insight about the upcoming game, one of the pics shows a first-look at a Guardian Stone, what part these stones will play in the game is currently unknown but they look pretty intriguing.
Enjoy fans!

... it's so beautiful....

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Official GameplayTrailer! HD -Here!

Oh....my.....Lord.....
It looks SO flippin' AMAZING!

Check out the very newest HD trailer containing actual gameplay footage of the upcoming title The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, in all it's majestic glory.   Release date: 11-11-11.

Commence drooling:

The Elder Scrolls V: SKYRIM ! My Prayers answered!

Oh yes indeed, there WILL be another Elder Scrolls game soon, say, 11/11/11.

PC games Vs. Life, a self-check.

So there is a GREAT article in Wired online today:
HERE
And while reading this, between the usual witty/funny/insanely dumb comments below, there was one that caught me..as it sounded as if it were me writing it in. I will excerpt:

"For me it came down to figuring out why I always stayed up so late anyway. With a career, a wife and 3 small children it was so that I could get more free time at the end of the day. If I went to bed earlier, that was it, more work and responsibilities before any chance at leisure time. When my wife started going to the gym at 5am, I decided to try getting up with her and enjoying the quiet time and it made a huge difference! (XBox 360 experience is much better with rested eyes and fresh contacts too) Now I get tired around 10:30pm and I go to bed knowing that I'm going to have 2 hours or so to myself when I get up, so it's something to actually look forward to rather than dreading the normal morning rush. Then on the weekends when the kids wake up at 7:30, it still feels like I slept in.
Posted by: Jason Feb 26, 2009 7:37:07 AM"

I mean...my WoW/Fallout 3,Oblivion characters get more sleep than I do! what does THAT mean?

my reply:
"@ Jason-> dude!- of all these [some funny, some very dumb] comments, yours was an exact replica of what i'm going through. I stay up WAY too late, even though my rotating shifts sometimes force me to get up by 4:45am.. i know i'm dumb, but i fight it every night, and sit on my pc till i literally nod off..wife hates it. don't want to get up even EARLIER though just to jog...maybe i need to re-prioritize, but what do i do?"

I must learn to balance more...sleep/wife/family, is more important than games, makes you feel better, more energetic, which makes you more productive, be a super-star at work, which leads to better and higher paying jobs, which leads to-you got it, more time and money to go back and play those PC GAMES ! !.. see where i'm going with this??

my Fallout 3 hands-on first impression

Thank you, Bethesda, for this awesome game...the bar has been raised, for interactive art. sometimes, a game comes along that really amazes me, and this is one.

the intro is so cool, you have to at least play this if you were doubting. It took 2 hours just to get past the entry setup/prologue story, to where I escape the vault, and step out into an incredibly detailed world as the sun is just going down...i went about a 100 yards before I already found someone that apparently needed some help, but didn't talk to him yet, and just looked at everything...the sun and sky,in the distance birds were circling above something they thought was interesting, and they were clear and un-pixelated!- the amazingly detailed burned out skeletons of buildings and rubble, a destroyed and charred children's playground, a strange robot probe that was wandering back and forth, with some weird old 50's propaganda recording coming out of its little speakers... Just seems really unique and well-crafted. they obviously spent a good amount of time on the environment.

I hope the rpg elements are a step above the rest, but it was so late, and i had to finally pry myself away, before i engaged the first real quest. i look forward to my future adventures.

the one thing that crept up in the back of my mind, as i began wandering the desolate rubble, was that i was relating more to this environment, identifying and thinking more in terms of-'what would i really want to do now, where should i go from here', more than say, oblivion or even star wars. As incredible as those worlds are, i feel like it is a fantasy that requires more 'suspending' of reality and disbelief, to fully enjoy the way the creators intended. With Fallout, i can actually feel like i could realistically be in the characters shoes. i can relate to this fictional, yet all-too-possible reality of a nuclear catastrophe within a large, modern, and familiar real-world city.

i know a game is immersive for me, when i find myself taking the time to slow down, smell the roses, open up its treasure boxes, and move about as if i was really there-instead of rushing around, just trying to kill the last guy with a gun, to get to the next level. i have begun losing interest in those 'wash,rinse, repeat' style games on equal timeline with my ever-shrinking chance to actually play games. C'est la vie!

This type of game, i appreciate as art, an escape from reality that places you into a story that [arguably] you wouldn't (hopefully!) be in, and make decisions you would never be required to make in any real-world job. That is the allure and the fun of the RPG, i feel.

The return of the 'PiP-Boy 3000' gadget, a monochromatic, all-in-one arm device that anyone who grew up on 80's personal computers can fondly appreciate, is handy and fun to play around with. The character faces remind me of Half-Life 2, but i agree with the official reviews, people do seem oddly stiff when they walk, engage you, and as they speak, while any other characters in the background become oddly frozen until you are done.

Another minor whine about the characters, they engage each other randomly in conversation, (which is cool) much like Oblivion, but when numerous people are in the room, it can become hard to hear your primary interests words, when 3-4 other conversations are happening, all at the same volume, right next to you. Maybe a patch or plugin will be made to adjust this...

But i am a perfectionist when it comes to games [often dream of designing them], and i know it is impossible to make a perfect product, but it just seems odd that things that people complained about, or were minor issues as far back as morrowind, still inhabit a developers game code.

Ah-well, that's what the modding community is for right? By far, this was a very inspiring 2-hour intro into a world that i am positive i will enjoy for many, many more hours.

... i'm happy to report-the game rocks so far.

Fallout 3 - Stop whining and just buy it!

It seems the new trend for every new gamer these days:
rush out to buy the latest big name/big money PC game hot off the press, spend 50 to 70 dollars doing this, then before the plastic has even a chance to cool, your off to amazon to write your disdainful little self-congratulating review of how bad the GAME sucks because of the latest copyright protection embedded in the software.

People- the reviews are for the game itself, the design and effort put forth by the programmers at the development studio. This is usually a completely separate building and department from the bean-counting lawyers that run the PUBLISHING company, IE. EA. If you want to bemoan and outrage against the latest version of copyright software [Securom etc] then fire up your browser and point it to EA Support and send them a not-so-friendly email. They are the ones ultimately responsible for these decisions, and should be the ones you aim your whining to.

And if you really feel like mentioning this in your game review, at least know what you are talking about. I love it when reviewers go off on a tirade, only to have gotten all their facts wrong, including what it does to your machine, the limitations of installing, and what version and type of embedded software it even is. Do your research before influencing and ruining a good title's Amazon ratings!! You are actually hurting the developer in the end, by writing such flagrant reviews. You mean well, and i know how frustrating it is dealing with EA in regards to installation issues and patching etc, but don't go barking up the wrong tree, and punish the people that worked hard MAKING this game for you.

....thank you.

**And for the rest of you that actually value your own opinions, go and get this game, it may not be how 40% of the whiners wanted it, but it has it's merits as a work of art, and an interactive diversion from the reality of these troubled times.**