UG - Mobile Games and Mobile Gaming Devices

First off, I must give credit to pg as him and I talked this out so some of the ideas are his as well. Whether he actually wants to claim credit for this crazy talk is up to him.

This started out as an Angry Birds for Android review, but as I started ranting it changed into what it is now. I will say Angry Birds is an entertaining game, drains my battery, but it is great time-killing game. However, I think at times the Android community goes crazy for anything that gets ported from the iPhone community and thinks it must be the greatest thing ever. I downloaded the game to see what all the talk was about and I have played it quite a bit since then. Like I admitted at the beginning, the game is fun. But, it is just a game where I slingshot birds around, this is nothing ground breaking, this isn't God of War. This thought path got me thinking about all the mobile game talk and the fights between Nintendo, Apple, and Sony.

There are lots of articles out there about mobile gaming and the iPhone is always at the center of the attention, mainly because it does sell a lot of games and Steve Jobs chants about it any chance he gets and always compares it to the PSP and Nintendo DS. While the numbers show the iPhone does sell lots of games, I would like to create new categories for these games. The iPhone (and Android and Blackberry, and Windows Phone 7 …) is really good at time-killing games. These are games I want to play while sitting on a toilet, or waiting in a doctor's office, or waiting for my plane to begin boarding, etc. The PSP and Nintendo DS games are different. These are more involved games that are long and draw the player in and really do have superior graphics and do require more controls. These are games I want to play at night while on my couch and my wife is watching a TV show, or while I am actually on a long flight, or while I am on a long road trip, or while I am visiting my in-laws, or getting a prostate exam (some doctors really like to take their time). Anyways, my point is that there are different game categories in my mind for the mobile arena. You sure as hell couldn't try to sell Angry Birds to a PS3 or Xbox 360 gamer.

Now, what I would really like to see is a mobile phone that by default would include the time-killing games, but let it also have the capability to do true mobile gaming. There have been rumors about a Sony upcoming phone that will include a PSP capability. This sounds awesome to me, but I immediately think of the issues like cost, controls, size, screen resolution, battery life, storage capacity, and all other reasons it shouldn't work. So pg and I were talking about some of this and sort of came up with what I would love to see in a device like this. BTW – there will be no image of what I am describing because I am not breaking out Gimp to mock this up. Please, use your imagination.

So first there is the phone and it is a touchscreen device, something in the 4” range and it runs the latest version of Android. It also needs to have some kick-ass hardware specs and screen resolution. It will need to include all the other normal things like front/rear camera, b/g/n wireless, and all the other tech in current devices.

For the PSP capability, I say go with a case for it. The phone will just slide into the case in landscape position. The case will include all the gaming controls (pg really wants two analog sticks) and it will hold a battery inside it to help with battery life while gaming. Sony and third party hardware makes can even sell different types of cases. Some cases can offer bigger batteries, or more storage, or a UMD reader (awesome idea pg), or theme them out, and anything else people can think of. People might complain about carrying something else with them, but the times I want to play a PSP would be when I was traveling with things already like luggage or at least some sort of bag that I am sure could handle the extra case.

This device could be marketed to both gamers and non-gamers. That is where the hardware and screen comes in outside of games. There are people who won't care about gaming, but will want the phone because it is one of the best hardware devices out there. And then gamers will want the phone because they will want real gaming. The phone can be sold separately or in a bundle with a case. I think this design can take care of most of the issues that could be presented by this except for the cost. In the end, the price will be high, but if it could truly be this great of a device and let me do it all, I will pay for it.

Update: This isn't what I was hoping for.

UG – Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (Most likely will include spoilers)

I was able to score another free rental from Dish Network, I guess they must sense my awesomeness. However, after watching this movie I am afraid that Dish might stop offering me free things since I am finding ways to waste them. I think I would have enjoyed this movie a lot more if I was gay (nothing wrong with that if you are). I mean Jake Gyllenhaal was prettier than the female star who supposedly had unmatched beauty. Hell, the slave ladies later in the movie were hotter than her and based on her acting skills/number of lines in the movie, they should have had one of the harem girls play the part. Also of note is that these Persians looked absolutely nothing like the Persians from 300, but to be honest, I can't say which image is better, both sort of bother me. The movie had some entertaining action, but I had trouble getting past my frustrations with how dumb the lead guy could be. How many times can the girl trick you? The one good thing about this movie is that it was so easy to follow and so predictable that I was able to put the finishing touches on my Android phone after installing a new ROM on it.  

UG - iPad coming to Verizon

This is a pure rant. Look, the iPad isn't coming to Verizon. They are simply selling the WiFi version and offering the option of including a MiFi with it. This is the same iPad that has been on sale this whole time. WTF? Seriously, this crap news makes it all over the place because they hope it is showing that the iPhone is coming to Verizon. I just had to complain about this because many of the tech blogs I follow have been posting on this and it is really retarded.

UG - Jonah Hex - All kinds of spoilers

Lets call this The Crow meets the old West. This movie wasn't bad considering I got it for free from Dish Network, but I am glad I didn't pay for it. I guess this was a comic book, but I didn't know of it. This guy fighting for the Confederate side does a good thing, but it requires going against orders so his regime turns on him. One guy kills Jonah's family while he watches, brands him, and leaves him for dead; however, he lives thanks to some Indians, but he was close to death and now he can touch dead people and they come alive and talk to him. He also apparently has crows that fly around and warn him before he gets shot from a distance or by someone hiding. The crows would be cool to have, except they fail miserably later in the movie and he gets jumped by the number 2 bad guy in the movie. Where the hell was the crow at that part?

It is also pretty sweet that a group of outlaws were capable of either building a ship or stealing it. However, the government has no clue how to find these guys, but I have to wonder how hard it should have been. Granted they were able to build a BFG, but I still think they should have been able to find a ship back in those days. Now, Jonah does have one kick ass super power, even though his face is all messed to high heaven, Megan Fox digs him and screws him all night long and wants to be with him. I sure as hell can't recommend this movie if you can't watch it for free, but if it costs nothing, it is better then watching another reality TV show, which mind you, no one should watch those programs.

pg - The Other Guys

The Other Guys is a movie about rooting for the underdogs. Only these underdogs have some serious dysfunctional issues. I found the opening scenes with Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson as super-cops absolutely hilarious. Will Ferril did an excellent job as spoiler and Mark Wahlberg was hilarious as cop who felt like a peacock who just wants to spread its wings and fly... only peacocks can't fly. Eva Mendes is absolutely hot as always and I assume this movie is where she met up with Will Ferril to make the famous Eva Mendes S.E.X. tape on funnyordie.com. Michael Keaton plays a hilarious sensitive(gay?) police chief who spoiler.

This movie brings back fond memories of the good 'ol police spoof movies but adds in some excellent action scenes as well. I had a great time and highly recommend it.

pg - My Journey from PS3 to XBOX360; A Comparison

I'm tired of all these stupid exclusive games coming out that I couldn't play because all I have is a PS3. (I have a Wii, but that doesn't count. The Wii is more like a DS trapped inside a console with a wrist twirling wandy-thing for small children and creepy adults. Unless, you're bowling with friends - but then you have to drink beer to make it not seem so gay. )

I'll cut to the chase.

UG - Halo: Reach Review

I have played all the other Halo titles except for ODST. I have always enjoyed the series, but I haven't been a die hard fan. I find them to be fun, but that is about it. Well, the same friend that came to visit who brought some really dumb games, also brought this game. We played co-op and beat the game in a day and I had a blast doing it. The game is in line with the rest of the series for fun and entertainment. While the game is fun, there were a few issues that I think would be highlighted harder in other reviews if it weren't a Halo game that gets it a free pass. The fact that I can shoot a wall and there is no damage is pretty weak. If another game didn't have this graphic effect, it would get panned. My other complaint is the co-op isn't drop in or drop out like Gears of War made popular. That should be a standard feature for games like this. However, overall the game was a complete blast and I enjoyed playing all of it.

Spoiler: You die in the end :).

UG - Mass Effect 2 Review

I will admit it from the start that I am not a fan of RPG and really my tastes stick to FPS, sports, and action games. I had a friend recently that visited and introduced me to Mass Effect 2 to see if maybe I could be converted to at least appreciate RPG style games. After playing it for a bit, I have to say, this game sucks. Here is what I got out of the game:

•  My character, among others, talk like a computer similar to something from xtranormal.com
•  I have glowing scars so whatever they fixed me up with is probably running down a battery that must be in me somewhere
•  The conversation is choose your own adventure style where the character actually doesn't say what I tell him to say
•  The cut scenes are long no matter how fast I push the buttons; I'm here to play a game, not watch a movie (didn't anybody learn anything from the last Metal Gear Solid)
•  I still don't like RPGs

Thanks, but no thanks, I will stick with good games.