Rotten tomatoes critics give Indy 4 positive reviews

Well I'll be damned. The fruit huckers over at Rotten Tomatoes have given the latest Indiana Jones movie positive reviews. I think that's a good thing, since the trailers left me feeling wary of this movie's potential.

So, hooray.

Gadrock hosting tourney tonight

May 19, 2008 - Monday


Indeed!

Starting at 9 PM, Gadrock Gamers will be hosting their first event at the Applebee's of Gadsden, located on Rainbow Drive.

We will be having Guitar Hero III (Medium & Expert) Tournaments.

It only costs five bucks to enter and the prizes are stout!

1st place gets $25 Applebee's Gift Certificate, $7.50 Replay's Gift Certificate and 10% Cash from Entry Fees!

Prizes also for 2nd and 3rd include: Gift Certificates from Applebee's, Collector's Paradise (comic shop) and more!!

It will be a blast and enjoy half priced appetizers after 9 PM, buy a soda and get free refills or drink a beer, responsibly!

Format: Single Elimination, Best 2/3 Songs (Judges pick tiebreaker songs)

Be there! Lets keep having GG at Applebee's, but we need your support!

Next Week: NBA Live 08 on XBOX 360!!

Setting up your own media servers

I just realized how useful having a PS3 hooked up to a High Def T.V. could be. I am now in the enviable position of being able to play media files on my computer using my PS3. This isn't that tricky to set up- mostly just time consuming because there are a variety of programs out there to manage your files. Katrina had no problems setting up hers on the Mac using a free trial of Twonky- but she had to help me figure out how to set mine up.

I used Windows Media Player 11 but it won't display my songs for some reason- perhaps because I have too many in one folder.

But here's a basic run down of the process that I snagged from a Web site.

Using Windows Media Player 11 as the server

Open Windows Media Player 11
From the toolbar, select Library then Media Sharing
Check "Share my media"
On the PS3 - Under Video, Photos or Music, select "Scan for media server"
Go back to the PC, and you should see a pop up showing an unknown device trying to connect.
Allow the device, and everything should work.

Using Simplecenter as the server

Download Simplecenter from http://www.simplecenter.com/
Install - If you only want the basic version, just click next when it asks you to create an account.
Select your shared media folders and let it scan.
Click next one last time.
Check your PS3 and your media server should now be visible.

Other Windows Notes

I've heard that many people are using Nero MediaHome and consider it to be the most feature-rich server

Mac

We recently tried setting up my roommate's macbook as a media server using two different products: Allegro Media Server and TwonkyMedia. We had numerous problems with both, including configuration issues, lack of functionality and just general buginess. I've been told that Elgato Eyeconnect works well, but will confirm as soon as I have time.

This is fascinating to me- once they start making cheaper white boards you can project anywhere, I'll be set. (And yes, I know about the Wii mote thing...but I mean something smaller and designed for the purpose of being a portable projector.)

EA Offers Take-Two Buy Out...Again

Today Electronic Arts (Publisher of Battlefield and The Sims) has extended its deadline for the buy out of Take-Two (Publisher of Grand Theft Auto, BioShock) for the third time around. EA is offering $25.74 a share for the second time; On April 18, EA pushed its dead line to May 16 but dropped its share price from $26 a share. The reason why EA extended the offer was for the Federal Trade Commission can complete its investigation into the deal. Take-Two was swift to tell its Stock Holders not to sell their shares. Strauss Zelnick Chairman of Take- Two said

We said we were willing to begin formal discussions with interested parties on April 30, following the launch of Grand Theft Auto IV, and we have in fact begun that process."

Strauss Zelnick also stated that EA wasn't the only company looking at buying out Take Two.

EA as of May 16 owns 6,210,261 of Take-Two's shares which is around 8% of the total amount. But Since the Launch of Grand Theft Auto IV Take-Two's shares have raised to $27.10 on Friday at closing which is more then what EA is offering per share.

New Dark Knight poster

For what it's worth....

SNL's take on "GTAIV"

This week's column

In no particular order

Every once and awhile, I forego the straightforward gaming column and let my random thoughts assemble. Their assembly is not unlike the Avengers, assembling, except none of my thoughts have superpowers or look as good as the Black Widow.

And speaking of the Avengers did any of you stick around at the end of the Iron Man movie credits and see the secret scene? If you didn't, you might consider seeing the movie again ...

Dietrich finishes "Bully"

Contributor John Dietrich, no stranger to childhood bullying, finished playing "Bully Scholarship Edition" for the Wii.

"Nothing I encountered lessened the game's appeal. You still never get weekends, but once you pass all your classes, every day is basically a weekend, because you don't need to be in school. That's when the game's open-world environment really begins to shine.

"My only complaint is that Gary, who's such a force in the first chapter and was an amazing teenage villain, disappears until the grand finale. I wish the writers had kept him around more consistently, because I love hating the jerk and he's a formidable challenge. Also, as always with any great game, it's a little on the short side.

"The missions do get more challenging, but the game was still unable to really get me frustrated at any point. That's a result of me being a good student in the beginning and dominating the classes, thus unlocking major bonuses. If you want to really, really make this game a challenge, skip the art, physical education, chemistry and geography classes.

"The game is definitely endless fun, mostly because you can continually torment whomever you want. Once you beat it, you unlock 'Endless Summer,' which is basically a mission-less chapter with no end where you can cause as much mayhem as you want and finish up any and all loose ends. I appreciate this, because too many games give you a ton of cool powers, but once you get them, you only get 10-15 minutes worth of game play out of them. With 'Endless Summer' you get as much as you want."

Fatality from cute

"Ultimate Mortal Kombat" wouldn't have been possible on the DS unless Nintendo could shove a puzzle game in there. Puzzle Kombat is cute for the first minute or so, but then you realize you're playing a game called "Puzzle Kombat" with a bobble-headed Scorpion. Nintendo could find a way to make "Grand Theft Auto" nauseatingly cute if Rock Star would let 'em.

Phony Outrage Alert

"Grand Theft Auto IV" was barely out a month before it became the target of phony outrage by a Fox affiliate in Chicago. A Fox report about the questionable taste of such an ad in light of the city's crime problem got the game's ads pulled from the side of Chicago buses.

I guess I could buy the story if the ads depicted any acts of violence. But it's a few head shots of "GTA IV" characters. "GTA" publisher Take Two sued the Chicago Transit Authority for backing out of their advertising agreement. Good for them.