Toronto Thumbs

Too Human’s Lookin’ Good

I had a chance to play Too Human tonight at the Toronto launch party for the game. Six game stations were set up at the fancy Spoke Club on King St. while several journalists and Silicon Knights staff members mingled. In a separate room, a large screen setup was available for play.

This was the first time I played the game since last October’s press preview at Silicon Knights’ St. Catharines headquarters. It played more or less how I remembered the preview build playing – only this time for some reason I kept trying to move the camera around rather than realizing that the right analogue stick is ONLY for melee attacks. I played for about a half hour and passed the controller onto someone else, opting instead to watch other people play, which ended up being just as enjoyable if not more interesting.

Watching other people play games without actually talking to them or giving them hints reveals a lot about their thinking processes. Some people were obviously a lot better than others at holding their own against the relentless horde of enemies, and it was interesting to see the more gifted gamers play through the various levels.

After much internet hoopla and tonnes of forum flame wars, Too Human is finally coming out next week. Will the haters be won over? Probably not, as it’s not in their nature. However if you go into this one with an open mind you’ll very likely be pleasantly surprised. I’m definitely looking forward to playing the whole game despite some control issues I have with it.

UPDATE: Apparently the control issues I was having with the game were in some part due to some sort of monitor calibration issue. I played Too Human for a good hour on a tube television and it played much smoother. Odd that the demonstration set-up would be slightly off like that but unfortunately things like that do happen. More to follow…

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3D Monitor Demonstration at Game Night 2008 - Summer

If you think that 3D gaming is just what everyone is been doing over the last decade, think again. Virtual Boy may have been a commercial failure and its headache inducing screen a pain but 3D gaming has actually come a long way since then. You’ll have a chance to see a demonstration of the latest iZ3D monitor (a 22″ LCD) that allows you to play 3D games in true 3D with only passive glasses. These don’t plug into anything and won’t hurt your brain. All of this is happening at the Personal Computer Museum in Brantford along with a bunch of other interesting gaming setups.

Whether you want to play BUZZ! with 8 players, enjoy a snowboarding controller or show your buddies who is boss with Sega Genesis baseball you’ll have your opportunity. Classic gaming like Alien Crush on the Turbo Grafx 16 and a contrast between Mario Kart SNES and the latest Wii version (complete with 4 wheel controllers for the ultimate experience) should whet your gaming appetite.

If you’re forced to hang out with non-gaming mortals, you can always let them know that there will be a movie with real movie-style popcorn being shown on a 16 foot x 9 foot outdoor screen. Just like the drive-inn, without the cars! What movie? Well, we can’t legally tell you but I’m sure everyone of all ages will enjoy.

So, get ready to waggle your TorontoThumbs down in Brantford (hey, it’s only an hour drive from Toronto) for GameNight 2008 - summer edition. Check out the website for more info and for directions, just follow them on the museum page. See you there!

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Event
The Evolution of Computer Games - in Toronto

Microsoft likes to win. They’re doing a pretty good job on the console front these days, but if you think they forgot about PC gaming, think again. We’ve seen the “Games for Windows” brand show up to help PC owners not only identify games intended for that platform, but also in determining if said game will run on a given setup.

Stepping back into a time where in some ways it was easier to play a computer (and in other ways, harder) Microsoft has commissioned the Personal Computer Museum in Brantford to help create a display in Toronto entitled “Evolution: 30 Years of Computer Games.”

The exhibit is open to the public Friday, June 27, and Saturday, June 28 2008 from 12pm-5pm at Interaccess, 9 Ossington Street (near Queen) in Toronto, Ontario. Admission is free.

Come out and get a taste of over 20 classic computers playing your favorites like Space Invaders!, GORF, Choplifter!, Half-Life, Sam & Max Hit the Road, and more. There’s even a secret hidden game within the venue with no information on it. While you are there, soak up the culture and browse the museum brochure. It might be enough for you to make the trip to the bigger display in Brantford.

Posted in Blast From the Past, Events | 1 Comment »

EVENT
Toronto Xbox LIVE Arcade Preview

Last night, I found myself in the upscale Yorkville district of Toronto. To those not familiar with the area, it’s really quite something. It’s a prissy, shi-shi land of boutique shops, bottle blondes who shop all day, and other deluded individuals willing to pay millions for tiny condos the size of a Prius.

So why was I there? Well, apart from my doing a bit of people watching beforehand, which fueled my general disdain for the conspicuous consumption of those wealthier than I will ever be, I was there to play video games. There’s a small ’50s diner in the heart of Yorkville called Flo’s Diner, and this was the location of the Xbox LIVE Arcade Preview Event.

Flat-panel monitors were set up along one side of the restaurant’s tiny bar and at the end of booth tables. On each, different games were being displayed. As media personalities began filing into the tiny diner, the bleeps and digitized gunshots got louder and louder. A good variety of games were shown, and some were obviously more popular than others (I’m looking at you, 1942: Joint Strike).

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Posted in Download Updates, Events, LIVE, News, Xbox 360 | 2 Comments »

EVENT
Helping the Little Geeks

The Little Geeks Foundation is holding a computer giveaway today at St. Andrew’s United Church from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
The organization is not-for-profit and it collects, refurbishes, and re-distributes donated computers to children in need. Their plan is to give away 200 computers this month, with an ultimate goal of 1000 computers for this year.

“Computer literacy, like math and writing is not a privilege in this country, it’s a right that every Canadian child should experience and Little Geeks is committed to making this a reality,” says Andy Walker, technology reporter and co-founder of The Little Geeks Foundation. “We need more individuals and corporations, like Best Buy Canada, to either donate their used computers or to provide financial support so we can all help make a difference in a child’s life, one ‘little geek’ at a time.”

Little Geeks was recently granted charitable status last year. For more information on the organization, including how you can help, visit littlegeeks.org.

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Personal Computer Museum Spring Clean-Up

As much as we’d like to think that summer’s here, it’s very much still spring. This means you still have time to do your annual spring cleaning, and the PC Museum can help you out at their annual spring clean-up on Saturday, May 24!

Simply bring them any old computer or video game equipment that you no longer have use for. Though they prefer it in working condition, they will take broken machines (but if you take a broken monitor, please also take the $10 disposal fee for having it taken care of properly).

Another cool thing about the spring clean-up event is that it’s your chance to get in on some cheap used gaming goods as there will be a huge garage sale going on. While you’re there, don’t forget to enjoy some barbeque, since they’ll have burgers, hotdogs, and sausages (not to mention other snacks). Is there really anything else you need?

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REVIEW
FITC 2008

April 19th to April 21st I attended Flash In The Can, The Design & Technology Festival held at the Hilton in downtown Toronto. This is an annual event where Flash developers and designers get together to listen to speakers, panels, and demonstrations on everything Flash and Flash-related.

From ActionScript to design to business strategies - it was three days of Flash, Flash and more Flash! Being a designer, I stayed away from the more technical speakers but avidly listened to the design and business presentations. While I overall enjoyed the conference, there were some presentations that were ill-prepared or just didn’t live up to what I expected.

The lobby of the Hilton set the tone for the conference as there were life-size cut outs of the FITC mascots - cartoon masked Mexican wrestlers (à la Nacho Libre) all around the registration desk. Upon seeing them I knew the conference would be fun. A Wii remote was set up inside a toy machine-gun. You could shoot vector drawings (created by speakers at the conference) by firing the gun at a huge projector screen. It made for some very cool graffiti-like art and was an interesting use of the Wii remote. They also had an Xbox 360 set up with Rock Band. On day one I thought it was really cool but by day three I was tired of hearing people butcher “Say It Ain’t So.”

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