Culture
2 CommentsIf velociraptors were housepets they'd be just like cats: total jerks
By Susana Polo on Jun 15, 2015 06.15.15
It's safe to say that the majority of the population of internet users has at some point entertained the idea of having a pet dinosaur. And we all know the reasons why we shouldn't have one: the food. The cleanup. The screaming bloody deaths.
But We Have a Dinosaur has a different reason: Dinosaurs are jerks.
E3 2015
15 CommentsNow look here: Ford done made a pickup truck for Halo 5: Guardians
By Owen S. Good on Jun 14, 2015 06.14.15
Brace yourselves: Ford's bringing a special Halo 5-themed pickup truck to E3. Yep.
The Ford F-150 Halo Sandcat, reports Motor Trend, is decked out in a green paintjob with a United Nations Space Command logo to evoke the design of Halo's Warthog vehicles. Ford even says the UNSC has designated it the M552. Neither of Halo's two wikis are updated to reflect this vehicle addition, so maybe it's not really canonical.
My other question is if this thing comes from space is it an import or domestic automobile.
I'm guessing domestic, because IRL the Sandcat started out as a Lariat SuperCrew 4x4 with an off-road package and a big ol' 3.5 liter engine. Galpin Auto Sports added a bunch of other stuff on it to complete the look. Yes, Xzibit, that means a custom Xbox One gaming system for...
Culture
57 CommentsTwitch welcomes YouTube's new game initiatives in the snarkiest way possible
By Ben Kuchera on Jun 12, 2015 06.12.15
Today YouTube announced its dedicated gaming site and app in what is widely seen as an attempt to compete with Twitch's game-streaming success. Twitch has responded on Twitter, in what amounts to a middle finger.
. @YouTubeGaming Welcome Player 2. Add me on Google+. #kappa
— Twitch (@Twitch) June 12, 2015
For the old farts out there, Google+ is Google's attempt at social networking, and is widely seen as an expensive and embarrassing failure. "Kappa" is a popular Twitch emote that indicates sarcasm.
Here's one individual who summed up the popular reaction perfectly.
@Twitch @YouTubeGaming DAMN
— DaddiBoy (@Tony_Daddi) June 12, 2015
It's getting rough out there, folks. Stay safe.
Polygon Featured Video: You must build a boat
Culture
8 CommentsOpening to Full House recreated in perverse shot-for-shot with Grand Theft Auto 5
By Brian Crecente on Jun 12, 2015 06.12.15
This shot-for-shot recreation of the opening credits for Full House made entirely in Grand Theft Auto 5 is amazing in so many ways.
There's the fact that the team who put it together managed to capture the basic look of that well-known intro despite the lack of appropriate props or even, in some cases, characters.
Actually, that's what REALLY sends this video remake over the top. Don't have a set of adorable baby Olsens to use for your remake? No problem, just use Chester the Molester. Turns out he's pretty spot on for the role, in a creepy GTA way. Even better? Trevor Phillips as Bob Saget. The more you watch the remake, the more you realize how perfect it is.
Just as awesome are all of the liberties the team took with those scenes. Somehow they still manage to capture the golden...
Culture
11 CommentsWatch E3 2015 in about 2 minutes
By Brian Crecente on Jun 12, 2015 06.12.15
Matt Lees has a habit of being funny and that's great when he combines it with an abridged look at the E3 that is to come.
In it we get a likely spot-on rundown of Sony, Microsoft, Bethesda and PC Gaming's press conferences, oh, and Nintendo's non-press conference.
Enjoy and then bookmark this to watch the real thing starting very, very soon.
Culture
8 CommentsHow to check the balance of your dice (and perhaps cheat like hell at D&D)
By Ben Kuchera on Jun 11, 2015 06.11.15
This video shows how you can use what's described as an old golfing trick to check the balance of your dice. You just get a glass of room temperature water, add a bunch of salt until your dice float, and then spin them a few times to make sure you're getting a truly random result.
The DM in me thinks this is a great way to ensure a fair game and to remove any dice that may be rolling low and causing you headaches, but the utter bastard in me is thinking this is a good way to load the odds in your favor.
The whole video is pretty cool, and shows how little care is put into balancing low-cast, opaque dice. Give it a watch, and try to use this knowledge for good and not evil.
Culture
28 CommentsChristopher Lee, known for playing Count Dooku, Dracula and Saruman, dies at 93
By Dave Tach on Jun 11, 2015 06.11.15
Christopher Lee, the veteran actor who starred in dozens of movies beginning in the 1940s, died this week after being hospitalized for respiratory problems and heart failure.
The U.K. Telegraph published a copy of his death certificate, which says Lee passed away at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London on June 7, last Sunday. The U.K. Independent reports that his wife delayed a public announcement to inform family first.
Lee, who stood six fee five inches tall, is perhaps best-known to his younger fans for playing Saruman in Peter Jackson's Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogies and Count Dooku in the Star Wars movies Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. Others may know him for his portrayal of Dracula and his role in The Wicker Man, though there are hundreds of other...
Culture
15 CommentsOne of the best Star Wars comics in ages is free, and it might get a bit dusty in here
By Ben Kuchera on Jun 10, 2015 06.10.15
This scene from Return of the Jedi is pretty great; it shows one of the Empire's biggest ships being taken down, and Akbar's tired relief at the victory gave the character a dose of, for lack of a better word, humanity. It's filled with great details.
Cartoonist Daniel Warren Johnson loved this scene. "For some reason, this A wing pilot MOVED me," he wrote. "Everything about this part of Return of the Jedi made me want to DRAW and CREATE."
So he created a comic about that character. I've put a few panels up in this post to give you some idea of how it looks, but please visit the site for the full series of pages. Beware: It's going to get pretty dusty.
Culture
35 CommentsJustice League short tackles the most controversial part of Man of Steel, and makes it work
By Ben Kuchera on Jun 10, 2015 06.10.15
Justice League: Gods and Monsters is a dark take on the heroes we thought we knew — you can read our interview with project lead Bruce Timm in another article if you're curious about the project — and this new excerpt from the release shows a Superman that's willing to kill.
It's an interesting decision, especially since Superman killing General Zod at the end of Man of Steel was such a controversial decision for fans of the character. This version of Superman is actual General Zod's son, complete with facial hair, and the death at the end of the short is more or less consensual.
This matches up with the other excerpt we ran on Monday; this is a dark world where your heroes kill people.
Testing the moral and ethical boundaries of superheroes is always an interesting thought exercise,...
Culture
30 CommentsControversial Magic: The Gathering card sells for $14,900 on eBay, half goes to charity
By Dave Tach on Jun 10, 2015 06.10.15
A rare and controversial Magic: The Gathering card sold for $14,900 on eBay, and the seller says he'll donate half of the proceeds to charity, according to the auction site's listing for the mythical Tarmogoyf card.
"You are bidding for a piece of Magic the Gathering history," the item's description reads. The owner and seller, Pascal Maynard, drew the card in the recent Grand Prix Las Vegas event, which took place last month. "I opened this Foil Modern Masters 2015 Tarmogoyf Grand Prix Vegas Stamped in the Top 8 and it created a huge story in the community, which you can probably find on the internet via #GoyfGate #FoilGoyf #MakeMagicHistory."
His decision to choose Tarmogoyf sparked some debate and controversy within the Magic community, as the hashtags above imply. You can watch it...
Culture
21 CommentsSuperfan spends $50,000 to create Elder Scrolls basement
By Brian Crecente on Jun 09, 2015 06.09.15
DC Comics artist Tyler Kirkham loves his Elder Scrolls. He loves the Bethesda game so much that he decided to spend about $50,000 turning his basement into something that looks like it would belong in the game, Barcroft.TV reports.
The basement, which looks a bit like an Elder Scrolls tavern, includes a medieval sparring area, waterfall shower, secret passageway, weapons, armor and potions.
You can check out the full story, and more pictures of the Utah basement, over on Barcroft.TV.
If you like Kirkham's basement, you need to watch our video tour of Richard "Lord British" Garriott's New York home.
Culture
30 CommentsJustice League: Gods and Monsters kicks off with vampire Batman vs. Harley Quinn
By Susana Polo on Jun 08, 2015 06.08.15
Welcome to the first installment of Justice League: Gods and Monsters, a joint project between Bruce Timm and Machinma to bring an alternate version of the Justice League to life in YouTube animation, comics and home video.
We spoke to Timm a month ago about the critical differences he's thrown into Gods and Monsters. This universe's Wonder Woman is from the realm of Ares; its Batman is Kirk Langstrom, who transformed himself into a vampire with weird science; and its Superman was adopted by Mexican immigrants to America, rather than farmers in the heartland, and exposure to racial bigotry at a young age has significantly altered his perspective on America as a country.
Above, you'll find the first installment of Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles, which will pave the way...
Culture
7 CommentsHow well do you know Star Fox?
By Megan Farokhmanesh on Jun 08, 2015 06.08.15
Star Fox is one of Nintendo's most iconic franchises, but how much do you know about its origins? The latest video from YouTube trivia channel DidYouKnowGaming tackles its history.
DidYouKnowGaming traces Star Fox's humble beginnings as a prototype for NES and how, under the influence of Shigeru Miyamoto, it transformed into a series starring anthropomorphic animals. The video above only goes as far as Star Fox 64, meaning you won't get details on games such as Star Fox Adventures or Star Fox Assault. And let's not forget the new Star Fox heading to Wii U, which we expect to see more of at E3.
Nintendo has not announced a release date for Star Fox yet, though the game is expected to launch before The Legend of Zelda for Wii U. Earlier this year, Nintendo said The Legend of Zelda would...
Culture
51 CommentsWatching teens play Contra is gloriously frustrating
By Brian Crecente on Jun 08, 2015 06.08.15
Kids! What with their never-ending continues, instructions and inability to survive in water, how can you expect them to take on Contra and do anything but fail ... gloriously?
In the latest, Teens React Gaming video we watch as teams of two learn important lessons like:
That dude running at you will kill you when he touches you.
Those dots flying toward you will kill you when they touch you.
That turret that pops out of the wall will kill you when it touches you.
The most important lesson these kids learn, though, is that like life, Contra is really, really hard.
Culture
3 CommentsAngry Birds Lego official Lego sets coming next year
By Brian Crecente on Jun 08, 2015 06.08.15
Angry Birds is getting its own line of Lego kits, Rovio announced today.
The construction toy line will be developed with by the Lego Group with plans to release the toys timed to the spring 2016 release of feature-length Angry Birds movie.
"We are excited to bring Angry Birds to life in Lego form, given the popularity of the game and its characters with fans of all ages, which will only be amplified by the forthcoming film," said Jill Wilfert, Vice President, licensing & entertainment at The LEGO Group. "We seek partnership with globally relevant properties that offer a unique and rewarding play experience to our fans, and our designers are having fun developing building sets that leverage the engaging play and deconstruction found in the Angry Birds game."
The toys seem to be the...
Culture
62 CommentsNotorious filmmaker Uwe Boll returns with epic F-bomb rant fueled by failing Kickstarter
By Brian Crecente on Jun 08, 2015 06.08.15
"I make movies and focus on the movies and that is how I operate."
That may be one of the only sentences in Uwe Boll's nearly 5-minute-long anti-Hollywood YouTube rant that isn't packed with expletives and insults.
Boll, a notoriously bad filmmaker who once thrived in the self-created niche of turning good games into epically terrible movies, seems to have lost his mind watching his latest Kickstarter fail.
The Kickstarter is asking for a mere $55,794 to make Rampage 3, a film about someone killing a bunch of people, but can't seem to muster that pittance. With three days left, all Boll has managed to raise is $25,394.
The video is absolutely worth a watch to catch a glimpse of just how passionate Boll is about his films and how much he hates the people he works with.
Years ago, I i...
