In the never ending attempt to cut down cable costs I found a nice, and free, app called Boxee. It essentially aggregates all the video feeds (Netflix, Hulu, friends’ personal feeds) I’d typically watch in my browser and provide a platform to nicely display them on my TV.

A while back we broke news of Crunchyroll beginning to stream English subtitled anime shortly after airing in Japan. Now with an ever expanding lineup, Crunchyroll will be partnering with Boxee providing their feeds in the software. If you really like it, you can signup ($5/month) for the premium capability which will give you access to streams up to 720p with no advertisements. Try the 2 week trial.

Through Crunchyroll you are also able to access all the live action drama. I’ll also add you can save your favorite channels. So if one is, say in the mood for yaoi, you can get your fill with HD quality streams.

[Crunchyroll via Mashable]

*Little know fact, Boxee is the offspring of the XBMC project.

I first got news of  ”shocking” footage from GamePolitics and felt the muted CNN iReport to be nothing more than people up in arms. Watching animated videogame footage of people being mowed down, even if they are unarmed civilians is, what some might say sadly, not new to me.

We’ve seen controversy play out like in Six Days of Fallujah; the player needing to make a moral decision on the battlefield with the media and non-gamers (and some gamers) saying games about terrorism in ultra-high-def-realism is too soon. So going back to COD: MW2 found by way of TheEscapist I saw the actual gameplay, with sound.

That’s where my attitude changes; maybe I’m getting grandpa old because once I heard what was going on in the background it became much harder to keep my belief people just need to get a grip. I hope I don’t now fall in that crazy crowd. I’m not going to say this goes too far, but I think it certainly comes close to the line.

You guys know I’m all against censorship, especially in games so you tell me what you think…

[RuTube]

UPDATE:

Activision responds:

From GamePolitics

Players have the option of skipping over the scene. At the beginning of the game, there are two ‘checkpoints’ where the player is advised that some people may find an upcoming segment disturbing. These checkpoints can’t be disabled.

Modern Warfare 2 is a fantasy action game designed for intense, realistic game play that mirrors real life conflicts, much like epic, action movies. It is appropriately rated 18 for violent scenes, which means it is intended for those who are 18 and older.

About the events taking place in the scene itself, Activision explained:

The scene establishes the depth of evil and the cold bloodedness of a rogue Russian villain and his unit. By establishing that evil, it adds to the urgency of the player’s mission to stop them.

During the hectic days of school, work, or personal tribulations, close your eyes and soar with the flying pantsu. Traverse the highlands, feeling the breeze on your face or break the sound barrier with an SR-71 Blackbird as your wingman. For you are Zen and all at piece with the world.

[F*ckedGaijin]

Self-described as a narrative paramedic, Rhianna Pratchett is most known for her work on the Overlord series with additional credits in Mirror’s Edge, Heavenly Sword, and Viking: Battle for Asgard. I had the opportunity to interview Rhianna about her creative approach to writing, general thoughts on videogame development, and emotive storytelling.

Read more!

When one thinks of Left4Dead, what is the first word that pops in your head? Hell it may not be the first word, but a some point “zombie” is sure to surface. Also, you might say, violent… This frames what will be our discussion: real-life vs fictional violence and zombies.

Each of these topics can be thoroughly exhausted, but what got me writing on this topic was the recent classification of Left4Dead 2 by the Australian ratings board (their version of the ESRB) as “refused classification”. This essentially means Valve’s zombie hit will not be able to be sold unless changes are made to the final product.

Why was it refused? It’s all in the terminology. In Left4Dead you play against the “infected”.

“The game contains realistic, frenetic and unrelenting violence which is inflicted upon “the Infected” who are living humans infected with a rabies-like virus that causes them to act violently.”

So the infected are living humans and not living corpses. As Fidgit editor, Tom Chick points out, “Since the Infected aren’t dead, since they’re simply sick, there’s a much different moral quandary when it comes to killing them. It’s a whole different kind of violence!”

And there lies the difference: Shooting sick granny, over bloodthirsty, violence induced granny causes you to act morally different. And for the developing psyche of an adolescent, who knows what damage may be done coupled with their loud rock music and loose morals. *points to DDN younguns* This is clearly someones issue, but I’m not sure why. I can understand if in the course of zombie/infected hunting you have a story track where you get to shoot the non-infected human, thereby making you a de facto death panel, but games are games right?

I think the bigger argument encapsulated in this is: “think of the children”. As a now, dusty semblance of an adult; I can argue parents should watch what their kids buy and monitor them so that if they find something objectionable, take it away. However as a kid, when my parents didn’t want me to watch Bevis and Butthead I just went over to a friends house. The same can be said for videogames. What really strikes a cord with me is I consider this unnecessary regulation and censorship. While I’m glad it isn’t in my home country, much like the German assault to videogames, I consider it my personal duty to rant.

It bothers me, but is it really that important? Similar to how American standards of decency have changed over time, do you think I should just cool my heels? In the grand scheme of things it doesn’t directly affect me.

Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino used his keynote speech at CEDEC game conference to offer some insight on what he believes is contributing to the “death of the planet”.

“I think that video games are evil,” says Tomino. “[Gaming] is not a type of activity that provides any support to our daily lives, and all these consoles are just consuming electricity! Let’s say we have about three billion people on this planet wasting their time, bringing no productivity at all. Add 10 billion more people, and what would happen to our planet? Video games are assisting the death of our planet!”

On the surface it appears to be simple baiting, but provocative statements aside, he urges game designers, “to create a game that does not negatively affect our daily lives and is something that is considered more productive.” He goes further stating the over-reliance on technology to produce games has separated us from the core idea: what we are trying to accomplish.

As a non-gamer, one may point to stories of game addiction, virtual violence played out in the real world, or a bevy of other neuroses felt by gamers as the “evil” games cause ; but as a gamer it is clear games are not evil, and the varying shades of grey are only understood by a gaming subculture.  The problem is no one listens to the people who understand the details, rather those that make the most noise.

[Gamasutra]

Frighteningly historically low birthrates among the Japanese have caused local governments to offer greater incentives for child-rearing. Anxiety over economic security, lack of nursing facilities, and enjoyment of urban life are commonly cited reasons for this decline.  However, this doesn’t stop the Japanese from practicing safe sex.  Although seen as a marketing gimmick, many Japanese condom manufactures hope their innovative ideas will revitalize the image of condoms.

Continuing last month’s trend of suggestively themed posts; today we focus on prophylactics. Whether it be your code of ethics, lack of options, or religious values holding you back; when the time comes make sure you have one of these in your hand. Not will you be protecting yourself, you’ll be showing personal style like with anime inspired designs by manga artist Junko Mizuno.

Stay Real…Respect!

[InventorSpot via WeirdAsianNews]

Amazon’s listed some Blu-ray titles with some hefty discounts. There’s 11 pages worth of films, sadly only 6 anime titles from what I found. If you’re looking to add these to your collection, but waiting for a deal, now’s your chance. Promotion ends July 24th.

[Amazon]

It’s the summer, schools are out and now is the time when flirtation kicks into high gear. The subtle hair flip, the cutey laugh, you ladies know how to pull out all the tricks. Although there are those times when your makeup goes a little too far. This is where I come in, I’ve scoured the net to bring you BubzBeauty. Ever wanted to get that anime eye look, but just not sure how to pull it off quite right? Bubz takes some of the guesswork out beautification and gives you some tips for the natural look rather than some other tutorials out there.

Knowing is half the battle. So go out, get dolled up, and get ready to show us those big beautiful round…

…eyes.

[BubzBeauty Channel]

If I were a character archetype I’d be a collector. In an RPG I gather everything I can, rarely selling it or leaving it on the ground. I am a pack rat, a junkie. My addiction? Strategy guides and game manuals. Growing up I didn’t read books, comics, or magazines. The money I’d get whoring myself out in summer jobs would be spent on my beat-up car and the crisp glossy guide of the next gaming hit. Most times I wouldn’t even own the game. It was my “me time” to gaze at each map, carefully studying each location, knowing every bosses weakness. When that wasn’t enough and funds we low, I’d go to the local Blockbuster, sometimes driving to multiple locations and casually take out the game manuals for home reading.

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