cartoons
Latest
Listen to the WoW Insider Show today with special guest Mary Varn
Yes, our podcast is back again this afternoon at 3:30pm EDT, and this week we're welcoming Mary Varn, the creator and artist behind NPC Comic, a webcomic about a girl and her two cats who all play World of Warcraft. She'll talk with us about her work and her own characters, and since we'll also have Kelly "Cadistra" Aarons of the new Byron the Tauren Rogue comic on again, maybe they'll be able to share some insight on putting WoW-related cartoons together. Turpster and I will make sure it's not all about drawing comics, though -- we'll be answering emails and talking about the most popular posts from the last week, including what's going on with patch 3.3 and when it might drop, what's up with all of the outages lately, and what it takes to get all of the achievements. All of them. Should be a great show -- you can tune in over on our Ustream page at 3:30pm Eastern, or just head after the break. See you then.
NVIDIA takes its feud with Intel to cartoonish new levels
Oh, boy. Just when you thought NVIDIA 's feud with Intel couldn't rise above endless name-calling, lawsuits and production shutdowns, NVIDIA does this. In a series of not-so-subtle cartoons on the recently established Intel's Insides website -- which NVIDIA's spokesperson has confirmed is, in fact, hosted by NVIDIA -- NVIDIA takes aim at Intel (and CEO Paul Otellini, specifically) over a range of alleged ill doings, and even goes so far as to include a cheeky disclaimer that the site "is not provided, sponsored or endorsed by Intel Corporation." Hit up the gallery below for a quick retrospective, and stay tuned for what we can only hope is a decent comeback from Intel.
Tom and Jerry and Ben 10 coming to the MMO realm
We've written a bit about the Cartoon Network MMO FusionFall of late, which enjoys a great deal of popularity with younger MMO gamers. Now it looks like two other cartoons will be coming to the MMO space: Tom and Jerry and Ben 10. Tom and Jerry is going massively multiplayer (for Asia in 2010) through TurnOut Ventures Limited, a joint venture between Turner Entertainment Holdings Asia Pacific Limited and Outblaze Investments Limited. Hong Kong-based Typhoon Games (who are developing Hello Kitty Online) is developing the Tom and Jerry MMO. A look at the TurnOut Ventures product page also shows they're working on Ben 10 Omniverse. Both massively multiplayer titles are being built on the Unity game engine, for PC and Mac compatibility. There's no announcement at this time for North American or European releases of either title. [Via Kotaku]
Dragonball Z HD refresh sees details, trailer pop up ahead of April 5 launch
The 100 episode limited edition high definition reintroduction of DragonBall Z has a name: DragonBall Kai, and a fresh HD trailer, embedded and lovingly fansubbed after the jump. More details have come out about the series since it was revealed, with the backers still emphasizing "no cropping" of original scenes, renewed opening and closing music plus re-recorded background songs. Just 24 more days to go.
Dragonball Z refreshed & renewed in HD for 20th Anniversary
Avoiding the obvious solution of gravity training, the original Dragonball Z TV series is getting remastered for HD, in honor of its 20th anniversary. According to this Shonen Jump scan, the reworked episodes will begin airing in Japan April 5, with footage extended (we're hoping that doesn't mean stretched, it doesn't seem like it) for 16x9 displays, with remastered sound effects and, where available, re-dubbed vocals by the original cast. The remastered edition will only consist of 100 episodes or so, but we're sure DBZ fans are already preparing to import this one on Blu-ray.[Via OKP]
MyToons.com first to deliver HD cartoons online
With more and more individuals flocking to the 'net to get their daily fix of original programming, we'd say MyToons is in a perfect position to attract the wandering eyes of cartoon lovers web-wide. The aforesaid website has just launched HD Animation, the first online portal for viewing community cartoon content in high-definition. Additionally, the new system will allow users to "embed and share HD animations at full resolution both on the MyToons site itself and on other pages throughout the internet." If you're an animator looking to have your material showcased in high-def, head on over to the MyToons website and have a look; as for all you viewers, the process is even simpler.
Make toon tunes with Looney Tunes: Cartoon Conductor
Remember back in the early '90s when you couldn't turn your head without running into another knock-off platformer based on some popular cartoon property? Well, it seems the rhythm-action game is the platformer for the new millennium. Case in point: Eidos' just-announced Looney Tunes: Cartoon Conductor, coming to the Nintendo DS this June.Players will use the stylus to conduct classic tunes from the, er, 'toons, and then be "rewarded with clips from favorite Looney Tunes cartoon moments." Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Daffy Duck, Sylvester the Cat and Tweety will be on hand for a game designed for "absolutely everybody who enjoys simple but addictive gameplay." And who doesn't enjoy that? No one, that's who! So that means everybody will enjoy this game! It's logic as indestructible as an ACME Indestructo Steel Ball.
Cheap IP of the Jungle
Remember George of the Jungle? You know, the cartoon from the '60s, from the same people that made the Rocky & Bullwinkle Show? It got made into a movie in ... oh, man, that was eleven years ago? Well, maybe the character has maintained an enduring appeal in Europe. Apparently he's coming back with a new animated series, and Ignition Entertainment is already showing off the new tie-in game for Europe.It makes slightly more sense that there's a new cartoon to promote, instead of just being a case of some random old cartoon getting a new video game. According to the press release, this game is among the "first releases from the global George of the Jungle™ licensed product programme." So look forward to more! Of this!
Mimoco releases a whole new batch of adorable flash drives
Have you been looking for that special something to whip out at the big meeting to show everyone that you've got style, class, and money to burn? Well perhaps you should take a peek at the latest set of Mimobot Core Series 2 USB flash drives, which come fashioned in a wide variety of cute-as-all-get-out cartoon monsters, designed by illustrator Dino Alberto. While we can't say that we prefer these to the company's previous Star Wars-themed line, there is something intriguing about this new set, like the fact that these adorable little guys all have an elaborate back-story that's loaded onto the drives for your viewing pleasure -- although you may just want to scrap that to make more room for your "business documents." The drives come in 512MB, 1GB, 2GB or 4GB capacity, and range in price from $39.95 to $109.95.
Building a better video game anime
With similar, heavily Japanese influences behind both video games and anime, it's no surprise that there's heavy overlap between fans of both art forms. But what happens when the two worlds actually meet? Anime blogger Azure Flame finds out with a look at what makes a good video-game inspired anime.The short essay is a little less than comprehensive -- it doesn't even mention the near-ubiquitous Pokemon anime, but the advice for making a good game-based cartoon is still useful. In short: a good game-based anime builds on the world and the story established in the game without being limited by the source material. We agree, and we're still waiting for the Super Mario Bros. anime that explores the plumbers' super-secret outer space battles between giant robots with enormous swords. Don't pretend you haven't pictured it yourself.
Disney releases Toontown for Mac OS X
Joystiq is reporting that Disney has released a Mac version of Toontown, an MMO cartoon game where users can create cartoon characters, join quests to save Toontown, race carts and even hurl wedding cakes at each other. The game seems to be fairly successful so far, as over 15 million Windows users have already been busy doing the online cartoon character thing. The Mac version is a Universal Binary so everyone on our side of the fence can play along, and the monthly subscription fee is $9.95. Of course a free, though short, three-day trial is available as well.Thanks Barb!
Scooby-Doo! Who's Watching Who? gameplay trailer
myFlash = new FlashObject('http://www.gametrailers.com/umremote312.swf', 'swffile', 480, 409, 8); myFlash.altTxt = ''; myFlash.addVariable('mid', 13968); myFlash.write(); I've had a soft spot for Scooby-Doo video games after playing Scooby Doo Mystery on the Sega Genesis. It was a point-and-click mystery game that had all the charm of the cartoon and was an absolute blast to play. And just this week, Scooby-Doo! Who's Watching Who? was released, and I have to admit I feel bad about not giving it the attention any Scooby-Doo title deserves, so here's a nice gameplay video showcasing the game. While there hasn't been any reviews I've seen thus far, the game features: The ability to control the Mystery Machine for the first time; Original voice talent from the Scooby-Doo animated series; and Various styles of gameplay, including puzzle, driving and platform. Although most Scooby-Doo games this generation haven't received too many great reviews (Most range anywhere from high 60s to low 50s), this game seems like a lot of fun, and with it's budget-based price of $20, it makes my decision all the more easy.
Sprint adds classic cartoons to (pricey) video offerings
We can't really see how it could get better than classics like Mr. Magoo, Rocky & Bullwinkle, Dick Tracy, and Casper, but it sure wouldn't hurt if Sprint dropped their ridiculous prices they expect you to pay for the privilege. Sprint is offering up their new Saturday Morning TV channel, featuring cartoon classics, along with Blip TV for comedic shorts and animations, and Comedy Time with six categories of stand-up comedy for whatever fits your mood. The problem is, Sprint expects you the shell out $5 a month per channel you'd like to watch, which can rack up pretty quickly, and shouldn't take more than a few channels to start rivaling a basic cable bill. We'd like to think we're as sensitive to a random Rocky & Bullwinkle craving as the next guy, but we'd much rather satisfy the addiction with some sort of package deal. That's all we're saying.[Via MocoNews]
