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Chassis the beer pouring robot gets paint job, even more lovable
Robots that assist in taking humans to their desired level of inebriation are far from new, but Chassis is just too darn likable to ignore. The beer pouring creature itself has actually doled out a few pints in its lifetime, but apparently, the latest spotting showed off a snazzy new paint job and a few additional lights. Heck, there's even a built-in microphone and speaker for "audience interaction." Best of all, however, is that the operator of this fellow can make it talk to party goers in the vicinity, and while we're currently unsure of its marital status, we have all ideas that it's a real hit with the ladies. Check out a few more snapshots in the read link below.[Via UberReview]
Well Fed Buff: Spicy Dwarven Cocoa
Every Thursday, Well Fed Buff will be serving up the tastiest dishes to boost your HP and stats, just in time for your weekend gaming. Are you a great adventurer who has been feeling lackluster about your predictable endeavors? Do you find yourself thinking, "my tongue is bored" or "I could have sworn I already killed Moroes multiple times". Have you been feeling the need for adrenaline? Well, move over Mana Energy Potion. All you need is an ancient dwarven recipe and you'll be up on your toes in no time! Spicy Dwarven Cocoa combines the spicy and the sweet in this thick, hot beverage that'll grow hair on your tongue. With several different alarm levels, and two or three separate sets of buffs, you won't want to pass up this recipe. User beware: each choice you make with every step and measurement can turn this concoction into anything from an uplifting treat to a fire-breathing dragon with a cherry on top!
Students throw real Mario party, with matching drinks
Graduate students at the IT University of Copenhagen take over their local bar Scrollbar (great name!) every Friday night, and recently decided to deck the place out with a Mario theme. More than just decorations and music, however, the theme also included a cadre of customized cocktails and shots, all appropriately inspired by the Mushroom Kingdom and its denizens.Drinks included the Princess Peach (a modified Southern Peach) and the Mario and Luigi Shot (half grenadine, half kiwi Bols). The Yoshi cocktail was popular enough to be added to the bar's standard repertoire, and patrons downing the 1UP Shot were treated to that all-too-familiar sound effect upon completion.Nintendo fans can check out the site for more details about the event, and recipes for mixing every cocktail and shot (assuming they're of the legal drinking age). Now all they need is some Tetris ice.[Via DS Fanboy]
A real Mario party, with drinks to match
Have you ever wanted to try a Yoshi cocktail? If so, you probably should have hit up the Scrollbar in Copenhagen on February 15th.A bunch of students attending Copenhagen's IT University decided to deck out the Scrollbar in Mario goodness, and topped it off by serving original Mario themed drinks.If you're looking to make some of these alcoholic beverages for yourself (assuming, of course, that you're the proper age to do so legally), you can check out the recipes for drinks like the Goomba or the 1up shot here.Too bad -- it looks like we missed out on the video game party of the year.[Via Tokyo Mango]
New Year's Eve in Azeroth
Just in case you aren't headed out to a party this evening, let this serve as your reminder that it's New Year's Eve in Azeroth this evening as well. As usual, there will be hourly fireworks in all the major cities after sunset, free drinks in public areas, and revelers aplenty (make sure to blow them a /kiss). Additionally, while it's not listed on Blizzard's official page, there are two quests available (one for each faction), and tradition says that the guards in Booty Bay will get drunk and pass out, which means PvP is going to be welcome in the neutral port town (usually, attacking someone there will get you beat up).Wherever you are this evening (in Azeroth or the real world), here's hoping you have a safe and happy New Year's Eve! Thanks for all you've done for us at WoW Insider in 2007, and we'll see you in 2008!
Spanish for people with fathers who can't stay off the sauce
With all the attention we've given My French Coach this past week, we thought it only right that we share one of the useful phrases from Ubisoft's other language trainer for the DS, My Spanish Coach. Now you can explain to the social worker why your inebriated father can't come to the door right now in two different languages! Thanks, My Spanish Coach! And a special thanks to you, dad, for never being sober enough to help us out when we really needed you!
Wine bottle flash drive: too sweet for our tastes
At this point, it's hard to envision an object that hasn't been miniaturized for the purpose of creating yet another novel flash drive, so you won't color us wowed with BeWine Connected's latest. This wine bottle USB drive packs Open Cellar wine cellar management software, a screensaver / wallpaper and wine-influenced ringtones (saywha?) onto 1GB of internal storage, but we'd be tempted to promptly format the thing upon arrival. Nevertheless, those interested in expanding their weird-but-still-useful collection of thumb drives can hand over €35 ($50) and claim one more solid addition.[Via Gizmag]
24 hours of Tabula Rasa: Hour 11
And here we are at 6pm, and hour number 11 in our 24 hours of launch day contests featuring Tabula Rasa. How's things? Good? Friday afternoon going OK?If not, maybe we can help-- this hour we'll be giving away a Tabula Rasa hat, a poster, and an oversized game box (sans actual game) to three random commenters on this post. Trust me, short of (legally consumed) alcohol of some kind, there's nothing that picks your Friday afternoon up more than a hilarious gigantic game box. As usual, you have to be a US resident (stupid laws!) and you have to be 18 and older. Leave a comment on this post in the next hour (by 7pm EST, official rules are here), and we'll pick three winners to win three prizes. And let's make this fun-- in your comment, tell us what the people in the pic above are running from.Good luck as always, and have a great Friday afternoon. Don't go too far, though -- the next contest is only an hour away.
16 year-old girl stalked from WoW to her high school
In today's online world of MySpace and Facebook, the trend seems to be against what the media has been warning the public of for years. Don't mention your name, your school, your town; wait, I meant, please join the "School X" and "Town Y" social groups! No one wants to feel anxious about their online identity these days. We all want to connect, to play, to share information, to put ourselves on Youtube videos, post photos, and it has even become uncool to be antsy about meeting people you met online. Unfortunately, regardless of what we'd like to believe, stalking still happens. A high school girl was recently approached at school by a man who crossed borders and travelled hours to find her.
Brewfest starts at midnight server time!
Trouble is brewing in the forums. Sorry. Couldn't resist. Apparently there has been some miscommunication about the in-game Brewfest event. Even the oft-infallible WoW Insider team has been an accessory to this crime, and for that we humbly apologize. There's been more than a little bit of chatter about it on the forums as well, and Drysc dutifully stepped to the plate and addressed the angry alcohol-deprived mob. (Thankfully, he survived a lynching. This time.)In my opinion Drysc took more of the blame on Blizzard's behalf than he needed to. The misunderstanding, from my perspective, has all been about verbage. The promotional material I've seen indicated that Brewfest would "go live" today, it didn't say the festival would actually start today. Like the Darkmoon Faire, Blizzard has opted to put a day of setup and teardown at each end of the event to add to roleplay realism. Personally, I think it's a nice touch.The good news is that the festival actually starts tonight at midnight server time. Be sure to check out Dan's guide to Brewfest festivities and make your way to your faction's Brewfest location!
Forum Necromancy
Forum necromancy (a.k.a. Thread necromancy) is the dark art of resurrecting long-dead forum threads on the official WoW forums by posting something new in them and sending them to the very top of the list. This heinous act is not to be mistaken with a "bump" -- sending a baby thread with trouble attracting viewers' eyeballs back to the top of the list. "Bumping" is no more reprehensible than "grinding" is. But beware those who seek to raise dead topics from the grave! These people are dangerous and Blizzard will punish them.I have proof! In an ancient era long forgotten -- back in May -- a young dwarf named Grothym asked if his character, after many many in-game alcoholic beverages, could black out or even die from alcohol poisoning. Drysc, the Blizzard Community manager, rightly thought this was a funny suggestion and commented: "I proposed that eventually the screen goes black and you wake up in a random capital city of the opposite faction, but it didn't fly." Then the thread went on for a few more pages and petered out. Aside from a brief stint in July, the thread remained dead until just a few days ago, when some druid with an impossible-to-pronounce name raised this thread from the depths of the forum archives, back onto the front page. No doubt he had been inspired by the Lich King.Fortunately, Blizzard's Gruul-like defender of the forums smashed this zombie-thread with the following words:As a rule of thumb, bumping an old discarded thread to the first page is considered to be against the Forum Code of Conduct. While there are indeed exceptions based on the topic and circumstances, in general it is recommended not to post in this manner, as it can lead to suspensions of one's posting privileges. A good guideline to go by is that if the most recent post in a thread is over a month old then it would be better not to reply to that thread.Yes. You read that right: suspensions of one's posting privileges for unleashing undeath upon the hapless citizens of the official WoW forums. Beware temptation to turn to the dark side. Post in living threads only.
Pocketable probe could detect drink spiking
Granted, we've come across hordes of patent applications that were far from practical, but if it's the premise that counts, we suppose this one works out alright. The app calls for a "probe" which could then be inserted into a drink, and an indicator connected to a database that would enlighten you if your drink has indeed been injected with a noxious solution while you weren't paying attention. The process would also require that a blast of electricity be sent through the probe, and though it's not directly stated, it also entails that the user be sober enough to understand it and willing to bust it out whilst partying. We have our doubts about the last two ever truly working out.[Via MedLaunches, image courtesy of BBC]
Automated drink slinger takes orders via LCD
Sure, we've seen legions of automated bartenders and coffee machines that conjure up your preferred cup of joe each morning, but the Digital Beverages MyFountain takes things up a notch. Sporting a touchscreen LCD, an internet-linked Windows XP computer, and the ability to be "100-percent customizable," this mechanical drink slinger reportedly interfaces with a "dorm-style refrigerator" that holds a dozen types of alcohol and mixers along with a water line and carbon-dioxide cartridge. Furthermore, the grown-ups can even password protect the non-virgin beverages on tap, and while it would sure be nice to kiss tips goodbye and hold all of your parties in-house, this bad boy supposedly starts at a stiff $2,575. Click on for a couple snapshots of the interface.[Via CNET, image courtesy of PopSci]
Nissan unveils concept car with anti-drunk driving technology
Just as expected, Nissan has indeed rolled out a concept vehicle that showcases its long-awaited anti-drunk driving technology. The vehicle sports "multiple preventative features" designed to curb inebriated operation of vehicles, and essentially detects the driver's state of sobriety and kicks into action if you've had a bit much. Amongst the detection agents are alcohol odor sensors built into the locking shift knob, seat-mounted sensors that can activate a voice and navigation screen warning, and a facial monitoring system that determines your "state of consciousness through your eyes." Regrettably, there's still no word as to when this system could actually hit showroom floors, but if the automaker has shelled out enough dough to craft a concept vehicle, we'd imagine it's not too far out.[Via TheAutoChannel]
Nuvo Wino infrared wine thermometer sports retractable sensor
There's no shortage of gadgetry designed to keep your wine legit and chilled, but the Nuvo Vino infrared thermometer is hitting the market to ensure that your pre-drink rambling doesn't lead to you drinking an overly warm glass. The simplistic device sports a retractable sensor that purportedly measures the exact temperature of the wine itself, and there's plenty of accompanying documentation to inform you of what perfect degree you should look for before indulging. As expected, it also features a fairly attractive motif in order to catch the eye of the affluent, but until they add built-in aural cues that blurt out whether or not your beverage is ideal, we'll hold onto our $49.95.
Foster's to aid in first "beer battery" fuel cell project
While it's certainly debatable whether beer is to thank for the explosion in the consumer electronics industry, it looks like we'll be thanking the beverage without hesitation for making our world a little greener. Oddly enough, "scientists and Australian beer maker Foster's are teaming up to generate clean energy from brewery waste water by using sugar-consuming bacteria," and better yet, the University of Queensland will host a microbial fuel cell at a Foster's Group brewery near Brisbane. Essentially, the cell will consume brewery wastes such as sugar, starch, and alcohol, while producing clean electricity by harnessing the energy released from the organic materials coming in. The device is expected to produce two-kilowatts of power, and while hopes are to bring the technology to other breweries and wineries around the country, this iteration should crank up sometime in September.[Via Physorg, thanks Michael T.]
Beer to thank for consumer electronics explosion?
Beer has certainly found its place in worldwide culture, but claiming that it's the foundation for all of the consumer electronics that we enjoy today is probably stretching it. Nevertheless, the controversial (or just plain sarcastic) Charlie Bamforth proclaims that "beer is the basis of modern static civilization," touting his three decades at Anheuser-Busch as a knowledge base. Essentially, Charlie insinuates that beer spurned innovation in ages past by making the early brewers think outside of the box, which subsequently led to tents, then cities, and by extension, iPods, laptops, and USB-powered oddities. Granted, the man's linkages make entirely more sense when inebriated (or at least tipsy), so if you're looking to prove just how important alcohol is to your gadget collection, grab a few cans and hit the read link below.[Via Inquirer]
Inebriated crooks leave behind digital snapshots of themselves
It's one thing to lose track of all the peripherals you need to gank whilst stealing a gaming console, but to leave behind digital snapshots of yourself at a crime scene is on an entirely different level of dumb. In a case filled with Darwin award nominees, a team of self-incriminating thieves managed to break into private property and jack about "$5,000 worth of expensive alcohol, including $800 bottles of wine and high-dollar scotch," only to forget a digital camera filled with photos of the party in progress. Interestingly, game designer Richard Garriott (Ultima Online, anyone?) actually owns the property, and has stated that he'll probably install a swank video surveillance / security system to prevent such an annoyance from happening again. But if you've been wondering how to make a quick buck in order to snag a few new pieces of kit flowing out of CeBIT, Texas police are offering "up to $1,000 in reward money" for leading investigators to the less-than-intelligent criminals.[Via Fark]
Russians congregate over internet, drink via USB shot glasses
Considering that we've all some of us have been enjoying online chats, poker, and dating for quite some while, it's not too shocking to see the Russians utilize the power of the web to bring alcoholics and social drinkers together in inebriated harmony. Sergey Mikheev, head of e-generator, has devised a USB shot glass to allow lonely, alcohol-needing individuals to get their drink on while safely at home. While we don't consider ourselves experts in Russian culture, it's apparently not tactful to get plastered solo, and while online drinking might be stretching the rules just a bit, we're sure those vodka-lovin' internet dwellers aren't complaining. The idea is to join a group of drinkers in an online lounge, where the USB shot glass levels are shown on each person's screen; once the go-ahead is given, the folks turn up their glasses and chug it down, ideally showing an empty glass after a random smashing of keys somehow spells out congratulatory phrases. As interesting and novel as this may be, let it remind us all how "getting a life" should be taken oh-so-seriously.[Via ChipChick]
Raiding under the influence
The response to Monday's breakfast topic got me thinking about drugs, alcohol and WoW. A lot of people said they drink to pass the time while farming in WoW. If you're 21 or whatever the legal drinking age in your country is, that's fine -- at least you're not driving. And as for other substances, well .... we're not the FBI and we're not here to judge or moralize. Generally, it's probably better to play WoW while intoxicated than, say, perform brain surgery or control the country's nuclear arsenal. But dealing with drugs and alcohol can be tough if you're in a group situation, especially if you're in a raiding guild. There's a thin line between "having a good time" and "wiping the entire group because the suppression room is spinning." I've been in raid groups with extremely drunk or high people, and the result has rarely been good. Sure, there's the odd person who can heal or tank just as well while under the influence, but I've also seen a drunk mage whisper me with "loool im kiting gluths stuff," and heard one too many guildmates explain that they couldn't remember why they quit the guild/insulted the officers/yelled out their phone number in Vent. Pretty entertaining for those of us watching, but for a guild actually trying to make progression, such members can be hard to handle. The worst I've seen was when I was guilded with a tank with an admitted drug and alcohol problem. He was an excellent tank when he was present and conscious, which is why guilds kept giving him chances. The end of the line for him with our guild was when he was the main tank for Nefarian -- we were just beginning to learn the fight, and the guild leader figured a tank with Will of the Forsaken might make things easier. He did a good job the first try. He did a good job the second try. But after the ten minute break before the third try, he disappeared. He didn't log out or tell anyone he was going AFK -- he just stayed still until he disconnected. Turns out he had taken quite a bit of alcohol and/or cocaine before the raid and had passed out at his computer. Needless to say, he didn't get to tank Nef again (although he did stay in the guild.) What does your guild do with people who are clearly intoxicated during instances? Do you have a drug-free zone policy during raids, or do you consider it a violation of the person's privacy to tell them what to do in their personal lives?
