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Today's most vertigo-inducing video: Portal Lvl. 13 Time Challenge
All we can say is, don't stand too close to the edge while watching this video. You'll slowly lose your equilibrium and tip over, falling into the void without a Portal gun to save your ass. In fact, we just watched it a second time, but made sure that our seatbelts were securely fastened, and that our tray tables were in the full upright and locked positions. We survived, and have now ordered a cocktail and another packet of peanuts with which we can calm our jittery nerves. Portal continues to stick out of every corner of The Orange Box as one of the coolest, and shortest, titles we've ever played. We'd love to see some new levels made available on a regular basis, as well as some FPS that will let us use the Portal gun on unsuspecting foes. Bring it on.
The fastest class to level with?
Breanni at WarcraftPets.com has spent quite a bit of time evaluating the nine classes of World of Warcraft and ranking them based on DPS, survivability, speed buffs, and downtime. The result? A very informative discussion of the classes comparative strengths and weaknesses. Breanni's list, ranked from slowest to fastest, with some comments of my own: Paladins: Excellent survivablity, but comprably poor DPS, even with a retribution build. Warriors: Good DPS, but moderate downtime (fight, bandage, fight, bandage, fight, bandage). Shaman: Reasonable DPS, but survivability and downtime issues. (How does a Shaman restore their mana? By sitting down to drink every third fight.) Priest: Spirit tap makes downtime no problem, an.d a shadow build provides great DPS -- but not as good as other classes Mage: Great DPS but poor survivability (cloth armor and low HP)and a good amount of downtime (pesky evocation cooldown). Warlock: Capable of similar damage to a mage, but with pets and more health (usually), they have much better survivability. Druid: A feral build provides great potential to do damage (cat form) and absorb damage (bear form). Combine that with healing ability, and you've got a great class to play. Rogue: Excellent DPS and pretty high survivability, too (vanish, evasion, sprint, etc!). Hunter: High damage, neigh unkillable in PvE, and if they ever do get in over their heads, they can feign death and get away without an annoying corpse run. I have to agree with Breanni's choices for the bottom and top of the list, but I think a lot in the middle could be mixed around. (I think Warlock could compete for the number two spot, personally -- but I tend to play Demonology spec, while Breanni leveled with an Affliction spec.) But enough about my opinions -- what do you think is the fastest class to level?
Five-minute Mario a world record? Yes and no
Is a new video of a five-minute speed run through the original Super Mario Bros. a world record? Well, it depends on who you ask.The Speed Demos Archive, which posted the video, certainly thinks so. In a recent news post, they talk up the video as the game being "beaten more quickly than is allowed by the rules of a certain other site which amusingly considers itself to be the authority on speed records." That other site is long-time video game scorekeeper Twin Galaxies, which currently establishes the record as a slower but still blazing 5:08 run by Scott Kessler.That gap is the result of some rather stringent rules set forth by Twin Galaxies -- esoteric glitches like wall jumps, pipe redirects and walking through walls are not allowed by the scorekeepers. These glitches aren't cheating per se -- they're all possible in the official, unaltered version of the game -- but they do go against what Twin Galaxies calls "programmer intent," and the spirit of how the game is meant be playedWhat's the difference? Well, eight seconds, which is a lifetime in the world of competitive speed running. Which view is more valid? Decide for yourself. Below, we've posted three videos: one from Speed Demos Archive; one of a slightly slower "TG legal" run; and one of an emulator-enhanced (but still technically possible) run from TASvideos.com. Let the battle begin.Previously: Mario racing minus the karts
Hybrid Technologies' all electric L1X-75 impresses off the line
No doubt we've seen our fair share of electric speedsters that can actually oust the more exotic (albeit fuel-powered) counterparts in off the line speed, but Hybrid Technologies' L1X-75 can rocket you from zero to sixty in a mere 3.1 oh-so-silent seconds. The 600-horsepower machine is crafted from a carbon-fiber frame, sports no luxurious amenities such as sheep skin floor mats, umbrellas in the boot, or even an AM radio, and can purportedly hit a top speed of around 175 miles-per-hour. Additionally, the eye-catching ride sports a 10,000 rpm redline, and the Li-ion-powered induction motors get all the juice it needs from your AC outlet. Unfortunately, there was no mention of when we'd see these sneaking into dealerships, but if you'll hit the read link below, you'll encounter a test drive video that shows off its fuel-shunning pizazz.[Via Slashdot]
Holy crap: Minesweeper Expert in 38 seconds
If you're anything like us, the first time you watch this video of a 38-second expert minesweeper run, you'll probably think it's a sped-up fake. But all you doubting Thomases can actually download the raw MVF file for Minesweeper recorder The Clone and be amazed at how quickly those fingers can actually fly. While you're at it, check out all the cool, ultra-obsessive content on Planet Minesweeper, which includes tips on mouse handling, a mathematical analysis of first click positions and a map of serious players nationwide. Seems some people use the game as much more than just a procrastination tool. Who knew? [Via TheLastBoss]
Sanyo's blue laser to speed up HD DVD / Blu-ray burning?
While Sony's certainly had its fair share of blue laser supply issues, and the current generation of HD DVD / Blu-ray burners are sluggish at best, it looks like the first step towards marginally acceptable write speeds to next generation formats has been taken. According to Nikkei, Sanyo has developed a blue laser diode which will speed up data access, and moreover, should be able to reach write speeds of "up to 6x for dual-layer discs." Similar to LG's combo unit, this diode also plays nice with both HD DVD and Blu-ray recorders, but there's no word if a hybrid writer using the laser is in our immediate future. Still, any progress towards harmony between the formats -- not to mention being able to burn a dual-layer Blu-ray disc in time for your next birthday -- is a step in the right direction, so we're expecting nothing less than a 6x burner to be hitting shelves sooner rather than later, Sanyo. [Warning: read link requires subscription][Via Inquirer]
Pioneer unveils DVR-A12J 10x dual-layer DVD burner
Similar to the height / width race that's always going on in the land of HDTV, the write speed race is also one that never seems to cease. While you can toast a blank DVD at 20x, the dual-layer variety demands a bit more patience, but thanks to Pioneer's latest, the waiting game is getting ever shorter. The DVR-A12J lineup comes in piano black, silver, and white color schemes, claims Windows XP compatibility, and offers up 10x write speeds on dual-layer DVD+/-R media. Additionally, it touts Labelflash technology (similar to LightScribe), writes to single-layer DVD media at 18x, and takes care of DVD-RAM at 12x. Moreover, it boasts a 2MB cache and a rather stout Cyberlink software bundle, including PowerDVD6, PowerProducer, and Power2Go. So if you're still holding out on those pricey (and sluggish) Blu-ray burners, you can snap this sucka up for just ¥10,000 ($86) later this month.[Via Impress]
ADTec's AD-SDH SD cards: waterproof and fast
Yeah, we've seen waterproof SD cards before. In fact, as things rapidly commodify, waterproofing seems to have become the new pink-standard of the witless, marketeer. Still, these super happy, go fast, AD-SDH SD cards from ADTec Japan are quick with a high-speed transfer rate of 20MB/sec -- ideal for smooth video capture or support for rapid stills shot under the soggiest of conditions. On sale any day now in Japan starting at ¥2,980 (about $26) for the 512MB stick on up to ¥8,980 (or $77) for the 2GB jobbie.
WoW Universal Binary FAST on iMac Core Duo
In case you didn't see my post yesterday over at WoW Insider, I just wanted to point out over here that, yes, indeed: yesterday's Universal Binary patch for World of Warcraft means the game runs nice and fast on my iMac Core Duo.On a 1.83Ghz Core Duo with 2GBs of RAM and 128MB of VRAM, I'm seeing 50-60 frames per second in unpopulated areas with the graphics set to the defaults. If I ramp all the graphics up, I'm still seeing 40-45 frames per second in these areas. If I enter something like a battleground where there's lots of action going on, I'm seeing about 30-40 frames per second with the graphics set to the defaults and 18-28 frames per second with the graphics pushed to their limit. Keep in mind that 24 frames per second is a stop-motion animated film, and regular full motion video is normally 29.97 frames per second.Overall, I'm ecstatic. Finally! A Mac gaming machine that actually plays games! Dear Game Developers: the time to code for Mac is now!
