Overkill
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House of the Dead: Overkill gets Euro release date, Collector's Edition
Sega will release The House of the Dead: Overkill in Europe next February, and there'll be an optional bonus at "selected retailers" for fans who preorder: this rad Collector's Edition. Arriving in a fetching minimalist slipcase (loving the authentic scuff marks), this will come bundled with a graphic novel that tells the stories of Agent Washington and Varla Gunns, and the events that lead up to the game.Here's the downside: this sweet package has so far only been announced for PAL regions -- apart from Germany, obviously. Sucks to be Germany, eh? Hit up our gallery for a closer look at the comic's cover and a sample page.%Gallery-29952%[Via press release]
Dodge the dead in new Overkill screens
Click on image to check out the new screens Some fresh screens for Sega's upcoming shooter, House of the Dead: Overkill, have risen from the dead and lurked their way onto the internet. They're pretty much what you'd expect: shots of zombies skulking toward the screen, along with shots of zombies being, uh, well ... shot. We don't know about you, but we're still incredibly excited to play Sega's campy shooter.Click on the image above to see the new screens, or head into the gallery below.%Gallery-29952%
Encrypted Text: Dough for your cookie cutters
Every Wednesday, Chase Christian of Encrypted Text invites you to enter the world of shadows, as we explore the secrets and mechanics of the Rogue class. In this special 3.0.2 edition of Encrypted Text, we'll be talking about the new talent trees that are coming this Tuesday with the release of the patch.With 3.0.2 right around the corner, all three of our precious talent trees are about to get shaken up. Talents are getting moved around, point costs are travelling in both directions, and a lot of rebalancing is taking place. Blizzard has been removing bloat from certain areas, and also adding some very cool new abilities for our class.With all these changes, it can be hard to see the forest for the trees. (Get it? Talent trees? Haha!) For a detailed analysis of all the changes, I recommend reading the patch notes. I am going to give my readers (you) exactly what a busy Rogue wants: what's nerfed, what's buffed, what's good when the dust settles?
G4 takes a stroll through the House of the Dead
We don't have to tell you how excited we are for House of the Dead: Overkill. After the game was announced, some details managed to escape Leipzig and we've been counting down the days ever since. Studio manager, Bradley Crooks, recently talked with G4 about the Grindhouse-influenced game, including some of the game's features. Also, Bradley says he thinks Overkill "might be the first game to feature a live birth. Or, maybe it's a live unbirth." Sounds disgusting! We love it!G4's player is a pain in the neck, so you'll have to head past the break to check out the video.%Gallery-29952%
GC 2008: Details for House of the Dead: Overkill escape Leipzig
Apparently, one Bradley Crooks, developer at Headstrong Games, revealed to Gamekyo a few details about the upcoming Sega game on every Wii gamers' mind (if it isn't on your brain, then you should get your head checked) during an event at Leipzig. The list is fairly long, so head past the break, where it's all been organized with helpful bullet points.%Gallery-29952%
House of the Amazing Swag
So far, we're loving Sega's marketing of House of the Dead: Overkill. We thought nothing could top the cracking grindhouse-style trailer released when the game was announced, but some of the swag associated with the game comes close.Destructoid's Jim Sterling (and we assume our other esteemed, Leipzig-attending colleagues in the press) just received the above video cassette box. Inside, Sterling discovered a postcard resembling a VHS tape, and a T-shirt that expands in water. Best of all, he notes how the box has been designed to look damaged and scuffed, so that it looks like the kind of under-the-counter filth that you may have found abandoned on a disused section of railway as a youngster; very subtle, Sega! Blast your way through the break for a couple more shots.%Gallery-29952%
Wii Warm Up: Best. Trailer. Ever.
Because you probably should watch it againWe were pleasantly surprised by the House of the Dead: Overkill trailer. We haven't seen such a quality trailer since ... well, maybe ever. We're genuinely pumped for the game.But, enough about us. What was your most memorable trailer? The Metroid Prime E3 trailer? The first Wind Waker footage? What was your favorite and most memorable trailer?
The House of the Dead: Overkill -- where the dead walk, and bullets talk
We all held our breath when Sega announced it had a surprise planned for the Leipzig Game Conference. Could it be a fresh Jet Set Radio game? A Daytona title? Surely not ... Shenmue III? Well, it's none of those, but House of the Dead: Overkill still appears to be awe to the some. Though a competent House of the Dead game already exists on the Wii, our toes curled with excitement upon watching the trailer above, with its grindhouse stylings and tongue-in-cheek commentary. "They came for brains. You will give them ... bullets."House of the Dead: Overkill is due out next year and, as has been previously mentioned, is being worked on by Headstrong. Hit up our gallery for the first screens and some of the best Wii boxart you'll see this year.%Gallery-29952%
Electronic House picks Home of the Year 2008 winners, we drool
Here it is: the hotly anticipated list of best homes as selected by Electronic House. Interestingly enough, this year's winners are quite different than the champs of 2007, and we suspect all that talk of green these days has something to do with it. Yep, for the first time ever, an "energy-efficient, sustainable" home snagged the highly-coveted gold, but make no mistake, this domicile is packed to the gills with electronic goodness (some of which actually helps keep energy waste down). Even if that doesn't pique your interest, EH has selected a plethora of other swank abodes to highlight, including the best home theater, a pimped out yacht and cribs with hidden treasures. Go on, get lost in the pages upon pages of snapshots and descriptions below -- and feel free to brag in comments if your pad wound up a winner.
Fire alarm bell repurposed for waking the dead
For those who could easily sleep through a tornado (or similar), there are a plethora of alarm clocks out there designed to wake even you up. Still, there's nothing like crafting a suitable alternative yourself, and the folks over at Hacked Gadgets decided to exemplify overkill in their latest concoction. 'Course, a "fire alarm bell alarm clock" is pretty self-explanatory, and while it certainly doesn't come through as loud over YouTube as we're sure it is in person, there's still ample reason to click through and peek the video yourself. [Thanks, Alan]
SnapStream Enterprise TV Server: ten tuners, 8TB of storage
And you thought WeaKnees' 2TB TiVo was hot stuff, now didn't you? Be that as it may, there's no denying that this beast puts the aforementioned DVR to shame, as the SnapStream Enterprise TV Server is available with up to ten built-in tuners and 8TB of fault tolerant storage space. In case you couldn't surmise, these units were created for enterprise use, but that's not to say it wouldn't fit right into your abode. In addition to being mighty impressive from a hardware standpoint, the software aspect is pretty svelte, too. The search feature enables users to snoop around within program meta data, and moreover, it enables owners to easily burn content to DVD, extract clips from full recordings and convert files into a variety of formats. Sure, even the "low-end" version rings up at $6,000, but if your New Year's resolution is to remain firmly planted on a sofa until 2009 (or beyond), this would probably be a sound investment.[Via TVSnob]
Perfect8's FORCE Center channel intrigues the elite
Make no mistake, we've seen our fair share of astronomically priced speakers, but Perfect8's latest may be one that actually looks halfway worth the ludicrous price. This glass-contained center channel rocks a set of casters, gold accents and a bevy of drivers. From the top, you'll find a 28-millimeter silk dome tweeter, a pair of 5.25-inch MG-cone drivers and a couple of 7-inch speakers about midway down. The FORCE Center reportedly has a frequency response of 35Hz to 34,000Hz, can handle 200-watts of steady power and can be adjusted for 4:3 and 16:9 viewing (whatever that means). Of course, most of us will be drooling at this beauty from afar, as the $40,000 asking price will shoo away all but the wealthiest of aficionados.[Via AudioJunkies]
66-fan case mod exemplifies overkill
We've seen some pretty questionable case mods involving additional fans, but this one will likely hold top honors until something even more extravagant comes around. The "Super Cooler" straps a grand total of 66 fans around the tower, which probably doesn't do a whole lot of good when all's said and done. Truth be told, we've all ideas that this thing was created more so for people to gawk at than to actually enable users to run uber-overclocked CPUs and graphics cards without the use of water, but whatever the case, it's an interesting (if not cacophonic) take on cooling. Hit the read link for lots more images, and keep those fingers a safe distance away, k?[Via Uber-Review]
Lantic Systems unveils gilded $30000 RC 1 remote control
Here at Engadget HQ, we've no particular issues with superfluousness, but we're just hard pressed to believe that anyone could find value in a $30,000 remote control. Granted, we'd certainly have a change of heart if said remote could grant a trio of wishes, create a clone to handle our 9-to-5 and serenade us on command, but unfortunately, Lantic Systems' RC 1 does none of the above. The discuss-shaped device only offers up control of one's DVD player, TV, CCTV / security setup, audio system, lights, curtains, HVAC and any other standard AV component, all of which can be taken care of for a Toyota or so less. Interestingly, the outfit doesn't even mention how much gold you're really getting here, but considering that those signed on to bring one home likely posses more money than sense, that tidbit probably isn't a dealbreaker.[Via BornRich]
Gigabyte's Visuals: the USB gauge for your PSU
We don't want you to get your hopes all sky high for nothin', so we'll preface this by noting that Gigabyte's Visuals only operates with the firm's Odin GT-series of power supplies. For those still with us, this monitor-mountable gizmo enables users to keep a close eye on the temperature, power and fan speed of their PSU, and it gets all the juice / information it needs via USB. Granted, it's probably overkill for all but the most hardcore of overclockers, but no one here ever said that extravagance was necessarily a bad thing. Look for this one to land anytime for a currently undisclosed price, and hey, maybe next year Gigabyte will open up the compatibility list a bit, eh?[Via OhGizmo]
PS Audio's prototype CD transport pretends to be cool
There's nothing we love more (okay, that's an exaggeration -- but barely) than blatant overkill, and this here prototype from PS Audio fits that description to a T. Granted, we fully expect audiophiles to blindly stand up for this thing -- even though no one outside of the company has a clue just how incredible (or not) the innards actually are -- but here's the skinny. This not-yet-named CD transport reportedly transfers audio tracks from standard CDs onto internal memory for as long as the disc remains inside; apparently, this design "nullifies any jitter" and "other possible audio degradation." Theoretically sound as this logic may be, we can think of quite a few other ways to listen to music stored on flash memory (or similar) without spending $2,000. Who knows though, maybe that wood is incomprehensibly exotic.
dB Dragger gets 180.5dB from a single subwoofer
We've seen (and heard, er, felt) some pretty sensational subwoofers in our day, but we can't even imagine what 180.5dB of mind-rattling bass (at the dash, no less) would do to one's senses. Nevertheless, Alan Dante has reportedly set a new record in the world of in-car bass output by using four Stetsom 7KD amplifiers, 15 Power Master batteries, and a single Digital Designs 9918Z subwoofer. Kudos Mr. Dante, you exemplify overkill, and that's exactly how we like it.[Via AudioJunkies]
Electronic House crowns Home of the Year winners
While we've seen a variety of domiciles packed to the hilt with consumer electronic-related goodness, the big boys and girls most certainly come out of the woodwork (or the downstairs home theater) when Electronic House begins accepting applications for its Home of the Year. The award goes to the home that most perfectly displays "a mix of electronics and design," and while we're fairly sure the 300 or so entries they received could all be worthy of gracing the pedestal, only three were picked to take top honors. Clearly, money was of little or no concern in the construction of these fine dwellings, but rest assured, the thousands upon thousands that went into objects of desire such as Runco plasmas / projectors, Crestron home automation systems, Lexicon amplifiers, Denon receivers, and the host of other LCD HDTVs, lighting systems, and in-ceiling speakers weren't used carelessly. Each of the top three homes sports a distinct angle and motif not directly shared by the other victors, and while we personally wouldn't mind visiting any of the three, be sure to hit the read link for the breakdown of how each crib won its medal, and click on through for a few more shots.
Mysterious smartphone offers up integrated 7.1 surround sound
Believe us, we've seen "surround sound" get put in places it was never meant to be, and while the likes of headphones, laptops, and even PDAs have yet to be spared as companies try anything to attract attention to their presumably lackluster offerings, the mobile phone doesn't typically see such desperate measures -- until now, of course. While minor gimmicks are fairly commonplace on humdrum overseas handsets, a mysterious Hong Kong-derived smartphone (another snap after the jump) purports to rock 7.1 audio right on the device itself, and by the looks of things, it's not lying. Of course, there will be absolutely no separation of channels with this thing, and we've got to believe that there's a few wires crossed within giving off a more matrixed wall of sound in reality. The rest of the specs (if they're to be trusted) include a 3.5-inch QVGA touchscreen, Bluetooth, two-megapixel camera, a microSD slot, and a transparent protective lid, and please, shut off that little voice that's urging you to ponder about where to find and purchase this hunk, alright?[Via JustAMP, thanks Wigald]
Baby Grand Master piano packs full-blown sound system
We've seen overkill in just about every venue imaginable, but just in case owning a pearly white Baby Grand wasn't superfluous enough, Gardner Post has made sure that its rendition is undoubtedly over the top. This beauty forgoes the typical keys for a swank AV system, as users will be graced with dual Pioneer DVJ-X1 DVD Players, a trio of Marshal LCD monitors, and an Edirol V-4 video mixer -- and that's just the video front. As far as audio is concerning, you'll find an Allen and Heath Xone 92 audio mixer, dual 15-inch subwoofers, an 18-incher to handle the low-lows, a 12-inch subwoofer strictly for bragging rights, three Bullet tweeters, and an AB 1,100-watt amplifier to provide the juice. Furthermore, these bad boys can be customized to the hilt for those willing to pay the price, as deep-pocketed customers can add hydraulic legs and lid, neon accents, personalized paint jobs, and fog / laser adornments. Unsurprisingly, you'll have to contact the manufacturer and maintain a serious line of credit before you'll get a price range on this thing, but if you've got to ask, you know it's out of reach. Click on for a few more shots.[Via The Raw Feed]
