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Makayama making a movie mount for iPad 2
The Makayama Movie Mount is a tripod-mountable case for the iPad 2, designed to set up your Apple tablet for an extended amount of movie shooting. The mount clips right around the iPad, and it also has two hotshoes for things like lights or microphones, a screw fitting for a place to mount a lens converter, and a kickstand on the back to hold the iPad up as usual. Makayama has also made a free app for the iPad that allows you to control the finer aspects of shooting, with both video and photography. I'm not sure why, if you want to go to these lengths, you'd use the iPad specifically for shooting video. Why not just invest in a real camera? Still, if you already own the iPad 2 and wouldn't mind doing your shooting, editing, and uploading of video all on the same device, this might be just the thing. The Movie Mount is going on sale in October, and it will be available for $69.95 in the US.
Naked Florida man opens fire on SWAT bot with AK-47, no kidding
"Investigators say they've never dealt with a naked man attacking a robot before." So starts perhaps the most insane local news story we've ever heard. According to an ABC affiliate in Florida, a disgruntled man, sporting nothing more than his birthday suit and an AK-47, opened fire on a robot last week, after threatening to shoot himself and anyone who crossed the threshold of his home. The $65,000 SWAT bot was sent in to investigate, and captured every inch of the man on video before being pumped full of bullets. Deputies say the man eventually surrendered fully-clothed and was taken for a mental evaluation. No word yet on when or if the footage will be released in a Robo COPS: Disrobed and Dangerous Special Edition. For now, you can check out video at the source link below.
Lock and load: Undead Labs talks guns
If you're going to include zombies in your game, they're there to be shot. That's a simple fact of life, a fact that Undead Labs seems to be fully cognizant about. The company's most recent developer blog talked about firearms for its upcoming zombie outbreak games, and the topic proved so irresistible to potential players that a second question-and-answer session has been posted talking more about guns. Whether it's in the console version or the full-scale MMO, who doesn't want to be sure of the highest-caliber destruction one can wreak upon the undead? The original developer blog talks in depth about trying to balance a realistic feeling with what players will expect from guns, but the follow-up goes into more detail. Gunfire and sounds will indeed attract zombies to players, but the team doesn't seem interested in burying players under mountains of different ammunition types. The guns in question will most likely not be licensed brands, although some licenses are being sought for some more iconic weapons. There also won't be a full spread of exotic firearms in the console game, Class 3, although the MMO version will likely have a wider variety. Take a look at the full set of answers for more details on the best part of zombie invasions -- sweet, sweet hails of bullets.
Shooting at Apple Store in San Diego leaves one robbery suspect dead
NBC's San Diego affiliate is reporting that an early-morning attempted theft at the Apple Store at Otay Ranch Town Center turned deadly when one of the alleged participants in the smash-and-grab attempt was shot and killed by a security guard. Police told the TV station that the incident occurred right before 7 AM Pacific Time this morning, before the store was open. The store manager was already working inside the store when three suspects smashed the glass doors at the front of the store; they were confronted by the guard. The guard told police that the exchange of fire began when one of the suspects produced a handgun. The three would-be robbers crashed their car nearby in an attempt to escape. One male suspect was shot and killed by the guard; the other two suspects, a man and a woman, were arrested shortly afterward in a nearby residential area. Store employees identified the surviving suspects as the same people who had attempted to break into the store. Apple stores that maintain storefronts on public-access streets, unlike those within enclosed malls, are frequently subject to glass-break theft. In 2009, an employee at the Clarendon store in the Washington, DC suburbs was shot and injured during a robbery attempt. Attempts to reach the Otay Ranch store by telephone were unsuccessful. Thanks to Lee for the heads-up.
TUAW's Daily App: Aftermath
I'll be honest -- I heard that Aftermath was a zombie game and almost gave up on it. I wouldn't be offended if you did the same, since lots of developers (especially iPhone developers) are depending a little too much on zombies for their gameplay. Yes, it's fun to fight the walking undead, but they're used over and over again because a) they're easy to program, and b) they let you make a "shooting humans" game without getting involved in the whole morality thing. But Aftermath is still worth a look. While a lot of zombie games on the store go abstract or silly, this one sticks pretty close to realistic, and it has some serious quality and interesting gameplay behind it. You're fighting zombies and moving through levels, but instead of aiming and shooting a gun, you're actually aiming a flashlight, and your gun automatically fires for you. The projected light makes the whole affair very atmospheric; the game's just dark enough that it actually feels a little spooky trying to navigate the shuffling brain-eaters to your next objective. Particularly if you're a fan of Left 4 Dead or that ilk, Aftermath is probably worth a look -- it's US$1.99 on the App Store right now. And please, developers, unless they're as inventive and well-done as this one, let's keep the zombie games to a minimum. Maybe we could fight werewolves instead? Or angry robots?
APB to overhaul driving and combat
"We're looking at almost every aspect of combat - how it looks, feels and sounds, as well as weapon characteristics and tactics," proclaims Realtime Worlds spokesman Neil Castle in a refreshingly frank post on All Points Bulletin's official website. The post certainly says all the right things regarding upcoming tweaks to the newly released urban crime MMOFPS. Whether Realtime Worlds can make good on the lengthy list of updates and reverse some of the negative buzz generated by less than favorable launch reviews will bear watching over the next few months. Castle's post touches on a number of complaints that various reviewers and gamers have had with the new title, from sloppy vehicle handling, to catching and punishing cheaters, to the addition of new rulesets and matchmaking functionality. "It's our goal to involve the community as much as is practical when tackling most of these areas - as we''ve said all along, and hopefully demonstrated throughout beta, RTW's goal is to grow APB into the game that its players want it to be," Castle says.
Review: APB (Day 2: Enforcers, get enforcin')
Review Diary Day 1: Welcome to San Paro Day 2: Enforcers, get enforcin' Day 3: Choose your illusion Day 4: Cards on the table This is part two of a four-part review of Realtime Worlds' new MMO APB. Yesterday, I talked about installing the game and creating a character. Today: the grind. Life in San Paro is pretty simple. Rob as a Criminal, or stop Criminals as an Enforcer. I chose to be an Enforcer, and after a short tutorial level, fell into the standard MMO grind -- go here, pick this up, go there, rinse and repeat. Unlike most MMOs, APB plays like a shooter -- there's a reticule, and you've got to line it up on your target to get anything done. But its "missions" are definitely MMO fare -- they're standard, multi-step and pretty interchangeable: hold this point, deliver this item, steal this car. But here's how APB sets itself apart: while you play the game, you're constantly being offered missions and being grouped with people on the same job, but the other side is getting offers too. When they're paired up in the same mission you are, an APB goes out, sirens flash on the screen, and then it's on, one faction against another. %Gallery-65497%
Metal Slug arrives on iPhone, sort of
If you thought the DS was a less-than-ideal platform for an original Metal Slug, you're really going to be surprised with this one. SNK Playmore has released one of its cartoony run-and-guns for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Metal Slug Touch is adapted to the platform in some unexpected ways: for example, instead of putting the player in control of a commando who occasionally happens upon a vehicle, Metal Slug Touch puts you in a vehicle at all times. Controls are simplified to make use of the iPhone's features: you move with the accelerometer, and dodge enemies with an "avoid" button. Metal Slug Touch sounds like a fairly bold experiment -- and something that, we suspect, works better than simply porting a console action game over with touch controls. Metal Slug Touch ($4.99) : [Via FingerGaming]
Ranger, beastmaster, and summoner targeted for job adjustments in Final Fantasy XI
No, you can't curve the bullets just yet, but Final Fantasy XI's next set of job adjustments, coming in the November version update, is targeting three classes -- the ranger, the summoner, and the beastmaster.In the first part of the job adjustment news, Square-Enix has released details on the changes coming to the ranger. Two of the changes really stand out, including the adjustment of Velocity Shot's ability duration from five minutes to two hours and the addition of textual notifications that will tell the ranger how successful their shot was from where they were standing.
The Guild shooting season 3, fires director (not really)
Our friends over at The Guild are hard at work on season 3 -- if you've been following their Twitter feeds, you'll have seen that shooting is underway en masse, and while we haven't yet heard when they'll be done, it sounds like they're already keeping some long hours over there. Such long hours, in fact, that tempers are apparently flaring on the set -- as you can see above, director and editor Sean Becker has become a victim of Felicia Day's (substantial?) wrath, and been fired from the show.Ok, not really -- they're just joking around. But even if he's kidding about what's in that "guild 3 master" box, we at least know there is a season 3 master, and that sooner than ever, we'll be able to see just what happened when Codex took that out-of-body sprint at the end of season 2. Can't wait to see it.
Man gets life in killing over 'stolen' PlayStation 2
Former Fresno State student Jonquel Brooks was sentenced to life in prison on Friday, for the 2007 shooting of four men -- one of which died in the altercation. On May 7, 2007, Brooks was approached and accused of stealing a PlayStation 2 system from one of the four men. Police did not find the stolen PlayStation in his apartment, defense lawyer Jane Boulger said. The argument eventually turned violent when Brooks fired shots, striking two of the men and killing another. Following the incident Brooks, 21, fled from the scene -- later surrendering to authorities. During his trial, Brooks claimed the shooting was in self defense, but prosecution argued he immediately resorted to the most extreme measures possible. According to prosecution, Brooks was known for "flashing a gun" and "dealing drugs." At sentencing, the mother of the deceased (Brant Daniels) forgave Brooks, calling him "a good kid who made a wrong choice." Fresno County Superior Court sentenced Brooks to 25 years to life for the first-degree murder of Daniels. Brooks was also sentenced to 25 years for using a gun and a combined 59 years and four months for the attempted murder of the other three men involved in the altercation. Following the conviction, Brooks was remorseful, saying that he prayed for the "forgiveness" of Daniels' family and friends. [Photo Credit: AP Images]
Chief of Germany's national police union wants to ban violent games
If the head of Germany's Police Union had his way, violent video games would be banned. The comments from Heini Schmitt, head of the Hessen German Police Union (DPolG), were made following a horrific school shooting at a Winnenden, Germany, secondary school.17-year-old Tim Kretschmer reportedly murdered 15 school goers, both students and teachers -- fourteen of which were female -- before taking his own life. According to German news site Echo Online, an addiction to "killergames" is apparent in "every situation" of violent rampages. Whether or not the site is making a statement specific to Germany or a sweeping judgment on worldwide violence is unclear. As for Schmitt, he is aware there is no evidence that violent video games cause violent behavior, but thinks the role of "killergames" cannot be "completely dismissed." With that in mind, Schmitt believes when an opportunity exists to remove a potentially violent stimulus, it must be used. "The world would be no poorer if there were no more killergames," the chief of the German police union added. It's difficult to analyze, or even dismiss, Schmitt's claims following such a horrific act. However, it's even more difficult to gauge any psychological triggers that exist in our society. After all, throughout history violent behavior has been blamed on almost everything, but because of their graphic nature, mature games have become the easiest target to publicly lambaste.[Via GamePolitics]
German Social Affairs minister calls for higher rating on World of Warcraft
Germany is reeling from a shooting rampage committed by a 17-year-old, and as happens in many of these situations, politicians are looking for answers to why a young man would do this to his community. One of the answers they've found so far is videogames. While we don't actually know if the young man played games or not (or what he played), Germany's Minister for Social Affairs Mechthild Ross-Luttmann is calling for a few games, World of Warcraft among them, to be moved up from an age 12+ rating to an adults-only classification.The tie between the shooter and WoW is slim. But a new study over there says that 50,000 to 60,000 minors could be classified as addicted to videogames. And the combination of the two events is causing Ross-Luttman to call for stronger ratings on "addictive" games like World of Warcraft. It's also interesting to note that in the US, the game is rated T by the ESRB, which actually calls for children 13 and up to play it, one year older than the German standard.But of course there are two conclusions here. First, every parent needs to take responsibility for what their younger children do: if these kids are addicted, parents need to step in and make sure things get straightened out. As a former employee of a gaming retail store, I can tell you that ratings only go so far. The responsibility has to lie with the parents. And secondly, while Ross-Luttmann is apparently using the shooting to try and push this agenda against addiction, the young man involved in the shooting was experiencing deep depression, and had access to firearms that he probably shouldn't have had. Changing game ratings is fine, but it won't do anything to help when you've got much bigger problems to deal with first.[via GamePolitics]
DTV switch doesn't kill TVs, drunk septuagenarians with guns kill TVs
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/tech_news/DTV_Switch_Doesn_t_Kill_TVs_Drunk_Septuagenarians_w_Guns_Do'; The elderly have been slightly behind in picking up on the DTV transition, so news of a frustrated 70-year old Missouri man doesn't surprise us too much. That the combination of losing his cable and being unable to get a DTV converter working drove him to shoot his TV and cause a short standoff with the police? A bit more shocking. All, however, is explained in one line: "According to the man's wife, he had been drinking." Please, spare your TV and follow instructions.[Via Multichannel News, Image courtesy of Phrank.com / Sledge Hammer]
House of the Dead devs on Overkill's story, zombie appropriateness
Headstrong Games could have chosen to make The House of the Dead: Overkill pretty much on autopilot. Gun goes here, zombies go here, here's a village, and ... cue monotone Engrish exposition. And it would have been awesome! But Headstrong has actually put some thought into the setting and story, meshing characters and elements of the classic series (like Agent G of "G's bloodstains!" fame) with a totally new story and feel.Headstrong discusses the development of the game's story and locations in a video after the break. We especially like seeing how much attention was paid to creating different zombie designs appropriate to each game's location, if only because about 90% people's attention in the game will be directed at the zombal component.%Gallery-29952%
Shootanto: Monkeys do the evolution on Japanese WiiWare
Next week, the Japanese Wii Shop will get an infusion of bizarre light-gunnery, courtesy of Hajime no Ippo The Fighting DS developer Grand Prix Games. Shootanto puts one or two players in the roles of monkeys, equipped with some kind of energy projectiles. As you shoot giant prehistoric insects, snakes, bipedal dinosaurs, and other baffling, low-poly obstacles, your monkey will begin to evolve -- first into a sort of Australopithecine ape-thing, then a caveman, toward what looks like a modern soldier.Normally, we'd complain about the crummy, low-budget graphics, but this is a game that will release at a six-dollar price point. For that much, we can relax our standards and have a laugh. We doubt this game will see release outside of Japan, which is kind of too bad. Check the link for a small gameplay video![Via GAME Watch]
VC Friday: Resistance is futile
EX-TERM-IN-ATE! EX-TERM-IN-ATE! Wait, no, those are the other ones. But whatever. The point is: after hearing nothing about Space Invaders Get Even! for months, the game has randomly appeared on the European and Australian Wii Shops. We are unashamedly jigging with joy as we type this. And the extra-terrestial goodness doesn't stop there, for Alien Crush Returns has also joined the line-up. Needless to say, we wholeheartedly welcome our new rulers (of all our spare time). The other game is Brain Challenge. Sorry, Brain Challenge. Alien Crush Returns -- WiiWare -- 800 Nintendo Points Brain Challenge -- WiiWare -- 1000 Nintendo Points Space Invaders Get Even! -- WiiWare -- 500 Nintendo Points %Gallery-25384%
House of the Dead: Overkill dev not worried about censors, piles on the gore
Censors, be damned! That's more or less the attitude of House of the Dead: Overkill developer Headstrong Games, which has said it won't be compromising the amount of gore in Overkill."Sometimes we've gone 'ooh, we shouldn't really do that'," producer Neil McEwen tells CVG, "but then we've gone 'no, hell yes we should'." McEwen reasons that, as nobody is getting exploited, then buckets of claret are justifiable: he suggests the gore will be as "extreme as possible." He also plays the tongue-in-cheek card, though that didn't help MadWorld when the Daily Mail came knocking. Even if censors have already ensured the game won't be released in Germany, we salute McEwen and Headstrong for this carefree attitude. If only other developers and publishers were as bold.%Gallery-29952%
House of the Dead: Overkill has terror, slaughter, possibly cute horses
And the Halloween-related media onslaught continues, this time with a delicious, gravelly-voiced, grindhousey trailer for The House of the Dead: Overkill. Unsurprisingly, we love this, but it still can't beat the trailer that revealed the game to a breathless world, on account that "You will cry blood from YOUR OWN eyes" is hands down one of the coolest lines ever penned.Still, if the opening few seconds teach us just one lesson, it is this: this game needs zombie horses, damnit.%Gallery-29952%
The House of the Dead: Overview
Headstrong Games' The House of the Dead: Overkill is meant to contrast sharply with the rest of the series. According to this Official Nintendo Magazine preview, the '70s horror theme used in the game's promotion and boxart also carries into the game in the form of a scratchy film filter over the graphics. The zombies are also less brightly colored than the semi-cartoony monsters in previous games, instead presented as "frighteningly realistic depictions of normal people brought back to life, even more human-like than the zombies in the Resident Evil games.Perhaps most frightening for the player is what they've done to reloading. Reloading your gun is still done the same way, but it's not instantaneous any longer. Now when you point offscreen, your character begins to change his clip, leaving him exposed. These guys need to learn the "instant reload" technique from the House of the Dead 2 cast!%Gallery-29952%
