trash-talk
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The Game Archaeologist uncovers Shadowbane: The battle-scarred blogger
I've long since enjoyed doing this column because, to me, it feels like the next best thing to having been there back in the day, playing these games. No one MMO player can occupy all titles at once, so experiences are bound to pass us by. Fortunately, the gamers who were there have long memories and are often more than willing to share a story or two if given half the chance. After last week's initial foray into our Shadowbane retrospective, I fished around for a hearty veteran of the minotaur wars who was willing to step up and answer a few questions without succumbing to post-traumatic stress disorder. Within a minute, my good friend Grimnir bit into the topic, and I reeled him in as he flopped and gasped for air. At some point, this metaphor got away from me, but no worries. Hit that jump and let's cast our nets down memory river and see what we can dredge up!
Visualized: Acer's Iconia Tab A500 is 'a better choice' than the iPad (update: video!)
We were making our way through Taipei's sublime metro system this week and what did we see on the side of the stairway? Why, it was a collection of iPad images, but rather than an Apple-funded advert, this was an Acer-instigated bit of spec sheet trash talk. The captions beneath the images read, in order: "no open operating system, no high resolution display, no Dolby Surround Sound, no Flash, no microSD, no USB port. Why do you want to choose this type of tablet?" Gracing the opposite wall was the tablet that ticked the "yes" boxes to all those items, Acer's own Iconia Tab A500. Perhaps once Acer figures out the answer to its own question, it can stop overhauling itself and get back to the job of chopping the iPad's market share down to size. Check out the full ad in the gallery below. Update: Looks like there's a video ad to go along with the print campaign! Check it out after the break. %Gallery-124902%
CE-Oh no he didn't!: NGP will be 'dead on arrival,' says ngmoco boss
In all honesty, you would expect the leader of a team concerned exclusively with producing games for smartphone platforms like iOS and Android to be dismissive of a new dedicated handheld console's chances, but it's still jarring to hear such a strident dismissal of the Sony NGP's chances. In an interview at GDC this year -- yes, the same place where we were treated to some very impressive demos of the NGP's performance -- ngmoco CEO Neil Young has expressed his belief that Sony's next PSP will be "dead on arrival." Claiming that the new portable will be incapable of competing with the rich ecosystems and affordable pricing models that smartphones now offer, Young says not even the crazy specs or PS3-like gaming will help the NGP survive. This echoes comments from Satoru Iwata last year saying that Apple, not Sony, is the "enemy of the future" for handheld consoles, though Young does close off on a positive note, saying that he sees brighter prospects for the 3DS thanks to Nintendo's rich collection of own-brand franchises and reserves of fan loyalty. So that's it, folks, better start selling those Sony shares while they're still worth something! Or not, it's up to you. [Thanks, Dominick]
HP derides BlackBerry PlayBook OS as a 'fast imitation' of webOS, RIM says it's just good UI design
It's not rare to hear talk of other operating systems employing webOS-like elements -- we've been asking to see its elegant notification system in iOS for years -- but RIM's BlackBerry Playbook borrows so heavily from the UI concepts of the software built by Palm and now owned by HP that it could easily be confused for a webOS tablet. It handles multiple concurrent applications using a card view and allows you to shut down unwanted apps by swiping them off the screen, a multitasking implementation that exhibits "uncanny similarities" in HP's eyes to its own TouchPad tablet. Still, the Hewlett Packard team insist that they're focused on their own products and will "keep innovating, we'll keep honing and those guys hopefully will continue to see the value in it and keep following us by about a year." Ouch. RIM's response, as espoused by Jeff McDowell, has been to say that "when you're trying to optimize user experience that juggles multitasking, multiple apps open at once and on a small screen, you're going to get people landing on similar kinds of designs." This essentially sidesteps the issue by throwing a subtle compliment HP's way, but it brings up an interesting question -- shouldn't companies aim to make the best software possible, in spite of it potentially looking like a ripoff of someone else's work?
T-Mobile continues campaign against iPhone 4 with new 'State of the Smartphone' infographic
T-Mobile cares about you. It cares so much that it's spending all its advertising dollars lately making sure you know full well that the iPhone 4 can't do "4G" the way its own phones can. The latest salvo in this crusade of enlightenment includes the above graphs showing just how much faster and further your money can go if you ride along on the Magenta network. It conveniently ignores the fact that AT&T and Verizon offer other phones besides Apple's iPhone, some of which can handle speeds above the 3G threshold, but such is the price you pay when you want to have a really pretty and eye-catching chart. Hit the source link to soak up more of T-Mobile's priceless wisdom. [Thanks, Ramon]
Microsoft's answer to the iPad: attack its enterprise weaknesses... even if nobody cares about them
If we were running Microsoft, we'd stop trying to pigeonhole the iPad and focus instead on reversing Apple's domination of the burgeoning tablet market. Alas, for better or worse, we're not the ones in charge, so all we can do is cringe at the news that Microsoft has put together a marketing campaign for its reseller partners that highlights the iPad's enterprise shortcomings. Yes, the device that was patently designed for consumer-centric accessibility is being tarred with the damning brush of being unfriendly to business. The thing is, business customers are indeed deploying iPads in their workplaces, but we're pretty sure none of them are throwing out the ThinkPads in the process, which kinda makes Microsoft's furrowed brows and highfalutin concerns -- such as the lack of enterprise OS patch management tools -- seem, well, disconnected from reality. Still, we know trash talk when we see it and there's a whole ten slides of the stuff at the source link below.
CE-Oh no he didn't!: Anssi Vanjoki says using Android is like peeing in your pants for warmth
You've been asking and imploring, so Anssi Vanjoki -- straight shooter, that he is -- now has an answer. Why doesn't Nokia switch to Android? Because Google's software represents only a short-term solution that will lead to bigger quandaries down the line, says he. Anssi was even graceful enough to illustrate this point with a vivid example, saying that mobile manufacturers who go the Android route are doing no better than Finnish boys who "pee in their pants" for warmth in the winter. Yeah. We don't know where to go from here either. To be honest, there's a legitimate point behind this trash talk, as the FT notes some analysts agree with Anssi that relying on Android as the universal OS may lead to "permanently low profitability" with users failing to distinguish among different brands if they all offer the same experience. Then again, tell that to HTC. [Thanks, Maark]
Soulja Boy calls out Xbox Live gamers
Hey you, on Xbox Live -- Soulja Boy has called you out! That's right, every one's favorite game reviewer has made an official announcement via his YouTube page that he can destroy anyone at online gaming. Take your pick kids: Halo 3? You're done. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare? Don't bother. Gears of War? Put down the controller and walk away. Soulja Boy is so confident that he throws out the challenge to anyone willing to find him on Live. Want to go head-to-head with the artist? Check out the video after the jump for his Gamertag -- of course the video is NSFW. Good luck, kids. [via What They Play]
Why the language barrier might be a good idea after all
It seems to come up quite often. Someone wants the language barrier bought down. Even if it requires questing or skilling up, they want to be able to talk to the other faction. It would even make lore sense, since at the least, Undead and Blood Elves should probably know common, and Thalassian is probably close enough to Darnassian that someone who knows one language should probably be able to get the gist of the other. That said, Blizzard's held pretty fast to the principle of squelching cross-factional communication. The only way you can make yourself known to the other side is with the default emotes, or sometimes with a bit of creative typing that can only convey crude messages. Honestly, at one point I was pretty gung-ho on removing the language barrier. As an RPer, a big part of the fun for me is being able to talk, act out scenes, say stuff in character, and all that. It was sort of annoying sometimes that I could be in an epic struggle with, say, a guild of Undead assassins, but any actual communication we made, be it OOC arranging of the storyline and in-game events or IC trash talk, would have to all be on message boards and email. It loses some of the spontaneity of in-game interaction. That said, lately I think I've decided that I'm fine with the current of level of cross-faction communication. Talking to the other side would cause more trouble than it would be worth.
News station tackles Xbox Live trash talk
Anyone who has spent any length of time playing Halo 3 online knows that it is a place of filth and depravity. Oh sure, the actual gameplay is nothing more than garden-variety violence. Nothing wrong with that. No, it's the language. The kinds of God-awful racist, homophobic, and xenophobic garbage that spills from the mouths of babes would make even the saltiest sailor blush. Of course, most gamers simply hit the blessed mute button, pwn some n00bs and move on. As a local news affiliate, such things can't be done, and are, in fact, irresponsible. So, a FOX news affiliate took it upon themselves to frighten inform parents about the copious dangers of Xbox Live, particularly the trash talk in Halo 3. The report notes that most parents don't know about the parental controls present in the Xbox 360. Furthermore, if they do, the piece asserts that parents would have to figure out how to use the controller to implement them. What is this, 1983? Are there still parents that are deathly afraid of game controllers? For what it's worth, the report does say that proactive parenting is the best defense for the virgin ears of children.Another video, this one taken from GayGamer.net, is posted after the break. One of the sites readers created the Gamertag "Gay Boy," took it into Halo 3 online, and recorded the results. As you might expect, the results are far from safe for work (or safe for civilized ears really). Just remember: mute button. It's your best friend, and the other guy will happily continue talking to no one. That's what the internet is for.
Trash Talk: Push button to spew insults
Do you remember that SmackTalk device that we reported on in October? The device that allowed you to pre-record five sound clips and with the press of a button it would ejaculate your words while pwning on Xbox Live. Over at Xboxic they've uncovered a new device that plans on one-upping the SmackTalk device called ... the Trash Talk. This little beauty can hold over one minute of voice recordings, sixteen pre-recorded clips, and is colorful to boot. You can even hook the Trash Talk up to your computer to record audio, it's friggin' amazing! And for only $39.99 you too can be part of the cool kid's club and automate your verbal insults.But seriously, we beg you not to purchase this over-priced lazy man's version of simply using a headset. Wasting money on such a thing would be bad for everyone involved, there are already enough loud and abrasive people on Xbox Live. Actually, if you've previously purchased the SmackTalk could you please leave a comment justifying the purchase and give us insight into the technology marvel? Then, we'll use that knowledge to base an opinion on the new Trash Talk device. So, is anyone willing to confess that they actually own or want one of these devices?
Tips for avoiding asses on XBL
Xbox Live Man-Ass Avoidance Technician Christopher (aka the Xbox Live Policy Program Manager) has some tips for protecting yourself and your family members from the glut of exposed anatomy in the post-Vision Cam XBL universe. Rule # 1 for teens: If you run across any overly friendly congressmen, staple your eyes shut.[Thanks AoE]
Major Nelson banned from XBL
No, he wasn't yelling about chocolate milk.[Thanks Nick]
Kaz sez: "MS copies Sony!"
Sony's Kaz Hirai has let his inner stroppiness out in an interview with PlayStation Magazine, where he moans at Microsoft for copying Sony's strategies and disses Microsoft's plan for an HD-DVD add-on whilst simultaneously bigging up his own company's Blu-ray plan. In a response to the interviewer's leading question/statement "Sony and Microsoft seem to be taking the exact same path...", Kaz responds by saying that "Every time we go down a path, we look behind and they're right there - we just can't shake these guys. I wish that they would come up with some strategies of their own..." It's possible that we'd be more likely to agree with this statement if we knew exactly what he meant, because as it stands this is the PR equivalent of trash talk.This childish display of "Miss! That kid's copying me!" reminds me of one of my favorite poems as a child called Please Mrs Butler by Allan Ahlberg, summmarized thusly: moan all you want, but don't expect sympathy from anyone. Especially when your complaint sits on very shaky ground.
