wizard of oz
Latest
How do you prevent an AI-generated game from losing the plot?
The new AI storytelling platform 'Hidden Door' plops players into TTRPG-like adventures based in their favorite literary universes.
Google search pays tribute to 'Wizard of Oz' with a dizzying Easter egg
Google isn't reserving its movie-themed Easter eggs for the latest blockbusters. The internet giant is marking the 80th anniversary of The Wizard of Oz with an Easter egg that reflects the rather turbulent ways Dorothy enters and exits Oz. Search for the movie title and you'll find a certain pair of red slippers Tap those and you'll be spun into a world of sepia search results much like Dorothy's version of Kansas. All the links still work, too. If you'd rather go back to a Technicolor landscape, a certain tornado will take you back if you don't mind a little dizziness.
Spicy Horse's Oz game is OZombie: 'If I only had some brainsss'
Spicy Horse's Oz game combines the undead with "an Oz not of our remembering" – it's called OZombie, and it stars Dorothy, Toto, the Lion and the Tin Woodsman. The Scarecrow, who always wanted brains, is cast as the villain in this iteration, and instead of carrying around a basket, Dorothy gets a repeater. Spicy Horse is unsure which game it will make next, OZombie or Alice: Otherlands, and it all depends on whether the studio can regain the Alice rights from EA. If Spicy Horse and EA work out a good deal, then Alice it is. If not, OZombie gets the green light and probably a Kickstarter. "Actually, the more I think about it – and the more I see/hear feedback from you guys – the more I'm personally leaning towards Oz," Spicy Horse founder American McGee writes on the OZombie Facebook page. "There's so much fun stuff to explore, so many interesting characters and locations to discover. Wonderland will also be there, if not today, if not the next project, then perhaps the one after that?" Keep in mind (and mind your brains) that OZombie is entirely separate from American McGee's Oz, the game Atari canceled in 2004.
American McGee's Spicy Horse working on a shiny new Oz game
Spicy Horse, the studio founded by Alice creator American McGee in 2007, is working on a game based on The Wizard of Oz – but it's not American McGee's Oz, the game that was canceled in 2004 when publisher Atari pulled funding. "This is not, in any way, shape or form, the title from 2004," Spicy Horse Community Manager Kelly Heckman tells Joystiq. The new Oz game is still in its early stages, and Spicy Horse has yet to decide which genre it will be – strategy, puzzler, platformer, action, FPS – though the studio has a few ideas. The game will be cross-platform between tablets and PC, Mac and Linux, and while Spicy Horse likes the idea of a physical product, it has no concrete plans in that regard. "It will be based on the entire Oz series – almost all 14 titles – so expect to see unique things not seen in previous incarnations," Heckman says. As legend has it, nearly a decade ago McGee began crafting a Wizard of Oz game, but Atari canceled it in 2004, after producing a handful of action figures and concept art. McGee went on to found Spicy Horse and partnered with EA to launch Alice: Madness Returns in 2011. Spicy Horse is currently in talks with EA to retrieve the Alice license, and it has plans for a third game in the series, Alice: Otherlands. Spicy Horse is working on two Kickstarters – one for Alice: Otherlands and one for Oz – but which project actually goes live will depend entirely on EA and how that Alice deal goes down, Heckman says. Yesterday on the Facebook page for Alice: Otherlands, one fan suggested that if Spicy Horse couldn't work out the Alice rights with EA, it should develop "that Oz title instead." Spicy Horse responded, "It's already in the works."
NASA films dark side of the moon, finds no evidence of Brain Damage (video)
Take a moment to Breathe, because this one's kind of heady. NASA has just published a new video of the Dark Side of the Moon and, contrary to popular belief, it's not really all that dark. (We'd probably describe it as a subdued gray, if we had to, but feel free to go with Any Colour You Like.) Compiled into a 30-second video clip, this footage provides a cursory glimpse of the moon's hind parts (its "B-Side," if you will), panning over the rock from north to south, in all its crater-y glory. It's all part of an initiative from NASA's Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL), which presumably spent a lot of Time and Money to build its twin spacecraft, nicknamed Ebb and Flow. On January 19th, the lab sent the pair up to that Great Gig in the Sky, as part of the GRAIL MoonKAM mission -- a "progressive" educational outreach program geared toward middle school students. Ebb was charged with filmic duties, and did a remarkable job of shooting On the Run with its MoonKAM camera, returning high res footage to NASA's engineers, and giving both Us and Them something to think about during the next lunar Eclipse. See the video (along with its eerily sync-able counterpart) after the break, and if you've got any questions about it, please don't hesitate to Speak to Me.
Off to see the Wizard? Netflix streaming the classic in HD today only
Just in case you haven't already grabbed the remastered Blu-ray, Netflix is streaming The Wizard of Oz today only (until 9 a.m EST. Sunday, October 4,) in HD for subscribers with the proper hardware to play it. Even those who haven't signed up yet can view it via PC, though with a few less pixels. We checked it out already via Xbox 360 and while it is remarkably clear -- and probably better looking than you've seen it in the past on VHS or dodgy OTA broadcast, it's still the same movie, though the difference becomes more dramatic once reaching the colorized land of Oz.
Blu-ray releases on September 28th 2009
You know we can't help it so here we go -- we're off to see the Wizard on Blu-ray this week as one of the all time classics is released in HD, but other than that there isn't much to get excited about. Sure if you like TV shows you might be interested in the latest seasons of The Unit or How I Met Your Mother and like usual there are plenty of other catalogs to help complete your collection, but most can keep waiting for the Summer blockbusters to open their wallets. The Wizard Of Oz (Warner) Superman Batman: Public Enemies (Warner) Away We Go (Universal) The Dark Crystal (Sony) Facing The Giants (Sony) Fireproof (Sony) Labyrinth (Sony) How I Met Your Mother: Season 4 (Fox) The Unit: Season 4 (Fox) Snakes on a Plane (New Line) The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) (New Line) The Girlfriend Experience (Magnolia) Lies And Illusions (Anchor Bay) Management (Image) Monsters vs. Aliens (DreamWorks) Bad Boy Bubby (Blue Underground) The New York Ripper (Blue Underground) Screwballs (Severin) Eagles Over London (Severin) Streets Of Blood (Anchor Bay) The Universe: The Complete Season Three (A&E) Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer (Dark Sky) Yellowstone: Battle For Life (BBC)
Netflix taking everyone to Oz for free via streaming, subscribers go in HD
As if we weren't already hyped that The Wizard of Oz is returning to theaters in celebration of its Blu-ray release, Netflix is putting a little something extra -- and free -- on it. Anyone in the U.S. will be able to stream the classic online via PC (trailer embedded after the break) at Netflix.com/wizardofoz from 9 a.m. October 3 for 24 hours, while subscribers can pull the stream down in high definition on any compatible device. No interruptions, no cost, no hassle. Prefer the group watch experience with an actual physical group of people? The company is also putting on a free concert and outdoor showing in NYC's Central Park September 29. With the options of on disc, streaming, in a theater or even outside it's hard to think of more ways to see a movie than this one, which would you pick?
The Wizard of Oz HD comes back to theaters September 23
Ahead of its remastered 70th Anniversary Blu-ray release, The Wizard of Oz is returning to the big screen in high definition. September 23 at 7 p.m. over 400 theaters will be showing the remastered version for the first time, plus the "To Oz! The Making of a Classic" featurette. If you go, take someone who thinks old films can't benefit from high definition.
15 Minutes of Fame: 10-boxing Karazhan, Part 1
15 Minutes of Fame is our look at World of Warcraft players of all shapes and sizes – from the renowned to the relatively anonymous, the remarkable to the player next door. Tip us off to players you'd like to hear more about.This week's 15 Minutes of Fame is about a multiboxing team – but it's not that team that just ganked you in your last Battleground. Absolute Power-H of Archimonde and its team leader/main tank, Nixi, have made their mark not in Battlegrounds but in Karazhan.Ever curious about a unique perspective of the World of Warcraft, we visited with Nixi & Co. to find out what it's like to "solo" Karazhan. This week in Part 1 of our interview, we go straight for the throat with Nixi's Kara strats. Next week, Part 2 of 15 Minutes of Fame: 10-boxing Karazhan brings you a look at Nixi's hardware setup and his top five tips for new multiboxers.
'Toto, I've a feeling we're still in scans'
We were so close to using "Skansas" for that title. So close. Anyway, RIZ-ZOAWD, Media Vision's gorgeous game interpretation of The Wizard of Oz, has made an appearance in the pages of Japanese mag V-Jump, where it continues to look all red-heeled and lovely.There's a serving of character art featuring the cowardly tin woodman, the brainless lion, and the heartless scarecrow (no, wait ...), new screens, and a brief guide to using the green, touch-sensitive trackball that steers Dorothy and Toto. This appears to be quite the versatile tool, with different strokes of the stylus allowing Dorothy to walk, run, and jump, but we can't stop thinking of Microsoft's awful trackball mice whenever we see it. Maybe that's just us, though.Gamekyo has the full scans, so click your heels and get over there for a peek!
The wonderful world map of RIZ-ZOAWD
Every piece of RIZ-ZOAWD news is as important as, if not more than, the announcement of a new Nintendo console. In fact, every single update on any RIZ-ZOAWD information is more important than any news about anything relating to video games in the history of mankind.So, a couple of new screens, then. Famitsu has revealed some new artwork along with the full world map, which is looking pretty stylish. Each area in the game is based upon a different season -- so the changes in environments aren't simply due to Oz being such a trippy place. You can check out a few more screens after the break, and the full collection over at Famitsu.Disclaimer: The above text contains at least one (miniscule) exaggeration.
More from the wonderful wizard of RIZ-ZOAWD
Is RIZ-ZOAWD the most beautiful game in the cosmos? Why, yes. Yes it is. Following on from these screens, we've found a big batch of new media just ready for the drooling. One might get a little bit tired of examining the same game for extended periods of time, but this Wizard of Oz remake is just really, really good-looking.The images show off a range of new enemies, some larger pieces of artwork and a bunch of in-game shots showing Dorothy wandering around doing her red-heeled thing. Check past the break for a few select screens from the pile, and wander over to the Kanji-laden source for a feast of RIZ-ZOAWD righteousness.
Follow RIZ-ZOAWD's yellow brick screenshots
Rather than make us wait for publisher D3P to update RIZ-ZOAWD's official site with images from the game, Famitsu clicked its heels and posted a preview of the Wizard of Oz-inspired RPG with a half dozen screenshots from the magazine pages posted earlier this week. Due this winter and developed by Media.Vision (Wild Arms series), RIZ-ZOAWD features a virtual trackball on the touchscreen which players can rotate to move Dorothy. During battles, enemies appear on the top screen, Dragon Quest-style, with attacks and other commands on the bottom display.So far, the game's seems to follow the 1939 film closely, but instead of living with her Aunt Em and Uncle Harry, the orphaned Dorothy lives alone with only Toto to keep her company. Also, during their adventure in the land of Oz, Dorothy and her party will play through "four fields of play themed in spring, summer, fall and winter." Hopefully, the game will turn out much better than the Sci-Fi channel's reimagining of the original story with its Tin Man miniseries.
RIZ-ZOAWD website is stunning
Anagram-lovers unite for the latest revelation in the RIZ-ZOAWD saga. The Japanese website is now live, and it's achingly beautiful. Note to all artists and designers -- you deserve a raise.After several gorgeous images inviting viewers to the main menu, the four classic Wizard of Oz characters are displayed together. Each one is a fabulous re-imagining of the original designs, with the Tin Man getting some extra shine. The only currently active link directs you to a synopsis of the story -- in Japanese. Well, most people should have the general idea, but there's sure to be countless new ideas in this RPG re-telling. Even with English details still in limbo, you can start appreciating the artwork right here -- right now![Via GoNintendo]
All the World's a Stage: Inspiration
All the World's a Stage is a source for roleplaying ideas, suggestions, and discussions. It is published every Sunday evening.You've probably heard that no story is completely original, that everything is copied from somewhere, and nothing anyone ever thinks or says is really unique. It's an awfully pessimistic way of looking at the creative endeavor, but there's a degree of truth in it.Any time you make up a new character, you are sure to be inspired by something you observed somewhere else. Perhaps you wondered, "What if there were a dwarven rogue, whose personality was a mix between Sherlock Holmes and Jack Sparrow?" or "My undead warrior is a lot like Frankenstein's monster, not evil so much as tragically neglected and rejected. He also likes to play with dolls." All this is fine and good for roleplaying, as long as you recognize the essential differences between your character and his or her inspirational anscestors. After all, every creative endeavor basically consists of mix-and-matching pre-existing knowledge in new and useful ways. In the same way a painter doesn't need to invent new colors, color palettes, or even new color matching techniques to make an beautiful, a storyteller doesn't need to create entirely new characteristics for each character in his or her story, only mix-and-match qualities real people already have in order to create someone compelling and interesting for other characters to interact with. Jump on in to find some great inspirations for WoW characters.
