I went to go see Shark Boy and Lava Girl in 3D with my eldest son on Saturday night. It’s a bit of a change-up for Robert Rodriguez, as this is a kid’s film and his last effort was Sin City. Still, Rodriguez did a great job. Marty and I both loved the film. (“I can’t wait for that to …
H. P. 8-Ball
Paul Tevis’s recent stab at being a prophet caused me to do some on-the-fly research concerning everyone’s favorite oracular device: the Magic 8-Ball. I chanced upon this enlightening article written the style of a Lovecraftian investigator probing the secrets of the mysterious artifact. Here’s a sample: An Opinion was Obtained The cylinder of fluid and device are still able to …
The Big War of the Worlds Release
No, not the Spielberg-Cruise film. Everyone knows about that. Instead, try War of the Worlds: New Millennium, a novel that updates the classic H. G. Wells tale for the 21st century, by none other than Doug Niles. Doug says it’s the best thing he’s ever written, and I’m inclined to believe it. I got to sample some bits of it …
A (Very Special) Gamer Olympics
This just in from a Gen Con press release at GamingReport.com: Brand new this year – Gamer Olympics! Ever wonder if a person could accomplish some of the feats if a Dungeon Master lays in front of a role-playing character? Now is the chance to find out! Test strength by swinging a sword as hard and as accurately as possible …
Forbeck TV
A while back, Rehab Resources, the people who provide physical and speech therapy for some of our kids, came to us with a problem. The next state budget proposed to cut their funding by 30%, which meant they’d have to close, despite the fact that they are the only ones in our county who provide these federally mandated services. My …
Core Stories in RPGs
Over on his LiveJournal, Mike Mearls posted some provocative ideas about something any successful roleplaying game needs: a core story. This sums up the game’s central theme from a player’s point of view in a sentence or two. It sparked off a few thoughts in my own befogged brain, which I added to his comments there. So you don’t have …
Blood Bowl Back Cover
I just got a pack of extra covers for my upcoming Blood Bowl novel from Games Workshop yesterday. When they print a book, they print the pages and covers separately and then bind them together. In the book industry, they regularly overprint the covers so they can send them out as advance advertisements for the book. I’ve shown you the …
Origins Awards Gamers Choice Voting Now Open
Just like the title says. Vote now, as the deadline is May 25! The instructions are a bit obtuse, but you’re supposed to vote on your top five favorite games for 2005, no matter what category they’re in. Then rank those five from 1 to 5, with 5 being the best. I worked on one of the games on the …
Good Days, Bad Days
Sometimes there are days you can’t ever seem to get going. Other times, you can do no wrong. Today, for example, I got to sleep about 1 AM. Then two of the quads woke me up screaming (them, not me–although I was tempted) at 5:30 AM. I’m used to that kind of thing by now though. I’ll spare you the …
Sith’s Revenge
Ann and I took in Revenge of the Sith on Friday night. It seems like everyone’s posting their deepest thoughts about the film and what it means to them, so I’ll spare you running over such well-trodden ground as much as I can. I liked the movie. The effects were stunning. Give me starship battles and lightsaber duels, and I’ll …