Chrysis

RPG-TV.com Network

2007-03-21T10:15:00.000-07:00

We're looking to expand RPG-TV into a network of websites all under the RPG-TV brand as it were. Each website will offer different content for instance right now we have the comic offering game related comics, next we're looking at a gaming news blog with a dedicated group of writers blogging throughout the days similar to Joystiq etc. After that who knows what may join the network. At this time it's all just in the planning stage but its quite exciting nonetheless :)

THING 07 Flyers!

2007-03-13T13:50:00.000-07:00

The UK Web and Mini Comix Thing 2007 is almost upon us, just 5 short days away! In preparation we've whipped up a flyer to mass print and hand out to help promote the comic. Here it is...

RPG-TV downtime

2007-03-09T15:33:00.000-08:00

Appologies to readers of RPG-TV who are finding the webcomic isn't loading. We are experiencing a few technical difficulties regarding our hosting and are working with our providers to remedy the situation as soon as possible (that is to say we are shouting at them a lot). I hope this will be fixed in a day or two. Thanks and hopefuly I'll see you when the issues are sorted!

Photoshop Jiggery Pokery

2007-03-04T14:03:00.000-08:00

As part of a project I am creating a series of images that will hopefuly make viewers call into question the ethics of digital image manipulation. I expect there will be five or six images in total. This is the first and hopefuly brings to focus the extent to which some beauty and pharmaceutical companies will twist the truth to sell you their "age-reversing" products. The youthfull face is that of my younger brother and the elder face is that of my Grandfather on my fathers side. The genetics are pretty uncanny it's almost creepy.

Avatars for your forums and messengers

2007-02-12T11:36:00.000-08:00

Here are a collection of avatars for use in forums, message boards and of course instant messenger programs.

Series 1

Podcast: #120 "Oh God! Please no!"

2007-02-04T09:40:00.000-08:00

RPG-TV Podcast for comic #120 "Oh God! Please no!"

So this week we decided to bring back an old trend and thats to record ourselves as we create the comic, the end result is this new PODCAST. I know a lot of people expressed interest and found it interesting to listen in on the process in the past so I hope you guys enjoy it. Be warned: If you are expecting something professional you will be sorely dissapointed. This time we dropped any facade of maturity, for instance the 45 minute podcast has at least 4 or 5 "Your mum" jokes. We are kids at heart. Present for the Podcast are myself, James and our two friends Adam (it annoys him when we don't introduce the podcast) and Scott (deep voice).

Show Notes...

- At 3.51 Adam goes for a wee, for some reason he announces this and so too have I.

- 4.16 James' brief review of the Crackdown Demo

- 5.40 I spoil the last boss of Lost Planet (BEWARE SPOILER)

- 9.39 Scott confesses half our cutlery has been stolen from Whetherspoon restaurants

- 13.33 Adams theory about the "X" button in Halo 3

- 17.19 I try to steer the conversation towards comic writing... to little avail.

- 24.24 Scott tries to write a comic (leave the humour to the pro's pal)

- 25.13 Adam talks about how much he loved the Dead or Alive movie.

- 29.30 Adam suggests Viva Pinata ideas for a comic

- 34.20 We talk about this guy we know called Graham. He always lies and shows off. Now you know.

- 35.37 Someone pulls Adams finger (How low can this go?)

- 37.39 We talk about Seacookie

- 41.29 We finally settle on the comic idea.

This Podcast isn't for everyone. Seriously we are horrible horrible children deep down. If you enjoy be sure to let us know and join in the discussion in our Forum!

Competition entries...

2007-01-31T10:33:00.000-08:00

I wanted to collect all of the competition entries in one place for judging so this blog post will suffice nicely. I'll continue to add the entries as more people enter in the final week or so. A big thanks to everyone who entered and good luck to you all!

Entries shown in the order they were submitted...

UK Webcomix Thing 07 T-shirts...

2007-01-28T17:18:00.000-08:00

In March we'll be exhibiting at the UK Webcomix Thing (read: convention) in London and so we shall be bringing merch to sellsy. First up will be a bunch of limited edition T's the design for which you are presently looking at. We'll only have 15 to 20 of these bad boys so get in early if you want a piece of the action.

We went to Video Games Live!...

2006-11-26T17:45:00.000-08:00

This blog documents mine and James' recent experiences at the first ever Video Game dedicated orchestral concert in London, Video Games Live. Please enjoy :) ...

It's Saturday the 25^th of November and we're standing outside the Hammer Smith Apollo theatre in London. It's dark, cold and foreboding yet none of this has discouraged five thousand gamers of all ages, both male and female from forming two orderly queues stretching back into the darkness. We're positioned about half way down the left hand queue, as I look to the right I see four kids, no more than ten, stood in a line. Each one of them has a Nintendo DS in hand, the dual screens lighting up the excited smiles on each of their faces as they await the first and only dedicated videogame concert in the United Kingdom.

Six O clock ticks past and the doors still haven't opened. I look behind me, people are standing on tip toes to try and get a look at the doors in a fruitless attempt to see what, if anything is the hold-up. Suddenly the orderly lines lurch forward and the processions of dedicated music fans march to the doors. Some moments later and it's our turn. We hand over our tickets, they get scanned, and we shuffle forward into the main entrance. To the right is a stall selling T-Shirts, caps and posters. A woman appears from nowhere thrusting complimentary CD's into our hands. The Ubisoft logo adorns the front; I smile and pocket the CD instantly. Like a magpie I love free 'schwag' and the hording thereof.

A sign informs us that games and competitions are taking place upstairs, I read it aloud and without further conversation we both make a beeline for the stairwell, both of us knowing that the illusive Nintendo Wii console would likely be on display. Sure enough, beyond the crowd of people playing the new Guitar Hero II, there was an even bigger crowd, one we soon found to be impenetrable at the time. All around us people were excitedly talking about the console and this would have to be confirmation enough that there indeed was a Wii in the building, at least for the meantime.

Defeated we filter back down the stairs and find our seats in the "circle" area. We had booked early, consequently we found ourselves close to the action. We settled into our seats and took a moment to absorb the stage in front of us. All manner of instruments were visible, I'm not familiar with all of their names but I can tell you there was a harp, many violins and a xylophone. You'll have to fill in the blanks yourself. Above the stage a huge projector displays the Video Games Live logo in all of its animated glory. We look around ourselves, discovering the periphery to our live music experience and one thing becomes immediately apparent. Nintendo has sold a lot of Nintendo DS units. Approximately one in six people seemed to have a DS of some variety in their hands. Excited I scrabble in my bag to retrieve my own console and activate "Pictochat", an Ad-Hoc wireless chat program built into every Nintendo DS. All four chat rooms were full, full of gamers inviting each other to "MarioKart" multiplayer sessions, full of gamers drawing cartoons of Mario and Zelda, full of gamers excited and waiting to hear 25 years of videogame history re-created by a symphony orchestra.

After a handful of matches in MarioKart I check my watch, mercifully (my MarioKart skills aren't what they used to be apparently) its seven thirty. As if controlled by my thoughts the lights dim, the crowd roars as smartly dressed musicians take to the stage. Without a word of introduction the projector fades the Video Games Live logo and instead is replaced with game play footage from a game everyone knows. The game was Pong. The audience collectively howls with laughter at the beeps and blips of Pong dutifully recreated by the men and women on stage. Suddenly there is music, it's 'Ride of the Valkyries' by Richard Wagner; a powerful piece set to footage from all manner of retro videogames from Frogger to Joust. The applause that follows suggest the audience enjoyed it as much as I and James did. Tommy Talarico, the producer and host for the evening takes to the stage introducing himself and the event. He works the crowd like a professional which is carried further by his natural charm and confidence. He is instantly likeable, which is fortunate because he features heavily throughout the evening.

The next segment, the first real segment, featured the music from Metal Gear Solid. The music was fantastic; indeed the composition is marvellous even at the worst of times but this was something special. As if the footage and music wasn't enough a spotlight appears on the stage highlighting someone dressed as a soldier from the game. As he walks across the stage someone hiding in a cardboard box shuffles around behind him, emulating some of the stealthy tactics one can use in the videogame. The effect was one of pure pantomime, especially as the guard notices the box and, in time with the epic orchestral score, becomes alerted to his intruder. He presses a hidden button on his outfit causing a large cardboard exclamation mark to shoot up above his head courtesy of a clever mechanism. Every single person in the audience lets out a cheer, some throw up the horns and the rest pump their fist with excitement. The atmosphere just became that of tangible enthusiasm and there is nowhere I or James would rather be.

The music continues with scores from such video games as Sonic, Super Mario, Tomb Raider, World of Warcraft and The Legend of Zelda. Every segment is greeted with cheers and applause the likes of which you will only ever experience when die-hard fans are receiving the entertainment and recognition they have grown up wanting deserving for years and years. Before the intermission Tommy Talarico brings up two contestants to play Frogger, the highest scorer winning for themselves a $2500 laptop. After a tense battle a young man walks off the stage with a huge grin and one very nice looking piece of electronic hardware.

During the Intermission I hunted down the gentleman's facilities, meanwhile unbeknownst to me, James had gone upstairs to hunt down the playable Nintendo Wii. Twenty minutes later and we reconvene at our designated seats and he informs me he was about to be given the controller when he was asked to leave. Apparently filming was frowned upon and the woman handing out the controller for the console took it upon herself to make an example of James and his handy-cam. He curses and I laugh through my milkshake as the second act begins.

The second half continues in the same manner with more breathtaking pieces and another competition, this time on the classic game "Space Invaders". At quarter to ten it is announced there is one segment left and we all know what it's going to be. Sure enough as the lights dim, the choir's male singers begin in a low baritone and the epic score from Bungie's masterpiece Halo 2 begins to reverberate through the venue. The music is so epic and awe inspiring in nature that it came as no surprise that this was the finale. What was surprising was the lack of electric guitar performing mind bending solo's given that world renowned guitarist Steve Vai performed the original piece. Regardless the audience ate it up, myself and James included, after all, how can you not enjoy the Halo 2 theme?

Despite the promise of a meet and greet from the musicians and performing cast in the lobby we saw fit to take our leave. The journey home was a long one and catching trains at Ealing Broadway past midnight was not a prospect we much fancied. Gathering our belongings we make for the exit, grabbing a couple more of those free CD's to give to friends as we leave. The cool air of the night hits us afresh, we hitch up our backpacks filled with snacks and schwag and set off in the direction of the station. Every line of conversation we have for the rest of the evening starts with "My favourite part was…" or "How much did you love such and such a piece". The sign of a fantastic evening of musical entertainment if ever there was one.

#95 Cabbage patch kids news post...

2006-10-31T05:54:00.000-08:00

Whew, took a while to get the news post done there eh, for a second I thought I was going to quit the webcomic world once and for all. That’s a lie. So anyway here we are on the precipice of Halloween! The spookiest non-holiday of the year, where even small children become as fearsome as a knife wielding muggers, proposing you hand over your valuable treats or face the trick (stabbing) of a lifetime. Oh how I love it so. Anyway I think the comic is fairly self explanatory: Violence is cool.

EXCEPT in a movie I watched last night. UltraViolet, based on the comic of the same name it was a hideous abomination of a film that I urge you all to avoid like the plagueiest of plagues. I’ll tell you what is very cool though. A little RPG for the DS called Contact. I shall resist spilling details, I’m sure you all know how to google for reviews and information about games. If you’ve been looking for a quality and original RPG adventure for your touch screen portable I strongly suggest you check this one out, I’m really enjoying my time with it so far.

Website news: You may have noticed our html archive is being neglected and updated sporadically and inconsistently. This is not our fault. Believe us lol. The good news is work should start soon on our brand new website! I can’t wait. Have a good working week!

XBox 360 advert I made for my Degree

2006-10-28T12:53:00.000-07:00

Heres a print ad I made for the 360 for my degree in MCC. I'm not sure whether I'll use it in my final project or not but I figured Id post it. Just an aside: I didn't use the cutout filter once. Anything that looks cutout (the controller) was painstakingly done so by hand.

Badge designs...

2006-10-28T07:32:00.000-07:00

In preparation for the upcoming Webcomix Thing 07 we have begun to prepare a bunch of merch and freebies to give away at the event! Here are some badge designs we'll be getting made up, at least, we will if you guys like 'em! Take a look and leave a comment to let us know! Thanks crew!

New PS3 Commercial...

2006-10-27T08:35:00.000-07:00

Shit yourself with fear. Playstation is coming.

My custom 360 faceplate AT LAST!

2006-10-27T03:28:00.000-07:00

Finaly got my 360 faceplate made up! Heres a digital photo labeled for your viewing pleasure.

#93 "Must... adapt... Halo!" news post...

2006-10-23T09:15:00.000-07:00

First things first, check out the custom faceplate I'll have on my 360 in roughly a weeks time! Shweet.
Universal Studios have cancelled the movie adaptation of Halo. Apparently due to rapidly inflating costs (not helped by Microsofts demand of 10% of all revenue) and Universal having serious doubts in its young inexperienced Director. Neil Bloomkamp has never directed a feature film, oh wait, he did do one short film and he was a 3D animator on Smallville and Stargate*shrug*
We don't have anything against him at all, hell he could even be 90 for all we know, we just wanted to make a joke out of it.
In other news happy belated anniversary to Digital Unrest, a fellow webcomic run by Chris Simmons, if you have not heard about it go check it out! Just a short post today but be sure to read James' post for his public love letter to his new TV.

Custom 360 faceplate...

2006-10-22T03:54:00.000-07:00

Here is my design for a custom Xbox 360 faceplate. I'll post you a digital photo when it is finished and fitted :)

#92 "Such as?" News post...

2006-10-18T16:27:00.000-07:00

You may have noticed our HTML archive hasn't been updated for a while now. We are experiencing some slight technical difficulties however if you bear with us for this you will find a light at the end of the tunnel. By the end of November RPG-TV is getting a brand new website! All HTML and fully functional unlike our current patchwork of a website. Watch this space!
In other news XBoxLive was down for 24 hours so that Lumines Live could hit the market place. In that 24 hours myself and James had to find other things to amuse us. For instance I went and got my hair cut and James as I beleive went on a thieving rampage killing all in his path, good times.
For anyone in the US I beleive Contact for the Nintendo DS hit your shelves this week? I have my copy pre-ordered from my usual import store so I should get it through the post any day now. I'm really excited, its been quite a while since I picked my DS up for anything other than a handy dandy alarm clock. Anyone who bought the game please let me know your thoughts in the forum or drop us a comment on myspace!
A lot of the big comics have been discussing the latest demo to hit XBL, namely Splinter Cell DA. All I can say is I've played it once, every other time it took so long to join a game that I lost patience and loaded up Far Cry instead. I hope the single player experience has a lot to offer because I'm not really sold from the single multiplayer experience I had.

#91 Deadly serious news post...

2006-10-15T13:13:00.000-07:00

The Phantasy Star Universe beta has caused me a lot of grief. It was going to be the way me and James spent our weekend as we planned on getting the most of our one meg download. As it turned out we didn't get the chance to even create a character. Even though I downloaded it the day it became available I have been unable to connect to the Phantasy Star servers because there is a limit to the number of people allowed on at any given time. This was not made clear. I trust there are many others out there equally pissed at this blunder. Joystiq have a nice summary of this disasterous beta that I shall quote you here...

The amount of time the PSU beta would be available has been constantly diminishing, marred by a series of problems. Let's recap:

The beta is announced as being up for download Oct 11 and 12 and then open to play until October 18. That gives us at most an entire week of gaming.
Near the eleventh hour, Sega announced that the download would be delayed, but promised within a few days. The download then comes available this weekend, but still only lasts until October 18. Two less days to enjoy PSU.
Xbox Live announces that they will be down for maintenance October 17th for up to 24 hours. That's another day we can scratch off.
Server issues plague the PSU beta.

Somehow I no longer feel like shelling out for this game. End rant.

Nintendo Fan sells treasure trove of Nintendo mag's...

2006-10-13T07:07:00.000-07:00

Ebay user Ooshy has what can only be described as a ridiculously vast collection of NGC magazines, all of which are now up for sale in one big auction.

Brief overview of collection includes:

Magazines:
- Stack of magazine from issue 1 - 120. All in good - perfect condition.
The "Free Gifts" on the magazines:
- Many posters of varying sizes
- A4 Cardboard print outs of game characters
- Assorted Stickers
- The "Game Guide +"collection from early magazines.
- Guide books
- Tips books
- DVD's
- A limited edition video
- Various toys such as a Keyring, and Nintendo Playing Cards
- Many other's

Check out the auction here and just browse the photos of the various collectables! Soooo many cheat books...

The reason we're obsessed with Far Cry...

2006-10-11T15:20:00.000-07:00

This video is what sold us on the game and the reason we continue to rant about it in our news posts...

#90 "A small large fee" news post...

2006-10-11T14:27:00.000-07:00

This shit Sega are pulling on Xbox Live gold subscribers is ridiculous and the manner with which they present the proposition is damn near insulting. If our rather explanatory comic hasn't demystified the situation enough for you, point your inter-browser here and have a read. Phantasy Star Universe is coming out across multiple platforms in a month or so and EVERYONE is going to have to pay $10 a month to play online, even if you have an Xbox Live gold subscription. Heres what 1Up got out of Sega...

"One, we can confirm Xbox 360 users will not be subject to microtransactions. The $10 a month GUARDIAN license provides access to all additional content, which Sega says includes "quests, maps, bosses, enemies, weapons, armor, clothes, Photon Arts, SUV weapons for CAST and Nanoblast attacks for beast characters, My Room items and decor (including holiday themes), and more."

It seems to me that "aditional content" such as "quests, maps, enemies, weapons, clothes..." etc should either be built into the game to start with... you know... like games have had for YEARS or, if you MUST create additional content, give users the choice to purchase it. Don't force it on people with a monthly charge.

Yuck.

Anyway just a reminder for those that havn't visited lately, we have new podcasts up in the PODCAST section (strangely) so if you enjoyed our first forray into the land of podcasting months ago then you may want to go check out the new content. Enjoy guys!

#89 "To be this redundant takes ages"

2006-10-09T09:54:00.000-07:00

The Sonic The Hedgehog demo has been on Xbox Live for a week or so now and I finaly got around to taking it for a figurative spin. My hopes for the next generation of Sonic titles have been immeasurably high. Lately the franchise has taken a severe beating from a publisher that seems tonot care what ridiculous games its characters appear in. Consequently I've been praying that this title would be the return to former glory... or at least to Sonic Adventure 1 quality. The demo has unfortunately failed to alleviate any of my worries and suffers from the same issues that have plagued the series ever since it made the leap to three dimensions. The camera is a bitch to control and likewise so is sonic as I found the homing attack launching me off the runway to my gloomy demise far more often than was my own fault. Playing as a character with uncontrolable lemming-like tendancies can be REAL frustrating. To the point of hanging one's self after extended play? Maybe.
In the Podcast for this comic we kind of started recording half way through, when we had a general idea what to do with the strip. Everything before that point was just us Ummming and Uhhhing so don't feel as though you're missing out.
Speaking of missing out, if any of you still have yet to see the World of Warcraft episode of SouthPark and don't use a torrent program etc, then check out my personal blog where I've embeded it in full here.

SouthPark does World of Warcraft...

2006-10-08T05:33:00.000-07:00

I'm sure many of you have heard of this episode and may not have seen it so I've embedded it below for you're viewing pleasure.

Wallpapers...

2006-10-06T07:00:00.000-07:00

Here are some Wallpapers for y'all! Appologies that only 1024 x 768 resolution is supported but if you stretch to fit, because its a cartoon and not photographic imagery, it is unlikely that it will look too shabby. Enjoy!

#88 "A need for dentistry" news post...

2006-10-04T11:44:00.000-07:00

Ok the dark times are passed us, we are moving on. Never again will an update be missed under penalty of a severe wedgy. Ok first up, we have a new Podcast available for download in the requested MP3 format! Appologies for the low audio quality we forgot to change the recorder from high to low compression. We'll remedy that for next time though. The pod of cast is basicly half an hour of me and "JJ" trying to write todays comic. What we went with may not be clear to all but the most entrenched in geek culture so let me lay it down for you. Ken Lobb, formerly of Rare (incidently that shitty gun in Golden Eye, the Klobb, was named after him!) now working for Microsoft gave a brief review of Gears of War. A Microsoft Game. I for one am astounded that someone who works for M$ would give such a glowing review. I'm led to beleive he said it will "Kick your fucking teeth in" from popular gaming blog Kotaku.
I'm not saying it won't. I'm just saying i'll hold out for a few more reviews before I go and lay down some pre-order dough.
In personal news, my trip to Disney was amazing! You can see a couple photos here, if you are so inclined. Also I have returned to an Internet ready house so as soon as I find a 15m ethernet cable I'll be back on Xbox Live. I miss it so, so much it's really quite distressing!

Euro Disney 2006!...

2006-10-04T11:29:00.000-07:00

Me and Tash went to Euro Disney a few days ago which is why we missed an update. So you can see it wasn't for nothing here is a handful of the photos of us having an awesome time!

#87 "A noble endeavor" news post...

2006-09-28T10:26:00.000-07:00

Today’s comic is a genuine moment taken from our adventurous lives. Fascinating! How is everyone today? I hope this comic finds you well, I myself have been slightly hung over from last nights escapades down at Keele. T'was excellent thanks for asking. Myself and Payam spent a fair chunk of the evening playing the Time Crisis III machine in true pro fashion. To say we rocked at it would be a fair assessment. Then again I have been playing the same machine for two years so go figure.
It has come to my attention that a sizeable chunk of you guys are new readers who have been siphoned here courtesy of the good Steve Napierski of Dueling Analogs fame. This will be due to the guest strip we recently did over there which you can view here. I think it's fair to agree it's the greatest comic to ever invade the virtual net-tron? Regardless it's very unfortunate that so many of you guys were directed here at a time when our entire fucking archive was broken due to a server change but them's the breaks. Rest assured we usually run a much tighter ship here at the TV.
There has been some fantastic news recently from X06 and that is that guitar hero II will be coming to the 360 with what I can only hope is a wireless guitar. The images floating the net sure look nice. Imagine what Xbox Live can bring as far as game expansions are concerned. Let’s just hope we don’t end up buying half a game with near essential micro-payments to get a full track roster.

#85 "Steal the sample" News post...

2006-09-20T13:47:00.000-07:00

I’m sure many of you have played Far Cry in one of its shapes and forms. Until last week my self and James were Far Cry virgins however now I can safely see our cherries are well and truly popped. The multiplayer component is, in this comic-make-guy’s humble opinion, a joy to play. The depth of combat is such that anyone can jump in and stand a fighting chance against veteran players yet for the more experienced players there is always a challenge. I’m not quite sure how this works but I think it’s safe to say it involves magical pixies and the death of hundreds of mystical unicorns…You know…Karma type shit. See this is quite a reversal of my previous online FPS experiences which were mainly formed from playing online Halo 2. A game in which, if you’re not very good at it, you’re very dead very fast and very often. Not so fun for beginners. Another pleasant feature that is seriously understated in the game is the map editor. It’s incredibly diverse and simple to use and essentially extends the game's lifespan significantly, even for those not willing to use it. How you say? Because it’s possible to download other peoples home grown maps through Xbox Live. This is a great element and means the better home made maps get spread around from player to player virally!
Anyway the subject material for today’s comic is that capture the flag in FC is called Steal the sample… maybe a semen sample… who knows right?
I wrote something of a rantifesto on Monday regarding my decline in faith for Nintendo’s everyman console the Wii. While I have certainly calmed down since then I’m still not overjoyed especially given the recent news that no first party games in the first quarter of launch will feature more than 2 player support other than Wii Sports nd Mario Strikers. Correct me if I’m wrong but I believe the whole point of the Wii was to play together… but only if that means 2 people right Nintendo? Regardless I’ll still be getting my hands on one as soon as possible to see if the hype lives up to the E3 que of legend. Before I end the post has anyone got or played Starfox Command and can you recommend it to me? I’m torn between SF:C or Mario Hoops for my latest DS fix. Thanks!

Gaming Tattoo Mario Style...

2006-09-19T05:37:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine has this sweet tattoo on his arm, for those of you that don't belong on this blog, it's a Question block from Nintendo's Mario series! Hit the link afterwards to see a pic that puts the tattoo in the context of his body and also that demonstrates him being a myspace whore.

A pic stolen from his myspace.

# 84 "A special promotion" news post...

2006-09-17T14:11:00.000-07:00

So who would have thought that making the Bomberman we all know and love into a 3D neo-futuristic affair would be severely detrimental to the gameplay? Certainly not the whole freaking gaming population Hudson! Let me assure you we all had VERY high hopes… “By the way Marge I was being sarcastic!”
Anyway I guess this week has been pretty big for all Nintendo fans, glued to their Internet’s like so many moths to a flame, waiting for the price/date combo, myself included I hasten to add! And surprise sur-freaking-prise, we Brits got well and truly shafted yet again with a £179 launch price. Now I’ve gone on record with friends etc stating that this price is horrendously high. I know it’s still the cheapest of all the next (and new!) Gen consoles and I also know that Nintendo is a company and not a charity. I’m also aware that from a business point of view why the fuck not sell it for £20 less than a core 360 when the demand for the Wii is obviously very high?!
All these arguments aside I’m just not sure I can physically go to a store counter, request a Wii and then reach for £180 knowing that I’m essentially buying a £45 GameCube but with zany controls. The Broadway processor is so old you can buy that shit for less than a tenner! The screenshots and video I’ve witnessed for Wii games all look like current generation releases anyway, and I find this more off putting now that I own a 360 and have come to expect and appreciate a certain degree of visual finesse from my games.
I know what you’re thinking, “But its not about the graphics anymore you whore it’s about the gameplay!” and I appreciate this. Don’t get me wrong I will still fork out for a Wii, I am THAT weak. The problem I have with this whole Wii will play together mantra Nintendo are spouting is that playing together means buying more Wiimotes and Wiichuks which have turned out to be disturbingly expensive. $40 for the mote and $20 for the chuck (for those who don’t read gaming news sites or my news post last week).
I hope this topic gets a few of you all riled up on the forums because its certainly an interesting debate. I’m sure the Wii will be very fun and in that respect represents a good value proposition but from a technical stand point I’m simply not convinced it’s worth £179… especially without the DVD playback that was once promised… that’s right, I’m still bitter about that too.

Videogames Live concert...

2006-09-12T03:14:00.000-07:00

Myself and James will be attending Videogames Live in London on November 25th aand I couldn't be more excited! check out the videos below to see what I'm talking about! In a nutshell its simply an awesome concert of videogame themes played by a huge orchestra with fantastic game visualisations in the background complete with lazers and crazy lighting! Hell theres even an entire segment devoted to Tron! Other included game music includes

- Final Fantasy series
- Space invaders
- Halo
- Ghouls N' Ghosts
- Mario
- Sonic the hedgehog
- Metal Gear Solid (W00t! Awesome music)
- And too many more to list!

Trailer for the concert.

Metal Gear Performance (amateur recording)

#82 "Awkward" News post...

2006-09-11T03:57:00.000-07:00

I’ve been thinking about the whole PS3 European delay debacle and the conspiracy theorist in me has come up with something. My theory is that Sony never intended for the European launch to take place on November of this year and the whole claim was merely a ruse.

"The previously announced PlayStation 3 shipment forecast of 6 million units globally within the fiscal year ending 2007 is not changed, suggesting that Sony wasn't expecting to sell any units in the PAL territories." -UK tech site Pocket Lint

There’s my basis for believing this but then I looked at motivation for the deception and actually figured it’s pretty feasible. Let’s assume that SCEE consider Europe the hardest territory to launch successfully in, perhaps due to high 360 sales or high PS2 sales that they do not wish to truncate. By announcing a November launch they forced Microsoft into playing their hand early, IE revealing emergence day to be in November. When Sony launch in 2007 they now no longer have to worry about going head to head with the highly anticipated Gears of War.

It’s just a crazy theory but I found it interesting anyways.

# 81 "An extension" news post...

2006-09-06T15:14:00.000-07:00

Just for the less observant among you “the Janitor is representing the Sega Dreamcast, look at the logo on his outfit!” See it’s a clever commentary that Sony will botch everything up and still sell a fuck-tonne of machines yet the Dreamcast was a great console and failed. Top drawer, top drawer. Right now that’s over we can all remove our monocles and top hats. So it seems like Gabe over at Penny Arcade (you might have heard of them) is Looooving Enchanted Arms right now. On the strength of his protestations I’m actually quite tempted to try it myself… it does look purdy!
Anyway I bought Street Fighter II on XBL the other day and it seems plenty of you Internet dwellers are happy to hand my ass to me via a seriously crushing defeat. I will practice oh yes! One day you will be mine!
You’ll also find me and James skulking around the rooftops in the “Far Cry Predator Instincts” demo that’s available on XBL Marketplace so if you fancy taking us on you know what to do. If you want me to add you to my XBL friends list just drop your gamer tag in a comment below or in the forums, same goes for James. Cheers gang!

New band takes inspiration from Zelda etc

2006-09-04T08:27:00.000-07:00

A new band called The Super Elfonso Brothers or simply "Elfonso" are the latest unheard of nerdcore band to find inspiration in videogames. The two real life cousins Rory and Alex have a split EP out with The SkullKid and an album on the way. I already invested in a copy of the EP and despite some love 'em or hate 'em vocals I find that I love 'em 90% of the time. The notable songs I've heard include...

MasterQuest - A song about The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time with lyrics like "My best friend's a ball of light, she's got my back when we get into a fight but she can't comfort me, a boy who never went through puberty"

The elementalist - A song for anyone who's played a MMORPG

Trail of Ribbon - My personal favourite. Finaly; a song about Sega Saturn Cult hit "Nights into Dreams"

Hit this link to download Masterquest from Megaupload and get a taste of the dynamic duo

XBL market place points translated to £££

2006-09-04T06:12:00.000-07:00

This post is as much for my own reference as it is for you guys. I wanted to know how much we're spending on XBL content so I've unveiled the smoke and mirrors that is the points system so you know exactly how much that online ready version of street fighter is costing you.

- 2100 points costs £16.99 from Play.com therefore one penny is equal to 1.235 gamer points

1P = 1.235 GP.

- So an XBL Arcade title at 800 GP is infact £6.48
- An XBL Arcade title at 400 GP is half at £3.24
- A theme or picture pack at 150 GP is £1.21

#80 " We go live to a hick" news post...

2006-09-03T13:12:00.000-07:00

Yuck, I’m ill right now, drawing up today’s comic has been an exercise in perseverance as I have sneezed over my monitor approximately twenty eight times. I hope you think the result is worth it. There isn’t really a great deal of news that I can think of, whether that’s due to a slow news week or my brain being mush right now I cannot discern. Oh, those of you that picked up copies of Saints Row over the weekend please comment either on my blog or in the forums and let me know what your experiences have been like so far. I’ll probably pick it up sometime next week, inevitably with James so we can form an RPG-TV crew and run tings in the Row! Remember, big tings are G’waning ya get me?!

# 79 Death from above news post...

2006-08-30T14:23:00.000-07:00

Before I get on to the big news I’ll just gloss over today’s comic. It’s referencing the upcoming 360 game “Just cause”, the demo is available on XBL now so go and play it, its freaking sweet. Now the big news that’s been published on Joystiq essentially as I type this is that according to Playstation Magazine, a redesign of the PSP will be hitting Japanese stores within the first quarter of 2007. The redesign will supposedly…
• have 8GB flash memory chips which will be built in according to industry reports
• be streamlined and thinner and lighter
• and Sony is still expected to include a still/video camera of undetermined resolution as a built-in feature of the new PSP

If this is true I suspect they may have shot themselves in the foot for Christmas. With news like this many would be PSP owners may decide to hold out for this new iteration. I’m still not sold on the PSP yet and with my console gaming to handheld gaming ratio on the rise I find myself holding my DS less and less.

This evening I downloaded the demo version of Geometry Wars on XBL and was pleasantly surprised to find the demo version is in fact the full version only you can’t unlock achievements and it doesn’t record your high scores. For me this is freaking fantastic as I’m not too bothered by the gamer score system and I don’t care much about high score beating anyway! I just hit the arcade tab on my 360 when I feel the need for a quick blast of gaming rather than an extended session. And besides If I got a really high score I could always jot it down on a Post-it!

For those of you that attend Keele University like myself, I look forward to seeing y’all soon! I can’t wait, James and I have some plans for RPG-TV events this year so keep your eyes on the Union!

# 78 "Correspondence" news post...

2006-08-27T15:08:00.000-07:00

At first I wasn’t sure whether It would be cool to start a news post with a swear word but I think I’m just going to go ahead and do it anyway because, well, we pay for this so we’ll do as we please!
The Just Cause demo available on XBL Marketplace is a fucking mandatory download. Go now and procure it for your selves (plural, we have multiple readers these days oh yes). If you have yet to hear much about this upcoming game I shall fill you in. It’s a sandbox design set on a huge island (really, HUGE) that resembles Cuba. You play as Rico an assassin/revolutionary (I can’t exactly figure out which) tasked with completing various missions ala GTA. However throw in a healthy dose of some of the finer features from Mercenaries and then imagine the game has fantastically exaggerated action taken from all the best movies (parasailing by grappling hook attached to a car for instance). The package is wrapped up with beautifully lush scenery complimented with excellent blurring effects and plenty of light bloom. Oh and did I mention there is no loading once you get passed the initial load. The game streams straight from the disc and its damn near seamless.
Today’s comic is pretty subtle, see we have two things going on at once, I bet you’re thinking that’s some pretty impressive shit, well, you’re right! My girlfriend (hereafter referred to by her name) went through a pretty serious phase of living in Animal Crossing. Peanut was our neighbour (and perhaps the most popular of all the NPC’s aside from K.K.) and Tasha adored that little pink puff of half baked A.I. Then one day when the DS was in my care and I ignored the game for too long Peanut left our town and I left the bed for the sofa. Actually I’m exaggerating but Tasha was pissed. The lesson is, getting your girlfriends interested in games isn’t all smiles and candy… Although she did recently complete a section of Phoenix Wright I was seriously stuck on.
Small snippet of Nintendo gossip, rumour has it that Nintendo have been holding back the Wii’s true power to surprise us with lush graphics nearer to launch. This means all demo units to this point will have had purposely lowered graphical capabilities. I’m not sure how believable this story really is but I hope to heaven its true because what I’ve been reading lately has me slightly less aroused by the prospect of the consoles launch.

"The perfect crime" News post...

2006-08-24T12:16:00.000-07:00

The Imperial guards that co-exist with me in Oblivion have an incredible ability! You see they always manage to apprehend me for crimes that nobody could ever EVER know about. No matter how desolate, no matter how devoid of life the location and no matter how stealthy I am, my thieving antics never go unheard of. It may just be me but the bounty on my head accrues with such a ferocious speed and frequency that it’s not uncommon for me to leave one town having served a jail sentence only to arrive at another town and get thrown in the slammer for crimes anew. This of course is stunting the growth of my Khajit assassin thief but hey such is the price of being the worlds worst burglar (although I am rather handy with a lockpick it must be said).
I caught wind of a sequel in the works that Is generating trepid excitement in my lower loins. The original Lost in Blue trailer was a huge deal for me. It looked like Ico meets Lost and then meets all sorts of (then) new touch screen elements. Of course we all know the final product lost its charm and was bogged down in a heavy handed stat tracking gameplay mechanic. And so it is that I once again lay awake at night in anticipation hoping with all my might that the problems of old are remedied for Lost In Blue 2. While on the subject of DS news I would like to point out that all of my white DS Lite owning friends are sporting hinge cracks. That’s an alarming 4 out of 4 or 100% for those of you who are a little more shaky at maths. Quite scary I’m sure you’ll agree, and, irrefutable proof that Nintendo fucked up its production. I think I may turn black and never go back sometime in the future. One last thing to you 360 owners or stakeholders, if you have yet to try out XBL, do so now, if only for a month because the Lost Planet demo is worth the 360’s weight in gold (maybe).

# 76 "It's like free phone calls" ...

2006-08-20T03:08:00.000-07:00

My experiences with the 360 have broadened considerably since last we spoke, as exemplified by the fusion of doodles and speech craft you see above. My premium pack of course came with the headset so it seemed foolish to leave it unwrapped and in the box… naturally it has been adhered to my head with some kind of space glue.
I imagine the above situation coming to pass in *gasp* real life in a month or so when James and I are reunited once more like two halves of a broken heart pendant, able to enjoy each others company without the NEED for electronic equipment. And when such a time reaches us you can also expect another high quality pseudo Podcast to make its way to the ON AIR section of our website. Only a fool would miss out on such a treat I think you’ll agree! Now that we link these news posts to our personal blogs allowing us near infinite space with which to ramble I feel pressured to make them exceedingly lengthy. On this occasion I shall resist said temptation and leave you with these browsing suggestions. 1) F@NBOY$ online, a relatively new gaming webcomic that’s head and shoulders better than 98.6% of new gaming webcomics. Go there or be a square or some other shape that has little to no respect in the shape Kingdom. And 2) Check out our forums if you’re a returning reader, some people have been adding me to XBL and I have no idea who you guys are, it would be great to chat and I can think of no better medium than our beloved Interforum!

#75 "The shadow that games in the night" news post...

2006-08-17T12:28:00.000-07:00

There is much to discuss with this news post so I give thanks to my blog for providing me with infinite space with which to ramble. First things first, the comic, the reason I presume you people keep returning to this humble corner, or nook, of the Interweb if you will. Infinium Labs, the psycho’s behind the aptly titled Phantom games system have, as we delicately scripted; shit canned the project. The product no longer exists… if it even did to begin with?! Anyway I found this old news article from the “Beeb” which I found quite amusing, especially some comments made on record by Infinium lab staffers, “"We think it will appeal to the hardcore gamer and the casual gamer,"… or … you know… no-one.
We can’t get upset over the loss since we don’t know what we’re missing however an educated guess by an elderly scholar might suggest what we’re missing is “probably not very much”.
Lately I’ve been getting to know my 360. Like I would on a date with a woman perhaps, easing in the conversation not wanting to get too deep into any particular topic before I snare the trap and take her to my bed (generally for the trap I like to use industry standard bear traps placed covertly under the dining table but each to their own, experiment to find what works best for you!).
The E3 Lost Planet demo is something I’d heard very little about (although I hasten to add neither of my ears has been to the ground lately so much has slipped me by), so playing through the demo was a delightful surprise. The animation and control was as tight and responsive as I could ask for, the effects (explosions) were superb and the whole experience just really excited me. Perhaps it was all the explosions? Regardless I was on the phone to a M’$oft rep the other day sorting out some XBL account issues and he informed me it would be multiplayer. Because I’m lazy I have yet to stop by gamespot and see if this is correct but if it is I find this a very erotic prospect to say the least. All the game needs is a melee attack. Seriously, Capcom, I beg you.
Before I go may I encourage any readers on XBL who wish to add me to their friends, to do so? My tag is Chrysis.

Appologies...

2006-08-16T23:13:00.000-07:00

... for a delayed comic update. My work hours have increased lately meaning some nights I don't get home until gone 9pm! The end result is im way too shatered to even think about drawing up a new comic. On the plus side it means I have cash to buy stuff for my 360 (which I love). Anyway the new comic will go up tonight probably at around 9 or 9pm GMT. Thanks for your patience gang :) xxx

# 74 "A special heritage" news post...

2006-08-13T11:02:00.000-07:00

I finally became sick of my own whinging and bought a 360. Everyday I would pine on, randomly asking relatives, friends, hell even strangers, if they would buy me one. But no more. My bundle included Oblivion IV and Dead or Alive 4, the former being a franchise I have never played and the latter being a game I possess almost God-like abilities at. Seriously. So I’ve been playing my new hardware for about 3 hours at this point, Oblivion seems to be almost infinite in scope, I feel completely overwhelmed. The first thing I did after escaping the sewers was visit the peaceful looking monks to whom you must deliver a royal object of some description. After a brief conversation with the fellow I deemed it appropriate to engage the side of his head in fisticuffs whilst he sat at his desk… Big mistake. For the next 10 minutes I was chased by the guy who was now violently wielding a katana trying to kill me with an apparent bloodlust the likes of which I have never seen.
Anyway I feel the purchase was made just in the nick of time with great content on the horizon in the form of Saints Row, Gears of War etc. I await the coming months eagerly. Oh, Superman freaking rocked my world.

Kevin Smith on the would be Superman V

2006-08-12T11:07:00.000-07:00

Essential watching guys, please view...

Reader buys hoodie, smiles lots...

2006-08-12T10:13:00.000-07:00

There it is, the evidence that buying merch makes you happy and us rich(er). Beloved reader Thaila invested £18 of her English pounds for some warm winter wear proudly displaying the fictional University she attends. Excellent work, MMmmmwa!

#73 "Say cheese" news post...

2006-08-09T16:21:00.000-07:00

Today’s comic is about 360 lawnmower-‘em up “Dead Rising” by the zombie fanboys at Capcom. I’m sure you guessed anyway but… you know… just to be sure. I’ll leave James to talk you through the game as he’s the writer and M’$oft fanboy. More importantly I wish to warn you all from shopping online with Forbidden Planet. I made an order an entire month ago for a Final Fantasy themed necklace for my brothers birthday present and it still hasn’t arrived and upon ringing their “helpline” I found out that the item isn’t in stock and may never be in stock “uhh sorry man”. How incredibly awful. Worst. Service. Ever.
As the days tick by I’m noticing more and more 360 content that catches my attention. My Wii anticipation is decreasing slightly as well. I wonder if perhaps the gaming lobe of my brain can only divide up so much interest to a platform like stat points to be assigned. I’m contemplating buying a 360 soon, perhaps a Saints Row bundle should one make itself available AND if the game receives an exemplary gold star from the many reviewers that will no doubt pick it up. Gamespot seem excited in their hands on time although whether that’s indicative of the games quality is somewhat ambiguous to say the least. I don’t know why previews are consistently so positively skewed but hey that’s just the way of the world I guess.

#72 "An executive decision" News post...

2006-08-06T14:15:00.000-07:00

I’m not entirely clued up on this Gears of War price point but I understand they are selling it for more than a regular X-Box 360 game. This kind of action is indicative of Epics confidence in the game (and maybe franchise) but of course from here it looks like they’re being mercenary jack asses. I’m sure the game is as solid as the hype suggests but wouldn’t it just be a pleasant act of good will on their behalf to not take the consumer to the cleaners? In any case James being the resident X-Box nut I’ll leave the rantifesto to him and instead focus my new posting energies on something altogether more distressing… on a personal level at least. I am sad to say that my DS Lite has fallen victim to the viral hinge cracking disease. Not just mine but my girlfriend’s also has the crack of doom which leads me to believe (or at least confirms for me) that it is a design problem and not just wear and tear. For starters both of us are anal to the point of being sycophants as far as keeping our machines pristine. The way I found my crack (stop laughing what’re you 12?) was an unpleasant experience at best. The phone conversation went something like this…

Natasha: “The worst thing has happened… My DS has a crack in the hinge”
Chris: “Shit really? That sucks. I guess your not treating it properly”
Natasha: “Shut up I look after it like a child!”
Chris: “Well so do I and mine doesn’t have… FUCK!”

Some slight paraphrasing may just have taken place but be assured that is the jist. My damn DS is an import as well so whether I can get another for the princely sum of free is looking pretty slim. Shit.

EDIT: By the way, the Grand Theft Autobot T shirt is no longer for sale because of copyright infringement or some such beaurocratic bullshit. Regardless I'll take it down when I get the chance and replace it with something even more dazzlemazing.

Im in love with GBA movie's...

2006-08-02T07:14:00.000-07:00

Did you know that it's possible to watch Movies on your GBA or DS? It turns out many of you arn't aware of this magical cart. Did you know this same cart also lets you listen to music, read word documents, view images and play NES roms? Well for those millions of you that arn't already doing this and making PSP fanboys red in the face, heres a little how to from Uncle Chris.

1)This will cost you about $25 or £15 (depending where you're from). Go here and purchase the GBA movie player cart in either SD or CF flavours. This will depend on your storage medium preference. I myself have the CF version but I bought it before the SD one is available. Note: The SD one is preferable, the cart is smaller and sticks out less.

2) If you don't already own an SD card or CF card go buy one, may I suggest Amazon, they're generaly cheap, you'll want a minimum of at least 1 Gig (this is what I have) 1 Gig will let you hold a full length movie, about 6 half hour episodes of something and a couple albums and of course miniscule files like NES roms, word documents and plenty of images. Double these up for 2GB and so on sized cards! Expect to be roughly £20 - £40 dpending on the card size and type you buy!

3) You'll probably need a card reader, these are USB devices, mine set me back about £5 (say about $10)

4) Now your all set! You can fanny around converting your own movies but it generaly takes a very long time so I suggest going to THIS FORUM where other GBA movie player users upload content theyve already converted! Don't forget to be polite and say thanks and if you get the time upload some of your own stuff for them to download, nobody likes a leacher!

5) Once you've got it all working you may want to customise the Movie players skins and so forth so go here where you can download new backgrounds, also you can download more movies and stuff here but beware, the downloads are SLLLLOOOOOOW.

TA DA! Now you have just exploded a whole bunch of new functionality out of your DS or GBA for about £50 or so! Movies, music, images, emulation! Now thats a great deal.

ENJOY!

My back...

2006-07-31T11:03:00.000-07:00

GAH! I've managed to pull a muscle in my back which means two things.

1) It hurts when I do stuff... like type that scentance
2) I'm off work for a few days Wooo! Now I can lie in bed watching scrubs DVD's, playing Mario Kart DS and eating chocolate croissants or "chocolatini's" as we call them in this house.

Oh and apparently E3 is essentialy over.

Venom revealed at last!

2006-07-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

We are Venom! God i can't wait to hear that! Anyway The first image of Venom has been released so here it is, enjoy! (Topher Grace... pure genius casting)

Can art and commerce be reconciled in videogames?...

2006-07-24T13:18:00.000-07:00

For my degree I recently wrote a paper on the subject of videogames uniting art and commerce, it looks in depth at what actually can be classified art and whether videogames can be classed as such considering their ultimate goal of making profit in a commercial environment. It also brings in theories and studies from Adorno and Horkheimer. If you're feeling academic and enjoy the games as art debate this may be an interesting read for you

Download from MegaUpload (MSWord document)
or
Download it from the RPG-TV webcomic (In the extras page)

New T-shirt designs on the way...

2006-07-23T14:16:00.000-07:00

We've been busy over the last few days cranking out design after design for the RPG-TV.com online store relaunch on Wednesday (26th July 06), I figured I'd give those of you that read this blog a sneaky peak at one of my personal favourites! And with that may I present to you the Grand Theft Autobot T.

Sketching...

2006-07-21T12:08:00.000-07:00

It's not going to win any awards but I got bored and sketched this out. The proportions are all wrong and all sorts so don't bother telling me what needs to be changed cuz I'm aware lol.

New RPG-TV comic up...

2006-07-21T12:06:00.000-07:00

Not really news per-sé but I wanted to make a post of it anyway. The new comic is up on RPG-TV.com so go forth, read and hopefuly be amused.

DS internet browser dated for UK...

2006-07-18T15:28:00.000-07:00

Usualy we Europeans get screwed when it comes to releases, but not on this occaision however as the Opera Internet browser for Nintendo DS has been dated for an EU release of Ocotber the 6th. This is more than great news as everything I've read about the app suggests that it is the real deal and worth every penny. Watch this space for more EU DS browsin news as it happens.

Lil Poison loving up on a lil Spongey B's...

2006-07-15T06:20:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had your ass handed to you at Halo by someone calling themselves Lil Poison? Because if you have you're about to feel even more ashamed- Lil Poison is this 8 year old profesional gamer, real name; Victor De Leon III.
He's already playing with the big boys and raking in the cash and women through sponsorships, checking out his blog gives an insight into what the Lil prodigy is now playing...

- Halo: Combat Evolved
- Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
- Lego Star wars
- Halo
- Halo 2
- Halo 2 map pack
- Star Wars Battlefront II
- Burnout 3
- Star Wars: Republic Commando

annnnd....

- SPONGEBOB: THE MOVIE

Phew so he is a real kid then and not some purpose built gaming android with the single goal of making us feel like noobs.

man gets drunk, dresses like Zoidberg

2006-07-10T11:22:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine got Drunk and got dressed as Dr Zoidberg from Futurama for a fancy dress party. Heres a video of him scuttling about and after is the morning after photo. A beautiful homage.

New T design

2006-07-10T09:26:00.000-07:00

Heres a new T design that comes from Comic 11 for those that read RPG-TV.

IGN list their top 25 episodes of Futurama...

2006-07-10T03:54:00.000-07:00

Over at IGN they have celebrated the ressurection of cult classic cartoon Futurama by listing their favourite 25 episodes in order of preference. Go check out their list HERE then come back to this blog and tell us how wrong they are. Personaly I would like to see "The luck of the Fryrish" and "Roswell that ends well" at the number 1 and 2 spots but meh whady gunna do?

Nintendo McDonalds Dogs a coincidence?

2006-07-08T10:56:00.000-07:00

I first noticed when Nintendogs hit our shores in Europe that Mc Donalds jumped on board with fluffy dog Happy Meal toys. While I was down at Newquay having a beach holiday (it was very nice thank you) I noticed McDonalds are once again pushing these cute furry dog toys and you know what? Nintendogs Dalmation and friends was released very recently.

I understood that Nintendo and McD were in a deal regarding the WiFi but I wonder if this is at all a coincidence or a heavily planned and advised move by the clown himself.

On holiday...

2006-07-01T00:12:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm going on Holiday for a week... Well its kind of a holiday, really more of sleeping in a tent by a beach but we'll see how. Anyway that means no updates for a week but keep an eye on the webcomic as usual, James will continue his post and make sure the new comics go up on time! See you next weekend!

EA - Minimal Wii support

2006-06-29T18:06:00.000-07:00

A source, someone I know, works for EA's European division. He isn't particularly high up the chain but he informs me that his team have been told EA's support for the Wii, at least for the first year or so, will be very minimal with little in the way of useage of the Wii's special features. He says we are to expect Harry Potter and a couple of Sports titles (with little in the way of motion sensing innovation) and essentialy no new games or licenses. Feel free to treat this as unfounded speculation but I for one am not expecting much at all from EA. Bummer.

SPIDER-MAN 3 TRAILER GO NOW!!

2006-06-27T13:25:00.000-07:00

No time to type stuff just read the title, look at this picture then click THIS LINK!

FF III shaping up nicely

2006-06-27T05:26:00.000-07:00

Heres a huge selection of Final Fantasy III screens for the Nintendo DS. It really looks like this could be a fantastic game so keep your eyes on this one!

SCREENS GALORE!

Wallpaper, get your wallpaper...

2006-06-26T06:14:00.000-07:00

Heres another wallpaper I whipped up in the event anybody wants it, just click the thumbnail. I had a chance to play brain training the other day, I was terrible at it and now I don't want the game at all because Dr Kawashima is pretty sinister and mean to me.

I see Pwn3d people...

2006-06-24T06:35:00.000-07:00

A new design for a black T shirt is available at our RPG-TV store and here it is now for your viewing pleasure!

FF III to feature WiFi

2006-06-23T16:48:00.000-07:00

Square Enix have confirmed that the upcoming DS remake of Final Fantasy III will indeed have WiFi online play. The only question mark remaining hangs over what capacity the WiFi will have. I hope it's a little more fleshed out than mere item trading and such but I fear the worst.

How wii make RPG-TV...

2006-06-23T03:45:00.000-07:00

We've been asked a lot lately how we make our webcomic and I did promise a step by step how to so now is as good a time as any give it. What follows is OUR step by step method of making a webcomic, what works for us may not work for you and visa versa, we're still pretty new ourselves so don't take it as gospel. With that said I think it's safe to continue.

1) WRITING

This can be the most tricky part of making webcomic. Typically myself and James will get together and just run through gaming news blogs like Kotaku and Joystiq etc. If there is a story that sounds pretty funny we'll just toss possible jokes and idea's back and forth. If none of the news stories are that good we'll focus on a character driven gag between the two characters, Seth and Josh.

2) ART

When we first started the comic we decided on our 3 panel layout and made the template from which all comics would be wrought in the crucibal of Adobe Photoshop. To start with I drew the characters by hand in ink then we scanned them in and both of us would colour them on photoshop. This gave us our basic characters but as you can see in the first 50 or so comics meant our art was never dynamic as the characters were essentialy always in the same pose. What we do now is re-draw bodies, arms, legs etc in Illustrator and lay them on top replacing the old bodies so that we can have them doing different actions. A perfect example of this is the middle panel in comic #57 where you can see his new arms are not shaded (yet it somehow manages to look nice IMHO)

2.1) Okay this is an indepth description of what to do with you're hand drawn art once its scanned. If you want to do all your art digitaly skip to the next step.

Right once you've scanned your ink image and your looking at it in photoshop the first thing to do is crop it so the surrounding area is smaller. Once this is done, if you zoom in, you'll notice colours in the once black ink lines SO what we do now is desaturate the image. Once this is done play with the contrast and brightness settings to make the black lines show up stronger and to make artifacts and bits of dust dissapear. Next select all of the white bits, internal and external of the character using the magic wand and delete so that all you have is the skeletal outline. When this is complete try a STROKE blending option; this will make any hidden bits of mess or scruffy areas show up so you can manualy erase them.

Okay now you should have a clean and clear outline ready to be coloured (or colored if you're American). Copy the layer and place the new outline over the top exactly. This will remain on top ensuring your inked lines are not affected when your start paint bucketing all over the place. Select the lower layer on your layers window and start colouring in you're art. Hopefuly all of your lines will connect otherwise, for instance, when you drop the hair colour on the hair it will also spill into the face so be extra careful to make sure the lines all connect. When colouring don't forget the whites in the eyes if you're using a white background, same goes for teeth and any other white areas you want.

Now you're art should be looking pretty neat. Whats left is shading. I do this one of 2 ways. One way I've started to use recently (a good example is the merc in comic 59) is simply to render some lighting effects so just play around with that until it looks right. The other way demonstrated on Josh and Seth is to select individual area's with the magic wand and just paint brush with a faint edge brush and then apply cutout filter to make the colours block again.

PHEW!

2.2) Ok this is a brief guide on how we make our art in Adobe Illustrator.

Using a cheap Wacom tablet (The model is CTF-221 and was £35 at PC World) I simply draw all the lines with a simple 1 pixel stroke. Illustrator can be a bitch for beginers to use and I really dont have space to write an indepth tutorial so I'm afraid you're going to have to look elsewhere for that. Once all the line art is complete I copy and paste the image into photoshop for colouring and shading which I outlined in detail above in 2.1

3) Constructing the comic

Now you have all your main art we're ready to construct the comic. This really is simple layers work, move the characters and objects around within the panels until they look right, try and leave designated areas of negative space for the speech bubbles and also don't use comic sans as a font. My advice is to google for comic book fonts, that should unearth a veritable treasure chest of goodies. Once this is ready you're all set, now you just need a website to publish your comics and BAM you're done!

I hope this was useful to some of you, if I missed anything out or you want specific info like what speech bubbles and how to make them just drop a comment!

Now this is an education...

2006-06-22T16:25:00.000-07:00

I'm sure some of you have considered doing one of these new fangled gaming degree's, you know, the ones with names like "Game Design" or "Fluffy wuffy studies", that sound so much more pleasant than say "Neuro-Science". Well a friend of mine is doing a degree in Game design and was kind enough to share with me an exam paper for one of his modules.

EDIT: This is simply one module from the course and I'm assured the course itself is very serious and strenuous involving coding etc, however for the sake of giggles check out some of the questions!

20) In the 2D platform game ‘Jazz Jackrabbit 2’, there is a point where your character gets dizzy and doesn't respond to the controls properly. What causes this?
a) Drinking from a beer bottle.
b) Jumping too high.
c) Inhaling smoke rings.
d) Drinking dizzy water.
e) Being hit on the head.

That ladies and gentlemen is a student loan well spent. Click here to download the full paper in Adobe reader format.

EDIT: The guy in that image is not me btw people. Seriously.

Scott Ramsoomair talks...

2006-06-22T09:17:00.000-07:00

The creator of mega popular gaming webcomic VGCats has done an interview with popular Nintendo blog 4 Color Rebellion. What better way to whittle away your time I ask? Check it out here.

DS Lite Euro launch imminent...

2006-06-21T01:39:00.000-07:00

This Friday (June 23rd) the Nintendo DS Lite finaly hits our shores in classic white and exclusive black flavours. Who will be forking out, who will be trading in and who wants what colour(s)? Let us know you're thoughts and whether you're satisfied when you finaly take the plunge!

Wii games to cost £50 according to PLAY.com...

2006-06-17T17:01:00.000-07:00

A quick peruse through PLAY.com revealed some disturbing and hopefuly inaccurate bits of information. Nintendo Wii games are available for Pre-order at £49.99 or roughly... what? $70 US is that? Regardless this is definately contradictory to what Nintendo have stated regarding their pricing strategies. I hope Play.com are just assuming because if this turns out to be true I for one will be most put out.

Since Duke Nukem Forever was announced...

2006-06-17T13:48:00.000-07:00

Kotaku bring news of a list of events. A list that details events that have happend since Duke Nukem forever was announced. The game has been in development hell for 9 years. So without further do do, here are a few things that have taken place since its announcement...

"Over 75 games based in the Mega Man universe, and 12 games featuring Mega Man universe character cameos were released.
The Voyager 1 spacecraft has travelled 8.8 billion miles from Earth.
19 wars have begun. 5 wars have ended.
Every single Grand Theft Auto game (13 of them!) was released.
Over 350,000,000 consoles and handhelds were sold worldwide.
Most embarrassing of all, from a product release standpoint?
Valve released both Half-Life 1 and 2, with several expansion packs and countless mods for each."

Go here for the full list...

If there's one thing I'm a sucker for...

2006-06-17T05:07:00.000-07:00

...It's the Pokémon universe. Those little RPG's get me everytime and so naturally I'm getting quite excited by the nuggets of news IGN is surreptitiously feeding us off their main DS channel.

"The game features a redesigned Pokedex, which now just happens to resemble a DS in shape and functionality, with dual screens and a d-pad. You control the Pokedex using the stylus and now have access to, in addition to basic Pokemon data, tools for playing with the Pokemon voices and comparing size and weight."

"In addition to the new Pokedex, you also have access to a completely new item: the Pokewatch. Shaped like a digital watch, the Pokewatch's screen is shown on the DS's bottom screen when you move about over the main fields of play. The watch, in all, has 20 functions, including basic time telling, a calculator, a camera and a tool for viewing Pokemon that you've captured. When you first get your hands on the watch, you have only a handful of these functions. One of your goals in the game is to collect more applications."

Sure these arn't dramatic changes in the least but don't they just sound crazy fun?... Maybe its just me.

I scare myself...

2006-06-16T17:14:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I scare myself. The accompanying image is a Pokémon trainer card displaying myself. This was really an excercise in pixel art that I eventually ended up taking toooo seriously. Anyway click away and marvel at my geekhood!

Bill Gates to world: "I'm taking a chill yo!"...

2006-06-16T04:18:00.000-07:00

In a press conference today, Gates said:

"I've decided that two years from today, I will reorganize my personal priorities. I have one of the best jobs in the world. I believe with great wealth comes great responsibility - the responsibility to give back to society and make sure those resources are given back in the best possible way, to those in need. It's not a retirement, it's a reordering of my priorities."

What does Bill know that we don't? Oh I get it! Halo 4 comes out then and he wants to make sure he has enough time to play it!

Pokémon Diamond and Pearl screens...

2006-06-15T18:14:00.000-07:00

These games havn't received as much widespread coverage as I would have anticipated. Here's a link to several pages of screens. Doesn't look mind blowing but has a nice oiriginal GTA style 3D scrolling effect to it, nice to see some colours in the battle scenes too!

Check out dem screens!

Advance Wars DS for £12.99

2006-06-15T11:19:00.000-07:00

Anyone in Britain looking for a cheap copy of Advance Wars Dual Strike, the fantastic strategy war game for the DS should pop down to their local Comet. I was in their today picking up all the gubbins to set up a wireless network in my house and spotted the game for £12.99.

Whether the game is this price across the Nation I cannot say but certainly Comet in Slough is selling it for this much. Go buy it!... Now!

Mercenaries 2 wallpaper...

2006-06-15T09:55:00.000-07:00

From this coming Mondays strip I decided to whip up this Mercs 2 wallpaper, here to take if anyone wants it :)

Black DS Lite shipment goes AWOL...

2006-06-15T05:31:00.000-07:00

Apparently a large shipment of Black DS Lite units has vanished and likely found its way to the Hong Kong black market. Play Gadgets reports...

"Looks like the black Nintendo DS Lite is hotter than ever. A container (those large metal structures that carry cargo) full of black Nintendo DS Lite and DS games had gone missing in Hong Kong when it was making its way from China (where the DS Lites are made) to Europe (where the black Lites are launching). The reported loss was $18 million Hong Kong dollars (US$2.32 million).
The Hong Kong police suspected that the black DS Lite units sold in Hong Kong recently were part of some loot and was willing to offer HKD$1 million ($128, 831) to anyone with a tip off or two."

That is one hell of a heist! I wonder how damaging this will be to the Eurpean launch on the 23rd?

Mercenaries Tattoo Contest...

2006-06-14T16:33:00.000-07:00

So, the developers of Mercenaries 2 are running a contest where by you must design the tattoo's that will adorn the main character. At RPG-TV we thought that might be a good excuse for a cheap laugh so heres the comic we came up with. It wont hit the site until Monday so I guess this constitues a preview? *shrug*

Template for photoshopping DS skins...

2006-06-14T16:30:00.000-07:00

Wow, the unexpected pimping from Kotaku has exploded my hit counter in one day which is awesome! Anyway a few of you wanted to know how I made the custom skins and I replied in the comments but heres the template for those of you that want to give it a try your selves!

5 mini bargains

2006-06-14T08:53:00.000-07:00

So i drove down to my local Gamestation earlier and picked up a whole bunch of cheap ass N-gage software, namely: Worms world party, X-men legends, Rayman 3, King of Fighters extreme and Call of Duty. Seriously i know the N-gage isnt a great gaming system but as a phone that can play games I really dont know why so many people slag it off. I guess its just cool to hate.

In other price news...

2006-06-14T04:22:00.000-07:00

I've noticed that GBA micro's are going new for £49.99 in most major retailers (inparticular Gamestation). Was this an official price drop because I never heard anything about it. Regardless if you've been thinking of picking one up now would be a good time especialy with Final Fantasy IV just around the corner (or available now from CD-WOW.co.uk).

£2.99!!!

2006-06-14T03:52:00.000-07:00

Sweet samba de amigo! I just found my local Gamestation selling new N-gage games for £2.99! Obviously for N-gage haters reading this please feel free to skip this post but for someone like me who recently descovered that a phone that can play Chaos Theory can't be all bad this is great news! I'm going to head in later and pick up Rayman 3, Colin McRae, King of Fighters Extreme and Worms: World party!

Skin up...

2006-06-14T03:21:00.000-07:00

Before I was fortunate enough to acquire a DS Lite I really wasn't a big fan of the original DS's design. Everyone could see it was ugly, some hated it more than others but my feeling was one of mild dislike. So rather than fork out money for a skin I took it on myself to make some. The end result are the FFVII and Jet Grind Radio surface clingers you see here. I really liked the FFVII one I must say.

The real Lauren?

2006-06-13T15:44:00.000-07:00

Could it be? Behold the real Lauren, this girl introduced me to X-files DVD box sets and a process called "Cleaning". I'm crazy lucky. God i love Mulder so much, *hugs a lock of Duchovny's hair*

Holy fanboy fatman!

2006-06-13T14:20:00.000-07:00

I got bored this evening and fired up illustrator, the end result is the wallpaper you see here. It's not especialy funny but to be honest I am so fatigued from kicking a football around and watching the world cup. Tiring stuff I think you'll agree. I really need to work on my shading and take my colouring to the next level but I'm really not sure how to start. Think I best start reading some tutorials!

The one where we didnt post the comic

2006-06-13T11:05:00.000-07:00

This is a strip that never made it to the website because pretty much everyone we showed it to thought it sucked. I still think its okay but meh I'll stick it here for anyone hardcore to check out. Be gentle.

A Wallpaper

2006-06-13T05:27:00.000-07:00

For those who don't frequent the RPG-TV forums here is a wallpaper that was exclusive to the people that did. Bit of a plug for our new True player shirt but thats life. Beautiful!

Time time time

2006-06-13T05:23:00.000-07:00

I've fiddled with the site and got it looking the way I like, that green template that came with the site wasn't to my tastes but hey. Between a job, the webcomic and the forum (and the worldcup) I'm not sure how much I'll get to post but lets just play it by ear and see how it goes.

The first post

2006-06-13T04:38:00.000-07:00

Well this is the first post to my blog, i'll see if I like it and if not then this will probably be left to drift the internet as a shrapnel of cyber junk. If I do like it hopefuly this will be a cool place to leave my art and whatnot!