ps238principal (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} ps238principal) wrote,@ 2008-04-24 02:01:00 |
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| Entry tags: | gama, las vegas, monsterpocalypse |
Gama Radiation!
Oh, GAMA, how did I ever leave you? It's been quite a while since I'd been to this trade show (for those who've attended, the last time I was there it was held in The Orleans, rather than at Bally's), and while my time there was a blur, it was one of the most fun and productive blurs I've had in quite a while. Plus I got to see this great setup for Privateer Press's Monsterpocalypse game. Now THAT'S a pool toy to surprise the nephews with...I was also pleased to be near some neighbors from back home. The Highlander card game is back and under new management (I'll be taking a look at the game soon, but as I understand it, the mechanics for simulating a swordfight via cards are supposed to be pretty well-done). Cristi (ever the educator) went and hung out at the Educational Insights booth and came back with, among other things, Playfoam. This stuff sounds so very space-age. Unlike "Floam," it doesn't have any gooey bonding agent, and you can stomp it into carpet without embedding dirt and hair in the stuff. It's non-toxic and tastes horrid, so it won't poison your kiddos when it discourages ingestion. So... inedible, indestructable, tastes bad... Are they making foam from fruitcakes? Anyway, I thought the wargaming crowd might find this stuff useful in making terrain or sculpting large forms to be covered with more permanent materials.
But the retailers were the real reason to go. Rest assured that a lot of the men and women running our local comics & games stores are often bigger fans of gaming and sequential art than we are. It was wonderful meeting, greeting, and gifting them with ps238 and Nodwick-y wares. I also got a chance to try out some new color markers while making some sketches that will soon be on comic store walls around the country. We figured offering some art would be fun, but I've seen what sun does to Sharpie (and sepia can look nice, don't get me wrong) so we tried out some new "Copic" markers. We're told that they're favored by the Manga-makers in our city, and that they can hold up to solar abuse a bit longer than other writing utensils. I was running on only a few hours of sleep and neglected to snap some photos, but I think we'll be getting links from the art recipients in the coming weeks and you, the viewer, can judge. :)
I also got to chat with some of the Dead Gentlemen who have a lot planned for their "Demon Hunters" RPG (the first chapter of which can be sampled for free), movie, line of hair care products, etc. Look for more great things coming from these guys soon...
In movie news, "The Spirit" is coming to movie houses in 2009 (the trailer can be seen here), but I fear I'm not the target audience. I've tried reading the comic by Will Eisner, but I'm not a huge crime noir fan, so a lot of the dialogue from those hard-boiled stories begins to sound like lines from "The Tick" to me. Anyway, it looks like Frank Miller is making a Sin City-esque version of the detective, believed dead, living in a graveyard, who fights crime without using guns. If he can pull it off and make it fly in this day and age, more power to him.
Doctor Who gave us the C'thulhu-esque "Ood" in their second appearance. For me, the story was a well-worn Who trope of civilization-saving, but the great stuff was the little hint at the end about what's to come. Is this a setup for a cast change, or perhaps the stakes in Who are being raised a few notches given that we're going to only get a few Who-movies in 2009 instead of a whole season?
And from our "life imitates art" department, way back in ought-six, one of the FFN guys claimed that buying both comics AND trade paperbacks helped to keep his house insulated, thanks to all the paper products he hoarded. It turns out, Shawn may have been on to something.
Linka, Las Vegas:
- Spectrum Genesis is a good little time-waster with some nifty visual FX to brighten your day. Swing your line to the star while connecting with each dot.
- Some point-n-click lunacy: Cowabanga is from the creator of the "Hapland" adventure series. So far, I can't tell if I'm winning or losing, but I know how to make the cow explode...
- A blogger recently came into posession of some old Atari 2600 carts and (language warning on one or two of these) photoshopped some amusing variants on old favorites. It kind of scares me that I played most of these, back in the day...
- So when I eventually get one of these at comicon this summer, (1) will my wife divorce me and (2) can I realistically expect to be allowed to wear it home on the plane?
- I post this for our fine cosplaying community, many members of which I suspect could get some use out of a skull-shaped motorcycle helmet. It might also come in handy if civilization goes south; you probably get your own mutant horde free if you own one.
- Cracked.com presents (possible NSFW photo of "Mystique" and some f-bombing, so surf responsibly) 8 pointless laws of comic book movies. The origin one is a gripe of mine; who DOESN'T know where Superman or Spider-Man came from?
- This week's linkdump is looking more and more like a nerdy toy catalogue, but there are some things you MUST own!
- And finally, since "impossible" seems to be the new standard in games, here's the Impossible Fan Quiz, an homage to the previous impossible game.
