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Author Archives: Alex Martin

This is Only a Test

This is Only a Test – Episode 43 – The SARS Mask Cast – 12/30/2010

by Alex Martin in Misc, Tech505 days ago

Starting with Norm’s Blackjack strategy, the WANG (Will, Ana, Norm, and Gary) deliver an unfocused retrospective podcast. But first, Gary’s new tradition of watching the Big Lebowski prompts a discussion of Cohen brothers’ films (with spoilers from 24:30-25:00). Next, they talk about tech highlights and lowlights of the year, looking at Apple products, social-networking apps, and 3DTVs. After plugging Rush Coil’s chiptune Christmas album, they move on to the news. Netflix Instant takes up 20% of the USA’s Internet bandwidth; a discussion...

The Oddcast

1UP.com – The Oddcast – 12/20/2010

by Alex Martin in Misc514 days ago

This is no ordinary episode of the Oddcast. Instead, frequent contributor Tole Cover presents a dance mega-mix of their best bits. His blog post lists the samples (from Auld Lang Syne to Jay Z) and explains why he’s done this. He’s been working on it since August, and must really love the podcast to have put this level of work into a 20-minute-plus mix. And if you think this is a good idea, keep an eye on the ongoing My Brother, My Brother and Me mix-tape project. Happy holidays from the 1UP Oddcast crew! Special remix by @tole_cover. Runtime...

Mobcast

Mobcast 84: Games of the year, kids these days, U.S. vs. U.K. gaming, and more

by Alex Martin in Games515 days ago

The Mobcast gets 200% classier this week, with English gentlemen John Davison of GameSpot and Metacritic, and brother Pete of The Squadron of Shame and The Big Pixels. They’re hosted by Bitmob’s Shoe and Brett. Shoe starts with a games-of-2010 discussion. They don’t pick a best game, but talk about surprises and under-the-radar games. (Spoiler alert: John spoils the ending for Mass Effect 2 from 15:45 to 16:20.) A listener asks how far along the scale between dry consumer-advice, and emotive criticism games reviews should fall. Market research...

Rebel FM

Rebel FM Episode 87 – 12/17/10

by Alex Martin in Games517 days ago

PopCap blogger Jeff Green’s next stop on his podcast tour is at Rebel FM. He starts the talk with World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, which practically turns the MMO into a new game. Next, Arthur boasts about his Pac Man Championship Edition DX score. Like Jeff, He’s been playing a multiplayer addition that could be its own game: Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam. He prefers it to Bad Company 2′s multiplayer because it is less exploitable. He also compares Crysis 2 to Halo, although he’s worried about the console versions. Anthony...

tested

This is Only a Test – Episode 41 – Sherlock Holmes That Sh*t – 12/16/2010

by Alex Martin in Games, Tech518 days ago

TV Quest 2010 continues with Norm’s quest for a video streamer. He’s left Toy Story on a loop, as a less boring alternative to the 100-hour slide-show that prevents image-retention on plasma TVs. Will also gives a run-down of the 3D situation on PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 and his own options for surround-sound. Will has fresh opinions on the iPhone, after putting down his Android and Windows phones, and Gary has just discovered Google Docs. Norm says why the latest AMD video cards aren’t exciting, and when to upgrade, before...

The Oddcast

The Oddcast: 12/13/2010

by Alex Martin in Games, Movies522 days ago

In this episode — recorded before Saturday’s Spike Video Game Awards — Chris, Sam, Tina, Alice, and her Otamatone start with last week’s odd news. But only after tales of last year’s VGAs, and last month’s 1Up staff trip to New York City. The first topic they analyse is Activision’s insistence, despite terrible sales of Tony Hawk Shred, that the pro skater is still relevant. Kratos’ cameo in the next Mortal Kombat reminds Chris of how excited he is for the fighter. And Japanese horror game Ikenie...

Mobcast

Mobcast 83: Halo vs. Call of Duty, Minorities, Great Stories in Bad Games, and More

by Alex Martin in Games522 days ago

Two community members, Michael Pangelina and Larry LeBron, join Shoe and Demian this week. Shoe follows last week’s Modern Warfare vs. Black Ops discussion by inviting them to compare the Halo and Call of Duty franchises. Halo has quirky multiplayer modes, but Call of Duty has tighter campaigns. Next, they talk about games whose genres don’t fit their settings. BioShock, for instance, was about exploration, but only allowed players to do that with their guns. Michael asks why so many game heroes are white. Perhaps it’s reflective...

tested

Episode 40 – Beard on the Run – 12/9/2010

by Alex Martin in Games, Tech525 days ago

After discussing the philosophy behind Will’s “clever internet t-shirt“, and Gary’s attempts at growing a beard, the crew gets into some tech talk. Gary’s spent another week with his new TV and reports on the minutiae of setting it up, aranging cables, breaking it in, and reinforcing his weak TV cabinet. Meanwhile, Norm has spent enough time with the Samsung Galaxy Tab to recommend you not buy it. Will’s also experienced some audio bugs with Windows Phone 7, and thinks it’s far behind iOS4 as a mobile...

Mobcast

Mobcast 82: MW2 vs. Black Ops, the State of AI, Zombies, and More

by Alex Martin in Games, Tech529 days ago

One of the more interesting Mobcasts comes largely thanks to guest Sid Shuman — PlayStation’s Senior Social Media Specialist. Demian starts by asking the crew to compare Call of Duties Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops. They come down on the latter’s side, thanks to its less-ridiculous campaign. Absurdities like Nazi zombies and exploding remote-control cars are fun multiplayer additions though. Shoe asks a question tech podcasts have been discussing recently: with video-streaming on consoles, can you cut the cable yet? Netlix, Vudu,...

Rebel FM

Rebel FM Episode 86 – 12/03/10

by Alex Martin in Games531 days ago

With Tyler yet to return, Area 5′s Ryan O’Donnell and IGN’s Greg Miller join for an extra-long Rebel FM. This episode includes a bonus hour-long spoiler-filled discussion of Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood after the usual game talk and letters. Anthony starts with Brotherhood’s multiplayer, which is surprisingly underpopulated. It’s not a great problem here, but they wonder if unlockable perks hurt the longevity of multiplayer games. Arthur calls Battlefield: Bad Company 2′s Vietnam DLC the baby of its mother-game...

This is Only a Test

Episode 39 – The City on the Edge of F*** You – 12/02/2010

by Alex Martin in Games, Tech, TV532 days ago

Will, Norm, and Gary continue the recent trend of long podcasts with this monster. They start with the holiday season and the TV specials of the US and UK. When I recovered from my rage coma (induced by Will saying “Welsh and English are pretty much the same”), they were talking about Norm and Gary’s TV-buying adventure. They looked at bigger versions of Will’s 58-inch Panasonic VT25 and Samsung’s 9000 series. Apart from the purchasing process, they detail the ins and outs, 3D gaming, and the unique properties of plasma...

Mobcast

Mobcast 81: Under-the-Radar Games, Kinect Reactions, Griefing, and More

by Alex Martin in Games536 days ago

Christian Nutt of Gamasutra is Shoe, Demian, and Brett’s guest for this episode of the Mobcast, recorded during the week of Thanksgiving. Appropriately, they start with the gaming developments they’re thankful for. They talk about frequent checkpoints and wireless controllers (which make gaming more convenient), touch-screen and graphics technology (which give developers more possibilities), and the internet (which has allowed indies to distribute games, and casual audiences to consume them). Demian asks for their favorite games that...

Rebel FM

Rebel FM Episode 85 – 11/24/10

by Alex Martin in Games538 days ago

Tyler is sick this week, and it sounds like the rest of the team will have a cold by the end of the episode. Matt hasn’t got to Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood’s multiplayer yet, but is impressed by the epic scale of the campaign. With Black Ops, Anthony’s finally found an interesting Call of Duty campaign. He’s also been laughing at Poker Night at the Inventory, enjoying Operation Flashpoint: Red River’s more-accessible direction, managing his calendar in Rune Factory 3: A Fantasy Harvest Moon, and shooting zombies...

The Oddcast

The Oddcast: 11/24/2010

by Alex Martin in Games540 days ago

Scott Weber fills in for Chris Plante in this short Thanksgiving podcast. It starts with news of Mark Wahlberg being cast as Nathan Drake in the Uncharted movie. Tina asks why everyone seems to prefer Nathan Fillion for the role. In China, buys you ten minutes on the world’s second-largest LED screen. A Chinese gamer recently used that time to play an unspecified MMO in front of shoppers. Also from China, the i-dong is a Kinect-like device with an unfortunate name. They describe Double Fine’s next game — Stacking — before...

tested

This is Only a Test – Episode 38 – Turkey Day Q&A – 11/24/2010

by Alex Martin in Tech540 days ago

It’s Thanksgiving and Norm’s thankful for his Breville Pie-Maker. He also likes the way apps scale to the seven-inch screen on his Samsung Galaxy Tab.  Will doesn’t think the Boxee Box is quite finished, and is less intuitive than Apple TV. iOS 4.2 has improved the iPad, and brought AirPlay to iOS devices, allowing limited video-streaming to TVs. In lieu of news, which is slowing down anyway, they devote the rest of this massive episode to questions and answers. They answer dozens of audio questions about everything from the computers...

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    Episode 092 - PTW ahoy!
    Games, tech, and the usual, for the last time. Hello Podcast Thing Weekly.

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