WWE RAW Wrap-Up

Monday Night Raw – February 13, 2012

Our wrestling television week begins with Kane’s focus on the Ambulance he claims will carry John Cena out of the Elimination Chamber PPV in 6 days. Passively advertising a match like this is ideal to me, but as we will see later, that was too good to be true.

The true start to the show was the announcement and commencement of an “Elimination Chamber Debate”, which reeks of an NXT challenge. With the exception of CM Punk, R Truth received by far the biggest pop. Laurinitis interrupts Punk, simply to introduce himself and retreat to the back; these people can’t help but waste time.

The segment went off as one would expect; Punk says he’s the best, Ziggler says he’s even better, Miz harkened back to Mania from last year, which is the last time he was successful, Kofi tries to stake his claim as a viable threat, Jericho points out that HE’S the best in the world (at everything he does) and Truth thinks he’s running for office, which admittedly led to a bit of actual comedy.

That man hates him some spiders. After a promise from Punk that this would not break down into violence, Kofi takes exception to Jericho calling him an afterthought and proceeds to deliver Trouble in Paradise, just before their match.

This is critical for Kofi, as he needs to stand out a bit rather than just be a filler body in the chamber…which he will be. But the wrestling world needs more Barry Horowitz’s.

The whole thing, while good for a couple cheap laughs, screams “me too” as per typical WWE – there are debates on TV right now, so we may as well do one too.

Match 1: Chris Jericho vs Kofi Kingston

A relatively short match, with Kofi getting in a bit of signature offense, aggression and escaping the Walls, to show him as viable. Kofi hits his finisher on Jericho, but cannot capitalize for the fall, leading to an eye poke from Jericho and a ‘cheap’ win via Codebreaker. The fact that Jericho had to cheat to beat Kofi solidifies him as a threat in the eyes of the higher ups, I’m sure.

Winner: Chris Jericho via pinfall.
Something I loved in this match was Jericho using a belly to back suplex as an offensive move, not just a counter as is typically done in modern WWE. There was also a great powerbomb spot out with Jericho countering Kofi’s signature corner punches.

We were then treated to three rapid fire non-match segments with commercials in between: HBK on screen, to get a big pop from the crowd; Ryder and Cena in the back, for another big pop and to put ‘star power’ on screen in between matches; and Laurinitis/Otunga ‘hatching a plan’ to gain more backstage power.

Match 2: Randy Orton vs Big Show

Daniel Bryan comes out first with his usual entrance and his splendid “YES YES YES YES” entrance – this man celebrates anything, even walking down to the ring and I love it. Orton is landing strikes on Big Show and actually moving him; need a credible threat to the ‘monster’ in the cage. The match went well, with a great top rope spike DDT spot on big show, leading to a botched RKO attempt, quickly and effectively resetting and landing the RKO, prompting Bryan to enter the ring and pop both men with his belt.

Bryan is turning out to be a great chickenshit heel, getting in people’s heads. Of note: Orton apparently suffered an actual concussion here and has (at this time) been replaced with Santino in the chamber match. One can only assume someone else will replace him. Also of note: Even after popping Randy Orton with a belt, there were vocal chants for Bryan.

Winner: Technically Randy Orton, as he was struck first.
It bugs me that the announcers could not fathom an excuse for the RKO mistake – that’s their job.
The second hour opens with HBK making a full entrance with pyro. Everyone still loves him, as they damn well should. I won’t bore with the details of the talk with HHH, as if you’re reading this, you’ve watched that.

What comes of this is HBK immediately conflicting/butting heads with HHH; not a punch was pulled here. Seems they want to kick the trip down the Road to Wrestlemania into high gear…fine by me. This concluded with a new video from The Undertaker, showing him cutting his ‘hair’ – this will explain Taker’s short hair look in the match, since he has had short hair in real life recently.

Match 3: R-Truth vs Dolph Ziggler
Ziggler got the ‘jobber’ entrance here – come back from commercial, and he’s already in ring, music finishing. They do this to him a lot and I cannot fathom why. Truth hit signature offense, Dolph hit a great dropkick->kip up->strut sequence, followed by a signature Dolph jumping elbow and situps…only to be cradled and pinned by Truth

Winner: R-Truth via pinfall
Truth is ‘strong’ thanks to a win over the last #1 contender, and Ziggler is given a reason to be less cocky and show-off less in the chamber match, since it cost him here.
Santino gives Ryder a garlic breathstrip. I love Santino and his antics, I really do. This one fell flat. I still love the sonamagun.

Match 4: Tamina Snuka vs Brie Bella

Beth Phoenix is ringside and quite boring on commentary. Great bedazzled shirt though: “Ding. Glamslam. Ding”. Tamina is being announced with her last name now, and proceeds to dominate Brie via Samoan Drop and Superfly Splash.



Winner: Tamina via pinfall

Announcing her with her father’s surname and the quick wins peg her as the face diva of the month. I doubt anyone takes the belt from Beth before Mania, which is hopefully when we see Kharma back in action full time. She does need to be a mommy first. Also, Layla is slated to return soon; hopefully some good divas action coming soon. AJ needs to be unleashed upon her return – she’s solid in ring.

Cena/Kane time – So much for passively advertising the ambulance match. Again, details aren’t needed as you’ve more than likely seen this. What the result sets up is the end of night spot AND potential for a Ryder angle when he’s “healthy” again. He’s filming a movie at the moment.

Match 5: The Miz vs CM Punk

Aside from a fun finisher sequence with the Skull Crushing Finale countered into a shoulder throw and the Anaconda Vice, this fell flat. Something was off with the chemistry between them, and Miz needs to be having strong showings right now.

Winner via submission: CM Punk
Show concludes with the return of the ambulance and ultimately Ryder being pushed off the stage in a wheelchair. This was a nasty NASTY bump. When Mick Foley gets on Twitter and says a bump wasn’t a good idea…you know it wasn’t a good idea. This gives Cena more incentive to embrace the hate at the PPV, but who knows what that will lead to and how that will play into Wrestlemania. Would I like to see a turn from Cena and therefore some development? Hell yeah. Do I expect? Not so much.

Here we have the makings of a lot of things: Ryder has multiple possibilities upon his return; I hate to see the fistpumper give up all of his goofiness, but a slightly more serious Ryder would be great for him and great for fans. The chamber is set up with the usual suspects.

Cena has all the more reason to embrace the hate, get past Kane and prep for the Rock; maybe Ryder feuds with Kane upon his return? HBK is set to take part in the HHH/Taker match as a ref/enforcer/etc. Will he turn on HHH and not let him do what he couldn’t get done himself? Will he help HHH put Taker out? Will Taker have a decent haircut beforehand? Pay your $55.99 to find out in just a few short weeks.

Back with Smackdown and the post-EC podcast real soon!

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Mass Effect 3 Demo Impressions

I'm 16 hours into my fifth playthrough of Mass Effect 2. This is all preparation for the third installment in the franchise. Mind you, it's been over a year since I touched the game. I just recently got back into it in order to have the narrative fresh in my head before taking on three.

Well it's Valentines Day, and Bioware shows their fans how much they love them by releasing the Mass Effect 3 demo on XBL. I played it through twice as different classes, and I'm going to give you my thoughts on all the things I loved about the demo. Much like we did with our look at the Diablo 3 beta This will be focusing on the single player demo, as I didn't have a chance to get into multiplayer.

Choose The Way You Play

When I fired up the demo, the first thing I noticed was that Bioware implemented certain ways to play the game. The three different play types are action, RPG, and story. I'll break those down in a moment, but I want to discuss how this move is a brilliant way to silence any naysayers.

For instance, people like myself enjoyed the RPG-heavy Mass Effect, but loathed its clunky battle system. Then Bioware addresses the complaints about the battle system with a major overhaul, creating what was essentially a 3rd person shooter with RPG elements. The RPG purists found the lack of any true RPG upgrade system as a turn-off.

As it goes in the gaming community, people will find something to hate, but Bioware has now made the game more accessible than ever with these three distinct play styles. They have effectively made the game more accommodating for all players, whether you're a novice or an RPG stat whore.
Allow me to break down the basics of these three play styles.

Action: This explains itself really. his play style is for the person who may not have the patience or desire to worry about what stats they want to upgrade. This is for someone who wants to eff things up and leave the customization of abilities to the game. They don't want to worry about increasing speech skills or making your warp ability have a 20% faster recharge rate. Think Mass Effect 2.

RPG: This is the traditional Mass Effect play style. You will have access to all the stats and abilities you could ask for. I chose this play style and I forgot how much I missed picking and choosing my abilities. I feel that this is really the way the game was meant to be played.

Story If you want to fly through the game this is your play style. It just sounds super boring. No customization of abilities, no dialogue trees, and easy enemies. Cool idea, but I can't imagine playing the game this way.


I found this new feature to be a brilliant idea on Bioware's part. Now, let's get to the meat and potatoes: Guns and battle system changes.

"We're going to need bigger guns. We need big F*n guns!"

Okay, so I used Rutger Hauer's line from 'Split Second', but it's so fitting. The battle system in ME2 changed dramatically over its predecessor. Bioware opted to go more of the shooter route in ME2 and they made it work. While they did make significant improvements to the system, the squad-based combat was really inconsistent.

There was nothing more annoying than issuing commands, having the NPC confirm the order, and then not execute it. It's absolutely maddening, so I was curious if ME3 would tackle this issue. The answer is a resounding yes, not only do the NPC's execute orders, they recommend strategies on the fly.

Here's an example of this improvement in action. The first thing I notice while in battle is how much smarter and organized enemies are. They work as a unit, so you have to play smarter. Well, when we were being overwhelmed with enemies, one of the NPC's said "flush them out". I then realized it was time to roll in a grenade to thin the herd.

The grenade took out two tangos, and then three just fanned out and took cover. I directed one of my NPC's to use warp, and as the enemy was floating aimlessly, I used push to get them over the edge. The other two split up, and when I was in cover, the NPC said "Shepard, take to the high ground."


Sure enough, there was a flight of stairs to my right. I was thoroughly impressed with the AI improvement overall. The HUD has also changed to make it easier to monitor your squads health and the recharge rates on their abilities.

Another difference I noticed was not only more guns, but the way they feel and sound. The game feels like a polished shooter. Firing guns is a more visceral experience now. I guess what I'm trying to say is that they feel more violent and raw.

This all comes down to the sound design of the guns, as well as how they feel when fired. Guns now have more recoil, and you can no longer just hold the trigger button down to take down enemies. You have to do short bursts to be as accurate as possible. Bioware has gone and made a shooter, plain and simple. If any of this sounds absurd, that's understandable, it's just that I notice things like this.

Other small alterations include better running animations, a roll function that actually works, and slight improvements to the cover system. Shepard does't move like a slug anymore. He/She runs and rolls with conviction now. The multiplayer component of the game makes complete sense now. After playing the game and seeing the changes Bioware has made, I can't wait to see what multiplayer is like.

March 6th can't come soon enough, and based on what I've seen, ME3 looks to raise the bar one more time. It really breaks my heart to think that this is the last installment in the series, but I'll get over it. For those who have played it, what are your thoughts? We'd like to hear what you think, especially if you've played multiplayer.

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Bees Knees Apps: Jetpack Joyride

Jetpack Joyride (Halfbrick) is your basic side scrolling obstacle-based game.  Your character is a failing salesman who stumbles upon a secret laboratory who is developing a prototype machine gun powered jetpack.  Pretty straightforward.

As you don your deadly jetpack, you need to maneuver your way through super-charged electric barriers, dodge horizontal laser systems and evade homing missiles.  There are even coins to collect along the way. You can see that these scientists do not want their new toy flying out the front door.

Why is this any different than the helicopter game on Addicting Games?

First of all, it's a mobile app you can take anywhere.  Second, the detailed cartoon graphics bring colorful and eye-catching visuals.  Third, and the most important, Jetpack includes special power-up vehicles that creates a whole new dynamic to gameplay.

Other than your average machine gun jetpack, your character can pick up special vehicles that allow you to teleport, breathe fire, stomp, reverse gravity, eat more coins, and ride like a badass.  These vehicles all have different gameplay mechanics so you always need to change the way you navigate passed obstacles.

Mr. Snuggles, a mechanical fire-breathing dragon, automatically floats upward and holding a finger on the screen brings him down while breathing fire on panicked scientists.

The Hog, a motorcycle, travels quickly across the ground while you automatically terminate scientists and have to hop over barriers.

And, the teleporter has a guided location beacon in which you can instantly materialize yourself to a new location.

These are only to name a few. Jetpack also has special coins you can collect during your airtime adventure which can be used once you crash and burn in a mini slot based game.  You can win extra coins, exploding bomb boosts, 750m headstarts and a second chance to continue or previous game.

Jetpack also has fun store option which allows you to spend your collected coins on vehicle upgrades, special power-ups and a plethora of outfits.  I believe the Super-Saiyan hair is somewhere a little over 9000. "Damn it."

Jetpack Joyride is free to install and comes connected to Apple's Game Center so you can keep track of your high scores and achievements against friends.  I recommend it and would love to see if anyone can beat my 3495m high score.  Please share your high scores below to shame me.

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Thoughts On The Walking Dead Season 2 Return

 SPOILERS BELOW

The mid-season premier opened up directly where the mid season finale left off. When I say exactly, I mean when the opening shot comes in, the camera angle is set so the audience is staring down the barrel of Rick's gun seconds following the execution of Sophia. Shortly following the massacre at Hershel’s farm, many of the main issues that the fans have been wondering about since before the massacre were addressed. Did Hershel know that Sophia was in the barn? He says he didn't, but Shane still doesn't buy it.

During the premier there are a lot of moral crossroads that are presented not only to the characters of the show, but to us as well. Do you agree with Shane opening up the barn door to slaughter those walkers? Should Rick have handled it like he said he was? Is Shane's way of handling this post-apocalyptic world the right or the wrong way? Most of these questions are addressed in the mid-season opener.

Putting all of that on the back burner for the time being, the main issue that I personally think should be addressed first and foremost is; Team Rick or team Shane? I am team Shane all the way. In a world of constant decay one cannot risk life and limb around every corner simply to rescue one little girl. Please don't think of me as being cold hearted here, but put your self in any member of Rick's group's shoes. I would be concerned about survival, and strength in numbers.

Going by the rule of any given police force nowadays, the window is only really 24 hours before the chances of getting the missing person back alive is sliced in half. Now take a zombie infested world with those odds, and that's not exactly a lot of room for success. Nobody wants to come out and say that, however, that is something that totally needs to be brought up. And that’s exactly what Shane does from the very beginning, and nobody listens to the poor guy. Not until the only beacon of hope shows up undead that is.

Rick introduces his good friend 'Python' to some unfortunate soul

Another thing that I would like to point out is that throughout the entire second season so far I felt like Hershel was being a big baby about everything. He didn't want to see the hard truth that was staring him right in the face. It takes Shane to release his wife and put five in her chest and say “WHY IS IT STILL COMING!?” for him to actually see that he is being that delusional. On top off all that he makes the selfish decision to go into town all by his lonesome just to have a drink. So only following logic Rick and Glen go after him.

Which brings us to the next segment of this episode: the bar scene. This 10 minute scene kind of sets the tone for the rest of the season to come. After Rick and Glen pursue Hershel into town and enter the bar, they face a much more trying challenge than walkers. They have to learn to face their fellow man. Two douches barge into the bar and strike up a conversation with Rick. They seem friendly at first, but then things get insane real fast.

They figure out that Rick and friends are held up at Hershel's farm all safe and sound. After an exchange of friendly and not so friendly conversation, it becomes pretty clear where this scene is headed.

After a short while of a little more conversation this turns into the wild west, and we get to see what Rick was like back when he was a bad ass cowboy cop that he showed us in first few episodes of the series. And let me tell you, Rick has one quick draw. In a blink of an eye he whips out his python and puts one square in the not so friendly guys head.

The last thing that really stuck out at me from this premier was when they were gathering the dead corpses of the walkers. They would collect them from the barn to bury and burn, but that's not what stuck out at me.

When Andrea and T-dog loaded the back of the pick up and started driving to the drop off point, they don't even get 50 feet when some poor bastards arm just falls off his body like meat falling off a rib. Andrea nonchalantly runs back, picks it up, and throws it back onto the truck. It just goes to show that this is life to them now, it's second nature, and it's not going away.

By the end of this episode both Hershel and Rick learn that there is more to life in this screwed up walker infested world then just keeping everyone happy. You need to step on some toes sometimes, get your hands dirty. Only then can you wash the blood out from under your finger nails.

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Comic Book Men Shatters Dreams, Destroys Lives

I don't want to be that guy right now. You know, the guy who just wants to take a dump on anything Kevin Smith, just because he's Kevin Smith. I personally like the guy, and I understand why he's doing Comic Book Men, but what the hell?

I'll admit, I liked the show until the employees started talking. Bryan is funny because he's fat and has a beard. And he says things like "Awesome" and "I want to ruin Ming's
life".

His sardonic tone makes him seem cool, when he's really just the same douchey, cynical comic book elitist who hates that you read digital comics (nobody cares that you buy individual issues for $1-$2 more, moron).

Comic Book Men should only serve as a podcast, not a television show. The four dudes that work in the shop are dull, boring, and socially awkward. It's hard to watch because you will feel embarrassed for these ass clowns.

The show follows these four studs who work in Kevin Smith's comic book shop in Jersey (cleverly named Jay and Silent Bob's Secret Stash) as they basically do Pawn Stars for comic book nerds.

The only reason it's even on TV is because Kevin Smith says things. The cast is a batch of weirdos who barter with social miscreants in an effort to capitalize on the 18 to man-child demographic on AMC.

There are times where you will hate yourself for watching. It's unapologetic about how awful it is. I took issue with it blatantly ripping off Pawn Stars, only it wasn't nearly as entertaining.

I used to frequent my local comic book shop nearly everyday, and I can count the times anyone ever came in with the rare crap that was featured in the show. It was laughably staged and painful to watch.

I received a text from a friend about the show, and this is literally what he said after watching it:

"I just wasted an hour of my life watching 'Comic Book Men.' Fuck you Kevin Smith, fuck you."

That's word for word, exactly what he said. This was my response.

"If you told Kevin Smith he's not funny, he would lose so much weight."

We immediately went to hating the guy, but why? Well, I think it's because it's embarrassing to think that this is how people view others who read comics.

I liked Red State, it nearly compensated for Cop Out, but someone tell Smith that and he'll spew some vitriolic hateful shit at you. Words like "fuck" and "stain" will be peppered in his tirade as he stands with an XXXL New Jersey Devils jersey to hide the shame. My friend also illustrated Tracy Morgan in Cop Out via text surprisingly well.

"I'M TRACY MORGAN. AND. I. TALK. LIKE. THIS!"

I laughed really hard because I heard Tracy Morgan in that text. Back on topic, I don't hate Smith for this. I know why he did it, it's just a bad show. I can't see it lasting very long, but I don't know what I'm talking about. I'm just some asshole with a keyboard and that makes my opinion completely invalid right?

Just watch it, then you can try to find ways to defend it, and then finally embrace the fact that you actually hate it. It's a fun ride really, if you like things that are nearly unwatchable. I mean, that's the stuff I live for.

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Adam Adamowicz's Artwork Lives On

You may not be familiar with who Adam Adamowicz is, but you know the worlds he created. He was the concept artist at Bethesda and was responsible for the amazing worlds in Fallout 3 and Skyrim. Sadly, Adamowicz passed away, but his artwork will live on. 

Fallout 3 is easily one of my favorite games, and I was enamored with the post-apocalyptic world that Adamwicz was able to create. I have also played Skyrim, but I've always prefered the Fallout universe with its steam punk appeal. This isn't to say that the Skyrim universe isn't gorgeous, it's simply matter of preference. 

I've been going through Adamowicz's concept art for the better part of an hour, and I've decided the world needs to see this.

This stuff is really impressive. People really tend to forget how much work and creativity goes into these worlds we get lost in. It's sad to see Adam leave us so soon, but his art will always be remembered. For the rest of this gallery, go here.

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Big Cross-over Events vs. Individual Titles

So let’s take a wide lens look at comics of present past, and future. We have DC doing all sorts of crazy, culminating in Flashpoint, which was then followed up by “The New 52.” Essentially, individual titles with minimal cross-over (not including the Green Lanterns on this list) followed by a major event, which ended up in them starting over from scratch.

Now that they've started over, we are all wondering “what will DC’s first BIG event be in the coming months?” That's the key here, we don’t know yet, and even if we are given the slightest of ideas, it's still months away from actually happening. There is too much going on in each title to actually give way to a cross-over event. Not to mention Justice League as an issue in and of itself is acting as a pseudo cross-over title, where all of these characters are coming together to face a common enemy.

Compare that to Marvel, where each year there is always “the Big Event.” House of M, Civil War, World War Hulk, Secret Invasion, Dark Reign, Siege, Fear Itself, and now Avengers vs. X-Men. This is a lot to expect out of the writers at Marvel to actually preserve continuity and write the big event. This is just a small list of big events, not including anything Cosmic or individual character books, that involves a multitude of others.

So this Summer Marvel intorduced Avengers vs. X-Men, and I can tell you it's on the top of my reserves list. What I love about this book is how it utilizes some of Marvel’s top talent in one book, which only crosses over into Avengers titles and X-Men titles. Usually crossovers have about 1000 tie-ins you can buy to get the complete story, but Marvel learned their lesson and is limiting it to one unique crossover. It's also bringing back the idea of hero vs. hero, which we last saw in Civil War, one of the greatest books in the past twenty years if not longer.

So what I was thinking is “which concept is better keeping to the classic one character per book, and writing it like that, or should we have crossover events which show that these characters live in the same universe and on the same earth?

I think that both are essential to a comic’s survival, and that when there are too few major events things feel incomplete, there needs to be that spine to tie it together. Also, throwing out too many just doesn’t work. Stick to the best stories and shelve the others. I’m curious to see what others think

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Motorola Droid 4 Available Today

Attention all Android lovers, Motorola's latest and greatest Droid 4 is NOW AVAILABLE!!! With its 4inch HD screen, dual core 1.2 GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, 8mp/1080p camera, and 4G LTE compatibility this device seems to hit every spot on even the most demanding of techies checklists. The Droid 4 also settles down those folks who are still not convinced to switch to touchscreen only keyboards with its LED edge lit qwerty keyboard.

This bad boy even has the mini HDMI output so you can show off all those great 1080p videos and 8mp photos on the big screen. The only downside I can find is that the Droid 4 is not shipping with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich right away. Early adopters will have to deal with 2.3.5 Gingerbread for the time being. The update is said to be on the way but no release date has been revealed. A major bonus to buying yourself the Droid 4 from VerizonWireless.com is they are offering Free Overnight Shipping so if you order before 4:30pm this powerhouse device could be in hand by tomorrow. For the full specs click here.

Source: VerizonWireless

Engadget

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David Jaffe Wants Your Help "Blowing sh*t up" In New Twisted Metal Ad

In a brilliant marketing move, Jaffe is in a new video asking for players help destroying the Sweet Tooth truck with a light machine gun. You're probably wondering how you would go about doing that, and that's where the brilliance comes in. Players will log into a shootmytruck.com, press a button and make it rain bullets.

This is one of the most interesting ways to market a product, while having fun in the process. Twisted Metal is set to release February 14th. Check the video for all them deets bro...



[Source: PlayStation Lifestyle]

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Sony's Financial Rating Downgraded

It appears that Nintendo isn't the only company suffering financial woes as of late. Sony, whose offerings stretch well beyond gaming, recently announced a $2.9 billion loss. This is just one of several reasons that has led to Standard and Poor lowering Sony's long-term corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings to a BBB+.

Because of continuing net losses since fiscal 2008, Sony's profitability looks significantly weaker than that of its global industry peers. In addition, we believe its ratio of adjusted debt to EBITDA is likely to remain high for the next one to two years, even for companies in the 'BBB' category. Standard & Poor's also believes Sony's adjusted total debt to capital (excluding finance operations) will rise to around 40% as of March 31, 2012, from 35% a year earlier. However, we base our one-notch downgrade on our view that Sony's profitability and financial standing will gradually recover in fiscal 2012 because there will be no repeat of one-off expenses due to floods in Thailand and impairment losses on stockholdings.

If you have no idea what any of that financial mumbo jumbo means, think of it in terms of a consumer credit report on a much larger scale. Sony has been struggling since fiscal year 2008 to post any positive financials. This may also be why former CEO and President Howard Stringer stepped down earlier this month. Kazuo Hirai, former president of the Consumer Products & Services Group for Sony, has taken over as the new CEO for the company. 

With the PSP Vita coming out later this month in North America, it should interesting to see what steps Hirai and Sony take in order to turn things around for the company  

Source: Reuters

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Corning Inc. Brings You The Future Through Glass

Corning Inc. is a manufacturer of specialty glass (Gorilla Glass) and ceramics and have been used by many big time companies.  Apple, including one.  There capabilities include display technologies, environmental technologies, telecommunications, life sciences, and specialty materials for advanced optics.  That is nice and all, but what does that mean to us?

It means a fully integrated future with the use of their glass products in collaboration with consumer technology companies we can't help but buy. Imagine a day with self-dimming window panes, 3D projection displays, large panel touch gesture screens and the ability to connect all of them seamlessly.

Well, Corning Inc. has brought a small taste of what that could be like.  Watch the videos below and experience a "Day Made of Glass".  I warn you though.  Tech heads or not, you will need a paper towel to clean off the drool from your desk.

A Day Made of Glass

 

A Day Made of Glass 2

A Day Made of Glass: Unpacked (What is possible now, and what isn't)

Source: Corning Inc.

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A Look Into the Diablo III Beta

Blizzard’s Diablo III Beta was released a few days ago to 100,000 lucky fans.  More will be sent out through contests and giveaways, but there are still the millions of fans who will not enjoy the experience early.  Let me try to be of some help.

Can you use all five heroes?

Yes.

What difficulty is the beta?

Blizzard set the difficulty on normal and this cannot be changed. There are greyed out options for the higher difficulties and an option to create a Hardcore character. For all who don’t know what Hardcore means, you get only one death. Just one.

Is there anything new in the main menu screen?

The initial log in screen has a similar layout to World of Warcraft. The character screen has a slot list on the left for your characters. There is a new feature that allows you to customize your own unique banner. This is connected to your overall account and not to each character. These banners can be seen around waypoints in the game when playing with other people. If you are a fan of the Game of Thrones novels, you will love this.

How much of the actual game is in the Diablo III beta?

The beta consists of what is said to be the first half of Act 1. I am unsure if this is true or not. It is a quick play taking up to roughly two hours of your time in main quests, but you can reset these and continue leveling up your character to level 13.

What is the first half of Act 1 about?

Okay, lets get detailed here.

Your hero starts on the outskirts of New Tristram. The “Fallen Star” piques your hero’s curiosity to explore the damage it has done. Each hero has their own dialogue keeping it fresh between the characters you create. As you come to the gates of New Tristram you come across Captain Rumford and his soldiers as the hold back the newly risen undead. Rumford gives a quest to talk with Leah (Deckard Cain’s niece) who was assumed to be the only survivor from the Fallen Star as it decimated Tristram Cathedral.

After confronting Leah, you head back to Rumford. He asks you to help him with the undead threat on New Tristram by killing off enemies called Wretched Mothers and their Queen at the Old Ruins (the original Tristram in Diablo II).

Once the path is cleared, you then set out with Leah to her mother Adria’s hut for the gate key to get in to Tristram Cathedral. Upon finding the key in a secret underground cavern below Adria’s home, you head out alone again to look for Deckard Cain.

In the depths of the Cathedral, you come across Deckard Cain fleeing from the Skeleton King and his minions. He then tells you that the Fallen Star has awakened the Mad King Leoric (Skeleton King) after you save him from impending death. Leoric was driven mad by Diablo’s evil and was killed by one of his knights. In order to get to the star, you must vanquish the Skeleton King who now guards the path.

Easy right? No.

In order to kill the Skeleton King, you need to find his old crown buried in the Defiled Crypts of the Cemetery of the Forsaken. Haedrig the Blacksmith, from the second Diablo, tells you about its whereabouts after you help him kill his sick and evil undead wife. You also look for his apprentice who hasn’t returned to New Tristram. 

You find the apprentice dead and tell Haedrig. Who cares?

After fighting and re-killing a dead chancellor who protects the Skeleton Kings crown, you bring it back to Haedrig so he can shine the thing up a bit. It needs to look glorious for when you kill the Skeleton King. Pristine, I know.

Now with the spit-shined crown in your hands, you make your way back to the Old Cathedral and fight your way to the lower levels. You eventually come across a Templar by the name of Kormac whom you save from a group of sorcerers. He tells you about his mission to kill a treasonous Templar, Jondar, who has become a necromancer and protects the Skeleton King.

He wants the Skeleton King dead as well, so you shake hands, hug and go about your business together.

As you scoot down farther in search of the Skeleton Kings Royal crypt you come across Jondar who Kormac “Troy’s” to death. You eventually find your way to the crypt after fighting off the Skeleton Kings small army of undead soldiers who magically spawn out of four pillars.

Magical pillars.

They die, the pillars fall and you can finally enter the Royal Crypt. There is an epic battle once you place the crown on the Mad Kings remains and the Skeleton King falls to your mighty skills. The end.

Is there anything new in the gameplay?

There are collectible books that give experience and a little bit of Diablo lore which helps with background information. This is presented through audio so it doesn’t interrupt gameplay and gives you some nice bed-time stories.

I also came across a battle event called the Jar of Souls. This event is triggered by clicking on a glowing jar found in the center of the room. A small quest is appears telling you to kill the approaching enemies being spawned by four pillars or poles. It is a great way to build some experience and they send a lot of enemies at you. A lot.

I will be going over some more parts of the game later in the week, like the Blacksmith Training so keep a look out.

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The Fun of Fright Night

I found myself bored the other night, so I checked On Demand, and I came across the new remake of Fright Night. I remember seeing previews for this flick and thinking it looked a bit campy and silly. I looked into the summary and saw that Colin Farrell and David Tennant were listed in the cast. I immediately decided that I needed to watch this, I’m a huge fan of David Tennant, so I hit play.

The plot was decent, main character Charlie Brewster (Anton Yelchin) discovers that his neighbor, Jerry Danridge (Colin Farrell), is a vampire. He seeks the assistance of the Vegas show runner/self proclaimed vampire specialist, Peter Vincent (David Tennant), for help destroying the vampire. He is turned away and returns home. 

As soon as he goes home all hell breaks loose. Jerry the vampire is after Charlie, his girlfriend Amy (Imogen Poots), and his mother Jane (Toni Collette).

There is a battle and Charlie now takes it upon himself to do whatever he can do destroy the vampire. He returns back to the Vegas strip to try and get help from Peter, while he is there Jerry arrives and with a new ally. Charlie’s ex best friend, who tried to tell him that his neighbor was a vampire, has been turned into a vampire.

Peter hides while Charlie has to battle his friend while dealing with the guilt of his friend being turned because he failed to listen earlier. After he has defeated his friend, Charlie and Amy attempt to escape from the building. Jerry is after them; he succeeds in grabbing Amy and turning her.

Charlie prepares himself for the fight of his life and is joined by Peter, who finally decides to fight. The big battle happens during daylight in Jerry’s house. Charlie and Peter discover Jerry’s underground hideout, and find out he has been turning humans in an effort to build up his numbers.

The big battle happens, and when all seems lost, Charlie uses an idea suggested earlier, and lights up his suit, attacks Jerry and succeeds in finally killing the vampire. The turned vampires return back to human, as their maker had been killed.

The film is definitely a bit ridiculous, But I say this in a good way. What movie with a vampire living next door to you wouldn’t be? I giggled during parts of the film I’m sure I wasn’t supposed to, and the way the vampires looked when they were ready to rip out someone’s throat, was awkward looking. They look more bat like than man. A different look than I have been used to. The trend of vampires in the past few vamp movies and series has been human like. The vampire looks added to the ridiculousness.

The movie really should change the beginning of its title, there wasn’t much fright in Fright Night. That doesn’t mean the movie was bad, it just wasn’t really a horror film. It had some freaky scenes, and of course blood, but there really wasn’t much to scare the audience. The fight scenes were entertaining, and there was some good comedy in the film. The movie was fun, silly, bloody, and entertaining. Some characters left much to be desired, Charlie and Peter were by far my favorite characters. Peter being a big part of the humor of this film.

The film is definitely worth a view. I wouldn’t go into it thinking it’s going to be a scary horror. Go in looking for an entertaining vampire movie. The acting is good and there is enough blood and fun for everyone. I enjoyed it, and plan on viewing any sequels released.

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Nocturnal Release: Drive

I picked up Drive last night on Blu-Ray. Damn I love the 80's. While watching it with my friend, she originally had thought that the film took place in the 80's due to the soundtrack. Now if you haven't noticed a recurring trend in my articles I love two things in movies: score/soundtrack and the 80's. Well, the 80's isn't really something that I look for, but I just had to reiterate.  

The movie is very slow paced, and it isn't filled with a massive amount of driving, so if you think that this is another Fast Five then you're dead wrong. The marketing of this movie can be a little deceiving. When I saw this in theaters, a few people in the audience weren't too pleased, but if you aren't pleased with this movie then you might have missed the point.

Ryan Gosling has been known better for being eye candy in a bunch of sappy romantic films. This movie showed him curb stomping a hit-man in an elevator and making his face into a potato latka. Just dropping fools at the drop of the hat is NOT the Ryan Gosling that the ladies know and swoon over, which made this movie all the better. After he squashed the beejezus out of that goon, I could have sworn he was gonna make that iconic Bruce Lee face after he greased somebody

                                                             Mudhole in the face....IN THE FACE!

The movie takes a drastic, violent turn towards the latter half of the movie, which really surprised me. I was taken along for this smooth, cool ride that ended up becoming a dark tale. I love that about this movie. I don't like to be able to predict what is going to happen before it happens. I want something fresh, something new. And this movie delivered. Like this movie for what it is, don't hate it for what you want it to be.

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The Amazing Spider-Man Trailer

Check out the latest look at the latest reboot of Marvel's The Amazing Spider-Man!

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Haywire Review

Steven Soderbergh continues to evolve his craft as he takes us into the world of spy versus counterspy. As he did with Sasha Grey and 'The Girlfriend Experience', Soderbergh has an amazing ability to have taken two women with little to no acting experience and really make them shine. This time, female MMA fighter Gina Carano takes the lead as Malorie Kane, a spy for hire and ex Marine. Sent off on a mission by her boss played by Ewan McGregor, she enters into a tale of betrayal, murder, and espionage.  

What I love about Soderbergh ( and Tarantino also) is the use of music in his films. I absolutely loved the choice of music for the Oceans movies. It gave the movie this sense of class and sophistication. It wasn't like you were watching a high octane action flick like the Bourne movies (which I love by the way). 

He takes you along a cool, hip ride with characters that aren't completely far fetched. The cast of characters is so well chosen: Michael Douglas, Antonio Banderas, Channing Tatum, Bill Paxton, and Michael Fassbender. Characters that just ooze with cool calculating exteriors.  

The action was the heart and soul of the movie.  Carano's background as a martial arts fighter gave the action scenes an extra sense of realism due to the fact that she has actually used these maneuvers in real life. This added a sense of brutality to each fight scene, which made it even more compelling to watch.  Carano really makes an impression as a sexy, deadly spy. Think Bond meets Bourne with curves. 

Carano was simply fantastic and I'm hoping that I see more of her in film in the future. But if she goes back into the octagon and continues to beat the stuffing out of people, I'm totally okay with that.  If you're a fan of the Oceans movies, or just want to see a movie that is more than just your average spy flick, you'll really enjoy this.

Bottom Line: A well directed action tour de force with a phenomenal cast that will not disappoint. Cough up the loot and check this one out.

Review written by Eric Colon

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Thoughts On The Grey

"Once more into the fray. Into the last fight I'll ever know. Live and die on this day. Live and die on this day."

This post is spoiler-ridden. You've been warned. 

This poem from Liam Nesson's latest film "The Grey" echoed far deeper as the movie progressed. Nesson plays a wolf hunter who protects employees of a petroleum company in Alaska from wolf attack while working on the pipeline. The movie plays out as if you were reading a novel, fitting because this was based on the short story Ghost Walker by Ian Mc'Kenzie Jeffers. It tells a tale of a man who's battle with nature and beast is an outward manifestation of the battle within his soul.

After a harrowing plan crash, Nesson and several other survivors, find that living through the crash allowed them to enter a new nightmare. They begin to be harassed by a pack of grey wolves. From the first death in the movie you see that the main character has a unique perspective on death. Maybe it was the suicide attempt that was alluded to in the beginning of the movie or maybe it was the death of his wife who visits him in his dreams. 

Once he held the shredded body of one of his companions, looked in his eyes and led him to the afterlife, I knew that I was watching something more than just a character death. You see a man who has walked that valley before, who has seen the face of death as it crept into his life, but that death wasn't coming for him, not yet. That death came for someone he cared deeply for. He recognized the fear in that persons eyes and knew exactly what to say to make that fearful transition as peaceful as possible.

As the story goes on I wondered as to why Nesson's character is fighting so hard to cling to survival. It seemed that as each of his companions died, his resolve to live began to grow.  It culminated to a powerful scene in which Nesson screams out into the heavens looking for God in the frozen hell that he is in. Wondering and hoping that those cries will be answered, but no answer comes. Regardless of the lack of response from this unseen God, the movie heads toward the inevitable fight with the alpha wolf of the pack.

This film was beyond what I expected. After the trailers I had thought that this would be a movie like Anthony Hopkins' "The Edge". But it was more than just a movie about survival, it was a movie about life. It was a film that asks us to re-examine the battles that we go through in this life and gets us looking deep inside at what truly keeps us going.

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Predicting Super Bowl XLVI In Madden 2012

Seeing as The Geek Asylum is based in New York, it only seems appropriate that we take the time to predict Super Bowl XLVI. Will the Giants do us proud?  Will the Pats get their revenge for 2007? Well that's what we have Madden 2012 for. Consider it a crystal ball, if you will. The game was predicted in two different ways. One game was actually played out by a physical player, while the other game was simulated.

Lets start with the first game played by a physical player who chooses to play as the Giants. Keep in mind that the rosters are completely up to date to ensure that we have the closest thing to today's game. Enjoy.

Game 1 Breakdown

First half: Giants receive ball at kick off. They go three and out in first possession. Tom Brady having trouble dealing with the Giants blitz. He manages to put a drive together in the latter portion of the quarter effectively getting the pats in the red zone.

Giants D steps up big time in a goal line stand and hold the Pats to a field goal. Eli finally gets in a groove and puts a drive together. Ahmad Bradshaw is killing it on the ground and eventually gains a TD. End of first half, the score is 7-3 Giants. Overall a very defensive first half.

Second Half: Giants D will not quit, putting Brady on the ground multiple times forcing him to make mistakes. Pierre-Paul is having an insane 3Q sacking Brady twice. Then Mathias Kiwanuka makes a big play when he smacks Brady so hard that it drives the ball loose and Pierre-Paul intercepts the ball.

With great field position, Eli converts the turnover to six points by launching a 38 yarder to Hakeem Nicks for the TD. The New England Patriot's nightmare is just getting started. Giants Strong Safety Kenny Phillips plays like a man possessed. Sacks Brady three times in the Pats next two possessions. Then he intercepts the ball at the start of the 4Q and runs 42 yds with it.

It's just ugly for New England. Eli converts again on another masterful 54 yd drive utilizing Cruz on the slot and then the nail in the coffin with the short pass to Nicks for the TD. The rest of the game sees Brady getting mangled and torn to shreds by the Giants D line. They hold Brady to no TD's and Giants demolish the Pats 24-6. It was glorious.

Final Stats/Awards: Eli Manning 21/32 192 yds 2TD's no INT's. Ahmad Bradshaw 17 carries 102 yds 1TD. Pierre-Paul 4 Tackles 2 Sacks 1INT. Kenny Phillips 6 Tackles 3 Sacks 1INT. Kenny Phillips gets Superbowl MVP. This is every Giants fans wet dream, but this just isn't going to happen. The Patriots pass protection is a lot better than that, at least we hope so. Remember that Game 1 was played by a physical player.

Game 2--Simulation

This is the game that was played as a simulation, which played out much differently. Giants defense isn't nearly as nuts as it was in the first game. The game is actually pretty boring after Eli Manning puts up a TD to Nicks and Hynoski runs in for another TD in the 1Q. Pats D adjusts quickly applying pressure to Eli throughout the game.

Eli throws three interceptions in the first half, he's sacked three times, and he fumbles the ball once. Fortunately the Giants D steps it up and keeps the Pats scoreless. The rest of the game is just a defensive chess match with no real action to speak of. Neither team can get a solid dive going or they would get to the red zone and choke.

The final ended up being 17-3 Giants.  Justin Tuck ends up getting MVP for his eight tackles and two sacks. This better not be today's game, no one wants a defensive match-up on Super Bowl Sunday. Let us know what your prediction for today's game is in the comments below.

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