Rahul Shirke

monoface: Mr. Potato Head on steroids

Browsing through the five-hundred lane interstate highway that is the internets, I came across monoface, an interesting project that puts all create-your-own-funny-face online games to shame. It uses actual photos (and really good ones, too) to create hybrids. Of course, no gender segregation and some humorous subjects makes for some rather strikingly funny results, as you see above.

I really like the professionalism here. Every possible face look real (albeit awkward) and blends perfectly. If you have nothing better to do, I recommend to hit the link and try monoface out for some laughs. If you have something better to do, I recommend you hit the link anyways.

Hitman IS going to be R-Rated

The rumour mills worked overtime yesterday, to bring in some phoney news about the Hitman movie being watered down for a PG-13 release. Looks like it was all lies. We’ve got news (or rather, confirmation) that Hitman is heading straight for an R-rating and will not compromise on gore, violence and all that stuff.

Director Xavier Gens is still on the project and is apparently confused as to why the rumours wanted him out of the project. Thank the lord for this news. I was under the impression that just once they make a good video game-movie and blam, they censor it out. Let’s hope we’re getting all that blood and gore we wanted.

A day of woe: EA buys Bioware, Pandemic

’tis truly a sad day in the gaming industry. Two of our most loved game developers, Bioware and Pandemic have been bought by the corporate giant that is EA. Well, I don’t need to list EA’s evils before you, but let’s just say that they are a large corporation, and Microsoft and Sony are also large corporations.

Bioware is one of the most popular and trusted game developers in the industry, standing by the likes of Valve, Epic, Bungie and so on. Their forté was RPGs and not just any RPGs, but really good ones. Neverwinter Nights, Knights of the Old Republic, Jade Empire, Baldur’s Gate series, and for God’s sake, Mass Effect, all of them are from Bioware. With EA’s acquisition, we may just be looking at a writhing death for any more awesome titles like these.

Also, Bioware is working on a top-secret MMORPG project for release somewhere in the future. EA is now going to get all the cash. EA’s CFO Warren Jensen stated bluntly: “”In fiscal 2009 and 2010, we expect the BioWare and Pandemic properties to deliver revenue in excess of $300 million annually.” That made me chuckle. Halo 3 brought in that much in a week. But it does make you wonder: Is the Bioware/EA acquisition headed for a model similar to the Bungie/Microsoft one?

Pandemic Studios is famous for its Mercenaries and Star Wars: Battlefront lines of games. They also created Destroy All Humans! and its sequel, two fun games that went unnoticed. Again, all their base now belongs to EA. They have no chance to survive, make their time.

The total deal has cost EA $860 million, which is more than a hole in the pocket. Regardless, it could be possible that EA is not only trying to diversify its portfolio, but gain a substantial lead over its competitors. Besides, Pandemic is known for its LucasArts games (Mercenaries, Battlefront) and one of Bioware’s finest is also an LA title (Knights of the Old Republic). Is EA trying to humiliate LA? Is LA going to strike back? Are both LA and EA fronts of an organization planning to take over the gaming industry? God, I hope so.

Toshiba: HD-DVD sells more than Blu-ray, more laughing at Sony

One of technology’s more heated battles is between the HD-DVD and Blu-ray storage formats, a rivalry comparable to Windows/Linux/Mac, UT/Quake 3 and Sony/Microsoft. The latest strike has been made, and Toshiba reports that HD-DVD is in the lead!

HD-DVD players began to outsell Blu-ray ones since about mid-September, according to NPD sales figures. Jodi Sally, Toshiba VP for marketing of digital A/V products said that year to date, according to NPD figures, HD DVD players command 53% of sales; Blu-ray players, 44%; dual format players, 3%. The lead may sound marginal, but it may just herald a dark future for Blu-ray.

Sony managed to woo many customers to their camp of evil when they released a cheaper version of Blu-ray players, and attained a status of absolute win. Sally says that the victory was short-lived and that HD-DVD still dominates the scene. Sony can be seen crying in that corner again, like last week (or the week before).

And as for the PC, Toshiba expects 5 million HD-DVD drives to be sold in the fiscal year 2008. With this, they seek to compete further against the atrocities of Sony’s Blu-ray. What is Toshiba’s master plan?

Toshiba believes more people are buying PC HD DVD drives with the pure intention to watch high-def movies than people who are buying the PS3. Sources have estimated that just 20% of PS3 owners have played movies on the machine.

Where will war turn next? Will Blu-ray strike back? Will Toshiba merge with Sony to form the Imperial Japanese Electronics corporations and attack American shores? We can only ~~hope~~ wait.

[Via Video Business]

Leaked info on Battlefield 3 shows 80-player battles, late-2008 release

It looks the waterworks just got broken, because the leaks have started afresh. DigitalBattle has gotten their murky hands on a PDF that outlines Battlefield 3’s (which has not been announced yet) features and stuff. The document was supposed to be for investors, but, ya know.

The game looks fantastic from where I stand. There will be two factions – the NATO and the Middle-Eastern Coalition, who will fight it out in “ticket-based” battles. 8 maps will be included in the release and 40 players will be the max for each team – making for a humongous 80 player standoff! Wow!

Maps will mostly be set in Middle-Eastern cities, with one map titled “Baghdad Burning”. There will be 24 vehicles per faction, (total of 48!) 17 weapons per faction and 22 unlocks – which makes for a whole lot of weapons included. The game will also introduce “Battalions” which will consist of 3-4 squads. Five classes – Five playable classes; Sniper, Assault, Engineer, Medic and Support are present – not a big surprise there.

Other features include:

Online stats tracking, awards and “real world ranks”
“Soldier” feature, looks like MMO-styled characters and avatars
Ranked servers will be available for resellers weeks before the game ships (for testing, apparently, ed.)
In-game replay and recording feature
VoIP, friends list, in-game IM-client and “extensive clan support”
Built-in auto software updater (no more patches!, ed.)

As for release and stuff – here’s what we know. It will be released in late 2008, with a teaser and announcement in January. Vista and OS X are supported, with no mention of XP (oh noes!). EA has played the diplomatic corporation and has given a stern “no comment” comment right now. We stand by for updates.

McG and Vin Diesel in Terminator 4?

Some of the latest news tells us that McG, famous for directing Charlie’s Angels and Stay Alive is in talks for directing Terminator 4. Doesn’t sound like a bad choice to me, at least if you consider the likes of well, Boll. Production on T4 has certainly sped up, though – the script arrived last week and since the movie is pre-strike, we should expect production to start ASAP.

Another piece of news says that Vin Diesel is rumoured to be in talks to play the terminator this time around. At least no one will complain about his acting, that way. Come to think of it – he’d make a fantastic Terminator!

As for the story itself, it has been confirmed that Terminator 4 will carry on from the story of Terminator 3 – the apocalypse has taken place and now John Connor has to form an army of rebels against the evil Skynet. I like the way the Terminator movies take place in two time frames, heh.

Who’ll make the cut? How will the movie fare? You can only discuss and comment right now. We’ll wait for the movie, though.

[Via Snarkerati]