2001: a Webpage Odyssey » Series of tubes

STEAM + MAC = GOOD 4 GAMES

Benjamin van Houts — Wed, 12 May 2010 23:08:54 +0000

I have no plans to play many, if at all any games on my mac now that steam is out. However I’m still very excited about the news. While Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo take over gaming in the console world, valve on the other hand is making some very smart moves in the desktop world. Just like steam when it first came out on pc, steam on mac has very little in the way of games (but it does have free Portal). Steam for me has gone from being a irritation, back in the days of half life 2 on dial up, to one damn good reason to turn my back on retail store and deduce my piracy to zero.

As the library of games start to grow and mature for mac users so will gaming on mac. If Vavle brings out steam for Linux likes its been rummaged could this mean valve has a very strong standing in the desktop gaming world? While services like Games for Windows failed, could the killer combo of games like half-life, portal and Team fortress combined with steam be Valves equivalent to Apple’s ipod and itunes? Steam is not the only on-line gaming platform, nore is it the best designed one (though the new redesign is a step in the right direction), but its one of the most popular and it does have some great games and killer sales.

I for one welcome our “new” overload of Desktop gaming.

Steam Shop

MY MAC RUNS ON STEAM

Benjamin van Houts — Wed, 12 May 2010 20:56:26 +0000

Just got up fro my 6:30 alarm for work. However I’m jumping back into bed as its cold and all I wanted to do was check out steam for mac. Out of my 185 steam games 12 work for mac. Got to download portal and torchlight

WAR OF TROPHIES, GOD

Benjamin van Houts — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 02:54:45 +0000

I’m really liken the silly trophies that can be unlock in the new God of war Collection for the PlayStation 3. Take for example: “Zero Health = Bronze Trophy (Bronze) Open a Health Chest when your health meter is already full”. Lets not forget this pop culture references to the movie Back to the Future: “1.21 Gigawatts (Bronze) Acquire Poseidon’s Rage”.

The box art loudly proclaims the game is Remastered in HD, while the game does run at 720p (don’t get me started why this couldn’t have been 1080p) the in-game pre-rendered cut-scenes are still in their original lower resolution but are presented in wide screen. The game has a setting for compensating for over or under scan and the sound is still in Dolby Pro logic II (sorry no Dolby Digital). If your a fan or never finished the original games back when they where on the the PlayStation 2 this is a great way to get your God on before God of War 3 comes out.

Kratos

BUMS, BOOBS & SPOT HEALING BRUSH?

Benjamin van Houts — Mon, 19 Jun 2006 08:40:26 +0000

Digital retouching in Photoshop can often be a challenging task but the results can be most rewarding. I do sometimes get frustrated with having to fix common mistakes that could have been easily avoided during the photo shoot. However attempting to improve an image without making it look blatantly obvious is a fun and challenging task when trying to stick to deadlines.

I don’t want to spend hours toying over some smaller detail when I’ve probably got to make the same correction on 20 more images. I’d like to think I’m rather competent in Photoshop but Nothing is more depressing then seeing the skills of a professional retouches, bodies are re-sculpted to look like mythical gods while skin tones are made smooth like silk. However that depression quickly passes as one’s mind springs to life, formulating ideas for ways to reduce the size of a model’s derriere.

Check out these links for some professional retouches:

Taylor James

Rocket Studio

Digital Retouch

BRIDGE OVER THE COMMANDER

Benjamin van Houts — Sat, 20 May 2006 08:19:25 +0000

Star Trek: Bridge Commander maybe a bit of a hit and miss for some (the words Star Trek Turing even the hardcore of sci-fi fans off) however the game has a lot to offer despite some of it’s short comings. Playing the role of Captain in a Galaxy classed stair ship the player must uncover a secret plot to destroy the Federation. While not an original plot the games strong points lay in its game play. As the caption of your ship you can issues orders to your crew members or directly take on their rolls manually, oversee all major operations of your vessel.

While the single player campaign suffers from wordy cut scene the game’s strong points lay in its quick battle system and the hundreds of downloadable third party mods. Mods range from new ships from all walks of the stat trek universe to graphic and game play improvements. It’s these mods alone that make the game appealing long after its release. Reliving famous battles like the one in Wrath of Khan is only a quick download way.

ZOMBIES & PUNCK-GOTH DYKES

Benjamin van Houts — Sat, 13 May 2006 08:15:55 +0000

Ross Campbell is an artist who likes horror movies, Japanese giant monsters, zombies, cave girls and mystic kung fu monks to name just a hand full of things. Ross’ two most recent publications, The abandoned and Wet Moon volume one, where recently purchased by myself from Amazon after falling in love with his work on deviant art the year before.

He’s main character Celo in the graphic novel Wet Moon is a neurotic, but sexy, girl embarking in the start of her college life. This first volume in an undisclosed saga introduces many colourful characters who dwell in the gothic, swampy southern town of Wet Moon. At first glance the comic seem like a “day in the life” affair, with many of its charming concepts been easily relatable to. However while a Lot of ground is covered in this premier installment, what parts of it’s underlining plot that isn’t reviled will help pave the ground for its ultimate susses.

I hope that Ross continues this style of storytelling, leaving the reader to second guessing its motives, while providing just the right amount of maturity and freedom when dealing with the comic’s more adult issues.

IF I HAD A MANSION IT WOULD BE MANIAC

Benjamin van Houts — Fri, 04 Jun 2004 10:39:28 +0000

Maniac Mansion Deluxe is a superb remake of one of the best adventure games of all time. Ron Gilbert‘s wacky and revolutionary masterpiece comes to life as never before in this Windows version lovingly crafted by fans: sporting improved SCUMM point-and-click interface, digitized sound effects, and gorgeous 256-color VGA graphics.

Download Maniac Mansion Deluxe
The lucasArts Museum
Classics Reunited

YEAR 2019? NO WAY IT’S UT2003!

Benjamin van Houts — Tue, 22 Jul 2003 09:59:44 +0000

Being a huge Blade Runner fan I was impressed with AngelHeart map, dm-2019, for Unreal Tournament 03/04. The map attempts to recreate many well known locations from the movie in outstanding detail. dm-2019 is one map that will push your gaming rig to the max, this 47.8 MB file is not only big in size but big in scale!

Download DM-2019 From BeyoundUnreal