New Street Fighter IV trailer

A new trailer has hit the interknot, nothing major just a splice job between the first trailer and game play footage. Enjoy

Funny Games Preview

While most of you are eagerly awaiting JJ Abrams monster mash, Cloverfield, and getting so serious about TDK there are gonna be a number of movies that are gonna fly right under your radar like CJ7 and this remake of the 1998 flick of the same name. Naomi Watts and Tim Roth star as a upper middle class family that takes a vacation at their summer house with their son. Sounds lovely don't it? After watching the trailer I'm getting a bit of the Scream vibe from the trailer but Funny Games looks a bit darker.
Michael Pitt and Brady Corbet look like they doing their best to perpetuate the "white folks are crazy" mythos, great job fellas!
Check out the trailer for yourself...
http://wip.warnerbros.com/funnygames/

CJ7 Preview

CJ7 is the latest comedy from Stephen Chow following Kung Fu Hustle. CJ7 is a comedy about a poor laborer named Ti (Stephen Chow) and his son Dicky. Dicky wants to get the cool toys his wealthier classmates have but Ti can't afford them, so one night Ti goes to the junkyard hoping to find Dicky a toy. Ti comes home with a mysterious green orb that turns out to be a squishy alien. Dicky sees this as his chance to impress his classmates. But the class bully has plans to take CJ7 from Dicky.

Inspire by Stephen Spielbergs E.T, CJ7 looks to be another fun comedy from Stephen Chow, Shao Lin Soccer & Hung Fu Hustle.

http://www.sonypictures.net/movies/cj7/

PS3 + Folding @ Home = Hope

This holiday season Sony sold 1.2 million PS3 consoles. Congrats to all those new PS3 owners! Not only are you playing next gen games like Call of Duty 4 MW, you're enjoying movies in HD 1080p glory, you can also be proud that your console is powerful enough to help with the research of various diseases, such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, cystic fibrosis and many cancers. The program harnesses the unused processing power of the Cell chip, and perform computationally intensive simulations of protein folding and other molecular dynamics .These simulations can take up to 30 years for a single computer to complete, Folding@home enables this task to be shared among thousands of computers connected via the network ... The Cell/B.E. Did you know processor inside each PS3 is roughly 10 times faster than a standard mainstream chip inside a personal computer (PC), so researchers are able to perform the simulations much faster, speeding up the research process?!

According to Guinness, the PS3 accounts for about 60% of all teraFLOPS performed!On September 16, 2007, the Folding@Home project officially attained a performance level higher than one petaFLOPS, becoming the first computing system of any kind to do so, although it had briefly peaked above one petaFLOPS in March 2007. In comparison, the fastest supercomputer in the world (as of November 2007, IBM's Blue Gene/L supercomputer) peaks at 478.2 teraFLOPS (1000 teraFLOPS=1 petaFLOP).

So when you're not playing dinner time or when your about to call it a night go fold! On December 19th, Sony updated the Folding@Home client to version 1.3 to allow users to run music stored on their hard drives while contributing. Another feature of the 1.3 update allows users to automatically shut down their console after current work is done or after a limited period of time.

A Tale of Souls and swords....and the force eternally be told

One of the more interesting news stories that's come out of CES 08 aside from the Warner Bro's Blu ray announcement is that Soul Cailbur IV's guest characters won't be Kratos or Master Chief or any other characters from video gaming. The popular weapons based fighter will star two iconic figures from a galaxy far far away. Darth Vader for the PS3 and Yoda for the X360. Personally I'm psyched that I have a PS3 instead of an X360, but I'm pretty sure we'll be able to DL the other character at some point after the initial launch.
Maybe this is NamcoBandai's way of hinting that they're working a Star Wars fighting game in the vein of Masters of Teras Kasi...but more gooder!

Free Swim's 8 PS3 titles in '08

2007 was a tough year for those of you who owned a PS3, but it's a new year and things are only gonna get better in 08! To start PS3 sales skyrocketed over this holiday season, and more recently the announcement at CES that Warner Bros. has become Blu Ray exclusive and that M$ execs have openly stated that

"The fate of HD-DVD is not critical to the success of the
Xbox 360, according to
senior Microsoft officials, who have noted that the
company would consider
supporting rival technology Blu-ray if it were
victorious in the high-definition
format war."

I'll be glad to have this pointless format war over so I can get back to buying movies without the hesitation of doubt that many consumers have had these last few years.

Another positive aspect for PS3 owners in 08 is the upcoming tsunami of A titles coming! Here is a list of the 8 titles (get it? 8 for 08 >.<) Free Swim is most looking forward to.

8. SSFIITHDR: FINALLY, we get to trully be World Warriors when Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD remix launches on the PS store! Capcom's flagship fighter gets a 1080p facelift with the help of Udon artists.

7.Gran Turismo 5: Polyphony Digital's Real Driving Simulator is back and if you thought GT4 was visually perfect GT5 will trully have old folks saying "that's a game!?" And online racing will happen this time!

6. GTA IV: Rockstar North is returning to Liberty City, so if you never got into the GTA series on PS2 nows your chance. This game looks sick!

5. Killzone 2: So Killzone 1 wasn't the Halo killer it was touted to be, but Guerilla is working hard to make KZ2 the PS3's exclusive FPS to envy. Fingers crossed.

4. Socom Confrontation: Opta Gonaffle Hafla meng! HD Socom going back to basics Desert Glory, Cross Roads and more in 1080p glory. Slant Six is working on the online only HD remake of the PS2's #1 online frachise. Some new features include customizable facial and physical aspects and additional themed DLable content post release.

3. Street Fighter IV: Capcom is resurecting video games most prolific fighting game. With a new art direction and a stunning new visual style will Street Fighter IV re capture the magic of Street Fighter II? I certainly hope so! HADOKEN!

2. Final Fantasy XIII: Square Enix brings the 13th chapter of it's multi-million dollar RPG frachise back exclusively to the PS3. Shiva transforms into a motorcycle O.o >gulp<

1. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots / MGO: Bust out the Geritol and call your friends on the Jitterbug, Snake is returning for what might be his final mission and he's OLD! Looks like Naomi's Foxdie is kicking in and Snake reunites with Meryl Silverburg and Otacon to save the world once again from the threat of nuclear armageddon. This is a must have title and probably the best reason to own a PS3!

There you have it, Free Swims top 8 of '08, agree, disagree? Sound off, drop a comment and share your thoughts!

Movie Review: Sunshine

It's the year 2057, the sun is dying and mankind faces extinction. Earth's last hope rests with a courageous crew of eight men and women to ignite the fading star with a massive nuclear weapon. Deep into their voyage, out of radio contact with Earth, their mission begins to unravel and they find themselves fighting not only for their lives, but for the future of us all.
Unforunately I wasn't able to see this movie in theaters due to it's limited release.
Sunshine is a brilliant (pun intended) film with very obvious influences; Ridley Scott's Alien, Paul W.S Andersons Event Horizon and Stanley Kubricks's 2001 A Space Odyssey, all master peices of science fiction. I was really impressed with Danny Boyles choice for the crew of Icarus II, Hiroyuki Sanada as Captain Kaneda, Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon) as Ship Botonist Corazon, Benedict Wong as Navigator Trey, Cliff Curtis as Icarus II's physician and psych officer Searle, Troy Garrity as Comm Officer Harvey, Chris Evans (Eight Below) Engineer Mace, Rose Byrn (Star Wars ep: II AotC) Icarus II Pilot Cassie and Cillian Murphy (Batman Begins/ 28 Days Later /Red Eye) as the Ships Pysicist and sole operator of the payload. The crew each had very defined attitudes and their individuality reminded me of the crew of the Nostromo, the international feel made the believability much easier to accept.
The brilliance of Sunshine and other Sci Fi gems of a similar ilk isn't focusing so much on the antagonist(s) or the circumstances throughout the movie, but the characters individuality, and how those circumstances affect them individually and as a group. If the cast is believable it helps immeasurablly in the viewers suspension of disbelief.

For myself some of the best Sci-Fi movies out there are the ones have simplistic stories and complex characters put in unbelievable circumstances and how they cope with the situation. I highly recomend Sunshine it ranks up there with my top 10 favorite sci fi movies of all time. Or you could watch AVP2....but that would be silly.

A

Game Review: Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare

"War is delightful to those who have not yet experienced it."-Erasmus

When you begin the game you start out as the FNG "Soap" MacTavish the newest member of Lieutenant Price's British 22nd SAS Regiment. Throughout the game you will switch between Soap MacTavish in Russia tracking Khaled Al-Asad who stages a coup in the middle east, with the funding of Ultranationalist Imran Zakhaev and Paul Jackson, a U.S. Marine stationed in the Middle East. You will also get to play as Lieutenant Price fifteen years earlier as he and Captain MacMillan sneak through the the partially irradiated Ukrainian city of Pripyat, within the Chernobyl Zone of Alienation. Another point in the game you will get to play a AC-130 Spectre Gunship gunner giving Lieutenant Price air support.
Call of Duty 4 begins as you (Yasir Al-Fulani) are abducted by Victor Zakhaev, son of Imran Zakhaev and thrown in the backseat of a car and driven thru the streets as a coup is going on and then tied to a post as Khaled Al-Asad kills you all while being broadcast. CoD4 had my attention at that point, and I can say it never let go! CoD4 offers one of the most compelling game experiences that rival many hollywood movies! If I can say CoD4 is equally entertaining as films such as Full Metal Jacket, Saving Private Ryan, Black Hawk Down and Platoon. The game looks like a next gen title, the graphics really pull you into the whole experience and if you have an HD TV with 1080p resolution and a decent home theater you'll be in gaming nirvana! The realism of the in game graphics is partially attained by utilizing high dynamic range lighting which can be seen throughout the multitude of environments. As I said before a decent home theater will really enhance the overall experience as CoD4's sound track and sound effects are top notch and the multiple layers of voice acting is very engrossing. Without spoiling the experiences within CoD4 you will really feel the chaos of war from the very first mission on the tanker till the final moments on the bridge.
As many reviews have pointed out the off line game is kinda short, I finished it in little over 5 hours but thats only a fraction of the fun CoD4 offers. Time to put those skills to the test and go online!
For those Cod4 Online FNG's you begin a lvl 1 Private and advance up the ranks by getting XP, you earn XP by killing opponents, completing objectives, like defusing the bomb in Sabotage or Search and Destroy. The amount of XP gained varies depending on the type of match the user is playing. When the user gains enough Experience Points their rank/level increases. Below is a list of the levels/ranks available.
1-3 Private
4-6 Lance Corpral
7-9 Corpral
10-12 Sergeant
13-15 Staff Sergeant
16-18 Gunnery Sergeant
19-21 Master Sergeant
22-24 Master Gunnery Sergeant
25-27 2nd Lieutenant
28-30 1st Lieutenant
31-33 Captain
34-36 Major
37-39 Lieutenant Colonel
40-42 Colonel
43-45 Brigadier General
46-48 Major General
49-51 Lieutenant General
52-54 General
55 Comander

As you advance up the ranks new weapons, challenges and perks are unlocked, challenges are weapon specific and include getting a certain number of kills, headshots, crouching or prone kills etc. by completing these challenges you are rewarded XP and unlock attachments for the weapon such as laser sights, silencers, or scopes.
Perks are also unlocked in the same fashion, perks give players an added bonus, players can choose 3 in your "create a class" which allows the player to customize their player.
The following is a list of known perks and what they offer. The number of available perks keeps the online experience level and doesn't give one player a huge advantage over another.
Perk 1: Bomb Squad
C4 x 2
Claymore x 2
RPG-7 x 2
Speicial Grenades x 3.....(Gives you 3 more smoke/flash grenades)
Frag x 3
Bandolier.....(Adds more ammo to your clip)
Perk 2: Juggernaut.....(More Health)
Slieght of hand.....(Reload quicker)
Stopping power.....(More weapon damage)
UAV Jammer.....(Jams enemy radar)
Sonic Boom.....
Double Tap.....
Perk 3: Extreme conditioning.....(Sprint longer)
Steady Aim.....(Steadier aiming)
Last Stand.....(Shoot your pistol while dying)
Deep Impact.....(Better bullet penetration through walls)
Dead Silence.....(Less noise when running)
Iron Lungs.....(Hold breath longer when sniping)
Eavesdrop.....(Allows you to listen in on enemy chat)
Martyrdom.....(While dying, player pulls a grenade)
CoD4 MW offers plenty of variety with a plethora of online modes such as Team Deathmatch, Free-for-All, Domination, Ground War, Sabotage, Headquarters, Tactical, Old School, and Hardcore. Each mode offers differnt rules of engagements to keep the online expirence fresh and not an XP grind to 55.
Call of Duty 4 is a terrific addition to your PS3 collection and really showcases the potential of your system, it's also avail on PC and X360. For more intel check http://www.charlieoscardelta.com/
9/10 Offline
10/10 Online

Macross Frontier: Episode 1 Close Encounter, 2 Preview

The idol singer, Sheryl Nome of Macross Galaxy fleet comes for the Galactic Idol concert to the Macross Frontier fleet.

Sheryl Nome is the top idol who is consistently ranked at the top of the charts for the Milky Way network.
Ranka Lee is a huge fan of Sheryl Nome, and dreams to be like her some day. Ranka has a part-time job at the Chinese-style food restaurant Nyun Nyun and is a high school student aboard the Macross Frontier. Ranka has an older brother, Ozma, who leads the special SMS Corps . Ozuma pilots a VF-25 with the skull leader paint scheme with fast packs in the first episode. He scores a ticket for his younger sister Ranka so she can go to the concert but she gets lost trying to take a short cut and meets Alto Saotome, a senior at the same high school. Alto is in the pilot training course at school along with Michel Bran and Luka Angeloni. Alto's peers tease him constantly, calling him princess, and beautiful.

Meanwhile a VF-171 scout ship is destroyed by an unknown enemy as the Macross Frontier moves closer to the center of the galaxy. The Macross then launches a squadron of unmanned Ghosts (seen at the end of M+), the unknown enemy makes quick work of them by using a high range jamming device...I guess Isamu and Guld were justified when they crashed the armistice celebration.

The NUNS scrambles and launches a squadron of VF-171's which finds this unknown enemy more then they can handle soon the SMS corps are called in to assist the NUNS, Ozma and his team engage the enemy as they push towards the Frontier.
Sheryl's concert is cut short when one of the creatures breaks through the dome of the Frontier and begins destroying the city. This is very reminiscent of SDFM in many respects, the colonists flee to shelter as the battle ensues between the main enemy, a red creature with marking that resemble the ones seen in Macross Zero on the Mayan Island and one of Ozma's wingmen. The episode end with Alto jumping into the unmanned VF-25 in Gerwalk mode with the Hikaru paint scheme and unloading it's gunpod into the strange alien.

The episode left me wanting more, the amount of fanservice was terrific! and the icing on the cake was hearing ai oboeteimasuka from DYRL as the credits were scrolling! The Macross dynamic is there, but I wonder if Sheryl Nome is connected to Sarah or Mao from M0. Will we see more of the birdman? I can't wait till the next episode, below is the teaser for episode 2, enjoy!

Movie Review: Aliens VS Predator Requiem

GET TO THE CHOPPAH!!!!!

Those four words immortalized by Dutch in the original Predator movie back in 1987...yup it's been 20 years since humanity has been dealing with those ugly mother f'ers! And we haven't learned a dam thing....at least Hollywood hasn't. AVP-R begins right where AVP ended, aboard the Predator ship leaving Earth. The corpse of the fallen Predator bursts open to the promise of new life of the "Predalien". Some how that little shit gets loose and grows big enough to kill the entire Predator crew before they leave the Earths atmosphere. Back on the Predators home world a distress signal is received and a sole Predator hops in his trusty galaxy 5 star ship and takes the HOV lane to Earth.

That's pretty much where the creativity and originality ends.

Welcome to Racoon City.......oops I mean Colorado.

This cozy mountain town is in for a rude awakening when Aliens, a Predator with magic blue elixir and some freaky hybrid of the two square off.

Lets just tally up the scorecard...

Homeless guys = dead

Homeless lady = dead

Homeless German Shepard = dead

Park Ranger = dead

Father and son on a hunting trip = dead

Creepy chef = dead

Waitress = dead

A whole Platoon of armed Nation Guard = dead

Evil Jock + Concubine = dead

Power Plant Guy = dead

2 Pot heads tokin up in a gun shop = dead

Husband of Ellen Ripley's great great great great grand mother =dead

Pregnant Lady= dead

Nurse = Dead

Here's what ya need to know in case this shit happens to your town...

1) Find a guy who's named after a state capital

2) Find a woman who knows how to shoot a high powered rifle and drive an armored vehicle

3) Stick with them ^

4) Avoid the evil jock and his cronies

5) Don't forget to get a spare car key from the dealer!

6) Don't EVER, NEVER EVER go swimming with hot chick in class after school is closed.

7) If your little daughter says there's monsters outside...GET THE F*CK OUTTA HOUSE!!!

8) Wear your uniform!

9) Do NOT go to the rendezvous point.

10) GET TO THA CHOPPAH!!!!!!!

If you are a die hard fan of either franchise this IS NOT a distress signal it's a WARNING!!!

All this movie has going for it is.....some OK fights between a vengeful Predator, a lot of aliens and a Predalien that will do some awful awful things to women who are preggers! Oh yeah we get to see Dallas before he gets everyone dead on the Nostromo, a clone of Newt, and the best impersonation of Ellen Ripley I've ever seen!

D