Jordland

Jordland – 1.9.09

// January 9th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Jordland

Tujiko Noriko & Aoki Takamasa’s “28″

// January 8th, 2009 // No Comments » // Music, Recommendations

This album is pure gorgeousness. While I’m not terribly fond of Tujiko’s solo stuff, when she collaborated with Aoki Takamasa for this CD they made some real magic.  It’s glitchy, poppy, dreamy… one of my all-time favorites for sure. Click below for the amazon link or the picture above for the last.fm link where you can listen to some of its delicious tracks.

Ninja Five-O

// January 8th, 2009 // No Comments » // Recommendations, Video Games

Ignore the splendidly terrible box art, this game is a gem. If you’re a fan of 2D action games that give you some freedom of movement then this is one of the best games you’ve never played. It’s perfectly designed to make you feel like a bad ass 80′s action movie hero… with a grappling hook. A fantastic, well designed, old-school style action platformer.

Click the image above to see the game in motion or click below to just buy this greatness off of amazon.

Jordland – 1.8.09

// January 8th, 2009 // No Comments » // Jordland

The Pearce Sisters

// January 8th, 2009 // No Comments » // Movies, Recommendations

The Pearce Sisters is a gorgeous (!) animated short created by Luis Cook of Aardman Animations (Wallace & Gromit, Creature Comforts, Shaun the Sheep). It’s a nice little story about two lonely sisters surviving in a harsh environment. Click here for the official website or click the picture above to watch the full short.

Tekkonkinkreet

// January 6th, 2009 // No Comments » // Movies, TV

Tekkonkinkreet is one of my favorite animated films and has been one of the main influences of the art style in my comics. It was animated by Studio 4c. Check out this trailer for Mind Game which is also stupendously beautiful (and also animated by Studio 4c).

Tekkonkinkreet was based on a manga called Black & White. You can click the image above to check out the movie’s official website, click here to see a clip of the film, or click below to check it out on amazon:

Percy Gloom

// January 1st, 2009 // No Comments » // Comics, Recommendations

Percy Gloom is a coming of age tale by Cathy Malkasian. It’s filled with beautiful artwork and charming characters. Percy is a lovable character – an innocent, naive, and neurotic little man who leaves home and moves to a strange new town for his first real job. Don’t be fooled into thinking this is a by-the-numbers coming of age story, this book is full of quirkiness and crazy happenings.

Click the picture above to visity Cathy Malkasian’s website or click the pictures below to see two one-page excerpts.

Jordland – 1.1.09

// January 1st, 2009 // No Comments » // Jordland

Jordland – 12.31.08

// December 31st, 2008 // No Comments » // Jordland

Weapon of Choice

// December 30th, 2008 // No Comments » // Recommendations, Video Games

Weapon of Choice was one of the first Xbox 360 Community Games released after the section was implemented. These games are not rated by any boards so pretty much anyone with the will to do so can create a game and put it on the marketplace. You may not realize it, but this is a huge deal and a historic moment in the industry. We will no doubt see some really brilliant and innovative games being released on here in the future. While it’s been slow going so far, Weapon of Choice stands tall.

In a nutshell, Weapon of Choice is an old school 2D action game laced with modern game design. It revels in its over-the-top action, 80′s cheese, multiple guitar solos, ridiculous looking aliens, and tongue-in-cheek humor. Modern design elements soften the typically difficult oldschool gameplay. For example, if you get too close to something that can hurt you the game will slow down and give you more time to react and get out of the way. WoC is also built around the idea that it should be fun to play whether you have an hour or 10 minutes. There are characters to unlock (each with their own bizzarely wonderful weapon), multiple levels with branching paths, and a few different endings. It all comes together beautifully.

WoC was developed by Mommy’s Best Games and the lead developer is an ex-Insomniac employee (amazingly, he pretty much did everything but the music). I spoke with him a few times and he’s a really nice guy. Check out the trailer below to see how the game looks in motion and then click the picture above to visit his website.