Hopefully you’ve seen our Antiquius Obscurius show, Bit Museum, which deals with freaky, old, weird, foreign and not-well-documented game kit from around the world. What I wanted to do today was give you, our fine readers, a peek into where our show gets brought to life in magical post-production land. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t take time out of your day to talk about post production, but this is a magical wonderland of awesome.

Run by the eclectic eccentric Scott Amore, Innerspace Soundlabs is a place like no other. Situated in a remote location in the New Haven area of Connecticut, you may at first glance think ISSL is a Ski Lodge, or some sort of cozy get-away for newly married couples. But in actuality, it’s a wonderland of technology, yet it’s oh-so-retro in atmosphere and craftsmanship. Quite literally, it is the perfect place to polish and fine-tune a show like Bit Museum. Come on inside and take a look, won’t you?

Innerspace Soundlabs is actually, first and foremost, a brilliant recording studio where a lot of bands have laid down their records with Scott’s masterful mastery of mastering. Being a musician himself as keyboardist for Butterflies of Love (under the British label Fortuna Pop!), Scott has a well-tuned ear for the nuances and dynamics of musical acoustics. However, what makes ISSL so incredibly awesome is it’s love of retro technique and a well-established relaxing atmosphere reminiscent of days past.

Scott Amore

Of course, Bit Museum is a video series and not a musical recording, so why do we take our precious footage to ISSL? Scott is also an accomplished video editor, having edited video for some really amazing clients such as eHarmony, Yale University, Gretsch Drums, and many more. And we figure, if we can hang out in 1975 while we edit a show about video games from 1975….win/win.

Equipment I cannot begin to understand.

I thought you guys might like this little trip through Innerspace Soundlabs for a first-hand account on how we put this superfly show together. If you’re a band looking to get your record recorded in an unbelievably awesome, relaxing atmosphere with engineering standards from the days when quality mattered, definitely get in touch with Mr. Scott. You will enjoy.

Visit Innerspace Soundlabs online: www.innerspacesoundlabs.com

I had a lengthy conversation with a friend of mine who is a total jerk. No, he’s not really, but he was going on about how he isn’t excited much about the New Super Mario Bros. for Wii. This was probably enough for me to cut off our friendship completely, but alas, I’ve known this punk for 13 years or so; I thought it best to give him another chance. (I’m kidding, Antonio. You know I love you.)

Anyway, our conversation turned toward why he felt this way, and I was interested in hearing his negative thoughts about something I was so gleefully excited about.

“They almost overdid it trying to replicate the look of the original,” Antonio said as he murdered a few small animals.

“But the 2D platform is still in demand. Mega Man 9 and even Street Fighter IV proves that,” I replied, as I donated money and clothing to nearby charities.

But Antonio continued on with his argument and had a valid point, I thought. “From Super Mario Bros, to 2 to 3, to SMB world there was an evolution. They weren’t obsessed with recreating the original, but obviously they retained the spirit of the original. Nowadays the attitude seems to be that they should recreate the original, add to it, but make it as much like the old one as possible,and I don’t really like that approach.”

It was an interesting way to look at it, and I couldn’t argue with it. It’s true. I think there is a lot of that going on in game design nowadays, however, some companies are finding such resounding success with this route, such as Capcom or Nintendo. So why is that? How is it that some people are so comfortable playing Mario games until the cows come home, yet some have gotten utterly sick and tired of it?

What I think it is, in some ways, is an unconscious deconstruction of video games. Now, before I continue on with this theory on things, I will point out that I am no longer speaking about my villainous friend Antonio; these are not necessarily his thoughts toward games. It’s more of what I think may influence an overall pervasive attitude amongst game critics who seem to revile long running franchises and games that see endless sequels.

What is a video game, in essence? It’s a computer program, most (by all means not all) of which are essentially based on the idea of one cursor that you control either avoiding other cursors or trying to occupy the same X,Y coordinates as others. I mean, that’s basically what they are. What makes a video game fun is the skin they’re wrapped in, the polish they’re given. But really, everything from Super Mario to Grand Turismo to Street Fighter are essentially one set of X,Y (and now Z) coordinates trying to avoid or occupy the space of other coordinates. Kind of deflates the entire idea of video games, doesn’t it? Don’t think too much about it, whatever you do…it’s very depressing.

I believe a lot of critics who are attacking the “rehash” practices of the industry are subconciously deconstructing video games without even realizing it. By saying New Super Mario Bros. is the same rehash as the Original Super Mario Bros, isn’t one really only looking at the most core, basic functions of the computer program? It really does seem so.

“It’s Mario running and jumping and avoiding obstacles…the same obstacles and the same enemies as he did 20-something years ago.” critics say.

Hmm. Aren’t these the same people who watch a television series week after week with the same cast, the same settings and the same overall basic story?

Man, not to clump on even more nerd stigma to this already dorkified article, but lets take a look at Star Trek (ok, and Star Wars, angry guy shaking his fists angrily at me right now who owns a dog named Chewie.) We’re talking about a series that has the same basic setting, the same set of characters, and the same basic plotline that has existed for decades. Decades! But why do we watch these and countless other series? Because we love to see the new situations the characters get themselves into. We enjoy watching the characters engage in new challenges, new strife, new romance, new emotions. It’s exciting to see what happens next. In reality, I don’t see how video games are all that different, using the Mario series as an example. The levels are new, the challenges are new, the graphics, for the most part, are new. It’s fascinating to see a beloved character in a new place.

There is one major difference between games and TV shows: the price. Things are different when the price of admission to watch your favorite characters do new wacky things is fifty bucks.

I write this article, I suppose, as a caution to my beloved fellow gamers. When you begin to see video games as “more of the same old thing over and over again”, question what it is you’re really tired of. And I don’t really have the answer to that necessarily since I believe that’s a personal issue for everyone. But beware: too much deconstruction of video games will reveal to you that you’re still playing Pong after almost 40 years.

I’d love to hear your opinions on this topic. As usual I don’t articulate myself very well on this blog (I’m more of a song-and-dance man) but hopefully you get the gist of what I’m saying. Chime in!

(Above model built and submitted by Bill Beckett, New Haven’s original cult classic.)

Back in 2006, we created what can only be described as fly when we made our little IO the Robot papercraft toy. Recently, my Cheesepuff Pals at Gaijin Games, released to the world their own incredible Commander Video papercraft, so I was inspired to dig out our old one and make it available again.

So yeah, I’m totally being all like “me too!” all up in this piece.

So go to it, you wacky asses. Go print this sucker, build it, and revel. Post your pics on the newly launched Robotube Games Facebook Fan Page, which currently has more fans than there are air conditioners in Antarctica.

GET IT HERE.

You asked for it, and now you’ve got it! Bloktonik leaderboards are online and embedded in the game as well as in their own link at Bloktonik.com.

We’ve teamed up with MochiMedia to bring you these leaderboards complete with country tracking, medals, and Day/Week/Month/All stat charting, so now you can totally represent your nation and rub your ridiculously high scores in the face of people all over this green Earth.

Aw heck, there’s even a Twitter/Facebook function to post your scores and annoy everyone you love and know personally!

Go play some Bloktonik now!

Hey all you people reading my blog out there. Been busy! Big plans set for the end of this year and into next Spring. Robotube is gonna essplode…can’t give away too much on that right now, but pretty soon.

Been working on updating Bloktonik to a ridiculous degree, prepping it for big happenings next year.

Here’s what I’ve added, for your blowin-stuff-up pleasure:

(Hit the jump for more.)

1) Not one, but THREE kinds of bombs have been added to the game! Score any kind of bonus, earn a bomb. You can store up to three, and deploy them with the spacebar. Here’s the catch: your NEXT block is changed into a bomb, so you gotta strategimize.

2) A Pause button! I know, I know, simple and probably should have been in the game since day one, but it wasn’t, so I’m lame. Now it is, so go on over and pause the game and sit there and do nothing until your heart’s content!

3) New possible secret bonuses to earn: find em yourself!

There are some other little tweaks and trinkets and what-not, but it’s not stuff that would really excite you enough to warrant me taking time to type about it here, even though I just spent quite a bit of time on this lengthy paragraph that explains why I didn’t want to waste time writing about them.

Bloktonik still needs a friggin’ high score board, so I need to get back to work. Talk to you cats later!

Play Bloktonik Now.

Go get this game right now. I don’t know how long the suits will allow this to stay at the $.99 mark, so I’d be jumping on this and rolling around in it while you still can.

Click here to get this fine product.

Yow…it’s been a while since I’ve typed words and stuff all over this blog. Been sort of busy. You guys know how it is.

Anyway, what better way to make a return than to talk about Space Invaders, only the single greatest video game franchise to ever appear on pretty much EVERY console ever conceived. I believe there’s even a version that will play on my microwave oven display.

What is it about Space Invaders that I simply have to see it played on every platform possible? I mean, the game is always the same, but I feel like Space Invaders is almost like a little diagnostic tool…something that evaluates and manifests all the little quirky nuances of each different piece of hardware it’s able to run on. Having seen the game for 35 years played on its native arcade machine, seeing it on different platforms makes playing a little comparison game so fascinating. So, it’s always a delight when Space Invaders is given a complete overhaul and I’m completely unsure of what to expect.

To call “Space Invaders Extreme 2″ an “overhaul” is an understatement. And there, my friends, is the last time I will use quotation marks in this post, I promise.

Video and more after the jump.

Space Invaders Extreme 2, out of the box, looks and feels like more of the same great stuff from the first installment released last year. Still an amazingly fun game with visuals that are absolutely delightful and dazzlingly candy-like. However, what really makes SI2 stand apart from SI1 is the addition of a more thoughtful bonus system: Bingo mode, as much as it conjures up visions of purple haired old ladies huddled in a church hall, is a fantastically addicting little sub-game that makes your choice of Invader-destruction a bit more selective and thought-out. By shooting the right colors of Invaders in the right order, you light up different spots on the Bingo card in an attempt to get 3-in-a-row. If you do, insane amounts of extra point items rain from the skies in what can only be described as a high-score nerd’s dream.

Aside from this new addition, there are loads of other intricate, complex little methods by which to earn bonuses, like a pinballesque set of lamps that are lit by achieving certain goals on each round.

Boss battles are much cooler than the first game, with enemies that take up the whole screen, and have far more aggressive and fancy attack patterns. Also, for those less seasoned, the game allows a beginner mode to be played, with infinite lives and easier attack patterns.

As always, I don’t intend to give a comprehensive review of the game here since reviews are a dime-a-dozen on these here intertubes, but for $20, Space Invaders Extreme 2 is a title you’d be absolutely nuts to pass up. Taito is really on a roll with their revamping of the SI franchise, between SI Extreme, SI Get Even (Wii) and SI Infinity Gene (iPhone).

Taito, if you’re listening, the Wii needs some Extreme action, and how do you NOT put Infinity Gene on the DS? I mean, come on ya crazy bastards! Do it!

Bloktonik!

Jay is Games, one of the web’s foremost respected indie and casual gaming authorities, has given Bloktonik a glowing review.

I wasn’t lying when I said that this game is addictive. We’ve seen matching games done in any number of ways, but Bloktonik manages to implement a lot of innovative new features that can keep you playing for hours.

Check out the full review over at Jay is Games, and then head over to Bloktonik.Com to play!

I am not that great at Street Fighter. Though, I’ve been playing the game since I was in high school. I am of the rare breed that even played Street Fighter 1, with the giant pressure-sensitive buttons and all. I enjoy the game. I like the real-time brain game that it is. I like the competition, the depth, the timing, the beautiful design….all of it. I can hold my own, maybe win 5 out of 10 matches. But sure, I lose a lot.

I’ve owned Street Fighter IV since release day in February of 2009. I’ve enjoyed every heart-pounding match, and even made a few friends along the way. But something has been happening lately: I’ve found that Street Fighter can turn people into unbelievable jerks.

I don’t use a microphone when I play. I have a simple handle on PSN, “Robotube”, and I use no icons or titles. I don’t even use taunts. I do nothing that would provoke other players, I send no messages, nothing like that. Yet, I’m finding something a lot worse than sore losers: a voluminous influx of sore winners.

Yesterday, (as usual), I was handily beaten by a skilled Blanka player. Match ends, I lose, that’s it. Suddenly a message pops up which reads “Bow down, bitch.”. I laughed at first, because I immediately had this mental imagine of some gorilla-like nutjob flipping out over winning, not much unlike his onscreen counterpart. It didn’t bother me much; I deleted it and moved on.

This evening, however, something far more eyebrow-raising happened. Before the match even started, my opponent and I are in the lobby, and he begins a tirade of obscenity toward me. Before we could even get past character select, I kid you not, I was called the n-word, a common homophobic slur, a dickhead, and a bitch. Nice, right? Being a straight white guy, I was all the more perplexed.

Again, my immediate reaction is to sort of brush it off, though I am far more troubled by the use of racist and homophobic slurs this time. Being called a dickhead or a bitch I can handle…I think most of my friends call me those things most days anyway.

I’m not 13 anymore so I don’t take any offense by being called any of those things by a nameless, tinny voice coming over my TV, however, the onslaught got uglier and more riddled with bigotry. It did make me realize something that I didn’t want to admit. Street Fighter really does bring out the ugly side of people. I know what you’re thinking….it’s shit-talking, it’s an attempt to psyche out the opponent, it’s part of the game….whatever. But a complete deluge of racial and homophobic vomit is so way beyond what I consider to be some garden-variety shit-talk. It’s really sad…it almost makes me wonder if the video game violence critics aren’t on to something.

If all it takes is a video game to bring such putrid racism and homophobia out of a person, we, my friends, are in trouble. Where did we go wrong? When did this happen? When did video games go from fun to fury? Is it the anonymity? If it is, then I am frankly scared of what lies beneath the exterior of all the random people I meet every day.

After that, I decided it was time to shelve the game for a while. I may be getting too old for this, I have to admit. I was really disappointed with the people I was playing with, and I just felt deflated…I didn’t want to “associate” with it anymore. Not for awhile, anyway. The lure of the magnificence that is Street Fighter will draw me back, but I need to step away for a while.

I’m just glad nobody else was in the room…how embarrassing it was at that moment to even be associated with gaming. I know this all sounds rather sanctimonious or preachy, so apologies for that tone, but I just had to share my thoughts on this incident. It was sort of an eye-opening moment for me.

When I said I wanted to do a Weekend Playlist regularly, I meant regularly according to MY definition. This does not necessarily coincide with YOUR definition of regularly. This weekend I played two games, pretty much. One of them is older and has been out for some time, the other is really old, but recently got a facelift for current generation consoles. Thankfully, it was rainy here on Saturday, perfect excuse to blow the entire day playing games! I love rainy weekends!

So I received Wolverine from Gamefly this past week. Yes, I still have my Gamefly account. I had played the PSN demo some time ago and enjoyed it, so I put it on my Gamefly Q. Naturally, this means Gamefly didn’t mail it out until months later. I began the game sometime last week and finished it late Sunday night. Have you ever been playing a game late at night when you have to get up the next day for work, or school? Of those times, have you ever been close to beating a game, and you are really into it, and you start having this internal dialog with yourself about whether you should stop playing and go to bed? Mine went like this:

Me: Self, it’s getting late and you have to go to work tomorrow.
Me: STFU self. You are lame. I’m fighting DEADPOOL! I almost got this game beat.
Me: Yes, but at what cost? 7:00am is going to show up real early tomorrow if you keep going.
Me: But I almost have him killed! It should only be like another 5 minutes! In the grand scheme of things, 5 minutes shouldn’t…….shit I died. See what you did? I was so close to winning, and now I have to start all over.
Me: Start all over? Are you mad? It’s gonna take you another 15 minutes to beat him, now!
Me: No, it’s cool I got the strategy down, now. See? I already have him like half dead.
Me: Yeah, half dead on the first and easiest phase, you still have phase 2.
Me: STFU noob. I’m tired of your shit. I am finishing this game tonight, and that is final.
Me: Whatever, but tomorrow morning when you are bumming. I don’t wanna hear it.

And here it is, tomorrow morning, and I am bumming. Not too bad, I have certainly had worse next-day-at-works. Yes, I called myself noob, and lame.

In any event, I really enjoyed Wolverine. For a game based on a movie, which are rarely any good, this was fun and engaging. Not the longest game I have ever played, clocking in at 10-15 hours (there is no in-game timer). Fans of the popular God of War games would probably find this game enjoyable, as the game mechanics feel very similar. I played the game on the “normal” difficulty and found it to be on the easy side. If you are a platinum trophy hunter, you will have to play through this game twice in order to get it. The second play-though will need to be on the “hard” difficulty setting. I have read that it is still on the easy side, just not quite so easy. If you like God of War, and you have yet to check out this game, I recommend it. I give it the non-official, un-sanctioned by Jason, Robotube games seal of approval.

The other game featured this week has been out on xBox for a while now, has been seen previously on SNES, and in your local Video Arcade. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time was one of my favorite arcade games when I was just a young whipper-snapper. The number of quarters I used to dump into that game is mind boggling even by today’s inflation-adjusted standards. Now, however, for the pricey sum of $10, and a few hundred megabytes of hard drive space I have a version to call my very own. It has been given a facelift, all the graphics are new and look really good. Thankfully, none of the gameplay seems to have been sacrificed by the new graphics. It feels no different to me than playing it in the arcade now almost 20 years ago.

There are even trophies to collect! Though most of them are not difficult. I managed to get all but one trophy in a matter of a few hours. The hardest one is going to be completing the entire game in “survival” mode. That is, completing the entire game without dying…..at all. Not impossible, but the best I have managed to do so far is to complete the game with Leonardo only dying twice. It will take a little more practice, but I have no problem with that. I will replay this game over and over until my thumbs bleed, and then I will play on bloody stumps. I probably don’t need to tell you to get this game, because if you enjoyed the TMNT arcade games as I did, you likely already know it exists. Even if you didn’t play the arcade games, get the game anyway. GO! NOW!