twiddlers

what to recommend

2007-09-05T21:09:00.000+01:00

Yet again, it's been a long time since the last post but every now and again I feel re-invigorated to post some opinion or other about video games. Perhaps in years to come I'll look back at these posts and reflect on how accurate or close to the truth some were.

This time I think it's been prompted by the purchase of a PlayStation 3 a few months ago, and I just felt like expressing a few thoughts on it and how it's left me thinking about what to recommend to people this Christmas.

You see, I didn't really need a PS3 and at the time I didn't really want one. I just kind of got one because it was the right time financially to pick one up. So having done that, I plugged it in and hooked it up to my telly via a HDMI cable and started using it.

You know, I was impressed... The PS3 is slick in the engineering department; it has no buttons, the disk is front loading, it's almost silent and the Blue Ray drive doesn't make a sound. The menu's are clean, minimal yet stylish, you can see all the little thumbnails animating in the menu's, it has a web browser, it makes little stylish beeps and clicks and it feels like a good bit of kit (a bit like most of Sony stuff lying around the house).

So, initially, thumbs up and in many ways it felt like a step up from my established next gen gaming system, the Xbox 360.

However, a few months on and I find myself asking which system do I think is the better system to recommend to others and this is where things start to get difficult.

Why..? Well it's because right now the 360 has it all when it comes to games; the graphics are (generally speaking) better than the PS3 (framerate, aliasing, pop-in etc.), the online part is much easier and reliable to use, the marketplace offers some great arcade titles and games are usually in shops sooner and cheaper than the PS3 versions. So, with an endorsement like this, the advice would seem to be clear: 'Buy a 360'. But it's not...

Whilst logically the 360 is the one to get I feel strangely compelled to recommend the PS3 because 'if' (and I mean a big'IF') Sony can just get a few things right... you know tidy up their sloppy PSN, lower the prices of their games a little, get some games to market quicker and improve the results on PS3 for cross platform development it will be the one to own. The hardware is reliable, it doesn't sound like a microwave in your front room, it can produce stella' visuals (we've already seen them) huge detailed games can fit on the Blue Ray, it has wireless networking, bluetooth and card readers and soon it will even record your TV!

If (and I mean a big IF) Sony succeed in tidying up the loose ends of a hugely ambitious project that is the PS3 it will be, without doubt, the one to own/recommend.

There's also all of the hardware issues that relate to the 360 to consider too. I think it's fair to say that almost all 360 owners expect their 360's to break within a year or two of purchase, either disk read problems or the dreaded Red Ring Of Death, and this surely goes in Sony's favour.

With this in mind, and without a proper 360 hardware revision this year, I'm left thinking of the saying "A candle that burns twice as bright, lasts half as long" and at the moment the 360 is definitely the one burning twice as bright.

and so it begins

2006-10-20T09:29:00.000+01:00

Just a quick one.

looks like Argos are starting the pre-order frenzy over here in the UK a little earlier than most for the Wii with their 'LIMITED STOCK' advert.

With PS3 postponed until sometime next year and the 360 appealing to a limited demographic I guess Wii could really make an impression over here this Christmas.

We shall wait and see.

BTW: Doesn't look like the Wii can be pre-ordered just yet online... [Link] however if you take a closer look at the picture above you'll find the CAT number so you can phone 'em up!

back from the dead

2006-10-19T23:23:00.000+01:00

It's been a while since I last updated this site and to be honest the question of how to re start the blog has been a bit of a sticking point.

So with over six months gone what's it goin' to be eh?

Well the question on my mind at the moment (and for some time) is whether or not we really are on the cusp of a significant change in the games industry. Yep you've guessed it… Wii. It has been the topic of discussion amongst friends over many a Pizza's and lunchtime ponderings and I hear 'everyone's' talking about it. For me it feels like this could be the return, the second coming, the biggest comeback of all time for Nintendo.

However, before I go any further I must warn you that this opinion may be skewed by the fact that I'm a huge Nintendo fan. My first and only true love of videogames was sparked by the imagination and pure playability of Shigeru Miyamoto's masterpieces on the NES and something from that era stuck. So where Wii is to most people simply a 'pretty cool idea' for me it's 'hope'. Hope that it will be a vehicle that drives the games industry into making games where the focus is on us doing interesting things again rather than just looking and sounding as realistic as possible whilst shooting some stagnant AI in the face.

Still with me? If not… try here… [Link]

Now Nintendo have already got the boat on the way to some degree by introducing us all to the DS and despite the ridicule by the likes of IGN in the early days it has become a true success story and in my opinion proves that games can be just that… 'games'. The DS doesn't have uber graphics, 7.1 surround sound, movie player, mp3 player, picture viewer, mobile phone, GPS receiver, HD display, 35 firmware updates and a web browser… do we care… exactly, because anyone reading this who already owns a DS knows exactly why it's enjoyable to switch on from time to time.

So back to the question… will the Wii do the job?

I think so.

Why? Well three things really…

Firstly and most importantly it needs to be popular and I think there's a good chance of that happening. It looks like something Apple would make (i.e. nice), it's not that expensive, it's different, it looks easy to use, it has a blue light on it and the marketing features a wide spectrum of people using the damn thing. This combined with a pack-in game, which just about anyone can play, and a killer launch title such as Zelda and you've pretty much covered the entire demographic.

Secondly, it is not a multi core multi threaded system with a GPU that can grill steaks, no it is a system that takes away the emphasis from clock speeds to: throwing, aiming, waving, balancing… you know… doing stuff. Like the DS, graphics aren't there to compete with the next game's box shot. Graphics on the Wii are there to look 'good enough' and to facilitate the gameplay. For this reason I believe a lower spec is actually strength of the system and combined with popularity; it will shift publishers focus towards more imaginative development studios/projects and put something interesting to do on the shelves.

Last but not least, I think we need a change. Things are getting stale. I've done PS1/2, Xbox / 360, Game Cube to death and you know what… it's all the same… I play the same old stuff over and over and every new Game Demo I download on Xbox Live is just another reminder of the fact that we haven't moved on at all really.

Don't get me wrong, I still love playing them all but I'm not excited by much these days.

You must feel it too, right?

If you do then you know what to do.

ps3 in november (in europe too - yeah right)

2006-03-15T10:12:00.000Z

The Sony announcement is out now and you can read all about it over on IGN but to sum it up:

Global launch in November
Console will be better than everything else
Online Service will be better than everything else
Supports telly's the size of Cinema screens at 1000 frames a second
Will act as a media server for the whole house
Oh and it grills steaks and has an 'easy to clean' removable fat tray

[Link]

gone over to the dark side

2006-03-14T11:26:00.000Z

Well, I haven't posted for a couple of days because I've been a bit busy....

PLAYING MY NEW XBOX 360!

NO! I hear you cry!

Yup, I did the deed on Saturday and got my self a Premium pack from the local independent game shop along with a couple of games. This is all, of course, in preparation for the launch of Oblivion, which is going to own me for a few months I'm sure.

I'll post what I think about the system later in the week, once I've played around with it for a while, but in the meantime I have to say that I'm quite impressed with it (more than I thought I'd be to be honest).

now i am crying

2006-03-10T20:28:00.000Z

Well I'm resigned to the fact that it's probably going to take a while before I can experience the DS Lite for myself but in the meantime I continue to torture myself.

Here's another video, by the same guy who did the last one, showing us a bit more DS Lite. The video covers things like how to hold it and what it looks like with a GBA cart sticking out of it.

I like the way he presents the video, a bit of a Geoff Goldblum approach...

[Link]

busy day - thursday roundup

2006-03-09T22:35:00.000Z

Well today has been a bit of a busy day, so I've decided to just do the one post on various bits and bobs...

Ok, so what have we got... ah yes...

The Origami is now out in the open and for everyone to see, and as we all suspected it's big, slightly clunky and the battery life is terrible... oh and it runs Windows XP, great! (or maybe not)

[Link]

Shigeru Miyamoto will be appearing on webchat.tv allowing fans to ask him questions about the new Mario game, due to appear on the DS soon. The webchat will be available to download at 8pm (GMT) on the 17th of March from here...

[Link]

Perhaps I should ask him how likley am I to get an imported DS Light this month?

Couple of things over on Eurogamer. The TV section has some more footage of the Metroid game coming to the DS. This game looks like a cracking shooter but I'm starting to get the feeling that I'll be disappointed with this game. After 3 years of playing 'shoot me in the face' over XBox Live I don't think I could face another mindless FPS. I really hope Nintendo haven't neglected the single player game.

[Link]

Also they've done a pretty hefty review of EA's Fight Night game for the 360 and according to them it actually looks as good as the demo's EA were showing at E3 last year! But wait for this right... the game is damn good too, which is even more surprising, especially after the rather disappointing FIFA and Tiger Woods EA launched with the 360.

[Link]

IGN have an editorial on the Nintendo Revolution, it's a good read and I always enjoy an editorial.

[Link]

And last but not least, it looks like we'll get to hear something about the PS3 next week even thought it's probably just an announcement to tell everyone that it won't be ready for April.

[Link]

new episode of gaming steve

2006-03-08T12:41:00.000Z

The new episode of Gaming Steve is out now. I haven't listened to it yet but I just thought I'd let you know.

The show includes a roundup of the gaming news, Spore stuff and the second part of the Oblivion preview, which includes some answers to listeners questions about the game.

It's always a good show, so enjoy...

[Link]

are we ready for next gen?

2006-03-08T08:43:00.000Z

1up have a feature that talks about Xbox 360 and how it's launch may be hurting the games industry.

I have to admit that even though I love all things new and shiny and I feel the pull of the 360, I do believe that we're jumping into the 'next gen' a little early.

Do we really need Xbox 360?

Do we really need a new box to play XBox Live Arcade? Do we want to encourage change every 3 - 4 years, because MS have changed their mind?

Perhaps we should all put two fingers up to MS and at least wait for the PS3 and Revolution to arrive before moving into 'next gen'.

Ah well, rant over. You can find the 1up feature here...

[Link]

think i'm going to cry - again

2006-03-08T08:18:00.000Z

My obsession with the DS lite continues and each day more articles are released over the internet teasing me.

The DS lite is a thing of beauty.

AND MINE HASN'T EVEN BEEN SHIPPED YET!!!!

Sorry about that :-D

See for yourself...

[Link]

psp lemmings review

2006-03-07T09:43:00.000Z

Eurogamer have a review of Lemmings for the PSP.

Interestingly it's very similar in opinion to the review I read in the latest issue of Edge magazine, same score too I think. I have to agree with the review tho' (in both cases). Lemmings is a great game but since the Amiga version it's been done to death and I really can't think of any compelling reason why I'd want to play it again without a suitable control scheme (like a mouse).

[Link]

can the revolution cause a revolution?

2006-03-07T09:15:00.000Z

GamesIndustry.Biz has an interesting article on Nintendo and the struggle they may face in the coming year to regain some market share. The article shares the opinions of some industry bods and it does make you think about some of the problems that they face.

The comment below struck a chord:

"Nintendo will have to rely heavily on experiential marketing. Sitting the Revolution in-store alongside other consoles is not going to show its advantages."

[Link]

will wright's spore on PSP and DS

2006-03-06T21:59:00.000Z

There's a game on the horizon from the man who created the Sims and it's called Spore.

Anyone who has been following this game knows that this game is one of the most innovate games we're likely to see this year and is on track to become a good candidate for game of the year.

For more information have a read here: [Link]

Anyhow, some interesting news is that EA are advertising for developers with experience in creating handheld games to work on Spore handheld titles. If this turns out to be the case then I'd be very interested. Spore on the move!

[Link]

a few things of interest (for a monday)

2006-03-06T12:59:00.000Z

Bit of a slow day in the news today, which isn't unusual for a Monday I guess, as we all try to re-align our brains back into a state where we can think again.

So let's see... ah... yes Eurogamer... couple of interesting reviews on there...

There's Nanostray for the DS [Link], which is looking like my type of game and Breath of Fire III for the PSP [Link], which looks ok but is plagued by load times (surprise suprise).

Also, it looks like someone thought they'd write a remote desktop application to control their PC using a DS. Why? Who knows... because they can... and probably because no else has.

Who needs Origami now eh Microsoft :-) ?

[Link]

Oh and last of all, it looks like E3 this year is gonna' be a BIG one again, soon they'll need to take over all of Los Angeles or something to host it...

[Link]

february retro gaming radio is out

2006-03-04T16:45:00.000Z

Shane R. Monroe's Retro Gaming Radio show for February is out now. Anyone who downloaded the Dual Screen Radio show link I posted earlier in the week will also enjoy this show, partly because Shane is also one of the people behind DS Radio.

Retro gaming radio has been going for years and years, it's a little focused on the USA (i.e C64, Atari, Amiga rather than Speccy, Master System etc.) but it's always a great, packed and insightful show.

So get downloading...

[Link]

psp - the love hate relationship

2006-03-04T16:30:00.000Z

I love my PSP, no I don't... I hate it, um no actually I love it... oh dear my head just exploded!

About a year or so ago I remember reading IGN and looking at all the latest news about the PSP and the Nintendo DS. I was trying to decide which of the two handhelds I should buy, once they came out over here in the UK... I mean I was racking my brain. Anyway, as it turned out the PSP was going to be delayed by about a year or so over here so I opted for the DS.

When I got the DS I must admit I wasn't really that impressed with it, I mean it was OK but it didn't blow me away... you know Zoo Keeper was good but not a show stopper. A short while after using the DS, however, I grew to appreciate the design and began to feel that Nintendo had actually thought this thing out pretty well.

A couple of months later, a local game store started selling imported PSP's at a reasonable price so I went and checked it out...

I swear, I was blown away by this thing. It looked amazing, it felt good, nice weight, fantastic graphics, easy menu system, superb mp3 sound quality, great headphones with inline remote and I could rip dvd's onto it and watch my fave films on the move!

What more could anyone want?

So without hesitation I just handed over the cash and hurried home feeling like a kid at Christmas. I got in, I charged it and within minutes I was playing Lumines and for a moment I knew this machine was something special, that this blows the DS out of the water and Nintendo would see the PSP become a name synonymous with handheld gaming.

So what went wrong, why is my PSP like so many others; just stuffed in a drawer in the house and almost left for dead. Well I think there are a number of reasons, and despite all the pre-release press about the PSP's battery life... guess what... It's not the battery life.

In fact the battery life is very impressive IMO and has never been an issue for me (when it was used). No, the real problem is something I think Tom at Eurogamer [Link] pointed out a long time ago and I started to realise that I was buying games that were already available in a superior form at half the cost for the PS2. These type of games were also the type of games that you wanted to enjoy in the comfort of your armchair or sofa and not in a lunch break or on the bog. As time went by I also started to resent something else: The load times! It was about this time (around 3 months) I began to have this uncomfortable feeling of relisation that this machine just wasn't geared up at all for 'on the move' entertainment hub.

It was fragile, it took too long to boot a game, you couldn't listen to music without quitting the game, dvd's took 4 hrs to convert to PSP format, the browser is crap and UMD disks self-destruct if you keep them in anything but the case they came in.

So all in all, the feeling was a bit like the time you've gone for the girl who looks amazing and offers the promise to make all your dreams come true, only to find she's no good in bed or dull as dishwater and in the morning you'd wished you'd gone home with her less good looking friend who was much more interesting anyway and probably a lot more fun.

Still, having said this, I'm still holding out. I haven't put the PSP on eBay just yet and I still believe that if Sony change their focus from 'all things to all men' to 'fantastic games', sort out the load times and offer an Xbox Live Arcade type service for 'twich' gaming... it will be worth every penny spent in the end (I hope).

360 camera

2006-03-03T22:25:00.000Z

It may look like it fell off a Darlek or belongs in a 1950's kitchen or something but the new XBox 360 camera promises to have some interesting possibilities judging by some of the demonstrations that Microsoft have been putting out.

I particularily like the idea of mapping your own face onto a 3D model. Now with that kind of feature people really can shoot me in the face and wouldn't it be fun if you could have differnt expressions for when you are being shot at etc.

Hmm... food for thought.

See more for yourself...

[Link]

child's play (and a little off topic) - no really

2006-03-03T15:52:00.000Z

Ever dreamed of writing your own games? Or perhaps you used to write your own back in the days when things were a lot simpler, and fancy dabbling in it again.

I've often thought about introducing my daughter (when she's older) to the joys of programming, as a creative output, but in this day and age it seems to be an impossible task. However, I came across a programming language called 'KPL' (Kids Programming Language) and it looks pretty good. Don't get me wrong, you're not going to write the next version of Half Life using this thing but for mere mortals like us 30year old dad's I can see some fun to be had creating the next version of Simon Says or even a good Spacies game.

From what I can see it's based on the MS .NET Framework and has collapsible indentation in the editor so a big thumbs up there.

You can download it, free, from the website in the link below and there are loads of examples that get installed as part of the Setup.

[Link]

1up round up on ps3 (so far anyway)

2006-03-03T14:34:00.000Z

1up have gathered up a pretty hefty look at the PS3 and what they know about it to date. There's a lot of information here (especially on the games) and mabey there's enough to make some think twice about hitting the 'confirm' button for your 360 purchase.

Grab a coffee, pull up a chair, adjust the rear view mirror on your work monitor and have a read...

[Link]

think i'm going to cry

2006-03-03T10:23:00.000Z

Looks like my DS lite pre-order is going to arrive a little later than expected... ah well...

Dear Gareth,

this e-mail is intended to give you an update about your recently placed
Nintendo DS Lite preorder (Order Number #######).

Before reading further, we recommend you to check out today's Nintendo DS
Lite news update, which contains background information, image galleries
and more:

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-17-71-8s-74-11a.html

As for every new hardware release, the situation for dealers such as
Play-Asia is never fully predictable in advance. Even though we are trying
hard to fulfill all preorders on or before release at the previously
announced price, availability and pricing are subject to final supply &
demand. The very first Nintendo DS Lite units were offered to us within
the last 2 days at prices ranging from US$ 250 to US$ 300, leaving us no
choice but to further keep an eye on the market situation during the next
few days until prices will go down to reasonable levels.

Nintendo has announced to ship a total of 450,000 Nintendo DS Lite units
during the month of March, along with 200,000 old Nintendo DS models. Even
though prices are high, they have constantly been dropping during the last
2 days and indications were given that units will be priced significantly
below the US$ 200 mark in the following week.

We will automatically start shipping all preorders once supply is
available to meet our current preorder price. All orders will be shipped
on first come, first served basis. The earlier you have preordered, the
higher will be the chance to receive a shipping notification e-mail
already during the very next couple of days. If your order is not ready to
ship within the next week, we will send you another e-mail update
explaining the current situation.

We understand that some customers might feel frustrated or annoyed by the
situation (so are we!), but we appreciate patience brought along for a few
days until the market situation has cooled down. Of course, cancellations
are possible at any time. Customers who paid by credit card are able to
carry out cancellations online in their customer account. If you have
already paid your order (by PayPal, bank payment, etc.), please approach
our customer service for details.

Once again we apologize for the unforeseen situation and hope for your
continued support.

Your Play-Asia Customer Service
http://www.play-asia.com

more oblivion

2006-03-02T22:15:00.000Z

Ok, so you already know that I'm quite excited about this one right?

The previews are starting to show up all over the net now and everyone is saying that this game is fantastic [Link] and now we have a release date, straight from the horses mouth!

MARCH 20th for the USA and 'a few days later' for Europe!
The big question is: Will I buy a 360 that day?

Stay tuned...

[Link]

ds download station

2006-03-02T21:51:00.000Z

Gaming Steve tries out the new Nintendo DS Download, which allows DS users to download playable demos of existing and up and coming Nintendo DS games.

Judging form his review it does exactly what you'd expect form Nintendo. There's no required firmware upgrade or special configs required, you just walk into a store, power up, download and enjoy!

Two of the demos reviewed are Brain Age and Tetris DS, both of which are looking like 'must have' titles.

[Link]

metroid love

2006-02-28T17:12:00.000Z

Metroid Prime and Echo's were in my opinion without doubt the best video games of this generation. To put it differently... I LOVE 'EM!

If you can get over the motion sickness of the head-bob and learn a non standard control mechanism (for a first person game) then do yourself a favor and splash out on a GameCube (£40 if you haven't got one already) and the two games (£20 each) you won't regret it, it will be the best £80 you've spent in a long time.

If you need any more convincing then take some time out to watch this detailed video review by Gamespot... [Link]

However, anyone who's in need of a new fix can look forward to the new DS version out soon, which along with the Revolution version, brings 'proper' mouse-look to the console generation and I personally think this is going to be a big deal.

Not convinced? Then take a look at these (boy are we in for a treat)... [Link#1, Link#2]

microsofts slightly bigger than usual pda

2006-02-28T13:26:00.000Z

Looks like there's some talk on the net about a hand held device that Microsoft are developing that will be all things to all people.

Unlike the PSP, this one has a touch screen and features an even bigger screen!

Oh and the rumor suggests it's play Halo too...

http://creativecoremedia.com/mso.swf http://www.origamiproject.com/1/

oblivion a 360 seller?

2006-02-28T11:54:00.000Z

Last year I was as hyped about the Xbox 360 as anyone, I had the pre-order in place about 12 months in advance, clearance from the missus to buy it and everything was looking good.

All I needed was for MS to deliver. And guess what, as we all know, they didn't.

Bit by bit the games kept falling of the radar and little by little it was becoming apparent that most of the launch titles were either rushed or not going to make it. The final nail in the coffin for me was finding out that I wouldn't be playing Oblivion on Christmas day, so I cancelled my pre-order and I haven't looked back since.

However, things are looking up now, it looks like Oblivion is more or less finished and finally the system seller (for me at least) may soon be upon us .

Check out the Links below... see what you think.

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/691/691449p1.html
http://www.eurogamer.net/tv_video.php?playlist_id=98&s=l

psp firmware 3.0 rumor

2006-02-27T21:42:00.000Z

Looks like the PSP could be getting yet another firmware upgrade if the rumors are to be believed and let's face it, they're probably true if history is anything to go by.

Apparently Sony are going to tempt us into trying to use our PSP's for a spot of e-mailing etc. and some sort of Notepad facility. If this turns out to be true, as a PSP owner I'm sure I'm not alone in wondering why Sony feel the need to dilute the systems focus even further.

I didn't buy it to be a PDA, a GPS device, a movie player, a mobile video camera, or even an oversized MP3 player. I bought it because it has so much potential as a powerful portable games machine and yet, if these latest rumors are true, it would seem that Sony is becoming less interested in the one thing most people bought it for... GAMES!

You can read some more about firmware 3.0 and see a few screenshots by following the links below...

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3148342
http://www.sengo.com/showthread.php?p=111899#post111899

think your clever - try this

2006-02-27T16:08:00.000Z

Just when you've gone and grasped Tetris or Soduko along comes something that completely blows your mind: The Magic Cube!

Really, if you've time to figure this one out within a single lifetime then chances are you're not from this planet, even one of the FAQ's asks:

'If it's so hard to solve, then why should I even bother with it?'

From what I can gather it's a four-dimensional Rubik's cube and although it might be impossible it 's still something quite interesting to play with (if you like this sort of thing) and you can find it here...

http://www.superliminal.com/cube/cube.htm

Oh and if anyone fancies something a little less cerebral then this is pretty good too...

http://chir.ag/stuff/sand/

dual screen radio - feb 25th

2006-02-27T13:25:00.000Z

Dual Screen Radio is an online downloadable radio show (MP3) produced by Shane R. Monroe and Chris Hentschel and it comes out every couple of weeks or so. If you're like me and you love all things Nintendo DS then check it out.

This weeks episode focuses on the DS Lite, Resident Evil DS, Opera Web browser and a load of other stuff.

Enjoy...

http://www.dualscreenradio.com/index.php

45 minute nes flashback

2006-02-27T11:07:00.000Z

Once and a while you get to see something that makes you want to head down to the nearest carboot sale and spend a tenner on an old game system like a 2600 or a NES.

This weekend I came upon one such thing in the form of a 45 minute video on Gamespot's website called 'NES flashback' where they're celebrating the 20th anniversary of the NES over in the USA. The video covers some of the best games of the time, the light gun, the Power Glove and of course ROB the robot.

I think I was about 15 years old when I got a NES for Christmas and I still boot the emulator up on the PSP from time to time to play Mario or Mega Man... ah... those were the days eh?

Anyway, here's the link...

http://www.gamespot.com/features/6144735/index.html

one small step

2006-02-26T20:13:00.000Z

You know, for some time now I've been thinking of putting together a Blog to talk about my favorite pastime… video games. From about the age of eight, games have been quite a significant passion for me and even now twenty-five years later I'm as obsessed as ever with the goings on in the industry and of course the games themselves…

So with this in mind here we are at the start of a new Blog, one that is by no means a giant leap for the gaming community but perhaps at the very least it will be a window into the opinions of a thirty-something gamer who's just as excited about Half Life's physics engine as the next gaming geek.

Anyhow here's something to make all the Nintendo DS owners out there smile and perhaps even a few Sony PSP owners (like myself) smile because we've been there so many times....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gH3dc7IZVPc