Everything Wrong With The Dark Knight In 4 Minutes Or Less

Yup.

The Hunger Games, Dredd and the 12ification of culture

I initially thought that The Hunger Games was a really good film. A really good film. It had all the ingredients, after all: a perfectly-cast Jennifer Lawrence in the lead role, Suzanne Collins as screenwriter, and a sympathetic director who really seemed to understand the material. The opening scenes of shaky-cammed apocalyptic gloom offset against the slick Truman Show-style televisation were perfectly pitched, so it was disappointing as the film inexorably slid into mediocrity the minute the violence started. Or didn’t, as it turned out. 

Unreal Engine 3 Now Works In Flash

I was just browsing Kotaku for news on Rage (verdict: mixed – though I pretty much don’t trust game reviews any more since I’ve seen too many good games under-scored (Hunted) or ignored (Enslaved) and too many average games overhyped). Instead, what caught my eye was a feature on how the Unreal Engine 3 now works in Flash – you know, that thing websites use.

Holding out for a hero

At E3 last week, the new Tomb Raider reboot was showcased. I must say I was a little disappointed. Not with the graphics, which look wonderful, nor the gameplay, which looks engaging, but just with Lara Croft. See, Lara represents something, and I’m not just talking about tits.

I’ve never played a Tomb Raider game through, but she’s practically as iconic as Sonic the Hedgehog – a cross between Indiana Jones and James Bond. She’s intelligent, beautiful, filthy rich and almost invulnerable, which is why little girls want to be her. Women who don’t ordinarily play video games play Tomb Raider because it’s pure escapist fantasy.