The future of sports videogames

Videogames are getting closer and closer to emulating real life every year - at least in terms of looks.

This is mostly true in sports games. Gawkers are impressed - year-in, year-out - with how far graphics are being pushed. Nobody seems to mind that sports games are generally the same every year, albeit from a few minor upgrades and roster swap.

But how many people honestly care how a game looks? [The answer is "plenty"; have you seen sales figures for sports games nowadays?] Isn't the point of a videogame to enjoy playing it?

Enough with the technicalities. I'll let the videos do the talking for this post.

First up, let's take a look at "Madden NFL 2008," the yearly update to the million-selling series from Electronic Arts' Tiburon studio:

The players run like constipated robots (is that even possible?) and it's just plain boring to watch.

It's the exact same game as "Madden NFL 2001," except with a prettier face and a few extra (negligible) bells and whistles.

But wait, virtual pigskin fanatics, your savior has arrived.

"Backbreaker" is a new football game from NaturalMotion using cutting-edge animation technology.

Granted, you won't be wrapping up LT for a loss or making Eli Manning cry because of the game's lack of an NFL license, but it's the game itself that matters, right?

Right?

Information on the new technology can be found at http://naturalmotion.com/ .

Iron Man scared of Grand Theft Auto?

The Financial Times recently spoke with Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello on two potential spring blockbusters: the silver screen's "Iron Man" and the controversial, fashionably twisted mafioso crimefest, Rockstar Entertainment's "Grand Theft Auto IV (GTA4)."

For those not hip to gaming culture, GTA is on the same popularity/financial level as Bungie's "Halo," which recently set an opening-day U.S. sales record (including movies, music, etc.) by bringing in over $170 million.

Iron Man is slated to hit the big screen on May 2, just three days after GTA4's launch on Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's Playstation 3 consoles. Still following? Good.

Now here comes the dilemma: Do you drop $8.50 for a movie lasting an hour and a half, or $60 for 50 hours in front of the idiot box? With the economy nowadays, people probably aren't going to drop money on both (at least within such a close time period of each other).

"The buzz in Hollywood, which I heard from some Hollywood folks...is people are worried whether Iron Man the movie is going to get killed by Grand Theft Auto the game," Riccitiello told the Times.

Is the supposed fear well-founded? Perhaps, especially if the past is any indication.

According to Rockstar, the most recent GTA game, "San Andreas," has sold more than 21.5 million copies as of March 26.

Yep. Be afraid.

A new car

So this past Friday, I signed away my financial freedom for the next few years and bought a 2006 Pontiac Solstice convertible. Yeek.

But before you go thinking that the lives of small-town newspaper journalists are all glitz and glamour, there's some things you must first consider.

For instance, instead of driving my new cherry red coupe to a penthouse suite, I'm driving it to my parents' home where I live rent-free (God bless them). Hey, you save where you can, right?

I also make short movies, which are sold to Web sites like Break.com and ebaumsworld.com. Some of them have been featured on national television. It's like a second job, pretty much.

So no, I'm not selling blood on the side. I don't have an abdominal scar from when I bartered one of my kidneys on the black market.

...but seriously, donations can be sent to davidallen@shelbystar.com.

Hey Nike, LaDainian Tomlinson can't act.

Love him or hate him, at least Lebron James has personality. He's gracing Vogue's cover - only the third man to do so in the magazine's 116-year-history. He's hosted the ESPYs.

I can respect that.

I can also respect athletes like Dirk Nowitzki and Tim Duncan, as they realize they have zero personality - they don't try to be marketing machines. They just play the game and accept the fact they'll never be dancing to showtunes on national television.

During his stint on primetime television, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, a former WWE wrestler turned Hollywood actor, was known to say, "Know your role, shut your mouth." LaDainian Tomlinson desperately needs to heed those words.



Can someone - anyone - tell me why Vizio and Nike want anything to do with this guy? He's gracing national TV ads. Well, he's an NFL standout - nothing new here. I have no problem watching the guy run. Heck, he's a money in the bank come Sunday afternoons during football season. But after hearing him talk, I really wonder what the marketing departments for these companies were thinking bringing him on to endorse their products.

Every time I see one of his monologue-driven commercials, I can't help but think he's going to slowly droop forward and blow a transistor at any moment, revealing he's actually a Korean test robot for their National Defense.

DCC update

Sorry, the wireless connection here is very weak. Commissioners are about to vote. Throngs of people showed up - standing room only for most of the meeting.

Update: 7:39 p.m.

Robert Yelton gave a run-through of the lease agreement for the historic courthouse and the Earl Scruggs Center, and County Manager David Dear gave an overview of commonly asked questions via Powerpoint.

Update: 7:41 p.m.

Commissioner Eddie Holbrook said, "It's impossible to please everyone. In my opinion, the historic courthouse and the Scruggs Center is a step forward."

Chair Jo Boggs notes the beauty of the courthouse exterior, but adds that the interior needs work.

Update: 7:44 p.m.

The lease agreement was unanimously accepted by the Board of Commissioners.

DCC Lease/Board of Commissioners

The meeting begins at 6 p.m. Check back for updates.

Talk Tech - Monster cables versus coat hanger

Every time an audiophile buys into hype and chooses Monster or Bose products over a generic brand, I cry.

A recent experiment pitting Monster 1000 speaker cables against a common coat hanger (with soldered-on speaker connectors) shows that if you're buying the expensive connective gadgetry, you're buying snake oil and volcano insurance.

Not one single person in the experiment could tell the difference between the Monster cables and the sophisticated hanging device (much like how I can't tell the difference between Fergie's "music" and a dying womp rat).

For shame, consumer America. For shame.

Read more HERE.