Thứ Năm, 4 tháng 7, 2019

FRANK HERBERT'S DUNE


There was a time when Dune could've been a behemoth of a franchise. Alejandro Jodorowsky's early treatment from the 70s became a legend in its own right and even inspired the likes of Star Wars and Alien. After David Lynch's underwhelming adaptation, the SyFy channel brought it to the small screen in the early 2000s with a small budget to match. So far, it's the best there is (that is until Denis Villeneuve gives us his inevitably awesome take) but I cannot forgive it for siring Frank Herbert's Dune, Cryo's broken attempt at a video game on PC and PlayStation 2.

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Thứ Năm, 27 tháng 6, 2019

5 GAMES FOR JUNE

https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/3d-ultra-pinball-space-colony.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/international-rally-championship.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/nippon-safes-inc.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/rebel-moon-rising.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/tower-of-souls.html

June's selection of games takes you on a trip around the world and beyond. First up is the space-themed pinball game 3D Ultra Pinball: Space Colony followed by a global racing tour in Magnetic Field's Network Q threequel International Rally Championship. Then, get into all sorts of hijinks while in Japan in Big Red Adventure's comedic predecessor Nippon Safes, Inc before travelling to a moon colony in order to protect its independence in the FPS sequel Rebel Moon Rising. Lastly, explore the trap-filled dungeons in the Tower of Souls, a rather unique dungeon crawling RPG.

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Thứ Tư, 19 tháng 6, 2019

CHRONICLES OF THE SWORD


King Arthur. Merlin. The Knights of the Round Table - there's nothing quite like the most epic of British fables. Many have taken their stab at adapting the tale be it books, movies or games and in 1996, Psygnosis published Synthetic Dimensions' long-gestating adventure game called Chronicles of the Sword. Taking place after the grail has been found, with Arthur firmly on the throne, he's beginning to find ruling over Britania in the magical Dark Ages quite troublesome.

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Thứ Sáu, 14 tháng 6, 2019

Chủ Nhật, 9 tháng 6, 2019

STUPID INVADERS


Comedy is something of a rarity in today's gaming market. Sure you may muster a titter or two at the quips made in Doom or the tantrum of a losing sibling in Mario Kart but none of them gets there through actual, full-on comedy. That's where classic adventures shine. And one that does is Xilam's 2000 point-and-clicker Stupid Invaders.

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Thứ Ba, 4 tháng 6, 2019

BANZAI BUG


Out of all the concepts for an action flight-simulator, that of a flying insect it perhaps the most inspired. Released in 1996 by Grolier Interactive, Banzai Bug took the gameplay from the likes of X-Wing or Wing Commander and plonked it into the miniature, colourful surroundings of a bug's adventurous life.

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Thứ Sáu, 31 tháng 5, 2019

5 GAMES FOR MAY 2019

https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/ad-cop.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/foul-play-mystery-at-awkward-manor.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/network-q-rac-rally-championship.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/rebel-moon.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/wwf-european-rampage-tour.html

For the month of May, gun down some terrorists in the PC-only light-gun shooter A.D. Cop. Take turns to solve the murder in Foul Play: Mystery at Awkward Manor based on Clue/Cluedo. Drive fast down dirt tracks and country roads in Network Q RAC Rally Championship. Destroy everything that moves in the little-known sci-fi first-person-shooter Rebel Moon. Finally, take your wrestling skills around the EU in WWF European Rampage Tour. Read on for more...

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Thứ Bảy, 25 tháng 5, 2019

DISNEY'S ALADDIN TRIPLE

https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/disneys-aladdin-pinball.html  https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/disneys-maths-quest-with-aladdin.html  https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/disneys-reading-quest-with-aladdin.html

The live-action Aladdin remake has just hit theatres, so what better time to celebrate the animated classic that is the 1992  original? Here are three rather obscure titles to feature the big blue genie and the motley crew that freed him. Flip your balls around Agrabah in Disney's Aladdin Pinball, an obscure mission-based pinball game. Then, if you need some refreshers on two of your three 'r's, test your arithmetic in Disney's Math Adventure with Aladdin and your reading in Disney's Reading Quest with Aladdin.

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Thứ Ba, 7 tháng 5, 2019

Dad, I love you

As many of you know, my father, Dr. Osama Abdin has passed 10 days ago on the 27th of April 2019. He passed peacefully in his ward bed at the hospital he was admitted at, on March 31st. My father's suffering with Parkinson's has ended and I believe he is now in a better place enjoying his afterlife with his parents and loved ones in full health.

I have passed from the constant grieving and crying phase a couple of days ago as I kept my mind busy creating art for the game development. I have to stay strong for my mom. My father had spent all his time and money to educate us. He wanted to stay working until his last breath, but aging didn't do him well. Caring for him the last 8 years made me feel that he was my son not my dad, specially the last couple of years he was my little baby. Parkinson's made him lose the ability to eat by himself so I used to feed him. He was a very nice person and his loud laugh will always be remembered. All the people whom attended the funeral were telling me that they would miss his laugh. The funeral was massive, thousands of people came to the cemetery each with a memory of how he treated their illnesses before his retirement.

I would like to ask you all to go to your parents and tell them that you love them. Go hug them. Make their lives easier in every possible way. This is what helped me cope with his passing, that I always told him that I loved him, always hugged him and kissed his forehead. And now he's not physically with me anymore, I can still send him my love through prayers and caring for those he loved. I will always check on his friends and loved ones here.

Dad, I wanted to afford a better treatment for you, I wanted to do many things for you, I wanted to give you the world. I am so sorry I could not do it by myself.

Rest in peace.


Thứ Sáu, 3 tháng 5, 2019

COSMOLOGY OF KYOTO


Can games be art? Anyone who has followed this site will know that I consider the answer to be a resounding and obvious 'yes'. Yet, prominent critics of other mediums still ponder this question. Famed film expert Roger Ebert was one of these naysayers but there was one game that did impress him - Cosmology of Kyoto.

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Chủ Nhật, 28 tháng 4, 2019

5 GAMES FOR APRIL 2019

https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/star-trek-first-contact.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/star-trek-pinball.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/star-trek-next-generation-interactive.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/star-trek-next-generation-transinium.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/star-trek-v-final-frontier.html

Capping off a month of Star Trekking, here's a quintet of mini-reviews set in the universe. First up is Star Trek: First Contact, an interactive fiction featuring the original crew. Next is Star Trek: Pinball, where you can fight for the high score in three unique tables. You can find out everything you need to know about the Enterprise, including an interactive guided tour in Star Trek: The Next Generation - Interactive Technical Manual. There's a more visual take on interactive fiction in Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Transinium Challenge. To cap it all of, you can follow the plot of the fifth movie in the multi-genred Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.


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Thứ Ba, 23 tháng 4, 2019

STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - A FINAL UNITY


In my continuing mission to explore strange new worlds, I thought I'd seek out new life and new civilizations in Star Trek: The Next Generation - A Final Unity. Let's boldly go where no one (or quite a few judging by the sales numbers) has gone before, and take a look at Spectrum Holobyte's classic 1995 adventure that is perhaps my favourite Star Trek game of them all.

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Thứ Năm, 18 tháng 4, 2019

STAR TREK: ARMADA


Many a gaming genre has worn the Star Trek license, but out of all of them, the Real Time Strategy perhaps fits Gene Roddenberry's egalitarian concept the best. Shooters are arguably too violent for the peaceful goals of the Federation while narrative-driven adventures don't always delve into the complexities of diplomacy, telling distinctly one-sided stories. So let's talk about Star Trek: Armada, Activision's 1999 attempt to do the cult phenomenon justice.

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Thứ Ba, 16 tháng 4, 2019

An Open Request

I wanted to share a quick update with you all. But as many know, lawsuits and their procedures take time. I have a little request though, if you have any kind of information that you think it may help in anyway with the Tardigrades lawsuit, please feel free to share it with me, you can always email it to me at ajabdin@yahoo.com

Your help is appreciated, and as always, please keep me and my family in your thoughts and prayers as we're going through a very difficult time now.

Thứ Hai, 15 tháng 4, 2019

STAR TREK: GENERATIONS


Three years after Captain Kirk passed the torch over to Jean Luc Picard in the seventh Star Trek motion picture, MicroProse finally gave us the movie tie in. Released in 1997, Star Trek: Generations adds a heavy dose of adventuring to the first-person-shooter but is it any better for it?

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Thứ Sáu, 12 tháng 4, 2019

STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE 9 - HARBINGER


Out of all of the Star Trek spin-offs, Deep Space 9 is arguably one of the best though it is somewhat underrepresented in video-game form. In 1995, the Federation space station located on the far side of the Milky Way came to PCs in a hybrid adventure game by Stormfront Studios called Harbinger.

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Chủ Nhật, 7 tháng 4, 2019

Thứ Bảy, 23 tháng 3, 2019

5 GAMES FOR MARCH 2019

https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/arcade-america.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/bad-blood.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/cyril-cyberpunk.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/network-q-rac-rally.html https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/p/wwf-wrestlemania-arcade-game.html

In the latest quintet of monthly mini-reviews, a slew of hidden gems have made their way out of the Chamber. As a propeller-wearing slob of a man, platform your way across the US in Arcade America. Survive the wastelands of a post-apocalyptic future in Bad Blood, an action RPG from the folks behind Ultima. Grab your hoverboard and save the world from invading teddybears in the platformer Cyril Cyberpunk. Race across a multitude of nations in Network Q RAC Rally. Finally, prove your wrestling worth in WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game for a multitude of systems.

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!protectable

Let me mention some facts. Now please bear with me as what you are about to read is not going to sound logical at all, except to CBS's lawyers Wook Hwang and Jonathan Zavin.

  1. First, they argued that they did nothing wrong and that my complaint (the lawsuit) is frivolous (which the court later ruled in my favor for this part)
  2. Then they partially admitted access and copying but that they copied the "de minimis" (the allowable amount) and "Scènes à faire" (common scenes in a specific genre or theme).
  3. Then they argued (and I can't believe I'm saying this...) that what they copied has no similarities.
  4. And finally, they are now saying that they did not copy because we came with our ideas independently.

Now I'm not a law expert or anything but I think even a 5 years old can come up with a better and more logical argument than Wook's. I had to make sure with both my lawyers Allan Chan and John Johnson that I do understand these arguments clearly as they make no sense to me. These arguments are from their actual filed dismissal letters to the court. All they did so far are desperate trials to mislead the court with irrelevant cases while contradicting themselves to a pathetic point. Why would they need to use all these varied and different arguments if they were innocent?

Based on Wook's arguments, my elements are not protectable, so the same goes with theirs. None of their material is protectable (Scènes à faire). None of their Star Trek material is protectable. This means (from their arguments) that anyone can create a work with the same bridge crew and the spore-drive and the giant tardigrade navigator. Does that mean The Orville had protection from the beginning and is not treated as a parody? Because honestly, The Orville did not even get close to any of those specific elements from Star Trek as Star Trek Discovery did to my Tardigrades game.

Sometimes I feel puzzled how Wook's arguments go past CBS' law department, unless their intention is to damage the IP of the Star Trek franchise to win their battle with me. So far, this is what seems to be going on.

Thứ Hai, 18 tháng 3, 2019