Spooky Outhouse Productions

Check out the Kickstarter. Enter the contest. 

 Kickstarter Link: http://kck.st/Yb5Wm

Keep your eye on this blog and podcast this week for details.

The post Get Your Character into the Fantasy Toolcards Deck: A Ruthless Contest appeared first on Geeky & Genki.

The Way of the Game is returning to our once-and-future mission of serving you well-rounded awesomeness.  If you prefer your chocolate and peanut butter separate, we’ve set up new feeds for you.

• The first feed is just podcast episodes, movies and games.
• The second is all our video game content, posts and podcasts alike.
• The third focuses in on We Just Watched a Movie.

The home page will always aggregate all our content, but the we’ve broken it all up into categories (and seasons for WotG) for your browsing pleasure.  That should make it easy to get just the content you want, when you want it.  Enjoy!

Welcome to the next installment of Captain’s Journey. Hopefully you are enjoying the story thus far. Please feel free to leave comments or questions here or on Twitter. *** “I am Captain Theran Jaxx. I am forty years old.” The words seem to echo around my room. The mirror is cold and unresponsive. It just shows me what is reality despite what I wish otherwise. My frame still stands at a respectable six feet. My hair, once brown, now shows a healthy dose of grey at the temples. The body that fills out my flight suit is a bit of a shock though. Gone is the pot belly from living the life of a pirate captain. Musculature that had been hidden by layers of fat can now be seen. The incident with the bug-eyed monsters seems to have triggered some metabolic process which has transformed my body into something that coincides more with the weapon that I am. In my youth, I was athletic. I played whatever sport that was popular at the time. It was about being competitive and part of a group. The sport was irrelevant. The need to be a part of a larger group and help it excel was a natural side effect to my Talent. I had to say in good shape to make this happen. The transformation which has occurred puts that to shame. I would have worn this skin tight flight suit in spite of what it would have shown off before. Now, It showcases a body....

 In this first episode on the Adventures in Oz RPG, I focus mostly on tone and the author’s approach to the Oz legacy. I also reveal my misunderstanding of transhumanism.

Links

Atomic Array

Adventures in Oz

The post Adventures in Oz by F. Douglas Wall, Part One appeared first on Geeky & Genki.

The Third Man this week.  Next week is On the Waterfront.  As always, follow along on our iCheckMovies list, and be sure to let us know how you’d rank the movies in the comments below.

The Third Man – September 2, 1949

Director: Carol Reed
Producer: Carol Reed, Alexander Korda, David O. Selznick
Writers: Graham Greene
Actors: Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, Trevor Howard
Distributor: British Lion Films

The course of the conversation:

Yeah, we didn’t watch Napoleon, again.  Keep an eye on the show notes.

Jonathan talks about business for a bit.

Jonathan also gives a history lesson about the Production Code.

All that talk about the code?  The Third Man is foreign and has nothing to do with it.

It’s another first for Jonathan.  Maybe.

All zither, all the time.

Nathaniel doesn’t like that he only connected with Anna. Michael and Jonathan argue that that’s the point.

Some movies needed to be watched a second time. This might be one of those.

Bruce Willis is not dead.

It’s not quite mustache twirling…

Never work with animals or small children.

We abandon any attempts at structure.

Unnecessary salacious trivia time!

Turns out, we’ve already watched a David O. Selsnick film.

There’s plenty of clever touches in this movie.

Noir is not a genre of trench coats and jazz bars; noir is a genre of it’s time.

There was an end, but no resolution.

We bust out the list.

I don’t really like this movie.  Oh wait, I really like this movie.

Michael makes a fairly easy choice.  Nathaniel and Jonathan make all sorts of changes.

Life is a message board, and firsts have been claimed.

Nathaniel’s third choice for his movie to include will shock you.

Michael picks a movie that’s gonna require a bigger boat.

Jonathan picked three movies, hedging his bet against someone taking one, and no one took any of them.

The guys moon over Moon.

Marlo Brando is De Niro’s tender side?  What?

De Niro Tenders.

Learn the basics of this unique system straight from its designer in this video interview.

The post 6d6 RPG 101 with Chris Tregenza appeared first on Geeky & Genki.

Singin’ in the Rain this week.  Next week is The Third Man.  As always, follow along on our iCheckMovies list, and be sure to let us know how you’d rank the movies in the comments below.

Singin’ in the Rain – March 27, 1952

Director: Gene Kelly, Stanley Donen
Producer: Arthur Freed
Writers: Betty Comden, Adolph Green
Actors: Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Myer

The course of the conversation:

Let’s try this again.

A very conventional movie pokes fun at very conventional movies.

Jonathan admits his total lack of musical knowledge while criticizing the musical numbers.

We still have to compare it to Raging Bull.

Jonathan has trouble explaining the kind of context in which he wants his musical numbers to be presented.

Cat beat box break.

That Michael Bay movie made perfect sense… said no one ever.

Favorite scenes.

Four packs of cigarettes a day is not a habit, it’s a problem.

Gene Kelly’s done it better.  Gene Kelly’s doing it better right now.  Gene Kelly will do it better again.

Jonathan refers to White Christmas again.

“Beautiful Girl” was a terrible number.

We’re not so sure this should be a top ten movie on so many lists.

Of course, it’s going to be in our top ten for a while.

Little nepotiz.

Nadia is probably singing “Good Morning” right now.

Whatever happened to tap dancing?

SingInception.

We didn’t fix it in post.

Singin’ in the Rain is placed on the list.

Jonathan’s already forgotten why he liked Finding Nemo so much.

Jonathan’s found his first paradox movie.

Nominations for additions to the list: Jonathan, Moon; Nathaniel, Blues Brothers; Michael, Twelve Angry Men.

We announce a bunch of movies for next week that we don’t actually watch.  As always, check the start of the show notes.

A warning, this review will be a little spoilery. When 7% came out last month from Red5 Comics, I was excited. Here was a comic with a science fiction bent that focused on the perfection of humanity through unlocking the full potential of the human brain. It hit on two things that I enjoy in science fiction, Hope and Psionics.  In that first issue we are introduced to a setting where thoughts are controlled by corporations which run everything for a monolithic government. The 7% is that last bit of brain that a scientist is trying to actuate with the hope that this would allow him and his people to free others from the yoke of oppression. The side effect of this procedure is the heightening of the human mind’s psionic capability. Squee! At the end of issue one, there were lots of interesting questions to follow. The one that I really wanted answered was who was this soldier and why did the symbiote respond to him? Issue two gives a good answer. We learn that the soldiers name is Cole. He is a musician and one of the sons of the head of Stone Corp. He has done his best to stay out of the corporate life and pursue his own agenda on a residential planet of Lux. It all comes crashing down when his father orders him to the company headquarters in no uncertain terms.  He has to leave behind the woman he loves and hopes to marry, for an uncertain future.....

Collateral 32: Kickstarters Past, Present, and Future

    Things of Which We Speak
    * Kickstarter
    * There's still time to support Spark. Do it!
    * Centurion: Legionaries of Rome was a success
    * Keep your eye on Broken Ruler Games for your Killshot news

    Feedback
    * If you want to contact the Accidental Survivors, you can email us individually at chris@accidentalsurvivors.com, fraser@accidentalsurvivors.com, and rob@accidentalsurvivors.com.
    * You can hop on over to our message forums at www.accidentalsurvivors.com.
    * You can find us on Twitter as AccidentalFrase, Accidental_Rob, and AccSurvPodcast.

#1 Evil Dead (2013) from TriStar opened at #1 with a gross of $25.8 million in 3,025 theaters.  Budget was $17 million.

#2 G.I. Joe: Retaliation from Paramount fell from #1 to #2 with a gross of $20.9 million (-48.5%) in 3,734 theaters (+15).  Total gross to date is $86.4 million.  Budget was $130 million.

#3 The Croods from 20^th Century Fox fell from #2 to #3 with a gross of $20.7 million (-22.7%) in 3,879 theaters (-186).  Total gross to date is $125.4 million.  Budget was $135 million.

#4 Jurassic Park 3D from Universal opened at #4 with a gross of $18.6 million in 2,771 theaters.  Budget was $10 million.

#5 Olympus Has Fallen from FilmDistrict fell from #4 to #5 with a gross of $10.2 million (-28.2%) in 3,059 theaters (-47).  Total gross to date is $71.2 million.  Budget was $70 million.

#6 Tyler Perry’s Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor from Lionsgate fell from #3 to #6 with a gross of $10.1 million (-53.4%) in 2,047 theaters.  Total gross to date is 38.5 million.  Budget was unknown.

#7 Oz The Great and Powerful from Buena Vista fell from #5 to #7 with a gross of $8 million (-31.6%) in 2,905 theaters (-419).  Total gross to date is $212.6 million.  Budget was $215 million.

#8 The Host (2013) from Open Road Films fell from #6 to #8 with a gross of $5.2 million (-51%) in 3,202 theaters.  Total gross to date is $19.6 million.  Budget was $40 million.

#9 The Call from TriStar fell from #7 to #9 with a gross of $3.5 million (-28.9%) in 2,002 theaters (-437).  Total gross to date is $45.5 million.  Budget was $13 million.

#10 Admissions from Focus Features fell from #8 to #10 with a gross of $1.9 million (-39.8%) in 1,407 theaters (-754).  Total gross to date is $15.3 million.  Budget was $13 million.

#11 Spring Breakers from A24 fell from #9 to #11 with a gross of $1.2 million (-57.8%) in 1,072 theaters (-307).  Total gross to date is $12.6 million.  Budget was $2 million.

#12 Identity Thief from Universal fell from #11 to #12 with a gross of $796 thousand (-27.5%) in 721 theaters (-361).  Total gross to date is $131.2 million.  Budget was $35 million.

The combined gross of the top 12 movies this weekend was $126.8 million.

Sources:
Box Office Mojo

Hosts: Scott, Todd, Trez In this not regular episode, Todd sits down to have a conversation with his friends Scott and Trez about the intersections of gaming, art, and music (particularly metal). Mostly we just end up waxing about our … Continue reading →

Show notes will be on their way.

Hosts : Rob and Mike
BS! Memberships: Spooky Outhouse Productions
Music : All music used with permission of Ghoultown

LA Noir, Dishonored and more!

Alas, Lucasarts…

Character creation for our “Keepers of the Hidden Way” game using Fate Accelerated Edition

Some additional setting info gets nailed down

Hosts:
(the) Brian
Ian
Thom

Read the full show notes here. The Sideways Tower And don’t forget to check us out and give us a Like on our new Facebook page The Sideways Tower Podcast

Our intro/outro music is by local band Suckerpunch. You can check them out of Facebook here: Suckerpunch

Sam is unable to record because [REDACTED DUE TO MORALITY CLAUSE].  Alex and Jonathan go old school and record a two-man ‘cast.

We start the show by discussing the demise of LucasArts.  Is it really something worth mourning or is the geekosphere reacting out of nostalgia?  We hope everyone who lost their job finds new and wonderful employment elsewhere, but we haven’t actually spent much money on a LucasArts game in a long time.

We also discuss how Sega Europe was forced to acknowledge that footage used in trailers for Aliens: Colonial Marines was misleading.  Alex doesn’t really care, because even the footage in the trailers failed to sell him on the game.  Jonathan gets it, but does a poor job explaining why.

Alex has completed Bioshock Infinite.  It’s made him forget just how much he loved Bioshock.  Relic gets discussed as Alex’s non-video-game game, basically an updated take on the board game Talisman set in the 40K universe.  Alex also met a younger version of himself while he was out of town last week.

Jonathan wants to know who wants to play Terraria with him.  It’s on 360 and PS3 now, and he’s down to get the game if anyone else is playing.  He also gets in his own non-video-game game by talking about the tabletop RPG Microscope; it’s very much a story game, but it’s a really interesting story game.  Jonathan’s also played some games provided free via Playstation Plus: The Cave, which may suffer from Jonathan’s favorite recent complaint, tonal inconsistencies; and Closure, a clever puzzle game that plays with light and shadow.

Finally, we wrap up the show with the MetaGame.  Defiance does not yet have a Metacritic score, and so we skip to our alternate game, Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge.  Jonathan does really well this week, only two points off the aggregate score of 71.  Alex and Sam picked numbers close, though, and so not much has changed on the leaderboard.  For the next round, we pick Injustice: Gods Among Us: Jonathan guesses 89, Alex 84, and Sam 80.

As Defiance still doesn’t have a Metacritic score as of release, let’s ask this question: do you like the Metagame?  Let us know in the comments below.

Aron’s nightmare Paul as the Easter Bunny update Aron’s seen some stories on that ding dang ol’ televisory box, and he’s got new floors We Can Be Heroes! The Star Wars Justice League: The FlashPoint Paradox WTF Month – Carrie Kelly?!??! Action Comics #19 Indestructible Hulk #6 Thanos Rising #1 All New X-Men #10 Masks #5 Miss Fury #1 Guardians of the Galaxy: Infinite #3 Superior Spider-Man #7 Harbinger Wars #1 – WP Give us a call at 972-763-5903 and leave us your thoughts. If we use your voicemail, you’ll win an Ideology of Madness SurPrize just like Tony Mast and Mikey Mason did this week! Knights of Reignsborough Season 2 is coming…!  

Author:  Matthew Wayne Selznick

Published: 2005

Lulu

Plot Summary - Fans of Spider-Man, silver age comics, and alternate history will enjoy this novel of teen angst and metahumans! This coming of age story is set in an alternate 1980′s, where people with amazing abilities make themselves known. Can young Nathan Charters find himself in this uncertain new world? Who is he, where did he come from, and is he part of a remarkable new minority…or just a misfit among misfits? Brave Men Run is at once gripping and emotional, shocking and intelligent.

Quick Thoughts: [forthcoming]

“Brave men run…in my family”

Your hosts:

• Lena
• Tony
• Scott

This episode was recorded: 02/28/13

Next Time: Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson

Congrats to Jeff and Scott for their high scores of 24!

Thanks to Art, Nick and Tad for their voice mails.

Picks:

Jeff

1. Evil Dead
2. The Croods
3. G.I. Joe: Retaliation
4. Jurassic Park 3D
5. Tyler Perry’s Temptation

Lena

1. Evil Dead
2. Jurassic Park 3D
3. G.I. Joe: Retaliation
4. The Croods
5. Tyler Perry’s Temptation

Back Seat Art House picks:

• Jeff – The Company You Keep
• Lena – Trance

I hope you are enjoying Captain’s Journey thus far. Today is the seventh installment of the story. Please feel free to sound off in the comments or contact me on Twitter. *** “You are not a monster.” “Hal. If I am not a monster, then what am I? I chose to push forward and destroy every last living thing on that ship. I took the lives of my crew to do it and was going to do the same to the Albedo. What other name is there for me?” “Weapon. It is a simple word but it fits better than monster.” I stand up and begin pacing about the room. “A weapon does not go off on it’s own. It does not turn on those who may have created it. Monsters do that. There are thousands of stories where this is the formula.” “Jaxx, your knowledge of history and weaponry is very poor. Bombs are weapons that are dangerous to their creators at all times. They are still used by many primitive races throughout the galaxy and take their toll on their makers as often as their targets. Humans are also well known for their penchant for turning living creatures into weapons. There are ancient records indicating that cetaceans were trained to carry bombs for naval engagements. The horrors heaped upon these creatures didn’t end there either. Upon the discovery of water planets, they were engineered to become even more intelligent yet subservient to humans. They were the perfect army....

 Thanks to Nancy McSwiney for the illustration of the Deep One.

We all know that life throws some spitballs, some curve balls, some seriously wild pitches. We have learned that we have to deal with all manner of twists and turns in order to survive this earthly existence. We have an awesome idea one day that sounds silly the next. We have goals that circumstances deem improbable to achieve, perhaps impossible. If we are not constantly in a state of mental Fluxx (and we usually are), the world around us certainly is. But we don’t want to give up. What’s the point of giving up?

I see Fluxx by Looney Labs as a safe, amusing mirror of this predicament. Fluxx is the card game with ever changing rules and win conditions, so to win one must be at the right place at the right time, and the right time and place constantly change. And, although strategy is not the main strength of the winners in this game, awareness and planning definitely play into one’s success or failure.

You must strike while the iron is hot. You must grab opportunity when it rears its pretty, little head. You must stay alert for these moments in play and in life when an answer that seemed non-existent pops into your troubled mind, when an opportunity says HELLO! PAY ATTENTION TO ME. 

In Fluxx, like in life, you must know your audience, your enemies, and the context in which you play. Are you competing with people who are cutthroat, people who will take you down right at the moment you think you are both working together? Or are you playing with players who are going to allow you to be the ruthless one.

Fluxx reminds us how to deal with the challenge of staying alert and of knowing when and which actions we should take in order to set the table for a scrumptious feast of success.

Let’s take just two of the Fluxx flavors to discuss these points: Oz Fluxx and Cthulhu Fluxx.

Oz Fluxx is a very child appropriate flavor of Fluxx. The Oz theme, the Oz art, all cheery and wonderful like the fantastic Oz stories. Dorothy knows that children like adults face challenges in life. Sometimes they are in the form of HUGE decisions: Which parent should I live with? Should I fight back against the bully or not? Childhood in some cases is nothing less than adulthood in miniature. In this version of Fluxx, sometimes Keepers and Creepers are both needed to match the winning conditions. Keepers are generally good, Creepers bad. And, isn’t knowing that gray areas exist a crucial part of growing up?Aren’t the most interesting villains the ones not completely evil through and through. It’s true; in this version of Fluxx, there are only four Creepers, but there are many decisions to make in the form of an abundance of action cards. Do not underestimate the toughness of growing up.

Cthulhu Fluxx is full of all of the horror you would expect in a Lovecraft themed game, albeit with a light touch. This mirrors some of the darker elements of life that one would just as soon forget if it wasn’t in one’s interest to remember them.

This version of Fluxx has UNGOALS. These are win conditions that when met cause EVERYONE to lose. Aren’t there people in life that want to take everyone down with them through various real-life goals? You know it.

And, this game has Creepers that permanently attach to your keepers, the good cards. Oh, life’s baggage, both from within and without. It’s is still possible to win with the baggage, but climbing that ladder of success will take much more endurance.

Oz Fluxx and Cthulhu Fluxx are currently my two favorite themes of this card game.

The post Oz and Cthulhu Fluxx: Mirrors of Life appeared first on Geeky & Genki.