Monday, January 31, 2011

The Rose by Sarah Slean Music Video

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

The NGP Announced - Successor to the PSP




Sony announced today at a press conference for Playstation that their successor to the Playstation Portable, the NGP, will be released in the Holiday Season of 2011. It is unclear if this is a Japanese only date or a worldwide release.

Some features of the NGP include...


  • Higher Graphics - Roughly equivalent of early PS3 Graphics
  • Front and Rear facing cameras 
  • Always-On 3G Data Connection
  • A new cartridge style game storage - UMD officially scrapped
  • 5" OLED Touch-screen
  • Touch Pads on the rear of the system
  • Two analog sticks
There will be location based features implemented that will show you other NGP players nearby and the most popular games in your location. It looks as though Sony has partnered heavily with Google in the implementation of Android-like features in the NGP. They have also planned to launch a Playstation service on Android devices including phones and tablets that brings the Playstation experience to the devices. PSP games and possibly Playstation 1 games will be made available for purchase to play on Android phones and tablets. 

Sony's main goal with the NGP and the Playstation launch on Android is to have a fluid gaming experience. To start a game on your PS3, walk out the door and continue that game on your NGP. To check in on your stats from your phone and tablet. 

Sony's main tagline for the NGP and the Android Playstation launch is...

The power is now in your hands
Head past the break for Sony's press shots!


Thursday, January 20, 2011

Beauty Lives - Sarah Slean: A Review


Beauty Lives is Sarah Slean's latest release. The album is a compilation of old and rare songs that had been played live but never recorded in studio. The album features ten songs that were voted on by Sarah's fans. Before the recording process, with the co-operation of LittleSlean, live recordings of several songs were made available and the voting process begun. Between the votes and personal decisions by Sarah, the track listing is as follows...

  1. Count Me Out
  2. Everything By the Gallon
  3. My Song
  4. Ogoni Star
  5. Sadie
  6. Closer
  7. Hooligans
  8. The Right Words
  9. I Do
  10. Glenn Gould Song
The album, overall, has a very cabaret and melancholy feel. The songs mostly seem to centre on a feeling of longing and regret. The album felt personal on first listen to me and it's definitely an album to sit down with a glass of wine and lament with. 

Some of the stand out tracks for me upon first listening was Count Me Out, The Right Words and Glenn Gould Song. After listening more and more to the album, Ogoni Star, Closer, and My Song also put themselves forward as well. 

Sarah's writing style takes such an insanely personal situation and puts it out as something very open and relatable piece. Count Me Out talks about being in a one-sided relationship. Where one person is so madly in love and the other just wants out. The song sounds as though it could be a whiny, self-satisfying type of song. But it comes across as a beautifully relatable piece. 

Sadie is an anthem to Sarah's future daughter. It tells the girl to be brave and strong, unlike her mother. To not let the issues she or the world goes through to weigh down on her like they have on herself. It seems to be a madly personal song but the song is so innocent and sweet it's really more of a self-empowering anthem. A reminder to be strong and believe in yourself. 

Closer is a song that relates to me on a madly personal level. It describes an unhealthy relationship that you just can't seem to get out of. The fear in taking the step away to be healthy and safe. 

Overall, I think this is a great introduction to Sarah Slean and is a really empowering album despite the sad tone that runs throughout it. It's available online through iTunes, Amazon and other digital retailers and in physical form from her official site: www.sarahslean.com 

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

FFXIII-2 Announced


Square Enix announced today at an event held in Japan that Final Fantasy XIII-2 is in production and will be released in 2011. It is unclear if this release window applies to Japan only or whether it will be an international release in 2011.

Little has been released about FFXIII-2. The new logo above shows a character who is said to be similar to Lightning in temperament. It is rumoured to be a man with purple hair.

Official Trailer



Screenshots below!