"Carbon Stars..."

Tom Kranis recently released his mappack containing rejected levels and cutscenes.  I was first made aware of Tom Kranis when he released his very interesting Halflife 2 map entitled "A Dog Was Hit In The Head With An Ax".  Of the cutscenes, included are scenes of Dog getting hit in the head with a BSP-designed axe, Dr. Breen giving his famous 'Carbon Stars' speech in various locales, and lots of other stuff.  If anything, I'd say that 90 percent of the mappack is rubbish, but it's definitely worth checking out if you're into mapping as there are really cool effects, gameplay concepts and ideas that have not been seen in any other Halflife 2 mod (remote controlled scientists, an automatic oil drum launcher, npc who follows you and wears a machinegun on his head that you can control, just to name a few) in addition to humourous cinematography (most of which I've recorded so you don't have to go through them).

Be sure to watch this video walkthrough of "A Dog Was Hit In The Head With An Axe."  Worth checking out if you can't bring yourself to finish the map all the way through.

The Organic Indie Preorder Pack

I gotta admit - I'm not hip to the 'Indie' games scene, the 'Indie' genre, or their dozens of stinky, sweaty, beardnecked fans, but one game company has certainly grabbed my attention.  I first heard of these guys when I was searching for information about Natural Selection 2, the sequel to the award winning Halflife mod.  A while ago Natural Selection 2 and Overgrowth were being sold as a pre-order bundle through Steam.  In addition to saving a significant amount, you get to preview and test early alpha builds (plus a special secret bonus for NS2 players.)  Both games use their own unique game engines.

What really grabbed my attention is how user friendly the interface for the level editor is for Overgrowth.  It's similar to Garry's mod, in that you can click an icon, place the model into the game world, and scale them easily to build set pieces, levels, buildings, etc.  As of right now, the alpha is mostly a ghost-town/desert landscape simulator, but the final product promises to be very mod-friendly.  Pre-ordering allows your money to go straight to the developers and keep development going

Humorous Garry's Mod parody

JBMod was originally made because the nerds on HL2World wanted to get back to making sexual poses with the ragdolls in Half-Life 2, which they weren't able to do anymore since the physgun had been removed from the final game. Both prior to the release of Half-Life 2, and after the release of JBMod, just about every screenshot involved Alyx Vance.

http://www.jbmod.com/

If you're still playing that oudated Garry's mod 10, then you truly are not living life to its fullest. Become a man and grow a sack, comb your pubic hair, have lumber for breakfast and download JBMod TODAY!!

It will bring pride to your family name!

Cool HL2 modding website worth visiting

http://joesmoddingmenagerie.blogspot.com/

A cool website detailing HL2 mods that may be of interest.

'Left4Dead2 Boycott' leaders meet Gabe Newell

http://www.kotaku.com.au/2009/09/gabe-newell-boycotting-l4d-modders-campaign/

Pretty much sums up Gabe Newell in a nutshell:

That said, I am just playing devil's advocate here. I could care less about someone who cares less about themselves. He is not only fat, but doesn't seem to care about most other aspects of hygiene. Most every picture of him is usually him covered in freaking stains and other such markings (the full pic at his article, seen on Kotaku, shows some kind of stain on his shirt - either that or a huge sweat stain coming from his belly. He is gross. As someone said, I am no spring chicken either, but at least I try not to be repulsive (clean clothes and a freaking shower at least, COME ON!) when I go out in public or go to work. Imagine how his co-workers must feel?

 - deathxrebirth, 1up.com

Ignatius J. Reilly is alive and has a blog!

Is that Gabe Newell guy a fat fuck or what? I can't believe he finds time between stuffing his chubby face with KFC and swallowing the pieces of chicken whole -- without chewing, just like a snake -- to shoot his smacking mouth off about how the PS3 is a disaster. You know what is a disaster? The fat fucks cholesterol levels. How about he takes some time off from enhancing his whale like physique and howling about the PS3 like a sea lion in heat, as pieces of chicken fly into the collective faces of the internet and instead squeeze out more that 1 game every decade, huh how about that? Then at least what he says would have a semblance of relevance instead of being the annoying ramblings of the man-child leader of a game company with almost no games released in 15 years for a now defunct platform.
-Kamiboy, "Last Man", Friday, October 12, 2007

If Ignatius J. Reilly were alive today and was writing angry posts about videogames on the internet, then I think I just found him (and I mean that in a positive way, honest!).  Read this blog and this blog, too.  It's a blog about how much the industry has changed for the worst, the death of PC gaming, the golden years of what gaming used to be, and why Gabe Newell is an asshole.  It's very well written and articulated and I couldn't put my thoughts into into words better than this man.

Article: "Are Gamers Stupid?"

This article pretty much sums up the majority of the gamers. Enjoy!

http://www.platformnation.com/2010/04/24/gamers-are-stupid/