Thief 4!?!

The engrossing, well-written Thief games have been a favorite in the Bonzuko household since Thief: The Dark Project first came out in 1997. Now the game is up to three (anyone know how we can play 1 & 2 on Jenn's laptop w/Vista, please let us know!), and unfortunately Team Bonzuko was convinced it was the end of the franchise.

Not so! Read this article that stellar blog Boing Boing linked. It's an overview of the games, the studios that made them, and some delicious confirmed news about the new one! Highlighted quote: "[Thief's] influence on modern gaming remains enormous, effectively introducing the idea of stealth and non-violent first-person action. It also remains a singular experience: none of its imitators have come close. For many people, there is only Thief."

There is "only Thief" for us. We don't know whether to say "hurry up" or "take your sweet time and make it amazing" to Eidos Montreal. Some of both? Thanks to Ragdoll Metaphysics for the article, and Boing Boing for paying attention! Image was yoinked off the Thief website.

Just like the game!

I've been playing my favorite game, Thief (when I haven't been grading finals, that is), and came across this news blip from comcast. This is weirdly cool--just like that one level in the game, with the spooky ghost that makes you find stuff in the abandoned insane asylum, and the nightmare music is playing, and you get trapped... I wonder what was going on with this guy. Maybe it's the adrenaline of burgling. Maybe it has something to do with the brightest full moon in 15 years. ~Jenn

Odd News - Malaysia burglar stuck for 3 days in haunted house

Movement and Song

These guys have had enough crazy YouTube exposure they really don't need me. However, I am always ready to celebrate the extraordinary as far as movement, and these guys actually sing really well! Look up "a capella" anything and you'd be amazed how much mediocrity you'll find. And highschool choirs, bless their developing hearts.

What I like about this group is the combination of an excellent (and hilarious!) musical arrangement along with a well-performed physical interpretation. Good work, Choir Redefined!
~Jenn

Wii Would Like to Play

We in the Bonzuko household love our elegant, geek-themed, brain-expanding-yet-addictive toys. In an earlier post, we expounded on the virtues of...oh that's right, we haven't told you what that toy is that you want. Oh yes, you want it.

But now, listen up kids, our latest healthy addiction is the Wii Fit game. Once you log in your BMI and play some very odd balance games, you can't wait to sully that pristine white plastic surface of the board with your feet again.

I'd encourage everyone to have this very awesome addition to and motivator for your exercise regime, but it looks as though Wii systems are insanely hard to get (let alone expensive) and the game itself is even harder. Oh well, we'll have to have a Bonzuko Fitness (and then homebrew?) party sometime soon I suppose.

Jenn's Favorite Wii Fit games: most yoga is fun; that one where you're in a penguin suit and catching fish; the put-the-ball-in-the-hole game; Rhythmic Boxing, and...well most of them are fun. What's yours?

~Jenn

Ancient Geeks, er, Greeks

Jason found this image online yesterday: it's a 20-sided die from Ancient Rome.

That and catching a glimpse of Code Monkeys on G4 the other day reminded me of an idea for a series of stage combat fights I had way back in my Ren Faire days: I thought it would be hilarious to do fights and use D&D dice. For example, a fight ensues, and some kind of impasse happens, or one character is disarmed. Then both characters, instead of dispatching each other with their weapons, whip out the dice. Whatever the dice say, the characters have to do.

Sort of like D&D Commedia: the actor-combatants would have a bunch of beginnings, middles, and ends that they'd know very well, so they could go with the dice flow no matter what.

In addition, I was also thinking of more of a video-game slant: like, the actor-combatants have belts with red and blue bottles of liquid that they can drink when they're hurt/tired....

Or is this more of a niche-audience thing? Am I the only one geeky enough to find this an amusing idea? The fact that G4 exists at all tells me maybe not, but...

~Jenn

Find Solutions Today

Today is really up to you. What shall you discover?

What is your objective? Why is it vitally important that you achieve this objective? How will you achieve it? Perhaps you have multiple objectives. Identify them, and recognize that there will be obstacles to reaching them. It's no big deal; just make a game of it and look for a solution.

If you have played video games, you have learned that there is always a way out of the (room) in which you feel trapped. Everything you need is available to you. Sometimes it takes staring at the same thing for an hour, going away for awhile, and revisiting that scenario. There is a solution. The majority of human existence lies in this process, and it can be as fun as you wish to make it.

Remember also that your actions affect those around you. Always consider this and try to make your decisions in the highest good for all beings concerned.

Find solutions today.

~Jason