mikeszekely

Man. Went to Target, and saw some of the new Deluxes like Dirge and Tuner Mudflap, but no sign of Bludgeon.

That's kind of what I'm not getting. Wouldn't the Pre or the Pixi be a better choice? Gorgeous OS on a limited number of devices on a single carrier. And if I'm not mistaken, Palm had an app store before Android. For that matter, why the Droid specifically? Even if you accept the notion that Android is the de facto iPhone alternative, solid HTC hardware with their beautiful Sense UI like the Droid Eris or the Hero seem a lot more attractive than a brick from the same people who heaped piles of cheap RAZRs on us? Maybe that's why the Nexus One is getting so much buzz... Maybe I don't get it because I don't hate the iPhone. I have zero interest in owning one, I'm not above pointing out its obvious flaws, but I can see why people like it.

Does anyone have an Android phone? Can anyone explain what the big deal with it is? A friend of mine and I were at the Verizon store the other day, and we both decided to get new phones. He went with the Droid (and he's my third friend and seemingly umpteenth acquaintance to do so); I went with the HTC Touch Pro2. And I just don't get it. I mean, the iPhone I understand. Despite its flaws, when it debuted it was a gorgeous and easy-to-use device aimed at general users competing against phones that were often large and clunky business affairs. Blackberry, I get. RIM was already a major player in the smartphone market and has maintained a dedicated following. Even Palm I get. I think webOS looks fantastic, and the primary issue holding it back is that it's only on two unimpressive handsets. Yet on sites I read, like Engadget and Gizmodo, Android is often lauded as the best alternative/competition to the iPhone, and Windows Mobile is almost universally derided. Don't get me wrong, I get a lot of the complaints about Windows Mobile. It's true that in it's raw form, even the new 6.5 update isn't what you'd call pretty. And yeah, it's not always finger-friendly. Different developers but their own UIs over top of it, though, and some of them (like TouchFLO) are quite attractive and certainly go a long way toward making WinMo finger-friendly enough. Plus, although not always for novices, Windows Mobile is an open platform, leaving tons of room for further customization and third-party applications. What I'm really not getting is why Android gets a pass. It looks good when covered up with a developer UI like Sense, but in the raw it's just as ugly as WinMo. While it's become something of a sport to try to root Android devices to accept third-party apps, out of the box Android is a closed platform. And after screwing around with the Droid for awhile, I'm not seeing any killer features that would make me say that any Android phone is an "iPhone killer." I expect that over time Apple will turn out to be their own biggest enemy in the smartphone market. It's current dominance (at least in the American market) forces RIM, Palm, Google, and Microsoft to continue to improve their software while Motorola, LG, Samsung, and HTC continue to improve their hardware. Meanwhile, we get one new iPhone a year retaining a design that's not as sexy as it used to be and adding improvements like MMS that the competition already has. In the meantime, I think as long as you're happy with whatever smartphone you have, be it an iPhone, Android, WinMo, or something else, that's just fine. Whatever works for you. I just don't get why it seems that the internet hates WinMo so much and thinks Android's the best thing since nachos. If anyone with an Android phone could explain it to me, that'd be great.

Prime and Megatron were both okay, but I'm absolutely loving War for Cybertron's Starscream. Legs are a little chunky and he could use some null rays, but everything else about him seems to be hitting the right notes.

Wait, that's discounted too? It's $60 at mine, and I didn't even think it might have dropped. Animated and Universe, sure, since they're older, but MP SW is still new.

Man, why is everyone's Wal-Mart but mine doing deals? I was in the other day, and the regular Ultra class figures were regular price, with the Wal-Mart exclusives being prices at $30. I'd like to snag the red Powerglide repaint, and would gladly do so for $11, but $30 is out of the question.

Has anyone, by chance, played Gundam Vs. Gundam Next Plus on the PSP? I thought the first Gundam Vs. Gundam was kind of boring, but they've addressed my main complaint by giving us something to do besides Arcade Mode. It's called, generically enough, Next Plus mode. You make a team of four mobile suits and take them through various maps. Some maps have one level, some maps have several with alternate routes. You gain GP and XP for every level. GP is used to buy new mobile suits. Weaker suits (like the Guncannon) cost 1000, mid-range suits (like the RX-78 Gundam) cost 2000, and powerful suits (like the Nu Gundam) cost 3000. XP is used to upgrade your mobile suits in five different categories that I haven't translated yet. You spend XP and GP, as well as change your team members, between maps. Once you've entered a map, you have a certain number of retries to complete the map with the team you have. Failure to do so will cause you to start back at the first level of the map. The levels are similar to the older Vs. games, like Gundam vs. Zeta Gundam. Some require you to protect a target, others destroy certain targets. Sometimes you just have to kill enough enemies to deplete gauge. Some missions will allow you to respawn until your gauge is gone, others don't allow you to respawn at all. Sometimes you can take a teammate, sometimes you can't. On rare occasions, you're setting up a queue... when you're first MS is destroyed, you move on to the second on the list. The gameplay is the faster style from the Seed vs. games and the first Gundam vs. Gundam. It's fast, fun, arcade Gundam goodness, and I actually appreciate that they have mobile suits from the various AU Gundam series mixed with the UC Gundams. There's at least one MS from every animated Gundam TV series except the second season of 00, Char's Counterattack, and F91 plus MS from the UC OVAs, Endless Waltz and Unicorn. It can be a little too fast, though... some missions have 30 second time limits, and the gameplay feels like button mashing at times. I kinda prefer the Gundam Battle series better now, and I wish they'd just make a new one of those that encompasses as many Gundam series as Next Plus does. (If they're running out of room on UMDs to do so, I'd gladly take a PS3 version with upgraded graphics).

Are we really complaining that a game that just came out in Japan isn't available internationally yet? Shouldn't we be used to getting games after Japan does by now? And yeah, if Microsoft gives you sacks of money with dollar signs printed on them (which I suspect is the case), and all they ask in return is that the Xbox version releases day and date with the PS3 version, "unreasonable" would be one polite way of describing anyone who wouldn't do it. And I don't think Squeenix is afraid of making 360 fanboys cry as much as they're afraid of not having sacks of money with dollar signs printed on them. Frankly, I don't get what all the fuss is about this time. The last time I played a good Final Fantasy game "PlayStation" was a gray console competing with the N64, not a brand. I've got zero interest in XIII.

No agents, $50,000, screw benefits.

More details on new Transformers game. Some highlights include mention of co-op play and a Decepticon campaign. Also, the story is considered canon by Hasbro, although the multiversal nature of Transformers continuity hardly makes that a big deal.

No. What advantage is there to the slim? It looks cheaper and has a bigger HDD. Whoop-de-do.

1.) A decent Asus laptop with a Mobility Radeon HD 4650. 2.) An HTC Touch Pro2. 3.) A Mitsubishi Lancer GTS. Sure the Ralliart and the EVO are better, but they don't really fit my budget. Technically, a new car doesn't fit my budget, but hey, it's Christmas.

By default, NoScript prevents Javascript from running without your approval. There's also an add-on called YesScript that lets you create a Java blacklist, or several other add ons to tweak Java's behavior.

And IE7 doesn't? Seriously, I get that some people don't dig (although, with the right plugins, it's still my browser of choice), but you're telling me that you'd really rather use IE7 over Firefox, Chrome (I use it on my netbook for speed, but I can't say I'm a fan), Opera (9 was awful, but I kind of like 10), Safari (I like it on Mac; not so much on Windows but I'd still use it before IE), or some other browser? For the record, you can block iFrame attacks in Firefox with the NoScript plugin.

You can see Megatron, Soundwave, and two bots I can't readily identify (although I'd guess Onslaught for the one) here.

If the new Transformers game, FU2 and AA2 come out in 2010 (along with Mega Man 10 and all the awesome games that missed the holidays this year), it's going to be a hell of a year for gamers.

Define upper crust stuff. Because if Transformers I pick up at Target don't count, then I've spent $0 on toys.

Nope, that's PC specs. For the record, mine was pretty big, but I'm feeling pretty inadequate what with the Core i7s and the Radeon 5800 series... Anyway, this has actually been a pretty cheap year for me, toy-wise. I mean, last year (or was it the year before?) I was importing Masterpiece Megatron, plus buying up all the Classics 2.0/Universe figures I could get my hands on plus several Animated figures. This year, I bought U.S. Masterpiece Skywarp, Leo Prime, the two Energon repaint combiners, Voyager Megatron, Dead End, and Breakaway. So I guess under $200 for me this year. Next year will likely be more expensive. I want a couple of the new movie characters that are coming out, like Mindwipe and Bludgeon, plus Animated Arcee if she's still coming out. Plus there's some reason to believe there's going to be a toyline for the new Transformers game. And let's not forget the U.S. release of Masterpiece Grimlock. I doubt it'll be $6000 CDN, though.

I enjoyed the Bayformer movies for what they were, but it doesn't change the fact that I've always hated the aesthetics of the Bayformer designs. As for Armada/Energon, the cartoons were stupid as all get out. But Armada Prime (at least when he wasn't in Super Mode) was a pretty awesome design. Energon Prime was kind of meh... I liked the G1 inspirations, but the result was kind of a fat Prime on skinny legs.

From an aesthetic POV and not counting Optimuses who aren't Primes (Optimus Primal) or Primes who aren't Optimus (Rodimus, Lio Convoy, etc), I'd put it somewhere around here: 1. G1 Optimus 2. RID Optimus 3. Classics Prime 3. War Within Optimus 4. Armada Optimus 5. Laser Optimus Prime (based on RID Scourge, since I don't think LOP has been animated) 6. The Optimus Prime from the G.I. Joe Crossover that turned into a HISS tank. 7. Alternity Optimus Prime 8. This guy 9. The retro-looking Prime from the other G.I. Joe Crossover 10. Alternators/Binaltech/Kiss Play Prime 11. Star Convoy 12. Energon Prime 13. Animated Prime 14. Hearts of Steel Prime 15. Cybertron/Galaxy Force Prime 16. The odd G1/Classics blend with the crappy Bayformer face that's in the current IDW ongoing series. 17. Bayformer Prime.

Actually, the more I look at it, the more I kind of like it. I really do hope that Hasbro sells some War for Cybertron toys.

New game getting a toyline? As much as I want to say I'm not loving these designs, I think I'd pick up Prime and Megatron. Maybe Soundwave.

Omega Supreme!

Worf was the Klingon who served on the Enterprise in The Next Generation, rising to chief of security before transferring to Deep Space Nine where he got married.

Michael Dorn! Worf is going to be a voice in Mass Effect 2!