Hey, Bloggers & Youtubers!

The first real update of 2013!

I'm back with a new video on Youtube. I spent about a few days recording footage for this new project and about a week and a half editing it together.

As you can tell, I making a push to upload more videos on Youtube. Whether they be Movie Collection Updates, Blu ray/Movie Reviews or random skits, I'm making them and sharing.

I'm trying to put my face out there, folks! It's fun and I enjoy it because watching movies is a part of my life now as it is for many of you movie watchers out there.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed making it.




Visit my channel for more videos!

Subscribe to stay in the loop with my latest material!

Until the next time, Peace!

I'm Now On Twitter!

Hey, Guys & Gals

Long time no see or read! Yeah, I know, that was lame.

Anyway, I just wanted to leave a quick post with some new details on some of my current endeavors.

First, I now have a Twitter account. I know! I finally joined that circle, yikes!

Link to my Twitter account below:

http://twitter.com/ThisNYerTweets

So, follow me and stay in the loop with my latest projects and adventures.

Next, I'm still uploading videos on Youtube. I have a new that I will share soon, which I'm excited to share and get reactions on.

I had a good time filming it and editing the whole piece together. So look forward to that!

Subscribe to my Youtube account and see what's up!

http://www.youtube.com/user/chekmate07

That's all for now!

Stay tuned.

100th Post: Linkin Park & The Cinematic Art of Video Games

 
So, it's been a little over two years, I think, since I started this blog and I'm proud to say that this will be post number 100!

Way back when I started I never thought that I would make it this far, but I continued to blog about all kinds of stuff that interested me or caught my attention. I ranted on just about anything that mattered to me, spoke words of encouragement or sadness to push myself forward. And, even though I say "me", in honesty I also include you, the internet surfers and readers that have either followed me here to this point or stumbled upon it.

Thank you for being the anonymous readers that you are.

Creativity is nourished by what we are exposed to. For me, it comes from my hobbies, talents and emotions. And believe me, that creativity comes from somewhere. It has a voice that speaks and it claws its way from the depths of my inner most mind to become a reality through my genre fiction writing or onto this blog.

Alright, enough of my preaching or rambling! Let's get on with this 100th post!

I thought I'd do something unique by sharing what gets my vibes pumping and my blood flowing with the excitement and thrills that spark my creativity. Most of you know that I'm a gamer. Have been for years. I love playing Dead Space, Resident Evil, Super Street Fighter 4, Gran Turismo 5, etc. I love being immersed into the story of a good game, just like a book, and fighting my way through to the end.

But more importantly, I love the cinematic art that these games have presented over the years. They're majestic, gritty, brutal and beautiful, and sometimes, they capture the tone and climax of storytelling better than actual films. I get so caught up in them that they leave an impression on me which later sparks an idea that morphs into something uniquely my own.

However, that impression is never left alone. Music also adds an extra flare or ingredient which allows it to further take shape into the thing I want most out of that idea. I've been a fan of Linkin Park since their first album Hybrid Theory and many of their songs have hit me on a personal level. Their songs know me so well, and understand my thoughts and feelings.

I appreciate Linkin Park and their music for that.

Okay, before I go on forever. I present my Top 5 Linkin Park & The Cinematic Art of Video Games countdown. I searched through Youtube and went through many GMV's to find these and I most say that I give total applause and credit to the creative visionaries that put these together.

You Guys or Gals ROCK!

[5]. Linkin Park - By Myself, featuring: various games
Well, I needed to start with something that grabs immediate attention, and what's better then cars and hot nuns with guns ready to shoot the shit out of you.



[4]. Linkin Park - Numb, featuring: more various games
Soaring eagles, Assassins influencing the American Revolution, Final Fantasy, and Robocop? Yeah, enough said.



[3]. Linkin Park - New Divide, featuring: Prototype
I love this song. A nice blend of emotion and destruction which compliments the song's lyrics and the narrative story behind Alex Mercer. Check out the second verse and at 2:45. When Mercer tears those soldiers apart, it grips me with intensity. Sometimes I like to pretend I'm Mercer, ha!



[2]. Linkin Park - Lost in the Echo, featuring: Resident Evil 6
What can I say about this? It's Resident Evil 6, man!!! Linkin Park's song almost provides a narration for the action sequences and makes it that much more effective to watch. With Ada Wong lurking behind the scenes the story may finally come full circle. I can't wait for this game!



[1]. Linkin Park - Burn It Down, featuring: A Majestic Ensemble of Games
Another great song! This was a tough one. It came down to two videos with the same song, but this video proved a more glorious effort by the creator to match visuals with lyrics. It's simply beautiful. I won't even try to describe it, just watch.


Well, that's my Top 5 Linkin Park & The Cinematic Art of Video Games countdown. I hope you all enjoyed looking into a small piece of what makes my mind tick.

Again, I want to give credit to the creators of these videos because they have put together unique gaming visuals that capture lyrical emotion. Each, in its own way, is an inspiration to me, and I hope to you all as well.

Until the next countdown or something, ha!

Cars That Can Drive Themselves!

Hey, Internet World!

I just saw this today and thought, FINALLY! They are working on cars that, eventually, can drive themselves. Man, I can't tell you how impressed and excited I became when I saw this video, which is found below. Already, my thoughts were scrolling through every futuristic anime or movie that depicted what the world or at least traffic would look like if this technology became real.

The only movie I can think off the top of my head is Total Recall. That scene where Arnold gets in the cab and the driver is a robot, yeah, that's the one. It's not exactly driverless, but it's close and a robot is driving and it talked if I remember correctly. Oh, and that's next too! Ha! Robots that can move about society like humans do.

As far as anime, there's too many to name and remember. Anyway, the video is from a German research institute, and the car is still in it's early stages of development. I referring to the driverless computer/A.I. that's been developed to make this happen. I've read another article on this topic which says that here in the U.S., Nevada has greenlit the driverless car as long as it meets certain regulatory conditions that are being established for it.

Now I'm thinking of a driverless Toyota Corolla, the AE86, from Initial D and Bridesmaids. It just reminded me of how Kristin Wiig handled that 86 like a pro! Ha! Can you imagine that car drifting on it's own, without a driver?

As always guys and gals, drive safely. Until Next Time!

Dead Island - This Made Me Emotional Today

Hey, all, I know it's been a while since my last post!

***You can watch the trailer below either before reading on or after what I have written. Cheers!***

It's very rare that something makes me a little, or so teary eyed that I would go ahead and write something about it. It feels like I need to, what we call in Spanish desahogar me, or vent to get it out of my system.

As most of you out there who have read my posts know, and I want to thank you, I am a huge fan of zombie movies, books and games. I can go into a long discussion of which games I like and have played. But, the larger element that always held my imagination, curiosity and emotional state of mind is the human condition.

These stories, movies or games may be examples of survival horror, action or comedy, but, of my preferred collection they all had one thing in common - people, the characters were always affected emotionally and psychologically.

That was the gripping state of mind that always captured my curiosity and my sentimental side. I dare say that there were moments that I did cry when a character died, or he or she watched another, most likely a loved one, die right before their eyes. I felt fear or impending doom when the narrator of my treasured book, or the lead character(s) of my movie or game realized that there was no going back and that they were going to die after all.

Brain Keene's Dead series, all three of them, had moments that brought tears to my eyes, or made think Christ all mighty that was a horrible way to go! My favorite games, the Resident Evil series, only the ones that placed you within that fictional secluded mid-western town of Raccoon City, gave me moments of morbid guilt or pity. It's the scattered notebooks, Man! You know, the ones left behind by the once inhabitants of that fated town. George Romero's ORIGINAL Dawn of the Dead was built on the human interaction element that would ultimately lead to their confrontation and demise. Well, we don't know if Fran and Peter did survive after they flew away, but you get the picture. Even AMC's The Walking Dead had plenty of those moments, and I raved about how good that was!

So, what got me all teary eyed this time? Well, it was the cinematic trailer for the video game Dead Island. Game trailers for zombie games never made me so emotional. They made me excited, but never emotional. There was something about the way this trailer was put together that was both brilliant in design/editing and story that gripped my heart and wouldn't let it go because you knew where it was rewinding to. I say rewinding because the trailer runs backward from the end, with moments of forward running scenes to depict the sad story of the family in the trailer. I hope this made sense, but you'll see in the trailer below soon enough.

And, the additional element that gave the trailer an even sadder revelation was the piano and violin theme that played in the background. From the moment it starts playing and we look into that little girl's eye, we know a tragic tale is about to unfold before us. The other moment is when the trailer is rewinding through the scene where the father had rescued his daughter and we're seeing what happened to her. There's a moment where the video rewinds to the point where he begins to reach out for her and you can see the expression and emotion on his face as it slowly crawls to black. That moment was so gripping for me that I felt my heart thump hard and my tears swelled up in my eyes. It one of those moments where a million words could describe it, but none can capture that emotion just right.

I probably sound like a big cry baby! Ha!

It makes me think about my life and all the things I have lost or fought and struggled hard to achieve, and in the blink of an eye they were taken from me. My life is full of struggles and complications just like anyone else out there in this crazy mixed up reality we call life. I've had my share of joys and sorrows. I brought joy to others be it family, friends or special people in my life. Often times it didn't last, for a multitude of reasons, but I tried to hold on, to fight for it, even though I knew it was a losing battle and it was doing me more harm then good. Yet, I tried to hold on in hopes that something was still there, like standing by that bus stop for something that might never come or releasing that door nob ever so slowly in hopes that someone would open it after you. It just like that father fighting desperately to get to his daughter, taking her, but still somehow realizing that it was too late.

Como decirle a alguien que te quiero y te extraño , pero sabiendo que la persona no puede sentir lo mismo. Y sigo luchando por ti, pero no se porque. 


Ah Zombie Books, Movies and Games!! Why do you bring us such climatic action and carnage only to leave us with despair and moments of deep sadness and heartfelt pain. On the other hand, that just means that it was a good thought provoking read, or a well crafted and engaging story, game or movie! 

Well, that's enough of me talking. Go watch the trailer below, unless you have do so already in which case - WATCH IT AGAIN!! 

Until next time!

 

Video Games | Dead Island | Cinematic Trailer

Xbox 360 | PlayStation 3 | Nintendo Wii | PC Games