Global Game Jam 2012

            What a fantastic weekend! I just finished participating in my first ever Game Jam, and it happened to be Global Game Jam 2012! For the uninitiated a Game Jam is an event that starts on Friday night and ends Sunday night, so groups of anywhere from 3 to 7 (or sometimes even just 1) have 48 hours to make a game that fits a theme. The Video Game Development Club, Spartasoft, usually puts on 2-3 Game Jams per semester. However, the Global Game Jam of this 2012 is a special Game Jam because it means 48 countries, of over 1000 participants making over 2300 games!

            So we kicked it off on Friday with a keynote presentation from Will Wright, famed video game developer of SimCity, The Sims, and Spore. After forming teams we were shown this picture:

And we were told, "That's the theme: go!" And off we went! Well, after pouring in hours, blood, and sweat (minus the blood and sweat) and sacrificing sleep and regular meals, we put together this baby:

 http://globalgamejam.org/sites/default/files/uploads/2012/22657/Danh.html

My current High Score is 65, can you beat it?

Also be sure to check out the other great games made by other groups in Spartasoft:

http://globalgamejam.org/og/games/17532/list

If you are interested in joining Spartasoft or learning more about the development of video games, we meet at 7 pm on Wednesdays, and all experience levels are welcome!

Drive

Last night I went and saw the movie Drive at the UAB movies. It felt like a movie designed specifically for me. It had all the action, violence, plot twists, and of course driving scenes, that I could ask for. The entire cast was incredible from the lead  Ryan Gosling , who played a very Steve McQueen/Clint Eastwood mold lead, to the ruthless villains played by Albert Brooks and Ron Perlman, down to the supporting cast. I especially wanted to make note of the beautiful Carey Mulligan playing the love interest, and the brilliant Bryan Cranston as the wise mentor to Gosling. Finally I want to include Kaden Leos who played the kid in the movie. Good child actors are incredibly hard to find, and have the potential to assassinate a smart, well written movie. However Kaden was right on par with the excellent cast.

I was actually very shocked by the amount of violence in this film. However, the sex and gore I found were very responsibly handled so as to add to the film without distracting us with gratuitous scenes much like the Fast and Furious series. The driving scenes of course stole the movie and were very gritty and suspenseful like I haven’t seen since the Bourne Identity series. It all looked and felt real, with a very minimalist approach to CGI if there was any.

This movie was excellent in a very unexpected way to me. It had a real soul that I find rare in a lot of the blockbuster hits filling the Hollywood landscape today. I recommend this movie to any action movie fan.

I’m so glad that UAB had this free opportunity available to see such a great movie before its even released on DVD. I found the quality of the Wells projection to be improved since the last time I was there, and the sound quality was great. I was a little disappointed there was no popcorn available, and for that I got to call you out 

Revenge of the Izzone!

IZ! ZO! IZZO! We are back baby! What a great start to 2012 with the first conference game since students returned. Taking on a dangerous Iowa Hawkeyes team, Michigan State showed itself to be the elite program in the Big Ten right now, and the frontrunner for a Big Ten title.

However, the most exciting news of the night was the return of Izzone! I have never heard the Izzone louder at the beginning of a game, than at the beginning of this one. This was of course in response to an Izzo e-mail calling out the Izzone for fading as of late. It was time for a return to former glory as one of the top 5 student sections in America. Tonight we delivered rocking the building from start to end. The Izzone members showed up in droves early and in the unified white. Most of the silly costumes were nowhere to be seen which was a welcome sight.

We also started a new free throw distraction chant by singing children's songs. I think a change of free throw chants has been long overdue. The first one we did was "If you're happy and you know it clap your hands." Which was absolutely perfect when we clapped at the exact moment of the shooter's release causing a sudden thunderclap sound after eerie silence. These are the creative ideas that separate the Izzone from just another basketball section full of energetic college students. Hopefully we continue to workshop the free throws as I found some of the other songs not as effective. Songs such as "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" were quieter and didn't involve sudden spikes in sound. However, for the first time in awhile, I have confidence the Izzone will play a major role in defending the Breslin Center.

Go Green!

Case Hall Caf - Early Review

Today I am back on campus and looking forward to an exciting 2012. I figure I'll kick the year off with a bit of an early review of South Pointe, the dining hall of Case Hall. The Case caf opened today and I've only eaten their once but I do have a few strong opinions of the place right out of the gate.

The first thing I noticed about the caf was the layout. I found the layout very centered and easy to navigate. When compared to Brody in particular the layout was very intelligent and all the dining options were in a central spot. In Brody I feel everything is kind of chaotic and spread out.

Moving on to the seating area, I found there to be a good amount of seats. None of them felt particularly isolated which is a feeling I actually enjoy at Brody. However, there still are plenty of nice seating arrangements. The biggest problem I've found with the entire caf is the lack of televisions. I noticed two televisions. Only one of them was very visible to the general seating area, the other television was awkwardly posed towards the food lines and really would only be visible from one table. As somebody who really enjoys Sportscenter with breakfast this is a problem.

I suppose more importantly the food that I had was really good. I had sushi which offered more options than the sushi at Brody, although I assume those options rotate. From the Great Lakes Plate I got rotisserie chicken and garlic mashed potatoes. The potatoes were very good but the chicken was both cold and burnt. Disappointing. Still a lot of promise in the future. I also saw Brimstone and Bliss look delicious although I didn't get an opportunity to try them out.

Again this was only a one time experience. As I continue to eat there over the course of the semester I'll post updates as I get a feel for each station, the length of lines, and the crowd overall. Perhaps when I have that understanding of the caf, I'll do a caf showdown between Case and the current champion Brody. Until then let's get some tv's in Case!