Archive for the ‘TV, Movies & Music’ Category

PlanetSims picked up on a note from Nod Gamers that EA signed a deal with Warner Bros. to allow the distribution of many of their games.  This was due to a sudden closure of EA Brazil back in December and left Brazil without any sort of means to purchase The Sims 3 High-End Loft Stuff or any of EA’s recent games.  While it’s not exactly the best answer to the solution (that would be re-open EA Brazil Studios), I’m glad to hear that the fans are not left in the dust.

Oh, and remember:

I’m about 8 months late posting this, but it’s too cool not to post.  This is for BlackEssence

Oh my, this guy has talent!  If you can get away playing this in high school, I’m sure you’d be surrounded by the ladies in no time.  Props to this dude.

Last November EA struck a deal with Extreme Music to use their media pieces for various commercials, movie spots and television ads.  Simillion found one of these commercials of Grey’s Anatomy using the music from The Sims 3.  Feels out of place for some reason, wonder how many people managed to pick up on the fact where the music originated from when they saw the ad for the first time.

Since I’m usually not up-to-date in the music scene, Dutch fansite SimParool pointed out that the song featured in the trailer for The Sims 3 Ambitions is a Simlish version of Rise Against’s Savior.  With it being included, it’s a safe bet that it’ll be one of the many new songs featured in the upcoming expansion pack.  You can listen to the original recording below. I’ve also embedded the trailer in case you’d like to listen to a sample from the Simlish song.

Ah, here’s the official PR:

The first trailer for The Sims 3 Ambitions, the newly announced expansion pack for the best-selling game of 2009, The Sims 3, is taking the viral world by storm highlighting the variety of new career paths now available to The Sims players. With the title track done in Simlish by punk rock band, Rise Against, watch as the heroic firefighter saves the day, the brilliant inventor masterminds a machine to travel through time, the ghost hunter finds vengeful spirits and the mad sculptor creates a masterpiece.  Launching in June 2010, The Sims 3 Ambitions allows players to pursue a variety of exciting professions that in turn affect their overall gameplay experience and the neighborhood. While on the job, the player has direct control over their Sims’ work and can choose how to spend their days.

Rise Against is the first band to be featured in The Sims 3 Ambitions with their song “Savior” recording in Simlish. Additional artists involved with The Sims 3 Ambitions will be revealed in the coming months.

“He slimed me, Ray!  I feel so funky!”

Missed out on two of the best movies of all time?  Get with the program!  If Hulu is available in your region you should now have the pleasure of streaming both Ghostbusters I and Ghostbusters II!

And yes, above picture is from my small Ghostbusters collection

If you drop by SimOperations you can read a short interview conducted with the bass player ‘Baby Dave ‘ from Pint Shot Riot about their time spent recording tracks for The Sims 3.  Here’s a sample question below:

We’ve seen your music in several of EA’s games. Which was your favorite to record?

That would probably be ‘Not thinking straight’. We recorded that down in Devon with producer Peter Miles and it was so beautiful down there. Almost perfect isolation surrounded by stunning scenery made it an amazing experience

interview here

I want this.  Want it now – will cut off an arm and a leg to get it (don’t worry, it won’t be any of mine).  Sadly it is just an animated short that was shown at TED2010 in California.  If Spore 2 ever looks like this…damn…

This spot was inspired by, and is a new take on life and evolution simulated video games.  It was a labor of love, animated by the wonderfully talented staff at Tippett Studios in Berkeley, CA.

All the characters are CG, modeled and painted after drawings by Daren and Isaiah.  The swarms are particle simulations, with creatures exported from a game and attached as sprites.  The backgrounds are all digital matte paintings, created by Isaiah and Daren.

Source:  Ghostrobot

I’m not speaking about myself but of Kraid over at Destructoid.  He published an article earlier today about how SimCity 3000 introduced him to Jazz and how he became a fan of the genre.   While I do find the music of SimCity 3000 to be enjoyable, I can’t really say I have the same opinion.  I don’t mind Jazz but it isn’t something I care to listen to all the time.

Ten years ago I bought one of my favorite games of all time. I still play SimCity 3000 Unlimited every now and then like any other classics in my collection. Creating huge metropolis, challenging myself with weird urban designs and landscapes, I’ve always been fascinated by Will Wright’s series from the very beginning. One of the best aspects of the game however is the music, vilely infused with pure post Hard-Bop era smooth-jazz and some cool New Age Electronica.

It took me a long time however to finally realize that I had this secret love for Jazz. Prior to two or three years ago I had no idea who John Coltrane or Miles Davis were yet at the same time I knew these songs and rhymns. I was familiar with the specific era of which I am now a huge devoted fan.

Destructoid – How SimCity 3000 made me fall in love with Jazz

Patrick Buechner, one of the folks who worked with EA/Maxis on The Sims shares with us the following videos.  They are casting calls in which people thought they were auditioning for a television show called The Sims.  Little did they know they’d appear in a tv ad to advertise one of the best PC games of all time.