Gamewank

Gamewank S02E02 – “Fundee”

Jim — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 19:41:07 +0000

We went to a party

It was in Dundee. There was a free bar on Microsoft’s tab, and it was in celebration of Crackdown 2′s launch. It was good. Big thanks to Dean and Sean for letting me and Alex tag along, we had a great night!

We have pals

They kindly took on review duties for us this month. Mentazm gets his thumbs into PS3 exclusive Demons Souls while Krystal play 360 exclusive Alan Wake with the lights off.

We’ll be back

Hopefully within a reasonable length of time, sorry this one has taken so long folks, we’ve just been busy.

We want your feedback

Get a comment to us via any of the means provided, giving your take on anything we’ve discussed, even if you just want to call us out for being wrong – we want to read your emails & comments and respond to them on the show. Don’t be shy!

We got tunes

Check out 100 Philistine Foreskins over on their myspace – http://www.myspace.com/100philistineforeskins

Also, once again (bloomin’ eck!) Danny Ec graces us with his take on a classic Gamewank tune. His stuff can be found here – http://www.myspace.com/dannyecclessneeze

Copyright Stuff

Mario Galaxy 2 soundtrack copyright Nintendo/Crackdown 2 is property of Microsoft Game Studios developed by Ruffian Games/Alan Wake was developed by Remedy for Microsoft Game Studios/Demons Souls was developed by From Software and published by Namco Bandai

Gamewank S02E01 – “It’s shite now”

Jim — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 18:36:16 +0000

Gamewank_s02e01.mp3

We’re back!

Season 2 opens with a FEATURE PACKED show with HORRENDOUSLY OUT OF DATE NEWS, REVIEWS, and a FANTASTIC MUSICIAN called PHIL GABRIEL who may be a parody or something, I’m not sure what, but it makes for a wonderful NOISE. Speaking of a wonderful noise, we have a spiffing new THEME by the utterly brilliant KAGUTSUCHI.

Features

Jim reviews Red Dead Redemption while Richie embarks on an epic retrospective of Nintendo’s Metroid franchise ahead of upcoming title Other M. Meanwhile, Perrin from Stage Clear tells everyone off for getting worked up about the glitz and sweaty glamour of E3 like a big crabbit bawbag.

More

Follow the adventures of DI Tam McGleish, time travelling Glesga copper, as he shags his way across the Old West!

Attribution:

Red Dead Redemption was developed by Rockstar and published by Take Two Interactive

The Metroid franchise is a property of Nintendo

Lost Planet 2 was developed and published by Capcom

Tellywank Pilot

Jim — Sat, 08 May 2010 23:15:42 +0000

TellywankPilot.mp3

Greetings, it’s been a long time!

As promised on twitter, this is Tellywank – the companion show to Gamewank that we’re hoping to make a regular addition to our podcast output. It’s a much rawer, minimalistic effort than our usual stuff. We’ve ditched the complicated sketches and pre-recorded reviews for a simple clips n’ chat approach.

The stuff we’ve covered is a few weeks out of date at time of posting, apologies for that. We mainly just want to see if you all will respond favourably to something of the Gamewank flavour but without the usual bells and whistles. So please, listen to the pilot and give us your feedback! Suggest changes, be as brutal as you like. We’re looking forward to hearing from you.

In this episode we discuss the new era of Doctor Who (up to Victory of the Daleks), the final series of Ashes to Ashes, the Ricky Gervais show and more.

Cheers,

Jim n’ Ric

PS Gamewank will be back soon.

Gamewank Finale/Metacrisis ENDGAME

Jim — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 16:58:53 +0000

“At the end of the multiverse lies the beginning of pomposity!”

Gamewank_ep12.mp3

This is our last episode for a while, and it’s a big one! We hope you like it, a lot of work and love went into it. In this episode we review Dragon Age and New Super Mario Bros, discuss Eurogamer, Bayonetta, Heavy Rain and the recent flurry of press attention garnered by the games industry. Oh, and save the universe. Sort of.

We would like to thank:

Owen and Alex – for giving us their time and voices and helping us with rewrites and EVERYTHING. You guys are amazing.

Krystal – for all the pimping & whip cracking! Also, that wee bit of voice acting and the kind words/advice you’re always giving us.

Danny Eccles – For your musical talents, filthy lyrics and general awesomeness.

Everyone who listens – you make it all worthwhile and we love you. Thanks everyone!!!

And lastly, our partners Rachel and Fiona, for putting up with all the time we spent locked away in our rooms.

We will be back next year – can’t wait!

- Jim and Ric

Christmas Cheer

Owen — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 18:24:59 +0000

Last Christmas, I bought Jim a pop-up Christmas card which featured pipe-cleaner Santa and Rudolph happily flying in a cardboard aeroplane. Conversation upon its receipt turned to the question of what would happen if, in the course of their wintry duties, they were caught in a storm and the aeroplane crashed. Twenty minutes later, I sent Jim the following over MSN, reproduced here for your entertainment while waiting for Gamewank 12:Metacrisis.

It had only been a matter of time, and eventually Nicholas’ alcoholism had flown the sleigh into a mountainside. It was probably just sheer bad luck that it should be such a remote and hostile one.

He hadn’t always been like this. When the world was young and the nascent human race had first cried out for him, he’d been a spritely, mischievous soul. But for millennia he had witnessed every cruel act by a child, his position requiring that he catalogue every transgression, every petty, evil crime perpetrated by every spoilt, sniveling brat.

He had become depressed, his naive world view shattered by eons of mistreatment. He had longed to end it all, to wrest back some small vestige of control, but for an immortal even suicide is no release. And so he ate. He blamed the collective consciousness – he was becoming obese because that’s how They imagined him, but the truth was that he sat in the dark eating fistfuls of brandy butter to dull the pain.

And so it was with more self loathing than desperation that he plunged his chubby claws into Rudolph’s chest, and dragged his still-warm heart from that cavernous ribcage, once so full of life. Dark, arterial blood stained his bright beard black as he worked his jaw, tearing the flesh of the vital organ and chewing, chewing, swallowing.

Illustration by Jamie Trinca

Episode 11b: Unheard Shenanigans (off cuts clip show)

Jim — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 03:46:22 +0000

Select trimmings from Gamewank’s cutting room floor to tide you over until the big long christmas special. Heavily features Barry and Ged from Amid Concrete & Callousness. Remember them? Lovely blokes.

Gamewank_ep11b.mp3

Episode 11: Metacrisis Prologue

Jim — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 23:48:26 +0000

Gamewank_ep11.mp3

Hiya!

We’re actually on time this month, but don’t get used to it.

Music

Tabasco Fiasco‘s Through the Eyes of the Reaper Man is pretty fucking awesome if you ask me. Treat! Cheers Gaz/Jed/Nico

Copyright

Risen developed by Piranha Bytes and published by Deep Silver, Solar Jet-Man developed by Zippo Games/Rare and published by Nintendo.

Babylon 5 is a property of Warner Brothers, Tron is owned by Disney, and Bruce Boxleitner was forged in the Fires of Win by GODS. GODS.

Manly Hugs,

Jim

Episode 10: The Shit One

Jim — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 00:45:19 +0000

Pish talked, Arkham Asylum reviewed and compo results video!

Gamewank_ep10.mp3

Reviewed: Batman Arkham Asylum

Flaying a Chute

Mentalists Hairy Painkiller provide endgame tuneage, and they can be found here: http://www.myspace.com/hairypainkiller

VIDEO

Gamewank vidcast 01: Competition from Richie Morgan on Vimeo

Picture defacement competition judged and somethingthed in a video/slideshow/thingy.

BYE

I’m off to bed.

Gamewank teh movie

Jim — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 22:27:47 +0000

So a couple of years ago I had an idea. I wanted to make a documentary about gaming culture, a proper look at all aspects of it. I wanted to look at how gaming affects different people in different ways, I wanted to see how gaming inspires people to various forms of expression. Forms like music, drawing and painting, game modding, flash games, comedy podcasting, ludology, hell if I could get a full on game developer to talk about why he loves making games it would have been a winner!

Of course, these people aren’t what makes up the majority of gaming culture, the average gamer is the creature we’re talking about! I’d have needed normal gamers to talk about why they love gaming so much, what it means to them, what they get out of it, the levels on which they appreciate a decent game.

It could have been pretty good. But a mixture of fear, laziness and a general lack of ideas that could string the bloody thing together without infringing any copyright laws caused the idea to fizzle out.

But a few nights ago in a london pub, a conversation with my aunt reminded me why i wanted to do it in the first place. She wasn’t on any kind of attack, she’s a highly intelligent woman and she’s only in her thirties, she really was just trying to get her head around the idea. “But why do you play games Richard?”, “When i watch a movie it gives me something to think about and discuss, you can’t have that with games can you?” and the clincher “But what about real people Richard?”…

Preconceptions, that’s what pissed me off and inspired the film idea in the first place, this idea that gaming is a purely Trivial Pursuit, that there’s nothing there, nothing thought provoking in the slightest.

It’s difficult to remember that a lot of people think like that, when your looking at the culture from the inside, it all feels quite normal. When you surround yourself with other gamers, it’s easy to forget how the outside is looking at you and your own. I still get looked at as a child by some people when i talk about gaming. It fucks me off.

So i got the idea back into my head, like really, I keep thinking about it. But I was still having difficulty trying to come up with the format, until it hit me today – TIE IT TO GAMEWANK!

Now it’s not gonna be like “the guys from gamewank do a documentary”, I don’t want us to come across as having this inflated sense of self importance (well no more than we have already). It’s more like “two humble gaming podcasters take a lookat gaming culture and what makes it tick”. I figured it could be presented by myself and Jamie, meeting various people and interviewing them. Maybe try to squeeze in the odd little relevent sketch.

Also, i don’t want you to get the wrong idea from this blog entry, i don’t want it to be “look at us, we gamers are fucking better than you, you naive bunch of cunts!”. I want it to be a balanced look at things, with the only real agenda being an attempt to deflate preconcieved notions of gamers.

Now, to be honest, I don’t really expect to really convert any major numbers, as far as causes go, it’s a little weak. But I’d love to just present gaming culture in a positive light-

- this is where you come in.

I’m looking for gamers who have stories to tell about how gaming affects them, people who want to articulate their own opinions and feelings on video games. I’d also like to talk to artists/musicians/filmmakers or anybody that looks at video games as a source of inspiration. Game modders, game devs, anyone who thinks they may have something to contribute.

I’ll also be hitting up all the fellow podcasters too.

Now don’t expect anything massive from this, it’ll literally be me, jamie, a bus pass and a borrowed Sony Z1E. But i reckon we could achieve something pretty special!

Get in touch through feedback@gamewank.com

Lots of Love

Richie

Episode 9: The Parting of the Baws

Jim — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 23:49:38 +0000

Gamewank_ep9.mp3

Sordid salutations to all, and welcome to yet another hour of vaguely videogame related FILTH.

Firstly, a wee off-site announcement: Ric and I took part in a 3-way gaming podcast linkup with the wonderful blokes at Sonics Ring and Stage Clear (see links to the right in “friends”), which turned into a massive 2 hour clusterfuck. It was very fun to record and full of hilarity, with some interesting gaming discussion into the bargain. So go check it out:

http://www.sonicsring.com

Big thanks to Dave, Iain, Rob and Richard for a great couple of hours on Skype!

Play in a suit

This edition’s musical climax was provided by Watch This Face, a mentalist one-piece in the shape of an old schoolmate of mine whose brain is luckily warped enough to have produced the sonic trickery found hither:

www.myspace.com/watchthisface

Competition

Yes, a crisp £5 Amazon voucher (we’re cheapskates, fuck you) will be winging its way to whoever we deem to have made the funniest MS Paint (or nearest Mac/Linux equivalent) alterations to these photos of us. Email your graffiti’d entries to: competitionATgamewank.com

Me:

Him:

DISCLAIMER FOR DOCTOR WHO FANS

We know D***k flight capability was implied as far back as The Chase, inferred with limited success in Revelation and only finally confirmed in Remembrance. Brevity demanded that the script be altered from the original “The D***ks mention every fucking serial” version.

COPYRIGHT STUFF

Ghostbusters The Video Game developed by Terminal Reality, published by Atari (US/multiplatform) and Sony Computer Entertainment (Europe/Sony platforms). Ghostbusters Original Score composed by Elmer Bernstein.

Splosion Man developed and published by Twisted Pixel.

The Daleks are the intellectual property of the Terry Nation estate, their likeness is owned by the BBC and this was a parody so DON’T SUE PLZ.