Fraser MacInnes - Jack of all tirades

September 30, 2008

Choice cuts - September 08

A famous Scotsman once said, ‘the best laid plans o' mice an' men aft gang agley’ and I am finding it a very useful platitude to fall back on these days.

So, Japan is no longer happening (boo hiss etc.) but in just under two weeks I will be flying out to Australia with my wife to visit some friends and explore for about six weeks. It’s not really my first choice of destination and it is going to be a working holiday, but it’s a whole other hemisphere all the same and I am really quite excited.

This month has been all about the video, and it seems that if things keep going the way they are, things work wise are going to continue to be about video for quite a while. Mr One Thumb might yet prove to be a tad impractical as a regular, but there are all sorts of other projects ramping up behind the scenes that could be just as much fun… Fingers crossed, in the meantime, here’s a thin sliver of this month’s clippings:

Mr One Thumb: Handheld redesigns

Loose Threads: Handheld game music...
Loose Threads: Will handhelds ever replace home consoles?
Loose Threads: Tying up loose ends

30 Sep 2008 11:28:00 | Work Updates

iRecommend - September 08

Currently listening to:

Mogwai - The Hawk is Howling
James Yorkston - Someplace Simple
Pavement - Slanted and Enchanted (Luxury Edition)

Currently watching:

Requiem - Hans-Christian Schmid

Currently reading:

Travels with my aunt - Graham Greene

Currently playing:

Spore Origins - EA Mobile
Spore - Maxis
Bioshock - 2K

30 Sep 2008 00:34:00 | Books, Film, Games, Music

August 31, 2008

Choice cuts - August 08

Well, I am sorry to say that I no longer live in beautiful sunny Munich. At the moment I am sitting in my in-laws' living room in their grand house in Uelzen, about 45 mins south of Hamburg. It's only a temporary situation of course, but I have to say, I am really looking forward to my impending move to Bristol (but not before I bugger off to Berlin for a weekend and then maybe Japan, it's a long story that I'll leave for another post for the time being).

Anyway, before Christmas, I should be settled in the bosom of Steel Media's homeland in the South West of the UK, which will be fantastic. So what with the move and the Leipzig GC, this month has been one of serious upheaval, but it yeilded some great bits and pieces which you can read about below.

GC08: Hands on with Chrono Trigger DS
GC08: Hands on with Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood on DS
GC08: Hands on with Unsolved Crimes DS
GC08: Hands on with Spore Creatures DS
GC08: Hands on with Star Wars: The Force Unleashed on DS and PSP
GC08: It's shoveltime for the DS
GC 2008: Pocket Gamer vs Konami PES 2009 multiplayer mobile showdown
GC 2008: Sony unveils PSP 3000
Leipzig GC 2008: Pocket Gamer's handheld showreel

31 Aug 2008 11:59:00 | Games, Web/Tech, Work Updates

iRecommend - August 08

Currently listening to:

Accoustica - Alarm Will Sound
Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Roxy Music - Sirens

Currently watching:

The Dark Knight - Christopher Nolan
Iron Man - John Favreau
The Incredible Hulk - Louis Leterrier
Hellboy 2: The Golden Army - Guillermo del Toro
Chaplin - Richard Attenborough

Currently reading:

The Spy Who Came In From The Cold - John Le Carre
Babbit - Sinclair Lewis

Currently playing:

Bioshock - 2K
Spore - Maxis

31 Aug 2008 00:27:00 | Books, Film, Games, Music

July 31, 2008

Choice cuts - July 08

It's sort of the end of an era for me this month. By the time I write my next choice cuts blog update, I'll be doing it from another city. Living in Munich has probably been the best two years of my life, but it's time to move on - duty calls!

Speaking of which my duties at the good ship Steel Media have taken a bit of a turn for the different this month. Having fancied myself as some sort of Kubrik-esq genius for a while (in my mind), I decided to finally get my ass in the seat and make some videos. Turns out, the results are pretty decent. So decent in fact that my boss let me off the hook with lots of my writing duties so I could soldier on with putting together some interesting new video features. They are all about the wonderful world of handheld games as you might expect though at the moment the majority of them are still in the production phase.

It's a behind the scenes thing at the moment then really, but hopefully next month, sitting at my new desk in a location that I am not quite sure of yet, I will be posting a choice cuts blog all about Mr One Thumb, video game reviews and of course loads of video coverage of the Leizig GC (can't wait).

Until next time...

Mr One Thumb: iPhone Games

Loose Threads: Which flash games should get a handheld release?
Loose Threads: Which of E3's handheld revelations has you the most excited?
Loose Threads: What would you like to see in Loose Threads in the future?

31 Jul 2008 19:13:00 | Work Updates

July 30, 2008

iRecommend - July 08

This month truly has been a bit of a jackpot in terms of all those little pleasures that keep me quiet.

Currently listening to:

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Bon Iver - For Emma Forever Ago
Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours
Fuck Buttons - Street Horrrsing
No Age - Nouns
Belong - Colorloss Record EP

Currently watching:

The Rocky Horror Picture Show - Richard O'Brien
La Vie En Rose - Olivier Dahan

Currently reading:

Pussey! - Daniel Clowes
Game Design Perspectives - Edited by Francois Dominic Laramee

Currently playing:

GTA IV - Rockstar
Echochrome Micro - JAPAN Studio

30 Jul 2008 16:40:19 | Books, Film, Games, Music

July 03, 2008

Musings on Euro 08...

Anyone who knows me will testify that what I know about football could be scrawled on the back of a postage stamp with a blunt crayon. I've just never really been interested.

Having said that, living in a country that actually has a chance of winning landed me in a 'if you can't beat them join them' type predicament and I did my level best to get into the spirit of things.

Strangely, it was made easy for me. I drew Turkey in the sweepstake at work, and faced with the prospect of winning some money I subsequently found a passion for the game I never new I had. When Turkey took the Croatians to a penalty shoot out, due to an equalizer in the last few seconds of the qualifying game for the quarter final (is that an eighth of a final then?), I was a gibbering, stammering mess.

Things were very different when they lost to Germany the following Wednesday, a turn of events which cost me nearly 150 euros in lost winnings and a full two day hangover.

Even so, my loyalties are easily bought so after hastily defecting to the German's side, I trundled off to the Olympic village to watch the final on huge screens with about 50,000 other idiots. It was quite a spectacle I have to say (not least because of the 35 degree heat), and though the Germans didn't win, it was nice to see so many people take a bit of time to feel proud of Germany, something that has generally been quite an uncomfortable feeling, even for young people, up until very recently.

So all in all, Euro 08 was probably the best football experience of my life. Admittedly that's a comment born of a humble amount of experience, but I think I might finally be starting to understand this phenomenon that has possessed and enchanted so many friends of mine over the years.

Whether or not, like the Turks, I am just passing through, or primed and ready to go the full 90 minutes as it were, remains to be seen.

3 Jul 2008 17:42:54 | Sports

June 30, 2008

iRecommend - June 08

Currently listening to:

Dananananaykroyd - Sissy Hits
Errors - It's Not Something But It Is Like Whatever
Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend

Currently watching:

American Movie - Chris Smith
The Savages - Tamara Jenkins

Currently reading:

Scott Pilgrim - Bryan Lee O'Malley
A Whack on the Side of the Head - Roger von Oech

Currently Playing:

GTA IV - Rockstar
Assassin's Creed - Ubisoft

30 Jun 2008 21:45:00 | Books, Film, Games, Music

Choice cuts - June 08

After May's excitements, I have had plenty of time to knuckle down and get on with some hard graft throughout this month. I hate to harp on about the weather but it really is one notch above el scorchio here at the moment not that that's a bad thing. It's just that my hardy Scottish blood is ultimately too thick for this climate (all that porridge really did stick to my ribs it seems) and most of the hours spent in front of my laptop are a bit clammy. If any of my chums in Edinburgh could hear me now...

Besides being ungrateful about Munich's quite literally sunny disposition, I have been feeling very grateful for the new phone that work sent me. It's a smashing Nokia N81 8GB which is great, not least because I can now while away several hours on the new N-Gage service and call it research. Life is good, if only I wasn't currently trying to find a new place to live...

Pocket Gamer Reviews

PS1 Classics - Rayman

Pocket Gamer Features

Loose Threads: Which third-party licenses does the PSP need?
Top five ways to trash your PSP (or DS, or iPhone...)
Loose Threads: Which is the best handheld console of all time?
Loose Threads: How much is too much for an iPhone game?
Loose Threads: What's the ideal lifespan for a handheld console?
The ten best PSP web browser friendly sites
Friday Freebie: Freeloading so you don't have to...

Pocket Gamer News

Sony struggling to convince publishers to support PSP, admits PlayStation executive
Analyst claims DS is past its peak
Einstein's Brain Game headed for mobiles

Pocket Picks Blogs

Nvidia readies smartphone super chip
Vodafone accused of spying on former board members
The wait for the 3G iPhone is almost over but what else will the WWDC bring?
Insidious mobile popcorn rumours spread on YouTube
CNET creates mobile phone radiation league tables
US Government officials exempt from early termination fees
Google Android facing delays?
O2 PAYG iPhone 3G details let out of the bag by mistake

30 Jun 2008 10:58:00 | Games, Web/Tech, Work Updates

May 31, 2008

Choice cuts - May 08

My_wife Well it's official, I am now a married man and the beautiful girl to the right there is my wife and I don't mind saying that I am the luckiest man alive. After the big day (more about that here) we went swanning off to the South of France for ten days or so (more about that here). All in all it's been a thoroughly excellent month, I'd even hazard that it was one of the best of my life *goes misty eyed*.