vinyarb

like, what is legit anymore?

Just keep flapping

Feb
12

Have you heard of Flappy Bird? Of course you have. That annoyingly simple to play, yet improbable to master gameplay is really what makes it super addictive.

Tap a flying bird to keep it in the air and navigate through broken pipes. How difficult can it be? Millions have tried. Many have failed.

But what really makes this an incredible story, is the sudden rise of the app, and fall of its creator. As the game rose in popularity, all eyes fell upon creator Dong Nguyen, and he started getting comments and tweets at him, both positive and negative.

Initially, he’d reply to the feedback and tweets gamely, but as time wore on, and the media picked up on his story, he started feeling frustrated by all the media attention and the negative impact his game was having on millions of players.

The game, designed to be a simple time-waster while waiting for your commute, instead turned out to be night-stealer, its addictive nature wiping away hours on end. It was meant to bring joy to our lives, instead, we alternate between love and hate of it. That, was the reason Nguyen decided to pull the plug on the game, removing it from the Android and IOS Appstores.

When he first announced that the game would be pulled, many thought it was a prank. Afterall, according to the Verge, he was raking in $50,000 per day serving up in-game ads. Why would anyone in their right mind do something like that? Well, don’t worry. He’s not crazy. In fact, he is rather brilliant, in my mind.

You see, while the game is no longer available for download on the stores, those who’ve previously installed the game would still have access to it. And with the supply now suddenly gone, demand for the game has in fact increased, and those who’ve already downloaded the game (50 million at last count) will no doubt be playing it even more, and passing the phones around to compete with friends who don’t have it.

The ads are still running on the already installed phones, so in my opinion, Nguyen has just nailed the perfect passive income for at least the next couple of months! His $50,000 per day (probably more) continues to flow in, while he no longer has to deal with queries, comments and vitriol (real or imagined) about the game.

Here’s an exclusive interview he did with Forbes regarding his decision to remove the app.

As long as we keep flapping, he’s going to be able to keep sipping mai tais on the beach. And if you were late to the game and desperately want to flap some birds, my phone is for sale for $6,888. Call me.

You can also download a flood of copies currently on the appstores, but Flappy Bee just doesn’t have the same ring, does it?

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Party like a time traveler

Jan
09

If you are a time traveler and loves to meet celebrities celebrity, here’s a special invite for you: Go back in time to 2009.

Yes, Theoretical Physicist, Cosmologist and Author Stephen Hawking would love to host you.

You read that right. He hosted a party for time travelers in 2009, and only sent out the invites in 2011. He figured that wouldn’t have been an issue for time travelers. So far, no one’s turned up. Yet.

Below’s the invite and a video for the party. Go make his day.

Party for Time Travelers

Ooooh wait, here’s a joke!

What did one time traveler say to the other about missing Stephen Hawking’s party?

“Don’t worry mate, we’ll be back in time.”


Searching the internet for evidence of time travelers

Speaking of time travel, Robert Nemiroff and Teresa Wilson from Michigan Technological University recently went on a search of the internet for possible traces of time traveling, left either by accident or on purpose.

Interesting read, although nothing was found.

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13 films of 2013

Dec
29

Wow, is it that time of the year again?

2013 seems to have just flown by. As usual, we have our hits and misses, some more surprising than others. Here is my list of films that have reached out to me more than the rest this year.

13. Side Effects

side effects

Is this a medical drama? A psychological thriller? A murder conspiracy? It’s all three rolled into one, and Steven Soderbergh nails it. Rooney Mara absolutely took the role and ran with it.

12. Elysium

 elysium_movie_poster

Neill Blomkamp was always going to face an uphill climb, trying to follow-up his amazing District 9. On its own, it’s a pretty solid film, but with District 9 floating at the back of your mind, Elysium can’t help but feel like it’s a bit of a stepdown. It’s a stronger allegory on the current human condition, but everything’s better with aliens.

11. The Incredible Burt Wonderstone

Incredible-Burt-Wonderstone-Poster

Everyone loves magic. Add in some rivalry between old time stage magicians and new age street and close-up Criss Angel type magicians, and you get magical laughs aplenty. Interestingly, Jim Carrey, funny in the 90s, plays new age street magician, and Steve Carell, current funnyman plays the old school Vegas stage show magician.

Plus, David Copperfield cameos, and acts as technical advisor to the magic tricks performed in the show. Definitely a much better film overall than the super disappointing “Now You See Me”.

10. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

catching fire

The Hunger Games was so disappointing last year I was seriously debating if I should catch the adaptation to book 2. But boy am I glad I did. The pacing was much, much better, narrative stronger, and all round stakes were actually felt.

9. Star Trek Into Darkness

StarTrekIntoDarkness_Poster

First off, I’m biased. Anything JJ. Abrams touches, is more than likely to end up on my best of lists. I know a lot of trekkies have been giving him crap about trying to hide the very obvious fact that Cumberbatch was Khan, and that he was simply rehashing previous storylines and twisting it for the sake of twisting it.

Still, I love the way he tells a story.

8. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

desolation of smaug

I maintain my belief that the Hobbit (a single novel) should have been kept to a single, maybe 3 hour runtime film. But, split into 3 films, we see the main characters simply roaming, walking, strolling and exploring area upon area in various locales on Middle Earth.

Still, it was breathtaking scenery and mindblowing effects. Especially in the Desolation of Smaug where we finally see in its full form, Smaug.

7. Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 Poster

The man that started it all, is back to kick off phase II of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And deservedly so. There was always a fear that after The Avengers, bringing back standalone heroes could feel a little of a letdown, but it was entertaining, action packed and funny where it should be.

6. The Conjuring

The Conjuring Poster

So. Fucking. Scary.

*Clap Clap*

5. Man of Steel

Man of Steel Poster

“Superman never kills”, “Superman should have brought the fight to a rural area to ensure the least amount of fatalities!”

Come on, you’re in the thick of battle, you’re outnumbered, you do the best you can. In any war, people will die. Be realistic.

The action was great, the effects were awesome, stakes were real. Awesome stuff.

4. This is the End

 this is the end

I had thought this would be a silly movie, and it was. But it really worked. The conceit of celebrities, as celebrities, facing an end of the world scenario, was tragically funny. Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, James Franco, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride and Craig Robinson all ham it up as a version of themselves, as they take on the apocalypse and end it, one way or another.

3. V/H/S/2

VHS 2

5 horror shorts. Some good. Others better. All round good fun.

2. Gravity

Gravity_Poster

In space, no one can hear you scream. BUT it sure makes your bum look perky without all that gravitational pull! Sandra Bullock nails her fish out of water, or should I say engineer out of land role as a medical engineer on her first space mission, which, predictably goes horribly wrong.

Space is scary.

1. World War Z

World War Z Poster

I’m giving this film my top score, because it showed zero signs of a film plagued in production hell, including a final third re-write and re-shoot!

It was massive in scope, exciting, action packed, and yet intimate when it needed to be (thank god for the last act rewrite!). I think Brad Pitt did very well, considering the production troubles, to hang in there and come up with a really polished film in the end.

So, what were your favourite films of the year?

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47 Ronin

Dec
28

As much as I like Keanu Reeves, and read about his sad circumstances surrounding his family, and tales of his extreme generosity toward his film crew, I really don’t understand what he was doing in 47 Ronin.

Based on a real life group of 18th century samurai, it’s supposed to be a tale about maintaining honour and integrity, as well as the plotting of vengeance against the murderer of their master. But nooo, they had to weave in a story about one of the ronins being a half breed human-demon (Keanu), a sexy witch shape-shifter, and random CGI orcs, monsters and one heavily tattooed guy, who has his own character poster, but less than 3 minutes of screen time.

Keanu Reeves is Kai, a half breed human-demon who is servant to Lord Asano. When Lord Asano is framed, and subsequently ordered to commit seppuku (death by suicide), his band of samurai become masterless (ronins), and banished from the land by Lord Kira, the person who framed Asano.

47 Ronin

The ronins, led by Oishi, secretly plan vengeance. However, as Lord Kira is aided by sexy witch-fox-dragon thing Rinko Kikuchi, they need to enlist the help of Kai, whose mysterious past and possible demonic links could tip the odds in their favour.

Somewhere in the midst of all this, we run into mythical creatures, weird 3 minute tattoo face guy (whose real life backstory is so much more interesting than the film), chopstick-wielding hair and lizard face monster monks, while words like honour and vengeance are bandied about freely in a “tell, not show” manner.

The rambling narrative makes the 2 hour runtime feel like 4 hours, and Rinko Kikuchi (Pacific Rim) tries too hard to be sultry, but just comes across looking irritated and uncomfortable wearing coloured contacts.

Rating: 4/10

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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Dec
22

Orc

Aw man, give those poor dwarves a break!

They are an industrious bunch of people. Nice, a little rowdy when drunk, but come on, who isn’t? They have excellent craftsmanship, and yet, they seem to be despised wherever they go.

Where we last left the dwarves, they were dropped off by the eagle express, albeit a little too far from Lonely Mountain. From there, they are (still) chased by the Orcs, captured by the elves, bullied by a Beorn, attacked by giant spiders, dumped in fish barrels, and mocked by the very dragon that rendered them homeless in the first place!

Give those poor sods a little respect. Afterall, let’s not forget that they are potentially the owners of a gold-laden mountain, once they find a way to rid themselves of that haughty Smaug.

This year, the sequels all seem to have managed to shrug off the negatives of their predecessor, and manage to tell better stories while providing tighter action set pieces.

Evangeline Lily

Plus, hot female elf alert!!

Rating: 8/10

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Fuck Yeah! Chuck Norris!

Dec
20

Because doing an epic split between 2 airplane wingtips in mid-air, is not enough.

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The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Dec
18

Catching Fire Poster

After surviving the harrowing Hunger Games, Katniss and Peeta make their way back to District 12, only to be told that her actions had sparked off a revolt, that could culminate in all out war between the districts and the Capitol.

In order to placate the masses, Katniss would have to convince everyone that she did what she did out of love for Peeta, and not in defiance of the Capitol. When the crowd remained unconvinced, Plutarch, the new Head Gamemaker comes up with a brilliant idea for the Quarter Quell, by introducing an all-star hunger games edition.

So back they go into the 75th Hunger Games for more hunger, uneasy alliance, high-tech obstacles, and Josh Hutcherson’s stiff acting.

With seasoned ex-winners this time round, and the overhanging threat of an all-out war about to break out, this 2nd of 4 Hunger Games film finally delivers. The pacing, action and overall direction is much, much better than the first.

The movie ends on a cliffhanger, rather like the book, and this time, I’m actually excited to see what’s going to happen next.

Rating: 8/10

But I think the person most excited will be Ms Jennifer Lawrence herself. She got a HUGE bump in salary, from $500,000 to $10,000,000 to reprise her role as Katniss Everdeen! Ka-CHING!

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WestJet springs Christmas surprise

Dec
11

WestJet delivered an early surprise Christmas present for some very lucky passengers.

Using technology, a team of merry westjetters, and plenty of heart, they set out to fulfill the wishes of the passengers on a particular flight.

Feeling a little sorry for the dude who wished for socks and underwear.

Wonder what would have happened if some dude had said “I wish for 3 more wishes”.

 

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