The Geek I/O Show: Episode 238: "No, Siri, No!"

This week on the Geek I/O Show, the team is joined by Brandt Cooley, the one and only Professor Shyguy, to talk about the Kickstarter for his new album, and also to rant and review Pacific Rim: Uprising!

We discussed: 

You’re Doing The Robot Dance, No Siri, No!, Zarya vs. Tracer, "I kinda didn’t like major’s mark", Every Kiss Begins with Jarred, They’re Not Black and White To Me, Big Fucking Weird Nap, Walking Through Places and Knocking Random Shit Over, Isn't That Just a Bounce House?, Leave My Toppings Alone, She Looked Like A Hot Mess, The World’s Best Meat Easting Vegan, and of course, The World’s Best Meat Eating Vegan (the difference is vital).

Join us on The Geek I/O Show, won’t you? Where you can find  everything from chiptunes, reminiscing, and intact soles to giant robots, kaiju, and scrappy underdogs!

The Geek I/O Show: Episode 238 Show Notes
The Geek I/O Show: Episode 238 Audio Archive

Ready Player One Review by Jaz

It has been a while since I've really devoured a book.  A book that I had to force myself to put down.  A book that gave me trouble sleeping.  A book that stuck with me fiercely after I finished it.  Ready Player One was all of these things.  I kept hearing this book mentioned here and there by people whose opinion I value.  For the better part of a year, I kept meaning to check it out.  I'm so sorry that it took me so long to do so.

I intend to keep this review as spoiler free as possible.  Still, if you want to go into this book knowing as little as possible, read the next few sentences and move on.  If you consider yourself a geek, a lover of geek culture, a video game nerd, or love pop culture in general (especially the 80's), put down whatever book you are currently reading and pick this one up.  You can thank me later.  If you hate reading, fine.  I have an excellent alternative for you.  There is an audio version available.  Read by none other than geek pop culture icon Wil Wheaton.  How appropriate.

The story is told from the perspective of Wade Watts, a desperately poor 18 year old living in a run-down trailer (literally stacked on top of other trailers) in a dystopian Oklahoma City in the year 2045.  From these humble beginnings, Wade embarks on a whirlwind adventure with the whole world watching.  It's a trope that we've seen over and over, whether it's Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, The Inheritance Cycle, and so on and so on.  Wade breaks the mold of this trope ever so slightly, however.  Wade isn't driven by fate.  Wade is in control of his destiny.  He doesn't embark on his journey completely clueless and aquire the skills he needs to succeed along the way.  He has studied and worked for five years to prepare for his journey, and they serve him well.

This serves to give the book a break-neck pace.  Things start off a little slowly as characters are introduced and the world is defined, but once things get going there is no looking back.  The story builds page after page as it works its way to a wonderfully satisfying climax.  Seriously.  I'm pretty sure I had a big goofy grin on my face all they way through the final chapters.  Mix that with a wonderful cast of characters you can't help but cheer for, a villain that is evil to the core and wants nothing more than to "win" power, life and death stakes, and more pop culture references than you can keep track of. You have a perfect balance of a good adventure story.  Speaking of pop culture references, they are extensive.  Whether directly or obscurely, tribute is paid to Star Wars, Star Trek, John Hughes, Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Back to the Future, Pac-Man, Adventure, Tempest, Joust, Monty Python, Rocky Horror Picture Show, World of Warcraft, Firefly, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Godzilla, Short Circuit, Cowboy Bebop, Voltron, The Muppets, and more.  So much more.

Take a couple days, grab Ready Player One, kick back, and enjoy the ride.  Trust me on this one.

Despite some minor flaws, I'm still compelled to give this book a perfect 5/5.  It deserves it.  Did I mention that the movie rights have already been purchased?  Not sure how they will acquire all the licensing to make this movie properly, but the prospect of seeing it on the big screen gets me beyond excited.

Happy gunting!

-JAZ

Psychonauts Review by Raul

  Psychonauts is an action adventure third person plat-former. Created by Double Fine, it was released in April of 2005 for Xbox, playstation, and Windows.  It received very high reviews; unfortunately the sales did not reflect the greatness of this entertaining, unique, and fun game. Psychonauts is about a summer camp for kids’ psychic powers, which is used to train them on how to use their psychic powers. The game is centered on a boy named Razputin (Raz for short) who runs away from his acrobatic circus family to begin his training to be a psychic secret agent. 

  Raz joins other kids whom also share in having special psychic powers, at whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp.  Raz is tasked with completing all the summer camps’ psychic training and earn merit badges which allow him to use his psychic powers.  So how do you train at a summer camp for psychics?  You astral project yourself into the camp counselors’ minds and enter a completely unique zone.  The first part of the game is getting your basic psychic powers which are used to find clues to an unraveling mystery of strange dreams and missing kids.  Psychic powers include psi blast, levitation, invisibility, and many others which are either unlocked by completing training levels, found merit badges, or by increasing your psi level.  Psychonauts is a one of the most unique games I have ever played.  Each mind you enter is completely different from each other (no two are the same).

  The minds you enter range between a war zone, to a groovy dance party, to being a giant rampaging Godzilla style monster. Combat can be customized by setting the psi power to one of three hot keys.  Set an enemy on fire from a distance, or get up close and hit them with a psychic punch.  Every npc in this game is fully voiced and has their own personality to interact with.  The music sets the tone of each zone perfectly.

  If you want a game that offers something different in a sea of sequels, or a just want to have some fun with a retro game, pick up Psychonauts on Steam for Windows and Macs at the low cost of only $10, and at the Xbox 360 marketplace for just 800 msp. This game is also available on the Playstation 2, so check your local bargain bins.     

Tadpool Tech LIVE STREAM 1: Hitman Absolution

Thank you all for joining me for this, and viewing it! We will be doing more of this in the near future! I loved doing it!