Local game developer Cipher Prime, award winning creators of the games Auditorium and Pulse, have recently released an updated version of their addictive music/puzzle game called Fractal. Featuring colorful graphics, cool music, various play modes, and deceptively simple gameplay, Fractal will keep you hooked for hours.

Fractal’s main campaign starts you of creating “blooms”, which is when you connect a group of similarly colored pieces called fractals to create a giant hexagon cluster on the board. For every bloom you create, you also are rewarded with music. The more blooms you take off the board, the more music you hear within the level.

The catch is that you only have  a certain amount of fractals to put on the board while also trying to achieve a certain amount of points per level. As you move through the campaign, the difficulty certainly ramps up. Multiple colored fractals pop up on the board, suddenly making the player have to be aware that the upcoming fractal might destroy an attempted bloom combo.

While playing Fractal I was reminded of the game Lumines, but while that game had a style of gameplay very reminiscent of the classic puzzler Tetris, Fractal feels like it’s own thing. It has its own style  and pace. The campaign doesn’t have you trying to complete a level within a certain timeframe, nor does it suddenly ramp up the speed of gameplay. It all comes down to the player. How the player decides to interact with the level determines the tension and complexity of each level. Needless to say you can discover multiple ways of creating blooms within a level which certainly ups the replay value of the game. (more…)

The last couple of months have been busy for our friends at Titan Books as they continue to produce some amazing works focusing on artists who should be household names for fans of film and art, as well as branching out with new novels featuring classic characters of literature.

This time around they have re-released an updated collection of the personal artwork of Drew Struzan, as well as a collection of works of popular science fiction artist Chris Foss. Finally, they have also released a new Sherlock Holmes novel, The Breath Of God.

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Yesterday the Philadelphia Art Sanctuary kicked off its 27th Annual Annual Celebration of Black Writing.

The two week event will feature various activities ranging from film screening and open mic nights, to mini art festivals and panel discussions.

Of particular interest to you Philly geeks, is the event on the 4th. On June 4th from 10am – noon, Art Sanctuary will host ‘Thinking in Pictures: Writing for Graphic Novels, Comic Books, and Cartoons‘. Afterwards there will be an outdoors festival that will feature an appearance by Brian “Deka” Paupaw.

A more detailed description of the events below.

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Last week I had the pleasure of chatting with Shawn Smith, former video game journalist for EGM Magazine, and creator of the character design studio Shawnimals.

In the world of Shawnimals lies Ninjatown, featuring a wide selection of ninjas with their own unique story and design. Ninjatown has been everything from toys to videogames. You can even read about Ninjatown on your various Apple devices thanks to the Ninjatown: Adventures of Wee Ninja comic book App available in the iOS store.

I had the chance to talk to Shawn about his background, how Ninjatown came to be, and some of his favorite games from the past year.

For those not familiar with the world of Shawnimals or Ninjatown, could you tell me a little about its creation, as well as a little background information about yourself?

Shawn: Sure thing, Shawnimals is a character design studio that believes in the power of unbridled, astonishing, ridiculous joy. Each Shawnimal comes with its own story that starts in the Shawnimaland universe, but is then given over to you to continue each unique creature’s adventure in your own universe.

Our huggable friends appear as designer toys, lifestyle accessories, apparel, comic books, video games, and as anything that fosters companionship. We believe that the best artistic experiences are participatory and affordable, and that – with an open heart – friendship can happen between you and just about anything. Even facial hair.

We have a staff of four: Myself, my wife and biz partner Jen, Monte and Eric. And two rotating intern positions.

As for me: I’m the creative force behind Shawnimals, and started the company before I even knew it by watching cartoons, drawing pictures and playing video games as a kid.

Fast forward to my job at EGM magazine as a game reviewer (1996 – 2000), I made the difficult decision to leave and focus on my first love: Art and design. I had the opportunity to explore my various characters and the countless sketchbooks on my shelf filled with hundreds of unused characters. In a way, Shawnimals were born shortly after. Without a doubt I have pop culturally-inspired aesthetic: Simple, compelling character designs, strong narratives, and a healthy dose of humor. All of the stuff that makes great pop culture great.

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As the year draws to a close, I realize that a lot of my time was spent in Brave New Worlds buying a ton of comics, or just standing around talking to Brian and/or Rob. Before we ring in the new year I wanted to take a look back at some of my favorite comics throughout the year.  Some of which have been completed and collected into trades while others continue to roll out monthly, or if your Mark Millar or Grant Morrison, whenever you get it finished. So let’s get started!

1. Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour – Bryan Lee O’Malley’s awesome series concludes with Vol.6 and is without a doubt the best in the series.  After five books of Scott being hilarious and often at times an idiot, he evolves into a, dare I say it, mature adult. Looking back on his past interactions with his friends and family, Scott faces the reality of his actions. Not all of which were that heroic in fact. What may have been my favorite moments of the book were moments that happened off the page when Scott was so busy with his own problems, and failed to see what his closest friends were going through.

2. Batman and Robin – Bruce Wayne is lost in time, many people thinking he’s dead. In the wake of his absence, former boy wonder Dick Grayson takes the mantle of the bat, while Bruce’s son Damien, becomes the newest Robin. I really didn’t know what to expect from this book, but I got some of the best Batman and Robin stories I could have imagined. Not to mention the revolving door of artists such as Frank Quitely, Cameron Stewart, Andy Clarke, and Frazer Irving. Each bringing their own unique style to the story but never sacrificing story to show off their talent.

While the series is ongoing, I’d say you can’t get any better than the first 16 issues, which dealt with Bruce’s absence and the new dynamic duo working out their own personal issues to accept their new roles in protecting Gotham City.

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We here at Geekadelphia prepared a nice holiday gift guide for you all, and I have a few book recommendations I’d like to add to that list.

Our friends at Quirk Books and Titan Books have shared a few of their newest releases with us. They’re all good reads and look good on any geek bookshelf.

So let’s get to it after the jump.

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On October 21st, the 2010 Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival will begin. Featuring films made by and starring Asian Americans, this event will celebrate its third year in Philadelphia as a growing voice of diversity for the film community. Over on the PAAFF website you can see the current lineup of films and events. Among the events is A Conversation With Greg Pak on Saturday, October 23rd.  A description of the event follows:

PAAFF is excited to present a free special event with Greg Pak, award-winning director of “Robot Stories” and writer of acclaimed Marvel Comics storylines such as “Planet Hulk,” “World War Hulk,” “Incredible Hercules” (with Fred Van Lente), and “Magneto Testament.” Greg’s latest short film, “Mr.Green” starring Tim Kang (The Mentalist) is an Official Selection at PAAFF ’10. Greg will be in attendance for live Q&A and will also be receiving the 2010 PAAFF Emerging Voice Award. For the latest about Greg’s work, visit www.gregpak.com and twitter.com/gregpak.

There will be a few prize giveaways for this event so that gives you even more of an incentive to attend. Also, in addition to appearing at the PAAFF that Saturday, Greg Pak will be doing a one hour signing event with our friends over at Brave New Worlds in Old City beginning at 3:30pm.

For more information on that event head over to the Brave New World’s website.  Information on where this film festival event will be held is below. We at Geekadelphia hope you attend a screening or two and enjoy the festivities.

International House
3701 Chestnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19104-3195
6-7:30PM Sat. Oct 23rd.

Blade Runner. Back To The Future. Indiana Jones. Star Wars.  They all have had the pleasure of being represented by the artwork of Drew Struzan.  Whether you knew it or not, you have seen Drew Struzan’s work for years. Drew has spent decades honing his artistic abilities to the status of legend. He is without a doubt one of the greatest living artists in the world.

Unfortunately for those of us who appreciate a well designed movie poster, or good art for that matter, we are given an ungodly amount of terrible “floating heads” or “photoshop lineup” posters that make me just as excited to watch a movie as I’m excited to watch paint dry. Uninspired, no emotion, lifeless. The exact opposite of everything that Drew brings to his work.

Luckily this year we not only get a documentary on his work, but Titan Books has published The Art Of Drew Struzan, which collects many of his classic works and includes many never before seen comps and finished pieces that were rejected or canceled for different reasons.

The Art Of Drew Struzan is comprised mostly of images. Those images pretty much speak for themselves.  From thumbnails to tight comps, and eventually finished paintings.  The text contains maybe a paragraph or two per film. A few more paragraphs if the story to complete an image it is a long one.

Drew, and accompanying writer David J. Schow, make those few sentences and paragraphs feel intimate. While reading through the book a second time, it feels like this book shouldn’t exist. Getting a peek into the process behind all those famous images feels like a huge privilege. It is both exciting and many times infuriating.

More after the jump!

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The following review is based on single player gameplay for the Xbox 360. While offline co-op gameplay is available, online co-op will not be available until a free update on September 28th.

In Crystal Dynamics first download only Lara Croft adventure, we find our heroine caught in ambush.  Her attackers unwittingly release the evil demon known as Xolotl from his prison in the Mirror of Smoke. Now tasked with sending Xolotl back into his prison, Lara finds herself accompanied by Totec, The Guardian of Light. It is up to Totec and Lara to work together and stop Xolotl from destroying the world.

In other words, for Lara Croft, it’s a Tuesday.

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Illustrator Rosemary Trevale is currently asking for submissions for Picard Day, starting June 16th and running through June 23rd. Sure it’s a weeklong  celebration instead of one day, but whatever, it’s Jean Luc Picard.

For those of you who have never heard of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Jean Luc Picard is captain of the Enterprise and is played by Professor X from the X-Men films. He’s awesome of course, and that’s why you should go to Rosemary’s Picard Day Blog and send over your illustrations, comics, or any other Picard celebrating items you may create. Head over to Rosemary’s Picard site here, and submit your work.

Illustration by Rosemary Trevale / Picard Day Blog

The folks over at Titan Books were kind enough to send me a copy of their book Yipee Ki-Yay Moviegoer!: Writings on Bruce Willis, Badass Cinema, And Other Important Topics written by Vern. If the name sounds familiar, that’s because Vern is well known for writing reviews on the Aintitcool, one of the most popular movie sites out there.  The book is a collection of reviews and essays, many of them have been published online. But instead of digging around the internet, the best of the best have been collected for your reading pleasure.

Review continues after the jump.

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Black Widow hates Spoilers too!

A few years ago, I used to enjoy spoilers of shows and movies. It wasn’t out of a need to be the first person to know the ending to a film, or the last five minutes of a tv shows finale. I just liked having the information. It’s not like I went around blurting out crucial plot points that some fans may be patiently waiting for. I just enjoyed them every now and then.

Nowadays it’s a whole different ballgame. Spoiling a films ending, such as the after credits sequence to Iron Man 2 (Don’t worry, no spoiler in the article), or revealing the final crucial minutes of a television show has gotten to the point of being silly. There’s no fun in it. Nobody wins anything, except maybe the satisfaction of being the first person outside of the creators of the show/film to know what’s going to happen next. I think our growing impatience with either waiting for a film’s release, or waiting for a tv show to end its season is ultimately ruining the initial impact of going into a film or show with as little information about it as possible.

More after the jump.

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