Kaylan & Kaylan on Xbox One and PS4

Posted on June 12, 2013 by Kaylan

PS4 vs Xbox One

Ed: A few weeks ago, Kaylan wrote a rant about her dissatisfaction with the initial info released about Xbox One. Yesterday, armed with more information, she addressed her own previous concerns. (Spoiler: she is still concerned.) Kaylan of the Past is plain text, Kaylan of the Present is bold. Without further ado, Kaylan and Kaylan:

The race is on! The release dates for the new gaming consoles for Microsoft and Sony are nearing. Is everyone else in the world, like me, thinking “Holy fuck, how is it already almost summer?!”

And with all the Dollywood trips I have planned, yeah, it’s basically summer. Is it super hot to anyone else?

Before you know it, the holiday season will be upon us. UGH. Now, it is no big secret that I am a huge Sony supporter, and when I do upgrade I was already leaning toward the PS4 (not that I need an upgrade anytime soon). Now, after the Xbox One announcement, more so than ever. The rumors surrounding Xbox One and its used games fee are a big concern of mine. The idea of buying a used game (or borrowing one from a friend to test my interest) and then having to pay a “small fee” bothers me. Continue reading →

Crafting with Bethany: BioShock Infinite Choker

Posted on May 22, 2013 by Bethany

“This is for the people who don’t give a shit about craftsmanship, or paying money for things.”

[Ed.: Never change, Bethany. You are so beautiful!]

Bethany Bryan writes funny things at Welcome to Bethville! and xoJane.

Alpaca Run

Posted on May 22, 2013 by Jennifer

Gamervescent friend Cameron Kunzelman has released a new game called Alpaca Run, in which you help a running alpaca jump over obstacles and collect apples throughout a series of different landscapes to the accompaniment of a delightfully oddball song by Samantha Allen and Guy Conn. The lovely background images come from the brain and doodlin’ hand of the one and only Joseph Culp.

Cameron on Alpaca Run:

Inspirations for Alpaca Run include: the Soundplay series that Kill Screen sponsored, the Bit Trip Runner games, running alpacas, and the feeling of absolute joy you have when you embody a jumping alpaca.

Notably, there isn’t a fail state in Alpaca Run. I want everyone to complete it. I want everyone to have a fun journey and to get to listen to a cool song without failing over and over again.

I died 27 times on my first playthrough, and still have a persistent case of the giggles. (Note: giggling madly does not do much to improve alpaca leap timing, does result in falling off of cliffs.) Leaping alpacas, man, they really can’t help but brighten your day. Go give it a try!

My Little Pony Mod

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Bethany

Let it be said here that my friend Meredith has good ideas. A few weeks ago, one of her ideas was to mod some My Little Ponies, and ever since she mentioned the idea, the tiny wheels in my brain have been turning.

I still have most of the My Little Ponies from when I was a kid. Even that one that the dog chewed up that time. And it was that sad, chewed-up pony that I decided would be perfect to turn into Elizabeth from BioShock Infinite.

Here’s what I did.

First! I removed her mane. (Her tail was already long gone.)

Then! I made her hair, skirt, and choker using polymer clay.

After that! I baked the whole mess at 175 degrees for 40 minutes.

And finally! I painted my wee Liz pony.

My Little Elizabeth

I’m doing Songbird next. Stay tuned.

Bethany Bryan writes funny things at Welcome to Bethville! and xoJane, sells the very best splicer masks on Etsy, and mods plastic ponies.

Eternal Sonata

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Kaylan

“You’ll NEVER learn anything playing video games!” said some snarky douchebag.

“Did you know Frédéric François Chopin moved from Warsaw to Paris in 1830 as part of the Polish Great Emigration? Where he supported himself as a composer and piano teacher? Or that he rarely gave public performances? And he never returned to his homeland? How about his major relationship (which was with George Sand, a French writer who loved cigars)?” I replied.

“No, why?” retorted the jerk.

“Because a video game taught me that!”

BURRRRRRRN.

Continue reading →

Visual Tour: Donkey Kong Country

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Joseph

Tree Top Town sketch by Joseph Culp

Donkey Kong Country. Everything about it—the flowing gameplay, the strangely appropriate music, the 3D-rendered style of the characters, and the world maps combined to create an experience that hasn’t really been seen before or since, tied together by the amazing environments that DK and Diddy blasted through on their quest for the stolen banana horde. In this post I’m going to discuss the design of some of these levels and try to identify a few of the factors that made them so great. Continue reading →

Sexism in Video Games at ETSUcon

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Jennifer

“Video games are only for very cool boys,” he said before being beaten to death.
–Cameron Kunzelman

The Sexism in Gaming panel did, as predicted, kick major ass! Panelist Samantha Allen wrote a brief post about it for The Border House (which I will lazily link to here, since she said everything I want to say about it and said it well), and you can listen to an audio recording of the entire discussion on YouTube (embedded below). There’s no video, but if you picture Samantha being graceful and composed, Kat as Lara Croft, Cameron looking like a bearded silent film villain, and me making a lot of extravagant hand gestures, it’ll be just like being present for the session. Go give it a listen!

Sexism in Video Games Panel

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Jennifer

Hi there, beautiful people! If you will be in or around northeast Tennessee tomorrow, you should come see me, Kat, Samantha Allen, and Cameron Kunzelman tackle a bunch of questions about sexism in video games and gaming culture for East Tennessee State University’s first anime/comic convention. It’s going to kick a lot of ass! Check out the event’s FB page for more details.

Got a question(s) for the panel? Shoot it to etsusivgpanel@gmail.com and we’ll do our best to answer within the time limit.

Look forward to seeing you there! And BONUS, for all those who can’t come due to geographical inconvenience: look forward to a massive post (or two, or three) on Gamervescent in the coming weeks to discuss some of the material in further detail.

Physicist Jedi Space Marine Princess Badass

Posted on April 18, 2013 by Jennifer

You guys, I cannot BELIEVE that I have not posted something about Jennifer Hale, queen of voice acting, on Gamervescent yet. I suppose I talk about Jennifer Hale’s amazingness so much in my day-to-day life, I just assumed I had already discussed the topic here. It’s high time to rectify this grave omission.

Jennifer Hale

Not only is Jennifer Hale the incredible voice of FemShep (best voice acting performance in a video game ever, yes?), Naomi Hunter AND E.E. in Metal Gear Solid, Cinderella in Kingdom Hearts, Samus Aran in the GameCube-era Metroid games, Bastila Shan in KotOR—basically, you’ve heard the woman’s voice at some point in everything, go spend hours scrolling through her IMDb page—I just now learned that she provided the voice for my favorite character in BioShock Infinite: Rosalind Lutece.

Game Trailers posted a wonderful interview with her and Oliver Vacquer, who voiced Robert Lutece, today. Go watch it! And then bow down before Jennifer Hale, because although we are not worthy, she continues to grace us with the dulcet tones of her amazingly versatile voice.

Let Me Help You Fall in Love with Shooters

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Bethany

Halo Shooter

Over the past week, two different people, who I believe are not part of a conspiracy of asking me eerily similar things, mentioned “not really enjoying shooters” but wanted to know more about BioShock Infinite and other shooting games.

So, I thought I would lay some stuff out there for people who are not necessarily into shooters and where to start if you want to give them a chance. Continue reading →