LANCOZA Blog

I have been looking for a complete solution for my multi-media centre requirements for quite some time. The original problem was in finding a device that could accomodate the plethora of media types that exist in the wild. With the mainstreaming of HD television's , HD media has become far more prevalent and with it the MKV container.

The other problem was in connecting the device to my Home Theatre system without too many wires snaking across the floor. I received a Eureka media player as a present and it works very well but it does not have a network connection which is a serious weakness and it cannot play MKV files.

My ideal media player was the Mvix with its network connection although it too cannot play MKV files. The price is prohibitive and I could never really justify the purchase. With the WD TV Live , my world has been rocked. It can play the full gamut of media types - including MKV, it accomodates any USB drive and has a network connection. In addition it has a Full-HD 1080p output and can connect to a USB wireless adapter so that there is not need for a network cable snaking across the lounge. It is also priced at about half the cost of an MVix which really seals the deal for me.

If I am very good, perhaps Santa will drop one off at my house this year - who knows ...

But as it turns out, a really cool toy . Not worth the price that they charge for it, so if you are keen on the Modern Warfare 2 Night Vision Edition, you should wait until it gets a nice fat discount - which I think will happen soon.

The only limited edition accessories that I am interested in are figurines or something practical , like a steel lunchbox .

As it turns out, the majority of my friends list are in hiding from the Live Ban-Police . If you play on Live occasionally, have a preference for first person shooters and like killing zombies then look me up. My Live tag is Hotshot es

Microsoft has started a wave of bannings on Xbox Live. The only reason given is for a violation of their Terms of Use .

There is alot of speculation about the timing and reasoning behind the bans, but from what I can tell if you have done a firmware mod to your Xbox, then you are a likely candidate. So far I know of 2 locals who have been banned, both have firmware modded Xbox's.

I had some free time this weekend and wanted kill some Zombies but no one in my friends list was online. I tried to join a random game in Call of Duty and Gears 2 but I could not find a single gane.

In my desperation I fired up the demo of Battlefield 1943 and ran around aimlessly with eight other deperate souls for a few mintes before I threw in the towel. All in all a very sad night on Live. My goal now is to expand my friend list quite dramatically beyond 'real' friends and to focus on finding 'cyber' friends. I mostly play Call of Duty and Gears 2, I also don't have any of the addon map packs, so I think that the prospective pool is quite limited.

It looks like Tycho from Penny Arcade was right when he said that the PC-gamer demographic is not the core segment of the video game market. The latest news from Infinity Ward is that the PC multi-player mode has been reduced to 18 players from 32 in the original game.

Added to the fact that there will be no dedicated game servers, it really looks like the twilight of PC gaming as a platform distinct from console gaming. Is this a good thing? I have long since stopped using my PC as a  gaming platform. My 360 is currently the only platform that I game on if you discount my dusty PSP. With the convenient, multiplayer games afforded by Live, I really don't miss anything about PC gaming, especially the routine hardware upgrades that gaming PCs required. I will accept the 'degraded' controls and graphics in favour of a more accessible gaming experience.

But why does it feel like a part of me died...

The Nintendo DS is going large while the PlayStation Portable is going Slim. I have always preferred the PSP over the DS because of its bigger screen. The DS has great functionality especially the touch screen but the screen size has been a deal breaker for me. Now there is a larger screen version coming to a store near you.

Need more info on Bioshock 2 ? We can help you out.

I have not had much interest in DJ Hero because of it's initial lack lustre track list. With Jay-Z's involvement, things are looking alot more interesting.

If you haven't had enough naked, witch exposure , then you can fill up your trough here. Although I must say there is something about those spectacles - but the cheerleader outfit...?

Well it depends on who you believe really. A source from BT Games mentioned that we would have Live 'sometime next year'. But he did not have any firm date or other proof to back up his claim.

Microsoft did respond to complaints about the lack of Live in SA. You can read the full interview here. It may have been a PR exercise on their part to reduce the number and volume of complaints. The one useful thing to come out of the interview is that bandwidth is not the obstacle keeping Live out of SA.

When we will have local Live servers is really anyone's guess. At the moment it is probably easier to get your UK/US Live subscription and points here  or here and not stress too much about something that is completely out of your control.

I finally got my Gold Live Subscription which means that I no longer have to create serial online personalities. The plan on Saturday was to kill zombies in Call of Duty but by the time I was online everyone else was headed to bed.

I decided to dive into the great unknown and join a random game. It seems no matter how random the selection, I always end up playing with 12 year olds from the UK or US, the mute button served me well.

I normally play online with maximum swearing and shouting so it was a weird sensation to play zombies, which requires a great deal of co-operation, without any communication at all. Regardless of how many rounds we played, we could not get past level 12. If anyone knows the secret to progressing further, please do let me know.

In Xbox news, the word is that we will only receive 600 of the Super Elites. All 600 have been reserved by one retail chain which means that unfortunately we (Lancoza) will not be stocking any.

 If you are in the market for one, then you should  snap it up as soon as you see it advertised. With the holiday season fast appoaching, they are sure to be in demand.