gaggle64

Downfall on more 4 thursday night, about the final hours of Hitler and the Nazi state as Berlin fell to the Soviets in 1945. It was stunning. Absolutely stunning. There honestly isn't a bad actor in that whole film, and the script and cinematography is flawless. Sometimes the actors are actually too good - even as the Russians close in, Hitler and his closest aids appear to remain convinced of victory, and you yourself almost believe them. When Hitler feels he is betrayed by his former Leftenant Himmler, you can feel his rage and sorrow as if your best friend had betrayed you. There are some fantastic, memorable lines in the film too: (Hitler hands a loyal nurse a cyanide capsule) Hitler: "I'm sorry I can't give you a nicer present." Quite honestly, the best war film ever made, bar none. 10/10

I think the IT crowd is great. Some people don't seem to like it, but it's great to see some fresh new comedy. I can't wait to see the second series myself. To be honest it feels like it's just gotten warmed up so I'm fully expecting the second series to build on it nicely. I would recommend that evryone give it a second try at least - comedy classics like Blackadder, Only Fools and Horses and Red Dwarf were largely ignored in their first seasons afterall. Hell, Red Dwarf was almost totally ignored until about season 5. "Hello have you tried turning it on and off, have you tried sticking up your arse!" (Slams phone down - pause) "Oh. I've just realised that was my mother. Ah well." I mean c'mon - it's from the guy who wrote Father Ted. You can't say it's not at least vaguely amusing.

I really enjoyed Robin Hood, Toy Story, the Lion king and Aristocats, but Dumbo is by far the best do far. It's everything a Disney movie SHOULD be, and what the executives who enjoy stripping Disney of any kind of creativity should remember that it was this kind of films that built the corperation. Dumbo has it all - immorial and uncaring society, seperation and substance abuse. All in all, it's actually a pretty dark and even brutal film at times, albeit one with a happy ending. Whole studios, like Studio Ghibli, probably wouldn't be able to do what they do if animated films like Dumbo, Pinnochio and Snow White had not blazed such a trail, one which seems so alien to 21st century Disney. Walt must be spinning in his cryotube.

Last I heard, Nintendo were considering an Live-style option. They're obviously going to go for the online thing, and in a big way, but exactly how remains to be seen. They need to find a counter balance between organisation and accesabillity, but I feel that the Revo online service could end up being quite different to the DS. We'll all know by the end of E3.

I honestly can't say the idea of complex power options keeps me awake. To be honest, I'm glad to hear there will be a totally Aero-free Basic version. I don't need or want most of the extra features that Vista will try to whore. The "Game browser" for example. I mean... why? All I want is some 32/64 bit fuctionality. Are you listening Microsoft? Cut the crap.

I think there's something to be said for a printed games mag. The main ones I read are NGC and Edge. You could argue that any old site has the same news up weeks before, but I feel that many publications offer reviews, editorials and opinions of a quality that you just can't get from your average internet site. Edge is almost an industry paper, and god ol' NGC has never let me down in putting a humorous spin on the world of Nintendo along side it's own quality reviews. Besides, if the internet has made the gaming mag defunct, why do we still keep seeing threads saying "Hay! Look at this magzine scan! etc."

Why not train as a plumber, joiner, builder or electrician? There are loads of decent tech colleges offering courses because the UK (not sure where you are) needs workmen so bad because everyone thinks that a university degree is more useful (forget everything you learned at school). If your even half decent there's a ton of cash to be made. Just a suggestion. - you'll probably find your own thing though. To be honest I've been flying by the seat of my pants since before I left school. Life's weird like that. Just gotta take as it comes sometimes. EDIT: Actually, if all else fails train to become an actor. You'll earn next to nought (unless you take up workshopping or something - they'll teach you that in acting school) but you'll have fun. It's the modern day equivelant of running away with the circus.

I haven't played Shogun, but I would say that Rome is certainly superior to Medieval Total War (which was also very good). It's just brilliant. Seriously, you can't go wrong with it. One of the best strategy games ever made. You can pick up Rome and it's expansion Barbarian Invasion together for less than £40 now, so you really shouldn't pass up the opertunity to get involved in such a fine gaming experience. For some friendly RPG action, Neverwinter Nights can be picked up along with all it's expansions very cheaply now, and it's great D&D fun. Slightly dated prehaps, but that hasn't dented it's massive appeal.

If the PS3 even had a hope of making it out for spring, we'd all be at least kneck deep in Sony's first waves of PRBS hype by now. They just seem to be burying their heads in the sand about it, while trying to convince everyone to do the same.

Black leather thong dancing for all! Happy B-day dabookerdude!

In fairness, this obviously a pretty extreme example. However, this one of the reasons I love Nintendo: their total allergy to loading times and their desire to avoid them at all costs. If the 360 booth in my local game is anything to go by, getting rid of long loading times isn't high on the priority lists of non-Nintendo consoles.

At the moment I'm reading the book version of "Letter from America" by Alistair Cook (who you may recall was in the news recently because his bones and organs were stolen for use in pagan rituals and illegal experimentation). It's a great read - you can just read any of the letters and gain a facinating insight into momentus events in Americas post-war history. From post-war immigration in 1946 to the aftermath of the Iraq war in 2004, it's a riviting, intelligent but surprisingly easy read. Highly recommended.

Don't knock the 6600. It's a pretty basic card, but my computer has near identical specs and I've gotten some pretty decent results out of it. It's a decent amount of bang for very little buck - if you wait awhile you could soon upgrade to a 7800 relatively cheaply anyway. The AMDs work great with games too.

Remind me to get myself some more RAM and a 7800 (minimum). I'm going to need it for Medieval Total War 2 as well. Sweet PC goodness for all!

It's gotta be Schwarznegger. The man's just too damn charismatic to ignore. I was also very surprised at his governership of California. He actually appears to have done a really great job. I would actually think that he would be a pretty decent choice for the Oval Office. Him, or Codeliza Rice. Definitly better him then Hillary Clinton. "To all the people who say our economy is doing badly, I say: Stop being economic girly men!" Classic - and it wasn't even on one of his films.

Sounds good. I like games with simple interfaces - I feel like I'm free just to enjoy the enviroment then. Maybe I'll have a little of both.

How does City of Heroes/Villains play? Are their lots of stats or is it quite simplified (official site not bery helpful). I'm planning on diving into a good MMORPG soon, and it's either this or EVE Online cause I love spaceships. Big, lazer spitting bad-ass hulks of doom especially. Complicated game system, but I'll live.

The Sly Racoon series is great. I don't have a PS2, but I've played at a mates house, and I juts love all of them. It's a nice colourful platformer with loads of personality. Fantastic fun and great to unwind with.

When I put Norton Internet Security 06 on my computer, it crashed the damn thing. Apparently this can happen if your PC has any spyware on it (one the reasons I wanted the damn thing in the first place). I was quite surprised as 05 had worked on my mums computer just fine. However, once I rebooted my computer and got it working, it's got my computer done up like Fort Knox. It does use a fair chunk of your system but nothing too detrimental to performance, and your computer will be fairly safe against almost anything out there. I'll leave you to decide.

I would also recommend Homeworld 2. With the 1.1 patch it's still looks pretty sweet even after it's release so long ago. It's rock hard, but a seminal 3D strategy game. The amounf of support it has from the Modding community is simply phenominal.

Jesus, this really puts my time at college into perspective. The most exciting thing I've done all year is play RISK for gods sake. Although alcoholic Risk has it's charms, I must say.

And the way he reloads the goddamn thing! I swear, I still splurge my pants whenever I see that sequence. The T-1000 is pretty badass too. Chrome. Very stylish.

Both the first two are sheer genius. The first one is great because Arnie is an unstoppable death machine that get's to say "Fuck you, asshole." The "I'll be back" moment when he drives a truck into the cop station remains a classic cinema moment and the difinitive I'll Be Back moment. The scene where he rises from the flames is spine tingiling. The second one is fantastic because Arnie gets to ride a bike. A BIKE!

Oh lord, this programme is the reason my college network is so slow. Loads of people use it to download music, programmes ect. and they hog all the bandwidth. Bastards.

Get a couple of small 5lb weights, and just keep lifting them. Do as many push and sit ups as you can everyday. Start small and work your way up. Do this for about 10mins - 20mins everyday regulary, and it will boost your strength and stamina and tone your body. Regular walks can actually be incredibly helpful for toning your body, shedding pounds and improving your stamina. Eat eggs. Drink water. It's done me no end of good.