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Photos } Smokefreerockquest finalist from Attic Sky’s Photo of Lady Gaga by Chris Traill
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RUSSELL BRAND
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In Hop, you’re the voice of the Easter Bunny, E.B. We bet there are some good outtakes. Well, sometimes when I’m improvising I just say anything that comes to mind and a lot of the things that come to mind are disgusting. I can’t remember specific lines but they would be unsavoury remarks, given the genre. Growing up, which was your favourite animated movie? I liked Pinocchio. I liked that little guy, lying and that. But it was a bit macabre, wasn’t it, when he had to go to that island where all them boys were turning into donkeys. That freaked me out. A lot of fairy tales, because of their social function, have at their core a peculiar disruptive darkness – like if you lie, you will end up a lost boy on an island full of donkey boys. I mean, I’ve lied, and that has not happened yet.
{20} Tearaway AUGUST 2011
Do you miss being a kid? No, because I have retained a J.D. Salingerlike attachment to perpetual childhood. There are things that are beautiful about childhood, for example being accepting of people, looking for joy in human beings and having an essentially benevolent and optimistic outlook in life. These things you can retain in adulthood. If you were a bunny who could poo out something cool, what would it be? Not jelly beans. But I think it would be good to poop complete wedding cakes and then to make one for the English Royal Wedding. Why isn’t Katy singing on the Hop soundtrack? She’s very, very busy with a lot of things, touring and stuff. I guess she’s sort of preoccupied with that and we see each other a lot – we live with each other – so perhaps it’s good that the work things are distinct.
Living in Los Angeles, do you miss London life and your friends? I do miss some aspect of London living, yes. Everyone misses where they are from. It doesn’t matter where you go in the world, where you are from is where you are from and you can’t escape it. Do you miss British food? I don’t like not being able to get a good fried egg sandwich, or beans and cheese on toast, or a jacket potato. You’ve written two autobiographies. Is writing a natural process for you? It’s not natural, no, I have to be imprisoned in a room by the people I work with and then I will write. I only write if all other options are eliminated. If it’s write or eat, I will eat. If it’s write or look out the window, I will look out the window. If it’s write or go to the toilet and look on the internet, I will do those things. So once all other possibilities are eliminated, then eventually I will become creative.
Hop is out now on DVD, and we have three copies up for grabs. Email promotions@academy.net.nz with “HOP TERM 3” in the subject line. Remember to include your full name, date of birth and physical address. For full terms and conditions, see page 35.
BREAK FROM THE QUAKE
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Alcohol is the most widely used drug in the world, and is more dangerous for teenagers than it is for adults – when a large amount is used it can actually harm and change the teenage brain. Since the brain is still developing, these changes can be life-long. In NZ, 24% of 16-18 year-olds have a substance abuse disorder and 50% are regular drinkers. Taking drugs or drinking regularly can lead to: • Skipping school and doing badly in schoolwork • Drifting apart from mates and family • Getting in trouble with the police • Increasing the likelihood of being physically injured, or developing depression • Spending more and more money buying the substance used After looking at what sort of things can happen if you use drugs or drink a lot, doesn’t it make sense that there are legal restrictions in place?
Why use drugs and alcohol? You might get involved with substances because you feel pressured by friends and don’t know how to get out of the situation. Maybe it’s to make yourself feel better when you are stressed, depressed, or think you don’t fit in. No matter the reasons, drugs and alcohol will end up making things worse. Short term, the effects might seem great – you may feel more chilled and confident. But when drinking too much, things go downhill pretty quickly. You get clumsy and have slurred speech, and could vomit or black out. When the high wears off, the you may feel even more lousy than before.
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{26} Tearaway AUGUST 2011
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Title: Red Faction: Armageddon From: Volition For: PS3 Also on: PC, Xbox 360
Title: Xbox 360 Triple Pack For: Xbox 360 Microsoft has packaged together three must-have Xbox Live Arcade games and released them on one disc. It’s an excellent idea that will provide hours upon hours of top quality gaming. On this particular disc (which is the first of its kind, to the best of my knowledge) we have: Trials HD – a motorcycle trials game that is so addictive that it should be illegal; Limbo – a cute, dark game that sees a young boy set off in search of his sister – it’s simplistic in gameplay and very unnerving; finally there is ‘Splosion Man – a classic platformer that bursts with humour and personality and includes some quality co-op multiplayer action. All three games are critically acclaimed and are essential inclusions in any gaming collection. The fact that you can now purchase them in one handy package is just the icing on the cake.
Title: Duke Nukem Forever From: Gearbox Software For: Xbox 360 Also on: PS3, PC It took so long to make that the reboot of the Duke Nukem franchise got dubbed ‘Vapourware’ and ‘Duke Nukem For Never’. Then all of a sudden, the finished game was announced and released, all within a couple of months. Except the sad thing is, after so much anticipation and with so many nostalgic fans anticipating something special, Duke Nukem Forever isn’t actually ‘finished’ at all. In fact, the game would have benefitted greatly from another 12 months in production. The jokes are there, the nostalgic nods to its roots are there, the smutty innuendo is there and so is the comic book violence. But all of that means nothing without a decent first-person shooter to base it around and that, I’m very sad to say, is where Duke Nukem Forever fails miserably. So much missed potential will most likely see the ultimate downfall of Duke Nukem…forever.
The Red Faction series has been around for a fair while now and it was the pioneer of destructible environments. Encountering a locked door in the original game and being able to blast away the wall around it was most satisfying. Red Faction still has destructible environments, but on a much larger scale. Red Faction Guerilla (the previous release) gave us non-linear gameplay and wideopen environments, along with great graphics and quite evil enemy AI, but Volition have decided to turn this latest instalment into a linear, close-quartered affair built around a messy plotline. There is also a second mode of gameplay, which is more of a time-waster than anything. It’s called Ruin and it gives you a time limit to destroy as many structures as possible, which earns you more powerful weapons to use the next time around. It’s fun for some mindless destruction, but the novelty soon wears off.
IAN KNOTT
GAME REVIEWS
s d r a z i w , s e t a r i P ! y m h o s . . n . o c i t p e c e d d n a Title: inFamous 2 From: Sucker Punch For: PS3 The original inFamous was a major success for PlayStation, despite having several flaws. Its sequel improves on the original in some ways but manages to find a few annoyances of its own. Cole McGrath is back once again and heading for a confrontation with the prophesised colossus ‘The Beast’ from the end of inFamous. Cole is again equipped with superpowers and the choice is yours whether you wish to use them for good or evil, although the game could have easily done without this muddled morality system. There’s a lot of fun to be had, despite an overwhelming air of predictability presiding over the game. The camera moves around far too much and can easily become more of a hindrance than a help and the game has a strange pacing to it, along with some extremely irritating enemy encounters that had me reaching for the off-switch on more than one occasion. inFamous 2 just doesn’t live up to the pedigree of its predecessor, and that’s a shame.
Armageddon is decidedly average and will no doubt be seen in a bargain bin near you soon enough.
Title: Child of Eden From: Ubisoft For: Xbox 360 Also on: PS3 Every once in awhile, a game comes along that almost defies description. Rez, Flower, Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, flOw, they all make you sit up and say ‘wow’. Add to that list Child of Eden from award winning game designer Tetsuya Mizuguchi. Project Lumi is a mission to reproduce a human personality inside Eden, the archive of all human memories. A virus invades Eden and it’s your job to eradicate it. The game can be played with the Xbox controller, but trust me when I say that Child of Eden is best played using Kinect and your hands as the controllers. Gameplay is very similar to Rez and flOw, in that it’s a mix of wire-framed flashy visuals, particle effects and interactive audio that responds to the action on screen.
Title: UFC Personal Trainer From: THQ For: Xbox 360 Also on: PS3, Wii Let’s get one thing clear: UFC Personal Trainer, despite being officially licensed to the UFC, is not a UFC fighting game. Instead, what we have here is a fitness trainer that requires Kinect, PS Move or the Wii to play. Personally, the thought of playing this holding any kind of controller seems quite awkward, so Kinect would be the weapon of choice. The user is put through a fitness training programme designed by MMA experts certified by the UFC and the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) in which you can choose from several trainers, including Frank Mir, Kenny Florian, Javier Mendez and Greg Jackson. Your progress and fitness level is monitored and workouts are tailored to suit your level.
Really, Child of Eden is worth investing in Kinect alone. It’s one of those games that can sell hardware. Get it. Play it. Love it.
In all honesty this is the best “in lounge” workout I’ve ever had, and I was sore for a couple of days after my first workout, which included a surprisingly intensive initial fitness test.
It’s definitely going to end up in my top five of 2011.
If gym memberships are too costly, then I highly recommend UFC Personal Trainer.
Title: LA Noir From: Rockstar Games For: PS3 Also on: Xbox 360, PC Cole (seems to be a very popular name for video game protagonists) Phelps is an LAPD detective. He attempts to climb the ranks in as righteous a way as possible, amid the post-war boom of Hollywood’s Golden Age. But this is a time of rampant corruption, high murder rates and a thriving drug trade. When a string of arson attacks, racketeering conspiracies and brutal murders occur, Phelps must infiltrate the seedy LA underworld and discovers a rotten element in his own ranks. LA Noir shows off a groundbreaking new animation technology that captures the actor’s facial nuances like never before. So lifelike are the characters, that it’s a little bit disconcerting, to be honest. Much like Heavy Rain did a while back, LA Noir blurs the line between gaming and cinematic entertainment. The result is a gritty work of art that exhibits unparalleled realism and a level of involvement that demands that you come back for more. This will be a lead contender on most Game of the Year lists.
Title: Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters From: Warner Brothers For: Xbox 360 Also on: PS3, Wii, 3DS, DS Inspired by the movie of the same name, Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters is a 3rd person adventure that places you as Hal Jordan (or Sinestro if the drop-in, drop-out co-op multiplayer is your style) who, aided by the Green Lantern Corps and his Power Ring, is charged with halting the invasion of the Manhunters and restoring intergalactic order. Superhero movie/game tie-ins are pretty much a no-brainer; they’re made to go hand-in-hand and this is no exception. It looks great, has Ryan Reynolds’ likeness and voice, and despite getting a bit repetitive, is a blast to play. As you play, you are able to purchase constructs (special powers) which can then be assigned to button-slots. You can switch these around at will, depending on the type of enemy you’re dealing with at the time. There are some tricky level bosses and plenty of puzzle solving along the way too. Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters is well worth a three-day, rainy weekend hire and even better if you play it in 3D.