Uncle Creepy wrote: "Below you'll find the trailer for the new Swedish zombie invasion film Zon 261.
It's not in English and there are no subtitles, but you'll get the gist
of things pretty quickly ... four people, hordes of zombies, blood
flies, guns fire! Yep, everything we need and want! There's no word on distro for this flick just yet, but we'll keep our ears to the ground and let you know what we find out."
I purchased the ZOMBIES, RUN! app a while ago, but a bad cold stopped me from trying it until recently. I have to say, it was $8 well spent. Yesterday I took the app for a spin on my first run in ages and it was a perfect way to get into running again.
THE GOOD
The app isn't just a scare app with zombie noises. It's a complex game system with a fun storyline. The basic idea is simple. There is a story that plays through your headphones as you run. It's not 100% interactive - it just plays through. However, it's a blast if you are able to "play along" in your head. You are Runner 5 - a person of action in the zombie apocalypse being talked to through your headset by people at a base close by. The first MISSION sets the scene. You crash and are guided through the landscape - set off on a mission to stay safe, gather supplies and get to the base in one piece.
The production values are very good. Fans of radio dramas or audio books will be very familiar with the audio storyline format. As you run, bits of the story come to you as actors talk to you through your headphones. The story sets a fantastic zombie tone - creepy and urgent. There are times where the scene becomes very urgent. "They are right behind you! Run, Runner 5! RUN!" I wanted to stop for a breather, but the game really did make me keep going. I gave into the fun of it and went right into the story. The nature of the audio made it easy to do.
You pick up items along your run and they are called out with an electronic voice. "You've collected antibiotics" I wasn't sure what the point of all this collecting was until I got home and played around with the app a bit. It all became clear and I was happy with what I found. The app has a SUPPLIES tab with icons of various supplies. When collected, a number shows up over the icon. You drag that icon to an area of your Base Map (antibiotics to the HOSPITAL on the map, for instance) and the level bar over that area of the map grows. When full, the level changes and the image of the item grows a la SIM CITY. (A small hospital tent grows to a larger, more robust hospital tent) This added another level to the game play that I really enjoyed.
You're also able to play your iTunes playlists through the app if you want music as well as the story. The story comes up between tracks and the collection notes chime in over the tracks. I'm currently working on my ZOMBIES, RUN! playlist with a zombie horror movie soundtrack in mind! :)
THE NOT SO GOOD, but forgivable.
Now, you can tell that this is the first rev of the app. Not by the game play itself - that worked really well. It was more along the back-end side of things. More nit picks than anything.
• I couldn't figure out a way to change from kilometers to miles.
FIXED IN v 1.1!
• I don't see a list of runs like RunKeeper where I can chart distances I've run. RunKeeper was a great way to mark running progress. This is more game than run program.
FIXED IN v 1.1!
• While there is a tweet function that tweets out your use of the game, there doesn't seem to be a function where you can connect and post to Facebook. Again, I used this feature in RunKeeper to keep myself motivated. If people know I'm running, they know when I'm NOT running and that kept me honest. Plus, why WOULDN'T you want a person tossing Facebook posts up about your product? I can only imagine that this feature is coming in Rev 2.0.
• And lastly, in a perfect world, the GPS would be weaved into the game so that little nuggets could be woven into the game play a bit more. "Pace yourself on this hill" or something to that effect. A programming nightmare, but it would add to the immersion for sure.
All in all, ZOMBIES, RUN! is a lot of fun so far and worth the small investment of cash. It's highly entertaining and adds another level to a run.
I have not laughed this hard in the theater....ever? Is that it? I think so! SO FUNNY.
This film was made for horror nuts. It takes all the horror classic “teens in the woods” scenarios and flips them around brilliantly. I was laughing out loud in the theater along with the rest of the audience and I didn't want the film to end. And the best part was that you could see that Eli Craig totally “get's it”. He knows how to make a film and knows what's funny.
The comic timing of Alan “Firefly” Tudyk and Tyler “Mad Love” Labine is perfection. I've never laughed so hard at splatter. It had me cringing and laughing so hard my eyes were watering.
A must see.
For added fun: Invite over every horror movie fan you know and get pizza and beer!
February was WOMEN IN HORROR MONTH. Not "hot chicks in bikinis and hot pants getting killed in films" month, but women directing and writing - steering the bus, not sitting in the back of it. (Not to take away from the skills involved in wearing a bikini and running away from a killer, but...)
So, since we dropped the ball in February, we're going to extend WOMEN IN HORROR MONTH into March! We have some great places for you to dig in and explore.
Now, it was pointed out in a FANTASTIC podcast interview with Heidi Honeycutt on the RUE MORGUE PODCAST that many people can't even name a female director in the horror genre. I know I can't, but I can name several male directors. Why is that? It was also pointed out that people still line up for old, Italian (Dario Argento) director's autographs (...even though his last films have been HORRID!), yet they may not line up for female directors who have made great films in the past year. Why is that?
Well, that's a great start. Now, I feel like it's a great thing to have a Women in Horror Month, but it would be even BETTER if it were just the norm to celebrate any director - male of female - all year round. Until we get to that point, let's all make sure that there is no glass ceiling for women - directing horror or whatever they are doing for a living. Period.
