[UPDATE] What's in the Works!

Just wanted to give you all a heads up: We're upgrading GTAL and launching a new look site, with a whole lot more content. It'll be much easier to get around, and looks awesome. Unfortunately, it's taking a little longer than I'd like, but it will happen. We'll let you know when it's all done and dusted. Until then, Happy Gaming, and keep on Expericooking!

- Jiggsy

[Tech] By the power of Greyskull...I have a network!!!

I was very pleased this week when this bad boy landed on my desk.

What is it? It's gypsy magic that will change my life forever.

Life is like layers of meat, cheese and pasta... AWESOME MNMM #9

I realise that many of my posts start this way but, I effing LOVE lasagne! How can you go wrong with meat, cheese and pasta baked in such a way that the AWESOMEness of the total far exceeds the sum of awesomeness of the parts? Nowhere, that's where. I've looked, trust me. My recipe here for you tonight isn't something special or over-the-top or anything, just a good, trusty, simple recipe with the odd little tweak here and there to make this an awesome meal with stuff all effort. All you need is a little time, patience and a big appetite!

Get your coat, you've pulled! MNMM #8

Time for another treat! Tonight I'll share with you a super-easy, but super tasty favourite of my friends and colleagues - my world famous (at my house) american-style Pulled Pork! Also, this picture looks like Pac-Man gettin' his pork on!

[Unboxing] Hatching an Alien(ware)

I had a very nice surprise turn up on my doorstep this week in the form of an Alienware M14X which I am reviewing as part of a competition from our friends at Gamespot AU.

 

There will be more reviews and information to come as I put it through its paces and run the hard yards of playing games on it and calling it work, but first up lets do an unboxing! Full pics after the break!

 

 

[REVIEW] Cutting to the Core: Fruit Ninja Kinect

I woke up this morning, almost unable to move my arms. My shoulders ached, as if I'd been climbing mountains. It seems hard for me to believe that swinging my arms around, slicing fruit in colourful arcs, could have been so strenuous, though in hindsight, I was puffed after my first round (definitely more a criticism on my physical state then anything else).

Fruit Ninja Kinect is almost nothing like playing it on a phone.

[REVIEW] Float like a Butterfly: Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet

So I must start this review with a quick confession - I haven't beaten the last boss yet (or what I think/hope is the last boss) yet and I'm almost at the point of tossing this game into the abyss of shame and never completing it. Yet I refrain from doing so as the game has the capacity to provide great feelings of triumph and satisfaction.

Read on past the jump to find why this game is so frustrating and at the same time so engaging...

Monday Night Man Meals #7

I fricken love wings. I love wings A LOT. I first had decent ones last year when my wife and I went to Hooters in the USA (which was amazing BTW). I was amazed at just how easy they are to cook and there is absolutely no denying that they are AWESOMEly manly! Hit the jump for the super-simple recipe as well as a run down on some of the usual accompaniments!

[REVIEW] Tracing the bloodline: Dragon Age 2: Legacy

Dragon Age 2 was, in my opinion, a mixed bag of a game. On one hand, there's an epic storyline that runs throughout (something we've come to expect from a BioWare game), beautiful scenery, and some of the funniest companion dialogue since KOTOR's HK-77. On the other, however, it's marred with repetetive  side quests, copy/paste map areas, and plot choices that didn't quite fit with the character you'd been playing throught the game. Also, with essentially only 2 endings, there wasn't much in the way of replay value.

Thankfully, that's where the latest DLC, Legacy, shines.

[PODCAST] Get your AWESOMEcast fix right here!

For this edition of the GTAL AWESOMEcast, Jiggsy2point0, Tinmut, Jeffois and Robeywan got together to talk the usual food, games, more, including the upcoming SciFi Channel (Australia) Doctor Who Tweetup/Clustr Launch and Insert Coin(s) in Sydney

 I won't lie to you, this edition was a little bit more... off-colour than the previous one, but that's just how these things go sometimes... I'm still not entirely sure why we kept finding ourselves referring to Red Dead Redemption, either...

More importantly though, we have a name! Thanks to AnchormanMazda, this podcast will now be known as the AWESOMEcast! Thank you to everyone for their suggestions! As always, if there's something you want us to cover, let us know in the comments, tweet us, or on our Facebook page!

Hit the jump below to stream or download the second instalment!

[REVIEW] The Particle Theory: From Dust (XBLA)

Let's get this straight up front. I didn't cook this game. But hey! I'm still a gamer at heart and I've been lucky enough to give this fabulous little XBLA game a look.

I was a big fan of Black & White from the epicly eccentric Mr. Molyneaux's Lionhead Studios. At first glance, you wouldn't be blamed for putting From Dust into the same "god game" bucket. To be fair, I thought the same for the first couple of levels. However, it didn't take long for me to realise it's really something different. Find out just what after the jump!

Monday Night Man Meals #6

Ok, some people will whinge and claim that this is MNMM #7 as the open sausage tar...PIE was actually #6 but that was a quickie and doesn't count. At least that's what Bill Clinton told the jury, right? Anyway, I kinda like creating the idea of people at a GTA-Con in the future arguing over which episodes should be counted and which were just sidelines. That's if they can count in future of course... I'm sure kids already think it goes something like: 4, 5, 6, 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9.

Anyhoo, I've just come back from a very short trip to America (fricken missed ComicCon by this much). There's very little I love about America than the AWESOMEly manly food on offer. Don't get me wrong, there are so many things to love about the U.S. (tattooed chicks, sheer scale and their economy), but at the same time there are so many things to loathe (bigots, starbucks and their economy) - but I particularly love the absolute melting pot for culinary styles a place like Southern California can be. I hear the same about NY, Florida and so many other places as well - but this recent trip took me to LA, so guess what that means? Something quntissentially American... YEP! Mexican food. Strap in and hold on, 'coz Papi's makin' Chimichangas!

[REVIEW] A Simple Equation: Fallout: NV's 'Old World Blues'

The next instalment of DLC for the 'not-so-buggy-now' Fallout: New Vegas has arrived, and it's a formula for success!

Old World Blues kicks off with a cryptic message, inviting you to the Midnight Science Fiction Theatre at the Mojave Drive In, so after ditching as much unnecessary gear as possible, losing the companions, and a quick fast-travel, that's exactly where I headed. The interesting thing about a Midnight show is that it kicks off (you guessed it!) at Midnight! Once the clock ticked over, a crashed satellite projected an image onto the remains of the Drive-In screen, and a quick inspection launched an all-too familiar (and still frustratingly unskippable) Slideshow Intro.

[REVIEW] Standing on the Edge of the Earth: Limbo (Steam/PSN/XBLA)

With it's release on Steam coming on August 3rd, what better time for another look at one of the most loved and praised indie games in recent history.

When I think of platformers, I think of Shinobi, Alex Kidd, Gunstar Heroes, Sunset Riders and Splosion Man (to name a small selection of my favourites). These are all games in which you already have, or are given the tools to make it past various obstacles, environmental or otherwise. Platformers are mostly filled with double-jumps, bottomless pits and crazed enemies that all require careful timing or a spamming of the power button to negotiate. Once these obstacles are dealt with, we are usually left with a sense of power and control over of our environment as we look back on the impossible tasks we have just performed.

Introducing the GTALCast!

We've been tossing up the idea of doing a Podcast for a while now, and this week we all got together and recorded one! This will be the first of many to come, hopefully weekly, and we want your feedback! What do you want to hear us talk about? More importantly, what do you want us to call it? We're opening it up to you to decide, so throw a Name down in the comments, vote for one, and the most popular name as voted by you guys (and girls) will become the Podcast name!

You can download the Very First GTALCast right here (MP3 ~60Mb, Right-Click, Save Target As), or hit the jump to stream it inside your browser!

Monday Night Quickie

I'm a bit torn on this one... Firstly, Jiggsy has given me the night off (we're doing our first podcast tonight), secondly this is more of a snack than and meal and third, I'm wondering if this really is very manly. But hey, I gotta eat and I don't always have to eat a kilo of steak, or try and turn your average meal inside-out or even nosh on miscellaneous pig parts. As for the questionable manliness of this dish, as long as no one mentions that it's a tart (which sounds a bit girly) and sticks to my description of an 'open pie' we'll be sorted! So, keep reading after the jump for a quick easy snack or entree or plate to bring to your next potluck dinner (do people still do those? I would LOVE to do one!) - my very own Cheesy Spicy Kolbasz Open Pie (DON'T mention the tart).

[REVIEW] Something Wicked this Way Comes: Shadows of the Damned

Have you ever played a Zelda game, and thought to yourself this needs more penis jokes? Or wished that Navi could transform into a gun? Yes? Then you're in luck, because Shadows of the Damned makes those dreams come true.

Hang on... What!? Zelda & Shadows of the Damned? Read on to find out what these two games hold in common...

[REVIEW] 2-Hit Combo- Cthulhu Saves the World/Breath of Death VII

In a world overrun breathtaking facial animation, serious character acting and more-than-linear idiot-proof shooters, it's definitely a relief to know that there's developers out there making clever, funny, and (above all else) fun titles still... throw those three adjectives into a blender, add half a pint of Old School RPG style, 2 cups of sprite (not the drink) graphics, and a pound of Sierra-esque humour, and you've got two of the most entertaining games I've been lucky enough to play (and replay!), Zeboyd Games' Cthulhu Saves The World & Breath of Death VII.

[VIDEO/PICTURES] HTC Sensation Launch Party w/ The Vines!

On a Wintery Monday night, Tinmut, HiJacker, and myself headed out to Sydney's Oxford Art Factory for the Australian Launch of the HTC Sensation. Hit the Jump for our video coverage, including a sneak peak at some of the awesome features of the HTC Sensation, and a MASSIVE Slideshow of all the action from the night, including The VInes!

[REVIEW] Hands-On with the HTC Sensation

At first I wasn't sure what I thought about the HTC Sensation. On the surface it appears just to be another Desire HD-esque device - Android on a big screen, wrapped in HTC Sense.

To judge it like that, however, would be doing both the device and myself a disservice, as when you get to know more about it and actually hold it in your hand, the device comes to life and impresses you like no previous HTC phone I've used.