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Nerve@SXSW 2006.
Blogging the Roman Orgy of Indie-music Festivals.
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An intimate and provocative look at Siege's life, work and loves.
Kate & Camilla
two best friends pursue business and pleasure in NYC.
Naughty James
The lustful, frantic diary of a young London photographer.
The Nerve Blog-a-log: kid_play
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A bundle of sass who's trying to stop the same mistakes.
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Our newest Blog-a-logger.
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Gay man in the Big Apple, full of apt metaphors and dry wit.
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Naughty and philosophical dispatches from the life of a writer-comedian who loves bathtubs and hates wearing underpants.
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Deep, deep inside the world of online video.
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A Demi in search of her Ashton.
The Prowl, with Ryan Pfluger
Nerve @ Cannes Film Festival
May 16 - May 25
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The Nerve Film Blog
Autumn
A fashionable L.A. photo editor exploring all manner of hyper-sexual girls down south.
The Modern Materialist
Almost everything you want.
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A sassy Canadian who will school you at Tetris.
Rose & Olive
Houston neighbors pull back the curtains and expose each other's lives.
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The name says it all.
merkley???
A former Mormon goes wild, and shoots nudes, in San Francisco.
chase
The creator of Supercult.com poses his pretty posse.
The Remote Island
Nerve's TV blog.
Brandonland
A California boy capturing beach parties, sunsets and plenty of skin.
61 Frames Per Second
Smarter gaming.
The Nerve Blog-a-log: Charlotte_Web
A Demi in search of her Ashton.
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A Manhattan pip in search of his pipette.
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Putting your baggage to good use.

61 Frames Per Second

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  • The Aberration of Sonic

    Yesterday, Derrick brought us The Joy of Sonic as assembled by Docfuture, the Internet's premiere professional Let's Play putter-togehter. Docfuture's playthrough of the original Sonic the Hedgehog is a relaxing video that comforts us like a blanket on a rainy day. Through Doc's mellow voice, we are assured all of us, even the furious Sonic, needs to take it easy sometimes. At the same time, it's good to feel strong sometimes. On occassion, we must gain invincibility, don a blaze of sparkles and plow through the things in our life that pee streams of negative energy in our pomegranate smoothies.

    Feeling relaxed and empowered? Then you're ready to travel through Docfuture's follow-up project: Let's Play Sonic 2: Special Edition.

    Sonic 2: Special Edition is a barely known (and, as some portions of this Let's Play will indicate, barely finished) 32X/Sega CD re-creation of the Genesis' beloved Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Few mortals have seen it, but we are blessed because Docfuture's father nabbed the prototype when he worked at Nintendo. The game did make an appearance on an episode Nick Arcade, where a little pigtailed girl lost the challenge to beat Robotnik within thirty seconds accompanied by Dragonforce music that wouldn't come into existence for something like another six years.

    Read More...


  • Barack Obama: Master Debater

    With 2008 being an election year, you'd think there'd be more video game/politics crossovers. Sure, we've got The Political Machine, but that's about it; I know this sort of material can become dated fast (see the Bush-esque politician in 2004's Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal), but--damn it--how are we nerds supposed to connect to politics in any substantial way?

    The answer to this question, of course, lies in the community; and the video I wish to showcase is proof of that.  YouTube user wddpcbass has produced a neat little parody that, while lacking in production values, takes a key moment in the last Presidential debate and perfectly translates it into a scene from the Phoenix Wright series. Obviously, if you've never played any of Capcom's DS lawyer sims, you'll have no idea why this is supposed to be funny. But trust me: it is.  All that's missing is John McCain tearing off a wig or pounding the lectern.

    Note: The context for this video is that Obama is replying to a misconception about his tax plan.



    After seeing this parody, all I can think about is a political campaign sim very much in the style of Phoenix Wright: travel to different locations, dig up dirt on your enemies, and destroy them in a formal debate. And in my fictional game world, the moderators of said debates will actually have power over the proceedings. Any takers? This could be huge.

    Read More...


  • Rockman Lucky Star

    Ewww, who stunk up the blog with religion and serious crap?...Oh, it was me. Sorry guys. Friday is not for thinking. Friday is for sillies, especially Fridays that herald the looong weekend. I'm gonna drink a beer and get so drunk.

    And by "a beer" I mean fifty.

    I don't think I'd want to live in a world without silly anime dances. I don't know how many of you are fans of Lucky Star (I personally haven't seen it yet), but the adorable Mega Man parody of the opening can be appreciated no matter your alignment. There's some impressive sprite work to be had. Bonus footage of Gravity Man flipping Roll and Kalinka upside-down.

    It's not quite what you think. Sorry. Lord, the whole thing is very innocent.

    I wish you the best long weekend ever.

    Read More...


  • Sonic is for Porn

    Dic's Saturday morning Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon--often referred to by its (very dedicated) fanbase as "SatAM"--remains an example of one of video gamedom's higher quality cartoon adaptations. The intro lives on in the hearts of our inner children. When we hear it, we recall our bowls of Trix and waking up before everyone else and oh my God, I can't even concieve of not sleeping in on a Saturday morning. Not even for Sonic.

    Most of us have grown up and become stale adults with worries about bills and running out of Dulcolax. Our tastes have changed as well; now instead of laughing along with Sesame Street, we laugh along with Avenue Q (maybe).

    Ah, but perverts may yet rejoice for this opportunity to recapture and distort their childhood. A thoughtful Sonic fan crossed Avenue Q's "The Internet is For Porn" with the animated cast of Sonic the Hedgehog. (Mildly NSFW.) Of course, every genius with free, spyware-laden editing software has crossed Avenue Q with every franchise ever (including your mom. Oh!--Zing!), but there's something very special about the obese Dr Robotnik bellowing "For porn!" Unfortunately, the image of Robotnik surfing the Internet for delights now hovers in my brain like a spectre.

    Someone get me a funnel and some lighter fluid.

    Read More...


  • "Honus Wagner Card Man?!"

    The Internet is more or less a traffic jam (some might liken it more to a pile-up) of videos dedicated to gaming culture. Most of these videos are testosterone-driven frenzies with bad picture quality and fuzzy sound that rattles like a drowning man's lungs. They're vital contributions, though: who else is going to declare "hahaha miyamoto did sooo many drugs before he made Super Mario Bros--there's, like, mushrooms everywhere!"

    Still, it's nice when game fans take the time to dedicate themselves to something truly funny and worth watching. I will now direct you to The Last Days of Doctor Wily, an Old Rich People tribute to Mega Man's evil nemesis.

    The ending more or less sums up the thoughts of anyone who's ever played a Mega Man game.

    Read More...



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  • about the blogger

    John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

    Derrick Sanskrit is a self-professed geek in a variety of fields including typography, graphic design, comic books, music and cartoons. As a professional hipster graphic designer, his recent clients have included Nerve, Pitchfork and MoCCA, among others.

    Amber Ahlborn - artist, writer, gamer and DigiPen survivor, she maintains a day job as a graphic artist. By night Amber moonlights as a professional Metroid Fanatic and keeps a metal suit in the closet just in case. Has lived in the state of Washington and insists that it really doesn't rain as much as everyone says it does.

    Nadia Oxford is a housekeeping robot who was refurbished into a warrior when the world's need for justice was great. Now that the galaxy is at peace (give or take a conflict here or there), she works as a freelance writer for various sites and magazines. Based in Toronto, Nadia's prized possession is a certificate from the Ministry of Health declaring her tick and rabies-free.

    Bob Mackey is a grad student, writer, and cyborg, who uses the powerful girl-repelling nanomachines mad science grafted onto his body to allocate time towards interests of the nerd persuasion. He believes that complaining about things on the Internet is akin to the fine art of wine tasting, but with more spitting into buckets.

    Joe Keiser has a programming degree from Johns Hopkins University, a tiny apartment in Brooklyn, and a fake toy guitar built in the hollowed-out shell of a real guitar. He writes about games and technology for a variety of outlets. One day he will stop doing this. The day after that, police will find his body under a collapsed pile of (formerly neatly alphabetized) collector's edition tchotchkes.

    Peter Smith is like the lead character of Irwin Shaw's The 80-Yard Run, except less athletic. He considers himself very lucky to have this job. But it's a little premature to take "jack-off of all trades" off his resume. Besides writing, travelling, and painting houses, Pete plays guitar in a rock trio called The Aye-Ayes. He calls them a 'power pop' band, but they generally sound more like Motorhead on a drinking binge.


    CONTRIBUTORS

    Cole Stryker is an American freelance writer living in York, England, where he resides with his archeologist wife. He writes for a travel company by day and argues about pop culture on the internet by night. Find him writing regularly here and here.

    Send tips to 61fps@nerve.com