In anticipation of the War of the Worlds game release on Xbox LIVE®Arcade, we’re giving away a giftpack including the Xbox LIVE®Arcade game code, official game poster, and DVD of the 1953 film!

The War of the Worlds is a brand new action adventure game offering players a dark and breathtaking new vision of the classic H.G. Wells novel. The game, which IGN called “Out of this world,” pits players in a challenging story of survival as a lone person trying to escape chaos and destruction amidst an alien invasion in 1950s London. The gameplay parallels the timeline and events from the 1953 movie adaptation, while introducing a new story arc, characters, locations, and sub-plots where players must outsmart an army of alien tripods and other menacing war machines as they make their way through a landscape of total devastation. Featuring the voice of acclaimed TV and film star Patrick Stewart as the narrator, The War of the Worlds is an exciting and atmospheric survival-adventure game, not to be missed!

http://www.waroftheworldsgame.com/     Be sure to “Like” War of the Worlds on Facebook for game news and more.  

Buzz about War of the Worlds game:

“A whole lot of wonderful. We’re sold.” - XBLAFans.com

“The art style and narration for The War of the Worlds look top notch.” - Game Informer

“An absolutely beautiful 2D game… the classiest damned game of E3, hands down.” - Nohighscores.com

To enter this contest you MUST leave a comment on this post. Otherwise your entry will not count.

Win a War of the Worlds Xbox LIVEArcade Giftpack

This is one nerd that wishes they had learned to knit while they had the chance. Way back in 1984 while in Germany as an exchange student I was amazed at how the students all sat in class knitting. One of my host girls tried teaching us but the translation from German to English and left hand to right hand made me completely confused. But this book makes me want to attempt it once again. I just really want that Star Trek Next Generation inspired sweater.

Knits for Nerds  not only shows you great ideas but gives you the knitting patterns to make them yourself. Don’t get too excited as the book doesn’t come out until February, but you can pre-order it on Amazon.

Knits for Nerds
30 Projects: Science Fiction, Comic Books, Fantasy
by Joan of Dark a.k.a Toni Carr
U.S.: $16.99 Canada: $19.99
ISBN: 9781449407919
Published by Andrews McMeel Publishing

From the publisher:

The best of science fiction, manga, and animaguiri meets knit one, purl two as knit siren and part-time roller derby girl Joan of Dark offers up an out-of-this-world assortment of knitting nerdiness inside Knits for Nerds. The patterns for 30 iconic clothing and accessory items inspired by popular TV shows, books, films, comics, and more—including Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and Firefly—are presented alongside full-color photographs showcasing completed projects, such as:

• Lieutenant Uhura’s sexy Star Trek minidress
• Hobbit feet slippers
• Firefly-inspired scarf, socks, hat, and jacket
• Tank Girl socks
• Hermione Granger’s secret beaded bag
• Manga-inspired leg warmers
• The Big Bang Theory-inspired his and hers sweater-vests
• Lord of the Rings-inspired shrug

In addition to a wardrobe of costume finery, hobbyists will also find instructions for practical projects such as an e-reader cover or a laptop bag crafted of checkered fabric that serves double-duty as a chessboard and carryall, as well as patterns for plush toys inspired by Star Trek, robots, and the comic book Squee! Wear (and knit!) your nerdiness on your sleeve with Knits for Nerds.

Knit for Nerds: 30 Geeky Scifi & Fantasy Projects

A few weeks ago we had the opportunity to tell you about the Star Trek Book of Opposites by David Borgenicht.

This is a really fun book for the young and old. Any Trekkie would love getting this fun little tome.

The book hits the streets in November, but this is your chance to win a copy of your very own.

Keep it or give it as a gift.

Just leave a comment on this post telling us your favorite Star Trek character and what you like best about them. You will also have the opportunity to get extra entries by completing task, but they are optional. All we need is your comment and your in the drawing to win this book. There will be three winners. If you win you will need to reply to our email to you within the specified time or an alternate winner will be chosen. GOOD LUCK.

Star Trek Book of Opposites Giveaway

Jake and the Never Land Pirates are set to sail on September 27th.

Ahoy, mateys! Set sail for adventure just off the shores of Never Land. Join Jake, Izzy and Cubby, parrot pal Skully and their trusty ship, Bucky, as they go from muddy swamps to enchanted jungles, solving pirate problems and hunting for lost treasure. But watch out for Captain Hook! With the help of faithful Mr. Smee, Hook is always trying to snatch the kids’ treasure, and it’s going to take teamwork, smarts and even pixie dust to outwit him. Overflowing with 7 action-packed episodes filled with treasure, adventure, and fun pirate rock music, JAKE AND THE NEVER LAND PIRATES is swashbuckling fun for everyone!

Check out some clips for the DVD.

Jake and the Never Land Pirates

#1 Horror Website Bloody Disgusting And The Collective Release PHASE 7 on DVD October 4, 2011

“Phase 7 is slick, smart horror.” – Mike McGranahan, The Aisle Seat

“Phase 7 distinguishes itself by its suffocating setting, its low-affect tone, and its cast of flaky characters.” – Peter Keough, The Boston Phoenix

“Phase 7 is an outstanding film.” – Don Sumner, Best-Horror-Movies.com

“[Phase 7] is a darkly comic trip” — Gene Triplett, The Oklahoman

“An inspired bit of genre stylistics that kept me watching for every single one of its 95 minutes.” Sandra Bruckner, Movie Freak

Hollywood, CA September 19th, 2011 – Heralded for its clever combination of humor and gore, PHASE 7 follows its successful theatrical run this summer with a nationwide release October 4^th, 2011 on DVD, iTunes, TV Video on Demand and other platforms.

PHASE 7 mixes satire, humor, horror and social commentary in a way that reminds viewers of the arch SHAUN OF THE DEAD and the savvy claustrophobia of [rec].  An Argentine apocalyptic horror film, PHASE 7 was directed and written by Nicolás Goldbart; produced by Sebastian Aloi; executive produced by Steven Schneider (Insidious, Paranormal Activity). With a “top-notch” cast, the movie stars Daniel Hendler (LOST EMBRACE); Jazmín Stuart (THE PARANOIDS); Yayo Guridi (LOS RODRIGUEZ); and Federico Luppi (PAN’S LABYRINTH).

View the official trailer at http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/selects/releases/phase7/.

Pre-order from Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Phase-7-Daniel-Hendler/

Add to your Netflix queue here: http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Phase-7/70178258?strkid=1778959975_0_0&lnkctr=srchrd-sr&strackid=2a3b6164a7699ef2_0_srl&trkid=222336

Check with your local cable provider for video on demand (VOD) channels for PHASE 7, available on the following providers: Comcast, Time Warner, Cox, RCN, Verizon, Charter, Cablevision, AT&T

About PHASE 7: 

In the film, Coco (Hendler) has just moved to a new apartment with his wife Pipi (Stuart), who’s seven months pregnant.  At first, they don’t seem to notice the growing chaos around them, but when authorities quarantine their building after a deadly pandemic breaks out, Coco joins forces with his off-kilter but well-prepared and stocked next-door neighbor Horacio to defend his refrigerator and keep Pipi safe.

Meanwhile, outside the building, Buenos Aires—and the world as the apartment denizens know it, is disappearing. The world is ending; got ammo?

PHASE 7 (FASE 7) premiered at the SXSW Film Festival in March, and also screened at the Boston Underground Film Festival, the Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival, the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal (the largest genre festival in North America) and the Danger After Dark Festival in Philadelphia.

About the Project

The Collective, a full-service entertainment management and content company, along with leading theatrical and distribution company AMC Theatres (AMC), and #1 Horror website BloodyDisgusting.com, have partnered to acquire and distribute the best new horror and thriller titles from the festival and international markets to AMC theatres across America.

Films from the series are available to fans of the genre in DVD, Video on Demand (VOD), online and television. Released though The Collective’s home-video partnership with Vivendi Universal, DVDs for titles in the Bloody Disgusting series will feature unrated content, bonus features and special packaging for each title. Also available from the series are RAMMBOCK: BERLIN UNDEAD and YELLOWBRICKROAD.

Horror Film PHASE 7 Coming to DVD

Could International Talk Like a Pirate Day get any better than this? Sign up for Disney Movie Rewards and check out the AWESOME (and I do mean AWESOME) LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean sweepstakes they are having (I so want to win that contest).

Dive Deeper Into the Epic Quest to Find The Fountain of Youth

Johnny Depp is Back as Captain Jack Sparrow in Disney’s PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES

Grossing Over $1 Billion at the Worldwide Box Office, One of the Biggest Films of All Time Sails Home on Disney Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and Blu-ray 3D™ on October 18th

BURBANK, Calif., July 14, 2011 — The Walt Disney Studios and Jerry Bruckheimer Films are proud to present the #1 worldwide box office success of 2011 – making over $1 billion globally – Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, in stunning high definition Blu-ray™, eye popping Blu-ray 3D™ (a first for the legendary franchise) and Movie Download on October 18, 2011.

Setting sail on an ocean full of hi-def adventures, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides will debut in a Limited Edition 5-Disc Combo Pack (1-Disc Blu-ray 3D + 2-Disc Blu-ray + 1-Disc DVD + 1-Disc Digital Copy), a 2-Disc Combo Pack (1-Disc Blu-ray + 1-Disc DVD), and for the ultimate fan a 15-Disc Four Movie Collection. Additionally the movie will be available in 3D and High-Definition Movie Download.

The Limited Edition 5-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack includes hours of bonus materials offering fans a deeper dive inside Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides including immersive Disney Second Screen technology, exclusive behind-the-scenes experiences, Fountain of Youth mythology, an extensive look at mermaids, bloopers, deleted and extended scenes, and much more.

In addition, the Pirates of the Caribbean 15-Disc Four Movie Collection offers fans more adventures than ever before. The Collection is packaged in an authentic replica Pirate’s Chest, and includes a collectible map and an iconic skull disc case that holds the Blu-ray™ discs and digital copies of ALL four Pirates of the Caribbean movies, along with the Blu-ray 3D™ disc and DVD of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, directed by Rob Marshall (Nine, Chicago), and written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio (Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, National Treasure 2, Mask of Zorro), Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is the latest addition to the incredibly successful Pirates of the Caribbean franchise that has for years entertained audiences of all ages with its thrilling adventures, hi-tech special effects and unique storylines.

Back as Captain Jack Sparrow, Johnny Depp (Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Alice in Wonderland) returns leading a sensational cast of talents that includes Penélope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona), Geoffrey Rush (The King’s Speech), Ian McShane (HBO’s “Deadwood”) and more.

The visually stunning film shot in high-definition 3D invites viewers to embark on an adventure-filled ride with Captain Jack Sparrow as he searches for the breathtaking Fountain of Youth. Along the turbulent trip, fans are forced to re-think their knowledge of fairytale creatures when they are introduced to a group of alluring yet precarious mermaids, traverse isolated islands and fight international enemies.

Film Synopsis:
From Disney and producer Jerry Bruckheimer comes all the fun, epic adventure and humor that ignited the original. Johnny Depp returns as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. A tale of truth, betrayal, youth, demise — and mermaids! When Jack crosses paths with a woman from his past (Penélope Cruz), he’s not sure if it’s love or if she’s a ruthless con artist using him to find the fabled Fountain of Youth. Forced aboard the ship of the most feared pirate ever, Jack doesn’t know who to fear more —Blackbeard (Ian McShane) or the woman from his past. Directed by Rob Marshall, it’s filled with eye-popping battle scenes, mystery and all-out wit.

Social Media:
For those who would like to stay connected with the world of Pirates are encouraged to:
• “Like” the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/PiratesoftheCaribbean
• Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DisneyPirates
• Visit the website and mobile site: www.disney.com/pirates

About Walt Disney Studios:
For more than 85 years, The Walt Disney Studios has been the foundation on which The Walt Disney Company (DIS: NYSE) was built. Today, the Studio brings quality movies, music and stage plays to consumers throughout the world. Feature films are released under four banners: Walt Disney Pictures, which includes Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios, Disneynature, Touchstone Pictures and Marvel. Original music and motion picture soundtracks are produced under Walt Disney Records and Hollywood Records, while Disney Theatrical Group produces and licenses live events, including Broadway theatrical productions, Disney on Ice and Disney LIVE!. For more information, please visit www.disney.com.

Yo Ho Ho Its The Pirates Life For Me

Title: Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes of Neverwinter™

Play The Game: http://apps.facebook.com/neverwinterheroes/?track=SocialCommunity&kt_tu=partner

Forums: http://forums.atari.com/forumdisplay.php?f=689

Platforms: Facebook

Release Date: September 15, 2011

Developer: Liquid Entertainment

Publisher: Atari

Genre: RPG

Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes of Neverwinter brings the magic, lore, and adventure of Dungeons & Dragons to the Facebook in the most engaging RPG ever to hit the platform. Create your character, form your party and set forth to explore the wilderlands and dungeons of Faerun.

Character Creation & Advancement

• Character creation and growth are based on Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition rules – chose your race, class, powers and stats to build a character to fit your play style.
• Your character will grow and evolve through your adventures as you discover powerful items, select new powers, and improve your abilities.
• New equipment will be visually represented on the battlefield and on your character sheet to show off your custom appearance and gear.

Socialize

• Bring your friends’ characters along as you build your adventuring party. You use their unique skills, they gain experience and loot!
• Friends can join in your adventures in Active Spectator mode. A friend can look in on your adventure, give advice in the chat channel, heal and buff your characters to improve your chances and gain additional experience!
• Visit your friends’ houses to view achievements and share gifts.

Adventure

• A wide variety of monsters, traps, puzzles will face adventurers. Choose from normal, hard, or heroic difficulty to increase challenges and rewards.
• Each adventure will vary in size, from shorter linear challenges at to sprawling multi-room dungeons
• Over 50 unique adventures at launch packed with side quests, traps, and boss fights, with even more to come.

Battle

•  Heroes of Neverwinter delivers deep yet accessible combat based on 4th Edition rules. Strategic use of positioning and status affecting abilities will devastate even the mightiest foes.
• Command up to 4 party members in turn based battles. Use at-will, daily, and encounter powers to win the day.
• A “point and click” interface allows new players to pick up and play, while experienced players devise advanced strategies.

Become the Dungeon Master

• Design adventures for friends and other players using the powerful dungeon creator toolset.
• Adventure to unlock new elements and enrich your dungeons.
• The most popular dungeons will earn gold for their creators.

Dungeons & Dragons Facebook game launches in Open Beta

By Traci L. Slatton, Author of Fallen

This topic fascinates me, because I wrestle with it every day. I am a creative person and I have a lot of ideas for stories. I’m also hungry. I’m starving to write 100 books before they peel my cold, dead fingers off my keyboard and lay me in a plain pine box. Then there’s another consideration: writing is misery. Every page is agony.

Ideas come and I take notes. If I’m walking, I’ll make a voice memo. Usually characters stuck in tense situations, and bits of their dialogue, come to me first. Sometimes I’ll get a palpable feeling-sense of a relationship: the tenderness and eroticism and playfulness and fierceness of it. I also see my main characters in my mind’s eye. With FALLEN, my recent post-apocalyptic romance, I had a vision of Europe in shambles, and a man and a woman who were both very strong and very tormented. She was willing to do anything to keep some children alive, but she was strongly connected to an absent husband. So the premise came to me       first. I had a clear sense of the man as good and bad, a leader, a striated human soul. I could feel his essence.

Usually I won’t start writing until the idea threatens to shove bamboo shoots up my fingernails if I don’t write it. That’s when compulsion has set in. The beginning is great fun. It’s a rush. I’ve never been interested in drugs but I always think that the rush of creative energy when I finally surrender to a story must be like the rush of some potent chemical. It’s intense, it’s alchemical, it consumes me. It’s like falling in love, because it’s all I can think about. I walk down the street with scenes scrolling through my brain. I feel alive in a new way.

After that initial rush, the work sets in. Maybe it’s like a marriage at this point. You know, when the honeymoon has worn off and you’re sick of picking up your spouse’s toenail clippings from the coffee table and you just want to throw a heavy wrench at his head. It’s a lot of unglamorous work. Here’s when I mock up an outline of the story, the main turning points, and the character arc. I grapple with the nuts and bolts of story, and the fundamentals of what I aim to do with this particular one.

Best I’ve figured out, and this is an on-going inquiry for me, story is what your main character wants and how they DON’T get it. All story has a common source: it’s an argument for a specific value. And all good fiction has two qualities: 1, it’s about truth but not necessarily about fact, and 2, it is structured around conflict and obstacle.

So I have scenes, obstacles, disasters, bits of dialogue, and the faces of my characters all jumbled up in my brain, and I sit down and start writing the first few chapters. Then I pause to write an outline. I also figure out what value I am arguing for. I am opinionated and I have strong values, which helps. I write out my value on a sticky note and tape it to the side of my iMac.

I also almost always have a clear sense of the ending of the story. With FALLEN, I saw my heroine riding off without her man. I saw her heart-broken and determined. I enjoy writing stories where the stakes are high, so I tweak the plot points to up the ante. How can I push a scene? How can I turn up the volume on a character’s breaking point?

Writing is an arachnoid process: it’s like weaving an intricate web from the silk in my gut. That weaving happens in the back and forth between the vast, oceanic creative flow and the careful structuring of analytical thought. Both are crucial.

I usually do research as I am writing. I’ll pause in the middle of a page and read six chapters in a book, or google around the internet, or send emails to people I know who might have answers. A small plane flies from Edmonton to Le Havre in FALLEN, so I emailed my friend Geoffrey, who’s a pilot, to ask him how that would be done. He had some ideas and he emailed some of his friends, too. When I have my answers, I resume writing. If I need to do further research, then, after a day or so, I’ll keep writing and start reading the necessary texts at night.

The end is another rush, because I get excited to torture my main characters more intensely, and so finish the story. Finally I have a first draft. Here’s where I ask a few trusted friends to read and critique. I’ve also found a free-lance editor who is scary smart, and I have her read the draft. Then I go back and revise, revise, revise . . .

© 2011 Traci L. Slatton, author of Fallen

For more information please visit http://www.tracilslatton.com and follow the author on Facebook and Twitter

Process of Writing: From Inspiration to Novel

Disney‘s Irresistible Talking Puppies Are Back!

The Highly Anticipated All-New Movie Joins Disney‘s Most Popular Live-Action Direct-to-Video Franchise
Fantastic Halloween-Themed Family Adventure Premieres September 20 Only on Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, DVD and Movie Download

Burbank, Calif., May 5, 2011 – The quintet of irresistible talking puppies, Disney‘s lovable ―Buddies,‖ are back for a ghoulish good time in a fantastic all-new Halloween-themed adventure, Spooky Buddies. The studio‘s most popular live-action, direct-to-video franchise makes its highly anticipated return, premiering on Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, DVD and Movie Download — September 20 from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. To learn more about this title, consumers are invited to visit www.disney.com/spookybuddies.

Overflowing with trick-or-treat action, the ‗Buddies‘ films are favorites of families and kids of all ages. Spooky Buddies continues the overwhelmingly popular franchise that features the adorable talking puppies, with action, laughs and fast-paced adventure. In this latest movie caper, the lovable canine clan find themselves in a mysterious mansion, with no less than the fate of the world hanging in the balance as they must stop a dastardly warlock from his plans for world destruction. Packed with fun, excitement and a bag full of bonus features, Spooky Buddies is a spooktacular feature-length movie that treats audiences to a celebration of friendship and teamwork for the whole family.

Spooky Buddies stars the voices of Diedrich Bader (TV‘s ―The Drew Carey Show‖), Ryan Stiles (TV‘s ―The Drew Carey Show‖), Debra Jo Rupp (TV‘s ―That 70‘s Show‖), Tim Conway (TV‘s ―SpongeBob SquarePants,‖ ―The Carol Burnett Show‖), Frankie Jonas (TV‘s ―Jonas‖), G. Hannelius (TV‘s ―Good Luck Charlie‖), Ty Panitz (Santa Buddies, How to Eat Fried Worms), Charles Henry Wyson (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), and Nico Ghisi (Santa Buddies). It also features the acting talents of Harland Williams (The Whole Nine Yards, Dumb and Dumber), Rance Howard (Night Club, The Dilemma), Jennifer Elise Cox (TV‘s ―Pretty the Series,‖ The Brady Bunch Movie), Pat Finn (I Love You, Beth Cooper), Michael Teigen (Santa Buddies), Elisa Donovan (Clueless), Sierra McCormick (Ramona and Beezus), Skyler Gisondo (Santa Buddies, Space Buddies), Sage Ryan (Piranha), Jake Johnson (TV‘s ―Little Monk‖), and Tucker Albrizzi (Bridesmaids). Director Robert Vince and Producer Anna McRoberts partner for their sixth ―Buddies‖ film.

In Spooky Buddies, the lovable ―Buddies‖ — talking pups B-Dawg, Budderball, Buddha, Mudbud, and Rosebud — embark on a spine-tingling journey across town to a shadowy mansion shrouded in legendary secrets. In a race against the mysterious Howlloween Hound, the Buddies and some new friends — Pip, Zelda, Rodney and Skip — must stop Warwick the Warlock to save the world from his dastardly deeds. Their brave exploits in this trick-or-treat adventure highlight the importance of friendship, courage and teamwork.

Bonus Features for Blu-ray, DVD & Movie Downloads DIGS:

Rosebud Edition — Leo Howard of Disney Channel‘s Leo Little‘s Big Show interviews Rosebud, the only female pup in the Buddies litter, as she invites viewers into her dream home for an exciting tour. Highlights include the creative use of the color pink throughout her décor, her blush-colored car – the perfect vehicle for the ultimate blond driver – and her fabulous closet holding luxurious garments, and some costumes that fans may recognize from past adventures.

All-New Music Video “Monster Mash” — A fun new Hip hop cover of this Halloween classic introduces the popular song to a new generation of trick-or-treaters with a high-energy new routine performed by Davis Cleveland, Adam Irigoyen, and Kenton Duty from the cast of Disney Channel‘s Shake It Up.

Social Media:
For those who would like to stay connected with what’s happening with the upcoming release of Spooky Buddies are encouraged to: “Like” the Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/TheDisneyBuddies Follow on Twitter at http://twitter.com/disneypictures View exciting trailers, video clips and more at http://www.youtube.com/disneymovies

Disney’s Spooky Buddies

Yes young padawan, this is the Star Wars blu-ray you want to pick up this week and not that other one (trust me).

Even if you watched this when it aired on the Cartoon Network you’ll want to swing buy a Wal-mart or stop by Walmart.com to pick up a copy of blu-ray/DVD combo for LEGO Star Wars: The Padawan Menace. It is only available at Wal-mart and comes with an exclusive young Han Solo LEGO mini figure!

Film Description:

A routine Jedi Academy field trip is turned into a rip-roaring comic adventure in “LEGO Star Wars: The Padawan Menace”. Tour guide Master Yoda leads a group of rambunctious Jedi Younglings through Senate chambers when he senses a disturbance in the Force. Summoned to help save the Republic, he discovers that one of the Younglings secretly boarded his ship… and has a taste for adventure! Meanwhile, C-3PO and R2-D2 are put in charge of the boisterous group and find themselves in over their heads. As the evil Sith prepare to wreak havoc, it’s up to Yoda and the Droids to ensure that their young charges aren’t torn to bricks.

For screen shots and another geeks view check out ForeverGeek.com

This Is The Movie You Are Looking For