Magic: The Designinging – A Contest
March 15, 2010 // Design + Games

Earlier tonight I sent my buddy Frank Chimero an IM that simply said,

“Idea: Make a deck of Magic: The Gathering cards based around current and classic designers.”

His response:

“i’m tapping 7 mana to summon josef muller brockmann
MANA BURN”

And with that we decided to create a contest where you, the reader, should design a Magic: The Gathering card for your favorite artist/designer/architect. Frank and I are both nerds and played magic when we were younger, so this is our tribute to this fine sport.
Here’s the gist:

- They can be dead or alive.
- Their Mana needs to be their country of origin or where they currently reside, the choice is yours. As you can see Josef is Swiss powered. You design what you think is rad.
- You must create original artwork for this. I made that whole damn card, except for Mr. Brockmann’s portrait which was done by Frank, in like 3 hours, so no whining.
- Make it funny. This is a stupid contest, so be creative and have fun!
- All designs should be 8″ wide at 72 DPI so it fits in the blog nicely.

The deadline for this little contest is Saturday, March 20th at Midnight PST. Frank and I will be judging these Sunday and then announce the winners on Monday. The winner will receive some Frank Chimero posters or maybe some of the weird crap he’s been buying lately like this pipe smoking viking. No matter what we promise it’ll be cool shit.

Please send all entries to thefoxisblack@gmail.com with the title Magic: The Designinging. Failure to do so may get you kicked out of the contest and all that jazz.

Happy designing and if you have any questions just leave them in the comments.

Bobby + Frank

P.S. We have no affiliation with Wizards of the Coast. Please don’t sue us.

Crush the Castle
March 14, 2010 // Games

A couple weeks ago I was going to try and start putting up more fun games to play on the weekends so here’s one that I had a blast playing a few months back. It’s called Crush the Castle, the premise of which is to crush… the… castle. You have a trusty trebuchet and fling things at the castle like rocks, bigger rocks and bombs. I’ve been playing a game on my iPhone lately called Angry Birds which is a lot like this and possibly even more fun.

One thing I love about this game are the sounds. There’s the clinking of the metal and wood as you smash things but the best part are the people screaming, which reminds me of a Monty Python film. Sorry if you don’t get anything else done with the rest of your Sunday.

Bobby

Monopoly Gets A New Look
February 10, 2010 // Design + Games

Monopoly has a rather sordid past, or so says Wikipedia, but it dates back to 1904 when a woman named Elizabeth (Lizzie) J. Magie Phillips created a game called The Landlord’s Game. This is believed to be the earliest incarnation of the game, though it’s gone through many a change in 100+ year history. Recently though Hasbro has given the classic game a rather contemporary twist, one I don’t think I’m so fond of.

The new version now features a round board, which I guess makes it edgy? They’ve also ditched cash altogether, opting for only credit cards which makes it feel more contemporary. Although, in our current economic climate I’m not sure if a lot of people are as spend happy as they used to be… I guess overall I feel like they’re just trying to make this classic game feel new and cool, but it doesn’t vibe with me at all.

Oh yeah, and the board plays songs like Rihanna’s Umbrella and Beyonce’s Crazy in Love… I think Hasbro needs to go directly to jail, they should not pass go, and should not collect $200 (or however much this game costs).

Bobby

First-Person Tetris
January 15, 2010 // Games

This is one of the most disorienting games I’ve ever played. First-Person Tetris puts you into the viewpoint of the Tetris block, so when you rotate the block, the whole scree rotates with it…. and then stays way until you rotate again. You also fall with the blocks to make it even trippier, and if that’s not enough of a mindfuck there’s night mode where you can’t see anything but the blocks. Waste the rest of your Friday!

Bobby

‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’ Trailer
November 3, 2009 // Films + Games

I’ve never actually played the more recent Prince of Persia games, but if it’s anything like this trailer I’m kind of excited. For those that don’t know, the movie is based upon the video game of the same name, though the original was released in 1989. The movie however is based on the newer versions of the game which are supposed to really great.

The movie reminds me of Aladdin, but here’s how Wikipedia sums it up:

Dastan (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a street urchin in 6th century Persia. After showing valor in battle, he is adopted by the king as his heir, so the king’s two sons will not fight over the throne. He teams up with Princess Tamina (Gemma Arterton) to rescue the Sands of Time, a gift from the gods that controls time, from the hands of the villainous nobleman, Nizam (Ben Kingsley).

In my opinion this movie has two good things going for it. The first is that it’s being released by Disney and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, the teams behind Pirates of the Caribbean. I really enjoyed all of the Pirates movies, especially the third one, so I’m hoping this film will be in the same “it’s fun, don’t over think it” genre. Second is that it’s being directed by Mike Newell who also directed the fourth Harry Potter film. He’s got a really great style and I think it really shines in the trailer.

The film is going to be released on May 28th, 2010, so it’s not too far away.

Bobby