Categories
Video Games

Video Game Review: Top Spin 3


Tennis is a strange sport for a video game. I think you’d be hard pressed to find 5 people you know who own a console and play tennis competitively. Now, most people don’t play football either but that doesn’t stop Madden from being a juggernaut franchise. The difference though is that everyone watches football while high level tennis television ratings are about equal to the John Deere Classic in golf. Didn’t see it? Don’t worry — nobody else did either.

So why make a game that has no players and no TV audience? Well, because you can actually take your time to make a polished game. Without yearly refreshes and tight deadlines, you can do something like completely revamp your controls and create a game that makes sense. While EA is busy making games for kids on the short bus and your grandmother (All Play!), 2K Sports went the opposite route and made Top Spin 3 harder than ever. So while the learning curve is pretty steep, Top Spin 3 is absolutely worth it.

Categories
NFL General

Week 5 2007 NFL Picks and Podcast

First of all, let me apologize for our very poor showing last week. I don’t know how anyone could have picked the sheer number of upsets that happened. We expect there to be a major correction this week with the favorites winning most of the games. Hopefully, we’ll average at leat 75% right and you guys will trust us with your office pools again.

The featured games this week are Seahawks @ Steelers, Chargers @ Broncos, Bears @ Packers, and the Cowboys @ Bills. You can download the podcast directly (running time 60 mins) or subscribe to the feed.

If you use iTunes, just click here and then click subscribe and iTunes will take care of the rest.

Categories
NFL General

Week 4 2007 NFL Picks and Podcast

We’re almost through a quarter of the NFL season. Can you believe it? We’ve got some byes this week so you there’s less ways to win (or lose) your money in week 4. Last week, RJ and Ryan both went 11-5 while Trevor and Vin went 10-6. More importantly, everyone got their Lock correct. Hope you made a few bucks off that.

The featured games this week are Seahawks @ Niners, Broncos @ Colts, Eagles @ Giants, and the Patriots at the Bengals. You can download the podcast directly (running time 50 mins) or subscribe to the feed.

If you use iTunes, just click here and then click subscribe and iTunes will take care of the rest.

Categories
NFL General

Week 3 2007 NFL Picks and Podcast

Welcome to another week of NFL picks. Somehow it’s week 3 already. Ryan tries to keep his hot streak going this week while RJ and Vegas Vinny try to bounce back from a 9-7 week. Trevor goes a solid 10-6 again. The whole NFL feels like it’s the mid-90s again. Just when you thought you had the NFL figured out, the Lions go 2-0 and the Saints are 0-2. Go figure.

The featured games this week are Niners @ Steelers, Colts @ Texans, Bengals at Seahawks, and the Cowboys at the Bears. You can download the podcast directly (running time 70 mins) or subscribe to the feed.

If you use iTunes, just click here and then click subscribe and iTunes will take care of the rest.

Categories
Philadelphia Phillies

Friday Free for All: Philly frustration

Back in August, I started the Friday Free For All to get back into writing feature length columns, but like smart Charlie Manuel managerial moves, they were few and far between. But I’m ready to make a comeback. (Yes, folks, you are witnessing the most unasked for comeback since Winger released Headed for a Heartbreak.) So here it is, the first Friday Free for All of 2007, equal parts sports, angst, and anti-starfucking.

Categories
College Basketball

You are about to bet on March Madness. Cancel or Allow?

CANCEL! CANCEL! CANCEL! I’m not stupid enough to actually bet cash on the tournament since I’m not up on my college bball this year (aside from throwing $50 away on office pools) but I am part of a contest from nbx.com called Battle of the Blogs. Instead of a bracket, they do a contest where you start with 100,000 points and you can bet on each game. Good thing it’s not real cash or I’d be selling blood and sperm right now.

I waded slowly into the betting pool, putting down 100 or 500 points on BC over Texas Tech, Louisville over Standford, Michigan State over Marquette, and various other games. Amazingly I went 11-3-1 to begin the contest. However, from Friday to Sunday, it seemed that college basketball was fixed. Against me specifically. I dropped 16 straight bets. 16. You could flip a coin and not do anywhere near as bad.

Categories
NFL General

Sportscolumn’s 2006 NFL Predictions – AFC edition

Yesterday we took a look at the NFC. Today it’s time to break down the AFC – winners of 7 out of the last 10 Super Bowls and 4 of the last 5. Can the AFC do it again this year? Will the Colts finally get over the hump? What team will come out of nowhere and make the playoffs? Are the Patriots back in championship form? Why does CBS’s pregame show suck so much compared to the Fox broadcast? Here we go with the AFC division previews.

Categories
NFL General

Sportscolumn’s 2006 NFL Predictions – NFC edition

Outside of the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, there is no better span on the sporting calendar than the opening weekend of the NFL season. No more guessing how preseason performance really translates into regular season play, no more thinking about who will make the 53 man roster, no more praying that a key player on your team doesn’t get hurt in a meaningless game. It’s just you, your remote, perhaps a cold brew, and the joy of Christmas in September. And while I appreciate the Thursday night teaser, I’d almost rather the NFL not have gone to that. It’s like getting an appetizer and then having to wait 3 hours for the main course to arrive. Just fast forward me to Sunday already!

But before we can start week 1, we need the obligatory 2006 NFL predictions. Here it is folks, what you’ve been waiting for… the official Sportscolumn 2006 NFL Predictions. I have spent all weekend digesting stats, schedules, rosters… and lots of alcohol. Depending on how much you agree with these predictions, is how much of the relative mix of those things went into the picks. I predicted game by game for each of the 17 weeks and came up with the final standings and records of every team in the NFL. We’ll kick it off with the NFC.

Categories
Philadelphia Eagles

Friday Free For All: "Invincible" movie review

As a service for the Sportscolumn community, I went to the 11:30 AM showing of Invincible today. Who am I kidding, if I wasn’t going to write a review for SC, I’d have seen the 2:30 showing anyway. As an Eagles fan, I am obligated to see the movie. What’s the population of the Delaware Valley? 6 million people? Multiply by $9… Invincible is guaranteed to bring in at least $50M just from the Philly area alone.

Categories
NFL General

Friday Free For All

You know, a long time ago, before the blog and site development sucked up all my time, I used to write about 3 columns a week here on SC. Only about one and a half of them were any good. Still, that’s a better batting average than Peter King, who manages to suck (mostly Tom Brady) in every single column. Ever since Trevor came out with his sports medley column, I’ve been meaning to wrestle the title of “Most Random Writer” back from him. So here it is folks, the inaugural Friday Free For All.