USA v. England
I watch all of these USA players every chance I get: in MLS, foreign league games, friendlies, etc and I am always sticking up for them when they get put down by soccer snobs for being no good. The fact is, we have some great players, and on any given day, they can beat any team in the world… But, today they just plain looked like 11 blue traffic cones, watching a bored England team run circles around them as if in training. There was no effort, no drive, nothing. I have seen these same players go down 9 v 11 on Italy in the world cup and fight for a tie – and in that game, be the ONLY squad to actually score (albeit an own goal) on Italy (the eventual champion) in the entire tournament. What the fuck happened on that pitch today I will never know. Its not like I was deluded enough to think they could actually beat England, but I at least wanted to see a little effort.
The squad that Bob Bradley put out there was pretty good, but I can’t figure the choice of the over the hill Josh Wolff, or Heath Pearce. Also, w/o Donovan, you need to START Adu. I would love to have seen ex-MUFC, now FC Dallas striker Kenny Cooper playing along side a crafty player like Freddie. In any case, this match was so boring that the Wembley crowd started to make fun of us by doing the Wave. Cheeky bastards.
One more soccer note, New Star Soccer 4 comes out soon, and it looks like a scorcher. Its got the zarjazz for sure. There is a beta you can try by visiting the boards, and a native Mac version this time around, so no fumbling with Parallels for me!!! Last time I played this game, I took young striker, Jeff (Spike) Fulton from FC Dallas (where I scored 4 goals) to the LA Galaxy (where I scored 14) all the way to European Player of the year and a World Cup victory for the USA. How’s that for a dream…
Bratney Escape the Madness
A new 8bitrocket game, sponsored by AddictingGames.com, will come out on Friday. It is called Bratney Escape The Madness. In it, you play Bratney, a spoiled party girl with 2 kids, an annoying ex-husband, and a band of paparazzi chasing you down. It is loosely based on the Pumpkin Man engine, which was basically an AS3 tile-based blit canvas demo that I turned into a puzzle-based pac-man like game. In this version, which has a re-vamped engine as well as many new game elements and puzzles, you are tasked with collecting as much money as you can to keep Bratney’s party-hard lifestyle afloat. On each of the 15 levels you must collect all of the harts of her fans and any money she finds to swell her coffers with cash. She must seek out the restraining order on each level for a temporarily reprieve from the paps. The game’s15 levels are filled with power-ups, surprises, obstacles, and more. It features at least one rap song by yours truly, and a host of other cool stuff. Look for it Friday is you do so desire.
Briefly, What’s new in Flash Game Land
Mochi has a new weekly $100 contest that you must be present on the boards to win. The last winner, Polinko, is a blast to play. If haven’t tried Epislon , you should. It is a cinematic, portal-like masterpiece! Also, if you have not played Robokill, you are in for a real treat!