Aliens Versus Predator from Fox Interactive ($40; 888-223-2369) lets you battle through 32 tense levels as one of three fearsome creatures: the alien that stalked Sigourney Weaver, the monster who hunted Arnold Schwarzenegger or a U.S. Marine. And the 3-D graphics transport you to the sci-fi flicks that inspired the game.
It is difficult, terrifying and much more gory than your average first-person shooter: We’ve seen blood and twitching limbs before but never so detailed and fully animated. Thrilling for strong-stomached adults, perhaps, but completely unsuitable for kids.
SITE SPECIFICOn Your Marks, Get Set, Charge!
DealTime.com
Thumbs up: When price is paramount, bargain hunters start here and let this site wheel ’n’ deal for them Thumbs down: You name it. Site searches auctions, retailers, classifieds–and reports back with results. Thumbs Down: Allows you to pick brands, or mere descriptions, along with the price you’re willing to pay
BrandsForLess.com
Thumbs up: Consumers chose their 60 fave sites, where service is job one. This site houses them all. Thumbs down: More than 1,500 brands from reputable online retailers ranging from J. Crew to Avon Thumbs down: One-stop customer service and order forms that serve all of its merchants–in near real time
iCanBuy.com
Thumbs up: It lets teens tour the mall, but they don’t need a ride (just their parents’ credit cards) Thumbs down: Hip music, videogames, sports gear and kid clothes from brands like Whutever Thumbs down: Automatic allowance deposits, on-site banking and charity links, with plenty of security
title: “Hot Property” ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-27” author: “Donald Malinowski”
Some web retailers have tapped into Generation Y through splashy spreads and efficient customer service. But Alloy.com has become cool the old-fashioned way–by giving stuff away. The freshly scrubbed Web site started life as a snowboard clothing catalog in 1996. Its fashion business is still going strong, but Alloy is now also trying to be an online community for kids ages 12 to 19. Each month, about 500,000 teens tune into the site’s free e-mail, chats and e-zine. One of the biggest draws: a poetry slam, judged by none other than Jewel. The winner gets tickets to one of her concerts.
CELL PHONESAu Revoir
Cell phones may be chic accessories on this side of the Atlantic, but don’t take yours to the movies in Paris. Starting this Wednesday (Bastille Day), the French mobile maker Alcatel will run ads in theaters that show rude phone users being scalped by American Indians or attacked by kung fu masters. The not-so-subtle message: turn off the ringer.
BOOKSNot Lost in the Translation
The subtitle is “The Insider’s Guide to Japanese Pop Subculture,” but “Japan Edge” (198 pages. Cadence Books. $19.95) takes the outsider’s approach, with essays by Americans on Japanese animation, comics, “noise” music and other cybernetic realms. The first-person narratives work best. In one, an American recalls discovering Japanese cartoons in Iran, of all places. And the book is loaded with great trivia, like monster flicks (“Godzilla vs. the Devil”) that never got off the drawing board. Someone should option that quick.
title: “Hot Property” ShowToc: true date: “2023-01-07” author: “Chad Kim”
Missed an important phone call because you tied up the phone reading e-mail? If you don’t want to spring for an extra line, www.pagoo.com offers a fully downloadable solution, the Call Catcher. Here’s how it works: if you’re online and you get a call, the caller’s voice message is instantly sent to your computer, and, while still online, you can listen to your friend ask why you’re late picking her up at the airport.
GAMESPokemania
The critter-based craze rages on. In Pokemon Snap ($60; 800-255-3700), a new Nintendo 64 game, players visit an island safari where they observe the cute but elusive creatures–in animated 3-D–in their natural habitat. The object is to snap photos of Pokemon: the better your pictures, the more of the island you can explore. Pokemon Pinball ($35) for the Game Boy lets you capture Pokemon, all 150 of them.
HUMOR?Desperate Means
Computer eating your life? Getalife software, available at www.visionary2000.com/getalife for $19.95, makes your computer inaccessible, returning it only after you endure 100 insults like “This system has detected a low-grade human peripheral. Connect?” Addicts may not want it, but designer Ed Bedno says, “My wife would buy it for me in an instant.”
title: “Hot Property” ShowToc: true date: “2023-01-28” author: “Oliver Oh”
WEBThe Internet, With Accents
If you’d rather surf in Spanish–or you’re searching for info on Santiago, salsa or Santeria–you might want to trade your Yahoo for a Yupi. The Miami-based site (www.yupi.com) prides itself on in-depth screening of indexed sites, all en espanol. Elsitio.com, an Argentina-based portal, will debut U.S.-centric content in the fall. And StarMedia.com, a comprehensive “destination site” in Spanish and Portuguese, features accent-ready instant messaging. All three offer the standard portal goodies, too, including news, free e-mail and chat rooms. And no, it’s not all about Ricky.
SHOPPINGRead This Before You Buy (Online)
Just when you thought you couldn’t hear more about shopping online, a new crop of consumer-rating, testing and educational sites help cut through the commercial clutter. Some use word of mouth; others, official tests. Surprise! Many even link to ads.
HOW IT RATES The powerful granddaddy of consumer rating is now online. Experts test. You buy. WHAT IT RATES Everything the magazine does, from Oriental rugs to kitchen appliances BEST GIMMICK Search reports from past 42 months–300,000 paid subscribers can’t be wrong
HOW IT RATES Site’s staff specializes in ranking Web merchants for quality and customer service WHAT IT RATES Zeros in on specific industries, including brokerage firms, travel agents and booksellers BEST GIMMICK Savings Center gives members easy access to coupons, discounts and special promos
HOW IT RATES In May this site famed for mere chat added talk that scores stuff Deja users buy and use WHAT IT RATES This most democratic site lets anyone willing to type rate anything he wants. Anything. BEST GIMMICK Shopper lets you search for new goods (on the Web) or used (through classified ads)
MOVIESBeing There
The ifilm network (www.ifilm.net) is letting Web users download rough cuts from an indie film in the making called “Scheme,” and then post feedback for the director. Shooting wraps in mid-September.
title: “Hot Property” ShowToc: true date: “2023-01-14” author: “Nancy Goulet”
VITAL STATS STAR WARS: GALAXIES LucasArts Entertainment Co.
PC Late 2002 Teen
WHY WE LIKE IT: The Force is strong in this massive online role-playing game set in the dynamic Star Wars universe, complete with Wookies. The game’s free-form design allows you to fight for the Empire or the Rebellion, or just go your way as a barkeep, merchant or adventurer.
VITAL STATS UNREAL II Infogrames Interactive
PC Early 2002 Mature
WHY WE LIKE IT: A 3-D sci-fi action shooter that will redefine the genre, because its graphics technology blows away what’s currently available. You’ll play a peace officer on the fringes of space doing your best to defuse a war between six alien races. Wildly immersive environments.
VITAL STATS METAL GEAR SOLID 2: SONS OF LIBERTY Konami of America
PlayStation 2 Fall 2001 Mature
WHY WE LIKE IT: Sequel to the best-selling cinematic action original, Metal Gear Solid 2 is a jaw-dropping thrill ride of a game. You play a special-forces hero battling nuclear-equipped terrorists. We especially like the game’s emphasis on stealth over brute force.
VITAL STATS BATTLE REALMS CraveEntertainment
PC Fall 2001 Teen
WHY WE LIKE IT: This was the best title that no one at E3 was talking about. A slick real-time strategy game set in a fantasy world inspired by Asian history and mythology, it easily out-wowed flashier competitors with brand names and more time in development.
VITAL STATS MEDAL OF HONOR ALLIED ASSAULT Electronic Arts
PC Fall 2001 Teen
WHY WE LIKE IT: Think “Saving Private Ryan”–The Game. This first-person combat game puts you smack in the middle of the D-Day invasion. It’s violent but not gratuitously so. Expo attendees waited in line for more than three hours to see a 15-minute demonstration. Surf Report If you can dream it, you can have a Web site about it. This week’s guide:
worstjob.com: Compare your employment tales of woe with those of truck drivers, nightclub bouncers and waitresses. www.donateaphone.com: How to donate your old mobile phone to a coalition that reprograms them so victims of domestic violence can easily make 911 calls. dvdreview.com: Click on the link to “Hidden Features.” Then read about Easter Eggs, or concealed extras, in some of your favorite DVD movies. bradkent.com/wrappers: Home of “The Quasi-Comprehensive Candy Bar Wrapper Image Archive.” Try to stump it. GADGETSPeak Performance It’s been ages since Swiss Army knives came just with prosaic tools like screwdrivers, can openers and scissors. Some current models include mini-flashlights and ballpoint pens. The company’s latest innovation: a built-in digital thermometer and altimeter. The knife is designed for hikers and skiers who want to know how high they are (and not from the wine they opened with the ubiquitous corkscrew). Cyberscope uses it to check what floor we’re on.
