Mom's Minute

 Star Wars Day is May 4, 2013

How will you celebrate Star Wars Day on May 4, 2013?   Here are some fun ideas for you.  You may choose to watch some of your favorite Star Wars movies on DVD or Netflix.   If you are in a travelling mood, you may want to visit Disney Hollywood Studios in Baylake, Florida and enjoy all the Star Wars festivities. 

Star Wars Art Exhibit

If you like art and  are on the west coast, you may want to take a look at the Star Wars themed May the Fourth be With You exhibits at the Gallery Nucleus in  Alhambra, California. 

Wherever you are, you can be sure there will certainly be  lots of Star Wars events happening on May 4, 2013 that you can participate in.

Star Wars

You may even dress up as your favorite Star Wars character as you play your Star Wars video game.  The options of how you can celebrate Star Wars Day are numerous.

To help you celebrate Star Wars Day, Zen Studios is offering a 50 percent discount on dowloadable Star Wars tables for Pinball FX 2 for  the Xbox 360 and Windows 8 as well as discounted tables for  Zen Pinball 2 playable on the Wii U, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Vita.   The discounted pricing starts May 1, 2013 and will last until May 8, 2013, 12:01 a.m. Pacific Standard Time, 3:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.  The downloadable tables are also available for the Kindle Fire.

Star Wars

However you choose to celebrate Star Wars Day on May 4, 2013,  stay safe, have fun and "May the force be with you."

https://www.facebook.com/zenstudios

Fight with the Gorn -- Then and Now

There is a saying that the more things change, the more they stay the same.  Some forty-six years later, this saying proves to be true for the new Star Trek video game when Captain Kirk battles a creature.  Back in the 60's, there was a Star Trek television episode where William Shatner as Captain Kirk battles against a creature known as  the Gorn.  This scene will be reapprised in Star Trek: The Video Game when it is released.

William Shatner promotes Star Trek: The Video Game

William Shatner 's promotion for Star Trek:  The Video Games uses actual punches re-enacted from the original scenes from Star Trek, the television show -- however, couch pillows are used to fight against the Gorn instead of space rocks.  In the Star Trek television show, the Gorn is a terrifying threat  with an army that battles against Captain Kirk, Dr. Spock and the crew of the Starship Enterprise.

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Star Trek:  The Video Game

Star Trek:  The Video Game is rated T for Teen.  The video game will be released April 23, 2013 in North America, April 26, 2013 in Europe, and will be playable on the Xbox 360, PS3 and the PC.

Star Trek New Screen Shots Read more.

Star Trek Release Date Read more.

Star Trek Prequel Video Game Read more.

Star Trek Releases April 2013 Read more.

Battlefield 4

If you know that you will be buying Battlefield 4 when it releases, why not cash in on the pre-order bonuses available if you order now?

Battlefield 4 is a first-person shooter video game and is the thirteenth installment in the franchise. It is fueled by the next generation power Frostbite 3 technology to give you the visual and dramatic experiences you may have come to expect from the Battlefield series.

This video game is published by Electronic Arts (EA) and developed by DICE. Game play has lots of battle based  missions including "Fishing in Bakau"  as well as escape episodes using vital intelligence.

 Gameplay for Battlefield 4 was recently unveiled during the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco, CA and it did not disappoint.   A spectacular 17-minute video game preview of what you can expect from Battlefield 4 was shown.

Battlefield 4 

A surefire way to get your copy of Battlefield 4 as soon as it is released is to pre-order it. Depending on where you pre-order, you will receive bonuses.  For example, if you pre-order from GameStop, you will receive a pair of Battlefield 4 dog tags and bonus content. You will also receive Battlefield 4 Premium Expansion Pack. Pre-order from Amazon.com before April 13, 2013 and you will receive a code that will release additional in-game content.

Scene from Battlefield 4

Check where you purchase your video games, including EA's Origin website,  for additional pre-order bonuses that may be available.

Battlefield 4 will be rated M for Mature and has a rumored release date of October 29, 2013.

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Game Developers Conference (GDC), San Francisco, CA

Looks like the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) accomplished its mission at the GDC to have its voice heard, even if it was during the closing hours of the GDC.  Yes... NASA "crashed" the GDC conference party -- but in a nice way.   A talk was scheduled at the last minute for NASA manager, Jeff Norris to speak about NASA's stance in the video game industry.  It may have been a surprise to many of the attendees to hear about real world space explorations and other NASA goals after having been previously involved in all things video games from virtual vice real-life viewpoints.

Classic Space Invaders Video Game

Norris opened his talk by stating, " You are all the space invaders," referring to the classic video game. 

In addition to discussing how NASA already has a place in the video game world by way of its Mars Rover Landing game and other interactive video game initiatives, Norris also spoke of how the agency is working to have an even greater presence.  In addition to the virtual world, Norris and his colleague, Victor Luo, a NASA interface human  engineer, stated that NASA is collaborating with Microsoft and others to  come up with new ways to control robots.

NASA at GDC in San Francisco, CA

During the surprise talk, Norris and Luo laid out ambitious plans for a bold and science-fiction drenched future for NASA.  

Star Trek Enterprise

Of course, NASA  could not leave the conference without alluding to going where no man  has gone before.

In Norris' words: "We all desperately want ‘Star Trek. I do believe that humanity's destiny is to climb aboard starships and explore the universe. I think at last we finally have in our grasp the technology necessary to build a very important room on this vessel."

The Game Developers Conference was held March 25 - 29, 2013 at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, CA.

Remember Me Video Game

How you ever experienced a memory lapse temporarily and had to retrace your steps to find an item that you thought was lost? Maybe you have misplaced your keys and tried to remember where you last placed them.  If so, you may be able to identify with the main protagonist, Nilin,  of the video game, Remember Me. However, the adventures go far and beyond finding lost keys.

Nilin from Remember Me Video Game

In the Remember Me video game, the heroine, Nilin, not only has a memory lapse, but her memory has been completely erased.  Remember Me is set in Paris, France in the year 2084.  In this futuristic action video game, everyone has brain implants where memories can be deleted, exchanged or traded.  Memory is an entity that is controlled by a corporation called Memoryeyes.  Another company, Errorists is fighting Memoryeyes for this control.

Players use Nilin's powers and alter parts of video game opponent's memories in real game-play.

Nilin in action in the video game Remember Me

Gameplay consists of building combos, which uses a combination of fighting moves called Pressens.  The Pressens can be organized to form chains.  You can unlock the 24 Pressens by gaining Procedural Mastery Powers (PMPs) which are obtained by executing combos and dispatching enemies. 

Remember Me video game is published by Capcom, has a pending rating, and will be playable on the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.  Release date is June 4, 2013 in North America and June 7, 2013 in Europe.