By Marty Mulrooney
On the 20th August 2009, Alternative Magazine Online owner Martin Mulrooney had the great pleasure of chatting to DJ Pete Price on local radio show City Talk (105.9FM.) His show that evening was all about discussing films past and present, providing a great chance for the website to not only get some free publicity, but for Marty to talk about some of his own cinematic favourites! Continue reading
Filed under Alternative Musings, Film
By Marty Mulrooney
Michael Marshall (also known as Michael Marshall Smith) is a British novelist, screenwriter and short story writer, currently living in London, UK. His groundbreaking first novel, the science fiction thriller Only Forward, won the Philip K. Dick and August Derleth awards, as well as much critical acclaim. He built on this success with two more sci-fi novels that soon followed, Spares and One Of Us, before switching genre and his writing name with the release of The Straw Men (as Michael Marshall.)
This was my first introduction to Michael’s work, and one I shall likely never forget. I was 15 years old, reading a book about child kidnappings, murder and secret societies deep in the heart of America, the summer light fading fast as I lost track of time. No doubt some extremists, who likely think the Harry Potter books promote witchcraft in children, would have balked at this series of events. Still, I was totally enthralled and I have read every book Michael Marshall has published since.
He has a strange power to take real life and twist it totally on its head, whilst still retaining a strong sense of reality. If you have never read Michael’s work, I urge you now, go and grab one of his books. His earlier sci-fi works such as Only Forward, or the later reality-based endeavours such as The Straw Men (my personal favourite) all offer a great place to start. It’s the type of storytelling that grips the reader and won’t let go, and you will not be disappointed. His fans can certainly attest to this already. So now, without further ado, it is an absolute privilege and a pleasure to be able to say that Michael Marshall (Smith) has taken some time out of his busy schedule to talk to us here today at Alternative Magazine Online…
Filed under Alternative Musings, Books
By Marty Mulrooney
The recent release of LucasArt’s The Secret Of Monkey Island: SE (in 2D) and Telltale’s Tales Of Monkey Island (in 3D) have shown that nothing can stop the allure of an aspiring pirate named Guybrush Threepwood fighting an evil ghost/zombie/ demon/ voodo pirate called LeChuck, a phobia of porcelain and a three-headed monkey, all rolled into a traditional point-n-click laugh-fest. Regardless of being 2D, or 3D, the franchise has always done well, and now it’s back with a vengence baby!
But what if you could have the best of both the 2D and 3D worlds all at once? Even more intriguing, what if there was a way to apply some voodoo magic, and completely update the visuals of classic games from the past, whilst still retaining a faithful look and feel to what has gone before?
In our recent interview with Dominic Armato, he whispered oh so gently of a video that allegedly showed just that. A clip that has become a youtube phenomenon, splashed out over various Monkey Island fan sites and game news sites, sending fans into a frenzy. Alternative Magazine Online knew of this video, and of course we linked to it. We decided this wasn’t enough. We wanted to know more. So we tracked down the man responsible. The man behind the magic. Get ready, ever faithful reader, to witness an interview with Hanns Appell… Continue reading
Filed under Alternative Musings, Games
By Marty Mulrooney
Dominic Armato is a name that many adventure game fans will undoubtedly be familiar with. Born in Chicago in the 1970’s, he has had an illustrious and much heralded career as a voice actor in video games.
Voice-over work started from a young age, yet his shining moment no doubt came when he successfully auditioned for the part of Guybrush Theepwood in Lucasart’s The Curse Of Monkey Island. It became his signature role, with the previously unvoiced character becoming so infused with Dom’s personality that it is almost impossible nowadays to imagine anyone else. Dominic Armato simply IS Guybrush Threepwood.
A further sequel followed, but after that it seemed as if the series was over. Luckily, and much to Dom’s (and the fan’s) delight, Monkey Island is back, in more ways then one. Here, Dom takes some time from his busy recording schedule (and burping his toddler!) to talk exclusively to Alternative Magazine Online in a refreshingly candid interview…
Filed under Alternative Musings, Games
Martin Mulrooney
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Alternative Magazine Online 