Celebrity Tattle: Surviving

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Liam Neeson Talks Surviving A Plane Crash In 'The Grey'

Film shows what happens when an oil-drilling team goes missing, and no one comes looking for them.By Kevin P. Sullivan

In most movies where the main characters find themselves stranded after a shipwreck or a plane crash, the survivors take solace in the fact that someone must be looking for them. "The Grey" isn't like most movies.

In the new film, which hits theaters Friday, Liam Neeson plays a member of an oil-drilling team that gets into a plane crash somewhere near the Arctic Circle during their journey home. Many die in the incident, and the remaining members soon realize that no one is coming for them. Unless you count the wolves.

Neeson told MTV News that the rougher edges of the characters in "The Grey" are what make the film something new and resonant. "They're definitely flotsam and jetsam of society. One of them says after the mishap with the airplane that 'Nobody's going to care about us,' " Neeson said. "Nobody's going to send out reconnaissance planes to try and find these guys because who cares? You know?"

During the course of the film, one of the characters makes reference to "Alive," the Ethan Hawke film about a rugby team stranded in the Andes. Neeson's co-star Frank Grillo described how their film and co-writer/director Joe Carnahan took a different road. "The element of survival is different because these are just much different men, as opposed to being civilized," he said. "They're not real civilized guys, and I think that's what Joe [Carnahan] tries to show you in the beginning of the film."

Even if the realization that no one will look for these men is devastating, Neeson believes that's ultimately what keeps the characters going. "It's from that sadness that they realize who they are and what they are and how they're just a speck of dust in society," Neeson said. "But that somehow empowers them to continue on with this crazy journey for freedom and solace and to get out of this predicament. It actually gives them strength, the fact that they're nondescript."

Will you see "The Grey" this weekend? Leave your comment below!

Photo: Open Road Films

"/>Photo: Open Road Films

Surviving the Onslaught on a Strategy War Game

by Jones Jack.in Entertainment / Celebrities (submitted 2012-01-27)

In the 1000ad turn based strategy war game, a small town that lives off the land is destined for greatness. Builders, toolmakers, weapon makers,explorers and an army work to expand their civilization. The player is the overall manager who is intended to see his town grow into a formidable city. The main economic activities that enrich the population in 1000ad are hunting, farming and trading. The turn based strategy means that after every turn which is IRA equivalent to one month, the town is elevated in its economic resources. The turn based progress is synonymous with the evolution of a civilization.

The gamer is able to amass builders and army units for each town. When the town becomes big enough to conquer other lands, the war aspect of the browser game emerges. But preceding that is the period of empire building that expands mining,farming and hunting over mountains, plains and forests. The basic resources of food and wood are used to get iron and gold. All the resources are used up by the buildings, builders, toolmakers and the armies. The town begins to have a bustling population. The turn based strategy aims at constructing a fortified city with a great wall and towers. An army is then supplied with weapons and food rations.

The whole business of building the empire is concluded within 300 to 500 turns. Points and resources are gained by how efficiently the turn based strategy is used. At that point the city forms alliances with other cities, which means other gamers in the multiplayer strategy game. Those alliances warm up to a showdown of war with other alliances. They train their army units and refine their research on all aspects of living. The research is done in constructions known as mate towers. This element of research is consistent with warrior civilizations in history. It makes 1000ad a realistic historical war game. Some of the weapons are for Paladins, Vikings and Japanese swordsmen. There is a lot of exploration by horsemen who scale the mountains, forests and plains. The turn based strategy is seasonal with farming from April to November and hunting on the winter.

The gamer must manage all industrial and political aspects. He must make sure that people don't freeze during winter as well as choosing the right alliances. Once the army is trained and all resources are ready, conquering can begin.

The decree of war heralds the assembling of soldiers who have mastered different weaponry. 1000ad has swordsmen, macemen, crossbowmen, archers, other horsemen and even kung fu warriors. The strategy war game provisions for training on the different fighters by allocating necessary resources. Therefore having many warriors does not mean winning the war. If resources were not acquired during the turn based construction, then the soldiers cannot be adequately supplied. The multiplayer strategy game is based on the logic that if an alliance has the most attack points then they will ultimately be victorious. At such a point, the strategy war game is over and the land is conquered. The move is similar to a checkmate. About the Author

Jack Jones is the author of this article on Text Based Game.
Find more information on Turn Based Strategy here.

Jones Jack.