by A.J. Focht

PlayStation fans around the globe continue to QQ over the extended absence of the PlayStation Network. While original reports stated the network would return this last week, they all proved to be filthy lies. Recent statements made by a spokesperson from the company suggest it might not return till the end month. Luckily for all the PlayStation fanboys and girls, this last week was packed with plenty of nerdy happenings to distract them from their enforced gaming sobriety.

[..]

by A.J. Focht

Welcome to the first edition of Your Week in Geek; catching you up on all your nerdy updates since… NAO!

Last week started right in the middle of the PlayStation Network outage. It wasn’t until Tuesday, April 26th, that Sony manned up and admitted their system had been hacked and that many of the network users may have had personal information stolen (such as user names, passwords, and credit card numbers). Sony is currently fighting on two fronts as they try to criminally pursue and prosecute those responsible for the attack, while fighting off a class action lawsuit filed by the raging masses. Despite the uphill legal battle, Sony has announced the PlayStation Network should be back online in the first week of May.

[..]

by Blogbot

SuicideGirls caught up with William Shatner when he materialized on the black carpet at Revolver Magazine’s Golden Gods Awards last week. The OG Star Trekker‘s far out level of badass quotient was being acknowledged with an Honorary Headbanger Award, which was presented to him by SG’s own Food Coma columnist Scott Ian (who was there with his band Anthrax ahead of the monster Big 4 Fest).

Shatner is planning to follow up his critically acclaimed albums* The Transformed Man (1968) and Has Been (2004), with a third full length entitled Searching For Major Tom, which is scheduled to be unleashed on the world later this year.

Given that we were at the Golden Gods, which is a celebration of all things hard ‘n’ heavy, we had to ask Mr. Shatner if his release would include any metal tracks. He responded in the affirmative, and revealed that the collection of out-of-this-world covers will include Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man,” Pink Floyd’s “Learning To Fly,” and Deep Purple’s “Space Trucking.”

“There are some great musicians are on there,” Shatner enthused. Among the many guests confirmed are ex-Deep Purple guitarist and Rainbow frontman Ritchie Blackmore (who makes “Space Oddity” even more of an oddity), Peter Frampton (the not-dead-yet legend plays guitar on “Spirit In The Sky”), Edgar Froese of Tangerine Dream (who brings the weirdness on “Learning To Fly” to new heights), Kinks’ guitarist and frontman Dave Davies (who takes quirky to Mach 10 on “Mr. Spaceman”) and Stokes’ guitarist Nick Valensi (who is a grounding influence on “Major Tom”).

“It’s fabulous,” said Shatner. “I mean, it’s a happening. I can’t wait to see what the reaction will be.”

In related news, we can exclusively reveal that Priceline is planning to offer “Name Your Own Price®” trips to the Twilight Zone**.

[..]

by Morgan

After replaying Dragon Age II twice this past month, I’ve never been more convinced that casual gaming offers a really refreshing break from hardcore gaming. It also offers something for gamers who aren’t into level grinding for hours or first-person shooters. And if you have a portable device, they can provide quick bursts of entertainment when you’re sitting on a train or waiting in an office – or sitting on a couch, bored by whatever’s on TV. This month I’m bringing you some quick hits of mobile games I love!

[..]

by Keith Daniels

Rifftrax is perfect for fans of Mystery Science Theater 3000, the beloved cult cable TV series about a man stranded in space with two robots who is forced to watch terrible sci-fi movies. Created by former MST3K writer and star Michael J. Nelson, Rifftrax continues his earlier show’s tradition of riffing movie commentary to go along with cinematic turds and classics alike. What Rifftrax misses from MST3K in its lack of skits and puppetry, it makes up for in its ability – freed from the legal wrangling that constrained MST3K – to riff on literally any movie Mike and his crew can stand to watch.

[..]

by Keith Daniels

MythBusters, Discovery Channel’s hit show which attempts to test popular legends, misconceptions, and tropes, is coming back on April 6th for their eighth year of bringing science with a heavy dose of explosives to television.

Co-host Kari Byron started as an intern at fellow host Jamie Hyneman’s special-effects shop M5 Industries at practically the same moment the show first began filming. From her first appearance as a model for an experiment, her critical thinking, artistic sensibility, and on-screen charisma allowed her role on the show to grow until she became part of a trio of co-hosts with special-effects veterans Grant Imahara and Tory Belleci who now have their own shop, M7, and test myths for the show in parallel with the original core duo of Hyneman and Adam Savage.

[..]

by Aaron Colter

Since I was old enough to legally get a job, I’ve been working for record stores, comic book shops, publishers, and magazines. If people didn’t pay for entertainment content, it’s unlikely that I would have had any of those jobs. Jobs which pay my rent, buy my beer, and allow me to support other artists. And as a current music producer, I sometimes fear the online culture of free has made it almost impossible for me to earn a living recording independent bands.

But, I like pirates.

[..]