Wow, it has just occurred to me that I’ve never had to write anything like this before. You’d think after years of yearbook signings and two major graduations that I might be a little better with goodbyes. Even the emails I wrote to all my friends here under the same roof at GV HQ was nothing like posting this to the innumerable amount of you on the internet. Actually, not quite innumerable. We got the Analytics, yo. Anyway, here goes.

Deep breath.

After nearly 4 years with the Gamervision team, I am moving on to pursue a life long dream of studying the art of film making. These are probably the absolutely best terms to leave on: one hell of a great experience to be followed by something my heart wants more than anything. So why am I so sad? For now, I’m just going to blame it on being a “girl” and having feelings and being overly sentimental due to the conditioning of society and the obnoxiously sweet (and kind of disturbing) children movies I grew up with.

Not a lot of you know the history of Gamervision, but it’s something that I remember being a big concept back when I was only 12 years old. After high school and college, things went into super locomotion and I was invited to join the team on a journey of watching something grow from the ground up. Granted, said journey included a lot of patient waiting, but every second was worth it. Being here to see Gamervision grow from 5 of us on a couch in the apartment above a garage to filling a warehouse with a bunch of creative, talented, driven and tenacious individuals has been one hell of a feat. Having made silly videos for ourselves to having our biggest productions travel light speed over the internet to reach all corners of the world is astounding.

I hope you enjoyed the Dairy because the Dairy (I) enjoyed you. Thank you to everyone who made it and this experience as valuable as it is from my “adopted” family to my coworkers and all you lovers and haters on the internet. Who knows what the future has in store for me? For now all I know is there will be a lot of drawing classes. Awesome, no?

If you’d like to keep your tabs on me and my progress, you can follow my Vimeo page which currently has a lot of my outside projects that I was working over the past 2 years.

Thank you so much everyone!

All the love in the world (and then some),

Nikkita

That Didn’t Sound Right…

A concept by designer Igor Chak, the Space Invaders Couch made from glass and leather is exactly what we’ve all been waiting for. I’ve seen pixelated couches, I’ve seen Tetris couches, but nothing measures up to this beauty. And it makes sense. If you have to sit on an alien, this would probably be the way to go. Space Invaders are, after all, one of the few sticky and slimy depictions of aliens in our geeky culture.

Reading Igor’s biography, the man has a really interesting story. Born in Vladivostok, Russia, he later moved to Japan with his family when he was only 5, a prime age to pick up on Japanese tradition, customs and attitude. Then it was back to Russia, a tough transition I imagine, and onto the US. It’s no surprise that someone with such a colorful past and upbringing would have such an interesting set of ideas and aesthetics.

More here!

Better Than Anything I’ve Ever Built…

Over time, headphones have evolved from a modest tool for music listening to an influential statement of fashion and status. Fancy headphones are everywhere these days, and they’re expensive as hell. That’s not even including the price for all the gimmick accessories to go with your already gimmicky accessory. But hey, that’s fashion for you. Why not be on the cutting edge and make your own super snazzy set of headphones using your old LEGOs?

Details and more here!

New Amazon Delivery Service Delivers Tote Bags By Hand

Totes Ma Goats!

Good news, Seattle. Life just keeps on getting better for you. Seattle based company and super distributor of nearly anything you’ve ever wanted Amazon.com has launched a greener alternative for delivery to the lucky residents of their shared lovely, albeit rainy, city. AmazonTote is the name, hand delivered tote bags is the game.

So wait, what’s the deal? It’s quite simple (and cheap!). AmazonTote is a free weekly service that delivers, by hand, to a number of designated zip codes in the Seattle area. There are no subscriptions or fees, and you don’t even have to be a member of AmazonPrime. Just a Seattle resident. If you make multiple orders, they will all arrive within the same “Tote Day” delivery. The totes can then be returned/reused for your next delivery, or if you really like totes so much you can just keep them.

Details and more and stuff here!

A Lot Of Tweets For Not That Many Topics

As seen on the animated Pulse Of a Nation cartogram, Twitter brings a lot out of people. So it should really be no surprise that gamers would have taken the opportunity to express themselves, their views, hopes, wishes, dreams and deepest disappointments to yet another outlet to the world too. Obviously understanding the torrid emotional state of the group, Aggregame generated an image to represent the 150 top gaming topics and words on Twitter over the course of a year.

Now to get a little perspective of what we’re looking at, the image above represents a pool of over 28 million collected gaming-related tweets from July 27th 2009 to July 22nd 2010. That’s nearly 78,000 tweets a day. And despite the many controversies and successes that are bound to make up a year, it seems as if the console war is still alive and well, beating out “modern warfare” and possibly even retweets. Granted, I’m sure these sudden bursts of expressionism weren’t necessarily slamming each other. It’s just funny to see that no matter what happens, what gets released or how much people share, the biggest topics are the actual consoles we’re all playing on.

More details here!

Because High Speed/Slow Motion Rules

3 Videos I Can’t Stop Watching

I’m not really sure what tuned me onto my fascination with the super high speed slow motion videos that have risen in popularity thanks to the likes of incredible advancements in technology, Myth Busters and people’s fatal fascination with guns and bullets. Stemming away from being a science experiment, high speed slow motion videos have taken on a fairly artistic roll, creating endless amounts of entertainment for people as weird as me. And Mike. And now all of you. Here are 2 videos that I can’t stop watching, and one honorable mention for a trooper of a model.

3 of the sweetest videos you’ll ever see here!

Like A Bicycle Built For Everyone

Last time I rode a tandem bicycle, I had only one other passenger and we were dodging the guidos and guidettes of the Jersey Shore in search of some ice cream. Luckily, the state of my computer is nothing like the state of my past vacations. Still, like my tolerance for the… unique (and drunk) walks of life on the boardwalk, my computer has a limit for USB plugs. No worries, the Tandem USB is here to the rescue.

Winner of the iF Concept Design Award 2010, Yi Fan Lin & Hong Yih Chu’s Tandem USB design is sleek, simple and organized. Well, more organized than any idea I would have conceived. Following other concepts of an infinite plugging system, the Tandem USB’s grooves and curves allow for all cords to exist in harmony.

More details here!

The iPad Dinner Plate

The Second Next Best Thing To Burning Money

I admit that I avoid certain nice things as a means to avoid some inevitable and much unwanted destruction. I take pride in my belongings, and while I accept that simply driving my car invites a whole lot of damage to it, I don’t plan on wearing white to a BBQ or a night out of sloppy drinking. So my gadgets aren’t so flashy. So what? This guy eats sushi off his iPad.

Now this is in no way a criticism on iPad owner Shiinaneko. To be honest, I think it’s brilliant. Kind of like the time one of our coworkers at GV slid his iPhone across the floor to make our in-house Apple fanboy uncomfortable. Or maybe it was his MacBook Pro. I can’t remember. The point is, I love making people uncomfortable and support everyone else’s efforts in doing so.

More pictures and stuff here!

Lights And Blinds For The Taking (Or The Leaving)

It’s hard to grow up when all of your favorite things from video games to movies and shows make for some really awesome toys. I managed to obtain an official “big kid” room before I started working for GV, then boom, all of a sudden my desk is covered in figurines, My Little Ponies and random orphaned goodies that need a home that I honestly have no use for (hello, random Albert Einstein doll). Your desk and rec space is one thing, but when it really comes down to decorating your home, you need to be a little more selective. Here are two specifically Star Wars pieces that may or may not work.

First up, an actual lightsaber light. Or rather an actual light lightsaber? Whatever, the thing hangs on your wall. And let’s be honest, no matter what kind of geek you are (or not) or how much you’d try to deny it, everyone wants a freakin’ lightsaber. But having weapons laying is rarely accessible, especially when their reality is constricted to a series of film and books. Shucks. But at least you can enjoy the novelty with some function with the Remote Controlled Lightsaber Room Light from the Star Wars Shop ($29.99, to be shipped in August). However, it’d probably only be acceptable if you have kids of your own or an ultra modern taste in interior design and snooty friends that wouldn’t know the difference. All in all, mostly passable.

Vader blinds and more here!

Keeping It Retro At Home

Mad Men And The 80s

No matter what year you live in, you can always pretend you’re in a different decade. It’s not just a state of mind, it’s a state of space. Luckily we have access to things of our past while everyone else is busy designing things of the future. Let us enjoy a more Mad Men or 80s-90s experience.

Do you watch Mad Men? Great. Now save those campy, albeit hilarious, misogynist one liners for later. No, seriously. I want to hear them. I’m guessing that every now and then you take a look around your office space and think “what would Don Draper make of all of this?” Well, your PC tower would probably look like the one above as designed by Jeffrey Stephenson with Mad Men in mind. That’s right, there’s a PC tower in there. And it probably doesn’t even smell like stale cigarette smoke like I imagine the rest of that set and every office and home in the 60s would have.

VHS bird house and more here!

Shitterton’s Shitty Ton Sign

When you name a town Shitterton, you’re asking for some trouble. Luckily, it’s been more of a case of stolen signs than a monkey inspired poo-fling fest. Still after having the town’s beloved Shitterton sign being stolen at least 3 times over the course of 20 years, you would probably start to get tired of it, hence why council stopped replacing the sign altogether. But now Shitterton has a solution. Proud Shitterton resident Ian Ventham collected money from neighbors to buy a sign that no one could or would want to steal, a giant stone weighing over a ton.

“I don’t think it was malicious, they just did it for fun, but it was exasperating for us. We would get a nice new shiny sign from the council and five minutes later, it was gone.”

Not only was the lack of a sign annoying, he said, but “it could make life confusing for delivery drivers”. “It was my wife’s idea to carve it out of stone,” he said. “We thought, ‘Let’s put in a ton and a half of stone and see them try and take that away in the back of a Ford Fiesta’.”

Mr Ventham, a retired RNLI director, wrote to neighbours asking them to donate £20 towards the cost of the immovable sign. Of 50 households, well over half contributed. After being told of the plan, Purbeck district council agreed to give £70 towards the cost.

Congratulations on the new sign, Shitterton. And thank you for giving me the opportunity to say “Shitterton” 7 times in one sitting.

[via Telegraph]

YouTube Snake

Well, isn’t that cute? No, not Danny Trejo (sorry, Tío). YouTube has hidden a special little feature for all you people that throw hours of your days away watching videos. So in case that wasn’t enough, now you can also play Snake simultaneously and equally as mindlessly. Eh, maybe not. Snake is kind of hard. Anyway, what to do: Pick a video, pause it, hold the left arrow down until the game appears and play! I played along to the new red band Machete trailer. My brain kind of hurts from all the awesome. I would probably suggest something a little less distracting (and less stabby).

Enjoy!

[via reddit]

More stories here including Ron Livingston as Keyboard Cat.

Call Him Mint Jelly Because He’s On The Lam

Comic-Con may be happening as we speak in San Diego, but buckets of geek crazy are still being dumped all over the rest of the world. For one, Darth Vader robbed a bank in Long Island, NY on Wednesday, letting down the millions of young fans that look up to him. Okay, so it was an impostor. Let’s just call him a cosplayer. Needless to say, the entire Darth Vader camp is deeply embarrassed by the whole situation.

The mystery man made off with some cash and has yet to be identified. After entering the Chase branch, Bad Vader was met by an amused customer who clearly did not find the Halloween costume much of a threat or even that suspicious. Vader must have been pissed because he ordered him to the ground with his pistol before robbing the teller.

More baffling than Darth Vader without his signature red lightsaber was the robber’s unique addition of camouflage pants to the iconic costume. Oh, come on.

More details here!

Pulse Of The Nation: A Map Of Our Twitter Moods

We’re An Emotional Bunch

It goes without saying that we’re a moody bunch. So when you give us outlets like Facebook statuses and Twitter to express the faintest sliver of discontent or joy, hell, we’re going to use it. A lot. Because we think people care when in reality, we’re all pretty much yelling into the same black hole. But hey, at least someone cares enough about or never ending mood swings to actually gauge the mood of the country over the course of a day according to all the tweets twitted out into the twittosphere.

Cartogram video and more here!

Ridley Scott And Kevin MacDonald Want Your Life!

I think I’ve finally concluded that my life is not the televised show I used to think it was after seeing The Truman Show and there is no final standing wall on the sound stage of life. I’m not disappointed. Just relieved. Embarrassing things tend to happen to me and if I can’t be grateful for being alone when they many times do, I don’t know what else to be grateful for. But despite the lack of interest from television to give us normal folk our own channel, this Saturday, July 24th, everyone in the world has been invited to participate in a massive cinematic experiment called Life In A Day. The rules are simple. Film your life. Answer three questions. Empty your pockets. Upload onto YouTube.

Welcome to Sundance, everyone.

Videos and details here!

How One Man Made His Own Daft Punk Helmet

And It Only Took 17 Months…

I love Daft Punk. Hell, a lot of people do. But apparently someone loves them more than all of us put together, because Harrison Krix of Volpin Props made his own flipping illuminated super robot love helmet. The process took an overwhelming 17 months and by the looks of it, it was worth every second, penny and drop of sweat. Because hot damn, I want to make out with that helmet.

Obviously understanding the impressive feat he was about to accomplish, Harrison documented the arduous year and a half long process of every step taken to recreate the iconic look of Daft Punk from scratch, both on his blog and Flickr. But in the case that this bountiful abundance of photos and descriptions isn’t enough to explode your brain with confusion and jealousy, here’s all of it in 3 minutes.

Video, pictures and more here!

Take That, Quick Shutter Speeds!

This year I made the grand purchase of a shiny new DSLR, a camera I’ve been dreaming of owning for a couple of years now. To be honest, I didn’t jump on the photography bandwagon along with everyone else when they discovered Flicker and Facebook photo albums. I guess I didn’t really buy that just anyone could be a master photographer. Sorry. Now having an interest in film, these two fields of visual arts were bound to collide, but instead of taking pictures of rolling hills and stupid angles of street signs, I’ve been kicking it in the dark with the long exposure settings and a flashlight. And now thanks to this light stencil tutorial by Flickr-er tdub303, I’ve got a new project to look forward to.

Details, pictures and more here!

Geek Makeup Is For Your Geek Face

Excuse Me, Your Pretty* Geek Face

I have no doubt that slapping on a sticker of a Mario mushroom or Zelda will make anything sell-able to someone, but those tricks stopped working with me when I was 10. Okay, maybe 11. Still, I’m always a fan of supporting the little guy, and in this case, the little guy is a little geek(s) churning out quality mineral makeup for other lady geeks.

Geek Chic Cosmetics specializes in mineral makeup that is both safe and vibrant. The collection has plenty of room to grow, but currently includes foundations, blushes and a wide variety of eye shadows for both everyday and cosplay wear. What makes things so geeky? Well, the names and inspirations for one. I have yet to see any other eye shadows inspired by the King of the Cosmo’s tights like “Katamari King“. There are also three different based on the colors of Mario, Zelda and Portal. If I had to chose, I’d definitely go for the Mushroom Kingdom set. Then again, it’s impossible for me to turn down any makeup. No. Seriously. Last fall Zane and I went to a concert and had to latch onto a group of strangers (or as I like to call them “surprise new friends”) to cut in line to get our things signed. One of said “surprise new friends” made makeup and gave us some samples. Yeah, I’m kind of scared to try it. Why haven’t I just thrown it away? Because I have a problem.

More makeup and details here!