Norse gods doomed in Shotgun's 'Ragnarok'

WITH THIS YEAR'S free summer park show, Berkeley's Shotgun Players finds itself between a "Ragnarok" and a hard place.
On the one hand, you've got all the storm and drama of the Norse gods. On the other, you've got, well, all the storm and drama of the Norse gods.
As gods go, Odin and his crew don't have the power and lightning- bolt glamour of the Greek gods, and their mythology is less commonly known (except maybe to those of us who remember the Thor comic books).
The Greeks are the Hollywood superstars, and the Norse gods are more basic cable personalities.
This might help explain why "Ragnarok: The Doom of the Gods" is not a wholly satisfying show.
Written by Conrad Bishop and Elizabeth Fuller of the Independent Eye theater company, and directed by Bishop, "Ragnarok" is told in the style of Greek theater with masks amid a Stonehenge-like cluster of stones (set and masks by Michael Frassinelli).
The masks are cartoonishly ugly, and so are some of the performances, and that's fun. But mixed in with the show's more irreverent aspects are some pompous, blow-hard theatrics -- like Bishop's choreography andFuller's dirge-like choral music -- that make the storytelling too self-important

Work-and-play station

WORK-AND-PLAY STATION: Its not your kid's PlayStation anymore. Sony's (www.us. playstation.com) new, $250 Wi-Fi-enabled handheld features dazzling 3-D graphics on a 4.3-inch LCD, a 32MB Memory Stick Duo card for storage, Sony's new 1.8GB optical Universal Media Disc for movies and a USB 2.0 port. You can plug it into your PC and use it to save important files. Understated in executive black, the PSP bundle includes stereo headphones, an AC adapter and a carrying case with access to games like Tiger Woods PGA Tour and World Tour Soccer. If you feel the need to share the fun, connect to as many as 16 other users by way of a hot spot or ad hoc network. It's all just business--monkey business

Disney Online to launch Pirates Online video game

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Entertainment company Disney Online has revealed it is offering Pirates of the Caribbean fans the opportunity to appear in an original video game based on the movie.
According to Disney Online, the massively multiplayer online, called Pirates of the Caribbean Online, will be available as a free download from http://www.PiratesOnline.com. It is to be launched at the same time as the theatrical version of 'Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End', which is scheduled to launch on 25 May, with free game expansions to be released every few months.
The company said the game takes part in an alternate universe, introduces Jolly Roger as a nemesis and allows players to help Sparrow get his crew together to look for the Black Pearl. It claimed film characters such as Sparrow, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann will appear in cut scenes with the player's avatar and said the story line will cover hundreds of hours of game play.
Consumers will be able to obtain a free electronic download, enabling them to access around a third of the game world and content, or opt to pay a USD9.95 monthly subscription for the full 'Pirates Online' experience.

Gravity Sponsors Ragnarok Online Tournament

Gravity Interactive, developer and publisher of the MMORPG Ragnarok Online, is holding a national competition throughout the US to choose the top players of the Korea-based game. While the tournament is underway, players will compete against each other on teams of nine to avoid elimination and earn a chance to compete as part of the top two teams in the country.
Gravity will be onhand at this year's Anime Expo convention, held July 2-5 in Anaheim, California, to oversee the two teams battling it out to determine the best players in the nation. Then, both teams will be flown to Seoul, Korea to compete against players from 18 other countries in the Ragnarok World Championship for a $10,000 cash prize.
The Ragnarok Online Tournament runs from June 10 to 16. More information is available at the official web site.

Ragnarok Online

From StarCraft ballads hitting the pop charts to players dying in Internet cafes, Korea is one country that loves the PC. Ragnarok Online, one of Korea’s popular MMORPGs, has now been translated and published Stateside.
The world
Ragnarok Online is based on the fantasy comic series Ragnarok, by Myung-Jin Lee, published in the U.S. by TokyoPop. These comics take elements of Norse mythology and blend them with classic fantasy tales and Asian design. It’s an entertaining serial adventure of gods and warriors.
The world of these comics is re-created online, with 10 different lands/environments and 20 different job classes that are earned through a hierarchal chart.
The hook
Ragnarok Online claims to be one of the top MMORPGs in Korea, so it must be doing something right. Appealingly, a 15-day free trial is available in the States, but be prepared for a long download—at least the game has bite-sized split RAR files.
Thankfully, the interface system allows you to play windowed, so you can battle the beasties while writing e-mail.

New hand-held PlayStation

Small enough to fit into your back pocket, Sony's new PlayStation Portable also features graphics that are so highly detailed and realistic, you'll swear you're playing PS2's homebound version. A USB media port also lets you connect this multitasking machine to your computer to download photos, movies, and music. But the feature that launches the PSP into gadget greatness is the built-in wireless capability, which detects surrounding PSPs, challenging them to instant battles. Got the PSP? Now check out these three mobile thumb-mashers.