In honor of iGirl, here’s another installment of our weekly endeavor to make you laugh, have fun and in all cases waste time.
You can create your own beast at BeastBlender.com, a site run by the Minnesota Association of Rogue Taxidermists. This flash-based blender offers body parts from an alligator, cockatoo, lemur and other creatures. I call my creation a “Allerhicomumode.” Scary, yes?
Past Hump Day timewasters:
For fans of the web-based sketch game Line Rider, the new version is much slicker than its creator may have intended. It’s also obviously coming out soon, based on the disc full of art, a slick new logo and a very cool demo movie. There is even the box art for the Nintendo Wii and DS versions of the game.
The game has won millions of fans, a few imitators and awards. Created by Bostjan Cadez as an art-school project, Line Rider is simple: Draw a few lines on the screen, press play and watch as a stick-figure “Bosh” rides the lines on his bobsled. The original game had no eraser — so whatever you only had one chance to get the lines perfect. The popular web game has attracted millions of players around the world and, most recently, a McDonald’s commercial.
I interviewed Bostjan in December 2006. Game developer inXile Entertainment in Newport Beach had just bought the rights to turn the animation into a game and Bostjan was in town from native Slovenia for a few months.
At the time, he considered his invention “a toy,” but one that encouraged people to make a story out of it.
“The eraser is missing on purpose. It was part of the concept. I wanted it to be, in a way, like life. If you make a mistake, it’s there. You can’t just erase it,” he said.
The new versions of the game for the Wii and DS will be so much more when released this summer.
Details on how this game will work on the Wii weren’t provided. Will I use the controller as my pen? Will the new Wii balance board be used as a sled?
But there is information on the new challenges of the game. According to Line Rider’s media folks, a story has been added to the game:
“Line Rider 2: Unbound” follows the sled-stealing scumbag Chaz, who is up to no good and only you, as the clever and cunning Bosh, can defeat him. For Bosh to save his true love Bailey, players must complete tracks in over 40 mind-bending puzzles created by the #1 Line Rider player in the world, TechDawg.”
Everything is slick about the new Line Rider game — from its new logo to a heftier Bosh, joined by the two new characters Bailey and Chaz, pictured below:
I kind of liked the simpler Bosh more:
What about you? Take the Line Rider poll:
Check out the video:
More on Line Rider:
In honor of iGirl, here’s another installment of our weekly endeavor to make you laugh, have fun and in all cases waste time.
Have you ever solved the Rubik’s Cube? Here’s your chance waste time at your desk, thanks to 27Bobs.com. The actor-turned-software architect said he developed the Rubik’s animation to ‘experiment with parent/child relationships and user interaction on multiple planes and axis.”
If that’s too much to think about, just waste time on this already:
If you’re stumped or have to get back to work again, he also offers a cheat, which automatically solves the cube. Have fun!
Past HumpDay Time Wasters:
One of the Web’s favorite free distractions, Line Rider, has inspired a new company.
Newport Beach’s inXile Entertainment spun off a new company called SparkWorkz. 
Line Rider, which started in 2006 as an art-school project, is a web-based game where users draw lines and then watch a bob sledder ride the lines. It has since been played by thousands who then uploaded their creations to YouTube. The most popular Line Rider video has been viewed 7.4 million times.
InXile bought the rights to the game in late 2006 from creator Bostjan Cadez, who spent time in Newport Beach to meet the developers. Read the original Register story: If you draw it, Line Rider will come. Line Rider is now heading to the Nintendo Wii and DS this summer. The first preview of the game for the Wii and DS is expected to be posted at game site IGN.com Thursday night.
Online, anyone can play for free. The official site features a ‘Bostjan’ with a new look but the game is pretty much the same.
“Vanity is a big thing on the Internet. It’s either you show off, ‘Hey, look at me,’ on Facebook and MySpace. Or it’s look what I can do. That show-off aspect is what I like,” said Brian Fargo, inXile’s founder.
Above: See the inspiration of Line Rider from art student Bostjan Cadez’ drawing pad.
In honor of iGirl, here’s another installment of our weekly endeavor to make you laugh, have fun and in all cases waste time.
I mentioned this on my blog way back when, but it’s a classic that I feel new readers should be exposed to: Just Letters Developed by Flashcomguru, this Flash distraction lets you rearrange retro alphabet refrigerator magnets. Fun fun, right?
But there’s more.
It lets other people join in on the fun at the same time. They’ll steal your letters, they’ll write corny phrases. Oh wait — that was you?
When I first blogged about this years ago, my Register colleagues had a mad time spelling out OCRegister (captured on right). If you’re able to manage something clever, send it my way to share with readers.
One parental warning: Lots of potty mouths in the room.
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