spaghetti

From the same development team behind Grand Theft Auto comes Red Dead Redemption, the story of an ex-outlaw named John Marston who has been given a second chance at life. Set at the end of America's Wild West, Redemption is a truly ambitious effort from every angle.

Does Redemption hold water on its own, or is it just Grand Theft Auto on horseback?

Jeff: Too many generalizations have been made that label Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto as the same game. Sure, at their basic cores the titles are similar, but on the surface Red Dead Redemption does a much better job at creating compelling narrative and emotionally charged characters. A big reason for its success is the time period in which Redemption does a convincing job at recreating.

Players are thrown into the end of the iconic Old West, where everyone knows one another and all there is to do is travel from town to town on your horse. It's because of this that everything your character does in the game carries that much more weight with it. Everything has a consequence and Redemption does an impressive job at making you think twice before acting.

The main exposition of Redemption takes a healthy amount of time to fully unravel, which allows for plenty of opportunities to explore the desert. We really enjoyed the fact that no side mission is meaningless because every action is documented via fame and honor, two of the game's RPG-style metrics. For example, the more "known" your character becomes can dictate whether he'll receive a discount at a general store. If he becomes more feared, people on the street will look the other way in passing. Redemption also incentivizes the player to cooperate with certain tasks and complete specific side missions in order to unlock bonuses like new outfits.

As we mentioned earlier, each character is impressively fleshed out with some voice-acting performances (Marshall Johnson immediately comes to mind) rivaling those of live-action dramas. The dialogue is calculated, believable, and is arguably the best display of human interaction as told through a video game.… Read more

Twirling spaghetti around a fork is a skill that can require a little practice, but you can speed up the process with the Twirling Spaghetti Fork, which costs around $10. Slide it into a pile of spaghetti and turn it on: the Twirling Spaghetti Fork is motorized and will wind your pasta around the tines of the fork. It requires two AAA batteries (which are not included) to operate. They seem to last for quite a while, considering that you really should turn off the fork in between bites. Leaving it running could make getting the spaghetti back off the … Read more

In a perfect world, all food would get cooked on the grill. Our modern kitchens make that dream impractical if not impossible. Walls, and a ceiling overhead do little for open fire cooking. Not only would it be difficult to achieve, but downright dangerous. There's a reason why bags of charcoal always insist upon outdoor use. So while it may be difficult to bring the grill inside, the next best thing is to bring the kitchen outside.

Burgers and hot dogs may be what most people think about when they think about firing up the grill, but times are … Read more

Huh, what? A spaghetti tester? For what? Determining if my cooked spaghetti is al dente? Hmm. I didn't know I needed such a thing, but now that I think about it... yeah, an Al Dente Spaghetti Tester would make a great addition in my kitchen. I'd be able to test spaghetti. I'd be crazy not to get one. Wait. What am I saying? Nobody needs this--especially because the price is almost $50.

Ridiculousness aside, the Al Dente Spaghetti Tester from POTT actually does look nice. The sleek, hook-like shape with a slotted end appeals to my aesthetic … Read more

Imagine you're on a road trip and that inner stomach clock starts ticking. You peer along the horizon searching for quick, fast, and easy road food. With visions of previous stops of greasy burgers and suspect tacos, you roll into a gas station unable to make a decision. Perhaps another bag of chips or a cellophane-wrapped sandwich will quell the rising hunger. You make your way past the nacho cheese and the perpetually rolling hot dogs, and suddenly a bright, oddly shaped contraption catches your eye.

Not only does the Cucina 2000 look and sound like a robot, it … Read more

If you're a fan of the Flying Spaghetti Monster and the gospel of Pastafarianism, then you have to love what's going on in Crossville, Tenn.

There, as I discovered today on Laughing Squid, some members of the local chapter of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster have gotten city approval to erect a statue of "His Noodly Appendage" outside the local courthouse.

I talked briefly by phone Monday with Ariel Safdie, one of the local chapter members involved with building and installing the statue, and she said that for her and her fellow members, the … Read more

If you aren't familiar with the phenomenon of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, you might want to skip this post. But if you're like a few of us at Crave who are totally down with the "Pastafarian" thing, you might be interested in the Tangle DNA speakers, which bear a remarkable resemblance to the FSM's noodly appendages. Plus, they can twist and bend any way you want!

Now that's intelligent design.