• art

    Double Fine's Scott C. To Autograph Alternate King of Kong Cover

    The folks behind I am 8-Bit, the art show featuring works based on video games, is holding an event this Saturday in Alhambra, CA. On hand will be Double Fine Productions' art director Scott C. who will be personally be autographing prints of his alternate DVD cover for the documentary, King of Kong: Fist Full of Quarters. The print is a nice sized 18 x 24 inches and will sell for a paltry $20. It's a pretty cool piece and having the autograph of someone who worked on Psychonauts would be pretty freaking sweet. You can go get your signed copy of the dvd and or print at Gallery Nucleus, 210 East Main Street Alhambra, CA. The event will go from 7 - 11pm and will feature such exciting extras as free booze and a Donkey Kong high score tournament with prizes.

    2:20 PM on Thu Mar 20 2008
    By fdemarco
    2,090 views, 24 comments

    Latest by mr.dandy: Great show! It was great to meet the filmmakers and Scott Campbell, what cool people. Thanks for posting more »

  • resident evil

    Biohazard Commercial Documentary


    This a pretty interesting short documentary on the making of a commercial for Biohazard 2/Resident Evil 2. The commercial was directed by zombie master George Romero and starred (the recently deceased) Brad Renfro as Leon Kennedy. I can't say that I've ever seen a documentary on the making of a commercial but this one is actually pretty interesting with the possible exception of the vapid quotes from the gal playing Claire Redfield. It lasts about eleven minutes and is definitely worth a watch.

    [Thanks, king_e_dawg]

    5:00 PM on Sun Feb 17 2008
    By fdemarco
    2,941 views, 43 comments

    Latest by NeoStarr: So Capcom pays tribute to George with Resident Evil and then gets him to direct a commercial for it, then more »

  • documentary

    Filmakers to Produce E.T. Landfill Documentary

    Some Auburn University students are planning a documentary on the famed E.T. landfill. The landfill, which many still claim is an urban legend, has been widely discussed in video game circles for years. Now our intrepid filmmakers are out to find the legendary dumping ground with their film E.T.'s March.

    We are proud to announce our upcoming documentary, E.T.'s March. Over the course of a week this March, we will go on a road trip from Auburn, AL, to El Paso, TX. From there, we will take the actual path those fourteen trucks took that fateful day, into the heart of Alamogordo, New Mexico. Along the way, we will take in the video game culture of our great country. The documentary will be released for free via the internet this summer.

    Good luck guys! Hopefully this doesn't turn out to be another Al Capone's Vault.

    E.T.'s March Official Site

    12:00 PM on Sun Feb 17 2008
    By fdemarco
    3,846 views, 70 comments

    Latest by ZeonicFreak: This is going to be interesting. Funny thing is, i wonder if they will find a copy of ET, then test more »

  • clips

    Second Skin Hits Close To Home

    Second Skin is an upcoming documentary by Pure West Films that focuses on the lives of seven MMO gamers, exploring how their games of choice have affected their lives. It touches on many popular MMO topics, such as falling in love, becoming addicted, gold farming, and the effects virtual worlds can have on the handicapped. It's really easy to make fun of the people you see in this, the first trailer for the film, but not so much when you've been there. Having been addicted to MMO's in the past, I see a bit of myself in the film's subjects. In the past I've spent weeks at a time rolling out of bed into my computer chair (if I even made it to bed) and immediately logging into Everquest, to the point where it was really the only thing that mattered in my life, and yeah - I've fallen in love online as well. Maybe one day I'll tell you folks all about it. For now, enjoy the trailer.

    Second Skin Home Page [Pure West Films]

    9:20 AM on Tue Jan 29 2008
    By Mike Fahey
    5,840 views, 88 comments

    Latest by Onizuka-GTO: @NotSoCool: i know the feeling, i've got kotaku addiction after i got fired from my first employment. while im back on more »

  • where are they now

    Gamasutra Catches Up With Alexey Pajitnov

    Gamasutra has a great article up right now in which they pay a call on gaming pioneer Alexey Pajitnov. For the uninformed, Pajitnov is the creator of a a little game called Tetris. They caught up with him at the GameCity conference in Nottingham, England before a viewing of the documentary Tetris: From Russia With Love to discuss his views on such subjects as the casual gaming scene (including Katamari Damacy), his new projects and the history of Tetris. It's some terrific weekend reading if you have some free time if only to hear the perspective of a true old school gamer on the modern gaming scene. Also, if you have never seen one of the several documentaries that follow the long arduous history of one of the most addicting games ever made, do yourself a favor and check one out. It's an amazing story filled with more drama and intrigue than most soap operas.

    Catching Up Casually: A Chat With Alexey Pajitnov [Gamasutra]

    3:00 PM on Sat Jan 19 2008
    By fdemarco
    2,013 views, 22 comments

    Latest by JoDi: This dude is so nice always. I think I was going to make a "In Soviet Russia..." joke but after reading more »

  • television

    Rise Of The Videogame Begins Tonight

    Just a quick reminder for those of you graced with cable—and not forced to choose between apartment-contracted 'bargain' cable providers or pointing a satellite dish directly at a tree, praying for a fastidious woodpecker to come along. Tonight at 8pm eastern is the premiere of the Discovery Channel's five-part documentary, "The Rise of the Videogame." It explores, using former Kotaku guest editor Geoff Keighley's words, "a look at how the social and political climate shaped games and game designers in the 70s through present day." I can assure you it's much more interesting than it sounds, stuffed with game developers both famous and obscure. Tonight's show features the dark, misunderstood beginning of the video game phenomenon, when people struggled to understand the concept itself. If you won't watch it for you, watch it for sad, cable-less me.

    Discovery's Rise of the Videogame Web Page [Discovery Channel]

    9:30 AM on Wed Nov 21 2007
    By Mike Fahey
    3,306 views, 41 comments

    Latest by cheeseboybeans: @Krondonian: at least our digital is freeeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEEEE! more »

  • dvd

    King of Kong Coming To DVD

    GoNintendo is reporting that King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters is heading for DVD. So, if you missed it in the theaters, now is your chance to see grown men acting like bratty children over who has the highest game score in the comfort of your own living room. The DVD, put out by New Line Cinema, will sell for $19.98 and will have an anamorphic widescreen transfer and commentary from director Seth Gordon and producer Ed Cunningham and a the obligatory extra features. Provided all goes as planned, the disc should be hitting shelves January 29, 2008.

    The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters tentative DVD release [GoNintendo]

    3:00 PM on Sat Nov 17 2007
    By fdemarco
    1,966 views, 17 comments

    Latest by Donner, party of 4... er...3?: It's worth it for the "Wiiipe my buuuuuuuuutt!" part alone. more »

  • tv

    Discovery Channel to Air 5 Hour Videogame Documentary

    Today the Discovery Channel announced that it's going to air a five-hour prime time documentary entitled "Rise of the Videogame." It covers the entire history of the industry and has interviews with the likes of Ralph Baer, David Jaffe, Will Wright, Peter Molyneux and even some now-obscure names like Ken and Roberta Williams, the founders of Sierra Online. I should disclose that I wrote the treatment for this show and served as a producer on it alongside World of Wonder (the company behind Inside Deep Throat). As opposed to a standard "History Of" documentary, the series takes a look at how the social and political climate shaped games and game designers in the 70s through present day. The first episode will premiere on Wednesday, November 21 at 8 PM (ET/PT) with new episodes to follow every Wednesday night through December 19th. If you want more details on each episode, you can read the press release after the jump. More »

    4:40 PM on Thu Nov 8 2007
    By geoff
    9,427 views, 58 comments

    Latest by ViewtifulJason: OK, whose got this torrented? more »

  • clips

    Documentary About Game About Killing


    I've always held that Danny Ledonne made the game based on the massacre at Columbine High School out of a sense of outrage. It was, I believed, a way for him to deal with the shooter and its aftermath. But the more Ledonne makes himself the center of the story, they less I believe that. In his latest work, Ledonne has created a documentary about the aftermath of his game about the aftermath of the massacre. Judging by the rather short trailer, it feels like the documentary is a little too much about Ledonne and not enough about the very real and complicated issues involving both the shooting and the idea of tacking serious subject matters with video games.
    Playing Columbine

    1:04 PM on Mon Jul 30 2007
    By Brian Crecente
    2,185 views, 45 comments

    Latest by L_K_M: @crecente: Hopefully educate the public? more »

  • back to the future

    King of Kong Speaks


    The King of Kong documentary has been making the rounds this year in various film festivals around the US and now there is a controversy over how one of the movie's "characters" was portrayed. In the movie, two men (Billy Mitchell and Steve Weibe) are trying to be crowned the King of Donkey Kong. Mitchell has held the title of the highest score in Donkey Kong up until recently, when Weibe and a documentary crew set out to challenge it. More »

    12:40 PM on Wed May 30 2007
    By Kim Phu
    1,731 views, 23 comments

    Latest by Stercus: Billy Mitchell doesn't "possibly work[s] at a fast-food restaurant" in the same sense a 15 year old works at a more »