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Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
GameStop Goes Casual
The Fantastic Fieldrunners Makes The PAX 10
Indie Dev To Make Biblical Striptease Game
iPhone Devs Create Games Seal of Quality
E3's Fuzziest Controller Causes Cute Overload
Snapshot Tinkers with Side-Scrolling Formula
IndieCade E3 Booth Gives Sneak Peek at Festival Entries
Indie Devs Turn To In-Game Ads After Piracy Strike
Braid Delayed (for the PC)

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Timstuff
10/07/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
I finally was able to see the slideshow/trailer, and noticed that in one of the rooms there was a modern 6-string guitar. 2000 years ago. Talk about historical accuracy!
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RicoTheSaboteur promoted this comment Timstuff was starred Timstuff was unstarred

RicoTheSaboteur
10/07/09

@Timstuff: Actually there are several anachronisms put in the game on purpose (the guitar is next to an amp, so it has to be on purpose). I assume it is to underline the timelessness of the tale. Is it a good idea? I am not sure, but it is no accident.
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phinehas
10/07/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
It's strange to pick this out of the entire new testament and then make it into something it's really not about. Which is fine, artistic license and all that I guess.

The book, though, is about Jesus' life and I find that faaaaaaaaaaaaaaar more interesting.
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phinehas was starred phinehas was unstarred

Sticks Calhoun
10/07/09

@phinehas: Let's not kid ourselves.

It needed more explosions and chase scenes.
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Sticks Calhoun was starred Sticks Calhoun was unstarred

Jorw
10/07/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
I played through Fatale last night and I think it's by far Tale of Tales' worst effort. I don't know if I was playing it wrong, but all I did was blow out candles for thirty minutes.

And isn't this supposed to be an artistic interpretation of the story or something? If there is any meaning here, it's far too abstract for me to understand.
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RicoTheSaboteur promoted this comment Jorw was starred Jorw was unstarred

RicoTheSaboteur
10/07/09

@Jorw: When you restart the game after completing it, you get to see an epilogue. While it does not explain anything, it gave me some time to reflect about the game and understand a number of things that flew way over my head during the play through. My lack of familiarity with the biblical story and its retelling by Wild certainly did not help, but the game designers where not that helpful either (to be more precise, I think they tried but failed, at least with me).

Some good ideas, some good moments, indubitably original, but overall the experience is a bit rough around the edges and tends to confuse mystery and illegibility, both in interface design and storytelling. Or maybe I am just dumb, which is something that should never be ruled out.

This being said, very few experiments result in a complete success, so I am fine with paying $7 to get an hour of entertainment and encourage people to continue experimenting.
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RicoTheSaboteur was starred RicoTheSaboteur was unstarred

Draco_2k
10/07/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
Holy shit. A religious game that actually sounds like it could be good? I guess I'd better check is the sky isn't clouded with flies, and rivers aren't running red with blood...
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mescalineeyes promoted this comment Draco_2k was starred Draco_2k was unstarred

Monolith
10/07/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
This looked less than spectacular, until I watched/listened to the trailer.
I would buy this if I had $7 to spare.
Which I don't after getting laid off due to budget cuts.

Also, question for Glasser:
"She dances what passed for a striptease back in those days"
What do you mean by "what passed for"? I was under the impression that back in those days, people were far more into the whole "clothing optional" thing. What would make it any less revealing back then compared to now?
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Edited by Monolith at 10/07/09 1:02 AM Monolith was starred Monolith was unstarred

AJ Glasser
10/07/09

@Monolith: We're talking rich girl circa 14 AD. That means she had money for clothes. As I understand it, clothes therefore = money = sexy. So her veil dance where I think she's actively making use of clothing counts as a "striptease" because it follows the same principles only with the clothes being on instead of off.

But like I said, my grasp of the Bible is weak at best. That could have been a reference to playing chess for all I know :)
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Monolith
10/07/09

@AJ Glasser: Didn't think about that. I suppose the most attractive thing is that which you never get. Expensive clothes would have been that thing.

Which is incredibly awesome when you think about it. What I wouldn't give to live for a couple years in that time period.
...(as a noble obviously).
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Monolith was starred Monolith was unstarred

phinehas
10/07/09

@Monolith: They wore clothes, and like any society at the time nudity was not a normal thing.

The girl, however, was a dancer in the court of one of the government officials, so she was probably more elaborately dressed than others.
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phinehas was starred phinehas was unstarred

Hey_Blinkon
10/06/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
Eh, this just seems to be a game trying to capitalize off of controversy. In the sequel you can crucify Jesus Christ.
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Hey_Blinkon was starred Hey_Blinkon was unstarred

abyssion1337
10/06/09

@Hey_Blinkon: I'd usually agree with that but that's not usually something that Indie developers do
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TheCleaningGuy promoted this comment abyssion1337 was starred abyssion1337 was unstarred

TheCleaningGuy
10/06/09

@abyssion1337: I agree. I think Kotaku blew it out of proportion with the whole "Biblical Striptease!" thing. Then again, I haven't played it, so what the hell do I know.
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Hey_Blinkon
10/06/09

@abyssion1337: Really? What better way to get exposure?
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Boom-Chicka-Ah: Here to Create a Star Commenter Empire
10/06/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
From a Jew to another, Shalom AJ Glasser!!
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wanion
10/06/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
Just jumping off from AJ's comment about her interest in the Salome story despite being Jewish, here's a little site that makes the bible fun for people of any religion:
[www.thebricktestament.com]
(NSFW in a Lego sort of way)
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wanion was starred wanion was unstarred

Boom-Chicka-Ah: Here to Create a Star Commenter Empire
10/06/09

@wanion: Lmao that was entertaining but i'll stick to my NKJV :P
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Hey_Blinkon
10/06/09

@Boom-Chicka-Ah: Here to Create a Star Commenter Empire: NKJV? So you must not be a practicing Jew.... :P
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Boom-Chicka-Ah: Here to Create a Star Commenter Empire promoted this comment Hey_Blinkon was starred Hey_Blinkon was unstarred

Boom-Chicka-Ah: Here to Create a Star Commenter Empire
10/07/09

@Hey_Blinkon: Yea I'm messianic
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-Skyline-:Offering FREE Grunt Birthday Parties!
10/06/09

In reply to Biblical Striptease Game Is Live!
Site got Kotaku'd... in like less then 10 minutes?
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ggodo, the man from R.O.A.C.H.
10/06/09

@-Skyline-: Offering FREE Grunt Birthday Parties!: Yea, the title promises striptease.
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Sherlock Homo
07/31/09

In reply to GameStop Goes Casual
Plants Vs. Zombies is a great game, no matter how hardcore or casual you are. But, that could be said with every Popcap game.
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gold163 Can (Not) Advance promoted this comment Sherlock Homo was starred Sherlock Homo was unstarred

gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

@Andy misses his 360 :(: Is it worth $20 though? :/
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Vysion
07/31/09

@gold163 Can (Not) Advance: Try it for free at Big Fish Games (one hour demo) and if you like it, grab it for $6.99. Or you can get it through Steam and have Achievements.
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gold163 Can (Not) Advance promoted this comment Vysion was starred Vysion was unstarred

gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

@Vysion: Wow, thank god, I was just about to spend $9.99 on Steam for it. Instead I directed that money towards the Monkey Island special edition. :P
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neozealot
07/31/09

In reply to GameStop Goes Casual
plants vs zombies for 20$?! are you shitting me?!
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Johnny
07/31/09

@neozealot: Honestly? I wouldn't play Plants vs Zombies if I could get it for free. Which I can. Whoops.
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Johnny was starred Johnny was unstarred

Zombie Peach
07/31/09

@Janxer: Huh. Last I checked, Plants vs. Zombies was an awesome game.
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gold163 Can (Not) Advance promoted this comment Zombie Peach was starred Zombie Peach was unstarred

gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

@Crenshaw13: I bet he meant, "couldn't" get it for free. Times are tight, and a lot of people would rather buy other games than Plants vs. Zombies, despite how good it is.
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gold163 (° д° ) was starred

Johnny
07/31/09

@Crenshaw13: Last I checked, I didn't agree with that mindset.
And yeah, that's supposed to be "can't".
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Johnny was starred Johnny was unstarred

BruzeWayne
07/31/09

In reply to GameStop Goes Casual
YES! I can FINALLY get caught up on the Agatha Christie series. Sooooo many curses to break, and legends to dispell!!!
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thespyderboy promoted this comment BruzeWayne was starred BruzeWayne was unstarred

JP05
07/31/09

In reply to GameStop Goes Casual
I avoid GameStop as much as possible, the last thing I want to do is go Digital with them.

I'll stick with Steam.
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JP05 was starred JP05 was unstarred

thespyderboy
07/31/09

@JP05: +1
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gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

In reply to GameStop Goes Casual
I think it's funny how "casual game developers" don't want their games to be known as "casual games" because they think that the title is demeaning. And then Gamestop makes a section of their store specifically for "casual gamers", who often recognize themselves as such. :/
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gold163 (° д° ) was starred

7ucky
07/31/09

@gold163 Can (Not) Advance: What are you talking about? I don't know any devs in the space that feel that way. In fact it's the opposite, Casual devs are flourishing while huge studios are closing their doors. Where do you hear such things?
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gold163 Can (Not) Advance promoted this comment 7ucky was starred 7ucky was unstarred

gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

@7ucky: I didn't say anything about the economic state of the companies, but I do remember reading a while back that casual developers hated being labeled as "casual", because they believed that their titles had as much merit and deserved as much attention in the market as AAA titles, which I thought was kind of bullshit, because I'd pick MGS4 over Bejeweled any day. X_X
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Edited by gold163 (° д° ) at 07/31/09 11:08 AM gold163 (° д° ) was starred

n00b_pwner
07/31/09

@gold163 Can (Not) Advance: Casual games can and will be addicting because of thier simple premise, as games like Call of Duty and Halo are replayable only due to multiplayer, while Fallout 3 is because of DLC.

Take singleplayer games like Prototype and Bioshock, and I personally don't see any reason to play it again unless if I get the urge after an extended time.

Take a game like fantastic contraption http://www.fantasticcontraption.com/ and you would spend a lot of time playing it BECAUSE it is simple.

I consider myself to be a hardcore gamer, but you can't forget what makes games entertaining in the first place.
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gold163 Can (Not) Advance promoted this comment n00b_pwner was starred n00b_pwner was unstarred

gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

@n00b_pwner: I certainly don't doubt that; I just wanted to point out my belief that "casual games" are deserving of that title, and are a separate entity from the rest of games as far as I'm concerned.
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gold163 (° д° ) was starred

7ucky
07/31/09

@gold163 Can (Not) Advance: Fair enough! Casual games studios aren't all winners, to be sure. And I'm with you: I definitely don't put a match 3 game on the same level as Half-Life.

I was more wondering if there was a company/person who said they felt that way because judging by all the drunken smiling faces at the casual games conference last week, everyone seems to be enjoying the label of "casual games" people. :D
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7ucky was starred 7ucky was unstarred

styl3s
07/31/09

@gold163 Can (Not) Advance:
Wrong, the only people who find casual gaming demeaning and look down on it are "hardcore" gamers who think they are too cool for school.

only morons classify games like "hardcore" "casual"
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gold163 Can (Not) Advance promoted this comment styl3s was starred styl3s was unstarred

gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

@styl3s: Why is this, in your opinion? I'd like to see why you think that all "hardcore" gamers find casual gaming demeaning, or why you think the distinction between "hardcore" and "casual" is unnecessary and stupid. Personally, I don't see anything demeaning about it. I just think that there's a very fine difference between what makes one game a "hardcore" game, and what makes another a "casual" game. Sure, Monopoly and Dungeons and Dragons are both board games, but I don't really see myself thinking that they can be classified as similar.

And like I said, some people actually classify themselves as "casual gamers". I'm sure that they don't all have inferiority complexes or anything. Are they all morons too? There's no need to be so aggressive about this.
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Edited by gold163 (° д° ) at 07/31/09 11:30 AM gold163 (° д° ) was starred

gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

@7ucky: Maybe I'm just out of touch, or misread something.

See, styl3s? Even the companies themselves acknowledge the label, "casual games". So game developers are morons too? :P
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gold163 (° д° ) was starred

Ueziel
07/31/09

@gold163 Can (Not) Advance: If I made something like Plants vs Zombies, I'd honestly be pretty mad if someone lumped me in with a bunch of games that had nothing to do with the tower defense/puzzle genre. The problem is, all of these "casual" games have actual genres, which no one uses anymore and the word "casual" has such a negative meaning around here that whenever someone says that they like Plants vs Zombies or Peggle or something, they have to add on "but it's the only casual game I like!" or else they get stoned to death.

It's dumb. If people just called them as part of the genres that they are, you wouldn't have this ever growing chasm forming up between people.
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gold163 Can (Not) Advance promoted this comment Ueziel was starred Ueziel was unstarred

gold163 (° д° )
07/31/09

@Ueziel: I don't typically refer to games themselves as "hardcore" or "casual", but I think it's important to differentiate between the demographics that such games represent when referring to them. That's all. If I want to play a tower defense game, then I'll look it up under, "tower defense", not "casual" or "hardcore". I have no problem referring to any game through its genre, but it's kind of futile to act as if there isn't a difference between what makes a game for "hardcore" audiences, and what makes a game for "casual" audiences, in my opinion. The chasm here only exists because of misuse of the two terms, and misunderstanding. I'd like to make this clear: yes, "hardcore" and "casual" aren't genres, and there's nothing inherently wrong about a game being "casual" or "hardcore", and I know that.
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Edited by gold163 (° д° ) at 07/31/09 12:07 PM gold163 (° д° ) was starred

Michael Dukakis - Curse you baseball gods!
07/31/09

In reply to GameStop Goes Casual
I saw the words "John Deere" and a little bit of me died inside.
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