King Denies Little Boy's Wish to Be Named 'Sonic X'

This reads like a fairy tale, but it's all true. A 6-year-old Norwegian boy wanted to change his name to "Sonic X," and in his land, such things must be approved by the king. More »

Nordic Fashionistas Get Their LBP On

Moods of Norway, a fashion design firm, is out to save the world from a fashion crisis. At least, that's the point of the LittleBigPlanet level it designed in collaboration with a Norwegian PlayStation distributor. The level's published and ready for you to play and, I assume, won't be taken down because it references third party IP. Although it'd be hilarious if it did. More »

GameStop Buys Norway's Free Record Shop

Folks in Norway who preferred buying video games at the local Free Record Shop instead of GameStop will soon have no real choice in the matter, as GameStop announces an agreement to purchase 100% of the Norwegian branch of the popular retailer. All 49 FRS locations throughout Norway will undergo rebranding once the transaction closes early next month. Says GameStop CEO, Dick Fontaine:

"We look forward to expanding our productive business model in the Norwegian market and partnering with the knowledgeable and energetic store personnel at Free Record Shop. This transaction is another step in our strategy of bringing more video game stores to growth markets around the world."

Not sure how rebranding existing video game stores are GameStop counts as "bringing more", but then I suppose I am not the CEO of a large company. Free Record Store also has locations in The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Finland, though it wouldn't surprise me if this agreement were only the first step in a move to acquire those as well. More »

WoW Helps Boy Triumph Over Moose

Who says video games are a waste of time? I'd like to see one non-gamer confronted by an angry moose and react with even half of the intelligence that 12 year old Hans Jørgen Olsen of Norway did. When he and his sister came across a confrontational moose during a walk in the woods near their home, Hans leapt into action, World of Warcraft style. First he taunted the moose off his sister, allowing her to escape, and then he used his level 30 hunter skill feign death, causing the moose to lose interest and wander off, while the healer in the party had a heart attack before putting two and two together. Just be glad Hans didn't encounter the moose around level 10, because while feign death is certainly real-world viable, I highly doubt charm pet works the same way. More »

Norwegian Artist Paints Purple Tentacle Wall Mural

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