What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Being surrounded by the latest and greatest future releases the video game industry has to offer might lead one to think that my thirst for gaming has been quenched. Not so. Despite having access to E3's massive library of games, I experienced but a fraction of what was playable at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Fortunately, I have a hard drive full of Xbox Live Arcade games to fill the void, including some stuff that, well, I'm not sure I'm allowed to mention. Suffice it to say, I'll be playing something fun this weekend.

On top of that, we'll be prepping for Comic Con. Anyone going?

I'll also be heading out to the Street Fighter Fight Club event in LA tonight, spending a bit more time with Street Fighter IV (and whatever else is on hand). Your gaming plans for this weekend are...?

Atari: Witchers, RPGs, Cooks, and ... Deer Hunters

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Play? Video games? Not this weekend, pal. There's far too much to get done for E3, which for the Kotaku staff, starts Sunday afternoon. Some of us will be probably be playing our Game Boy Advances, DSs, PSPs and Neo Geo Pocket Colors en route to smoggy Los Angeles, California, but this editor is going to focus on leveling up his stress levels. Oh, sure I may get my Paladin up to level 50 in Diablo II to let off some steam, but beyond that... work, work, work, work, work!

Hopefully, some of you are planning on hitting up the Kotaku party on Sunday. Then we can talk about games. For now, let us know what your playing this weekend in the comments, and I'll live vicariously through you. Maybe name your character after me in a sign of solidarity? No? Hey, I tried.

What Are You Playing This Holiday Weekend?

What are you playing this weekend? On a Thursday? Sorry, but we got some independence to celebrate. That's what we'll be doing all day tomorrow instead of hunting for game cakes, posting crazy wild speculation and bringing you the freshest of Tifa hentai. We'll be shootin' guns, lighting M-80s and stuffing our fat faces with saturated fats and washing it all down with a frosty cold... well, you know. We might even find some time to do a few posts. In fact, I'm pretty sure of it.

We might even play some games! Playing through Too Human has given me a loot gathering itch that only Diablo II and/or Phantasy Star Online can scratch. Say, that reminds me. This weekend is a free Day of Defeat: Source weekend, meaning you can game on Valve's dime should you have a Steam account. Have a good one, America!

Activision Boss Wants Cheaper Consoles

Activision honcho Bobby Kotick is worried. Very worried. Video game consoles are expensive! And to buy them, you need money. Lots. As Kotick points out:

It used to be the case that we did well during slowdowns because if you couldn't afford to go to the movies or to travel to a theme park, you stayed home and played a computer game. But now I think that the hardware manufacturers are going to have to think about reducing their prices because the cost of purchasing some of this stuff is prohibitive.

I dunno, as a kid, I kinda always remember video game consoles being expensive. But hey, that's because I was like a little kid and little kids have no money. But I'm an adult now, and it's all relative, Bobby Kotick! Speaking of adults, Bobby also pointed out that the adult geared games are as important to the industry as R-rated movies. That's echoing similar things Kotick stated earlier. This leas us to believe that yes he will probably say the same thing again.

Guitar Hero firm Activision [Times Online via MCVUK]

While wrangling coverage of Blizzard's Worldwide Invitational will consume a portion of my weekend, spending more time hands-on with Silicon Knights' Too Human will swallow up quite a bit more of my Saturday and Sunday. Expect extended impressions on that game throughout next week. To wind down, I'll be devoting some personal time with Team Fortress 2, playing as one of the many Pyros clogging the ranks on the hunt for Steam Achievements and new weapons. Oh, and there's Soul Bubbles to finish. Lordy!

Other than that, it's time for serious Summer fun. We'll be bandying about shuttlecocks and grilling lots of meat in the greater Los Angeles area, working on our third sunburn. What have you got planned for this regular sized weekend? Any gaming gettin' done?

One week it's Guitar Hero DS. The next it's Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. Not enough? Mid-week we've got news of Gutar Hero action figures.

When a brand is successful, it spreads. And that means: toys. Seemingly undeterred by the fact that my corporate overlords finance Rock Band, the people at McFarlane Toys gave my MTV blog a first look at the Guitar Hero: Axel Steel action figure. A full figure pic is at the link below.

Figures of Johnny Napalm, Lars Umlaut and God of Rock should be floating around the web too. Figures come out in the fall for $10-15.

First Pic Of ‘Guitar Hero’ Action Figure - Axel Steel [MTV Multiplayer]

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

With the new changes to the Pyro class in Team Fortress 2, it's time to blow the dust off the PC—something I've been neglecting—and get my hands on those lovely new weapons. And those two new maps! Since there's a free TF2 weekend happening right now, you really have no excuse not to join in on the fun. Okay, you might have a half-dozen or so, but I really don't want to hear 'em.

I'll also be cruising through Metal Gear Solid 4 one more time, taking my time to enjoy the sights instead of constantly thinking "Must finish by Tuesday. Must publish review. Run, Snake, run!!" Other than that, I'll just be trying to beat the heat.

What are you playing this weekend?

Five LEGO Video Games That Will Never Be

With LEGO adding a delicious layer of licensing to properties like Star Wars, Indiana Jones and Batman to generally welcome results, we won't be surprised when LEGO Halo becomes a real project or once proud properties like Tomb Raider resort to the LEGO treatment to win new fans.

The Minus World gang put together a list of five LEGO video games that will never ever happen, though we're not 100% sure that LEGO Juno is completely off the table. Our favorite is above, but heretics may find LEGO The Passion of the Christ more to their liking.

5 LEGO Video Games That Will Never Happen [The Minus-World]

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Me? Metal Gear Solid 4 obviously! I'm only a few hours in, right when Snake starts battling the space aliens and all those Raiden clones start showing up and attack Meryl with the leech launcher. That's total bullshit, obviously, so don't string me up for spoiling you on Solid Snake's search for the kingdom of the crystal skull and that there's an unlockable bloodsucking weapon.

Beyond MGS4, I have a Kotaku giveaway contest to design this weekend, a birthday party to attend, plus some Meat Bun related things to wrap up, all very exciting stuff. All that and a Metal Gear Solid 4 review by Monday? Can I do it?! What about you? What are your IRL and virtual plans for the weekend?

Iceland. It's where all the cool kids go to have a summit. Reagan and Gorbachev rapped about nukes there in 1985; 20 years later, the Supreme Metal Council condemned the overuse of the devil horns hand-signal. And now something billing itself as EVE Online's democratically elected government will meet there, probably because it's too far for Something Awful to show up and grief the shit out of it.

The only gaming I'll be doing this weekend will be in the form of low stakes blackjack and pulling some one-armed bandits, as this weekend is a Vegas weekend for yours truly. Having just visited Las Vegas for Capcom's Captivate 08 media event last week, you might wonder why I'd be so quick to return. Well, when you don't leave step out of the confines of the hotel for 48 hours, you don't really see much of Vegas.

Besides, last night we had a bad gamer bender at a friend's house. After a Haze demo, we decided to continue slumming it with the so-bad-it's-bad Crash Time and the even worse Yaris, two impressively dreadful Xbox 360 racers. At least the Battlefield: Bad Company was fun. But I think I need a break. How about you? Gaming plans?

What Did You Play This Weekend?

Another blown "What Are You Playing This Weekend?," another chance for "What Did You Play This Weekend?" on a Monday evening. With WAYPTW? duties put to the wayside by attending Capcom's Captivate 08,—the details of which you should see tomorrow morning beginning at 8 AM Eastern Time—we'll have to settle for the accurate version, not the fantasy version of your weekend gaming adventures.

Me? I was video gamed out after playing the wares on display at Captivate 08, plus I'm still suffering some sort of bizarre thumb strain from speed-reviewing Grand Theft Auto IV—no, that's not a joke—so I was game free. I'm currently running through Final Fantasy VI for the first time ever, though, and will be all up in it again this week. You?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

This is weird. I feel like I don't have anything to play! It's Memorial Day weekend and, in the tradition of takin' it easy to honor the memory of U.S. soldiers who have died in military service to their country [Ed.'s note: :( ] I'll be takin' it real easy. I'll play whatever is on the inside of my many consoles already. Taking stock, that's Grand Theft Auto IV in the Xbox 360, Super Mario Galaxy in the Wii, Phantasy Star Collection in the PS2 and Haze in the PS3. Just kidding on that last one. I've had my fill. I'll make sure to put that right back in its case.

We've got some BBQing and pool partying that needs to get done, plus some lazing about, maybe some straightening of the U.S. flag outside Kotaku Towers West. Other than that, just kickin' it. You? What are you playing this extended holiday weekend, should you have one?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

I'm about to beat feet to a Sony Computer Entertainment America related event, so who knows what I'll be playing this day. Hopefully, something exciting! For the rest of the weekend though, I'll be hunkering down with a PlayStation 3 and a copy of Haze, racing to shoot my way through Ubisoft's first person exclusive that should appeal to bees. Bees!! I've gotten as far as the installation so far, but will have it finished by Monday at the latest. Woo!

Okay, I'm already late for Sony! Have a good weekend, y'all! Oh, what are you playing, anyway?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Last night we had a bit of a gaming bender at Kotaku Towers West, a night filled with Wii Fit, We Ski, and Rock Band. The highlight, of course, was a two hour Cruis'n session—the Wii shitware title that was finally freed from its shrinkwrap confines last night to much amusement. It's absolutely the most unintentionally hilarious game I've ever played, with some of the sloppiest game design ever... even for a Cruis'n title. Rarely has a game brought me to tears with laughter, so Cruis'n should at least be lauded for that. Highly recommended for your next game night, especially if booze is available.

This weekend I'll be ditching the Cruis'n as I get back to R-Type Command and continue my Rock Band duties, now with added Boston. How about you? Weekend plans?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

With Ma and Pa McWhertor swooping in to LA this weekend, my attempts to get some Grand Theft Auto IV time in are most assuredly thwarted. I can't have my mother hearing that kind of language, seeing her favorite son act like a callous criminal and enjoying every salacious second! Perhaps I'll be able to squeeze in a bit of time with R-Type Command, scheduled to ship May 6 and arriving at Kotaku Towers West yesterday. The review is planned for an appearance next Friday, if you're looking for an opinion on the PSP game.

Outside of some strategic Bydo empire dismantling, I'll be playing "Entertain The Folks" with my weekend. How about you? What are you playing this weekend?

I love architecture — and still have days where I think I probably should've gone into architectural history — so I always enjoy BLDGBLOG's game-related posts. This week is a chat with Daniel Dociu, Chief Art Director of Guild Wars. The interview is worth reading for a look at the pictures alone, but a look at how gorgeous environments are created is interesting, too:

... I look back all the way to the dawn of mankind: to ruins, and Greek architecture, and Mycenean architecture, all the way up to the architecture of the Crusades, and castles in North Africa, and the Romanesque and Gothic and Baroque and Rococo - even to neo-Classical and art deco and Bauhaus and Modernist. I mean, there are bits and pieces here and there that make a strong impression on me, and I blend them - but that's the beauty of games. You don't have to be stylistically pure, or even coherent. You can afford a certain eclecticism to your work. It's a more forgiving medium. I can blend elements from the Potala Palace in Tibet with, say, La Sagrada Família, Antoni Gaudí's cathedral. I really take a lot of liberties with whatever I can use, wherever I can find it.

You can find more examples of Dociu's work at his website or BLDGBLOG's Flickr photostream.

Game/Space: An Interview With Daniel Dociu [BLDBLOG]