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The Two Best Twitter Accounts Around (For Video Games)
Use Twitter? You just might! You may, if you’re one of the clever ones, be following sites like this, or people like this Those two are OK, I guess, but they’re far from my favourite. Especially when it comes to video games. Instead, that honour is shared between two accounts. Two very different accounts. I…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 14, 2012 -
An Idiot Was Paid $5 Million to Smuggle Cocaine Inside an Xbox
It was only a month ago we heard of a guy who tried, and failed, to hide a few bricks of coke inside an Xbox. Guyanese drug smugglers obviously don’t keep up with the news. Border authorities in Jamaica have arrested a man who, after initially clearing customs with two items of luggage, tried to…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 14, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
An Evolving History of Old Video Games For Girls
Think back to the video games of the 80s and 90s and most characters, let alone protagonists, were dudes. But not all of them. Which is where the delightfully-named Femicom comes in. It’s a website that’s looking to “collect information about 20th century electronic games and toys, especially video games and computer software, that feature…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallThe Secrets, and Threats, Lurking Behind Pokémon Games
This is the first episode of Did You Know Gaming?, a new series close to my heart because it does exactly what I try to do here with Total Recall: not necessarily dwell on the known history of games, but the more interesting stuff hiding in the background. It’s off to a good start, with…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
The Story of a Family in Turmoil After a Video Game Studio Closes its Doors
The collapse of 38 Studios has been notable not just for the scale and suddenness of the closure, but the manner in which it has affected employees. It’s easy for us to read a story about a shuttered game developer, think of the games we’ll never get to see, then move on with our lives.…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
Be Afraid, There’s a “New” Valve Indie Bundle
Last year, Valve released a bundle of indie titles on Steam called the Potato Sack. It was a great deal, sure, but another main purpose was for it to set off a chain of marketing and hype that led to the early release of Portal 2 This year, the idea returns, with the Potato Sack…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
Now Anyone Can Cosplay in This “Armoured” Hoodie
Cosplay normally requires, at least in theory, a ton of design and manufacturing work. Followed by modelling and photography. That’s even more work. If you want to look like something fancy and dressed up, it’s way easier to just buy one of these hoodies. Then you can say you’re cosplaying Dragon Age, or Skyrim, or…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
That Left 4 Dead Prequel Rumour Was, Sadly, a Bust
That rumour last week that there was a Left 4 Dead prequel in development? Yeah, not true. “We’re trying to be a little coy and a little fun because we want the communities to discover it,” Valve’ Chet Falisek told PCGamesN, “but those guys are still making Payday: The Heist, we’re still making Left 4…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
Culture
Thundercats, and Concept Art, Ho!
Tyler Breon is an artist who has previously worked on properties such as Spider Man, Uncharted and God of War, including the most recent title in the series, the upcoming Ascension He’s currently employed at Big Red Button Entertainment, who are working on unannounced projects. If you like what you see here, you can check…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
The Best of Old and New Gaming Collide in Mercenary Kings
The latest title from Tribute Games, the developers of the wonderful Wizorb, is Mercenary Kings. At first glance, it looks like a homage to old side-scrollers like Metal Slug. And, in some ways, it is! But it also involves something a little more contemporary, at least in its scope: crafting. The levels will be littered…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
This Game Might Actually Get “Force Powers” Right
While it’s still very early in development – hence the rough edges – there’s still a ton of promise to be found in Stillalive Studio’s Son of Nor Looking like an Avatar game in everything but the, um, official license, players use the terrain and the elements as their weapons, shifting the landscape and creating…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
For Cheaters in Max Payne 3, Hell is Other Cheaters
Max Payne 3 developers Rockstar have come up with a tidy solution to the problem of dealing with online cheaters: throw them in the same room together and let them kill (or at least annoy) each other. Here’s Rockstar’s explanation: Anyone found to have used hacked saves, modded games, or other exploits to gain an…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
Blizzard Limits the Number of Diablo III Games You Can Create
In an effort to “help reduce server strain and improve overall game stability”, Blizzard has placed an undisclosed limit on the number of new Diablo III games a player may create in quick succession. While this will annoy those “farming” for rare items, who will create a game, quickly check stuff, leave then create another…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
When PC Games Look Like Complete Shit
As the current generation of consoles get older and older, we’re seeing PC games like Battlefield 3, Crysis 2 and even Max Payne 3 already start to look decidedly next-gen. At least, they do if you’ve got a decent rig. If you don’t, then your games won’t look as good as they do in official…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallSee How Tron’s Original Arcade Looks Today
In the 1982 film Tron, nearly everything takes place, in one way or another, inside a joint called Flynn’s Arcade. While at E3 last week, video game historian Scott Patterson decided to skip the noise and light and go and see how the building used for filming is looking today. It’s…not bad! It’s still clearly…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 12, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Nintendo’s Early DRM Was Simple (And Didn’t Work)
DRM, or Digital Rights Management, is in many ways the great scourge of modern gaming. Designed to limit the effects of piracy, it’s often more of a pain in the ass for paying customers than it is a hindrance to pirates. It’s usually associated with PC games, but Nintendo is no stranger to it either.…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 12, 2012 -
This Video Game is a “Paedophile Haven”, Apparently
Being neither a small child or, it turns out, a paedophile, I had no idea, but according to a documentary put together by Britain’s Channel 4, kid’s online game Habbo is the place to go if you want someone to ” licky your v a g i n a”. The report collects a ton of…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 12, 2012 -
The 3DS’ Circle Pad Pro Gets a Very Attractive Makeover
Nintendo’s official 3DS Circle Pad Pro extension is, well, it’s not very pretty. It’s also getting hard to find. Thank the maker for Nyko, then, who have not only produced the world’s first third-party alternative, but have come up with something that looks much nicer than Nintendo’s offering. For $30, the Nyko Power Grip Pro…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 12, 2012 -
This Guy’s Portal Gun Actually Works, Turns His House Into a Test Chamber
Jason Craft recently purchased a Portal Gun from Aperture Laboratories. Not a toy. A real one. You can see it in action in this video, where he tests it out with a few friends. Sure, it might look like fun and games in the game, but in the real world? These things are dangerous POrtal:…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 12, 2012 -
Former NFL Player Recovers From Video Game Addiction, Returns to Pro Football
Former All-American defensive tackle Quinn Pitcock was, in 2007, a high profile rookie on the Indianapolis Colts’ roster. By 2008, he was out of the NFL, not because his body was damaged, but because he was addicted to playing Call of Duty No, seriously. Pitcock’s inability to stop playing his Xbox 360, in particular Activision’s…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 12, 2012
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