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Did Farmville Steal Game Code from a Competitor?
Zynga, the big-hitting developers of games like FarmVille and CityVille, has found itself in court accused of not just ripping off another company’s idea, but literally stealing the code for it. Developer SocialApps claims that it entered into an agreement with Zynga back in 2009 to develop a farming game, based on its existing Facebook…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2011 -
Well, the World of Warcraft/StarCraft Theme Park Actually Opened
Joyland, a theme park in China built with massive (if unlicensed) tributes to the video games of Blizzard Entertainment, has actually opened its doors. People are going on the rides. And taking photos. In true Oh China fashion, the StarCraft section has been renamed Universe of Starship, while the World of Warcraft sections are even…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2011 -
CultureTotal RecallThe Greatest Mario Rip-Off of Them All
Like any other artistic medium, most video games “borrow” content and ideas from other titles. That’s how inspiration works. There’s a line between inspiration and copyright infringement, though, and in 1987 Time Warp Productions jumped over that line (then into a warp pipe). Their game, The Great Giana Sisters, wasn’t a homage to Nintendo’s Super…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2011 -
Mega Man’s 3DS Game Bites the Dust
In case you couldn’t tell from the lack of serious updates or the departure of the game’s creator, Capcom’s Mega Man Legends 3 has now officially been shitcanned. Neither the community-driven prototype or a final commercial product will be released, Capcom saying the progress made on the game did not meet “the required criteria” necessary…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
This Cosplay Is a Flawless Victory
This Mortal Kombat shot is above and beyond what you normally expect when you think “cosplay photograph”. That’s because Cosplay photographer Alexander Vasiliev is not here to screw around. His Kitana versus Jade image leads the way this week in our round-up of Western cosplay, which also features people dressed to the nines as characters…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
Enjoy A Portal Song, Sung by Two Valve Voice-Over Greats
I know, Portal junk and stuff are so prevalent it sometimes feels as if the internet is drowning in it, but you will still be better off watching this video, filmed over the weekend at the Anime Midwest festival in Chicago. That lady up on stage, Ellen McLain, you’re about to hear her sing the…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
Oh Jigglypuff…
…why so serious? By Dan Hipp
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
The Halo Toy Box Set Charting the History of Master Chief
Action figures normally aren’t funny, but McFarlane’s Halo Anniversary piece is good for a chuckle. Better still, it’ll also be sold as part of a three-pack, each figure depicting Master Chief as he’s appeared in the three main Halo games. Due for release later this year, the bundle includes three figures each his own assortment…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
Will You Help These Stupid Aliens Into Space?
Kerbal Space Program is a simple, free strategy game in which you’re in charge of an alien space program. Don’t worry, it’s nothing too complex. You just build rockets, and if they explode, you build a better one. The core of the game is the space craft creation suite, which is essentially Spore’s Creature Creator,…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
This Man Spent Over a Month of his Life Completing a Video Game
It usually takes some kind of achievement or trophy you can show off to your friends to compel people to 100% complete a video game. For Steve Tolin, however, all it took was the pursuit of true completion. That and 773 hours of his life. Tolin has completed 100% of Dragon Quest IX’s content, the…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
Let’s Check out a Sports Game That Isn’t American (or About Soccer)
The biggest sports game in the world is EA’s FIFA series. After that? A whole bunch of American sports. Great for Americans, or the sport’s fans, but they’re not the only sports in the world. So let’s take a gander today at Rugby Challenge, from New Zealand outfit Sidhe Interactive. A common complaint levelled against…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
Your Steam Downloads Are Now Faster, Stronger
This may not be the sexiest PC gaming news of the year, but for many it may well be the most important to their week-to-week purchasing habits: Valve’s Steam service is now promising vastly improved download speeds. Only a week after Steam was brought to its knees by a massive sale, many downloads trickling down…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
CultureTotal Recall
A Celebration of Awesome NES Title Screen Art
I know we recently took a look at the “forgotten” art of the video game title screen, but those were contemporary examples, from the time the art had already been forgotten. It’s probably a better idea to look at a time when it was in its prime, featured on the games of the Famicom and…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2011 -
Culture
The Regal Video Game Art of Nadia Mogilev
You know, this being video games and all, most of the concept art we feature shows men with guns, or destroyed landscapes or sometimes men with swords. Today, we’ll change that. Well. Mostly. There are still some men with swords, but today’s Fine Art has a gentler touch to it. These images are by artist…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 15, 2011 -
China’s TF2 Rip-Off Also Loves Battlefield Heroes
So Final Combat, China’s seemingly shameless rip-off of Team Fortress 2, isn’t as shameless as we first thought. I mean, it’s not entirely lifting content from Valve’s shooter. It’s lifting it from EA’s Battlefield Heroes as well! This gameplay footage, sent in by reader Enrique, shows that while the game’s characters (and announcer) are straight…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 15, 2011 -
Let’s Make a Deal with Awkward Nintendo Cosplay
TV game show Let’s Make a Deal recently had the honour of featuring not one, but two Nintendo cosplayers. The first, dressed as Link, had the honour of being an actual contestant. The second, dressed as Mario, did not. Link, Mario and Luigi visit Let’s Make a Deal [Go Nintendo]
By Luke Plunkett Published July 15, 2011 -
Meet the Biggest-Selling Wii Game Not Made by Nintendo
A common complaint amongst third-party publishers is that the only games which sell well on Nintendo consoles are Nintendo games. Which is mostly true! Unless you’re Ubisoft. It’s been revealed that the single biggest-selling third-party game on the Wii is now (and is likely to remain, given the console’s impending replacement) Ubisoft’s Just Dance 2,…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 15, 2011 -
It Appears This Game has Turned You Into a Spider
This is Bound, in which you play Tom, who used to be just a regular guy but who has now been turned into a spider. Bummer. Due for the PC sometime towards the end of the year, it’s a student project from Stuttgart Media University, and while the black & white visuals aren’t exactly unique,…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 15, 2011
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