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Weekend Talk Amongst Yourselves
Reader ak-blanc sends this postcard from Liberty City as an unorthodox Father’s Day greeting. Good morning and welcome to Weekend Talk Amongst Yourselves. This is your space to discuss anything on your mind about the subject of video games. Of course, we hope you’ve called your pops or sent him a card and wished him…
By Owen Good -
Culture
Sunday Comics: Chews Your Poison
Welcome to your Sunday read of the week’s best in web comics. Make sure to click on the expand button in the bottom right to enlarge each comic. Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich published June 12.—Read more of Awkward Zombie Nerf NOW!! by Josué Pereira published June 14.—Read more of Nerf NOW!! Penny Arcade by…
By Owen Good -
EA Honcho Doesn’t Want to Piss Off Dead Space Fans, Still Wants to Scare the Crap Out of Them
Viewing the gameplay demonstration of Dead Space 3 at Electronic Arts’ E3 keynote, my immediate reaction was “Well, that looks like a game I can play without dookieing on myself.” Others didn’t have such a positive reaction. Frank Gibeau, the president of EA Labels told CVG that he’s heard the noise and that they “definitely…
By Owen Good -
Forza Totilo: The Winners
My boss’ ride in a Ferrari promoting Forza Horizon at E3 provided us with material for more than 150 ‘Shop entries this week, plus many more to come as it will assuredly become a meme. Or so one hopes. For now, we have 20 winners inside, including overall No. 1 indysgille! Let’s go ahead and…
By Owen Good -
See Life as a Team Fortress 2 Character with this Augmented Reality Smartphone App
Cam Fortress doesn’t really “do” anything, but it does let you pretend to sneak up on someone on the subway platform with your Spy switchblade drawn, or carry Pyro’s flamethrower to a gas station. Developed and launched on Google Play for Android phones, Cam Fortress launched last week, and is free to download. You may…
By Owen Good -
Oh, Good Grief, CBS is Gonna Do a Draw Something TV Show
CBS, the network that once made a show out of a Twitter feed, has picked up the pilot for one based on a Zynga game. Draw Something figures to be a celebrity-infested reality/gameshow hybrid that reeks of the old “Win, Lose or Draw” more than it showcases the game or its features. Per CBS: “Teams…
By Owen Good -
Jimmy Fallon Thought the Wii U was a Wii Peripheral
This morning we ran a roundup of clips from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon‘s big post-E3 “Video Game Week,” highlighted by his hands-on time with the Wii U. Fallon’s opening monologue, however, is where the entertainment is, really. Nintendo can’t be too pleased that its Late Night close up begins by describing the Wii U…
By Owen Good -
Leak or Hoax, a 56-Page Manifesto Does Get Some Things Right About the Next Xbox [Update]
An apparently two-year-old document, purporting to be an internal overview of Microsoft’s plans for the Xbox 360’s successor, surfaced overnight, and while many rightly cast doubt on its authenticity, the claims it makes are not too farfetched. Some have even been reported before. The document, evidently a PowerPoint slide presentation, is at best an official…
By Owen Good -
Reggie Shows Jimmy Fallon How to Flick Throwing Stars with the Wii U Controller
This week, Jimmy Fallon’s Late Night provided a kind of victory lap for video gaming’s heavy-hitting brands coming out of E3. “Video Game Week” on the show wrapped up last night with Reggie Fils-Aime, the boss of Nintendo of America, giving Fallon some hands-on time with the Wii U. Sure, it’s a hype appearance, but…
By Owen Good -
All My Rowdy Super Friends
I haven’t picked up a LEGO title in years but I have to admit LEGO Batman 2 has my attention. A bonus credit on the purchase of that game, plus savings on Steel Battalion and The Secret World headline this week’s roundup of deals in The Moneysaver. Software • June 19 release Lego Batman 2:…
By Owen Good -
Hitler Recaps the Week in Video Games
Godwin’s Law states that “as an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1.” As basically all video game discussion takes place online, let’s just cut to the chase and give der fuehrer’s take on recent topics of interest to gamers. It’s been a month since we checked…
By Owen Good -
Backhanded Box Quotes: ‘Gears of War with Normal Size People’
Welcome to “Backhanded Box Quotes,” a collection of super pissed-off user reviews from people just like you! Whoa, whoa, don’t take that personal. Inversion Released: June 5. Critic: JayDeth (Metacritic) • “[S]ome things explode and suddenly your playing Gears of War with normal sized people. Yay?” • “[V]ery very bland and no one will ever…
By Owen Good -
Lessons in Double-Speak, from Native Speakers
The major controversies, disappointments and outrages of the preceding week all seemed to share one trait: They contained some eye-rolling levels of double-speak and ulterior meanings. The issues themselves have been gummed to death, and I really don’t wish to rehash those arguments. But we’re talking about debates that could have been better served, and…
By Owen Good -
Two Dozen All-Time Greats Available in Madden 13, with More to be Unlocked
News and notes from around the world of sports video gaming: • Madden NFL 13‘s new “Connected Careers” mode will allow gamers to play as one of several all-time greats—rated according to their rookie seasons—or run a team as one of seven hall-of-fame coaches. There are 27 players and seven coaches in all, but some…
By Owen Good -
A Handshake-Only Deal Pays Off for FIFA and an Unlikely Champion
EA Sports is well known for licensing partnerships, especially exclusive ones that command quite a premium from the publisher. Yet in one of its timelier, and more unusual ones, no money changed hands. The label, through its FIFA franchise, of course, is the official games partner of Manchester City, recently crowned champion of the English…
By Owen Good -
DayZ‘s Caretakers Thwart ‘Sustained and Constant’ Hacking
Rocket, of the development team behind the Arma II mod DayZ tweeted moments ago that “due to sustained and constant hacking, the central database is being dropped until further notice. You will not be able to connect.” Kotaku has emailed Rocket for clarification and additional details. Update: That didn’t last long. All functionality was quickly…
By Owen Good -
Sorry, South Alabama, You’re Not in the Game
A couple years ago, Cullen Loeffler was sore at EA Sports because they had deliberately left the Minnesota Vikings’ long snapper out of Madden NFL, for years, because of roster space restrictions. It was an amusing kerfuffle, mostly because who the hell is really looking to play as a long snapper on special teams, anyway.…
By Owen Good -
Running Backs Should Deliver the Most Enjoyable Reaction Time in NCAA 13
Robert Griffin III may be the cover athlete for NCAA Football 13 but the former Baylor quarterback is not an optimal superstar headlining the game’s demo, which released last week. He’s skilled enough, but the new “Reaction Time”—the signal feature of NCAA 13‘s Heisman and Road to Glory modes—is really showcased when you’re running the…
By Owen Good
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