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Culture
Sunday Comics: Dead Island
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. Virtual Shackles by Jeremy Vinar and Mike Fahmie published May 25.—Read more of Virtual Shackles Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich published May 21.—Read more of Awkward Zombie…
By Owen Good Published May 27, 2012 -
Culture
I Don’t Know What the Hell is Going on With These Guys, But I Like it
Chinese artist Xi Zhang works for online gaming powerhouse Tencent. He’s been in the video game business for nearly ten years now. Some concept artist’s work is shooting for realism. Others aim for mood. Zhang’s looks like something I would dip in honey and serve at a party, it looks that tasty You can see…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 26, 2012 -
Culture
We Can Only Hope Next-Gen Street Fighter Looks This Good
Loraine Howard III doesn’t just have the best name of any artist we’ve featured here on our concept art spotlight, he also has some of the most impressive 3D work, headlined by the incredible Balrog you see up top. If next-gen pants don’t look that good I’ll be very disappointed. Loraine has previously worked with…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 25, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
How to Beat the Worst Video Game Ever Made
While that’s a subjective boast, has any other game been so terrible that copies of it were taken out into the middle of the desert and buried? No. So I’m sticking with it. ET, released in 1982, was so terrible that marketing material had to be produced helping players get through it. If what’s written…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 24, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallThe Internet Has Never Been More Awkward Than Julia Stiles in 1994
As awful as this is, I can’t stop watching. This is Julia Stiles circa 1994, guest-starring on Ghostwriter, and introducing kids to the wonders – and perils – of the internet. Such an idealist, she was! Shame she never saw the porn, cat pictures and Facebook coming. She might have lingered a little less longingly…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 24, 2012 -
Culture
What is This, Video Games or a Fashion Show?
Jace Wallace is a concept artist currently employed by Electronic Arts. Some of his more recent works include The Sims 3. But don’t let that put you off what you’re about to see. Because what you’re about to see is some beautiful art. You can see a lot more stuff at Jace’s personal site To…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 24, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallThe Excitement of Driving a Public Bus Around Tokyo. Very Slowly.
Japan has a long and storied tradition of developing games where you are a train driver. Doing very little but going forwards, backwards and slowing down at stations. If that sounds a little too pedestrian for your tastes, well, there’s always Tokyo Bus Guide. Released around the turn of the milennium on the Dreamcast (and…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 23, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Game Box Nipples and Gunsmoke Moustaches
This is Game Over, a title for the Spectrum, first released in 1987. A game released amidst controversy. See, while later editions of the game would feature slightly edited variations of the box art, the original featured one of video gaming’s first wardrobe malfunctions. You could see half a nipple. And it caused an outrage.…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 23, 2012 -
Culture
Some Kick-Ass Fantasy Images to Start Your Wednesday
Sean Murray is an artist who we’ve actually featured here before. But that was when I only posted images pertaining to a particular game, or franchise. Now that I’ve blown Fine Art’s doors off, it’s time to look at the rest of his work, because the stuff he’s done aside from Kingdoms of Amalur is…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 23, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallUnboxing a…1986 Sega Master System
Who gives a shit about unboxing modern games hardware. We all do it when we buy the thing, they come with basically nothing, and the documentation is woeful. Let’s enjoy, then, this unboxing of a 1986 Sega Master System bundle. Marvel at the included accessories. Gape in awe at the pack-in games. I actually never…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 22, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Your Eyes Are Not Ready For This Hideous Sega Jacket
Just as Nintendo had its Power Line, so too did Sega once have its own band of phone-based game assistance. It was staffed by men and women who were known as Sega Game Counselors, and in addition to their jobs helping kids get past the tough parts of games, they also got these jackets. This…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 22, 2012 -
Culture
The Colourful Concept Art of Pink77
Chinese artist XiaoPeng Xing, aka Pink77, has been working in the games industry for eight years now, lending his talents out to clients like Activision/Blizzard and online juggernaut Tencent. His calling card? Bright colours and the female of the species. Some of these images are for professional projects, others – like his King of Fighters…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 22, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Now You Too Can Play the Terrible Akira Video Game!
In 1988, Taito released Akira, cash-in on the hugely-popular animated film of the same name. Just in case you were wondering if Japanese developers somehow made better movie adaptations in the 1980s, no, they did not. The game was terrible. Still, that’s mostly second-hand information, as most Westerners have never actually played the game, since…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 21, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Activision’s 1984 Catalogue Did Not Feature Call of Duty
Before the internet, before people even really cottoned onto the idea of games magazines, publishers had to sell things the old-fashioned way: with TV ads and catalogues. Most catalogues were simple affairs, all bright lights, screenshots and slogans, but sometimes publishers went a little left field. Like Activision did in 1984 when it basically commissioned…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 21, 2012 -
CultureCelery with Peanut Butter: The Snacktaku Review
In the comments section of my most recent Snacktaku review, a reader accused me of (and I am paraphrasing here) “eating nothing but crap”. Perhaps this review of the healthy, wholesome combination of a vegetable no one likes and chocolate’s pale understudy will convince him otherwise. Sometimes I eat things that only look like crap…
By Mike Fahey Published May 21, 2012 -
Culture
A Force to Recon With
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier arrives this week, giving Dragon’s Dogma a tough act to follow. PlayStation Move title Sorcery also finally arrives on shelves. Today • Mario Tennis Open (3DS) Tuesday • Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier (PS3, 360) • Dragon’s Dogma (360, PS3) • Sorcery (PS3) • Men in Black: Alien Crisis (360,…
By Owen Good Published May 20, 2012 -
Culture
Sunday Comics: A Hell of an Error
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. Virtual Shackles by Jeremy Vinar and Mike Fahmie published May 18.—Read more of Virtual Shackles Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich published May 14.—Read more of Awkward Zombie…
By Owen Good Published May 20, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallHere’s How To Make The Professor Layton Soundtrack Much Better
The Professor Layton games have long demanded a soundtrack a bit more sophisticated than the one they have—the plinky, “ooh boy, we have a mystery!” music is fine at first, but eventually I’ve found that it begins to grate. This is especially true of the first game that I played in the series, 2008’s Professor…
By Kirk Hamilton Published May 19, 2012