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CultureTotal RecallIt Takes A Lot Of Focus To Play Pong… WITH YOUR MIND
Psychic/possessed children are creepy. They do creeeepy things, like stare blankly at you and speak in a monotone and maybe set your hair on fire with their minds. But sometimes, they do something even creepier. They play video games… without using the controllers This scene, from the apparently terrible 1981 horror film Kiss Daddy Goodbye,…
By Kirk Hamilton Published May 18, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallThe Weird Art of the Video Game Massacre
We’ve all done it. Anyone who’s played an open-world game, from Grand Theft Auto III to Fallout 3 to Red Dead Redemption, has gone on a murderous rampage. Those civilians. They’re all just… sitting there. You know what else is sitting there? Your dark, murderous id. Time to go to town. The number of video…
By Kirk Hamilton Published May 18, 2012 -
Culture
Star Wars is no Match for Some Good Concept Art by Your Side
Paul Adam is a concept artist at BioWare. No, not the Mass Effect BioWare. Or the Dragon Age BioWare. The Star Wars one. So yeah, you’re about to see some lightsabers. This art was all done for Star Wars: Old Republic, some of it as promotional stuff for the game’s website, other pieces as concept…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 18, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallVideo Games Kickstarted the Careers of Some of Hollywood’s (and TV’s) Greats
You may have seen one or two of these clips before, maybe even here on Kotaku, but boy, seeing them all laid out in a single video like this is something else. Witness stars like Christian Bale, Jack Black and…30 Rock’s Jenna Maroney and…Paul Rudd get a big break on crappy old video game commercials.…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 17, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallA Very Sexy Introduction to an Ancient Tabletop Game
Sure, I could bang on about Caveman, a tabletop electronic game released by Tomy, and how it had a rad soundtrack and some terrific box art. But my Australian accent is, while occasionally loud, not exactly sexy. And I’ve never actually played this thing. So let’s kick back and watch the Belgians at Bleeping Relics…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 17, 2012 -
Culture
Only Art Can Bring Halo, Uncharted & Assassin’s Creed Together
Evan Shipard is an Australian artist who has worked on some big movies and movie franchises, such as Wolverine, Narnia and even House of Flying Daggers He’s also worked on a number of prominent video game commercials, including Halo’s Deliver Hope spot and trailers for Battlefield 3, Uncharted, Assassin’s Creed and God of War Shipard…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 17, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Welcome to Atari, Sir, Here’s Your 1973 ID badge
Ronald Jardine was one of the very first employees at Atari. We’re talking the early 1970s here. Employee #159. Wonderfully, Jardine recently took photos of his old ID badge from his time there and uploaded them, giving us an insight into the cutting-edge security methods employed at the blossoming tech company. It was…a card with…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 16, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
You Won’t Sleep After Seeing Soft & Cuddly
Soft & Cuddly was a 1987 game for the ZX Spectrum. It was neither soft, nor cuddly. It was horrifying Strange and mildly disgusting in a way only British-developed game for personal computers in the 1980s could be – and I say that as a good thing – it tasks the player with collecting the…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 16, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallThere’s Live-Action Diablo Footage…From Suburban America
This old Diablo II commercial, from around the time of the game’s launch in June 2000, is notable for two things. The first is that it’s a rare example of official live-action Diablo The second is the use of the word Macintosh in the closing splash. For all the credit companies like Valve get these…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 15, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
The Creator of Mario and Zelda Reveals his Secrets (in 1999)
In 1999, Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto gave a keynote address at the Game Developers Conference. An address you can watch here in its entirety. Remember, this isn’t the quasi-executive, Wii Music Shigeru Miyamoto we know today. This is the designer at perhaps the height of his powers, with games like Super Mario 64 still fresh…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 14, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Fresh New Images of Tired Old Hardware
If you’re short on ideas for new wallpaper, and have a bit of a thing for old video game hardware, check out French artist Alan Cloiseau’s collection of vintage Sega, Sony and Nintendo systems and controllers. His personal site has plenty more great art.
By Luke Plunkett Published May 14, 2012 -
CultureMaple Bacon Fudge: The Homemade Snacktaku Review
Give a man a snack, you keep him sated until dinner; teach a man to create a snack, and he’ll make it once, tell everyone about it, and then never make it again, no matter how excellent it is. This weekend I made maple bacon fudge. I may never make it again, but I am…
By Mike Fahey Published May 14, 2012 -
Culture
The Worlds of Batman and Lord of the Rings, Brought Together by Art
Stacey Clark is a senior concept artist at Warner Bros.’ Monolith Productions. In this gallery, you’ll find some of her work for games such as Lord of the Rings: War in the North and Gotham City Imposters. You’ll also find some personal pieces. Check out Stacey’s blog and sketchbook for more of her stuff! Fine…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 14, 2012 -
Culture
Choose Your Payne
Diablo III is this week’s long-anticipated release, but it is not the only one. Max Payne 3 also arrives on consoles, as does the Game of Thrones adaptation. It’s a busy mid-May for both physical releases and downloadable titles. Tuesday • Diablo III (PC, Mac) • Max Payne 3 (360, PS3) • Game of Thrones…
By Owen Good Published May 13, 2012 -
Culture
Sunday Comics: Simple Math
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. Nerf NOW!! by Josué Pereira published May 9.—Read more of Nerf NOW!! Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich published May 7.—Read more of Awkward Zombie Penny Arcade by…
By Owen Good Published May 13, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallA Moment To Re-Experience The Amazing Intro To Full Throttle
Has it been a while since you last played Full Throttle? I’m guessing it has. Sit back, relax, and watch the intro movie from the game. I remember the gravel-voiced intro, the long shots of the road… but more than anything I remember that song that kicks in when Ben ramps his bike over that…
By Kirk Hamilton Published May 12, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallBecause Nothing Says “Exciting World War II Airplane Action” Like A Flying Baby
Most everyone has some memory or another of 1943, the top-down airplane bullet-hell shooter to which we all lost a good deal of quarters. When I think of 1943, I think of things like “Difficulty” and “Insane Difficulty.” I do not, however, think of a flying baby. But in the Japanese ad campaign for the…
By Kirk Hamilton Published May 11, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
A Red Dead Redemption Ghost Story to Chill Your Bones
They say Red Dead Redemption is haunted, you know. They’ve said it for years now—ghosts exist in the system, devils and spooks and specters and maybe even a class-5 full-roaming vapor or two. I’ve never encountered any ghosts in the game myself, but I’ve heard and read enough accounts that I’m willing to believe something…
By Kirk Hamilton Published May 11, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallWhat an Old Game Boy Can Teach us About Men’s Toilets
Via Vice mag’s tech site, Motherboard, we get a look at one of the best pieces of work ever done on a Game Boy. And it’s not even a game. In response to recent excitement over things like the iPhone’s Game Boy camera app, Michael Byrne shares this clip, made by some friends of his…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2012