-
CultureTotal Recall
Just This Once, Let’s Revive The Greatest Console War: Genesis or Super Nintendo?
It was a good war. A just war. It was, maybe, the last great war. I’m not talking about World War II. I’m talking about the great console war of the 1990’s. I had a great time goading Lisa Foiles into reviving the 90’s console wars with me a few weeks back—despite the best efforts…
By Kirk Hamilton Published July 14, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallI Want A Friday The 13th Game That Lets Me Play As Jason
Happy Friday the 13th! Jason is over right now, he says to tell you guys, “Hi.” I get that survival horror is about being afraid, running away from an unstoppable evil. But Jason is almost too damned goofy to really work as a big-bad in a survival horror game. Maybe that’s why there hasn’t been…
By Kirk Hamilton Published July 13, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Was 1998 The Ultimate Year in Video Gaming?
2011 was a hell of a year for big game releases. I remember at some point in the fall thinking, “Dude, we are approaching 2007 territory here.” 2007 was a hell of a year for big game releases. Modern Warfare. Mass Effect. Bioshock. Portal. That year set the stage for the franchises that would dominate…
By Kirk Hamilton Published July 13, 2012 -
CultureSee How Much Work Goes Into Making a Fancy Video Game Trailer
Cinematic trailers are everywhere in games marketing these days, so much so it’s rare to see a title shown off for the first time any other way. As we become more familiar with them, though, we start to take them for granted. Which is a bit of a shame, considering how much work actually goes…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 13, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Nintendo’s Official Super Metroid Guide Featured Transparent Samus Armour
This is the cover to the Japanese edition of the official guide to SNES classic Super Metroid. I can see what they’re trying to do with the idea, maybe, but in execution it just looks weird. Like a Nintendo console getting on in years, re-released in a transparent colour scheme. [via VGJunk]
By Luke Plunkett Published July 12, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
The Weird, Wonderful and Sometimes Secret History of Nintendo
While other video game companies are happy to celebrate 10th, 15th or even 20th anniversaries, Nintendo is over 100 years old. Founded in 1889, the company has enjoyed a rich video gaming tradition dating back to the 1970s, releasing some of the most successful gaming consoles and franchises of all time. Which is great for…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 12, 2012 -
Culture
Luscious Game Art Makes Robots and Beasts Look Great Together
Markus Neidel is a German concept artist who most recently worked on Black Prophecy, a sci-fi MMO. You won’t find too much sci-fi in this gallery, though. What you will find for the most part are some epic fantasy images that look so delicious you’d be forgiven for thinking you could slice them off your…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 12, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
That Game Where “Hulk Hogan’s” Chest Nearly Exploded
Wrestle War is a Japanese wrestling game that was released in arcades in 1989 (and on Japanese and PAL Mega Drives a couple of years later). Despite not carrying a single official license, it decided to rip off a number of high-profile wrestlers of the time, like Hulk Hogan (who was awesomely renamed “Titan Morgan”)…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
A History of Video Game Movies That Haven’t Been Made (And Probably Won’t)
As video game fans, it’s easy to get excited about movie adaptation news because, as video game fans, you expect this means the movie will one day actually get made. It doesn’t. That might be how video games work, but it’s certainly not how Hollywood works. This week has seen three big announcements in the…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2012 -
Culture
The Art of a Rockstar Games Legend
Scottish artist Ian McQue has worked at Rockstar North since, oh, the dawn of time. Over the years he’s contributed art to games like the Grand Theft Auto series, Bully, Manhunt, Agent and even Body Harvest, the studio’s cult N64 game Currently lead concept artist at Rockstar North, the home of the core Grand Theft…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Poor Godzilla, a Game Boy is Too Tiny For His Giant Fingers
When he’s not crushing major Japanese cities, Godzilla likes nothing more than to kick back and play his own video game on the original Game Boy. Only, because his giant claws can’t hit the buttons properly, he’s always dying, which pisses him off, causing him to stomp around crushing cities. Wash, rinse, repeat. It’s a…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 10, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallHistory is Littered With the Corpses of Failed Consoles
So, you’re excited about this weird new Ouya console? Having made over $1 million from Kickstarter backers in a single day, you probably are! So now’s the time I’m going to tell you to cool your jets, if only a little. Why? Because there’s a lot more to making a video game console than just…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 10, 2012 -
Culture
Gorgeous Tera Concept Art, Fresh From Korea
If you’re a fan of Tera, the new MMO on the block, you might want to take a look at this gallery, because it features the work of Kim Hyeong Seung, a concept artist who has worked on the game. Almost everything here is from the game, with the exception of the obvious. Like the…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 10, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
The Sega Console That Was Just For Girls
Chances are the Sega consoles you played, or at least saw growing up, were actually made by Sega. But not everyone was afforded that luxury. In some territories, the hardware had to be manufactured and sold by third-party vendors, resulting in some bizarre systems like this: The Master System Girl. Note that this is not…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 9, 2012 -
Culture
The Word is Fight, Fight, Fight
NCAA Football 13 is the week’s biggest console release, bringing with it roleplaying enhancements to the game’s career mode and the chance to relive the glory days of more than a dozen Heisman Trophy winners. Downloadable titles round out the remainder of the week. Tuesday • NCAA Football 13 (PS3, 360) • Quantum Conundrum (PSN)…
By Owen Good Published July 8, 2012 -
Culture
Sunday Comics: Cold Dead Hand
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 July 2.—Read more of Awkward Zombie Nerf NOW!! by Josué Pereira published July 4.—Read more of Nerf NOW!! Penny Arcade by…
By Owen Good Published July 8, 2012 -
CultureTreat Yourself to a 1990s NBA Jam Session While We Await Word of 2K’s Major Announcement
2K Sports has told us to keep on the lookout for a huge announcement—biggest ever in the label’s history—and so far we haven’t heard anything. The reveal of details for the “Dynasty Edition” of NBA 2K13 was not it—that much was confirmed by a 2K Sports representative to me, earlier this week. Whatever they have…
By Owen Good Published July 6, 2012 -
Culture
Art That Gets to the Heart of Star Wars (and Tomb Raider, and Resistance)
Concept artist Christian Piccolo works at BioWare’s Austin studio. Before that, he’s worked on a number of cool game franchises (and other projects) like Tomb Raider, Resistance and Marvel Ultimate Alliance My favourite stuff, though, comes not from a game, but from a book. Piccolo managed to get a gig on DK’s amazing Star Wars…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 6, 2012
