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Culture
Daarken’s Fantasy Art Has Shades of Mass Effect
The mildly-bizarre partnership between Mass Effect 3 and…Kingdoms of Amalur was announced with a wonderful piece of art. That piece was the work of Mike “Daarken” Lim, a freelance games artist whose stuff we’ll be looking at today. Beginning his career in 2004 creating monsters for Wizards of the Coast (creators of Magic: the Gathering),…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 13, 2012 -
Culture
This World of Warcraft Art Takes it to the Brink (I’m Sorry…)
Laurel D. Austin does some great work. Employed for years at Splash Damage, the team behind Brink, she’s recently joined Blizzard, where she’s working as a concept artist. Living the dream. In this gallery you will find: some of her amazing work for Brink (say what you will about the game, its art was awesome)…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 12, 2012 -
Culture
We Fear a World Without Twinkies as Hostess Files For Bankruptcy Again
Being a comic book fan in the 80s I grew up thinking there was no problem that couldn’t be solved by golden flaky crust or delicious cream filling. Apparently that doesn’t apply to financial insolvency, as snack cake maker Hostess Brands files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time. It’s hard for me to…
By Mike Fahey Published January 11, 2012 -
Culture
This Game Art Wages Total War On Robots, Dragons and Fast Cars
Swedish artist Andrée Wallin has quite the resume. Since getting into the business in 2008, he’s provided concept art for games like Oblivion, Dirt 3, DJ Hero, Napoleon: Total War, MotorStorm and Split Second. Right now, he’s working with 343 Industries on Halo 4 He’s also worked with clients like Universal Pictures and the Jim…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 11, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallLet’s Watch the Kick-Ass Dragon Quest Anime!
A few video games have had the honour of being turned into animated series. Zelda and Mario are two of the most prominent, if terrible examples, while Wing Commander is a rarity that got it right Another that got it right, and in a big, big way, were the anime series based on blockbuster role-playing…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 10, 2012 -
Culture
Runescape is Getting a Facelift. Here’s Some Art.
Here’s something cool. Runescape, the venerable (and hideous) MMO that’s now over ten years old, is getting a graphical overhaul later this year. Before the new models take their place in the game, though, concept artists had a tricky challenge. How to maintain the identity of such ancient characters but update them for 2012? And…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 10, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
The Legend of the Legend of Zelda Board Games
In 1988, Milton Bradley released a Legend of Zelda board game. Awesomely, it wasn’t a lazy conversion of an existing game like we see now, with Nintendo Monopoly or Metal Gear Risk. It was a game specifically tailored for Zelda And take a look at that box art! Amazing stuff. The game was based on…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 9, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
There’s Nothing Like Vintage Sci-Fi Art to Liven up a Game Cover
Few things on this planet get me more excited than classic science fiction art. Wait, no. Quality classic science fiction art. Which means people like John Berkey, who is the man behind two of the best examples of sci-fi box art from the 1990s. Berkey, who passed away in 2008, was a prolific commercial artist…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 8, 2012 -
Culture
Zen and the Art of Pinball
The new year is still getting off to a slow start. Highlights this week are entirely downloadable titles, for PS3, Xbox 360 and on the 3DS eShop, where Zen Pinball releases on Thursday. Tuesday • Choplifter HD (PC, PSN) Wednesday • AMY (XBLA) • Choplifter HD (XBLA) Thursday • Zen Pinball 3D (3DS eShop) Sources:…
By Owen Good Published January 8, 2012 -
Culture
Sunday Comics: The Safety Dance
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 Jan. 2.—Read more of Awkward Zombie Nerf NOW!! by Josué Pereira published Jan. 6.—Read more of Nerf NOW!! Penny Arcade by…
By Owen Good Published January 8, 2012 -
Culture
The Head-Punching Game & Comic Art of Dave Wilkins
Dave Wilkins is a concept artist in the video game business. He’s also an artist in the comics business. So if you see awesome art in this gallery about comic characters in video games, or video game characters in comic books, do not be alarmed. What you’ll see in the gallery above is a selection…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 5, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallWhen Video Games Come to Life, Emilio Estevez Must Die
When it comes to old video game movies, you’ve probably seen, or at least heard of, stuff like The Last Starfighter. Or Joysticks. Or adaptations like Street Fighter, Double Dragon and Mortal Kombat. You don’t often hear people talking about The Bishop of Battle. Which is a shame. Because it’s amazing The Bishop of Battle…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 5, 2012 -
Culture
The Blinding Character Art of Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3
If you’ve played (or even seen) recent fighter Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and thought, well, that character art sure is lovely, I wonder where I can get high-res versions of them all, you’ve got taste. You’re also being looked after today by Capcom, who in a pleasant surprise (this doesn’t happen very often) has…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 4, 2012 -
CultureTotal RecallThere was a Famicom Game About the Leader of the Soviet Union
You expect, and will find, old games for the Famicom where you play as a soldier. Or a pilot. Or an athlete. What you don’t expect, but what you’ll find anyway, is a game starring the leader of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. This is Gorby’s Pipeline, otherwise known as Gorby no Pipeline Daisakusen.…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 4, 2012 -
Culture
The Kickass Mechs, Guns and Soldiers of a…Gameloft artist?
Gameloft has a pretty poor reputation around these parts, much of it very richly-deserved, but that doesn’t mean the mobile gaming specialists are entirely without merit. In 2009 Gameloft founded Redsteam, a studio that specialises in pre-production art. Its purpose is two-fold: while it creates art for Gameloft titles, it also aims to “grow in…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 3, 2012 -
CultureTotal Recall
Forcing Old Atari Game Boxes to Tell the Truth
Rarely was there ever a greater discrepancy between actual graphics and box art design than during the Atari era. You’d get these amazingly evocative, painted box arts for a game about…blocks. Not cool. Mighty God King seeks to rectify this by taking the box art and changing the game’s name to better reflect what’s being…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 3, 2012 -
Culture
Sunday Comics: Friendship is Modding
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 Dec. 26.—Read more of Awkward Zombie Nerf NOW!! by Josué Pereira published Dec. 29.—Read more of Nerf NOW!! Penny Arcade by…
By Owen Good Published December 31, 2011
