Each week throws off several new video game lists ranging from the humorous to the trivial. What's better? A list of those. Here's a roundup of the rundowns out there.
•10 Worst Ways to Spend Your Time in a Game [TechRadar] Grinding, grinding, and grinding. And sewer levels. Also farming or mining any resources. And being Mister Best Friend in Grand Theft Auto IV. To this I would also add any escort mission of a basically helpless NPC/ship that always runs toward gunfire, and spending an hour in any pro sports game analyzing and proposing trades rather than playing.
•The Truth Behind 10 Great Videogame Myths [Crispy Gamer] All but two of these myths are busted; only one - the great Atari landfilling of Pac-Man and E.T. in 1983 - is confirmed. Mario leaping over the flagpole was rated "plausible." All others are crap - including nude Lara Croft. Too bad.
•10 Game Ads That are Horribly Up Their Own Ass [GamesRadar] Gears of War, Gears of War 2, Halo 3, Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST make up half the field of what is more or less a rehashed Top 10 of overhyped games. I'm not sure if it was an advertisement on mass media or just a game trailer, but this Call of Duty: World at War ad struck me as excessively macho and undeservedly self-glorifying.
•10 Video Game Women Who Don't Use Sex to Sell [The Game Reviews] Next time someone complains that video games do nothing but objectify and dehumanize women, point them to this list. Really. It's a nice reminder that some games not only offer playable female protagonists, they're compelling characters, proving a triumph of design over jiggle physics. But I am absolutely floored that Samus Aran is not on this list - her armor in later designs might accent feminine curves, but it's battle armor, and not all that shapely. Is it because she ran around in a bikini after you beat the original Metroid? Also, my obscure contrarian pick: Annie Stoakes from Red Dead Revolver.
•Top Ten Best Game Over Screens [VG Chartz] I simply cannot accept a list such as this without the unforgettable "THE END" from Missile Command. Remember, nuclear annihilation was the emotional fulcrum of the Cold War, and for a game that made, in its own way, a hell of a statement about the times, nothing said it better than "THE END."