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  Talk Amongst Yourselves

  It’s another hot summer day, but there are plenty of ways to keep cool. For instance today is free Slurpee day! But don’t let that distract you. Everybody knows the best way to keep cool in the summer is to talk about video games. So have at it! A very special thanks to Mythos for…

  By Sam Winstrom Published July 11, 2011
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  The Reinvention of Literature

  There’s something seemingly scandalous, irreverent about Simon Meek’s notion of “playing through” novels like Crime and Punishment or Wuthering Heights But in practice, Meek’s work transforming the world’s great literature into something experienced on a gaming console is more akin to performance art or theater than it is video games. Meek seems to want to…

  By Brian Crecente Published July 11, 2011
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  PipClock Has You Duck-and-Covered in Case of Apocalypse

  With the exception, maybe, of VATS calling out your headshots, our modern mobile devices are shades more useful than the Pip Boy. Nonetheless, the Fallout universe’s wrist-borne computer seems so much more essential and dramatic, probably because its analog hum, scanlines and fluttering screen make it all seem so close to a breakdown. In steps…

  By Owen Good Published July 11, 2011
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  The Best Night Note Picture This Week

  Hosing Around | TOKYO, JAPAN: Comedian Tetsuro Degawa appeared at a recent Nexon event. Hijinks ensued. (Photo: 4Gamer) Toyota Continues to Chase Nerds (Now With Less Awkwardness) The Nagoya-based auto maker is already going after Western otaku with its bizarro take on virtual idol Miku Hatsune. Next up? Japanese otaku. Expos Bring Out the Best…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  Dragon’s Dogma Is the Stuff of Nightmares

  Dragon’s Dogma is rumored to be the most expensive game Capcom has ever made. Wonder where that money is going? It’s going into things like this! In the game, this is a Chimera. It’s also a Chimera in Greek mythology. And if you think it’s scary now, imagine what it was like in classical times.…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  One Hundred People Can Win Free Tokyo Game Show Tickets

  The Tokyo Game Show organizers are offering the chance for fifty couples (100) people to get free TGS tickets. Just follow @tokyo_game_show on Twitter and tweet why you want to go to TGS (be sure to add #tgs2011ticket) by August 31. Airfare and hotel are not included. Nerd sweat is.

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  Are These Dark Souls Screens Hard Enough for You?

  Dark Souls, the spiritual successor to tough-as-nails Demon’s Souls, looks to be wonderfully difficult game—if not more difficult. Set in a dark fantasy world, the game’s got dudes in armor and griefing! What else do you need? Developed by From Software of Armored Core fame, Dark Souls will be released on the PS3 and Xbox…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  Toyota Continues to Chase Nerds (Now With Less Awkwardness)

  The Nagoya-based auto maker is already going after Western otaku with its bizarro take on virtual idol Miku Hatsune. Next up? Japanese otaku. The result isn’t nearly as awkward. To help promote its new plug-in Prius hybrid the Prius PHV, Toyota is teaming with the iconic sci-fi yarn Neon Genesis Evangelion At the junior high…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  Expos Bring Out the Best In Cosplayers

  Anime Expo 2011 isn’t just about anime. It’s an excuse to dress up as all kinds of characters, and at this year’s event, the video game cosplayers were out in force. Most of the shots in this week’s cosplay roundup were taken at the event, held in Los Angeles at the same venue E3 is…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2011
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  Dust 514 Isn’t Really Free-to-Play [Update]

  Dust 514, the first-person shooter spinoff from PC MMO EVE Online, is free-to-play. Sort of. It’s been revealed that the PS3 game won’t actually be free to download, as players will have to stump up a “cover charge” of $10-20 (the final price hasn’t been decided) just to get access to the game, which will…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2011
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  Is Battlefield 3 Skipping Steam?

  Over the weekend, EA published a list of all the digital retailers you’d be able to preorder Battlefield 3 from. There were dozens of stores. Yet Steam wasn’t one of them. That’s led to speculation that, in the wake of the recent, ahem, change in relationship between EA and Steam owners Valve, you won’t be…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2011
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  A Museum for Kick Ass Plastic

  Over the weekend, famed model figure and kit maker Kaiyodo opened a its Kaiyodo Hobby Museum Shimanto in the city of Kochi. The museum houses model kits and figures from yesteryear as well as newer ones. The museum houses the inevitable Ultraman and Neon Genesis Evangelion models; it also has more off-the-wall stuff like mummy…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  Enough People Sucked at This Game That It Doesn’t Work Any More

  It’s a mechanic as old as games themselves: perform poorly and you lose a “life”. Experimental Dutch title GlitchHiker went a little further, though: perform poorly and the whole game died. An entrant in the Dutch Global Game Jam 2011 earlier this year, GlitchHiker was tied to a central server which was programmed to literally…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2011
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  You Can Now Buy Play for Japan

  In the wake of the March 11 earthquake in Japan, Grasshopper Manufacture’s Akira Yamaoka put together a charity album. That album is now available in selected territories on iTunes.

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  These Zelda Cards Are the Queens of My Heart

  Artist Nelde has created these designs for a deck of Legend of Zelda playing cards. Pretty neat, yes? Not only do the Zelda images fit the traditional playing card style, but he’s even drawn some intricate new details: the ace of Triforce is a nice touch. You can see the images in greater detail in…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2011
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  What Happens When a Stupid Person Burns a DS Lite?

  We’ve already seen some idiots deep fry a PSP and then try to eat it. Now, let’s look at photos taken by—I assume—a less stupid person. Less stupid, only because he doesn’t try to actually eat the burnt DS Lite, but still pretty stupid! Burning electronics is never a good idea, considering the toxins released…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  The Great Arcade Extravaganza Went Down Over the Weekend

  It may not have the pulling power of bigger shows, but California Extreme remains one of the best arcade events on the gaming calendar, luring in attendees from the Bay Area (and beyond!) to play hundreds of great old coin-op machines. Held over the weekend at the Hyatt Regency in Santa Clara, California, the 2011…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2011
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  Besides Exercises, This Game Has Breast Physics and a Sexy Voice

  When Shape Boxing 2 originally went on sale, giant boob idol and former Sega arcade spokesgirl Megumi appeared in the game’s commercials. At the time, I thought this was because she’d lost a lot of weight after having a child. But as this gameplay footage reveals, I could be wrong. Just maybe. As Japanese YouTube…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011
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  Yes, But Can Your PC Run Battlefield 3?

  Over the weekend, hardware specifications for one of the PC’s most anticipated games of 2011 appeared on GameStop’s website. They’ve since been removed, but the internet never forgets. The specifications, which may or may not be final, read as follows: Minimum Hard Drive Space: 15 GB for disc version or 10 GB for digital version…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2011
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  The End of Analog TV as I Know It

  From an early age, I watched a lot of television: The Lone Ranger, The Dukes of Hazard, and Hee Haw (hey, I grew up in Texas) were all piped in to our living room’s Curtis Mathes television set. I don’t live in Texas anymore, but I do watch a lot of analog television. The two…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011