Can Final Fantasy Still Save Square Enix?

In the past, whenever Square Enix released a new Final Fantasy, things were a-okay. Yet, in 2010 the Tokyo-based game maker released two, and things are anything but. In late December 2009, Square Enix launched Final Fantasy XIII in Japan, and the title hit the West in 2010. The game is the fastest selling title…

Video Games Are Like Rock Music, Elvis And…Dungeons And Dragons?

Cliff Bleszinski, the designer behind Gears of War, is a nice enough guy. Polite, well-mannered, intelligent, all that jazz. But his video games, with their chainsaw guns and curb-stomps, might raise some eyebrows. Not mine, but other people’s. “You know the violence in games, the language and all those issues are issues… on one hand…

This Spring’s Geekiest Hotel Room Is Ready For Battle

For the equivalent of US$450, you too can rest your head here. That is, if you can get a reservation. Starting March 1, famed anime Neon Genesis Evangelion is getting its own Evangelion themed room at Highland Resort near Mt. Fuji, complete with a “plug” shaped bed where guests can watch DVDs while reclining. According…

Devil Jin Taps In For New Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Screenshots

Tekken game director Katsuhiro Harada tossed up a handful of new Tekken Tag Tournament 2 screens on his Twitter account (via CVG). The screens even have his Twitter account so you can follow him. Convenient!

MvC3

The PS2 Just Will Not Die!

The PlayStation 2 was first released in the year 2000. It was presumed dead in 2006, with the advent of the PlayStation 3. Yet here we are, eleven years later, and the thing just will not stop selling. Sony released its quarterly financial results overnight, and amidst all the money talk one figure stood out:…

The Nintendo 3DS Leaves This Man Red-Faced

Nintendo’s upcoming glasses-free 3D gaming peripheral is a wonder. With 3D on, it’s like the on-screen objects are popping out at you. Just as MegawinTV finds out after checking out the handheld’s cardboard version. MegawinTV is a Japanese comedy troupe — think a sillier, Japanese version of Mega64. The group’s Twitter explains their mission best:…

This Incredible 3D Art Is Too Nice To Play With

These pictures are the work of artist Jason Martin. If you’ve played Mass Effect 2, Force Unleashed II, DC Universe Online or taken an interest in the upcoming Batman game, you may recognise his amazing work. Martin is an artist at Blur Studios, the guys who bring you many of the gaming world’s biggest and…

How I Found Myself Working In An Arcade Gaming Hell

I love arcades. I wrote a book about them. But there was a time that I hated them. Well, not all arcades, just one in particular. I’ve been in Japan a long time now, pretty much all of my adult life. When I first arrived, I didn’t have a job for a few months. This…

Civilization’s Greatest Fantasy Could Soon Be Reality

It’s funny, for a game based on history and real things, Civilization has always had a strangely fictional unit at its core: the “Settler”, who can make towns and later cities just appear It’s like they’re carrying all the necessary buildings, tools and equipment needed for a settlement in their backpacks, and at the drop…

We Got An Armored Core V Trailer Incoming!

You’ve seen the screens, so now watch the trailer. No, really. Do it.

Hey, An Arcade Stick With Ostrich Leather On It

Hoping to stand out in a market filled with game tie-ins and garish colours, peripheral manufacturer Neo Legend has hooked up with snooty French fashion brand Hoon to release this ridiculously fancy arcade stick. I could not possibly do the item description justice, so here it is in its entirety: Manufactured in a specialised Parisian…

These Facebook Games Are Bigger Than You Think

If you’ve ever felt like comparing how much money a “traditional” video game makes as opposed to how much a Facebook game makes, check out this chart. It makes for interesting/depressing reading. Put together by game site IGN, it’s very important to note that this isn’t hard science. Much of the information depicted is not…

Yakuza 4 Demo On The Way

On February 22 (NA) and February 23 (EU), a Yakuza 4 demo will punch the PlayStation Network in the face then smash a bike over its head.

Was Demon’s Souls Just Ripped Off?

iPhone games ripping off other games is nothing new. But this time, it appears as though popular role-playing game Demon’s Souls is the latest victim. Recently released iPhone game Kaibutsu Chronicle: The New World apparently features art that’s been directly lifted from Demon’s Souls. Japanese netizens discovered the art and then went ahead with their…

Man Killed At Monster Hunter Stamp Rally

Last Sunday at around midday, 34-year-old Fumiaki Kuranouchi and his friend went to a Monster Hunter “stamp rally” in Tokyo. Before leaving, they rode a roller coaster called the “Spinning Coaster Maihime”. Sadly, the ride cost Kuranouchi his life. The tragedy took place on Sunday, January 30, which incidentally was the last day of a…

This Dog Is Not Afraid Of Dead Space 2 (Or An Xbox 360)

Ashley’s dog broke her Xbox 360 while she was in the middle of playing Dead Space 2. That’s usually grounds for a sob story, but this one has a happy ending. The clumsy pooch knocked over her console – which was standing vertically – while Dead Space 2 was in it, ruining both the machine…

Team Fortress 2 Gets Even More Collectible

Don’t look now, but there’s another Team Fortress 2 statue on the way

Man Steals $12 Million In Online Cash From Farmville Creators

British hacker Ashley Mitchell thought it would be a hoot to steal $12 million in online cash from Zynga, the creators of Facebook games like FarmVille and CityVille. And it would have been! If he hadn’t been caught. Mitchell’s story reads like a textbook bungled burglary. He hacks into a Zynga server, running popular online…

Nintendo And The Soviet Union Got Along Just Fine

In today’s day and age, if people want to see a whole bunch of Nintendo characters appearing in the same game, they can play Smash Bros. In the 1980s, they could play…Tetris. The kind of canon-smashing forces that in the 21st century can pit Link against Mario and Kirby against Pikachu simply weren’t around during…