Sunday, September 16, 2007
Arcade Flyer Art Saturday: Buck Rogers Planet of Zoom
11:00AM Flynn De Marco | Sega produced Buck Rogers: Planet of Zoom for arcades in 1982. This was a perfect example of using a well known character to try and sell an otherwise boring game. The only thing branded “Buck Rogers” was the cabinet itself while the game had next to nothing to do with the hero’s story besides the fact that it was set in outer space. It was controlled with an eight-way joystick and two buttons with the cabinet coming in a stand up version as well as an enclosed sit down style. The gameplay was pretty generic and rather dull with the player piloting a space ship from a “behind the ship” perspective, avoiding obstacles and shooting down enemy ships. The ship’s speed could be controlled by using the two buttons and the steering of the ship and shooting done via the joystick. Levels had you speeding through tunnels and cityscapes to reach your goal, and according to the inside of the flyer, the game even had some sort of cobbled together “plot”. More »
Colin McRae Dies In Helicopter Crash
10:00AM Flynn De Marco | A bit of sad news today. Colin McRae, the British rally car driver who lent his name to a series of racing games by Codemasters, died yesterday in a helicopter crash near his home in Lanark, Scotland yesterday afternoon. McRae was Britain’s first World Rally Champion in 1995 and has been confirmed by his manager to have been piloting the Squirrel helicopter that was carrying him and three other passengers. It is believed that one of the passengers was McRae’s five year old son, Johnny, who is also feared dead – although this has not been confirmed as of yet. The identity of the other passengers is still unknown due to extensive fire damage. Our hearts go out to Colin’s wife, daughter and the rest of his family and friends. Rally champion Colin McRae dies with son in helicopter crash [Times Online] [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] More »
The Mega Man Tattoo
9:00AM Flynn De Marco | Kotakuite Aronn sent in this picture of his brand spankin’ new Mega Man tattoo that his sister got him for his birthday. I have to say I am really impressed with the precision with which this was rendered. It is pixel perfect and looks quite sharp. You don’t see a lot of really well done 8-bit tattoos and this one definitely makes the grade. Congratulations Aronn, you have a keeper! Not that you’d have much choice… More »
Bogost On the ‘Reverence’ of Resistance: Fall of Man
8:30AM Maggie Greene | The flap over the portrayal of Manchester Cathedral in Resistance: Fall of Man has long since settled, but Ian Bogost has an interesting take on the significance of including such a structure within a video game in his Gamasutra column. The depiction of the cathedral shows off the PS3’s capabilities, but the inclusion of such an important landmark is not simply a standard of the apocalypse genre or something that serves to cement the time and place of the setting, but a homage – not a desecration – of a site: Manchester Cathedral was ransacked during the English Civil War in 1649, half-destroyed by German bombs in 1940, and bombed by the Irish Republican Army in 1996. It survived all these attacks. Its patrons rebuilt it. And it stands still today. Resistance adds a fictional homage to the church’s resolve, this time in an alternate history fraught by an enemy that neither understands nor cares for human practices like religion. And it survives this as well. The Church of England sees their cathedral’s presence in Resistance only as a sordid juxtaposition, the sanctity of worship set against the profanity of violence. But when viewed in the context of the game’s fiction, the cathedral serves a purpose in the game consonant with its role in the world: that of reprieve for the weary and steadfastness in the face of devastation. The Manchester bishop obviously didn’t agree, but Bogost points out that this flap provided yet another platform for ‘concerned citizens’ to rail against video games and perceived links between virtual and very real violence. Would the flap been as big if there hadn’t been some religious angle to foam at the mouth about? Persuasive Games: The Reverence Of Resistance [Gamasutra] More »
Twenty Five Things About Fallout 3
8:00AM Flynn De Marco | Bethesda Software’s Fallout 3 community forums is currently hosting a list of 25 questions culled from its members, and answered by executive producer Todd Howard. Questions are broken up into groups according to subject matter and cover a range of topics including combat, NPCs, AI. mature content, quests and dialog. It’s a nice, hefty Q&A and sure to make great weekend reading for all of you out there anxious to get more info on Fallout 3. And don’t worry, Howard is still pretty cagey on some subjects so you can still remain blissfully spoiler free (with the possible exception of the semi-BioShock spoiler which is clearly marked towards the end of the bonus questions). Community FAQ – 20 questions [Bethesda] [Thanks, Patrick] More »
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Get Your Tenori-on On
7:30AM Maggie Greene | There’s been some buzz about the Tenori-on, the musical instrument-toy-game-Lite-Brite thing designed by Toshio Iwai (the guy behind Electroplankton) – it’s been released in the UK and can be yours for a mere £599 (about $US 1200). It’s obviously reminiscent of Electroplankton, and I’m also reminded of Lumines. Alas, I’m but a poor grad student, and even an exceedingly cool, shiny, and musical Lite-Brite isn’t in the budget. Here’s Iwai demoing his creation at the UK launch on 4 September. [via Music Thing] More »
Hot Flashes: Viva Caligula!
7:00AM Flynn De Marco | The twisted folks at Adult Swim who have brought us such Flash game awesomeness as Orphan Feast and Five Minutes to Kill Yourself, comes a twisted romp through ancient Rome in the form of Viva Caligula! Take on the persona of the infamous Emperor Caligula and slaughter your way through Roman citizens, guards, skeletons and prostitutes with up to 26 collectible weapons. As an added bonus, scream into your microphone to increase your “rage factor”. Collect all the weapons for special entrance into the orgy! Not to be confused with Viva Pinata. Viva Caligula! [Adult Swim] More »
Get Your Ninetudo DS Accessories
6:30AM Maggie Greene | Two summers ago, a friend of mine went to mainland China for a vacation – unluckily for her, she forgot her DS charger in Taipei. Fearing she’d have to go a day without checking in on her Animal Crossing village, she didn’t realise that the wonderful world of Chinese bootlegs would be coming to her rescue: the Ninetudo DS power adaptor! Those jokes about the Sonya PS3 didn’t seem so far-fetched. Wonderland posted this photograph of the actual article (from a Flickr photostream by Crys) – so if anyone’s stranded in China with no DS charger, fear not: it’s ‘Ninetudo’ to the rescue. More »
When Hype Gets Out of Hand
6:00AM Flynn De Marco | Halo 3 is undoubtedly one of the most highly anticipated games of this year for many people. It is also true that the Halo 3 hype machine has been working overtime, injecting a bit of Halo into everything from beverages to cars. While this kind of marketing works on a lot of levels, I can’t help but think that in some ways it might be a detriment to the title. Not only does it make it difficult for the game to live up to everyone’s expectations, it also leaves other people (some of whom might be fans) wishing they just didn’t have to hear about it anymore. After reading Gamertag Radio forum poster Anjo Banjo’s thoughts on the subject, I realised that other people felt the same way. Knowing full well that she would probably be lynched for her feelings on the subject, she posted an article about her experiences with the Halo 3 marketing campaign and how “next time an (retail) employee asks me about preordering Halo 3, I might just end up in gaol. Cause I am honestly sick of this.” Now, obviously these people are just doing jobs, but I feel Anjo Banjo’s pain. It seems like one can’t turn around without seeing Master Chief’s helmeted head staring at you and the Kotaku mail room is filled to capacity with Halo tips of every size and shape. So, my question to you is this. Has the Halo 3 hype machine gone too far and would the over marketing of a game, whatever it may be, keep you from purchasing it? More »
