If you game in an igloo and have a USB connection, have we got a gadget for you: Heated gaming gloves. Jack these babies into two USB ports and they’ll warm your hands by another 10 degrees in five minutes. They have the cut-out fingertips to give you that hobo-warming-his-hands-over-a-trashcan-fire style. Considering the U.S. economy, it’s the “it” look of 2008.
I know I’ve been going on and on and on about the Fallout 3 presence at Penny Arcade Expo, but seriously, they really deserve it. Take, for instance, this handy-dandy Vault Dweller’s Survival Guide they’ve been handing out to everyone who stops by. Not only does the 47-page book explain how to adapt to the outside world and warn you about radiation: the silent killer, it also explains “The Unappetizing Truth”, aka the reality of cannibalism.
The game-related posts on architecture blog BLDGBLOG are few and far between, but generally worth waiting for. This week, Geoff Manaugh took a look at Fracture and Celestial Impact, especially in terms of the game mechanics of deforming or otherwise changing the terrain. Looking at game design elements from an architectural perspective is a fascinating one, but Manaugh goes on to ponder if architects tried their hand at designing for games:
I’m not sure how this piece of garbage gets manslaughter and not murder — probably because it was a plea agreement. But a man in Arizona has pleaded guilty in the death of an 18-day old baby whose crying had interrupted his video game.
You know, how many times have you been sitting there, thinking to yourself, “Self, not only do I wish I had a working SNES controller, but I wish it was four feet wide so that I had to hug it like a six-year-old on a swimming pool raft.” Well, Gizmodo found this yesterday, an outfit called SCAD Inc., which has heard your cries and responded. Perhaps inspired by the coffee-table NES controller these guys have spent the past two months building a super-size Super Nintendo controller, with a comprehensive photographic record of their progress. As of last update, the project was in its final QA stages — detail painting, wiring, etc. Now I want to see a chaise longue made out of an Intellivision controller.
Hands-down the best booth on the Penny Arcade Expo show floor is Bethesda’s Fallout 3 homage.
We’ve got a short weekend coming up here in Kotakopolis, as Monday will be Labour Day in the United States. Maggie and I are both working half-days Saturday and Sunday. Bash and Luke will be back in tomorrow evening to pick up their usual shifts. So, fear not, we’re still here. It might be light this weekend but we had a very robust report during the week, the highlights of which are below, with more on the jump.
