Andrea claims to be a Sega diehard going back to when she was nine years old, becoming obsessed with Sonic, Toejam & Earl and Rolo to the Rescue until she was 14 and, presumably, discovered boys. Says Andrea:

I didn’t return to my game playing days until about 2 years ago, and now, I’m STILL obsessed with those old games. When I was little I would stay up way past my bedtime and if I died (in the game), I would be crushed. I’d be so mad that I’d beg to stay up and try again.

Andrea was chosen because, while the eight other entrants either brought a virtuoso Bayonetta look, or just the sexy-behind-librarian-glasses, Andrea, “married both elements to come out on top.” Hell, I’d settle for marrying just one of them.

Doesn’t look like there are any promotional duties involved here. But Andrea does take home an Xbox 360, a 50-inch plasma TV and, of course, a copy of Bayonetta.

Bayonetta Contest Winner Announced [Maxim via VG247]

Fresno Bee writer Mike Osegueda reports that he and his wife initially were having a frustrating time playing New Super Mario Bros. Wii together.

And then, without the cost of a therapist, Osegueda had a revelation:

I realised the way I play “Mario” is like a bachelor lives — running through each level as quickly as possible, daring crazy jumps and sometimes paying the price.

She’s more slow and careful, watching how situations develop before making a move.

I’d see her glaring at me when I ran too far ahead. But she was there to slow me down when I was about to do something that would probably kill Mario and end our game.

As we continued to play, we started handling the game the way we handle chores — picking tasks that fit us best individually. It’s why she washes the dishes and I put them away.

Soon, I saw “marriage” in Mario’s every move. When our characters gather coins, they all go into one pot. Hello, joint bank account. Picking which level to play next is sort of like picking what to have for dinner. You should talk about it before pressing a button.

Over the weekend I played New Super Mario Bros. Wii with a few other people. Not being a polygamist, I can’t liken that weekend session to any marriage I’ve ever been part of. The rotating trio of us had all the coordination and cooperation of a group of people running after a hundred dollar bill.

‘New Super Mario Bros. Wii’ is a lesson in marriage [Fresno Bee]

Wait, didn’t we post this last week? Yes, we did. But we stuffed up the dates, so we’re posting it again.

As long as you can make it into the Sydney CBD this evening, of course. If you do, you’ll hear a veteran panel of journalists and commentators discussing the evolution of tech and games over the past decade. Should be fun!

When: Tuesday 24th November. 6pm onwards.
Where: Shelbourne Hotel, Altitude Bar, 200 Sussex St (cnr Sussex & Market)
Price: FREE!

The expert panel will be hosted by erstwhile Kotaku editor Seamus Byrne and features the following games/tech media luminaries:

David Flynn – veteran tech journo and former editor of ACP and Icon
Tim Dean – former editor of PC Authority and Cosmos
Bajo – Good Game host
Jez Ford – Geare editor
Ben Mansill – Byteside bloke and founding editor PC PowerPlay and Atomic
Daniel Wilks – editor of Hyper
Simon Sharwood – veteran tech journo, writes for everyone!

Just make sure you RSVP now to reserve your spot.

Last week Electronic Arts put a bullet in the head of Pandemic Studios, putting many of their 200 staff out of work a week before Thanksgiving.

Today Pandemic ex-staffers let EA know how they feel. Maybe the publisher should be happy that all they lost was a printer in the mass firings of developers skilled at making games with destructible environments.

With a bit of free time on their hands, maybe a gifted writer at Pandemic should hit me up for a “writing assignment”. Who doesn’t love a holiday expose?

The parents were, the police replied. Authorities then showed up at the boy’s house after he hung up, and after listening to the story, told him that his parents were within their rights to take away his game console as punishment.

The police also advised the boy to listen to his parents and stop wasting taxpayers money. Well, don’t know about that last one – but they should’ve told him that, too!

Authorities do not know why the boy was being punished. Yeah, why would any parent punish a child who would question their authority and then call 911?

Buffalo Grove boy dials 911 after parents take away his Xbox video game [Chicago Tribune via Obscure Store via Gizmodo]

AMAAAZING Bioshock Cosplay At Aquarium [Geekologie]

These have been designed by Dave Rollins, are made of acrylic, and are going for the entirely reasonable price of $US20. The only downside? No Wavebird.

Anyone interested, you can get ‘em from Etsy.

video game controller ornaments are very merry indeed [technabob]