Cryptic Studios' PC superhero MMO City Of Heroes has announced the winners of its 'City Of Archvillains' Halloween costume competition over at its community site, for which the task was to create a real-life villain to match up with your in-game hero. There are some fine pictures in the winning gallery, particularly the winning 'Kor/Votum' duo.

But naturally, by far the best entries weren't the winners, and the full entry gallery reveals the Angelik Madness/Demonik Wreakage duo, a particularly fine example of MMORPG fandom - bonus points for anyone who can identify the convenience store the pineapples are being held up in. Yet above all, Catsheep/Admiral Steaksauce is another outstanding supermarket-related effort - bravo.

Posted by Simon Carless at 4:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just a quick note to say that GameSetWatch is officially launched - which, if you're reading this, is incontrovertibly true, right? Over at Gamasutra we have the official announcement, which provides some info on the blogging line-up here that's worth repeating:

"GameSetWatch is headed by Game Developer/Gamasutra EIC and former Slashdot Games editor Simon Carless. Contributors to the daily-updated game weblog, which aims to pinpoint and succinctly link to the gems of video game coverage online, include GeekOnStun weblog creator Michael McWhertor, Edge Magazine contributor Brandon Boyer, LostLevels founder Frank Cifaldi and Wonderland game weblog creator Alice Taylor, as well as Insert Credit co-founder and Game Developer editor Brandon Sheffield." So there you go - stay tuned for the many shenanigans to come on the good ship GameSetWatch.

Posted by Simon Carless at 1:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The incredibly generic-monikered TechEBlog has details on Cenix's GMP M-6 Korean gaming handheld, with which it is apparently "looking to take on the PSP in [South] Korea". According to the site: "This system features a MiniSD Card Slot, 2″ Widescreen TFT-LCD Display, and FM Tuner", and a couple of built-in games, with '50,000' more downloadable via the web (Java? Flash? Text adventures? Who knows.)

Other vital statistics? "The GMP-M6 measures 90 x 13 x 45.5 mm and weighs just 55g. Fully charged, the system gets approx. 6 hours of video/game play, and 20 hours of music playback on its 3.7V Li-polymer battery. A 1GB model which comes in either black or white will cost $193 USD." It looks a little on the teeny side, and without lots of dedicated game software support, it's probably not going to blow the market away, but heck, it's another novelty geek item to file next to the apparently ultra-buggy GP2X, right?

Posted by Simon Carless at 11:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

For those of you who don't know Super Furry Animals, let's sum up - psychedelic Welsh pop group, once got Sir Paul McCartney to eat celery in time to their music, not as famous in the States as they should be.

But let's add to that list - commissioned excellent video game-related music video [.MOV] for their song 'Lazer Beam', directed by Aurelien and Florian Marrel, and imagining the band starring in their own side-scrolling arcade brawler. Points to note - the Final Fight-style overlay map, and the Metal Slug vs. Moonwalker type 'gameplay', as people are forced to dance by the sheer power of the SFA's sonic weapons. Oh, and now we want to play the 'Lazer Beam' game, and it doesn't exist, damn you all to hell. [Via RobotWisdom.]

Posted by Simon Carless at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

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Game-art site Grand Text Auto recently announced the public availability of Book And Volume, a new Inform text adventure by Twisty Little Passages author Nick Montfort.

As GTA handily explains: "As a sysadmin in Book and Volume’s nTopia, it’s easy to know what to do. Your computer, your pager, and your boss are constantly telling you. And you must spend your Sunday night running around rebooting servers whether you like it or not (there’s a big demo coming up!) or get fired." The official site has more information, and even a link to a non-savable web version of the game using Java, for the curious. There, proof that there's text adventure life outside the (absolutely excellent!) IFComp.

Posted by Simon Carless at 10:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Extremely entertaining EverQuest II weblog (yes, this is a real statement!) Aggro Me has been poking around the more obscure voice actors used for the multitude of speaking characters in the game, which also includes Christopher Lee and Heather Graham as top-line voice talent.

Among the more interesting in the massive list? Well, there's Mindy Sterling, who, of course, "played Frau Farbissina from the Austin Powers films", and assays Oracle Ulinara, Darmen Sproutmore, and Merchant Novak, among others, in EQII. Heck, there's even Mae Whitman playing Lilly Ironforge, and Mr. Aggro points out: "If you're an Arrested Development fan, you may be interested to know that Mae played Anne Veal, George Michael's very religous girlfriend." As for The Wonder Years' all growed up Danica McKellar punching up Lolla Cotgrove? Say no more, say no more.

Posted by Simon Carless at 3:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The insano Sega acolytes over at UK-headquartered website Kikizo sneaked over to document the Virtua Fighter 5 arcade playtest that happened at Tokyo's Club Sega last weekend, and professed themselves extremely impressed with the Lindbergh-based arcade title, as yet officially unconfirmed for next-gen consoles.

Particularly interesting, apart from the extremely pleasant graphics, is the complex online networking for the arcade title: Kikizo explains of the expanded VF.tv service: "What this service provides is an ongoing service that will be in every arcade in Japan. Each arcade will have at least one VF.tv monitor, which will show battle replays of matches (complete with full audio commentary!), advertisements, and player rankings." Sounds pretty smart - watch for the final version of Virtua Fighter 5 in Japanese arcades in April 2006.

Posted by Simon Carless at 7:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Over at DS weblog Neologasm, they've put up a startlingly literate rave for one of the most popular DS import-only games, the pundit-beloved, and, indeed, GameSetWatch-adored 'Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan' (or 'Oh! My! Ouendan!' if you're translating half-assedly), which was developed by Gitaroo-man creators Inis.

As Neologasm explains: "In Ouendan there is no conventional single hero. In each stage, you play a particular group of people--the cheer squad--who empower the individual heroes of their stories to win conflicts." Why is this so great? Well, it's suggested: "At its greatest, Ouendan is about the triumph of personal responsibility. This is not the communist ideal that "the people" as a group hold true power, or Ayn Rand's notion that when freed to do so, some individual humans can be freed from the dead weight of the common people, but the (I suppose) classic liberal idea that common individuals, empowered and working together, can do great things." Also, it has some great J-Pop, if you're not into the highbrow deconstructionism.

Posted by Simon Carless at 12:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Edge Online continues its regular 'FAQ' series of mini-interviews by quizzing Quantic Dream's David Cage, most recently renowned for his post-Bowie story-driven piece of intrigue that is Fahrenheit/Indigo Prophecy.

Cage is particularly interested in imbuing his games with emotion, and this comes out in his answer to a question about new developments in gaming: "If you're talking strictly about technology, I'd like to see more technologies related to living characters (body and facial animations, skin, eyes, clothes, hair, etc.) - all the little details that make the difference between a living character and a bunch of pixels." Onward, traipsing across the Uncanny Valley, perhaps?

Posted by Simon Carless at 5:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

When Shigeru Miyamoto made a rare public appearance in New York in late September to help promote Nintendogs, all kinds of sensible and non-sensible item signings resulted. One of the less sensible, a guitar signed by Miyamoto himself, is now available on eBay with a reserve price of $700, and the frenzied explanation: "Not only is this guitar autographed by Miyamoto, but he is also the last person who played it!"

Apparently, "The chords he played? The opening chords to the Super Mario Bros. theme song!" Pity it's not a Nintendo-themed guitar, though, since there's a precedence for game-themed axes - the Um Jammer Lammy real-life guitars collected by former GamePro and current Future guitar-loving journo Dan Amrich, for one.

Posted by Simon Carless at 6:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If, like us, you prowl around your local video game store looking for weird Eastern European-developed family games nobody else cares about, you might have come across Shamu's Deep Sea Adventures, an officially Sea World-licensed adventure title for (deep breath!) PS2, Xbox, Gamecube, DS, and GBA, from Activision Value. As the official website explains: "All is not well within Shamu's beloved SeaWorld Adventure Park - Poseidon wants to steal the magic of the park away from Shamu and SeaWorld." Damn you, Poseidon!

The screenshots show off a surprisingly lush Ecco-esque seascape, and TeamXbox's review reveals 720p support for the Xbox version, calling it "a pretty slick little kid’s game". Plus, in a nefarious piece of 'alternative' marketing, perhaps your tykes found out about the $29.99 game from their teacher, thanks to the LearningWorks lesson plan [.ZIP] posted on the Shamu homepage - sneaky, Activision, sneaky.

Posted by Simon Carless at 12:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The clever shoot-em-up fans over at Shoot The Core! managed to spot Uplift, an academic project created by a student at the Georgia Tech Experimental Gaming Lab, Nathanael Ng.

Ng explains in his abstract: "It has been found that individuals engaging in challenging activity such as athletics, coding, or playing video games sometimes enter a state of cognition known as 'flow' or 'the zone'. This is, I believe, a fundamental human capability, yet it has not been formally studied to any significant degree." What better way to study it (utilizing "a biofeedback/neurofeedback interface") than with a frantic abstract 2D shooter, too? Unfortunately, the game isn't online just yet, but the screenshots look like Vectrex-esque fun, and the more degrees we grant through Ikaruga clones, the better shape America will be in.

Posted by Simon Carless at 7:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The creators of the 'Roguelike' DungeonDoom mod for Doom III have announced that Version 7.0 XP is now available for download - both Doom III and the Resurrection of Evil expansion pack are required to play. The official page explains of the rather neat mod: "DungeonDoom incorporates most key features of Roguelike games. In particular, levels are largely composed of mazes, which are generated randomly every time a new game is started. Levels have stairs leading either to higher or lower levels of the dungeon. The lower the player descends into the dungeon, the stronger the enemies get. Killed enemies drop gold which then can be used by the player in shops to buy weapons and ammo."

Even wackier, the new version of the mod, V7.0XP, include "alignment system and dynamic storyline influenced by player alignment", and even a new character class, Cardmaster,' based on collectible card gameplay. So that's the Doom III Rogue CCG, then? Sure, I'll take a dozen.

Posted by Simon Carless at 3:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

KonamiStyle, the online shop that represents game publisher Konami's game, music, and merchandise interests, has deployed for United States customers. Previously available only to Japanese and European markets, Konami now gives US-based gamers the option to buy online.

At this point, the only wares available are currently marketed Konami software releases. This pales in comparison to offerings provided by the Japanese iteration, which include pants-wetting goodness like Konami property t-shirts, the Metal Gear Solid 3 Extreme Box, arcade quality Bemani controllers and more. KonamiStyle for Europe is not slouch either, with Silent Hill 4 mugs to prove it.

Buyer beware: KonamiStyle American-style currently lists Microsoft specific system requirements (hiss...), but using other alternatives has yet to hurt our browsing experience.

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Over at sister site Gamasutra, they've added a 'Playing Catch-Up' column with former id artist Paul Steed, particularly 'famous' for his somewhat controversial 'Crackwhore' model for Quake II, as well as his larger-than life personality.

Steed's fascination with the female form continued even post-id, though, as he explains: "I was doing these visualizers for [popular MP3 software] WinAmp, this plugin where you have 3D dancing girl at about 10,000 polygons... I came up with the proper solution to the breast bouncing one night over seven Guinnesses with a waitress. I showed her my laptop, and what I was working on, and she happily jumped and bounced for me." After a stint at Microsoft working with James Cameron on Battle Angel demos for Xbox 360, Steed is now a Creative Director at Atari, with an eye for the less carnal and more practical: "I always wanted to work with a publisher, in the sense that I want to affect games and make them better."

Posted by Simon Carless at 12:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

David Edery, the manager of the CycleScore exergaming project at MIT, has his own weblog, Game Tycoon, and, quizzing a fellow bulky-peripheral utilizer, has interviewed Harmonix's Greg LoPiccolo about the awesome PlayStation 2 axe-wielding, plastic Gibson-totin', critically drooled-over title Guitar Hero.

Among the highlights? LoPiccolo suggests of the game's late-lifecycle timing: "The major franchises are all out toiling with their new dev kits, so there aren’t that many compelling PS2 titles out there, which is great for us!" There's also hints that "you can sell people more music for the existing game, new features via expansion content" - maybe the "solo improvisational mode" that Harmonix recently mentioned in an Edge interview will make it into an add-on pack? We can only hope. (Via Ludology.)

Posted by Simon Carless at 8:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jim Munroe runs the No Media Kings website, and if you're into games and art, you might have heard of his piece 'My Trip To Liberty City', narrating a trip to Grand Theft Auto's home town in typically tedious holiday-home-video style. (He also wrote the excellent futurist sci-fi novel Everyone In Silico, which you can download as an ebook.)

In any case, Munroe has now publically released another game-related short live action film, 'Mario's Pain', in which "the played-out plumber talks about his back problems", and if you like to see stuffed-toy Nintendo characters complaining of intense lumbar conniptions, then you may want to check this out. Also because it's pretty darn funny.

Posted by Simon Carless at 7:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

A handy update over at the official website for Lionhead's 'The Movies' compiles some of the best films recently uploaded to the site, after having been created in Peter Molyneux's critically well-received hybrid PC strategy-creation title.

Some of the best? Well, much remarked on already is 'The French Democracy', "an original French movie about the recent French riots in the suburbs", but also well worth checking is 'The Movies Ad Contest!", in which "Peter Molyneux is upset with the marketing of his visionary product, The Movies... [and] dives into full Evil Genius mode and begs for a new advertising campaign." Wait, that movie is just a movie... right?

Posted by Simon Carless at 7:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Digital Leisure, which owns the rights to a host of classic laserdisc-based arcade games (the likes of Dragon's Lair and Thayer's Quest - and even some atrocious live action FMV games like Mad Dog McCree), has announced that the company will be releasing the games for the Xbox 360. Truth be told though, these are simply DVD titles that are compatible with the 360 hardware by virtue of the 360 controller's doubling as a DVD remote. The (unlicensed!) games are not exactly affortable, at $30 a pop, and might be better presented in compiled form, perhaps with official license from Microsoft.

Posted by bsheffield at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sister site Gamasutra has a short write-up on Twin Galaxies' "Legends of the Golden Age: A Tribal Gathering of the Greatest Video Game Superstars of the 1980s", to be held in Humble, TX, the weekend of December 2-4, 2005. The Twin Galaxies website has more information on the '80s arcade game legends turning up, but alongside Pac-Man and former Pole Position champs making an appearance, the event reveals: "Greg Sakundiak of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, who held many world records on classic arcade games during the 80s, but retired from gaming to pursue a career in professional arm wrestling, will also be present."

But where can we find out more on this button-pressing pumped-up God of a man? Well, Greg originally held the Twin Cobra world record, 1,900,450, set on 5/15/86, but more recently, participated in the 2001 Canadian Armwrestling Championships page, which has action photos of Sakundiak (on the right) placing second in the 'Men 60kg' category. Wanna bet he's preternaturally good at Track & Field?

Posted by Simon Carless at 8:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

1UP was good enough to make the trip down to what we presume is Golfland in Sunnyvale, a little while back, and they came back with a preview and videos of Mario Kart Arcade GP, the Namco-developed arcade iteration of the classic Nintendo series, which includes cameras to take photos of participants and attach their faces to the karts, and even Pac-Man-inspired bonus track areas.

Matt Leone semi-laments: "The data cards are gone, the teenage photo booth crowd doesn't really exist over here, and the hardcore racing fans seem to be pretty well occupied by the Initial D games. It all explains the 'limited quantities' Namco mentioned in the press release when it announced the game for the U.S. market." However, Jeremy Parish definitely likes the cut of the game's jib, noting it's the "best-looking Mario Kart ever", and commenting: "Namco's interpretation of Mario Kart is dramatically different than anything that fans might be used to. The feel is definitely more arcade-like than other MK titles (which seems reasonable enough, considering). " Go, Mario, go!

Posted by Simon Carless at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The excellent Hall Of Light database of Commodore Amiga games, one of the single best-cataloged and annotated single-format info projects around, has now built up a significant list of Amiga promotional games, and some of the title in question, extremely early advergames to a tee, are fascinating.

While some of these mainly German titles, such as a Nestle promo game, Tricky-Quiky-Games, there's also The Sony Game, in which you play some kind of diseased Walkman, and even the suitably pan-global Pepsi: All Over The World. Even more interesting, the German Federal Press Office produced Der Rasende Reporter, and, although screenshots are sadly missing, there's Come Together (Around The World), a promotional game for Peter Stuyvesant Cigarettes - that's right, kids, come together to play games and smoke cigarettes - around the world.

Posted by Simon Carless at 10:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

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GameSetWatch received a press release today from Audiobrain, which is the sound design company, headed by long-time gameLab composer Michael Sweet, behind the built-in sounds for the Xbox 360.

The release handily explains of Xbox 360's epic opening swooooosh: "The startup [noise], created with several layers of clear and consistent sound design, both organic and architectural in nature, starts with a rumble representing the enormous size of the world appearing over the horizon, then a swoosh for the energy and a shimmer with lower sounds colliding at the visual impact and form the X in the world, creating the sense of duality and searing, impactful energy." Yep, it sounds better in Dubly, especially after that explanation - the specially composed Xbox 360 soundtrack for the console's E3 appearance also plays on the Audiobrain homepage.

Posted by Simon Carless at 11:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Mobile phone publisher iFone has announced that it is employing a 'twist of lemming', and switching up the classic DMA Design/Psygnosis Lemmings license to create Love A Lemming, a somewhat bizarre virtual pet game starring everyone's favorite suicidal rodent, shipping to European mobile operators in December.

Apparently: "The aim of Love a Lemming is to name, tame and train your very own Lemming so that it can be successfully released into the wild", and Jay Sharples, Product Development Manager at iFone, commented: "For some players it will be the start of a long attachment with their Lemming." Wait, will the lemmings be released into the wild to frolic and play with their lovable brethren, or released into the wild... at the edge of a jagged cliff? Oh nooooooo.

Posted by Simon Carless at 11:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Over at Voodoo Extreme (part of the IGN/Fox conspiracy, Mulder!), they've posted a synopsis with screencaps of last night's CSI: Miami U.S. television episode, 'Urban Hellraisers', which, yes, uses the GTA/violent game furore for a 'plucked from the headlines' one-hour whodunnit.

Of course, this includes such delights as (spoiler alert!): "Caine & co. arrive to discover that the GM has "gamed himself to death" by playing for 70 hours straight", and: "Turns out [the culprit] was the head of the publishing company that distributed Urban Hell Raisers and orchestrated the crime spree to help create buzz and sell more copies of the game", though the VE3D guys argue: "It certainly wasn't a Hollywood-fuelled tirade against the games industry despite being full of stereotypes and opinions of violent titles." Fair enough, then?

Posted by Simon Carless at 8:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)

You may have heard, a few weeks back, that Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima had opened an English-language version of his weblog. Well, although the Japanese blog has posts as recent as two days ago, the fan-made translations are still catching up, and are currently up to October 12th, encompassing some striking new entries.

Notably, the October 7th entry, as surprisingly long (1800+ words) and detailed as earlier ones, provides an interesting look into Kojima's worries as he works on Metal Gear Solid 4 for the PlayStation 3: "Our work method will be difficult to preserve when we move to the next generation consoles. Physical forms and facial expressions will need to appear in-game exactly as they appear in reality. We will need to rely upon one single actor for our four main ingredients: facial model and texture, motion acting, facial expressions, and vocal performance. I'll also need to worry more about the adaptation from a Japanese language version into English. Facial and vocal expressions always differ between the two."

But more than that, Kojima seems almost frenzied over the state of the world, and strangely at odds with someone who obsesses over military details in his games: "Terrorism and civil wars consume us. Blood and lunacy overwhelm human order. We court the ideals of national and emotional security when we should concern ourselves with political and personal inner peace. We don't work toward nuclear disarmament and anti-war diplomacy; we fetishize emergency responsiveness. Does anyone consider the panorama that exists beyond the blinders of "our personal futures"? Who can claim a personal future without creating society's future in the process?" Time to tune in and drop out, perhaps?

Posted by Simon Carless at 4:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The folks over at GameCloud grabbed a brief interview with Left Behind Games' Troy Lyndon, discussing the forthcoming PC real-time strategy game based on the Rapture-themed Christian series of 'Left Behind' novels, which have sold a staggering total of 62 million copies over the last 10 years.

The official book website reveals: "[Left Behind authors Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins] estimate they've heard from more than 3,000 readers who have made decisions of faith after reading Left Behind." So... can an RTS (here's a trailer) make you believe? And more to the point, can you play the bad guys, too? Lyndon explains: "In Storyline Mode, a gamer can only play the good side of the Tribution Forces. However, in Game World Mode, gamers can play either side and view more realistically how their choices are matched up with consequences. And though both sides can win against each other in Battle, no conclusion is provided regarding who wins the war. Can you guess?" Um, Satan?

Posted by Simon Carless at 12:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Everyone can try them out on Tuesday, but last week, GameTunnel's Russell Carroll commented on some indie Xbox 360 Live Arcade titles that were playable at the 2005 IndieGamesCon in Portland, Oregon.

Of particular interest was Pom Pom's supremely psychedelic Mutant Storm Reloaded, of which Russell raved: "Seeing the game in motion was even more amazing...or was that nauseating?" Mm, the power of the Yak is strong in those ones. But the other titles, including a switched-up controls version of IGF winner Wik & The Fable Of Souls, plus a much enhanced iteration of the oft-ignored Outpost Kaloki, look equally smart, and Carroll concluded brightly: "In the end the Xbox 360 has the potential to be a big win for indie game developers and I hope it will help further increase the awareness of some of the many great indie titles available." Amen to that.

Posted by Simon Carless at 4:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The ever-perceptive Clive Thompson's latest Wired News column on games finds him asking: "Why are the most violent, brutal figures in video games usually police officers and soldiers?"

Thompson cannily points out: "In Doom, the game that began it all, you were a Marine. Then came a ceaseless parade of patriotic, heart-in-hand World War II games, in which you merrily blow the skulls off Japanese and German soldiers under the explicit authority of the U.S. of A. Yet anti-gaming critics didn't really explode with indignation until Grand Theft Auto 3 came along -- the first massively popular modern game where the tables turned, and you finally played as a cop-killing thug." What else do we have to add? Maybe this McSweeney's primer will calm you all down a little bit - games are just, well, games? Thompson concludes by pointing out: "Maybe our power fantasies are best kept where they belong -- on the console."

Posted by Simon Carless at 2:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Russian developer Step Creative Group seems to be a fan of seminal 19th century Russian author Nikolai Gogol - so much so that they made Evenings On A Farm Near Dikanka, a 2D adventure game for PC based on one of Gogol's (handily out-of-copyright) novels, and currently nearing completion.

The plot: "The protagonist of the game - rural smith Vakula - is enamored with Oksana, the first beauty of Dikanka. But Oksana presents an apparently impossible requirement: she wants Vacula to bring her shoes that the tsarina wears. Vakula’s adventures begin when the habitual rural life suddenly turns magical." It's a bit like 'Bewitched' meets 'Monkey Island' in the 18th century Ukraine, then? Please sign us up for "the world where miracles and habitual fancifully intertwine", forthwith.

Posted by Simon Carless at 11:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Ex-GameSpy staffer Ben '222b' Turner has an eye for the obscure, and is a particular fan of cult Japanese developer Treasure, having written an excellent retrospective of the Gunstar Heroes creators for 1UP.com recently.

So, imagine his surprise when some eagle-eyed forumites pointed out to him Tiny Toon Adventures: Scary Dreams, a Conspiracy-published Treasure title for Game Boy Advance, believed to be a Europe-only release under a different name, but currently available on eBay in largish amounts from a liquidator. Unfortunately, Ben notes: "All told, it's fast, it's chaotic, it's mildly entertaining. It feels very much like a prototype of Astro Boy: Omega Factor, which it probably is. But where Astro Boy is refined and beautiful, TTA: Scary Dreams is simplistic in gameplay and barebones in presentation." So... hardly a slamdunk, but collectors had better get in fast, before the inevitable price gouging starts.

Posted by Simon Carless at 11:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The ever-informed Clickable Culture has the latest details on a major hacking attack in blue-sky 'virtual world' Second Life, this time successfully foiled by admins for the popular (and seedier than one might expect) world.

According to the blog, a "denial-of-service (DOS) attack employing malicious 3D objects", intended to flood the world with so many polygons that it was impossible to move, was well-handled this time out, since: "The company deployed spectacular counter-measures within 45 minutes in the form of a massive virtual-reality firewall--literally a vast line of protected land separating the malicious objects from the rest of their cyberspace grid." All spectacularly Gibson-esque, eh?

Posted by Simon Carless at 7:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Over at the Metal Slug Database, they've posted an in-depth look at Metal Slug 6, the latest in the classic SNK series, complete with screenshots and plenty of spoilers.

Apparently, we can expect multiple alien races and some pretty nifty new vehicles, including a donkey carrying a howitzer and an underground drilling machine - maybe this is a cut above the other recent Metal Slugs? But... the 'Days Of Our Lives'-style plot tragedy? Sadly, 'much-loved' character Allen O'Neil won't be returning to the series: "The fact that Allen has been revealed as a cyborg in Metal Slug 4 will not allow him to appear any more on other new Metal Slug games." Awwwww. (Via IC.)

Posted by Simon Carless at 5:09 PM | Permalink

The guys over at NextGen Productions have announced the release of the 'Tokyo Access' DVD, an official CESA-approved look at the Tokyo Game Show 2005. The single DVD, featuring nearly 3 hours of footage, and including an exclusive Peter Moore interview and other notable CESA-arranged interviews, retails for $12.95, and is apparently available via GameStop stores in the U.S., as well as via popular Asian retailer Lik-Sang.

The company's previous releases have included multi-DVD E3 documentaries, but this DVD promises, alongside all the sights and sounds of TGS, "bonus features including retro gaming in Japan, Two Ji live at TGS, interviews with developers and publishers, Hi-Def content and more." Rumors that 'Tokyo Access' includes certain Insert Credit-related co-editors of this blog waxing lyrical on Tokyo's game stores are yet to be confirmed - but could be dangerously true.

Posted by Simon Carless at 5:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There's a rather interesting photo over at Yahoo! News which shows "Microsoft's new Xbox 360 installed at a bus station in Paris during a promotion." Actually, it looks like a bus stop, and apparently Microsoft France decided to install an Xbox 360 (with slogan 'Jump In!') inside the stop's billboard, to lure hapless commuters.

Seriously, do they even realize how swiftly that glass would be smashed in America, given current Xbox 360 attempted sale prices? We guess this proves that the French are much more trusting - but the guy on the left is a Microsoft employee, judging by his shirt, so they'd have to get past him first. Possibly by sneering Gallically.

Posted by Simon Carless at 4:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)