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Zelda/South Park Mash Up
Wow. I don't even know what to say after watching this one. It's in turns terrifying, disgusting and downright hilarious. This goes beyond the normal mash up, this is like a mash up on acid. A semi-pornographic Zelda parody done in South Park animation style using the voice tracks from the Zelda cartoon. And to top it all off , it shows the original cartoon the voices come from in the lower left corner. Amazing job by Robotbling! I'm speechless...ahhh......yeah.....
Update: ESA President Stepping Down
We first broke the story that Electronic Software Association president Doug Lowenstein was stepping down from his post Thursday night. Today, calls and emails to the ESA were not returned. I was told this morning that both Lowenstein and the media contact for the ESA were "gone for the day." An ESA employee initially denied the report that Lowenstein was quitting, but then declined to be quoted and said we would hear back from the organization on Monday.This is unfortunate. Doug Lowenstein has done a lot to defend the rating system and keep the bureaucrats at bay when it comes to regulations.
What Are You Playing This Weekend?
My cheapass copy of Every Extend Extra was unceremoniously tossed on my doorstep by the mailman moments ago, a soft thud I'm glad I heard, as one of the local stray pit bulls or dirty transients could easily have made off with it. Maybe that Gamestop "value" shipping also includes a half-assed drop off from the mail carrier, I don't know.some new, some old. I just picked up R6: Vegas for the PC and its great. Also I got ahold of a copy of the old Start Trek third person action game DS9: The Fallen. I never got around to playing it despite the fact that the game has a minor cult following and has been out since 2001. Lastly, after reading the nominees for the ModDB awards I went downloaded several mods that looked great including the HL2 Empires mod.
SiN Episodes Canned?
Is SiN Episodes already done? After making what seemed like a minor splash on the Steam platform with its first episode, the Games For Windows magazine crew sounds down on the future of Ritual Entertainment's episodic title, SiN Episodes, on their weekly podcast. After congratulting the Sam & Max team on actually publishing their second episode, the editors start rappin' 'bout episodic gaming.Jeff: Sin Episode 2... Shawn: ...is likely not happening now.I had fun with EP1 but as far as gaining new fans for the IP they just didn't go far enough. They used as much of HL2's assets as possible to save money while inserting one of the most generic storylines and one dimensional characters possible. While I'm sure the small number of fans of the original appreciated the effort what was released was just too limited and unappealing for younger gamers who grew up these past few years with far more complex and involving titles.
In the end I grudgingly agree that the company probably has to reinvent itself to stay relevant.
Game Design in Germany
Crytek designer Tim Partlett has posted a lengthy account of what it is like being a game designer in Germany. I had assumed it was pretty bad, considering the outcry over violent games fueled by the recent school shooting, but some of the incidents he relates are downright chilling. In 2004 the Bavarian authorities sent in the state troopers. Ostensibly it was as a response to a claim made by a former employee that we had illegal software installed on our machines.Wow, I remember that incident when they got investigated because of some little baby they let go of ratted them out for installing some liscensed app on more than one machine. The same individual (I assume) later started posting to various hardcore forums that FarCry was going to be a disaster because of mistakes the coders were supposedly making.
The rest of it doesn't surprise me though. Its (Germany)one of the 3 European countries that will actually jail a person for racist statements.
Jam 'n' Top Shock's Nightline Profile
As promised, here is a video of Hampton J. Sock appearing on ABC's Nightline. We would have had it sooner, but we were too busy not being able to handle the truth to actually put it up on YouTube ourselves. It's an insightful look into the history of a man on a crusade. A man fighting evil. A man completely owned by Janet Reno. Tell me that interviewer isn't about to bust out laughing at several points. Watch his face. I just wish he had asked Mr. Hon Stomp the most poignant question of all.He claims support from all kinds of people and groups yet nobody has the sense to replace him with a lawyer who isn't a complete failure at LAW?
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Thompsons "moral responsibility" is mainly a facade. He is looking to break the game industry cherry. He knows that by playing the odds he will eventually end up with a sympathetic judge who will create a precedent thereby putting Thompson into the upper 1% of trial attorneys in the country. With that comes the fame and a financial payoff he so richly thinks he deserves. The trouble is he is on the verge of being disbarred from his home state and something like that never goes away. You'll also notice Hillary Rodham has distanced herself from him after learning quickly that his histrionics will NOT sit well with others should she run in '08. She isn't the only one beginning to realize that the man isn't mentally stable.
Mario Grows Up, Exits Closet
Spanish artist Ismael Álvarez made this fantastic pic especially for the lads over at GayGamer, but I imagine it's equally appealing to our lady readers as well. Looks like Mario has grown up, lost some weight, bulked up and...has new, exciting views on his sexuality. That, or his new attack in Mario Galaxy is to shove Toad down the front of his pants. It's slightly NSFW, so for the "full" pic hit the link at GayGamer below.Tom of Finland II
*cue Arnold Schwarzenegger voice*
"STOP IT!"
Xbox 360 Backward Compatability Update Hits
Good news. The rumored Xbox 360 backward compatability list that leaked online earlier this week is now available on Xbox Live, according to Major Nelson. With this update, the backward compatability listing numbers over 300 original Xbox titles. The better news? It even contains a title not originally listed in the leaked version, in the form of Conker Live and Reloaded. Hit the jump for the full list of new and updated supported games, then cue bitching that Game X is sadly missing.Its obvious they don't decide on which games based on quality. I see Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Psychonauts being the only worthwhile titles there.
Clips: New Bioshock Trailer
I'm not the biggest FPS fan. Not because I don't like them, so much as I'm just plain terrible at them. Shots fly wide of their marks and I've even managed to blow myself up by throwing a grenade straight into wall and have it bounce back. But, I am honing my FPS skills for one reason and one reason only...Bioshock. This looks like one of the most amazingly crafted games I've seen in a long time and I can hardly wait to get my hands on it.I saw an earlier mini-trailer deal on this game, and it looked pretty awful. The developer was describing the game mechanics and what those robots and the little girls were about.
If its the trailer where you see the little girl extracting then "using" the stuff she gets from corpses then I would say you need to get your eyes checked. That was a stunning video.