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PETA Makes Scary Version of 'Cooking Mama' Game, Majesco Replies

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Nov 20th 2008 at 7:15PM

PETA Grinch Tries to Steal Thanksgiving
Animal rights activist group PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has never been known for its subtlety. Actually, that's an understatement. PETA has long been known for its over-dramatic publicity stunts. It's not that we always disagree with PETA's goals, it's just that their methods make us so uncomfortable we start to think that maybe Ted Nugent isn't such a bad guy after all.

The group's latest target is Thanksgiving. PETA has created a flash version of the Nintendo Wii hit 'Cooking Mama' (we hear the lawyers warming up their suing pens right now) that gruesomely details the steps involved in gutting and dressing a turkey.

Even if you lose, PETA still rewards you with a video that shows off the terrible conditions at commercial turkey farms. We agree it's not pretty, but they're gonna have a hard time convincing people that their food should be treated better. Especially if their main method of preaching is a flash version of an incredibly frustrating video game.

Majesco (publisher of 'Cooking Mama') responded with a press release noting that the new title 'Cooking Mama: World Kitchen' features plenty of vegetarian dishes, including miso soup and rice cakes. The gaming publisher doesn't appear to be taking the offense too seriously, since half of the release consisted of quotes from the fictional game's protagonist, 'Mama,' including her claim that her, "...only goal is to ensure you leave the table well fed."

We don't know about you, but we're hungry now. Maybe the Nuge can go kill us some grub. [From: Download Squad]

National Geographic to Make Video Games

by Kaiser Hwang, posted Nov 19th 2008 at 3:49PM

Games are recession-proof, right? Well, maybe not, but that's not going to stop National Geographic from making a videogame label. Dubbed National Geographic Games, the for-profit division will focus on creating software to further spread geographic knowledge. The new division's first game, 'Herod's Lost Tomb,' will be available as a free download for PC, Mac, and iPhone, while upcoming games will be developed for the Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3, and other handheld devices.

Believe it or not, National Geographic already has a game, made in partnership with Namco Bandai for the Nintendo DS, titled 'National Geographic: Panda.' Similarly, Sony has a National Geographic-like PlayStation 3 game released in Japan titled 'Afrika.' Could this the National Geographic: Africa game referred to National Geographic Games' press release? Hmm...

10 Classic Game Clones for the iPhone

by Dan Reilly, posted Nov 19th 2008 at 9:22AM


If we've learned anything from the demise of Scrabulous, it's that programs that are obvious copies of classic games can survive until they're too popular for their own good. So, that means that this list of 10 rip-off games for the iPhone, compiled by our bros over at Asylum, might be the death knell of your favorite time wasters.

But hey, we're not here to drag you down. You'll probably have plenty of time left with subtly-titled 'Space Invasion' and 'Tris,' until somebody puts two and two together and realizes what they're infringing on. Then again, whoever owns the rights to 'Arkanoid' and 'Marble Madness' might not even remember those games existed, so everything might just turn out fine. Fingers crossed, right? [From: Asylum]

Video Games Blamed for Bad Driving

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Nov 19th 2008 at 8:40AM

Video Games Blamed for Bad Drivers
Anyone who has ever played an extended 'Grand Theft Auto' session, only to have to later get behind the wheel of a car, doesn't need to be told that video games are a bad influence on drivers. We constantly drive down the street mentally tallying how many points we would score for nailing the old lady with the walker and how much air we could get if we floored it over this upcoming hill. But leave it to German researchers and Australian law enforcement to confirm the glaringly obvious.

In a new study, German researchers claim that video games that let players drive recklessly, crash, and otherwise have fun, are causing people to be less responsible behind the wheel. Interestingly, they say driving games only negatively affect the real driving skills of men. One researcher, Supt Evans, pointed to the obvious disconnect from reality, "In games you race, you crash and it is a matter of pressing the buttons and off you go again. In real life it doesn't work that way, you can be killed." Thanks for that brilliant analysis.

We smell another crusade in the making, in which video games become the scape goat.

We're not denying that playing some of these games might actually have an impact on how a person drives, but let's be honest, people drive recklessly because they're jerks with no concern for the safety of others, not because they just played 'Gran Turismo 5.' What do you think? [From: News.com.au]

'Naked Gun,' the 'Grand Theft Auto' Edition

by Lee Bains, posted Nov 18th 2008 at 3:35PM



Anybody who has ever been an adolescent boy will jump up and applaud this 'Grand Theft Auto' homage to the slapstick cinema classic 'The Naked Gun,' courtesy of Neatorama.com.

For those who might be too "sophisticated" to know much about that seminal Leslie Nielsen film, 'The Naked Gun' begins with a spoof on that archetypal 'Dragnet'-style scene -- a first-person perspective from a cop car rushing through city streets. Only, in 'The Naked Gun,' the officer driving the car makes a few bizarre turns.

We're all anxiously hoping the creators of 'Grand Theft Auto' have a full-on 'Grand Theft Auto: Naked City' sequel in the works. [From: Neatorama]

God-Friendly 'Guitar Hero' Clone Gets Shown Off

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Nov 18th 2008 at 2:40PM


Oh man... we were excited when we first heard about 'Guitar Praise,' but now that we've seen the three-minute over-explanatory trailer, we might just buy two copies, just in case one isn't enough to get us heathens past St. Peter.

The 'Guitar Hero' clone features songs from Christian Rock acts like Day of Fire and Family Force 5 (What!? no Stryper?), as well as a wireless controller that lets you "shred the riffs and thump the bass." And if you were wondering what to do while you wait for your turn, the trailer lets you know that you can sing along. Exciting!

We really hope that other religions get in on the guitar-based rhythm game fad soon. We're really excited to rock out to 'Hava Nagila.' [From: Joystiq]
Engadget

New Xbox Experience Now Available, Netflix HD Streams, Too

by Thomas Ricker, posted Nov 18th 2008 at 9:14AMBreaking News


Microsoft's new Xbox Experience dashboard doesn't officially launch until Wednesday the 19th. But if you signed up for the preview (and who didn't?) with a valid console ID then it's available now according to Major Nelson. What's more, Netflix has confirmed its Xbox 360 launch details: more than 12,000 movies and TV episodes and 300 streaming HD titles. Remember, streaming is free for Netflix members who are also Xbox Live Gold members. The HD video streams will be limited to SD audio, however -- multi-channel audio is in the works as are additional HD titles. Now get outta here kid, NXE awaits.

[Via Joystiq]

Read -- Major Nelson
Read -- Netflix

'Super Obama World' Game Features Prez-Elect, Palin, Pigs With Lipstick

by Lee Bains, posted Nov 14th 2008 at 12:30PM




This week, video game design company Zen Soft launched Super Obama World, an online video game starring the President-Elect, himself, we learned from the Daily Mail.

Owing an obvious debt to Super Mario World -- the classic Super Nintendo game -- Super Obama World utilizes a similar side-scrolling format and squat, cartoonish characters. This, of course, is not President-Elect Obama's first foray into the world of video games.

In the game, which is free and requires Adobe Flash 9.0, players navigate a broadly grinning, pixelated Barack Obama through an Alaskan landscape, where he must battle (i.e., jump on top of) lipstick-wearing pigs and Alaskan fat cats, try to collect flag lapel pins and, finally, come face to face with a snow-mobile-riding Sarah Palin.

Game Hint: Think twice before running down that long bridge in Stage 1. What did we learn this Fall about bridges in Alaska? [From: The Daily Mail]

Sony Deleting 'LittleBigPlanet' User Content At Will

by Kaiser Hwang, posted Nov 13th 2008 at 10:26AM


There's some dramatic irony going on here: Sony is deleting user-generated content created for its much-lauded 'LittleBigPlanet,' a game that heavily emphasizes user-generated content. Sure, the company does say the content violates its end-user license agreement (EULA) by including references to television shows and games, but Sony isn't even giving the users a warning to fix their mistakes -- the content gets automatically deleted, with no clear message as to why. If you're not familiar with EULAs, basically it's a contract between a software maker and you, the user, granting you a license to use the software. You know when you install software and have to click "Agree" to start the installation? That's the EULA.

In many cases, the offensive content found in 'LittleBigPlanet' is simply an item or character, yet Sony deletes the entire level causing, in some cases, users to have to spend hours recreating said level. From one player: "I had items ... that other people created of 'Sonic the Hedgehog' and a 'Metal Gear Solid' character. They couldn't just delete those items, they had to go and take the whole level?"

Even if users were given a warning, the EULA seems a bit flawed. It's sounds like (we don't have it here to get the details) it'd be comparable to posting, say, a videogame review on YouTube, and then having it removed because you didn't get permission to show clips of the game. The 'LittleBigPlanet' creations in question aren't official, but they couldn't they be confused as such either. On top of that, users aren't making money from it. If the content were pornographic, we could start to understand, but deleting peoples' levels because they have a character or level that resembles/was inspired, say, 'Super Mario Bros'? Isn't recreating the things we love part of the reason user-generated content is so great?

Head on to the official LittleBigPlanet forums for some frustration. [From: Wired]

Bush Seeks Midnight Law Prohibiting Online Gambling

by Lee Bains, posted Nov 13th 2008 at 7:03AM


In the waning hours of his presidency, George Bush is pushing to effectively outlaw online gambling in the United States. These efforts have met strident opposition by Democrats, proponents of Internet betting, and even some financial institutions.

The Bush administration's pursuit of these prohibitive laws follows on the coattails of a rider vaguely prohibiting online betting that was included in a piece of 2006 legislation ostensibly dealing with the security of U.S. ports. While that rider did, in fact, become law, its unclear language -- leaving open the question of what constitutes online gambling -- has left it largely unenforceable. President Bush and Congressional Republicans hope to clarify that language and outlaw the Internet practice before President-Elect Obama and the slew of newly elected Democratic Congress members take office.

In these troubled economic times, we're appalled that the government is trying to take away our one sure-fire means of supplementing our incomes. We mean, it is a sure thing, right? Right? [From: AOL News]




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