The Grand Theft Autoblame-express keeps rolling on as three Georgia teens say they learned to make Molotov cocktails from the game. We must have skipped that level, is it the one with the points for the rape? WSBTV reports that the 15 and 16-year-old youths have been charged with 57 felony counts for a series of "car bombings" by Molotov cocktails.
The real kicker here is that police figured out who the arsonists were by going to the local Wal-Mart and sifting through receipts. One had on it the purchase of "Sprite bottles, red rags and lighter fluid," then the cops pulled the tape for the time of the purchase to identify the suspects. Poor guys, the game allegedly taught them how to make their tools of destruction, but not how to get away with the crime. Pro Tip: Hop in a car and drive until out of the police's radius.
We don't know about you, but we've been doing a little internal happy dance that a crummy video game version of The Dark Knight wasn't rushed to shelves, sullying in some way our love of the film. But The Batman's absence was apparently enough to get under the skin of the AP, which tried to dig up any dirt they could on the Caped Crusader's video game incarnation.
The general consensus? No one expected The Dark Knight to do as well as it did, meaning EA didn't feel a rush to get the game out day-and-date with the film, a miscalculation that analyst Michael Pachter estimates cost the company $100 million. Of course, it's mainly guesswork and speculation at this point, what really happened is anybody's guess. But make no mistake: Though we're happy there's no botched Dark Knight title on the market, we do want one. We just want the right one.
Here's a way to show you care: an Atlanta, GA schoolteacher (and obsessive knitter) is recreating World 1-1 in scarf form (based on this map from Ian Albert). The plan is, once she finishes, she and her boyfriend will get engaged. You can follow along with her progress at the aptly-titled The Mario Scarf Blog, with an FAQ found here. Now, if only there was a World 1-2 belt to go along with it ...
Check out this pixel scarf we found via, erm, ffffound. We're too worried about clipping issues to ever wear pixelated clothing ourselves. Check out the highlights for today:
The murder of a cab driver in Thailand, in which the killer said his inspiration was Grand Theft Auto, was a tragedy. The Thai government's handling of the situation ... well, that's starting to turn into a dark comedy. GamePolitics reports the Thai Ministry of Health has created a list of 10 violent games to avoid. Coincidentally, it's the same outdated list that Detroit prosecutor Kim Worthy created and released last year.
Thankfully the internet isn't that old, otherwise who knows what era the Thai government might have created taken its list of dangerous games from? Find both the Thai government and Detroit lists after the break.
Braid is great. Braid's 1200 MS point ($15) price, on the other hand, has been a point of contention. Designer Jonathan Blow sat down with 1Up and discussed what went into the decision of the game's price point and some of the tough choices that needed to be made.
Blow explains if the game maintained sales among a niche audience at 800 points he would be "bankrupt or in debt." Then again, if Braid sells moderately well -- and if the buzz over the title keeps going, it should -- he says he could have stuck it out at 800 points and then the game would have probably sold even better. Check out the developer's dilemma in the video after the break.
A Fred Savage film this is not. At the very least, LAN Party Massacre is living up to the one key tradition of the video game movie "genre" -- it looks terrible. But really, would we want it any other way?
It should come as no surprise that our favorite film around Joystiq HQ is Matthew McConaughey starrer Fool's Gold. We even have an adorable little Fool's Gold drinking game where ... well, we get really drunk and watch Fool's Gold. It's precious. Now, Ken Levine tells videogaming247 that, despite what we all assumed, the BioShock movie will be little to nothing like Fool's Gold!
"You're always going to be worried that in that first meeting they're going to be, like, 'OK, it's Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey on a desert island hunting for pirate treasure,' but it's not going to go that way," he said. Apparently, KennyL thinks director Gore Verbinski and crew "will very much honor the dramatic and thematic elements of the game."
... So you're saying there's not even room for Alexis Dziena as a ditzy heiress who proves to herself that she has something more to offer besides a killer body and a 1,000-watt smile? Why are you even making this movie?
Developers vying for a slice of the rhythm game pie may soon find the cost to dig in to be increasing -- at least if they want players to nod along with music they know. According to Reuters, Warner Music's top exec Edgar Bronfman has come forward, stating that game companies should pay more to the music industry in order to include licensed tunes in their music-based games.
Says Bronfman, who compared the relationship to the likes of MTV or Apple's iPod, "The amount being paid to the music industry, even though their games are entirely dependent on the content we own and control, is far too small." Given Warner's interest in music currently flowing through both Guitar Hero III and Rock Band, not to mention the war that is abouttounfold on living room stages later this year, it will be interesting to see who will 5-star this game of financial tug-of-war.
In an interview with GameDaily, Sega's VP of marketing, Sean Ratcliffe, formally acknowledged something that, oh, every gamer and members of the media have known for the past decade: theSonicfranchise has largely gone to poop. Well, Ratcliffe didn't go that far. He did offer explanations, promises, and gently worded ways of saying that Sega is going to continue doing ... the same old thing with the Blue Blur (except for the, um, "werehog" part). In summary:
"Some of that criticism is probably warranted. We definitely recognize that a franchise that has been going as long as Sonic, you really have to put a huge amount of effort in to make sure that you maintain that quality ... which is why you're seeing us this year taking the first steps in making sure the quality is right, and we're constantly looking at innovation ... you know, blending classic 2D gameplay with 3D, beautiful landscapes, rich environments. Then with a nice innovative twist, we're taking Sonic in a different direction, slow him down and he transforms into a 'Werehog.' And that changes the gameplay again. For fans of Sonic that have been looking for a next-gen experience, this is the game they've been waiting for."
Slow him down? ... *facepalm* (Oh BioWare, save us now!)
I was lucky enough to be able to go up to George Lucas' ranch this Sunday to see a screening of The Clone Wars and to interview the man himself, along with director Dave Filoni and producer Catherine Winder. To top that off, they gave us an insider's tour of the inner working at Lucasfilm and LucasArts.
There's a gallery below filled with highlights from the tour, including the LucasArts gaming lounge, the playtester's room, and their mocap studio. However, the real highlight was... tons of concept art from the "so secret we won't even talk about it"Indiana Jones game that is still forthcoming. It was all dated 2005, so who knows if it'll still feature in the game, but the above image of Indy watching the Golden Gate Bridge being built gives us hope. Find out more after the break.
The 2008 Penny Arcade ExpoOmegathon V lineup has been revealed and it feels surprisingly casual. There's no Doom or Quake title like we've seen in every previous Omegathon. Also new: starting the first round with a non-board game (Jenga has been pushed to round 5). Here's the list:
Round 1: Peggle
Round 2: Boom Blox
Round 3: Pictionary
Round 4: Rock Band (Our guess is Rock Band 2)
Round 5: Jenga
Final Round: *** TOP SECRET ***
The 20 Omeganauts have already been chosen (congratulations to any Joystiq readers who made the cut!); first prize this year is a trip for two to the Tokyo Game Show with all expenses paid and $5,000 in "walking around money."
While last year's Omegathon skipped the previous tradition of using a classic retro title (Pong, Combat, Tengen Tetris), every year has featured an id Software shooter. With Rage, Doom 4 and the new Wolfenstein looking unlikely, we're trying to think of another potential, unreleased FPS that could top last year's surprise Halo 3 inclusion. If Tycho and Gabe are looking to make our heads explode, maybe they can get Duke Nukem Forever. We won't find out until minutes before the final round on Sunday, August 31 at 4:30 PM PT.
In the meantime, check out the list of past Omegathon lineups, and feel free to make your own and play along at home.
Although it's probably wrong to call Frank Caliendo a "John Madden impersonator," because he does a billion great impressions ranging from President Bush to William Shatner, he's definitely best known for his spot-on send up of the white-haired football legend. Both Caliendo and Jay Mohr are joining the voice cast of Midway's upcoming footballer, Blitz: The League II.
Caliendo will play three different characters, the prison warden, the offensive line coordinator and the color commentator, and Mohr will be playing The Agent, which will probably be similar to the role he played in Jerry Maguire. Midway probably wants to avoid a lawsuit with NBC, the NFL, and Madden himself, so it's doubtful Caliendo will be speaking as The Coach when we get blitzed this Fall... but here's hoping.
If you haven't been to the Star Trek Experience inside the Las Vegas Hilton, you might want to try and get yourself there on August 10th. That's when Mr. Spock himself, Leonard Nimoy, will be unveiling gameplay footage from the upcoming Star Trek Online.
This long-in-the-making and often troubled MMO has had a shaky path down the development road, and Vegas might be the perfect place for it to make one of its first appearances. Developer Cryptic could renew their Star Trek vows with a quickie wedding in true Trek style. One Vulcan Vow Renewal to go, please.
The "Smile" achievement in Geometry Wars 2 seems to giving people a run for their 800 MS points. Rooster Teeth's new achievement site, Achievement Hunter, has produced a spiffy little walkthrough vid of how to painlessly get attempt to get the 25 gamer point reward. Nobody says it's going to be easy, but then the best rewards in life (that leave you feeling alone and used at the end of the day) never are.
The Indiana Jones game that LucasArts doesn't want you to know about ... yet
Check out PS3 Fanboy's Trophy portal for all your Trophy-hunting needs!
Source: First images from 360 Avatar Creator
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