gaming

Now that the dust has settled with Manhunt 2 and Rockstar and its parent company Take Two Interactive are being held to the fire once again, the utter lack of knowledge and ignorance that permeates every level of retail has shown its ugly face.

Instead of understanding the nature of the latest Manhunt 2 scandal where gamers could ostensibly view adults-only content in the game through a code hack, Target and others have announced that it will not sell the game on its shelves because "players can potentially view previously filtered content by altering the game code."

Simply put, this is one of the most ludicrous and ridiculous decisions I have seen in years by any retailer. Just because a gamer can "potentially view previously filtered content by altering the game code", Target (and others) feel the need to take Manhunt 2 off store shelves?

Ridiculous.… Read more

In a statement released to reporters yesterday, Google explained that the company is currently "in tests to determine the best approach to in-game advertising." According to the search giant, it believes video games have become the "perfect medium to deliver relevant, targeted advertising that ultimately benefits the user, the video game publisher and the advertiser."

Does Google honestly believe this garbage? After it bought AdScape for $23 million earlier this year, I think most of us knew this day was coming, but why? This relatively new medium of in-game advertising, when done poorly, ruins any good game.… Read more

Sony Computer Entertainment America announced on Thursday a full list of the games and hardware bundles that it will be launching for its PlayStation systems--PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation portable (PSP)--for the fast-approaching holiday season.

The games, both first- and third-party, range from "enthusiast" titles geared toward the traditional young-male "gamer demographic," to more casual and social games "This holiday season we are offering our largest line up of quality software and hardware products to meet every taste, lifestyle and budget," said Scott A. Steinberg, vice president of product marketing for SCEA, said in a statement.

Sony is pitching the older PlayStation 2 console as an affordable hub for casual games, like SingStar and Buzz: The Mega Quiz. The PS2 is also "getting a social makeover with limited edition ceramic white hardware" and a new price of $149.99--perhaps as Sony's answer to that other white gaming console, you know, the one from Nintendo.

Among the more highly anticipated Sony titles are EA's Rock Band and The Orange Box; Activision's Guitar Hero III; and The Eye of Judgment, a trading card-based game that Sony developed in conjunction with Hasbro's Wizards of the Coast subsidiary.

A full list, below the jump:… Read more

If you're one of those gamers for whom a beat-up old BarcaLounger doesn't cut it, I might have just the fancy alternative for you.

If, that is, you don't blanch at the notion of forking over $300 for a chair that has little purpose other than indulging your greatest gaming needs.

I present the Renegade, the latest in the Ultimate Game Chair series.

This little beauty, which I am currently not sitting in, is a monument to everyone's inner level-70 World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade player.

What does your 300 clams buy you besides 50 pounds … Read more

I got a hilarious e-mail this morning from video game giant Activision touting the tremendous sales of the latest iteration of its hit franchise, Guitar Hero.

The subject line of the e-mail began, "Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock earns $115 in first week."

After I got through blinking a few times to make sure I was reading it right--I was--I looked into the body of the e-mail and saw that, yes, the company had left out a rather meaningful word: "million."

So, no, Guitar Hero III didn't sell two copies in its first week. … Read more

It's time for a caveat-laden confession. Around the office I'm known (unfairly) as a Nintendo fanboy. I got my Wii around 10 months ago, and to date I'm still satisfied with my purchase. That said, for the last two months, the Wii has lied fallow while my Xbox 360 got the bulk of my attention. Nintendo's little white box indeed collected a thin layer of dust while I played Bioshock, Oblivion, and Portal.

The Wii has been going through a pretty stiff dry spell. Besides occasional hits like Metroid Prime 3 and Super Paper Mario, Wii … Read more

It's fun for me to think about a room full of Target executives sitting around and making a decision about whether a video game is too violent for it to sell.

According to ABCNews.com, the giant retailer has decided not to carry the recent Rockstar Games gorefest, Manhunt 2, almost certainly because it has been at the center of the latest kerfuffle over the content of one of the publisher's titles.

"All video games and computer software sold at Target currently carry ratings by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board--from early childhood through mature audiences," ABC … Read more

For some people online flash games are a passing distraction to fill the hours between lunch and home time. For others online flash games are a passionate hobby that keeps them up until the early hours while they try and beat their last score.

Whatever your reason for playing them, we love them so much, we've put together a list of the top 10 best flash games ever, in no particular order. From very simple puzzles to complex plaformers, these should keep you entertained all day long. Click here and prepare to be distracted.

(Source: Crave UK)

"You have been attacked by a cyan ghost! You pass out and awake minutes later back where you began."

You might not remember it this way, but you--and probably everyone you know--has almost certainly had this experience, though in a different manifestation.

It's Pac-Man. Except instead of controlling your little yellow iconic character around a maze of dots and colored ghosts, this is Pac-Txt, a text version of the famous video game that recalls the old glory days of Infocom games like Zork and Leather Goddesses of Phobos.

I found the site after stopping in on one … Read more