Games and gear

Spider-Man 3 is shaping up to be one of the biggest movies of the year, and like any blockbuster it's getting its own video game. Usually video games based on movies based on comic books tend to completely bite, but Spider-Man has so far managed to dodge the bullet. Though repetitive, Spider-Man 2 turned out to be a fun, attractive game that captured the web-slinger's web-swinging beautifully. So I still have hopes for the Spider-Man 3 game.

PlayStation 3 owners have even more reason to be excited about Spider-Man 3. According to IGN, the Spider-Man 3 game will … Read more

Good news for everyone but SLI owners. Nvidia just released a Windows Vista-certified 100.65 graphics card driver for its GeForce 8800 cards. You can find the driver on Nvidia's site. That's great for those of you running Vista and a single GeForce 8800 card. For anyone who has an Nvidia SLI mode of any flavor, you're still stuck in beta mode for now. We haven't played with the new driver yet, so we can't say just how beta the SLI support is. Nvidia's driver notes indicate that full SLI support will come in … Read more

Nyko sent us its new Wireless Sensor Bar and a Charge Station for the Nintendo Wii, so I took it home for the weekend and gave it a spin. This is only a first look, but the results for both devices were very promising.

The Nyko Charge Station is an all-in-one battery dock for Wii controllers. It comes with two rechargeable battery packs, two rubberized covers, and a two-slot charging dock for the Wiimotes to sit in. The battery packs replace the AAs that normally charge the Wii remotes, and the covers have a small hole in them so the … Read more

This little Tamagotchi-like device, called the "Virtual Boyfriend," promises to help "practice your relationship skills." Okay, I'm not denying that my dating prowess might need a little bit of tweaking here and there, but this is just a bit much. Rather than raising a pet, you have to learn how to treat a boyfriend right--presents, dates, and, uh, "wild passion." (What?!?) Ooh, and there's a twist, since the Virtual Boyfriend can make "decisions" too (how novel!) so it can get unpredictable and exciting!

Thanks, but no thanks. I think … Read more

I guess I could call the R2 Gaming Mouse Mark II a flashy device, but I would never go with such an obvious pun. Ever.

Still, the blinking LEDs were the first thing that caught my eye when I spotted this gadget for $59.99 on ThinkGeek. And they're programmable, so you can make them pulse to the unique beat of your own first-person shooting.

The apparent appeal of this mouse, besides its disco aura, is that it's customizable beyond the lights--a definite plus for gamers. Using the PAL 2.0 programming language, players can assign different functions … Read more

It's a bit late for Valentine's Day, but this was just too cool to pass up. Plus, if you're adventurous, it could be a nice wholesome President's Day long weekend activity. Flickr user "Bakalov" has made chocolates using the packaging from the Wiimote and nunchuck. Just remember, it's the packaging. This epicurean Nintendo fan was not actually filling his Wiimote with chocolate. Got it? Good.

As Kotaku said, "Everything is better if you fill it with molten chocolate.

So you're ready to take on the world with your Lightsaber phone and MP3 Lightsaber. But wait--your Millennium Falcon develops engine trouble. What's a Jedi to do?

Why, whip out your Safety Wand and Megaphone, of course--"a safety beacon that amplifies your voice up to five football fields away," as Uber-Review says. It's not an official piece of equipment from the Lucas empire, but it sure could have fooled us. (Do we hear the pitter-patter of trademark attorneys?)

Anyway, at least your ship has been rescued. And good thing you didn't have a … Read more

Nintendo threw a little shindig last night, and I went to sample the company's upcoming wares. The games Nintendo showed off included Super Paper Mario, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07, and Mario Party 8. Frankly, all three games look darn good.

I spent the most time on Super Paper Mario, sequel to the excellent GameCube RPG Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, and it's even weirder than its predecessor. Unlike the straight role-playing in previous Paper Mario games, Super Paper Mario is a puzzle-filled platform game with some loose RPG elements. The titular 2D plumber gets the power to … Read more

This item falls squarely under the category of major geekdom, but we're here to serve, not to judge. So we herewith offer the "Card Saber DS"--a sleeve that holds three DS games and a cartridge, according to Ubergizmo. Yes, it's not the most practical thing, but it costs only about $7. Besides, there's no price on the ability to unsheathe your games like a samurai. And it would go splendidly with your MP3 Lightsaber.