Piracy of PC games is nothing new, and has been discussed previously. Due to the high levels of PC game piracy, some development companies have decreased (or eliminated) PC game development, shifting support to console development. But piracy isn't limited to PCs, as modchips and other hacks have allowed users to play pirated and homebrewed games. In the continuing struggle for control, Microsoft banned as many as 1 million modded systems from Xbox Live, resulting in a surge of people reselling Xbox 360s that have been banned from online play (and modders finding a fix for the ban). Some developers have adopted another tactic - increased development of downloadable content (DLC), which has been seen as both good and bad by gamers. John Riccitiello, the head of Electronic Arts, seems to have embraced DLC as a marketing option, in noting that "[people] can steal the disc, but they can't steal the DLC."
posted by filthy light thief on Dec 9, 2009 - 77 comments

Hell is Other People [more inside]
posted by flatluigi on Oct 19, 2009 - 61 comments

Ethnography of Rock Band Bar Night. The Rock Band video game (and the similar Guitar Hero) are more than video games where players try to earn points and some are exploring the deeper meaning of such games. [more inside]
posted by k8t on Aug 10, 2009 - 16 comments

Takeshi no Chōsenjō: it came before the endurance test that is Desert Bus, and served as an inspiration for Janey Thompson's Marathon. In English it is known as Takeshi's Challenge. Released in December 1986 for the Famicom system, the game mechanisms include use of the Famicom microphone to sing karaoke for an hour. And that's after you drink to the point of blacking out, divorce your wife, quit your job, and learn to hang glide AND learn the Hintoba language, amongst other things. All of this takes place in lands populated with nothing but people that want to beat you to death. Of course, you can skip that all and complete the game in a mere 4 minutes by simply walking off the edge of existence, and magically ending at the final treasure room. [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief on Jul 25, 2009 - 42 comments

Final Fantasy IV remix project. This week the videogame music rearrangement site, OCRemix.org, released a new project covering Nobuo Uematsu's soundtrack to FFIV (originally FFII in the US). FFIV's was the first game soundtrack I fell in love with, back in 2nd grade. Maybe you feel the same. [more inside]
posted by grobstein on Jul 22, 2009 - 19 comments

Moments [more inside]
posted by flatluigi on Mar 20, 2009 - 4 comments

Good morning, Crono! (Cf.) Starting this Friday, the Vintage Game Club will play through the RPG classic Chrono Trigger, a game beloved and praised but perhaps not well understood. The discussion is beginning here (little substance so far). [more inside]
posted by grobstein on Mar 17, 2009 - 46 comments

Luna City Arcade is Peter Hirschberg's home / barn video arcade, with about 60 vintage machines all set up to eat quarters. WaPo story about Peter's dream. You can come around to Peter's Virginia home for Game Day every couple months. [more inside]
posted by grobstein on Jan 16, 2009 - 35 comments

Driving Off the Map by James Clinton Howell is a formal analysis of Metal Gear Solid 2. If you played this game — even if you didn't like it (especially if you didn't like it) — you need to read this to learn what you actually played. If you've never played Metal Gear Solid, it's still an excellent example of serious video game scholarship.
posted by cthuljew on Dec 8, 2008 - 37 comments

Mother 3 fan translation completed. Earthbound (known as Mother 2 in Japan) is one of the most highly regarded RPGs for the Super Nintendo. The game suffered disappointing sales in America, but has since gained the status of a cult classic. A sequel, Mother 3, was released for the Game Boy Advance, but it has never been officially translated into English. After a long development, a fan translation patch has just been released. Trailer. [more inside]
posted by painquale on Oct 17, 2008 - 44 comments

Happy Birthday, MeFi, here's a fun free* game! Ikariam is sort of like a Skyrates version of Civ, with the real-time MMO combat and diplomacy that might bring to mind. Also, it's set in Olympian Greece, but only kind-of. Enjoy! *Batteries not included. Some registration required. Suggested age: 8-and-up. Some implied violence and consumption of alcohol (wine). Expansion materials may be purchased but are not necessary to enjoy the game and are, by the judgment of this MFGA (MetaFilter Gaming Authority) member: "some kind of bullshit."
posted by Navelgazer on Jul 14, 2008 - 20 comments

Bible Fight [Flash game]
posted by thirteenkiller on May 7, 2007 - 24 comments

Infinite Mario Brothers Did you love Mario Brother 3? Would you like to love playing it forever? With randomized maps and worlds? Oh, yes, you would.
posted by boo_radley on Nov 25, 2006 - 32 comments

Fun Motion - a blog dedicated to physics-simulating games, currently with 49 reviews (and counting) of well known favorites like Stair Dismount and Truck Dismount, Towers of Goo, Toribash and many, many more. (A follow up to my previous YouTube post.) Kiss your precious, fleeting motes of productivity goodbye, cube-farmers!
posted by loquacious on Oct 19, 2006 - 26 comments

"Over the last few weeks I have been introducing you to eight schools of criticism – Biographical, New Critical, Marxist, Structural, Jungian, Psychoanalytical, Feminist, and Post-Colonial – giving a little history behind each, and showing how they can be used to critique the video game Katamari Damacy for the PlayStation 2." [Part One | Part Two | Part Three]
posted by Blazecock Pileon on Oct 16, 2006 - 63 comments

Not your older brother's Burger Time. Burger King is developing three XBox videogames starring its eponymous mascot. And not just any games: they'll be modeled after such titles as Halo, Mortal Kombat and Need for Speed. But, you know, with fast food. Confirmation of the plans came in the form of a lawsuit threatened against Kotaku, the blog that broke the story.
posted by me3dia on Apr 17, 2006 - 31 comments

Concerned (Half-Life 2 comic)
posted by Protocols of the Elders of Awesome on Feb 27, 2006 - 38 comments

Mario Adventure - SMB3 hacked into an entirely new high-quality game
posted by Protocols of the Elders of Awesome on Feb 17, 2006 - 20 comments

A time attack of Megaman X and Megaman X2, played simultaneously on one controller by one person. (Torrent download link provided on page)
posted by jimmy on Dec 22, 2005 - 21 comments

Witness the Whiteness as borderline-albino Canadian nerdcore MCs kick it Konami-school [Windows Media/Quicktime; more]
posted by Pretty_Generic on Aug 16, 2005 - 13 comments

SMW - The complete soundtrack to Super Mario World, covered by one man using dozens of instruments. Roughly in game order, faithful to the originals, with some bizarre artistic license thrown around. A private hobby made public. Dedicated to Koji Kondo.
posted by Pretty_Generic on Aug 13, 2005 - 20 comments

EDSAC - home of the first videogame, OXO.
posted by Pretty_Generic on Jun 19, 2005 - 5 comments

Illusion of Gaia and my cousin David
posted by Tlogmer on Mar 29, 2005 - 20 comments

"In the game, the player plays the role of a character called The Postal Dude. He lives in a town where there are all kinds of people, white, black, skinny, fat, straight and gay. You can play the game in a passive role without killing anyone," Desi said.

"We are not political," he added.
posted by donkeyschlong on Jan 23, 2003 - 17 comments