The Dark Mod, a total conversion for Doom 3 in the spirit of Looking Glass Technology's Thief series, has finally been released after years (and more years) of development and is now available to download.
posted by dunkadunc on Oct 17, 2009 - 20 comments

We've covered web-based game Evony's peculiar advertising previously. Now intrepid gamers are playing/observing the thing, and finding a lack of both freeness and heaving bosoms.
posted by mippy on Sep 25, 2009 - 41 comments

Journey to the Center of the Earth - or DonDon (?) is an excellent exploration-based platformer game with fabulous little pixel graphics and a solid 45 minutes or so of gameplay. Think Diet Spelunky, or La Mulana Lite. A little more info and hints at Indie Games Blog.

Sorry, Windows only (direct link). F4 for fullscreen (but it's better in 1x windowed mode)
posted by BlackLeotardFront on Sep 19, 2009 - 6 comments

This month marks the 25th aniversary of Elite, the groundbreaking 3D space trading game. The making of Elite. More on the making of Elite from The Backroom Boys. Emulate the original BBC Micro version. The Dark Wheel.
posted by Artw on Sep 19, 2009 - 29 comments

To jump straight into it, what made you decide to make a game involving rape? Inspiration was mostly personal, I’ve known a few girls who have been through similar situations, which sparked the concept. As far as the experience, I wanted to inspire emotion in the player, even if its vile and disgusting.

Edmund is game designer Paul Greasley's contribution to indie PC gaming web site TIGSource's competition's adult section. Gamers react. [more inside]
posted by Foci for Analysis on Sep 12, 2009 - 119 comments

The downward spiral that is Evony, a web based multi-player game, advertising. Also: The Best Worst Ads by 1UP and fake in-game ads by Something Awful.
posted by Foci for Analysis on Jul 11, 2009 - 41 comments

Wolfenstein 3D, the animated graphic novel.
posted by Artw on Jul 8, 2009 - 42 comments

In the wake of the Resident 5 racism flap (previously), and with the final game released, one of it's chief detractors, N'Gai Croal, talks to its producer, Jun Takeuchi (Part 1, Part 2). Meanwhile industry magazine MVC takes a look at Africa as a games market.
posted by Artw on Jun 12, 2009 - 137 comments

There's something in the sea... and it has a big drill for an arm.
posted by Artw on Apr 20, 2009 - 74 comments

Monopoly killer - how The Settlers of Catan redefined board games.
posted by Artw on Mar 29, 2009 - 160 comments

The niftiest thing at Coin Op World? The mp3 files of Classic Arcade Sounds. [more inside]
posted by Miko on Mar 13, 2009 - 27 comments

Want to play a swashbuckling pirate, space opera hero, or monster-fighting Victorian dandy? How about a supervillain fighting against alien invaders? Or a mutant snack cake? Welcome to Savage Worlds. [more inside]
posted by MrVisible on Feb 25, 2009 - 56 comments

Despite the oft-declared death of the Adventure Game, Nintendo's success has raised the genre's mainstream profile and quality to a level unseen since the 90s. The DS in particular has been an ideal platform for AGs, leading to the release of a number of popular Japanese titles in the American market. Professor Layton and the Curious Village is only the most recent to receive praise from western game rags - but it is the most consistently well-reviewed - making many short-lists of the best DS games of 2008. Featuring beautiful illustration, engrossing puzzles, and a charming story, Professor Layton topped Japanese software charts on its release (as did its sequel, Professor Layton and the Devil's Box, still unreleased in the US), though all indications are that its American sales have been underwhelming. [more inside]
posted by macross city flaneur on Jan 21, 2009 - 62 comments

Friday Flash Fun: Evacuation is a puzzle game about explosive decompression. Save the crew! Eject the aliens into space by opening the spaceship's doors! The catch: doors of the same color all open together. [more inside]
posted by Rinku on Jan 9, 2009 - 17 comments

RIP 1UP & EGM. [more inside]
posted by juv3nal on Jan 7, 2009 - 63 comments

In 1986, most gamers who were lucky enough to own a new video game system at home were playing the original Nintendo. It's launch in 1985, a year before the Sega Master System was launched in the states, allowed it plenty of time become the most popular console in the market, and the game Super Mario Bros. quickly became the best-selling video game of all time (a title it continues to hold, having sold over 40 million copies to date). However, even though Nintendo commanded 95% of the North American video game market at the time and the CEO of Sega made little effort to promote and market it, some people still bought and gave the Sega Master System a chance. Perhaps it was the 3-D glasses or it's unique ability to read multiple media inputs... or perhaps that the original version of the system had a secret game built right into it (and it was unbeatable!). [more inside]
posted by Bageena on Dec 22, 2008 - 52 comments

In a must-see interview for tabletop gamers everywhere, Colonel Louis Zocchi talks about modern mass produced plastic dice and why they utterly fail at being random: Part 1 - Part 2
posted by loquacious on Nov 26, 2008 - 84 comments

"A Solitaire Civization game that's compact enough to play on a plane ... Using only a pad of paper, a pencil, and a specialized deck of cards, lead your civilization through the ages to become ... civilized." A free "print-and-play" board game. [more inside]
posted by jbickers on Sep 25, 2008 - 20 comments

Ken Levine, creator of Bioshock, gives a funny and inspiring speech about growing up geek before the internet and the era of 'geek chic'. (SLGV, and annoying age check)
posted by mattholomew on Sep 11, 2008 - 22 comments

Will Wright's PC game Spore was released yesterday. The 'Sim Everything' game from the creator of Sim City and The Sims takes the player from cellular growth to space colonization with several stages in between. Reviews are in, and the consensus is that it's good but not as legendary as its scope (and multi-year development cycle) would suggest. The game's 'draconian' DRM has sparked controversy, causing Amazon users to bomb it with one-star reviews.
posted by mattholomew on Sep 8, 2008 - 144 comments

Delta Green - be part of the conspiracy. The latest sourcebook for Delta Green, the cult modern day Call of Cthulhu setting, is being financed via fundable. If the target for funding is not met it’s release will be delayed... if it is released at all. A niche setting within a niche system in a hobby in decline, Delta Green is still intensely well loved by those who know about it, making them a good target for the ransom model. Will thinking outside the usual publishing business models save pen and paper RPGs?
posted by Artw on May 11, 2008 - 63 comments

In this way, Lu Yang became one of the "RMB gamers" she disdains. More than 10,000 RMB was quickly and nearly imperceptibly spent. In the game, the "queen" possessed fearsome power. She carried out vengeance for herself and her friends, she accepted entreaties, and she protected the caravans of the kingdom. At the same time, she went out with the heroes to invade other kingdoms. Her reputation spread far and wide. [...] "Long live the Queen!" People bowed to her in submission. That was the high point for Lu Yang on ZT Online, and for that one fleeting moment, she felt that the time and money she had spent was worth it.

The System is a translated Chinese article examining ZT Online, an MMORPG that has taken fleecing gamers to a new level.
posted by Kattullus on May 6, 2008 - 34 comments

Everything you need to know about playing Nintendo.
posted by dhammond on Apr 10, 2008 - 64 comments

Arden: The World of William Shakespeare is a Neverwinter Nights mod created by the Synthetic Worlds Initiative at Indiana University. You can play it, but it's kinda boring.
posted by BitterOldPunk on Dec 1, 2007 - 9 comments

Trigger Happier "Trigger Happy is a book about the aesthetics of videogames — what they share with cinema, the history of painting, or literature; and what makes them different, in terms of form, psychology and semiotics. It’s offered under a CC license, for a limited time only. I’m not sure how limited that time will be, so grab it while it’s hot." [drm-free pdf]
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken on Nov 22, 2007 - 14 comments

Thule Trail is a cute modern remake of The Oregon Trail.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane on Sep 25, 2007 - 17 comments

In the grand tradition of Killer comes Humans Vs. Zombies, a campus game that's growing in popularity. From its origins at Goucher, it's spread to a reported two dozen colleges. An interview with the game's moderator is here, and you can watch the 45-minute documentary from one of the games on Google Video
posted by Pope Guilty on Jul 12, 2007 - 18 comments

Uptick in Cold War-like rhetoric making you a little nostalgic for the era of parachute pants and Members Only jackets?
A cabal of Russki comrades at some pinko university have been going around collecting and resurrecting disused Soviet-era arcade games, which became instantly obsolete with the collapse of communism. Sea Wolf, Duck Hunt, Pole Position, Dogfight!
We begin bombing in five minutes.
posted by planetkyoto on Jun 7, 2007 - 28 comments

2007 Independent Games Festival Finalists. Most have downloadable demo and full versions (on the PC, anyway). Share and enjoy.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken on Jan 29, 2007 - 3 comments

Sonic Invaders - videogaming without the video. [Windows]
posted by Arcaz Ino on Nov 17, 2006 - 6 comments

The Mario Brothers Tragedy reaches the finish line. After a 2 year wait Alexander Leon has finally finished his Mario Bros. flash epic. (previously here and here)
posted by hugecranium on Jul 7, 2006 - 42 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

A video game "based on Bob Ross' creative, unique and easy to learn painting techniques and TV show properties" is coming to the next-generation Nintendo system.
posted by AloneOssifer on Apr 5, 2006 - 31 comments

Level editor for Super Mario World.
You'll need a SNES emulator and a Super Mario World ROM.
(Ctrl+right-click to insert objects.)
posted by Tlogmer on Oct 20, 2005 - 19 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

A Brief History of Game: A nine-part review of the major highlights in rpg history. Other interesting if generally unrelated pieces on the history of gaming, pen & paper or otherwise: "Where Have All the Demons Gone?", discussing the history of Magic the Gathering; A somewhat flippant piece by GameSpy; and some obligatory RPG theory regarding the historical popularity of various styles of RPG.
posted by voltairemodern on Aug 5, 2005 - 32 comments

A Gamers' Manifesto
posted by Tlogmer on May 23, 2005 - 40 comments

Time Traveling with Tetsuya Mizuguchi: an auditory interview with the producer of such classics as Rez, Space Channel 5, and Lumines. (via)
posted by graventy on Mar 29, 2005 - 5 comments

The Maoist International Movement reviews videogames
posted by Tlogmer on Feb 19, 2005 - 43 comments

Introducing the Gizmondo handheld games console from Tiger Telematics. It's like the PSP, only DOOMED.
posted by Pretty_Generic on Jan 27, 2005 - 23 comments

BOG LEECH! Game sprite horrors! Lovecraftian nightmares!
posted by jimmy on Jan 13, 2005 - 5 comments

Was Mario some Communist propaganda? "If anything can be said about Mario, it is that he seems to wear quite a bit a red . It’s on his name, it’s the color of his suspenders, his super mushrooms, his flag, even his hat." He does kinda look like an 8-bit Stalin, but a more important question must be asked: "Is Mario a drug pusher?"
posted by StephenV on Dec 24, 2004 - 20 comments

I am Mr. Roarke, your host. Welcome to Fantasy Island! The virtual economy gets more interesting. (More inside)
posted by malaprohibita on Dec 17, 2004 - 35 comments

Speed Demo Archives is the Guinness Book of Records for Quake speed runs, but they also have speed demos for other games, including a 2:57:35 Half-Life 2 run (torrent to video here). [Via FileRush]
posted by turbodog on Dec 8, 2004 - 7 comments

The Atari Games That Never Were -- and then some. A community dedicated to rooting out prototype or unreleased titles such as Alligator People,Monstercise and -- hey cool -- a genre-busting color-field. While all this may seem a tad on the esoteric side, the glimpses into the the art is cool, hey?
posted by undule on Dec 1, 2004 - 15 comments

...when Jesus appears in your texture maps.
Ok, this is old news (been there since 1996), but from my own game programmer point of view, this site is hilarious, in a bittersweet way.
It's been down for a while, only available through the wayback machine, but recently got online again.
It might even be informative for all nerdy mefis, since latest news prove games programming stay as a modern slavery icon.
Might be NSFW if you're working on 'in trouble' game project.
posted by denpo on Nov 30, 2004 - 11 comments

Princess Maker 2 - Stressed out from current events? I doubt the game is as much fun to play as it is to be bewildered by, but either might help. "...is basically a perverse sports management simulation where your entire team consists of a single ten year old girl that you have to raise to adulthood. Much like any decent sports manager game you have to keep track of a nearly overwhelming number of statistics that fluctuate based on training. In Princess Maker 2 these run the gamut from the mundane like "strength" and "charisma", to the droll like "cooking" and "conversation", to the bizarre like "sin" and "temper". "
posted by soulhuntre on Oct 28, 2004 - 13 comments

Doom 3: It may possibly be the most pirated game in history.
posted by Keyser Soze on Aug 5, 2004 - 68 comments

More viral marketing? Move over, BK chicken. I love bees is teh rox0r.
posted by cohappy on Aug 2, 2004 - 7 comments

Rising Force Mud Remember back a couple of years, when the rage was "Multi User Dungeons "? You know graphical role playing. Well, its still around, And loads more interesting than the new online rpgs than the playstation has going. So check it out and play awhile if you want.
posted by edmcbride on Jul 3, 2004 - 15 comments