Don’t Forget the Wii U’s Camera

The Wii U’s second screen gets most of the press regarding Nintendo’s new console, but there’s another interesting oddity bolted into the new machine’s controller: a camera. The camera is front-facing and, in the launch games I’ve played, barely used. When it is used, it’s a reminder that there are lots of new possibilities available…

Animal Legends Lets Me Control a Rogue Raccoon. That’s All I Ever Wanted.

Cute and colorful free-to-play social RPG Animal Legends from Appy Entertainment was released on iOS this week. It features a raccoon that stabs giant pink rabbits. There’s a rhino warrior and an owl wizard as well, but let’s focus on what’s important here—raccoon rogue. Raccoons are, hands down, my favorite animal. They are fluffy. They…

Man Accused of Hacking an MMO, Then Stealing the MMO, Then Building His Own Clone

Dutch national Anil Kheda, 24, has been indicted by US Federal authorities for hacking an online game, bringing it down, stealing its code then setting up a cloned rival. It’s alleged Kheda attacked the online PC game Outwar (a text-based browser MMO) a few years back, at first knocking it out of action for a…

I Survived Mr. Torgue’s Arena In The New Borderlands 2 DLC That Drops November 20th

What do you do when you visit the Badass Crater of Badassitude? You try to become the number one badass. Duh. The Badass Crater and your number one title await you in a new DLC campaign for Borderlands 2. The world of Pandora is no stranger to zany characters, so it shouldn’t be surprising that…

“Help! My Wife Won’t Stop Playing Animal Crossing.”

The plea appeared on Yahoo! Japan’s Q&A section. It began: “My wife won’t return from Animal Crossing.” The latest AC game, Animal Crossing: New Leaf, was recently released in Japan. The Animal Crossing games are hugely popular in Japan. According to the husband, after his wife downloaded her copy of New Leaf in the middle…

Evangelion 64: An Ancient Tale of Importing During the Dawn of the Internet

Neon Genesis Evangelion is one of my favorite anime and the first that ever really forced me to work for understanding. Back in high school, it was the anime I always recommended to others, and I have watched it countless times in the years since. Needless to say, I was (and perhaps am still) a…

Some Chinese Dude Made an iPhone Replica OUT OF STEEL

Okay, it’s not a working iPhone 5. But still, it’s the same size as an iPhone 5, and, it’s handcrafted out of a piece of steel Recently, a do-it-yourself type took a 140mm long, 60mm wide, and 6mm thick steel plate, and he turned it into an iPhone 5 replica. The gentleman documented the entire…

Pepsi Special Is a Special Cola, But Not a Special Tasting Cola

Out of the unique flavors Pepsi has released in Japan, Pepsi Special might have the most boring taste. However, it could be one of the most revolutionary. In Japan, Pepsi regularly releases an array of, how should I say, unique flavors. Some of them, such as Salty Watermelon Pepsi, are not as bad as you…

Kiki Trick is a Listening Game That’s More Work Than Fun

From Mario to Rhythm Heaven when it comes to first-party games, Nintendo is no slouch. But what’s surprising is how many of these titles never leave Japan even today. We took a look at the B-List Nintendo crossover Captain Rainbow earlier this year, but it is far from the only forgotten Wii title. In fact,…

Report: Japanese Employees Vent Online About Square Enix

Last year, there were unconfirmed reports that Square Enix’s Tokyo headquarters was a dark place to work. This latest report doesn’t sound nearly as bad as those. Doesn’t sound like rainbows and sunshine, either. NicoNico News points to comments made on Japanese employment site Career Connection. The site aims to help jobseekers find out more…

According to Sony, the PS3 has sold 70 million units worldwide, and the PS Move has sold 15 million. That’s…a lot!

How Victoria’s Secret Bewildered a Japanese Animation Giant

Last week, Victoria’s Secret held a big fashion show in New York City with a bevy of models and Justin Bieber. There was the typical parade of silk and lace. And then, there was something unexpected: model Jourdan Dunn strutted down the catwalk in bodysuit, straight out of Japanese anime Neon Genesis Evangelion. You weren’t…

Take a Good Look at This “Real Life Kirby”

In Nintendo games, Kirby is round, pink, and cute. In real life, Kirby is apparently round, white, and, well… Japanese doll sculptor Honoka created the work, putting this photo up on Twitter. The reaction has varied from people calling the sculpture “frightening” or “creepy”, to others praising the artistry that went into creating the piece.…

Relive The Horrors of the Original Xbox Live Dashboard

Microsoft’s Larry Hryb has been digging through the archives in honour of Xbox Live’s 10th birthday, and has come up with a few dusty old relics. Above and below, you’ll find images of what the first, original Xbox Live dashboard used to look like. And you thought the current dash is bad. While it sort…

Yes, it is Off-Putting When There’s an Achievement for “Staring at a Woman’s Tits”

Rock Paper Shotgun points us towards this great video by OXM, on the subject of women in video games. It starts a little slow, but bear with it. By the time you get to Mass Effect’s “dicks in a cupboard”, you’re well on your way. I wouldn’t often say a video I post here is…

My Favourite Black Ops II Moment Was When a Hollywood Legend Gets His Dues

There are a number of Hollywood stars lending their talents to Black Ops II. Sam Worthington returns as Mason, for example. The only thing Worthington provides, though, is his voice. Others got to be in the game. You might recognise Admiral Briggs as Tony Todd, while Harper bears a resemblance to his voice actor, Michael…

Wife Leaves Game-Addicted Husband Who Spends 25 Hours a Week Playing… Second Life

No, you didn’t just wake up from a bad dream of the future and find yourself safely back in 2006. It’s still 2012, and an Australian man who still plays Second Life has seen it cost him his marriage. The 51 year-old man, who “cannot be named for legal reasons”, saw his 33 year-old wife…

Star Wars Action Figures Inducted Into the Hall of Fame. Let’s Celebrate With Awesome Pictures.

Because there is a hall of fame for everything you can put in a hall, there is of course a National Toy Hall of Fame in the United States. Which this week has inducted perhaps the most popular figures of all time into its ranks. From a rocky beginning in 1977, when not enough figures…

This Grand Theft Auto Movie Doesn’t Just Work, It’s Incredible

This is RISE, a Grand Theft Auto-inspired short film by director Gevorg Karensky. Whatever quality and budgetary limitations you might think this has because it’s “fan made”, you go right ahead and throw them out the window. If this is what Grand Theft Auto VII looks like on my ValveBox TVPC, then the future might…

Skyrim, Smooshed Into Teeny Tiny Little Planets

Drawing on some awesome photography work, Dutch artist midhras has taken three of the biggest video game worlds around—Skyrim, Fallout 3 and RAGE—and condensed them into tiny little planetoids. It’s like Super Skyrim Galaxy. You can see some here, but the whole collection is at the link below. Planetesimals [midhras, via Save Room Mini Bar]