I've always enjoyed the casual Tekken Cosplay, but a whole film about the game, without the crazy hair? I dunno. These new sales pictures aren't selling it for me. Unlike this fan-made trailer for Tekken pointed out by Topless Robot. Now that's a hyper stylized fighting movie I can get behind.

For a better look check out Coming Soon.

Based on a novel by Dmitry Glukhovsky, Metro 2033 takes place 20 years after an apocalyptic event that wipes out most of the human race. It's being developed for THQ by Ukrainian studio 4A Games. [THQ Games on Flickr]

You can see more of Thomas' amazing work - including a ton of videogame design - on his website. I first came across his work via Concept Ships.

The video above comes from our roundup of Spore's most demented and inspired pornographic creations, a while back, gathered into one giant sexy music video. And now that Hollywood is interested in making Spore the movie, we demand it include some Sporn.

Chris Wedge (Ice Age) is producing the film, while the writers from Disney's latest animation project The Princess and the Frog, are writing the script.

"I'm always looking for unique worlds to go to in animation," Wedge said. "From every perspective — visually, thematically and comedically — the world of 'Spore' provides the potential to put something truly original on the screen."

That's the truth. We can't imagine an interesting Spore movie without some unconventional genitalia bursting out on screen. That's one clever way to market it as a tent pole production, no?

[Variety]

This game has a long, long wait but thankfully these images seem to promise an MMO world unlike any other. The detail is astounding, even on different planets. In this MMO players will be able to customize characters and their ships. Exploration isn't limited to already-existing Trek planets. And the game will include Trek alien races such as the Andorians and Klingons, which you can see in this gallery.

[More pictures via Massively]

MakingOf spoke with Kevin Shortt, the lead scriptwriter for the Avatar game. The game's release actually predates the film's; it hits shelves on November 24th, when we won't see the full feature film until December 18th. Although the game is designed to be an immersive experience — one that delves farther into the mythos of Pandora and the Na'Vi than the film does — we apparently shouldn't expect any spoilers for the movie's storyline. The Avatar game and the Avatar film follow entirely different plots, though the human-Na'Vi conflict appears central to both.

In the interview below, Shortt talks a bit about his process and working with James Cameron, and shows some shots of the gameplay. They're not nearly as slickly animated as the film, but they do offer a sense of Pandora's world and creature design, including the planet's bioluminescent lifeforms:

And here is a more promo-y video where Cameron and his crew hype the game and Pandora itself:

[MakingOf]

The Empire Changes Strategy [Star Wars: The Old Republic]

According to a study carried out by Russell Beale and Matthew Bond of the University of Birmingham in the UK, gamers value social aspects of gaming and pricing over storytelling and graphics. The two analyzed game reviews to find what mattered most in determining "good gaming," and found that the cost of the game, and whether or not the game offers chances for others to become involved in the experience outweighed bad storytelling or poor graphics.

Plot and graphics not paramount in videogame success [New Scientist]

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 Launch Trailer [Comic Book Resources]

In a similar to the traditional Turing Test, BotPrize judges watched game play of a human player and a bot, and were asked to select which player was which. A $6000 grand prize was offered to any programmer whose bot could fool the judges 80 percent of the time. No one took home the gold, but one programmer did receive a $1700 for creating the most deceptively human bot. Below is a video comparing human play to bot play:

A Turing Test and Cash Prize for Human-Like Video Game Bots [Popular Science]

[IGN] (Via)

We chatted with lovely Amber Valetta about the cold and cruel futuristic world Crank's Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor created for Gamer. A world where people can control others like puppets, and believe you me, that's hardest on the ladies. Especially when your user makes you dress up in tiny blue short-shorts and crazy orange wigs. Valetta talked about what it all means, and what the Grey Goo theory has to do with Gamer.

So you were a sociology major ... what do you think you learned about people in general in this whole experience?
I think first and foremost films are for enjoyment. The arts in general are for two things: they're for entertainment purposes, but they're also to reflect our dreams, our hopes, the present, the future, the past. Whether it's good or bad.

So, I think that this movie says a lot about what's going on today and also where we could possibly be moving to in a darker future. And I think that on a psychological level, if you look at the scheme of maybe a wider consciousness, there is this lack of intimacy, this acceptance of exploitation, this desensitization to violence and sex. And I think that's what this movie is really, on a deeper level, really showing and saying.

To what degree would you sell yourself? I would give my life for my son; and in this movie my character would give her life for her daughter, and she does. She's willing to be brutally ... I mean, they softened it a bit, but she's brutalized. And Gerard Butler's character is fighting for his life. So there are two people who are going to the most extremes to get back to one another and to their child, so I think there's something unique and interesting about those characters in the movie, but there's also something interesting about the bigger social commentary of what the film's saying. And it's ... disturbing, it is disturbing.

How do you think people will react to it overall?

I think there are going to be different reactions. I think people are gonna totally get off on that it's a ride; the film looks like a video game in the sense that it's constantly moving, and angles are all over the place, and so I think there's going to be that aspect. I think there's gonna be people who just love action, I think there's gonna be people who are so into the futuristic element of it, with the nanotechnology [the tech Gamer uses to control humans], and then I think there's some people who will just get into the whole thing of it, you know? And I'm sure it's gonna not be for everybody. This movie is not for everybody.

When you say 'not for everybody,' do you mean the violence?
Yeah, I mean, I would never show it to my son. Maybe when he's like, a teenager or something, but I would never show it to my son.

Are you worried that ... there's a 'humanist thesis' to the film, but it's an awful lot of blow-shit-up action?

Oh yeah, but the thing is - that [thesis] in itself is a satirical point of view. It's also showing you how, we don't give a shit. We'll just blow shit up and everybody will be all "Yay!" you know?

How much of it the satirical aspect was discussed on set?

I think the directors [Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor] knew exactly what they were doing; in fact I know they knew what they were doing. We talked about nanotechnology, we talked about the kind of subtext that was going on. But then, at the same time, they know they're there to entertain. It's not like we're all trying to get on a soapbox and be like, stuffing some message down people's throat. I think the point of an artist is expressing different ideas and showing different things, whether it's through this kind of avenue or something else. But I definitely know they knew what they were doing. I know they thought it was funny because that's the kind of guys they are. They laugh, but I think they also think it's ... I mean, we talked about how nanotechnology is terrifying.

I don't know, I think this movie definitely pushes some buttons; it pushes my buttons even.

You've got one strange futuristic ensemble on for most of this film. Were there any other favorite little world-building moments?

They let me be extremely involved with costume, hair and makeup and we all got to share ideas and from day one when we tested different looks it was really clear to me that when I was in society, there was going to ... those aspects were going to be so important to me, (like) the costume.

My gamer creates an avatar; so it was vital to the character. When my character, Angie, is in her real life, I had to be as raw and scrubbed down - I was like, please don't put any makeup, as little as possible; the hair, I would (say), 'Let's not wash the hair' - we tried to stay as true to form as we could.
And then all the sets were just amazing. I mean really really cool. Like the scenes with Milo were great. It was really crazy; and then the club scene, the raves -

Gamer went through a lot of edits, what got cut that maybe you wish or you can't wait for people to see in the DVD release or bonus features?

Emovie gets cut, but this movie in particular, the way they wanted the movie to look ... was like this constant movement and action, so I don't think the movie was cut because of this or that. I think it's the way they wanted the movie to speak to people. Those things coming out on DVD? I think there are extended scenes with Milo and I that are great, some of the rave, I think there was some really great stuff in the rave that they didn't show because the rave's only 20, not even, maybe 10-15 seconds?

On the in-game nanotechnology....

I think the scary thing is is that nanotechnology is so ... we just don't know that much. We don't really know what it can do if it gets inside of you, the human body. It's not intend to go inside the human body, and they're already putting it out on the market. And there's the whole Grey Goo theory [that is referenced in the film].

Can you elaborate about that?

You should ask (Mark an Brian) about the grey goo theory. It's just the theory that nanotechnology because it's so tiny can pass even the membrane of your brain, but it can do that with anything. So they would take over. It's kinda like that book Crichton wrote, Prey.

So this cup of coffee could just become a mess of cells because nanotechnology is screwing up the molecules?

Exactly.

Gamer comes out this Friday September 4th.

It should be pointed out that, right now, no-one really seems to have a clear idea of what'll happen next. For one thing, the sale isn't even expected to be completed until the end of the year, shareholders and antitrust oversight approval pending, and for another, if Joe Quesada is to be believed, maybe there'll be no obvious change:

Everybody take a deep breath, all your favorite comics remain unchanged and [Marvel editor] Tom Brevoort remains grouchy.

So what do both companies actually get from this buyout? Marvel, for their part, go from being the fourth biggest worldwide entertainment brand to being part of the biggest, with all the distribution and licensing perks that come with that. Disney, as the official press release states, get access to Marvel's IP - which arguably gives them the potential to own the tween/teen male market in the same way that they currently own the female market with the Princesses brand, High School Musical and its like, and pop moppets like the Jonas Brothers. They also get Marvel Studios, which had been considered one of the most successful independent movie studios of recent years. Except... it's not necessarily as simple as all of that.
Here are existing licensing deals that Marvel has in place, that Disney said yesterday they would honor, and which place all of this outside of Disney's control (for now):

Film
Marvel's current distribution deal with Paramount (Viacom-owned) covers the next five Marvel pictures including Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), Captain America (2011), The Avengers (2012) and Iron Man 3 (2012/2013). Paramount confirmed the films to be produced under their Marvel agreement. These films would all flow thru to Paramount's new pay TV network EPIX, however, all new properties beyond these would likely flow through Disney's output partner (currently Starz).

X-Men property has been licensed to 20th Century Fox (News Corp. owned) while Spider-Man has been licensed to Sony, which seems to have plans for the next three installments.

Theme Parks
It appears that Universal Studios maintains geographical rights to Marvel IP for as long as they have Marvel-related rides/attractions at the park (unclear if this also includes merchandise that exists within its parks today). In other words, Walt Disney World in Orlando is unlikely to see a Spiderman/Hulk themed attraction for the foreseeable future. The following excerpt comes from Universal City Development Partners' (owner of Universal Studios Orlando) 10-K: "We have geographical exclusivity east of the Mississippi River with regard to the specific Marvel characters we utilize. The license for the Marvel properties does not prohibit its assignment and is for the duration of our use of attractions themed around Marvel characters."

Video Games
THQ: Multi-year deal signed in May 2008 for Marvel Super Hero Squad.
Activision: Deal signed Nov 2005 and goes through 2017 for Spider Man and X-Men
Sega: Multi-year deal signed in April 2007 for Captain America, Hulk, Thor and Iron Man

Toys
Hasbro 10K: "Subsequent to December 28, 2008, the Company entered into an agreement with Marvel that resulted in the extension of the current agreement from the end of 2011 through the end of 2017."

Deadline Hollywood's Nikki Finke has the list of characters specifically licensed for Universal's theme parks:

For starters, here's the main list of licensed characters at Marvel Island inside Universal Orlando's Islands Of Adventure (provided me by Universal): Spider-Man (also attraction), Dr. Doom (also attraction), Hulk (also attraction), Storm (also attraction), Captain America, Cyclops, Green Goblin, Rogue, Storm, Wolverine, "and lots more if you include stores and dining," a Uni exec tells me.
Paramount tells me Iron Man and Thor also are included.

According to other sources, here are the characters by Attractions, Walk Around, and Shop:

Attractions (Characters licensed for the attraction use, but not necessarily for walk-around. Some in the attractions list are also licensed for walk-around, but not all.): Spider-Man, Doc Oc, Scream, Electro, Hydro-Man, Hobgoblin, J. Jonah Jameson, Hulk/Bruce Banner, Dr. Doom, Fantastic Four (as a group, not individually), Storm, Magneto, Professor X.

Walk around and/or Shop: Green Goblin, Cyclops, Rogue, Wolverine, Fantastic 4 (restaurant / walk around), Captain America (restaurant / walk around), Kingpin (shop / walk around), Merch (shop)

So no movies until 2013, no toys until 2017, and no theme parks or videogames for the big name characters in the foreseeable future, either. What does Disney actually get for their $4 billion right now? Maybe television and comics? Former Marvel editor-in-chief and Disney Adventures creator Marv Wolfman thinks so, even if he's not too hopeful about that whole "comics" thing:

Publishing. Well, that's the big one, isn't it? At least for us. Actually, only for us. The big ones in reality are movies, TV and video games. One major video game hit can make more money than 95% of all movies. But let's talk comics. What division will that fall under? Publishing? Movies? Consumer Products? Something else? What happens to Marvel Comics will depend on which Disney company it falls under and as of 1:30PM, I don't know the answer to that.

With this level of uncertainty, it's no surprise that some feel that Disney paid too much for what they're actually getting (although others feel just the opposite).

There are other questions still left to be answered: What happens to Disney's existing comic deals with Boom! Studios and their own Kingdom Comics line? Will Disney and/or Marvel look for alternate distribution for their comics, and if so, are we looking at another Heroes World situation? With all this talk of Marvel's 5000-strong character base, does Disney really believe that there are multiple Iron Man-scale successes in there - and what happens when superheroes fall out of fashion? All of these will, undoubtedly, be answered at some point in the near future, but for now, as the dust settles, the most important question may end up being: Is it all worth it?

Wolverine/Donald Duck by SaiyaGina, Punisher/Mickey Mouse by AlexFugazi, Theme Park image by Fuzzcat.

According to the website for the in-development MMO Perpetuum:

In the not-too-distant future, a strange anomaly opens the gates of the universe for humans. With this new technology, energy, information and atomic size objects can be transported to anywhere in space.

The most intriguing of all new discoveries is an Earth-like planet, where humanity discovers a new source of energy, vital to its unbroken advancement. However, this planet is inhabited by a synthetic, robot-like life form. Their technology and resources are the goal of humanity's new conquest.

Players may take part in various areas of the project. They may fight on the front lines for new territories, develop the already established infrastructure, trade goods or services, or even set their own goals and set up their own corporations.

There's a ton more info at the website, including some screenshots and a complete future history of the next 200 years of human development. Let's just hope the finished project looks as kick-ass as this concept art of alien landscapes, robots, teleportation gear and stations.

After seeing District 9, we're sad we'll never get to see Halo done by Neill Blomkamp and Peter Jackson, because those are some storytelling and visual-effects chops. The truth is, video game movies don't have to suck — as long as someone better than Uwe Boll is in the director's chair, and you avoid the kind of bizarre decisions that went into giving us Doom.

So here are the ten movies that have a better chance of reaching screens than Halo right now - some of which might even be great.

The game: Dead Space.
Who's in? D.J. Caruso, director of Disturbia and Eagle Eye (and in line to direct Y: The Last Man) was announced as director of this film recently.
What's the Hollywood summary? As Variety puts it, "Set in deep space in the 26th Century, the thriller focuses on an engineer who responds to a distress signal from a mining ship, only to find it infested with monstrous creatures called Necromorphs, human corpses that have been re-animated by an alien virus. The engineer and his team retrofit most of their weapons from tools on the mining ship, and try to stay alive long enough to discover the "hive mind" that is controlling the creatures."
Is it really more likely than Halo? There's a production deal, but nobody's written a script yet, and Caruso still wants to make a Y movie. He's also in pre-production on a movie called Jack The Giant Killer, and working on The Defenders, according to IMDB.

The game: BioShock
Who's in? Gore Verbinsiki, director of the Pirates Of The Caribbean movies. With a screenplay by John Logan (Gladiator, Star Trek: Nemesis).
What's the Hollywood summary? Says Variety, "Story takes place in the underwater city Rapture, where a pilot crash-lands near a secret entrance and becomes involved in a power struggle."
Is it really more likely than Halo? Maybe not. Back in April, Universal put the project on hold due to concerns about its high budget (around $160 million.) But Variety adds: "All parties vow that "Bioshock" will not become another "Halo," the would-be live-action adaptation of the Microsoft game that was canceled when Universal and Fox got cold feet over budget fears." So there you go. They vow. And Verbinski bailed out of Pirates 4 to do this project, so he's motivated.

The game: Duke Nukem
Who's in? Depth Entertainment, the studio that produced Max Payne. (So if you liked Max Payne, you're all set.)
What's the Hollywood summary? No details are available, but basically a wisecracking guy fights aliens. Says Scott Miller with 3-D Realms: "We're taking an all-new direction this time around. I haven't seen that old material in years, and can't even remember what it was about. So, we're starting from scratch on a story. Our first order of business is to create a Duke Nukem storyverse, which is similar to a story bible, and fleshes out all of the characters, their histories, motives, and gives a very detailed description of the Duke Nukem "universe." Once this is created, we then have the foundation to create a story and a script. This storyverse document will also be useful for future projects."
Is it really more likely than Halo? Max Payne got made, didn't it? Picture Mark Wahlberg in a tank top.

The game: Area 51
Who's in? Comics god Grant Morrison was hired to write the screenplay in 2007 for Paramount Pictures. No director or stars are attached, though.
What's the Hollywood summary? Says Variety, "Set in the U.S. government's most top-secret military facility, storyline revolves around a hazardous materials specialist who is called in to investigate a viral outbreak that could be extra-terrestrial in nature."
Is it really more likely than Halo? Um, well... there's been no movement since Morrison was attached as screenwriter in 2007.

The game: Mass Effect
Who's in? Avi Arad, former head of Marvel movies and producer of the Spider-Man and X-Men movies, signed on last September.
What's the Hollywood summary? The story follows Commander Shepherd and his crew as they save alien species from the systematic eradication that a random species must face every 50,000 years from a pitiless mechanical foe. And a crusty bureaucray stands in their way at every turn.
Is it really more likely than Halo? Arad has a track record of getting movies made, obvously — but there's been no news in almost a year.

The game: inFAMOUS
Who's in? It was announced in late July8 that Sheldon Turner, writer of The Longest Yard remake and Up In The Air, pitched a movie adaptation and Sony picked it up. Former Marvel exec Avi Arad (and Ari Arad) will produce.
What's the Hollywood summary? Says the Hollywood Reporter, "inFAMOUS centers on bike messenger Cole MacGrath, who survives an explosion that destroys entire blocks of Empire City only to find he has new electricity-derived super powers."
Is it really more likely than Halo? Sony seems highly motivated to make it happen, especially since sister company Sony Computer Entertainment published the game, from Sucker Punch Prods.

The game: Asteroids
Who's in? It was just announced that Lorenzo di Bonaventura (G.I. Joe) will be producing, with a screenplay by Matthew Lopez (Race To Witch Mountain.) No director or stars yet. (Insert your own joke about various Hollywood stars who could play convincing chunks of space rock.)
What's the Hollywood summary? Says di Bonaventura, "We've crafted a really strong, deep mythology for the thing. Without divulging too much about it, it's two lead characters – two brothers – who have to go through a seminal experience to figure out their relationship, against this huge backdrop."
Is it really more likely than Halo? Well, G.I. Joe did pretty well. So, yeah.

The game: World Of Warcraft
Who's in? Sam Raimi is signed up to direct, after he's done making Spider-Man 4. Charles Roven (The Dark Knight) is producing.
What's the Hollywood summary? Says the Guardian, Warcraft "is set in a medieval-style fantasy world called Azeroth populated by humans and such Lord of the Rings-style races as orcs, trolls and dwarves, but also the undead and blood elves. Players must choose whether to join the nefarious Horde or the Alliance faction."
Is it really more likely than Halo? It's pretty much a done deal. Raimi is supervising the start of production while he works on Spidey. It may even be decent.

The game: Gears Of War
Who's in? Len Wiseman (Live Free Or Die Hard) is directing, from a script by Chris Morgan (Wanted), with Bowen and Godfrey of Temple Hill producing for New Line. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson won't star, because "a Doom connection would not be smart for us," says Wiseman. But he's hoping Kate Beckinsale will play Maria, the doomed wife of second-in-command Dominic Santiago.
What's the Hollywood summary? Wiseman told Comic Con that the movie will include Emergence Day, when the enemy Locusts emerged from underground and revealed themselves to the human inhabitants of the distant planet Sera. That would make the movie a prequel to the games, which take place long after Emergence Day. Also, Wiseman says there would be more bad-ass female soldiers.
Is it really more likely than Halo? It's still in the early stages, but Wiseman seems pretty determined to make it a reality.

The game: The Sims
Who's in? John Davis (Norbit, Eragon) is producing for Fox, with a screenplay by Brian Lynch.
What's the Hollywood summary? A couple of kids get their hands on the Sims Enhancement Pack, says Davis, and then mayhem results: "What they realize is that they can scan their world in, because this is the most life-like, real Sims game ever. As they are playing this, they are all of a sudden realising [that] what they are playing on the game is having an effect on the real world. So in effect, through the game, they are able to control their world. It's wish fulfillment, and obviously it turns against them."
Is it really more likely than Halo? It was announced in 2007 and has been stalled since then. But never underestimate Hollywood's sadism.

Researchers at the University of Tokyo are working to create holographic displays that mimic the sensation of interacting with solid objects. Sadly, there are none of the holodeck's forcefields at work to turn light into a solid object. Instead, the researchers place a reflective marker on a person's hand and use Nintendo Wiimotes to track the position of the hand relative to the hologram. As the hand gets near the hologram, the display triggers a feedback mechanism, which feeds acoustic radiation pressure to the hand, creating the sensation that the person is touching an object. At the same time, the hologram reacts to the hand's position, and can be batted, grabbed, or floated based on the hand's position.

At the moment, it is all an extremely clever illusion, and one in need of greater development. But I hope that the researchers plan on sticking to holograms of balls and don't get around to creating a holographic Professor Moriarty any time soon.

[Physorg]

I love how this image - and many of artist Miguel Angel Martinez Monje's images - manage to show both machine ruin and a still-thriving Earth. Industrial wreckage is illuminated by gorgeous skies; killer robots flash through verdant forests.

Monje grew up in Spain, and is a concept designer - some of these designs were concept work for the Killzone games.

via Concept Ships and Monje's website.

First off, if those are arrow-carrying Moblins, then that's hilarious, because I always thought their spears were more arrow-like. Other great Z references in the gallery include mummies and the life potion — also, I spy a Blue Candle, so hopefully Neil will start burning down the forest and pissing off even more bad guys. The new series premieres in two weeks on Monday the 27th over at Atom. Don't miss it.

If you haven't seen the glory of Neil here's the first episode. It's full of self degrading, foul humor, and you won't be disappointed.

Funny Videos | Funny Cartoons | More Video Clips

Look for Neil and friends, including cast members Sandeep Parikh and Tony Janning, at San Diego Comic Con on Thursday at Booth 3445 at 1:40 and on Saturday at 4:30 Felicia Day will join up with the rest of the group for a Rock Band session. And, of course, there will be a panel on Saturday at 7:30 in Room 7AB. Let's hope they bring back Felicia Day as the flashing, cutter fairy. Hopefully her appearance at the Con solidifies her commitment to that wonderful character for future episodes.

I have to say I kind of like the alien, menacing look of the earlier designs, but I bet the svelte newer version will be a lot easier to maneuver. [The Cult Of Rapture via GameSetWatch]

You probably already knew that Spock and Nero created an alternate universe, where Vulcan got vulcanized and James Kirk's dad died when he was born. So the TNG continuity still exists, just as an alternate reality. But just in case you got confused, here's a chart to explain it all for you. Also, is this the first time we've seen official dates for the events of J.J. Abrams' recent Trek movie?

[Star Trek Online]

Describing smugglers as "slick, sneaky and street-smart," it's almost as if they're daring you not to want to play this particular class, even before you get to the outfits inspired by Lando Calrissian. Who would want to be a Jedi when you can be one of these guys, instead?

Smuggler [Star Wars: The Old Republic]

Most people have experienced text adventures (also known as interactive fiction) in some way: the phrase "you are likely to be eaten by a grue" still strikes fear into many hearts. The same way a well-written novel can conjure up detailed and engrossing pictures in the mind of a reader, so, too, can a good text adventure.

The first experiment with interactive fiction, ADVENT (or Colossal Cave Adventure), and the first commercial text adventure, Adventureland, were the model for future games of this format. Both were fantasy games with increasingly widening worlds to explore. From there, though, one company dominated the text adventure market: Infocom.

In addition to their humor, their unconventional packaging (including "feelies," odd little artifacts from the game), and their innovative interface, Infocom also developed a reputation for creating large and strange virtual worlds. They also inspired independent creators to take up the mantel of creating text-based worlds. Here are some of the most expansive and iconic of those worlds.

Zork

The first version of Zork was written in the late 70's, but since then, the world of Zork has expanded into something giant and complex. The game is divided into three parts, all set in the vast Zork universe. In part 1, throughout your quest to collect treasures and become the Dungeon Master, you explore a fiendishly complex maze, an ancient ruined temple, a portion of the "Land of the Dead," and a flood control dam, all part of a great Underground Empire.

An that's all just part 1. Parts 2 and 3 take you to more mazes, a carousel, a volcano, a museum, an immense "Land of Shadows," and more, encountering wizards, thieves, and the infamous grue. The tone of the games is lighthearted and full of jokes. The combined effect makes the Zork trilogy totally engrossing, one of the first fully immersive virtual worlds. (Play part 1 here)

Bureaucracy

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy author Douglas Adams worked closely with Infocom to create two different games. The first, and more well known, was based off of his famous Hitchhiker series, but the second was set in an entirely different, entirely scarier world.

It's called Bureaucracy, and in it, you are a confused citizen trying to file a change of address card. This simple task spirals into a complex, infuriating adventure in a fully formed world disconcertingly similar to the real one. In the world of Bureaucracy, your lunch order is lost due to a computer crash, your mail is scattered throughout the various houses you visit, you are almost eaten by a tribe of cannibals, and you eventually enlist the help of a hacker to finally get your address changed.

The thing that makes the world of Bureaucracy so engrossing is that it starts as a routine exploration of the town you find yourself in, but it quickly develops into a giant web of confusion and manipulation. It feels a little like waking up and finding yourself in a parallel world where everyday tasks take a SWAT team to accomplish.

Trinity

Trinity opens on a quiet English park about to be blasted by a nuclear explosion. Your job is to escape into a parallel universe of sorts and explore the mystery of how the bomb came to be launched at the park that day. What follows is a journey through nuclear test sites of the past and future and the surreal landscapes of another dimension, a sort of speculative history and future of the development of nuclear weapons.

Trinity is an unabashedly political game. It was released in 1986, and it's a commentary on the nuclear age. But it's also an exploration of a strange dimension with it's own rules, a blend of fiction and reality. Figuring out these rules means fully delving into Trinity's strange world.

A Mind Forever Voyaging

In a strange experiment with the virtual worlds of text adventures, A Mind Forever Voyaging presents a laboratory creating its own simulated virtual world. This research team has created a virtual city to model a new plan for economic and social development. You control an artificial intelligence named PRISM, and your job is to delve into the virtual town to observe conditions under this new plan.

The game progresses through years in the simulated city, and you observe the slow growth of dystopia. It's an unconventional entry in the text adventure canon. There are very few puzzles and the ultimate goal seems merely to observe and learn from the failures of the research team. The game essentially presents you with a declining world for you to explore and try to understand.

Curses

With the fall of Infocom in the late 80's, text adventures and interactive fiction seemed to be on the decline. But there was a minor resurgence in the format not long after. Graham Nelson's 1993 game, Curses, is considered a standout in that resurgence.

In Curses, you are a wealthy Englishman searching through the attic of your recently inherited house for a map. Of course things get complex from there, but the bulk of the richness of the environment comes from the clearly carefully conceived mansion, Meldrew Hall. In exploring the house, it seems to come alive with its own history. Curses is worth checking out for this section alone. (Play it here)

These games, among others, show the power of text to develop immersive and complex virtual worlds.

Further reading: The Cursor Is Your Friend In Scifi Text Adventure Games

In Gamer, Kable (Butler) is the poor death-row inmate sold into slavery in evil Michael C. Hall's real-life video game. Butler is a puppet for a wealthy user, competing in a first person shooter war game. The kid pictured above can literally step into Kable and control his every move, pinning him against other inmates. After a certain amount of never before reached wins, Kable gets his freedom.

Official synopsis:

Set in a future-world where humans can control other humans in mass-scale, multi-player online gaming environments, a star player (Butler) from a game called "Slayers" looks to regain his independence while taking down the game's mastermind (Hall)

Here's the high res. version of that image:

Gamer will hit theaters September 4th.

You can see more of Paquette's work at his website. And his blog, with shiny new work, is here.

Prison Break actor Wentworth Miller took to his Twitter to let his fans know that he's talking Bioshock. And later tweets seem to imply it's indeed the video-game's movie version.

This means a few things: that Hollywood is moving forward with the long-in-development film, budget problems or not. Plus it means actors like Miller are going to be getting a second look as they are a bit cheaper than the big Hollywood A-list actors. I'm completely for this. I like Miller — he's a solid actor in Prison Break — and I'm interested to see more from him. And I want to see who else they start to tap for roles in this film.

UPDATE: Sorry guys, I was had. Thanks to commenters pointing this out, looks like this Twitter might be a big fat fake. I apologize if I excited anyone (including myself). I wish it was true because I really would like this movie to be filmed.

Some of the "concept-art-style" screenshots look a bit too clean and bright for my liking, but I still love the mutant wolves and the ruined ashes of Connecticut. [Kotaku]

Deus Ex 3 is a prequel to the other two Deus Ex games. In it, you're Adam Jensen, a private security officer working at a company that develops biomechanical augmentations for the human body, just one stepping stone towards the nanotech augmentations of the other games. Jensen witnesses an attack on his company, and has to investigate. Besides Shanghai, the game will take you to future versions of Detroit, Montreal and two other cities.

Here are some more bitchin images:

[EIDOS Forums]

As in the original Bioshock, you'll be exploring the ruins of an undersea city that was supposed to be a utopia. This time around, it's ten years later, and you're a prototype "big daddy," escaping from mental conditioning by the mad scientist Dr. Bridgette Tenenbaum. Young girls are being kidnapped by a mysterious creature known as a "Big Sister," and Tenenbaum, the creator of the "Little Sisters," feels a sense of responsibility. It's hinted the "Big Sister" may be one of the "Little Sisters" freed at the end of the first game, who didn't take well to life on the outside. As you wake up at the start of the game, you hear Tenenbaum's voice urging you on to go find the Big Sister.

Here's a featurette about the new game:

And here are some awesome screenshots and concept drawings (more at the link below):

In the new game, you won't just explore Rapture, you'll be able to go outside as well, thanks to a fancy diving suit that comes with your "big daddy" armor. This'll provide a break from the non-stop claustrophobic action and also let you access a part of the city you couldn't reach otherwise. And you start to realize that Rapture and the sea-slug stem-cell substance ADAM are having on the local sea life, including weirdly mutated coral that's meshed with the city walls. You also get to visit the headquarters of Fontaine Futuristics. And as in the first game, you have a choice between saving Little Sisters, or harvesting ADAM from them. But you can also "adopt" them, which means they become your friends and help you find other sources of ADAM, which enhances your abilities. But if you adopt a Little Sister, you have to protect her from the vicious Slicers. And of course, the Big Sister is horrifying and totally lethal, with a needle arm and a cage on her back to hold Little Sisters.

[Gamespot]

These are just a few of the bizarre, haunting, and gooftastic paintings from Giant Robot Gallery's "Game Over Continue" Show, which opened on March 27 during the Game Developers Conference and closes today. So if you're in the San Francisco Bay Area, now's the time to check it out. I was there at the opening night, and the place was packed with indie gamer nerds, some showing off games they'd built just for the show and others just enjoying the videogame art ambiance.

A frivolous but true observation: indie gamer nerds have incredibly good taste in hoodies. I would go to another opening like this just for the awesome hoodies, and then stay for the excellent art.

Check out art from the entire show (and buy one to support a geek artist!) via Giant Robot

So either McG is messing with us or right now Arnold seriously isn't in Terminator Salvation. In an interview with MTV, McG said point blank, "We don't know if Schwarzenegger is in the movie or not; it's not clear. I can say that." He then went on to call the Arnold wrangling "a complicated, delicate balance."

He even dismissed Terry Crews' confirmation that Arnold is indeed in the flick.

But McG has said that some version of Arnie's T-800 will be in the movie one way or another, so I'm not sure what to think but I'm guessing that they are haggling over a voice over for some sort of robot like face that may or may have Arnold's likeness. I hope there isn't some adviser out there, instructing Arnie to stay away from this flick. It's a recession, and it's his job as California governor to boost our morale and our economic spending, the best way he can - with action movies and Terminator cameos. No one has forgotten that Arnold was the Terminator. In fact, that whole shtick probably helped him get elected in some marketing way or another. Get out of the way of progress.

McG also touched on Linda Hamilton's voiceover in the MTV interview, explaining that

Everyone knows she instructed her son how to survive and how to fulfill his destiny via audio tapes. There is a great deal of listening done to those audio tapes done in hope of guidance. There's some scenes with Christian being inspired by the character Linda played.

In other bloody robot news, there is a new a new Terminator video game trailer stuffed with resistance goodness. Listen to the human army call out for help, blow up some bots, and hug it out.

The second game takes place in the 70s, ten years after the original. Yes, that's you controlling Big Daddy - Amazing, I know. In the video, you're chasing down Big Sister whilst the screams of helpless victims echo in the distance. Also, I believe that Bridgette Tenenbaum makes a quickie appearance. Apparently Tenebaum is distraught because "Big Sister" is taking little girls and turning them into monsters. You play Tenebaum's only hope, the prototype Big Daddy, and doesn't it feel good when you're holding the drill?

After watching this, one can only hope that Hollywood is paying attention. Yes, they're making a Bioshock film, but this is bigger than that. Oftentimes, the stories told via video game are a thousand times more compelling than most blockbusters. I hope the Bio film lives up to the game and maybe inspires Hollywood to hire a few folks from the video game world rather than just making a terrible Chun Li film.

Here is a much older trailer for Bioshock 2:

Despite an interview at Gateworld where Brad Wright hinted that the game didn't have much of a future by saying "They had an opportunity and they got our support, and they obviously had significant funding, and it didn't happen," Balentine (the Manager of the GateWorld project) says that progress is still moving forward with the MMO.

On the World site, he address Wright's interview, saying:

Our official response is that the lights here are still on and the development team is working hard every day to get this game built.

I've been asked from many corners lately to provide an official response to a story circulated by Gateworld.net. I spoke with Darren Sumner, the author of the story, soon after it was posted and gave him a detailed response to the article which he decided not to publish.

Our official response is that the lights here are still on and the development team is working hard every day to get this game built. Team members are in the office seven days a week to deliver Stargate Worlds. Brad Wright is the Stargate expert and a creative consultant on Stargate Worlds who advises us on the story; unfortunately we had not recently updated him on our progress or the impact from the current global economic crisis, and he was not fully aware of the continuing progress on our game.

It's true that the production of Stargate Worlds has been significantly impacted by the greatest worldwide economic downturn in decades, but we are still raising enough money from angel investors to keep the dev team working.

We are currently negotiating several deals that will cover our financial responsibilities and fund the remainder of development. When we sign those deals, you'll hear about it. Until then, we'll keep building Stargate Worlds, because right now, that's the only thing that matters to us.

So that's good news because from the concept art we've seen, it looks pretty gorgeous for an MMO. I hope this project sees the light of day, for the sexy alien ladies alone.

According to a press release from Tor Books:

The first novel in this new trilogy will be published in early 2010. An unabridged audiobook edition will publish simultaneously with the new novel.

A science fiction icon and winner of the field's highest awards, Greg Bear has signed on to write three "Halo" novels set in the time of the Forerunners, the creators and builders of the Halos. Almost nothing is known for sure about this ancient race. Worshipped by the Covenant as gods, their engineering relics pepper the galaxy, and their connection to humanity remains unanswered. Devoted fans of both the books and games will finally get to delve deep into the era of these enigmatic beings, and discover for themselves the epic story behind one of the great mysteries of the "Halo" universe: the complete disappearance of the Forerunners from existence. "Greg Bear is truly a living legend of science fiction. To have him at play in the Halo universe will be exciting not just to Halo fans but to science fiction fans on a whole," says Eric Raab, Tor editor.

Daphne Bavelier, from the University of Rochester, New York, has turned into something of a gaming evangelist; six years ago, she proved that playing games made you more adept at completing visual tasks, and now she's on the way to proving that they also improve your eyesight.

A recent study conducted by Bavelier showed that gamers playing what she terms as "action" games (first person shooters) for 50 hours over a nine week period had a 43% increase in their ability to perceive contrast, a discovery that may pave the way to the first non-lens and non-surgical treatment for amblyopia, or failure to identify contrast, which affects 3% of the population of western society. Her study has led to the University of California in Berkeley starting an amblyopia trial where games will be prescribed as treatment.

Shoot 'em up video games are good for your eyesight [New Scientist]