The World's First Multi-Award Winning Philosophical First Person Single Player Exploration Puzzle Art Game, or MAWPFPSPEPAG

This is probably the part where you scratch your head and wonder what on earth the Laser Romance team is talking about this time. Well, dear reader, I am not sure I'm fully equipped to explain it to you. However, what I can offer is a great deal of anticipation, a quote, and a video for an upcoming genre-busting game called Hazard: The Journey Of Life.

"It's an exploration of knowledge, not an exploration of space," says the narrator and creator of this unique game, Alexander Bruce. You read correctly, this game is being made by a single person with a good idea. Sound familiar?

This looks to be a great example of how solitary developers are challenging the modern norms of gaming conventions. I am always eager to see a developer break the mold, as was the case with both Notch and Blow. And from my limited playtime with the demo, I think Hazard: The Journey Of Life will accomplish this as well.

For more information on what a MAWPFPSPEPAG is, hit the jump (there's also a trailer and a link to the demo!)

Run Your Steam Games from Multiple Hard Drives

If you’re like me, the drive you installed steam on is running out of space. The classic way of addressing this issue is to reinstall steam on another drive. That method sucks – you have to reload every game. Fortunately, there's another way - by creating a directory junction.  Here’s how to move individual games to a separate drive, while leaving your steam install intact.

Amnesia Scared A Man

Even if this video is staged, which I'm not certain it is, it's still hilarious. I believe it's a little old, but nevertheless, if you haven't seen it, enjoy.

It's definitely not safe for work due to an abundance of screaming, cussing and overwhelming man-terror. My favorite part is around 4:20. I'm not a psychologist or anything, but he sounds like he is legitimately scared out of his gourd.

This guy is apparently on Skype with a bunch of his friends, who are all playing Amnesia seperately. They find his reactions to be quite amusing. Hit the jump for the expletive-filled video to find out why.

A Vacuum Of Space Games Filled



This is a warning. A space-warning: This article contains embarrassingly high levels of geekery. Side effects include laughter at the author, sending insulting emails and / or death threats to the author, danger of becoming a Trekkie and changing your religion on Facebook to Jedi.

Space is awesome. It titillates my nerd sensibilities and fascinates me to my very science-fiction-loving core. I love everything about space. I love the unfamiliar physics and weightlessness, I love the ever-present danger of absolute zero and the harsh conditions of space, I love the mysteries of the farthest expanses of our galaxy, I love the brilliant possibilities that colonization holds for humanity. I also love the colorful nebulae, hot lasers, spacesplosions and screaming (space would be so much more cinematic if it actually allowed for sound) tie-fighters. Isn't everything (except sound) better in space? It certainly follows that I would love video games set in space.

My interest in this highly-niche genre began with a Playstation game called Colony Wars. Not only was it a good game, but it also looked great at the time and featured the voice work of a real live actor, and one with some voice work already on his resume. If James Earl Jones narrating about space doesn't pique your interest, nothing will!

I haven't been as excited about a space game since then. That is, until now. For a little less conversation and a little more action, (please), and some footage from upcoming space games, hit the jump.

A Warming Breakfast For Your Heart: A Waffle Game

Who here thinks arcade cabinets are awesome? I'm raising my hand. Now who here thinks that waffles might be the greatest thing since breakfast was invented by Samuel. H. Breakfast? Yeah, I do too! (Don't worry about looking him up, just trust me on this one! No, no! You close that Google tab!)

Well, then you should probably check out this organ-warming article about a group of guys that built an arcade cabinet specifically for a breakfast joint. And got free waffles for life out of it.

That's the power of video games, baby!

Head on over to Kotaku and read the article in it's full glory by clicking right about here.

Guillermo del Toro Is The Face Of inSANity!

Slated for 2013, distinguished film director Guillermo del Toro is working on a multi-platform horror adventure game (the first in a trilogy) called inSANE. Announced at Spike 2010 Video Games Awards, del Toro is working with developer Volition, Inc. and mega-publisher THQ to guide the project to completion. Del Toro, who has openly complained about movie-based games, claims that he will approach the development of the inSANE trilogy in a completely different manner than he would the development of a film. Ultimately, in the end, del Toro aims to release a great game with a focus on narrative and atmosphere.

“I’m a gamer. I was born with a controller in my hand and a giant chicken quesadilla in the other. I promise to bring you visually stunning worlds, one-of-a-kind characters, and hopefully, you’ll shit your pants," read a quote on Gamesradar regarding del Toro.

Hit the jump for the trailer and some additional information!

Dejobaan's Next Now: 1... 2... 3... KICK IT! (Drop That Beat Like an Ugly Baby), Available for Pre-order

When I previewed Dejobaan's upcoming title, it had a working title that went something like "ooo! ooO! oOO! OOO!"  The name has changed to 1... 2... 3... KICK IT! (Drop That Beat Like an Ugly Baby).  It might just be me, but it's got a certain, uh, panache.  The game itself is still what I described previously.  Ichiro Lambe sent out the below press release with some more official details about the game.  Oh, and you can pre-order it now for $9.95 (33% discount) and get access to the current Alpha.

Dejobaan Games (creators of the award-winning "AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! -- A Reckless Disregard for Gravity") announces "1... 2... 3... KICK IT! (Drop That Beat Like an Ugly Baby)" for Windows PCs. Battle your favorite drum 'n' bass tracks, or zen out as you soar through that trance album. "Kick It" mines your existing MP3 music to build hovering, hallucinogenic worlds to fly and fight through. Gamers who pre-order the title now for $9.95 (33% off the final price) at www.dejobaan.com/kickit will receive an alpha they can preview Right Now.

Picture this: Ten kilometers above the Earth's crust, you plummet, your own music library powering you through terminal velocity. A hint of orchestral strings, and gameplay responds with wide open skies ahead. But what’s this? Big, fat bass beats, and suddenly you’re intimate with the side of a behemoth building -- scrape by with a millimeter to spare, and your score multiplier doubles, then triples. A serious drum line breaks though the soundscape: cymbals crash, and you’re swarmed by teeming hordes of mechanical monsters hell-bent on shooting you out of the sky. Take aim, and take 'em down.

Want to play mad scientist? In Kick It, the worlds you create are living organisms, so if you want to alter the soundscapes generated by your tracks, go on! Tweak a tune’s genomes, hit “play,” and watch it warp into something unrecognizably twisted. What next? “I want every song about dragons to throw 10-story tall wyrms at you," says studio founder Ichiro Lambe. “That's why we're opening the game up for feedback months before launch. We want everyone's crazy-ass ideas.” Dejobaan will continue to polish the game 'till it’s as smooth and silky as an ugly baby's bottom for launch in 2011.

Availability and system requirements: Kick It is available for playable pre-order at www.dejobaan.com/kickit, and requires Windows XP/Vista/7; a 1.5GHz processor; 2GB RAM; and a 512MB 3D card.

Here's an updated trailer, for your viewing pleasure:

Let's Get Biblical, Biblical

Let me preface this by stating outright that I am an atheist.  I do not mean to offend with any of my words below.  Just the same, sometimes, when a game is about the Bible (or at least loosely related), beautiful things happen.  Did I say "beautiful"?  I meant hilarious.  Either way, I'm happy at the end of my playtime.

Rather than feebly trying to relate to you the pure gold that is The You Testament, I will simply link you to PC Gamer's feature.  if you want to experience it for yourself, you can download it here.

The Bible Game, however, I will rant about for ages.  It is, hands down, my absolute favorite party game ever.  At $5-7 used (depending on your platform of choice: Xbox or PS2), it's a steal.  But not actually stealing, that would be a sin.  It is a 4-player game show featuring Bible trivia (which, no joke, sometimes gives you answers to choose from like "Baby Cakes"...  What.  Excuse me?) and vaguely Bible-themed mini-games.  The whole affair is presided over by a very enthusiastic fellow named Justin Warren, who is exactly the same size as all the kids participating in the show.  The effective strategy for the trivia, which seems to be primarily esoteric facts of Biblical events, is mashing the buttons on your controller in order to get your answer in first, since the first correct answer gets the most points.  How's that for praying for a, as Justin likes to say, "Good result!"  I'm feeling more religious just writing this.  The mini-games themselves aren't terribly inspired, but they are well executed and the controls feel good.  And the Christian rock that streams out of your speakers the entire time you are in these so-called Challenge Games is, well, divine.

The best part about The Bible Game, though?  Each player gets to choose one of eight playable characters, all of whom are styled even more stereotypically than I thought possible.  You've got the blond boy scout, the pig-tailed (white) blond girl wearing all pink, an Asian boy with square glasses and a pencil tucked behind his ear, and a Latino boy wearing a sideways baseball cap and a sports jersey, among others.  Oh, but dear reader, that isn't all.  You get to name them.  That's right, 8 characters to label these fine unassuming worshipers with the most vulgar and horrible scum your devious little brain can muster.  You won't really understand until you play this gem, so I recommend that you drop what you're doing (i.e. reading this article), grab three friends, and go buy a copy immediately.  Hell, buy a Xbox/PS2 if you have to.  You'll thank me.  And the graces of G-d, too.

As requested, here are a couple images of the fat blond boy scout.

Thanks to Yosskovya for the tip on The You Testament.

Arcades And The Video Games That Break Our Bones

Arm Champs II

Arcades are products of a dying caste. On the decline for the past two and a half decades, it has become increasingly more difficult to find them. And when you do manage to wander into an arcade, unless it's a Friday or Saturday night, chances are you're all by your lonesome. The lights of machines twinkling, games beeping and talking to you as if they have been waiting for someone to show up for a very, very long time. The vestiges and ghosts of people remain only in the form of high scores, but no living souls are in sight. These are testaments to a once thriving subculture that rose in the late 70's and waned in the mid 80's and ultimately was dissolved by home consoles.

Go on. Hit the jump for more about unconventional arcade cabinets, broken arms and my personal quest to defeat a videogame's arm.

Playstation Hits Home, Commercially Speaking

Commercials. I hate* them. You hate** them. We all hate*** them.

If all humans had a sort of superpower that would make us aware of the total number of hours we've spent watching commercials in our lives, we would likely become stricken with guilt and shame and descend into madness. Also, that would be a fairly awful superpower. The thousands of hours of mindless propaganda and earworm jingles. I think I'm getting dumber just writing about it.

But every now and then there will be a diamond in the rough. A commercial that grabs you and leaves you feeling engaged or enlightened or just plain giddy. Typically, this happens because it made you laugh or say "What just happened?". Rarely is it because they are inspiring or, dare I say, moving. A commercial spot isn't a long time to tell a story. Especially not a good one. But Playstation has a history of interesting and well-executed commercials.

That's why I think this Playstation commercial from 1999 is one of the best. I never caught it when it was released, but understandably so since it was exclusive to Europe and never reached American televisions. Let's not forget that Youtube wasn't even a twinkle in any of the (three) founders' eyes at this time.

We all spend countless hours watching shenanigans on the boobtoob, so why not take thirty more seconds and check out one of the few great videogame-related commercials. Hit the jump for the video.