On VIP Breakdown: Jon and Kate Plus One Big Break Up

PAX 2009

Fans of the Monkey Island Adventure series are about to go bananas! Organizers of Penny Arcade Expo () have just annouced Ron Gilbert as the keynote speaker at this year’s sixth annual event to be held Sept. 4-6 in Seattle, Washington. The 20-year veteran game designer, programmer and producer, Ron Gilbert’s resume includes Maniac Mansion and the first two installments in the Monkey Island adventure series. In addition, his famous SCUMM scripting language granted him a spot in the Computer Game Hall of Fame. He is currently creative director at independent development studio Hothead Games in Vancouver, Canada.


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Gamer Grub

Some might say gamers are an entirely differently species who require a special diet – Gamer Grub agrees.  Gamer Grub snacks are specially designed to improve the performance of gamers. Packed with vitamins and many other chemicals we can hardly spell or pronounce, Gamer Grub offers a delicious snack, which will also help gamers to power up.

To raise the awareness of their product, Gamer Grub’s booth at E3 gave out free sample for the drained by-passers to refuel. The snacks come in different flavors such as Pizza, PB&J, Wasabi and Chocolate, which were all very tasty.

If you are in dire need to step up your game, Gamer Grub is available at Fry’s and ThinkGeek. Remember—eat well and prosper.


Xbox 360 Facebook Home screen

In addition to Twitter, Facebook is also coming to the Xbox 360 this fall. You’ll be able to update your Facebook status, browse your news feed, view photos, and more, all from the Xbox 360. Even better? Games can take advantage of Facebook Connect, to publish screenshots and other details directly to your Facebook account, if you so choose. You’ll also be able to send Facebook friend requests to those in your Friends list on Xbox Live, if they’ve linked their Facebook and Xbox Live accounts. Get a look at the Facebook on Xbox 360 screenshots that we’ve put together, so you can get a better idea of how it will all work.

Gallery: Facebook coming to Xbox 360


Twitter update from Xbox 360

is coming to the Xbox 360, as announced by Microsoft at their 2009 Xbox Media Briefing at . You’ll be able to see recent tweets from your contacts, and you’ll also have the ability to update your Twitter status right from the Xbox 360 as well. Check out a few Twitter on Xbox 360 screenshots, and feel free to follow Playfeed on Twitter.

Update: Facebook for Xbox 360 is also on the way!

Gallery: Twitter coming to Xbox 360


Ever wonder how it might look if Mario grabbed a go cart and started speeding down your local highway? You’ve gotta check out the YouTube video above, produced by Remi Gaillard. Once he started chucking banana peels, we were rolling. Seriously, take a look, it’s worth a laugh.

If you know of any other great video game related videos on YouTube, feel free to link to them in the comments!

[Thanks, Drea!]


GDC 2009 Hideo Kojima

If you at any point in your life have enjoyed a stealth game, you might know Hideo Kojima as the man to whom you owe your firstborn. He’s the father of the beloved Metal Gear game/interactive movie series, and he delivered the final keynote of the today. And, as expected, it was worthy of a man who had just received a lifetime achievement award the night before. I took some pictures of the presentation, and tried to elucidate as best I can, but I seriously cannot stress how much you should try and find the video of the presentation as filmed by the GDC – Kojima is a genuinely funny guy with a lot to say, and if you like the cut of his jib (which is a very good cut, I hear), you deserve to see and hear the whole thing. In the meantime, have some on the house.

Click to continue reading GDC 2009: Hideo Kojima: Solid Game Design: Making the Impossible Possible


Xbox 360 controller soap front

If you’ve always wanted to game while in the shower, this one is an interesting compromise. Digitalsoaps on Etsy has put together a ridonkulous controller soap bar. The best part? It looks awesome. The bar of soap looks just like your typicaly chill-colored Xbox 360 controller, with rised buttons, analog sticks, and control pad. The bar of soap weighs in at seven ounces, and is scented with Mountain Dew fragrance oil - gotta keep it real. You can grab your own Xbox 360 controller soap bar for $12 on Etsy.

Read More | Xbox 360 Replica Soap Bar

Gallery: Xbox 360 controller soap replica


From the Department of Plastic Instruments, we present you this little nugget of wondrousness: While you were struggling with a bag of cheese doodles, 14-year-old Danny Johnson entered the Guinness Book of World Records by scoring an astounding 973,954 points on “Through The Fire and the Flames”, the song infamous as a destroyer of worlds and eater of babies. It’s a 99% attempt, which is less than previous title holder Chris Chike’s astounding 100% run-through (see above video), but it IS possible to get a higher score with careful Star Power placement. Hit the jump for the full press release.

Click to continue reading Guitar Hero player enters Guinness World Records, Rush still shunned from Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame


Money

Now that we’re over the holiday hump (i.e. every game imaginable being released at the same time, oh god, why do you do this to me), a lot of sites and publications have been putting together lists of games to look forward to in the new year. Me? Nuh-uh. I don’t have the cash for that. Fallout and Dead Space alone have depleted my gaming funds for a while (not to mention a certain 360 dying enough times for me to wish ill on its relatives), and if you’re like me, you want a cheap alternative until your funds recover. Hell, even if you don’t need it, you can’t pass up a quality gaming experience on the cheap, but being a penny-pinching bastard like myself tends to help heal those imaginary wounds. So, I’ve decided to put together a list of a few old-but-still-awesome games that you can get for slightly less than the cost of a night with your mom, though they’ll probably last far longer.

You may want to note that some of these games are older and may stutter and wobble and spurt blood if you’re running more than Windows XP, so you may want to check your compatibility before you plunk down the green to have them downloaded to your inferior operating system, muahaha. Hit the jump for the rundown.

Click to continue reading Five Awesome Games You Can Play on the Cheap


World of Goo

For those of you who may not know, the Global Game Jam is a worldwide game-off where hundreds of indie game developers will try to rapidly create games based on set criteria in just about 48 hours. This, if you couldn’t tell, is difficult as hell to pull off, but usually leads to a bunch of interesting games. It’s set to go from Jan. 30th to Feb. 1st, in which time the Game Jam will roll over time zones and get the developers cracking. If you’ve played a number of indie games released this year (such as ), you know what kinds of minds are going to be fueling this. On the same note, a worldwide keynote will be broadcast for the Game Jam by none other than Kyle Gabler, developer of indie game (which, if you haven’t heard, is very very good). The description per the site:

In a Game Jam, participants come together to make video games. Each participant works in a small team on a complete game project over the course of a limited time period, usually over a weekend. With such a small time frame, the games tend to be innovative and experimental. The Global Game Jam (GGJ) is the first of its kind: a game Jam that takes place in the same 48 hours all over the world! The global Game Jam will start at 5:00PM Friday, January 30, 2009 through 5:00PM Sunday, February 1, 2009, (all times local). All participants in the Global Game Jam will be constrained by the same rules and limitations, with each time zone having one distinct constraint.

Look forward to more coverage and information about the Game Jam as we learn it, or head over to the site to get it all straight from the horse’s mouth.

Read More | Global Game Jam

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