Most Recent: Etcetera

Kickstart This! The “Poo Pub” Edition

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Andrew Rainnie

Two weeks ago, former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher passed away. Our coalition government saw fit to spend £10 million of taxpayers’ money on her funeral. This was a woman who divided the country, and whose iron grip is still curled around Britain’s bleeding heart. The rich and powerful turned up to see her off, while poverty-driven protesters quite literally turned their backs on the funeral procession. The BBC refused to play “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead,” an anti-Thatcher song taken from The Wizard of Oz, after her haters propelled it to number two on the UK music charts. If anyone could suck the fun out of life, it was Thatcher.

A couple of days after she kicked the bucket, I learned that a humble New Zealand pub owner named Les Lisle had passed away. I met Les only once, in 2011, while travelling the globe with a ginormous backpack strapped to my back. It was customary to stop at the Mahinapua Pub, affectionately known as the Poo Pub, on the way to the town of Wanaka. The tour company I was travelling with booked the place out for a slap-up meal followed by a fancy dress party. When we arrived, old Les (who was 85 at the time) got on the bus and laid down the rules of his house in a well-practised and often funny speech. When we ventured inside his pub, we found the ceiling covered with hats; there were over 3000 of them, all tacked to the ceiling. Les told me some were his, and some were donated by the travelers who passed through. He was managing that pub of his before I was even born. I doubt he played many video games – there was a pool table and dart board – but he was an agent of fun, and probably managed to affect more peoples’ lives in a positive light than Thatcher did with her negative rule. They were both born in 1925, and died with days of one another. If anyone deserved a £10 million funeral, it was Les Lisle.

Unfortunately, I barely have £10, so in honour of his youthful spirit in the face of old age, I’m dedicating this month’s Kickstart This! to Les. Let’s see if we can channel some of that positive spirit into funding projects that are fun for all, such as the 2D upward-scrolling platform puzzler Brave Bit, hand drawn sci-fi adventure gameA Small Favor, 8-bit microorganism sim Bitcrobes, and underwater tower defense title Fish vs. Crabs. And just to shake things up, we also have the helpful app GameSnap, and last but not least, PWNED: A Gamers Novel, a romantic comedy adventure set within an MMORPG.

Let the games begin! (more…)

Posted in Etcetera, Features, Mobile, PC, Top Story |

Daily Scoop: April 22, 2013 – Off to ECGC!

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Nicole Kline

Another week, another exciting event! This week, it’s the East Coast Game Conference in North Carolina. I’ll be back on Friday! But until then, you’ll just have to find your own deals, sadly. Wait! Please don’t be too sad!

If you’ve been waiting patiently for Dishonored to go one sale, I’ve got good news – you can get it right now on Amazon for $19.99. If I didn’t have a giant pile of games sitting next to my television right now, as well as a big pile of stuff to move into my new apartment, I would have bought it already! Once I’m all moved in, I might splurge on a few new games. We’ll just have to see…

Got some great t-shirts for you today! Hit the jump for the awesomeness. (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Daily Scoop: April 19, 2013 – The cake is… not a lie?

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Nicole Kline

Well, at least, that’s what this Amazon.co.uk page is telling me. You mean I can make my very own Portal cake? I am envisioning all kinds of hilarious birthday party ideas right now!

Sadly, there are no good deals up today. Oh, but, you CAN pre-order Monaco over at Steam right now at a discount. You should definitely scoop that up!

There are a few good t-shirts, though, so you should hit the jump and check those out!

(more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Daily Scoop: April 18, 2013 – Portal shirt mashups rule the day

Posted on April 18, 2013 by Nicole Kline

Ever have a day where you didn’t feel like getting out of bed, other than to turn on your console, grab a controller, and take your ice cream out of the freezer to eat for breakfast? That’s pretty much every day for me lately – I just want to sit around and play games. But alas! Things need to get done, as they say. And so here I am, to let you know what sales and t-shirts are available for you today!

Let’s start with the new deals over at GameStop. They’re offering 50% off of “hundreds” of used games – looks like the total is actually 294, which technically is hundreds. You will likely find something you want in that tempting list. There are lots of PC downloads on sale – Borderlands 2 is $29.99, Crysis 3 is $39.99, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is $29.99, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Dragonborn is $9.99, and XCOM: Enemy Unknown is $29.99. Plenty of physical games are on sale as well – Army of Two The Devil’s Cartel is $39.99, the Battlefield 3 premium edition is $39.99, FIFA Soccer 13 is $39.99, Halo 4 is $39.99, Need for Speed: Most Wanted is $49.99, and Tiger Woods PGA Tour 14 is $49.99, and The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct is $39.99. Whew. That’s a lot of sales!

And now, t-shirts! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Daily Scoop: April 17, 2013 – Nintendo day!

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Nicole Kline

Well, Nintendo fans are certainly happy today! Earthbound is coming to the Wii U, A Link to the Past is getting a sequel, and lots of other great stuff is happening. I guess this means I need to get a Wii U, huh!

Amazon has some fresh digital deals up. Continent of the Ninth Seal and Pet Pack – The Troobles: Second Life are free, American Pickers is $4.99, and Scribblenauts Unlimited is $8.99. Scoop ’em up!

There are two great t-shirts available today! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Daily Scoop: April 16, 2013 – Back to reality

Posted on April 16, 2013 by Nicole Kline

I went to MEPACon this weekend and played a buttload of Dungeons and Dragons! It was a good time, but I’m glad to be back to regular life, regular food, and regular sleep. Not that I didn’t appreciate three solid days of role playing, but after a while, everybody needs some sleep, am I right?

I’m super excited about the release of Pandora’s Tower today! I hope I can make some decent progress in Dead Space 3 before the Wii game takes over my entire life. And everyone keeps telling me to get Defiance and Injustice: Gods Among Us. Aieeee!

If you’re looking for some good deals, Amazon has Asura’s Wrath on sale for $17.64, which is 65% off the retail price. Scoop it up!

If you’re looking for t-shirts, you won’t be disappointed! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist webseries hadokens Kickstarter

Posted on April 8, 2013 by John Scalzo

Have you seen the Street Fighter: Legacy fanfilm before? If not, I highly recommend checking it out on YouTube. After that, you might want to swing over to Kickstarter and check out Joey Ansah and Christian Howard’s next project: a prequel webseries known as Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist.

Ansah (the director) and Howard (who plays Ken) are seeking £625,000 (about $950,000) to produce the series with 25 days currently remaining on the Kickstarter clock. More than a mere fanfilm, this time the duo has secured the rights to create a live-action Street Fighter film from Capcom. So Assassin’s Fist will have the blessing (and marketing support) of Capcom if its successful on Kickstarter:

It is a true warrior’s tale; a coming of age story for Ryu and Ken as boys become men; told in parallel with the dark tale of the generation that came before them, filled with tragedy, loss and heartbreak.

This story really contains all the elements of universal, classic, conflict based story telling; father vs. son; brother vs. brother; a love triangle; betrayal; revenge; and the ultimate question: Can a man change his destiny? Or will the inevitable catch up with him?.

According to Ansah, the production, which has been in various stages of development for the last three years, needs to secure the rest of its budget now, or the team runs the risk of losing the financing they’ve already secured. No pressure or anything.

Posted in Etcetera, News |

Daily Scoop: April 3, 2013 – Super Dungeon Explorer

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Nicole Kline

Last night was board game night at our local game store, and we ended up playing Super Dungeon Explorer with some friends. Our friend Josh had picked up the latest expansion at PAX East, and we were all eager to try it out. The new characters are amazing, especially the one based around Simon Belmont. I mean really, just look at these minis. Too cute!

Not too many deals going on today, but if you’re really going to press me for something, I would have to say it would be the PS3 250GB Amazon Exclusive Family Entertainment Bundle. It includes PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, Ratchet & Clank, Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando, Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal, a controller, and a remote control.

It’s currently marked down to $249.99 from $399.99, which is a great deal. Scoop it up! Got a few t-shirts as well: (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |