Here at Ology, we’re always working to expand our knowledge and broaden our horizons.  We take the motto ‘All about it!’ pretty seriously.  So it’s my honor and duty to inform all of you aspiring Gameologists that we’re movin’ on up to the Geek side.

That’s right, friends, Romans, and countrymen–as of today, I’m scooting over to a new channel, Geekology.  This link is gonna be your only way to get there for a bit, since I don’t think it’s been built into the handy little bar on the site banner yet.

Why the switch?  On the new channel, I’m hoping to extend our daily conversations out into the wider world of Geek.  From comic books to Internet memes to sci-fi and fantasy, I’ll be bringing you the latest and greatest in stuff you’re maybe a little ashamed to be into.  Don’t worry–the incisive (not to mention modest!) gaming coverage you’ve come to count on will still be part of this New Deal.  But the merge will allow Ology talents from across the site–including from the Gadget and Screen streams (don’t lie, you know you love those guys)–to pick up the D20 and get rolling.

You can hop over to Geekology now to check out some articles you may have missed and just generally appreciate how pretty it is.  Starting Monday, the site will be accessible from the navigation bar.  I’ll see you on the new page, everyone–have an awesome Halloween weekend!

[Image Source:  LARPers]

The first time I ever seen Super Mario Bros. 2 was on a commercial that aired way back in the late 80s(link). With a bit of luck and a brand new VCR, after taping some Saturday morning cartoons, that small little piece of Xanadu was mine to keep. I watched that commercial over and over again. It somehow triggered euphoria for me each and every time I watched it, even a bit to this day. Super Mario Bros. 2. simply looked INCREDIBLE!!!

The graphics were such a big step up from the original, so much that I was floored and amazed that the NES could output such power and wonder. The enemies looked extraordinarily rad, strange, and unique. There were 3 headed snakes, small masked birds, and MY GOD, A MOUSE WITH SUNGLASSES, A MOUSE WITH SUNGLASSES!!!! Could This game get any better looking? Not only were the graphics almost at par comparative at the time to Crysis, well for me personally; not only was there a MOUSE WITH GODDAMN SUNGLASSES, but Mario, yes the one and only Mario, could finally pick up items. MARIO COULD PICK UP ITEMS!!! GOOD LORD IT WAS AMAZING!

I had never fathomed that such a thing could ever happen, that Mario, Super Mario of the Super Mario Bros, could pick up items. It was such a genius, well maybe just creative, game mechanic at the time. I had never played, seen, or read about anything remotely like this at any point in my life. I was set at playing this game. I wasn’t even concerned about owning it then, I just wanted to play this, this, immaculate, unspoiled, sinless, spotless, stainless gift from the video game gods. I told my mom, I wrote it on my Christmas list, I checked the rent shops, and I put the word out to my friends in school that I was looking to play this game. I was making it known.

After Zulu managed to finally acquire the game, the real fun started:

The title screen hit us like a ton of bricks, this was it, Super Mario Bros. 2 in all of it’s splendor. Just as the initial shock of playing this game hit us, we were then punched in the guts by a character selection screen. HOLY CRAP!!!!!!!! Not only could we play as MARIO, but we could play as LUIGI, TOAD, or even PRINCESS TOADSTOOL!!! Yes, the very same princess you rescued in the original game.

I forgot who went first or who we played as initially, but what did matter was that at that exact moment in time, we were both playing the greatest video game in the world, at least that’s what it felt like. I was personally overwhelmed and boggled by the sheer unique beauty of it all. The environments were so different from the original. Green hills that once would only be seen or detailed as simple background art were now fully developed platforms, logs rolled down waterfalls in crisp, fluid, sprite based animation, and heads of plants waved as if wind were blowing by. The little things, that most would take for granite in today’s world really made an enormous impression on me. Compared to Super Mario Bros. , Super Mario Bros. 2 was a massive, giant, enormous step up for the series.

The enemies were unbelievable creative. There were cloaked masked creatures named shy guys that very much resembled Jason Voorhees, other breeds of those very same with guns as mouths, tiny squinty eyed birds with magic carpets, and for God’s sake, a transsexual gender confused dinosaur that not only spit eggs out of it’s mouth, but guarded doors made out of the heads of a one time existing race of giant birds. What more could you want from a video game? Super Mario Bros 2. embodied and defined fantasy.

The game played a bit differently as well. It was all still based on completing each level, but the game added a bit more depth into it then the original had. There were now more stops along the way, such as castles, rooms, outdoor housing and caves, vertical platforming, varied boss battles, and well, overall more areas to be had. There were also a few different paths to take to finish some of the levels as well. Speaking of, the levels weren’t even timed. Super Mario Bros 2. gave us a bit more to explore the the original.

Super Mario Bros 2. somehow was given the title of black sheep as time moved on. I’m pretty sure it was given that title because of it’s history and just by how different it was. Imagine if there was no Doki Doki Panic, only Super Mario Bros 2. (U.S), Now try to look back at it without thinking of the history. Super Mario Bros. 2. was a great, unique, imaginative, and creative game. This is hard to say, but personally, I believe it had much more character and personality then the original. It was also a great stepping point for Super Mario Bros. 3 as well, both graphically and by design.

The original Japanese version of Super Mario Bros. 2. looked and played very much like the original. It was more so an extension of the first game then as a sequel. The U.S. Version of Super Mario Bros. 2. substituted as such. It evolved and moved the series into what it would evidently become. Without 2, we wouldn’t of had the others. I may go so far as to say that the franchise could have died with the NES, much like the original Donkey Kong games, Balloon Fight, and Ice Climbers.

It can no longer be denied:  Super Mario Bros. 2 was straight ballin’.  So be a patriot and play one of the best American platformers from the NES era.  Don’t worry–it’s pretty easy, even if you aren’t a die-hard Mario-phile.

[Via Destructoid]

[Image Source:  TRS Rockin]

I’d much rather hear gamers trash-talking like this in real-life.  Even these corny PG jokes are better than racist epithets, homophobia and outright profanity.  I don’t wanna seem like a prude, but come on, guys.  Get a little creative.  If Wal-Mart can do it, so can you, right?  You don’t wanna get shown up by Wal-Mart, do you?

[Via Kotaku]

[Video Source:  Youtube]

[Image Source:  Endsights]

Man, do I love me some awards shows.  The ballots, the stars, the drama–it’s like a sporting event, except I actually know what’s going on.  Most of the time, anyway (I’m looking at you, Kanye!)  So what could be better than finding out the winners of gaming’s Golden Joystick Awards?  So maybe we don’t have a lavish theatre overflowing with hot starlets and high fashion.  Well, to that, I say–let’s see Hugh Jackman double-jump!  Then we can talk.

So who won all these prestigious accolades?  Check it out:

The 27th annual Golden Joystick Winners were announced in London today, with Fallout 3 being crowned the “Ultimate Game of the Year.” What other games were big winners?

More than 1.2 million votes were cast for this year’s Golden Joystick Awards, representing a 47% jump in votes over the previous year, and a great many of those voters were Activision Blizzard fans. While Bethesda’s post-apocalyptic epic took home top honors, five of the fifteen awards announced last night went to Activision Blizzard games. Call of Duty: World at War took home awards for MSN Multiplayer Game of the Year and Nintendo Game of the Year; Guitar Hero World Tour snagged the Rampage Soundtrack of the Year award, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was named the ShortList One to Watch. With those four under the company’s belt, it comes as no surprise that Activision Blizzard were named Publisher of the Year as well.

Other notable awards include Fallout 3’s PC Game of the Year award, Left 4 Dead’s Online Game of the Year, and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars’ Handheld Game of the Year win.

I think Fallout 3 definitely deserved the nod–way to smash the Activision Blizzard united front, Bethesda!  I’m also glad Chinatown Wars got some props.  For all its controversy, the GTA series never stops changing it up, and you have to appreciate that.

Any of your favorite games get snubbed?  Exalted? Let me know!

[Via Kotaku]

[Image Source:  MSN]

If so, well, have I got an App Store game for you:

Namco Games announced this morning that Garters & Ghouls had hit Apple’s App Store, so I immediately ran to my iPod Touch to download it. I mean, it promised to feature two of my favorite things, those things being both garters and ghouls.

The game starts with a debutante, Marie, being brought back from the dead by Megaman’s Dr. Wily to slaughter some zombies. (Note: Dr. Wily does not actually appear in the game, but I’m pretty sure it’s the same actor who plays him.) Gameplay is a relatively simple “twin stick” shooter, with two touch analogs used to move Marie, and to shoot waves of zombies and monsters with various weapons like a crossbow or shotgun.

Garters & Ghouls doesn’t look bad running on the iPhone, with its campy comic book feel that translates pretty well to the touch screen. I’m personally not a huge fan of the “phantom analog stick” thing that a lot of iPhone devs force into games, but they’re serviceable for Garters & Ghouls. My biggest complaint would be the speed in which Marie walks… for someone being attacked by hordes of monsters, she moves like she’s wearing cement shoes.

The game features 25 levels, along with a full set of in-game achievements, if that’s you’re sort of thing. Like most games on the App Store, it’s only $4.99, and that price seems about right.

If you’ve got the five bucks, today’s the perfect day to hunker down and waste some zombies.

I realize that a picture of CastleVania accompanies this post, for which I must apologize.  But hey–you clicked on it.

[Via Destructoid]

[Image Source:  Joystiq]

OK, that was a tough one.  Here’s the answer:

It would appear that Nintendo made the right decision in finally getting around to releasing Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box worldwide, as the company was able to trade that box for one filled with cash money. The company released a supplement to its earnings report, listing the million-selling first-party Wii and DS games of its Q3 (April-September), and Diabolical Box made the list with 1.26 million units sold. The entirety of that 1.26 million comes from outside of Japan, since it wasn’t a first-party game in Japan, and it was released in 2007.

The other new additions to the million-seller club on DS: Tomodachi Collection, the Mii communication game, and Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver, which mysteriously managed to rack up 10,000 overseas sales despite not having been released outside of Japan. Is Nintendo tracking import retailers differently somehow?

On Wii, Wii Sports Resort has reached 6.97 million units worldwide, and Wii Fit Plus has already sold 2.13 million, a nice complement to the 4.28 million that the first Wii Fit sold in the last quarter.

P.S.  The key hint was in the title.

[Via Joystiq]

[Image Source:  Video Game Central]

News source Reuters says scary video games are having “a record year as zombies, monsters, demons, and chain-sawing wielding psychos fight against the consoles, making video games the new home of horror for some.”

Nice qualifier, there. After all, not everybody is sold on the scariness of some games.

The article goes on to quote video game industry analyst Michael Pachter of Wedbush Morgan Securities as saying that horror video game sales are up this year from last. By September 2009, they’d scared up $147 million in sales compared to the $131 million they brought in throughout 2008.

Best part, though, is where they got Freddy Krueger actor Robert Englund to explain why video games are scary:

“Halloween gives fans the chance to dress up in costumes and celebrate horror, but video games are the best way for fans to actually participate in these worlds,” he told Reuters.

This same article reveals that Dead Space 2 is coming at you in 2010…so get ready to fall in horror-love all over again.

[Via Kotaku]

[Image Source:  Will Goldstone]

Sometimes, though, that’s its own reason.

Kotaku’s Leigh Alexander has written up a blog post in praise of the harsh, unforgiving game experiences we all love to hate.  Says Alexander of Demon’s Souls:

I can’t stop playing, and I can’t really figure out why. Aren’t games supposed to be accessible, and isn’t frustration supposed to be a killjoy? What’s the allure in this difficult game?

Expanded audiences and accessibility are major watchwords in the present era of gaming. Microsoft Game Studios’ Bruce Philips recently unveiled research at Gamasutra showing that even among Xbox 360 games where completion rates are highest, most users only get about half the potential Gamerscore. And 30 percent of users don’t finish some of the most popular and widely-played titles Philips studied. His theory – and that of numerous other designers crafting games designed to be appealing to wider audiences – is that frustration is what makes players give up.

But even though I’m definitely frustrated with Demon’s Souls at times, I’d say I’m even more driven to succeed and to conquer than I’ve been in a long time. What gives?

“I do not think that games must be accessible to be appealing,” Demon’s Souls producer Takeshi Kajii told me in an interview. “If you make a game accessible it will expand the audience. However, if we were to make all games accessible, wouldn’t you eventually get tired of the same thing?”

Kajii explained that in creating Demon’s Souls the team sought to return to the core of what’s fun about games, and relied on three tenets: challenge, discovery and accomplishment. “People commonly say Demon’s Souls is hard because of this, but we never made the difficulty needlessly high for the sake of being hard, nor did we intend for it to be a selling point,” he said.

Demon’s Souls‘ Kajii says that failure needs to be an ever-present possibility if the player is to feel a sense of accomplishment. “We designed it so that players are likely to die if they aren’t paying attention,” he says. “By maintaining this intensity, players will be constantly nervous while playing, but [will feel] a tremendous sense of accomplishment is their reward for doing so.”

That’s pretty legit.  I can appreciate hard games, but I’m not quite as hardcore as any of these designers or gamers.  Maybe I better go back to platformer school–Mega Man 9 kicks my ass every time I fire it up.  I’m trying so hard, but those little yellow bullets can only do so much.  At least I got past the first screen of I Wanna Be the Guy!  Check out the blog post proper for more details on this under-appreciated genre.

[Via Kotaku]

[Image Source:  Youtube]

GamePolitics has a good summary of the controversy if you need to catch up.  What struck me today, though, was Activision’s statement on the matter and possible series of solutions:

Responding to footage leaked online yesterday from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 which showed the apparent ability for gamers to take part in a terrorist attack, Activision verified that the content was legitimate and explained that players will have the opportunity to skip over the scene in question.

VG247 has the full statement:

Players have the option of skipping over the scene. At the beginning of the game, there are two ‘checkpoints’ where the player is advised that some people may find an upcoming segment disturbing. These checkpoints can’t be disabled.

Modern Warfare 2 is a fantasy action game designed for intense, realistic game play that mirrors real life conflicts, much like epic, action movies. It is appropriately rated 18 for violent scenes, which means it is intended for those who are 18 and older.

About the events taking place in the scene itself, Activision explained:

The scene establishes the depth of evil and the cold bloodedness of a rogue Russian villain and his unit. By establishing that evil, it adds to the urgency of the player’s mission to stop them.

Looks like a good move.  Brutal Legend used this same strategy to have it both ways, forcing players to make an active decision about the content of their game.  And I don’t think having such a scene in a video game is altogether a bad idea in principle.  It’ s risky, of course–but that’s never bothered me (though I recognize that it may bother some.)  I think that a scene like this offers us a chance to get really close to our antagonists–to understand the very human evil that drives people to commit these acts of violence.  As long as the scene tries to accurately represent the events being depicted, I think Activision should be in the clear.  The problem will come if they try to:  a) glorify the player’s killing spree, or b) demonize the villains by introducing elements of excess and spectacle into the attacks on innocents.

The idea of terrorism–especially in a location like an airport–being under the player’s control is a divisive issue in today’s gaming world.  I think Activision is being as responsible as it can be, given it’s already made the debatable choice to include such a scene in MW2.

[Via GamePolitics]

[Image Source:  Crunchgear

Not only will the first few months of 2010 play host to the release dates of a squadron of delayed aught-nine blockbusters, it’s also when we can expect to see the recently announced, seriously embiggened DSi XL hit North American and European store shelves. According to a Nintendo spokesperson, the new model of the handheld will be released stateside (and … union-side?) in the first quarter of 2010.

That just leaves us with one final, appropriately oversized question: How much is it going to cost? Don’t get us wrong, we love the idea of buying a bigger version of a smaller version of a smaller version of an originally bulky handheld — but based on the sheer number of titles we’ll be buying in the dawn of next year, we’re probably going to be kinda strapped.

Are you down to buy a bigger DSi?  I feel like the system’s slim profile is one of its key stylistic advantages, so I’ll probably wait on this one.  Still, new hardware almost always leads to innovations down the line, so maybe this won’t be so hard an upgrade to justify after all.
[Via Joystiq]

[Image Source:  Slippery Brick]