When friends of mine voice a desire to buy certain games I find distasteful (but not necessarily sinful), I often struggle to decide whether or not I should question their tastes. After all, we all struggle with different things, especially when it comes to video games, wherein the stakes seem higher when you’re interacting with the action on screen. Some might find Bioshock, one of my favorite games, to be utterly tasteless, but I find it to be challenging and... Read more

At his Looking Closer, Jeffrey Overstreet asks some interesting questions about the way Tarantino’s new movie is marketed. Read more

The Red Envelope Campaign. A good idea? I think so. Read more

Ben Fritz on the difference between public and critical opinion when it comes to what makes a good game: “Apparently the people who make games do not agree with the public about who’s leading the industry. (Which, I think, adds credence to my arguments that Sony is getting too artsy for its own good and Nintendo games are like “Paul Blart: Mall Cop”).” Read more

Santiago Ramos muses about the use of “hope” in a Pepsi ad in his post titled “No Logo” at The IMAGE Blog: I can’t quite pin down why I can’t stand Pepsi’s new “Refresh Everything” ad campaign, which makes commercial use of the nation’s bad luck and blue mood by making happy, colorful signs with positive words on them. Every morning, I walk past buses with “JOY,” “TOGETHER,” and, most annoyingly, “OPTIMISMMM” emblazoned on their sides, like giant metal cows... Read more

See what one reviewer is saying of Obama’s first big speech. I wonder what our own Ben Bartlett will think of it. Read more

LittleBigPlanet, Braid, Left 4 Dead Lead Game Developers Choice Award Finalists. Read more