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Pure Awesome: Nerf Wii Blaster Controller Shell

Breckon found this hidden within the many, many analyst presentations Electronic Arts released today. I'm not too sure on the specifics though, as I haven't had a chance to dig through all of the accompanying audio yet. Regardless, this thing sure looks awesome.



Something to do with the upcoming Nerf games, perhaps?

Nancy Drew Game Announcement Talks Snowmobiles, Snowballing

Publisher Majesco has announced that the girl it describes as "the world's most recognizable teen super-sleuth" will be returning to the Nintendo DS in the form of Nancy Drew: The Mystery of the Clue Bender Society.

Developed by Gorilla Systems--the same company that handled Nancy Drew's DS debut, The Deadly Secret of Olde World Park--the title pits Nancy against two other other detectives searching for the Clue Bender Society's secret tome, which has all the answers to all of the greatest mysteries known to man.

Containing nine chapters of teenage super-sleuthing, with activities ranging from interrogations and snowmobiling to cell phone conversations and suspect following, the game is slated to arrive this summer.

"The Nancy Drew brand is marked by a distinctive 'snowballing' of suspects, clues and danger as the teen detective works to solve the deepening mystery," explained Majesco operations VP Gui Karyo. "Nancy Drew: The Mystery of the Clue Bender Society delivers this signature intrigue while incorporating a host of compelling new interactive features that augment the Touch Screen experience."

Child Psychologists to Violent Game Critics: Suck It

In a sudden and unexpected surge of common sense, a pair of child psychologists have spoken out against the causal relationships between violence and gaming, and the ways in which they're used to vilify our pastime.

Drs. Frank Gaskill and Dave Verhaagen write on the SoutheastPsych blog that an oft-cited research article criticizing violent video games concludes that "playing violent video games often may well cause increases in delinquent behaviors, both aggressive and non-aggressive." But the research article itself later notes that forging a causal link in a correlational study is "risky at best". Gaskill and Verhaagen bring the science:Why is it risky? Because correlations are just relationships between two variables; you can never say one causes the other. We could say that during the season when ice cream sales increase, shark attacks also increase. But we could not say the more ice cream you sell, the more you cause shark attacks.

If that sounds familiar, it's because it's a very eloquent summation of the argument that gamers have been so desperately trying to clarify to parents, lawmakers and the media for years. And we've become so embroiled in the argument's finer points—likesay, what to do when some nut goes apeshit on a game she's never played— that we may have lost sight of the fact that a fair bit of the core science upon which the argument is based might be faulty. So what prompted the pair to speak out against such unqualified remarks?

Some legislative initiatives and public opinions across the country are based on fallacious assumptions, personal biases, political posturing and weak science. Common sense tells you that you don't let an elementary school kid or an older child with a history of aggressive behavior play Grand Theft Auto. But that same common sense tells you that if 90 percent of households have owned or rented a video game every year - while the juvenile crime rate has been going down for more than a decade - then a little Halo 3 never hurt anybody...

Consider this your bright spot in an otherwise somber span of years in which the violence in games debate has reached a decidedly ridiculous tone and volume. My only hangup is the choice in venue—this is the sort of talk we need on a broader scale, not just on a blog.

Beholden though we may be to our colleagues Geoff Keighley, Chris Kohler and other journos who have stuck up for games on the ad-hoc cable news debates, we need professionals outside of the gaming sphere who actually come equipped with a working knowledge of gaming—dudes with degrees who can combat false rhetoric and back it up with expert opinion.

There's room for both ends of the argument, so long as those who participate conduct themselves with respect for the issue at hand and those who disagree. Loathe though I might be to admit it, maybe there is a link between media and violence—when I was six, I was asked by some random boy on the playground if I wanted to play "Captain Power" with him. I agreed, and he promptly socked me in the fucking mouth. I think I was the bad guy.

Be Mine

Artist Alexandria Neonakis is making a habit of celebrating Valentine's Day in true gamer fashion. In years past she's drawn up some creative V-Day cards featuring characters from Shadow of the Colossus, World of Warcraft, and Katamari Damaci.

This time she went with everyone's favorite flavor-of-the-year, Team Fortress 2. With her permission, you can conveniently check out the excellent artwork below. Print them out to surprise your own significant others--especially if they don't know what Team Fortress 2 is.

Also, be sure to stop by Alexandria's slick website: www.beavotron.com.

Watch This: The Shacknews Challenge

How long can you make it before you pause? I made it 56 seconds. Breckon lasted 20.

Post your times in the comments below. The first person to honestly make it all the way through--and yes, I will know if you're lying--will receive some type of special recognition for their, er, dedication. Yeah, dedication, that's it.


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