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Just checking out the embed functionality on the new Telltale Videos site…

Being as that the absolute mutability of the details and specifics pertaining to the life of our lord and savior, the right honorable Jesus H. Christ, has long been embraced and celebrated by the fathers of the church, (Christ’s love of and/or distaste for whores, prawns, the diseased, homosexuals, bitchin’ Camaros, every nation on the face of the Earth, various professional sports franchises and a variety of other topics having been well-established by both the papacy and angry, drunken guys on the BART as a persuasive argument for the separation of fools and their money) I would submit that it should not be a controversial action in the least part to amend or modify the scriptures in such a way to suggest that the Holy Spirit’s seminiferous indwelling took place not in the dewy, April springtime of the Virgin’s immaculate womb, but in the cold, dark night of deepest October, perhaps as part of the ancient Judaic rite of Challahween.

Having thus transposed the date of the blessed, non-consensual event, it naturally follows that the embryonic messiah’s glorious gestation should have reached its conclusion not in the chill of winter, but instead as summer’s lush and languid treasures are revealed. The star of Bethlehem holding sway over the armies of commerce and tradition, Norse mythology and the rumours of the Pagans shall be swept away and as families gather round the twinkling fronds of the ceremonial palm tree, exchanging gifts and season’s greetings to the calypso rhythms of their cherished Christ-mass carols, their brethren in the business of electronic gaming will heave a healthy sigh of contentment, pleased to be spending the life-affirming months of warmth and sunshine in the company of friends and loved ones, instead of slaving away at the manufacture of their computerized diversions, all of which must previously have been delivered to the merchants of plastic and sorrow at Summer’s end, such that the wicked houses of Replication and Compliance might have the opportunity to perform their bizarre, occult rituals before placing them on the mythical “shelves” as a tribute to the Lord (and his fondness for sci-fi themed FPS titles).

And yet, even as I compose these thoughts I am filled with a dark and ominous dread that my words may be twisted and employed towards nefarious ends by the followers of Mammon. And so I shall be unequivocal in my admonishments: NO!!! This is NOT to say that the margins of (the) prophet shall be widened by the elevation of a second Son! There shall be NO talk of “Christmas 2.0” or ANY synergistic re-imagining of other hallowed Summer festivals (such as Independence Day or the “Vans Warped Tour presented in partnership with Boost Mobile: Boost… Where You At?”) as justification for the further perfunctory exchange of gifts. Let the specter of “Sweetest Day” haunt our memories and remind us that the unchecked inflation of “holy days” can only serve to multiply our woe. And let us also take this opportunity to address various other clerical errors in the story of Jesus, including the unfortunate transliteration of his surname as “Christ” instead of “Cruz” and the oft-mistaken belief that he took the form of a human being, and not a monster truck, as was told in the original Aramaic.

From SFGate’s interview with Ubisoft’s Laurent Detoc:

Casual games are attractive not only to gamers but also Ubisoft, which can develop many of those titles for cheaper. But Detoc said the casual games are not complete cash cows because Ubisoft’s is using a certain amount of those profits for marketing, which he said is necessary to draw in new casual users, who are not as hooked in to games as hardcore gamers.

“The margins on these games are good when you look at development, but it takes a lot of marketing dollars,” he said. “It’s like packaged goods. You have to think about marketing, retail space, branding.”

When you sell games to “non-gamers” you’re not only selling the game, you’re selling the concept of “games!”

Oh those crazy Finns… So I guess Nokia is still banging on the mobile gaming drum even after their um… “experience” with the N-Gage & I have to give them credit for persistence. Their latest marketing push is surrounding this new mobile/PC crossover title called Reset Generation which is pitched as an homage to “everything that came before” as well as a statement on the generation that grew up with videogames and share “a certain disposition such that they feel they can just reset things when they mess up. They feel that every situation can be won.” Certainly they won’t hear any protest from me on that thematic choice *cough* but after reading the initial coverage in The Escapist I was left wondering. What kind of gameplay have they cooked up to support these neat ideas?

Digging a bit deeper turned up some screenshots & concept art as well as the following synopsis: “The game plays like a mix of Rampart, Worms, Ataxx, and Bang! Howdy.” So yeah… those screenshots… I dunno. I mean, it’s entirely possible that this will turn out to be a well-balanced, finely nuanced update to the mobile/casual tile-based formula, but for whatever reason, that does seem to be a particularly difficult formula to break out of & so I can’t help but be suspicious when I see marketing speak like “The first video game about video games” and furthermore “Not a first — THE first. It’s a lot of firsts!”

On the other hand… This is cool: “Every piece of art, every frame of animation, every sound and voice file; all will be released for free.” And of course there’s the obligatory widgetization: “Nokia intends to release Reset Generation online, in browser-based form — as a widget anyone may place on their own website at no cost.”

So I’ll withhold judgment I suppose, at least until I’ve had a chance to test out the browser-based version of the game. And in the meantime, I would definitely encourage you to enjoy the first free asset release from the game: an updated version of The Day The Music Died by 8-Bit Weapon.

8-Bit Weapon - The Day 2D Died

P.S. Is it just me or do they name-check Sirlin about 1:15 into that song?

In some circles, the Mint 400 is a far far better thing than the superbowl, the Kentucky Derby, and the lower Oakland roller derby finals all rolled into one.
–Raoul Duke