GAMING: TURNING BACK TIME

We all wish we could press rewind sometimes. Tom Standage looks at a few video games that make this possible ... read more »
COMMENTS: 1 | ADD NEW COMMENTZOMBIES AND HEARTS OF DARKNESS

Cultural stereotypes, charged politics and a fraught colonial history make Africa a tricky setting for a video game. Brett McCallon describes his discomfort playing "Far Cry 2" and "Resident Evil 5" ... read more »
COMMENTS: 10 | ADD NEW COMMENTPLINK, PLONK, BOOM

Playing "Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Edition" on the child-friendly Nintendo DS is a bit like "putting vodka in a baby’s bottle," writes Tom Standage in his latest gaming column ... read more »
FINALLY, A FIRST-PERSON GAME WITHOUT A GUN

First-person games can be thrilling, but they always seem to involve shooting (to the dismay of concerned parents and bored gamers). That's what makes "Mirror's Edge" so unique, writes Brett McCallon ... read more »
THE TROUBLE WITH WAR GAMES

The first video game about the Iraq war provoked a firestorm of its own. A realistic game about the second invasion of Fallujah might be a bit too ambitious, writes Benjamin Pauker ... read more »
GOOD FILM, BAD GAME

Why do good films make such bad games, and vice-versa? Tom Standage, business editor of The Economist, considers this strange paradox ... read more »
COMMENTS: 16 | ADD NEW COMMENTAT PLAY: COMPELLING, DYSTOPIC "FALLOUT 3"

Set in a post-nuclear-war landscape, "Fallout 3" is an almost unbearably grim video game. Brett McCallon explains why he can't stop playing it ... read more »
AT PLAY: HOW GAMING WILL (AND SHOULD) INFILTRATE OUR EVERYDAY LIVES

New video games are encouraging players to cook dinner, get in shape, learn French and enjoy the genius of Beethoven. Brett McCallon is cheered by the way gaming has infiltrated the everyday. Now if only he could convince his wife to play "Halo" ... read more »
GAMING: "SPORE" GETS THE WILLIES
User-generated content is working wonders in the gaming industry. "Spore" is a fine example, except for all of those penis-shaped monsters, writes Tom Standage ... read more »
AT PLAY: HIDEO KOJIMA'S DEEPLY FLAWED MASTERPIECE

"Hideo Kojima's 'Metal Gear Solid 4: Sons of the Patriots' was, without question, one of the most important game releases of 2008," writes Brett McCallon in his gaming column. Be patient: its greatness overcomes its considerable flaws ... read more »

