In Other News...July 9

[DoctorFinger]

- THQ is working on a patch for UFC Undisputed which will punish quitters (http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/ufc-quitters-will-be-punished), which is apparently a rampant problem in the game right now.

- Batman: Arkham Asylum will feature a Prince of Persia-like anti-death system (http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2009/07/08/batman-arkham-asylum-features-prince-of-persia-esque-no-deaths-from-falling-system/). If you fall, you're prompted to fire your grapple gun, which takes you back to the last stable ground you were on. Unlike PoP you can still die in other circumstances.

- A demo for last month's open world racer Fuel is now available for PC, 360 and PS3.

- On again, off again, on again? The final boxart (http://yfrog.com/5hia1nj) for Modern Warfare 2 does bear the "Call of Duty" name.

- MekTek.net will be releasing Mechwarrior 4 and all of it's expansions for free (http://battletech.catalystgamelabs.com/2009/07/09/mechwarrior-to-be-distributed-free-on-battletech-com/) in the near future as a digital download.

- Because the "Mass Effect/SeXbox" brouhaha apparently wasn't enough for BioWare, Dragon Age: Origins will also feature digital boot knocking, and may even feature full frontal nudity (http://www.videogamer.com/news/bioware_undecided_on_dragon_age_full_frontal_nudit y.html).

- I feel a sudden urge to visit Russia. Why? Because only there do you get Fallout 3 LARPing (http://community.livejournal.com/vault13/1590035.html) (Live Action Role Playing)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2507/3704885226_dc1f71fcee.jpg

- Netflix streaming will be coming this fall to Sony (http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3175122)...Bravia TVs.

[torrefaction]

You'd think devs would've figured out that quitters suck by now.

[divinechaos]

That FUEL demo sucks so bad. The graphics are horrible and the handling is even worse.

[LordDon]

Free Mechwarrior 4 and Fallout LARP, YES!!!

Boobs in Dragon Age, WTF?

[Panthera]

Nitpick - I'm pretty sure the LARP is Fallout and Fallout 2 based, I don't see stuff from the third game.

[Karak]

You'd think devs would've figured out that quitters suck by now.

Agreed. This is something that should be built into every single game.

[Karak]

That FUEL demo sucks so bad. The graphics are horrible and the handling is even worse.

Oh the game is so much worse.
if only because its the same horrible shit but its a full game of it:(

[Wilkz07]

who cares about full frontal in Dragon Age... slap the M rating on it and be done with it. hell, Lost and the Damned had male frontal nudity, did anyone raise a fuss about that?

M-rated dont modify your games because MADD or Jack 'whats his names' of the world.

[LongStepMantis]

I love the look on the chick's face in the OP pic.

"I'm so dumping you after this."

Either that or that's just the way Russian women look. Like they've been wronged.

[jpublic]

Oh yes, MW4.

[DeathtollWRX]

Wow those Russians sure like Fallout. I really like the costumes and even the atmosphere.

[Doogie2K]

I love the look on the chick's face in the OP pic.

"I'm so dumping you after this."

Either that or that's just the way Russian women look. Like they've been wronged.

A bit of A, a bit of B, from what I've experienced.

[BLeeP]

Now lets see some S.T.A.L.A.K.E.R. LARP action! I mean Russia looks like it's practically made for it! I mean, it loo....oh, wait. Never mind.

[Vigil80]

Oh my Lord. I would join that Fallout club and never look back.

[KidCactus]

That FUEL demo sucks so bad. The graphics are horrible and the handling is even worse.
And the fact that you can drive in a straight line between checkpoints to win the race is amusingly ridiculous.

[Esquilax1138]

Now lets see some S.T.A.L.A.K.E.R. LARP action! I mean Russia looks like it's practically made for it! I mean, it loo....oh, wait. Never mind.

Ask and ye shall receive, not only S.T.A.L.A.K.E.R larp (http://www.webpark.ru/comments.php?id=35729), but at Chernobyl for reals! Takes a while to load but it's worth it.

[Hotcod]

Boobs in Dragon Age, WTF?

Why not? if your going to show sex scenes i don't see the point in being screamish about boobies. Sex is a huge factor in life and if games want to tell mature stories then i see no reason it should not come up, so to speak, and if you are being graphic in anyway (blood and guts) then to shy away from showing a woman's nipples... well... that is a little screwed up

The simple fact of it is that if you want to fully explore romantic realtionships (so to speak) then sex and nudity is a part of that. When it comes down to it there are people you like, people you like who you've kissed, people you like who you've seen naked, and people you like who you've had sex with and each one of those has puts a unique spin on the relationship and how it's developing.

Of course you don't have to show anything in detail, you could just do a fade to black, but with games when you are interacting with that character rather than just tv or film, well, it could help put a hook in... a slight one mabye but it takes that character to a character you have seen naked... which may seem like a small thing but you now have something "unique" in your relationship to that character that you don't with the others.

In other words if your going to go blood guts and character driven then sex and nudity are perfectly valid things to explore in terms of the players relationship to the characters.

[Narradisall]

Yeah, same deal as some of the above. All quitters should be punished as standard in MP games. I wish other devs that also get that first point would get that losing allies in MP games should either be replaced by the hardest Bot AI they have or give you control (depending on the game).

Lots of out of the blue Mechwarrior love coming too! I'll have to pick them back up again, good times.

...and yea, the first thing I noticed is that is NOT a happy Scribe in the Fallout picture.

[Kelegacy]

That FUEL demo sucks so bad. The graphics are horrible and the handling is even worse.

I need to try out the demo, because if I could score the game for cheap I would pick it up for the premise alone. A huge world to drive around in (with little to do as a negative) is exciting for me. But not if the game is crap.

[inmostlight]

Nitpick - I'm pretty sure the LARP is Fallout and Fallout 2 based, I don't see stuff from the third game.

That sure looks like it takes place in Oasis to me.

[Primus]

No matter the universe, LARPing is always lame.

[Borthcollective]

I hope the Mech 4 downloads don't include the Clan and Inner Sphere packs, I will never be able to sell them at an inflated price if they do.

[JayVe]

I love the look on the chick's face in the OP pic.

"I'm so dumping you after this."

Either that or that's just the way Russian women look. Like they've been wronged.

Looks like she is simply 'in character'.

http://star-dreamer.users.photofile.ru/photo/star-dreamer/96092385/xlarge/108751319.jpg

Some of their photography is amazing (http://star-dreamer.users.photofile.ru/photo/star-dreamer/96092385/xlarge/108800960.jpg). I'd love to play a few sessions with a group this dedicated, just to see what it is like. :D

[RandoM51]

Boobs in Dragon Age, WTF?

Oh snap, you mean they're portraying a fantasy world that isn't as sexually repressed as the United States?

[MagGnome]

Those STALKER LARP shots are incredible! Wow, the attention to detail is just amazing.

[Hawkzombie]

Oh snap, you mean they're portraying a fantasy world that isn't as sexually repressed as the United States?

At least it's not as sexually repressed as Japan.

EEE breasts and Tentacles as far as the eye can see, but not any genitalia. How on Earth do those people PEE??

[Spectre-7]

*scratches head*

I'm pretty sure you can't say a single genitalia... I mean, you can say it (and did), but I don't think it's grammatically well formed. Genitalia is a plural noun, and the result is like saying a single clothes, or a single feet.

The bugger is that there is no singular form, doubly confounding since I just performed a quick check of my own, and appear to have only one. Hmmm. Maybe I'm counting wrong.

[Hawkzombie]

*scratches head*

I'm pretty sure you can't say a single genitalia... I mean, you can say it (and did), but I don't think it's grammatically well formed. Genitalia is a plural noun, and the result is like saying a single clothes, or a single feet.

The bugger is that there is no singular form, doubly confounding since I just performed a quick check of my own, and appear to have only one. Hmmm. Maybe I'm counting wrong.

LOL

Ok, fixed. 'Any genitalia' :p

[Spectre-7]

Awww, no need to fix it on my account... It was meant as an idle observation, rather than a correction.

There's positively fuck all going on today, and I'm just bored stupid.

[Hawkzombie]

Awww, no need to fix it on my account... It was meant as an idle observation, rather than a correction.

There's positively fuck all going on today, and I'm just bored stupid.

I'm trying to delay mowing the lawn myself.

[MagGnome]

I'm trying to delay mowing the lawn myself.

Maybe we could all do some gaming?

Nah... :p

[Hawkzombie]

Maybe we could all do some gaming?

Nah... :p

Wait...people game around here?!? I thought we all just talked about it!!

[MagGnome]

Wait...people game around here?!? I thought we all just talked about it!!

That's all I do these days.

Even that's stretching it, as I haven't been in a game-related thread for a few weeks now. :p

[Doogie2K]

*scratches head*

I'm pretty sure you can't say a single genitalia... I mean, you can say it (and did), but I don't think it's grammatically well formed. Genitalia is a plural noun, and the result is like saying a single clothes, or a single feet.

The bugger is that there is no singular form, doubly confounding since I just performed a quick check of my own, and appear to have only one. Hmmm. Maybe I'm counting wrong.

Genitalium? Or genital? (Since the "more" English version of genitalia is genitals.)

[Spectre-7]

I've yet to study Latin in any significant way, but if I correctly identified the word's declension and am reading the case chart correctly--those are two fairly large ifs, by the way--then the proper singular form would be genitalis.

As for genital, the word is presently cited as an adjective only (in the phrase genital warts for instance), but I suppose it could be pressed into service as the singular form of genitals if need be. At present, though, there exists no accepted singular form of genitals or genitalia, much as the words clothes and regalia exist only as stranded plural forms.

Oh drat! Is my boredom showing again? ;)

[Doogie2K]

I've yet to study Latin in any significant way, but if I correctly identified the word's declension and am reading the case chart correctly--those are two fairly large ifs, by the way--then the proper singular form would be genitalis.

As for genital, the word is presently cited as an adjective only (in the phrase genital warts for instance), but I suppose it could be pressed into service as the singular form of genitals if need be. At present, though, there exists no accepted singular form of genitals or genitalia, much as the words clothes and regalia exist only as stranded plural forms.

Oh drat! Is my boredom showing again? ;)

I bow before your superior linguistic knowledge.