The staff has been hard at work preparing to start recording what we like to call “The Mushroom Cloud,” MEGATONik’s new podcast dedicated to serious and not-so-serious discussion on facts that are important to gamers. We’re not talking about the latest sales figures or boring things that people in suits care about. The Mushroom Cloud will go that extra mile to give you the latest gaming news, thoughts, and enough not-safe-for-work jokes to land you in your office’s gender-sensitivity training for the rest of the week. We’re doing this for you, our readers, because we care.

We’re finishing up the details and preparing to record our first episode next week. Prepare yourself for a show that will take your questions and discuss with us live. Expect reviews, live games, and plenty of ridiculous humor that will leave you rofl-ing all over yourself. Nasty, huh?

We’ll be posting show notes and much more for the first episode in the middle of next week. Until then, let us know if you’ve got any ideas for topics, features, or live games. I promise that this podcast will be worth your time, or I’ll post embarrassing pictures of Cortez. You’ll be entertained either way.

By now I’m sure that nearly all of you reading this are aware of my love/hate relationship with Halo 3. Yes, I play it daily and love and hate every minute of it. This video, made to reflect the Bud Light “Real Men of Genius” ads, absolutely nails some of the major flaws that can be found in the game.

What the f***? The BR’s broken.

Valve has just released a new trailer for another character, The Sniper, in their Team Fortress 2 “Meet the..” series. That these two-minute-long trailers provide more personality than most games with full-fledged storylines is certainly a testament to TF2’s character design. I wish I had an Australian accent.

Check out previous trailers after the jump.
Read more

Super Deluxe does it again with this humorous take on rehabilitating World of Warcraft junkies. The video bothered me though. Would a woman really tear a man from WoW like that? I set out to find the answer in the typical investigative reporting style.

Sadly, my MMO junkie friend who is getting married was unavailable for comment, because he’s currently trying to find his body.

[via GamePolitics]

With Metal Gear Solid 4 being just a few days away, Konami wants to remind you of some of the most awkward times in MGS history. Enjoy the embarrassment.

In its continuing effort to kick E3 while it’s down, Gamecock has announced its “BE-3 Initiative,” to “mock and take full advantage of the E3 Expo (or, since its death, the Media & Business Summit).” In conjunction with this, Grand Champeen of Gamecock Mike Wilson is running for ESA President (see his campaign ad above).

It’s hard to argue with “fun we can believe in,” and I’d vote for him just to get his hair into office (if I actually could).

Read more

Browsing on Digg today, I saw this video review I thought I’d share with you all. It’s highly informational, extremely entertaining, and completely dead on. This post is for you who people out there that didn’t exactly agree with my views on Turok being an absolute shitfest of a game.

Hail Yahtzee.

[Click image to view actual size]

Today marks the release of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, possibly the most hyped game of the year so far. With it comes a comic ready to poke fun at the fervor, but, surprisingly, it’s not a webcomic. It’s the nationally syndicated FoxTrot, one of my favorite comics of all time. The best part about the strip is that Bill Amend, the strip’s writer and drawer, slips in a few other jabs at game stores like “AB Games” besides the main punchline. My favorite part is how the poster underneath the counter switches between the first and third panels.

FoxTrot by Bill Amend

Will Arnett of Arrested Development fame was on Late Night with Conan O’Brien a few days ago, and he started talking about Call of Duty 4. Whether you’re a fan of Call of Duty 4, Arrested Development, or both (or neither, but in that case you’re missing out on not only one of the best games of 2007 but one of the funniest shows ever), you should be able to appreciate the short clip.

Still, no matter what you think of it, there’s one things we should all be able to agree on: “Call of Duty 4 is not gonna play itself.” Will Arnett speaks the truth, and fortunately, Call of Duty 4 certainly seems to get around.

[Via IAMfourzerotwo]

There is only one thing that can stop all of the rampant fanboy-ism that is devouring the industry that I love, and I pray that I never see the day where it happens. The minute that it happens I will officially be done with video games…and that is if the industry evolves into having only a single home console. Who am I kidding, I’ll still be into video games when I’m old and gray no matter what. If interested in seeing my opinons on this and how we would see the death of the fanboy, click the jump below.

Read more

While I usually try to avoid the bizarre antics of PETA, a friend of mine turned my attention today to PETA’s Super Chick Sisters, a flash game just oozing with edutainment and Mario-like goodness.

Read more

Not only does the Halo series promote violence, but now it’s starting a new trend with school kids: teabagging. The Asbury Park Press reports that in Point Pleasant Beach, kids are teabagging each other outside of school grounds.

The report states:

A group of boys has been involved in bullying others, and officials said their actions have included physical attacks, taunting and sexually harassing victims by making their crotches touch other boys’ heads while fully clothed — something apparently inspired by the Halo video game series, in which players can perform a posturing move over a defeated enemy.

Jane Chmielewski said her son, a seventh-grader, was assaulted by a pack of boys who then sexually harassed him. However, since that incident took place outside school grounds, district officials said they were not able to investigate the situation or punish those involved.

Jane Chmielewski’s son was apparently approached by 10 boys, put in a headlock, and teabagged. He was also recorded with a cell phone camera. Before this incident happened, another altercation occurred, in which the boy was thrown to the ground, kneed, and got a garbage can placed over his head.

Schools classify this as sexual harassment, and that this new teabagging trend is most likely inspired by the Halo series. The Board of Education has introduced a new policy that allows them to punish students bullying outside of school grounds. The punishments range from verbal warning, to expulsion.

As Kwech so elegantly stated before, gaming is enduring a big surge thanks to the ongoing Writers’ Strike. But not only are ordinary people like you and me playing more games, but so are celebrities. In the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, gaming pops up in various places as a method of surviving the strike.

Conan O’Brien, already an outspoken fan of Rock Band, documents his attempts at Halo 3’s multiplayer in his strike diary:

DAY 37
I turn my back on TV and venture off into uncharted territory: Halo 3. I enthusiastically shoulder my rifle and begin my virtual campaign to defend Earth. Within the hour I’ve been shot in the face six times by a 9-year-old Dutch boy named DeathGiver23.

His encounter is probably not an exaggeration.

Neil Patrick Harris (known to most people for his stunning portrayal of Neil Patrick Harris) also offers some advice. He recommends to “Work on your Wii skills. And I don’t mean the bathroom kind. The videogame kind. I’m partial to carnival games- the ringtoss and the dartboard and all of those. And you don’t have to pay three dollars to throw.”

And finally, those gods amongst men over at Penny Arcade get a shout-out as well, earning the number one spot on EW’s list of ways to get your entertainment fix online.

As much as I can’t stand House being off the air, it looks like the writers’ strike is the best thing to happen to the video game industry.

Does anybody else remember the game Cool Spot that was released for the SNES and Genesis way back in ‘93? Because I do, and I’ve reminisced about it here. Be warned, though, as this article is NOT SAFE FOR WORK due to the (unfortunately unavoidable) gratuitous use of vulgarity that might just be on par with a Tourette’s-ridden sailor. Just be warned before you hit the jump:

Read more

Uwe Boll, who I consider the next Ed Wood Jr., is not one person who shys away from his critics. He’s been known to say some off the wall shit talking and even has had boxing matches with some of his film critics.

He recently sent out a statement to BollBashers.com, a website dedicated to bashing Uwe Boll, about his new movie based off of the Dungeon Siege series, In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale.

The statement reads:

Our competitor in USA FIRST SUNDAY with Ice Cube is a piece of shit and for NOBODY nearly so interesting as IN THE NAME OF THE KING. We have a better movie and a bigger movie with a better script, better cast and we proved in europe that our movie has the power to stay 3 weeks in the TOP TEN and that we can get at least 50% good reviews. FIRST SUNDAY is a direct to DVD title in europe but in USA Sony puts 40 mill. $ in advertising to win that weekend. And this is completly absurd. Sony will not even recoup the advertising costs with that movie. The MAJORS own the TV Stations and the Radio Stations and they use that for free advertising and so the wide audience believes at one point that FIRST SUNDAY is the movie of that weekend - and they go and buy a ticket. The biggest problems in todays market is that nobody believes anymore in word of mouth or gives a film a chance without seeing upfront all 5 seconds in TV a spot.

Uh…So far, First Sunday has a 17% on RottenTomatoes, while A Dungeon Siege Tale has a 05%. Boll’s piece of shit based on 19 reviews, while First Sunday is based off of 48. It’s plainly obvious that Boll’s problem is not with the US or with “today’s market.” It’s pretty much common sense to avoid a film made by a director that has never directed a half decent film in his film career. Eh…I guess more Raging Boll is on the way.