In real life, everyone knows sharks are perfectly lovely creatures that hold down good jobs, drive responsibly in hybrid cars, and almost never prey on humans. In popular media, however, they’re vicious aquatic bastards who like nothing better than to sneak up on unsuspecting swimmers and devour them as gruesomely as possible, preferably in front of an audience. ...

We'd like to think that every developer sets out to make the perfect game. But as budgets swell, stockholders throw tantrums, and release dates draw near, there's a whole myriad of snafus can explode in the face of well meaning folks. Plenty of games spit in the eye of gamers’ expectations and miscarry at retailers every year - that’s not special. These games are the great white whales that tanked so hard they dragged entire companies down with them. ...

We know we’re supposed to be morally outraged at the incredibly sexist idea of a game in which bikini-clad ladies hack away at swarms of zombies. We get that. But you know what? Most of us here really LIKE girls in bikinis (and schoolgirl outfits). And we love zombies. So, you put those two together and add in some samurai swords, and we’re there, outraged or not. ...

Death happens a lot in videogames, but for some reason it never seems to stick. From heroes who get infinite do-overs to supporting characters who “die” only to resurface at the nick of time down the road, videogames might be the only medium in which the audience feels surprised, and perhaps even cheated, if a dead character isn’t magically brought back to life. ...