There’s a widespread notion in the videogame industry that game reviews can have a profound impact on game sales, and for the most part the evidence bears that out. But as tempting as it is to gloat about the supposed power that we, the videogame press, hold over the livelihoods of publishers and developers, it’s not always true. In fact, history is littered with countless examples of megahit games that had originally been ripped to shreds by reviewers ... » Read More

3 Aug 2009

The Top 7... Deadliest shark attacks

Wii Feature | Okami

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. ... » Read More

15 Jun 2009

Before and after: the games that changed during...

Wii Feature | Okami

Splinter Cell ConvictionSam Fisher’s gone through some midlife crisis-sized changes over the past couple of years. One minute he’s a tortured emo agent on the run, with as little respect for the law as he does for kept facial hair. The next he’s a malicious murderer, who makes Jack Bauer look like Jack Osborne. Above: From badly groomed to just plain badThe Conviction of 2007 has heavy influences from ... » Read More

20 Apr 2009

The Top 7… greenest games

Wii Feature | Okami

How noble, the human species! Once a year we selflessly take a break from wrapping products in toxic plastics and burning piles of old tires to appease this stupid, stupid planet we live on. How dare it demand more trees, breathable air and animals that don’t choke to death on our trash? ... » Read More

1 Dec 2008

The Top 7... Games you won’t get to until...

Wii Feature | Okami

Another holiday shopping season is here, bringing with it the grim realization that, once again, the game industry has failed to learn its damn lesson. Just like every other year, seemingly every game publisher on the planet has decided to shove its biggest releases onto store shelves for the holidays, confident that they won’t be buried under the avalanche of every other publisher doing the exact same thing. ... » Read More

20 Oct 2008

The Top 7... Little heroes in big worlds

Wii Feature | Okami

Our weekly Top 7 lists usually cover timeless topics that could probably post any point throughout the year. But this week, with the newly released, critically fellated LittleBigPlanet inspiring countless cases of tiny heroes roaming gigantic worlds, we wanted to be a bit timelier and celebrate the very best of the very small. ... » Read More

1 Aug 2008

Top 10 Entries on Top 10 Lists

Wii Feature | Okami

If you’ve been reading gaming lists - magazine, internet or bar napkin - for as long as we have, then you’ve probably noticed a number of inclusions that seem to always make it. It’s like you can’t have a “Defining Moments”, “Worst whatever” or “Underrepresented blah” list without mentioning what every reader assumes will be the top pick. ... » Read More

9 Jun 2008

MGS4 makes last stand against casual games

Wii Feature | Okami

“We’re in the era of casual games, and it’s time to say ‘this is for the hardcore gamer’,” says Hideo Kojima, creator of Metal Gear Solid 4. “So it’s really, really important [MSG4] succeeds.” Has he got a point? With budgets spiraling (a decent next-gen title costs anywhere from $20-40 million) companies are becoming more risk-averse, keener on pumping out sure things than trying out new ... » Read More

25 Apr 2008

Bikes in Gears of War 2?

Wii Feature | Okami

With yesterday's announcement that Burnout Paradise is to get motorbikes, we thought we'd see what other big-name games would be like with bikes in them. How? With Photoshop, of course ... » Read More

26 Mar 2008

Five reasons you suck if you don't play Okami

Wii Feature | Okami

If you didn't go out and buy Okami, you suck. Period. Okami is one of the best games that hardly anyone played. Despite having received rave reviews and numerous awards - including our very own “Too Beautiful to Live” accolade - sales for the title were lackluster. What the hell, gamers? Do you want to play crap like Deer Hunter 17 and Bratz: Inappropriately Sexed-Up Pre-Teens all your life?Luckily, the Wii version of Okami is just ... » Read More

10 Mar 2008

Top 7... Death Rattle Games

Wii Feature | Okami

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. ... » Read More

18 Dec 2007

2007's worst kept gaming secrets

Wii Feature | Okami

18th Dec, 2007 There are some things that developers and publishers just don't want you to know. And given the unnaturally high number of game announcements, hardware revelations, industry shake-ups, and all round cool things going on this year, they've wanted you to not know a lot during 2007. Thankfully though, the internet exists, and thus nothing is sacred. That's the eternal irony of the games industry. It's a business which tries to shroud itself in secrecy, but whose patrons congregate ... » Read More

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