January 5, 2009 – 1:13 pm
Where to begin.
Much worthier games than A2M’s upcoming Wet have been threatened with premature death on account of the Activision/Blizzard merger that killed Sierra. In fact, some people thought Wet would toddle off into the sunset, unremembered. After all, the game has no publisher, and Activision/Blizzard CEO and super-genius complete moron Bobby Kotick has indicated that his company will only produce 10-year, $100-million franchises from now on. Wet is new IP, and that don’t qualify.
Apparently, though, A2M is still beavering away on this game (pun intended), under the not-misguided assumption that sooner or later someone will come along and publish this action platformer. Rant follows.
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January 2, 2009 – 2:30 pm
In more amusing than average news, recently disabarred attorney Jack Thompson has shared his view that God has caused Take-Two Interactive’s stock to plummet to all time lows in the wake of EA’s abandonment of acquisition talks. Take-Two, as you know, published Grand Theft Auto - among other games, though Thompson neither knows nor cares about that, he’s very single-minded - and therefore have earned the ire of the almighty.
The full email exchange with GamePolitics honcho Dennis McCauley is here for your enjoyment. Thompson follows his usual routine, starting the religious hoodoo before moving on to personal insults, Scripture quoting, attacks on non-Christians, and a complete breakdown of grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
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December 23, 2008 – 11:03 am
Snow blankets the ground - in four foot drifts through much of the midwest - and the season of cheer draws nigh. From all of us here at Four Fat Chicks, have a safe and happy holiday season with family and friends. Posting may be down over the next week, but fear not… we have even bigger and more exciting plans for 2009, once we recover from the party celebrating its arrival. Thank you all for your continued support and community spirit, please feel free to sample the egg nogg, and enjoy a prosperous and happy New Year!
December 21, 2008 – 8:16 pm
FFC fans, please welcome Jason P. Sage as our latest contributor to the Fat Chicks Celebrity Guest Editorial Section. Jason is a hard-working independent developer on the technology and coding side of things. He and I have communicated fairly regularly over the past 12 months, discussing new technologies, the plight and promise of the indie developer, and various other topics.
Jason is also the lead of Jegas, LLC, a hosting and consulting provider offering innovative software, web development, networking, and technical solutions to its clients.
For as long as I can recall, Jason has been talking excitedly about Iron Infantry, a game he’s been developing himself. Recently, though, he’d seemed a bit… down on the subject, frustrated by the technology available to independent developers on a budget. In this article, he reflects on that, and also discusses the salvation he discovered in the form of Leadwerks Game Engine, an affordable third party solution so powerful that we’ll likely see some top-shelf games using it in the very near future. Even if you’re not an indie or an engine expert, you should find something intriguing in Jason’s article, as his tone and style speak volumes of what it’s like to develop from the independent trenches. Jason will be here as Jegas to respond to your comments. I hope you all enjoy the piece, and look forward to additional upcoming Celebrity Guest Editorials in the new year… take it away, Jason!
– Steerpike
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December 20, 2008 – 10:17 am
Everlight: Of Magic And Power
Developer: The Games Company
Publisher: The Adventure Company
Released: October, 2008
Available for: Windows XP/Vista (System Specs Below)
Verdict: 
4/5 Thumbs Up
“Grandpa, What Is A ‘Dom-i-na-trix’?”
My 3rd grade grandson has great reading skills, including an interest in new words to embellish his rich vocabulary. Unfortunately, one day he happened to be looking over my shoulder at the gorgeous fairy tale setting presented in Everlight right at a point when, to the surprise of both of us, a particular character gave us an unexpected jolt. While directing Ryan to another, more age appropriate activity, I did indicate that a dominatrix was someone who helped needy adults exercise in a special way and that he should follow up with his parents for further elaboration (hopefully not his teacher!).
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December 18, 2008 – 1:57 pm
Need more gaming to go? France-based Agharta Studio has released the first episode of their interactive adventure, 1112 for the iPhone and iPod touch. This first of six planned episodes will introduce players to Louis Everett and his wife, Anna, of Jalonsville, NJ as they attempt to uncover the mystery of Louis’ constant headaches and bizarre dreams.
The game features gorgeously hand-drawn 800×600 environments, multi-touch zoom feature, an intricate dialogue system (both multiple choice and manual input) as well as a complex and twisted storyline. The developers list the TV show, Lost, as one of their inspirations, so players can expect not-easily-explained happenings.
I’ve spent about ten minutes with the game and have only managed to turn off Louis’ annoyingly high-pitched alarm clock with one of the Touch’s unique features and then proceeded to get trapped in the bathroom with no clue how to back out. Maybe I should read up on the controls?
1112 is only available for download from iTunes’ App Store for the meager sum of $7.99USD. Stay tuned for more updates as I stumble my way through virtual New Jersey.
