Credit: Wandeag.com

Call of Duty: Black Ops’ crossbow gets short shrift when compared to the more exotic tomahawk — and for good reason: it’s fun watching one hurled across a map to find its unsuspecting mark a few seconds later. Though both require a greater degree of finesse (and some luck) than the conventional weapons, the tomahawk has become an obvious favorite in a community obsessed with catching – and viewing – one-in-a-million kills. But for a change let’s admire the runt of the weird weapon litter.

Here are a few videos highlighting the explosive crossbow. Be sure to subscribe to the respective channel if you’re suitably impressed.

Continue Reading

Call it hard wiring from a childhood full of NES, but when I see a game like Ninja Senki, something deep inside makes we want to grab a controller immediately. The free game, available for Windows, is in Kotaku’s words “inspired by classic NES games Ninja Jajamaru-Kun and Mega Man.” The former is a reference beyond my western grasp, but I think we can all agree that Mega Man rules. Plus, Ninja Senki was the work of Jonathan Lavigne, who designed Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game. Not that it matters; we’ve seen plenty of awesome indie stuff from unknown developers as well, but a little street cred sweetens the deal. Go! [Kotaku via Albotas]

Medal of Honor is out now, and unlocking the best weapons, equipment, and facial hair in the frantic online component is priority one. We’ve spent time in the trenches as U.S. soldiers and unleashed mortar strikes with the Taliban Opposing Force to discern the quickest, easiest ways to rack up scorechains and earn the coveted “Tier 1″ designation. Don’t join the online firefight before reading this intel.

Continue Reading

Despite my wackier theories, I still think Minecraft is a fascinating game, soon to be more so with an update on October 31. The announcement is Halloween-themed, but the feature list looks good for year-round crafting. Read on for bullet-points, along with some thoughts. Or just the snarky and somewhat cryptic official feature list.

Continue Reading

At the gut level, a Michael Jackson MMO seems ridiculous, but hear Planet Michael out for a minute: The game, to be published next year by SEE Virtual Worlds, will be set in places inspired by the late King of Pop’s songs and music videos. Pictured above is a scene from “Thriller,” and areas based on “Beat It, “Smooth Criminal” and “Billy Jean” are also planned. The gameplay details are hazy, but developer Josh Gordon told USA Today that the game will avoid violence in favor of song and dance.

Continue Reading

MINECRAFT REVIEW, BLACK OPS TIPS - You might say that Minecraft hit the big time today. Featured in a Penny Arcade comic — amusing even if you haven’t played the game — developer Mojang Specifications will surely reap thousands of new sales, despite the game’s alpha status and $9 price tag.

I’m fortunate enough to have been in on the joke — I use that term intentionally, and I’ll explain later — for a couple months now. I’ve dabbled in mashing mountains, cutting down trees and slaughtering a variety of fauna, all in service of building man-made structures in an otherwise pristine natural environment.

Continue Reading

Apparently, this monstrous, $16,999 PC from Origin, dubbed the “Big O,” houses the guts of an Xbox 360 slim. It’s hard to tell from all the beautiful liquid cooling tubes running back and forth, but if you look closely at the left image, you can see the Xbox 360 disc tray on the bottom right, and two USB ports on the bottom left. Of course, the console itself has been taken apart to better fit the computer tower, and also benefits from the liquid cooling, so no Red Ring of Death here (or, red dot of danger, as it were). Reportedly, playing the Xbox 360 is not a problem while the computer is cranking away on other tasks.

Continue Reading

People don’t listen when you tell them video games translate to real-world skills, but thankfully, University of Florida Ph.D candidate Nate Poling doesn’t care. He’s teaching “21st Century Skills in StarCraft”  at the school’s honors college. From the course description:

With society becoming increasingly technology-based and fast-paced, it is important for professionals to be highly proficient in skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, resource management, and adaptive decision making. These skills are fundamental in Starcraft and therefore make the game a highly effective environment for students to analyze and take action in complex situations.

Continue Reading

Last week, we were all creeped out by the virtual reality game that tried to teach abstinence. Privates, a free downloadable game by Zombie Cow, takes a different approach: Drop four cartoon soldiers into the human body, and have them blast sexually transmitted diseases for an hour of platforming fun. I haven’t tried Privates yet, but DIYGamer gives it an enthusiastic review: “Definitely worth a download, it’s an experience you’ll most likely be describing to your friends the next day… but possibly not your family.”

Continue Reading