video Hitman: Absolution is a game about assassinating people in public spaces. The E3 demo puts players in control of Agent 47 in a bustling Chinatown quarter surrounded by hundreds of people, all potential witnesses to his crime. Paradoxically, in the moments before the violent outbreak, no one ca
Spy films are tiring of the old femme fatale. For the movie Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), apathy and demoralization may have extinguished sexual desire, making sexual tactics defunct. Or at least that’s what Samantha Hinds argues in the New Inquiry. The new style in spy cinema has been one of a
video “Bad people” aren’t the only ones who lie; creative types are more likely to to have strong “moral flexibility.” That is, more creative people are better at justifying dishonest actions. Dan Ariely, author of Predictably Irrational, explores the motivations behind such justifications in his bo
Video “GET YOUR SON BACK” reads the flashing, psychedelic text that opens A Mother’s Inferno. Developed in six weeks by a group of students at DADIU (pronounced “Daddy-O”), A Mother’s Inferno plays less like a game and more like a psychological horror film (think Jacob’s Ladder). Players take on the
Art student Drew Linne made a mock Guess Who? board with Nintendo characters. Too tough or too easy?
Video Steve Jobs hated buttons. I happen to like feedback on my devices. Tactus Technology may have a middle ground. I’m skeptical but a fascinating thought experiment regardless. While touchscreens provide a versatile user experience, they provide no tactile experience for consumers. Vibration hapt
With its new social features Miiverse and NintendoLand, Nintendo is confronting the challenges of monitoring and regulating the ways people communicate with each other inside its privileged magic circle. Speaking at a developer roundtable at E3, Nintendo’s Katsuya Eguichi spoke about the company’s e
Benjamin Jackson earlier this year explored the roots of social games like FarmVille in the behaviorialism of B.F. Skinner, questioning their core ethical principles: Many people defend FarmVille as a harmless distraction, arguing that the thousands of hours spent playing the game would still have b