Well it’s finally here after years of work (and nearly as many years of hype): Spore, Will Wright’s latest opus lets you guide a fully customized creature from microbe to intergalactic navigator every step of the way. Today I picked up the $80 “Galactic Edition”, which is a full $30 more than the normal edition – one of the bigger markups among the special editions I’ve stripped so far. It also hails from EA (insert grumbling here), so the package is starting out with strikes against it… but I changed my tune when I really saw what I got for the money.

Click through to ogle every inch!

I just bought this on eBay... well, not this one, but one like it. It's a promo poster for the upcoming Mega Man 9 (due this month, supposedly), and to match the game's retro, old-school look, sound and feel, Capcom commissioned something as hideous and campy as their old-school box art from artist Gerald de Jesus. You can click on it for a bigger version... I especially like the promoted "Ultrasound Graphics Synthesis" - take that, you Blast Processing and Mode 7 pansies!

(By the way: Gerald's work is actually quite good, you can see it at his website HERE.)

I love what Capcom is doing with Mega Man 9 (and can only hope it's not a total financial disaster for them) so I couldn't pass up the poster. Just after winning I decided to go out for dinner, and since my girlfriend was busy I brought a magazine.

Sometime between finishing my appetizer and waiting for my lasagna, I had a sobering vision of myself: A thirtysomething guy wearing an Alien Hominid t-shirt and reading Game Informer, eating alone in a crowded restaurant after winning an online auction for a poster that surely nobody else in the restaurant - or even his own immediate social circle - would appreciate.

Mayhaps the pendulum has swung too far in one direction? I think it's time for a night out at the bar or a sporting event or something.

Been playing Mercenaries 2 the past couple days, and so far, so good. To me it delivers something I was deeply annoyed GTA4 didn’t: freedom, in a big way. Specifically, the freedom to approach the challenges the game lays out for you in any number of ways rather than revoking player options for the sake of a mood, cinema, or scripted sequence. As I complained in my GTA4 review:

Why do I have to follow the biker gang on a motorcycle when a perfectly good car is right next to me?... If I know where someone is escaping to, why can’t I just go directly there and wait for him, rather than have to stay within 50 yards of his entire, erratic flight?

So far, Mercenaries 2 hasn’t done nearly as much of that. When you force players to play by the rules in a genre that’s built on the concept of being rule-free... um, there’s obviously something wrong with the formula there. (More after the jump!)

With John McCain officially accepting the nomination to become the Republican Party’s Presidential nominee, political convention season is over. But the fun doesn’t have to stop! Joystick Division is mildly proud to present The Top Seven Video Games of the RNC! Read on for the for political satire the likes of which hasn’t been seen since Fox News cancelled The ½ Hour News Hour!

From left to right: Having fun, Having fun, About to Break Up with Her Goddamned Boyfriend, Having Too Much Fun, Amused

It's days like this, when I get an email such as this, that I love life (umm, such as this).

Hi There!
We're in the process of getting final Rock Band 2 review units together. Please let me know ASAP if you plan to review Rock Band 2 and if so, please also send along your shipping address so I can make sure the bundle gets to the right place. If you do not plan to review Rock Band 2 this year, please let me know who else at your outlet I should be in contact with.

Also-- all reviews are embargoed until September 15th, we will be sending out the review guide with product later next week.

Thanks!

How do you respond to an email like that? "Well, I GUESS I'll take a Rock Band 2 bundle. I'll try to fit in into my schedule next week. You know, if I can find room for it."

A few days back I asked readers for their tips on hunting for video game bargains. A few of you sent in your tips, including this one from reader Jason:

The best tip I can suggest for find great deals on games is to make friends with a gamestop employee. A friend of mine used to work at at a GS and whenever people would bring a game or accesory that he knew I was looking for he would call me and see if they would take a slightly higher cash offer for the item. I was able to snag a 60gb PS3 this was for $200.

Chances are, if you care enough about video games to be reading a gaming blog, you’ve heard all about Too Human. You’ve heard the tales of its epic, console-spanning development, heard the stories about the head of its developer starting online arguments about the title, and you’ve definitely heard the complaints about the game itself. Too Human has been called out by gamers and critics on every front: a flawed core combat mechanic, a twitchy camera, poor animations, hare-brained dialogue, and much, much more.

Every complaint you’ve heard about Too Human is true.

However, if you’re still interested in Too Human despite the mixed response, I would still advise you to check it out. Because while Too Human is swamped with problems, it does have its charms – they can just be hard to find from time to time.

10. Gamers need to shower. Yes, this is a cruel one, but it’s true. Entering a crowd of fanboys means entering a certain, “I’m sleeping on the floor of the expo and haven’t changed my shirt in three days” odor cloud. It’s bad enough I considered carrying Febreeze with me on the expo floor.

9. Kilts are the new cool – or at least, nerds’ idea of cool. Here in Seattle, there’s a store that makes and sells “utilikilts,” skirts for boys with cargo pockets that start at $150. Popular among the type of people who carry D20s, these fashion statements dot the expo. It’s especially hard to take a security guard seriously when his kilt is blowing in the wind.

Let me set the scene for you: it’s Friday night at the 2008 Penny Arcade Expo, and I’m in the VIP line for the Champions Online party – which is to say, a totally empty line headed by a guy in a horribly cheap superman costume. Oh, look, they’re opening the doors to the Seattle Public Library. Yes, this party takes place in a library. Inside, there’s plenty of free beer, and almost no one to drink it. Fifteen minutes later, I’m so bored I’m roaming the bookshelves attempting to entertain myself by drinking while reading fine literature. Ah fanboys, you’re so cuddly, but damn do you throw a lame party.

I have returned from PAX with all my original body parts, as well as a suitcase that weighed much more than it did on the way there. That's right, I'm loaded down with swag! There was much, much more free stuff flying around, from Halo toys to Vault Boy puppets (which I wasn't able to snag, although I did get a Vault Dweller's Survival Guide), so my haul is only a small sample of what was available. Check it out, won't you?

Due to some very positive, very flattering feedback on the illustrations I did for our Bionic Commando Rearmed discussion (which you can find HERE), I was persuaded to do some more, this time of a few Bionic Commando villains. Click on through for a peek, BC fans…

The Fallout Booth rocks. Hard.

You may ask "Gary, what does this have to do with videogames?" Well I'll tell you: I'm retiring from gaming altogether to watch this video over and over until I die.

Yesterday I went to GameStop to pick up Contra 4 to keep me busy on my flight to PAX. While I was there, I picked up Spider-Man 3 for Xbox 360 at the low, low price of $8. Yes, I know it sucks, but I've played the rest of the series and I'm a completist. Today I went to Target for some last minute supplies, and I noticed the Eye of Judgement bundle with camera was on clearance for $35. I didn't buy it, but I may snag it when I get back because Sony's got some cool stuff on the way for that camera (I could care less about the game).

Where do you folks go to hunt for video game bargains? Online? In stores? Gypsy Caravans? Send your best bargain hunting tips to antongordonwrites@gmail.com and I post the best ones here on the site to share with the world.

For the 360 folk out there: the long-awaited Castle Crashers will finally hit the service sometime during the wee hours tonight (precisely when varies depending on your time zone).

I don't think I'll be sitting up waiting for it tonight, but I do intend to dig right into it tomorrow - so if you're looking for some sword-packin' backup, hit me up at gamertag "Vrolokus".