No Less of a Memory — The Human Drama of Video Game Sports [Stick Jockey]

Some video game sports moments are so indelible we remember and narrate them the same way we do the ones from real life. I’m not saying we confuse the realities, necessarily, although anyone who’s completed his third season of a dynasty in any simulation can be forgiven for wandering into an alternate reality. “My star linebacker, Rocky Doss, was lost for the season with a broken leg today,” my friend Dav, playing his fifth season as Air Force’s head coach, told me a few years ago. “And honestly, I really felt sorry for the guy. He was in the second game of his senior year.” Andy Hutchins, who writes The Arena sees things in just such a way. I went to him a week ago with this Greatest Sports Moments idea. He immediately rolled off an AP-style lede, complete with a quote. And to be fair, if I took Northwestern to a national championship, I’d probably be hallucinating, too: The nation’s top two scoring offenses entered the BCS National Championship Game expecting pyrotechnics. But it was Tim Vincent and the Northwestern defense that proved more explosive, leading the Wildcats to a 17-14 win and their third straight national title. Vincent, the NCAA’s all-time sack leader, harassed Oklahoma’s signal callers all game, sending two to the sidelines with injuries on his two sacks, and the Wildcats’ defense gave up no points after the first quarter, holding the Sooners to just 143 yards of total offense. “I’ve been a part of three special teams and three special defenses here at Northwestern,” Vincent said. “What this defense did tonight makes this the sweetest win we’ve had.” So in this spirit, I asked around for some folks’ top moments in sports video gaming. They follow below, with mine going last. Of course, feel free to share your own in the comments, and I’ll excerpt some of them into this column in an update later today. Steve Noah, Operation Sports (MLB 09 The Show) I like to create myself in a lot of games, just to see how accurate the game is, compared to my real life, uh, non-existent professional career. This time it was baseball, playing MLB 09 The Show. Building myself into a cyber-steroid emerging uber-talent was hard. But after a few years, I was eventually plugged into the starting lineup of the San Francisco Giants. Even though I had a great average with good power and speed, I wasn’t what you’d call clutch. It seemed like every imaginable time I had runners in scoring position, during the season or in the playoffs, when the team needed me the most, I would choke, crumble and let them down. Every single time. I’d dribble it off the plate, pop it up or just strike out at the most important time of the game. That is, until Game 7 of the World Series. Steve Noah, “Mr. Choke Job” himself, stepped up to the plate, bases loaded, bottom of the ninth with one out, trailing 6-3. It was something kids daydream about when growing up. On a 3-1 count, the count that I would usually jump all over, only to see disappointment, I hit a 390 foot home run to win the game! I was jumping up and down, screaming and yelling like I actually did this in real life. Like I was a kid again, like a professional baseball player, living a dream. OK, maybe not. But damn, did it feel good, and to do it against the Yankees was icing on the cake. Commenter “Michael Dukakis” (MLB 08 The Show) It all began as a baseball conversation among friends. With two Mets fans, two Yankees fans, and a Red Sox fan no matter how civil the discussion began,it always quickly devolved into something similer to the Dawn of Man scene from 2001: A Space Odyssey. So as our “discussion” continued it came to a bet. Me and one of the Yankee fans 1 on 1 MLB 08, $10 to the winner and of course, bragging rights. I, the Mets and he of course, the Yankees. Before I was even settled in the La-Z-Boy a Derek Jeter home run makes it 1-0. No biggie, Carlos Delgado immediately homered and I was right back in it. The 1-1 tie held until the top of the 8th, when Jeter smacked a two-run double (Pixelated Aaron Heilman, my starter, was just as bad as his counterpart apparently). Mariano Rivera began warming up, due to face the bottom of my lineup. My first two batters were retired on strikeouts. But a walk to a pinch-hitter and a base hit gets me in business. Rivera goes to full count on my next hitter and then walks him. That brough up Carlos Beltran, with the bases loaded. Now this was a year ago so I can’t quite remember the exact pitch sequence, but I remember the last pitch. Oh what a shot it was, clearly into the virtual parking lot. The gloating and $10 mine. That is my greatest sports video game moment … and sadly, probably one of the biggest wins any Mets team has had in quite a while. Jim Harris, Operation Sports ( NHL 94 ) As a teenager growing up in Winnipeg in the early ’90s, to say we were preoccupied with NHL 94 would be the understatement to end all understatements. We played it when we were bored. We played it when we were avoiding homework. We played it to determine our social standing and our own sense of self worth. My younger brother and I were especially transfixed. We spent hours and hours battling it out in one fictional seven-game series after the next. Having played the game so much, we were essentially equally skilled. If we played 100 times, he might win 51 games to my 49 (but I’d probably win six of the 11 ensuing fistfights). One particular seven-game series still stands as my favorite sports moment. Having gone back and forth over the course of a particularly tense series, we finally entered Game 7. Much to my chagrin, my brother got the best of me that game, building up a comfortable lead over the course of the first two periods. When the horn sounded to end the second period, the taunting began. He started ripping into me like only a younger brother could. I was finally getting my comeuppance. Then something strange happened. Singing a happy victory song at the top of his lungs, he danced his way right out of the room. After a moment, I realized he’d mistakenly thought the game was over. At that point, I did the only thing that was right to do: I turned down the volume on the TV and played out the third period against an absent opponent. I called my brother back into the room to politely alert him to his oversight, just as the third period wound down. As I recall, he didn’t take it too well … Owen Good (Hardball!) This is from 1992, after my freshman year of college. By now I had been playing Hardball! on a Commodore 64 with a Wico Command Control joystick for close to five years. We’d gotten it from our next door neighbor, who was the software buyer for the catalog showroom store in town. He’d been sent a bunch of samples and regularly passed them along to us. Somewhere around my sophomore year of high school I began keeping box scores on notebook paper in a three ring binder. I could routinely log a 10-run, 20-hit game against the computer, and with the right pitcher, toss an 18-strikeout shutout. But never a no-hitter. I was Hardball!’s Dave Steib – the Toronto Blue Jays pitcher who twice took a no-hitter to the final out only to lose it. In this case, I was convinced the game’s AI was rigged to assure you never threw a perfect game against it. Repeatedly – it must have been half a dozen times, minimum – I would record the first 26 outs and get to two strikes on the game’s final hitter, who would then drop an unplayable flare just over the third baseman’s head. No matter where positioned the infield or the outfield, they couldn’t get to it in time. So that summer in 1992, I sat down to play Hardball! on a Saturday. I took the Champs’ screwballer, Pepi Perez (with the deceptive 5.47 ERA) up against the All-Stars (the only other team in the game.) Sure enough, I powered through the first eight innings without a runner reaching base. In the ninth inning, after getting two outs, I figured the perfect game had been proven an impossibility, but I was not going to waste a no-hitter. So I decided to pitch around the final batter and see if I could get the next hitter.I threw every ball out of the strike zone, just to see how committed the game was to screwing me. The computer swung at two pitches and looked at the rest, running the count to 3-2. I delivered the final one low and outside, absolutely intent on walking the computer. It hit the ball directly to my third baseman, who didn’t have to move. He caught the ball for the final out. I’d finally thrown a perfect game in Hardball! I turned off the computer and never played the game again. Stick Jockey is Kotaku’s column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

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No Less of a Memory — The Human Drama of Video Game Sports [Stick Jockey]

No Less of a Memory — The Human Drama of Video Game Sports [Stick Jockey]

Some video game sports moments are so indelible we remember and narrate them the same way we do the ones from real life. I’m not saying we confuse the realities, necessarily, although anyone who’s completed his third season of a dynasty in any simulation can be forgiven for wandering into an alternate reality. “My star linebacker, Rocky Doss, was lost for the season with a broken leg today,” my friend Dav, playing his fifth season as Air Force’s head coach, told me a few years ago. “And honestly, I really felt sorry for the guy. He was in the second game of his senior year.” Andy Hutchins, who writes The Arena sees things in just such a way. I went to him a week ago with this Greatest Sports Moments idea. He immediately rolled off an AP-style lede, complete with a quote. And to be fair, if I took Northwestern to a national championship, I’d probably be hallucinating, too: The nation’s top two scoring offenses entered the BCS National Championship Game expecting pyrotechnics. But it was Tim Vincent and the Northwestern defense that proved more explosive, leading the Wildcats to a 17-14 win and their third straight national title. Vincent, the NCAA’s all-time sack leader, harassed Oklahoma’s signal callers all game, sending two to the sidelines with injuries on his two sacks, and the Wildcats’ defense gave up no points after the first quarter, holding the Sooners to just 143 yards of total offense. “I’ve been a part of three special teams and three special defenses here at Northwestern,” Vincent said. “What this defense did tonight makes this the sweetest win we’ve had.” So in this spirit, I asked around for some folks’ top moments in sports video gaming. They follow below, with mine going last. Of course, feel free to share your own in the comments, and I’ll excerpt some of them into this column in an update later today. Steve Noah, Operation Sports (MLB 09 The Show) I like to create myself in a lot of games, just to see how accurate the game is, compared to my real life, uh, non-existent professional career. This time it was baseball, playing MLB 09 The Show. Building myself into a cyber-steroid emerging uber-talent was hard. But after a few years, I was eventually plugged into the starting lineup of the San Francisco Giants. Even though I had a great average with good power and speed, I wasn’t what you’d call clutch. It seemed like every imaginable time I had runners in scoring position, during the season or in the playoffs, when the team needed me the most, I would choke, crumble and let them down. Every single time. I’d dribble it off the plate, pop it up or just strike out at the most important time of the game. That is, until Game 7 of the World Series. Steve Noah, “Mr. Choke Job” himself, stepped up to the plate, bases loaded, bottom of the ninth with one out, trailing 6-3. It was something kids daydream about when growing up. On a 3-1 count, the count that I would usually jump all over, only to see disappointment, I hit a 390 foot home run to win the game! I was jumping up and down, screaming and yelling like I actually did this in real life. Like I was a kid again, like a professional baseball player, living a dream. OK, maybe not. But damn, did it feel good, and to do it against the Yankees was icing on the cake. Commenter “Michael Dukakis” (MLB 08 The Show) It all began as a baseball conversation among friends. With two Mets fans, two Yankees fans, and a Red Sox fan no matter how civil the discussion began,it always quickly devolved into something similer to the Dawn of Man scene from 2001: A Space Odyssey. So as our “discussion” continued it came to a bet. Me and one of the Yankee fans 1 on 1 MLB 08, $10 to the winner and of course, bragging rights. I, the Mets and he of course, the Yankees. Before I was even settled in the La-Z-Boy a Derek Jeter home run makes it 1-0. No biggie, Carlos Delgado immediately homered and I was right back in it. The 1-1 tie held until the top of the 8th, when Jeter smacked a two-run double (Pixelated Aaron Heilman, my starter, was just as bad as his counterpart apparently). Mariano Rivera began warming up, due to face the bottom of my lineup. My first two batters were retired on strikeouts. But a walk to a pinch-hitter and a base hit gets me in business. Rivera goes to full count on my next hitter and then walks him. That brough up Carlos Beltran, with the bases loaded. Now this was a year ago so I can’t quite remember the exact pitch sequence, but I remember the last pitch. Oh what a shot it was, clearly into the virtual parking lot. The gloating and $10 mine. That is my greatest sports video game moment … and sadly, probably one of the biggest wins any Mets team has had in quite a while. Jim Harris, Operation Sports ( NHL 94 ) As a teenager growing up in Winnipeg in the early ’90s, to say we were preoccupied with NHL 94 would be the understatement to end all understatements. We played it when we were bored. We played it when we were avoiding homework. We played it to determine our social standing and our own sense of self worth. My younger brother and I were especially transfixed. We spent hours and hours battling it out in one fictional seven-game series after the next. Having played the game so much, we were essentially equally skilled. If we played 100 times, he might win 51 games to my 49 (but I’d probably win six of the 11 ensuing fistfights). One particular seven-game series still stands as my favorite sports moment. Having gone back and forth over the course of a particularly tense series, we finally entered Game 7. Much to my chagrin, my brother got the best of me that game, building up a comfortable lead over the course of the first two periods. When the horn sounded to end the second period, the taunting began. He started ripping into me like only a younger brother could. I was finally getting my comeuppance. Then something strange happened. Singing a happy victory song at the top of his lungs, he danced his way right out of the room. After a moment, I realized he’d mistakenly thought the game was over. At that point, I did the only thing that was right to do: I turned down the volume on the TV and played out the third period against an absent opponent. I called my brother back into the room to politely alert him to his oversight, just as the third period wound down. As I recall, he didn’t take it too well … Owen Good (Hardball!) This is from 1992, after my freshman year of college. By now I had been playing Hardball! on a Commodore 64 with a Wico Command Control joystick for close to five years. We’d gotten it from our next door neighbor, who was the software buyer for the catalog showroom store in town. He’d been sent a bunch of samples and regularly passed them along to us. Somewhere around my sophomore year of high school I began keeping box scores on notebook paper in a three ring binder. I could routinely log a 10-run, 20-hit game against the computer, and with the right pitcher, toss an 18-strikeout shutout. But never a no-hitter. I was Hardball!’s Dave Steib – the Toronto Blue Jays pitcher who twice took a no-hitter to the final out only to lose it. In this case, I was convinced the game’s AI was rigged to assure you never threw a perfect game against it. Repeatedly – it must have been half a dozen times, minimum – I would record the first 26 outs and get to two strikes on the game’s final hitter, who would then drop an unplayable flare just over the third baseman’s head. No matter where positioned the infield or the outfield, they couldn’t get to it in time. So that summer in 1992, I sat down to play Hardball! on a Saturday. I took the Champs’ screwballer, Pepi Perez (with the deceptive 5.47 ERA) up against the All-Stars (the only other team in the game.) Sure enough, I powered through the first eight innings without a runner reaching base. In the ninth inning, after getting two outs, I figured the perfect game had been proven an impossibility, but I was not going to waste a no-hitter. So I decided to pitch around the final batter and see if I could get the next hitter.I threw every ball out of the strike zone, just to see how committed the game was to screwing me. The computer swung at two pitches and looked at the rest, running the count to 3-2. I delivered the final one low and outside, absolutely intent on walking the computer. It hit the ball directly to my third baseman, who didn’t have to move. He caught the ball for the final out. I’d finally thrown a perfect game in Hardball! I turned off the computer and never played the game again. Stick Jockey is Kotaku’s column on sports video games. It appears Saturdays at 10 a.m. U.S. Mountain time.

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No Less of a Memory — The Human Drama of Video Game Sports [Stick Jockey]

The Nintendo Download: It’s Old Home Week [Downloadables]

Familiar names and face populate this week’s downloadable Nintendo games, with appearances by Frogger, Excitebike, Bomberman, and more Electroplankton than you can shake a stylus at. Perhaps the most exciting game to come out as part of this week’s Nintendo Download is Excitebike: World Rally for WiiWare (1,000 Wii points). It’s not just because it is a return to the original motorbike racing title, complete with a track editor that lets you share your creations with friends, but simply the fact that this isn’t Excitebots or Excite Truck. If you’d rather fear the road than own the road, you can always grab Frogger Returns (500 points), another 3D update to the classic 2D traffic-dodger. Rounding out the WiiWare triple-play this week is Dragon Master Spell Caster by Stickmen Studios (500 points), a game that sees players doing battle on dragon back, casting spells and spewing fire in either the single player story mode or split-screen multiplayer. DSiWare gets six new titles today, through five of those are Electroplankton mini-games available at 200 DSi points apiece. When you’re done playing microscopic musical fishies, you can blow them out of the water with Bomberman Blitz (500 points), which delivers the classic Bomberman experience to the DSi with both local and online eight player multiplayer battles. Rounding up this week’s rather massive list of downloadable titles is the Virtual Console , which adds the platforming goodness of Sega’s Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap (500 points) and Cybernoid for the Commodore 64 (500 points) to its ever-growing lineup of classic titles. So what’s your poison this week? WiiWare Excitebike: World Rally Publisher: Nintendo Players: 1-4 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) Price: 1,000 Wii Points™ Description: Prepare to face daredevil jumps, crazy obstacles and other racers in the newest installment in the venerable Excitebike franchise, available exclusively on the WiiWare service. Choose from multiple camera angles as you tilt your way to smooth landings using motion-sensitive controls. Compete in races around the world in four championship circuits. Use Nintendo® Wi-Fi Connection to invite friends to a race. Or if you’re feeling brave, take on anyone else looking for a match. Feel like tackling a challenge of your own design? Use the intuitive Track Editor to choose from the available obstacles and put together your dream course, then share courses with friends to see whose creation skills reign supreme. Frogger Returns Publisher: Konami Digital Entertainment Players: 1-2 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) Price: 500 Wii Points Description: Frogger Returns takes the heart-pounding challenge of arcade Frogger and moves it into the next dimension. Classic top-down 2-D game play is updated with colorful 3-D graphics, a new perspective, new levels, new enemies and game-changing power-ups. A local multiplayer mode lets you race a friend. Dragon Master Spell Caster™ Publisher: Stickmen Studios Players: 1-2 ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10 and Older) – Mild Fantasy Violence Price: 500 Wii Points Description: The Dragon Lords have returned to the magical world of Nakiha, bringing ultimate power to whoever controls them. Choose your champion, then master amazing magic and fierce dragon attacks to defeat the rival Champions and their Dragon Lords. Choose from four different paths and decide the fate of the world in the fantastic story mode. Battle your friends in two-player split-screen arcade mode and tailor your tactics with different dragon and rider combinations, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. Marvel at the effects of mind-blowing spell collisions. Mix spells and unleash their ultimate power. Control your Dragon Lord and crush, bite and burn your way to victory. Nintendo DSiWare Bomberman Blitz Publisher: Hudson Entertainment Players: 1-8 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) – Comic Mischief Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points Description: Bomberman makes his downloadable debut on Nintendo DSiWare with Bomberman Blitz. Dive into a classic multiplayer Bomberman experience with eight-player local or online multiplayer using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Hone your skills and learn the maps, then take the battle online. Change map and item preferences for enhanced customization. Delivering unparalleled multiplayer excitement, Bomberman Blitz lets Nintendo DSi users enjoy the addictive fun of Bomberman anytime, anywhere. Electroplankton Trapy Publisher: Nintendo Players: 1 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) Price: 200 Nintendo DSi Points Description: Trapy plankton make sounds as they swim over graceful lines made up of linked triangles. The creatures follow the lines you trace along the water. There are six types of Trapy in all, each with a unique color and sound. All Trapy plankton produce different tones depending on the direction they swim. They produce the lowest-pitched sounds when they swim to the right and produce higher-pitched sounds as their path veers to the left. Electroplankton Hanenbow Publisher: Nintendo Players: 1 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) Price: 200 Nintendo DSi Points Description: Normally aquatic creatures, Hanenbow sometimes use floating leaves to launch themselves out of the water, creating strange sounds and melodies as they bounce off the leaves. Entire schools of Hanenbow have been known to launch out of the water, one after another. As a leaf is repeatedly hit by flying Hanenbow, it gradually changes color. This also alters the sound made by bouncing Hanenbow. When all the leaves turn red, a flower will bloom. It remains unclear why the Hanenbow display this curious behavior. Electroplankton Rec-Rec Publisher: Nintendo Players: 1 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) Price: 200 Nintendo DSi Points Description: Rec-Rec are fishlike plankton that feed on sound waves. They absorb sound waves transmitted through water and use them as a form of nutrition. The sound waves that the Rec-Rec eat are then stored inside their bodies until they have been digested. Once the digestion process is complete, they play back the sounds in perfect four-second intervals. While these sounds are playfully emitted, wave patterns can be seen pulsating on their bodies. Rec-Rec always swim side by side in schools of four. When they swim at different speeds, the frequency with which they emit sounds also changes. Electroplankton Nanocarp Publisher: Nintendo Players: 1 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) Price: 200 Nintendo DSi Points Description: Nanocarp have very sensitive hearing. Using their two ears to sense vibrations coming through the water, these plankton can distinguish sound quality and frequency. They display very interesting reactions to the sound of humans clapping or breathing. Nanocarp are also excellent swimmers. They have a tendency to swim in formations of 16 and react together when they detect sounds. These plankton emit sounds on their own when they sense waves on the water’s surface. When this happens, the pitch of sounds they produce changes depending on where the Nanocarp is located. Electroplankton Beatnes Publisher: Nintendo Players: 1 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) Price: 200 Nintendo DSi Points Description: Beatnes are curious plankton with geometrically shaped heads that form vertical strands like seaweed. Their bodies are made up of eight sections, each featuring a distinctive diamond-shaped tail. The sound of a Beatnes can vary wildly depending on which segment of the body is tapped. However, all of the sounds closely resemble the short-wave and triangular-wave sound effects from a Nintendo Entertainment System™ sound chip. When Beatnes are tapped in time with a rhythm, they continue to repeat the sounds in perfect time for a short period. Virtual Console Wonder Boy™ III: The Dragon’s Trap Original platform: MASTER SYSTEM Publisher: SEGA Players: 1 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) – Mild Cartoon Violence, Tobacco Reference Price: 500 Wii Points Description: Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap is widely considered to be one of the best games produced for the SEGA MASTER SYSTEM. The direct sequel to Wonder Boy in Monster Land, it starts in the final lair of the previous game. This game is the first in the series to allow Wonder Boy to roam freely by using various animal forms, but as with previous games in the series, Wonder Boy can also buy various weapons, armor and items to help him in his quest. Cybernoid™ Original platform: Commodore 64 Publisher: Commodore Gaming Players: 1 ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) – Mild Fantasy Violence Price: 500 Wii Points Description: Federation storage depots have been raided by pirates, who’ve taken valuable minerals, jewels, ammunition and the latest battle weaponry. You have been commissioned by the Federation to retrieve the cargo and return it to storage within a specified time limit. The pirate craft have activated all planetary defense systems, which you must negotiate along with the pirates themselves. If you fail to reach the depot within the time limit, or if the value of your retrieved cargo is insufficient, you must forfeit one of your Cybernoid ships. Image courtesy of IGN

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The Nintendo Download: It’s Old Home Week [Downloadables]

Video Games and Balloons: Because Everyone’s Talking About this Right Now [Gratuitous Local]

The saga of Colorado’s Balloon Boy had me and Crecente nostalgic for our days of four-alarm all-hands coverage at the Rocky (which only happened every week). So I’ve localized today’s report to include the video game angle to balloons. So here we go: All the games I could think of involving balloons, their age relative to young Falcon Heene, and a fun factor on a scale of 1 to 10, with one being “The Lifetime of Grounding Falcon is in for After This” and 10 being “Chased by Two Sheriffs Departments and Eleven News Crews on a Magical Journey Through the Air.” Granted, it looks like he did not actually take that journey. He was found in the attic of his home, apparently never aboard the wayward experimental aircraft in the first place. But on a day dominated by news of balloons, here’s our contribution. Because dammit, Brian and I just can’t not localize a story. It’s still in our blood. • CIRCUS ATARI (Atari 2600, 1980: 23 years older than Falcon Henne ): This Breakout clone involved two clowns poised on a teeter-totter – one would launch the other into the air to pop a canopy of balloons overhead, landing to launch his partner, and so forth. This was developed by Exidy and published by Sears, back when it produced a licensed version of the VCS console. Fun rating: Two: Three hours with this would be like Falcon writing 1,000 “I will not trick an entire nation into believing I am aboard a balloon at 10,000 feet” sentences. • KICKMAN (Arcade 1981, Commodore 64 1982. 22 years older than Falcon Henne): Single-clown action this time, aboard a unicycle, not a teeter totter. In Kickman, your clown has to keep plummeting balloons from touching the ground, either by catching them atop his pointy hat or kicking them back in the air to catch on his pointy hat. Pac-Man occasionally falls out of the sky to eat the balloons off your head and, if you balance him, will gobble them up from beneath, turning you into an engine of balloon destruction. Fun rating: Actually, I’ll give this a five. I lost hours to it playing on a 64 with an old Wico command control stick. Surprisingly addictive, especially once you figured out the speeds of each color balloon. • BALLOON FIGHT (Nintendo Entertainment System, 1985: 18 years older than Falcon Henne): Of course, the first game that leaps to mind. Balloon Fight was a Joust-type setup that pit you against other balloon-harnessed foes in midair combat. Pop or be popped was the name of the game; a single-player mode had you navigating an aerial race course filled with ouchy things that could send you plummeting to the ground faster than a mylar-covered flying saucer punctured by small arms fire. Fun Rating: A good seven. One of the first titles for NES, fondly remembered by many who had the system, but it’ll get old after the twelfth day of home confinement. • BALLOON KID (GameBoy, 1990 and GameBoy Advance, 2000: 13 years older than Falcon Henne): Now we’re dealing with a game that truly could be ripped from today’s headlines – if Falcon had in fact taken flight and he had a sister go looking for him, instead of the Weld County Sheriff’s Office. In this side-scroller, you’re seeking out your kid brother, who’s gone floating away on a bunch of balloons. You must navigate through treacherous levels using a couple of balloons whose altitude you can control by using the A button. Fun Rating: Another seven. Look, we’re talking about f—-ing balloons here, not Metal Gear Solid. Of course it’s not going to appeal to the core, and, relative to the genre, this was about as good as it ever got. • INDIANA JONES and the FATE of ATLANTIS (PC and Mac, 1992, 11 years older than Falcon Henne): A key sequence in this LucasArts SCUMM classic was constructing a makeshift hot-air balloon to land Indy aboard a Nazi U-boat, as the story lurched toward its inevitable conclusion undersea. Fun rating : The balloon portion itself was a bit frustrating, but taken on the whole, graphical adventure games of this era were the apotheosis of the genre, and Indiana Jones only made them better, so I give it a nine. There you are, a dirty half-dozen localizing video games in the ballooniest news cycle ever to hit modern mass media. So, what are your favorite games including balloons? Or we can broaden the discussion to video games that include Falcons. Or Hennes. Madden NFL 10 has both, actually.

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Video Games and Balloons: Because Everyone’s Talking About this Right Now [Gratuitous Local]

Forza Motorsport 3’s Full 400 Strong Car List [Xbox 360]

Forza Motorsport 3 ’s automotive stable may not feature the impressive overkill of the Gran Turismo series, but when the list approaches 400 unique cars from over 50 manufacturers, well, that’s when we start to tune out. But for those of you who consider 400 “a nice start,” developer Turn 10 Studios has revealed the official list of each and every car that will appear in Forza 3 . It’s a list so long that it spans two DVDs. Hell, it goes beyond that with five limited to the collector’s edition of the game, five for the Forza Motorsport VIP Membership Car pack and six only for those who pre-order. That full list begins… in 3… 2… 1… The Cars of Disc 1: 2008 Acura #15 Lowe’s Fernandez ARX-01b 2008 Acura #26 Andretti-Green Racing ARX-01b 2002 Acura #42 Realtime Racing NSX 2008 Acura #66 de Ferran Mortorsports ARX-01b 2009 Acura #66 de Ferran Mortorsports ARX-02a 2005 Acura NSX 2002 Acura RSX Type-S 2007 Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione 2009 Alfa Romeo Brera Italia Independent 2008 Alfa Romeo Mito 2006 Aston Martin #007 Aston Martin Racing DBR9 2008 Aston Martin #008 Bell Motorsports DBR9 2008 Aston Martin #009 Aston Martin Racing DBR9 2005 Aston Martin DB9 Coupe 2003 Audi #1 Champion RS 6 2008 Audi #2 Audi Sport North America R10 TDI 2006 Audi #2 FSI Champion Racing R8 2006 Audi #8 Audi Sport Team Joest Audi R10 TDI 2008 Audi A4 Touring Car 2009 Audi Q7 V12 TDI 2010 Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro 2006 Audi RS 4 2003 Audi RS 6 2000 Audi S4 2004 Audi S4 2007 Audi S5 1983 Audi Sport Quattro 2004 Audi TT Coupe 3.2 quattro 2007 Audi TT Coupe S-Line 2004 Bentley Continental GT 2009 BMW Motorsport 135i Coupe 1971 BMW Motorsport 3.0 CSL 2001 BMW Motorsport #6 Prototype Technology Group M3-GTR 2009 BMW Motorsport #92 Rahal Letterman Racing M3 GT2 1997 BMW Motorsport M3 E36 2005 BMW Motorsport M3 E46 Coupe 1991 BMW Motorsport M3 E30 2008 BMW Motorsport M3 E92 2002 BMW Motorsport M3-GTR 2009 BMW Motorsport M5 E60 2009 BMW Motorsport X5 xDrive48i 2008 BMW Motorsport Z4 M Coupe 2009 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 2008 Cadillac #8 Remington Shaving CTS-V 2009 Cadillac CTS-V 2004 Chevrolet #3 Corvette Racing C5.R 2005 Chevrolet #31 Whelen Engineering Corvette Z06 2006 Chevrolet #4 Corvette Racing C6.R 2007 Chevrolet #4 Corvette Racing C6.R 2003 Chevrolet #50 Corvette Racing C5.R 2003 Chevrolet #73 3R-Racing Corvette Z06 2005 Chevrolet #99 Tiger Racing Corvette Z06 2009 Chevrolet Aveo5 LT 2002 Chevrolet Camaro 35th Anniversary SS 1990 Chevrolet Camaro IROC-Z 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS 1969 Chevrolet Camaro SS Coupe 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 1979 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS-454 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt SS Coupe 2002 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 2008 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS Stock Car 2008 Chrysler 300C SRT-8 2006 Chrysler Crossfire SRT6 2009 Citroen C4 VTS 2002 Dodge #1 Team Zakspeed Viper GTS-R 2008 Dodge #11 Primetime Racing Group Viper Competition Coupe 2008 Dodge #2 Mopar Viper Competition Coupe 2004 Dodge #22 3R-Racing Viper Competition Coupe 2003 Dodge #23 Magellan Financial Viper Competition Coupe 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T Hemi 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT-8 1969 Dodge Charger R/T 2006 Dodge Charger SRT8 2008 Dodge Charger Stock Car 2006 Dodge Ram SRT-10 2003 Dodge Viper Competition Coupe 2003 Dodge Viper SRT10 2008 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR 2005 Ferrari #11 Larbre Competition 550 Maranello GTS 1964 Ferrari 250 GTO 1998 Ferrari #30 MOMO Doran Racing F333 SP 1967 Ferrari 330 P4 1994 Ferrari F355 Berlinetta 1995 Ferrari F355 Challenge 1999 Ferrari 360 Modena 2003 Ferrari Challenge Stradale 1991 Ferrari 512 TR 2002 Ferrari 575M Maranello 2006 Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano 2004 Ferrari 612 Scaglietti 2006 Ferrari #62 Risi Competizione F430GT 2008 Ferrari #71 Tafel Racing F430GT 2003 Ferrari #88 Veloqx / Prodrive Racing 550 Maranello 2008 Ferrari #90 Farnbacher Racing F430GT 2009 Ferrari California 1969 Ferrari Dino 246 GT 2002 Ferrari Enzo Ferrari 1987 Ferrari F40 1989 Ferrari F40 Competizione 2004 Ferrari F430 1995 Ferrari F50 1996 Ferrari F50 GT 2005 Ferrari FXX 1984 Ferrari GTO 2010 Fiat 500 Abarth SS 2009 Ford #1 TeamVodafone FG Falcon 2004 Ford #10 Tiger Racing Mustang 2009 Ford #25 Britek Motorsport FG Falcon 2009 Ford #5 Ford Performance Racing FG Falcon 2009 Ford #9 Stone Brothers Racing FG Falcon 2009 Ford Fiesta Zetec S 2009 Ford Focus RS 2006 Ford Focus ST 2003 Ford Focus SVT 2008 Ford Fusion Stock Car 2005 Ford Ford GT 1970 Ford Mustang Boss 429 2000 Ford Mustang Cobra R 1993 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra R 1985 Ford RS200 Evolution 2009 Holden #2 Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE 2009 Holden #33 Garry Rogers Team Commodore VE 2009 Holden #39 Supercheap Auto Racing Commodore VE 2009 Holden #51 Sprint Gas Racing Commodore VE 2005 Honda #18 TAKATA DOME NSX 2005 Honda #8 ARTA NSX 2004 Honda Mugen Civic Type-R 2006 Honda Civic Si Coupe 2007 Honda Civic Type-R 1991 Honda CR-X SiR 2009 Honda Fit Sport 2002 Honda Mugen Integra Type-R 2000 Honda Integra Type-R 2002 Honda Integra Type-R 1992 Honda NSX-R 2005 Honda NSX-R GT 2003 Honda S2000 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2003 Hyundai Tuscani Elisa 2008 Infiniti G37 Coupe Sport 2009 Jaguar XKR-S 2008 Koenigsegg CCGT 1988 Lamborghini Countach LP5000 QV 1999 Lamborghini Diablo GTR 1997 Lamborghini Diablo SV 2005 Lamborghini Gallardo 2006 Lamborghini Miura Concept 2005 Lamborghini Murcielago 2007 Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 2008 Lamborghini Reventon 2003 Lexus IS300 2006 Lexus IS350 2009 Lexus IS F 2002 Lexus SC430 2005 Lotus Elise 111S 2009 Lotus Evora 2006 Lotus Exige Cup 240 2008 Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged 2005 Maserati #15 JMB Racing MC12 2008 Maserati GranTurismo 2004 Maserati MC12 2009 Mazda #16 Dyson Racing B09/86 2009 Mazda Mazdaspeed 3 1994 Mazda Miata 2007 Mazda MX-5 Roadster Coupe 2001 Mazda Mazdaspeed Roadster 1997 Mazda RX-7 2002 Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type-A 2004 Mazda RX-8 Mazdaspeed 1997 McLaren #43 Team BMW Motorsport McLaren F1 GTR 1997 McLaren F1 GT 2009 Mercedes A200 Turbo Coupe 2004 Mercedes C32 AMG 2009 Mercedes C-Class Touring Car 2009 Mercedes ML 63 AMG 2009 Mercedes SL 65 AMG Black Series 2005 Mercedes SLR 2003 MINI Cooper S 2009 MINI John Cooper Works carlist_4 2006 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT 2006 Mitsubishi HKS Time Attack Evolution 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX MR 1999 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI GSR 2004 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII MR 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X GSR 2008 Nissan #12 CALSONIC IMPUL GT-R 2003 Nissan #12 CALSONIC SKYLINE 2008 Nissan #23 XANAVI NISMO GT-R 2008 Nissan #24 WOODONE ADVAN Clarion GT-R 2008 Nissan #3 YellowHat YMS TOMICA GT-R 2010 Nissan 370Z 1970 Nissan Datsun 510 2003 Nissan Fairlady Z 1994 Nissan Fairlady Z Version S Twin Turbo 2007 Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V 1992 Nissan Silvia CLUB K’s 1994 Nissan Silvia K’s 2000 Nissan Silvia Spec-R 1993 Nissan Skyline GT-R V-Spec 1997 Nissan Skyline GT-R V-Spec 2002 Nissan Skyline GT-R V-Spec II 2002 Nissan MINE’S R34 Skyline GT-R 2000 Nissan Top Secret D1-Spec S15 2009 Nissan Versa SL 2004 Opel Speedster Turbo 2003 Pagani #17 Carsport America Zonda GR 1999 Pagani Zonda C12 2002 Panoz #50 Panoz Motor Sports LMP-01 2005 Panoz #51 Panoz Esperante GTLM 2005 Panoz Esperante GTLM 2004 Peugeot 206 RC 2007 Peugeot 207 RC 2007 Peugeot 207 Super 2000 2007 Peugeot #8 Peugeot Sport 908 2009 Peugeot #9 Peugeot Sport Total 908 1968 Chrysler Plymouth Barracuda Formula-S 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP 2006 Pontiac Solstice 2002 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Ram Air 1973 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am SD-455 1987 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am GTA 2008 Porsche #16 Dyson Racing RS Spyder Evo 1987 Porsche #17 Racing Porsche AG 962c 2008 Porsche #2 Gruppe Orange Racing 911 GT3 Cup 1998 Porsche #26 Porsche AG 911 GT1-98 2005 Porsche #31 Peterson-White Lightning 911 GT3-RSR 2008 Porsche #45 Flying Lizard 911 GT3-RSR 2005 Porsche #5 XBOX 360 911 GT3-RSR 2005 Porsche #55 Applied Materials 911 GT3 Cup 2005 Porsche #66 AXA Racing 911 GT3 Cup 2008 Porsche #7 Penske Racing RS Spyder Evo 2007 Porsche #80 Flying Lizard 911 GT3-RSR 2006 Porsche #82 Red Bull 911 GT3 Cup 1995 Porsche 911 GT2 1982 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.3 1970 Porsche 914/6 1989 Porsche 944 Turbo 1987 Porsche 959 1998 Porsche 911 GT1 2004 Porsche 911 GT3 (996) 2008 Porsche 911 GT2 (997) 2007 Porsche 911 GT3 (997) 2007 Porsche 911 Turbo (997) 2003 Porsche Boxster S 2003 Porsche Carrera GT 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2009 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S 2006 Porsche Cayman S 1980 Renault 5 Turbo 2003 Renault Sport Clio V6 RS 2007 Renault Clio Renaultsport 197 2009 Renault Twingo Renault Sport Cup 2008 Saab 9-3 Turbo X 2002 Saleen #11 Graham Nash Motorsport S7R 2003 Saleen #2 Konrad Motorsports S7R 2006 Saleen S281 E 2008 Saleen S331 Supercab 2004 Saleen S7 2006 Saturn ION Red Line 2007 Saturn Sky Red Line 2005 Scion tC 2009 Scion xD 2009 SEAT Ibiza Cupra 2007 SEAT Leon Cupra 2007 SEAT Leon Supercup 2007 Ford Shelby GT500 1968 Shelby Mustang GT-500KR 2003 Subaru #77 CUSCO SUBARU ADVAN IMPREZA 2006 Subaru Impreza S204 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX STi 2005 Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STi 2008 Lexus #25 ECLIPSE ADVAN SC430 2008 Lexus #36 PETRONAS TOM’S SC430 2008 Lexus #6 ENEOS SC430 2004 Toyota Altezza RS200 2003 Toyota Celica SS-I 1994 Toyota Celica GT-Four ST205 1984 Toyota Celica Supra 2002 Toyota MR-S 1985 Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT Apex 1998 Toyota Supra RZ 2008 Toyota Yaris S 2005 TVR Sagaris 2006 Vauxhall Astra VXR 2009 Vauxhall Corsa VXR 2004 Vauxhall VX220 Turbo 2009 Volvo C30 R-Design 2004 Volvo S60 R 2003 Volkswagen Bora VR6 1995 Volkswagen Corrado VR6 2006 Volkswagen Golf GTi 2010 Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk6 1992 Volkswagen Golf Gti 16v Mk2 2003 Volkswagen Golf R32 1984 Volkswagen Rabbit GTI 2008 Volkswagen Scirocco GT 2008 Volkswagen Touareg R50 The Cars of Disc 2: 2003 Honda #16 G’ZOX NSX 2004 Honda Civic Type-R 1999 Honda Civic Si Coupe 1994 Honda Civic 1.5 VTi 1995 Honda CR-X Del Sol SiR 2005 Honda NSX-R 2000 Honda Prelude SiR 2005 Mazda Axela Sport 23S 2001 Mazda Mazdaspeed Familia 1990 Mazda Savanna RX-7 1995 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse GTS 1998 Mitsubishi FTO GP Version R 1997 Mitsubishi GTO 2003 Nissan #23 XANAVI NISMO GT-R 1997 Nissan #23 Nissan Motorsports R390 2003 Nissan #3 HASEMISPORT ENDLESS Z 1998 Nissan #32 NISSAN R390 GT1 2005 Nissan #46 Dream Cube’s ADVAN Z 1969 Nissan Fairlady Z 432 1998 Nissan R390 2003 Nissan Skyline Coupe 350GT 1993 Nissan MINE’S R32 Skyline GT-R 1998 Subaru Impreza 22B STi 2005 Subaru Legacy B4 2.0 GT 1969 Toyota 2000GT 2006 Toyota #25 ECLIPSE ADVAN SUPRA 1999 Toyota #3 Toyota Motorsports GT-ONE TS020 2004 Toyota #35 Yellow Hat YMS Supra 2005 Toyota #36 OPEN INTERFACE TOM’S SUPRA 2005 Toyota #6 EXXON Superflo Supra 1995 Toyota MR2 GT 1995 Toyota Tom’s T020 MR2 2002 Toyota Tom’s W123 MR-S 2002 Toyota Soarer 430SCV 1992 Toyota Supra 2.0 GT Twin Turbo 1998 Toyota Top Secret 0-300 Supra 2001 Aston Martin V12 Vanquish 2002 Audi #1 Champion S4 Competition 2001 Audi #4 Johansson Motorsport R8 2004 Audi #5 Audi Sport Japan Team Goh R8 2004 Audi #8 Audi ABT TT-R 2008 Audi R8 2003 Bentley #7 Team Bentley Speed 8 1999 BMW Motorsport #15 BMW Motorsport V12 LMR 2005 BMW Motorsport #2 BMW Motorsport M3-GTR 1998 Ferrari #12 Risi Competizione F333 SP 2003 Ferrari #72 Team Alphand Aventures 550 Maranello GTS 1961 Jaguar E-type S1 1993 Jaguar XJ220 2002 Koenigsegg CC8S 1992 Lancia Delta Integrale EVO 1974 Lancia Stratos HF Stradale 1989 Lotus Carlton 1972 Lotus Elan Sprint 2002 Lotus Esprit V8 2005 Maserati #35 Risi Competizione MC12 2005 Maserati #9 Vitaphone Racing Team MC12 2006 Maserati GranSport 1997 McLaren #41 Team McLaren F1 GTR 1998 McLaren #41 Gulf Team Davidoff McLaren F1 GTR 1954 Mercedes 300SL Gullwing Coupe 2003 Mercedes CLK55 AMG Coupe 1998 Mercedes AMG Mercedes CLK GTR 2003 Opel #5 OPC Team Phoenix Astra V8 2007 Peugeot #1 Peugeot 207 Super 2000 1993 Peugeot #3 Peugeot Talbot Sport 905 EVO 1C 2005 Porsche #3 Lechner Racing School Team 1 911 GT3 Cup 1998 Porsche #5 Zakspeed Racing 911 GT1-98 2002 Saab 9-3 Aero 2003 SEAT Leon Cupra R 1998 TVR Cerbera Speed 12 2001 TVR Tuscan S 2005 Vauxhall Monaro VXR 2004 Volvo #24 At-Speed S60 R 2004 Volkswagen Beetle 2001 Acura Integra Type-R 1997 Acura NSX 1987 Buick Regal GNX 2004 Cadillac #16 Team Cadillac CTS-V 2002 Cadillac #6 Team Cadillac Northstar LMP-02 2004 Cadillac CTS-V 1996 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 427 1970 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 2004 Chrysler PT Cruiser GT 2003 Dodge #126 Team Zakspeed Viper GTS-R 2000 Dodge #57 Carsport Holland Viper GTS-R 2000 Dodge #91 Viper Team Oreca GTS-R 2003 Dodge SRT4 1996 Dodge Stealth R/T Turbo 1999 Dodge Viper GTS ACR 1998 Chrysler Eagle Talon TSi Turbo 1966 Ford GT40 MkII 2005 Ford Mustang GT 2003 Infiniti G35 Coupe 2003 Panoz #11 JML Team Panoz LMP-01 2006 Panoz #81 Team LNT Panoz Esperante GTLM 2004 Pontiac GTO 1968 Pontiac GTO Hardtop 2001 Saleen #26 Konrad Motorsports S7R 2000 Saleen S281 1965 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C 1999 Shelby Series 1 Exclusive Cars Limited Collector’s Edition Cars: 2005 Acura Forza Motorsport NSX 2005 Aston Martin Forza Motorsport DB9 Coupe 2010 Audi Forza Motorsport R8 5.2 FSI quattro 2008 Dodge Xbox 360 Charger Stock Car 2003 Nissan Forza Motorsport Fairlady Z Forza Motorsport VIP Membership Car pack: 2008 Aston Martin DBS 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 2007 Ferrari 430 Scuderia 2007 Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera 2007 Porsche 911 GT3 RS (997) Exclusive Preorder Cars: 2009 BMW Motorsport Walmart M5 E60 2009 BMW Motorsport GameStop M5 E60 2009 BMW Motorsport GAME M3 E92 2009 BMW Motorsport MicroMania M5 E60 2008 Mitsubishi GameStation Lancer Evolution X GSR 2010 Audi R8 5.2 Community Edition The Official Forza Motorsport 3 Car List [Official Site]

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Forza Motorsport 3’s Full 400 Strong Car List [Xbox 360]

Electronic Arts Sues to Cancel Langdell’s Trademarks [Controversy]

Electronic Arts is asking the United States to cancel five trademarks held by Tim Langdell ’s Edge Games, saying the marks have been effectively abandoned. In comments to Kotaku, EA portrayed its actions as done on behalf of the development community. Langdell, at the center of many controversies over the years regarding trademark rights to the word “Edge”, has been involved in a similar dispute with Electronic Arts since 2007 concerning its title ” Mirror’s Edge .” On Sept. 11, EA filed a petition with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to wipe out five trademarks involved in the case, saying they have been threatened by Langdell for a year over the distribution of Mirror’s Edge. “EA has filed a complaint to put an end to legal threats over a trademark issue related to our game, Mirror’s Edge,” company spokesman Jeff Brown said Tuesday. “While this seems like a small issue for EA, we think that filing the complaint is the right thing to do for the developer community.” Langdell, in a statement to Kotaku, called Electronic Arts’ petition “a desperate attempt by EA to see if they can win the right to use Mirror’s Edge by forcibly removing Edge’s legitimate rights to Edge.” Langdell pointed to a USPTO ruling in his favor, from August 2008, which found EA’s registration of the trademark “Mirror’s Edge” had been granted in error, and the company’s subsequent abandonment of the mark – made official Sept. 8 – “stands as an acceptance of Edge’s rights.” The USPTO database does list the trademark “Mirror’s Edge” as “abandoned” as of Sept. 8, 2009. When asked about the timing of EA’s filing, Brown, the spokesman, said only that the company had been unsuccessful in its yearlong attempt to resolve the dispute, and “we feel it is important to establish the rights of developers in this situation. So we filed the petition to cancel those marks.” Brown also declined to comment when asked if the petition was at all related to any upcoming product announcements using the word “Edge.” Nor would he specify how negotiations with Langdell broke down. Over the years, Langdell has been accused of heavy-handed behavior against developers who wittingly or unwittingly use the word “Edge”, which he trademarked years ago for use in video games, and a slew of other associated products since then. In addition to the disagreement with EA, Langdell has been involved in a bitter dispute with Mobigame, whose iPhone game EDGE has appeared on the iTunes App Store and was later removed when he challenged Mobigame’s usage of the title. The notoriety surrounding this action in large part led to a campaign to have Langdell removed from the board of directors of the International Game Developers Association. Langdell voluntarily quit the board last month rather than face a removal vote. “A lot of small developers who are faced with this situation settle claims because they don’t know how, or can’t afford to fight for their rights,” said Brown, the EA spokesman. “We hope that as a result of this action, other developers will be less intimidated by unwarranted legal threats.” But Langdell counters that EA is trying to poison sentiment against his company, and that its accusations “sound like comments intended to sway indie game news reporters’ opinion and deflect you away from the obvious fact that it is EA [that] indie developers need to be protected from.” In the filing, Electronic Arts alleges that Langdell has effectively abandoned these trademarks through disuse. While Langdell vigorously states his company is actively involved in the development of games, both Mobygames and this analysis say the last game published by Edge Games was in 1990. Edge Games’ Web site says it is developing four multiplatform titles, one of which “Racers,” was released on Sept. 9. “Clearly, Edge has not abandoned its trademark and that allegation is obviously destined to fail,” Langdell told Kotaku. Langdell’s statement says Edge’s games “are on general sale at this time as they have been at all times over the past many years.” Significantly, EA also alleges that Langdell fraudulently obtained the trademark registrations, filing out-of-date and even falsified specimens to obtain them. EA alleges two registrations, dated 1996 and 2006, used box covers from games published in 1989 and 1990 and were not examples of a mark used in commerce, especially as the 1990 game was developed for the since-discontinued Commodore Amiga. Another 2009 registration submitted an Edge mark used on the 1986 game Bobby Bearing, saying that game had been in use “continuously over the past five years,” on mobile phones. EA claims that is false. EA says two other registrations, in 2004 and 2005, were obtained by submitting a nonexistent magazine cover in one case, and a Hulk comic book published in the 1990s in another. (Langdell claims to have licensed trademarks to the two publications.) Langdell flatly denied that Edge ever committed fraud in applying for its U.S. trademarks. Langdell has also said that Mobigame told him, in an email published here , that it and Electronic Arts had formed some sort of partnership, to what end he did not say. In a lengthy public statement published last August, Langdeel seems to imply that EA and Mobigame might be working together “to seek to undermine our rights in EDGE,” to get out of an agreement Langdell says Edge and EA had reached earlier. Brown, the EA spokesman, said that to his knowledge EA has no formal relationship with Mobigame. A request for comment left with Mobigame was not answered as of publication time. Mobigame replied to Kotaku that, in May, it had been working on a video game project unrelated to EDGE, or any game involved in this dispute, licensed by a British company that was in negotiations with Electronic Arts to publish it. Those negotiations have since ended, Mobigame’s David Papazian said. According to a notice sent by the USPTO, Langdell has until Oct. 27 to respond to EA’s petition. Should the matter proceed to trial, that will begin in the summer of 2010. Electronic Arts’ filing may be downloaded here , in .pdf form. Langdell, for his part, accuses EA of playing the bully in this matter. “The key dispute for the past two to three years … has always been between the multinational conglomerate EA and Edge fighting for its rights as a relatively small indie developer up against the giant corporate bully, EA,” Langdell wrote. “It is a great pity that another fellow indie developer, Mobigame, got caught in the crossfire, but at least EA are now out in the open with their fight, now openly trying to stifle the legitimate rights of indie developers.”

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Electronic Arts Sues to Cancel Langdell’s Trademarks [Controversy]