Spore turns seven years old next month. It’s a strange, innovative, daring, and unsuccessful game, and I thought now would be a good ...

I need to make peace with an old game here. Hear me out. Game reviews are a strange beast. Publishers use them as ...

It’s not surprising, really. My husband and I both play videogames, and I write about them professionally. Gaming has always been a part ...

In most genres of gaming players can get their kicks from tormenting the poor virtual creatures weaker than them. Known as “videogame cruelty ...

Workers march single file, carrying out the day’s task. Soldiers flank the column, ready to defend it from myriad enemies. But then tragedy ...

Super Mario doesn’t believe in God. For all his magical items, heroic deeds and self-sacrifice, Mario knows – simply knows – that there ...

As I write these words, my five year old son is skirting the Millennium Falcon across the face of the Death Star, taking ...

Contrary to its creator’s claims, Spore isn’t “Sim-Everything.” If we’re taking this game as The Gospel According to Will Wright, then the history ...

[folder_nav][folder_nav] Since Spore was available on the pirate sites days before release, it’s hard to make the case that the online activation prevented ...

[folder_nav][folder_nav] Tracking the development of DRM involves watching a single bad idea grow and evolve into breathtakingly hideous new forms. This online activation ...

  PAX 2008: Designing Virtual Worlds   Dave Williams and Ed Stark of Red 5 Studios hosted this question/answer session. Both have come ...

[folder_nav][folder_nav] Yes, it’s true. On the PC, Mass Effect can only be activated three times, after which the game will no longer work. ...