In this week’s edition, science continues to be awesome, levelling up goes scholastic, Mewtwo gets mocked, Nintendo lets us in on its poorly kept secret and poké-boots get poké-walking.
Turn Invisible Through Science!
From cloaking devices to the One Ring, the idea of being able to turn invisible is a persistent one, but one that has always been the purview of fiction. But thanks to German scientists, your own invisibility cloak might not be impossible after all. It’s all just theory right now, but who knows what the future might bring? (link)
Professor Offers Students a Chance to Level Up
A professor teaching game design at Indiana University has ditched grades in favor of a system of experience points, with students’ final mark being determined by how much XP they have at the end of the course. The thinking behind the system is to motivate students with the game theory that they would be learning, and make the course seem more fun. Personally, I just like the idea of leveling up in real life. (link)
Bad Company 2 Mocks Mewtwo Marketing Blunder
Modern Warfare 2 did everything right, right? Wrong. If you cast your mind back to before the game came out, you might recall the ill-advised “Fight Against Grenade Spam” advert, which was withdrawn after people complained about its less-than-complimentary acronym. In its ongoing campaign to take potshots at Mewtwo while promoting Bad Company 2, EA has released its own ad, with a slightly more appropriate acronym. Hit the link for the video. (link)
Nintendo Admits It Is Not ‘Teh Hardcorez’
If you’re waiting for Nintendo to start making hardcore titles, you might want to find a new hobby, as the company has finally confirmed what we’ve all suspected for a while: Nintendo isn’t very good at hardcore games. That’s not to say that the company is opposed to hardcore games but it’s not going to be making any in near future and will be relying on third-party developers to fill that gap. (link)
And I Would Walk 500 Miles…
Want to unlock everything in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver? Well you’d better invest in some decent shoes as you’ve got quite a trip ahead of you. Pokémon enthusiasts have worked out that unlocking all the routes in the game requires a trek of at least a thousand miles to generate all the Watts you need. It’s a good job the DS is so portable really, you’ll need something to do on your trip. (link)
