New Atari.com Lets You Play Classic Games for Free

Atari Crystal Castles

The revamped Atari.com lets you play several classic games for free. A recent press release stated:

In the Atari Arcade fans can play free games such as Asteroids, Adventure, Battlezone, Crystal Castles, Lunar Lander and Yars Revenge. The classics, often replicated but never improved upon, appear in their complete original forms. The Arcade includes worldwide leader boards where gamers can see how they stack up and compete against others.

In addition to these offerings, the site will sell clothing featuring the iconic Atari logo and offer special discounts on current games. Yeah, that’s nice, but I just want to play some Crystal Castles!

Any of your old favorites up on the site?

Source

Congrats to Nightshade386 (and Other Contest Updates)!

Magnet winner Hrolf 1

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages…RPad.tv is proud to present the latest refrigerator magnet winner in the wooooooorld! Nightshade386!!! And if you’re not down with that, I’ve got two words for you! Winning comment.

Hrolf was kind enough to send pictures of his magnet. I’m honored to be on his fridge, along with his beautiful kids and Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo. Be sure to hit the break for one more photo.

LarcenousLaugh, you’ve been emailed. I’m still waiting for your mailing addy.

Continue reading “Congrats to Nightshade386 (and Other Contest Updates)!”

Coffee Talk #32: Great Dogs in Gaming

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the incredibly handsome Chris Taylor, Andre Ward bringing big-time boxing back to The Bay, or the unstoppable WWE Sheamus, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

I love my mabari war hound, Cisco, in Dragon Age: Origins. He’s a faithful dog and a fearsome warrior. While he can’t equip all the nifty weapons and armor my other party members can, Cisco is an underrated combatant that’s incredibly useful for taking out opposing mages.

Dragon Age Mabari

As Cisco was dispatching baddie after baddie in DA, I started thinking about other dogs in gaming. Cisco would beat the crap out of that lame-ass dog in Dead to Rights. I don’t care if that dog had its own button to activate his attacks. He sucks compared to Cisco. Having said that (Curb reference!), there are plenty of dogs that would give my Cisco a run for his money.

The dog from Duck Hunt is one of the oldest and best in the business. Dogmeat from Fallout 3 is a menacing force. The dog in Fable II was a bigger part of the game than I thought he’d be. Yamato from Shadow Dancer: The Legend of Shinobi had special ninja-dog training. It’s kind of crazy how many courageous canines have graced videogames.

Who are some of your favorite videogame dogs? (And no, Amaterasu from Okami doesn’t count. She’s a Shinto sun goddess!)

LittleBigPlanet PSP Available for Download

By the time you read this, LittleBigPlanet for PlayStation Portable will be available for download through Sony’s PlayStation Network. This is arguably the biggest digital download debut for the platform (I’m not counting retro titles).

LittleBigPlanet PSP

The original game for PS3 was critically lauded and received tons of awards, though its commercial success didn’t match its accolades. I’m curious to see how the PSP version will perform as a digital download. It will be an interesting barometer of how receptive PSP gamers are to doing digital. Furthermore, I want to see if this style of game can succeed on a handheld platform.

Are any of you going to by LBP for PSP? Do you think it can do well on the platform? I’d love for it to be uber-successful, but I have my doubts.

NY State Wants to Use Consoles for Emergency Contact

Achievement NYS Emergency Broadcast System

The New York State Emergency Management Office wants to reach gamers that might be too absorbed in the latest shooter or RPG to notice catastrophic events. Fearing that its citizens, particularly youngsters, will miss out on emergency broadcast messages on television or radio, the state is trying to communicate through online services like PlayStation Network and Xbox Live as part of its Empire 2.0 initiative. InformationWeek has reported:

State authorities are testing a plan that would see the Emergency Management Office issue alerts over online gaming networks in addition to regular channels.

The goal, said New York State Deputy CIO Rico Singleton, is to reach younger residents who spend more time on the Xbox, PlayStation, or Wii than with television or radio.

While I’m pretty sure I’d notice a hurricane or nuclear attack while playing a game, I’m happy that my home state (born in the Bronx!) is being forward thinking. Also, the Yankees won the world series so NY rules even more.

Source via Joystiq

Malicious Worm Hits Jailbroken iPhones

iPhone 3GS

Nefarious hackers are trying to get extract banking information from people with jailbroken iPhones. The good news is that the problem is currently restricted to ING Bank customers in The Netherlands. The bad news is that it could spread. Engadget Mobile has reported:

It targets jailbroken handsets with SSH installed, but this time adds the ability for the hacker to remotely control and access the phone. By throwing up a purported ING Direct login page, he (or she, or they) can collect your online banking credentials and, presumably, all the cash they are supposed to protect. Presently isolated within the Netherlands, this outbreak may spread further still, as it is capable of infecting other jailbroken iPhones on the same WiFi network.

I’ve always been wary of the whole jailbreaking process. Sure, it frees up the iPhone and allows for all sorts of unofficial apps, but it can also be problematic with official updates and programs. Apparently hackers target jailbroken iPhones too, since this is the second worm targeted towards these handsets. There are lots of cool things you can do with an unlocked iPhone, but it just doesn’t seem worth the hassle (for me).

Any of you using a jailbroken iPhone? Hopefully your banking 411 is safe.

Source

Today’s Poll: Which Dragon Age Country Do You Want to Play In?

Thedas map

The excellent writers of Dragon Age: Origins did a fine job of setting up the game’s sequels. While this chapter of the DA saga had you and your party marching around Ferelden, several other lands were mentioned in the game’s dialogue and the numerous codex.

Leliana’s home country or Orlais once ruled Ferelden. It’s still the most powerful nation in Thedas, full of political intrugue and sexy bards. If gay elf assassins are more your thing, the lawless world of Antiva might be for you. Although it’s fronted by royalty, criminal organizations and merchant guilds are the real powers here. The island nations of Par Vollen and Seheron are home to the Qunari — giant people that are driven by war and a strict code of honor.

Which of these lands would want to invade in Dragon Age 2? Leave your answer in the poll and your reasoning in the comments section (please)!

[poll id=”11″]

Fallout 3 Avatar Clothes Coming Thursday

Fallout 3 Avatar clothing

Bethesda has announced a line of Fallout 3 dolly avatar clothes for Xbox Live. The following threads and one accessory will be available on Thursday:

  • Vault 101 Suit — 240 MS Points
  • Bethesda Game Studios Shirt — 80 MS Points
  • Fallout 3 Ringer Shirt — 80 MS Points
  • Vault Boy Shirt — 80 MS Points
  • Vault Boy Suit — 240 MS Points
  • Vault Boy Head — 80 MS Points

I know that a lot of you are down on dolly avatar clothes and accessories, but some of this Fallout 3 gear is cool. Anyone tempted to buy some?

Source

PSA: Amazon.com Videogame Lightning Deals All Day Today!

Updated 12:00PM PST

Amazon.com videogame “Lightning Deals” are happening all day today. These are limited-supply deals, so check early and check often. I’ll update this post to list the current deals.

  • New Play Control Pikmin for Wii — $14.98
  • Call of Duty 4: Game of the Year Edition for PS3 — $25.00 Expired
  • Rock Band 2: Special Edition for PS3 or Xbox 360 — $70.00
  • UFC Undisputed — $25.00
  • Call of Duty: World at War for Wii — $27.00
  • Nintendo DS Lite Red/Black — $97.98

All expired!!!