Like any video is ever going to top this one.
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Some details about Telltale's upcoming The Walking Dead dead game have started trickling in, and some of them are actually sounding pretty promising.
Jake "Rodford" Rodkin recently talked to Joystiq, and while the whole story is worth reading, perhaps the most interesting part is that episodes will "be able to talk to each other":
Characters that die in one game in Episode 1 will stay dead, or if the player keeps them alive, they'll reappear in later episodes.
Pretty awesome. Now read it all.
Source: Joystiq
Last week (hey, shut up) brought specifics about the retail release of Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse, which is due out for release in Europe - and Europe only - on August 26th. Lace Mamba, the same folks who handled the boxed UK releases of Ghost Pirates of Vooju Island and Tales of Monkey Island, will be putting out both a Plain Jane version and a collector's edition of Sam & Max's third season. Here's what you get with the leaded:
Additionally to the full game, including all five episodes, the box will include five collectible Sam & Max badges as well as an artwork poster by Sam & Max creator Steve Purcell. The recommended retail price is set at £24.99
In summary, to hell with North America.
Source: Gamasutra
We have more images from Telltale. First up are 
The last two episodes of Hector: Badge of Carnage are still set to be released this fall and we have five new screenshots from the second episode. A 
Last, here are Telltale's videos from their third and fourth days at Comic-Con:
Source: TTG Blog
You've heard the commentary on Monkey Island 2 SE, now be prepared to watch it (or at least some of it)! Videos courtesy of gen16.com's Youtube channel.
Thanks to reader Threepwood4life for telling us about these.
Source: gen16.com
The release date has not been revealed, but EA has begun taking pre-orders for the upcoming Star Wars game. Pre-ordering will net you early game access as well as a colour stone which will change the colour of your weapon or something. There's a standard edition, a digital deluxe edition, and a collector's edition. The standard edition can be bought on EA's new Origin service as well as a physical copy. Digital deluxe is only available on Origin and collector's edition only as a physical copy. Bioware has put up a page over here with a list of retailers and info on what's included in the different editions. Most stores seem to be out of the collector's edition though last I checked, German Amazon still has copies left.
Source: swtor.com news
We can now finally bring you some new concept art from Telltale's upcoming game The Walking Dead which is based on the comic of the same name.
Telltale's also released an in-game screenshot of the same locale as seen in 
Earlier in the month, other parts of the web were told that developer Red Fly Studios laid off 30 employees. Today comes news relevant to this part of the web: those layoffs apparently occurred because Red Fly was working on a Star Wars game that LucasArts canceled. Details are precious; aside from the fact that Red Fly is mainly a Wii developer, the resume that constitutes the source of this story speaks only of the project as a "next-gen Star Wars game."
Statistically speaking, LucasArts' catalog is far less deficient in Star Wars than it is in, for instance, Not Star Wars, so it can be considered a safe assumption that their decision to kill the project had to with not wanting to re-assign resources away from Handsome Halibut, currently slated for release in the Spring of two-thousand never.
The XIth Cook Chase podcast this week features a guest star: Junaid from the old days of The World of Monkey Island! Junaid was one of the many Monkey Island fan artists who has since become very talented and amazing. And he owes it all to Disney LucasArts!
Gabriel recorded this week's podcast by crouching behind his neighbour's fence, stealing their wifi; and later on Roger 'Zaarin' Roger gives a moving performance in honour of Dave Grossman. The Paco Vink comic mentioned in the podcast can be viewed here, and the article in which Bill Tiller talks about CMI character design can be read here.
Listen below, or go to our to download a higher quality copy. Thanks to Zaarin for editing it together.
Thanks to everyone who voted in our poll last week. The results can be seen below:
| Which poem do you think is the best? (Listen to them in the podcast). | ||
|---|---|---|
| Schenk: 'Untitled' | 6 | |
| Grossman: 'Burger' | 4 | |
| Total votes | 10 | |
As you can see, I won by two votes. IN YOUR FACE, GROSSMAN. I mean, bad luck. But seriously, try harder next time. I am officially challenging you to a poetry smack down. BRING IT ON, IF YOU DARE. Competitive poetry: it's the gay Olympics.
The new poll asks the question Where would you like to live? Answer by clicking on one of the choices, or by leaving a comment here!
Ron Gilbert loves you, and you love him. At least he really really wants you to love him, if his Google+ account is anything to go by. Here he posts the type of Monkey Island related stuff only a true connoisseur can appreciate, like what The Ronzo has on his desk, his ties and... You know, stuff only misunderstood purveyors of good taste like yourself truly could appreciate.
Go circle him on Google+ and laugh mockingly at those still using Facebook, the MySpace of our generation.
This week's pick is a twelve-minute special on LucasArts that G4 Tech TV aired in the 2002-2003 area. Furnishing employment for the zaniest narrator ever, this video features interviews with a pre-assassination Simon Jeffrey, Mary Bihr, Dave Grossman, Sean Clark, and Mike Stemmle. Apparently those last two are respectively working on a Full Throttle and Sam & Max sequel, so that's exciting, though I didn't know Tim Schafer made The Curse of Monkey Island.
The 10th Cook Chase podcast includes: LucasArts games for the blind, the latest Power of Monkey Island episode, the Puzzle Agent 2 review, Gabriel's experience of interviewing Dave Grossman, and a new feature analysing Grossman's poetry, which this week is based on 'Burger'. Gabriel wrote his own poem in reply to Grossman's, which you can listen to in the podcast. Please vote for which poem you think is the best by using the voting form on the right.
Listen below, or go to our to download a higher quality copy. Thanks to Roger 'Zaarin' Roger for editing it together.
Coming soon: a way of subscribing in iTunes! So that will be exciting.
This week's selection is sort of a sequel to last week's: Tim Schafer's second appearance on Gamespot's web show "On the Spot" in March 2005, only a month and some change after the previous appearance and sans beard. With the imminent release of Psychonauts even more imminent, the hosts interrogate Tim about the game, Tim betrays murderous intentions for anyone who would dare to make a Full Throttle sequel, and footage of Tim's dad from the Psychonauts launch party is unspooled.
Note that this is the Edited for Mojo version of the episode, meaning we lopped off the parts that didn't have Tim in it,
Pretty cool news for UK gamers - a bundle package of the two Monkey Island special editions will be released on September 9th for PC, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. Naturally, the publisher on this is LEC's European distribution arm Activision - I'm pretty sure the last time LucasArts itself ever shipped a retail product with the Monkey Island name on it was that compilation of the first three games from 2001, and there's no reason for them to blemish their record.
What's cool about this release is that it's going to include some exclusive bonus material. To quote the press release:
Monkey Island Special Edition Collection will also include never-before seen content including environment and character concept art from both the Special Edition versions of both games. Music fans can also tap their toes along to the remastered and re-recorded soundtracks for both games. And most exciting, players will also receive storyboards and concept art from an Industrial Light & Magic exploration of a Monkey Island™ animated movie that was never released.
The accumulation of Steve Purcell and Tony Stacchi concept art from the Monkey Island movie has gotten quite formidable over the years - it would be cool if LEC really had anything never-before-seen to share.
Anywho, hopefully this makes some new fans for the Monkey Island series. Although I wonder what LucasArts' response will be when the newly christened crew of Threepwood devotees wants to buy installments 3 and 4?
Another week, another Cook Chase Podcast, in which Dan and Gabriel attempt to summarise a whole week of news, and discuss the most important developments.
This week, we catch up on listener comments (including a tweet and an e-mail from Uri Geller!), the Puzzle Agent 2 review, Dave Grossman poetry, and we also bring you exciting news about a music video that has LucasArts references in it. Listen below, or go to our to download a higher quality copy. Thanks to Zaarin for editing it together.
Information about the music video referenced in the podcast:
I've been a long-time reader of Mixnmojo. Needless to say I freaking love old-school Lucasarts games.
I've recently completed a pixelated 8bit animated music video and have put hidden references to loads of games in it. Some are fairly straightforward and a couple people spot the Max head ... however what very few people are able to find is the Day of the Tentacle reference. Only hardened DOTT players will pick it up. And someone with a quick finger for the pause button.
Making Of: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vz1_MQnw5WA Making Of - extra: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pblMKuuplCY Write-up: http://www.goldfishlive.com/blog/brand-new-goldfish-music-video-we-come-together 'Spot the 64 references' by Mahalo Video Games: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PUvuAADA28Do you count yourself among an imaginary coalition to effect an industry of "violent, fart-joke-infused, aggression-release-valve games?" Well, LucasArts creative director Clink Hocking has a few condescending words for you. Yes, the first published work with Hocking's name on it since he jumped from Ubisoft to the Star Wars house may not be a game per se, but shouldn't lecturing people about the culture of making games take precedence over actually making games?
To be fair, the disclaimer beneath Hocking's rant does assure that he's still attached to that "unannounced project." I'm still pretty sure that's a game.
Source: Edge
There's only 50 minutes left at the time of writing, but the special editions of Monkey Island 1 and 2 are in today's steam summer sale with 50% off. Thats £3.49 each or £5.24 for both.
[Edit]The sale has now rolled over to the next day. Both games are still on sale but there's only 33% off this time.
Source: Steam
Benny has continually been updating his music and speech extractors for Telltale's games and his latest update introduces support for the Back to the Future finale. Head on over to his site to grab them both. Is Puzzle Agent 2 support coming soon, one wonders...
Source: Quick and Easy software
This week's selection is another beefy one: Tim Schafer's first appearance on the web show "On the Spot" in February 2005. Observing that the studio where Gamespot taped the show was "really close to where I get my coffee," Tim dropped by unannounced and armed with a demo of Psychonauts. His beard was still in play at this point.
Note that this is the Edited for Mojo version of the episode, meaning we lopped off the parts that didn't have Tim in it, and also all the hardcore sex scenes. Boy, did we have our work cut out for us in deleting those.
Another week, another Cook Chase Podcast, summarising all the recent news and discussing the most interesting items.
This week, Gabriel is joined with "Peter", a.k.a. SurplusGamer, and topics include: homoeroticism, Fate of Atlantis replicas, and whether Trenched being delayed is worth crying about. Listen below, or go to our to download a higher quality copy.
In other news, if you have a response to the current HOT TOPIC -- what are you doing when you listen to the podcast? -- be sure to send them to podcast@mixnmojo.com.