Blogs
November 29, 2011Doing evil?In a business sector known for cutthroat, amoral maneuvering, social-game developer Zynga stands out as, well, particularly cutthroat and amoral. At least that's the view of many of its competitors and former employees, some of whom we interviewed for a September 2010 SF Weekly cover s ... More >>
Blogs
August 12, 2011As far as the Internets go, Doctor Octoroc is the real deal -- he's the animator, composer, and wizard behind more or less every good retro video game parody online, like "Jersey Shore: The RPG," "Game of Thrones RPG," "8-Bit Twilight (Interactive Game)," and more.
Based in Philadelphia, D ... More >>
Blogs
July 27, 2011It seems like America has gotten a little obsessed with cake lately. Just look at your cable listings (Cake Boss, Ace of Cakes, and Cupcake Wars) or your Internet bookmarks (Cake Wrecks). To liven up the party, you don't just need a cake. You now need a life-size fondant-covered replica of Grandma's ... More >>
Blogs
June 13, 2011Empires and Allies allows users to build cities and go to warZynga's latest Facebook game, Empires and Allies, is being closely watched. Tech-industry observers see the combat and city-building game as a gambit by the successful social-game developer to expand its offerings beyond the breathtakin ... More >>
Blogs
March 11, 2011The next generationNintendo geeks will will be swarming at Pier 39 starting today where they can get a demo of the new Nintendo portable game system. Nintendo 3DS demo pod
participants will also get to create and share their own customized Mii, the and play upcoming games including n ... More >>
Blogs
February 25, 2011This does not resemble a personal computerPlaystation 3 owners who have been grousing over their video game gadgets have something more to complain about.A federal judge has dismissed most their claims filed in a class action lawsuit against Sony last year. A group of gamers accused the entertain ... More >>
Blogs
October 1, 2010That little bastard might not be smiling for longOne of the issues raised in our September cover story on social-gaming company Zynga was the long-term viability of a business based on copying and aggressively marketing inane but addictive game concepts. The Facebook applications that are making ... More >>
Blogs
September 16, 2010Still printing money, it seemsOne of the more vivid side discussions provoked by our story last week on social-gaming company Zynga's allegedly predatory business practices was about the merits of Zynga-style games. The company specializes in Facebook apps that entice users to compulsively build ... More >>
Blogs
September 13, 2010Today, FarmVille crops yield real cashIt ain't been a great week in the press for Zynga, the San Francisco-based creator of popular online games such as FarmVille. Last Wednesday we published a cover story in which ex-employees dished on Zynga's allegedly "evil" practice of copying competitors' g ... More >>
Blogs
August 25, 2010Who says a war is bad for business?San Francisco-based social-gaming company Zynga is being sued for alleged trademark infringement over its popular Facebook game, Mafia Wars.Digital Chocolate, another online gaming company, claims in a lawsuit filed in federal court that it owns rights to the na ... More >>
Blogs
August 19, 2010Dennis Herrera is taking off the gloves over Zynga's 'Mafia Wars'The San Francisco City Attorney's office is going after social-gaming company Zynga -- maker of such popular Facebook applications as FarmVille and Mafia Wars -- for what it calls an "illegal and actionable" marketing campaign to pr ... More >>
Blogs
July 27, 2010"Visions of the Gamepocalypse"Yerba Buena Center for the Arts7:30 p.m., $10Recently we downloaded a much ballyhooed racing game for our iPhone, played for five minutes, and felt like we'd watched the first season of Mr. Belvedere. We felt stupid. Another time we spent a weekend with Nintendo Wii ... More >>
Blogs
June 7, 2010Unsatisfying videogame experiences often end with the player being shot, blown to bits, eaten by ghosts, or crushed by barrels rolled by a deranged gorilla. This one ended with a lawsuit -- and not in the virtual world but San Francisco Superior Court. A disgruntled gamer named Daniel Wolf last w ... More >>
Blogs
February 3, 2009Bang! Gotcha! Yer fired!As more and more Americans find themselves sitting at home in their tattered bathrobes at 3 p.m. on working days, videogame sales have gone through the roof. Last year, Americans spent $22 billion on games -- a 23 percent jump from the prior year. Now, here's the funny part: ... More >>
Blogs
January 6, 2009 We all know video games are awesome, but why? The annual Game Developers Conference aims to answer that question in great detail, with hundreds of panel discussions related to every nuance of making video games. Over 230 sessions are already confirmed, touching base on video game audio, business an ... More >>
Blogs
October 30, 2008 We all know video games are awesome, but why? The annual Game Developers Conference aims to answer that question in great detail, with hundreds of panel discussions related to every nuance of making video games. Over 230 sessions are already confirmed, touching base on video game audio, business an ... More >>
Home Entertainment
July 9, 2008Atari's Alone in the Dark is scary for all the wrong reasons.
Home Entertainment
June 25, 2008Majesco's Blast Works: Blowing stuff up DIY-style.
Home Entertainment
June 4, 2008Majesco's Blast Works: Blowing stuff up DIY-style.
Home Entertainment
May 21, 2008Majesco's Blast Works: Blowing stuff up DIY-style.
Home Entertainment
May 7, 2008Majesco's Blast Works: Blowing stuff up DIY-style.
Home Entertainment
April 16, 2008House of the Dead returns for the Wii, stiff as ever.
Blogs
March 20, 2008House of the Dead returns for the Wii, stiff as ever.
Blogs
February 25, 2008House of the Dead returns for the Wii, stiff as ever.
Blogs
February 24, 2008House of the Dead returns for the Wii, stiff as ever.
Blogs
February 22, 2008House of the Dead returns for the Wii, stiff as ever.
Blogs
February 21, 2008House of the Dead returns for the Wii, stiff as ever.
Home Entertainment
January 2, 2008NiGHTS' second coming feels more like a first draft.
Home Entertainment
December 26, 2007A look back at the best of 2007.
Home Entertainment
October 10, 2007A look back at the best of 2007.
Home Entertainment
August 8, 2007Alien Syndrome will alienate some, infect others
Blogs
July 29, 2007Alien Syndrome will alienate some, infect others
Home Entertainment
July 25, 2007A few more changes would've helped Transformers
Home Entertainment
July 11, 2007The Wii's Big Brain Academy makes summer school cool
Home Entertainment
July 4, 2007The terrorizing townsfolk of Resident Evil 4 shamble onto the Wii
Home Entertainment
June 27, 2007All the beer in the world can't save Mario Party 8
Home Entertainment
June 6, 2007A promising glimpse of the next Halo
Culture
May 23, 2007New play explores whether violent videogames create killers
News
April 18, 2007She wants to harness the power of the communal cerebellum her games create and put it to work solving real-world problems
Home Entertainment
March 7, 2007There's not much besides an extra controller to these minigames
Home Entertainment
February 21, 2007There's more than one way to play with your Wii
Home Entertainment
December 13, 2006Nintendo finally gets 1-Up on the competition
Home Entertainment
October 4, 2006Saints Row shamelessly apes Grand Theft Auto
Home Entertainment
May 24, 2006The five biggest attention-getters at E3.
Home Entertainment
March 22, 2006Sega's Hedgehog goes back to the grind . . . yawn
News
March 22, 2006Sega's Hedgehog goes back to the grind . . . yawn
Home Entertainment
March 1, 2006The Xbox Live Arcade is a high-tech twist on the old-fashioned coin-op.
Home Entertainment
February 8, 2006There's nothing rusty about Mega Man X's old-school 'bots.
Home Entertainment
January 11, 2006Dragon Quest VIII is the biggest thing from Japan since Godzilla.
Home Entertainment
December 7, 2005Perfect Dark Zero isn't a bull's-eye, but it hits the target.
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