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Does One Award Warrant a Game of the Year Edition for Dead Island?
by Chris Pereira
22 May 2012 at 5:19pm

Dead Island is set to be re-released in a Game of the Year Edition package next month, a fact that is the source of some complaints. It's not so much that the game is being bundled with its DLC that is the problem; it's the labeling of the game as Game of the Year, a title which many feel it is not deserving of.

It is completely understandable why a publisher would want a game re-release to be positioned as a "Game of the Year Edition." That title carries with it a certain connotation of quality, that it was among the very best, if not the best, games released during the year it originally came out. Game of the Year Editions are commonly associated with the likes of Morrowind, Oblivion, Fallout 3, Red Dead Redemption, and other critically acclaimed games. There is a certain expectation that a GotY Edition consists of a terrific game and bonus content (be it downloadable content or expansion packs) that early adopters had to pay extra for, with all of this often coming at a sub-$60 price.

What If the Cost of Games Continued to Rise Since the '80s?
by Marty Sliva
22 May 2012 at 5:07pm

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1UP COVER STORY

1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF MAY 21 | WHAT IF?

What If the Cost of Games Continued to Rise Since the '80s? Cover Story: A sad look at a hobby that became too damn expensive.

December 12, 1985

You'll never guess what I got for my birthday! I woke up this morning, walked into the living room, and saw Dad playing Nintendo in front of the TV! He was having trouble with the first level of Mario, so I sat down and helped him jump over the pits until we got to the flagpole at the end. After that, we brought out the Zapper and played Duck Hunt until dinner time. Mom got kinda mad at Dad for buying something so expensive, but he told her that my birthday only comes once a year.

What If the 1993 Video Game Violence Hearings Resulted in Government Censorship?
by 1UP Staff
22 May 2012 at 3:30pm

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1UP COVER STORY

1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF MAY 21 | WHAT IF?

What If the 1993 Video Game Violence Hearings Resulted in Government Censorship? Cover Story: Peer into a dark and twisted present we'll (thankfully) never know.

n late 1993, state senators and certified oldsters Joseph Lieberman and Herb Khol got a whiff of this whole "video games" thing and decided to use their unholy powers to investigate the issue. While our friends in Germany and Australia often find amazing games banned outright or plagued with hilariously conspicuous censorship, we Americans escaped with a barely perceptible slap on the wrists thanks to the efforts of testifying industry vets who actually knew the subject at hand. But one can only wonder what the '90s gaming landscape (and beyond) would have looked like if the iron fist of government oppression punched the living daylights out of our beloved hobby...

Book Review: Exploring Video Gaming's Near-Death with "1983"
by Jeremy Parish
22 May 2012 at 2:18pm

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1UP COVER STORY

1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF MAY 21 | WHAT IF?

Book Review: Exploring Video Gaming's Near-Death with "1983" Cover Story: Thirty years ago, video games almost died. We examine the possibilities.

ith his latest book, 1983, game journalist and historian Chris Kohler has chosen to take a slightly different tack then he employed for his massive treatise Power Up: How America Gave Video Games an Extra Life a few years back. Rather than approaching the topic of video games from a wide-ranging, all-inclusive perspective, Kohler instead drills down here into a single crucial moment in time for the young medium: The near-crash of the industry in year 1983.

Despite the Orwellian overtones of the title Kohler has selected for his work, there's nothing ominous about the story contained herein -- perhaps, except, the idea that video gaming could have been snuffed out entirely a mere decade after Pong's debut. A combination of gold-rush greed, incompetence, and '80s corporate culture nearly suffocated the fledging entertainment medium just as it was hitting its stride. The Warner corporation's eagerness to cash in on their purchase of Atari, combined with the influx of low-quality, externally developed 2600 games after Activision broke away to become the first third-party developer, nearly buried the industry beneath a deluge of self-cannibalizing mediocrity.

Breaking the Illusion: Not Playing by the Rules
by Chris Pereira
21 May 2012 at 7:07pm

I like to play games in what I imagine is an unusual manner, or at least I thought this to be the case until 1UP members revealed they share some of my habits. One of these things, my propensity for systematically exploring an area before moving on, has reared its head in particularly noticeable fashion as I make my way through Max Payne 3. Playing in this way was clearly something the game's designers accounted for, as evidenced by the collectables scattered throughout, and yet it feels almost as if I'm being punished for deciding to be a completionist.

My process for approaching each area in Max Payne 3 follows the same pattern, only being altered if I'm low on health and out of painkillers (health packs in Max Payne's world). I kill everyone and then proceed to sweep over the entire room, seeking out any hidden spots or areas which do not appear to lead to the next area. As I make my way from one combat area to the next, I'm mindful of my surroundings and am sure to double back to check behind staircases and to see which doors can be opened. I do this all while searching for golden gun components, painkillers, and clues which can be examined. The latter can fill in the backstory but is hardly needed to get the gist of the narrative. I'm able to comfortably do this because there is no ticking clock, even if what Max is doing at any given time suggests there should be, and because enemies come in limited numbers and only in certain areas.

What If?: Gaming's Alternate Realities
by 1UP Staff
21 May 2012 at 6:27pm

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1UP COVER STORY

1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF MAY 21 | WHAT IF?

What If?: Gaming's Alternate Realities 1UP explores what might have happened had video game history gone differently.

People love to look back at the past and ask, "What if things had gone differently?" Navel-gazing at history spans cultures and races. Whether it's author Harry Turtledove making a fortune by contemplating how differently the American Civil War would have gone if someone had time-traveled to give the Confederate Army machine guns, or the manga Konpeki No Kantai in which the Japanese navy beats up America in World War II before teaming up to kill Hitler, second-guessing ourselves seems to be human nature.

Maybe it's the competitive nature of the medium, but video gamers seem especially fond of revisiting the past and wondering about alternate outcomes. As the Three Fates in the image above suggest, games have woven a rich and complex tapestry in their mere half-century of existence -- a tapestry whose design and nature could have changed radically had things turned out differently.

What If Video Games Never Came Home?
by 1UP Staff
21 May 2012 at 6:25pm

1UP COVER STORY

1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF MAY 21 | WHAT IF?

What if Video Games Never Came Home? Cover Story: A chilling glimpse into a world where the arcade still rules supreme.

UP's cover story this week revolves around the question, "What if?" In keeping with that theme, we'd like to offer this glimpse into one of many alternate realities of video gaming: A world where video games never came home. A world where the arcade still dominates gaming. How would a site like 1UP be different in such a place? We talk to our mirror universe counterparts about the state of gaming and their thoughts on the medium.

What If Third-Party Development Didn't Exist?
by Nadia Oxford
21 May 2012 at 6:24pm

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1UP COVER STORY

1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF MAY 21 | WHAT IF?

What If Third-Party Development Didn't Exist? Cover Story: How Activision's 1982 win in court changed the industry.

et's be honest, when we think about Activision-Blizzard as a company, at least a few of us get a mental image of a dark overlord with hooked fingers looming over a burning landscape. This image is usually accompanied by a deep-voiced demand for sacrificial virgins. Given Activision-Blizzard's status as The Biggest Thing That Has Ever Existed in Gaming, it's easy to forget that prehistoric Activision fought for the right to develop third-party games on the Atari 2600 -- a battle that it eventually won in court.

Activision's victory essentially made it possible for third-party game designers to ply their trade on home game consoles.

Activision's drive for justice wasn't exclusively about being paid its deserved royalties, either. During the 2600 era, Atari had a nasty habit of not crediting its game developers (or even letting developers bring attention to themselves, which convinced Adventure developer Warren Robinett to bury his name in the game, possibly creating the first digital Easter Egg). When Activision won the right to make its own games for the 2600 in 1982, credit was no longer a problem.

What If Square Never Left Nintendo?
by 1UP Staff
21 May 2012 at 6:22pm

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1UP COVER STORY

1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF MAY 21 | WHAT IF?

What If Square Never Left Nintendo? Cover Story: We look at how the RPG powerhouse would've fared without the PlayStation.

or RPG fans of the early 1990s, Square practically had their own branch on the Nintendo family tree. This held especially true on the Super NES, where Square came into its own with Final Fantasy IV and VI, Secret of Mana, Chrono Trigger, and wealth of Japan-only releases that loomed just out of reach for Americans. By the end of 1995, the union seemed solid. Nintendo's long-awaited Nintendo 64 system was on its way, and would be home to Square's next Final Fantasy.

There seemed no reason to worry until the spring of 1996, when those same RPG fans opened game magazines and learned that Final Fantasy VII wouldn't release in the form of a Nintendo 64 cartridge. It was now headed for the Sony PlayStation, as with every other game Square planned to make for the latest generation of consoles. By the end of the year, Square sewed up a publishing agreement with Sony, and their first PlayStation release, the fighter Tobal No. 1, sat on store shelves. It came as quite a surprise to players who'd effectively grown up with RPGs on Nintendo systems.

Final Fantasy VII didn't just amount to a critical PlayStation success; it was also instrumental in establishing the Japanese RPG in North America's mainstream game industry.

What If Steam Hadn't Recovered From Its Shaky Launch?
by 1UP Staff
21 May 2012 at 6:21pm

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1UP COVER STORY

1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF MAY 21 | WHAT IF?

What If Steam Hadn't Recovered From Its Shaky Launch? Cover Story: Without Steam in a central role, the last decade of PC gaming would have been remarkably different.

hen Steam first appeared in 2002, its success was far from a sure thing. Bugs and network problems outnumbered the available games on Valve's digital distribution platform by a wide margin. Users who disliked having to launch an extra application before playing their games doubted the necessity of the program itself. It took years for Steam's library to grow, for Valve to smooth over the rough spots, and for the public to embrace the concept of digital distribution. Today, Steam is synonymous with PC gaming, putting Valve in a unique position from which they can influence the industry in a number of ways.

What if the initial stumble had resulted in a full-on faceplant? How far would the ripples of that failure have spread? I don't claim to know exactly how things would have played out differently, but a lifetime of regret and PC gaming -- which occasionally go hand in hand -- has sharpened my hindsight enough to make a few educated guesses.

Large Wooden Doll House

Quick And Easy Doll Furniture

Doll furniture, no matter what size doll you have, can easily be made by you. Some really easy things to make are: chair, sofa, bed, tables, rugs, pictures, and even wardrobes. Supplies can be foam, fabric, cloth, paint, even deli trays. You'd be surprised what you can make from things you already have at home.

A quick and easy chair, for instance, is made from a piece of material and some stuffing. Draw the shape of a lightbulb and cut it out of two pieces of fabric. Also cut two triangles which are about 2" across the bottom and 3" tall. Turn the lightbulb cloth shape upside-down to where the largest part of the "bulb" is facing downward. Pin the triangles pieces, one on each side, between the wide part of the bulb shapes. Position it to where the 2" side of the triangle piece goes between the front and back bulb-shaped pieces, at the bottom. This will give you a design of the screw part of the bulb being the back of the chair and the bulb part being the seat of the chair. Stitch the triangles into place before sewing around the screw part of the bulb.

Leave a small section open for stuffing. Pour in mini styrene balls or even rice. Stitch shut. Settle the Barbie doll into the chair. Move her back and forth on the seat. This forces the stuffing up into the back and makes a nice concave area as the seat. This design is a beanbag-type chair that works great for other dolls as well - just make it larger for big dolls.

Blow up a small balloon and tie. Dip lightweight string in starch and wrap it around the balloon. Continue wrapping, allowing to dry, then wrapping more, until the balloon is covered in string. The starch will harden the string as it dries. When completely dry use a pin to pop the interior balloon. Cut a large oval shape from one side of the string and remove the popped balloon. Use elasticized string to attach the "chair" to a ceiling in the dollhouse. Simply set the doll in the opening and she has a unique hanging corner chair. A cushion can be made for the string chair by simply sewing two small circles of fabric together and stuffing with cotton or foam. The chair can be painted any color with most any type of paint.

Use deli trays to make any number of furniture and accessory pieces. A birthday cake lid, for instance, makes a fabulous pool. Whether the lid is small, large, round or rectangular, it will make a perfect pool. Glue small stools, made of plastic and found at craft stores, into the interior corners of the pool. Glue small plastic ladders to the sides for doll entry. Plastic cups that hold pudding or applesauce make perfect ourdoor furniture. Glue the lids or bowls on tripods, or cover with sewn plastic covers.

You can make a deck to surround the pool out of popsicle sticks. Glue the sticks onto the top edge, at one end of the stick. The stick should point outwards. Now glue another stick to the end of the first stick. The first stick will form the deck board while the second stick forms the legs of the deck. Continue gluing the sticks until the pool is surrounded. Make sure to leave a small place for an entry way. Glue a set of wooden craft steps into the entry way to complete the deck.

A wicker basket makes an impressive bed for a larger doll. Choose a wicker basket that's deep enough to hold the doll. Make a pillow with lace for the mattress. Purchase wooden rockers to mount the bed, leave bed sitting right on the floor, or use tiny empty spools for legs. Instead of wicker baskets you can also use plastic storage containers.

The small, square plastic storage containers are perfect for a vanity chair. Use the tiniest ones for Barbie-size dolls and larger ones for bigger dolls. Stitch a throw that's square on top and has a long ruffle all the way around. Now just turn the container upside-down, position the cover, and set the doll. The same can be done to make a sofa that sits against a wall. Glue two or three of the smallest containers together, make the throw for it, and place it against a wall.

Foam blocks can be used to make sofas, beds and more. Check at places that sell foam or order pre-cut pieces online. Use a long piece of block foam to make a bed. Be sure the foam block is long enough to hold the doll then cover the block in fabric. Fabric glue will make this job very easy. Now you can make sheets, blankets, and even pillows for the bed.

Instead of covering the entire foam piece with fabric you can also surround it, except for a tiny portion of the foam on top, with fabric-covered cardboard. This will give it a look of being framed-in and will be sturdier. Instead of covering the cardboard with cloth glue a laminated picture of dresser drawers to the cardboard for a drawers-under-bed design.

Small boxes for gifting jewelry are perfect for coffee tables, end tables, night stands and more. The lids make great counter top sections, drawers, and other things for the house. Use the technique of gluing pictures onto the boxes and lids to make fabulous designs like cupboards, vanities, stove, refrigerator, microwave and home decor.

Boxes that have four lids, two small and two large, make fantastic wardrobes. Cut the two small pieces off and use for pictures on the wall. With the remaining portion of the box cut magazine pictures out to decorate the box, or wrap it in cloth. Use tiny doll furniture hardware to close the wardrobe or make your own with small button and elastic thread. Inside, use a craft stick to make the clothes hanger rod. Cut it to size and glue it in place, making sure it's positioned low enough to accommodate the doll clothes hangers.

It's easy to make rugs for your dollhouse, too. Cut corduroy, denim, faux-fur or other selections of cloth to the size rug you need. Now use foam backing to keep the rugs in place. The foam backing can be found in the form of cabinet liner at most department stores. Cut it to shape and size then glue onto the back of the cloth pieces.

Make easy pictures for the walls by cutting out any design from a magazine and gluing it to a piece of cardboard. Laminate the picture to make it look even better. Use scrap-booking frames around the perimeter of the design. Decorate the frames with tiny faux jewels, faux fur, wallpaper, or shelf paper.

Accessories can be something as simple as a perfume bottle. If you've ever seen those tiny perfume sample bottles you know they make the perfect vase for flowers. Simply cut some tiny silk flower pieces to place in the "vase". And stickers can be used as everything from wallpaper embellishments to vase decorations. There are many ways to make your own doll furniture or accessories, and many things already in your house for making it. Try a few small pieces for practice then get busy creating new dollhouse home decor.

By Emma Salk - Born in Columbus, Ohio, Emma Salk has traveled the U.S. and parts of the world. She has visited nearly every state in America and now resides in scenic North Carolina. Emma Salk has been published, online, o...

Building a wooden doll house?
I want to build my daughters a large wooden doll house. When building the frame what is the best but CHEAPEST wood I can use? I want this to be sturdy. What is the best to attach the pieces? Nails? Wood glue? http://www.gelbrich.com/wood/dollhouse1.jpg Something basic like this. I'm NOT a builder.. lol. .. But I really want to try this. I have a lot of ideas just not really sure how to do it. Any tips would be great :) Thanks!

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Local artist puts vibrant wagging tongues, wet snouts to canvas - Bay News 9

20 May 2012 at 11:05pm What began two years ago as a friend asking a friend to paint a family pet for a Christmas gift turned into a small custom pet ... especially as a small business person," she said. "I like the idea of things that involve local community ...

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Brand your organization with corporate gift baskets and Christmas gift basket...

20 May 2012 at 5:57pm If there are, then go and see what people are saying about the website. You will have an idea about the quality of their corporate gift baskets and Christmas gift baskets, the time taken to deliver and the quality of customer service. As far as branding ...

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10 of the Most Profound Sentiments Ever Uttered on Community - io9.com

17 May 2012 at 11:34am ... a Christmas gift marked "Meaning of Christmas"] It's the first season of Lost on DVD. Pierce: That's the meaning of Christmas? Abed: No. It's a metaphor. It represents lack of pay-off . . . I get it. The meaning of Christmas is the idea that Christmas has meaning.

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Promotional Corporate Gift Basket Ideas - 1UP.COM

15 May 2012 at 1:24pm Never offer gifts within a bidding process, even if Christmas or some other holiday is near. They are often seen as bribes. Usually, gifts should never be given to a business if the business is still in negotiations along with you over an offer or contract.

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