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Electronic Arts CEO: Creativity Can Pay Off, But We're Still Not Sure About Publishing Brutal Legend

Nathan Grayson — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 20:31:27 -0500

EA has certainly taken a turn for the less-reviled as of late -- a sudden change that can be attributed to risk-taking, trouble-making CEO John Riccitiello. However, even creative greats like Picasso, De Vinci, and Batman were only human, and all humans have breaking points. For Riccitiello, that point was seemingly first-person run 'n' rebel Mirror's Edge.

"I was totally convinced that game needed to be third-person and not first-person, because I wanted to see Faith," Riccitiello said.

“I was really wrong about the third-person thing,” he continued, citing the highly anticipated title's finished form.

But even with titles like Mirror's Edge under his belt, Riccitiello's heart is clad in a business suit, and some "creative risks" -- like Tim Schafer-Jack Black collaboration Brutal Legend -- give him palpitations (the bad kind; not the blood-pumping, required-to-survive kind).

"I have seen it," Riccitiello replied when asked if EA has considered publishing Brutal Legend. "I am well aware of what the game is. It’s a very significant creative risk."

"Sometimes significant creative risks end up being some of the world’s best products. Spore was also a significant creative risk. So was The Sims. Portal, BioShock. But so was [the relatively poor-selling, high quality Tim Schafer title] Grim Fandango."

That's, uh, pretty hard to mistake for a "Yes."

We Love the Weighted Companion Cube Case, Not Sure If It Loves Us Back

Tom Edwards — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 20:21:57 -0500

Scott Dacus is such a big fan of Portal his ringtone is the game’s theme song, “Still Alive.” However, an even bigger fan of the game commissioned Scott to build this case as a gift for his wife. We think this man is a genius or headed for divorce court—either way, he’s our new hero!

Hit the jump for an up-close look at a case which will never threaten to stab you, and in fact cannot speak.

Game Theory: The Sundance of Gaming

Thomas McDonald — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 12:15:52 -0500

The Independent Games Festival is chock-full of inventive indie fare.

The Orange Box

Will Smith — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:11:37 -0600

Finishing The Orange Box left us in a state of shock. It wasn’t
Half-Life 2: Episode 2’s requisite cliffhanger ending that floored us;
rather, it was the realization that Episode 2 is the low point of the
entire Orange Box package. Portal and Team Fortress 2 completely
eclipse what Valve bills as the “centerpiece” of the bundle.

Click Read More for more.

No BS Podcast #38: The Hard Drive Edition

Maximum PC Staff — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 18:00:13 -0500

In this weeks episode of the Maximum PC Podcast, the gang talks about hard drives, solid state drives, and Intel's X38 chipset

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