As someone who has been to bat for several Kickstarter projects lately, I'm becoming concerned with what's going to happen on the other end. After all this community support, will it be back to business as usual when the products hit the shelves? Will all this "fan outreach" end when they start worrying about maximizing their sales?

How will I feel when the games that I've not only helped fund, but--like many of you, have also promoted heavily with every social media tool at my disposal--how will I feel if those games end up on the shelf with the same kind of closed-source, DRM-encrusted, shrinkwrap-licensed bullshit that plagues the rest of the industry?

After some preliminary research, I've found that while most of the big game projects at least promise a DRM free version (at least as a limited option to backers), there are few promises that they will *exclusively* offer DRM free versions.

Let's consider how some of the Kickstarters I've supported are handling these issues:

I'm back this week with Lori Ann and Corey Cole, the wizards behind the Quest for Glory series. In this episode, they discuss games 2-4 in the series, including all the behind-the-scenes shenanigans at Sierra On-Line. It's required listening for all fans of the franchise. On a related note, their Hero U: Rogue to Redemption Kickstarter has been successfully funded along with Dave Marsh's Shadowgate. I'm sure both teams are celebrating quite heavily right now! I wish them all good luck making the games of their dreams without having to worry about some publisher's demands.

Download the mp4 here.

Street Fighter III 3rd StrikeStreet Fighter III 3rd Strike
Street Fighter Alpha 3
Marvel vs Capcom
Capcom vs SNK

I finished my last post my saying I would have a look at the 2d fighting games that Capcom put out for the Dreamcast so here we are. Fighting games then - they have been around for some time - I can remember Karate Champ in the arcades with it's 2 joystick control and it was a game I steered clear of after a few tries - my money wasn't going far and a kid on a budget had to be selective back in the day - I can remember watching quite a few games though. It's a genre I've always been in two minds about - I've been like a moth to a flame really. They attract me - but my level of skill is such that I get frustrated very quickly. I read reviewers laughing at the simplicity with which they can dispatch CPU controlled characters at the highest difficulty setting but I struggle at the default difficulty. I guess I'm too predictable - when I find a few moves I can execute I tend to stick to them and fighting game AI seems to be able to deal with this approach quite easily. Even a game as old as Street Fighter II Turbo on the SNES seems to be able to figure me out pretty quickly.

Buggy Boy on the C64 is pretty good, there are some excellent ports on the Atari ST and the Amiga as well but back in the day I played the C64 version a lot. Actually played my little Buggy Boy demo tape off the cover of a games magazine with just the off-road track the most. Didn't play the other tracks that much actually. Read more below...

Hi, guys! Welcome back. This is the second segment of my gargantuan interview with QFG designers Lori Ann and Corey Cole. We chat here about their backgrounds, the first QFG game (Hero's Quest), and some thoughts about good puzzle design.

Download the mp4 here.

My PlayStation VitaIt's a busy time for the Sony PlayStation Vita handheld. Due for release within a week at fine retailers everywhere, our latest book, My PlayStation Vita, is available for immediate pre-order at a great low price (Amazon is only $15.93, for instance, for the paperback, and $9.99 for the Kindle version!). You can use Amazon's look inside feature to get an idea of the great content, or download a PDF of Chapter 5 and the Index, direct from publisher Que. You can think of My PlayStation Vita as the Vita's missing manual, and your friendly guide to all of the powerful handheld's hardware features, apps, games, and overall capabilities.

In addition, today, Sony has brought the best deal in gaming, PlayStation Plus, to Vita owners. For a low monthly, quarterly, or yearly price (which is less than the price of a single game!), PlayStation Plus not only gives you regular discounts on games and game content, but also a selection of free games every month. The best part is these are often full blown retail games or AAA downloadable titles. The first batch of freebies are none other than: Uncharted Golden Abyss, Gravity Rush, Wipeout 2048, Jet Set Radio, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Mutant Blobs Attack. All of those amazing games and more each month are yours to keep and play as much as you want as long as you're a current PlayStation Plus member. This is all in addition to similar freebies you get for the PlayStation 3. Best deal in gaming indeed... Finally, if you don't already have a Vita, there are some nice bundles available, and Sony has indicated that a particularly intriguing offer is coming Black Friday: $199.99 for your choice of system and game bundle. Can't beat that!

So, to sum up, check out the book, then buy the book, and then take advantage of all the great deals and get to playing and tapping into the full potential of the Vita. If you're a fan of great gaming and amazing technology, you won't be sorry!

A demonstration of a hardware compatible Gameboy Advance SP system that has the capabilities to run real GBA game cards as well as run files from an SD-card. The screen is much brighter and of a higher quality thn the original GBA-SP's screen and they seem to have used the exact same plastic molds as the original. Read more below...