VIDEO GAMES

10 Video Game Consoles That Were Big Disappointments

The history of video gaming is littered with consoles that didn't live up to the hype. Here are 10 of them.

The Legend of the Lost Atari E.T. Games

In 1983, the gaming company Atari decided to capitalize on the recent success of the hit movie, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Grossing a total of $359 million in North America alone by the end of its theatrical run, the exciting, kid-friendly adventure seem

How Playing Tetris Could Help Fix A Lazy Eye

One in 50 children are born with a condition called amblyopia, in which the vision in one eye fails to develop properly, resulting in what's commonly called a lazy eye. If left untreated, amblyopia can result in a loss of eyesight, which is why doctors tr

The Secret Origins of 11 Famous Video Games

Gaming has its fair share of wacky origin stories. Check out some of the best, from 'Super Mario Bros.' to 'Street Fighter II.'

The Best Video Game Consoles (of 1990)

11 Tasty Geek Pizzas

Elevensanity continues! Next up on our lists of 11 for the 11th, we'll whet your appetite with a lunchtime list.

14 Hand-Painted Geeky Shoe Designs

While plenty of people have geeky tee shirts, nerdy shoes are far less common—but shoes are great because, unlike tees, you can wear them day in and day out if you so please. If you’re ready to put your best geek foot forward, here are a few great shoe de

How to Win at Pac-Man

Classic Atari 2600 Video Games

A Brief History of SimCity

With a new SimCity coming soon, let's look back at the Sim franchise.

Super Mario Bros. in 5 Minutes

In late 2011, Andrew Gardikis set a record for a "speed run" on <em>Super Mario Bros.</em> -- this means he played through the entire game as quickly as possible (yes, he used the warp tubes). For that 2011 run, Gardikis calculated his time at 4:58.898,

The Diabolical Motivations of 11 Video Game Villains

In video games, every violent gang and alien race in the known universe (this one and parallel) cannot stand human civilization. Have you ever wondered why, though?

12 Things You Might Not Know About World of Warcraft

Last month, Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft turned 8—which means that kids who started playing it when they were in middle school are now graduating from college. (Excluding the serious players, who will probably need a couple of extra years to

10 Things You Might Not Know About Atari

Wikimedia Commons Forty years ago, on November 29, 1972, a startup called Atari announced the release of Pong, a coin operated “video game.” The company’s name was taken from the ancient Japanese board game Go, and vaguely translates as “to hit the mark.

Very Rare Air Raid Atari Cartridge Found

Back in 2010, I wrote a story about some very rare and very expensive video games. Thanks to that article, Tanner Sandlin of Austin, Texas, realized he had one of only a handful of known copies of the Atari game, Air Raid. Normally the cartridge sells f

How Did the Game Genie Work?

The Game Genie was the technological holy grail of my Nintendo-playing childhood. Here was a device that would let me play Super Mario Bros. with infinite lives, or get infinite rockets in Metroid. Here's exactly how it worked, and how people are still us

72 Scenes from the Portland Retro Gaming Expo, 2012

On September 30, I spent a geektastic day at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo. I arrived early and got a look at many booths before they opened (later, they would be swarmed by thousands of attendees). For much of the day I was one of several referees for

Did Blowing into Nintendo Cartridges Really Help?

When I was a kid with a Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), sometimes my games wouldn't load. But I, like all kids, knew the secret: take out the game cartridge, blow on the contacts, and put it back in. And it seemed to work. (When it failed, I'd ju

How 13 Classic Video Games Got Their Names

How they got their names, and what they were almost called.

Will the Real "Super Mario Bros. 2" Please Stand Up?

This week, Nintendo released "New" Super Mario Bros. 2. But "Old" Super Mario Bros. 2 isn't what you think it is. Here's the odd story of how Nintendo crammed Mario into places he was never meant to be. Super Mario Bros. 1

18 Independent Artists at Comic Con 2012

Back in 2010, we introduced you to some of the many talented artists at the San Diego Comic Con. So how have things changed in the last two years? For one thing, there are even more talented artists setting up shop at the convention these days. Here are a

10 Envy-inducing Video Game Bathrooms

The stereotype of the serious video gamer living in his parent's basement, sitting in the dark covered in Cheeto dust only covers a small portion of gamers. Many have grown up with video games and eventually bought their own homes. Owning a home means you

A Brief History of Console Video Games

In the first 30 seconds, this video takes us from Pong through a series of 1970s and early 1980s arcade games, then into NES versions of The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros. In the remaining two and a half minutes, we're treated to a wild ride of bl

Ten Tetris Treats

Some people play with their food, while others make a game out of cooking -literally! Tetris is great for all kinds of food preparation because it's simple, recognizable, colorful, popular, and fun. Some of these you can try out yourself! 1. Block

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