Hideo Kojima’s masterpiece is most likely the reason you bought a PS3, and for good reason. Like its predecessors, Metal Gear Solid 4 bends the rules of video game convention to become a landmark for its generation of gaming, and like its predecessors, it deserves a space on your shelf.
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By 2002, the Mortal Kombat series had become a running gag of the fighting game world. The last gamers had seen of the series was an awful port of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and the horrific action game Mortal Kombat Special Forces. Now granted, the fighting game scene was in a slump, but even then there were still quality titles such as Capcom vs SNK 2, King of Fighters, and Dead of Alive 3. Midway knew that they if Mortal Kombat was once again going to be relevant, they would have to go back to the drawing board, and they did just that with Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance.
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Recently we heard that there would be a new staction figure line and a new animated series for Thundercats. Well now we know what came of the action figure line. I did not see this coming, but Bandai has been named the global toy licensee of the new Thundercats series.
I was truly expecting Mattel to get this license and for the line to be in scale with their DC and MOTU offerings. Bandai’s best effort is Power Rangers and Ben10, which is not saying much. Bandai is really going to have to step their game up to get collectors to sign on to this line, myself included.

Press release after the jump.
[Via PoeGhostal]
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Warner Bros has announced they plan to relaunch Thundercats with a new animated series set to debut on Cartoon Network. A date has not been announced, but it will be co-produced by Warner Bros Animated and Studio4°C in Japan.

A copy of the press release follows, but it really doesn’t say much outside of WB’s attempt to get Thundercats going again after decades of rumors and false starts. Oh, and we also have this massive teaser image of Lion-O. Thats pretty cool right?

So if you were to look into the Eye of Thundera and were given sight beyond sight, what would you want to see in a new Thundercats show?
For me personally, I hope WB calls up Mattel and gets the Four Horsemen to do the action figure line.
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Since Iron Man returns to theaters this week, this week’s $20 GOTW will take a look back at one of old shellhead’s finest moments. A mysterious orb threatens all life on both the Marvel and Capcom universes, so Ruby Heart unites heroes from the two universes in order to help save it. However, fights keep breaking out, and now that teams are made up of three, things are more chaotic than ever. Marvel Vs Capcom 2 would be the last game Capcom did utilizing the Marvel license, and they decided to go out with a bang. MVC 2 features Iron Man, his buddy War Machine, and several of his fellow Avengers as part of the 50+ fighters on hand.
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Since the alphabet is the building block of our language, the Powet Alphabet is the building block of what makes us geeks.

What is this composite, amalgamated entity? If you’re a fan of anything Science Fiction, Science Fantasy, or generally geek, you’ve seen movies and/or TV shows by at least one of these three gentlemen — if not all three — even if you don’t know their names. Of the many things they have in common, the most obvious (and least important) is that all of their names start with “J”. I frequently can’t think of one without thinking of the other two. Together they are like some triune entity, the three faces of a Geek (not “Greek”) god.

Let’s explore their credentials together.

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I’m one of the many who believe that video games not only can be a form of art, they can also be a literary medium. Want proof? Look no further than Silent Hill 2’s gripping narrative and try to tell me that that’s not on par with a Steven King or Clive Barker. Check out Ico’s emotionally moving story. Even Bungie’s Halo and Bioware’s Mass Effect have introduced players to science fiction universes on scale with a Star Wars or Battlestar Galatica. However, if gaming is to progress as an entertainment medium, it’s not enough to present an quirky art style or a deep plot. Gaming has to be able to explore taboo and even controversial subjects just like books, movies, and television shows do, even if they may get somewhat offensive or politically incorrect (which is why I was disappointed when 6 Days in Fallujah ended up being indefinitely postponed, but that’s another story). Of course I’m not saying that a developer should go out and create ‘KKK Lynchin’ Heroes’, but if and when done correctly, video games can provide a light with which to look at social issues that continue to affect us today. Beyond Good and Evil could be considered a commentary on the role of the press and the distribution of information during times when civil freedoms are being challenged, and Metal Gear Solid 4’s storyline about private military corporations can be considered a look at military policy, particularly in the wake of the Blackwater scandal. However, few issues have been more hotly debated than that of violence in our schools, and no one moment in our history better exemplifies the issue than the Columbine Massacre.

For those of you who don’t know the story, on April 20th of 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, two troubled teens who had apparently been bullied during their years in high school went on a violent shooting spree, killing over a dozen students and teachers. The media, parents/teacher groups, clergymen, and opportunistic politicians, unable to fathom that two white boys from a wealthy suburban community bought about something that apparently is only supposed to happen in the ghetto or a backwoods rural area (and with rumors of a so-called ‘trenchcoat mafia’ shut down), immediately set about finding things to blame the tragedy on. “It was because of easy access to guns!” “It was because gun control laws are too strict!” “It was Marylin Manson!” “It was violent video games!” “It was Doom!” “It was because of the evil liberals taking prayer out of schools!” “Where were the parents at?” “Why didn’t anyone see the warning signs?” With all the fuss in a search for a scapegoat, few even considered to take a look at the events in their lives that might have led up to the shooting. Enter independent developer Danny Ledonne. Using the program RPG Maker 2000, he created a game which places characters in the role of the shooters. By researching thousands of pages of news articles about the massacre, home videos the two killers made, and video news reports, Ledonne’s product gives an insight and paints a picture suggesting why such a tragedy occurred.

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The aughts are over with 2009. Did we make the best of it? Did our predictions for the year turn out the way we hoped back in our inaugural Powetcast? Regardless, what were the best and worst entertainment items of the year? Find out in this special two-part season finale of the Powetcast!

Direct Link: Powetcast Episode 25: Aught to Enjoy

Direct Link: Powetcast Episode 25.5: The Coolest Beans of 2009

Audio Netcast Details
Subscribe to the Powetcast on iTunes

(What were your favorite games, comics, tv, movies, and toys from 2009? Leave your comment below!)

Show notes after the jump!

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