One of the opening night parties at Austin GDC was held at the Arthouse, which is currently housing an exhibit of gaming related art that ranges from 8-bit inspired to some truly abstract pieces. Reset/Play is showing in Austin through November 2nd, and is well worth a visit. Eddo Stern's Best...Flame War...Ever... (King of Bards vs. Squire Rex, June 2004) is worth the trip alone. It recreates an online flame war between two EverQuest gamers with sound and animation, and runs for about 14 minutes. Truly amazing.

Another impressive piece in the exhibit is Andrew Galloway's How to Play World of Warcraft, which features two huge video images showing closeups of the mouse and keyboard of a gamer, and those are flanked by huge blowup images of ASCII text guides for the game. You can see both of these pieces in the gallery below, or read more about it at the Arthouse main page.

[Much thanks to Amaze Entertainment's Rodney Gibbs and SXSW's Linday Muse for the invitation]

It seems that, these days, the video game industry doesn't place much of a premium on exploration for exploration's sake. Oh sure, you can get an achievement or trophy for uncovering enough of a map, but it seems that's detracted from the simpler joy of just finding what you can find.

A new web project, "Traveling Without Moving," doesn't see things that way. It's looking for pictures by gamers from games, a collaborative travelogue of images from every corner of the virtual world. If you need examples, the project's creator has begun documenting his own travels here.

Yes, it's in its infancy and yes, it may be that some of you can't make the distinction between meaningful photo and screenshot. But if Traveling Without Moving works the way it's intended, you might find yourself once again combing the digital hillsides for little more than the satisfaction of having been there.

Taito has released a very official-sounding statement, charging Mr. Stanley and the exhibitors of the controversial Space Invaders art installation, featuring a simulated attack on the World Trade Center, with unauthorized use of its intellectual property:

"Taito Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Square Enix Co., Ltd., today stated unequivocally that the 'Invaders!' installation by Douglas Edric Stanley and displayed at the Games Convention held in Leipzig, Germany was produced entirely without Taito's knowledge and that the use of the world-famous Space Invaders content was wholly unauthorized. The 'Space Invaders: Die Jubiläumsshow!' ('Space Invaders: the Anniversary Show') exhibition of the Computer Game Museum Berlin hosting the installation was likewise planned and presented without Taito's knowledge and authorization.

"Taito is seriously considering all available options -- including legal actions against the infringer and, if necessary, the Games Convention exhibitor involved -- in order to end this unauthorized and impermissible misuse of the Space Invaders content and to protect Taito's intellectual properties."

An art installation that features Space Invaders aliens attacking an image of the World Trade Center is beginning to draw ire from the mainstream media. Kotaku was the first site to call attention to the exhibit, which was part of a larger tribute to the classic game's 30th anniversary at the Leipzig Games Convention. A Games Convention press release calls the installation an "an articulated and critical commentary about the current war strategy" and "a social tale that can be related to historical tales without losing its poetic power." The New York Daily News ran with a decidedly different take, though, calling the exhibit a "disgrace" in one headline and featuring outraged reactions from families of 9/11 attack victims, who called the game "distasteful" and "disgusting."

The story has been slowly leaking into the mainstream from there. News wire UPI basically echoed the Post piece, while Fox News posted a surprisingly balanced take on the controversy. International wire AFP's story, meanwhile, doesn't seem to see anything wrong with the exhibit at all. So is this piece a triumph or a travesty? Watch the video and decide for yourself.

Update: Taito just dropped a very serious statement into our inbox. Read it here.

Last night was the opening night shindig for the latest i am 8-bit show, and it was by far their biggest event yet. We arrived early as part of a press event to mill around and quietly take photos, but by 9PM the place was packed with people checking out the art, listening to the whomping sounds of Computer Jay, DJ R-Rated, and Leeni (check her out in the Pac-Man dress, along with her 8-bit tattoo). There was a massive line of people outside waiting to get in, and it had turned into the hottest ticket on Hollywood Blvd. Which, yes, is actually saying something.

They had turned the entire storefront of the World of Wonder (didn't they used to make Teddy Ruxpin?) into a huge display, featuring giant Piranha Plants from Super Mario Bros., and they had an old-school setup where you could play games ranging from an NES to a full-sized arcade cabinet, right there on full display to everyone passing by. It probably didn't hurt that some of the Nerdcore calendar girls took up residence here later and played Game Boys and quarter-eaters in their underwear.

Read more after the break, and be sure to take a spin through the huge gallery which shows off the more than 200 pieces in the show, and how crazy the whole scene became.

One of the most overlooked aspects of E3 is a chance to look at the Into the Pixel selections from each year. These are huge pieces of art inspired by and created for different video games. They often feature much deeper looks into the games they represent, just check out this piece from Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood as an example.

Our favorites are probably the simple yet fun Mokeskine-notebook from Rayman Raving Rabbids, or the Little Big Planet-esque Puzzle World Twilight landscape painting. Check out our gallery below of images from the 2007 and 2008 shows and pick out your favorite. There's some really good desktop wallpaper fodder in there if you click the high rez button.

For more Into the Pixel art, check out the galleries on their site. If you're in the Los Angeles area, the exhibition will be open to the public during this year's E for All, from October 3rd through the 5th.

Diablo 3 looks to be many things, but if early footage is to be believed, dark is not one of them. It's an observation that's incurred the ire of thousands of armchair heroes expecting to return to the gritty countryside seen in previous games instead of the more colorful landscapes shown during the game's recent unveiling.

Speaking to MTV Multiplayer, lead producer Keith Lee explained the game's artistic direction as emphasizing contrast, while comparing the game's visual style to Lord of the Rings. To quote Lee, "color is your friend." We guess that's true ... except if you happen to be colorblind (hey, the story might be good too!). Even so -- judging by the players who've begun to gather pitchforks in hand en masse outside the Blizzard gates -- if we were Lee, we'd be sneaking out through the back.

We know there are probably one too many prerequisites for you to find this story truly interesting -- but if you're one of those rare DS Lite owners who recently purchased Guitar Hero: On Tour, and is also into homebrew applications for the handheld, and also fancies themselves a modern day Botticelli, then there's a new homebrew painting application with some surprising peripheral functionality that the four of you should really consider picking up.

The app in question is BassAceGold's UAPaint (v1.02), which allows the use of the On Tour guitar grip buttons for easily accessible short cuts to important tools, streamlining the digital painting process. It's a really sleek setup -- unfortunately, we're not entirely convinced that DS doodlers really need faster, more powerful methods of etching poorly-rendered genitalia into their luminescent screens.

38 Studios has added a seasoned artist to its ranks, announcing the appointment of Thom Ang as the company's new director of art. In his new role, Ang will oversee the art management and direction of 38 Studios' projects, including "Copernicus," the outfit's ever-mysterious MMO undertaking.

A 15-year digital art and illustration vet, Ang joins the Curt Schilling-founded developer from THQ, where he handled things both artsy and fartsy for more that 25 of the company's titles. In addition, he also worked on TV shows such as The X-Files, and spent time in the trenches at EA Los Angeles handing art and team management for the Medal of Honor franchise. We're still in the dark as to what the studio is up to with Copernicus, though it's good to know the company has someone on board with the chops to help steer the ship down a more artistic path.

A collage of video games from Flickr user bobfoldsfive. In his words, "This here is a list of video games that I have some attachment to in some way or another. May not be the most highly rated games, but they are games that I've played and have influenced me in some way." While we're busy making our own collages, check out the highlights for today:

Joystiquery
Joystiq hands-on: Left 4 Dead, round 2
Joystiq hands-on: Madden NFL 09
Law of the Game on Joystiq: No Freedom of Trash Talk
Poll: What's Blizzard's big WWI announcement?
Readers pick best webcomic: The Gabriel Method
Scared stiff: Why should we care about Silent Hill: Homecoming?
Wii Fanboy Weekly: June 19 - June 25

News
Super Street Fighter II XBLA beta begins today
First screens of Major Minor's Majestic March look ... Parappa-esque
Too Human video serves up co-op 'serving'
Squint at a new Duke Nukem Forever screenshot
Nintendo, Starlight partner to help sick kids
Nintendo announces new Wario Land for Wii, Kirby for DS
Limbo of the Lost developers say they were unaware of Oblivion rip-off
We can't resist new Fallout 3 screens
GTA's Hot Coffee settlement draws minimal response
Capcom licenses Unreal engine for Euro-developed title
PSP firmware 4.01 is here to fix 4.00
1Up talks Gears of War 2 multiplayer with Bleszinski
New Gears of War 2 screens and art emerge
'I am Murloc' track creeping onto Guitar Hero 3 tomorrow
Xenogears, Einhänder arrive on Japanese PSN
Microsoft brings Chobot, 'IGN Strategize' to XBL
EA: Byron regulations may delay games for UK
Check out this Gears of War 2 leaked beta footage
Conn. State Sen. Slossberg wants confirmation of GTA IV rape scene
Blood Bowl trailer channels Madden + Warcraft

Rumors & Speculation
Rumor: In-game XMB features have been revealed
More alleged PS3 profile pics posted
Rumor: PlayStation phone's future in flux
Analyst: Activision a better investment than EA

Culture & Community
Use your 360 to stream Netflix
NINJA GAIDEN 2 presents: Zero Punctuation's MGS4 review
Daily Show talks campaign games

The artist known as Pixeloo delivers once again with his "real" rendition of Grand Theft Auto IV antihero Niko Bellic. Thankfully, Niko's character design is that of a standard human, so we don't get the abomination of Pixeloo's not-safe-for-sanity "Real Mario."

The artist says he did the piece for Official Playstation Magazine UK's latest issue. Another impressive piece by Pixeloo, and unlike Real Mario, the Real Niko won't cause us to wake up screaming for two weeks and shudder every time we even think about the portly plumber.

We know what you're thinking, and this isn't it. Rather than being an awesome Jet Set Radio-style game where the Wii Remote functions as a spraycan, this is actually an equally awesome art project. A student at Bauhaus University in Germany modded a Wii-mote, putting the waggle-happy components in a spraycan for an interactive graffiti project.

According to SlashGear (because we don't speak German), the Wii Spray device allows users to virtually spray-paint walls -- presumably using some kind of sorcery. Neato, but we'd still like Jet Set Wii-dio, please (and we even figured out a name for it!).

[Via Engadget]

Don your Victorian regalia, our fanciful readers, and you may earn your place in the annals of gaming history by appearing in Lionhead's much anticipated RPG, Fable 2. Just throw on that ratty old frock coat and strike your most Quixotic pose in front of a camera being operated by a tight-lipped, non-judgmental friend. Save the resulting blackmail image as a Ye Olde JPEG, send it in to Lionhead's art department, and you could serve as a model for one of the many paintings strewn across the interiors of Albion's exotic homes.

It's a neat way to get your mug in what will no doubt be one of this year's blockbuster titles -- though you've only got until next Wednesday to submit your best Pimpernel-esque portrait. We trust you can carve out some time between the big quail hunt and the late night ether frolic to read the rules and regulations before you commit your extravagant visage to film.

Still need insipiration? Look no further than the above image of Joystiq's own Justin McElroy. If there's a man who better embodies the unflappable spirit of a colonial gentleman, we have yet to meet him.

It's been a very long day, so we won't fault you if you missed any of these posts ... so long as you read through them now, of course. Eastern-European reader Ilya sent us word of this "Slavic MarioCar" (more images here). Check out the highlights for today:

Xbox 360 Spring Showcase (screenshot roundup)
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts due in November
New MS leak shows Too Human co-op
Too Human dated August 19 for North America, Aug. 29 for Europe
Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise adds camera, co-op, September release
Penny Arcade Adventures hitting XBLA on May 21
See Gears of War 2, Too Human, Viva Piñata 2, Banjo-Kazooie 3 in new video
See tons of new Fable 2 screens
Too many Too Human screens (and a video!)
New Ninja Gaiden II screens are bloody, marvelous
Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise screens
Gears of War 2 'Assault' screens, plus weapon-specific executions announced

EA Spring Break 2008
Joystiq hands-on: Battlefield Heroes
Joystiq hands-on: Left 4 Dead
Joystiq hands-on: Skate It

Joystiquery
An evening with Uwe Boll's Postal
Joystiq interview: Holy crap! Telltale talks Strong Bad
Massively Week in Review: May 6-12, 2008
Meet the Team: Ross Miller
The best of WoW Insider: May 6-13, 2008
Wii Fanboy reviews the WiiWare launch lineup

News
European WiiWare launch lineup
Vigil Games details Warhammer 40K MMO
LostWinds sequel already in the works
See first vids of Platinum's MadWorld and Bayonetta
Fable 2 'content complete,' 3 more Fables planned, Danish site reports
Metal Gear Solid 4 intro video sneaks out
SOE president sees more MMOs on PS3
Lego Indiana Jones demo now available for PC
Kojima: Altair costume unlockable in MGS4
Alone in the Dark shows off driving gameplay
EA records $454 million loss, despite sales of $3.6 billion in fiscal 2008
Mock TV downloads spotted in US PS3 ad
Nintendo sells 6 million Wii units in Japan

Rumors & Speculation
Rumor: Sony may update PS3 firmware for GTA IV problems
Analyst: US software sales up 70% in April
Kojima's next project hinted at during MGS4 press event
Rumor: 360 slimming down in 2009

Culture & Community
Mario spotted in new Banjo-Kazooie trailer

We're of the sound opinion that not enough games let you control feeble old women on the verge of death. Thankfully, here comes The Graveyard, an art game by IGF-winning developer Tale of Tales, which places players in the role of an elderly woman visiting a cemetery.

The game is incredibly short and simple, but gorgeously rendered, and features a somber, original song as an interlude to the "gameplay." The free version is only a trial, and you can pay a measly five dollars USD for the full game. The only difference? In the full game the old woman may die.

[Via TIGSource]