Joystiquery
Joystiq Podcast 002 - Perfect for YOU edition (feat. MTV News' Stephen Totilo)
Off the Grid interviews Brian Reynolds of Big Huge Games
Ring of Death: An Xbox 360 story -- Part 3
Today's hottest game video: Hellboy trailer

News
Japanese software sales: week ending 02.18.07
Japanese release day highlights: 02.22.07
R-Type Delta hits Japanese PlayStation Store
ESRB takes notes from MPAA, recruits parents
Monster Hunter Portable 2nd off to a quick start in Japan
Graphing the perceived Wii drought by the numbers
Mercenaries 2 on Xbox 360 ... PC & PS2 (this time it's official)
Next Ratchet & Clank officially titled
GameCube gets vasectomy; no longer reproducing
Circuit City busts out the used games
Boom Boom Rocket preview
Nokia patent transforms stylus into joystick
In the distant future, Wing Commander Arena for Xbox Live Arcade
Vectorman of Vermillion: Spinball Oasis for Virtual Console
Xbox 360 IPTV to be shown at The Connected Home show in Europe
Xbox 360 Platinum Hits 'Round 2' whiffs on bargain knockout
Former EA prez joins Microsoft as strategic adviser

Rumors & Speculation
Analyst: Wii could plague 30% of U.S. homes
Is the industry betraying its games?
Rumorang: Warhawk downloadable, now multiplayer-only
Prince of Persia could be Disney's next 'Pirates' film franchise

Community & Culture
The other side of a disturbed teen's tale
The sexual predators! They're coming from inside the Xbox!
From Russia with love: massively multiplayer online drinking game
Owner of seven failed Xbox 360s speaks out

Joystiquery
Metareview: Sonic and the Secret Rings (Wii)
Joystiq review: Sam & Max - The Mole, the Mob, and the Meatball (PC)
Today's sneakiest game video: Frontlines - Fuel of War hidden tour

News
Microsoft: January Xbox 360 sales up 18%
Left Behind Games leaves behind money
Elite Beat Agents sequel is on (oh yes)
Major League Gaming signs distribution deal with Flame Ventures
New Super Paper Mario Wii screens (in our favorite ratio)
Wii outsells both 360 and PS3 in January despite shortages
How a car is scanned for Gran Turismo HD
Mouse on a mini bicycle could power Nintendo's Wii
Xbox 360 price drop at select UK retailers
Montreal QA specialist doubles as more developers come to town
FlOw, Q-Bert and a Ridge Racer demo coming this Thursday
Strong Q1 sales point to less cyclical gaming calendar
NPD: Lost Planet leads strong January game sales
EA resurrecting Wing Commander on Xbox 360?
Human Head rolls with Marc Ecko game division
No More Heroes to be most violentest Wii game. EVAR!
Telltale Games looking to develop for Xbox 360
(Wired) Xbox 360 Wireless Receiver hits retail
Gundam Musou HD promo movie now downloadable
Panel de Pon DS announced

Rumors & Speculation
Perrin Kaplan mentions Nintendo Wii 2.0 ... already?

Culture & Community
Trim the fat off PSP flash with Outa-Space homebrew
"Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis..."
Nintendo Wii mashed with YouTube = WiiTube
Wii + reitirement home = Wiitirement home
Unreleased but unforgotten systems
Barkley brings the jam in homebrew RPG demo

PS3 this, Wii that... whatever happened to the days when all you needed for a good time was a crappy computer and a copy of your favorite adventure game? Relive those days with a selection of music from LucasArts' brilliant Monkey Island series, performed on piano, mandolin, and live six-piece band (cool!)

Previous game music days (please excuse the two week gap)

LucasArts, longtime custodians of secrets pertaining to primate islands, have announced their intention to work with the timesplitting folks at Free Radical on a brand new game. Slated for next-generation consoles, the as yet undisclosed title will benefit from the combined efforts of two experienced studios. Peter Hirschmann of LucasArts labels the agreement as a good idea, since Free Radical "has always been about titles with great gameplay and innovative design." [Opposites attract quip here.]

With Raven Software spending most of their time reading comic books these days, it might not seem outlandish to suggest that the mystery game here could be a new entry in the Jedi Knight franchise -- to be more precise, Dark Forces 5: Jedi Knight 4: Jedi Outcast 3: Jedi Academy 2: Jedi Colon. Then again, it could be an entirely new IP. Just as well, since the only other idea we can muster is a first-person shooter starring a despondent Bobbin "Are you my mother?" Threadbare.

When he isn't busy dressing us down for bullying up on student plays, Ron Gilbert -- the lead designer behind adventure-game classics like Maniac Mansion and The Secret of Monkey Island -- apparently has lengthy chats with outlets like Gamasutra on what's missing in gaming today (the stories, stupid) and how to fix it (make his game). Yup, he talks a bit about that secret project he keeps going on about ... but, first the stories!

"I think there are a lot of people out there who are just not willing to play games that involve a lot of twitching and a lot of action. But if there was more of a slower-paced game like an adventure game, or a kind of light role-playing game, I think these people would be a lot more interested ..."

A light role-playing game, eh? Wonder what he meant by that ... we may never know. Or maybe he'll spill the beans on the next page.

"The thing I'm trying to do with the game right now is kind of meld it with an RPG. So what you've got is the kind of large world exploration that you have in an RPG that you don't really have with an adventure game. You've got the action, some light combat, you know, Diablo-style combat going on with it, but it is also infused with really good adventure-game-style puzzles and adventure-style sensibilities to the storytelling."

Diablo Lite with a funny adventure-game story and goofy adventure-game puzzles? We are so there.