[Gamasutra highlights a week's worth of alternative video gaming news, media, and other curiosities from sister blog GameSetWatch, as written by editor Eric Caoili.]
This round-up brings news on Milk director Gus Van Sant co-writing a screenplay on the suicides of game designer Theresa Duncan and Rockstar artist Jeremy Blake, a rare NES game that sold for $20,100, and the passing of BoingBoing's alternative/indie gaming blog Offworld.
Other highlights include a look at Electronic Arts's cancelled revivals for the
Mutant League and
Road Rash series, and a Beatles chiptune tribute album released on John Lennon's birthday.
This past week's top stories:
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EA's Cancelled Mutant League, Road Rash Projects Unearthed
"
Mutant League Resurrection [was] a 3D title that was in development at EA Chicago in 2005 before it was cancelled due to lack of funding. It looks like Resurrection was pitched as a multi-sport title, as you can see the football field transform into a hockey rink..."
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8-Bit Operators Release Full Beatles Chiptune Tribute Album
"In honor of John Lennon's birthday, 8-Bit Operators today released all of the tracks for Wanna Hld Yr Handheld, Vol. 1, its 8-bit compilation of Beatles covers. The group, which is also responsible for the chiptune Kraftwerk tribute, previewed several songs from the album last month, but you can now stream all of the covers for free."
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Gus Van Sant, Bret Easton Ellis Writing Script On Game Designer's Suicide
"Director Gus Van Sant (Milk, Good Will Hunting) and author Bret Easton Ellis (American Psycho) have teamed up to write a screenplay for a film adaptation for "The Golden Suicides", Vanity Fair's article on the double suicide of game designer Theresa Duncan and her boyfriend, artist Jeremy Blake, in July 2007."
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'Most Expensive Game Of All Time' Sold For $20,100
"Unlike the highly coveted Nintendo World Championships carts and Sony's sure-to-be luxury priced PS4, the Nintendo Campus Challenge cart could be a one-of-a-kind item. Originally created by Nintendo for a 1991 video game tournament that visited 58 college campuses, the cartridge contains competition versions of
Super Mario Bros. 3, Pin-Bot, and
Dr. Mario..."
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Reports Of Offworld's Death (Sorta?) Exaggerated
"Not even a year since after site was launched, Offworld, BoingBoing's consistently interesting alternative/indie gaming blog, was declared dead by many of its fans. Well, on Twitter at least."
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Butterfinger, Seth Green Running 'Dude, Where's My Bar?' ARG
"Robot Chicken co-creator and producer Seth Green has teamed up with candy maker Nestle for a very weird promotion: a 'Dude, Where's My Butterfinger Bar?' alternate reality game."
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SNK Releasing Massive Neo Geo Online Collections
"After years of bundling its Neo Geo games and selling them in anthologies for current and less expensive consoles, SNK Playmore is aggregating those sets and selling them in even bigger batches for the PlayStation 2 in Japan."
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Warren Buffett: Ukulele Hero Art Auctioned Off
"Back in May, multi-billionaire Warren Buffett took a break from his business/investment work to give ukulele lessons to members of Girls. Inc of Omaha. ... Local paper Omaha World-Herald picked up on the story, and editorial cartoonist Jeff Koterba mocked up a Ukulele Hero: The Warren Buffett Edition box with the world's second richest man on the cover."
