Alice: Madness Returns @ wired.com

Madness Returns - Wired Front Page

Wired.com writer Chris Kohler did an interview with myself and RJ Berg where we talked about Alice: Madness Returns. From the article:

Wired.com: Since this will probably be many people’s first experience, I’m guessing you’re crafting the game in such a way that you don’t need to have played the original to enjoy it.

McGee: Yeah, but there’s a definite need for us to honor and answer to the existing audience, people who’ve been loyal fans to the property over the years. We’ve done our best to blend together into the story elements from the first game. This is a natural sequel, a narrative sequel to the first game. So we get back in there and people who know the first game are going to have a lot of reward in terms of seeing locations that they may have seen before, characters that they knew from the first game. But it’s certainly not a requirement, bringing this game to console for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 players, for them to have played the PC one.

Read the FULL INTERVIEW.

Alice as a cover girl

GamePro is going all-out and featuring our very own Alice on the cover of their September 2010 issue.  According to the article on their website, Will Herring will be discussing the early previews of the game during his 14-page feature.  Will visited with us in China recently to get the scoop straight from the Horse’s mouth.

In addition to the overview of Alice: Madness Returns, Will also delved into the complex world of tracking the evolution and permutations of the intellectual property of Lewis Carroll’s slightly-addled heroine from the original stories penned in 1865 on through the movie treatment at the hands of Tim Burton.

For us, it’s excellent to be able to talk about the game finally, and even better to listen to everyone else talking about it, too.  If you missed the original announcement this past Tuesday, EA released the first teaser – and we’re all in agreement that it does tease!  If there was any question about it’s impending rating, we’re hoping that clears it up.

Get ready to snatch up your copy at the end of July.

Finally, the official announcement

Today at the EA Showcase, American finally got to announce the name of the new game, Alice: Madness Returns, and also to show a spectacular 30-second teaser.

EA has now opened up the official Alice sequel website, plus there’s a Twitter account, thewhiterabbit you can follow, and we also now have a Facebook page.

How many more ways could we possibly get you the information as we start giving out more? With the embargo lifted, expect much, much more as we draw closer to some of the most exciting tidbits, like… a solid release date.

… but not yet.

Soon. SOON!

10th Anniversary Vorpal Blade

Vorpal Blade (Epic Weapons 10th Anniversary Edition)

Kotaku’s Mike Fahey has announced the release of a Vorpal Blade to celebrate the 10th anniversary of “American McGee’s Alice”. From the post:

In American McGee’s Alice, an older, abuse-ravaged, mentally unstable Alice cuts a bloody path through an equally twisted Wonderland using her trust Vorpal Sword. Now Epic Weapons brings the Vorpal Sword to life.

Epic Weapons is creating the replica Vorpal Sword to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the release of American McGee’s Alice. When the game was originally released, Alice was portrayed on the cover holding a bloody version of the Vorpal Sword, though the image proved too disturbing and was soon replaced with a wand and later some playing cards.

Read the full article and join the comments on Kotaku HERE
Or join the balanced and rational conversation on Destructiod HERE

After reading, you can get your hands on a Vorpal Blade several ways.
Purchase at Epic Weapons
Auction at Epic Weapons

You can also see the Blade at the Epic Booth during this year’s Comic Con. More info can be found in the press release.

First Amendment and Video Games

ECA Freedom to Game Petition

For nearly two decades, elected officials have tried to regulate which video games you can buy, rent and play. Every single time they’ve passed a law, the federal courts have struck it down as unconstitutional. But this may change this fall.

It only takes a few seconds to speak out, HERE

The Supreme Court of the United States has agreed to hear the State of California’s infamous ‘violent video game case,’ Schwarzenegger v. EMA. That means that this year, or early next, the Court is going to decide whether to agree with the lower federal courts or not. Agreeing would mean that they believe that video games are, and should continue to be, First Amendment protected speech; just like books, movies and music. The court disagreeing would mean that they think video games should be treated differently. This could lead to new bills and laws curtailing video game access in states across the country.

Join others in signing The Gamer Petition, HERE

It is no exaggeration to state that their hearing represents the single most important moment for gamers, and the pivotal issue for gaming, in the sector’s history.

Reading is Slower on Kindle?

New Kindle

Read on CNN this morning that Kindle and iPad reading are slower than reading a normal book.

From the article:

It takes longer to read books on a Kindle 2 or an iPad versus a printed book, Jakob Nielsen of product development consultancy Nielsen Norman Group discovered in a recent usability survey.

The study found that reading speeds declined by 6.2 percent on the iPad and 10.7 percent on the Kindle compared to print. However, Nielsen conceded that the differences in reading speed between the two devices were not “statistically significant because of the data’s fairly high variability” — in other words, the study did not prove that the iPad allowed for faster reading than the Kindle.

I read this article with a mixture of disbelief and suspicion. Disbelief because I’m a regular Kindle user – and I *know* my reading speed has increased on the device. And suspicion because the outcome of a study like this would be influenced by too many external factors.

The first time I read something on Kindle or iPad I was so taken with the activity, so distracted, that my reading speed and comprehension certainly suffered. But now that I’ve grown accustom to the novelty of it my reading speed – and the amount of material I’m consuming – has jumped dramatically. Were these test subjects new users? Were they distracted by the device, its interface or with thinking, “Hey, I should really buy one of these!”? I know I would be.

The screens and amount of text contained on a single line, plus line spacing can all be adjusted for optimal reading speed. It varies between individuals – so you’ll want to experiment to find the right settings. But once you do – like I did – watch out. You’ll be reading faster and reading more.

Amazon probably has data to support the efficiency of reading on a Kindle. If not, they should collect it from people willing to submit it. In my opinion these devices are a godsend and should be proliferated as widely as possible. Not only do they encourage faster reading and more of it – but they’re a disruptive platform, one that allows average individuals access to a worldwide, wireless publishing platform.

Don’t believe me? Try one – I bet you’ll be as amazed as I was.