By Patrick Cant
Racing reviewer

I fail to see the allure of making video games about toy cars. Hot Wheels, RC cars, whatever. If you can actually have the toy, what’s the point of the game? Conversely, making the Hot Wheels car jump accurately over the bed in a video game is great, but why not do it with a “real” arcade racer like Burnout or Ridge Racer.

With that in mind, here’s Penny Racers Party Turbo Q Speedway. First of all, PRPTQS is a stupid name. The “Turbo Q Speedway” is even printed in smaller type, so as not to obscure the entire cover.

Second, and of much more importance than a stupid name, is the game’s Mario Kart-ness. You race little Penny Racer cars (some of you may still have toy-car imprints in the soles of your feet from stepping on them in the dark in 1985) on wacky, Katamari Damacy-like courses.
More on Penny Racers for the Wii on the jump

Last week, I moseyed on down to the Bourbon & Branch in San Francisco to check out the multiplayer modes in the upcoming game Damnation. The title’s flying a little under the radar right now with the likes of Far Cry 2, Fable 2 and Gears of War 2 on their way.

For the uninitiated, Damnation is a Steampunk-themed game set in an alternate history of the United States, where the Civil War goes on for decades. Amid this conflict, players have to battle the forces of an industrialist who wants to finish the war once and for all.

What sets Damnation apart from other third-person shooters is it’s focus on platforming. This is a game where players can jump over railings, hang and leap over to an adjacent ledge. They can shimmy across buildings and launch themselves from edge to edge. The movement is more Shadow of the Colossus rather than parkour.

The gameplay lends itself to certain modes such as King of the Hill, where players have to battle for a certain position in the game and they rack up points for staying there.
More on the multiplayer mode in Damnation

As if you needed more reasons to play Rock Band 2, here are two more: Red Hot Chili Peppers and AC/DC albums. Microsoft’s Major Nelson has posted information on the Chili Peppers’ Blood Sugar Sex Magik.

That’s 16 tracks for 1600 Microsoft points. That’s a deal in my book. It’s about a 100 points per songs instead of the 160 point.

In November, AC/DC will finally land on Rock Band. According to the release, “The AC/DC LIVE: Rock Band Track Pack allows players to experience this amazing set list with Rock Band, Rock Band 2 or other compatible music game peripherals.” I think they’re talking about those wonderful, wonderful Guitar Hero World Tour instruments.

Full AC/DC track list on the jump

Dean Takahashi, who used to work for our sister paper the San Jose Mercury News, has written an epic expose about the Xbox 360 and its “Red Ring of Death” problems.

Takahashi, who now writes for Venture Beat, details how the Microsoft’s decision to rush the console to shelves has contributed to the problem that many gamers face. It’s six pages but amazing sourced and smartly written. It’s also meant to be a last chapter to Takahashi’s book The Xbox 360 Uncloaked: The Real Story Behind Microsoft’s Next-Generation Video Game Console.

If you’re a fan of game journalism, then you should read it. It’s a good piece of work though the beginning damns the system more than it does in the end.

Hi folks, I’ll be out for the day. I’m working on a Guitar Hero World Tour feature. This will take me to Danville of all places, but it’s going to be interesting.

I’m also got wrangled into a couple of events one for Buzz! Quiz TV for the PlayStation 3 and the other is the Spore launch party. As usual, I’ll write it up when i get the chance. I’m sure Danny can hold down the fort.

Bill of Rightsby Flickr user techbirmingham under Creative Commons license

If Ben and Jerry’s can have a Bill of Ice Cream Rights, you figure that gamers can have one, too. I figure that since more money is made making video games than ice cream, we’d have one by now, but surprisingly, gamers don’t have squat.

But Galactic Civilizations creator Brad Wardell wants to fix that. He spoke with Gamasutra and came up with a Bill of Rights of sorts and I like a lot of the ideas. Unfortunately, it’s targeted toward the PC audience so those who play Starcraft, Counter-Strike, etc. may want to pay attention. I’m a console guy and we have issues of our own.

Gamers bill of rights on the jump

The 11 remaining people that play Everquest II and Star Wars Galaxies can now talk to each other! Ok, maybe that’s not entirely fair, some people still play Everquest II.

Station Voice, the free integrated chat service, is soon going to also hit Everquest (the first one, now I really didn’t know that was still around) and all SOE’s upcoming games. It could be good, but then again it could just turn out like voice chat in Live Arcade. Plus it might ruin the superhero aesthetic of DC Universe Online when everyone sounds like Lenny, Comic Book Guy, Martin or the Squeaky-Voiced Teenager.

(From Kotaku)

Tetris Opener

Originally uploaded by totalAldo

For those who can’t get enough Tetris (and you know who you are), the folks at Tetris Online announced a new WiiWare title for the fall called Tetris Party.

They’re sure not creative with those titles are they?

The game includes 18 game modes, including some new-ish single player and multiplayer. Interesting enough,, the game even uses the Wii Balance Board. It makes you wonder how they’ll incorporate that.

On top of that, there’s going to be a six-way online versus mode. It’s so much Tetris that I’m surprised I’m not seeing tetriminoes right now.

By Rosanna Chea
Casual Games Maven

At its root, Cake Mania 2 follows the original DS game and all online versions, but it’s the new extras that make the sequel unnecessarily longer and less enjoyable. It’s still a time-management game, and you still play as Jill, a baker who makes custom cakes for a mix of impatient and bratty customers.

New features include different characters and settings and nonlinear gameplay. While the first Cake Mania told the story of Jill trying to save her grandparents’ bakery, Cake Mania 2 ditches the plot and has Jill hopping from aquarium cafe, to Antarctica and space, which makes for some far-fetched stories. Read the space stage introductions and you’ll get the plot of a D-movie: Aliens are battling humans over cake recipes.

Then the game throws in the worst plot device ever: time travel. After successfully completing stages, I had to go back and complete them again to advance in the game, and my upgrades didn’t even carry over. This choose-your-own-adventure feature can give you six different endings, but it makes the game drag and makes something simple confusing. After finishing levels, I didn’t know if that was the end, or if I had to complete something else.

So how do you fit a PC game on a DS screen? Find out on the jump

Super Mario Kart Cake

Originally uploaded by M.A.L.

Hey this is one of the rare non-E3 posts of the week. It’s one of the most impressive wedding cakes I’ve seen. It’d be even better if this were an actual level in Super Mario Kart.

As for our E3 cover, I assure you that there will many, many more write-ups. When you’re running around doing these meetings, checking out games and playing them, you don’t really get a sense of how much you have to write about until you’re sitting face to face with the computer.

Suffice to say, I still have Sony and Codemasters to write up. I’m finishing up my tour through the Capcom booth today. Ah, so many games, so little time.