Several video game journalists I admire — Simon Parkin, Kieron Gillen, Mathew Kumar, and Brandon Boyer — recently put together a giant, 960-page book that discusses 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die.

I was doing my best to ignore it out of professional jealousy, but then I saw the list of games .exp publisher Mathew Kumar wrote up for the tome. Along with predictable titles like Bioshock 2 and Boulder Dash, he contributed articles for handheld releases like Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes, Rebelstar: Tactical Command, Astro Boy: Omega Factor, SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighter’s Clash, and Art Style: Intersect (what about Boxlife and PiCTOBiTS?).

I was especially excited to see he wrote a piece for Retro Game Challenge! You might remember that Mr. Kumar wrote that open letter to XSEED, imploring the publisher to localize Game Center CX 2, in the last issue of .exp.

So, if you want to read a book in which people talk about your favorite video games, buy this (and GameSpite). Purchase an extra copy to send me, too, as it’s pretty expensive (understandable considering the page count)!

Buy: Retro Game Challenge

Import: Game Center CX 2

tags / 1001 video games you must play before you die / mathew kumar / retro game challenge / ec

Attract Mode — a name you’ll recognize from store owner Adam Robezzoli’s excellent guest posts here recently — was already a hot spot for video game zines (if not the only worthwhile spot), stocking recommended reads like FORT90ZINE, 1-Up MegaZine, and the Calvin and Hellen’s Bogus Journey faux-NES instruction booklet.

The video game culture shop added two zines you should pay heed to (and then pay money for):

1. exp. ($5), a 32-page rag promising “experiential articles” from Mathew Kumar, the self-described “best damn games journalist in Canada”. I have a copy of the inaugural issue, and though I care nothing for Red Faction Guerrilla or S.T.A.L.K.E.R., his articles on the two titles are savory.
2. Life Meter Mini 1 ($6), a 32-page collection of video game-inspired art from the awesome Life Meter livejournal community

If you’re looking for an alternative to the mainstream approach of video game coverage in popular print mags or sites, definitely hit up Attract Mode’s zine section. All of the issues are much cheaper than that other high profile video game zine, Kill Screen, too! ;o)

Oh, and the online store also has several other new products that you will want to save up some change for: Area 5 Gold/Asphalt shirts, arcade coat hooks, Harvey James Poster #01 (now in stock), and Harvey James Poster #02 (Tim Rogers Dartboard Cover!).

See also: More Attract Mode stuff we like, Cave Story shirt designs by James “HARVEYJAMES” Harvey

tags / attract mode / zine / exp / life meter mini / mathew kumar / life meter

UK gaming radio show One Life Left hosts a semi-regular segment in which the entertaining Mathew Kumar elects a “Best Worst Game”, inviting listeners to try out interesting but flawed titles, such as Skip’s Art Style: BoxLife:

“When I was a student, fresh in my first year, I decided to get a job in a factory rather than somewhere sensible like at a Carphone Warehouse. The hours were longer, but I knew it was going to pay more.

So, when I went for the interview, thanks to my university education, I was given a job in quality assurance. My job was to open the boxes the factory produced, check them, then reassemble them. And so I did this for 12 hours a night, every night, all summer.

I never had the feeling that what I did had any point or any idea that the boxes were going to do anything useful. And all the money that I made was just frittered away on the pointless improvements to my life. They were just pointless. …

[BoxLife] captures everything about that one summer I worked in a factory and its sublime education in futility for the uninitiated.”

My transcription likely isn’t 100% accurate, as I couldn’t pick out  a few words from Kumar’s thick Scottish accent. You can listen to the segment yourself in this week’s episode of One Life Left, starting around the 46:45 mark.

Buy: U.S. Matte Black and Blue DSi

Import: Japanese Nintendo DSi (White, Black, Pink, Lime Green, Metallic Blue)

See also: Boxlife Cribs, Tiny Preview: Art Style: HacoLife (and DSiWare to an extent)

tags / boxlife / art style / hacolife / skip / mathew kumar / podcast / one life left / ec