Study shows that playing PopCap games makes you happy

Apparently, playing video games can help depression.

An experiment from East Carolina University’s Psychophysiology had nearly 60 (half of which served as controls) subjects – all meeting the criteria of clinical depression – play three casual games – Bejeweled 2, Peggle and Bookworm Adventures.

Retro Review: MediEvil (available on PSN)

In 1998, Sony had a stroke of genius with MediEvil (one of the many strokes of genius SCE has had over the years). A genuinely funny mix between 3D action platforming and puzzle, the game had a likable lead character, a cool gothic ‘horror’ world, and tight level design.

Which is why it’s amazing the franchise hasn’t continued in any genuine fashion. Sure there was a sequel released in 2000, and a PSP remake of the original in 2008, but for an A-class game, MediEvil remains one of the most unfairly treated franchises to have graced Sony platforms. We consider it up with the likes of Magic Carpet as an all-but forgotten franchise that is crying out for a HD rebirth.

It's not the prettiest game now, but it's still good, clean fun

Review: NHL 2K11 (iPad)

Ice hockey is one of the fastest sports out there. Five guys a side, a rink too small to hold them, big hockey sticks and a little puck being slapped back and forth - it's chaotic, furious, and a perfect fit for the video game format.

Did not expect an iPad ice hockey game to play this smooth, or look this good

Help Poto and Cabenga unite on iOS devices!

Award winning (and all kinds of weird) platformer, Poto and Cabenga, is headed to iOS devices and will cost just $US0.99 to try.

Review: DeathSpank (PSN)

Hacking, Slashing and Laughing

Looting and killing for hours on end has been a staple in our gaming history for years on end, but never has it been so funny. An evil item known simply as The Artifact has been stolen by the evil Lord Von Prong and his evil henchmen, and it up DeathSpank, The Hero of the Downtrodden, to redeem The Artifact, and rid the world from evil once and for all.

With a name like DeathSpank, it’s quickly obvious that this is not an ordinary game at all. DeathSpank draws its main gameplay similarities from games like Diablo, or Champions of Norrath. Instead of the normal towns and dark corridors though, DeathSpank is full of vivid bright colours, and witty characters such as Farmer Bobblewood, and the Demon Witch Heybanstace, and not to mention the evil Lord Von Prong, who actually isn’t that evil, but instead is quite feminine, wears thongs, and enjoys opera music. Enemies such as the Kangamoos, or  half Kangaroo and half Cow, fill this wacky game, and are nowhere near the ordinary. DeathSpank takes the hack-and-slash genre into a realm unseen before, the realm of hack-and-slash comedy.

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Mobile-focused Gamevil boasts record year

Mobile games vendor, Gamevil, has enjoyed a record year in 2010, in terms of sales and income.

Gaming on the Kindle? Who would have thought it?

You wouldn’t think the Kindle was the ideal platform for gaming, but there is one niche genre where it should excel.

Black and white illustrations - classic RPG at its finest

Final Fantasy 1 & 2 headed to PSN - should anyone care?

Final Fantasy 1 and 2 are finally coming to the PlayStation Network in English. Given they’ve been on every other platform known to mankind in recent years, we’re surprised it’s taken so long this time around, but is it worth dipping into the virtual wallet to buy yet another copy of either classic?

Please note - screenshots not representative of PSN Final Fantasy releases. Rather they're there to show snapshots of the two games at various points in history