Accusing your opponent of being a flip-flopper? Why, that's practically Politics 101.

But calling out a challenger for playing Halo and blogging? Must be a sign of the times.

In Maricopa County, Arizona, Republican incumbent Fulton Brock has rolled out those allegations and more by way of slinging mud at his Democratic challenger, Ed Hermes (left). Both men are vying for the job of county supervisor.

As Joystiq reports, a campaign mailing sent out by Fulton uses the Halo referenced in an attempt to portray Hermes as young and inexperienced:

Skilled player of popular video game Halo. Hermes was quoted in the ASU student newspaper as saying, "I am addicted to Halo and play almost every night."

 

The anti-Hermes ad also accuses the Democrat of being a student mascot at football games as well as a blogger and a video gamer.

Here at the GamePolitics command bunker we've gotten some new books in of late.

While I don't know that we'll have time to post full reviews, I wanted to let readers know what's been coming across the desk.

I've mentioned Game Widow in the past, the new book from Wendy Kays, wife of SOCOM lead designer Graham Kays. Wendy will be on Dr. Phil show later this month to discuss game addiction and has dropped in to comment on GP here and there. At 117 pages (not counting resource section), her book looks to be a quick read. From the synopsis:

Is your loved one constantly monopolizing your computer or TV to play video games? If so, you might be a game widow. Wendy Kays, former game widow, is here to help. In this book, she successfully bridges the gap between those who game and those who don't by sharing invaluable advice and practical strategies for reclaiming your relationship with a video-gaming spouse, friend, or family member.

At 107 pages, another quick read is A Manifesto for Media Freedom by Brian Anderson and Adam Thierer. Anderson is the editor of City Journal, while Adam is director of the Center for Media Freedom at the Progress and Freedom Foundation. Adam is a GP reader. From the synopsis:

The rise of alternative media over the last 20 years has broken the liberal stranglehold over news and opinion outlets. The Left blames much of the Democratic Party's electoral woes on the influence of the new media's many vigorous conservative voices. Yet, instead of fighting back with ideas, today's liberals quietly and relentlessly work to smother this political discourse under a tangle of campaign-finance and media regulations.

Author Joseh Lieberman (not to be confused with the U.S. senator of the same name), has released School Shootings: What Every Parent and Educator Needs to Know to Protect Our Children, an update to his 2006 book, The Shooting Game. While Lieberman doesn't blame school shootings on violent video games, neither does he absolve them of blame. The better part of a chapter devoted to the video game issue and the author mentions familiar names such as Danny Ledonne, Jack Thompson and Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. From the synopsis:

Investigative journalist and longtime educator Joseph A. Lieberman takes us inside the minds and hearts of everyone affected by school shootings—and the kids who commit the shocking crimes... After years of intensive research, Lieberman shares his findings, shedding dramatic new light on school shootings—from Columbine to Virginia Tech and more—and offers practical strategies for how we can respond to and even prevent them.

There's a lot of talk these days about games and the learning process. In fact, GamePolitics wrote about the educational possibilities of World of Warcraft just yesterday.

But blogger Miss Self-Important over at nobody sasses a girl in glasses takes a dim view of combining games and learning:

There is no logical connection between [video games and reading] - in my experience, the only activity that video game playing encourages is more video game playing. This is not inherently evil (just mostly), but neither is it going to achieve the stated end. But! also! "some educational experts suggest that video games still stimulate reading in blogs and strategy guides for players." And nothing instills lifelong literary habits like video game strategy guides.

 

And indeed, the single instance this article offers of the connection between gaming and reading is that great bastion of literacy--the internet message board... Again, I have to wonder--how excited should we about every line of text a child reads?...

 

Yes, I also loved Age of Empires in high school and played it obsessively, and sadly, it taught me nothing about ancient history. That's because a video game is... the creation of video game designers... If they want to design a victory that requires the ancient Egyptians to build a hydrogen bomb, they can do that... The connection between a historical video game and actual history is whim, not fact.

Miss Self-Important is primarily riposting Using Video Games as Bait to Hook Readers, a piece from Sunday's New York Times.

GP: What do you think, GP readers? Are games good tools for learning?

Sega, publisher of the upcoming MadWorld, is working closely with the ESRB on the bloody game's content, according to a report on MTV Multiplayer.

Sega's goal, of course, is to avoid a sales-killing Adults Only rating. It's more or less a given that black-and-white (and red) MadWorld will be tagged with at least an M rating in the United States.

Of the cooperation, MTV Multiplayer's Patrick Klepek writes:

Sega is working closely with the Entertainment Software Ratings Board to ensure the game receives just an M rating, they told me. The ESRB receives new builds on a regular basis and Sega notes their feedback. Sega wants them to feel “part of the process” of developing “MadWorld” and isn’t looking to surprise them...

 

But don’t let the ESRB’s involvement make you nervous; “MadWorld” is plenty violent right now. It looks like “Sin City” was bathed in a bucket of blood.

As GamePolitics reported in August, Sega is similarly working with the BBFC on smoothing over MadWorld's path to a successful U.K. release. It's unclear, however, whether MadWorld will see release in other violence-sensitive markets, including Japan, Germany and Australia.

Although MadWorld is not scheduled for release until March, the game has already been the subject of at least one call for a ban.

Over at Crispy Gamer, game scribe Kyle Orland pokes fun at the whole Jack Thompson is a media creation bit, with GamePolitics coming in for some extra attention:

A group of prominent game journalists is gathering together to fight the recent disbarment of anti-game crusader Jack Thompson. The group, headed by GamePolitics editor Dennis McCauley, issued an open letter to the Florida Supreme Court this morning, urging them to reinstate the controversial former lawyer...

 

The statement also included a link to an online petition where gamers could sign up to "get Jack Thompson off the bread lines and back in the headlines, where he belongs." Signatories on the letter include prominent writers for Kotaku, Joystiq, Destructoid and dozens of other gaming blogs...

 

McCauley is worried that those reveling in Thompson's fall from grace haven't fully absorbed what the game journalism landscape will look like without him... McCauley went on to argue that Thompson delivered "the spittle-flecked, borderline-incoherent rants that gamers wanted -- that they needed -- and in that he'll be nearly impossible to replace. We've lost a giant, and we need to do everything we can to get him back."
 

GP: Funny stuff, Kyle.

Oh, and I have just one word for you: paybacks...

Big Download reports that last week's E For All Expo in Los Angeles was not well attended:

The second annual E For All Expo is over and the self-proclaimed "North America's premier video game event" actually came away with lower attendance than last year's inaugural event. The show, held at the LA Convention Center, had 15,000 official attendees this year compared to 18,000 for the first edition of the show (the number might have been even smaller had E For All not hosted two pro gaming events organized by third parties).
 

Joystiq was similarly unimpressed:

The E for All attendance numbers aren't exactly the most robust for an event being held in a megalopolis like Los Angeles, especially when compared to PAX 2008's 58,500 attendees who trekked up through the great wilderness to find the sleepy town of Seattle. Meanwhile, BlizzCon is capped at 15,000 attendees and those tickets, at $100 apiece, sold out almost as soon as they went on sale.

Among major game publishers, only Microsoft, EA and Ubisoft had a presence at E For All.

Highly-respected M.I.T. prof Henry Jenkins recently gave an interview on digital piracy to a Filipino newspaper. The story received wide coverage in the Western gaming press after GP picked it up (see: Henry Jenkins: Piracy is the Great Equalizer).

Jenkins goes into greater detail in a new blog post, noting with some surprise the reaction prompted by his comments, which seemed to rationalize piracy to a degree. He writes:

the time lag between the interview... and its surfacing on western blogs could be counted in a matter of hours... in many ways, the circulation of this story demonstrates in pretty powerful ways what I saw as the central thrust of my comments -- that media companies can no longer realistically lock down their content into predictable zones and roll it out on their own time table. The moment content emerges anywhere in the world, it creates a hunger around the planet among potential consumers which will be met illegally if it is not met legally... 

 

In my heart of hearts, I think most people would prefer to work within legal structures if they are available to them... We can also understand this piracy as part of a breakdown of the moral economy between producers and consumers. Here's what I mean by a moral economy: Underlying all economic transactions are certain social understandings between buyers and sellers that reflect their sense that exchanges are just and fair to both sides. We can call this a moral economy... 

 

We can call this "piracy" or not. But it will continue to be a reality until the media companies develop a more sophisticated understanding of what factors motivate such behavior and the ways that such practices reflect breakdowns in the market mechanisms surrounding the creative economy.

GP: Regarding the pirate pic, Destructoid initially Photoshopped Jenkins after picking up on GP's coverage. Jenkins recycles the pic in today's post, quipping "One American blogger even "pirated" one of my portraits, which was doctored to depict me as a pirate. I figured that "pirating" it back is only fair game."

What the Hell, we'll steal it back from Jenkins.

Occasionally here at GamePolitics we pay honor to the sacrifices made by gamers serving in the military.

Along that line, we note an unusual human interest story posted on The Mad Blog, which is penned by Mad magazine cartoonist Tom Richmond.

Richmond writes about visiting a U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany with a group of fellow cartoonists. There they came upon a soldier who had been badly injured while gaming during his free time:

Eventually we made it up to the ICU, where we saw a few seriously wounded soldiers. The first young man we saw told us a story of how he had been serving in Afghanistan and was in his tent taking a little R&R playing a video game when a projectile explosive hit. He was missing a part of one leg and the other was damaged.

 

Chip did a hilarious drawing of him playing his video game which was exploding and he was thinking “Man, this video game is so realistic!” That sounds a little insensitive but the fact is these guys like to talk about their injuries, how they happened and what was going on. He got a big laugh out of that. He was hurt but was going to be okay. He was in a lot of pain but I think we brought some laughs to him.

The head of Tiga, the trade association for game developers in the U.K., has renewed calls for government support.

As reported by Edge Online, CEO Richard Wilson paid notice the current world economic crisis, but maintained that it should not deter the British government from backing home grown game developers:

The credit crunch, turmoil in the financial markets and declining economic activity constrain a government’s fiscal room for manoeuvre; but constraint is not the same as paralysis. Just as the Ontario administration is supporting its games developers in the midst of difficult economic conditions, so the UK government should back its video games industry.

 

UK video games developers have a skilled workforce; experienced management teams; and an effective approach to outsourcing. UK games businesses offer high quality games, produced on time and at great value...

 

The UK government can build on these competitive advantages.. by announcing a consultation on the merits of a tax credit for games production and eventual reductions in corporation tax. Consultation on these measures would give a powerful signal of support to the UK games industry...

Wilson's comments about Ontario refer to the recent announcement that the provincial government would create a $1.5 billion fund to provide incentives for game developers. The disparity in government support between Canada and the U.K. has long been a sore point for U.K. developers.

While video games generally catch more heat for violence than sex, there have been a fair number of lust-fueled controversies in game land. Now, Playboy tech writer Damon Brown documents them in his new book, Porn & Pong: How 'Grand Theft Auto,' 'Tomb Raider' and other Sexy Games Changed Our Culture.

Salon has a lengthy interview with Brown who starts with Custer's Revenge and touches (appropriately, we might add) on everything from Leisure Suit Larry to Hot Coffee and beyond. Not one to leave out the online crowd, Brown includes a section on game-related cybersex:

One of the things I write about is the first documented cyberspace rape in a text-only environment called LambdaMOO. A user found a loophole that allowed him to control the actions of other players. He could make one player hurt or have sex with another player and so on. The malicious user went rampant through the game universe, forcing players into sexual acts, and was repeatedly kicked off the game, but he always managed to come back under a different user name.

The Playboy writer also explains his theory of why most protagonists in sexually-oriented games are male:

Most of the creators of these games are straight, most are white and a portion of them are Asian. [Game designers] want to have a protagonist the player can identify with and, on a different level, the designer himself can identify with. People identify with Larry, because everyone's been desperate and had those moments where they can't pick up anyone, or they want to be Niko Bellic, this awesome tough guy who can maintain five girlfriends across the city of New York.

In the future, Brown sees erotically-charged games becoming much more, um... interactive:

Our grandchildren are going to have amazing sex lives -- I can't think of a better way to say it. Connecting vibrators and other types of tools to the computer and getting pleasured by a professional or a long-distance lover is a brilliant idea. It will connect people in a much deeper way than the Internet or a webcam that's going 15 frames per second...

 

From talking to people at the Adult Entertainment Expo in Vegas in January, I understand the basic idea is that teledildonics will take off in a mainstream way any moment now. I'd say within five years it's going to become standard equipment for a lot of people.

UPDATE: Over at Edge Online, editor Colin Campbell has an entertaining whinge at the entire subject of sex in games. Best line:

Words like teledildonics leave me dizzy with nausea.
 

GamePolitics readers may recall ICED!, an immigration-themed game released earlier this year by human rights organization Breakthrough. ICED! generated a good bit of controversy, including attacks by the Minutemen anti-immigration group.

While the goal of ICED! was to avoid being picked up by the authorities, Breakthrough has launched a new game which explores issues surrounding federal detention of suspected illegal immigrants.

Homeland Guantanamos is an interactive, online adventure which casts the player in the role of an investigative reporter looking into conditions inside federal immigrant detention facilities. As the game begins, players are assigned to follow up on the death of Guinean tailor Boubacar Bah, a real person who died under mysterious circumstances while being held at a facility in New Jersey. 86 other suspected illegal immigrants have also died in U.S. custody since 2003.

The New York Times, which originally broke the story of Bah's death, looks at the Homeland Guantanamos:

The fictional framework plays fast and loose with traditional rules of journalism — the reporter takes an undercover job as a detention guard and writes a first-person appeal for change rather than an article — but the content encountered along the way is backed by links to real newspaper articles, court documents and other factual material...

 

Mixing fact and fantasy is familiar territory for Breakthrough, which seeks to galvanize young people by using the new tools of popular culture to put them in the shoes of legal and illegal immigrants.

Kelly Nantel, a spokeswoman for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security offered harsh criticism of the game:

[It is] a work of fiction that dehumanizes the individuals depicted and grossly distorts conditions in detention facilities. I believe that most informed people know that they leave reality at the door when they enter the world of video games.

Breakthrough executive director Mallika Dutt, who hopes the game will help generate support for legislation aimed at bringing additional due process to immigration proceedings, told the NYT:

The Department of Homeland Security’s enforcement measures have become increasingly draconian and are leading to severe consequences, including death, for many.

It was the gaming world's cause celebre of 2007.

Manhunt 2 was reviled by anti-violence activists, banned by the U.K.'s content rating organization, and criticized in Parliament and at No. 10 Downing Street.

After a protracted legal fight, England's High Court overturned the ban early in 2008. But, as Eurogamer reports, Manhunt 2 is just now being readied for sale in the U.K.

The street date is October 31st.

That's appropriate on two counts. Of course, it's Halloween. But it's also the one-year anniversary of the originally-scheduled Manhunt 2 launch.

Wondering how long it is until Jack Thompson's court-ordered disbarment becomes effective?

Wonder no more.

Longtime GamePolitics reader E. Zachary Knight (who is so dedicated that he volunteers for double duty as our comment moderator) has created a nifty extension for FireFox which counts down the time until Thompson's law career is just a bad memory.

Download it here.

Pwn or Die serves up new Sarah Palin images in which the Republican Veep candidate is Photoshopped into various video game shots. 

You'll recognize GTA IV, Tomb Raider, and others

Personally I found the GTA IV lollipop girl image (hit the link) the most entertaining, but the big, huge Pwn or Die watermark across the center is a buzz kill.

We are seeing more and more Palin parody material of late. Fidget finds it no surprise that Palin is getting so much attention in gaming circles, citing this RNC-time post on The Atlantic

In addition, I predict a bonus unintended consequence for McCain among middle class/educated/post-college/pre-adult white males. A demographic label that follows many into their late 30s and currently trends for Obama. Basically the gamers/Gen-Xers/Seth Rogen/Will Farrell crowd..."Sarah Palin as Lara Croft" will leave these guys drooling like zombies.

In Thailand, video games have been under government attack ever since the August slaying of a taxi driver by a 19-year-old man who reportedly told police he was re-enacting a scene from Grand Theft Auto.

In today's edition of Bangkok newspaper The Nation, an editorial terms games "a menace":

A number of Thai children have become addicted to computer games, which can be destructive not only to their social behaviour but also their studies.

 

There have been a series of cases of some children unknowingly committing violent acts because they were imitating scenes they have seen on computer games, some of which contain graphic images...

 

A survey from the Culture Ministry revealed that Thai children spent around 2 hours a day playing computer games. About 80 per cent of them choose the combat-style, action-packed games, some of which come with graphic and violent images. The addiction can affect their personality as they become more prone to bursts of anger and violence. Without proper guidance, some are unable to distinguish between fantasy and the real world.

GP: As GamePolitics reported last month, the Thai Ministry of Culture banned five games.