...entering hybernation mode...

I'm not sure anyone noticed, but I haven't been blogging that regularly lately. No, really. And it's not that I don't have things I'd like to write about either, as I'm actually full of silly gaming ideas, have discovered quite a few interesting oddities I'd like to share with you loveable lot and never really stopped keeping up with the less mainstream side of gaming news. No. Thing is, I just don't have the time nor -to be frank- the calmness needed to actually blog. At least not with the quality I've decided I should be aiming for. So... well, Gnome's Lair is entering a mode of hybernation, meaning I will be around checking my friends' blogs, answering comments and mails, but won't be actually updating this blog with new content. I will, on the other hand, be able to post the odd Retro Treasure, as it's both easier to do and frankly more relaxing.

Mind you, Gnome's Lair will definitely be back sometime this December and will hopefully be much better (and possibly drastically redesigned) than ever. Now, if you will be kind enough to excuse me, I got a dissertation to finish.

Tata!

DeathSpank: The Great Tease

Ron Gilbert (may flowers sprout in his nostrils and bi-sexual angels serve him breakfast) has posted three video teasers for his hotly (well, in some odd aesthete circles at least) anticipated adventure/RPG DeathSpank. Click, watch them and fantasize about wearing the legendary thong of justice. Oh, and as the game has evolved enough to be coming soonerish, do expect to play it sometime during 2009.

Empire: Total War - A Trailer to cheer the Navy

Seems I'm back from my ultra-short though truly invigorating vacations and here's a lovely trailer about the forthcoming Empire: Total War strategy game to dampen the collective post-summer pain. The game should hit Europe the 6th of February 2009, feature some pretty impressive sea battles, impressive graphics and some intriguing references to the 1st French Revolution. Sounds lovely, doesn't it? Find out more over at TotalWar.com and then, well, why not, have a look at my review of Medieval II: Total War.

Decker's Delight Links (11.Aug.08)

Haven't blogged that much lately, I know and I'm not that thrilled about it, but things were -still are, actually- slightly hectic and at times downright shit. Anyway. Here's another selection of fine gaming links to get you by till the Lair strikes back(s). Enjoy.

1up.com, that interesting yet mostly mainstream gaming site, has been nice enough to present us with Shrink Wrapped. It's a brilliantly illustrated piece on the history of PC game packaging trends (covering everything from Akalabeth to City of Heroes), it is. A nice retro start, eh?

On to Monkey Island 2 then, the greatest adventure game of all time, that just -well, relatively speaking- got itself an exhaustive feature over at the International House of Mojo. Expect a brilliant read on the quality of said classic, said classic, its history, its secrets and quite a bit on trivia.

For an insider's look at the admittedly, well, idiosyncratic history of Bullfrog try Alex Trowers' version. Available in two glorious parts: Part 1 and oddly Part 2.

Dear GameSetWatch, on the other hand, provided the internets with a smart and excellently written piece that only slightly has to do with gaming: Sex and Tetris. Unfortunately, none is explicitly described. Oh, and there's a bit on Subversive Games you might enjoy instead. I did.

Rock Paper Shotgun is always brilliant. You know it, I know it, we all generally know it. Read it. Daily. And do not forget to pay attention to some older posts like The Stalin vs. Martians Interview and the glorious (and extra-handy) Planescape Landscapes. Oh, oh, and Word Play of course.

Remember the excellent freeware text-adventure that was Gun Mute? Good. You can now grab its latest version and a ton of extras while peeking at its design notes here. Courtesy of Pacian and his Space Cat Rocket Ship.

Further interactive fiction fun can be had with Milliways: Infocom's Unreleased sequel to the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Learn why it was never made, play the unfinished versions, have a look inside Infocom and don't miss the comments.

TIG Source, always the source and inspiration of top quality indie games, presents (presented more like it) the results of the rather impressive and wildly innovative Procedural Generation Competition Results. Dig in and then move on to the next compo.

Now, after trying the latest version of War Twat, do let Oddbob speak on adventure games and let the man that makes the cops look bad guide you to an excellent freebie. Behold Zombies, Cows and a Sponge.

Edge, the gaming site of the gaming mag, has a gaming feature on Sega's oddest game ever: Segagaga or SGGG. Probably the finest Dreamcast game around and an imaginative love letter Sega sent itself.

For the few tabletop gamers still visiting the lair, here are some links to keep you playing away from your computers: Of Dice and Men, the Warhammer retrospective and the reviews of them Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition books.

Time for the mystery link: The Ultimate Software Gold Plating by Coding Horror. Care for a hint? Here are two: Jeff Minter, Atari Jaguar.

Some relatively random Quick Links:

• Retro Gamer got a brand new site!
• Richard Cobbett does Limbo of the Lost
• The first space wargame relaunched
• A history on remaking King's Quest
• SSH presents the best in forthcoming AGS adventures
• The Pickford Brothers' legendary softography
• 7 notorious Lazy Character Cliches
• A history of abuse or an abuse of history?
• The artful games discusses Falout 3 hype
• if hitler had been a hippy
• Packman?
• Retro Treasures is still around mind
• And so is the glorious Sega Saturn Junkyard

The Spectrum Games Bible 1982-2008

Having already missed the apparently excellent ZX Spectrum Book - 1982-19xx book, I'm more than excited to have been timely informed about the incredibly ambitious Spectrum Games Bible 1982-2008 project, that's already spanning two books and covering more than 500 games. What's more, at least four more books will soon be released, hopefully reviewing every game ever released for the gloriously humble Speccy. Now, that's what I call ambition. Possibly a worthy cause too. Well, almost. Anyway.

To grab the extremely well priced first books (or their rather pricey colour counterparts) do yourselves a favour and follow this handily underlined link. Mind you, you can even contribute to the forthcoming volumes -this is most obviously a group project, you see- and, yes, actually get paid. Oh, oh, and for some free, online, high-score comparing ZX Spectrum gaming you have to give MySpeccy a try.

Related @ Gnome's Lair: re: Rex, the glory of Llamasoft, JSW: the patch, Vinyl Data and adventures on LPs

UT3: DM-Bagger

Play an Unreal Tournament III deathmatch on a huge excavator on Venus. On your PC or even PS3. By following this link and grabbing the appropriate mod. From the fertile mind that brought us the Fawlty Towers CS mod. Enjoy. Oh, yes, not in a talkative mood really.