Nope, that’s not a grammatical error up there (although I’m sure there will be plenty to follow) — Moms is the new LP from Portland-based indie-rockers Justin Harris and Danny Seim of Menomena. Moms follows on the heels of Mines, a spectacular effort and one of the best albums of 2010, as well as the (perhaps unsurprising, given the band’s known tension and in-fighting) departure of one-third of the band in Brent Knopf. The question wasn’t so much if the band would continue (according to Danny Seim and Justin Harris, that was never really an issue), so much as if they could keep the momentum that they had built with Friend and Foe and Mines.

Mark of the Ninja is Possibly the Best Side-Scrolling Stealth-Action Platformer Ever Made

I’ve always had a few problems with stealth games. While I enjoy the genre as a whole (I’m pretty sure I’ve owned all of the Splinter Cell games at some point or another), I don’t think I’ve ever played a stealth game where the actual stealth mechanics felt right. Enemies tend to be too savvy or not savvy enough, failing to notice a hulking dude barely concealed in a thin lair of shadow two feet away from them while three green dots glow vibrantly in the “dark” (and hey, if they do notice you, there’s always a hay bale nearby or a cardboard box to slip into). There’s an imperfect science to stealth games in which the player usually ends up having to learn how to work around the wonky nature of the AI instead of actually learning how to be stealthy. All of this makes Mark of the Ninja that much more impressive, as its offering of side-scrolling stealth-action platforming is damn near perfect.

They Bleed Pixels is an Absolute Fucker — You Should Play It

I don’t mean to start a running theme on this blog by only posting about games that are bastard difficult, but I can’t help it. Like I mentioned in the Trials post, I’m drawn to these games. There’s something about a game that’s impossibly challenging yet mechanically precise, a game in which every fault you make is entirely your own, requiring a level of determination and skill (and an Everest-sized mountain of luck) that constantly propels the player forward. It’s addicting — incredibly so — with a cathartic release unlike anything else in video games. And so They Bleed Pixels, the latest outing by Spooky Squid Games, joins the ranks of such “fuck you” titles as Super Meat Boy and I Wanna be the Guy (alright, maybe not that bad).