It’s only a little bit less strange than it sounds. Zombie Cow Studios, creators of Time Gentlemen, Please! and the free Ben There, Dan That!, have marked their $5.00 game half off, down to around a whopping $2.50, to celebrate the impending release of Modern Warfare 2. Or rather, to celebrate the wait for the release of Modern Warfare 2. Yeah, it’s weird.

The sale is Ben and Dan’s way of trying to help pass the time before MW2 hits, and so TGP will only remain marked down until this Tuesday when the game is released worldwide.

To get the discount, simply enter the coupon code MW2AAAAGES when buying the game through their site. By the way, $2.50 is a disgustingly low asking price for the quantity of classic, dryly British adventure game wit you’ll be getting, so hop on it!

(via Zombie Cow Studios)

We check out all the game-related Halloween costumes you sent in (and we even let a couple non-game ones slide — why not). Plus the best First Person Shooters of all-time and some great new indie releases!

Radar: Viewer Halloween Costumes, SkullPogo, SY!NSO! 360

Request for next year: could more people be Mario?

Check out all the costumes on our Facebook page – LINK

L4D Cosplay Rap – LINK

SkullPogo: iPhone, Arcade, Chevy Ray Johnston/Justin Smith, $1.99 – LINK

SY!NSO! 360 – 360, Arena Shooter, Loafjaw – LINK

Free Indie Countdown

#3 – Mamono Slayer: Flash, Puzzle, Skipmore – LINK

#2 – GunFu Deadlands: Windows/Mac/Linux, Arcade, Christian Janssen – LINK, requires the Love2D Game Engine – LINK

#1 – Small Worlds: Flash, Platformer, David Shute – LINK

Feedback: Best FPS Games

Nothing like a violent fragfest to blow off some steam, huh? You let us know which First Person Shooters you like to play the most.

Next week’s question: What’s the best multiplayer game of all time? Weigh in with a video or audio comment on www.Bytejacker.com or leave a message on our hotline: (845) 704-7158

Free Indie Rapid Fire

Au Sable: Windows, Platformer, Amon26 – LINK

Block Towers: Windows, Arcade, JLJac – LINK

SkyFyre: Flash, Shooter, SoybeanSoft – LINK

This week’s music:

Album: Game Music 1, Artist: Phlogiston – LINK

Vote on this week’s contenders and leave a video or audio comment on our site! You can also leave us a message at (845) 704-7158.

Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/bytejacker

Become a fan on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bytejacker

The first 2BeeGames Indie Game Competition has nearly reached its conclusion! The contest winner, Auditorium, has been formally announced for Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and the PSP Go.

2BeeGames says to expect Auditorium’s ambient-ass wonderfulness out by mid-2010. They’ve even suggested that if the game sells well enough, fans of the game should expect eventual DLC. Rad!

The best part of all this? Their announcement blog post includes a photo of them with Anthony. Our Anthony. D’awwww.

(via 2BeeGames)

Have you always wanted to try WiiWare games like LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias but lacked the courage to blindly drop the $10? The answer to all your troubles is apparently just over the horizon. The incomparable Satoru Iwata announced today that demos for WiiWare titles are on their way to the system, and we’ll begin seeing them in some regions before the end of the month. Heck yes, Nintendo! Play that catch-up!

Seriously, it’s kind of hard to not be excited by this announcement, especially after being spoiled for so long by game demos on other systems, including the DS. Iwata warns that it’s only a trial run and that only a couple titles will be covered at first, but still, a couple free chunks of game is better than no free chunks of game.

(via Joystiq)

Any Wii owners super psyched about this news? Any WiiWare games you’ve held off getting because you couldn’t get a hands-on first? Let us know what you think in the comments!

As Bytejacker readers, I probably don’t need to explain to you the appeal of retro music and imagery. Pixel art and chiptunes are staples in any true indie gamer’s diet, and when the two come together, a beautiful thing happens. Here are three excellent examples of such beauty.

Some of what follows may teeter on the edge of the Not-Work-Safe, so if you find swearing or pixelated anthropomorphic vibrators at all disturbing, please avert your sensitive eyes.

Pato Pooh – Follow Me

This incredible video, assembled by Maceo Frost, is actually DRIPPING with retro game references. Seriously, if Nintendo was as lawsuit-happy as Disney, they could collect billions of dollars in royalties. There are at least a dozen classic game references in here, and it’s impossible to catch them all on the first try, making this easily the most rewatchable video on this list. Absolutely amazing work.

MeNeO – Papi

MeNeO is a pretty amazing chiptunes duo out of Barcelona, Spain. Their music (and apparently their live performances) is heavy with humorous sexuality, and it shows in this video for their distressingly catchy song “Papi”. At once beautiful, confusing, and kind of hilarious, this video is one of my favorites of the past few months. Be sure to grab the free MP3 from the bottom of the Vimeo page here: http://tinyurl.com/lny4hx

Leo Campasso – Wild Wind

This is less of a music video and more of a short story, but bear with us. Leo Campasso’s precious (and true) narrative is illustrated beautifully in true LucasArts adventure game style. Quiet, understated, and adorable, this should be a nice come-down from the other two videos, which are absolutely none of those things.

Readers! Which video did you enjoy the most? Which 8 bit videos should be included in the future? Let us know in the comments!

Last night, at a press event in Japan, Nintendo formally announced the DSi XL (to be known as the DSi LL in Japan), a new version of the DSi (which was a new version of the DS Lite [which was a new version of the Nintendo DS]). The device will have a 93% bigger screen than the DS Lite, compared to the DSi’s 17% bigger screen.  Nintendo claims the device exists for people who want to use the DS as an internet browser and media player, but insists it will still serve the primary purpose of MAKING ANYONE WHO BOUGHT A DSi FEEL LIKE AN ASSHOLE.

How long can Nintendo keep up this Russian-nesting-doll-like procession? Honestly, the only way this could feel more like an Onion article would be if the thing were called the DSi Lite XL Micro.

All this comes alongside the news that the DS “family” has sold 113 million units. Kind of an apples-to-oranges comparison, but put that number next to the 34 million Xbox 360s sold, and you start to get a sense of how true that it-prints-money animated GIF adage has been for Nintendo.

The DSi XL is due out November 21st for Japan and in early 2010 for Europe. No US date has been given yet.

Commenters, I really want to know what you think about this one. Is this a mistake or a keen eking of the last few dollars out of our cold, dead hands by Nintendo? Let us know below in the comments!

The long-awaited sequel to everyone’s favorite WiiWare launch title is here and we put it through its paces. Plus we’ve got your picks for the scariest games of all time and we’ve forced Anthony to dress like tiny forest folk. Hooray!

Radar: LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias
Frontier’s back with the second installment of their novel fantasy franchise. Did they fix the shortcomings of the first? WiiWare, Platformer, 1000 Points ($10), http://lostwinds.frontier.co.uk/

Free Indie Countdown
#3 – Hell is Other People: Browser (Unity), Shmup, George Buckenham – LINK
#2 – You Can’t Possibly Expect Me to Do That!: Windows, Platformer, Cosine – LINK
#1 – Picma: Flash, Puzzle, Moonberry Studios – LINK

Feedback: Scariest Games Ever
In an incredible coincidence, you sent in your picks for the scariest games ever during the week of Halloween. Did you guys plan this or something? Next week’s question: What’s the best FPS of all time? Weigh in with a video or audio comment on www.Bytejacker.com or leave a message on our hotline: (845) 704-7158

Free Indie Rapid Fire
GunFu Deadlands: Windows/Mac/Linux, Arcade, Christian Janssen – LINK, requires the Love2D Game Engine – LINK
Mamono Slayer: Flash, Puzzle, Skipmore – LINK
Small Worlds: Flash, Platformer, David Shute – LINK

This week’s music: Alex Mauer, “MO” and “We Are the Fugitives,” from Eat People 123 – LINK
Shnabubula, “LEFT behind” from Controller 1 – LINK

Vote on this week’s contenders and leave a video or audio comment! You can also leave us a message at (845) 704-7158.

Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/bytejacker
Become a fan on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bytejacker

SpeedRunGames has pushed out version 1.06 of Grappling Hook, the game that apparently is to Anthony as catnip is to cats. The free update adds 8 new levels intended for experienced players, as well as a full-fledged level editor that will allow players to create and play their own stages in the game. In case it’s too overwhelming, SpeedRunGames promises that a tutorial will be posted on their website later on in the week.

That’s not the only big Grappling Hook development since the review episode went up:  the Mac version is now out, for those of you who swing that way. HA! SWING!

(via SpeedRunGames)

Earlier this month, 2-man indie game studio 2D Boy celebrated the one year anniversary of their hit World Of Goo by testing out the Radioheadian pay-what-you-want approach for a week. The results they posted last week were pretty awesome, especially this histogram illustrating what people paid for the game when given the freedom to choose. The blog entry documenting the initial results is very cool and absolutely worth checking out.

However, yesterday, 2D Boy put up another post with even more in-depth results. They put out charts showing the donation average over time, the donation breakdown by platform, and, my favorite, the donation average by country:

Please note that 2D Boy went as far as looking up each country’s Gross Domestic Product and comparing it to the average donation price to calculate the generosity of every participating country. THE GENEROSITY. Seriously incredible. Check out the full post on 2D Boy’s blog below:

Pay-What-You-Want Birthday Sale Wrap-up (via 2D Boy)

Readers! Did any of the numbers surprise you? Were you kind of shocked to find out that South Korea is the least generous country on earth? Let us know in the comments section!

You’ve probably been to a wedding before, which means you are probably aware that they are awful. They all sort of run together in your head, don’t they? Same old ceremony, same old chicken or fish dinner, same old lame people doing the Electric Slide.  Well, Donelle and Adam, a graphic designer and iPhone game developer, said: “Hey, look, listen: fuck that,” and created a completely DIY 8-Bit wedding.

The bouquet. It gives ice powers.

Check out the Flickr gallery below for more pictures of all this sweet, sweet awesomeness and also ask yourself: “Why doesn’t my fiancee want a wedding like this or play the bass? Do I really want to marry this person?“

(Spoiler: No, you don’t.)

You can find more information about the wedding and an interview with the bride and groom over at Off Beat Bride, which I totally do not have in my RSS reader, you guys, so shut up about it.