Analyzing Medusa in gamer mythology
In his recent Retronauts feature, 1UP's Jeremy Parish examines the disparate interpretations of Medusa throughout early gaming. Discarding most of the intricate histories of the Gorgon sister, most game designers chose instead to focus on the two (obviously most important) aspects of Medusa: her serpentine hairdo and (sometimes) her stone-inducing gaze.
Pariah gives a number of examples, with pictures, of Medusa in gaming before transitioning into a discussion on the Castlevania series and its insistence on making Medusa a flying head maneuvering in a sinusoidal pattern.
One of the tales of Medusa that we haven't seen game designers capitalize on: when Perseus beheaded Medusa, Pegasus the winged horse and Chrysaor the giant sprang forth, presumably the offspring born of an night of passion between Poseidon and Medusa.
[Via Wired]
