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Custom-made Aperture Science gas mask will make sure you're still alive, won't open portals
Valve's Portal series has been used as the pretext for many achievements outside of puzzle gaming, including getting hitched. Keeping you from shuffling off this mortal coil, however, is still new. Two Horns United has given a gas mask a decidedly nerdy visual upgrade that resembles the game's iconic Aperture Science Portable Quantum Tunneling Device, right down to the light-up energy chambers. Best of all, unlike some homebrew projects, you'll have a (probably limited) chance at buying one yourself after June. Coworkers might look at you oddly as you strap a portal gun to your face during a safety drill, but you'll have the quiet satisfaction of knowing you're truly ready for a neurotoxin attack, not to mention taking the title of a Jonathan Coulton song very literally.
Datamancer Steampunk Laptop now available for anachronistic pre-order
We really hope you've haven't grown tired of Steampunk over the years. Over-saturated? Passé? Perhaps, but there's still something undeniably alluring about the blend of Victorian-era mechanics and modern technology. That's why, even three years after we first caught a glimpse of it, we're pretty psyched to hear that Datamancer's Steampunk Laptop is actually being made available for purchase. Detailed specs haven't been offered, we only know that it will feature "cutting-edge internal components," but we can tell you there are a bevy of customization options. You can choose everything from the wood stain color, to keyboard fonts, to etched brass lids or clockwork gears like the original design (except these will tick and turn). You can pre-order one now (at the source link) for $5,500 -- a healthy discount over the estimated price once production on these one-of-a-kind machines kicks in to gear ($7,500+). Now we just have to decide between food and rent, or a work of PC art.
CPL developing new competitive game: Severity
John Romero had a surprising announcement for the assembled crowds at Sunday's Cyberathlete Professional League (CPL) finals. No, he didn't declare he was going to make you his bitch (and no that joke will never get old), but he did announce the development of a new first-person shooter tuned specifically for professional gaming.According to a CPL press release, Severity will support both single-player and team matches, will be based on an id Software game engine, and will be released for both console and PC by late 2007. The game will also include "enhanced tournament support, spectator modes, [and] detailed player and tournament statistics tracking," whatever that means. Development on the project is being headed by Tom Mustaine, an industry veteran who worked on games ranging from Final Doom to 25 To Life.While it's nice to see pro gaming grow large enough to support a custom-made game environment, we have to wonder whether a new property will be able to make any inroads against popular competitive gaming standards like Quake and Counter Strike. Should competitive gaming start focusing on custom-made games, or stick with the popular, third-party creations that have gotten it to this point?[Thanks Will]
