Girl Gamers Australia

Left 4 Dead kicks Zombie ass - Buy it

That pretty much sums up our review of new Valve zombie fest "Left 4 Dead". The game which is essentially truly alive (haw haw) when you play it in 4 player co-op is truly something to behold. If you like mad action shooters, and more importantly if you like them with zombies and big fat bloated zombie hangers on that explode, well what are you waiting for.... BUY the damn game!!

On the downside there's 4 characters and only one of them is female. It would have been nice for Valve to shoot us a little equality and make things 2 and 2, but saying that, Zoe does kick ass.

Clock Tower movie lead goes to Milla Jovovich

According to various reports the lead in the upcoming "Clock Tower" game to movie adaption will now go to none other than Milla Jovovich. As we previously reported, it was thought to have gone to actress Britanny Snow, but it's since been confirmed Jovovich will take on the role of Alyssa Barron and not Snow at all.

Jovovich seems to have a flair for the game to movie tie-in. She is famous for taking on the role of Alice in the "Resident Evil" films. Here's hoping "Clock Tower" is better than those have turned out lately.

Halo 3 Recon and its female playable hero would save Bungie money

We realize it's a long shot and probably wishful thinking, but we've noticed Bungie playing the gender pronoun game when discussing the new "Halo 3: Recon" game. Interviews are rife with the utter avoidance if anything "he" or "him", which is fairly strange we think. Also things like "Instead of playing a super space marine, however, you'll play an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper (ODST), one who's not quite so burly or bad-ass." are popping up, which may be innocent or it may be a hint.

We're not the only female gamers thinking it either. Could Bungie FINALLY repay all their female gaming fans with a little female Shock Trooper love. From a PR perspective alone it would be genius. Think about it, all the little Halo fanboys would get into a tizzy, leading to literally thousands of forums chat about the game. Female gamers would love it, mature guy gamers would probably take it in their stride and many might think it was about time. The fanboys would still buy the game regardless and the media coverage would be so intense it would basically pay for itself ten fold.

Essentially we're thinking if Bungie made the "new hero" a female Halo hero, people would freak out or fall in love, both of which would lead to a hell of a lot of online and other media coverage they couldn't pay for! As far as PR goes it would actually be pretty shrewd.

Sarah Palin as games characters - Governor Palin does Samus, Cortana, Meryl and more

Sarah Palin seems to be getting more and more coverage of late and now she's even entered the realm of video gaming. Gaming site Pwn or Die (a recently launched spin-off site to Funny or Die) has a set of Sarah Palin gaming images of the Governor as various games characters, including: Meryl from Metal Gear Solid, a hooker in GTA, Samus Aran, Cortana and a few others.

That's all well and good, it's in good humor, but the whole Sarah Palin thing has brought up numerous questions with regards to how women are treated in the higher echelons of not only politics, but business overall. Sarah Palin is consistently made fun of, for her accent, her career, her family pastimes, her looks. Now we're not Palin fans by any means here at GirlGamers Australia, anyone that says "Oil of coal, of course, is a fungible commodity and they don't flag, ya know, the molecules where, where it's going to, where it's not" doesn't bode well with us. What we find interesting is the way in which Hillary Clinton and now Sarah Palin are treated by not only their running mates or opposition - "you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig" - but also by the media as a whole.

Sarah Palin being covered as games characters at least has her depicted as heroes for the most part. We do wonder if Mr Obama would like to use the Sarah Palin image from GTA in his campaign in the coming weeks though.. seems like a tactic either side would stoop too.

Honestly will there ever be an honest politician with actual moral integrity?

LucasArts frak female gamers! - Again

LucasArts have frakked us female gamers with their new characters for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. They're releasing new downloadable characters you can play in the single player campaign... GREAT! I thought with a Star Wars fangirl excited yelp, "I'll get to play through as a female character" especially given their are 4 characters incoming. No screamed LucasArts, you get 4 male characters so frak you! The new characters include Luke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ki-Adi-Mundi, and Kit Fisto - ALL male! Apparently these skins were decided on based on what they heard from fanboys... sorry... "fans", that being the very vocal fanboy contingent.... FFS common sense LucasArts!! Is it really that difficult to assume perhaps some of the people to have purchased Star Wars: The Force Unleashed are FEMALE?!?!

Honestly, sometimes I just want to burst into these board room meetings, jump on the table and start singing I AM WOMAN! Well, not really... but you catch my drift.

Kate Wilson in Hydrophobia

Kate Wilson is a new female protagonist in upcoming game "Hydrophobia" by Blade Interactive. Kate Wilson is a systems engineer aboard a futuristic city-sized cruise liner, called the Queen of the World. Kate becomes the reluctant hero of the piece when terrorists attack and attempt to take over the ship.

Kate Wilson has a problem in "Hydrophobia" though, she's actually aquaphobic and has been since childhood. Well being stuck on a ship flooded with water isn't an ideal place for our hero to be, but it does mean some cool character development.  There's no word on a release date yet for "Hydrophobia" but the screenshots are looking very nice indeed and hell, she looks like a regular girl, she's not a triple F cup and a waist the size of the average woman's thigh. jeepers, she even has short hair!

Via [Lesbian Gamers].

Clock Tower movie has Britanny Snow as lead?

Clock Tower 3 was one of the creepiest games we'd played here at Girl Gamers Australia, the female protagonist and twisted story really gave other horror genre titles a run for their money. Seems like the long rumored Clock Tower movie is now up and running with the lead actress just being named as one Britanny Snow.

Snow recently appeared in horror slasher flick Prom Night and find yourself flick Finding Amanda. Snow isn't overly well known, but given the film is apparently being directed by Martin Weisz ("The Hills Have Eyes 2"), it might be as creepy as the game, but we don't hold out much hope. Filming starts in November.

Lara Croft mark 6.5 Alison Caroll revealed

The new Lara Croft model has been named and she is - apparently - a former gymnastics representative for Great Britain. Not a bad choice for the flipping and leaping Lara Croft.

From the Presser: Athletic and agile, 23 year old Alison Carroll from Croydon is set to be catapulted from her current job as a receptionist to a world of superstardom as she follows in the footsteps of Oscar-winning actress Angelina Jolie and model Nell McAndrew to become the new face of Lara Croft.

Unlike her predecessors Alison does not come from a modelling background, but with 12 years' experience as a professional display gymnast, she is completely at ease at the thought of appearing in front of thousands of screaming Lara Croft fans. She certainly had no trouble impressing the judges when she competed against hundreds of other hopefuls in the search to find the live model of the action heroine.

Alison is an elite gymnast who has flown the flag for Great Britain. She has performed across the UK and overseas as part of a team of twenty athletes, wowing Prince Charles when she appeared at a special event at Westminster Abbey. She is also a dedicated coach of younger gymnasts, and recently choreographed the routine for the junior team that won the British National Championships. Alison already follows a rigorous training regime, visiting the gym six times per week, and will be well prepared as she embarks on the fast and grueling training programme required to portray sexy heroine Lara Croft. Starting immediately she will undertake a series of courses which will include a SAS survival, combat and semi-automatic weapon firing courses in Eastern Europe, and a crash course in world archaeology, to become the world famous, archaeologist and action heroine. Once completely trained in the ways of video gaming’s leading lady, Alison will be lining up a host of international modelling assignments, starring in TV commercials, appearing on chat shows and is set to travel the globe over the coming months.

Alison Carroll says; “This is a fantastic opportunity and I am really looking forward to embracing Lara’s world” said Alison Carroll “I still can’t believe they chose me to take on the role of Lara – and I can’t wait to get stuck in. This is my dream job – I have always wanted to be an action hero and hope to be able to use my gymnastic ability to perform all of Lara’s stunts. It is slightly daunting but I am really excited at the same time.”

Sarah Hoeksma, Eidos Group Marketing Director says; “With her tremendous athletic ability, dance training and striking look we feel Alison embodies all the assets required to be the live model of Lara Croft, and we are really looking forward to working with her.” Alison follows in the footsteps of previous Lara Croft stars, Karima Adebibe, Lucy Clarkson, Rhona Mitra, Nell McAndrew, Lara Weller and of course Angelina Jolie in the Tomb Raider movies. Tomb Raider: Underworld marks the first game in this popular, recognisable series that is designed specifically for next generation consoles.

Lara Croft uncovers proof of the existence of the mythical hammer of the Norse God Thor, a weapon rumored to have the power to smash mountains into valleys and destroy the Gods themselves. Setting an epic journey around the globe in motion, Lara visits the ruins of ancient civilizations, collecting clues that lead her to a forgotten power that could lay waste to civilization. Exploiting the power and capabilities of next generation consoles, Lara must hunt for clues across massive environments, solving multifaceted puzzles, facing foes both animal and supernatural, this time with the aid of enhanced weapons and abilities.

Tomb Raider Underworld trailer looks awesome

Tomb Raider Underworld is going to bring down the house if this trailer is anything to go by. Watch and be amazed. Tomb Raider: Underworld sees Lara undertake her riskiest mission yet, descending to the depths of the underworlds. For generations, stories have been told of the fearsome weapon of the Norse god, Thor. Legend has it that he who wields the hammer has the power to smash mountains into valleys and the strength to destroy even the gods. For more than a thousand years it has existed only as a myth…until now. It's out November 18.

Rhianna Pratchett has Faith in Mirrors Edge

Electronic Arts Inc. has announced that writer and story designer Rhianna Pratchett is responsible for crafting the intricate script for Mirror’s Edge - a unique first-person action adventure WITH a female lead no less!! Pratchett introduces players to Faith, a ‘runner’ in a world where communication channels are highly monitored and the movement of human traffic is closely watched. When Faith’s sister gets framed for a murder she did not commit, Faith finds herself on the edge of the city, on the wrong side of the law.

On a side note Rhianna Pratchett is daughter of fantastic writer Terry Pratchett and she also penned the story in Heavenly Sword, another female character that rocked!