Now this is fascinating. The Super Mario Bros 2 that came out in the US is actually not the real Mario 2. Nintendo thought the real one was too hard, so they modified another game called Doki Doki Panic with Mario graphics and released that instead. That explains why Mario 2 is kind of the odd man out among the whole series, with its weird gameplay mechanics (Pulling turnips out of the ground? What the fuck is that?).

This is an awesome trailer for Portal, a new game that\’ll be included with Half-Life 2 Episode 2. The recently released Prey also has portal technology, but Valve takes it to the next level by allowing you to put portals anywhere. It opens up insane gameplay possibilities. Looks like you can get stuck in an infinite loop too, that\’s nuts.

I bought a Nintendo DS Lite last weekend, along with New Super Mario Bros. and Brain Age. It\’s so neat. It really does look like it could\’ve been designed by Apple. It\’s very sleek; the plugs, switches, stylus, and GBA filler piece all sit flush along the sides so the smooth lines aren\’t spoiled. I think it\’s the perfect size too. Any smaller and my hands would probably cramp up playing it.

I haven\’t played console games in years, and portable systems for even longer, so I\’ve forgotten how convenient it could be. I can pick it up and start playing within 5 seconds, and with the sleep function it picks up right where I left off. Hell, I\’m gonna take it to work and sneak in some games when I\’m not busy.

Mario Bros. is just like the old games, before the series went 3D. All the side-scrolling, running and jumping action is back. Mario and the bad guys are 3D, while the levels are 2D, but it all works together really well.

Badass slow motion videos of drag racing.

The Hunt for 928 is a good story about the search for the crash site of a top secret CIA jet. I love how he finds 3 other crashed jets along the way.
[ From Coudal Partners ]

Artist Scott Wade uses the dusty back window of his Mini as his canvas.That\’s a long way from \’Wash Me\’.

\”She was the greatest piece of ass I ever had, and I had\’em all over the world! And then Johnny Fontane comes along with his olive-oil voice and guinea charm. And she runs off. She threw it all away just to make me look ridiculous! And a man in my position can\’t afford to be made to look ridiculous!\” – Horse head pillows for fans of the Godfather.

Train service in Cambodia is very poor, so locals created bamboo trains, homemade, electric trains that use the rails and provide more frequent service. If 2 trains ever meet, they\’re light enough that one can be taken off the tracks for the other to pass. I really like this, people taking things into their own hands when their government fails them.
[ From Boing Boing ]