Website Feature: Gourmet Gaming

Games like Cooking Mama really get my appetite going. Here you are preparing delicious food and you can't even eat it. It's like composing a symphony and not being able to hear how all the parts finally come together - I'm talking to you Beethoven. One gamer has the food creativity of a culinary master and has figured out how to make out favorite in-game treats into real life products.

Daniella - the creator of Gourmet Gaming - takes the concept way farther than the simple Cooking Mama recipes you could easily find around the internet. She has created recipes for Costume Quest's Mossy Log, Pokemon's Poffins and many more. This gamer gone food artist has crafted some of the most delectable desserts and snacks I've ever seen. Maybe it's just her amazing photography skills, but all the food she puts up on her website looks amazing.

Kingdom Hearts - Spark Lemon via Gourmet Gaming

Looking at the recipes and delicious food is one thing, but making them is a whole different story. Each recipe is rated on a scale from one to five hearts to show the level of difficulty. In addition, all recipes include the metric and customary units - a nice gesture for all her American fans.

Out of all her recipes, I decided to take a stab at making her recipe for The Sims  Goopy Carbonara. With a two heart difficulty rating, I figured it would be an easy dinner dish and a good place to start in all of her crazy foods.

Video Game and Reality Carbonara via Gourmet Gaming

For the recipe, click here!

Mine didn't turn out so pretty, but my tastebuds were pleased. The next time I make this recipe there are two things I plan to do differently.

For one, I wasn't able to find cubed ham the recipe called for at my local Fiesta - the Mexican food store my friend insisted we go to for ingredients - so I just used flat lunchmeat ham instead. It worked just as well but because it shriveled so much, it resulted in a frugal amount of ham in the overall dish, leaving it tasting a little bland. It's a good cheap replacement, but if you do use this substitute then make sure you add a generous amount of it.

One other thing I would do is make more of the sauce. The amount the recipe makes just didn't create that 'goopy' feeling for me. It still tasted great, but it would have tasted fantastic if there was just a bit more.

My take on the Goopy Carbonara

I plan on returning to her website for many more dinner recipes. I'm hoping she does a recipe for Fallout's Surgar Bombs next!

Yours truly,
HavokRose

EA Conference - E3 2012

The first thing I want from this conference is The Sims. When I think EA, The Sims is the first thing that comes to mind. I played that game on my computer as a child well into my teenage years. Returning to that series would be awesome.

Dead Space. EA started with DeadSpace 3, and I was just about ready to run from the room. If there there is one thing that really scares me, its aliens. I don't mean aliens like the cute Grunts in Halo, I mean like the big baddies in Aliens.

Thankfully, the trailer hardly showed any of the gruesome creatures, but it did reveal something else: Co-op! Who doesn't love Co-op? Especially if it's a simple drop-in and drop-out format. With this addition, maybe I could handle the horrifying world of Dead Space. Just maybe.

Everyone was just bringing in surprise guests today. In order to talk more about the upcoming Madden game, EA brought in NFL's Hall of Famer, Michael Oher.

Then, it was time for a Maxis presentation. I was so happy - then they announced it was a game for Facebook. That shrunk my excitement down to the size of a pea. In a way, it makes sense that they are finally releasing the SimsCity Social for Facebook.

Facebook is a great place for simulation games, such as FarmVille and CastleVille, so it was only a matter of time before Maxis brought it's original creation to Facebookers. In addition, they announced another SimsCity for PCs that would include a multiplayer feature.

In addition to these three games, EA announced and presented the following games:

• Battlefield 3 Premium
• Star Wars: The Old Republic Expansion 
• Medal of Honor: Warfighter
• Madden NFL Social 
• FIFA Football Club on Smartphones and Tablets 
• FIFA 13
• UFC and EA Sports Partnership 
• Need for Speed Most Wanted
• Crysis 3

My favorite part of this conference was when Criterion Games' Executive Producer Matt Webster ended his presentation with "God save the queen." So British. 

Did anything from EA's conference impress you?

To watch EA's Conference, click here.

Tune in tomorrow for a report on Ubisoft and Sony's conferences! 

Yours truly, 

HavokRose 

Did you say, free?

The last computer game I seriously played was the Sims 3 - about two years ago. This Thursday, that may change. Since most of my gaming experience has been on consoles, I've never been too interested in MMO's. But this is one I will definitely try.

Today, IGN reported Star Wars: The Old Republic will offer new users a free trial starting Thursday, March 15 and ending Monday, March 19. The trial gives users the opportunity to try out the eight available classes and explore their Orgin world and Capital world. PVP Warzone will also be available along with The Esseles and Black Talon flashpoints, IGN reported.  


As a Star Wars geek, I am incredibly excited. I've heard great things about this game, and it'll be my first MMO. I think this would be a great way to get started, and if I don't like it, I can at least say I've tried. Let me know if you plan on taking part in this trial!

Yours truly,
HavokRose

Mmm... Donuts.

Since I got my iPhone last August, I have been on the hunt for ways to make the little machine reflect me and my interests. I have over 600 pictures and five pages of apps. The memory on the little poor device is almost bloated with the 572 songs and three movies I have on it. However, I keep pushing it's limits.

I love the Simpsons. Especially the games. I remember countless hours I spent as Lisa, running around Springfield in The Simpsons Arcade Game, Road Rage, Hit and Run and the recent The Simpsons Game.

Now, EA has cranked out another Simpsons game to occupy the time I don't have. This time it's free and for the iPhone - sorry Android users. 

The Simpsons: Tapped Out is the newest addition to the Simpsons game collection and it is wonderful! I've only begun the tutorial, but I'm already in love with the plot and the gameplay. In this game, Springfield is wiped out by a nuclear explosion, thanks to Homer. He is the only person left in what used to be Springfield. It has become a large field of grass with scattered products of nuclear waste. It is your job to rebuild the iconic town. With a simple tap and a bit of money, you have ability to place buildings, foliage and decor wherever you desire.

The controls  can be a little tricky at times. Tapping something once doesn't always complete the action desired. Precision is key, and when the target is only a few pixels big, it can be a little tedious. Despite this hiccup, the game has already become addicting. So much for doing my Japanese homework.

If you download this game, what do you think? Let me know in the comment section below!

Yours truly,
HavokRose