If you read a lot of gaming blogs, you soon realize there are only so many things to be written about video games. Sure, the specific games and people being discussed may change, but it’s the same basic stories again and again.

Well, good news for any of you who want to get into the blogging game — I’m opening the vaults and giving you every single basic story you need to become a successful video game blogger. Don’t worry, there’s not actually that many to remember…

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What’s weird and wonderful in science this week?

• Researchers believe your armpits stink to attract bacteria and leave your other orifices alone.
• There’s a new book detailing that your not being a morning person might have more scientific basis than just you hating your job.
• Here’s why so many fossils have a lot of uranium in them.
• Remember when you heard sperm counts had been halved by 1990. Turns out, not so much.
• To predict earthquakes, we need to stop looking at the ground and start examining tides.
• Not thinking about pain doesn’t just help you deal with it emotionally…it makes the brain divert pain signals and release pain-killing chemicals
• We drive like idiots, there are more cars on the road than ever, and yet it turns out that we’re actually dying in cars a lot less.
• After years of trying, we’ve finally got the signature of plutonium-239, meaning we might finally be able to store nuclear waste safely.
• And finally, the importance of an infamously unsolvable problem.

Anything we missed? Let us know in the comments!

image courtesy cometstarmoon on Flickr

It’s time once again for our Friday comic book cosplay feature, casting the spotlight on the best comics related costumery from the cosplay community.  We’re focusing on those cosplayers who we think deserve special recognition for coming up with the best costumes, whatever the budget, and the photographers who capture them for posterity.

This week we’re featuring some awesome cosplay of Batgirl, Spoiler, Batman, Poison Ivy, Robin, Harley Quinn, The Riddler, Phoenix, Bane, Black Cat, Superman, Scarlet Spider, Lois Lane, Spider-woman, Booster Gold and more!

Gamma Squad is committed to giving a voice to the cosplay community that thrives in groups like our friends at TheSuperheroCostumingForum.com. Each week we spotlight our favorite costumes and in addition we also host a regular cosplay contest, with the results forming a special theme week. We invite cosplayers, costumers and photographers to submit pictures of their work that relates to the theme (or any cosplay in general!) to our Flickr group to be considered. We’ll then pick our top choices and post them on Gamma Squad for the adoration of all.

Our current theme is:

• Indie and Small Press Cosplay

For now, enjoy this week’s selection!

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“Battleship” is going to get sunk this weekend by “The Avengers”, but it doesn’t matter: it’s already a hit. It cost $209 million and it’ll probably make $400 million across the world when all is said and done, meaning that the studio will break even on the movie.

And, since this is Hollywood, that means A) they’re already writing “Battleship 2″ and B) that board game season, not to mention card game season, is officially open. Here are ten games that Hollywood’s probably already optioned, along with a few taglines that we tried to make as horribly uncreative as possible, so when their marketing departments do use them, we can sue.

We also expect them to define any game that comes in a box as a “board game”, even if it’s a roleplaying game.
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As I’ve mentioned around here before, I like She-Hulk. She’s sassy single female lawyer with big green boobs — what’s not to like? Turns out Angie Harmon of Law & Order and Rizzoli & Isles fame (uh, semi fame?) agrees. Angie really wants to play She-Hulk, going so far as to post a picture of herself cosplaying as She-Hulk on Twitter.

I dunno — I mean, she’s got the lawyer thing down, and she’s green, but she’s kind of skinny to be playing She-Hulk. Shulkie’s not as hefty as her cousin (He-Hulk), but she should have a bit more meat on dem bones.

But it seems as if Angie’s got at least one supporter — long-time She-Hulk writer Dan Slott. Upon hearing of Angie’s interest in the character, Slott Tweeted “I swear I’d write the pilot for free.” Cool, well if Dan’s got the script covered, I’ll write the theme song!

Single, Green, Female Lawyer,
Fighting for her client,
Wearing sexy mini-skirts,
And being self-reliant…

via The Mary Sue

[via]

In case you hadn’t noticed from the ads all over this page, Battleship is showing in theaters in North America now. This trend of buying the film rights to board games and toys is ripe for parody. You don’t even really have to try. It already sounds like a parody to say there will be movies based on Battleship, Rubik’s Cubes, Monsterpocalypse, Risk, Candyland, Monopoly, and Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots. And yet they’ll probably make mad cash on these movies. Okay, Hollywood. But when you fall off that big pile of money and break your legs, don’t come running to us for sympathy.

Let’s celebrate all the money they’re going to somehow make from this ridiculous premise with a collection of 15 parody photoshops and videos.

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