This article is from the first edition of The Video Game Librarian website I published between 2008 and 2010. It was originally written on August 21, 2008.

LucasArts is pulling out all the stops for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. In addition to the video game, their cross-format media event will feature a tie-in novel, a graphic novel, and an art book (The Art and Making of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed) detailing the making of the game.

Joystiq got a first look at the book and posted a bunch of excerpts on their site. The 224-page tome, which was written by Brett Rector and The Force Unleashed project leader Haden Blackman, definitely looks to raise the bar for game art books everywhere. The Art and Making of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed will be available in stores this week.

And for more Star Wars fun, the Star Wars: The Force Unleashed demo will be added to the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Marketplace tomorrow.

This article is from the first edition of The Video Game Librarian website I published between 2008 and 2010. It was originally written on August 13, 2008.

A new book titled The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy recently popped up on Amazon. The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy is an essay compilation edited by Luke Cuddy, and it’ll be released on November 28.

Using the game franchise as a springboard, here’s a look at some of the philosophical questions the publisher believes the book might be able to answer:

With both young and adult gamers as loyal fans, The Legend of Zelda is one of the most beloved video game series ever created. The contributors to this volume consider the following questions and more: What is the nature of the gamer’s connection to Link? Does Link have a will, or do gamers project their wills onto him? How does the gamer experience the game? Do the rules of logic apply in the game world? How is space created and distributed in Hyrule (the fictional land in which the game takes place)? How does time function? Is Zelda art? Can Hyrule be seen as an ideal society? Can the game be enjoyable without winning? The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy not only appeals to Zelda fans and philosophers but also puts video games on the philosophical map as a serious area of study.

The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy is the latest entry in the longrunning “Popular Culture and Philosophy” series. The series has spawned dozens of volumes looking into the deeper meaning of our favorite entertainment, with previous philosophical deconstructions focused on Seinfeld, The Simpsons, The Beatles, zombies, James Bond, The Matrix, The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, poker, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The Legend of Zelda is the first video game entry in the “Popular Culture and Philosophy” series, but it won’t be the last. The popular plans to release World of Warcraft and Philosophy in 2009.

This article is from the first edition of The Video Game Librarian website I published between 2008 and 2010. It was originally written on July 21, 2008.

After the success of the Halo series of novels, it was only a matter of time before Microsoft’s Gears of War series got the same treatment. And get it, it will. The first novel in a planned Gears of War trilogy will be released on October 28 (just ahead of Gears of War 2‘s November 7 release date). It will be a prequel to the game series titled Gears of War: The Battle of Aspho Fields and will be written by Karen Traviss (who previously brought the Star Wars: Republic Commando world to life in a series of novels).

Here’s what Del Ray had to say about The Battle of Aspho Fields:

In Gears of War: The Battle of Aspho Fields, the last human stronghold on Sera braces itself for another onslaught from the Locust Horde, as ghosts come back to haunt Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago. For Marcus — decorated war hero, convicted traitor — the return of an old comrade threatens to dredge up an agonizing secret he’s sworn to keep. As the beleaguered soldiers of the Coalition of Ordered Governments take a last stand to save humankind from extermination, the harrowing decisions made at Aspho Fields have to be relived and made again. Marcus and Dom can take anything the Locust Horde throws at them — but will their friendship survive the truth about Dom’s brother Carlos?

This article is from the first edition of The Video Game Librarian website I published between 2008 and 2010. It was originally written on June 17, 2008.

Bungie has revealed that the next book in the series of novels based on Halo will be released this Fall. The book will be titled Halo: The Cole Protocol and will be written by Tobias S. Buckell.

According to Bungie, the novel “reveals the location of the Spartan Gray Team and takes readers into an unexplored conflict of the Human-Covenant War where unlikely alliances are formed and shattered…”

This article is from the first edition of The Video Game Librarian website I published between 2008 and 2010. It was originally written on May 28, 2008.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots will be released for the PlayStation 3 on June 12, and the highly-anticipated PS3 title will be joined on store shelves by a novelization of the first title in the series, which was released earlier this week.

Written by Raymond Benson (best known for authoring a series of James Bond novels from 1997-2002 and for two stories based on the Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell franchise), the book is simply titled Metal Gear Solid.

Here’s what the back of the book has to say… Continue reading →

This article is from the first edition of The Video Game Librarian website I published between 2008 and 2010. It was originally written on April 4, 2008.

Simon & Schuster has revealed, through their online store, that they plan to release two volumes of the Legend of Zelda manga in 2008.

The Legend of Zelda: Volume 1 will be released on October 7 while The Legend of Zelda: Volume 2 will sneak in before the end of the year on December 2. Both titles will be written by Akira Himekawa.

Himekawa has been writing the Legend of Zelda manga in Japan since 1998, when he authored an adaptation of The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time. Since then he has also adapted Majora’s Mask, Oracle of Seasons/Ages, Four Swords Adventures, A Link to the Past (though the manga was titled Triforce of the Gods) and The Minish Cap.

It is currently unknown which series Simon & Schuster will start with this Fall.