There's quite a few tidbits of information from the video games press sector this week. Sure it's in the shadow of E3, but hey it's still video gaming news, so here we go.

Legacy Interactive has teamed up with Paramount Digital Entertainment to develop titles based on the popular Paramount Pictures’ films Clueless, Mean Girls and Pretty in Pink. Yes ladies and gents, it's all about casual gaming here and it sounds absolutely dire.

Here's a rundown straight from the press sheet:

In Clueless: The Game, the player takes on the part of Cher trying to find perfect boyfriends for all her pals. Players will need to figure out what kind of guy their friends want by noticing what clothes these potential suitors wear and what sort of interests they have. Once Cher knows what they want, she will have to pick out the right elements to make the perfect man for them. Players will have to be quick! Love waits for no one!

Mean Girls: High School Showdown allows players to take on the role of a student trying to restore balance to the many cliques in their high school and to end the reign of the terrible “plastic clique" — the prettiest girls and the meanest of the mean. To do this, players will need to unite the cliques by using a few tricks of their own. Players can choose to take the high road by using kind words and revealing important truths at the right time, or use the Plastic’s own evil tricks against them, by using rumors, pranks and put downs. A mix of both might go a long way, too!

The classic 80’s hit movie, Pretty in Pink, is known as a movie that defined a generation, and now players will have the chance to relive the story in an all-new entertaining game format. Through a series of beautifully rendered scenes, players will need to solve a variety of fun and challenging visual puzzles in order to experience the memorable story about love, friendship, the clash of social cliques and how to rise above them. Andie, Duckie, Blane, and the rest of the unforgettable characters from both “the wrong side of the tracks” and not, return to play out the romantic fairytale love story, but this time with a dramatic difference … their fate will be put in the hands of the player. … continue reading

I think I remember the first time I really, really wanted to look like somebody on TV. It was the late 1980s; the show was Saved by the Bell; the actress was Tiffani-Amber Thiessen; and the relevant monstrosity was this:

Now, you might be saying, that isn’t really so bad. I mean yes, the top is mauve, the jeans are floral, the hair is big and static ... but that Tiffani-Amber Thiessen is a pretty girl, right? No wonder at eight years old you wanted to look like her.

Well — yes. I mean, I’m sure the fact that Tiffani-Amber Thiessen is pretty had an impact on it — but I’m afraid I can’t excuse myself so easily. It wasn’t just that when I watched Saved by the Bell, I wanted to have Kelly Kapowski’s hair, or Kelly Kapowski’s smile. No, I wanted to have Kelly Kapowski’s look, her whole gloriously '80s pastel-and-neon wardrobe — complete with a pale orange T-shirt with rolled up sleeves that I remember particularly coveting. And — since it was the '80s — I think I more or less got it.

Fast-forward five years, to the premiere of a show called My So-Called Life in 1994. Jordan wore plaid flannel. Danielle wore plaid flannel. Rayanne had a plaid flannel shirt that reached the ground. And Angela ... well, Angela had red plaid flannel shorts that she wore with black tights. To quote a poster on TelevisionWithoutPity.com, “I can’t believe how normal I used to think these outfits were [...] Today, it looks to me like she’s wearing cutoff pajama pants over leggings.”

Did I run from this sea of flannel? Did I say “no plaid for me?” No. I had a pair of plaid green shorts that I hoped would make me look like Angela (they didn’t).

Plaid got a different, less grungy and more preppie twist the next year, when Clueless hit the movie theaters: … continue reading

Jane Austen never goes out of style. The founding mother of chick lit (I say that with love and respect; please don’t throw your dog-eared copies of Pride & Prejudice at me) has become cinema’s go-to wordsmith. Move over, Shakespeare: This is Jane’s world now.

Of course, adapting Austen’s books for the big screen is nothing new. But two upcoming films take it a step further this summer. They are inspired by the very woman herself. Becoming Jane (opening Aug. 10) and The Jane Austen Book Club (opening Sept. 21) both draw inspiration from Austen’s life. And both look, at first glance, pretty intriguing.

Becoming Jane features Anne Hathaway as a 20-year-old Austen at the start of her writing career and a crossroads in her love life. It sounds like, for lack of a better description, classic Austen. And Anne definitely fits the part. Broody writer looks good on her. … continue reading