Steve Jobs never 
had a lot of interest in the video game world, but that didn’t stop Apple from accidentally becoming one of the most influential companies in the industry.
Now, the founder of Valve Software, makers of the acclaimed “Half-Life” series and Steam digital distribution system, says he believes Apple could make Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo’s consoles irrelevant at some point in the future.
While the story in 
Stray Souls: Dollhouse Story might not be the strongest in the app store, it does a masterful job of creating a spooky atmosphere that makes the story come alive. It’s well-paced and scales well to both experienced puzzle/adventure gamers and newcomers to the genre. The heroine is a bit disappointing, though, in that she sometimes comes across as someone who is entirely dependent on her husband. (For instance, she notes at one point that she had never driven before her husband taught her how.)
All in all, though, the game is a clever blend of puzzle games with a story that twists nicely. It’s certainly too intense for young players, but tweens and adults will have lots of fun with it.
Borrowing heavily from 
Angry Birds and Fragger, Monster Island adds an extra layer of cartoon absurdity as characters try to blow up other monsters. There’s no story to the game, per se, but it’s very well animated. And despite taking some trial and error to master, it’s not overly complicated and very welcoming. The problem with the game is it’s derivative and doesn’t really advance the genre. And the coins you work so hard to collect don’t have a lot of use, except for buying unlocks for levels or cheats — something you likely don’t need if you’re able to amass coins. (You can also unlock other monsters to play as, but that’s nothing that affects gameplay.)
It’s a fun diversion and will keep you busy for quite a while, but won’t prove to be an all-time great.
Few, if any, 
in the Hollywood community have embraced the Web as passionately as Felicia Day.
Now, with the fifth season of her comedic web-series “The Guild” in her pocket, Day has weighed anchor on a new project, a six-part Web series tying in with Electronic Arts hit video game franchise “Dragon Age” – and it looks like she may have another hit on her hands.
Nolan Bushnell is 
a man with big ideas.
In 1972, he founded Atari, laying the foundation for the video game industry we know today. Five years later, he bought a pizza chain from Warner Communications and built it into Chuck E. Cheese.
Now, the serial entrepreneur and tech visionary says mind control could be the next big step for video games.
Four months after 
Warner Bros. announced that it would delay the release of its films in Hungary due to rampant piracy in that country, officials have raided a substantial piracy operation.
Police have confiscated a number of computers and allegedly pirated content that belonged to the CiNEDUB ring. Included among the haul was a 70 TB hard drive housing 5,000 movies, 4,000 songs, 6,000 games and computer software.
Plenty of people 
are celebrating Netflix’ decision to scrub plans to separate its DVD-by-mail and streaming services, but nowhere are the cheers louder than at the corporate HQ of leading video game rental company, GameFly.
In his note announcing the reversal of the controversial decision, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings made no mention of earlier plans to add video games to the company’s rental collection — and many think the plan might have been abandoned.
The match-three 
genre is a tired one, but you have to give the developers of Panda Picnic credit for finding a way to make it fun once again. By blending the random elements of a slot machine with the “match three of the same fruits” objective, and making it into a multiplayer experience, they’ve created something unique enough to turn heads.
The demand to log into Facebook, though, is very intrusive and for an app that simulates gambling, the app is very curiously (and obviously) tailored to children. From the music, to the graphics, to the name of the panda who sits at the top of the screen (Petey the Panda), it’s a page out of the “how to appeal to children” handbook. Adults will have fun with it, but there are a lot of lurking bad lessons and habits for kids.
Just days after 
announcing a slew of alliances with cable channels and services, Microsoft is adding Ultimate Fighting Championship events to its growing roster of non-gaming programming.
Starting Dec. 1, Xbox 360 users will be able to order pay-per-view events as well as access a library of live and on-demand content. The first pay-per-view will be the company’s UFC 140 event on Dec. 10.
Electronic Arts, which 
has struggled with its basketball titles for the past couple of years, now has another hardwood woe: One of the game’s all-time greats.
Former Boston Celtic center Bill Russell has sued the company over the use of his likeness in its “Tournament of Legends” feature in the NCAA basketball franchise.
Chris Morris: Journalist 