Note: this post contains rumors which are unsourced, because they’re rumors. While I wouldn’t post about them unless i was fairly certain they had some credence, they should not be taken as fact, and should be approached with the appropriate amount of skepticism. The exception to this is the fact that the three studios in question did blackball EGM/1UP (as well as a number of other publishers in Europe as well), and Sony did fuck up last year and try to bully Kotaku into pulling a story.

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So, I wasn’t a huge fan of the last Area 51 game; it looked really good, especially for the PS2, and it played alright, but there was nothing in it that grabbed me especially. But it also released while Halo 2 was still in the public sphere, so that may be why. Anyhow, Midway has been kind enough to drop the still-in-development Blacksite: Area 51 on the Live Marketplace (but still no Stranglehold, though it’s due significantly sooner; not a good sign). Since the game is still pretty far off, it’s a pretty short demo, arguably shorter even than the micro-demo of GRAW 2 a couple of months ago, but there’s enough there to get an idea of where Midway is going with the title.

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So picture this: Sentient, hovering fast food, at a golfing resort, using golf clubs to beat two dimensional moon beings and their zombie ninja cohorts into submission. Oh, I forgot: They’ll also be riding golf carts, of course. Interested? I thought not.

Nevertheless, that is the premise behind Midway and Cartoon Network’s new title Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am, which, incidentally, is possibly the most ridiculous title I’ve ever heard. While action-adventures and fighting games can on occasion be entertaining, I’m skeptical about this one. After all, the game is based off of ATHF, a show that prides itself on fucking random storylines, which works well enough in small doses. However, pack that into a 5-10 hour game, and it might be a little much for even the most hardcore fans.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the show. And, I’ll admit, I’m hoping that Midway’s close collaboration with Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis - ATHF’s creators - will hit the nail on the head with this one. It’s been a long time since any company has produced a good combination of hilarity and fun gameplay on a mainstream console (I can’t quite count Sam and Max, since its on Gametap). If ATHFZNPA can accomplish this difficult task, then that will be fantastic. I’d be happy to support the series with my 50 or 60 dollars. But I can’t say I’m holding my breath.

After all, this game is in response to the Aqua Teen movie coming out in mid April, Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters (Another splendid title, I might add). And we all know how often games based on movies end up being awful representations of their former selves. Now, as for games based on movies based on quirky TV shows? Its so fundamentally wrong, that it might just work. Or it could be such mind boggling garbage that our heads could explode. Either way, I’ll be waiting for the reviews on this one.

-Bedlam-