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Classic 'Clue' Board Game Gets a High-Tech Makeover

Tired of the same old, boring 'Clue' board game? Feel claustrophobic while you wander aimlessly around that old dusty mansion? Have you ever lay awake at night thinking that the only missing ingredient from an otherwise near-perfect storm of a board game was international espionage? Of course you have. Well, your wildest board game dreams, dear reader, are about to come true.

Game company Hasbro has announced the release of a newer, sleeker, more global, and more high-tech version of Clue, titled 'CLUE: Secrets & Spies.' The usual suspects are all there, with their same hues, but are now secret agents, working to foil the elusive "Agent Black" and his C.L.U.E. (Criminal League for Ultimate Espionage) network of evil. The New York Times reports that in addition to the '007'-type narrative, the game also features an ultraviolet decoder, and, for the first time in Hasbro history, text messaging as a built-in part of the game.

Before beginning, players send a text message to Hasbro headquarters and wait to receive further instructions. (Careful, agents; texting fees aren't included.) The texting is an optional feature, and Hasbro has announced it will continue through December 2011, coincidentally, around the same time that the remake of the cult classic '80s movie is slated for release.

Traditionalists and 'Clue'-ficionados might be bristling at the thought of sullying the storied lineage of the game with a remake. We can totally understand that, seeing as remakes are, in general, innately cringe-worthy. From an innovative perspective, though, even the most staunchly old-school among us have to admit that the texting feature is pretty cool. It's probably even cool enough to warrant shelling out the $25 for 'Secrets & Spies' (something we'd be more than willing to do). Still, we're pretty confident that regardless of how alluring the newest, shiniest variation is, nothing beats the original. [From: The New York Times]
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Games in Real Life

Games in Real-Life

    From Capcom's futuristic swashbuckler, Bionic Commando:
    Capcom created this full-sized replica of Bionic Commando's arm to celebrate the launch of the BC sequel and remake. It's not as heavy as it looks.

    From the retro-future shooter BioShock:
    This life-sized, 7′ 2″ Big Daddy statue from BioShock went up for bid on the Dutch eBay, and the proceeds went to the World Wildlife Fund. And weighs a svelte 100 pounds!

    From a variety of classic arcade games:
    PES' Game Over video brings various games, from Space Invaders to Frogger, to claymation life.

    From the post-apocalyptic duck-and-cover shooter, Gears of War:
    Know that impossibly over-the-top machine gun/chainsaw Lancer from Gears of War? Developer actually Epic had one made; thankfully, it neither shoots nor chain-saws...

    From everybody's favorite sci-fi FPS Halo:
    What would you do for a real-life Master Chief suit? Or perhaps the better question: what wouldn't you do?

    From the ultimate in cute customization, Little Big Planet:
    It took a bit longer than expected, but the real-life Little Big Planet Sackboys are finally on their way, courtesy of Mezco Toyz. Sony's mascot will come in a variety of customized outfits -- all of which will actually be available in the game as well.

    From a little game you may have heard of, Mario Brothers:
    "Mushroom Kingdom" is the work of one Ashley Buerkett. And while it's not really a game, it's one of the more impressive pieces of papercraft we'v'e seen to date. Complete with NES controller!

    From the arcade classic, Pac-Man:
    Pac-Manhattan brought the classic arcade game to the New York City grid,and was developed by NYU's Interactive Telecommunications graduate program. Wanna be a Ghost, Pac, or Power Pill? It's your choice -- just watch out for the taxis.

    From the mind-bending puzzle-shooter, Portal:
    For anyone lucky enough to have played Valve's Portal, this is pretty much the ultimate souvenir: the Portal Gun, made from blue LED's and Storm Trooper-white plastic molding defies expectations (if not gravity).

    From the kart-racer that ate up your childhood, Mario Kart:
    This French gamer brought Mario Kart to life, driving a go-kart around town and tossing banana peels out the back.

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