Mid Day Distraction

Pretty damn impressive for a commercial.

"Inaugural" Video Game Puts Players in Obama's Shoes

If anyone wants to get me this for Christmas.....

If you've ever wondered why it's important to elect someone smarter than you to be President of the United States, French video game company Eversim has the answer--which may also lead the way in uniting politics junkies and video game junkies.

Commander in Chief, the ultimate strategic simulation PC game, is coming to the United States. The new "geo-political simulation adventure" puts the gamer in the President-Elect's shoes beginning on Inauguration Day 2009: January 20, which is also the game's planned release date.

Players will have to navigate all the same issues as President-Elect Barack Obama will: the unstable economy, energy, national security, terrorism, and "all things politics," testing their leadership abilities in five levels of difficulty.

Players begin by selecting members of the Cabinet and heads of states from "250 personality types and 20 variables including age, gender, political leaning, religion, charisma, competence, popularity, etc." The generic personalities mean that though you can try your best to replicate Donald Rumsfeld, he isn't an actual character in the game. (That's probably a good thing.)

Super Obama World!

Oooh, I'm going to have to go play. Via Jake-

A three-person software company in Madison, Wisc., called ZenSoft has created an on-line videogame that pays tribute to President-elect Obama by putting him in "Super Obama World," which bears more than a passing resemblance to the 1990s game Super Mario World.

In the first installment, Obama is in Alaska, where he scores points by collecting American flag lapel pins, and battling hockey moms, Russian soldiers, Gov. Sarah Palin, oil company executives, and pigs and pitbulls wearing lipstick.

(snip)

The gamemakers say future installments will put Obama in Illinois, Arizona, and Washington, DC.

21st Century Candidate For A 21st Century World

Not just Burnout. Baseball, basketball, car races... Via Ben.

A reader who spends too much time with his Xbox sends over many more images of Obama ads embedded in video games.