A few minutes of recapping old stuff then all new news. This episode proves why Allison is necessary to the flock, enjoy!

No podcast recording tonight. You see, we’re all sick. Which is bad.

Pre-E3 Special! I don’t think we have ever been so focused on games in one episode of The Bender. Listen now!

Mike Wilson, Gamecock’s Grand Champeen (and possibly high on smack?) has announced his candidacy for ESA president.

The man who taught us all about Jerry who was a race car driver and Wynona’s big brown beaver, who then later gave us classic theme songs for great shows like South Park and Robot Chicken, is now helping ensure that the Mushroom Men game is going to have at least one thing going for it, memorable music.

Gamecock and Red Fly Studio’s Mushroom Men have snagged up Claypool for all the in game music and already from the update on their web site (mushroommen.com) you can hear that awesome odd bassy touch that Les brings to the table. Gamecock is easily becoming one of my favorite publishers, so far all the developers they are working with seem cool (Pirates vs Ninja Dodgeball’s Blazing Lizard) and the games themselves are looking great (LEGENDARY!). From all the Mushroom Men videos I have seen, the game is turning out good and having Claypool along is some of the best icing ever on a cake.

Press release that is well worth reading:

Mushroom Men Hard To Find In Real Life, Easy To Find Online

Now Featuring Music Courtesy of Les Claypool

Cockpit, Austin, TX – April 11, 2008 – Gamecock Media Group today announced that a completely revamped Mushroom Men website is alive and thriving on the internet [www.MushroomMen.com]. The site is packed with new information about Red Fly Studio’s “Mushroom Men: The Spore Wars” for Wii™ and “Mushroom Men: Rise of The Fungi” for Nintendo DS™, and also features original music by Les Claypool that will be used in-game.

“Getting Les Claypool involved with Mushroom Men has always been a dream scenario! Having him on board and collaborating with everyone is a really exciting time for the project,” said Kris Taylor, Co-Founder and Art Director of Red Fly Studio. “Now with the new website up and running, we hope people can really come and get a vibe for what we are creating with the Mushroom Men universe.”

In both versions of the game players are thrust into a raging war taking place between enemy factions of mushroom men. As a brave Bolete, players view the world from the entirely surreal perspective of a three inch high mushroom, transforming common household trinkets and trash into weapons and tools that wreak havoc. The game will feature rich environments we, as humans, take for granted, and an entertaining combination of exploration and combat.

MushroomMen.com is the go-to source for all the latest information about the world of boletes, morels, amanitas, and lepiotas. Sprouting from simple links; viewers will find rendered art, videos, characters, weapon systems, screenshots, gameplay footage and more. For those with ears, they’ll be treated to Les Claypool’s (of “Primus” fame, and the creator of the theme songs for South Park and Robot Chicken) exclusive mushroom-inspired character and theme music. The original tracks will play an important role in the game’s audio gameplay experience.

“When Mushroom Men was first presented to me I was coincidentally on the perpetual late fall hunt for the elusive King Bolete mushrooms which dot the West Sonoma County landscape where myself and my family dwell,” said Les Claypool. “The yearly quest for these fabulous, fungal delicacies has become a bit of a seasonal obsession for myself and my two children over the past few years. Coupled with my son’s obsession with fantasy gaming, it was all I could do to get anything else done around Rancho Relaxo once he got wind of the impending Mushroom Man game and the creator’s interest in having me do the soundtrack. After seeing the design material and mock-ups online, I was queried on a daily basis whether or not I had ‘talked to the Mushroom guys’ and would they be sending us a beta version to try out. I knew at once that this was an opportunity to gain massive brownie points in the eyes of my offspring, a feat that becomes more and more difficult the closer they get to adolescence. Thanks Mushroom Men.”

MushroomMen.com features the latest information about Mushroom Men and will be continually updated with new content over the next several months.