By Kevin L. Clark

Here, we spotlight the movements, mods, and works of art within gaming culture for your ultimate enjoyment. The weekly post is your central point to see just how video games influence the world around us.

You may be stuffed full of turkey and other tryptophan-like substances, but that does not stop gamers from wondering the latest about Zak Penn’s Ready Player One adaptation. Based on the Ernie Cline book of the same title, Warner Bros. managed to scoop up this digital delight back in 2010. For those who don’t know, the plot develops around a Willy Wonka-esque innovator who creates a futuristic world where everyone lives in virtual reality. When that man passes away, a group of players must exhibit knowledge of all things pop culture, music, and games from the 1980s. Penn recently did a new interview, which confirms that the Ready Player One movie is done and talks about the obstacles of video game licensing. Nerd Report‘s Fred Topel penned the story.

Bill Nye may be your favorite science guy, but there can be something said for scientist who attempt to break down gaming in a scientific fashion. Arjun Keval Joshi of NintendoLife broke the hearts of many Super Mario Galaxy fans when he recounted a study from the Department of Physics and Astronomy, which broke down the small planets Mario traverses in the game. Using the surface gravity of Earth as their measuring mark, the students came to the conclusion that places like the Gold Leaf or Cosmic Cove galaxy would “likely explode in real life.” With not enough mass to produce a stable body, these minuscule planets would destroy all in an explosive blaze of gold coins and mushroom matter. If you want to know the particulars in full detail, you can read the actual paper by clicking here.

Did you know that Pixel Perfect had a plan to celebrate the Nintendo classic, Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out, on its 25th anniversary?! RetroPete at 8-Bit Central had been following the developments for the definitive book for awhile. The 240-page, unofficial encyclopedia for the NES game had a successful Kickstarter campaign, but failed to receive Nintendo’s blessings to release the book. Although the Brownsville Bomber, Mike Tyson, got a copy of the hardcover book, the supporters behind the project all went without due to Nintendo’s “complicated licensing issues.” Thankfully, Pixel Perfect has decided to allow interested readers access to the book in PDF form! By heading over to Pixel Perfect’s website, you are just a few short clicks from being able to learn more about Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out game than Conan O’Brien!

If you see anything that you feel is culturally relevant, artistic in merit, or just all-around cool for gamers — please don’t hesitate to let us know @HaroldGoldberg, @KevitoClark, and @HarryRabinowitz.