Just in case you haven't been following this rare and unseemly spat, Matt Selman, a senior producer on EA's Simpsons game has criticised Rockstar for apparently insisting that a satirical reference to GTA be removed from the game. On an episode of Game Head (relevant section viewable here), he says:

The game begins with Bart wanting to play a game called Grand Theft Scratchy. Of course this is a parody of Grand Theft Auto. And Marge immediately takes it away from him. She tries to clean up the town and stop the game from being distributed in Springfield because Marge is against video game violence. She uses horrific violence to stop video game violence... in a video game... That's called irony. The people who make Grand Theft Auto - they spazzed out like little babies.

From earlier comments by Simpsons lead designer Greg Rizzer, it would seem that a Rockstar lawyer saw the Grand Theft Scratchy level at Leipzig and demanded that it be removed. Senior producer Matt Warburton has added, "They're supposed to be rock stars; that's not a big rockstar move - to be afraid of The Simpsons making fun of their game."

There's an implication that Rockstar were worried consumers may be confused into thinking that Grand Theft Scratchy was, in fact, the next official title in the Grand Theft Auto series. Selman responds by characterising Rockstar's alleged concerns:

We couldn't get our game out in time, so we're afraid that the gamers -- who are not morons -- are going to get confused by an Itchy and Scratchy poster of 'Grand Theft Scratchy' - they're going to think that's the same thing as Grand Theft Auto... EA lawyers are afraid to use the name 'Grand Theft Scratchy' in promoting the game... [Rockstar's] games are full of satire, lame attempts at parody... basically putting the words sixty-nine in wherever they can find it...

Miaow.

It seems the GTA section will now be re-named Mob Rules. According to 1up, a trailer of the level, complete with new name, is available at EA's site and the content - clearly still reminiscent of the gangsta adventure series - remains unchanged. I couldn't access the site, though - it's perhaps being inundated by Rockstar lawyers.

The wags in Sega UK's marketing department have come up with a new 'street advertising campaign' for the very good update of AM3 classic, Sega Rally. Fans are being asked to promote the game by writing its name and a relevant slogan onto their own dirty vehicles, then emailing in a piccie. The provider of the best photo wins a copy of Sega Rally, a PS3 and an extreme rally day experience.

This is far from a new concept. They've been doing dirty car advertising in Moscow for ages and Ray Ban used the idea just a few months ago in its Never Hide campaign. However, it might be worth a try as there only appears to be one picture on the gallery at the moment...

Anyway, it's worth checking out the Sega Rally blogs, for vehicle designer Keith Burden's posts on the process of constructing the cars for the game. It's also - it goes without saying - worth checking out the game itself, which is a lovely slab of sunlight-smacked driving fun, merging the fishtailing oversteer of the arcade original with modern concerns such as physics and mud. And the physics of mud. (Driving in the tyre furrows of other cars brings more stability to your ride.) The result is a more sophisticated title - it bears the definite imprint of the Colin McRae series, which is no accident as the game has been overseen by Guy Wilday, producer of CMR until the recent Dirt instalment.

I love it. Despite the silly marketing gimmick.