Video Games

“2010 Sales Of Video Games Fell Flat”

2011-01-14T09:23:00.001-08:00

“2010 Sales Of Video Games Fell Flat”

2010 Sales Of Video Games Fell Flat

Posted: 14 Jan 2011 09:12 AM PST

Posted on: Friday, 14 January 2011, 10:45 CST

Overall sales of video games fell short of expectations for 2010 but are expected to climb back up for 2011 as people embrace new ways of playing games online and on mobile devices, according to retail research firm NPD Group.

Total spending on video games and equipment fell 6 percent to $18.6 billion in 2010, as gamers curtailed spending in the early part of the year despite a surge in video game accessories -- spurred by Microsoft Corp's Kinect and Sony Corp's Move motion control systems.

Microsoft Corp. said last week it has sold more than 8 million Kinect units over November and December, the first two months on the market, beating its target of 5 million and forced it to accelerate delivery of units to stores that were meant to be sold in January and February.

As a result, the company said, it expects shortages of both the Xbox console and the Kinect add-on for the next two months. Kinect lets people control on-screen action with body movements or spoken commands and is priced at $150 dollars.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 video game consoles were the only platform to sell more hardware in 2010 than in the previous year, according to NPD. "This has been the biggest holiday and the biggest year ever for Xbox," Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said during a presentation at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Recent economic slowdowns are blamed for the slowdown in 2010 of overall sales of video game platforms with a positive uptick in sales numbers during the end-of-year holidays. "It was a robust finish to a year marked by innovation and engaging millions of consumers through a multitude of delivery models," said Michael Gallagher, president of the Entertainment Software Association trade group.

"I look forward to a strong 2011 with a great pipeline of titles."

Many of those new titles are expected to debut at an international Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles later this year.

---

On the Net:

Source: RedOrbit Staff & Wire Reports

More News in this Category

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured site: So, Why is Wikileaks a Good Thing Again?.

“Turn video games into more than child's play”

2011-01-13T09:34:00.001-08:00

“Turn video games into more than child's play”

Turn video games into more than child's play

Posted: 13 Jan 2011 08:23 AM PST

School holidays. The young family sits in the cafe: mum, dad, baby and pre-school-aged son. The boy's not quite there. He's battling zombies, shooting gangsters or flying a starship on his hand-held gaming device.

For the parents, it's a boon. He's unmoving, silent, undistracting. They can read the newspaper, feed the baby, make conversation. None of the hands-on wrangling we do with our son and daughter, who play Lego (and fight over the blocks) or draw (and fight over the pencils). The hand-held console is the ultimate labour-saving device for parents: pacifier and babysitter in one, and it goes where they go. It even has headphones, so mum and dad aren't disturbed by missiles and monsters.

Some perspective: this isn't the end of civilisation - the final gambit before we're trapped in the Matrix forever. This is itself the stuff of video games, not sober comment. And the average gamer isn't a child but a 30-something adult - hence the need to overhaul classification laws.

Nonetheless, every tool has its shortcomings. To reveal these, we need calm analysis, not moral panic. What are the potential problems with video games as digital babysitters?

First, they encourage anti-social behaviour. Much of what our children learn is by demonstration, not overt communication. With the hand-held console, we consent to our children opting-out of conversation. They learn that the table is for private pursuits, not the intimate to-and-fro of talk, and the rhythms of domesticity: passing foods, cutting and pouring, savouring the common meal.

This wouldn't be a problem if families were always cheek-by-jowl. But, between school, kindergarten, work, extracurricular trips and chores, families often spend little time together. The hand-held console means one less voice at the table; one less opportunity to get to know one another, in the short time we have.

Second, the portable console has some worrisome limitations. Not because of the content, which is often benign, even when violent. Rather, the medium itself is limited, because of how it teaches.

Video games can undoubtedly be educational. Studies suggest they can improve visual skills, like critical awareness during driving. They can also encourage problem-solving, communication and reading.

Put simply, video games are not pure bubblegum, and this is why some professions - from the military to medicine - use them to train staff.

The problem with many popular video games is that they have little creative content - for players, not designers. Even in open-ended ''sandbox'' environments like Grand Theft Auto, kids find a ready-made world. These worlds are written and designed by professionals, and are rarely rewritten and redesigned by young players. The video game often teaches exploration, but not necessarily innovation from the bottom up.

Finally, consoles can be habit-forming. True addiction to video games is still uncommon, but it's increasing as the technology becomes more prevalent. This is why centres exist to treat the condition.

As with gambling, games can involve a ''variable reinforcement schedule''. Put simply, the unpredictable nature of the rewards keep us pressing buttons. We get a buzz at first, but it becomes increasingly difficult to recapture it. The result is first distraction, then addiction.

Children are equally at risk of this, and certainly vulnerable to unhealthy preoccupation. This is bad in principle, as it glosses addiction with parental authority. And it also entrenches the problems we've already seen. It makes it harder to step back, turn it off, climb a tree or pick up pencil and paper.

Video games are not evil. They don't need banning or other draconian measures. On the contrary, they can be fun, bonding, educational and challenging. Some children are undoubtedly learning more from Grand Theft Auto than from their classrooms.

What's vital is recognising the console's limitations, and ensuring its virtues don't become vices - that private concentration doesn't degenerate into isolation, nimble problem-solving into lazy absorption, challenge into addiction.

The games are in the hands of kids - and the kids are in ours. Both can be handled wisely.

Dr Damon Young is a philosopher, and the author of Distraction.

“Idle Ramblings”

2011-01-12T09:31:00.001-08:00

“Idle Ramblings”

Idle Ramblings

Posted: 12 Jan 2011 08:22 AM PST

I've never been able to outgrow video games

By Ron Giofu/The Amherstburg Echo

Posted 1 hour ago

I wouldn't describe myself as a "gamer" by any stretch of the imagination.

I don't have the latest video game systems and any game I do have is fairly old and obsolete.

That being said, I still haven't been quite able to cure my addiction to video games. I don't play nearly as often as I did as a kid, but I still play here and there when given the opportunity.

Growing up, our first computer was the Commodore Vic-20. Folks my age and older likely have heard of it, but I wouldn't blame the younger generation if they read this and say "what did you have?"

The Vic-20's successor was the Commodore 64, and that's when I was in my prime playing video games. I had hundreds of games on those big floppy discs and it was always a matter of which one I wanted to load first. And forget the controllers, it was joysticks all the way. I wore out a fire button or two on the joysticks as well.

By the way, mentioning "joysticks" and "fire buttons" isn't a backhanded way of slipping obscene references into this column. Those were the legitimate video game controllers of the day. If you don't believe me, ask your father or mother, or maybe even your grandparents.

The Commodore 64 served me very well for a number of years. In fact, there are still times when I would like nothing more than to play one of the games I had for it.

In my adult life, I advanced to the Sony Playstations of the world. My original Playstation died out and then I had a PS2 that had issues loading the games now and then. Either that, or the games froze. I haven't upgraded to the Playstation 3 yet.

Needless to say, I've enjoyed the Playstations I've had to the point where they were past their prime, malfunctioning and worn out. Not the fault of the manufacturer, mind you, just a guy who probably needs more to do in his spare time.

Lately, I've been spending free time in the evenings playing games on Facebook. I play Family Feud a fair bit and gravitate to other games as well. Some games I find silly at first but that doesn't stop me from getting addicted, particularly when I figure out what I'm doing.

Some might say that adults playing video games is childish. I say that argument has a bit of merit to it, but so what? It's a harmless way to spend free time, as long as you don't get too competitive and throw your controller through the TV set. I've gotten wound up and competitive playing video games in the past; luckily I haven't had to purchase a new TV because of it.

“The Toylet: Sega launches video games controlled by men's URINE in Tokyo”

2011-01-11T09:30:00.001-08:00

“The Toylet: Sega launches video games controlled by men's URINE in Tokyo”

The Toylet: Sega launches video games controlled by men's URINE in Tokyo

Posted: 10 Jan 2011 08:11 PM PST

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 9:46 AM on 11th January 2011

Sega have launched a new bathroom video game console – that is controlled by the player's urine.

Sensors on the novel device – named the 'Toylet' - measure the speed and intensity of the male player's water flow at the urinal.

The bizarre consoles – which each have four video mini-games – will be installed at four metro stations across Tokyo, Japan.

Scroll down for video

The Toylet: The console works by measuring the pressure and location of the male player's urine flow through sensors in the bottom of the bowl

The titles are expected to be a money-spinner for the company because they can show adverts before the user starts to wee.

A pressure sensor in the urinal measure the strength and the location of the urine stream as it hits the basin.

An LCD screen displays the graphics and rewards the strength, length and accuracy of the pee through a points system.

One of the games challenges players to blast graffiti off the wall with a high-pressure flow.

Another title calculates exactly how much urine the player has produced while 'Milk from Nose' puts the toilet user up against the previous person in a challenge to see who has the strongest flow.

Money spinner: The consoles are expected to be very profitable for Sega because adverts can be displayed before the game starts

In 'The North Wind and Her' the player lifts up a woman's skirt with high-pressure blasts in their role as the wind.

The bizarre consoles have been launched in Japan and will be installed at the first four metro stations in the next few weeks.

The games are designed to make restrooms more fun – and also to keep the user's eye on the target.

Proud players are able to download their high scores onto a flash drive.

No one was available at Sega for comment.

Places:: Japan

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

2011-01-10T09:26:00.000-08:00

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011

Posted: 10 Jan 2011 06:17 AM PST

RALEIGH, North Carolina—Video game makers leave behind a year of slow sales in 2010, but are hopeful that a new generation of games for tablet computers, mobile phones and Web social networks will spur a return to growth in 2011.

The explosion of mobile games like "Infinity Blade" on iPhone and "Angry Birds" on Android smartphones has lured new consumers into playing games. At the same time, video game company Zynga has turned social network FaceBook into a hugely successful platform with hits like "Farmville" (55 million monthly players) and "CityVille" (44 million and counting).

"Before we were figuring out how to make social games, now we are mastering the art of making social games," said Mark Skaggs, vice president of product development at Zynga.

He said the next generation of FaceBook games will have "deeper gameplay, more polish, and be much more and better social experiences."

North American sales of video game hardware, software and accessories are expected to reach $20.9 billion for 2010 by the time all sales are totaled after the holidays. That figure is down four percent from 2009, according to Jesse Divnich, vice president of Electronic Entertainment Design and Research.

Yet, despite the economic slump that continues to impact gamers' disposable income, industry players expect 2011 to bring a wave of new revenue from items such as downloadable content, mobile games, and in-game micro-transactions.

Adding the new sources of revenue, Arvind Bhatia, senior research analyst at Sterne Agee, sees US and European game sales up 5 percent for 2010 and another 5 percent for 2011.

At this week's International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, companies such as Samsung and Verizon will unveil new smartphones and tablet devices to extend the reach of games to more consumers.

Michael Cai, the head of video game research at Interpret, said over half of tablet owners today (52 percent) are playing games on their devices. Gaming is the second most popular activity on iPads and other tablets, behind surfing the Web.

"I think one of the big trends of 2011 is cross-platform gameplay, that is, game experiences that are continuous across mobile, television, PC, social media, console and interactive toys," said Jesse Schell, assistant professor of entertainment technology at Carnegie Mellon University.

"As these technologies get more and more ingrained in our lives, game experiences across them will become more connected and more continuous," he added

One reason for optimism is the performance of game sales at the end of 2010. "Call of Duty: Black Ops," for example, sold 8.4 million copies in the U.S. alone in November. Last week, its maker Activision Blizzard Inc said the game accounted for more than $1 billion in sales.

"Black Ops" is one of a growing number of titles shown in stereoscopic 3D, which should appeal to buyers of new 3D TVs that will be promoted heavily at the winter CES by companies such as Sony, Vizio and Panasonic who cater to gamers.

At CES, which runs from January 6-9, Sony will showcase stereoscopic 3D games like "MLB 11: The Show," "Killzone 3D," and "Motorstorm: Apocalypse." Nintendo will promote its Nintendo 3DS autostereoscopic (glasses-free 3D) portable device, which will launch February 26 in Japan and in other territories shortly thereafter.

Sony and Microsoft jumped into the motion controlled game this fall with PlayStation Move and Kinect for Xbox 360, and both are selling strongly and helping the bottom line for the game industry late in 2010.

"There had been doubts on whether the casual consumer, who ballooned industry sales in 2008 and 2009, would return given the plethora of much cheaper entertainment options such as mobile and social networking games," said Divnich. "With November 2010 sales being up across the board, it is clear that the casual and mainstream base is still willing to make significant video game purchases."

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

2011-01-09T09:10:00.001-08:00

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011

Posted: 09 Jan 2011 06:33 AM PST

"Before we were figuring out how to make social games, now we are mastering the art of making social games," said Mark Skaggs, vice president of product development at Zynga.

He said the next generation of FaceBook games will have "deeper gameplay, more polish, and be much more and better social experiences."

Adding the new sources of revenue, Arvind Bhatia, senior research analyst at Sterne Agee, sees US and European game sales up 5 percent for 2010 and another 5 percent for 2011.

"As these technologies get more and more ingrained in our lives, game experiences across them will become more connected and more continuous," he added

“Video Games Live”

2011-01-08T09:23:00.001-08:00

“Video Games Live”

Video Games Live

Posted: 07 Jan 2011 11:29 PM PST

January 6, 2011

Friday night at 8:00 p.m., the Minnesota Orchestra is performing a special concert called Video Games Live: Bonus Round. If the title of the show is an instant turn-off for you, I urge you to keep reading.

St. Paul, Minn. — Tommy Tallarico is the creator, executive producer and host of the show. He's been a part of the gaming industry for 20 years as a composer, designer, producer, and more. He's won more than 45 industry awards and is in the Guinness Book of World Records for working on more commercially released video games than anyone else in the world (more than 275).

Tallarico grew up in the age of PONG, and the moment he played it he was hooked.

"I couldn't believe I could manipulate stuff on a television set," Tallarico said. "My two greatest loves growing up were video games and music, but I never thought to ever put the two of them together because there was no such thing as a video game composer in the 70s."

When Tallarico was 10 years old, he would take a cassette recorder to the pizza parlors and arcades to record his favorite video game music. When he got home, he would charge the neighborhood kids a nickel to come watch him play air guitar to the cassette while the game was playing on the television behind him. Now, Tallarico is able to charge a bit more than a nickel, and he's taken the show around the globe.

"Who knew 30 years later I'd be doing it in places like the Hollywood Bowl with the L.A. Phil or playing to a hundred-thousand people in China."

The show is unorthodox for a place like the Hollywood Bowl or our own Orchestra Hall, to say the least. The on-stage orchestra is combined with lighting effects, video elements, and audience interactivity. You can also expect electronic percussion, soloists and live action.

With that in mind, how does Tallarico convince prestigious orchestras like the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Minnesota Orchestra to perform a show like Video Games Live?

"The reality is that they're all suffering right now. They need to bring in a younger generation. The symphonies love bringing in new audiences."

The truth of the matter is this: At this point, Tallarico easily could hire his own group of touring musicians, rather than bringing the show to different orchestras around the world every couple of weeks. But he is just as passionate about opening the eyes of non-gamers to the world of gaming as he is passionate about drawing in a new generation of classical music lovers. He wants Video Games Live to be performed by the Minnesota Orchestra so that people in the state of Minnesota want to go back and hear more of the Minnesota Orchestra.

In 2009, the gaming industry generated $10.5 billion, according to The Entertainment Software Association. More than a quarter of the population over the age of 50 plays video games. Shockingly, the average gamer is 34 years old.

So what kind of audience will be at Orchestra Hall Friday night? Last year, 89 percent of attendees had never been to Orchestra Hall for a classical concert. Eighty-nine percent. And fifty percent had never even stepped through its doors.

Tallarico created an outlet for gamers who happen to be musicians but didn't have a place to go hear the music that permeates their gaming lives. He pointed me to www.ocremix.org, a website where musicians all around the world upload files of gaming music they've remixed their favorite melodies from their favorite games. There are tens of thousands of people creating and sharing music because of the games they play.

The reality is that they're all suffering right now. They (the orchestras) need to bring in a younger generation. The symphonies love bringing in new audiences.

- Tommy Tallarico

Tallarico wants those musicians to go see Video Games Live, but more importantly, he wants them to go back again to hear Stravinsky or Bach live.

"There is nothing like listening to fifty to a hundred musicians on stage performing the music of Beethoven and Mozart."

Tallarico gets letters and emails from parents after every Video Games Live performance saying their children are now interested in learning to play violin or some other orchestral instrument.

"We get so many letters like that," he says.

If Video Games Live can indeed continue to ignite a classical musical journey for a younger generation, I'm all for it. I hope to see you at the show.

Next week, I'll speak to a handful of students involved in orchestras that perform video game music. Until then, click the link on the right to hear a track from classical piano giant -- and gamer -- Lang Lang's latest recording project.

(Video Games Live had a successful run on PBS over the summer. The music from a segment highlighting Sid Meier's "Civilization IV" is up for a Grammy. The conductor of the show, Wataru Hokoyama, is an alum of the Interlochen Arts Academy, The Cleveland Institute of Music , and the University of Southern California. His resume includes work on the television series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the musical episode)", and the hit video game "Resident Evil 5".)

“Video Games Live”

2011-01-07T09:05:00.001-08:00

“Video Games Live”

Video Games Live

Posted: 06 Jan 2011 04:58 PM PST

January 6, 2011

Tallarico grew up in the age of PONG, and the moment he played it he was hooked.

"Who knew 30 years later I'd be doing it in places like the Hollywood Bowl with the L.A. Phil or playing to a hundred-thousand people in China."

With that in mind, how does Tallarico convince prestigious orchestras like the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Minnesota Orchestra to perform a show like Video Games Live?

"The reality is that they're all suffering right now. They need to bring in a younger generation. The symphonies love bringing in new audiences."

The reality is that they're all suffering right now. They (the orchestras) need to bring in a younger generation. The symphonies love bringing in new audiences.

- Tommy Tallarico

Tallarico wants those musicians to go see Video Games Live, but more importantly, he wants them to go back again to hear Stravinsky or Bach live.

"There is nothing like listening to fifty to a hundred musicians on stage performing the music of Beethoven and Mozart."

Tallarico gets letters and emails from parents after every Video Games Live performance saying their children are now interested in learning to play violin or some other orchestral instrument.

"We get so many letters like that," he says.

If Video Games Live can indeed continue to ignite a classical musical journey for a younger generation, I'm all for it. I hope to see you at the show.

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

2011-01-06T09:11:00.001-08:00

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011

Posted: 06 Jan 2011 06:32 AM PST

"Before we were figuring out how to make social games, now we are mastering the art of making social games," said Mark Skaggs, vice president of product development at Zynga.

He said the next generation of FaceBook games will have "deeper gameplay, more polish, and be much more and better social experiences."

Adding the new sources of revenue, Arvind Bhatia, senior research analyst at Sterne Agee, sees US and European game sales up 5 percent for 2010 and another 5 percent for 2011.

"As these technologies get more and more ingrained in our lives, game experiences across them will become more connected and more continuous," he added

“Video games go off quicker than tomatoes”

2011-01-05T09:35:00.001-08:00

“Video games go off quicker than tomatoes”

Video games go off quicker than tomatoes

Posted: 05 Jan 2011 06:23 AM PST

We are grateful to Which? for working out that video games lose value faster than cars.

The organisation bought a copy of COD: Black Ops from a retail outlet for £44.99 - and then tried to sell it three days after its release to seven high street retailers. The buyback offers ranged from £16.70 to £33, with the worst representing a depreciation of 70 per cent compared with the recommended retail price.

Which? is a tireless campaigner on behalf of consumers and has done much good work over the year. But the car-video depreciation analogy is silly.

Cars cost lots of money. People need them and few can afford to buy new. After the initial plunge when the car is driven out of the show-room, demand ensures that residual prices are fairly high.

Videogames, even expensive games, are cheap - and come out of buyers' leisure budgets. Games are considered worth the money if they are worth the while - i.e. something that eats up dozens of hours of playing time.

And when you get tired of the game, you can flog it on the pre-owned price, to get a substantial discount on your next purchase. Alternatively, you can buy a pre-owned game on the cheap, so long as it is not a very recent release.

The pre-owned video games market is massive, and greases the wheels of new sales. This suggests that UK retailers are doing a good job here. But how long can it last? Publishers, what with their downloads, and online plug-ins and DRM and retailer Ts&Cs, could kill it with the flick of a few switches.

“Health Notes: Active video games pave way to health”

2011-01-04T09:43:00.001-08:00

“Health Notes: Active video games pave way to health”

Health Notes: Active video games pave way to health

Posted: 04 Jan 2011 06:45 AM PST

New Year's resolutions: we all make them, we all break them. Most of us know that increasing exercise and making good food choices are keys to improving health. The New Year is a popular time to start working toward a healthy lifestyle, but how can we keep it going throughout the year? Active-play video games offer fun activities and measurable goals that can make it easier to sustain a more physically active routine.

Consider the results of a recent survey sponsored by the American Heart Association, which found that playing active-play video games can lead to more real-world physical activity. The survey showed that 58 percent of people who play active-play video games subsequently started a new fitness activity like walking, tennis or jogging. Additionally, 68 percent of people who play active-play video games say they are more physically active since they got involved in video games.

Here are some ways the AHA recommends to start off the New Year with steps toward a healthy lifestyle:

• Many folks are interested in starting an exercise regimen but are intimidated by going to a gym because they are out of shape or have never had a workout routine. Using Nintendo's Wii Fit Plus, people can create a fitness program at home to help prepare for the gym. They can get comfortable with activities such as strength exercises and yoga poses at home before signing up for a membership or a class at a local fitness center.
• Start a Facebook page where you can share your fitness stats and calorie intake with friends. Update your status every time you use active-play video games, take a walk around the block or discover a delicious new heart-healthy recipe. Sharing these details can build mutual encouragement and help keep you honest.
• Are you a car enthusiast or a dog lover? Buy a fun new calendar featuring images of your favorite things and use it to track your daily successes. Include your time using Wii Fit Plus or doing yoga, or give yourself kudos when you skip fatty snacks and grab a handful of almonds instead.
• Start a neighborhood New Year's resolution group. Walk together, ride bikes together, host active-play video game parties or even invite a local nutritionist to provide a healthy cooking demonstration for your group. Set weekly goals and work together to achieve them. Recent research found that 82 percent of people who engage in active-play video games play more socially with family and friends.
For more information visit www.activeplaynow.com

For all your health news, go to HealthKey at www.dailypress.com/health

“3D video games could be harmful to young children”

2011-01-03T09:30:00.001-08:00

“3D video games could be harmful to young children”

3D video games could be harmful to young children

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 07:00 AM PST

(CNN) - Nintendo says 3D images on its new hand-held gaming system could hurt the eyesight of kids under six.

There are concerns that 3D, which sends different images to the left and right eye, could affect the development of vision in small children.

SONY and Toshiba have also warned parents about some of *their 3-d products.

“For future newsmakers, look to electric vehicles, video games, and compost”

2011-01-02T09:21:00.001-08:00

“For future newsmakers, look to electric vehicles, video games, and compost”

For future newsmakers, look to electric vehicles, video games, and compost

Posted: 02 Jan 2011 07:39 AM PST

If there's such a thing as an "off season'' in the region's innovation economy, it transpired this past week. Out-going voice mail messages suggested getting in touch via e-mail, and e-mails generated an automatic "Out of Office'' reply.

But there's no better time than the off-season to analyze individual players, and the long stretch of games ahead. Here's my take on the people, companies, and technologies that will be making news in 2011. I compiled it with help from about a dozen local entrepreneurs, angel investors, venture capitalists, and investment bankers who accidentally picked up their mobile phones or obsessively responded to e-mail while on their holiday breaks. My only filter: I ignored any plugs for companies with which my fellow scouts were involved.

■ Cambridge video game developer Harmonix Music Systems Inc. was emancipated, just before Christmas, from its corporate parent Viacom Inc. The company that brought you the Rock Band series and the more recent Dance Central game for Xbox is now majority-owned by a New York private equity firm. But cofounders Alex Rigopoulos and Eran Egozy are sticking around, and it will be interesting to see what new games they come up with, now that they don't have Viacom's suits peering over their shoulders. "We are very excited about the future of Harmonix,'' Egozy wrote in an e-mail last month.

■ One or two makers of fully electric vehicles will likely announce this year that they're licensing technology from Watertown-based WiTricity Corp. WiTricity is commercializing technology invented at MIT to transmit electricity through the air over short distances. Two of WiTricity's special magnetic coils could be integrated into a mat on the floor of your garage and the undercarriage of your electric car, for instance, to automatically charge the car's battery without plugging it in.

■ Shouldn't your table scraps be helping to produce clean energy? Harvest Power Inc., a Waltham company, may announce a project in Massachusetts to build a plant that turns food waste and yard trimmings into both compost and natural gas equivalents, using a bacteria-assisted process called anaerobic digestion. The company has had discussions with Lexington and other towns, but CEO Paul Sellew will only say that news about a facility in the Northeast could come in the second quarter. Harvest has more than 150 employees.

■ Two super-quiet start-ups in the mobile commerce arena will likely reveal at least a little about their strategies in 2011: Elyxor Inc., from the former chief technology officer of Boston-based online retailer Rue La La, Mark Carleo, and Paydiant, from m-Qube veterans Chris Gardner and Joe Paratore (m-Qube was a mobile content delivery start-up acquired in 2006 by Verisign Inc.).

■ Former Sonus Networks Inc. CEO Hassan Ahmed is building a new company in Acton, Affirmed Networks Inc., which last year raised $11 million from two local venture capital firms. Ahmed isn't talking yet, but I'm told that the company is developing solutions that will help wireless carriers deliver data more efficiently to info-hungry mobile phone users, over the newest 4G networks. One possible solution is storing multiple copies of frequently accessed videos or websites so that they are closer to the user that is requesting them. Another is "off-loading'' data from the wireless network, and sending it long distances over the terrestrial Internet.

■ So many people mentioned Recorded Future Inc. to me that it takes home the "most promising start-up'' medal in a walk. The Cambridge company scours the Web for forecasts, predictions, and estimates about what's likely to happen in the future whether that means a week, a quarter, or a year from now. By presenting the information on a timeline, the company makes it possible to see how trends develop and how sentiment changes over time. Unlike most search engines, it's not free: Access starts at $149 a month. Both Google Ventures and In-Q-Tel, the investment arm of the Central Intelligence Agency, have put money into Recorded Future.

■ Longwood Founders Fund is one of the newest venture capital firms in town, and worth watching in 2011. Longwood announced last week that it has raised $85 million from Genzyme Corp., GlaxoSmithKline, and other investors. The fund's trio of managers were all involved in the creation of Sirtris Pharmaceuticals Inc., a start-up that is now part of Glaxo (but has yet to win approval for any of its new drugs). Longwood will seek to form life sciences companies around promising scientific discoveries, rather than picking existing start-up companies on which to bet. Among the first Longwood projects is Verastem Inc., a Cambridge start-up developing drugs to target cancer stem cells, which the company says are a significant cause of tumor recurrence and metastasis.

■ Another Cambridge biotech company, Zafgen Inc., is continuing research on a drug that could be useful in fighting obesity. Zafgen's drug initially delivered as an injection, and perhaps eventually as a pill, seems to target delinquent fat tissue that ignores the body's normal cues to crank out the fuel that our muscles need. Zafgen has raised about $30 million in venture capital funding.

■ I hope the next 12 months will offer a glimpse of the products that two of the cofounders of iRobot Corp. are developing. Rodney Brooks is building an easily programmable robotic arm that can perform light manufacturing and packaging tasks, I'm told, at Cambridge-based Heartland Robotics Inc. And Helen Greiner of Cyphy Works Inc. seems to be designing flying robots for various wartime and peacetime surveillance tasks, according to a grant her company was awarded in 2009. This year could also bring a peek at what iRobot's health care division, announced in late 2009, has been working on. It could be a bot designed to help family members and caregivers monitor seniors who prefer to stay in their own homes, rather than be moved to an elder care facility.

■ Look for Hopkinton-based EMC Corp., the state's biggest technology company, to continue trying to grow its revenues in 2011 by acquiring smaller companies. One investment banker said he expects to see EMC edging closer to the consumer market (the company's home turf for the past three decades has been the corporate data center). In 2007, EMC bought Mozy Inc., which operates an Internet-based back-up service for consumers and small businesses, and in 2008, it paid $213 million for Iomega, a maker of hard drives.

■ Other local companies could be gobbled up by bigger entities based elsewhere. On the list of possible acquisition candidates are Nuance Inc., a leading supplier of speech recognition software based in Burlington, which itself is the product of a string of acquisitions; Cambridge-based Akamai Technologies Inc., which helps accelerate the delivery of content across the Web; Kiva Systems Inc., a Woburn-based maker of robotic warehouse helpers; and Avid Technology Inc., which sells software used in movie and music production. (One investment banker even mentioned EMC, with a market capitalization of $47 billion, as an acquisition candidate.) Demandware Inc., a Woburn company that helps online retailers improve and manage their websites, was mentioned several times as a company attractive to a bigger player and as a local company that could file to go public in 2011.

■ Two companies in the data back-up business could also try to float shares this year: Woburn-based Acronis Inc. and Boston-based Carbonite Inc. Kayak.com, the travel planning site with operations in Concord and Norwalk, Conn., has already signaled its desire for an initial public offering, as has Zipcar Inc. Cambridge-based Zipcar operates the largest car-sharing network in the world, parking vehicles in urban neighborhoods and renting them to its half-million members on an hourly basis. Assuming that the stock market sees a few sunny stretches in 2011, the pair could become the latest flagship companies here in New England, with nationally recognized brands and stock you can trade.

Scott Kirsner can be reached at kirsner@pobox.com. Follow him on Twitter @ScottKirsner.

“Video games year-in-preview”

2011-01-01T09:03:00.000-08:00

“Video games year-in-preview”

Video games year-in-preview

Posted: 31 Dec 2010 11:30 PM PST

What? It's 2011 already? How did this happen? We weren't done with 2010 yet!

The frantic, unstoppable flood of video game releases that pile up at the end of each year is like a giant foot stomping on time's own accelerator.

All of a sudden we're screeching into the new year and already looking at what's ahead in the next 12 months.

With the exception of the intriguing handheld Nintendo 3DS, capable of producing 3D visuals without the need for funky glasses, no new game systems have yet been announced for 2011.

There's an outside chance Sony will launch the PlayStation Portable 2 this year, and Nintendo could start talking about its successor to the Wii, but nothing's been confirmed on either front.

Which means 2011 is going to be about software, not hardware.

And that's a great thing, for two reasons: no one needs to worry about shelling out $500 for the latest, greatest next-generation game system this year, and some of the games that are coming out for the existing systems are looking really, really good.

In no particular order, here are the 11 games we're most stoked about in 2011. Looking at this list now, we realize time can't move quickly enough:

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (PS3)

The sequel to the best game of 2009, this one will see wisecracking fortune hunter Nathan Drake exploring some sort of vast desert and being both the deceiver and the deceived. Somehow. Whatever, Nov. 1 can't come fast enough.

The Last Guardian (PS3)

A spiritual successor to the amazing PlayStation 2 games ICO and Shadow of the Colossus, we're hopeful this tale of a boy and his giant flying dog-eagle-thingy will live up to the pedigree of the previous two titles.

Portal 2 (Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Mac)

Given that rogue computer GLaDOS was blown into a million pieces in 2007's sublime action-puzzler Portal, we're dying to know how (and when) this sequel will continue the tale. And whether there will be cake.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

While original Deus Ex creator Warren Spector isn't involved in this game from Eidos Montreal's studios, the Blade Runner-esque visuals have us all hot and bothered.

Mass Effect 3 (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

Edmonton's own BioWare Corp. rounds out their epic sci-fi role-playing trilogy with Commander Shepard and the crew of the Normandy trying to save Earth from destruction by alien invaders. No pressure there.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

If you dropped more than 100 hours into The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion like we did, you'll be equal parts excited and apprehensive about this sequel. Hey boss, give us the month off when this game comes out, OK?

Rage (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

The folks behind the genre-defining shooters Doom and Quake are back with a post-apocalyptic action game that combines frantic mutant-blasting gunplay and Road Warrior-style automotive combat. Rage? More like joy!

Batman: Arkham City (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

Hugo Strange might not have quite the same supervillain cachet as the Joker, but given how amazing 2009's Batman: Arkham Asylum was, we're delirious with anticipation for this bat-sequel.

Diablo III (PC, Mac)

We're all for taking the time needed to perfect and polish a game, but seeing as how Diablo II came out in 2000, this waiting game is getting a bit ridiculous. Those dungeons aren't gonna crawl themselves!

Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle (Nintendo 3DS)

We've gone hands-on with snippets of several Nintendo 3DS titles, but the one that's got us most excited is this 3D take on everyone's favourite gentleman puzzle-solver. Correct!

Duke Nukem Forever (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

This sequel to Duke Nukem 3D has been 14 years in the making (no, that's not a typo) and will finally be in our hands in 2011. Really, there's nothing more to say than that. Except maybe, "Come get some!"

“Video games preview for 2011: Shifting into top Gear”

2010-12-31T09:06:00.001-08:00

“Video games preview for 2011: Shifting into top Gear”

Video games preview for 2011: Shifting into top Gear

Posted: 31 Dec 2010 06:43 AM PST

METAL GEAR SOLID: RISING

PS3, Xbox 360 due: Winter

This project marks the debut of Hideo Kojima's most-loved series on the Xbox 360. It's also the first MGS game to abandon Solid Snake and pass the protagonist cap on to Raiden, who first appeared in Metal Gear Solid 2.

Less about stealth and more about all-out blasting, there are rumours that Kojima's perfectionism could push the release date back to 2012.

GEARS OF WAR 3

Xbox 360 due: Autumn

Epic Games' Gears Of War series has set the standard for third-person shooters, so there's plenty to live up to for this final salvo that concludes the epic trilogy starring Marcus Felix and Delta Squad.

New features include a four-player co-operative campaign and an intriguing new Beast mode that turns the tables and lets you play as the enemy Locust and fight off humans. If you buy Bulletstorm - Epic's other shooter due in February - you'll get a beta version of GOW 3 included.

UNCHARTED 3: DRAKE'S DECEPTION

PS3 due: Winter

Indiana Jones-apeing adventurer Nathan Drake should return in time for next Christmas in what's likely to be the biggest PS3 exclusive of the year. Said to be based on the era of Lawrence Of Arabia, the game will feature overhauled and expanded multiplayer and co-op features, and Uncharted 3 will also support stereoscopic 3D.

BRINK

Xbox 360, PS3, PC due: Spring

Shooter fans should keep an eye out for this, a class-based shooter due out around Easter. Set on a once-utopian floating city in an otherwise apocalyptic world, it'll feature team-based multiplayer missions with a carefully scripted narrative. The key focus is on a competitive multiplayer element. Developers Splash Damage are looking to turn the mind-numbing frag fests of Call Of Duty on their heads by introducing a novel kill-rating system, where it's the classiness of your kills, not quantity, that counts.

“Man 'stole video games' from boy's coffin”

2010-12-30T09:14:00.001-08:00

“Man 'stole video games' from boy's coffin”

Man 'stole video games' from boy's coffin

Posted: 29 Dec 2010 02:55 PM PST

STATE police in Pennsylvania arrested a man accused of stealing video games from the casket of a 17-year-old boy who was killed in a Christmas Day car crash.

Jody Bennett, 37, allegedly took a Game Boy, a Game Boy Light and three games from the open casket of his deceased family friend, Bradley McCombs Jr, at a memorial service in Indiana County on Monday night, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said.

Mr Bennett, who has a history of alcohol and drug-related charges, apparently fled the service after the boy's grieving family confronted him.

He was charged with vandalism, theft, harassment, disorderly conduct and abuse of a corpse and is being held on $15,000 bail.

Mr Bennett's aunt, Dianna Bennett, was not at the funeral but heard about her nephew's unseemly behaviour afterward.

"I still cannot believe anyone would do anything like this," she told the paper. "He even had a brother killed when he was drinking and driving ... You think that would make him think, but I don't know."

Read more at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

“My Brain on Video Games”

2010-12-29T09:41:00.001-08:00

“My Brain on Video Games”

My Brain on Video Games

Posted: 29 Dec 2010 09:31 AM PST

I'm lying in a $3 million M.R.I. scanning tube, a noise-canceling headset on my ears and a mirror contraption on my head that lets me see a television hung on the nearby wall.

This has got to be among the weirdest ways anyone has ever played a video game.

That's what was going through my mind last month as I participated in an unusual experiment. While I was inside the machine at the University of California at San Francisco, researchers were sitting in a room nearby watching real-time images of the inside of my brain. (See an audio slide show about the experience and the science.)

On two monitors, they saw changes in blood flow to various regions of my brain as I used a controller to maneuver a racing car along a winding track. And as I drove, I tried to ignore, or at other times react to, different shapes popping onto the screen.

"So," I asked after the test finished, hoping my brain looked at least healthy and maybe somehow impressive to a neuroscientist, "what happened to my brain? What did it look like?"

"It's not that simple," responded the research leader, Dr. Adam Gazzaley, a neurologist at the university.

Indeed not. It turns out that the test results, while they did show changes in activity in key brain regions (read on to the bottom and, no, my brain isn't somehow impressive), were not particularly revelatory. But what is fascinating are the new ways scientists are using this type of technology to measure and map the ethereal concept of attention.

For several decades, neuroscientists have used imaging machines to explore the brain. Early work in the '90s involved such simple tests as discovering or verifying what parts of the brain get involved in particular tasks. (Hand squeeze = motor cortex! Uncork champagne = also, probably, motor cortex.)

More recently, the researchers have been trying to map neural networks so that they can understand, for example, what parts of the brain get involved — and how they cooperate — when someone experiences pain, or makes a decision. Doing so, it turns out, is as hard as trying to guess all the ingredients in an Iron Chef's stew, and their proportions, by peeking into the pot.

But scientists argue that this work is important given the role attention appears to play not just in daily life but in a host of maladies — like attention deficit disorder and schizophrenia — in which someone appears to become overly focused on trivialities or, by contrast, unable to focus at all. I've written about some of this research in a series of articles this year.

It's sort of cosmic to contemplate the idea of breaking down attention into its anatomical components. "Look, honey, my auditory cortex is absolutely paying attention to you. It's only my visual cortex that is focused on Angry Birds!"

Other researchers are doing related work. At the University of Utah, neuroscientists have been imaging the brains of Air Force fighter pilots and others identified as "supertaskers," meaning that they seem better able to switch quickly among tasks. The images show differences between these subjects and less able multitaskers in three areas of the brain that are involved with setting priorities.

The Utah researchers say more effective task switchers appear to have a neurochemical advantage that makes them less likely to overreact or become overwhelmed by task switching.

Dr. Gazzaley said such imaging research could have implications for everyday life.

"Distraction and interruption or multitasking are contributors to deficits in memory," he said. "One of our main questions is whether we can train these abilities."

The imaging experiment was step two in their process of discovery. Step one was an experiment his lab recently finished that tested people's abilities to both multitask and to focus amid distraction.

The preliminary results, reported last month at a neuroscience conference in San Diego, surprised them. They found that, in general, people's ability to juggle two tasks drops off in their 30s and then sharply in their 40s. The researchers had expected to find that multitasking — or, more precisely, the ability to switch comfortably between tasks — drops off only when people are much older.

Hal Pashler, a cognitive scientist at the University of California at San Diego who is well known for his studies of attention and focus, told me to view those preliminary results with some caution. He said that researchers have routinely found that people in their 20s also suffer "huge" performance costs when they try to multitask. In other words, 20-somethings, you can't actually study while texting and watching odd animal videos.

Regardless, Mr. Pashler said the next step in Dr. Gazzaley's experiment was worth taking but highly challenging: he wants to marry the results of the behavioral study on multitasking abilities with the data his lab is just beginning to collect using the M.R.I. machine. I was among the first subjects of that project, which the lab expects to delve further into next year as it seeks to detail what is happening inside the brain at the moment subjects are interrupted and lose focus.

A few days after my scan, Dr. Gazzaley got a chance to look more closely at what happened inside my head when I was trying to multitask, switching between "driving" and reacting to other objects on the screen, as opposed to when I was doing those tasks individually, without interruption. Simply put, when my attention was divided, it taxed certain areas of my brain used in setting priorities and trying to determine or assert control.

"The results are neither surprising nor novel and consistent with existing literature," Dr. Gazzaley explained, which I suppose is comforting, though I maintain that while I may not be a supertasker I can get a heck of a lot done after I've had a Starbucks Peppermint Mocha.

Dr. Gazzaley said he hoped new findings might emerge next year when the lab gathers data on more people, refines the tests and adds a new component. In addition to imaging the brains of multitaskers, they plan to simultaneously monitor them using electroencephalography (EEG), which will enable them to measure more precisely the communication patterns among regions of the brain during the instant of interruption.

"This is a jumping-off point," he said. "This is the start of the experiment."

“Best Video Games of 2010”

2010-12-28T09:08:00.001-08:00

“Best Video Games of 2010”

Best Video Games of 2010

Posted: 28 Dec 2010 01:40 AM PST

1 Comment | Add

Rate & Share:

Info:

By Briana Lawrence December 28, 2010

We usually do a monthly game article to talk about the games we're excited for. We're going to skip December since there aren't too many big releases this month. Instead, we're going to talk about the games we have enjoyed this year as a whole.

January

January brought us Darksiders and Mass Effect 2. The combat in Darksiders reminded us of God of War but the open world adventure brought us memories of Zelda, creating a great game to kick start 2010. Later on that month brought us Mass Effect 2, proving once again that BioWare is the developer to turn to when it comes to action-adventure rpgs.

February

While seeing Rapture for a second time might not have had as many surprises as our first trip, the world was still creepy, intriguing, and fun to play through. Thank you, Bioshock 2. The next game that we enjoyed this month was the murder mystery Heavy Rain. It might not have been the most action packed game this year but the plot and the characters are what made the game exciting. There are just some scenes that we'll never forget -- Madison trying to escape that mad man's basement? That still gives us the creeps!

March

God of War 3 gave PS3 owners something to be proud of. The amazing graphics and brutal gameplay reminded us why we're Sony fans. Pokemon Heartgold and Soulsilver brought back a memory of a simpler time when the franchise was still new to us and reminded us why these games are still addictive. Dragon Age Origins: Awakening continued the hit rpg franchise with a new campaign. Sadly, Final Fantasy XIII didn't live up to the expectations we had; we were looking forward to gushing about it but after so many years of waiting it was not the game we wanted it to be.

April

The only game of interest from this month is Super Street Fighter 4. After already playing through the original Street Fighter 4 we had doubts about re-buying what seemed like the same game. But with new characters and new combos the game ended up being better than the first.

May

The masterminds behind Grand Theft Auto brought us an open world western called Red Dead Redemption and it quickly became a favorite among all gamers. Super Mario Galaxy 2 took us on a grand adventure with Mario and the cutest dinosaur ever created: Yoshi! For the survival horror fans, Alan Wake was the newest edition to the genre, making future writers think twice about the manuscripts they create.

June

Metal Gear Solid Peacewalker was one of the biggest games on the PSP, finally giving people reason to take interest in Sony's handheld device once again. Lego Harry Potter was the newest entry into the always entertaining Lego franchise, while Sin and Punishment: Star Successor gave wii users a fast-paced rail shooter.

July

StarCraft II, StarCraft II, StarCraft II! Not much else to say about that so moving on. Handhelds were the spotlight this month as Dragon Quest IX was released on the DS and Persona 3 was re-released on the PSP. Both met rpger's gaming needs, be it action, adventure or twisted storyline where players shot themselves in the head. For the gamers into the fast-paced 2D fighters, BlazBlue pulled a Super Street Fighter 4 with the release of BlazBlue: Continuum Shift which added more characters, new challenge modes, and revamps of the stages.

August

Surprisingly, the PSP dominated this month. The Y's series made its PSP debut with Y's seven while the PS3 tactical rpg Valkyrie Chronicles got a sequel on the PSP, Valkyrie Chronicles 2. Both games continued to breathe life into the system, making it worth our time once again. Much like Final Fantasy XIII we desperately wanted to rave about Metroid: Other M but... sigh... moving on...

September

As Sony released their motion controller: the Playstation Move, Microsoft struck back with Halo Reach. The PSP kept kicking with Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, a worthy prequel to the series that simply made us want a part 3... now... please? The DS released Professor Layton and the Unwound Future, the third game in the puzzle solving series. Killing zombies became popular again with Dead Rising 2 and a creepy survival horror game quietly launched on the PC: Amnesia the Dark Descent. We recommended this over the flop that was Final Fantasy XIV.

October

Let's start with the sequels: Fallout New Vegas, Rockband 3, Super Scribblenauts, Fable 3, and Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 2. It was a post apocalyptic rock performance with creative word games, tyrannical kings, and ninjas who storm... 2. The Star Wars fan is us will mention Star Wars the Force Unleashed 2 but be warned: it's very, very short. Speaking of "short but fun" games, Enslaved: Odyssey of the West unfortunately met that criteria. Can Ninja Theory just not make a long game? Two big game franchises -- Castlevania and Kirby -- got reboots with Castlevania: Lords of Shadow and Kirby's Epic Yarn. Two epic adventures: one with a cool fellow named Gabriel and another with the cutest puffball in existence. Before the giant FPS orgasm that is Call of Duty gamers got a hold of Medal of Honor, but reviews weren't nearly as strong as we wanted them to be.

November

Here we go. Of course we're going to mention the biggest game release of the year: Donkey Kong Country Returns! O.K., o.k., you know we're talking about Call of Duty: Black Ops but Donkey Kong is amazing and full of bananas. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood was another huge game release this month, letting us do what we love best: kill people with a cool ass character. God of War: Ghost of Sparta let us do the same thing, only more violently -- oh Kratos, you angry man you. Microsoft wisely waited until holiday season to release their motion device: the Kinect, and the thing has been selling like cakes that are hot. In return, Sony finally released Gran Turismo 5 after telling all of us that it would be released next year. Nintendo had their hands full with GoldenEye, Epic Mickey, and Golden Sun: Dark Dawn -- a game fans had been waiting for for 7 years. We've always been fans of GoldenEye -- ever since the Nintendo 64 -- and Epic Mickey took us into a twisted Disney World with wonky camera angles that got very annoying very quickly... but the story's so interesting that we continued on.

December

The mad rushes of games have slowed down quite a bit but there are three titles worth mentioning: World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, Super Mario All-Stars, and Tron. We're not big WoW players ourselves, but we can't deny that it's the biggest MMORPG out there. We're definitely excited for Super Mario All-Stars, not only for the game, but for the collectible goodies it comes with.

Bonus Round: Downloads!

This year has been full of downloadable games that have been rated just as high -- if not higher -- than the console games that were released this year. In this section, we're going to talk about the games that have been worth all of those extra online purchases. Red Dead Redemption got some interesting DLC this year, but there's one pack that even IGN called a "masterpiece." Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare combined aliens with cowboys... er... we mean zombies with cowboys, yeah, that's it... where did we get aliens and cowboys? Next up is a personal favorite that warms our little gamer heart: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. If you enjoyed the movie then definitely give the game a try. Limbo was a very cool, almost creepy game that was visually amazing with blacks, whites, and grays to illustrate a shadowy world full of nasty traps. A new platformer was released whose main character is... a cube of meat, but Super Meat Boy was much more challenging than it sounds and provided ridiculous amounts of entertainment. Costume Quest was an interesting rpg where your sibling is kidnapped while trick or treating, so it's up to you to save the day before... curfew?

Sonic the Hedgehog returned in a game that brought him back to his 2D roots: Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode one. Joining the old school hedgehog in the "classic remake" category was Castlevania, Pac-Man Championship Edition, Perfect Dark, and Lara Croft went on a new adventure in Lara Croft: Guardian of Light.

So that's how 2010 shapes up. We had some great games and some disappointing games but, in the end, we still had a good time and are anxiously awaiting next year. Was 2010 a great year for you?

“JOURNALISM NEXT: Video games to go on trial”

2010-12-27T09:09:00.000-08:00

“JOURNALISM NEXT: Video games to go on trial”

JOURNALISM NEXT: Video games to go on trial

Posted: 26 Dec 2010 08:50 PM PST

The Supreme Court is now hearing a case about banning youth from playing certain violent video games. The state of California has written a bill claiming that games with a level of "deviant violence" are having dangerous effects on children and teenagers. Is this a compelling argument or a load of rubbish?

The law itself states that violent games will be labeled with a 2-inch square on the front of the box to address it as violent. In addition if any retailer should sell one of these games to a minor they would be held accountable and fined around $1,000 for each violation.

In place currently is the Entertainment Software Rating Board which considers the content of each game and produces a rating ranging from E for Everybody to M for Mature gamers 17 and older.

Graphic by NICOLE FELDMAN/Special to the Herald New state lawsuits could put the squeeze on video game makers by ramping up required rating codes.

The California bill requires a new rating system for any game where "the range of options available to a player includes killing, maiming, dismembering, or sexually assaulting an image of a human being."

It branches out to include characters with substantial human qualities, which includes zombies, aliens, mutants, and others. Opponents say this bill is unconstitutional. To prohibit games is to take away freedom of speech. If the law does pass, than anyone under the age of 18 would be affected, including the vast majority of high school students.

Why is this dangerous? With there being a fine on games sold to minors it would be difficult for the developers to make games that include any form of violence. If a sales clerk makes a mistake, than the people who made the game have to cough up a huge chunk of change to pay for it. With that happening, they'd stop taking chances with games that had any form of action, and even gamers of adult age would suffer.

Also with a smaller window of players able to purchase games the industry will make less money. A game as simple as Super Smash Brothers Brawl could be considered too violent and banned from our age group.

Games like Call of Duty or Halo would almost certainly be, and other games like God of War and Left 4 Dead would for sure. With less income the game industry will not be able to make as many games in any genre and will, ultimately, collapse. Is this necessary?

As it is, games have a strict rating system. Games that have any form of violence are rated T for Teen. If language, blood, or other acts of violence or indecency are included in the game, then the rating gets bumped to M for mature, or on the rare occasion a game is too graphic it's rated AO for adults only.

When it's rated M for Mature you have to be 17 years of age or older to buy them, or have a parents' permission to play.

If this is true, then why would there need to be a separate rating system?

The games that have extreme violence and content can't be purchased by minors without parental consent. If the parents don't take the time to parent their kids and take a look at what their kids are buying and playing, is that the video games fault? Should society step in and prohibit these things if their parent doesn't?

“2010 | Video games: Top titles don't require flailing”

2010-12-26T09:27:00.001-08:00

“2010 | Video games: Top titles don't require flailing”

2010 | Video games: Top titles don't require flailing

Posted: 26 Dec 2010 02:57 AM PST

Four years ago, Nintendo turned the video-game world upside-down with its motion-controlled Wii console.

The big headline from 2010 is that Nintendo's primary competitors have finally followed suit: Microsoft with Kinect, Sony with the PlayStation Move. At first glance, it looks like a bad year for gamers who'd rather sit than flail about like dervishes.

But the game industry is driven by software, not hardware, and the best games of 2010 are those you could play the old-fashioned way - from the comfort of a chair.

The Kinect and Move technology is impressive, but (with one exception) the games available for them don't reach the creative heights of the year's best, ranked in order:

1. Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar, for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360): It's more than Grand Theft Auto on a horse, and it's all because of John Marston, the former bandit at the heart of the wild West drama. He's the first Rockstar protagonist with a heart, and his journey toward redemption is the most rewarding trip I took all year.

2. Mass Effect 2 (Electronic Arts, for Xbox): Engaging characters and an absorbing mystery help BioWare expand its sprawling intergalactic empire. It's as ambitious and thought-

provoking as the best science fiction.

3. Rock Band 3 (MTV Games, for Nintendo Wii, PS3 and Xbox): New keyboard and "pro guitar" accessories bring fans of the exemplary franchise closer to the stage than ever.

4.Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies (Square Enix, for Nintendo DS): The delightful role-playing game is a satisfying throwback to classic sword-and-sorcery adventures.

5. Enslaved: Odyssey to the West (Namco Bandai, for PS3 and Xbox): The vision of a post-apocalyptic America, featuring two of the year's more intriguing characters, deserves a wider audience.

6.Nier (Square Enix, for PS3 and Xbox): A man battles to save his daughter in a fascinating mash-up of Zelda, Zork and a half-dozen other classics.

7.Dance Central (MTV Games, for Xbox): The best of the Kinect launch titles, the full-body workout will release your inner Lady Gaga.

8.BioShock 2 (2K Games, for PS3 and Xbox): Communism rears its head in 2K's underwater dystopia, and although some of the wow factor is gone, tighter controls and a more coherent story make for a first-rate follow-up.

9.Darksiders (THQ, for PS3 and Xbox): Clever puzzles, vivid animation and an acerbic sense of humor lift the adventure above the standard Zelda clone.

10.Fallout: New Vegas (Bethesda Softworks, for PS3 and Xbox): Despite some glitches and a meandering plot, the sequel delivers 80-plus hours of post-nuclear kicks.

“Crime: Computer, video games stolen”

2010-12-25T09:23:00.001-08:00

“Crime: Computer, video games stolen”

Crime: Computer, video games stolen

Posted: 25 Dec 2010 12:47 AM PST

Crime: Computer, video games stolen

The Daily Reflector

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Pitt County deputies are investigating a report that an unknown person broke into a 60-year-old man's home between Nov. 24 and Dec. 22 and stole property valued at $2,775.

This article is only available to home delivery and electronic edition subscribers of The Daily Reflector. Current home delivery and electronic edition subscribers can log in to access this article at no charge. Current subscribers who have not established a user name and password can click here. To become a subscriber, please click here or contact Customer Service at (252) 329-9505.

“The Top 10 Video Games of 2010”

2010-12-24T09:25:00.001-08:00

“The Top 10 Video Games of 2010”

The Top 10 Video Games of 2010

Posted: 23 Dec 2010 03:03 PM PST

Here's my obligatory list of 2010's top 10 video games, in no particular order. Yours would no doubt look different. That's the point of lists, after all: To throw our favorites out there, then stand around comparing and critiquing.

On a different day, in a different mood, I might've picked Bayonetta, Dead Rising 2, Gran Turismo 5, Mass Effect 2, Super Mario Galaxy 2, Super Street Fighter IV, and who knows, maybe even Heavy Rain and Dragon Quest IX.

After all, you don't get annual top X lists right, only published.

Red Dead Redemption (Xbox 360, PS3). Someone finally made an interactive western that's not a crummy arcade shooter or repulsive ethnic assault game. Red Dead Redemption continues Rockstar's sardonic critique of American exceptionalism, this time channeled by a retired outlaw sporting scars clawed from nose to neck. Nothing else this year so pitch-perfectly combines a sharp-eyed narrative, lively gunplay, memorable characters, spectacular scrub-riddled landscapes, expertly paced challenges, and masterful mini-games. I tried not to fall for this one and failed completely.

See: Red Dead Redemption on PS3 vs. Xbox 360

DCS A-10C Warthog (PC). Digital Combat Simulator somehow pulled off the best simulation of the A-10C Warthog close air support (CAS) jet in the world this year, and I'm just talking about the beta. It's probably also the most authentic consumer-grade simulation of a multimillion dollar aircraft yet attempted. Play in arcade mode if you want quick thrills, or study the 663-page manual and revel in the resplendent avionic fidelity, which includes fiddling dozens of switches and onboard mini-computers just to properly start the plane up.

See: Photoreal Flight Simulation Without Compromises

StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty (PC, Mac). You'd be facile to call StarCraft II ho-hum just because it's a slicker version of StarCraft. Is football mediocre because it's the same game every year? Last year's Beatles remasters somehow less for being the same tunes? Blizzard minced no words about StarCraft II's e-sports pedigree or slavish devotion to B-grade sci-fi, both of which it delivers unsurpassed (to the chagrin of contrarians). If competitive real-time strategy's your bag, here's its apotheosis.

See: Razer Spectre StarCraft II Gaming Mouse

Across the Dnepr 2 (PC). No one plays wargames these days, or they just flirt with dilettantes like the Total War series or AGEOD's board-gamey titles. Shrugging, SSG gave us Across the Dnepr 2, an expansion to last year's brilliant Kharkov, an operational-level World War II hex game inspired by David Glantz's peerless Kharkov: Anatomy of a Military Disaster. What's so special? The same thing Kharkov delivered: A turn-based wargame that deftly mitigates a decades-old wargaming problem--hindsight--by mixing historically restricted areas and formations with unguessable force outlay variants.

See: Across the Dnepr 2 Released, Coolest Wargame Ever Expands

Amnesia: The Dark Descent (PC). Amnesia just might be the scariest survival horror game yet made. I keep saying that and I'm not kidding. You play in a creepy German castle, as terrifying for what it doesn't reveal as what it does. Your only weapons are your wits. No really, the game hands out tinderboxes and candles in lieu of guns, crowbars, or chainsaws. It's the best game of hide and seek (but mostly hide) you've ever experienced. Forget Resident Who and Silent Whatever, and play this.

See: 10 Games You Probably Don't Know About but Should

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (Xbox 360, PS3). No one's telling a better story than Ubisoft Montreal, or making fewer design compromises. Brotherhood picks up where Assassin's Creed II left off, but with a turf war angle in which you assault fortified towers to liberate swathes of Rome. That's grafted onto a mammoth city-improvement simulation and smoothed over with dozens of compelling, subtly iterating challenges. That, and the series gets its first taste of multiplayer: A brilliant game of round-robin in which you're both hunter and hunted.

See: When in Rome, Climb Everything

Command Ops: Battles From the Bulge (PC). Another fascinating, fantastically wrought wargame the mainstream sites and strategy blogs blinked past. You shouldn't. Not if you're into exquisitely drawn World War II maps, meticulously crafted scenarios, carefully folded-in historical fidelity, and relentlessly shrewd, frighteningly aware computer opponents. Battles From the Bulge was the most sophisticated real-time strategy game released this year, and you've probably never heard of it.

See: Why PC Wargame Battles From The Bulge Costs So Much

BioShock 2 (PC, Xbox 360, PS3). BioShock 2 got nearly everything right, sidestepping BioShock's narrative flaws and story-wrecking three-ring-circus of a finale. It further refined psychedelic action mechanics pioneered not by BioShock but Looking Glass's System Shock in 1994. And it made us care deeply about a haunted child, then let us play as one.

See: A Sequel That Surpasses the Original

Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising (PC). If Blizzard's the slickest real-time strategy outfit, Relic's the craftiest. Their standalone Chaos Rising expansion adds snarling Chaos Space Marines and a gorgeous ice-crusted planet to last year's intrepid tactical-scale Dawn of War II, but also an artfully scripted and optionally cooperative solo campaign with a strategy-fiddling morality angle. The ethical consequences are perhaps underplayed in the end, but you'll agonize over their tactical ramifications for the full duration of this clever, darkly compelling ride.

See: Dawn of War II Chaos Rising Expansion Details

Final Fantasy XIII (Xbox 360, PS3). In the war between Western and Eastern style roleplaying games, I so hope we lose. Western game sites embarrassed themselves by calling Final Fantasy XIII "too linear" instead looking more closely at its elegant core battle system. Instead of wasting time in lifeless villages with brainless citizens and generic shops, FFXIII propels you forward at warp speed to grapple with iteratively elaborate battles, no two enemy encounters alike.

See: About Final Fantasy XIII's Linearity Issue

Keep tabs on us with Twitter (@game_on)

“Palo Alto company boots up a game-changer”

2010-12-23T09:23:00.001-08:00

“Palo Alto company boots up a game-changer”

Palo Alto company boots up a game-changer

Posted: 23 Dec 2010 05:45 AM PST

By John Orr

Arts and Entertainment Editor

My 9-year-old son Riley and I had a great time over the weekend playing video games using OnLive.com, which is a fairly fabulous, fairly new and well-funded operation based in Palo Alto.

It's being marketed as "cloud computing" for video games, but I consider that whole concept more of a marketing term than anything else, much like "Web 2.0," which I always thought of as so much claptrap, conceptually. Neither Web 2.0 or cloud computing are really new to anyone who's spent much time online.

Part of the very well-run operation at OnLive.com are Web-based video games that can be played via computer. Nothing new there, although OnLive.com has an extremely good selection of games, and all the software I saw ran very well.

But a difference is that players need not eat up hard-disk space by loading massive games, either from Web downloads or from compact disks. All that software sits on the OnLive.com servers, and players just use it when they want to use it. Very neat, since it is a good selection of games.

The other way to get to OnLive.com's games is via a very small console that allows players to skip the computer altogether.

What is it? It is a small black chunk of technical wizardry about the size of an older cell phone -- less than 5 inches long, 3

inches wide, about ¾ of an inch thick. It hooks up to the Web, to an HDTV, and responds to a wireless game controller.

Riley and I plugged in those cables and were connected to OnLive.com, where we found 38 video games waiting for us. That was last weekend; by Wednesday, there were 46 games.

Some of the titles include "Lego Harry Potter Years 1-4," "Batman: Arkham Asylum," "Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands," "Saw," "Dirt 2," "Madballs in Babo: Invasion," "The Maw," "Lego Batman," "Mafia II," "Shaun White Skateboarding," "Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition," "Defense Grid Gold" and "NBA 2K11."

OnLive is a strong concept, one I suspect is going to be a major game-changer in the industry. It costs only $99 for the little black console, which comes with one very cool controller that has all the needed buttons and batons and rumble. Compare that to $200 for a Wii, or $300 or more for a PS3 or Xbox 360.

We also played without the console, by using my home computer, which is a few years old and has a good but not super-great graphics card. The game graphics were pretty good, with just a little pixilation now and again. OnLive says its app runs on almost any PC or Mac, but really, you're going to want a very good Web connection, a fast processor and a good graphics card.

To run the computer version of OnLive, I ran over to Fry's and coughed up a little dough for a PC game controller, which I didn't happen to have before. I got a Logitech Rumble F510 for about $30 or $40. A good investment. If you already have a game controller for your PC, you don't need to spend any money at all to go to OnLive.com and try a bunch of games in demo mode. Then buy the ones you want, at competitive prices.

And, players don't have to worry about software upgrades -- that takes place at the OnLive servers.

But even better, actually, was using OnLive's little console, on a borrowed HDTV.

The games ran fast, most of the time with no noticeable lag, and the graphics were completely beautiful on the HP HDTV monitor we'd borrowed -- better than what I was able to achieve on my home computer.

I had a lot of fun with "Madballs in Babo: Invasion," which was new to me, and also played "Defense Grid Gold," to compare it to a version I have played for hours on an Xbox 360. Both games ran very well. Riley spent days playing "Lego Harry Potter Years 1-4," "Batman: Arkham Asylum" and "Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands."

I had to use a crowbar to get him away from the games.

The OnLive.com operation was announced at the Game Developers Conference in 2009, then launched in June of this year, offering 10 games right away, and now 46 games, last I looked, including some A-list material.

OnLive.com is backed by a bunch of entertainment industry powerhouses and is staffed by some of the brightest lights of the computer gaming industry. It is a strong product that seems to be steadily getting better, in terms of delivery across the Web and in its list of games.

Its niche in the market is a little hard to define.

On the one hand, it is extremely competitive, cost-wise. Lots of game demos than can be played for free on the Web, and full games at competitive prices. Very little hard-disk space needed to run the OnLive.com Web app.

And the little black console and controller package is dirt-cheap. It's a great product and the $99 price is flat-out crazy.

But users will have to have invested in a pretty good computer to begin with, for that way of playing, or own an HDTV for the console route. They aren't cheap.

So, you have an inexpensive but great video games operation for use on higher-end computers and TVs.

But, of course, recycling centers are piling up with older model TVs as consumers being home those pretty flat-screen HDTVs, so the market is probably there.

If OnLive.com were not privately held, I'd want to buy its stock. I think it's going to be a success.

E-mail John Orr at jorr@dailynewsgroup.com.

Video games review

What: OnLive gaming systems
Upshot: It's the goods
Website: www.onlive.com

“Popular Music in Video Games”

2010-12-22T09:13:00.001-08:00

“Popular Music in Video Games”

“Violent Video Games Don't Predict Aggressive Behavior”

2010-12-21T09:10:00.001-08:00

“Violent Video Games Don't Predict Aggressive Behavior”

Violent Video Games Don't Predict Aggressive Behavior

Posted: 20 Dec 2010 09:18 PM PST

Latest Mental Health News

FRIDAY, Dec. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Exposure to violent video games or television shows is not a strong predictor of aggression or violence among youth, says a new study from Texas A&M International University.

Instead, it found that depression influences children and teens levels of aggression and violence.

The study's dismissal of violent video games as a risk factor in aggression contrasts to some other recent findings, including an analysis of 130 studies on video games and violence released in March by researchers at Iowa State University and colleagues. That analysis concluded the evidence strongly suggests that playing violent video games increases aggressive thoughts and behaviors and reduces empathy.

The new study included 302 mostly Hispanic youthS, ageD 10 to 14, in a small U.S. city on the border with Mexico. The participants were interviewed at the start of the study and again 12 months later.

The initial interviews revealed that 75% of the participants played video games within the past month, and 40% played games with violent content. Boys were more likely than girls to play violent games.

At the follow-up interview, 7% of the young people reported engaging in at least one criminally violent act during the previous 12 months. The most common types of violent acts were physically assaulting other students or using force to take an object or money from someone else.

The study also found that 19% of the youth took part in at least one nonviolent crime, such as shoplifting, over the same period.

After the researchers adjusted for such variables as exposure to domestic violence, bullying and depressive symptoms, they found exposure to violence in video games or television was not a strong predictor of aggressive behavior or rule-breaking, concluded investigator Dr. Christopher Ferguson, of Texas A&M International University.

However, depressive symptoms were a strong predictor for aggression and rule breaking and their influence was particularly strong in young people with preexisting antisocial personality disorders.

"Depressive symptoms stand out as particularly strong predictors of youth violence and aggression, and therefore current levels of depression may be a key variable of interest in the prevention of serious aggression in youth. The current study finds no evidence to support a long-term relationship between video game violence use and subsequent aggression. Even though the debate over violent video games and youth violence will continue, it must do so with restraint," Ferguson wrote.

The study was published online in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence.

-- Robert Preidt

SOURCE: Journal of Youth and Adolescence, news release, Dec. 14, 2010

“Game On: Video Games Help Test Human Behavior”

2010-12-20T09:03:00.001-08:00

“Game On: Video Games Help Test Human Behavior”

Game On: Video Games Help Test Human Behavior

Posted: 20 Dec 2010 04:10 AM PST

As a communications researcher who focuses on virtual worlds, Dmitri Williams has a simple rule for how his team studies games: If you haven't played it, you can't study it. As a gamer, it sounds like a no-brainer.

But when I voiced my admiration for the rule and its sensible approach, Williams pointed out that I'm the "first journalist ever" to not ask him whether he plays video games. His usual stock response to such questions: "Would you ask film professors if they watch films?"

Williams is based at the University of Southern California, though he heads the Virtual World Exploratorium (VWE) project that spans multiple universities. His group of economists, psychologists and anthropologists see games as nothing less than virtual labs where they can collect data about human behavior that would be impossible to get in the real world. [Understanding the Most Destructive Human Behaviors]

"The worlds are great petri dishes for studying human behavior," Williams said. "Most of us are not interested in a particular virtual world. We don't care about the dragon, we care about human behavior."

The group's ability to mine useful data is a big reason why it has funding from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Army Research Institute, and the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity - the latter being the high-risk, high-payoff research arm for the U.S. intelligence community.

Every move you make

As inspiration for his work, Williams pointed to the 1966 book "Unobtrusive Measures" by Eugene Webb, a pioneer in organizational behavior research. The book tells of a museum that wanted to measure visitor interest in certain exhibits without actually bothering visitors, and so it used the ingenious solution of examining the wear and tear on the floor tiles in front of displays.

Similarly, players can do what they like in games without being bothered by monitoring devices or cameras, because their behaviors are recorded unobtrusively as in-game data. The big difference is that games can offer a much finer level of detailed behavioral data than any scuff marks found on a floor tile.

"The advantage of behavioral data is that rather than asking someone what they did, you know what they did," Williams told LiveScience. "It's the difference between asking what a person saw at the museum and watching what they looked at on the [camera] video feed."

Using game data also eliminates other real-world challenges that researchers face when trying to study human behavior. There is no need for survey data tainted by lying or poor memory, because researchers can simply consult game logs to find out how much a player really paid for a pricey dragon mount, or see just how long players spent playing online. (Hint: its more than players think.)

But researchers can only get their hands on such data if they approach game companies. Williams and his colleagues at the VWE project struck such a deal with Sony Online Entertainment, a game publisher that operates many massively multiplayer online (MMO) games such as EverQuest II.

To address possible "Big Brother" concerns, both the researchers and Sony Online Entertainment agreed that the player data would be anonymous. That means the researchers don't ever see any personal identifying information connected to the game data. Since then, the VWE has also struck similar deals with a Chinese MMO publisher and a U.S. free-to-play online game publisher.

Real-life lessons

The deal has already paid dividends for the researchers, who hail from diverse academic backgrounds. One economist wrote a paper about macroeconomic behavior in a virtual world - not unlike how other experts have looked to online worlds such as "Second Life" for lessons about unregulated banks and economic patterns.

"When we look at a virtual world, we have every single transaction, period, with no error - there's no sample because we have everything," Williams said. "We have every [virtual] copper piece that was ever sold for a wolf pelt." (Williams is referring to the option players have in many games of buying/selling/trading with either a non-player character or other players.)

Such economic research not only benefits from a virtual world's ability to track every purchase of every wolf pelt, but can also examine unusual economic circumstances that play out in a virtual world with no real-world costs. Policy makers don't have that luxury when they try to tackle real-world economic problems such as recessions.

"In a virtual world, you can test things with much less risk and at much lower cost than in the real world, where policy makers run these kinds of experiments all the time," Williams said.

Another colleague with an interest in transportation patterns studied why players chose certain routes based on travel times. That study relied upon the basic psychology of decision-making that underpins what humans choose to do, even in virtual worlds where players trade for fantasy items and ride mythical griffins or dragons from point A to B. [Related: Grand Theft Auto May Improve Decision-Making Skills]

Parallel worlds

Still, getting the research right means figuring out what in-game behaviors are a good match for behaviors in the real world. Researchers risk doing bad science, and ending up with inaccurate conclusions, if human behavior in a game "maps" poorly to real-world behavior.

"Mapping is all about when can I trust this parallelism and when can I not," Williams explained. "When does it go from goofy research with a bunch of professors studying dragons to a study with practical applications in the real world?"

He gave the example of a paper published in the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases in 2007. That paper explored how researchers might study human behavioral reactions to epidemics in virtual worlds, and cited a much-publicized instance where a disease-like condition began spreading and killing players' virtual avatars in the popular "World of Warcraft."

The problem with the Warcraft example was that players likely behaved radically different from how they would have in a real-life situation. Infected players gleefully spread the disease to major cities in the game with predictably messy results, because virtual death in "World of Warcraft" is only an inconvenience.

"If players had a psychological cost associated with [in-game] death, like losing a week of playtime, maybe games would start to approximate real-world systems," Williams said.

Taking games seriously

Having a rigorous approach to studying games has helped the researchers gain credibility for their work, given that relatively few researchers look at games beyond their impacts on such things as aggressiveness and violence.

One of the first researchers to take games seriously was Nick Yee, an expert in the psychology of virtual environments at Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center in California. Back in his undergrad days in 2002, he began surveying gamers who played early MMOs such as EverQuest and publishing his results online.

"Nick was really one of the very first guys to look into this space," Williams said. "Here was an undergrad kid doing a lot of stuff that was state-of-the-art [in this field] for a long time."

But whereas much of that early pioneering work was focused on scraping publicly available data from games, Williams and other researchers have gone deeper into the rabbit hole by getting game data through the back door, so to speak. Their challenge now is to keep demonstrating the potential of virtual worlds as virtual labs, and open up new opportunities for working with the game industry.

"It's easy to blow it off, and it's also easy to get it wrong," Williams said. "We take this very seriously, we're funded by serious agencies and we publish in serious journals."

LiveScience.com chronicles the daily advances and innovations made in science and technology. We take on the misconceptions that often pop up around scientific discoveries and deliver short, provocative explanations with a certain wit and style. Check out our science videos, Trivia & Quizzes and Top 10s. Join our community to debate hot-button issues like stem cells, climate change and evolution. You can also sign up for free newsletters, register for RSS feeds and get cool gadgets at the LiveScience Store.

“Top video games jump off retail store shelves”

2010-12-18T09:33:00.001-08:00

“Top video games jump off retail store shelves”

Top video games jump off retail store shelves

Posted: 17 Dec 2010 09:35 PM PST

[fivefilters.org: unable to retrieve full-text content]

They paced down aisles with images of post-apocalyptic warriors and flying dinosaurs on the shelves.

“Video games: App provides content details to explain industry ratings”

2010-12-17T09:08:00.001-08:00

“Video games: App provides content details to explain industry ratings”

Video games: App provides content details to explain industry ratings

Posted: 17 Dec 2010 09:04 AM PST

NEW YORK -- Video games come with ratings similar to movies, but plenty of parents buy games rated M for Mature for their kids under 17.

To give them more information about what's in the games their children are asking for, the Entertainment Software Ratings Board updated its free mobile app Tuesday to let users snap photos of the boxes of video games and find out what the ratings mean. For newer games they will also get vivid descriptions and examples of content that could be unsuitable to children.

The nonprofit industry group is responsible for assigning the ratings on every video game sold in stores. The ratings range from EC for Early Childhood to AO for Adults Only, though the latter is rare and major retailers don't stock games with that rating. The most popular shooters, such as "Call of Duty" and "Grand Theft Auto," are rated M.

For games rated before July 1, 2008, the app will bring what each letter rating means. For games that were assigned a rating after that date, it will fetch information about why they received that rating. For "Call of Duty: Black Ops," for example, this includes combat that "can generate pools of blood and dismembered limbs." On the other hand, "Kirby's Epic Yarn," rated E for Everyone, is a safer bet for young kids. In it, "enemies lose feathers, yarn or beads when hit (and) Kirby reacts to damage with an 'Ow!' sound effect," according to the ESRB.

The video game industry expects a decision from

the U.S. Supreme Court next year on the constitutionality of a California ban on the sale of ultra-violent games to children. Parents' groups and politicians say games should be regulated like firearms and tobacco rather than like books and movies. The industry believes that its ratings system works well and negates the need for government regulation.

The app is available on the iPhone and on Android devices by searching for ESRB.

To use the photo feature, tap "Search by photo" on the app's yellow home screen. This should bring up your smart phone's camera feature. Use this to snap a photo of the video game's box, making sure it's centered in the screen. Tap "use" if you'd like to use the photo.

“Top 5 video games for children”

2010-12-16T09:21:00.001-08:00

“Top 5 video games for children”

“Ron Artest says JaVale McGee is playing too many video games”

2010-12-15T09:23:00.001-08:00

“Ron Artest says JaVale McGee is playing too many video games”

Ron Artest says JaVale McGee is playing too many video games

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 08:53 AM PST

Usually when you talk about playing too many video games you're talking about the national childhood obesity problem. Well, that or you're an over 50 curmudgeon and think all video games are a blight — "We didn't have them growing up in the 60s and we got along just fine… by doing a lot of drugs." You know, that kind of logic.

But when Ron Artest was talking about playing too many video games Tuesday night, he was talking about JaVale McGee — one of the five most freakish athletes in a league full of freakish athletes. McGee racked up 12 points and 9 rebounds against the Lakers but Artest became the latest in a long line of people questioning McGee's feel for the game. Artest just did it much more creatively to Michael Lee of the Washington Post.

"He potentially could be a really good player," Artest said. "I think he got to go to school a little bit more. He's got to work on that IQ a little bit. He got to watch more tape. I don't think he watches tape. I think he plays video games. I do. I don't think he watches tape. I think he plays video games and I think he could possibly have an Atari. He should upgrade to a Play Station."

Atari? He's that out of date?

"Possibly Atari," Artest said. "He could potentially become a force, if, if he wants to. But if he doesn't, he can continue to play Atari."

Damn. That is a smack. But he's not the first Laker to do it, remember Lamar Odom back at Team USA basketball camp this summer said McGee needed to develop a better feel because "the game is called basketball, not run and jump."

McGee though will continue to rack up the NBA Jam level highlights so long as John Wall is throwing him ally-oops.

“App lets you snap photos to see video game ratings”

2010-12-14T09:09:00.001-08:00

“App lets you snap photos to see video game ratings”

App lets you snap photos to see video game ratings

Posted: 14 Dec 2010 07:59 AM PST

NEW YORK – Video games come with ratings similar to movies, but plenty of parents buy games rated M for Mature for their kids under 17.

To give them more information about those ratings, the Entertainment Software Ratings Board updated its free mobile App Tuesday to let users snap photos of the boxes of video games and find out what the ratings mean.

The nonprofit industry group is responsible for assigning the ratings on every video game sold in stores. The ratings range from EC for Early Childhood to AO for Adults Only, though the latter is rare and no major retailers stocks games with that rating. The most popular shooters, such as "Call of Duty" and "Grand Theft Auto," are rated M.

The app is available on the iPhone and on Android devices by searching for ESRB.

“Video Games and Realism: What Parents Should Know This Holiday Season”

2010-12-13T09:20:00.001-08:00

“Video Games and Realism: What Parents Should Know This Holiday Season”

Video Games and Realism: What Parents Should Know This Holiday Season

Posted: 13 Dec 2010 07:33 AM PST

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., Dec. 13, 2010 –

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., Dec. 13, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- More than 60 percent of parents say video games have no effect on their children.

Not true, says Marina Krcmar, associate professor of communication at Wake Forest, who studies the impact of video games on children and teens. And, as games get more and more realistic, research shows the positive and negative effects on children increase, Krcmar says. "Greater realism leads to greater immersion; greater immersion leads to greater effects. One of those effects can be increased aggression."

The quality of the graphics and the sound in this year's new video games is amazing, she says, "It's getting closer and closer to virtual reality." For war games like "Call of Duty: Black Ops," the complete immersion in a realistic violent world raises some red flags.

"We learn what's right and what's wrong by consequences," she says. In many of the most popular games, shooting people results in no negative consequences. In fact, there is actually a reward.

The Xbox Kinect adds a new twist this year. The new system eliminates the need for a controller completely, so movements look and feel more realistic. According to Krcmar, research shows that if the controller looks and feels more like the movement would feel in real life, the player becomes more involved in the game. For non-violent games, this could be good. But, as violent motions feel more natural and the line between real and virtual blurs, there is likely to be a stronger link to increased aggression after playing the game, she says.

This is likely to affect you in negative ways in the long run, she adds.

Krcmar, who researches video games and violence, and teaches a class called "Video Games: Research and Theory," recommends some alternatives to "first-person shooter" games.

She suggests parents consider strategy games instead. She recommends two games for the Nintendo DS: "Professor Layton and the Curious Village," a mystery and puzzle game or "Etrian Odyssey," a role-play game for older children that allows them to explore and strategize. "Harvest Moon," is her favorite for young children. It allows them to own a farm, grow food and take care of animals, but is also helps children practice planning, problem-solving and strategizing. Finding good games takes a little more effort because they are often not marketed as well as some of the more violent games.

With these games, the enhanced realism also makes the player feel more involved in the game and increases the effect. But, instead of heightened aggression, the effect might be to develop problem-solving skills.

Krcmar offers a caveat about realism in games, "Parents should not assume games that don't have the sophisticated look of perfect graphics can't inspire involvement. Involvement also increases with a good narrative or story."

In addition to problem-solving, Krcmar says there are other beneficial effects of video games on children. Research shows that video games help with hand eye coordination and teach us how to scan the environment for important visual information.

She offers a few general tips for parents regarding video games:

*Do your homework. Research new games online to find out as much as you can about content.

*Don't trust the marketers. Many games that are marketed to kids are completely inappropriate for them.

*Talk to your kids about the games they are playing.

*Regardless of what games they are playing, set up game systems in family living spaces.

This news release was issued on behalf of Newswise(TM). For more information, visit http://www.newswise.com.

SOURCE Wake Forest University

“Video games, DVDs and iPads are hot gift ideas”

2010-12-12T09:19:00.001-08:00

“Video games, DVDs and iPads are hot gift ideas”

Video games, DVDs and iPads are hot gift ideas

Posted: 12 Dec 2010 03:46 AM PST

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Dec 12, 2010

Yes, it's time for our annual Christmas column. If you're trying to figure out the right gift purchase for that special someone, stay close to home, says Denise Lint, store team leader for Target, the big mainland retailer that set up shop in Hawaii last year.

Lint, who has been following the trends for consumer electronics in the Aloha State, says that people are in a nesting mode this holiday season. "People are going out less," she said, "and they want to spend more time with kids," particularly to help with educational pursuits.

"DVDs are very hot," says Lint, especially those for children. Titles from the "Baby Einstein" and "Little Big Planet" series, Xbox games and Wii games are all popular. In addition to the software, associated hardware such as the Nintendo DSi game system ($113), the Kinect Sensor and Kinect Adventures game bundle ($149.99, or $299.99 bundled with a 4 GB Xbox 360), PlayStation Eye Camera ($39.99) and PlayStation Move Motion Controller ($49.99) are also showing strong sales, she says.

Part and parcel with brisk DVD sales is an increased interest in DVD players, according to Lint. The Sony Blu-ray wireless ($201) is popular, as is the reasonably priced Memorex progressive scan DVD player for $32.99.

In addition to hardware and software for the home, Lint noted that mobile device sales are going through the roof. Among the most popular items are the Apple iPad 16 GB model ($499.99) and the Amazon Kindle Wi-Fi + 3G ($189.99).

Tim Bajarin, a Silicon Valley analyst with longtime ties to Hawaii, says there's a good reason why the iPad is the top choice. Even with similar Android devices coming out, he says, iPad has great functionality so that you can watch TV, movies or browse the Web. "It taps into an ecosystem of 50,000 applications, which adds to its utility."

Bajarin says the No. 2 choice of consumers is smart phones. The iPhone leads the pack, but Android phones, such as Motorola's Droid, RIM's BlackBerry and the Windows mobile phone, are also popular.

The No. 3 choice this Christmas is MP3 players, with Apple's iPod Touch the most sought after in that space, he said.

E-books are the No. 4 pick this holiday, according to Bajarin, with Amazon's Kindle, Barnes & Noble's Nook and the Sony Digital e-reader leading the pack. He likes the Kindle best but is intrigued by the Barnes & Noble NOOKcolor at $249.

The No. 5 slot is bargain-priced laptops. Bajarin says there are some great notebooks under $500 from Toshiba, Acer, HP and other manufacturers.

This year there's no shortage of cool gifts, but be wise because you just might have to dig a little deeper into your pocket.

------

Cliff Miyake, general manager in Honolulu for tw telecom, can be reached at Cliff. Miyake@twtelecom.com.

Subscribe to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser:
Monday-Sunday

1 Year - $180.96
6 Months - $90.48
3 Months - $45.24

Subscribe Now

Home delivery prices for Oahu Only. Please call customer service at (808) 538-6397 for Neighbor Island and mail subscriptions. For Weekend Subscription Rates Click Here

“Video Games And Realism, What Parents Should Know This Holiday Season”

2010-12-11T09:02:00.001-08:00

“Video Games And Realism, What Parents Should Know This Holiday Season”

Video Games And Realism, What Parents Should Know This Holiday Season

Posted: 11 Dec 2010 04:25 AM PST

Main Category: Pediatrics / Children's Health
Also Included In: Psychology / Psychiatry; Public Health
Article Date: 11 Dec 2010 - 1:00 PST email to a friend printer friendly opinions

Current Article Ratings:

Patient / Public:		3.5 (2 votes)
Healthcare Prof:

More than 60 percent of parents say video games have no effect on their children.

So, she encourages parents to be more aware of content when they purchase games during this holiday season. "The T-rating and M-rating for video games are not very consistent and not very informative for parents, so parents need more information," Krcmar says. The quality of the graphics and the sound in this year's new video games is amazing, she says, "It's getting closer and closer to virtual reality." For war games like "Call of Duty: Black Ops," the complete immersion in a realistic violent world raises some red flags.

"We learn what's right and what's wrong by consequences," she says. In many of the most popular games, shooting people results in no negative consequences. In fact, there is actually a reward.

This is likely to affect you in negative ways in the long run, she adds.

Krcmar, who researches video games and violence, and teaches a class called "Video Games: Research and Theory," recommends some alternatives to "first-person shooter" games.

She offers a few general tips for parents regarding video games:

-- Do your homework. Research new games online to find out as much as you can about content.

-- Don't trust the marketers. Many games that are marketed to kids are completely inappropriate for them.

-- Talk to your kids about the games they are playing.

-- Regardless of what games they are playing, set up game systems in family living spaces.

Source: Wake Forest University

Please rate this article:
(Hover over the stars
then click to rate)

Patient / Public:

Health Professional:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.

All opinions are moderated before being added.

Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

“Video games take over marriage”

2010-12-10T09:14:00.001-08:00

“Video games take over marriage”

Video games take over marriage

Posted: 10 Dec 2010 04:01 AM PST

Dear Carolyn: A little more than a year ago, I married my wonderful husband. Things were great between us, until his mother bought him an Xbox for Christmas.

My 34-year-old husband now spends, literally, every waking moment playing video games. Before, we used to enjoy cooking dinner together in the kitchen; now he plays when he gets home from work while I cook alone. He stays up late and plays while I sleep. He plays instead of doing any kind of chores around the house. He is not the least bit embarrassed to play when friends come over.

I have repeatedly asked him to curtail his game-playing, to no avail. I feel like I married a small child, and that gaming has taken over our marriage.

I have told him how much his game-playing obsession offends me. It has become a sore topic. Yet he continues to play for hours on end. I refuse to attempt a conversation while he's playing and leave the room if it's on.

At first, I figured it was just a phase. Now, I view it as an addiction consuming our marriage. And his family gave him a gift card for more games! I fear what they will give him this Christmas.

—Newlywed No More

A: Saying it offends you is different from saying, "I feel like I married a small child," or that you don't feel as if you have a husband anymore.

His neglect will alienate you to the point where you no longer love him or want to remain married; you can plan on it. Often, though, the only thing that wakes spouses up to the possibility of getting dumped is the sight of other spouse actually leaving, with no interest in coming back.

Part of that planetary alignment can't be simulated: Saying you mean something will never have the same power as showing you mean it.

But while you can't fake being at the precipice when you aren't yet, you can bring yourself to the point of brutal clarity now, while you still feel emotionally invested in the marriage. "I am not ready to give up, because you're wonderful and I love you, but I am approaching the point where I refuse to be in this marriage alone." Don't just ask him to stop. Connect his choices to their eventual cost, as you would any addict.

Stop enabling him, too, by being his cook and housekeeper. Invite him to cook with you, and if he declines, prepare a small meal for yourself. Let him wash his own clothes and dishes.

He still might choose gaming. And you might choose to make an appointment with a (well-vetted) marriage counselor— and, with his full knowledge, to talk to his family.

He still might choose gaming. But all of these steps give you important information about his willingness to contribute to his own marriage. Again—the time to treat it as a crisis is while you still care. Any later will be too late.

“Reboots In Video Games”

2010-12-09T09:56:00.001-08:00

“Reboots In Video Games”

Reboots In Video Games

Posted: 09 Dec 2010 09:36 AM PST

Well the recent GI cover revealed that Laura Craft will be getting a new face lift in a reboot of sorts. Many video game franchises seem to be getting face lifts as of late, games like Sonic (well), Devil May Cry, Dragon Age, Silent Hill, Castlevania, Banjo Kazooie and infamous(almost guess people have problems with change).

Why do I think reboots can be successful? Well first I would consider the franchise being rebooted and here are some possible questions that could be asked.

Does the franchise have room for improvement?

Can said franchise draw inspiration from others successfully?

Is the IP popular enough to have recognition with gamers?

Would the franchise make sense in a new style of genre? (such as changing from 2d to fps)

Castlevania for example has a name gamers can recognize, the 2D and 3D games could use improvement and the games definitely borrowed elements from other franchises (Metroid Shadow of the Colossus) Castlevania has rebooted itself many times going from 2d level system to a Metroid open world 2D game of sorts and thus symphony of The Night was born the best 2D (In my opinion) Castlevania. Then Castlevania tried 3d out and well that was met with bitter disappointment in the first incarnations. Then a miracle Castlevania Lords of Shadows came out and hallelujah was that game spot on.

(Cannot tell you how happy I was with this game)

Resident Evil 4 abandoned the style which made the game famous and the change paid off. The game went on to amass even greater critical acclaim, redefining a new genre and go on to great sell numbers. Sure some "purists" may claim this ruined the series, everyone else probably enjoy the changes.

(My favorite game in the series next favorite being 2)

So as you may guess I enjoy the idea of reboots. However there are times where I can admit that a reboot may have not been the most viable option which brings me to Sonic. Our blue hedgehog seems to continually be struggling in the 3D realm while games from the same generation seem to have made the leap just fine such as Mario. I even though Mario reboots almost every time a game is released the fundamental principal stays the same, which is fun. Sonic keeps on trying to incorporate deep stories, new side characters that I guess we are supposed to care for, new gimmicks and Tails (seriously get rid of the little fox for his own good). For me so many changes and reboots just leave to feel that Sonic is just the name Sega is riding on and who could blame them Sonic made Sega. Mario keeps changing and yet keeps the fundamental principal that made gamers fall in love with him "fun". I would say 9,000 reboots are more than enough attempts to revive a character, just keep the fundamentals of what made the character fun and add them to a new creation. That way the character's ideas do not die and can help create new IPs.

(Sonic vs The Black Knight really?)

Spyro and Crash well (Crash of the Titans was pretty good.) could be examples as. However, if I start talking about where these franchises went I might start crying on the inside.

(Who would win in a contest of mediocrity?)

So I am all in favor for reboots and can't wait to see the new Laura Croft, just like I cannot wait to see the new Dante. Reboots give me a chance to experience new IPs with a new twist and get to see my favorite characters with a new perspective. I only hope developers remember what made everyone fall in love with the IP in the first place.

Here is hoping that the new Tomb Raider will be Game of The Year Material until next time Cody Gilley signing out..

(Thanks for the great cover art GI!)

“Video games get kids to eat more veg, fruit”

2010-12-08T09:58:00.001-08:00

“Video games get kids to eat more veg, fruit”

Video games get kids to eat more veg, fruit

Posted: 08 Dec 2010 12:37 AM PST

After being fingered as a key cause of the rising rate of US childhood obesity, video games got a reprieve yesterday as a new study showed they can be used to encourage kids to eat healthier foods.

A research study, conducted in the US, where nearly one in five six- to 19-year-olds is obese, found that children who played certain "serious" video games – not the blockbuster blood-and-guts ones like Black Ops – increased the amount of fruit and vegetables they ate per day by around one serving.

That is a useful step towards fighting childhood flab because "increased fruit and vegetable intakes have been associated with decreased risk of obesity," says the study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Baylor College of Medicine professor Tom Baranowski, who led the study, said the video games Escape from Diab and Nanoswarm, which were designed to change diet and physical activity behaviours to reduce the risk of becoming obese and diabetic, "motivated players to substantially improve diet behaviours.

"Diab and Nanoswarm were designed as epic video game adventures, comparable to commercial quality video games. These games incorporate a broad diversity of behavior change procedures woven in and around engrossing stories," he said.

Playing both games several times "had a meaningful effect on dietary fruit and vegetable intake," the study found.

But while that was good news, the bad news was that the children did not get more exercise, and, even with their increased intake of healthy foods, they still failed to eat the doctor-recommended minimum daily amount of fruit and vegetables. Health professionals recommend that children eat five servings a day of fruit or vegetables and get an hour of moderate to vigorous exercise.

"Serious video games hold promise, but their effectiveness and mechanisms of change among youth need to be more thoroughly investigated," said Dr Baranowski.

The childhood obesity rate in the US has tripled in 30 years, with experts blaming the rise on everything from a poor diet based on processed foods to kids spending too much time in front of the television or playing computer games when they could be outside exercising.

“Video gamers eat more veg”

2010-12-07T09:27:00.001-08:00

“Video gamers eat more veg”

Video gamers eat more veg

Posted: 07 Dec 2010 05:06 AM PST

After being fingered as a key cause of the rising rate of US childhood obesity, video games got a reprieve as a new study showed they can be used to encourage kids to eat healthier foods.

The study, conducted in the United States, where nearly one in five six- to 19-year-olds is obese, found that children who played certain 'serious' video games - not the blockbuster blood-and-guts ones such as

Black Ops - increased the amount of fruit and vegetables they ate per day by around one serving.

That is a useful step towards fighting childhood flab because 'increased fruit and vegetable intakes have been associated with decreased risk of obesity', says the study published in the American Journal of

Preventive Medicine.

the risk of becoming obese and diabetic, 'motivated players to substantially improve diet behaviours'.

'Diab and Nanoswarm were designed as epic video game adventures, comparable to commercial-quality video games. These games incorporate a broad diversity of behaviour-change procedures woven in and

around engrossing stories,' he said.

Playing both games several times 'had a meaningful effect on dietary fruit and vegetable intake', the study found.

amount of fruit and vegetables.

Health professionals recommend that children eat five servings a day of fruit or vegetables and get an hour of moderate to vigorous exercise.

'Serious video games hold promise, but their effectiveness and mechanisms of change among youth need to be more thoroughly investigated,' said Baranowski.

The childhood obesity rate in the United States has tripled in 30 years, with experts blaming the rise on everything from a poor diet based on processed foods to kids spending too much time in front of the

television or playing computer games when they could be outside exercising.

Obese children are more likely than their normal-weight counterparts to grow up to be obese adults, to suffer from a number of obesity-related conditions including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and fatty liver

disease, and to die prematurely of any cause, various studies have found.

“Mother: Video games 'dangerous tool'”

2010-12-06T09:57:00.001-08:00

“Mother: Video games 'dangerous tool'”

Mother: Video games 'dangerous tool'

Posted: 06 Dec 2010 01:37 AM PST

Panorama reporter Raphael Rowe meets a mother who cut off her internet connection at home because she was worried about the amount of time her 19-year-old son was spending playing computer games.

In this case, the game was the popular World of Warcraft. Blizzard Entertainment, the makers of the game, told Panorama in a statement: "Our games are designed to be fun… but like all forms of entertainment… day-to-day life should always take precedence. World of Warcraft contains practical tools that assist players and parents in monitoring playing time."

Panorama: Addicted to Games?, BBC One, Monday, 6 December at 2030 GMT then available in the UK on the BBC iPlayer.

“R18+ video games classification push”

2010-12-05T09:35:00.001-08:00

“R18+ video games classification push”

R18+ video games classification push

Posted: 04 Dec 2010 09:36 PM PST

Video gamers pushing for a R 18+ classification have received a powerful ally in the federal government, which has announced it supports the move.

But a deal could still be stymied if any one of the states and territories decide to oppose it.

The federal government announced on Sunday it will push for the change in order to provide better protection for kids and teenagers.

Australia's most restrictive classification for video games is currently MA 15+ and those classified as R 18+ overseas are often banned.

But the situation has resulted in many violent games sneaking in under the MA 15+ banner.

Home Affairs and Justice Minister Brendan O'Connor said cracking down on classifications will also help parents make the right decisions about what games their children play.

'Children and teenagers shouldn't be exposed to the gratuitous sex, violence and adult themes that are contained in some computer games,' he said in a statement.

'If the new category is introduced it could result in computer games that are currently classified as MA 15+ being reclassified R 18 +, providing a new level of protection.'

The states will be asked to make a decision on Friday's Standing Committee of Attorney-Generals meeting.

South Australia has already voiced its opposition to relaxing the ban on R-rated computer games.

Mr O'Connor said it was convinced the argument for a new adults-only classification was valid.

A recent telephone survey showed 80 per cent of the 2226 people involved said they supported such a move, and the support was strong across the country.

Some 91 per cent said adults knew that a game classified R 18+ was clearly unsuitable for children.

The survey results add to the public consultation the government ran earlier.

The attorney-generals department received some 60,000 submissions during the consultation period, with approximately 98 per cent in support of an adult classification.

“Learning From Video Games”

2010-12-04T09:07:00.001-08:00

“Learning From Video Games”

Learning From Video Games

Posted: 03 Dec 2010 01:16 PM PST

What are video games? The general answer would be of course, entertainment. We play video games for the excitement, for the escape, and for just plain fun. Either you are blowing some zombies head off, trying to solve a mysterious puzzle, or leveling up. You can be sure to count on video games to fulfill your particular gaming appetite. Gaming is unique in this way, allowing you to explore a certain universe and giving you the freedom to interact with your environment definitely gives you a sense of satisfaction.

Recently, I have realized that not only do you get entertainment out of the video game media, but you also receive education and information. You might know what I mean, or possibly some of you are scratching your head going:

"What is this guy talking about?"

Well, here are some points I have thought up that should back up this statement.

World History

History is a big part of games today as they always have been. You have to admit, you have learned a lot about world history while sinking your head into a game. Whether it is learning about the Italian Renaissance in Assassin's Creed or fighting your way through the plethora amount of historic battles in war games - history is there. Sure, video games might twist some stuff but at the end of the day you can find a hint of it.

I can say that history is not my best subject in school so when I can play a video game and experience some of the epic moments of this or another countries past then I feel like I have learned something more no history book or curriculum could ever teach me.

Expanding To Books

If you think about it, video games and books...they don't mix. These two forms of hobbies are entirely two different things but some video game titles have closed that gap. Reading a book or graphic novel/comic is educational and informational. When there is any game title that has a deep, deep universe it is always great to expand and explain upon some of its mysteries including origins or some brief mentioning or glimpse of certain events in that specific game's mythos. The video game titles Mass Effect, Halo, Gears of War, Resistance and even Dead Space have entered the reading realm.

Plus, Assassin's Creed has already published their first comic (of three) titled Assassin's Creed: The Fall. I'm not an avid reader, I probably read 2 to 5 books per year, but I really appreciate a good book. I haven't read any video game based book yet (working on it) but I think that video games that transition into books is a fine thing. So, if you like a video game that has a book drawn from it why not read and get some educational value?

Knowledge Of Firearms

In video games: Your weapon is your life and your friend. From the generic knife to some of the most powerful weapons in gaming history, you will always wield one. There are so many that game developers have embraced such as Treyarch with their Call of Duty installments and DICE with Battlefield. Though, there are other game developers like Bungle (Halo) and Visceral Games (Dead Space) that have created very unique and diverse weapons, including many more. I can say that I used to know nothing about sub machine guns, assault rifles, sniper rifles, pistols, rocket launchers- their class, names, and even the difference between them. But now, if you would show me a picture of a particular weapon, I bet you I could tell you the class and name of that specific weapon. It's really cool because when I watch a movie, TV show, or play a game, from the sound and look, I can at least have an idea of what weapon that person is using.

Also, in a weapon menu's you usually get to inspect the stats portraying the damage, accuracy, and rate of fire as my examples point out. Whether or not these stats are accurate compared to the actual weapon, I don't know. The same goes for the varied types of vehicles, explosives and equipment.

I believe that video games have definitely helped my understanding of weapons and their impact in battle.

Conclusion

From world history, to making me want to read books, and informing me about all of the different weapons of our past and present time; these are three lessons that I have learned from video games. And there are probably tons more that I have yet to notice. This blog was to not only tell what I have learned but it was made for you, the GIO community to reveal what you have learned from the video game media that doesn't only involve entertainment. What have you learned from video games? Have video games opened your eyes to our world history? Has it made you want to read video game based books? Or has video games taught you something entirely different? Share your thoughts.

Thanks for reading this post and I hope you've enjoyed it.

“Online Video, Games & News Take on Mobile, Personal Clouds”

2010-12-03T09:49:00.001-08:00

“Online Video, Games & News Take on Mobile, Personal Clouds”

Online Video, Games & News Take on Mobile, Personal Clouds

Posted: 03 Dec 2010 07:15 AM PST

The app world is really kicking into high gear, with several industries seeing growth opportunities through the development and distribution of mobile applications. There are a few areas in particular that have made gains in the past year, across all major mobile platforms, but especially on Apple iOS and Android. Entertainment and gaming are two big areas of interest in the mobile app world, with online video straddling a number of mobile app categories, driving its growth as well.

We've seen how some of these trends are shaping up from the Millennial Media S.M.A.R.T. report series, ranking ads in the mobile app and OS markets. As expected, Apple leads with a 25% market share, improving continuously over the last 13 months since its launch. Closely following is RIM's BlackBerry Curve, which represents a significant part of the mobile market. The laurels for the third position goes to Motorola, which previously was ranked the second, and has seen wild success from manufacturing Android devices. The shift from Droids to Android sustained and gave a new bounce to Motorola's smart handsets, and all of the above have pushed progress through for app distribution.

The S.M.A.R.T. report also mentions the increasing demand for smartphones, reaching a 60% level of the overall market of telephones. This growth is highly connected apps development in the categories of social networking, online video and gaming. The trend is growing hand-in-hand with the spread of connected devices.

Recently, a new iPad app, for sharing HD videos has been released, demonstrating the impact of online videos. Libox's free iPad app provides HD media-sharing between Apple devices, in an easy and safe way. Libox supports different type of media files, from music and photos, to video. Using a Libox account ensures users to intelligently sync and stream their media files at the highest quality level. Designed especially for HD media, the iPad's 9.7 inch resolution is perfectly suitable, and pushes several cloud developments on the personal consumer front.

Erez Pilosof, Libox founder and CEO, stressed the app's aim on the smartohones market, saying, "With vastly simplified sharing and the new iPad app, LIBOX is taking the concept of 'media anywhere' to the next level. We offer a free, unlimited service, across multiple platforms to let users enjoy and easily share their full HD media collection, whenever and wherever they want."

In fact, the iPad has received a lot of attention from apps developers lately. The publishing industry is taking advantage of the iPad for digital distribution of printed content, as Flipboard has re-launched its application, enabling users to customize the content and the layout of their favorite magazine. Being considered a "magazine metaphor," Flipboard is following the market's drive for online reading and entertainment and moreover, the social media's influence over the spread of information within virtual environments.

Tablets in particular are expected to drive the API developer economy, sprouting service businesses and creating direct channels to consumers. According to Gartner, Cloud Services individually will generate almost $150 billion in coming years, primarily because they can be used in almost any application or platform on internet and are renowned for accessibility and increasing security traits.

Among media sharing, entertainment is gaining more credit from the worldwide users. This sector is seeing rising growth rates on Android, as the platform becomes more stable and condusive to game development and distribution. After huge success on Apple iOS, the popular game Pocket God has arrived on the Android Market this week, making another milestone for Google's mobile OS.

“Christmas Shopping Guide 2010: Top 10 Video Games of the Holiday Season”

2010-12-02T09:37:00.001-08:00

“Christmas Shopping Guide 2010: Top 10 Video Games of the Holiday Season”

Christmas Shopping Guide 2010: Top 10 Video Games of the Holiday Season

Posted: 02 Dec 2010 09:32 AM PST

Do you have a child that loves video games but you aren't sure what video game to get them? Sure, you could just ask them what video game they want but maybe you want to surprise them by buying a game they were not

expecting for Christmas. Consider this a video game holiday shopping guide. This guide will hopefully help you decide what video game is best for your child this Christmas.

Call of Duty: Black Ops
Systems: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PC
Call of Duty: Black Ops is the top FPS game available this Christmas season. In layman's terms FPS stands for first person shooter. If the type of video game your child plays the most consists of running around and shooting opponents, usually in a war setting, then Black Ops is probably the video game at the top of their list.

Donkey Kong Country Returns
Systems: Wii
Donkey Kong Country Returns will appeal to Nintendo fans and casual gamers. Donkey Kong Country will also be suitable for younger video games because it will be clean and probably not very difficult. Donkey Kong Country also features an iconic video game character, Donkey Kong, and his kid-friendly sidekick Diddy Kong.

Epic Mickey
Systems: Wii
Epic Mickey is about everybody's favorite cartoon mouse, Mickey. Epic Mickey might sound like a kid's game but is directed at adults just as much as children. Unless you think the video gamer in your household is a "hater" or is "too cool" for Disney products then Epic Mickey would be a good choice for any Wii owner.

Fable III
Systems: Xbox 360
Obviously Fable is the third part of a series so fans of the first two will probably also enjoy the third installment. Fable III is an action role-playing game, meaning it is closer to games like Diablo, Mass Effect and Fallout and not so much like Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest. Even if the gamer in your household prefers the Final Fantasy style role-playing game then Fable III is probably still a safe bet for Xbox 360 owners this Christmas.

“Violent video theory inconclusive”

2010-12-01T09:29:00.001-08:00

“Violent video theory inconclusive”

Violent video theory inconclusive

Posted: 01 Dec 2010 04:05 AM PST

A study shows a link between video games and violence is inconclusive. Source: HWT Image Library

A REVIEW of research into links between violent video games and aggression has been inconclusive.

Just days before talks about creating an R18+ classification for video games, Home Affairs and Justice Minister Brendan O'Connor revealed there was no strong evidence to link them to aggression.

But he did flag concerns over some people's access to violent games.

"Some people in the community may be more vulnerable than others to experiencing higher levels of aggression after playing violent video games, because of their personality, experiences or some other factor," he said.

He also suggested some MA15+ games would be reclassified if an R18+ category were created.

The standing committee of Attorneys-General will meet to discuss the possibility of creating an R18+ classification for video games on December 10.

There was some consensus in the collective research that people with psychotic personality traits might be more affected by violent video games than others.

A US study of 41 school shooters showed five had an interest in violent video games and 25 had some interest in any violent media.

The review found there was little evidence violent video games had a greater impact than other portrayed violence.

Nearly 60,000 submissions were received on the issue by the end of February, with 98 per cent indicating support for an R classification.

“Study: Video Games a Form of Pain Relief - News”

2010-11-30T09:21:00.001-08:00

“Study: Video Games a Form of Pain Relief - News”

Study: Video Games a Form of Pain Relief - News

Posted: 30 Nov 2010 09:07 AM PST

If meeting the family this Christmas is going to be a particularly painful experience for you, then you might want to turn to video games to take the edge off. According to an American doctor and a recent study, playing games actually alleviates real physical pain, too.

Dr. Charles Friedman of Pain Relief Centers, said that motion-controlled gaming such as Nintendo's Wii and Microsoft's Kinect allow sufferers to become distracted enough to relieve some of their pain. "Acute pain is shown to be noticeably reduced in children and adult sufferers once engaged in video game activity," he said.

Findings from a study conducted by the American Pain Society - a group of doctors and scientists that work to examine the causes and reductions of pain-related suffering - have supported Friedman's claims. It shows that focusing on video games allows the user to temporarily forget about any pain.

But the APS has stressed that games do not simply distract users - there's a more complicated mechanism at work that allows people to deal with serious pain and procedures such as burn wounds or chemotherapy. For the former case, playing games reportedly reduced patient's pain from 30 to 50 per cent.

So the next time you're trying to get your gran to play Wii Sports with you and she complains of a bad back, you can use this as a reason to get her off the sofa.

“Activists protest Sacramento library's war-themed video games”

2010-11-28T09:24:00.001-08:00

“Activists protest Sacramento library's war-themed video games”

Activists protest Sacramento library's war-themed video games

Posted: 27 Nov 2010 10:29 PM PST

About 20 people, some carrying signs that read "War is not a game," gathered outside the Sacramento Public Library's main branch Saturday to criticize the library for making war-themed video games available to the public.

The protest coincided with a session at the downtown branch in which anybody 17 and older could walk in and play the controversial and highly popular war-themed video game "Call of Duty: Black Ops."

Set during the Cold War, the first-person shooter game features intense gunbattles, torture scenes and an assassination attempt.

Members of the local chapter of Veterans for Peace and other activists picketed outside at the library's front steps, handing out fliers that urged, "End War Games at the Public Library!"

"They're trying to bring young people into the library, and that's a valid goal," said John Reiger, president of the chapter. "But to use violent video games to draw the young people is just wrong."

At issue for the Veterans for Peace is that although the library does not offer games that depict intense civilian violence, such as "Grand Theft Auto," it does offer violent war games, Reiger said.

The library is hosting a "Black Ops" tournament on Dec. 11. It has already held tournaments of Super Mario Bros. and Nintendo Wii sports this year, and had an event that included another game in the "Call of Duty" series.

The goal of the video game tournaments is to show that the library "has something for everyone," said library director Rivkah Sass.

War games like "Black Ops" are very popular, and war itself is "part of our reality," Sass said.

"We have something that's going to delight and offend everybody that comes into the Sacramento Public Library," she said. "If we don't, we're not doing a good job as a public library."

At the entrance to the "Black Ops" room Saturday, library officials set up a table with books that they said had been scrutinized for violent content. Among them: Ralph Ellison's "Invisible Man," "Harry Potter" and the Bible.

James Johnson, 20, of Sacramento was one of the first to grab a controller and start playing.

"Back in the day, I'm sure there were people protesting violence in books, then in movies," Johnson said. "Honestly, this is not anything wrong."

Reiger said Veterans for Peace will continue to protest the upcoming tournament.

"Frankly, a lot of people are incensed about this," he said.

Call The Bee's Matt Kawahara, (916) 321-1015.

What You Should Know About Comments on Sacbee.com

Sacbee.com is happy to provide a forum for reader interaction, discussion, feedback and reaction to our stories. However, we reserve the right to delete inappropriate comments or ban users who can't play nice. (See our full terms of service here.)

Here are some rules of the road:

• Keep your comments civil. Don't insult one another or the subjects of our articles. If you think a comment violates our guidelines click the "report abuse" button to notify the moderators. Responding to the comment will only encourage bad behavior.

• Don't use profanities, vulgarities or hate speech. This is a general interest news site. Sometimes, there are children present. Don't say anything in a way you wouldn't want your own child to hear.

• Do not attack other users; focus your comments on issues, not individuals.

• Stay on topic. Only post comments relevant to the article at hand. If you want to discuss an issue with a specific user, click on his profile name and send him a direct message.

• Do not copy and paste outside material into the comment box.

• Don't repeat the same comment over and over. We heard you the first time.

• Do not use the commenting system for advertising. That's spam and it isn't allowed.

• Don't use all capital letters. That's akin to yelling and not appreciated by the audience.

You should also know that The Sacramento Bee does not screen comments before they are posted. You are more likely to see inappropriate comments before our staff does, so we ask that you click the "report abuse" button to submit those comments for moderator review. You also may notify us via email at feedback@sacbee.com. Note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us the profile name of the user who made the comment. Remember, comment moderation is subjective. You may find some material objectionable that we won't and vice versa.

If you submit a comment, the user name of your account will appear along with it. Users cannot remove their own comments once they have submitted them, but you may ask our staff to retract one of your comments by sending an email to feedback@sacbee.com. Again, make sure you note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us your profile name.

If you choose to use our "reply to comment" feature, you should note that the length of the quoted comment will count against the size limits for your comment.

“As Video Games Lose Buttons, They Add Realism and Fun”

2010-11-27T09:42:00.001-08:00

“As Video Games Lose Buttons, They Add Realism and Fun”

As Video Games Lose Buttons, They Add Realism and Fun

Posted: 26 Nov 2010 09:22 AM PST

[fivefilters.org: unable to retrieve full-text content]

As video games swap controllers for players' bodies, the experience edges closer to art.

“As Video Games Lose Buttons, They Add Realism and Fun”

2010-11-26T09:40:00.001-08:00

“As Video Games Lose Buttons, They Add Realism and Fun”

As Video Games Lose Buttons, They Add Realism and Fun

Posted: 26 Nov 2010 09:00 AM PST

[fivefilters.org: unable to retrieve full-text content]

As video games swap controllers for players' bodies, the experience edges closer to art.

Video Games

“2010 Sales Of Video Games Fell Flat”

“Turn video games into more than child's play”

“Idle Ramblings”

I've never been able to outgrow video games

By Ron Giofu/The Amherstburg Echo

Posted 1 hour ago

“The Toylet: Sega launches video games controlled by men's URINE in Tokyo”

Explore more:

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

“Video Games Live”

“Video Games Live”

“Changes in video games prompt optimism for 2011”

“Video games go off quicker than tomatoes”

“Health Notes: Active video games pave way to health”

“3D video games could be harmful to young children”

“For future newsmakers, look to electric vehicles, video games, and compost”

“Video games year-in-preview”

“Video games preview for 2011: Shifting into top Gear”

“Man 'stole video games' from boy's coffin”

“My Brain on Video Games”

“Best Video Games of 2010”

1 Comment | Add

Rate & Share:

Related Links:

Info:

January

February

March

April

May

July

August

September

October

November

December

Bonus Round: Downloads!

“JOURNALISM NEXT: Video games to go on trial”

“2010 | Video games: Top titles don't require flailing”

“Crime: Computer, video games stolen”

“The Top 10 Video Games of 2010”

“Palo Alto company boots up a game-changer”

“Popular Music in Video Games”

“Violent Video Games Don't Predict Aggressive Behavior”

Latest Mental Health News

“Game On: Video Games Help Test Human Behavior”

“Top video games jump off retail store shelves”

“Video games: App provides content details to explain industry ratings”

“Top 5 video games for children”

“Ron Artest says JaVale McGee is playing too many video games”

“App lets you snap photos to see video game ratings”

“Video Games and Realism: What Parents Should Know This Holiday Season”

“Video games, DVDs and iPads are hot gift ideas”

“Video Games And Realism, What Parents Should Know This Holiday Season”

“Video games take over marriage”

“Reboots In Video Games”

“Video games get kids to eat more veg, fruit”

“Video gamers eat more veg”

“Mother: Video games 'dangerous tool'”

“R18+ video games classification push”

“Learning From Video Games”

“Online Video, Games & News Take on Mobile, Personal Clouds”

“Christmas Shopping Guide 2010: Top 10 Video Games of the Holiday Season”

“Violent video theory inconclusive”

“Study: Video Games a Form of Pain Relief - News”

“Activists protest Sacramento library's war-themed video games”

“As Video Games Lose Buttons, They Add Realism and Fun”

“As Video Games Lose Buttons, They Add Realism and Fun”