Esports gaming circle SK-Gaming has been known for firsts for quite some time now. Originally a Quakeclan, SK-Gaming has rostered champions in many games, including WoW, Warcraft III, and their most notable area of success; Counter-Strike. Recently, they have conquered what may be the greatest obstacle ever erected in the WoW universe: Kil’ Jaeden. This monstrous boss fight is legendary amongst WoW players; consisting of three grueling phases wherein the fight can end at any moment due to a single player’s incompetence. Apparently, this sort of thing doesn’t bother the guys and girls over at SK. The record is duly noted in the history of WoW: there for us to ogle, but never again chase.
If you think that there aren’t enough places to buy video games, systems and accessories, then be thankful that Blockbuster has unveiled a new business branch:retail video game sales. In a move to compete with game store giants GameStop and Game Crazy, Blockbuster corporate-owned stores will begin selling games, hardware and accessories. Available systems include Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS, but one notable missing system is Sony PSP.
Today’s video is an advertisement by Sony that supposedly never made it into circulation. I have no idea whether or not this was a real ad or if it was really banned. But if it was, props to Sony for having the balls to say what we were all thinking.
When Force Dynamics reached into their magic hat, they pulled out a rabbit this time, folks. By reusing the 301, a previous generation of their driving simulator, FD found a cheap way to refresh interest in a classic Nintendo franchise. When I first read the news I said to myself: “Self, who are these guys kidding?” But after watching for three minutes and nineteen seconds, I was ten years old again. I was navigating a hopelessly elaborate labyrinth of peculiar traps, dynamic wheels, and pure imagination reminiscent of Rube Goldberg’s inventive genius.
Japanese juggernaut Square Enix, known for their blockbuster Dragon Warrior series, and other less popular offerings (*cough* Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, Chrono Trigger) says it’s time for a change. Square Enix President Yoichi Wada told the Reuters Global Technology, Media and Telecoms Summit last weekthat his company is facing increased competition from non-Japanese game makers, and that *gasp* North America is now a viable market.
Soviets have long been portrayed as threatening, dangerous menaces to freedom: Ivan Drago (Rocky IV), General Orlov (Octopussy), and now Cate Blanchett as Irina Spalko (Indiana Jones). But here’s the side you don’t often see: the Red’s love of dance. And hot damn, can those Ruskies cut some rug!
The President of South Korea!
I wonder if there’s an achievement for that…
While custom systems are not unheard of, few can say they own one personally commissioned by Microsoft’s top guy. In fact, only one hundred people will get to say such a thing, with South Korea’s President Lee Myung-bak being the first.
Have you ever wondered what it’d be like to feel a slight gust of wind wisp across your face in tune to the whistling gales gently rolling over the plains of some polygonal city? Well, now you can! The Phillips AmBx not only offers that, but some slight mood lighting focused just outside of your frame of vision for when you enter a cave or some such nonsense. All for a mere $299 to $399!
I don’t know what’s more impressive: his speed, his girth, or how hilarious this video is. Any which way, this guy just took the top spot in my list of heroes over 400 pounds. Sorry Marlon Brando.
I was delighted to be given the opportunity to attend and cover the Games and Mobile Forum / LA Games Conference for GotGame. The conference was at the Hotel Roosevelt on Hollywood Boulevard, directly opposite Graumann’s Chinese theater, on the Walk of Fame. A glittering setting for a games gathering!
This was a conference for industry insiders: game company executives talking to each other and to representatives from related business, focusing on “The Future of Connected Entertainment.” To a gamer, hearing about the industry from this point of view was an eye-opening experience.
For some time now, most of us have had access to the Wiimote. Before this era of gaming, however, there were plenty of attempts at unique gamer interaction, including in the forms of the Power Glove, Light Guns, and even Sony’s Eyetoy (which now seems to have gone the way of the dinosaurs). Now, in an intriguing bid for attention, SusiGames has demoed the Susisphere: a remote-linked sphere that so far isn’t doing much more than letting vaguely interested show floor goers run around a convex dome, while blasting rotating spaceships with a mod-linked Wiimote.
Ubisoft, one of the world’s most prolific video game publishers, announced last month that it has acquired Gameloft’s development studio in Pune, India. The studio, established at the end of 2006, currently has a team of 120 developers and testers, with a goal of 200 within 12 months and 500 “in the coming years.” They will be concentrating on porting Ubi’s titles to handhelds and strengthening their testing teams.
That’s right. On top of being a gaming console, a Blu-ray DVD and media player and, in the future, an online virtual environment, Sony’s Playstation 3 can also be converted to a fully functional PC.
Who says that you can’t mix work with play? Probably your parents, when you’ve got a big assignment due. However, next time they say: “Quit that game and do your homework” simply respond, “I am taking a stress-reducing and mood-improving study break,” because according to a recent PopCap study, playing games may be just that.
Spread the Word!