Events, Gamer Culture, Nintendo Wii
Any charitable event is a good thing. But a charitable event that raises over $10,000 is a great thing – especially if it’s run by three young guys from their couch.
Early last month, Steve Jobs and the rest of team Apple announced the release of the iPhone 2.0 software beta. This update enables Apple to fully leverage the SDK that it released earlier this year, which enables third-party developers to more easily create applications for the iPhone, by creating the “App Store.”
The App Store “lets users browse, search, purchase and wirelessly download third party applications directly onto their iPhone or iPod touch.” Importantly, Apple gives 70% of software sales revenues to developers and even lets development parties give their applications away for free.
So, why should this matter to Nintendo? Well, game publishers are already hailing the fact that this development may make the iPhone the handheld gaming platform of choice.
According to John Riccitiello, the CEO of Electronic Arts, “The animation technology in the iPhone OS enables us to build awesome games… I think iPhone consumers are going to be blown away by the games we create for this platform.”
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With the WiiSpray Can, aspiring vandals can practice their craft. The WiiSpray enables Wii owners to “paint” graffiti images on top of simple canvasses on their TV. It works the same way that most other Wii game do, just point and shoot – or in this case, spray paint. The WiiSpray Can looks crude but considering its stage of development, it incorporates some novel engineering. After you paint your masterpieces, or chicken scratch, you can upload it to a website for the world to see. With a whole lot of aesthetic tweaking of the WiiSpray “Can,” this could be a popular game one day.
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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.
