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The Xbox 360 is back in black
March 29, 2007 After more rumours (and denials) than you can shake a stick at, Microsoft have officially announced the new Xbox 360 Elite, and somehow managed to leave us with more questions than answers. What we can safely tell you is that it's got an HDMI port, comes with a 120GB HDD...and it's black. Read More
Integrated Marketing Communications and Consumer Control become major marketing issues
March 28, 2007 Once upon a time, not long ago, media was dominated by newspapers, television and radio. Advertising agencies made one advert and ran it many times. Life was easy, lunches were long and cheques were fat, but the proliferation of new media and the growing complexity of the media landscape is quickly becoming the biggest challenge faced by marketers. A survey conducted by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) polled over 100 senior marketers to select from a comprehensive list of subjects to rank their top three issues that directly impact their marketing decisions and plans. Integrated marketing communications jumped from the fourth spot in 2006 to the top of the list this year. Read More
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 Review (Xbox 360)
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March 28, 2007 If you have ever doubted just how much advantage the Dominator system equates to on the battlefield, here's your opportunity to sample it first hand. Was the development of the real Dominator and the interface to Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 linked? We don't know but when our games editor saw the real system demonstrated, he visibly paled. Ubisoft has already given gamers in Australia 10,000 good reasons (AUD$10,000) to play this game in an upcoming Xbox Live tournament. This no doubt left the majority of our readers, who can't play online games competitively and don't live in Australia, entirely unconvinced. Here's our games editor with a full review. Read More
New research substantiates Video Games as key advertising vehicle
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March 23, 2007 New media research and measurement firm Interpret’s Gameasure report is likely to make a few marketing managers think about the most effective way to spend their precious budget. The report reinforces the significance of video games as a medium for marketers seeking to reach and influence key demographic groups, particularly young males. The report measures actual reach, frequency and demographic makeup of over 80 video game titles and shows that games reach well beyond reported retail sales figures. Read More
Video Game Penetration grows and grows
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March 19, 2007 Once regarded as frivolous and inconsequential, the game console is fast gaining mainstream media clout and the third generation of consoles has further expanded its penetration into homes with 150 million US citizens now having access to at least one console - more than half (52.4%) of the total U.S. television population. As a medium it is particularly strong among key demographic groups with more than two-thirds (67.7%) of all men 18-34 and 80 percent of men 12-17 years of age. The number of video game consoles in U.S. television households has expanded by 18.5% in just two years, according to a new report. Specific console penetration details have not yet been released.
Australian Xbox Live tournament offers $10,000 first prize
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March 5, 2007 - Ubisoft-published game Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter (GRAW) was released last March, and went on to sell 1.4 million copies in its first seven weeks. Sales figures of this caliber generally guarantee sequels, and sure enough, this Thursday (March 8th, 2007) sees the release of GRAW 2. You've probably already played the multiplayer demo released on the Xbox Live Marketplace in February, but there's no question those who haven't will have a newfound interest in the game now there's a chance to win AU$10,000 playing it online. Read More
Piano Wizard integrates the video game and piano lesson
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March 3, 2007 - Parents rejoice! Finally a video game that you can give to your kids with no immediate hesitation or eventual regrets. The results of long hours spent in front of the game aren't just honed reflexes and hand-to-eye coordination, but the gift of fluency in the most beautiful and timeless language of all...music. Read More
Nyko Wii Charging Station simultaneously recharges two Wii remotes
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March 3, 2007 - In this day and age, disposable batteries are environmentally irresponsible, yet remain a desirable retail item due to convenience and price point - and those of our readers with Wii's or Xbox 360's will know how many AA's regular use of these consoles can chew through. This makes us a little surprised that Nintendo left this one up to the third-parties, but equally glad Nyko have stepped up to the plate with their Wii Charging Station. Read More
Is Sony adding rumble to the SIXAXIS?
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March 2, 2007 - Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and Immersion have agreed to conclude litigation at the U.S Court of Appeals, and have entered into a new agreement to explore the inclusion of Immersion's technology (read: rumble) in PlayStation products. This is in stark contrast to Phil Harrison's recent comments regarding rumble as a "last-generation feature", which were widely criticised as a desperate attempt to hide the fact that the lack of rumble in the SIXAXIS was a design decision based more on legal proceedings with Immersion, than last/current-generation feature sets. Read More
Australia's Best Games of 2006 - Interactive Entertainment Awards
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February 26, 2007 Last Friday, more than 350 industry types hit Doltone House in Sydney, Australia for the Interactive Entertainment Awards. Twenty awards were handed out - twelve industry voted, and eight based on GfK sales data from January 1 to December 31, 2006. Read on for the unsurprising results of the industry voted awards, and the surprising winners (and some truly bizarre categorisations) of the best sellers. Read More
Crackdown (Xbox 360) Review
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February 23, 2007 - If you haven't heard about this game yet, you must be living under a virtual rock. We covered the release of the demo last month, but to sum things up, you're a cop with constantly evolving superhuman abilities, cleaning up crime in a city overrun by it. Today sees the game released on shelves worldwide, and our Games Editor has had a few days head-start to determine whether the cool premise was backed up by an equally cool game. Here's the scoop. Read More
New Wii channel - Everybody Votes
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February 14, 2007 - Nintendo launches a new channel for the Wii Menu today, the Everybody Votes Channel, which allows up to six players per console to vote in regional and worldwide polls...a tired premise with an interesting touch - the ability to predict the results of the polls, and track your accurate predictions in a "How Tuned In Are You?" section. Read More
Register for Playstation Network in Europe, get Casino Royale on Blu-ray
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February 13, 2007 - Even with the delayed launches of the Playstation 3 in PAL territories, Sony is still light on solid launch titles, with Resistance: Fall of Man and Motorstorm being the only exclusives receiving substantial acclaim from reviewers. To shift the focus back to their current strengths, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe have announced that the first 500,000 PS3 owners to register with Sony's free online service "PLAYSTATION Network" will receive a copy of the latest James Bond blockbuster "Casino Royale" on Blu-ray. Read More
Ubisoft plans expansion - 1,000 new jobs by 2013
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February 12, 2007 Ubisoft is currently one of the world's largest video game publishers, home to 1,600 employees at its headquarters in Quebec, and a number of hit franchises including Rayman, Prince of Persia and Tom Clancy. Today the company announced a major expansion of its operations in Quebec - expanding its current video game studios, and creating a CGI studio, with 1,000 hires planned by 2013. The CGI studio will create short films based on Ubisoft games, with the first planned film based on the massively hyped Assassin's Creed. Read More
Perfect score in Wii Sports: Bowling
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February 12, 2007 No doubt many of our readers lucky enough to own a Nintendo Wii have witnessed a few killer streaks on Wii Sports: Bowling, however none will have topped this. If you want to blow away the competition next time your friends are over, watch this video of a gamer known only as el moco take down a perfect 890 pins on the Power Throws training game, and then read his incredibly detailed post on the method he used to get there.
Future Combat System Live-Fire testing begins
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Feb 6, 2007 While we’re not big fans of the “if it aint broke, don’t fix it” edict (break it – there’s always a better way), there’s also no point in reinventing the wheel just so a system can be different - if you can focus on the key parts and use off-the-shelf parts for the other bits, then so be it. Given that the XBOX 360 controller is extremely hardy, we’re not surprised to see it being trailed by the military as part of the Army’s Future Combat System - after all, it's a highly evolved bit of kit ergonomically-designed for eight-hour-a-day usage. The Army completed the first live-fire exercise, Experiment 1.1, involving Future Combat Systems technologies and equipment at the Oro Grande Range at Fort Bliss, Texas, last week. The exercise is the first step in accelerating the delivery of key FCS capabilities to current-force Soldiers, and part of the most comprehensive Army modernization effort in more than half a century. The iRobot derivative RedOwl which the soldier is using is an ongoing rapid development program led by The Photonics Center at Boston University with iRobot, Insight Technology, and BioMimetic Systems. The RedOwl is a remote, deployable sensor suite designed to provide early warning information, gunshot detection, intelligence, surveillance and targeting capabilities to military forces and government agencies. The RedOwl robot also employs a suite of advanced optics including a thermal camera, 300X zoom daylight/infrared camera, infrared laser illuminators, a rangefinder, high intensity white driving light, and voice communication microphones and speakers, all in a package that weighs less than five pounds.
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition - multiplayer update, new cheat codes
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February 6, 2007 Capcom have announced the release of a patch for Lost Planet: Extreme Condition, currently scheduled for March 9th. The patch addresses numerous bugs in the multiplayer game, and throws in some essential new functionality that will alleviate the problems gamers are having finding servers for Ranked matches that aren't across the other side of the world. To ease the pain of the fairly lengthy wait, Capcom have released three new cheat codes which will breathe new life into the title for people who are still stuck early in the game, and haven't seen the more impressive (and fun) later missions as a result. Read on for the full details, and cheats. Read More
Nintendo Australia adds four games to Wii Virtual Console line-up
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Nintendo Australia today added four more titles to the Wii Virtual Console service, comprising of Sega Mega Drive games Comix Zone, Bonanza Bros. and Gain Ground, and the NES game Gradius. This brings the total number of games available to 36 - read on for the entire list, complete with recommendations from our Games Editor. Read More
Crackdown demo about to hit Xbox Live Marketplace
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January 23, 2007 [UPDATE: Read our full length review of the retail version] Crackdown is the latest brainchild of Dave Jones, whose prior masterpieces include smash hits such as Lemmings and Grand Theft Auto. Realtime Worlds have developed the title exclusively for Microsoft Game Studios and the Xbox 360, and a demo offering both single and multiplayer modes is set to hit the Xbox Live Marketplace later today. Read More
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (Xbox 360) Review
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January 24, 2007 After you've heard about Lost Planet selling one million copies since its initial release less than a month ago (only a week if you're outside Japan), you're probably wondering if this figure is more to do with the lack of any Christmas blockbusters for the Xbox 360, or because it's a great game in its own right. Our Games Editor has the lowdown after spending a bit too much quality time with the game. Read More
Trivial Pursuit Intellectual Property dispute drawing to a close
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January 6, 2007 Humans have been playing board games for at least 8000 years, with the most popular board game in history being Monopoly. In 1981, Trivial Pursuit burst onto the scene, establishing a new genre of board game and with more than 90 million games sold in 33 countries and 19 languages, three television shows spawned (in the United States, United Kingdom and Germany), and an electronic version now available on mobile phones from most major mobile carriers in the U.S., the success of the game and its inventors is the stuff of legend, business school case studies and … law suits. A case currently before the courts in Nova Scotia (Canada) is going down to the wire to decide the rightful inventor of the wildly popular board game. The dispute dates back 12 years and centres around the claims of Cape Breton resident David Wall who says Chris Haney (one of the two acknowledged inventors of the game along with Scott Abbott) picked him up hitchhiking in 1979 and during the ride he described his concept for the game to Haney who went on to collect the biggest royalty cheque in board game history. The local newspaper, the Cape Breton Post, has all the details. If there’s a moral in the story for our audience of people who love clever ideas, it’s that good ideas (i.e. valuable Intellectual Porperty) should not be disclosed to complete strangers. Read More
The AddMirror - highly effective ambient media
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December 19, 2006 The world of ambient media seems to grow more crowded by the day, as advertisers seek an opportunity to cut through the clutter of the myriad adverts which have dulled our awareness to them. In terms of attention, there are few more effective mediums than the mirror where everyone becomes the centre of their own attention. So we’re pleased to report that the most effective medium in history now takes advertising. Addirect was founded in 2003 with the idea of bringing together advertising and technical innovation to create highly-targeted ambient media and they have certainly achieved that with the AddMirror. Working exactly like a regular mirror, The AddMirror reveals up to six A4-sized “hidden” advertisements using pre-set lighting sequences. The rationale behind The AddMirror is that it’s a dynamic medium for advertisers that compels audiences to engage with their creative work. Simply put, people looking in washroom mirrors cannot fail to see their adverts. Moreover, AddMirrors are strategically located in sites that guarantee high visitor traffic. Read More
Call of Duty 3 (Nintendo Wii) Review
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December 14, 2006 The shooting scenes in Rayman: Raving Rabbids proved that on-the-rails shooters work very well on the Wii, which as well as whetting our appetites for a port of Virtua Cop or Time Crisis, led us to have fairly high expectations of how a first-person shooter (FPS) would fare using the Wii Remote. Call of Duty 3 is the first Wii FPS we've had our hands on - and it's a bittersweet experience. Read More
Game of the Year - Gears of War (Xbox 360)
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December 14, 2006 An epic story line, polished controls, amazing graphics and a furious (and incredibly addictive) multiplayer game make Gears of War the game of the year. Our games editor hasn't been very productive for the last week - here's his fairly detailed excuse. Read More
Avatar technology comes to mobile phones
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December 12, 2006 8, 2006: The news of the coming of the first avatar-based mobile game from CBS Interactive and Hong Kong-based Artificial Life (a regular subject of our stories such as the Virtual Girlfriend V1.0 and V2.0, and the development of the first Massive Multi Player 3G Game) is exciting indeed. CBS Interactive will launch the first avatar-based mobile game tied to a major TV show for The CW's America's Next Top Model. The mobile game which enables avatars (virtual characters ) to live on user's cell phones is the first of many mainstream uses for Avatars which many futurists feel will ultimately represent the real time embodiment of people in cyberspace and lead to meaningful on-line community – for people of any common pursuit, regardless of whether it’s business or personal. These are the first fledgling steps of a future three dimensional superstar – YOU in zeroes and ones, and the first inhabitants of cyberspace. Avatars are already widely used in Internet chat rooms, allowing people to be represented by an image, that masks their actual character, behaviour and even gender. Read More
Internet Video Revenues to exceed US$7 Billion in 2010: Advertising revenues spur initial market; content services to show significant growth beginnin
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December 8, 2006 The Internet Juggernaut is now in full stride. What began just a dozen years ago as a fledgling commercial medium is now well into its second billion users – first it was text, then text and pictures then it fueled the digital music revolution and now it is getting set to do the same for video. Annual U.S. revenues from Internet video services – spanning user-generated content to television shows and movies – will exceed US$7 billion by 2010, according to Parks Associates’ Internet Video: Direct-to-Consumer Services. The report also notes this growth will accompany an ongoing shift toward greater parity between the revenue sources. In 2007, approximately 85% of revenue will be from advertisements attached to user-generated content and television and news streams. By 2010, services for renting and downloading TV shows and movies will account for nearly 40% of total revenues. Read More
Splinter Cell: Double Agent playable demo on Xbox Live
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December 6, 2006 Fetching a score of 86 at MetaCritic is no mean feat - only two titles on the 360 have managed any better, putting Splinter Cell: Double Agent on the must have list this Christmas. Those of you who remain unconvinced by 47 positive reviews can now test it out for yourself by downloading the single player demo from Xbox Live Marketplace. Read More
Research shows the message in advertising is irrelevant
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December 5, 2006 Now here’s a story that is certain to fuel debate – new research undertaken by the University of Bath’s School of Management shows that creativity and emotion are what makes advertising successful, not the message it is trying to get over. University of Bath’s Dr Robert Heath (pictured) found that advertisements with high levels of emotional content enhanced how people felt about brands, even when there was no real message. However, advertisements which were low on emotional content had no effect on how favourable the public were towards brands, even if the ad was high in news and information. Read More
The next-generation console round-up
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November 28, 2006 The next generation of gaming is either here, or just around the corner depending on your geographical location. The three heavyweight contenders are Microsoft XBOX 360, Sony PS3 and Nintendo Wii - each with their own varying idea of what gamers want for their dough...and with the high price of entry, and launch-period supply issues, we can't blame you if you haven't chosen a side yet. If you're looking at an extravagant gift for yourself, junior, or the whole family this Christmas, our games expert has assembled a two-minute guide to help you make an informed decision. Read More
The Future of TV – midday primetime, 5 second ads, shorter more concise everything, snackable content, interactive plots, and personalised content
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November 11, 2006 Personalization and interactivity will be the key drivers of mobile TV according to a new report commissioned by Nokia and conducted by Dr Shani Orgad from the London School of Economics. The report, titled 'This Box Was Made For Walking', examines the future impact of mobile TV on the broadcasting and advertising industries. The report predicts that the introduction and adoption of mobile TV will ultimately give way to a more personal and private TV experience than that of traditional broadcast TV, with big implications for users, content providers and advertisers. Users will be able to receive content anytime, anywhere, choose what is most relevant to them, and even create and upload their own television content, while content providers and advertisers will be able to tailor their offerings more specifically to the user. Full report can be downloaded here. Read More
Trimersion HMD takes First Person Shooter games to a new level of reality
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October 31, 2006 The global success of First Person Shooter (FPS) games was catalysed by the launch of shareware phenomenon Doom on December 10, 1993 which was downloaded by more than 10 million people in its first two years – a remarkable number given the number of people online at that point. The game lived up to iD Software’s promise that it would become the "the number one cause of decreased productivity in businesses around the world" by hogging bandwidth on office networks and defined this popular gaming genre. The FPS format evolved and massively multiplayer online games subsequently created a new way to misspend your youth. Given the genre is characterized by an on-screen view that simulates the in-game character's point of view, the massive global following of FPS games is ripe to move to a logical next level of realism by offering greater immersion inside the game via the head mounted display (HMD) … and the HMD most likely in our book is the new Trimersion from 3001 AD. The wireless Trimersion head tracking HMD and tracking gun replace the mouse/keyboard or gamepad controllers with a realistic and natural interface (for killing things). Read More
The Future Combat System Videogame for the PC
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October 20, 2006 Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) is not your run-of-the-mill video game developer – a massive corporation providing scientific, engineering, systems integration and technical services and solutions to all branches of the U.S. military, agencies of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), the intelligence community, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other U.S. Government civil agencies, as well as to customers in selected commercial markets. Now it has created a videogame: Future Force Company Commander (F2C2) was designed by the company's Tactical Systems and Solutions Business Unit to help demonstrate the networked battle command that the Future Combat Systems (FCS) program is developing for the U.S. Army. It’s not the first time the American military has used video games to capture the hearts and minds of America’s high-tech youth. F2C2 is a real-time tactical strategy game that allows the player to learn about the Army's FCS program by assuming command of a Mounted Company Team in the year 2015. Through game play, F2C2 showcases how FCS can provide the 21st century soldier unprecedented situational awareness, and the ability to see first, understand first, act first and finish decisively. Read More
The Bodywall improves health for all age groups
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The Bodywall is one of the most adaptable inventions we’ve ever seen. Designed as a way to assist athletes to stretch effectively, the high adhesion gloves and shoes and high-tech wall surface offer spiderman-like capabilities. So it’s a gym, a ready made game and new form of physical education and wil be undoubtedly incorporated into the training regime of every elite athlete on the planet. But its chameleon-like character solves different problems in different markets. As in the parable of the seven blind men and the elephant, each person experiences and perceives the Bodywall in a different way. The original concept was to use a combination of the wall and gravity to challenge the entire body – improving proprioception, building muscle, joint, ligament and tendon strength, maintaining flexibility, reducing injury, rehabilitating injuries and facilitating full stretching of almost every muscle in the body for the very young and the very old, and everyone in between. Bodywall can be used either privately or very publicly, and can be manufactured for an audience of one, with the manufacturers offering a personal service, accepting four-colour, high resolution digital imaging. For an individual training for their own life goals, the Bodywall’s massive surface is an ideal place to decorate with personal messages to absorb while stretching – a great place to focus energies, emblazon a life purpose or a “go get ‘em” motivational mantra. It can function as a personal billboard for athletes and on a team scale, it offers a mobile sponsor wall that can be set up quickly at any training venue, in the change rooms or beside the pitch, court or track. In a world obsessed with sport, it’s a new high-association, visual advertising medium for sponsors. Whichever way you look at this invention, it ticks ALL the boxes. Read More
Survey reveals U.S. gamer market is diversifying
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September 2, 2006 For years, game developers and marketers have focused only on two types of videogame players: hardcore gamers and casual players. Ultimately, detailed segmentation of any market is required to unravel its mysteries and recent analysis by research firm Parks Associates indicates that the gamer community has diversified to include six distinct groups and, most importantly, a new middle market has emerged, with different motivations, gaming behaviors, and spending patterns. Traditionally ignored by marketers, the three segments Social Gamers, Leisure Gamers, and Dormant Gamers account for 53% of the Internet gamer population and 56% of the retail revenue. Read More
Philips Entertaible - Electronic Multi-Touch Tabletop Gaming Platform
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September 4, 2006 Earlier this year Philips showed a prototype Entertaible at the CES in Las Vegas. Today, it is unveiling the finished fully integrated tabletop gaming platform at this year's Internationale Funkausstellung in Berlin. The multi-purpose platform enables a new class of gaming that combines the excitement of electronic games with the fun and social interaction of board games. Entertaible enables simultaneous multi-user interaction, object detection and recognition. Initially targeting social gaming away from home in locations such as pubs, bars, hotels or restaurants, Entertaible has the potential to evolve into a gaming platform for the consumer market. Read More
