Nintendo not doing so well
1UP is 80% drop for the quarter. 'Speculation from the news service on the reason for the drop makes perfect sense - the GameCube doesn't have enough exclusives, first-party and third-party, and sales of GBA SP and GameCube have been declining, and the DS is sitting on the shelves in the US. Poor Sega...I mean Nintendo.
New MAdden 06 website launches today!
EA has just launches a new Madden NFL 06 website to get people ready for the new game.
www.madden06.comFrom Quarterback Vision Control and Precision Passing to the new NFL Superstar Mode and the Truck Stick, Madden NFL 06 will revolutionize the way you play football. This year's game is so groundbreaking and innovative EA SPORTS built a whole new web site to get you ready for the Madden experience. But beware -- once you check out the new sights and sounds of Madden NFL 06, your life will never be the same.
DDR Extreme Soundtrack Nominated for MTV Video Music Award
DDR Extreme Soundtrack Nominated for MTV Video Music Award
MTV has just announced that the soundtrack from the best-selling dance video game, Dance Dance Revolution Extreme(tm), has been nominated for an award in the "Best Video Game Soundtrack" category for the MTV Video Music Awards (occurring on August 28th). It is exciting to see this category be a part of a world-renowned entertainment awards show like the MTV VMAs and Konami is honored to receive this nomination alongside other top video games. Head on over to the MTV.com website to see the full details on the "Best Video Game Soundtrack" award and nominees.
Link to MTV Music Awards voting page:
http://www.mtv.com/onair/vma/2005/index.jhtml#/onair/vma/2005/nominees/category.jhtml?cat=523
XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN
WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT AWARDS KONAMI DIGITAL ENTERTAINMENT VIDEO GAME RIGHTS FOR XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN
Video Games Will Be Based on Top-Rated Warner Bros. Animation Series
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
LOS ANGELES – July 26, 2005 - Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. has entered a multi-year license agreement with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment to develop and publish games based on the Warner Bros. Animation hit kids’ television series Xiaolin Showdown for multiple video game systems.
Currently in its second season on Kids’ WB!, Xiaolin Showdown is consistently rated among the top 10 television programs with boys 9-14 years old. Xiaolin Showdown is also a growing phenomenon internationally as it currently airs in Brazil, Hong Kong, Italy, New Zealand, Mexico, and parts of Central and South America.
“Warner Bros.’ Xiaolin Showdown has exhibited tremendous momentum since its launch in North America in 2003, and the program has all of the elements to make an exciting video game,” said Kazumi Kitaue, Chairman and CEO of Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. “As the property mixes fantasy and adventure with action and comedy, it also fits extremely well with Konami’s strong catalog of anime and mass market franchises.”
“The increasingly popular, action packed Xiaolin Showdown is an ideal property to bring into the interactive space,” said Jason Hall, Senior Vice President of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “The game will feature new, hilarious adventures based on the show, allowing fans and gamers to interact with and play as their favorite characters.”
Xiaolin Showdown is a mystical Kung Fu action-adventure comedy that follows Omi, a Kung Fu monk who leads three young dragons-in-training on globetrotting adventures. Their mission is to search and protect the Shen Gong Wu - mystical power objects - from a band of villains led by Evil Boy Genius.
For more information, please visit: http://www.konami.com/gs.
About Konami Corporation
Konami Corporation is a leading developer, publisher and manufacturer of electronic entertainment properties, specializing in the home video game market. Konami Corporation's action and adventure titles include the popular franchises Metal Gear Solid®, Silent Hill® and Castlevania®, among other top sellers. The latest information about Konami can be found on the Web at www.konami.com. Konami Corporation is a publicly traded company based in Tokyo, Japan with subsidiary offices, Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. in the US and Konami of Europe in Frankfurt, Germany. Konami Corporation, the parent company of Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. is traded in the United States on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol KNM. Details of the products published by Konami Digital Entertainment - America can be found at www.konami.com/gs.
About Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Inc., a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, is a premier licensor and a developer of entertainment content for the interactive space across all current and future platforms, including consoles, PC-based gaming and wireless applications.
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Media Contacts:
Konami Digital Entertainment - America Bender/Helper Impact
Marc Franklin/Denny Chiu Adam Fenton/Stefanie Acken
650-654-5600 212-689-6360
mfrankpr@konami.com/chewyd@konami.com adam_fenton@bhimpact.com/stefanie_acken@bhimpact.com
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Licensing Contact:
Remi Sklar Konami Digital Entertainment
818-977-3023 Daniel Kletzky, VP Business Development
remi.sklar@warnerbros.com 310-228-4622
dk.01689@konami.com
Japanese PSP 2.0 software out
PSP Upgrade 2.0 is outIt's out! But when do we get this in the US?
GameSwapZone.com
Press Release - Wednesday July 27,2005
GameSwapZone.com the first Auction site of its kind in the USA, a web site for gamers by gamers, covering everything from playstation, Xbox, PSP, Game Cube, N-Gage, Game Boy ,PC games and more.
Boca Raton, Fla.—July 27 2005-- Game Swap Zone announces the launch of the first online auction site specifically for games. The web site caters to online gaming enthusiast across the globe looking to either buy or sell used or new games. The web site also boast the free listing of products on the site for a basic listing. Plus as an extra added bonus there will be no fees of any kind this summer during the months of July, August and September, so anyone can post and sell a game or product with not costs associated to it.
This web site will allow people from all over the globe to connect with one another. The site is in English right now but plans on rolling out a German, Japanese, Korean and French version within the next 6 months.
The auction site will provide new and updated features to keep its consumers on the cusp of latest technology in auctions:
· Stores - each person or company will be able to set up a store with a personalized logo
· Buy Now feature, allowing buyers to set a buy price
· Fresh page layouts with new, cutting-edge design
· Summary boxes for game reviews
· Wanted Ads – Allows people to post a request looking a specific item
· Rating System, allows the users to give feedback about other buyer and sellers to cut down on fraud.
· Bulk uploading – allows our users to upload multiple items at one time..
Web site,
http://www.gameswapzone.com
Gamespot on Rockstar
House backs federal investigation of Rockstar Games
[UPDATE] Hot Coffee scandal intensifies as legislators vote 355-21 to support a Federal Trade Commission probe seeking answers from the Take-Two subsidiary.
Just when you thought the Hot Coffee scandal couldn't get any hotter, the heat is getting turned way up--by the federal government, no less.
Just after 7:00pm on Capitol Hill today, the House of Representatives voted
355 to 21 to support a Federal Trade Commission inquiry into Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The purpose of the probe will be to determine if Take-Two Interactive and its publishing subsidiary Rockstar Games deceived the voluntary Entertainment Software Ratings Board when it submitted Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Today's vote advanced House Resolution 376, introduced by Congressman Fred Upton (R-MI). In Upton's words, he is "leading the congressional effort to determine if a best-selling video game maker intentionally deceived the industry's ratings board to avoid an 'Adults-Only' rating."
In a statement, Upton recently said he was "outraged by the brazenness of Rockstar Games in their effort to do an end-run around the ratings system... Rockstar Games' deceit has severely undermined the integrity of the ratings system."
The game initially received a rating of M for Mature but has since been
slapped with a rating of AO for Adults Only, becoming one of only a handful of games to bear the retailer-scorned label. Rockstar is in the process of manufacturing new game discs that have the hidden sex minigame removed. Those versions of the game will be rated M.
The vote, coming on the eve of a five-week recess in Congress, means that Rockstar could now come under scrutiny by the federal government. It also raises the possibility that there could be a penalty imposed if an investigation finds that the publisher committed fraud in obtaining the M rating for San Andreas.
[UPDATE] According to attorney Jack Thompson, an outspoken critic of Rockstar Games, the resolution does not have the binding effect of law; it simply expresses the overwhelming sentiment of the House of Representatives that the Federal Trade Commission should investigate the matter fully.
As for where the House resolution might lead, Thompson told GameSpot that from his perspective, additional action inside the beltway was likely: "I have spoken with leaders on the Hill on all this, and you can look for Congressional hearings on this in the fall."
GameSpot will have more details on the investigation as further information is made available.
Fuse TV
Looking for something to watch while you are out with your Sony PSP? Look no further than to Fuse TV - it’s like MTV, but with music videos. Just go to the main page, click on downloads, then portable video. It’s mostly interviews right now, but isn’t it always nice to find free stuff? Fuse also offers some fairly straightforward details for how to get the videos on your PSP and, when that does not work, links to some programs that will do all the work for you. And since most of you have probably downloaded some video onto your PSP’s before, I think you know the routine by now.
Madden 06!
YES! Thanks to our good friends over at EA we now have Madden 06 in our hands and ready to play!
Advertising in videogames
| | Carl Bialik from the WSJ writes "'Advertising in videogames, dominated in the past by static ads such as billboards and signposts, is beginning to look more like TV commercials,' according to the Wall Street Journal. Massive, the company that brought still ads to videogames last year, is now introducing full-motion ads to PC-based games (not yet console titles). Massive CEO Mitchell Davis 'says Hollywood movie studios have shown particular interest in running 15-second movie trailers in online games.' Also of note: 'One problem with the full-motion ads is that gamers can easily avoid watching them. The full-motion ads start playing when a player moves near the ad spot on the screen -- and stop playing when the player moves away. As a result, gamers may see only a few seconds of the 15-second ads. Massive says it won't charge advertisers unless the full ad has been viewed.'
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