GuitarStar Goes Global With Player X

Player X Ready to Rock With Next-Gen GuitarStar

AdME today announced that award-winning mobile media company, Player X, will distribute its next-generation advertainment application, GuitarStar, worldwide. First released on the AT&T Wireless network, GuitarStar brings two new features to the mobile entertainment arena: beat-matching technology and unique advertising capabilities.

GuitarStar's revolutionary "beat-matching" technology synchronizes visual movements with the beat of the underlying musical soundtrack, allowing mobile gamers to "play by feel" rather than taking their cues solely from what they see.

But GuitarStar is not just a game. It also serves as a highly-versatile promotional platform, providing entertainment and consumer brands with an entirely new mobile medium to promote their products. GuitarStar currently includes emerging musical artists in the rock, pop and hip hop arenas.

Recently named the 4th fastest-growing venture-funded company in the U.K., Player X has been a leader in mobile content distribution since the inception of mobile data services and instrumental in the launch of some of the biggest mobile brands and games in the world. Today, the company champions a variety of media-led genres, including mobile music games and innovative mobile entertainment.

"Player X is extremely excited about partnering with AdME to bring this versatile new entertainment vehicle to a worldwide audience," said Tony Pearce, Player X CEO.

Peter Eggleston, AdME CEO added: "GuitarStar’s unique combination of gaming, music and branding capability makes it one of the most compelling mobile products available for both user and advertising communities alike.”

Xbox 360: The Official Xbox magazine gets new look

Changes at UK's bestselling videogames magazine

Future’s Xbox 360: The Official Xbox Magazine unveils a cracking new look this month and gives gamers a real treat with an exclusive review of Halo 3 and a gigantic double-sided poster.

Xbox 360: The Official Xbox Magazine has been given a comprehensive redesign as the UK’s best selling videogames magazine enters its third action-packed festive season.

The new look issue arrives at the same time as the launch of the long-awaited Halo 3, the final part in Microsoft’s record-breaking series. The team have been working hard to complete the game to bring OXM fans the first UK print review to hit the newsstands.

It’s all change for the magazine as editor Steve Brown leaves after two years. During his tenure he edited both PC Gamer and Future’s original Official Xbox title and will be still making appearances in OXM as he goes freelance.

“Future’s Group Senior Editor, Steve Jarratt will be taking the reins of the magazine until a full-time replacement is found. Jarratt has masterminded the redesign and brings an incredible range of experience to the project having been involved in the industry since Sonic was but a twinkle. He’s been responsible for some of the most iconic brands in the videogame magazine business including Edge and Total!”

Associate Publisher Emma Parkinson said:

“With Official Xbox Magazine about to spend its third Christmas in the market, we decided it was time for UK’s best-selling games magazine to get a new look. The console’s matured over this period, and we wanted to make sure that the magazine reflected this. Our readers have different demands now, especially since the range of games available is so vast, so the challenge was to meet the demands of these gamers while still ensuring that the magazine remains welcoming to people who have only just bought their 360, or who will be buying their first Xbox this Christmas.”

Also in issue 26 of OXM readers can read the verdict on Project Gotham Racing 4, Sega Rally and Virtua Fighter 4, check out a huge stack of previews and indulge in an eight-page open-world gaming feature looking at the shape of things to come. There are tips for Take 2’s masterpiece, Bioshock, a revamped news section and a packed disc that contains ten playable demos, loads of great trailers and previews and a special access code that unlocks Readers’ Only content on www.oxm.co.uk.

Nintendo Announces New Wii Remote Jacket Accessory

Nintendo announces the Wii Remote Jacket, a durable, silicone cover for the Wii Remote that provides a variety of benefits for the player. Nintendo will include the Wii Remote Jacket with all Wii hardware systems and with all Wii Remotes sold separately or packaged with Wii Play. Hardware featuring the Wii Remote Jacket will begin shipping to retailers on Oct. 2 and is expected to be on retail shelves the week of Oct. 15.

The Wii Remote Jacket provides cushioning for the Wii Remote for people who might accidentally throw or drop their Wii Remotes while playing games. Use of the Wii Remote Jacket is meant to supplement, not replace, the basic game-play instructions: keep a firm grip, don't let go of the controller, use the wrist strap and make sure your play area is free of people or objects. The Wii Remote Jacket also serves as a cover for the Wii Remote. Nintendo recommends players use the new Wii Remote Jacket as a cushiony shield, though the current Wii Remote is a safe product when used properly.

"We're always looking for ways to improve our products and make sure everyone has a safe and fun experience," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "Many electronics manufacturers provide similar protective covers for products like cell phones, PDAs and MP3 players."

Current Wii owners who want to equip their Wii Remotes with the new Wii Remote Jacket free of charge can go to Wii.com or nintendo.com, or call 1-866-431-8367 to place an order. Nintendo will begin taking orders on Oct. 2, and Wii Remote Jackets will begin shipping the week of Oct. 15.

The Wii Remote Jacket is designed to be added and removed easily, in case users want to slip their Wii Remote into an accessory like the upcoming Wii Zapper™.

The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii™, Nintendo DS™, Game Boy® Advance and Nintendo GameCube™ systems. Since 1983, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.4 billion video games and more than 420 million hardware units globally, and has created industry icons like Mario™, Donkey Kong®, Metroid®, Zelda™ and Pokémon®. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's Web site at www.nintendo.com.

The Virtual Army Experience Games

Five years ago, the U.S. Army launched America's Army, a free first-person-shooter (FPS) computer game based on the Army itself. It received solid reviews, and has been through multiple permutations, including retail versions for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. A new Xbox 360 America's Army game, True Soldiers, ships later this fall.

The Army is now bringing its video game series out of the PC and console and to virtual reality with the Virtual Army Experience. America's Army: VAE is a traveling exhibit presented by the U.S. Army that lets people get a dose of VR combat through the America's Army: Special Forces (Overmatch) video game. At Digital Life, I got a chance to try the Virtual Army Experience for myself.

The virtual reality game consists of a handful of mock-up military vehicles and a set of several large projection screens. After a short mission briefing (go into enemy territory, get a captured terrorist with valuable information, and leave), the game's participants and I got into the vehicles and manned mock-up M-240 machine gun mounts. I sat in the roof turret of a Humvee, with a gun mounted on a huge, circular rail that let it slide and swivel back and forth. When everyone got settled in, the mission began.

Like a giant light-gun arcade game, the experience consisted mostly on training my fake gun on terrorists and enemy vehicles and blowing them up to the best of my ability. The fake M-240 produced satisfying kickback, rattling and shaking in my hand thanks to pressurized air. The Humvee itself also shook as it absorbed virtual rockets and IEDs. I had fun, sliding and spinning back and forth, training my gun on enemy targets and trying to gun them down before they could fire on us. We drove through the simulated landscape, picking off terrorists and protecting fellow soldiers' rides until we reached the end of the game. The screens flashed large "Mission Accomplished" logos and we all shuffled out into another trailer for "debriefing".

More from crave

Video games banned on Japanese planes

No more DS or PSP playing for Japanese gamers in the air

Playing wireless hand-held video games on Japanese airplanes no longer will be allowed after a revised law enforcing an earlier ban went into effect Monday.


Previously, passengers were asked by airlines to refrain from using gaming systems with built-in wireless functions, like Nintendo's popular DS.


But Japan's transport ministry has concluded that the electromagnetic waves emitted by the consoles have the ability to interfere with aircraft navigation systems and other devices.


Passengers still will be permitted to use game systems that lack integral wireless communication functions.


The law also has been relaxed to permit the use of electric razors, calculators and cassette players.


Wireless computer mouses have also been banned aboard flights, along with headphones that are not provided by the airlines. Battery chargers and toys that give off electronic sounds can't be used during take-offs and landings, the ministry said.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Dragon Quest - make history on Slime Knights!

King Slime here asking you to join the journey to create an army and make history on Slime Knights!

Enter a world full of fans of the Dragon Quest series and some of the best monster hunters in the country! Slime Knights, the official Square Enix community for Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker, allows you to join the monster hunt and work your way up the community rankings to become the ultimate hunter!

Exercise your creativity, meet new friends with an interest in Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker, and have fun with me, King Slime, as I guide you through the world of Slime Knights.

Members of Slime Knights get inside access to the latest news and media about Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker:

By participating in the community, you'll get a chance to win amazing items like game posters, strategy guides, Dragon Quest plushies, Nintendo DS Lites, and exclusively signed copies of Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker!

Get first access to Square Enix content including official art, graphics, videos, and more!

Once you are a part of this insider community, you will be able to create your own profile and partake in special "Hunts" to further your fandom of Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker.

Gain enough experience and you will have a chance to level up, earn community reputation, and win some great items.

Take a look at the official community for Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker and start living the life of a true monster hunter! Join us now at Slime Knights!

Rooney scores Fifa game ad role

Watch the Ad here

The Fifa 08 football computer game - which features a digitised version of Wayne Rooney - has drafted in the real life footballer as part of a pan-European advertising campaign.

Rooney stars in a TV advert that shows the England footballer taking over a golf driving range to prove to a pair of gamers that his footballing skills are as good as his computerised alter ego.

The campaign - the largest that games manufacturer EA Sports will run in Europe this year - includes a series of three TV commercials, press, outdoor and online ads.

Eric Quennoy, the creative director of Wieden & Kennedy Amsterdam, the agency behind the campaign, said: "A lot of sporting titles leverage the fact that famous athletes inform the creation of their game.

"The breakthrough for us was when we decided to flip that on its head. Instead we wanted the game to inform how the athletes played".

Read the story here

Source: Guardian

Kids Creating Computer Games

Free Educational Software that teaches student computer programming in a 3D environment

Computers used to keep businesses on track, assist doctors with complicated surgeries and even develop life-saving combinations of drugs. The demand for computer programmers has never been greater, yet there has been a 50-percent drop in the number of computer science majors over the past seven years -- especially among women. A new program uses the lure of animated movies to entice young students.

The sky should be the limit for someone imagining a future in computers. But how do you light a fire under an aspiring student? Find a way to make it fun. Computer scientists at Carnegie Mellon University have developed a revolutionary new way to teach the basics of computer programming called "Alice."

Instead of using Java -- the computer language with lots of numbers and punctuation -- "Alice" relies on three-dimensional figures placed in a storyline.

"We like to refer to it as Pixar in your garage. It's 3-D characters, but it's obviously low-budget," says Randy Pausch, director of the Alice Project at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Penn.

Users manipulate their computer mouse to select from a gallery of 700 characters and backgrounds. Next, they choose their character's movements using a pull-down menu. Researchers say "Alice" is the perfect way to engage pre-teens, especially girls.

"To really have a substantial impact on the number of female students that end up in computer science, you really have to reach them no later than middle school." Caitlin Kelleher, Ph.D. at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Penn.

For 12-year-old Lucy Gabriel, "Alice" made her computer class the highlight of the school day.

"I like designing the characters. Making them look funny, or making them look the way I want them to look," Gabriel says.

"It's almost sinister in the fact that they're programming, but they don't know it," says Laurie Heinricher, Dean of Students at Winchester Thurston Middle School in Pittsburgh, Penn.

Alice's developers give the software away as a free download. They're hoping someday, Alice sparks enough interest in computer programming to sharply increase their ranks.

Alice's developers say they don't know exactly how many schools are using the program to teach computer programming, but they say there have been more than a half a million downloads. Download your own copy at: Alice

$169 Rock Band on November 23

Harmonix rep confirms Amazon.com price and date for upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 rhythm game bundles; PS2 edition to follow December 10 for $159.99.

Shortly after Rock Band was first announced for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, retailers posted product pages for the game's various instruments and an all-in-one bundle. However, Harmonix and MTV Games remained stubbornly mum on the subject of pricing and package options for the music game.

That changed today when a Harmonix rep confirmed for GameSpot that Amazon.com's latest changes to the game's price and release date are accurate. The online retailer is currently listing the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 bundles of the game for $169.99, with a November 23 release date.

In addition to that news, the representative also confirmed the PlayStation 2 version's price and release date. Last-generation gamers will have to wait a little longer to shred, but the price of admission won't be quite so steep, because the PS2 bundle will sell for $159.99 when it arrives December 10. The game and instruments will also be available separately.

Both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 bundles will include the game, a wired drum kit, and a microphone. The 360 bundle will also come with a wired Fender Stratocaster guitar controller and USB hub, whereas the PS3 bundle will come with a wireless version of the Stratocaster controller and no USB hub. The PS3 edition's instruments can also be used with the PS2 edition of the game.

In May, results that were leaked from a focus group revealed that MTV Games was asking potential customers about three price points: $150, $175, and $200. Shortly thereafter, GameStop began listing the entire bundle for $199, which indicated that Harmonix, MTV Games, and distributor Electronic Arts had opted for the highest price point possible.

Source: Game Spot

SEGA Rally

SEGA Rally

Title: SEGA Rally
Developer: SEGA Racing Studio
Format: PS3, XB360, PC, PSP
Genre: Racing
Release date: September 28th 2007

GAME OVERVIEW

The introduction of SEGA Rally™ to the arcades in 1995 had the single biggest impact on the racing genre. Subsequent console rally games concentrated on a realistic simulation of the sport but their popularity, reflecting in sales, steadily dropped over the last decade. Now, SEGA Rally is back and set to reinvigorate the genre with the vital ingredients that many of the modern racers lack – fun, character and beauty, with few rally games able to match its unique and rewarding experience. Rally’s dead, long live SEGA Rally.

Arctic Environment
Set in one of those days which are brilliantly bright, yet utterly freezing, the Arctic Environment in SEGA Rally is where players can warm themselves up by haring across snowy tracks at break-neck speeds. Featuring a range of surfaces to challenge drivers, tracks take players past icy industrial buildings, across frozen lakes and along snow covered roads which beautifully show off the unique SEGA Rally deformation engine. These tracks certainly aren’t for the faint hearted, yet offer room for empowering power slides around heroic corners. Players will have to remain focused, and be careful not to be distracted by the likes of sea planes sweeping over head or ski-do riders showing off next to the track, if they are to become the ultimate SEGA Rally champion.

SEGA Rally will be released across Europe on September 28th 2007. For more information on SEGA Rally please visit www.segarally.com. For assets please visit www.sega-europe.com.