The Games News

With technology growing, game developers are beginning to consider placing advertisements in video games. What’s next, showing commercials while the game loads up? The only kind of advertisement that could possibly be acceptable for video games is advertisement that is visible in the background scenery of the video game.

There are a few examples of games where advertisement is acceptable: Sports games (advertisements on hockey boards, painting sponsors on NASCAR cars, etc.) and games with giant levels (games like the Grand Theft Auto series, first-person shooters with multiplayer levels, etc.). If advertisements become a mainstay in the video game world, it won’t just anger me but everyone else with a conscience. Gamers play games because they want to get out of the everyday world for just a few moments. With the introduction of advertisements, gamers could no longer leave reality without being reminded how much reality is still around.

Once upon a time, Nintendo was the king of the console and their only competition was lowly Sega. Then, two newcomers came into the picture: one an underdog with a long shot to succeed and the other a monopolizing company trying to grab yet another corner of the technological market. These two companies literally tore apart Sega and left Nintendo at the starting line trying to figure out why they had been knocked off of the right track.

Five years since Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft brought their next-generation systems onto the market, Nintendo is getting ready to release what just might be their ticket back into the VIP room of video games. The Nintendo Wii plans to not just launch Nintendo back into the spotlight, but to leave Microsoft and Sony in their dust. The key to Nintendo’s domination will be the success of the motion-controlled Wiimote and Nunchuck. If gamers enjoy these enough, all Nintendo will have to is sit back and watch the cash roll in.

Sony has recently unveiled its plan to release the new PlayStation 3. It is priced at a whopping $499 and $599 for the base and ramped-up versions of PlayStation 3 respectively. It is the price that is worrying both the gamers and critics alike. There is a serious concern that the price of the PlayStation 3 would be detrimental in the sales of the new console. It is widely said that the PlayStation 3 is the most advanced gaming console, but is it the most expensive too?

No, it is not, according to statistics, the console JDO, costing $700 was the costliest console ever. There can be two comparisons, one based on the actual cost and one based on the relative cost. In both the categories PlayStation 3 comes in the top five. The interesting thing to be noted here is all the high priced consoles have fared poorly in the market, in fact were big failures. All the high priced consoles, which included JDO, Neo Geo, CD1, and Saturn were good consoles but they lost out to their lower priced competitors. Experts say the same will not happen with PlayStation 3 because none of the high-priced consoles had a predecessor like the PlayStation 2.

What will happen to the high-priced PlayStation 3? Will it have the same fate as the other consoles or will PlayStation be an exception? We will have to wait and see.

In the ongoing study of violence caused by video games, a growing concern has been whether or not children have been more or less susceptible to the dangers caused by increasing violence in video games. While most have begun to believe that video games are bad for children which cause them to become more violent as they grow in age, others believe that video games are actually good for children. With most violent games receiving higher ERSB ratings (Mature and Adult ratings) and retailers being fined if they sell to minors, most individuals under the age of 18 are being restricted to purchasing or renting games that are designed for their age group. Most of these games have to do with some sort of sport or they have a cartoon-type of look and feel to it. With restrictions continuing to grow and the threat of fines for illegal distribution looming, children should be able to play video games without the thought of unnecessary violence polluting their experience.

Sony’s new PSP digital camera was put on display at the E3 2006 in March but is due to go on sale on November 2 in Japan. The camera is an add-on, called Chotto Shotto, which means the camera can be fitted into the existing PSP. It will cost approximately $50. The 1.3-mega-pixel camera is not just about taking pictures or recording videos; it comes with an in-built photo editor. The photo-editor allows viewing them as a slide show, modifying the existing photo and many more. The camera rotates 180 degrees making it possible to keep the camera screen right in front of you, irrespective of where the subject is. The camera also has a “zoom” function.

The pictures taken can be saved on the Memory Card in the PSP Media format and the videos in the .Avi format. On the downside, critics argue that the PSP camera is not even as good as a high-end mobile phone. The video recording options are not very innovative either. There are no games, which can be played using the PSP camera, which would definitely be fun. On the whole, the PSP camera looks awesome. It is just a matter of time before some more features are added to the PSP and surely we will have one of the best portable communication devices in our hands.