Monthly Archives: November 2011

Black Friday: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

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Gamasutra editor-at-large Chris Morris has two Black Friday lessons: 1.) Never risk going to Walmart for Black Friday deals and 2.) People are definitely responding to video game sales this year.

Forget televisions and laptops. Judging by the fervor and numbers, Black Friday 2011 was all about video games. Unfortunately, thanks to a few boneheaded bargain hunters, it was a shopping day that would do nothing to help the industry’s image among mainstream shoppers.

Video game violence was all over the news this weekend, but it had nothing to do with Modern Warfare 3 or GTA. This time, it was the people buying games that were going postal.

Read more at Gamasutra

Weinstein follows Disney’s ‘second screen’ lead

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Disney was the first studio to fully integrate iOS systems with their films, but they’re no longer the only filmmaker doing so.

The Weinstein Company and Technicolor have teamed up to utilize the tech company’s MediaEcho application to supplement last year’s Best Picture “The King’s Speech” with historical footage, additional commentary and behind the scenes information.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

App Review: A Charlie Brown Christmas

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While the nostalgia wave and smart release timing are likely to give A Charlie Brown Christmas a boost, don’t let that distract you from the truly wonderful nature of this app adaptation of the familiar television special. Narrated by Peter Robbins, the original voice of Charlie Brown, and featuring innumerable voice clips from the show, it’s a faithful retelling of the story and certain to charm both children and parents who remember it from their own childhood.

Beyond the story itself, there are plenty of extras, like the chance to decorate your own Charlie Brown Christmas tree. Word and note highlighting serve as educational prompts to children as they peruse the text and play with Schroeder’s piano. And touching illustrations on screen make them spring to life. It might start a bit slow, but by the time you get to the familiar Peanuts theme, you’ll find yourself smiling.

Read more at Common Sense Media

Frustrated wife puts gamer husband up for sale on Craigslist

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Guys, be careful how involved you get with this season’s awesome crop of video games. Your wife may try to sell you off.

Kyle Baddley learned this the hard way earlier this month, when his wife Alyse got frustrated by his constant Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 playing and offered him up to the highest bidder on Craigslist.

Read more at Yahoo! Games

Activision launching specialized Call of Duty programming Friday

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The launch window has been a rocky one for Activision’s Call of Duty Elite, but even with a few bugs remaining, the publisher is ready to start ramping things up.

This Friday, members of the subscription service will get the chance to see the first installment of Friday Night Fights, an original entertainment series that’s produced by Ridley Scott and Tony Scott’s RSA Films.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

App Review: Hardest Game Ever – 0.02s PRO

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The smartest thing the developers of Hardest Game Ever – 0.02s PRO did in making the game was give the player an infinite number of chances. You’ll need them, but you won’t mind, since the series of mini-games the app presents are both fun and addicting. That’s not to say they’re easy, though — by any means. It may not be the actual “hardest game ever,” but it is demanding, and that’s the heart of its charm. Replaying the games again and again doesn’t really get old. It’s a terrific time killer for people who only have a few moments to play.

Read more at Common Sense Media

Game Review: uDraw Pictionary: Ultimate Edition

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uDraw Pictionary: Ultimate Edition is a faithful video game recreation of the classic game and creates a modern twist on family game night. While drawing with the uDraw tablet peripheral isn’t as natural — or as fast — as drawing on paper, it adds a twist to the game that many players will enjoy. It’s certainly better than using the controls on a typical game device — even the Wii.

The game offers several gameplay modes to cater to a wide audience and stays true to its family roots by offering different difficulty levels of clues for kids. Some of the wacky things that can happen in the harder Pictionary Mania mode include the lights going out as you draw, the drawing surface rotating, and you are given a limited to the amount of ink to use. The game’s biggest failing, though unavoidable, is that clues appear on the TV screen. Some players might be tempted to sneak a peak while others have their eyes closed. And in a game whose fun lies in guessing and bad drawings, that could spoil some of the fun. If you and your family can resist that, though, this is one of the most family friendly titles on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Read more at Common Sense Media

Samsung nears deal with Google TV

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Google TV was the biggest thing that didn’t happen at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show. Released with a lot of fanfare in late 2010, it immediately hit resistance and most television manufacturers quickly scrapped plans to include it in their 2011 sets.

The system probably won’t have much of a presence at the 2012 CES either, but it looks to have found an ally with one of the largest names in TV.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog