While there’s 
no pleasing all of the people all of the time, by most accounts this year’s Video Game Awards on Spike TV were an improvement over previous installments, with several big new game reveals, developers actually making it on stage to accept their awards, and obvious sponsor pimping (like the “Most Addictive Game Fueled by Mountain Dew” from last year) jettisoned.
But for Mark Hamill, they were still pretty crummy.
Activision’s “Call of 
Duty: Modern Warfare 3″ has joined the billion dollar club — after just 16 days on store shelves, setting yet another entertainment industry record.
James Cameron’s “Avatar” was the previous record holder for a property to hit the $1 billion sales mark. It took a day longer than the action/shooter video game to achieve that, however. (“Black Ops,” the previous game in the “Call of Duty” series, took six weeks to hit the number.)
Spike TV’s annual 
Video Game Awards program always tends to divide the gamer audience, which grumbles about the flashy nature of the programming, but the event is still very much a can’t miss event among those players.
With several announcements of new game franchises, including Epic Games’ “Fortnight” and Sony/Naughty Dog’s “The Last of Us” making bows this year, it’s a second E3 of sorts. But the real focus is on the awards.
Last month saw 
the biggest launch ever in the video game industry, but flat sales of hardware kept things about on par with last year saleswise.
All totaled, the gaming industry took in $3 billion in November, roughly $10,000 more than last year, according to the NPD Group. But the overall picture was rosy for the industry — as game sales were much higher than predicted.
For years, 
video games have been pointed to as a contributing cause of childhood obesity. Now, a group of Canadian researchers are saying today’s crop of titles could actually help solve the growing problem.
The Bloorview Research Institute, in combing through 18 different research reports conducted between 1998 and 2010, found that while the amount of exercise varied from game to game, most children who play video games got the same amount of exercise as they would from a brisk walk.
Led by “Modern 
Warfare 3″ and a surprisingly strong “The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim,” video game software sales soared past analyst expectations in November.
Retail sales of console and portable software were up 15 percent to $1.67 billion. Analysts had expected a climb of just 3 percent.
Minton co-founded 
DDM in 2005 to help represent vidgame development studios and to act as a strategic adviser for Hollywood licensors.
The company has clients in the U.S. and Europe and is in the midst of helping Red Stallion set up a development studio in Qatar. Lately, Minton has been working with Hollywood directors who want to retain the videogame rights to their films, allowing them to continue to grow the properties in a new medium.
Shigeru Miyamoto 
is royalty in the video game world. There is no other game creator whose name instantly commands respect and awe — and to whom a company’s fortune is so indebted.
Now, the man who created such classic franchises as Donkey Kong, Mario and The Legend of Zelda says he intends to step back from his current role to focus on more personal projects.
Barry Steakfries 
is one of those heroes you feel you should be rooting for, but you don’t always succeed. He tries hard to come up with one-liners in this time-traveling shooter, but they’re really not that funny, and the game ultimately feels somewhat paint by numbers: Get the weapon drop, kills lots of monsters, run to get breathing room, repeat. This edition is a nice visual improvement on its earlier version, and the game has a vocal fan base, but it’s clear to newcomers that developer Halfbrick was just figuring out to do with the character in this early appearance. (Thankfully, they made him mute and more likable in later games.)
While Minecraft 
is an amazing success story on the PC, this iOS version is stripped of a fair bit of what makes the original game so successful. Users can build structures until their hearts are content, but there’s no challenge for them to face. The monsters are gone, as is the ability to mine and craft items. It’s akin to being invited to a party, but walking into an empty building. If you haven’t tried the game, this isn’t the way to be introduced to it. If you have, you’d still have to be a massive fan to enjoy this version as it stands now. Hopefully, as the build progresses, there will be more to do — especially at this high price.
Chris Morris: Journalist 