Games
Lapworks' portable Gamers Desk
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LapWorks,best known for its ergonomic and heat-reducing laptop desks and stands, has entered the Gaming market with a portable Gamers Desk. As PC gamers move to their couches to play First Person Shooter (FPS) and other high precision games on their HDTV or laptop screen, the desk provides a comfortable, ergonomically-sound, wide flat platform across the lap with ample space for a broad gaming keyboard and optical mouse or a laptop and external mouse. Read More
NVIDIA unleash GeForce GTX 200 GPUs
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NVIDIA’s new family of GeForce GTX 200 graphics processors (GPUs) - which includes the GeForce GTX 280 and GeForce GTX 260 GPUs - include NVIDIA CUDA technology and the new CUDA runtime for Windows Vista, which allows programmers to offload the most intensive processing tasks from the CPU to the NVIDIA GPUs. The GPUs also deliver 50% more gaming performance over the Company’s previous NVIDIA GeForce 8800 Ultra GPU with impressive shading horsepower at resolutions as high as 2560 x 1600. Read More
The week in games at The Gamer Gene
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First ever footage of Duke Nukem Forever hits the internet, Disturbed and Jimmy Buffet arrive in Rock Band, Tecmo stock drops 10 percent on news of lawsuit from ex-designer Tomonobu Itagaki, iamchris4life conquers Dragonforce in Guitar Hero III once and for all, and they ask: what are you playing this weekend? Read More
Sony announce Qore - an interactive HD gaming program for the PS3
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Sony has announced Qore, a monthly, interactive gaming program shot in HD and distributed via the PlayStation Network. Qore will feature exclusive news, interviews and previews along with bonuses like exclusive access to beta tests, demos, and downloadable content. Read More
Today's headlines at The Gamer Gene
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LucasArts considers resurrecting the point-and-click graphic adventure genre, Intel sponsors a free release of Havok Physics, Animation and Content Tools, a hacker turns his Roomba into Pac-man, Zombies take over Africa, and people who want to dress up like Gears of War characters rejoice. Read More
Wii Fit Reviewed
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Making exercise fun is something that Nintendo has tried before. In 1986, they licensed Bandai's Family Trainer peripheral for the NES and launched it worldwide as the Power Pad. In the 90's, they created the Exertainment system - essentially an exercise bike with a SNES inside. Both products were capable of raising your heart rate, but offered little else in the way of improving your health or building good habits. Wii Fit sees Nintendo's honed skill in software and peripheral development come together for another crack at the holy grail of software - making exercise fun. Read More
Nintendo's Wii Fit hits US stores
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We've come a long way since VHS was the new kid on the block and sweating it out in front of Cindy Crawford’s “Buns of Steel” fitness training video was all the rage. As the next generation of technology-enhanced personal training, Nintendo has released Wii Fit, a “game” incorporating over 40 activities that challenge users in areas ranging from yoga and aerobics to strength training and balance. Read More
Gran Turismo 5 Prologue Review (PlayStation 3)
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With the full Gran Turismo 5 not due until 2009, and the free downloadable Gran Turismo HD Concept now no longer available from the PlayStation Store, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue is the only PS3-based option for simulation-style racing fans. Read More
Review: Logitech's Driving Force GT force-feedback wheel for the PS3
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The Gamer Gene recently got their hands on a Logitech Driving Force GT, the official wheel of Gran Turismo for the PlayStation 3, and are reporting significant improvements in fun factor and immersion, and a decline in the brutal learning curve of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. Read More
Porsche 911 leather steering wheel for PC and PS3
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April 29, 2008 Gamers have long been able to take their dream ride for a virtual spin, and now high-end input device producer Fanatec is offering Porsche fans and gamers alike an authentic look and feel with the introduction of the Porsche 911 Turbo Racing Wheel for PC and Sony PlayStation 3 (PS3). The leather-covered wheel features a tuning display that allows gamers to change settings like sensitivity or Force Feedback during gameplay. A Mabuchi RS 550 Motor is responsible for the extra strong Force Feedback effects with additional Force Feedback actuators in the wheel used to stimulate motor vibrations. Read More
Assassin's Creed Review (PlayStation 3)
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Ubisoft’s massively hyped action-adventure game Assassin’s Creed sure is an interesting one - an ambitious mix of a history and science-fiction story with action and stealth gameplay. Can a game with this scope still be accomplished within the deadline-driven game development business? Our friends over at The Gamer Gene recently had a look at the PlayStation 3 version - check out their review here.
Assassin's Creed (PS3) Review [The Gamer Gene] Read More
A football table for the 21st century
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April 10, 2008 Table football is a game for all ages and one which continues to stand the test of time despite the advent of complex computer graphics and increasingly sophisticated game-playing interfaces. Now a collaboration between GRO design and Tim modelmakers has resulted in an overhaul of the design that aims to inject new life into the game and transform the football table from a bulky eye-sore into an attractive object d' art that complements modern interior spaces. Known as "11- the beautiful game", the strongly sculpted table incorporates minimalist design, a subtle use of light an dazzling white and chrome materials on the playing surface contrasting the dark exterior in an effort to bring the dynamics and drama of the game to the fore. Read More
Mindwire's shocking V-5 sensory feedback kit
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March 14, 2008 Mindwire has designed an electrical muscle simulation kit that integrates with second generation consoles to give sensory feedback to gamers - in other words, when you shoot a friend in Tekken he gets an electric shock. Some may shake their heads, we say "yes please!" Read More
Second lease of life: researchers develop online character with reasoning abilities
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March 12, 2008 Users worldwide have relished the opportunity to live out parallel existences in virtual worlds such as ‘Second Life’, but the characters within those worlds have traditionally been mindless avatars only performing tasks as directed by their human puppet masters. Now, a team of researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is working to engineer characters with reasoning abilities similar to that of a child. Read More
Logitech's Driving Force GT Wheel for the PS3
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Logitech has unveiled their Driving Force GT Wheel - the official force-feedback wheel of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue for the PlayStation 3. Designed in collaboration with Gran Turismo developers Polyphony Digital, the wheel features a realtime adjustment dial, allowing you to adjust brake bias, traction control and damper settings on the fly. Read More
Why PAL PS3 owners should import Rock Band
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The geeks at The Gamer Gene really love Rock Band, and their latest feature is designed to convince PAL PlayStation 3 owners that they should stop waiting for EA to release the game in their territory, and simply import the game. They've done so, twice, and can't fault the process - especially when the other option is sitting around waiting for a vague Q2-Q3 release date. Read on for what to and what not to worry about when importing Rock Band. Read More
PSP gets Skype functionality - we put it to the test
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Sony recently released a firmware update for the PSP that adds Skype functionality - as long as your PSP is the newer, slimmer kind. We've spent the morning calling people from weird places - here's the lowdown. Read More
PS3 gets DivX/XviD playback - we put it to the test
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The PlayStation 3 firmware update 2.10 arrived yesterday, adding Blu-ray Disc Profile 1.1 support, and more importantly, XviD and DivX playback. We recently brought you the low down on XviD/DivX playback on the Xbox 360, and now we've spent another strenuous morning watching videos - here's our report on Sony's implementation.
NVIDIA 3-way SLI taps the power of three GeForce cards
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NVIDIA have announced their new 3-way SLI (Series Link Interface) system, designed to eat system-melting games like Crysis for breakfast by allowing three GeForce cards to be used in one PC. This delivers up to 2.8 times the performance of systems with one GPU, and gives PC gamers ability to run the latest graphically-intensive games in the highest resolution at 60 frames per second - with anti-aliasing and all the bells and whistles. Read More
Two wheels versus four in Project Gotham Racing 4
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December 11, 2007 The Project Gotham Racing (PGR) franchise has always put gamers behind the wheel of some of the world’s most powerful and desirable cars, but with PGR4 gamers now also have the chance to throw a virtual leg over of some of the world’s best two wheeled vehicles including BMW's K 1200 R. Read More
Xbox 360 gets DivX/XviD playback, we put it to the test
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The Xbox 360 Fall Dashboard Update arrived overnight, and added a long list of new functionality - although the one thing most people are interested in is the relatively unexpected arrival of DivX/XviD playback. We've spent the morning messing about with it to bring you the lowdown... because we figured your boss wouldn't call watching videos "work." Read More
Samsung announces world’s fastest graphics memory
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December 3, 2007 Samsung has developed a GDDR5 (series five, graphics double-data-rate memory) chip that can transfer data at six gigabits per second - more than four times faster than that of current game consoles. The new memory also operates on less power at 1.5 volts, an improvement of 20 percent on the GDDR3 graphics chip. Read More
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Review (Xbox 360)
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It's official - World War II games are dead. Infinity Ward has brought the iconic Call of Duty series into the 21st Century with a flash-bang, giving Tom Clancy a run for his money with an epic depiction of modern war. Read on for a full review of what the guys at our video game blog, The Gamer Gene are calling a hot contender for Game of the Year. Read More
Play Big IN1 portable gaming projector
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November 12, 2007 InFocus Corporation has released the Play Big IN1 Gaming projector, designed specifically for gaming consoles. The IN1 is designed as an all-in-one solution combining high-end audio, multiple inputs for connectivity to DVD players, cable and satellite boxes, a projected image of up to eight feet in size, plus a mirror that flips the image on the ceiling for a truly laid back gaming experience - all in a compact unit weighing less than 10 pounds. Read More
Top Gear to feature on Gran Turismo TV
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October 25, 2007 A collaboration between the BBC and the creators of Gran Turismo will see the Top Gear Test Track featured in the 5th edition of the popular racing game as well as providing downloads of the award-winning motoring program through Gran Turismo TV. Read More
Xbox 360 Arcade console announced
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Microsoft has officially announced another of their worst kept secrets - the Xbox 360 Arcade unit - some time after the units first appeared in stores across North America. The new entry-level bundle will replace the aging Xbox 360 Core bundle, and while it remains hard drive-less, it includes a much smaller Memory Unit - which isn't big enough for downloading high-definition TV episodes from the Xbox Live Video Marketplace, but will suffice to save your progress in games, and download new titles from the Xbox Live Arcade. Read More
BioShock Review (Xbox 360)
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While gamers and the gaming press continue to rave over what is almost undisputedly the most immersive first-person shooter experience yet, there's a reasonable chance that part of Gizmag's readership remain unconvinced, or even unaware of BioShock. Do you read science-fiction? Think first-person shooters all went downhill after Doom? Looking for a game that offers moral choices? Do yourself a favor and check out an in-depth review of BioShock for the Xbox 360 over at our game blog, The Gamer Gene. Read More
Sony accelerates PS3 and PSP convergence with PVR and GPS accessories
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August 23, 2007 In an ironic twist on the convergence theme, Sony has made some significant announcements at the Games Convention in Leipzig moving the PS3 and PSP towards becoming general entertainment and convenience platforms. Announcements included a TV Tuner and PVR software for PS3, a Video Download Service for PSP in conjunction with BSkyB, a voice chat, video chat and instant messaging service for PSP, and a satellite navigation accessory for PSP. On top of the recent release of the EUR50 Go!Cam which turns a PSP into a video and still camera, the “c” word (convergence) is very relevant. Read More
RockBand: think Guitar Hero plus drums and vocals
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August 24, 2007 There is no more exciting yet-to-be released video game than the upcoming music-based game, Rock Band. It’s day one at the Games Convention in Liepzig and we haven’t seen everything yet, but we can safely say it’s the release of the show. It has been previously seen at E3 but with ten new tracks announced and the news that a special version announced for the 50 million installed base of PS2s in Europe, the game looks set to smash sales records when it is released in the coming holiday season. Even if you’ve never looked at a game previously, Rock Band might well turn you into a rabid gaming enthusiast. It's like Guitar Hero, except it also delivers bass guitar, drums or vocals and combines the lot so you can play collectively as a group, which multiplies the fun several magnitudes. Gizmag’s gaming blog thegamergene.com also managed to get its hands on the game at Liepzig and you can read those first impressions here. Read More
"Brain Age 2" released for Nintendo DS
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August 22, 2007 Nintendo has launched its second release in the burgeoning world of brain games in effort to attract non-gamers to pick up the controller. Brain games are designed as exercise for our grey matter based on the notion that our neural systems are constantly changing throughout life and that effective instruction can actually alter brain function. Read More
Comparing film and video game ratings
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August 20, 2007 Statistics show that computer games are no longer the domain of children and teenagers yet the general perception exists that games are corrupting our children and should be subject to censorship. Indeed, so strict is the current ratings system in comparison to film ratings that Factor 5 president Julian Eggebrecht described the current censorship regime as McCarthyism in his keynote today at the prestigious Games Convention Developer’s Conference in Leipzig. The keynote, entitled “No Sex, No Drugs, and Little Rock and Roll” covers the history of the ratings system for both films and games and the bizarre inconsistencies between them. TheGamergene has full video of Eggebrecht’s fascinating and thought provoking presentation here. Read More
Checkers “solved” using up to 200 computers at a time
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August 8, 2007 After 18 years of work, Jonathan Schaeffer from the University of Alberta, has announced the completion of Chinook, a checkers playing program that has calculated every possible playing scenario on a checkers board with ten checkers or less remaining. After evaluating the data, Schaeffer’s team concluded that whenever two players play through a game without making a single error, they will unavoidably reach a draw. It means that whenever Chinook plays competitively, be it with a computer or human, it simply will not lose. Read More
FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage Review (Xbox 360)
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July 24, 2007 Our new video game blog The Gamer Gene have posted a review of FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage for the Xbox 360. If you couldn't tell from the name alone, this is no racing simulation - quite the opposite in fact. If Forza MotorSport 2 was a little bland for you, how do you like the sound of aerial shortcuts, nitro boosts, destructible environments (and opponents) and rewards for full-contact racing? Read the full review here. Read More
Game Advertising growing at 33% CAGR - more than any other medium
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June 29, 2007 Computer games, be they console- or PC-based, elicit a level of involvement far beyond anything man’s ingenuity has previously created. The ability to produce an instantaneous and appropriate response to every action can generate a realism and intensity of connection waaay beyond the passive experience of watching television, or the audio wallpaper of radio, with a passion approaching that of procreation. This has not escaped the world’s most creative and influential minds (aka advertising creative directors) who see this as the ideal circumstance in which to deliver a message that will stay with us – gaming offers both a wonderful new way to interact with a brand, and an opportune time to tattoo a brand name on the psyche while the brain is open and engaged. Right now, household penetration of game consoles is approaching mainstream media status, yet the average monthly household advertising expenditure of the medium is less than 50 cents, compared to US$37 for broadcast TV. Is it any wonder then that this seriously under-leveraged advertising medium will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 33% until 2012, much higher than that of other major advertising media, including TV, radio, print, and the Internet. Read More
Analysts: Nintendo DS will penetrate 89% of Japanese households by 2011
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June 26, 2007 A Nintendo in every pocket? The phenomenally successful Nintendo DS handheld gaming console is comprehensively trouncing the more powerful Sony Playstation Portable (PSP) around the world - but nowhere is Nintendo mania more alive than in Japan, where on current sales and penetration figures, a key industry analysis firm has forecast that 89% of Japanese households will have a Nintendo DS by the year 2011. What a stunning figure! Read More
