That was likely the scene in one gamer’s living room this week, as he spotted a virtual billboard for the Obama campaign during an online session of the racing game Burnout Paradise
on the XBox 360. Read article here.
Want to be part of the upcoming Batman: Arkham Asylum? Are you going to pre-order the game? You may very well be in luck then. Gamestop, Eidos Interactive and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment have announced a contest for those who pre-order the game with the grand prize of being in the game. The contest ends October 15th. The prizes go as such:
1st Prize: One lucky fan will be immortalized inside Batman: Arkham Asylum
2st Prize: A console of the winner's choice (either Xbox 360 or PLAYSTATION 3) and a copy of Batman: Arkham Asylum on release
3st Prize: A copy of Batman: Arkham Asylum on the platform of winner's choice on release.
To participate… http://www.gamestop.com/gs/sweepstakes/bmaa/default.aspx
Hey, videogame super-fans: GameFly wants you! The company is inviting gamers everywhere to dress up as their favorite video game character for a chance to star in an upcoming TV commercial. That's right, here's your opportunity to become a star.
Contestants will compete by submitting a video of them portraying their favorite video game character during one of three live casting call events or online here.
Events will be held at:
· September 9, Los Angeles – Hollywood and Highland Center/12-6 p.m. PST
· September 16, Chicago – ESPN Zone/12-6 p.m. CST
· September 23, New York – Hawaiian Tropic Zone/12-6 p.m. EST
Once the contestant vids are compiled, you'll be able to vote on the winner--October 1 through October 31st!
Okay, so last night (March 4) did not decide the democratic presidential candidate.
We know the democratic issues, where they stand, their slogan, and we have their non-stop sound bites.
Let’s come down the ladder of priority and look into a lighter way of choosing our candidate. Obviously McCain, Clinton and Obama are all qualified to lead this country and for those that don’t agree… blame Bush (he has clearly lowered the bar for the next President).
Since all candidates are concerned about the economy as are the voters, let’s talk about the leading industry in salary and employment growth… the 17.9 Billion dollar gorilla, the fastest growing industry--faster than the US economy itself—I’m talking about the PC & Video Game Industry!
So if we were to vote primarily on keeping the economy afloat (passing the ball to the hot hands), we would have to see who is for the Game industry and who is about limiting it’s growth potential. Read more to see how the candidates match up.
Here are the 3 candidates:
Hilary Clinton
- Proposing legislation that would penalize retailers for failing to enforce the ratings rules of the ESRB (Entertainment Software Ratings Board).
- Formed the Family Entertainment Protection Act (FEPA), a joint effort by senators Clinton, Joe Lieberman (D-CT) and Evan Bayh (D-IN). FEPA would have effectively criminalized the sale of adult-rated games to children and created an independent committee to monitor the ratings themselves, but was ultimately struck down as being unconstitutional for attempting to circumvent the First Amendment by passing off the findings of a private entity (in this case, the ESRB) as federal law.
- Believes there is a link between violent games and violent kids, blames the industry
Barack Obama
- Came out several times on the side of technological freedom, particularly in the cases of Net Neutrality and changes to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
- Did not accept a $500 donation by former Entertainment Software Association president Doug Lowenstein, although he never cited a specific reason.
- Believes the industry can do a better job policing itself.
- He would call upon the video game industry to give parents better information about programs and video games by improving the voluntary rating system we currently have (ESRB), but if the industry fails to act, then his administration would.
- Less convinced of the causal relationship between violent games and violent behavior and proposes further study
John McCain
- For years he has been a somewhat polarizing figure in the violent video game debate by routinely criticizing the industry as a whole.
- Affiliated with Joe Lieberman (see Clinton 2)
- Specific plans for the video game industry remain murky
