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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: video games

video games stories: 184 news summaries

1 - 20 of 184 Stories | 1 2 3 4 5 ... 10 Next >>

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 'Naughty' Mickey Hits the Wii 

Disney dares to reimagine him for new generation

Nov 5, 09 11:14 AM CST
(Newser) - Mickey Mouse is going back to his papered-over roots as a mischief-maker as Disney reimagines its core property for a new generation, and perhaps a new revenue stream. The first vehicle is “Epic Mickey,” a video game for the Wii console in which players can choose to play... More »

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Nintendo Wii • Mickey Mouse • Disney • rebranding • cartoon characters • video games

 Slumping Wii 
 Surprises 
 Nintendo 

Lack of hit games hits sales

Oct 30, 09 8:07 AM CDT
(Newser) - With hit games few and far between, consumers aren’t exactly fighting in the aisles to get their hands on a Wii anymore. Nintendo slashed its full year sales forecast for Wii hardware 23% yesterday, the Wall Street Journal reports, and offered little hope of a swift turnaround. “... More »

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Nintendo • Nintendo Wii • video game console • sales projections • video games

Gaming Causes Joint Pain in Kids: Study

Child scientist finds 60+ minutes of daily play may cause trouble

Oct 19, 09 4:04 PM CDT
(Newser) - The repetitive motions involved in playing video games cause joint pain in children, according to a new study by a true expert—an 11-year-old gamer. Deniz Ince, with the help of his rheumatologist dad, studied joint pain among his fellow video game enthusiasts, aged 7 to 12. More than an... More »

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parenting • children • gaming • Xbox 360 • PlayStation 3 • Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors • joint pain • video games • Wii • PlayStation 2

 Rock Band Hits the iPhone 

Popular video game makes its debut as iPhone, iPod Touch app

Oct 19, 09 12:01 PM CDT
(Newser) - Rock Band has arrived on the iPhone, complete with a Bluetooth multi-player mode that allows four people to jam together. The $9.99 app, also available on the iPod Touch, includes 20 tracks, among them the Pixies' "Debaser" and two Foo Fighters songs; of course, more can be purchased... More »

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iPhone • iPod Touch • Rock Band • iPhone applications • video games

 The New 
 Video Gamer 
 Is a Chick 

Females now constitute 40% of players

Oct 13, 09 8:23 AM CDT
(Newser) - In 2001, women and girls constituted just 12% of video gamers; now, fully 40% of game players are female, and the gaming industry has taken notice. EA, Sony, Nintendo, and several other companies are rolling out new products catering to girls, from a dancing game to a Hannah Montana adventure... More »

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women • Nintendo • Sony • girls • Electronic Arts • video game developers • video games

 War Games 
 Help Vets 
 Cope With 
 PTSD 

Psychologists say virtual reality allows vets to confront and overcome trauma

Sep 29, 09 9:02 AM CDT
(Newser) - Using realistic war games to re-create the sights, sounds, and even smells of combat is helping veterans overcome post-traumatic stress disorder in several clinical trials. Games like Virtual Iraq—modeled on Full Spectrum Warrior—help psychologists bring patients back to traumatic events and break down mental barriers. Researchers say the... More »

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veterans • US military • virtual reality • PTSD • Iraq veterans • Afghanistan veterans • video games • post-traumatic stress disorder

 Nintendo Cuts Wii to $200 
 in Price War With Sony 


Console maker slashes price at opening of Tokyo Game Show

Sep 24, 09 8:24 AM CDT
(Newser) - Nintendo is slashing the price of its Wii console by 20% worldwide, bringing the US price to $200—a cut announced just as Sony was beginning its presentation at the annual Tokyo Game Show. The prices of Sony's Playstation and Microsoft's Xbox were both dropped to $300 lately as the... More »

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Nintendo • Nintendo Wii • video game console • Xbox • PlayStation • Sony Playstation • video games • Wii • Microsoft Xbox 360


 Army Recruiters' 
 Video Arcade 
 Draws Fire 

Simulations ignore 'reality of war itself:' Pulitzer winner Chris Hedges

Sep 11, 09 5:26 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Army Experience Center in Philadelphia—a sort of video arcade/recruiting center—has numerous detractors, and those opponents have an influential ally. “This is just a new version of an old attempt” at recruiting, Pulitzer Prize winner and former New York Times war correspondent Chris Hedges tells dscriber.... More »

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Army recruiting • US military • Pennsylvania • protests • Philadelphia • recruitment • anti war movement • video games • Chris Hedges • Army Experience Center

 Guitar Hero 5 
 Uses Cobain's 
 Image Illegally: Love 

Nirvana frontman's widow threatens to sue Activision

Sep 10, 09 4:58 PM CDT
(Newser) - Kurt Cobain's widow, Courtney Love, says she plans to sue Activision for allegedly including the Nirvana frontman’s image in its Guitar Hero 5 without permission, MTV reports. “For the record this Guitar Hero shit is breach of contract on a Bullys part and there will be a proper... More »

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entertainment • Courtney Love • Kurt Cobain • Nirvana • civil lawsuits • Activision • likeness infringement • rock music • video games • Guitar Hero 5

 Stones Legend 
 Bashes Guitar Hero 

Real instruments gathering moss, Wyman complains

Sep 9, 09 4:54 AM CDT
(Newser) - The growth of video games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band means fewer real guitar heros in the future, complains former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman. Playing the games "encourages kids not to learn, that's the trouble. It makes less and less people dedicated to really get down and... More »

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Rolling Stones • Beatles • rock bands • Pink Floyd • Guitar Hero • Rock Band • rock music • video games • Jay-ZTV • Bill Wyman

TECH REVIEW

 Rock Band Matures 
 With Beatles Edition 

Game is good, clean cross-generational fun

Sep 7, 09 5:06 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Beatles: Rock Band successfully brings the winning music-game formula to one of rock’s biggest names, writes Elizabeth Landau for CNN. Designed to be played by as many as six, the game "does make for a great time and will probably be a hit at parties." Meanwhile,... More »

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baby boomer • Beatles • Rock Band • video game reviews • video games • tech review • Jay-ZTV


 Playing Tetris 
 Boosts Brain 
 Power 

Study claims game
has building blocks
for better grey matter

Sep 2, 09 6:15 AM CDT
(Newser) - Playing Tetris leaves people's brains better-equipped to deal with more than just an onslaught of falling blocks, according to a new study. Researchers—funded by the video game's makers—took brain scans of adolescent girls before and after three months of daily Tetris playing and found that some parts of... More »

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brain • neurology • arcade games • video games • Tetris

Iran Launches Islamic
Video Games


Aug 21, 09 5:54 AM CDT
(Newser) - Video game developers are in Cologne for one of Europe's biggest gaming conventions, and one booth is standing out: the Iranian National Foundation for Computer Games, which is trying to get a foothold in the West. The games have a decidedly nationalist slant, reports the BBC. One game is a... More »

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Iran • games • Cologne • video game developers • video games

Video Games: The New Prozac

Classic time-wasters seem to ease the symptoms of depression in studies

Aug 18, 09 10:26 AM CDT
(Newser) - If depression's got you down, it might be time to turn to your Wii over your wee blue pills, reports the Washington Post in a look at how video games might ease the disease. For one depression sufferer, Bejeweled was "a big help in getting through to the next... More »

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depression • mental health • psychology • video games • Jay-ZTV

 The 10 Best iPhone Games 

PC World finds the best shooters, puzzle and sports games

Aug 11, 09 6:06 PM CDT
(Newser) - The App Store has thousands programs for sale. Which are worth your time and money? PC World sifts through the junk to give you the best games:
  1. Real Soccer 2009. A superb game with intuitive controls.
  2. Strategery. A single and multi-player “board” game in the vein of
... More »

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video games

Tech Review

Upgraded Remote Gives Wii New Spark

MotionPlus yields more accurate control, heralds things to come

Aug 5, 09 11:12 AM CDT
(Newser) - With sales slowing, the Wii needs a shot in the arm, and Nintendo thinks it’s found one with Wii MotionPlus, a little accessory that plugs into the bottom of the controller, giving it a gyroscope that can detect more subtle motions. The results are nice, writes Katherine Boehret for... More »

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Microsoft • Nintendo Wii • video games • tech review • Wii • remote control • Project Natal • motion sensor • gyroscope • MotionPlus

(Newser) - Seniors are wholeheartedly embracing Wii Bowling as a fun social activity mercifully devoid of the weight of an actual ball, the Chicago Tribune reports. “Can you think of anything better to do?” says the president of a league at a Chicago-area retirement community. “It's the piece de ... More »

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sports • elderly • Nintendo Wii • retirement communities • video games • seniors • bowling • league

iPhone App Offers
School Shooter Game

Critics wonder how, why Apple approved

Jul 20, 09 11:45 AM CDT
(Newser) - A new iPhone game that glorifies school shootings somehow got through the Apple screeners, PC World reports. “Zombie School,” from the just-as-politically-incorrect company Retarded Arts, lets players pick off “zombie” cheerleaders, principals, and quarterbacks from atop a “zombie shooting tower.” Worse, adds TechCrunch, is the... More »

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iPhone • school shooting • iPhone applications • video games • school shootings

glossies

Video Games May
Stave Off Mental Decline


Jul 11, 09 7:23 PM CDT
(Newser) - Shelling goblins and building medieval empires may be perfect ways to stave off cognitive decline, Anita Hamilton writes in Time. Research already shows that challenging tasks can keep brains sharp in old age, but now multi-million-dollar studies are getting the elderly to play video games—not puzzle or math games,... More »

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elderly • brain • cognitive decline • cognitive development • video games • cognitive enhancement

OPINION

 The Top Arcade Classics 

Star Wars impressed, but Donkey Kong was barrels of fun

Jul 7, 09 7:15 PM CDT
(Newser) - They may seem primitive alongside your Wii, but lest we forget the glory days of arcade games, Peter Hartlaub counts down the best in the San Francisco Chronicle. The top five:
  1. Donkey Kong: 30 years on, “they’re making documentaries about this incredible video game,” whose barrel-throwing
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
entertainment • list • Donkey Kong • arcade games • Star Wars • video games • X-Men

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