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August 2008
- Realistic NCAA Football Rosters Are Video-Game Gold
  
  Ars Technica | Aug 27, 08 2:40 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - College-sports video games offer players and teams carefully designed to mirror real-world counterparts, but NCAA regulations bar use of college athletes’ names in-game. But, Ars Technica finds, fans are willing to pay those who put in the time-consuming work of compiling rosters, with one company grossing $150,000 last year selling memory cards and downloadable files that put names to players in Electronic Arts’ football franchise. More »
- Startup Goes After Nintendo Over Patents
  
  Wall Street Journal | Aug 20, 08 5:50 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A Maryland tech firm claims that Nintendo stole some of its technology for the popular Wii console, the Wall Street Journal reports. Hillcrest Laboratories filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission, alleging that Nintendo infringed on patents for motion-sensing technology. It wants to ban Wii consoles from being imported to the US, and a lawsuit is pending. Nintendo had no comment on the complaint. More »
- Midnight Means Madden Mania
  
  Philadelphia Inquirer | Aug 11, 08 8:20 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - With the clock ticking down to the midnight release of the 2009 edition of EA Sports’ mega-popular "Madden NFL" video game, millions of eager gamers are excited to dig in—but not as excited as the manufacturer, which has made $2.4 billion from the franchise since 1995. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports on the anticipation on both sides. More »
- Gaming Sets Hopes on Teenage 'Guitar Hero' Whiz
  
  New York Times | Aug 9, 08 2:33 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The video game industry is ready for its closeup, and a shy Minnesota teenager just might provide the face. Chris Chike, 17, is a wizard on "Guitar Hero" who has millions of online fans, a world title, a growing list of endorsements, and even a few marriage proposals, the New York Times notes. Industry leaders hope he can be gaming's version of skateboarder Tony Hawke, who took a fringe sport mainstream. More »
- Wii Want to ... Train Surgeons
  
  Guardian (UK) | Aug 8, 08 4:34 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Nintendo’s popular Wii console is finding new uses in the hands of surgeons. The Guardian takes a look at an Arizona hospital that's making use of the Wii’s precise, motion-sensitive controller to hone motor skills for more serious applications. In a program for doctors being trained to do minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery, those who regularly played on the Wii scored 48% higher on tool control than those who didn't. More »
- Hollywood Getting Its Videogame On
  
  Portfolio | Aug 7, 08 4:36 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Videogames, once the bane of Hollywood studios, are making a comeback—and Disney appears to be leading the pack, reports Portfolio . Facing flat box-office sales, dwindling DVD revenues, and fickle TV audiences, the entertainment industry is seeking better ways to make a buck. That means revisiting the lucrative game market and investing big in original content. More »
- Distributor Pulls Grand Theft After Murder
  
  Reuters | Aug 4, 08 4:16 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A video-game distributor is pulling Grand Theft Auto IV from shelves in Thailand after a teenager robbed and murdered a cab driver while attempting to re-create his experiences in the game, Reuters reports. The 18-year-old, currently in custody, has shown no signs of mental illness. He faces death by lethal injection if convicted. More »
- Inconceivable! Princess Bride Game a Treat
  
  Variety | Aug 1, 08 2:15 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Despite short gameplay and a $20 price tag, the Princess Bride PC game "delivers the goods" for fans, writes Matt Peckham in Variety. A light-hearted Flash adaptation, it remains faithful to the beloved 1987 swashbuckling spoof, even casting many original actors to voice their iconic roles. The game "stands to do brisk business if publisher Worldwide Biggies can get the word out." More »
July 2008
- Gamers Vie for World Title
  
  NPR | Jul 28, 08 7:52 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Video gamers, get ready: Tonight will determine your world champion as Los Angeles hosts the finals in the Championship Gaming Series. The evening will be broadcast globally—complete with a breathless play-by-play announcer, NPR reports. Players, all of whom are paid for their efforts, will compete in a variety of genres, including racing, fighting, and shooting, in their quest for the prize. More »
- Rock Video Games Compete for Top Acts
  
  Rolling Stone | Jul 26, 08 4:10 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Aerosmith didn’t release an album in July, but still had their best sales week ever thanks to Guitar Hero: Aerosmith , which bowed to a cool $25 million. Video games have become music’s hottest market, Rolling Stone reports: Rock Band and Guitar Hero are battling for top acts, and musicians are eager to toss in their tunes. More »
- A Possible Cure for BlackBerry Thumbs
  
  Laptop Magazine | Jul 25, 08 3:23 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - If your thumbs ache after hours of texting and gaming, a new gadget may be able to whip your digits back into shape. The Xtensor "exercise device" helps geeks strengthen their wrists and hands or rehabilitate injuries, reports Laptop Magazine , but reviewer Joanna Stern acknowledges that she hasn't had the $39.95 device long enough to report on whether it works as intended. More »
- More Girls Get Into Gaming
  
  San Jose Mercury News | Jul 21, 08 7:53 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - After years of male dominance, the video game industry is seeing a growing number of girls pick up the controllers, SiliconValley.com reports. More than half of "casual" PC card and puzzle-type game users are female, but girl-play goes further: More than half of Nintendo Wii players are now women, and 48% of US women either have a Wii system or have asked for one, the company says. More »
- Microsoft Aims to Broaden Xbox Appeal
  
  New York Times | Jul 15, 08 10:18 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Microsoft hopes to discard the image of its Xbox 360 as a distinctly young, overwhelmingly male form of entertainment and push more casual experiences toward a wider, mainstream audience, the New York Times reports. Microsoft debuted more accessible entertainment fare at the annual E3 convention yesterday, including features to share photos and stream Netflix movies, as well as family-friendly games. More »
- Xbox Price Cut to Clear Way for New Model
  
  Seattle Post-Intelligencer | Jul 14, 08 2:10 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Microsoft is slashing the price of its Xbox 360 video game system to clear shelf space for a new model with a larger hard drive, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports. The long-rumored price reduction knocks $50 off the $350 price of the 20-gigabyte model. The new pricetag places the Xbox 360 at $50 more than Nintendo’s wildly popular Wii system, and $100 below Sony’s Playstation 3 console. More »
- Video-Game Industry Scores Big-Name Composers
  
  BusinessWeek | Jul 9, 08 3:30 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Far from the shrill beeps of a decade ago, video-game music has come into its own with compositions approaching the maturity of film scores, BusinessWeek reports. A new wave of composers is putting time and effort into sophisticated soundtracks that mark the continuing expansion of video games as a form of entertainment. More »
- Finally, A PC Strategy Game That's A Console Winner
  
  USA Today | Jul 3, 08 6:10 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution could be the first winner among console versions of PC strategy games, Dylan Fawcett writes in USA Today . While it’s too simple for established fans, newcomers will like its fast pace. Negatives, including a confusing help menu and the strangely even matching of ancient and modern militaries, don’t make the game any less worth buying, Fawcett says. More »
June 2008
- Metal Gear Solid 4 Is a Winner
  
  USA Today | Jun 27, 08 7:11 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - If you’re a fan of Metal Gear Solid , you’ll love the fourth and final chapter, Marc Saltzman writes in USA Today ; if you’re not, you might be bored stiff by the “cinematic sequences, confusing storylines and campy dialogue” of Guns of the Patriots . But don’t let that dissuade you: MGS4 is “probably one of the best-looking video games to date.” More »
- Game Over for Teens 'Acting Out' Grand Theft Auto
  
  New York Post | Jun 27, 08 2:50 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Six bored Long Island teenagers have been busted for acting out the violent themes of the controversial video game Grand Theft Auto IV with a real life spree of break-ins, a mugging, a beating and a carjacking, police charge. "These teens have difficulty separating fact from fiction, fantasy from reality," a detective told the New York Post . "It was quite alarming." More »
- Chill Chips May Take Heat Off Computers
  
  ComputerWorld | Jun 25, 08 3:49 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Researchers have developed a tiny refrigeration system to keep computers cool, an invention that will do away with the clunky fan currently used—and potentially lead to much smaller and faster devices, Computerworld reports. The team at Purdue University expects the technology to be ready for installation within 2 years. More »
- Grand Theft Auto Sex Scenes Fail to Excite
  
  New York Times | Jun 25, 08 8:34 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Moral outrage that sparked a class action lawsuit over the hidden sex scenes in the wildly popular Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has failed to translate into complaints, the New York Times reports. Despite the millions of copies of the game sold to date, only 2,676 offended owners have stepped forward to file a claim under a settlement agreement reached with the game’s makers. More »