Archive for April 24th, 2008
Posted by: admin in Tech News
Once again, Nintendo released a quarterly earnings report that not only solidifies the company as a major player going into the next generation, but shows that it’s certainly onto something with both the Wii and the DS. But according to that same report, not everything is perfect with the company’s handheld system.
According to Nintendo, it’s only forecasting 9 percent growth going forward as sales of the DS continue to slide and expectations of higher sales continue to dwindle. Nintendo contends that DS sales could fall to 28 million units from 30.3 million units sold.
Mario is coming in a big way to the DS.
(Credit: Nintendo) And while some market analysts are disappointed with the news of the DS slowing and the company itself not growing as fast as they would like, they fail to fully understand the nature of the beast they’re trying to gauge.
If analysts were worried about the Wii, I would probably concur. But why would anyone be worried about Nintendo’s plans for the DS? Will it sell fewer units this year? Maybe. But if nothing else, I think that we’ll soon find that Nintendo has something up its sleeve that will jump-start sales and send those same, misguided analysts into a frenzy.
…
source The Digital Home
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Posted by: admin in Gaming
When it was revealed last week that the massive secret Ed Boon and the boys were clutching so close was the announcement of a Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe game, the reception here at Destructoid seemed lukewarm at ideal. Actually, scratch that… most of you pretty much panned it as a joke.
Considering that MK was single-handedly responsible for birthing the ESRB in the first place, that stance was somewhat understandable. Fatalities and blood are very much a staple of Mortal Kombat games. To learn that they may not be a part of the next installment in the series is a major disappointment. However, I just can’t see how that alone is going to change the overall enjoyment of the game. All things considered, there’s no reason why MK vs. DCU can’t melt your face off — even if you’re a gore-whore.
Get your pitchforks ready (my saber is already drawn), and hit the jump:
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Posted by: admin in Gaming
With the allowance of mods really helping out the PlayStation 3 version of Unreal Tournament III, it seems practically myopic of Microsoft to stomp its foot and ban them from the Xbox 360. Complaining of mythical, hypothetical troubles that would arise, it seems MS hasn’t noticed that the PS3 really isn’t suffering as a result of mods. Nevertheless, it still fears user-created content, probably because complete and utter, jugular-grasping control is taken from the hands of The ‘Soft itself (that and it can’t charge for extra maps so easily).
Epic’s Mark Rein is still determined, however, to include mod support on the Xbox 360, no matter how he does it. Rein said he was working with Microsoft to try and figure it out, and that mods will be included in some way, shape or form:
We’re still trying. We’re working with Microsoft to try to figure out how to support it, but regardless of what happens, mods will play a part somewhere along the line. We’ll make sure we get a fair share of mods working. We’ll figure that out.
I really wish Microsoft would just stop being babies about the whole thing. If it didn’t want to grant mods, it shouldn’t have tried to make the Xbox 360 like a Personal computer. Gamers love mods, and with consoles and personal sharing more in common than ever, it makes sense to grant them. Most gamers are ready to spit on the Xbox 360 version of UT III because it lacks a massive part of what makes the PC and PS3 versions fun. Put frankly, Microsoft is bloody stupid to continue down this ignorant, arrogant path.
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Posted by: admin in Gaming
I hate 1UP right now, sitting on top of all that delicious Splatterhouse info and slowly distributing scraps to the masses like capricious Roman emperors from on high. Ah, screw it, I will take whatever I can get.
The above image is Rick’s new in-game look for the Xbox 360/PS3 resurrection of Splatterhouse. It’s a slight departure from the more blatant Voorhees rip-off, especially the Hulk Hogan arms, but I have the ability to dig it. It has a hyper-real look that should hopefully mean we’ve got some ridiculously over-the-top, cartoony gore to look forward to.
In addition, it has been revealed that Splatterhouse is to be developed by Bottlerocket, the team that brought us Mark of Kri and Rise of the Kasai. I wasn’t actually all that keen on Kri, but I know it’s considered a generally solid action game, so it’s good to see the team has had some success in the past when it comes to combat-driven gameplay. Finally, the game is due for release mid-2009.
That’s all they’ll tell us, the fiends. When EGM hits, someone be a dear and scan everything in for your humble, UK-bound writer, please.
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Vodafone UK is offering a £10/month discount on two of their tariffs (£35/month and £40/month) when customers sign up for 18 months - they have even done a bit of research to show why this is so important!
Apparently, 52% of us Brits say that on at least one occasion, £10 had made a significant difference to them.
Top ten popular ways to spend a life changing tenner, according to Vodafone's research:
1. Lottery ticket or scratch card
2. Bet on a horse
3. Life changing book
4. Pregnancy testing kit
5. Mobile top up
6. Buying a drink for their (unbeknown to them) future wife
7. Buying flowers for their wife/wife to be
8. A bargain find at a car boot sale or antique fair
9. First driving lesson
10. Making a donation to a animal shelter when they bought their first pet
Comment: I don't even want to think how many people can claim to have done more than one of these at the same time…..
[Via: Sky News]
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SpinVox, the rather excellent voice-to-text company have mailshotted me to let me know about some of their latest stats - I thought I would share these for your edutainment:
- Our Carriers are reporting a 33% uplift in Voicemail deposits, as the calling celebration knows their message will be seen in minutes.
- 87% of people return a SpinVox message, which is driving a 10% uplift in voice and 15% in text.
- This is all equating to a 110% uplift in the voice message revenue line.
- 40% of SpinVox subscribers state they prefer unlimited 'all-you-can-eat'
conversion plans to the pay-per-conversion approach.
- The active SpinVox user base has now passed half a million and is on target to hit six million by mid 2008.
- In Q1 volumes doubled month-on-month in line with our expectations and we’re due to continue at this rate throughout the year.
Comment: this really does just confirm the strength of the voice-to-text business model, and moreover, how SpinVox are operating extremely well in this area. V-T-T is a genuinely useful service (I “use” it all the time with people dropping voicemails to me), and SpinVox should be congratulated on their success to date - well done guys (and girls)!
Check out more (including a free trial) at SpinVox's website: http://www.spinvox.com
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Motorola have gone live with an awesome competition for those of that are a bit creative with old digital video - how do you fancy winning (a) one Motorola Z10, and (b) £10,000? Yes? Then read on!
The competition
The competition is extremely easy to enter. Entrants should pick a ‘logline’ from the list below (‘logline’ being film industry speak for a one-sentence summary of a film’s plot. For example, Alien’s original logline was “Jaws in space”) and use it to form the basis for a short film of no more than 90 seconds in length. As long as they relate to the logline, films can feature any subject matter the creator chooses (subject to the rules below): funny, emotive, thought-provoking or slapstick, all are welcome. And entries won’t be judged on production value – they have the ability to be as rough and ready as the creator likes.
Step one - Entries must be posted to a YouTube group by Might 30th from where they will be put on a Motorola-branded YouTube channel. Entries in the first stage will be judged by the panel with representatives from Empire, O2, Motorola and advertising bureau Ogilvy. However, it is also an opportunity to showcase your work in front of friends and family. The makers of the top twenty films will win a MOTO Z10 phone and be named as Finalists with their videos reviewed on Empire.com.
Step two - The twenty Finalists will be invited to produce a second short film, using only their newly prized MOTO Z10. They will be given a week to create the second film which they are required to post on the web to a YouTube group by the deadline of 13th June. These entries will be featured on Empire Magazine’s website and will be reviewed by the same panel of judges. The film judged ideal by the panel of judges will be declared winner and the maker will win the main prize of £10,000. The content from successful entries may also feature in a ‘DIY movie making’ video to be produced and released by Motorola at a later date to further promote the handset.
The Prize
The 20 winners of Stage One will receive the MOTO Z10 handset with which they are required to film an additional film with a ‘logline’ of their own creation. The overall winner will receive a cash prize of £10,000. The winner will not only get the plaudits and kudos associated with winning but also the opportunity to have their work scrutinized and critiqued by an esteemed panel of judges.
Comment: this is truly cool - an excellent competition with GREAT prizes, from a Mobile Vendor that we all want to see do well. The Z10 is really great with media playback (and recording, so if you want one, and a chance to win the £10K, check out the URL below
http://www.hellomoto.co.uk
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 Following previous rumors that indicated that the next-generation iPhone would be made available in Italy without contract or carrier-lock, we're hearing that the next destination for an unlocked 3G iPhone could be Belgium.
Apple has been open to different business models for its iPhone, and it seems that the company is embracing the notion of offering unlocked versions of its iconic iPhone at premium price-points. Belgian site Astel.be is reporting that Apple is looking to bring the 3G iPhone to Belgium's three major wireless providers - Proximus, Mobistar and BASE. The carriers are stated to be preparing special, iPhone-specific wireless rate plans ahead of the anticipated launch of the next-generation iPhone.
Mobistar is apparently expected to have a two-month exclusivity window on the 3G iPhone, with the remaining Belgian carriers getting the 3G iPhone's graces by year's end.
June-ish is the rumored launch window, we'll keep our ears to the ground on this one.
[Via: AppleInsider]
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