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Fallout 3 Censored

November 6th 2008 08:16
So, Australia has has rejected Fallout 3 becuase of drug references. The game has to be edited so that Australia will approve the game, but since one country rejected the game, everyone has to suffer the censorship.

An issue was raised concerning references to real world, proscribed drugs in the game, and we subsequently removed those references and replaced them with fictional names. To avoid confusion among people in different territories, we decided to make those substitutions in all versions of the game, in all territories. I didn't want people continuing to assume the version in Australia was some altered version when it's not. There are no references to real world drugs in any version of Fallout 3."


It all started with Fallout 3 was refused a classification by the Australian Office of Film and Literature becuase of the use of morphine for limb pains . According to the Office’s guidelines, “material promoting or encouraging proscribed drug use” is refused classification.

In mid-August a revision was made so that the game could get a rating in Australia. And, although everyone thought that the revision was only going to be for Australia, but the VP of PR and marketing says that the revisions will be released in other territories to include the US and Europe.

We want to make sure folks understand that the Australian version of Fallout 3 is identical to both the UK and North American versions in every way, on every platform.

The revision basically removed the references of morphine, and replaced it with fictional names. They want Australians to know that everyone will see the substitions, and not just them.

I didn't want people continuing to assume the version in Australia was some altered version when it's not.” Finally, he explained that, “There are no references to real world drugs in any version of Fallout 3.


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New Wii Console?

November 4th 2008 08:08
Although, Microsoft and Sony have tweaking their console SKUs, Nintendo has refused to alter the Wii SKU. I mean, with the tremendous success of the console, there hasn't been much need to alter or change anything.

Well, there are rumors that Nintendo is going to alter the Wii SKU. A few people at Codename Revolution have found a UPC code that one anonymous source claims is the new Wii console SKU.

It's thought that the new Wii SKU will be the "Wii Play 'n Learn," which is thought to be aimed at younger gamers with an educational slant.

If you check out the gaming forums, it's thought that maybe the new Wii console SKU will include Big Brain Academy and possibly Wii Play.

There is still a good bit of speculation and rumors for hte time being, but it's definitely something that Wii lovers should watch out for....

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Californians Sue Over Xbox 360 Flaw

November 2nd 2008 18:59
It was bound to happen at some point in time. A lawsuit has been filled over an XBOX 360 flaw. Silly, if you ask me, but hey, some people find their gaming more of a passion that I do. California inhabitants filled the lawsuit becuase of the Xbox 360 Ring of Death, or RROD.

Basically, the lawsuit alleges that there too many Xbox 360 consoles have experienced hardware failures, and that Microsoft knowingly manufactured the faulty game consoles.

As evidence, the lawsuit uses articles from various gaming publications and sources to include dailygamenews.com, VentureBeat, Digital Media, and Yahoo! All of the publications, as with others, state that Microsoft knew about the faulty hardware as far back as November 2005. The publications state that Microsoft knew that about 50% of the Xbox 360 consles were defective.

The lawsuit seeks a court order to force Microsoft to pay off the disenfranchised Xbox 360 owners with all the profits that they made from selling the console. A RROD refund, so to speak.

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Black Friday Video Game Deals

October 28th 2008 13:43
Black Friday is a huge shopping even for so many people and families. I mean there are many people who do all or their shopping on Black Friday, and for those of you who are gamers or those of you who know gamers, this is a great day for you to get your video games and video game consoles on sale for great prices. You will be able to find some really nice deals if you just do a little research as to what stores will have the best deals.

So, before you go shopping this Black Friday, you want to make sure that you've got all the video game and console deals marked down and what store has the best deals. It'll make your shopping trip much simpler in the long run. So below, I've found a list of the video game and console deals that you will be able to find for Best Buy, Circuit City, Game Stop, K Mart, Wal Mart, and FYE, Just remember that these deals may vary slightly with your city and store, but this will be a good place that you can start.

I would recommend that you check out blackfriday.com for more deals that you will be able to find, but for the most part, the following list should get you started with your main shopping.


Best Buy
Nintendo DS
Cooking Mama Video Game - $9.99
Kim Possible Video Game - $14.99
Legend Of Zelda Bundle With Free Starter Kit - $149.99
Nintendogs Bundle With Free Starter Kit - $149.99
MLB 2K7 Video Game - $9.99
Pirates of the Caribbean Video Game - $9.99
Nintendo Wii
Brunswick Pro Bowling - $19.99
Chicken Shoot Video Game - $14.99
Rapala Tournament Fishing - $19.99
Sims 2 Pets Video Game - $14.99
Sonic Secret Rings - $19.99
SSX Blur Video Game - $14.99
Playstation 2
React Legacy Guitar with Pedal - $39.99
Grand Theft Auto San Andreas Video Game - $9.99
Guitar Hero II Video Game - $24.99
Midnight Club 3 Video Game - $9.99
New Brunswick Pro Bowling Video Game - $4.99
Spiderman 3 Video Game - $14.99
Stacked Video Game - $4.99
Flickr Image by ShadowKris
Sony PlayStation 3
40GB Game Console With Free NBA 08 Game - $399.99
Madden NFL 07 Video Game - $9.99
Sony PSP
Grand Theft Auto Video Game - $9.99
Replay - $4.99
XBox 360
Call of Duty 3 Video Game - $19.99
Console w/Guitar Hero II And Controller - $349.99
Def Jam Icon Video Game - $14.99
Ghost Recon 2 Video Game - $19.99
Gun Video Game - $4.99
Spiderman 3 Video Game - $19.99
Stuntman Video Game - $19.99
Tony Hawk’s Projects Video Game - $14.99
XBox
Destroy All Humans 2 Video Game - $4.99
The Incredibles Video Game - $4.99


Circuit City
Nintendo DS
Cake Mania Video Game - $9.99
Cooking Mama Video Game - $9.99
Console w/Nintendogs Best Friends Game - $139.99
Console w/Zelda Game - $139.99
Nintendo Wii
Happy Feet Video Game - $9.99
Mario Strikers Charged Video Game w/$10 CC Gift Card - $49.99
Racing Wheel - $2.99
Red Steel Video Game - $9.99
Sports Set - $9.99
Super Mario Galaxy Video Game - $34.99
Sony Playstation 2
Arena Football Video Game - $4.99
Bully Video Game - $9.99
Console w/Free Controller - $129.99
Ford vs Chevy Video Game - $4.99
From Russia With Love 007 Video Game - $4.99
Guitar Hero II Bundle - $59.99
Flickr Image
Guitar Hero III Bundle w/Free $10 Gift Card - $89.99
Madden 08 Video Game - $14.99
Pinball Video Game - $4.99
Star Wars Battlefront II Video Game - $9.99
Xtreme Bowling Video Game - $4.99
Sony Playstation 3 40GB Console w/Free Controller & 5 Blu-Ray Movies - $399.99
Sony Playstation PSP
Core System - $169.98
Bust A Move Video Game - $4.99
Limited Edition Daxter Entertainment Pack - $199.99
XBox 360
Assassins Creed Video Game w/$10 CC Gift Card - $59.99
Call of Duty 2 Video Game - $9.99
Call of Juarez Video Game - $9.99
Guitar Hero II Bundle - $59.99
Halo 3 Video Game w/$10 Gift Card - $59.99
Project Gotham Racing 4 - $44.99
Pro w/Free Wireless Controller & Two Games - $349.99
XBox
Fable Video Game - $4.99


Game Stop
Assorted Playstation 2 Games $10 Off - $9.99
Assorted Playstation 2 Games $10 Off - $19.99
Assorted Playstation 2 Games $10 Off - $29.99
Assorted PSP Games $15-25 off - $14.99
Assorted Xbox 360 Games $10 off - $10 off
Buy 2 Used Games or Accessories and Get 1 Free - B2 G1
Flickr Image by midnightglory
Nintendo DSD
Diner Dash or Naruto - $19.99
Bundles (Nintendogs or Zelda) - $149.99
Free Sylus & Case with Purchase of DS & Mario Party DS - $0.00
Nintendo Wii
Sports Pack Console Stand or Remote Charger - $9.99
Rockstar Table Tennis - $29.99
Playstation 2
Cobra Racing Wheel - $19.99
Free $30 Gift Card w/ Purchase of System - $129.99
Frontman Wireless Guitar - $39.99
Singstar Bundle Pack - $149.99
Playstation 3
Blu-Ray Remote - $9.99
Virtua Tennis 3 - $19.99
Wireless Controller - $19.99
Sony PSP
Rainbox Six Vegas - $9.99
Bundles (Daxter or Star Wars) - $199.99
Tomb Raider - $19.99
Virtua Tennis 3 - $9.99
Xbox 360
Drive FX Racing Wheel - $39.99
Dynasty Warriors Empires - $19.99
Mortal Kombat Unchained for Sony PSP - $9.99
Power Kit - $9.99


K Mart
Nintendo DS
Brain Age 2 - $19.99
Carrying Case - $7.99
Flash Focus - $19.99
Mario Party DS - $29.99
My Word Coach - $29.99
Lite Bundles - $149.99
Zelda: Phanton Hourglass - $34.99
Nintendo Wii
Carnival Games - $39.99
Cars: Mater-National - $39.99
Harry Potter - $29.99
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games - $49.99
Flickr Image by La Ignorancia Mata
Nintendo Wii Console- $249.99
Petz Horsez 2 - $49.99
Avatar - $39.99
Spongebob Squarepants: Attack of the Toybots - $39.99
Super Mario Galaxy - $49.99
Tomb Raider Anniversary - $39.99
Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground - $49.99
Wii Dual-Charge Wiimote Station - $29.99
Wii Messenger Bag - $29.99
Wii Nunchuk Controller - $19.99
Wii Remote - $39.99
Wii Wireless Sensor Bar - $19.99
Wii Zapper w/ Link’s Crossbow Training Game - $19.99
Playstation 2
Bee Movie Game - $29.99
Three-Pack Of Games - $8.99
WWE Smackdown 2008 - $49.99
Spiderman Friend or Foe - $29.99
Playstation 3
80GB MotorStorm Pack - $499.99
Charge Link Cables - $9.99
Dual Charge - $24.99
Sony PSP
Pro Duo 1GB Gaming Memory Stick - $23.99
Travel Case - $19.99
SOCOM - $39.99
The Simpsons Game - $39.99
WWE Smackdown 2008 - $39.99
Xbox 360
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - $59.99
Guitar Hero II Bundle - $59.99
Half Life 2: The Orange Box - $39.99
Halo 3 - $59.99
Madden 08 - $49.99
Medal of Honor: Airborne - $49.99
NBA Live 08 - $49.99
Need for Speed: Pro Street - $59.99
Skate - $49.99
20GB Bundle w/ 2 Games - $349.99
Dual-Charge Station w/ 2 NiMH Batteries - $29.99
Wireless Controller - $39.99


Target
Nintendo DS
Lite Starter Kit - $28.00
Pirates of the Caribbean - $17.00
Star Wars II - $17.00
Special Edition Nintendo DS Lite Bundle - $149.99
Nintendo Wii
Big Brain Academy Wits Degree - $28.00
Boogie - $38.00
Pirates of the Caribbean - $28.00
Smarty Pants - $28.00
Playstation 2
Flickr Image by lovebuzz
Boogie - $38.00
Guitar Hero III Bundle - $85.00
Pirates of the Caribbean - $17.00
Star Wars II - $17.00
Psyclone Wireless Guitar - $38.00
Playstation 3
Call Duty 4 - $48.00
Heavenly Sword - $48.00
NBA 2K8 - $28.00
NCAA08 Football - $38.00
Pirates of the Caribbean - $28.00
Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground - $38.00
Skate - $48.00
Sony PSP
Core System - $169.99
Xbox 360
Call Duty 4 - $48.00
Gears of the War - $38.00
Halo 3 Special Edition Console - $399.99
NBA 2K8 - $28.00
NCAA08 Football - $38.00
Pirates of the Caribbean - $28.00
Spiderman: Friend or Foe - $38.00
Star Wars II - $17.00
The Orange Box - $48.00
Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground - $38.00
Wireless Headset - $48.00
Project Gotham Racing 4 - $48.00
Saints Row - $17.00
Skate - $48.00


Wal Mart
Nintendo DS
The Legend Of Zelda Phantom Hourglass - $34.88
Lite Console With Nintendogs Bundle - $149.87
Lite Console With Zelda Bundle - $149.87
Nintendo Wii
Super Mario Galaxy - $49.88
Playstation 2
Madden 08 - $19.88
Nascar 08 - $19.88
NBA Live 08 - $19.88
NCAA Football 08 - $19.88
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 Game - $19.88
Guitar Hero I And II Bundle - $39.82
Bundle With 2 Controllers And ATV4 Game - $129.00
Wireless Guitar Controller - $29.87
Playstation 3
Rockband Special Edition With Full Instrument Set - $169.92
XBox 360
Arcade Console Bundle - $279.92
Xbox
Rockband Special Edition With Full Instrument Set - $169.92


FYE
Buy WWE Smackdown vs. RAW 08 and Get a Free DVD - B1G1
Flickr Image by electronization
Nintendo DS
Brain Age 2 Video Game - $19.99
DK: Jungle Climber Video Game - $29.99
Mario Party DS Video Game - $29.99
Rose System with Nintendogs - $129.99
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass Video Game - $34.99
Nintendo Gold DS Bundle with Zelda - $129.99
Nintendo Wii
DragonBallZ Budokai Tenkaichi 3 Video Game - $49.99
High School Musical: Sing It! Bundle with Mic - $49.99
Mario And Sonic At The Olympic Games Video Game - $49.99
Super Mario Galaxy Video Game - $49.99
Video Game System - $249.99
PSP
Video Game System Bundle w/2 Games - $199.97
Sony Playstation 2
Crash Of The Titans ‘07 Video Game - $19.99
Madden NFL ‘08 Video Game - $19.99
SNBA Live ‘08 Video Game - $19.99
The Legend Of Spryo - The Eternal Night Video Game - $19.99
Video Game System - $99.99
Sony Playstation 3
80GB Console w/Motorstorm - $499.99
XBox 360
Console Bundle w/4 Games - $419.97
Guitar Hero II - $59.99
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Studies: Video games can aid students

October 21st 2008 15:59
Although, not many parents want to admit it, video games can help and assist students. There has been studies performed to prove that video games can help students because they actually increase a person's brain activity and thinking abilities. When playing a video game, the person must be able to multi-task. I mean, not video game is as simple as running a straight line. Even Pac Man requires serious brain work since you have to eat the dots while avoiding the ghosts.

Looking at some of the video games, you'll find that they have even more brain activity and brain power than others. For example, compare Pac Man with World of Warcraft. One is actually much simpler than the other, which means the the more complicated of the two actually requires much more brain activity.

So parents, don't put away those video games just yet -- today's gamer may be tomorrow's top surgeon. Researchers who gathered in Boston for the American Psychological Association convention detailed a series of studies suggesting video games can be powerful learning tools -- from increasing younger students' problem-solving potential to improving the suturing skills of laparoscopic surgeons.

One study even looked at whether playing "World of Warcraft," the world's biggest multiplayer online game, can improve scientific thinking.

The conclusion? Certain types of video games can have benefits beyond the virtual thrills of blowing up demons.

In one Fordham University study, 122 students in fifth, sixth and seventh grades were asked to think out loud for 20 minutes while playing a game they had never seen before. Researchers studied the children's statements to see if playing the game improved cognitive and perceptual skills. While older children seemed more interested in just playing the game, younger children showed more interest in setting up a series of short-term goals needed to help them learn the game.

"The younger kids are focusing more on their planning and problem solving while they are actually playing the game, while adolescents are focusing less on their planning and strategizing and more on the here and now," said Fordham psychologist Fran Blumberg, who conducted the research last year and plans to submit it for publication. "They're thinking less strategically than the younger kids."

Studies by Iowa State University psychologist Douglas Gentile and Dr. James Rosser, head of minimally invasive surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, compared surgeons who play video games to those who don't.

The edge went to gamer surgeons, they found, even after taking into account differences in age, years of medical training and the number of laparoscopic surgeries performed. In laparoscopic procedures, surgeons use small incisions, thin surgical tools and video cameras to see inside the body.

One study of 33 laparoscopic surgeons found that those who played video games were 27 percent faster at advanced surgical procedures and made 37 percent fewer errors than those who didn't.

Advanced video game skills also were a good way to predict suturing abilities, according to their study, which was published in the Archives of Surgery in 2007.

Research Gentile and Rosser conducted for a second as yet unpublished study of 303 laparoscopic surgeons found those who played video games requiring spacial skills and hand dexterity performed better at those skills when tested later compared to surgeons who didn't play videos, Gentile said.

"The single best predictor of their skills is how much they had played video games in the past and how much they played now. Those were better predictors of surgical skills than years of training and number of surgeries performed," Gentile said. "So the first question you might ask your surgeon is how many of these (surgeries) have you done and the second question is 'Are you a gamer?'"

Some videos games even appear to sharpen scientific thinking skills.



Researchers at the University of Wisconsin at Madison looked at a random sample of 2,000 chat room posts about "World of Warcraft" to see what the players were discussing. The game is set in a fantasy world where players hunt, gather and battle to move their characters to higher levels. Players who work together succeed faster.

The research found the game encouraged scientific thinking, like using systems and models for understanding situations and using math and testing to investigate problems.

The vast majority of the discussion participants, 86 percent, shared knowledge to solve problems and more than half, 58 percent, used systematic and evaluative processes, researchers found.

The forums show that gamers are "creating an environment in which informal scientific reasoning practices are being learned," said Sean Duncan, a doctoral student who worked on the "World of Warcraft" report with lead author Constance Steinkuehler. The paper is set for publication in the Journal of Science Education and Technology.

The news wasn't all good.

Other studies confirmed earlier research that found students who played violent games tended to be more hostile, less forgiving and believed violence to be normal compared to those who played nonviolent games. And those who played more entertainment games did poorer in school and were are greater risk of obesity.
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Ok so we all should have seen it coming. Presidential candidates already advertise and campaign themselves all over the place, it was only a matter of time that they move towards video games. I mean, there are so many people that actually play video games, and most are between the ages of 13 to 25, which means those between 18 and 25 are able to vote, and you know that if they see an Obama ad, they'll think it the coolest thing that a presidential candidate put an ad on their new video game. So that'll win that vote right there. Well whatever floats their boat. It was only a matter of time until it started. Next, we'll start seeing ads in movies at the movie theater.

It increasingly looks like Barack Obama is going after bigger and bigger stakes -- and (hopefully) a bigger and bigger win. After recently putting down no less than $2 million on 30 minutes of airtime on CBS and NBC, it's just been confirmed that Obama has released what appears to be the first in-game political advertisement. You can find the ad while playing Electronic Arts' "Burnout Paradise" on XBox 360. National Public Radio also reported this morning that the Obama campaign is "running ads in 18 video games, targeting 10 states that allow early voting


[ Click here to read more ]
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