By Nadia Oxford on Jan 20, 2011 in Apple, iPhone and iPad, Nintendo
0
Video game history is dotted with examples of instances where a system, company, or game seemingly became a force overnight. But to date, there hasn’t been a game-changer quite like Apple’s App Store. Two years ago, the iOS’s digital distribution service was a curious distraction for techies with an affinity for cutting edge toys. Now, it’s in the vernacular of the entire developed world. Need to look up directions, figure out a tip, or hurl...
read more
By Nadia Oxford on Jan 19, 2011 in Apple, Business, Nintendo 3DS
0
Nintendo’s seeming aloofness on issues pertaining to hardware design can be maddening, but also exciting (they’re obviously doing this to drive us crazy). The company is talented at rolling out hardware innovations, but at the same time, it’s set in its ways. While the industry changes around it in great bounds, Nintendo takes tiny steps. That’s the maddening part. But there are also small hints here and there indicate Nintendo is starting...
read more
By Nadia Oxford on Jan 14, 2011 in Business, Digital Distribution, Game Design
1
Success in the video games industry is usually measured by sales numbers. The faster those numbers are racked up, the greater the perceived success. Roughly 5.6 million copies of Call of Duty: Black Ops sold in 24 hours? Congratulations Activision, you have a smash hit on your hands! Medal of Honor sold a measly 500,000 units in one day? Ohhh, better start digging in your medicine cabinet for those cyanide pills, EA. No, long-term sales mean nothing: All that...
read more
By Nadia Oxford on Jan 7, 2011 in Business, Cloud Computing, Digital Distribution
0
What will the online gaming market look like by 2012? According to a recent report put together by analyst firm ABI Research, it’s going to have a whole lot of dollar signs stapled to it. $20 billion worth, to be exact.
Analyst Michael Inouye believes the biggest area of growth will be China, though the country’s pay-as-you-go business model for online games like World of Warcraft is significantly different from North America and Europe’s...
read more
By Nadia Oxford on Jan 6, 2011 in Business, Culture, Game Design
5
Making gamers happy isn’t easy: We like to complain a lot. Pleasing us is harder than ever because of the sheer volume of choices we have, not to mention the widening chasm between Japanese and Western-developed offerings. Everybody–gamers and developers alike–has their own idea about what constitutes a “Japanese” title versus a Western one, and grand generalizations abound as a result. If you’ve ever browsed through a game...
read more