holiday 2010
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Kids 6-12 want iPads and iPod touches, survey says
Go figure -- this holiday season, kids want the priciest, hottest consumer electronics going. That's according to a new Nielsen survey, which says that across the demographic of kids 6-12, the iPad is the hottest gift in town, with 31 percent angling for a future purchase of Apple's tablet. The iPod touch is another big gift want as well, topping both the Nintendo DS and the Sony PSP this year. And the iPhone is also on the list, with 20 percent of those polled hoping to see a smartphone under the tree. I don't have kids, but it seems a little nuts to me that six to twelve year olds are hoping for devices like the iPad and the iPhone. Then again, when I was a kid, there was nothing we wanted more than a new SNES or a Sega Genesis, and we still wound up getting things like books and sweaters anyway. So just because these kids want a big ticket Apple device doesn't necessarily mean it'll be showing up under the tree later this year. But you never know -- those kids go to school for like eight hours a day, right? Maybe while they're away at school, Mom and Dad get to use the iPad for themselves.
Frostburgh holiday comet headed for LEGO Universe
In the mood for a snowy throwdown? Netdevil and Gazilion have just the thing for you LEGO Universe players -- an entirely new wintry wonderland named Frostburgh! The new area is actually situated on an icy comet that will open up on November 30th, offering players a whole new area to explore in honor of LEGO Universe's winter holiday, Frostivus. In fact, there will be a festive new mission every day for the entire month that Frostburgh will be orbiting near Nimbus Station, as well as all new holiday NPCs to meet with. Aside from the new holiday quests, players will additionally have the chance to get into snowball fights, build gingerbread houses, open presents, pick up fun wintry stuff for their minifigs, and tame new reindeer pets. Additionally, the Vertigo Loop racetrack is in for a snowy storm of its own: Icy road conditions and evil snowmen are on the forecast, which will create new challenges for racers. For those who manage to make it through the hazardous road conditions, new achievements and special Frostivus cars await! As a preview of the chilly LEGO Universe fun that kicks offt next week, we've gathered up a handful of screenshots in the gallery below, or you can check out the Frostburgh trailer after the break! %Gallery-49493%
Retailers: Gran Turismo 5 to miss Christmas release
Today was the day we were supposed to finally, maybe play Gran Turismo 5 -- not even Walmart, it seems, can get over the latest delay. A search for the game today on the retailer's site turned up an "In Stock" result (pictured above); though clicking through to the product prompted only a pre-order option. While there remains no definitive release date for the comically-delayed sim racer, a Sony representative reiterated in a statement to Joystiq today that the publisher is "still aiming for this holiday" to launch GT5. Sony has backed up this target window by recently updating retailers, which passed the information along to their customers. Specifically, Amazon has notified GT5 pre-orderers of a "new delivery estimate based on the new release date" -- that date being December 31, 2010. (A full copy of one such email is posted after the break.) Although there are exceptions (first-party Nintendo games tend to be released on Sundays), almost all video games are released on Tuesdays -- just like today -- in the U.S. And though Amazon appears to be acting on a date provided by the publisher, Sony confirmed December 31 is just a placeholder. "As far as the Amazon date goes," a Sony representative told us, "retailers have arbitrary dates that get listed to coincide with any given title's launch window if we haven't provided a specific date. So it's completely driven from their side [...] A placeholder if you will." Similarly, GameStop and Target now list January 1, 2011 placeholder release dates for GT5 (whereas GameFly is sticking with "TBD," for now). Technically, you can get away with extending the holiday season into early January, and by all accounts, GT5 is still on track to meet this rather dubious date range. According to retailer expectations, however, no gamer -- big or small -- is going to be unwrapping Gran Turismo 5 from under the Christmas tree, or from any other location their loved ones might stack their presents this holiday. Unless, of course, Sony can pull off a last-minute miracle.
Rumor: Apple retail app to offer "check-ins," connect employees and customers
MacStories has heard an interesting rumor: that Apple's recent work in location-based networking and "check-in" software will be used inside of Apple's retail stores, specifically to provide better service from employees there. Not a lot is known yet (and MacStories doesn't reveal the source of the info, though presumably it comes from someone who works in or with Apple retail), but the rumor says that Apple would provide an app that's specifically designed to help coordinate the experience of visiting an Apple Store. A customer could check in and set up appointments directly from the app, get push notifications, and even see photos of employees assigned to help them. Employees could also use the app to track customers in the store and receive information about what they were there for. It all sounds very interesting -- we know for a fact that Apple employees went through some training just recently for the upcoming holiday season, so this app could have been one of the topics discussed. Something like this would definitely streamline things at the Apple Store, and move from the very ad hoc way of splitting up customers and employees to a more directed kind of connection. We'll have to see what Apple reveals as we move closer to this year's holiday sales season.
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood announced and detailed by Ubisoft
Click to Colosseum-size This morning, Ubisoft officially announced Ezio's return to the Assassin's Creed franchise, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. Though the game was outed and cursorily detailed in some placeholder box art last week, the official press release shared some specifics: the single-player campaign ("set in the living, breathing, unpredictable city of Rome") is expected to last 15 hours, and sees Ezio recruiting and training "promising young Assassins" for deployment across the historical capital. Rather than using money earned to bolster a villa, you'll fix up Rome itself, which will change Ezio's social standing, unlock missions and curry favor with various factions. The release promises collaboration with Da Vinci, Machiavelli, and Caterina Sforza, and describes new "secret weapons." Ubi is throwing in poison darts, parachutes, hidden blades and guns, not to mention an "advanced flying machine" -- which is presumably useful in more than a single mission this time. Multiplayer -- developed by Ubisoft Annecy, who created the online component of Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory -- is said to feature "multiple authentic character classes" (presumably the characters seen in the gallery below) each of whom will use "signature weapons and killing moves." We'll look for more details and a more specific release date than "Holiday 2010" at E3, perhaps on a giant advertisement emblazoned on the side of the convention center. %Gallery-92693%
Sony Europe: Don't worry, Gran Turismo 5 will be out before Christmas. Maybe. (We hope.)
The vice president in charge of "Southern Europe" (read: Spain, Portugal) at Sony Computer Entertainment isn't a man to mince words. No sir, James Armstrong answered his recent interview question from Canarias Al Dia on the subject of Gran Turismo 5's release date with rock solid certainty: "We believe that we will launch the product this Autumn, before the holiday, though this hasn't been decided yet" [our translation]. Alright, so Armstrong wasn't exactly 100 percent nailing down a date for the game that's been delayed more than a few times (Sony most recently pushed back its Japanese release to an unknown date). However, it is nice to see someone at Sony saying the sim might actually see release before the end of this console cycle. Oh, and in case you were wondering, he also puts doubt on the use of Sony's Motion Controller in the game, so at least we've got that knowledge to console us in the meantime. %Gallery-71410% [Via GT Planet, Videogamer.com]
