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How old are those playing your class?
Mianii of the Ursin realm is collecting data in a forum thread on the average ages of players. She has organized the information by class, and what she has found so far is pretty interesting. Each person that posts in the thread includes their class and age and she adds it into her calculations (eww math). Currently the average age of paladins polled is 22.88, while the average age of rogues polled is 16.24. Weirdly enough, mages average at 34.74, so yay for me being ahead of the curve for once. Now before we start making conclusions based on these numbers, we have to realize she is polling forum posters, and that is a very small segment of the player population. I would love to be able to get access to this data from Blizzard, since I am sure they are storing demographics somewhere. If we had an accurate idea of the ages of the players then we could start forming generalizations about age, attitude, and class mechanics and behavior.
DS Daily: Did it work?
So we've all had a while to mess with Brain Age. We've Stroop tested and memorized lists of words and been yelled at by a floating head. Did it work? Do you feel smarter ... more aggressive ... like you could take on the world? Or can you at least do division a little more quickly? That's pretty good too.
Non-games selling non-poorly in Japan
It's no secret that Japan has got Brain Age on the brain. Brain Age and its sequel, which was just now (kind of) announced for the US, have broken all kinds of sales records and been pretty much the sole motivator for the insane success of the DS. But what is less well-known is that, in addition to driving the creation of a ton of copycat software, training fever is pervasive enough to drive sales of that stuff. In other words, Brain Age has created a market for non-games, just like Nintendo hoped it would.Gpara compiled a list of 95 DS non-games ordered by Media Create sales numbers, and NeoGAFfer Jonnyram has translated the first ten. These things don't cost much to make, and they are bringing in stacks of money. That's Economics Training at work. Or it would be if that existed. Give it a couple of weeks. Brain Age 2: 4,266,000 Brain Age: 3,403,000 Eigo Zuke (English Training): 1,937,000 Big Brain Academy 1,519,000 General Knowledge Training/Common Sense Training:1,381,000 Cooking Navi: 815,000 Kanji Test: 523,000 Tokoton Kanji Brain: 406, 000 IQ Suppli DS: 219,000 [Via NeoGAF]
My Word Coach lets you be like us (plus DS-to-Wii connectivity!) [update 1]
[Update: Fixed broken link.]Surely you've thought at some point, hunched over your keyboard because that damned essay is due tomorrow morning, that words could flow glibly and beautifully from your fingertips, as they do so often at Nintendo Wii Fanboy.All right, that was a little arrogant. We're sorry.Anyway. As you very well may know, Brain Age focused fairly heavily on the numerical side of things. Equations = sadness. Did it teach you how to express, or to inspire? Hell no. And so Ubisoft jumps into the brain training genre, with both Wii and DS versions of their literary inculcator, My Word Coach.There's an in-depth preview over at IGN, and we highly encourage you to peruse their hands-on experience. We'd also like to point out that this game features a simple and effective DS-to-Wii communication feature, in which handwriting performed via stylus is instantly translated into the Wii title, which coincidentally happens to have a far more robust handwriting recognition system than did Brain Age. Is your brain tingling in excitement? We certainly hope so.
Summon Night coming to DS
Banpresto's Summon Night series of RPG's finally made it to the U.S. last year on the Game Boy Advance. Fans of the GBA action-RPG's will be happy to know that Summon Night is getting a new entry on the DS: Summon Night: Twin Age. The original Summon Night games were strategy RPG's similar to Tactics Ogre, but this, like the GBA games, is more action-oriented. It stars two plucky youths named Aldo and Leeha who want to become great summoners-- you know, standard RPG stuff. They want to be the very best, like no one ever was. To find gems is their real test-- to use them to summon monsters is their cause.Twin Age will be released in Japan in August. No word on if Atlus will pick it up for localization.%Gallery-3357%
Brain Age for $14: a smart move
If you're not one of the approximately 12 million people training their brains in minutes a day, then you aren't truly participating in the DS cultural phenomenon. We won't put a value judgment on that decision-- some people just aren't interested in brain training, or non-traditional gaming, or math. But if you have yet to get into Brain Age for financial reasons, we may be able to help you. Circuit City is offering the game this week for $13.99, which, as anyone who has played it will tell you, is less than $19.99. Also available: Zoo Tycoon and, uh, some unknown media for other devices.Now is a great time to pick up Brain Age and see what all the fuss is about (it's about short, brain-teasing minigames!) It would make Satoru Iwata happy, and isn't that what it's really all about-- the smile on one absurdly rich man's face?
Iwata reminds Nintendo of America who's boss
(Hint: it's Iwata. Iwata is boss.) Nintendo just released their financial results briefing, which contains a transcript of a question-and-answer session with Nintendo president Satoru Iwata. Ever wondered what it would be like to work for Iwata? This quote should replace that wonder with terror: "When I received a report from the U.S. that they sold 1 million Pokémon Diamond & Pearl already, I asked them, 'why did you sell only 10,000 Brain Age last week, when Europe sold through 30,000?' This is a typical example of how I communicate with our people in the U.S."Why would Iwata be so mean in the face of ostensibly great news? Because he's a huge jerk? Probably not. For one thing, Pokémon selling a million copies doesn't mean that anyone at Nintendo of America did anything particularly well. All they had to do was release it, making sure that the word "Pokémon" was clearly visible on the box.But more importantly, Iwata isn't looking just to sell a bunch of games. He wants to expand the gaming market in the US like the DS has in Japan, and for that, Brain Age needs to get into non-gamers' hands. Then Nintendo can sell a bunch of games to them as well as to Nintendo fans. As Iwata notes in the report, 500,000 DS systems were sold in the US in March, which is a large number, but not as large as the 600,000 to 700,000 sold in Japan each month.[Via NeoGAF]
BBFC publishes research on gamer demographics, perception
The British Board of Film Classification published today research that they have conducted concerning video games. The report covers a wide aspect of gaming culture. Highlights include: Age: "Although children are beginning to start playing games at a younger age, the overall age of players is getting older. Younger games players are influenced to play particular games by peer pressure and word of mouth, but negative press coverage for a game will significantly increase its take up." Gender: "There is a sharp divide between male and female games players in their taste in games and how long they spend playing. Female games players tend to prefer 'strategic life simulation' games like The Sims and puzzle games and spend less time playing than their male counterparts; male players favour first 'person shooters' [sic] and sports games and are much more likely to become deeply absorbed in the play." Benefits of gaming: "People play games to escape from every day life and to escape to a world of adventure without risk which is under the control of the gamer, unlike the real world. Games provide a sense of achievement and are active, unlike television and films which are passive. However, games are better at developing action than building character and as such gamers tend to care less about the storyline than making progress in the game. Gamers claim that playing games is mentally stimulating and that playing develops hand eye coordination."
Xerox wants to extract demographic information from web surfers
The age of Big Brother everywhere is certainly upon us, and while we've seen (or at least heard of) tracking devices being implanted in the most unusual of places, it looks like Xerox is hoping to join the devilish fray. In an attempt to craft a demographic extractor to garner marketing dollars galore, a recently filed patent application spells out a system that utilizes software (and potentially hardware) to map users to "centroid vectors" which would determine a person's age, sex, and other "private" information simply based on their website visits. Interestingly, test cases are reportedly showing a respectable "75-percent accuracy rate" so long as a "sufficient number of pages were visited." Still, we can't imagine any tracing technology would be lawfully allowed behind the backs of law-abiding citizens (right?), but considering that even your TiVo has the potential to sell your soul to lucrative ad agencies, we wouldn't put it past 'em.[Via ArsTechnica]
New Daedalus data: girls heal and play elves, kids play Horde
This has been the common wisdom, or at least a stereotype, for quite some time, but apparently female players really are more likely to prefer healing than male players are. The Daedalus Project, one of my favorite sites about MMOs, has published some new results. The site focuses on sociological research about MMOs and MMO players, and among other things, the new results look at the gender and age breakdowns of how MMO players would respond to various hypothetical questions.There were four questions asked, although one of them is only slightly applicable to WoW. For nice charts (as seen above) and full data, see the site, but I'll summarize the interesting points here, question-by-question. Note that it's possible that this data, being an aggregate of players of different MMOs, does not represent WoW well. I doubt it, however; given WoW's market dominance, most of the respondents probably are WoW players. Edit: note that in my summaries below, I'm merely point out trends, not causes. I'm not trying to say (for instance) that girls heal because they're girls; there are many other factors at play here.
Brain Age works, it really really works!
And with a scientific headline such as that, who's to argue, amirite?But seriously, according to some Israeli scientists the brain-training exercises found in the game MindFit (very much like Brain Age), when compared against classic computer games such as Tetris, actually improve brain power more. Using a total of 121 volunteers over the age of 50, the study spanned over 3 months and, at the end, when each group was divided the scientists found that both groups had improved, but the group playing MindFit actually had better spatial short-term memory, spatial learning and focused attention.[Thanks, Andrew!]
DS Daily: New horizons
There have been a lot of familiar franchises on the DS, and we love them! But, and this is where a lot of the system's publicity comes from, there has also been an explosion of new genres and new experiences, as well as revivals of past trends. So, as hardcore gamers (the kind who read game blogs), has your gaming universe been expanded by the DS? Have you taken part in any completely new experiences? Played your first graphical text adventure? Minigame collection? Whatever Brain Age was?Or maybe what you discovered on the DS is something popular that you just missed out on for some reason, like Final Fantasy or Castlevania. We want to hear about your experiences! We want to know how the DS has affected your gaming tastes! We want to know how you classify Brain Age!
A look at some unsung DS villains
Modojo's Ryan Morgan took a trip into the underworld of DS games, finding the meanest of the mean villains and delivering stern warnings about them. These aren't the everyday spiny, cloaked, "NOOOOOOO"-bellowing villains we know, the kind that telegraph their evilness to the world, but some more insidious cads who, while they look innocuous enough, will strike and attempt to force you to feed their twisted, evil obsessions. The biggest offender? The color blue, who Nintendo seems to have collaborated with to render Brain Age players hoarse or even mute from repeated attempts at the Stroop test. Bluuuuuuuuuuuue!
EU Commission looks to harmonize game age restrictions
Are you thinking about selling little Francois Quatorze (that's "fourteen" in French) that copy of Dead Rising he keeps eyeballing? Think again. European Union Justice and Security Commissioner Franco Frattini is seeking to harmonize the rules concerning the sale of video games to minors. The Reuters article specifically cites 16 as the age in question, as Europe ratings board PEGI uses a 16+ rating for games typically rated "T" for Teen by the ESRB. Frattini opines that under current EU-wide rules, retailers still do not consistently check the consumer's age when selling 16-rated video games.Said Frattini, "I do want to harmonise rules ... punishing people illegally selling products, people not controlling and checking identity."The key element here is that Frattini does not want to universal agreement as to which games receive what age restrictions, as the tolerance of certain content factors differ amongst the EU's 27 nations. Germany, for example, recently banned (by means of ratings refusal) a handful of high-profile titles such as Gears of War, Dead Rising, and Crackdown.
Wii Sports: Training and Fitness modes documented
We've been spending tons of time with Wii Sports and we never took the chance to check out the Fitness and Training modes. In correcting the situation, we found that each are fairly straight forward and just how you would imagine them; Fitness is a kind of Brain Age semi-clone, yet instead of a brain age you are given a fitness age, and with Training you are taken through several scenarios in each of the sports. Fitness mode is a good deal more in-depth, so initially you'd want to head into Training mode before checking that out so that you can train up before committing yourself to a fitness age the system is looking to label you with.Continue reading for our first ever Wii Sports Fitness mode trial!
Kawashima ditches the DS for the PSP in Europe
Dr. Kawashima, the jovial floating head accompanying you on your travels through swift mathematics problems and furiously shouting "brew!" at your DS whilst playing Brain Age, has decided to float on over to the competition with Mind Quiz for the PSP in Europe. Ubisoft, the publisher behind Mind Quiz, looks to bring the same experience to Sony's handheld, sans touch-screen capable and voice-recognizing gameplay. One thing that makes Mind Quiz stand out from its Brain Age cousin is that it will feature online gameplay and mock exams to quiz your mind.[Via Joystiq]
Brain Age math challenge exploit
We're pretty sure that at least one of you have solved the 10 math problems exercise in Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. We aren't sure, however, that some of you have done it in 8 or less seconds. Considering this individual is exploiting the system a tad through the use of chicken scratch writing, we can't give him much credit. OK, maybe we're just jealous...As always, video is embedded into the post after the break.
Brain Age sells 4 million worldwide
Nintendo recently sent out a press release where they went over the latest numbers for their popular brain-trainer DS title Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. In revealing the numbers for the three major regions of North and South America, Europe, and Japan, Nintendo stated they have sold over 4 million units worldwide. 600,000 of the units were sold in the Americas, 500,000 total in Europe, and an insane 3 million units have been sold in Japan."Brain Age is so easy to pick up and play, regardless of your experience level," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "You can play it for 10 minutes or an hour and keep yourself feeling sharp. As a baby boomer, it's like a treadmill for my mind."[Source: Nintendo Press Release]
Touch Generations slogan ideas
We don't normally post about advertisements, instead leaving that up to the ad critics, but this Touch Generations ad just brought some hilarious commentary to our mind. We envision a nice evening out, maybe the couple's 23rd anniversary, and after a few glasses of wine, the husband is feeling a bit frisky once the couple arrive home. "Not right now," she says, shouting "brew" into her DS Lite during an intense round of Brain Age. "I have to get my brain's age down," she quickly follows with. The husband, upset, rolls over and firmly fixes a frown upon his face, falling asleep. In the spirit of cruelty, we decided we'd come up with our own ad slogans for the Touch Generations brand. Here goes: Touch Generations: Now having a headache doesn't have to be your only excuse. Touch Generations: Because you're too old for most stuff anyway. Touch Generations: "Paddles" are too complicated nowadays. Touch Generations: You'll be damned if you're paying for another dog from the pound. 6 is quite enough! Touch Generations: Because reading is for dummies. Touch Generations: Because you should at least be able to kick your kid's ass in one game. What kind of brilliant marketing ideas are swimming around in your noggin?
Brain Age striking it rich in the mainstream media
First up, CBS News has some rather extensive coverage, both in article and video form, on Nintendo's brain-tickling title Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. With the focal point of the piece being that these types of "brain games" are excellent for senior citizens, allowing them to keep a nimble mind through continuous use of the title, it paints one excellent picture overall. The debate as to whether these types of games actually can benefit your health is one that is sure to be without resolution for some time to come, but getting seniors and those who would otherwise be disinterested in games, playing and enjoying themselves, is a huge win for Nintendo. CBS isn't the only news affiliate covering the Brain Age story, however, as a local Arizona news team also covered the game. This local Fox News team actually took the game to the streets and got it into the hands of average citizens, recording their reactions. What's also surprising is that the team even brought up the voice recognition problems that so many of us have had, which shows they really put their time in with the game.Embedded video after the link.
