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Kuju goes west, opens casual studio in America
Developer Kuju opens new studios like most of us open Twinkies, though with less tearing of cellophane and swallowing of delicious creme filling. Since March 2007 the UK-based company has opened up three new specialized branches, including kid-friendly Nik Nak, online-focused doublesix, and Sheffield-based Chemistry, which looks to Epic's popular Unreal Engine as its tool of choice. Now Kuju has added yet another studio to its collection with Kuju America, a new San Francisco office focused on the casual games space. Kuju's North American face is already pounding out code for its first title, which it describes on its website as a "high profile IP," something that doesn't mesh all that well in our brains when thinking of games with a casual flair -- though the company teases that more information is "due to be announced soon." It's worth noting that Kuju America is a licensed dev for the PS3, PS2, Xbox 360, Wii, and DS. On the one hand, it's hard to get too excited about anything with so little to go on. On the other hand, however, we sure could go for a Twinkie.
Gran Turismo 5 Prologue in the US on April 17th
We're not sure whether Gran Turismo 5 Prologue is meant to be a demo, a hype-builder or some sort of mid-development cash-in for Gran Turismo 5 (probably all three), but we do now know that it will be made available in America on April 17th. The game can be purchased on a retail Blu-Ray disc or as a PSN download, just like Warhawk. Whichever way you buy it you'll be paying the same - $39.99, though the Blu-Ray version will come with a HD behind the scenes video titled "Beyond The Apex".The 60+ cars included can be raced online with up to 15 other people. Polyphony Digital will be holding official online races and Gran Turismo TV will allow you to watch motoring shows from all over the world via the PlayStation Network. Not bad for a demo, even if it does cost $40.
Trans-Pacific Express submarine cable system gets FCC approval
It's not like we haven't seen consortiums working to establish better links between America and Asia, but the more the merrier, right? Apparently, Verizon Business has just recently received the all-important thumbs-up from the FCC to "activate and operate the Trans-Pacific Express submarine cable system in the US." The TPE cable is hailed as "the first next-generation undersea optical cable system directly linking the US and mainland China," and is the first major system of its kind to land on America's West Coast (Oregon, to be precise) in over seven years. For those curious, the 10,563-mile submarine communications cable will be able to support the equivalent of 62 million simultaneous phone calls -- which is "more than 60 times the overall capacity of the existing cable directly linking the US and China" -- and will initially provide capacity of up to 1.28Tbps. So, when will this thing be up and running? If all goes to plan, it should be fully operational by August (you know, prior to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing).[Image courtesy of Devicepedia]
Cowon's iAudio U5 heads to America
Don't feel bad if the iAudio U5 hasn't creeped into your mind since it "debuted" at IFA last September -- it's not like Cowon's doled out any sort of marketing blitz to keep us intrigued. Nevertheless, this somewhat stylish little DAP is apparently making its way to the US of A for those who like to avoid the me-too crowd. Specs wise, you'll find a 1.8-inch 160 x 128 resolution LCD, up to a full day of battery life, 4GB / 8GB of internal memory, MP3 / WMA / WAV playback, a built-in FM radio and voice recorder, user adjustable five-band EQ and USB connectivity. Good enough for you? Cough up $149.99 / $109.99 to snag one in 8GB or 4GB, respectively.
Half of US households own a digital television
We already learned that some 28-percent of US households were rocking at least one HDTV back in March, but now the Consumer Electronics Association has come forward with new figures showing that over half of American abodes are home to a digital television. According to revamped CEA projections, around 32 million DTV units will ship out next year, with 79-percent of those being HD sets. 'Course, the downside of this is that a good chunk of America still isn't prepared for the DTV cutover in 2009, but thanks to all the advertising that will likely be taking place over the next year and change, we'd say they've got plenty of time to get on board.
EA: European developers more creative than American developers
Americans, bust out the boxing gloves; Europeans, bust out the champagne. A representative from EA has stated that European game developers are inherently more creative than American developers. This is either a tad insulting, or a very nice compliment (you know, depending on where you're from).Nick Button-Brown, director of business development at EA Partners, spoke with GamesIndustry.biz recently, and admitted that U.S.-based game studios are less willing to take chances than their European counterparts, and are therefore less likely to innovate in the industry.To be fair, he also argues that multiculturalism plays a big role in the creative output of Europe. Still, Button-Brown states that a paradigm-shifting game like Grand Theft Auto would have never come out of America. Stand up for yourselves, America! There are obvious exceptions to Button-Brown's argument. What games are the pride of the United States?
The Soloist: Why I do it
After this post, I had it in mind to think through why I prefer to solo, and whether the reasons why are valid ones, given that I'm playing in a genre meant to provide a social experience. I'm going to try to list as many reasons as I can think of in favor of grouping and playing with buddies, and provide a counter-argument if I can. Bear in mind, this is not me telling you that you should go solo; this is just me trying to 1) explain why I do it, and 2) understand for myself whether my reasons hold water.Enough said; excelsior!
Farmers and Warcraft players in the US of A
This blog post is careening around the blogsphere at large, and it probably behooves us to mention it here on WoW Insider, considering the points it makes about WoW players. It's a variation on the red state/blue state argument, in that it points out that there are actually more Warcraft players in the United States today than there are professional farmers. And so, says the piece, when someone, be they politician or pundit or newscaster, says that "the real America" is rural farmland where people are more likely to be milking cows than running Karazhan, they're wrong.There are a few problems with this argument, of course, one of which is admitted to in the article: farming and World of Warcraft-playing are hardly mutually exclusive. Just because you read blogs and play MMOs doesn't mean you're not a person who wakes up in the morning and gets your eggs out from under chickens. The other issue is that if you're going to start fighting nostalgia, you're going to lose. Every generation looks at the future (or in this case, the rapidly approaching present) and compares it unfavorably to the past. I've always thought it amazing that someday we will have someone in the White House who knows how to get 30 extra lives in Contra, and that person will probably look at the new holo-vid-games that come out in 2016 and say "when we were young, we played with buttons and thumbsticks!"But back to the issue at hand: it's true-- America is becoming a technological, urban country, and whether you like it or not (politics completely aside, because I know how much you guys like those on this gaming blog), it's a fact that a person on the street is more likely to know what day Brewfest starts rather than when the summer solstice hits. Sure, we're not seeing the latest class changes on the evening news, but we are seeing Warcraft selling trucks, and whether newscasters and politicians are recognizing it or not, the MMO culture is becoming more and more massive every day.
Nokia's N81 shows up in FCC, gives Americans hope
While the N81 has managed to capture the hearts of many thus far, we Americans have been forced to look longingly at it as we wonder if it will ever come to our shores. Thankfully, it seems that there's at least a glimmer of hope, as the sexy handset managed to slip up on the FCC's website, although the documentation has since been removed. Nevertheless, this ought to mean that the handset is well on its way to being sold in US outlets, so why don't you give those hands-on pictures a more serious glance till we find out more, cool?[Image courtesy of SolNew]
Takara Tomy's i-SOBOT headed stateside?
We're not exactly sure how much we trust i-SOBOT's MySpace page, but if you're a believer, this creature will be headed to America real soon. Interestingly, it purports that the primary reason for making the leap to the US is to "study our culture," which is likely a suave way of suggesting that its totally scoping out our defenses as the clan back home develops a sufficient takeover strategy. Nevertheless, word on the street has this bad boy landing stateside before Christmas for $300 - $350, so there's still a few months left to prepare for the seemingly inevitable invasion.[Via Gearlog]
8GB iriver clix 2 now available in US
Yeah, we know our overseas brethren have been toying with their 8GB clix 2 DAPs for awhile now, but as these things usually go, we Americans are celebrating late. Nevertheless, the US iriver store is now offering up the 8GB clix 2 for purchase, and it still touts that lovable 2.2-inch AMOLED display, an FM tuner, integrated voice recorder, up to 24-hours of battery life, and USB 2.0 connectivity. All yours for $239.99.
Chinese company interested in American Hard Disk Drive manufacturer
An unnamed Chinese company has expressed interest in purchasing an American Hard Disk Drive manufacturer, which has predictably sparked the interest of the American Government ever paranoid about technology "security." Mr. Bill "Seagate is for porn" Watkins disclosed this overture from an unnamed company, eloquently stating that "The U.S. government is freaking out" whilst saying that Seagate was not the target company -- although apparently the company would find it hard to refuse a generous offer from a Chinese company. In the end though the whole mini-ruckus seems much ado about nothing: the New York Times seems to think that the Chinese will only go through with a bid if it doesn't ruffle the feathers in Washington, and one can only imagine the resulting "ruffling" if this high tech purchase rumor transitioned from mere conjecture to the realms of possibility. And all this over something as seemingly trivial as storage.
Is HDTV finally ready for the mainstream?
It seems that this question gets posed by one mainstream media outlet or another every year or so, and what better time to ask again than following estimates that 50 million American homes will be HDTV-equipped by the end of next year? It's no secret that carriers are pushing HD more frequently in their advertising, and now that select basic cable channels are finally making the move to HD, we wonder if the currently satisfied viewers will get curious and follow along? Numerous analysts have suggested that consumers won't make the jump en masse to demand HD programming until a noticeable amount of non-network content becomes available in HD, and while CNN, Food Network, TBS, and A&E (for instance) are all going (or have gone) HD, there's still hundreds of channels out there that have yet to purchase the first piece of HD recording equipment. Is HDTV ready for mainstream? Our gut says not quite, but we're a lot closer today than we've been.[Image courtesy of PSBSpeakers]
50 million American homes to house HDTVs by 2008
Honestly, don't look so surprised. Just under two years ago, some 15-percent of American homes had at least one HDTV somewhere on the premises, and not long after, estimators were suggesting that a whopping 82-percent of domiciles would be HDTV-equipped by the end of this decade. Earlier this year, a more recent report found that over one-quarter of those residing in the US of A owned an HD-capable set -- though we'll never live down the embarrassment from the hordes of owners who've yet to figure out how to operate them. Nevertheless, an updated study has found that "more than 30 million US households now have at least one HDTV," and judging by recent sales figures, has estimated that 52 million homes will house an HDTV by the end of 2008. Now, how's about a few more HD channels for the growing sect, eh?
HTC Touch to launch first in Taiwan, US bound by year's end
Good news for those of you in Taiwan (and America, too) who can't wait to get acquainted with HTC's Touch, as its creator has reportedly announced that it will be deployed shortly in its "home base," with an American launch to go down before the dawn of 2008. Peter Chou, chief executive officer at HTC, has purportedly stated that it would "only be fitting if the first country in Asia to sell the Touch was Taiwan," and also noted that Chunghwa Telecom would be its "exclusive partner in distributing and retailing the handset" in that country. On the home front, all we know is that the Touch should indeed be found on American shelves before the year's end, but here's to hoping it's closer to today than December 31st.Read - HTC launch in TaiwanRead - HTC launch in USA
Austin-area Scouts aim to smear model rocket launching record
The 1,000 hand-painted model rockets that Austin-area Cub Scout Pack 990 and Boy Scout Troop 990 are aiming to launch some 500 to 1,000-feet in the sky today aren't as technically sophisticated as some we've seen, but raising over $8,000 in an attempt to obliterate the current record of 399 is something to salute. Rather than pocketing the funds and heading off to Philmont or using this fine weekend to complete that 50-miler via canoe, these two crews have their sights set on deploying a full thousand rockets (shown again after the jump) within five seconds of each other in order to firmly establish a new world record. Interestingly enough, the event has drawn such buzz around the area that Congressman Michael McCaul and Austin City Council Member Lee Leffingwell will actually be speaking at the venue before watching the fireworks -- and if any of you just happen to be in the area with a few extra frames left on your digicam, grab a few shots, will ya? Oh, and we recognize that true Scouts already know the motto, but considering the pyrotechnics you're playing with on this one, we're really stressing that "be prepared" bit.
If the DS didn't have a head-start in the US ...
Here's some food for thought: what if the DS didn't have a four-month head-start ahead of the PSP? Both systems have had at least 22 months of sales in America. Looking at cumulative sales, this chart from VGcharts.org shows that the PSP has sold more than the DS in their first 22 months of sales. Certainly, Japan is a completely different story ... but does that really matter for gamers in the US? Americans love their PSP ... even if the video gaming press doesn't want to admit it.
Space Machine GPS-306 lands in North America
If you've yearned for an Asian-based GPS, but didn't feel like worrying over those annoying import duties or changing out the maps, Space Machine apparently feels your pain. Contrary to its title, this device actually doesn't include the marked highways on Jupiter and Mars, but it does manage to include NAVTEQ maps of North America in case you're traveling there, and also features a 3.5-inch QVGA touchscreen, integrated MP3 player, automatic re-routing, turn-by-turn voice guidance, SiRF Star III GPS receiver, 256MB SD card, car mounting kit, headphone jack, and a carrying case to boot. While most rebadgers actually take the time to slap their own logo on there, the GPS-306 apparently still rocks the Holux GPSsmile 51 motif, right down the "Holux" branding atop the screen. Nevertheless, we do appreciate the effort of importing the unit for us, and those attracted to the name more than its functionality can pick one up now for $399.95. [Via NaviGadget]
Eurovision successfully transmits US HD feed to Europeans
As if there wasn't enough variations of HD feeds, and the fact that NTSC and PAL just can't seem to get along, the last thing the blokes across the pond want (or need) is another complication when it comes to catching American sports on their HD sets. Thankfully, Eurovision is not only sparing everyone the trouble, it has reportedly claimed a victory in the typically messy conversion game. The global network operator has apparently transmitted HDTV coverage of NHL and NBA games shot in America to Europe, all without down-converting to NTSC in the process. The content originated in 1080i/60, and was rebroadcasted in the UK-friendly 1080i/50 format, all while keeping users on both ends thoroughly pleased. Eurovision's head of production and services, Tony Naets, proclaimed that Europeans who witnessed the converted coverage "were delighted with the results, which included the ingest of the original coverage through the resources of Eurovision Americas in Washington, the conversion from the original broadcast format to 1080i/50, and the transport of the converted signal via our dedicated transatlantic fiber to the European uplink." While quite a mouthful, we think we dig what he's saying, and as soon as Europe sends a few of its own HD soccer football feeds our way, we'll be grinning from ear to ear as well.
Epson's 1080p PowerLite Pro Cinema projector to hit US for $4,999
Since good things come to those who wait (or pre-order, sometimes), we're thrilled to see our patience has paid off while waiting for Epson's EMP-TW1000 to head stateside. As predicted, the svelte new projector rocks the PowerLite moniker, while maintaining the bevy of impressive specs and curvaceous design. Beneath the hood of the PowerLite Pro Cinema 1080 is Epson's own C2 Fine 1080p 3LCD chips, OptiCinema optics, E-TORL lamp, an AccuCinema lens, and "Absolute Black Technology" which provides a 12,000:1 contrast ratio. While you won't be able to grab this US-bound beauty until January 2007, you can use all this extra time to start pinching those pennies, as this bad boy will run you $4,999 when it finally lands.
