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Sims 3 expansion beats Star Trek Online in February's PC top 20
NPD has released its monthly list of the top 20 PC games, and while Star Trek Online made a valiant showing in the month of its debut, landing at number two for the main game and number four for the collector's edition, it was beaten in the end by the Sims 3: High End Loft Stuff (yes, "Stuff") content pack. The Sims juggernaut of a brand continued to rock the top 20, claiming six spots total, and perennial favorite World of Warcraft continued to place almost all of its current editions on the list in three different spots. Other big titles in February were Bioshock 2, the Everquest II: Sentinel's Fate expansion, and Mass Effect 2. Aliens vs. Predator appeared at a miserable number 19, below something called the Mumbo Jumbo Assortment. Full list after the break. We'll say this about PC game players: They know what they like, and they stick with it. [via Big Download]
Aussie ratings board to discuss an R 18+ rating at April meeting
A meeting in April might bring an end to the Australian video game bans that many gamers there believe to be overly repressive. Local Aussie website Adelaide Now says that the Australian National Classification Scheme could finally take a look at the ratings issue when it meets in April of this year. One widely-supported solution would be to establish an R 18+ classification for games over there -- currently, any games that don't match up to the MA 15+ rating are automatically banned, which leads to story after story of games that are rated for 18+ instead smashed with the banhammer down under. The one spoiler is South Australian Attorney General Michael Atkinson, who not only opposes the R 18+ rating, but hasn't gotten a very good impression of angry Australian gamers. He'll be at the meeting in April and will have veto power on any measures proposed, so unless he has a change of mind (or gamers who are organizing politically against Atkinson can oust him in an upcoming March election), the meeting in April could end in the same old disappointments for Australian gamers. [Via GamePolitics]
EB Games endorses R18+ rating in Australia
Australia isn't just dangerous because of its abundance of deadly, poisonous wildlife, it's also not a great place to live if you're an adult gamer. See, the country's maximum rating for video games has long been MA 15+, meaning that a mature game must either be censored down to what the country deems is suitable for a 15 year old individual or outright banned from release in the country. This forces many gamers to navigate the seedy streets and back alleys of the importing scene. Nasty stuff, believe us. But, there's hope. A new rating of R18+ has been a hot topic as of late. Recently, the government has been receptive to a change in the legislature, despite South Australian attorney general Michael Atkinson's vehement disapproval. The public is able to weigh in on the proposed change right now, but retailer EB Games has also decided to join the fight for more mature titles. And like anyone else trying to get something done on the internet, it's started a petition. The "Grow Up Australia & EB Games" petition pretty much mirrors the same form found on the Aussie government's site here, so if you're a bloke or sheila who has already voiced your opinions on the government site, there's no need to fill out this new EB Games questionnaire. If not, get on it. The deadline is February 28. [Via IGN]
VGA 2009 viewership down 5% from 2008
Spike TV's Video Game Awards show isn't simply about celebrating the best of the games industry. No, it plays host to numerous WORLD EXCLUSIVE trailers. But, just how many people tuned in to watch? According to a report by Variety's The Cut Scene, not too many: Roughly 647,000 viewers watched the broadcast in 2009, a 5-percent decrease from 2008's viewership, and a 30-percent decrease from 2007's. When accounting for DVR views, the total jumps to 691,000 viewers. (For comparison's sake, the most recent Golden Globe awards drew in 16.9 million viewers.) The online numbers (via GameTrailers.com) should make it pretty clear what Spike TV is doing right -- and what it's doing wrong. The scene pictured above, featuring Mike Tyson and the cast of The Jersey Shore, got a paltry 16,000 views. The Halo: Reach trailer, on the other hand, got 584,000. Perhaps if the Video Game Awards focused on, y'know, video games, there would be more reason to stay tuned in.
Mature-themed Wii games get the black box in Japan
Nintendo of Japan has launched a new program to better differentiate its diverse Wii software lineup. According to the company, future Wii games that earn a CERO C rating (equivalent to ESRB's Teen rating) or above will be packaged in new black boxes. Likely, this initiative was started due to the upcoming release of Zangeki no Reginleiv, Nintendo's first CERO D–rated game (ages 17 and up) in Japan. It seems this is a platform-wide mandate, as Biohazard: The Darkside Chronicles looks to become the first third-party game to sport Nintendo's black packaging. By differentiating "hardcore" games from the rest of the Wii lineup, core gamers should have a much easier time identifying the titles they might like. As for helping "casual" folk make the quick decision, it's as yet unconfirmed if Nintendo will continue to use that striking red box for all Mario-themed games. [Via Siliconera]
Activision survey: 82% of gamer parents aware of ESRB ratings
That woman buying her 12-year-old a copy of Modern Warfare 2 at Gamestop right now may not know about it, but Activision says a recent survey concluded that 82% of gamer parents are well aware of the ESRB rating guidelines and what they mean. The survey also found that 75% of children who play games understand the rating system, and that 70% of parents actually pay close attention to the ratings when buying a game either for themselves or for their families. Note that it doesn't say they follow the ratings, only that they are aware of the system and pay attention to how games are rated. Gaming families spend a lot of time playing games, too: 76% of parents agree that video games are a big part of their family activities, and among gamer parents, a majority (52%) of their gaming time is spent playing with their children. Finally, a full 59% of kids polled say that "it's a little creepy" when Jane Lynch shows up to play games with you for a Microsoft commercial. Okay, you got us, we lied about that last stat. When anyone from Glee shows up, it's 100% fun.
Heavy Rain handed '15' rating, BBFC explains
In a rather surprising act of mature judgment, the British Board of Film Classification has assigned Quantic Dream's Heavy Rain a "15" rating. Given the so-called adult themes of the western interactive novel (a genre we're classifying right here), the expectation had been that the game would receive an "18" rating, which is even reflected on retail art mock-ups. The other European ratings board, PEGI, has yet to post its classification for the game. Speaking with IncGamers, a BBFC spokesperson explained, "These are obviously not real people, or real people acting, and it all depends on the level of blood and violence. We use the same classification for games as we do for films, and this game is suitable for a 15 audience." That's odd, we could have sworn many "real people" acted in Heavy Rain. Still, we're pleasantly surprised to see a ratings board bring equity into play by reviewing a game within the same guidelines used for movies. %Gallery-30067% [Via Eurogamer]
You too can be a ban-happy Australian politician
Australians have gotten the short end of the gaming stick for some time now, with several games either receiving edits or simply being banned because of the country's lack of an adult classification. Now you can be the one doing the stick shortening thanks to the free downloadable title Ban This Game!, which lets you click on arguably offensive materials to ban them while South Australian Attorney General Michael Atkinson and Minister for Broadband and Communication Stephen Conroy look on approvingly. (We've got a brief video after the break if you'd like to see it in action.) If you'd like to take your activism beyond clicking 50 Cent and giggling, there's loads of more info on the game's Facebook page. [Via GamePolitics]
Nielsen survey says most PSP users are female, Xbox 360 most played
In its 2010 Media Industry Fact Sheet, the Nielsen Company tallied some interesting numbers [PDF] related to the increase of social media and how video game console usage trended in 2009. According to its survey statistics, Sony's PSP market in the United States contains a slight majority of female gamers -- 52% of the platform's owners in the region, while 49% of Nintendo Wii owners are female. Nielsen's survey statistics show that, as of 2009, 45% of all active gamers are women. Social media has, expectantly, made a dramatic leap in usage. Nielsen's survey claims Facebook membership skyrocketing from November 2008 to 2009 with 109 million members accessing the site at the end of the the decade versus about 47.5 million the year before. Twitter saw its user base increase by 15.9 million members in the same time frame. Both social media sites have seen life on consoles. Related to each console's individual usage -- besides what the good looking gamers enjoy -- Nielsen's survey claims the Xbox 360 is the most played console (ranked by share of total usage minutes), taking 23.1% of the measured playtime. Sony's PlayStation 2 netted second with 20.4% and the Nintendo Wii closed up the top three with 19% of the vote. While we know the previous sentence sounds like we just called all console gamers hideous beings, we just mean that ladies are pretty and smell like daffodils compared to the faint odor of Cheetos and Mountain Dew that lingers around us fellas. [Via Edge]
MMO Family: Hey, this looks like a kids' game
MMO Family is your resource for leveling a gaming-specced family ... From tips on balancing gaming with family life to finding age-appropriate niches for every family member, MMO Family offers you advice on MMO gaming of the family, by the family and for the family. We've talked before about different ways to sniff out if an MMO is a good choice for your kids. What we haven't covered yet are the indicators that a game may not be a good fit for your family. In light of the long hours of freedom stretching before our kids when school's out (and the fact that parental oversight is more likely to be lenient, if not downright indulgent, during the holidays), we decided some yellow-light signals might be in order. Being a gaming parent sometimes makes it tougher, not simpler, to choose the right games for kids. Constant exposure to gaming news and game names can give us a false sense of familiarity. We build assumptions about games based on what we know about the companies that produce them. What we think we know actually makes it harder to spot what we're not clued into at all.
Molinker is no more on the App Store -- ratings scam results in expulsion
Well, here's the happy side to the police state known as Apple's App Store. One of the more prolific app makers out there, Molinker, has been recently unceremoniously expelled from the Apple orchard due to its manipulation of app ratings and reviews. As it turns out, Molinker has been massaging the truth by pumping out false five star reviews for its wares, and now Phil Schiller himself has stepped in and pulled the company's whole catalog -- consisting of more than 1,000 apps -- seemingly permanently: Yes, this developer's apps have been removed from the App Store and their ratings no longer appear either. So the App Store is now a bunch of travel guides lighter and Mr. Schiller gets a "good boy" badge from the blog brigade. Good news all around then.
ESRB launches TV campaign to promote mobile ratings guide
In its continuing battle against apathetic parents, the ESRB is launching a brand new ad campaign promoting its mobile ratings guide (viewable after the break). Both the iPhone app and mobile website will allow searchers to get disturbing and/or hilarious descriptions of all rated games. In addition to promoting the search program, the campaign should also raise awareness of the ESRB's existence. "I'm always choosing between what my kids want and what I think is best for them," the commercial's faux parent states. While the mobile tools should help parents make better decisions, we still think there's an even more valuable asset for parents to use: common sense. For example, you may want to ignore Timmy's suggestion to get Assassin's Creed or Modern Warfare. The titles alone should make it pretty clear these are games about killing people.
Are DVRs actually going to save the network TV model?
Stay tuned for the network's latest DVR strategy: acceptance. Armed with the latest Nielsen data, ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox are rushing to tell advertisers that even with a set-top box and its bevy of pauses, fast forwards and 30 second skips at the ready -- we're guessing this doesn't apply to Media Center users on automated setups -- most viewers simply settle in and watch the commercials anyway. The New York Times breaks down the commercial-plus-three ratings system the networks initially opposed that could end up saving shows like Heroes from cancellation -- though a return to the old way of thinking might be worthwhile if it means an end to that show's now pitiable existence.
Australia's OFLC wants to classify iPhone, mobile games
Australia's Censorship Classification Board wants to rate games released on iPhone and other mobile devices. iTnews reports that Donald McDonald (really?), director of the OFLC, sent a letter to the "commonwealth censorship minister" (really, really?!) that he's concerned games offered on mobile devices aren't being submitted to the classification board.Let's just try to ignore that the task of classifying all the games released on the App Store would be overwhelming -- but, bless the OFLC for trying. The US's ESRB is also currently trying to get mobile games under its purview, however, the difference is that the ESRB accepts that games can be for adults.[Via Edge]
WoW Ratings lets you rate anything in Azeroth
I had an idea like this one -- a site that would allow you to rate anything at all (from a new movie to the casserole your aunt makes), and then let other people share their own opinions about whatever you rated. My idea never got off the ground (standard operating procedure for the idea mill I call my mind), but reader Antoine apparently had the same idea, and built it specifically for the WoW universe. WoW Ratings is kind of a silly site with some interesting outcomes: basically it's a database of everything in the game, from bosses to zones to game features or what have you, and you can come along and rate whatever you want on a scale of 1 to 5. The ratings don't actually mean anything (though Antoine has them listed as qualities from Uncommon up to Legendary), so it's really just a broad temperature-taking of the World (of Warcraft) at large.The most interesting screen is probably the "Best and Worst" screen (which you can reach by clicking on the toolbar at the top of the homepage -- note to Antoine: permalinks are your friend, scale back on the javascript), where, as of this writing, Hakkar the Soulflayer is sitting on top of the heap, and the Voice Chat patch and Darnassus are sitting in the bottom 10. No Fandral Staghelm yet, strangely, but I'm sure things will get shaken up after all you readers head over there (and if the site's a little shaky under the flood of our link, give it time to get back on its feet). Sure, it's a little silly, and it's not so much a "resource" as it is just a free-for-all of player opinions, but it is interesting to see kind of a meta-overview of what players do and don't like. Useless features for the loss, old school raid bosses for the win.
WoW Insider Show Episode 112: We got segments
Our podcast is now ready for your downloading pleasure, and I have to say -- it was a good one. Nothing flashy, no once-in-a-lifetime guests (though both Turpster and Matticus were on with me, and those guys are definitely one-of-a-kind), but it was just a good solid podcast, with some great discussion about the latest PTR build and Lord Marrowgar, the Battle.net changeover, and our very first predictions about when we might see patch 3.3 on the live servers. Turpster's even got some money riding on his guess already.Plus we answer your emails as usual, and that's always a good time -- you can email us anything you want (including some mp3s for intros if that's your thing) at "theshow AT wow dawt com". If you like the show, don't forget to go hit us up on iTunes -- you can subscribe to the show there, or leave us a good rating or review if you like. Thanks for listening as always, and enjoy the show!Get the podcast:[iTunes] Subscribe to the WoW Insider Show directly in iTunes.[RSS] Add the WoW Insider Show to your RSS aggregator.[MP3] Download the MP3 directly.Listen here on the page:
MMO Family: Con your games like a pro
MMO Family is your resource for leveling a gaming-specced family ... From tips on balancing gaming with family life to finding age-appropriate niches for every family member, MMO Family offers you advice on MMO gaming of the family, by the family and for the family.When I first started playing MMOs in the very earliest days of EverQuest, I never quite understood my husband's rantings about the con system (i.e. to "consider" a monster's levels in relation to the player's). He can only take on light blues? Say what?! My magician's pet was putting down dark blues and whites while I ran to the kitchen for a drink. What was his problem, anyway? Unfortunately (for my husband and monks everywhere), no matter what they say, what's good for the goose isn't always good for the gander. And when it comes to choosing MMOs for your family, what's appropriate for one child and one family might be off the rails for another. Like keeping kids safe on the internet, the best strategy for choosing suitable games is a combination of tactics tailored to your family's likes, dislikes and needs. How can you best con the games your kids are begging to bring home?
Sony PSP Go game dev taken aback by lofty ESRB rating costs
Nothing really new here -- the ESRB has been charging a nominal fee to get its saucy logos on your game for years upon years now -- but the discussion of fairness has recently surfaced with the introduction of Sony's UMD-less PSP Go. A few game developers are voicing concerns about the amount the ESRB charges (we're hearing around $2,500) in order for their titles to receive a rating, particularly when those very same titles don't have such a costly requirement in Apple's App Store. Subatomic Studios, for instance, can charge $2.99 for the iPhone version of Fieldrunners, while the same game is priced at $6.99 on the PlayStation Store. Naturally, the ESRB would love to get in on App Store ratings, but it's hard to say just how long (if ever) that cracking process will take. So, any of you devs put off by the ESRB fee? Put off enough to sidestep PSP Go development altogether?[Via Joystiq]
Website rates best and worst cellphones by radiation output levels -- how does yours stack up?
You're surely aware that your cellphone bleeds radiation into your face the whole time you're on the phone with your mom, best friend or lover, right? Yes, it's a fact we try not to think about most of the time, but now there's a tool out there on the internets for the more reality-facing folks among us. The Environmental Working Group's launched a website dedicated to rating cellphones on their radiation output alone. Ranking highly (meaning they put out the lowest levels of radiation) are the Motorola RAZR V8, and AT&T's Samsung Impression. In fact, it seems that Samsung is cranking out the healthiest phones these days! Phones with poor showings includes T-Mobile's myTouch 3G and the Blackberry Curve 8830. So hit the read link and tell us, how does your phone rate?[Via bookofjoe]
PSP Go launches with interactive ESRB guide
The PSP Go may not be able to play UMD games, but it will be able to ... um, tell you more about ESRB ratings? SCEA is doing its part to educate consumers about the video games ratings board by including an ESRB app on each and every PSP Go system. Considering most of us are already familiar with the ratings system, this move is simply to target ignorant parents. "If you don't need it, you can delete it," SCEA's Jeff Rubenstein reminded readers of the PlayStation.blog.While this small gesture won't sell any systems, it is a good step in the right direction. If all future consoles come with more information about the ESRB, it further cements the organization's credibility, and avoids potentially messy government regulation (as evidenced by Australia's latest debacle). However, we're sure that many of you will join us in deleting the app from the system on day one.
