PBS: The Video Game Revolution

Posted by Brandon Gribin Categories: Culture, Retro,

No, we’re not talking about Nintendo’s Revolution - rather the video game industry’s revolution as a whole. While video games have become a big part of our lives, you simply can’t forget their humble origins and the sheer fact that they’re a relatively new form of entertainment. The linked PBS feature takes a great look at the history of video games - starting in the 60’s and going through recent years. Additionally, the feature covers how games have forever changed our world.

We recommend taking a look at the linked feature - it’s pretty well done.

Read More | PBS

Nintendo Says No DS Redesign

Posted by Brandon Gribin Categories: Nintendo DS, Rumors,

Contrary to earlier rumors, Nintendo will not be releasing a redesigned Nintendo DS any time soon. Putting things into consideration, releasing a new DS design doesn’t make much sense now anyways - especially considering how well Nintendo’s portable machine has been selling both here and in Japan.

Read More | EuroGamer

CES 2006 Video: Microsoft Gives Us A Windows Vista Preview

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: CES, CES 2006, Features, Microsoft, Software, Videocasts,

We were able to spend a few minutes chatting it up with a Microsoft employee going over some of the more interesting changes we can expect when Windows Vista ships. We recorded a video of the demonstration that we got while going hands on with Vista at CES. In it, we talk about:

• Animation effects
• Legacy metadata for 2000 legacy games built-in to the OS
• The new PC performance rating replacing “system requirements”
• Vista desktop search
• Vista’s way of alerting you of potential system problems
• The new Windows Defender Antivirus and Antispyware program
• The three official Windows Vista SKUs
• The new Breadcrumb Bar

Here’s how to get the video:

|iTunes| - Subscribe to our iTunes video feed
|RSS| - Subscribe to our video RSS feed
|Download| - iPod-formatted H.264
|Download| - MPEG-4

CES 2006 Video: Microsoft Gives Us A Windows Vista Preview

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: CES, CES 2006, Features, Microsoft, Software, Videocasts,

We were able to spend a few minutes chatting it up with a Microsoft employee going over some of the more interesting changes we can expect when Windows Vista ships. We recorded a video of the demonstration that we got while going hands on with Vista at CES. In it, we talk about:

• Animation effects
• Legacy metadata for 2000 legacy games built-in to the OS
• The new PC performance rating replacing “system requirements”
• Vista desktop search
• Vista’s way of alerting you of potential system problems
• The new Windows Defender Antivirus and Antispyware program
• The three official Windows Vista SKUs
• The new Breadcrumb Bar

Here’s how to get the video:

|iTunes| - Subscribe to our iTunes video feed
|RSS| - Subscribe to our video RSS feed
|Download| - iPod-formatted H.264
|Download| - MPEG-4

New Games For the Week of January 15, 2006

Posted by Charles Leake Categories: Release Dates,

Games coming out this week:

25 to Life: XBox, Playstation 2
Ape Escape Academy: PSP
Ape Escape 3: for the Playstation 2
MVP 06 NCAA Baseball: XBox, Playstation 2
MX vs. ATV Unleashed: PC
Samurai Showdown V: XBox
Zooo: Game Boy Advance

Doctor Bans Child from Playing Video Games to Stop Head Twitching

Posted by Brandon Gribin Categories: Culture, PlayStation 2,

A 9-year-old boy was ordered to stop playing video games. As odd as it sounds, turns out that after playing a lot of video games over his winter break, he began noticing that his head was uncontrollably jerking back and forth. As a result, his doctor ordered him to stop playing PlayStation - and sure enough, his head stopped jerking. It’s too bad this kid ran into trouble most likely as a result of playing video games - and it seems really unusual. However, console and game manufacturers do suggest limiting your hours playing games and watching out for seizures and the like.

Read More | Local6

600,000 Xbox 360 Consoles Sold in U.S.

Posted by Brandon Gribin Categories: Corporate News, Xbox 360,

On Friday, Reuters reported that Microsoft has sold a grand total of 600,000 Xbox 360s in the United States. Initial sales reports from the end of November indicated that Microsoft had sold 326,000, so an additional 274,000 since then isn’t horrible. Of course, we’d like to see more unites on store shelves, but that just wasn’t possible around launch time. Maybe it’s about time Microsoft shipped less units to Japan and more, instead, to the U.S.

Read More | Yahoo! News

XtremeMac Roadshow Integrates iPod Into Car Entertainment System

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Portable Audio / Video, Transportation,

Let’s face it, trying to watch the latest episode of Lost (or The Bleeding Edge) on your iPod Video while in the passenger seat of a car speeding down the highway isn’t known to be the easiest of tasks. The XtremeMac RoadShow aims to take a bit of the burden off, offering a solution that allows you to integrate the iPod into a vehicle entertainment system. For $49.95 USD, you get an 8-foot long RCA cable that sends the audio and video from the iPod to the car, along with a 12-volt power adapter to keep the iPod juiced up during the trip. Call us impressed.

Read More | XtremeMac RoadShow via MobileWhack

BuddhaPad: The Good Luck Mousepad

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Design, PC / Laptop,

If you haven’t been getting your Buddha belly rub on lately, break out your credit card and order yourself a BuddhaPad. Simply put, this is a mouse pad that had you rubbing Buddha while you surf the web. Even better, your other hand is still available for any other rubbing you need to be doing at the same time. You can pick one of these up for $10.95 USD - a small price to pay for happiness, prosperity, and good karma, no?

Read More | BuddhaPad

High-Res Burnout 360 Screens

Posted by Brandon Gribin Categories: Action, Driving, Screenshots, Xbox 360,

We’d be lying if we said Burnout on Xbox 360 didn’t look amazing. Still, I’m not completely sold on the game. After already picking the title up on the original Xbox, I’m a little relucant to spend an additional $60 on the same game with some minor updates. Here’s to the next Burnout title. Meanwhile, click through to see all 8 shots in glorious high-res.

Read More | TeamXbox