Gaming sales down 24% from a year ago

Console gaming is big business; there’s no doubt about it. But the industry actually saw a pretty steep decline in sales last month. Research firm NPD Group reported that total US video game sales hit $848.3 million during September. While that might seem like a respectable number, that’s down 24% from the same time last year, which was over $1 billion.

By category, hardware sales (consoles, etc.) took the steepest loss, with a 39% slump to $210.9 million. Software sales (games, etc.) were down 18% from $609.7 million last year to $497.4 million this year. Accessories fell by 11% to $139.9 million. So, it seems the past year hasn’t been a good one for gaming companies.

However, Microsoft was quick to toot their horn, claiming that last month was the 21st consecutive month that the Xbox led the console race by selling 270,000 Xbox 360 units and owning 49% of the console market share, making that the 19th month in a row that Microsoft owned at least 40% of the console market share.

However, Nintendo‘s upcoming Wii U console will soon be the newest and hottest console on the market, and if the launch goes well, it could end Microsoft’s streak. The Wii U may also bring the gaming industry out of its slump and encourage more gamers to buy its products. We’re guessing that the lack in new hardware was the reason consumers weren’t spending much on gaming products in the first place.

[via CNET]


Gaming sales down 24% from a year ago is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Star Citizen has already raised almost $500,000

Chris Roberts, the iconic game designer whose work you may have seen in Wing Commander and Privateer, is making a comeback after spending almost a decade out of the game industry to design a new space-themed MMO called Star Citizen. However, he needs $2 million in crowd funds in order to continue development of the game, but so far that doesn’t seem like a problem.

Roberts announced today that after just two days, over 4,000 backers have given almost $500,000 in pledges. The campaign still has a month to go, and the developing company has already reached a quarter of their goal after two days. It’s very impressive to say the least, and it shows how passionate the gaming community is for great games.

Roberts also mentioned that many buyers have given more than $250 in order to get a bunch of goodies, that includes a spaceship-shaped USB stick of game, CD of the game’s soundtrack, a fold-up glossy full color map of the game’s universe, a set of five ship blueprints, a 3-inch physical model of the in-game ship, and a hardback-bound 42-page book called ‘The Making of Star Citizen’.

Also, if you take a look at the different pledge categories, almost all of them say an estimated delivery date of November 2014, which is most likely the date that the full game will release to the public. The early alpha version of the game is said to arrive sometime next year, and will be available for free to the first 200,000 backers who pledge $30 or more.

[via Joystiq]


Star Citizen has already raised almost $500,000 is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Satoru Iwata talks Wii U design, guts a console for context

Satoru Iwata talks Wii U design, guts a console for context

Nintendo’s top dog Satoru Iwata recently sat down with some of his R&D crew to talk about designing the Wii U, and unfortunately, a console was sacrificed in the process. The discussion focuses on what changes they’ve made this time ’round, including the new multi-core CPU and GPU module, and how they fitted more cooling gear in a body smaller than the Wii as a result. In addition to some nice teardown pics for illustrative purposes, they muse on moving to HD, part testing, case design and how the GamePad is more of a companion than a controller. We don’t want to spoil the whole bit, so head to the source link for the full transcript, or check out the gallery below if you just want the visuals.

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Satoru Iwata talks Wii U design, guts a console for context originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 12:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rovio and CERN teaming up on education: hopefully the Angry Birds help us this time

Rovio and CERN teaming up on education hopefully the Angry Birds help us this time

The last time CERN and an angry bird met, it didn’t end so well: the Large Hadron Collider overheated after a feathered creature reportedly dropped its breakfast on outdoor machinery. Things should go much more smoothly this time around, with CERN and Rovio partnering on an educational initiative that will be unveiled in full at the Frankfurt Book Fair on October 12th. Although the two are shy on just what’s entailed beyond the presence of some Angry Birds material at the event, the union will mark the start of Rovio’s learning brand and likely represent more in the long run than another Angry Birds Space tie-in. We’re mostly wondering if subatomic physics research will explain why we still can’t three-star some levels in a physics-based game.

Continue reading Rovio and CERN teaming up on education: hopefully the Angry Birds help us this time

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Rovio and CERN teaming up on education: hopefully the Angry Birds help us this time originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 08:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iControlPad 2 gets funded, adds QWERTY keypad and smartphone mount

DNP iControlPad 2 gets funded, adds QWERTY keypad and smartphone dock

Product 3 LLC, the company behind the original iControlPad, has successfully funded a successor: folks, meet the iControlPad 2. While there isn’t much to its name, the sequel boasts a handy QWERTY keypad along with an optional swivel-mount that you can attach to any smartphone. It works over either microUSB or Bluetooth, and true to its open-source roots, is said to support the Ouya, the Raspberry Pi and pretty much any other device you can throw at it. What’s more, it can be programmed to control almost any app via its support for touchscreen mapping. There’s still room for additional backers, so you could try to get a raw version for $69 or a boxed edition for $75 if you manage to pre-order in time. Let’s just hope the sequel doesn’t experience the same delays as its older sibling, especially given the $150,000-plus the company earned in its Kickstarter campaign.

[Thanks, Craig]

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iControlPad 2 gets funded, adds QWERTY keypad and smartphone mount originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 02:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Angry Birds update arrives with 15 new levels

Hot on the heels of Rovio‘s recently launched spin-off of the Angry Birds series, Bad Piggies, the developer has released a set of new levels for the original Angry Birds game that are based off Rovio’s newest title. Bad Piggies was a huge hit for Rovio, and now they’re looking to spread a little bit of the game’s goodness to their other popular title.

Aside from the added levels, there are also a few new power-ups like “Super Seeds”, the “Almighty Sling King”, and “Birdquake”. Unfortunately, all of these are in-app purchases, so in order to really kick butt in the game, you’ll have to pay up a little. Then again, in-app purchases seem to be becoming the norm, so always be prepared to have your wallet out if you want any kind of advantage in a game.

In related news, the executive vice president of Rovio, Andrew Stalbow, announced that the Angry Birds series is currently getting around 200 million active users on a monthly basis. In any given day, Stalbow says that there are anywhere between 20-30 million users that are connected to Angry Birds.

Those are certainly strong numbers, and we don’t expect them to go down anytime soon, especially with the developer’s upcoming Star Wars-themed title about to hit the market next month. The popularity of Star Wars alone could bring in millions of Angry Birds virgins to play the new game. Look out for Angry Birds Star Wars on November 8.

[via Android Community]


Angry Birds update arrives with 15 new levels is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Wing Commander designer returning with new space MMO

If you remember classic games such as Wing Commander and Privateer from the 90s, then you might be happy to hear that the designer from both games is making a triumphant return by working on a new space-based MMO called Star Citizen. Legendary game designer Chris Roberts spent the last several years producing movies like Lord of War, Lucky Number Slevin, and The Punisher.

Roberts says that Star Citizen will “change the way people perceive games for the PC” and it will “breathe new life into space combat games.” The game will feature a sandbox world like most MMOs, but it will also have an offline single-player mode like we saw in Wing Commander. There will also be support for user-generated content and various modding tools.

Star Citizen will be set in a futuristic style, but will resemble the Roman Empire in some ways. It will focus around the idea of “citizenship”, which must be earned through various civic duties and military service in the game. Roberts says that Star Citizen “is meant to be everything you ever dreamed you could have in a Space-Sim.”

The game is also said to have “10 times the details” of current mainstream titles on the market, which is why Roberts is only offering the game on PC. He mentions that PC gamers like being on the cutting edge, so he plans on giving dedicated PC gamers their fair share of awesome graphics.

The game has already been under development for the past year. However, in order to move on with further development, the company is looking for $2 million in crowd-funded donations. The first 200,000 backers who give at least $30 will be able to play an early alpha version of Star Citizen, which should be ready sometime next year. When the game finally does release to the public, it will be available for $60 with no additional monthly fees.

[via Ars Technica]


Wing Commander designer returning with new space MMO is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Fake Bad Piggies app infested 82,000 Google Chrome users with adware

If you happened to get in on the Bad Piggies action recently, let’s hope you didn’t accidentally download and install the fake version in the Google Chrome Web Store. It turns out over 80,000 Chrome users are now being affected by the adware, which installs a plug-in that displays advertisements when you visit popular websites.

Not only does the plug-in introduce you to a handful of pesky advertisements, but once you give the app permission to “access your data on all websites”, the plug-in can be used to steal personal information like email addresses and credit card information.

Security company Barracuda Networks discovered the fake app and have issued a statement and a report on the unfortunate situation. They suggest that those who are affected should uninstall the fake app immediately and change their passwords on other websites. Hopefully, the plug-in wasn’t able to do a lot of damage, but who’s to say what personal information it gained from the 82,000 users it affected.

The security company also discovered that some of the plug-ins are from www.playook.info, which is a maker of “free” flash games, but Barracuda Networks took a look at the site’s Whois records and it revealed nothing. They say that hiding behind Whoisguard is considered a very suspicious thing for a business to do. So, if you’re wanting to play Bad Piggies, be sure to go to the source to download and install it. Happy gaming!

[via Pocket Gamer]


Fake Bad Piggies app infested 82,000 Google Chrome users with adware is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Angry Birds Star Wars coming November 8

Rovio has kept up on its word about giving us some more details on the Stars Wars-themed Angry Birds sequel that was teased on Friday. Rovio has officially announced Angry Birds Star Wars, and it’ll be available for download on iOS, Android, Windows, and Mac on November 8 — exactly one month from now.

Rovio included a short teaser trailer with the announcement this morning that extends on the animated GIF we were teased with on Friday that had a darkened figure with a robe on holding a light saber. Obviously, we knew what it was about right away, but the trailer still doesn’t give us a lot of details other than the fact that the game is launching on November 8.

However, the trailer does show off the fact that the light saber is what looks to be a slingshot. We’re not really sure how a light saber slingshot will play into this new installment, or what special powers a light saber slingshot will provide, but we’d be lying if we said we weren’t excited to find out.

In the description of the YouTube trailer, Rovio also announced that they’ll “have a whole host of toys, animations and other Angry Birds Star Wars goodness to enjoy”. They also mention to follow their Tumblr blog and to check back “every day” because it’s “just the beginning.” May the birds be with you!


Angry Birds Star Wars coming November 8 is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Feel the Force: Angry Birds Star Wars coming November 8th to iOS, Android, WP, Kindle Fire and computers

Feel the Force: Angry Birds Star Wars coming November 8th to iOS, Android, WP, Kindle Fire and computers

Rovio teased a certain film-inspired Angry Birds picture a long, long last week, and as expected, it’s another new game — Angry Birds Star Wars. Our furious feathered friends are assuming the likenesses of characters from the epic saga, with the trusty Red Bird taking on Luke Skywalker’s role. It wouldn’t be the Rebel Alliance without a dark side to fight, which is where the Pigs fit into the storyline; even the music and levels for gravity-based play will hark back to the film franchise. In addition to the software, details of related merchandise have also been uncovered, including table games, toys and costumes. The game is out on November 8th for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Kindle Fire and computers, and if it follows the original storyline, we wonder how Red Bird’s going to feel about his porcine family history.

Continue reading Feel the Force: Angry Birds Star Wars coming November 8th to iOS, Android, WP, Kindle Fire and computers

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Feel the Force: Angry Birds Star Wars coming November 8th to iOS, Android, WP, Kindle Fire and computers originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 06:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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