Earlier this year, a collective sigh issued forth from the hundreds of thousands of gamers lamenting the general miniaturization of the Electronic Entertainment Expo. The event's owners, the Electronic Software Association, bowing to pressure from members who saw diminishing returns from the multimillion dollar expenditure the show required of them, evolved the show into a more manageable and less-costly event.
In July, the ESA downsized E3 and renamed it the E3 Media and Business Summit. The near free-for-all that attracted 60,000 attendees would now be invitation-only and would no longer fill the cavernous halls of the Los Angeles Convention Center.
Many in the game industry called it the end of an era, albeit a bloated era.
Well, the bloat is back--and it is likely a good thing for gamers.
According to a memo circulated to a short list of LA Convention and Visitors Bureau members this week, International Data Group, publishers of dozens of tech magazines and producers of hundreds of trade shows around the world (including Macworld), will produce a new games show to be held in Los Angeles in mid-October, 2007.
"IDG has been secured to run the new Game Pro Expo show, what we knew as E3," the memo reads in part.
According to Michael Krouse, vice president of convention sales for the LA Convention and Visitors Bureau, IDG is estimating that the event will draw 30,000 attendees, and that long term, those numbers could grow. "I am absolutely convinced this show will be as big as [the old] E3," Krouse told GameSpot News.
The new show will be endorsed by the ESA--"a very important element to the partnership," says the memo, which goes on to say Game Pro Expo will take place at E3's former digs, the Los Angeles Convention Center, on October 18, 19, and 20, 2007.
The Game Pro Expo will have trade show, consumer, and game competition components and is being presented to Convention and Visitors Bureau members as a show that could rival the old E3 in size, scope, and impact on the Los Angeles economy: "Use E3 as a guide [when prepping for Game Pro Expo]," the memo advises.
Referring to the game competition, Krouse said that Staples Center owners, AEG, are likely to partner with IDG, and, "in concept," the live tournaments would take place at the Staples Center.
This news follows on the heels of another trade giant, the Consumer Electronics Association, which announced last month it would not produce a game-oriented trade show in Los Angeles in 2007.
Xfire is suing IGN Entertainment over communication technology its says infringes on its popular PC software.
Xfire claims that IGN Entertainment's GameSpy Comrade, which uses a feature labelled Buddy Sync to retrieve information from instant messaging programs, could do irreparable harm to the company by infringing on copyright, stealing users and disclosing trade secrets.
The suit was filed the day before the release of Electronic Arts' PC title Battlefield 2142, which includes a copy of the Comrade program on the disc.
"Xfire's case is clearly a thinly veiled attempt to hijack Electronic Arts' release of Battlefield 2142, after EA decided to incorporate IGN's Comrade program in Battlefield 2142 instead of [Xfire]," said IGN.
After EA's senior product manager Richard Biggs told a US court that he estimated any delay to the game would reduce sales "by at least a half," district court judge Susan Illston denied a restraining order to halt the release of the game.
However, Illston did note that serious questions are raised within the lawsuit, which continues.
Trade show organiser and magazine publisher IDG is to produce a new games show to be held in October 2007, at the home of the old E3.
"IDG has been secured to run the new GamePro Expo show, what we knew as E3," reads a memo circulated by the publisher to LA Convention and Visitors Bureau members, GameSpot is reporting.
With the backing of the Entertainment Software Association, considered "a very important element to the partnership," according to the memo, the event will take place at the Los Angeles Convention Centre, former home of E3.
The event will incorporate both trade and consumer audiences, with the memo urging members to "use E3 as a guide," when considering the potential audience it could attract and the possible impact on the LA economy.
No publishers, format-holders or developers have officially been linked with the GamePro Expo and the ESA is yet to publicly back the event.
It's been five long, interesting, industry-changing years since the world's most pervasive PC operating system underwent its last revision, but the time is at long last upon us. Vista (and Office 2007), as we understand it, will be launched officially (really) November 30th to corporate customers, while consumers will be able to get theirs going January 30th, 2007. Stay tuned as the bugs keep a gettin' squished over Redmond way, and we count down to what will probably be the biggest software launch since XP.
At 5:30 PM on November 16th, Bonnie Wright will switch on London's Marylebone High Street Christmas lights as part of their seasonal festivities. The event will include various live music, food, drink, shopping stalls, an appearance by Santa, and a fireworks display.
Our Halloween special (only a few hours late) brings some unspooky fun to the latest episode of our weekly Harry Potter podcast. Join Ben, Jamie, Laura, Micah and me for a discussion on ghosts and much more:
- This week we welcome you to the show with our sweet new intro.
- Why is WB so adamant about keeping the movies 2 1/2 hours long?
- Jamie's lack of Halloween enjoyment as a child explains his bitter disposition as an adult.
- How should we take Nearly Headless Nick's advice to Harry at the end of OOTP?
- What's with the Bloody Baron, and why is he so... bloody?
- Was the Grey Lady inspired by the ghost of Lady Jane Grey, who haunts the Tower of London?
- Could Dumbledore have gotten rid of Peeves?
- Does Professor Binns know anything crucial about Voldemort?
- Debate: Halloween is a morally vapid holiday, which encourages delinquency.
- Laura Mallory update.
Contrary to popular belief, you do not need an iPod to download or subscribe to the show. You can always update your feed in iTunes, or visit our website and click on "Episodes" for direct download links and more. On that page you will also find a low-bandwidth version of the show for those of you with dial-up connections. Enjoy!
JK Rowling updated her site today with news that she now has a third title for Book 7. Jo also discusses her progress with the seventh book in the past week.
I've now got a third title. I've been thinking back, and I know that I've had more titles than this for a couple of the previous books, so I'm not too worried by this. Title three currently ahead by a short nose, or perhaps that should be a vowel and two consonants.
I've just had a great writing week. There are few feelings more joyous than reading back over the week's work and thinking 'that's not bad at all', as opposed to the all-too-frequent, 'it's rubbish, I've wasted a week and I'll have to re-write the lot.' And if you think that's an exaggeration or false modesty, you are very, very wrong. It's perfectly possible to put in eight hour days and have nothing to show for them but a single idea that, if reworked completely, might be passable.
Don't ever say that Microsoft doesn't listen to its customers: Following intense backlash against the license transfer stipulations in Vista's EULA -- first we'd heard that only one reactivation was allowed, and then it was clarified as ten -- the software giant has decided to reword the pertinent passage, which now reads "You may uninstall the software and install it on another device for your use. You may not do so to share this license between devices." Bam, that's it -- no limits on the number of transfers and none of that silly major upgrade versus minor upgrade distinction; now you can reinstall Vista ten times a day if that's your thing. As expected, you still have to purchase multiple copies of the OS if you want to run it on more than one machine, but at least now you can tinker with your PC without worrying about running out of reactivations or having to humiliate yourself by begging a Microsoft CSR to give you just one more install. Next step: everyone bitch and moan in the comments about how Vista is too expensive, until Redmond finally relents and starts handing out copies for free when you order a value meal at your favorite fast food joint.
The four day Miss Video Game competition will be held from June 10 -14 2007 in Montreal, Canada. Yeah, another Canadian gaming event! Why are we telling you about it this early? Registration is due by midnight December 31, 2006. Event organizers say 50 women have already agreed to step into the virtual ring. Allegedly Becky Young of Video Games Live and Faith Naked of The Girl Gamer are ready to lock and load.
The competition will test the players across various game genres. This isn't some wimpy one genre FPS fest, no sir, these ladies have to be good at it all: FPS, RTS, strategy and anything else the organizers come up with -- along with having gamer spirit and attitude.
Invariably a fair amount of you are saying, "But I'm a guy, what do I care?" This is where the sick/fun part comes in. Between Dec. 31 and Jan. 20 the rest of us are allowed to vote on the ladies we want to see in the competition based on personality, creativity and gamer representation. The competitors will be allowed to upload videos, interviews and audio clips during this time to sway our vote.
The pre-competition will determine four finalists and one additional finalist will be picked by the celebrity judges. No word yet on who the judges will be. The finalists will be flown to Montreal next June and battle for three days. The competition will be broadcast across the interwebs. The winner receives $1000 USD, a trip to Mexico and a gaming system . No word yet on whether Miss Video Game gets a tiara.
Having revealed that it's working on several new Sims games in its investor conference call this week, EA has also hinted at several other new titles.
And we're not just talking about the inevitable yearly updates either - with chief financial officer Warren Jenson, whose comments were picked up by GameSpot and Firing Squad, mentioning another Lord of the Rings game, a new SimCity and a next-generation version of Criterion's critically acclaimed console FPS Black.
Lord of the Rings may have wound down at the cinema, but EA's still managed to turn out some spin-off titles in the last 12 months, like the rather good Battle for Middle-Earth II strategy game and PSP turn-based title Lord of the Rings: Tactics, while SimCity is about due for a return and Black always looked like it could do with a next-gen playground.
Elsewhere, Firing Squad reports that the conference call also bore mention of comeback for motorbike title Road Rash, along with a new Simpsons game released to coincide with the next TV series in the US.
HBO on Demand will start airing "a sneak preview" of Order of the Phoenix on November 20th. Right now there are no other details concerning what will be included in HBO's preview, but our guess is that it might include clips from the trailer (which will be released on the 17th before Happy Feet).
As we reported in October, Goblet of Fire will make its television premiere on the 19th. In association with the movie, HBO is holding a contest to win tickets to the OOTP premiere.
No time is listed on HBO's website for the OOTP sneak preview, but we will update you as soon as we find out!
Publisher SEGA has picked up the rights to Marvel's Iron Man, including both the comic books and the forthcoming movie, which is due to appear in May 2008.
The first fruit of the multi-year deal is likely to be a game based specifically on the movie, which will be targetted at the next generation console platforms - and the agreement between SEGA and Marvel also apparently paves the way for SEGA to produce at least one additional Marvel superhero property on next-gen consoles.
The Iron Man history is filled with compelling and intriguing characters and stories, and with the power of the next-gen systems, SEGA will be bringing these characters to life like never before," enthused SEGA of America president and COO Simon Jeffery.
The deal comes a few months after Activision, the former holder of the Iron Man rights, confirmed that it had dropped out of its arrangement with Marvel - telling US website GameSpot back in July that it no longer retained the rights, despite the fact that its deal was originally scheduled to extend to 2009.
We need to wait A LOT. I wonder if this one will be for all the next-gen systems.
nVidia's GeForce 8800 GTX GPU is the first DirectX10-supporting graphical processor unit to be announced.
DirectX10, in case you were unaware, is being introduced with Microsoft's Windows Vista and promises to take PC gaming to a whole new level. DX10 is being employed in the likes of Crysis, Crytek's jaw-dropping PC first-person shooter.
nVidia says that it's GeForce 8 series features numerous "ground breaking technologies". Elaborating, the company's spoken of "A revolutionary new unified shader architecture delivering teraflops of raw floating-point processing power for incredible levels of graphics performance 128-parallel, 1.35GHz stream processors and NVIDIA Quantum Effects physics processing technology ushering in a new generation of visual effects and real-time graphics realism Simultaneous 16x anti-aliasing and 128-bit High Dynamic Range (HDR) lighting for unparalleled image quality". You can breath in now.
:GeForce 8 graphics cards are actually available now, but - ouch - they cost. The GeForce 8800 GTX, for example, will set you back around 500 quid while the GeForce 8800 GTS is around £400.
Microsoft's much-delayed new PC operating system, Windows Vista, is finally finished - with the software giant announcing that the OS has gone to manufacture this week.
However, the OS will not be shipping to consumers until January 30th. Business customers get first dibs on Vista, and will be able to get hold of copies of the software in the next few weeks.
From a gaming perspective, Vista has been pushed by Microsoft as being one of the most significant upgrades to the PC platform in recent years. The OS upgrade includes a number of major features that integrate games as a central part of the system, including the latest version of the DirectX platform, DirectX 10, and online community features which are compatible with the Xbox Live platform.
Many major upcoming PC titles will rely on DirectX 10 for high end visual effects - and while most games will continue to be compatible with Windows XP for some time, developers are expected to move their titles exclusively to Vista and DirectX 10 over the course of the next few years.
After suing the Free Software Foundation (FSF) in 2005 for price-fixing and finally losing earlier this year, Wallace filed an action against IBM, Novell and Red Hat alleging that the companies' distribution of Linux under the GNU General Public License (GPL) violated US federal antitrust law. Not to be deterred by the dismissal of this new case after the district court judge found that he didn't have a leg to stand on, Wallace kept fighting the free-software "conspirators" right up to the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. That court affirmed the dismissal this week, after finding that Wallace did indeed lack even the slightest shred of a case against the companies.
At first glance, Wallace's main argument is intriguing. After it sinks in, however, its appeal only lingers for extreme literalists or Microsoft executives.
The argument goes something like this: since the source code for Linux is free for everyone, and since the companies involved have all contributed to the source under the GPL, the companies have formed a conspiracy to engage in predatory pricing with the aim of forcing smaller developers out of the software market. Essentially, by giving software away, they have stifled competition by creating an environment where small developers can't compete with Linux's price-point. The GPL functions as the conspiracy in this strange world, since it is a common effort to pull the price-rug out from under any potential competitors.
Let's start right there, eh? The Seventh Circuit panel's opinion, penned by the prolific and learned Chief Judge Frank Easterbrook, smacks this reasoning down with a lingering noise of fingers-on-face that makes the spine tingle. Judge Easterbrook sees this logic as an attempt to "turn the Sherman Act on its head" by using antitrust law to drive prices up by preventing people or companies from distributing free (as in speech) software.
Remember that the goal of antitrust law is to encourage competition in order to keep prices low for the benefit of consumers. Thus, if prices remain at the lowest level possible through competition, there is no antitrust violation. In US antitrust law, a predatory pricing scheme involves three steps: first, there is a period of artificially low prices; next, competitors fall out of the market; finally, the predatory company achieves monopoly pricing. If no monopoly arises, then low prices remain.
Since the prices in question couldn't get much lower, Easterbrook argues, it is clear that the companies have not engaged in predatory pricing. Software distributed under the GPL could never result in monopoly prices, Easterbrook claims, since the GPL keeps prices low forever and encourages an increase in output by making source code easy to build on. In fact, according to the judge's logic, the GPL is a weapon against monopoly (read: Microsoft), not a means to achieve it.
Moreover, Easterbrook writes, proprietary software still has a huge market share, and many people continue to choose proprietary software over alternatives available under the GPL. The number of proprietary OS's continues to increase despite the fact that the GPL is encouraging the "dumping" of free software products on the market. Since competition remains healthy, according to Easterbrook, the low prices enabled by the GPL do not constitute predatory pricing.
Easterbrook also took exception to Wallace's labeling of people and companies who utilize the GPL as "conspirators." Antitrust law prohibits conspiracies with "restraint of trade" as their goal. In the case of the GPL, however, Easterbrook states that the GPL doesn't restrain trade in the slightest. Instead, he argues, it is a cooperative agreement that encourages new products and derivative inventions. And even though these new products might be clunky, difficult to use and inaccessible to all but the geekiest of geeks, such a cooperative is not illegal.
Wallace also chose to renew his price-fixing argument here, which fared no better with Chief Judge Easterbrook than it did with the judge in the FSF case. While the GPL does, literally, fix the price of the source code at zero, Easterbrook states, maximum prices are usually a good thing for consumers. As such, they are evaluated under the Rule of Reason.
The Rule of Reason is an antitrust rule that, in essence, states that only unreasonable restraints on trade are subject to antitrust laws. A maximum price is, technically, a restraint on trade because it restricts price opportunities. Since intellectual property law gives creators the right, but not the obligation, to charge for their property in order to recover fixed costs, however, and since open-source software creators have been able to cover their fixed costs through donations of time, it would be ineffecient and harmful to consumers to force developers to charge for their source code. Thus, free software is perfectly reasonable, and survives this sort of antitrust scrutiny.
In summation, Chief Judge Easterbrook assuages any remaining fears that the open-source community might have by definitively stating that "[t]he GPL and open-source software have nothing to fear from the antitrust laws."
And not even the entry of antitrust-rogue Microsoft into the open-source game can screw that one up.
Emma Thompson (Trelawney) was interviewed on Jonathan Ross tonight where she mainly discussed her new film, Stranger than Fiction, while speaking a little about Harry Potter. A video of this appearance can be seen here (right click and save, 4.35 MB). Please note, however, that the video may not be entirely suitable for younger audiences and we therefore urge you to view with caution. Thanks to Nick for the recording!
In a recent interview, Daniel Radcliffe was asked if he would be playing a death in Movie 7, and he then suggested that Harry might die in the final book: "That's the only way [J.K. Rowling] could ever halt any call for her to keep writing [Potter books], because, I mean, if Harry survives, she'll just be getting plagued by requests to write an eighth book for the rest of her life."
The actor's friend also drew a parallel between Harry vs. Voldemort and Sherlock Holmes vs. Moriarty. In the book, Holmes had to die in order for his nemesis, Moriarty, to be vanquished. Dan continued, saying: "But, obviously, he [my friend] hasn't read the sequel [in which Holmes was revived]. So, yes, but that's the thing that I would sort of like to see coming."
Emma Thompson (Trelawney in POA and OOTP) recently gave two interviews to coincide with the release of her new movie, Stranger than Fiction. Newsweek asked how her daughter has reacted to her being cast in the Harry Potter films. "I'm in big with my daughter. In fact, I'm taking her to the set at half term. So I'm in with her and her friends... It's a great threat to have. 'I will not take you to the premiere. I will not give you Daniel Radcliffe's number.'"
The actress also told USA Today that roles in child-oriented movies, like Harry Potter and Nanny McPhee, "are very rich and fun to play." Additionally, on facing off with Imelda Staunton (Umbridge) in Order of the Phoenix, Thompson said: "We were playing something that was very cross comedy and tragedy."
A law was passed last week that makes it an offence to launch a denial of service attack in the UK, punishable by up to ten years in prison.
There had been concern that Britain's Computer Misuse Act, written in the days before the World Wide Web, allowed denial of service attacks to fall through a loophole. These are attacks in which a web or email server is deliberately flooded with information to the point of collapse.
The 1990 legislation described an offence of doing anything with criminal intent "which causes an unauthorised modification of the contents of any computer"; the question was whether that covered denial of service attacks. When a court cleared teenager David Lennon in November 2005 on charges of sending five million emails to his former employer – because the judge decided that no offence had been committed under the Act – the need for amendment seemed obvious.
Lennon's lawyer had successfully argued that the purpose of the company's server was to receive emails, and therefore the company had consented to the receipt of emails and their consequent modifications in data. District Judge Kenneth Grant concluded that sending emails is an authorised act and that Lennon had no case to answer, so no trial took place. That ruling was overturned and Lennon was sentenced to two months' curfew with an electronic tag. But by that time, amendments to the 1990 legislation were already included in the Police and Justice bill.
It was passed yesterday, becoming the Police And Justice Act 2006. The Act also increased the penalty for unauthorised access to computer material from a maximum of six months' imprisonment to two years.
The 2006 Act expands the 1990 Act's provisions on unauthorised modification of computer material to criminalise someone who does an unauthorised act in relation to a computer with "the requisite intent" and "the requisite knowledge."
The requisite intent is an intent to do the act in question and by so doing:
to impair the operation of any computer,
to prevent or hinder access to any program or data held in any computer, or
to impair the operation of any program or data held in any computer.
The intent need not be directed at any particular computer or any particular program or data.
The wording is wide enough that paying someone else to launch an attack will still be a crime, with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Supplying the software tools to launch an attack or offering access to a botnet could be punished with up to two years in prison.
Production Weekly's latest issue contains information concerning Half-Blood Prince, including that David Yates is set to direct the film. While everyone should consider this a rumor for now, we heard that David had been in talks with WB to possibly direct HBP.
This is a story i've been working on in my mind for years now. Why post it here, of all places,,
Why post it at all? I'll always remember it. I created it, The question is. Do you even care to take the time to read it. do you even know what it is.
It all doesn't really mater. Ill do this as an outlet for many buzzes to come. This is for me anyway, So you can read it if you want. But . This belongs to me...
{Oblivion},
The Darkness is Who I am, I know nothing But the comfort of the void, Time loses all meaning as it slips into a endless stream,
I become one with everything, and one with nothing.
For I am everything, and nothing, we are one and the same.
Maybe, It'll be okay if i close my eyes,, Just for a little bit..
Who knows how long the darkness lasts, until daylight i guess..
...
(( GAbriel...))
Who are you?
(( Gabriel,,, Its time to wake up..))
Who are you?! And why do you presume to order me about?!
(( wake up gabriel..))
{Reflections of white} ( the lunar ruins)
{Fusoya} Golbez!! Golbez!! Come quickly, I believe i've found something,
{Golbez} What is it fussy? And ive told you call me gabriel, Golbez was the name zeromus gave me as a mindless puppet, Call me by the name my people gave me, Gabriel....
{Fusoya} I've told you The names Fusoya!! Say it with me Fu-So-Ya!
(After a brief jest)
{gabriel} so what do you think it is?
{fusoya} Im not quite sure, I may be old, But im not that old. These ruins date back to an ancient time, even before your father and I, The original lunarians from the lost civilization, Built this shrine long before settlers ever came to live here..
{gabriel} So how old is it then?
{Fusoya} its hard to say really, Maybe we should take it back with us.
{gabriel} Whatever old man!!!... Why didn't you just say lets go to the ruins to train.... Geeze, don't i ever get a day off?
{Fusoya} Oh, I see,, And maybe while your sitting on your lazy ass, enjoying your day off. The villagers nameingway can just do all your work for you!!
{gabriel} erm....
{fusoya} GET TO WORK!!!
{gabriel} Okay okay, i was only joking, geeze...
(slave driveling old fart)
{fusoya} I heard that!
{gabriel} . (mumble..)
(meanwhile back at the lab) * always wanted to say that ;p
{gabriel} So this is the blade of shadows huh ?, That's a funny name for a piece of rusted metal...
{Fusoya} Hmmm. I cant really translates this language, Its not like anything i've ever seen., Some of it makes since, See , like here, You can clearly see the words Blade, And shadows, Consuming, Darkness. BUt I cant make the rest out,
{gabriel} hmm..
{fusoya} Our options are limited. We have no other choice, You will have to see king bahumet..
{gabriel} Right, On my way..
{fusoya} Wait, Take the blade with you and some previsions i've prepared..
{gabriel} Thank you, I will return as soon as i find something out.
{Fusoya} Godspeed Golbez.
( As gabriel leaves to find the bahumet king, fusoya attends to the wounded at the nameingway village)
{ Nameingway resident} Thank you, Fusoya, We've been helpless since our few fighters, where defeated by the chimera...
{fusoya} Think nothing of it, Ill do what i can to be of help.
( Distressed nameingway) Help!!! Help!! The chimera comes!!!!!
{Fusoya} Everyone!! Take Cover!! Grab your children and get them to safety now!!! ( the nameingway citizens, all run for cover, save a few brave souls)
{fusoya} I told you!! the chimera is attacking, Run for cover and hide!!!
{brave nameingway} No... I will not run.
{fusoya} Do you have a death wish ? are you mad?!!
{brave nameingway} No. I am not frightened, The chimera Took My wife, My child, And my friends. I have nothing Left to fear of losing. I will stand, i will fight..
{fusoya}
(sorrow filled expression)
Very well brave one, Stand and fight with me.. We will do this together.
(meanwhile, gabriel traverses the depths of the bahumet layer, unawear of the goings on at nameingway village. )
( as he travels the depths the layer the lesser beasts seem to yield to him, in an almost respectful manor,
Hmm.. it seems i've ran into a block. I don't want to end the behumet layer yet., i need some story element for this,,, Ill be back after i get a good buzz going....
EA hold on to the top spot again with a boost from the Xbox 360 version being released, despite two new big hitters comming in to claim 2nd and 3rd. COD 3 is the second fastest-selling Xbox 360 title ever and
should be boosted by PlayStation 2, Wii and Xbox version that will be release soon.
PES 6, Fifa 07 and The Sims 2: Pets, all drop 2 places each to male way for the new titles, and GTA:VCS, is still selling well for the PSP in 7th place.
Lego Starwars 2 makes a come back into the top 10, with the PSP version being released.
Sega get into the top ten with Creative Assembly's Medieval II: Total War debuting at number nine, while Canis Canem Edit fails to convert hype into steller sales drops to 10th
F.E.A.R Xbox 360 version brings it back into the top 40, with 20th place while, Sony's Buzz: The Sports Quiz, enters the charts with a whimper in 31st
Next week: Gears of War, will it knock Need for Speed of the top?
Remember Lik-sang? a single tear rolls down my cheek...
But recently on my internet travels I found winsunx.com , and got a little desa vu.
On the left Lik-sang, on the right Winsunx
sorry for the crap small pics, can't get a better one for lik-sang
Could it be true has lik-sang reinvented it self?
No, the answer is winsunx.com has been around for years (since 2003) and has recently decided to copy lik-sang design, (you can check the old design they had back in april 06 here)
On Saturday we told you Production Weekly had reported that David Yates would direct the sixth Harry Potter film. However, Warner Bros. has just informed us that a Half-Blood Prince director has yet to be chosen, so consider this false for the time being.
Emma Watson yesterday gave an enlightening speech at Oxford University, detailing what she's learned from playing Hermione, how she really enjoys the Potter sets, how Evanna Lynch humbles her, and a number of other interesting matters. Emma also spoke a little about her future, explaining how she wishes to continue her schooling and acting career.
Emma Watson has always wanted both school and acting, and this is how she sees her future. She really wants to go to university, particularly when the acting system is 'unreliable.' She wants to go elsewhere, to learn what it is like to live on your own, to live with friends and away from parents. Speaking of which, she was then asked what her parents -- who sat on the front bench to Watson's right -- think. Both attended Oxford and are intelligent enough to do what is best for their daughter.
'All my money is pretty much locked away,' she said, and she is more than happy with this. She doesn't really like being asked about money, but does describe that she has an allowance and that enables her to live like a normal teenage schoolgirl.
Will she be comfortable in a future of acting where she is not Hermione? It is 'a bit of a daunting concept' and she hopes that she is 'talented enough to pull it off' when she does finally dabble in something different. Perhaps theater or maybe just a 'big blonde bouffant.'
You can also submit your own petitions. Maybe some nice fellow in the homebrew/import scene could create a petition, to allow the importing of console (psp, ps3) like the rest of the world can (bar our other European friends)
While browsing the LucasArts store yesterday, I noticed a new collection that brought back fond memories of the LucasArts Archives from ten years ago. Star Wars: The Best of PC will be available starting next Tuesday (11/21), and will include the following titles:
Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast (2002)
Knights of the Old Republic (2003)
Battlefront (2004)
Republic Commando (2005)
Empire at War (2006)
Star Wars Galaxies 14-day trial
Hardcore Star Wars fans may scoff at the "Best of" title when classics such as Tie Fighter, Rogue Squadron, and Shadows of the Empire are absent from the box. But this isn't a bad assortment at $40, and it offers a little bit of everything for PC gamers on your holiday shopping list who enjoy different genres. How many of you plan on picking this up, either for yourself or someone else?
The BBFC reports that the first trailer for Order of the Phoenix has a running time of 54 seconds and is rated PG. US theaters will show the trailer on Friday before Happy Feet, though it is not yet known when international fans will see the trailer. We will update you with more information as we get it.
Warner Bros. has just revealed the first official promotional poster for the Order of the Phoenix movie. It depicts Voldemort brandishing his wand, with the caption: "You Will Lose Everything."
A short commercial for an upcoming Order of the Phoenix preview was recently aired on ABC Family. Thanks to reader Ashley, we have a detailed description of the preview's ad:
The first thing that you see is two (what appear to be) Death Eaters, one with a blue mask and one with a green mask, I believe. It then switches to a scene with Harry in it looking scared and sweaty. Then it switches to a scene with Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Neville, and Luna riding broomsticks (they ride on Thestrals in the book) in London right over the Thames River. You see the London Bridge in the background and you see a cruise tour boat that they are flying past. Then it switches to Harry, Ron, and Hermione (Ron isn't present in the book) in the Forbidden Forest backing away from something - it's either Grawp or the Centaurs. Then it switches to Harry, Hermione, Ron, Luna, Neville, and Ginny flying past the Houses of Parliament/Big Ben. And then it switches to Harry flying towards the screen with London in the background, over the Thames River.
The Order of the Phoenix preview will come as part of ABC Family's Harry Potter weekend, which will air on December 1st. We will have a video online shortly afterwards.
Not content with upsetting gamers with its mediocre gameplay, PS2 survival horror 'The Rule of Rose' (don't worry if you've not heard of it) has gone one step further and angered Europe's justice commissioner Franco Frattini, who has taken umbrage at the glorification of violence that features in similar games.
The Rule of Rose, whose protagonist Rachel is subjected to both physical and psychological harm, has so deeply shocked the EU commissioner that he has urged all EU governments to tighten controls on such games that 'glorify' violence.
Frattini is reported to have said that "an increasing number of such games display and even glorify violence, sometimes extreme violence. In particular one of the latest games (The Rule of Rose) relates to a young girl who becomes submitted to psychological and physical violence. This has shocked me profoundly for its obscene cruelty and brutality."
His dislike has already affected the game in Italy, where the Mayor of Rome has already vowed to have it banned from shelves. Now whilst in the case of this particular game this is no particular loss, is it only a matter of time before more valuable games become affected? The recent title change of Rockstar's Bully to Canis Canem Edit may only be the tip of the iceberg if further regulations are set in place.
Indeed, Frattini added that "games where you are supposed to shoot down ordinary people walking on the streets or where you have to bully children at schools" are also on his videogame hit-list.
The commissioner now wants Home Affairs ministers meeting on December 5 to look into how they can increase awareness of the potential risks of such videogames, initially through stricter labelling and restrictions on sales to minors.
Whilst currently Frattini is demanding tighter legislation to stop children from playing these violent games, is the banning of such games (as shown in Rome) far from becoming commonplace in Europe? Have your say in the comments section below...
I was wondering what you lot would consider the best 2+ player games of all time. Apart from games for mixed skill players, this has never been asked on here before, so it would be interesting to see. From my own experience and research, it looks as though a top 50 would include games such as Streetfighter 2, World of Warcraft, Speedball 2, Super Mario Kart, SWIV, Ikaruga, Stunt Car Racer, Super Monkey Ball, Puzzle Fighter, and Mario Party. Whether they are competitive or cooperative, Slippery slope or Perpetual comeback, 2-player or multiplayer, retro or cutting edge, I want to hear them! I would prefer MMOG games not to be included, unless there is a good deal of interaction between the people in the 'same house' (e.g. perhaps they can team up and play against the world)
A man in Manchester, England has been convicted of using an MP3 player to hack cash machines. Maxwell Parsons, 41, spent £200,000 of other people's money after using the machine to read card details.
Parsons plugged his MP3 player into the back of free standing cash machines and was able to use it to read data about customers' cards. That data could then be used to 'clone' cards and use them for bogus purchases.
Free-standing machines are typically found in shops and bars, and they allowed Parsons to plug his machine into the back of them in a way that would be impossible in wall mounted dispensers.
The MP3 player recorded customer details as they were transmitted over phone lines to the bank. Tones were read as they were transmitted and used to clone cards.
The case was heard at Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester. Parsons was sentenced to 32 months in prison for the scam. Though £200,000 was spent on the cards, police said they believed that Parsons himself only earned £14,000 through it.
Police uncovered the scam almost by accident when they stopped Parsons for making an illegal u-turn in a car in London. They found a fake bank card in his possession and searched his home in Manchester, where they found the evidence with which to prosecute.
He denied the charges of fraud at first but eventually admitted to possessing equipment to make a false instrument, deception and unlawful interception of a public telecommunication transmission. He is believed to have had accomplices.
To celebrate Christmas U.S. television station ABC Family will be showing the first three Harry Potter movies, including the extended version of Prisoner of Azkaban, the weekend of December 1st. We now have the commercial currently airing on the station which includes scenes from the upcoming Order of the Phoenix:
A description can be read below courtesy of MuggleNet.
The first thing that you see is two (what appear to be) Death Eaters, one with a blue mask and one with a green mask, I believe. It then switches to a scene with Harry in it looking scared and sweaty. Then it switches to a scene with Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Neville, and Luna riding broomsticks in London right over the Thames River. You see the London Bridge in the background and you see a cruise tour boat that they are flying past. Then it switches to Harry, Ron, and Hermione in the Forbidden Forest backing away from something - it's either Grawp or the Centaurs. Then it switches to Harry, Hermione, Ron, Luna, Neville, and Ginny flying past the Houses of Parliament/Big Ben. And then it switches to Harry flying towards the screen with London in the background, over the Thames River.
It has just been announced that the first OOTP trailer will debut via satellite on November 20th at 9-9:15 PM EST and the following day at 6-6:15 PM EST. The coordinates for both feeds are:
USA Today has published four brand new photos from the Order of the Phoenix movie in an article which also contains a new interview with Dan Radcliffe. The photos show Voldemort, Sirius, Umbridge... and, drumroll - Harry and Cho kissing!
UPDATE: One new scan from the actual USA Today article has a nice shot of Harry learning Occulmency. Thanks to Andrew's World Cultures teacher for the newspaper!
We expect high quality versions of all these images in the coming days, but most likely tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who emailed!
Warner Brothers has just informed us that the teaser trailer for Order of the Phoenix will premiere online Monday, November 20th on the official Happy Feet website. We'll let you know when it hits the site!
Warner Brothers has released ten brand new pictures from Order of the Phoenix today, including a few that didn't make this morning's USA Today article.
The defence lawyer of a Wisconsin man charged with having sex with a dead deer is claiming he's innocent of any wrongdoing - because a "crimes against sexual morality" statute prohibits sex with animals, but fails to mention carcasses, The Duluth News Tribune reports.
Bryan James Hathaway, 20, of Superior, was arrested on "a misdemeanour charge of sexual gratification with an animal" after indulging in intercourse with said deceased deer on 11 October.
His attorney, public defender Fredric Anderson, last week filed a motion with a Douglas County court which argued "because the deer was dead, it was not considered an animal and the charge should be dismissed". He wrote: "The statute does not prohibit one from having sex with a carcass."
He further argued that, according to Webster's dictionary, an animal is "any of a kingdom of living beings". If you include carcasses in that definition, Anderson reasoned, "you really go down a slippery slope with absurd results".
Anderson demanded that a judge clarify "what the Legislature intended 'animal' to mean in the statute", insisting: "And the only clear point to draw the line in that definition, I believe, is the point of death."
Assistant district attorney James Boughner countered by saying that the court could indeed use a dictionary to determine the meaning of a word, but isn't obliged to do so. He told Judge Michael Lucci that "when a person's pet dog dies, the person still refers to the dog as his or her dog, not a carcass".
"It stays a dog for some time," Boughner added, noting that Hathaway himself had referred to the dead deer as exactly that, and not a carcass, when confronted by police.
Brougher concluded by stating the "statute was on punishing the human behaviour, not protecting animals".
"It does not seem to draw a line between the living and the dead," he noted. Interpreting the statue to exclude carcasses would, moreover, "also exclude freshly killed animals", Boughner insisted. This, in turn, "could lead to people who commit such acts with animals to kill them".
Boughner's latter point seems to be backed up by Hathaway's previous form, which saw him in April 2005 plead "no contest to one felony charge of mistreatment of an animal for the shooting death of Bambrick, a 26-year-old horse, to have sex with the animal".
Judge Lucci summed the matter up concisely with: "I'm a little surprised this issue hasn't been tackled before in another case." He then promised to render a decision before Hathaway's next court appearance on 1 December.
Hathaway faces a possible nine months' jail and a fine of up to $10,000 on the deer sex rap, but if convicted, "could serve a prison term of up to two years because of a previous conviction".
According to Gamepolitics.com, Bill OReilly has a few choice words for gamers and computer geeks in general. The well-known conservative pundit has harsh words for iPod owners, gamers, the PS3, and all of us 'disconnected from reality' by modern technological contrivances."
From the article:
"Basically what you have is a large portion of the population, mostly younger people under the age of 45, who don't deal with reality — ever. So they don't know what day it is; they don't know temperature it is; they don't know what their neighbor looks like. They don't know anything... because they are constantly diverted by a machine. Now what this does is it takes a person away from reality because they've created their own reality..."
The California Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling on Monday stating that websites can't be sued over third-party content, the Associated Press reports.
The court found that, according to the Communications Decency Act of 1996, only the person responsible for creating libellous content can be pursued.
At issue was a San Diego woman, Ilena Rosenthal, who is alleged to have slandered a doctor by posting email memos obtained from third parties on her website, the wire service says.
The decision is bad news for lawyers, who naturally take on these cases in hopes of suing the daylights out of rich operators like Google, Yahoo!, MSN, AOL, and the like. Not surprisingly, many of these outfits generously participated on behalf of the defendant.
A Lower California court had ruled that the liability protections provided by the Communications Decency Act did not apply to individual online "distributors" of putatively libellous content, like Rosenthal. But the state Supremes found that "by declaring that no 'user may be treated as a publisher' of third party content, Congress has comprehensively immunised re-publication by individual internet users".
Thus lawyers' lobbying groups will have to go back to Capitol Hill and buy some better legislation, allowing them to sue wealthier targets.
You can now see the teaser trailer for the film on this page. If you are using Internet Explorer you will need to turn up the volume on the player. Firefox users will need to click the video in the playlist for it to run.
If you are unable to view the trailer on that page, please try the links below:
MTV's Total Request Live today aired a video which featured clips from OOTP (same as those in the trailer) and interviews with some of the Order of the Phoenix cast members, including Dan and Rupert. In addition, when Bonnie Wright was discussing the film, a new photo of the DA was shown briefly. To download this video, click here [5.27 MB, wmv].
E! Daily 10 has released their Order of the Phoenix set report on their website, which you can check out (in video form) right here. In it, they speak with Dan Radcliffe on the floor of the Ministry of Magic's Atrium, have a small interview with David Yates, and reveal a few more parts of the set. Thanks to Ellen for the tip!
MTV has posted 15 brand new set images from the fifth Harry Potter film. They show the following: the interior of the Ministry of Magic; Harry and Mr. Weasley attending the disciplinary hearing there; the writing on Harry's hand from Umbridge's quill; some of the other cast, and more!
As we reported yesterday, HBO on Demand is currently airing a special preview of the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix movie. The preview runs for almost four minutes, and includes tons of new OOTP footage, including behind the scenes glimpses at the making of the movie. A video of this very exciting sneak peek can be seen here, thanks to HPANA.
PLEASE NOTE: As this video contains such a large quantity of never-before-seen footage, we warn you that it may spoil some of the film for you.
In a short interview with CBBC Newsround, actor Dan Radcliffe comments on the response he's received about the trailer: "So far [it] has been very, very positive. People do seem to be wanting to see more of the film." You can see a video of this on YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USSg4dM31yc
Electronic Arts, maker of the entire Potter video game series, today has a new game to announce: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix! In a press release issued this afternoon, EA had this to say about the game's uniqueness:
The close and synergistic relationship between book, film and videogame is more defined in the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix videogame than ever before. Players will be able to explore the many key locations within Hogwarts in minute detail, each one a visual match to its film equivalent, while being engrossed in the thrilling adventures outlined in the rich narrative of the book.
With the ability to play multiple characters, including Harry Potter, Dumbledore and Sirius Black, the videogame of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix offers fans the opportunity to wield a wand, explore all around Hogwarts, and experience one of the most exciting and dangerous years in the life of the Boy Who Lived.
You can see four screenshots from the game in our gallery! The game will be released for all gaming consoles on July 13th, 2007 - the same day of the US and UK release of the film.
Third-party publisher Electronic Arts confirmed today that the game adapation of the upcoming movie Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix is in development for multiple platforms, including Wii.
The game will closely follow the events of the corresponding film and book, with players able to explore key areas and use magical abilities as Harry Potter, Dumbledore and Sirius Black, among other characters. Electronic Arts did not specify how the title will utilize Wii's functionality.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix is expected to release in July 2007. Stay with The Wiire for all the latest Wii wizardry.
Looking for a reason to be thankful today? Well look no further than Librarian of Congress and copyright czar James H. Billington, who has bequeathed a wonderful gift upon millions of cellphone users by granting an exemption wherein consumers may legally break the software locks on their handsets in order to transfer service to another carrier. That's right, starting on Monday you'll be able to say screw you to Cingular or ta ta to T-Mobile and keep rocking your precious RAZR even after you've jumped ship and signed up with a new provider. The exemption is one of a record six granted by the Copyright Office on Wednesday, and was announced so unexpectedly, that even the EFF's Fred von Lohmann admitted that he was "surprised and pleased" by the development. So go forth, friends, and use this new info to either make the switch or squeeze a better deal out of your current provider -- just remember, no matter how hard you try, you're just not gonna be able to get that unlocked GSM phone to play nice with Sprint or Verizon.
Here's something abandonware enthusiasts can be thankful for: the Library of Congress yesterday approved six exemptions to US copyright. The one most pertinent to gamers is that, for archival purposes, copy protection on software no longer being sold or supported by its copyright holder can be cracked.
What does this mean? Well, those retro games -- classic or otherwise -- that you can't seem to find anywhere can now be preserved without fear of ramifications. Although it is still unlawful to distribute the old games, free or otherwise, rarely do any abandonware cases go to court. The ruling is more symbolic than anything, but a step in the right direction.
Other rulings involved the rights of consumers to crack cell phone software locks for use on other carriers, the rights of educators to make compilations of DVD scenes, and the rights of blind people to use third-party software in order to read copy-protected electronic books. These rulings come as clarifications of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). All new rules take effect on Monday and last for three years.
Four Quarters Before Xbox 360
PS2 - $2,389,120 (61.1%)
XBX - $1,126,022 (28.8%)
GCN - $395,853 (10.1%)
Total - $3,910,995
Four Quarters After Xbox 360
PS2 - $2,084,636 (56.3%)
XBX/360 - $1,336,411 (36.1%)
360 - $757,464 (20.5%)
XBX - $578,947 (15.6%)
GCN - $278,884 (7.5%)
Total - $3,699,931
Let's analyze the year-over-year numbers.
- "Xbox" (Xbox Classic and Xbox 360) gained 7.3% market share.
- PS2 lost 4.8% market share.
- GameCube lost 2.6% market share.
- Xbox Classic lost 13.2% market share.
- "Xbox" (Xbox Classic and Xbox 360) revenue increased 18.7%.
- PS2 revenue decreased 12.7%.
- GameCube revenue decreased 29.5%.
- Xbox Classic revenue decreased 48.6%.
- The overall market revenue decreased 5.4%.
The Xbox brand overall has increased its share. Xbox 360 has so far taken 13.2% away from the original Xbox, 4.8% from PS2, and 2.6% from GameCube. It's only natural for most early adopters of Xbox 360 to be from the Xbox Classic user base.
Now let's look just at Q3 2006, the most recent quarter.
- Xbox Classic and Xbox 360 combined for 41.2% market share.
- PS2 is still in the lead with almost 54% market share.
- Xbox 360 is already at almost 32% market share.
The source data includes EA, Activision, THQ, Ubisoft, and Midway.
Approximately 50% of the combined revenue comes just from EA.
