| Unglued: Beyond Guitar Hero
My name is Elbert Lagerfeld, and I serve as the Senior VP of Interactive Entertainment Marketing Solutions for a reputable firm here in Corvallis, Mont. We keep an eye on the video-game industrys hottest new trends and brainstorm creative ways to draw a bit of extra sizzle from them. A sales associate at Best Buy recently turned me on to your wildly popular Guitar Hero II and now I find it popping up everywhere. Just this afternoon I heard a comedian on some VH1 list special call the game so totally sex! and, though Ive never heard sex used as an adjective, Im pretty sure I agree 100 percent. The games track selection is impeccable: Mtley Cre (spandex-clad Satanism!), Rush (anarchic time signatures!) and G N R (a child who is sweet!), to name just a few of my personal faves.
Interview: Lust for Second Life
Don't call Second Life a game. Every time I use the word to describe the megapopular online virtual world as I talk with a couple of reps from Linden Labs, the company behind the phenomenon, they correct me. Instead they opt for the more inclusive term "community." It's probably more accurate anyway. Second Life (SL for short) has no score, objective or storyline to speak of, making it decidedly un-gamelike. That's most certainly part of the reason it has taken Netizenry to the next level, gathering millions of registrants and helping bring terms like avatar and MMOG into the mainstream (although the "G" stands for game, Linden equivocates the point on its FAQ page). The cover of BusinessWeek probably had something to do with it, too. But where does the hype end and the (virtual) reality begin? Is SL past its peak or just getting started? We sat down with two of the real people behind the, uh, community to find out.
Free Running Game Projection
To coincide with the European release of Free Running on PS2 and PSP, Rebellion and Reef Entertainment together with the Chief Marketing Office in Rotterdam, Netherlands, have conducted the worlds biggest videogame projection on the Nedlloyd building in the City. As part of Rotterdams City of Architecture 2007 event, the Free Running Gameplay was the first prize for the lucky winner of regional heats leading up to the premiere on Saturday 14th April. The Free Running videogame, launched across Europe on Friday 20th April, is based upon the extreme sport of Parkour, which featured in the recent James Bond movie Casino Royale. Jason Kingsley, CEO of Rebellion said, Associating Free Running with the Rotterdam City of Architecture 2007 event made perfect sense. The CMO are communicating Rotterdam as a youth orientated city and playing an urban-sport focused videogame on one of the Citys key buildings actively engages with and encourages the young people of Rotterdam to get involved with new and exciting projects.
The Pistons Pick Up Their Intensity
The Pistons are built for the playoffs. This is a team with six consecutive 50-win seasons and four straight trips to the Eastern Conference Finals. So forgive them if they coasted through long stretches of the regular season, because the know that now is the time that games matter. From the Detroit Free Press:Dumars joked before the playoffs started about how literally Wallace seems to take the team's "Playoffs are it" approach. "If you tell him that's what the main focus is, then that's what he's going to lock in on," Dumars said. "The backlash of that is you still have 82 games to play. I've said to him, 'The playoffs are what matters here.' He basically takes that literally. I'm like, 'wait, wait, wait, we've still got 82 games.' I've got to remind him from time to time that the 82 games do mean something."Dumars does not have to send a similar reminder when the playoffs begin, not when he sees Wallace racing down the court, hitting the floor and shooting lights out.Chauncey Billups is also picking up his intensity -- not only on the floor but also in interviews.
Shadow of Math
Simple tasks like putting out the rubbish and making a cup of tea are translated into art works in Jonathan Brown's free exhibition Shadow of Math at Artstation from 26 April to 8 May. Informed by elements of game theory, a mathematical method of decision-making, Brown uses a camera to record and measure the duration of everyday activities such as putting out the rubbish. He then manipulates and blends these images using digital media, computer animation programmes and painting. .
Suns Head Back To Town This Friday
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Jacksonville Suns return from a long road trip to Huntsville, Ala., and Jackson, Tenn. this Friday to host the defending Southern League Champion Montgomery Biscuits for a five-game series at the Baseball Grounds. The Suns welcome back national Christian recording artists Avalon for the first Family Faith Night of the season on Friday, April 27, courtesy of Saturn of Jacksonville. Following the Suns game against the Biscuits, fans will enjoy NAPA Friday Family Fireworks, after which Avalon will perform a faith-based concert on the field. In Avalon's first and only visit to the Baseball Grounds in 2005, a near-record crowd of 11,318 enjoyed the game and concert. Church groups will also enjoy a special discount for this evening of fun, faith and fellowship.
The Faithful Spy: Amerithrax Spoiler Alert
New York Times correspondent Alex Berenson has written a spy thriller called Faithful Spy. The hero, John Wells, has been undercover so long that the CIA is no longer sure where his loyalties lie. Only the mid-level CIA analyst at Langley, Jennifer Exley, believes in him. But as Zawahiri's plan to unleash the most devastating bioterrorist attack in history unfolds, Wells and Exley know they must stop him, with or without the help of the ass-covering bureacrats at Langley. Spoiler alert: our hero gets the girl. .
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