185,000 Peeps Visit 2007 GC

The Games Convention (GC), an annual event for the video gaming industry held in Leipzig Exhibition center in Germany once again broke the record for 2007 in terms of figures. The event gathered a total of 185,000 visitors with 503 exhibitors and over 3,300 journalists from 46 countries.

According to Josef Rahmen, Managing Director of the Leipziger Messe:
"The GC 2007 has exceeded all of our targets. A high degree of satisfaction can be seen, not only amongst exhibitors and trade visitors, but also amongst the general public. This result underscores once again why the GC, as Europe's leading fair in the industry, has an ideal home in Leipzig."

Peggy Schönbeck, GC Project Director also commented:
"I'm delighted that our new hall concept proved to be a success. The expansion of the GC Business Center, the new hall layout and the incorporation of the outdoor area all led to a marked increase in the quality of the fair experience. The expansion of the GC family area is a sign of our increased focus upon families. We have been supported in this by the industry itself, which is paying increasing attention to the field of Family Entertainment. The best proof of this is the rise in average age and growing number of female visitors."

GC not only showcase video games. The event also covers other fields like information and entertainment, hardware, and other information/entertainment softwares.

Olaf Wolters, Managing Director of German Federal Association for Interactive Entertainment Software concluded: "Once again, the GC 2007 was a successful, excellent fair. We achieved all of the objectives that we had set ourselves in advance. The new hall concept proved to be a success. Both trade visitors and private visitors found conditions improved by the increase in surface area and new layout of the halls. I am particularly pleased with the rise in interest in the GC family. Once again, the professional co-operation with the Leipziger Messe meant that our trade fair was even more of a success. I am highly satisfied with the result and look forward to welcoming people back to Leipzig next year."

In addition, the organizers of the event expect to draw more people next year. Well, I'll try to upgrade my Acura exhaust system while waiting for 2008 GC.

Speed Racer Game in Development

In connection with the upcoming Speed Racer movie directed by the Wachowski brothers, Warner Bros. Interactive has also announced that it will launch a Speed Racer game in 2008 that will be published in several gaming platforms including PlayStation 2, Nintendo Wii, and Nintendo DS. The game will be released during the premiere of the Speed Racer movie.

Warner Bros. said the game will allow players to play the role of the characters in the film and drive their signature car models. As expected, the game will feature some racing events that and the players' goal is to win every race, obviously. Well, I just wish I could drive a Saab sports car model equipped with Saab motor mount in this game. LOL!

Warner Bros. described the game as "car-fu style of action". Samantha Ryan, Warner development and production senior VP commented: "Speed Racer is an exceptionally creative property and teamed with the Wachowski brothers’ vision it makes for action-packed racing gameplay. The game will capture the intensity of the racing in the film to give gamers and movie fans a chance to take the wheel after they experience the film.”

Joel Silver, producer of the Speed Racer film also commented: “We are very excited about this natural extension from the Speed Racer film to the videogame. Larry and Andy are videogame fans themselves, so they believe that an interactive game is a key component to the entire Speed Racer experience."

As for me, I just cant wait to get my hands on PS2, insert the Speed Racer game, and start racing. Whoosh!

Ten Best Shooting Games of 2007

I'm a fan of first-person shooting (FPS) games. I mean it feels so damn great when you shoot your enemy's head (Whatever they may be. Aliens, humanoids, etc.) and tear their body apart with your bullets. Anyway, since FPS games are one of my fave game genre, let me share you something I got from browsing Game Daily's website (www.gamedaily.com).

Game Daily featured 10 of the best FPS games this 2007. Check them out!

Bioshock
"The spiritual successor the System Shock 2 takes players to an underwater city called Rapture, where science without restraint has run amok and the survivors have mutated themselves into abominations."

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
"Out of the past and into the present, Call of Duty moves past the World War II and heads straight into the War on Terror."

Crysis
"Gamers will finally be able to put their high-powered gaming computers to the test with the most technologically sophisticated game to come out in 2007. "

Enemy Territory: Quake Wars
"Most were automatically sold on the fact that it's a new Quake game-related game."

Gears of War PC
"Xbox 360 players broke in Gears of War and made it a required game for the console system."

Halo 3
"Here's a game that needs absolutely no introduction. The story of the Master Chief and the war between humanity, the Covenant and the Flood that threatens to exterminate all life in the galaxy will be concluded."

Half-Life 2 - The Orange Box
"The orange box includes five games in one! This monster sized package includes the original Half-Life 2, Episodes 1 & 2, the highly anticipated Team Fortress 2."

Left4Dead
"Play as a team, and you might survive. Go at it alone and you'll die."

Medal of Honor: Airborne
"Call of Duty might have gone to modern times, but Medal of Honor isn't through with World War II just yet."

Unreal Tournament 3
"The third installment of the legendary Unreal Tournament franchise will be hitting the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3, so there's no excuse to be left out of the online frag-fest."

So these are the 10 best FPS games according to Game Daily. Play some of these games if you want. Anyway, I got to go and look for GMC mud flap online.

Halo 3 Gains More Than 1 Million Preorders

The upcoming Halo 3 first-person shooter (FPS) game has already gained popularity even though the game has not yet been released in the market. In fact, the game is still under development from Bungie Studios exclusively for the Xbox 360 console platform. Halo 3 is the final chapter of the Halo game series. The Halo 3 will be officially launched in game shops all over the U.S., Canada, and Australia, on September 25, 2007, and in Europe in the following day.

The launch of this game is considered as the "entertainment event of the year." Why? It is because Microsoft Corp., the game's publisher has announced that there are more than 1 million preorders of Halo 3 in North America for the Xbox 360. Whoa! How's that? Anyway, this is just a mere commercial strategy done by game retailers to make their customers preorder the game in their store (make some money!).

Bob McKenzie, senior vice president of merchandising at GameStop Corp said: "What we've experienced is nothing short of phenomenal. 'Halo 3' has eclipsed many previous records and will prove to be one of the must-have items of 2007."

Jill Hamburger, vice president of movies and games at Best Buy also said:
"The excitement for 'Halo 3' is incredible. From our preorders online and the buzz we're hearing in our stores, we know this release is going to be one of the biggest entertainment events of the year. We're thrilled to be able to bring it to our customers."

Halo 3 will roll out in retailers in three versions: Standard Edition, Limited Edition and the collectible Legendary Edition.

"This September, 'Halo 3' will push video game entertainment into the forefront of mainstream culture. Teaming up with some of the world's strongest and most recognizable brands is trailblazing new paths and cementing video games as big entertainment on par with major event films, and is a testament to the excitement and anticipation intrinsically linked to 'Halo 3.'" said Chris Di Cesare, director of creative marketing at Microsoft.

Halo 3 could be one of the best selling video games of all time. Watch out till September to find out. While waiting for that, I think I have to find quality Alfa Romeo oxygen sensor on the web for my friend's car. Take some time to check this blog for other gaming updates.

Jackass Game Preview

Whoa! This is great. While browsing though Games Radar (www.gamesradar.com), I found this latest news that features an interview with the producer of the upcoming Jackass game for PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable (PSP). I never someone would have an idea to create a game that is actually based on the Jackass TV series and movies. The game will also feature some of the well-known Jackass crew like Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Ryan Dunn, Chris Pontius, Steve-O, Dave England, Ehren McGhehey, Preston Lacy, and Jason "Wee-Man" Acuña. But I don’t know if these freaks are all featured in the game. Maybe just some of them.

Anyway, check out this interview with Aaron Rigby, the producer of the forthcoming Jackass game.

Q: Where did the inspiration come from for the game?

Aaron Rigby: "The original series was the biggest inspiration. It was just crazy and creative. The way the Jackass crew had the show set up gave us the opportunity to draw from a huge amount of stunts."

Q: Is the game based in actual sketches or are they completely new?

Q: Was it very difficult to create a game based in a TV series that hasn't got any kind of story or screenplay?

Rigby: "Definitely. The story was pretty basic initially, but we got help from the Jackass cast to make it more authentic. It was their input that made the storyline work and their voices that added the credibility and humor to it."

Q: The big appeal of Jackass is the spontaneity. Do you think you have succeeded translating this into a videogame?

Rigby: "That was a real pain. In most games success is success, you either accomplished your goals or you didn't. Jackass doesn't work like that. The stunts in the show were just as good whether they accomplished what they set out to do or failed completely. That means that our goals in a stunt had to make sure that an entertaining failure worked just as well as a resounding success."

Watch out for other updates of the Jackass game on this blog. Got to check for new Toyota MR2 parts on the web so chill out! By the way, check out the image below. This could be featured on the Jackass gameplay soon. There is only one word that I could say about this.... "OUCH!!!"

EA Losses Q1 Sales

We all know that Electronic Arts (EA) is one of the world's leading game publishers. EA is known for publishing some of the famous role playing games (RPG) and sport themed games like Madden NFL, NBA Live, Tiger Woods PGA Tour, The Sims, and others. Unfortunately, the company's fiscal first quarter sales were down by about 63%.

According to EA, "the net loss for the three months ended June 30 was $132 million, or 42 cents a share, compared with a loss of $81 million, or 26 cents a share, in the same quarter last year."

CEO John Riccitiello said that these results was due to the declining sales of new console gaming platform like the PlayStation 3 (PS3) and Nintendo Wii.

During a conference call, Riccitiello said: "Point blank, this cycle is developing quite differently than the last cycle. The next-gen hardware build is going a little more slowly. The last cycle, EA was on the PS2 in a gigantic way and of course that platform ended up leading the market."

"This time, there's been some unexpected strength with the Wii and the PS3 hasn't - yet - performed as well as we expected it to. That probably has a bigger impact than any other factor on our margins. Great software sells hardware. These titles have a dramatic effect on Xbox 360 and PS3 hardware sales and we feel great about that."

Although EA lost their first quarter sales, the company still manage to get back on the track and surpassed Wall Street's expectation by 10% per share.

Meanwhile, EA will be releasing The Sims Spore, so check this blog for more updates. The gaming industry expects EA to release the game some time in spring of 2008.