3DS Design Final, Has Wii MotionPlus-Like Technology

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Hideki Konno is platform producer for the 3DS, and he had a say in everything from the sliding analog pad, 3D screen and the Tag Mode automatic downloads. Despite the fact that downloads look like they’ll play a key role in the system, he expressed some reluctance about the coming of the download revolution to portable consoles.

“This is my own personal opinion, but although I sometimes download music, when it s game software I prefer to actually go to a store and get the product in my hands, said Konno. However, I don’t think we can stop the era of downloadable purchases from coming.”

Konno also confirmed during the interview that the accelerometer and gyroscope in the 3DS are essentially the same technology as the Wii MotionPlus. Also, when asked if the 3DS design was finalized or if there would be changes before its release, he said, “You can take this as the final shape.”

Source: Wired

PopCap Gets Social

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PopCap is looking to put more social features into all of its future titles. Senior designer Dave Bishop explained the social initiative during a talk at Develop 2010 and gave an example of a future version of Peggle, where players can see details of what their friends are doing and send them messages.

Bejeweled Blitz has led the charge for PopCap on Facebook with over 10 million monthly users, and other franchises from the company will likely follow suit. PopCap is planning a Plants vs. Zombies announcement for August 2, which may include a sequel or more social features.

Source: ShackNews

Square Enix CEO Implies Japanese Gaming Industry Is Weak

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Japanese publisher Square Enix last year acquired British publisher Eidos wholly, though that shouldn’t be taken as an indication of the strength of the Japanese market over the Western one. In fact, Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada was highly critical of Japanese publishers in general, joining a chorus of his Japanese peers in the process.

“Large Japanese publishers always had a pretty strong skill in making games that appeal to Westerners. But the trend that you are seeing now is motivated more by the desire of the creators, rather than those who are trying to sell the games,” said Wada. “Until about 10 years ago, Japan was the driving force for the entire game industry in the world. But that has not been the case for the past 10 years, so the Japanese creators are kind of exploring, kind of struggling, trying to think why. And so through their struggles, they thought that probably we can try and make Western types of games, and try and become the leader of the market.”

“The Western developers have become much stronger, during the past five years, in this aspect — the game element. This is the area the Japanese creators are struggling with right now, trying to explore in new ways,” he continued. “So if you look at all these three factors and ask, ‘is Japan strong or weak today ‘ I don’t think we can say Japan’s strong. But when I heard those three titles that you mentioned [Super Mario Galaxy 2, Gran Turismo 5, and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword], I don’t think they correctly reflect the current state of Japanese games and their creative strength. So it could have been the timing at which this research or survey was conducted. Maybe it was a time when strong Japanese titles were not around.”

While Square Enix has tried to bring more Western titles to Japan’s shores, Wada lamented that more don’t try these imported titles. Japanese gamers have been avoiding Western games way too much, and as a result for the past five years, they have not even given themselves a chance to experience this aspect — the game elements. “They haven’t even had a chance to try that,” said Wada. “But there are many wonderful games from the Western market as well, and I wanted Japanese game players to enjoy them, too. Of course, I wanted that to contribute to our sales, but I also wanted that to inspire the Japanese game creators. The more they’re exposed, the more they can learn.”

Source: Gamasutra

Vuvuzela Hero: Blow That Horn!

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Anyone who watched any part of the World Cup will remember at least one thing: the vuvuzela horns. Giving off a sound like a hive of bees, the iconic instrument of South Africa’s World Cup is both praised and chided in this parody video.

Google App Inventor In Action

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In the fight to win over developers between Google and Apple, the former is targeting the not-so-technical types. As shown in this promotional video for the Google App Inventor, it helps those who can’t code a line to make working Android apps by connecting a series of blocks.

Ad Spending Sees Huge Gains In Latin America And India

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Nielsen’s most recent Global AdView Pulse report said that ad spending was up 12.5 percent worldwide over the first quarter last year. The global ad spending at rate-card values rose to $110 billion during the same period.

Latin America, India, and China all saw the most significant gains year on year, with 48 percent, 34 percent and 18 percent. More established marketing regions also did well, but not on the same scale; Europe rose 7 percent, the U.S. saw a 4 percent gain and Japan spending was flat.

Both the Vancouver Winter Olympics and run-up to the World Cup drove marketing worldwide, with television spends up 16 percent over the same period in 2009. Despite problems for newspapers and radio ads, both saw 10 and 9 percent growth during Q1 2010. Magazine marketing declined 7 percent and Internet spending rose 12 percent. Spending for automotive companies, notably, increased 19 percent during this period.

Ad Executive Named Activision Publishing CEO

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Activision recently announced that Eric Hirshberg has been named CEO of Activision Publishing, effective September 7. He’s a veteran of 13 years at Deutsch LA, being both CEO and Chief Creative Officer and having worked on the lauded Kevin Butler ads for SCEA.

“In contemplating the requirements for the role of Activision Publishing’s new CEO we believed it was vital to have a leader who was a dedicated gamer, inspired creative thinker, and possessed the ability to manage and lead creative talent in a manner that produced both superior products and provided superior shareholder returns,” stated Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard. “Eric is unique in this regard. There was no one we could find who possessed the unique blend of skills that Eric brings to Activision.”

“Eric’s experience helping to develop strategies for his clients like Sony’s PlayStation, Direct TV and HTC have given him unique exposure to video games, subscription-based entertainment and the delivery of mobile content,” continued Kotick. “I have known him for a long time and Eric is one of those rare multi-talented people who managed to build a billion dollar business from the ground up in a difficult, competitive industry using his creative skills, passion for excellence, discipline and focus. He is one of the most inspiring people I know and I am excited that his energy, determination, and keen understanding of popular culture will be added to our extraordinarily talented team.”

“Eric’s proven business development and talent management abilities combined with his established abilities as a creative leader make him uniquely suited to lead Activision Publishing for continued success,” added Activision Blizzard COO Thomas Tippl.

“I feel like everything I’ve done in my entire career has been preparing me for this,” says Hirshberg. “This is a chance to take everything I know how to do, from leading creative people, to developing a great creative product, to building a culture of ideas, and apply them to something I’ve been passionate about my entire life. Activision has a portfolio of properties, and track record of innovation that are second to none. To be able to help write the next chapter is the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Hi5 Expanding Social Gaming Pull With New Investment

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hi5 announced recently that it received $14 million in venture capital. The funding for the social entertainment site was led by Crosslink Capital, and Crosslink General Partner Jim Feuille will join the hi5 board of directors.

“hi5 is among the companies leading and defining the rapidly emerging social entertainment category, and this round will enable us to fully capitalize on what is already a massive market opportunity,” said Bill Gossman, CEO of hi5. “Crosslink has been at the forefront of this revolution with investments in Pandora and Like.com as well as successful public market experience with Omniture and Ancestry.com, so we are thrilled to have Jim’s expertise joining the company.”

hi5 will look to use this money to further expand into virtual goods and social gaming.  hi5 already features its Coins virtual currency and gifts store, the Games channel and Stars animated avatars.

“The social entertainment category is experiencing explosive growth, and hi5 has the global audience, strategic vision and seasoned management team to be a significant long-term leader in this market,” said Feuille, who is also on the board of Pandora, and played a role in the transformation of its massive entertainment site. “hi5’s unique combination of social game mechanics, ownership of a social graph and a third-party game platform positions the company well for success.”

Deus Ex Media

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Del Rey announced recently that they will publish a novel based upon the Deus Ex game series. Called Deus Ex: The Icarus Effect, the book will focus on Secret Service agent Anna Kelso and special-ops soldier Ben Saxon.

“We’re really pleased to be able to announce this new Deus Ex novel with Del Rey books,” said Andre Vu, Marketing Game Manager, Deus Ex. “The novel is set in the Deus Ex universe and there will be characters and story elements in it, that will overlap with our next videogame Deus Ex: Human Revolution, hope fans will be very excited about.”

Deus Ex: The Icarus Effect and Deus Ex: Human Revolution will both release in 2011.