Mass Effect 3 Producer Won’t Be Sad When It’s Finished

BY

Mass Effect 3 is less than a month away, and fans cannot wait to see how the Commander Shepard trilogy ends.  Still, despite wrapping up one of the most acclaimed RPG trilogies ever, producer Casey Hudson isn’t feeling wistful just yet.

“We’re probably too busy to feel sad it’s over right now,” said Hudson, when asked if he would be upset when BioWare wrapped up Mass Effect 3. “I don’t think I’ll be sad. We’re not done yet, and I don’t know what the final experience will be, but I’m pretty sure Mass Effect 3 is the best in the series.”

“We had ambitious goals, but to make a whole series that spans recessions, BioWare’s independence, different publishers… Well, we did it in the end,” he added, and when asked what happens next with the series, Hudson replied, “We don’t know exactly, but there will be more Mass Effect for Mass Effect fans, I’m sure.”

Source: CVG {link no longer active}

KartRider Coming To Facebook

BY

Nexon has announced that it will bring KartRider to Facebook with KartRider Dash set to debut sometime in March 2012. The original online multiplayer racing game has over 270 million registered users since it launched in 2004.

“We’re still learning how to approach players on Facebook and [other] platforms besides our core PC business,” said Nexon EVP of Social Games Aron Koh. “It’s been challenging. It’s not easy to push out multiple updates to get the metrics up. But we’re very conservative when it comes to acquiring new users. We spent very, very little on [MapleStory Adventures] and we could see that the IP was popular and that was the main factor in acquiring users. It was a very good experience and we’re very happy with how our original IP translated to the platform.”

“One thing I’m very interested to see from our own [studio] and from other companies is more synchronous games on Facebook,” says Koh. “There a couple of synchronous games out there, but it’s very limited. As a company, we’re interested to see more players jumping into that arena.”

Source: Inside Social Games

Tiny Tower Builds Up To 10 Million Downloads

BY

Nimblebit announced that Tiny Tower has been downloaded 10 million times since launching on the iOS App Store. This announcement comes on the heels of a war of words between the indie developer and Zynga over the issue of copying.

“To celebrate Tiny Tower reaching 10 million iOS downloads, we’re giving away over 10 million Tower Bux to players,” said developer Ian Marsh.

Tiny Tower was named the Apple iPhone Game of the Year for 2011. The popular mobile game has over 1 million monthly active users.

Free-To-Play Trend Expanding Monetization, Says Parks Associates

BY

According to a whitepaper “Trends in Digital Gaming: Free-to-Play, Social, and Mobile Games” the game industry will see a shift in revenue models, as smartphones and tablets change who plays games and how people pay for them. On average, Facebook gamers already spend $29 per month, while free-to-play gamers spend $21 per month on virtual goods and upgrades.

“In-app purchases greatly expand monetization of the free-to-play model, thanks to seamless payments,” said Pietro Macchiarella, Research Analyst, Parks Associates. “Already, most of the top grossing games on iTunes and Android can be downloaded for free and generate the majority of their revenues via virtual purchases. While mobile players are often characterized as ‘casual gamers,’ they spend a comparable amount of money on free-to-play titles as their peers spend on console games.”

Additionally, the number U.S. gamers who regularly download games or gaming apps to their mobile devices increased from seven percent in 2008 to 18 percent in 2011, which mirrors the growth of smartphones and tablet adoption. Among tablet owners, 71 percent of adults and 79 of teens play games on these devices at least one hour per month.

“Games running on smartphones and tablets have a significant advantage in the free-to-play business model, compared to their counterparts on PCs,” Macchiarella said.

Source: parksassociates.com/trendsingaming

Eastwood Denies Political Undertones For Chrysler Ad

BY

The Chrysler ad narrated by Clint Eastwood was easily among the best of Super Bowl XLVI, but it’s also been criticized by certain right-wing pundits, who likened it to a political ad for President Obama. Chrysler denied any political content in the ad, while Eastwood, a GOP supporter, has publicly denied the notion that he was stumping for the President.

“I just want to say that the spin stops with you guys, and there is no spin in that ad. On this I am certain,” in a statement Eastwood issued to the O’Reilly Factor. “l am certainly not politically affiliated with Mr. Obama. It was meant to be a message just about job growth and the spirit of America. I think all politicians will agree with it. I thought the spirit was OK. I am not supporting any politician.”

“Chrysler to their credit didn’t even have cars in the ad. Anything they gave me for it went to charity,” he added. “If Obama or any other politician wants to run with the spirit of that ad, I say go for it.”

Bill O’Reilly, a friend of Eastwood, backed up his statement. “Now Eastwood – who tried to do a good thing, now this guy is getting hammered as an ideologue,” said O’Reilly. “He’s caught in the political wars. That’s why people are cautious about doing any of this stuff. I don’t think that’s fair to Eastwood.”

Still, O’Reilly guest and public relations expert Mike Paul thought there was a subliminal message that supported President Obama. “To me, it was a classic ‘thank you’ ad,” Paul said. “Thank you for bailing us out.”

Source: LAtimes.com {link no longer active}

Skylanders Giants Bearing Down On Toy Fair

BY

Activision announced that they will show off Skylanders Giants at the North American International Toy Fair. The game is a sequel to Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure, the best-selling kids’ franchise worldwide in 2011 and the number one overall new IP launched in North America during the same period.

“Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure‘s success in 2011 validated an exciting idea that with the right technology, and the creative minds to support it with engaging characters and story, we could define a new model for children’s play,” said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing. “Skylanders Giants marks the evolution of this core concept. We’ve got super-sized figures, remarkably cool new characters that light up, as if by magic, and more ways to play and explore Skylands than ever before. We’re delighted to announce the title at Toy Fair 2012 and can’t wait for fans to go hands-on this fall.”

“While it was still in development, we recognized the potential that Skylanders had to connect with our customers due to its unique merging of physical and digital play,” said Jerry Storch, Chairman and CEO, Toys”R”Us, Inc. “The game was an enormous success last holiday shopping season, and the toys seem to evaporate as soon as they arrive on our store shelves.  We’re excited to continue our enthusiastic support for Skylanders with a comprehensive, global marketing program to introduce Giants to our customers.”

Eli Manning: More Ads For The Super Bowl MVP?

BY

Eli Manning was MVP of Super Bowl XLVI and much richer endorsements will likely head the way of the New York Giants quarterback. Bob Dorfman, executive creative director at Baker Street Advertising, thinks that Eli could move out of the shadow of big brother Peyton, who earns roughly double what Eli does in endorsements every year.

“There are several categories that are ripe for Eli to move into, categories where Peyton already is,” said Dorfman, pointing to credit cards or fast food; Peyton currently endorses MasterCard and Papa John’s. “I could certainly see Eli picking up another $3 million a year in deals.”

There are no guarantees when it comes to endorsements, however. “There are countless athletes who don’t translate on-field performance to off-field marketability,” said Henry Schafer, executive vice president at Marketing Evaluations, which compiles the Q scores that advertisers use to measure celebrities’ likeability rating with the public. “Even when Brady was winning the Super Bowls, Peyton was the more likeable athlete.”

Source: money.cnn.com