Technology News: Gaming

Will PlayStation Play the Cellphone Game?

Monday - June 29, 2009

If you're working your thumbs into a carpal-tunnel frenzy on your Sony PlayStation Portable, navigating the blood and gore of the company's successful gaming franchise "God of War," do you really want to interrupt the mayhem to take a phone call from Mom? Sony may soon get an answer to that question, according to a weekend report that says the Japanese consumer electronics giant is looking into the prospect of developing a hybrid mobile phone/gaming device. [More...]

Hasbro Gets Medieval on D&D Fans for Posting Handbook Online

Thursday - June 18, 2009

Dungeons & Dragons & lawyers, oh my -- eight people face accusations they illegally posted the pioneering role-playing game's newest handbook for download on the Internet. Wizards of the Coast, a subsidiary of Hasbro, is seeking unspecified damages in three copyright infringement lawsuits naming a total of eight defendants in U.S. District Court in Seattle. [More...]

'Star Defense' Brings New Dimension to Classic Strategy Game

Thursday - June 18, 2009

Just about every "tower defense"-style game ever made can be described like this: You've got a base you need to protect. Wave after wave of bad guys keep on attacking it, running down a long and winding path before, I don't know, running face-first into the front door, or something. Point is, when they reach the gate, they do damage, and it's your job to strategically set up a bunch of defensive towers along that path. [More...]

Natal Drops Jaws, Nvidia Shines, Pre Sets New Bar

Monday - June 8, 2009

Last week, Microsoft stole E3 with what may be the closest thing to a "Star Trek" holodeck yet: Project Natal, which turns a gamer's whole body into a controller. Computex was all about battles between smartbooks and netbooks; Intel and AMD; and Windows and Android. Also last week, the Palm Pre actually showed up on my doorstep, and I got a first look. I wasn't disappointed. [More...]

'The Sims 3' for iPhone: How Large Can You Live on a Small Screen?

Thursday - June 4, 2009

"SimCity," originally released by Maxis 20 years ago, was the matriarch of a gaming dynasty, giving rise to an impressive sprawl of spinoffs and sequels. The main series hit its true stride with "SimCity 3000," and related "Sim" titles like "SimAnt," "SimEarth," and "SimTower" achieved varying degrees of success. [More...]

Sony Whips Up Wii-Like Motion Controller

Wednesday - June 3, 2009

Desperate to gain more traction in the video gaming market, where it trails behind rivals Nintendo and Microsoft, Sony on Tuesday demonstrated a new motion-sensing controller to an audience of gamers. The demo at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles showed off a device about the size and shape of a television remote control with a colored ball at one end. [More...]

Microsoft at E3: Look, Nintendo, No Controllers!

Tuesday - June 2, 2009

Microsoft is controlling the early buzz at the massive E3 video game convention with its Project Natal technology, which allows gamers to interact with their Xbox 360s without the need for handheld controllers. Along with the publicity, though, the company is creating a lot of questions regarding its ability to deliver on the innovation and promise demonstrated in LA on Monday. [More...]

Tricky Software Pulls Off the Mac/PC Balancing Act

Monday - June 1, 2009

For some developers, working for a multibillion dollar game powerhouse with lots of resources would be a heavenly prospect. That wasn't the case, though, for Zachary Waibel. Waibel is the founder and president of Tricky Software, of Menlo Park, Calif., a maker of games like "Armado" and "Spore Origins" for Macintosh and Windows computers, as well as devices like the iPhone and iPod. [More...]

'Sims 3' Characters Get Personality Plus

Wednesday - May 27, 2009

Maybe it's neat, childish, lucky, ambitious and insane -- just depends on what traits gamers choose for their neighborhood of virtual playthings in "The Sims 3," Electronic Arts and Maxis' popular life-simulating game for the PC and Mac. Executive producer Ben Bell said it will focus more on social behavior than ever before. [More...]

'Punch Out!!' for Wii a Winner on Split Decision

Wednesday - May 20, 2009

In the early 1980s, after Muhammad Ali retired, boxing was losing its mojo. It took two larger-than-life brawlers to bring star power back to the ring: Mike Tyson and Little Mac. They were the stars of the 1987 Nintendo game "Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!" If you had a Nintendo Entertainment System back then, odds are that at some point you pounded your way through a roster of palookas like Glass Joe and Bald Bull. [More...]

The Coming Visual Computing Revolution

Monday - May 18, 2009

For the last decade, the PC market has kind of sucked. Against the massive growth of the '90s, and with the exception of Apple, which didn't do well in that decade, the PC market has been a poor reflection of the excitement that once surrounded it. Part of the problem was the focus on computation and the lack of focus on things that make computing exciting. [More...]

See More Articles in Gaming Section >>