Paid Surveys, Opinion Polls and Product Trials

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love

Take this with a grain of salt, but Gizmodo says they accidentally got their hands on an official statement to the effect that Microsoft's Home and Entertainment division, responsible for Xbox and Zune, will be unveiling a "top secret" product at 12:01 AM EST:

What it is, we do not know for sure, but it's "something totally new ... and it's going to change the way people interact with technology." The email ... also stated that "you really have to see it to believe it."

View Entry

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love

Did you know that "Angry Video Game Nerd" (neé Angry Nintendo Nerd) is actually quality entertainment, now? Now that it's got high production values and all the awkward boring parts have been skillfully edited out, watching this guy rant about classic games is finally as entertaining as it should be. This episode rightfully skewers the awful 32X, then literally skewers it with an arrow, thus providing more entertainment than any post-Genesis Sega hardware had any right doing.

View Entry

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love

Budget-minded gamers take note: game specialty retailer GameStop (and EB Games, by extension) is clearing out its back rooms in preparation for the 2007 holiday madness, with some heavy discounts on new software and heavier discounts on the failed UMD format: seems like every title is $5.

I was in there the other day and noticed that they had dump bins on the floor neatly stacked with games in alphabetical order. If you go in, check out the Game Boy Advance section, as they seem to be clearing those out even though they're not part of the sale. I got Polarium Advance and Capcom Mini Mix for $10 each.

GameDays [GameStop]

View Entry

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love

That rumored announcement from Microsoft's H&E division turned out to be very real -- it's Milan, a 22-inch high table with a touchscreen "surface computer" built right in. Mark McClusky of Wired magazine has posted a hands-on report to Gadget Lab tonight:

For instance, you can take a digital camera that's Wi-Fi enabled, put it down on the tabletop, and the machine recognizes it and downloads the photos. Then, you can interact with them much like actual physical photos—you can pass them around the table, shuffle them into piles to sort them, pull on the corners to zoom in or out. It's intuitive, quick, and brings a fun social aspect to a task (photo editing) that can be the very definition of tedious.

View Entry

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love

Nintendo announced in Japan today that it would debut two new colors of the Nintendo DS next month: Metallic Rosé and Gloss Silver. Ordinarily I'd say these have a snowball's chance in hell of making it to America, but we do love our metal over here. So maybe.

View Entry

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love

Really, it's a miracle that some if not most Americans learned how to pronounce and spell "Nintendo" in the 1980s. It's kind of hard to mock those who didn't. At the same time, this picture -- of a stack of old games my parents just found at a yard sale -- has a certain classic appeal. I don't think you can look upon it and not be taken in by its folksy charm.

Not to mention the fact that they're Intellivision games.

View Entry

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love



View Entry

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love

For the Nintendo DS remake of Final Fantasy IV, Square Enix maestro Nobuo Uematsu is reworking the game's memorable "Theme of Love" into a vocal arrangement. But they haven't yet signed a singer -- that's where you come in.

Square Enix is currently accepting applications from pro and amateur vocalists alike (although you can't already have a record deal) to perform the song in the game. You've got to be over 18, although they're accepting applications from both genders. You also probably have to live in Japan, although it doesn't mention any restrictions on the official announcement page.

Applications will be open until July 31st. Oh, and the Square Enix Party trailer is finally available, too, which most of you probably care a lot more about.

View Entry

DATE: 08/06/2007 / MOOD: in love

More than five million unique DS owners have connecting using Nintendo's Wi-Fi service, racking up 200 million play sessions in the process. Half of those sessions were to exchange Pokemans. Ok, that last bit is completely made up, but Pokemon Diamond and Pearl are two of the five most popular Wi-Fi enabled DS games worldwide. The other three are Animal Crossing: Wild World, Mario Kart DS, and Metroid Prime Hunters.

According to Nintendo's internal demographic tracking, in less than 18 months, DS purchases have increased 42% among women, 127% among people 30 and up, and 212% among people 35 and older. Seems like there's a bit of statistical doubling up there, but impressive numbers, just the same.

View Entry