Video Games

If you’ve ever wondered why the Nintendo Revolution will succeed in all markets, especially Japan, check out this video. It shows the universal appeal of the Revolution, as well as its innovative controller:

Yes, that’s right. In order, from left to right, they feature two old folks conducting a symphony, two chefs chopping away, a boy and his girlfriend playing what appears to be a version of pong, the sexy controller itself, a cute Japanese girl bopping to Mario, a Dentist working on drill technique, a grandson and grandfather fishing, a man trying to play major league baseball using the controller as a bat, and then a raunchy dummer. The xBox 360 is not this diverse.

On display at CES is the PSP-controlled ‘94 Honda Civic. Using the PSP’s built-in WiFi, you can open the doors, turn on the lights, and even drive the car from afar! This could be a disaster should it break into the mainstream market, but thankfully the model is not for sale.

Coca Cola teamed up with Blizzard to theme a World of Warcraft coke commerical in China with singers S.H.E., also known as Selina Ren, Hebe Tien, and Ella Chen. Here’s a pictoral transcription of the commercial:

Businessman: Girls!

Businessman: Sexy is what sells.

Businessman: You get my drift?

Girls: No.

Businessman: (Turning into an orc) What do you mean, no?

Businessman / Orc: (Roars)

Girls: (Turning into elves) No is no.

Girls / Elves: (Attacking the orcs)

Businessman / Orc: (Takes some damage)

Girls / Elves: (Drinking Coca Cola)

Final Screen! You can download the video yourself from Tokyo-Genki. Funny that they run a WP blog, but don’t publicize the trackback URL…

Everyone seems to be making a “Best of” list these days, but especially around the holidays. IGN has picked their top games for the year per platform, with some big awards still pending. The best per platform are:

-PS2 - God of War
-Xbox - Jade Empire
-360 - Call of Duty 2
-PC - Civilization IV
-GameCube - Resident Evil 4
-GBA - Wario Ware Twisted!
-DS - Mario Kart DS
-PSP - Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
-Wireless - Skipping Stone

I find award-shows rather boring, and almost comical in their attempt to be sensational. There are no redeeming qualities of award shows, but due to the fact that this was the Spike TV Videogame Award Show of 2005, I feel compelled to write on it. The full list of winners is available here, and here are the most notable winners:

+ Game of the Year: Resident Evil 4
+ Best Action Game: God of War
+ Best First-Person Action: F.E.A.R.
+ Best Original Score: We Love Katamari
+ Most Addictive Game: World of Warcraft
+ Best Graphics: Resident Evil 4
+ Best PC Game: World Of Warcraft
+ Best RPG: World Of Warcraft
+ Best Handheld game: Lumines
+ Best Technology: PSP