October may have been another less-than-stellar month for videogame sales, according to industry trackers NPD. But November's game releases may help game publishers and console makers get back on top, and a big argument in its favor is now battling for consumer dollars on store shelves: "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2."
The November 10th midnight launch came with "Halo"-style publicity stunts and long lines at retailers. Celebrities came out to play online during a New York City Union Square event, and thanks to the buzz, Activision announced that "Modern Warfare 2" is now the best-selling videogame of all time, besting the previous record-holder, "Grand Theft Auto IV."
And like that game ,"Modern Warfare 2" comes with its share of controversy, thanks to a scene involving a terrorist attack on an airport and its overall level of violence.
Xbox Live slams the door on "modders"
Perhaps in anticipation of all the "Modern Warfare 2" online multi-player gaming to come, Microsoft's Xbox Live service this week sent out notices to about a million of its 20 million members, notifying them they were being banned from the service because they had modified or "modded" their consoles. Xbox Live contends many modders do that so they can play pirated games - including possible illegal copies of "Modern Warfare 2" - but a quick glance at the service's community forums listed a lot of gripes from gamers, admitting they had cracked open their Xbox 360s but only so they could install a hard drive of their choosing, or they were playing personal backup copies of games they had previously purchased.
Sorry everybody; it's a violation of the terms of service to tamper with your 360 in any way or play any unregistered games. When you check on the "I agree" box at Xbox Live signup, you're basically giving Microsoft the right to look inside your console for any changes you've made. You can still hang on to your Gamertag, but you'll have to buy a new console if you want to get back on the service.
"FIFA 10 Soccer" review
Even though he's not really a fan of soccer, our resident gaming addict Tracy Gorgas kicked around the new Electronic Arts "FIFA 10" Playstation 3 game, and has decided to cheer for it.
The tutorial videos are helpful for those who need to get up to speed on the basics of football (the world's version of that sport, don't you know), and the graphics and sound are good, Tracy says. You create a player and try to help them work their way up the ranks to international soccer stardom. You can play the game from his vantage point, or from that of a spectator.
Tracy may not be a soccer fan, but thanks to "FIFA 10," he's willing to learn, and even wants to finish the game to see if his player can become the next David Beckham.
A Story Before Bed
My favorite tech story that I reported on this week: www.astorybeforebed.com, the latest project from the Seattle-based starup Jackson Fish Market.
It's exactly as the name implies: digital bedtime stories, using your webcam and the web site's server storage capabilities. You pick a book from a 50-title catalog, and using your computer's webcam, you can record yourself reading a book to a child. You save it to the web site, and that child - using authentication (hopefully with the help of an adult) - can watch you or a grandparent read the book, and the book's "pages" turn on the web site.
It's a neat idea, and although it was originally conceived so that grandparents living afar could connect with grandchildren via the Internet, it's also becoming helpful for families who have a parent serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.
A Story Before Bed charges $6.99 for each recording, but Jackson Fish Market co-founder Hillel Cooperman told me that the company has given away free recordings to military families during "deployments" at Fort Lewis. Another is schedule for 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 29th at Gilchrist Motors in Tacoma.
Cooperman says he's in negotiations with other children's book publishers to add more titles to the web site's "bookcase."
A Story Before Bed is compatible with PC and Macs, but you have to have Adobe Flash enabled on your machine.
