http://www.gamespot.com/news/6202410.html?tag=latestheadlines;title;1
Konami confirms three of its franchises will be making their way to the Apple handheld in 2009.
Last week, a teaser page on the English-language page of Konami's Japanese Web site led many to believe the Japanese publisher was working on bringing the Metal Gear Solid franchise to the Xbox 360, reviving the Metal Gear Acid brand, or even porting the long-running series to the Wii. However shortly after information leaked via scans of gaming magazine Famitsu, Konami has confirmed a different mission for Solid Snake.
In an official press release today, Konami of Europe revealed that Metal Gear Solid Touch would be heading to the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch early in the New Year. According to the release, "Metal Gear Solid Touch focuses on action elements of Hideo Kojima’s classic stealth series, and will see series veteran Solid Snake embark on an all-new mission." It won't be a completely new experience for MGS fans however, with players "using locations and characters introduced in Konami’s Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots [including] eight action-packed stages, with more to be added at a later date."
In addition to the feted stealth-action series, Konami also confirmed Frogger for the iPhone, reportedly "a pixel-perfect conversion of the classic arcade game," and Silent Hill: The Escape. It looks like these releases may only be the start, with Konami's Head of Mobile Business Department quoted as saying, "We welcome the iPhone and iPod Touch to our product line-up and look forward to these initial games." (Emphasis added).
The teaser page on Konami's Web site now links to what appears to be a placeholder page with the Metal Gear Solid Touch logo.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Video Games and the iPhone
I'll be writing columns from time to time for publication on The Score of Cool Springs' website, within our Facebook group, as well as for this blog. Here is the first such column, on video games and the iPhone.
Video games dial up a new friend: the Apple iPhone
Bradley Metrock
President, Score Holdings LLC
General Manager, The Score of Cool Springs (4091 Mallory Lane, Suite 124, Franklin, TN 37067)
December 2008
While no one can deny the tremendous impact video games have on American culture, many people are still unaware that video games, as an industry, have far surpassed music and movies in revenue. Whether you live here in Music City USA, or in Silicon Valley, or anywhere inbetween, video games reign supreme as the de facto choice of entertainment.
Many reasons for this video game dominance exist, but the main one is economic: video games, at $50-$60 a pop, offer a much greater return (in terms of hours of entertainment from the product) than movies in the theater, DVD movies at home, music CDs at home or in the car, concerts at the Sommet Center, or virtually any other type of existing option. A family of four would spend $50 going to see Bolt at the local theater, especially if any concessions are involved. The same family of four could spend about the same amount on Rock Band, Scene It, Mario Kart, or LittleBigPlanet, and get 10 times the amount of recreation for the money. It’s a no-brainer.
Video games are so popular that they are moving from the living room, which they conquered long ago, to mobile devices such as the iPhone. The flock of capital to iPhone application development, of which a significant portion is funding game projects on the device, is nothing short of amazing and a true indicator that video games are only going to continue to rise in popularity and ubiquity. Nintendo’s DS handheld platform, and to a lesser extent, Sony’s PSP device, have enjoyed a sizable market share in the portable gaming market for years, but the iPhone is not just a serious threat to that share, but is creating an entirely new paradigm for gaming on the go.
One of the most popular games on the iPhone is Fieldrunners, a ‘lite’ strategy title (from developer Subatomic Studios) that asks the gamer to place a series of towers, cannons, and other weaponry on a field in an attempt to thwart the bad guys trying to cross from one side of the screen to the other. The game features gorgeous graphics, deep and addictive gameplay, and a price tag of just $4.99 for hours of mobile fun. So fun, in fact, that Time Magazine ranked the title alongside Grand Theft Auto IV, Gears of War 2, and Spore – games that were much, much more expensive to create – in its Top 10 Video Games of 2008 list. As most video gamers are aware, that’s quite rare air for any mobile title, and though Apple won’t disclose how many times the game has been downloaded, Fieldrunners has remained high atop Apple’s most popular list in the App Store for months.
With the hyped Warfare Incorporated just released to the platform, and Electronic Arts’ SimCity heading to the iPhone in mere days, the quality titles keep adding up for continued market dominance for the iPhone against its competition in the mobile device sector. In fact, it could very well be the perfect “Storm” to doom RIM’s Blackberry product line. After all, competition is just a game, and as long as Apple’s devices feed off the seemingly-infinite demand for video games within the domestic market, they’ll keep winning.
Video games dial up a new friend: the Apple iPhone
Bradley Metrock
President, Score Holdings LLC
General Manager, The Score of Cool Springs (4091 Mallory Lane, Suite 124, Franklin, TN 37067)
December 2008
While no one can deny the tremendous impact video games have on American culture, many people are still unaware that video games, as an industry, have far surpassed music and movies in revenue. Whether you live here in Music City USA, or in Silicon Valley, or anywhere inbetween, video games reign supreme as the de facto choice of entertainment.
Many reasons for this video game dominance exist, but the main one is economic: video games, at $50-$60 a pop, offer a much greater return (in terms of hours of entertainment from the product) than movies in the theater, DVD movies at home, music CDs at home or in the car, concerts at the Sommet Center, or virtually any other type of existing option. A family of four would spend $50 going to see Bolt at the local theater, especially if any concessions are involved. The same family of four could spend about the same amount on Rock Band, Scene It, Mario Kart, or LittleBigPlanet, and get 10 times the amount of recreation for the money. It’s a no-brainer.
Video games are so popular that they are moving from the living room, which they conquered long ago, to mobile devices such as the iPhone. The flock of capital to iPhone application development, of which a significant portion is funding game projects on the device, is nothing short of amazing and a true indicator that video games are only going to continue to rise in popularity and ubiquity. Nintendo’s DS handheld platform, and to a lesser extent, Sony’s PSP device, have enjoyed a sizable market share in the portable gaming market for years, but the iPhone is not just a serious threat to that share, but is creating an entirely new paradigm for gaming on the go.
One of the most popular games on the iPhone is Fieldrunners, a ‘lite’ strategy title (from developer Subatomic Studios) that asks the gamer to place a series of towers, cannons, and other weaponry on a field in an attempt to thwart the bad guys trying to cross from one side of the screen to the other. The game features gorgeous graphics, deep and addictive gameplay, and a price tag of just $4.99 for hours of mobile fun. So fun, in fact, that Time Magazine ranked the title alongside Grand Theft Auto IV, Gears of War 2, and Spore – games that were much, much more expensive to create – in its Top 10 Video Games of 2008 list. As most video gamers are aware, that’s quite rare air for any mobile title, and though Apple won’t disclose how many times the game has been downloaded, Fieldrunners has remained high atop Apple’s most popular list in the App Store for months.
With the hyped Warfare Incorporated just released to the platform, and Electronic Arts’ SimCity heading to the iPhone in mere days, the quality titles keep adding up for continued market dominance for the iPhone against its competition in the mobile device sector. In fact, it could very well be the perfect “Storm” to doom RIM’s Blackberry product line. After all, competition is just a game, and as long as Apple’s devices feed off the seemingly-infinite demand for video games within the domestic market, they’ll keep winning.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Beta Test Signups Now Open!
The Score of Cool Springs' beta test is now open!
From late December throughout the month of January, The Score will feature a full slate of both FREE as well as half-priced video game tournaments.
Games like Left 4 Dead, Madden, NCAA Football, Halo, Mario Kart, Civilization: Revolution, Age of Empires: Mythologies, GoldenEye 007, Geometry Wars 2, Super Smash Bros Brawl, and countless others will be featured in tournaments!
To sign up, head over to TheScoreOnline.com and click on "Calendar." Click on the Beta Test Signup link (listed on December 29) and get signed up within our site's reservation system.
Then, sign up for any of the other tournaments!
New tournaments will be added daily throughout December and January, so keep checking back on the website.
Beta test signups are extremely limited, so sign up today if interested before our Facebook ad hits the site in the next couple of days!
From late December throughout the month of January, The Score will feature a full slate of both FREE as well as half-priced video game tournaments.
Games like Left 4 Dead, Madden, NCAA Football, Halo, Mario Kart, Civilization: Revolution, Age of Empires: Mythologies, GoldenEye 007, Geometry Wars 2, Super Smash Bros Brawl, and countless others will be featured in tournaments!
To sign up, head over to TheScoreOnline.com and click on "Calendar." Click on the Beta Test Signup link (listed on December 29) and get signed up within our site's reservation system.
Then, sign up for any of the other tournaments!
New tournaments will be added daily throughout December and January, so keep checking back on the website.
Beta test signups are extremely limited, so sign up today if interested before our Facebook ad hits the site in the next couple of days!
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