via gamespot

It doesn't take a scientist to figure out that playing a heated game of Dance Dance Revolution will burn more calories than sitting on the couch with a controller in hand. However, Mayo Clinic obesity researcher Lorraine Lanningham-Foster wanted to find out exactly how much more energy dancing games require, and her findings were recently published in the medical journal Pediatrics.

"In this day and time, children really love to play video games," Lanningham-Foster told GameSpot. "And even though we might want children to be outside and engaged in more traditional children's play, I don't think that children are going to abandon video games anytime soon...It's important to look at it this way because video gaming may potentially be a better way for obesity researchers to develop better interventions for children."

Led by Lanningham-Foster, a group of researchers measured the amount of energy expended by 25 children (10 of them mildly obese) in five states of activity. The children were tested sitting while watching television, sitting and playing a traditional game, playing two different types of games that require activity, and then walking on a treadmill at 1.5 miles per hour while watching television. The traditional game was Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure on the PlayStation 2, while the games requiring activity were the EyeToy-compatible Nicktoons Movin' on the PS2 and Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix 2 on the Xbox.

The researchers found that children that watched television and played a traditional game used the same amount of energy, while those that played the Jellyfish Jam game on Nicktoons Movin' tripled the calories burned. However, the obese children used five times as much energy as they had when playing a traditional game. For both groups, the most energy-intensive of the activities studied turned out to be Dance Dance Revolution, with the obese children burning six times the calories of sitting still while playing the song "Samba" on speed setting 3 in the game's training mode.

"Activity-promoting video games have the potential to increase energy expenditure in children to a degree similar to that of traditional playtime," the researchers concluded, adding, "We think that converting seat-based screen time to activity-associated screen time is an essential approach for promoting an active environment that is also fun for children."

The study was completed months before Nintendo released its activity-oriented Wii, so Lanningham-Foster and her team couldn't include it in this round of research. However, she said she's fascinated by the system.

"I haven't had a chance to do some studies with it, but it's something I'd love to have the opportunity to do," Lanningham-Foster said. "The technology there is actually quite similar to some of the technology we use to monitor physical activity in children."

The researchers acknowledged that the study group used was small, but they consider the findings sufficient to warrant further studies in randomized trials. ...

One of the frontrunners for PlayStation 2 game of the year was the well-received (and in some minds, controversial) Bully from Rockstar Games. The publisher fended off critics of its prep-school survival story to release a finalist in many critics' "Best of" lists for 2006, including GameSpot's Game of the Year.

Gamers looking forward to steering the destiny of Bully protagonist Jimmy Hopkins through another year at Bulworth Academy may not want to scope out back-to-school sales just yet. According to Michael Pachter of Wedbush Morgan Securities, Bully fans should not expect a sequel.

Citing sales performance for the game, Pachter flat-out told GamePolitics.com, "I would NOT expect a sequel [to Bully]." (emphasis in original.)

Pachter estimates that the game will create revenue of about $24 million before it's off store shelves, and that the three-year development time cost about $15 million. Including other expenses, the analyst predicts that Rockstar will do no better than break even with the game.

When asked for comment, a representative from Rockstar Games told GameSpot, "Rockstar does not comment on rumors or speculation."

via gamespot ...

via /.

A new series of articles is out on IBM DeveloperWorks on programming the PS3. The first article is up, discussing the installation of Yellow Dog Linux and first steps in programming the Cell BE Processor on this platform. From the article: ' It is unusual for gaming consoles to allow foreign operating systems to be installed on them. Since consoles are usually sold at a loss, they are usually locked down to prevent games from running on them without the publisher paying royalties to the console developer. Sony decided to open up the PS3 console a little bit, and allow third-party operating systems to be installed, with the caveat that they do not get accelerated graphics. Because of this, you can now install Linux on the PS3. You have to jump through a few hoops, but it definitely works. ...

Just check out the first screenshots from the upcoming Burnout 5 - vehicle pile-ups have never looked prettier.

Developed primarily for the PS3 - although an Xbox 360 version is also in the pipeline - the fifth Burnout is sporting an entirely new game engine and apparently has "the best crashes ever in a game," according to series developer Criterion's Alex Ward.

"If you don't believe the crash is real, then it's not going to frighten you," Ward recently told MSNBC. "The first crash you see on PlayStation 3 has got to go way beyond everything you've ever seen, beyond anything that we've ever done. Because every time we put our game out, people say, 'It's the best crashes ever in a game.' We've got to go beyond that now. We have to go beyond a game, and we have to go beyond a game car crash. That's what all of our work is focused on right now."

There's no official release date yet, though Criterion has hinted that it'll be out on PS3 before the end of the year. Screenshots are from the PS3 version of the game, but we're assuming the Xbox 360 version will look pretty much identical.

News/screens at CVG ...

Sorry to all, the release of the Dark Alex custom firmware took down our servers twice tonight and killed our stats counter and then stopped people from forum posting.

strangely enough the posting is back to normal but stats are still fubared. will update soon ...

via gamesradar

A video posted on YouTube titled Moral Kombat is set to become a controversial forum topic - a trailer for the first full-length film documentary to tackle the videogame violence debate head-on, featuring none other than game-obsessed lawyer Jack Thompson.

According to the film's maker, Spencer Halpin (quoted on the Apple Pro/Video website), his aim is to show that "consumers need access to information about the content of games so they can make their own decisions about what to buy". Which seems a bit of a non-starter given organisations already exist to do just that (the BBFC and PEGI age rate games in the UK and the ESRB have a similar advisory role in the US).

From the look of the trailer it's all a bit alarmist, with one memorable sequence suggesting that videogames were in some way to blame for the World Trade Center attack. How? The pilots learned how to fly the planes by 'playing' a flight simulator, obviously. As you might expect, background footage is a roll call of famous game scapegoats including Manhunt, Grand Theft Auto and Hitman.

Despite high production values, and a balanced approach promised (the film includes interviews with videogame apologists as well as the likes of Jack Thompson), we can't imagine any major movie studios will want to sign up Halpin's film, given their close relations with videogame film and TV licences, many of which contain violent content. Good job, then, that Halpin has made the film without profit in mind. Instead he's going to donate all the money it makes to a kidney research foundation.

Check out the VIDEO HERE and let us know what you think. ...

Gran Turismo HD, the bite-sized, high-def PS3 outing for The Real Driving Simulator series, might not be much more than a demo but it does feature a gorgeous new circuit, the Eiger Nordwand. Plus it'll be totally free to download, so we can't really complain. Hit the movies tab above to see us tear round this fantastic-looking track in a shiny Ferrari 599.

Already available in Japan and the US, we're expecting GT HD to be downloadable as soon as the PS3 Network opens in Europe, so we can enjoy some hi-def racing on our spanking new consoles. Sony has yet to confirm an exact release date but it'd be madness to deny early adopters this crisp new dose of Gran Turismo goodness. Hopefully we'll know for sure in the next few weeks.

Read our corner-by-corner guide for yet more GT HD.

Check out Gamesradar for more info. ...

via gamesindustry

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter has told GamesIndustry.biz that the games industry is likely to experience more modest growth than has been predicted in the coming months.

"I think 2007 will be sloppy. It will start out quite strong, due to the PS3 and Wii supply situation being fixed in the US and the PS3 launch in Europe," he stated.

"Software sales in the summer should trend down to mid-single digits, due to impossible comparisons to 2006 and extraordinarily expensive console prices. I think that the PS3 and the Xbox 360 will continue to sell very slowly during the summer, because at the price, they are no longer an impulse purchase."

However, Pachter went on, software sales should pick up in the autumn - with an increase of around 15 per cent likely during November and December. He also believes that hardware sales are likely to be higher at Christmas than during past years, and will continue to rise in 2008 as the household penetration of high definition monitors grows.

"We expect to see only 30 per cent penetration in the US as of now and probably under 15 per cent in Europe; that should grow to 50 per cent and 25 per cent by year-end 2007, and to 70 per cent and 50 per cent by year-end 2008," Pachter stated.

"Once that many households have HD, PS3 and 360 sales should pick up dramatically, and software sales will grow as well."

Overall, Pachter said, the industry is likely to see "slightly more modest growth than many expect early in the cycle".

"We'll get a false signal in the first part of 2007 due to the next generation console supply situation," he added.

In a separate report, Wedbush Morgan predicted that publishing giant Electronic Arts is "likely to meet or modestly beat" its targets for Q3, with revenue estimates standing at US$ 1.3 billion.

WM has also issued reports noting that US rental service Netflix has launched more aggressive promotions after Blockbuster announced it secured 2.2 million subscribers - exceeding its year-end target by 200,000. According to the reports, Netflix is still likely to face difficulties in competing as many subscribers are signed up through Blockbuster's high street stores. ...

via engadget

It was only a matter of time before we started to see the first wave of PS3 branded input devices, and no surprise, Logitech is leading the charge. Today they're introducing their Cordless MediaBoard keyboard for PlayStation 3, a wireless keyboard with vertical scrollbar and touchpad so you can forget stringing that mouse across the room. Although you can't exactly use it to games, it'll be available next month to sate your PS3 browsing and messaging needs for $80 -- two things sure to make Phantom weep a little harder over its scammy little Lapboard.

Screen Via Comments ...