Owners of HTC’s Google phone the T-Mobile G1 have begun to receive an over-the-air update that upgrades their device’s firmware to the latest 1.5 release, dubbed ‘Cupcake’.
The rollout, which will eventually arrive with all of the UK’s 100,000 G1 owners, has already started and will be completed over the next few weeks.
Notable features of the new OS include an on-screen keyboard, integrated picture and video uploads, scrolling improvements and tweaks to the functionality of things such as the camera and GPS.

Vodafone’s new HTC Magic, which was released in the UK last week, comes with Android 1.5 already installed.

http://www.casualgaming.biz/news/285...Android-update ...

Capcom has expressed its concerns regarding the sustainability of the arcade sector due to the quality between arcade and console titles becoming “negligible”.

The Osaka-based publisher spoke of the flagging arcade industry in Japan during its quarterly financial report.

The firm stated that Japanese arcades have in recent times seen a declining rate of visitors. “This was due partially to the lack of sales-inducing games,” the company said, “and to the fact that the difference between home video games and arcade games has become negligible.”

Capcom did add that it was pleased with its Street Fighter IV arcade-to-console strategy, adding that console units sales have surpassed the 2 million mark.

“We released Street Fighter IV [in arcades] with the aim of taking full advantage of the synergistic effects of from our home video game software,” said the group, adding that it was able to achieve “satisfactory results” in a tough environment.

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The first details on F1 2010 have emerged, and Codies is already claiming "we've got the best F1 game ever".

"Literally nothing less will do. F1 games haven't set the world alight over the last decade and we think that the sport deserves a game which really captures its excitement and glamour," exec producer Gavin Raeburn told OXM.

Codies' F1 effort, which will be released when next year's championship is in "full swing", uses the impressive engine and tech behind GRID.

Raeburn promises to make "the drama and rivalry" of F1 part of the experience, plus the obligatory technical stuff like handling that changes depending on grip levels and weather conditions.

"The online component is as important as the single-player experience," he added. "Key to this is enabling people to find and play with the right people. If you're an arcade fan playing F1 online you probably want to play with like-minded players in shorter racers, rather than end up in a hardcore sim session."

More details and concept art can be found in the latest issue of OXM, on sale now.

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Though data suggests that the majority of consumers are still not aware of the format
Whether Blu-ray’s rise to ascendancy will gather the required pace needed before the mainstream adaptation of digital movie downloads arrives is yet to be seen, but sales of HD discs players have performed well year-on-year.
TechRadar reports that annual Blu-ray player sales climbed 72 per cent in 2008 in North America, according to NPD. In Q1 2009 alone 400,000 Blu-ray players were sold, representing a market value of $107.2m.
However, other data has shown that the majority of US consumers are still ignorant about the format, with 58 per cent of 7,000 people surveyed by NPD claiming they were “not very familiar” with the format.
“Blu-ray's superiority used to be difficult for many consumers to grasp,” analyst Russ Crupnick stated. “But when friends rave about it, or demonstrate Blu-ray in their homes, they are selling the benefits in a way that is far more effective than simply viewing an advertisement or seeing it demonstrated at a retail store.”

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34224/Blu-...icking-up-pace ...

ony Ericsson president Hideki Komiyama has expressed his interest in partnering with Sony’s game business, stating that a PlayStation mobile handset “could happen”.
The business is currently fighting its corner in the cutthroat mobile handset market, though it has so far failed to provide a serious Smartphone competitor to the iPhone.
Due to the heightened competition, Komiyama is interested to see if the PlayStation arm of Sony can provide a lucrative and unique selling point for its future handsets. Speaking to The Financial Times, he claimed that a PlayStation mobile “could happen”.

Despite its struggles in the Smartphone market, Sony Ericsson is a big believer in convergence. In the past the group has integrated the Walkman and Cybershot brands into its phones, though has not yet embarked on the same path as Nokia did with the n-Gage.
Sony Ericsson is currently relying on third-party technologies to make its phones smarter. The firm will be delivering two new mobiles to the market by the end of 2009, both of which will be able to use operating systems such as Google's Android and Microsoft's Windows Mobile.

http://www.casualgaming.biz/news/285...l-could-happen ...

Following yesterday's full year financial results Nintendo has released internal sales figures for its top-selling first party titles on the Wii and Nintendo DS.

The results suggest that Wii Sports has become the best-selling bundled videogame of all time, beating NES classic Super Mario Bros. In turn Wii Play is now the best-selling non-bundled game, with Nintendogs taking its place if its status as a hardware bundle with the Wii remote is discounted.

In total Wii Sports has sold 45.7 million units worldwide, which is only slightly below the current 50 million total for the Wii itself, since the game is not bundled with the console in Japan.

Wii Play sales are currently on 22.9 million, followed by Wii Fit on 18.2 million and Mario Kart Wii on 15.4 million. The best-selling Wii title not to be bundled with additional hardware is Super Smash Bros Brawl on 8.4 million units.

The critically acclaimed Super Mario Galaxy is the Wii's sixth strongest seller on 8 million units, followed by Mario Party 8 on 6.7 million and Wii Zapper bundle Link's Crossbow Training on 3.76 million.

Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City (aka City Folk) is the best-seller from Nintendo's 2008 Christmas line-up on 3.76 million units, followed by Wii Music on 2.65 million. Super Mario Stadium Baseball (aka Mario Super Sluggers) is the last of the million-selling titles on the list at 1.2 million units.

On the DS the top-selling title is Nintendogs and all its many near-identical SKUs, with sales of 22.2 million units. This is followed by New Super Mario Bros which stands at 18.4 million.

Brain Training (aka Brain Age) has sold 17.4 million units worldwide, with Pokemon Diamond/Pearl on 16.8 million, Mario Kart DS on 14.6 million and More Brain Training (aka Brain Age 2) on 13.7 million.

Animal Crossing: Wild World stands at 10 million, followed by launch title Super Mario 64 DS on 7.5 million, Mario Party DS on 5.8 million and Pokemon Mystery Dungeon on 4.5 million. Pokemon Platinum is on 3.7 million and Kirby Super Star Ultra is on 2.3 million - with neither title yet having been released in Europe.

Pokemon Ranger has sold 2 million units worldwide, while Rhythm Paradise (aka Rhythm Heaven) is on 1.9 million. Professor Layton and the Curious Village has sold 1.6 million units in the West, although this figure does not include Japan where the game is self-published by developer Level-5.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...illion-sellers ...

Following yesterday's full year financial results Nintendo has released internal sales figures for its top-selling first party titles on the Wii and Nintendo DS.

The results suggest that Wii Sports has become the best-selling bundled videogame of all time, beating NES classic Super Mario Bros. In turn Wii Play is now the best-selling non-bundled game, with Nintendogs taking its place if its status as a hardware bundle with the Wii remote is discounted.

In total Wii Sports has sold 45.7 million units worldwide, which is only slightly below the current 50 million total for the Wii itself, since the game is not bundled with the console in Japan.

Wii Play sales are currently on 22.9 million, followed by Wii Fit on 18.2 million and Mario Kart Wii on 15.4 million. The best-selling Wii title not to be bundled with additional hardware is Super Smash Bros Brawl on 8.4 million units.

The critically acclaimed Super Mario Galaxy is the Wii's sixth strongest seller on 8 million units, followed by Mario Party 8 on 6.7 million and Wii Zapper bundle Link's Crossbow Training on 3.76 million.

Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City (aka City Folk) is the best-seller from Nintendo's 2008 Christmas line-up on 3.76 million units, followed by Wii Music on 2.65 million. Super Mario Stadium Baseball (aka Mario Super Sluggers) is the last of the million-selling titles on the list at 1.2 million units.

On the DS the top-selling title is Nintendogs and all its many near-identical SKUs, with sales of 22.2 million units. This is followed by New Super Mario Bros which stands at 18.4 million.

Brain Training (aka Brain Age) has sold 17.4 million units worldwide, with Pokemon Diamond/Pearl on 16.8 million, Mario Kart DS on 14.6 million and More Brain Training (aka Brain Age 2) on 13.7 million.

Animal Crossing: Wild World stands at 10 million, followed by launch title Super Mario 64 DS on 7.5 million, Mario Party DS on 5.8 million and Pokemon Mystery Dungeon on 4.5 million. Pokemon Platinum is on 3.7 million and Kirby Super Star Ultra is on 2.3 million - with neither title yet having been released in Europe.

Pokemon Ranger has sold 2 million units worldwide, while Rhythm Paradise (aka Rhythm Heaven) is on 1.9 million. Professor Layton and the Curious Village has sold 1.6 million units in the West, although this figure does not include Japan where the game is self-published by developer Level-5.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...illion-sellers ...

Ubisoft is planning an E3 blowout at the Los Angeles Theater next month to announce its Holiday 2009 game lineup.



Not Joel McHaleThe France-based publisher and developer will pull the curtain back for Rabbids Go Home, Red Steel 2, Assassin's Creed II and some unannounced titles at the June 1 event. The invitation-only soiree will be rebroadcast on Ubisoft's Web site the following day, and IGN will have up-to-the-minute coverage from the show.

The event will be hosted by Joel McHale, star of The Soup on the E! network. Ubisoft's press release announcing the event did not mention whether Spaghetti Cat will be in attendance.

http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/980/980682p1.html ...

Nintendo has been named as the sixth most reputable company in the world in a new annual survey, ahead of Microsoft at number 30 and Sony at number 126.

Research firm the Reputation Institute has rated over 1000 companies from 20 industry categories, although this is the first time that Nintendo - the only pure videogames company in the list - has been included.

Following over 60,000 online interviews in over 25 countries, each company is given a "Pulse" rating out of 100 to indicate the strength of its reputation. Nintendo's debut rating is 81.63, while Microsoft is up 7.53 points to 78.05. Sony saw its Pulse rating fall by 5.78 points to a total of 72.21.

Both the Microsoft and Sony ratings take into account each company's wide range of non-videogames-related businesses, making comparisons between any of the three console manufacturers problematic.

The number one-ranked company is Italian confectioner Ferraro, makers of the Ferrero Rocher chocolate sweet, with a commanding Pulse rating of 85.17. Swedish furniture company Ikea was second on 83.98 and pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson was third on 83.58.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...reputable-list ...