Bing gains new videogame features

Microsoft has announced a suite of new functions for search engine Bing focused on entertainment - specifically music, games, television and movies.

According to comments on the official Bling Community blog 76 per cent of people use search to find entertainment online - but according to Microsoft only 10 per cent have a regular trusted destination.

The site now features both enhanced functionality for searching for entertainment, as well as a new portal at www.bing.com/entertainment.

"In the gaming realm, people go to the web for a few key tasks. They want to choose which games to buy, become a better gamer by finding cheats and walkthroughs, and find and play casual games online in a safe and easy manner," said Bing senior vice president Yusuf Mehdi.

The front page for www.bing.com/entertainment currently advertises links to walkthroughs and cheats for Super Mario Galaxy 2 and 2009's Batman: Arkham Asylum, linking through to websites such as IGN and G4. What may be links to reviews do not work at time of press.

Also on the prominent front info box is a link to play PopCap's Zuma's Revenge, hosted inline on Bing.com itself. Working in conjunction with Microsoft Games almost 100 other casual games are currently available from within Bing. Social features are also included to allow friend invites via social networks such as Facebook.

"We see a great opportunity to help customers make important entertainment decisions - from deciding what movie to buy or see, which TV shows to watch online or on your TV, what music to listen to, how to find and safely play your favorite casual games," Mehdi.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...-game-features