Sunday, December 14, 2008 at 8:22PM In case you needed a reminder that kids are (1)digitally savvy, (2)gamers and (3)environmentally conscious, take a look at the top search results on Google following Nickelodeon's launch of the Big Green Help Global Challenge this morning.
Sunday, November 30, 2008 at 3:35PM This is one of the coolest spots I've seen in a while. By fusing the old school Super Mario tune with the new school Wii technology, Wii creates a bridge between gaming eras. And it's fun to watch.
advertising, branding, gaming in advertising, branding Monday, February 4, 2008 at 4:16PM
I've been following the story of Fox's review of Mass Effect and the immediate response from gamers with some fascination.
The recent Fox News segment reviewing the game detailed the "full digital nudity and sex" and used the term "seXbox" throughout. The problem is that there is no full digital nudity and sex in the game. The segment featured Psychologist (and author) Cooper Lawrence, who had admittedly never played Mass Effect, denouncing the game content and its damaging effect on young male gamers. The only voice of reason in the report was Geoff Keighley of SpikeTV, who had actually played the game. He called their assessment of the game "completely incorrect" on multiple occasions, but ended up being drowned out before getting his full word in.
EA immediately responded, demanding that Fox correct the story, calling their participants "largely ignorant about videogames, the people who play them, and the ESRB system that governs their ratings and sales." Gamers were less congenial, heading to Amazon and immediately delivering a barrage of one star reviews of Lawrence's recent book, along with a number of parody videos on YouTube. One reviewer wrote:
I know all about this book but have never fully read it. Why? Due to the overwhelming backlash, I have no choice but to agree with the 1 star ratings. The rumors are rampant that this book was poorly written and poorly researched. So without verifying the contents myself — I give it a 1 star. Good thing video games aren’t judged in this manner — whew!!!
The reviews have since been removed, but the damage was enough that Lawrence backed off of her statements. “I recognize that I misspoke,” she said. “I really regret saying that, and now that I’ve seen the game and seen the sex scenes it’s kind of a joke."
Fox News has been able to get away with creating a political bias for quite some time. To apply that same philosophy to a video game audience is playing with fire. They are technologically-savvy and are quick to form a bond anytime they feel attacked. This is just one example of a group using social media to flex their muscle, but it demonstrates how quickly an online movement can inflict a response in the non-online world.
Author Faults a Game, and Gamers Flame Back (NYTimes)
