Video Game Saga *

Metroid: The Other M Trailer, LEGO MMO Beta Signup, Nintendo Attacking Piracy, Facebook Madden

Metroid: The Other M Trailer is here! Check it out!

It is a departure from the norm for Samus Aran for sure, but one that I am highly anticipating.  Metroid has always been one of the most atmospheric action series of the last 2 decades, and the trailer shows a tactical combo style of combat that will fit right in.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Lego is accepting signups for their upcoming LEGO Universe MMO game.

You can sign up for free at:

http://us.universe.lego.com/en-us//Beta/Default.aspx

Look, who doesn’t love Lego's?  The current Lego line of console games have been pretty entertaining, so it's definitely worth giving them a chance on a MMO.  I'm willing to give it a go, let me know if you are accepted into the Beta--maybe we can run around together!

---------------------------------------------------------------

From 411Mania.com:

"Nintendo revealed that they have settled with James Burt over pirating issues last November. Burt, a native of Australia, was the first person to put New Super Mario Bros. Wii on the Internet to download. Nintendo caught him by employing "the use of sophisticated technological forensics."

So, how much does this one guy owe for doing this? $1.5 million Australian dollars. That translates to $1.3 million U.S. dollars. This is "to compensate Nintendo for the loss of sales revenue caused by the individual's actions." To put this into perspective, the game has sold over 10 million copies in three months."

"Wii will get you..."

Ouch.  It is VERY hard for me to believe that the actions of one man affected the overall sales of this game at all.  He unfortunately is just the one guy that got caught, and Nintendo is making an example of him.

Look, I'll give you the short version of my feelings on piracy.

1) Support developers you like, and they will stay in business.

2) Just because someone downloads a game, does not mean a sale was lost.  Most people download items that they had no intention of ever buying.

3) Just because someone downloads a game, does not mean they won't buy it--see rule #1.

What do you think?

---------------------------------------------------------------

From Bloomberg.com:

"Electronic Arts Inc. will introduce “Madden NFL” on Facebook Inc., bringing the video game to the social networking site’s 400 million users, said Peter Moore, president of EA Sports.  “We have to make ‘Madden’ more accessible,” Moore said today in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “You’ll see us on Facebook going forward.”

Electronic Arts is looking to capitalize on the surging popularity of games played on Palo Alto, California-based Facebook. The world’s second-largest video-game publisher purchased Playfish Inc., the maker of “Pet Society” and “Restaurant City,” for $400 million last year. Chief Executive Officer John Riccitiello has said the company aims to generate more sales from games played online and on mobile devices.

A version of “Madden NFL” on Facebook would be a “simpler experience” than the console version, Moore said. An official announcement or release date hasn’t been decided, said David Tinson, a spokesman for EA Sports. Versions of the game have sold 63 million copies in the U.S., according to researcher NPD Group Inc."

News flash!  If you are not on Facebook, your girl is!  If she isn't, your friends are.  And whether you personally care or not, social sites like Facebook are the future of casual gaming.  People log in every day to keep their Farms and Cafe Worlds going.  There is SERIOUS money in developing top titles for this venue, and EA is going to make insane bank from this tactic.

See you next week!