Ouya reveals holiday-themed white console

Ouya 2.0 still coming in 2014    

 

Following the news of a Ouya 2.0 coming in 2014, the system's developer released news of a holiday-themed version of their current hardware. The limited edition system doubles the console's internal storage (16GB instead of the standard 8GB) and will be all-white, as seen in the image above.

This particular Ouya will be limited to North America and is priced at $129.99, up from the regular version's $99.99 price. Pre-orders are available from the console's official site.

The Ouya recently surpassed 500 available games in their online store, which includes a mix of small, inide games as well as titles from major publishers like Square Enix and Sega. However, one notable former Ouya exclusive, Towerfall, recently announced that it would be coming to PS4 and PC sometime soon.

 

Xbox One achievement interface revealed

Microsoft shows off achievement interface for next-generation system

New images of the Xbox One achievement interface have been revealed, showing off the new presentation style and functionality for the next-generation console.

Microsoft partner studio manager Mike Ybarra revealed a pair of images on Twitter this weekend. The first image (above) shows that achievements will be displayed in a tile-based layout and are accompanied by visual depictions of the task completed.

Scrolling over an achievement and pressing "A" will launch the achievement tile into full-screen (as shown in a second image released by Ybarra). This includes an image supporting the context of the achievement, as well as its title, description, and value. The page will also show progress toward specific achievements.The Xbox One launches on Friday, November 22, for $500.

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Sony: We need Wii U to be successful

Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida says Nintendo's success will benefit Sony by bringing more people to games.

 

 

 

Though the PlayStation 4 and Wii U may be competitors, Sony has spoken out to say it would like to see Nintendo's home console business be successful. More people playing games will benefit the industry at large, Yoshida argued in a new interview with IGN.

 

"We need Nintendo to be very successful to help induct as many consumers who like to play games with controllers, sticks, and buttons because we believe they are great things," Yoshida said after the interviewer asked about the impact of smartphone and tablet gaming.

 

Nintendo's Wii U has underperformed so far, selling 3.91 million units, below the company's internal expectations. Yoshida said the console's lower-than-expected sales may come down to Nintendo's pushing the system at core gamers when instead the company should stay focused on the family friendly market.

 

"To me, what they have made with Wii U was continuing what they were doing well [with the original Wii]. But the messaging when they were saying 'we are for core gamers' was a bit confusing," he added. "But this year I think they slightly changed their messaging, and it seems to me like they are coming back to where they are focused."

 

Nintendo has a number of marquee first-party titles in the pipeline, including Super Mario 3D World (November 22), as well as Mario Kart 8 and a new Super Smash Bros. game for 2014. Meanwhile, Sony's PS4 launches tomorrow, November 15, in North America.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Survey : Only 1 percent of gamers want a Wii U this Holiday season

A survey of 5,000 gamers reveals that just 1% of them want a Wii U this holiday season.

According to a new survey from Intergi Entertainment one of the largest advertising agencies for the games industry the Wii U isn’t on many gamer’s Holiday wish lists.

 

They did a recent survey where just one percent of gamers said they wanted a Wii U. 58 percent said they wanted a PlayStation 4, and 39 percent said they wanted an Xbox One. According to Integri, over 5,000 gamers were surveyed, and they claim a margin of error of 1.4%.

 

The Wii U didn’t fare any better when gamers were asked about the games lineups. When asked “Which console has the most impressive game line-up?“, just 2% picked the Wii U. When asked “Which console design is most appealing to you?“, again, just 1% picked the Wii U.

 

At least when it came to the controller, The Wii U got 14% approval rating for the GamePad, while the PS4′s touchpad got 51%, and Xbox One’s “rumble triggers” got 35%.

 

Nintendo hasn’t been advertising the Wii U much over the past few months leading up to the holiday shopping season, and this is the result. We’re sure that many of those who were surveyed didn’t know much about the Wii U, despite the console being a year on the market.

 

But of course, a survey is just a survey. Just because people say something doesn’t mean they’ll actually do it. Or that they know what they’re talking about… 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Games Definitely Don't Harm Kids, Says Huge Study

Looking at over 11,000 kids for a decade.

 

A decade-long study of over 11,000 children in the UK has found no association between playing video games from as young as five, and mood or behavioural problems in later life.

 

Originally published in the British Medical Journal (via Games and Learning), the findings were part of the UK Millennium Cohort Study and sought to explore how exposure to screen entertainment affected children's psychosocial development.

 

The key findings that came out of the study included that exposure to video games from the age of five was shown to have no effect on behaviour, attention or emotional issues. Neither television nor video games caused attentional or emotional problems and there was no difference between boys and girls in the survey results.

 

The study did show, however, that watching more than three hours of TV a day at the age of five did lead to a small increase in behavioural problems in youngsters between the ages of five and seven. It's worth noting too, that a much lower number of children spent as long playing video games as they did watching TV.

 

So what does this mean? Well, most studies that span such long time-frames tend to focus on the effects of watching TV rather than the more active act of playing video games, and almost all have focused on American children. It's also one of the first studies to separate TV and video games.

 

The results of the survey seem to validate what others have been saying for some time now: video games are actually a positive force in the world or, at the very least, don't do any real harm.

 

 

Four things you didn't know about Xbox One

Think you know all there is about Microsoft's next-generation video game console? Here are four Xbox One features you might not be aware of.

 

 

As you likely know by now, Microsoft's next-generation console is fueled by a powerful processor and graphics engine, and includes an improved Kinect accessory to put you in the action. Along with new features added to the Xbox Live service, the new machine boasts a number of exclusive games, such as Forza Motorsport 5, Dead Rising 3, Ryse and, early next year, Titanfall.

 

And you're probably aware that Xbox One lets you record, edit and share gaming experiences with friends around the world and even broadcast live games right from the console.

 

But there's quite a bit you probably didn't know about Xbox One. We caught up with a few key "players" at Microsoft to share their favorite lesser-known facts and features of the new console.

 

 

Report : Apple acquires dev of Xbox 360's Kinect sensor for $345M

Apple has acquired 3D sensor and chip developer PrimeSense, developers of the technology behind Xbox 360's Kinect motion control peripheral, for $345 million, Calcalist reports.

In July, Calcalist reported that Apple offered $280 million for the Tel-Aviv-based company after discussions of integrating PrimeSense's technology in Apple's products.

PrimeSense's 3D-scanning technology was used in the Kinect for the Xbox 360 following a partnership with Microsoft. The company also offers its own mass produced 3D sensor peripherals and chip. These include the Carmine 1.08 peripheral for $200, as well as its 3D sensing Capri 1.25 system on a chip that can be embedded into consumer devices such as smartphones, laptops, consumer robotics, tablets and more.

 

Sony Playstation 4 sold over 1 million in first day

Sony Corp sold 1 million units of its new PlayStation 4 gaming console in the first 24 hours that it was available in the United States and Canada.

Andrew House, the head of Sony Computer Entertainment, the unit of Sony that oversees PlayStation, said in a statement that "sales remain very strong in North America." "We expect continued enthusiasm as we launch the PlayStation 4 in Europe and Latin America on November 29," House said.

Sony is aiming to sell 5 million PlayStation 4 (PS4) units by the end of its fiscal year that ends on March 31. Robert W. Baird & Co analyst Colin Sebastian has said he expects 2.5 million to 3 million PS4 shipments in the fourth quarter in North America.