Darth Vader Invades Korean Commercials

Olleh, a South Korean telecom company, has licensed the image and voice of Darth Vader for their new ads. The humorous as seemed to be designed to show how LTE WARP is a fast way of distributing data; we’ll even forgive the fact that “Warp” is a Star Trek term.

Steampunk GPS For IOS

Remember the days before the Spark of Electricity drove everything, when your GPS Apparatus emitted satisfying Hums and Clicks from the Gears and Springs contained within Remember the beauty of the Steam-Powered Satellites adorning and lighting the Nighttime Sky Watch gears turn, needles spin, and text flip through, just like the steam-powered, spring loaded GPS Apparatus from back in the days before the electric spark changed the world! The Steampunk GPS Apparatus displays the User’s actual Global Coordinates in DMS (Degrees, Minutes, Seconds) or Decimal coordinate systems. It displays the User’s Altitude in Meters or Feet, and gives Speed in Miles or Kilometers per hour. And the Apparatus even provides the User with the current Heading. Remember, The Steampunk GPS Apparatus is for the purpose of Entertainment only, so One should not use it to navigate while piloting One’s Dirigible.

Cut The Rope

Zepto Labs have raised the bar once again and made their hit mobile game Cut the Rope available to play in IE or any HTML5 compatible browser. Cut the rope and have some fun!

Feature: Turtle Beach Firing Salvos With Modern Warfare 3

In part one of our interview with Turtle Beach, [a]list talked about how their ambitious new partnership with Activision came to be with Michael Arzt, VP Marketing and Business Development at Turtle Beach. In part two, we discussion the products and the execution of the marketing plan with the Modern Warfare 3 headsets.

Tell me about the four models in particular for MW3.

Michael Arzt: The intent with this line was to offer different models for different gamer appetites. The top of the line Ear Force DELTA represents Turtle Beach’s top of the line headset with a robust feature set including: wireless Dolby surround sound game audio, dual pairing Bluetooth chat for Xbox 360 and PS3 and cell phone/mp3 integration. Add to that fully customizable audio presets and voice prompts, exclusive downloadable content, killer looks and a rugged combat case and you’re starting to paint a picture of the ultimate MW3 headset for the maximum Xbox and PS3 audio experience.

The Ear Force BRAVO is a stereo headset that offers most of the benefits of our top of the line unit, but at a lower price point. Bravo drops surround sound and Bluetooth, but comes with the same rugged storage case, custom presets, MW3 design, etc. With the addition of a rechargeable battery and universal cross-platform compatibility with Xbox, PS3, PC and Mac the BRAVO is a tremendous value. (Those looking to upgrade to Dolby surround sound later can always pick up one of Turtle Beach’s amazing DSS processor units.

Ear Force CHARLIE is the ultimate MW3 headset for PC gamers and one of the best-looking headsets we’ve ever produced. It offers incredible multi-driver (8 discrete speakers per headset), amplified surround sound performance for MW3 and any other PC game. Its in-line amplifier controls allow gamers to fine tune each and every speaker for optimum performance on any PC.

Last, but far from least is the Ear Force FOXTROT. It offers amplified stereo performance, cross platform compatibility and several other great Turtle Beach features in a more affordable package. It’s based on our most popular wired headset model and delivers more clarity and punch than a lot of headsets that cost three times the price.

I’ve noticed that you’ve run some ads on sites like GameFAQs. Is that a reflection of the sort of business you’re expecting for these accessories?

Michael Arzt: We know that our customers are motivated by the games they care about most. As such, they are always looking for more information about the games they consider investing in and, beyond that, additional ways to enhance their game experience. Those enhancements mean different things to different gamers. For some, it’s DLC, like new maps, levels and characters. For others; it’s finding tips on how to get past a tricky boss or other challenge. Advertising on sites like this and others that are frequented by avid gamers makes sense for us. We know that we offer another kind of very compelling and instantaneous enhancement for them and as such we want to be a part of their consideration. Whether you are a gamer looking for a more immersive experience, better chat functionality or the competitive advantage that advanced hearing can afford you, Turtle Beach gaming headsets can give you all of these things. That in turn, makes games more fun; regardless of what is motivating you.

Beyond traditional advertising we rely on word of mouth. When avid gamers are having fun and Turtle Beach is top of mind, they will often tell others about their positive experiences and that should help grow our business. As we continue to show more and more gamers the benefits of superior headset audio, more and more will see Turtle Beach headsets as an essential part of every gaming session.

What cross promotion have you gotten with Activision for the MW3 headsets?

Michael Arzt: Suffice it to say, there has been a lot! Obviously, merely having the Call of Duty logos and MW3 art on our products and packages makes an immediate impact with all of the media and consumers seeing the iconic imagery. The coverage of the game being generated by Activision is another huge boost, as we work with them to promote both products side by side as the ultimate MW3 experience. From there, we have been able to tap into a number of key MW3 marketing initiatives through our Activision partnership.

Some of the better examples include: Domestic US and international launch events, including the big “Play It Early” promotions at hundreds of Best Buy locations; large-scale pre-order campaigns with all the top game retailers, including Best Buy, GameStop, Amazon and others; A free-standing Turtle Beach MW3 PoP display in major retailers; Delta headsets are one of the top prizes in the Call of Duty “Double XP” promotion being run by Mountain Dew Game Fuel and Doritos. Turtle Beach is well-represented both online and in ten-thousand-plus in-store displays; headset integration into select PR and media events, including the celebrity-fueled “Friday Night Fights” programs that will be broadcast to all Call of Duty Elite members; Turtle Beach’s community team will be working closely with the Call of Duty community teams to further extend reach and awareness through an ongoing string of contests, promotions and more.

Ear Force FOXTROT

So it’s not just a fire-and-forget for Turtle Beach . . .

There’s plenty more going on behind the scenes, but those are the notable ones that I can talk about most readily right now. We’re really excited about what we’ve done here with Activision and look forward to hearing what the community thinks once they power up the game, pull on one of the limited edition headsets and slip into the awesome world of MW3.

Michael, thanks.

_ _

Picked up an Ear Force headset How did you get to know about the device Join the discussion on Facebook.

DC Universe Online Turns One

Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) has announced that DC Universe Online has seen its one-year anniversary. As celebration of this, players will receive a special one-of-a-kind One Year Anniversary Cape that features a number “1” on the back for every character that exists on January 11, 2012.

“We broke a lot of new ground with last year’s launch of DC Universe Online, both by successfully creating the first PS3 MMO community and adding true action combat to the genre,” said Lorin Jameson, Executive Director of Development, Sony Online Entertainment. “The free-to-play transition at the end of last year is a proof point that our community is stronger and larger than ever. We are very proud of what we’ve accomplished thus far and look forward to continuously striving to improve the game.”

DCUO has seen the creation of over 3.5 million Heroes, more than 2 million Villains, more than 1.8 million registered players on PC, with over 2.3 million registered players on PS3 and 3.6 million days of playtime total by all players in-game. Since launch, SOE has added 1,200 new NPC characters, more than 200 new quests, over 2,500 new items added since launch, an additional 15 new zones and 1,800 new encounters.

Games Dominant Activity For Mobile Apps

According to Flurry, 49 percent of all the time spent with mobile apps is spent with games. According to a study of data taken from the sessions from over 140,000 mobile applications, users are spending more time on mobile apps than they are using their PC to browse the Internet.

The study also shows that Google, Apple and Facebook are fighting over who will get the most mobile eyeballs; Facebook has to deal with the fact that most of their Flash games don’t work on mobile platforms, despite the fact that social networking is the second most popular activity for mobile apps. Facebook is hoping to correct this with Project Spartan which would allow Facebook apps to run on top of the Facebook Messenger app instead of the iOS app equivalent.

Source: blog.flurry.com

EA Play4Free Reaches 25 Million Registered Users

Electronic Arts has announced that their Play4Free library of titles has well over 25 million registered users worldwide. Games like Battlefield Play4Free, Battleforge, Lord of Ultima and Dragon Age Legends have hit a combined 5 million registered users while larger franchises Battlefield and Need for Speed have hit 10 million registered users in their F2P incarnation.

“Developing a community of 25 million players is a remarkable achievement. It is a testament to the explosive growth of the free-to-play market and a reflection of EA’s commitment to spearheading the digital transformation. We plan to continue to innovate in the category, introduce new gameplay that delights players and keeps them coming back for more,” said Sean Decker, Play4Free, vice president. “For our teams, this is an incredibly exciting time to be making games as the audience continues to grow and diversify.”

EA also announced that Command & Conquer: Tiberium Alliances will be going through a beta trial via EA’s Play4Free studio.

Zynga Adds EA’s Cottle

Zynga has announced that it has added Barry Cottle, now former executive vice president of EA Interactive, as executive vice president of business and corporate development. He joins joins John Schappert, Phil Frazier and Mark Turmell among others who have left EA for Zynga.

“It’s rare that you find someone who possesses a deep operational background and also has the vision to see where your business and your industry are headed,” said Mark Pincus, Founder and CEO of Zynga. “Barry is one of those executives, and I’m very excited to have him join the team. His skill set, combined with his deep understanding of the games, technology and entertainment spaces will help us accelerate our mission of connecting the world through games. On a personal level, Barry is a great person who brings humility and curiosity, and I’m confident he will fit in well with Zynga’s culture.”

“I’m proud and thrilled to join the Zynga team, the pioneer and driving force behind the social games industry,” said Cottle. “I’m looking forward to being part of building play for the world in a way that truly connects people and delights players everywhere, each and every day.”

Gaming Tablet Prototype From Razer In The Works

Razer has unveiled a gaming tablet unlike what’s been done before. Called Project Fiona, it houses a powerful Intel Core i7 chip and features PlayStation Move-like motion controllers that lets it play games like FireFall smoothly.

“While multi-touch screens have become the de facto user interface for tablets, they are not the right interface for serious PC gaming,” said Min-Liang Tan, CEO, Razer. “The user interface we have designed for Project Fiona allows all existing PC games to be played right out of the box and also provides game developers new opportunities as they develop next-gen games on a highly-intuitive platform. Both developers and gamers are going to love the new user interface that combines the best of a gamepad, multi-touch screen and accelerometers for an all-new gaming experience on-the-go.”

Intel Working With Lenovo On Android, Windows 8 Tablets

Intel has demonstrated a a Lenovo tablet based on its new “Medfield” Atom processor called the IdeaTab K2110 tablet. Based on the Android Ice Cream Sandwich OS it is slated to release sometime Q2 2012.

Intel and Lenovo also used CES to show off a prototype Lenovo tablet running Windows 8 and equipped with Intel’s next-generation Atom chip, dubbed Clover Trail. The new Intel ship will be used for most Windows 8 tablets in 2012, while Hybrid tablet-laptop designs will implement Clover Trail and Intel’s Ivy Bridge processor.

Source: Cnet