Yahoo! News: Technology - Video Games

Trends & Innovations - Friday (Investor's Business Daily)

Fri, 09 May 2008 22:49:39 GMT

Investor's Business Daily - U.S. retailers are getting better at blocking underage teens from buying M-rated video games, says an FTC survey using undercover 13- to 16-year-old shoppers. Just 20% of the undercover teens were able to buy M-rated games, vs. 42% in '06. Retailer GameStop was the best at blocking underage sales of video games, stopping 94% of them. Less-diligent retailers included Hollywood Video, which blocked 60%. ...

"Pirates" maker to turn "BioShock" game into film (Reuters)

Fri, 09 May 2008 18:51:21 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080509/tc_nm/bioshock_dc"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080509/2008_05_09t160446_450x343_us_bioshock.jpg?x=130&y=99&q=85&sig=j6UmAjHrq3q78acuFRuERQ--" align="left" height="99" width="130" alt="A screenshot from the hit video game 'BioShock' about an underwater utopia gone disastrously wrong. (Take-Two Interactive Software/Handout/Reuters)" border="0" /></a>Reuters - Take-Two Interactive Software Inc said on Friday that "Pirates of the Caribbean" director Gore Verbinski will make a movie version of "BioShock," its hit video game about an underwater utopia gone disastrously wrong.

Hollywood plans film of hit video game 'Bioshock': report (AFP)

Fri, 09 May 2008 18:49:08 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080509/ennew_afp/entertainmentusfilmvideogamesbioshock"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/afp/20080509/capt.cps.ndb75.090508204655.photo00.photo.default-375x512.jpg?x=95&y=130&q=85&sig=Ot3aZD2RT29VrIx_9.N3rA--" align="left" height="130" width="95" alt="Award-winning videogame "Bioshock" is to be turned into a movie by "Pirates of the Caribbean" director Gore Verbinski, entertainment industry media reported Friday.(AFP/OFF)" border="0" /></a>AFP - Award-winning videogame "Bioshock" is to be turned into a movie by "Pirates of the Caribbean" director Gore Verbinski, entertainment industry media reported Friday.

'Grand Theft Auto Success' Taxes IGN's Google-Powered Map (TechWeb)

Fri, 09 May 2008 18:40:00 GMT

TechWeb - InformationWeek - Microsoft's retailer survey also found more than 60% of all GTA games sold in the first week were for its Xbox 360 videogame console.

Clarification: Activision earnings story (AP)

Fri, 09 May 2008 18:30:52 GMT

AP - In a May 8 story about Activision Inc.'s earnings, The Associated Press reported that the company expected earnings of $1.30 per share after excluding Vivendi Games. The story should have said the adjusted earnings excluded other items as well.

GTA IV May Be Driving Sales of Gaming Consoles (NewsFactor)

Fri, 09 May 2008 18:07:52 GMT

NewsFactor - While Grand Theft Auto IV is racking up sales records, console makers are vying for bragging rights of their own, and Microsoft seems to be the victor.

Video games don't create killers, new book says (Reuters)

Fri, 09 May 2008 11:31:01 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080509/tc_nm/videogames_dc"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080509/2008_05_08t162551_450x349_us_videogames.jpg?x=130&y=100&q=85&sig=hojFmiVmyS9WBtvanPtElA--" align="left" height="100" width="130" alt="An advertisement for the 'Grand Theft Auto 4' video game sits on display at a store in New York April 28, 2008. (Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)" border="0" /></a>Reuters - Playing video games does not turn children into deranged, blood-thirsty super-killers, according to a new book by a pair of Harvard researchers.

Toss 'Iron Man' in scrap heap (USATODAY.com)

Fri, 09 May 2008 11:12:28 GMT

USATODAY.com - We've seen this plot before: Blockbuster summer film hits theaters. Mediocre video game tie-in hitches along for the ride. The latest is Iron Man. Weapons mogul Tony Stark is kidnapped by militants in the Middle East and forced to build a superweapon. Instead, Stark creates the Iron Man armor and escapes. After returning home, Stark decides to cease weapons production and destroy the remaining remnants of his arsenal.

"Guitar Hero" helps Activision rock Wall Street (Reuters)

Fri, 09 May 2008 00:04:35 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080509/tc_nm/activision_dc"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080509/2008_05_08t164949_450x321_us_activision.jpg?x=130&y=92&q=85&sig=JgAgyj.6QExmNmcoEVc_cw--" align="left" height="92" width="130" alt="Guitarist Slash walks off stage at the end of the presentation of the new Activision game Guitar Hero III during the E3 Media and Business Summit in Santa Monica, California July 11, 2007. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)" border="0" /></a>Reuters - Activision Inc posted a quarterly profit on Thursday that blew past expectations as demand for its "Guitar Hero 3" and "Call of Duty 4" video games made up for a complete lack of new releases.

Grand Theft Auto IV Speeds Past Six Million Mark (NewsFactor)

Thu, 08 May 2008 22:22:55 GMT

NewsFactor - Since its release on April 29, global sales of the Grand Theft Auto 'GTA IV' video game from Take-Two Interactive Software (Nasdaq: TTWO) have surpassed six million units, with an estimated retail value of more than $500 million in the first week. Over the first day alone, GTA IV sales were approximately 3.6 million units with a retail value of $310 million worldwide.

No signs of game industry slowdown: Activision CEO (Reuters)

Thu, 08 May 2008 20:56:40 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080508/tc_nm/activision_market_dc"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20080508/i/r2452114569.jpg?x=130&y=92&q=85&sig=HrEyU7L.yL4XUPRjzNQaFQ--" align="left" height="92" width="130" alt="Guitarist Slash walks off stage at the end of the presentation of the new Activision game Guitar Hero III during the E3 Media and Business Summit in Santa Monica, California July 11, 2007. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni" border="0" /></a>Reuters - Activision Inc Chief Executive Bobby Kotick said on Thursday he sees no signs that growth in the video game industry is slowing.

"Guitar Hero" helps Activision post 4th-qtr profit (Reuters)

Thu, 08 May 2008 20:22:36 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080508/tc_nm/activision_results_dc"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080508/2008_05_08t162208_450x321_us_activision_results.jpg?x=130&y=92&q=85&sig=RiNSlZjdrzumNdsHyeD2lQ--" align="left" height="92" width="130" alt="Guitarist Slash walks off stage at the end of the presentation of the new Activision game Guitar Hero III during the E3 Media and Business Summit in Santa Monica, California July 11, 2007. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)" border="0" /></a>Reuters - Activision Inc posted higher-than-expected profit on Thursday as ongoing demand for its "Guitar Hero 3" and "Call of Duty 4" video games offset an absence of new releases.

FTC: Kids Finding It Harder to Buy M-rated Video Games (PC World)

Thu, 08 May 2008 19:00:22 GMT

PC World - Teenagers in the U.S. are having a more difficult time buying M-rated mature video games in stores than in past years...

Academic says gadgets threaten Internet's future (Reuters)

Thu, 08 May 2008 12:27:45 GMT

Reuters - The rise of gadgets like the iPhone, Blackberry and Xbox threatens to unravel the decades of innovation that helped to build the Internet, a leading academic has warned in a new book.

Tethered gadgets threaten Internet future: academic (Reuters)

Thu, 08 May 2008 11:55:48 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080508/wr_nm/britain_internet_life_dc"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080508/2008_05_08t080150_450x319_us_britain_internet_life.jpg?x=130&y=92&q=85&sig=KDWXaZuNZoK2n2EdEWSTUg--" align="left" height="92" width="130" alt="Steven Levy, a journalist from Newsweek magazine, holds the Apple iPhone outside the Apple store on New York's 5th Avenue, June 29, 2007. (Mike Segar/Reuters)" border="0" /></a>Reuters - The rise of gadgets such as the iPhone, Blackberry and Xbox threatens to unravel the decades of innovation which helped to build the Internet, a leading Oxford academic has warned in a new book.

Nintendo Wii makes Yamauchi Japan's richest: Forbes (Reuters)

Thu, 08 May 2008 10:40:25 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080508/tc_nm/nintendo_rich_dc"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20080508/2008_05_08t065103_450x319_us_nintendo_rich.jpg?x=130&y=92&q=85&sig=mz9xnxWVvXOrqNs53WoHrA--" align="left" height="92" width="130" alt="Nintendo Co's Wii game console is displayed as a woman looks at a game software title for Wii at at a Sofmap store in Tokyo's Akihabara district April 24, 2008. (Toru Hanai/Reuters)" border="0" /></a>Reuters - Soaring sales of Nintendo's Wii game machine have made former Nintendo (7974.OS) chairman Hiroshi Yamauchi Japan's richest man, worth $7.8 billion, Forbes magazine said in its annual rankings.

GAMES REVIEW: 'Iron Man' video game clunky (AP)

Wed, 07 May 2008 21:20:18 GMT

AP - "Iron Man" has always had a flight problem in video games.

Take-Two's 'Grand Theft Auto IV' tops $500M in week 1 sales (AP)

Wed, 07 May 2008 20:44:46 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080507/ap_on_hi_te/take_two_grand_theft_auto_iv"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20080505/i/r3238581501.jpg?x=130&y=86&q=85&sig=3iOjLmGQ3YXKrJnBotgHlg--" align="left" height="86" width="130" alt=""Grand Theft Auto IV" video game boxes are displayed on a rack inside a GameStop store in New York prior to the midnight release of the video game April 28, 2008. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson" border="0" /></a>AP - "Grand Theft Auto IV" raked in more than $500 million in its first week in stores, selling more than 6 million units worldwide, the video game's publisher said Wednesday.

'Grand Theft Auto IV' races into videogame record books (AFP)

Wed, 07 May 2008 19:26:00 GMT

<a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080507/ennew_afp/lifestylevideogamesusitcompanyrockstar"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/afp/20080507/capt.cps.nco42.070508212316.photo00.photo.default-512x341.jpg?x=130&y=86&q=85&sig=oidFVDgTyH5ZsSh87MaG9A--" align="left" height="86" width="130" alt="A window display advertises Grand Theft Auto IV. The game blew away videogame and Hollywood records as its creators reported Wednesday that it raked in an unprecedented 500 million dollars in its opening week.(AFP/Getty Images/File)" border="0" /></a>AFP - "Grand Theft Auto: IV" blew away videogame and Hollywood records as its creators reported Wednesday that it raked in an unprecedented 500 million dollars in its opening week.

Electronic Arts Looks To Wii To Drive Sports Growth (TechWeb)

Tue, 06 May 2008 22:57:14 GMT

TechWeb - Key games such as "Madden" football, "NBA Live," and "FIFA" soccer are expected to come out in special versions for the game console soon.