Violent video game law squelched

Gamers can now breathe a bit easier that the preservation of video games and Free Speech has been decided today when the United States Supreme Court struck down California's video game law that made it illegal to rent or sell violent video games to minors in a 7-2 vote.

The law, originally signed by Arnold Schwarzenegger, threatened to deal a serious blow to the video games industry. Throughout the ruling Monday, California wasn't able to convince the court that the violence in video games actually caused harm to minors, however. In the 92-page decision, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia wrote that games are a protected media as are other forms of creative expression:

“Video games qualify for First Amendment protection. Like protected books, plays, and movies, they communicate ideas through familiar literary devices and features distinctive to the medium. And "the basic principles of freedom of speech . . . do not vary" with a new and different communication medium.”

California's 2005 law, stated that any retailer selling or renting an “M” rated game that included violent act such as killing, raping or brutalizing a human would be charged a civil fine up to $1,000 per game sold, if the prosecutor could prove that the game lacked any serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.

Even though this was a state case, the ripples of this decision could radiate out further as at least 11 other states, including Florida, Mississippi and Texas side with California and enacted similar laws regarding restricting the sale of violent video games to minors. Regardless of the ruling, California lawmakers may yet try again to keep the law intact.

It's possible that if the law didn't get overturned, the ramifications could have weakened the gaming industry as a whole. Not many developers would want to create games that retailers may refuse to sell for fear of the consequences. Chalk one up for video games industry.

This Week in Famitsu

WEEKLY FAMITSU #1176

Cover Story

This month's Famitsu has an in-depth look at all things Capcom. Capcom can trace its roots as a company back to 1979, when it was created as a branch of the IRM Corporation for the manufacturing and production of “Capsule Computers”, a term used by the company to describe arcade machines. In fact, Capcom's name itself is an abbreviation of CAPsule COMputers.

Capcom's first release was a coin-operated baseball game in 1983 called Little League, but its first real video game, a top-down shooter called Vulgus, wasn't released until the following year. Since then, Capcom has gone on to establish itself as one of the leaders in the video game industry. They have created some of the most popular franchises of all time, including Street Fighter, Mega Man, Resident Evil, Devil May Cry, Ace Attorney (Phoenix Wright), Lost Planet, Dead Rising, and Monster Hunter.

Besides a basic history of the company, the article is chock-full of interesting Capcom trivia. For example, since being released in 1991 there have been 16 different versions of Street Fighter II to appear in both arcade and home console form. The Mega Man series is actually known as Rock Man in Japan and has seen over 60 releases since its introduction on the NES, with the 67th release, Mega Man Legends 3, currently in development for the 3DS. In fact, the Mega Man Legends series is Keiji Inafune's, the creator of Mega Man, favorite of all the various Mega Man games.

The Resident Evil series is known in Japan as Biohazard. The name was changed because Capcom was unable to trademark the name Biohazard in the United States. The Ace Attorney series was originally developed and released for the GBA here in Japan, and it wasn't until the series was ported to the DS that it was released abroad in other countries. Phoenix Wright's name in Japanese is actually Naruhodō Ryūichi, which is a word pun; naru hodo roughly translates to 'I see!' or 'I understand now!'

Last but certainly not least is Monster Hunter, or 'Mohan' as it is known colloquially in Japan. While Monster Hunter has a small following in the United States and sells decently, the series is popular in Japan. Really, REALLY popular. So much so, in fact, that since the series debuted in 2004, it has sold over 18 million copies, with more than 2/3 of those sales figures coming solely from Japan. Ask any 13 year old Japanese boy what game he likes and he will tell you 'Mohan', I guarantee it.

In addition to creating some of the biggest franchises of all time, Capcom also publishes many Western games here in Japan. Over the years, they have been responsible for the Japanese localization of many of the most popular franchises abroad, including Grand Theft Auto, God of War, The Getaway, True Crime and until fairly recently Call of Duty (With the release of Modern Warfare 2, Square Enix now publishes the series in Japan).

Famitsu also polled its readers on a number of topics relating to Capcom for their article. Here are the results:

Top 5 Most Popular Capcom Series

1.) Resident Evil

2.) Monster Hunter

3.) Street Fighter

4.) Mega Man

5.) Ace Attorney

Top 10 Capcom Series That People Want Sequels For

1.) Breath of Fire

2.) Monster Hunter

3.) Mega Man

4.) Final Fight

5.) Resident Evil

6.) Onimusha

7.) Rival Schools

8.) Devil May Cry

9.) Ghost 'n Goblins

10.) One Piece

Top 10 Favorite Capcom Characters

1.) Ryu (Street Fighter)

2.) Dante (Devil May Cry)

3.) Mega Man (Mega Man)

4.) Jill Valentine (Resident Evil)

5.) Airou (Monster Hunter)

6.) Albert Wesker (Resident Evil)

7.) Amaterasu (Okami)

8.) Phoenix Wright (Ace Attorney)

9.) Zero (Mega Man)

10.) Miles Edgeworth (Ace Attorney)

Featured Games

Grand Knight History (PSP): So, many of you might remember last week's Dragon's Crown, by VanillaWare (Odin Sphere, Muramasa) for the Vita, but did you know they are also making a regular PSP game? Grand Knights History is an RPG with strategy game elements, with a world set around a great war between 3 countries. You control 4 knights at a time in battle, and you can make up to 3 teams of knights to switch between. It's playable over PSN, so you can battle and check your rankings against other players online. The art is the typical gorgeous fare VanillaWare always puts out, and if nothing else, it will be interesting to see why it's listed as being playable by 1 player to infinity players... They literally use an infinity symbol, I've never seen that in Famitsu before. It's coming out here in Japan this September 1^st, but whether it makes it over to the US remains to be seen; with the PSP on its way out, and VanillaWare hard at work on another title for the Vita, this could get skipped over. Be prepared to import this one, VanillaWare faithful!

Dragon's Dogma (PS3): Touting the call line of being Capcom's first 'open world action game', Dragon's Dogma is just that: a vast world waiting for you to explore, and of course, kill everything you meet on the way. You can choose between 6 character classes for your journey: warrior, ranger, sorcerer, assassin, mystique knight (that's what they actually call it, but it's probably an English mistake for mystic knight) and a magic archer. As you adventure through the world with your allies (played by other friends over the internet or AI characters), you meet a variety of mythical monsters who want to kill and eat you, so of course you have to kill them first. It's currently scheduled to come out here in Japan sometime in the first quarter of 2012.

Rebuild of Evangelion 3nd Impact (PSP): Based off of the popular anime series Evangelion, this music rhythm game is being developed by Suda 51 (Killer 7, No More Heroes), with the music being supervised and created by Akira Yamoka, the famed composer of the Silent Hill Series! The game will feature six different gameplay modes, all of which are based on different aspects of the Rebuild Evagelion series.

Weird Games Found Only In Japan

New Love Plus (3DS): Back in 2009, Konami released a game called Love Plus for the DS in Japan. Love Plus was a dating sim game that let you pick one of three different girls (each with their own unique personalities) to engage in a virtual high-school relationship (FYI: There is no sex what-so-ever). The game sparked a cultural and social phenomenon in Japan. Love Plus became so popular that one gamer became an internet celebrity for marrying his Love Plus girlfriend, and a travel company actually started offering real life vacation packages to go on with your Love Plus girlfriend...I kid you not. Love Plus has sold 500,000 copies, so a 3DS sequel was inevitable.

The game still features the same three girls that made the first one such a sensation, but thanks to the 3DS's technology, it features superior graphics, which are now displayed in 3d, and improved features. In addition to the visual upgrade, the game takes full advantage of the systems multiple cameras. New Love Plus lets gamers introduce their girlfriend to their friends, which then allows your friend to come up in casual conversations you have with her. The camera is also used for the game's "boyfriend lock" feature, which ensures that your girlfriend only recognizes you and will treat anyone else playing your game as a stranger. The 3DS's cameras will also be used in conjunction with the systems built-in gyroscope, allowing you to look at your girl from all sides. Be warned though: if you stare at certain 'special' areas too much, she'll get embarrassed. You'll also be able to take pictures of your girl via a camera mode, and if you're on good terms with your girl, she'll even pose for you. The game also utilizes the 3DS's online play to allow you to let your girlfriend interact with other players' girlfriends, which will in-turn create new story-lines and conversations to take part in.

Look for this game to be released in the United States NEVER!

Hardware Sales: Week of 5/30-6/5

• PSP – 29,519 units
• 3DS – 27,866 units
• PS3 – 15,270 units
• Wii – 7,056 units
• NDS – 6,832 units
• 360 – 1,619 units
• PS2 – 1,141 units
  
  

Top 5 Selling Games: Week of 5/30-6/5

• Resident Evil: Mercenaries 3D (3DS) – 61,306 units
• One Piece: Unlimited Cruise SP (3DS) – 19,937 units
• Battle & Get! Pokemon Typing DS (DS) – 11,860 units
• Phantom Breaker (360) – 11,789
• Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker 2 Professional (DS) – 10,613 units
  
  

Top 5 Most Anticipated Games: Based on survey results from 6/2-6/8

• Tales of Xillia (PS3)
• Final Fantasy: Type-O/Agito (PSP)
• Dragon Quest X (Wii)
• Photo Kano (PSP)
• 2^nd Super Robot Wars OG (PS3)

That's all for this weeks Famitsu, we hope you enjoyed it! Check back next week to see what is going on in gaming here in Japan! If you would like us to cover different subjects/topics please make sure to leave us some feedback in the comments section, thank you.

Submitted By: Aaron McKeever & Sherrie Blackwell

Digital vs. Disc

Just two short weeks after its release, Sucker Punch's Infamous 2 has been made available for download on Playstation Network showing that the battle between online and retail video game sales still rages on.

Rolling out full, first party exclusives has been done on consoles before such as on Xbox Live but it's not usually this quick. Sony did it with Warhawk, but with game like Infamous 2 running at full price of $59.99 on PSN and whopping 15 GB a pop, it seems that buying games at your local retailer's the better option. Not everyone's on board with this though.

Visit almost any online video game forum and you're bound to find gamers debating whether they prefer their games in disc or digital form. Some claim that digital distribution is simply a sign of progress of gaming evolution that provides them with a perpetual gaming library that's available anytime, and that boxed games along with brick and mortar retail stores are doomed to go the way of the dodo. Yet, others argue that video game discs are immune to things like hard drive and server failures, and can easily last a long time with proper care. Not to mention there's nothing like tearing the shrink wrap off of the game case and whiffing that new plastic smell when you crack it open for the first time.

There's no doubt that online game download purchases are rising, however. According to an NPD Group report, consumers bought and downloaded 11.2 million full-game PC titles through services like Steam and Direct2Drive vs 8.2 million bought at retail stores in the first half of 2010. These sales made up for 43 percent of overall game revenue mainly due to the general higher price retail stores charge. With the expansion and integration of online capabilities on PSN and Xbox Live, it may be only a matter of time until more full console games become available online.

So is downloading games really better than discs, and why would you want to bother getting your video games off of PSN or Xbox Live? Here's a list of some of the pros and cons of digitally purchasing your next favorite title:

Pros:

• No need to leave your house.
• You can download games at anytime of the day.
• Game doesn't go out of stock.
• You're usually allowed to try the game before you buy it.
• No physical storage space required.
• No need to worry about losing or scratching your game disc.
• Downloading and installing games is generally very easy.

Cons:

• Downloaded software is proprietary, which allows the customer to use it but not actually own, resell or trade it in for another title.
  
• Full downloaded games take up a lot of HDD space and downloading them is usually a long and tedious process.
• Developers and publishers may decide that their legacy software/hardware isn't worth maintaining, which could prevent access to your downloaded games.
• Some games can't be played without an active internet connection, and if the server goes down, say bye-bye to your game for a while.
• If the hard drive fails, the game is lost until you replace your system and re-download the game.
• Downloaded games are less portable.

So, at the end of the day, games are games and while downloading them is becoming more and more popular, it's unlikely that physical media will completely go away. After all, everyone loves box art.

One Gamer's Opinion: Thank You for Duke Nukem Forever

I want to say thank you to 2k Games & Gearbox Software for releasing Duke Nukem Forever. Does Duke Nukem Forever have it's share of gameplay and design problems? Yes. Does it look outdated graphically? Yes. Is any of this 2k Games & Gearbox Software's fault? No.

What everyone out there seems to be forgetting is that 2k Games & Gearbox Software didn't "make" this game. Once 3d Realms went belly up and all the dust settled from the various lawsuits, 2k Games was left with rights to the franchise and the code to the game that 3d Realms had been working on for over a decade. Rather than see all these years of work go down the drain and start completely from scratch Gearbox Software fixed up the code as best as they could and released Duke Nukem Forever as is, in the form it was made by the people at 3d Realms. Why did they do this? Because the President of Gearbox Software, Randy Pitchford, once worked for 3d Realms, many years ago, on Duke Nukem 3d. Pitchford left the company before production on Duke Nukem Forever began.

In an interview by Pitchford, done during the games PAX announcement, he said that this is not their game, it is 3d Realm's game. He wanted to see "this" game released, that way fans of the series could finally play the illusive game they had been waiting for, for soo long, as it was intended to be. In addition, he also wanted all of the untold number of people that worked on this game for the past 14 years to finally see their hard work and dedication pay off. In the same interview, he also said that once this Duke game was released Gearbox would eventually begin working on their Duke game.

2K Games & Gearbox Software should be commended for saving this game from the dead and releasing the title as it was intended to be, knowing full well it wasn't going to be up to par. The game has been in development hell for 14 years, there was no way it would live up to anyone's expectations. Once Gearbox releases their version of Duke Nukem then I will judge, until then I'm just glad that I FINALLY got to play Duke Nukem Forever.

Sites threatened to be blacklisted for negative Duke reviews

Not having played Duke Nukem Forever yet, I can't give my thoughts on 2K Games and Gearbox's fourteen year long project, but a majority of reviews have shown that time hasn't been good to Duke. Many reviewers such as Gamespot, IGN and 1Up.com slammed the game for poorly paced levels, unnecessary platforming segments, and overall lack of fun. It's not only Duke that's under the gun, but also the reviewers themselves: 2K Games' PR Agency, The Redner Group, publicly threatened to blacklist any reviewer who ran a negative review on Duke Nukem Forever.

After a number of these reviews were published, the Redner Group, based out of Santa Monica, CA, retaliated against the critics and tweeted that they went “too far” with their venom-filled reviews. Furthermore, the agency stated on their Twitter account that they're considering which news outlets get review copies of games in the future and which don't. 2K Games didn't take Redner's reaction well, however, and cut relations with the PR agency. This prompted agency founder, Jim Redner, to submit a formal apology to a number of gaming publications

The press interacts with public relations agencies on a regular basis and this relationship can sometimes walk on shaky ground. According to gaming news outlets like Kotaku, this type of internal blacklisting with gaming companies does happen, but isn't usually made public. Kotaku got blacklisted by Sony from its event, games and interviews when it published a rumor about the unveiling of the PS3 Home back in March 2007. Game developers always want their products to do well and video game journalists want to report on the latest juicy tidbits of news and put forth quality game reviews. It's often a delicate balance that reviewers must take into account when critiquing a game.

Metacritic.com, a website that provides a general critic consensus, shows that Duke Nukem Forever currently has a “Metascore” of 49 on the Xbox 360, a 55 on PS3 and a 57 on the PC. Given the amount of time, money and effort that went into creating this highly anticipated title, the score comes as a pretty big letdown for many gamers.

Reviewing a game at the professional level takes more than popping in a game, playing it for a few hours and then giving it a thumbs up or thumbs down. The reviewing process of a video game can be a lot of work. About a week before a game's release, companies usually provide critics with a review copy of a game. The game then needs to played in its entirety, with the reviewer paying close attention to things like game flow, controls and fun. Ideally, the review needs to be composed and posted before the game hits store shelves, not often an easy task.

Many gamers want their video game they've been waiting for to be fun and intuitive, which is what developers intend to deliver. It doesn't always work out that way, and it's up to gaming journalists to help decide whether the game is worth the time and money. After all, no self-respecting gamer would want to spend their hard-earned money on a game they've been anxiously waiting for, only to take it home and discover it falls short? A game developer can be ultimately passionate about its game, but when threats start to fly, the potential damage can become worse than the final score given by the critic.

Nintendo Wii U will only support single controller, Why???

According to an article posted by M.H. Williams, Nintendo has decided to only allow for one controller on the new Wii U, scheduled to launch in 2012. The new device or controller for the Wii U is the highlight of the systems capability. Basically Nintendo has integrated a tablet like device, a portable handheld and console controller into one. I had an opportunity to try out this device at E3 2011 and had mixed feelings about it.

The controller is larger than a DSi Xl and smaller than an Ipad. Although it wasn't uncomfortable to use for the short period of time I tried it, in my opinion it would get tiresome after long gaming sessions. One of the aspects I had considered as an upside to this new controller scheme would be in games like Madden. It has always been annoying selecting plays on a split screen with your opponent sitting right next to you. With the new screen in your hands, the Wii U controller would add the ability to select more discreetly. As well , it would be ideal for board and card games. Scrabble anyone...?

So basically, Nintendo has just eliminated, what I thought to be the best integration for this odd new controller. If you want to read the article click the link above. But in a nutshell Nintendo has stated that their decision to only provide for one controller on the new Wii U is associated strictly with cost. I personally hope they fix this.

What type of integration do you see the new Wii U controller opening up for developers and games?

Hackers grow bolder and the victim list grows longer

If there's one thing the PSN hack showed, it's that even large gaming companies like Sony are susceptible to cyberattacks. Now, Nintendo, Epic Games, Square Enix, Bethesda and Codemasters can join the club of hacking victims.

Nintendo reported that one of its U.S. web servers was hacked earlier this month, prompting the Big N to send notices to its customers to change their passwords and usernames to prevent their personal information from being stolen. While Nintendo said that no financial or third party data was lost, it's clear that after this attack, Sony was just the beginning.

Lulz Security, responsible for the recent “minor” Senate.gov leak, resulting in the exposure of a large list of the site's root directory and file names, recently snuck into Bethesda Softwork's backdoor. LulzSec, boasted on their twitter account that they broke into Bethesda's website, grabbed more than 200,000 Brink user info and told the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim publisher to “fix your junk”. LulzSec hasn't released its stolen info and no financial data was lost. Still, Bethesda, like Nintendo, encouraged all it's customers to change their usernames and reset passwords.

Next up: Epic Games, yep the Gears of War developer's website and forums got hit, too. Although, the attack was not as serious as the PSN hack. The hackers, which weren't identified, responsible could only obtain email addresses, passwords, but no info linked to any financial data. Epic reported no further damage to itself or its customers.

The same can't be said about the DiRT3 creators, Codemasters, which got hit by twice in a month. On June 3, hackers pillaged the publisher's website and made off with lots of user data, including members names, screen names, user names, Xbox Live Gamertags and IP addressees to name a few. Fortunately, Codemaster uses an external payment provider, so no financial data was reported lost. Still, the company doesn't completely dismiss the fact that this information could still have been compromised.

Cybercriminals are getting so confident that they even targeted Square Enix, one of the most highly respected and award-winning company responsible for developing the Final Fantasy series and publishing the upcoming Tomb Raider. It's suspected that Anonymous is involved in nabbing 25,000 customer emails and 350 resumes of people who have applied for jobs at the company's Canadian office.

With all these attacks, it's questionable if any gaming developers will remain hack-free. It's really a question of “who's next?”

Robin to possibly appear in Batman: Arkham City

Batman's Boy Wonder sidekick, Robin might make an appearance as a pre-order bonus in the highly-anticipated Batman: Arkham City according to a user on arkhamcity.co.uk. Rocksteady has yet to reveal more info regarding if Robin will partake in the single player story or just be a challenge map only character.

Check out Rocksteady's official twitter page to get your fill on this and more updates on Batman: Arkham City, which hits store shelves on Oct. 18 this year.

This Week in Famitsu

Welcome to the first of what will be a regular series here at Level Up Video Games, known as “This Week in Famitsu.” For those of you that don't know, Famitsu is the most popular gaming magazine here in Japan. Every week they put out an issue well in excess of a 100 pages, and they have been doing this for 25 years! Famitsu is THE gaming magazine of Japan, and is highly regarded around the world as well. Each week we will give you a little peak into the gaming scene here in Japan by offering up a small sample of what Famitsu is talking about.

WEEKLY FAMITSU #1175

Cover Story

This week's Famitsu is focusing its attention on Bandai/Namco Games, with a 50 page retrospective on the two companies' (recently merged into one company) most memorable and popular series. Did you know that both companies got their start in the mid-1950s manufacturing small coin-operated children's rides?

Over the years they have been responsible for creating and publishing such popular series as: Pac-Man, Gundam, The Tales of ~ RPG Series, Super Robot Battle, Tekken, Ridge Racer, Ace Combat, Taiko Drum Master, Dragonball/Dragonball Z, Soul Calibur, .dot Hack, Naruto, Katamari Damacy, XenoSaga, & Tamagotchi. However, the three most popular of those series here in Japan are: Gundam, Tales of ~, and Super Robot Battle.

Did you know that since the days of the NES there have been over 160 different Gundam games released for EVERY SINGLE console, EXCEPT the Sega Genesis (even the Virtual Boy got one). They even made a Gundam RPG for the NES! While not nearly as old as Final Fantasy, the Tales of ~ series is about to see its thirteenth entry released with Tales of Xillia for the PS3 this September; however those twelve games have actually been released on different consoles over 25 times!? The Super Robot Battle series, one that has seen only 3 releases in America, has over 50 releases here in Japan!

Featured Games

Kojima Productions: Famitsu takes a great look at all the cool features the upcoming 3DS version of Metal Gear Solid 3 will incorporate: touch-screen map/item interface, motion controlled gyroscopic sneaking, and custom camouflage via the 3DS camera. In addition, the article also talks about the upcoming PS3 HD re-releases of both MGS2 & MGS3, MGS Peace Walker, and Zone of the Enders 1 & 2.

Dragon's Crown (PS3/Vita): The very first HD game from VanillaWare, the developer of both Odin's Sphere and Murumasa. It is a 2D action-RPG with hand-drawn graphics and four-player online co-op for BOTH the PS3 and Vita. The game will have simplistic controls, deep character customization, and six different classes: Fighter, Amazon, Dwarf (Heavy Fighter), Sorceress, Wizard, & Elf (Archer).

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (3DS): A look into how the 3DS's features have been used and incorporated into this gaming classic. The article also offers a refresher course on all the characters from Ocarina of Time in case you might have forgotten who the players are. 

In addition, Famitsu also polled hundreds of it's readers to vote on their favorite Zelda game of all time. Here are the results:

10. Oracle of Ages/Seasons (GBC)

9. Link's Adventure (NES)

8. Spirit Tracks (NDS)

7. Link's Awakening (GB)

6. Twilight Princess (Wii)

5. Wind Waker (GC)

4. Link to the Past (SNES)

3. Legend of Zelda (NES)

2. Majora's Mask (N64)

1. Ocarina of Time (N64)

Weird Games Found Only in Japan

Dancing Eyes (PS3): This is ostensibly a puzzle/action game coming out for the PS3 in Japan, where you watch girls...dance. You can dress the girls up in different outfits, and one 'minigame' involves peering through the clothes of the girl, x-ray style, at their lingerie. Another 'puzzle' involves matching up lines and blocks on a girl's shirt over her chest to get a.... special item. We were too scared to read further.

Hardware Sales: Week of 5/23-5/29

• PSP – 34,253 units
• 3DS – 25, 096 units
• PS3 – 15,842 units
• Wii – 7,552 units
• NDS – 6,389 units
• 360 – 1,751 units
• PS2 – 1,094 units

Top 5 Selling Games: Week of 5/23-5/29

• One Piece: Unlimited Cruise SP (3DS) – 76,578 units
• Troy (PS3) – 28,556 units
• Pandora's Tower (Wii) – 22,344 units
• Nobunaga's Ambition: Heavenly Road (PS3) – 16,304 units
• Akiba's Trip (PSP) – 16,059 units

Top 5 Most Anticipated Games: Based on survey results from 5/26-6/1

• Tales of Xillia (PS3)
• Final Fantasy: Type-O/Agito (PSP)
• Dragon Quest X (Wii)
• Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (3DS)
• Photo Kano (PSP)

And that's all for this week! Hopefully you enjoyed this brief glimpse into what Famitsu deems news-worthy. We'll try to keep adding to what we cover in this feature, so that hopefully it becomes something to really look forward to. Until next time!

Submitted By: Aaron McKeever & Sherrie Blackwell

The adventure that is E3!

I am sure that all of our friends at Level Up Video Games have already read all the major announcements, some of which were leaked even before the show began. So I am not going to cover these stories. There are tons of blogs you can read with all the opinions you need. What I want to share with you is the experience of being at E3.

This morning I awoke in my comfortable bed and realized that the excitement of the Electronic Entertainment Expo was over and I was back to reality. Every year for the last 5 years I have been attending E3, the biggest and best video game expo in the world. This year was no different. I packed my things on Monday and headed off for Los Angeles with my son who has worked at Level Up Video Games for the last 3 years and was finally able to attend the conference with me. We had a great time.

E3 is held at the Convention Center in the heart of downtown LA every year, across from the Staples Center home of the LA Lakers. High rises everywhere. A city where Mercedes, Porshe and Ferrari are as common as Honda on these traffic packed streets . The convention center, surrounding buildings and streets are draped with advertisement banners, some 50plus feet tall, advertising the biggest titles of the year. It truly is a spectacle to see. Downtown LA is like one big advertising mecca, there are ads on everything.

First off, when you arrive at the LA Convention Center there are always some rather large outdoor exhibits set up from various companies along the sidewalk entrances. Last year was Virgin Gaming a subsidiary of Virgin Records. This year it was NOS Energy, Saints Row and Walmart Gaming centers among the largest on the streets. Passer-bys can enjoy these displays as they are outside and not in the convention center. From NOS we had some insanely awesome car displays and DJ booth tented off with comfortable seating and free energy drinks (of which I had my share). Across the street was the Saints Row exhibit, where purple clad bikini babes were offering VIP car washes and giving away purple Saints Row T-shirts which read "I love Rim Jobs", I kid you not, I got mine. I felt sorry for the bikini babes because it was actually overcast and a bit cold in the morning and these poor women were out washing cars in practically nothing.

Moving on, aside from the hilarious and ingenious costumed characters and gorgeous models you see handing out fliers for their various companies wares, there are also the badge holder pick up tents lined up along the sides of the main entrances. As we made our way to the tents to gain access to the main facilities, one can't help but notice all the media. Camera-men and microphones are everywhere, thousands of people from all over the world speaking every language you can think of and dressed in all forms of attire from suits, to sweats, all with one thing in common, their affiliation to this immense industry of gaming.

After being fitted with your logo ridden badge from all the companies who paid to have their names adorned on the I.D. Badges, you are off to the front doors, but not before being handed numerous more fliers, and mini swag from the dozens of independents and other representatives lining the walkways.

The Los Angeles Convention Center is enormous with over 900,000 square feet of space. This place is huge and floor space comes at a high-premium for the exhibitors. Each exhibitor spends anywhere from several thousand to over a million dollars to display their products and services. From the structures, to the lighting, video and audio components, these displays are grand beyond anything I have ever seen before.

Upon entering the lobby you are overwhelmed by the shear size of the foyer. Displays from Sprint to Lord of the Rings are speckled across the main lobby. More swag, bags to carry the swag and more advertising fliers and goodies are passed out like candy on Halloween. Each booth more amazing then the next, and you haven't even entered the exhibit floors yet. There are escalators ahead and to both sides. The South Hall is the primary exhibit area where the big wigs like Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo are housed. Then there is the West Hall with companies like Bethesda, THQ and Activision amongst hundreds of other company exhibits.

On Day 1 the main exhibit halls are not open to all attendees until 12:00pm. So you can meander around the lobbies and hallways but you don't gain access to the main exhibit halls till then. The lines start to build at the hall entrances about 11:00am and the anticipation is ripe in the air until the clock strikes noon.

Let me elaborate here, there are essentially 4 types of badge ID's for E3. The most common being the Exhibits Only badge which is issued to attendees who work in the business as retailers or wholesalers but don't have any exhibit at the conference. The second type of badge is an Exhibitor badge, this is for staff that actually have an exhibit on-site. Third, is a Media badge, which is for all the news and blog attendees who have special access to certain conferences and other areas that are restricted to standard Exhibit Only or Exhibitor pass holders. In order to qualify for a media pass you need to work for a reputable print or online media company with no less than 8,000 subscribers a month. Lastly, is VIP badges which is pretty much the highest caliber of access. These are reserved for the biggest executives, main sponsors and special celebrity guests only. These guys have access to pretty much everything.

This year we were lucky and got hooked up with Exhibitor ID badges which meant we were let in early to the main halls prior to the noon kick-off, which gave us a little while to look around before the crowds filled the halls.

Upon entering the main halls you are overwhelmed. Lights, sounds and video overtake your senses, you catch your breath and decide which way to turn, which exhibit to see first. Decisions are made and let the games begin. There is no time to waste as lines are formed and chaos ensues. We started with Duke Nukem Forever. We got in line and entered their demo room, where we were greeted by the staff, assigned a seat and handed our choice of a beer or Redbull, upon which the demo was introduced and our first multi-player experience began. After a 10 minute match we were escorted out and corralled over to Duke's throne to have our picture taken with 2 incredibly hot Duke babes. And then on to the next, display. These displays range from a hundred square feet to several thousand square feet. My advice, after attending all these years is to wear comfortable shoes. You do a lot of walking. There are demo systems everywhere showing off all the hottest games to come for all your favorite consoles. Many of which you can just walk up and start playing, others which you must endure long-lines, kind of like being at an amusement park.

But all this fun is not the sole purpose of E3, in fact the real purpose of E3 is all business. Offices and meeting rooms are all around and business is being conducted on tight schedules. So while many attendees are there just playing games and trying out cool new peripherals and accessories, thousands of close-door meetings and deals are being ironed out.

As a store owner I am there to find new products and distributors to connect with, which for my son was not very exciting. But that's what it's really about when I attend this conference.

Being at E3 is definitely a memorable experience but the reality is that when you are reading about it on the internet or watching it on TV you really get to see more than you can ever see while you are there. There is just so much going on at once and with hundreds of thousands of square feet to cover, it is impossible to catch everything.

We walk for miles and get to see some amazing displays but in the end it is really impossible to keep up with it all. So just like all of you I do my reading on line to keep up with all the major announcements.

Don't get me wrong it is truly awesome to see and I wouldn't pass up an opportunity to go but now you get a better picture of how big this event really is.

New product announcements, getting to see up close and experience the games and technology first hand is an honor, but it really is hard to see it all, and in the end you're just happy you got to see what you did and wish there was more time (or a clone of you) to catch a glimpse of something you missed, but there's always next year!

Submitted By: Jerry Abreu

Average player age and female gamer percentage on the rise

New game demos and announcements aren't the only things being revealed at E3 this year. Coinciding with the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the Entertainment Software Association released the results of its annual "2011 Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry" demographic study with some facts that may surprise you:

• The average gamer is 37 years old and has been playing for 12 years.
  
• 82 percent of gamers are 18 years of age or older.
• 42 percent of all players are women and women over 18 years of age are one of the industry's fastest growing demographics.
• Today, adult women represent a greater portion of the game-playing population (37 percent) than boys age 17 or younger (13 percent).
• 29 percent of game players are over the age of 50, an increase from nine percent in 1999. This figure is sure to rise in coming years with nursing homes and senior centers across the nation now incorporating video games into their activities.
• 65 percent of gamers play games with other gamers in person.
• 55 percent of gamers play games on their phones or handheld device.
• 91 percent of the time parents are present at the time games are purchased or rented.
  
• 98 percent of parents are confident in the accuracy of the Entertainment Software Rating Board ratings.
  
• 75 percent of parents believe that the parental controls available in all new video game consoles are useful.
• Parents also see several benefits of entertainment software.
  
• 68 percent of parents believe that game play provides mental stimulation or education.
  
• 57 percent believe games encourage their family to spend to time together.
  
• 54 percent believe that game play helps their children connect with their friends.

Who knows, maybe with the release of this new info, perhaps peoples' stereotype of gamers being nothing more than reclusive, uncleanly, zit-riddled teenagers can finally be dispelled. Which category do you fall into?

E3 2011

E3 2011 is in full swing with tons of announcements, trailers and demos from the industry's leading game developers, and Level Up is in the thick of it!

Microsoft looking to explore new possibilities of interactive hardcore gaming with Kinect and Xbox Live; Sony making a comeback from the recent PSN outage with a lineup of hit games and a new handheld system, the Playstation Vita; Nintendo look to satisfy both hardcore and casual gamers to push interactive gaming further with its console, the Wii U coming in 2012; not to mention lots of anticipated titles from third party developers, there's a lot to look forward to in the world of gaming.

Stay tuned for more info from our guys on the floor coming soon!

Nintendo says farewell to the DS Lite and drops the price to $99.99

Nintendo plans to drop the price of it's discontinued DS Lite – one of the Big N's most successful and popular handheld systems – drops down to $99.99 starting June 5.

The DS Lite's back lit dual screens, Wi-Fi multiplayer and downloads, Gameboy Advance compatibility, microphone and PictoChat to name a few, Nintendo's little powerhouse helped to revolutionize handheld gaming.

Now, with the DSi, DSi XL and the recently released 3DS, the Lite can now take the rest it deserves.

Tips and Advice from the Experts at Level Up: Set Up your media server!

Video Game consoles have been around for years. What's changed? Pretty much everything, but most notably is the fact that gaming consoles have evolved from merely playing games to providing a powerful media and communications device for your family.

If you own today's Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 you can link it your home computer to share all of your videos, music and pictures. You can access the internet, or use your game system to video chat and send messages. Services like Hulu Plus which provides the most popular pre-recorded television shows, Netflix which provides on-demand movies from all your favorite studios and other services like Crackle, Vudu, Last.fm and many more provide unlimited media content on demand. Built-in photo gallery, media players and browser applications as well as many upcoming new apps will unleash a whole new experience for your gaming console.

Some of the services mentioned above are provided on a monthly fee base such as Netflix and Hulu-Plus which start at only $7.99 but in my opinion are well worth it. In fact I am very close to cutting the cable service at home all together.
Services like media share and message and video chat however are free. Here is how to set up your media share service.
1)First you must have a PC with Windows XP or higher installed.
2)You also need to have Windows Media Player (this comes pre-installed on all windows pc's) or another media server program like PS3 media player installed. The process is about the same. For this example we will use Windows Media Player Version 12 and Windows 7 OS.
3)You must have your PS3 or Xbox 360 connected to your Home Network either by using an Ethernet Cable or a Wireless connection.
4)Open your Windows Media Player and activate sharing. With Windows Media Player 12 you would click on the STREAM button and select Automatically Allow Devices to play my media.
5)You will then see a a list of all Media compatible devices that are connected to your home network.  Your Xbox or PS3 will show on the listed devices found.  (Note: your game system needs to be turned on in-order for it to be discover.)
6)Next go to your game system and view Media Library on your Xbox 360 or go to Video, Music or Pictures drop down menus on PS3, you will see Windows Media Player logo if you click on it you can see all your pics, videos and music and play them right from your console.

Viola! You now can view and enjoy all the media you have stored on your home computer through your Game Console and Big Screen.
Remember that not all formats are supported by Windows media player or your game systems built-in media player. But you will find that the most common formats will work just fine. Some of the most common formats are WMV, MP3 and MP4, .AVI.
So if you haven't already explored your game systems potential, I strongly recommend you give these tools a try and see what your game system is really capable of.

Submitted by
Jerry Abreu