Velocity Vector
Those of you who are really into the neoclassic era and specifically Castlevania will maybe find this interesting:
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=7102227&publicUserId=5379721
GameDev.net has announced the start of their annual Four Elements game design contest:
http://www.gamedev.net/community/contest/4e5/
Submissions are due November 30.
Ted Owen of the Global Gaming League is trying to get video games into the Olympics:
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060601-6968.html
My first thought was "whuh... ?" But then I realized that it's not any sillier than including all the screwball sports they have in the Olympics right now.
Atari has been warned that it will be delisted if it doesn't bring its share price back up:
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=15274
I'd guess we'll likely see either a buyout or a reverse stock split before that happens.
Looks like Sony may announce further details of the PlayStation 3 launch (including a more realistic schedule) at a press conference on March 15:
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=15266
At project247.com, you can bid on game development contracts:
It appears they only collect a fee on successful bids, so this should be good for the small developers out there looking to break in and operating on a small budget.
Microsoft has announced a new "Best of Platinum Hits" line of XBox games at the $9.99 price point:
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=15090
Now would be a good time to pick up Morrowind if you haven't already.
"The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion" is due out the week of March 20 on PC and XBox 360:
http://www.elderscrolls.com/news/press_030206.htm
XBox 365 has a hands-on preview:
http://www.xbox365.com/news.cgi?id=GGrdLrLHiP02260227
Titan Poker has changed their bonus terms. Instead of clearing $10 in bonus money for every 1000 points, you clear $5 for every 400 points. That's a 20% faster clearance rate, combined with the ability to clear the bonuses in smaller chunks:
http://www.velocityvector.com/games/3400.html
They've also instituted a VIP program that allows you to gain up to 11 points per hand played.
More on Atari's financial woes:
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=15016
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Ars Technica has a tutorial on developing games with Perl and SDL:
http://arstechnica.com/guides/tweaks/games-perl.ars
There's now a Geometry Wars 2 knock-off available for free on the PC:
Electronic Arts is offer players a choice between paying a fee to play PSP Fight Night Round 3 online or receiving junk mail:
http://arstechnica.com/journals/thumbs.ars/2006/2/19/2914
Add Merrill Lynch's analysts to those who believe the PS3 will be much later and much more expensive than had been hoped:
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060219-6216.html