Movember Fundraising

Fundraising efforts for Movember. £2 donations acceptable. Donations do not = grade boosts but may result in +1000 good karma.

Click the pic to check on progress or offer a supportive message on my Mo Growing journey this November..

Mr H

SPRING 2013 - GTA V REVEAL

http://www.rockstargames.com/newswire/article/45951/grand-theft-auto-v-is-coming-spring-2013.html

Posted today on the Rockstar Games website:

"Today, we're proud to announce that Grand Theft Auto V is expected to launch worldwide spring 2013 for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

 

Developed by series creator Rockstar North, Grand Theft Auto V takes place in a re-imagined, present-day Southern California in the largest and most thriving game-world we have ever created set in the sprawling city of Los Santos and for miles beyond – from the tops of the mountains to the depths of the ocean.

 

Starting next week November 5, 2012, Grand Theft Auto V will become available for pre-order everywhere and fans can expect a host of new information to become available in November.

 

Look for downloadable desktop versions of the brand new artwork above coming very soon."

 



Note what we know for sure now:

• Spring 2013: Did a certain Mr Howard say May 2013 - will I be right? Even sooner would be nice!
• Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 - Not the Wii U, or portable versions - so core gamers targeted.
• Core audience a certain gender targeted with such provocative marketing?
• Los Santos - A return to the city that featured in GTA: San Andreas on the PS2 and original Xbox. On current Gen consoles this game-world is going to be HUGE.
• Consumers can pre-order from next week: Even with what little we know, expect pre-orders to be massive, filling top 10 charts for months before we get a sniff of the game.
• Clever stuff from Rockstar, as consumers will be hitting the online retailers like Play and Amazon for Christmas gaming purchases, have a look at the top 10 charts and Rockstar will have taken the top spot away from this Christmas' big hitters - Assassin's Creed III, Halo 4, Skylanders, Black Ops 2 etc. Watch this space!
• Developed by Rockstar North - Focus on getting this right - Developed by Rockstar North, Published by Rockstar Games - Obviously part of the same company, which is called Vertical Integration - R* own companies at every stage of production.

Press Release from Rockstar Games' parent company Take Two Interactive announcing the news to investers:
http://ir.take2games.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=86428&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1751693&highlight=

"Grand Theft Auto V builds on everything we've learned about open world game design," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "We can’t wait to share it with fans."

Beginning November 5, 2012, Grand Theft Auto V will be available for pre-order in stores everywhere. For all other information and updates on Grand Theft Auto V including the latest trailers, please visit http://www.rockstargames.com/V/

About Take-Two Interactive Software
Headquartered in New York City, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a leading developer, marketer and publisher of interactive entertainment for consumers around the globe. The Company develops and publishes products through its two wholly-owned labels Rockstar Games and 2K, which publishes its titles under the 2K Games, 2K Sports and 2K Play brands. Our products are designed for console systems, handheld gaming systems and personal computers, including smartphones and tablets, and are delivered through physical retail, digital download, online platforms and cloud streaming services. The Company’s common stock is publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol TTWO. For more corporate and product information please visit our website at http://www.take2games.com.
Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies, and are used under license from Microsoft.
"PlayStation" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
All trademarks and copyrights contained herein are the property of their respective holders.

Social Gaming & Zynga links

Social games are a bit part of many people's lives, maybe without them realising it! They are games aimed at mainly casual gamers but are played through social networking sites such as Facebook. The major company in this field is Zynga - if you have played a game on Facebook, the chances are it will be a Zynga game. Castleville, Chefville, Words with Friends, Cityville, Farmville, Mafia Wars just to name a few - If you haven't played one of these, I bet somebody on your Friend's List has!

The big part of their business model is that they can scale to a massive user base without having to spend a massive amount of money on marketing, somethign that can more than double the cost of building a traditional game. They did this by causing you as a player to automatically spam your friends with requests to join the game.

Facebook enjoys a symbiotic relationship with Zynga as both companies profit from these games - Facebook takes a slice of any real money purchases made in the games. In fact, in 2011 Zynga was responsible for 12% of Facebook's total revenue (money coming in).

The social gaming market has appeared so lucrative that traditional console game companies, such as Sony and Electronic Arts, which target more serious gamers, are starting to experiment with more casual social games for mobile devices.

The lifespan of these social games are often quite short - with many estimated at a 3 month span - so it is imperative for Zynga and other social gaming firms to make as much money as possible and come up with the next big hit. This has led to numerous complaints of plagiarism as EA and other developers have said that Zynga simply copies ideas from other gamemakers and polishes them up and brands them with the Zynga name. It is a cut throat market and morals often come into question! Especially in the last week as it was announced that Zynga have partnered up with online betting site BWin to create a 'real money' casino game. Cue the Daily Mail worrying over whether this will encourage younger Facebook users to develop gambling problems. So Zynga is a company that is often in the news at the moment!

Zynga's Wikipedia page - Useful for a bit of background to this company, as well as the controversies behind some of their practices.
The Zynga Petting Zoo - Marketing campaign for Farmville
Inside Zynga - An insight look at the social gaming company (Note: vid made by Zynga = GLOSSY!)

Useful articles though simply Googling Zynga can lead to the latest news on the company.
6 Reasons Zynga and Social Gaming are dying
Zynga in Slumps-Ville, but social games are still hot
Zynga shares surge after earnings report
EA believes social gaming's collapse is overhyped
235 million people play games on Facebook every month
App Center hits 150 million monthly visitors
Zynga in trouble over Mafia Wars guerrilla marketing
Bingo! Facebook gambles on games using real money, not credits, to engage users
Zynga makes first move into 'real money' games, partners with Bwin
EA sues Zynga for copying The Sims Social
Indie developer calls Zynga out over plagiarism
EA makes millions using Facebook Ads for Battlefield 3

Lesson 12 - Social Gaming

Social gaming
Starter Task:
When you log in and get onto this Blog, go to this link and answer the question on screen.

The lesson's PowerPoint is behind the cut