Depending on your perspective, this year’s E3 has been either incredibly exciting or exceedingly frustrating. Hardcore console gamers lament the lack of new console hardware (Sony, Microsoft) and when there was it fell short of heightened expectations (looking at you, Wii U). For those Mac lovers out there paying attention, it was exciting because almost everyone’s press conference and announcements were in debt to Apple in one way or another. It seems the Apple approach to gaming has left a lasting impression on the Big 3 of console gaming. Below is a rundown of announced products and how they have Apple’s fingerprints all over them. (more…)

Apple Gaming News

Apple and Apple Related Gaming News

• AT&T is reportedly prepping their staff for the iPhone 5 launch.
• Is this the first look at Apple’s iPhone 5?
• The iPhone is kicking ass in the world market share with sales jumping 142%.
• How odd. The prices of top iPhone games keep dropping.
• Aside from that fact that there are fake Apple stores in China, Apple’s sales have never been better in China.
• Some of the fake Apple stores have been ordered to close though for permit reasons.
• The iPad is the new gaming platform, and the Nintendo 3DS now just a toy?
• Another Apple store is opening in New York but this time at Grand Central Terminal. Time to make a trip to a New York.
• Wow, Apple has more cash on hand than the U.S. Treasury.
• The magic number is one at Apple. The Auteur vs. the Committee, which one is better?
• With the Macbook phased out of Apple product line, should you buy a Macbook Pro or a Macbook Air?

Apologies for the late Weekly Flashback! I’m currently in LA for a family reunion and my grandpa’s 90th birthday. Here’s the past week’s Apple and Gaming news.

Apple and Apple Gaming Stories

• Rumor has it that Apple might be making the iPod Touch 3G capable.
• Another rumor is that Apple may be releasing TWO iPhones this year.
• So many rumors this week! Apple is also rumored to be partnering with China Mobile and possibly Sprint in the future.
• Apple will know better next time than to do business with this guy.
• Hey, iTunes App Store users! You all have bought more than 15 billion apps!
• Apple lost their lawsuit against Amazon on the usage of “Appstore.”
• New York artist is taking heat from Apple and the Secret Service over a little project of his.
• OS X Lion is coming soon so prepare your Mac!
• John Carmack from id Software has a few things to say about Apple Mobile Gaming.

• Global gaming business is projected to hit $112 Billion in 2015.
• Guess what, Sony has now jumped on the next-gen console craze and expected to launch PS4 2012.
• China may finally stop blocking console sales in the future.
• Although there’s a Pokemon app coming to iPhones soon Nintendo says no to smartphone gaming.
• A good chunk of Gears of War 3 was leaked and the feds are on the case!
• ESRB ratings do work as a parental control! But there still is a bit work that needs to be done.
• Civilization is coming to Facebook!
• Makes of Crysis, Crytek, has talked with Microsoft about going first party.
• Microsoft gets smart and folds Games for Windows Marketplace into Xbox.com so you can get all your gaming needs in one place!

Our Posts

• Duke Nukem Forever Mac FAQs
• Apple is Ready to Usurp the Mobile Gaming Crown
• Brown v. EMA: The Best Arguments For and Against Video Games

If you had told me a smart-phone would have one day carved a huge chunk out of the handheld gaming market, I’m pretty sure I would’ve just scoffed in your face and told you that no way in hell would that be possible. Well, seeing as how Apple mobile gaming with the iPhone has taken off to claim over 40 million gamers and around 34% of the entire American portable gaming market, I am inclined to eat my own words.

(more…)

Apple and Apple Related Gaming News

• Apple is in yet another lawsuit. This time over patents with Samsung, who is seeking a US import ban on Apple products.
• Apple adds TRIM support and fixes to improve graphic performance in OS X Snow Leopard.
• Bungie’s Marathon is headed for the iPad. FREE OF CHARGE!
• iPad sales are expected to hit 40 million this calendar year.
• Speculation that the iPhone 3GS price may drop to zero!
• Ever wanted to see the inside of the Thunderbolt Cable? iFixit tore one apart for your viewing pleasure.
• Professional Video Editors give their thoughts on the new Final Cut Pro X.
• Rumors of the iPhone 5’s features are cropping up.
• Mac OS X Lion is expected out on July 6th!
• Cars 2 video game races onto the Mac.

Gaming Stories in General

• Rejoice Gamers! Video games are now under the protection of the First Amendment!
• Bungie created a new social and mobile gaming venture called Bungie Aerospace.
• Warcraft is now free-to-play! Well, it’s free until level 20.
• Age of Conan is following in the steps of WoW and will soon to be free-to-play.
• Playstation Plus is one year old this week!
• Want to buy a Wii peripheral that costs more than the Wii itself?
• The British really love their Call of Duty Black Ops.
• Farmville creator, Zynga , is going public quite soon.
• How young is too young for kids to start video gaming.
• Angry Birds has found a new home in China.
• The next Xbox may be just around the corner.

Our Posts

• The Legacy of Duke Nukem 3D
• The GameAgent Store Just Got 400% More Awesome
• Duke Nukem Forever: The Long Road to the Mac
• Duke Nukem Forever Coming to the Mac

 

With the announcement of the Nintendo Wii U and the whole dual-screen-console-gaming bit, you’d think that it’s a pretty novel idea? Well, believe it or not, Nintendo wasn’t the only one with that idea. 

(more…)

So if you haven’t been living under a rock, E3 has come and gone this past week and has left many gamers, including myself, with soiled pants and a willingness to throw money at the companies that flaunted their products at the expo. Lots of huge announcements were dropped and, as a gamer, make me super excited for the coming future of gaming.

  (more…)

Week in Review is back but  now it shall be called Weekly Flashback! This is usually a Friday thing but I got a bit sick this past Friday so this week you’ll get a double dose! Anyways… Hello all! I’m Jas Kao and I’ll be joining the GameAgent team of blog writers to hopefully amuse and inform you fellow readers about what’s going on with the gaming world, Apple, Aspyr, and GameAgent. A little about myself is in order. I’m a college student and currently reside in Austin. I’ve been gaming since I was 6 years old. Started off with console gaming with the Nintendo 64 but moved into computer gaming into my latter years. I wouldn’t necessarily say I stick to a particular genre of gaming. I play all and enjoy most.  Though I’m quite fond of  RPG types games. Currently I’m working my way through Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition with plenty of mods tacked on for added enjoyment. Anyways, that’s enough about me. I’m gonna ease myself in with Week in Review and then later provide, for your entertainment, more meat-and-potatoes blog posts. Apple Computer and Apple-related Gaming

• Why isn’t Apple at E3 this year? Because they are hosting their very own WWDC conference!
• Apple unveils iCloud (a way to store all your stuff on all your Apple products), iOS 5, and OS X Lion at their WWDC conference.
• If you wanted to catch the June 2011 Apple keynote, here it is for your viewing pleasure.
• Products from Apple are apparently “very difficult to make.”
• Apple gamers now finally get a pretty awesome gaming mouse.
• Apple console? Not quite, but Apple TV gets console-style gaming.
• Good news everyone! Apple has one of the best reputations around.

  Gaming Stories in General

• E3 Press Conferences. Watch them. Be Excited.
• Nintendo’s new HD console gets a name: Wii U. Unfortunately, the shareholders aren’t too happy with the announcement as Nintendo’s stock sunk 5.63%.
• PSN hackers may just get off scott free.
• Playstations NGP (next generation portable) gets an official name and a price along with some spiffy features.
• Balanced gaming=super important.

Added Bonus to this week’s Week in Review

• Booth Babes of E3. You know you want to click.

Our Posts

Civilization IV Mac Expansions: Buy One, Get One Free

Civilization V now available on the Mac App Store!

Have you ever gone abroad, purchased a DVD, and returned to only find that the regional code was wrong for your player? Similarly, video games made for France are different from games made for Japan or those made for the United States. But for games, the issue is not as easy to explain as a regional code.

Of North American sales, the US takes 85% of the video game market. However, according to Ernest Adams, a writer for Gamasutra, the best way for a game to become a blockbuster is to become an international hit. Big manufacturers and publishers are multinational; think EA (United States), Nintendo (Japan), and Ubisoft (France). But crossing the border takes a lot more than just translating the original text and voice-overs into the receiving country’s native language.

Let’s start with the more technical stuff first, and then we’ll see what sort of cultural trouble game manufacturers need to worry about.

(more…)