Category Archives: reTransmit

cool things I’ve learned from others directly or found online which hopefully relate to the core topics of the blog

Hype Can Be a Bad Thing

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Via the MIT AdLab, Forbes is carrying their own article about advertising in online gaming. From the article:

Lost in the talk this week of the new videogames from Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo is that these consoles will provide an ideal platform for advertisers.

…

Realism is key to many games, and real life is a place where ads and commercial products crop up all the time.

I wonder if that demographic they keep citing and which by now some of us probably have memorized (“18 to 34 year old males with disposable incomes who are increasingly less likely to watch TV”) puts off some corporations – especially those who are neither in the electronics industry nor aware of the particular advantages available to them in this new arena. More importantly, when are they going to start asking where the women are? It’s not like there are no females in games or virtual worlds. I mean, one look at the crap on TV and they can’t believe women are sitting there watching that stuff.

Dangerous Handbag

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Flytrap Handbag

I should preface this entry with two comments:

1) the RepRap project about which I’ve previously posted is part of the Centre for Biomimetic and Natural Technology. Consequently, I’ve been reading increasing traffic on the subject of biomimicry.

2) I’ve always been fascinated by carnivorous plants (pitcher plants, sundews, and of course the Venus fly-trap) and as an industrial design student I even had a toy concept based on these things.

That said, via MoCo Loco I’ve come across a fun site. Eenamaria is a start-up handbag boutique specializing in biomimetically-influenced handbags. Very cool. Now just wait until they become functional… purse snatchers beware.

The Wizard’s Toys

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Screenshot from Wizard of Funk

To be honest, I don’t pay as much attention to Sony’s Eyetoy as I probably should. Not that new interfaces aren’t interesting. They certainly are. It’s just that I’ve been waiting for that Power Glove-VR Goggle style 3D interface the title character from the movie Johnny Mnemonic whips out to retrieve data from a hotel fax machine(!) in Beijing. Guess I’ve been blinded, so to speak. Anyway, although it’s not a major product hit afaik (edit – at over 5 million sold according to reports, I guess it’s doing pretty good), it does seem like the Eyetoy is carving a nice niche for itself. Case in point is this entry over on Gamesblog:

Despite the proliferation of rap, guns and cars there were a few examples of gaming innovation tucked away in the darker corners of the E3 show-floor. One of these was Wizard of Funk, the world’s first, get this, EyeToy RPG.

Maybe I need to go back and listen to Eyetoy creator Richard Mark’s 2004 talk at Accelerating Change. The SLFuture Salon has a blog entry with links, so if you want to catch it, here’s that entry.

Billions and Billions…

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… of dollars.

From this Yahoo/AP press release:

Game publishers have to recognize that there are millions, if not billions, of dollars in advertising money coming their way in the next few years,” said Justin Townsend, chief executive of IGA Partners Europe, an agency that places in-game ads for clients.

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Until very recently, advertisers weren’t rushing to place products in video games. They spent only $34 million in 2004 on in-game ads – a far cry from the billions spent on television advertising.

But that amount is expected to explode to $562 million by 2009, according to The Yankee Group research firm. Including “advergames” – games built solely to promote a product – game advertising will approach $1 billion by the end of the decade, the firm predicts.

which is essentially the same thing written in today’s Wired online article. Maybe it’s not “Want a Coke With That Railgun?”. Maybe instead it’s “You Need a Coke to Power That Railgun”.

Both stories via Blue’s News.