CES - Gaming

I ended 2008 talking about all-in-ones, so might as well begin 2009 on the same topic. Lenovo hasn't been much of a player in U.S. consumer desktop market lately, but the IdeaCentre A600 all-in-one, announced this morning, very plainly has the home user in mind.

According to the specs in the press release, Lenovo has followed the large LCD trend common to other all-in-one vendors. The IdeaCentre has a 21.5-inch display, along with a built-in subwoofer, and an optional Blu-ray drive and digital cable tuner, features that position the IdeaCentre A600 alongside other large screen all-in-ones as … Read more

While last year's CES didn't offer much in terms of gaming, it would appear that CES 2009 has a lot more in store. This is partially thanks to the Nintendo Wii, which has not only solidified itself as the best-selling console of this generation, but because the system lends itself so well to third-party accessories. We expect to see plenty of new products announced exclusively for the Wii from companies like Mad Catz and Nyko.

It's possible that Microsoft may reveal some new info regarding the Xbox 360 hardware. Rumors of a Blu-ray drive continue to swirl, … Read more

CES 2008 wasn't a very big show for gamers. Sure, there were plenty of controllers and accessories on display, but actual game developers were conspicuously absent. It's not surprising; CES is always oriented more towards general consumer electronics, and game-heavy companies usually wait until spring or summer shows like E3 to make their big announcements.

We were surprised by a major announcement from Namco at CES, though. According to the game company, its upcoming Soul Calibur 4 will feature Darth Vader and Yoda as playable bonus characters. Soul Calibur 2 saw Zelda's Link, Tekken's Heihachi, and … Read more

Many of us have been decrying the overall lack of gaming gear here at CES, but while there might not be much video game hardware on display at the Las Vegas Convention Center, several video game publishers are in town showing off their latest wares, including LucasArts, Eidos, Microsoft, and Namco.

The latter is perhaps the most interesting, since the title being shown off is the latest iteration of the fighting game Soul Calibur, which first hit living rooms via Sega's Dreamcast console back in 1999. The series features an eclectic cast of medieval Japanese characters battling over a … Read more

At first glance, Re-Mission comes across as a stylishly produced, anime-influenced video game. But the targets in question are cancer cells, which the character Roxxi the nanobot blasts with the Chemoblaster, the Radiation Gun, and the Antibiotic Rocket.

Re-Mission is specifically designed as a health improvement intervention for teens and young adults who have cancer. Game producers at HopeLab start with a desired health outcome, and then reverse engineer a game that encourages positive behaviors, adding motivation and fun into something as scary as a kid's battle against cancer.

HopeLab Vice President Ellen LaPointe spoke at the Sandbox Summit … Read more

If the Wii Zapper strikes you as too 'gunlike,' then you're probably not going to like these Wii accessories. Brooklyn-based CTA Digital showed off an entire arsenal of gun-themed Wiimote peripherals.

From the pistol-like Magnum Gun to the submachinegun-like Buzz Gun, CTA showed off no less than six Zapper-like Wii gun attachments. The Shot Gun for Wii stood out among them, a hulking, heavy pump-action shotgun accessory. The Shot Gun was a mock-up, and hopefully the final version of the gun will be lighter than the bulky model CTA displayed.

While they look fun, CTA's Wii accessories were … Read more

As it has in the past, Dell put a new desktop on display at the show this year, but without revealing any specifics. We're not able to tell much by looking only at the exterior of the XPS 630, other than the fact that it retains the overall look and feel of the high-end XPS 700 series, including the external case lighting.

Dell pulled a similar move with the XPS 710 H2C at last year's CES, and that system shipped in February 2007. If Dell follows that same pattern, we hope to have a review unit in our … Read more

A group of video game giants that changed the way people play in the '80s, '90s, and 2000s were honored with technology and engineering Emmy Awards during a ceremony Monday night in Las Vegas amid the Consumer Electronics Show, according to Sony Online Entertainment.

The awards were handed out in two categories. The first was development of massively multiplayer online role-playing games. The winners were Sony Online Entertainment, Blizzard Entertainment, and AOL/Time Warner for EverQuest, World of Warcraft, and Neverwinter Nights, respectively.

In the user-generated content and game modification category, Electronic Arts, Id Software, and Linden Lab were honored … Read more

The Nintendo Wii uses a wireless remote to begin with, but that remote still manages to use a cord half the time. Most Wii games use both the Wii Remote and the Wii Nunchuck, an analog stick peripheral that plugs into the base of the remote via a long cable. Nyko first cut the Wii cord with the Wireless Sensor Bar and is taking away yet another tether with the Wireless Nunchuck.

The Nyko Wireless Nunchuck connects to the Wiimote via a little wireless dongle that clicks into the controller's accessory jack. Once plugged in, tapping the connection buttons … Read more