Games and gear

The Wii is quickly solidifying itself as the gadget that is perpetually making us think, "Hm, I never thought of that, but it's a cool idea." First the whole Wiimote thing, then Wii Sports, then the Opera browser, then the weather and news channels...this is one gaming console that's full of nutty features and add-ons that might seem wacked out at first, but which inevitably catch on in that kitschy Nintendo way.

And Nintendo's far from finished. Rumors are flying about the latest additions to the Wii, and the video game blogs are scrambling … Read more

The Brits are using a simulated combat environment developed by the University of Southern California, to treat soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

By bringing to life a "virtual Iraq," complete with the realistic thumps and bumps of battle, the program allows troops to "relive and confront psychological trauma." All this takes place in a graduated manner so as not to re-traumatize, according to the University of Reading's Visualisation Centre.

The Iraq simulation experience is "fully immersive," meaning that patients wear VR goggles that transport them to the virtual battlefield. There, an attending … Read more

With the video game market credited for racking up $7 billion in annual sales, even trade shows about the industry are big news for legions of loyal gamers. With the demise (or at least downsizing) of the Electronic Entertainment Exposition--the gigantic video game show held in LA each spring--smaller events, such as the Game Developers Conference are picking up the slack.

The show floor is bigger than last year's, and companies such as Sony and Nintendo have set up large E3-style multimedia booths, making the event's higher public profile one of the biggest stories coming out of GDC … Read more

Ubergizmo has spied that the International Spy Museum is selling the Cola Cam for about $18.

Cool, you may think. Who wouldn't want a camera shaped like a can of soda?

There are several reasons.

First, you have to hold it as if you are shot-gunning a beer, so you can't just sit it on a shelf and let it click. It's so obviously a camera that you would not need the spy for spycams surveillance kit.

Second, the flash that pops up makes it extremely obvious that this is not a can of Cindy Crawford's … Read more

Sony finally unveiled its big PlayStation 3 surprise at GDC 2007. After its short but intense pre-GDC rumor war with Kotaku, Sony announced Home, the new online service for the PS3.

Underneath the marketing hype that Gamespot and News.com both already covered, Home is essentially a cross between Second Life and Nintendo's Mii avatars. PS3 users will get their own customizable avatars and virtual homes with which they can go online, chat with and host friends, find players for online gaming, buy and show off clothing and decorations, accumulate game trophies, and other social gaming activities. The service … Read more

The SciFi network has a little gift for Battlestar Galactica fans. It's posted downloadable audio and video clips from the show and is running a contest for the best 4-minute, fan-made, BSG knockoff video. Amateur BSG directors are encouraged to mash up the SciFi clips with their own footage. Hopefully, hilarity will ensue.

SciFi isn't providing any online video-editing option (maybe a deal with Adobe, for Remix, or with Yahoo, for JumpCut, would have been a good idea). But there's an upside to that: the BSG files are free and clear to download, not locked into a … Read more

Perhaps the best part about yesterday's report that we'd once again have Commmodore-branded computers on the market are the blogs that reported it, which dug up some pretty great images of the original, classic Commodore 64. Sure, we're eager to see what details come out on March 15 at CeBIT (Europe's massive annual tech show, held in Hannover, Germany), when the new Commodore Gaming PCs make their official debut. But really, what's more fun than browsing through all of the cheesy old-school console shots? We think we found a good one, but be sure to … Read more

While I was at the three-day WonderCon convention in San Francisco this past weekend, not only did I get an eyeful of loads of comics books and celebrities like the original Lois Lane, Noel Neill; Cassandra "Elvira" Peterson; and Chase Masterson (Leeta from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine). I also got some great schwag.

Standing toward the back of the hall at Moscone South was what appeared to be a majestic Borg cube-esque structure of T-shirts, hoodies and the like. It was there that I not only found a classic Amazing Spidey shirt, but a Namco Pac-Man belt. … Read more

The rumors were true: Nokia's N-Gage is returning, but it will be a gaming platform available on several new phones rather than on a single gaming handset. Gaming blog Kotaku was among the first to report on the news, which Nokia will expand upon at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco. Top mobile publishers such as EA, Glu Mobile and THQ Wireless are said to be on board, and Nokia is showcasing at least six N-Gage games, including versions of such well-known franchises as Brothers in Arms and FIFA 2008.

Nokia's press release specifically mentions that … Read more