Better Place is a company founded by Shai Agassi The goal of the company, from the videos, interviews and articles that I have written, in a nutshell, is to make electric cars feasible. Everyone in the word agrees that oil is at/past its peak in terms of being able to pump out the maximum from the ground. And we all agree that we need to power our cars differently.
Better Place sounds amazing if we can get the infrastructure up. If we can get this infrastructure, which I am thinking may cost alot, I think Better Place is feasible. Slashdot has a reference to how the battery replacement works, and how quick it is.
My skepticism comes from the amount of money I think it may take to get the infrastructure up and running. We are having issues now in trying to change things around, I can't imagine it will be too easy to get this done.
In all reality, I want this to work, and I truly hope it does. I just hope that we can get over the big financial hurdle to get it all done.
My friends over at JKonTheRun brought to light another article regarding the limitation of the Windows Starter Edition (for Windows 7, limitation on the number of programs running at a time). I can not say I completely agree, but I understand their point. But, that depends on two things.
- Either I run too many programs and can do with less
- I am not truly a "mobile" person, or what they themselves design as mobile. Which, is very possible.
I purchased my netbook (Acer Aspire One) back in december, because, frankly, I wanted a light computer to take to class. My netbook weighs in at a super light weight at 2lbs. Yea, it sports a small monitor (8.9") and the Intel Atom processor isn't the most powerful thing, but for the most part it has achieved what I need; a light-weight computer for me to take to class and take notes.
But, I think my issue comes with the programs that I use. As I sit here now, I have Word, IE7, Outlook, Live Sync (great for students with multiple PCs), AVG Antivirus, with many times Windows Live messenger is also running.
Now, what constitutes a running program? If Live Sync and AVG don't count, then I probably can live with starter, if it makes my experience quicker. If it doesn't then I may have issues. Although, one can say that I can, like Kevin, live entirely in my browser. I can get my email at outlook.com, as well as using meebo.com for my IM client, and can use web based word processing software (like Google provides). But, do I want to?
It is definetly something that I can consider, but, we'll see how it goes. I hope to get my hands on some Vista soon, once school is out.
[jkontherun]
Upon reading engadget, I read about how Time Warner Cable may be dropping the DOCSIS 3.0 trials they planed to launch because they weren't able to implement the broadband pricing tears. The Tier Pricing got alot of bad PR because, frankly, it crippled people and if you did not want to be broadband crippled they forced you to pay more.
As their plans stand now, you pay about $60 a month for an unlimited stream. And I am not too much against a cap at one point, although its punishing the 99% good. I truly wonder what type of broadband consumption my house uses. At my house, assuming I am home, we tend to have 2 360s that may be playing on Xbox Live, downloading content or even streaming media via Netflix on the 360, as well as downloading from MSDN. If my house doesn't push the cap (lets say 250gb like comcast), then I will be fine. Otherwise, if my activities like that cause me to go over the cap, that is where my issue is.
Still not sure why Time Warners PR hit has to cause us to suffer. I just want broadband like Japan, or even those northern European countries.
[Engadget]
Reports are in that the common electrical plug for electric vehicles to recharge, I assume coming into cars in the next 2-3 yrs, has been agreed upon by almost all, if not all, car manufacturers.
Engadget [http://www.engadget.com/2009/04/19/automakers-agree-on-common-plug-to-recharge-electric-vehicles/]
This is quite a huge. Why? Because a unified system is the only way for electric cars to be feasible. In the US alone we have 3 major automakers, that as of this time still exist (Chrysler, GM, Ford). If even those three each had their own system, then it would not be feasible or profitable for companies to operate electric charging stations. Then, to consider the vast amount of international companies like Nissan, Toyota, Honda, Hyanduai and so on, it would be impossible.
While this may be seen as a "small step" towards electric vehicles/cars, its implementation is quite important.
Twitter has almost become my one stop shop for news with CNNBrk (cnnbrk, how it did not get to 1mil subscribers before kutcher is another story), Techmeme (which is a sort of aggregation of tech posts). It is also my main communication platform. Outside of texting and email, Twitter has almost replaced my use of Windows Live Messenger and AIM. Twitter is now taking over for my inside knowledge about sports, specifically motorsports.
About 3 weeks ago, the American Le Mans Series held their annual 12 hrs of Sebring. The ALMS is a mix of prototype cars as well as consumer cars that are adapted to race (like Corvettes, Porsches, Ferrari, Vipers, Ford GTs, etc). This is one of the main tune-ups to the 24 hrs of Le Mans in June. But not having speed channel, and being a fan of racing, the Audi team (http://twitter.com/audiR15tdi) decided to create a twitter account to keep those who couldn't be there or be in front of a TV to keep up with the action. They discussed everything a race fan may like, lap times, pit strategies as well as information from the other team.
I think I see twitter being more of a hybrid news aggregation/messaging platform as it develops.
Everyone knows about Youtube.com, but not that many know about Hulu.com, atleast until recently. They had an ad during the super bowl, which was bound to help, and have recently in the last couple of months have actively pushed their presence via ads on TV. Like many people when they compete with something Google, atleast my first thought would be, "Google/Youtube/etc. has too much marketshare to be affected by this new product.
There are a couple of reasons that I think may help Hulu outlast Youtube.com
- Hulu.com has liscensed content. Hulu.com is a joint venture between News Corp (Fox TV) and NBC, the
last time I checked. While CSI may be the best overall show on TV (not
including Reality-type shows like American Idol), Fox and NBC have a
pretty good lineup of shows. 24, Heroes, House to name a few.
- Hulu actually owns the content. They own the rights to the content, therefore they can do whatever they
want. They want to put ads, they can. There are no restrictions.
- Hulu has a certain level of quality. If I was to compare the average quality of youtube, as well as the average quality of Hulu, Hulu clearly wins. Personally, I would rather watch higher quality...not sure if anyone else would watch lower quality.
- Hulu can monitize it, and youtube loses money. Can Hulu be losing money right now? Yes, it is a possibility, maybe even more than the rumored $470 million that Youtube is expected to Lose good this year. But, while it may take them money at this point to get it up and running, they can monitize it. They can place ads. They can have user specific ads, they can put ads overlaying their videos, and they have content that everyone wants to see. Does Youtube have things people want to see? Of course, or they wouldn't be in the position they are, but to have an Avril Levigne video as the most watched is odd to me.
Mark Cuban looks at some other ways that Hulu is beating Youtube.
Resource: Do you think Bandwidth Grows on Trees? [Slate]
I should say that I read Mark Cuban's blog in my feed reader, and many of times, I completely agree with. Yea, he has been the NBA Owner (Dallas Mavericks), that has been the outspoken one, the one who is almost shaking it up, but many of times, especially in terms of his thoughts on technology, he is right.
From my perspective, his fame came, first, from Broadcast.com, and now it is with HDNet and the Mavs. He was ahead of the curve with internet streaming at broadcast.com, and now with HD video/television with HDNet. HD hasn't really come into its prime and be "mainstream" until the last 2-3 years, when prices for HD Televsions have dropped. Cuban started HDNet in 2001 (according to wikipedia). To see that he thought internet based video would be big, just shows how much more he knows and how much more people should actually listen to him.
Its bad, that he has gotten a bad rap because of his interactions during NBA games.
I suggest more people should read a bit of the interview (found here), read his blog (Blog Maverick), and if you pay attention to twitter, follow him there (mcuban).
-Gerlach
It may not make sense linking twitter and Bobby Flay, the popular chef that has multiple programs on the Food Network. But, understanding the way that twitter needs to be to achieve success are.
The YES Network had a one on one interview between Michael Kay and Bobby Flay for the Centerstage program. And inside the interview, in a response to Kay asking about celebrities coming to his restraurant, mentioned that he did not care much for the celebrities coming in during big openings of his new restaurant(s). Why? Because he mentioned that he did not want his restaurant to be known as a "hot spot", and like everything in Hollywood, a hot spot is only hot for so long. He was more interested in it becoming successful the same way many other restaurants have in the past, with a good base of customers, many that are local, that can go to the place often.
That is where I think Twitter's success needs to be. The way Twitter has exploded recently (which may be the reason twitter.com has been flaky) is via the celebrity club. Twitter has become so popular and mainstream that even ESPN talks to athletes about twittering, and if they don't will they and/or why they dont. Twitter has to keep that "ground movement" of users, instead of just trying to become popular with celebrities, in order for it to succeed. If it doesn't, like many other web 2.0 startups, it has a good chance of failing.
For my class, IST500, we have to write a posting atleast once a week, and I have been laking. It is not because I am lazy. I have published multiple posts here at this blog for a couple of years, with the high end being near 2-3 a day. I haven't been writing, because I haven't felt there is anything to add.
To me, having a blog is a great way to get information out, but it should be something that is either good for the community or stirs some sort of conversation. And, frankly, I feel like I have failed that here. I have published opinion pieces telling large companies how they can do better (Microsoft and F1), I have given a sort of exclusive with some games (playing gears early and creating a rough [very rough] layout schema for a map that no one else saw, three months before the game came out). Ive written how community members can get some hardware to transfer content from one HDD to another.
I can make lists for a while. But, in reality, there has not been much that I can add. You can get more exclusive info quicker via Larry Hyrb and his blog (majornelson.com), as well as Joystiq and Xbox.Joystiq.com.
Maybe its time to change content. Because...ill be posting more.
Twitter: twitter.com/matt_gerlach
Xbox Live: Mastaglach820
Formula1.com ran an interview with Codemaster's Rod Cousens about Codemasters winning the Formula1 license. Its a short interview, but from it you get the picture that they are really going to try to bring Formula1 to the mass consumer. If they are able to do this, Formula1 can be one of those top games. If they are able to mix arcade (for the "general" gamer) with the simulation (hardcore), it could be a game that will sell millions of copies.
Its unfortunate that in the US, we have almost a lack of interest in racing series that really utilizes technology. Yes, I understand there is technology in NASCAR, and Indy Car and such but not nearly the amount that there is in Formula1. Formula1 has really spawned new technology that you see in some of the top sports cars in the world.
Anyways, head over to the interview.
[The future of F1 videogames - exclusive with Codemasters’ Rod Cousens - Formula1.com]
First off, if you follow F1, you know that Microsoft is already a party of it all. They are the sole manufacturer of the ECU (I believe software only) for ALL the F1 cars. So, Microsoft has a foot in the door.
Why do I think Microsoft should get this license? Because Formula 1 is HUGE in Europe and Asia. The majority of races for F1 are in Europe with more expansion into Asia as well as the Middle East. These are markets where Microsoft could use some help...well, in some cases a lot.
What is another reason? They can (essentially) strap an F1 game to the underpinnings of Forza 2. How many people agree that Forza was a pretty realistic game for the 360? Now give the team another year, graphics will improve as well as all the math behind the calculations.
Microsoft....get the license!
http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/37275/98/
This is something I am CONSTANTLY thinking about. Truly, what is holding record labels from putting content out for Rock Band. The way I look at it, it is almost free marketing! Seriously, all a company has to do is allow EA/MTV/Harmonix to create the content when given the music. It is something that boggles my mind everyday.
Now, I understand there are a couple of things holding back the content:
- EA may be throttling content so that every pack gets it own time to shine- Yea, this is fair but, I would love to see more content. Has Xbox Live noticed less downloads per game since going on a(n) (almost) weekly schedule of two new games? If not, there is no reason why EA should hold back.
- The Artists do not want their content on the game- This one would boggle my mind completely. Like above, it is free advertising/marketing. I will be the first to say that I have LEGALLY purchased music from the Zune Marketplace just because I liked playing the song on a game (in most cases it was Guitar Hero songs, but that is irregardless). What about a now defunct band? Outside of band fights, this is essentially getting money for a band without even having to do anything! Now...there are some bands that think quite highly of their music and don't license it often, see Led Zeppelin. But those bands, at least I consider are few and far in between.
- The Songs don't fit the game- The benefit to Rock Band having a guitar, a bass, a drum set and a mic is that there is a lot you can do with the game. For me, I am DEFINETLY looking to pick up the drums in the next couple of weeks. Side Note: My birthday is a week from Monday...so if any one wants to send me a working Xbox 360 drum set...use the contact button up top :). Anyone continuing on, the same benefit is also its song selection downfall. You have to have all four parts to be a song. There are great instrumental songs that I would love to have on Rock Band, but without vocals, you cant render that fourth person useless. This goes for all songs that have 3/4ths of the equation.
- The Music Industry is slow, archaic and doesn't see the benefit- Being a NIN, my thoughts on the music industry may be skewed. (Thanks for the NIN Content though!). But even with that said, the music industry is slow to the new technologies and it is showing. CD sales are constantly dropping and you are finally getting your things together for the digital age. Just get with the program. Like I said, this is almost FREE MARKETING. I have an idea for the record labels:
- New band is coming out or a new album by a Band- Build Rock Band into your marketing strategy. Give Harmonix $500k-1 mil, and sell the songs at $1 for a week or two. After that raise it after that. Or, you can forgo giving Harmonix money, and just give them the ability to use the song and they sell it for $1 (which, I presume is what they get per song when sold at $1.99) for a set amount of time. After X number of downloads, you or the artist them gets a portion of what is sold. Really, if this is done, you end up MAKING money on this marketing!
I am still loving Rock Band, and am looking forward to more content, especially NIN content. It just annoys me that they are kind of slow with rolling out more content. I should also note that this really sprouts from me wanting Audioslave. They are almost PERFECT for this game.
System link used to be THE thing when the original Xbox came out. You can have massive games with friends all while in the same house. Then came tunneling software like XBC and Gamespy, where you can play people across the world, especially in titles like Halo. But with the advent of Xbox Live, the way of system linking kinda went the way of VHS. Why would I need to drag my Xbox all the way to a friends house, when I can just link up on Xbox Live.
The benefits of Live are pretty big. I can be playing any Xbox Live game, and receive an invite to play another. If I am on Guitar Hero 3 and my friend wants to get some Valentine's Day playlists done on H3, then he can shoot me an invite, I accept it and all I have to do then is put in and launch Halo 3. Very simple, right? Exactly. There is also voice support, so we don't need to scream for everyone to join or setup, etc...
BUT! To my dismay last night, I found out that while Call of Duty 4 can do system link it is COMPLETELY useless. I can understand the 1 person limit in a Xbox Live match, but...for system link?!? It was a huge disappointment and makes me wonder why the heck a developer includes it for that. It is truly worthless at that point.
Well...we played Halo 3 instead.
Wow...it has been a WHILE since I have blogged. There are multiple reasons why:
- School just takes up time
- I don't want to blog unless I contribute at least an opinion, or if I give a heads up that not many will see. I am NOT here to post press releases. To me...that is pointless, I'll just head to the gamerscore blog for that.
- I kinda got tired of it. I was at the point where I felt the NEED to blog. It got to the point where I didn't want to. So I didn't.
- Swimming. I swim here at Syracuse. Coming back from practice all tired and such, and then having to do work was...too much.
Do I want to contribute more? Absolutely. Do I hope people at least kept me near the feed list? Yea, I hope they did. So here goes. This is something that has been on my mind since I read about it last week.
Rock Band and Nine Inch Nails: More Content to Come
Be Aware that the videos embedded below may contain profanity. I am 99% sure the profanity will not be in Rock Band.
First off I am a pretty big Nine Inch Nails fan. I own all (need to check that) 5 major releases from 1989's Pretty Hate Machine to 2007's Year Zero (with songs from Broken, The Downward Spiral (full), The Fragile (full), and With Teeth (full)). So to hear that February's OXM has news about a new Nine Inch Nails track pack I was extremely happy. That is probably going to be the first pack for Rock Band that I will purchase. But...I still have issue with the song choice. Note: It is guarenteed that I am buying these tracks the minute they release.
- March of the Pigs: There will need to be alot of vocal editing for this song. Will they utilize a radio-friendly version that may be in existance? I would hope because in the explicit album version there are many foul words. Also, there aren't always heavy instrumentals. Yea, near the end there is but...the song seems a little unbalanced.
- The Collector: This song will probably be good for the average person to like. It has more of a mainstream sound...but isn't that pre-fab Fallout Boy material. My issue is that it kinda lacks guitar. It has a nice base and drum track but the guitar seems stale. It may be different when playing but I feel there are better songs. More on that later. The video will showcase how the song is going to be played. You get a clear view of the drummer (Jerome Dillion) as well as Trent singing and playing guitar, with Aaron North also playing. Playing Bass is Jeordie White (aka Twiggy Ramirez with Marilyn Manson).
- Perfect Drug: This song, I feel, may be the hardest for people to get used to. It has a unique sound, which I like. The song is catchy, im just not sure how it is going to play. It will be a little weird. Take a look at the video to get an understanding.
What I think Should have been included:
- Getting Smaller (With Teeth, 2005) - It is a face paced song with a good balance of guitar, bass and drumming. A good amount of vocals as well. The unofficial video (Fight Club dubbed with "Getting Smaller") can give you an idea as to what the song sounds like).
- Last (Broken, 1992). Overall a good rock song. Again, a good balance of the 4 parts. Video again is unofficial with the song dubbed over. Quality of the video is...meh.
- Head Like a Hole (Pretty Hate Machine, 1989). The Live version would be even better, since the original has a bunch of synths but still a great rock song.
These are just a couple of ideas for me. Hopefully, ill be posting a bit more.
How do you entertain an entire family from grandparents in their 60's or 70s, parents in their 30s and 40s and kids in their teens and 20's, many of which are not the stereotypical "gamer". The answer is Scene it. With questions from movies starring Humphrey Bogart to movies starring Vince Vaughn in "Fred Clause" (Yes, the Fred Claus that came out in Oct/Nov 2007....AFTER the game came out), anyone has a chance to answer questions.
The questions do not just pull on just fact. Nor do they pull from what you see in a movie. You will get questions based on credits, where they provide the position title (ex. makeup artist, or Director) and the person's name. You will also get questions based on video clips, where you have to pay attention to not only what is said, but what happens inside the clip. Even make sure to how many lamps are in a room in certain clips. :)
Positives of the Game:
- Anyone can play it. It doesn't truly matter what your age is. Obviously, of course the game won't really be to fun for kids that are young (give or take younger than 12-14), as a good majority of movies that the game is currently based on are from around the time they are very young. Outside of that it can entertain almost anyone.
- It is very easy. Once you get the general concepts of the different types of games (being able to separate which ones to buzz in for, or how to get the clues for answers), it becomes very easy.
- It never truly gets boring. You rarely see questions repeated. You may see the same video clips, but not necessarily the same questions.
Cons:
- This is my opinion...but the game is really only fun when you are in a group. I haven't played it yet by myself, but it was just so much fun creating rivalries inside of groups that I can't imagine that it will be as fun. With that said, I still think it could be fun to play it in a single player setting. And by no means, is this a "true" negative.
- You will see questions repeated. While I have never seen a question repeated while I was playing and signed into my account, I have seen a question duplicated. Do I think I will see it, even if I sign into my profile every time and it keeps track of what questions I have seen? Yes, with contain that is restricted to what is on the disc, I do expect to see repeating questions.
Overall:
This game is great for family get together's. Since I will be traveling around the US during the New Years Eve time frame, my mother has asked me to leave Scene It at home when I return for Christmas. And that, frankly, speaks a lot. My mother is by far not a gamer, with the only games she truly plays are Tetris (I know, classic), and Snood. If you are looking for a GREAT game to play during Christmas time, I highly recommend picking up Scene It.
Edit: So, looks like fellow Xbox MVP Morgan has created a "My Zune Card" service.
You can get your own by taking "ZUNETAG" out of the URL and replacing it with your...zune tag.
http://card.mygamercard.net/apps/zune/ZUNETAG.png
I know, its been a little over a week since Guitar Hero 3 launched. Yes, it MAY be too early for content downloads, let alone premium. But, Guitar Hero 3 packs 70 songs on disc, with MANY being extremely good songs (and not covers for most of them mind you). Simply put...if you want the songs buy them.
Today, I decided to add another 500 MP points to my account to quickly download the Velvet Revolver song pack for Guitar Hero 3. It comes with their first hit, Slither, as well as their most recent hits "Messages" and "She Builds Quick Machines" from Libertad (new album recently released in 2007). Simply put these songs ROCK!
"She Builds Quick Machines" (music video) - The non-guitar solo parts have a good amount of notes in it at the medium level to keep it fun. Then...the solo part. Woo!
"Messages" (listen) is a nice slower paced song that on medium, I found fairly easy. I hit all the notes, but needless to say I am not a beginner at this (nor am I someone who rocks out at expert). It is a real nice song, definitely a change of pace.
"Slither" (music video) - Not as fast as SBQM, but definetly a very good song for Guitar Hero 3. I would put it in a mix between SBQM and Messages, favoring more towards SBQM.
I know...its been a while since some consistant posting. I hope to change that in about 2-3 weeks. I should have a review of "Scene it?" later this week, if not early next week. It will either be here, or there will be a link to my Xbox.com post.
Lets run through a quick list of what Forza Motorsport 2 needs to do, to get me back. Given, I love the game, but it is at a point where...it is kinda stale. Its almost the same thing over and over. Now, I LOVE knowing a tracking and trying to improve my lap times, but playing H3 online, or playing through my PGR4 career is a little bit more "fun" to me now. So on to the list:
- New Tracks - This is like a shooter adding a new map. It is something new that I want to conquer, set fast times and race fast. Maybe a track like Le Mans or Monza or Indianapolis (formula 1 configuration) would be some great editions. I do understand that each track may be hefty in terms of space taken up on the HDD, but...I think its worth it.
- New Cars - I know we have received new cars lately, but, while good it isn't the type of cars I want. I love consumer cars, but man, I want some more R class cars. I want fast cars. I want cars that challenge each other.
- New Challenges - Take those new cars and create new races for them. Pit the Audi's R10 against the Puegeot's 908 HDi. Put the new mustang against the concept Camaro.
- New Liveries - Get me some cool looking cars. The new badboyvette's C6.R that is racing at Laguna Seca this weekend. Yes, I know I can probably do it myself...but I lack those skills in Forza.
That is just a quick (and relatively) obvious ways for Forza to get me back. But they are essential. It would be really great to see some of these happens, so I have hope that the Turn 10 team will do so.
Looks like its been a REAL long time (about a month) since I last posted here to my blog. I needed a break from a bunch of things, with swimming/training hitting the harder parts as well as tests in classes and projects being due.
My blog is here for me to write about great things for the community (not to really comment on rumors/speculation, that much). The blog isn't here for me to establish a community. Please do not get me wrong, I would love (and hope I do have some) community that reads my blog maybe once a day. But, it is just for me to get my ideas as well as other community happenings out for more people to see.
Ill probably be posting a little bit more (as we move further and further from the news juggernaut that is Halo 3).
Now, for the most AMAZING C6.R Corvette I have ever seen (hope this paint job stays):
[via autoblog.com]
The Numbers
· “Halo®” and “Halo 2” have sold more than 14.8 million copies worldwide (Xbox® and PC versions). It’s expected that by the end of the year fans will have spent more than $1 billion on the “Halo” franchise.
· The “Halo 2” release on Nov. 9, 2004, set entertainment history by generating $125 million in U.S. sales in its first 24 hours. The launch of “Halo 3” on Sept. 25, 2007, is expected to once again set entertainment sales records by selling more in the U.S. on day one than any movie in history (the current record is held by “Spider-Man 3” at $151 million) and selling more in its first week than any album.
· “Halo 3” is the most anticipated game in video game history, and pre-sell numbers showcase the excitement, reaching 1 million in the United States alone in late July, two months before the launch.
· More than 10,000 retail stores across the United States will be open at midnight on Sept. 25 to ensure that fans receive “Halo 3” hot off the shelves. Managers at workplaces worldwide expect a higher than usual number of absentees in the days following the launch.
The Xbox LIVE Numbers
· The “Halo 3” multiplayer beta, which ran for three weeks in May 2007, attracted more than 820,000 unique participants from 25 countries around the world and became the biggest console beta of all time.
· Participants in the multiplayer beta logged more than 12 million hours of online gameplay. That’s the equivalent of 1,400 years of continuous play by a single person. They downloaded more than 350 terabytes of data, equivalent to more than 82 million digital song downloads with an average size of 4 MB.
· Of the 7 million members on Xbox LIVE®, the largest social network on TV, more than 5.5 million have played “Halo 2.”
· Nearly three years after the release of “Halo 2,” more than 300,000 unique gamers continue to log on to Xbox LIVE every day to play it.
The Facts
· Master Chief, the hero character of the “Halo” franchise, is one of the most recognizable characters in video games. He recently joined heroes of television and film as the first videogame character to be immortalized in Madame Tussauds’ 250-year history.
· “Halo 3” will be released around the globe as follows:
- Sept. 25: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Hong Kong, India, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan and the United States
- Sept. 26: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom
- Sept. 27: Japan
· Owing to its worldwide popularity, “Halo 3” will be available in 17 languages: English, Brazilian Portuguese, Czech, Danish, Finnish, French, Italian, German, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Slovak, Spanish (Iberian and Latin American), Swedish and Traditional Chinese.
· “Halo 3” has more audio than 20 feature films combined, including the following:
- 39,000 lines of dialogue
- 13,000 sound effects
- Music totaling six hours of continuous play
· The music of the “Halo” series has garnered numerous audio awards around the world, including the 2004 Console Game of the Year from the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Game Developers Choice Awards and Rolling Stone magazine’s award for best game soundtrack.
· Inspiration for the environments in “Halo 3”came from a variety of sources, such as French cathedrals Chartres, Metz and Reims; a Wallace Stevens poem titled “The Snow Man”; and the sketches and watercolors of artist David Roberts.
· “Halo 3” development began in 2004, and the title took 120 full-time employees (double the number that developed “Halo 2”) and an army of contractors over 1 million person-hours to create. The Bungie Studios team spans a broad range of talent, including architects, engineers, journalists, artists and videographers.
· The Bungie Studios team consumed more than 20,000 pounds of pizza, 24,000 gallons of soda and more than a half ton of bananas during the three years it took to develop “Halo 3.”
The Partners
· The “Halo” franchise has spawned numerous licensed products such as action figures, soundtracks, graphic novels, collectible figurines, apparel, costumes and a comic book series. The licensed merchandise for “Halo” has brought in three times more revenue than all merchandise sold to date for the Harry Potter franchise.
· “The Official Halo 2 Guide: Strategy Evolved” had day-one sell-through of 270,000 copies, the second-best launch day for Random House Inc. next to Bill Clinton’s “My Life.”
· Bungie’s “Halo Graphic Novel” was one of Marvel Comic’s top-selling graphic novels in 2006 — amongst a field of “Amazing Spider-Man,” “X-Men” and a number of other Marvel properties.
· Two of the four “Halo” novels made the New York Times’ best-seller list, and are the top-selling video game novels of all time.
· Academy Award-winning director, screenwriter and producer Peter Jackson has partnered with Bungie Studios to extend the “Halo” franchise by co-writing, co-designing and co-producing an interactive entertainment experience exclusively for Xbox 360.
The Awards
The “Halo” franchise has received critical acclaim worldwide. “Halo,” “Halo 2” and “Halo 3” have received more than 235 awards from media and industry organizations in the United States alone.
Ok, so it was more than a couple. :P
More Posts
Next page »