NINTENDO'S MARIO LENDS HIS VOICE TO HELP HOLIDAY SHOPPERS

Nov. 24, 2008 - If you want people to know what gifts you want for the holidays, you need to speak up. And who better to help you speak up about your love for Nintendo DS™ games than iconic Nintendo video game character Mario™ himself?

Starting today, people can visit http://mariowishlist.varitalk.com and check off the Nintendo DS items they hope to receive for the holidays. After users provide some other fun information, your friend, relative or special someone will receive a voice mail or e-mail with a personalized message from Mario about what Nintendo DS gifts you hope to receive.

To provide even more shopping support, Nintendo's holiday Web site is there to help both gift-givers and gift-getters streamline their shopping lists, by offering information about Nintendo DS systems and games. To check it out, go to http://giftcenter.nintendo.com. If you're the one doing the shopping, you can browse through the holiday Web site based on the type of gifts enjoyed by the person you're shopping for, such as the Mario fan, the music groupie or the puzzle fanatic.

But let's say you're the one doing the receiving. The holiday Web site will help you build a wish list and send it as a hint to your loved ones in an e-card with special holiday designs. This feature will be available through the end of December.

For more information about Nintendo, please visit www.Nintendo.com.

Whilst everyone is going nuts over today’s release of Halo 3, how about we reign in the “most successful video game ever” hyperbole and take a walk down sales-figure lane to recall the 25 best-selling video games of all time. And before you predict H:3’s eventual place on a revised version of this list, take note of where Halo 2 already falls in sales history.

Video Gaming is a multi-billion dollar industry where over two (2) billion video game titles have been sold. Below, we examine the top twenty five best selling video games of all time including a title that sold over 20 million copies. Some of these games will surprise you. (The sales of games listed below represent independent sales of packaged games, for example packaged with Nintendo Super Mario Bros. sold 40 million copies. This list includes international sales.)

1. Pokémon Red, Blue and Green (Gameboy) - 20.08 Million Copies Sold
2. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 18 Million Copies Sold
3. The Sims (PC) - 16 Million Copies Sold
4. Nintendogs (Nintendo DS) - 14.75 Million Copies Sold
5. Pokémon Gold and Silver (Gameboy) - 14.1 Million Copies Sold
6. Super Mario Land (Gameboy) - 14 Million Copies Sold
7-tie. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (Playstation 2) - 13 Million Copies Sold
7-tie. Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire (Game Boy Advance) - 13 Million Copies Sold
7-tie. The Sims2 (PC) - 13 Million Copies Sold
10. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Playstation 2) - 12 Million Copies Sold
11-tie. Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 11 Million Copies Sold
11-tie. Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (Playstation 2) - 11 Million Copies Sold
11-tie. Grand Theft Auto III (Playstation 2) - 11 Million Copies Sold
14. Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen (Game Boy Advance) - 10.66 Million Copies Sold
15. New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo DS) - 10.52 Million Copies Sold
16. Gran Turismo (Playstation 1) - 10.5 Million Copies Sold
17. Pokémon Diamond and Pearl (Nintendo DS) - 10 Million Copies Sold
18. Super Mario Bros. 2 (Nintendo) - 10 Million Copies Sold
19. Final Fantasy VII (Playstation 1) - 9.8 Million Copies Sold
20. StarCraft (PC) - 9.5 Million Copies Sold
21. World of Warcraft (PC) - 9 Million Copies Sold
22. Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day! (Nintendo DS) - 8.61 Million Copies Sold
23. Gran Turismo 2 (Playstation 1) - 8.5 Million Copies Sold
24. Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) - 8.47 Million Copies Sold
25-tie. Halo 2 (XBox) - 8 Million Copies Sold
25-tie. Donkey Kong Country (Super Nintendo) - 8 Million Copies Sold
25-tie. Super Mario Kart (Super Nintendo) - 8 Million Copies Sold
25-tie. GoldenEye 007 (Nintendo 64) - 8 Million Copies Sold
25-tie. Pokémon Yellow (Game Boy) - 8 Million Copies Sold

Just like PG-13 movies inherently make more money than R-rated movies–because they are accessible to a much wider audience–games that appeal to a wide age range always outsell even the most successful mature titles. Thus, until Master Chief starts tangling with Pikachu, Halo 3 will carry much more marketing heft than it does sales clout.

List via Forever Geek.

"Gears of War," "Okami" and "Wii Sports" Lead the Recipients of The 7th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards

Indie Internet Phenomenon "Line Rider" Takes Home Award for Innovation..

SAN FRANCISCO — March 7, 2007 — Epic Games and Microsoft Game Studios’ Xbox 360 shooter Gears of War was the recipient of three honors including Best Game at the 7th annual Game Developers Choice Awards. The blockbuster hit game also received the awards for Technology and Visual Arts. Following close behind with two awards each were Clover Studios and Capcom Entertainment’s Okami and Nintendo’s Wii Sports. The ceremony, produced and hosted by the Game Developers Conference (GDC) and presented by the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), is the only peer-based, open nomination awards program in the industry where honors are bestowed to developers by developers. Recipients were announced tonight at the 2007 Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco.

“A Game Developers Choice Award is like no other award presented in our industry, as it is the only prize that gives the community the chance to appreciate and honor individual developers,” said Jamil Moledina, Executive Director of the Game Developers Conference. “By celebrating our visionaries by name, we give the audience and the public at large a chance to give credit where credit is due.”

Nominations were free of charge and open to all IGDA members, ensuring that the nominees reflect the international development community's opinions. The IGDA membership voted on the finalists.

The recipients for the 7th annual Game Developers Choice Awards are:

Best Game

Gears of War (Epic Games / Microsoft Game Studios)
- Cliff Bleszinski, Michael Capps, Rod Fergusson

Audio

Guitar Hero II (Harmonix Music Systems / RedOctane)
- Jeff Allen, Eric Brosius, Izzy Maxwell

Character Design

Ōkami (Clover Studio / Capcom Entertainment)
- Mari Shimazaki, Sawaki Takeyasu, Kenichirou Yoshimura

Game Design

Wii Sports (Nintendo)
- Keizo Ohta, Takayuki Shimamura, Yoshiaki Yamashita

Technology

Gears of War (Epic Games / Microsoft Game Studios)
- Michael Capps, Ray Davis, Tim Sweeney, Daniel Vogel

Visual Arts

Gears of War (Epic Games / Microsoft Game Studios)
- Jerry O'Flaherty, Chris Perna

Writing

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo EAD / Nintendo)
- Kyogoku Aya, Nate Bihldorff, Mitsuhiro Takano

New Studio

Iron Lore Entertainment (Titan Quest)
- Paul Chieffo, Jeff Goodsill, Brian Sullivan

Innovation

Line Rider
- Boštjan Cadež

Ōkami (Clover Studio / Capcom Entertainment)
- Atsushi Inaba, Hideki Kamiya

Wii Sports (Nintendo)
- Keizo Ohta, Takayuki Shimamura, Yoshiaki Yamashita

Recipients for the evening's special awards were:

Lifetime Achievement
Shigeru Miyamoto

First Penguin
Alexey Pajitnov

Maverick
Greg Costikyan

Community Contribution
George “The Fat Man” Sanger

"Once again, the Game Developers Choice Awards have shown that gaming greatness can be found within every type of game—from the most hardcore of experiences, to those that have brought all new audiences into our industry’s fan base," said Jason Della Rocca, Executive Director, IGDA. “Each year, I am humbled by what our members can do with this great art form.”

For more information about the awards and all the recipients, please visit: http://www.gamechoiceawards.com/