2007: The Video Game

It's been a full year for everyone involved with video games, from developers to publishers, to peripheral manufacturers and, ultimately, to gamers. Now we can finally look back and remember the many events that have further shaped a continuously expanding industry, which touches entire generations using a concept that allows you to become a hero every time you pop in a disc and grab a controller.


Next-Gen

No doubt about it, one of the year's most memorable moments is the launch of the PlayStation 3 console throughout PAL territories. It is the third home entertainment system produced by Sony Computer Entertainment, successor to the PlayStation 2 and part of the PlayStation series. Powered by the Cell Broadband Engine (developed by Sony Computer Entertainment, Toshiba, and IBM), the PlayStation 3 plunged into a market that was already witnessing a gruesome fight between two powerful competitors, Microsoft and Nintendo, with their respective home entertainment systems, the Xbox 360 and Wii.

As part of the seventh generation of video game consoles, the PS3 benefits from next-gen primary storage media, being capable of playing back content from Blu-ray Discs (BD) at a bit rate of multiplex 48Mbps (it also supports DVD, CD and SACD playback). In case anyone asks, tell them that's the maximum bit rate defined in BD standards, if you own a PS3 and want to show off.

The console has had a sluggish start, sporting very few titles that made good use of its capabilities, but thanks to a price cut and the recent batch of games, it's doing a bit better. Currently Sony is still working on some aspects, one of which is PlayStation Home, hoping to make the PlayStation 3 an entertainment-center-worthy asset. With the latest PS3 firmware update, owners of Sony's console can even watch DivX/XviD movies, or whatever they desire at a 1920x1080 resolution, (2,073,600 pixels in total) – 1080p, aka Full HD.






Nintendo's Wii and DS, the Consoles that Bonded Generations Together

Although the two systems were launched in 2004 and 2006 respectively, it was 2007 that saw Nintendo's consoles become so popular that they actually started bonding generations together. Grandpas, superstars and millions of ordinary people of all ages and genders started picking up on the most fun-to-use handheld that offered an intuitive yet complex control system.

The DS/NDS was released in 2004 in Canada, U.S., and Japan. The console features a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP, with two LCD screens inside - one of which is a touchscreen. It also features a built-in microphone and it supports wireless IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi) standards, allowing players to interact with each other within short range.

And if the DS started it all, the Wii was sure to continue bonding people all around the world offering an even more interesting control system, making Nintendo's home entertainment system the perfect tool to keep a party going on for hours. The most distinguishing feature of the console is of course its wireless controller, the Wii Remote, which can be used as a pointing device and can detect acceleration in three dimensions.

The machine became popular mostly thanks to the Wii Sports game disc. The five games included on the disc (Wii Tennis, Wii Baseball, Wii Golf, Wii Boxing and Wii Bowling) became so popular that they even infected an antivirus-making company!






Hold Yor Wee For A Wii

Of course some mishaps were bound to occur given the huge popularity of the Wii. People wanted it so bad that they were willing to risk their own health to grab it for their kids. It is the case of Jenifer Strange who, entering KDND's "Hold Your Wee for a Wii" contest, died from water intoxication.






Manhunt 2

2007 was surely not Rockstar's best year. Controversy has struck again! We can say the same about the British Board of Film Classification, which also had to suffer from the release of Rockstar's and Take-Two's violent title. The board did all in its power to prevent the game's release in Europe and the UK, banning it not once, but twice, on the count of lacking context for the gruesome killing occurring within the game. In case you were wondering why, HERE's a sample.

2007 sure saw a lot of controversy with the release of other titles too, such as Mass Effect, and the lesbian sex scene it features, or better yet... implies. Nevertheless, it's still Manhunt 2 that always had the spotlight, since every time the BBFC said NO, someone came along and said "why don't you reconsider that decision?" (not an actual statement). Adding Hot Coffee 2, again put on Manhunt 2's tap, it is safe to say that Rockstar's horror action title really got the industry thinking this time around: is it, or is it not the time to stop and reconsider what is right and what is wrong to flood the market with? But given the amount of cash that flows in thanks to ever darker titles, it is practically impossible to stop the release of a game like Manhunt 2 worldwide.

In fact, the fight between Rockstar and the BBFC goes on to this moment. While gamers from The States are stabbing and shooting people on screen with no good reason as we speak, Europe's gamers still have a lot of waiting to do before they get to become virtual serial killers. Some hope they will give Rockstar's game a go, others certainly don't. Who will win? 2008 will provide a better answer.





Jade Raymond

What's the gaming market today without some female presence? In a world where man leads and woman leads man, Jade Raymond popped in at just the right time and, whatever the reason, she sure helped sell some copies of Assassin's Creed. Some may go as far as to say that Ubisoft has exploited the young producer, something that we can't confirm, nor deny, but one thing is certain: she's a babe and no one minds her presence at gaming events, interviews and so on. In fact, we may see a flood of girl gamers in the nearby future, with more and more women picking up on games and speaking their mind nowadays.






StarCraft II Confirmed

As every year goes, all consoles are blessed with at least two or three great exclusives, but the PC always gets la crème de la crème. Although StarCraft II has only been confirmed this year, it surely marks a memorable moment for the industry. RTS gamers worldwide have been anxiously waiting for the day StarCraft II would be announced and 2007 saw that happening. Blizzard is still enjoying a great dose of popularity thanks to World of Warcraft but they felt pleasing fans even more was in order.

As such, the Olympic Gymnastics Arena, Korea, Seoul, saw thousands of attendees watching one of the most touching video game presentations ever, that included a StarCraft II debut trailer (cinematic) and a gameplay demonstration straight from the hands of the development team. So if 2007 was great just getting a glimpse at the new RTS game from Blizzard, wait till the company makes a more detailed unveiling in 2008. I have a feeling we'll have even more to be thankful for about this time next year.






Duke Nukem Forever

Aaaa DNF! What's 3D Realms taking so long? It's been more than ten years and the developers still haven't been able to produce the game... not even a decent trailer. Wait a minute, we've just been informed that they have. Yes indeed Duke fans, 2007 marks the year that 3D Realms have finally managed to pull their act together and provide fans with real proof that Duke Nukem Forrever is finally shaping up into the long awaited sequel to one of the most popular FPSs ever developed. DNF is real and for the first time in more than a decade, fans have something solid to chew on. Hey... it's all I could come up with ok? Don't quote me or anything like that. Let's just keep these last words I wrote to ourselves, shall we?






Jeff Gerstmann's Sudden Departure from Gamespot

As the fight for popularity amongst companies involved with games is becoming more fierce with every passing year, conflicts of interest emerged again. The firing of Jeff Gerstmann, executive editor of Cnet-owned website Gamespot (one of the most renowned video game publications), revealed even further that the gaming industry is starting to become a tough place to be. One negative Kane & Lynch: Dead Men review was all it took to get Gerstmann fired. Strike one. YOU'RE OUT! Sure enough, everyone's denying that's the case, but all signs indicate that Gerstmann's departure was not due to "natural causes."


Credits: penny-arcade.com




The Halo 3 Phenomenon

But let's not get all sad and stuff now that 2007 is approaching its end. Why don't we try picturing 2008 with a Halo 4 being released... or at least confirmed? You'd like that, wouldn't you Xbox 360 owners?

Halo 3 is without a doubt the biggest thing this year, as far as owners of Microsoft's home entertainment system are concerned. 2.7 million gamers worldwide (more than a third of Xbox LIVE's userbase - 7 million subscribers) have logged on with Halo 3 in mind within the first week from the game's release. Cumulating the amount of hours Halo 3 players worldwide have kicked each other's asses online within the first week, that makes some 4500 years of Halo 3 continuous gameplay.






Looking forward to an even more exciting and fun-filled 2008

There's so much more to say yet so little words to describe the best moments of 2007 as far as the video games world goes but, as a hardcore gamer, I'm sure that everything mentioned above is familiar to you. This is just a mere reminder of what 2007 stands for and why everyone should look forward to an even more exciting 2008, because if there's anything that doesn't regress with the passing of each year, it's the gaming industry.

Check out the related links below for more 2007 hot gaming stuff.

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