Augmented Reality
September 20th, 2009
Courtesy of The Economist, an interesting article on augmented reality. As the report notes: VIRTUAL reality never quite lived up to the hype. In the 1990s films such as “Lawnmower Man†and “The Matrix†depicted computer-generated worlds in which people could completely immerse themselves. In some respects this technology has become widespread: think of all […]
Read more »Playing Chicken: Farmville, Zynga, and the Rise of Social Games
September 7th, 2009
Via Hemispheres Magazine, an interesting look at the rise of online game company Zynga which has based its 
business on social networking and 
microntransactions. As the article notes: “…Your new neighbor “Steph†just sent you some cherries and avocados, which will fit nicely in a tidy little plot next to your eggplants. You’ve still got […]
Read more »Advatars And The ‘Attraction Economy’
September 5th, 2009
Via The Guardian, an interesting commentary on The Attraction Economy and in-game advertising. As the article notes: “…Whether you like the idea or not, in-game advertising is big business and it’s only going to get bigger. Earlier this year, Screen Digest predicted that the sector would be worth over £1bn by 2014 – commercial messages […]
Read more »Avatarnomics: Games As An Economics Simulator
August 20th, 2009
Courtesy of The Atlantic, a short article on the economics of video games. As the article notes: “… I’ve spent more time playing Fable II than I’d really like to admit. Like recent entries in the Grand Theft Auto series, it’s an open-world game that allows the player to travel to any location at any […]
Read more »Avatarnomics: Virtual Economy As Real As The Real Economy
August 17th, 2009
Via Terranova, interesting research on the economics of EQII. As the article notes: “…We think the paper is notable because it is the first instance (as far as we know) of published, peer-reviewed, basic economic tests using actual large-scale data from a virtual world. No estimates, no samples, no bootstrapping–just all of the data, period. […]
Read more »Augmented Reality Game Plus Facebook Equals Gaming For The Future?
August 13th, 2009
Via Fast Company, an interesting report on a new game that may provide a glimpse into gaming of the future. As the article notes: “…Social networking and augmented reality are the tech buzzwords du jour–but what happens when you mix the two up? You get the casual game Cannonballz from Zugara. And it’s a little […]
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