Gaming Links
Kotaku has a link to an excerpted episode of G4's Attack of the Show that clearly demonstrates how Rock Band is universal goodness.Kevin Periera, who can apparently play the drums on Coheed and Cambrias's Welcome Home with 89% accuracy on Expert, first interviewed the band, then got to play the song with them. On a real kit. And he sounded freaking great. Take a look here.
N'Gai Croal has post today concerning the potential EA acquisition of Take-Two with comments from Justin Blankenship, who worked at the Federal Trade Commission as a lawyer from 2001 to 2004. His comments are provocative, and here's an excerpt:
Although EA/Take-Two wouldn't have a clean monopoly in a broader market of sports videogames, the merged entity seems to be reaching critical mass. In addition to the new exclusives in NHL games and NCAA basketball games, and the third-party exclusive for NBA games, EA/Take-Two would also acquire 2K's third-party exclusive license for MLB games. Add that to a portfolio that already includes exclusive licenses for NCAA football, the PGA, NASCAR, FIFA, and the NFL, and you've got a juggernaut in the sports videogame market and a wall of exclusive licenses preventing any other developer from competing on equal footing.
Even without a total monopoly, one could expect that a publisher with that many sports titles under its belt could potentially abuse that market power to the detriment of its few smaller competitors. The concentration levels in a sports videogame market would be well over the thresholds of concern defined in the DOJ/FTC
...Do I think this is a deal that the government would sue to block? Not really. But I wouldn't be at all surprised if they required EA to divest its license agreements with certain sports leagues, and maybe spin off some of the talent behind those games to a competitor. And if that happens, does this deal still have the appeal to EA?
I'm not sure what EA wouldn't have a monopoly on after the deal--curling, maybe. Justin's full comments are well worth reading.
I've mentioned Gametab in the past as being indispensable for keeping up with gaming news. What I didn't know is that Reed (sorry, don't know his last name), Gametab's founder, has a new site called Evo Tab, and it's totally slick. Right now, only gaming feeds are available, but the layout is incredibly clean, and he mentions on the site that news feeds will be added later. In addition, you can even add additional gaming feeds easily. All in all, it looks like an excellent way to keep track of loads of content.
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