Saturday, August 18, 2012

Learning About Video Game Company Logos

A logo is a graphic representation that visually creates a brand identity and reflects the credibility of a company. It is oftentimes considered as a significant marketing tool through which consumers are able to make an impression of the business. In the realm of video gaming, numerous companies have definitely put their marks on the minds of the people over the years through the help of their respective logos - each of which is distinctive from the other.

Let us name some of these video game company logos that have notably been catching the attention of consumers:

Atari

Originally designed by George Opperman, the Atari symbol appears elegant with the use of a stylized letter 'A' that was later labeled as the Atari 'Fuji,' resembling the shape of the Japanese mountain. It has been the accepted and used symbol of the corporation founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell. It was representing one of the first arcade games to be launched ever, Pong, signifying two opposing players battling across the Pong court in the middle. It has become an iconic symbol and a ceaseless signification of Atari's mode of gaming. Also, the stylized 'A' is connoted by few as a race track. There are some who considered it as a picture of a rocket taking off or even believed as three converging roads. Some of the notable games that Atari has famously made include Pac-Man, Hangman, Backgammon, and others.

Capcom

Another prominent Japanese video game developer and publisher is Capcom Co., Ltd. Founded on June 11, 1983, it created multi-million-selling series such as Street Fighter, Mega Man, Monster Hunter, and the popular Resident Evil. Its name was actually derived from the term "Capsule Computer," bounded by two concepts: "a container packed to the brim with fun" and "a desire to create securely packaged entertainment to decrease the rapid expansion of pirated materials." The bearing logo uses the Art Noveau style-inspired font Korinna Extra Bold, highlighted with the vibrant blue and yellow colors, and has been one of the most iconic logotypes in gaming.

Konami

Started as a jukebox rental and repair business, Konami Corporation was established in 1969, with its label combined using the names of the business leaders and founders. Konami, meaning 'small waves,' was the Japanese developer behind the popular series such as Yu-Gi-Oh!, Silent Hill, Contra, Metal Gear, Super Cobra, and Castlevania. The famous symbol highlights two swooshing lines that are strongly depict progressive motion, strengthened by the fierce red schematic colors. It has gone through changes also from its old typography to its newest design introduced last 2003. The latest corporate brand expresses the company's legacy on creativity and innovation throughout its existence. It was emphasized even more by the cardinal red color signifying its corporate attitude.

Nintendo

This is very familiar with almost everybody. Who will not remember one of the most renowned video games 'Super Mario'? It is one of the highly popular games developed and published by Nintendo, a Japan-based multinational company founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamuschi. The initial video game company logo of Nintendo was in red color, which is still used by some franchisers. The gray version was adopted in 2006. It contains primarily of the more recognizable and bold typeface name of the company, enclosed by a capsule-like outline that made it very easy to remember. Though artless, Nintendo's emblem basically signifies power, longevity, and prominence in the gaming industry. Sublogos are also introduced, including Nintendo 64, which seem to be more colorful and intended for the young ones. Despite the emergence of these renewed graphic mark versions, the original design was still used widely for the fact that it solely symbolizes the real stance of the business.

Sega

Established in 1940, Sega Corporation has also been one of the highly acclaimed developer and manufacturer of video and arcade games. Since 1991, Sonic the Hedgehog has been the flagship mascot, competing with Mario, Nintendo's mascot. The emblem stands to be simple yet artistic in its unique way as it is characterized by curvy and futuristic letters in blue color, drawn and outlined with white lines. Some of the series introduced by Sega were Street of Rage, Sonic the Hedgehog, Dragon Force, and Jurassic Park.

Ubisoft

Video and computer gaming in Europe has literally been enhanced through the emergence of a French game publisher and developer Ubisoft Entertainment. Founded in 1986 by the Guillemot brothers, it is now considered as one of the largest interactive entertainment publishers all throughout the globe. The first symbol adopted by the firm was inspired by a rainbow figure. Though effective, it was replaced with a more dynamic visual identity recently. It features a series of coiling loops that creates a creative aura and a sense of belongingness. Its blue color schemes produce a cool and tranquil environment for gamers. Generally, the new insignia intends to develop its consumer-focused business approach and is believed to be a mere representation of the company's utmost beliefs.

The above companies are only few of the many that have already established an undisputable and recognizable identity in the world of arcade and gaming. Basically, there are factors that bind these video game company logos. It is the fact that all of them are all simple yet identifiable - two things that you must consider in creating an emblem for your own firm. Though simple, symbols must still be creative in such a way that it can grab the consumers' attention in a snap. Most importantly, the design must at all times represent you and the values of your business.

Darwin Palmer believes that a creative mind can make something out of nothing. He has over 20 years of professional experience in the logo and web design industry.


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Friday, August 17, 2012

Mahjong: Then and Now

What is Mahjong? Well, many must be familiar with this term. Every game-loving person would certainly know what exactly it is. It is nothing, but a game that originated in China. Sometimes, it also gets classified in the domino games' category. If you are four in number, and getting bored, you can surely play this game at any of the online gaming sites.The table game should bear no resemblance with the newly invented solitaire type, which is a tile matching single player game played in PC. This Chinese game is similar to rummy, a card game; it requires extreme skill, calculation and strategy. In Asia, this game is given the name "gambling game."

Mahjong tile game consists of 136 tiles having Chinese symbols and characters. However, the number of tiles may vary according to regions. In general, the game starts by giving every player 13 tiles. In return, the players draw as well as discard tiles, unless a legal hand is completed. Are you wondering what a legal hand is? A legal hand is nothing, but a winning hand comprising of 14 tiles; this can be achieved either by picking it from the wall (win from the wall), or by stealing it while a player has discarded a tile that was needed for completing a legal hand (win by a discard). It is with the 14th won tile with which the player forms melds (4 groups) and head (a pair).

Today, Mahjong's characteristics of players and popularity differ globally; it is more popular in the Asian countries compared to western countries. The popularity of Mahjong is evident from the proven fact in 2010, that it is the most populous table game played in Japan. Many devotees of this tile game feel that its popularity is decreasing day by day, and efforts are being taken for reviving it. The fact that this game's culture has its root in China can never be forgotten. Even today, many Hong Kong movies portray this game in certain scenes.

We should never ignore the research, which states that Mahjong causes epileptic seizures if played for a prolonged period of time, similar to various other games, including, chess, card games, checkers and Mastermind. However, there are just 23 cases reported in the medical literature, which were caused by playing this game. This is not an exclusion criterion for playing this wonderful game. People prefer this game, whether it was in the past or present. It was popular both then, and now.

We provide the best info about Mahjong. For further details please visit the provided links.


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Thursday, August 16, 2012

Tower Defense Games Require Strategic Thinking

Tower defense games are an exciting sub-category of the games involving strategy.

The aim of the player is to protect himself from enemies and prevent them from reaching him/her by building towers. These towers may be used as barricades and some of them may even shoot at the enemies trying to cross them.

Each game becomes more exciting as a player advances because the enemies get fiercer. The player is endowed additional powers each time he crosses a level. The player can collect points and buy more complex tools to help build sturdier towers.

These games can easily be learnt and it involves the simple strategy-positioning of towers in important locations that will stop the enemies and not let them reach you.

In each round the player can withstand a number of blows from the enemies before he/she finally succumbs and loses a 'life'. If the player can keep the enemies away for the required amount of time and not suffer too many blows, he crosses the level successfully. However, if the number of blows that the player takes crosses a certain limit, then the game is lost.

One of the best techniques of playing tower defense games and winning each time is to create a maze like path that the enemies must cross in order to reach your base. Another helpful trick is to bar an exit on one side, and when the enemies take turn the opposite side, bar that side too. This causes the enemies to keep moving back and forth in search of a break in the path.

Playing these games does not require experience, and all you need to do is device a strategy to block your enemies long enough for you to win your game. Enemies who bypass the barricades can be killed before they reach your 'base'. An amateur player must familiarize himself with the terrain in which he will have to place the towers. Some games have a fixed map, whereas other games allow users to create their own custom maps, and this makes the game all the more exciting.

In order to play this game, you don't need to download any content from the internet. A flash player is all that is required and the game loads in a few seconds. Get it loaded and, you can start playing and have unlimited fun killing your enemies and blocking them from reaching your base!

We provide the best info about Tower Defense Games. For further details please visit the provided link.


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Tuesday, August 14, 2012

An Accessible Virtual World for the Totally Blind? Could It Really Happen?

Virtual worlds have been around for many years and have become a staple in the gaming community. Some of the more popular titles of virtual worlds include Second life, World of Warcraft and Planet Calypso just to name a few. These virtual environments, however are not accessible for the blind at all because they lack the proper kinds of extra audio information needed for someone to navigate the world and interact with it.

For example, in Second life, if a resident wants to build themselves a virtual home on a piece of land and they cannot see the screen, the implementers could include audio voice prompts that would allow the resident to choose the kinds of flooring to go in their home for example, or whether they wished to include a porch or a deck on their home to entertain guests. If they wanted to purchase some items to go into their new home, this same voice prompt could give them a browsable list of items that the shop has for sale, and then the person could press enter on their chosen item and thereby make the purchase, placing the item in their inventory.

Looking at Planet Calypso as another example, if the player wished to make their way to the door of a building, or a door within a building, the builders of the game could create tones or other types of sounds to indicate dors nearby along with a voice prompt saying "door," whenever a key was pressed on the user's keyboard. Another example for Planet Calypso could be a feature where the player could board a space ship, ad once an empty seat has been located by using voice prompts on either side of the player's speakers informing them of seats on their left or right-hand-side, the person could then step to that seat and choose to sit down from within a list of options and then buckle his or her safety belt by pressing the operate button on the seat which could automatically be done after the person has seated themselves properly.

We as blind people cannot only play video and computer games, but we can also play virtual worlds if given the right kind of technology and equipment in the virtual world, and yes, contrary to some people's popular belief, blind have just as much capacity to learn to play video and computer games as the sighted community does, we are not stupid nor do we need to be put in special education classes. I sincerely hope that this article has served to open your mind as to what these virtual worlds could be like for the blind, and I hope you realize that we can play them right along with you if we are given the right chance and opportunity. There do not have to be any barriers as far as the sighted and blind communities are concerned, we can all play and interact together on the same level as the rest of you.

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Monday, August 13, 2012

Classic Kids Games - Some Of The Best Classic Games Ever

Today, video and computer games are big business. Billions of dollars are made by video game companies each year, and more kids than ever are playing them. Board games are also still highly popular, but either of these options can be surprisingly expensive - a good board game can cost up to forty dollars or more. For many people, getting back to basics can bring a family together, teach your kids skills and lessons, and cost very little. Numerous classic games based on pencils and paper are available, and these retro games can be surprisingly fun for anyone who wants to play them.

For the most retro of all retro games, you'll need to dig way back into your own childhood and maybe even beyond. Classic games like tic tac toe or hangman are very easy to setup, fast to play, and don't really cost a dime. Hangman can actually teach your kids vocabulary and spelling skills, and while they don't have the pizzazz of most modern board games they're still fun for a couple of hours, especially with younger kids. Other classic games like Salvo or Word Squares are easy to understand and to play as well, and can be a lot of fun for very little money.

But when you put the words 'classic games' together with 'pencil and paper', most people will think of pencil and paper RPGs like the legendary Dungeons and Dragons series. There are a huge number of retro games based on this model, ranging from superhero modules to futuristic ones. Finding a good RPG is an excellent way to boost creativity, teamwork, imagination, and even math skills. Whether you start with the basic D&D set or look for something else, these are good options for older kids who get bored with Hangman. A couple of books, paper, pencils, and the special dice are all you'll need to get started.

There are also some retro games that you can play with pencil and paper that involve printing out a board on your computer. Games like Ghoulash involve a printed board but little else and can be an interesting kind of 'homemade board game' well worth considering. In short, you don't have to spend hundreds of dollars on video games or board games to have fun with your family. A bit of creativity and a back-to-basics approach with some classic games are really all that you need to have great family fun.

Free educational gaming resources can be found on my website

Educational Games Guide


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