Posts Tagged ‘Gaming System’

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Video Game Chairs

April 4th, 2010

In this article we are going to take a look at the V Rocker eS video game chair. This game chair is manufactured by a company called the Ace-Bayou group. For our purposes we are going to take a closer look at the V Rocker eS model

At first glance the V Rocker kind of looks like a car seat but let me tell you it is not. This video game chair is designed to sit on the floor and enable you the player rock and move with the game. What makes this possible is the solid hardwood and steel construction. Then this frame is covered with fire retardant foam, then it is upholstered in upholstery grade vinyl. This fabric makes it real easy to keep clean.

The V rocker sound chair which is sometimes called a sound rocker is not only well built it offers some real great technical features This game chair features 2.1 surround sound. There are two speakers mounted in the chair at about head level. The sub-woofer is mounted in the back of the chair so you can really feel it! This sound system is boasted to be 80 watts of sound. The controls for this system ate conveniently located on the side. This control panel features volume and bass controls as well as input and output jacks not to mention as well as a headphone jack. To let you know it is working the chair has a LED power indicator.

Staying with a technical theme this video game chair can connect to just about any gaming system that might be out there. You can also plug your personal audio listening devices. It is real simple to do just plug it into the chair, have the chair powered on then listen, it is as simple as that. The chair comes almost completely assembled with instructions.

What room or rooms can I use this game chair in? The answer to that is almost any room.It is great in the living-room,the bed-room or game-room. The V Rocker is also easy to transport so it can be moved from home to the dorm room One more great feature is the ergonomic design with full back support for those long sessions with yore favorite game. No more need to go from the couch to the floor then back to the couch. With this chair you can stay comfortable in one spot for long periods.

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Video Game Testers are in Demand

January 7th, 2010

With the amount of video games that are being developed every year there is a great need for those who are interested in becoming a video game tester. Some people are interested in the testing of video games not only because they enjoy the games but because they are interested in all that it takes to develop and complete a video game. There is so much involved in video game development that if may take up to 3 years to complete one video game. With the video game systems that are available now and that may be developed in the future the number of video games is increasing at a rapid rate.
Video game testing ensures that the new builds of games coming out has been played to identify any errors in each version of each game. That’s right for each gaming system there is a different version of each video game. Can you image exactly how many video games exist. To create new video games testing is important to determine errors in each separate version that is available for the consumer to buy. A video game tester determines if there are errors in the game that they are testing as they are playing their designated game. The errors that video game testers are looking for include bugs, art glitches, logic errors and level bugs anything that is an error has to be corrected before the game is completed and that is why video game testers are not brought into the development of a video game until nearing the end of completion of the game.
With the amount of video games that are being developed quality assurance will help in the success of a video game. That is why it is important that a video game tester documents the errors they find in detail if needed so that the developers can locate the exact spot of the error. Game designers often need tester to tell them where the game needs improvement at. Video game testers have to have the patience it takes to describe the areas in which the errors are located so that the directions can be followed easily by the developers and producers so the errors can be fixed and the video game can be completed.
With so many video games being developed, produced and completed patience is really a key for those interested in the video game industry. Starting as a video game tester will give you a simple taste of exactly what it takes to finish off a video game. Patience learned as a video game tester help you learn to stay the course in the completion of a video game. Sometimes the patience for video game testers comes when they must spend hours and hours on the same level of a game doing the same sequence over and over just to make sure an error or glitch has been corrected.
Video game testing jobs may be the perfect solution for anyone looking to work from home. So if you are interested in the video game industry you can start by becoming a video game tester and making sure that as many games as you touch are completed with quality.

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Parent’s Guide To Video Game Systems

December 29th, 2009

At HomeComputerGames.com we get a lot of emails from parents asking about the various types of video games and gaming systems that are available. More than once I have heard “What exactly is a Halo 3?

I can see how this can all be a bit daunting to a parent buying video games for their children. With so many different types of systems available it is often hard for someone that doesn’t play video games to keep up with it all. There is Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, PS2, PSP, RPG, ESRB…..

Here I have put together this Parent’s Guide to Video Game Systems in hopes that I might help prevent some poor parent from suffering the shame and embarrassment of not knowing what the hell your kid is talking about.

To start you may want to familiarize yourself with some of the components of a “Gaming Systems”.

Each Gaming System has it’s own technology and is comprised of the following:

Gaming Console: This is the actual component that the gaming media that contains the actual game, such as a DVD or CD, is played on. Without this there is no gaming system as this contains your CPU, memory, and other such input and output ports.

Gaming Controllers: These are your input device for playing the game. These are much like a mouse or keyboard that you use on your computer. Many controllers contain an array of buttons that perform various actions such as making a character in the game run or shoot a gun or some other assigned function. **A PC is a type of gaming system and in turn gaming systems are a type of PC

Video Game Media: The most common type of Video Game Media are DVD, CD, Gaming Cartridge, and downloaded files. **Note that each video game is proprietary to it’s own Gaming System but may exist for several different types of Gaming Systems. So you might find a certain game is available for the PC and for the Xbox 360 but not available for Nintendo Wii or PS3. Each video game will state on the cover what Gaming System it is for.

Viewing Screen:The Gaming Console has to be connected to some sort of monitor or TV to view the game on. Some of the Portable Gaming Systems have small Monitors built into them much like many cellphones now have. In fact many cellphones contain gaming systems along with the rest of their many functions.

This section below explains several of the more popular gaming systems along with the necessary hardware. Some gaming systems may have gaming accessories that are compatible for other types of gaming consoles. But this is not the norm and for the most part gaming consoles have their own “proprietary” gaming accessories and games.

Gaming Systems:

Listed are some of the more popular Gaming Systems

PC:

Some will argue that the PC is not the most popular gaming system but more games are created and played on the PC than on all of the other Gaming Systems put together. The reason is the PC has been around longer and can perform other functions besides just being a gaming system. The PC is often an entry into video games as many families have personal computers and laptops. There are many thousands of video games available for the PC, many of which are not available for any of the other Gaming Systems.

There are also many websites that have video games free to download or play online at no cost. Just Google free PC games and you will find a ton of arcade sites that allow you to play their games for free.

Technical Specs

This list could be vast and would change almost daily so only the basic details are listed.

Manufacturer: Various, Dell, HP, Gateway, etc..

Game Media: DVD, CD, online downloadable files, online remote hosted media (flash games etc..)

Viewing Screen: PC Monitor

Online Playable: YES

Available Controller Slots: Various

Number of Games Available: Untold thousands

Gaming Accessories: mouse, keyboard, guitar and other musical instruments, joystick (flight stick), airplane throttle controlls, gaming automobile steering wheel and pedals, headset, video / webcam, surround sound system, Data storage (hard drive), other

Xbox 360:

The Xbox 360 is Microsoft’s gaming system and is an upgrade from their original gaming system the Xbox. The Xbox 360 is probably the most popular gaming system outside of the PC though the Nintendo Wii surpassed the Xbox 360 in sales. Recently Microsoft lowered what was a very expensive gaming system making it more affordable to consumers. As a result sales have soared and has insured that the Xbox 360 will be around for some time to come. There is a vast array of video games available for the Xbox 360 covering all genres from the hard core shooter games to the more family oriented classic games such as Monopoly. The Xbox 360 is also backwards compatible for many of it’s predecessor the Xbox.

Many new releases for the Xbox 360 are anticipated with zeal from gamers with many titles being sold out within hours of release. You may choose to Pre-Order many popular games before they are released to the public insuring that the game is secured for the customer with the game arriving a day or two after the official release. There are no extra charges in pre-ordering and this is a sure fire way to insure that you get your game before they are sold out.

Technical Specs

Manufacturer: Microsoft

Game Media: DVD, online downloadable files

Viewing Screen: TV / Monitor

Online Playable: YES via subscription based Xbox 360 Live

Available Controller Slots: 4 with wireless controller capabilities

Number of Games Available: The total number of games available seems to be a bit of a mystery. Not counting the Xbox 360 Live Arcade games there is a known amount of 587 games though I cannot verify how close this is to the actual number of games available. There is a list of Xbox 360 Games listed at wikipedia.org.

Gaming Accessories: At this writing there are many accessories available for the Xbox 360. Multi-button controller (many various types to choose from), keyboard, face plates (for changing the appearance of the gaming console), guitar and other musical instruments, gaming automobile steering wheel and pedals, headsets, video / webcam, surround sound system, External Data storage (hard drive, memory card), carrying cases and storage units, auxiliary cooling systems (the Xbox 360 has had some problems with it overheating), remote control, dance pad, and other accessories I am sure that I am missing

Nintendo Wii:

A unique feature of the Nintendo Wii, and one that makes it stand out from the rest of the gaming systems is it’s wireless controller, the Wii Remote, which can be used as a handheld pointing device and detect movement in three dimensions. This revolutionized the gaming industry in that many games call for you to act out actions such as swinging a sword or a tennis racket as opposed to sitting in your chair and pushing buttons. Of course this was a big hit with parents knowing that their children would at least have to stand up and get a bit of exercise.

The Nintendo Wii was the top selling gaming console sold during 2007 and revolutionized the meaning of video games by introducing a video game entitled the Wii Fit, that caused you to get out of your chair and exercise. The game includes all sorts of exercise competitions and has an exercise manager to help you keep track of your workouts.

Video games and exercise combined made for a newsworthy item and the Wii Fit sold off of the store shelves within hours. To date the Wii Fit is still hard to find except at inflated prices on Ebay.

Technical Specs

Manufacturer: Nintendo

Game Media: 12 cm Wii Optical Disc, 8 cm Nintendo GameCube Game Disc

Viewing Screen: TV / Monitor

Online Playable: YES via the free Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection

Available Controller Slots: Up to four Wii Remote controllers (connected wirelessly via Bluetooth), Nintendo GameCube controller ports (4)

Number of Games Available: Here again the total number of games available seems to be a bit of a mystery. The Nintendo Wii is also backwards compatible with the Nintendo Gamecube. Meaning that you can play old Gamecube Games on the Nintendo Wii. This does not include games released on Nintendo’s Virtual Console or WiiWare but there is a known amount of 518 games though again I cannot verify how close this is to the actual number of games available. There is a list of Nintendo Wii Games listed at wikipedia.org.

Gaming Accessories: Outplacing the Xbox 360 there are many accessories available for the Nintendo Wii.

Multi-button controller (many various types to choose from), keyboard, guitar and other musical instruments, gaming automobile steering wheel and pedals, headsets, video / webcam, surround sound system, memory card, carrying cases and storage units, various play weapons, remote control, dance pad, and other accessories I am sure that I am missing.

Sony PlayStation 3 (PS3):

The Sony PlayStation 3, also known as PS3, is the next in line of the 7th generation gaming consoles. The PS3 follows its predecessor, the PS2, as Sony’s next line of gaming systems. The PS2 was and I believe still is the leading gaming system of all time with over 140 million units sold to date.

A major feature that sets the PS3 above the PS2 is it’s online gaming service, the PlayStation Network. The PS3 was also the first Blu-ray 2.0-compliant Blu-ray player on the market. Other features include its multimedia capabilities, connectivity with the PlayStation Portable, and its use of a high-definition optical disc format, Blu-ray Disc. Several revisions to the system have been made with Sony now offering various versions such as the 20 GB model and the Premium model with a 60 GB hard drive.

Technical Specs

Manufacturer: Sony, Foxconn and ASUSTeK

Game Media: Blu-ray Disc, DVD, CD (all models), Super Audio CD (20 GB, 60 GB, 80 GB (CECHExx models)

Viewing Screen: TV / Monitor

Online Playable: YES via the free PlayStation Network

Available Controller Slots: up to 7

Number of Games Available: Once again the total number of games available seems to be a bit of a mystery. The PlayStation 3 is also backwards compatible with original PlayStation and PlayStation 2 games. Not counting the downloadable games from the PlayStation Network I found 442 games though again I cannot verify how close this is to the actual number of games available. There is a list of PS3 Games listed at wikipedia.org.

Gaming Accessories: Multi-button controller (many various types to choose from), console skins for changing the look or the system, keyboard, guitar and other musical instruments, gaming automobile steering wheel and pedals, headsets, surround sound system, hard drives to 160 GB, carrying cases and storage units, remote control, dance pad, cooling system, PlayStation 3 Eye, and more as I am sure that I am missing some.

These are the newest gaming systems available. Not to be forgotten are the portable gaming systems such as the Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) and the Nintendo DS. These gaming systems are small portable handheld systems perfect for the on the go gamer and for family vacations. The two mentioned do interact with their big brothers the PS3 and the Nintendo Wii respectively. But this is for another article as I am sure you have read quite enough about video game systems for the moment.




By: Ken Durham

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