Win A 46" 3DTV And PlayStation 3 With Medal Of Honor: Warfighter

Ahead of Medal Of Honor: Warfighter's October 26th release, we're launching a new competition to give you the chance to win some incredible hardware. For the last few weeks IGN readers were given the opportunity to choose your ultimate gaming prize and the voting has now closed.

We're happy to announce that we're giving away a 46-inch 3DTV and a PlayStation 3 so that you can play EA's upcoming shooter as it was intended to be played - on a massive screen with the volume turned up to the max!

HOW TO ENTER

If you want to get involved all you need to do is head to...

http://uk-microsites.ign.com/medalofhonor/ 

...and click on the competition link at the very top of the page then click on the button marked Enter.

You've got until 10am on September 18 2012 to submit your details, so what are you waiting for soldier?

This competition is open to UK residents over the age of 18 only, with full terms and conditions on the competition page.

Source : feeds[dot]ign[dot]com

Valve reportedly getting into the PC hardware business

Reports are coming out today that confirm long-held rumors that Valve has been looking at some way to enter the PC hardware business. While this doesn't point toward the much-desired "Steam Box" that was rumored a few months back, it's an exciting development nonetheless.

According to The Verge, Valve has confirmed rumors that a job posting for an industrial designer indicates that they are planning to enter the hardware business. However, they did not specify what sort of hardware they're planning to make, only offering the following quote as a sort of clue, "We're frustrated by the lack of innovation in the computer hardware space though, so we're jumping in. Even basic input, the keyboard and mouse, haven't really changed in any meaningful way over the years. There's a real void in the marketplace, and opportunities to create compelling user experiences are being overlooked."

It's not clear whether that quote indicates Valve will be leaning toward making PC accessories such as mouse/keyboard alternatives, or if they have ambitions that go beyond that. And of course, there's always the possibility that Valve is planning to start small with little projects like a gaming peripheral, then work its way up the chain to bigger productions.

We will of course be following this story with great interest, and will report back if any new developments arise.

Source : gamesradar[dot]com

Valve Confirms Hardware Development

A job listing on Valve’s site confirms that the company will begin developing hardware. A listing for an industrial designer says “Valve is traditionally a software company. Open platforms like the PC and Mac are important to us, as they enable us and our partners to have a robust and direct relationship with customers. We’re frustrated by the lack of innovation in the computer hardware space though, so we’re jumping in.”

The post continues, adding that Valve is interested in creating new user experiences. “Even basic input, the keyboard and mouse, haven’t really changed in any meaningful way over the years,” it says. “There’s a real void in the marketplace, and opportunities to create compelling user experiences are being overlooked.”

The post specifies that the position will add “expertise in product design and manufacturing, ergonomics, usability, aesthetics, and surfacing.” Candidates are also expected to have “6+ years of professional experience shipping world-class, high-tech hardware products” and “a thorough understanding of product design principles.”

Speculation about Valve’s entry into the hardware market has been flying since March, when rumors suggested Valve was working on a Steam Box console. Valve later debunked the rumors, commenting that the world is “a long way from Valve shipping out any sort of hardware.” Later, a listing for an electronics engineer to work on "platform hardware" emerged, as well as a blog post discussing wearable computing.

We’ve reached out to Valve for comment about the job listing and will update with any additional information we receive.

Thanks to CVG for the heads up.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

Source : feeds[dot]ign[dot]com

Sifteo Cubes Get an Update, New Partnerships

Last year's award-winning game platform - Sifteo Cubes - are due for an upgrade. Sifteo will release updated hardware for their award-winning tactile game blocks later this year, along with a few high-profile game titles to push the system.

The original Sifteo Cubes connected via bluetooth to a Mac or PC program that actually ran the games. This wasn't such a drag as long as you had a laptop, but the cubes were obviously meant to be totally portable; the just-announced "ultra-compact" Sifteo Base will make good on that vision when it's released this November.

The system will now support connecting as many as 12 of its $29, 1.7-inch blocks (the previous limit was six). The most exciting of Sifteo's announcements comes on the development end: a new software development kit (SDK) available to game makers Oct 1st should help expand the library of available games.

Sifteo Cubes are clearly best suited to kid-appropriate puzzle games (the entire platform is "Rated E for Everyone"), and Sifteo's partnership with Nickelodeon to bring out a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles title - called Ninja Slide - is clearly a further step in that direction.

More interestingly, a game made by Richard Garfield, the designer behind Magic: The Gathering (among other games) is slated for an early 2013 release. Details on this one are scarce, and while it's almost certainly not Magic-branded Garfield has said he's "creating a game that I think will be as fun and engaging as Magic: The Gathering has been for many.”

The new Sifteo Cubes, which will ship in November this year, are available for pre-order. But be advised: Sifteo told IGN that the new blocks are not backwards-compatible with last year's model; you may want to be careful where you shop.

Are a Ninja Turtles title and a (potentially) awesome Richard Garfield game enough for you to shell out for the $199 6-block set? Let us know in the comments.

Jon Fox is a Seattle hipster who loves polar bears and climbing trees. You can follow him on Twitter and IGN.

Source : feeds[dot]ign[dot]com

Nintendo reportedly controls 70% of the Japanese gaming market

For the past couple years many people have been chanting the mantra that Nintendo needs to give up the hardware business and transition into a software-only business releasing games on other consoles as well as the iPhone.

However, new numbers shine a bit of a light onto why Nintendo might be a little reluctant to leave their position as a hardware manufacturer. In short: the Japanse games market may be slowly flagging, but Nintendo's killing it. In the latest sales charts from Japan, games on their consoles represented 70% of the Japanese gaming industry. Though it's unclear if those numbers included mobile and PC games.

Nintendo's New Super Mario Bros. 2 on the 3DS is leading the charge with nearly 150,000 sales during the past week, aided in no small way by the success of the 3DS which Wired notes has been at the top of the Japanese charts for quite a while now.

Nintendo's success in the West may be more up for debate, however it hardly seems like it's time for Nintendo to abandon ship and layoff their entire hardware department. They've clearly got a lot more gas left in the tank. That said, the stakes get higher and higher every time Nintendo launches a console, and the whole industry will be watching when they launch the Wii U later this year. 

Source : gamesradar[dot]com

Transformers: Fall of Cybertron not available on PC in Australia

Neither Autobots nor Decepticon will be rolling out across gaming's entire hardware spectrum, as Activision has announced that Transformers: Fall of Cybertron won't see a release on the PC platform in Australia.

A media release sent by Activision heralding the game's launch was sent to outlets, before an updated version was offered minutes later. In its revision, PC was removed from the available platforms, the change highlighted by a simple note: 

"Please be advised that TRANSFORMERS: FALL OF CYBERTRON will not be available on PC in Australia."

The PC is no stranger to the-platform-is-dead naysaying, while Australia has experienced its share of region-specific knocks. However, it's disappointing to see a hefty one-two punch come from a publisher such as Activision on a title with such wide appeal.

We've reached out to Activision for additional comment, and will update this story when we know more.

Source : gamesradar[dot]com