Thursday, November 03, 2005
Citing poor N-Gage sales, Nokia will bring the games to other compatible phones to give them a boost in numbers.
From Reuters, "'I am not happy. I said we needed to sell six million in three years, and we sold one-third of that. We need to make some changes,' said Anssi Vanjoki, head of Nokia's Multimedia division, which produces N-Gage."
"He said Nokia will now bring the games that were developed for N-Gage to the new N-series phones it launched earlier this year. The Finnish mobile company announced three new models in the series earlier on Wednesday, bringing the total to six."
Posted by
Al on 11/03 at 03:26 PM
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Friday, October 14, 2005
Nokia and Sulake, a Finnish interactive entertainment company and creator of the famous Habbo Hotel, today announced Habbo Islands, the first mobile game created to connect to the Habbo Hotel community.
Habbo Islands offers an exotic, fun-filled adventure vacation to both existing Habbo Hotel users as well as people experiencing Habbo for the first time.
Habbo Islands, situated in a peculiar small world of its own on the southern hemisphere in the Habbo World, combines adventure, simulation, management and socializing in a unique way. Habbo Islands, a new part of the Habbo experience, is a single player adventure world where players can visit in dynamic environments and exciting adventures. During the island vacation, players will be able to connect with friends in Habbo Hotel via Habbo Console.
Twenty adventures, ranging from building a zoo and saving the Blue Faced Pandas to having a rodeo competition, take place in four different environments, such as the pirate lagoon and the beach party island. Players can meet amazing animals like the Slightly Insane Koala, Micro Elephant, Walking Mega Plant, and the Cropped Zebra-Giraffe.
"Habbo Islands is another example of how Nokia is widening its title portfolio into new, innovative and exciting areas. Habbo Hotel is an extremely successful on-line community and therefore we believe this collaboration will attract new fans to the N-Gage platform", said Gregg Sauter, Director, Games Publishing, Nokia.
"We are very excited to extend the Habbo community to a new kind of platform, offering a new Habbo experience for both our existing users as well as totally new audiences. On Habbo Islands players can experience unique and fun adventures on the go, and at the same time keep in touch with their Habbo Hotel friends," said Sampo Karjalainen, Chief Creative Officer and Founder, Sulake.
Habbo Islands, exclusive to N-Gage platform, is expected to be available for consumers during the second half of 2006.
Posted by
Al on 10/14 at 01:39 PM
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Thursday, October 13, 2005
Nokia today announced Shadow-Born for the N-Gage platform.
Developed by Backbone Entertainment, Shadow-Born is set to change the way gamers use their mobile phones for gaming by integrating smartphone functionalities into the game. Imagine a game where characters leave text messages, schedule calendar appointments or set alarms in your smartphone. Shadow-Born promises a genuinely immersive and interactive experience, taking game play to a new level of involvement.
"We are really pushing the envelope with this game," says Gregg Sauter, Director, Games Publishing, Nokia. "Whether it's the smartphone functions such as text messaging or your to-do list, or the very fact that your mobile phone is with you wherever you go. No other platform could offer this type of gaming experience."
As a Shadow-Born, you are gifted with the rare ability to see the dark truth of the world. It is a world where supernatural beings from your dreams and nightmares surround you, and where vampires control corporations and werewolf gangs roam the streets at night. Shadow-Born offers a rich storyline and is set in the hidden realms within the urban cityscape.
Posted by
Al on 10/13 at 03:02 PM
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Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Nokia today announced that it has shipped Atari Masterpieces Volume 1 for the N-Gage platform.
This bumper pack includes not just one but eight classic games such as Asteroids, Battlezone, Black Widow, Millipede, Missile Command, Red Baron, Lunar Lander and Super Breakout.
Some things are better left untouched and the proof can be found here with original graphics and game play together with a host of tips and tricks. However, gamers can now revisit these old favourites while they are on the move!
For those who get their biggest thrill from showing off, gamers can upload their high scores on the N-Gage Arena, and compete worldwide for the title of retro gaming guru. As an added bonus gamers will also have the opportunity to unlock additional Atari 2600 titles - 2600 Adventure, 2600 Surround, 2600 Video Chess and 2600 Yar's Revenge.
"Atari Masterpieces shows how originality can stand the test of time," said Gregg Sauter, Director, Games Publishing, Nokia. "Nokia has created a worldwide league table within N-Gage Arena so retro gaming enthusiasts now have a forum to tell who is truly the king of the old school."
This collection will be followed by Atari Masterpieces Volume 2 next year.
Posted by
Al on 10/12 at 02:17 PM
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Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Nokia today announced that it has released a new version of the N-Gage Arena launcher for the over 400,000 valued N-Gage Arena members.
The new version 2.5 includes new features and functionality, as well as updates to the existing services. N-Gage Arena members can now download a free copy of the new launcher at http://arena.n-gage.com/launcher.
The N-Gage Arena launcher, the gateway in the N-Gage phones to the N-Gage Arena, has been revamped to offer even better community and connectivity features to N-Gage owners. New features include Public Group Chat, Friend Rankings, Login Message and Filtered Content. Now users can participate in group chat sessions from within the launcher. Chat rooms are available 24/7 and open to all N-Gage Arena members. Users may now view new rankings tables that allow them to compare their own rankings against members on their Friends list playing the same game. The login message feature allows for a special message to be broadcast in the launcher start up sequence to ensure users are aware of important news. Also, content can now be filtered to specific users based on their operator, country or currently loaded game.
"The N-Gage Arena is an integral part of our consumer offering. It is a unique global mobile on-line gaming community and we are excited to make it even better," says Rob Sears, Director, Community Technology Management, Entertainment Products Business Unit, Nokia. "The new launcher software will enhance the consumer experience, and will help create new opportunities for the operators to tailor content to their customers."
Improvements to current features and functionality have also been made. The online status indicators on one's Friends List have been expanded to include more information, such as the title of the game that a friend is currently playing and whether or not the friend is available to chat while in-game. It also shows friends who are in a Public Group Chat session. The launcher's user interface and menu structure has been updated to be more in-line with the website and thus improve usability. New secondary icons have been added to the main menu to function as indicators and shortcuts to key content areas. Content has been expanded to included user-generated content such as tips & hints and photos. Other general improvements to the launcher's navigation, alert notification, start up experience and preferences management have also been made to make the consumer experience easier.
The initial offering of the new launcher software for N-Gage QD devices is in English only. Additional versions in twenty-one additional languages, along with software for the N-Gage game deck, will be rolled out later this year.
Posted by
Al on 08/30 at 02:13 PM
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