With new Wii Sports, Wii Music, the Wii's future is casual

Nintendo's press conference held few surprises, but a new Animal Crossing, Wii Sports, and the announcement of Wii Music show that Nintendo is more dedicated to the casual market than ever. Ars reports from Nintendo's E3 press conference.Read More...

Resistance 2 gives PS3 devs a blueprint for online play

Resistance 2, the sequel to the first great PlayStation 3 game, is now on store shelves. It's a force to be reckoned with, as Insmoniac has created one of the best multiplayer shooters on the platform—the game a must-buy for PS3 owners this holiday season. Read More...

Can Videogames Be Funny?

Hail to the Chimp, a videogame who's humor revolves around lampooning the political process and the cable-news cycle, is a rare humor entrant in a marketplace dominated by action and musical rhythm games.

Queen's Birthday Honours: Full list

Make Father's Day a day for play (USATODAY.com)

USATODAY.com - Some guys like ties, but all boys love toys. Whether dad's the sporting type, a race-car driver in training, an action hero, a rock-star wannabe or the more cerebral type, there's electronic entertainment perfect for him this Father's Day. Video-game writer Marc Saltzman offers a few suggestions.

These lawyers got (video) game

Firms retool their entertainment practices to cater to the video game industry. A year ago, newly minted lawyer Shawn Foust approached a senior partner at his Century City firm with an idea: dedicate an entire practice to the video game industry. ¶ Today, the 26-year-old coordinates a team of 20 lawyers at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton that tackles mergers, licensing contracts and other deals that help make the burgeoning game business hum. ¶ "I'm pursuing my lifelong dream of combining the two things I love -- games and law," Foust said. ¶ Never a group to steer clear of the action, lawyers across California are retooling their entertainment practices to cater to the game industry. Video games are expected to generate nearly $50 billion in global revenue this year, despite a slowdown in consumer spending, and sales have already surpassed old-line businesses including music. ¶ As the game industry grows, so do its legal needs. ¶ "There's tax work, litigation, risk management, immigration, labor -- the list goes on and on," said Seth Steinberg, who last year left his position as general counsel of George Lucas' video game publisher, LucasArts, to start a private practice in San Francisco specializing in the game industry. ¶ Other firms have joined in. Greenberg Glusker Fields Claman & Machtinger, the law firm of record for the likes of Tom Cruise and Warren Beatty, has cultivated a game practice led by Stephen Smith and Suann MacIsaac.