While E3 is declining in popularity and prestige thanks to the Internet's ability to ruin any surprises that game developers may have up their sleeves, it is still a great time to preview all the new software and hardware in the gaming market.  This year is no different, especially thanks to the announcement of Nintendo's two new attachments for the Wii console.

The list of Wii additions is getting quite long, with the Wii Zapper, Sport Set, Wii Wheel, and numerous third-party additions all being part of the growing family.  That family will soon welcome two new members: the WiiSpeak and the Wii MotionPlus.

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Despite the constant emergence of new technology, old trends still reappear from time to time to remind us all that some times the best things were in the past.  The glorious return of point-and-click adventure games to console gaming marks one of these occasions.

I used to absolutely love point-and-click games for my first computer.  Each one came on its own floppy disk and was DOS gaming at its finest.  My pride and joy was a collection of all three sequels to the Hugo's House of Horrors series, purchased for me by my mother.  The appeal of the games is that they contain so many secrets that the replay value tends to be through the roof as avid gamers play again and again to find every single Easter egg possible.

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Combining aspects of things that people already enjoy is one of the best ways to make an impression on a market without having to be completely original or creative.  For the past couple of months, there has been a surge of such activity in the form of ‘angry' video game reviews.  These reviews combine aspects of life that many males (and some females) enjoy, including ranting, nostalgia, cheap Photo shopping, and dirty humor.  Taken together, these form a "review" of a classic video game.  The reviews have the taste level of an episode of Family Guy, but also have the marketability, as well.

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These are probably the hottest electronic gift items for the 2007 holidays. We've got a little bit of everything in here. Personally I'm waiting for the 3G version of the iPhone so that's not on my list. So instead I asked for an ASUS EEE and got it early! I'd review it but there's so much written about it already I won't bother. Suffice to say that it's tiny and light and fine for basic computer usage.

What? The item you lust after most is not in our poll? Feel free to complain in the comments area!

[Poll=16]

One thing I’m noticing more and more is media websites running advertisements as background images on their websites. Above is an example from Gamespot. If you click on the image above you’ll see the page in all its widescreen glory. It is a pretty spectacular ad. I’ve seen similar ads on entertainment sites like TV Guide and the Superficial and think we’ll see more like this the future. They work for a number of reasons:

• Most people have widescreen LCD monitors nowadays but most websites don’t use the space. These ads fill that void.
• The ads are visually engaging and catch the eye much more than banners or Flash piece. People have gotten pretty good at figuring out where ads are normally located on a page and ignoring them.
• Ultimately, the ad is still in the background of the page taking up space that otherwise wouldn’t be used, so I think this makes these kinds of ads less disruptive than formats you have to mute or that cover over text you are trying to read.

I think these background ads should be deployed judiciously by sites. You want to break it out only on special occasions and make sure the advertiser is a perfect match for your brand. Overuse will lead to the loss of the wow effect the Gamespot ad achieves.

What do you think? Cool or just another way to steal your attention?

Wagner James Au of GigaOM has a fascinating look at why, despite the endless hype, marketing in Second Life hasn’t proven to be effective yet. This is a good companion piece to a link I posted yesterday that provides some practical reasons to be skeptical of Second Life’s marketing potential (put me in the big time skeptic category).

Regardless of your personal feelings about Second Life, I think Au’s criticism of the execution of Second Life marketing efforts thusfar is illuminating:

To play in Second Life, corporations must first come to a humbling realization: in the context of the fantastic, their brands as they exist in the real world are boring, banal, and unimaginative. Car companies are trying to compete with college kids who turn a virtual automotive showroom into a 24/7 hiphop dance party, and create lovingly designed muscle cars that fly, and auction off for $2000 in real dollars at charity auctions.

Faced with such talented competition, smart marketers should concede defeat, and hire these college kids and housewives to create concept designs and prototypes that re-imagine their brands merged to existing SL-based brands which have already proved themselves in a world of infinite possibility. Or as the Komjuniti study suggests, they can keep building sterile shopping malls, and continue wondering why Residents prefer nude dance parties, giant frogs singing alt-folk rock, and samurai deathmatches– and often, all three at the same time.

I think the same thesis applies to MySpace or Youtube or any of the new so called “social” marketing channels. Bringing an old mindset to a new medium doesn’t accomplish anything. Your only chance of having real and sustained success is if the mindset shifts as well.

Our team here at TBG has written about the Wii/PS3 controversy on many occasions (also see our ImpactWatch report) over the past few months.  We finally had the chance to take our
"research" to the next level when Todd brought his Wii for a little conference room face-off. (Todd won a Wii courtesy of a Problogger contest and 451Press this winter).

I must admit, I was prepared to be underwhelmed by the Wii.  Rumors of poor graphics and less-than-stellar wii-mote responsiveness had me thinking that maybe the Wii was probably overrated.

I would like to take this opportunity to discredit any rumors about the Wii being crappy.  While my experience with the Wii may be limited to playing Wii sports, I can say for sure that the system is the opposite of crappy…it's fantastic. 

My favorite Wii sport by far was the tennis.  This game is addicting and fast-paced, while learning the basics is quite easy.  Getting to be good at this game is more difficult, as I quickly learned while Todd destroyed me my first couple of times playing, but I had fun anyway and was convinced immediately that I wanted to buy one for myself.

First impressions:

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By now, we've all heard the unfortunate tales of injury and destruction that have come as a result of playing the Nintendo Wii. If you haven't, I suggest visiting Wii Have a Problem, a blog dedicated to reporting wacky Wii-related stories. The site has video footage of broken screens, ranging from laptop monitors to 40 inch LCDs; pictures of broken Wii remotes from overzealous bowlers, golfers, and batters; and yes, even reports of tennis elbow!

While most of us may find these stories amusing (if not hilarious), Nintendo seems to be taking them pretty seriously. The company had the foresight to include with the Wii a detailed safety manual, indicating that Nintendo predicted even the most bizarre of Wii-related injuries. Lucky for them, because if they hadn't, I assume they would be facing some pretty serious lawsuits. The safety manual warns against a variety of Wii-related dangers, including, among other things:

• Seizures
• Eye Strain
• Motion Sickness
• Console/TV Screen Damage

My personal favorite, though, is the warning that "The Wii console is a Class I laser product." Hold on, let me call Dr. Evil…I'm sure he'll want to hear about this.

These Wii-injuries are no joke. The Wall Street Journal published an article on November 25, "A Wii Workout: When Videogames Hurt", that discussed some inuries suffered by Wii fanatics, and even interviewed a doctor to get some advice on what to do about Wii-related aches and pains. According to the article, doctors advise Wii-users to "stretch out and be sure to take care of any injuries afterwards." Some Wii-players have even resorted to wearing athletic braces while playing Wii Sports. The WSJ article further reports that:

Nintendo itself warns players about this risk just before some of the games begin. A message flashes up on the screen saying: "Make sure there are no people or objects around you that you might bump into while playing." Some Wii games also have pop-up reminders every 15 minutes advising gamers to take a break.

Anyway, endless reports of injuries and TV damage are not stopping consumers from their Wii buying sprees. Since its launch on November 19, NexGenWars reports that Nintendo has already sold more than a million units in the US, although the site notes that this figure is only an estimate. In addition, the game system made its Japanese debut this weekend and was a major hit. Thousands of people were lined up at major electronics stores through the middle of the night in order to purchase the Wii. Many customers were very enthusiastic. One Japanese man even wore a home-made Wii remote control costume. When asked about his outfit, he replied, "I made this (costume) by myself yesterday. This is an homage to Nintendo."

According to BBC News, the Wii will go on sale in Europe December 8; Nintendo hopes to release 4 million units by the end of the year.

UPDATE (12/15/06):  I read on the BBC this morning that Nintendo has officially responded to the Wii-mote flimsy strap issues.  According to BBC, Nintendo will replace all broken wrist straps for the Wii-mote with a sturdier version free of charge.  In addition, all new Wii consoles will come with a much stronger wrist strap for the Wii-mote in order to prevent future problems.  You can order a replacement strap for your Wii-mote here on Nintendo's website .