By Ryan Van Etten on 04/21/2010
Game designer/researcher Jane McGonigal asserts that collaborative videogames are the key to solving our real-world problems. In the video here, she outlines why she considers World of Warcraft to be an “ideal collaborative problem-solving environment.” She discusses four key factors in gaming culture that give gamers an edge at problem-solving—urgent optimism, social fabric, blissful productivity, and epic meaning.
Posted in Activism, Education, Gaming, Infoculture | Tagged collaboration, counterculture, creativity, culture, game design, gaming culture, innovation, Jane McGonigal, mindset, MMO, MMORPG, motivation, problem-solving, psychology, social gaming, social intelligence, TED, trust, urgent evoke, video, videogame, virtual worlds, WoW
By Ryan Van Etten on 02/02/2010
Piano music is as popular in Second Life as it is in real life. The setting is a virtual world—the music is real, interactive, and on key. This vivid photoset features pianos and players (avatars) in Second Life. 11 photos and 1 video.
Posted in Gaming, Music, News, Photo Journal | Tagged avatars, culture, music gaming, nightlife, photos, piano, pianos, Second Life, videogame, virtual piano, virtual worlds, virtuality
By Ryan Van Etten on 12/31/2009
Pandora is blowing music consumption off the grid. Myriad digital choices are sending audio junkies into sensory overload—music wants to be everywhere. The stage is lit—music has always been social, and the web continues to make it even more so. Communication is on the rise.
Posted in Apps, Editorial, Gaming, iPhone Apps, Music, Music Flux, Popular, Visual | Tagged Activision, Amie Street, analysis, AOL Music, Apps, blip.fm, ccMixter, chart, collaboration, comparison, consumption, Creative Commons, deezer, Delicious, Digidrummer, DJ Hero, DJing, EA Mobile, emusic, facebook, friends, games, gigzee, Grooveshark, Guitar Rock Tour, Harmonix, Hip Hop All Star, Hype Machine, iheart radio, iLike, Imeem, Indaba Music, indie, influencers, iPhone, iTunes, jamble music mashups, jamendo, jamglue, Lala, last.fm, Looptastic, mashups, mobile, mobile music, mobility, MOG, music gaming, music industry, music sites, musicians, musicovery, MySpace, Napster, networks, NIN, NLog Synth, pandora, predictions, project playlist, PureVolume, recommendation engine, ReverbNation, Rhapsody, rhythm games, Rock Band Network, scratching, Second Life, seeqpod, sensory overload, Sirius, Slacker Radio, social intelligence, social media, social music, songza, soundcloud, spotify, stats, streaming, Tap Tap Revenge, Tapulous, The Beatles Rock Band, thesixtyone, tinysong, trends, twisten.fm, ustream, Vevo, video, Virtuoso Piano, visualization, we7, your friends are your filter, YouTube
By Ryan Van Etten on 11/17/2009
I saw this interview of Dhani Harrison on Conan O’Brien the night before The Beatles Rock Band’s debut in September, and until then I had not realized that George’s son, Dhani Harrison, had played such a major role in the development of the game. In the interview Dhani describes how he ended up working on creation of The Beatles Rock Band, which started with his 5-year-long Guitar Hero obsession.
Posted in Design, Editorial, Gaming, Interviews, Music | Tagged alternative, band, band websites, Conan O'Brien, development, Dhani Harrison, facebook, game design, interaction, interview, music gaming, musicians, MySpace, Rock Band, rock/pop, social media, social music, stickam, The Beatles, The Beatles Rock Band, thenewno2, video, videogame
By Ryan Van Etten on 11/16/2009
The Beatles rock on in 2009 and players of The Beatles Rock Band have posted YouTube videos to show it. Here you can compare a video of Revolution from the videogame with the video of Revolution performed by The Beatles in 1968.
Posted in Gaming, Music | Tagged arts, band, comparison, fans, flashback, gamers, generation, live music, music gaming, players, revolution, Rock Band, rock/pop, The Beatles, The Beatles Rock Band, video, videogame, virtuality, YouTube
By Ryan Van Etten on 10/15/2009
Moral values—are they learned or are they built into our genetic makeup? Are our brains hard-wired to draw a line between right and wrong? Different cultures might vary on specific issues—there are social activities you can do freely in Amsterdam that you would be arrested for doing in New York for example—but generally most current cultures make similar separations between right and wrong. In essence morals transcend culture, right? But why exactly do we feel the need to separate right and wrong—what is it that makes our moral clock tick?
Posted in Discussion, Editorial, Education, Gaming | Tagged behavior, culture, evolution, future, gaming culture, human, influencers, interaction, modern, moral values, psychology, right vs wrong, sociology
By Tanya Robertson on 10/09/2009
On September 18th SpaceJunky Island reopened with a floating city made of crystals. It was a great show with a big turnout. Crystals have some effects over our energy balance and you can feel them here in Crystal City. All of the designers have opened up new, modern stores from Bare Rose to Solanges and BDD.
Posted in Events, Gaming, SL Events | Tagged fashion, Izzy Cole, music gaming, photos, Second Life, social music, spacejunky, virtual bands
