The BBC has released an early test version of their iPlayer video service for the Nintendo Wii. Unfortunately the service is only available for license-fee payers in the UK, but if you meet the criteria, fire up the Internet Channel and hit bbc.co.uk/iplayer - then come back here and tell us what it was like!
Sony has signed a deal with the BBC that will allow players to download episodes of Top Gear through Gran Turismo TV. GT TV is a channel on the PlayStation Network that will provide the latest news and content from the motoring world. In addition to being able to watch Top Gear, Gran Turismo 5 will feature the Top Gear Test Track to test your times on, and maybe beat the Stig’s personal best. Polyphony Digital president Kazunori Yamauchi had this to say about the partnership:
“We at Polyphony are great fans of the world’s best motoring programme, Top Gear, so we’re delighted to be collaborating with BBC Worldwide to deliver Top Gear content via Gran Turismo. We’re sure that players will be as thrilled as we are when they get the chance to put their own driving skills to the test on the Top Gear Test Track in GT5, as well as enjoying classic episodes of Top Gear via GT TV.”
GT TV is expected to launch in 2008, and the BBC will be providing 40 episodes of Top Gear for download.
The common perception that gamers are all social isolates has often been fostered by the media, but not so in a BBC article by Paul Rubens. Rubens article attacks the preconceived notions of playing video games and in turn equates them to traditional hobbies. He writes:
…over the years, video games have been blamed for everything from destroying marriages to turning balanced adults into murderers and rapists. At the very least, will video games produce a generation of unsociable hermits?
It’s a common misconception that gaming is a solitary activity, as today an increasing number of titles are for gamers to get together and play in turn. In this respect, it’s no different to golf - a game which can be a source of marital friction but is rarely accused of incitement to murder.
