Diane's Business Games Blog

The commercial potential hidden in the ever growing online gaming market has been known to marketers for a long time. It is known that millions of people around the world are playing different types of online games. The wide range of available games - from single player trivia, puzzle, sports and casino games to classic multi player games such as backgammon and chess to massive role playing and strategy games like World of Warcraft and Lineage – attracts diverse variety of players.

Recent surveys show that online gaming is not an exclusive territory of 25-35 males. More than 50% of women at the same age are playing online games on a regular basis, plus a decent percentage of older (and of course, younger) men and women are also preoccupied in the internet gaming world. For marketers, these numbers mean unique opportunity to expose all kinds of products to millions of potential customers.

Marketers use variety of online marketing techniques to approach the massive crowd of online gamers including traditional advertisements and more creative and advanced types of online marketing tools. From chewing gums to automobiles through anti-depression drugs, it seems like everyone is after the online gamers’ attention.

One of the most common ways to promote a brand is by online games. For example, the Chrysler Group, the owner of the Dodge brand, has an exclusive game website dedicated to racing games, in which the player can drive the company latest models, and if played well, the players are rewarded with a HEMI® Power Bonus!

Online Pool as a Test Case

Let’s say that you want to shoot some pool online. By clicking “online pool” on one of the biggest internet search engines, you will find two major food manufacturers battling for the opportunity to promote their brands on your virtual pool table.

The giant chewing gum company Wrigley’s is the sponsor of the popular gaming portal, mostly known for its online billiard games. Once you’ve entered Candystand virtual pool room, you will be asked to customize your playing able from a selection of three designs, each one represents a different chewing gum brand, which its logo is spread all over the pool table. Will you consider chewing an Ice Breakers later?

You will be facing the same dilemma if you choose to play at Nabisco World. However, if you go for the most popular choice today, Yahoo! Pool, you won’t be able to escape advertisements as well; right after you’ve registered and before entering the desired game room, you’ll be hit by Yahoo! Games’ sponsors’ messages.

As you can see, today’s marketers have learned how to take advantage (not necessarily in the negative meaning) of the increasing interest in online games. From industries tycoons to small, local businesses, most of them came to the conclusion that online gaming marketing is far more affective and profitable than advertisement campaigns.

Saul Rivers is a new media expert who covers the online gaming industry and related topics. Rivers contributes articles to various skill gaming websites including online billiard, chess and backgammon sites such as http://www.play89.com, for example.
 

Share This

Puzzle games are a genre of games loved by most hard-core gamers simply because of their ability to challenge a person’s intelligence. Generally, a puzzle is a game comes with a some mystery attached which you have to uncover in order to resolve it. It demands both attention to detail and basic common sense to for a solution to be found. Some of the types of puzzles are mechanical, lock, jigsaw and picture puzzles.

Although, there may be a serious side to puzzles such as a mathematical or scientific based ones which may lead to a serious discovery, most of us play puzzles as a form of entertainment. Generally people with a high reasoning aptitude tend to do resolve puzzles quicker. Most games really are based on some form of logic which is why games can be so addictive. The need to resolve the problem is at the forefront of any gamer’s mind and sometimes the knowledge that you resolved a particular puzzle can be very exhilarating even inspirational.

In the early days, puzzles were brought to us in the form of board games which you could by from the shops or you could find puzzles at the back of newspapers or better still you could buy a book of puzzles. Nowadays however, you can find all kinds of puzzles to play on the internet. Most of these are fun, entertaining and a learning experience for people of all ages. In fact you are likely to find any type of puzzles and be able to resolve it without using a pen. If it is Sudoku you like you can find a play it online.

Some of the most well-known puzzles include Whodunit, Sudoku, Crossword, Knight’s Tour, Puzz-3D and Spot the difference. Sudoku is a logic-based placement puzzle. The the goal is to complete the grid so that every column, every row and every 33 box contains the digits 1 to 9. The creator of the puzzle provides a partially completed grid so that there is only one solution. It is easy these days to find Sudoku and other puzzles to play online for free.

Playing free puzzle games has now become popular. Instead of going to the nightclub with may cost anywhere from $7 and $30, some young kids and teenagers are simply visiting their local cyber-cafes for an adrenaline rush of free online puzzle games. To add to this, you can meet people from different parts of world who share similar interests. Some of the favorite online puzzles games are the Cartoon Quizz, Ultimate Zelda Game Quiz, Just Sudoku, Quiz Time With Chron Series, Collapse and Koala Checkers.

To end this, the way in which we play puzzle games has evolved over the years, particularly since the advent of the internet. Now you can play and replay your most loved puzzles without erasing it over and over again.

By Jake Jenkins Pro Gamer Play Puzzle Games, find free chat and free online puzzle games at Gamerevolt.com

Share This

Classic thinking games are a great way to tune up your brain. You can use these mind games to help you increase your brain power and to get you out of your thinking “ruts.” Play them enough, and they’ll habituate you to using creative problem solving as a normal part of thinking about things.

Thinking Games For Groups

Group thinking games are especially good for long trips in a car. Have someone look out the window, for example, and randomly choose an object. Everyone in the car then tries to imagine a new way to make money with it. Common street signs become places to advertise, trees are sold with names, and a truck becomes a traveling grocery store.

Use the “change of perspective” technique as a problem-solving game. Just pick any topic, and see who can come up with the most unique new perspective. Could there be a world where jobs weren’t necessary? How would a virus define morality if it was conscious?

One creative thinking game uses a technique called “concept combination.” You simply combine random concepts or things in interesting ways, and see who has the best idea. A chair and a microwave? Maybe an easy-chair with a built-in cooler, microwave and television, or microwavable “couch potatoes” - a potato snack in the shape of a couch.

More Thinking Games

A lateral thinking puzzle you can try right now involves nine dots, layed out three by three. Connect them all with four straight lines, without lifting the pen or pencil from the paper. When you figure this one out you’ll appreciate the expression “thinking outside of the box.”

Many lateral-thinking puzzles use a scenario, real or imagined, with a selection of things you have to use to accomplish something. Imagine a ping-pong ball in an iron pipe that’s set in cement. The pipe sticks up three-feet high, and has almost the same diameter as the ball. Using only a box of frosted-flakes, and a t-shirt, and your body and mind, how many ways can you find to get the ball out of the pipe? You could also set this up for real, to know if a proposed solution will really work.

Many riddles are just mind games or lateral-thinking puzzles. You move laterally in your mind, away from your usual line of thought, to solve a riddle. For example, what did his friends do when the canibal was late for dinner? They gave him the cold shoulder, of course! Keeping your brain in shape doesn’t have to be a matter of serious study. Why not play some thinking games?

Steve Gillman has been studying brainpower and related topics for years. For more on How To Increase Brain Power, and to get the Brain Power Newsletter and other free gifts, visit: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.com

Share This

Online computer games are video games that are played in a network, such as the internet or an internal office network. Its popularity started out from small local networks and extended online. As more and more people gained access to the World Wide Web, online games have likewise been a fast-growing segment for internet-based industries such as software developers and gaming console manufacturers.

There are a large number of games available online, ranging from the simple, text based games to role playing games imbedded with complex graphics and virtual environments that many players can access at the same time. Most online games now have organized online communities where its players can interact with other players; thus, making online games a social activity.

The online games popular during the 80s include Scrabble Clones, Chess and other board games. There were also online games that had fantasy settings that were played on a BBS using a modem. However, the high fees charged for online access diverted the set-up of some of these games from being played online into play-by-email games.

During the 90’s, the internet brought about many changes in the way online games are played. It was during this period that settings and concepts were redesigned and given a more urbane appeal. Complex graphics were applied to gaming and online matches started as well.

These new concepts also brought about a new generation of gamers. Born between the years 1980 and 2001, these advanced gamers can play any type of computerized and video games and are largely adept with the navigation of computer devices apart from the inherent savvy over handheld gadgets. The rise of these gamers influenced the internet’s shift from that of an information machine into an entertainment media as well.

Today, computer games online have become a profitable industry. Websites offering games charge monthly fees to web surfers while some maintain their sites through the sizeable advertising revenues obtained from on-site sponsors.

Copyright © 2007 www.CGExpo-UK.com; www.ElVortex.com
This article may be freely reprinted in your ezine, e-book, blog or web site so long as this copyright notice is left unchanged. (John Eddie)

Share This

Do your English or foreign language learners like to play games? If they’re at all like my students, of course they do. Are you looking for a short, fast-paced, dynamic activity your language learners will love? While you’re at it, do you want them to practice their language skills too? Here are two adaptable games that work just great in my EFL classroom. I think they can work well for you too.

“Tricky”

Also known as Tic-Tac-Toe in some countries, you can adapt this game in a number of ways to elicit spontaneous practice on the part of your English or foreign language learners. Divide a table, desk, the board, a sheet of paper or even a portion of the floor into a nine-square, three by three grid pattern using a marker or masking tape. Ask a question or give a short task to a student or group of students. A correct answer allows them to place a marker (or one of themselves) into a square. An incorrect answer rolls the turn to the next student or group. The students or groups take successive turns giving answers (or completing short tasks) or responses, trying to get three in a row horizontally, vertically or diagonally. Things can heat up quickly with this game activity.

BINGO

B-I-N-G-O, a dynamic alternative or variation of “Tricky”, this seemingly age-old favorite uses five (or any number) in a row horizontally, vertically or diagonally to determine a “winner”. Use grammar in context, vocabulary, synonyms, definitions, antonyms, questions – answers, short dialogues or whatever else you want your language learners to practice in context. The first student or small group to score five in a row is declared the “winner”. To continue to involve even more students or time, continue playing with a second or third place winner. You can also play until everyone has “won”.

Learners practice their English or foreign language skills, turn-taking and cooperative learning strategies while having a blast. As a board game, use nine different-colored squares on a table or desktop with plastic figures or the learners’ personal items (keys, key rings, pens, coins, buttons, small objects, etc.) as markers. For a more Total Physical Response (TPR) approach, mark off the floor with masking tape and the students themselves become the “markers”. Use markers on the white board to write in the learners’ or team names for larger groups. But try one or both of these simple, quick activities to jazz up a slow-starting class or as a “wake up” dynamic for longer class sessions. Then judge for yourself how your learners respond.

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an ELT Teacher Trainer, English language learning expert author and university professor in Cali, Colombia. He has published more than 350 articles and academic papers and presented at numerous EFL teacher training and TEFL conferences throughout North America, South America and Europe. For comments, questions, requests, to receive more information or to be added to his free TESOL articles and teaching materials mailing list, e-mail: lynchlarrym@gmail.com

Share This

This article gives brief information about the popular computer online games. Today online games are becoming very popular. It is important to know about the types of games that are available.

Action and adventure Games: The games which come in this genre are the ones, which involve fighting games, space adventure games, situational games where the player is required to achieve some objectives, etc. Most of the games in this genre are rich in animation and may also come with a story line.

Arcade Games: Gaming arcades earlier used to be the place in the neighborhood, where gaming machines were installed. To play a game, one must put some coins into the machine. Online arcade games are just another term.

Board Games: These are some of the most popular games. Board games played online are the same, which we play in our real life. They are animated versions of traditional and favorite board games.

Card Games: These need no explanation. Card games are ever popular with the gaming population. There are a lot of games designed with playing cards.

Casino Games: Now again, these are fairly addictive. They simulate the games available in real casinos. When you play with virtual money, there is nothing to lose. So you get a lot of people playing online casino games. You may believe it or not, but a lot of online casino games may even involve real money transactions.

Strategy Games: These are the games, which take considerable time to play and complete. The player has to apply his mind totally to devise strategies to play and win. Some people may not like strategy games, but others like these. These games may take some time to master.

Sports Games: People like to play sports games on the Internet. One does not need much time to understand sports games, if one already understands the real sport. One can have many levels of play. And there may be the option of competing against a second player or the computer itself.

Shooting Games: These are great stress busters. People can play these games and let out their anger on shooting enemies and objects in virtual games. There can be a lot of variety in shooting games. These can also be included in the action and adventure genre of games, but are kept separate due to their popularity.

Puzzle Games: These games are again very popular for people who don’t like too much action or violence. These can actually help you sharpen your mind. Puzzle games are loved by all ages. In fact there is no age group for puzzle games.

The author C.D. Mohatta writes fun quizzes and fun tests at http://www.funquizcards.com/ on topics like love, personality, dating, relationships, friendship, movies, tv, music, business, etc. The author also writes articles, advice and ideas at http://www.yourromanceguide.com/ on topics like love, dating, marriage, relationships, break-ups, etc. The third site associated with the author is http://www.yourfungames.com/ - it has free arcade games which anyone can play online.

Share This

Online games have been under fire for some months now as addictive. The facts are different. Some games are surely addictive, but benefits far outweigh the negatives. For example there is a big range of puzzle games available free online. Can puzzles be addictive? Can puzzles spoil children? Let us look at the benefits of online puzzle games in detail.

Online puzzle games benefits- every puzzle that we solve needs application of mind. No puzzle can be solved without concentrating the mind on the problem. Ultimately puzzles lead the student improve his/her logical and analytical ability. Subjects such as operations research need these qualities in abundance. Higher mathematic involves lot of game playing. Those games are different, but once your mind sharpens solving online puzzles, you can proceed to higher levels of games in mathematics that can help solve many problems.

We have been solving puzzles since ages. The only difference now is that one need not search for a book or a magazine to look for puzzles. One can get them online for free. Puzzles that involve alphabets, and numbers are a fantastic method to sharpen the ability of children in thinking. Please encourage your children solve puzzles. By depriving them that, you may drive them to something bad. Better to give them the satisfaction of solving online puzzles and sharpening their mind. Sit down with them and make the selection with them. After that give them the freedom to play and solve puzzles. You will find out the results yourself after sometime.

The author, C.D.Mohatta writes fun quizzes and fun tests at http://www.funquizcards.com/ on topics like love, personality, dating, relationships, friendship, movies, tv, music, business, etc. The second site, the author writes for, is http://www.ecarduniverse.com/ which has free ecards on holidays, birthday, love, friendship, family, expressions, celebrations and all events and occasions. One more site associated with the author is http://www.yourfungames.com/ - it has free flash games which anyone can play online.

Share This

If you’re an avid gamer, you probably enjoy most genres of games and puzzles. Someone asks if you’d like to play, and you immediately say, “I’m in!” In an admittedly informal survey of avid gamers (and after some very heated discussions), here are the games that they claimed were among the most addicting games on the planet.

Video Games

When it came to addicting video games, many of my gamer friends voted for the Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (for the GameCube) and WarioWare: Smooth Moves (for the Wii). The guys in the crowd were partial to the Burnout Series and the Gran Turismo series (for the Playstation). And those who were into role-playing games were vocal in their support of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (on the Xbox 360).

Board Games

All of my gamer friends love to play board games, and most named Monopoly as one of the most addicting games on the planet. Other traditional board games that ranked high included Scrabble and Risk. Some mentioned unique board games, such as Axis & Allies and Starfarers of Catan, while others stuck with Pictionary and Trivial Pursuit.

Card Games

When it came to card games, more than a few of my gamer friends admitted to having stayed up all night playing poker. Several owned high-end poker chip sets and planned their activities around their monthly poker games. There weren’t any bridge players in the group, but several mentioned learning old-time card games from their parents and grandparents. The fondly reminisced about playing card games of canasta, rummy, hearts, and spades as they were growing up.

Kid’s Games

All of my gamer friends said that they came from game-playing families, and that they started playing games when they were very young. Aside from card games like Old Maid and Crazy Eights, most ranked Chutes and Ladders, Sorry!, and checkers as all-time favorites. Those with kids said that some of the newer games for kids, like Cranium Cadoo and Pictionary Junior, were big hits at home, although one said that her daughter loved jigsaw puzzles more than any particular game - and had over 50 in her collection!

Strategy Games

When the subject of strategy games came up, there was an intense discussion of the merits of checkers, chess, and backgammon. The chess players in the group dismissed checkers as too simple, while the checkers players argued that the chess players were just brainiacs. Everyone did agree, though, that backgammon was one of the most addicting games on the planet.

Party Games

Naturally, all of my gamer friends often attended “game night” parties, and all agreed that 25 Words or Less and Taboo were two of the most addicting games on the planet. For more organized fun, many voted for Bunco, a mindless dice game played by 12 or more players. Everyone vouched for the fact that Bunco allows you to visit with friends while rolling the dice, accumulating points, and periodically screaming “Bunco!”

Obviously, every gamer is unique and has his or her own personal list of the most addicting games on the planet. But if you haven’t dabble in those that my gamer friends recommend, give them a try - you might find them addicting as well!

Chris Robertson is an author of Majon International, one of the worlds MOST popular internet marketing companies on the web. Learn more about The Most Addicting Games Ever or Majon’s Family and Children directory.

Share This

Want a fun way to tune up your brain? Why not use some classic mind games to help you increase your brainpower and get you out of your thinking “ruts.” Good mind games habituate you to using creative problem solving as a normal part of thinking about things.

One lateral thinking puzzle you can try right now involves nine dots, layed out three by three. You have to connect them all with four straight lines, and without lifting the pen or pencil from the paper. Figure this one out and you’ll appreciate the expression “thinking outside of the box.”

Mind Games For Groups

Some group mind games are especially good for long trips in a car. For example, someone looks out the window and randomly chooses an object. Everyone in the car then tries to imagine a new way to make money with it. Street signs become places to advertise, trees are sold with names, and a truck becomes a traveling grocery store.

The “change of perspective” technique can be used as a problem-solving game. Pick any topic, and see who can come up with the most unique new perspective. Could there be a world where jobs weren’t necessary? How would a virus define morality if it was conscious?

Another creative game for a group uses a specific technique, called “concept combination.” Simply combine random concepts or things in interesting ways, and see who has the best idea. A chair and a microwave? Maybe an easy-chair with a built-in cooler, microwave and television, or microwavable “couch potatoes” - a potato snack in the shape of a couch.

More Mind Games

Some lateral-thinking puzzles use a scenario, real or imagined, with a selection of things you have to use to accomplish something. Imagine a ping-pong ball in an iron pipe that’s set in cement. The pipe sticks up two-feet high, and has almost the same diameter as the ball. With only a box of frosted-flakes, and a t-shirt, how many ways can you find to get the ball out of the pipe? You could also set this up for real, to know if a proposed solution will really work.

Riddles are just mind games or lateral-thinking puzzles. You move laterally in your mind, away from your usual line of thought, to solve a riddle. What did his friends do when the canibal was late for dinner? Gave him the cold shoulder. Keeping your brain in shape doesn’t have to be a matter of serious study, does it?

Steve Gillman has been studying brainpower enhancement, creative problem solving, and related topics for years. You can visit his website, and subscribe to his free Mind Power Course, at: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.com/mind-power.html

Share This

In the seventies I worked in an office, and although we were fairly busy, there was downtime. When things got quiet, several of us would play “the game.” We didn’t have a real name for it, but we all knew what “the game” was.

At the merest suggestion of quiet time, we would immediately pull out a lined tablet and beginning with a line at the top we would write an “A” at the far-left and continue down the page to “Z” with each line representing a letter of the alphabet. Then we would divide the page into columns. If there were three of us playing, there would be six columns. It there were four of us playing, there would be eight columns. Each column would be given a heading like “rivers” or “politicians.”

Before starting “the game,” we would agree on a time limit. We would take turns answering the phone. We would all stop when work had to be done, so that no one had an advantage.

The object of the game would then be to write down as many rivers as we could that began with the letter “A” then “B” and so forth down the page. The winner would be the person who had the most correct answers. We all acted as a judge and we threw out all duplications. If two of us wrote down “Amazon River” neither one of us got credit. This was incentive to go beyond an easy answer.

Choosing the heading for the column was always important. Each person got to choose two headings. Generally, you want to choose a subject that you are familiar with, so that you have an edge in playing the game. For example, one friend had spent much of her early life in Eastern Washington, so she would sometimes choose “Washington counties” or “small towns in Washington.” In Washington State the Cascade Mountains divide the state into Western Washington and Eastern Washington. Most of the population is located in Western Washington along Puget Sound where I grew up, but the larger geographic area is Eastern Washington.

Two friends were older than I, so I would sometimes find myself trying to come up with “popular songs from World War II” or “radio programs.” What’s interesting is that after playing “the game” for a while, you learn the answers . . . and even obscure headings become familiar. You can learn much from playing a simple game. And I remember fondly our quiet time busily filling up the pages of lined tablets.

Since playing “the game” I have used it as a brainstorming tool. When my wife and I began selling business training products in 2001, I was overjoyed to find a three-ring binder, Pen and Paper Games For Training, which contains forty different games and activities that can be used for business training, or as the binder suggests, “Putting the Fun into Learning.” The very first activity listed is “A to Z.” It’s “the game!” The description says, “This is a fun and interesting way to brainstorm by finding words starting with every letter of the alphabet. It can be used to explore definitions and ideas.”

The Game has changed little in the last thirty years, but it has become a little more detailed. “A to Z” comes with Aims and Objectives, Overview, Applications, Trainer’s Role, Participant’s Role, Game Techniques, Resources, Step-By-Step, and Variations.

“A to Z” can be played during workshops, seminars, team meetings . . . and even during downtime. It can be used to find solutions for problems you never even knew existed. This is a great learning experience, and of course it doesn’t really matter if you win or lose, but rather . . . how you play “the game” that counts.

Author Don Doman: Don is a published author of books for small business, corporate video producer, and owner of Ideas and Training (http://www.ideasandtraining.com), which provides business training products. Don also owns and Human Resources Radio (http://www.humanresourcesradio.com), which provides business training programs and previews 24-hours a day.

Share This