ZIZZY’s blog

You may have played NewsBreaker before, where you destroy blocks and attempt to catch the falling news stories from MSNBC.com. Now, this game is coming to movie theaters where the audience will work together to play it. And as if a few loud, annoying movie goers who stand up in front of you, can’t seem to sit still, and generally disrupt your peaceful theater experience wasn’t bad enough, now the entire audience will be participating. The press release (found after the jump) explains:

“NewsBreaker Live combines live msnbc.com RSS newsfeeds, the movement of the audience as a human joystick, and the big screen as a game board to bust audiences out of their pre-movie doldrums with an interactive game that delivers real-time news headlines to kick start the moviegoing experience”

The audience will move as one to control the game and break the blocks, using “groundbreaking motion-sensor technology” they call “CrowdGaming.” The news headlines they try and catch will come in real-time from MSNBC.com, so not only are you trying to get points, but to “accumulate knowledge.”

While this does sound like it could be more interesting then the usual stream of repetitive advertisements and useless movie trivia (along with annoying songs in the background) that plasters most screens before the movie, it sounds like the kind of idea that might not actually work as well as it appears on paper (or in this case, on your screen). Even if the game actually picks up the crowd’s movements accurately, there will be groups of people who choose to play the much more entertaining game of ruining everyone’s fun by moving in the wrong direction and failing to catch anything.

[Via Kotaku]

MSNBC.COM’S NEWSBREAKER LIVE BUSTS AUDIENCES OUT OF THEIR PRE-MOVIE DOLDRUMS WITH A LIVE VIDEO GAME EXPERIENCE

Interactive Game Keeps Moviegoers Entertained and Up-to-Date with Msnbc.com Headlines; Summer Blockbusters a ‘Moving’ Experience

Redmond, Wash. - May 7, 2007 - Msnbc.com liberates movie audiences from the out-of-date trivia, static billboards and the impatience of waiting for the summer blockbusters to begin with NewsBreaker Live, the first in-theater, audience participatory video game. Modeled after classic video games, NewsBreaker Live combines live msnbc.com RSS newsfeeds, the movement of the audience as a human joystick, and the big screen as a game board to bust audiences out of their pre-movie doldrums with an interactive game that delivers real-time news headlines to kick start the moviegoing experience.

NewsBreaker Live will have moviegoers of all ages swaying, swinging and rocking in their seats by utilizing groundbreaking motion-sensor technology dubbed “CrowdGaming,” which tracks the entire audience’s collective movement to control the game. Working together as a human joystick, the audience will move in sync to smash up msnbc.com’s colorful brick spectrum of news with a bouncing ball and paddle. As each brick breaks, real-time headlines from msnbc.com fall. The audience then accumulates points and knowledge by using the paddle to capture the headlines before they drop off the screen while simultaneously maneuvering the paddle to keep the bouncing ball moving to break new bricks.

“This summer, instead of waiting impatiently for movies to start, msnbc.com’s NewsBreaker Live lets moviegoers in on the action,” said Catherine Captain, vice president of marketing, msnbc.com. “We developed the game for the msnbc.com consumer who we know enjoys the experience of finding news. It’s designed to bring to life the msnbc.com experience they value, the compelling, original and quirky stories told in a colorful and entertaining manner, as well as give them the opportunity to discover and engage with the brand beyond the computer screen.”

Exclusively at National Amusement’s The Bridge: Cinema de Lux, NewsBreaker Live will debut in Los Angeles during the opening weekend of Spider-Man 3 and be featured as the opening act for the summer’s most anticipated blockbusters including Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Shrek the Third, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer and Transformers in Philadelphia and White Plains, NY throughout May, June and July.

In addition to NewsBreaker Live, msnbc.com introduced the NewsStream screensaver and NewsBreaker online game, two entertaining and innovative ways for news explorers to keep up-to-date on the current news that fuels intellectual debate, watercooler conversations and cocktail party chit chat. Powered by msnbc.com’s RSS newsfeeds, both online tools offer news across the spectrum, ranging from business and entertainment to health and travel, bound to appeal to everyone’s interests.

Whether you’re a sports fanatic, entertainment aficionado, political enthusiast or news generalist, the NewsStream screensaver provides the latest headlines on the topics that interest you. News explorers can customize their screensavers to deliver news tailored to their interest by selecting to receive any combination of msnbc.com’s 14 category feeds at a time. As headlines pop out from a full spectrum of stories on the monitor, consumers can click on them and link to the full story on msnbc.com.

In NewsBreaker, the online version of NewsBreaker Live, players climb through ten game levels in total with each progressive level featuring a more challenging round of play. As they advance levels, the headlines will fall faster and players will have to move more quickly to gather them all. Scores are posted to a global leader board enabling gamers to compare their results against one another.

To arm themselves with the latest news, entertainment and information, news explorers can download the NewsStream screensaver at www.spectrum.msnbc.com and the NewsBreaker game at www.newsbreakergame.com.

The msnbc.com NewsBreaker Live game was conceived with New York-based strategic communications firm SS+K and brought to life with interactive design company the Brand Experience Lab. The revolutionary technology was developed in conjunction with Etcetera Edutainment, a sub-set of Carnegie Mellon University’s Entertainment Technology Center.

The NewsBreaker Live in-cinema game, the NewsBreaker online game and the NewsStream downloadable screensaver are all part of msnbc.com’s new branding campaign - A Fuller Spectrum of News - that exemplifies the colorful journey and multiple perspectives of news, entertainment and information consumers experience on its site. Msnbc.com launched the campaign in early April on TV, in print, and online.