Mom's Minute

Prada Final Fantasy Fashion

Characters from the video game world are branching out and finding a presence in the real world's fashion and clothing industry.

Main characters from Square Enix's Final Fantasy XIII-2 video game will grace the cover of April's Arena Homme+'s magazine wearing Prada clothing.

The images are of real life models with digitally rendered faces of the Final Fantasy characters.

Square Enix found an innovative way to celebrate the Final Fantasy video game's franchise 25th anniversary by partnering with Prada.  According to Yoshinori Kitase,  producer for Final Fantasy XIII-2, the Final Fantasy series is known for its innovation, so working with Prada, a renowned fashion house, was a very exciting opportunity.

Video games and clothing are not new in partnerships.  Brands such as Adida and Brass Monki have shoes dedicated to video game characters.  Angry Birds and Minecraft are included in video games with hands in the fashion industry.  In fact, Minecraft added an additional $1million above video game sales by the partnerships.

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The entire 12 page Final Fantasy photo spread appears in the April issue of Arena Homme+s magazine that goes on sale the week of April 8, 2012.

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Penny Arcade Expo (PAX)  East video game conference is in Boston, MA April 6-8, 2012

April 6, 2012 kicks off dates when more than 150 video game companies will be at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in Boston, MA.  Not only known for indepependent video game companies, Boston, MA is recognized for video game industry social networks, video game related clothing as well as a touch screen video game table that is now in beta.

PAX East 2012

The video game exhibitors come as far away as Thailand and London, and include such companies as Harmonix Music Systems which will be debuting its Rock Band Blitz as well as  Turbine, Inc. (now WB  Games) who are developers for large scale fantasy video games including Lord of the Rings, Dungeons and Dragons, and Asheron's Call.

Rock Band Blitz 

Lord of the Rings

In addition to video games galore, at PAX East there will be panel discussions, dedicated video game tournaments, concerts and exhibit halls filled with booths displaying the latest from top publishers and developers.

Max Payne will be available for play at PAX East.

Sports video games along with a variety of other type console and PC games can be played while at PAX East.

PAX East is currently sold out of the three day passes; however passes are available for Friday and Sunday.

World Rally Championship (WRC) 3 will be released in October, 2012

It's official.  The Italian developer, Milestone, has confirmed that the latest installment of the racing video game, World Rally Championship 3 will have a release date of October, 2012.

Changes to WRC 3 include new graphics to adapt to the various video game platforms. All the ralies on the 2012 WRC calendar will be featured along with the WRC teams and drivers.

WRC 3

The race cars will  have new modeling schemas to make them look more realistic. Other improvements in the game include heightened crowd effects, new cinematic introductions at each stage, and over 50 driving teams.

Screenshot from WRC 3

WRC 3 is purported to provide effects that will offer real world racing characteristics culminating in an in-game virtual reality type experience.

Cover art for WRC 3

A specific date for the release of WRC 3 in October 2012 was not provided at press time.

WRC 3 will be playable on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita and PC.

Google Project Glass prototype

What does Google's latest venture, Project Glass has to do with video games? In first person shooter type games, there is heads up display that shows pertinent information on ammunition counts, health and objective points.   The display mode of the video games is used for information and sharing.  By the same token, Project Glass will be used for similar purposes.

Two video games Google Project Glass are using as comparison for the information  sharing and display are Deus Ex Human Revolution and Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Future Soldier.

The information display for the video games and not the game play in the video game itself is used as a reference point for Google's Project Glass. Similar to the information displayed in these video games, you will be able to see information via the special glasses for daily living. 

For example, supposed you are walking along and want to know the weather forecast.  Just put on your special glasses, and a display will appear showing the weather forecast similar to the picture shown above. Or maybe you are getting ready to use the subway and want to know if it's in service. Slip on your glasses and the information you want to know is right there in front of you.

Why is the Google team introducing this technology to you now?  Apparently,  they would like to know your comments, or what you think about Project Glass.  Here is an excerpt from the team seeking your input.

"We think technology should work for you -- to be there when you need it and get out of your way when you don't. A     group of us from Google [x] stared Project Glass to build this kind of technology, one that helps you explore and share your world, putting you back in the moment. We're sharing this information now because we want to start a conversation and learn from your valuable input. So we took a few design photos to show what this technology could look like and created a video to demonstrate what it might enable you to do.

Please follow along as we share some of our ideas and stories.  We'd love to hear yours too. What would you like to see from Project Glass?" 

Google has a youtube video posted demonstrating what Project Glass is expected to do.

Editorial Note: If Project Glass comes to fruition, safety of the individual wearing them should be paramount when measured against the ease of obtaining information.