SoftKinetic Studios, the games & application division of SoftKinetic, in partnership with Fuel Entertainment , today announced brODDcast, a puppeteering title for natural gesture recognition-based platforms.brODDcast lets anyone control on-screen puppets using their own body movements to create unique theatrical performances that can be shared online.

The first in a new series of “imagination play” titles from SoftKinetic Studios and Fuel Entertainment , brODDcast enables anyone to create HD-quality puppet performances and share them with the world, without content restrictions or technical knowhow. The game includes a plethora of customization options to make every puppet and every setting unique; users can quickly add and mix audio, change set pieces, add visual FX, and even layer in new performances. In addition, players will be able to collaborate with others to create a performance and upload their final masterpieces to the sharing site of their choice.

“To make brODDcast accessible and enjoyable for all ages, we’re leveraging SoftKinetic Studios’ expertise in building immersive gesture-based entertainment,” said Mike Burns, chief creative officer at Fuel Entertainment . “We feel we’ve made new form of interactive entertainment that’s as much fun to play as it is to watch. It draws people in, getting the whole room laughing and participating.”

brODDcast features:

• 1:1 full body avatar control; puppets mimic players’ motions in real time
• Design your own puppets, customizing included characters or starting from scratch
• Simultaneous puppeteering with two or more people
• Everything is sharable online, from funny greetings and silly skits, to drama or current events; let your imagination run wild
• Audio options include players’ voice (with lip sync), vocal modifications, sound effects or downloaded sound clips
• Sets and props are fully interactive, with animated object interaction
• Photo booth tool allows users to pose and snap pictures of their puppets
• Performances can be edited, augmented and exported as movies
• Weekly and monthly expansion packs will offer fresh content

“brODDcast is the first interactive title of its kind to explore imagination play. Using natural gesture recognition allows people to easily create any performance they can dream up,” said Mike Nichols, general manager at SoftKinetic Studios. “The ability to share HD quality movies online opens up a whole new way to share and play creatively.”

About Fuel Industries

Fuel Entertainment is a 2nd generation Entertainment Studio specializing in the development of 360° transmedia kids properties, delivering vibrant characters, storylines and experiences through a variety of innovative channels, ranging from mobile and console to social and web. Properties include the tween girl-targeted MMO Spark City World, upcoming PS3 titleSideway and Fairies & Dragons, featured in Europe as a McDonald’s Happy Meal promotion. The studio’s parent company is award-winning Digital Creative Agency Fuel Industries, with locations in Los Angeles, Seattle and Ottawa, Canada. Passionate about redefining the interactive agency and inventing the future of online content, Fuel’s clients and joint venture partners include Microsoft, McDonald’s, W!ILDBRAIN and FremantleMedia Enterprises. For additional information, visitwww.fuelindustries.com or Fuel Entertainment:www.fuelentertainment.com

About SoftKinetic

SoftKinetic’s vision is to transform the way people interact with the digital world. SoftKinetic is the leading provider of gesture-based platforms for the consumer electronics and professional markets. The company offers a complete family of 3D imaging and gesture recognition solutions, including patented 3D CMOS time-of-flight sensors and cameras (DepthSense™ family of products, formerly known as Optrima product family), multi-platform and multi-camera 3D gesture recognition middleware and tools (iisu™ family of products) as well as games and applications from SoftKinetic Studios.

With over 8 years of R&D on both hardware and software, SoftKinetic solutions have already been successful used in the field of interactive digital entertainment, consumer electronics, health care and other professional markets (such as digital signage and medical systems). SoftKinetic, iisu, DepthSense and Interface Is You are tradenames or registered trademarks of SoftKinetic. For more information on SoftKinetic please visit http://www.SoftKinetic.com. For videos of SoftKinetic related products visit SoftKinetic’s YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/SoftKinetic

• Wii Fit Plus for only $77 – Target’s lowest price ever! (Includes Wii Balance Board and Wii Fit Plus game).
• Free $5 Target GiftCard® with the purchase of Fable III ($59.99 for Xbox 360), Rock Band 3 and The Sims 3 ($59.99 each for Xbox 360, PS3, Wii). Available October 26 at 8 a.m.
• Free comic book with the purchase of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II ($59.99 for the Xbox 360, PS3; $49.99 for Wii). Available October 26 at 8 a.m.
• Free WWE action figure with the purchase of WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2011 ($59.99 for the Xbox 360, PS3; $49.99 for Wii). Available October 26 at 8 a.m.
• Shaun White Skateboarding with three exclusive bonus challenges ($59.99 for the Xbox 360, PS3; $49.99 for Wii). Available October 24 at 8 a.m.

Tech Savings for Capturing the Fun!

• Free $15 Target GiftCard with the purchase of the Flip Ultra HD camcorder ($149.99)
• Nikon D3100 14.2 megapixel digital SLR camera on sale for $649.99 (save $50)

Those gamers lucky enough to have the 2009 Penny Arcade Expo on their calendars will have an even better chance to check out The PEREGRINE, where the gaming glove will be on display at booth #1342.

The videos are presented by Pu “Whisper” Liu, the pro gamer from Team Evil Geniuses who lays claim to the #1 Warcraft III: Dawn of the Ancients (DotA) ranking in North America, as well multiple eSports World Cup USA DotA championships. An avid user of The PEREGRINE, Whisper shows in the videos how the glove allows users to instantly trigger over 30 in-game abilities literally with the touch of a finger, speeding up their response time while simultaneously offering a more comfortable and intuitive gaming experience.

The videos can be viewed here.

“We unveiled The PEREGRINE to the world at E3 and the response was even better than we could have imagined,” said Brent Baier, inventor of the Peregrine. “We can’t wait to show it off to even more people with the first videos of the product in action, and our hands-on debut at PAX.”

“Everyone on The PEREGRINE team is on the edge of our seats waiting for the first gloves to roll off the assembly line, because we truly believe it will change the way people play games,” added Baier, CEO of Iron Will Innovations, the think tank founded to bring revolutionary products like The PEREGRINE to life. “What started more than five years ago as the dream of a starving engineering student is starting to truly take shape, and it’s exhilarating!”

More details can be found here.

PAX Details:
Friday, September 4 through Sunday, September 6
Booth #: 1342

  The G5 was easy to install, runs on USB port, and is comfortable to navigate. There is the general scroll wheel, a left mouse button, aright mouse button, which is on all mice. But this mouse doesn’t stop with that. There are 2 left thumb buttons that can be assigned to keys, or for shooting. There are 3 indicator lights on the top. The bottom houses a removable weight cartridge, for better control. Weights are included.

  The speed is 400, 800 or 2000 dpi, and is adjustable. Maximum speed is 20 g. It has a 6.4 mega pixel per second processor. When I began using it, I could tell immediately the difference it made not only while playing World of Warcraft. The entire computer seems to go faster, and the computer I own goes fast, as it is. The right hand grip is made to cause less fatigue. I need to get used to the feeling of it. I like the feeling of the material covering the plastic, it does not slip in the palm. The rounded shape cushions my palm. My wrist need to break it in a bit. My arm wants to control it straight,  instead of relaxing.

The speed that the mouse pointer runs  is 45–65 inches/second, and glides over surfaces. The laser technology is noticeable in the movement across the  mouse pad. It is the smoothest moving mouse I’ve ever had. It is precise. I’m glad I purchased it, I wonder why I waited so long. The price was 59.99 at Best Buy, and is compatible with Window’s Vista.

SwitchBlade PRO has all the PC game play muscle of the original SwitchBlade, plus powerful new features including support for PlayStation 3 SIXAXIS controllers, pre-configured game “Blades” for more than 20 popular games, and the new BladeBuilderTM tool that allows gamers to build and share their own customized game support Blades. Additionally, SwitchBlade PRO introduces the new Texter™ system that let’s gamers send text messages right from their game controllers.

In addition to the debut of SIXAXIS support, SwitchBlade PRO features the patented and unique Texter™ technology for messaging and chatting in games using only the controller. Natural thumb button movements produce all the characters and numbers needed for easy convenient messaging from the user’s controller, with stored phrases and full configuration provided through SwitchBlade PRO’s configuration menus. Fully animated onscreen tools guide the user through typing messages, displaying commonly-used phrases and providing the ability to text in other Windows applications.

“After receiving feedback from many of the more than 100,000 people who have downloaded SwitchBlade, we’ve implemented what they’ve liked best, and added the new features they wanted. SwitchBlade PRO is the result,” commented Peter McAlindon, PhD., president and CEO of Blue Orb. “SwitchBlade PRO users will continue to experience a growing assortment of supported games—with Blades developed both by Blue Orb game experts and players using the great new BladeBuilder tool.”

SwitchBlade PRO is intuitive, easy to use software that brings the fully configured controller experience to the most popular PC games, including World of Warcraft®, Guild Wars®, Half-Life® 2, Call of Duty® 4, Age of Conan® and now Warhammer® Online: Age of ReckoningTM. SwitchBlade PRO provides THE console gaming experience to gamers playing PC games. Support is now provided for both the PlayStation® 3 and Xbox 360® controllers, with additional controller types slated to debut later this year.

Dr. McAlindon commented further, “Gamers have told us they wanted in-game messaging capability right from their controller. The patented Texter system gives them this capability, plus a powerful stored phrase feature that makes sending messages quick and easy.”

SwitchBlade PRO will be available on a subscription basis for $1.99 per month, or $19.99 per year, and can be downloaded from www.switchbladepro.com or www.switchbladegaming.com starting October 1, 2008.

About Blue Orb, Inc. – Blue Orb, Inc. is a high technology company located in Maitland, Florida that specializes in the research, production, distribution, and licensing of advanced software solutions for gaming, computing, and communications devices. The company’s mission is to create and bring to market innovative products that enhance the gaming experience. For more information on Blue Orb, our products, and licensing opportunities, please visit our Web site at www.switchbladegaming.com/.