Kotaku: Tournaments

Nintendo Launches Worldwide Mario Kart Wii Tourneys

Mike Fahey — Thu, 01 May 2008 09:20:00 MDT

The online competition heats up today as Nintendo introduces the first in a series of worldwide Mario Kart Wii tournaments. Every few weeks a new special tournament challenge will appear on the Mario Kart Channel, allowing players to attempt them as many times as they'd like for the duration of said challenge, with the best times sent to the worldwide rankings to see how they stack up to the competition. Challenges can range from simply getting the best times with a certain character to using specific control setups or collecting the most coins. The first tournament should be up today, challenging gamers to get the fastest time on the Mario Circuit...with a twist. This is a pretty nifty way to keep fans coming back to the game, allowing them to prove their Mario Kart prowess without being a complete jerk about it.

Nintendo Announces Worldwide Mario Kart Wii Tournaments
Nintendo has thrown down the gauntlet for Mario Kart® Wii racers worldwide. Now it's time to see who's up to the challenge, as players take on the world in Mario Kart Wii Tournaments.

Every few weeks, a new tournament will appear on the Mario Kart Channel, an online feature that not only allows players to compete in tournaments, but also exchange race data with friends. Tournaments might take the form of a challenge for players to race a certain course as fast as they can with specific characters, or to collect a number of coins on a course using the Wii Wheel™ accessory or another control setup. They can feature unique rules or obstacles on the course.

The first tournament, which appears today, directs racers to compete for the fastest time on the Mario Circuit. Look closely though - something may be different. Players can attempt the challenge as often as they like during the duration of the tournament. Their best time will be recorded and added to the worldwide rankings, allowing players to see how they stack up against the best racers from around the world.

Coke Using Gaming Tournaments For Marketing

Maggie Greene — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 14:30:08 MDT

Not content with billboards, giant Coke bottles that tower several stories high in high-traffic pedestrian zones, and a pretty overwhelming market share, Coke has decided to go after Chinese gamers using the ubiquitous internet cafes and gaming tournaments. In partnering with GGL to roll out the tournaments, Coke will be reaching "15 provinces, 100 cities and 4,000 cybercafes." In addition to the fun of participating in targeted advertising, "the winner of the iCoke tournaments will be flown to New York to compete in the 2007 Digital Life gaming tournament, which will take place Sept. 27-30." But fear not, while Coke may be going after the potentially lucrative Chinese market first, the tournaments should be coming to a country near you soon:

there are plans to roll out the initiative with Coke in other countries, including Brazil, Japan and Korea and eventually the U.S. and Western Europe. Entry into some of those countries will start later this year.

Thrilling! ... Maybe I'm still just a touch bitter about the shunning of Diet Coke in favor of Coke Zero at convenience stores all across Taipei. Damn you, 可口可樂.

Coke's Got Game in China [AdWeek]

CBS Televising Game Tournament Tomorrow

Maggie Greene — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 13:30:39 MDT

Tomorrow at noon EST, CBS will be airing the first part of four consisting of footage from last month's World Series of Video Games tournament. We covered this back in May, but the first date is finally upon us. The program will be featuring Guitar Hero II, World of Warcraft and Fight Night Round 3. The New York Times has even picked up on the show and has a quick look at the potentials and pitfalls of bringing gaming to a mainstream channel:

But for gaming to make it as a major-network TV sport, the big hurdle will be translating a medium that is by its nature meant to be experienced firsthand into a compelling hands-off spectator experience. It is a task that in some ways is no less daunting than that of the early baseball television producers who eventually realized that a camera way out in center field would provide the best view of pitches.

My boyfriend already set the TiVO. We'll see how this goes and (perhaps more importantly) what the ratings are like after the fact.

Video Game Matches to Be Televised on CBS [NYT]