| Hidayat, Super Dan on course for HK clash
HONG KONG � Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat and world number one Lin Dan remained on course for a Hong Kong Open badminton quarter-final showdown after crushing wins here yesterday. Lin �Super� Dan dispatched Englishman Andrew Smith 21-17, 21-5 while Hidayat routed China�s Chen Hong 21-11, 21-13 in just 23 minutes in the first round. Hidayat, still in search of his first Super Series title, will play South Korea�s Park Sung Hwan in round two on Thursday while Lin is strong favourite against Shoji Sato of Japan. Hidayat and Lin share badminton�s hottest rivalry, although the famously hot-tempered Indonesian has not beaten his Chinese rival since the 2005 world championship final. �I�m not thinking about Lin Dan yet,� Hidayat shrugged. �We�ll see the day after tomorrow.
PRESS RELEASE: Nintendo Kicks Off The Holidays With Two New Nintendo DS Bundles
REDMOND, Wash., Nov. 20, 2007 – Starting Nov. 23, Nintendo gives the holiday season a fresh blast of color with the launch of two special-edition Nintendo DS™ bundles. Each pairs a custom-color Nintendo DS system with one of the platform's hottest titles. The new Gold edition comes with The Legend of Zelda®: Phantom Hourglass, while the Metallic Rose Nintendo DS comes with the "Best Friends" version of Nintendogs™. "Nintendo DS remains the portable system of choice for gamers," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "Our new bundles will be collector's items for current gamers while offering an attractive way for people new to video games to play with style." With its dual screens, touch-screen, amazing franchises and innovative games, Nintendo DS has been a cornerstone of Nintendo's efforts to expand the world of video games to new audiences and to get as many people playing as possible.
(From the last 12 hours)
Artists of River Town meet Nov. 27, 6 p.m. at the Oroville Library, Mitchell and Lincoln streets. All invited. Attendees are asked to bring a piece of art to share. There will be a slide show by Rex Burress. Call 534-7690. Sewerage Commission - Oroville Region meets Nov. 28, 5 p.m. at 2880 South 5th Ave. Oroville Republican Women Federated meet Nov. 28, 11:30 a.m. at South Feather Water and Power Co., 2310 Oro Quincy Hwy. Lunch is $7. Marianne Haydon, president of Ca. Republican Women Federated will be speaker and new officers for 2008 will be installed. Retired Teachers of Oroville and South Butte County meet Dec. 5, 11:30 a.m. at the Cornucopia. This is the annual Christmas party featuring Vera Mae Robinson and Mariam Compton. All retired teachers and their guests are invited to attend.
Cubs keep Wood for $4.2 million
CHICAGO Given his history of arm problems, even Kerry Wood was surprised at all the interest he drew in free agency. While Wood was tempted to leave the Chicago Cubs, he couldn't be lured from the team he has pitched for his entire career. After making the switch to the bullpen last season after a swift recovery from shoulder problems, Wood agreed Monday to a $4.2 million, one-year deal to return to the Cubs, spurning what general manager Jim Hendry said were numerous multiyear offers elsewhere. He called his decision to stay with the Cubs an easy one. "Chicago's my home," Wood said during a conference call. "Chicago's been great to me. There's no better place to play, especially if you're winning." Wood, the 1998 NL Rookie of the Year, can make an additional $3.45 million in performance bonuses based largely on games finished from 20 to 55.
Christmas season is full of hot toys … and recalls
Years ago, I remember tromping from store to store during the Christmas season looking for a large Buzz Lightyear toy for my son. I was desperate to find the item, knowing it was at the top of my son's list. Luckily, someone returned a Buzz to a local toy store just as I called. The store held the toy for me and the story had a happy ending. Or so I thought. As many parents will attest, the toy of the moment can quickly lose its luster. Buzz was buried at the bottom of a toy box in no time. A few years later, he was garage sale fodder. I'm not sure if my son ever even played with the darned thing. Buzz wasn't the only toy I chased through the years. I have vague memories of Pokemon card quests, Power Ranger missions and WWF matches. And all of the items have wound up sold, boxed in the garage or headed to the Salvation Army.
Retailers stock up on what consumers want this holiday
Interactive games, penguins, dolls, candles and figurines are all hot gift items for the holidays this year, according to the predictions of store managers and owners.Electronic toys and games that encourage physical involvement, such as the Fisher Price Smart Cycle and Nintendo Wii, also will be popular gifts this year, area merchants said.The Smart Cycle is a colorful, stationary bike that plugs into the television set. Children pedal as they play games featuring well-known characters, such as Dora the Explorer and SpongeBob SquarePants.The Smart Cycle is expected to be one of the most popular Christmas items at the Rock Falls Wal-Mart, said Linda Carlson, store manager.The Nintendo Wii is a video game system in which participants play games by doing something physical, such as swinging a golf club or throwing a touchdown pass, rather than just sitting and pressing buttons."The control is innovative; you actually move the control.
Hot toys '07 | Retailers stocking shelves
The first trick-or-treater is barely out the door, and Christmas is already on retailers' minds. Aisles down from the costumes and candy corn are fake fir trees and candy canes. And Columbia-area merchants are quickly stocking shelves for wide-eyed children — and adults. Traditional dolls and character plushes, such as Fisher-Price's Tickle Me Elmo and Ganz's Webkinzs, are expected to sell big in Columbia, along with the new video console wonders of PlayStation 3, Xbox and Wii. The Consumer Electronics Association found that households with Internet access will spend an average of $172 on electronic toys for their children. In fact, the Guitar Hero III video game and controller set that retails for about $100 has been named an overall top seller this Christmas by Toys "R" Us.
Games Asylum » The Simpsons Game
EA recently said that they were going to pull their socks up when it comes to DS development, and you can't argue with the effort they've put into this. It comes on the largest DS cart available, contains over twenty minutes of FMV, some 3,000 speech samples, a virtual Homer to play with and a handful of retro game parodies including Frogger, Space Invaders and Gauntlet. The thing is that EA themselves aren't responsible for the effort - Amaze did all the work. Oddly their company logo has been emitted from the start up sequence and isn't shown until the end credits. Bad show, EA. Although now in 2D, it follows the same story as the bigger console versions, right down to each Simpson having their own special skills. That story being that the yellow fellows know that they're in a videogame and eventually discover that they have to face their creator if they want to escape.
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