Blog Posts by Chris Morris

Constance SteinkuehlerThe Obama administration is embracing the gamification movement in a big way.

Constance Steinkuehler has been hired as a senior policy analyst at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Sounds like a typical government title, huh? Here's the catch: She studies video games.

Steinkuehler is tasked with finding ways to use games as educational tools, including ways in which games can teach Americans everything from eating right to balancing their budget (maybe she'd like to test that one on Congress for starters).

The circle of life doesn't stop -- even in the video game world. No matter how popular a game genre might be, it's always in danger of becoming irrelevant.

Sometimes, that's due to oversaturation, or perhaps interests have simply shifted elsewhere. While no video game death is permanent, several genres are in deep hibernation -- and others are threatening to join them. Here are five game types in serious need of some extra lives.

EverQuest (Sony Online Entertainment)The game that made MMO games a viable force in the industry is going free-to-play.

EverQuest will drop its mandatory monthly pricing strategy in March, as the game hits its impressive 13^th birthday — though like other free-to-play games Sony Online Entertainment currently distributes, there will be a tiered pricing plan for players who want more features and content.

"The game will now be setup to be flexible so that you can decide how much to pay, based on how much fun you're having," said EverQuest producer Thom Terrazas in a statement.

Nintendo might have a stable of terrific game franchises and groundbreaking systems, but when it comes to online gaming, the company is woefully behind.

It's hoping to change that with its next-generation system, though, and started down that path by announcing a few details about the 'Nintendo Network' late last week.

It's a big step up from friend codes, the oft-maligned stopgap multiplayer functionality the company currently uses. The network, which will be available for the Wii U (and, ultimately, the 3DS), puts the company a step closer to catching up to online gaming leaders Microsoft and Sony.

Live ParkMicrosoft's Kinect technology has taken on a life of its own since its introduction 14 months ago. What started out as an amusing new way to play games is now being utilized by doctors and carmakers.

And now, theme park designers.

South Korea's "Live Park" opened its doors late last year, with several attractions centering on the fusion of motion capture technology and user avatars. And it's even weirder than you can imagine.

When you've got the right group of people, playing a video game online can be a blast. Opponents are evenly matched, the gameplay is never predicable, and you might even make a friend in the process.

Those sessions, unfortunately, are rare. Too often, online gaming brings out the worst in people. You'll have to deal with tirades, cheaters, and griefers, jerks who get pleasure torturing other players.

There are plenty of bad habits in the online gaming world, but here are ten of the worst.

Once the most profitable company in the video game world, Nintendo is now swimming in a sea of red ink.

Getty ImagesOn Thursday, the company announced a loss of $623 million in the nine months that ended December 31, compared to $639 million in profits a year earlier. And the bad news doesn't end there.

Nintendo has once again been forced to lower its estimates for the full year. The game maker now says it will end its fiscal year (which wraps up on March 31) with an $837 million loss -- a significant step down from the $258 million it had previously expected to lose. It will be the first annual operating loss in the company's history.

The PlayStation Vita won't hit store shelves for another month, but some critics are already declaring it a disaster, based on early sales returns.

That's quite premature -- not to mention a bit fatalistic -- but you don't get to become a multi-billion dollar, multinational company without making a few mistakes. For every Walkman and Playstation 2 there exists a handful of other Sony ideas that didn't ring true with consumers.

Some were critical flops. Some had disappointing sales. Some weren't even physical products. But, in the end, all of them fell short in one way or another. Here's hoping the Vita avoids the fate of these Sony misfires.