The grant to the universities – N.C. State and Georgia Tech – is part of the federal stimulus package and will span four years of research. Phase one of this study will seek to identify the qualities a game must have to improve cognition – memory, problem-solving, critical thinking and the like.”

“We want to determine the components an effective game should have,” said Dr. Anne McLaughlin, an assistant professor of psychology at N.C. State, and the study’s principal investigator.

After determining which game qualities deliver the greatest improvement in cognitive function, phase two will seek to develop guidelines for “a new class of video game for older adults,” and also develop a prototype game that follows those guidelines. State seems to be supplying the analysis, with Tech coming in to create the game. The study will last from September this year to August 2013.

Boom Blox was chosen as the study game because its “novelty, attentional demand and social interaction may be manipulated by the researchers.”

I think it’s significant for a number of reasons: They’re moving the Wii-as-therapy fad beyond the examination of physical benefits. They’re starting with a reasonably current and commercially successful title. And they’re trying to spur games development. (And I went to N.C. State, but no one should really care about that.)

Study to See if Video Games Can Boost Thinking Skills in Elderly [Eurekalert.org thanks Jason]

Video game designer Robin Hunicke, noticeable at any gaming event for having the reddest hair of anyone in attendance, is trading her big-company background for ThatGameCompany, a sign that the small studio behind Flow and Flower is growing its ranks.

Hunicke had served as lead designer on MySims, the Wii spin-off of the classic PC series that itself has launched MySims spin-offs. She also was a producer on the original Boom Blox and the sequel, Boom Blox Bash Party, which launches this week.

In an e-mail to Kotaku, Hunicke explained her move:

“I’ve always pushed to try new things. With MySims, we reached beyond core Sims compulsions, embracing a whole new range of casual game mechanics. With Boom Blox, we channeled the beauty and complexity of physics into an edge-of-your-seat game that’s also extremely accessible. Add intuitive editors and online features (a huge win for Bash Party) – and you’re allowing people to create and share experiences in a whole new way.

“These projects, GDC and Experimental Gameplay, teaching, research… all my work is united by a single thread. I want to reach new people, with new experiences, via the medium of games and the language of game design. TGC was founded with similar goals in mind, and is at the forefront of the indie movement as a result. The blend of emotion and exploration they have achieved with their titles is what sets them apart.

“It’s funny – I don’t think I fully appreciated their impact until I began telling folks about my new gig. ‘Oooh, Flower,’ they’d say, smiling. ‘I really *loved* that game!’ And in their voice I could hear this… resonance. It’s a connection to the game and its creators that goes beyond the experience itself. That’s the kind of connection I want to help bring to life!”

ThatGameCompany co-founder Kellee Santiago wouldn’t let slip what Hunicke will work on, but said “Her talents as a designer and her experience and skill as a producer make her an asset to any team, but make her a perfect fit for thatgamecompany, where we’re trying not only to change what games are made, but how they’re made. I think Robin is going to push us all to greater heights in video game development.”

Normally a job reserved for Japanese idols, voice actors and bikini models, EA has tapped Mr. Spielberg to hold aloft his latest Wii creation, showing expert product placement with a hint of a smile that shows just how pleasing a game of Boom Blox Bash Party can be.

Kudos go out to Spielberg’s stylist, who downplays the Steven with a tasteful, homogeneously brown blend of merino wool, suede and corduroy, so as not to distract from the Boom Blox Bash Party box art.

The original Boom Blox may have been a critical hit, but it never quite sold up to expectations.

Finally a set of screenshots for EA’s Boom Blox Bash Party that accurately portray what a true Bash Party should look like.

We’ve gotten holiday cards, lots of holiday cards; holiday songs;, even a holiday video, but this is our first ever holiday cheat codes.

Electronic Arts sends along their well wishes for a bright new year and the codes to unlock most everything in their Steven Spielberg-backed Wii title Boom Blox.

At the BOOM BLOX title screen, hit up, right, down, left on the D-pad button

Type in the codes below using the keyboard
Pandoras Blox: Unlocks all levels in the game
Tool Pool: Unlocks all the toys in Create Mode
Nonstop Props: Unlocks all the props in Create Mode
Critter Litter: Unlocks all the characters in Create Mode

He tells Yahoo! Games’ Celebrity Byte that he and his family bond over games of Guitar Hero and Rock Band, with Steven on the drums. They’re not just playing Boom Blox to keep dad happy.

Spielberg himself is more of an action man, playing titles like Call of Duty 4 and Half-Life, raised on Pong which he calls the “Woodstock of video gaming.” He’s not a fan, however, of cut scenes in video games.

“You know the thing that doesn’t work for me in these games are the little movies where they attempt to tell a story in between the playable levels,” he says. “That’s where there hasn’t been a synergy between storytelling and gaming.”

Spielberg says more needs to be done in the providing a “universal narrative” in video game storytelling.

“They go to a lot of trouble to do these [motion-capture] movies that explain the characters. And then the second the game is returned to you and it’s under your control, you forget everything the interstitials are trying to impact you with, and you just go back to shooting things,” Spielberg laments.

But we like shooting things, Steven.

A Close Encounter with Steven Spielberg [Celebrity Byte]

LittleBigPlanet may be the stunt-modder’s level design palette of choice these days, with some truly spectacular creations, but its not the only game in town.

Speilbergian Wii favourite Boom Blox comes with a nifty level editor too, and someone has spent a lot of time waggling that WiiMote to create Boom Bloxified recreations of 8-bit classic including Galaga, Duck Hunt, Pac-Man and Donkey Kong.

8 Bit Games Recreated in Boom Blox [GoNintendo]

Variety also reports that a sequel to Boom Blox was in the works at the Blueprint group and by developers around the world, but that the project has since shifted to EA’s Sims & Casual division. So, to sum up, a development division you weren’t supposed to know anything about or likely weren’t aware of is no more and a sequel to a game you knew was coming is on the way.

Electronic Arts shuts down Blueprint, making Boom Blox 2 [Variety]

“Boom Blox from EA Casual continues to sell well”, EA CEO John Riccitiello said in today’s quarterly earnings conference call, adding that the Wii game “is judged by many to be one of the best Wii titles this year”.

Since launch, Boom Blox has sold over 450,000 copies, meeting EA’s expectations, according to CFO Eric Brown, keeping Spielberg in fresh baseball caps. EA execs didn’t specify whether those figures were worldwide or not, but we’ll assume they are for now.