Hillary Clinton Asks About Your Gaming Habits. Kinda.
Former first lady, current Presidential candidate, and long-time adversary of the videogame industry, Hillary Clinton, has seemingly decided to stop alienating people who play games and instead, *gasp*, reach out to them, albeit minimally.

In a recent poll on her website, among dozens of other banal questions like “Which of the following celebrity supporters would you most like to win time with?” (Rob Reiner and Chevy Chase are on the list…), Big Hill asks:

“Which of the following have you visited or played online?”

– SimCity
–Second Life
–Sims
– Other
– None of the Above
– Don’t Know

Okay, so she isn’t really digging deeper than the soccer-mom demographic here, but at least we know she, or, more likely, someone on her campaign, is thinking about gamers, something that probably wasn’t on too many presidential hopefuls mind’s the last time around.

Is she planning to set up a Second Life (pictured above) account and plaster her grill all over people’s island estates? If she could be convinced to dress up in a Master Chief costume or do some Wii Bowling with senior citizens, then my vote is as good as hers.

Small-time Titles like Halo 3, Mass Effect, Super Mario Galaxy OK!
If you want to sell millions of copies of a game this year, it appears that space is indeed the place.

The latest NPD (the group that tracks game sales) numbers show that Halo 3 has sold a tremendous 5 million copies since its release at the end of September. I have not seen the latest figures, but I know there maybe a little more than 10 million Xbox 360’s out there at the moment, so it’s safe to say Halo 3 is the 360 title to beat.

It was also announced this week that the galactic epic Xbox 360 title, Mass Effect (one of the most amazing RPGs we have played), has sold over 1 million copies in 3 weeks, as did Super Mario Galaxy (maybe the most fun Mario game of all time), for the Wii.

Call of Duty 4 Kid Busted For Online Threat
In a case of “don’t say dumb shit on a public forum,” 19-year old college student, Allieu Shaw, playing Call of Duty 4 on the Xbox Live online service, stated he would start “shooting up” his Maryland school and began laying out how his killing spree would go down.

The young dumbass was quickly reported and apprehended by the local authorities, who worked with Microsoft to track him down. Naturally, the little shit clarified the incident by saying he was “only joking” and had no intention of carrying out an attack.

Shaw faces a maximum penalty of one-year in jail or a fine of up to $5,000. Idiot.

Ghostwood might look like the Klaxons and be signed to Modular, but don’t expect any Technicolor-tinted silliness from this Sydney, Australia-based foursome. Rather, as indicated by their forthcoming, self-titled EP, these boys prefer brooding guitar chords and emotionally distraught lyrics, and sound closer to straightforward indie rock than most acts on Modular. In other words, this will not be another giddy dance party release à la Muscles or New Young Pony Club.

The EP is set for a digital-only release on January 15. Download the single “Red Version” from Modular, and gear up for somber moods and muted color schemes in 2008.

Watch the video for “Red Version.”

Tracklisting
1. Red Version
2. Blue Version
3. Ghost
4. Run
5. Pencils

San Francisco digital music academy Pyramind will again host its electronic music producers forum, Test Press Thursdays. Now in its third year, the event invites amateur and bedroom producers to debut new tracks and have them evaluated before a panel of industry experts.

The song review panels will resume their quarterly schedule again in 2008, starting January 17 and continuing throughout the year on April 17, July 17, and October 16. These will all take place at Pyramind’s new facilities at 832 Folsom St.

Test Press was started in 2005 by the electronic and dance music committee of the San Francisco Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS). Pyramind’s Greg Gordon and friends launched it as a means to empower producers and share expert tips.

Test Press’ entrants span many genres, from drum & bass to minimal techno, funky house, and electronic pop. Each producer is given feedback on his or her song’s strengths or needed improvements. Technology sponsors such as Ableton and M-Audio also present and showcase new gear at the events.

On October 13, Pyramind Institute for Advanced Digital Audio training opened its new campus and launched Epiphyte Records, which debuted the audio/DVD Test Press SF, featuring tracks by previous Test Press Thursday winners. Pyramind offers certificates in Digifesign Pro Tools, Apple Logic, Waves, Reason, and many other digital music programs.