LONDON (Reuters) ? The sovereign debt crisis crippling the euro zone still threatens other developed economies, leaving Britain and Japan teetering on the edge of recession but with the United States seen several paces away from a slump, a Reuters poll found.
Reuters polls of over 250 economists taken over the past week found hatchets taken to 2012 forecasts for the euro zone, Britain and Japan as ultra-loose monetary policies have failed to stimulate enough growth.
Once-booming economies in Asia have also felt the effects of the slowdown, but earlier on Wednesday China pledged to guarantee growth in the face of an "extremely grim" outlook for the global economy in 2012.
European Union leaders made an historic step towards fiscal union last week but there are fears it will not be enough to ease the debt crisis that has brought the bloc to its knees. Financial markets have reacted negatively.
"The move decided towards fiscal union can contribute to calm market fears, but not quickly," said Jean-Louis Mourier, economist at Aurel BGC.
The 17-nation bloc is already in a recession that will last until next April and growth will be flat next year, according to the latest Reuters poll.
Britain's 2012 growth forecast was slashed to just 0.6 percent from 1.0 percent a month earlier. Analysts gave an even chance that Britain, whose main trading partner is Europe, would fall back into recession within the next 12 months.
Economists predicted Japan's economy will shrink in the fiscal year to next March thanks to the yen's relentless strength as well as supply chain disruptions from a devastating earthquake earlier this year.
But the U.S. economy, the world's biggest, probably picked up speed in the last few months and will grow moderately in 2012, staving off the need for additional stimulus from the Federal Reserve.
U.S. growth was expected to average 2.1 percent next year, unchanged from November's poll, and more than half the economists polled said they do not expect the Fed to undertake another round of quantitative easing next year, known as "QE3."
"It's still this very gradual recovery, picking up a little bit more steam, but not really making up a lot of the ground that was lost in the labor market," said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James.
A surprise drop in the unemployment rate last month to 8.6 percent, as well as relatively strong consumer spending has buoyed growth expectations for the current quarter, with forecasts revised up.
But GDP growth is expected to slow sharply to 1.8 percent in the first quarter, providing scant relief to U.S. President Barack Obama ahead of an election year.
At its annual policy-setting conference Beijing delivered a series of commitments to deliver economic stability, laying out a blueprint for the world's second-biggest economy in the year ahead. It promised to keep monetary policy "prudent," fiscal policy "pro-active" and consumer prices stable.
Major central banks have slashed interest rates to record lows and pumped trillions of dollars into the money supply in an attempt to heat up tepid growth.
The European Central Bank -- which hiked interest rates earlier this year before performing an about-turn -- is seen cutting them to a record low of 0.75 percent early next year.
Across the Channel, the Bank of England -- which has already cut rates to 0.5 percent -- is seen increasing its asset purchase program next year by an additional 75 billion pounds.
Analysts expect the Bank of Japan to stick to its ultra-easy monetary policy until the end of the fiscal year to March 2013 at least and also see a chance of further easing steps.
The BOJ has expressed its readiness to offer additional stimulus if its scenario of a moderate recovery is threatened.
"There is a possibility the BOJ will ease policy in January-March if share prices tumble and the yen further appreciates on the back of overseas dismay," said Yoshiki Shinke, a senior economist at Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute.
In that case, "The BOJ may top up its asset buying scheme or it may change what it buys in the scheme."
(Additional reporting by Andy Bruce, Leah Schnurr in New York and Kaori Kaneko in Tokyo; Editing by Catherine Evans)
THE HAGUE, Netherlands ? The world court ruled Monday that Greece was wrong to block Macedonia's bid to join NATO in 2008 because of a long-running dispute over the fledgling country's use of the name "Macedonia."
In a 15-1 ruling, the court found that Greece's veto breached a 1995 deal under which Greece had agreed not to block Macedonia's membership in international organizations if it used the name "The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" while the matter was submitted to U.N. mediation. More than 15 years later, discussions over the name are still unresolved.
Although the question of Macedonia's name is sometimes seen as superficial by outsiders, it is a matter of deep concern for both sides. The young country has used the name in one form or another since shortly after World War II, when it was a province of Yugoslavia, but Greece sees use of the name as historically inaccurate at best and a potential threat to its territorial integrity at worst.
Monday's victory is largely symbolic since the court didn't order Greece to alter its stance in the future.
The U.N.'s highest court, formally known as the International Court of Justice, found that the ruling itself "constitutes appropriate satisfaction" for The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, said presiding Judge Hisashi Owada, reading the written decision.
But the ruling does lends moral weight to the small country's protests that Greece's moves to block it from joining NATO and the European Union are unfair.
Ordinary Macedonians appeared pleased.
"Finally, a little justice for Macedonia!" said housewife Marina Stevcevska, 49, after hearing of the ruling.
"After years of disappointments for this country, finally we have received a good news, somebody to tell Greece that it is doing wrong, that is enough", she said.
Outside the courtroom, Greece's Dutch Ambassador Ioannis Economides urged Macedonia "to resist using today's decision to subvert the negotiations," and NATO Chief Fogh Rasmussen said in Brussels that Macedonia still won't be admitted to the alliance until the name issue is resolved.
Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov said Greece should "respect the judgment of the International Court of Justice."
"For the time being, we do not want to look through the categories of winners and losers," he said, promising to continue the negotiations.
Though colloquial use of calling the country "Macedonia" has grown, U.N. documents refer to it consistently as "The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia," while Greece refers to it by the acronym "FYROM" ? apparently to avoid even spelling out the word "Macedonia" in relation to the country. The country calls itself the "Republic of Macedonia."
U.N. envoy Matthew Nimetz said Monday he had urged both countries "to view this event as an opportunity to think constructively about their mutual relationship and to consider a renewed initiative to reach a definitive solution to the 'name' issue."
There was little opposition from Athens to the Yugoslav territory using the name Macedonia from World War II until it declared independence in 1991. The country occupies much of the territory in the region that was known as Macedonia in the times of Alexander the Great in the 4th century B.C.
But over the centuries the region has undergone such complete ethnic and cultural changes as to render use of the name nonsensical, Greece argues ? not to mention that Greece has its own province called Macedonia.
The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is now composed mostly of Slavic peoples who speak a language similar to Bulgarian ? and Bulgaria was a bitter military enemy to Greece in the first half of the 20th century.
Greece is concerned that if the country uses the name Macedonia, that will eventually lead it, possibly together with Bulgaria, to stake claims to parts of modern Greece.
Macedonia has been friendly to NATO since its independence, allowing U.S. troops to use its territory as a staging ground during the Yugoslav wars. NATO clashed with Serbia under the rule of Slobodan Milosevic, even as Greece sympathized with Belgrade due to historical strategic and religious ties.
Under the 1995 interim agreement, Greece dropped economic sanctions against Macedonia in exchange for the temporary compromise on the name and Macedonia stopped using an ancient Macedonian flag and amending articles of its constitution which could be seen as hinting at claims to Greek territory.
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AP reporters Elena Becatoros and Derek Gatopoulos contributed from Athens and Konstantin Testorides contributed from Skopje, Macedonia.
BRUSSELS ? The European Union's antitrust watchdog is probing whether Apple helped five major publishing houses illegally raise prices for e-books when it launched its iPad tablet and iBookstore in 2010.
The probe, announced Tuesday by the European Commission, offers a glimpse into the fierce fight for shares of the growing e-book market, especially as Apple has tried to take on Amazon and its Kindle e-book reader. It also highlights the struggle for profits between retailers and publishers, as more and more readers download books electronically.
In particular, the Commission is investigating a significant shift in the way the price of e-books is determined that occurred in 2010, just as Cupertino, California-based Apple introduced the iPad and its own online bookshop, iBookstore.
Apple was the first retailer that allowed publishers to move to so-called agency agreements, which let publishers set the price that online bookshops sell e-books to consumers. Until then, publishers were able to set the wholesale price of e-books, while retailers decided what price to sell them on to readers.
"The Commission has concerns that these practices may breach EU antitrust rules that prohibit cartels and restrictive business practices," the regulator said in a statement.
Giving publishers the power to set retail prices could effectively restrict competition between online bookshops, since it takes away individual retailers' powers to set lower prices. Since Apple's deal with the publishers, several other online retailers have also shifted to the agency model, possibly in an attempt to secure the rights to sell popular e-books.
The EU investigation targets publishers Hachette Livre, a unit of France's Lagardere Publishing; Harper Collins, owned by Rupert Murdoch's U.S.-based News Corp.; CBS Corp.'s Simon & Schuster; Penguin, which is owned by U.K. publishing house Pearson Group; and Germany's Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck, which owns Macmillan.
The Commission stressed the probe was in its early stages and did not mean the companies actually broke EU competition law. It follows a similar investigation by Britain's Office of Fair Trading and a class action lawsuit against the same five publishers and Apple filed this summer in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
The U.K. agency on Tuesday closed its own probe, since the Commission has taken over the case, but said it was cooperating closely with the EU investigation. It said its investigation was triggered by several complaints, without naming any names.
Apple representative Bethan Lloyd said the company would decline to comment at this time.
Pearson said the fact that the Commission has opened a probe did not prejudge its outcome. "Pearson does not believe it has breached any laws, and will continue to fully and openly cooperate with the Commission," it said.
Holtzbrinck echoed that statement, saying it found the Commission's case "without reason."
HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster said they are cooperating with the investigation, while Hachette Livre declined to comment.
The e-book market has been dominated by Amazon.com Inc. and its Kindle reader, with both Apple and Barnes & Noble's Nook reader fighting to break in.
In a summary of its complaint, the U.S. law firm Hagens Berman, which filed the U.S. class-action suit, claims that "Apple believed that it needed to neutralize the Kindle when it entered the e-book market with its own e-reader, the iPad, and feared that one day the Kindle might challenge the iPad by digitally distributing other media like music and movies."
The lawsuit also alleges that, following Apple's deals, Amazon was forced to abandon its discount pricing model and move to the agency model.
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Robert Barr in London, Hillel Italie in New York, Elaine Ganley in Paris, and Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin contributed to this report.
This product photo provided by Spin Master Ltd, shows the Appblaster. The $19.99 AppBlaster, a plastic gun for kids over 8 years old. After slipping an iPhone or iPad touch on top of the AppBlaster, kids can shoot at aliens that pop up on the screen. (AP Photo/Spin Master Ltd, Tom Szuba)
This product photo provided by Spin Master Ltd, shows the Appblaster. The $19.99 AppBlaster, a plastic gun for kids over 8 years old. After slipping an iPhone or iPad touch on top of the AppBlaster, kids can shoot at aliens that pop up on the screen. (AP Photo/Spin Master Ltd, Tom Szuba)
This undated product photo provided by Disney, shows the Disney AppMates. AppMates, is a toy car based on the characters from the company's ?Car's 2? animated movie. One car sells for $12.99 while a two-pack goes for $19.99. The free app lets kids drive around on different courses by moving the car across the iPad screen. (AP Photo/Disney)
This undated product photo provided by Crayola, shows the Crayola Color Studio and iMarker. Children can doodle on the tablet using Crayola's iMarker just as they would a coloring book. AP Photo/Crayola)
NEW YORK (AP) ? Make room in the toy box for the iPad.
Crayola allows tots to doodle on the iPad using its iMarker just as they would a crayon on a coloring book. Tweens are able to belt out their favorite Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez tunes on a Disney microphone that turns the tablet into a karaoke machine. And technology accessories company Griffin enables teens to fly its toy helicopter by using the iPhone as a remote control.
This holiday season, toy makers have turned Apple Inc.'s pricey tablet and smartphone into playthings for kids. They figure in this weak economy, parents will be willing to splurge on toys for their children that utilize devices they already have ? or want ? themselves.
Tiffany Fessler of Gainsville, Ga., certainly was willing to do that even though when she initially bought her $829 iPad she never imagined she'd be sharing it with her 20-month-old son. But whenever she sat down to check emails on the iPad, he'd climb into her lap wanting to use it.
So, Fessler decided to get him the $29.99 Crayola iMarker, which transforms the iPad into a digital coloring book using a Crayola's free ColorStudio HD application that parents can download. Kids can draw and color using the iMarker, which has a soft tip so it doesn't scratch the tablet's glass screen.
"When you have a screaming toddler in a restaurant or any public area, you want to have something to calm him down with," says Fessler, 39. "This is just another way to keep him entertained."
That the iPad and iPhone have infiltrated the $22 billion toy market this season is no surprise. Smartphones and tablets ? particularly Apple products ? are more popular than ever with people of all ages. This year, Apple is expected to double the number of iPhones sold to 90.6 million worldwide, according to research firm Gartner, while the number of iPads sold is expected to triple to 46.7 million.
And Apple products have a certain "cool factor" with kids that toy companies, which can make up to half of their revenue during the holidays, are hoping to tap into. In fact, the iPad and iPhone are among the most coveted electronics this holiday season among kids. About 44 percent of 6- to 12-year-olds want the iPad this year, according to a survey by research firm Nielsen. The iPod touch came in the No. 2 spot with 30 percent, followed by the iPhone at 27 percent.
Not to mention, anyone who's a parent knows all too well that babies and older kids alike love to fiddle with or drool all over mommy's iPad. Nearly 40 percent of 2-to 4-year-olds have used a smartphone, iPad or video iPod, according to a survey by nonprofit group Common Sense Media. That number rises to 52 percent for 5- to- 8 year olds. And even 10 percent of infants have used one of the devices before their first birthday.
"It's mostly something for kids to use in the car or at the doctor's office," says Chris Baynes, a toy analyst. "It's a way to get the kid to be quiet."
With that in mind, Crayola teamed up with Nashville, Tenn.-based Griffin Technology, which is mostly known for selling iPhone and iPad cases and car chargers, to make the iMarker and the ColorStudio HD app for kids. The iMarker, which is like a stylus that resembles a Crayola marker, is targeted at children ages three and up.
"Regardless of who they buy it for, once it is in the household, we know that kids use it," says Vicky Lozano, vice president of marketing at Crayola, which makes the iMarker.
Other toy makers also have gotten into the game:
? Griffin's $49.99 remote-controlled toy helicopter is aimed at teens over 14. Called the "HELO TC," it flies using a device that plugs into an iPhone, iPad or iPod. A free app turns the touchscreen of the devices into a cockpit that controls the helicopter.
? Mattel Inc.'s Fisher-Price unit is selling "The Laugh and Learn Apptivity Case" aimed at babies for $15. The case locks the iPhone into a colorful, easy to grab case that looks like a big round rattle. The case stops babies from making unwanted calls and protects the iPhone from something else: drool. Parents can open up three free apps that play music, read words aloud and count numbers. The company plans to release an iPad version of the case this spring.
? Disney has three offerings. The "Disney Spotlight" microphone, which is $69.99 or $99.99 for a wireless version, plugs into the iPad and allows kids to sing along to Disney songs from shows such as "Hannah Montana" ? or to their own music ? and record their own music video. Disney's $79.99 AppClix digital camera enables kids to upload their pictures to an iPad and a free app allows them add Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck into the photos. And Disney teamed up with Canadian toy maker Spin Master to create "Appmates," a toy car based on the characters from the company's "Car's 2" animated movie. One car sells for $12.99 while a two-pack goes for $19.99. Using a free app, kids can "drive" on different courses by moving the car across the iPad screen.
? Spin Master, which makes toys such as Air Hogs and Bakugan, started a new line this year of toys for the iPad and iPhone called "AppFininity." Its first toy in the line is the $19.99 AppBlaster, a plastic gun for kids over age eight. After slipping an iPhone or iPad touch on top of the AppBlaster, kids can shoot at aliens that pop up on the screen.
Analysts say these toys are just the beginning of a new niche for toy makers. Indeed, most of the companies say they plan to roll out more products for smartphones and tablets ? including some that use Google Inc.'s Android software? next year.
"I think it's going to be a growing segment," says Jim Silver, editor-in-chief at toy review website TimeToPlaymag.com. "Next year, there will be even more (products) than you can possibly imagine."
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Joseph Pisani can be reached at http://twitter.com/josephpisani.
For family game night at our house, my husband Richie and son Oz jump into the Wii game "Kirby's Return to Dreamland" together.
By Winda Benedetti
According to a recent study from the NPD Group market research company, 91 percent of kids in the U.S. between the ages of two and 17 are now gamers. But here is the surprising bit: The fastest growing group of young video game players?is the toddler set?? between two and five years old.
While some parents worry about whether playing video games is good for young children, I've found that gaming ? when properly supervised and balanced with other activities?? can be a great pastime not only for kids but for parents' relationship with their kids.?Playing video games with your child is an absolute?blast! It's a?fun way to bond with?your?kid, plus?it's a superb way to teach?children?some teamwork and puzzle-solving skills without ever letting on that you're actually, you know, teaching.
It just so happens that I have my own young gamer?? my almost-five-year-old son Oz. He's been helping me test out some of the latest video games in an effort?to find titles that are enjoyable and appropriate for kids four to 10. What you'll find below is a look at the pros and cons of seven games that are not only easy for young players to jump into, but are great for parents and kids to play together.
Kirby's Return to Dreamland ? Wii - $50
Nintendo
Pros: Learning how to use video game controllers can be difficult for the youngest players, but this laid-back title?? starring Nintendo's famous pink protagonist?? is a fun, easy way to teach young hands to work buttons and a directional pad. The game is also downright adorable and relatively non-threatening for little players just trying to get the swing of things.
"Return to Dreamland" can be played by up to four people at a time which makes it a fantastic all-family game night option. Playing as Kirby?and his pals, you and your children?will need to use?teamwork and cooperation as you?to explore bright, colorful worlds and?try to find the pieces of a lost spaceship that crash-landed on Kirby's planet, while fending off a host of relatively non-threatening foes in the process.
For this game, your child will?turn Nintendo's Wii Remote controller on its side and use it as a traditional controller. And since this is a two-dimensional side-scrolling game, figuring out how to run, jump and fly the characters around the screen is fairly easy for kids to do. Meanwhile, the difficulty level ramps up veeery slowly, which means your child (and therefore you) won't get frustrated.
My son loves watching Kirby suck up his enemies to absorb their powers and is wowed by Kirby's new eye-popping, screen-filling Super Abilities. And when the going does get a bit tough, he can have his character jump onto my character's back for a piggy-back ride past the rough patches.
(It's worth noting that?another excellent Kirby game to consider playing with young kids is last year's superb Wii game "Kirby's Epic Yarn.")
Cons: There really isn't much of a downside to this game other than the fact that seasoned, grown-up gamers familiar with Kirby's history may find this particular installment a bit too easy. But then again, this isn't about us is it?
Sesame?Street: Once Upon a Monster?- Xbox 360 (Kinect required) - $50
Double Fine Productions
Pros: "Once Upon A Monster" offers everything a conscientious parent wants from a video game?? non-violent gameplay that both activates the body and the mind. It also offers that delightful Sesame Street sensibility and, well, Elmo ... lots and lots of Elmo along with his adorable monster pals.
With the Kinect motion controller reading your child's body movements, this game acts as a kind of interactive story book throughout which your child meets various colorful characters and tries to help them solve the problems they're facing.
Winda Benedetti
Oz tries out his Kinect-enabled flying skills in "Once Upon A Monster."
To cheer up an unhappy monster, your child will make music by flapping their hands to bang on virtual drums. To help clean up a flower creature's garden, they'll hurl balls of virtual garbage into virtual garbage cans (as if tossing basketballs). And since the game features easy drop-in/drop-out cooperative?play, mom and dad can jump into the action at any time.
Cons: The Kinect controller is often pitched as the perfect device for allowing young children to interact with games and virtual environments. After all, there's no controller to hold in tiny hands and no buttons or sticks to struggle with. And yet, my son ran into more controller-related frustrations with this game than any other on this list.
The thing is, little kids have a hard time standing in one place. They jump and flail their arms when they're relaxing. "Once Upon a Monster" asks kids to perform some pretty specific movements but frequently seemed to have a hard time reading my son when he performed them.
Be sure to take the time to make sure the Kinect is perfectly calibrated to your child's size (the game will walk you through the process). Meanwhile, urge your wiggle-worm to hold still a bit and try to focus on the specific gestures they need to execute to interact with the game. It may take some practice and some patience but the little whippersnappers learn very?quickly.
Pros: Imagine going to Disneyland?? but a Disneyland without all the crowds and lines and cost ... not to mention the parental misery created by all three.
Welcome to a little game called "Kinect Disneyland Adventures." Sure, the Disneyland you'll find here is merely a digital recreation. But it is a pretty impressive digital recreation and one that you and your child can jump into and explore at your own pace.
Almost all of the Disneyland grounds have been recreated within this game and are ready to explore. With the Kinect camera reading your child's body motions, your kid makes an avatar to look like him or herself and then steers that avatar around the Disneyland grounds by pointing where she would like to go. She can run up to Mickey and give him a high five or give Snow White a hug. And these characters will send your child on various quests that will have them exploring the famed park.
Meanwhile, the rides are where the gaming action comes in. Head over to Peter Pan's Flight, where you and your child can fly through the air collecting coins or sword fight with Captain Hook. Step into the Matterhorn where you'll race bobsleds or ski down snowy hills.
The $50 lifetime ticket for you and your family to enter this virtual park will seem downright cheap compared to the hundreds of dollars a trip to the real Happiest Place on Earth will run you.
Cons: If you're not a fan of the Disney marketing machine, then this game is not for you.
Rayman: Origins?- PlayStation 3; Xbox 360; Wii - $50 to $60
Ubisoft
Pros: One of the great joys of parenting is hearing your children laugh. And if you want to enjoy the sounds of your young gamer guffawing uproariously, then grab "Rayman: Origins."
Zany, crazy and?hilarious not to mention utterly creative, "Rayman: Origins" is not only a delightful platforming game for up to four players, it is a gorgeous?work of animated art.
My husband, son and I have been having an absolute blast playing this game together. Here Rayman and his friends have awoken a cranky granny and her minions with their snoring. And now you must run, jump, swing and fly through one surreal?level after another, each filled with a colorful host of outlandish baddies to beat. My son unleashed the most splendid, unstoppable peals of laughter when we encountered the chicken-headed boss pictured above.
Kids will love this game because it is silly in all the best ways. Adults will love this game because each level is a cleverly constructed work of gaming art. (See In-Game editor Todd Kenreck's full video review at right.)
Cons:?This game will grow more demanding for the very youngest players far more quickly than something like "Kirby's Return to Dreamland" and will have them facing down more intense challenges than some young kids may be ready for. But it's worth noting that, if a child fails to get past a particularly difficult part in the game while playing with a parent or older sibling, he or she will find his character popped into a bubble that floats safely along until another player pops him out to rejoin the action at a more manageable point.
Pros: My son loves both skeletons and swashbuckling tales of sword fighting, so perhaps it's no wonder he's a huge fan of "Medieval Moves."?This game?puts young players in the role of?the boy Prince Edmund?who finds himself transformed into a skeleton and thrust into a battle against a nefarious sorcerer and his army of undead.
Skeletons? Army of undead? Well, yes. "Deadmund's Quest" may sound scary but it is cartoony as can be. The story of Prince Edmund-turned-Prince Deadmund is presented in comic-book-style cut scenes and the bad guys are more goofy than they are blood-curdling. Meanwhile, this is an "on rails" game, which means your child doesn't have to worry about maneuvering Deadmund around?this world. Instead, the hero is whisked through the medieval-themed environments almost as if on a roller-coaster ride. All your young player has to do is focus on knocking out the bad guys.
Since this game uses the PlayStation 3's Move motion controllers, kids get to do battle with a host of skeletons by swinging the orb-topped wand controller like a sword, or drawing it out like they would a bow and arrow. And the Move controls here work superbly. They are highly responsive and?my son?found the?gestures and button presses easy to get the hang of.
The Move controls?really pull young players right into what is nothing short of a thrilling adventure. And the multiplayer modes mean that?we parents can jump in and try our own sword-swinging, arrow-shooting skills alongside our young companions.
Cons: Each youngster is different and you should consider whether doing battle with skeletons?? no matter how bloodless and cartoony those battles are?? is something that will thrill your child ...?or scare 'em. This game may be most appropriate for slightly older kids (think?seven to 10).
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure - Xbox 360; PlayStation 3; Wii; Nintendo 3DS - $70
Activision
Pros: This title blends two things that kids love into one bright, enjoyable package. That is, it combines real-world toys with video gaming.
The starter pack comes with the game disc, three Skylander figurines?? Spyro, Trigger Happy and Gill Grunt?? and a plastic Portal of Power peripheral that you plug into the game console. Fire up the game disc and then pop an action figure onto the Portal of Power and suddenly an animated version of that action figure appears inside the game.
You and your?child will take these characters on a colorful, humor-filled quest to save the Skylander world from the evil powers of Kaos. Each of the different action figures has unique powers and abilities and your child will need to think about how to best use these unique strengths?to conquer the challenges and puzzles they face.
It really is pretty neat to swap these toys on and off the portal and see them pop into and out of?the video game on the fly. Meanwhile, the more your child plays the game with a certain character, the more that character is upgraded with additional powers and abilities. And here's another cool bit: All those upgrades are uploaded to an RF chip in the matching action figure. What that means is, your kid can take their own action figures over to a friend's house and, even if that friend has the game on a different kind of game console, your child can pop their figurines onto their friend's Portal of Power and play the game with all their own characters' unique upgrades and customizations intact.
Cons: The $70 price tag for the starter kit is steep to begin with, but you may end up spending even more money than that. While the "Skylanders" game can be won with just the three initial characters, there are actually 32 Skylander figurines in all to collect (i.e. buy for around $8 a piece) and these additional characters unlock additional challenges and additional areas within the game.
My son was perfectly happy with the initial?three action figures, but that doesn't mean every kid will feel the same. The more your child delves into this "Skylanders" adventure, the more you may hear them beg?"I want more."
Fruit Ninja Kinect - Xbox 360 (Kinect required) - $10 download via Xbox Live
Oz and his friend Dexter - both 4 years old - slice and dice (and wear themselves out) with a game of Fruit Ninja Kinect.
Pros: I cannot tell you the joy that "Fruit Ninja Kinect" has brought to our household ... and to our son's bedtime routine. Simply put: There is no better way to wear out your kid to the point that he or she has no strength left to fight sleep.?
"Fruit Ninja Kinect" (which I reviewed in full here) takes the gameplay found in the hit smartphone/tablet game and puts it up on your TV via Xbox Live and Kinect. Rather than swiping your finger across a touchscreen to slash fruit that's tossed up into the air, the Kinect camera keeps track of your body movements as you swing your arms and legs to cut down pineapple, kiwi, bananas and other nefarious foods.
This game was not made specifically for children, but it certainly brings out the child in everyone who plays it. More importantly: It's easy for children to jump into and I can promise you, their enthusiasm for the fruit-slashing ninja arts is a joy to behold.
The multiplayer mode is especially enjoyable to play with young kids. Sure, you can play it competitively, but there's also a cooperative mode that allows you to work together as you slash your way to a joint?high score. And there's nothing like conquering evil fruit to bring you closer to your adorable rugrat.
Cons: ?The menu screens are very sensitive to motion and can be difficult for wiggly children to navigate, so you might need to help them get things started. Meanwhile, the difference in an adult's height and a small child's height can make it so the Kinect camera has a difficult time fully reading both players' movements. I suggest you have Kinect calibrate to your child (giving them the best game experience) and then play on your knees beside them.
Also be absolutely sure you give each other enough room when you play together ? otherwise, with all those flailing arms, someone is liable to get a karate chop to the nose.
For more game news and holiday buying guidance, check out:
Winda Benedetti writes about games for msnbc.com. You can follow her tweets about games and other things here on Twitter or join her in the stream here on Google+. ?And be sure to check out the In-Game Facebook page right here.
It may not be retiring the powdered wigs just yet, but according to The Guardian, the British government is ready to replace traditional paper documents with tablets in UK courtrooms. Starting in April, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) will give slates to Welsh and English prosecutors to store all forms and evidentiary items, later extending the offer to judges, jurors and defense lawyers. To start, administrators will give 35 Hewlett-Packard tablets to prosecutors in Norfolk as a test for the bigger roll out, which is estimated to save around £50 million (or around $78 million) in dead trees across the UK. There's no word yet which tablet HP has in mind, but chances are it will not be the discount rack TouchPad -- perhaps a Windows tablet is more in order in this court.
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