No Barriers to Fun!

We met our friend Giddeon at the AbleGamers Accessibility Arcade in Atlantic City, New Jersey. When he first sat down with the AbleGamers crew, Giddeon didn't want to play any games. He told us that with his disability gaming was difficult. Giddeon has a rare disease that caused the growth of his arms .. Read More
A Window to the World

Shepherd University invited the AbleGamers Foundation to come on campus and do one of our Accessibility Arcades for the students and local disabled community. The event was a roaring success with hundreds of children and adults coming out to see the technology and in some cases experience gaming the first time. Read More

About the AbleGamers Foundation

Since 2004, the AbleGamers Foundation, a 501(c)(3) public charity, has served more than 56 million members of the disabled community by advocating greater access in video games. Today, AbleGamers is a leader in the development of equipment, programs and services to those living with disabilities, hardships, and quality-of-life issues that are a result of chronic illness or trauma. It is our goal to ensure that all people, regardless of their disability, can use gaming as a tool to have enriched social experiences with friends, family, and the world at large.

SOE Moving to India (UPDATED)

Written by Mark C. Barlet

Published on 23 December 2007

Are you kidding? Okay, there is so much of this story that sounds line a rumor blown out of proportion. It does not even pass the smell test if you ask me, but I will post it just in case pigs did start to fly.

The Indian Economic Times is reporting that Zapak is set to buy Sony Online Entertainment for a meager $300 million.

Zapak Digital entertainment, the online gaming company promoted by Anil Ambani-led ADAG group, is all set to buy out Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) for around $300 million (Rs 1,200 crore).

According to sources close to the development, the deal will be finalised within the next few days. Sony Online was on the block for the past two weeks and Zapak, which has been looking for acquiring international studios, is finally said to have reached a consensus over the valuation of Sony Online.

"The deal is almost through. It is in the final stages of negotiations and by next week, Zapak will have a full right to all content, owned and published by Sony Online," sources told SundayET.

Sony Online Entertainment is the game development and game publishing unit of Sony and posts revenue of around $ 150 million (the company doesn't reveal the exact details for the division). It has in the past come out with popular games such as Everquest, PlanetSide, Star War Galaxies and Vanguard. SOE's headquartered at San Diego, California, with additional game development studios located in Austin, Texas, Denver, Colorado and Seattle.

Here are a few things that make me think this is total BS. First the story says that SOE has been on the block for two weeks. So the largest online gaming manufacturer, has been for sale for two weeks and no one in the gaming news picked up this story? The WOW Fan boys and SOE Haters would have lit up the gaming news sites like a firecracker. The other part of this story that leads me to believe it is a farce is the price, $300 million? I find it hard to think that all of EQ, EQ2 and all of the other properties owned are only worth a paltry 300 million. I dare to say that even with the tragedy that is "Star Wars" is worth more than 300 million just for the intellectual property license behind the game.

What is SOE saying, well not much, the community manager, Craig "Grimwell" Dalrymple over on the EQ2 page says...

Yeah, interesting how the one thing (us looking to bring our games to that market) suddenly twisted into that rumor.

SOE: Not being sold to any company

Update: We no longer have to take the word of the community manager on the EQ2 forums, there is now official word from Sony via Reuters

Sony Online Entertainment on Sunday denied an Indian media report that said Zapak Digital Entertainment Ltd, part of the Anil Ambani-led ADAG group, was buying Sony Online and said the company was not up for sale.
India's Economic Times, citing anonymous sources and an unnamed Zapak official, had earlier reported that Zapak was set to buy Sony Online for about $300 million.

"Sony Online Entertainment is not for sale and the report that Zapak is purchasing Sony Online Entertainment is completely erroneous and false," a company spokesperson for San Diego-based Sony Online told Reuters over telephone.