Empire Avenue lets you buy people
What's your social influence really worth? There's a new site out in beta that aims to find out.
The creators of Empire Avenue have created an ingenious, and simple-to-use, way of allowing users to buy and sell shares of ANYONE that they feel has great social influence. They've developed an online stock market game for people and brands that will eventually allow those people and brands to earn a share of any advertising that runs on their pages within the game.
Here's a more detailed description taken from blippr:
Empire Avenue is a revolutionary online influence stock exchange combined with an advertising platform that allows individuals and organizations to convert their online influence and reach into revenue. To this end we will be connecting advertisers, consumers and influencers in a manner not as yet undertaken in the online space. Through the Empire Avenue influence stock exchange and its tracking features we will measure the influence value of individuals registered with Empire Avenue. Influencers will be given control over the advertising they carry, and advertisers will be better able to reach their target consumer. We believe that this better targeted advertising approach will lead to better returns and leads for advertisers. Empire Avenue sets itself apart not only in its unique feature set, but also by paying influencers the majority of advertising revenue generated unlike other major advertising networks.
Because the system is still in beta you'll need an invite to join in on the fun, but if you can find someone to give you one, you'll have a head start at what I believe could be the next major "Farmville-like" online social game.
I have 2 invites left, so if you ask and I still have one...it's yours.
Max and the Magic Marker
Help Max save his drawings by using your "Magic Marker" to defeat the monster he drew.
This game allows kids to use their magic marker to help Max navigate through his drawings to help save them from "Mustacho", the bad guy he drew that came to life to destroy the drawings. The game is very similar to Crayon Physics Deluxe, which my, now 6 year olds, played for weeks when they were 4. Max and the Magic Marker builds on the Crayon Physics concept by adding a more defined plot, larger levels, and a cool new character.
Here is a more official description of the game (taken from steampowered.com)
Something incredible is happening in this unique adventure! Max just drew a terrifying monster with his new marker and now it's alive and wreaking havoc in his drawings! He doesn't have any choice but to stop the monster if he wants to save his pictures. In a new kind of gaming style, Max & the Magic Marker combines tried-and-tested 2D jump n run feel with the innovative option of directly influencing the level design. Here, Max is able to change every level with his magic marker so that all obstacles can be overcome, traps avoided and puzzles solved in order to send the monster back to where it came from.
Buy the game for Mac and PC at steampowered.com or try the online demo (requires installation of a browser plugin) at maxandthemagicmarker.com/demo. You can also buy the game for Wii by searching for "Max" on the Wii shop channel.
Minute To Win It
NBC's Minute To Win It
Host Guy Fieri offers contestants a shot at $1 million -- if they can complete a series of challenges using everyday objects in a race against the clock on his show "Minute to Win It". While the prize for my company's version of this contest wasn't quite as impressive, it was still a very worthy reward: a night in the Ritz Carlton Buckhead, and a $150.00 gift card to the Buckhead Life Restaurants. To have a chance at winning the prize, you first had to win your department's contest, then you had to go into the Get Married studio and beat the other department winners.
The department challenge that the web team had to complete was called Face the Cookie. The basic concept was to place an Oreo on your forehead, then, using only facial gestures, move the cookie down your face and into your mouth. This was much easier said than done. I was the only one of the three competitors to get a cookie to my mouth.
The company challenges, featuring the six department champions, were Penny Hose, Breakfast Scramble, and Go The Distance. Winning a competition earned you five points, finishing second earned you three points and third earned two points. Going in to the third competition there were three people tied with five points, one with four points, and one with three. After the final competition, myself and one other employee were tied with eight points. On to the tie-break contest: Hangover. My competitor went first and hung four hangers in sixty seconds, however, I got lucky and coerced all six hangers into cooperating.
