By Marjorie Gorospe
INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — “Dayo” literally means foreigner or stranger in Filipino.

Dayo is also the title of a first full-length animated film entry in the 2008 Metro Manila Film Festival. It is Filipino-made.

Dayo is story about a boy named Bubuy who goes on a quest to save his grandparents kidnapped by enchanted beings and held captive in mystical land called Elementalia.

Robert Quilao, the director of Dayo, said the characters in the story were inspired by Filipino legend and culture.

Filipino mythological creatures like the Manananggal (a half-bodied vampire-like creature), Tikbalang (half-man, half horse creature), Kapre (giant hairy creature who smokes a giant tobacco pipe) are characters that have been added in the animated film.

But to add twist to the film, the infamous Manananggal becomes a Manananggol (Savior) and helps Bubuy save his grandparents.

“People that I know from other countries say we have a rich culture so why not make use of it,” Quilao said.

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By Agence France-Presse

TOKYO–Nintendo Co. said Thursday it will start offering videos through its blockbuster Wii game console, the latest new feature for the Japanese entertainment giant.

Nintendo said it would develop original programming which Wii users could access via the Internet and watch on their television. It is considering videos for both free and fees.

The game giant teamed up with Japan’s leading advertising firm Dentsu Inc. to develop the service, which will begin in Japan next year, with an eye on future expansion into foreign markets.

Japanese rival Sony Corp. has already started using its popular PlayStation series for online movie sales and advertising by placing corporate messages inside games, which often have highly niche audiences.

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By Alex Villafania
INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — It may sound like the fabled land of the Rohirrim in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Rohan Online, however, is not related to it but it does have the same elements of medieval fantasy.

Rohan Online is the latest massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) that game publisher Level Up! Online is introducing in the Philippines.

The game is similar to most hack-and-slash online games and features six character classes, the Humans, Elves, Half Elves, Dhans, Dekans, Dark Elf.

There are also male and female models for each class. Each of the classes have unique roles and attributes, some are close quarter combatants, some are long range fighters, while others are more balanced types.

These character classes also own unique weapons and items. Some can wield two-handed weapons like the Human Knight. The Elf Archer for example can use bows more efficiently than the rest of the characters, while the Dhan Assasins can use stealth weapons to kill enemies quietly.

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Watch reporter Izah Morales’ interview with Level Up! Philippines chief executive officer Jane Walker who introduces new online game Crazy Kart.

Level Up! has partnered with Shanda Interactive China to bring this latest online game in the country.

In the same interview, Level Up! Marketing Head Ramon Macutay also describes the different features of the game in this video interview.