Here’s a roundup of today’s news found elsewhere on the internet:

NPD: Industry sees growth of 6% in March (gamesindustry.biz) - The US games industry grew 6 per cent in March, according to the latest NPD figures. In line with predictions, revenue increased to $1.52 billion, with a busy month of software releases leading to a rise in software sales of 10 per cent on last March to $875.3 million.

Hardware sales were down 4 per cent on last year to $440.5 million, however hardware prices declined by 16 per cent over the year.

Accessories sales increased 11 per cent to $206.8 million.

According to NPD analyst Anita Frazier, March saw the first non-holiday year-on-year increase of sales since February 2009, and the month was the third best non-holiday month ever recorded. Nintendo led the way with hardware sales, with its systems accounting for 59 per cent of all that was sold in March. The DS was the best selling console with over 700,000 units sold, while the Wii followed behind with sales of 557,500.

Violent games effect sleep patterns less than previously thought (vg247.com) - Another day, another study by a group on the effects of videogames on the human psyche.

This time, it’s from researchers in Australia who have concluded that violent games don’t make falling much more difficult than normal. Two groups of teenage boys ages 14 through 18 who usually fell asleep within 15-minutes, were observed.

One group played Modern Warfare for 50 minutes, and the other group watched March of the Penguins and were gauged on whether it took them longer to fall asleep afterward. Apparently, there wasn’t a very significant difference, as the researchers concluded that “the direct effect of pre-sleep videogame playing on adolescent sleep may be more modest than previously thought”.

Eleven teens took 7.5-minutes longer to fall asleep after playing Modern Warfare, while it took those that watched the film three-minutes longer to go to sleep. Two fell asleep faster after playing the game, and four teens fell asleep during the film, which was described as “slow-moving and tranquil” compared to the game.

Promotions prank ends in armed police callout (nzherald.co.nz) - A marketing stunt to promote a video game sparked an armed police callout after an actor pointed a fake gun at terrified pubgoers in Auckland's Viaduct Basin. About 20 revellers drinking outside Degree bar dived for cover after the promotions worker threatened them with a black imitation pistol about 8pm on Friday.

Witnesses said they heard someone shout "he's got a gun" and outdoor drinkers dived behind their tables. Degree manager Steph Kurtovich said: "This guy with bandages on his hands pointed a gun at customers sitting outside. They were pretty terrified."

The stunt, to promote the release of Xbox title Splinter Cell Conviction, was condemned by police. Senior Sergeant Ben Offner said officers could not tell the gun was made of plastic until they had taken it from the actor. "We consider these types of stunts to be very ill-advised and have real concerns a similar one may one day end in tragedy."

Game promoters Monaco Corporation said they hired another marketing company to organise the event and had no idea that a gun would be used. "This was by no means an attempt to get cops down there and get this sort of exposure. We do apologise, we shouldn't have had guns down there," said Duane Mutu, Monaco's marketing manager. "It was just marketing gone wrong."

Police said two men were cautioned at the scene.