Cartoon Network Universe Fusion Fall online game site launched

Majesco, an innovative provider of video games for the mass market, and Cartoon Network Enterprises today announced that Cartoon Network Universe: FusionFall for PC and Mac has shipped to retail outlets nationwide. The first massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) for kids, and a major initiative for the network, FusionFall is set within a re-imagined Cartoon Network universe where players must rally together to defend the world from an epic alien invasion.


The Victory Pack Exclusive retail version of FusionFall is loaded with extras including: a four month subscription to the online game, an in-depth game guide with details of all "Nanos," monsters and adventure paths, and codes for two exclusive outfit and weapon sets only available in the Victory Pack.

"FusionFall is an innovative and groundbreaking MMOG that will appeal to the legions of Cartoon Network fans," said Gui Karyo, Executive Vice President of Operations, Majesco. "Partnering with Cartoon Network on the retail version of the game was a major initiative for us and we believe the extensive added value in the Victory Pack will enhance the playing experience."

"A massive undertaking for the network, FusionFall stands to be a truly unique and rich gaming experience for kids that blends some of our most popular characters in a way that has never been seen before," said Christina Miller, vice president, CNE. "Building off of this excitement, we're pleased to partner with Majesco to offer fans an extension of the game at retail day and date with its online launch." The intergalactic conqueror Planet Fusion is invading the Cartoon Network world - warping terrain, corrupting the environment, and creating evil Cartoon Network character clones! Players must team up with the online community and more than 50 characters from some of Cartoon Network's most popular shows - including Ben 10 Alien Force, Dexter's Laboratory, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Ed, Edd' n Eddy, The Powerpuff Girls, Kids Next Door, Samurai Jack, and many more, to restore order to the Cartoon Network universe. After creating their own unique avatar, players will explore a massive 17-plus square kilometer area with 60 playable zones including familiar areas from Cartoon Network shows and fusion "infected" areas.

Created through a partnership with leading Korean MMOG developer Grigon Entertainment, FusionFall is a mix of 3-D console platform game action and all the customization, character development and open-ended world exploration of a MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game). New, expanded content will be added to the game regularly. Players can collect a variety of items throughout the game, including more than 30 customizable "Nanos" - tiny stylized versions of Cartoon Network's most famous characters - that provide special powers and abilities across more than 600 unique missions. In addition, FusionFall's distinctive visual approach combines an all-new cel-shaded anime style fit within the familiar look and feel of Cartoon Network.

Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and up, the Cartoon Network Universe: FusionFall Victory Pack Exclusive for PC and Mac is now available for the suggested retail price of $19.99. The game will also officially launch online January 14. For additional information about the game please visit the official site at www.FusionFall.com.

Horseland - online virtual pet online community update

Popular online game announces redesign with immersive 3D world and avatars

Horseland, a popular virtual pet online community, has announced a revamped website that now includes an interactive 3D world with customizable horses and avatars.

One of the oldest online gaming communities featuring virtual pets, Horseland is loved by young and old alike from all over the world. Over the past decade, millions of players have created horses and dogs that they care for, compete with, breed, and trade. Horseland promotes an open play experience, allowing players to create their own online roles (e.g. horse trainers, breeders, home page designers) to cater to the various needs of the users in the community.

Horseland announced today the addition of an immersive virtual world where players can create customizable avatars for themselves and their horses. In this virtual world, players can ride their horses and have adventures with other members of the virtual community. Players now also have the ability to design their own 3D jumping courses and compete in jumping competitions with their horses. Additional features of the new site include a tack shop to buy items for horse and player avatars, player forums and casual games.

“Horseland is all about imagination and experiencing what it is like to own your own animal,” states Christina Johnson, General Manager of Horseland LLC. “By adding the new immersive 3D world, players can now interact with their horses and each other in a more realistic way."

About Horseland

Since its launch in 1996, Horseland (www.horseland.com) has grown into one of the most popular virtual worlds on the web. With over five million user accounts, Horseland is free to play, however, players may purchase in-game "coins" which can enhance their experience. Horseland offers two versions of the game: Horseland Jr, available for players less than 13 years old and featuring characters from the popular Horseland cartoon that is televised throughout the world, and Horseland World, which is geared toward older players and offers more realistic and complex play. Horseland is operated by Horseland LLC, a privately held company headquartered in Chicago, IL. The company has been in operation since 1995.

Free video game magazine download - online here

January is a notoriously quiet month in the gaming calendar, but that hasn't managed to keep the Thirteen1 team from getting another awesome issue of their web-zine out to you.

2009 is shaping up to be another stellar year for gaming, with a ton of top titles scheduled for release over the coming 12 months.

This month's T1 highlights the titles that you should be anticipating the most this year, telling you exactly what you need to know about each of them.

You know they're good like that, and Thirteen1 promises you'll be drooling with excitement after checking out their 2009 – A Gaming Odyssey feature!

This month's edition has also packed in the usual top-title reviews for you to read up, and spend your pennies, on in the January sales.

The reviews jump, climb and dance around Ubisoft's glorious looking Prince of Persia, kill as many songs as possible with Microsoft's Lips, rock out to Guitar Hero: World Tour and build some rather bizarre looking contraptions with Banjo and Kazooie's latest adventure from Rare, Nuts & Bolts...

..and just incase Santa wasn't good enough to you...

You can bag yourself a top-notch overclocked Gainward 9800GTX+ graphics card, courtesy of the generous people behind Runes of Magic. Just read the mag to find out how you can get hold of this post-Christmas treat.

Be sure to check out the Jan edition of Thirteen1 now!
http://www.thirteen1.com/

Zeebo download games console launched

No consoles are launching in 2009, right? Not so. Brazilian manufacturer Tectoy, most notable outside of South America for its long partnership with Sega and official distribution of its consoles in Brazil, will be releasing an entirely original product called Zeebo.

Centered around downloadable games distributed only over a 3G wireless network, the console is designed for emerging markets, and has high-profile partners and games including Electronic Arts's FIFA, Id Software's Quake, and Namco Bandai's Tekken.

It will save its small, standard definition titles, many of which will initially be BREW mobile game ports, to the system's internal flash memory. This is intended to sidestep the issues of piracy, home internet availability, and retail distribution of game titles.

The company is 57 percent owned by Tectoy and 43 percent owned by mobile tech company and BREW creator Qualcomm. As well as the above-mentioned larger companies who will release games for the console, Zeebo is hoping to attract independent developers as well.

English info on the console is exceptionally rare so far, with no launch yet slated for North America. But there is opportunity here; the firm feels there's potential for a repeat of the indie-led App Store boom Apple is currently seeing with iPhone.

Gamasutra recently had a chance to talk to Zeebo Inc. CEO John Rizzo, who heads up the operations in North America, as follows:

What's the market for the console?

JR: For the moment, our focus is Brazil first, and then Mexico. Then, selected parts of the rest of Latin America. Then a year from now, likely China and/or India. Those are a little bit harder to figure out, because the content in China and India is likely to be very different from content in Brazil. So we need some time to figure out what the content needs to be.

We work with developers in the local countries; I could imagine a Bollywood dance game with a dance pad. That would be fantastic in India, much more sale-able than Prey. Or in China, a game that teaches English as a second language would be really cool and powerful for that market.

It takes a little longer -- and then, of course, in China there's a ban on consoles, per se, that the seven ministries of the government need to lift -- and that's going to take probably six months to a year for that to happen.

Because our business model is one where we want to get a local partner in the country and put their name brand on it as well, that means it takes a little longer to get that all squared away. So, yes, we're going to those countries as well.

It's pretty much designed for an SD set up, right? Not high definition?

JR: In fact, it's really more designed for the cheapest, most resilient TVs you can find. 

With China especially, MMOs are king. Is it possible to play with other people across the network with Zeebo?

JR: Yeah, it is technically possible, and in fact, Ultimate Chess actually is going to be offered in two versions. It will be offered in a single-player version and a two-player version.

The two-player version is over the wireless connection. The reason that is going to be relatively easy to do, is that when you are playing chess, the only thing being transmitted is the move coordinates.

So, very low data density, you can compute how many times people are going to play chess; they're going to push it three hours a day -- or how many moves they are going to make in three hours. And you can figure out how many megabytes a day you need to buy to make that happen. Then, you simply make the price of the multiplayer game large enough to cover the cost of the data.

But the problem with an MMO game is you don't really know how much traffic there is going to be. And we have to pay for the traffic. So I think we will move into that domain, which is certainly very important, as you mentioned, in China and elsewhere, but it's probably going to be a different pricing model.

Right now, we use prepaid. It might be entirely a subscription model, and the subscription model might be constrained to a certain number of hours per day of play and anything above that, there's a super pack you can buy that jacks that up.

It seems like free to play, pay for items might be a useful model.

JR: Yes. We've got to figure all that and navigate through it. The other thing that's interesting, too, for us, is that I think that there is some percentage of people... I'm not sure if it's the majority or some large percentage, that play in the middle of the night.

And if you play in the middle of the night, with a cellular-based network, the data pipe is empty anyway during the middle of the night.

So, we might be able to work some kind of deal whereby the bandwidth we buy at 2AM is a lot cheaper than the bandwidth we buy at 10PM, in which case we could offer an MMOG that has a different pricing structure, depending on what time of the day you play.

So, you're still working on the business model.

John Rizzo: The remaining thing we're trying to figure out is the business model. Because the way it works technically, right now, is that if you fill the gigabytes in flash, and you go into the UI and say "delete", it will remove the game from flash, but it will leave a tag that says you already bought it.

Let's say six months later you decided that you wanted to download it again. The only question that we are wrestling with at the moment, which we won't solve right away, is whether or not it's free when you download it again or whether we simply charge you for the air time when you download it again because we pay for the cost of the air time -- and so that's the only question we're trying to work out.

In any event, the customer won't have to pay full price, there's no doubt about that. Whether or not they pay a buck or two to download it again is still something we're trying to figure out. and from my perspective, personally, as the CEO of Zeebo, I don't think people should pay for it again, even for the air time. Because if you fill up your Flash memory, that means you've bought 40 or 50 games.

We license the right to manufacture and sell the console in Brazil to Tectoy. So, if they do want to charge somebody to do the re-download, that's within their purview.

How is your model working so far for the publishers? Will developers be able to release stuff directly on Zeebo without going through a publisher, or rather, having Zeebo as the publisher?

JR: So, the interesting nuance of this is that all these things here [displayed on the screen], these are assets that are stored server-side. And we upload them into the console in the middle of the night, and they're cached. And these basically are like banner ads.

So if a publisher comes up with a new title, they can basically place their ad, if you will, on the stage. And the way the stage works is that every click of the paddle, the cylinder [of ads] rotates and, there's four [ads] in this case... as you move through this, so it's like this continuous thing.

So, it's a way for the publisher to directly market to the customer. Over time, as we get enough of an installed base, we might actually consider charging publishers for that access, but you could put videos here, you could put a GIF, you could put bitmaps and stuff...

I figured there would also be a clearer text-based list.

JR: Yeah, at some point, yes. Until there's a huge number of titles, we try to make it more graphically rich. But in this case there's cover art, and then you can sort by [headings such as] favorites, new, genre, and stuff. And then, this is a scroll up and down.

When you click on one you get the game description. In this case, this is just [dummy text] in, but the cover, in this case, the parental rating in Brazil, which is required by Brazilian law, and then the number of points required.

If you don't have enough points when you try to buy it, it will say, "Do you want to refill your console?" and you can do that by buying more points with a credit card, that we call a "scratch card". And then you use the joypad to key stuff in to the virtual keyboard.

In the future, we could plug the keyboard into the back, a USB keyboard, and then the publishers themselves, if they want to have a custom store, we could create a custom store that's made for them.

Can you multitask while the system downloads a game?

JR: No, the current limitation, [the system's] fully loaded, it fully occupies [the system, during] most of the downloads. But if you happen to pull the power during the middle of a download, it automatically recovers, so there's no issue with that.

And then, it's like [Amazon digital reader] Kindle. The wireless plan is built in, you don't actually subscribe to a plan, you don't know that a plan exists, the number of points effectively covers the cost of the download as well, and you end up paying for that. Everything is secure.

But to answer your question on the publishers' side... Either we've got a signed agreement in 80 percent of the cases, or a handshake agreement when we just won't do the contract now, [with] six of the top 10 publishers, and if a publisher wants to have us be the publisher, we can do that as well.

If a developer wanted to go directly to you, they could?

JR: Exactly.

I assume, starting out, it is mostly going to be mobile ports.

JR: Good question, good point. That's what we thought. [laughs] In fact, when we started the company we said, "Hey, there's lots of mobile games out there and they are easy to port, and let's do that."

What we discovered is that most of the sources we went to said, "Yeah, we can do that, but what we would rather do is take console content and port it down in Zeebo, because the gameplay experience and the graphics are richer."

So I would say in 60 to 70 percent of the cases it's more console content. If for example, you take the FIFA game from EA, that's an interesting port because a part of it was taken from mobile content. And then the voiceovers, we took from the PC.

In the case of Tekken, would that be a PlayStation port, or is that mobile?

JR: It's not a mobile port, I know that. But I don't know if it's PlayStation or some other platform.

I'm wondering how easy it is to strip down to this architecture, depending on what the time is.

JR: I'll give you a couple examples. In the case of the chess game, Ultimate Chess, it is strictly from a [Glu mobile] BREW port. That took four months. Quake, which was strictly a port from the PC, took about six months.

Some of these other games -- like Prey Evil, I think, is taking seven months, maybe. So I think the best case is three months, the worst case is like nine months. That's reasonably fast.

It's slightly longer than I thought it would be. But I don't actually know what the chipset and the SDK are like.

JR: It's just like BREW. Part of the reason for it, the length of the time here, so far, has been that we really didn't release an SDK to developers until June 1st. And the SDK that we released June 1st really didn't become completely stable and bulletproof until September 1st. So I think the titles starting today are going to be faster, I believe.

Are you encouraging original development over ports, or are you going more for name recognition?

JR: I think at the moment we have enough of the publishers and other brand name titles in the queue that, as we enter into 2009, we are going to start shifting into more originally authored, independent titles.

There is a possibility this becomes like the iPod Touch and the iPhone, where you get people that have never really developed before do so because they can reach a huge market and because the marketing cost is virtually nil. So we hope that's the case.

Full post on Gamasutra here...

Ubisoft announce Call of Juarez - Bound in Blood video game

New Game is a Prequel to the Successful Wild West Shooter

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system and Windows PC in 2009. Ubisoft is again teaming with Techland to develop Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, a prequel to the action shooter Call of Juarez.

“Call of Juarez was well received by gamers and critics,” said John Parkes, Marketing Director at Ubisoft EMEA. “We’re confident this new collaboration with Techland will bring an even bigger and better adventure to fans of shooters and the lawless Wild West.”

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood transports players from a ravaged Civil War-era Georgia to the Aztec ruins of Mexico. In the wildest West ever depicted, players can embody both McCall brothers in an intense storyline full of greed, lust and lawlessness.

Bruce Springsteen makes Guitar Hero debut with brand new track 'my lucky day' and classic hit 'born to run'

Guitar Hero World Tour to Debut Exclusive Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Tracks as Downloadable Content Day and Date with Release of New Album, Working on a Dream

Bruce Springsteen will make his videogame debut on January 27, 2009, with two downloadable songs available exclusively in Activision Guitar Hero World Tour.

Coinciding with the release of his new album, Working on a Dream (Columbia Records), the two-song Track Pack will be available for download simultaneously with the album’s release on January 27, 2009. The Track Pack, which features the iconic Springsteen song “Born to Run” and “My Lucky Day,” a brand-new track off his new album, Working on a Dream, will be free to download during the first week of the album’s release.

“Bruce Springsteen has been a defining force in Rock ‘n Roll and we are incredibly excited to have him make his video game debut with Guitar Hero World Tour,” said Robert Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard.

Springsteen’s longtime manager Jon Landau said, “Activision has been a leader in getting music to the public in new ways and we are very happy to have them making these two songs available to their audience.”

The Bruce Springsteen Track Pack will be available on Xbox LIVE® Marketplace for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®Store for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and as singles for Wii™ for free between January 27, 2009, and February 4, 2009. Starting February 5, 2009, the Track Pack will be available on Xbox 360 for 320 Microsoft Points, on the PLAYSTATION 3 system (UK pricing TBC) and as singles on Wii™ for 200 Wii Points each.

RockStar 09 open for entries

Major Major are likely to remember the day they filled in the application form for RockStar 08. Since winning the competition back in September they've supported Franz Ferdinand and the Ting Tings in front of 4,000 people at the legendary Pilton Equinox Party, spent time recording at Peter Gabriel's renowned Real World Studios and seen their name up in lights as the first confirmed act for Glastonbury 2009.

Next year RockStar 09 will offer these incredible opportunities to another group of unsigned artists and bands. They'll pit themselves against each other in a bid to impress some of the most influential people in the music industry. Of course, they'll hope to emulate last year's talented four-piece from Liverpool.

Conor Clarke, Major Major's front man, said: “It's amazing to be the first band confirmed for Glastonbury next year. The RockStar gigs were immense and the competition has, put simply, changed our lives - there's absolutely no question of that.”

RockStar 09 is open to any and all unsigned bands/performers and will take place in the legendary village of Pilton, the home of the festival and the spiritual home of many of the greatest music legends.
It all kicks off after 24 bands have been selected by an experienced panel of judges to take part in the live heats.

These heats will take place over four shows in May 2009 (15th & 16th and 29th & 30th May) at Pilton Working Men's Club where the bands will compete to try and impress the judges to get through to the live final on the 1st of August 2009.

The RockStar 09 winner will be the first confirmed act for Glastonbury 2010. They'll also get to spend valuable recording time at Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios, as well as play a full set at Michael Eavis' Pilton Equinox party on 19th September 2009 where several thousand dedicated music fans party the night away at his home, Worthy Farm.

A spokesperson for Real World studios added: “We are eager to hear and see some of the undiscovered rock talent the UK has to offer in 2009. We were thrilled to be so heavily involved in RockStar 08, the standard of the finalists was phenomenal, and this year? …Well, let's just say we're all very excited!”

The competition is open to all, bands, solo artists, young and old, the only criteria is to be unsigned. Entries must be in before the closing date on 1st of March 2009.
To enter bands and artists must download and complete the entry form, available at http://www.rockstarbands.co.uk/5/09news.html and send a clear recording, of no less than 2 tracks, of themselves/their band playing to:

RockStar 08, PO Box 4249, Glastonbury, Somerset, BA6 8UU.
Further information and terms and conditions can also be found on the PDF form or you can email info@rockstarbands.com with any additional questions.

Free-to-play FlyFF - Fly for Fun - Snow event announced

Celebrate winter with the gPotato team with a frosty event in the free-to-play MMORPG Flyff!

Players of the free-to-play MMORPG Flyff (Flyff for Fun) have a treat in store for them this month. After a fantastic response to our Christmas events, a brand new mission awaits players in-game between the 13th and 19th of January. The event, organised by the gPotato team gives players a series of quests to save Winter from a terrible threat.

From the 13th to the 19th of January, Flarine City hosts a special guest: the Winter God, and he needs players help! The monsters of Madrigal have kidnapped his servants and he can’t put the key elements of magic and snow that make Christmas without them. Players will therefore have to find the Fairies and Snow Crystals scattered throughout the Flyff world and return them to him.



There are plenty of in-game rewards up for grabs for players who complete these quests, including some brilliant items which will allow them to temporarily increase their combat abilities and defensive skills. For those players who find all Winter God’s servants, a special reward can be found in the skies of Flarine.

By organising regular in-game events for the FlyFF community, the gPotato team hopes to offer a vibrant and constantly evolving environment for players of all levels. To create a strong community spirit and meet players expectations, lots of activities and events are coming to 2009.

Please find enclosed the exclusive screenshots of the special Flyf Winter event. For additional information, please visit the official website http://flyff.gpotato.eu

About Flyff

FlyFF: Fly for Fun is a free-to play MMORPG featuring a “manga-ish” atmosphere and is operated in French and German by Gala Networks Europe Ltd. Become an adventurer and discover the world of Madrigal, flying above hordes of monsters and resolving intriguing mysteries. On more than 120 levels, FlyFF offers players a diverse and thrilling adventure, allowing them to fly freely on a brush or a magical hoverboard! For more information, please visit the official FlyFF website at the following address: http://flyff.gpotato.eu.

FIFA Interactive World Cup champion officially crowned at FIFA World Player Gala

Record numbers already signed up for FIFA Interactive World Cup 2009. Barcelona confirmed as venue for 2009 competition grand final in May.


FIFA, the world’s governing body of football, Electronic Arts and Sony today announced that Alfonso Ramos, the FIFA Interactive World Cup 2008 Champion, has received his official winner’s trophy at the FIFA World Player Gala in Zurich. Ramos was joined by some of the world’s greatest footballers, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Fernando Torres at the star-studded event which also saw Cristiano Ronaldo crowned the 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year.

The FIFA Interactive World Cup (FIWC) 2009 has received a record number of entrants with around 320,000 competitors already signed up to compete in this year’s competition. The FIWC has become one of the largest and fastest growing sports gaming competitions in the world with players from around the globe battling it out on EA SPORTS FIFA 09 for PLAYSTATION 3 (PS3) in a bid to be crowned the best virtual footballer in the world and receive the $20,000 1st place prize. For anyone who thinks they’ve got what it takes, there is still time ahead of 31st March to enter and show the world what you’re made of, so get registered and start laying your claim to the crown.

FIFA, EA and SCEE have also announced that the FIWC 09 grand final in May will take place in Barcelona, one of the world’s greatest football cities. The glamorous grand final marks the culmination of months of qualifying rounds currently taking place both online via the PlayStation Network and at FIWC 09 Live Qualifier Events around the globe, in countries including Australia, Brazil, UK, Germany, France, Italy, South Africa and the US.

“We got involved in the FIFA Interactive World Cup with the intention of creating an iconic gaming competition, but to achieve the huge increase in competitors that we have seen this year is something that exceeds even our most optimistic predictions”, said Darren Carter, Vice President for Brand and Consumer Marketing, SCEE. “Everything about the FIWC this year is bigger and better and to see so many competing online on PlayStation Network really highlights how PlayStation has grown along with the tournament. We can’t wait to welcome the best virtual footballers to Barcelona, Spain.”

“We are extremely proud to once again be supporting the FIWC alongside FIFA and Sony Computer Entertainment”, said Matt Bilbey, Vice President International Marketing, EA SPORTS. “We believe that FIFA 09 is our best ever football title and we are delighted to see so many gamers battling it out in the game both online and at physical qualifying events around the world. The FIWC has grown over the years to become a truly global gaming competition which captures the heart and spirit of football and gaming and we look forward to crowning this year’s victor at the grand final in May.”

Details about the live qualifier events near you will be made available over the coming weeks at www.FIFA.com/FIWC, so check in regularly to keep your fingers on the pulse of the FIFA Interactive World Cup 2009.

Racing Simulator game - GTR 2

Leading PC digital distribution platform GamersGate announced today that they exclusively have GTR 2 in there catalogue and it is available for direct download on http://www.gamersgate.com.

Simbin AB finds it very exciting to finally launch there highly ranked game GTR 2 on the digital platform GamersGate.com.

GTR 2 is the successor to the international award-winning racing simulation GTR accurately represents the challenges of Motorsport racing. The detailed, photo-realistic depiction of these powerful cars and beautiful circuits, thanks to the latest graphics technology, and the enhanced driving model will make your adrenaline rise in one of more than one hundred HP-beasts.

Beginners can start with the driving school where they are taught the basics of race driving by a professional instructor. Thanks to dynamic day, night and weather changes and an impressive damage system, the races of the exciting FIA GT series become a thrilling gaming experience.

To find out more about GTR2 on GamersGate, please go to: http://www.gamersgate.com/?page=product&what=view&sku=DD-GTR2

FIFA 9 tops UK video game chart for 10th January 2009

1 FIFA 09 EA SPORTS
2 CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR ACTIVISION
3 NEED FOR SPEED: UNDERCOVER EA GAMES
4 WII FIT NINTENDO
5 WII PLAY NINTENDO

6 GUITAR HERO: WORLD TOUR REDOCTANE
7 MARIO & SONIC AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES SEGA
8 QUANTUM OF SOLACE ACTIVISION
9 LEGO INDIANA JONES: ORIGINAL ADVENTURES LUCASARTS
10 MARIO KART WII NINTENDO
11 CARNIVAL: FUNFAIR GAMES 2KPLAY
12 FAR CRY 2 UBISOFT
13 DR KAWASHIMA'S BRAIN TRAINING NINTENDO
14 FALLOUT 3 BETHESDA SOFTWORKS
15 GEARS OF WAR 2 MICROSOFT
16 GUITAR HERO III: LEGENDS OF ROCK REDOCTANE
17 100 CLASSIC BOOK COLLECTION NINTENDO
18 LEGO BATMAN: THE VIDEOGAME WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE
19 SONIC UNLEASHED SEGA
20 PRINCE OF PERSIA UBISOFT

NinjaTrick Free-to-play browser game for Facebook in February.

Free-to-play browser based action game “NinjaTrick ()” – on Facebook Open Platform on February, 2009.

NinjaTrick is a browser based action game where players can select various kinds of Ninjutsu (special techniques and accessories) and challenge each other, controlling their own “Ninja” character with a mouse. The simple rules and fast-paced game development enable players to battle strategically against others without needing experience in mass multiplayer online games.

Anyone can easily play this game just by accessing the website. Unlike the conventional games and virtual worlds which require downloading 3D software, Adobe Flash Player allows NinjaTrick to run on web browsers.

The biggest attraction of this game is that players can create their own Ninja. Ninjas will show different characters depending on the Ninjutsu they select. Furthermore, using the virtual currency, Ninja Gold, enables players to purchase special accessories and customize their Ninja freely, which is not only a great opportunity for players to enjoy the game, but also the chance to interact with other players .


NinjaTrick Introduction

Simple, profound game modes.
This game is a battle game playable with up to eight players. In addition, players will need to find GEMs hidden around the playing field within the time limit.

The rules are simple, but utilizing the various Ninjutsu allows players to experience diversified, thrilling battles with other players.

Combination of Ninjutsu expands strategy Dozens of Ninjutsu, differing in characteristics and effects are available. In accordance with opponent’s strategy, players can change Ninjutsu and arrange effective combinations to enjoy strategic matches.

The game options also allow players to select from a single match to a maximum four-to-four team battle, and diverse stages are added sequentially, offering players a wide variety of game play.

Virtual world – “Ninja City”

The virtual world, Ninja City, features the following functions: players can chat with other players, make friends, form guilds for battle preparations, etc. By using the virtual currency, Ninja Gold, players can also exchange digital goods such as special Ninjutsu , costumes, and equipments to deck out their Ninja. For younger users, CyberAgent America, Inc. will take appropriate measures to maintain the soundness of the community by regulating chat contents and establishing a report system supported by players.

Wonderland Online - Birthday Gifts

Besides the Leveling for Gifts event, Wonderland Online players can also get great gifts on their birthday. The system will give out gift boxes automatically if players log in the game on the day of their birthday. Before opening the gift box, remember to make a sweet wish.

Note

1. Must be Level 30+.
2. Double click the gift box to see what’s inside.
3. When a players birthday arrives, please make sure there is at lease one slot for the gift box. The gift box will still be given out the next day if a player doesn’t have enough space on their birthday.
4. Players will not get the gift box if they do not log in the game on their birthday.
5. Each account can get a gift box only once per year.
6. Players should provide the correct data, and if the data is changed, the system will give them their gift box the next year.

Tales of Pirates - The Magical Lone Tower

It is said in Tales of Pirate that the Magical Lone Tower symbolizes true love and the accompanying loneliness that separation from it, or not having it at all, brings. Whether you have found your true lover or are still alone, you can find the love code after visiting the magical tower, but it’s not easy to get close. It is guarded by various monsters. Now we are going to share the Lone Tower X file with all players.

The Lone Tower has a total of 6 floors. Each floor has different BOSSes. Players can access the Lone Tower by getting a Lone Tower Pass, available in the Item Mall now, or directly buying the Pass to the specified floor of the Lone Tower in game. Players can also run there themselves using Auto-trace. Players who want to challenge the Lone Tower should note before entering, that the critters inside are all senior rank BOSSes. The 1st floor BOSS is a powerful Level 69, and their levels gradually increase from the 2nd floor to the 6th floor. This place is recommended for players Level 70+ to challenge, and they’d better go in groups.

If you ever explore the depths of the Lone Tower, you may have seen the following BOSSes: the Mad Tribal Witchdoctor, the Frenzied Lizardman and the Feral White Bobcat. They all contain rich treasures. Want to obtain this treasure? Well, watch yourself, because they are not easy to fight with. Defeat them and obtain drops including the Bloodied Carcass , the Bloodied Bow , the Essence Dagger , the Arcane Lobster Muffs and the Big Health potion.

Players, if you want to test your limits, come to challenge the magical Lone Tower in Tales of Pirates! Remember to bring your friends to watch your back!

Restaurant Empire 2 PC video game

Paradox Interactive has today announced that it has finalized a publishing agreement with Enlight Software to release Restaurant Empire 2 in North America. Restaurant Empire 2 builds on the highly popular Restaurant Empire franchise, a title that has already sold over 300,000 units in the United States alone.

With two handfuls of cash and a dream of creating a legacy, you will build, cook and hire your way to the very top of the culinary world, where tasty food is king and smart management reels in the dollars. If you’re skilled enough in the kitchen and behind the management desk, you just may go further than any aspiring restaurateur before you and cement your status as a true legend of cuisine.

“Enlight has done a tremendous job with the Restaurant Empire franchise. It offers everyone the opportunity to put their cooking and entrepreneurial skills to the test,” said Fredrik Wester, Executive VP of Paradox Interactive. “We are looking forward to working with them to bring the second instalment to North America.”

“Paradox has proven itself as the premier strategy-based PC publisher and we could not think of a more appropriate partner to take Restaurant Empire to the next level,” said Trevor Chan, CEO, Enlight Software.

Myth War II New version Dragon - 1.0.4.27 download released

The people at Myth War II are giving out a special New Years Surprise! The latest version of the game has been released (1.0.4.27) with a new server with a cool name Dragon.

Client Update

1 A new fully playable server: In this updated version, the game designers have added a new server called Dragon to the game. Lord Gaea, the creator of all lives on Rarus Continent is portrayed as a titan cursed with a dragons head, wielding a huge sword and wearing golden armor. Every realm in the game is guarded by 12 dragons which are the toughest and most violent creatures in Myth War II universe.

2 No limits to players’ titles for their pets involved in combat. In this new server, players are allowed to combat with many high level pets even as newbies.

3 A new NPC trying to help correct bugged resistance distribution for reborn players. This new NPC will be found in the Church. With one click, you will get the bug in resistance distribution fixed.

Download the latest client here: http://mw2.igg.com/download/client.php

New Server

The new server has been available since January 8th and new updates have all been unpacked. As a fair play is advocated, people from Myth War II hope that with the successful launch of this new server, all players can enjoy this game as much as possible.

The decision to shut down the old Myth War does not mean they chose to give up this classic MMO. Instead, most of features that worked well in Myth War have been maintained and even improved in MW2. What’s more, it is reasonable to expect Myth War Ⅲ to come out in 2009, which would probably take you into a 3D Myth World.

FLIP is to the iPhone what Tetris was to the Game Boy

With the holidays always comes something new.

This year, if you’re one of the lucky to have received an iPhone or iPod Touch under the tree, you’ll definitely want to check out what’s brewing in the App Store.

Imagine a puzzle game where you simply flip the iPhone and everything on your game-screen drops down from one end to the other. 

Imagine this concept being successfully employed by three distinctly fun game modes. Imagine giving your brain a workout with a truly logical design containing symmetry comparable to the Rubik's Cube. Imagine FLIP.

The objective in standard mode FLIP is to collect gems by matching them with other like-colored gems vertically, horizontally or a combination of the two. This may appear to be inline with puzzlers like Bejeweled, Columns, and even Bust-A-Move, but FLIP is a truly evolved form of gameplay when compared to such classics. Not only can you rotate the iPhone in any direction you see fit, but you can also use the touch screen to create a WARP, which will drop gems in place immediately and precisely.

In addition to standard mode FLIP, you can look forward to two other brain busting modes, including puzzle mode and speed mode. All three game modes in FLIP bring out the uniqueness of the iPhone as a game system. FLIP is simply not possible on any other platform, including the Nintendo DS, and even the Wii.

Along with other clever control mechanisms like the WARP, the motion sense of FLIP makes it one truly unique gem. A gem that every iPhone and iPod Touch user should have readily available for those times when fun is calling.

Main Features:

• Logical, intuitive, and satisfying use of motion sensors and touch screen
• Three game-modes, including Standard, Puzzle, and Speed
• Local and global high scores for all three game modes
• Nearly 200 brain-busting puzzles in puzzle and speed modes, virtually unlimited play and replay value in standard mode
• Listen to your iPod music while playing, with or without FLIP music and sound effects on
• Super fast startup, virtually no load times
• Well designed dynamic 2D visuals
• Suspend a game in progress and return at anytime, exactly where you left off – no extra screens, no hassles
• True pick-up-and-play game

Game Mode Descriptions:

In standard mode FLIP the objective is to match like-colored gems vertically, horizontally or a combination of the two. The minimum number of gems you must match is displayed on the game-screen and increases as the game progresses.

In puzzle mode FLIP you play through a series of puzzles, called think-puzzles, which have you matching gems to pulsating-shadows of like-color. A gem must land on top of a like-colored pulsating-shadow for a valid match. As you progress through the game the puzzles become more complex.

In speed mode FLIP you play through a series of fast-paced puzzles, called speed-puzzles, which have you matching gems of like-color vertically, horizontally or a combination of the two. The minimum number of gems you must match is displayed on the game-screen and varies from puzzle to puzzle. As you progress through the game the puzzles become increasingly difficult.

Five handheld games to look forward to in 2009 - PSP and DS

1 Grand Theft Auto Chinatown Wars

The folks at Rockstar have been working on this first DS "GTA" for years. It's still not clear how they can provide a "GTA"-quality soundtrack in a DS cartridge. But I do expect Rockstar's knack for great characters and creative chaotic gameplay to be in full force. This one is rated M and will be out in March.

2 Mario and Luigi RPG 3

Good things about the "Mario" role-playing game series include the frequent use of Luigi as a projectile weapon, the industry-leading comedy scripts, the exhaustive cameos of many great Mario series characters big and small — and, my favorite, the "Mario" role-playing games are big without being bulky, sporting a streamlined RPG structure that requires a lot less time spent fiddling with menus and more time in action and expanding the story. This DS game probably won't be out until the second half of 2009.

3 Patapon 2

This PSP sequel follows up last year's rhythm war-strategy game. That's right — rhythm war strategy. As with the 2008 "Patapon," players control an army of soldiers that almost look like a bunch of punctuation marks, marching from left to right across the PSP's screen in a battle against birds, dragons and other beasts. The player doesn't control the army. Instead, the player taps out the drumbeats that send the army marching forward, back or into various types of attacks. Keeping the rhythm keeps the combat going. Play this one with headphones, and you'll be hooked.

4 Loco Roco 2

The first edition of this PSP blob-rolling game was one of the most cheerful and creatively illustrated games I had played on any platform. The blob-rolling is back and looks to be even more imaginative this time. This game is already out in other parts of the world and will be released in America in the spring.

5 Rhythm Heaven

How do I describe this one? It's a weird music game that involves tapping and swiping the DS stylus — not just in sync to the game's music, but to characters on the screen who dance or punch or karate-chop things — or all sorts of other oddness. The Japan-only original, "Rhythm Tengoku" for the Game Boy Advance, is one of my favorite games ever. This DS sequel will hopefully be at least half as good. Nintendo says this one is coming out in the first half of the year.

Source: MTV

Global Agenda - PC video game open beta

Hi-Rez Studios announced today that players can now apply to participate in closed beta for Global Agenda, an action massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) scheduled for release in late 2009. The closed beta is anticipated to begin in the second quarter of ’09 and players can apply by visiting http://www.globalagendagame.com/

Global Agenda, built using Unreal Engine 3, is set in a near future world of advanced technology and player-driven conflict. It features fast-paced ranged and close combat, RPG-style character progression, solo or cooperative team missions, and epic, competitive campaigns between player-created agencies.

“Our alpha testing has gone very well - in terms of game stability and, most importantly, very positive feedback from an active alpha community”, said Todd Harris, Executive Producer of Hi-Rez Studios. “Based on these results we are excited about aggressively growing the Global Agenda player community in Beta”

Features Intended for Closed Beta Include:

• Develop your agent – Create, extensively customize, and improve your agent character over the course of your career, complimenting your FPS skills with RPG-style progression and high-tech gear.
  
• Join with other agents – Engage in cooperative PvE missions to develop and refine your individual and team tactics
  
• Advance your agency – Join a player-created agency, compete in technology races for advanced equipment, and capture critical locations to increase your influence in the world.
  
• Compete in fast-paced PvP combat – Work with your allies to raid or capture enemy controlled facilities during objective-based missions. Equip yourself from a powerful array of weapons, armor, and strategic devices like triggered explosives, deployable turrets, stealth suits, holographic decoys, and remote control robots.
  
• Experience a dynamic, player-driven world – Agency leaders navigate through a global conflict of other player-run groups, striving to reach their goals first. Territory, resources, technology, and influence are all valuable commodities, with agencies engaging in politics, intrigue, and outright deception to control them.
  

My Model Train on iPhone and iPod Touch

During the change of the year the first HandyGames title for the Apple iPhone was published in the App Store. Since Christmas 2008 the Winter Edition of the HandyGames Classic My Model Train is now also available for iPhone.

"The iPhone platform opens a whole new dimension in mobile gaming", commented HandyGames CEO Markus Kassulke. "That is why we started to adjust our games to these special abilities and to conquer also this part of the games market."

Both the advancement for the iPhone and the distribution at the App Store of the HandyGames title was performed in cooperation with Four Corners Development Group (FCDG). Jeff Miller, FCDG CEO, confirms the high potential of working with HandyGames - "We are very looking forward to a further cooperation. HandyGames has developed a lot of award winning mobile games, and we are planning a long-termed cooperation to bring them to App Store."

Other HandyGames releases in the App Store are already scheduled and will be announced in the course of the year.

Medieval Games for Nintendo Wii

Medieval Games for the Nintendo Wii home video game system from Nintendo. Medieval Games allows you to experience the excitement of days of old with up to three of your friends.

From battling dragons and storming the castle, to catapulting and archery contests, Medieval Games offers hours of fun for the entire family.
Choose from a variety of colorful characters, such as the knight, princess, bard, or wizard as you compete in a variety of game modes. Tournaments and jousting await in this rich fantasy world!

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