Virtua Fighter 5 Official Site Launch

SEGA Europe Ltd. are pleased to announce the launch of the official website for Virtua Fighter 5, the hotly anticipated fighting game for the PlayStation3 computer entertainment system. Virtua Fighter offers a range of content for both fans of the highly acclaimed series and gamers new to Virtua Fighter.



Virtua Fighter includes a range of material covering everything from a game information section describing all the aspects of Virtua Fighter 5 to a detailed character section explaining everything there is to know about fighters old and new. An extensive media section allows visitors to view a selection of movies and screenshots, going great lengths to prove the undeniable beauty of Virtua Fighter 5 and also includes a variety of wallpapers and icons for fans to download.




Visitors wanting to brush up on their Virtua Fighter knowledge can browse through the history section of the site to get the inside information on the critically acclaimed and much loved game, helping to make Virtua Fighter the perfect site for fans of what is hotly tipped to be the world’s greatest fighting game.

For more information on Virtua Fighter 5 please visit Virtua Fighter

wii news channel launches in US

News At Your Fingertips: AP And Nintendo Launch Wii News Channel Across Americas

As the options for news multiply, Nintendo is putting a simple solution for straight news right in the palm of your hand-in the form of the Wii Remote™. The News Channel, free to Wii™ owners, will debut on the console's Wii Menu beginning tomorrow, Saturday, Jan. 27. Using the international resources of the Associated Press, the News Channel gives you key stories in multiple categories from across the country and around the world.

"What Wii has done for video gaming, we hope it will also accomplish for news," says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. "Just by pointing at your TV screen, you become your own interactive editor, instantly accessing the latest headline stories, whether they originate in Kansas City or Kyoto."



"The Associated Press is always looking for innovative ways to expand its audience for news and information," said Jane Seagrave, vice president and director of AP's digital division. "The Wii News Channel extends our global reach even further, on yet another platform, offering our news to people who otherwise might not see it."

The simple user interface allows Wii owners to spin a virtual globe and point to the location of a news event using the Wii Remote. Stories will be listed under headings including Business, Sports, Arts/Entertainment, Technology and Science/Health to allow users to quickly access information in the order they want. At any given time, dozens of stories might be available for each category. In the global view, stories can be grouped by region instead of category. Icons show which stories have been read, which stories are text-only and which ones come with news photos. Because Wii caters to all different ages, the interface allows users to change the size of the text. By using the "always-on" system functionality of WiiConnect24™, stories will be updated frequently, even while owners are sleeping.

BLAST! Signs up Charlotte's Web

BLAST! SIGNS UP CHARLOTTE'S WEB, THE CHILDREN'S FILM OF THE YEAR

Blast! Entertainment Limited part of the Mastertronic Group of Companies continues to raise the bar by signing up the major movie license Charlotte's Web for PlayStation 2.

Publishers Weekly lists the book as the best-selling children's paperback of all time, selling more than 45 million copies and has been translated into 23 languages. Aside from its paperback sales, Charlotte's Web is 78th on the all-time hardback list. Bringing this all time classic to life on PS2 is Atomic Planet Entertainment Limited (APE) a video games developer based in the North of England, consisting of a management team that has over 70 years of industry experience.



The hugely anticipated film is due for release in UK cinemas in February, it's a live-action/photo real CG animated feature adaptation of E.B. White's "Charlotte's Web" starring Dakota Fanning as Fern. Heading up the all star cast is Julia Roberts lending her vocals in the lead role of Charlotte A. Cavatica, a spider and heroine of the book who goes out of her way to save Wilbur the pig's life by weaving miraculous words into her webs.

Also providing voices are Oprah Winfrey as Gussy the barn's maternal yet irreverent goose; John Cleese as Samuel the sheep; Steve Buscemi as the barn's sardonic Rat Templeton. Cedric The Entertainer will play opposite Oprah as the other Goose - Golly. Reba McEntire and Kathy Bates will voice the barn's ironic cows; Betsy and Bitsy and Thomas Haden Church will voice Brooks, one of two dimwitted crows opposite Andre Benjamin (Andre 3000) as Elwyn the other crow.



Charlotte's Web on PlayStation 2 combines all the major characters of the story and places them in the players control. This is a quick and simple game to get into that is perfect for children. Varied gameplay will include exploration and problem solving and the player with have to explore the farm to live through the infamous Charlotte's Web story.

Sean Brennan, Blast! Entertainment, commented "Signing Charlott'e Web is a major coup for us and we'll be maximising the massive publicity that will surround the film launch. This release firmly places Blast! on the map as the leading value PS2 publisher across Europe and we plan to announce further high profile signings throughout 2007."

Charlotte's Web will be released on PS2 in March 2007 throughout Europe with an RRP of £9.99/€14.95, the Blast! range represents excellent value especially for kids and families with characters you know and love.

New hardware boosts Oz game sales

New hardware releases helped the Australian games industry reach a sales high of AUD $925 million (EUR 562m) in 2006.

Total game sales were up 7 per cent in 2006, with hardware rising 18 per cent and accounting for AUS $329 million in sales (EUR 200m), according to data released by GfK Australia.

Software sales amounted to AUD $596 million, a rise of just one per cent, but actual software units sold dropped to 12.5 million, compared to 12.6 million in the previous year.

Between October and December 2006, the DS sold 151,922 units, while the PlayStation 2 managed 122,639 consoles sold. The PSP sold 55,850 units in the same period.


Industry expects to break AUD $1bn sales in 2007


Since the Nintendo Wii launched December 7, it has sold a total of 51,744 units, while the Xbox 360 has sold 45,036 units in the final three months of the year.

The Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia believes that the industry will continue to grow this year.

"2007 will be a considerable year for hardware sales and the Australian interactive games industry will comfortably exceed the AUS $1 billion mark," offered Chris Hanlon, CEO of the IEAA.

Sega teams with Kuju for new PSP project

Puzzle game Crush due for summer release

Sega has teamed up with Kuju Brighton to develop new title Crush for the PSP.

The game is due for release this summer, and promises a gameplay mechanic whereby players are able to change the environment from 3D to 2D, in order to solve puzzles.



"Crush introduces a fascinating new gameplay perspective on the PSP that encourages players to stretch their imagination in a whole new way," said Scott Steinberg, VP of marketing for Sega of America.

"The spatial concept of the crushing mechanic is something truly unique that encourages users to think back and forth between 3D and 2D objects and environments to engage different parts of their brain, and see beyond what is literally in front them."

EA collects Pogo titles for DS release

Pogo Island to feature five casual gaming favourites

Electronic Arts is to repackage five of the most popular titles from casual gaming site Pogo.com for release on the Nintendo DS.

Word Whomp, Poppit, Phlinx, Tri-Peaks Solitaire and Squelchies will feature in the package, due for release this March.



"Million of people have been captivated by these simple, yet addictive casual games," said Kevin Chorney, producer for Pogo Island.

"We're so excited to finally bring the online experience to players on the go," he added.

EA bought Pogo.com in 2001, and the site currently enjoys an average of 2.6 million users per day.

No 20gig PS3 for Europe

Europeans who fancy getting their hands on the 20GB model of the PS3 will also be disappointed, since Sony has decided not to launch the cheaper version of the console in this market - not initially, at least.

The company says it'll continue to monitor demand for the 20GB version, of course, and claims that it's only going with the 60GB version as the sole offering because that's what retail has told them to do.



Whether that's entirely true or not (we've spoken to several retailers who seem bitterly disappointed at the decision to launch a single SKU and not offer a lower priced proposition), it's obvious where the decision has its basis.

Sony are no doubt mindful of the fiasco at the launch of the Xbox 360, when Microsoft chose to ship a large number of crippled Core systems as part of it day one allocation - leaving frustrated consumers who wanted the premium system stuck with buying a Core, and then battling over short stocks of the hard drive add-on.

Wii Lineup For First Quarter

Wii Lineup For First Quarter 2007 Expands Nintendo's Global Phenomenon

Fans Will Find Dozens of New and Classic Games Everyone Can Play

After watching everyone from gamers to grandmas fall under the spell of ground-breaking Wii™ games during the holidays, Nintendo fulfills its promise to continue the flow of fun for veteran and new gamers alike. Nintendo's first-quarter lineup is filled with new games that expand the breadth and depth of the Wii library and build on the kind of fun that has made Wii such a smash hit. The first three months of the year are filled with games for everyone, from sure-fire favorites like Wii Play™ to SSX ™Blur and The Godfather® Blackhand Edition from EA and a new Prince of Persia® Rival Swords game from Ubisoft. Fans can enjoy the classic Nintendo franchises such as The Legend of Zelda®: A Link to the Past® and the upcoming Mario Kart 64™ for the Wii Shop Channel. And on Jan. 27, the News Channel goes live with global coverage provided by the Associated Press.

"Our tremendous worldwide launch shows people, from experienced players to non-players, are hungry for the kinds of entertainment only Wii provides," says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. "Wii hardware production continues full bore, and every week we're delivering more incredible content to further expand the experience."

Casual game players who recently discovered or rediscovered the thrills of video games through games like Wii Sports™ and WarioWare™: Smooth Moves will be glad to know Wii Play, a collection of nine new games in the Wii Sports style, will be available Feb. 14. Wii Play includes games like Billiards, Fishing and Shooting Range, a target-practice game in the style of Nintendo's classic Duck Hunt™. Wii Play comes packaged with a Wii Remote™ to highlight the fun multiplayer aspects of Wii, and to provide an incredible value.



Veteran gamers who spent countless hours playing through The Legend of Zelda®: Twilight Princess will find new challenges by entering worlds populated by everyone from Tiger Woods to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, thanks to a deep list of new offerings from third-party publishers.

Beyond the current library of 34 new Wii titles, the schedule for upcoming Wii releases includes:

• Feb. 14 Wii Play with Wii Remote Nintendo


• March 27 Disney's Meet the Robinsons Buena Vista


• March Bust-A-Move Bash Majesco


• March Prince of Persia Rival Swords Ubisoft


• March TMNT (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) Ubisoft


• March Bionicle Heroes Eidos


• March Blazing Angels Squadrons of WWII Ubisoft


• Q1 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07 EA


• Q1 SSX Blur EA


• Q1 The Godfather Blackhand Edition EA


• Q1 Medal of Honor Vanguard EA


• Q1 Sonic and the Secret Rings Sega

But new titles don't begin to describe the array of game action available on Wii. With yesterday's Virtual Console release of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past from the NES®, the library of downloadable Wii titles grows to 42. Also, next week will see the addition of an all-time favorite, Mario Kart 64. Nintendo will continue to make weekly announcements to update Wii owners about upcoming releases.

New kind of puzzle game, The Incredible Machine,

Vivendi Games Mobile announces the forthcoming launch of a new kind of puzzle game, The Incredible Machine, in April 2007.

Inventors welcome: the weirder, the better!

Based on Sierra’s franchise with 5 games released between 1993 and 2001, Vivendi Games Mobile has developed the mobile version of this mythic game where ingenuity is the master key to success.



With 60 problems to solve and another 20 as bonuses, the game develops and will challenge your inventor -side for many hours.

As the user, you are the assistant of Professor TIM. You have to choose carefully from 34 objects to design and assemble your own contraptions which will undoubtedly have working pulleys, levers, belts, motors, balloons and more. Your ultimate goal? Generate a chain reaction which will make your contraptions work.

Each of your creations will be rated by Professor TIM. Get a good or excellent rating in order to unlock new mechanisms as bonuses (up to 20); new backgrounds for the game and new original music to be played while you are solving your next challenge.

In order to improve your skill or impress your friends; you can re-watch the workings of mechanisms you have invented.

Two game modes are offered to the user:

Classic:
Get the best results for your problem -solving skills in order to get to the next level and unlock new challenges, backgrounds and music.

Free:
Train or entertain your friends in the free mode. You can play as you wish with the mechanisms you have already unlocked in classic mode.

Final Fantasy XII Cosplay Contest

Square Enix Ltd., the publisher of Square Enix® interactive entertainment products in Europe and other PAL territories, today announces an exclusive Cosplay competition to celebrate the launch of its forthcoming FINAL FANTASY XII.

If you think you have what it takes to be an official Square Enix Cosplayer, you are invited to enter the official FINAL FANTASY XII Cosplay competition. Three Grand Prize Winners will win a two night trip to London to showcase their FINAL FANTASY XII costumes on stage at the official launch event in central London, and will also receive a FINAL FANTASY goodie bag.



Be sure to start cutting and sewing immediately as entry to the competition closes on 11th February 2007, 11:59 p.m. If you think you have what it takes to be an official Square Enix Cosplayer, send an email with three photos of you in your FINAL FANTASY XII costume to the dedicated email address – found at Square-enix. Before entering please read the Official Contest Rules for entry details and eligibility requirements.

Any other Final Fantasy Cosplayers wanting to showcase their costumes from previous Final Fantasy adventures are welcome to join the celebrations at the launch event, but are not eligible to enter the above competition. A number of goodies and giveaways will be available at the launch – full event details will follow shortly.

FINAL FANTASY XII will be available from 23rd February 2007, exclusively on the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system.