SEGA Rally Demo

SEGA Europe Ltd. today announced that the demo for SEGA Rally™, the truly thrilling and highly anticipated racing game, is available for download on the Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. The demo features two quick race tracks taken from the colourful, steep sided Canyon environment and the gloriously muddy and downright dirty Tropical environment. Players will also have the choice of literally tearing up the deformable surfaces in either the Mitsubishi Evo IX FQ3 or the Subaru Impreza STi Spec C type RA.

SEGA Rally will be released across Europe for the Xbox 360, the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system and the PC on September 28th 2007.

Now, go and try out the unique deformation technology which the SEGA Racing Studio has worked so hard to implement into SEGA Rally. For the first time ever you can not only see the deformation in action, but feel every bump along the way.

NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams from Sega

SEGA Reveals New Details on NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams
SEGA® Europe Limited today announced that NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams™, the sequel to the critically-acclaimed hit NiGHTS, will feature a two-player mode and network support at launch. SEGA also unveiled plans to reawaken the Artificial Life (A-Life) feature in NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams, which gives gamers the freedom to oversee and develop their own sandbox environment enabling them to capture, raise, and even combine the inhabitants from the world of Nightopia.

Unlike any other game available today, NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams will deliver the feeling of flight through the innovative Wii Remote™. Players will glide, spiral and loop through a variety of mystical dream worlds packed with action and adventure as they dive and blast through rings, gather orbs and come up against fantastic and unforgettable boss battles. Anchored by a storyline about courage, hope and inspiration, NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams is an ideal game for the entire family.

NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams unfolds in Nightopia, the spectacular dream world of two young characters, Helen and Will. Struggling to overcome the every day challenges of growing up, these two 12-year-olds find their real life experiences spilling over into their dreams. As Helen and Will fall into a deep sleep, they are greeted by NiGHTS, a fantasy jester, who leads them to explore the rich and vibrant land of Nightopia. Along the way, NiGHTS helps the youngsters bravely face their fears by finding inventive ways to confront, outpace, and outwit foes - such as the villainous Nightmarens. Through the freedom of flight, execution of stunning acrobatic moves and tapping into special abilities that enable gamers to combat danger and restore peace to Nightopia.

Three classic games added to Wii channel

Everyone's favorite long-tongued, egg-tossing dinosaurs make a colorful splash on the Wii Shop Channel this week. Yoshi's action takes place in storybook "pages" made up of bookmaking materials and other familiar textures, including cut-paper forests, denim clouds, inflatable plastic islands and stacks of colored spools. It's a classic Nintendo® 64 game remembered as much for its beauty as its game play. Once you're done with that, you can probably find time to fly an attack helicopter or play a little baseball to get ready for the post-season.

Three new classic games go live at 9 a.m. Pacific time. Nintendo adds new games to the Wii Shop Channel every Monday. Wii™ owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points™ to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week's new games are:

Yoshi's Story™ (Nintendo 64, 1 player, rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): The evil Baby Bowser has cast a spell turning Yoshi's Island™ into a picture book. Worse yet, the Super Happy Tree has been stolen, making the island dark and gloomy. Players must take control of six Yoshis, each a different color, and travel through six pages (worlds) of platforming adventure to recover the tree and return the island to normal. Featuring huge character models and bright, vibrant colors, the game's various environments (such as woods, caves, mountains and oceans) come alive in a uniquely gorgeous 2½-D look. Eat fruit, avoid enemies and obstacles, and throw eggs from the Yoshis' never-ending supply in your quest to stop Baby Bowser's plan from succeeding. If you're good enough, you can aim for higher scores by being picky about the fruit you eat. And who knows, you might even find the mysterious black and white Yoshis.

Super Thunder Blade™ (Sega Genesis, 1 player, rated E for Everyone - Mild Violence, 800 Wii Points): In this follow-up to Thunder Blade, you'll fly a new and improved attack helicopter in a series of attacks against guerilla armies that are bent on taking over the world. Although your aircraft is formidable, your enemies are vast and varied. You'll have to take on submarines, tanks, fighter planes and more. Your command of this state-of-the-art battle copter must be top notch, as you'll have to dodge oncoming fire and use your various weapons to eliminate all enemy targets so you can reach the guerilla base and end their nefarious plans once and for all. Put on your flight suit and step into the thrilling action of Super Thunder Blade.

World Class Baseball (TurboGrafx16, 1-2 players, rated E for Everyone, 600 Wii Points): Acclaimed for its steady game play, World Class Baseball is the definitive baseball game on the TurboGrafx16. Battle the computer in OPEN MODE or play a friend in VERSUS MODE. Customize your team in EDIT MODE or even watch a game between two computer opponents in WATCH MODE. World Class Baseball offers the complete baseball gaming experience. Of course there's also plenty of single-player action. The main feature is PENNANT MODE, where the player chooses a team from one of the world's leagues and strives to win their team's league. Beat league rivals and save your progress with passwords on your way to becoming league champions. After winning your league, get ready to the face the other league's champion in the heated series for the world championship.

Free Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2 Tournament

Right on the back of XLEAGUE.TV announcing their intentions to run Mario Strikers & PES6 as their inaugural Free Tournament, it has been announced that XLEAGUE.TV are to run a Free Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2 Tournament.

“GRAW2 is one of the most popular FPS titles around the world and XLEAGUE.TV are proud to announce this Free Tournament.” Says Ray Mia, XLEAGUE.TV Channel Manager.

The GRAW2 Tournament rules and start dates are available now on www.xleague.tv, as are the last remaining places for the PES6 Tournament which will be kicking off soon. So don’t miss out, get involved and win yourself a nice bundle of cash!

The remaining free tournaments will be unveiled over the following weeks.

XLEAGUE.TV will also be rolling out a Pro XLEAGUE.TV structure in the near future, where the very best teams and solo players will be invited to play in one of the most competitive online gaming arenas. More details to follow shortly.

For more information on the XLEAGUE.TV survey, new free tournaments and prizes, please visit www.XLEAGUE.TV or contact Marketing Manager Lee Catania on lee.catania@nasnet.co.uk. XLEAGUE.TV can also be found on Sky Channel 279.

About XLEAGUE.TV:
XLEAGUE.TV is the UK’s first dedicated eSports channel and fully integrated website launched in May 2007. The revolutionary channel, which broadcasts on Sky channel 279, offers a comprehensive range of services to its members including leagues and tournaments, customisable user profiles, match scheduling and club and team creation. By competing on www.xleague.tv, gamers can win the opportunity to be invited to the studio for the chance to play on television.

The channel was launched at a cost of £5 million and is part of the Portland Media Group. XLEAGUE.TV has a wealth of In-house facilities include production, post-production and play-out, as well as an advertising agency, a media buying and planning department and a modelling agency.

Ubisoft expands into China

Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest video game publishers, announces the opening of a new video game development studio in Chengdu, Sichuan, China. Richard Tsao, senior producer at Ubisoft’s Shanghai studio, has been appointed managing director of the new studio. Ubisoft Chengdu will initially focus on internal outsourcing and in time will be responsible for developing online titles for PC, consoles and handhelds.

The opening of the new studio was celebrated today at a signing ceremony with Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer of Ubisoft, as well as the Party Secretary of Chengdu Hi-Tech Zone, Mr. Jing Gang and Mr. Han Chun Lin, Director of Chengdu’s Hi-Tech Zone.

Following on its history of success in China, with Ubisoft’s Shanghai studio already the second-largest Ubisoft development team in the world, the new studio in Chengdu will open its doors in Tianfu Software Park with 10 team members and the goal of expanding to 200 developers over the next year. Chengdu, with over 35,000 software programming graduates per year, is one of the most technologically developed cities in Western China, offering long-term growth opportunities based on a talented and highly educated local population. With its cutting-edge infrastructure and a local Hi-Tech Zone, Chengdu attracts international companies from all over the world and will provide a perfect environment for Ubisoft to establish an outstanding development studio.

“The success of our studio in Shanghai, which has been further confirmed with the launch of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 for the PLAYSTATION 3 system, has encouraged us to extend our growth in China,” said Christine Burgess-Quémard, executive director, Worldwide Studios at Ubisoft. “We are convinced that Chengdu offers the perfect environment for our expansion, offering a great number of highly educated and talented people.”

Richard Tsao’s career in games development began at Microsoft, where he helped to ship games such as Dungeon Siege and Mech Warrior 4. He then moved to Crytek, shipping Far Cry® and managing pre-production for Crysis before coming to Ubisoft Shanghai where he was most recently responsible for projects including Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter® 2 for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system. Before video games, Rich gathered a decade of development experience as a technical project manager and programmer for various client/server software projects, including deploying the first online billing system for MSN Internet access service.

Ubisoft was the first major developer to establish itself in China, opening a development studio in Shanghai in 1996. Ubisoft’s Shanghai studio, managed by Corinne Leroy, has developed internationally renowned games including Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow® for the Xbox® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, which reached No. 1 shortly after its release in 2004. The studio celebrated its 10th anniversary last year and the team is currently developing an entirely new franchise, Tom Clancy’s EndWar™, which will release in 2008.

10000 Retailers will open for Halo 3 midnight launch

More than 10,000 retailers in the United States alone are expected to open their doors at midnight on September 25 to begin selling Halo 3.

One million copies of the game have already been pre-ordered in North America. The company also recently announced pricing for a Halo 3-themed Xbox 360 console.

Halo 2 sold 2.4 million copies and earned up to US 125 million in its first 24 hours on store shelves. Microsoft expects Halo 3's launch to shatter its predecessor's day-one entertainment sales record.

In what Microsoft has dubbed the "Unite to Fight" launch week, regional events will be held at retailers in locations including New York City, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Miami, allowing gamers a chance to win merchandise and play the game with local celebrities.

In the US, Best Buy will be making Xbox LIVE Gold free for everyone during the first three days of Halo 3's availability. From September 25 through September 27, everyone with an Xbox 360 and a broadband connection can become an Xbox LIVE Gold member and experience Halo 3 online.

Microsoft will be giving away 8,000 points during this free Xbox LIVE period to 144 randomly-selected people. Those winners will also receive a chance to win one of two grand prizes, which include a Halo-themed Pontiac GXP Street Edition valued at USD 28,000 and a Samsung home theater entertainment system valued at USD 3,499.97.

Pontiac itself has teamed up with Microsoft to provide 1,000 lucky winners a copy of Halo 3 before it's available in stores with their "First to Own" promotion. Meanwhile, at the NASCAR Dover 400 on September 23rd, David Stremme will be driving the number 40 Target/Halo 3 inspired race car.

Microsoft has also announced Game with Fame sessions during the first week of Halo 3's launch, allowing gamers to play against their favorite actors, bands, and sports stars over Xbox LIVE. Bungie's Halo 3 development team will also be on Xbox LIVE during launch week, giving gamers a chance to play against the talent behind the game.

Finally, a new Xbox 360 Halo 3 theme and gamerpic will be available for Xbox LIVE Gold members only during launch week.

Source: GamesIndustry

Colin McRae - Star of Video Game Franchise - Dies in Helicopter Crash

Colin McRae, winner of 25 World Rally Championships and star of video game franchises, was killed in a helicopter crash Saturday along with his 5-year-old son, 6-year-old Ben Porcelli and 37-year-old Graeme Duncan. The 39 year old McRae was piloting said helicopter which he owned and was licensed to fly, when it crashed into a wooded area near his home in Scotland. According to police, the aircraft was badly burned, making it impossible for officials to immediately identify the occupants.McRae’s career spans the World Rally Championship from 1987 until 2004, the Paris to Dakar rally, the Le Mans 24 hour race, the Race of Champions and the X Games. McRae’s success on the rally circuit led to a computer game “Colin McRae Rally,” first released in 1998, which is now found on PlayStation, Game Boy, Xbox and PSP platforms - and most recently DiRT for the PC, PS3, and Xbxo 30.

“He was really daring, always pushing it further,” Formula One driver Heikki Kovalainen said. “I always liked his attitude. It was maximum attack always and he had some big rolls sometimes. Every time he had one, though it was like: ‘Oh well, it’s just a roll,’ and he just carried on.”

McRae received an MBE award in 1996 from Queen Elizabeth II. He was married and also has a daughter.

The staff at Gaming Today would like everyone to please keep Colin’s family and the families of Graeme Duncan and Ben Porcelli in your thoughts and prayers as they go through the trying times ahead. It will be hard enough to deal with the loss of Colin and Graeme, but even more difficult due to the fact that young children were involved.
AP

Colin McRae, 1968 – 2007

Everyone at Codemasters, especially those who worked directly with Colin McRae, is deeply shocked and saddened by the tragic events of this weekend.

The loss of Colin McRae is deeply distressing. That it involved his son and another so young makes it even more tragic. Our thoughts are with his family and those closest to him and we share in their pain.

For over ten years, Colin was part of the Codemasters family and it was a privilege to have a man recognised as a true legend on the team. He always took a keen interest in the game experience, wanting to make sure it was without equal in its portrayal of the sport.

His contribution was inspirational and brought his technical expertise and passion for rally driving to each and every McRae game. Through the popularity of those games, he brought a whole new audience to the sport itself.

Codemasters’ relationship with Colin began through Jim, David and Richard Darling and their condolences, along with ours, are passed to Colin’s family. We are heavy of heart at his passing but we are also brimming with pride at knowing him and to have played a small role in his life.

He will never be forgotten by all at Codemasters.

The Colin McRae series of video games:
Developed and published by Codemasters in partnership with Colin McRae, the McRae games now form a 9 million+ selling series. The first game, Colin McRae Rally, was published in the summer of 1998 for the PlayStation and PC. It became an international best-seller and set a benchmark for rally video games that only its sequels could better. Colin McRae Rally 2.0, for the PlayStation and PC, followed in 2000, with Colin McRae Rally 3, for the PlayStation 2 and PC, in 2002.

With Colin’s input, the series continued to evolve with an ever growing variety of car makes and classes, stages and countries featured through the games of 2003 and 2004, Colin McRae Rally 04 and Colin McRae Rally 2005 respectively (PlayStation 2, Xbox and PC).

Most recently, the series diversified further, mirroring Colin’s own participation in a broader range of motor sports, with year’s title: Colin McRae: DiRT. Published in June for the Xbox 360 and PC, and most recently for the PlayStation 3, Colin McRae: DiRT has players competing in off-road races on gravel, mud and dirt tracks all over the world. www.codemasters.co.uk

Colin McRae’s website – www.colinmcrae.com – is now hosting Messages of Condolence http://www.colinmcrae.com/condolences.asp

Project Gotham Racing 4

Update For All Project Gotham Racing Fans!
Racing For The Gold! "Project Gotham Racing 4" Goes Gold

New game web site launches as the latest installment of the legendary racing series gets set to release exclusively on Xbox 360 on 12th October 2007

Microsoft Game Studios and Bizarre Creations today announced that “Project Gotham Racing 4” (“PGR 4”), the latest installment of the best-selling and award-winning racing franchise, has been released to manufacturing. The team also confirmed that the game’s new web site is up and running. Fans can now visit http://www.pgrnations.com for all the latest news, features and updates from the “PGR” universe and the team at Bizarre.

Set to redefine the experience “PGR” fans have come to know and love, “PGR 4” is set to race onto store shelves on 12th October. Featuring a unique, exciting racing experience where dramatic racing action is captured in breathtaking cinematic style, “PGR 4” is sure to capture the attention of racing fans everywhere. The all new addition of motorcycles adds a new dimension to the “PGR” driving experience by allowing gamers to compete and pull off amazing driving manoeuvres not possible on four wheels.

The official “PGR 4” web site at http://www.pgrnations.com contains the most recent news and updates in the Project Gotham universe. Currently, the web site is the home to the game’s full robust vehicles list, including models from the world’s top car and motorcycle manufacturers, as well as the official Achievements list. The site will be continually updated to give fans a true home base with all the “PGR 4” information and content they’re looking for.

From the inspired minds at Bizarre Creations, “PGR 4” offers franchise fans and new players alike exciting new ways to race over Xbox LIVE. “PGR 4” allows drivers to build a global racing community through team-oriented gameplay while making it easy to find their favourite races, friends, ghosts, replays or photos. Additional improvements to the unique Kudos rewards system provides gamers with more incentives to show off their distinctive driving styles including the ability to purchase new vehicles, game modes, gamerpics and more at the “PGR” Shop. “PGR 4” will be available at retailers nationwide on 12th October for an estimated retail price of £44.99.

Pokémon Diamond/Pearl

DISCOVER THE ULTIMATE POKÉMON TRADING DATABASE!

Over 10 million people globally are enjoying the phenomenon that is Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl and in Europe, 1.6 million copies have been sold in just 7 weeks since launch. For the first time in the Pokémon series, these games have allowed fans to trade Pokémon with anyone in the world via the Global Trading Station, using the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. Now an all-new and exciting Pokémon service is being made available, as fans are invited to visit the Pokémon GTS website - www.pokemon-gts.net - where they can keep up-to-date on the global Pokémon trade.

From Friday 14th September, 5pm CET, the Pokémon GTS website will be the place to go for fans across the globe, giving them access to top trading information such as the most traded Pokémon, most deposited and wanted Pokémon at the Global Trading Station, as well as discovering which Pokémon are being traded most in each country. The top 50 most traded Pokémon, as well the top 50 most wanted and most deposited Pokémon in the world.

Trying to work out which Pokémon are the best to collect? Using the GTS site, you can simply click on the image of the Pokémon being traded to gain all the information you could ever need, including Pokémon name, type, moves learnt and the time, date and country it was deposited in. What’s more, users have the opportunity to bookmark any Pokémon discovered, adding them to a ‘favourites’ folder to look out for next time they visit the GTS in Pokémon Diamond or Pokémon Pearl.

Using the interactive globe element, users can rotate and research Pokémon trading action from many parts of the world. By simply spinning the globe and clicking an area of interest, users can find out more details about the Pokémon but also discover facts about many countries, including capital city, population, language spoken and local greetings!

So log on and discover a whole new world of trading everyone’s favourite Pokémon! Visit www.pokemon-gts.net from 14th September.

Madden NFL '08 scores high

More than 2 million units sold

The NPD Group has released the US hardware and software sales figures for August 2007, with EA's Madden NFL '08 dominating the charts.

The Xbox 360 version of the game was number one, with 896,600 units sold, followed by the PlayStation 2 version, with 643,600 units sold. The PlayStation 3 version of the game sold 336,200 units, which was good enough for fourth place overall.

The Wii, Xbox, and PSP versions of Madden NFL '08 were in eleventh, twelfth, and eighteenth place, respectively.

Bioshock, which is atop the charts in other countries, came in third with 490,900 units sold.

Three Wii games--Wii Play, Metroid Prime 3, and Mario Strikers: Charged--took the fifth, sixth, and seventh positions on the charts. Mario Party 8, also for the Wii, was in the ninth spot.

Guitar Hero II for the PS2, with the guitar controller, sold 145,400 units and was in eighth place. The follow-up, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s for PS2, made tenth place on the charts with sales of 127,100 units. The Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero II was in seventeenth place on the August sales chart.

Hardware-wise, Nintendo continues to dominate, with an estimated 403,600 Wii consoles and 383,300 DS handhelds sold in the US in August.

Microsoft sold 276,700 Xbox 360 consoles on the strength of a price cut, with Sony selling 130,600 PlayStation 3 consoles. Sony also sold 202,000 PlayStation 2 consoles and 151,200 PSP handhelds.

Overall, videogame hardware and software sales were up 46 per cent from the same period last year.