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Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Jumper

STORYLINE

Jumpers, people with a genetic anomaly that enables them to teleport themselves instantaneously to anywhere on the globe, have existed for centuries. An age-old battle rages between the Jumpers and the Paladins, a clandestine organization set on eliminating them from the planet. The Jumper game extends the film’s storyline, following Griffin, a battle-hardened Jumper determined to avenge the death of his parents at the hands of the Paladins. Griffin’s quest to find the killer spans exotic locales around the world.

KEY GAME FEATURES

• Jump Ability - Use your teleportation skills to “Jump” within hand-to-hand combat range of an enemy to start dishing out devastating blows.
• Combos - Exciting and intense layered combo fighting system
• Finishing Moves - Instantly teleport enemies to exotic perilous locations to finish them.
• Enemy classes - Deeply ranked hierarchy of Paladin enemy types.
• Exotic Locales - 5 combat arenas set all around the world – Colosseum, Griffin’s Desert Lair, Nepal, Tokyo Streets and Experimental Lab Facility
• Unlockable abilities - Unlockable skills and combos through gameplay.
• Available February 12th – releasing the same week as the theatrical release
• Available for the X360, Wii, and PS2 platforms


GAME RELEASE DATE: February 12th, 2008 (NA)
FILM RELEASE DATE: February 15th, 2008 (NA)
GENRE: 3rd Person Action Fighting Game
PLATFORMS: Xbox 360, Wii, & PS2
DEVELOPER: Brash Entertainment & Red Tribe & Collision
PUBLISHER: Brash Entertainment

AVENCAST: Rise of the Mage New Trailer

Leading publisher Lighthouse Interactive and developer ClockStone Software are happy to announce that their fantasy-based Action RPG, AVENCAST: Rise of the Mage is now available in major retail stores across North America and Europe. To accompany the highly anticipated release of this Windows® game on PC DVD-ROM, a new trailer is now available. AVENCAST is also Windows® Vista™ compatible.

Erik Schreuder, CEO of Lighthouse Interactive said, “We are extremely proud that AVENCAST: Rise of the Mage has hit store shelves. AVENCAST is a game that can be thoroughly enjoyed by Action and RPG fans alike. Its combat system is unique to the RPG genre. Players will have fun casting spells and defeating hordes of demonic enemies as they take on each new quest.”

AVENCAST: Rise of the Mage has a complete package of exciting features such as intense, action-packed combat sequences, mighty spells that are graphically stunning, and a multitude of perilous quests to conquer. AVENCAST combines role-playing with a fluid combat system found in beat-em-up games, which is unique to the RPG genre. It is accessible to novice RPG game players, but it will also challenge core RPG and Action fans. Both combat and non-combat interactions create a perfect balance between brains and brawn. By requiring players to bring their own combat and strategic skills to the forefront, they will have the excitement of crafting a powerful character unleashing their hero’s potential. Players who enjoy mastering spells, uncovering countless items, exploring exotic environments, and battling malicious foes will certainly enjoy the world of AVENCAST!


GAME SUMMARY:

As the sun rises over Avencast, the renowned academy of magic; a young adept begins his perilous journey. In a world of wizardry, wonder and untold mystery, you must undertake some of the most diverse quests to hone your abilities in spell casting, weaponry and melee combat. Your martial skills are soon put to the test as demonic monsters of unknown ancient origin descend upon Avencast turning the academy into a horrific state of chaos and destruction.

Armed with over 50 combat moves and spells, and a vast arsenal of equipment items, you must uncover the source of these ominous happenings while vanquishing an onslaught of fiendish enemies. Treachery and deceit reveal themselves as the vicious army of adversaries beleaguers your frail haven threatening Avencast’s very existence. Amidst the mayhem, an astonishing truth unfolds which will forever change the battle scarred Wizard.


FEATURES:

• Cast Lethal Spells from Different Skill Trees – Surrounded by vicious foes, unleash a mighty soul magic spell. The pure agglomeration of energy alone produces a warp in the surrounding atmosphere before the catastrophic nova demolishes your enemies. Blood Magic (elementally charged blows with varying speeds, ranges, and damage properties) and Soul Magic (covers all kinds of ranged magic spells allowing better area control) – both allow players to summon reinforcements during combat.
• Perilous Quests – While brawn and agility will win most battles, acumen and strategic thinking are necessary to survive challenging quests.
• Fluid Combat System – Chain together spells and easily execute lethal attacks using an innovative system that favors skillful gameplay over dull mouse clicking. Unleash your hero’s potential as you bring your own player skills to each intense battle.
• Strong Player Personification & Character Development - Acquire new equipment, armor, weapons and spell casting skills to craft a powerful character.
• Over 30 Nightmarish Monsters with Advanced AI – Each with versatile combat strategies, attacks, and defensive moves dependant upon the player’s behavior and attack strategy.
• State-of-the-art 3D Engine – Stunning graphics enhanced with advanced visual effects make for an impressive display of devastating spell casting.
• Many Hours of Exciting Gameplay – Set in diverse worlds with both indoor and outdoor environments to explore.
• Attractive to a Broad Range of Players – An Action RPG at its core, but dynamic gameplay and adventure-like quests make AVENCAST attractive to a broad range of game players.

MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:

OS: Windows XP / Vista™
CPU: 2.2 GHz Intel Pentium or 2200+ AMD Athlon processor RAM: 512 MB (1 GB recommended for Windows Vista)
Video: nVidia GeForce FX 5700 or better / ATI Radeon 9700 or better
PC DVD-ROM: 4x
Sound: DirectSound compatible (Sound Blaster X-Fi series sound card recommended)
Available Hard Disk Space: 4.4 GB
DirectX: 9.0c
Other: Mouse, Keyboard and Speakers

To download the new trailer, visit: www.lighthouse-interactive.com

Gordon Brown And Paris Hilton Meet In Serious Policy Computer Game


Where democracy is getting your voice heard...

Gordon Brown joins a virtual Paris Hilton, Alistair Darling and Keira Knightley as 3D characters in the downloadable SeriousPolicy Game ( http://www.seriouspolicy.com ). Developed by educational simulation specialist, PlayGen, the computer game sees the player on a mission to win Treasury funding for a new policy.

But this isn’t satire. SeriousPolicy is designed as an example of how computer games can be put to use for both citizen engagement and education. With its clever blend of fun and seriousness, it encourages flagging public engagement in political processes and is an ideal tool for winning over Britain's younger voters - especially with Ms Hilton in situ.

PlayGen’s MD and head developer, Kam Memarzia, says: “Young people are largely disengaged from politics these days. We’re showing how to engage audiences with new ideas through a medium they’re comfortable with – i.e. computer games. Young people have a fundamental expectation of interactivity and we can use that to deliver educational value, and enjoyment too.”

He adds: “We can develop games that involve people in policy development or feed into actual public consultations. And the decisions players make can be used to measure real world attitudes". Accordingly, the game runs with the strapline, ‘democracy is getting your voice heard’.

In SeriousPolicy, the player can receive advice from Tony Blair and David Cameron, annoy Alistair Darling or be congratulated by the PM. Along the way, the player wanders through a virtual Members’ Lobby at the Houses of Parliament, pops over to a simulated HM Treasury, and is summoned to a stunningly realistic digital Number 10. Meanwhile, a Paris Hilton lookalike provides light relief and the MC bears more than a passing resemblance to Keira Knightley.

At the ‘Virtual Worlds Forum Europe 2007’, held in London last month, Lord Puttman called for virtual worlds to "encourage [young people] to exercise those same values and skills we wish to see them exercise in the real world”.

Companies such as Sun, IBM and BP are increasingly adapting 3D virtual world technology for internal corporate use. The United Nations recently launched ‘Food Force’, a game that helps people understand the difficulties of dispensing aid to war zones. And, in the US , police have collaborated with designers to produce ‘Booze Cruise’, an educational game about the dangers of drink driving.

“Serious games are ideal for illustrating complex situations,” says Memarzia. “And they can reach huge audiences. ‘Food Force’ has been downloaded by four million players, a number to rival commercial gaming hits such as ‘Grand Theft Auto’.”

The SeriousPolicy Game can be downloaded from www.seriouspolicy.com. It was developed to demonstrate how political processes and decision-making can be brought to life in an entertaining and interesting way through a virtual world; and also to highlight to players - whether citizens or officials - the importance of public engagement in the decision-making process.


View a selection of high res screenshots from the Serious Policy game here

The way Speedball 2 is meant to be played

To maximise the impact of its latest title, Speedball 2 – Tournament, from the outset, FIP Publishing has announced its partnership with NVIDIA. As part of NVIDIA’s The Way It’s Meant to be Played programme, Speedball 2 – Tournament will bring gamers a stunning experience of its blend of sports action and combat. Developer Kylotonn Entertainment has worked with NVIDIA to enrich the game with technical features including SLI multi-graphics processing unit (GPU) support and Coverage Sampling Antialiasing (CSAA) to enhance performance and image quality.

In addition, NVIDIA will promote Speedball 2 – Tournament for one month on its nzone.com website, and host a permanent microsite for the PC game in English, French, German, Spanish, Italian and Russian language versions. NVIDIA will also incorporate the game into its ongoing PR activities. Gamers can look for the distinctive NVIDIA logo in the game’s packaging, manual and introduction sequence.

“As part of NVIDIA’s The Way It’s Meant to be Played programme, our engineers have helped FIP Publishing to ensure that Speedball 2 – Tournament takes advantage of the latest graphics technology,” explains Phil Wright, Head of Content Business Development in EMEA and India for NVIDIA. “We’re very pleased that their development studio Kylotonn has worked with us to optimise the game for the PC and make sure gamers can look forward to compatibility, stability and reliability when playing Speedball 2 – Tournament on their NVIDIA hardware.”

Total PC Gaming hits the shelves at just £3.99

Ambitous technology publisher launches first new PC games magazine in ten years, with a focus on online gaming and hardware

Imagine Publishing is proud to announce the launch of Total PC Gaming, a new magazine aimed at capturing the excitement of the burgeoning PC gaming, modding, retro, and MMO scene worldwide. Hitting the newsstand today, and priced at just £3.99, the new magazine features 148 glossy pages of the latest PC games news, previews, reviews, hardware group tests, retro classics and features.

Every issue of Total PC Gaming comes free with the 20-page mini-magazine, MMO Worlds, dedicated to the globally successful Massively Multiplayer Online gaming phenomenon, including hits like World Of Warcraft, which boasts over 9 million players. Total PC Gaming’s extensive MMO coverage is unique in the market and a crucial part of the magazine’s remit to deliver a comprehensive guide to PC gaming.

www.totalpcgaming.com goes live on the same day as the magazine and offers its users access to the latest PC games demos, the team’s top ten lists, exclusive preview screenshots, plus a database of reviews. The website is especially important for Total PC Gaming, because the magazine does not boast a covermounted DVD and is therefore priced competitively at just £3.99, making it better value than its rivals, which in some cases are up to £2 more per issue.

Editor in Chief, Dave Harfield who launched Total PC Gaming said: “Imagine Publishing is known for its innovation and quality and Total PC Gaming is yet another example of those founding principals being applied to a new magazine market.”
“I hope all PC games publishers and hardware manufacturers support this new magazine to help to break the current monopoly situation and encourage the competition that has been sorely lacking for many years.”

Imagine Publishing is one of the UK’s fastest growing consumer specialist publishers. Formed in May 2005, it now publishes 20 magazines and 20 websites in the videogames, computing, entertainment and photography markets. An Imagine magazine is purchased every ten seconds.

Name: Total PC Gaming
Price: £3.99
148 pages
Launch: 8 November 2007
Website: www.totalpcgaming.com

As Xbox LIVE Turns Five, Microsoft Announces Next Wave Of Social Fun


Xbox LIVE Membership Soars Past Eight Million Mark, Microsoft Unveils New Download Service for Full Xbox Games Direct to Your Living Room

On 15th November, Microsoft Corp. will celebrate the fifth anniversary of Xbox LIVE. In addition, the company notes that the latest membership figures show more than eight-million members are now actively engaged in the largest social entertainment network on TV. Xbox LIVE has grown from a small community of gamers in two countries, playing a handful of games online with their friends, to a worldwide social entertainment network offering online access to gaming, music and video entertainment. As friends across 26 countries and nine languages have connected on Xbox LIVE, it is their feedback and active participation that has guided the service to become what Wired magazine recently called “The king of the online arena.” As a gesture of thanks to the community, all eight-million members will have the opportunity to download a free Xbox LIVE Arcade game, between 08:01 a.m. on 15th November 15 and 7:59 a.m. on 17th November. In addition to this, every active Gold member who joined the service at launch will receive 500 MS Points for free.

Starting on 4th December, all Xbox LIVE members will receive a free system update with a host of new features and enhancements. Included in this update will be the launch of the “Xbox Originals,” which, for the first time ever, will enable consumers to download and own full Xbox games such as Halo®, Psychonauts™, Crimson Skies®: High Road to Revenge™ and Fable® among others directly to their Xbox 360. This new service will launch with an array of blockbuster titles spanning the most popular genres from action-adventure to classic role-playing games.

With no disc necessary, and at just 1200 Microsoft Points per game, Xbox LIVE members can easily rediscover these hit titles, or check out a game they missed the first time around. This launch line-up is only the beginning as Xbox 360 owners can expect to see a growing catalogue of Xbox games for download to own over the coming year.

“In just five short years Xbox LIVE has revolutionised the way friends and family have fun in the living room across the world,” said Mike Newey, EMEA Group Product Marketing Manager, Microsoft Entertainment and Devices Division. “Xbox LIVE truly is the place for hanging out with friends and now they can enjoy full downloadable Xbox games on demand.”

For more information about the downloadable games available on Xbox LIVE, the evolution of Xbox LIVE or the “Xbox LIVE is 5IVE” member rewards, visit www.Xbox.com.

Game Design Expo 2008 Announces Keynote Speakers

Makers of Hit Game Halo 3 Headlining 2008 Event
Game Design Expo is thrilled to name its keynote speakers for 2008: Jay Weinland and CJ Cowan, two of the team leads behind Bungie Studios' blockbuster Halo 3, the fastest selling video game of all time.

The keynote will headline Game Design Expo 2008, which runs January 19th and 20th, 2008, in Vancouver, BC. The event is hosted by Vancouver Film School (VFS) in association with Event Partners G4TechTV, EA, CAEAA, Annex Pro, Crystal Dynamics, Radical Entertainment, Big Fish Games, Metropolitan Hotel, and The Province.

The two-day event will also feature lectures and panels by the designers, producers, and CEOs from top companies like Activision, BioWare, Eidos, EA, and Stormfront Studios, presenting topics ranging from the Console Wars to Digital Acting & Interactive Narrative to Game Audio. In conjunction with Game Design Expo 2008, the Game Design program at VFS will hold a free day-long Open House on January 20th, with workshop classes and hands-on game demos.

In their keynote address, Bungie's Weinland (Audio Lead) and Cowan (Director of Cinematics) will discuss the tools and processes that helped create the sound and visuals for Halo 3, which was released in September to rave reviews and first-day sales in the U.S. that reached a record-breaking $170 million.

General ticket sales for Game Design Expo 2008 begin on November 21st, 2007. Check gamedesignexpo.com for detailed information, schedules, and up-to-the-minute news.

Game Design Industry Expo VFS Game
Design Open House

Saturday, January 19th, 9:00am - 7:30pm Sunday, January
20th, 12:00pm - 4:00pm

Vancity Theatre, 1181 Seymour St. Vancouver
Film School, 390 West Hastings St.

Sunday, January 20th, 10:30am - 4:00pm

Vancouver Film School, 420 Homer St.

Vancouver Film School, founded in 1987, offers a proven education for everything in the entertainment industry. With 14 production-oriented programs and a unique one-year educational model, VFS prepares students to join the creative economy. Under the guidance of industry professionals, students in the Game Design, Animation & Visual Effects, Digital Design, and Sound Design for Visual Media programs develop the knowledge, experience, and portfolios and reels that enable them to step right into the video game industry.

Buy Bioshock, Get The Darkness Free


Here's a pretty good deal from Amazon. Buy Bioshock for $50 and get The Darkness for free. "But the shipping," you say. "But the tax," you say. "I cannot afford such things," you say. "I'm saving for a new KitchenAid mixer to make game cakes," you say.

Amazon gives free shipping on orders over $25, and there's no tax in most states. For those interested, hit the link and scroll down to the "Best Value" option. That's where the hot savings are.

Atari restructure

Atari, Inc. to Realign Cost Structure - - Atari, Inc. to Grant the Test Drive License to Infogrames for Future Development
Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR), an interactive entertainment company, today announced the company will re-focus its operations on publishing and distribution in North America, completing its withdrawal from the production business. Atari also announced that it has licensed its Test Drive franchise to Infogrames Entertainment, S.A. ("IESA") under an agreement which includes a $5 million advance royalty.

Restructuring Initiative

Atari has determined to focus its resources on the publishing and distribution segments of the rapidly growing video game business. The Company's operations will involve title acquisition, sales and marketing, and physical distribution of products from IESA, its 51% shareholder, and other selected partners.

In line with that goal, Atari has agreed in principle with IESA to terminate its Production Services Agreement in the near future. As a result, Atari will no longer provide production and quality assurances services to IESA. Rather, Atari plans to transfer certain employees and contract other staff on a project basis for a limited period of time.

As part of the company restructuring, Atari, Inc. will reduce its current workforce in order to re-align the Company's cost structure with its on-going business base.

Atari Announces Departure of Chief Executive Officer
Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR), an interactive entertainment company, today announced that David Pierce has resigned his position as Atari's Chief Executive Officer under the terms of his employment agreement. Curtis G. Solsvig III, Chief Restructuring Officer, will assume Mr. Pierce's responsibilities on an interim basis. An executive search has been initiated to find Mr. Pierce's successor.

"We appreciate David's support and commitment through a difficult period in the Company's history and wish him well in his future endeavors." said Gene Davis, Chairman of the Board of Directors.

High Velocity Bowling


FACT SHEET

Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. (SCEA)
Studio: SCEA San Diego Studio
Platform: Exclusively on PLAYSTATION 3 (PS3) via PLAYSTATION Network
Players: 1-4 Players
Genre: Sports
Rating: E10+

OVERVIEW

Meet the High Velocity Bowlers, each with a unique personality, skill-set, and comedic attributes. Using the SIXAXIS™ wireless controller to simulate a real bowling swing with lifelike lane environments, High Velocity Bowling™ provides a social and interactive bowling game for all ages and skill levels. In challenge mode, players will compete to unlock ten distinctive characters and progress through ten themed alleys on their way to collecting trophies, awards and most importantly, bowling domination. Up to four players can bowl in multiplayer mode. Complete with leaderboards and stats,
High Velocity Bowling is all the fun and comedy of bowling . . . . minus the rental shoes.

KEY FEATURES

• High Velocity Bowling supports 1-4 players at a time. Play alone or with friends/enemies
• 8 unique characters available, each with their own themed alley to unlock through successful game play.
• SIXAXIS™ Wireless Controller - Fully controlled by the SIXAXIS motion sensors to simulate a real bowling swing. Fun to pick up and play!
• Challenge Mode - Progress through a series of tournaments, matches, and trick shot showmanship to unlock hidden characters and lanes.
• Trophy Room – View all the trophies, rings, and patches you have accumulated through successful bowling.