CHAMPIONSHIP GAMING SERIES

Media Event to Kick Off 2007 World Final

Championship Gaming SeriesTM (CGS), the only worldwide professional gaming league will hold its inaugural World Final December 6-14 at Sony Studios in Los Angeles. At the highly-anticipated showdown, 12 top CGS teams from around the world will battle each other for their share of an unprecedented $1,000,000 total prize purse, of which $500,000 will go to the World Champion team.

In what will become an annual platform for the world’s best gamers to compete professionally, the inaugural CGS World Final will be broadcast on television to more than 350 million viewers by DIRECTV’s The 101 in the U.S., BSkyB’s Sky One, Sky Two and Sky HD in the UK, ESPN STAR Sports in Asia, SKY in Mexico and Brazil, DIRECTV throughout the rest of Latin America, and across mainland Europe via additional soon-to-be confirmed broadcast partners.

CGS WORLD FINAL PRESS CONFERENCE

WHAT: Join CGS Commissioner/CEO Andy Reif and Eric Shanks, DIRECTV’S Executive Vice President of Entertainment as they share important league news and officially kick off the 2007 CGS World Final. They will discuss the latest pertaining to the World Final while also announcing exciting developments for the 2008 season. Additionally, both Andy and Eric will address audience questions and be available for one-on-one conversation immediately following the press conference.

WHO: Andy Reif, Commissioner and CEO, CGS
Eric Shanks, Executive Vice President, Entertainment, DIRECTV

WHEN: Thursday, December 6, 2007
2:30-4:00p PST

WHERE: Radisson Hotel (press conference) Sony Studios (event)
Playa Vista Meeting Room Sound Stage 29
6161 W. Centinela Ave. 10202 W. Washington Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90230 Culver City, CA 90232
310.649.1776 310.244.4000

CGS WORLD FINAL EVENT

WHAT: CGS World Final

WHEN: December 6-14

WHERE: Sony Studios

EVENT SCHEDULE:

December 6 (7:00p-10:00p PST): First round day 1
December 7 (7:00p-10:00p PST): First round day 2

December 8 (9:00A-1:00p PST): WoW:BC 2v2 CGS Championship (Competition will be webcast on thecgs.com)
December 9(12:00p-6:00p PST): Individual World Final (Competition will be webcast on thecgs.com)

December 10 (7:00p-10:00p PST): Quarterfinals day 1
December 11(7:00p-10:00p PST): Quarterfinals day 2
December 13(7:00p-10:00p PST): Semifinals
December 14(7:00p-10:00p PST): Final

CHAMPIONSHIP GAMING SERIES

Media Event to Kick Off 2007 World Final

Championship Gaming SeriesTM (CGS), the only worldwide professional gaming league will hold its inaugural World Final December 6-14 at Sony Studios in Los Angeles. At the highly-anticipated showdown, 12 top CGS teams from around the world will battle each other for their share of an unprecedented $1,000,000 total prize purse, of which $500,000 will go to the World Champion team.

In what will become an annual platform for the world’s best gamers to compete professionally, the inaugural CGS World Final will be broadcast on television to more than 350 million viewers by DIRECTV’s The 101 in the U.S., BSkyB’s Sky One, Sky Two and Sky HD in the UK, ESPN STAR Sports in Asia, SKY in Mexico and Brazil, DIRECTV throughout the rest of Latin America, and across mainland Europe via additional soon-to-be confirmed broadcast partners.

CGS WORLD FINAL PRESS CONFERENCE

WHAT: Join CGS Commissioner/CEO Andy Reif and Eric Shanks, DIRECTV’S Executive Vice President of Entertainment as they share important league news and officially kick off the 2007 CGS World Final. They will discuss the latest pertaining to the World Final while also announcing exciting developments for the 2008 season. Additionally, both Andy and Eric will address audience questions and be available for one-on-one conversation immediately following the press conference.

WHO: Andy Reif, Commissioner and CEO, CGS
Eric Shanks, Executive Vice President, Entertainment, DIRECTV

WHEN: Thursday, December 6, 2007
2:30-4:00p PST

WHERE: Radisson Hotel (press conference) Sony Studios (event)
Playa Vista Meeting Room Sound Stage 29
6161 W. Centinela Ave. 10202 W. Washington Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90230 Culver City, CA 90232
310.649.1776 310.244.4000

CGS WORLD FINAL EVENT

WHAT: CGS World Final

WHEN: December 6-14

WHERE: Sony Studios

EVENT SCHEDULE:

December 6 (7:00p-10:00p PST): First round day 1
December 7 (7:00p-10:00p PST): First round day 2

December 8 (9:00A-1:00p PST): WoW:BC 2v2 CGS Championship (Competition will be webcast on thecgs.com)
December 9(12:00p-6:00p PST): Individual World Final (Competition will be webcast on thecgs.com)

December 10 (7:00p-10:00p PST): Quarterfinals day 1
December 11(7:00p-10:00p PST): Quarterfinals day 2
December 13(7:00p-10:00p PST): Semifinals
December 14(7:00p-10:00p PST): Final

Giveaway games portal - £8,000 Christmas cash - £350 a day!

Users can win £350* a day through online advent calendar

Christmas is nearly here and what better way to start December than win yourself some instant cash to buy all those Christmas presents.

alaplaya (www.alaplaya.eu) – an online games portal - is celebrating getting over 100,000 gamers signed-up on the site since its launch three months ago. Registered users will have the chance to win £350 every day before Christmas by simply opening the correct alaplaya advent calendar day.** Those who are not lucky enough to win each day’s big prize, can still win some great, smaller prizes and no-one will log-off empty handed.

The portal is also turning into a winter wonderland with its main games – ‘Audition’, a dance battle; ‘FantasyTennis’; and ‘Come On Baby’, a fast adventure game – being kitted out with all the latest Christmas accessories and outfits for your in-game character.

Demonstrating the graphics you’d expect on a console, the free, manga style games are suitable for all ages and levels, making it hard to resist getting into the alaplaya Christmas spirit. Gamers can swap tips, share Christmas greetings and hang out online on the portal, as well as challenge each other to dance-offs, tennis tournaments and crazy adventures. What more could you want at Christmas?

Get into the festive spirit now: www.alaplaya.eu


Or check out the alaplaya games trailers at: www.sevenload.com/alaplaya

City of Heroes, Allowing Players to Turn Back Time in Issue 11

NCsoft® Europe, the world’s leading developer and publisher of online computer games, today announced the release of City of Heroes® “Issue: 11: A Stitch in Time,” a free expansion for current subscribers, which provides players new content including the ability for heroes and villains to travel back in time to participate in world-altering missions as well as a weapon customization tool, two new power sets and enhancements to the inventions system.

The City of Heroes title, of which NCsoft recently took sole percent ownership, has included 11 free major content expansions to the game and a retail expansion with the 2005 release of City of Villains™. Issue 11 offers new ways for players to tackle the comic-book styled adventures in Paragon City™ and the Rogue Isles™ while adding new depth and features.

The headline feature of Issue 11 is the ability to “flashback” in time to participate in exciting events from the history of Paragon City and the Rogue Isles. Issue 11 introduces the mysterious Menders of Ouroboros, which gives players the ability to travel through time to embark on historic quests including a hero mission that prevents the Circle of Thorns from unleashing a devastating demon on a defenseless world (a story which was originally presented in the City of Heroes comic book). Additionally, villains will be able to travel through time to assist Lord Recluse™ in his initial campaign to conquer the Rogue Isles.

Heroes and villains can also use the “flashback” abilities to play or replay hundreds of missions from earlier in the game. Players will be able to set mission parameters to earn special badges and participants’ levels will be set appropriately to ensure that the challenge of each story-arc remains constant.

“The ‘flashback’ feature is an innovative feature that gives players an opportunity to participate in huge story-lines and opens up missions they enjoyed previously,” said Matt Miller, NCsoft’s lead designer for City of Heroes and City of Villains. “This gives the game greater depth and many more challenges.”
Issue 11 also adds two new power sets, Dual Blades and Willpower. Willpower, which is available to Tankers, Scrappers, Brutes and Stalkers, offers a strong mix of resistance, defense and regeneration powers, allowing these characters to shake off pain continue battling.

The Dual Blades set allows heroes and villains hold blunt or bladed weapons in each hand to deliver devastating attacks using the new ‘combo’ combat system. The Dual Blades are available to Brutes, Scrappers, Stalkers and Tankers.

The Dual Blades are also featured in the new weapons customization tool added to the game’s lauded costume creator. With Issue 11, players who use an assault rifle, bow, broadswords, claws, villain claws, dual blades, a katana, a ninja blade, a mace, pulse rifle or dual pistols can change their weapons the same way they change their costume pieces. Using the weapons customization interface in the costume creation tool, players can select from a variety of weapons appropriate to their respective power sets.

“The players have been craving features like this and we are happy that we are able to deliver on their desires,” Miller said. “The NCsoft City of Heroes team is 100 percent dedicated to creating new adventures and continuing to build the game. This is the most successful comic-book based game on the market and we will work hard to keep it that way.”

Issue 11 also includes new inventions sets including “very rare” purple sets, and a new invention set for taunt, buff and debuff powers.

To join in the comic-book themed adventures, players can purchase the City of Heroes “Good Versus Evil Edition” game pack at retailers across Europe, which includes complete City of Heroes and City of Villains games, as well as a set of exclusive bonus items. Customers receive the first month of play free and both games can be played for the single monthly subscription price of £8.99 / €12.99.

For more information about City of Heroes, go to http://eu.cityofheroes.com .

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Namco Bandai Website goes International

Leading video games publisher and developer NAMCO BANDAI Games Europe (NBGE) today announced the release of the multi-language version of its official website www.namcobandaigames.eu.

The website is now available in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish. The website contains the latest corporate and product information with official announcements added in the future as they come. Other features include exclusive downloadable contents, online surveys and many more.

For more information about NAMCO BANDAI Games, its products and services, visit www.namcobandaigames.eu

Hard Rock Casino video game - open for business

After a slight hiccup earlier this month, Oxygen Games is overjoyed to announce that Hard Rock Casino for the PlayStation 2 entertainment system will definitely be in shops from tomorrow, 30th November.

With action spanning across multiple casino environments, all of the casinos and games are presented in true 3D with multiple camera angles showing off the gaming floor, as well as presenting the action in a television broadcast style.

Players may test their talents with more than 20 different casino games, including:
• Table Games: BlackJack, Roulette, Craps, Baccarat, Casino War, Pai Gow Poker, Fortune Pai Gow Poker, Big Raise Hold'Em and Let It Ride
• Slot Machines: Multi-Win Slots, Traditional Slots, Progressive Slots, Video Poker, Video Keno and Video Slots
• Poker Room: No Limit Texas Hold'em, Limit Texas Hold'em, 7 Card Stud, 5 Card Draw and Omaha
• Race and Sports betting, where bets can be placed on real time sports playing on overhead screens. These include: Football, Hockey, Basketball and Horse Racing

Game Modes include:
• Adventure Mode - Create a character and explore the Hard Rock Casino. As the player progresses through different games, s/he is presented with a series of goals and challenges that must be completed in order to advance and unlock more casinos
• QuickPlay - Randomly generates a character to play and allows the player to select any of the unlocked casinos to play in. Any of the casino games may be played for fun or for practise
• Tournaments – These are set up in a heat format so that the player often has to finish in the top three to advance to the next round. Some heats are time-based; players with the most money at the end of the time limit will advance. Other heats are based on a number of rounds or hands

In addition, sophisticated tutorials are available, giving give basic instructions, winning strategies and Hard Rock insider tips for each game.

Experience high stakes areas, invitation-only tournaments, and many unlockable upgrades for your character with Hard Rock Casino, for PlayStation®2 – in store from Friday, November 30th.

World Championship Poker 2 video game released

Following the unprecedented success of its World Championship Poker title for PC, PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, Oxygen Games™ has great pleasure in confirming that its sequel - World Championship Poker 2: All In, for Xbox 360™ videogame and entertainment system from Microsoft, will be in the shops from tomorrow – November 30th.

Boasting an extensive feature set and designed specifically to make full use of the capabilities of the Xbox 360™, this Next-Gen title features even more varieties of poker, plus multi-table online tournaments and intuitive AI. In addition, the game includes extra personalities, more game environments and Xbox®Live compatibility with webcam support**.

Features:
• 14 poker variants including: Texas Hold'em, Five-Card Stud, Deuce-to-Seven, Triple Draw, Razz
• In-game tutorials for each variant
• Games may be played on or offline
• Create unique avatars to represent yourself through your career
• Likenesses, play styles and signature personality traits of six of the world’s best professional poker players, all with enhanced and dynamic personality traits
• Webcam support**
• Enhanced AI and character animations
• Hone skills with Scenario Play
• Multi-table online tournaments
• Mixed games
• Switchable third/first-person TV modes
• Poker rule customisation
• Reputation system
• All-new gaming environments
• Continuous career mode, simulating the career choices of your emerging poker pro
• Dynamic bluff and tell system - expanded to include player versus player interactions

World Championship Poker 2: All In also makes excellent use of Xbox®Live Leaderboards and Xbox®LiveVision, giving players the ability the see their opponents as they play.**

The talent :
• Howard Lederer
• Annie Duke
• Robert Williamson III
• Marcel Luske
• Thomas Bihl
• Erin Ness
• Commentary by Matt Savage, the world's foremost poker tournament director

Game at a glance:
• Single Player mode: Quick Play, Career and Scenario
• Multiplayer mode: Rank, Player Match, and Quick Play. Any of these may be Tournament games
• 1-8 Players (Non-Tournament) and 1-16 Players (Tournament)
• Six new themed poker environments in which to host the action, with multi-table online tournament capabilities
• Choose where you want to play: Casino locations, with 8 player tables, have a dealer; pad locations, with 6 player tables, allow the player to deal
• Choose the total number of players at the table - up to 200 people competing at any one time in a tournament!
• New set of venues opened for play each week, with different game types available to enter; tournaments, invitationals, side games and private games.
• Four private pads to upgrade to. Each in turn may be upgraded with new furniture and prizes, which are viewable by other players when you host online games!
• Buy items for your pad from the Pawn shop…or sell them back. Even take out a loan; however, failure to pay it back will result in your items being repossessed
• Unlockable additional pre-defined gameplay scenarios as you advance through your career

Want to play with the big boys? Reserve your seat at the high stakes tables now! World Championship Poker 2: All In, for Xbox 360™, will be in the shops from November 30th.

** Requires Xbox®LiveVision and appropriate hardware to be installed on players’ consoles

Blu-ray format dominating in Europe

HD 300 and Bond - Casino Royale top titles

The Blu-ray format is outselling rival HD DVD in Europe, accounting for 73 per cent of all HD movies sold.

According to the Blu-ray Disc Association European Promotions Committee, sales recently broke the 1 million barrier. That's not counting PlayStation 3 games, which adds another 20 million units to Blu-ray disc production for sale in Europe.

HD DVD was developed by Toshiba, while Sony backs the Blu-ray standard. Microsoft's Xbox 360 offers an add-on HD DVD movie player; Blu-ray disc playback is standard in every model of Sony's PS3.

Of the high definition movie discs bought by consumers so far this year in Europe, 73 per cent were in the Blu-ray Disc format and 27 per cent were HD DVD, according to sales data provided by Media Control Gfk International.

The Blu-ray Disc Association said the best-selling titles in the Blu-ray format were 300, Casino Royale, Spider-Man 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.

In the US, Blu-ray disc movies had outsold HD DVD movies by almost two-to-one during the first nine months of 2007 according to Home Media Research.

Heroes producer signs for Games Developer Conference 2008

Radical Entertainment also join February event

Heroes producer Jesse Alexander is the latest creative to sign for next year's Game Developers Conference.

Alexander, who worked on the Alias and Apocalypse videogames before working on the hit TV series, will discuss working within a team on serialised content.

Also joining the GDC line-up are Eric Holmes and Tim Bennison of Radical Entertainment to discuss their new original IP Prototype.

The Game Developers Conference takes place February 18 – 22, in San Francisco.

Source: Games Industry

Guitar Hero video game tops Swedish charts

All four SKUs in top ten

Activision's Guitar Hero III has shot to the top of the Swedish multiformat charts, with all four SKUs in the top ten.

Other new entries in the top twenty are Microsoft's 360 exclusive Mass Effect at three and EA's Need for Speed Pro Street at number 11.

Super Mario Galaxy is the best-selling game on the Wii, while Nintendo favourites The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and New Super Mario Bros are at one and two in the DS charts, respectively.

Electronic Arts holds the top three spots in the PC charts, with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Crysis and Need for Speed Pro Street.

The full charts for the Swedish market follow:

Multiformat

1. Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock (PS2)

2. Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock (360)

3. Mass Effect (360)

4. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)

5. Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock (Wii)

6. Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock (PS3)

7. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PC)

8. Assassins Creed (360)

9. Singstar Svenska hits Schlager (PS2)

10. Assassins Creed (PS3)

11. Need for Speed Prostreet (PS2)

12. Need for Speed Prostreet (PS3)

13. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (360)

14. Crysis (PC)

15. High School Musical: Sing It! (PS2)

16. Need for Speed Prostreet (360)

17. Need for Speed Prostreet (PC)

18. Unreal Tournament 3 (PC)

19. World of Warcraft (PC)

20. The Sims 2 Tonårsprylar (PC)



PC

1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

2. Crysis

3. Need for Speed Prostreet

4. Unreal Tournament 3

5. World of Warcraft

6. The Sims 2 Tonårsprylar

7. En riktig jul - Julkalendern 2007

8. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade

9. Counter-Strike 1: Anthology

10. The Sims 2 Jorden Runt

PlayStation 2

1. Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock

2. Singstar Svenska hits Schlager

3. Need for Speed Prostreet

4. High School Musical: Sing It!

5. Buzz: The Hollywood Quiz

6. Singstar Svenska hits

7. FIFA 08

8. Buzz: The Mega Quiz

9. The Simpsons

10. GTA San Andreas


PlayStation 3

1. Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock

2. Assassins Creed

3. Need for Speed Prostreet

4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

5. Ratchet & Clank Tools of Destruction

6. FIFA 08

7. NHL 08

8. Rainbow Six Vegas

9. Lego Star Wars 1 & 2 The Complete Saga

10. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008


Xbox 360

1. Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock

2. Mass Effect

3. Assassins Creed

4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

5. Need for Speed Prostreet

6. Halo 3

7. Ace Combat 6 Fires of Liberation

8. NHL 08

9. Gears of War

10. FIFA 08


Wii

1. Super Mario Galaxy

2. Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock

3. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
4. Rayman Raving Rabbids

5. Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess

6. Metroid Prime 3 Corruption

7. The Simpsons

8. Rayman Raving Rabbids 2

9. Table Tennis

10. Lego Star Wars 1 & 2 The Complete Saga


Nintendo DS

1. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

2. New Super Mario Bros

3. Mario Party DS

4. Lego Star Wars 1 & 2 The Complete Saga

5. Pokémon Diamond

6. Bilar

7. Pokémon Pearl

8. Mario Kart DS

9. The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer

10. Nintendogs: Dalmatian & Friends


PSP

1. Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters

2. Silent Hill Origins

3. The Simpsons

4. Tekken Dark Resurrection

5. FIFA 08

6. GTA Vice City Stories

7. Daxter

8. Need for Speed Underground Rivals

9. Crash of the Titans

10. Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions