Take on the Banker with New 'Deal or No Deal, The Banker's Quiz' Online Game

World's Largest Skill Game Site Brings Intellect and Agility to New Online Version of Smash Hit TV Show

King.com, the world’s largest skill games site and Endemol USA, the world’s largest independent production company and market leader in interactive entertainment with global hit franchises such as Deal or No Deal, Big Brother and 1 vs. 100, today launched an exciting new version of the online game, ‘Deal or No Deal.’ The new game, ‘Deal or No Deal, The Banker’s Quiz’, will feature elements from the hit NBC game show and popular trivia questions.

In the game, players compete against each other to remove low value briefcases by answering general knowledge questions correctly. Players are judged on both speed and accuracy of response.

Already a leader in bringing TV programming to online games, ‘The Banker’s Quiz’ further extends King.com’s commitment to enable fans to go beyond the passive television experience and actively participate in their favorite games.

“We are excited to bring another compelling game to our Deal or No Deal fans,” said Jon Vlassopulos, vice president, Digital Media, Endemol USA. “We recognize that fans love the banker in the show and now they get to become one themselves through this unique online experience.”

“Deal or No Deal has staying power and continues to enjoy enormous success with television audiences around the world. It is also one of King.com’s most popular games,” said Toby Rowland, co-founder and co-CEO of King.com. “Players of ‘Banker’s Quiz’ will enjoy the new variation, the increased level of interactivity, and the intellectual challenge of this wildly successful game.”

NAMCO BANDAI Games Launches Culdcept SAGA Demo Download On Xbox LIVE

Demo for Unique Trading Card and Board Game Hybrid Hits Xbox LIVE with Single and Multiplayer Modes

NAMCO BANDAI Games America announced today that a free Culdcept SAGA demo is now available for download on Xbox LIVE Marketplace for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. Culdcept SAGA combines the luck and strategy of a board game with the depth of a trading card game to create a unique fusion of traditional turn-based play. The Xbox LIVE demo allows players to experience both the single and multiplayer portions of the game with two different gameplay modes.

In Culdcept SAGA, players move around a game board and attempt to claim ownership of land squares while battling enemy monsters. Players can customize their own unique decks, choosing from nearly 500 hand-illustrated cards with fearsome monsters, powerful spells and useful equipment. New cards can be unlocked by playing through the game’s single player and multiplayer modes, and players can also venture online with custom decks to participate in strategic clashes for up to four players on Xbox LIVE.

The newly released demo includes both single and multiplayer modes in which players can learn the rules of the game using several pre-made decks. The multiplayer portion of the demo allows up to four players to compete against one another on a single system, matching tactics and upgrading their minions in an addictive battle for territory.

Culdcept SAGA will launch for the Xbox 360 on February 5, 2008 for a suggested retail price of $39.99. For more information, please visit: www.namcobandaigames.com.

World of Warcraft -New features to Feast of Winter Veil 2007

- The Preserved Holly that players can get from completing special holiday quests can now be used on flying mounts. This will temporarily turn their flying mount into a flying reindeer that trails sparkles as it flies through the air

- Handful of Snowflakes – this is a new item you can obtain by /kiss –ing a Winter Reveler NPC. It will create a light snowfall above any targeted player.

- Burning Crusade Holiday Bosses – as in past years, certain bosses will be dressed in a festive fashion and will drop seasonal hats when defeated. The holiday versions of the bosses will begin on Dec. 25 and end on Jan. 2. These bosses include:

• Grand Warlock Netherkurse (Shattered Halls)



• Grandmaster Vorpil (Shadow Labyrinth)



• Exarch Maladaar (Auchenai Crypts)



• Captain Skarloc (Durnholde Keep)



• Nethermancer Sepethrea (Mechanar)



• High Botanists Freywinn (Botanica)

- Mechanotoy – This is a new gift that can be obtained from under the Winter Veil tree in Ironforge and Orgrimmar. It lets you summon a Mechanotoy non-combat pet to follow you around.

The rest of the event remains as in the past, which is described on the event page:

http://www.wow-europe.com/en/info/basics/events/winterveil/

Escape from Paradise City Arrives on Direct2Drive

Escape from Paradise City, the hybrid RTS and RPG game for the PC, is now available for purchase and download on IGN’s Direct2Drive service. In Escape from Paradise City, gamers play as three unique characters -- an ex-con, a streetwise hand-to-hand expert and a corrupt FBI agent – who find themselves forced to help the government infiltrate the criminal underworld of the most corrupt city in America. Players must use each character’s unique skills and traits in their quest to defeat local gang leaders and make their way to the final showdown with the city's mysterious crime bosses to get to the root of their stranglehold on power. The game is available for immediate purchase and download at http://www.direct2drive.com/5474/product/Buy-Escape-From-Paradise-City-Download. More information about Escape from Paradise City is available at http://paradisecity.cdvus.com.

“Escape from Paradise City offers an innovative blend of role-playing and strategy gaming mechanics within a dark, modern setting where the anti-hero rules the day,” said Mario Kroll, cdv Software Entertainment USA’s Director of Marketing and PR. “We are delighted to be able to expand our purchase options to our customers and are delighted that Direct2Drive’s partnership offers a great, customer-friendly way to purchase and instantly play our titles.”

Escape from Paradise City drops players into a dystopian world that combines a dark underworld and elements of the supernatural. In the game, the player is required to infiltrate the gangs of Paradise City on behalf of a powerful government agency that, despite its influence, has been unable to introduce even a glimmer of law and order to this horribly corrupt city. In an intertwining chapter-driven story, the player takes turns controlling one of three gritty characters that, for their own reasons, have “volunteered” to get to the bottom of the mystery behind the controlling crime syndicate’s power.

Third Official "Grand Theft Auto IV" Trailer available on Xbox.com and Xbox LIVE

Today “Grand Theft Auto” fans will get their next look at the eagerly anticipated “Grand Theft Auto IV” with the release of the third official trailer, "Move up, ladies" on Xbox.com and Xbox LIVE Marketplace.

At 20.00, gamers can get another glimpse at Grand Theft Auto's colorful world in HD on Xbox.com and Xbox LIVE Marketplace. While online you can also check out the first two trailers, screen shots, and a preview of the “Grand Theft Auto IV” Marketplace theme.

“Grand Theft Auto IV” is the next chapter of the award winning “Grand Theft Auto” franchise from Rockstar Games and will be coming to the Xbox 360 on day one. In addition to online multiplayer, a first for the series, gamers will experience hours of additional gameplay with two downloadable episodes exclusively available on Xbox LIVE following the release of the game. Focused on the story of Eastern European immigrant Niko Bellic, “Grand Theft Auto IV” takes players back to Liberty City and promises a cinematic story told like only Rockstar can, an extremely vast and detailed world to explore and gameplay like the series has never seen before.

For all things Xbox 360 and Grand Theft Auto IV visit:

www.xbox.com

Elf Online Client Download Released

Happymmo is pleased to announce the download address for its first mmorpg Elf Online. Players could download Elf Online at http://download.elf.happymmo.com/elf_online.exe now.

Also, Elf Online will start it close beta soon. Players could enter the game by using the beta key after installed the game. For those players who haven’t gotten a beta key. You may click here to apply for one.

For more informations on Elf Online close beta please visit www.happymmo.com

New Frag Dolls UK website launches

Website...

To celebrate the end of their second year online, the UK Frag Dolls have launched a brand new version of their community website.

The UK Frag Dolls are a group of passionate girl gamers brought together by Ubisoft in 2005. They are advocates for the idea that gaming should be enjoyable and fun for people of any age, gender or skill.

Coming in fashionable grey and blue, the new website boasts improved access to the girls’ video and audio features, photos and blogs. The site is home to plenty of great content, including interviews with gaming luminaries and industry legends including Charles Cecil, Michel Ancel, Dr. Dave Doak, Jade Raymond, Paulina Bozek, Randy Pitchford, Tommy Tallarico, Iain Lee and many more.

Content added for the launch of the new look website includes a video interview with Dr. Tanya Byron, in which she talks about the Byron Review into the affect of games and the internet, and the 10th episode of the popular Afternoon Tea podcast, in which the ladies discuss the latest gaming developments over a nice cuppa.

The Frag Dolls attend and cover gaming events online and all over Europe, including the Edinburgh Interactive Festival, Leipzig Games Convention, Women in Gaming, Nottingham GameCity and the London Games Festival. The new look site features a extensive video and photo archive where images and videos from these events can be found.

Since their formation the group have appeared in mainstream and specialist press, on radio, on television, and even tackled new areas such as HD video on Xbox Live Marketplace.

Between them, the three girls have over 50 years experience as gamers – and outside this have racked up time as a television producer, a videogames journalist, a pathology graduate, a teacher and a researcher.

“Two years on, I feel the new site showcases our work brilliantly,” said Frag Doll Kitt, “though if they don’t change that ugly grey background I’m quitting.”

The Frag Dolls originally launched in the US in 2004 and are now one of the most recognised gaming groups in the world.

Stranglehold Downloadable Map Pack Coming Soon

Midway today announced a downloadable map pack for the acclaimed 3rd person action adventure title, Stranglehold, for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game systems. The map pack features 10 additional multiplayer maps ranging from the Kowloon Market to Wong’s Estate Grounds to the Rooftops of Chicago, as well as 21 all-new multiplayer character skins. The Xbox 360 version will include 10 new achievements worth 250 points. Rated “M” for mature by the ESRB, the Stranglehold downloadable map pack will be available soon in North America via the PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE.

About Stranglehold™

A collaboration with world renowned action film director John Woo’s Tiger Hill Entertainment, Stranglehold allows players to experience the excitement of true next-gen action as you take on the role of Inspector Tequila created by John Woo for his influential action film, Hard Boiled starring Chow Yun-Fat. Ensnared by a crime boss with a gripping secret, Inspector Tequila is forced to cross the line from sworn duty to renegade cop. Engage your enemies with intense cinematic gun battles and cause massive environmental damage in real-time or revolutionary slow-motion Tequila Time. More information about Stranglehold can be found online at www.strangleholdgame.com

Brain Changes When Viewing Violent Games

"Scientists at Columbia University have used Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to show that a brain network responsible for suppressing inappropriate or unwarranted aggressive behaviors became less active after study subjects watched several short clips from popular movies depicting acts of violence.

These changes could render people less able to control their own aggressive behavior. Although research has shown some correlation between exposure to media violence and real-life violent behavior, there has been little direct neuroscientific support for this theory until now.

'Depictions of violent acts have become very common in the popular media,' said researcher Christopher Kelly. 'Our findings demonstrate for the first time that watching media depictions of violence does influence processing in parts of the brain that control behaviors like aggression.' The full research paper is published on the The Public Library of Science, a peer-reviewed, open-access, online publication, that publishes all its articles under a Creative Commons Attribution License."

Source: Slashdot

Teachers create Video Game Design programs

There are major trends and shifts in enrollment in the programming/computer science field. They have little to do with what is offered in schools. A majority of students do not seem to want to take courses in programming and computer science. As a result programming courses in high schools are at risk. High Point has developed a plan to turn kids on to the computer science industry without developing multi-year vocational programs of study. “After surveying students we discovered they wanted to work with hardware and design video games more than sit behind a computer and learn a programming language,” says Mark Wallace, supervisor of the Technological and Business Studies departments at the school. Wallace along with Marx Reynoso a computer programming teacher, developed a plan that would provide offerings that many students indicated they would be interested in taking. The plan is to bring them into an area they are interested in and then show them a reason for programming and computer science. The knowledge and skills gained in the programs are transferable and will hopefully drive many students into the computer science field. These programs will help excite students to look at robotics, “smart” transportation, software development and unknown explorations, the teacher said.

Mike Fasano, a freshman at High Point, feels the video game design unit in the already popular Communication Technology course taught by Wallace, where students are also learning about communication systems, electronics, fiber optics and GPS/GIS technology is “fun, entertaining, and helps you learn a lot about game development.”

More here...