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Thursday, December 13, 2007

Pro Evolution Soccer - PES 2008 arrives on Sony PSP and Nintendo DS

PES 2008 comes to handheld

Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH's unveils bespoke versions for PSP (PlayStationPortable) and Nintendo DS

Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH has released details of its handheld versions of PES 2008, with versions for PSP and Nintendo DS scheduled for release in the New Year.

Developed by Konami’s football Studio in Tokyo, both contain all the realism and intuitive controls associated with the series, but within bespoke versions tailored for their host format. The PSP version of PES 2008 shares a lot in common with the existing PlayStation 2 game, with a wide range of tournaments and leagues on offer, alongside an all-new World Tour mode, wherein users are set a series of challenges as they tour the globe. As each task is successfully completed, further tests designed to show the capability of your chosen squad are unlocked.

Full Edit modes have also been incorporated into PES 2008, while the data sharing aspect has been totally reworked to allow users to continue building their team while away from their home system. As such, Master League information can now be swapped between the PSP and PlayStation 2 versions, as can League, World Tour and Cup Mode data.

Similarly, the Nintendo DS version of PES 2008 includes Exhibition, Penalty Shoot-Out and Konami Cup elements, and a variant on the World Tour system where the player faces elite teams from every continent. The wireless elements of the Nintendo DS have also been well used, with a Network Mode facilitating multi-player games of up four users with copies of the game, while one-against-one matches can be played with just one copy of PES 2008. Players can also trade players with friends, while coins are collected and can be used to add the world’s best players to your team.

With PES 2008 still enjoying major success on PLAYSTATION 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2 and PC-DVD, handheld users can look forward to stunning versions of the truly beautiful game in 2008.

PES 2008 will be released for PSP (PlayStationPortable) and Nintendo DS in Q1, 2008. Versions for PLAYSTATION 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, and PC-DVD are available now.

BubbleWorld PC video game download

From the creative minds at Bibo Games comes BubbleWorld, an enjoyable, refreshing mix of hidden objects, matching skills and mouse control, for kids, their moms, dads and even grandparents!

The objective of BubbleWorld, according to Marco Pesce, CEO of Bibo Games, is to bring all the family together for hours of gameplaying fun. BubbleWorld has been created as a family game, one that could be as challenging and fun to play for kids as for their moms and dads. Not only does it offer you an entertaining way to pass your free time, but it may also serve as a great learning game for your kids because it raises their powers of perception and their confidence and dexterity with the PC’s mouse.

Can you help poor Cindy? She and her friends are trapped in a world of bubbles as a result of a wicked spell cast by the evil Witch Makeeba.

In seventy levels of fascinating gameplay, becoming increasingly more difficult, you must click on the matching bubbles trapping each pair of her friends to release them. Sounds easy but you have a limited time available and the bubbles bounces all over the screen! Special “bonus” bubbles give you a chance to increase the time you have remaining – a green pair gives you another 20 seconds, while a blue pair gives an extra 50 seconds. But, to make things more difficult, from time to time a pair of bubbles will start to flash. When this happens you must rush to free that pair before they burst and you lose ten seconds of your valuable remaining time.

Each level ends when you run out of time or have managed to free all the trapped friends, and you earn 100 points for each freed pair. If you complete the level without running out of time, you go on to the next level. Otherwise you start back at your opening position for that level. To make things more interesting, new types of friends appear in later levels.

Be Warned – Don’t start to play this game unless you are prepared to keep going as you progress through the various levels, because it’s truly addictive! Don’t blame us if you suddenly find that hours have magically disappeared while you enjoy the fun, for believe us – you will enjoy it!

Read more information about BubbleWorld at http://www.bibogames.com/

Download an evaluation copy from http://www.bibogames.com/bubbleworld.exe

BubbleWorld requires Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000/2003/XP/Vista and costs $19.95 (USD). All registered customers are entitled to free priority technical support. Additional information on BubbleWorld, as well as its evaluation version is available at no cost from http://www.bibogames.com

Neverwinter Nights 2 Download Patch 1.11 Released

A new auto-update patch has been released for Neverwinter Nights 2 featuring numerous updates and fixes for the main game, Mask of the Betrayer expansion pack, toolset and the DM client.

Functionality improvements

Exploits removed

In-game messaging improvements

Animation issues addressed

Dialogue fixes

Toolset crashes fixed

Spell fixes

Scripting improvements

Download the patch here

Myth Makers: Orbs of Doom video game for the Nintendo Wii

Video games publisher and games developer Data Design Interactive are pleased to announce that its Nintendo Wii development team, working on the popular ‘Popcorn Arcade’ label, have had another game gain Nintendo approval. ‘Myth Makers: Orbs of Doom’ is the 13th title available from Popcorn Arcade and will ship this fall.

Myth Makers: Orbs of Doom

The evil sinister Rebus has trapped the Myth Makers in the Orbs of Doom; you must complete his mind boggling challenges in order to save them. This quest will test your skill, tax your mind and your nerve as you balance your way through a mixture of twisty bends, narrow ledges and peculiar obstacles. Myth Makers: Orbs of Doom provides madcap fun using a tilt control method, designed to fit the gestures and hand motions of the Wii Remote.

8 magical Myth Makers characters to choose from.

Over 40 amazing brain busting levels set across 5 lavish environments!

Try setting new records by racing against the clock and explore the other exciting modes of play.

Knock the other competitors off the track in the exciting multi-player mode allowing you to play with up to 4 opponents simultaneously.

Picross 4 kids Child's Play Puzzle play online

This week, Wii Picross announces the release of "Picross 4 Kids", an imaginative book of original picross puzzles created for younger players. Fifty percent of all proceeds this year are to be donated to the Child's Play 2007 charity, which supports Children's Hospitals in many different countries.

Picross 4 Kids is fully illustrated with a wide variety of comical situations featuring inventive uses of picross puzzles. The book is 52 pages long with over 100 puzzles, and includes a thorough tutorial as well as a complete solution guide. It is carefully designed to be accessible to children as young 5 or 6 years old, but it offers a a variety of challenges for kids of all ages. This fun and healthy pastime will exercise childrens' math and logic skills without them being aware of it, and the many hours of enjoyment it offers makes it a perfect gift for the holidays.

Picross 4 Kids is available now as an e-book, and as a printed comic book. (www.wiipicross.com/picross4kids)

More information and demo pages from the e-book can be found here: (http://www.wiipicross.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=614)

If you haven't visited www.wiipicross.com since its launch then you don't know it at all!

Since July 2007, this family friendly, global picross puzzle site for Wii and PC has greatly expanded with:

- Nearly 2000 puzzles in the Puzzle Bank, manually tested and fixed for solvability

- A player voting system ranking all of the puzzles by quality

- A Puzzle Search screen that lets you explore the huge variety of puzzles by their popularity and thematic tags or keywords

- Weekly Top Designer rankings

- Random Play, letting you set preferences and then enjoy a stream of puzzle content

- RSS feed for Puzzle of the Day

- Greater screen space, optimized for widescreen Wii use and a better PC experience

- New grid features: interactive clues that fade as you satisfy them, and row and column highlights

- The ability to print out any puzzle, with instructions and example puzzles, to share and play on paper

- Improved Design screen features

- And festive Advent Calendar puzzles running up until December 25th

All of this on top of the already solid platform of tutorials, feature puzzles, community forums, and designing and sharing of user puzzles with players from all over the world.

KartRider free-to-download, free-to-play online multiplayer racing game

Nexon America Inc. is lighting up KartRider’s Arctic Rim with Christmas ornaments and decorations this holiday season. With tracks from Arctic Rim reverberating Christmas spirit, KartRider is also presenting holiday events, music and prizes to supplement the festivities. Already surpassing enormous expectations, KartRider, the free-to-download, free-to-play online multiplayer racing game, is anticipating an influx of new and returning users during the holidays. More information can be found at http://kart.nexon.net.

More specifically, Shark’s Fin, Penguin Town, and Ice Cave, the three tracks that currently comprise the Arctic Rim courses in KartRider, received a Christmas makeover that includes candy cane poles, penguins clad in Santa gear, and jingly bells amongst the numerous decorations. There will also be Christmas carol background music. Much like the neighbors on your block who are fiercely prideful of their annual Christmas light decorations, Nexon America is going all-out in an effort to bring holiday spirit to the rapidly growing number of KartRider users.

In addition to the decorations, KartRider is rolling out bigger events and prizes in the spirit of the season. KartRider’s Holiday Marathon, an endurance race for serious kart enthusiasts, boasts rewards such as laptop computers and Ipods, among other must-have holiday gifts. KartRider’s Myspace users are getting involved with the Holiday Wish List event, which prompts users to leave comments on the KartRider Myspace page stating which item from the Item Shop they’d like to receive for Christmas and why; winners will be selected to receive their holiday wish based their comments provided.

Also being released this month is the Holiday Plate and Holiday Baton items. The plate will be available in the Item Shop while the baton will be awarded to users who complete a certain amount of races in a quest. The Holiday Plate and Holiday Baton allow users to show their spirit through two different venues and promises to light up the karts of millions of users.

With all the decorations, events, and gifts, it’s shaping up to be a very merry Christmas for KartRider users. KartRider fans can check on http://kart.nexon.net for more news and updates regarding open beta and official launch. Nexon plans a pedal to the metal onslaught of promotions, contests, and events in coordination with KartRider’s launch schedule to “drive” this title to success!

Russian games giant PC games commitment

05 Games today announced plans to significantly bolster its PC portfolio by signing a new deal with Russian games giant, 1C Company, to exclusively publish its PC games and launch its new label under the 1C Company brand across Europe. The agreement grants 505 Games European co-publishing rights in conjunction with 1C’s Western European team, 1C Publishing. 1C’s current range of titles falls under this new deal, as well as new games currently in development. The new label aims to reinvigorate the PC market with exciting, high technology titles being developed in Eastern Europe.

Working with the 1C Europe team, 505 Games will launch, promote and build the 1C brand across Europe. 505 Games will manage the marketing, PR, sales and distribution across the 1C Company range, including eagerly anticipated titles including Cyrostasis, NecroVisioN, and Death Track in the first cycle of launches. Over a dozen titles are scheduled for release in 2008.

“We are incredibly excited to be working with 1C Company to bring the fantastic range of top quality titles to a PC-hungry European market,” commented Ian Howe, Managing Director of 505 Games. “1C’s PC portfolio further enhances our release schedule for 2008 and offers the PC gamer something new and stimulating.”

“We are delighted to be working so closely with 505. Not only does our range complement its portfolio perfectly, but its team’s long term experience, creative drive and personality matches ours and fits the way we like to operate to a tee,” said Darryl Still, 1C’s International Marketing Director.

“Having worked closely with the key 505 Games people in the past, we confidently look forward to a long term and successful partnership that will have a real impact on the industry,” added Peter King, Managing Director at 1C UK.

The first PC titles from 505 Games and 1C Company are scheduled for a Q1 2008 release. For more information please go to www.1cpublishing.com

Burnout Paradise video game demo on Sony PlayStation Store and Microsoft Xbox LIVE.

Welcome to Paradise! EA today released a fully explorable slice of the award-winning racing game, Burnout Paradise.

Available now at the PLAYSTATION STORE and XBOX LIVE MARKETPLACE, the downloadable demo will allow players to experience a piece of Paradise City before the game hits retail stores in the UK on January 25, 2008.

Discover jumps, billboards and smashable targets all over Motor City, Big Surf Beach and Ocean View in search of the fastest Burnout Route in the Hunter Cavalry car. Also, attempt your shot at a race and check out the all-new Stunt Run mode. If you’re online, invite up to three friends into your game and connect with them instantly using the EasyDrive online system. Once online, players can work cooperatively to complete three FreeBurn challenges or simply smash each other up and grab their Burnout Mugshots with the PLAYSTATION Eye and Xbox LIVE Vision cameras.

The development team at Criterion pushes the boundaries to make each Burnout game stands on its own – reinventing the franchise with every iteration. The Paradise experience is all about freedom and exploration. The game has been designed to embrace speed, freedom, social online play and spectacular crashing, but now with all new modes, a completely open world and events at every intersection.

So make action your middle name and take to the streets of Paradise City.

Frontlines: Fuel of War available for free download on Microsoft Xbox Live

Lock and load soldier! Its time to take the battle to your living room as the single player demo of Frontlines™: Fuel of War™ goes live on Xbox Live® Market Place. Players will be thrust into the near future as they battle in an epic struggle over earth’s last oil reserves in this innovative new first person shooter from THQ and KAOS Studios.

Set in the near future, Frontlines: Fuel of War asks the plausible question ‘what would happen if our oil reserves were about to run out?’. As man kind is starved of one of its most important resources two super powers face off over the last reserves in intense futuristic warfare. Starting on the oil fields of central Asia this game takes players across the globe and right into the heart of Moscow itself.

Created in collaboration with a team of military advisors this game features over sixty different weapons and vehicles all based on real world technology being developed by the modern military. Players will be able to take the war to their enemy using everything from guided smart bombs and remote control combat drones to the good old fashioned assault rifle. The unique Frontline mechanic employed in this game ensures that the gameplay is intense and fast-paced at all times as well as giving players the freedom to explore the maps fully.

The Xbox Live® Marketplace demo features the second mission of the single player game where players can experience the open world gameplay and hi-tech weaponry as well as the destructibility of structures throughout the maps. With complete freedom to complete objectives in any order and from any direction players will be able to replay this demo again and again as they discover completely new ways to reach their goal.

The finished game will feature a gripping and immersive single player storyline spanning eight vast missions and an exciting multiplayer mode for up to 32 players featuring a unique role and load-out system allowing players to customize their character to suit any situation.

So what are you waiting for? Download the free Frontlines™: Fuel of War™ demo now from Xbox Live® Marketplace and get right into the action! The full version of Frontlines™: Fuel of War ™ will be available for Xbox 360, Sony PS3 and PC in February 2008.

XNA Game Studio 2.0 from Microsoft Enables Creation of Online Multiplayer Games Using LIVE

Popular game development software now includes support for Xbox LIVE and Games for Windows – LIVE

Microsoft Corp. today marked the next step in its initiative to democratise game development and unleash the creativity of the community with the release of the XNA Game Studio 2.0, the next generation of the popular game development platform for Xbox 360 and Windows. The new version builds upon XNA Game Studio Express, released one year ago, and includes the ability to create online, cross-platform multiplayer games for Xbox 360 and Windows using Xbox LIVE and Games for Windows - LIVE, respectively. XNA Game Studio 2.0 adds more than 15 new features and is available for download from http://creators.xna.com.

“When building XNA Game Studio 2.0, we wanted to offer everyone the opportunity to utilise the rich gaming environment of LIVE used by AAA developers for titles such as ‘Halo 3’ and ‘Gears of War,’” said Chris Satchell, general manager of the XNA organization at Microsoft. “We accomplished our goal with this new toolset, and, best of all, it remains highly accessible to students, hobbyists and pros alike.”

Many of LIVE’s best features are supported by XNA Game Studio 2.0 with minimal to no coding necessary to activate them - features like matchmaking, which uses LIVE to find the best games for you to play based on your location and internet connection. Additionally, XNA Game Studio 2.0 fully supports game development with all versions of the Microsoft Visual Studio product line.

XNA Creators Club Academic Trial Memberships Now Free to Qualified Students and Faculty

Since its release last December, XNA Game Studio has been an incredible success, with 750,000 downloads, adoption by more than 300 universities worldwide and at least nine textbooks on the tools in development. In subjects from computer science to fine arts, introductory courses to graduate and research projects - XNA Game Studio is helping faculty members and students explore the boundaries of applied gaming technology in education. Along with XNA Game Studio 2.0, Microsoft will also provide a free academic trial membership in the XNA Creators Club beginning in January, allowing faculty members and students to use XNA Game Studio 2.0 and Xbox 360 for instructional purposes.

Time to Dream-Build-Play Again

From more than 4,500 entrants from around the world, four community games were awarded Xbox LIVE Arcade publishing contracts in this year’s Dream-Build-Play game development competition. Microsoft will once again challenge aspiring game developers to create their dream games for a chance to win more coveted publishing contracts. This week Microsoft kicks off registration for Dream-Build-Play 2008 with the Silicon Minds Warm-Up Challenge. Registration begins on 14th December and winners will be announced at the Game Developers Conference where details of the main challenge will be announced. Run in partnership with Microsoft Research’s Machine Learning Group in Cambridge, England; Rare Ltd.; and Lionhead Studios, prizes for the Warm-Up Challenge will include the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to interview for an internship with one of those organizations.

“Artificial intelligence is so important to the games we make at Lionhead Studios, and we are very excited to see what the community can come up with in this Warm-Up Challenge to Dream-Build-Play 2008,” said Peter Molyneux, managing director at Lionhead Studios. “We are always on the lookout for the best talent and believe that XNA Game Studio 2.0 will be a great platform for contestants to showcase their skills on.” More information about Dream-Build-Play 2008 is available at http://www.dreambuildplay.com.

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Thursday, December 13, 2007