Raid Nets Consoles Bundled With £12K Cash video games print money!

A raid undertaken to investigate a man operating an illegal business selling Sony PSP (PlayStation Portable) SD memory cards and chipping offences resulted in the discovery of over £12,000 in cash stuffed into a single original Microsoft Xbox console and three PlayStation2 consoles.

Following the raid at a man’s house in Tower Hamlets on Monday 14th January the incredible discovery only came about when the consoles, seized by Tower Hamlets Trading Standards investigators and officers from the Metropolitan Police, were handed over to ELSPA (the Entertainment & Leisure Software Publishers Association) IP Crime Unit investigators.

Following standard protocol, the ELSPA investigators began removing the casing of each of the four consoles with the intention of checking for evidence of circumvention devices (chips) and tampered hard drives when they discovered several plastic bank bags – each containing thousands of pounds sterling in note form.

The Xbox contained a staggering £5,925 where the hard drive should have been and the three PlayStation2s each volunteered £2,835 £2,025, and £1,425 respectively, making a grand, wallet-bulging total of £12,210 recovered.

Cash discovery aside, the man had been selling PSP games on SD memory cards (he was caught in possession of an estimated 75) and providing an Xbox and PlayStation 2 chipping service. Consequently, a POCA (Proceeds Of Crime Act) investigation has already started to estimate the criminal gain from his illegal activities.

Michael Rawlinson, managing director of ELSPA, commented: “I’ve heard it all now. It never ceases to amaze ELSPA and its investigators the lengths criminals go to make money – and always to the detriment of honest, hard working businesses. I congratulate Tower Hamlets Trading Standards on bringing to an end this illegal business operation.”

Bogarus Rises! Dominions 3.14 Now Available!

Who says January has to be an unexciting time for computer gaming? Illwinter Game Design and Shrapnel Games are pleased to announce a new patch for the multi-award winning fantasy strategy title, Dominions 3, overflowing with the delectable goodness you've come to expect from Illwinter.

Bringing the retail game to version 3.14 the patch includes something for everyone, even your dear old grandmother! Like new nations? Of course you do! And so you get a new late age nation, Bogarus! Do you get your mod on? Version 3.14 adds a number of helpful modding commands for everyone who enjoys tweaking the game. What about bugs, you say? 3.14 kills bugs deader than Britney Spears' career.

The complete list of changes found in the 3.14 patch includes:

•NEW! A new late era nation called Bogarus!
•NEW! Bakemono got a new scout.
•NEW! New random events.
•Spell AI: Touch of madness and Berserkers avoids casters and archers to some extent.
•Spell AI: No longer casts LoS on armorless units.
•Modding: Increased maximum number of descriptions.
•Modding: Max number of nations and nametypes increased.
•Modding: New monster commands: #darkpower, #firepower, #coldpower, #stormpower, #fallpower, #winterpower, #summerpower, #springpower, #darkvision, #onebattlespell, #patrolbonus.
•Modding: New item commands: #newitem, #descr, #weapon, #armor, #type, #name, #copyspr.
•Modding: New spell command: #nextspell.
•FIXED! MR bless bonus was sometimes displayed incorrectly.
•FIXED! Dominion sometimes spread in incorrect ways.
•FIXED! Legions of Steel bug fixed.
•FIXED! 'y'-screen bug fix.
•FIXED! Caster of Stygian Paths took 1 point of damage for each unit under his command instead of the units taking the damage.
•FIXED! Stygian Paths reported random number of lost on the way.
•FIXED! Ritual casting magic items could malfunction.
•FIXED! Bug preventing more than a hundred sprites or so in mods has been squashed.
•FIXED! Several minor fixes to monster stats and magic sites.
•FIXED! Dance of the morrigans fixed.
•FIXED! Setting 1920x1200 resolution didn't work properly.
•More magic sites enabled in caves.
•Scathach got her magic and flight.
•Hydra sacred all the way.

Please note that prior score graphs will disappear when the version 3.14 patch is applied.

The version 3.14 patch is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux and can be downloaded directly from Shrapnel Games at:

www.shrapnelgames.com/Illwinter/Dom3/6.htm

Dominions 3 is an award-winning juggernaut of turn-based strategy gaming that make most other strategy games weep in envy. Available for all popular operating systems (Win, Mac, Linux) Dominions 3 is a game that isn't afraid to use the word 'epic' to describe its gameplay and really mean it. You can recruit, research, empower, forge, battle, search, pray, blood hunt, assassinate, move, storm castles, enchant items, sneak, build, starve, heal, scout. Enjoy three eras of play, scores of nations, well over a thousand unique units, hundreds of magic spells and items, twenty-one players in a single game, random map creation, a manual that could choke Linda Lovelace, and more.

Dominions is also a game that is constantly growing. From the wonderful official support of the developers who have added expansion packs worth of new content since its original release, to the fan base with their ever growing mod library, Dominions 3 is a living, breathing organism. In an era where a Grant will get you six hours of gameplay, that same Grant will get you thousands of hours of gameplay with Dominions 3.

For more information on what may be the last fantasy strategy game that you'll ever need, please visit:

www.shrapnelgames.com/Illwinter/Dom3/1.htm

A complete catalog of Shrapnel Games products may be accessed by visiting us at www.shrapnelgames.com. Since 1999 Shrapnel Games has brought a wide array of unique titles to gamers around the globe, both in computer and board format. Be sure to check out current favorites such as Air Assault Task Force, Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space, and WinSPWW2, along with upcoming titles such as Eat Electric Death! and ETO: European Theatre of Operations.

Wii-kly Update: New Classic Game Added To Wii Shop Channel

Traverse the half-pipe from the comfort of your living room. With this classic game, it's Winter Break all the time. Freestyle through white powder, and school your best pal with your new trick! Did you get air?

This new classic game goes 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 game is:

1080°® SNOWBOARDING (N64®, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): Hit the slopes for some serious shredding in one of the first truly realistic snowboarding games ever created! Start in the lodge and select from five characters, each with his/her own particular attributes and special tricks. Then take a look at the wide assortment of available boards and choose one that best suits your rider and style. Once you've got the gear, six different modes of play, including Match Race, Trick Attack, and 2-Player Versus, await. Pick a course and get ready to experience a sensation of speed that'll make you forget all about the cold—but it might just send a shiver down your spine. Throw in hidden characters and boards, varying weather and snow conditions, multiple paths through each course, and a variety of tricks to master—topped off with rock-solid play control—and you've got a recipe for winter fun that you can enjoy any time of the year. It's all the fun and excitement of the sport, without the bruises and frostbite!

For more information about Wii, please visit http://wii.com.

Mischievous Monster Mayhem

2006 saw Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) launch the junior range of their highly successful Buzz! franchise, with RealtimeUK producing intros for both Buzz! Junior: Jungle Party, and Buzz! Junior: RoboJam – so we were pleased to be invited by SCEE to produce the intro for the third in the Buzz! Junior series, Buzz! Junior: Monster Rumble.

The brief from SCEE for Monster Rumble was to introduce four very cheeky monsters, in a 60 second intro that would act as a teaser for the game. As the game is aimed at young players aged between six and nine, SCEE’s focus was on fun, humour and mischief – with just the right amount of scariness for our younger audience.

The RealtimeUK team started by playing a demo of the game to gain an understanding of the monsters and the game itself – and to make sure they could reflect the game accurately in their intro piece. SCEE provided some concept artwork and reference material to inspire the team when putting together the script and storyboard for the intro.

RealtimeUK’s Animation Director, Chris Fenna, explains, “Our task was to encapsulate all the fun and mischievousness of the game within a 60 second intro. With four cheeky monsters and a Transylvanian Castle to play with, we had plenty of source material to create a movie; the challenge was to distil this into one minute.”

RealtimeUK’s animation features a mad professor in his lab performing a Frankenstein style monster creation, which takes a turn for the worse as he ends up creating four mischievous monsters. The monsters then stage an escape, hurtling through the house and into the swamp outside, leaving the mad professor bewildered at what he has unleashed on the world.

“One of the more challenging aspects of this project was the highly stylised modelling, as this is one of the most cartoony-like animations we have produced”, says Chris. “The animation was pushed to be as creative and funky as possible and the monsters were developed to be entertaining and full of bounce.”

Low res proxy versions of the monster characters were used to drive the cloth simulation, which features during the opening sequence. “We started with default cloth parameters and then went in to make fine adjustments to achieve the best results”, continues Chris. “Matte paintings produced in Photoshop were utilised for all the outdoor background environments. These were based on concept work and in-game reference and were mapped onto flat planes and layered up in the backgrounds of each shot.”

The final animation was a massive success and SCEE felt that the brief had been fulfilled superbly.

Tony Prosser, Managing Director at RealtimeUK commented that “our team enjoyed working on the Buzz! Junior: Monster Rumble project. They relished the challenge of creating new characters and bringing these mischievous monsters to life. We look forward to working with SCEE again in the near future.”

About RealtimeUK

RealtimeUK is a production house that creates stunning computer-generated 3D imagery and animations and is widely recognised for producing CG films that make a real impact on their target audience and deliver awesome image quality. RealtimeUK have a successful history of producing imaginative animations for both photo-real and stylised games for some of the world’s premier developers and publishers including Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE), Evolution Studios, Juice Games and Namco, and have now produced all 8 intro animations for SCEE’s Bafta Award Winning franchise Buzz!

RealtimeUK also work with some of the world’s leading advertising agencies, producing high-impact CG animations for both online advertising campaigns and product websites. They have worked on high profile projects such as Prehistoric Park for ITV, Vauxhall VXR, Fiat and most recently produced a launch animation for the new Audi R8 super car. Their animations have produced proven results for clients.

To date, RealtimeUK’s client base boasts such well known names as AKQA, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, Vauxhall, Juice Games, Ford, Modem Media, Audi, Evolution Studios, Fiat and Codemasters. Their track record and impressive client list has enabled RealtimeUK to win some of the most exciting contracts in the industry. A range of project examples can be viewed at www.realtimeuk.com

RealtimeUK has built up an impressive bank of CG animation and imagery case studies over the past 11 years. With a highly experienced, talented and growing team of Digital Artists and animators, RealtimeUK is confident in their ability to service their clients every CGI requirement, regardless of complexity.

Samsung Embeds I-play's 'Win at Texas Hold Em' Mobile Video & Game

I-play, the mobile publishing arm of Oberon Media, today announced an embed deal with Samsung for its trail blazing ‘made for mobile’ videos, ‘Win at Texas Hold Em’ and Negreanu Pro Poker, the mobile game. The mobile videos and game are presented by Daniel Negreanu, arguably the most successful tournament player in poker history, and will be embedded on the Samsung E950 in February 2008.

A specially designed poker pack will be launched by Samsung containing the E950, Negreanu Pro Poker, the mobile game and twenty-five ‘made for mobile’ ‘Win at Texas Hold Em’ clips and will be available through hundreds of retail outlets in France.

I-play and Daniel have created ‘made for mobile’ video clips, to unleash the potential Texas Hold Em champion that lies in every player. Whether you’re a novice, occasional player or pro, you can learn to win with this video clip series. The 2-3 minute clips, presented by Daniel, have been shot at the Venetian Hotel & Resort in Las Vegas, with twenty-five clips covering the basic fundamentals through to more advanced topics such as tournament play, no-limit strategy, tells/bluffs to hot tips.

I-play and Daniel have also creating a next generation mobile poker game, the Artificial Intelligence behind has been tested against Daniel himself, and will therefore be the most sophisticated AI available on the market. Daniel’s enthusiasm for poker is insatiable, and having him by your side as your personal tutor, providing intelligent and in-depth analysis at each stage of the game is sure to make you winner.

Daniel Negreanu has been consistently winning poker tournaments since the age of 23 and has accumulated over 36 world-wide poker victories along the way. In 1998, he earned the title of “youngest World Series of Poker (WSOP) champion,” a designation he held until 2004. His career tournament winnings top $10.6 million dollars, which puts him in the top three poker players worldwide in terms of tournament earnings. Daniel’s professional accolades include being named the 2004 Card Player Magazine Player of the Year, 2004 ESPN World Series of Poker (WSOP) Player of the Year, and 2004-05 World Poker Tour (WPT) Player of the Year.

Stephane Blanc, Business Development and OEM Director Europe for I-play commented: “We are extremely excited to be launching the next generation in poker entertainment with Samsung and to be working with someone as accomplished and well-respected on the poker circuit as Daniel. I-play’s diversification into mobile video capitalizes on the huge opportunity this space presents while leveraging the company’s partnerships and proprietary technology strengths. The combination of the mobile video and game signals a ground-breaking new offering and an industry first, offering bite sized chunks of entertainment to develop the Texas Hold’em aficionado in us all.”

About I-play

I-play brings the best in mobile entertainment to an audience of over one billion people via a network of more than 120 carriers worldwide. I-play has been creating mobile games since 1998 and continues to spearhead the creation of mobile entertainment for the next generation.

I-play is a wholly owned subsidiary of Oberon Media, the world's leading casual games company. Oberon’s Game Centre platform, is the industry standard and has been adopted by many of the world's largest corporations. The platform combines casual game content, merchandizing and features to fulfil each partner's specific needs. Oberon Media's publishing arm works with the industry's best, award-winning game developers to produce the top-selling casual games, which can be played in more than a dozen languages on PC, web-based, mobile and console platforms.

Founded in 2003, Oberon Media is headquartered in New York, with offices in North America, Europe and Asia.

For more information visit us at http://www.iplay.com/

THQ Wireless Inc. And Playboy Enterprises Sign Global Agreement For New Mobile Games Launch

THQ Wireless Inc., a subsidiary of THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI), today announced that it has signed a worldwide agreement with Playboy Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: PLA, PLAA) to exclusively develop Playboy-branded mobile games. The multi-year Playboy agreement covers the development and publishing rights to multiple Playboy-branded, lifestyle themed, non-nude mobile games featuring bikini-clad Playmates to be released worldwide. The first title, Playboy Games: Pool Party, is scheduled to launch in summer 2008.

“Given the extensive appeal and popularity of the Playboy brand, mobile games based on this license are sure to provide a fun and entertaining experience,” said Adam Comiskey, vice president, international, THQ Wireless. “THQ Wireless is ideally positioned to provide engaging games with the hallmark of the Playboy lifestyle.”

“The number of Playboy fans around the world has never been greater and that popularity is reflected in the growing sales of Playboy-branded products and services,” said Ed Lang, senior vice president of mobile, Playboy Media Group. ”Given the growth of the mobile industry, we’re excited to join THQ Wireless in offering this next-generation form of entertainment to consumers."

Playboy Games: Pool Party will include a set of mini-games depicting animated, bikini-clad Playmates at the famous Playboy Mansion engaged in “pool party sports” including poolside water balloon fights, waterslide slaloms and aquatic mechanical bull riding. Developed by THQ Wireless internal studio Universomo, Playboy Games: Pool Party is based on actual events held at the Playboy Mansion and immortalized in the Playboy Home Entertainment DVD release, Playmate Playoffs, hosted by Chuck Woolery.

Early Registration Opens for the 2008 ION Game Conference

Game industry professionals looking for an upscale exclusive event to attend this year need look no further: the 2008 ION Game Conference is now open for early online registration. The discounted early registration rate will only be offered until March 17, 2008. Attendees can save $500 off the full registration price by registering online before the cutoff date. Attendees are encouraged to register early, since ION will have a limited capacity and is likely to sell out.

The ION Game Conference will take place at the first-class Seattle Waterfront Marriott Hotel in Seattle's picturesque waterfront district from May 13 to May 15, 2008. ION will feature a broad array of in-depth level lectures and panels, networking events and an expo area exhibiting cutting-edge products and services relevant to the industry for 2008 and beyond.

The Seattle Marriott Waterfront hotel, the site for the 2008 ION Game Conference and all official event activities, is offering a special discounted rate for attendees of $209 for single or double occupancy. The rate is available until April 14, 2008.

“We’re enthusiastic about being able to be to open our doors again for 2008, so game industry veterans can see for themselves all the exciting changes we have planned under the new ION Game Conference banner,” said Peter Freese, Conference Director for the 2008 ION Game Conference.

The 2008 ION Game Conference is shaping up to be an exciting, ground-breaking experience for the online game industry, as the lectures, panels, networking events and more take form. Confirmed speakers for the conference include:
Allison Luong - Managing Director, Pearl Research
Bill Fulton - Founder, Ronin User Experience
David Ryan Hunt - Game Designer, Flying Lab Software
Geoffrey Zatkin - CEO, Electronic Entertainment Design and Research (EEDAR)
Osma Ahvenlampi - CTO, Sulake

The ION Game Conference is an annual game industry event designed for an international attendee audience, for those who strive to network and learn about new online game development and business trends, at the highest level. Visit the official website http://www.ionconference.com for the latest news and information about the ION Game Conference. To review the global and diversified advisory board supporting the ION Game Conference, visit http://www.ionconference.com/advisors.html. To keep informed about the latest news about ION and the online game industry, sent straight to your e-mail Inbox, sign up for the free ION Connection newsletter at http://www.ionconference.com/signup.html.

First person shooter - NecroVisioN, PC video game

First person shooter, NecroVisioN, for PC across Europe under the newly created 1C Label.

Developed by The Farm 51, NecrovisioN is a first person shooter which immerses gamers in the claustrophobic trenches and bunkers of the First World War. Reminiscent of a Lovecraft horror, NecroVisioN seamlessly mixes the harrowing battlefields with a nightmarish demon and vampire underworld, unleashing a truly visceral experience.

The year is 1916 and the Great War has been raging for two long years when Simon Bunker, a US army soldier, joins the front line with the allied forces. During the ferocious fighting, Bunker and his battalion get lost behind enemy lines while trying to break through to allied positions. While being pushed back into defensive positions they stumble across a series of mysterious trenches where all is not as it seems. As they push forward they discover that there is a greater evil hiding underneath the battlefields of the Great War, an evil which is forcing its way to our world and threatens to change the delicate balance of power.

Battling his way through the trenches, Bunker uncovers an enemy more deadly than anything he has ever encountered. Demons and vampires wage a brutal underground war, which is spilling into the human world, and Bunker finds himself fighting not only for his own survival, but the survival of Mankind.

Key features include:

- a stunning mix of WWI and Hellish underworld environments
- intense and explosive first person combat
- 18 different weapons with a mix of authentic WWI and Underworld mystical
- hordes of enemies including human, demons and vampires
- 12 visceral missions to challenge all abilities
- huge, brutal boss battles
- online/LAN gaming for up to 16 players
- six maps with three game modes, including deathmatch, team deathmatch and capture the flag/artefact

Sony PlayStation 3 overtaking Microsoft XBox 360 In Europe?

A million PS3s sold in PAL region in December; Gap closing quickly on 360
PlayStation 3 is set to overtake Xbox 360 in Europe by the summer of this year, despite launching well over a year after its rival.

That was the bullish claim of SCEE president and CEO David Reeves this week, who revealed that PS3 has already outsold 360 in certain territories such as France, Spain, Germany and Italy.

In an exclusive interview, Reeves told MCV that in December PS3, PSP and PS2 all sold over a million units each in the PAL region.

And although Sony Corporation is yet to announce full global sales figures, Reeves provided a snapshot of PS3’s PAL performance so far, whilst predicting the leap ahead of Xbox 360 within the next few months.

“In December we sold just over a million PlayStation 3s during the month,” he told MCV. “That’s across all PAL territories and that’s a sell-through figure. About 20-22 per cent of that figure was sold in the UK alone.

We’re very happy with the performance of PS3 in the UK.

“We don’t often mention the competition, but I will give you some interesting data: In terms of installed base in some of our major markets, such as France, Spain, Germany and Italy – plus some distributor territories in smaller markets like Switzerland – our current cumulative installed base is now higher than Xbox 360.

“It has not yet reached that in the UK. But the team here expect to overtake the installed base of Xbox 360 across all PAL territories in late summer. It’s also worth mentioning that last week we outsold Xbox 360 in PAL territories by a ratio of three to one.”

Full interview from MVC

Mass Effect sex-show Fox News to EA: Let's Talk…On Camera

Electronic Arts asked Fox News to correct false statements the publisher believes the channel made about Mass Effect on a recent installment of Live Desk With Martha MacCallum.

The news channel's response? Come on the show, and we'll talk about it.

As first reported on MTV's Multiplayer gaming blog, an unnamed Fox News spokesperson says the network has "extended several invitations to EA through a company representative to appear on 'Live Desk With Martha MacCallum' to discuss 'Mass Effect' and the segment which aired on Monday. We have received no response."

Today, Fox News sent that same statement to IGN, declining to comment further on the matter.

In light of the way EA feels the show's reporters presented their game, an appearance on Live Desk may be the last thing the company has in mind. In a letter this week to Fox News, which is owned by IGN parent company News Corp., EA VP of communications Jeff Brown accused the show of being reckless, ignorant and unfair in its treatment of Mass Effect, a BioWare role-playing game released last year to wide critical acclaim.

Brown took Fox to task for unfairly judging Mass Effect against other Fox properties and asked the channel to correct what EA says were errors in its reporting and presentation of the game:

"As videogames continue to take audiences away from television, we expect to see more TV news stories warning parents about the corrupting influence of interactive entertainment. But this represents a new level of recklessness.

"Do you watch the Fox Network? Do you watch Family Guy? Have you ever seen The OC? Do you think the sexual situations in Mass Effect are any more graphic than scenes routinely aired on those shows? Do you honestly believe that young people have more exposure to Mass Effect than to those prime time shows?

"This isn't a legal threat; it's an appeal to your sense of fairness. We're asking FNC to correct the record on Mass Effect."

We've contacted EA for an update, but have yet to hear back. We'll keep you posted on the Mass Effect mess.

Source: UK media box