13-year-old beats Guiness world record Guitar Hero score

13 year-old Grapevine native Daniel Johnson beat the Guinness World Record for high score on a single song for “Guitar Hero III” when he attended the Guitar Hero 24-Hour Marathon presented by Blockbuster. Daniel played on a XBOX 360 and scored 890,971, beating the previous record by more than 10,000 points while playing “Through the Fire and Flames” by Dragonforce at the Expert Level on his first attempt.

When asked what he thought about breaking the world record, Daniel said, “I’m glad that I had the opportunity to break the record and help people learn about Education is Freedom.”

The previous record was held by Chris Chike who achieved a score of 880,920 in March 2008.

The Guitar Hero 24-Hour Marathon, presented by Blockbuster was an event benefiting the Dallas non-profit foundation, Education is Freedom, which is part of the “Igniting Opportunity for the Children of Dallas Campaign (IOCD),” a cause dedicated to increasing the educational achievement of children in Dallas. Several Dallas CEO’s, Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert and Jim Keyes, CEO for Blockbuster all participated at the event.

First- through fifth-place winners received an array of prizes from Southwest Airlines, Activision and BLOCKBUSTER.

Disney Fairies - Tinker Bell on Nintendo DS this Christmas

This new video game brings the popular Disney Fairy, Tinker Bell, and her magical world to life for girls nationwide

Disney Fairies - Tinker Bell for Nintendo DS will be available nationwide this 2008 Christmas season. For the first time on the handheld platform, fans of Disney Fairies and beloved Tinker Bell can explore the delightful world of Pixie Hollow and play as the popular Fairy herself. Disney Fairies: Tinker Bell allows girls to interact with dozens of enchanting Disney Fairies, including Silvermist, Iridessa and Fawn, and explore Pixie Hollow through time-based activities and mini-quests.

“Disney Fairies has become a phenomenon all around the world,” said Craig Relyea, senior vice president of global marketing, Disney Interactive Studios. “Bringing the game to DS allows fans to play as Tinker Bell and take the Fairies world everywhere they go, while having fun learning about the importance of creativity, teamwork and responsibility.”

Disney Fairies: Tinker Bell is a color-rich, deep and detailed game that mirrors the beautiful Fairies world that girls have come to love and cherish. In the game, Tinker Bell invites players to discover her mystical world, embark on adventures, explore their fashion tastes and complete fun quests to prepare for the coming seasons.

Disney Fairies: Tinker Bell game features:

• Choose from hundreds of dresses, costumes, shoes and accessories to fully customise Tinker Bell.
  
• Create new designs featuring hearts, flowers and other patterns to place onto outfits.
  
• Barter and trade items collected in Pixie Hollow with other Fairies for new clothing and accessories.
  
• Create trends by gifting outfits to friends and watch as Pixie Hollow becomes filled with Fairies dressed in those outfits.
  
• Earn medals and form new friendships when completing special tasks for other Fairies in Pixie Hollow, including repairing broken items using Tinker Bell’s special tinkering power and locating missing items.
  
• Engage in challenging and fun mini-games, such as catching dew drops, painting ladybugs and tickling silkworms.
  
• Utilizes the DS real-time clock, so environments will reflect time of year or time of day. Girls will witness snow falling in the winter time, fireflies coming out at night and Fairies throwing a huge bash on their birthday.
  
• Published by Disney Interactive Studios and developed by Genius Sonority, Disney Fairies: Tinker Bell will be available Christmas 2008 on Nintendo DS.
  

Theatre of War - Boxed version available in US

Theatre of War, the WWII battlefield simulation title from cdv Software Entertainment USA and Battlefront.com, has shipped to North American retail outlets today. This boxed retail version of Theatre of War will include all the patches and official content additions since the game's previous download-only release. Theatre of War combines the look, feel and historical elements of World War II to create an unrivaled tactical battlefield experience spanning major campaigns from the Battle of Moscow to Normandy. With more than 50 missions spread across multiple campaigns and a rich do-it-yourself mission and map editor included, Theatre of War rewards armchair generals with tremendous gaming and replay value. For more information about the game, please visit http://www.cdvus.com.

Theatre of War offers a fresh take on the WWII Real-time Strategy genre by combining the look, feel, sounds and historical elements of WWII to create the ultimate warfare simulation. The game engine features realistic shell ballistics, armor penetration calculations and damage effects coupled with destructible environments, trenches, fortifications and individually tracked weapons, equipment, ammo and vehicles. More than 50 battles spread across seven different campaigns (US/UK, Soviet, German, French, Polish, Battle for Moscow and Panzer Lehr in Normandy), along with eight non-campaign scenarios, five Training scenarios and 11 different multiplayer missions are available in the game to offer a rich and challenging combat experience to players.

ArchLord, the free MMORPG exceeds half a million players

Codemasters Online is pleased to announce they have opened the doors to their 500,000th player of its popular subscription-free MMORPG, ArchLord.

Since moving to free-to-play, ArchLord has seen explosive new player growth over recent months with more players than ever taking on the challenge to compete to become the all-conquering ArchLord and with it rule the entire game world.

Ed Relf, Director of Marketing, Codemasters Online commented, “This is a key milestone in the growth of ArchLord. ArchLord is a premier free-to-play MMORPG offering significantly more depth and quality than most other free-to-play games and this recent achievement solidifies our commitment to the ongoing development and success of ArchLord.”

To cope with the increased popularity for the game, Codemasters Online will shortly be opening an all-new game world to cope with the game’s substantially increased demand as they gear up for the next free content update Episode 3 due in the coming months.

ArchLord is a premier free-to-play online role-playing game allowing players to download and play the game for free with no monthly subscriptions or commitments. The online game challenges thousands of players each month to raise an army, to compete to become the game’s all-ruling ArchLord and with it control of the entire game world impacting on the lives of thousands of ArchLord players.

To download ArchLord the premier free-to-play MMORPG visit the game’s official website www.archlordgame.com

New Guitar 4-in-1 Ant Commander launched

Be The Envy of Your Friends With The First Guitar Controller That Is 100% Compatible With All Guitar Hero & Rock Band Features For PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3

The Ant Commandos, a leading provider of innovative wireless video game music peripherals and accessories, announced today its V Shaped Double Range Guitar ranging in colors from flame red and electric blue, to jet black, is now available at retail for an SRP of $59.99. The Double Range Guitar is the first on the market to feature 100% compatibility with all Guitar Hero and Rock Band games for PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3.

TAC's Double Range Guitar enhances players' gameplay experience no matter which music-inclined video game or PlayStation system they are using. By utilizing 2.4GHz wireless technology, players can hurl themselves around as they thrash to the beat, up to 30 feet away from the console. A second set of FeatherTouch fret buttons on its Xtended Fret Array allows players to fully take advantage of experiencing a full range when performing earth-shattering solos, then using the higher set for rhythm parts. The Double Range's lower 5 buttons are 100% compatible with Rock Band's Solo Guitar play and it offers a 5-way switch to support the sound effect feature in Rock Band. When playing Guitar Hero, the lower 5 buttons behave just like the top 5 buttons, thus allowing gamers to simulate solo action in Guitar Hero I, II, and III. Additionally, gamers will be able to rock out like a true musician with the 360FLY Clip, a special belt clip that attaches to the guitar with a single pivot point, allowing players to wildly spin the guitar to replicate the moves of their favorite famous guitarists.

"Guitar Hero and Rock Band have become a cultural phenomenon, and with all the people out there playing these games, it is important that their guitar controller work with every feature in the games," said Jesse Manwill, Senior Manager, Product Management at TAC. "The Double Range is the ONLY guitar that is compatible with all of the Guitar Hero and Rock Band features-including the solo and 5-way effect switch. Consumers who purchase the Double Range can rest assured they are getting the most feature compatible guitar available on the market."

The Double Range is the only guitar controller that is compatible with both the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3. This market advantage is a huge benefit, eliminating consumers' headaches as players no longer have to worry about which platform's peripheral they need to purchase in order for it to work with their system. If a consumer is thinking about upgrading to a PlayStation 3, or if they already have a PlayStation 3, but they want to play their favorite songs on Guitar Hero 1 and II on the PlayStation 2, they can still purchase the Double Range as it is fully compatible for both systems.

Other Double Range features that help players make the most of their gameplay experience include the new PowerThief power saving mode which conserves the controller's power by turning off when it senses inactivity, and the Low Battery Indicator which blinks red, signaling to players that the battery needs to be replaced -no more guessing or discarding a good battery. Also, the Super Whammy System whammy bar helps to provide protective control over soaring whammy bar effects for those who are rough with their controller.

Online Trainz Booking Office opens for business

Avoid the rush! Don't miss any more Trainz!!! Paradox Interactive is pleased to confirm the online Booking Office for – Trainz: The Complete Collection, officially open for business.

The multipurpose website is a great source of news and information for novice or experienced commuters, drivers, surveyors and yardmasters alike. Services include:

- A description of features
- Release timetable and other news
- Purchase information
- Action screenshots
- Informative videos

and more. If you plan to travel through the world of Trainz, then this site should be your first destination, in preparation for your great virtual journey ahead!

Visit the Booking Office, by clicking on the following link: http://www.paradoxplaza.com/trainz

C.O.R.E. - Locked and Loaded First-person shooter action for Nintendo DS

Conspiracy Entertainment Europe is pleased to announce that they have secured the European publishing rights from NoWay Studio, Poland, to their latest release C.O.R.E. The game is a dynamic fast paced, action packed, first-person shooter for Nintendo DS that will be instantly familiar to everyone who loves classic single player / team based shooter games.

For the last 11 months, NoWay Studio has been busy pushing the limits of the Nintendo DS with amazing full 3D animations and visual effects. This “next generation” title is the first game to bring the FPS experience so familiar to PC gamers, to the Nintendo handheld gameing machine.

The team have created a complex of buildings, underground passageways and chambers where players can roam freely battling with a variety of enemies and bosses. Each of the levels is introduced by an in-game movie setting out the objective ahead. Each building or tunnels complex can be completed in a variety of ways allowing the players to discover new weapons, passageways, hiding places and solutions each time the game is played.

As a marine, you are sent on a mission into the government C.O.R.E. lab complex. The complex was built on the site of a meteor which smashed into the desert some 20 years previously. The facility was built so that government scientists could investigate the impact; everything had been going to plan until 2 weeks ago when all contact was lost. Your mission to investigate why contact has been lost with the facility will be complex and dangerous; the lab covers many levels with offices above ground and chambers below dug deep into the desert bedrock.

The final solution will take place deep down underneath the earth where it is believed that the scientists tunnelled into the remains of the meteor itself. When you and your team reach the final level you will have to face a danger that is a threat for the whole of Mankind.

Features

• Fully 3D action across huge levels pushes the DS to its limits.
• Enemies ranging from insane marines and mad scientist to big deadly mutants.
• A variety of weapons must be collected to complete the levels; conventional weapons like hand guns, shotguns and rocket launchers must be handled along with experimental weapons like the plasma gun.
• The detailed world in side the base will require players to master interactive tools like switches, controllers, access cards and video cameras.
• DS networking is fully supported allowing local team play in modes like Death Match, Team Arena or Capture the Flag. Single card will allow up to 4 players in multiplayer mode.

Alone in the Dark - Soundtrack to be released by Milan Record

The Soundtrack to Alone in the Dark Features a Mesmerizing Score by Composer Olivier Deriviere Performed by Grammy Award-winning Choir The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices

Atari and MILAN RECORDS today announced their first collaboration with the forthcoming MILAN RECORDS release on May 24, 2008 of the soundtrack to the highly anticipated action survival video game Alone in the Dark. The original Alone in the Dark created the survival horror genre and set the standard for later games. Developed by Eden Games, the new Alone in the Dark is set to reinvent the genre once again with unique innovations and thrilling gameplay.

The evocative score was composed by Olivier Deriviere (Obscure) and performed by world-famous, Grammy Award-winning choir The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices. The result is an energetic, memorable score that mixes orchestration with the unique sound of The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices.

“For its first release of a video game soundtrack, Milan Records is very proud to be associated with such a classic series as Alone in the Dark,” said Nick Bobetsky, VP Sales and Marketing, MILAN RECORDS. “This is an original and powerful soundtrack, which goes beyond what you would normally expect in a video game.”

Alone in the Dark follows paranormal investigator Edward Carnby as over the course of one apocalyptic night he must fight to survive and uncover the earth-shattering secret behind New York’s Central Park. With an exhilarating mix of gameplay, intense storytelling in a TV season style, unprecedented environmental interaction, and DVD chapter select feature which lets players move on if they get stuck, Alone in the Dark is set to change what players expect from action games.

Alone in the Dark is scheduled to ship on June 20th in Europe and June 24th in North America on Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Windows-based PC, Wii and PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system, followed by PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system later in 2008. Classic soundtrack label MILAN RECORDS (City of God, Tsotsi, Flags of Our Fathers, Ghost, Monsoon Wedding, Pan’s Labyrinth) will release the album physically and digitally in North America on May 24th and across Europe in late June.

Here’s what the press has to say about Alone in the Dark:

“Alone in the Dark’s sheer scale is simply mind-blowing.” – Gamesradar.com

“A fresh approach to video game storytelling” – Gamespot.com

Tracklisting:

1- Prelude to an End
2- Edward Carnby
3- The Fissure
4- Collapsing Floors
5- The Façade
6- Reception Hall
7- The Humanz
8- Who Am I?
9- Central Park
10- Crying NY
11- Loneliness
12- Bethesda Fight
13- Killing The Fissure
14- No More Humans
15- Truth
16- Niamam
17- The Light Carrier Test
18- Shto Li (A cappella)
19- The Final Gate
20- The Choice
21- An End for a Prelude

New Update 1.4.1 Released for SHIP SIMULATOR 2008

Publisher Lighthouse Interactive and developer VSTEP today released a new update to their successful simulation hit Ship Simulator 2008. This highly realistic simulator puts players at the helm of some of the World’s most varied and detailed ships found at sea, allowing them to explore accurately recreated environments. Ship Simulator is available in 20 countries and 7 languages.

Update 1.4.1 is multilingual and suitable for all available versions of Ship Simulator 2008. It upgrades versions 1.0 until 1.4 to version 1.4.1. Furthermore the update is suitable for players with Ship Simulator 2008 and the official add-on Ship Simulator 2008: New Horizons.

Some of the new key features included in Update 1.4.1 include:

• Towing performance improved - Towing has been enhanced by a new system that improves the towing performance of all tugboats.



• Improved ocean bump maps and ship dynamics - Wave effects on all ships have been improved, recreating waves on a more realistic scale and intensifying the sailing experience for all vessels.



• Improved AI awareness – AI captains have better awareness and, depending on the size and speed of your vessel, AI controlled ships will stop for your ship to pass.



• Pushboat connection - The pushboat is able to connect to the barges using a new type of rope only available for the pushboat.

With the growing number of Ship Simulator users worldwide, VSTEP is continuously adding new content and features. In Ship Simulator 2008, players will perform a multitude of tasks, all set within stunning 3D environments. They will take control of a wide array of vessels – from massive cargo ships and ferries, to speedboats, yachts, water taxis, personal watercrafts, and even the mighty Titanic.

The waters you sail are as varied as the ships, including the harbours of New York, the Thai Phi Phi Islands, Rotterdam and Hamburg, plus three newly added harbours Southampton, Marseille and San Francisco. Ship Simulator 2008 incredibly recreates real-world locations from around the globe and presents players with the challenges of commanding the vessel of their choice on the open sea.

To download update 1.4.1 and the complete feature list, visit: www.lighthouse-interactive.com

To find out more about Ship Simulator 2008 and to keep up with the latest news, visit: www.lighthouse-interactive.com and www.shipsim.com.

Guitar Hero World Tour - the definitive rock and roll music video game

New State of the Art Wireless Instruments; Innovative Music Studio Lets Players Compose, Record, Edit and Share Music - Biggest Selection of On-Disc Music with All Master Tracks; Robust New Eight-Player "Battle of the Bands" Mode

When the house lights go down this fall, a new generation of axe shredders, drummers and fearless frontmen will come together and rock with Activision, Guitar Hero World Tour. The latest installment from the No1 best-selling video game franchise of 2007, Guitar Hero World Tour will transform music gaming by marrying Guitar Hero’s exhilarating guitar gameplay, with a cooperative band experience that combines the most advanced wireless instruments with revolutionary new online and offline gameplay modes. The game will feature a slick newly redesigned guitar, a genuine electronic drum kit and a microphone, as well as an innovative Music Studio music creator that lets players compose, record, edit and share their own rock and roll anthems, along with online Band Career and 8-player “Battle of the Bands.”

Delivering the largest on-disc set list in a music-rhythm game to-date, Guitar Hero World Tour is comprised entirely of master recordings from some of the greatest classic and modern rock bands of all-time including Van Halen, Linkin Park, The Eagles, Sublime and many more. Additionally, the game will offer significantly more localized downloadable music than ever before on all of the next-generation consoles. Budding rock stars will also be given creative license to fully customize everything from their characters’ appearance and instruments to their band’s logo and album covers.

In addition to a newly designed more responsive guitar controller and microphone, Guitar Hero World Tour will deliver the most realistic drum experience ever in a video game with an authentic electronic drum kit. Featuring three drum pads, two raised cymbals and a bass kick pedal, the drum controller combines larger and quieter, velocity-sensitive drum heads with soft rubber construction to deliver authentic bounce back and is easy to set up, move, break down and store.

“Guitar Hero has set the standard for music-based gaming and with Guitar Hero World Tour and the game’s groundbreaking Music Studio, we are once again delivering unprecedented innovation that has the potential to revolutionize consumer generated music, much in the same way that video sharing hubs have driven user generated video,” said Dusty Welch, Head of Publishing for RedOctane. “With the introduction of our advanced high-quality new wireless instruments, in-depth customization options and advanced online functionality, the game enables music fans and gamers globally to share in the most social and expressive music experience ever.”

Guitar Hero World Tour delivers more ways to play than ever before. Virtual musicians can live out their rock and roll fantasies by playing either a single instrument, or any combination of instruments, in addition to the full band experience. In addition to all of the online gameplay modes from Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Guitar Hero World Tour introduces Battle of the Bands mode which allows eight players to join online and challenge each other band-to-band to determine who is the best of the best. In the Band modes, up to four players can jam together, online or off, as they progress through the game, and in single-player Career Mode, players can jam on any of the instruments in branching venue progression enabling them to rock out in the order of their choice.

The game’s innovative new Music Studio lets players express their musical creativity by giving them access to a full compliment of tools to create digital music from scratch, utilizing all of the instruments, and then play their compositions in the game. Music creators will also be able to share their recordings with their friends online through GHTunes where other gamers can download their unique compositions and play them.

Guitar Hero World Tour is being developed by Neversoft Entertainment for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system. The Wii version is being developed by Vicarious Visions. The PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system version is being developed by Budcat. The game is not yet rated by the ESRB.