High Voltage Software, Inc., one of the world's largest independent developers, today officially revealed the Hollywood voice-over cast of their exciting first-person action shooter, The Conduit.
Mark A. Sheppard stars as the voice of the main character, Mr. Ford. A British-born actor and musician, Sheppard’s TV credits include Battlestar Galactica, 24, Medium, Firefly, Burn Notice, CSI and The Bionic Woman. His film credits include Unstoppable, Evil Eyes, and In the Name of the Father.
“I think the story in this [The Conduit] is fantastic,” said Sheppard. “I think there’s a lot there for the player to enjoy.”
William Morgan Sheppard puts his incredible voice to the character of John Adams. William Morgan Sheppard spent 12 years as an Associate Artist with the Royal Shakespeare Company. His TV credits include Star Trek: The Next Generation, Babylon 5, and Kingdom Hospital. His film credits include Star Trek VI, The Prestige and Transformers. His video game credits include Medal of Honor, Metal Gear Solid 2, Escape from Monkey Island and Star Wars: Force Commander.
“It [The Conduit] has a resonance to it as a story;” said Morgan Sheppard. “It’s really quite exciting… and very well written.”
Last and definitely not least is Kevin Sorbo, who stars as the voice of the terrorist Prometheus. Sorbo is an American actor best known for the roles of Hercules in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Captain Dylan Hunt in Andromeda. His film credits include Kull the Conqueror, Avenging Angel, Prairie Fever, Meet the Spartans and An American Carol.
“It [The Conduit] looks like a riot,” said Sorbo, “I’m looking forward to it.”
The Conduit is tentatively scheduled for release in Q1 2009 exclusively for the Nintendo Wii.
Alawar NewEdge Mobile, a leading publisher of Java games for mobile phones, announces a worldwide release of Sky Bubbles, previously available only for PC. Now casual game fans can enjoy one of the top 5 (2007) games on their mobile devices.
The PC version of the game developed by Visual Shape Games and published by Alawar Entertainment found great response among players and was kept at top positions for more than a month. Sky Bubbles (PC version known as “Sky Bubbles Deluxe”) features vivid graphics, intriguing storyline and addictive gameplay, which has made it extremely popular among logical arcade games’ fans all over the world.
The mobile version of the game, developed by New Edge, equals the PC version in brightness and addictivity and is expected to find even greater response among mobile casual games’ players.
The mobile Sky Bubbles encourage the player to meet in intellectual fight with the wicked wizard Caralight, who has taken hold of the dream-world and its inhabitants. A square game field with disorderly placed multicolored bubbles was chosen for a battleground. The task isn’t an easy one – to fight the evil one should make a combination of bubbles of the same color, which will release the souls captured in them by Caralight.
The release of the mobile version was motivated by the extreme popularity of the PC game, which took its rightful place among top 5 best-selling casual games in 2007. “Every year casual games become more and more popular in Russia”, says Olga Znamenskaja, Executive director at ANEM. “The PC casual games have already got a stable ground in the market, but gradually casual content gains its positions in mobile market as well, which provides for the new directions and additional opportunities for the game industry development. New Edge’s staff made a good job, developing Sky Bubbles, making the mobile version of this match3 game every bit as good as the PC version, so we expect it to win at least the same popularity among mobile casual games’ players”. The mobile version of Sky Bubbles features:
- popular casual game genre; - bright, vivid graphics; - 25 levels; - 3 different backgrounds; - 6 bonuses – Charge, Cross of Light, Clock, Solidarity, Horizontal and Vertical Lightning; - bubbles of 7 different colors – 7 magic chains; - catching storyline; - special animation for each bubble; - highly addictive gameplay; - PC game soundtrack.
Both Russian and English versions of the game are now available for distribution.
Armchair physicists rejoice! The hotly anticipated award-winning World of Goo makes its WiiWare debut this week, inviting players to build infinitely fascinating structures out of Goo and uncover the mystery behind the World of Goo Corporation. Other cool additions to the Wii Shop Channel this week include Art Style: CUBELLO, the second installment in Nintendo's Art Style series, and a pair of classics for the Virtual Console: SECRET OF MANA and STREET FIGHTER II': SPECIAL CHAMPION EDITION. Fun offerings like these are sure to heat up your October, no matter how low the autumn temperatures may go.
Nintendo adds new and classic games to the Wii Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time 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 games are:
WiiWare
World of Goo (2D Boy, 1-4 players, Rated E for Everyone—Comic Mischief, 1,500 Wii Points): World of Goo is an award-winning, physics-based puzzle/construction game made entirely by two guys. Grab living, squirming, talking globs of goo to build structures, bridges, cannonballs, zeppelins and giant tongues. The millions of Goo Balls that live in the beautiful World of Goo are curious to explore—but they don't know that they are in a game, or that they are extremely delicious. World of Goo Corporation is contractually obligated to state that everyone is a winner, and is enthusiastic to celebrate everyone's Goo building opportunities equally.
Art Style: CUBELLO (Nintendo, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 600 Wii Points): Art Style: CUBELLO mixes the strategy and feel of a traditional puzzle game with the precision and reflexes required in a shooter. As each stage begins, various colored cubes form into one large object called a Cubello, which floats and rotates as you play. Launch additional cubes from your magazine and try to connect four or more of the same color, removing them from the Cubello and eventually leaving only its core. Take on the challenge of either Stage or Endless mode and watch what happens when Bonus Time is activated. The straightforward controls and goal ensure that anyone can play, while offering enough depth that even advanced players will find themselves quickly addicted to the unique world of Art Style: CUBELLO.
Virtual Console
SECRET OF MANA (Super NES, 1-3 players, Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older—Mild Fantasy Violence, Mild Suggestive Themes, 800 Wii Points): Good and evil battle for a young warrior's heart. There is one force in the universe that keeps good and evil in perfect balance. It is called the tree of Mana. But a magic sword has tricked a young warrior into upsetting this balance, spreading evil throughout the land. Thus, the warrior must undertake a dangerous journey to find the seeds of the Mana tree, which have been hidden for centuries. Only then can perfect harmony be restored. In this incredible adventure, things are not as they seem. Magic swords release evil as well as fight it. Treasure chests hold booby traps. Monsters are friends and friends are enemies. Potions give power, black magic takes it away. Dragons fly, weapons change. It's a world turned upside down that you must help the warrior make right. And the only way to succeed is to solve the Secret of Mana.
STREET FIGHTER II': SPECIAL CHAMPION EDITION (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, Rated T for Teen—Violence, 800 Wii Points): STREET FIGHTER II': SPECIAL CHAMPION EDITION was the first STREET FIGHTER game released for the Sega Genesis console. The STREET FIGHTER series can be considered one of the first fighting games to popularize competitive video game fighting. This version of the game contains both the CHAMPION and HYPER rule sets, from the two editions released in the arcades. It also introduced an exclusive Group Battle mode that is now a general feature in most fighting games. Play as one of 12 different characters, each with their own distinctive fighting style. Try single-player mode or challenge a friend in this legendary, classic fighting game.
Dead Mountaineer’s Hotel, their shocking ‘whodunit’ mystery adventure game for Windows, will be releasing early in 2009. Originally scheduled to release this year, they have decided to extend the production schedule in order to further polish the game. Dead Mountaineer’s Hotel is a character-driven, non-linear game with multiple endings, inspired by award winning Russian sci-fi novelists, the Strugatsky Brothers. Players must solve the astonishing murder of one of the hotel’s guests and unveil the startling secrets surrounding the mystical Dead Mountaineer’s Hotel.
“Dead Mountaineer’s Hotel is a game with a wonderfully intricate plot. It is very important for us to ensure that we meet the expectations of the Adventure community by marrying a great story with fun gameplay and quality voiceovers. The additional production time will allow us to further polish the game and deliver a great experience,” said Steve Wall, V.P. Business Development at Lighthouse Interactive.
“Play it, and you’ll be hooked.” That is the TrackMania message. Simple, addictive and to the point.
TrackMania DS allows players to drive at mind-blowing speeds in hi-octane racers on incredible tracks made of jumps, loops, turbo boost pads and other crazy design features. Ascaron and 93 Games will release TrackMania DS on 21st November 2008, providing players with more than a hundred circuits to tear around, in three distinct single-player modes.
The Desert, Rally and Stadium environments have been expertly implemented onto the handheld, ensuring that TrackMania on Nintendo DS pushes the boundaries of the format.
Rally courses require expert handling across dirt paths, asphalt roads and winding, hilly tracks. In the Desert environment players negotiate chain bridges and giant potholes through dusty, stony canyons. When racing in Stadium, the most famous TrackMania environment, it is all about speed and style as cars power-slide and skid around corners at blistering pace.
Each environment has its own vehicle type, delivering three unique styles of gameplay. Rally tracks put players in an ultra light vehicle with immense power and great handling. In the stony canyons of the Desert it’s down to sensitive suspension and handling skills, while the iconic TrackMania car, a stylised F1 racer, is unleashed for players in the Stadium environment.
“If ever a game deserved to be the new craze, TrackMania is that game,” stated Alan Wild, International Product Manager at Ascaron Entertainment. “Words don’t do the game justice… literally. Play it, and you’ll be hooked. Therein lies the TrackMania ethos. This is gaming as it’s meant to be.”
Ascaron and 93 Games will release TrackMania DS on November 21st 2008, providing the millions of Nintendo DS players worldwide with a whole new racing experience on a thoroughly addictive handheld version.
Fast facts: Publisher: Ascaron Entertainment / 93 Games Web:www.Ascaron.com / www.trackmania.com Developer: Firebrand Release date: November 21st 2008 Price: £29.99 PEGI: 3+ (Expected) Format: Nintendo DS Genre: Racing
The dogs of war are being unleashed today, as Activision and developer Treyarch announced the launch of the multiplayer beta for Call of Duty: World at War on the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. Console players can guarantee themselves a token by pre-ordering the game at UK Game retail locations,* or online at http://www.game.co.uk/. Call of Duty fans that register to become members at www.callofduty.com are also eligible to receive a token, but these tokens are limited in supply, so register today. Additionally, Eurogamer will also be distributing keys from 5pm today on a first-come, first-served basis (http://www.eurogamer.net/).
Windows PC fans can expect a multiplayer beta soon and more information will be made available at www.callofduty.com/beta.
The Call of Duty: World at War multiplayer betas will provide players with an opportunity to play as U.S. Marines, German Wehrmacht, Japanese Imperial Army and Russian Red Army factions in a variety of game types (Team Death Match, Free-For-All, Capture the Flag and War), across three different maps:
Castle: The Imperial Japanese Army faces off against the Marine Raiders in a daytime battle, located on the grounds of an ancient, Japanese castle.
Makin: The U.S. Marine Raiders square off against the Imperial Japanese Army in a nighttime fight, set in an outpost on the Makin Atoll in the Pacific.
Roundhouse: The Wehrmact will fight the Red Army to the bitter end in a daytime struggle that features tank and infantry combat, set in a desolate, war-torn European train depot.
The betas will last for a few weeks; however, the full battle will commence on 14th November, 2008 when Call of Duty: World at War is released to retailers nationwide.
Call of Duty: World at War is in development for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Games for Windows, PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system, Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS. The title has been rated 15 for Mature for strong violence and language by the BBFC. The Nintendo DS and PlayStation 2 versions have been rated 16+ by PEGI.
For more information and exclusive updates about Call of Duty: World at War, visit www.callofduty.com.
See the game that lets intrepid adventurers embark on an epic quest in a huge medieval world of combat and magic created exclusively for PLAYSTATION 3
A young man, protecting a princess, comes to possess an incredible ancient artefact that can transform him into the White Knight, an all-powerful, seven-metres-tall warrior from ancient times. This is the setting for the eagerly-awaited White Knight Chronicles™, the forthcoming flagship role-playing title for PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) that takes players on an epic quest in a huge, lavishly-designed medieval world, and also allows them to team up in bands of four to quest online via PlayStation Network. An enormous role-playing adventure developed by acclaimed RPG developer LEVEL 5 and published by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, White Knight Chronicles will be previewed at the PlayStation stand at this year’s Tokyo Game Show, with its online features showcased prominently.
The story of White Knight Chronicles begins in the kingdom of Balandor, where a princess’s coming-of-age banquet is raided by an evil Corporation called “Wizard”. A boy called Leonard grabs the princess’s hand and leads her to safety in the castle cellars, where he finds a strange suit of armour that transforms him into the White Knight – an ancient warrior with the strength to defeat the Wizard corporation forces. Leonard’s transformation into a mighty hero, the White Knight, is the beginning of a life-changing fantasy experience, fighting against the fiercest enemies.
Alongside the huge single player quest, adventurers will be able to meet in online lobbies to team up for their quests through the wide world of White Knight Chronicles. Players will find friendship and team spirit in abundance as they journey through a land of awe-inspiring mountains, a lofty castle, a cavernous mine and a towering mobile city built on the back of a gargantuan creature. They’ll hone their combat skills and strategy against foe after foe in gripping melee battles with enemies large and small – and they’ll join a globe-spanning community of brothers (and sisters)-in-arms with a shared taste for adventure.
NeuroSky manufacturer of “wearable” consumer bio-sensors, announced the unveiling of a brainwave-controlled video game at the Tokyo Game Show 2008 in Makuhari, Japan, on October 9 and 10. This exciting and entertaining demonstration is based on a new game concept being jointly developed with Square Enix.
The technical demonstration developed with Square Enix operates in conjunction with Windows PC machines and features the NeuroSky commercial headset, MindSet. The recently introduced MindSet is capable of interfacing to a variety of gaming platforms, including PC, console and mobile. It resembles a pair of headphones, with a single electrode contacting the user’s forehead while reading the player’s brainwave information, or EEG data. The headset registers the current state of relaxation or concentration of players, allowing them to perform a variety of actions within the game.
“At Square Enix, we are actively involved in developing a variety of gaming interfaces. I am thrilled to have this opportunity to work with NeuroSky, and apply their advanced sensor technology in this brain-wave controlled game demonstration,” commented Ryutaro Ichimura, Producer at Square Enix. “Although the main purpose of the demo is to test the results of our short development period, I hope it also unlocks new potentials in gaming.”
Stanley Yang, the CEO of NeuroSky, considers the joint development with Square Enix as further validation that brainwave-reading (EEG) technology is rapidly emerging onto the video game scene. “We are delighted to have built such an important partnership with a key industry player to have jointly developed a demonstration based on brainwave-reading technology. The market has been anticipating the introduction of this technology for many years, and the reality of controlling features of a video game through mental control is finally taking root.”
The highly-anticipated follow-up to video game Oblivion - Fallout 3 is available now on the internet on various torrent sites.
The official Fallout 3 video game - due for release on October 28 in America and October 31 in Europe.
The Xbox 360 version of the game has been hacked and at the time of writing had well over 2000 people downloading the 6.52GB file on one site alone.
The hacked version of the game would only be playable on an illegally modified Xbox 360.
Although a majority of console and PC games are leaked online before the official release, for a game to be distributed illegally three weeks before it hits the shops highlights the demand for pirated material from users - and the holes in security measures designed to prevent illegal copying of games.
Game development studio Denki today released Golden Balls the company's latest game for digital interactive television.
The game is now available in the UK through Sky’s interactive TV games service. Every Sky customer can access and play Golden Balls using their Sky remote control.
Golden Balls was reinterpreted and built specifically to recreate the popular television gameshow, within the tight constraints of digital interactive television (DiTV). The design and development was completed by Denki's highly experienced External Development Department (EDD), the world's leading developer of games for DiTV.
The release of Golden Balls brings EDD’s total releases for DiTV in 2008 to 17 games, while the department has designed, created and released more than 170 games over the last eight years.
“We're very pleased with the way Golden Balls turned out,” says Richard Ralfe, the head of Denki's EDD. “Capturing the essence of a very popular show and recreating it within the confines of a set-top box was something of a challenge, but which we were more than capable of meeting. Anyone who's watched Golden Balls will be able to pick up and enjoy the game. It's as close to being on the real show as we could possibly make it. The only way we could make it any more realistic is to send the presenter round people's houses to press the buttons for them...”
The market for DiTV games is growing worldwide, with the UK leading the majority of other countries in the penetration of set-top boxes and the advanced nature of Interactive services. Sky has 8,980,000 subscribers in the UK and Ireland and a growing number of interactive services – including games – which every customer can access through their set-top box and Sky remote control.
Denki’s EDD has recently celebrated seven continuous years of DiTV Product development, and an incredible 72% of its total product portfolio is still being broadcast today for audiences to enjoy.
Other countries around the world are now starting to open up their digital interactive television markets, offering enormous potential for Denki's titles to reach a massive global audience. In February 2007 Denki premiered titles on DIRECTV in North and South America, providing a number of games for the launch of their new DiTV ‘Game Lounge’. DIRECTV reaches over 16 million subscribers in the United States and over 1.5 million in Latin America.
Denki is now actively pursuing opportunities in other countries around the world.
Colin Anderson, the managing director of Denki, said, “The Digital Interactive Television market is one which is often overlooked by the mainstream gaming industry, yet it offers significant benefits to developers, brand owners and gamers alike. While the technology is restrictive, compared to the current generation on consoles – or even handheld games devices, the penetration into households, familiarity with the controller and the on-demand nature of the games lend themselves to a very large mainstream market. This market is growing in leaps and bounds as more and more countries begin offering these services to television viewers.
“Our external development team is quite simply the most experienced and talented DiTV game developer in the world today. They've done an incredible job with Golden Balls and I am delighted to have them available to millions of Sky homes.”
Denki’s External Development team is always happy to offer their experience to brand owners and media companies with properties they wish to bring into the interactive entertainment market
Golden Balls can be found on Sky Games, which is accessed by pressing the Interactive Button on your Sky Remote Control.
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