Halo 3, Mass Effect and PGR 4 now Xbox budget priced at under £20

Expanded Classics range brings blockbuster titles at budget prices.

Microsoft today announces the expansion of its Classics collection in EMEA to include three blockbuster titles, as it continues its strategy of offering high quality experiences at outstanding value. On 20th March, Halo 3, Mass Effect and Project Gotham Racing 4 will join the elite selection of Xbox 360 Classics, with each game available at an Estimated Retail Price (ERP) of just £19.99.

The Ultimate Blockbuster

Halo 3 made entertainment history when it launched in 2007, setting sales records that smashed those set by all previous video games and blockbuster movies. It remains the most played game on Xbox LIVE, with over 1,000,000,000 multiplayer games played since launch. The award winning action series has sold more than 25 million units worldwide and its third instalment sees Master Chief, the last known survivor of a secret military project, fight to save humanity and uncover a secret so incredible, it will change the galaxy forever.
 
Lose Yourself in a Living Galaxy

Mass Effect, developed by BioWare, is an immersive, story-driven experience coupled with awe-inspiring visuals, exclusive to Xbox 360. As one of the first human beings to step onto the galactic stage, players must face a grave threat that may destroy all of civilization. Travel across an expansive universe, exploring the uncharted corners of the galaxy, searching for pieces of the truth in order to discover how to defeat the coming destruction.

Racing to the Fore

Project Gotham Racing 4 is the latest instalment of the legendary street racing series. This time motorbikes join the action and the weather elements push you to the limits as you tear up the stunning tracks in the best of racing machines.

“We are delighted to add three of our finest titles to the Classics range, adding to the exceptional entertainment offering available on the Xbox 360 at outstanding prices,” said David Gosen Vice President of Marketing, Xbox Europe. “As we see more and more families looking to save money by staying in, Xbox 360 continues to offer high-quality home entertainment at fantastic value and consumers are clearly recognising this as we sail past 8 million console sales in Europe.”

House of the Dead Overkill breaks Guinness record... for swearing!

Guinness World Records, the global authority on record-breaking, today announced that recently released The House of the Dead: OVERKILL has broken into the Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition for most swearing in a video game with a whopping 189 uses of the f-word.

Setting a record in this brand new category, the title recognizes The House of the Dead: OVERKILL as the most profane video game in history. During three hours of relatively limited dialogue, the campaign features 189 uses of the f-word, which equates to just over one per minute and three percent of all words spoken in the game.

Video Games Records Manager for Guinness World Records, Gaz Deaves, said: “This record category pre-existed for movies, music and television, but The House of the Dead: OVERKILL is the first video game to be awarded the title in the Gamer’s Edition. It’s a mark of the times.”

The new record will be shortlisted for inclusion in next year’s Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition. The 2009 Gamer’s Edition, which includes high scores and interesting facts from the world of video gaming, also dedicates a separate section to video game controversy; among the many nations listed in the chapter, Greece stands as the first country to ban all video games for an all-encompassing ban on electronic video gaming lasting two months during 2002. Mexico banned Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 in the state of Chihuahua because the state’s governor was offended by the game’s portrayal of the region and its people. The longest ban in gaming history is awarded New York City, whose mayor imposed a ban on pinball machines, which stood for 34 years from 1942.

Jonathan Burroughs, writer of The House of the Dead: OVERKILL, stated: “It is a dubious honour to receive such an accolade working in an industry where so often the fruits of your labours are derided and dismissed for being puerile or irresponsible, but in the case of The House of the Dead: OVERKILL a little puerility was the order of business. Parodying the profane excess of grindhouse cinema was Headstrong Games’ objective and I am flattered that this record acknowledges that we not only rose to that challenge, but entirely exceeded it.”

Action shoot-em-up Operation - Star Hammer on Xbox Live

Black Lab Games is proud to announce Operation: Star Hammer, coming soon to the Xbox LIVE Community Games portal.

Operation: Star Hammer is an intense action-packed shoot-em-up, set in a war-ravaged galaxy under threat from the evil Nautilid empire. As a raw recruit, gamers will enlist with the Alliance of Planets Defence Force as they join the fight to save the universe from total destruction. Presented via a top-down view, pilots fly a space fighter using full 360 degree freedom of movement as they take on enemy fighters and gunships in a frenzy of space combat.

Featuring 60 missions across three separate campaigns, Operation: Star Hammer boasts both solo and multi-player game modes. Mission objectives range from flying patrols to engage a ruthless enemy, escort missions, covert operations behind enemy lines and more. Operation: Star Hammer offers a multi-player option in which up to three players can take control of enemy ships in an attempt to prevent the main player's mission objective from being reached.

Pilots gain access to improved weapons and promotions as they progress through the game. Completed missions can be replayed at any time.

Featuring high resolution, hand-drawn art and loads of dazzling special effects, Operation: Star Hammer is scheduled to be available in Q2 2009.

Final Fantasy XI - Crystalline Prophecy – Ode of Life Bestowing out March 23rd - Rise of the Zilart A Moogle Kupo d’Etat & A Shantotto Ascension later

The first in a series of three previously announced add-on scenarios for their MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online) game, FINAL FANTASY XI, will be available for purchase on 23rd March, 2009.

This add-on scenario, titled “A Crystalline Prophecy – Ode of Life Bestowing,” will be available exclusively for online purchase through the PlayOnline Viewer, and will be priced at €9.99 and £7.99. After purchase, FINAL FANTASY XI players will have access to this new content after the release of the upcoming version update in early April 2009.

Creation of these three upcoming content packages is led by Masato Kato, who created the stories and scenarios for FINAL FANTASY XI, and its first expansion pack, Rise of the Zilart. Two additional add-ons, “A Moogle Kupo d’Etat – Evil in Small Doses” and “A Shantotto Ascension – The Legend Torn, Her Empire Born”, will be released later this year.

About A Crystalline Prophecy – Ode of Life Bestowing

Story
One day, a giant crystal appeared in the skies above Jeuno, triggering a series of unexplained happenings across the land. Now, adventurers will set forth to unravel the mysteries of this primordial crystal that holds the secret of Vana’diel’s past.

Accommodating players in North America, Europe and Japan, FINAL FANTASY XI is the first massively multiplayer online role-playing game capable of simultaneous multiplayer cooperation across three different platforms. Now in its sixth year of service, FINAL FANTASY XI has a robust community of 500,000 subscribers from around the world. The series continues to evolve and expand, offering newcomers and fans alike an immersive, engrossing and engaging universe to traverse, defend and explore.

Mind, Body & Soul video games on Nintendo Wii and DS

Mind, Body & Soul range exclusively for Nintendo Wii and DS.

The initial launch titles establish a new brand of gaming, enabling users to improve their everyday lives while having fun along the way.

Nutrition Matters for Nintendo Wii and DS offers users the ability to track their net calorific gains and losses through exercise and dieting.

A simple and accessible tracking mechanism monitors both calorific burn through daily activity and food intake through an extensive nutrition database. This allows users to set their own targets over any period of time, with regular data updates to monitor progress. The nutrition reference guide can be used as a calorie fore-planner for events such as dinner parties, birthdays or even just Sunday lunch by providing calorie data, protein and fat contents for hundreds of foods. With the Wii version supporting Nintendo’s balance board as a set of digital scales, Nutrition Matters enables users to set goals and monitor one’s progress towards the perfect beach body.

Big World Puzzle Book for Nintendo DS is an interactive word based puzzle title. Some of the games within are based on traditional word play, while others have been created specifically for the game. Each game type has over 1,000 different levels, offering more puzzle action than you can shake an HB pencil at. Also included is a fully comprehensive help mode for struggling players, multiplayer modes and scalable difficulty levels to maintain a challenge throughout.

Finally, Mind Storm 2, also for Nintendo DS is the sequel to the best selling title from developer Ask Co. Ltd, which exercises all corners of the brain, from logic puzzles to analytical conundrums. 12 games each have five levels of difficulty to offer a thorough and wide-ranging puzzle experience suitable for all age groups.

“We are confident the Mind, Body & Soul. range offers something different to entice those users who perhaps don’t consider themselves ‘gamers’”, commented Alex Price, Senior Global Brand Manager for 505 Games. “The Mind, Body and Soul range is all about life enhancement. It enables people to improve their everyday lives whilst having fun at the same time.”

Mind Storm 2 and Big Word Puzzle Book both on Nintendo DS are scheduled for release in early April followed by Nutrition Matters on Nintendo DS and Wii in mid May. Watch this space for more titles across the range shortly...

HanbitSoft Reveals 1.5 Patch Details of Hellgate: London

1.5 patch details of Hellgate: London, an online action RPG developed by Redbana US Studio, every week through the game’s Korean official website.

HanbitSoft and developers in Redbana has been preparing 1.5 patch since last year, as soon as the developing crew had been formed. It is planned to be an extensive update to reinforce Hellgate’s reputation. HanbitSoft announcing that the company will be posting the patch details in weekly basis suggests that the update date is getting close.

HanbitSoft posted the general introduction of 1.5 patch on March 6th through Hellgate’s official website, and mentioned that there will be Mode Merger, Consignment House, and various kinds of PvP features, etc. On March 13th, the company revealed parts of the patch contents in details: Mode Merger, Achievement Reward System, Instance Swtiching and Item Linking.

After 1.5 patch, all modes will be merged. In current Hellgate, players play either in Normal Mode or Elite Mode, but later on, the two modes will be combined and all players will be playing the game together. Players who are playing in Elite Mode will be able to keep the Elite mark next to their names, and granted with special titles.

Achievement Reward System is a system that rewards the players who accomplish the challenge achievements, with ‘- + To all attributes’, ‘Health injectors’ and etc. Instance Switching will also be added for easier channel shift. Instance Switching is designed with simple User Interface, so that any player can easily transfer to the place where the player he wants to play with is. Ultimately, it will also strengthen the community by providing convenient system for more active interactions between players. With Item Linking, players can link their items to chatting window, and show off their luxury items. It will make the item trade a lot easier.

HanbitSoft will be revealing more details on rest of 1.5 patch contents step by step every week through Hellgate’s Korean official website.

Flight Control highly addictive iPhone game

Firemint today issued a warning to App Store shoppers. Early reports indicate that the company's new game, Flight Control, may be highly addictive. Firemint recommends small doses to be taken as part of a balanced lifestyle.

"My first 5 star app! Can't...stop....playing....!"
"Love it! Simple but incredibly addictive"
"I can't stop trying to break the highscore."
- App Store customers

Within a few days of release, the game has entered the top 10 charts in many countries, including #1 paid game in the Netherlands, #3 in Finland, #4 in Taiwan and rising rapidly in other regions. Purchasers are generous with their praise, and the game currently has an average worldwide review score of 4.63 out of 5 stars.

“Can't stop playing this, perfect controls, simple idea, incredibly addictive, one more go gameplay”
“Great stress reliever, great fun, great mobile gamine experience”
“This is the best game on in the AppStore!”
“This is my new favourite game for the iPhone”
- App Store customers

Professional reviewers agree:

“Incredibly fun... while the game seems incredibly simple on the surface, the company has managed to hit upon the winning balance of easy pick-up gameplay, ramping difficulty and tickling the need to try “just one more time”… we’re big fans of the game”

- Arnold Kim, Touch Arcade

The game delights with broad appeal and quirky humour. Its polished graphics and music evoke the golden era of aviation. “We’ve been really pleased by the wide adoption of the game. People love the simplicity and style, and are on Twitter confessing to their addiction. We’re even hearing stories about married couples competing against each other to get the higher score” said Alexandra Peters, Firemint’s Community Liaison for the game.

Gameplay is easy to learn - just touch and drag planes to their runways - but difficult to master, as more and more aircraft appear and the player is challenged to redirect them to avoid mid-air collisions. The unique control method is only possible on the iPhone and iPod Touch, with the player drawing flight paths directly on the screen. Aircraft can fly in a straight line, an elegant curve or more complex patterns. Players have even been observed performing intricate skywriting manoeuvres. Flight Control is ideal for two minutes or two hours, with extremely fast “two-taps-to-play” startup and "just one more go" gameplay.

"The game is something I refer to as ultra-casual. It is quick to play but extremely addictive," said Robert Murray, CEO of Firemint and the game’s designer. "Games that are typically called casual have become surprisingly complex. I think they have lost their way".

In the spirit of an emerging App Store trend, Murray has promised to announce the first month’s sales figures and document the company's experience with the App Store. "The App Store is an amazing new opportunity for so many smaller developers, but it is difficult to forecast sales and even harder to launch an effective marketing campaign. We hope that sharing our experiences will help, and the more developers do it, the more will follow. I think that will create a stronger ecosystem for everyone".

Flight Control is available now, worldwide, exclusively for iPhone and iPod Touch devices. The game is on sale at US$ 0.99 for a limited time, before rising to the full price of US$ 2.99.

Price: US$ 0.99
Release Date: 6 March 2009
Developer/Publisher: Firemint

Bored Meeting Online - free online update through Xbox Live

Due to Bored Meeting's positive reception both in the press and on the official Xbox popularity list, Bumble.bz announces a free online update under development to bring the smart, fun, and addictive game play into the Xbox Live arena.

"Since this is still the experimental stage of XBLCG," says developer Steven Jones, "we needed to gauge whether the additional development time [for online play] would be worthwhile. I'm happy to say that the initial release of Bored Meeting as a solid local multi-player game has been so well received that we're now developing the Bored Meeting Online update."

Gamers already enjoying Bored Meeting - or who purchase Bored Meeting in the interim - will receive the free online update through Xbox Live in the coming weeks.

Bored Meeting availability
Bored Meeting is available as a free trial and as a 400 Microsoft Point full version on Xbox Community Games.

Solitaire Lovers Love Unique Game PC video games variations

BVS Solitaire Collection 6.6 with 430 multi-featured, very different solitaire card games to play. You'll be able to learn solitaires not found elsewhere: Topsy-Turvy Queens, Twelve Sleeping Maids, Steeplechase, Braid and many others. It also includes all of the most popular solitaire card games such as Spider, Pyramid Solitaire, Klondike, Freecell, Carpet, Forty Thieves, Monte Carlo, Russian Solitaire, Flower Garden, Golf, Cruel, Accordion ...

You can modify rules of almost any of the included games, thus creating your own solitaire variation.

The whole design of the game can be customised, incuding card sets, card backs and backgrounds. BVS Solitaire Collection features attractive smoothly scalable playing cards to fit any game window size and any screen resolution up to 2500 x 2000 pixels and even higher.

The unlimited Undo function and "You are stuck" feature will help you to come back and try another approach. Use the plethora of statistical and scoring screens to track your performance and progress in playing solitaire, and even publish your personal statistics on the BVS Solitaire Collection web site to appear in the top scores list.

If you're tired of Klondike, check out BVS Solitaire Collection. Even if you've played a lot of solitaire, these games will definitely be new to you.

System Requirements
BVS Solitaire Collection 6.6 is available for PC computers running Windows 95/98/ME/NT4/2000/XP/2003/Vista. System requirements include: Pentium II , 64MB of RAM, 15MB HD space, sound card, and 32 MB video card.

BVS Solitaire Collection costs $19.95

Grandmaster Chess - Tournament PC video game

Grandmaster Chess: Tournament, a casual chess sim. The original, Grandmaster Chess Online, was popular with chess fans around the world.

The biggest improvement to Grandmaster Chess: Tournament is the enhanced hints and tips system. For example, the game can now teach a player the rules of chess and then sharpen his skills by displaying the best moves during a game.

Advanced players can also enjoy Grandmaster Chess: Tournament, as users can choose from six difficulty levels and two game modes. The first mode is good for polishing one's skills and finding a decent opponent. The second mode is a single-player tournament played against the computer. Grandmaster Chess: Tournament also allows two users to face off on the same computer.

Flexible configuration options enable players to select a game board, choose a set of chess pieces, change the camera angle, adjust the sound effects and music, and toggle the help system.

"Our developers set out to create a chess game that would appeal to everyone," says Denis Sedovich, producer. "Now everybody can take part in a simulated chess tournament and win. Grandmaster Chess: Tournament can even help novices master this classic game of strategy and prepare children for future challenges."