Rock Band make over $1 billion in US sales - sells over 40 million songs

MTV Games, Harmonix, the leading developer of music-based games, and distribution partner Electronic Arts, announce that the Rock Band franchise has officially surpassed $1 billion dollars in North American retail sales in 15 months, according to The NPD Group. In addition, over 40 million paid individual songs have been sold via download through the Rock Band platform furthering its position as the music video game leader in paid song sales and downloadable content with over 600 songs available to date in the Rock Band catalogue.

Originally launched on November 20, 2007, Rock Band is the multi-million unit selling, genre-defining music game platform that allowed music fans and gamers to interact with and discover music like never before by choosing guitar, drums, vocals, or bass to start a band and rock the world. Developed by Harmonix, the world’s premier music video game development company, and published by MTV Games, the Rock Band platform has had a positive impact on the overall promotion and sales of music, benefiting artists included in the game both directly through royalties associated with game sales and indirectly by causing the sale of more songs and albums.

Key Stats for the Rock Band Franchise

Sales

• Rock Band franchise has officially surpassed $1 billion dollars in North American retail sales in 15 months, according to the NPD Group
• Rock Band was the No1 title of 2008 by revenue across all game genres (NPD)

Music / Downloadable Content

• 614 songs offered via the Rock Band platform, both on-disc and in-game music store, as of March 24, 2009
• 269 different artists / bands offered via Rock Band franchise as of March 24, 2009
• Over 40 million paid songs have been sold via download since Rock Band launched on November 20, 2007
• 11 albums released to date via the Rock Band platform including AC/DC Live, The Cars, Judas Priest, Pixies, Mötley Crüe, Foo Fighters, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Megadeth, Rush, No Doubt and Stevie Ray Vaughan, as well as special compilations from The Who, Nirvana, The Grateful Dead, Boston and more

Critical Acclaim

• Average Metacritic score of 92 [2] for both Rock Band and Rock Band 2
• Rock Band and Rock Band 2 have garnered more than 50 industry awards including:
• IGN’s “Best Music/Rhythm Game of 2008”
• Gamespot.com’s Editor’s Choice Winner for “Best Rhythm / Music Game of 2008”
• Spike TV’s 2008 Video Game Award Winner for “Best Music Game” and “Best Soundtrack in a Game”
• Gametrailers.com “Best Music and Rhythm Game 2008”
• PlayStation: The Official Magazine’s “Best Rhythm Game of 2008”
• Yahoo’s “Best Party Game of the Year – 2008” and named one of Yahoo’s “Best Tech Products of 2008”
• G4 TV’s X-Play “Best Music Game of 2008”
• Named as one of Entertainment Weekly’s “Entertainers of the Year 2008”
• Called “Best party game of the year” by the Associated Press
• Named as one of USA Today’s “Top Video Games of 2008”
• Cited as one of MSNBC.com’s Top Video Games of 2008 and one of the Best Xbox 360 Games of 2008
• Heralded as “hands down the best party game ever” by Time magazine and named as one of Time’s Top Video Games of 2008

Rock Band Franchise Innovations

• First full band music video game to hit consoles
• First music video game to offer export of content library from disc and cross compatibility of downloadable content (DLC) in sequel games.
• First music video game to offer weekly downloadable content (averaging more than 3 songs per week since its launch on November 20, 2007)
• Lead the way for full compatibility and interoperability between competing peripherals
• First music video game to allow for export of avatars and other game data to create real life merchandise
• First music video game to offer full albums as downloadable content: Judas Priest’s “Screaming for Vengeance,” released in June 2008
• First music game to offer a new song day-and-date with its release to radio, with Mötley Crüe’s “Saints of Los Angeles”

Add Street Fighter or MegaMan themes to your iGoogle page...

New Mega Man and Street Fighter themes for iGoogle.

Fans can now create even more personalized iGoogle pages with Capcom themes celebrating the iconic brands, Mega Man and Street Fighter. Starting today, iGoogle invites you to update your iGoogle page with your favorite characters from these beloved video game franchises.

If you’d like to try this out right now, follow the links below and add your theme automatically onto your very own iGoogle page:

* http://www.google.com/ig/sharetheme?skin=http://ighosting.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/xml/game_streetfighter.xml&source=gp04
* http://www.google.com/ig/sharetheme?skin=http://ighosting.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/xml/game_megaman.xml&source=gp05

Winning Formula - System 3 limbers up for a great Formula 1 season

System 3 invites racing fans to prepare themselves for a superb year of Formula 1 racing, with all the action kicking off this weekend in Melbourne, Australia. It’s anybody’s game in these early stages as energy recovery systems, slick tyres and frill-free bodywork throws the ball into the court of any racing team quick enough to take advantage of the new 2009 regulations.

One thing’s for sure though; we’ll have a definite idea of which team has got what it takes by the time the British GP comes around on June 21st. And what better way of preparing yourselves for some awesome weekends of European summer racing than by throwing a McLaren F1 around the corners of Silverstone, Nürburgring, Spa and Monza? You can do just that in System 3’s SuperCar Challenge, which is set to launch just in time for gamers to become Silverstone pros. And with the unrivalled handling engine and superb attention to detail found in SuperCar Challenge’s cars and tracks, you can be sure that your experience will be as close to the real thing as is possible in a videogame.

Gamers will be invited to battle in 16-player online races and take part in specific GP track competitions (Silverstone, Nürburgring, Spa and Monza) with winners picking up top prizes such as tickets to Formula 1 race events!

SuperCar Challenge features some of the greatest vehicles and racing circuits the world has to offer as well as a critically acclaimed car handling, realistic rain conditions, track tutorials and voiceovers from Tiff Needell, an in-depth Career mode, intricate decal & livery customization tools and 16-player online battles. SuperCar Challenge will launch in Q2 2009.

Xbox Party Mansion will be available free at online gaming site Miniclip.

Xbox has launched a new online game to raise brand awareness and help it compete more efficiently with family-targeted consoles such as the Nintendo Wii.

Xbox Party Mansion will be available free at online gaming site Miniclip. It was devised and created by Digital Outlook.

The game targets a new audience and aims to generate awareness of the brand's family- friendly gaming and entertainment available on the Xbox 360 console.

It has five levels and the focus is to find hidden objects. Each room in the Party Mansion represents a different theme of Xbox gaming including movies, sports and family.

An extra level is available when the game is completed. It is the brand's first foray into the online casual advergaming market.

Source: Marketing

God of War 3 gameplay trailer leaked on YouTube

A new God of War 3 gameplay video has leaked onto YouTube (may be removed at any time)...

Ratchet and Clank are back on PlayStation 3 with - A Crack in Time

Get ready for time-bending fun and intergalactic mayhem with Ratchet and Clank - A Crack in Time

Ever wanted to travel back in time? This Autumn Ratchet and Clank are back on PLAYSTATION 3 (PS3) in the UK like you’ve never seen them before – and they’re on a mission to save the future!!

Get ready another round of intergalactic chaos with Ratchet and Clank - A Crack In Time, the latest addition to Sony Computer Entertainment Europe’s multi-million selling Ratchet and Clank franchise.

Concluding the events that began in Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction and Ratchet & Clank: Quest for Booty, Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time will answer some of the franchise fans’ biggest questions. After discovering that lovable robot Clank’s disappearance was engineered by Dr. Nefarious, the Wrench-swinging Ratchet races to save his best friend. Along the way, both will finally uncover the hidden truth behind their origins, and discover their ultimate destinies. As the duo come closer to reuniting, they’ll have to ask themselves the biggest question of all: Do Ratchet and Clank’s destinies lie with each other? Or is it finally time for the universe’s greatest duo to separate for good?

If you haven’t played Ratchet & Clank before and are new to this successful franchise, prepare to be immersed in hilarious action-packed galactic capers and discover how time travel will entertain you in ways never before experienced.

Powered by Insomniac Games’ fourth-generation PS3 technology, Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time will continue to bring the experience of playing your own computer generated animation movie to PS3. Expect all the laughs and witty banter of a Ratchet and Clank title, as you enjoy all-new space gameplay that gives players the opportunity to engage in space battles, explore the surrounding star system, and discover hidden items and collectables... You’ll come head-to-head with a brand-new cast of baddies, and some old favourites, and obliterate them with cool new weapons and abilities.

Get ready for a brand new time-bending, laugh-out-loud adventure when Ratchet and Clank: A Crack In Time arrives in stores in Autumn 2009. It’s the newest addition to the smash-hit Ratchet and Clank franchise, with eight titles across PlayStation 2, PS3 and PSP (PlayStation Portable) platforms. With Ratchet and Clank, the future is never certain!

Mytran Wars video game exclusively for PSP (PlayStation Portable)

Deep Silver, the games label of Koch Media, a leading producer and distributor of digital entertainment products, today released new information regarding the turn-based strategy game Mytran Wars, due to be published soon.

A multitude of varied challenges await in Mytran Wars. A commander of the Kondor Corp. forces may be confronted with reconnaissance, assault, defense or rescue missions in the course of his career. All of these missions call for an individual approach in order to achieve the best result with as little loss of life and machinery as possible. To that end, it is absolutely vital to study the basic strategies of machine-supported warfare.

The forces of Kondor Corp. consist of mighty combat robots controlled by humans, which seek out their enemies for direct confrontation. The latest generation comprises three very different types of units:

Intruder
The Intruder is the most lightly armored unit, built for maximum mobility. Its excellent speed comes at the cost of reduced basic equipment, making it ideal for recon missions, quick advances, and flank attacks. Moreover, this unit type can be equipped with a variety of special items. This enables the Intruder to repair other units in the middle of a gunfight, to manipulate the enemy's electronic sensors, or to significantly impair the mobility of hostile troops – sometimes even stopping them altogether. The Intruder can prove to be the most valuable unit, provided three basic rules are observed:

1. Avoid direct clashes with the enemy.
2. Have Intruders act as support units on the flanks, or from the second rank.
3. Equip at least one Intruder with repair equipment in order to keep damaged allies operational.

Destroyer
The Destroyer represents the backbone of the ground forces. With medium armor, medium to heavy weaponry and average mobility, the Destroyer is a universal all-purpose weapon that can be employed for all kinds of missions. The Destroyer has an extensive and varied arsenal of weapons at its disposal: efficient long-range weapons, powerful rocket launchers for area damage, or melee weapons for skirmishes at close range. The Destroyer's medium armor is capable of absorbing several direct hits, enabling the unit to hold positions of strategic importance, even during tough battles. High Command recommends:

1. If possible, equip the unit with a melee weapon and a ranged weapon; that way, it will be well prepared for any situation.
2. Optional rocket launchers cause area damage, allowing the Destroyer to take on several hostiles at once.
3. Have the Destroyer conduct an initial strike, then send in Intruders to finish the job before the enemy recovers.

Devastator
The Devastator is the heaviest Kondor Corp. unit. As the name implies, this unit has a devastating effect on enemy troops and morale. This juggernaut has the best armor and the most powerful weapons. The only disadvantage is its slow, even sluggish, movement speed. The Devastator constitutes the spearhead of our forces - it is like a massive, impenetrable wall that advances on our enemies, incessantly laying down deadly fire. Its use is confined mainly to combat on open battlegrounds, due to its limited mobility. As the Devastator's production costs are very high, the High Command recommends:

1. Do not employ Devastators for rescue or recon missions; these are the province of lighter units.
2. Never send a Devastator into battle alone. While the Devastator can sustain direct enemy fire for a long time, it can be easily destroyed if attacked from several directions at once.
3. Always take the terrain into account. The Devastator's already limited mobility should not be further impaired by sending it across difficult terrain such as dense forests or canyons.

DISSIDIA -FINAL FANTASY - out in Europe - Autumn 2009 as PSP exclusive video game

Celebrating over 20 years of world’s most popular adventure game series. DISSIDIA -FINAL FANTASY- brings together the largest cast of FINAL FANTASY characters ever assembled in a single game. The most famous heroes and villains will now collide in a war that threatens to tear the world apart.

DISSIDIA -FINAL FANTASY- takes one-on-one fighting to a new action-packed level on the PSP. Through expansive 3D environments, players can glide through the air, dash along walls and perform summons familiar to fans of FINAL FANTASY. Complete with all the character progression and customisation expected from the series, DISSIDIA -FINAL FANTASY- truly delivers the action, spectacle and emotion of FINAL FANTASY in the ultimate portable fighting experience.

John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix Ltd. comments, “With so many favourite heroes and villains contained in one game, DISSIDIA -FINAL FANTASY- is certainly going to appeal to fans of FINAL FANTASY. We also hope that players unfamiliar with the series are also attracted by an action-packed experience that really showcases the PSP and is set to become an instant classic on the system.”



About DISSIDIA -FINAL FANTASY-

Story
Cosmos, the goddess of harmony. Chaos, the god of discord. Reigning from distant realms, the two gods had gathered warriors from all lands to lead them in savage war.
Cosmos and Chaos were of equal strength. It was believed the conflict would last forever. However, the balance is now broken.

Those who answered Chaos's call created an inexhaustible force. And under vicious attack without relent, the warriors fighting for Cosmos started to fall one by one. The conflict that has continued for eons is now about to end in Chaos' favour.

The world has been torn asunder, sinking into a vortex of disorder. As for the few surviving warriors… their fates have yet to be determined.

Features

• Experience the high-quality world and gameplay mechanics of FINAL FANTASY presented in action-packed 3D environments where players can glide through the air and dash along walls.

• Combining all-out brawling alongside RPG-style character development and customisation, an original system developed by the creators of the KINGDOM HEARTS series takes fighting gameplay to another level.

• Fan-favourite heroes and villains from the entire FINAL FANTASY series come together in one game for the first time in a remarkable new tale with fully-voiced CG movies and real-time events.

• Players select their favourite FINAL FANTASY characters, sided with either Cosmos or Chaos, to set the stage for their fantasy match.

• Accessible through "EX Burst", players can experience gameplay faithful to the originals through memorable battle features such as "Limit Break" and "Overdrive". In addition, long time fans of the series can enjoy the ability to summon Aeons and options such as the "command battle" system. Familiar environments and music from the FINAL FANTASY series also appear, arranged to make the most of the hardware capability.

• Continue the experience by trading Friend Cards, creating items and sharing AI characters with other players and even engage in virtual AI battles made possible by the PSP system ad hoc mode.

Resident Evil 6 could take eight years say producer

Resident Evil 6 could take 8 years to reach the shelves, according to Resident Evil 5 producer Masachika Kawata.

"We haven't decided whether we're going to make Resident Evil 6 yet...," says Kawata. "But if we do, it could take anywhere up to eight years, but hopefully only four."

Resident Evil 5's retail success means there will almost certainly be a sequel but eight years? The longest wait in the series was between PlayStation's Resident Evil 3 in 1999 and GameCube's Resident Evil 4 in 2005 but that was bolstered by several Resident Evil spin-offs in the meantime. Could it be the same story here?

Source: OXM

Secret Files 2: Puritas Cordis - New adventure on PC, Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii in May

“Secret Files 2 – Puritas Cordis” is on its way into production. So players can look forward to May 8th when the game will be released for PC, Wii and Nintendo DS.

Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis... the world is on the brink of disaster. By the time Nina Kalenkow realizes that the recent catastrophes were caused not by nature, but by an unscrupulous secret society known as Puritas Cordis, it is almost too late.

While her ex-boyfriend Max, a scientist, witnesses the brutal methods of Puritas Cordis at the excavation site of an ancient Indonesian temple complex, Nina joins forces with a priest in France to investigate the connection between the secret society's sinister prophesies and the creepy leader of an ancient order. A dramatic race against time begins.
Will the protagonists be able to avert the impending apocalypse?

Platform: PC, Nintendo DS and Wii
Genre: Graphic Adventure
Developer: Animation Arts and Fusionsphere Systems (PC),
keen games (Nintendo DS, Wii)
Publisher: Deep Silver
Release: May 8th 2009
Website: http://secretfiles.deepsilver.com/