New sci-fi massively multi-player online game, Outer Empires

Online game developer Iron Will Studios launches the web browser-based version of its expansive new sci-fi massively multi-player online game, Outer Empires.

Set in a persistent galaxy with more than 20,000 star systems for players to explore, colonise and control, Outer Empires has completed its extensive beta testing phase.

“To paraphrase Douglas Adams, Outer Empires is big. Really big,” says lead designer Paul Hutson. “We’ve built one of the biggest sandbox environments in gaming history, and players are already flooding into the Outer Empires galaxy to begin building new lives as miners, traders, pirates, politicians, tyrants and all manner of other lifestyles this enormous game promises.”

Outer Empires blends together the MMO space-faring elements of games such as EVE Online, the classic space exploration game Elite, and the socio-political adventuring of Sins of a Solar Empire into a whole new universe of trade, economics, questing and war.

Playing directly within a web browser, no installation is required to begin forging a career in Outer Empires, allowing players to jump into the same game any time they’re near a PC.

“We want people to be able to play anywhere, anytime,” Hutson continues. “That’s why it was essential to make Outer Empires as accessible as possible, so they can play at home, at work, at the internet cafe and soon – thanks to the iPhone and iPod touch version – anywhere they want.”

The exact same game has been adapted to Apple’s prolific handheld platform and submitted for App Store approval, which will allow iPhone and iPod touch users to join the same persistent universe and play the same game as they would on a PC or Mac.

Outer Empires offers players the chance to not only discover and colonise new worlds at the far reaches of cyberspace, but to create and join factions (or guilds) to pool their resources, expand territories and even establish player-run governments in their own quadrant of the galaxy.

“Outer Empires is quite literally a brand new galaxy waiting for players to mould it into the experience they’re looking for,” Hutson concludes. “The only limits are the player’s imagination, and the amount of fuel their ship can carry!”

The Outer Empires MMO is completely free to play, but features a subscription fee (from as little as $3.18 per month), allowing them to access a far greater range of in-game vehicles, items and colonies.

Visit www.Outer-Empires.com to sign up and start playing Outer Empires right away.


FEATURES LIST:

* Play directly within any web browser (Firefox, Opera, Chrome, Safari etc.)
* Coming soon to iPhone and iPod Touch
* Fly missions (transport, fighter, freight, exploration, bounty)
* Set up colonies (Mining, Food Production, Manufacture, Development/Research)
* Run/join factions (guilds) within the game.
* Take control of and fight for systems (either themselves or as part of a faction).
* Buy/Mod/Build/Sell ships using a number of variable items that can be created from the manufacture plants players set up.
* Story arcs and player-led governments
* Trade with other players and the system.

Dragon Portals video game for iPhone and iPod Touch

Dragon Portals is now available for iPhone and iPod touch. The game is an adaptation from a premium casual game originally released for PC and Mac.
”We are thrilled being able to bring our latest casual title on iPhone and iPod touch as well,” said Tero Alatalo, the CEO of 10tons. “Dragon Portals works really well on iPhone, and offers a premium casual game experience for everyone who enjoys challenging marble dropping action.”

Dragon Portals makes use of iPhone’s intuitive touch controls in an easy to learn but hard to master match three game. The game offers several hours of enjoyable puzzle action with unique game mechanics. The player assumes the role of Mila, the long lost descendant of a Dragon Sentinel. The mission is to free the friendly dragons from the dark magic that binds them to the ground. The goal in each level is to keep the dragons aloft by making matches of three or more same colored orbs. Over a dozen different power ups and over 70 levels are sure to keep the player entertained for hours. In addition there is an endless survival mode in which the player tries to stay in flight for as long as possible.

The game is developed by 10tons’ casual game studio MythPeople. It is their second premium casual game release on App Store. The first one, Azkend, has received outstanding reviews since its release in April 2009. Additional mobile adaptations of 10tons casual games are in the horizon as well as unique titles for just iPhone and iPod touch.

Dragon Portals is now available from Apple’s App Store on iPhone or iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore/. The game will be available for $0.99 until 23rd of August 2009 and $4.99 thereafter.

Interaction iPhone movie Scream in the Dark released

Little Worlds Studio is proud to announce Scream in the Dark on iPhone, the first interactive film for B-movie fans! Can you do better than all those teens slaughtered en masse in horror films?

In "Scream In The Dark," you must escape the clutches of a mysterious serial killer by making the right choices at the right time.

It's the first episode of an interactive series in which you are the hero.

Finally, you can play a bimbo in a Z movie and perhaps survive longer than 5 minutes...

Test your friends too and compare your survival instincts using a scoring system.

Features:
- Exclusive choice system throughout the film for a unique interactive experience.
- Original graphic style.
- Interactive film with more than 20 minutes of video.
- Bonus to unlock.
- Saving system for high scores.
- Vote for who will be the next baddie in Episode 2.
- Languages: French, English, German, Spanish, Italian.

Vote on Facebook for the next serial killer you’d like to see in Episode 2!

Igor: See his hammer? Your nuts are gone!

Helmut: Schwarzwald Chainsaw massacre? No more bush!

Logan: Rock, axe and fun!

YOUR choice will determine the badass to defeat in the next episode.

One of the world’s largest MMO Aion video game out soon in Europe

NCsoft, the world's premier publisher and developer of MMOs, confirmed that Aion will be in stores soon. Aion is the highly anticipated game that has already taken Asia by storm and has quickly become one of the world’s largest MMO franchises ahead of its release in Europe on 25th September.

In advance of the game’s launch, Aion will be showcased at both GamesCom 2009 in Cologne, Germany, as well as the Penny Arcade Expo 2009 in Seattle, US. Both events will feature exclusive hands-on access to the 1.5 version of the game, which has yet to be unveiled to Western audiences. This version of the game introduces numerous enhancements, including continued improvements to Aion’s innovative character customisation that will now include a host of Western styles, as well as new zones, instances, skills, quests and continued game balancing and improvements.



Aion has already built major momentum among gamers across Europe and North America, with more than three million hours of gameplay logged in the game’s closed best testing alone. Additionally, the Limited Collector’s Edition version of the game is nearly sold out in retailers, and Aion is currently on the best-seller lists for PC games weeks ahead of the game’s launch. Aion is available for pre-order from a number of participating online and brick-and-mortar retailers. For a complete list please go to http://eu.aiononline.com/uk/retail/.




Unlike any MMO before it, Aion is a uniquely crafted online experience where flight offers much more than just a way to explore the landscape – it is a strategic and integral part of combat, quests, and exploration. Players will dive into battle and plunge through thousands of unique, story-driven quests, all while trying to save a world literally shattered in half from centuries of brutal conflict. Using one of the most flexible and in-depth character customisation systems ever featured in an MMO, players will be able to create genuinely distinct characters and explore a visually stunning world of ethereal beauty brimming with otherworldly inhabitants, mysterious enemies, and ancient secrets.

Kidz Sports Crazy Mini Golf 2 video game on Nintendo Wii

Data Design Interactive (DDI) – a successful video games publisher and games developer – are pleased to announce the highly anticipated sequel to Kidz Sports: Crazy Mini Golf 1 which has sold over 250,000 units on the Nintendo Wii. This is another technology lead by DDI, and it will be available exclusively for Nintendo Wii in North America and Europe in the 4th Quarter of 2009.

Kidz Sports: Crazy Mini Golf 2, Developed by Data Design Interactive will be exclusively for the Nintendo Wii and will support the new Motion Plus Controller for the most realistic and accurate putting movement. Totally fluid instant feedback, wherever you swing your putter, your on-screen character follows; lift, turn, twist, swing, every detailed swing of your putter is accurately replicated in real time. It works for both left and right handed players.

Designed in collaboration with crazy golf champions, Crazy Mini Golf 2 is the perfect Wii family gaming experience. Hot on the heels of the original, Crazy Mini Golf 2 is a larger-than-life, party game that mimics the action and excitement of this popular sport.

Become fully immersed in the atmosphere of each environment with vibrant visual effects and awe-inspiring locations. With 72 of the craziest holes spread over four different worlds ranging from the spooky Halloween World, the ancient ruins of Egypt, the excitement of the Fun Fair and the cool Ice Age you’ll have hours of fun putting your way around each course.

Using the new Wii Motion Plus controller, Crazy Mini Golf 2 presents a realism that has until now not been possible, this is the most realistic and fluid golfing experience available anywhere.

The intuitive controls will make a great game for beginners and a fun challenge for the more experienced player, providing a rich, newly designed, casual golf game that revolutionises the way video game golf is played. Crazy Mini Golf 2 ‘putts’ the player in total control of the club!

Create your own unique avatars to play in game using the ‘NuYu’ character editor.
There is no limit to the amount of crazy characters you can create, with buckets of customizable features ranging from hairstyles, clothing, hats, glasses and much, much more!

Develop your career as a pro or challenge your friends in the Multiplayer mode featuring game play designed specifically to get players together for a fun experience. You can also play to beat your previous records or the current champions. The more skilled a golfer you become, the more challenge there is to keep beating your old records!

Feel the unmatched fun and intensity of the game with intuitive game play. Bringing you a fun, active and easy to play experience that family and friends can enjoy in the comfort of their own living room!


Features:

* 72 larger-than-life holes with bright colourful interactive levels
* Four exciting new courses including Funfair, Ice Age, Halloween and Egyptian Pyramids.
* Engage in single player or multiplayer tournaments to see who is the ultimate crazy golf champion? (up to 4 Wii Remotes at once)
* Special focus on the competitive Multi-Player experience. Play with up to 4 friends or family.
* Single-Player Tournament Mode – Hone your skills in the single player challenge.
* Fully immersive Wii Motion Plus technology turns the Wii Remote controller into a virtual putter.
* Intuitive and incredibly easy to pick-up-and-play control design that brings the game to life like never before for both casual and more advanced players.
* Create and customise your own unique golfing character with the amazing NuYu editor, compatible with NuYu’s from Crazy mini golf 1.
* Successful play allows for the unlocking of new character costumes, and courses.
* On-screen information describes the control method in a simple way for players of all ages.
* Immersive stylized graphic environments and characters with sound that enhances the game play experience.

Watch rally stars in their cars in the new Colin McRae - DiRT 2 video

Stunning Rally gameplay and amazing real world racing footage come together as Codemasters today launched the Colin McRae - DiRT 2 ‘Rally Rally Good’ video, now available to view at www.dirt2game.com.



Focussing on some of the core Rally events in Colin McRae - DiRT 2, the new video captures the unique exhilaration of rally driving and includes officially licensed vehicles, such as the Mitsubishi EVO X, the Subaru Impreza STI and the Colin McRae R4, tackling dramatic stages across three continents. Real world footage also captures a new generation of off-road stars, including Ken Block, Dave Mirra and Travis Pastrana, pushing their cars to the limit.

Driven by the latest generation of the award-winning EGO Engine and set to deliver a peerless rally experience, Colin McRae: DiRT 2 features a revamped handling system that incorporates full weight transfer on vehicles, enabling players to perform advance rally techniques like the Scandinavian Flick. Pace notes, written by Citroen C2R2 Champion Co-Driver 2009 George Gwynn, guide players through each challenging stage, with gamers able to choose from either an American or British Co-Driver and a choice of two call systems. Staggered starts, thousands of spectators and authentic changes in terrain make for spectacular stages and prove out why rally is the pinnacle of off-road autosport.

Colin McRae: DiRT 2’s World Tour career mode lets players choose their own path through the game, whether they decide to focus on their favourite discipline or sample the full range of exciting off-road racing on offer. Set to take racing games to a new level, gamers take on over 100 stunning events, including aggressive, multi-vehicle races and intense solo challenges set in the most diverse and demanding real-world environments. From the muddy tracks of the Malaysian rainforest to spectator-packed stadiums in London and Los Angeles, racers will compete in contemporary off-road race disciplines covering Rallycross, Trailblazer, Raid, Landrush, and Rally.

Complete with full head-to-head competitive online play, get ready for the ultimate off-road competition when Colin McRae: DiRT 2 launches September 8th (US), 10th (EPAC), 11th (UK) for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS and PSP (PlayStation Portable) system. A Games For Windows LIVE edition will follow with support for DirectX 11.

Supreme Ruler 2020 GOLD video game set for Domination on PC!

Paradox Interactive announce the release date of its upcoming war strategy title, Supreme Ruler 2020 GOLD. Developed by Battlegoat Studios, Supreme Ruler 2020 GOLD includes Supreme Ruler 2020 and official expansion Global Crisis.

In Supreme Ruler 2020, it is up to the player to lead a nation in a world that has fallen into anarchy. In Global Crisis, players face an even more devastating and realistic experience through a sandbox-style campaign that takes into account real-world headlines for a chilling portrayal of tomorrow’s chaotic world.

Grab control of one of more than 250 territories from around the world, in a sandbox-style campaign that incorporates real-world headlines for a chilling glimpse of a world on the brink of World War III.

Features:
• Over 30 scenarios spread across the original campaign and the thrilling expansion as players march towards World War III
• Control one of more than 250 territories from around the world in single-player or multiplayer modes
• Use high-resolution NASA satellite imagery to manage your sprawling empire
• Control hundreds of actual military vehicles using a sophisticated tactical command system
• Realistic world using detailed diplomatic, economic, and political models
• Great flexibility, either through modding or a limitlessly customizable Super Sandbox mode

Supreme Ruler 2020 GOLD will be available for purchase in retail stores and via digital distribution channels on September 18.

For more information, please visit the Supreme Ruler 2020 official website http://www.paradoxplaza.com/SupremeRuler2020 or http://www.battlegoat.com

Heroes of Gaia video game closed Beta Launch! Free to play game invites registrations

Snail Game, a leading game developer in China, has today announced the closed beta launch of their free-to-play fantasy MMORPG Heroes of Gaia. Registration is closed but players can enter the beta by collecting a beta key through various sources, including the community pages set up for the game at Facebook and Twitter.

Current Snail Passport holders or beta key holders can proceed to play the beta at http://play.heroesofgaia.com. Members of the gaming press, editors or owners of gaming portals may contact us to receive a beta key for review or coverage purposes.

American Golfer shoot for a fortune with Shot online world championship cash prize contest

Shot-Online Players Take Things Offline To Compete Face-to-Face For a Chance To Win Thousands in Cash Prizes-North American Preliminary Begins August 20th

San Jose-based online game publisher, Gamescampus.com (www.gamescampus.com, run by OnNet USA), announced today the upcoming dates for the North American preliminaries and the results of the European preliminaries in the World Championship for its golf game, Shot-Online.

Shot-Online has once again been chosen as an official game of 2009 GNGWC (Game and Game World Championship). The tournament is a unique opportunity for Shot-Online players to take their online golfing experience offline, giving them a chance to compete face-to-face with their fellow Shot-Online players across the world. Gamescampus and GNGWC are offering thousands in cash prizes, with the best Shot-Online players also winning a trip to Korea for the final.

The GNGWC qualifying event For North American Shot-Online gamers will take place August 20th through August 26th. The winners at that preliminary will then move on to the regional final which occur in mid-September. The North American regional winners will join winners from Korea, Japan, Europe and South America at the finals in Korea in November where they will compete for $5,000 USD in cash prizes.

The European preliminaries and regional finals were held in Germany with more than 500 players competing in Shot-Online. In the regional final held at the Leipzig games convention on July 31. four finalists from the European region were selected: Silver, Mitschel, Maddy_02 and Godewind (their in-game IDs). Matthias Bohm, the 3rd place winner said "I am very happy about being one of the top 4 winners. But the best part of the tournament was that I could meet many other players through the game."

"We saw a great response from our European gamers who came out to compete in the preliminary. There are some very talented golfers in our community," said Tony Liu, Producer of Shot Online at Gamescampus.com. "Since North America is by far our biggest market, we expect an even bigger turnout and we are excited for the competition to begin!"

The GNGWC is hosted by KIPA (the Korean SW Industry Promotion Agency) and sponsored by the Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Shot-Online has been a part of the annual tournament since its inception. Multiple countries will take place in the tournament; including Europe, North America, South America, Korea and Japan. Each will hold local contests with the final global match being held in Korea this November where 16 lucky finalists will compete for the grand prize.

Shot-Online players can sign up by going to GamesCampus' official Shot-Online website (http://shotonline.gamescampus.com).

Mini Ninjas demo out this Wednesday, August 19th!

The Mini Ninjas demo, which will be available on Xbox 360 entertainment system, PlayStation 3 entertainment system and PC, takes you on an exciting journey to feudal Japan where you join Hiro, Futo and Suzume on their biggest ninja adventure ever as they embark on an epic and electrifying quest to restore harmony to a world on the brink of chaos.



The PC demo is available for download from the official website www.minininjas.com at 10 CET, Xbox 360 demo is available on the same day via Xbox LIVE Marketplace and the PlayStation 3 demo is available through PlayStation Network on Thursday the 20th of August.

You can also get your free PC demo from the Sqaure Enix’s booth at GamesCom at (B54 in Hall 6) starting from Wednesday morning.

Mini Ninjas will be released from 8th of September across North America, 11th of September in the United Kingdom and PAL territories and 9th of October in France and Germany and will be available on Wii, Nintendo DS, Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Games for Windows and PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system.

The game will be published in Europe and PAL territories by Eidos Interactive and co-published in North America by Eidos, Inc. and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.

Learn more about Mini Ninjas at the official webpage: www.minininjas.com and join the fan group on Facebook.