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Monday, June 02, 2008

Burnout Paradise - Software Update for PS3 and Xbox 360 new cars modes and more...


At the end of this month (June 2008), the software update Cagney will be released for Burnout Paradise on the PS3 and Xbox 360 with a plethora of fixes, changes, and additions. Some very notable changes include a new title screen, live frontpage, new cars, and more modes.

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Born of blood update released for sword of the stars video game


Sword of the Stars Update 1.5.2 released for Born of Blood, the official add-on to critically acclaimed 4X space strategy game Sword of the Stars. Update 1.5.2 allows current owners of Born of Blood to play on custom maps created by others, and engage in multiplayer action with those who are playing the recently released version included in Sword of the Stars: Collector’s Edition. The Update however does not contain many of the robust features that are exclusive to the Collector’s Edition, such as the ability to share custom maps or create stand-alone servers.

Update 1.5.2 is English only and can be installed over all previous versions of Born of Blood. Some of the key features include:

  • Play custom maps created by other players and access example custom maps in the Maps folder
  • New encounters added
  • Addtional visual feedback to polygon targeting an enemy in combat (i.e. during mass missile launches)
  • AI enhancements (i.e. prevention of the AI from surrendering too early)
  • Various performance issues corrected
  • The ability to observe encounters even if players have other combats queued
  • The Zuul receive one additional colony despite the map settings and a free bore ship is provided at every initial world
  • Build queue is now visible from the trade tab in the Empire Summary
  • New AI player names, badges and portraits to reflect characters and references from The Deacons Tale (visible to 1.5.2 players, but not accessible for personal use)
  • Drag & drop multiple ships from side list into fleet manager


Though Update 1.5.2 is quite comprehensive, it does not include the following features that are found exclusively in the retail version of Sword of the Stars: Collector’s Edition, which is out now:
  • Create a stand-alone game server
  • Ability to permanently save a copy of a custom map created by other players
  • New ship badges and player avatars
  • Use of custom maps in single and multiplayer modes
  • The first ever Sword of the Stars novel entitled, The Deacon's Tale by acclaimed science fiction author Arinn Dembo
  • Bonus CD with full music tracks (including never-before-released tracks), concept art, video trailers and interviews, and detailed bios for each race

To download Update 1.5.2 and view the complete feature list, visit: www.lighthouse-interactive.com

Real airfield scenery from just flight FSX Airfield for under €5.95 - $7.99 - £4.00


Real Scenery Airfields – White Waltham

Developer: Just Flight
Genre: Flight Simulation
Format: PC – ESD download
UK Release: 2nd June 2008
SRP £3.99 / €5.95 / $7.99


Just Flight is pleased to announce the release of the second instalment in its series of British airfield sceneries for Flight Simulator X. Real Scenery Airfields – White Waltham re-creates the well-known home of the West London Aero Club – a very popular destination for both real and virtual pilots.



Available to download exclusively from Just Flight, and at a special introductory price of just £3.99 / €5.95 / $7.99, Real Scenery Airfields – White Waltham is fantastic value and a must-have for anyone who wants to experience real GA flying in FSX. The product page can be found here -

http://www.justflight.com/product.asp?pid=312

Real Scenery Airfields – Denham, the first out of the blocks, has been very well received by press and public alike and Just Flight’s in-house development team has been spurred on by its success. White Waltham has been designed to the highest standards using high resolution aerial images and on-site research; the scenery includes all the major buildings that make White Waltham instantly recognisable.

Among the many unique features of this scenery is snow on the ground during December and January – a first for FSX add-on airports! As well as the authentically-modelled buildings, custom night textures and high resolution mesh, White Waltham boasts static and AI aircraft, people and objects - there are even animated flocks of birds!

Another first for White Waltham is a fully functioning demo version of the airfield [here] that users can try before they buy.

Demo link –

Demo download

SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS: Microsoft Flight Simulator X (Service Pack 2 and Acceleration compatible) – Windows Vista or XP

HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS: PC with 3.0 GHz (equivalent or higher) processor, 1.0Gb RAM, graphics card with 128Mb (or higher) video memory, Hard disc space 1.0Gb

Demo Version of SimCity Societies - Updated Content Free Download June 12


SimCity Societies from The Sims Label, Electronic Arts

Demo will show off much of the new fan requested content and features that have been added to the game over the last few months through five free game updates. Just some of the features and content added to Societies include:
· New strategic modes: Basic, Hardcore and Nightmare, each one a more intense challenge to your city buildings skills.
· Three new exotic disasters, including UFOs, a giant robot and a massive monster
· New events and crises, including counter-cultural revolutions, general strikes, epidemics and more
· Easy firefighting controls. Put out the flames faster!
· Improved road placing controls
· Almost countless UI additions, everything more charts and graphs to new auto-execute buttons for special abilities
· City Policies, giving you the power to enact Universal Healthcare, Indoctrination, and other ways to affect, or control, your citizens lives
· Six scenarios ranging from the relaxing the intense
· Dozens of new buildings and special Sims
· More than 100 other additions and improvements



The free downloadable demo will include the tutorial, a challenging scenario and two major disasters.

Look for it on June 12 at www.simcity.com.

The SimCity Societies free game updates are available right now at www.simcity.com. When you download update 5, it will include all previous updates.

Upcoming for SimCity Societies after the demo launch is its first expansion, Destinations, and the massive compilation, The SimCity Box (which includes Societies, Destinations, SimCity 4, SimCity 4 Rush Hour, Snap City and Spore Creature Creator Trial Version), due out on June 23. Check www.simcity.com for more info.

Start a Band and Rock the World with Rock Band Exclusively on Xbox 360



Celebrity Rock Band fans Maximo Park headline search for this summer's biggest rockers and announce June 10th download date for their critically acclaimed track Girls Who Play Guitars

This weekend, at a beachside event in Ibiza ‘Xbox 360 Presents Rock Band Live’ was launched. The promotion allows music fans in France, Germany and the U.K. to Start a Band and Rock the World with Rock Band, a new video game available only on Xbox 360 this summer! Those who give stellar performances on Rock Band could win a rock star lifestyle: living it up VIP style in Ibiza with a week’s holiday at the Ibiza Rocks Hotel.



Rock Band is available exclusively on the Xbox 360 console this summer and is going to be the season’s biggest hit! The game takes the music videogame genre to new heights of enjoyment as music lovers and would be band superstars get access to their favourite artists across the generations from every genre of rock. With an endless supply of digitally distributed content downloaded over Xbox LIVE the game brings together friends and family and challenges players to tour for fame and fortune by mastering lead/bass guitar, drums and vocals.

Xbox 360 Presents Rock Band events will be held in a number of different locations in U.K., France and Germany. Fans will have the opportunity to perform songs on Rock Band from a variety of artists including David Bowie, The Clash, Jet, Radiohead and Garbage. Those who give outstanding performances on Rock Band will make it to the wall of fame on www.xbox.com/rockband with the winners, chosen by MTV and celebrity judges Maximo Park, living like VIPs in Ibiza.

Paul Smith, front man of Newcastle’s finest export and Xbox 360 Presents Rock Band Live judge explains what they will be looking for when picking the winners:

“All the best rock bands have got amazing star quality and whilst they’ve got to play their instruments well they’ve also got to have the showmanship to excite a crowd. From outrageous outfits and haircuts to amazing postural performances we are looking for a group who give us all of this and more on top!”

Maximo Park have been rehearsing furiously for a tour of Europe’s summer music festivals are big fans of Rock Band, performing David Bowie’s Suffragette City at the Xbox 360 Presents Rock Band Live event. The band’s track “Girls Who Play Guitars”, taken from their highly acclaimed album Our Earthly Pleasures, will be available to download and play with Rock Band from Tuesday 10th of June 2008:

“We have an Xbox 360 with Rock Band installed in our rehearsal studio in Newcastle and it’s great for thrashing out some amazing songs,” explains Paul. “We can’t wait until our fans can do the same with Girls Who Play Guitars.”

Rock Band’s amazing offering of over 70 songs to date is available for purchase and to download from Xbox LIVE. New songs will be made available for download on a weekly basis. Full-length albums such as Judas Priest’s Screaming for Vengeance and The Cars self titled album are also available on Xbox LIVE as digitally distributed game levels.

Chris Lewis, Vice President of Xbox 360 Europe concludes:

“Rock Band on Xbox 360 is going to be the biggest game of the summer. It makes rock stars of you, your friends and family, bringing them together to compete not just for high scores but for the ‘stage floor’. With the launch of Xbox 360 Presents Rock Band Live promotion we hope everyone will have a chance to feel like a star, even if only for five minutes.”

Weird Worlds Soundtrack available now on your iPod!


Whether it's relaxing after a long day of work, driving through the countryside on a fine Sunday afternoon, or being probed by little green spacemen everything goes better with music. With that in mind Digital Eel, masters of the twenty minute space oddities and other realms beyond the ken of man, have made available the official soundtrack to their hit game, Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space, for immediate download!

Available in either 44100Hz stereo/128Kbps or 44100Hz stereo/486KBps DRM-free .mp3 formats the Weird Worlds soundtrack features twelve minutes of music that will take you on an astral journey from here to Sector Prime and back. It includes over twenty tracks, many of which are cuts that were not featured in the final game and are now available for your listening pleasure for the first time ever! Enjoy the "missing" theme loop, along with tracks for all your favorite races such as the Tchorak, Tan Ru, Muktian, and many more.

Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space won Digital Eel the IGF 2006 Innovation In Audio Award and with such an amazing soundtrack it's easy to hear why. Download it today and share it with your friends, family, and those peeping Greys that like to jump up and down outside your house. Put it on your iPod, computer, in your car, or wherever you listen to .mp3s (or better yet, in all places). Burn it onto a CD and pass it out and the
next Star Trek rave.

And need we remind you that it will make the perfect companion piece for the upcoming Digital Eel board game, Eat Electric Death!? Eat Electric Death! is a tactical starship combat game set in the Infinite Space universe. Players can command vessels from seven races (Terrans, Garthans, Tan Ru, Zorg, Urluquai, Yellow Kawangi, and the Klakar) ranging from nimble fighters to gargantuan base stations in over twenty-five scenarios. With Eat Electric Death! Digital Eel has brought everything you've come to expect from their electronic visions—amazing visuals, addictive and easy to learn gameplay, endless replayability—and translated it seamlessly into the world of cardboard and dice. Currently in production it will be available soon.

Download the official Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space soundtrack here:

www.shrapnelgames.com/digital_eel/weird_worlds/6.htm

For more information on Eat Electric Death! and to pre-order please visit:

www.shrapnelgames.com/digital_eel/eed/1.htm

If per chance you have not yet experienced the award-winning game that the soundtrack originates from by all means be sure to check out the Weird Worlds gamepage here:

www.shrapnelgames.com/digital_eel/weird_worlds/1.htm

From there you can read more about it and download a unique ten year pirate mission that will provide a good sampling of what to expect from the full game and find out why
Kieron Gillen of Eurogamer blamed it for his procrastinating Christmas shopping the year it was released: "Oh - a final testimonial to Weird Worlds strengths: as of 1:00 am
on December 22nd, I haven't done any Christmas shopping yet. When my aggrieved girlfriend, family and friends come at me with the communal axe, I'm blaming this."

Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite is available on both PC and Mac and can be ordered either as a physical copy or as a direct download.

Be sure to visit Shrapnel Games, publisher of Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space, to check out our complete catalog of critically acclaimed independent strategy games, including many FREE titles such as winSPWW2 (the original supermod Steel Panthers conversion) and many from Digital Eel, including a print-and-play fantasy board game.

Jimmy buffett re-records classic tracks for rock band


Talk about offering something for everyone - Harmonix and MTV Games announced today the latest artists to join the all-star Rock Band roster - mega-platinum-sellers Jimmy Buffett and Disturbed.

Buffett fans—better known as Parrotheads—can imagine they’re nibbling on sponge cake and watching the sun bake as they play along to three of Jimmy’s biggest and best: “Margaritaville,” “Cheeseburger In Paradise” and “Volcano.” A big believer in the game, Buffett re-recorded all three songs exclusively for inclusion in Rock Band. Each Buffett track will be available for $1.99 per track (160 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) or $5.49 (440 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) for the three-pak.

Joining Buffett are Chicago-based metallers Disturbed, who are no strangers to Rock Band™; Leading consumer electronics and entertainment retailer Best Buy recently announced they are partnering with MTV Games and Hamonix to offer Disturbed fans the opportunity to download two free tracks from the band’s highly anticipated new album, INDESTRUCTIBLE. By pre-ordering the album at www.BestBuy.com/disturbed, fans will receive instructions to download title track “Indestructible” and “Inside The Fire” for Rock Band from Xbox LIVE® online entertainment network. Both of those songs will now be available to all Rock Band™ game players, along with a third new track, “Perfect Insanity.” Each Disturbed track will be available for $.99 per track (80 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) for a limi ted time, or $2.99 (240 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) for the three-pak.

Release date: Tuesday, June 3, 2008 (Xbox LIVE Marketplace)
Friday, June 6, 2008 (PLAYSTATIONStore)

Tracks: “Margaritaville” – Jimmy Buffett
“Cheeseburger I n Paradise” – Jimmy Buffett
“Volcano” – Jimmy Buffett
“Indestructible” – Disturbed
“Inside The Fire” – Disturbed
“Perfect Insanity& rdquo; – Disturbed

(All six tracks utilize original master recordings.)

Price: $1.99 (160 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) per Buffett track
or $5.49 (440 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) for the Buffett three-pak

$.99 (80 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) per Disturbed track (limited time),
or $2.99 (240 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) for the Disturbed three-pak

Locations: & nbsp; Xbox LIVE Marketplace and PLAYSTATION Network

**Dates for Rock Band game tracks are tentative and subject to change **

We love Golf on Nintendo Wii - Fact Sheet


















We Love Golf!
Fact Sheet

We Love Golf! transforms the Wii Remote into a virtual set of golf clubs, creating the most immersive golfing experience available off the greens. This new title is being developed in partnership with Camelot Software Planning, best known for developing successful sports games for home systems, including Hot Shots Golf and the Mario Golf series.








We Love Golf! presents a realistic golfing experience with a fresh new spin incorporating the Wii Remote's unique motion-sensing functionality. Players will use the controller to choose clubs, line up shots, swing and even add a touch fade or draw with a flick of the wrist. Just as on a real course, gauging wind conditions, correct club selection and careful reading of the greens are all essential for victory. A variety of game modes, multiple characters, and unlockable content will provide endless hours of putting heaven.

  • Fully immersive golf game turns Wii RemoteTM controller into a virtual set of clubs
  • Engage in single player or up to four-player head-to-head competitions to see who is the ultimate fairway champion
  • True-to-life golf physics – pick the right club, line up shots, factor in wind speed and direction
  • Dramatic, telecast style presentation brings players into the game as they watch their shots fly through the air or sink into the hole
  • Multiple game modes ranging from tournament, character matches, stroke play, closest to the pin competitions, special mini-games and more
  • Unlock new playable characters, courses and more by playing through the various game modes
  • Multiple courses, each with their own unique obstacles provide a variety of settings and challenges
  • Several different playable characters, each with their own look, personality and play style
  • Dozens of selectable costumes to customize the look of the game

Play Cricket On Your Mobile


Indiagames launches the quick format version as a mobile game

Complementing the ongoing hysteria surrounding the latest cricket format, India's benchmark mobile & online games company and a leading global mobile game publisher – Indiagames Ltd., has launched Cricket 20:20 for mobile phones.

This new game promises to unleash the most advanced and realistic cricketing experience one can have on a mobile phone – complete with day and night conditions, options to customize field settings and batting / bowling line-ups, simulated replays, an in-game mascot and live match statistics and graphs while playing. One can choose the multi-player option and play against a friend or the advanced A.I. (Artificial Intelligence). Either ways, the player is set to have a great deal of fun both batting and bowling.

Commenting on the launch, Vishal Gondal, CEO, Indiagames said, “After the phenomenal success of our earlier game Championship Cricket, we had to develop something truly path-breaking. Cricket 20:20 offers a totally different, realistic, original and never like before cricket gaming experience on the mobile phone. We are confident that the game will break all previous records for cricket game downloads”

Indiagames has in the past had a successful catalogue of cricket based games such as Championship Cricket, Cricket World Championship, Zaheer Khan’s Net Practice and Mandira’s Cricket amongst others.

The Cricket 20:20 mobile game will be available with all leading mobile operators across India and can also be downloaded from the Indiagames mobile gaming postal http://mobile.indiagames.com

Too Human developer diary 4 available for download on Xbox LIVE


Silicon Knights Shows Off the Inner Workings of "Too Human's" Co-Op Mode

Silicon Knights Shows Off the Inner Workings of “Too Human’s” Co-Op Mode, Available for Download on Xbox LIVE Marketplace now

Watch Denis Dyack and Team Showcase the Intuitive Features and Fun-Filled Experience of Co-Op Mode, and Check Out an All-New Chapter of “The Goblin Man of Norway”

As the countdown continues to “Too Human’s” August 29th release, gamers can now experience the fourth installment of the game’s video diary series available for download on Xbox LIVE Marketplace this Friday, May 30. Prepare to discover the true meaning of cooperative play as Silicon Knights gives gamers an all-access pass at the intricacies of the title’s co-op mode*. Gamers will have an exclusive look at “Too Human” gameplay as they learn about what playing with partners over Xbox LIVE is all about – working in tandem with their customized characters to hunt and gather loot with one another while slashing hordes of monsters.

Silicon Knights’director and president, Denis Dyack, and director of design, Henry Sterchi, explain how players will distribute their loot, build their characters and execute killer combos. Both Dyack and Sterchi also demonstrate additional features, such as the ability for players to explore skill trees to discover the depth and diversity of classes, as well as the ability for players to begin levels in different sections – a convenient feature for those who want to jump out of a game and jump back in without losing significant progress within a stage.

The video diary also includes the second installment of the three-part documentary titled, “The Goblin Man of Norway: The Examination.” Researchers and scholars continue to shed light on the findings and examination of the “Goblin Man.” For more information and updates on “The Goblin Man,” viewers can continue to visit http://www.norwegianfilmcommittee.org/.