VideoGameNews

June 30, 2009 – It's time for gamers around the world to embark on an all-new incredible adventure with their favorite sub-zero heroes in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs from Activision Publishing, Inc. and Twentieth Century Fox Licensing & Merchandising (Fox Licensing). Based on the highly anticipated 3-D animated feature from Twentieth Century Fox, which debuts worldwide on July 1, the game allows players to command their favorite movie characters, including Sid, Manny, Diego, Scrat and the relentless one-eyed Dino hunting weasel, Buck, and venture into a mysterious underground world of dinosaurs, while solving puzzles and platforming through more than 15 exciting levels.

"Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs allows kids to play as some of their favorite movie characters on their own, or, for the first time in the series, with their family and friends in multiplayer mini-games," said Rob Kostich, head of marketing for licensed properties, Activision Publishing, Inc. "Family game night will take on a whole new meaning as you compete in hilarious challenges like Sloth Throw, Dino Targets and Sloth Chase using your Wii Remote or gamepad." Read more

June 29, 2009--Three-dimensional experiences are taking over the film experience at movie theaters in 2009 and Disney Interactive Studios is leading the way in video games by introducing innovative stereoscopic 3-D features in two of its premier games this summer. G-Force and Toy Story Mania! both feature revolutionary innovative experiences using 3-D technology and are the first games for next-generation systems to fully feature three-dimensional stereoscopic technology.

G-Force and Toy Story Mania! allow the player to choose to turn on special 3-D features in the games while wearing the enclosed 3-D glasses. Using the anaglyphic 3-D glasses, players will see the action extend forward from their television screens in a three-dimensional perspective while playing the games. Two sets of 3-D glasses will be enclosed in each package for players to experience visuals that seem to pop out from their television sets. The glasses enable both players to experience 3-D during a two-player Toy Story Mania! game or for an accompanying family member to view that perspective in G-Force. Both standard video game 3-D graphics and the stereoscopic 3-D experiences are offered in the games and can be changed by the player. Read more

June 25, 2009 -- KOEI, recognized worldwide as the premier brand of strategy and action games, today released new add-on missions for DYNASTY WARRIORS: Strikeforce. The new missions are available exclusively on PlayStation Network.

Each month a new Quest Pack will be available. This month's Quest Pack includes all of the previously released add-on content plus five new missions:

• Yellow Turban Fortress X - Return to the Yellow Turbans' fortress to finish the fight! (Difficulty: 4)
• Submerged Castle - Face the mighty Lu Bu and gain rare materials! (Difficulty: 4)
• Battle of Bo Wan Po X - Return to Bo Wan Po to finish the fight! (Difficulty: 5)
• Chi Bi vs Zhou Yu - Return to Chi Bi to finish the fight against Zhou Yu! (Difficulty: 7)

For the latest updates, follow @KOEIcorp on twitter and visit the official minisite at www.koei.com/strikeforce.Read more

June 16, 2009 – Atari, one of the world's most recognized video game publishers, today announced that the highly anticipated, summer blockbuster title, Ghostbusters: The Video Game is now available at retailers across North America.

Working closely with Sony Pictures Consumer Products and acclaimed development studios Terminal Reality and RedFly, Atari brings this completely all-new chapter of the blockbuster Ghostbusters saga to advanced gaming platforms coinciding with the 25th Anniversary celebration of the film’s original theatrical release. Ghostbusters: The Video Game, based on the smash hit motion picture franchise, is penned by original Ghostbusters writers and stars Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd and reunites many of the original cast members. In addition, the game also launches today along with Sony Pictures Home Entertainment's worldwide debut of the original motional picture on Blu-ray Disc™.

Featuring the unique blend of humor and fright that established Ghostbusters as a pop culture sensation, this new chapter of the blockbuster franchise is available at retailers across North America for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft ($59.99), Windows PC ($29.99), PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system ($59.99), PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system ($19.99), Wii ($39.99) and Nintendo DS ($29.99). Read more

June 15, 2009 - Harmonix and MTV Games today announced 25 tracks from artists including Soundgarden, Motley Crue, Rush and from artists performing at this year's Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival coming this week to the Rock Band Music Store catalog of downloadable content for the Wii system.

Bonnaroo is a four-day annual festival in Tennessee. Named the "Best Festival" by Rolling Stone in 2008, Bonnaroo is well known for its extensive and diverse musical line-up. Now, music lovers and gamers can experience part of that line-up with Rock Band. Master recordings from Ben Harper and Relentless7, Phish, Coheed and Cambria, Shooter Jennings and TV on the Radio will be made available June 16, in the Rock Band Music Store on Wii.

Rock Band is taking care of country fans on Wii this week as well, with tracks from Brad Paisley, Brooks & Dunn, Dierks Bentley, The Dixie Chicks and Miranda Lambert available June 16 in the Rock Band Music Store on Wii. Read more

June 12, 2009--It's time to rev up the engines and race into an all-new adventure with the MySims! The EA Play Label of Electronic Arts Inc. announced today that MySims Racing for the Wii and Nintendo DS zooms into retail outlets this week. The latest title in the popular MySims franchise starts players as wannabe speedsters and after working their way up the ranks, it is time for them to burn rubber against the toughest MySims rival racers on the trickiest tracks in Speedville. The excitement never stops as the more successful the player is on the track, the more they will be able to customize their kart and trick it out with new engines and bodies.

Designed specifically from the ground up for the Nintendo platforms, MySims Racing offers something for everyone who wants to live life in the fast lane. Read more

June 11, 2009--LEGO Battles for Nintendo DS is now available at retail stores nationwide. Produced by TT Games, developed by Hellbent Games and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, this latest game in the award-winning LEGO videogame line-up combines elements of three classic LEGO toy themes, LEGO Castle, LEGO Pirates, and LEGO Space. Offering a new LEGO "build and battle" experience, LEGO Battles allows gamers of all ages to play alone in Story and Free Play modes, as well as with two other friends in Multiplayer mode.

LEGO Battles is an epic real-time strategy game that takes players through six unique storylines and 90 levels on land, sea and air for a completely customizable LEGO adventure. As gamers progress through the narrative, they can create LEGO bases and squads by mixing and matching units from the different themes to create the ultimate personalized LEGO team with which to do battle. Friends can also challenge one another on the battlefield in Multiplayer mode through wireless DS multi-card play that supports up to three people. Boasting 55 playable characters and 30 vehicles, the game puts fans in the middle of pirate swordsmen fighting side-by-side with aliens, dragons battling ninjas, pirate ships launching broadsides against space crafts, and many other unique combinations. Players will discover that with a little imagination and LEGO creativity, the build and battle possibilities are extensive. Read more

June 9, 2009--Electronic Arts Inc. announced today that EA SPORTS Grand Slam Tennis is now available in North American retail stores and will be available worldwide by June 12, 2009. Developed specifically for the Wii by EA Canada, Grand Slam Tennis offers the deepest and richest tennis gaming experience at all four Grand Slams and is the only game to feature Wimbledon. Experience the thrill of playing on famed Centre Court or under the lights at the U.S. Open.

With authentic tennis motions, users will feel like they are actually playing tennis. They can vie for tennis immortality in Grand Slam Career mode by winning all four majors, a feat Roger Federer accomplished yesterday after winning his first French Open. With the win, he tied Pete Sampras with 14 career Grand Slam titles. Both are among the licensed players in Grand Slam Tennis, which includes some of the greatest in tennis history. John McEnroe appears exclusively in the game and graces the North American cover, along with Federer and Serena Williams. Joining the trio is a mix of current stars and legends who collectively own 136* Grand Slam singles titles.Read more

Iron Maiden master recordings made available as downloadable content for Rock Band Music Store for the first time

May 29, 2009 – Metal lovers take notice! Harmonix Music, the leading developer of music-based games, and MTV Games, along with distribution partner Electronic Arts Inc., today announced that 12 tracks from Iron Maiden, one of the world's most successful rock bands, will be added June 9 to the Rock Band Music Store of downloadable content for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system and the Wii system.

The release of these downloadable tracks coincides with the U.S. release of Flight 666 on Blu-ray and DVD as well as a double-CD soundtrack album and limited edition double-vinyl picture disc. Flight 666 documents the first leg of Maiden's legendary SOMEWHERE BACK IN TIME WORLD TOUR, which took them 50,000 miles around the planet, playing 23 concerts on five continents in just 45 days. One of the stars of the movie is the band's customized Boeing 757, Ed Force One, which carried the band, all their crew and 12 tons of stage equipment and was piloted by Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, a fully qualified and active Airline Captain with Astraeus Airlines.

Live recordings of "Aces High," "Hallowed Be Thy Name," "Fear of the Dark" and "Iron Maiden," featured on Flight 666, are among those available for download in the Rock Band Music Store June 9. The other eight songs were amongst those featured on the band's Somewhere Back in Time World Tour during the first leg of which Flight 666 was filmed. This will mark the first time master recordings from Iron Maiden have been made available on Rock Band games.Read more

May 26th, 2009 – Harmonix and MTV Games, along with distribution partner Electronic Arts Inc., announced that Rock Band Unplugged for the PSP (PlayStation Portable) system ships to stores in North America and Europe today!

Developed by Harmonix in partnership with Backbone Entertainment, a Foundation 9 Entertainment studio, Rock Band Unplugged creates a full band experience in the palm of players' hands by combining traditional beatmatch gameplay with key elements from both Rock Band and Rock Band 2. The hands are the "peripherals" in Rock Band Unplugged allowing players to take direct control of the lead/bass guitars, drums and vocals. In addition, players can capture a deep and interactive Rock Band experience by taking their band on the road in World Tour mode, practicing their chops in the Band Warmup Mode, or by taking on the most extreme musical challenge imaginable in Band Survival mode. Read more