Village Gamer

EA Brings Need for Speed to Life in Next Summer’s Biggest Drift and Time Attack Racing Event
London to Host Need for Speed Live 2009 International Race Event

Today at the SEMA show in Las Vegas, Electronic Arts Inc. announced Need for Speed™ Live, a unique festival and competition that celebrates car culture. This first-time event, which is still being negotiated, will be open to the public and will be hosted next summer at the world famous Brands Hatch Circuit located near London, England. The weekend-long experience will be a showcase of entertainment, videogames, music, car shows and displays designed to appeal to fans of racing games, proud owners of hot vehicles, fans of exotic cars and motorsports enthusiasts.

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Edmonton – XGen Studios today announced that the long awaited Stick Arena Ballistick has arrived! Stick Arena Ballistick is an improved and expanded version of the original Stick Arena. Included in this new version are new weapons: The Flamethrower, Chain Gun, Railgun, Chain Saw, Laser Sword, and Tesla Helmet. Or kick it oldschool with the original weapons: Katana, AK-47, Sledgehammer, Shotgun, Baseball Bat, or Glock. Battle it out the new all-new Space Lab, or the original Offices, Construction Yards and Sewers. Gamers can upgrade characters with customizable Spinners and Pets, create custom maps, earn in-game currency, and much more. For a quick overview, check out the trailer or Play Ballistick Now. Ballistick is rated Mature.

Quebec City – Beenox Studios, an Activision Publishing, Inc. property today announced that the Quantum of Solace™ video game, based on the eagerly anticipated “Quantum of Solace” and prior “Casino Royale” James Bond films, is now available. Developed under license from EON Productions Ltd and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM), the Quantum of Solace video game equips players with the weapons, espionage and hand-to-hand combat skills and overall charm needed to survive the covert lifestyle of legendary 007 secret agent James Bond. Beenox Studios developed the Games for Windows and Wii versions of the game.

“Activision’s Quantum of Solace video game marks the first time players can become the newly re-imagined, dangerous and cunningly efficient James Bond as portrayed by Daniel Craig,” said Rob Kostich, Head of Marketing for Licensed Properties, Activision Publishing. “We’re extremely pleased to release the game day and date with the new movie, so for those of us waiting for the new era in Bond gaming, Quantum of Solace has arrived.”
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Next Chapter in Award-Winning Franchise Features All-New Single-Player Campaigns, Multiplayer Modes and Innovative “Direct-Fire” Feature

Relic Entertainment and THQ Inc. have announced that Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor, the next standalone chapter in the widely acclaimed real-time strategy (RTS) franchise, is currently in development for Windows PC. Featuring three intense campaigns, brand-new multiplayer modes and an innovative “direct-fire” feature that allows even more tactical control during the heat of battle, Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor will immerse players in some of the most historic, tide-turning clashes of World War II. Internally developed by Relic Entertainment, the game is currently scheduled for release in spring 2009.

“Company of Heroes is one of the most critically acclaimed RTS series of all time,” said Peter Matiss, vice president of global brand management, THQ. “With Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor, Relic Entertainment is delivering an all-new, standalone chapter in the franchise and continues to push the boundaries of innovation and quality in the genre.”
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Every Story Ever Written is Just Waiting to Become Reality

Toronto – The Adventure Company, a leading publisher of interactive entertainment software, today announced it will publish Inkheart for Nintendo DS™. Based on the feature film adaptation of the best-selling Cornelia Funke novel, Inkheart brings high-quality, beautiful graphics to your DS in the fantastic and lovingly detailed world of Inkheart.

“To launch an adventure game in conjunction with its feature film release is an exciting opportunity for us,” said Brian Gladman, Global Product Manager at The Adventure Company. “Adventure enthusiasts can see the movie and then become a part of the story themselves by playing the game. The story has all the components for a successful transition to a DS game, fantasy, intrigue, exploration, character development and puzzle solving. We can’t wait to put it out there!”

Inkheart is the story of Meggie, a young girl whose father has a secret magical ability; he can bring book characters to life simply by reading the story aloud! It sounds like a wondrous gift, but evil lurks within the pages of a rare children’s fable…

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EA’s Award-Winning Videogame Delivers All the Fun and High Energy of Skateboarding This Holiday Season

EA Montreal and Black Box, studios of Electronic Arts Inc. announced today that their award-winning Skate It videogame will hit retail stores starting November 19th in North America and November 20th in Europe for the Wii™ and Nintendo DS™. With intuitive Wii remote, nunchuck and DS stylus controls and the optional use of the Wii Balance Board, Skate It delivers a fun and unique skateboarding experience for skate fans and gamers of all ages.

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Montreal – Interactive entertainment company Ludia Inc. will create games based on the popular television game show Press Your Luck, it was jointly announced today by Alex Thabet, Founder and CEO of Ludia Inc., and Olivier Delfosse, Senior Manager, Interactive FremantleMedia Enterprises, licensor for “Press Your Luck”. The multi-year exclusive agreement will bring the Press Your Luck game show experience to the PCs, consoles, iPods and iPhones of players worldwide.

The Press Your Luck game will retain all of the favorite elements of the classic show, rendered with a dynamic redesign, including hundreds of new trivia questions to answer, “spins” on an interactive giant game board, and the iconic Whammy providing never-before-seen animated antics. In addition, the Press Your Luck game will incorporate connected gaming elements to make it easy and entertaining for friends and family to play and interact together. Both
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Toronto – NCsoft®, the world’s premier publisher and developer of massively multiplayer online games (MMOs), today announced a partnership with TransGaming, Inc. to bring their award-winning City of Heroes ® franchise to the Apple® Macintosh®. The game has been enabled for the Mac by TransGaming, a leading developer of portability technologies for the electronic entertainment industry. City of Heroes for Mac will be available for public beta testing with the release of the game’s thirteenth expansion, Issue 13: Power and Responsibility later this fall. The official launch will occur pre-holiday this year with a special digital-only Mac edition of City of Heroes, available across all NCsoft West consumer territories.

“Players will soon be able to join the battle of good versus evil in the most popular comic book MMO on both the PC and Mac platforms…and in the same game world,” commented Brian Clayton, executive producer of City of Heroes for NCsoft West. “Given Mac’s fame as a platform for creative people and City of Heroes’ unprecedented character customization options, I think City of Heroes is a perfect fit for the Mac gaming community.”

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Vancouver – Hothead Games today announced that Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode Two is now available worldwide simultaneously via Xbox LIVE® Arcade (except Korea) and via the Greenhouse digital distribution platform for the Windows®, Mac®, and Linux® versions. Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode Two is expected to offer players six to ten hours of gameplay, and is priced at $14.95 for the Windows, Mac, and Linux versions and at 1200 Microsoft points via Xbox LIVE Arcade. The game has been rated “M” for Mature by the Entertainment Software Rating Board for all platforms.

The madcap Penny Arcade experience continues in Episode Two of the RPG-adventure game series! Players can jump right in with a fresh character and new customization options or carry over their look and stats

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Montreal – Meridian4 is chilled to announce that they have signed an agreement with Frogames to help digitally distribute their FPS (First Penguin Shooter) through numerous online sites across the net.

“I have bookmarked their website for a long time because Meridian4 has always published great games made by indies!” said Christophe Canon at Frogames.

“Put a penguin in a game and I’m hooked, but put a penguin in a surprisingly sophisticated and well crafted FPS where bullets are replaced with snowballs and I’m addicted. The moment we played Penguins Arena, we knew that it fit our company and the games we publish.” said Steve Milburn, Marketing Director at Meridian4 and penguin lover.

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