Village Gamer

Ontario – Howling Moon Games has released their newest iphone title Solar Advance in the iTunes App Store for 99 cents usd.

As the player, you are the intelligence controlling an advance technology that can store the suns energy for use back on a distant planet. As the intelligence you will need to motion special matter that absorbs certain forms of energy. The energy that needs to be caught bursts from suns. Along its path it changes shape and colors. The color of the flare needs to be met by the same color matter for it to be harnessed.

Game Features:

* Each new level leaves the player with more matter to control, more color differences from the solar flares.
* A timer calculates your overall game score, preventing your MAT’s from being destroyed decreases your overall time.
* Each sun has a different gravitational pull.
* New Collapsing Star mode just for the iphone
* An amazing leaderboard system to keep track of your highscores
* Try and collect all the rewards

Yarmouth County – Xona Games has announced that their newest game, Decimation X is coming to Xbox LIVE Indie Games (XBLIG) in January 2010 for 80 Microsoft Points. Xona Games has not yet released a lot of promo material for the game, but according to the Decimation X web site, game play will revolve around intense retro-styled shoot ’em action for 1 – 4 players and feature music from Imphenzia.

Gormley – Digital Leisure’s Dragon’s Lair is now available for download via Nintendo’s DSiWare store. Rated by the ESRB as E10, Dragon’s Lair is available for 800 DSi Points.

Title Details: You play the heroic Dirk the Daring, a valiant knight on a quest to rescue the fair princess from the clutches of an evil dragon. Control the actions of the daring adventurer and find your way through the castle of a dark wizard who has enchanted it with treacherous monsters and obstacles. In the mysterious caverns below the castle, your odyssey continues against the awesome forces that oppose your journey to the dragon’s lair. Dragon’s Lair is a fully animated classic arcade game from legendary animator Don Bluth.

Game Developer Research is pleased to announce the debut of its sixteenth report, the ‘Game Developer Census 2009‘. The in-depth 248-page report aims to create an accurate list of each significant developer and publisher within the video game industry in the United States and Canada, as well as an accurate list of staff averages for each company.

The Census report lists more than 700 companies alphabetically by U.S. state and Canadian province, along with general contact addresses, website information, estimates of employee numbers and details on their market specialties (from casual gaming, online gaming, mobile gaming and serious gaming to PC, handheld or console gaming).

Not included in the Game Developer Industry Census estimates are game tools company, game contracting/services company, PR, marketing, and external business service, or game distribution and retail professionals. The report is intended to be a valuable tool for game industry trendwatchers, contractors, service companies, and other entities wanting to acquire accurate information to reach out to the North American game market as a whole.

According to Techvibes, “The report reveals that the United States videogame industry employee count is essentially flat year-over-year, rising slightly from 44,400 to 44,806. The small rise in North American game industry employment was marked by an unusually high number of new studios – particularly in social and online gaming – springing up to counterbalance the many closures that occurred throughout the rest of the industry.

Canadian companies, however, saw growth that can almost be called explosive. The continued establishment of new studios and expansion of existing large studios led Canada’s the employee count in the Census to rise 30% year-over-year. The totals rose from 9,500 Canadian video game employees in 2008 to 12,480 in 2009.

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Toronto – Interactive Ontario today announced that registration is now open for INplay 2010. This two-day conference, taking place at the Liberty Grand in Toronto, is designed to bring creators of kids interactive properties and developers together to explore inspiring ideas for the future.

“ INplay promises to bring cutting edge research, innovation, market strategy and inspiration together in this one-of-a-kind conference,” said Ian Kelso, president and CEO of Interactive Ontario. “ IO is proud to collaborate with such great partners, many of whom are global leaders in the kids media entertainment business.”

“With all the changes happening in content creation and delivery, INplay is a huge opportunity for inspiration, to hear some of the latest research, and connect with potential partners in the kids interactive market,” said Ted Brunt, VP Interactive Production, marblemedia.

Early bird pricing ends February 25, 2010. Members of Interactive Ontario receive a further discounts on tickets. For registration, press accreditation and to sign up for the INplay newsletter, visit their website.

INplay is for game developers/publishers, broadcasters, content producers/distributors, interactive/mobile/social media developers, toy/game manufacturers, book/magazine/comic publishers, marketers, researchers/child psychologists and all businesses with interest in the kids’ interactive media.

This project is spearheaded by IO in partnership with industry leaders including: Astral Media Inc, Bitcasters, Blue Print Entertainment, Breakthrough New Media, Capybara Games, CBC, Corus Entertainment, Decode Entertainment, Earth Rangers, Kids Can Press, marblemedia, Meridian Artists, Portfolio Entertainment, Spin Master Ltd., and zinc Roe Inc.

Ottawa – Fuel Industries has had a very busy year, it seems – in a summary of 2009 projects, Fuel released information about their work with EA, Intel & Dell, Microsoft, Toyota, MTV and Screenlife. For the record, I want that screen used in the Intel 360 “Future of the Data Centre” project. Some of Fuel Industries’ work can be found on Facebook in the way of EA Pogo Puppies, an interactive application that allows Facebook users to adopt and care for cute little puppies. The studio also created the SceneIt! Online Facebook App, bringing Screenlife’s interactive trivia games to the masses. Meanwhile, Twitter users were invited to learn, compete and create haiku pieces extolling the virtues of Microsoft’s Windows Server 2008 R2.

Fuel also worked with MTV, Verizon and Electric Farm Entertainment to create a growing online, interactive property for Valemont University through the use of blogs, websites, alternate reality and social media. Toyota and Fuel worked together to build excitement and adventure for Facebook users with their Adventure Finder App. This App, built to promote the new Toyota 4Runner,  uses interactive quizzes to generate possible off-road adventures.

Gormley – Digital Leisure has released a new trailer for the DSiWare version of Dragon’s Lair, which will be available from the Nintendo DSiWare download zone this coming Monday (December 21st).

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Ottawa – Fuel Industries has produced a very nice way to say Merry Christmas to all of their friends, and they’ve done such a great job I wanted to share their efforts with all of our readers. Designer Alyssa Munaretto, Producer Braden Brailey, Rob Plowman (Director, Fuel Sounds) and Nick Ianniti (Director of Communications) got together and recorded three Christmas songs for our listening pleasure. The tracks are downloadable, so you can add them to your Christmas playlist. Thank you and Happy Holidays to everyone over at Fuel!

Edmonton – Bioware has added some very cool Dragon Age: Origins clothing to the XBL Avatar Store – players can now dress their Avatars in DAO t-shirts and hats, available in three styles. Now if they would just release the Return to Ostagar DLC expansion on XBL…

Vancouver – The Innovation Camp organizers have announced the dates and location for their next workshop series – Innovation Camp 3. Taking place at Discovery Parks (887 Great Northern Way) in Vancouver, the first Innovation Camp of 2010 will occur on the following dates:

• Tuesday, January 26, 6:30pm to 9:30pm
• Thursday, January 28, 6:30pm to 9:30pm
• Saturday, January 30, 10:00am to 6:00pm

Participants will spend their Camp time practicing techniques to generate new ideas and expanding upon those ideas in order to accomplish a shared goal such as creating a product or completing a project/challenge. There are no lectures, just engaging activities that facilitate learning, interaction and growth. Registration is now open, and at only $150.00 (including sandwiches, fruit and tea, coffee & juice), Innovation Camp offers great value to its participants. I’ve heard plenty of good things about the Camp, so if you have the opportunity to participate, I’d say give yourself a great Christmas present by registering today.

Vancouver – IUGO Mobile Entertainment has put many of their great titles on sale – visit the iTunes App Store and pick up a few – or all – of them and get many hours of fun and challenge for very little money. Sounds like a good return on investment to me!

Guelph – Stir Fry Games has announced that an update for SFG Soccer is now available on XBL. The following changes will be automatically applied next time you sign in and start up the game:

• Hard Difficulty Setting
• Team & Player Stat tracking
• Ability to Edit Any Team
• Use your Custom Teams in Exhibition Matches
• Golden Boot Award
• League leaders section
• and some bug fixes

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Montreal – Meridian4 celebrates the season by making a donation to DonateGames and encourages other publishers to do the same, especially during this time of year.

“This Meridian4 donation represents what we know to be true, gamers are good. Video games new and used are being recycled to help others. Gamers are also great communicators and users of technology. This donation is important, gamers are telling each other about our work, and as the word spreads, the video game community and video game playing families with rare, neglected diseases are contacting DonateGames with stories of the joy and inspiration from knowing the gaming community, like Meridians4 are helping spread the word, generate relief funds and create global awareness for the rare and neglected disease community.” said Jim Carol of DonateGames.

“We discovered DonateGames at a game convention and after reading their literature, we thought it was a great idea and a one we wanted to get behind. The three directors at Meridian4 all have children and we know how devastating it would be if they were afflicted with a debilitating or fatal disease. This is a terrific idea and we hope that other gaming companies and gamers will get involved.” said Steve Milburn, Director at Meridian4.

Vancouver – Just in time for the holidays, Hothead Games today announced that Jonathan Blow’s Braid is now available for download via the PlayStation®Network in Europe. Already recognized by Metacritic as one of “The Best Games of 2009” for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, European gamers can fill their virtual stockings with this amazing indie title for only €9.99.

Players explore the human condition and manipulate time with our hero Tim in the lush, painterly world of Braid. The game takes you from a house in the city on a journey through a series of worlds to solve puzzles and rescue the princess. In each world, you have a different power to affect the way time behaves, including the ability to rewind, create parallel realities and utilize time dilation to overcome the many obstacles in your path. There is no filler in this game; every puzzle shows you something new and interesting about the game world.

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Montreal – Ubisoft has just announced further details on the earlier announced upcoming downloadable content for Assassin’s Creed 2. Each DLC expansion requires ownership of an Assassin’s Creed 2 disc copy for either the PlayStation 3 or the Xbox 360 as well as 1.0 GB of available memory for each chapter.

The Battle of Forli expands the Assassin’s Creed II Sequence 12 experience by delivering a missing piece of the storyline. Join Machiavelli and Caterina Sforza to defend Forli from the Orsi Brothers. Accomplish a daring rescue and prevent the Piece of Eden from falling into the hands of the Templars. Uncover new depths to the historical conspiracy by gaining access to six challenging new memories including the opportunity to pilot Leonardo’s flying machine across Romagna. The Battle of Forli will be available towards the end of January 2010.

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Assassin’s Creed II Sequence 13: Bonfire of the Vanities continues to expand the addictive AC2 universe. Work with Machiavelli to free the city of Florence from the grip of the mad monk Savonarola by targeting influential citizens under his control. Battle, sneak and free-run your way through more than ten challenging new memories. Discover a new district of Florence, and utilize Ezio’s brand new move: the spring-jump.

Ubisoft® has also announced (via Ubisoft UK) a few details about the Limited Collector’s Edition of E3® 2009 Xbox 360 most awarded game, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction™.

The Splinter Cell Conviction team also invites everyone to connect to the Xbox LIVE® on the 16th of December at 9:00:00 AM PST (12 noon EST) for the worldwide premiere of the multi-player modes.

The announcement from Ubi UK states that the Limited Collector’s Edition will be available on February 26th in all European, Middle Eastern, Asian and Pacific territories, for both the Xbox 360™ and the Windows® PC games and will include:

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This post was updated to include further IGN Award Winners.

Toronto – Harlequin Enterprises Limited, the global leader in series romance and one of the world’s leading publishers of women’s fiction, and Big Fish Games, the multi-platform developer, publisher and distributor of casual games, today announced the launch of Harlequin Presents: Hidden Object of Desire. The hidden object game with a romantic storyline is the first game release following the announcement of the companies’ partnership.

Inspired by The Royal House of Karedes, a Harlequin Presents® Mini Series, Harlequin Presents: Hidden Object of Desire features Allie, a reporter on assignment covering the 30th birthday of the Prince of Aristo. Following her arrival in the Kingdom of Adamas with her photographer, a series of events occur and players assist Allie in her quest to solve the mystery by finding hidden objects and solving puzzles.

“We are thrilled to be working with Big Fish Games to introduce our readers to this new interactive experience,” said Donna Hayes, publisher and CEO of Harlequin Enterprises Limited. “Our partnership reinforces our commitment to brand innovation and we anticipate great success with Harlequin Presents: Hidden Object of Desire.”

“Big Fish Games and Harlequin are wonderfully aligned as our audiences are global and largely female,” said Jeremy Lewis, president and CEO of Big Fish Games. “The games we develop together – starting with Harlequin Presents: Object of Desire – will appeal to romance readers and casual gamers alike. We anticipate the partnership will lead to audience expansion for both companies.”

Harlequin Presents: Hidden Objects of Desire will be sold online for $6.99 USD exclusively at Big Fish Games. Players who download the game within the first year of its release will also receive a free digital edition of the first book of the miniseries.

Edmonton – Dragon Age Origins has won four more awards, this time from online game magazine IGN. Congratulations to the studio for their Best Xbox 360 RPG, Best PC RGP, Best Story and PC Game of the Year awards. Dragon Age Origins has also been nominated in several categories for our own Readers’ Choice Awards. Nominations for our awards close on December 31st – be sure to let us know which Canadian titles and studios you think should be in the running.

Congratulations are also extended to Capybara Games, whose new Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes won IGN’s Best DS Stragety Game Award and for Critter Crunch, which won for Best PS3 Puzzle Game.

EA Canada’s FIFA 10 has taken top spot for IGN’s Best PS3 Sports game and Best Xbox 260 Sports Game, while Ubisoft Montreal’s Assassin’s Creed 2 won Best Xbox 360 Action Game and Xbox 360 Game of the Year.

Ontario – Ontario is helping to drive innovation and stimulate economic growth in the creative sector by supporting early-stage development for television, film, mobisodes, webisodes, video games, internet properties and more. The Intellectual Property Development Fund is a one-year pilot programme administered by the Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC). An extensive list of guidelines have been posted on the OMDC’s website.

The province is investing $10 million to support screen-based companies in moving ideas from the development stage into production and marketing. By providing funding for development expenses, the McGuinty government is promoting the continued growth of Ontario’s creative sector and helping businesses thrive as they develop new and innovative products.

If only there was this much support for the interactive industry in every province – we have the unique position of having a massive talent pool in this country, and yet there are many companies struggling to stay afloat. The Province of BC government would do well to take a serious look at what’s going on east of the Rockies in regards to the interactive and creative sectors.

Ontario’s creative sector is now the third largest source of employment in North America, following California and New York, and according to OMDC, total direct employment in Ontario’s cultural industries (businesses whose main purpose is to create and distribute arts and entertainment) was about 202,000 people. This sector was also responsible for generating almost $12.2 billion of Ontario’s Gross Domestic Product through film and television production, interactive digital media, music recording, commercial theatre, magazine publishing and book publishing.

Gormley – Digital Leisure is excited to announce that arcade classic “Dragon’s Lair” will soon be available on Nintendo’s DSiWare™ service.

No quarters needed! You’ll soon have your chance to take on all the “Lair” has to throw at you, right in the palm of your hand. For the first time on any handheld Nintendo® system, you’ll be able to play Dirk in his original animated form – no pixel graphics here!

On December 21st in North America and January 1st in Europe, you’ll take on the role of Dirk the Daring, a knight on a quest to rescue the fair Princess Daphne from the clutches on an evil dragon – Now using your Nintendo DSi! Dragon’s Lair is rated E10 by the ESRB forAnimated Blood, Fantasy Violence and Mild Suggestive Themes.

Toronto – The Cloud Slam Conference, which brings together leading companies and visionaries in business, technology, and cloud computing to showcase the hottest opportunities for driving profitability through sustainability, today announced their call for proposals. Taking place March 23-25, 2010 as virtual event , the conference is also proud to announce it has gathered hundreds of attendees passionate about cloud computing. These announcements reflect a growing trend involving companies that have committed to developing best practice cloud strategies for the emerging global economy that requires innovative, viable and profitable models for business success.

You are cordially invited to participate in Cloud Slam 2010 through paper submission, a workshop or a special session organization, a tutorial, an invited speech, a demo, a poster, an exhibit, a panel discussion, whichever sounds more appropriate and convenient to you. There will also be tutorial sessions, workshops, special sessions, demos, posters, panel discussions.

The conference will include invited presentations by experts from academia, industry, and government as well as contributed paper presentations describing original work on the current state of research cloud computing, their use in business, their design, performance and use, and their applications.

To encourage media coverage of the Cloud Slam 2010, the conference provides up to 2 free press credentials to verified media representatives from each organization. Media partnerships are also welcome, please send cross promotion proposals to media(at)cloudslam(dot)org.

Conference sponsorships are welcomed. To sponsor Cloud Slam or get additional information about event, contact Khazret Sapenov at 510-984-2312 or at sponsors(at)cloudslam(dot)org.

Vancouver – Aftercad Software is pleased to announce that Novedge LLC, a leading online CAD/CAM store, has become a distribution partner for Aftercad’s new 3D collaboration service Renderjam.com.

Renderjam.com is a Software as a Service (SaaS) offering that allows businesses to view, mark-up, manage and publish 3D assets onto the web, without the need for proprietary viewers, providing easy and instant access to project information by all stakeholders.

“Renderjam offers a new lightweight and very easy to use visualization product that enables anyone in the organization to access digital 3D assets. Being distributed as a service it has a very low impact on IT overhead and it is easy to deploy. Renderjam is the ideal tool for architects and industrial designers that need to share their project data.” said Dr. Cristiano Sacchi, CEO of Novedge.

Novedge will offer the Renderjam.com service through its successful Novedge.com portal. “Our partnership with Novedge gives us invaluable exposure and access to market” stated Chris Boothroyd, CEO of Aftercad “and we look forward to marketing this product with Dr. Sacchi and his team.”

Vancouver – The British Columbia Technology Industry Association (BCTIA) is pleased to announce the launch of PODIUM, their 2010 business outreach programme. The PODIUM program is designed to connect guests and media of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Games with technology sector business partners and media stories while visiting BC.

The centre-piece of the programme is the PODIUM digital guide, an e-book illustrating the talent and ingenuity that makes British Columbia a great place to live, work, study and invest. The PODIUM guide profiles over one hundred world-class companies and includes a number of companies whose technology is being used to power aspects of the Games. The digital guide will be distributed to thousands of contacts, including International Business Development offices, Olympic Sponsors and hosting organizations, Federal and Provincial governments, and media. The PODIUM guide will continue to evolve right-up to the opening ceremonies. The more great companies we have participating, the more buzz we’ll create.

To help guests and media connect with innovative BC companies, the BCTIA will be providing meeting concierge services – coordination services to facilitate introductions before, during and after the games. With non-stop activity during the 2010 Games, we are working to ensure that international business people and media call upon us to connect them with business introductions and unique media stories. Interested parties need only send an email to podium[at]bctia[dot]org.

Montreal – ELearning Alliance invites you to reserve April 14, 2010 to attend the event eLearning Montreal. This day is specifically aimed at training officers, human resources and people who have to acquire content and e-learning tools. Meet the leading Quebec companies active in this area and to attend lectures offered by industry experts. The location and details of that day will be announced in January.

Vancouver – It’s time for gamers to take on a new undercover assignment with Activision Publishing, Inc.’s announcement of True Crime® – an all-new open-world game inspired by classic Hollywood and Asian cinema style action thrillers. Built from the ground up by developer United Front Games to look, feel and play like a true Hong Kong action flick, True Crime follows the story of detective Wei Shen as he infiltrates one of Hong Kong’s notorious Triad crime syndicates. The title was revealed exclusively this past Saturday, December 12th during Spike TV’s 7th Annual “Video Game Awards 2009” show.

As a newly hired thug within the Triad organization, Wei must do whatever it takes to stay undetected and survive, balancing his moral duty as a cop with the objectives of the assignment. In order to ascend the ranks of the underworld, gamers will engage in visceral, fast-paced martial arts combat and explosive gunfights, along with high-octane driving sequences and acrobatic free-running chases as they go deeper and deeper undercover.

“We’ve been waiting for the right story and opportunity to bring True Crime to a new generation of gamers in 2010,” said Maria Stipp, EVP and GM of Owned Properties, Activision Publishing. “United Front Games has the vision to bring this new undercover game experience to life, where fans will play out their own epic Hong Kong action thriller!”

“We’re excited about the opportunity to deliver a complete reboot of the True Crime experience,” said Stephen van der Mescht, Executive Producer at United Front Games. “As our Spike TV VGA reveal trailer shows, we are dedicated to creating both an exceptional open-world gameplay experience through our combat, free-running, shooting and driving mechanics, as well as a rich story with memorable recurring characters. We want players to feel like an undercover cop experiencing the moral dilemmas and life and death situations of the HK underworld.”

Set in Hong Kong, True Crime takes gamers through diverse neighborhoods, ranging from the high class Central HK to the bustling fish markets of Aberdeen and beyond in a wide variety of story missions and sandbox activities. The game also introduces handfuls of intriguing characters for gamers to interact with as they navigate through a truly unique and dangerous city.

Gamers can go undercover and “become one of them” when True Crime arrives in Fall 2010 for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and the Games for Windows®. The game is currently rated “RP” (Rating Pending) by the ESRB.

Edmonton – BioWare™ and TransGaming, Inc. have announced plans to release Dragon Age™: Origins for the Mac® on December 21. The critically acclaimed, dark fantasy epic will be available to Mac Players as a digital download where they can choose between the Standard or Digital Deluxe version.

The Digital Deluxe version will feature additional content including: a collection of wallpapers, in-game bonus items, the game’s soundtrack and the Warden’s Keep additional content. Warden’s Keep provides players with a new dungeon-exploring adventure, new loot including a set of ancient Grey Warden armor, a chance to gain two of six mysterious new abilities, a new base complete with merchants and a party chest to store their hard-earned items. The Standard and Digital Deluxe versions are available now for pre-order through many popular online digital retailers.

“We are very excited to bring this award-winning title to the Mac community,” commented Vikas Gupta, President and CEO of TransGaming. “Our Cider technology allows us to rapidly enable and deploy high quality titles like Dragon Age, and we are pleased to be delivering this exceptional caliber of gaming to the ever growing Mac gaming community.”

Each version of Dragon Age: Origins for the Mac will also include The Stone Prisoner and the Blood Dragon Armor. The Stone Prisoner gives players access to new environments, items, hours of additional gameplay and the mighty stone golem, Shale, who can become one of the most powerful party members in the game. In addition, players will receive the Blood Dragon Armor, a set of themed armor that gives players additional protection in combat and will be available for use in both Dragon Age: Origins on the Mac and in Mass Effect™ 2 on the Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system and PC.

In Dragon Age: Origins, players take on the role of a Grey Warden, one of the last of an ancient order of guardians. Now, as an evil blight threatens to destroy all life, it is up to players to unite the shattered lands and slay the corrupted dragon known as the Archdemon. To restore peace, players must make ruthless decisions and be willing to sacrifice their friends and loved ones for the greater good of mankind. Whether you’re a new or veteran gamer, Dragon Age: Origins reinvents the fantasy experience, combining a great story with raw emotion and brutal action.

Dragon Age: Origins is now available on PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation®3 console and will be available on December 21 on The Mac at popular online digital retailers and is rated M by the ESRB.

Montreal – Today Ubisoft Canada announced that Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands™ will ship May 2010 for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, the Wii™ system from Nintendo, the Nintendo DSi™ and Nintendo DS™ systems, and Windows-based PC. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands™ will expand the Prince of Persia universe with a new storyline, the introduction of new characters, and new powers over nature and time. The game takes place between Prince of Persia® The Sands of Time and Prince of Persia Warrior Within™.

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Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands is the next chapter in the fan-favorite Sands of Time universe. Visiting his brother’s kingdom following his adventure in Azad, the Prince finds the royal palace under siege from a mighty army bent on its destruction. When the decision is made to use the ancient power of the Sand in a desperate gamble to save the kingdom from total annihilation, the Prince will embark on an epic adventure in which he will learn to bear the mantle of true leadership, and discover that great power often comes with a great cost. Game features include:

Classic Gameplay Reinvented: From huge-scale multi-enemy combat to dizzying feats of acrobatic prowess in gigantic environments enhanced by the Prince’s ability to control nature and time, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands will push the Prince’s prodigious abilities to unseen levels.

A Blockbuster Experience: Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands will offer players unforgettable set pieces made possible by the advanced technology offered by the award-winning Anvil engine. With all-out war at the gates of the kingdom, the Prince’s abilities will be challenged like never before through the course of epic wow moments.

Mastery Over Nature: Wielding powers of nature and time, the Prince will have unparalleled mastery over his environment and his enemies. The Prince will discover that harnessing the forces of nature itself will prove to be a devastating companion to his ability to rewind time.

Return of a Fan-Favorite Franchise: Set between Prince of Persia The Sands of Time and Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands will provide fans a new chapter in the Prince of Persia universe and deepen their understanding of the Sands of Time series.

The versions for Wii™, Nintendo DSi™ and DS™ as well as the PSP® system will feature a different gaming experience from the versions for Xbox 360 and PlayStation®3 system. More details will be unveiled in the near future. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands has not yet been rated by the ESRB.

Montreal – EA Montreal has announced a demo for ARMY OF TWO™: THE 40th DAY will be available as a free download on the PlayStation®Network and Xbox LIVE™ Marketplace on December 17th. The demo will include most of the first level in the game, where the iconic two-man private military team of Salem and Rios find themselves trapped in Shanghai as it falls under attack. Players will experience the focused co-operative action that has made THE 40TH DAY one of next year’s most anticipated games. A demo for the PlayStation® Portable (PSP®) will also be available for free on the PlayStation Network in North America on January 7th and in Europe on January 14th.

ARMY OF TWO: THE 40TH DAY is the sequel to the 2008 multi-platinum co-op shooter. Players must work as a team to survive relentless enemy assaults and escape the city as it collapses around them. THE 40TH DAY delivers an organic and immersive cooperative adventure with one of the most robust weapon customization systems ever found in a videogame. Players can mix and match weapon parts found in the world and execute strategic two-man tactics that create a one-of-a-kind co-op action experience.

“THE 40TH DAY is non-stop action in an explosive Shanghai. The game has been designed with a focus on co-op gameplay and it has been our goal to refine this core experience in all aspects of the game,” said executive producer Reid Schneider. “The demo will give players the opportunity to experience this evolution and the new co-op moves and tactics available to players at any time in the game.”

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Gamers who pre-order* ARMY OF TWO: THE 40th DAY will have exclusive access to the game’s all-new explosive bonus multi-player mode, ‘Extraction,’ at launch. This mode will be unlocked for all other players one month after the game ships. Extraction Mode pits a team of four players against a series of unique enemy waves as they move from point to point in the ruined city. Players must strategize as a unified team to combat the different forces of the 40th Day Initiative while trying to get out alive.

ARMY OF TWO: THE 40th DAY will be in stores worldwide on January 13th for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system, and the PlayStation® Portable (PSP®). The demo available on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles is playable via online co-op or in split screen. Army of Two The 40th Day is rated M by the ESRB.

* Please visit Army of Two: The 40th Day for Pre-Order details.