What Have You Played This Week?

Looking at the list it shows that I haven't played much, but it feels like I played a lot.

Football Manager 10 – PC – I stopped playing as San Marino. It was difficult, but I noticed that San Marino was no longer listed as being based in San Marino and listed as being an Italian club. One of the reasons why I started the club was to become great, make players get San Marino nationality, and make the national team good. So as this didn't work, nor changing it in the editor, I started a new game as FC Bayern.

Enchanted Arms – PS3 – This wasn't the first game in my Swapgame list...actually it was pretty far down so I was surprised when it arrived. I'm only 5 hours in so I can't say much about the story, but so far, the graphics are average and show their age but the cutscenes do look good. The story so far has been fairly typical with a few high points. Combat is simple and the tutorial has explained it clearer, its like Final Fantasy Tactics. What is strange is I can't access the XMB from in the game, but at least i'm able to save anywhere I need to.

IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey – PS3 – I finished the campaign and tried to complete the missions, but I only got around half way through them before I had enough. I also tried other levels of difficulty, but found I preferred the arcade style gameplay and not the more realistic difficulties. Overall the game was fun, the graphics are good and the arcade gameplay is enjoyable. But there are perhaps too many missions and near the end things got boring and repetitive.

ModNation Racers – Demo – PSP – For Me, Motorstorm Arctic Edge is the best racing game on the PSP so I was really interested in seeing how ModNation Racers compared. Whilst graphically its fine, for me the handling wasn't quite right in the demo. I had a couple of tracks to try out, and whilst they were different, I didn't feel like the handling was right on either of them. The Kart racing style was fun with the weapons and I can imagine the mutliplayer would be great. The Demo also had some track editor stuff, enough to make a basic track, but it didn't allow you to save it or share it. Also I found that the majority of the editor icons were to small to see, without trying each one, what they were. I spent time getting used to it and made some tracks and it does work fairly well.

what have you been playing this week? feel free to add your weeks gaming selection in the comments, or you can comment on the game i played this week.

Sony Announce Pinball Heroes Bundle 2 Is Coming To PSP's On 25th May

Sony have announced the second Bundle for Pinball Heroes is set to come out in the USA on 25th May for $9.99. This new bundle features 4 new themed tables including Wipeout HD Fury, Motorstorm, Fat Princess, And ModNation Racers. at present, you will only be able to buy the tables in the bundle and not separately, and You do not need to own any of the tables in Bundle 1 to play Bundle 2.

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From USA Playstation Blog

Sony Online Entertainment Announce New Rides, Accessories, And Vacant Lots In Free Realms

Sony Online Entertainment have announced that new Rides, Accessories, And Vacant Lots are now available in Free Realms. The Rides, which include a Hoverboard that runs at 150% of normal walking speed, is available from the marketplace for 550 Station Cash. New Vacant Lots in Snowhill and Briarwood have been opened for Tree Houses, Obstacle Courses, Mazes, and more. two new clothing items for Wizards, and two new weapons for Warriors have been released as well as Mare and Stallion Rides.

Sony Online Entertainment reveal that Clothing and Weapons for Archers, Tiger Rides, and Treeble Pets are set to come early this summer.

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Press Release

HOVERBOARDS! Why walk when you can ride a Hoverboard? That’s right, the Ride every kid has wanted since 1989, debuts today in the family-friendly virtual world of Free Realms™! Players will look cool cruising around Free Realms at 150 percent of their character’s normal walking speed and showing off with board trick animations. The Precursor Tech Hoverboard is currently available in a brown and blue version and a brown and orange version, each for 550 Station Cash in the Marketplace.

ALSO ARRIVING: Also available in Free Realms today are Fall Away Blocks, Fluffy and Storm Cloud Blocks and small, medium and large Bounce Pads. These new items are perfect accessories for player imagination and building on the recently introduced Vacant Lots in Snowhill and Briarwood. From tree houses and obstacle courses to mazes in the sky, Vacant Lots are empty plots of land ripe for constructing anything players can dream up.

Today’s update also includes the addition of two new clothing items and two new weapons each for the Wizard and Warrior jobs, and Mare and Stallion Rides.

WHEN: Hoverboards, Fall Away Blocks, Fluffy and Storm Cloud Blocks, new weapons and clothes for the Wizard job, new weapons and clothes for the Warrior job, and the different sized Bounce Pads are now available in the Free Realms marketplace. Clothing and weapons for the Archer job, Tiger Rides and Treeble pets are scheduled to be released early this summer.

ABOUT: Sony Online Entertainment
Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) is a recognized worldwide leader in massively multiplayer online games, with hundreds of thousands of subscribers around the globe. SOE creates, develops and provides compelling entertainment for the personal computer, online, game console and wireless markets. Known for its blockbuster franchises and hit titles including EverQuest®, EverQuest® II, Champions of Norrath®, Untold Legends™, PlanetSide®, and Star Wars Galaxies, as well as the recent kids’ phenomenon Free Realms™, SOE continues to redefine the business of online gaming and the creation of active player communities while introducing new genres on various entertainment platforms. Headquartered in San Diego, CA, with additional development studios in Austin, TX, Seattle, WA, Denver, CO, and Tucson, AZ, SOE has an array of cutting-edge games in development across various platforms and genres for audiences of all ages.

SOE, the SOE logo, EverQuest, PlanetSide, and Legends of Norrath are registered trademarks and Untold Legends are trademarks of Sony Online Entertainment LLC in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks and trade names are properties of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

Activision Announce Blur Has Facebook Intergration

Activision have announced that their upcoming racer, Blur, has Facebook integration in the Playstation 3, Xbox 360, and PC versions of the game. Players will be able to Share and Post In-game Photos, racing stats, unlockable items, challenge friends, and more from in the game.

Press Release

SANTA MONICA, Calif., May 21, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX News Network/ -- Activision Publishing, Inc.'s (Nasdaq: ATVI) highly-anticipated racing title Blur(TM) will deliver a new level of social interaction to gamers later this month by allowing fans to challenge their friends and share achievements directly from inside the game through Facebook.

By seamlessly integrating an innovative "Share" button, Blur lets players choose to light up the competition in both single and multi-player modes by sending game challenges to friends and posting in-game photos, racing stats, unlockable items and much more on their Facebook pages.
"Blur's innovative integration with Facebook makes it easy for players to interact with their real friends to share game play, emotions, and the racing experience," said Dan Rose, Vice President of Partnerships and Platform Marketing, Facebook. "Blur is leading the next generation of console games integrating with Facebook to make gaming more social for our more than 400 million users."

"Blur is the first multi-platform videogame that connects the television to Facebook, and for the first time, videogame audiences on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC will be able to link their console gameplay to their network of friends," said Robert Kotick, CEO, Activision Blizzard. "Facebook has become a fantastic platform for videogames and Blur elevates it even further."

Blur is the ultimate powered-up racing experience, where players collect addictive and intense Power-ups throughout each course, including the ability to blast other cars out of the way with huge bursts of energy, boost speed with Nitros, drop Mines and even generate defensive shields to fend off other racers. Blur offers online multiplayer supporting competitive and cooperative gameplay for up to 20 racers, including team racing and objective based events, and also supports 4-player split-screen. For more information on Blur, please visit the official game web site located at www.blurthegame.com, and check-out Blur on Facebook at www.facebook.com/blurthegame.

Blur is scheduled for release nationwide May 25th for the Xbox 360(R) video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION(R)3 computer entertainment system, and the PC, and is rated "E10+" by the ESRB.

About Bizarre Creations
Bizarre Creations is a video game developer based in Liverpool, England. Established in 1994, the company is famed for such high profile franchises as Formula 1, Fur Fighters, Geometry Wars, The Club, and the Project Gotham Racing series. With 200+ staff working out of a custom-built development studio, the company now simultaneously develops several next-gen projects across various platforms. They can be found online at www.bizarrecreations.com.

About Activision Publishing, Inc.
Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products.

Activision maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, Russia, Japan, South Korea, China and the region of Taiwan. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activision.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Publishing's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Activision Publishing generally uses words such as "outlook," "will," "could," "would," "might," "remains," "to be," "plans," "believes," "may," "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "estimate," future," "plan," "positioned," "potential," "project," "remain," "scheduled," "set to," "subject to," "upcoming" and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause Activision Publishing's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, but are not limited to, sales levels of Activision Publishing's titles, shifts in consumer spending trends, the impact of the current macroeconomic environment, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the interactive game market, Activision Publishing's ability to predict consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms, declines in software pricing, product returns and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Activision Publishing's products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware (including peripherals) and related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology, industry standards and consumer preferences, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against Activision Publishing, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, customers, licensees, licensors, vendors and third-party developers, counterparty risks relating to customers, licensees, licensors and manufacturers, domestic and international economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign exchange rates and tax rates, integration of recent acquisitions and the identification of suitable future acquisition opportunities, and the other factors identified in the risk factors section of Activision Blizzard's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Publishing and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

Activision is a registered trademark and Blur is a trademark of Activision Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. "PlayStation", "PLAYSTATION", and "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Facebook(R) is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners.

SOURCE Activision Publishing, Inc.
Copyright (C) 2010 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

EA Announce The Canadian Hockey League Will Now Be Included In NHL 11 And Future NHL Games

EA have annoucned that they have signed a 4 year agreement with the Canadian Hockey League that will see the 3 regional leagues that make up the Canadian Hockey League included in NHL 11 and future NHL games. The 60 teams that will be added come from the Western Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, and Quebec Major Junior Hock League, and feature 51 Canadian Teams and 9 American Teams. As well as the league, this partnership also see's the Mastercard Memorial Cup, names and likenesses of players, logo's, jersey's and more included in NHL games.


Press Release

BRANDON, Manitoba--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Canadian Hockey League (CHL) in association with Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) today announced a four year agreement that will see the league included in EA SPORTS™ NHL® products. The three regional leagues that make up the CHL, including the Western Hockey League (WHL), the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), will all have their teams and players represented in EA SPORTS NHL 11 when it becomes available in retail stores this September.

Representing 51 Canadian and nine American teams with players aged 16-20 the CHL is the top development league in the world and the number one provider of talent to the NHL. 47% of all players selected in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft came from CHL teams. The 2010 NHL Entry Draft could mark the fourth straight year where a CHL player is selected first overall, with Tyler Seguin of the Plymouth Whalers and Taylor Hall of the Windsor Spitfires representing the top two ranked players by NHL Central Scouting.

“The CHL is very excited to partner with an industry leader like EA SPORTS to create a brand new way for CHL fans to associate with their favorite CHL teams and players,” said David Branch, President, CHL. “This opportunity also provides EA SPORTS fans around the world the ability to learn more about the next wave of NHL stars as they compete in the best development league in the world.”

“It’s exciting to have the CHL integrated into our game for the first time,” said Jordan Edelstein, VP of Marketing, EA SPORTS. “Their inclusion will make NHL 11 the most definitive and complete hockey experience available.”

Four of the last five players to be featured on the cover of EA SPORTS NHL Series games are CHL graduates including Patrick Kane, Dion Phaneuf, Eric Staal and Vincent Lecavalier.
The licensing agreement between EA SPORTS and the CHL allows the following to be included in NHL 11:

Ability to play with all 60 teams that make up the CHL
Names and Likenesses of players that are on the rosters of a CHL team
Mastercard Memorial Cup
CHL new RBK Edge Jersey design in NHL 11
WHL, OHL and QMJHL logos and league structures

The CHL integration in NHL 11 will tie to several modes in the game, including Be A Pro, Be A GM, Tournament Mode, Season Mode and Playoff Mode.

The EA SPORTS NHL franchise has won 22 Sports Game of the Year awards over the past three years. This year the NHL 11 franchise begins a new era with gameplay innovations that are set to deliver the most realistic, accurate and exciting representation of NHL hockey to date.

NHL 11 will be available for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system with an MSRP of $59.99. It is developed by EA Canada in Burnaby, B.C. The game has not yet been rated by the ESRB or PEGI.

EA SPORTS is one of the leading sports entertainment brands in the world, with top-selling videogame franchises, award-winning interactive technology, global videogame competitions and breakthrough digital experiences. EA SPORTS delivers personal access to the emotion of sports through industry-leading sports simulation videogames, including Madden NFL football, FIFA Soccer, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball,NCAA® Football and NCAA Basketball, Fight Night boxing and Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® golf, while EA SPORTS Active™ Personal Trainer for the Wii is the most critically acclaimed product available for interactive fitness.

For more information about EA SPORTS, including news, video, blogs, forums, fantasy leagues and game communities, please visit www.easports.com to connect, share and compete.

Fans will have the opportunity to watch Taylor Hall and the Windsor Spitfires compete in the championship final of the 2010 MasterCard Memorial Cup on Sunday May 23, 2010, live at 7:00 pm Eastern on Rogers Sportsnet, RDS, the NHL Network U.S, and on livestream at www.sportsnet.ca. The Spitfires will face the winner between the WHL Champion Calgary Hitmen and the host Brandon Wheat Kings. The QMJHL Champion Moncton Wildcats also competed in the 92nd edition of the prestigious national championship event.

For more information about the 2010 MasterCard Memorial Cup please visit www.mastercardmemorialcup.com.

About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City, California, is a leading global interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the Company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, wireless devices and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA SPORTSTM, EATM, EA MobileTM and POGOTM. In fiscal 2010, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.7 billion and had 27 titles that sold more than one million units. EA's homepage and online game site is www.ea.com. More information about EA's products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at http://info.ea.com.

EA, EA SPORTS, EA Mobile, POGO and EA SPORTS Active are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. “PlayStation” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies and used under license from Microsoft. John Madden, NFL, NBA, FIFA, NHL, NCAA, Tiger Woods and PGA TOUR are trademarks of their respective owners and used with permission. Wii is a trademark of Nintendo. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

About Canadian Hockey League
The Canadian Hockey League is the world’s largest development hockey league with 60 teams in nine Canadian provinces and five American states. The CHL is made up of the Ontario Hockey League, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and Western Hockey League. Last season, more than nine million fans attended CHL games in the regular season, playoffs and at the MasterCard Memorial Cup. The CHL supplies more players to the National Hockey League than any other league. Last season 527 graduates attended Canadian Universities on scholarships from CHL teams. For more information please visit www.chl.ca.

EA Have Released A New Madden NFL 11 Developer Interview And New Screenshots

EA have released new screenshots and a video for Madden NFL 11. the Video is a developer interview which focuses on the sound of the game. they discuss how in Madden 10 they had added things like banners but ultimately they hadn't added appropriate sounds to the game. In Madden NFL 11, they set out to add the appropriate music that's used in stadiums, meaning they have licensed songs. They also discuss how they bought in Gus Johnson to bring excitement for the Play by Play Commentary, which they also had professional writers come and and write. They discuss how they moved away from pointless comments in game that have no bearing on whats happening, and added personality to facts.



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