EA And Game Announce A UK Need For Speed Shift Championship

EA And Game have announced the UK Need For Speed Shift Championships. From August 28th, participants have to post the fastest lap on a track from the upcoming Need For Speed Shift game. Then On September 26th, the top 49, 1 from each of the 49 GAME shops, will compete At Time Trial events at Thorpe park. The Winner of the event gets a Brand New Nissan 350Z GT. there will be other spot prizes for participants at GAME stores.

The Need For Speed: Shift UK Championship tour will visit the following GAME stores:
LONDON and SOUTH EAST
Tunbridge Wells, Royal Victoria Place – 28th August
Maidstone, Week St. – 29th August
Bluewater, Upper Rose Gallery – 30th August
Thurrock, Lakeside – 31th August
Chelmsford, Exchange Way – 4th September
Ilford, Exchange Shopping Centre – 5th September
Romford, Liberty 2 Centre – 6th September
Chatham, Pentagon Centre – 11th September
Bromley, The Glades – 12th September
Beckton, Gallions Reach – 13th September
London Oxford St, Oxford St – 18th September
Brent X, Brent X – 19th September
Walthamstow, Walthamstow – 20th September

SOUTH
Plymouth, New George Street – 28th August
Taunton, Fore Street – 29th August
Cardiff, Queen Street – 30th August
Carmathen, Greyfriars – 31st August
Bedford, Midland Road – 4th September
Luton, Arndale Centre – 5th September
Slough, Queensmere Centre – 6th September
Basingstoke, Festival Place – 18th September
Reading, The Oracle – 19th September
Swindon, Regent Street – 20th September

MIDLANDS
Banbury, Castle Centre – 28th August
Coventry, Arena Park – 29th August
Merry Hill 123, Brierly Hill – 30th August
Merry Hill 217, Merry Hill Shopping Centre – 31st August
Walsall, Park St – 4th September
Wolverhampton, Dudley Street – 5th September
Chesterfield, Vicar St – 6th September
Hanley, The Potteries – 11th September
Telford, Telford Shopping Centre – 12th September
Lichfield, Spires Shopping Centre – 13th September
Nottingham 2 569, Victoria Shopping Centre – 18th September
Nottingham 1 524, Listergate – 19th September
Sheffield Meadowhall, Meadowhall – 20th September

NORTH
Fort Kinnaird, Edinburgh, Kinnard Shopping – 28th August
The Fort, Glasgow, Provan Walk – 29th August
Braehead, Glasgow, Braehead – 30th August
Silverburn, Glasgow, Silverburn – 31st August
Burnley, James Street – 4th September
Stockport, Princes Street – 5th September
Ashton Under Lyme, The Arcade – 6th September
Bradford, Darley Street – 11th September
Trafford 144, Manchester, Trafford Centre – 12th September
Manchester 231 The Fort, The Fort – 13th September
Manchester 502 Arndale, Arndale Centre – 18th September
Middlesborough, Linthorpe Road – 19th September
Metro Centre, Gateshead – 20th September

Press Release

Guildford, UK – August 27, 2009 – Electronic Arts has teamed up with retailer GAME to create the ultimate videogame driving challenge: the Need For Speed™ SHIFT UK Championships. Starting on August 28, gamers will be able to put their racing skills to the test as they compete in GAME stores across the UK to post the fastest lap times on new video game Need for Speed SHIFT, the latest edition of EA Games’ renowned Need for Speed series.

Heats will take place at 49 GAME stores, with the fastest winners going on to face off in a final set of time trials to be held at Thorpe Park, Surrey, on September 26th.
The 49 finalists will then compete to set a quick lap time worthy of being crowned the Need for Speed SHIFT UK Champion, with the winner receiving the keys to a brand new Nissan 350Z GT sports car. There will also be a host of other spot prizes for participants in individual stores.

“With Need for Speed SHIFT, we set out to create a racing game that pushes the genre and delivers something never before seen in a Need for Speed title,” said Stuart Lang, EA UK Marketing Director. “By focusing on the driver’s experience through the first-person view, we are able to capture the high-speed intensity and gripping emotions of racing. This contest will allow thousands of gamers across the UK to experience that feeling and reward them for their skill.”

Martyn Gibbs, Customer and Brand Director at GAME, said: “This is a great chance for GAME customers to come in store and try an exciting new game before it’s released. The gameplay is fast and incredibly realistic. Lots of budding racers are going to be really excited to come in and test their racing skills against other racers around the country. And to top it all, the prize is amazing. It’s another example of GAME going the extra mile for customers.”

Players are thrust into the loud, intense, and athletic experience of racing a car from the driver’s perspective through the combination of perception based G-forces, the hyper reality of the cockpit view, and the all-new brutally disorienting crash dynamic. Need for Speed SHIFT features an accurate, accessible physics-based driving model that allows you to feel every impact, every change of track surface and every last bit of grip as you push yourself to the edge.
Need for Speed SHIFT will be released on PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system, PC and PSP® (PlayStation® Portable) in fall 2009. More information can be found at www.needforspeed.com. Press can download assets at http://info.ea.com

Notes To Editors:
The Need For Speed: Shift UK Championship tour will visit the following GAME stores:
LONDON and SOUTH EAST
Tunbridge Wells, Royal Victoria Place – 28th August
Maidstone, Week St. – 29th August
Bluewater, Upper Rose Gallery – 30th August
Thurrock, Lakeside – 31th August
Chelmsford, Exchange Way – 4th September
Ilford, Exchange Shopping Centre – 5th September
Romford, Liberty 2 Centre – 6th September
Chatham, Pentagon Centre – 11th September
Bromley, The Glades – 12th September
Beckton, Gallions Reach – 13th September
London Oxford St, Oxford St – 18th September
Brent X, Brent X – 19th September
Walthamstow, Walthamstow – 20th September

SOUTH
Plymouth, New George Street – 28th August
Taunton, Fore Street – 29th August
Cardiff, Queen Street – 30th August
Carmathen, Greyfriars – 31st August
Bedford, Midland Road – 4th September
Luton, Arndale Centre – 5th September
Slough, Queensmere Centre – 6th September
Basingstoke, Festival Place – 18th September
Reading, The Oracle – 19th September
Swindon, Regent Street – 20th September

MIDLANDS
Banbury, Castle Centre – 28th August
Coventry, Arena Park – 29th August
Merry Hill 123, Brierly Hill – 30th August
Merry Hill 217, Merry Hill Shopping Centre – 31st August
Walsall, Park St – 4th September
Wolverhampton, Dudley Street – 5th September
Chesterfield, Vicar St – 6th September
Hanley, The Potteries – 11th September
Telford, Telford Shopping Centre – 12th September
Lichfield, Spires Shopping Centre – 13th September
Nottingham 2 569, Victoria Shopping Centre – 18th September
Nottingham 1 524, Listergate – 19th September
Sheffield Meadowhall, Meadowhall – 20th September

NORTH
Fort Kinnaird, Edinburgh, Kinnard Shopping – 28th August
The Fort, Glasgow, Provan Walk – 29th August
Braehead, Glasgow, Braehead – 30th August
Silverburn, Glasgow, Silverburn – 31st August
Burnley, James Street – 4th September
Stockport, Princes Street – 5th September
Ashton Under Lyme, The Arcade – 6th September
Bradford, Darley Street – 11th September
Trafford 144, Manchester, Trafford Centre – 12th September
Manchester 231 The Fort, The Fort – 13th September
Manchester 502 Arndale, Arndale Centre – 18th September
Middlesborough, Linthorpe Road – 19th September
Metro Centre, Gateshead – 20th September

###


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 SPORTS Freestyle TM and POGOTM. In fiscal 2009, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $4.2 billion and had 31 titles that sold more than one million copies. 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 Need for Speed are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.

Zynga Announce That FarmVille Has Become The Largest And Fastest Growing Social Game

http://www.zynga.com/images/games/gameBig_farmville.jpg

Zynga have announced that their Facebook game, FarmVille, has become the largest and fastest selling social game in history. they have announced that there are more than 11 million daily users, with around 1 million new daily users joining a week.

Press Release

SAN FRANCISCO --(Business Wire)-- Aug 27, 2009 Zynga (www.zynga.com), the largest developer of social games, announced today that its wildly popular FarmVille game is the largest and fasting growing social game in history with more than 11 million daily active users. Since its launch on June 19th, 2009, FarmVille has attracted more than 1 million new daily active users a week, on average.

FarmVille is a light, fast and fun game where players create and manage their own virtual farm. Like all Zynga games, FarmVille lets you play, invest and express by plowing, growing and harvesting a variety of crops for money and game points. Players also have options to invest in their farms by purchasing fruit trees and farm animals such as pigs and cows, and compliment their crops with other farm assets such as barns, windmills and greenhouses. Nurturing the farm is the key to success for players and their network of fellow farmer friends--those who tend their crops diligently will see their farms flourish and their bank accounts swell. Players’ friends are a key element of success in FarmVille.

“FarmVille demonstrates the huge market potential of social gaming – in just 9 weeks the game has become a cultural phenomenon,” said Mark Pincus, founder and CEO of Zynga. “No other application has achieved what this game has in such a short amount of time. Who would have guessed that FarmVille is now the biggest online game in North America and quickly becoming the biggest online game in the world."
“FarmVille’s growth is nothing short of spectacular and a clear indicator that we have a winning formula for giving players around the world a virtual farming experience that they truly enjoy,” said Mark Skaggs, VP and GM of Zynga’s Social RTS studio. "By combining the best elements of social gaming, with people’s instinct to nurture, we’ve created an incredibly fun, wholesome and rewarding experience.”

About Zynga
Zynga is the largest social gaming company with 27 million daily users and 93 million monthly users. Zynga’s games are available on Facebook, MySpace, Bebo, Hi5, Friendster, Tagged, Yahoo! and the iPhone, and include FarmVille, Texas Hold’Em Poker, Mafia Wars, YoVille, Vampires, Street Racing, andScramble. The company is funded by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, IVP, Union Square Ventures, Foundry Group, Avalon Ventures, Pilot Group, Reid Hoffman and Peter Thiel. Zynga is headquartered at the Chip Factory in San Francisco. For more information, please visit www.zynga.com.

EA Announce That Kate Mulgrew, Tim Curry, Tim Russ, Claudia Black, And Steve Valentine As Dragon Age Origins Voice Actors

EA has announced many famous Sci Fi actors as voice actors in their upcoming Dragon Age origins game. Names Like Tim Curry, star of The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Broadway’s Spamalot, as well as Kate Mulgrew, well-known for her role as Capt. Kathryn Janeway in “Star Trek: Voyager”, Tim Russ (“Star Trek: Voyager,” “Samantha Who?”), Claudia Black (“Stargate SG-1,” “Pitch Black”) and Steve Valentine (“Estate of Panic,” “Crossing Jordan”) all feature in the game.

Tim Curry plays a villain called Arl Rendon Howe, Whilst Kate Mulgrew plays a powerful witch called Flemeth

Press Release

EDMONTON, Alberta --(Business Wire)-- Aug 27, 2009 Leading video game developer BioWare™, a division of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS), has secured a star-studded voiceover cast for its upcoming blockbuster game, Dragon Age™: Origins. Featuring Tim Curry, star of The Rocky Horror Picture Show andBroadway’s Spamalot, as well as Kate Mulgrew, well-known for her role as Capt. Kathryn Janeway in “Star Trek: Voyager”, Dragon Age: Origins also includes notable cast members Tim Russ (“Star Trek: Voyager,” “Samantha Who?”), Claudia Black (“Stargate SG-1,” “Pitch Black”) and Steve Valentine (“Estate of Panic,” “Crossing Jordan”). Dragon Age: Origins marks BioWare’s return to fantasy, created from the ground up to take players through a dark epic tale filled with violence, lust, and betrayal.

Tim Curry will play the villainous Arl Rendon Howe. Howe is the calculating villain, cultured and charming, with an insatiable lust for power, who never hesitates to harm anyone who gets in his way. Kate Mulgrew will lend her vocal flair to Flemeth, a powerful witch who maintains her immortality through the darkest of means, and who plays a pivotal role in the player’s survival. Both roles provide the actors with the opportunity to bring their considerable talents to bear in their portrayal of these characters.

“Dragon Age: Origins has the largest cast of characters of any game BioWare has ever made,” said Mark Darrah, Executive Producer, BioWare. “By working with an incredibly talented cast of actors we are able to bring reality and depth to the characters, their back stories, motivations, and dreams that our talented writers have created for them.”

In Dragon Age: Origins, players take on the role of a Grey Warden, one of the last of an ancient order of guardians who have served as protectors throughout the centuries. Only they have the power to unite the shattered lands, defeat the Archdemon and drive back the darkspawn that threaten to destroy the world. Players will interact with many interesting characters who may join them in their quest, and they will choose whether these characters become friends, foes, or even a romantic interest. Featuring a deep and compelling story where every choice can have a dramatic impact on the game, Dragon Age: Origins is scheduled to release on November 3, 2009 in North America, for the PC and Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system and later in November for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system.

Dragon Age: Origins is rated M by the ESRB. For more information about Dragon Age: Origins, visit www.dragonage.com. Pre-order the game now atwww.eastore.ea.com.

About BioWare
BioWare develops computer, console, handheld, mobile and online video games focused on rich stories and memorable characters. Since 1995, BioWare has created some of the world's best-selling titles, including the award-winning Baldur's Gate™ and Neverwinter Nights™ series, Star Wars®: Knights of the Old Republic™ and Sonic™ Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood (for the Nintendo DS™). Original BioWare-created intellectual properties include Jade Empire™ and the 2007 Game of the Year, Mass Effect™. With studios in Edmonton (Alberta, Canada), Montreal (Quebec), and Austin (Texas), BioWare is hard at work on the epic fantasy roleplaying game, Dragon Age™: Origins, Mass Effect 2™, the epic sequel to Mass Effect, and the story-driven massively multiplayer game, Star Wars®: The Old Republic™, as well as several unannounced projects. In 2008, BioWare was acquired by the world's leading electronic entertainment publisher, Electronic Arts. For more information on BioWare, visit www.bioware.com.

About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), 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: EATM, EA SPORTSTM, EA MobileTM and POGOTM. In fiscal 2009, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $4.2 billion and had 31 titles that sold more than one million copies. 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.

BioWare, Mass Effect, Dragon Age and Jade Empire are trademarks or registered trademarks owned by EA International (Studio and Publishing) Ltd. in the U.S. and/or other countries. EA, EA SPORTS, EA Mobile and POGO are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. “PLAYSTATION” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Nintendo DS is a trademark of Nintendo. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

New Halo ODST Vid Doc "Firefight"

Microsoft has released a new Vid Doc for their upcoming game, Halo ODST. this one is entitled Firefight and focuses mainly on that mode, whilst also announcing some already known pre-order bonuses.

Sony PR Announce That White PSPgo Will Be On Sale When The PSPgo launches.

I had noticed that many online retailers do not have the White PSPgo available for pre-order. i got in touch with Sony PR to see if the UK is getting the white version of the PSPgo or not. they replied with:

"Both will be available on 1st October. Depends on the retailer."

So until i hear otherwise, the White PSPgo will be out October 1st along side the black model.

Sony Announces The Buzz World Champion

Sony have announced that Armin Diethelm has won the Buzz World Championship. He won a Mini Clubman and also started the La Tomatina festival in Spain.

Press Release

Armin Diethelm gets crowned Buzz!™ World Champion, starts the world’s biggest tomato fight and receives the keys to a brand-new MINI Clubman… all in the same day. How cool is that? It’s all thanks to PlayStation…

Buñol, Valencia, 26th August 2009: Sony Computer Entertainment Europe are thrilled to announce that today, 33-year old Armin Diethelm of Switzerland was

a) awarded the accolade of being Europe’s general knowledge champion!

b) allowed to light the firework that signalled the beginning of La Tomatina: an hour-long, juice-drenched tomato-hurling frenzy in which more than 50,000 people flung 100 tonnes of over-ripe tomatoes at each other in the streets of the Spanish town of Bunyol!

c) handed the keys to his own MINI Clubman!

Why? Because Armin Diethelm is the winner of the Buzz!™ World Championships, a six-month competition organised by PlayStation. It’s an international competition that’s seen thousands of the world’s biggest general knowledge brains battling it out on quiz title Buzz!™: Brain of UK on PlayStation®3 (PS3™) to prove themselves the triviaa king (or queen) of Europe. Entrants quizzed their hearts out online on PlayStation®Network to make it into their national finals – after which the best and brainiest went to Spain to represent their nation in the grand final and compete for the triple prize of a lifetime – the fame, the car – and the instigation of tomato-based chaos.

Buzz!™ is the BAFTA-award winning game that gets friends and family together, delivers a quiz show straight to your living room and gives you an experience to remember time after time. Exclusive to PlayStation, it’s won a Guinness World Record for best-selling videogame quiz and keeps going from strength to strength. The latest title in the series - Buzz!™: Quiz World - will be available this holiday season on PLAYSTATION®3 and PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable). Meanwhile, Buzz!: Brain Of UK is out now on PLAYSTATION®3, PSP™ and PlayStation®2. Find out more at www.eu.playstation.com.

About Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE), based in London, is responsible for the distribution, marketing and sales of PLAYSTATION®3, PlayStation®2, PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable) and PlayStation®Network software and hardware in 99 territories across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania. SCEE also develops, publishes, markets and distributes entertainment software for these formats, and manages the third party licensing programs for the formats in these territories. Since the launch of PLAYSTATION 3 in November 2006, over 23.7 million units have been sold globally and continue to be sold at a record level. Maintaining its position as one of the most successful consumer electronic products in history, PlayStation 2 has sold over 138.8 million systems worldwide. Since its launch at the end of 2004, over 52.9 million PSPs have been sold globally, highlighting the importance of the portable entertainment market. With the huge increase in interest and accessibility of network applications and network gaming, over 26 million accounts have registered to PlayStation Network, the free-to-access interactive environment, and over 540 million items have been downloaded.

More information about PlayStation products can be found at www.playstation.com or visit the Virtual Press Office at www.scee.presscentre.com.

PlayStation, PLAYSTATION and the PlayStation logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. PS3 and PSP are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

About Buzz!
Conceived and developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe’s World Wide Studios, the Buzz! franchise has brought the PlayStation experience to millions of quiz fans and social gamers around the world - shipping more than 6.7 million units across the PAL region and a further 2.3 million units in the Buzz Junior™ range. The first title in the Buzz! franchise, Buzz!: The Music Quiz™, presented by the eponymous Buzz, was launched in Autumn 2005 on PlayStation®2. It introduced the public to a new way of gaming; simple multiplayer buzzer action and a commitment to deliver quiz games for every interest and tailored to every territory. This has seen a series of regular launches of specialist and general knowledge Buzz! quizzes covering topics ranging from Sports to Hollywood celebrities. July 2008 saw Buzz! move onto PLAYSTATION®3 with Buzz!™: Quiz TV, a natural evolution for the franchise that delivers a dedicated quiz TV network with a channel for each quiz topic, a full schedule of downloadable quiz packs and the creation of a global online quiz community that can compete through PlayStation®Network in ‘Sofa Vs. Sofa’ challenges as well as develop its own mini quizzes. 2008 also saw Buzz! move onto PSP for the first time with Buzz!™: Master Quiz – a general knowledge quiz with six new round types specifically designed for PSP including a multiplayer Pass Around Mode that uses one PSP to play against two-six opponents. This was followed in December 2008 by Buzz!™: Brain Bender, in which Buzz brought his trademark humour to the brain-training genre and Buzz!™: Brain of UK, a series of nationally-themed quizzes available on all PlayStation platforms.

Buzz timeline:
Autumn 2005: Buzz!™: The Music Quiz
March 2006: Buzz!™: The Big Quiz
Autumn 2006: Buzz!™: The Sports Quiz
March 2007 Buzz!™: The Mega Quiz
October 2007: Buzz!™: The Hollywood Quiz
March 2008: Buzz!™: Pop Quiz
July 2008: Buzz!™: Quiz TV on PLAYSTATION®3
July 2008: Buzz! ™: Master Quiz on PSP™
December 2008: Buzz!™: Brain Bender on PSP™
March 2009: Buzz!™: Brain of UK on PLAYSTATION®3, PSP™ and PlayStation®2

About Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd
AboutSony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE), based in London, is responsible for the distribution, marketing and sales of PLAYSTATION®3, PlayStation®2, PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable) and PlayStation®Network software and hardware in 99 territories across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania. SCEE also develops, publishes, markets and distributes entertainment software for these formats, and manages the third party licensing programs for the formats in these territories. Since the launch of PLAYSTATION 3 in November 2006, over 16.8 million units have been sold globally and continue to be sold at a record level. Maintaining its position as one of the most successful consumer electronic products in history, PlayStation 2 has sold over 137.7 million systems worldwide. Since its launch at the end of 2004, over 44.5 million PSPs have been sold globally, highlighting the importance of the portable entertainment market. With the huge increase in interest and accessibility of network applications and network gaming, over 13 million people have registered to PlayStation Network, the free-to-access interactive environment, and over 236 million items have been downloaded.

PlayStation, PLAYSTATION, the PlayStation logo and EyeToy are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. PS3 and PSP are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Microsoft Announce A Xbox 360 Elite Price Drop to £199.99

Microsoft has announced that from August 28th, the Xbox 360 Elite model will be going down in price to £199.99. The Arcade model price is being increased to £159.99. They have also announced that the Xbox 360 Pro model is being phased out.

Press Release

LONDON – 27 August 2009 — Xbox 360 today invites you to experience more fun, more entertainment and more ways to connect with friends and family at an even better value. From August 28th 2009 an Xbox 360 Elite console will be priced at only £199.99 estimated retail price (ERP). And with 120GB of storage, there’s plenty of room for your favourite games, movies and more from Xbox LIVE.

Xbox 360 puts all your entertainment in one place so you can play games, watch movies, listen to music and coming this Autumn, watch live TV via Sky Player, Sky’s Online TV service as well as being able to enjoy music with LastFM and be part of the social collective with your Twitter and Facebook, all from your Xbox 360.1 And, as announced earlier this year, the Xbox 360 bought today will work in the future with “Project Natal” the controller-free gaming experience.

“With the Christmas season right around the corner, it’s another opportunity to put the consumer centre stage with entertainment and games that everyone will enjoy,” said Neil Thompson, Senior Regional Director ,Entertainment and Devices Division, Microsoft UK and Ireland. “We have a goal over the next 18 months to deliver value with amazing content and rich interactive experiences in the living room.”
The new pricing structure provides choice, differentiation and value at both entry and premium levels with the new price point for Xbox 360 Elite with a 120GB hard drive at £199.99, and £159.99 for Xbox 360 Arcade.

The Xbox 360 Pro with a 60GB hard drive is to be phased out.

Having an Xbox 360 at the centre of your living room provides more fun for less and entertainment for any occasion through Xbox Live:

Play games for everyone.
Families and friends can get together to belt out tunes on “Lips” or build a famous foursome and relive the music of the Fab Four with “The Beatles: Rock Band.” For those who crave action, players can tear up the tracks of “Forza Motorsport 3”; jump back into the “Halo” universe as an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper in “Halo 3: ODST”; or deploy for combat with this year’s highly anticipated title from Infinity Ward, “Modern Warfare® 2,” the sequel to the best-selling first-person action game in history, “Call of Duty® 4: Modern Warfare.”

Watch live TV and movies.
Coming this Autumn, Sky Player on Xbox will offer access to Sky’s on line TV service including -- Sky Sports – a comprehensive on-demand library of thousands of programmes spanning entertainment, movies, documentaries, kids, culture, news and sports. Along with high definition movies on Zune video megastore in 1080p clarity for many videos and the convenience of on-demand, coming this fall.2

Connect with families & friends.
Xbox LIVE, the industry-leading online gaming and entertainment network, will soon offer its 20 million community members even more blockbuster partners and features, introducing a whole new era of social entertainment in the living room. Starting this Autumn, you can interact with friends on Facebook and share photos and real-time status updates right from your television, or stay connected to Twitter by reading, posting and replying to Tweets.1 And visit the Xbox LIVE Avatar Marketplace for the latest fashions or download full Xbox 360 titles to your hard drive through Games on Demand.
With all of these experiences available for the holidays and the future addition of “Project Natal,” which will work with every Xbox 360 sold today and tomorrow, the Xbox 360 system provides more fun for less.

-Ends-

About Xbox 360
Xbox 360 is a premier video game and entertainment system. It is home to the best and broadest games as well as the largest on-demand library of standard- and high-definition movies and TV shows connected to the television — with music coming this fall. The digital center of the living room, Xbox 360 blends unbeatable content with the largest online social network of 20 million members on Xbox LIVE to create a limitless entertainment experience that can be shared at home or across the globe. With the addition of currently code-named “Project Natal,” Xbox 360 will forever transform social gaming and entertainment with a whole new way to play — no controller required. More information about “Project Natal” and Xbox 360 can be found online at
http://www.xbox.com/projectnatal and http://www.xbox.com ;.

About Xbox LIVE
Xbox LIVE is the largest gaming and entertainment network and delivers more entertainment than any device connected to the television, including movies, TV and games, with music coming this fall. This fall, Xbox LIVE also will be the only entertainment service to provide instant-on 1080p streaming high-definition video from Zune in supported countries. With an active community of more than 20 million people across 26 countries, Xbox LIVE lets you play the best games, enjoy the largest on-demand library and, coming soon, listen to millions of songs — all while connecting to friends anytime. An Xbox LIVE Gold Membership provides you with exclusive benefits and premium access to entertainment from the top studios and services, all in one place. More information about Xbox LIVE can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/live .

About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

1 Xbox LIVE Gold Membership will be required for Twitter and Facebook when they are available, and is required for Netflix. Games, media content and Netflix membership are sold separately; a hard drive is required for storage.
2 Xbox LIVE Gold Membership will be required for Last.fm and LIVE Party.
3 Netflix Movie Party available with supported titles.

Note to editors:
If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass on Microsoft’s corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.mspx.