Thursday, October 22, 2009

Sega Release A Video Which Provides An Indepth Look At The New Features In Football Manager 2010

Sega Have Released A Video Which Provides An Indepth Look At The New Features In Football Manager 2010. this is a 15 minute long interview with the studio director of SI Games, Miles Jackson, and him talking through some of the changes, the reason why they made them, and what they hope they have achieved by doing so.
A Break down of what Miles Jackson talks about include:

Football Manager 2009 spent 22 weeks at Number 1 in the UK charts. however SI Games were not happy with the boxed release of the game. they released several patches and got it to an acceptable level, but aim to have a boxed release of 2010 which they can be proud of.

Football Manager 2010's UI has been changed. the tree navigation system that was on the left side is gone, the focus has been moved to the top. the menus have been redesigned with the aim of making things easier to find, and to help show the more indepth options. the UI is still skinable and there will be 3 available, a light, a dark, and a Football Manager 2009 style.

They announced that the game can be installed Via Steam, even if you didn't buy the game from steam.

The games 3D match engine has been improved, new features have been added whilst existing stuff has been enhanced. crowds and stadiums have been worked on. crowds in stadiums now accurately match the attendance, you can see when it's a full house of half full for example. Stadiums will be accurate to real life versions, and will visually change when they're upgraded. shadows and weather effects have been added, with weather effects visually effecting the pitch and play.

Tactics have been heavily worked on. when watching the game in the 3D engine, you will be able to give commands to your team, substitutes, and make quick changes.
A Match Analysis tool is now in the game, it will analysis your team and the opposition from the last match and provide detailed analysis.
Background staff will provide advice in a way which introduces the more indepth features, which previously maynot have been used much, and give suggestions for how you can improve things.

News has been overhauled. the game will start with a minimal news system, but this is highly customisable with you being able to add news from other regions to your news feed. this can be edited later.

One last feature talked about is the games Editor. new this year is the Competition Editor. this has taken them a couple of years to make. this enables you to add leagues to countries or new divisions to existing leagues.
The changes you make can be shared with other people. some new leagues and divisions will be available for download when the game is released.




Cryptic Have Announced That The Star Trek Online Closed Beta Has Started

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/58/Startrekonline.png

Cryptic have announced that Star Trek Online is now in a closed Beta.
they will be sending out E:mails periodically letting people know if they have been accepted.
You can still sign up to the closed Beta. all you need to do is create a account with the site, and fill in the application.

Link: "Closed Beta, Here We Come!"


Bioware Announce That Dragon Age Journeys, A Free To Play, Browser Game Is Now Available

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/10/dragon.age.journeys.101509-580px.jpg

Bioware and EA have announced that Dragon Age Journeys is now available. the game is a free to play browser game that can be found at www.dragonagejourneys.com.
This is the first chapter of Dragon Age Journeys and has the Hero exploring the underground Dwarven Kingdom Of Orzammar.

Press Release

Guildford, UK – October 22, 2009 – Leading video game developer BioWare™, a division of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS), today announced that the first chapter of Dragon Age™ Journeys, a free* to play browser based game set in the Dragon Age world, is now available. Dragon Age Journeys puts players in the role of a hero exploring the underground dwarven kingdom of Orzammar. Players will uncover a dastardly plot that threatens to unleash a great evil that won’t stop until it destroys all living things. Based on BioWare’s upcoming dark fantasy epic Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age Journeys, sets a new standard of quality for browser-based games with addictive combat mechanics and fluid gameplay. Players of Dragon Age Journeys will have the chance to earn exclusive in game content forDragon Age: Origins on the day of its release.

The game is produced by a new browser-based production team at EA and an all-star team of independent development talent, with the goal of creating premium quality browser games. Dragon Age Journeysrepresents EA’s commitment to supporting talented independent developers.

“Dragon Age Journeys continues our mission of working with talented game developers and artists to create high quality games, blowing away expectations of what is possible in the browser,” said Mark Spenner, VP of Development, EA 2D. “We are honored to be working with BioWare to introduce the Dragon Age franchise to a wide audience of gamers.”

“Dragon Age Journeys sets the stage for Dragon Age: Origins,” said Mark Darrah, Executive Producer, Dragon Age: Origins. “The team has shown the Dragon Age Franchise in a bold new light and the release of this game allows a broad audience of players to discover our dark fantasy universe for the first time.”

Dragon Age Journeys will feature intense tactical combat, a compelling story and deep customization. Players can choose from one of six different origin stories, each offering a unique background that shapes the lens of how the player perceives the world and how the world will perceive them. The game will deliver an amazing experience to fans looking for an introduction to BioWare’s dark fantasy epic,Dragon Age: Origins.

Dragon Age Journeys is available free to players atwww.dragonagejourneys.com and more information is available atwww.getdragonage.com

Dragon Age: Origins will be released on November 6th in the UK on the Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system and PC. The PlayStation®3 version will follow later in November. Dragon Age: Origins is rated 18 by PEGI.

*Internet connection required.

###

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 Electronic Arts, a leading global interactive entertainment publisher. 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 Mobile 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.

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. Mirror’s Edge is a trademark or registered trademark of EA Digital Illusions CE AB. 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.


Codemasters Have Revealed The Release Date For Dirt 2 On PC

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/7a/Dirt_2_box_art.jpg

Codemasters have revealed that Dirt 2 is coming out in the USA on 1st December. the UK release date is 4th December, and the release date for EPAC Territories is December 3rd.
Dirt 2 will also be a DirectX 11 game and feature Games For Windows Live.

Press Release

Codemasters® today revealed the DirectX 11-powered Games for Windows Live edition of Colin McRae : DiRT 2 at Microsoft Corp.’s New York Windows 7 Launch Event. Codemasters also announced that the Games for Windows Live version of the highly-anticipated racer will be shipping on December 1st in North America and releasing on December 3rd through EPAC territories with a December 4th street date in the UK.

Following the critical and commercial success of the console editions of Colin McRae: DiRT 2, Codemasters Studios has integrated the wealth of new performance enhancing features available in DirectX 11 in the Games for Windows Live edition. Colin McRae: DiRT 2 will deliver the definitive off-road experience and its launch will herald a new generation of games powered by the superior DirectX 11 technologies. Gamers can preview Colin McRae: DiRT 2 as powered by DirectX 11 in gameplay and tech videos now showing at www.dirt2game.com.

“The opportunity to enter into a strategic relationship with Microsoft to fuse key DirectX 11 technologies with Codemasters’ EGO™ Engine and set the new standard in race gaming on home computers was irresistible,” said Bryan Marshall, chief technical officer, Codemasters. “By taking advantage of the DirectX 11 feature set included in Windows 7, including hardware tessellation, multi-threading and Shader Model 5.0, we will deliver the most immersive and realistic off-road racing experience yet and set the technical benchmark in the genre.”

Codemasters will take advantage of DirectX 11 features to add to the realism of the racing environment. Hardware tessellation will further improve the appearance of water and other surfaces as well as crowd animations. The performance of Shader Model 5.0 will aid in creating an even richer 3D experience, enhancing key image quality parameters such as depth of field, ambient occlusion and shadows. These DirectX 11 features, and many others, combine to deliver the most exciting and visceral racing experience yet.

“By working together with Codemasters to deliver early access to DirectX11 technologies for the Games for Windows Live edition of Colin McRae: DiRT 2, we are able today to demonstrate the new levels of immersive gameplay and visual performance gamers can experience in Windows 7,” said Mike Ybarra, general manager of Windows Product Management at Microsoft. “Through our strategic relationship and the delivery of the DirectX 11 feature set, we are confident Codemasters will lead the way in the development of the next generation of PC games.”

Colin McRae: DiRT 2 Games for Windows Live edition supporting DirectX 11 technology is set to ship on December 1st in North America and releasing on December 3rd through EPAC territories with a December 4th street date in the UK. Editions for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Wii™, Nintendo DS™ and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system are in stores now. For the latest videos and information, accelerate over to www.dirt2game.com.

Ignition Entertainment Announce That Arc Rise Fantasia Is Coming Out Summer 2010 On The Nintendo Wii

Ignition Entertainment have announced that Arc Rise Fantasia is coming out summer 2010 on the Nintendo Wii. this exclusive Nintendo Wii title won the IGN "Best Wii RPG" award, from IGN, at this years E3.
In the game you play as L'Arc, A Mercenary who's defending Meridian from an impending invasion. once a team is formed, you set out across the overworld, a overworld filled with enemies and dungeons.

Press Release

GLENDALE, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- Oct 22, 2009 Ignition Entertainment Ltd., a UTV Enterprise, a worldwide publisher and developer of videogames and Marvelous Entertainment announced that Arc Rise Fantasia is releasing in Summer 2010 exclusively for the Nintendo Wii™.

Arc Rise Fantasia, winner of the “Best Wii RPG” from IGN at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2009, is a new turn-based RPG with a beautiful, anime-inspired Japanese art style. Players will jump into the shoes of L’Arc, a calm and composed mercenary, who sets out to defend the Meridian Empire from an impending invasion of ferocious creatures. After assembling a party of friends, each with a unique set of abilities, players will embark on a perilous journey across an overworld filled with deadly enemies and treacherous dungeons. While strategically queuing up attacks, players can summon mystical creatures and work with their party members to execute massive attacks.

“We are absolutely thrilled to bring Arc Rise Fantasia to a western audience,” said Shane Bettenhausen, New Business Development Director of Ignition Entertainment. “It’s an ambitious Japanese role-playing game with deep gameplay, top-notch production values, and an unforgettable story line--Wii owners have been pining for a massive fantasy epic and their patience will definitely be rewarded.”

“In Arc Rise Fantasia we’ve implemented a fun and quick paced battle system to give gamers an enjoyable RPG experience,” said Hiroyuki Kanemaru of Image Epoch. “Ignition Entertainment has a great track record with bringing established Japanese experiences to new western audiences and we’re delighted to be able to team up with them to publish Arc Rise Fantasia.”

Additional information about the game can be found at the game’s official website: www.arcrisefantasia.com, on Twitter: www.twitter.com/arcrisefantasia and on Facebook: www.facebook.com/arcrisefantasia.

ABOUT IGNITION ENTERTAINMENT LTD:
Ignition Entertainment Limited is a UTV Media Communication company. Ignition was created by a core team of gaming industry veterans with the purpose of building upon their successful track record to develop and publish within the international games industry. You can find more information about Ignition Entertainment Ltd. at www.ignitionusa.com, www.twitter.com/ignitionusa and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ignition-Entertainment/84691257885.

ABOUT UTV SOFTWARE COMMUNICATIONS LTD:
UTV Software Communications Ltd. is India’s foremost Media & Entertainment Company with leadership position in four Verticals that includes Motion Pictures, Broadcasting, TV Content and Interactive (i.e. Animation and Gaming). Listed on the Mumbai Stock Exchange with the Motion Pictures business listed on the AIM, London Stock Exchange. Walt Disney Inc. holds a strategic stake in UTV. It has subsidiaries with offices across India, the UK and USA. More information on the group is available at www.utvnet.com

ABOUT MARVELOUS ENTERTAINMENT INC.
Marvelous Entertainment is a leading Japanese creator of interactive entertainment with such esteemed franchises as Harvest Moon, Rune Factory, Luminous Arc and No More Heroes under their corporate umbrella. More information on Marvelous Entertainment can be found at http://www.mmvus.com.


ABOUT IMAGEEPOCH INC.
Imageepoch Inc. is a videogame developer based in Tokyo, Japan. The company, which currently employs over 100 individuals, was founded in December 2005 by Ryoei Mikage. Imageepoch's first release was a turn-based strategy RPG on Nintendo DS, "Luminous Arc." Since then, they have released 5 titles such as "World Destruction" and "Seventh Dragon." The company consists of young members including the president, Mr. Mikage himself. It has been a developing team specialized in RPGs with very unique titles such as "Arc Rise Fantasia." The company's motto is to be epoch-making as its name says.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Futuremark Reveal Shattered Horizon PC Hardware Recommendations


Futuremark have revealed the Shattered Horizon PC hardware recommendations.

Minimum Requirements:
Shattered Horizon requires DirectX 10 on Windows Vista or Windows 7. There is no support for Windows XP or DirectX 9.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 / AMD Athlon64 X2 5600+
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce 8800GT / ATI Radeon HD 3870
GPU memory: 256MB
Hard disk space: 1.5 GB
RAM: 2GB
Sound: Windows Vista compatible sound card

Recommended Requirements:
Shattered Horizon requires DirectX 10 on Windows Vista or Windows 7. There is no support for Windows XP or DirectX 9.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 / AMD Phenom II X4 940
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260 / ATI Radeon HD 4870
GPU memory: 512MB
Hard disk space: 1.5GB
RAM: 2GB
Sound: Windows Vista compatible sound card

Screenshots and trailer can be found here

Press Release

HELSINKI --(Business Wire)-- Oct 22, 2009 Futuremark® Games Studio today confirmed that Shattered Horizon™, their upcoming multiplayer first-person shooter for the PC, will be fully compatible with Windows 7. The studio also revealed the minimum and recommended hardware requirements for their DirectX®10 only game. www.shatteredhorizon.com

Shattered Horizon is a multiplayer first person shooter that immerses you in the cold reality of combat in space. Teams of players fight in zero gravity to control hollowed-out asteroids, huge fragments of Moon rock and the ruined remains of the International Space Station.

Speaking about the requirement for DirectX 10 Jukka Mäkinen, Head of Futuremark Games Studio, explained, “PCs are rapidly leaving the consoles behind when it comes to graphical capabilities. Because Shattered Horizon is being developed exclusively for the PC we haven’t had to make any compromises. Everything, from graphics and controls, through to the interface and dedicated server support, has been designed for PC gamers who love to play FPS games.”

Jaakko Haapasalo, producer at Futuremark Games Studio added, “With Windows 7 launching today, and some very affordable DX10 and DX11 cards entering the market, there are plenty of reasons for PC gamers to make the jump from XP. When they do, they’ll find that Shattered Horizon’s stunning space setting is a great way to show off their PC.”

Minimum Requirements:
Shattered Horizon requires DirectX 10 on Windows Vista or Windows 7. There is no support for Windows XP or DirectX 9.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 / AMD Athlon64 X2 5600+
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce 8800GT / ATI Radeon HD 3870
GPU memory: 256MB
Hard disk space: 1.5 GB
RAM: 2GB
Sound: Windows Vista compatible sound card

Recommended Requirements:
Shattered Horizon requires DirectX 10 on Windows Vista or Windows 7. There is no support for Windows XP or DirectX 9.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 / AMD Phenom II X4 940
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260 / ATI Radeon HD 4870
GPU memory: 512MB
Hard disk space: 1.5GB
RAM: 2GB
Sound: Windows Vista compatible sound card

Coming to Earth 2009
Shattered Horizon is the first self-published title from Futuremark Games Studio and will be available via digital download this holiday. Visit the official website for more game details. www.shatteredhorizon.com

Community
Facebook: http://bit.ly/FGSonFB
Twitter: http://twitter.com/FuturemarkGames
Steam: http://steamcommunity.com/games/shatteredhorizon
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/futuremarkTV

About Futuremark® Games Studio
Futuremark® Games Studio, wholly owned by Futuremark® Corporation, was formed in January 2008 to create original games with new and entertaining gameplay. Shattered Horizon™ is the studio’s first self-published game. Shattered Horizon is rated TEEN by the ESRB. The game carries the NVIDIA®: The Way It's Meant To Be Played™ seal. Futuremark is based in Helsinki, Finland and maintains a sales office in Saratoga, California. For more information, please visithttp://www.futuremark.com

© 2009 Futuremark® Corporation. Shattered Horizon™ and Futuremark® Games Studio trademarks and logos, Futuremark character names and distinctive likenesses, are the exclusive property of Futuremark Corporation. Microsoft, DirectX, Windows, Windows Vista and Windows 7 are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. The names of other companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

UK PSN Update 22/10/09

Special Offers
Everyday Shooter – PS3 [£3.99]
SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo – PSP [£9.99]
Future Cop: L.A.P.D. - PS1 Classic [£2.39]
Syndicate Wars – PS1 Classic [£2.39]]
Hi-Octane – PS1 Classic [£2.39]
Championship Bass – PS1 Classic [£2.39]
Street Skater – PS1 Classic [£2.39]
Street Skater 2 – PS1 Classic [£2.39]
The Little Mermaid II – PS1 Classic [£2.39]

PS3 Games
EyePet – Wild West Styling Pack [£2.39]
EyePet – Lucky Dip Styling Pack 1 [Free]
Midnight Club Los Angeles – Police Car Pack [Free]
Cross Edge – Power Up Pack+ [Free]

Demo's
None

Guitar Hero 5
Classic Rock Track Pack 2 [£4.39]
“Freeze-Frame” by J. Gelis Band [£1.59]
“Lay It On The Line” by Triumph [£1.59]
“Show Me The Way” by Peter Frampton [£1.59]

Rock Band
Queen Pack 01 [£9.19]
“Another One Bites The Dust” by Queen [£0.99]
“Crazy Little Thing Called Love“ by Queen [£0.99]
“Fat Bottomed Girls” by Queen [£0.99]
“I Want It All” by Queen [£0.99]
“I Want To Break Free” by Queen [£0.99]
“Killer Queen” by Queen [£0.99]
“One Vision” by Queen [£0.99]
“Somebody To Love” by Queen [£0.99]
“Tie Your Mother Down” by Queen [£0.99]
“Under Pressure” by Queen [£0.99]

Videos
DC Universe – New York Comic Convention Panel Screenshots Trailer
Battlefield Bad Company 2 – Gamescom Squad Story Trailer
Dragon Age Origins – City Elf Origin
Dragon Age Origins – Dalish Elf Origin
Dragon Age Origins - Dwarf Commoner Origin
Dragon Age Origins - Dwarf Noble Origin
Dragon Age Origins – Human Noble Origin
Dragon Age Origins – Mage Origin
Dragon Age Origins – Sacred Ashes Trailer
Dantes Inferno - Limbo

Wallpaper
FIFA 10
LocoRoco Midnight Carnival

Theme
None

Dynamic Theme
EyePet [£1.59]
Ratchet And Clank A Crack In Time [£1.59]

PS1 Classic
None

PSP
WWE Smackdown Vs. Raw 2010 [£31.99]
Marvel Super Hero Squad [£29.99]
Astro Boy: The Videogame [£23.99]
Disney G-Force [£29.99]

Minis
Red Bull X-Fighters [£3.99]

Rock Band
Rock Band Unplugged - “All I Want” by The Offspring [£0.99]
Rock Band Unplugged - “The Rock Show” by Blink 182 [£0.99]

Demo
Star Wars Battlefont: Elite Squadron

Theme
NONE