SYDNEY — June 22nd 2012 — Ubisoft® has announced that James Noir’s Hollywood Crimes™ is available for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. Players will go deep in an exciting and immersive adventure and be confronted by more than 140 intriguing puzzles and riddles in order to solve a series of murders.
In James Noir’s Hollywood Crimes™, the player embodies the participant of a TV game show gathering the best puzzle-solvers of the United States. But a diabolical criminal mastermind manipulates and defies players at every turn, and former winners are killed one after the other. To get out of this situation and discover the identity of the murderer, the player has to solve the puzzles left by the killer on every crime scene.
To get more information about James Noir’s Hollywood Crimes™ and to try the game, please visit: www.jamesnoir.com
Preorder The Sims™ 3 Supernatural Limited Edition and receive exclusive content from the world of Plants vs Zombies, including new outfits and a working Peashooter!
Peashooter – Defend your house from zombified Sims and other unsavoury characters by shooting peas at unwanted guests!
Ripped Zombie Suit Outfit – Dress your Sim in the classic zombie attire from PvZ.
Newspaper Zombie Suit Outfit – There’s nothing quite as terrifying as loud boxers and sock garters.
Cone and Bucket hats – Make a bold fashion statement and deck your Sim out in this hilarious headgear.
Exclusive Origin Décor pack:
Order The Sims™ 3 Supernatural at Origin.com and receive these exclusive Plants vs Zombies décor items to add some creepy flare to your Sims’ homes!
Plantern lamp – This unique item looks just like the planterns that keep the fog at bay in the Plants vs Zombies game.
Wall-nut sculpture – Nothing says “get off my lawn” like an angry-eyed wall-nut.
Zombie gnome sculpture – The iconic undead garden gnome from PvZ can grace your Sim’s house or garden.
Brains flag sculpture – Deck out your garden, rooftop, or anywhere with this flag used to lead the charge in Plants vs Zombies.
Exclusive Registration incentive:
Register your The Sims™ 3 Supernatural Expansion Pack online to get these items and add a little Plants vs Zombies flavour to your game!
PvZ Poster – Let your Sims show their love of the popular game with this cool wall art.
PvZ T-shirt – Dress your Sim and show off their kooky spirit.
Fans of The Sims™ FreePlay can keep the party going and improve their social skills with a new update to The Sims™ FreePlay.
New features of The Sims™ FreePlay:
Party Boat and Nightclub: get inspired by buying drinks for your Sims, dance the night away at a local club or visit the new Party Boat for daily rewards. Join friends who are already out partying by checking into the Party Boat via Facebook. Invite new friends by sharing an update on your Facebook wall or sending a request to friends.
New careers: Sims can now become bartenders or DJs at new local hotspots.
Social interactions and competitions: share events via Facebook or compare your Sim’s town value, level and Sim count to friends on the new leaderboards.
Social rewards: the more neighbours a player has the more benefits they will receive with bonus ranging from additional daily rewards to unlocking special items like a swing set, sandpit or even a foosball table.
Facebook notification: socialise your mobile Simsexperience by enabling push notifications to stay up to date with all your friends’ Sims activity.
The families in town can enjoy new items for toddlers including doll houses, tea sets and kiddie pools. For Sims that prefer their animal friends, The Sims™ FreePlay is introducing fish tanks and six cat breeds including the Maine Coon, Bengal and Toyger as well as accessories for their furry companions like food bowls, scratching posts and beds.
All Sims become inspired in game when players update, there’s never been a better time to be social with The Sims™ FreePlay.
Wait is over for massive expansion of critically acclaimed strategy game
Sydney, Australia – June 22, 2012– 2K Games and Firaxis Games announced today that Sid Meier’s Civilization® V: Gods & Kings, the expansion pack for the award-winning CivilizationV, is now available for Windows-based PC and Mac. Sid Meier’s Civilization V: Gods & Kings enhances the Civilization V experience with new gameplay content and provides even more ways for players to achieve world domination. Spanning the breadth of human civilization, the Gods & Kings expansion pack takes players from founding the first Pantheon of the Gods and spreading religion across the world, to deploying spies in enemy cities to steal information and technology, and much more.
“Sid Meier’s Civilization V: Gods & Kings continues the tradition of content-rich expansion packs for the Civilization series,” said Sarah Anderson, senior vice president of marketing for 2K. “It is the ultimate Civilization V addition, giving fans and newcomers another reason to keep playing ‘one more turn.’”
Developed by Firaxis Games, Sid Meier’s Civilization V: Gods & Kings takes players through time as they engage in new quests and global competitions, interact with new types of city-states, and master exciting new systems for land and naval combat. Nine new civilizations, each ruled by a new leader; nine new wonders; three original scenarios; and dozens of new units, buildings, technologies and resources have also been added, offering even more ways for players to expand their empire on their quest to rule the world.
“We can’t wait for fans to get started on their quest to achieve world domination in all-new ways with Civilization V: Gods & Kings,” said Sid Meier, director of creative development for Firaxis Games. “Gods & Kings is one of the best expansions we’ve ever created, delivering countless hours of new gameplay experiences for Civ players around the world.”
Key features include:
– Expanded Epic Game: The core game experience has been greatly expanded with the addition of new technologies, 27 new units, 13 new buildings and nine new Wonders;
– New Civilizations and Leaders: Gods & Kings features nine new civilizations, each with unique traits, units, buildings and leaders;
– New Game Scenarios: Three new scenarios let gamers experience the medieval period, the fall of Rome, and embark on a new adventure in Empires of the Smoky Skies, a Victorian steampunk scenario;
– The Return of Religion: A first for Civilization V, players seek out Faith, choosing a Pantheon of the Gods and creating Great Prophets to found and spread their customized religion across the world;
– World Domination: The fight for world domination is more dynamic than ever. Gods & Kings features a reworked combat system and AI that places more emphasis on a balanced army composition. Additionally, the navy is now split into two different ship types, melee and ranged, making coastal cities vulnerable to a surprise naval attack;
– Enhanced Diplomacy and Espionage: Establish embassies at foreign courts for closer ties or clandestine operations. As the religions of the world start settling in and the world moves into the Renaissance, spies can be unlocked to establish surveillance of foreign cities, steal advanced technologies from your strongest competitors, or garner influence with City-States through election rigging, or even a coup;
– City-States: Two new city-state types have been added, Mercantile and Religious, adding new gameplay to a greatly expanded quest system to further the narrative of the game and making diplomatic victories more challenging.
Sid Meier’s Civilization V: Gods & Kings is rated PG by the Australian Classification Board and is available now in stores for PC and for download on PC and Mac. For the latest news, information, downloads and a detailed look at each of the civilizations in Gods & Kings, please visit www.civilization.com.
Medal of Honor Warfighter – Single Player E3 2012 Demo Video
Medal of Honor Warfighter puts players in the boots of today’s most elite U.S. warriors to experience missions that have a dotted line to real world terrorist incursions. This is Tier 1 on a global scale, featuring real world hotspots in the single-player campaign and introducing international Tier 1 Operators in multiplayer. In case you missed it, you can watch and post the Medal of Honor Warfighter single player footage first revealed at E3 2012. Here, Tier 1 Operators land in Somalia’s Pirate Town in an effort to bring order to the country’s southern region.
With Medal of Honor Warfighter, gamers can represent their nation’s Elite Special Forces on the multiplayer battlefield. Medal of Honor Warfighter introduces a new style of play where the world’s best-of-the-best warriors go head-to-head in combat. This summer, players will get a first-look at six of the 12 different Tier 1 units in the game including the Polish GROM, Canadian JTF2, Australian SASR, British SAS, U.S. Navy Seal and U.S. OGA – all battling it out in Somalia.
22nd June 2012 / Sydney, Australia – Cartoon Network’s The Amazing World of Gumball, the smash-hit debut series from Turner Broadcasting’s London-based European development studio, has claimed a prestigious ASTRA Award for ‘Most Outstanding Children’s Program or Event’.
The 10th Annual ASTRA Awards ceremony took place on Thursday 21st June 2012 at the Sydney Theatre Company and The Amazing World of Gumball beat off stiff competition, trumping Camp Orange: Wrong Town and Move It Mobb Style®.
This is the ninth award win for the series since launching in the US in May 2012. In June 2011, The Amazing World of Gumball scooped a feted Cristal Award for ‘Best Television Production’ at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. The show went on to win two awards at the British Academy Children’s Awards (Kids’ BAFTA), for ‘Best Animation’ and ‘Best Writer’ in November 2011. In February 2012, the series won three Kidscreen Awards for ‘Best Children’s Program – Viewers Choice’, ‘Best Animation – Programming’ and ‘Best Animated Series – Kids’. Later the same month at the 39th Annual Annie Awards, the series won ‘Best Animated Television Production Children’. Earlier this month, the series was also recognised for ‘Excellence in Programming Kids 2-11 – Comedy’ at the first annual Cynopsis Kids !magination Awards held in new York.
The Amazing World of Gumball’s award wins at these International awards ceremonies confirm that the series is gaining serious industry recognition and are a testament to the creative talent and production innovation behind the groundbreaking 2D, 3D and live action series.
Turner Broadcasting’s London-based studio is headed up by Daniel Lennard, Vice President of Original Series & Development, who is responsible for the development of in-house and wholly-owned original series on Cartoon Network. Daniel is executive producer of The Amazing World of Gumball and has nurtured the series and its show creator Ben Bocquelet since its inception. A second series of The Amazing World of Gumball is currently in production.
The Amazing World of Gumball follows the misadventures of twelve-year-old Gumball, an average boy who happens to be a blue cat with a giant head. He faces the ups and downs of the average 12-year-old, like being chased by a T-Rex or dressing like a cheerleader to impress the girl he admires. Other than that, Gumball lives a regular suburban life in the town of Elmore with his Dad, who is a giant pink rabbit, and his Mom, who works in a rainbow factory. He’s got a 4-year-old genius sister and a pet goldfish, which happens to have legs.
Robi Stanton, General Manager and Vice President, Turner International Australia says: “We are so proud of Cartoon Network’s The Amazing World of Gumball. The series is truly amazing and an ASTRA Award win means the world to us! Cartoon Network ‘tooners have really embraced our newest hero, Gumball. Behind the scenes, it’s all down to the production team Cartoon Network Europe and our partners, Dandelion Productions, Boulder Media, and Studio Soi, who all work tirelessly to make The Amazing World of Gumball the outstanding show it is.”
The Amazing World of Gumball is available exclusively on FOXTEL, every Saturday @ 9am. The second season will premiere in Summer 2012.
Larger Version of Nintendo 3DS System Launches for $249.95* srp on August 23rd in Australia and New Zealand
June 22nd, 2012 – A big year for the Nintendo 3DS™ system is about to get even bigger. In a Nintendo Direct video on June 22nd, Nintendo revealed plans to launch Nintendo 3DS™ XL, a new version of Nintendo 3DS with 90 percent larger screens. When it becomes available in Australia and New Zealand on August 23rd at the suggested retail price of $249.95*, the new system will create even more immersive entertainment experiences for users, delivering a wealth of games and video content that can be enjoyed on the go.
Nintendo 3DS XL features an updated form factor and will be available in Silver + Black, Red + Black, and Blue + Black. The new system’s battery life outperforms that of the original Nintendo 3DS, and it comes bundled with a 4GB SD card, which owners can use to store content such as downloadable games and videos from the Nintendo eShop. With upcoming titles such as New Super Mario Bros.™ 2 (launching 18th August) being available as digital downloads as well as boxed retail games, you will be glad of the extra space.
Nintendo 3DS XL launches on 23rd August alongside New Art Academy™, a new entry in the Art Academy series. The larger screens of Nintendo 3DS XL mean users will have even more room to unleash their creativity while enjoying art lessons that teach real-world drawing and painting techniques.
To view the latest Nintendo Direct video which contains more news on upcoming Nintendo products, visit www.nintendo.co.uk/nintendodirect or www.youtube.com/NintendoUK
Nintendo Direct contains European details, please check the latest Australian and New Zealand news from Nintendo Direct at www.nintendo.com.au
21 June, 2012 — Wargaming, the award-winning videogame developer and publisher, today announced that World of Tanks will be featured at the World Cyber Games Grand Finals, taking place at Kunshan International Exposition & Convention Center in Kunshan, China, from November 29th to December 2nd.
Already a favorite amongst professional gamers around the globe, World of Tanks makes its World Cyber Games debut after numerous and successful tournaments and championships ensured by its highly dynamic yet strategically diverse gameplay.
“Several months ago we introduced a special blitz version of tank battles with only seven players per team, and it has proven to be a great fit for tournament formats,” said World of Tanks eSport Lead Alexey Kuznetsov. “We are all excited about being included in the most popular cybersport event of the year, and I’m sure World of Tanks will make a great debut there.”
World of Tanks is the first and only team-based, massively multiplayer online action game dedicated to armored warfare. Throw yourself into the epic tank battles of World War II with other steel cowboys all over the world. Your arsenal includes more than 150 armored vehicles from America, Germany, the Soviet Union, and France, carefully detailed with historical accuracy.
A flexible system of authentic vehicle upgrades and development allows you to try any of the vehicles and weapons in the game. Whether you prefer to exhaust your foes with fast and maneuverable light tanks, make deep breaches in enemy lines with all-purpose medium tanks, use the force of giant tanks to eliminate opposing armored forces, or become a heavy sniper with long-range howitzers, each unit type has its own advantages and can be extremely effective when operated by a true tank ace.
But being a great tank commander alone isn’t enough to win! In World of Tanks, it’s all about teamwork. Victory is achieved by combining your combat skills with those of the other members of your team, each playing their own role on the battlefield. Just add your favorite strategy to build your own steel empire and manifest the indisputable authority of the tank power!
New Game Modes, Armored Vehicles and Battle Arenas Enter the Fight
20th June, 2012 — Wargaming, the award-winning global videogame developer and publisher, announced today the release of Update 7.4 for its distinguished free-to-play MMO action game World of Tanks that goes live on 20th June for North America and on June 21st for Europe. The update introduces some sweeping changes to the game, including two news game modes, an impressive collection of new French armored vehicles, new maps and two premium machines for the Soviet and German tech trees.
Encounter Battle and Assault, the two newly introduced game modes, will provide players with innovative new gameplay experiences that emphasize strategic team gameplay. In Encounter Battle, two opposing teams must fight over a single base. In Assault, one team must defend a single base against an opposing team, who must capture the point at all costs.
“Update 7.4 and its two new game modes definitely refresh the game and bring more exciting and challenging combat tasks to players”, comments Mike Zhivets, producer of World of Tanks. “The addition of new French SPGs and tank destroyers only enhances the game’s already deep strategic and tactical gameplay”.
Update 7.4 sees the French tech tree updated with new long range SPGs including Renault BS, Lorraine 39 L AM, AMX 105 AM, AMX-13 F3 AM, Lorraine 155 (50), Lorraine 155 (51), Bat. Chatillon 155, boosting excellent possibilities for thoughtful, slow-paced combat ground action. For even more firepower, the French reinforcements also include eight new tank destroyers: Renault FT AC, Renault UE 57, Somua Sau 40, S 35 CA, ARL V 39, AMX AC de 100, AMX AC de 120, AMX 50 Foch.
For players looking for new ground to conquer, Update 7.4 also delivers two new, diverse maps. Widepark brings the fight to a dense labyrinth of streets in a half-ruined European style town, ideal for deadly ambushes and dynamic “cat and mouse” games in an urban environment. Airfield takes players away to North Africa, where hilly terrain provides good cover from shelling and airbase installations satisfy those who like deliberate precision fire from higher grounds or high speed racing across open ground.
Update 7.4 also introduces new premium content, specifically for the German and Russian trees, including the Soviet made heavy tank IS 6 (tier VIII) and the German Jagdtiger, also known as the JagdTiger mit 8.8cm KwK 43 L/71 (tier VIII).
About World of Tanks
World of Tanks is the first and only team-based, massively multiplayer online action game dedicated to armored warfare. Throw yourself into the epic tank battles of World War II with other steel cowboys all over the world. Your arsenal includes more than 150 armored vehicles from America, Germany, the Soviet Union, and France, carefully detailed with historical accuracy.
A flexible system of authentic vehicle upgrades and development allows you to try any of the vehicles and weapons in the game. Whether you prefer to exhaust your foes with fast and maneuverable light tanks, make deep breaches in enemy lines with all-purpose medium tanks, use the force of giant tanks to eliminate opposing armored forces, or become a heavy sniper with long-range howitzers, each unit type has its own advantages and can be extremely effective when operated by a true tank ace.
But being a great tank commander alone isn’t enough to win! In World of Tanks, it’s all about teamwork. Victory is achieved by combining your combat skills with those of the other members of your team, each playing their own role on the battlefield. Just add your favorite strategy to build your own steel empire and manifest the indisputable authority of the tank power!
