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DISNEY INTERACTIVE STUDIOS ANNOUNCES “GROUNDBREAKING” RACING GAME — SPLIT/SECOND

Award-Winning Black Rock Studio Creating Innovative New Action-Racing Game

Where Speed Meets Strategy in a City Rigged For Destruction

MELBOURNE, Australia — (March 13, 2009) — Racing to the finish line takes on added excitement when competitors trigger destruction on the track to take out their opponents.  Disney Interactive Studios today announced Split/Second, an intense action racing game set within the world of a hyper-competitive reality television show.  Competitors vie to be the first across the finish line in a made-for-TV city built for destruction, with the ultimate goal of becoming the season champion.  Developed by Black Rock Studio, Split/Second is scheduled to be released in early 2010 for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and Windows-based PC.

Competitors in Split/Second don’t just collide with other vehicles to knock them from the track – they can also trigger explosive events that drastically alter the dynamics of the race.  Players must use strategy and pinpoint timing to derail opponents, tactically alter the track or create entirely new routes.

“Split/Second elevates action racing to a new level by enabling players to strategically take out their opponents by dynamically altering the course in real time,” said Craig Relyea, senior vice president of global marketing, Disney Interactive Studios.  “Split/Second further showcases Black Rock Studio’s ability to innovate and deliver a compelling experience that has wide appeal beyond the traditional racing genre.”

“We’re creating huge memorable moments on par with the biggest blockbuster action films,” said Nick Baynes, game director, Black Rock Studio.  “Action racing has captured the imagination of video game fans worldwide and we’re going to redefine that experience with Split/Second.”

Black Rock Studio is the development studio behind the critically acclaimed 2008 action sports game, PURE.  PURE won numerous awards, including the Game Critics Award for Best Racing Game of E3 2008, and was named among the top 10 video games of 2008 by Entertainment Weekly.  Formerly Climax Racing, Black Rock Studio is a development studio of Disney Interactive Studios and is based in Brighton, England.

For more information about Split/Second, go to http://www.splitsecondvideogame.com/.

About Disney Interactive Studios
Disney Interactive Studios, part of Disney Interactive Media Group, is the interactive entertainment affiliate of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS). Disney Interactive Studios self publishes and distributes a broad portfolio of multi-platform video games, mobile games and interactive entertainment worldwide. The company also licenses properties and works directly with other interactive game publishers to bring products for all ages to market. Disney Interactive Studios is based in Glendale, California, and has internal development studios around the world. For more information, log on to http://www.disneyinteractivestudios.com.

© Disney. Product names, release dates and features may be subject to change.

 
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Apple Announces Incredible New iPod shuffle World’s Smallest Music Player Now Talks to You

SYDNEY, Australia – 12 March, 2009 – Apple today introduced the all-new iPod shuffle, the world’s smallest music player at nearly half of the size of the previous model, and the first music player that talks to you. The revolutionary new VoiceOver feature enables iPod shuffle to speak your song titles, artists and playlist names. The third generation iPod shuffle is significantly smaller than a AA battery, holds up to 1,000 songs and is easier to use with all of the controls conveniently located on the earphone cord. With the press of a button, you can play, pause, adjust volume, switch playlists and hear the name of the song and artist. iPod shuffle features a gorgeous new aluminium design with a built-in stainless steel clip that makes it ultra-wearable.

“Imagine your music player talking to you, telling you your song titles, artists and playlist names,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of iPod and iPhone Product Marketing. “The amazingly small new iPod shuffle takes a revolutionary approach to how you listen to your music by talking to you, also making it the first iPod shuffle with playlists.”

iPod shuffle is based on Apple’s incredibly popular shuffle feature, which randomly selects songs from your music library. And now, when you can’t remember the name of a song or an artist playing, with the press of a button iPod shuffle tells you the name of the song and artist. iPod shuffle can even tell you status information, such as battery life. With the ability to hold up to 1,000 songs and the VoiceOver feature, you can now easily switch between multiple playlists on your iPod shuffle. iPod shuffle can speak 14 languages including English, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish.

The new iPod shuffle comes in silver or black and features a sleek and ultra-wearable design with a built-in stainless steel clip. iPod shuffle is the smallest music player in the world and is incredibly easy to clip to almost anything and take with you everywhere you go. iPod shuffle features up to 10 hours of battery life.*

Pricing & Availability
The third generation 4GB iPod shuffle is now shipping and comes in silver or black for a recommended retail price of A$129 inc GST through the Apple Store (www.apple.com/au) and Apple’s retail stores. iPod shuffle comes with the Apple Earphones with Remote and the iPod shuffle USB cable. iPod shuffle requires a Mac with a USB 2.0 port, Mac OS X v10.4.11 or later and iTunes 8.1 or later; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows Vista, Windows XP Home or Professional (Service Pack 3) or later and iTunes 8.1.

*Battery life and number of charge cycles vary by use and settings. See www.apple.com/au/batteries for more information. Song capacity is based on four minutes per song and 128-Kbps AAC encoding; in 256-Kbps AAC format, song capacity is up to 500 songs; actual capacity varies by encoding method and bit rate.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.

 
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Lenovo Retools ThinkCentre Business Desktops for Smaller, Lower Cost Options

Sydney, Australia – March 11, 2009: Lenovo today announced that it is retooling its desktop PC portfolio to give customers two new, smaller, lower cost options. Lenovo’s new ThinkCentre A58 brings small-to-medium-business customers reliable, secure and affordable desktop technology in a new design, while the ThinkCentre M58e provides the technologies and green features that mid-market and large companies need to stay productive and efficient. With more customers demanding smaller desktop PCs today, the desktops come in tower and small form factor models.

 

“Customers are feeling the pinch of the challenging economic times, and are demanding PC products that give them the most value for their dollar,” said Otto Ruettinger, Business Manager, Desktops and Monitors Lenovo Australia, New Zealand. “We’ve crafted the latest Lenovo ThinkCentre desktops to give them the essential technologies they need to stay productive, reliability features and service plans to stretch their dollar further and security options to protect their business.”

 

Security, Reliability and Efficiency

For two layers of protection, users can combine Lenovo’s Rescue and Recovery tool included with the desktops to help in recovering and restoring lost files along with Lenovo’s Online Data Backup service to keep data backed-up at a secure, off-site location. Preloaded on both desktops, customers can try the online backup service for free with up to 5 GB of storage for 90 days.

 

The new ThinkCentre desktops provide the security businesses require with features such as a fingerprint reader on several optional Lenovo keyboards for easy password management, I/O port disablement to help protect against external threats and a chassis intrusion switch to help detect tampering in the PC.

 

With select EPEAT Gold-rated models and models that already meet the Energy Star 5.0 criteria, which takes effect in July, the ThinkCentre M58e desktop helps large enterprise customers ensure their PC technology is among the most energy-efficient and environmentally responsible on the market. For companies with large fleets of PCs, the savings can quickly add up. A ThinkCentre M58e desktop combined with a ThinkVision L1940pW monitor can save organisations approximately $60 a year over previous Lenovo desktop and monitor solutions.1 Additionally, both the ThinkCentre M58e and the ThinkCentre A58 desktops are GREENGUARD certified, meaning they have been tested for up to 2,000 different chemical emissions.

 

Value-Added Tools Help Manage PC Investment

Most businesses purchase PC technology as an investment to be managed over several years. However, Gartner reports that only 13 to 16 percent of the total cost of PC ownership over the lifecycle of the PC comes from initial hardware costs, and the rest are software and ongoing management costs.2 The new ThinkCentre A58 and M58e desktops help organisations manage both upfront hardware costs and ongoing management costs in several ways.

 

Lenovo has engineered unique, ThinkVantage Technologies on the ThinkCentre M58e and Lenovo Care tools on the ThinkCentre A58 that are included in the cost of the PC. These tools help companies avoid IT costs and lost productivity associated with individual PC usage in SMB environments, such as data recovery, as well as issues IT managers in large corporations face such as IT help desk calls, password resets, asset management and more.

 

Lenovo includes a variety of tools on the desktops such as Rescue and Recovery to help recover and restore files and Power Manager to easily manage and remotely control a PC’s energy usage even when it is turned off. They also include Client Security Solution, Client Security Password Manager and more.

 

IT administrators can deploy and manage Lenovo ThinkVantage Technologies across a fleet of PCs through purchasing LANDesk software. Additionally, the ThinkCentre M58e desktop offers platform stability of up to 15 months for corporate customers who may deploy technology over an extended period of time.

 

Essential Technologies

The desktops feature technologies including choices of:

 

Intel Core2Quad and Core2Duo processors
Onboard Direct X10 graphics support
Support for up to 1TB of storage
Up to 4 GB memory
Blu-Ray or DVD burners
 

Ongoing Service and Support

Lenovo offers a variety of warranty options as well as its ThinkPlus Priority support service plans which give customers 24×7 technical support and priority call routing, among a host of other features and tools. For those in the middle of the night scenarios, ThinkPlus Priority support can help support critical business needs while helping businesses reduce or eliminate the need for around the clock IT staff, which can translate into significant cost savings.

 

For complete lifecycle management, Lenovo offers custom imaging and deployment, as well as Asset Recovery Services, a solution that provides for computer take-back, data destruction, refurbishment and recycling. Customers can also recover value from their old PCs which can then be used toward the purchase of new ones. 

 

Pricing and Availability3

The ThinkCentre A58 and M58e desktops will be available from the 12 March with models starting at AUD$779.00 including GST. They will be available through business partners and www.lenovo.com.au

 

About Lenovo

Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) is dedicated to building exceptionally engineered personal computers. Lenovo’s business model is built on innovation, operational efficiency and customer satisfaction as well as a focus on investment in emerging markets. Formed by Lenovo Group’s acquisition of the former IBM Personal Computing Division, the company develops, manufactures and markets reliable, high-quality, secure and easy-to-use technology products and services worldwide. Lenovo has major research centres in Yamato, Japan; Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, China; and Raleigh, North Carolina. For more information see www.lenovo.com.au

 

1Calculated using Lenovo online energy calculator, comparing ThinkCentre M58e tower and ThinkVision L1940p monitor with ThinkCentre M52 tower and ThinkVision C170 monitor in business usage model with power management enabled. Results are based on hypothetical typical customer scenario and individual results will vary. Electricity rate based on U.S. EIA website, showing $0.1033 per KwH.

 

2Gartner: Desktop Total Cost of Ownership: 2008 Update. January, 24, 2008. #600153705

 

3Prices do not include tax or shipping and are subject to change without notice and is tied to specific terms and conditions. Reseller prices may vary. Price does not include all advertised features. All offers subject to availability. Lenovo reserves the right to alter product offerings and specifications at any time without notice.

 
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ASUS unveils new graphics cards…ASUS ENGTX295 and ENGTX285 Series – world’s fastest graphics cards

Up to 10% performance enhancements for exceptional gaming graphics 

Sydney, Australia, March 11, 2009 – ASUS, manufacturer of top quality graphic solutions, has released the world’s fastest dual and single GPU graphics cards incorporating the latest generation of NVIDIA GPUs – the ASUS ENGTX295 and ENGTX285 Series graphics cards with GeForce™ GTX 295 and GeForce™ GTX 285 chipsets (respectively).

The ENGTX295, ENGTX285 ULTIMATE, and ENGTX285 TOP graphics cards are high performance, with the ENGTX295 leading the pack as the world’s fastest graphics card scoring an outstanding 3DMark Vantage Extreme Preset score of 9126. The ENGTX285 ULTIMATE and ENGTX285 TOP´s core, shader, and memory clock performances are increased from 648MHz up to 712MHz and 670MHz, from 1476MHz up to 1620MHz and 1550MHz, and from 2484MHz up to 2760MHz and 2600MHz respectively…(read full press release attached).

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ASUS ENGTS250 Series boosts performance by 20%
Extreme cooling, excellent capability, plus exclusive Dark Knight fansink

Sydney, Australia, March 11, 2009 – ASUS, leading producer of top quality graphic solutions, has launched the ENGTS250 Series graphics cards.

The ENGTS250 TOP presents astounding graphics, offering performance boosts of up to 20% for outstanding gaming experiences. Well equipped in the thermal department and with the specially designed Dark Knight fansink, the ENGTS250 delivers extreme cooling and low noise levels – enhancing gaming delight. The ENGTS250 also includes…(read full press release attached).

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About ASUS
ASUS is a leading company in the new digital era. With a global staff of more than ten thousand and a world-class R&D design team, the company’s revenue for 2008 was 8.1 billion US dollars. ASUS ranks among the top 10 IT companies in BusinessWeek’s “InfoTech 100”, and has been on the listing for 11 consecutive years. ASUS was also selected by the Wall Street Journal Asia as No.1 in quality and service. For more information, visit www.asus.com.au.

 
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Introducing the ASUS Marine Cool concept motherboard Advanced design and innovative materials deliver ultimate durability

Sydney, Australia, March 11, 2009 – ASUS, leading producer of motherboards, has unveiled its new Marine Cool concept motherboard. A progressive motherboard, the Marine Cool features the revolutionary Ceramic-Metal Thermal Module that utilises ceramics and metals. Cooling efficiency is doubled allowing the Marine Cool to work in severe environments such as high humidity and heat.

Clad in gun-metal gray with metallic military-green highlights, plus a heatsink styled after a rugged armed forces vehicle, symbolises the Marine Cool’s strength and stability. In addition to the innovative use of ceramics and metals, the Marine cool has a metal heatpipe module on the front that provides exceptional heat transference. Located on the back and set flush with the PCB, the Ceramic Backplate makes full use of a micro-porous ceramic technology to provide a larger surface area. These enhanced technologies integrated with revolutionary design are able to improve thermal efficiency twofold.

The Marine Cool is also equipped with Onboard UPS – a built-in polymer battery that serves as an extra backup power supply which activates if there is a power failure. This helps prevent damage to onboard components, as well as avoid loss of critical files and data corruption during unexpected blackouts when power is inconsistent and fluctuates.

Furthermore, the server-standard Failover Memory design on the Marine Cool uses a built-in memory to help continue system boot-up in the event of errors to add-on memory. When the PC is switched on, Failover Memory guarantees that the system will boot, regardless of incompatible or faulty memory.
About ASUS
ASUS is a leading company in the new digital era. With a global staff of more than ten thousand and a world-class R&D design team, the company’s revenue for 2008 was 8.1 billion US dollars. ASUS ranks among the top 10 IT companies in BusinessWeek’s “InfoTech 100”, and has been on the listing for 11 consecutive years. ASUS was also selected by the Wall Street Journal Asia as No.1 in quality and service. For more information, visit www.asus.com.au.

 
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AMD Announces Shipment of the 50 Millionth Graphics Processor for the Wii™ From Nintendo

– ATI ‘Hollywood’ graphics processor firmly establishes its position as most popular AMD GPU for consoles to date ?
SUNNYVALE, Calif. — Mar. 11, 2009 — AMD (NYSE: AMD) announced that the 50 millionth ATI ‘Hollywood’ graphics processor for the Wii™ game console from Nintendo shipped today. With 50 million units delivered, the ATI graphics processor code-named ‘Hollywood’ becomes the most successful AMD game console chip to date in terms of unit sales.

“Nintendo values its ongoing relationship with AMD. AMD’s graphics technology expertise as displayed in the ATI ‘Hollywood’ chip is a great part of the momentum of Wii. Our combined efforts help deliver entertaining experiences to create many smiling faces in living rooms around the world,” said Genyo Takeda, general manager of Integrated Research and Development, Nintendo Co., Ltd.

“We congratulate Nintendo on this major milestone for its popular Wii console. AMD shares Nintendo’s excitement for delivering engaging experiences for every member of the family,” said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, Graphics Products Group, AMD. “We’re proud to provide the ATI ‘Hollywood’ chip as the cool and quiet graphics engine that factors so prominently in the overall enjoyment for Wii owners. AMD counts Nintendo as a valued customer and we continue to work together to make console entertainment a growing phenomenon worldwide.”

The ATI ‘Hollywood’ graphics processor is a custom graphics processing unit from AMD that enables Wii to provide exciting, immersive game play and interaction for consumers around the world. AMD has a rich 10-year history of providing graphics solutions for Nintendo spanning both the Wii and Nintendo GameCube™ consoles.

About AMD
Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD) is an innovative technology company dedicated to collaborating with customers and partners to ignite the next generation of computing and graphics solutions at work, home and play. For more information, visit http://www.amd.com.

© 2009 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. AMD, the AMD Arrow logo, ATI are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.  Other names are for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.

 
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LucasArts and Activision Publishing Renew Pan-European, Southeast Asia and Australian Distribution DEAL

SYDNEY – March 10, 2009 – LucasArts announced today the renewal of its pan-European, Southeast Asia and Australian publishing and distribution agreement with Activision Publishing, Inc.  (Nasdaq: ATVI). Activision’s role in the distribution and marketing of LucasArts’ video game products will strengthen both companies’ solid market presence across the globe.

“This agreement with Activision reflects LucasArts’ commitment to the international markets and we look forward to bringing the best products to our consumers worldwide,” said Mary Bihr, Vice President of Global Publishing, LucasArts. “We made the decision based upon Activision’s proven track record in managing strong brands and our long standing relationship which has produced tremendous results as games such as LEGO® Indiana Jones™ and Star Wars™: The Force Unleashed™ have risen to the top of sales charts globally.”

“LucasArts’ vast portfolio of video games has caught the imagination of gamers of all ages across the globe – opening up exciting new possibilities for much-loved franchises whilst injecting fresh ideas into the market,” said Menno Van der Bil, International General Manager of LucasArts for Activision Publishing. “We look forward to working alongside LucasArts to release unique and innovative products the whole family can enjoy for the years to come.”

LucasArts and Activision are on the heels of celebrating some of their best accomplishments to date.  Forging a new episode in the galaxy’s favorite saga, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed proved to be the best selling Star Wars™ game of all time, with over 5.7 million units sold worldwide.  Also whipping their way up the charts last year were the smash hits LEGO® Indiana Jones™:  The Original Adventures, the LEGO® Star Wars series and the popular Star Wars: The Clone Wars™ video games based on the hit animated television show.  LucasArts and Activision are poised to continue this momentum with stellar brands for years to come starting with the highly anticipated Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings™ recently announced to ship in June 2009.

 
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LEGENDARY KISS® BASSIST AND VOCALIST GENE SIMMONS SPEAKS OUT ABOUT NEW AXE GUITAR VIDEO GAME CONTROLLER

Atari Australia joins with Interactive Game Group to Bring Legendary Guitar to Life for Gamers

– March 10, 2009 – On the heels of his first foray into videogame controllers based on his axe-shaped bass guitar, Gene Simmons has a lot to say about it.

“I never do anything half way. My AXE controller is the closest thing you can have to being onstage in KISS. I created and designed the Gene Simmons AXE™ bass guitar and I can’t wait for the fans to experience it for themselves”, said Gene Simmons. “The Gene Simmons AXE guitar is such a recognisable symbol – people have been asking for a gaming replica ever since Guitar Hero was first introduced.”

Gene Simmons joined with Interactive Game Group, LLC to create the Gene Simmons AXE guitar controller for Guitar Hero® and Rock Band® video games.

Commenting on developing the guitar, Interactive Game Group Founder, Fred Chesnais said, “Gene Simmons is the Rock Lord and the Gene Simmons AXE bass guitar is an integral part of his signature look. Bringing this Axe controller to life was an incredible journey, and I am sure every player will enjoy it”.

This fully equipped, axe-shaped guitar controller is a replica of the KISS bassist and vocalist’s signature bass guitar. The AXE controller is personally certified by the Rock God himself, Gene Simmons, to give you that Rock Star experience.  The wireless AXE guitar controller is a three-quarter-sized replica of the original Gene Simmons AXE guitar and larger than the standard video game guitar controllers. Customized with a replicated paint finish of the original guitar, the Axe guitar controller features Gene Simmons autograph and his photo in make-up painted onto the body of the controller.

The first AXE video game controller brought to the market is compatible with Guitar Hero and Rock Band video games for Nintendo Wii, PlayStation® 2 and 3.

The Axe Guitar is due for release in April 2009.
For additional information please visit the site http://www.genesimmonsaxeguitar.com.
For more information on Atari’s entire product line up visit www.atari.com.au and log on to the Atari Trade Site for all box shots, demos, trailers and online screenshots.

 
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FREE WILLY SET FOR SOUTH AFRICA SHOOT

Principal photography began on 23 Feb. in Cape Town, South Africa

Warner Premiere has announced the start of production on FREE WILLY: SOUTH AFRICA, with filming that commenced on February 23 for five weeks in Cape Town, South Africa.  The announcement was made by Diane Nelson, President, Warner Premiere.

FREE WILLY: SOUTH AFRICA is set for a release exclusively on DVD in 2010 and tells the charming tale of Kirra, a young Australian girl who is sent reluctantly to stay with her grandfather, Gus, in Cape Town.  When a young orca whale, Willy, is trapped by a storm in Gus’s run down water theme park, Kirra slowly but surely finds herself adapting to the new surroundings and an ever-growing friend.  But, when Gus’s latest attraction starts eating too much, he is tempted to sell Willy to an unscrupulous competitor.  The race is on for Kirra and her friends to find Willy’s family and return him to the ocean…

“The FREE WILLLY films are known worldwide for being inspirational, family-oriented, quality entertainment and we’re very excited to be continuing this tradition with ‘Free Willy: South Africa,’” said Nelson.  “With a heart-warming, compelling story line and a terrific cast, we’re sure this film will be a hit with new audiences of all ages as well as fans of the earlier releases.”

FREE WILLY: SOUTH AFRICA stars 10-year-old actress, singer, wildlife crusader and dancer Bindi Irwin as Kirra.  Already a household name and Emmy Award winner through her wildlife documentary series, fitness DVDs and music albums, Bindi is the daughter of the late Steve Irwin, the world-renowned Australian wildlife expert and conservationist, whose work she is carrying forward.  Beau Bridges plays Gus, Kirra’s curmudgeonly grandfather.  A Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor with a career spanning five decades, Bridges has most recently appeared in the hit television shows ‘Stargate SG-1’ and ‘The Agency.’

Writer/Director Will Geiger’s most recent film ‘Elvis and Anabelle’ starred Blake Lively, Joe Mantegna, Mary Steenburgen and Max Minghella and won the Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking Award at the Newport Film Festival.  His previous film ‘Ocean Tribe’ won the Best Director Award at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and the Audience Award at Newport.  “Free Willy: South Africa” is a South African and German co-production being produced by David Wicht of Film Afrika (‘The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency’, ‘Goodbye Bafana’), Laura Lodin (National Geographic Films) and John Stainton who has directed and produced all of Steve and Bindi Irwin’s television series and movies.

The FREE WILLY films have enchanted family audiences since they first hit theatres in 1993.  The universal themes of ecology, exploitation, the intelligence of marine life and the relationship of people with animals are all explored through the stories.  The FREE WILLY theatrical film releases have a combined domestic gross box office total of $190,922,484* and have sold almost 3 million video units to-date.  (*Adjusted for inflation)

 
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NAMCO BANDAI GAMES ANNOUNCES KLONOA® FOR Wii™

– A Classic Returns with Updated Graphics and Controls, Coming to Australia in 2009 – 

– 6 March 2009 – NAMCO BANDAI Games Europe announced today that Klonoa® will be available in Australia for Wii™ in 2009.  Klonoa’s long-awaited return offers vibrant graphics, motion control and new secrets to discover in this update to the series’ debut adventure.  Highly revered as one of the best platform games of the past 10 years, Klonoa will ignite Wii owners’ imaginations with addictive gameplay, exciting stages and a memorable story.  

Help Klonoa save Phantomile, a land formed by the dreams of its inhabitants, and recently besieged by an unknown evil.  Klonoa’s breathtaking journey takes him through a series of increasingly difficult stages across multiple kingdoms as he strives to save his friends and homeland.  Throughout his quest, Klonoa is aided by his friend Hewpoe, a benevolent spirit who resides in the ring from which Klonoa is able to fire his Wind Bullet.  The Wind Bullet gives Klonoa the ability to grab and inflate his enemies and use them to his advantage. 

With a simple move of the Wii Remote™ Klonoa can throw captured enemies to break obstacles, uncover hidden items or defeat other enemies.  Klonoa can also use any enemy he is holding to perform a double jump which allows him to reach high ledges or jump across large pits.  By moving the Nunchuk™, Klonoa can use his whirlwind to slowdown approaching enemies.  In addition to the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controls, Klonoa offers a wide range of control options for any style of play, including Wii Remote only, Classic Controller and the Nintendo GameCube™ controller.   

For more information on Klonoa, please visit: http://www.namcobandaigames.com.   

About NAMCO BANDAI Games Europe:
NAMCO BANDAI Games Europe S.A.S., is a leading interactive entertainment software publisher based in Cergy-Pontoise, France. The company is a part of the NAMCO BANDAI group of companies known for creating and publishing many of the industry’s top video game franchises including the RidgeRacer™, Tekken™, SOULCALIBUR™, Tamagotchi™, Digimon™, Dragonball® and Naruto™ brands.