Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Mitchell Johnson all star in the Ashes Cricket 2009 trailer – see it at www.PlayAshes.com

New details include a Partnership with Comic Book Writer Matt Fraction

Friday 24th July 2009 – SEGA® Europe Ltd. and SEGA® America, Inc. today announced details about the upcoming videogame Iron Man 2, including the fact that renowned comic book author Matt Fraction will be creating the game’s all-new story, which includes familiar elements from both the movie and comic book universe.  Iron Man 2, the video game, allows players to truly feel the power of Iron Man with new destructible environments, epic enemies, and innovative hand-to-hand combat moves, as well as other features from the film and comic book.

This brand-new tale will take gamers deeper into the Iron Man comic world, adding to the excitement of the upcoming Marvel and Paramount Studios film. Iron Man 2 exclusively offers fans a chance to play against enemies such as the unforgettable Crimson Dynamo, not found in the film. Iron Man 2’s original plotline sees Tony Stark gifting the world with new technology in order to make it a better place. However, his philanthropic nature isn’t enough to keep the bad guys away as Iron Man’s enemies have devious designs on the technology. Ultimately, Tony Stark/Iron Man will be forced to fight in epic battles, face huge enemies and in the end, the fate of the world will be left in his powerful hands where he will battle to save it from destruction.

“Iron Man 2 presented me with the challenge and opportunity to work with both
SEGA and Marvel on creating something wholly unique– a story that exists at the cross-roads of the comic I write, the film universe which I was lucky enough to be asked to contribute to, and a wholly- immersive interactive experience like a game’ says Fraction. “A game presents an entirely new challenge, where the audience/consumer/player engages with the world, with the big and small aspects of the place and characters.  They’re a co-conspirator in the narrative. I hope it’s as exciting and challenging to play as it was to write.”

Iron Man 2 takes players into a richer and more interactive Iron Man world. The game allows players to take full advantage of the Iron Man suit as they battle through futuristic environments inspired by the movie and comic book universe. These environments will also offer a new level of destructibility, making each encounter with enemies a more exciting and intense experience. Also new to the game are some powerful hand-to-hand combat styles one of which is kung fu.  Iron Man 2 has taken fan feedback into consideration and will have a redesigned control scheme, making it fun and accessible for gamers to feel the power and strength of Iron Man.

“The first Iron Man film raised the awareness of this popular comic hero to new heights in Europe” commented Gary Knight, European Marketing Director, SEGA Europe Ltd. “We are excited to be working with Marvel again on this second iteration and having Matt Fraction on board to create a truly original script for the game means fans are in for a treat!”

Matt Fraction is the Eisner-nominated and Eagle-winning writer of the creator-owned comics CASANOVA, FIVE FISTS OF SCIENCE, and LAST OF THE INDEPENDENTS.  His work at Marvel includes THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN, THE UNCANNY X-MEN, THE IMMORTAL IRON FIST, and many more. He has consulted with Marvel Studios on IRON MAN II.  He was born in Chicago, lived all over the United States, and considers himself to be from North Carolina.  Most recently a resident off Kansas City, MO, Matt co-founded and co-owned the motion graphics, design, and animation house MK12 and has worked for film, television, and advertising clients around the world. Their work has shown internationally and won numerous awards. He and his wife, son, two dogs and two cats are currently moving out of the middle of the country and headed towards more coastal environs.

Iron Man 2, the video game, will be coming out in Autumn 2010. The game will be available for Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, PSP (PlayStation®Portable) system, Wii™ home video game system and Nintendo DS™

For more information on Iron Man 2 please visit the SEGA website at www.sega.com. To check out the all new assets from the game, visit http://www.sega-press.com

About SEGA® Europe Ltd.:
SEGA® Europe Ltd. is the European Distribution arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA® Corporation, and a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. SEGA Europe’s web site is located at www.sega-europe.com.

About SEGA® of America,Inc.:
SEGA® of America, Inc. is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA® Corporation, a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home.  The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.  SEGA of America’s Web site is located at www.sega.com/us

Three new X Games competitions to offer ultimate glory in all-action off-road racer

Friday, 24th July 2009 – Codemasters® in partnership with NAMCO BANDAI Partners Australia New Zealand, and ESPN’s X Games, today announced an agreement that will see three all-new X Games stages created and integrated exclusively in Colin McRae: DiRT 2, the sequel to the award-winning off-road racing title.

The three new stages – X Games America, X Games Europe and X Games Asia – will carry official X Games branding and infuse added realism by bringing the series’ unique action sports atmosphere to the game. Players will be able to compete in the X Games events by reaching landmark achievements within the game’s World Tour.

“With Colin McRae: DiRT 2 Codemasters has captured the zeitgeist of contemporary action sports racing, making the game a great platform to integrate the X Games brand and the look and feel of its global events,” said Rick Alessandri, ESPN Senior Vice President and Managing Director, X Games Franchise. “We’re excited that millions of players will have the opportunity to engage in the X Games environment both in the game and online.”

“We’ve been inspired by the flair, style and big event atmosphere of ESPN’s X Games series, which has switched on a new generation of action sports fans to rally and off-road racing.” said Gavin Raeburn, Senior Executive Producer, Codemasters. “It’s been incredible to work with them to shape a series of exclusive X Games integrations for Colin McRae: DiRT 2. Gamers will experience three major competitions that will make them feel like they’re really arrived on the world’s premiere racing stage, competing in front of thousands of fans in dramatic and spectacular stadium events.”

The X Games events will be headlined by off-road racing’s most famous and respected athletes including the multi medal-winning Subaru Rally Team USA driver Ken Block, Dave Mirra, Tanner Faust and Travis Pastrana. X Games 14 Rally Car Racing gold medallist, Pastrana competed with the late Colin McRae at X Games 12 (2006) before going on to feature in and lend his voice to the original Colin McRae: DiRT game, published in 2007.

Each X Games event will consist of two knockout rounds (quarters and semis) rounded off with a dramatic final held at spectacular locations including London (X Games Europe), Tokyo (X Games Asia) and Los Angeles (X Games America). The X Games America competition is identified from the very start of the game as the pinnacle event in Colin McRae: DiRT 2’s racing world and the ultimate test for any off-road racer.

Colin McRae: DiRT 2 will be shipping on September 13th in Australia and New Zealand. The game will be published for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft®, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Wii™, Nintendo DS™ and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system with a Games For Windows® LIVE edition, supporting DirectX 11, to follow. Get ready for the ultimate off-road competition online at www.dirt2game.com

To view: http://videos.uk.ubi.com/index.php?video=hr1a8yqf 

Coming exclusively to Xbox 360 and PC, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction is the highly anticipated sequel in the multimillion-selling Splinter Cell series and one of the most critically acclaimed Xbox franchises of all time.

An investigation into his daughter’s death unwittingly leads former agent Sam Fisher to discover he’s been betrayed by his prior agency, the Third Echelon. Now a renegade, Fisher finds himself in a race against time to thwart a deadly terrorist plot that threatens millions.  

Uniting revolutionary gameplay enhancements with a high octane, no-holds-barred storyline, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction arms you to the teeth with all the high tech weaponry and lethal skills of an elite operative and invites you to enter a dangerous world where justice means making your own rules.

PlayStation® deal with music giant brings Universal Music hits to SingStore for all to sing

Sydney, 24 July 2009 – Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) has signed a deal with Universal Music which will see hit songs from this major record label coming to SingStore™, the online store for SingStar™ on PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™). This is great news for SingStar fans, who’ll have access to more chart-topping hits from the biggest names, as well as more choice and more songs to sing with friends and family. The first instalment arrives on 8th August 2009, including classic hits from Elton John and The Police, right up to the latest sounds of Kaiser Chiefs and The Killers.

Due to popular demand from the SingStar community however, PlayStation® has brought forward the SingStore release of The Jackson Five’s I Want You Back, making it available for download by PS3 users now!

Microsoft teams up with top anime studios to create a collection of original short films that taker the “Halo” franchise to a new frontier. 

Sydney, Australia — July 24, 2009 — A renowned set of storytellers from some of the world’s leading anime studios in Japan are about to take one of the most iconic franchises in science fiction and video games to a new level. Microsoft Corp., in collaboration with some of the most acclaimed anime creators, today unveiled a new project called “Halo Legends,” which will bring the “Halo” franchise and its sweeping sci-fi saga to an entirely new medium, in the form of several original anime short films.

“Halo Legends,” which will officially debut at a panel presentation today at Comic-Con International in San Diego, is being produced by Microsoft’s 343 Industries and features creative direction from anime pioneer Shinji Aramaki, director of the critically acclaimed “Appleseed” and “Appleseed EX Machina” anime features, and Mamoru Oshii, director of the landmark “Ghost in the Shell” movies, with additional production from Joseph Chou of J-Spec Pictures. The compilation will include a series of short stories that explore different times, themes and characters from the “Halo” universe and will be distributed globally by Warner Home Video, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. company. Influential studios that are part of the project include the creators behind some of the most popular and celebrated anime to come from Japan, such as “The Animatrix,” “Cowboy Bebop,” “Fullmetal Alchemist,” “Ghost in the Shell,” “Dragon Ball” and more.

“The opportunity to work with talents such as Shinji Aramaki, Mamoru Oshii and others from some of the greatest anime studios is a very rare opportunity for Microsoft,” said Frank O’Connor, “Halo” franchise development director and provider of story and creative direction for 343 Industries. “We’ve seen the world through Master Chief’s eyes, and we’ve experienced facets of the universe through a variety of literary prisms, but now we get to watch new tales unfold in really rich, visually dynamic ways. I think anime fans and ‘Halo’ fans alike are in for a real treat.”

Set hundreds of years in the future, the “Halo” series of games and novels chronicle mankind’s struggles against an alien collective known as the Covenant. The Covenant is scouring the universe for relics it believes will lead it to a new life and is destroying civilisations and planets that stand in its way. The most prolific hero from the fiction is a super soldier or Spartan known as Master Chief, who is the main protagonist in the original trilogy of Xbox and Xbox 360 “Halo” titles. In the trilogy, Master Chief discovers that the Covenant is intent on activating a series of mysterious ring worlds known as “Halos,” which would ultimately exterminate life throughout the universe. He becomes mankind’s champion in a race against an unrelenting enemy in its most desperate hour. Through best-selling novels, comics and additional Xbox 360 games such as “Halo Wars” and the upcoming “Halo 3: ODST,” the universe has grown and tales of other heroes have emerged.

“‘Halo’ and its characters are a very natural fit for anime,” said Aramaki, creative director for the “Halo Legends” project. “As a fan of the ‘Halo’ universe, it is an honor to work with Microsoft and my very talented peers from other studios to create this collection.”

Studios involved in the “Halo Legends” project include Bones Inc., Casio Entertainment Inc., Production I.G, STUDIO4?C and Toei Animation.

• Bones. Founded in 1998, Bones has become one of the top animation studios in Japan in less than a decade. The studio is best known for its incredible body of work on mega-hit franchises such as “Cowboy Bebop: The Movie,” “Fullmetal Alchemist,” “Sword of the Stranger” and “Eureka Seven.”

• Casio Entertainment. Casio Entertainment was founded in 2004 and is renowned for its visual effects work on the movie “Dai Nipponjin” (“Big Man of Japan”), which was officially invited to the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and nominated for Best Visual Effects at the 2008 Asian Film Awards. Casio Entertainment is also known for its computer-generated animation support work on several top Japanese video games.

• Production I.G. Production I.G has produced a number of acclaimed feature films, original video animation, TV shows and video games. For their storytelling and quality of animation, “Ghost in the Shell,” “Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade” and “Blood: The Last Vampire” have earned critical accolades in Japan and all around the world. “Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,” directed by Mamoru Oshii in 2004, was the first Japanese animation feature ever to compete for the Palme d’Or at the Festival de Cannes.

• STUDIO4?C. STUDIO4?C is one of the top animation studios in Japan. Founded by the industry veteran Eiko Tanaka and acclaimed animation artist Koji Morimoto, it has become globally known for its uncanny ability to marry the spirit of high art with mainstream anime aesthetic. STUDIO4?C is known for works including “The Animatrix,” “Tekkonkinkreet” and “Batman: Gotham Knight.”

• Toei Animation. Toei Animation, established in 1956, is the oldest animation studio in Japan. Toei has produced the largest number of global hit TV anime series for kids, such as “Dragon Ball,” “Digimon,” “Sailor Moon,” “One Piece” and many more.

The complete “Halo Legends” collection will be distributed by Microsoft partner Warner Home Video, which will have more to announce on its release and distribution plans soon.

“As a leading entertainment distributor and a company identified with premier anime content, we’re very pleased to be working with Microsoft on ‘Halo Legends,’” said Amit Desai, vice president, Family, Animation and Partner Brands Marketing, Warner Home Video. “The combination of the talent involved and the ‘Halo’ brand ensure the collection is something consumers are really going to enjoy.”

A preview of select “Halo Legends” episodes will first debut on Xbox LIVE, the largest gaming and entertainment network in the world through a new experience called Halo Waypoint.

Launching later this year, Halo Waypoint will be a new destination for “Halo” fans on Xbox LIVE around the world. It will inform fans of the latest “Halo” news and activities, and grant access to content ranging from podcasts, trailers and screenshots, to exclusive video footage you won’t find anywhere else. It also will provide a new challenge for “Halo” gamers with a career system and player rankings tied to both in-game and out-of-game accomplishments related to “Halo.” In addition to the limited, early episode premieres, Halo Waypoint will debut several behind-the-scenes videos that chronicle the making of “Halo Legends.”

– ends –

Should you have any questions or comments please contact:

Alice Coulthard, Pulse Communications: (02) 8281 3818 / alice@pulsecom.com.au

Daniel Wong, Pulse Communications: (02) 8281 3826/ daniel@pulsecom.com.au

About Xbox 360

The powerful Xbox 360 video game and entertainment experience delivers amazing games, the next generation of the premier Xbox LIVE online social network, and unique digital entertainment experiences that revolve around gamers. Xbox 360 now boasts a catalogue of over 500 high-definition games. More information can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/xbox360.

The limited “White Edition” is available from all good retailers, and includes: 

·         White collectable Ezio figurine

·         Collectible white packaging

·         Bonus in game content 

RRP Xbox 360 / PS3 $129.95; PC RRP $109.95 

Also, available:

1.       Assassin’s Creed II Standard Edition – Xbox 360 / PS3  – RRP $109.95; PC RRP $89.95

2.       Assassin’s Creed II Black Edition – Xbox 360 / PS3  – RRP $149.95; PC RRP $129.95  **EB Games exclusive** 

Brought to you by the makers of Guitar Hero®, one of the best-selling video game franchises of all time, Band Hero™ brings a new genre of music focused on today’s hottest hits and classic anthems that everyone will know and love. Headlined by some of the biggest names in music as in-game artists and playable characters, Band Hero™ is the ultimate party game where players of all ages will be able to experience the signature, easy-to-learn but difficult to master Guitar Hero® gameplay. Taking social gameplay to new heights, Band Hero, allows fans to create the band they always dreamed of using any combination of guitar or drum controllers and vocals, providing a new generation of rockers and performers the chance to experience and interact with their favorite music.  

For more information check out the Official Website www.bandhero.com

Sydney, Australia – July 23, 2009 – Activision Publishing, Inc. announced today that beloved comic book legend Stan Lee will make his first onscreen videogame cameo in the highly anticipated Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2, slated for release this September. Lee lends his likeness and voice to a character whose role is pivotal to the game’s storyline, which incorporates elements of the acclaimed Marvel Civil War comic book series.   

“I am thrilled to be making my first onscreen videogame cameo in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2,” said Stan Lee, Publisher Emeritus, Marvel Comics.  “It’s such a kick to see characters that I’ve helped create come to life in the game and now I’m a part of the Marvel videogame universe!” 

“With Activision’s long-standing history of bringing so many of Stan Lee’s creations to life, it’s great to be able to incorporate him into Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2,” said Rob Kostich, head of marketing for licensed properties, Activision Publishing, Inc. “Stan is a legend in the comic world and his appearance is yet another special treat that fans can look forward to when we bring back the largest army of playable Super Heroes and Super Villains this Spring.”  

About Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2

The greatest Super Hero™ action/RPG of all time is back with the world’s largest army of heroes and villains in Marvel™: Ultimate Alliance 2.   Incorporating elements of the acclaimed Marvel Civil War storyline, the game allows players to choose their side and team up with revered heroes and villains, including Spider-Man, Wolverine, Hulk, Iron Man, Deadpool, Venom, Green Goblin and Captain America.  Players can combine characters’ powers and unleash astonishing new attacks.   

For more information, visit www.MarvelUltimateAlliance.com, where players can become VIP members earning exclusive and early access to insider content such as classified game information and character reveals, Ask-a-Developer sessions, VIP-only screenshots and videos, and community prizes. 

Fans can also join the recently-launched Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 Civil War online game, a casual online web game that puts players in the heart of the Marvel Civil War, and be eligible for weekly giveaways and prizes, including Xbox 360 Elite consoles, signed memorabilia from Stan Lee, a grand prize of a 42” 1080p flat screen TV and more.  Fans get to choose their side among Pro-Registration and Anti-Registration forces and face off in real-time battles to help their side emerge victorious. 

Vicarious Visions is developing the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system versions; n-Space is developing the Wii™ and Nintendo DS™ versions. (Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 system, and Wii systems have been rated M – Violence and Nintendo DS™ has been rated PG – Mild Violence by the Classification Board). 

About Activision:

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

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

Coming to store for $69.95 in Australia and New Zealand, Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City will be releasing on October 29^th. 

Episodes From Liberty City contains the critically acclaimed ‘The Lost and Damned’, the first standalone episode from Grand Theft Auto IV, as well as the second forthcoming episode ‘The Ballad of Gay Tony’. 

The first ever wallpapers for The Ballad of Gay Tony are available on the web site now in a variety of resolutions, as well as Blackberry and iPhone formats! 

Check the web site for further details… 

www.rockstargames.com/episodesfromlibertycity