Today we are happy to share a new clip from Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony, the all-new episode featured in Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City. Along with a new story, characters, weapons, vehicles, and music, The Ballad of Gay Tony adds a ton of original content for the couch potatoes of Liberty City.

Check out the video for a sneak peek at Princess Robot Bubblegum, the hit anime show taking Liberty City by storm. Also, don’t forget to check out brand-new episodes of other classic shows including Republican Space Rangers, The Men’s Room, and I’m Rich.

Oct. 28, 2009— EB Games,  Australia’s largest video game and entertainment software retailer  announced that TODAY 28^th Oct. Katsuhiro Harada (Harada-san) will make his only public Australian appearance at EB Games Westfield Bondi, Sydney.

Katsuhiro Harada is a Japanese game Producer and Director. Harada-san is the Manager of Game Design Section 2, R&D Dept. 1, R&D Div. 1 at the Contents Production Headquarters of Namco Bandai Games Inc., and he’s been in charge of Tekken for over ten years.  Harada-san’s credits include:

1. Tekken 6 (2009) (VG) [Director] [executive producer]
   1. Soulcalibur IV (2008) (VG) [Director] (co-director)
   2. Soulcalibur Legends (2007) (VG) [special thanks]
   3. Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection (2005) (VG) [game director: arcade original staff] [project supervisor]
   4. Urban Reign (2005) (VG) [special thanks: Tekken team]
   5. Tekken 5 (2005) (VG) [game director] [supervisor: Devil Within]
   6. Tekken 4 (2002) (VG) [project director] [Actor …. Additional Voices] (voice)
   7. Tekken Tag Tournament (2000) (VG) [project director]
   8. Tekken 3 (1998) (VG) [project director]

To help celebrate the upcoming release of Tekken 6, the event will take place at Westfield Bondi Sydney with the following festivities TODAY Oct. 28, 2009, between 1pm and 3pm:

• Autograph signing – Come meet Harada-san, get your photo taken with him and get your Tekken games and merchandise signed.
• Life-size Tekken statue to be won– Come along for your chance to win a life-size statue of Jin and Kaz. A must for all Tekken fans.
• Free copies of the game to be won 1 week prior to release – The top 20 best dressed Tekken fans will receive a free standard edition copy of Tekken 6.
• Free Tekken 6 poster – Everyone that turns up between 1pm and 3pm will receive a free Tekken poster.

We’re proud to announce the release of our action-RPG, Torchlight, which comes to you from the same minds who brought you Diablo, Fate and Mythos. In addition, we have also released the launch trailer for Torchlight, which showcases all of the key features, characters and gameplay of Torchlight.

You can download the latest trailer below on Youtube
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghQBj6Gfn10)

28 October, 2009 –
Super Mario Bros.™ comes to Wii™ for the first time on 12 November!

Take all the fun of a classic side scrolling Mario™ game, couple it with the innovative controls of the Wii Remote™, plus new features and multiplayer options and you have New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii!

New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii allows up to four players to play together, competitively or cooperatively. Pick other players up to save them from danger, or throw them into it! New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii brings family entertainment into living rooms and engages groups of friends and family in fast-paced Super Mario Bros. fun! New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii, additional players can jump into the game at any time and on any level! Mario, Luigi™ and two Toads are all playable characters in New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii, while many others from the Mushroom Kingdom make appearances throughout the game. Players can even ride different Yoshi characters and use Yoshi’s tongue to swallow enemies – or their fellow players.

New items in New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii include Mario’s new ability to transform into Penguin Mario, and also the propeller suit. The propeller suit shoots players high into the sky with just a shake of the Wii Remote.

New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii also contains a Super Guide feature. If players have trouble with a tough course and lose a life enough times in a row, the Super Guide icon will appear in the course. Once activated, Mario’s brother Luigi will take control of the game and show players a safe route through the course as he heads for the goal.

New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii Comes packaged in a special red case AU SRP $99.95 / NZ SRP $119.95*

New SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii features a classic gaming experience that anyone can enjoy, but what about for the seasoned players out there? Brand new power-ups, tricky jumps, and clever co-op techniques will provide plenty of challenges – even for veteran Mario gamers. As you play through the game, Hint Movies can be unlocked that show off some serious platforming finesse by the best players on Nintendo’s development team.

AFI AWARDS NOMINATIONS – ICONIC AUSSIE FILMS & SBS DVD

MELBOURNE, Wednesday, 28 October 2009 – The 2009 Samsung Mobile AFI Awards nominations announcement in Sydney today has revealed an unprecedented raft of nods for Madman Entertainment distributed products, including several key nominations for Madman’s 2009 catalogue of ICONIC AUSSIE FILMS and SBS DVD releases. 

BALIBO (Dec 11^th. DVD $39.95srp / BLU-RAY, $44.95srp) has received a total of 14 nominations across all major categories, including ‘AFI Member’s Choice’, ‘Best Film’, ‘Best Direction’, ‘Best Actor’ and ‘Best Cinematography’. 

SAMSON & DELILAH (Nov 25^th, $39.95srp) has received 11 nominations, again, across most major award categories. These include: ‘AFI Member’s Choice’, ‘Best Film’, ‘Best Direction’, ‘Best Actor’ and ‘Best Cinematography’, as well as ‘Young Actor Award’ nominations for each of the film’s co-stars, Rowan McNamara and Marissa Gibson. 

In addition to recently being awarded ‘Best Film’ in the Alice Nella Città Section at the Rome Cinema Fest, LAST RIDE (Nov. 4, $34.95srp) has received 3 AFI nominations; including ‘Best Cinematography’, ‘Best Actor’ (Hugo Weaving) and a ‘Young Actor Award’ nomination for Tom Russell. 

Several other ICONIC AUSSIE FILMS releases have also received nominations, including MY YEAR WITHOUT SEX (Out Now, $34.95) for ‘Best Original Screenplay’ and  LUCKY COUNTRY (Dec 2, $34.95) for  ‘Best Costume Design’ and a ‘Young Actor Award’ for Toby Wallace. 

SBS series’ EAST WEST 101 – SEASON 2 (Out now, $29.95srp), has received 5 nominations across the Television Nominees category, including ‘Best Drama Series’, ‘Best Direction in a TV Series’, ‘Best Lead Actor’ (Don Hany and ‘Best Lead Actress’ (Susie Porter) 

Other SBS series’ that have receiving nominations this year include FIRST AUSTRALIANS (Out Now, $39.95) for ‘Best Documentary Series’ and ‘Best Direction in a Documentary Series’, CRACKING THE COLOUR CODE (Out Now, $24.95) ‘Best Cinematography’ and ‘Best Edtiing’ in a documentary, SAVED (Out Now, $24.95) ‘Best Telefeature’ and DEATH OF THE MEGA BEASTS (Jan 13^th 2010, $24.95) for the ‘AFI Visual Effects Award’. 

Scott Hicks’ GLASS: A PORTRAIT OF PHILIP IN TWELVE PARTS (Out Now, $34.95) has also been nominated for 2 awards in the documentary category, including ‘Best Feature Length Documentary’ and ‘Best Sound in a Documentary’. 

The 2009 Samsung Mobile AFI Awards Ceremony will take place on Saturday, Dec 12^th at the Regent Theatre, Collins Street, Melbourne, and will be broadcast on Channel 9 at 9.30pm.

Releasing November 4, Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron is the deepest and most action-packed Star Wars Battlefront game ever. 

Experience battlefronts that span ground, space and capital starships, a robust original storyline and expanded gameplay features that deliver endless replayability.

Check out the official Eminem trailer at http://www.gametrailers.com/video/eminem-behind-dj-hero/58216

Expanding upon the revolutionary easy to pick up/challenging to master gameplay mechanics developed and refined in Guitar Hero®, DJ Hero™ delivers an all-new interactive music experience that allows players to start the party and not only experience, but to hear music in an all-new way. 

With over 100 individual songs, highlighted in 93 unique never-before-released mixes that blend genres of music, including hip-hop, pop, rock and dance, DJ Hero delivers the most diverse and international collection of music ever assembled in a music game by incorporating anthems from legendary artists. 

Created exclusively for DJ Hero, the turntable controller immerses fans into the authenticity of DJ culture and a sea of music as they utilise and master various DJ techniques including scratching, blending, cross fading and sampling, while leaving room for creative expression with a variety of effects and player chosen samples and scratches, transforming a face in the crowd into the life of the party. 

PLEASE NOTE THAT DJ HERO IS ON SALE FROM 28^th October IN AUSTRALIA.

Fast and light all-in-one security suite now Windows 7 compatible and available for download 

Sydney – Oct. 28, 2009 – After bringing to market a unique approach to the fight against cybercrime with the award-winning Norton Internet Security 2010 and Norton AntiVirus 2010, today Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC) unveiled data proving the effectiveness of the powerful new protection model codenamed “Quorum,” now available as part of the Norton 360 version 4.0 beta.  The upcoming version of Symantec’s fast and light all-in-one security suite features improvements to PC tuneup, backup and other aspects of the product.  Norton 360 beta is Microsoft Windows 7 compatible, as are Norton Internet Security 2010 and Norton Antivirus 2010. 

“Basic security is not enough for today’s complex threat landscape,” said Charles Kolodgy, research director of Security Products at IDC.  “Consumers are facing an environment of online threats that are fast increasing in number and evolving in scope to put their identities and finances at risk.  To maintain their confidence regarding the Internet, consumers are turning to products, such as Norton 360, that provide multiple layers of security protection.” 

Introduced last month with the Norton 2010 products, codename “Quorum” uses the unique attributes of a file, such as age, download source, digital signature, and prevalence, to assess its reputation.  It also continuously updates a file’s reputation as it changes over time.  Since its release, the new protection model is now tracking 70 million unique files, leveraging input from more than 35 million anonymous Norton Community Watch members.  In addition, the technology currently identifies one million new files per week. 

Leveraging this technology, Symantec has achieved unprecedented results in third-party testing designed to compare the effectiveness of security products against genuine threats consumers might encounter online.  In tests conducted by Dennis Technology Labs ([1]), an independent UK-based lab that specialises in “real-world” anti-malware testing, Norton Internet Security 2010 powered by the new protection model was the only product out of 10 to achieve a perfect score of 100 percent detection, compared to an average detection rate of 78 percent across all products tested. 

In addition to protection and performance, Norton 360 beta includes improvements to the features valued most by consumers, such as PC tuneup and backup.  The latest version boasts enhancements designed to save computer users time, improve PC performance and deliver “set and forget” convenience.  Consumers can save valuable boot-up time by using the Smart Start-up Manager feature to reduce or stagger start-up applications.  For backup users, Norton 360 beta offers the ability to backup up files online, and to restore or access them from anywhere via the Web.  

“In the fight against cybercrime, we recognise that consumers need more than just basic protection,” said Rowan Trollope, senior vice president, Consumer Products and Marketing, Symantec.  “Our technology’s effectiveness has been battle-tested and proven in the field, and we’re including this new form of security in the Norton 360 beta.” 

Norton 360 beta includes additional key features such as the Norton Insight family of technologies and enhanced versions of the recovery tool and Norton Identity Safe.  Also included in Norton 360 beta are SONAR 2, sophisticated second-generation behavioral security technology that detects entirely new threats based on their suspicious actions, without the need for traditional fingerprints, and a powerful new enterprise-grade spam blocking engine.  Norton 360 beta features Norton Safe Web, a Web site rating service that annotates Google, Yahoo! and Live.com search results with safety and ecommerce ratings, and an opportunity to try OnlineFamily.Norton, a Web-based service that keeps parents in the loop on their kids’ online lives. 

Beta Availability

The beta is available for free public download now at: www.norton.com/n360v4beta. Norton beta testers are encouraged to share feedback and discuss their product experiences in our online Norton Public Beta Forum.

Norton Internet Security 2010 with Reputation-based Security Technology

Scores Perfect Threat Detection Rate 

Symantec security solutions earn accolades from Dennis Technology Lab, AV-Comparatives and AV-Test.org 

Sydney. – Oct. 28, 2009 – Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC) today announced that its industry-leading Norton security products received top reviews from three respected, independent testing bodies, Dennis Technology Lab, AV-Comparatives.org and AV-Test.org. These independent reports highlight that new Symantec technologies including codename Quorum and advanced heuristics are proven to increase effectiveness in providing protection against today’s real world threats. These groundbreaking technologies are currently available in the newly announced Norton 360 version 4.0 beta, Norton Internet Security 2010 and Norton AntiVirus 2010.

“These tests covered important, but very different benchmarks in security testing and yet each one arrived at the same conclusion — Norton is a best-in-class offering,” said Stephen Trilling, vice president, Security Technology and Response, Symantec. “Symantec’s products, with our new reputation-based security technology and advanced heuristics, demonstrated their ability to protect against millions of threats while maintaining among the lowest false positive rates and the highest performance across all tested products.

Dennis Technology Lab

Dennis Technology Lab recently tested the effectiveness of 10 well-known security offerings in a real-world anti-malware comparison test. Designed specifically to reflect a customer’s experience as closely as possible, the test exposed each of the 10 products to genuine Internet threats the way real users could have encountered them.  Each test system was instructed to visit genuinely infected Web sites and downloaded files exactly as an average user would.  The report shows that Norton Internet Security2010 achieved a perfect detection rate, and was noted as “the only product to do so” defending against all threats and fully protecting the system from attack or compromise. In stark contrast to the Norton results, the report noted that the average detection rate across all products tested was 78 percent.

[1] 

AV-Comparatives

In the Anti-Virus Comparatives Test No. 23, performed by AV-Comparatives.org, Norton AntVirus 2010 received the top “Advanced+” rating for protection, awarded only to those products that have very high detection with few false positives.  Symantec also received the top “Fast” rating for scanning speed.  Amongst products receiving the top “Fast” rating, Symantec had the highest level of detection, representing the best combination of detection, false positives and scanning speed. 

AV-Test.org

AV-Test.org recently performed a test of Norton Internet Security 2010 and noted that the product “was able to detect 459,872 samples, yielding an excellent detection score of 99.75 percent.”  The test also noted that “Symantec’s product was tested on a PC that was already infected with 25 different malware samples.  The product successfully detected and removed all infections.”

The Technology behind the Products

The core anti-malware technology and content evaluated in these reviews is delivered by Symantec’s Security Technology and Response (STAR) organisation, a worldwide team of security engineers, threat analysts and researchers dedicated to developing the world’s best protection against both existing and emerging threats. 

STAR’s technology is leveraged across Symantec’s enterprise and consumer security product lines. This year, STAR, working with Symantec’s Consumer Business Unit, delivered a number of highly innovative new security technologies.  These enhancements have contributed to the top levels of detection and performance achieved in these reviews.  The innovative technologies introduced in Norton Internet Security and Norton AntiVirus 2010 include:

• New reputation-based security: Symantec’s new technology codenamed Quorum leverages the wisdom of Norton’s tens of millions of participating customers to derive highly accurate security ratings for virtually every file available on the Internet.  This empowers Symantec users to make far better choices about the software they download and install on their computers. 
• Advanced new heuristic protection: STAR has introduced a new generation of heuristics to detect unknown malware files before they can run and cause damage.  This advanced approach detects entirely new malware, spyware and adware strains without fingerprints, instead searching files for suspicious sequences of instructions typically used by malicious software.
• Advanced new behavioral protection: STAR has completely redesigned the behavioral protection, enabling it to recognise and block thousands of new malware variants by analysing the behaviors of running software, all without traditional fingerprints.
• New lean and efficient engines: STAR optimised the core security scanning engines, helping to make Norton Internet Security 2010 and Norton AntiVirus 2010 the fastest security products in the industry.

Additional Resources

• See additional background on Symantec’s Reputation-based security technology (codename Quorum) here
• See what makes codename Quorum unique here 

About the Reviews

Dennis Technology Lab is an independent UK-based test lab that specialises in ‘real world’ anti-malware tests.  The “PC Virus Protection 2010”report is a result of testing conducted by Dennis Technology Lab which aims to compare the effectiveness of the most recent releases of popular anti-virus software, including a selection of commercial and free programs. This study was commissioned by Symantec and can be downloaded in its entirety here.

Anti-Virus Comparative No. 23 is the latest comprehensive security product evaluation conducted by the independent testing organisation AV-Comparatives. The reviewers evaluated security products from 16 major vendors in three areas: Overall Malware Detection, False Positive Testing and Scanning Speed.   Products achieving top detection rates with a low number of false positives received the top “Advanced+” rating.  For further information on the review, visit http://www.av-comparatives.org/images/stories/test/ondret/avc_report23.pdf

The independent testing organisation AV-Test.org, conducts regular security tests of products from all major vendors.   Further details are available at http://www.av-test.org/.  

About Security Technology and Response

Symantec’s Security Technology and Response (STAR) organisation, which includes Security Response, is a worldwide team of security engineers, threat analysts, and researchers that provides the underlying functionality, content, and support for all Symantec corporate and consumer security products. With global response centers located throughout the world, STAR monitors malicious code reports from more than 120 million systems across the Internet, receives data from 40,000 network sensors in more than 180 countries, and tracks more than 25,000 vulnerabilities affecting more than 55,000 technologies from more than 8,000 vendors. The team uses this vast intelligence to develop and deliver the world’s most comprehensive security protection.

About Security Solutions from Symantec

Symantec helps organisations secure and manage their information-driven world with security management, endpoint security, messaging security and application security solutions.

About Symantec

Symantec is a global leader in providing security, storage and systems management solutions to help consumers and organisations secure and manage their information-driven world.  Our software and services protect against more risks at more points, more completely and efficiently, enabling confidence wherever information is used or stored. More information is available at www.symantec.com.

ACTIVISION’S BAKUGAN BATTLE BRAWLERS™ VIDEO GAME IS NOW OUT IN AUSTRALIA  

The World’s Hottest Toy and Animated TV Series  Comes to Life on Five Game Platforms Today 

Sydney, Australia – October 28, 2009 – Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) announced today that Bakugan Battle Brawlers™, the most anticipated kids’ video game of the year, has been released for Nintendo DS™, the Wii™, the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and the PlayStation®3 and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment systems.  There is also a limited run Nintendo DS Collector’s Edition that includes an exclusive “Naga” ball packed in with the game. The Bakugan Battle Brawlers video game, licensed by Corus Entertainment Inc.’s Nelvana, is based on the top-rated television series and Spin Master’s best-selling toy.  The game allows fans to become a part of the universe they love – meeting all the characters from the show and taking part in battles to become the world’s best. 

“Bakugan™ is a true phenomenon that continues to explode in popularity and the videogame will draw even more people into its universe,” said David Oxford, Activision Publishing.  “The Bakugan Battle Brawlers videogame combines the characters and story from the cartoon series with the skill and strategy of the toy line to create an experience like no other.” 

Fans can jump in the game to answer the call to brawl as they throw Bakugan cards onto the battlefield and then try to carefully shoot their Bakugan balls onto the cards to unleash their monstrous powers.  When two Bakugans stand on the same card, they transform into gigantic creatures and fight to the finish. 

Bakugan is based on the story of Dan and his friends whose lives were forever changed when mysterious cards fell from the sky.  Creating a game from the cards where powerful creatures known as Bakugan battle, it wasn’t long before they discovered that their hobby was much more than just a simple pastime.  Utilising special game cards Bakugan battle masters roll spheres onto the cards, which activate and transform into Bakugan “battle brawling” action figures. 

The toy line has won three 2008 “Toy of the Year” awards from the Toy Industry Association and its Bakugan^® Battle Brawlers^™ New Vestroia ^™ Maxus Helios^™ 7 in 1 toy was recently listed as one of Toys”R”Us’ “Fabulous 15” toys for the upcoming holiday season.  “Bakugan” is also wildly popular animated series airing on Cartoon Network and Network Ten in Australia and many international broadcasters. 

Bakugan Battle Brawlers™ is a co-production from Nelvana Enterprises, Spin Master Ltd., Sega Toys Ltd., TMS Entertainment, Ltd., Japan Vistec Inc. and Sega Corporation, with animation by Japan Vistec Inc. and TMS Entertainment, Ltd. 

For more information on Bakugan: Battle Brawlers, visit http://www.bakugan-videogame.com. 

About Corus Entertainment Inc.

Corus Entertainment Inc. is a Canadian-based media and entertainment company. Corus is a market leader in specialty television and radio with additional assets in pay television, advertising services, television broadcasting, children’s book publishing and children’s animation. The company’s multimedia entertainment brands include YTV, Treehouse, W Network, CosmoTV, VIVA, Movie Central, HBO Canada, Nelvana, Kids Can Press and radio stations including CKNW, CKOI and Q107. Corus creates engaging branded entertainment experiences for its audiences across multiple platforms. A publicly traded company, Corus is listed on the Toronto (CJR.B) and New York (CJR) exchanges. Experience Corus on the web at www.corusent.com. 

About Spin Master 

A multi-category children’s entertainment company since 1994, Spin Master® has been designing, developing, manufacturing and marketing consumer products for children around the world and is recognized as a global growth leader within the toy industry. Spin Master is best known for such popular brands as 2008 Toy of the Year winner Air Hogs®, Aquadoodle™, Tech Deck™, Moon Sand™ and new boys action phenomena Bakugan Battle Brawlers™.  Spin Master employs over 600 people with offices in Toronto, Los Angeles, Paris, London, Hong Kong and China.  For additional information please visit: www.spinmaster.com. 

About Now Production 

Now Production is a premiere videogame developer founded in 1986 and based in Japan. It has developed games for many major publishers, including Namco, Konami and Activision, working on games such as Katamari Damacy, Dance Dance Revolution and Little League World Series 2008. In recent years, NowPro has started creating original, independent titles and is also involved with developing mobile software and online games. 

About Activision Publishing

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, the Netherlands, Australia, Japan and South Korea. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company’s website, www.activision.com.