THQ today announced the release of Darksiders, the critically acclaimed action-adventure game, set on Earth one hundred years after the apocalypse brings about the premature end of humanity.  Developed by THQ’s internal development studio Vigil Games, Darksiders gives players control of War, one of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse, as he explores a demon-ravaged world and battles heaven and hell in an epic quest for vengeance and vindication.  Darksiders is now available at retail outlets nationwide for Xbox 360 and PS3 for a suggested retail price of $109.95

LIVE MUSICIANS SCORE M.U.D TV SOUNDTRACK

Worms/Bracknell/Baltimore, 6th January 2010.

Fed up of the same TV shows repeated week in week out? Reality TV getting stale?
Think you can do a better job? Well it’s time to put your money where your mouth is
and head over to M.U.D. TV (Mad, Ugly, Dirty Television) where you call the shots as
a top TV Exec striving to raise the ratings and bring in the advertising revenue of your
TV station.

To create the right atmosphere for the crazy TV studio environment, Kalypso Media
recorded the M.U.D TV soundtrack using live musicians. Johannes Semm, Boris Royko,
Cornelius Ulrich and Michael Pätz not only composed the games’ score but also played
the instruments and recorded it live in a studio. The result is a blend of funk, chill out
and soul music fitting the gameplay perfectly.

A five minute medley of M.U.D TV’s soundtrack is available to download now. Head
over to www.kalypsomedia.com/downloads/mudtv-medley.zip to sample for yourself.
M.U.D. TV is currently under development by Kalypso Media’s own studio Realmforge
and will be available on PC in March 2010. For all the latest news on M.U.D TV visit
the official game site www.mud-tv.com

We love starting the New Year out with a bang! On the eve of CES 2010, Steve Ballmer and Robbie Bach announced in Microsoft’s keynote address that 2009 was a great year for Xbox and 2010 will be the biggest year ever in Xbox history.

In 2009…

• Xbox sold more than 10 million consoles last year and we have now sold 39 million Xbox 360s around the world.
• Xbox Live continues to redefine and lead social games and entertainment:
  • Xbox  LIVE enjoyed its biggest week ever at Christmas time, with a new member joining every second.
  • Xbox LIVE saw record peaks of more than 2.2 million people using the service at the same time.
  • The addition of new social features like Facebook, Twitter and 1080p instant on movies has been a huge success with nearly 10 million members utilising entertainment content on Xbox LIVE. 
  • Over 1 million new friend connections have been made since the launch of Facebook on Xbox LIVE. 

For 2010…

• As announced during the keynote, “Project Natal” will be hitting living rooms this holiday (2010).  “Project Natal” – which will work with every Xbox 360 – ushers in an entirely new category of games and entertainment, turning YOU into the controller.
• 2010 will deliver our biggest line-up ever of exclusive blockbuster releases.  Kicking off the first-half of the year with back-to-back Xbox 360 exclusives like Splinter Cell Conviction, Crackdown 2, Mass Effect 2, and Alan Wake.  Our holiday line-up of games includes the highly anticipated Fable 3, followed by Halo Reach, which is expected to be the biggest title of 2010.
  • With Xbox LIVE, we’re changing the face of social entertainment.
    • A new Xbox LIVE experience, “Game Room,” will be the ultimate destination for reliving the glory days of the classic 1980s arcade. “Game Room” will offer a library of 30 original arcade and console classics including “Centipede®,” “Asteroids Deluxe®,” and “Super Cobra,” which are shown in their original cabinet designs.  Buy once and play on both your Xbox 360 and Windows-based PC.

For additional Xbox news and assets for CES, please visit www.microsoft.com/ces.

Kingston shows its support for the SISTER2sister Program
A Life Changing Experience Foundation program

Sydney, Australia: January 6, 2010 — Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the world leader in memory products supported the Life Changing Experience Foundation’s “SISTER2sister” Program. During the 2009 graduation ceremony in November, Kingston provided a custom USB Flash drive as a special gift to each of the “little sister” graduates, “big sister” mentor volunteers, and the staff and team leaders from the foundation. With the logo of the Life Changing Experiences foundation etched on the drive, the Kingston USB Flash drive can not only hold precious memory and photographs, but will also serve as a reminder of their year long experience on the program.

“We are very happy and thankful for Kingston’s generosity and its support to this program and all the participants would be thrilled by receiving the memorable keepsake,” said Jessica Brown, CEO and the founder of Life Changing Experiences Foundation.

“This mentoring program is a meaningful experience that will have a huge impact in the lives of many teenage girls and we admire the spirits that all these members have shown during the process of goal-achieving. It is a program that Kingston values and we are very delighted to support such a program.” said Vaughan Nankivell, Regional Manager- Australia and New Zealand for Kingston Technology.

The SISTER2sister program initiated by Life Changing Experiences Foundation provides young teenage girls who are at risk of abuse and/or neglect with a professional positive female model to inspire and help motivate them throughout the year. The program strives to help young girls realise their full potential and give them the opportunity to become confident young women.  In 2009, this was achieved by different activities each month such as learning to surf, cooking, climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, combined with talks given by resource speakers on relevant teenage issues. 

For more information on the foundation please visit their website www.lifechangingexperiences.org.

To discuss this product on Kingston Blog, please go to www.kingston-blog.com. To try the game “Challenge Your Memory”, please go to www.kingston-blog.com/challenge_your_memory/en/.

About Kingston Technology Company, Inc.
Kingston Technology Company, Inc. is the world’s largest independent manufacturer of memory products. Kingston designs, manufactures and distributes memory products for desktops, laptops, servers, printers, and Flash memory products for PDAs, mobile phones, digital cameras, and MP3 players. Through its global network of subsidiaries and affiliates, Kingston has manufacturing facilities in California, Taiwan, China, Malaysia and sales representatives in the United States, Taiwan, China, India, Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam, Europe, Russia, Turkey, and Latin America. For more information, please visit www.kingston.com/anz.

VANCOUVER,BC – January 5, 2010—()—Deep Fried Entertainment Inc., an independent video game developer, is proud to announce its first WiiWare™ title, ShadowPlay, an entertaining puzzle game that  will have you thinking about common household objects in a different light! The game is available exclusively on WiiWare service for Nintendo’s Wii™ system, and will be released January 11^th, 2010.

ShadowPlay challenges players by transforming shadows into 100 exciting, unique puzzles. By using the Wii Remote™, players manipulate their given objects one by one to create a cumulative shadow that matches the goal. As more challenging puzzles are unlocked, players will have to find more creative ways to solve problems. You will never look at a slice of pizza the same way again! Winning a round will allow players to advance to the next level as well as score another item to use in the FreePlay Mode where you can unleash your imagination and create your own shadow art. Try creating a bike out of a pineapple or a dolphin out of the shadow of a pear.  Family and friends can also jump in to help tackle a puzzle at any time using Local Co-op Mode! ShadowPlay will provide tons of brain-racking fun for players of all ages!

What is even more awesome is that ShadowPlay is the first independent WiiWare game to take full advantage of the Wii MotionPlus™, which means you can experience full maneuverability of objects and have even more fun! Of course, the game still works with the Nunchuk™ controller and will provide loads of entertainment.

“ShadowPlay is a unique game introducing a new way to solve puzzles. Playing with shadows is present in almost every culture in the world, in some form or another, and I think this game taps into a really creative way to express ourselves. I particularly love the FreePlay mode!” says Brenda Bailey Gershkovitch, DFE’s C.O.O.

Key Features:

-100 intriguing puzzles, lots of unique objects for manipulation and 10 themes with various challenging levels provide entertainment for all players of all ages!

– Wii MotionPlus compatibility!

-Local Co-op mode allows for collaborative fun

-Full manipulation of 3-D objects for complete control

-Bonus FreePlay Mode where you can create your own shadows!

 How do you ShadowPlay?

Nintendo trademarks used under license. WiiWare is available only through the Wii console.

Get ready…!

Hannah Montana, everyone’s favourite singing and dancing Disney Channel star, continues to live the best of both worlds when Hannah Montana Season 3, Part 1 is released as a double-disc Disney DVD on 31 March 2010! With more reasons than ever before to take Hannah home, exclusive to the DVD are behind the scenes features including: backstage time with Miley and “Even More Sister Secrets”: Brandi Cyrus goes behind the camera with Miley!

Showcasing Hannah’s all-new look, with new stories and new music, you can enjoy 15 totally awesome episodes as Hollywood superstar MILEY CYRUS is back as Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana. As your typical Malibu teen: juggling school, boys and her secret double life as the chart-topping celebrity Hannah Montana,  this latest series on DVD, is everything you’ll want for your Hannah collection and more!

In the first half of season 3, Miley and the gang are back with even more hilarious escapades as Hannah finally gets her licence but has to prove that she’s actually Miley when the police pull her over! You’ll love watching Lily and Oliver’s new romance as it starts to blossom… and you’ll be laughing for hours when Jackson suffers from amnesia, leaving Miley to convince him to do the craziest of things! With a hit new movie, “Indiana Joannie” and a brand new look, Miley has the world at her feet, but she’ll need help from her family and friends to remind her that she is Miley first and Hannah second.

With even more exclusive bonus features exclusive to DVD including a behind the scenes peek at the cast and their dogs, and a ton of totally rocking’ new songs featuring Let’s Get Crazy and Ice Cream Freeze (let’s do this!), Hannah Montana Season 3 Part 1 is the latest addition to add to every Hannah fan’s collection!

Sydney-based distributor appointed for sales and marketing of Konami titles in Australia and New Zealand
 

Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH has announced it has appointed Mindscape Asia Pacific to oversee its distribution responsibilities in Australia and New Zealand.

As part of the agreement, Mindscape will look after all distribution and marketing for Konami’s forthcoming titles. They will oversee key titles starting with Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s Tag Force 4 for PSP® (PLAYSTATION®PORTABLE), and beyond including titles such as Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow.

The agreement will take effect from January 4th, and will cover all new Konami titles from that period. “The sheer enthusiasm and experience Mindscape offered made them an easy choice as our Australian partner,” commented Kunio Neo, President of Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH. “Their knowledge of the Australian market and expert team will help us make huge inroads in a year when Konami has some of the most exciting and innovative titles. We look forward to a long and fruitful relationship.”

“We are delighted to be working with a publisher of Konami’s reputation in a year when they have such strong releases,” commented Tony Hughes, Managing Director Asia & Pacific for Mindscape. “We look forward to launching the new games and showing our skills at bringing such triple-A titles to the Australian market.” 

Konami appoints Mindscape to oversee Australian ops

Sydney-based distributor appointed for sales and marketing of Konami titles in Australia and New Zealand

Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH has announced it has appointed Mindscape Asia Pacific to oversee its distribution responsibilities in Australia and New Zealand.

As part of the agreement, Mindscape will look after all distribution and marketing for Konami’s forthcoming titles. They will oversee key titles starting with Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s Tag Force 4 for PSP® (PLAYSTATION®PORTABLE), and beyond including titles such as Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow.

The agreement will take effect from January 4th, and will cover all new Konami titles from that period. “The sheer enthusiasm and experience Mindscape offered made them an easy choice as our Australian partner,” commented Kunio Neo, President of Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH. “Their knowledge of the Australian market and expert team will help us make huge inroads in a year when Konami has some of the most exciting and innovative titles. We look forward to a long and fruitful relationship.”

“We are delighted to be working with a publisher of Konami’s reputation in a year when they have such strong releases,” commented Tony Hughes, Managing Director Asia & Pacific for Mindscape. “We look forward to launching the new games and showing our skills at bringing such triple-A titles to the Australian market.”

WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE: SEASON 1, VOLUME 1

It’s time for more hilarious magical mishaps at Waverly Place with Alex and the gang when volume one of Wizards of Waverly Place is released to Disney DVD 3 March, 2010! With exclusive bonus features ONLY available on DVD, including a magical trip behind the scenes with the cast, Volume 1 of Wizards of Waverly Place is sure to leave you totally spellbound and begging for the next instalment!

Starring in her own Disney Channel Original series, successful teen flicks including Princess Protection Program and rocking on her upcoming album, this year’s teen choice female TV star of the year SELENA GOMEZ steals the show as the coolest teen wizard in town. You’ll love watching Alex’s spells go awry and her hilarious attempts to reverse the magic, all while hiding her identity as a wizard to the rest of the world!

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SONNY WITH A CHANCE: SEASON 1, VOLUME 1

It’s now time for lights, camera and so much action as Sonny Munroe (DEMI LOVATO) lives out every teenage girl’s fantasy when she gets plucked from obscurity and into the fast and exciting world of super-stardom in Hollywood! After gaining instant fame from her self-produced viral short that has exploded on the internet, Sonny is hot property and quickly becomes the newest cast member of So Random, the hugely popular teen sketch comedy show. Starring another Disney Channel star, DEMI LOVATO, Volume 1 of Sonny with a Chance is available for the first time on Disney DVD.

Catch 9 bonus episodes of So Random’s number one competitor TV show, McKenzie Falls, with the cliff-hanger episode never-before-seen and exclusive to DVD!

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JONAS: SEASON 1, VOLUME 1

Get ready for the ultimate rock star experience when Volume 1 of JONAS is released to Disney DVD! Sleek guitars? Maths tests? Screaming fans? It’s all just a typical day for Nick, Kevin and Joe Lucas, the stars of JONAS, the hottest rock band on the planet! With bonus features ONLY available on Disney including exclusive episodes and a hilarious behind the scenes prank, Volume 1 of JONAS is the must-have addition to every Jo Bro fan’s collection when released to Disney DVD, 3 March, 2010!

This super talented trio are not your typical rock stars. Juggling worldwide fame with school, regular friends and their family is half the fun and you’ll love watching your favourite teen heartthrobs tear up the stage in front of thousands of fans before making it home in time to do the dishes!993999

BLAZBLUE CONFIRMED FOR AUSTRALIA

The highly acclaimed 2D fighting game gets set to arrive down under!

Gold Coast: 4th December 2009. N3V Games together with All Interactive Entertainment (AIE) are pleased to announce that they will be releasing BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger across Australia and New Zealand on PLAYSTATION®3 and Xbox 360®.

BlazBlue is a new experience in 2D fighting games making exceptional use of the power behind the Next Gen consoles and online gameplay networks. The game is created by Arc System Works, the Japanese developers behind the critically acclaimed, long running Guilty Gears fighting franchise which began in 1998.

BlazBlue has been hailed as the “game that every self-respecting console fighting fan should play”. It has already enjoyed huge success in Japan and critical acclaim in North America with over 70% of reviews rating the game as 90% or higher, three giving it a perfect score!

N3V Games will be publishing the Zen United line-up including the much anticipated BlazBlue.

“We have a fantastic line-up going forward into Christmas and are starting the first half of 2010 aggressive with 3 monster titles with BlazBlue being one of them! The Zen titles are a welcome addition to N3V’s line-up and we will be working very closely with them to make all their releases a great success. We have big plans for BlazBlue upon release that I’m positive all the OZ gamers out there will enjoy – so keep up to date via our website and the BlazBlue Australian site which will be active come December.” – Paul Olsen (N3V Games – Production Head).

In the PAL version all characters have an “Unlimited” unlockable and there are new character colours. Online, the PAL version is completely compatible with US and Japanese networked players.