Future of Online Game Design Defined at gamescom

Sydney, Australia – August 18, 2011 – NCsoft®, the premier global leader in massively multiplayer online (MMO) games, staked its claim to the future of online gaming with some of the most innovative entertainment properties at gamescom, the world’s largest tradeshow for interactive games and entertainment. NCsoft revealed one of the best kept secrets for the show, WildStar™, its latest MMO, with a polished three-act playable build on the day of the announcement, unheard of in the video game industry. The company also showcased a new playable build from the highly anticipated Guild Wars 2® featuring several new races, professions and Player vs. Player combat. Attendees at gamescom can experience the magic on the show floor in the NCsoft booth (A11/B10, Hall 9.1.)

“WildStar and Guild Wars 2 showcase the innovation coming from NCsoft’s development studios, paving the way for the next generation of videogames and setting a high bar for the entertainment industry to follow,” said Matt Turetzky, executive vice-president of publishing for NCsoft West. “We are focused on delighting players by delivering fun, immersive experiences that rival traditional forms of entertainment through personal expression, best-in-class gameplay mechanics, and social engagement.”

Developed by NCsoft’s Southern California-based Carbine Studios, WildStar offers epic high adventure, where players make their mark as Explorers, Soldiers, Scientists or Settlers and lay claim to a mysterious planet on the edge of known space. WildStar’s iconic visual style and “Momentum Mechanics” immerse players in a deep world stacked with content, challenges and rewards that respond to the play style choices of individual players. Depending on a combination of faction, race, class and path, WildStar will present gamers with unending surprises, mini-quests and challenges, ensuring that their experiences are fun and fresh.

Since winning Online Game of the Year at gamescom 2010, ArenaNet® revealed several new elements of the highly anticipated Guild Wars 2 including the Engineer profession, dungeons and underwater areas of the world. This year at gamescom 2011, NCsoft and ArenaNet give players the opportunity to get hands-on with several new and exciting aspects of the game including an encounter with an Undead Dragon boss, Player vs. Player combat, character appearance customization as well as a glimpse into the charr starting area and asura and sylvari mid-level content, which are all playable on the show floor.

For more information about NCsoft’s presence at gamescom, please visit http://us.ncsoft.com/en/events/.

About NCsoft
NCsoft, headquartered in Seoul, Korea, is the world’s premier publisher and developer of massively multiplayer online games, including the critically acclaimed Aion®, Lineage®, Guild Wars®, and City of Heroes® franchises. Announced in August 2011, WildStar™ is the newest MMO being developed by internal team Carbine Studios. NCsoft West is a division of NCsoft that holds operating responsibilities for North America, Europe, South America, and Australia/New Zealand. More information can be found at http://www.ncsoft.com

A week of bonuses, free game time, and awesome prizes … and everyone is invited!

SYDNEY, Australia & REDWOOD SHORES, Calif. – August 18, 2011 – Whether you’re Guardian or Defiant, High Elf or Kelari, a PvE-er or PvP-er, you’re going to find a good reason to celebrate starting August 25^th as RIFT™ reaches its  half-year milestone. More than a million gamers have activated RIFT in the six months since launch, making it one of the most successful MMORPG releases in history, and from August 25^th to September 1^st, Trion is rewarding everyone. Subscribers will enjoy a week of substantial in-game bonuses, and new and returning players can play the full game free with no leveling or zone restrictions.

“We really wanted to do something fun and memorable for this amazing milestone,” said Scott Hartsman, RIFT Executive Producer. “What better way to say thanks than to kick the doors open and add even more rewards for our subscribers?”

Subscriber half-birthday week bonuses include:

• Special Surprise Birthday Gift – Following the event, all active subscribers will receive a special in-game birthday surprise to commemorate the occasion!    
• Bonus Experience – Your blood-lust is rewarded with bonus experience in both PvE and PvP 
• Guild Bonus Experience – Swiftly level-up your guild with bonus XP granted for completing guild quests  
• Big PvP Payouts – All warfronts and open-world PvP will grant extra Favor and Prestige  
• A Plethora of Planarite – Sealing Telara’s rifts and combating the invasions will reward you with extra planarite  
• Bonus Plaques & Marks – Increased chance for bonus Plaques of Achievement and Marks of Ascension in all dungeons and raids 

The party doesn’t have to stop on the 1^st! New Ascended who choose to continue their adventures in Telara can purchase the game client for just $4.99 USD through September 1^st if they sign up for any RIFT subscription plan.

RIFT revelers can also participate in several contests scheduled throughout the week for the chance to win awesome prizes. For the most up to date information on RIFT, please visit www.riftgame.com.

TrackMania2 Canyon builds upon the successes of the prequel with updated graphics, realistic racing features and an expanded network infrastructure, while still maintaining the intuitive gameplay, captivating racing modes and familiar community instruments that made the series so unique. TrackMania² Canyon is the first title to be released on ManiaPlanet, the new gaming system giving players access to innovative and enjoyable online games!

To celebrate the forthcoming release of RAGE™, the highly anticipated first-person shooter from legendary developer id Software, Bethesda Softworks® is pleased to announce An Evening With id Software: A Look At The Past, Present and Future of Gaming. This special event, to be held at the iconic Sydney Opera House on Sept. 14, 2011, will feature RAGE creative director, Tim Willits, talking candidly about the history of id, RAGE, and his thoughts on the future of the industry. 

Inventors of the FPS genre, id Software are celebrated for developing blockbuster franchises including DOOM®, QUAKE® and Wolfenstein®. Formed in 1991 in Richardson, Texas, id has a long-standing reputation as the godfathers of the first person shooter, not only defining the genre in the early nineties but refining it over the last two decades. For one night only, The Sydney Opera House will be home to the art of video games and Tim Willits.

A number of lucky fans will have the opportunity to attend this exclusive event alongside a number of the Australian and New Zealand video games industry.  They can win their chance to attend via a series of competitions hosted across a number of media outlets later this month.

RAGE will be released in Australia and New Zealand on October 6^th, 2011, and will be available on Xbox 360^® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation^®3 computer entertainment system, and PC. RAGE won numerous awards at E3, including ‘Best Overall Game of Show’ from IGN and three ‘Best of E3’ Game Critics Awards including ‘Best Console Game’. RAGE features intense first-person shooter action, breakneck vehicle combat, an expansive world to explore and jaw-dropping graphics powered by id’s revolutionary id Tech 5 technology.

For more information on RAGE please visit www.RAGE.com.

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Follow the delightfully fun – and often hilarious – journey of a group of young teenagers as they navigate through the most memorable and also difficult times of their lives in the original film PROM, arriving on Disney Blu-ray Value Pack and DVD on November 2. This enchanting coming-of-age story is the perfect family-friendly film that captures all the anticipation, excitement, drama, and humor that accompany every young person‘s journey through high school.

At ?Prom‘, every couple has a story and no two are exactly alike. For Nova Prescott (Aimee Teegarden), it‘s a classic tale of opposites attracting when she finds herself drawn to the guy who gets in the way of her perfect prom, Jesse (Thomas McDonell). Fellow seniors Mei (Yin Chang) and Tyler (De‘Vaughn Nixon) harbor secrets, while others face all the insecurity and anticipation that surrounds one of high school‘s most seminal events. Share the laughter and the drama as secrets are brought to light, seemingly steady relationships unravel and new romances catch fire. Get ready for this hilariously heartfelt date with destiny featuring a hot ensemble cast of rising young stars and cool bonus features.

There are hundreds of nights in high school, but there‘s only one PROM! Fans won‘t want to miss the chance to own the ultimate 2-Disc Blu-ray Value Pack, exclusively packaged with bonus features including a hilarious, laugh-out-loud short, Last Chance Lloyd, plus deleted scenes, music videos and more. PROM will be available for purchase at retail as a 2-Disc Blu-ray Value Pack (Blu-ray + DVD) for $49.95 RRP or 1-Disc DVD for $39.95 RRP.

PROM stars Aimee Teegarden (Friday Night Lights), Thomas McDonell (The Forbidden Kingdom), Danielle Campbell (Prison Break), Yin Chang (Gossip Girl), Nicholas Braun (10 Things I Hate About You), Jared Kusnitz (The Secret Life of the American Teenager), Jonathan Keltz (Entourage), De‘Vaughn Nixon (Sonny with a Chance), Nolan Sotillo (Corey and Lucas for the Win), Cameron Monaghan (Corey and Lucas for the Win) and Raini Rodriguez (I’m in the Band).

Journey Back to Pride Rock with Environments and Character Costumes Based on Disney’s Award-Winning Film August 17, 2011 – Disney Interactive Studios is bringing yet another magical world to the upcoming video game, Disney Universe, with the introduction of an all-new environment from the beloved animated classic Disney’s “The Lion King.” Disney Universe is the first video game that brings together characters and worlds inspired by both animated and live action films from Disney’s Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, and Walt Disney Pictures. In the “The Lion King” world, players will journey to the African savanna by suiting up as iconic characters from the award-winning movie, where they’ll explore Pride Rock and the Elephant Graveyard.  

“’The Lion King’ was an animated masterpiece, and certainly one of Disney’s most treasured films,” said Adam Sussman, senior vice president of publishing, Disney Interactive Media Group.  “Fans of all ages will surely enjoy the exploration and adventures that await them in this Disney Universe environment, where they’ll have a chance to revisit some of their favourite scenes and suit up as characters from the movie.” 

Players can suit up as characters from Disney’s “The Lion King,” including Simba and one of Simba’s best friends, Pumbaa the warthog, as they navigate their way through the Pride Lands and the Elephant Graveyard. The new level also introduces seeds and water bombs to grow plants that can be used as platforms, and players can ride duck vehicles through lava and engage in a final, stormy battle with the evil Scar at Pride Rock.

The new Lion King environment is the latest addition to the roster of other notable Disney properties showcased in Disney Universe, including Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland,” and Disney•Pixar’s “Monsters, Inc.” and “WALL•E”.  In addition to being included in the upcoming Disney Universe video game, Disney’s “The Lion King” returns to the big screen on Oct. 12 in 3D for the first time ever, followed by the Diamond Edition release on Oct. 4 in high-definition Blu-ray™ and Blu-ray 3D™.

Disney Universe will be available October 27 for the Xbox 360^®video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, the Wii™ system from Nintendo and Windows PC/MAC.

Please visit www.disneyuniverse.com.au for more information 

SYDNEY, Australia – August 17^th, 2011 – World-leading independent game developer Funcom and EA Partners, a division of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS), today announced that the highly anticipated modern-day, Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMO), The Secret World™ will release for the PC in April 2012. Starting August 26^th, gamers can register to join upcoming betas, through a unique interactive social media campaign that will be made available on www.thesecretworld.com.

Imagine a world where secret societies pull the strings of kings and presidents, where vampires are more than just a Hollywood fantasy, and where all the myths, legends and conspiracies are true. The Secret World is an MMO that breaks free from the confinements of character classes and levels and allows players to explore real-world locations with an engrossing storyline. Funcom will not only challenge but redefine long-established MMO standards.

“It has never been more rewarding working on The Secret World than it is now,” says Senior Producer and Creative Director Ragnar Tørnquist. “The progress we are making in development allows the whole team to really enjoy just playing the game for hours on end. We are all looking forward to bringing in players through upcoming betas, and their feedback will be crucial to the further development of the game as we progress toward the April 2012 launch.”

For more information, visit the official website at www.thesecretworld.com.

We have a great sizzle trailer for you guys for our new title FIFA Street which will be released early 2012.