Yo-Ho-Ho and a bottle of Rum

Hull, UK/ Frogster have released the biggest ever expansion for Bounty Bay Online, “Beyond the Horizon” free to download now. Players can take to the seas as one of five available unique character classes, further elaborating on the character development of the rum-swigging, treasure-looting MMO. Beyond professions and skills, players can now live the lives of the five classes and take to the seas as a Treasure Hunter, Armed Businessman, Imperial Guardian, Military officer or a Caribbean Pirate; each with their own defining special abilities, which can be expanded in a comprehensive skills tree.

For the first time players can take the route around Cape Horn, circumnavigate the whole of the historical seafarer world and travel to a new continent. High level players will be taken to the new continent of South America to experience the legendary Mayan civilisation. Featuring new demanding questlines, beautiful stepped-pyramid-strewn scenery and a whole new instance. Six new cities and harbours across North and South America await!
Beginners will be greeted by a new beginner friendly tutorial quest series to guide them into the new class system as well as introducing them to the basics of the game. New dialogue boxes and an interactive quest guide have been implemented alongside a new window for PVP events and world announcements, culminating in a much more user friendly experience.

Pets have been expanded upon, offering four new companions; Hell Wolf, Ice Fairy, Shadow Reaper and Wild bull. Each has the previous values of loyalty, health, experience and pet levels but features new additional attributes of “Damage Bonus” and “Critical Strike”. The new pets can be supplied with special equipment and exclusive skills and thanks to their own personal inventories, offer more storage space for your character!

Free-to-read online gaming magazine, Thirteen1 recently published a two part tour of the “Beyond the Horizon” content, including a free chance to win a rare Shadow Reaper pet – guaranteed to shiver the timbers of anyone who tries to get in your way.

For more information on the new “Beyond the Horizon” features, please visit: http://www.bountybayonline.com/bth/en/

To enter the free competition for a Shadow Reaper pet, please visit: http://www.thirteen1.com/Issues/1313110/mag.php#13

About Frogster
The Berlin based Frogster Interactive Pictures AG , listed on the stock exchange, has focused on the growth sector of massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) at an early stage already. The company licenses, markets and operates its virtual worlds for thousands of players in Europe, Asia and North America. In Europe its subsidiary Frogster Online Gaming GmbH is taking care of the operative business of the Frogster group. Frogster America Inc. based in San Francisco, USA, markets and operates MMO Games in North America. In June 2008, Frogster was awarded as “Landmark in the Land of Ideas”, a competition under the patronage of the German President Dr. Horst Köhler. Further information at: www.frogster.de

SYDNEY, 20 January 2010 – Xbox LIVE is firmly establishing itself as Australia’s entertainment hub as a growing number of Australians adopt online services as their entertainment medium of choice. Over the past calendar year, Australians made 8.3 million purchases through Xbox LIVE, Xbox’s online entertainment service, an increase of more than 72 per cent on the previous year’s record 4.8 million.

ANZ subscribers to Xbox LIVE grew by more than 50 per cent year-on-year (YOY), with the service now registering numbers of more than 450,000 across the ANZ region. Xbox LIVE customers in Australia and New Zealand spent more than 136 million hours on Xbox LIVE in 2009, a YOY increase of more than 36 per cent.

David McLean, Head of Entertainment, Microsoft ANZ comments; “Xbox 360 continues to deliver new and compelling entertainment experiences through its Xbox LIVE service. The introduction of our Movies on Demand service in November, which offers HD movies streamed direct to television, has particularly resonated with Australian customers. The service was accessed by more than 100,000 subscribers in its first eight weeks alone.”

“We’ve invested significantly in building our local Xbox LIVE community and the ANZ market now supports one of the biggest LIVE communities anywhere in the world. Subscribers can also access popular social networking sites through Xbox LIVE such as Facebook and Twitter, which have been specifically optimised for the living room ‘big TV’-style viewing experience. The growing demand for online services sets us up particularly well for the future, as online entertainment continues to surpass all expectations and clearly demonstrates the growth opportunities that exist in the ANZ region.”

2009 also delivered an increase in ANZ console sales of more than 12 per cent YOY and revenue growth of more than 13 per cent YOY for the company. More than 950,000 Xbox 360 consoles now take pride of place in lounge-rooms across the ANZ region, with nearly half of these connected to the Xbox LIVE network. 

The Xbox 360’s attach rate (software purchases per console) continues to be a great measure of success, with Xbox continuing to enjoy the highest attach rate of any next generation console across Australia and New Zealand .

 McLean closes; “As we look ahead to the coming year, we expect 2010 to be the year of the Xbox, with the release of our strongest ever games line-up, including the highly anticipated Xbox 360 exclusives; Mass Effect 2, Fable 3, Alan Wake, Crackdown 2 and probably the biggest title of the year, Halo Reach.”

ANZ facts*

• Over 450,000 Australian and New Zealand homes are connected to Xbox LIVE
• More than 136 million hours were spent on Xbox LIVE in 2009 – a year on year increase of 34%
• Over 950,000 Xbox 360 consoles have been sold in Australia and New Zealand
• Nearly 100,000 Australian and New Zealand Xbox LIVE subscribers connected to Xbox LIVE Movies on Demand in the first eight weeks
• Xbox 360 enjoys the strongest attach rate of any next gen console. Third-party publishers also sell more copies of blockbuster titles, such as Call of Duty; Modern Warfare 2, in the Xbox 360 format.

– ends –

*All stats quoted come from GfK or Microsoft internal sales data

For further information, 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.

About Xbox LIVE

Xbox LIVE is the first and most comprehensive unified online entertainment network seamlessly integrated throughout the entire console experience, making it easy for people to find the friends, games and entertainment they want from the moment they power on their Xbox 360 system. Xbox LIVE connects millions of members across 26 countries to enjoy hundreds of multiplayer games, downloadable games via Xbox LIVE Arcade, free and premium playable game demos and movies in the as well as new game levels, characters and vehicles for all their favourite retail games. More information can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/en-au/live.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realise their full potential. Xbox 360, the Xbox 360 logo, Xbox LIVE are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.

HOSTED BY UFC FIGHTERS

20 January 2010, Sydney, Australia – The Ultimate Fighting Championship organisation’s first foray into Australia sold out within hours, but fans can still experience UFC 110 live and in-person at the Acer Arena, Sydney, on 21 February, at an exclusive theatre experience inside the arena’s Grand Ballroom.

This exclusive event will be hosted by three international guest UFC fighters, who will take part in a special question and answer session before the action gets underway. Fans attending this unique viewing party will witness the entire 10-bout UFC 110 fight card on huge hi-definition screens.

Also, ticket holders will receive a special commemorative laminate and official UFC 110 event program.

“We are thrilled to be able to give our passionate Australian fans another chance to be able to experience this historic event in person,” said Marshall Zelaznik, UFC Managing Director of International Development.

“Fans will get up close and personal with UFC fighters and then watch the entire fight card on big screens along with other UFC fans. There will be a great atmosphere and it will be the next best thing to being in the actual auditorium.”

The Q & A begins at 10:45AM, with the first bout going live at 11:45AM.

Tickets for the UFC 110 viewing party are priced at $50 and go on sale from www.ticketek.com.au a 9AM, AEDT, Friday, 22 January.

Don’t miss your chance to be a part of UFC 110.

About UFC 110

The Ultimate Fighting Championship has already taken Australia by storm selling all 16,500 tickets to Sydney’s Acer Arena within hours of going on sale last month.

The stacked supercard – which features 20 of the greatest mixed martial artists from around the world – contains explosive matchups featuring two early Fight-of-The-Year candidates. In the main event, a world heavyweight title shot is on the line when unbeaten young gun Cain Velasquez takes on former UFC and PRIDE champion Minotauro Nogueira.

Plus, UK superstar Michael “The Count” Bisping hopes to spoil the middleweight debut of the legendary ‘Axe Murderer’, Wanderlei Silva.

For more information on the Ultimate Fighting Championship or UFC 110 visit www.UFC.com.

Australia’s Muslim Cameleers arrive at the Immigration Museum

A new exhibition that tells the remarkable story of Australia’s first Muslim community and their role in the exploration and settlement of Australia’s arid interior opens at the Immigration Museum on 26 February 2010.

Australia’s Muslim Cameleers: Pioneers of the Inland 1860s to1930s explores 80 years of Muslim society in Australia and traces the little known heritage of the Muslim cameleers who first arrived in 1860 to aid expeditions into outback Australia. These men from Afghanistan and British India (today’s Pakistan) travelled thousands of miles of desert tracks to open up the country and make possible the creation of new inland communities.

The first Muslim cameleers arrived at Port Melbourne on 9 June 1860 to join the Burke and Wills Expedition, which this year marks its 150th anniversary. The ill-fated expedition was the first in Australia to use camels, and despite the venture’s failure it successfully demonstrated the ability of camels to survive the harsh Australian conditions. From the 1860s to the 1920s it is estimated that at least 20,000 camels and more than 2,000 cameleers arrived in Australia.

“Australia’s Muslim Cameleers explores a fascinating, but fragmentary history of an era that has almost slipped from view, but which has been critically important in Australia’s national story”, said Philip Jones, Curator at the South Australian Museum, where the exhibition was developed.

“The exhibition brings together previously unrecognised and dispersed heritage objects and images, confirming the pioneering role of the cameleers throughout inland Australia”.

Australia’s Muslim Cameleer’s features beautiful historical photographs, film, artworks and oral histories and includes objects such as camel saddle packs, textiles and other artefacts as well as portraits of the early cameleers and paintings that reflect interactions between the cameleers and Aboriginal people.

Over a period of more than five decades, Australia’s Muslim cameleers were instrumental in opening lines of supply, transport and communication between isolated settlements. Along the way they enriched the cultural landscape, and while many returned to their homelands others stayed and built families. Australia’s Muslim Cameleers tells the story of their legacy and the important part they played in Australia’s multicultural heritage.

Australia’s Muslim Cameleer’s: Pioneers of the Inland 1860s to 1930s
26 February to 19 September 2010
Immigration Museum, 400 Flinders Street, Melbourne
Adults $8, children and concession FREE

To celebrate the Disney DVD and Blu-ray release of G-Force, 27 January 2010, we asked Katrina Warren for her top tips and facts on Guinea Pigs.

Interesting facts about Guinea Pigs:

• Guinea Pigs are native to South America and are also known as Cavies
• Guinea Pigs are not pigs but are classified as rodents. Like pigs, however, a female is called a sow and a male is a boar. But unlike pigs, the baby guinea pigs are called pups.  A group of Guinea Pigs is called a herd
• Guinea Pigs are born with their eyes open and a full coat of fur and can run and eat solids within a couple of hours of being born
• Guinea Pigs have a variety of coat types. The most common is the Smooth-haired which has a short coat. There are also Long-haired varieties which require daily grooming and Coarse-coats which have swirly hair and a cute rough appearance.

Do Guinea Pigs make good pets?

• Yes, but only to those prepared to commit to giving them proper care. They have a life span of five to seven years which requires a long term commitment.
• Guinea Pigs are inquisitive, talkative and rarely bite
• They are great pets for people with limited space
• If socialised with humans from a young age they are affectionate and cuddly
• Because they are small and fragile they are not recommended for children under five

Caring for a Guinea Pig

• Guinea Pigs are social creatures and don’t like living alone. Groups of females can live happily together but they also need interaction from their human carers
• The more you handle and interact with your Guinea Pig from an early age, the more comfortable they will be around humans. Remember, they are fragile and you should never play rough
• Young children should always sit on the floor to handle Guinea Pigs. They have very delicate bodies and serious damage can be done if they are dropped or squeezed too hard
• Guinea Pigs require a great deal of Vitamin C , making it necessary to feed them formulated Guinea Pig pellets supplemented with lots of fruit and fresh vegetables like broccoli
• A Guinea Pig’s front teeth continually grow so it is important that they have hard food like pellets to gnaw on
• Guinea Pigs are sensitive to changes in temperature so their cage must be kept out of draughts and direct sunlight
• Unless your Guinea Pig does a lot of exercise on hard surfaces like concrete, you will need to trim his/her toenails to prevent them curling back up to their foot pad

Be a part of all the G-FORCE action when you bring it home on Disney DVD and the 2-Disc Blu-ray™ Hi-Def Combo Pack from 27 January 2010!

Your Country Needs You!

• National pride is at stake as GT Academy 2010 Time Trial enters final days
• Cut-Off for Top 20 Times in Each Territory will be 23:59 (GMT) on 24 January

The countdown has started to the end of the GT Academy Time Trial and the online action is extremely competitive. At stake is a prize that will make a dream come true – the opportunity to swap your PlayStation®3 for the controls of a real Nissan 370Z racing car and compete for a whole season in the European GT4 Cup. An added incentive to enter GT Academy 2010 is national pride, with the GT Academy Facebook page recording a league table of participating nations, currently headed by Germany.

Participants have until midnight (GMT) on 24 January, 2010 to record their fastest lap times on the stunning new Gran Turismo® version of the iconic Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. The Time Trial is available to download via the PlayStation®Network. Anyone taking part will drive the Gran Turismo versions of both a standard, road version of Nissan’s stunning 370Z as well as a tuned version of the same car, with the combined lap times determining positions on the leader board.

Kingston Digital to Replace Affected Secure USB Flash Drives with Upgraded Security Architecture, New Drives

Sydney, Australia – January 19, 2010 – Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced it will replace certain secure USB Flash drives with new units designed with an improved security architecture. The Kingston drives affected are the DataTraveler BlackBox (DTBB), DataTraveler Secure – Privacy Edition (DTSP) and DataTraveler Elite – Privacy Edition (DTEP). Kingston is offering its customers the following: a FIPS-certified replacement for the DTBB; and the DataTraveler Vault – Privacy Edition for the DTSP and DTEP.

Kingston was notified in December by a third-party security consulting firm that the DataTraveler BlackBox, DataTraveler Secure – Privacy Edition and DataTraveler Elite – Privacy Edition contained a potential security flaw. Kingston believes the best solution is to replace those potentially affected units.

“We have decided the best way to address this problem is to offer our customers replacement units that incorporate newer and stronger security architecture,” said Vaughan Nankivell, Regional Manager, Australia and New Zealand, Kingston. “Since we were first notified of the potential hack, we have concluded that exchanging drives is the proper solution for our customers.”

Customers who own one of the affected drives should contact Kingston’s Customer Service Department for full details of our standard return process. For the customer service phone number in your region, visit www.kingston.com/driveupdate.

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/. To get the freshest information on Kingston, please go to http://twitter.com/KingstonFEPR.

To find out if your Kingston product is genuine, Kingston also provides an online verification site: www.kingston.com/asia/verify. To try the game “Search for Genuine Kingston”, please go to anti-counterfeit.kingston-blog.com. For the interesting animation: The Adventures of Rex, please visit: www.theadventuresofrex.com.

About Kingston Digital, Inc.
Kingston Digital, Inc. (“KDI”) is the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the world’s largest independent manufacturer of memory products. Established in 2008, KDI is headquartered in Fountain Valley, California, USA. For more information, please visit www.kingston.com/anz.

256 players; 32 squads; one world. Announcing the biggest online shooter ever: MAG™  – exclusive to PlayStation®3 available in stores 11^th February 2010 

• Massive online action on a global battlefield
• Join a 128-player Private Military Corporation and work your way through the ranks to become an elite operative
• Australia hosts dedicated servers to ensure best online experience

SYDNEY, 19 January 2010 – In a not-too distant future, you clutch your assault rifle and check your ammo for the last time. You and your squad have fought in battles before but none as large as this. As the enemy base in front of you shakes under the force of an air strike, your platoon leader gives the order and you prepare your squad to advance. An armoured personnel carrier punches through the enemy perimeter and you sprint for the gap with bullets whistling past your head. Your platoon leader goes down, picked off by a sniper. If you can survive this engagement, command of a 32-player platoon could be yours. Welcome to the world of MAG™ from Sony Computer Entertainment Australia (SCE Aust.) – a world of massive online action on an unprecedented scale, where 256 players take to the battlefield to win glory and the right to command squads, platoons and even an entire private army.

MAG is set to blow other online action shooters out of the water and Sony Computer Entertainment Australia is pleased to confirm that the game will be hosted locally, to support an optimal MAG online experience for Australian gamers.  

Alon Isaacs, Director of Online Services, SCE Australia & New Zealand commented, “MAG brings simultaneous 256 player online play to PS3 for the first time. This challenges all elements of the online environment to deliver a responsive and quality experience for players. With 256 players all accessing a game server at the same time, every component of the infrastructure from the server to the database and particularly the network must perform optimally to ensure there are no bottlenecks.”

“Like Killzone® 2, the global server set will include MAG servers based in Australia, demonstrating Sony Computer Entertainments commitment to do everything it can to ensure that consumers will get an optimal experience when playing this ground breaking title online.”

Exclusive to PlayStation®3 (PS3™), MAG is set in a world where governments use Private Military Corporations (PMC’s) to do their dirty work. Scores are settled by corporations including the elite, streamlined Raven and the brutal, intimidating S.V.E.R. You’ll choose your PMC and join an eight-man squad to take to the field in a private army of 128 players. As you prove yourself, game by game, you can decide how your career progresses. You can specialise as a sniper, a medic, a scout and an assault operative – or whatever else you find yourself to be good at under heavy fire. You can also move through the chain of command, earning the right to lead a squad, then a platoon, then an entire private army – customising your character with new weapons and kit along the way.

Free to join and free to play, battles will take place on PlayStation®Network between two PMC’s of up to 128 players, divided into four 32-man platoons made up of four eight-man squads. Although it’s a huge structure, a single person can always turn the tide of battle with an inspired action – and with ground vehicles, planes, sniper rifles, grenades, rocket launchers, parachutists, and air strikes, you’ll get to do it a different way every time.

MAG – only on PS3 – will be available in stores across Australia from 11^th February 2010. 

ENDS

Gothic fairytales, marionettes and sign language

In the tradition of Harry Potter, The Grimstones –  Hatched is a gothic fairytale told with giant books, exquisite old-world marionettes and sign language, to be  performed at the Arts Centre on 13 and 14 February.

Acclaimed both in Australia and internationally, The Grimstones – Hatched celebrates the wonder of books, the acceptance of difference, family love and the simple pleasures in life.  Created by Asphyxia, it is part of Kids at the Arts Centre, a new year round program for children aged 3 – 12 and their families.

“The Grimstones – Hatched speaks beautifully to older children with imagination and love of mystery,” says Emer Harrington, Program Manager for Families. “It’s a very moving story that parents will love too!”

The Grimstones – Hatched will be followed by an Auslan sign singing workshop, performed by Asphyxia and her interpreter Paula Dowse.

Asphyxia is a deaf circus performer turned puppeteer. She has toured nationally and internationally over the past decade with her performing arts company, Sky Works. Asphyxia has a background in ballet, and has trained with Circus Oz and the National Institute of Circus Art, specialising in trapeze, adagio (double balance) and hula hoops. Her theatre shows, including Blood Makes Noise, have performed sell out seasons in Melbourne, Sydney and the USA.

LISTINGS DETAILS
The Grimstones – Hatched is a gothic fairytale told with giant books, exquisite old-world marionettes and sign language. There’s a girl who reads dreams, a mother who sews garments lined with love and warmth, a grandfather who heals people with his magical concoctions and a baby boy with three legs.

Designed and created by Asphyxia. Performed by Asphyxia and Paula Dowse.

Venue: the Arts Centre, ANZ Pavilion

Dates: 10.30am & 2pm, Sat 13 & Sun 14 February

Tickets: $16. Family ticket (4 tix) $56. Recommended for 6 – 12 year olds.

Auslan for Everyone – Sign Singing Workshops

Join Asphyxia, deaf circus performer turned puppeteer and her interpreter, Paula Dowse, as they teach the classic Australian song ‘My Island Home’ in Auslan. This workshop is in Auslan and English and is a delightful combination of music, song and dramatic expression, guaranteed to get you smiling!

Venue: the Arts Centre, ANZ Pavilion

Dates: 12pm, Sat 13 and Sun 14 February

Tickets: $10. Family ticket (4 tix) $34. Recommended for 6 – 12 year olds.

For all bookings, phone 1300 182 183 from 9am to 9pm, Monday to Saturday or visit theartscentre.com.au/kids or go to the Arts Centre’s Box Office.

RACV is delighted to be a major partner of the Arts Centre supporting the Kids at the Arts Centre program, which gives Victorian children and their families the opportunity to engage in wonderful creative learning experiences together.

This Downloadable Content requires the base game King Arthur – The Role-playing Wargame in order to play.

About the game

“The legend of the Once and Future King is as ancient as the realm of Britannia itself. It tells about the arrival of a great king who will unite the warring kingdoms of the land and bring peace and prosperity to all.”

Three sets of unique and ancient artifacts become available. Each set was designed for specific classes: Sages, Champions and Warlords. These artifacts are the rewards of nine challenging and new battle missions.

Sage Set

There was once a blind druid who could rule magic like no one else. When he disappeared, he left his treasured artifacts behind. These personal belongings were thought to be lost…

Staff of the Blind Hermit

Ring of the Blind Hermit

Cloak of the Blind Hermit

Champion Set

Sir Marrick was a knight of King Ryons, one of the greatest warriors of the jousting fields. His pride became the reason for his fall, when he decided to duel with one of the champions of the Sidhe.

Sword of Sir Marrick

Amulet of Sir Marrick

Plate of Sir Marrick

Warlord Set

Gorlois was the Duke of Cornwall, the master of Tintagel Castle. He was a great warlord, but finally he was slain in a combat against Uther Pendragon. His ancient artifacts are said to have magical properties after the Miracle.

Banner of Gorlois

Ring of Gorlois

Armour of Gorlois