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Game Charts: FIFA 07 still number one

Wed, 13 Dec 2006 00:00:00 +0000

GAME CHARTS

FIFA 07 (Fifa 07 review) is number one in the all-formats chart for a third week running, having seen off rival Pro Evolution Soccer 6 (Pro Evo 6 review) once again and beaten launch titles for Nintendo's new Wii console.

EA is also occupying the number two slot with Need for Speed: Carbon - the bookies' favourite to be Christmas number one.

Pro Evolution Soccer 6 is up one place to number three, following increased sales of the PSP and Xbox 360 versions, while Call of Duty 3 drops into fourth position.

Making its debut at number five is The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - one of six of the 14 Wii launch titles to go straight into the all-formats chart.

It's estimated that around two thirds of those picking up one of Nintendo's new consoles also bought a copy of Zelda, making it the best-selling Wii title so far - followed by Wii Play, which comes bundled with a remote controller, and is at number nine in the all-formats top ten.

Ubisoft lined up no less than seven Wii titles for day one, and Red Steel was the third most popular game for the console, followed by Rayman Raving Rabbids at four, Monster 4x4 World Circuit at eight and GT Pro Series at nine.

In the all-formats chart Red Steel debuted at 19, while Rayman went in at number 30. The highest climber of the week was Happy Feet, also a Wii launch title, up seven places to number 11.

Nintendo's handheld is still going strong, with 14 DS games in the top 40 - including Yoshi's Island DS at number 36, which has almost doubled sales during its second week of release, and Big Brain Academy at 39.

Xbox 360 title Project Gotham Racing 3 is up 14 places to number 36, and Xbox 360 Live Arcade Unplugged has appeared in the chart for the first time at number 35.

Article Source Game Charts: FIFA 07 still number one

Electronic Arts to release Burnout Dominator

Fri, 08 Dec 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Officials from major developer and publisher Electronic Arts have announced the development of Burnout Dominator, a new entry in the company's crash-centric racing series, exclusively for the PlayStation 2 and PSP.

A brand new Burnout game is on the way, and it's not coming out for the PlayStation 3, Wii, or Xbox 360. The name of the game is Burnout Dominator and it's being developed only for the PSP and PlayStation 2. It promises to include dozens of World Tour events along with all the crazy wrecks and reckless driving that made the previous Burnout games so successful.

The game's senior producer, Nick Channon, says, "The series was born on the PlayStation 2, and Burnout Dominator is about celebrating the essence of Burnout. Burnout Dominator focuses on the reckless skill-based racing and fear of crashing that fuelled the first games." We don't know about you, but "the essence of Burnout" sounds kind of gross to us. Still, we're always happy to see a new addition to a beloved series. Burnout Dominator is scheduled to be released sometime in 2007.

Burnout Dominator (PS2)
Burnout Dominator challenges gamers to face off against a series of hot-blooded rivals in brutal tests of aggressive driving techniques where performing burnouts gives you the advantage and multiplies your score potential.

Article Source Electronic Arts to release Burnout Dominator

Ice Age 2 The Meltdown for Wii

Wed, 06 Dec 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Sierra Entertainment announced today that the video game Ice Age 2 The Meltdown, based on the worldwide blockbuster animated film Ice Age: The Meltdown from 20th Century Fox is available at retailers nationwide on the Wii video game system.

The unique Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers allow players to guide their favorite Ice Age: The Meltdown pals through challenging puzzles and exciting mini-games.

"Ice Age 2 The Meltdown and the Wii are a perfect combination for family fun this holiday season," said Cindy Cook, chief strategy and marketing officer, Vivendi Games. "Fox has stepped up as a partner to offer an incredible amount of talent, assets, and effort to the game, which also takes full advantage of the Wii Remote's motion sensors. The result is an action-packed adventure featuring non-stop entertainment that is sure to appeal to gamers of all ages."

Elie Dekel, executive vice president, Fox Licensing & Merchandising, added, "This game is the perfect complement to the film and a great way for fans to extend their experience with the story and its characters."

"Ice Age 2 The Meltdown showed its strength as a popular movie-based kids video game with retail sales of over 1.3 million units and in the box office with sales topping $646 million worldwide," said Pascal Brochier president, global retail, Vivendi Games. "We are expecting Ice Age 2 The Meltdown for Wii to follow a similar course."

Article Source Ice Age 2 The Meltdown for Wii

Deep Fritz checkmates Kramnik

Wed, 06 Dec 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Deep Fritz, a chess-playing computer, has beaten human counterpart world chess champion Vladimir Kramnik in a six-game battle in Bonn, Germany.

World chess champion Vladimir Kramnik lost his final game in a match against computer program Deep Fritz on Tuesday, ceding a hard-fought Man vs. Machine series 4-2.

Kramnik, seeking a final win to level the match, played an unbalanced opening with Black. He built up a good position and equalized. But he then went astray, losing a pawn from which he never recovered.

The Russian takes home $500,000 (euro375,000) half of what he would have received if he had won against Deep Fritz, a commercially available chess program that runs on a powerful personal computer.

Article Source Deep Fritz checkmates Kramnik

Electronic Arts Buys Headgate Studios

Fri, 01 Dec 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Electronic Arts today announced that the development team at Utah-based developer Headgate Studios, Inc. has joined EA. EA has partnered with Headgate since 2000 to develop top franchises such as Tiger Woods PGA TOUR and Madden NFL. The development team will remain in Bountiful, Utah and will continue to work in partnership with the EA development teams in California and Florida. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Vance Cook, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Headgate will continue to lead the studio team as Executive Producer, reporting to Nick Earl, Vice President and General Manager of EA Redwood Shores/Maxis.

"Having worked with EA for the past six years, we know their teams share our work ethic, passion for creative excellence and commitment to quality. By joining EA, we are making official what we all already feel -- that we are part of the EA family. We couldn't be happier," said Vance Cook, Executive Producer at EA Salt Lake.

"The team at Headgate is a great fit with EA's creative team. Their creative spirit and technical leadership have separated them from the pack," said Paul Lee, President of EA Studios. "Salt Lake City is a terrific place to make games -- it's a dynamic city with a vibrant creative community and a great quality of life. We are thrilled to have them join EA."

The team at EA Salt Lake will focus on development for the Nintendo Wii.

The partnership between the two companies goes back to 2000, when Headgate began developing and porting sports franchises such as Tiger Woods PGA Tour and Madden NFL, and more recently did the PC version of The Godfather. So we can expect the "08" EA Sports iterations to be fully customized for the Wii remote - which just so happens to make a perfect controller for golf games.

Article Source Electronic Arts Buys Headgate Studios

Football Manager 2007 patch released

Sun, 03 Dec 2006 00:00:00 +0000

SEGA and Sports Interactive have released a patch for the PC, Mac and Intel Mac versions of Football Manager 2007.

Sports Interactive says that the patch deals with a bunch of issues that were brought to its attention by the game's loyal fanbase. The good news is that the patch is save game compatible, but the press release does state that to gain the full effect of the patch it's advised to start a new game.

You can grab the file you need over on the Sports Interactive website. Console owners can get their hands on Football Manager 2007 from tomorrow with the release of PSP and Xbox 360 versions.

Article Source Football Manager 2007 patch released

Microsoft's Gears of War, for the Xbox 360, goes straight in at number one

Thu, 23 Nov 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Microsoft's Gears of War, for the Xbox 360, goes straight in at number one in this week's ELSPA UK games chart.
The third-person tactical shooter (pictured), which 'thrusts gamers into a deep and harrowing story of humankind's epic battle for survival against the Locust Hordeset', is the first game developed by Epic Games exclusively for Microsoft Game Studios.

Gears Of War Xbox 360 Best Deals
		USA	UK
Gears of War - Xbox 360	Buy.com $59.99	Argos £39.99

EA's street racing game Need For Speed: Carbon (DS, GBA, GC, PS2, PSP, Wii, Xb360, Xb, PC, PS3) is deposed to number two, with THQ's wrestling game WWE Smackdown! Vs. RAW 2007 (PS2, Xb360) slipping one place down to three.

With no other new entries, the biggest climber this week is THQ's Bratz: Forever Diamondz (GBA GC PS2, DS) - up from 29 to nine which is aimed at girls and has just been released for the Nintendo DS. Yasmin, Cloe, Sasha and Jade are back on an adventure that sends them 'in search of the hottest young fashion designer'.

Getting format specific, Medieval II: Total War remains number one in the PC chart, WWE Smackdown! Vs. RAW 2007 stays number one for the PS2 chart, and Need For Speed: Carbon is still top of the Xbox chart. The only change, as you would expect, is that Gears of War is number one for the Xbox 360.

Without more ado, here is the all-format Top 10 in full (number of weeks in chart in brackets), for the week ending 18 November (full-price games):

1 Gears of War (1)
2 Need For Speed: Carbon (3)
3 WWE Smackdown! Vs. RAW 2007 (2)
4 FIFA 07 (8)
5 The Sims 2: Pets (5)
6 Pro Evolution Soccer 6 (4)
7 Call of Duty 3 (2)
8 LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy (11)
9 Bratz: Forever Diamondz (2)
10 Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (3)

Article Source Microsoft's Gears of War, for the Xbox 360, goes straight in at number one

Top 10 Most Popular Microsoft XBox 360 Games

Sun, 19 Nov 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Rumble Roses XX
The vixens of wrestling are back.

The Elder Scrolls IV
Another title in the hit RPG series.

Gears of War
Teamwork-oriented shooter.

Dead Rising
Third-person zombie killfest.

Prey
Revisiting the first-person shooter.

Frontlines: Fuel of War
Infantry and vehicle-based shooter.

Battle for Middle-Earth
Elves and dwarves just can’t agree.

Chromehounds
Robots and guns galore.

FFXI: Treasures of Aht Urhgan
An expansion of Final Fantasy.

Splinter Cell 4
Sam Fisher goes to jail.

Article Source Top 10 Most Popular Microsoft XBox 360 Games

TOP10 Most Popular PS2 games

Sat, 18 Nov 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Final Fantasy XII
Due in October, already creating online buzz.

Devil May Cry
Stylish action—guns, swords, and demons.

Naruto: Ultimate
Ninja Rabid, fi ghting action in many styles.

Spy Hunter: Nowhere to Run
Chase game, featuring The Rock.

Digital Devil Saga
2 Sequel to the reality-blurring hit.

Okami
A wolf travels through Japanese myths.

Tak 2: The Staff of Dreams
Sequel to the original kidfriendly title.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
Fastpaced pirate adventures!

Justice League
Heroes Loaded with iconic superheroes.

NBA Live 07
Harddriving basketball fest.

Article Source TOP10 Most Popular PS2 games

Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars to be launched for Xbox 360 and PC

Sun, 19 Nov 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Electronic Arts has confirmed on Friday that Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars is in development for Microsoft's next generation console, and will be released during 2007 - much like the PC version (except that the Xbox 360 version will have "a steady stream of downloadable content on Marketplace").

C&C 3 is currently in the works at EA's Los Angeles studio, where The Battle For Middle-earth II was also developed for the PC and Xbox 360. Having already taken the first step toward bringing real-time strategies to next-gen consoles - and a pretty successful step from what I hear - the team at EALA has designed an intuitive console-specific control scheme, in order to support Tiberium Wars' fast-action strategy gameplay. The game will include a deep single-player campaign, and an immersive multiplayer experience featuring massive battles, where you take control of large armies on the battlefield of the future.

"The year is 2047 and the stakes could not be higher. Tiberium - a self-replicating alien substance that has infected the Earth - is spreading like a radioactive ice age. The Global Defense Initiative, a high-tech alliance of the world's most advanced nations, is fighting to contain Tiberium, but Kane, the megalomaniacal leader of The Brotherhood of Nod has other plans for Earth. Kane's secret society turned superpower is bent on using Tiberium to take control and transform humanity into his twisted vision of the future. All-out war rages over Tiberium and the fate of the planet rests in the balance."

This game not only looks worse as more and more media becomes available, but from the only two Xbox 360 screenshots released today, one of them shows a tank halfway stuck in a building. Great job, EA! Whoever handled the release of this media couldn't even pick two screenshots without obvious bugs?! Or is the game still that buggy, that they let tanks run rampart through buildings?

Article Source Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars to be launched for Xbox 360 and PC