Official event tie-in set for PS3, PC and 360 this summer; Wii edition to hit later in 2009
Ashes Cricket 2009 for PS3, 360 and PC is set to be one of this summer’s key sporting titles, says Codemasters.
The game will go up against a raft of big summer sports titles including EA Grand Slam Tennis, Tiger Woods, Wii Sports Resort and Virtua Tennis 2009.
“The Ashes is set to be the sporting event of the summer and it’s great to be producing the official game of the Series,” said Codemasters producer Jamie Firth.
“In partnering with the development team at Transmission Games, Ashes Cricket 2009 is a cricket title with an unprecedented heritage that comes from two companies that know and love the sport. The Brian Lara titles became the number one cricket gaming brand for over ten years and it’s a reputation that we fully intend to continue with Ashes Cricket 2009.”
Ashes was first revealed on Gamespot earlier today, and is set to follow-up the firm’s hugely successful Brian Lara series. The title is fully licensed by cricketing bodies ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board), the MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) and Cricket Australia, and features all official players, kit and stadia.
ECB commercial director John Perera added: “The Ashes is one of the iconic challenges in world sport. With cricket set to dominate the sporting calendar this summer we're delighted to be able to give cricket fans the chance to follow in the footsteps of their heroes and try and win back the Ashes for England.”
“Cricket as a sport lends itself extremely well to this type of treatment and we are pleased that with Codemasters technical expertise we will be providing gamers with the next best thing to be playing out in the middle. We are sure it will be a great success."
Ashes Cricket 2009 will be released this summer on PS3, 360 and PC, with a Wii edition scheduled for later in the year.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34229/Code...-of-the-summer ...

Official event tie-in set for PS3, PC and 360 this summer; Wii edition to hit later in 2009
Ashes Cricket 2009 for PS3, 360 and PC is set to be one of this summer’s key sporting titles, says Codemasters.
The game will go up against a raft of big summer sports titles including EA Grand Slam Tennis, Tiger Woods, Wii Sports Resort and Virtua Tennis 2009.
“The Ashes is set to be the sporting event of the summer and it’s great to be producing the official game of the Series,” said Codemasters producer Jamie Firth.
“In partnering with the development team at Transmission Games, Ashes Cricket 2009 is a cricket title with an unprecedented heritage that comes from two companies that know and love the sport. The Brian Lara titles became the number one cricket gaming brand for over ten years and it’s a reputation that we fully intend to continue with Ashes Cricket 2009.”
Ashes was first revealed on Gamespot earlier today, and is set to follow-up the firm’s hugely successful Brian Lara series. The title is fully licensed by cricketing bodies ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board), the MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) and Cricket Australia, and features all official players, kit and stadia.
ECB commercial director John Perera added: “The Ashes is one of the iconic challenges in world sport. With cricket set to dominate the sporting calendar this summer we're delighted to be able to give cricket fans the chance to follow in the footsteps of their heroes and try and win back the Ashes for England.”
“Cricket as a sport lends itself extremely well to this type of treatment and we are pleased that with Codemasters technical expertise we will be providing gamers with the next best thing to be playing out in the middle. We are sure it will be a great success."
Ashes Cricket 2009 will be released this summer on PS3, 360 and PC, with a Wii edition scheduled for later in the year.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34229/Code...-of-the-summer ...

2K Games has announced that it has signed on Digital Extremes to develop the multiplayer game for BioShock 2. The group is said to be working closely with 2K Marin, the team responsible for the single player game, in the effort to develop a "substantial element that enhances the lore and fiction of the BioShock Universe."

The multiplayer game will take place during the fall of Rapture as players take on the role of Plasmid test subjects for Sinclair Solutions. This game will reportedly expand the BioShock fiction and reveal more about the fall of Rapture.

As far as gameplay goes, little has been revealed aside from a leveling system. Experience points will be earned during matches that will give players access to new weapons, Plasmids and Tonics. Locations will include the Kashmir Restaurant and Mercury Suites, built from the ground up specifically for multiplayer.

2K president Christoph Hartmann said, "The fans asked for a multiplayer experience and we answered. With Digital Extremes delivering a multiplayer experience for BioShock 2 that features all of the things that make BioShock unique, we're holding ourselves to a high standard so that we can deliver the depth and variety that fans of the BioShock universe demand."

Digital Extremes is best known for its work on the Unreal franchise. Most recently, it developed Dark Sector for Xbox 360, PC and PlayStation 3.

http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/980/980999p1.html ...

2K Games has announced that it has signed on Digital Extremes to develop the multiplayer game for BioShock 2. The group is said to be working closely with 2K Marin, the team responsible for the single player game, in the effort to develop a "substantial element that enhances the lore and fiction of the BioShock Universe."

The multiplayer game will take place during the fall of Rapture as players take on the role of Plasmid test subjects for Sinclair Solutions. This game will reportedly expand the BioShock fiction and reveal more about the fall of Rapture.

As far as gameplay goes, little has been revealed aside from a leveling system. Experience points will be earned during matches that will give players access to new weapons, Plasmids and Tonics. Locations will include the Kashmir Restaurant and Mercury Suites, built from the ground up specifically for multiplayer.

2K president Christoph Hartmann said, "The fans asked for a multiplayer experience and we answered. With Digital Extremes delivering a multiplayer experience for BioShock 2 that features all of the things that make BioShock unique, we're holding ourselves to a high standard so that we can deliver the depth and variety that fans of the BioShock universe demand."

Digital Extremes is best known for its work on the Unreal franchise. Most recently, it developed Dark Sector for Xbox 360, PC and PlayStation 3.

http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/980/980999p1.html ...

Game Boy Colour releases Silver and Gold heading to Nintendo’s current handheld
Ahead of the rumour mill reaching fever point, Nintendo has reportedly confirmed that legendary Pokemon pair Heart Gold and Soul Silver are to be remade for DS.

IGN reports that both games, which were initially released for Game Boy Colour in 2000, will feature a number of enhancements alongside the obligatory duel and touch screen support.
There’s still no word, though, on any kind of fully-fledged Pokemon outing for Wii – though perhaps considering that ‘proper’ Pokemon adventures failed to make it on to both the N64 and GameCube, maybe it’s no surprise.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34227/Poke...-for-DS-remake ...

Nintendo has revealed global lifetime sales figures for first party Wii and DS titles that shifted over a million copies during the fiscal year ended March 31.


Topping the list is Wii Sports with 45.7 million copies sold, including those bundled with hardware. That total likely puts the game's sales ahead of those of Super Mario Bros, which has long been considered the bestselling game in history with over 40 million sales. The 1985 NES classic was also bundled with hardware.

When approached, however, Nintendo UK said that it couldn't confirm that sales of Wii Sports had overtaken those of Super Mario Bros.

Elsewhere in the data, Nintendo said that Wii Play sales are just 200,000 copies shy of 23 million units, followed by Wii Fit on 18.2 million and Mario Kart Wii on 15.4 million.

On the DS front, the near identical editions of Nintendogs have sold 22.27 million copies, followed by New Super Mario Bros on 18.4 million, Brain Training on 17.4 million and Pokemon Diamond/Pearl on 16.8 million.

Nintendo Wii
Wii Sports - 45.7 million (includes sales bundled with hardware)
Wii Play - 23 million
Wii Fit - 18.2 million
Mario Kart Wii - 15.4 million
Smash Bros. Brawl - 8.43 million
Super Mario Galaxy - 8 million
Mario Party 8 - 6.7 million
Link's Crossbow Training - 3.76 million (includes sales from Wii Zapper bundle)
Animal Crossing: City Folk - 3.38 million
Wii Music - 2.65 million
Mario Super Sluggers - 1.26 million

Nintendo DS
Nintendogs - 22.27 million
New Super Mario Bros. - 18.45 million
Brain Training - 17.4 million
Pokemon Diamond/Pearl - 16.8 million
Mario Kart DS - 14.6 million
Brain Training 2 - 13.7 million
Animal Crossing: Wild World - 10.8 million
Super Mario 64 DS - 7.5 million
Mario Party DS - 5.85 million
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon - 4.5 million
Pokemon Platinum - 3.75 million
Kirby Super Star Ultra - 2.36 million
Pokemon Ranger - 2 million
Rhythm Heaven - 1.9 million
Personal Trainer: Cooking - 1.84 million
Professor Layton - 1.65 million (does not include Japanese sales)

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=214597 ...

It may or may not be wishful thinking on the part of a struggling company, but Sony Ericsson president Hideki Komiyama claims that a PlayStation phone, similar to the existing Walkman and Cybershot phones, "could happen".

http://gizmodo.com/5245642/sony-eric...e-could-happen ...

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has said that the company's not anticipating a new console generation "any time soon".

"As far as the consoles themselves... I think that there's a lot of runway for all of these devices," he said during Activision's quarterly earnings call.

"I think that we've got a long way to go before you get to price points that truly take advantage of all of this hardware," added Kotick (pictured in extreme close-up, below), according to Seeking Alpha.


"I think from a geography standpoint, we still have a long way to go before these products have really penetrated every single geography, so we don't really anticipate there are going to be material changes to the console landscape any time soon."

EA CEO John Riccitiello made similar remarks recently, saying that the publisher's expecting a "very extended" console cycle, while Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter agrees too.

Ubisoft's not so sure, however, with boss man Yves Guillemot saying that the company's preparing for the launch of new hardware "in the next few years"

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=214579 ...

demo of two-wheeled racer SBK '09 is now available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Go mental.

The 2009 version boasts all the Tracks, teams and riders you'd expect from the official license, plus "for the first time ever" in a motorbike racing game, SBK09 features visible damage on fairings and rider leathers. Excellent.

"With SBK09 Superbike World Championship, we try to reach both new motorbike enthusiasts as well as hardcore riders offering them a real championship whenever they fancy jumping on a virtual bike, improving their performance and competing against turns and time," explains Black Bean marketing man Fabrizio Vagliasindi (say that 10 times quickly).

It's out on May 29 for PC, PS3, 360, PSP and PS2.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=214559 ...