EA’s Play label is to publish a new range of games aimed at young female players.
Titled Charm Club Girls, the new franchise is to debut with Wii release Pajama Party, and three original titles for the DS. Each of the games will focus on completing tasks and collecting charms in a world that is designed to be sassy, fun, and relevant to the world of the intended audience.
"Charm Club Girls celebrates everything that's fun about being a girl," said Sarah Handley, senior director of marketing at EA Play. "Girls are gamers too and EA wants to provide them with games that are fun, fabulous and appeal to their interests."

"With Charm Club Girls, we're providing girls with quality games that emphasise cool characters, fun challenges, customisation and lots of collectible charm rewards that can be shared across products," added EA Play’s senior producer. Dyan Williams, "Girls are really excited about a new line of games made just for them."
Across three DS games, My Perfect Prom, My Fashion Mall and My Fashion Show, players can tackle fashion dilemmas, plan for the perfect date, and handle a range of shopping-related mishaps. Meanwhile, the Wii version offers 30 minigames addressing activities such as pillow fighting and speed hair teasing.
Distributed by EA Casual Studios, the games are currently scheduled for release in autumn 2009, and have not yet been rated by PEGI or the ERSB.

http://www.casualgaming.biz/news/286...-new-franchise ...

Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE: HAS) today announced that more than a dozen of its globally popular toy and game properties will land on various video game platforms in the second half of this year through licensing alliances with video game leaders Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) (EA), Activision (NASDAQ: ATVI), and Glu Mobile (NASDAQ: GLUU). The new wave of video games builds on the momentum achieved by EA in the past 18 months with its release of nearly 40 Hasbro-inspired titles across 16 brands and 13 platforms, several of which have held top sales rankings by platform. Additionally, through an extended licensing agreement with Performance Design Products (PDP), a new line of Hasbro-branded video game accessories will land at retail in 2009.

This summer will kick off with major action and adventure based on the launch of Activision's TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN in June on the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system, the PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system, Wii, PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system, Windows PC, PSP (PlayStation Portable), and Nintendo DS. Glu Mobile is also on deck to release the game on a variety of mobile devices as well as a mini-application on the iPhone. EA will then heat up the month of August with the launch of G.I. JOE The Rise of Cobra on the Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION3, Wii, PlayStation2, PSP, Nintendo DS and mobile devices.

For board game fans, EA has turned up the fun dial with releases of BATTLESHIP, YAHTZEE, CONNECT 4, SCRABBLE*, BOGGLE and SORRY! on Xbox LIVE Arcade. These releases come on the heels of spring launches including SCRABBLE* and LITTLEST PET SHOP Spring on the Nintendo DS; TRIVIAL PURSUIT on the Wii, Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION3, PlayStation2; MONOPOLY Here & Now: The World Edition, TRIVIAL PURSUIT Daily 20 and YAHTZEE! Party on Pogo.com; and CRANIUM, YAHTZEE, THE GAME OF LIFE, and CLUE on an array of mobile devices.

"Through our strategic alliances with the world's most talented video game developers and publishers such as EA, Hasbro has continued to re-invent the play experience of its brands in a way that is meaningful to today's digital consumer," said Mark Blecher, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Digital Media and Gaming at Hasbro. "Hasbro-inspired video games are all about creating an interactive entertainment-based social connection with family and friends anytime, anyplace – from the living room to the dorm room, an airport or the back seat of the car."

Moving into the fall timeframe, EA also has several exciting games in development that will entertain the entire family. MR. POTATO HEAD will be called back into duty as the M.C. of fun in HASBRO FAMILY GAME NIGHT 2 for the Wii. The new Wii version will showcase a collection of five games including OPERATION, JENGA, BOP-IT, PICTUREKA, and CONNECT 4X4. For on-the-go players, a Nintendo DS version called HASBRO FAMILY GAME NIGHT will feature CONNECT 4, BATTLESHIP, SORRY! Sliders, OPERATION, and BOP-IT.

Big fun is also on the horizon for LITTLEST PET SHOP fans kicking off with LITTLEST PET SHOP FRIENDS on the Wii and Nintendo DS. The new game -- set in a party-like atmosphere -- will include new and exclusive pets, party-planning activities, special mini-games and fun, new environments to explore. Adding to the digital LITTLEST PET SHOP collection will also be the fall launch of LITTLEST PET SHOP ONLINE, an incredible, all-new online world where girls can play games and customize and create their own LITTLEST PET SHOP pets while connecting with friends and exploring the expansive and fun-filled world of LITTLEST PET SHOP.

Recognizing that every gamer needs cool gear, PDP will create a new line of Hasbro-branded video gaming accessories and products for the Wii, Nintendo DS, Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION3, PlayStation2, iPod and a variety of mobile phones. Licensed accessories will feature TRANSFORMERS and G.I. JOE in support of the movie and video game launches this summer as well as LITTLEST PET SHOP and NERF.

Hasbro will showcase several of the EA and Activision video games slated for summer releases as well as select PDP accessories at the International Licensing Expo in Las Vegas on June 2-4, 2009 in Hasbro Booth #1825. EA and Activision are also set to showcase their respective Hasbro-branded video game lineup at the E3 Expo in Los Angeles on June 2-4, 2009. ...

505 Games bringing title to Europe this Christmas on DS
505 Games will publish Cooking Mama 3 on DS across Europe this Christmas.
The game will boast over 80 recipes, 200 mini-games and a four-player multiplayer from one cart.
“Mama provides a truly unique gameplay experience which can’t be replicated and always delivers,” commented Ian Howe, Managing Director of 505 Games. “Cooking Mama remains our most successful series to date and we know Cooking Mama 3 will only serve to build upon its existing legacy.”
The title will also offer two new game modes: ‘What dish can you make’, in which players choose ingredients from a list and Mama will come up with a tasty recipe containing them both for you to cook; and ‘Lets go shopping’, which challenges your memory as Mama sends you out to the shops with a list of ingredients to buy.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34507/Cook...ma-3-announced ...

Last week we noticed the German USK rating board had a listing for The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition on Xbox Live Arcade and PC. Today LucasArts confirmed the remake and announced it will have updated, high definition graphics, voice acting, and a re-mastered musical score. If fancy pants graphics aren't your thing, you'll have the ability to toggle between the modernized and classic visuals. The Special Edition is being developed internally at LucasArts.

Originally released in 1990, Monkey Island is a hilarious point-and-click adventure that follows the mishaps of wannabe pirate Guybrush Threepwood. LucasArts says this is just the start of its plans to unearth its classic franchises and games.

Look for The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition this summer.

http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/988/988558p1.html ...

THQ is to bring its third game based on the Cars animated movie to all the major console and handheld formats.
Due for a worldwide release in autumn 2009, Cars Race-O-Rama includes never-before-seen characters and a number of new tracks, and is due for release on DS, Wii, Xbox 360, PSP and both the Sony consoles.
Based around the universe of the feature film, Race-O-Rama is pitched as a high-speed racing adventure game, and will also include a number of multiplayer minigames based on the 'Cars Toons' television series currently being screened on the Disney Channel.

Additionally, Race-O-Rama allows for the customisation of vehicle parts, and lets players show off their skills with 'Kachow' poses designed to appeal to the reporters and fans that populate the game.
So far the THQ-published titles based around the licence of the Disney-Pixar created movie have sold 13 million units worldwide, which suggests a large potential market for Race-O-Rama.

http://www.casualgaming.biz/news/286...urns-to-gaming ...

The redesigned PSP is due for release this autumn, according to Sony's US hardware marketing boss John Koller.

Official details of the new hardware leaked yesterday, confirming the system drops the UMD disc drive, and now boasts a new 3.8-inch screen, 16 gigabytes of flash memory and Bluetooth support.

"It's a 3.8-inch screen, it's 43 percent lighter than the PSP-3000, 16 gigs flash memory, Bluetooth support and all digital content so the UMD drive goes away so it's going to be something a lot of consumers like - download straight to a hard drive," said Koller, according to our sister site, Eurogamer.net.

Koller said that firm details of Gran Turismo for PSP will be announced during E3 this week, and he also mentioned a new Metal Gear Solid title, as well as stating that continued integration with Sony's other consoles is increasingly important.

"Integration with PSP is very important to us. And it works just like PSP-3000... A lot of people like to be able to take their content from PS3 with them on the go."

Details of the PSP Go were accidentally leaked via Sony's own Qore gaming show, prematurely posted online before being pulled. A price for the system has not yet been detailed.

Sony's E3 press conference takes place on Tuesday at 7pm BST / 8pm CET .

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...ue-this-autumn ...

Talk to iPhone games developers, and the feature they're most excited about in the new iPhone 3.0 software is the ability to do in-game micro-transactions. And while you might wonder if this is just an excuse to get iPhone gamers to dip into their wallets even more often, it's actually a hugely positive thing for several reasons. Downloadable content, virtual items, subscription billing and fast-track social advancement are some of them, so Pocket Gamer looks into a bit more depth about what you can expect on the micro-payments side once iPhone 3.0 debuts

http://apple.slashdot.org/story/09/0...hake-Up-iPhone ...

Jumping on the completely unconfirmed rumor bandwagon it seems that there have been photos leaked for the new iPhone which include things like an auto-focus camera, video capture, and a compass. The photos were originally displayed (and then quickly removed) on a Chinese forum and quickly spread to many other sites including a complete human translation on the MacRumors forum. Looks like Apple security may have to break a few more pocket protectors to keep employees in line.

http://mobile.slashdot.org/story/09/...e-Capabilities ...

There are Wiimote peripherals. And then there is the Type Pad Pro.

Attaching to the Nyko Wand (the Wiimote is semi-incompatible because it lacks Nyko's proprietary Trans-Port Technology), the Type Pad Pro transforms an ordinary Nintendo controller into a testicularly spaceshippy full QWERTY keyboard. Through Trans-Port communication, the A and B buttons on the Wand are relocated to the Type Pad while the pad itself integrates with the Wii through a wireless USB dongle. (Yeah, it's a tad confusing. Basically, the pad is incapable of piggybacking its signal onto the Wand's.)

The result is a QWERTY keyboard capable of surfing the internet on the Wii. The other result is the zaniest but most ambitious Wii peripheral we've seen this side of Nyko's unreleased Party Station.

There's a mad, mad man at the helm of Nyko's design team. And we really want to go drinking with him.

http://gizmodo.com/5273073/nyko-type...nconspicuously ...