Brand new interactive gaming experience from EA SPORTS to be released on March 20th exclusively on Nintendo DSTM
Guildford – February 5th, 2009 – Electronic Arts Inc. (Nasdaq: ERTS) announced today that world famous Chelsea FC and former FIFA World Cup winning coach Luiz Felipe Scolari will be featured as the Academy Master of EA SPORTS™ Football Academy, the brand new interactive football gaming experience exclusively available on Nintendo DSTM in Europe on March 20th. As Academy Master, Scolari will use his expertise and coaching experience to guide consumers through the game, offering hints and tips on how to become a true football expert.
EA SPORTS™ Football Academy features 14 action packed mini games and over 90 hours of playing experience that will test football knowledge in all areas of the game and teach more about it, from identifying players and teams to understanding formations. Performance in the mini games is assessed via a Football IQ rating, so one can really see who has the best football brain – the more you practice, the better you get. The mini games also hold the key to building up your Academy team – every time you take a mini game test, you will earn new players to add to your squad.

Man arrested for strangling girlfriend with Wii controller

Posted on 15 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 6 Comments

A 21-year-old man from Austin, Texas has been accused of strangling his girlfriend with a Wii controller. Christina Alvarado told police that she woke up Daniel Alvarez because she noticed that her cookies were gone. Alvarez was angry that his girlfriend bothered him while he was sleeping and started yelling at her. The two struggled for several seconds and during the fight, Alvarez was able to get his girlfriend into a choke hold.

Alvarado was able to break free by hitting Alvarez in the eye, but both ended up in the living room. Alvarez then grabbed a Wii controller, pinned Alvarado down, and began choking her with the cord of the controller.

Fortunately, Alvarado broke free once again and called 911. Alvarez tried to flee from the scene but was unable to do so. Police caught and arrested the man shortly after.

When police arrived, it could be seen that Alvarado was clearly hurt by the controller. She had a faint mark on her neck, had shortness of breath, had trouble speaking, and was also coughing. For now, however, Alvarado can rest somewhat easily. Alvarez is currently in the Travis Country jail with a set bail amount of $40,000. He faces second degree felony charges of aggravated assault with serious bodily injury. Alvarez could receive a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

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Rare not developing any handheld games at the moment

Posted on 15 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, News | 2 Comments

“The handheld team wasn’t “closed down” quite as you put it – you’ll be pleased to hear that we still have all the talent on-site (even if they’re not all in the same barn) and they’re all hard at work on new projects.- What I can confirm is that none of these projects are for handhelds, so it’d be true to say that at present, we’re currently not developing any handheld games. Might we return to that field in the future? Well, we’re certainly not ruling that out. However, to the best of my knowledge there’s nothing in the pipe at the moment.”

I really hope Rare picks up work on handhelds in the future. The company did some great work with Viva Pinata on the DS…It’d be a shame not to see any more projects for them on the portable.

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Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. officially confirmed for Wii

Posted on 15 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 0 comments

# NHANCED REALITY SYSTEM (E.R.S.): E.R.S. is in-game technology that helps turn novice aviators into elite pilots of the future. The Enhanced Reality System is the core of the HAWX flight experience: aircraft interception trajectories, incoming missile detection, anti-crash system, damage assessment, tactical map, and weapons trajectory control. E.R.S. also allows players to issue orders to their squadron and other units, making this system as iconic to HAWX as the Cross-Com system is to Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter®!
# ASSISTANCE MODE : Players can ease into their flight missions and gain a level of comfort with the use of the assistance mode. Once employed, players can take full advantage of their technological support through the E.R.S and gain maximum piloting security. If the situation calls for the player to unleash the full potential of the aircraft, the assistance mode can be switched off and all safety features will be deactivated. This comes with increased risks, but allows the player advanced dogfighting maneuvers and stunning third-person views.
# REVOLUTIONARY MULTIPLAYER: For the first time ever in the air-combat genre, players will be able to experience the entire solo campaign with seamless JUMP IN/JUMP OUT functionality. In PVP mode, players can challenge each other in intense dog-fighting sessions and find out who’s the top gun. Winning players are rewarded with experience points and money to unlock more weapons.
# REALISM AND TECHNOLOGY : Players have the opportunity to take the throttle of over 50 famous aircrafts, and take them over real world locations & cities in photo-realistic environments created with the best commercial satellite data on the civilian market.

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Smash-Up details

Posted on 15 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 1 Comment

– Settling with a darker version of modern CG Turtles
– Large part of the staff also came from the Team Ninja development team
– Created from the ground up to be a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game
– Wide variety of levels to choose from
– Trying to give each level distinct personality
– Interactive elements different for each level – destructible, progressive, different art styles/strategies, etc.
– Characters include Splinter and “others you know well in addition to surprise characters you certainly wouldn’t expect”
– Several different modes of play designed for single player
– Went with Wii because it appeals to all ages, controller options
– Environments can be used as weapons
– No plans for MotionPlus or WiiSpeak but will give plalyers several controller option to choose from

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First Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Smash-Up trailer

Posted on 15 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 3 Comments

Obama set up a Wii station for the Superbowl

Posted on 15 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 2 Comments

President Barack Obama has shown a lot of support for Nintendo’s systems in recent weeks. There have been reports that he has played a bit of Wii Sports and helped his daughters locate their DSs. Now most recently, President Obama apparently set up a Wii station in the East Wing of the White House for the Superbowl.

“Representative Charlie Dent, Republican of Pennsylvania, said he was “pleasantly surprised” to be invited to the White House to watch the Super Bowl. He brought his three children — ages 14, 12 and 8 — who joined other kids at a Wii station that was set up in the East Wing.” – NYTimes

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Video shows how Dead Space might look like on Wii

Posted on 15 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 1 Comment

THQ Reports Fiscal 2009 Third Quarter Results

Posted on 15 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Three Months Ended 12/31/08
Net Sales – $357,310 [compared to $509,609 three months ended 12/31/07]
Net Income (loss) – $(191,754) [compared to $15,507 three months ended 12/31/07]
Nine Months Ended 12/31/08
Net Sales – $659,704 [compared to $843,443 nine months ended 12/31/07]
Net Income (loss) – $(334,238) [compared to $(806) nine months ended 12/31/07]
For the three months ended December 31, 2008, THQ reported net sales of $357.3 million. On a non-GAAP basis, the company reported fiscal 2009 third quarter net sales of $385.6 million. A year ago, the company reported net sales of $509.6 million, for both GAAP and non-GAAP comparison purposes.