GameNews Headlines December 2006

* SEGA Acquires Aliens Licence [12 Dec 06]
* Cancer Themed Game for Patients Going Strong [12 Dec 06]
* Xbox on Life Support [12 Dec 06]
* Indian Uni to Set Up Centre for Game Development [12 Dec 06]
* New Singapore Program to Fund Mobile Game Dev [11 Dec 06]
* [NG] Lost Planet (X360) Due 12 Jan 07 [11 Dec 06]
* Update: X Media Lab Singapore [7 Dec 06]
* Film Vic Applauds GDAA Game Awards Winners [7 Dec 06]
* [NG] Wii Finally Launches Across Australia [7 Dec 06]
* [NG] Token Frenzy Released [7 Dec 06]
* [NG] Star Wars holiday Pack for PC [7 Dec 06]
* [NG] Ice Age 2 for Wii in Early 2007 [7 Dec 06]
* [NG] War Front: Turning Point Demo [7 Dec 06]
* Top Ten games for the Week Ending 30 Nov [4 Dec 06]
* [NG] Cooking Mama Coming to DS [4 Dec 06]

Licences
SEGA Acquires Aliens Licence
SEGA and Twentieth Century Fox Licensing & Merchandising have announced "a worldwide exclusive agreement to bring game content based on the critically-acclaimed Alien film franchise to next-generation gaming systems. Multiple titles, including a first-person shooter and a role playing game, are currently in pre-production with the first to be released in 2009. Securing the rights to produce Alien titles reinforces SEGA’s strategy of combining premium licensed content with original IP to aggressively expand its global business." For the press release link, see the new Sega Aliens website here. [12 Dec 2006] [top]

Serious Games
US: Cancer Themed Game for Patients Going Strong
Re-mission, which we first reported about in April this year (see Game to Help Young Cancer Patients Deal with Treatment Launched) is proving popular with young cancer patients. In the game the player destroys the enemy, cancer, and according to a US based news website it is providing patients with new perspective on fighting cancer. The article also reports on a study which has been undertaken where "kids in the study played this game or a regular video game for three months. Researchers found the teens who played Re-Mission felt better overall, knew more about their cancer, and were more likely to take their medications properly." For the article, click here. [12 Dec 2006] [top]

Consoles
Xbox on Life Support
MCVUK.com reports "the death knell has tolled for Xbox 360's predecessor as official release schedules show seven of the UK’s top ten publishers appear to have turned their backs on the format. According to official release schedules, major third parties like Ubisoft, Sega, Midway, Vivendi and Activision have no planned future Xbox releases." For the article, click here. The adds that "the only big budget games still officially due for the format are: Avatar The Last Airbender from THQ (09/02), Medal Of Honor: Heroes from EA (Q1 2007) and 2K Games’ film tie-in Ghost Rider (Q1 2007)." [12 Dec 2006] [top]

Education
Indian Uni To Set Up Centre for Game Development
The Telegraph India online reports that Jadavpur University "is set to become the first academic institution in the country to have a centre for development of computer games. The increasing preference of young engineers for a career in the rapidly-growing gaming industry has prompted the university’s decision to set up Games Valley." The project is expected to involve collaboration with "Digipen, in Washington DC, which conducts programmes in design and computer games. An agreement will also be signed with Algon Quin University in Canada, which is known for producing quality game developers." For the article, click here. [12 Dec 2006] [top]

Government
New Singapore Program to Fund Mobile Game Dev
"To give a further boost to the Lion City's goal of becoming a world-class game development hub, the Media Development Authority (MDA) of Singapore says it has launched a new program that will provide funding for Singapore-based mobile game developers" reports Phillipines' INQ7.net. "The INVIGORATE initiative is now open for applications from local mobile game studios and teams from December 9, 2006 to February 9, 2007. The MDA will select 10 teams, each of which will get up to S$25,000 in funding." In addition to funding the MDA will "mix and match [teams] with mentors from local or global game developers or publishers." For the article, click here. For the MDA website, click here. [11 Dec 2006] [top]

From Newgames.com.au
[NG] Lost Planet (X360) Due 12 Jan 07
A new trailer for Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (X360) has been released by Capcom. Read the full news item here. [11 Dec 2006] [top]

Events
Update: X Media Lab Singapore
International digital media mentoring organisation X Media Lab says its Singapore conference, held yesterday, sold out. "The 330 seats available for the XML Pro Day Conference at the Singapore “Learning from Games” Lab sold out" reports the organisation. The conference delegates heard 16 set-piece keynote addresses. Starting today and ending tomorrow, the Lab component of the event will see 14 project teams working with their selected mentors to find ways to bring their projects to market. Project owners and titles include: Disney Internet Group (Tokyo): “English Flash,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation (Australia): “ABC Virtual World,” Australian Centre for Interaction Design (Australia): “CIPHER,” and Ministry of Education (Singapore): “Simply City.” For the X Media Lab website, click here. [7 Dec 2006] [top]

Development
Film Vic Applauds GDAA Game Awards Winners
Film Victoria yesterday congratulated GDAA Game Award Winners Iron Monkey Studios and Endgame Studios. The studios were recognised at the GDAA Annual Game Awards which took place last week at the Game Connect Asia Pacific Conference in Brisbane. "Film Victoria is pleased to congratulate Endgame Studios, who won the The Adam Lancman Award for Best New Start Up and Iron Monkey Studios, whose project Darkenlight won the GDAA Award for Best Unsigned Game (Professional) 2006" remarks a Film Victoria press release. "Both studios have received Game Prototype Development Program investment from Film Victoria, for Slidatron (by Endgame Studios) and Darkenlight projects." [7 Dec 2006] [top]

From Newgames.com.au
[NG] Wii Finally Launches Across Australia
The Nintendo Wii console has finally been released across Australia with many stores offering midnight pickup overnight. Read the full news item here. [7 Dec 2006] [top]

From Newgames.com.au
[NG] Token Frenzy Released
Independent Australian game developer Ultrabizz, has just released a new title for the PC called Token Frenzy, a 3D vehicle game. Read the full news item here. [7 Dec 2006] [top]

From Newgames.com.au
[NG] Star Wars holiday Pack for PC
Activision says a new PC compilation is on its way for the holidays, Star Wars: The Best of PC, featuring Star Wars: Empire at War, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Star Wars Battlefront, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, and Star Wars Republic Commando, with a 14 day Star Wars Galaxies (online) trial included. Read the full news item here. [7 Dec 2006] [top]

From Newgames.com.au
[NG] Ice Age 2 for Wii in Early 2007
Vivendi Games says Ice Age 2: The Meltdown, currently available for PS2, Xbox, PC, GC, DS, and GBA, is being developed for the Wii console and will be available early in 2007 in Australia. Read the full news item here. [7 Dec 2006] [top]

From Newgames.com.au
[NG] War Front: Turning Point Demo
QVS now have a demo link on their website to the new multiplayer demo for RTS game War Front: Turning Point. Read the full news item here. [7 Dec 2006] [top]

Charts
Top Ten Games Week Ending 30 Nov 06 Now Up
GameNews.com.au has updated its Top Ten Game Rentals Chart provided each week by Gameplay.com.au: for the third week in a row Canis Canem Edit for PS2 leads the way followed by Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent for X360. Destroy All Humans 2 has fallen back one to position 4, with The Sims 2: Pets for PS2 taking its place. There are three new entries, F.E.A.R. for X360 nd Need for Speed Carbon for X360 and PS2. F.E.A.R. enter the charts at position 5 showing strong demand. Krome Studios' Spyro: A New Beginning for PS2 has fallen out after only a week, and Dead Rising and Test Drive Unlimited have finally fallen out after 9 and 7 weeks in the Top Ten respectively. The latest chart is for the week ending 30 November 2006. Link: Chart [4 Dec 2006] [top]

From Newgames.com.au
[NG] Cooking Mama Coming to DS
Sydney based Red Ant Enterprises has announced that the innovative DS game Cooking Mama, developed by Taito and Published by 505 Games, will be released 7 December this week: Cooking Mama challenges players to use the stylus as a master kitchen tool to cook 76 real world dishes ranging from pepperoni pizza to cabbage meat rolls. Read the full news item here. [4 Dec 2006] [top]

[top] [Home/Latest News]