Rock Band new's

10:00 (BST), 08/09/2008

Rock Band

Press Release PROVIDED BY GAMES PRESS

– Rock Band™ continues its European invasion as Harmonix, the leading developer of music-based games, and MTV Games, a part of Viacom’s MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), along with distribution partner Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS), today announced a European price cut for the Rock Band Instrument Edition on the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. In addition, Rock Band for the PLAYSTATION®3 and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment systems and Wii™ will ship to retail and will be available in the UK the week of September 8th, in France the week of September 15th, in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Sweden, Belgium, Netherlands, Austria and Luxembourg the week of September 22nd and in Spain the week commencing September 29th. The Instrument Edition of Rock Band will retail for €139.99 in Europe and £109.99 in the United Kingdom for the Xbox 360®, PLAYSTATION®3 system, PlayStation®2 system and Wii™.

Rock Band is an all-new platform for music fans and gamers to interact with music. The game challenges players to put together a band and tour for fame and fortune, mastering lead/bass guitar, drums and vocals. With more master recordings than any other music game, Rock Band features some of the world’s biggest rock artists and spans every genre of rock ranging from alternative and classic rock to heavy metal and punk.

In addition to the 58 tracks from the North American release, Rock Band will feature nine additional tracks including:

• Blur “Beetlebum” (English)*

• Oasis “Rock ‘n’ Roll Star” (English)

• Tokio Hotel “Monsoon” (English)

• Muse “Hysteria” (English)

• Les Wampas “Manu Chao” (French)

• Playmo “New Wave” (French)

• Die Toten Hosen “Hier Kommt Alex” (German)

• Juli “Perfekte Welle” (German)

• H-Block X “Countdown to Insanity” (German)

(*cover song)

In addition, Rock Band’s unprecedented library of more than 200 songs available for purchase and download to date in North America is now available in Europe for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system and PLAYSTATION 3 system. All new Rock Band downloadable content will be available simultaneously in the US and Europe on a weekly basis. For a complete list of Rock Band songs available for purchase to date, please go to http://www.rockband.com/dlc.

Since its North American release in 2007, Rock Band has garnered more than 40 awards including Game Critics Award: Best of Show E3 2007 and three awards at The 11th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards including Outstanding Innovation in Gaming, Family Game of the Year, and Outstanding Achievement in Soundtrack.

Rock Band is rated 12+ by PEGI.

For more information on Rock Band and Harmonix Music Systems please visit www.rockband.com and www.harmonixmusic.com.

Developed by Harmonix, MTV Games is the publisher of Rock Band. EA is the exclusive distribution partner for Rock Band.

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MTV Networks, a division of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is one of the world’s leading creators of entertainment content, with brands that engage and connect diverse audiences across television, online, mobile, games, virtual worlds and consumer products. The company’s portfolio spans more than 150 television channels and 350 digital media properties worldwide, and includes MTV, VH1, CMT, Logo, Harmonix, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, Noggin, The N, AddictingGames, Neopets, COMEDY CENTRAL, Spike TV, TV Land, Atom, Gametrailers and Xfire.

MTV Games is dedicated to creating, marketing and publishing high-quality, innovative interactive products that are relevant to the MTV audience and complement the core values of the MTV Networks brands.

Harmonix Music Systems, Inc., based in Cambridge, MA, and established in 1995, is the leading developer of groundbreaking music-oriented videogames. Harmonix was founded by Alex Rigopulos and Eran Egozy, who formed the company to invent new ways for non-musicians to experience the unique joy that comes from making music and have pioneered music and rhythm gaming in the US. For more information please visit: www.harmonixmusic.com.

Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City, California, is the world's leading interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the Company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, cellular handsets and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA SPORTSTM, EATM, EA SPORTS FreestyleTM and POGOTM. In fiscal 2008, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.67 billion and had 27 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA's homepage and online game site is www.electronicarts.co.uk. More information about EA's products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at www.electronicarts.co.uk/press.

Harmonix, Rock Band, Rock Band 2 and all related titles and logos are trademarks of Harmonix Music Systems, Inc., an MTV Networks company. Rock Band and Rock Band 2 developed by Harmonix Music Systems, Inc. MTV: Music Television, MTV Games and all related titles and logos are trademarks of MTV Networks, a division of Viacom International Inc. All other marks are the property of their respective owners. EA, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS Freestyle and POGO are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Microsoft, Xbox, and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. "PlayStation", "PLAYSTATION" and "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Wii is a trademark of Nintendo. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

 Games Press is the leading online resource for games journalists. Used daily by magazines, newspapers, TV, radio, online media and retailers worldwide, it offers a vast, constantly updated archive of press releases and assets, and is the simplest and most cost-effective way for PR professionals to reach the widest possible audience

new's

Tales of Vesperia Review

September 7, 2008 by  

As more and more RPG’s come along for the Xbox360, they keep getting better. Tales of Vesperia is no exception. This latest Tales game offers a very long story, great looking graphics, good narrative, and enough content to last about 60 hours.

As the case with all Tales games, Vesperia has a long story that involves the world being in danger. The main role is accompanied by Yuri Lowell, an ex-Imperial Knight who lives by doing only what he wants. When the blastia core (magical devices) of the lower quarter gets stolen, Yuri sets off to find the thief and return order to his part of the town once again. Along the way, Yuri runs into characters such as Estelle; a run away princess, and Karol; a monster nerd.

Throughout the story, Yuri and his friends will run into new characters and get into new messes while fixing some along the way.  If not skipping scenes or rushing, the story can last up to 40 hours and wraps up nicely. Similar to other Tales games, the “talking heads” scenes make a return. While they are completly optional, they do give more insight as to what is going on or character opinions on certain issues.

As you travel further into the world of Terca Lumireis, you’ll run into more characters that will join you on your quest. At first you’ll only start off with a few, but later they’ll keep coming one by one. Each character has their own personal goals that they would like to accomplish while on the epic quest. Everyone’s goal is written out well and it can be hard not to care about them. The character relationships can be heartwarming as well. When Yuri and Estelle talk one-on-one you can’t help but smile sometimes.

When looking at the world of Terca Lumireis you’ll find beauty everywhere. The visual style is most similar to Eternal Sonata with the cel-shading, but side-by-side, Tales of Vesperia would look more crisp overall. Some of the cutscenes are completely animated, like an anime show, and look fantastic. While their aren’t a whole lot of those scenes, they can pick up the pace since some of the real time scenes can be a bit lacking.

As you travel more you’ll run into a number of towns. As you enter a new town you’ll need to talk to every party member, who will be scattered around the town. A lot of information comes from these towns, monsters may attack, you might find new friends and possibly new enemies, and more quests. You wont spend too much time in these towns since there aren’t many errands you have run in them.

Tales of Vesperia runs and plays very well. There’s virtually nothing to slow down the pace of the game, as there aren’t any time consuming puzzles or vast arenas you have to run through. Vesperia stays true to the formula of other Tales games. The combat is virtually the same here. It runs in real time and you’ll have a nice sized field to fight in. The default option is auto-targeting enemies while you press the B button to attack, while pressing the A button along with pressing the left analog stick in a direction to perform Artes. Everything looks and flows beautifully in combat and is pretty easy for the most part, though some strategy is required for some later boss fights.

The combat is not all about mashing buttons until you win. There is the option to change the strategy for you three AI-controlled teammates, or have three of your friends pick up controllers to play as them. In later fights, item usage and character placement is imperative. If you’re lucky enough while using an Artes, a green, red or blue decorated circle will appear over the enemy. If you press the right trigger in time you’ll perform a fatal strike. These usually don’t kill an enemy right away, but if it does you’ll be rewarded with more EXP and Gald.

As stated before, Vesperia has other aspects that other Tales games have. For instance if you look carefully enough you’ll find the Wonder Chef, who will give you new recipies for you to cook and you’ll get new Artes as you level and find new weapons. In the end, Tales of Vesperia does not disappoint in the least. It’s refreashing to see an aging series get such a fresh update. While Tales of Vesperia isn’t too much different from the others, it absolutely is the best. It’s one of the best RPG’s on the 360 to date and is worth a purchase.