Gamer Investments - Video Game Industry and Stock Market News

Title: “Ninja Blade”

Age Rating: Rating Pending

Availability: Q1 2009

Product Overview: Step into the dark and mysterious world of “Ninja Blade,” where gamers will be given the epic task to defend Tokyo and ultimately humanity itself from a horrific, genetically mutating disease.

High atop the towering skyscrapers of modern-day Tokyo, Ken Ogawa and his team of skilled ninjas are deployed to destroy the infected monster horde and stem the spreading disease as humanity hangs in the balance. Matters quickly take a turn for the worse as Ken and his team are betrayed from within their own ranks. After narrowly escaping death, Ken is left to fight the daunting battle alone while also attempting to understand the motivations behind his betrayal.

Armed with an extensive arsenal of specialized ninja weapons, tools and skills including the powerful forces of “Ninja Vision” and “Todome,” players must fight insurmountable odds, and once again bring peace and order to Tokyo.

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Highly Anticipated Hasbro-Branded Video Games to Be Showcased at Consumer Electronics Show Booth # 72201

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Jan 06, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Fans of casual, family-friendly games are about to see their circle of fun widen with a slate of new Hasbro-branded digital play experiences on a variety of platforms from Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ:ERTS) in 2009. Leading the charge is SCRABBLE, which rocketed to the No. 1 position on Pogo.com(TM) with more than 2.5 million players laying down virtual tiles since its June 2008 launch. The best-selling crossword puzzle board game is on deck to land on handheld platforms including the Nintendo DS(TM) and Sony PlayStation(R)Portable system (PSP(R)) in March 2009 in the US and Canada. EA is also gearing up to inject nostalgic fun into the Xbox LIVE(R) Arcade by bringing perennial board game favorites to the popular platform. Under a Hasbro Family Game Night banner, games such as SCRABBLE (US and Canada only), BOGGLE, BATTLESHIP, YAHTZEE, CONNECT FOUR, SORRY! and SORRY!Sliders will begin to roll out in Spring 2009. EA will showcase the highly anticipated lineup at the Consumer Electronics Show on January 8-11, 2009 in Las Vegas.

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Driven by record sales at retail along with an 84 percent jump in online consumer spending; global install base lead over PlayStation 3 expands to more than 8 million units.

REDMOND, Wash. - Jan. 5, 2009 - Despite a tough economy, the gaming industry held strong in 2008 and Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system recorded the biggest year in Xbox history, with more consoles, games and online entertainment experiences sold than any previous year. It was a year in which life-to-date unit sales of Xbox 360 systems climbed to 28 million consoles worldwide - expanding the product’s lead over Sony PlayStation 3 to more than 8 million units. The Xbox LIVE community also grew to more than 17 million active members, as online consumer spending increased 84 percent from last year. Since the launch of the Xbox 360 three years ago, more than $1 billion has been spent on Xbox LIVE. This amazing growth was fueled by the launch of the New Xbox Experience1; the broadest selection of hit games, TV shows, and movies available; and mass-market price points, starting at $199.Xbox 360 is experiencing record-setting sales around the globe, particularly in Japan and Europe, nearly doubling market share in these key territories. In Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) specifically, Xbox 360 has now sold more than 8 million units, extending its lead over the PS3 by more than 1 million units.

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LONDON - 5th January 2009: Xbox® today revealed sales data showing Christmas 2008 was the biggest sales period ever in the brand’s six-year European history, with sales of Xbox 360^TM almost double those of Christmas 2007[1]. Eight million Xbox 360 consoles have been sold in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA)[2] up to the end of 2008, widening its lead over PlayStation 3 in the region to more than one million and setting the scene for further growth in 2009.

GfK-ChartTrack data shows that Xbox 360 was the fastest-growing console of 2008, with sales in the fourth quarter of 2008 over double that of the same period in 2007, spurred on by a mix of value, great games and entertainment, and the recently-launched New Xbox Experience.

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Resident Evil® 5, Street Fighter® IV, Bionic Commando®, Dead RisingTM: Chop Till You Drop, FLOCK! and MotoGPTM for WiiTM Ready to Dominate the Console World

Capcom®, a leading worldwide developer and publisher of video games, has today confirmed that six of its upcoming titles will be released within the first half of 2009. The line-up demonstrates Capcom’s commitment to pursuing a multi-platform strategy while growing its portfolio of titles and includes the latest installments of some of gaming’s most cherished franchises.

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Cambridge, Mass. - January 2, 2009- Harmonix and MTV Games announced today the addition of one of the most influential pioneers of rock and roll, Roy Orbison, to the Rock Band® Music Store catalog of downloadable content. Grammy Award-winning Roy Orbison was a singer, songwriter and performer whose distinctive sound scored him an astounding nine Top 10 hits in four years in the early 1960s. Orbison’s historic career began in the 1950s and saw a huge resurgence in the late 1980s, when he became a prominent influence on artists like Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, Bono, k. d. lang and Traveling Wilburys.

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EA Sports president Peter Moore,upset that FIFA 09 didn’t make Eurogamer’s Top 50 Games of 2008, justified his anger on his blog with some impressive sales data:

Now I get that the sports genre is the Rodney Dangerfield of games when the awards are handed out. But c’mon, one of the best sports games of recent times not even in the Top 50? This title will sell in excess of 10 million units when all is done and dusted, but doesn’t even rank a mention?

No matter how you feel about soccer, or sports games in general, 10 million is pretty impressive.

Link

-Justin

In addition to tracking television viewership The Nielsen Company has also been collecting data on a whole host of things people have been doing during 2008, including what video game systems are getting the most use.  According to their findings the PlayStation 2 saw the most action in 2008 accounting for 31.7% of all play time.  The Xbox 360 came in second at 17.2%, followed by the Wii at 13.4%.  Sadly, the PlayStation 3 didn’t fair quite as well narrowly beating out the GameCube at 7.3%.

Check out the full list and a link to the full report after the break.

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Fudzilla is reporting that Microsoft is preparing for a massive layoff on January 15th, 2009.  According to the report about 17 percent (15,000 jobs) of Microsoft’s workforce will be cut.  MSN is expected to get hit hardest, while the Entertainment and Devices Division will most likely see little change considering they have just started to become profitable.

Due to a lack of official confirmation from Microsoft this one will stay in the rumor category for now.

Link

-Justin

Eidos has released some DLC for the Xbox 360 version of Tomb Raider Underworld, although it’s not the additional levels that were promised.  If you have 62 MB to spare you can pick up a costume pack that consist of a red (pictured above) or blue wetsuit.  Hey, at least it’s free.

Link

-Justin