Week of October 30, 2005

Envisionz, makers of Media Center PCs and other home entertainment products, announced today that they are taking pre-orders for their next-gen media center hub.

This is the first media entertainment PC that will blur the lines between PC and Game Console. This revolutionary system will allow you to play Envizions customize console games, or upgrade the system to configure to your personal own personal taste. This unit is the first phase of many more phases to come. Each level of advancement will be labeled by numerical phase count. The first phase of this system is scheduled to ship the early part of 2006, and the second phase will ship 2007 and so on. This multi media system will be the network that will not only enter the living room but merge the entire home under one unit. EVO will be 100 % wireless.

More info can be found at their website: http://www.envizionsinc.com/pre_order.htm

Microsoft and Rare want to encourage fans to create their own Perfect Dark Zero fansite, so they have released the fan kit:

Webmasters and causal fans alike can now create a sleek and sexy "Perfect Dark Zero" site that is worthy of the game's famed heroine, Joanna Dark. Microsoft Game Studios and Rare today announced that the Fan Site Kit (FSK) for the hotly-anticipated prequel to Rare's critically acclaimed blockbuster hit, "Perfect Dark," is now available. The new FSK offers an array of materials for building an impressive fan site, including hi-res character renders, concept art, logos, backgrounds, weapon icons and other web-ready artwork. The "Perfect Dark Zero" FSK is available for download at http://perfectdarkzero.com/fansites/.

Eidos Interactive, one of the world's leading publishers and developers of entertainment software, today confirms that the game previously known as Roll Call has been re-named and will feature as a major part of the 2006 line-up of titles under the new title ZERO TOLERANCETM- City Under Fire.

Developed by London-based Rocksteady Studios, ZERO TOLERANCE is a high velocity, action shooter confronting real terror in a real city. Play as Nick Mason, an ex-US marine and part of T-Zero, the elite counter-gang unit. Specially trained in all areas of urban combat and armed with the very latest high-tech weaponry, T-Zero is all that stands in the way of total anarchy.

Experience a year in the unpredictable life of a T-Zero Officer in a city on the brink of collapse as he works with the Emergency Services in a desperate fight to save his city.

ZERO TOLERANCE will be available on PS2 and Xbox in Q2 2006.

Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. has announced plans for the upcoming expansion set to World of Warcraft®, its award-winning subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game. World of Warcraft: The Burning CrusadeTM will take players to a new realm of adventure and intrigue as they continue to explore Azeroth and the regions beyond. New races to play, new lands to explore, and new levels of power for existing World of Warcraft characters all await players in The Burning Crusade.

"We're extremely proud of what we created with World of Warcraft, and we look forward to expanding the boundaries of the game with The Burning Crusade," said Mike Morhaime, president and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment®. "With all of the new content we have planned, the expansion set will offer something for every World of Warcraft player to explore and enjoy."

World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade takes up where World of Warcraft left off, with the races of the Horde and the Alliance continuing to rebuild their lives among the shattered lands of Azeroth. Amid the fragile peace that exists between the factions come rumors that the Burning Legion's age-old war against Azeroth – the so-called Burning Crusade – has been rekindled and threatens to consume the world in another firestorm of war and strife. Old allegiances fall and new ones rise as both the Horde and Alliance look to new friends in this time of need.

Building on the award-winning formula set forth in World of Warcraft, the expansion set adds even more rich content to an already massive game. Players can look forward to:

Vivendi Universal Games (VU Games) and HD Publishing today announced an exclusive worldwide agreement for the modern day warfare real-time strategy (RTS) game, Joint Task Force. Under the agreement, VU Games will co-publish, market and distribute HD Publishing's Joint Task Force for the PC in 2006 under the Sierra brand.

"Joint Task Force will appeal to gamers worldwide because they can command the front lines in tomorrow's most hazardous war-zones including the Middle East, South America, Central Asia and the Balkans," said Philip W. O'Neil, Chief Operating Officer and President of North America for Vivendi Universal Games. "No other strategy game is as gritty or immediate as Joint Task Force."

"We are extremely pleased to further strengthen our relationship with Vivendi Universal Games and to continue on from the success we shared with 'Nexus: The Jupiter Incident,'" said Mike Horneman, Managing Director of HD Publishing. "VU Games' skill and expertise in distribution will bring this innovative product to a worldwide mass market."

Developed by Mithis Entertainment, Joint Task Force is a story of modern war where players match superior tactics and military technology against dangerous unconventional forces around the globe. The game's exacting attention to detail – from buildings that dynamically collapse to military vehicles modeled down to the last rivet – will create a new benchmark for modern-day RTS games. For more information about the game visit www.jointtaskforce.com.