New Halo 3 Maps

Usually I get tons of press releases on Tuesday, not this week. Today my inbox was flooded with a boatload of information. Because I like to keep my readers informed (and I'm lazy) the press releases are listed below in italics.
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Halo 3 Legendary Map Pack
More than 7.3 million copies of “Halo 3” have flown off store shelves, upwards of 500 million hours of frag-tacular online gameplay have been logged on Xbox LIVE and the Heroic Map Pack has been downloaded by 1 million plus gamers and counting. But it’s not over yet…Microsoft and Bungie today announced that April 15 will mark the release of the next wave of “Halo 3” downloadable content. Available exclusively on Xbox LIVE Marketplace for 800 Microsoft Points, the Legendary Map Pack will introduce three new maps to the title’s award-winning multiplayer experience, Ghost Town, Avalanche, and one map yet to be revealed. And with the addition of some exciting Forge options, fans can explore new ways to create and share their custom “Halo 3” content.
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Ghost Town is a battle-scarred maze of narrow passages and dangerous ruins outside the once-prosperous city of Voi. Collapsed ceilings and shell-battered buildings provide both valuable cover and deadly traps, as catwalks and stairways take the fight from claustrophobic ground combat to dizzying rooftop battles. Ghost Town is a mid-sized map ideal for Team Slayer games and smaller, objective types. The second map, Avalanche, is a tribute to Sidewinder, a “Halo: Combat Evolved” fan-favorite. This massive, vehicle-oriented objective map adds a twist to its classic predecessor with all new interiors, dramatically reshaped exteriors and brand new vehicle variants. Take a ride and admire the visual variety from the cockpit of the retuned Hornet. The third map to be included in the Legendary Pack has yet to be announced, but stay tuned to Bungie.net for full details on another returning classic… fans of smaller Slayer maps, it’s time to get excited.
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I'd be a little more excited if these maps were 400 points instead of 800 but that's what I said when the first Halo 3 maps came out. Speaking of which, the first pack was supposed to be free when this April pack is released. I still hope that's the case but this press release says nothing of that.
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Sims 3 coming in 2009
Electronic Arts Inc. announced today the first details on one of interactive entertainment’s most anticipated games, The Sims 3. Featuring a brand new engine that has been in development for nearly three years, The Sims 3 allows you to immerse your unique Sims in an open living neighborhood right outside their door. The initial feature-set unveiled includes the new seamless, open neighborhood, new Create A Sim, new realistic personalities and new unlimited customization. The Sims 3 will launch globally in 2009. The Sims franchise has long been recognized for its appeal to a universal audience, both male and female, and at any age. Its broad appeal and loyal The Sims community has vaulted the franchise to an impressive 98 million games sold around the world and translated into 22 different languages. Celebrated for its creativity, humor, and community, The Sims franchise has become a global and cultural phenomenon since its inception in 2000. Now, The Sims 3 is being designed to be the next-generation flagship game from The Sims Label.
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New Seamless, Open Neighborhood—Explore the Neighborhood Freely.
See the sights with your Sims! The new seamless neighborhood architecture allows your Sims to roam freely around the neighborhood and visit their loved one and friends—or foes. Discovering other Sims homes and families, traveling around to new locations like City Hall or the local park will create a whole new way of life for your Sims. Storytelling options will multiply as your Sims stroll downtown to meet new acquaintances, head across town for lunch, spy on their neighbors and bump into the boss when they least expect it.
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New Create A Sim—Create Any Sim You Can Imagine.
In addition to the open, living neighborhood, the all-new Create-a-Sim interface will feature easy-to-use design tools that allow you to make truly detailed Sims that are more realistic than ever. Create-a-Sim gives you the incredible freedom to customize just about any Sim you can imagine. From thin to full-figured to muscular—everything in between and even the extreme! In addition to determining your Sims body shape and size, you will also be able to fine-tune every feature on their faces, customize their hair style and select their skin tone, all from a vast selection of options. With so many choices to choose from, it is fun to create more realistic characters that look like you, someone you want to look like, or even a famous personality.
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New Realistic Personalities—Every Sim Is A Unique Person, With A Distinct Personality
With the innovative and proprietary Realistic Personality System in The Sims 3, you can attribute each character with five distinct personality traits, helping shape your Sims behavior and how they interact with others and their surroundings. This new system will empower you to create extremely complex and diverse in-game personalities. Will you create the nosy, inappropriate, kleptomaniac grandmother who loves to meddle in other people’s business? Or the commitment-phobic, hot-headed punk rocker whose rude nature and childish disposition keeps him from scoring a date? In The Sims 3, Sims will go beyond the basic set of day-to-day needs to be distinct individuals with multifaceted personalities, who can focus both on short-term opportunities and long-term goals. With a wide selection of personality traits to mix and match, more than 700 million combinations of Sims await. You never know who’ll meet in The Sims 3!
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New Unlimited Customization—Everyone Can Customize Everything!
New and accessible creativity tools in The Sims 3 make it simple for anyone to customize anything, anywhere! From floors to flowers, fashions to sofas, wallpaper to window shades and more, The Sims 3 gives you all the flexibility and options you need to be the architect of your dream house or explore your interior design skills to outfit your ultimate home. Your Sims can make home an ultra-deluxe mansion, a cool bachelor pad, family’s dream home or charming cottage. The choice is yours in The Sims 3. For more information visit www.TheSims3.com.
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ESA Foundation Offers Scholarships for Future Video Game Developers
With entertainment software holding its place as one of the fastest growing industries in the U.S. economy and becoming a new field of study at colleges and universities, the ESA Foundation has established a scholarship program to help train and educate the next generation of video game developers and designers. Computer and video game companies posted record revenues of $9.5 billion in 2007 and the industry grew by 17 percent from 2003-2006, four times the growth rate of the national economy. More than 200 colleges, universities and technical schools in the U.S., and 400 worldwide offer programs and courses in video game design.

The ESA Foundation’s Scholarship Program makes available $45,000 in scholarships for women and minority applicants pursuing careers in video game development. Full-time undergraduate students can apply online for a $3,000 scholarship until May 15, 2008. The program assists women and minority students who plan to continue their education in fields supporting video game development, including graphic design, computer science, animation or programming, digital entertainment or software engineering. Scholarships are offered each year for full-time study at accredited four-year colleges and universities. The ESA Foundation plans to award 15 scholarships of $3,000 each to students for the 2008-09 academic year. Scholarship Management Services administers this program. For more information and to complete an application online please visit: https://www.scholarshipamerica.org/esaf.
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Cast announced for Street Fighter Movie
Capcom, a leading worldwide developer and publisher of video games, is proud to confirm the main cast for its live-action Street Fighter movie based on the hugely popular video game series.The story revolves around fan-favorite Chun-Li, who will be portrayed by actress Kristen Kreuk (of Smallville fame). Michael Clark Duncan, Neal McDonough, and Taboo of Black Eyed Peas are also on board to round out this all-star cast. The film will be made in conjunction with Hyde Park Films, and will be distributed by 20th Century Fox for a scheduled 2009 worldwide release.The Street Fighter movie is only one of many projects Capcom has planned to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Street Fighter. Summer 2008 will see the Japanese arcade release of the much-anticipated Street Fighter IV. Street Fighter was first released in 1987 to critical acclaim for its innovative features. This was followed up in 1991 with the smash hit Street Fighter II, which broke records by being available in 500 thousand arcade cabinets and selling over 25 million units on home systems. These records cemented Street Fighter’s reputation as one of the most popular fighting game series of all time and ensured that the fighting genre would become a staple of the gaming world.
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The cast so far includes:
• Chun-Li: Kristin Kreuk. Plays the role of Lana Lang in the WB television series Smallville .
• Balrog: Michael Clarke Duncan. The Island, Sin City, Daredevil, The Scorpion King
• M. Bison: Neal McDonough. The Hitcher, The Guardian, Minority Report, Band of Brothers
• Vega: Taboo. Member of popular R&B music group Black Eyed Peas and recipient of three Grammy Awards.
• Charlie Nash: Chris Klein. We Were Soldiers, American Pie
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Haahahahahaha! Chris Klein?!?! Hahahahahahah!
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And finally - Check here and here for some downloadable games I reviewed for GamePro. I have some bigger stuff coming up with the site but I'll let you know more about that later...Next week I'm planning on heading up to Denver for my tour of the SOE Denver studio so hopefully that post will go up next week.
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