Retro-Styled Indie Adventure The Shivah: Kosher Edition Now Available for PC and iOS

In this newly remastered version of developer Wadjet Eye Games’ debut, updated artwork and music enhance unique mystery set in poor New York City synagogue

NEW YORK – November 21, 2013 – The Shivah: Kosher Edition, a newly remastered version of Wadjet Eye Games’ acclaimed 2006 adventure The Shivah, is now available for download on PC and iPad / iPhone / iPod touch. In this story-driven game players don the yarmulke of Russell Stone, a disillusioned rabbi at the head of a struggling New York City synagogue, who gets tangled up in a murder investigation after inheriting a large sum of money from a former congregation member.

The commercial debut of game designer Dave Gilbert, this unassuming adventure game sparked interest from mainstream publications including CNN, USA Today, and The Jerusalem Times and earned a “Best New Studio” Game Developer’s Choice nomination for Gilbert’s company, Wadjet Eye Games. In the seven years since, the self-sustaining Brooklyn-based studio has gained recognition for developing the supernatural Blackwell mystery games and publishing breakout indie hits such as Independent Game Festival winner Gemini Rue.

From its rabbinical conversation methods, Talmudic combat, and handy in-game Yiddish dictionary to its point-and-click gameplay reminiscent of classics like King’s Quest and Monkey Island to its thoughtful storyline, The Shivah is a unique adventure game poised to appeal to Jews and goys alike. The new Kosher Edition has updated pixel art graphics, a new soundtrack, and a refined interface as intuitive and comfortable on touchscreen devices as it is on PC.

“Rabbi Stone and The Shivah jumpstarted my career in 2006, in more ways than one,” says Dave Gilbert. “Working on this game was what made me decide to pursue this ‘full time game developer’ thing, and the positive reaction it received is what made me stick with indie development all these years. Creating The Shivah: Kosher Edition has been a wonderful experience of revisiting where it all began, and I look forward to sharing this revamped version with a wider audience.”

The PC version of The Shivah: Kosher Edition sells for $4.99 and can be downloaded from the official website (http://www.shivahgame.com), Steam (http://store.steampowered.com/app/252370), and GOG (http://www.gog.com/game/the_shivah). A free PC demo can be downloaded from http://www.shivahgame.com/demo.

The iOS version of The Shivah: Kosher Edition is a Universal App that can be downloaded for $1.99 from the App Store (https://itunes.apple.com/app/id718923722).

Wadjet Eye Games’ next major release will be Blackwell Epiphany, the fifth and final game in the popular Blackwell mystery series, coming to PC and iOS in Q1 of 2014.

About Wadjet Eye Games

Founded in 2006, Wadjet Eye Games has developed a reputation for producing award winning and critically acclaimed adventure games. Committed to creating unique character-driven game experiences around recognizable brands, in 2010 Wadjet Eye expanded to support and publish games by other independent developers. The company’s portfolio includes The Shivah and the Blackwell series, both of which have garnered Game Developers Choice nominations, Puzzle Bots, which was selected for the Penny Arcade Expo’s PAX 10 showcase, IGF Student Showcase winner Gemini Rue, and the critically acclaimed Resonance. The company is run by husband and wife team Dave and Janet Gilbert out of their home in Brooklyn. For more information, visit http://www.wadjeteyegames.com.

PROTECT YOUR BRAAAAAINS WITH SKULLCANDY, ASTRO GAMING AUDIO GEAR INSPIRED BY POPCAP GAMES’ PLANTS VS. ZOMBIES

Critically Acclaimed Studios to Develop Exclusive Headsets, Earbuds and Speaker Tags

For Plants vs. Zombies 2, Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare

SAN FRANCISCO – Nov. 21, 2013 – Skullcandy, Inc. (Nasdaq: SKUL), a high-growth, performance lifestyle audio brand, and its division ASTRO Gaming, creators of premium video gaming equipment for professional gamers, announced an exciting new relationship with Plants vs. Zombies™ creator PopCap Games.  As part of the agreement, Skullcandy and ASTRO Gaming will develop several new products including branded headsets, earbuds and speaker tags in support of the latest releases in the popular Plants vs. Zombies franchise, including Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time and Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare.

“Skullcandy and ASTRO Gaming understand that gamers play an unending variety of games, in every imaginable location, across all manner of devices and at the same time expect a consistently high-quality experience from their games and their gear,” said Aron Drayer, Director of Marketing, ASTRO Gaming/Skullcandy Gaming.   “ASTRO Gaming and Skullcandy have become the gamers’ choice for high-fidelity audio because we create unique products that function seamlessly across every platform with unsurpassed performance and customizable style.  PopCap shares this larger vision of gaming so it’s thrilling for us to partner with them on Plants vs. Zombies, which presents a completely addictive gaming experience that can be enjoyed anywhere and on every platform.”

The first of the new Plants vs. Zombies-inspired gaming gear from ASTRO Gaming will be sets of exclusively designed speaker tags for its award-winning ASTRO A30 and A40 Audio Systems.  Developed with direct input from PopCap Games, the ASTRO Gaming Plants vs. Zombies speaker tags will feature artwork from Plants vs. Zombies and Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare to ensure a truly authentic and iconic representation of…plants, zombies, lawn mowers and, of course, braaaaains!

ASTRO Gaming speaker tags provide customers with an opportunity to truly personalize their listening experience with magnetically interchangeable custom-made art designed specifically for the studio’s award-winning A30 and A40 headsets.  ASTRO headset owners can create their own speaker tags using the ASTRO Customizer or choose from dozens of pre-existing and highly stylish tags, including several eye-catching series by Upper Playground, iam8bit, Penny Arcade and many more.

Details about additional and upcoming Plants vs. Zombies headsets and earbuds from Skullcandy and ASTRO Gaming will be announced at a later date.

The ASTRO Gaming Plants vs. Zombies speaker tags are available now directly through the company website at www.astrogaming.com – Plants vs. Zombies 2 sets for the ASTRO A30 are $19.99 each and Garden Warfare sets for the ASTRO A40 are $24.99 each.  Bundles including the ASTRO A30 and A40 Audio Systems and the Plants vs. Zombies speaker tags are also available for $209.99 and $259.99, respectively.

For more information about ASTRO Gaming or the studio’s customizable speaker tags, please visit www.astrogaming.com.

About PopCap Games

PopCap is the leading global developer, publisher and operator of casual video games: fun, easy-to-learn, captivating games that appeal to all ages across PC, mobile, social and other platforms. Based in Seattle, Washington, PopCap was founded in 2000, was acquired by Electronic Arts in 2011, and has a worldwide staff of more than 400 people in Seattle, San Francisco, and Shanghai.

About Skullcandy, Inc.

Skullcandy is a global designer, marketer and distributor of performance audio and gaming headphones and other accessory related products under the Skullcandy, Astro Gaming and 2XL by Skullcandy brands. Skullcandy became one of the world’s most distinct audio brands by bringing color, character and performance to an otherwise monochromatic space; helping to revolutionize the audio arena by introducing headphones, earbuds and other audio and wireless lifestyle products that possess unmistakable style and exceptional performance. The Company’s products are sold and distributed through a variety of channels in the U.S. and approximately 80 countries worldwide.  Visit skullcandy.com, or join us at facebook.com/skullcandy or on Twitter @skullcandy.

About ASTRO Gaming

ASTRO Gaming creates premium video gaming equipment for pro gamers, leagues, gaming enthusiasts and their lifestyles. Spun-off from design powerhouse ASTRO Studios, known in the gaming world for designing the Microsoft Xbox 360™, Alienware PCs, and HP’s Gaming PCs, ASTRO Gaming produces a line of gamer-centric “tech-life” products, supporting this rapidly growing community. ASTRO Gaming’s product line includes the A40 Audio System, the A30 Cross-Gaming Headset, and the Transport Series of gaming gear bags.

All ASTRO Gaming products are available at www.astrogaming.com, www.astrogaming.co.uk  and www.astrogaming.fr

PopCap and Plants vs. Zombies are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc.

ALBION ONLINE DISCUSSES CHALLENGES OF BALANCING PVP & GVG
Player Vs. Player And Guild Vs. Guild Combat Revealed

Berlin, November 21, 2013—  Sandbox Interactive has pulled the curtain back on the importance of player versus player and guild versus guild combat in their upcoming cross-platform Sandbox MMO, Albion Online.  With a player-driven economy and territorial-based PVP, balancing these two systems has proven to be challenge the Albion team is ready to face!  Players can find out more and sign up for the upcoming closed beta test at http://albiononline.com/

With a game focused primarily on Player versus Player (PvP) and Guild versus Guild (GvG) fighting, Sandbox Interactive has striven to make these aspects of the game as fair and exciting as possible!  In Albion Online guilds can claim or conquer areas for their own, which are then known as their territories: guilds can own as many territories as they can capture and hold onto, and these territories provide shelter and resources to their battle-weary warriors!

Though Albion Online has a massive, unlimited open PvP system, there’s special features and mechanics for GvG, as well as other systems put in place to make the battles both fair and exciting.  Players will need to fight bravely for their territory!  In order to make GvG fighting fair for all parties, there is a system which stops enemy players from being able to attack safe territories while guild members are offline. For most of the day, territories are protected by a magical barrier, through which only members of the guild (or friendly members of other guilds) are allowed.

“To accommodate players from many different time zones, guilds choose a certain number of times during the day at which their territory will then be ‘open’ to attack,” said David Salz, Technical Director for Albion Online, “Because building up a power base takes many investments, including time, it’s important that guilds don’t lose their territories simply because they’re sleeping.”

Guilds of all shapes and sizes must feel that they can make their mark (literally!) on the world of Albion, so to level the playing field, Albion Online restrict the size of the GvG battles to accommodate smaller guilds and reward them for their skill in battle rather than their sheer size!  Thus, when guilds fight over territory, these battles will be restricted to a maximum of 5 members on each team.  Both the attacking and defending guilds will be notified prior to the battle commencing, and will at this point have to choose their five best warriors to battle over the territory; this restriction not only allows smaller guilds to compete and to prevent “zerging.”

It’s so important to cater to guilds of all persuasions, Albion Online can’t solely be run by guilds purely focused on PvP. Albion Online has crafting, trading, PVE, — so if players want to do anything to avoid PvP, our mercenary system is for them!  If a territory is threatened, players can also put a bounty out their enemies.  Claiming territory should be a challenge, so guilds must actively and thoroughly plan a strategy for claiming a certain area – guilds are only able to attack a territory if it shares its borders with a territory they already own.  Keep your friends close.and your enemies closer!

Albion Online is the first true cross-platform MMO, running on different devices including Windows, iOS and Android at the same time and in the same world!

Albion Online will go into beta in early 2014 and players can get all the latest updates by following the game on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/albiononline and Twitter: @albiononline, or on Google+  https://plus.google.com/u/0/102755040714140552319/posts and on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9gij-VpDFWaaqn1zLM4TEQ

For more information, please visit www.albion-online.com

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About Sandbox Interactive
We are Sandbox Interactive, an independent company founded in January 2012 and based in Berlin, Germany. We believe that the creation of your own world and interaction with other players are paramount to entertainment — and both creating and interacting are best experienced in sandbox games. That’s why we are extremely passionate about sandbox MMORPGs. Currently, we are a team of 12 full time employees and 9 freelancers, all working hard on our project Albion Online. Most of us are coders and artists. We believe that delivering a great product is most important. That’s why we focus on our game rather than on marketing or a huge B2B network. And even more important, everyone in our team is still a gamer themselves and loves games. We hope that you will be able to feel this love in our game.

FIGHTER WITHIN^TM AVAILABLE ON XBOX ONE AT LAUNCH 

London, UK — November 21, 2013 — Today, Ubisoft^® announced that Fighter Within™, the first motion-fighting game designed specifically for the next generation of hardware, is now available for Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft.

Powered by Kinect for Xbox One, Fighter Within provides the excitement of a fun, immersive and straightforward combat experience. Fighter Within makes the most out of the improved local multiplayer capabilities of Kinect, tracking the two players’ moves as they challenge their friends and family in one-versus-one opposition.

The new Kinect allows for greater variety of gameplay and endless fun. Players engage their fighting skills by throwing punches, kicks, counters and combos. All in all, Fighter Within recognizes more than 40 moves, each of the 12 unique fighters has his signature moves and each of the 10 arenas has its specificities. Players can let their inner fighters decide the best strategy to defeat their opponent based on their preferred style of fighting.

Finally, thanks to the power of Xbox One, Fighter Within boasts impressive next generation quality graphics and unequaled responsiveness. Facial impacts and sweat are reproduced in real time to propel players into the heart of the fight.

For the latest information on Fighter Within, please visit: fighter-within.com

DANCINGANCHOVY Entertainment and DeNA Team Up to Release Team Monster for iPhone, iPad & iPod touch

SAN FRANCISCO – November 21, 2013 – DANCINGANCHOVY Entertainment, a Korean mobile game developer, in partnership with DeNA announced today the launch of Team Monster for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Named one of the top ten most anticipated mobile games by leading mobile gaming site TouchArcade last year, the innovative action role-playing game (RPG) is sure to delight players around the world. The simple, but strategic real-time strategy monster battle game features a mysterious island inhabited by adorably viscous monsters where the player collects, raises and trains a team of creatures, while following storylines that feature a colorful cast of characters. The player develops their island camp, upgrades their home, and unlocks new buildings as they level up in the game.

“With Team Monster, we set out to create a mobile experience with the depth and quality that RPG fans expect from a handheld console game, but free to play and with great social mechanics,” said Deelee, chief executive officer of DANCINGANCHOVY Entertainment. “I’m thrilled to invite mobile game players to download and play Team Monster. Our development team hopes that consumers enjoy playing Team Monster as much as we had creating it.”

The Team Monster App is available for free from the App Store on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch or at www.AppStore.com/TeamMonster

Game assets including logos and screenshots can be downloaded at: http://moba.ge/TeamMonster

A Team Monster trailer is available for you to watch and embed on your site via this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osghKwSCqQY

Team Monster is also coming to Android mobile devices soon. Players can preregister and receive an email alert when the game is available. They will also receive a free in-game Cathawk, a rare flying monster by preregistering on the Team Monster website: www.teammonstergame.com

About DANCINGANCHOVY Entertainment

DANCINGANCHOVY Entertainment Inc. is a popular mobile game developer in Korea with strong representation in the global market. With a team of experienced and talented developers, the studio is focused on creating casual game experiences for consumers. Their portfolio includes games such as Team Monster for KAKAOTalk.

About DeNA

DeNA (pronounced “D-N-A”) is a global leader of developing and operating mobile services including free-to-play games, the Mobage social games platform, e-commerce and other online offerings. Founded in 1999, DeNA is headquartered in Tokyo with offices and game development studios across the globe. DeNA Co., Ltd. is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (2432). For more information, visit: dena.com

HARMONIX LENDS EXPERTISE TO REALTA ENTERTAINMENT’S BANDFUSE: ROCK LEGENDS

Realta Entertainment Group today detailed its collaboration with music game pioneers Harmonix Music Systems on the recently launched BandFuse: Rock Legends, the music video game where legendary rockers transform players into real-world guitarists, bassists and vocalists. Harmonix, developers of the pop culture phenomena franchises Guitar Hero and Rock Band, provided the Realta development team with input ranging from intuitive interface designs, to guidance for setting skill levels for novice players.

“We’re happy to see the folks at Realta pushing forward and innovating in the music game space, especially in ways that inspire and motivate fans to pick up real instruments,” said Alex Rigopulos, CEO and co-founder of Harmonix Music Systems.

Harmonix contributed its Rock Band vocal interface design to the BandFuse: Rock Legends gameplay. The interface, when tied to the Realta analytics engine, scores vocals for instant feedback in single and multiplayer mode. The team also shared the iconic Rock Band instrument logos for use in the in-game user interface.

“The team at Harmonix offered feedback on our original game design, providing expertise on key techniques and game development based on their experience in making groundbreaking music games,” said Stephen Gomes, CEO of Realta Entertainment. “They advised us on ways to make the experience more fun and accessible to a broad audience, which ultimately contributed to this being a great pick-up-and-play experience.”

Seamlessly connecting real guitars, basses and microphones to game consoles, BandFuse: Rock Legends empowers players to jam to a fully unlocked library of hit songs from rock to metal and punk to funk, featuring 55 massive genre-jumping songs. BandFuse: Rock Legends features in-game guitar and bass guitar instruction by a platinum cast of musicians including master guitar instructor Slash, Zakk Wylde (Black Label Society), Mike Ness (Social Distortion), Bootsy Collins (Parliament/Funkadelic, Rubber Band), George Lynch (Dokken, Lynch Mob), Zoltan Bathory and Jason Hook (Five Finger Death Punch), and Alexi Laiho (Children of Bodom).

Now available in North America for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 systems, BandFuse: Rock Legends is rated T for Teen by the ESRB. The game will release in Japan on December 19, 2013, and a European release date will be announced soon. To learn more about BandFuse: Rock Legends, please visit www.bandfuse.com, ‘Like’ it on Facebook, watch it on Twitch and follow @BandFuse on Twitter.