Archive - 2013

13 Fun Facts About Six Flags Great Adventure’s Fright Fest

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Jackson, NJ – October 3, 2013 – Six Flags Great Adventure’s Fright Fest features four more weeks of “thrills by day, fright by night.” The world’s largest scream park operates Friday nights, Saturdays and Sundays plus Columbus Day through October 27.  Twenty-five Halloween-themed shows and attractions, including four new additions, enhance the park’s world-class lineup of thrill rides for all ages, but did you know…

1.      It’s all about the zombies. 200 zombies terrorize the park after 6 p.m., and can be found angrily wandering the midways or stalking guests in terror trails and haunted houses.

2.      There are seven master makeup artists who use 1,500 ounces of airbrush makeup and fake blood to transform 200 actors, students, parents and business professionals into flesh-hungry zombies each night.

3.      Things that go bump in the night: Fright Fest zombies use shovels, chainsaws, clown horns and metal cans filled with marbles to amp up the startle factor on the midways.

4.      Special effects supervisor Tony Mandile creates 600 latex foam facial prosthetics from scratch, and each is used only once.  At the end of the night, they are discarded and new ones are created every week.

5.      Team members travel from as far as Maryland and Connecticut each weekend to perform as a Fright Fest zombie.

6.      Not to be corny, but Fright Fest requires 1,500 bunches of corn stalks to complete the corn mazes and festive park décor.

7.      The Bloody Fountain is colored by eight pounds of food-grade, red vegetable dye.

8.      Six Flags Great Adventure’s landscape department uses eight tons (16,000 lbs.) of pumpkins and gourds, 2,300 mums and 700 bales of hay to create beautiful fall scenes for “thrills by day.”

9.      Spiders galore! It takes 1,200 pounds of beef tube webbing to transform the theme park into a scream park.

10.    The creepy, hazy ambiance of Fright Fest is thanks to 1,210 gallons of “fog juice” to create the mysterious, rising fog, plus 24,500 lbs. of CO2 and 4,480 liters of liquid CO2 to create the “dry ice” effect of low-level fog during “fright by night.”

11.    35,200 lbs. of propane are required to illuminate the spooky flame columns in the heart of the park.

12.    While summer is known for theme parks and thrills, Fright Fest is actually the most popular time of the year at Six Flags Great Adventure.

13.    In addition to zombies, thrill rides are a main attraction during Fright Fest.  Guests can’t resist a spin on their favorite world-class coaster in the dark like El Toro, Nitro and Kingda Ka.

Air Conflicts: Vietnam Aircraft Customization Screenshots

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October 3, 2013, Ridgewood, NJ – Kalypso Media USA is making available new screens and info from Air Conflicts: Vietnam today. The new “Aircraft Customization” overview takes a look at a key aspect of the gameplay – the ability to tune and tweak your aircraft to better fit your fighting and flying style. Download the new screens and overview to have a look at this integral component of Air Conflicts: Vietnam, the upcoming arcade-styled air-combat game for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Windows PC.

Vietnam. 1965. A long-simmering conflict escalates into a full-fledged war, and you are about to become a big part of it. Jump into the cockpit of some of the finest combat aircraft as young Joe Thompson, a newly minted U.S. military pilot. He is brave, talented and ready to do his duty, but his experiences during this war will change him forever.

Air Conflicts: Vietnam is an arcade-styled air-combat game that immerses players in the harrowing skies over Vietnam. Take to the air in screaming fighter jets or grab the controls of devastating helicopter gunships as you shatter enemy encampments with explosive ordinance, decimate North Vietnamese ace fighter squadrons, escort bombers as they deliver their deadly payload, or rescue stranded soldiers and deliver support troops to the ever-changing front lines of the vicious battlefield.

Key Features:

  • Live a thrilling wartime narrative. In an epic single-player campaign, filled with heroic moments and the darker side of war, your performance in air combat and support missions drives the story from the initial escalation of tension, through key battles of the Vietnam War and, ultimately, the fall of Saigon.
  • Jump into the cockpit for instant action. Pilot and customize more than 20 planes and – for the first time in the Air Conflict series – helicopters, including the workhorse UH-1 Iroquois, fire-breathing AH-1 Cobra attack gunships, the devastating F4 Phantom and F104 Starfighter jets, plus fearsome enemy MIG fighter jets.
  • Lead your squadron to victory. Command up to four jets or helicopters, maximizing their unique abilities to complete challenging objectives, while earning experience, leveling up and improving your leadership and air combat skills.
  • Challenge your friends for air supremacy. Play up to eight online opponents in nail-biting, fast-paced capture-the-flag, deathmatch and team deathmatch air battles.
  • Get your groove on. As you test your pilot skills against AI or human opponents, treat your ears to a cool rock soundtrack in the style of vintage Vietnam-era tunes.

Screenshots

Warlock 2: The Exiled Trailer

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NEW YORK — October 3, 2013 — Paradox Interactive, a publisher of games and minion of all-powerful wizards, today announced the upcoming release of Warlock 2: The Exiled from Ino-Co Plus, the sequel to turn-based strategy fantasy game Warlock: Master of the Arcane. Coming to PC in Spring 2014, Warlock 2 will challenge strategic sorcerers and megalomaniacal mages to conquer Ardania in an all-out war of cunning, combat, diplomacy, and excessively enormous fireballs. Single-player and multi-player gameplay will each challenge would-be warlocks to manage an entire realm full of deadly beasts, promising to make Warlock 2: The Exiled an exercise in constant war mongering and turn-based tragedy.

For a glimpse at the perils of Warlock 2: The Exiled, watch this trailer, courtesy of a babbling man spouting off stuff about war:

Journey back to the realm of Ardania, the land that cannot go an entire week without being conquered, and conquer it once again! Exiled to a shard from a shattered world, players of Warlock 2: The Exiled must contend with fellow exiled mages and a host of terrifying creatures. Wield ancient magic, summon even more terrifying creatures, wage constant war where every decision is crucial (warlocks don’t do auto-resolving battles), and discover just who possesses the greatest balls of fire in a turn-based strategy game that offers no surrender or retreat.

Warlock 2: The Exiled features:

  • The Never-ending Gory – The battle for Ardania is constant, merciless, and challenging: your claim to the land will be tested with battles across the world map where each fight is worthy of your personal attention; you’re not called a WAR-lock for nothing
  • Spelling Counts – Over 150 spells to add to your tome, allowing command over powerful enchantments, nasty hexes, and elemental forces
  • A Crass Menagerie – Hundreds of different mythical and magical beasts to deploy on the battlefield with distinct tactical uses, from giant rats and dwarven prospectors to werewolves with hats on them
  • Friendship is Magic – A multi-player experience as robust as the single-player experience, including PvP, Co-op PvE, and every combination in between
  • Warlock 2: The Playstyles – Fight your way through the shards to reclaim Ardania in new ‘Exile’ mode, or relive the classic gameplay of ‘Master of the Arcane’ mode with new features from the sequel

For more information about Warlock 2: The Exiled, visit www.warlock2.com.

Ubisoft Reveals Watch Dogs and Assassin’s Creed IV System Reqs

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Ubisoft has revealed the system requirements for the Windows PC versions of Watch Dogs and Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.

Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag

Minimum configuration:

  • Operating System: Windows Vista SP or Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8 (both 32/64bit versions)
  • Note that we only support 64 bit OSs.
  • Processor: Intel Core2Quad Q8400 @ 2.6 GHz or AMD Athlon II X4 620 @ 2.6 GHz
  • RAM: 2GB for Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8
  • Video card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 260 or AMD Radeon HD 4870 (512MB VRAM with Shader Model 4.0 or higher)
  • DirectX: DirectX June 2010 Redistributable
  • Disk Space: 30 Gb
  • Sound: DirectX Compatible Sound Card with latest drivers
  • Peripherals: Windows-compatible keyboard and mouse required, optional controller

Recommended configuration:

  • Operating System: Windows Vista SP2 or Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8 (both 32/64bit versions)
  • Note that we only support 64 bit OSs.
  • Processor: Intel Core i5 2400S @ 2.5 GHz or AMD Phenom II x4 940 @ 3.0 GHz or better
  • RAM: 4GB or more
  • Video card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 470 or AMD Radeon HD 5850 (1024MB VRAM with Shader Model 5.0) or better

Supported video cards at the time of release: Nvidia GeForce GTX 260 or better, GT400, GT500, GT600, GT700 series or AMD Radeon HD4870 or better, HD5000, HD6000, HD7000 series
– Note: Latest GeForce drivers tested: 320.49 for all series. Latest Radeon drivers tested: 13.1 for Radeon HD4000, 13.4 for Radeon HD5000 and above.
– Laptop versions of these cards may work but are NOT officially supported.

Watch Dogs

Minimum Specification

  • GPU: DirectX 11 graphics card with 1 GB Video RAM
  • CPU: Quad core
  • RAM: 4GB

Example 1
GPU: NVidia GTX 460
CPU: Intel Core2 Quad Q6600

Example 2
GPU: AMD Radeon HD 5770
CPU: AMD Phenom X4 9750

Recommended Specification

  • GPU: DirectX 11 graphics card with 2 GB Video RAM
  • CPU: Eight core
  • RAM: 8GB

Example 1

  • GPU: NVidia GTX 560 ti
  • CPU: Intel Core i7-3770

Example 2

  • GPU: AMD Radeon HD 7850
  • CPU: AMD FX-8350 Eight-Core

“Ultra” Specification

  • GPU: Latest DirectX 11 graphics card with 2 GB Video RAM or more
  • CPU: Latest Eight core or more
  • RAM: 8GB or more

Example 1

  • GPU: Nvidia GTX 670
  • CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K

Example 2

  • GPU: AMD Radeon HD 7970
  • CPU: AMD FX-9370 Eight-Core

Bethesda Softworks Opens Australia Office

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October 2, 2013 (Rockville, MD) – Bethesda Softworks®, a ZeniMax® Media company, today announced it has established a new publishing office in Sydney, Australia. ZeniMax Australia Pty Ltd will directly oversee sales, marketing, and distribution for all Bethesda titles in Australia and New Zealand.

The establishment of ZeniMax Australia underscores the importance of the growing Australian market as well as the company’s continuing commitment to the Asia Pacific region. ZeniMax also has operations in Hong Kong and Tokyo.

With the opening of the new office in Australia comes the appointment of Simon Alty as Managing Director for the new territory. Alty was most recently Managing Director of One to Another Pty Ltd where he and his team played a pivotal role in many successful Bethesda launches including The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim®.

“Simon’s experience and expertise in the games industry – specifically having worked on sales and marketing of Bethesda’s titles the last four years – will be of great value as we open a publishing office in Sydney,” said Sean Brennan, Managing Director, ZeniMax Europe Ltd. “Looking ahead, 2014 promises to be a big year for Bethesda as we release a trio of AAA titles: The Elder Scrolls OnlineWolfenstein: The New Order and The Evil Within.”

For more information about ZeniMax Media, visit www.zenimax.com. For more information about Bethesda Softworks and its games, please visit www.bethsoft.com.

DCS Brings EDGE SDK to Kickstarter

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MOSCOW, Russia – October 1st, 2013 – Flight simulation developers Oleg Maddox, Ilya Shevchenko, and Igor Tishin, are happy to announce that they will be releasing the Eagle Dynamics Graphics Engine (EDGE) landscape editor SDK to the backers of their ongoing DCS WWII: Europe 1944 Kickstarter campaign.

The SDK can be used to create new landscapes for the DCS WWII project. It’s an all-in-one tool that combines a 3D object library, texture manager, and a landscape editor.  With a full 24-hour day cycle, options for multiple seasons and time periods on the same map, and industry-best level of detail, EDGE is designed for and tested by real pilots to ensure it meets the highest standards of realism.

The developers hope that the DCS WWII community can organize a concentrated effort to design and create one or more new landscapes for the upcoming flight simulation. The SDK should be available to project backers later this year.

The Kickstarter campaign for DCS WWII: Europe 1944 has successfully reached its base funding goal, and is now working to reach a stretch goal that adds the Messerschmitt Me.262 jet fighter to the simulation. The project is scheduled for a Fall 2014 release, with Alpha and closed Beta access to project backers.

DCS WWII: Europe 1944 Features:

  • Detailed recreations of famous WWII aircraft, including the Republic P-47D-28 Thunderbolt; Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX; Messerschmitt Bf-109K-4; Focke-Wulf FW.190D-9; and the North-American P-51D Mustang.
  • Meticulous modeling of individual aircraft systems.
  • Combat theater map painstakingly recreated from period maps.
  • Rich single-player experience recreating famous battles from both sides.
  • Dynamic weather and seasons add a beautiful backdrop and additional challenges to each sortie.

For more information, please visit

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/508681281/dcs-wwii-europe-1944

Announcement Video

Destiny Beta Coming in Early 2014

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Santa Monica, CA – October 1, 2013 – Be among the first to blaze a trail through the wild frontiers of Destinythe next evolution of entertainment from the creators ofHalo®, and the company that brought you Call of Duty®.  Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI), and Bungie today announced that fans who pre-order the game at participating retailers worldwide will get early access to the Destiny Beta, which will include a diverse sampling of major activities featured in the full game.  The Beta will begin in early 2014 on the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system;PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system; Xbox One, all-in-one games and entertainment system and Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft.

To celebrate the announcement, Activision and Bungie have released a new trailer entitled”The Moon,” featuring a highlighted destination in the game, and the Hive, one of the four enemy races featured in Destiny.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAbpZfqE8r4

“We have no doubt Destiny is not only a great action game but also the next great entertainment property,” said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing.  “That means we’re putting all our creative support, and all our expertise in creating blockbuster franchises, into a colossal Destiny Beta that we believe will set a new bar for the next generation of games.  Fans have a lot to look forward to in 2014.”

“Destiny is the most ambitious game we have ever made, and it’s our chance to transform the way you experience a new Bungie universe,” said Harold Ryan, Bungie president.  “From day one Destiny has been an incredibly bold vision that Activision shares with Bungie.  Destiny is a massive universe that is populated by the players, and for that reason we need fans to get their hands on the game, fans all around the world.  We can’t wait!”

DestinyBeta Redemption Codes are only available while supplies last.  To see a list of participating global retailers, fans can visit http://www.destinythegame.com/wheretobuy.  Upon pre-ordering the game at a participating retailer, fans canvisit http://bungie.net/beta and follow the instructions on the page to secure their spot in the Beta.  The required 9-digit entry code will be printed on their receipt, on a flyer distributed at time of purchase or sent via email through their respective retail rewards program.  Fans that pre-ordered before October 1st 2013 and qualify for this offer are automatically entered into the Beta and will receive their entry code from their retailer via email.  All questions or concerns related to the Beta code should be brought to the attention of the retailer.

More Rocksmith 2014 Edition Tracks Announced

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA. – October 1st, 2013 – Today, Ubisoft® revealed more tracks to be included in all versions of Rocksmith 2014 Edition™.

The new tracks announced are:
•       Def Leppard – Pour Some Sugar On Me
•       Deftones – My Own Summer
•       Green Day – X-Kid
•       Queen – We Are The Champions
•       Ratt – Round and Round
•       Rush – The Spirit Of Radio
•       Tak Matsumoto – GO FURTHER
•       Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers – Mary Jane’s Last Dance

In addition to the new tracks, a new Expert Opinions trailer has been released.  See what experts have to say about learning guitar with Rocksmith 2014 Edition in this new video with Jerry Cantrell (lead vocalist and guitarist for Alice In Chains), Brendon Small (creator of Metalocalypse and Dethklok), Marty Schwartz (the number one online guitar teacher) and more.

Rocksmith 2014 Edition™ allows players to plug any real guitar or bass directly into their Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the Sony PlayStation® 3 computer entertainment system, PC or Mac® to begin their musical journey. Rocksmith 2014 Edition will launch on October 22, 2013.

Rocksmith 2014 Edition’s tracklist as of today:
•       Aerosmith – Walk This Way
•       Alice Cooper – No More Mr. Nice Guy
•       Alice In Chains – Stone
•       Arctic Monkeys – R U Mine?
•       Avenged Sevenfold – Bat Country
•       Bob Dylan – Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door
•       B’z – ultra soul
•       Def Leppard – Pour Some Sugar On Me
•       Deftones – My Own Summer
•       EarlyRise – Wasteland
•       Gold Motel – Brand New Kind Of Blue
•       Green Day – X-Kid
•       Iron Maiden – The Trooper
•       Jack White – Sixteen Saltines
•       Kiss – Rock and Roll All Nite
•       La Sera – Love That’s Gone
•       Magic Wands – Black Magic
•       Mastodon – Blood and Thunder
•       Minus The Bear – Cold Company
•       Muse – Knights Of Cydonia
•       Nirvana – Heart Shaped Box
•       Oasis – Don’t Look Back In Anger
•       Pantera – Cemetary Gates
•       Paramore – Now
•       Paws – Sore Tummy
•       Queen – We Are The Champions
•       R.E.M. – Losing My Religion
•       Radiohead – Paranoid Android
•       Ratt – Round And Round
•       Red Fang – Wires
•       Rise Against – Savior
•       Rush – The Spirit Of Radio
•       Screaming Females – Rotten Apple
•       Slayer – War Ensemble
•       Splashh – All I Wanna Do
•       Tak Matsumoto – GO FURTHER
•       The Dear Hunter – Stuck On A Wire Out On A Fence – Orange
•       The Kinks – You Really Got Me
•       The Rolling Stones – Paint It, Black
•       The Shins – For A Fool
•       The Smashing Pumpkins – The Chimera
•       The Who – My Generation
•       Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers – Mary Jane’s Last Dance
•       Weezer – Say It Ain’t So
•       White Zombie – Thunder Kiss ’65

More tracks will be announced in the coming weeks.

For the latest information on Rocksmith 2014 Edition™, please visit: http://www.Rocksmith.com